LATHANDER
The Morninglord, Commander of Creativity, Patron to Spring and Eternal Youth, Mentor of Self-Perfection, Bringer of the Dawn, Lord of Birth and Renewal
Greater Power of Elysium
Symbol Sunrise made of pink, red, and yellow gems, or a simple rosy pink disk
Realm Morninglory (Elysium/Eronia)
Alignment Neutral Good
Aliases none
Superior none (AO)
Allies Chauntea (lover), Deneir, Eldath, Gond, Ilmater, Kelemvor, Llira, Lurue, Mielikki, Milil, Oghma, Paladine, Selune, Siamorphe, Silvanus, Sune, Torm, Tyche (dead), Tymora, Tyr, Ushas
Foes Bane, Beshaba, Bhaal (dead), Cyric, Ibrandul (dead), Iyachtu Xvim (dead), Loviatar, Moander (dead), Myrkul (dead), Shar, Talona
Servants none
Servitor Creatures butterflies, celestials of all types, elysian dragons, hollyphants, radiant creatures, robins (normal and celestial), sanctified creatures, sun peacocks (normal and celestial), sunwyrms (good aligned only)
Manifestations an intense and rosy radiance that appears around objects to indicate special qualities or at confusing or dangerous junctures to indicate a safe or preferred path, and that causes those people it surrounds to be telekinetically pushed out of harmful situations, healed of all wounds, purged of any diseases, poisons, foreign objects, magical and nonmagical afflictions and deleterious effects, magical or psionic compulsions, fear, and curses, causes resurrection effects to be automatically successful, and transmits messages
Signs of Favor aster blossoms, an intense and rosy radiance with the same qualities as his manifestation, sun peacock feathers
Worshipers Aristocrats, artists, athletes, farmers, hunters of the undead, merchants, monks of the Sun Soul, peasants, performers, the youthful
Cleric Alignments LG, NG, CG
Specialty Priests Morninglord
Holy Days Midsummer morning, the mornings of the vernal and autumnal equinoxes
Important Ceremonies Song of Dawn; contracts, marriages and promises made at dawn, funerals for those not meant to be raised or resurrected
Portfolio Athletics, birth, creativity, dawn, renewal, self-perfection, spring, vitality, youth
Domains Community, Courage, Endurance, Good, Glory, Hope, Life, Protection, Radiance, Renewal, Strength, Zeal
Favored Weapon Dawnspeaker (heavy or light mace)

LATHANDER
Male Sentinel 20, Cleric 20, Morninglord 20, Master of Radiance 5
NG Medium Outsider (Extraplanar, Good)
Divine Rank 17
Init 44 (+16 Dex, +8 Superior Initiative); Senses 17-mile-radius; Listen 77, Spot 77; remote sensing (20 locations), portfolio sense
Aura divine aura (DC 78), courage (100 ft, +8 saves against fear), radiant 3/day; Languages can communicate with any living creature; Words of Creation
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AC 105, touch 57, flat-footed 95, undead 107 (+18 armor, +20 deflection, +10 Dex, +17 divine, +30 natural)
hp 1,860 (20d10 + 45d8 plus 1300); divine shield 23/day (170 hp); renewal 1/day (if fall below 0 but less than -10 hit points regain 1d8 +20 hp); DR 40/epic, evil and adamantine
Immune ability damage, ability drain, banishment, death effects, disease, disintegration, electricity, energy drain, fire, imprisonment, mind-affecting effects, paralysis, poison, rebuking, sleep, sonic, stunning, transmutation, and turning
Resist acid 37, cold 37; SR 81
Fort 111 Ref 101 Will 105; +2 against evil outsiders and undead, +4 against mind-affecting effects from evil outsiders, +5 against evil spells or spells from evil characters
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Speed 60 ft. (12 squares)
Melee dawnspeaker 115/110/105/100 (55 plus 18 fire plus 18 holy plus 1 negative level vs evil plus 48 vs evil outsiders and undead plus undead disruption [Fort DC 79 or die]/19-20/x2 plus 36 fire plus 36 holy plus 2 negative levels vs good plus death [Fort DC 79, evil outsiders and undead] plus undead disruption [Fort DC 79 or die]), +8 atk vs evil outsiders and undead; or
Melee spell 80 or
Ranged spell 76
Base Atk +43; Grp +63
Atk Options Awesome Smite, Cleave, Holy Potency, Power Attack; smite evil 24/day (+20 atk, +455 damage)
Special Actions alter reality, divine blast (444 damage) 23/day, feat of endurance 1/day (+30 Con for 1 minute), destroy evil outsiders and undead 27/day as a 66^th level cleric (turning check 73, turning damage 105; Heighten Turning, Intensify Turning, Multiturning, Quicken Turning), protective ward 1/day (+65 resistance bonus to one saving throw for one hour), surge of hope 1/day (when failing a skill check, attack roll, or saving throw, add 1d6 to the result), touch of life 1/day (1d6 +65 temporary hp to a single creature for one hours), zeal 1/day (you may take 20 on a skill check, except on checks are not normally allowed to take 20, without increasing the amount of time needed to make the check); Battle Blessing, Corona (Will DC 62), Divine Censure (Will DC 62), Epic Divine Might, Epic Divine Vengeance, Sacred Vengeance
Combat Gear dawnspeaker
Divine Spell-like Abilities (CL 65^th; +1 good spells; all [fire] and [light] spells are intensified)
At will – aid, animate objects, animate plants, antimagic field, atonement, bear’s endurance, bigby’s clenched fist, bigby’s crushing hand, bigby’s grasping hand, blade barrier (DC 53), bless, bless weapon, bolt of glory, bull’s strength, charm person (DC 48), cloak of bravery, color spray (DC 48), commune, consecrate, crown of glory (DC 55), death ward, dismissal (DC 51), dispel evil (DC 52), disrupt undead, disrupting weapon (DC 52), endure elements, enlarge person, widened faerie fire, flame strike (DC 52), fire shield, fire seeds (DC 53), freedom, gate, globe of invulnerability, good hope, greater cloak of bravery, greater dispel magic, greater heroism, greater planar ally, greater restoration, greater status, greater teleport, heat metal (DC 49), helping hand, heroes’ feast, heroism, hide from undead (DC 48), holy aura (DC 55), holy smite (DC 51), holy sword, holy word (DC 54), hypnotic pattern (DC 49), iron body, lesser restoration, lion’s roar (DC 56), magic vestment, mass bear’s endurance, mass heal (DC 56), mind blank, mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion, plant growth, plane shift (DC 52), polymorph any object (DC 55), prayer, prismatic sphere (DC 56), prismatic spray (DC 54), prismatic wall (DC 56), protection from energy, protection from evil, rary’s telepathic bond, rainbow, rainbow pattern (DC 51), refreshment, refuge, regenerate, reincarnate (DC 51), remove disease, remove fear, repulsion (DC 54), righteous might, sanctuary (DC 48), scintillating pattern, searing light, sustain, spell immunity, spell resistance, status, stoneskin, sympathy (DC 55), summon monster IX (good creatures only), sunbeam (DC 54), sunburst (DC 55), tongues.
1/day – calm emotions (DC 51)
Master of Radiance Spell-like Abilities (CL 56^th; +1 good spells; all [fire] and [light] spells are intensified; only usable during aura of radiance)
1/round – beam of sunlight, searing light
Morninglord Spell-like Abilities (CL 54^th; +1 good spells; all [fire] and [light] spells are intensified)
1/day – daylight, searing ray (as searing light, but automatically empowered against undead)
Cleric Spells per Day (CL 54^th; +1 good spells; all spells are energized and maximized; all [fire] and [light] spells are intensified)
20^th (3+1/day) – heightened intensified end to strife (DC 63) (x2), heightened last judgement (DC 70), enhanced heightened intensified mass heal (DC 59) (D).
19^th (3+1/day) – heightened miracle (DC 69) (x2), consecrated intensified purified sacred storm of vengeance (DC 59), enhanced empowered heightened sunburst (DC 63) (D).
18^th (3+1/day) – consecrated enhanced heightened purified flame strike (DC 62) (x2) (D), intensified quickened righteous smite (DC 57), enhanced intensified righteous smite (DC 57).
17^th (3+1/day) – heightened holy word (DC 67) (D), heightened know true name (DC 67), empowered intensified lion’s roar (DC 58), heightened quickened miracle (DC 63).
16^th (4+1/day) – intensified mass heal (DC 59), intensified righteous exile (DC 59) (x2), intensified storm of vengeance (DC 59), enhanced quickened sunburst (DC 58) (D).
15^th (4+1/day) – empowered intensified blade barrier (DC 56) (D), enhanced quickened searing erupt (DC 59) (x2), intensified mass cure critical wounds, heightened righteous glare (DC 65).
14^th (4+1/day) – enhanced fire-substituted fiery searing lion’s roar (DC 58) (D), heightened quickened holy word (DC 60) (x2), empowered quickened sunburst (DC 58) (x2).
13^th (4+1/day) – enhanced quickened flame strike (DC 55) (D), quickened implosion (DC 59) (x2), quickened sublime revelry, intensified weight of sin (DC 56).
12^th (5+1/day) – empowered enhanced blade barrier (DC 56) (D), empowered enhanced cometfall (DC 56), intensified divine retribution (DC 55), consecrated purified sacred firestorm (DC 58) (x2), quickened visions of the future.
11^th (5+1/day) – quickened amber sarcophagus, consecrated purified quickened cometfall (DC 56), sacred searing erupt (DC 59), quickened greater shield of lathander, quickened light of purity, quickened sunbeam (DC 57) (D).
10^th (5+1/day) – quickened crown of brilliance, consecrated fire-substituted searing earthquake (DC 58), quickened heal (DC 56) (D), empowered fire-substituted stormrage.
9^th (7+1/day) – heightened eternal rest (DC 56), quickened flame strike (DC 55), feast of champions, gate, mantle of the fiery spirit, prismatic sphere (DC 59) (D), summon elemental monolith, undeath’s eternal foe.
8^th (8+1/day) – chain dispel, holy aura (DC 58) (D), illusion purge, know true name (DC 58), mass restoration, mass valiant spirit, spread of contentment (DC 58), shun the dark chaos (DC 58), consecrated purified wages of sin.
7^th (8+1/day) – bastion of good, control weather, fortunate fate, quickened light of Venya (DC 53), rain of embers (DC 57), radiant assault (x2) (DC 57), rejuvenating light (DC 57), sunbeam (DC 57) (D).
6^th(8+1/day) – chasing perfection, consecrate battlefield, quickened deific vengeance (DC 52), heal (DC 56) (D), fiery vision (x2), ghost trap, light of courage (DC 56), vigorous circle.
5^th (9+1/day) – atonement, blistering radiance (DC 55), chaav’s laugh (DC 55), condemnation (DC 55), crown of flame, divine agility, divine retribution (DC 55), searing meteoric strike (DC 54) (x2), valiant fury (D).
4^th (10+1/day) – aligned aura (DC 54), assay spell resistance (x2), aura of the sun (x2), channeled divine health, cure critical wounds, holy smite (DC 54) (D), recitation, sacred haven, sunmantle.
3^rd (10+1/day) – cure serious wounds, fell the greatest foe, find the gap, flamebound symbol (x2), forced manifestation (DC 53), heart’s ease, mass align weapon, phieran’s resolve, prayer (D), protection from negative energy.
2^nd (10+1/day) – detect aberration, eagle’s splendor, healing lorecall, make whole, mark of doom (x2), mark of judgment (x2) (DC 52), master’s touch, share talents, shield other (D).
1^st (10+1/day) – bless water, conviction, detect taint, divine favor, endure elements (D), exorcism (x2) (DC 51), nimbus of light, ray of hope, ray of resurgence, vision of heaven (DC 51).
Orisons (6/day) – create water, cure minor wounds, guidance, light, purify food and drink, read magic.
Epic Spells Prepared 6 divine, up to Spellcraft DC 122
Epic Spells Known epic mage armor, epic repulsion, epic spell reflection, global warming, glorious light of renewal, greater ruin, hellball, nailed to the sky, nimbus, rain of fire, ruin, superb dispelling. Lathander has additionally created many epic spells that bring light and life, as well as bring ruin to the undead.
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Abilities Str 50, Dex 42, Con 50, Int 36, Wis 51, Cha 50
SQ avatar, bane of the restless, celestial fortitude, celestial minion 1/day, creative fire +20, divine grace, divinity, immortality, lathander’s light, resist fiendish lure
Feats Awesome Smite, Battle Blessing, Cleave, Consecrate Spell, Corona (Will DC 62), Divine Censure (Will DC 62), Divine Might, Divine Vengeance, Empower Spell, Energize Spell, Energy Substitution (fire), Extra Turning, Fiery Spell, Heighten Spell, Heighten Turning, Holy Potency, Improved Critical (heavy mace), Improved Initiative, Improved Turning, Maximize Spell (B), Power Attack, Purify Spell, Quicken Spell, Quicken Turning, Sacred Vengeance, Sanctify Martial Strike, Searing Spell, Weapon Focus (heavy mace), Words of Creation (B)
Epic Feats Enhance Spell, Epic Divine Might, Epic Divine Vengeance, Epic Spellcasting (B), Great Smiting (x2), Improved Heighten Spell, Intensify Spell, Intensify Turning, Multiturning, Positive Energy Aura, Superior Initiative
Salient Divine Abilities Area Divine Shield (170 hp in a 170 ft square or a 17 ft sphere or hemisphere), Automatic Metamagic (energize spell), Banestrike (evil outsiders), Banestrike (undead), Call Creatures (17 celestials with up to 37 HD), Divine Inspiration (hope), Divine Fast Healing (x2), Divine Paladin, Divine Spellcasting, Divine Weapon Focus (heavy mace), Divine Weapon Specialization (heavy mace), Earthmother’s Boon (unique salient divine ability), Energy Burst (170 ft, 136 fire damage), Energy Storm (170 ft, 17 holy and 17 positive), Gift of Life, Indomitable Strength, Life and Death (Fort DC 79 or die, 340 damage on a successful save), Lord of the Dawn (unique salient divine ability), Mass Life and Death (any number of creatures no more than 17 miles apart, Fort DC 79 or die, 340 damage on a successful save), Power of Nature, Rejuvenation (-17, -34 in Morninglory), Undead Mastery (17 creatures)
Skills Appraise 70 (78 paintings and sculptures), Bluff 82, Concentration 125, Craft (painting) 138, Craft (sculpting) 138, Diplomacy 143, Gather Information 72, Heal 125, Jump 84, Intimidate 86, Knowledge (arcana) 80, Knowledge (history) 92, Knowledge (nobility and royalty) 118, Knowledge (religion) 118, Knowledge (the planes) 118, Listen 77, Perform 145, Ride 62, Search 75, Sense Motive 82, Spot 77, Spellcraft 122, Survival 67 (75 extraplanar), Swim 82, Tumble 67
Possessions +8 full plate of the celestial battalion, dawnspeaker

