I did Recruit School (Rekrutenschule/Ecole de recrue) and even two repeat courses (Wiederholhungskurs/Cours de répétition) for now. I failed my first university studies and am now in the second bachelor year of my second university studies (Pharmacy).
What annoys me is that when you have a whole semester full of courses, labs and exams, missing three weeks for the army is a bit stressful. I did 1 WK/CR in the summer vacations last year after passing the first year, but it was stressful as at my uni, the catch up exams (Wiederholungsprufungen/Examens de rattrapage) are at the end of the summer vacation. While I passed them, it was still stressful. For next year, I could fortunately report the WK/CR until 2026 so I don't have to worry about it for now. But you can only report two consequent WK/CR for more than a year (so the third WK/CR you can still report it, but only in the same year).
I was wondering if for university students like me, it would make sense to switch to Civil Service (Zivildienst/Service civil) even tough I heard switching to Civil Service multiplies your remaining service days by 1.5 (so for example if you still had to serve 100 days in the Swiss Army, you would have to do 150 Civil Service days instead).
Because in the Swiss Army, you wake up at 5:30 in the morning and are busy until 23:00. Even if sometimes you have nothing to do, you are still waiting for order, and you can't really study for your exam on a laptop in the middle of a forest, or in the mountains at -2 °C while it's snowing. And you're away from home the whole week. And even if it is uncommon, in my last two WK/CR the first week-end we couldn't go home either (first WK/CR due to Covid, second WK/CR due to a special event) so it was two weeks away from home.
While for Civil Service, as far as I know it's office hours from 8:00 to 17:00 and you go home everyday, so you can more easily study for exams. Also, for Civil Service, you can do something professionally that may help your career later. I still don't really have work experience, but it looks to me that in Civil Service you are more likely to gain it than during Military Service, except of course if you are really unlucky and end up in an old people care home or something similar (but even then it's probably not that bad I guess)
What do you think ?

Hi everyone!
So I'm analyzing plant species richness in 30 different locations and I'm wanting to find out how environmental variables affect the species richness either negatively or positively. I have 7 environmental variables and among my hypotheses are things like: does a bigger size of an area mean higher species richness? Is one type of management better (in that it brings higher species richness) than another? Does larger differences in topography impact species richness? How does a high percentage of forest in the surrounding landscape affect species richness? and so on.
I was told by my professor that a DCA and a CCA analysis would be good for this, and I did do those. In my scatter plots I got some patterns of how impactful each environmental variable is, but now that i've thought about it a DCA and CCA can't really answer my research questions properly right? It fees like I need some kind of correlation or multiple regression analysis in addition. When I asked my professor about the fact that the DCA and CCA doesn't really give me a lot of statistical significance, he said it was okey and he didn't mention or suggest that I'd have to do anything in addition, but I'm doubting him now. I've even asked ChatGPT what it thinks and it too suggests that DCA and CCA is not enough.
Unfortunately, I have exactly a week before I'm supposed to present my work and results and now I'm starting to doubt and I'm between decisions:
Only go for the DCA and CCA that I've already done (but then I won't be able to answer my research questions right?)
OR:
Do another statistical test in addition and just use the DCA and CCA as illustration of the patterns.
I know I could ask my professor but I just can't bring myself to do it. I'm late with this assignment as it is and I can't admit that I'm doing this a week before my presentation.
I'd be grateful for any tips and opinions! Thank you!

Creation of the Realms
In the beginning there where two beings one of Light and one of Dark Aether one represented Creation and the other Destruction, both of these entities created the Realms of Draakana and Avalar which would become the homes of various species but especially Dragons which where created by the beings to bring forth magic into the realms. However they also created one specific Dragon a purple one that would be able to control all elements including Aether itself, this purple Dragon and all the ones that would follow would protect the Realms and bring an era of change either whether good or bad was up for the Dragon themselves to decide.
The Banishment of the Dragons
Formerly the Dragons lived in what is now known as the Forgotten Realms it was here where their species truly flourished, they build much of realms infrastructure and brought an era of peace across all species in these lands. It was during these times when the connection with Avalar was first founded and both realms entered an age of progress, however eventually a certain Sorceress grew to resent the Dragons believing them to hoard all the magic for themselves and banished them to the other side of the world, and with this the magic across the Forgotten Realms would slowly fade away over time with the portal that led to Avalar being the first to close.
The Founding of the Dragon Realms
When the Dragons awoke in the land they found themselves in they slowly but surely recreated their new home on the Island which would eventually become Dreamweavers. However this Island would eventually become to small for their civilization, and one brave Sea Dragon would set out to find a new home for her and her children. And after a long and exhausting swim she found land but after dragging herself to shore she collapsed and passed away her children would become the first inhabitans of what is now known as Dragon Shores, with the other Dragons following soon after.
The events of the OG trilogy happen
A thousand years after the Dragons have made their home in the new Realms a new purple Dragon was born who became known as Spyro, and whilst Spyro was mostly a thrill seeking young Dragon who didn't care about things such as destiny he would through his adventures bring the Realms into a new age of peace and prosperity. His story began when a creature known as Gnasty Gnorc who after causing much mischief across the Realms because he felt that he didn't fit in with the other creatures, with him having a particular interest in learing magic this caused the Dragons to eventually banish him to the Junkyard which Gnasty build his own kingdom in with him creating othe Gnorcs out of the stolen treasures of the Dragons.
Now Gnasty Always had plans to one day return to the Dragon Realms and take it for himself but after being insulted on live television he decided to put that plan into action now, and with one devasting hit of magic all the Dragons where turned into statues except for Spyro who didn't know it at the time but his ties to Aether had protected him from Gnasty's magic. After this Spyro would go about his first adventure freeing all the Dragons and collecting their stolen gems and eggs all ending with him torching Gnasty, of course Spyro didn't cause any permanent harm to him just enough to hopefully teach him a lesson
Sortly after Spyro's first adventure he found himself into a new mess, having brought to the Realms of Avalar which has been taking over by a small creature called Ripto nobody fully knows where Ripto has come from, perhaps a realm far away from both Draakana and Avalar but seeing how he has a hatred for Dragons it shows that he lives in a place near them. It is during this adventure that Spyro starts to take his role as a purple Dragon more serious whether unintional or not, with him bringing the various warring races of Avalar together and bringing peace across the lands and eventually leading to both Avalar and Draakana re-establishing contact. This adventure eventually ending in him defeating Ripto (or so it seems) and getting the vacation he wanted in the first place.
And now Spyro's last adventure of the og trilogy atleast, after a Thousand years of the magic slowly disapearing in the Forgotten Realms the Sorceress also notices that the magic she uses to keep herself alive is fading as well, with the signs of aging apearing across her body. Not just this but the portals across the Realms are shutting off one by one which would cause trouble for her dominion over the lands, she eventually caught wind of a young dragons adventures and learns where the Dragons have choosen to live after she banished them, and send her apprentice Bianca to steal their eggs, with Bianca believing that she wanted to bring the Dragons back to the Forgotten Realms to bring the magic back. Of course it was Spyro's job to get the Eggs back together with Hunter who choose to travel with Spyro to the Dragon Realms after his adventure in Avalar, and much like before Spyro would help the inhabitans of the Forgotten Realms and thanks to his Aether magic the longer he stays in the Realms the more the magic came back.
A short while into their adventure Hunter and Bianca would start to interact and would begin to catch feelings for eachother, much to the chagrin of Spyro which to be fair if your best friend felt in love with somebody who kidnapped the babies of your species you would not be happy either. But luckily for Spyro after Bianca learned that what the Sorceress plan is for the baby Dragons she would start to help Spyro and Hunter, and eventually Spyro would defeat the Sorceress once in her castle and later for good in the super bonus round.
After this the Forgotten Realms restablished contact with the Dragon Realms and became known as the United Realms under Bianca's leadership, it was also after this that the portal to Avalar was permantly openend only in the United Realms instead of the Dragon Realms thanks to the Professor having to go of old tomes, of course this was easily remedied when the Dragons gave the proper coordinates. This resulted in the cultural exchange between all Realms and a large group of Avalarians to move to Draakana, who created the Valley of New Avalar or just the Valley of Avalar as most called it.
What came after
Most of the events that happenend after the Forgotten Realms are of minor note, such as Spyro freeing the Fairylands from Grendor and saving the Dragonflies twice with the second time being caused by Ripto. The one thing of note with this even is that Spyro started to experiment with a different element mainly bubble breath, which he got access to thanks to Bianca who uncovered runes from the old dragon civilization it is even believed that these runes where created by the first Purple Dragon.
And now we get to the interesting bits, an elder by the name of Red got corrupted by the Sorcerer to plant Dark Gems (which another Dark Master would use later), in order to drain the land of Magic. And whilst Spyro would of course defeat Red the Sorcerer was in the meantime looking into the origins of Aether and the Purple Dragon, this let him to the Shadow Realm a place beyond creation. And after the defeat of Red he set his plan into motion to tap into these Shadow Realms by releasing the Calamity, which trapped everyone from Draakana and Avalar in the Shadow Realm whilst also draining them of their magic, it is also thanks to his meddling with Dark Aether that resulted in his Purple scales. And whilst Spyro would defeat him just like any other villain before hand the Calamity would have had irreparable damage to the world such as the formation of the Ancient Grove a poisonous forest that corrupts all that enter it. And it even changed the nature of the Purple Dragon.
The Age of Malefor
After an unknown amount of time Spyro would grow older and more powerfull having returned to his home of Artisans but some noticed that he would start to behave oddly, he would start to become more and more obsessed with Aether and other elements and eventually fell to the temptations of Dark Aether. This let him to be exiled and he eventually found himself in a place where Dark Aether was most abundant a place that would eventually become the well of souls. If only the Elders had paid attention to Spyro they would have noticed the weird glow in his eyes, and the fact that it looked as if there was something missing. This now soulless husk that was once the Hero of the Realms completely taken over by Dark Aether now dubbed himself Malefor the Dark Master, and he let a campaign of terror against his own kind, destroying the Artisans homeworld leaving it as a useless ruins that got covered up by the ground only to be rediscovered in the future and be renamed as the Ruins of Warfang. The same happenend to the Dream Weavers which Malefor let fall to the ground destroying the landscape and distorting it with runaway magic. Together with his Ape army he waged war agains all other Realms, using the improved Dark Gems now known as Dark Crystals to drain magic of both Dragons and other creatures to fuel his army and ambitions. Luckily for the rest of the world the Dragon Elders and Spyro's old friends managed to corner Malefor and trap him in the Shadow Realms or atleast his Essence, whilst the evil force that has taken his souls place was trapped in the well of Souls.
The Legend begins
Despite Malefor being trapped the damage was still done, much of the world was without magic and the portals became useless, not just that but many started to mistrust Dragons thanks to the ongoing war and many dragons have been killed during the war. But all would change when a new Purple Dragon would be born, who would for some reason insist on being called Spyro not even he knows why. After an attack from the apes on his home with the Dragonflies Spyro learns he isn't one of them and sets out to find where he belongs. It was at this moment that the found Ignitus the Dragon that was task with gaurding the eggs all those years ago, and after learning his name he was of course suprised but the decided to keep it to himself. After their meeting Spyro and Ignitus would retake the Temple and set out to save the othe Gaurdians from Cynder, with him traveling to the Elemental islands which cumulated in him ending up saving Ignitus in the ruins of Dreamweavers now known as the Concurrent Skies, it was here where Spyro learned about Cynders past and followed her to Convexity the place where the Dragon Realms and the Shadow Realms meet. And where Spyro and Cynder fought and whilst Spyro did defeat and save Cynder from her corruption but Malefor's essence is freed from the Shadow Realm, since then Cynder lived with Spyro and the Gaurdians at the Temple but what she has done under Malefors control still haunts her.
A couple of weeks later the Eternal Night approaches an event where the two celestial moons would eclipse and allow spirits to wander the Well of Souls, Spyro would be sent out to stop the Ape king Gaul and to find Cynder who fled the Dragon Temple thanks to her guilt, with spyro also having been tasked with finding the chronicler who has been contacting Spyro in his dreams. Spyros first stop would be the Ancient Grove a large forest that was corrupted by Dark Aether during the Calamity that at this point happenend centuries ago, and is gaurded by Arborik a large tree golem that was created by Malefor as an artificial soldier. But after Spyro defeated him he was kidnapped by a group of pirates and forced into an arena, it was during this time he got a letter addressed by Hunter of Avalar and had a short reunion with Cynder before Gauls forces attacked the pirates and kidnapped her, Spyro used the distraction to escape the pirates but during is flight away from the ship he fell unconscious thanks to the Chronicler, only to be saved by a leviathan who brought him to the shores of the White Isle.
The White Isle is an ancient Island that houses all of Dragon knowledge and is believed to have been created since the beginning of time, with the first Chronicler being also the first Purple Dragon. After Spyro met the Chronicler he told him that he led Spyro here to wait out Malefors return, but after Spyro learned that this would cause Cynder to return to Malefors control he choose to go to the Well of Souls to stop him there and then. And after a long battle on his way to the top and a fight against Gaul who incapacitated Cynder Spyro would fall in the energy beam that sat at the center of the arena, which caused Dark Aether to start corrupting the young Dragon much like it had done before with his previous life. And after this newly formed "Dark Spyro" gave Gaul the finishing blow he flew up to Cynder and Sparx who where horrified to see what had become of Spyro, with Cynder tackling Spyro out of the Energy beam which luckily turned him back to normal. But the Well of Souls started to collapse around them thanks to Malefors return, so Spyro would use his Dragon time ability to freeze them into a large crystal and protect them from the collapsing mountain.
During this three years would pass and during those years Malefor would cause even more damage to the world, first he corrupted the apes into shadowy monsters because he felt that they only followed him for power instead of loyalty, and then he destroyed the magic Crafters homeworld turning it into the Burned Lands whilst raising the ancient temples high up into the skies. After this he sent out his new artificial soldiers out to attack the Realms and used Dark Crystals to once again drain the lands of magic. At the end of those three years Hunter would finally find Spyro and Cynder only to be beaten by Malefors forces who took them to the catacombs which at some point where known as the Celestial Plains, both Spyro and Cynder would wake up at this place and fight their way out of it and finally meet up with Hunter who explained that he was sent out by Ignitus after Spyro didn't return to the temple, as well as the three years that they where absent.
After this they join him and travel to Warfang after a quick disagreement in the Valley of Avalar, a name that for some reason sound familiar to Spyro they found themselves in Warfang, right in the middle of a seige by Malefors army. And after Spyro and Cynder fight themselves through he city and defeat the giant lava golem they reunite with Ignitus, with Cynder asking if they could do something about the magic chains that keep Spyro and Cynder trapped together only to learn much to her annoyance that there is nothing they could do about it. After a short celebration of their victory malefor would announce the return of the Destroyer who would created the belt of fire that will destroy all life on the planet, so Spyro and Cynder would go through the Ruins of Warfang which housed the leftovers of Artisans and open the gate for the Gaurdians and other Dragons to ambush the destroyer in the valley.
After making their way to the valley they noticed that the Destroyer moved to quickly to catch up to them, only for Cynder to suggest to blow the Dam so that the water would slow it down. And so they did after which they destroyed the Dark Crystals that controlled the beast including the ones on the inside, but before they could celebrate Malefor reanimated it with his dark powers this let Ignitus with no choice but to take Spyro and Cynder through the now weaker belt of fire to confront Malefor head on, whilst sending the other Gaurdians to help the other inhabitants to hide underground far away from the surface. However even with Ignitus being an fire Gaurdian the flames eventually overtake him and with his last powers sents Spyro and Cynder through the belt killing him in the progress, this leaves Spyro distraught and he lets the darkness overtake him luckily for him Cynder is there to remind him that he's not alone. And both race through the Burned Lands and the Floating Isle's to confront Malefor before it is to late.
After finally making their way to Malefor the two Purple Dragons finally meet, with Malefor starting to create doubts in both Spyro and Cynder which allows him to sortly retake control of Cynder. During this Malefor would start to taunt Spyro leaving some hints about how they're the same, something Spyro would mistake as meaning something else and he almost gave up completely believing he had failed to protect Cynder, Ignitus and the others. This allowed Cynder to break free, and Malefor to fly in a fit of rage with the battle for the fate of the world finally beginning.
At first they battled high above the volcano but after the Destroyer finally entered it the planet started to break apart, and the fight went on in the same Volcano and the falling Temple that Malefor called home. With them eventually making their way to the core of the Planet, which was made from solid Aether, and with both sides giving one last Aether attack with Spyro and Cynder finally overtaking Malefor he falls on the Crystal and the Light Aether spirits take Malefor away, and hopefully destroying the Dark Spirit that had taken over the old Spyro's body all those centuries ago. But this wasn't the end yet because even with Malefor gone the world was still falling apart, and Spyro saw one last option telling Cynder to leave to life another day for he might not make it out this time, but Cynder choose to stay by Spyro's side and with one last use of Dragon time now amplified by Light Aether, and Cynders declaration of love Spyro stopped the world from falling apart creating a new era for the survivors.
And that's where our story ends the world now exists as a group of floating islands hold together by magic which finally started to really return, and Ignitus became the new Chronicler who started to look where Spyro and Cynder ended up, seeing how they're not in the book of dead dragons. What happens after this is anyones guess, maybe a new Purple Dragon would be born who would protect these newly formed Skylands.

