(Part 2 out now)
I woke up with a cough of blood and pain. I felt something metal with my hands as I looked down. A long stint of rebar poked out of my ribcage and through my chest plate, covered in a mix of my blood and the bile of a bug.
I reached down and grabbed my Senator, feeling its trusty weight in my hands. I haphazardly tried to place the barrel against the portion of rebar sticking out of my back. This had better work, I thought. I pulled the trigger once and with a loud Crack I felt the vibration from the shot in my stomach. I tried to choke down vomit and pulled the trigger twice more Crack, Crack. With the third shot the rebar gave way and I rolled to my side and collapsed on the ground. Agony shot through my body as I hit the dirt.
I realized then, Hmmph, they left me. During Extraction one of the other divers called in a 500kg as we were about to board Pelican 1. She had thrown it over one of those damned chargers in an effort to kill one last bug but... it started charging us. I was the last one in line and just as I was about to board... i was thrown 200 feet away from extraction site. I don't blame them. I'd have left me too. We had successfully evacuated a number of scientists and other military personnel, but we'd lost the planet. No hard feelings I guess.
I tried to pull my mind away from those thoughts and just focused on one. Survive. I pulled myself to my knees and looked at the rebar again. Cant park there bud, I thought tryna cheer myself up. I had dropped my senator when I fell and ended up with two free hands. I reached down and with the assistance of my servo-assited armor prepared to wrench the rebar from my chest. Alright, count of three, I thought. One my heartrate quickened. Two I adjusted my grip ever so slightly. Three I ripped the metal rod out and felt a hot stinging pain shoot through my body. I quickly grabbed a stim and applied it.
I winced as the stim numbed my broken ribs and began rapidly working to heal them and my open chest wound. After a couple seconds, I could stand.
I took quick stock of my inventory. My Senator with 23 rounds left, two ration packs, a canteen of water, 1 stim, a knife, and a bag of oatmeal. Oatmeal? Seriously? I'd rather have ammo but... beggars can't be choosers.
I looked around me. Snow and beaten down rubble surrounded me. This was some kind of research station, I think. Didn't bother grabbing the name. Cold as hell and nothing really around to get my bearings. Great. I thought. Im gonna die inside a freezer. I started looking through the rubble for anything useful. I found a corpse of one of the scientists that hadn't made it to evac. I grabbed the ID card off his jacket. Figured It'd get me inside a building if there were any left standing. I crawled out of the rubble and onto the snowy tundra.
The sun had set and with it most of the light I would've been able to utilize. I scanned the horizon for a blinking light. Blinking like meant beacon. Beacon meant possible radio, maybe some ammo. I clocked one to the southwest and began walking that direction senator drawn.
I spotted a few distant bug patrols illuminated by moonlight but they had no interest in me. I kept my head down and kept moving towards the light. Details started to take shape and I could see this was a research station. Perfect I thought.
I reached the door and used the key card. There was a Beep and the red light flashed green. The door cracked open before jamming. Oh no you dont, I thought and with one hand yanked the door open. I closed it behind me with the same hand to keep the wildlife disinterested.
Inside was dark and damp. I had lost the seal integrity on my suit so there was barely any oxygen regulation. Didn't need it on this planet but still, it's a bitch to fix. I turned my flashlight on and started scanning the room for a light switch. I found one but wouldn't ya know it... dead. At least the beacon had power. I walked over to the radio and pulled off my helmet. I wedged the flashlight in my neck and leaned my head to the side. I started flipping switches and turning dials to see if there was a response. Nothing. Id have to find the master terminal. I grabbed the flashlight and donned my helmet again. I began scanning the room again before I heard it. A little shuffle behind me. I turned quickly and drew my senator raising it at the source of the sound.
It was a small child. At least... thats what it appeared to be. At first glance I could see bindings on its legs and arms. A hospital gown with little ducklings on it and a teddy bear tucked under its arm. I lowered my senator as it spoke.
"Dr. Mehon told me to wait here. He said hed be right back."
Dr. Mehon was probably dead I thought. I knelt down and put my hand on the child's shoulder. "Whats your name kid?"
"3". I felt a rage build up. I swallowed it quickly.
"Well 3, what uh... why.. why do you have bin.." I stopped myself. Whatever those scientists were doing here...
3 looked up at me and I noticed it. A cat like set of eyes. Other little details started to click as well. Four fingers on each hand, slightly pointed ears, a discoloration of skin and a rigid scale-like spine on the shoulder.
"The radio doesnt work mister." 3 seemed to have understood their situation. "Dr Mehon destroyed it before he left."
I realized then that it was unlikely either of us would make it off this planet alive.
EDIT: Part 2 out now! (Part 2's a lil shorter) I Didnt think itd get this many upvotes and comments. Ill keep writing then. Feel free to suggest names for 3!

The dungeon master described the party stepping through the wizard's portal into the plane of Elemental Chaos. "Before you lies a tempestuous sea of ever-changing terrain and clashing elements. The portal has opened onto a planetoid floating in the sea of shifting energies. Standing a ways away is a giant humanoid figure that seems to be made out of some of the same energies."
"Giant?" Sara asked?
"Yeah, it's like fifty feet tall. Looking upon its face makes your gut wrench as its face is a pool of ever-churning distorted energies. Make a save versus fear."
The players snatched up dice bags. Twenty-sided dice were rolled all around the table, but Mary, sitting to the right of Sara, noticed that Sara hesitated.
"What did you call these things again?" Sara asked. "Primordials? I didn't really imagine that they'd be so ugly or terrifying... or big."
"Oh, fine," the dungeon master responded. "Ambriel the rogue can have advantage on this check. What is your roll?"
Sara picked up an extra dice, tossed them into the bowl on the table and squinted at them in the dim light of the basement. "I got an eight." she said, frowning.
"Sorry, Ambriel and anyone else that got below a ten is afraid of the figure and will be at a disadvantage for initiative. The figure lets out a scream that sounds like an avalanche in a hurricane. Roll initiative!"
"Nineteen!" the boy across the table said. "Fifteen!" said another after rolling some dice. "I have a plus two, and I only got a twelve." said Mary.
"What about you Sara?" the dungeon master asked.
"Um, I don't want to fight it. Can I try talking to it?"
"I guess so," said the dungeon master, frowning. "What will you try saying to it?
"Well first," Sara started, "Is it at its house?"
The dungeon master and the boys across the table erupted into laughter. The dungeon master managed to stop laughing and reply. "These things don't have houses. They just live outside in the chaos."
"Oh." Sara looked disappointed. "I thought they would have houses." and then quieter. "Maybe a family."
The dungeon master laughed again. "What are you going to say to it?"
"I guess I'll say: 'Greetings friend! Do you know which way it is to the Dark Wizard Malik's tower?'"
The dungeon master laughed yet again. "It doesn't seem to understand what you're saying. It screams again and then attacks. Do you have your initiative number yet?"
Mary had been glaring at the dungeon master. He finally noticed her expression and slouched down, a sheepish look crossing his face as if he knew he was going to be in trouble.
Sara frowned, rolled her dice, and then stated "Six."
The party proceeded to fight with the primordial and Sara participated but wasn't really enjoying the situation. After the beast fell the party raced to loot its corpse.
"What did we find?" the boy across the table asked eagerly.
"Nothing, of course!" the dungeon master announced with some glee in his voice. "The primordial's body has evaporated and merged with the endless chaos around you."
"Well that's at least one thing you got right." Sara said.
"What do you mean?" Mary asked.
"Oh, forget it." Sara responded.
The end of the combat signaled the end of the evening since it was already past eight. The friends scooped dice and character sheets back into their bags, cleaned up the snacks, and said their goodbyes for the evening. Sara walked up the stairs and into the front yard with the other two boys. Chris's mom was there to pick up him and Tyler. She waved at them as they drove away and then started toward her own house just down the street.
The walk was only five minutes, if she took her time, and she had walked this street a hundred times before. She was enjoying the breeze and the crisp night air and didn't notice when the footsteps behind her started. When she noticed them she'd picked up her pace but they grew uncomfortably close. Sara spun around and was faced with a figure in the shadows behind her. It was only a few feet away but she couldn't make out a face.
"What do you want?" She asked the shadow. It did not respond. It did, however, step forward into the glow of the nearby street light. Still, its form appeared like a pitch black hole in the world; a torn place in space the shape and size of a man. The shadow reached toward Sara and she knew that this was an undead being. It had been hoping it could claim the life force of a human this evening; to pull her into the shadow realm and keep her there till she had faded away and become another shadow. Unfortunately for the shadow, she was not a victim that could be claimed so easily.
Sara dropped her book back and grabbed the shadow's arm, glancing down the street to make sure it was clear. Then she released her human disguise and pulled the shadow closer. She stared into the colorless void where its eyes should have been and the shadow stared back into the ever-changing distortion that her face had become. Lightning arced across Sara's skin that now appeared to be made of a roiling mass of stone and waves of pure water.
Sara's outline blurred and her humanoid form faded almost completely, leaving a cloud of elements ever fighting for position, yet she didn't let go of the shadow. The shadow was in a panic now, struggling and desperately trying to free itself from her grasp, to no avail. Sara pulled the shadow inside her cloud and it was ripped and torn by every element until it was gone in just a moment.
Sara concentrated for a moment and reached a human hand out of her cloud of chaos, and picked up her book bag. She formed an arm and shoulder to put the bag on, then a head and some feet and finally squeezed the last bit of her cloud into the shape of a green jacket. "Was she wearing a blue jacket before or a green one?" she asked herself. "I guess it doesn't really matter." she answered, and changed the jacket to blue.
***************************
Sara, Chris and Tyler walked up the stairs out of the basement, leaving Mary and the dungeon master still sitting at the table. The dungeon master was shuffling some papers, his mind racing with ideas for the next session. Mary stared at him, arms crossed and after a moment she finally spoke. "That was mean, Brian."
Brian looked up from his papers. "What?" he asked defensively with a worried look on his face.
"The primordial we met tonight in the game. That wasn't cool." She mocked an imitation of Brian: "It just lives outside in the chaos. Its sooooo ugly and scary." She crossed her arms again and stared daggers at him. Brian was silent and just looked down at his lap.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I thought we were supposed to act like we didn't know..."
"You know she's not going to keep playing with us if you keep being an asshole, right?"
Brian frowned and was quiet.
"Don't you like her playing with us?" Mary continued. "She's a way better rogue than Johnathan was. If she leaves and Johnathan finds out we have room at the table then we might have to let him join the party again. Is that what you want?"
Brian shuddered. "No. I do like her playing with us. She is a pretty awesome rogue." They sat in silence for a minute. "I'll make it better next week. I have some ideas."
"Good." Mary stood up and walked to the stairs. "We'd better not be fighting a changeling or a dragon next week." she said with a laugh.
The outside air was cool and crisp; the twilight had faded already and the streetlights were on. Chris and Tyler had left already; their mom always picked them up. Sara lived at the end of the street. Mary looked down the street toward Sara's house and near the other end of the street she saw Sara, almost home. Mary shivered as she watched as a shadow approached Sara. Mary then watched as Sara discorporated into a chaotic mass of lightning arcs and flame over a roiling mass of rocks and water. In another moment she had absorbed the shadow and it was gone. Those shadows gave her the creeps and she was glad another one was gone. Mary's parents had told her many times how they were lucky to have the Smiths living on their street. "Good girl." Mary whispered as she watched Sara pick up her book bag and put on her human disguise for the rest of her walk home. Mary walked back into the house.
***************************
Sara reached the end of the street, hopped up the porch stair to her front door and walked inside, locking the door behind her. Inside, her mother and father were lounging on the sofa watching a reality TV show together. Her dad waved a friendly tendril of water at her and turned his attention back to the show. Sara's mom floated up and across the room, her pattern of fire and stone indicated concern.
"Is everything okay honey?"
"Well" Sara started slowly. "In tonight's game we finally met a primordial, but the party just killed it. The dungeon master thought it looked scary." Sara dismissed her human disguise, released a small puff of smoke and slouched a bit. "Are they ever going to accept us for who we are?"
Sara's mom wrapped her in a hug. "Your friends do like you dear. It doesn't matter that you don't look like they do."
"Yeah, I guess you're right mom. Thanks." She brightened up a bit, her waves of water crashing in a happy whirlpool. She started up the stairs to her room but halfway up she turned around and said "Oh yeah, I got another shadow on the way home." Her mom, who had already returned to the sofa, crashed a tiny avalanche of stone in approval and then returned to watching the show.