Aura of Radiance (Su) The light of Lathander shines perpetually. No matter how dark it is, the Morninglord sees as though the conditions were identical to the outdoors at sunrise. This ability functions like darkvision out to 60 feet, except that he sees in color. Lathander also has a +2 sacred bonus on saving throws against spells with the darkness descriptor and a +2 sacred bonus to Armor Class against attacks from undead creatures.
Beam of Sunlight (Sp) Lathander can evoke a dazzling beam of intense light (the equivalent of a beam from the sunbeam spell) once per round as a full-round action as long as his radiant aura is active as a 56^th level caster.
Blessing of Dawn (Su) The sight of the morning sun is an inspirational vision for the Morninglord. Lathander gains a +2 morale bonus on Will saves from sunrise until noon. This ability is in effect only while he can see the sun; the effect is suppressed any time he is deprived of the sight of it during this period.
Celestial Fortitude (Su) Lathander’s endurance and fortitude are enhanced against fiendish attacks. He has a +2 sacred bonus to all Fortitude saving throws against effects from evil outsiders and evil spells. Additionally, if he makes a successful Fortitude saving throw against an effect from an evil spell or evil outsider that normally deals half damage or partial effects on a successful save, he instead takes no damage and suffers no partial effects.
Celestial Minion (Sp) Lathander may summon a Medium or smaller size celestial animal (with the celestial creature template) as a standard action usable once a day. This celestial minion carries the same responsibilities as a paladin's special mount and gains the same bonuses to its HD, natural armor, Strength, Intelligence, and other special abilities that a paladin's special mount has, but only remains for 20 hours before returning to the outer plane from whence it came.
Creative Fire (Ex) The Morninglord is a creative, expressive deity. He has a bonus equal to his morninglord level on all Craft and Perform checks.
Divinity Lathander is an embodiment of ancient divine power. As such, reality is his to shape as he sees fit.
Alter Reality: Lathander may alter reality within the bounds of his portfolio. This functions as a wish spell that requires no XP or material cost. The limits of this ability are fully described in Deities and Demigods. He can additionally alter his size from Fine to Colossal and may additionally alter up to 100 pounds of objects in the same manner.
Avatar: Lathander can have up to 20 avatars at any given time. The Morninglord appears as a golden-skinned athletic male of exceeding beauty who has just fully entered early manhood. He wears noble robes constructed in the colors of the dawn, carries himself proudly, and dresses in the finest golden plate armor if attending to matters that might turn violent.
Divine Blast: Lathander can create a ray of divine power that extends for up to 17 miles, dealing up to 444 points of damage, as a ranged touch attack with no saving throw. Lathander can unleash a divine blast 23 times per day, and alter the visual, auditory and sensation-based qualities of his divine blast as he desires. Lathander’s divine blasts generally take the form of rays of fiery sunlight.
Divine Shield: As a free action 23 times per day, Lathander can create a shield that lasts 10 minutes and stops 170 points of damage from attacks. Once the shield stops that much damage, it collapses. Any damage Lathander is naturally immune to does not count towards the shield’s limits.
Earthmother’s Boon (unique salient divine ability) Chauntea is Lathander’s lover and has bestowed a degree of protection over her consort. By her grace, the Lord of the Dawn cannot be harmed by any nonmagical plant or any creature with less than 33 Hit Dice with the plant subtype. Epic creatures and creatures with equal or more than 33 Hit Dice must succeed at a Will save (DC 79) to harm the Morninglord.
Greater Turning (Su) Six times per day, Lathander may use greater turning as the granted power of the Sun domain. This is superseded by his Lord of the Dawn salient divine ability.
Lathander's Light (Su) Whenever Lathander casts a spell with the light descriptor, its area is doubled.
Lord of the Dawn (unique salient divine ability) Lathander is the sun. He is the light that drives back the darkness, the brilliant spark that lights the way out of night and the creative brilliance within every artist. His dominion over light and the sun, both physical and metaphysical, grants him a variety of powers as listed below:
Fires of the Sun: The light of the sun shields Lathander’s body. This protection renders Lathander immune to all forms of magical and nonmagical fire, with searing effects only dealing half damage. In addition, spells and spell-like abilities cast by Lathander from the Sun domain, or with the [fire] and [light] descriptors, are similarly enhanced and are always intensified.
Radiance of the Dawn: Lathander can shed light equal to full sunlight in a 17-mile emanation from his body that counters and dispels all Darkness effects unless created by a higher ranked deity. Undead and evil outsiders caught within the radius must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 79) or be destroyed and turned into dust. Creatures vulnerable to sunlight suffer a -17 penalty to the saving throw. A successful saving throw still deals 17d8 points of damage, while creatures vulnerable to sunlight suffer 17d12 points of damage.
Spark of Creativity: Lathander is the commander of creativity, the inspiration and muse for craftsmen and artists throughout the Realms. 17 times per day, Lathander may bestow a +17 divine bonus to any Craft or Performance check, or the Efficient Item Creation feat, to up to 17 creatures for the next 24 hours. Performances and non-magical items crafted beneath the aegis of this ability always earn three times the normal gold amount and have three times the listed market price in cost. Magical items crafted with the benefit of this ability add +17,000 gp to the listed market price and increase any numeric benefit (enhancement bonuses for the purpose of attack and damage rolls, armor and save bonuses and so forth) by +4.
Spurn the Profane: Lathander uses the totality of his character level to determine the effectiveness of his ability to smite evil, turn outsiders and undead as well as any of his feats that affect the undead. His turn attempts resolve as greater turnings (as the granted power of the Sun domain). In addition, Lathander adds his paladin spells to his clerical spell list, using the sum of both lists to determine his caster level.
Wrath of the Dawn: As a standard action Lathander can generate a ray of scorching light that extends for up to 17 miles and inflicts 17d6 points of damage, half fire and half divine. As a full attack option, he can generate up to four rays, and undead and evil outsiders suffer 17d12 points of damage. In addition, Lathander can duplicate the effects of any spell with the [light] descriptor as a standard action. (CL 65^th, DC 50 plus spell level).
Maximize Turning (Su) Once per day, Lathander can automatically achieve the maximum possible result on a turning damage roll. This is superseded by his natural divine powers.
Radiant Aura (Su) Three times per day, Lathander can emanate an aura of brilliant light that weakens undead creatures for one minute. The aura provides bright illumination in a 30-foot radius around him, and shadowy illumination for an additional 30 feet beyond that. Creatures that take penalties in bright light also take them while within the radius of the bright aura. In addition, undead creatures within the radius of bright light take a —2 penalty on attack rolls, damage rolls, and saving throws. Activating the radiant aura is a free action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. While his radiant aura is active, Lathander casts spells with the light descriptor at +2 caster level. The radiant aura is the equivalent of a 5th-level spell with the light descriptor for the purpose of interacting with spells and effects with the darkness descriptor.
Rejuvenation of the Morn (Su) Dawn is a powerful symbol of rebirth and renewal. Once per tenday, Lathander may spend one uninterrupted hour before dawn in prayer. As soon as the sun rises after this prayer ritual, he gains one benefit of his choice from the following list.
· Healing up to full normal hit points (self only).
· Removal of any poisons or diseases (self only). This effect does not restore ability damage or ability drain caused by poison or disease.
· Full restoration of ability damage due to one poison or disease.
If his prayers are interrupted for even a single round, the attempt is ruined, and he must wait a full tenday to try again.
Resist Fiendish Lure (Su) Lathander has a +4 sacred bonus to all saving throws against mind-affecting attacks of evil outsiders.
Possessions
Dawnspeaker, Lathander’s gold-and-ivory mace, is a +10 fiery blast ghost strike mighty disruption heavy mace of holy power and evil outsider and undead dread. When held by the Morninglord, it also functions as a holy devastator. The DC of the weapon’s disruption and dread abilities is 79, and creatures vulnerable to sunlight suffer a -17 penalty to saving throws made to resist Dawnspeaker’s abilities. Lathander is known to loan out Dawnspeaker to questors and warriors he deems worthy and can call it back to his hand from anywhere in the cosmos.
The Morninglord also occasionally wears a set of golden +8 full plate with the powers of an armor of the celestial battalion. The bonuses are not reflected in the above statistics.
Other Divine Powers As a greater deity, Lathander automatically receives the best possible result on any die roll he makes (including attack rolls, damage, checks, and saves). He treats a 1 on an attack roll or saving throw normally and not as an automatic failure. He is immortal. Senses Lathander can see (using normal vision or darkvision), hear, touch, and smell at a distance of 17 miles. As a standard action, he can perceive anything within 17 miles of his worshippers, holy sites, objects, or any location where one of his titles or name was spoken in the last hour. He can extend his senses to up to 20 locations at once. He can block the sensing power of deities of his rank or lower at up to two remote locations at once for 17 hours. Portfolio Sense Lathander is aware of any event under the light of the sun, competition or act of artistry of the number of people involved up to 17 weeks in the past and 17 weeks in the future. Automatic Actions Lathander can use any skill related to his portfolio as a free action if the DC for the task is 30 or lower. He can perform up to twenty such free actions each round. Create Magic Items Lathander can craft any magical item that associated with heat and light, aids in self-empowerment, preserves or restores vitality or harms the undead, including artifacts.
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Eternal Rest [Ravenloft: Legacy of Blood 71]
Necromancy
Level: Cleric 6
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: Ray (see text)
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will partial (see text)
Spell Resistance: Yes
This spell creates a ray of golden light that destroys one undead creature’s material body (if it has one), causing it to crumble to dust, which is then wafted away in a swirling breeze. This spell affects incorporeal undead without the usual incorporeal miss chance, and such a creature merely winks out of existence if it fails its save. If the target makes a successful save, it still takes 6d6 points of damage. If the creature has a special quality that allows it to return after destruction (such as a vampire’s fast healing power or a ghost’s rejuvenation power), the creature gains a bonus equal to its Charisma modifier on its saving throw. If such a creature fails its saving throw against this spell, it must make a successful Will save at the same DC (also with its Charisma modifier as a bonus) to return. If the creature’s method of return normally requires a saving throw (as a ghost’s rejuvenation power does), the creature must first make that saving throw, then make the Will saving throw against this spell.
You can improve your chance of success by presenting at least one object or substance that the target hates, fears, or otherwise finds repulsive or painful (such as a mirror and bud of garlic for a vampire). For each such object or substance, you gain a +1 bonus on your caster level check to overcome the target’s spell resistance (if any), and the spell’s saving throw DC increases by +1. A particular creature’s history might suggest additional objects or substances that would make the spell more effective.
This spell can also be cast when an undead creature has been physically destroyed and its remains are not present. In this case, the spell must be aimed at the spot where the creature was destroyed, and it must be used within 1 minute of the undead creature’s destruction. No attack roll is required for this use of the spell.
This spell can destroy an undead darklord’s physical form, but it cannot prevent the darklord from returning.
Rainbow [Dragon Magazine 321 68]
Conjuration (Creation)
Level: Cleric 6, Radiance 6
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Effect: Rainbow bow, quiver, and arrows
Duration: 1 hour / level
Saving Throw: No
Spell Resistance: Yes
A rainbow-hued longbow appears in your hand, along with a full quiver of arrows fletched with different colors. The longbow is considered a +1 longbow that the caster is proficient with. The quiver holds an endless supply of seven different colored arrows, each being made of a different material and having the following effects:
Red: +1 elemental-bane adamantine arrows.
Orange: +1 construct-bane silver arrows.
Yellow: +1 plant-bane evil-aligned arrows.
Green: +1 magical beast-bane good-aligned arrows.
Blue: +1 undead-bane lawful-aligned arrows.
Indigo: +1 aberration-bane chaotic-aligned arrows.
Violet: +1 dragon-bane cold iron arrows.
Only the caster is able to use the bow, quiver, and arrows. They appear immediately back in the caster’s possession if dropped or given away, though the caster may drop the bow and quiver to use another item, but can rematerialize them at will, as a free action. The bow, quiver, and arrows have no weight and cannot be disarmed or sundered.
Know True Name [Kalamar: Player’s Guide 3.0 177]
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Cleric 8
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 action
Ranged: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft. / 2 levels)
Target: One fiend
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates
Spell Resistance: Yes
You force a fiend to tell you its true name. Once you know a fiend’s true name, all spells that you cast at that creature have their save DCs increase by +4. You also gain a +4 on all checks to penetrate the creature’s spell resistance.

Exploration of an Innovative K-12 School Curriculum and Pedagogical Approaches
Before going over the curriculum we must first discuss how to best teach. All of the following methods outlined below are what would I would suggest be use to teach the students trying to use just one or even just two of these would not be enough and would compromise the students learning and education
Teaching Methods
Project-Based Learning (PBL): In PBL, students work on a project over an extended period, which could be a week or a month, to respond to a complex question, problem, or challenge. The projects are usually multi-disciplinary and require students to apply what they've learned in a practical manner. This allows them to see the immediate applicability of their learning.
Inquiry-Based Learning: This is a form of active learning that starts by posing questions, problems, or scenarios—rather than simply presenting established facts or portraying a smooth path to knowledge. Students are involved in the construction of their learning. They engage with the material, participate in the class, and collaborate with each other.
Gamification: Incorporating elements of game design in education can make learning fun and engaging. This can involve point systems, leaderboards, badges, or other game mechanics.
Experiential Learning: This method involves learning by doing and reflecting on the experience. It can include internships, study abroad programs, field trips, laboratory experiments, or any other hands-on learning experiences.
Flipped Classroom: In a flipped classroom, students review lecture materials at home and do their 'homework' in class, where they can ask for help as they practice new skills and apply new knowledge. This allows teachers to spend class time helping students apply what they've learned and coaching them as they work through challenges.
Cross-Disciplinary Projects: By integrating different disciplines into a single project, you can make the learning experience more holistic and interconnected, much like how the knowledge of different magical disciplines would combine in a fantasy setting.
Competency-Based Learning: In this educational model, students advance upon mastering a skill or a competency. This encourages active utilization of knowledge and immediate feedback, similar to how a magic student might advance only after successfully casting a particular spell.
Now that we have given a basic outline of the teaching styles we can go over the curriculum for K-12 the idea would be to Have an A/B day schedule and some classes would meet less frequently because they don't take much time to cover everything, all of this will be done in order to create well rounded students, people and citizens. They are not only creative in nature, but leaders in their own right as well as capable of doing whatever they desire and succeeding wildly
Core Curriculum Classes:
STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics): must Ensure these subjects are covered both within the integrated curriculum (like coding in math, cooking in science, history in art, etc.) and as standalone classes to develop depth of knowledge.
Memory Techniques & Knowledge Management Techniques: Using an Integrated code based system with AI tools to help teacher track progress and provide more targeted assistance as well as help students with how to effectively organize and manage knowledge, covering basic note-taking, the PARA/CODE system. Using AI to provide semi interactive sessions that not only explain how memory works but also actively encourage the practice of using the note taking method & memory techniques
Project-Based Learning: Encourage practical application of knowledge through project-based learning. Gamification & Experiential Learning: Use these techniques to make learning more engaging and fun.
Flipped Classroom & Inquiry-Based Learning: Encourage independent learning and critical thinking through these teaching methods.
Elementary School: Coding & Digital Literacy: Introduce basic coding principles using visual coding platforms. Begin teaching about online safety and basic cybersecurity. Financial Literacy: Teach basic concepts like the value of money, saving, and spending. Potential to introduce the use of real currency and creating student based economy Community Service: Arrange class-based community projects and encourage involvement in community service outside of school. Gardening & Cooking: Teach students about plants, nutrition, and basic cooking skills through a school garden. Literacy & Reading: Develop a reading program that exposes students to a variety of genres. Writing can begin with simple sentences. History: Teach history from a holistic and critical perspective, exploring different cultures and perspectives. Basic Medicine & First Aid: Introduce simple health, hygiene, and basic first aid skills. Physical Education: Encourage a love for physical activity through a variety of engaging games. Emotional Regulation & Healthy Relationships with Technology: Incorporate social-emotional learning and healthy technology use. Leadership: Begin fostering leadership qualities through group activities and responsibility sharing. Self-Defense: Introduce basic safety rules and personal boundaries. Spanish: Introduce basic Spanish vocabulary and phrases, along with exposure to the culture of Spanish-speaking countries. Songs, games, and interactive activities can be used to make learning enjoyable.
Middle School: Coding, Digital Literacy & Practical Engineering: Continue coding education and introduce robotics and basic electronics. Financial Literacy: Start teaching about budgeting, banking, and simple concepts of earning. Potential to introduce the use of real currency and creating student based economy Community Service: Encourage students to plan and lead community service projects, either in groups or individually. Gardening & Cooking: Progress in gardening and cooking skills, introducing sustainability issues. Literacy, Reading, & Writing Skills: Increase complexity of reading and writing assignments. History: Provide more in-depth history education using primary sources and interpretations. Basic Medicine & First Aid: Offer a more detailed course on first aid and health. Physical Education: Introduce a range of physical activities, sports, and body awareness topics. Emotional Regulation & Healthy Relationships with Technology: Develop emotional intelligence skills, mindfulness practices, and education about responsible technology use. Leadership: Teach various leadership styles and emphasize group projects requiring delegation and decision-making. Self-Defense: Continue with more practical self-defense techniques. Study of Government: Begin a foundational study of the local and national government. Teach students about the branches of government, their roles, and how laws are made. Spanish: Continue to build on vocabulary and grammar learned in elementary school. Introduce simple written exercises and encourage basic conversation in Spanish.
High School: Coding, Digital Literacy & Practical Engineering: Offer advanced coding and practical engineering classes, including topics like 3D modeling and advanced electronics.Teach more advanced cybersecurity concepts and ethics of digital communication Gardening & Cooking: As elective courses, delve into advanced topics like food science or agricultural technology. Literacy, Reading, & Writing Skills: Offer a variety of literature courses, creative writing classes, and research-based writing. History: Teach history as a dynamic and interpretive subject, encouraging critical thinking. Basic Medicine & First Aid: Include more advanced first aid, mental health awareness, and basic human anatomy and physiology. Physical Education: Offer a range of athletic options, and include education about exercise science and long-term health benefits. Emotional Regulation & Healthy Relationships with Technology: Provide resources for emotional regulation, advanced mindfulness techniques, and in-depth discussions about technology's role in society. Leadership: Delve deeper into conflict resolution, strategic planning, and ethical leadership, often through real-world applications. Financial Literacy: Start teaching about budgeting, banking, and simple concepts of earning. Potential to encourage student to start their own business or get a job and have students buy things from each other Self-Defense/Mixed Martial Arts: For interested students, offer elective classes in mixed martial arts, fostering physical and mental skills. Study of Government: Expand on knowledge from middle school and introduce international government systems. Discuss the concepts of democracy, socialism, and other forms of government. Involve students in mock debates and simulations, like Model United Nations or Mock Parliament. Study of Politics: Begin a course on political science, covering key political ideologies, parties, and political processes. Discuss current events and involve students in debates and discussions to encourage critical thinking. Creating Change: Introduce a course on social activism and creating change. This can involve studying historical movements for change, understanding how to effect change within a legal framework, learning about peaceful protest, and planning and implementing a small-scale change project within the school or community. Spanish: Continue to deepen knowledge of Spanish. Encourage advanced conversation and written exercises. Students could read Spanish literature or news and discuss in class, fostering language skills and cultural understanding.
This kind of curriculum would be nearly the best, being interdisciplinary, hands-on, and centered around the interests and needs of the students. It would aim to not only equip students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the world, but also ignite their passion for learning and encourage them to continue learning throughout their lives.
But before we’re done one last thing must be covered. How to assess a student's growth because science shows that paper tests are not suited for the task. There are many innovative ways to assess student understanding and skills without relying solely on traditional exams. The methods that could be used include Assessment Methods
Portfolios: Students could compile portfolios of their work, which could include code they've written, projects they've completed, or essays they've written. A portfolio allows students to demonstrate their learning process, their progress over time, and their ability to apply what they've learned in different contexts.
Presentations: Students can demonstrate their understanding of a topic by presenting on it. This could involve presenting a project they've completed, explaining a concept to the class, or debating a topic with classmates.
Peer and Self-Assessment: Students can learn a lot from assessing each other's work or their own work. This can help them develop a better understanding of the assessment criteria and improve their ability to critically evaluate work.
Performance Assessment: In subjects like self-defense, physical education, cooking, or gardening, students could be assessed based on their performance. This could involve demonstrating a technique, completing a task, or participating in a game or competition.
Reflective Journals: Students could maintain journals where they reflect on what they've learned, how they've applied it, and what they still want to understand better. This can give teachers insight into a student's thought process and their understanding of the subject.
Project-Based Assessment: Students can be assessed on the projects they complete, whether individually or in groups. This allows students to demonstrate a range of skills, including knowledge of the subject, problem-solving, creativity, and teamwork.
Community Service Assessment: In addition to the other assessments, teachers can assess students' community service involvement, their planning and leadership skills, as well as their reflections on their experiences.
The emphasis of Knowledge Management Techniques and Memory Techniques in core classes as a standalone session every day would ideally give students a break from traditional instruction and allow them to process and manage their learnings. This can be in the form of group discussions, independent reflection time, or guided activities for planning and organizing their work.