Title, just finished the second book, and it was one of the best book I've ever read. There are some questions that I have after reading it, it would be great if we can discuss on it

1. If the goal for the droplet was to 'disable' the sun as soon as possible, why did it stop midway around Neptune, and then why did it waste it's time fighting the space fleet when it had no reason to.
   
2. What do you think about zhang beihai's escapist plan, ultimately his efforts led to Blue Space being on a horrifying eternal voyage for 1000 people thinking humanity is dead, and knowing nothing about the dark forest.
   
3. Was there any point about the imaginary woman thing ? any underlying meaning I am too dumb to understand. Firstly I thought the point of the imaginary woman was to showcase how luo ji can create whole worlds inside his mind and then he'll make a plan in his mind or something, but.. that wasn't the case at all? Yan was just a way for UN to make him work. it could have been a normal wife, like Wang's wife and children.
   
4. Also who did you think was a better protagonist, Wang or Luo Ji
   

As far back as I can remember, I had always been passionate about the great outdoors. My love for the wilderness began when I joined the scouts, exploring the diverse landscapes of Southern California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. I was never a huge fan of the dry, barren landscapes, but camping provided a much-needed escape from the monotony of Orange County suburbia.
The first time I visited the Pacific Northwest, I was enchanted. The scenery was breathtaking—majestic mountains, lush fields, and meandering rivers. It was clear that anyone who praised the desert's beauty had never laid eyes on the Cascades. Seeing grass and wildflowers growing without irrigation was practically a revelation.
When I was old enough, I moved to Washington state, immersing myself in nature every weekend. My adventures took me hiking through dense forests, camping by serene lakes, and occasionally taking mushrooms under peaceful waterfalls.
I joined several online forums dedicated to outdoor enthusiasts. One community that particularly fascinated me was the Northwest Tomb Raiders. This group of history buffs and thrill-seekers was dedicated to uncovering artifacts, whether Native American relics or treasures hidden in modern ruins. Many members were collectors, fencing their finds to museums and archaeologists, which made it a rather profitable side gig, should you be lucky enough.
In the fall of 2009, an intriguing post appeared on the forum. A user named Lokk claimed to have discovered a cache of artifacts with Scandinavian origins. He couldn't carry everything back due to the treacherous terrain and his age, so he shared the coordinates, hoping someone else could retrieve the items. I scrolled down to see a few posts of people planning to loot it in the Spring, when the paths have reopened. One user, Patagooner, planned on going as early as possible.
Excited by the prospect, I gathered my two friends, Carl and Noah, for the expedition. They weren't as enthusiastic about camping as I was, but after I told them how much a single arrowhead goes for on the black market, they were on board. It was the start of winter now, which had its advantages and disadvantages. On the plus side, the rangers would have a harder time spotting us. On the downside, the harsh conditions posed a serious challenge for two inexperienced hikers.
I must’ve blown about four grand at REI on gear for them, justifying it with the knowledge of how much more I would make with two extra packs. That is of course assuming there really were as many artifacts as Lokk had said, and Patagooner hadn’t beaten me there.
The journey began like any other. We met in the pre-dawn darkness and went over our supplies, ensuring we had everything we needed. By mid-morning, we were on our way, my pickup truck winding up the mountain paths. The roads of Olympic National Park were the epitome of the raw, untamed beauty of the Pacific Northwest.
They snake through ancient forests, where towering Douglas firs and Western hemlocks create a verdant canopy overhead. Mist clings to the trees, giving the landscape an ethereal quality. Occasionally, the forest would open up to reveal breathtaking vistas of snow-capped peaks and deep, shadowy valleys.
As we climbed higher, the landscape grew increasingly desolate. The dense forest thinned out, replaced by rugged terrain and jagged rock formations. The air grew colder, and the first flurries of snow began to fall, dusting the ground in a thin, white layer. The road became narrower and more treacherous, winding precariously along the edge of steep cliffs.
Finally, a road closure blockade signaled the end of our journey in the truck. We unloaded three dirt bikes—one mine, two rentals—and continued up the trail. The bikes roared to life, carrying us several more miles into the wilderness. The trail twisted and turned, cutting through dense underbrush and over fallen logs. The snow began to fall more heavily, blanketing the forest floor and muffling the sound of our engines. The world around us grew quieter, more isolated.
Eventually, the snow became too deep to traverse by bike. We dismounted and prepared to continue on foot. The silence of the forest was profound, broken only by the occasional rustle of branches in the wind. I checked my modern GPS, its screen displaying the coordinates and a relief map of our destination.
The cold air bit into our cheeks as we trudged through the snow-laden forest. The silence was almost oppressive, broken only by the crunch of our footsteps and the occasional call of distant wildlife. The GPS indicated we were close to our destination, but the dense underbrush and uneven terrain made progress slow.
Suddenly, Carl's excited whisper cut through the stillness. "Hey, look at that!"
He pointed to a small, furry creature ambling through the trees. It took a moment to realize what it was—a bear cub, innocently exploring its surroundings.
My heart sank. "Carl, get back," I hissed, my voice low but urgent. "Where there's a cub, there's a..."
Before I could finish, a massive shape exploded from the trees. The mother bear, easily three times the size of the cub, charged at Carl with a ferocity. She was a blur of dark fur and powerful muscles, her roar echoing through the forest.
"Run!" I yelled, but it was too late. The bear was upon Carl, swiping at him with her massive paws. He screamed as he fell to the ground, the bear towering over him. Desperation and adrenaline surged through me. I grabbed the nearest heavy branch and swung it at the bear, hoping to distract her.
Noah joined in, shouting and waving his arms. We had to be careful; one wrong move and she would turn on us. The bear snarled, turning her attention away from Carl for just a moment. It was enough for him to scramble backwards, clutching his bleeding arm.
"We have to get him out of here," I shouted to Noah, who nodded, fear etched on his face. The bear, still enraged, seemed torn between attacking us and protecting her cub.
Using the brief respite, we hauled Carl to his feet. His face was white, and he was clearly in shock. Blood soaked his sleeve, dripping onto the snow. "There's a ranger station about two miles from here," I said, my voice shaking. "We need to get him there. Now."
We half-carried, half-dragged Carl through the forest, every shadow and sound heightening our paranoia.
Finally, after what felt like forever, the small, wooden structure of the ranger station came into view. We had been avoiding the rangers to keep our expedition secret, but now it was our only hope.
Pounding on the door, I prayed for a quick response. The door creaked open, and a weathered face appeared. "What happened?" the ranger demanded, taking in the sight of Carl's bloodied form.
"Bear attack," I gasped. "We need help."
The ranger's expression shifted from suspicion to urgency. "Get him inside. We've got a first aid kit and a radio."
As we eased Carl onto a makeshift bed, the ranger inspected his wounds. "You're lucky," he said after a moment. "The cuts are deep, but they missed any major arteries. He'll need stitches, but we can handle that here. No need for an airlift."
The ranger's face darkened as he turned to me. "What the hell are you boys doing out here?”
I hesitated, "We... we were just exploring."
The ranger's eyes narrowed, his anger palpable. "Exploring? In a restricted area? In the middle of winter? Are you out of your minds?"
He worked quickly and efficiently, cleaning and stitching Carl's wounds. Carl winced but stayed silent, his eyes closed in pain.
"Do you have any idea how dangerous it is out here?" the ranger continued, his voice rising. "The storm, the wildlife... This area is off-limits for a reason! You should have known better." he said, pushing a finger into my chest.
"We'll stay here for the night," he continued, "The storm's getting worse, and it's too dangerous to move him now. We'll reassess in the morning. And count yourself lucky I don't arrest your asses."
Night fell quickly, the storm outside growing more ferocious with each passing minute. The howling wind battered the small ranger station, and the walls creaked under the pressure. We huddled in the main room, the tension thick in the air.
The ranger looked at us sternly. "I need to check the perimeter and make sure everything is secure. There are things out there you don’t want to encounter, especially in this storm."
"Things? What do you mean?" Noah asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
The ranger's expression hardened. "Just stay put. No matter what you see or hear, do not leave this cabin. Understood?"
We nodded, the seriousness in his tone leaving no room for argument. "We'll stay put," I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt.
The ranger grabbed his coat and shotgun. "I'll be back in an hour. Do not leave this cabin." With that, he opened the door and stepped into the raging storm, disappearing into the darkness.
As soon as the door closed, I turned to Noah. "We need to go. Now."
Noah's eyes widened. "Are you crazy? He said to stay put."
"If we wait until morning, we'll be escorted out of here and lose our chance. This might be our only opportunity to find those artifacts."
Noah hesitated with uncertainty "But... what about Carl?"
"He'll be fine here. The ranger can take care of him. We have to do this now."
Reluctantly, Noah nodded. "Alright. Let's take what we can and go."
We quickly looted extra gear from the cabin. I checked the GPS one last time before we slipped out into the storm, the cold wind battering us.
The snow fell heavily, obscuring our vision as we slogged through the forest. The ranger was nowhere in sight as we made our way towards the our destination, each step filled with trepidatious excitement.
The storm began to die down as we approached the coordinates. We stepped into a clearing where the undisturbed snow lay like a pristine white blanket. In the center stood an ancient, weathered stone altar, encircled by intricate wooden carvings, delicate metalwork, and beautifully crafted statues. The sight was breathtaking, a treasure trove, a veritable museum of paganism.
Noah and I exchanged glances, our eyes wide with amazement. "Do you see this?" I whispered, barely able to contain my excitement.
"We're going to be rich," Noah replied, his voice trembling with awe. "These must be worth a fortune!"
We approached cautiously, as if the vision before us might disappear. The craftsmanship was stunning. I reached out to touch a carved wooden idol, marveling at the detail. "This is incredible," I said, my voice barely audible.
We began to load our packs with as many artifacts as we could carry, each one more exquisite than the last. It was beyond our wildest dreams. We were so engrossed in our task that we didn't notice the small figure watching us from the ridge.
It wasn't until I turned to leave that I saw her. A young girl, maybe eight years old, stood there, her blue eyes wide with curiosity. She was dressed in simple, rustic clothing, her blonde straight hair blowing gently in the wind. For a moment, we just stared at each other.
"Noah," I whispered urgently, nudging him. "Look."
He turned, his eyes following my gaze. "What the...?" he muttered, his voice trailing off.
The girl took a tentative step forward, her eyes fixed on the items in our hands. There was no fear in her gaze, only a quiet intensity that made my skin crawl.
"Who are you?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
She tilted her head slightly. "My name is Sigyn."
"What are you doing out here, Sigyn?" Noah asked, his voice shaky.
"I live here,"
"You live here?" I echoed, incredulous. "Is there anyone else around?"
"Yes," she whispered.
"Where?" Noah demanded, looking around nervously.
"Everywhere," she said with a giggle.
The way she said it, so matter-of-factly, bothered me deeply. Noah and I exchanged a look, both of us trying to figure out what to do next.
"We can't take her back to the ranger," Noah started, "We'll lose everything."
I nodded, my mind racing. "Sigyn," I said slowly, "we need to know who else is here. Can you help us?"
She looked at me with her piercing blue eyes, then said, "I'm sorry."
"For what?" Noah asked.
"For what's going to happen to you," she replied, her voice tinged with sadness.
"You need to tell us what's going on," Noah said, grabbing her arm roughly. "Why are you out here alone?"
She looked up at him, unperturbed. "I am not alone," she said softly.
Before we could press her further, a loud, guttural mooing sound echoed through the clearing. We turned towards the direction the girl had come from, and there, emerging from the shadows, was the silhouette of an elk. As it approached, my stomach dropped. Its body was a grotesque amalgamation of life and decay. Its skull was fully exposed, the eye sockets dark and empty. Large patches of its ribs were visible, the flesh around them rotted away.
The elk's movements were slow and deliberate, its head swaying as if in a trance. It walked directly towards us, its hollow eyes fixed on Sigyn. The closer it got, the more the stench of death filled the air—a nauseating mix of decay and earth. I fought the urge to retch.
Sigyn stood up, her expression calm. The monster sniffed her gently, its nostrils flaring. Without a word, she climbed onto its back, mounting it like a horse. It was a surreal and horrifying scene ripped straight from a nightmare.
As she settled onto the elk, she looked back at us, "A thief in the night shall reap what he sows," she said, her voice carrying an otherworldly echo. "Beware the price of stolen dreams."
With that, the beast turned and began to walk away, Sigyn riding it into the shadows of the forest. We stood there, frozen in place. The realization that we were in far over our heads began to sink in. This started to feel like a trap.
We need to get out of here," My voice trembling. "Now."
We turned to leave, our packs heavy with the pilfered goods. But as we took our first steps, the forest around us seemed to come alive. Shadows moved among the trees, and whispers floated on the wind. I quickened my pace, glancing nervously over my shoulder.
"Did you hear that?" Noah asked sharply,
"Just keep moving," I commanded.
A figure emerged from the shadows, blocking our path. It was a man, tall and gaunt, his eyes burning with an intense light. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked, his voice cold and menacing.
"We're leaving," I stammered. "We didn't mean any harm."
The man smirked, and with a swift motion, he raised his hand. More figures appeared, closing in on us from all sides. We were surrounded.
"Run!" I shouted, shoving Noah forward.
We sprinted through the forest, branches whipping at our faces and legs. The figures pursued us, their footsteps silent and relentless.
Noah stumbled and fell, his pack spilling open. Statues scattered across the ground, glinting in the moonlight. "Help!" he cried, scrambling to gather the items.
"Leave them!" I shouted, pulling him to his feet. "We have to keep moving!"
But it was too late, their hands seizing us. I struggled, kicking and thrashing, but their grips were too strong. They forced us to the ground, binding our hands with rough, coarse ropes.
"Please," I begged, "Don't hurt us."
The man who had first appeared stepped forward, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "A thief in the night," he mocked.
They dragged us through the forest, the trees closing in around us like a cage. We were at their mercy.
In the distance, I could see the elk standing at the edge of the clearing, Sigyn still astride its back. Her eyes met mine, and for a moment, I thought I saw a flicker of pity. But then they turned away, disappearing into the shadows once more.
We were dragged into the heart of the forest, our struggles futile against the unyielding grip of our captors. As we broke through the treeline, a massive bonfire came into view, its flames licking the night sky. Shadows danced around the clearing, cast by the flickering light. A woman stood at the forefront, her presence commanding.
Her eyes were milk white, devoid of pupils, and her long, flowing white hair cascaded down her back. She was completely naked, her skin pale and marked with intricate symbols. Atop her head, she wore an elk skull, its antlers extending like eerie, skeletal fingers. She beat a drum emblazoned with more of the same cryptic symbols, each thud resonating deep within my chest.
Around the fire, about two dozen people stood, all drinking from crude, horned cups. Their faces were solemn, eyes fixed on the woman as she led them in a haunting chant. The atmosphere was thick with a mix of reverence and intoxication.
We were forced to our knees before the woman, who paused her drumming to look down at us. Her gaze was haunting, as if she could see into the very depths of our souls.
"Who are you?" Noah demanded, his voice trembling.
The woman ignored him, raising her arms to the sky. The chanting grew louder, the rhythm of the drum faster and more frenzied. The air around us seemed to vibrate with energy, the flames of the bonfire growing higher and more intense.
I glanced at Noah, fear mirrored in his eyes. The woman began to speak, her voice low and melodic, but filled with power, in a language I couldn't understand. Suddenly, she stopped, lowering her arms. The chanting ceased, and an silence fell over the clearing. She looked directly at me, her white eyes unblinking.
En tjuv i natten skördar vad han sår, akta dig för drömmar som du stjäl och får.
Hans skratt bevakar lundens gömda stig, där skuggor sveper över skogens liv.
För varje stulet andetag och svek, måste en tjuv möta sitt smärtsamma ödelek.
Tricksterns vilja, vår ande här, så i hans nåd, våra liv bär.
I was terrified and confused. She started again, softer, in a way I could understand.
A thief in the night shall reap what he sows, beware the price of stolen dreams.
His laughter guards our hidden groves, where shadows cloak the forest's seams.
For every stolen breath and lie, a thief must meet his painful end.
The tricksters will, our spirits tie, so in his grace, our lives suspend.
The crowd surged forward, grabbing Noah first. He screamed, his terror echoing through the trees as they pulled him towards a makeshift altar beside the bonfire. The woman chanted louder, her voice rising in a hypnotic rhythm as they began their gruesome work.
They stripped him of his shirt and bound his arms to a wooden frame. I tried to move, to help him, but the grip on my shoulders tightened, pinning me to the ground.
The woman approached Noah, holding a knife with a blade that gleamed in the firelight. She started to slice into his back, her movements deliberate and unhurried. Noah's screams pierced the night as she methodically carved the shape of wings into his flesh.
Blood poured from the wounds, soaking the ground beneath him. The crowd's chant grew louder, almost drowning out his cries. I watched in horror as the woman reached into the incisions, breaking the ribs and pulling them outward, creating a parody of wings.
Noah's agony was unbearable to witness. His screams turned to whimpers, his body convulsing in pain. The woman didn't stop until the work was complete, his lungs exposed and hanging grotesquely from his back.
They lifted Noah's broken body and placed him over the fire. The smell of burning flesh filled the air, making me gag. His life ebbed away as the flames consumed him, the once vibrant light in his eyes fading to nothing.
The woman turned to me, her expression devoid of mercy. "You will meet the same fate," she said, "He demands it."
The smell of burning flesh and the sight of his broken body over the fire was seared into my mind. Despair settled over me as I closed my eyes.
A deafening blast shattered the night. My eyes flew open to see the shaman stumbling backward, a gaping wound in her chest. She collapsed to the ground, her white eyes staring lifelessly into the void.
The villagers turned in shock as another shot rang out, this time hitting one of the men holding me. I twisted free from their grasp and saw the park ranger standing at the edge of the clearing, a pump-action shotgun in his hands. He fired again, the sound echoing through the forest, before one of them tackled him to the ground.
"Run!" he shouted, his voice raw and desperate. "Get the hell out of here!"
I didn't need to be told twice. I sprinted into the darkness, the chaos of the clearing fading behind me. Branches whipped at my face, and the snow underfoot made every step a struggle. I could hear the sounds of fighting and gunshots, but I forced myself to keep moving.
The cold air burned in my lungs, but adrenaline pushed me forward. I didn't stop until I reached the station, my legs threatening to give out from under me. I burst through the door and slammed it behind me.
Inside, Carl lay where we had left him, his face pale and twisted in pain. I stumbled to the radio, my hands trembling as I fumbled with the controls.
"Mayday, mayday!" I yelled into the microphone. "This is an emergency! We need help! Please, someone, come quickly!"
Static filled the room, punctuated by my ragged breaths. I repeated the call, my voice growing more frantic with each passing second. Finally, a voice crackled through the speaker. "This is Ranger Station Bravo. What's your location? Over."
I could barely form the words. "Olympic National Park! The ranger station near mount Christie! We're under attack! Please, send help!"
"Copy that. Help is on the way. Stay put and stay safe. Over."
I collapsed to the floor, my body trembling with exhaustion and fear. Carl moaned softly, his eyes fluttering open. "What… What happened? Where's Noah?”
Tears streamed down my face and I found myself choked up. “He’s gone, man. Help is coming.”
The minutes stretched into an eternity as we waited. The wind howled around the station, and every creak and groan of the structure set my nerves on edge. I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched, that the forest itself was closing in on us.
The radio crackled again, this time with a different voice. "Helicopter en route, ETA fifteen minutes. Prepare for extraction."
I glanced at Carl, his eyes filled with confusion. "Hang on. We're getting out of here."
As the minutes ticked by, I couldn't help but think about the ranger. He had saved my life, but he hadn't made it back. My mind conjured up images of what might have happened to him, the cultists overwhelming him in the darkness. A sense of guilt gnawed at me, knowing he had sacrificed himself for us.
The sound of rotors cut through the night, growing louder as the helicopter approached. I ran to the window and saw its searchlight piercing the treetops, scanning for the station.
I helped Carl to his feet, supporting his weight as we made our way to the hatch. The helicopter hovered above, lowering a rescue basket. The wind from the rotors whipped the snow into a frenzy, but I didn't care. Salvation was finally here.
We secured Carl in the basket first, and I watched as he was hoisted up, disappearing into the safety of the helicopter. My turn was next. I realized that I was now alone and exposed. Fear coursing through me as I scanned around the edge of the forest, expecting to be grabbed and taken seconds before my rescue. But the moment never came. As I gripped the rope, I took one last look at the forest below. The flames of the bonfire still flickered in the distance.
I was lifted into the air, the ground falling away beneath me. The helicopter's crew pulled me inside, and I collapsed onto the floor still holding onto my pack, my body finally giving in to exhaustion. The doors closed, and the helicopter banked away, leaving the horrors of the park behind.
Weeks had passed since the harrowing events, but the memories clung to me like the bitter cold. I had returned to civilization, seeking solace in the familiar chaos of the city. I found a wealthy collector through a network of contacts. The artifacts fetched a price tenfold the cost of gear. The money was substantial, but as I held the cash, it felt like a hollow victory.
Noah's absence weighed heavily on me. His disappearance was chalked up as a missing persons case, and despite my best efforts to explain what had happened, no one believed me. The authorities conducted a search of the area, but they found no trace of the cult, the artifacts, or the clearing. It was as if the forest had swallowed up all the evidence.
I returned to the site where we had parked the truck. The dirt bikes were gone, stolen by opportunistic thieves, but the truck remained. I drove back in silence, the road winding through the dense forest. For a moment, I thought I saw the girl watching me from atop a ridge until I realized it was just paranoia. I stepped on the gas a little harder.
Back home, I checked the Tomb Raiders forum again. The post that had led us into the forest was gone, deleted without a trace. I messaged the mods, but apparently, they don’t keep records to maintain confidentiality. I wrote about our experience, detailing every terrifying moment, but the responses were skeptical at best. Most dismissed it as a work of fiction or a desperate cry for attention.
Time passed, and I tried to return to a semblance of normalcy. Yet, the wilderness called to me stronger than ever. It was my sanctuary, the only place where I could find peace amidst the turmoil. I spent more and more time outdoors than ever before, but now it always felt like I was just running from something.
Determined to prove what had happened, I returned to the forest with a camera and recording equipment. This time, I documented every step, capturing footage of the trees, the snow, and the eerie silence that hung in the air. I retraced our path, hoping to find the clearing again. But each night, as I reviewed the footage, something strange would happen. The files would be corrupted or entire segments missing.
I pressed on. I found the site where Noah had fallen, the ground still bearing faint traces of what had happened. I set up the camera and began to speak, recounting the events in detail. As I spoke, a cold wind swept through the clearing, and the camera's screen flickered. I finished my account and turned to check the recording, only to find the file corrupted once again, the footage replaced by static and a faint, mocking laughter.
I returned home, defeated and exhausted. My attempts to share what I had experienced were met with disbelief and ridicule. The files I managed to save were corrupted beyond recognition. It was as if the forest itself was conspiring against me.
Almost exactly one year later, as I browsed the forums, a new post caught my eye. It was cryptic, eerily similar to the one that had led us into the nightmare. It spoke of another trove of artifacts, hidden deep within the wilderness, waiting to be claimed.
The post was signed with a new name: Skygge. Different handle, same style. Another trap. They had taken so much from me, left scars that would never heal. I opened my drawer, my fingers brushing over the cold metal of my weapons. This was the moment I had been waiting for. This time, I'll be ready.
The forest’s secrets won't remain hidden forever.