Oh hello again my friend. Good to see you arrived back safely. Sit on the floor here. I’ll play with your hair. Okay I’m done, so tie your hair back up. Don’t move yet, I’ll hug you first. Huh? Where are you walking off to now? Sit back down. Don’t move. Remember well that if you want a normal friend, you’re free to go find one. But if you choose to be my friend, just know that you’re my property.
Ah…your skin is so dry :/. Does it hurt? Okay sit over to that counter. I’m going to put skin care products on your face.. Wow! You’re glowing now! Looks great.
Today you should wear the dark blue shirt and the light washed blue jeans…I just think it looks better. It’s not that deep, mate, just do as I said. Go change.
Eh, you’re eating those chips again? I’ll just snatch that away from you. Mercy…you’ve been eating these every day for the past 4 days. And baam, okay, I threw it in the bin. Good grief, you know you have to maintain your figure…and more importantly your health. It’s almost like you’re just asking me to control you completely.
Wow, you look so good in this lighting, I’m just going to wrap my arm around your shoulder like this and borrow some good looks for myself by association. Oh wait, I can just wrap my arm around your waist like this so we can walk in unison like when we were kids. Weird feeling, right? But this sense of unity makes my heart feel warm.
Oh, so you prefer to hold hands? Mmm, that is nice at times, but I think I’ll just hold you by the wrist instead this time. I like the feeling of this better than holding hands. Sometimes my hands get sweaty the other way…plus if I hold your wrist, then you have to follow me, right? Then you’ll suddenly remember that you belong to me. You still want to be friends, right? Right, so then you’re still my property.
Let’s wake up early and go to the gym. Oh come on….. you’ll be glad that you did I’m sure! These bodies won’t maintain themselves, Y’know? You have to join the fitness journey. Don’t be shy. It’s my choice what I want to do with my property, right? RIGHTTT. To the gym we go!!!
Are you interested in Greek architecture? No?….eh that’s okay, I’ll teach you something about it anyways.
You listen to me well. I think you’ll get an upgrade in life soon. Awesome
Ooo, let’s go meet some new people! socialize, travel…just live out a dream. Ah…you’re not nervous, right? Ah…it’s okay, you can stay by me. But just remember once again… that any friend who can get this close to me….is my property.

Oh hello again my friend. Good to see you arrived back safely. Sit on the floor here. I’ll play with your hair. Okay I’m done, so tie your hair back up. Don’t move yet, I’ll hug you first. Huh? Where are you walking off to now? Sit back down. Don’t move. Remember well that if you want a normal friend, you’re free to go find one. But if you choose to be my friend, just know that you’re my property.
Ah…your skin is so dry :/. Does it hurt? Okay sit over to that counter. I’m going to put skin care products on your face.. Wow! You’re glowing now! Looks great.
Today you should wear the dark blue shirt and the light washed blue jeans…I just think it looks better. It’s not that deep, mate, just do as I said. Go change.
Eh, you’re eating those chips again? I’ll just snatch that away from you. Mercy…you’ve been eating these every day for the past 4 days. And baam, okay, I threw it in the bin. Good grief, you know you have to maintain your figure…and more importantly your health. It’s almost like you’re just asking me to control you completely.
Wow, you look so good in this lighting, I’m just going to wrap my arm around your shoulder like this and borrow some good looks for myself by association. Oh wait, I can just wrap my arm around your waist like this so we can walk in unison like when we were kids. Weird feeling, right? But this sense of unity makes my heart feel warm.
Oh, so you prefer to hold hands? Mmm, that is nice at times, but I think I’ll just hold you by the wrist instead this time. I like the feeling of this better than holding hands. Sometimes my hands get sweaty the other way…plus if I hold your wrist, then you have to follow me, right? Then you’ll suddenly remember that you belong to me. You still want to be friends, right? Right, so then you’re still my property.
Let’s wake up early and go to the gym. Oh come on….. you’ll be glad that you did I’m sure! These bodies won’t maintain themselves, Y’know? You have to join the fitness journey. Don’t be shy. It’s my choice what I want to do with my property, right? RIGHTTT. To the gym we go!!!
Are you interested in Greek architecture? No?….eh that’s okay, I’ll teach you something about it anyways.
You listen to me well. I think you’ll get an upgrade in life soon. Awesome
Ooo, let’s go meet some new people! socialize, travel…just live out a dream. Ah…you’re not nervous, right? Ah…it’s okay, you can stay by me. But just remember once again… that any friend who can get this close to me….is my property.