Online Keywords and Predictive Programming in the YouTube Comments Section

When you watch trending videos and songs on YouTube and Instagram, they often carry subliminal messages. These messages are planted in our minds using specific keywords, phrases, and music frequencies. They can trigger specific memories and emotions, resonating with fear, FOMO (fear of missing out), extreme emotional uncertainty, and social injustice. These are the things we see and feel but can't easily express.
These strategies are used to program our minds on a mass level, shaping our thinking and actions. For example, in a comedy show, we are prompted to laugh at jokes even if they are poor. Similarly, we may feel a sense of lack and victimhood when we see emotional advertisements on Instagram about hungry children.
The comment section has become a new area where predictive programming occurs. When we read the comments with the highest likes, we often receive subliminal messages that sync with the video's music, specific messages, the pauses in the speech, and even the reception from our earphones (left and right ear hearing).

How to Spot the Effects

1. Old memories of lack and victimhood will surface.
2. Excessive smoking and anxiety.
3. You will start to criticize more in your speech and will have extreme viewpoints.
4. Pleasure-gratifying fast food and spicy food cravings.
5. You will be motivated to do something but will stop the efforts quickly.
6. Watching accident videos online.

The predictive programming is designed to create chemical issues in the mind, causing it to release cortisol. The more cortisol in the body, the more it goes into flight or fight mode. These are all tactics used to condition you because your mind creates a stronger grip over your negativity.

How to Combat Predictive Programming

Meditation, dhyāna (focused meditation), and vivek (discrimination or discernment) are essential to seeing these influences as they are and deleting the memories and their adverse effects.

 
Elle était une amante parmi les plus étranges\ De nuit, dans la pénombre, me croyant endormi\ Je pouvais deviner sous mes paupières mi-closes\ Son ballet silencieux et presque immobile
Sa silhouette fine mesurait chaque geste\ Et se mêlait aux ombres pour ne pas m’éveiller\ Une fois arrêtée au dessus de mon corps\ Elle promenait son nez et humait mes odeurs
Je devinais alors son profil tendu\ Ramassant les effluves de mes moindres recoins\ Elle respirait mon ventre, ma nuque mes aisselles\ La plante de mes pieds, les poils de mon pubis
Quand elle se tenait là, figée et concentrée\ Elle paraissait une louve reniflant ses petits\ Les yeux fermés bien clos comme en recueillement\ Fouillant dans ses instincts les odeurs des bêtes
Cet animal timide et souvent effacé\ Rougissait pour un rien et manquait d’assurance\ Il me fallut du tact pour aborder la chose\ Et c'est le rouge aux joues qu'elle confessa son vice
Toutes les senteurs lui paraissait divines\ Elles ne connaissais pas de mauvaises odeurs\ Mais des parfums subtils qui comptaient des histoires\ Qu'elle parcourait ensuite comme on suit une piste
Je me sentais flatté qu’elle me respire ainsi\ Et nous accomodâmes de nouveaux jeux d’alcôve\ Chacun à tour de rôle nous reniflions l’autre\ Tout le long de son corps, dans ses moindres recoins
J’appris ainsi par elle à suivre dans son nid\ Une mésange grise couvant sous ses aisselles\ A pister sur son cou les frôlements d’un chat\ Et au creux de son ventre, caché dans son nombril, Un minuscule loir, lové pour s’endormir
De la même manière elle m’enseigna aussi\ A sentir le parfum d’une oreille attentive\ A renifler l’arôme d”un oeil qui observe\ A humer sur les lèvres le goût de l’abandon
Tout juste après l’amour, ce que nous raffolions\ C’était nous endormir le nez caché dans l’autre\ Délectés des arômes musqués de nos deux sexes\ Accompagnant nos songes de contes animaux
 