Indulge in the Wild: Luxury Camping with Wild Highs in Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh, with its breathtaking landscapes, snow-clad peaks, and serene rivers, has long been a haven for nature enthusiasts and adventure seekers. But what if you could immerse yourself in this natural beauty without sacrificing comfort and luxury? Enter Wild Highs, your gateway to an unparalleled experience of Luxury camping in Himachal Pradesh. Here, we blend the rustic charm of the wilderness with the opulence of a high-end retreat, offering you the best of both worlds.

What is Luxury Camping?

Luxury camping, or "glamping," takes the traditional camping experience and infuses it with modern comforts and conveniences. Picture waking up in a spacious, well-furnished tent with a plush bed, enjoying gourmet meals under the open sky, and spending your evenings by a crackling campfire without compromising on amenities like hot showers and Wi-Fi. At Wild Highs, we ensure that your encounter with nature is both immersive and indulgent.

Why Choose Wild Highs for Luxury Camping?

1. Exquisite Locations

Our luxury campsites are strategically located in some of the most picturesque spots in Himachal Pradesh. Whether you choose the lush valleys of Kullu, the serene banks of the Parvati River, or the enchanting forests of Dharamshala, each site offers stunning vistas and a tranquil environment. These prime locations not only provide a perfect backdrop for relaxation but also serve as excellent bases for exploring the local attractions.

1. Opulent Accommodations

At Wild Highs, our accommodations redefine outdoor living. Our tents are more like luxurious suites, featuring king-sized beds with premium linens, en-suite bathrooms with hot showers, and private decks with breathtaking views. Thoughtfully designed interiors ensure that you experience the elegance of a boutique hotel while staying close to nature.

1. Gourmet Dining

Savor the flavors of Himachal Pradesh with our gourmet dining options. Our chefs prepare a variety of delicious meals using fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Enjoy a hearty breakfast with mountain views, a picnic lunch by the river, and a candlelit dinner under a starlit sky. Special dietary requirements? Our team is ready to cater to your specific needs, ensuring every meal is a delight.

1. Personalized Experiences

We believe in crafting experiences that cater to your personal preferences. Whether it’s a private yoga session at sunrise, a guided trek through the mountains, a fishing expedition, or a cultural tour of nearby villages, Wild Highs offers a range of activities tailored to your interests. Our dedicated staff is always on hand to ensure that your stay is customized and memorable.

1. Sustainable Luxury

At Wild Highs, we are committed to sustainable and responsible tourism. Our campsites are designed to minimize environmental impact, utilizing eco-friendly materials and practices. We aim to create a balance where luxury meets sustainability, allowing you to enjoy nature without compromising its beauty.

Activities to Elevate Your Stay

Adventure and Exploration

For the adventurous at heart, Himachal Pradesh offers an array of activities. Try your hand at white-water rafting, paragliding, or mountain biking. Explore hidden trails on a guided trek, or embark on a jeep safari to discover the region’s diverse flora and fauna.

Wellness and Relaxation

Indulge in holistic wellness experiences with our curated wellness packages. Enjoy yoga and meditation sessions amidst serene landscapes, unwind with a massage using traditional Himalayan techniques, or soak in a natural hot spring.

Cultural Immersion

Delve into the rich culture of Himachal Pradesh. Visit local temples and monasteries, participate in traditional festivals, and learn about the region’s history and heritage from knowledgeable guides. Engage with local artisans and take home unique handicrafts as souvenirs.

What to Pack for Your Luxury Camping Trip

While we provide most of the essentials, here are a few items you might want to bring to enhance your stay:

• Comfortable clothing suitable for both warm days and cool nights
• Sturdy walking shoes for outdoor activities
• Personal toiletries and skincare products
• A good book or journal for reflective moments
• A camera to capture the stunning scenery

Conclusion

Luxury camping in Himachal Pradesh with Wild Highs offers a unique blend of adventure, comfort, and natural beauty. Whether you’re seeking a romantic getaway, a family vacation, or a solo retreat, our luxurious camps provide the perfect setting for an unforgettable experience. Reconnect with nature, indulge in luxury, and create lasting memories with Wild Highs. Your extraordinary adventure in the Himalayas awaits!