I think my mana base is probably an issue, too many slow dual lands and not enough basic lands. Also, I may have made the mistake of assuming my commander is always out. I made the decision to lean a bit more into white and green just because of the card quality I have for white and for the ramp of green. However, I had to cut the deck down from ~180 cards.
Are there any obvious mistakes I’ve made or recommendations?
https://manabox.app/decks/z_3Ta8VCSRyqdw1Pdu5BcQ
[COMMANDER]
1 Aragorn, the Uniter
[PLANESWALKERS]
1 Domri, Anarch of Bolas
1 Arlinn, the Pack's Hope // Arlinn, the Moon's Fury
1 Samut, Tyrant Smasher
[CREATURES]
1 Jaspera Sentinel
1 Armored Scrapgorger
1 Dennick, Pious Apprentice // Dennick, Pious Apparition
1 Frodo Baggins
1 Poison Dart Frog
1 Reclusive Taxidermist
1 Rootcoil Creeper
1 Arwen, Mortal Queen
1 Bilbo, Retired Burglar
1 Chance-Met Elves
1 Foreboding Statue // Forsaken Thresher
1 Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar
1 Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar
1 Migloz, Maze Crusher
1 Welcoming Vampire
1 Faramir, Field Commander
1 Frilled Mystic
1 Mondrak, Glory Dominus
1 Selvala, Eager Trailblazer
1 Sigarda, Champion of Light
1 Yotian Tactician
1 Djeru and Hazoret
1 Maja, Bretagard Protector
1 Otharri, Suns' Glory
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
[ARTIFACTS]
1 Prophetic Prism
1 Azorius Locket
1 Boros Locket
1 Horn of Gondor
1 Inherited Envelope
1 Izzet Locket
1 Mithril Coat
1 Selesnya Locket
1 Simic Locket
1 Mind's Eye
[INSTANTS]
1 Wash Away
1 Boros Charm
1 Decisive Denial
1 Disdainful Stroke
1 Get Lost
1 Hindering Light
1 Ride Down
1 Sacred Fire
1 Scatter Ray
1 Arrester's Admonition
1 Dissipate
1 Endless Detour
1 Ionize
1 Pledge of Unity
1 Repulse
[SORCERIES]
1 Chart a Course
1 Savage Smash
1 Arwen's Gift
1 Incubation // Incongruity
1 Lórien Revealed
[ENCHANTMENTS]
1 Petrify 1 Lawmage's Binding
1 Minimus Containment
1 Wedding Announcement // Wedding Festivity
[LANDS]
1 Alpine Meadow
1 Arctic Treeline
1 Copperline Gorge
1 Eroded Canyon
1 Evolving Wilds
2 Forest
1 Fortified Beachhead
1 Gateway Plaza
1 Hengegate Pathway // Mistgate Pathway
3 Island
1 Lonely Arroyo
1 Lush Oasis
1 Minas Tirith
1 Mirage Mesa
1 Mountain
1 Needle Spires
1 Overgrown Farmland
3 Plains
1 Rimewood Falls
1 Rockfall Vale
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Seachrome Coast
1 Selesnya Guildgate
1 Shimmerdrift Vale
1 Shire Terrace
1 Simic Guildgate
1 Stormcarved Coast
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Thriving Grove
1 Thriving Isle
1 Volatile Fjord
1 Wind-Scarred Crag
[MAYBEBOARD]
1 Great Hall of the Citadel
1 Chromatic Star
1 Citanul Stalwart
1 Syncopate
1 Boros Challenger
1 Domri's Ambush
1 Dorothea, Vengeful Victim // Dorothea's Retribution
1 Finale of Glory
1 Harbin, Vanguard Aviator
1 Katilda, Dawnhart Prime
1 Malevolent Hermit // Benevolent Geist
1 Melira, the Living Cure
1 Negate
1 Samwise Gamgee
1 Assimilation Aegis
1 Confounding Riddle
1 Fall of the Impostor
1 Flip the Switch
1 King Harald's Revenge
1 Mana Geode
1 Phyrexian Altar
1 Phyrexian Atlas
1 Replicating Ring
1 Torens, Fist of the Angels
1 Union of the Third Path
1 Weaver of Blossoms // Blossom-Clad Werewolf
1 Devious Cover-Up
1 Neyali, Suns' Vanguard
1 Neyith of the Dire Hunt
1 Sunder Shaman
1 Gandalf the Grey
1 Spell Swindle

So a few weeks ago I got ill, nothing too serious, probably just some bad sushi, or something I left in the fridge too long. Anyway my body decides - as they are prone to do - that firing out both ends for a while is the best solution. After a few hours of trying to stay hydrated through this, getting lightheaded etc. I start to notice blood in the vom. Now, I've had that before a few times, but combined with the lightheadedness when I've had seizures before I decide it's "oh fuck" time.
Now, I live down the road from the hospital, like if I take an evening stroll I'll walk past it. Still decide I'm probably not going to make it on foot without something bad happening so call the ambulance. I've called a fair few in my time and not once have I ever heard the operator say "On their way, lights and sirens." Anyway, they monitor me overnight, discharge in the morning, but say they want me in for a gastroscopy (camera down the throat to check things out) as an outpatient. No worries, I've had one before. Couple of weeks later they book me in. Because it's a general anesthetic I need someone to pick me up. I figure I've got a friend who works at the hospital, see if she can do it. She's busy at her other hospital. I don't want to drag someone 40 minutes each way so I have to stay overnight. Whatever.
Well they do the procedure and the doc comes to talk to me, basically says my throat was so fucked they couldn't actually see anything, but they managed a biopsy. Have to go on a course of meds for 8 weeks and come back to try again. Here's the kicker though, the thing that was making it fucked is apparently a serious indicatocause of, well you know the Atlantic? It's a big sea right.
So here's me living alone, no family to talk to, all my friends prepping for a wedding so I can't talk to them and risk having this hanging over the whole shindig, trying to handle that news along with job applications and interviews, driving my autism up the wall. Then I get told I have an apartment inspection in a week so I'm stressing about getting the apartment ready. Anyway with all that I forgot to eat for a couple of days which laid me up for a few days which isn't fun. Finally managed to get out of the apartment today and get something to eat - not much mind you - and do some cleaning for the inspection on Tuesday. The follow up appointment from the second procedure is about a week before the stag do and two before the wedding so I'm just hoping it's either good news or I can hold it together and not fuck things up for my mates.
Anyway, I know that's a bit of a ramble, but I figured you all might like to know that even through all this I'm not drinking. There's absolutely no good that can come of it, so I'm still here with you all.

URI - Circles of Light Gala - 25th Anniversary - 25th Anniversary 06-18-2024 @ 6:30 PM - Miner Auditorium at SFJAZZ, San Francisco
Join us for the unforgettable Circle of Light Gala, produced by Dr. Oscar Williams, a one-of-a-kind event uniting URI's global community. Experience an evening filled with inspiring stories, captivating music, joyful dance, and heartfelt songs. Celebrate the power of unity and diversity as we come together in person to support URI's vital mission and forge new connections with like-minded individuals.Don't miss out on this extraordinary opportunity to connect, celebrate, and make a difference. Be inspired to join URI and help end religiously motivated violence. Get your tickets now, the first step to making a valued difference in your community.https://www.uri.org/circles-light
Tickets - https://www.sfjazz.org/tickets/productions/visiting-presenters/uri-circles-of-light-25th-anniversary/

Hi everyone! I'm planning a trip to Banff and Calgary with my wife (we are in our late 60s) and three family members in their 20s and 30s. I've already gotten some useful info from reading this sub -- thank you to all the people providing advice.
Everyone in my party is from the US and we have little or no experience visiting Canada. My current plan is to visit from July 1-6 with this rough itinerary:

• July 1: fly into Calgary arriving mid-afternoon. Pick up rental car at the airport. Drive to hotel in Canmore (already made a refundable reservation) and spend the rest of the day in Canmore.
• July 2-3: make day trips from Canmore to Banff and nearby areas. Some candidates: Banff Gondola, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Banff Springs Hotel.
• July 4: drive to Calgary in the afternoon, check into a hotel near the airport.
• July 5: spend the day in Calgary, maybe go to the Stampede if it's not too crowded.
• July 6: get up at 5am (!) to catch our 7:30am flight back to the US from Calgary airport.