 
Retrouvez mes poèmes érotiques sur mon blog ; https://pierreandrea.bearblog.dev/

[FIRST][LAST]
Atlantis Commission
Officer Report - Lieutenant Colonel John Shepard
CLEARANCE LEVEL 5
Well this had definitely been a very interesting couple of hours. This dimension and its people had very odd opinions and ideas. Apparently the prey species of this dimension were all obligate cowards, whose instincts compelled them to be non-violent and run from threats. At least according to themselves. There were apparently some of them who were “predator diseased” as they called it, a disease which often resulted in increased violence, aggression, lack of empathy, and unheard like behavior. It sounded to me like some form of infectious psychopathy, but the venlil assured us it shouldn't affect us since we were predators, which didn’t really ease my fears, but hopefully it was something we could figure out when we got home if it ever became a problem.
Gotta love mandatory quarantine periods woo hoo!
As scary as this odd disease sounded, my main concern at the moment was to try and turn a professed coward into someone who could at the very least defend themselves.
I looked down to the table of gear ahead of me and then over to the mostly naked Venlil to my side, and then even farther to Tiel’c who thought It would be a good idea to help oversee Farva’s rapid fire training course. I fiddled with the bluetooth earpiece which was rigged up to one of our handhelds to run a translation program to speak directly with the captain. A big step up from our unknowingly one sided communications earlier.
I stepped on the other side of the plastic table and placed my hands down upon it and looked on at my new student..
“Welcome Captain Farva to our very impromptu accelerated course on Human arms armor and basic infantry tactics.” I said gesturing to the hodge podge gear we had managed to assemble for the good captain. “Are we ready to begin?”.
She flicked her ears, somewhat nervously by the looks.
“I’d take it that's a yes then?”
“Oh yes sorry”
“Alright then, well given that most of our crew is human and the only other alien struts around naked all the time, the only gear we have on hand is for humans, So you're going to be running size smalls and it's all going to fit all a bit big” I say as I toss her the tactical vest. ”Here try this on, we can try to tighten it up if it's a bit loose anywhere”. The captain wrestles with the buckles a bit, and Teal'c helps her tighten up some of the top straps, as the Venil’s shoulders weren't as broad as humans. Farva gave Teal’c an odd look, but seemed appreciative none the less.Once finished, she grasped the vest in her paws with interest. “This armor seems quite lightweight, which is nice, weight is often an issue that causes us to forgo armor, since heavy armor would hurt our running ability.” Farva remarks. “Also the sheer amount of pockets seems quite excessive, what do you need all these for?”
“Well for starters it's currently missing these '' I hand Farva one of the armor plates which she looks over. “That is a depleted Naquadria ceramic composite plate. It’s designed to stop bullet impacts and dissipate energy weapon blasts. It slots into that chest compartment in the front and back of your armor.”
“This isn't quite what Id imagine for the armor of your kind”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Well judging by your ships I would have imagined you would put more emphasis on defense Your predatory nature would make you less likely to run away from conflict allowing for more encompassing armor to cover more than just your chest, since you have less need to run.”
She would put it like that.
“Well there are a number of reasons for that, a lot to do with those excess pockets you mentioned. For starters you will not be carrying the same amount of gear that the standard infantry unit would normally be carrying, we are preparing you for a quick in and out op. Normally us expedition teams need to be deployed into unknown territory for extended periods of time, we need to carry everything we might need with us from food, bullets, weapons, to comms gear, sensors, repelling equipment etc. The weight from all that gear adds up fast; In order to stay sufficiently mobile and combat effective; we only carry enough armor to protect our vitals, head and torso, anything else can hopefully be patched up by a field medic.”
Tielc gave his piece as well. “It is important to know when to run both towards and aways from one's foes, not every battle can be won through strength alone, but by strategy and cunning. Being able to reposition oneself quickly is therefore highly advantageous”
Farva seemed to freeze at Teal'c's statement, not out of fear I think, she instead had a distant look in her eye. To snap her out of her slump I handed her a standard ballistic helmet.
Seeming to get the idea she looked at it oddly and tried it on. It confirmed to her head shape decently well but depressed her ears to either side of her head, kind of resembling what one might imagine a sad bunny rabbit to look like “I don't think this will be something I can bring with me” she said ” I can't use ear signals and this will muffle my hearing.”
“Why don’t you keep it on for the time being, I think any extra hearing protection might be useful considering what we are about to try next.” I hand Farva some ballistic ear protectors, slightly modified and somewhat ramshackle. “One of the corporals worked closely with Nurse Fila to get an idea for safe decibels levels for your kind, we were also able to get these earbuds molded to fit into your ear canal better”
Farva took them and slipped them in. “These are a bit uncomfortable, what do I need these for?”
“You'll need them for this” I say as I unsnap the clasps on the weapons case revealing its contents.
The content seems to capture Farva’s interest, getting a slight tail wave.
“Okay So this here is a p90, It carries a 50 round top loading magazine of teflon coated armor piercing ordnance. With a cyclical rate of fire of 900 rounds per minute.”
Farvas ears perk up at this. “This seems like an efficient design, I take it these are a flashlight and laser sight for accuracy?” She asked, pointing to the top of the weapon.
“Yes we also have holographic and acog optics which will help line up targets from farther away.” I look on as Farva picks up the weapon and inspects it, testing the weight as I note that it will weigh a fair bit more once loaded. But she doesn't seem to be struggling with the weight. I can't help but notice good firearm safety as well, she keeps her finger well off the trigger and takes care to keep her weapon pointed aways from anyone else.
“This seems like a solid design but I'm not sure how useful those weapon optics would be, as they are not designed for my side facing eyes”
“I'm sure our master at arms can figure something out, why don't we give it a test fire first tho, before we send it off to make adjustments.” I instruct her on how to load the weapon and turn the safety off. I warn her of the sound it makes. And while definitely taken aback by the recoil and sound at first, she quickly gets the hang of it, she has some respectable shot groupings in both single fire and in short bursts. And keeps the rounds reasonably centered while firing in full auto.
She did a whole lot better than I would have initially suspected given her performance in the hanger bay a day before.
“The rate of fire seems useful” Farva spoke “This would be useful for our soldiers, our accuracy falters when we are panicked, and the increased shot count should guarantee some hits based on volume of fire alone” she finished with a dejected expression.
She quickly places the weapon back in its case, as if it burned to touch.” I don't know if I should be armed for this mission, at least not with that weapon, I don't want to miss and hit one of you in the back!”
“What? Nonsense, you are a great shot, and this is just a precaution in case we get separated or flanked and need some covering fire. If our guys are doing their job right you shouldn't need to fire a single round anyways.”
Captain Farva’s breathing started to hasten, earlier I might have thought it was fear, but I was starting to get an idea of what the captain's issues were. I’ve seen this before.
“I.. I can’t be trusted with this responsibility, every time I am left in charge of something, every time people put their lives in my paws I ....”
“Farva, don’t you start with me now you hear.” I said sternly, swiftly capping off her inevitable spiral of self doubt.
“But.. no.. you don’t understand”
Stopping her again I spoke. “But nothing, what happened before on that ship, and back at that colony is in the past. I don’t know your whole situation, but from what I have gathered from the crew It was nothing good. You feel responsible and it's eating away at you, and frankly it doesn’t matter if that's true or not. Accidents happen, people make mistakes, and when that happens we need to learn, take those lessons to heart, and don't let it stop us from helping people in the present. If you let guilt, or fear of mistakes stop you, then bad guys have already won, all without having to have fired a shot”
Farva is quiet for a short time, I was hoping I got through to her, I'm not the best and pep talks and this certainly wasn’t your typical weapons demo, if only everyones could go as smoothly as Ronan’s.
Farva spoke quietly, arms pressed up against her chest, she looked so sad, defeated, and small. Well more than usual anyways. “We can't be strong like you humans, we are too emotional and when we are scared we run away or we lock up and...”
“And that is clearly not the case with you captain Farva” Teal’c finally reentered the conversation having heard enough. “You have shown courage with every action you have taken so far, your actions have saved the lives of many of your crew, every time you have been threatened you acted not just to protect yourself but others as well. You attempted to contend with beings many times your size without even thinking about it, all in the effort to protect others, and this is only in the time we have known you, this speaks nothing of your actions over the colony. You are a warrior of admirable courage Captain Farva, your self doubt is unearned.”
A single tear rolled down Farva’s eyes which she quickly wiped away. “That was very nice of you to say, but I'm not brave like you say, I was terrified out of my mind the whole time.”
Teal’c looked puzzled. “I did not call you brave, I said you were courageous.”
Farva shot back with the little venlil one up one down ear flick I had very quickly learned was confusion.” I'm confused you just said brave twice”
“Hmm it appears your language does not contain the word I am using, I apologize I am not used to speaking through a translator” Teal’c relented “ There are two words I am using admittedly in slightly different forms, bravery and courage. Bravery or to be brave is to lack fear, to not be afraid to begin with. Courage tho, Is a trait far more admirable. Courage is to be afraid, to have fear, to worry about one's own mortality and personal safety. It is to acknowledge risk, danger, to feel fear, but to act in spite of it.”
“Had I not met your kind before I would have thought predators don't feel fear.”
“Everyone fears feel Farva, It is how we overcome it that determines our worth as warriors”
Teal’c picks up the p90 and returns it to Farvas hands.
“Your people need a warrior Farva, a warrior who protects the innocent and guides the lost to safety. You have shown how collected you can be in the heat of battle, You have already proven your worth in our eyes Farva, now you must do the same in your own. The greatest enemy lies not without” Teal’c places his hand firmly on the venlil’s chest “But within”.
After Action Report - Venlil Colonial Defense Force
Subject : Chief Engineer Donu
I fiddled with my holopad, Its small surface area proving to be a consistent source of annoyance in my current endeavor. Gone was the large workspace afforded to me by my holotable back in my office. Instead I had to work with the scaled down portable holotablet I was just fortunate enough to have strapped to my person when I was beamed away from our last ship. I was stuck with its smaller keyboard and slower rendering speeds.
An annoyed smooth skin alien looked over my shoulder at my device, attached to it was a jury rigged fiber optic cable, slotted into a terran silicon to crystal patch cable, which would convert the electrical signals broadcasted by my tablet into a bandwidth that the terrans crystalline based computers; which they used for highly complex tasks like hyperdrive and transporter systems; could use, and then It was patched again in a even stranger connector to patch into the odd asgard computer stones.
All in all it looked like someone tried to plug a regular computer into some crystal construct like you would find in a fantasy holonovel, and again plugged that into a harchen heat rock sauna lounge. Finally branching out from this conglomeration was a simple copper based wire that connects to a computer terminal at which currently sat the late Doctor Rodney Mckay. A title upon initially hearing led me to believe he was a medical doctor, which led to a flurry of medical questions that he had absolutely no means of answering.
While this odd alien nomenclature was interesting, what intrigued me more was his actual area of expertise, theoretical astrophysics, as well as a number of other diverse specialties and fields. Not to mention not only was he a great scientist who had he been raised in the more civilized portion of this galaxy, would have knowledge and aptitude that would put him alongside some of Aafas greatest minds, but he was also an engineer without peer, at least in this galaxy. His interactions with general Samantha Carter hinted at her possibly being his match if not more. For a species that was supposed to glorify violence the decision to have a scientist be arguably the most senior member of what was by their admission a military vessel spoke to their commitment to knowledge and understanding, a very noble prey-like goal.
I looked warily at the lines of code at my screen, the asguard translation program had earlier scanned our ship and was able to parse written languages, but complex files, like images and 3d design schematics were harder to encode and decode from our perspective systems. As is stands we have 3 completely separate computer architectures, the asguard can talk to human computers and the venlil computers can talk to the asguard computers, It sounds like we would have everything we need to get a human C.A.D schematic into a venlil holotablet right? Wrong! And you're stupid for entertaining such a idiotic notion! Parsing text from raw binary is relatively straight forward, you're just looking for patterns, repeating bit combinations that might infer letters and then iterating them over millions of times looking for patterns, letters, words, and then with a bit of help from some undecoded analog audio transmission, spoken language. This is a far cry from actual procedural communication protocols,the ones that allow for file transfers, exactly what we needed if we were to get Rodney's redesigned part schematics into a format and medium that can be plugged into a suitable fabricator. Assuming one still exists, which I can reasonably assume it does.
Speaking of which, I have just made something of a breakthrough. For upon my screen appears a simple geometric hydrogen cube, we’re talking vertices, planes, material data, everything we need for a usable design file.
I let out an excited pent up yip, the culmination of hours of frustrating software integration work. Unfortunately I startled Rodney, who lets out a panicked gasp and clutches his chest pelts with one of his paws.
“Oh god…..” He gasps, pointing at me “Please.. don’t do that”
“Sorry!” I say a bit meekly. I slowly approach him so as to not make him unnecessarily uncomfortable and show him my work.
“I got the file exchange set up, all we need from you is to finish any modifications to your part, upload them to my holopad, and then we can print away at any class 3 or above fabricator we can scrounge up on Brayga colony.”
“Ok.. um.. got it, I'm almost done i’m just you know” He points a lone grasping appendage at his screen,”Running some simulations, making sure everything is up to spec.” keeping his response kurt. “Sorry for freaking out there.”
I nod my head in the human display of affirmation and return to my workstation to further bug check my work, to test potentially problematic edge cases for when he finishes. Tho Rodney's continued odd behavior intruded on my thoughts.
I should have felt empowered, being able to intimidate this ‘massive beast’, but I didn't. I didn't like being feared, his people have been nice to me, Rodney himself courteous to a fault and desperate for positive attention.
I thought I could expect predators to be fearless but that clearly wasn't the case, rodney was fearful, nervous, had I not known better I would say defective, and while it annoyed his crew, they didn't berate him for it, or attempt to assert dominance, they encouraged it even with placating words and tried to help him through it, they encouraged and supported him like a proper herd, even if sometimes it took the form of what the human would call a playful ribbing. I supposed I could help him as well.
I approached him again, careful to make my approach known to him, making sure to approach from within his limited field of vision. He looks up at me with a wide eyed glare, had I not known him I might have assumed it was hunger, but I did and knew it to be concern.
“Uh high Donu.. um whats up?”
“Why are you afraid of us rodney?”
“Wa-What, me afraid?” he gives out a panicked laugh ”uh no no, I'm not afraid, you know just a bit weirded out I'm just getting used to you all, it's not a fear thing it's a a…. Just getting used to new aliens thing, ask Hermirod we went through this whole song and dance right buddy”
Hermirod furrowed his brow and gave an irritated sigh from across the room.
I reached out to take Rodney by the paw.
His whole body flinched at my mere touch, I quickly withdrew my paw.
“Oh.. um.. I didn't…”
“Rodney! It's okay, your crew doesn’t seem to care when you show fear, and neither do I. Why are you afraid of us? You are almost twice our size and surely double our strength, most venlil would scream and run in terror at the mere sight of you. What's wrong?”
Rodney let out a sigh. “Oh its, we don't have to talk about this, I can deal with this, I deal with scary situations all the time, it's fine, I'll be fine.”
“Rodney, my people are a very emotional, empathic people, we are open with our feelings and with our fear, and the fear of the one can affect the herd, please let me help you. I don’t know what to expect from your society but I promise I wont judge you for your fear or emotions, I mean look at many of my crew mates, we are no one to judge”
Rodney shot back “You didn't seem to be so bothered”
“I’m too old to care, I was about to retire, hell I was about to die as far as I knew, Brayga colony was supposed to be a quiet place to lay back, work on some hobbies, plant a garden and pester the young men of my colony until I either dropped dead of boredom or got lucky” I joked.
That seemed to raise Rodney's mood somewhat. He sighed and seemingly relented.
“It’s… a dumb story, I don't even know why it affected me so much, I come from a place on earth called Canada, people don't usually believe me when I say I am from there, us Canadians are notoriously friendly and I guess I haven’t exactly filled that mold for a lot of my life, but hey I'm working on it, people like me, I have lots of friends back at Atlantis” He says the last sentence in a way as if it isn't me he's trying to convince.
“I'm sure you do, Rodney, You seem like quite the charming individual when you're not cowering!”
“Ha ha thanks, maybe you could come and visit sometime. Tell that to doctor Becket, really nice guy, smart man, he would love to meet you, he loves investigating new species. But back on topic, oh boy, so me and my sister Jeannie were on a family trip to rural Vancouver to visit my grandpa's farm, he kept a lot of goats, not for eating or anything, they were essentially pets that he would use for milk”
“Wait hold on? You drink milk from other animals! Do your females not produce enough milk for their young?”
“Oh um no, we just sort of drink it or ferment it into cheese!”
“Ferment? You mean spoil?
“Yeh”
I reeled from this plasma blast of a statement, I like any right minded venlil had a number of nightmares about being an arxur’s cattle before, especially when I first learned about those things in primary school, but never once had it crossed my mind that we could be used for something so weird. What the speh was I supposed to do with that information?
“Maybe you should get back on topic”
“Yeh sorry about that uh.. Anyways the momma goat had just had a litter of babies, and their real cute when their little, so late in the day when my grandpa was asleep we snuck out to the pens so we can play with the little baby goats, our grandpa told us not to but you now how kids are.”
At this I think back to a young Nyan, as I teach him the inner working of the hyperdrive, I tell him he’s not cleared yet to operate in this engine compartment alone, but I could tell from the occasional caught black hairs and dropped writing implements, there had been a number of curious unauthorized expeditions into its inner workings, he didn't really listen either.
“My sister as always was trying to be the voice of reason, wanting to take it slow. If I was paying attention I might have noticed the angry moma goat who didn’t appreciate the strange human messing with her children.”
The color seemed to drain from his face.
“I uh…” He began to stutter again ”I screamed, a lot, it was rather undignified, she ran right at me, thank god it wasn't a male goat, one with horns, I tired to run but I was hit in the back and knocked over and kicked real good in the head, like wake up in the vet clinic a quarter mile down the road kind of bad”
“This goat was a prey animal?”
“That would be what your kind focuses on”
“Oh sorry”
“Anyways It seems dumb but I have just never been good with animals since then, especially ones that look like you; no offense; I'm getting better but when I first saw you guys in the hangar bay, I was just that dumb kid again, getting in way over my head, scared for my life. I guess there is something to be said about childhood trauma. I really should be over this, I'm getting better with it I swear it’s just”
I take his paw again, he doesn't flinch this time.
“I'm a venlil, a prey animal, I know fear, I know what it is to live in fear, It rattles your brain, it turns your paws to wet grains. It takes great strength to overcome it, to push it aside just long enough to protect the herd. Your herd relies on you Rodney and you are doing a great job in spite of your fear, in spite of having to work with those you fear. You have achieved intellectual feats that rival the greatest minds of the federation and all that while struggling with a traumatic experience. Fear isn’t dumb and there is nothing wrong with you for feeling it.”
“Thank you” Rodney says “That means a lot, I won't be like forever I promise, I just need some time.”
“We will laugh about this someday,” I assured. “Nothing as big and intelligent as you should be afraid of anything”
“Are you calling me fat?” Rodney exclaimed with fake offense.
We both chuckled.
My kind words had resulted in a more upright posture, and a more cheerful demeanor from the human, almost like when I congratulated Nyan on his work, and it got me a look at that happy snarl of his, that I was starting to grow quite fond of.
After Action Report - Venlil Colonial Defense Force
Subject : Apprentice Engineer Nyan
Oh wow! I get to write a report for this mission! I never get to write reports, Donu says they're too boring, but there’s so many interesting things going on all the time. Sometimes I sneakily write my own! Just for fun of course, nobody sees them, which is probably for the best as I sometimes get excited and embellish them slightly. One of the reports I wrote was about the time Donu used nothing but a wad of electrical tape, a bottle of high grain venlil alcohol and a pocket knife to repair a venlil medical ship just in time to get out of the way of a big scary space predator, with glowing red eyes and a million tentacles!
Anyways Im not sure If im suppose to write these In present tense first person or past tense. I asked the captain and she said it's whatever so long as I make sure any pertinent dialogues are properly quoted(“”).
“Nobody usually reads these things anyways.” She said, but this one is surely going to be so exciting, who could look away!
I mean who's gonna scoff at a chance to read about friendly predators from another dimension! A dimension of friendly predators who give warm head scratches and hand out yummy strayu not strayu treats called donuts, that are somehow fluffier than strayu, and have a nice moisture to them. I asked for the recipe but Samantha said we wouldn't have the ingredients back on Venili prime to make them, and Teal'c said the recipe is an old family secret. Its weird predators would be so protective of their plant snacks.
There are so many weird things about these predators, they have nurturing instincts that make them find us cute. They stay perfectly balanced even if they don’t have tails, swinging their arms and body all over the place to keep upright like a lopsided gyroscope, it's pretty funny looking!
They also wear artificial pelts all the time, which I thought was weird, I thought maybe the ships temperature was set by the angry gray alien since he’s the only crew member beside the venlil who walks around naked all the time, maybe he had a fit when it was to warm, and the humans obliged him cause they were worried they would make him even angrier, and wore clothes to make up for the cold. I thought this made sense, a lot of their technology does seem to come from the Asguard, maybe he has more say in the goings on of the ship because of that. But apparently humans just like wearing pelts all the time. They feel uncomfortable without them and don’t like it if you try to remove them or look up their upper artificial pelts they call shirts.
The humans are so weird, I don’t even have to embellish my reports to make it more interesting. Like that time with the big tentacled space predator. That may sound real compared to this stuff but it Isn't, Ha! I bet you fell for it at first, hook line and sinker! Like the humans would say. I think I used that saying right, I'm not sure what it means, but Shepard brought it up when he was telling a story about the wraith.
The humans are so nice, instead of exterminating their predators they try to cure them! Their doctors are working to modify the wraith so they don't have to eat humans anymore, so they can be friendly predators too.
Anyways I should probably get to the actual report part of this report. Farva says I should start after I went off with Samantha to work on some special astrophysics equations she said I would be good at. I kind of wanted to go with Donu to help Rodney get the new parts they needed, or Farva to help rescue our people, but the humans and even the angry gray alien got really weird when Farva mentioned taking me on the mission. Samantha seemed to want me to help her really badly so I didn’t mind. Samantha says I have the most important part to our mission. She's teaching me about how humans communicate through subspace, and about stellar drift equations. We are working on what she calls the exit strategy.

Here is the recap of the 8 monetized posts from Kylea and Joseph "Joe" Gomez of Kylea G Weight loss Journey on 05/17/24.
"Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain't goin' away." Elvis Presley
⚠️ Compuslive Buying Disorder (CBD), aka shopping addiction, Disordered Eating, Domestic Violence, Gaslighting, and Religion will be discussed.
Disclaimers: I am not a physician, influencer, or paid content creator. I am not affiliated with WW. I am semi-retired from the healthcare field with multiple college degrees. These opinions are my own based on social media content. I wish no harm to Kylea or Joe Gomez.
☎️ If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, please call or text 988 for assistance.
☎️ National Domestic Violence Helpline: Confidential Help is available 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233. Or text START to 88788.
The tagline of Kylea G Weight loss Journey is, "I changed my entire life with prayer and a playlist of songs. No surgery, no meds. Just Jesus."
DAILY STATS 05/17/24:
0/8 posts discussed prayer
0/8 posts discussed music
1/8 posts mentioned walking outside
0/8 posts shared a recipe
2/8 posts were about something Kylea ate or drank
1/8 posts was about driving home
2/8 posts were about a current pet
1/8 posts "Joe" discussed Kylea being a dog mom
1/8 posts "Joe" made about Kylea sending him McDonalds
📢 For our friends at Meta, that means that approx. 50% of the monetized posts had nothing to do with weight loss, which is the tagline and purpose of her page.
⚠️ Disordered Eating- Daily WW Points Used (Data compiled from monetized content):
2 WW Points: Plate of scrambled eggs + plate of fresh fruit + Peanut Butter Chocolate Muscle Milk in coffee.
8 WW Points: Double Shot Espresso over ice with almond milk, sugar-free vanilla, 1/2 of Peanut Butter Chocolate Muscle Milk shake, with cinnamon on top. Turkey, bacon, cheddar & egg white sandwich.
📢 For our friends at Meta, that means Kylea consumed 10 out of (up to) 30 daily WW points in maintenance mode= Disordered Eating. This is dangerous and potentially deadly messaging for those on a weight loss journey.
Recipes Shared: ZERO
🚨 Please speak with a medical professional about any questions or concerns you have about your health.
Comments: In my opinion, Kylea falsified the timeline of her arrival home. She frequently lies and has a history of mental breakdowns during travel. Let's see if you agree...

1. Unknown Breakfast Location: Kylea does not even vaguely mention her sister's presence and shows a closely cropped picture of food and a beverage.
   
2. "Joe" posted this, "My wife has been waiting to be a dog mom for a long time. I'm so excited for to be welcoming one into our home soon. 🐶 🏠"
   

*I kept the wording of the quote exactly as it appeared. "Joe" shared an old photo of Kylea holding RayRay's face (her mommma's Frenchie) and kissing him above his left eye.
⏸️ Remember, Kylea was traumatized from a dog biting her face as a child and told her followers she wanted a puppy from a breeder because of this event. This was an odd picture to share.

1. Unknown Starbucks Location for Lunch: A tightly cropped image of an empty Starbucks paper bag, Iced Beverage, and Muscle Milk is shared. There is no mention of her sister, leading Reddit users to believe Kylea was in an airport, possibly alone. How is she consuming all these dairy products without issues this trip?
   
2. God is Good: Kylea's sunburn disappeared from yesterday in this tightly cropped photo of her near a flowering plant. Her location is not disclosed. "I've just been walking around and appreciating all of the beauty of the world around me today. God is so good!!"
   

⏸️ This suspicious photo led Reddit users to believe Kylea was either already home, almost home, and/or there was a serious disagreement with her sister (they have a history of this happening). Why buy a Go City Pass and barely use it? Why go to CA to whale watch and not complete the task? Why so secretive this trip? Was she alone the majority of the time? The entire vibe has been off.

1. "I think Oliver is missing his Mom 🐈‍⬛️ 🐾" An old 📸 of Kylea sitting on the floor, squeezing Oliver to her chest (he looks like he's trying to get away), is shared. This is the 1st mention of Oliver this trip. She normally posts more often about missing him while traveling...
   
2. "Joe sent me a picture of the fur babies and they both look like they're ready for me to be home 💖" An (allegedly) old 📸 of Oliver and Alice on the back of the couch is shared.
   

Concern has been growing for weeks about the welfare of Alice. 🐈‍⬛️ I hope she is okay.