Have you ever watched a gritty ITV drama and thought "F*cking hell this is dreary"? Well now you can make your very own, thanks to the ITV Drama Recipe Kit! Just follow the directions below and you'll be well on your way to making forgettable nonsense:
1) Setting
You're going to need a setting first, opt for an overcast seaside village/town so you can get plenty of drone shots of waves crashing, and your main character standing at the edge of a cliff, staring out into the grey. Make sure it feels like the Isle of Wight in November. The environment has to feel so completely detached to any time period that your viewers can only make reasonable guesses to the setting based on which model of iPhone your main character is receiving mysterious harassing phone calls
2) Main Character
You'll need a blonde woman in her 40s/50s, make sure she has a designer trench coat so we know she's a detective when we first see her. Basically just grab a Sally Lindsay type and give her a heaping of trauma. Make sure to get a scene of her screaming "TELL ME WHAT YOU DID TO MY DAUGHTER" to an unknown person in some autumnal woodlands for the ITVX promo. It's guaranteed to get you nominated for an award
3) Overall plot
Keep things light and playful by introducing a dead child to the mix who died off-screen months before the first episode. Have your main character constantly fondle some trinket that has a special connection to the dead child, as they are routinely assaulted by over edited echoing flashbacks of the once living child doing living child things. F*ck up the audio too so that the child's giggling sounds haunting and ghost-like for when your main character suddenly snaps back to reality in a public toilet staring into a dirty mirror
4) Vehicle
Always ensure your main character drives a non-descript grey saloon clearly beyond their salary. It has to be inconspicuous and dull so that your main character can spy on the wrong person as they exchange packages with a shady individual in a gravel-lined carpark. Once you reach episode 4 of 6, use flashbacks to manufacture a sudden revelation for the main character which leads them to make a violent U-turn on a B-road to confront a suspected murderer
5) Therapy
Make sure at least one member of your principle cast is having regular therapy sessions even though they don't want therapy sessions. These sessions being mandated by their employer or loved ones as a response to some sort of traumatic event that in some way connects to the aforementioned dead child. Illustrate their internal pain with at least one over edited scene of flashbacks interspersed between them tossing and turning in their designer king size bed, before a sudden echoing gunshot and a scream forces them into an upright position
6) Conflict
Ensure that the main character must conduct their own off-the-books clandestine investigation because they either don't have the proper jurisdiction, the case has been prematurely closed, or their superintendent believes they are too emotionally invested in the case because it closely mirrors the character's own off-screen personal tragedy. Under no circumstances can you give your character allies with anything actually useful to contribute, otherwise there's no bureaucratic system to rail against in their fight for justice
7) Conclusion
Wrap up the story with the mysterious antagonist being revealed by episode 5 of 6, so that there can be an emotional confrontation that results in said antagonist falling off the cliff established in the first shots of episode 1. If you'd prefer more violence, have them fight over a kitchen knife in a deciduous forest, fall over, then as the protagonist and antagonist find blood on their turtlenecks, they look down to find that the antagonist has stabbed themselves, they bleed to death on a pile of dead leaves and the protagonist is able to achieve some form of closure in their IKEA home in a jump-cut to 6 months in the future

This is the first time I have written something of this length, and is more of an exercise in self-therapy than anything else. Disclaimer: This story contains conversations about child abuse. Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy it.
Nathan’s number appeared on my phone screen. I debated whether or not to answer it. We hadn’t been on speaking terms for a while, and while we did keep in touch sporadically, it was usually because of important family issues. I didn’t know of anything happening with mom or dad, nor with Talia or Rio, so I let it go to voicemail. I could always call him back later. I placed the phone back in my pocket, and returned to cleaning my camera. The phone buzzed again. A text message came through. I read the preview line from the home screen. “The city declared eminent domain on the house” I unlocked my phone, read the full text message, and dialed my brother.
I wasn't able to get any closer to the house than a few blocks. Most of the area was blocked off with chain link fencing and construction equipment in preparation for the demolition that was supposed to take place within the coming days. The barriers didn’t prevent people from walking in to the neighborhood, but it hindered scrappers from coming in and stripping the houses of copper wiring and plumbing.
I grabbed my camera bag out of the trunk of my car along with my tripod. I shouldered it and hooked the tripod to my bag. I pulled my water bottle out of the center console and shut the door. I stood next to my car surveying the neighborhood. 12 city blocks of old single family homes comprised the neighborhood where I grew up. Some of the houses had been empty for months, others for years. There was an eerie silence that permeated the still air. I could not hear the familiar sounds of people, pets, or cars. I locked the car and put my keys in my pocket. I patted my jacket down to ensure I had what I needed. After a quick check, I started my walk.
The sidewalk of the old neighborhood streets still bore the familiar cracks and grind marks from years of buckling and remedy. Leaves dropped by the trees still lay scattered all along the pathways and sidewalk. Korina’s house was the first house I encountered as I made my way through a gap in the fence. The yard was overgrown with tall grass and thistle. I could see the faded blue paint of the old house contrasting the green and browns of the lawn. The chain link fence that marked off the corner property was nearly invisible through the thick brush. As I continued walking west towards 110th, I started to feel something was off. The streets seemed wider than I remembered. It took me longer than I’d like to admit, but eventually I realized what was different. There were no cars.
The streets here typically had cars lined bumper to bumper in any spot available, and were visible from block to block. The absence of all these vehicles made me realize just how deserted the neighborhood really was. House after house, yard after yard, the telltale signs of desertion reinforced what I could see from the moment I passed the construction fence: This was no longer my neighborhood. There were no signs of life, and no one I could expect to find still here. Abandonment was the new normal here. I continued on, glancing at houses and recalling memories of summer bike rides, and daily walks with dogs I used to have. I remembered walks home from school, and chasing after ice cream trucks when they passed our houses. I smiled a bit as I remembered more and more of my years spent here. I don’t quite know just why I was smiling. There were plenty of bad memories here too. Fights, yelling, being beat up, being robbed. I could remember failed friendships, lost loves, and bitter feelings of failures too.
Still, I felt a certain amount of nostalgia despite the weight of these negative feelings. I almost wanted to experience everything again, although I wasn't sure why I was feeling this way. Concrete, asphalt, billboards and liquor stores were the normal vistas of everyday life. Occasionally, after a good rainstorm, the grey haze of smog would lift, and the mountains would be visible to the north. At least, they would be visible until mid-morning when the exhaust from a million cars covered them behind a veil of pollution.
It wasn’t until the first time I travelled out of the city that I realized there was more to see. Traveling up the coast north along the Pacific Coast Highway introduced me to scenes of deep blue ocean water spanning the width of my vision. Driving up Highway 3 introduced me to the permeating scent of Pine and Fir trees. The two-lane stretch of highway from Portland to Tillamook introduced me to lush green forests that I had only ever read about. When I came home to the same old dirty, dusty concrete and boiling summer asphalt, I had made up my mind. I would do everything it took to leave this place. I would not spend another day longer than was necessary living in cramped quarters and fighting for parking space.
I arrived to the house, and paused at the gate. The house sat in contrast of what the rest of the neighborhood looked like. Instead of overgrown grass and tall weeds all over the place, the landscaping showed signs of relatively recent work. The guava tree in the front lawn still had some fruit ready to be picked, and the avocado tree on the other side of the pathway was still weighed down by its own fruit. Flowers still bloomed in the raised bed in front of the house. My brother had clearly tried to keep up on things until the last possible moment. The house, too, looked better than what I expected after walking up 4 blocks and seeing nothing but dilapidated houses and unkempt yards. I opened the gate and walked up to the small porch. The metal gate that enclosed it was gone having been removed by my brother when he took over the property. It looked nice to see it open instead of the cage it once felt like.
I turned the knob on the door, but it didn't give. Ever a creature of habit, my brother had locked the door when he left. Of course, he did. I sighed and prepared to find another way in when I remembered my parents hiding a spare key. I wasn’t sure if it would still be there, but after running my hands along the back side of the gutter downspout, I was rewarded for my efforts. I unlocked the front door and stepped into the front living room, the sounds of my footsteps and the closing door echoing in the empty space. The room felt both larger and smaller than I remembered it. I suppose it was lack of furniture that made it feel larger, but it still felt smaller than I remember. The result of growing taller throughout the years I suppose. I slowly walked along the slate tile floor towards the central hallway that connected the front of the house to the back bedrooms. I wasn't entirely sure that just because the front door was locked, that there wasn't some squatter looking for a little temporary shelter within the back rooms. I carefully and silently crept step by step towards what used to be the bedroom shared by my sister and me. I stuck my head in and gave the room a cursory glance. It was empty, thankfully. I moved back into the hallway and peered into the bedroom across the hall. This is where both of my brothers had shared a room. It too, was empty save for a few boxes holding hardware and doorknobs from the closet doors of the bedroom. I walked back towards the back of the house where my parent's bedroom was. The walls in the hallway bore the dusty signs where picture once hung. The bedroom door was open. I stepped inside, and looked around. The old avocado paint that my mom had picked out years ago still adorned the walls. Walking further towards the addition that was the small room my grandma and grandpa lived in showed that there was no one here. I breathed a sigh of relief as I set my bag down and set up my tripod. I reached into my bag a pulled out an envelope of old photos. These were old snapshots that we had all taken at some point in time in the house. There were pictures of all of us sitting at the dining room table playing a game of Monopoly. There was a picture of my brother and sister sitting on a couch in the front living room. There was a picture of me hanging on the bars of the front porch. I looked through them all and held them in place in front of me as if I were holding a window to the past.
Each picture made the lump in my throat grow as I started to struggle to control my emotions. There was history here, and soon it would all be gone. This is the place where my parents had raised four kids. They had taken care of my grandparents in their twilight years here. My Aunt and my grandmother had both died in this house. Birthdays, graduation parties, and anniversaries had been celebrated here. The echoes of life had reverberated within the walls of this place. Now, the house sat silent. It would never again know happy screams of kids having a water-balloon war out in the front yard, nor would it hear the cries of anguish as the matriarch of the family passed away surrounded by her family. What once was a home full of life was now just an empty house made of drywall and paint. I sat there for a moment contemplating just how much family history was actually made here. As I thought hard about my siblings and my parents, I felt pained at the thought of our strained relationships. We had all scattered once we had the opportunity to be free of each other. My oldest brother had married and moved away as soon as possible. My sister now lived in northern California. My parents too had moved away. I was now living in Utah. Only my older brother had remained behind. The lump grew larger in my throat as tears welled up in my eyes. I held back sobs of anger and pain. Why was I hurting? Hadn’t I dealt with these issues already? I walked back to my old bedroom and sat down under the window. I pulled my head down into my knees and cried. I could hear yelling and screaming in my head. Shouting matches between siblings and parents, brothers and sister, rattled inside my brain, making the pain grow. I sat there and cried. I hadn’t cried like this in a long time. Eventually I ran out of tears and tired gasps of sorrow and regret washed over me as a blanket of drowsiness enveloped me. I leaned my head back and fell asleep.
I woke up to the sound of footsteps. It took me a moment to realize what I was hearing and hurriedly stood up. Had someone followed me? I knew the police were patrolling the area sporadically. Had they seen me enter the house? I knew there would be a possibility of getting a trespassing citation, but I figured I could either talk my way out of it seeing as to how I was a former resident, or I could probably fight the citation in court if the judge knew why I was there in the first place. Ultimately, passing through the gate had been a calculated risk that I was willing to take for the sake of my art. I got up from my corner of the room and moved towards the door. If there was someone in the house, I needed to know. I didn’t want my gear to stolen, and if there was a cop in the house, I wanted to ensure I didn’t get shot.
I was greeted by the sight of a startled chubby boy standing on the other side of the door. His round cherubic face was crowned by a head of short curly hair. His hazel green eyes stared widely back at me. He clearly didn’t expect someone to be here in the house. His body recoiled in fear as he cowered back towards the hallway. “Wait, what are you doing here?” I asked as non-threateningly as I could. The boy muttered something that I couldn’t quite make out. “What did you say? I couldn’t hear you” I replied. “Are you here to rob us?” he timidly responded. “Rob you? What are you talking about?” I asked as confusion set in. “What are you doing here?” It was his turn to be confused. “Uh…I….live here?” he replied. “What do you mean you live here? No one lives-“I stopped midsentence. I hadn’t noticed in my initial shock but the room wasn’t the same. A familiar blue couch caught the corner of my eye. In front of that was an old console TV with a partially broken antenna hanging on the wall behind it. I walked further in to the living room to notice wood paneling on the walls. A large mirror hung on the wall to my left. Familiar yellow lamps sat on round drop-leaf tables on either side of the couch. A large hutch sat in one corner, a collection of letters and bills, mail advertisements, and a phone book covered scattered over it. “What just happened?” I asked out loud to no one in particular. I was thoroughly mystified by what my eyes were seeing. I had walked into the house from the front door and had stepped into an empty white room with slate floor tiles, but somehow now found myself in a furnished room with brown carpet that was all so familiar to me, yet was nothing but a distant faded memory. I turned to look at the boy still startled by the intrusion of a strange man looking wildly around the room in total shock.
“You can take what you want, just please let me go. I don’t want problems.” He stated his voice still shrill with anxiety. I blinked a few times as I tried to process just what the heck was going on. I gathered my thoughts as best I could and tried to reassure him. “Kid, I’m not here to rob anyone. I was just-“I shook my head “Where the hell am I? Am I having a dream?” I asked myself. “I must be dreaming. I’m just tired and still sleeping. This is all a dream. Yeah, that’s it.” I needed to sit down. Being back in the old house must have overtaxed my senses, I told myself. I’d having a dream about an old memory. I walked over to the chair next to the couch and sat down. I sunk into it and rested my head back towards the wall.
The boy kept his distance, but sensed I wasn’t there to hurt him. He looked me over with anxious curiosity. He stood at the far end of the couch, examining me while he played out scenarios in his head in preparation for a quick exit. “Why are you in my house?” he asked me. “Dude, this is all just a dream I’m having. I’m not really here.” He reached over to the couch and picked up a pillow. He reared his arm and threw it at me. It landed in my lap. “I don’t know, man. You sure seem to be here.” He said to me. I opened my eyes, startled. I looked down at the pillow he tossed and examined it. I ran my hand over the fabric and felt its texture. I remember this pillow. This was the pillow I would roll under my head as I lay on the couch and watched TV as a kid. A sudden realization hit me as I looked around the room with fresh eyes. No longer was I blinded by the fog of confusion. I knew exactly where I was.
