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2024.05.22 02:11 ScrotumBlaster_69 Am I evil enough?
Be Anarion, a neutral evil genie warlock.
Mfw my genie is imprisoned in a ring by the god of fire and most of her power is stolen.
I love my genie (maybe a bit too much) and will do anything to free her.
Another party member named Sa becomes best friends with an NPC, the NPC is a cleric or Eros, the goddess of darkness.
He also begins supporting the goddess.
Another member, named Nox joins us at level 5. He's from the Shadowfell, Eros' Domain.
Mfw when we randomly get attacked by some evil shadowfell guys and barely survive.
Turns out Nox stole an item from the BBEG of shadowfell, an item that can kill Eros.
Sa berates Nox for not telling us and thinks of giving the item to the BBEG so we're safe.
Mfw I realize this item can kill Eros... a goddess, maybe it can kill other gods... or demi gods...
Refuse to give back item. We decide to counter attack as soon as possible to try and take them by surprise.
Persuade Sa and Nox to keep the item safe inside my ring. Sa tells me to not give it to the enemy even if things turn deadly. I may have fleed from a previous combat encounter and left the party behind... oops
DM rolls a 97 out of 100 on a roll to determine what kind of info we get from our sources. We learn where the BBEG's Boss is.
We roll up to his crib and kill him since he's weakened because he was recently resurrected.
I choose to loot his crib.
Mfw I randomly pick the correct window and succeed on a 5% chance roll on a d100.
Turns out this crib is someone else's. I meet an incredible powerful mage.
Ask to use his library, I'm secretly looking for info on how to use this item to kill a demi god.
He decides to start small talk with me, DM takes me to a private channel.
Mfw I roll a nat 20 on insight.
Mfw he hates Eros because he's basically the Invoker from DOTA, but I can choose to not help him and he won't hurt me or steal the item from me.
We sign an unbreakable vow, like Harry Potter.
I give him the god killing item. He uses it to kill Eros and then discards the godlike power from his body.
The vow specified that he has to find info on how we can kill the demi god and he must help me in the final fight against him.
I request a fake replica of the item to have the option to lie to everyone about using it.
Both the original item and the replica are identifyproof. However a powerful enough mage could tell this is a mere fake.
Party doesn't know any of this. I'm not sure what effect Eros' death will have on the world.
Next session is either confession time or my gaslighting era.
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2024.05.22 02:10 OreoJehi So how are we feeling Kaeya mains? I think we all know it never been was a coincidence at this point. [+and an UNRELATED THEORY post]
| For newcomers who doesnt know what I'm talking about: Here's two posts for context. Im going to be honest. Im feeling dreading sick for Kaeya rn (pls help đ„č). I opened this app cuz I wanted to giddily share a nothing-post, a theory that you probably had read it before but I haven't thought of it and it was making me too giddily-excited that I wanted to share. Only to see this post. I couldn't help it but express my dreading feelings here, so pls let me piggyback this post to also share my theory thoughts. But really, Im feeling it really bad rn, the chills, the dread. It has never stopped and it gets worse over time, starting from the beginning, ngl it feels super unlucky to be a Kaeyamain. Anyone here feels similarly if not the same? (And fyi, it's not affecting me in real life scale, I know how to separate irl and fiction so please, just dont; you could say it's another form of entertainment?). If you're not up for a theory you can freely skip it and talk about deathflags! Anw, I'll start abt that theory right now with this: Kaeya: Oh, you can't tell? My family's lived in Mondstadt for generations. [I got bored sitting around at home, and decided to set off on a journey to expand my horizons.] Hyperborea, Natlantian, Remuria & Khaun-Arya. Dont the word being hyphenated and Arya capitalized are being too specific? Arya reminds me of Mond's ost "Dream Aria". Khaun-Aria? Credit to u/Sun_ele155 for telling me for that Aria means wind in latin and Khaenriah possibly being a translation of "traitor of wind" (Im sorry for the unsolicited tag so pls feel free to tell me if you dont like that đ) I think you're already getting a clear picture but let me add more "pieces". The Abyss Order stole a statue of Barbatos and hung it upside down. Doesn't it signifies their hate against this god? Out of all the other statues of 7? Kaeya was specifically sent to Dawn Winery, with his dad looking back to him with hatred and hope. These are what I currently have to support this theory (+other Mondstadt ominous signs. Im curious if the Dadaupa battle is related to this). But Im sure I could dig more and Im currently doing that. It's just that this I seriously, seriously, want to share this realization to y'all even if I havent have yet all the pieces: Haven't you realized it yet? What