1. Driving 6 Hours Home: "The last few days of adventure in California was fun but I'm so ready to get home to my hubs!! I had a long day of travel today. ✈️ Now for the 6 hour drive back home! 🚗 Ready to cuddle my cats 🐈‍⬛️ and introduce you to our new family member later this weekend! 🐶 🐾"

⏸️ Notice, Kylea never says "we" today. This fuels the speculation of a separate return trip home from her sister. I would hardly call scrambled eggs, fruit, salsa chicken salad, and coffee an adventure. Her photos (if they were even hers) showed empty tourist destinations. I learned nothing of note from her "California adventure." What an odd trip.

1. "Joe" posted McDonalds: "I worked late last night and my wife still made sure that I got one of my favorite dinners. I love McDonald's cheeseburgers! 🍔 🍟"

I have shared resources this week on domestic violence. Not only is McDonalds triggering content for those on a weight loss journey, why is Joe Gomez unable to buy his own food? These photos (Joe holding the takeout bag) remind me of a young child posing with objects for praise.
📢 To our friends at Meta, "Joe" posting (under Kylea's account with her name) 25% of her content today is ridiculous. The page name is not "Kylea and Joe's Journey." This is not a lifestyle page. Kylea blatantly violates many monetization policies with her content. Please follow your policies and take action.
Final Questions: Do you believe Kylea traveled alone or with her sister? Do you think they were together the entire time? When do you think she arrived home? What did you learn about San Diego? How did she do as a travel blogger? 🤔
Takeout: Unknown breakfast restaurant for KG= $18 est + tip; *Possible breakfast for sister= $18 est + tip; Starbucks for KG (unknown location)= $15 est + tip, *Possible lunch for sister= $15 est + tip, Muscle Milk for KG= $3.50 est;
Shopping/Travel Expenses: Airport Parking (up to 50% off with prebook)= $16 est; Return Flight for KG on Unknown Carrier at unknown time (I do not believe she ever had a $45 round trip flight)= $82 + fees; *Possible Flight for Sister (same issue as above)= $82 est + fees; Mileage Dallas, TX to Joplin, MO= (350 est mi/33mpg) x $3.85 est= $40.83 est;
All info from Reddit. ✌️

I have a unique seasonal job that lets me live in a remote and wild place in complete and utter isolation for about half of every year. It is much more than only a job. It is the very center of my world and being now.
I was already weird before, and I'm both more and less weird now. I've learned to relate to other humans really quickly on my offseasons, but I also hardly feel related to but a few on a spirit-nourishing level, because my experiences are so far divergent from the norm that they are impossible to really describe or communicate. I have found in the past that writing gets to the heart of things more. And recently I got thinking about my husband's collections of old handmade letters, zines, mix cassettes & CDS, original music, comics, that he used to exchange with friends. I think that I'd really adore both making and receiving creative letters/parcels, a handful of times a year. I think these medium might help me scratch that relational itch, and actually find a way to share my world more. So I thought I'll post here, give things a try, and maybe find someone to slowly build this sort of friendship with.
A little more about myself:
I am animist and daoist in worldview. I love to read writings relating to hermit practices, anthropology (especially of prehistorical, nomadic, or hunting-gathering-tending humans), the natural world, or the occasional thoughtful fiction story. I used to love writing, but not in any formal way. Many years ago, I studied plant ecology in university. The activities I most love are all related to making the things I need to live, together with the lands I live within. I am a crafter and maker, and the materials I work by principle with must be ones I can directly relate to, gather myself, and transform with my own hands. In recent years I am very focused on fiber crafts, working with wild animal and plant fibers, practicing handspinning, weaving, knitting, felting, and more using also all my own tools. But I also carve, tan hides, make pottery of wild clays, and so on. My projects are very slow, on the scale of seasons or years. As an example, I loosely "rear" wild silkmoth caterpillars on wild trees, protecting them from predation in exchange for their cocoons a year later when they emerge as moths. It will take three generations to produce one woven garment from the silk, or four years. I am on year two of this! I do also enjoy not-thinking, not-doing, or immersing in my own physicality. I love long-form foot travel, trail walking/hiking/running, and at different times I try to be consistent with weight training (winter) , calisthenics (summer), and qigong/taijiquan (always).
I used to have a more artistic side, which I'd like to explore more again. I would illustrate and draw animals/plants, and try to record small songs. My husband is a musician, painter, and photographer. He has so many old film and polaroid cameras I'm starting to play around with. I love trying to find how to capture the essence of how a place feels to me, or how I perceive it. My husband is also really into film, so I watch many with him and have a small interest in that medium of storytelling/creativity as well.
Outside any interests I could list, most of my days revolve around plain old living. I am usually in a cabin so this means fetching and heating rainwater or snow, cooking, tea brewing, gardening, and so on. I like discussing daily affairs, and lifestyle choices, as much as anything else.
I grew up sensitive and shy natured, but as I've grown I'm more matter-of-fact, accepting, practical. I have experienced a lot of loss and grief in my life, very recently even, and so I try to be kind and compassionate. I cannot help but always try to understand why people are the way they are, although I wish I could develop more indifference because that tendency gets me into sticky situations at times. I find it easiest to connect with wild animals, and I have many stories about them. (Bear stories most of all, for some reason.) I most admire toads, but my husband says I am like a marten. Relaxed among the trees and in high places where I feel in my element, a bit frenetic on the ground (metaphorically: in the humans' world) where I feel less belonging and stability. I'm becoming more adaptable so maybe I'll cultivate that toad mode someday.
I am totally open to whoever you are. Very occasional snail mail is my preference, but I expect we will communicate over email for a bit before we get to that. You don't have to be into arts or crafts. Likewise you don't have to be so verbose as I am. Maybe who I'm looking for will be more into this or that, like plain old letter writing, or sharing comics, or including drawings/photos, or crafts, or any combination. I'm willing to try whatever form of exchange feels best, or being very low-pressure and intuitive about it. I only really want to find someone who I jive with. Maybe who is very specific and deep along their own path, or along a similar path as mine. Sameness in worldview/values is something I crave these days. If you feel that, please reach out; I'd love to hear your story. ♡

BASIC INFORMATION:
Full Name: Finnick Adair Kedros
Age: 16 in human years 32 In Satyr years
Birthdate: November 17th
Gender: Cis Male
Pronouns: He/Him
Hometown: Yosemite National Park.
Languages Spoken: English, Ancient Greek, & Zoolingualism
Sexuality: Gay
Nationality: American
Ethnicity: Kri-Kri
Fatal Flaw: Unknown
APPERANCE:
Height: 182 cm
Eye Color: Amber
HaiFur: Dark brown hair that has highlights of a lighter brown. Finnick’s leg fur is the same light brown color that highlights his hair.
Physique: Tall and Muscular, After spending years climbing mountains in Yosemite and fighting off monsters, Finnick has gained a few muscles. He has multiple scars for the same reasons.
Face: Being a Satyr, Finnick has rather noticeable horns, Kri-Kri goats have straight horns that only curve towards the end of the horns. Finnick frequently has facial hair growing, and he prefers to shave. Finnick also has a nose piercing , he mainly wears a silver hoop with it. His actual face is narrow with a “pointed chin,”. He has a large nose. His skin color is typically for Kri-Kri satyrs.
Staple Clothing Pieces: Baggy pants that cover his goat legs, Camp Half-Blood Shirt, And shoes 2 times his size. And a worn light yellow hat that has the almost faded lettering of "Yosemite,".
FAMILY:

Name	Age & Relation	Description
Finch Kedros	Father, 47 in Human years	An older Satyr who spent years leading Demi-gods to Camp Half-Blood. Who eventually retired after a Demi-God rescue gone wrong, He moved back to his home forest in the Yosemite National Park where he still lives today. Finnick and Finch have a good relationship.
Poppy Kedros	Mother, 42 in Human years	A flower Nymph that lives in Yosemite National Park. She has a decent relationship with her son, Despite him believing she prefers his sisters.
Chloris, Daphnes & Cerossa	Sisters, 19, 14, 11 in Human years	Flower Nymphs in Yosemite National Park, Younger sisters of Finnick. The three of them had always been close. The girls have always enjoyed teasing their brothers and are frequently in arguments with them
Maron Kedros	Brother, 13 in Human years	Finnick’s little brother, the two get along very well and have a very strong relationship. They spend most of their time together playing the pan pipes or arguing with their sisters.
Dante Abernathy	Friend & Former Lover, 17 in Human years	A Satyr that also lived in Yosemite. Finnick, and Dante had been friends since childhood and ended up dating. The two broke up when Dante moved to New Argos to study at the Techne Institute.

PERSONALITY:
Favorites:

• Songs/Albums: Fleet Foxes, Florence and the Machine, Hozier, Father John Misty, Lord Huron, The Lumineers, Sufjan Stevens, & Of Monsters and Men.
• Colors: Earthy tones, especially yellows and oranges.
• Food: Coke Cans, Metal Clippings, Aluminum, Nuts, Oranges, & Grapes
• Places: Yosemite, Vermont, New Argos, Northern Canada, Redwood Forests, Mount Regions.
• Hobbies: Playing the Panpipes, Knitting, Hiking, Soccer, Strawberry Picking, & Beekeeping
• Flowers: Peony, Marigold, Begonia, Gardenia, Hydrangea, & Sunflower

Traits:

• Good: Dedicated, Gentle, Kind, Idealistic, Organized, Resourceful, Trusting, Warm
• Neutral: Selfless, Earthy, Maternal, Optimistic, Helpful, Creative
• Bad: Skittish, Clumsy, Foolish, Graceless, Shy, Timid, Weak-Willed

Trivia:

• Finnick can name almost every plant just by smell alone.
• Once while rescuing a demigod Finnick stole a police officers car
• Finnick grew up speaking mainly in Ancient Greek with his mother and English with his father
• Finnick was taught to braid by his sisters and often braids his fur.
• Despite being a Satyr Finnick has his "Drivers License," from the state of South Dakota.

POWERS:
Major Power:
Empathy Link: The ability to establish an empathy link between the user and another individual. The two can telepathically communicate over great distances, especially through dreams, and they can perceive each other's senses. If one dies, however, the other either also perishes or reduces to a vegetative state. This link can be removed if the two affected individuals are close and will it away.
Minor Powers:
Plant Manipulation (Chlorokinesis): The ability to control plant life through the use of panpipes
Weather Inducement: The ability to induce good weather, such as light rain showers or a sunny day, through the use of panpipes.
Nature Healing (Vitakinesis): The ability to induce healing in plants or individuals (minor injuries, soothing pain) through the use of panpipes.
Domain Power:
Satyr Physiology: A trait where one is born with the abilities of a satyr (Greek: satyroi, Roman: faun). This includes Superior Smell and Speed, Legendary Climbing, and Tracking Proficiency. Satyrs are also able to communicate with all wildlife (Animal Communication / Zoolingualism).
Mount Lamis: Yosemite National Park, a Satyr Sanctuary
Mount Lamis one of the oldest Satyr Sanctuary’s in North America, founded by the 17th century satyr and legendary explorer, Lamis Kedros. Lamis was considered to be one of the first satyrs to reach the north American continent and traveled west to avoid all the new settlers and to search for Pan. Once Lamis reached the rocky mountains he believed he would find Pan on the other side of the mountain somewhere closer to the sea.
Lamis never found Pan but he instead found the region of Yosemite where he would spend the rest of his days. Lamis proclaimed that all the mountains and all the valleys of this region will be protected and blessed by the Satyrs, in the name of the great god Pan. Lamis himself placed a Satyrs Blessing on the area and even today the area remains earthy. The highest peak in the area would be named after him and would be the home of all his descendants. The mortals called Mount Lamis, Mount Lyell after a mortal scientist.
HISTORY:
Born and raised in Mount Lamis Yosemite was a wonderful experience for Finnick. He had his many siblings and loving parents and even a few friends. When Finnick was 12 years old (Human years) his parents decided that it would be best for the young satyr to begin rescuing demigods and taking them to Camp Half Blood. So that's exactly what Finnick did, he would spend most of the months of the year pretending to be a teenager and befriend the demigod in peril. In the few summer months he would return home to his family.
And it was during one of these summers where his feelings towards his friend and fellow protector Dante blossomed into something else. The two began dating shortly and even when they had to part ways to different mortal middle schools they continued to date. It was almost a year after they had begun to date when they ran into each other dropping Half bloods off at camp that the broke up. Dante had reveled that he would spend the summer in New Argos and wanted to Finnick to come with him, not willing to leave his family Finnick broke up with him and hasn't seen him since.
Since their break up Finnick has spent every summer with his family, avoiding the east coast entirely. That of course was until this summer when Finnick had arrived home to his parents deciding that it would be best if he had spent the summer at Camp. Not wanting to upset his parents Finnick agreed and made his way across the country to Camp Half Blood.
CURRENT TIME:
Finnick walked eagerly over the hill, it had only been a weeks since he had been at camp dropping of a demi-god but after some reflection he was excited to be back. It would be a chance to actually get to know the Heroes within the valley for longer than just a few weeks in the school year where Finnick didn't even get to truly be himself.
He was excited to be able to go strawberry picking with the children of Dionysus and gardening with the Demeter kids. And banter with the nymphs as if they were his sisters-- The site of the blood red Ares cabin covered in barb wire and the most likely chance of stepping on a Landmine scared the goat out of his horns. It seemed Finnick had forgotten about his fear of the more, violent campers. Goats were skittish around humans especially the Kri-Kri. Only slightly worried he continued to walk through camp, maybe he would see a camper he brought to camp before.
(ooc: I hope I can use the new Argos bit like i did, plz let me know if I cant. i took a lot of inspiration from other intro's I hope that was ok! :3 Feel free to have your character know Finnick already! he would have been at camp a lot before)

Previous diary entries are here: https://www.reddit.com/buffy/comments/1ctyuhn/rewatchers_diary_season_2_episodes_11_to_14/
Today I want to talk about Phases (2x15); Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered (2x16); Passion (2x17); and Killed by Death (2x18).
It's so good to be back at The Bronze (2x15-2x17)! I didn't know how much I missed it. Phases is great, BBB is a fun romp, Passion is BTVS at its absolute finest and temps me to add 'P' to my list of tiers, Killed by Death is S2 shedding its S1 skin. (Consider that choice of words in the light of episode 20.)
Phases

• I love Cain! Well he's a bad guy so I don't love love him, but I love every second he's on screen. He has such... I'm not sure charm or charisma or chemistry is the right word 'cause it puts him in a positive light. Maybe screen presence is better.
• And he's funny! "People for the ethical treatment of werewolves" :D
• Giles calls him a pillock, a quite British insult which will be repeated in Becoming (2x21-2x22).
• There's a fun bit early where Willow says something like "at least Oz is not an animal". Chekhov's lycanthropy much?
• Giles being asleep in his car while he's supposed to look for werewolves with Buffy makes his later scolding of Xander—for sleeping on while werewolf watch—appear a bit hypocritical.
• Xander and Cordelia's anti-chemistry continues to develop, much to my amusement.
• In Teacher's Pet (1x4) Xander dreamed of being the one to save Buffy. When a vampire Theresa rises from her coffin, he finally gets to—right after they called out the episode by mentioning Xander might get his head cut off.
• I guess we should talk about Oz being a werewolf. Buffy was dating a monster—they make monster movies about vampires—who turned into a real monster when he lost his soul. Now Willow is dating a monster too? Uh-oh.
• Angel tried to keep the monster in check by warning Buffy about himself: "we're not right for each other" // "I'm older than you and this can't work" // coming clean about Drusilla in Lie To Me (2x7). Oz is trying to keep the monster in check by attempting to chain himself up and by pushing Willow away when he's about to turn. One is more successful than the other.
• Oz could have come clean and asked for help, but the way the scoobies talked about werewolves probably pushed him out of it. Later he'll ask Faith about her stance on werewolves, and he'll fail to communicate in Wild at Heart (4x6). I won't opine on whether that's in character on not, but I think at least some seeds have been planted here.
• Let's talk about about Larry and his coming out scene. I'm male, I'm not gay, digest my take accordingly. I thought it was mostly good—that is, the writing felt true to life and it was compelling to watch. It's tragic that he was afraid of coming out. I don't think we see malice directed to non-straight characters to the degree Larry is afraid of (excluded from his sports, being run out of town), I mostly remember surprise ("Tara's a great girl, Wil" / "Tara's your girlfriend?!?") followed by acceptance, at least when same-sex attraction is talked about overtly and explicitly. But let's assume Larry is right to fear that he'll be punished somehow if people know his true self, and no one can help him with that. Then I can clearly understand why he would remain in the closet, as a painful adaptation to an unfriendly environment. What really gets me, and maybe I'm reading too much into a single word, is him saying "[... admit I'm gay]". English isn't my first language, but my understanding is that "admit" means "acknowledge something bad", suggesting internalized homophobia: Larry views his own homosexuality as bad :(
• No Larry, it's okay to be gay (as the song goes). What's not okay is knocking papers out of the hands of random passers-by. It's so nice seeing him make amends near the end of the episode, by helping a victim of the same mistreatment at someone else's hands. And I guess step one of self-acceptance manifests by dropping the false persona you've used to cover up your true self.
• Hey maybe Larry can be(come) fun to be around for N-3 days of the month, just like Willow and Oz.
• The obvious parallels in this episode are Oz and Larry, both acting like monsters—if you'll admit the hyperbole about Larry's bullying—and new(-at-least-to-us) sides of them (ahem) coming out. But, in part because I like thinking concretely, I find the Larry/future-Willow parallels even more compelling. Did you catch my Restless reference? I think Willow's false persona is not about her sexuality but the very core of her being—and during her dark phase at the end of S6, it all comes out.
• Phases is great. It's not spectacular or anything, just one of those solid on-the-good-side-of-average episodes which make up the backbone of BTVS and which makes me love the show.