While making day trips from Canmore, we'd like to see mountains, lakes, glaciers, and if possible northern lights. We'd like to take some gentle walks/hikes to see the natural wonders, but nothing strenuous or requiring good balance (I'm a bit wobbly due to medical issues). Up to 2-3 miles of mostly level ground is fine. We also like exploring nice towns.
Questions:

1. Instead of July 1-6, another possible time window for this trip is sometime between July 27 - Aug 31. Would that be a better plan? It seems like the week of July 1-6 might be about the most crowded time of the year to visit Banff, due to Canada Day. Is that week significantly more crowded than Jul 27 to Aug 31? All things being equal, most people in my part prefer July 1-6, but if it would be much better to go sometime July 27 - Aug 31, we'd switch.
2. What would be a good itinerary for the day trips starting from the hotel in Canmore, given our interests and limitations?
3. Any advice on how to avoid the worst of the crowds and lines in the Banff area?
4. Is July 5th a bad day to go the Calgary Stampede because it's the first day?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide! :)

[Eöl] shunned the Noldor, holding them to blame for the return to Morgoth, to trouble the quiet of Beleriand; but for the Dwarves he had more liking than any other of the Elvenfolk of old.
Welcome one and all again to the 2024 Read-Along and Discussion of The Silmarillion here on tolkienfans. For Week 20 (May 12-May 18), we will be exploring The Quenta Silmarillion (The History of the Silmarils) chapter 16, "Of Maeglin."
​
Aredhel, the daughter of Fingolfin, resided awhile in Nevrast with her brother Turgon, but later went with her people to dwell in the hidden city of Gondolin. However, she soon wearied of her hidden life in Gondolin and was permitted to set out purportedly to visit with Fingon in Hithlum with three lords of the household of Turgon. Upon reaching the Ford of Brithiach, she commanded her companions to instead turn south in the hope of passing through Doriath to eventually find the Sons of Fëanor, "her friends of old".
Upon arriving at the borders of Doriath, they were refused entry by King Thingol. And so Aredhel and her companions instead sought the dangerous route between the haunted valley of Ered Gorgoroth and the northern edge of Doriath. This passed through the land of Nan Dungortheb, where Aredhel was separated from her companions. They searched but could not find her, and barely escaping death themselves returned to Gondolin to share their tale, and there was great sorrow at the assumed fate of Aredhel.
But Aredhel, having lost her companions, continued on and eventually arrived in Himlad, where she was welcomed by the people of Celegorm and waited for his return. There for a while she was satisfied, but as the year lengthened, she took to riding further afield, seeking new and unknown paths and fields. By chance, she crossed into the forest of Nan Elmoth, where dwelt Eöl, who was named the Dark Elf. In earlier days, he was of the kin of Thingol, but he had left Doriath and fled to the shadows of Nan Elmoth. He loved not the Noldor, but learned from the Dwarves much skill of metalwork, and was often a guest to the halls of Nogrod and Belegost. He espied Aredhel from afar and desired her, and ensnared her in enchantments so she could not find the way out, but instead came deeper into Nan Elmoth. Being weary, she finally came to the halls of Eöl, and he welcomed her, and took her for his wife, and it was a long time before any of her kin heard rumour of her again.
Though at Eöl's command she was required to shun sunlight, it is not said that she was completely unwilling to their union, and in the darkness of Nan Elmoth was born their son, who, in her heart, she named Lómion, which means "Child of the Twilight" in Quenya. But Eöl gave him no name until he was twelve years old, at which time he named him Maeglin, that is "Sharp Glance".
As Maeglin grew to full maturity, he resembled, in face and form, one of the Noldor. But speaking few words, except in matters important to him, he resembled his father in mood and spirit. Often he went with Eöl to the cities of the Dwarves, and learned much from them, especially the craft of finding ores and metals in the mountains. Yet he loved his mother more and would often listen to her tales regarding the Noldor, and the valour of the House of Fingolfin, while Eöl was abroad.
In speaking of her kin to Maeglin, Aredhel desired to see them again, and these tales stirred also in Maeglin the desire to see the Noldor. But upon revealing his inner wishes to Eöl, his father became infuriated, and threatened to bind his son if he would associate with the Noldor. Maeglin became cold and silent, and no longer went abroad with Eöl, and Eöl mistrusted him. One midsummer, Eöl went away to a feast in Nogrod. During this time, the desire grew hot in the heart of Maeglin to leave Nan Elmoth and look upon his mother's people and to seek the city of Gondolin. Seeing this, Aredhel was glad and they departed, telling Eöl's servants they sought the sons of Fëanor.
However, Eöl returned earlier than anticipated and found his wife and son two days gone. He set out immediately in wrathful pursuit. On entering Himlad, Eöl was ambushed by the riders of Curufin, and was taken to their lord. Curufin mockingly asked Eöl what urgent matter brought him to his land, and Eöl told him that he wanted to join his wife and son on their visit to him. Upon learning from Curufin that they turned westward, travelling along the northern fence of Doriath, Eöl asked leave to discover their purpose. Curufin instead coldly bid him go back to Nan Elmoth.
Thus Eöl rode off in haste, full of shame and anger. He perceived that Aredhel and Maeglin were heading towards Gondolin and rode after them. As the two arrived at the Outer Gate of Gondolin, they were received joyfully and passed inside the Hidden Kingdom, where Turgon listened with wonder to the story of his sister, and gave Maeglin the highest honour in his realm. Eöl watched them from afar and followed them to the city, but was taken in by the Guard, and was brought before Turgon after claiming to be husband and father to Aredhel and Maeglin. Aredhel confirmed this and Turgon welcomed Eöl as his kinsman, giving him leave to stay in Gondolin. But Eöl insulted the King, and bid Maeglin to "leave the House of the slayers of his kin, or be accursed". Maeglin did not answer.
Turgon then set a choice before Eöl and Maeglin of either abiding in Gondolin, or dying in Gondolin. Eöl stood a long time in silence, before he abruptly took a spear from under his cloak and threw it at Maeglin, crying "the second choice I take, and for my son also! You shall not hold what is mine!" But Aredhel came between the spear and Maeglin, and was struck. Eöl was restrained, set in bonds and led away. However the tip of the spear was poisoned, and Aredhel died in the night. Eöl was brought before Turgon and no mercy was shown to him; he was led to the Caragdûr, a precipice upon the northern side of the city, to be cast down. Maeglin stood by in silence, and Eöl cried out "so you forsake your father and his kin, ill-gotten son! Here shall you fail of all your hopes and here may you yet die the same death as I". And he was cast over the cliff-edge. Thus ended Eöl, Dark Elf, of the shadows of Nan Elmoth.
Maeglin grew great in stature in Gondolin, and was high in the favour of Turgon. He rose to be mighty amongst the Princes of the Noldor, and was the greatest other than Turgon in the realm of Gondolin. And yet not all things went as he would have liked, though he did not reveal his heart. For from his first days in Gondolin, he loved Idril Celebrindal, his first cousin, and desired her, but without hope. For the Eldar did not wed with kin so close, and further, Idril loved him not at all. Maeglin's love turned to darkness, and he sought more to have his will in all matters, no matter the cost to him, if it might grant him more power.
And so it came to be that in Gondolin, at the height of all its bliss, majesty, and beauty, a dark seed of evil was sown in the heart of Maeglin.[1]
Of Maeglin at The Lord of the Rings Wiki: This chapter introduces Maeglin, and his father Eöl, and tells the history of Maeglin's life from his birth to his becoming a citizen of Gondolin. Also in this chapter is the death of Eöl.
Chapter discussion at Entmoot TolkienTrail.
Chapter discussion at The Barrow-Downs.
Questions for the week:

1. Eöl is described as grim -- "his eyes could see deep into shadows and dark places." Does this just mean his eyes have adjusted to life in the dark, or is there also a hint of his being able to see beyond what is there, in a "foresight" or "farsighted" kind of way?
2. Maeglin and Eöl argue because Eöl won't let him see his mother's kin which causes a major rift between the two. Why did Eöl object?
3. What is significant of Maeglin's given name of Lomion, i.e. "Child of the Twilight" by his mother, Aredhel, but at age 12, Eöl named him Maeglin, i.e. "Sharp Glance".
4. Why did Eöl have more liking for the Dwarves "than any other of the Elvenfolk of old."?

For drafts and history of this chapter see The War of the Jewels, "Part Three: The Wanderings of Húrin and other Writings not forming part of The Quenta Silmarillion", Chapter III, "Maeglin)", pp. 316-339.
For further history and analysis of this chapter, see Arda Reconstructed (by Douglas Charles Kane), p. 155.
Be sure to have your copy of The Atlas of Middle-earth by Karen Wynn Fonstad on hand as you go through this chapter.
Some Tolkien-related hangouts on YouTube (relevant to this week):

• Nerd of the Rings This episode: Maps of Middle-earth: The First Age The Silmarillion Explained
• Nerd of the Rings This episode: The Origins of Melkor Tolkien Explained
• Nerd of the Rings This episode: The History of Morgoth [COMPILATION] Tolkien Explained
• Nerd of the Rings This episode: Eöl the Dark Elf Tolkien Explained
• Tolkien Untangled This episode: The Return of the Noldor Of the Lords of Beleriand : Silmarillion Explained - Part 2 of 10
• Ælfwine's Road This episode: Silmarillion Summary: Ch. 16 - Of Maeglin [19/31]
• Voice of Geekdom This episode: Chapter 16.1 - Eöl the Dark Elf, and Aredhel, White Lady of the Noldor Silmarillion Explained
• Voice of Geekdom This episode: Chapter 16.2 - The Rise of Maeglin Silmarillion Explained
• The Tolkien Road Podcast This episode: Silmarillion 2022 Ch 16 » Of Maeglin
• The Tolkien Road Podcast This episode: 0047 - The Silmarillion - Chapter 16 - Of Maeglin
• The One Ring This episode: Tolkien’s Disney Princess!? – Of Maeglin – The Silmarillion – 18