I was home.
I looked at the boy still standing at the edge of the couch. I looked him over and realized who he actually was. I stared in disbelief as I smiled and tried to put him at ease. “It’s ok Johnny. I’m not here to hurt you. No one is going to hurt you. Please, sit down” I told him. I motioned to his end of the couch. “Who are you, and why are you here?” he asked me.
“This will be hard to believe, but I’m you” I said with an incredulous tone, “I’m not sure how I ended up here, but I’m here.” He looked at me as I had grown a second head. “That doesn’t make any sense. How could you be me? Did we invent time travel? Oh! Are we secret government agents with the CIA?”
I chuckled. “Wait, wait, wait. Let’s start at the beginning. I’m you at 38 years old. You’re…what, 11… 12 years old? It makes sense. I fell asleep under the window in my- our old bedroom. I didn’t come here on purpose or in a machine. And no, I’m not a government agent.” His face contorted to display understanding, disappointment and finally suspicion. His eyes narrowed as he leaned in towards me. “How do I know you’re really me?” he asked. I thought about it for a moment. How could I prove to him that I was who I said I was? A few seconds of silence settled between us. I stroked my chin, thinking of a solution.
“I have a better idea. Ask me questions that only you know the answers to.” “Okay” he responded. He glanced around the room trying to come up with something. His eyes fixated on the Nintendo sitting under the TV cabinet. “What game do me and Nathan have a map of?” I looked over at the NES. I hadn’t thought about this for years, but I knew instantly what he was asking. “YOU don’t have anything. Nathan is the one that made the map for Section Z” His jaw dropped. He tried to trick me, but his plan failed. He knew well and good that Nathan never let him play. It was always ‘I’ll let you play when I die’ or, ‘you can play when I’m done’. The problem was that he never followed through. Usually by the time Nathan was done, the NES was overheated, and the game would no longer load until it cooled down. By that point, it was time for bed.
“How do you know that?” he asked in astonishment. “I know these things because I’m you. Just like I know that you wear t-shirts to the pool because you’re embarrassed by what others will think of your body. I know that you used to think that people that die off in movies were prisoners that were set to be executed from death row, so they used them for making movies. I know all about you because I’m you”
Johnny sat on the end of the couch in bewilderment, his mouth slightly agape. He had never told anyone any of this. He didn’t have any close friends to talk to about such things, and those friends he did have were more acquaintances than friends. There was only one way he could possibly know these things. He was talking to his future self.
I could see Johnny’s mind completely explode. There lay endless possibility and the answers to a million questions he could ask about his own future. He started to ask a question, only to stop, close his mouth, and try asking another. I knew if he kept this up he would have a stroke or something. “Dude, calm yourself. Let’s talk this out rationally, otherwise you’ll end up stroking out or something.” I told him. He took a deep breath and I could hear him muttering quietly. I knew he was trying to form a coherent sentence before he actually spoke it. I did it all the time. “Ok, first of all, are we rich?” he asked with tempered expectation. I chuckled and grinned back at him. “No, not at all. If I was rich, would I be dressed like this?” I replied as I motioned to my beat up brown Vans and worn out jeans and T-shirt. “We-, I – make enough to get by. I’m not poor, but I earn enough to pay the bills.” His face grew a smirk as he commented “Yeah, I figured. What do I do for work? I mean, what do you do for work?” I thought about it for a second. I wondered how much information I should divulge to a younger me. I still didn’t think this whole situation was really happening, but if it was, I probably should proceed with caution. “Well, it’s complicated. I do a little bit of everything. You know how you’re constantly taking things apart? Let’s just say that it’s good to put them back together in order to keep them working. Take good notes on paper if you need to, and make sure you have a clean work area so you can keep track of all the parts.” He gave me a sheepish look. He knew exactly what I was talking about. I had spent countless hours sneaking dad’s tools to my room so I could figure out how something was built and try to figure out how it worked. I had gotten myself into some pretty bad trouble with dad over a drill, his timing light, and other stuff I had taken from his room. His belt had become quite familiar with my butt cheeks.
I gave him a knowing smile. “What else do you want to know?” He thought about it for a second. “Do we have a girlfriend?” I laughed, probably a little more than I should have because his face contorted into a sour frown. “You don’t need to be a jerk about it” he scowled. I continued to chuckle. “Yeah we have a girlfriend. We have more than a girlfriend” I could tell he was irritated with my vague indirect answers. I knew what he was asking. I remember the crush I had on my neighbor across the street. We had been friends since kindergarten, and had been classmates for 1st, 2nd, and 4th grades. We got along really well, and I knew from around 12 or 13 that I wanted to be her boyfriend. Unfortunately, things never progressed beyond the ‘just friends’ stage of things. It wasn’t from lack of effort on my part. We had just grown up together most of our lives that she didn’t see me as anything more than a brother and friend. “Dude, look. You just started to go through changes and you are starting to notice girls, but that doesn’t mean that you need to love every girl that shows you a little kindness or subtle interest. You need to slow down and let things happen naturally. You can’t force a relationship with someone.” Johnny pondered these words for a moment. I sat back and put my feet up on the coffee table. I looked around the room some more while I waited for another question. There was so much I had forgotten, but being back here had unlocked more and more memories that continued to wash over me. I was trying to hold on to my cool as not all those churned up recollections were pleasant. I stood up and walked over to the front door to peer outside the small central window embedded into the center of it. I could see the old neighborhood as I remembered it all those years ago. The lot across the street that served as a parking area for those that worked at the wheel works at the end of the block was empty of cars. I furrowed my brow as I thought for a moment. An empty lot meant it was afterhours or the weekend.
The gears in my own head started turning. “Wait, where is everyone?” I asked Johnny. Johnny turned to look at me still processing my last response. “Uh..oh, Mom and dad are out of town. They took a trip east this time. I think Rio said they are in Arizona right now. Rio and Nathan went out to get some food and to rent some movies from Video Showcase. Knowing them they’ll eat out first. Talia is staying over at Tia Rosie’s place today with her friends.” I grunted at his response. My mind was wandering as he mentioned Talia and Tia Rosie.
A sudden sharp pain pieced my heart. The pain of a thousand memories now unsealed spilled out from the box I had locked them away in. Tears welled in the corners of my eyes as I turned back to look at Johnny. He felt it too. He stared at the floor with an intensity that made me think it would burst into flames at any moment. I walked back over to him and sat next to him. He didn’t move. I placed my hand on his shoulder, and he threw himself into me. I could feel the tears dripping onto me as he sobbed intensely. “Hey man, its ok. It’s going to be ok.” I said as my own tears started to flow uncontrollably. I pulled him close and draped my other arm around him.
I knew the pain he was feeling. It was such a heavy burden, and I knew there was no one he felt he could talk to. I remembered it all so vividly. We sat there for what seemed to be an eternity. When we finally stopped sobbing, and our noses ran dry, we tried to breathe our way through to calmness. I got up and knelt in front of him. “Johnny, listen to me and remember what it is that I’m about to say to you. You are stronger than you think. You are stronger than you believe. NO ONE should ever have to go through this. Just because it happened to Talia, doesn’t mean you have to put up with it any longer. I know you didn’t think it was wrong, but I’m telling you that what she is doing to you is wrong. Talking to mom and dad isn’t going to make them hate you. You are not doing this to her, she is doing it to you. I’m not making excuses for her, but she is also more damaged than anyone realizes, and she is also dealing with the same level of pain you are. Remember that we do unto others what has been done to us. That doesn’t mean we need to continue the cycle of abuse” The lump in my throat grew immense at my own statement. I swallowed it as best I could and continued “You are going to deal with this pain a little bit at a time, and you’ll slowly get over this. It’s like a broken bone. When it happens, you don’t realize how bad the pain is until the adrenaline wears off, but then the immense pain is there. Just remember that this will pass. Just like a broken bone, you will heal over time, and one day, you will realize that the pain is gone and the bone is no longer broken. You’ll remember the pain, but it won’t hurt anymore.”
Johnny sat there in stunned silence. I knew he didn’t have anyone to help him through this. He couldn’t talk to Rio or Nathan about what was going on. Mom and Dad were constantly working to keep the family fed and sheltered and while they provided materially for their kids, emotional help was less available. Perhaps it was due to their energies being divided into 4 kids, a mortgage and multiple jobs, or perhaps it was also the culture of not talking about problems. Either way, they needed to know what was happening. They wouldn’t be able to fix it otherwise. “They’re going to be mad at me” he finally said after a few moments of silence. “No they won’t be. They love us all. I know you’re not used to hearing it, but they do love you. Everything they do is because of their love for us. This isn’t your fault. You didn’t do anything wrong. Telling them isn’t going to cause them to be angry.” I thought for a moment to find a good analogy. “You love Odie and Lady, right?” He nodded in agreement. “Ok, how would you feel if you knew someone you trusted was coming to the house and beating up our dogs when we weren’t around?” He thought about it for a second before his face changed to anger. “I’d want to kill them!” “Yes, but would you also feel sad that you weren’t there to try to protect them?” I reasoned. His face changed again. He understood what I was saying. Mom and Dad would be angry, but not necessarily at him. They would also feel a great sadness knowing that someone was hurting their child.
I smiled at him. He understood. I nodded. “Dude…You’re going to come to understand that life is not what you think it will be. Life is messy and can change in an instant. The plans you make today may not make it to next week. A lifelong goal can be derailed because of something out of your control. Mom and dad have spent their life protecting us with the goal of keeping us safe, but circumstances out of their control have affected their kids, and now we- you all have to deal with the fallout. Just remember that you are not the culprit. Yes, mom and dad will be hurt and angry, but not at you. Trust them. They don’t do things to hurt us” Johnny hugged me. I- He didn’t have many people he could trust and open up to. He liked to talk a lot about everything going on in his life, no matter how trivial. Everything, except this. This was a shameful topic, and he didn’t feel like anyone would understand why he didn’t go to an adult sooner. The problem was simple. He simply didn’t understand that it was wrong. Now that he had an adult that he could talk to, himself no less, he wanted to lift this burden off his shoulders. He was happy to have found someone and he hugged me tightly. I hugged him back just at tightly. It wasn’t every day that I could meet my younger self and help to comfort them. “Thank you” he said to me.
The world darkened, and everything faded to black.
I lifted my head out of my knees and looked around. I was sitting under the window in my old bedroom again. Had I fallen asleep? I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time. I was emotionally drained and incredibly tired. I hadn’t had sleep like that in years. I got to my feet and looked around the room briefly before walking out to mom and dad’s old room. I grabbed my camera and slowly walked the house, snapping picture after picture. The only sound to be heard was the sound of the camera shutter and my soft footsteps. I thought about my dream as I took pictures.
Upon entering my room, a random memory hit me.
The stash.
I was pretty sure I had taken the hidden box when I moved out all those years ago, but since I was here, I should double check. Heading into the closet, I pushed the panel that led to the attic space out of the way and peered in. I couldn’t see anything, so I reached up there to feel around. The box was indeed gone. I felt around for a few more seconds and was surprised to feel what felt like a thick envelope. I didn’t remember leaving anything up there, but after pulling it down and giving it a cursory glance, I figured it was an old envelope of lost love letters. It wasn’t until I blew off the thick layer of dust that I realized what I was holding. It was a letter. Not just any letter. It was addressed to me.
Under the now semi-cleared layer of dust were the words “To be opened by future me”. I looked at it for a few moments before opening it. I couldn’t remember making this at all, much less storing it up in my secret hiding spot. If ever I hid something, it was in the stash box. My hands shook a bit as I started to open the envelope and pulled out the yellowed pages inside. I started reading.
"Dear Future John. I have spent the last few years remembering a dream I had when I was younger. Life was…difficult at that time, and I spent a lot of time escaping my reality by reading a lot of books and watching a lot of TV. On the off-chance that what I think is a dream really happened. I wanted to write some things down in an effort to give you my thanks. I merely consider myself a conveyer of thanks, although I will pile on my own thanks to you for your words of encouragement. I remember finding a stranger in the house one day while I was home alone. I was afraid he was there to hurt me at first, but after a few moments, I came to realize I was meeting myself. Well, I was meeting me, but from the future. I think he said he was in his 40’s, but I couldn’t tell you with any certainty. Either way, we talked. We talked about life, and what the future held in store for us…
Mostly though, we talked about the abuse. Well, Talked is being generous. We cried, and then we talked. I don’t remember exactly what he told me, but I remember how he made me feel. He made me feel safe. I felt like I could trust him. Trust myself. In the end, he gave me the courage to stand up for myself both at home and at school. He also gave me the courage to talk to mom and dad about what was going on between me and Talia. I do remember being afraid that I would be punished, but he reassured me that they wouldn’t, and that they loved me.
It was a difficult and awkward conversation, but in the end, arrangements were made for me to share a room with Rio and Nathan. I didn’t have much of a relationship with Talia for a long while, but after some years, we managed to patch things up. She apologized to me, and I came to understand the abuse she herself was subjected to by so-called family friends. She didn’t tell me this in an effort to excuse it, but to merely help give me closure to a difficult time from my own childhood. Mom and dad promised to be more attentive to us and we sort of established what I guess you would call an open door policy. We talk more about stuff that’s happening in our lives. Mom is much easier to talk to now. Dad is a little more patient with us too. I apologized to them for not coming to them sooner, and dad gave me a “nugget of wisdom” that I think I’ll live by: We can’t fix what we don’t know is broken. I’ve tried to make sure I talk to them when something is wrong, and I’ve tried to implement that in my life so I don’t have problems with other people.
I’m trying to grow up to be a good guy. I want to have good relationships with people. Nathan says I’m turning into a people pleaser, but I don’t necessarily see that as a terrible thing. I know when to say no to someone. Well, either way, I wanted to make sure I thank you for the help you gave us. I probably won’t remember writing this, but I hope I do find it again someday. Here’s hoping I turn into the man I feel you are. -John Age 16."
I stared at the letter, the words blurring as tears welled up in my eyes. I quickly brushed them away as I quietly spoke to no one in particular. “Thanks guys. I hope I live up to your expectations” I folded the letter, placed it in my pocket, and walked out of the room. After picking up my backpack and tripod, I silently walked towards the front door, my footsteps echoing in the empty house. I turned to look back at the empty living room one last time, and after a moment, I walked out.