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

• Amy is back! I'm always happy to see her, she's one of my favorite side characters.
• First we find out Buffy is dating a monster, then Willow too, and now we learn Xander is dating the kind of monster who would break up with her boyfriend on Valentine's day. It's really true what they said in I, Robot... You, Jane (1x8): they're doomed.
• It's not like a horde of love-crazed girls is any better, though. And Buffy's mom! [stacys_mom.mov] Is this where Xander's dream in Restless (4x22) comes from?
• Even Drusilla is hot for Xander. They truly are doomed, and Xander could be completing the dating-a-monster trio here.
• Before this, Amy invoked Godess Hecate to turn Buffy into a rat—also to be invoked in Gingerbread (3x11). We see rat-Buffy liking cheese. Hey, is that at the root of Willow telling Riley "Buffy likes cheese" in Something Blue (4x9)? Also, Amy's eyes turned red for a moment, reminding me of the final shot in Seeing Red (6x19). I learned in Lie to Me (2x7) that you can tell the baddies by their horns or black hats but it didn't mention red eyes. I'm confused :-p
• In either this episode or the previous one (I think), there was a throwaway comment around Willow, maybe from Oz to Willow, about using powers for good and not turning into an evil mastermind—or words to roughly that effect. Apropos red eyes.
• Once or twice when the mob of girls was chasing Xander, I thought to myself "this is getting a bit old; please pick up the pace and go somewhere". But one bit of pacing not to my taste does not detract from this being a dang good MotW episode, by which I mean: it maybe nudges the characters and/or relationships forward a step—in particular Cordelia choosing Xander over Harmony—without really moving the needle on the season arc, and while doing so it focuses mainly on the episodic issue, in this case the love spell hijinks. It does its thing very well, would recommend.

Passion

• Oh no not Jenny :(
• I mean, you all know Passion. Greatest. Shit. Ever. Afterwards my partner said, with a sad tone of voice, "This' a stupid show. One more episode?"
• Angelus' speech at the end, "without passion [...] empty rooms" is great. And it's true: having something in your life which you value greatly, such as loving someone, means you also have the capacity for pain and suffering if you should lose it. Yet this is what life is for: loving, valuing, risking pain and loss. And especially endgame couples: one always dies first, leaving the other to suffer the bereavement. And yet by hormones and pheromones we are driven into each others' arms, only to be ripped out again.
• Of course: just because suffering is part of life doesn't mean we should go around inflicting it. Much better to accept the unavoidable parts, reduce the suffering we can eliminate, and hope we can tell them apart.
• Just go watch it, I don't have anything witty to say.

Killed By Death

• "Tact is just not saying true stuff, I'll pass" // "let's go, tact guy"
• They say that college is a time for experimentation. I always thought they meant lab work. I think Willow shares my mindset: her and Xander used to play doctor, except Willow would be reading the medical texts and Xander didn't have it in his heart to tell her she was playing it wrong. Willow in a nutshell: on point with the academic program—the lab work in my analogy—but a bit less so with the social program, i.e. the actual experimentation.
• Ooh, while in a heath care facility she talks about vampires and Giles pretends it's a delusion with which he plays along. That must sting real bad for Buffy: in Normal Again (6x17) we learn that she has already been in a (that time: mental) health care facility in which people didn't believe her about the vampires.
• Child Buffy playing supergirl with who I assume is her cousin Celia was suuuuper cute. I don't recall the images from The Weight of the World (5x21), but I think child-Buffy in 2x18 didn't look exactly like child-Buffy in 5x21. Oh well, maybe (up to) three years of aging will do that to a child.
• Buffy is sick so she can see the monster which she fights to save the kids the end. MotW, kept me looking at the screen the whole time, didn't move any needles on anything as far as I can tell. Not terrible, but not what excites me about BTVS.

Loose threads: I did not talk about Larry grabbing Buffy's ass in Phases or Buffy commenting on Xander not making use of her being under his (er, Amy's) spell in Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. I don't think I have anything new to say, but I want to acknowledge that those things happened.
Episode tier list

• S-tier: 17
• A-tier: 7 13 14 > 9 10 15 16
• B-tier: 3 6 > 1
• C-tier: 8 11 > 5
• D-tier: 2 4 18 > 12

FWIW, I tend to rank two-parters as a unit, probably where I would place the best half. If I tried to distinguish real hard, Surprise (2x13) might end up somewhere lower on the A-tier. I'm not sure about What's My Line (2x9-2x10).

Hey there! I am a 30 year old guy from Upstate New York looking for someone that wants to make an emotional connection, and would like to put efforts into conversations.
A bit about me: I'm 6’1". I get height can be a big deal for some women so I think it's best to just put it out there first 😅 I've got black hair, brownish black eyes. Average body, I'm muscular and wanting to start exercising both for health and a little bit for better shape. I like to think I'm fairly attractive but then most of us grew up with a relative always telling us we were not handsome or cute, etc. we can share pictures once we establish some comfort zone. If education is important, I am a college graduate with post-graduation degree as well. Now working as an engineer.
I have to lead with the fact that I can be pretty sarcastic at times. I also joke and (playfully) tease. I'm pretty easy going/chill and I like to keep things light and fun, but also enjoy getting into the really deep conversations as well. I'm a sucker for the whole good morning and goodnight text thing as well as checking in on those busier days. That doesn’t mean we have to just message good morning and good night for the whole week. Haha. I think most important part of knowing someone via online platform is initial conversations and if you don’t have enough time let me know otherwise that conversation is dead in no time.
I love animals. I've always felt very connected and attached to them and just enjoy interacting with them. While I am more of a dog person pet-wise, cats are still pretty cool in my book. Cats are more complex though I love the mysterious nature.
Anything outdoors is great in my opinion. Just feel like going for a walk? Let's do it. I do kayaking a bit in the summers, fish, hike, go for drives. I have the habit of occasionally stopping and taking pictures of plants and flowers I see around (I'm always down to share!). While sending me message write code - “I3U” so that I know it’s someone who actually read my post. Didn’t write in the end cuz some people might just skip to end. This doesn’t mean that you just send me the code. I am strictly gonna monitor now. I have skimmed through soo many texts and my innocent heart always gives chances, I am gonna try to be little strict this time.
It's not just the outdoors I love. I can also get down with chill days at home binging something on Netflix or playing something on my PC. Let's face it, I'm a bit if a nerd (everyone has something nerd about themselves) and if you like Jurassic park, board games, Any Mafia movies, gaming, etc we will get along great. I'm a sucker for horror movies as well and am always looking for recommendations. I listen to a lot of music. I shouldn’t brag but I listen to english ,german, Spanish, french and Hindi songs. Born and brought up in India. Hence, hindi songs.
A bit about (possibly) you: I'd prefer if you were in some sort of professional environment and ambitious. I'm not extremely picky about things like hair and eye color. Height is also not a big deal. If you're alot smaller than me and worried that it's something you’ll be insecure about, it's not. The big thing for me is personality. I think personality can make us a lot more or a lot less attractive. I want someone that is genuinely kind and sweet, someone that likes to laugh, someone that's not afraid to be goofy.
A final note: I'm a single guy and looking for someone dynamic. Sometimes I can respond immediately and sometimes it takes a minute due to the obvious circumstances. I also don't expect you to respond immediately to every message, I get that we all have lives and can be busy at times. It would be awesome if you are up for a voice chat. And please please when responding write something about yourself.
If any if this sounds remotely interesting to you, feel free to reach out via reddit dm or chat!

Hey there! I am a 30 year old guy from Upstate New York looking for someone that wants to make an emotional connection.
A bit about me: I'm 6’1". I get height can be a big deal for some women so I think it's best to just put it out there first 😅 I've got black hair, brownish black eyes. Average body, I'm muscular and wanting to start exercising both for health and a little bit for better shape. I like to think I'm fairly attractive but then most of us grew up with a relative always telling us we were not handsome or cute, etc. we can share pictures once we establish some comfort zone. If education is important, I am a college graduate with post-graduation degree as well. Now working as an engineer.
I have to lead with the fact that I can be pretty sarcastic at times. I also joke and (playfully) tease. I'm pretty easy going/chill and I like to keep things light and fun, but also enjoy getting into the really deep conversations as well. I'm a sucker for the whole good morning and goodnight text thing as well as checking in on those busier days. That doesn’t mean we have to just message good morning and good night for the whole week. Haha. I think most important part of knowing someone via online platform is initial conversations and if you don’t have enough time let me know otherwise that conversation is dead in no time.
I love animals. I've always felt very connected and attached to them and just enjoy interacting with them. While I am more of a dog person pet-wise, cats are still pretty cool in my book. Cats are more complex though I love the mysterious nature.
Anything outdoors is great in my opinion. Just feel like going for a walk? Let's do it. I do kayaking a bit in the summers, fish, hike, go for drives. I have the habit of occasionally stopping and taking pictures of plants and flowers I see around (I'm always down to share!). While sending me message write code - “I2U” so that I know it’s someone who actually read my post. Didn’t write in the end cuz some people might just skip to end. This doesn’t mean that you just send me the code. I am strictly gonna monitor now. I have skimmed through soo many texts and my innocent heart always gives chances, I am gonna try to be little strict this time.
It's not just the outdoors I love. I can also get down with chill days at home binging something on Netflix or playing something on my PC. Let's face it, I'm a bit if a nerd (everyone has something nerd about themselves) and if you like Jurassic park, board games, Any Mafia movies, gaming, etc we will get along great. I'm a sucker for horror movies as well and am always looking for recommendations. I listen to a lot of music. I shouldn’t brag but I listen to english ,german, Spanish, french and Hindi songs. Born and brought up in India. Hence, hindi songs.
A bit about (possibly) you: I'd prefer if you were in some sort of professional environment and ambitious. I'm not extremely picky about things like hair and eye color. Height is also not a big deal. If you're alot smaller than me and worried that it's something you’ll be insecure about, it's not. The big thing for me is personality. I think personality can make us a lot more or a lot less attractive. I want someone that is genuinely kind and sweet, someone that likes to laugh, someone that's not afraid to be goofy.
A final note: I'm a single guy and looking for someone dynamic. Sometimes I can respond immediately and sometimes it takes a minute due to the obvious circumstances. I also don't expect you to respond immediately to every message, I get that we all have lives and can be busy at times. It would be awesome if you are up for a voice chat. And please when responding write something about yourself.
If any if this sounds remotely interesting to you, feel free to reach out via reddit dm or chat!

Hey there! I am a 30 year old guy from Upstate New York looking for someone that wants to make an emotional connection.
A bit about me: I'm 6’1". I get height can be a big deal for some women so I think it's best to just put it out there first 😅 I've got black hair, brownish black eyes. Average body, I'm muscular and wanting to start exercising both for health and a little bit for better shape. I like to think I'm fairly attractive but then most of us grew up with a relative always telling us we were not handsome or cute, etc. we can share pictures once we establish some comfort zone. If education is important, I am a college graduate with post-graduation degree as well. Now working as an engineer.
I have to lead with the fact that I can be pretty sarcastic at times. I also joke and (playfully) tease. I'm pretty easy going/chill and I like to keep things light and fun, but also enjoy getting into the really deep conversations as well. I'm a sucker for the whole good morning and goodnight text thing as well as checking in on those busier days. That doesn’t mean we have to just message good morning and good night for the whole week. Haha. I think most important part of knowing someone via online platform is initial conversations and if you don’t have enough time let me know otherwise that conversation is dead in no time.
I love animals. I've always felt very connected and attached to them and just enjoy interacting with them. While I am more of a dog person pet-wise, cats are still pretty cool in my book. Cats are more complex though I love the mysterious nature.
Anything outdoors is great in my opinion. Just feel like going for a walk? Let's do it. I do kayaking a bit in the summers, fish, hike, go for drives. I have the habit of occasionally stopping and taking pictures of plants and flowers I see around (I'm always down to share!). While sending me message write code - “I4U” so that I know it’s someone who actually read my post. Didn’t write in the end cuz some people might just skip to end. This doesn’t mean that you just send me the code. I am strictly gonna monitor now. I have skimmed through soo many texts and my innocent heart always gives chances, I am gonna try to be little strict this time.
It's not just the outdoors I love. I can also get down with chill days at home binging something on Netflix or playing something on my PC. Let's face it, I'm a bit if a nerd (everyone has something nerd about themselves) and if you like Jurassic park, board games, Any Mafia movies, gaming, etc we will get along great. I'm a sucker for horror movies as well and am always looking for recommendations. I listen to a lot of music. I shouldn’t brag but I listen to english ,german, Spanish, french and Hindi songs. Born and brought up in India. Hence, hindi songs.
A bit about (possibly) you: I'd prefer if you were in some sort of professional environment and ambitious. I'm not extremely picky about things like hair and eye color. Height is also not a big deal. If you're alot smaller than me and worried that it's something you’ll be insecure about, it's not. The big thing for me is personality. I think personality can make us a lot more or a lot less attractive. I want someone that is genuinely kind and sweet, someone that likes to laugh, someone that's not afraid to be goofy.
A final note: I'm a single guy and looking for someone dynamic. Sometimes I can respond immediately and sometimes it takes a minute due to the obvious circumstances. I also don't expect you to respond immediately to every message, I get that we all have lives and can be busy at times. It would be awesome if you are up for a voice chat. And please when responding write something about yourself.
If any if this sounds remotely interesting to you, feel free to reach out via reddit dm or chat!

I had been posting here for a long time as “roacsonofcarc.” The other night some kind of digital upheaval threw me off my desktop and wiped out my all saved passwords. I talked Reddit into letting me back in, but for some reason my identity changed.
For my first post under this new name, here are some of Tolkien's possible connections to one of my favorite authors: Geoffrey Chaucer.¹ In his The House of Fame, an eagle carries the poet (in a dream) to the palace of the goddess Fame. On first being picked up, Chaucer faints. When he comes to:

And here-withal I gan to stere,/And he me in his fet to bere,/Til that he felte that I had hete,/And felte eke tho myn herte bete./And thoo gan he me to disporte,/And with wordes to comforte,/And sayde twyes, "Seynte Marye!/Thou art noyous for to carye,/And nothyng nedeth it, pardee!/For, also wis God helpe me,/As thou noon harm shalt have of this;/And this caas that betyd the is,/Is for thy lore and for thy prow.

The sense of this, for those who can't deal with Middle English, is that the eagle tells Chaucer not to be such a pain, because nobody is going to hurt him. The cream of it is the adjective “noyous,” which as you might suspect means “annoying.” (One of the things I like about Chaucer is that he makes himself the butt of all his best jokes.) When I reread the poem a few months back, this reminded me of Bilbo being airlifted to the Carrock:

Bilbo opened an eye to peep and saw that the birds were already high up and the world was far away, and the mountains were falling back behind them into the distance. He shut his eyes again and held on tighter.
"Don't pinch!" said his eagle. "You need not be frightened like a rabbit, even if you look rather like one. It is a fair morning with little wind. What is finer than flying?"
Bilbo would have liked to say: "A warm bath and late breakfast on the lawn afterwards;" but he thought it better to say nothing at all, and to let go his clutch just a tiny bit.