The Silmarillion Reader's Guide at Tea With Tolkien.
The Silmarillion Reader's Guide by askmiddlearth on Tumblr.
Quettaparma Quenyallo (QQ) - The most extensive list of Quenya words available on the internet, by Helge Fauskanger, 1999-2013.
Tolkien Collector's Guide - Guide to Tolkien's Letters
A (Hopefully) Light Guide to the Silmarillion — Or What I Wish I’d Known Before Reading It by u/Ok_Bullfrog_8491/
The Definitive Family Tree of the Tolkien Legendarium by u/PotterGandalf117
Wikipedia - The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
Announcement and Index: (Take 2) 2024 The Silmarillion and The Fall of Gondolin Read-Along

Poem by Marceline Desbordes-Valmore (photo of text)
English Translation by David Paley (Another translation to explore is by Louis Simpson)
Les séparés The Separated Apart
Do not write. I am sad and would like to fade away. The fine summers without you are nights without light. I have folded my arms unable to reach you; And to knock at my heart is to beat on my grave. Do not write!
Do not write. Let us learn only to die in ourselves. Ask only of God… of yourself, whether I loved you! In the depths of your absence, to hear that you love me Is to be hearing from heaven without ever ascending. Do not write!
Do not write. I am fearful of you and afraid of my memory That has kept your voice and calls to me often; Do not show me the water that cannot be drunk For your cherished writing brings your portrait alive. Do not write!
Do not write those sweet words that I dare not read any more: It seems that your voice spreads them over my heart; And, as I see them through the glow of your smile; It seems they are stamped with a kiss on my heart. Do not write!
https://preview.redd.it/nfboc8l2rb1d1.jpg?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6281eaa6bb17dae221fecc3aefeae5db72386ed3

Something I’ll experiment with is posting prompt lists I have in storage for you writers, artists, whatever out there. Most of the ones I have are from ancient LiveJournal communities but this one is special in that it’s from an ancient FE site. Internet Archive link is at the top (though be warned, it’s in Japanese and on iOS the text is garbled.)
In summary, these are 100 FE-themed prompts that I’m posting here for your usage (Google translated, so there may be some awkwardness):

1. Load
2. Prepare to attack
3. Heroine
4. Loyal Knight
5. Close call!
6. Hero
7. Knight and Princess
8. Attack!
9. Join
10. Class change
11. Arena
12. Treasure found
13. Fluttering
14. Dancing in the sky
15. Across the desert
16. Wound
17. Brother and sister
18. Healing
19. Dragon's blood
20. Rage
21. Warrior
22. Time to rest
23. It has to be you
24. Wind
25. Frozen land
26. Triangle attack!
27. Heavy
28. Beautiful long-haired swordsman
29. Valkyrie
30. Rival
31. Take aim
32. Go at your own pace
33. Rescue
34. Revenge
35. Bonds
36. The Captive Princess
37. Goodbye
38. Sleep
39. Mage
40. Friendship
41. Noble and Commoner
42. Risking My Life
43. Not Yet!
44. I Can Be of Help
45. Grassland
46. Unstoppable
47. Persuasion
48. Princess
49. Prayer
50. Light and Darkness
51. Dragoon
52. Domination
53. Fated Showdown (Part 2)
54. Wait
55. A Break
56. Loved One
57. Money
58. Big Brother
59. Tension
60. Look-alike
61. ...I'm Bored
62. Unrequited Love
63. Cleric
64. Guard
65. Beard
66. I'm sorry
67. Special training
68. Ancient magic
69. Smile
70. Sword dance
71. That cute girl
72. Partner
73. Sweat
74. Help me
75. Night
76. Friends
77. ...!!
78. Tears
79. Fatal blow
80. Prince
81. Legendary weapon
82. Thank you
83. Blood
84. Stand by me
85. Strategy meeting
86. Confession
87. Past
88. Hurry! Hurry!
89. Heart pounding
90. Rain
91. Alone
92. Happiness
93. Great duo
94. Handsome
95. Banquet
96. Back
97. Eve of the final battle
98. Final battle
99. The Message of Peace
100. Wedding Ceremony

Use some of them, all of them, go wild! Some are not very husbando-themed but you can probably still make it work ;)

Character Creation:

PC
Reddit Account: AnotherBabyEchidna
Discord Tag: thebrundun
Name and House: Willem Ryger
Age: 45
Cultural Group: RiverlandeValemen
Appearance: Willem Ryger always seems to have a coy smile about him, accentuated by his strong jawline and sharp cheekbones. His curly light brown hair has begun to thin, though his pronounced brows remain strong. Standing around six feet tall, his posture always exudes confidence, and his near-yellow brown eyes always seem to be hiding a secret or a joke.
Trait: Mastermind
Skill(s): Assassin (e), Covert (e), Devious
Talent(s): Philosophising, Carousing, Gambling
Negative Trait(s): n/a
Starting Title(s): Lord of Willow Wood, Ser
Starting Location: King’s Landing
Alternate Characters: n/a

Bio-Timeline:

• 20 BC: Willem is born into the cursed bloodline of House Ryger to Willow and Ryman Ryger. House Ryger has long kept their curse a secret to the outside world. As the story goes, at the birth of every Ryger there is a new weeping willow sprouted in their willow forests and the health of the weeping willow is said to be directly tied to the health of the Ryger.
• 18 BC: Willem’s brother, Marq, is born.
• 10 BC: Willem is sent to ward under Vance of Wayfarer’s Rest at the behest of his grandfather Lord Leo Ryger who detests the idea of his disappointment of a son raising the eventual heir of Willow Wood.
• 8 BC: Willem makes quick friends with Beck Bracken, also warding at Wayfarer’s rest, though he takes a special liking to his sister, Perra, and a childhood crush forms.
• 2 BC: Willem is knighted but the event is overshadowed by the capitulation of the Vances to Aegon the Conqueror. He returns home to Willow Wood where his grandfather informs him of the family curse and in order to avoid the curse he is sent to The Eyrie to join their court, quickly earning their trust and his outsider perspective and connections are used in the capacity of Master of the Thresholds. Also during this time his first son, a bastard named Rickard, is revealed to him. Despite the child being of common birth and mute, Willem takes him in to raise him as his own, though much of the raising is done by his servants.
• 1 BC: Funnily enough, similar to how Willem was present when King Aegon landed at Wayfarer’s Rest, Queen Visenya lands at The Eyrie, and Willem is one of the few advisors to Sharra to counsel bending the knee.
• 1 AC: Willem Ryger weds Lynese Hightower, though his true love is still Perra Bracken yet he spares her his family curse by not wedding her. Later in the year his first trueborn daughter is born and named Roslyn. Additionally, his nephew, Robyn, is born, and the pair of Robyn and Roslyn are inseparable.
• 2 AC: Willem and Lynese have another child and name her Mya.
• 5 AC: Willem and Lynese have their last child together, naming their son Myles, though the curse claims Lynese’s life shortly after his birth. After her death, his life of debauchery begins and he begins his yearly parties for the elite of Westeros. Another nephew, Addam, is also born, though Willem does not celebrate the addition to their family with his brother.
• 7 AC: Willem involves himself in the Tully plot against King Aegon, though his ties to the Vale arouse suspicion and he is barred from much of the decision making. Due to this untrust, he informs Lord Blackwood of the plot who takes on much of the burden of revealing the plot to Queen Visenya. Due to Willem’s close ties to the Vale and his lord grandfather’s acceptance, House Ryger swears fealty to House Arryn directly. During this time, the stress pushes Willem into the arms of his childhood crush, Perra Bracken, despite his continued refusal to wed her. Unbeknownst to him a child is spawned from this affair.
• 8 AC: Willem becomes a personal confidant and source of comfort to the grieving Queen Rhaenys. The intimacy of their relationship is kept a closely guarded secret, especially their bedding which results in another child unbeknownst to him. His duties to the Vale require a large distance to be maintained between them, forbidding any true relationship from developing.
• 10 AC: Willem is present for Sharra Arryn’s death yet at the same time his own father, Ryman Ryger, dies. Rather than return home, Willem persists in The Eyrie during the trying time for House Arryn. As Ronnel Arryn comes of age, Willem is retained as Master of the Thresholds.
• 11 AC: Willem’s grandfather, Lord Leo Ryger, dies soon after, as if he only lived out of spite to not see Ryman inherit Willow Wood. His death occurs after a visit to The Eyrie, the second time of visiting with the first being the oath to House Arryn, where Leo further informs Willem of their curse. Were a Ryger to stand quiet enough in the weeping willing forests of their home, he could hear their ancestors. Lastly, it is revealed that despite Leo’s attempts to shield Willem from the curse, a rot has set into Willem’s willow. Due to this, Willem accepts the counsel that his brother Marq take on much of the responsibility of ruling Willow Wood.
• 12 AC: Willem’s eldest daughter, Roslyn, is informed of everything that his grandfather has informed him of. He decides to keep Roslyn close and begin to teach her much of his subterfuge and sets her up to inherit many of his connections should he pass.
• 13 AC: Willem’s daughter, Mya, is sent to ‘squire’ for the Cavaliers upon their creation.
• 15 AC: Willem’s son, Myles, is sent to squire for the legendary knight Lord Corbray, though the boy is difficult to train mostly due to his protest of being sent away from his family.
• 18 AC: Willem’s bastard son, Rickard, is finally knighted and immediately following his ceremony he takes off to find where his commoner mother was sent off to. Unfortunately, the Riverwar breaks out during his travels and he finds himself on either side of the war depending on which side of the battle he happens to need to be on to continue his search for his mother.
• 19 AC: Willem is present for the wedding of Queen Visenya and Lord Lyn Egen and does his best to aid in the planning of the festivities.
• 20 AC: Willem’s brother, Marq, declares himself Regent of Willow Wood. While having been the de facto regent, the declaration comes under contention from Willem. To resolve the dispute, Roslyn is made Steward of Willow Wood and acts as eyes and ears for Willem. Her loyalties are in contention, unbeknownst to Willem, as Roslyn and her cousin Robyn further their relationship into intimacy.
• 22 AC: Willem’s bastard son, Rickard, returns from his travels. Being mute, his ability to convey his travels is limited, but the corpse he returns with bears the resemblance of the woman Willem bedded long ago. They put her body to rest in the weeping willow forests and Rickard forever swears his service to his father.
• 23 AC: Willem’s trueborn son, Myles, returns to Willem now a knight. He is given the truth of the family curse and his mental state further spirals, with his long protest of being sent away now given a proper justification. Willem brings the entire family to the forests to find each of their weeping willows, where Myles finds the rot of his father to have spread to his tree nonetheless. He vows to make his death worthwhile, though Willem cautions that despite his own tree having rot, he has yet to perish.
• 25 AC: Willem leads the entirety of House Ryger to the festivities in King’s Landing.