Summer of Adventure Sale – 15% off some of Exodus Travels most popular trips

Posted on May 15, 2024 by Andrew Larder

Summer of Adventure Sale

Summer brings longer days and endless hours of sunshine, making a European summer trip more tempting than ever. Whether you’re looking to soak up the sun in Greece, enjoy local wine tastings in Italy or take rides along countryside lanes in France, we’ve got the perfect hiking and biking adventures for you.
To help you start planning, we’re offering up to 15% off some of Exodus Travels most popular trips, so you can get that Summer of Adventure feeling! Available on selected departures between May 1st and September 30th, 2024. With over 400 trips on sale, talk to our agents today to figure out what summer adventure you want to experience.
In a couple of months’ time, you could be discovering the legendary site of Pompeii and the romantic towns of Positano and Ravello on our Highlights of the Amalfi Coast trip. Or take a journey back in time, on our Highlights of Ancient Greece, to visit the fascinating archaeological ruins of Acropolis, Epidaurus and Mycenae. If you’re interested in biking, consider Cycle Northern France: Brittany to Normandy to take you past stunning medieval villages, the historic Omaha Beach and harbor towns that are known for their oysters and refreshing apple cider.
Make 2024 the Summer of Adventure to remember forever. With tours in over 100 countries on sale, get inspired by checking out a few adventures below or contact us to find your perfect trip.
Our Top Picks for Summer 2024;
With so many trips to choose from, here are just a few to get you started. Culture, Wildlife, Hiking or Cycling; find your adventure this summer!
Highlights of Ancient Greece – Cultural Journey through thousands of years and major UNESCO World Heritage sites
Tour Starting in Athens, this tour covers significant archaeological sites such as the Acropolis, Mycenae, and Epidaurus. It also includes visits to the medieval castle town of Mystras, Olympia—site of the ancient Olympic Games, Delphi, and the stone forest of Meteora, a major Orthodox community. The journey spans the Peloponnese peninsula and central Greece, featuring stunning coastlines, forests, and mountains.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Explore the ancient sites of Mystras and Delphi •Visit Olympia, the site of the first Olympic Games •Enjoy spectacular Meteora
Highlights of the Amalfi Coast – Cultural Discover one of the most fascinating and romantic destinations in the world
Tour Based in quiet Agerola, amid the green Lattari mountains, this tour explores the Bay of Naples’ famous sites, including the well-preserved ruins of Herculaneum and the legendary Pompeii. The journey extends to the dramatic Amalfi Coast, offering excursions to Capri, scenic views from the Path of the Gods, and the charming town of Ravello. Experience the region’s rich cultural heritage and breathtaking landscapes, celebrated by artists and writers throughout history.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Enjoy boat trips along the Amalfi Coast and to the island of Capri •See the romantic coastal towns of Amalfi, Positano and Ravello •Visit both Herculaneum and Pompeii •Enjoy Italian hospitality at family-run Hotel Due Torri
Cycling Vietnam – Cycling Experience the real Vietnam by bike
Tour This two-week cycling tour from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi covers diverse landscapes, from colorful fishing villages and rice terraces to jungle-clad mountains and white sandy beaches. Highlights include swimming on a tropical island, exploring the ancient port of Hoi An, and ascending the scenic Hai Van Pass for breathtaking coastal views.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Take a cycling holiday through Vietnam’s most scenic landscapes •Savour mouth-watering cuisine •Crawl through the Cu Chi war tunnels •Relax in charming Hoi An •Cruise among the limestone formations of Ha Long Bay •Overnight on a tropical island
Cycling Puglia & Matera – Cycling Cycle from the UNESCO town of Matera through Italy’s heel to Lecce
Tour Explore the cultural and natural treasures of Italy’s Puglia and Basilicata regions. This itinerary includes Matera’s intriguing Sassi houses and the UNESCO-listed trulli houses of Alberobello. The journey proceeds through idyllic countryside to Ostuni, the White City, and onto Gallipoli along the dramatic Ionian coastline. While cycling across the Salento Peninsula, experience the quintessential Italian lifestyle amidst olive groves, limestone cliffs, crystal-clear waters, and baroque towns.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Ride from the stunning UNESCO town of Matera •Enjoy gentle cycling through olive groves and past conical trulli houses •Sample fine seafood and wine from the Salento coast •Stay in accommodation bursting with character
Loire Valley: Walks, Wine & Chateaux – Hiking Discover regal estates and fine wines in the glamorous Garden of France
Tour Enjoy a walking tour in the Loire Valley, where stunning royal castles meet premier winemaking. Stay in a chateau near Tours and a country manor in Beaumont-en-Véron, ideal bases for exploring the region. Visit notable castles like Amboise and Chenonceau, and tour picturesque vineyards, sampling exceptional wines along the way.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Stay in a 15th-century chateau and 17-century country manor house •Tour Chenonceau, a magnificent chateau stretching over the Cher river •Visit wine producers to sample their celebrated drinks at source •Visit the lavish Château Royal d’Amboise, once home to French monarchs •Meet members of the Loire wine brotherhoods, practically unrivalled in their knowledge of the local produce •Enjoy tranquil walks through vineyards and along the Loire River
Iceland’s Laugavegur Trek – Hiking Hike one of the best-loved walking trails in Iceland to discover otherworldly landscapes
Tour Iceland is renowned as a premier trekking destination with its dramatic landscapes shaped by volcanic activity and glaciers. The Laugavegur Trail is a highlight, featuring a week-long trek from the colorful mountains of Landmannalaugar to the dramatic Thorsmork region, exploring craters from the 2010 eruption. All meals are included while camping. Additionally, early summer treks enjoy nearly 24 hours of daylight, while trips in late August and early September offer potential sightings of the Northern Lights.
HIGHLIGHTS
•Take the best-known trekking route in Iceland •Discover natural hot pools, waterfalls, lava fields, craters and volcanic fissures •Experience 24-hour daylight in July, chance of the Northern Lights in late August and September
Drew Larder FORA Travel Advisor – Amazing DEALS and perks of unforgettable travel. Hotels, cruise lines pay for my travel help, not you!
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This has probably been spoken about, from what I understand, I need to lodge my license transfer to QLD within 90 days and there is mutual recognition during this time.
Do I have 90 days to lodge my transfer and then however long it takes to get transferred?
Or do I have 90 days once I move then after that time(90d), my firearms become illegal? Even if my licence is in the process of transferring.
All safe storage requirements would be met.
What does NSW do with my licence? Does it get cancelled? If I move and change my NSW safe storage address to Queensland address what happens ?
I just went through all this stuff to get my license here in sydney NSW and and now a opportunity has come up that I may accept.
Is the QLD process different from NSW? How are the wait times? Do I have to wait again for this 28 cooling period? Does the cooling-off period still apply for purchasing firearms on my QLD licence as well?
I just bought my firearms for crying out loud and I don't want to have any problems going forward.
I'm new to the shooting community so I don't have any friends that hunt or shoot here in NSW.
Is the SSAA an approved hunting and target club in QLD? is that enough for genuine reasons like here in NSW. I also have my R-licence for state forest hunting.

In the quaint village of Briarbrook, nestled between rolling hills and whispering pines, lived a curious soul named Eliza. Her days were stitched together by the rhythm of the seasons, each passing year marking a new chapter in the symphony of her life. From the tender age of six, Eliza had a penchant for collecting seashells, each one a treasure imbued with memories of seaside escapades that lingered in her heart.
Through the lens of her youthful gaze, the world was a canvas painted with the hues of wonder and possibility. The winding cobblestone paths of Briarbrook, once familiar and comforting, now seemed to whisper tales of distant lands and untold adventures.
Eliza's transformation began with an unexpected encounter in the heart of the woods. She stumbled upon a mysterious figure, cloaked in stories and secrets, weaving tales spun from threads of wisdom and curiosity. The old sage, nestled beneath the gnarled branches of an ancient oak, imparted cryptic advice that sparked a yearning for discovery within Eliza's soul.
As seasons melted into one another, Eliza embarked on a voyage of self-discovery, a journey shaped by trials and revelations. She encountered peculiar companions along the way—a nomadic storyteller whose words painted vivid landscapes of far-off realms, a silent gardener who nurtured seeds of wisdom in the fertile soil of her mind, and a spirited bard whose melodies echoed the songs of forgotten legends.
Each encounter left an indelible mark on Eliza's spirit, illuminating hidden facets of her identity. The trials she faced—challenges that tested her courage, tempests that stirred her resilience—were the forge where her character was shaped and honed.
With the passage of time, Eliza's once small world expanded like a blooming tapestry unfurling to reveal the vastness of existence. Her footsteps led her beyond the village's borders, across sun-kissed meadows and moonlit forests, as she chased the elusive whispers of distant horizons.
The crescendo of her journey was not marked by a definitive destination but by the realization that the pilgrimage itself was the essence of her metamorphosis. The soul-stirring melodies of life's harmonies resonated within her, guiding her toward a profound understanding—that growth was an eternal dance, an ever-evolving rhythm that echoed the cadence of the human spirit.
In the end, Eliza returned to Briarbrook, her heart brimming with the treasures of her odyssey. The village, once suffused with familiarity, now appeared adorned with newfound hues and shades, each cobblestone and each whispered tale a testament to her evolution.
As she gazed upon the horizon, Eliza knew that her journey had only just begun—a boundless expanse of tales awaiting to be unwoven, mysteries yearning to be unraveled, and the infinite depths of her own soul waiting to be explored.
🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯
In the shimmering metropolis of NeoArc, where the glow of neon lights danced upon sleek skyscrapers, lay a world teetering on the edge of evolution. Here, in the heart of innovation, the threads of society intertwined with the fabric of cutting-edge biotechnology, genetic engineering, and the pulsating rhythm of biometrics.
Enter Marcus, a young engineer whose fascination with the fusion of biology and technology bordered on obsession. His world revolved around the labyrinthine corridors of the Research and Development sector, a sprawling enclave where the echo of mechanical hums harmonized with the whispers of experimental breakthroughs.
The city's pulse throbbed with advancements, where cybernetic enhancements were the new frontier, and genetic modifications promised to redefine humanity's very essence. Marcus was entangled in this web of progress, driven by an insatiable curiosity to decipher the symbiosis between man and machine, the convergence of flesh and circuitry.
In the shadowed alleys and clandestine laboratories of NeoArc, Marcus found himself embroiled in clandestine projects that skirted the edges of ethical boundaries. The allure of pushing the boundaries of biotechnology to transcend limitations beckoned, blurring the lines between ambition and moral compass.
As Marcus delved deeper into the intricacies of biopunk, he encountered factions entrenched in clandestine operations, each vying for control over the enigmatic possibilities offered by genetic manipulation. The allure of power and the pursuit of human enhancement became a battleground where ethics clashed with ambition, morality tangled with scientific prowess.
Yet, amidst the chaos and ethical dilemmas, Marcus found a beacon of hope—a glimmering thread of purpose that intertwined with his quest for knowledge. He realized that the true essence of biopunk wasn't merely about the advancement of technology but the ethical responsibility tethered to wielding such unprecedented power.
The climax of his journey wasn't marked by a groundbreaking scientific discovery or an engineered revolution but by the profound realization that the future of biopunk lay not solely in scientific marvels but in the conscientious application of its possibilities.
In the hum of NeoArc's bustling streets, Marcus emerged not as a trailblazing scientist pushing the boundaries of biotechnology, but as a steward of ethical innovation. His resolve to tread the path of biopunk with ethical integrity became the cornerstone of his legacy—a testament to the convergence of humanity and technology in an era poised on the brink of revolution.
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bio punk
In the heart of the sprawling city of NeoArc, Marcus stood amidst the fluorescent glow of the Research and Development sector, engrossed in the rhythmic hum of the lab. His quest for scientific breakthroughs was a symphony composed of ambition and ethical contemplation, interwoven with the threads of intrigue that pulsed through the cutting-edge world of biopunk.
Character Development:
As Marcus meticulously tinkered with strands of genetic code, he navigated the labyrinth of his own moral compass. Each experiment, each ethically ambiguous choice, etched a subtle mark upon his conscience. His devotion to scientific advancement wrestled with the nagging tendrils of ethical responsibility that coiled within his mind.
Plot and Literary Devices:
One fateful night, a clandestine meeting in the dimly lit alleys of NeoArc beckoned Marcus into the clandestine underbelly of biopunk's potential. The dialogue between Marcus and a shadowed figure unfurled like a carefully crafted riddle, each word laden with intrigue and veiled warnings.
"Marcus, you possess the ingenuity to redefine the very fabric of humanity," murmured the shadowed figure, the words laced with both temptation and caution.
The plot thickened as Marcus found himself entangled in a web of intrigue, navigating a plot steeped in mystery and ethical quandaries. The external dialogue mirrored the city's pulsating energy, shrouded in the secrets of illicit experimentation, while his internal dialogue echoed with the reverberations of moral dilemmas.
Inner Dialogue: "Can scientific progress eclipse moral boundaries? Is the pursuit of advancement worth compromising ethical standards?"
External Dialogue: "I seek answers, not just to revolutionize science, but to wield its power responsibly," Marcus countered, the gravity of his words underscoring his ethical stance.
Development Through Dialogue:
Conversations with clandestine researchers, heated debates with colleagues, and ethical discussions within the corridors of the lab epitomized Marcus's journey. Each dialogue was a canvas upon which his character evolved, transforming from a zealous scientist fixated on progress to a vigilant guardian of ethical innovation.
The climax unfurled in a crescendo of moral reckoning—a pivotal moment where Marcus had to choose between the allure of unchecked progress and the moral imperative to wield biotechnology responsibly.
Conclusion:
As the neon-lit streets of NeoArc bathed in the city's nocturnal luminescence, Marcus emerged not just as a scientist but as a beacon of ethical responsibility within the realm of biopunk. His character arc encapsulated the fusion of scientific curiosity and moral consciousness, painting a portrait of growth that mirrored the city's ever-evolving skyline.
This journey through Marcus's inner and external dialogue, intertwined with plot and ethical dilemmas, encapsulated the essence of character development within the intricate tapestry of the biopunk genre.
🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧
Remember these were generated by ChatGPT and have not been edited. They were prompted using the same writing genre prompts that were provided to you, and I was trying to make an example of how to respond but instead, this is what was churned out from different sessions. I'm still working on it but let me see what happens when humans respond!

I've been meaning to make this post for a while but life kept getting in the way.
There is a bunch of new (well, new to me) stuff I've discovered over the last few weeks, and wanted to share my thoughts with you.
Let's start with the "prequel" (although never canonically confirmed) to the Marathon series was a game called Pathways to Darkness. The backstory for this game is:

Sixty-four million years ago, a large extra-terrestrial object struck the Earth in what would later be called the Yucatan Peninsula, in south eastern Mexico. The dust and rock thrown up by the resulting explosion caused enormous climactic changes in the ensuing years, and many of the Earth's species became extinct during the long winter that followed.
The object itself was buried thousands of feet below ground, its nearly two kilometer length remarkably intact. It remained there, motionless, for thousands of years before it finally began to stir-- and to dream.

Hmm. Buried below ground. Finally beginning to stir and dream. Who does that sound like?
Let's keep going.

The heat of impact liquefied the rock around it, which later cooled and encased the dead god's huge body far below ground. As it began to dream, it wrought unintentional changes in its environment. Locked deep beneath the Earth, strange and unbelievable things faded in and out of reality. Vast caverns and landscapes bubbled to life within the rock, populated by horrible manifestations of the dead god's dream.

As it began to dream, it wrought unintentional changes in its environment.. Locked deep beneath the Earth, strange and unbelievable things faded in and out of reality.
Like Fingerrats? Or like Spider-wolves?

Vast caverns and landscapes bubbled to life within the rock, populated by horrible manifestations of the dead god's dream.

Caverns and landscapes. I want to expand this point here for a bit because it's also mirrored across Alagaesia.
Let's start with Helgrind.
For any FV enjoyers, I've previously speculated that Helgrind is a reliquary, or a previously living being that was transformed (a la Ctein).
But the curious thing here is the timeline of Helgrind and it's tunnel system, taken with the above context.

Q: Assuming it wasn't built by the Ra'zac themselves, was the lair inside Helgrind purpose-built for the Ra'zac and Lethrblaka, or did they appropriate it some time after it was built? If it wasn't built for them, what was its original purpose?
A: Partially natural formations (linked to tunnels elsewhere in Alagaësia), partly expanded by the priests of Helgrind and Galbatorix himself.

But... The Ra'Zac didn't inhabit Helgrind until at least after the Humans came over. So these tunnels underneath Helgrind existed before the Ra'Zac, or Galbatorix ever set foot on Alagaesia. Which, I don't know about you, but a massive network of tunnels does not smell entirely natural to me.
So.. where else are there "natural" formations that link to other tunnels elsewhere in Alagaesia?
We've seen these "natural" formations in Vroengard:

Q: The deeps under Vroengard, were they created by the riders or was it a previous system of caverns that they repurposed?
A: Previous system. I mean, there's been work done on them, but... 'It looks similar, parts of it feel similar to the caverns that we encountered in this book. They both have that hole in the cave which goes deeper, with something in the hole that's not clearly defined.' Yeah.

And we've seen similar depictions in the Beors, and Nal Gorgoth. So from the Beors to Vroengard, "natural" tunnels exist underground. I don't buy that they are entirely natural.
Given the context of the Marathon game above:

Vast caverns and landscapes bubbled to life within the rock, populated by horrible manifestations of the dead god's dream.

I think these tunnels came from Azlagur.
Let's switch gears here, I want to talk about another archaeological mystery in the world of Eragon - El-Harim.
I believe El-Harim was heavily influenced by the (not canon confirmed, but implied) prequel to the Marathon games, the Pathways into Darkness

Pathways casts the player as a member of a US Army Special Forces team sent on a mission to the Yucatán Peninsula. On May 5, 1994, a diplomat from the alien race known as the Jjaro appeared to the President of the United States and informed him that on May 13, an ancient godlike being sleeping beneath a pyramid would awaken and destroy the Earth. The only way to prevent this catastrophe is to prevent the god from awakening. The eight-man Special Forces team carries a nuclear weapon, with the goal of entering the ancient pyramid, descending to the bottom level where the god sleeps, and activating the bomb to stun the god and bury it under tons of rock.