Though Bilbo is riding on his eagle's back, while Chaucer is carried in its claws. Next, here is a line from Tolkien's best-known scene of courtship: “And Eowyn looked at Faramir long and steadily; and Faramir said: 'Do not scorn pity that is the gift of a gentle heart, Eowyn!'” I don't think it is a coincidence that Chaucer wrote that “pitee renneth soone in gentil herte”; in fact, he liked the line so much he used it three times – in the “Knight's Tale.” the ”Squire's Tale,” and The Legend of Good Women.
And then there is the lightness of the linden tree.² The first preserved version of the story of Beren and Luthien is a poem that appeared in 1925 in a magazine published by Leeds University (where Tolkien was teaching), under the title “Light as Leaf on Lindentree.” That exact phrase does not appear in LotR, but Aragorn's song at Weathertop includesHe heard there oft the flying sound/Of feet as light as linden-leaves. “ The lightness of linden leaves is also alluded to in Legolas's “Song of Nimrodel": And in the wind she went as light/As leaf of linden-tree.
Tilia cordata is a European species, and I don't know what about its leaves makes them light. But the association is old. It occurs in Chaucer in the “Envoi” to the “Clerk's Tale,” which advises wives to Be ay of chiere as light as leef on lynde, “Be ever in behavior as light as a leaf on a linden tree.” And here is one of the best things in William Langland's Piers Plowman (a poem I mostly find drab compared to Chaucer):

Love is plonte of pees, most precious of vertues/For hevene hold it ne mighte, so heuy hit first semede/Til hit had of erthe ygoten hitsilue./Was never lef uppon lynde lyghtere ther-aftur./As when hit hadde of the folde flesch and blode taken./Tho was it persaunt and portatif as the point of a nelde/May none armure hit let ne none heye walles
Love is plant of peace · most precious of virtues./For Heaven might not hold it · so heavy it seemed/Till it had of the earth · begotten itself./Never was leaf upon linden · lighter thereafter,/As when it had of the field · flesh and blood taken,/Then was it pricking and piercing · as the point of a needle,/That no armour might stay it · nor any high walls.

(Langland is writing about the Incarnation of Christ. Michael Drout's J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia notes both of these, at p. 525.)
Finally, in “The Window on the West,” Faramir says of Boromir's horn:

The shards came severally to shore: one was found among the reeds where watchers of Gondor lay, northwards below the infalls of the Entwash; the other was found spinning on the flood by one who had an errand on the water. Strange chances, but murder will out, ’tis said.

“Murder will out” is one proverb that Tolkien did not make up; it is commonplace in English literature. Chaucer surely didn't invent it either, but this is another phrase that appears three times in the Canterbury Tales. Here it is in the “Nun's Priest's Tale”:

Mordre wol out; that se we day by day./Mordre is so wlatsom [disgusting] and abhomynable/To God, that is so just and resonable,/That he ne wol nat suffre it heled [hidden] be,/Though it abyde a yeer, or two, or thre./Mordre wol out, this my conclusioun.

Tolkien knew the “Nun's Priest's Tale” by heart. In 1938 he dressed as Chaucer and recited it from memory before an Oxford audience. See Letters 32, pp. 39-40, and the Carpenter Biography at p. 214..
1, Sorry if I have posted some of these before. Gandalf too experienced some memory loss while on hiatus.

1. According to the OED, the name of the tree was originally the “lind,” or sometimes the “lime.” “Linden” was originally an adjective, like “dwarven.”

A build for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons
Sebastian Gilberti, a.k.a. Bastion, is a human/sentinel hybrid, the product of combining a master mold and a nimrod into a living person. Bastion is thus far proven to be immortal, infinitely calculating and patient but with a singular hatred for mutantkind from his Nimrod programming. Prior defeats had only refocused him into grander and deadlier returns, one time sending time portals from a robot apocalypse future with an endless wave of Nimrod sentinels to the X-Men’s timeline, resulting in multiple main character deaths just to be forestalled. For Bastion, there’s no such thing as overkill. He is the future incarnate.
Bastion:
8/14/15/14/12/8 with a +2 in Intelligence and a +1 in Constitution

• Kalashtar as race, getting the pink skin and white hair, resistance to psychic damage and advantage on wisdom saves, and the ability to telepathically communicate with your minions
• Arcana and Investigation as an Artificer, Smith’s (Tinker’s?) tools
• Selesnya Initiate background from Ravnica for a spell choice later
• Medicine and History from the Selesnya background

Level Progression:
1st level goes to Artificer to start with con save proficiency and medium armor, then the rest goes into wizard. ASIs are spent on maxing intelligence, getting Resilient:Wisdom, War Caster, and Subtle metamagic.
Level 1:
Artificer spells: morning prepare, int mod +1, so start with four, gain one at 5, and one at 9
Cantrips:

• Fire Bolt - your standard energy beam
• Thorn Whip - snag and pull at an enemy

1st:

• Cure Wounds - for self-repair mid-combat
• Sanctuary - deter spells and attacks at you as well as your minions from turning on you
• Faerie Fire - aid the targeting of your minions
• Expeditious Retreat - activate your jet booster to swiftly navigate the battlefield
• Absorb Elements - raise a forcefield to deflect energy-based attacks
• Feather Fall - employ your jet heels to prevent falling from midair

Necromancy Wizard:

• Arcane Recovery: restore a number of spell slots equal to half your wizard level (rounding up), effectively a second cast of your highest slot up to 6th level spells, or more plentiful lower slots if you need those more.
• Grim Harvest: heal after killing a creature with a leveled spell. Healing amount is twice the spell’s level, or three times if it was a necromancy spell. For instance Disintegrate at 6th level would heal 12 hp, but Circle of Death at 6th level would heal 18.
• 6: Undead Thralls: double the minions for casts of Animate Dead, and minions raised by a spell have your wizard level of extra HP and your proficiency bonus added to their damage
• 10: Inured to Death: gain necrotic damage resistance and your max hp can’t be reduced
• 14: Command Undead: as an action you can take control of any undead with no upper duration limit, and limited only by its intelligence score.
• Spell Mastery: choose a 1st and 2nd wizard spell to be at-will
  • Mage Armor: I liken this to the cyborg appearance when a prime sentinel activates. Touch a creature and their AC will be 13+dex. Every minion gets 2 or 3 ac out of this.
  • Wither and Bloom: for easy healing of your undead minions and extra value out of Grim Harvest; half damage on save means efficient clearing of commoners for some fast corpses. Ghasts in particular have 8 hit dice, so they can extent their hit points to a maximum of 8d8+40, or around 76 extra hp.

Wizard Spells: wiz level + int mod prepare (extras at 5 and 9), start with a book of 6 + 2 per level up
Cantrips:

• Chill Touch - fire a beam of concentrated darkness that deadens healing
• Minor Illusion - tune a nearby radio to play your favorite classic song
• Mage Hand - shape your electric cables into a hand to reach things with
• Mending - use your technopathy to repair broken parts
• Sword Burst - spin with your metallic wings to slash everything around you

1st:

• Magic Missile - produce several laser guns at once to fire a barrage
• Shield - raise a forcefield to deflect attacks
• Charm Person - you’re unsettlingly charmful and relaxed for someone so dangerous
• Disguise Self - for alternating looks between cyborg and man
• Hideous Laughter - hold a target helpless and prone in your wires
• Detect Magic - read tech with your technopathy and sense mutant powers with your Nimrod half
• Snare - a defensive trap to ensnare approaches in wires
• Identify - read tech with your technopathy, finding the inner workings of magic items

2nd:

• Hold Person - paralyze an enemy in wires
• Levitate - lift some helplessly before you
• Misty Step - teleport in or out of spaces in combat
• Wither and Bloom - sap at your enemies while bolster
• Nystul’s Magic Aura - for making Sentinels, explained below

3rd:

• Animate Dead - your base minions, in extra durable or ranged attacking varieties
• Glyph of Warding - to interact with Planar Binding
• Magic Circle - to interact with Planar Binding
• Counterspell - analyze mutant powers and deploy reactive countermeasures ala Nimrod
• Dispel Magic - disrupt mutant powers with a Nimrod energy blast

4th:

• Dimension Door - open a portal to teleport through
• Summon Greater Demon - upcast as a 6th slot to pull in a Maurezhi, explained below

5th:

• Awaken - picked up from the Selesnya Initiate background. For making Sentinels, explained below
• Planar Binding - for permanently retaining a Maurezhi summon

6th:

• Create Undead - Summon Ghouls and Ghasts which can be reraised by a summoned Maurezhi
• Arcane Gate - open a portal to teleport the whole army
• Contingency - an emergency Dimension Door to exit a losing fight
• Tasha’s Otherworldly Guise - take your Nimrod form and create metallic wings and armor fight and fly.

7th:

• Simulacrum - make a copy of yourself to speed up the prime sentinel making process
• Finger of Death - blast a heavy necrotic damage ray that raises a slain target as a permanently controlled zombie

8th:

• Clone - a backup body, effectively immortality
• Mighty Fortress - your hidden lab and headquarters
• Demiplane - zombie storage unit

9th:

• Wish - for expediting the army manufactory
• True Polymorph - for creating sentinels
• Imprisonment - for keeping Magnetos in their prison attire for their regular shaving

Tactics:
Mighty Fortress:
Bastion has a lot of army building to do, so first order of business is going to have to be Mighty Fortress. You can make these permanent and even avoid the material cost by using Wish over the course of a year, so selling one can bankroll everything else you’ll be getting up to. When he’s ready, a Mighty Fortress of his own will serve as his Operation Zero Tolerance secure lab. There he can have all manner of sentinel and prime sentinel manufactory as well as stash his emergency Clone.
Simulacrum:
You’re going to be very busy with the various sentinel-making schemes, so perhaps your best course is to start with Simulacrums of yourself to multiply your efforts. These are your Nimrod model sentinels, any one of them a match for the X-Men themselves. The Wish spell casts Simulacrum instantly, and even duplicates of yourself without a 9th slot gets things moving at a dizzying rate. A Boon of High Magic to have a spare 9th slot circumvents this, if desired.
True Polymorph:
Simulacrums have your Spell Masteries as at-will options but otherwise don’t get slots back, so a spent Simulacrum can still be made useful with True Polymorph, turning it into another creature of a cr equal to its level for one hour. Here I go with the Ogremoch, a cr 20 gargantuan earth elemental with over 500 hp, making them a kaiju-sized godzilla sentinel like the one that flattened Genosha, able to deal double AND maximized damage to structures due to the Siege Monster trait and its attacks being adamantine. It also resist magic, has legendary resistances and legendary actions. By taking from its own hp, Ogremach is able to also deploy a swarm of earth elementals and gargoyles as its own fleet of sentinels from its own body.
Awakening:
As detailed in my Sentinel build, I outlined a way to make a huge sized construct into a Warrior sidekick that is able to level up alongside you. With a Ravnica background you are able to add the Awaken spell, which with Nystul’s Magic Aura confusing what creature counts as a plant, you give intelligence and language to a cr 0 stone giant construct. If you can’t find a stone giant construct, True Polymorph’s object into creature option can make one for you, permanently. Nystul’s and Awakening and it then can qualify as a sidekick, helped with True Polymorph adding the detail that it is friendly to you, and it can then gain attack actions and the full breadth of leveling for a Warrior Sidekick which is basically a discount Fighter. Keep these alive through enough fights and these too can rise to level 20.
Command Undead:
If you won’t be leveling a sidekick from 1 and need a Sentinel on the fly, the object into creature option of True Polymorph has an upper cr limit of 9. A good contender here is a Barrowghast, a cr 7 huge undead with good hp, a slam attack and a strength drain that raises a zombie with each humanoid it can kill by draining. Conjure the Barrowghast and concentrate for 1 hour to make it permanent, then immediately use Command Undead. It has to fail a Charisma save in which it has -2, then becomes your loyal ally indefinitely, limit of 1.
Summon Greater Demon:
Bastion’s most important aspect is his ability to mass produce prime sentinels, a seemingly endless supply of human-sized minions to fight on his behalf. The Planar Binding spell helps make this possible, turning what is normally an hour summon into a year-long one. Using the secret lab home base, a Glyph of Warding with a precast Magic Circle to contain a demon has Summon Greater Demon cast over it, upcast to a 6th to be able to pull in a cr 7 Maurezhi. Maurezhi is able to assume the appearance of a humanoid it eats for 1d6 days, making them capable of assuming that person’s life. Its claws can paralyze and its bite can kill by draining a target’s Charisma score with no save, dying immediately if it drops to 0, and if that target is a humanoid, they are raised again as a Ghoul, a cr1 undead that can also paralyze with its attack.
Create Undead:
The 6th level spell Create Undead gives you the ability to make stronger undead minions. Cast as a 6th slot, you can raise three Ghouls; each level upcast increases the number and strength of your summons, up to a 9th slot raising six ghouls or three Ghasts, a cr 2 undead with a paralyzing attack and poisoning aura. Ghouls and Ghasts are significant because the Maurezhi reraises fallen Ghouls and Ghasts with a 5 or 6 recharge; by having multiple Planar Bound Maurezhis, you can keep this very frequent. Not reraisable by a Maurezhi but also available from upcasting Create Undead to an 8th slot are Wights which can raise their own set of zombies. They can control up to 12 but if you just don’t care about controlling zombies then it’s only limited by the number of humanoids they can slay.
Animate Dead:
Speaking of zombies, Animate Dead is doubly efficient for a Necro wizard. Raise Zombies for minions that can resist being destroyed or Skeletons for minions with a solid ranged attack. A single bonus action can command all zombies or skeletons within 60’ of you, potentially hundreds at a time, but if by the Sanctuary spell or a magic item mentioned below you aren’t concerned about who they attack, simply let them loose near to your enemies.
Demiplane:
A fun trick with hordes of undead is to pack them into a Demiplane spell. Demiplane is an 8th level spell that creates a 30 cubic foot pocket space. Skeletons and Zombies don’t need to breathe or be comfortable, so fill the whole thing up. Per Squeezing rule, a creature can squeeze into a space made for one size category smaller than itself, so a large creature that is 10’ long, wide, and high, could squeeze into a 5’ cube. Or to put it in other words, eight large creatures could cram into 10’ cubic feet if they all squeezed and stacked up neatly. Demiplane’s 30 cubic feet is 176 squares, meaning you could have up to one thousand, seven hundred and twenty-eight medium undead dudes all human pyramidding in there, floor to ceiling. The Demiplane then seals and remains that way until such time as you cast it again, opening it up for a veritable army of uncontrolled minions to pour out of. The door remains open for a full hour, giving them enough time to pop out and get running. Point the exit to any living victims and let their nature do the rest.
Sanctuary:
Whatever the size of Bastion’s army, targeting you won’t end it, as you have Contingency Dimension Door as well as Clone for exiting a losing fight, and your horde can operate just fine without you being present. You can also easily maintain Sanctuary on yourself, forcing casters to risk wasting slots, even with Dispel Magic. Furthermore, Wither and Bloom is a spell mastery for you and doesn’t have to deal damage at all for the healing to work, so you can spend every round healing a minion of your choice for 1 hit die + your int mod. Sanctuary doesn’t prevent AoE spells such as Fireball, but Charm Person cast before Sanctuary would, as the charmed condition prevents them from causing damage to you, thereby also protecting the minions in your immediate vicinity, and if you upcast Charm Person you can select multiple enemy casters at once. In short, you discourage quick solutions to dealing with you or your army, making every last hit point of your horde matter. If and when you choose to end Sanctuary so you can affect an enemy with damage or control, Bastion has a solid AC and can manage his own hp with Wither and Bloom, Cure Wounds, and Grim Harvest.
Magic Item Wishlist:

• Staff of the Forgotten One - undead cr 2 and lower won’t attack you. This includes all zombies, skeletons, ghouls and ghasts. Maurezhi are Planar Bound and can’t attack you anyway.
• Libram of Souls and Flesh - spellbook with several necromancy spells, swap a prepared
• +1/2/3 Arcane Grimoire
• +1/2/3 half-plate armor
• Portable Hole - keep a pocket dimension of extra humanoid corpses to raise as needed
• Cubic Gate - for time travel portals, portals to collect stone giant sentinels, and stronger Command Undeads such as Nightwalker
• Boon of High Magic - have an extra 9th slot, perfect for Wishing a simulacrum that can also immediately Wish up a simulacrum.

The X-Men in 5th ed D&D Full Build List

If you listened to Euphoria and thought that some of the lines were a little bit "off," then you're not alone. Take a closer look:

Have you ever played have-you-ever?

The game is actually called Never Have I Ever.

Dementia must run in his family, but let it get shaky, I'll park his son

Parkinson's disease is not related to heredity.

Feelin' like Joel Osteen

Haley Joel Osment is the actor in the movie AI. Joel Osteen is a pastor.

Field goal, punt y'all niggas

You kick a field goal, you don't punt a field goal.