Family Tree:

https://www.familyecho.com/?p=START&c=3f566chlk4whp1yg&f=600232199387350859

Supporting Characters:

AC
Name and House: Roslyn Ryger
Age: 24
Cultural Group: RiverlandeValewoman
Appearance: Roslyn’s dark, straight hair and pale skin stand in sharp contrast to her father. Her amber eyes are inherited directly from him, however, as was her smile that often appears devious to some and endearing to others. Constantly lost in thought, she takes an unassuming posture, preferring to only display confidence when she feels she is in the right.
Trait: Insidious
Skill(s): Espionage (e), Investigator
Talent(s): Singing, Hunting, Gambling
Negative Trait(s): n/a
Starting Title(s): Steward of Willow Wood
Starting Location: King’s Landing
Alternate Characters: n/a
 
Archetypes/Notable Characters:

• Mya Ryger - Daughter of Willem; the resemblance is uncanny upon realizing that Roslyn inherited Willem’s cunning while Mya inherited charm. Aged 23. Tourney Knight archetype.
• Myles Ryger - Son of Willem and heir to Willow Wood; of whom has lost the luster of life in his eyes with an uneasy calm demeanor always present. Aged 20. Cutthroat archetype.
• Rickard Rivers - Bastard son of Willem; a mute who has devoted his life to a love of killing under the guise of being a knight. Aged 27.
• Marq Ryger - Brother to Willem; rather than enacting his cunning through subterfuge, he has instead proven his ability as a cunning commander with a true love of tactics. Aged 43.
• Robyn Ryger - Nephew to Willem; a man of true brilliance and joy for learning who has devoted his time to the art of revenue generation. Aged 24.
• Addam Ryger - Nephew to Willem; a kind-hearted simpleton that has been focused on the simplicity of combat. Aged 20.
• Septon-Maester Stephus - A long-time advisor to Willem; likely neither septon nor a maester, but his wisdom is vast, if often crude. Aged 68.