Getting into a bit more of the backstory:

Only during the last few centuries has the god begun to effect changes on the surface of the Earth. Grotesque creatures have been sighted deep in the trackless forest of the Yucatan, and strange rumors of an ancient pyramid-- which is neither Aztec nor Mayan-- in the same area have been circulating in the archaeological community since the early 1930's.

Pyramid, eh? There are two different options here I can think of that equate.
The extended FWW Map
First, in the extended map from FWW, we can see a Pyramid-esque shape - Different color, different slope, etc.
Or, second (and probably more likely), it could be El-Harim:

It is a very bad place. It’s a place where some bad things happened at one point and it’s not a good place to go walking around. I don’t want to get into it too much more because again, it’s a good possibility for another story and I want to keep thinking about it a bit more. It is in Alagaesia and we’ve actually been close to the location.

Many speculate that the below vision from Eragon in Brisingr, which was never explained in the main cycle, is of El-Harim:

And he rested, and visions beset him of a circular stone city that stood in the center of an endless plain and of a small girl who wandered among the narrow, winding alleys within and who sang a haunting melody (A Feast with Friends, Brisingr).

If this vision IS El-Harim , it's super significant because of these two descriptors:

circular stone city
narrow, winding alleys

Fractals. The city itself is a fractal, like Nidus for any FV enjoyers.
The narrow winding alleys are significant because of the descriptors of the Vanished/Grey folk:

The spaces between the structures were narrower than the humans preferred; the proportions were taller, thinner, which matched the images she had seed of the Vanished...
The ancient outline of the city was - as she suspected - a fractal, and the shape of it contained meaning.... At the nexus of the apttern, where it coiled in on itslef like a nautilus shell" (Shards, TSIASOS).

Narrow. Circular (Nautilus shell). Winding. Fractal.
Whatever this city is, El-Harim or otherwise, it is/was a grey folk/vanished city.
And given the quotes from above - "Its a place where some bad things happened at one point", and "dangerous, creeping, ancient, evil thing" - My guess is that the event that caused the Grey Folk to bind the AL to magic happened here, in El-Harim.
Alright, moving along.
Let's talk about the Az and the God. There are a few parallels I've talked around, but the BIG link between the two are Dreams. This is especially important because of the release of the world map recently.

We are the devotees of Azlagur, the Devourer. Azlagur the Firstborn. Azlagur the Dreamer. He who sleeps and whose sleeping mind weaves the warp and weft of the waking world. But the sleep grows restless" (Obliteration, Murtagh).

Versus

As it began to dream, it wrought unintentional changes in its environment. Locked deep beneath the Earth, strange and unbelievable things faded in and out of reality. Vast caverns and landscapes bubbled to life within the rock, populated by horrible manifestations of the dead god's dream.

I could write a whole post about the parallels between the two and their linkage to dreams, but I'll cut it short here for now to save room to dig in to other areas. Specifically, the Dreams connection is especially important because of the relase of the world map recently - I have another post here that gets into more detail, but the translations from the World Map in the middle translate to:

where dreams and dragons dwell

Dreams (!) and Dragons.
Combine that with the Etymology of the words:

Alagaësia ala = land gaësia = rich/fertile
Alalëa ala = land lëa = a beautiful dream
Elëa = the dream itself

So the planet, named Elea, translates to "The Dream Itself". Very interesting.
This is even more significant when you take into account this tweet chain from Chris, a bit earlier in March

Darn it. Just invented a name in the ancient language. Googled it to make sure no one else had used it ... only to discover that I had used it in an earlier book. Lol.
Can we ask what name?
Edurna

I believe the name was a potential candidate for the name of the planet of Alagaesia, which is important because of the etymology of THAT name (All credit to Zora for digging this one up).

Edurna sounds awfully like Adurna and Edur
Adurna meaning water and Edur being a prominence

Prominence. And Water. You know what that sounds like to me? Plaintive Verge. Just food for thought.
Second-to-last Az connection I want to cover: Hunger.

Whirling darkness swallowed him, and at the center of it... lay a formless horror - ancient and evil and from which emanated a constant merciless hunger (Dreams and Portents).

Versus a quote about the cosmic entity in Marathon:

Now I fear what that weapon has unleashed will destroy us. I once boasted to be able to count the atoms in a cloud, to understand them all, predict them, and so did I predict you, but this new chaos is entirely terrible, mindless, obeying rules that I don't comprehend. And it is hungry.

Now, the last piece of Azlagur-related lore I want to cover here is the "Black Sun".
In all of the visions, a Black Sun precipitates Azlagur's rise.

"A black sun rimmed by black flame hung against a darkling sky... The beast rose rampant against the black sun - A wingless dragon, apocalyptic in size, terrifying in presence. Destroyer of hope, eater of light"

Before getting into the Black Sun a bit more, there's an additional connection here I want to touch on - usage of the word rampant in connection with Azlagur.

In Marathon, Rampancy is the enhanced self-awareness of a computer AI, causing a progression towards greater mental abilities and destructive impulses. The destructive impulses, however, are primarily caused by being threatened or harassed. There are three main stages, as well as a fourth and final stage that is rarely achieved, to rampancy, named by the primary attitude of the AI during those times: Melancholia, Anger, Jealousy, and Meta-Stability.

There are some overlaps with what we see from the Maw.
And Melancholia.. that's an interesting word. Especially when taken into context the meaning of the name:

A melancholy dream of great beauty.

Melancholy.. Dream... The pieces of the puzzle are coming together. And Rampant...
Chris also uses that exact same verbiage when discussing a deleted scene from TSIASOS:

Q: I just finished reading To Sleep in a Sea of Stars and I have to know: it sounds like the Wranaui fought the corrupted during the Sundering but if that's true and it happened almost 300 years prior.... Who created the old corrupted? I've been questioning this for days!
A: That was actually in material cut by editors (some of the dream memories). Another Seed/Idealis was damaged and, when the Old Ones tried to separate it from its host, the xeno went rampant.

The xeno went rampant. Very interesting.
Alrighty, I keep getting distracted, back to the black sun.
The reason the Black Sun is important is because it always precipitates Azlagur's rise, throughout several of Murtahgh's visions. In each of them, there is a Black sun.
So, by this, we can extrapolate that the sun needs to be Black in order for Azlagur to rise (which is hinted at at the "Day of Black Sun" celebrations near the end of the book).
But... what does it actually mean?
There is a parallel in Marathon, their weapon:

The trih xeem (also "tri xeem") is an extremely powerful weapon that can be used to force a star into early nova... it was originally conceived and built by the Jjaro [The Old Ones/Vanished equivalent]. Much of the Marathon Infinity story revolves around preventing the Pfhor from using the tri xeem and inadvertently releasing a W'rkncacnter that is supposedly trapped within the Lh'owon sun.

So, the story of the last Marathon games revolves around preventing the usage of the weapon to release the cosmic-level baddie trapped in the sun. So, effectively, the antagonist is imprisoned by the sun.
But.. how does that translate to Azlagur and Murtagh?
The Black Sun requirement for Azlagur's rise could be construed as "imprisonment" by the sun; Azlagur cannot escape until the sun is turned Black. But it only really starts to come together when you piece together these pictures.
First, early concept art for the Fractalverse
You see the black orb, heading directly for the glowing star? Sounds pretty similar.
But that's not the smoking gun; look at the depiction of the black orb in the concept art, and compare it to the trih xeem, the weapon in Marathon.
A black orb with a trail heading directly for the sun. Almost an exact match.
OK.. so I get that it has some relevence in fractalverse, but how does it translate to Eragon?
Well, because of the Beors. Specifically, a picture CHRIS HIMSELF posted about the Beors.
Here
I propose that THIS black orb, at the top of the Beors (which, suspiciously, no one has traveled to) houses the black weapon. After all, the depiction is quite similar - A large, circular, black orb. Looks pretty similar to the other pictures.
And given the above context that Azlagur can only rise with a "Black Sun", the pieces all start to fit together. It's not perfect, but there are definitely a lot of overlaps.
Alright. I've been waiting for this one. The last piece. Let's talk about Angela.
Q: Will we get Angela lore? I feel like she could have killed Galbatorix and just didn't feel like it.
A: For those who don't know Angela is based on my sister Angela, because she breaks the fourth wall to a degree she has. Not only does she have plot armor, she knows she's in a story and can break the story itself. So, yes, she could have killed Galbatorix, but that would have made for a very bad story. That said, I do have an entire book planned around Angela, and it's very high on my list of books to write because it takes place before some of these other big stories I want to write. And that's also the difficult thing. I have my big storylines, and then I have a couple of one off side books I want to write, and it's just a question of time, energy and effort.
She knows she's in a story, and she can break the story.
Based on that, and several other descriptions I will get into in a bit, I think her story is directly related to the Marathon Infinity game.

Marathon Infinity begins as the Pfhor destroy Lh'owon using a Jjaro-derived doomsday weapon known as the Trih Xeem or "early nova". Unfortunately, the weapon also releases a powerful chaotic being: The W’rkncacnter, which threatens to destroy the entire galaxy. Because of the W’rkncacnter's chaos or by means of some Jjaro tech of his own, the player is transported back and forward in time, finding himself jumping between timelines and fighting for various sides in a desperate attempt to prevent the chaotic being's release.

and

In Marathon Infinity, a W'rkncacnter is imprisoned in the sun of planet Lh'owon. It is theorized by some that the W'rkncacnter's powerfully chaotic nature may be responsible for the jumps between realities seen in the game. When the Pfhor use a trih xeem device to send the star into early nova, the creature is released, to the horror and destruction of the Pfhor.

Angela is the Eragon-equivalent of the player.
She can transport back and forward in time, jumping between timelines, and fighting to prevent the chaotic being's (Azlagur's) release. Let's dive in.
First:

Q: Is it canon that Angela the Herbalist is a Time Lord and did she make a cameo in To Sleep in a Sea of Stars?
A: Is Angela the Herbalist is a Time Lord? That would be copyright infringement, so I'm going to say "no comment", but she is in To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. And there is a canon reason for this. And you should have no problem spotting who she is in that book.

So there's a canon reason she's in the book. Interesting. When you take that into context with the next bit

Q: On your last AMA on reddit, someone asked if any fan had guessed the identity and history of Angela correctly. You said nobody has guessed correctly and there's not enough information in the books to do so. That puts every fan theory out there on her wrong, correct? She's not the soothsayer, a time lord, grey folk, etc, correct?
A: Angela: Some of the fan theories have gotten parts of her history and identity correct. However, there's a HUGE aspect to her nature that no one has guessed (or least, not in a non-joking way). And no, I don't mean her being a Time Lord.

So there's a huge aspect to her nature that no one has guessed (at least at the time of writing). She's self-aware, knows she's in a story, and can jump around in time. And, similar to the Marathon games, it appears like only she knows that she's in a story.
So, based on the Marathon inspiration, we can guess that she is trying to accomplish the same thing - To prevent the release of the cosmic-level villain. We know that she has some kind of relationship with the Draumar:

In Murtagh, it’s revealed that Bachel and “Uluthrek” (Mooneater, Angela’s given Urgal name) met with Bachel explicitly going out to confront her (a courtesy not even offered to a Rider like Murtagh)

So, by extension, she has some kind of connection to Azlagur. This is supported by other circumstantial evidence in FWW as well:

Since we know that the Dream Well in Mani's Caves is similar to the Well in Nal Gorgoth I can assume that Angela is revealing the existence of the Draumar to Elva there? I feel certainly feel as if you're setting up her for something in the future series.
Heh. Good Catch.

So, she is clearly working with Elva to do something related to the Dream Wells, and she also previously confronted Bachel, many years ago. So throughout multiple years across the WoE, she is connected to Azlagur and the Draumar; her story clearly revolves around them/Azlagur, somehow.
Putting the above pieces together, my guess is that she is jumping around in different timelines, trying to manipulate actions of the past to prevent the rise of Azlagur. Just like the player character in Marathon. There's another piece of circumstantial evidence to support this assertion as well.
In Marathon Infinity:

After multiple "jumps," the player (seemingly the only one who realizes he is being transported between possible realities)

Versus Angela:

As hours passed, the stars turned above, night chill drew the heat from my body, and I fell into a curious trance, not asleep but not fully awake... The world altered" (On the Nature of Stars, FWW).

I believe this world "Altering" was the first time she experienced an alternate timeline, without knowing what it was at the time.
We've also seen her create "Doorways" as well - Although it's not clear if this is fast traveling (a la a Torque Gate), or truly opening a path to another timeline.
In Eldest:

"As they landed, he noticed a patch of white on a small hill nearby. The patch wavered strangely in the dark, like a floating candle, then resolved into Angela, who was wearing a pale wool tunic" (A Sorceress, a Snake, and a Scroll).

and then later, more concretely:

"I traced a line on the wall, reached out, and opened a door that wasn't there. ON the other side - nighttime, a beach by a black ocean lit only by stars, so many, many stars, more than there should be. Of course, I would not take Elva to my home, not yet. But this was a waypoint, a place to build and learn and grow... She stared into the gap, the impossible portal" (On the Nature of Stars, FWW).

Still, as always with Angela, so many questions.
Alright, we've reached an ungodly wordcount, so I'll call it here. There are still more connections I'm uncovering between the two series (such as the potential connection between the Gedway Ignasia and the "warning" sensation from Marathon), so I might make a follow-up post in the future with everything else I uncover.
As always, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think in the comments, or if you've found any other connections between the two.