Analysis

At first, I thought, oh, maybe these are just oversights or mistakes. But then I realized that Kendrick wouldn't do that. I think he planted these errors into the song to make it feel like he was vibing off the top of his dome, like he didn't calculate and orchestrate an entire strategy.
Sun Tzu said, "Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak," and Kendrick took that to heart. He appeared spontaneous when he was actually meticulously planning every move.
Kendrick references these inaccurate lyrics later in his surprise Win-The-War moment of "Meet the Grahams," where he says:

Fuck a rap battle, this a long life battle with yourself

The correct phrase is "lifelong," as in, a lifelong battle. Not a long life battle. Instead of using the correct phrase, he twists it to allude to the errors in Euphoria. Gloating that he played his hand perfectly and dealt a backbreaking blow.
Kendrick is insanely dangerous because he is sneaky and deceptive, but people don't even know he's being sneaky and deceptive. You can't figure him out, he keeps us guessing. Brilliant.

 
Elle était une amante parmi les plus étranges\ De nuit, dans la pénombre, me croyant endormi\ Je pouvais deviner sous mes paupières mi-closes\ Son ballet silencieux et presque immobile
Sa silhouette fine mesurait chaque geste\ Et se mêlait aux ombres pour ne pas m’éveiller\ Une fois arrêtée au dessus de mon corps\ Elle promenait son nez et humait mes odeurs
Je devinais alors son profil tendu\ Ramassant les effluves de mes moindres recoins\ Elle respirait mon ventre, ma nuque mes aisselles\ La plante de mes pieds, les poils de mon pubis
Quand elle se tenait là, figée et concentrée\ Elle paraissait une louve reniflant ses petits\ Les yeux fermés bien clos comme en recueillement\ Fouillant dans ses instincts les odeurs des bêtes
Cet animal timide et souvent effacé\ Rougissait pour un rien et manquait d’assurance\ Il me fallut du tact pour aborder la chose\ Et c'est le rouge aux joues qu'elle confessa son vice
Toutes les senteurs lui paraissait divines\ Elles ne connaissais pas de mauvaises odeurs\ Mais des parfums subtils qui comptaient des histoires\ Qu'elle parcourait ensuite comme on suit une piste
Je me sentais flatté qu’elle me respire ainsi\ Et nous accomodâmes de nouveaux jeux d’alcôve\ Chacun à tour de rôle nous reniflions l’autre\ Tout le long de son corps, dans ses moindres recoins
J’appris ainsi par elle à suivre dans son nid\ Une mésange grise couvant sous ses aisselles\ A pister sur son cou les frôlements d’un chat\ Et au creux de son ventre, caché dans son nombril, Un minuscule loir, lové pour s’endormir
De la même manière elle m’enseigna aussi\ A sentir le parfum d’une oreille attentive\ A renifler l’arôme d”un oeil qui observe\ A humer sur les lèvres le goût de l’abandon
Tout juste après l’amour, ce que nous raffolions\ C’était nous endormir le nez caché dans l’autre\ Délectés des arômes musqués de nos deux sexes\ Accompagnant nos songes de contes animaux
 
 
Retrouvez mes poèmes érotiques sur mon blog ; https://pierreandrea.bearblog.dev/

 
Elle était une amante parmi les plus étranges\ De nuit, dans la pénombre, me croyant endormi\ Je pouvais deviner sous mes paupières mi-closes\ Son ballet silencieux et presque immobile
Sa silhouette fine mesurait chaque geste\ Et se mêlait aux ombres pour ne pas m’éveiller\ Une fois arrêtée au dessus de mon corps\ Elle promenait son nez et humait mes odeurs
Je devinais alors son profil tendu\ Ramassant les effluves de mes moindres recoins\ Elle respirait mon ventre, ma nuque mes aisselles\ La plante de mes pieds, les poils de mon pubis
Quand elle se tenait là, figée et concentrée\ Elle paraissait une louve reniflant ses petits\ Les yeux fermés bien clos comme en recueillement\ Fouillant dans ses instincts les odeurs des bêtes
Cet animal timide et souvent effacé\ Rougissait pour un rien et manquait d’assurance\ Il me fallut du tact pour aborder la chose\ Et c'est le rouge aux joues qu'elle confessa son vice
Toutes les senteurs lui paraissait divines\ Elles ne connaissais pas de mauvaises odeurs\ Mais des parfums subtils qui comptaient des histoires\ Qu'elle parcourait ensuite comme on suit une piste
Je me sentais flatté qu’elle me respire ainsi\ Et nous accomodâmes de nouveaux jeux d’alcôve\ Chacun à tour de rôle nous reniflions l’autre\ Tout le long de son corps, dans ses moindres recoins
J’appris ainsi par elle à suivre dans son nid\ Une mésange grise couvant sous ses aisselles\ A pister sur son cou les frôlements d’un chat\ Et au creux de son ventre, caché dans son nombril, Un minuscule loir, lové pour s’endormir
De la même manière elle m’enseigna aussi\ A sentir le parfum d’une oreille attentive\ A renifler l’arôme d”un oeil qui observe\ A humer sur les lèvres le goût de l’abandon
Tout juste après l’amour, ce que nous raffolions\ C’était nous endormir le nez caché dans l’autre\ Délectés des arômes musqués de nos deux sexes\ Accompagnant nos songes de contes animaux
 
 
Retrouvez mes poèmes érotiques sur mon blog : https://pierreandrea.bearblog.dev/

This is what I like to imagine that each Daemon Primarch does in memory of the S.O that has fallen during the Heresy either by battle, forced onto an opposite side, or etc.
Fulgrim: Practices meticulously and rewrites symphonies and songs that she and her muse would make before the Heresy began. Even now into the 41st millenium do the halls of Slaanesh's realm echo with both the haunting yet beautiful meoldies of her Muse, and the screams of anguish of never being able to perfect songs and sonnets that will never be heard by the one person who saw her as the most perfect woman in the world, and in return only asked for her companionship and the thankfulness to be with the most beautiful woman in the world. With it being in her tainted flagship that the one thing she will never allow any Daemonette or any of her Astartes to go near is her prized possessions in the form of the few portraits that her Muse would make for her...Considering them to be the most perfect gifts anyone could or ever will give to her and to taint them with ones inferior touch would be to taint the memory of her beloved.
Mortarion: Despite being a living plague and reaper of flesh for the Plaguelord; there is still one comfort that the Pale Queen takes solace in; in the times where she is not called upon the spread the gifts of Nurgle to those who are still enslaved to the God Emperor. Which is her own special garden she managed to create on the Plague Planet, one that she managed to create in twisted replication of the flowers and other such plants that she and her beloved would grow together....Despite these plants being twisted and malformed from being grown by the powers of rot and decay, there is a beauty and care put into them that Mortarion treasures in finally making her garden bloom once more. That much like her beloved and herself, even in the most horrid conditions possible can something endure to grow and thrive despite the harshness of the world around it. For it was this garden that was made so sacred to the Primarch of the 14th that not even Typhus dared to venture forth to his Primarchs gnarled Garden, lest he be bisected and beaten into rotten pulp for defiling the memories of his Primarchs' lost love.
Angron: Even now as she is caught in the perpetual fury and wrath as an unwilling champion of Khorne to forever feel the bite of the Nails within her skull, there is one thing that has managed to help her begin to overcome and even gain a dominance over the pain they have inflicted upon her for so many centuries. Which is in every 8 months when she is not called upon to butcher Imperials, Xenos, and etc in the name of her new master; does she go to a barren planet now void of life and ruined by the scars of the Heresy, yet one where no World Eater dare touches in fear of being turned into a bloody smear where they stand. Wherein she goes forward to not only practice with her weapons as she had in days of old when she was still something resembling human, but to visit the one place where she remembers the one single string of memories that makes her happy and gives her clarity strong enough to beat back the bite of the Nails. It was forested area overgrown by moss, vines, and other plant-life where the ruddy skies remained clear and the raging falls surged forth, and yet despite the once oasis becoming a jungle overgrown and gnarled. That it was this place she would visit to remember the good times, the times where she could sit and be at peace with her Rose, the times where they would lie under starlight and be away from the battle and bloodshed; where Angron could know a moments peace. And it would be here in the barren jungles of a once paradise planet that the Daemon Primarch would sit in pained meditation, where she would focus to battle away the bite of the Nails and day by day overcome their incessant gnawing at her skull, but at times have the comfort of knowing that her Rose was there with her. Not in flesh and bone, but in rebellious spirit to help her overcome the Nails as they once did in life...once step at a time as she sat, took a deep breath and focused her resolve and endless wrath inwards to seek a peace she had long since been denied.
Magnus the Red: As the one-eyed sorceress prepares to unleash her wrath against the wretched Wolves of Fenris, she studies her spellbooks once more to search for spells that would bring an end to Russ's wretched planet. Yet as she did so and continued to pour over ancient texts at speeds and proficiency so astonishing that it was mind-numbing to watch one singular entity absorb decades if not centuries worth of arcane lore in mere minutes. Did she eventually stop when she happened upon a stack of story books on her many shelves within her personal library, her single eye glancing upon said novels as those she remembered as the story-books her lover would read to them before the Heresy. Stories of ancient heroes and those who outsmarted deities of old through cunning and guile, stories from Ancient Terra where heroes wielded arcane might that even to her felt outlandish yet humorous in what could be done. With her stopping her studies into blasphemously powerful magic to read the novels that her and her lover would read in their spare time, taking comfort in them as an escape and inspiration for what further pursuits into the esoteric they could dive into, and seeing them as a gateway to being heroes of their own story. And so Magnus the Red would pick one of those story books and read them for the next few hours, allowing herself to become lost in the world of fantasy and fiction that would allow her to escape her reality as a Daemon sorceress of immense power...That for a few moments she could escape to a world of imagination where she could be with her beloved once more...if only for a short moment in time.

Happy Friday, darlings!
I'm pleased to present you with my submission for this Wednesday's writing prompt!
A Woeful Harpy's Song by WeirdMollusk (CW: Violence/blood)
Premise: When someone fails their Wisdom save against the harpies, they don't just hear singing. They see and hear what they want most in the world, just out of reach. What does Astarion experience when he fails his save? How does he react when he is brought back to reality? What is he feeling? Do his companions notice, or are they similarly distraught?
This scene takes place on the beach near Emerald Grove in the Act 1 quest: Investigate the Beach. It's also a prelude to my post-canon fic: Noblesse Oblige (check it out if you like this story!)
******
At first, the ethereal harpy song that drew him in. It was the unexpected sight of Cazador’s quarterstaff Woe that caught and held his attention, though. Astarion couldn’t recall his master ever being absent from the company of his signature whipping stick—yet somehow the sight of it lying casually on the ground across a narrow span of water didn’t phase him.
The sound of his companions’ battle ruckus faded into the background. Astarion wasn’t able to recall why he was standing on a cliff edge, holding his longbow with an arrow strung taut and ready to fly. His desire to fire upon the harpy serenading him vanished the moment he set eyes upon Cazador’s staff. It was only a dozen paces away, Just out of reach, really.
All he had to do was claim the staff for himself, and he could use its power to break his unholy vampiric bond once and for all.
Relaxing his arms, Astarion un-nocked his fire arrow and jogged along the narrow edge of the cliff, paying no mind to the deadly drop into the seawater below. Ahead, there was a gap in the ledge he was confident he could leap over if only he could work up the momentum.
Just as he was about to jump off the ledge, a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, dripping into his eye. The vicious sting of salt brought him abruptly back to his senses, and he spread his arms wide, pinwheeling them back to try to slow down and skid to a halt. When he finally came to a stop, the toes of his boots were hanging just over the edge of the narrow platform.
All at once, Astarion had a rather stunning view of the battlefield below. The rocky outcropping he’d almost leapt for was no longer there—having vanished once the harpy’s enchantment on him failed.
Shadowheart stood on the shore, gesturing purposefully with her mace and yelling something he couldn’t hear past the Silence field that shimmered like a massive bubble between them.
Knee-deep in water, their drow party leader Rhaenyra slashed with a greatsword into one of the two harpies targeting her. A puff of feathers and an arc of blood followed the path of her blade before the second harpy planted its clawed feet into her chest and pushed her down. As she went underwater, a flurry of magic missiles whizzed past Astarion’s head, courtesy of Gale, who stood on the shore a few paces behind.
Astarion re-nocked his fire arrow and let loose, aiming into the back of the harpy who pecked at Rhaenyra’s eyes while trying to drown her. The explosion of feathers that resulted was almost as gratifying as the sight of the beast erupting into flames.
Smouldering wings beat frantically as the harpy attempted to douse the fire engulfing its feathers with seawater. Unburdened, Rhaenyra rose up from the water and furiously hacked her greatsword in rapid succession until the charred beast lay in pieces.
Astarion heard a harpy swooping down from behind and tried to roll aside, but he wasn’t fast enough. Claws raked through the leather of his armour, and he yowled as talons slashed into the skin of his back. As he shouldered his bow and reached to take up his daggers, another round of magic missiles battered into the harpy, knocking her out of the sky. She fell to the ground before him, so he kicked her off the ledge onto the jagged rocks below.
With the last of the beasts down, Astarion bent forward, resting his hands gingerly on his knees, as though catching his breath. The sound of a tiefling boy weeping from the shoreline confirmed that there were no casualties resulting from today’s ‘heroic’ deed. That was nice, he supposed, but the knowledge didn’t do much to soothe the burning of his wounds.
The familiar throb of torn flesh inspired recollections of what had compelled him to nearly leap to his death: Woe. Astarion grimaced to himself, rubbing his face in his hands while struggling to swallow down a knot that gripped him by his throat.
He’d nearly died. Again. And this time, he almost went willingly.
The revelation stunned him with the perspective he’d been given into his own psyche. Astarion was familiar with mind games; Cazador especially delighted in their cruelty. But this felt different—it was his own mind that had conjured the illusion and made it real enough that he struggled to contain an aching sense of loss.
He knew now it wasn’t real, but for just a moment there—he honestly believed that his freedom was just within reach.
Sluggishly, Astarion willed his legs to take him down the narrow path of the cliff and toward his companions on the shore below. Tufts of feathers littered the sand, and no less than three bird-like corpses floated awkwardly in the water, bobbing along to gentle waves.
Gale had already descended upon the harpy that met its end on the jagged rocks, and was using a small knife to cut free morbid reagents for potioncraft. He smiled distractedly as Astarion stumbled past, but graciously didn’t ask for assistance.
Shadowheart seemed occupied with tending to several bloody gouges in Rhaenyra’s face, meaning he’d been shouldered with the unsavory responsibility of soothing a traumatized child, of all things. Astarion considered asking Gale if he needed any help.
It didn’t take long to spot the tiefling boy cowering in the grass near the shoreline. Sighing with annoyance, Astarion approached. The child peered up at him with a snot-streaked face as he came near.
“A-are they gone?” He asked through rapid, hiccoughing breaths.
“Gone? Oh, no. They’re all quite dead. You’re not injured, are you?” Astarion frowned slightly as he looked the boy over. He seemed a little pale, but wasn’t physically mangled as far as Astarion could tell.
“Yes! No—I mean, I don’t know?” His confusion was palpable, though.
“Well, you seem like you have use of your legs, at least. Go on! Go make yourself someone else's annoying problem.”
Astarion tried to shoo the child away, but it was the looming shadow over his shoulder that caused the boy to scramble up the sandy bank and flee. Rhaenyra had approached from behind, no doubt terrifying the boy with her imposing presence. The ebony skin of her face was slick with blood and harpy feathers. Chunks of flesh still clung from the joints in her armour, and crimson ooze dripped off the edge of her greatsword. She didn’t have any new scars on her face though, which was surprising considering the pecking he’d seen her take, earlier.
She smirked awkwardly at the sight of the boy running away, but didn’t seem too bothered by it. This was far from the first time someone had responded poorly to the sight of an oversized drow in platemail.
“Astarion!” She chortled his name with a cheerful tone that contrasted the gruesome sight of her, “Great thinking with that fire arrow. Though, I’m adding ‘burning harpy’ to the top of my worst-smells-ever list.” Her praise came with that signature smile: white teeth gleaming from under dark, gore-splattered lips. Rhaenyra’s encouragement sparked a devious little thrill within, as Astarion was just starting to believe that she might actually be genuine.
“I hope you’re not planning to sleep on your belly tonight, though…” she reflected with a note of concern while leaning her tall frame over to get a better look at his back.
Defensively, Astarion tried to pivot away from the gawking, but he paused when she offered up healing potion. Gladly, he reached out and took it. “How thoughtful, thank you. I wouldn’t want to sully my bedroll with blood, after all.”
“You’d rather sully mine, instead?” As she teased him, Rhaenyra’s dark red eyes flicked up to meet his gaze, and Astarion fought a sudden impulse to look away. Nearly two centuries of stalking streets and turning tricks…yet somehow it was genuine flirting that made him uncomfortable.
He couldn’t deny himself such a willing invitation to dinner, however. Leaning toward her, Astarion crafted a sultry smile, and purred: “Precisely, darling.”
.~*END*~.