I first started noticing that something was wrong around 3 months ago. At the time, I was working from home and would usually light a scented candle while I worked, which usually helped me relax and stay focused on my work. I would usually burn through a candle a week, but over time, the candles started to take less time to fully burn up. At first, I thought that this was because of a change in ingredients the company that made the candles used, but the problem persisted after I switched candle brands, which I once again blamed on the candle manufacturers.
I kept this belief for another week until the first incident. While getting up from my computer desk, which faces away from the candle, to take a quick bathroom break, I caught a glimpse of the lit candle. A two-inch layer of molten wax rested on another three-inch layer of solid wax, the wicks rising out at first and being somewhat visible through the molten layer, finally breaking the surface and being slowly burned away. The flames flickered as I swung the door open and walked out of the room. When I returned 10 minutes later, the molten layer was gone, and the wicks had been shortened so that the flames rested right above the solid layer of the wax. At first, I thought that the glass jar that contained the candle was leaking, but after a short inspection, I was only able to find two small drops of candle wax that had solidified right next to the candle on the bedside table. I still had 2 hours of work left to do, but I was too lost in thought and was unable to do any work for the rest of the day.
Every night before I go to sleep, I like to read for at least 30 minutes, and while reading, I usually light a candle. Around 4 days later, I had mostly forgotten about the incident and went back to using candles. Due to my naivety, it returned.
I fell asleep while reading with a candle lit on my bedside table. I woke up to loud slurping noises. As I opened my eyes, the brightness of the light I had not turned off almost blinded me. As my eyes tried to readjust to the light and focus on what was in front of me, I saw a somewhat humanoid dark gray to light blue blur that contrasted with the white paint on the walls behind it. Another gray line stretched from the shape's head to the candle on my bedside table. I could feel my heart skip five consecutive beats. I opened my mouth and tried to force out a scream for help, but the pressure I applied to my throat was way beyond what it was able to handle, leading me to only produce a light wheezing sound. I tried to sit up or to at least prop myself up, but my muscles failed me. Trying to push myself up with my arms felt impossible. As I stared at the figure that had suddenly appeared in my room, my eyes finally managed to focus, making it possible for me to see the intruder who was now staring at me. The figure was a man at least 7 feet tall, fully naked; he looked bloated; his eyes were bloodshot and looked like they would pop out of their sockets; at any point, his skin was a grayish light blue.
HIS LIPS
His lips extended from his mouth like an elephant's trunk, which had been split in half. The lips extended from the man's face to the candle; the flames had been put out. He was using his lips as a makeshift straw, slowly sucking up all the molten wax from the candle, which had fully liquified while I was asleep. I laid in bed, unable to move, unable to scream for help, staring until he emptied the jar. His lips retracted back to his face, the molten wax solidifying on their tips and cracking, flakes of wax falling off the man's lips and falling to the floor. The man grinned, staring at me. The ridges and gaps between the teeth were filled in with wax, making it impossible to make out where one tooth ended and the next one began. The man opened the door he was standing next to, but instead of walking out of the room, he stepped behind it. His face peered at me from above the door, and then once again, like he had done to drink the wax, the man puckered his lips, which stretched from his mouth and floated to me. I shook and tried to roll over away from him. I wanted to get up and run, but my fear had taken over my body. Tears flowed from my eyes. He kissed me on the cheek, leaving flakes of wax and light moisture. He retracted his lips and lowered his head behind the door.
I don't remember falling asleep, but when I woke up, I saw the empty glass jar, which at one point contained the candle. Even though I had hoped that what had happened was a dream, it wasn't. I still had flakes of wax on my cheek, and on my bedroom floor, the wax in the jar had disappeared. I called the police, but they were unable to find anyone in my apartment; they also could not find any evidence of a break-in.
After the break-in, I started looking for a new apartment to move to, thinking that the man was tied to the building I was in, but even though I had thrown out all of my candles, I could not stomach spending another hour in my apartment, constantly looking over my shoulder or walking around with my back pressed up against the wall to not allow it to creep up on me. Thankfully, my friend Emma was able to let me stay over at her apartment while I looked for a new one for myself.
Me and Emma have been friends since we were 8, and we've been there to support each other when times get rough. This isn’t the first time I've had to stay over at her house for an extended amount of time; in fact, I have had to stay over at Emma’s as many times as she has had to stay over at my apartment, whether it was because of evictions after losing a job, breakups, or a candle wax drinking squatter. I didn't even know if it was human. I mean, sure, it looked like one, but human lips are not supposed to do what his did, and somehow it didn't have a reaction to molten wax being poured down its esophagus. I didn't tell Emma about what happened—the details at least—I just told her that a man had broken into my house and was watching me sleep. The only people I told the truth to were my therapist and the cops, and all of them disregarded what I told them as my mind making things up after a traumatic event.
For a while, I believed what they said—I mean, why wouldn’t I?—but then I started seeing him again. For a few days, I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me again like it had done during the night of the incident. For split seconds out of the corner of my eye, I would see the outline of a tall, bloated figure. At first, they were hours apart, but after a while, it became constant. He was standing in each room I passed, in every single dark corner I glanced past, and then he spoke.
“FeeD MeEeee”
It stood in the kitchen, peering over from a small gap between the fridge and the sink, where the trash can that had been knocked over onto its side usually stood. His voice was raspy, and every word that came out of his mouth was distorted as if he were gargling water, but still, I could somehow clearly make out each word he said from over 15 feet away.
“Please just leave me alone I… why are you following me?”
I shouted at the figure, the same fear that had taken over my body during the night I saw him for the first time paralyzing me, making it impossible for me to move anything other than my eyes, eyelids, and mouth.
“i’M sTarviNg, I nEEd You To FeEd ME”
It replied again. Now, stepping out from behind the fridge, he stepped directly onto a rotten banana. Its mushy brown content’s seeping out of the peel under the pressure of his decomposing foot, which was covered in scabs, and took up the same grayish light blue color as the rest of his body. He mostly looked the same; his bloodshot eyes bulged from their sockets, but now his tongue was swollen. It peeked out from between his bloated, cracked gray lips; it stared at me, waiting for an answer.
“Ok, I’ll.. I’ll feed you, but please just... leave me alone.”
I replied, the tone of my voice shifting into high-pitched squeals with every quick breath I took. He looked satisfied by my response. He somehow squeezed his bloated body back into the gap that was at least four times smaller than him. After peering over at me from above the fridge, he bent over backwards, his spine releasing a series of sickening cracks until he was fully obscured by the fridge, and then he vanished.
Still barely in control of my body, I limped over to the couch tucked away in the back corner of the living room, it took me at least 10 minutes to steady my breathing and 20 more to fully regain control of my body again but as soon as I did I ran out the house and to the nearest store, during the 15-minute walk he stared at me through dark windows and the backs of cars, peered out at me from gaps between leaves in the trees and bushes, he even followed me into the store staring at me from the middle of deserted isles before disappearing right before my eyes were able to fully catch him, once I finally got the candles I randomly picked four off of the shelves and rushed to the self checkout.
When I arrived home, I had 2 hours before Emma got off work. I didn't want to feed it while she was home, and I didn't want her to see it. I pulled out two of the candles from the black plastic bag and placed them on the kitchen table, the first a light blue candle named “Garden Rain” and the second a red candle named “Juicy Watermelon." I pulled out a lighter from one of the drawers Emma used after her stove stopped lighting on its own and lit each of the 6 wicks on the candles. As soon as I started seeing the wax melt under the heat of the burning wicks, I dropped the lighter onto the table next to the candles and ran out of the room. I could not stomach seeing that thing again; even just thinking about it made me shudder and hyperventilate. The paralyzing fear that seeing him caused me made me want to vomit.
At least 30 minutes later I started to hear it drink even though the living room and kitchen were separated by a wall, even though I had closed the door I could still hear what at first started as slurping sounds which were followed up by loud gulps, then it stopped, and once again 30 minutes later it started drinking, as the slurping started once again I heard the door to the apartment crack open, it was Emma, as she stepped through the door I saw her carrying two large brown paper bags of groceries in her hands, she was headed to the kitchen.
“Hey let me grab those for you”
I said running over to her, my voice shaking.
“Oh, thanks. Are you… okay, you look scared?”
My eyes shot wide open in a mixture of fear and surprise. I said the first thing that came to mind.
“Yeah just umm… I didn't expect you to come home so early and I got a bit spooked”
“shit sorry, I know I should have called you, work let me off early today,”
I started to turn away from her walking to the kitchen.
Trying to keep her away from the kitchen I told her to wait for me in the living room because I wanted to talk to her about something. I didn't know what I would talk to her about but that was a problem for future me to resolve, somehow it worked.
“What's that sound?”
She called out to me while walking towards the living room couch. It took me a few seconds to come up with an excuse.
“I think it’s the sink, or the pipes at least”
I opened the door to the kitchen with my eyes closed at first hesitant to look knowing what would be greeting me. slowly prying my eyes open I started to see its outline, my muscles started to lose strength as the details of the man came into my view, I felt the grocery bags start to slip from my arms, my knees buckled, face first I fell onto the kitchen floor scattering the groceries all over the floor, I mixture of a light scream and a yelp escaped from my mouth as my body made contact with the floor, Emma concerned for my safety ran into the kitchen, she didn't scream, using all of the strength and mobility I had left in my muscles I rolled over expecting to see her face drenched in terror, her body frozen still unable to move just like my body had done the first time that I saw him, but Emma looked concerned, the man was gone, she crouched down beside me.
“Oh my god are you ok? What happened?”
I looked around observing my surroundings.
“I um… I… I tripped on the little thing at the bottom of the doorframe”
I finally managed to blurt out another excuse, not being able to remember what the name of a door sill was. I started to sit up using a part of the energy that had returned to my body, pain pulsed through my chest and arms, Emma looked at me with a concerned face.
“You've been acting really weird since I got home, are you sure you're ok?”
“Yeah… I think I’m just having one of those days you know”
The confusion on Emma’s face said that she didn’t know and to be honest I didn't either, I guess my luck of pulling random excuses out of my ass ran out, Emma thought that she triggered some sort of PTSD response after barging into the house unannounced at first apologizing then trying to change the subject to stop my trembling which I was still unsuccessfully trying to hide from her.
“Did you buy candles?”
Emma asked picking the groceries apart from the garbage that spilled out the can that the man had knocked over, placing them on the table next to the now half-empty glass jars, the flames flickered above the inch or so of molten wax the man was unable to finish drinking.
“Yeah I’ve been struggling with work lately, they usually help me focus”
“Huh Interesting combination you’ve got going on here”
She looked at me and smiled slightly, I smiled back and chuckled to seem normal.
“Yeah even I don't know what I was trying to accomplish here, to be honest”
I tried to help Emma clean up the spilled groceries but she did not let me, she told me that I needed to recover like I had been in a car crash instead of having taken a little tumble. After a few seconds of silence, Emma spoke again.
“Anyway, what did you want to talk to me about earlier?”
A quick jolt of stress shot through my body, in a jumbled mess of lies and fear I had forgotten what I had told Emma, I sat there in silence for a few seconds unable to come up with an excuse