if Khaenriah were former Mondstadtians! Maybe during in the early ages where Mondstadt is in its lowest point, possibly the slavery period, where their god has immensely disappointed them. Believing that Barbatos has abandoned them. So they branched out, traveled far and formed a new kingdom? In the first Chasm Interlude, a Dain Quest, Dain stated that the ruins there were much more older than their ex-kingdom. hah So how about this, what if these ex-Mondstatians discovered and successfully studied the civilization's technology of this ruins and migrated underground with it? Or how about these former Mondstatians migrating with the already formed kingdom underground, fully taking it over? You know, I wonder how did the Crimson Moon Dynasty end? (Ofc, ex-Mondstatians overtaking the Crimson Moon Dynasty is still just a possibility; it could had started way before!) Imagine that, Kaeya is a fully Mondstadtian nobility! (Well, half). It's such a game-changing fascinating thought isnt it? Let me share this tidbit I think is relevant: â[...] The Temple of Silence was originally founded by the ruling elite of the day. Traditionally, such organizations are bound by a strict and ancient code of nobility.â (Cyno SQ2 spoilers) Now I think they want get back to their roots and rule it again, and using it for revenge against Celestia. You know, I dont know why I never thought and realized of this before, Khaenrians being ex-former-Mondstadtians, despite the obvious "pieces" being right there-. I only remember being confused by Kaeya's line âMy family has lived in Mondstadt for generationsâ. But I guess playing through the new update made me "see" it. Whoever said or thought that Kaeya was involved in a ceremony, and/or that's how he got his " truth-seekinghidden eye ability", I think we nailed it. A possibility of course. A doubt. Just do remind if we take this SQ as an allegory(feels like most SQs I played are), there highly could be littered with red-herrings or that it's not a total representation (I mean, obviously. Im still leaning onto the "opposites in each cycles" theory but Im still trying to prove that). âââ Separate comments: If we assume that the cycle "Hyperborea" occured in Snezhnaya (the word relates to extreme north, look it up) and "Natlantian" for Natlan, try to think of civilizations that were both destroyed and its people cursed, representing each of our present nations. Outside of the unified civilizations ofc (with Trifecta symbols), post-Primordial One/Celestia rule. ALSO NOTE THAT WE ARE STILL HALF-WAY OF THE KHAUN-ARYA CYCLE (sorry for the caps, I just lately discovered this one). What happened in Khaenriah was only the beginning Do you know, during the Remuria ruling era, there were two "nations" that were involved to something, and no, Im not talking abt Fontaine for the other one. Cassiodor's former tribe (it's a group of people, it counts right?), was destroyed and its people âenslavedâ by Remuria (hmm, doesnt it overlap with ex-mond theory too?). Him defecting to Remuria and being, *ahem*, close friends with Boethius being the reason of escaping that fate. In the end, Remuria still had gotten itself destroyed. Tbh I still need to look deeply more onto this but this is what I currently have. Okay now, to this final part is an afterthought of the post and I don't have the explanation for it(meaning proof). It was an instantaneous thought. And I quickly forgot what urged me that thought, the reasons why. Sorry, but I have(and want) to write this here for the record: I couldn't help but feel that, in the same way we experience and progress through the storyline in the game, this samsara cycles shenanigans, civilizations being destroyed, first started in Mondstadt. And we are now back in a full circle. submitted by OreoJehi to KaeyaMains [link] [comments] |
2024.05.22 01:49 Mrmander20 [Vell Harlan and the Doomsday Dorms] 4 C7.1: The Elephant in the Room
At the worldâs top college of magic and technology, every day brings a new discovery -and a new disaster. The advanced experiments of the college students tend to be both ambitious and apocalyptic, with the end of the world only prevented by a mysterious time loop, and a small handful of students who retain their memories. Surviving the loops was hard enough, but now, in his senior year, Vell Harlan must take charge of them, and deal with the fact that the whole world now knows his secrets. Everyone knows about Vellâs death and resurrection, along with the divine game he is a part of. Now Vell must contend with overly curious scientists and evil billionaires hungry for divine power while the daily doomsday cycle bombards him with terrorists, talking elephants, and the Grim Reaper himself -but if he can endure it all, the Last Goddessâs game promises the ultimate prize: power over life itself. [
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âShould I be worried?â
Why would you be worried?â Kim said. âDean Lichman loves us.â
Dean Lichman had asked the two of them to stop by his office, though his brief message had not said what for. That left Vell to concoct nightmare scenarios in his head.