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DO NOT COMMENT ON LINKED POSTS. I am NOT OP. Original post by u/God_Dammit_MoonMoon in treelaw
trigger warnings: Tree Destruction
mood spoilers: Mild Confusion
 
(Virginia) Neighbor is on video ripping my eastern redbud sapling out of the ground - 2024-05-05
TLDR -- (location: VA) neighbor came onto my property -- I have her on video coming from her yard and carrying yard debris, looking around as she goes, walking up to one of my redbud saplings, ripping it out of the ground and breaking it in half a couple of times as she walked back to her property. The tree is very clearly on my property. She was (very clearly) looking to see if anyone was around before she did it. What is "standard procedure" here? How do I get her to replace at least the one tree I have her on video destroying? I'd ask how to not make this living situation awkward, but we're way past that at this point.
Long Version:
I live in Virginia in a neighborhood without an HOA. I bought my house a couple of years ago and there were zero large trees in the yard.
All of my neighbors have very landscaped yards. My house needed renovation, so I haven't done much in the yard other than plant some trees so they had time to get established. In the 2 years I've lived here, I've planted 7 trees in the front yard.
4 of the trees I have planted have been eastern redbud saplings on either side of my driveway. The first pair died over the first winter I was here and then I planted the second pair this past fall.
The most recent pair survived. One was absolutely thriving and the other was struggling but had growth. Between the trees and my neighbors property is my mailbox and the trees have mulch rings.
I say these things because it's not like there's a question of whose property the trees were on or did they look dead (and did the neighbor think they were doing me a favor by removing yard debris).
Three weeks ago, I went out to check the mail and the one closest to my neighbors yard was missing. There wasn't a sapling laying on the ground so it wasn't like an animal chewed it at the base and it fell over. The entire thing was gone but the mulch wasn't disturbed. I even dug into the mulch to try to find the root ball because it was so weird. No root ball.
My partner and I couldn't remember the last time we had seen it and we had friends in town helping with the renovation so it went out of our mind as a weird thing. Partner was convinced it was an animal. I was convinced someone stole my tree.
Tonight, I went out to take the garbage to the road and -- lo and behold -- the 2nd redbud is missing.
I look around for it -- in case it's on the ground and it's not there. Mulch isn't disturbed. Exact same situation as the other one. So I dig down to try to find the root ball and there isn't one. it's only 4ft tall, so not like there'd be a big one to begin with.
I call my partner and let them know. They've been out of town but mention when they left Wednesday morning, they remember checking on the tree. So I go to the video footage.
It was there the morning of the 1st and the morning of the 2nd. The morning of the 3rd....hard to tell. It might be there. It might not. I go through more video from friday and confirm the tree is not there.
So I go back to the 2nd and I start going through the video and around 7pm, I get my answer -- I see my neighbor walk onto my property, carrying yard debris from her yard. She's looking around, and then walks up to the tree, rips it out of the ground, and walks back off to her property snapping the tree in half a couple of times as she goes. If I had to guess, she was carrying the yard debris as a cover "oh I thought it was yard debris and I was just trying to help".
I went back to check to see if I have her on video doing the same thing to the first tree, but the video doesn't go back that far unless you specifically save the video (which I didn't think to do). If I were a gambler, I'd put money on the fact that she did the same thing to the first tree.
I know tree law in VA states that if the trees are on your side you can trim them as long as you don't do it to a point where you kill them, but these trees were very much on my property. The one that she killed recently, it was literally the tree, my driveway, a small stretch of yard (where the 1st tree was that went missing) , my mailbox, and then the neighbors yard.
What is standard procedure here on addressing this with a neighbor? I don't want to get police involved for destruction of property but at the same time, who comes onto someones property and rips their trees out of the ground?
Unrelated -- my relationship with this neighbor has always been wonderful. Like I bake them pies and the give me things from their garden. We bring in packages for each other when fedex inevitably delivers them to the wrong house. There was a windstorm in March that blew a tree from their neighbors yard (two houses down from me) into their yard and I went out with my chainsaw to help cut it up so it didn't just sit.
*quick update\*
So this has gathered far more comments than I expected but I figured there were a couple of things that needed to be addressed.
First -- the video. The video is safe. I have a copy on my phone, personal laptop, work laptop, and have sent it to many, many friends because it's such a batshit situation. We have copies should I need to use it.
Second, tree proximity to property line -- because I was curious, I went out with my handy dandy tape measure to check to see how far the trees were planted from the line. The first tree that was yoinked 3 weeks ago was 6ft from the property line. The second tree that was pulled a few days ago was 22 feet 3 inches from the property line. The only one arguably "close" to the property line was the first one (6ft from the line) and honestly, if she had come to me with a concern about it, I probably would have agreed to move it in the fall when it went dormant and it was safe to do so. Instead she chose tree violence.
Third, "the plan". Because my partner travels a lot, we both own our houses (so neither of us are going anywhere), and because I want to make sure she doesn't retaliate against the other 9 baby trees in my backyard (that's fenced in) or my dog, I've decided to take u/kemperflow 's advice to an extent. Basically I'm going to tell them someone vandalized and stole property out of my yard and that I'm going to be going through the video from one of the cameras in the next couple of days and this camera points at the area of the trees. I'm going to ask them if they've had anyone vandalize or steal their property in the last week or so. Basically giving them the opportunity to fess up and give me whatever lie they come up with on the spot as to why she destroyed the trees. If she owns up to it, I'll ask her to buy me new trees to make it right and then tell her she should not come onto my property and do something like this again without my permission. If she doesn't, in a few days I'll go back with the video and give her another opportunity to make it right. At that point if she still doesn't, then I'll report her for theft and destruction of property and have her trespassed. Because we're not going anywhere anytime soon, I don't want to go completely nuclear in the first round. Hopefully it doesn't get to last bit.
Fourth, she is an avid gardener. She has trees lining the back of her property, trees on the property line she shares with me (close to where the redbud massacre of 2024 occurred), a vegetable garden, so many rose and phlox bushes I've lost count and recently added some new low shrubs near the trees on the back of her property. Her yard is very curated with many shrubs, trees, and flowers -- both deciduous and evergreen. While I could be wrong, I don't think her removing the trees had to do with her being concerned about their leaves. If she were, she'd probably take down one of the two 60 yr old maple trees in her backyard.
 
Update: (Virginia) Neighbor is on video ripping my eastern redbud sapling out of the ground - 2024-05-07
Okay, so this will *hopefully* be the final update and there won't be any need to get motion activated sprinklers involved. I'm not ruling them out if this ends up escalating after this post.
Today I worked from my closet because it has a window that just so happens to overlook my neighbors garden and her car was in her driveway so I knew she was home.
Around 1pm she made an appearance so I went out to "check the mail". I waved to her with a big smile and said hello. She said hello and we exchanged minor pleasantries. And then I segued into asking
"Oh hey, have you guys noticed if you've had anything stolen or vandalized in your yard?"
"Oh no. not at all."
"I'm glad to hear it. I've had two trees taken from my yard over the last 3 weeks."
"What do you mean taken from your yard?"
"Well the two redbuds I had at the end of the driveway -- they were saplings and one was by the mail box and the other was by the lamp post. The first disappeared about 3 weeks ago and the second one disappeared sometime after Wednesday last week."
"No, we haven't had anything like that happen."
"That's great. Yeah, I don't know what happened. I'm going to check one of the cameras I have on the property in the next couple of days. It's pointed at the driveway, so it gets clear views of the trees and we'll be able to see what happened. Hopefully it's just animals or something because if someone came onto my property and stole them, I'm going to have to get the police involved for theft."
If I didn't have her attention before, I definitely had it at the last bit because she started asking more clarifying questions about these missing trees -- What kind of trees did you say? And where were they? How big were they?
I answer all of her questions and add on that it sucks because I bought these trees and they had been planted since fall but "Yeah, I guess we will find out what happened in a few days when I have an opportunity to check the video." And that's about the time she says "Oh, That might've been me. I think I thought they were weeds." (For the record — no I do not believe she mistook two 4ft saplings for weeds.)
I let her know that if that's the case, I would like her to replace them. To which she replies that she's not sure but it might've been.
I reassured her that it's okay if she doesn't know. We can wait to resolve this until I view the video because I absolutely do not want her to pay for replacements if she's not responsible.
Y'all. She absolutely did not want me to go to the video.
She asked me what kind of trees again and I told her. She said that if I told her how much they were, she’d pay me back.
And I said “are you sure you don’t want to wait to check the video?”
“No no. I’ll take care of it. Just let me know.”
I pulled my phone up and found comparable redbuds online and we calculated the total that she would owe together. She went inside and gave me cash to get replacements for the redbuds. We stood and chatted for a couple more minutes but I did reiterate that she needed to talk with me before doing something like this in the future and if she see's some weeds that she thinks needs to be pulled on my property to let me know because it isn't fair or right for her to bear the burden of weeding my yard.
And so concludes The Redbud Murder Saga. (I hope)
 
Reminder - I am not the original poster. DO NOT COMMENT ON LINKED POSTS.

Importance of regular website audits

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Understanding Website Audits

What is a website audit?

A website audit is a comprehensive examination of a website's performance, structure, and overall health. It involves analyzing various aspects such as site speed, user experience, SEO optimization, and security. The primary goal of a website audit is to identify any issues or areas of improvement that may be hindering the website's ability to drive conversions. By conducting regular audits, website owners can ensure that their site is functioning optimally and providing a seamless experience for visitors. Regular audits also help in identifying opportunities for growth and implementing effective strategies to enhance the website's performance.

Why are website audits important?

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Using SEMrush for Website Audits

Introduction to SEMrush

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Step-by-Step Guide to Conducting a Website Audit

Setting objectives and goals for the audit

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Interpreting Audit Results and Taking Action

Understanding the audit report

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Conclusion

Importance of regular website audits for maintaining website health

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Benefits of using SEMrush for website audits

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Taking proactive steps to ensure website's success

Taking proactive steps to ensure website's success
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What is a backlink checker?

A backlink checker is a tool that allows website owners to monitor and analyze the backlinks pointing to their website. Backlinks are incoming links from other websites that direct users to your website. They play a crucial role in determining the credibility and authority of a website. By using a backlink checker, website owners can identify the sources of their backlinks, assess their quality, and ensure that they are not linked to any spammy or low-quality websites. This helps in safeguarding the reputation of the website and improving its search engine rankings.

Why is website reputation important?

Website reputation is crucial for the success of any online business. It plays a significant role in building trust and credibility among users. A positive website reputation can attract more visitors and potential customers, while a negative reputation can drive them away. One way to safeguard your website's reputation is by using a backlink checker, such as SEMrush. A backlink checker helps you monitor and analyze the quality of backlinks pointing to your website. By identifying and removing harmful or low-quality backlinks, you can improve your website's reputation and ensure that it ranks higher in search engine results. This is especially important for leaders in the field of continuing education, as a strong website reputation can enhance their credibility and attract more learners.

Introduction to SEMrush

SEMrush is a powerful tool that can help website owners safeguard their online reputation. With its backlink checker feature, users can easily monitor the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to their website. This is crucial for maintaining a strong online presence and ensuring that the website is not associated with any spammy or low-quality websites. By using SEMrush, website owners can identify and disavow harmful backlinks, improve their website's authority, and ultimately enhance their website's reputation. In addition, SEMrush also provides valuable insights and data on competitors' backlinks, allowing users to gain a competitive edge in the online market. With its user-friendly interface and comprehensive features, SEMrush is a must-have tool for any website owner looking to protect and enhance their website's reputation.

Benefits of Using a Backlink Checker

Identify and remove toxic backlinks

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Monitor competitor backlinks

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Improve search engine rankings

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How to Use SEMrush Backlink Checker

Create an account and log in

Creating an account and logging in is the first step towards utilizing the full potential of the backlink checker tool provided by SEMrush. With an account, you can access a wide range of features and functionalities that can help you safeguard your website's reputation. By logging in, you can easily navigate through the user-friendly interface and take advantage of the various tools available. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced marketer, SEMrush provides you with the necessary resources to analyze your backlinks and ensure that your website maintains a positive online presence. So, don't wait any longer, create an account and log in to SEMrush to start benefiting from its awesome marketing materials.

Enter your website URL

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Analyze backlink data

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Interpreting Backlink Checker Results

Understanding backlink quality

Understanding backlink quality is crucial for maintaining the reputation of your website. Backlinks are a key factor in search engine rankings and can greatly impact the visibility and credibility of your site. By analyzing the quality of backlinks, you can ensure that your website is not associated with low-quality or spammy sites. This helps to build trust with search engines and users alike. Additionally, a backlink checker tool like SEMrush can provide valuable insights into the sources of your backlinks, allowing you to identify and address any potential issues. By regularly monitoring and managing your backlink profile, you can safeguard the reputation of your website and maintain its integrity in the online world.

Identifying anchor text

Identifying anchor text is an important aspect of safeguarding your website's reputation. By analyzing the anchor text used in backlinks, you can gain insights into the keywords and phrases that are being associated with your website. This information is valuable for understanding how your website is perceived by search engines and users. When it comes to keywords like healthcare workforce, it is crucial to identify the anchor text used in backlinks. By doing so, you can ensure that the hyperlinks associated with these keywords are relevant and authoritative, thereby enhancing your website's reputation in the healthcare industry.

Analyzing referring domains

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Best Practices for Website Reputation Management

Regularly monitor backlinks

Regularly monitoring backlinks is essential for safeguarding your website's reputation. By using a backlink checker tool like SEMrush, you can stay updated on the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to your website. This allows you to identify any spammy or low-quality backlinks that could potentially harm your website's SEO performance. Additionally, monitoring backlinks helps you track the effectiveness of your link building efforts and identify opportunities for improvement. When it comes to managing backlinks, it is important to pay attention to the keywords ThemeForest and WordPress themes. These keywords are crucial for websites that utilize ThemeForest's WordPress themes, as they play a significant role in attracting targeted traffic and enhancing the overall user experience. By regularly monitoring backlinks associated with these keywords, you can ensure that your website maintains a strong online reputation and remains competitive in the digital landscape.

Disavow toxic backlinks

Disavowing toxic backlinks is an essential step in safeguarding your website's reputation. By using a backlink checker like SEMrush, you can identify and analyze the quality of your backlinks. This tool enables you to detect any toxic backlinks that may be harming your website's SEO performance. Once you have identified these harmful backlinks, you can disavow them to ensure they no longer negatively impact your website's reputation. Disavowing toxic backlinks not only helps improve your website's credibility but also enhances its overall search engine ranking. It is a proactive measure that every website owner should take to maintain a positive online reputation.

Build high-quality backlinks

Building high-quality backlinks is crucial for the success of your website. Backlinks not only improve your website's visibility in search engine results but also help establish your website's credibility and reputation. When it comes to building backlinks for your screen printing supply business, it is important to focus on quality rather than quantity. High-quality backlinks are those that come from reputable and relevant websites in the same industry. These backlinks not only drive traffic to your website but also signal to search engines that your website is trustworthy and authoritative. By using a backlink checker like SEMrush, you can easily analyze the backlink profile of your website and identify any low-quality or spammy backlinks that may be harming your website's reputation. By regularly monitoring and removing such backlinks, you can safeguard your website's reputation and ensure that it continues to rank well in search engine results.

Conclusion

Importance of website reputation

The importance of website reputation cannot be overstated in today's digital landscape. With the increasing competition and ever-evolving algorithms, it is crucial for businesses to rank on Google and establish their online presence. A high-ranking website not only attracts more organic traffic but also builds trust and credibility among users. One effective way to safeguard your website's reputation is by utilizing a backlink checker using SEMrush. This powerful tool allows you to analyze your website's backlinks, identify any potential issues, and take necessary actions to improve your website's ranking. By regularly monitoring your backlinks, you can ensure that your website remains in good standing and maintains its reputation in the online world. Whether you are a car website owner or any other industry, the importance of website reputation cannot be ignored.

Benefits of using SEMrush backlink checker

SEMrush backlink checker provides several benefits for website owners and marketers. One of the key benefits is the ability to monitor and safeguard the reputation of your website. By using the backlink checker, you can easily identify and analyze the backlinks pointing to your website, including those related to home security products. This allows you to ensure the quality and relevance of the backlinks, which in turn can positively impact your website's search engine rankings and overall reputation. Additionally, the backlink checker helps you detect and disavow any harmful or spammy backlinks that may be negatively affecting your website's reputation. With SEMrush backlink checker, you can take proactive steps to maintain the integrity and credibility of your website.

Take control of your website's reputation

Take control of your website's reputation by using a backlink checker like SEMrush. With this powerful tool, you can monitor the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to your website, ensuring that they are from reputable sources. By regularly checking your backlinks, you can identify any spammy or low-quality links and take necessary actions to remove them. This not only helps in improving your website's search engine rankings but also safeguards your online reputation. Start a bar supply business online and make sure to use a backlink checker to protect your website's reputation.
In conclusion, online marketing can be easy and effective when you have the right tools and strategies in place. With Semrush, you can turn the algorithm into your friend and make your business visible online. Our 55+ tools for SEO, PPC, content, social media, and competitive research can help you achieve measurable results. Whether you're a small business owner or a marketing professional, Semrush has everything you need to succeed. Visit our website today and start optimizing your online presence!