“I…umm… I don’t remember, it wasn't anything serious though”
“Damn did you hit your head too?”
She said once again proudly smiling at her joke.
At this point Emma picked up the last bag of potato chips from the floor and placed it on the table, then she opened the fridge and started loading the groceries into it.
“Anyway I gotta go get back to work’’
I blurted out after a few more seconds of awkward silence.
“Alright well good luck”
I walked over into the living room and sat down in front of my workstation, which now consisted of a laptop sitting on a small foldable TV tray that had just barely enough room left on it to fit a small USB mouse.
The last thing I remember, before I fell asleep, was me mindlessly scrolling through apartment listings while Emma watched a random 90’s horror movie I’m positive only had a budget of $500.
I woke up with a light stinging pain shooting through my dry throat, and a dim hissing sound caused by thousands of water drops striking the ground outside filled the room. I pressed the spacebar on my laptop, the brightness of the screen blinding me temporarily, after taking a few seconds to let my eyes readjust I managed to make out the time, 3:45 AM. A strong smell I was unable to make out the origin of assaulted my nostrils. Lavender.
The smell hitting my nose had the same effect on me that I would expect smelling salts would have on a weightlifter right before they set a world record. Before I knew it my legs were moving on their own at an almost uncontrollable pace, fighting back against my mind which was telling them to slow down after years of being used to navigating both mine and Emma’s apartment as steadily as possible to not bother the neighbors.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity I stood before Emma’s bedroom door, a faint, yellow, pulsating light radiated from a lamp and snuck out of a small gap between the door and the doorframe, reluctantly I pushed my left hand up against the door, my right hand grasping onto the door frame for a sense of stability, once the door was fully agape I scanned the inside of the room my heart skipping a beat for every humanoid shadow cast up onto the wall by the lights from the wicks which were set ablaze and were being slowly burnt away.
I walked into Emma’s room and made my way over to her bedside table to put out the candle, as I stepped closer towards her, her face became more defined, I could finally make out her features, she was awake, but no she could not have been, even though her eyes were wide open they never blinked, she didn't even move slightly, as I moved closer I finally managed to fully make out the expression of pure terror on her face, her mouth wide agape as if she was about to release a deafening screach, but she could not have, a single drop of solidified wax dribbled out of the corner of her mouth and clung to her cheek, my eyes traced the cream colored path back towards her mouth, first up her cheek then between the corner of her mouth and finally behind her teeth, there instead of her tongue or the roof of her mouth I saw a wall of wax which had filled in the entirety of her mouth.
I fell to my knees and hunched forward supporting my body weight with my arms, I was too late, I resisted the urge to vomit and got back up onto my feet, a mixture of tears and snot slid down my face and onto my lips, shaking now I slowly started limping over towards my phone which I had left on the couch next to where I had awoken just minutes before, just minutes before my life was destroyed because of my lies if I had just told Emma what I had gone through, if I had just told her what had happened on the night of the incident which now seemed trivial, even if she thought that I was crazy, I know that she would have complied just to make me feel comfortable.
It took me at least 30 seconds of repeated attempts to stabilize my hands enough to properly dial 911. “Someone broke into my apartment and hurt my friend” was the only reasonable explanation I could come up with that would not get the operator to hang up on me thinking that this was a prank call.
I sat there in the living room for an agonizing 10 minutes, crying, my sadness slowly transformed into anger towards myself, and my mind raced thinking of all the lies I’d told, I kept thinking that if I had just told her the truth she would not have been laying there in her bed, her body bloated, “every single orifice has signs of forced penetration and has been filled with what seems to be candle wax” is what was written on her autopsy report.
For a few days I was the main suspect in Emma’s murder, but due to the almost unstoppable crying and the unresponsive state that I was in when the police arrived, mixed with the lack of evidence of me having a way to produce 30 pounds of candle wax led to me being released out of police custody, but because I was the main suspect I was not told any details about what had fully happened to Emma, for days all I had to work off of was the image of her face frozen in terror, and a short glance I caught of her bloated body as she was being carted out on a stretcher.
I recounted every single word of our last conversations over and over again until they became permanently etched into my brain.
Emma’s parents originally wanted to cremate her, as that is what she had somewhat jokingly asked for whenever the topic of funerals came up, well she had joked about wanting to have had unpopped popcorn shoved down her throat before she was sent off to “scare the shit out of the guy cremating me” but due to all the wax which would have been impossible to get out of her body they were forced to bury her.
A few days before Emma’s funeral her body disappeared.
After Emma’s death, her parents took me into their home, after reading the autopsy reports and seeing her corpse they had thrown out every single candle they owned which made their home the safest choice I had, still, this did not stop me from buying a machete and keeping it under my bed, just in case.
I was laying on the bed in their guest bedroom The day that the police informed Emma’s parents about her disappearance, the bedroom is right above the front porch of the house, at first I heard them ring the doorbell which was followed up by 3 powerful knocks on the door, for about a minute I laid there on the bed listening to muffled voices exchanging distorted words I was barely able to make out which slowly transformed into distorted weeps, curious I lifted myself up from the bed, made my way over to the window and carefully lifted the bottom panel making Shure to not make too much noise, the distorted muffled sounds started forming into coherent words “We checked the security footage but the only strange thing we could see was a 5 second time jump” one of the officers spoke in a serious and almost monotone voice “which meant that the security guard who was the only person in the building had to climb down 2 flights of stairs walk through a 40 foot long hallway and then drag her body back up stairs and out of the building in 5 seconds” Emma’s mom let out yelp “ but don’t worry ma'am that’s actually good news because we know that her corpse is still somewhere within the building and was probably brought to the wrong floor by an intern, we’ve already warned all of the staff at the hospital to keep an eye out, and we also sent 5 officers to search the hospital”
I could not believe what I was hearing, my breathing quickened, but this time instead of fear I felt anger, that fucker stole her corpse and was probably in the weird separate plane of existence he always went back to after terrorizing me, cutting off chunks of her body, melting her, and drinking her.
I closed the window Emma’s mom's cries once again turned into a muffled rumble which was only possible to make out if you knew what to look for, I took a few steps back away from the window planning to lay back down, not wanting to bother Emma’s parents. I bumped into something, not something, someone, its fleshy towering form as solid as a wall sent me tumbling forward, I knew it was him, he had returned to take me too, to stretch his swollen cracked lips, push them down my esophagus, fill my lungs and stomach with wax. But despite all of that this time I was not scared, I was angry, and I was not going to stand there in terror like I had the last time I saw him.
I fell forward onto my knees my face missing the window sill just by mere inches, I put my hands onto the floor, lifted one of my knees, and rotated 180 degrees now facing the monster, to the right of him pushed up against the wall was the bed, light from the sun reflected off of the metallic button which kept my machete in it’s sheathe, the man started to stretch his lips, they were moving towards me, waving a wiggling through the air like a snake slithering towards me.
I dove towards the bed one of my feet pushing off of the floor and the other pushing against the wall which creaked under the pressure applied to it, I flew for a few moments before slamming down onto the carpet and sliding forward, the heat generated by my skin brushing against the carpet released a sharp stinging pain throughout my body, my outstretched arm landed just a few inches short of the machete, I quickly bent my arms, pushing my body up and crawled towards the machete. my fingers wrapped around the handle I spun around, my back pushed up against the bedside table, once again facing the man, he was still facing the window but his lips faced me and were just a few feet away from me, for what felt like minutes but was most likely no longer than a second, I struggled to hook my finger under the strap securing the machete into its sheath, as the lips inched towards me the man started producing gurgling noises, he was regurgitation wax.
I finally pulled the machete out of its sheath, I swung the blade at the man's lips, the blade was not met with any resistance as it sliced through the man’s lips which landed on the carpeted floor with an audible thud, the man did not have a physical reaction to my counter-attack, his lips kept creeping towards me, once again I slashed at the lips, still no reaction, I repeated this at least 3 more times.
I wanted to kill him, I wanted to take revenge for what he had done to Emma, but fighting back was pointless. I realized that no matter how much I tried to hurt it, I could not kill him, I could not get rid of him.
My rage dissipated and a mixture of fear and sadness crept in, and soon took over my body, I screamed for help, I screamed in fear, in agony, tears streamed down my face as the man's lips finally reached my face, he wasn’t met with any resistance as his lips snuck between mine, pried my jaw open and finally started to slide down my esophagus.
I heard the cops run up the stairs, they started banging on the door asking if I was okay only to have been met with muffled screams, hot wax started to pour down inside of me, the stinging pain of the heat made me want to plunge the machete which I had dropped onto the ground next to me into my stomach to create a gaping wound that the wax would hopefully funnel out of, the texture of the man's slippery, oily lips matched with the poison like flavor of the wax caused me to start gagging, I felt my insides bulging like at any moment my intestines would have been filled to the point where they would pop, I wanted to vomit, the drain myself of the filth I was filled with, but his lips had plugged my throat not allowing anything to get out.
Hearing my muffled screams the cops started kicking the door down, the man retracted his lips, the suction aided my attempts at cleansing my insides, I got onto my hands and knees streams of molten wax pouring out of me, solidifying on the the carpet, with another loud thud the door swung open slamming into the wall, the man was gone.
That’s the last thing I remember before I passed out, but according to one of the doctors who was in the ambulance that brought me to the hospital, I was still semi-responsive during the first 10 minutes of the ride to the hospital.
Approximately 13.4 pounds of wax were removed from my body, the doctors said that I was in a critical condition and some of them did not expect me to make it.
One of the officers who was there the day the man attacked me took a report of what had happened to me, due to the unmistakable evidence of what had happened to both me and Emma, and the fact that this was the 3rd instance of me reporting something like this the police finally started investigating who this man might have been.
Around a month later I was discharged from the hospital and once again have been staying in the living room of Emma’s parent's house.
I’ve been seeing the man again, candles were not allowed in the hospital I stayed at, which means that he’s probably very hungry, he’s close to attacking me again, I know it, he wants to finish what he started and I don't know if I have the power to fight back, I’m not sure if defeating him is even possible, I’m tired.
I’ve been seeing Emma too, her bloated, reanimated corpse often appears to be standing next to the man. If I let him take me will I get to join them? I’ve tried asking but they don’t answer, they just stare, I can’t keep living in constant fear, always looking over my shoulder, I miss Emma.

• My generation is doomed to prioritizing work over life. I’m going to work until I’m 67, assuming the fact I’m in a good enough position to retire. That isn’t very likely… I’m going to work until I’m dead. I’m never gonna have the time for a vacation or do what I want.
  
• The world I grew up in no longer exists. Coming across a happy, polite person is a rare occurrence. Safety in America is at an all time low, you can go ANYWHERE and be a victim of a mass shooting or some form of violence. Everybody’s so divided, there’s no unity. Everybody’s always on guard and hostile.
  
• Our own government works against us to ensure our suffering, there’s no way out. You’re going to learn to live with it and “be happy”. You can’t afford anything, you will never own a house in modern age.
  

Surely there’s a light at the end of the tunnel…
Right…?