âHe doesnât love all of us.â
âAlex doesnât count as âusâ,â Kim said. She was a looper in purely a technical sense, mostly due to her own refusal to be a team player. âBesides, sheâs been behaving lately. Sheâs only been an asshole, not an active liability.â
âThat we know of.â
âIf we donât know about it, Dean probably doesnât either,â Kim said. âItâs fine, Vell, he probably just wants to ask us for advice or deal with some problem he has.â
âThatâs not much better,â Vell said. âHow weird would things have to be that the Dean is asking us for help personally?â
âOnly one way to find out,â Kim said. She gestured to the door to the Deanâs office.
Kim entered first, and found it in much the same state as it always was. The desk piled high with paperwork, a small bowl of assorted candies shoved into the corner of the desk, and Dean Lichman behind it, frantically tapping away on a laptop. Vell had not been in this office for several years, and it was vastly different than the last time heâd been here.
âAh, there you are, come in, have a seat,â Dean Lichman said. âUnless youâd rather we have our conversation elsewhere, Vell.â
âWhy would I want that?â
âWell, itâs my understanding you havenât been in this office since my, uh, predecessor,â Dean Lichman said.
âOh, right, the kidnapping,â Vell said. âNo, Iâm good, I donât really get traumatized by things anymore.â
Vell had been killed too many different ways in too many different places to have a functional trauma response. A few days ago heâd gotten his legs chewed off by a vending machine, and still stopped by it to pick up a soda on his way to the office.
âThatâs a very concerning response, Mr. Harlan.â
âYeah. Anyway, what did you need?â
Dean Lichman gestured for the duo to take a seat, and both did so. He folded desiccated hands in front of himself before beginning to speak.
âI would like to ask you two to take a look at an experiment that will be occurring later this week,â Dean Lichman said. âI donât have any reason to believe it poses a threat, but I would like to be assured it is a safe and ethical environment, and, well, you two have a knack for identifying trouble spots.â
âYou could say that,â Kim said. It was more accurate to say that trouble had a way of identifying them -and then leaping at them and ripping their heads off.
âIâd appreciate it if the two of you could simply examine the laboratory and give it your approval, or disapproval, as the case may be,â Dean Lichman said. âThough if youâre too busy, I fully understand.â
âIf you donât think this is dangerous, why are you asking for our help anyway?â
âSimply for my own peace of mind, frankly,â Dean Lichman said. âThe schoolâs policies on animal experimentation are...satisfactory, I suppose, but I do want to take extra precautions when the subject is a creature as smart as an elephant.â
âAn elephant?â
âYes, a resident of a reserve in Thailand,â Dean Lichman said. âAn older elephant by the name of Mae Noi. She has cancer, apparently, and she is submitting to experimental treatment in the hopes it will be useful for younger elephants.â
Kimâs digital face briefly flashed with a facial expression of concerned skepticism.
ââSheâ is submitting to treatment? As in the elephant?â
âYes. Apparently the elephant can talk,â Dean Lichman said. âNo, I donât know how it works, they said it was âmore impressive in personâ.â
âWell now I kind of want to go just to see the talking elephant,â Vell said.
âSame.â
âWell, do try to take a few glances at the experimentâs safety while youâre there,â Dean Lichman said.
âSounds like a plan,â Vell said. âThanks for the heads up.â
âIâll be there too,â Kim said.
âExcellent. Thank you both, and Iâll try not to take up too much of your time,â the Dean said. He then bid them both a polite goodbye and returned to his mountains of paperwork. Vell took a step out of the office and then took a sip from the soda heâd recently retrieved from the evil vending machine.
âSo, what do you think?â
âI think I really do want to see the talking elephant,â Kim said.
âObviously, yeah, we all want to see the talking elephant,â Vell said. âI mean the whole situation. You think the elephant thing is going to be the daily apocalypse for that day?â
âWell, on the one hand, an elephant seems like the kind of thing that would kill us,â Kim said. âBut on the other, I feel like the fact we have advance warning means itâs not going to happen.â
âTrue. The universe probably wouldnât make it that easy for us.â
âYeah, but the elephant thing still feels pretty threatening,â Kim said. âOnly way to find out is to wait a few days, I guess.â
A FEW DAYS LATER âHello you two,â Dean Lichman said. âAnd Hawke.â
âHey,â Hawke said.
âHe also wanted to see the talking elephant,â Kim explained.
âWell, thatâs not a problem, it was an open invitation,â Dean Lichman said.
âThanks. Still, sorry for not saying I was going to show up in advance,â Hawke said. âIt took me a long time to make up my mind whether I was more interested in or afraid of a talking elephant.â
âThey are rather large, arenât they? I suppose that could be intimidating.â
âIâm okay with elephants on their own, itâs the talking part that doesnât sit right with me,â Hawke said. âWhat if the elephant doesnât like me? What if Iâm the first person to ever get insulted by an elephant?â
âYouâre less afraid of getting trampled by an elephant than insulted by one?â
âIâm a little afraid of trampling, but elephants are chill,â Hawke explained. âThey wouldnât attack unless provoked. I kind of feel like one might call me a dipshit unprovoked, though.â
âYou have oddly specifics fears, Mr. Hughes,â Dean Lichman said.
âYeah.â
In spite of those fears, Hawke happily stepped through the door to the zoology lab. It did not take a long time to locate the elephant in the room, as it was a literal elephant. The towering pachyderm was in a makeshift pen in the center of the lab, with an ample supply of food and a strange pedestal in front of her.
âDr. Chanthara,â Dean Lichman said, with a polite wave to one of the researchers in the room. âGood to see you. These are the students I told you about.â
âHm. Nice to meet you,â Dr. Chanthara said. He was, perhaps not unreasonably, skeptical of why three seemingly random students were in charge of a safety inspection. The fact that one of the three was a robot made him even more skeptical.
âHi, nice to meet you too, and, uh, donât mind us,â Vell said. âWe just have an eye for weird things other people might miss.â
âSure. I- wait. Arenât you that kid who got chosen by a god?â
âYeah, thatâs me,â Vell said. âAnd her too, technically.â
Kim shrugged. She didnât care for any extra attention on that point.
âRight,â Chanthara said. He was beginning to see why these students might know their stuff. âI suppose we should start by introducing you to Mae Noi. Say hello, Mae.â
The elephant shifted on her feet and poked her trunk at the wide pedestal in front of her twice.
âHello. Friends,â a synthesized voice droned. Vell stepped a little closer to the pedestal, just enough to see that there were an array of buttons on the side facing Mae Noi.
âOh, itâs kind of like a keyboard,â Vell said. Heâd seen similar things used with dogs, though usually in a much simpler fashion. Mae Noi seemed to have a few dozen buttons at her disposal.
âSmart,â Mae Noi said, with another prod of her trunk.
âWe initially put it into our sanctuary as a bit of a novelty, something elephants could choose to interact with,â Dr. Chanthara explained. âMae Noi took to it a bit better than most. Especially once she found out she could use it to ask for food.â
âFood. Pumpkin. Pumpkin. Pumpkin.â
âNo, Mae, no food until after experiment,â Dr. Chanthara scolded.
âExperiment,â Mae Niko said with a prod. âPumpkin.â
âYes, experiment then pumpkin,â Dr. Chanthara said.
âThatâs not really a talking elephant, is it?â Hawke said.
âItâs more talking than most elephants,â Dr. Chanthara said.
âElephant. Smart,â Mae Niko said. âSmart.â
âYes, uh, right, elephant smart,â Hawke said. He took a step back, to avoid any further offense and any further risk of being insulted by Mae Noi.
âYouâre very impressive, Mae, donât mind him,â Kim said. âHow many words does she know?â
âOur platform back home has around three hundred words, though sheâs still learning some of them,â Dr. Chanthara said. âThe âtravelâ version we put together only has a hundred, just enough to make sure she can get her basic needs met and communicate about the experiment.â
âRight, speaking of, I do believe we should put some time into our reason for being here,â Dean Lichman interjected. âYouâre welcome to stick around afterwards, at Dr. Chanthara and Mae Noiâs discretion, of course, but we should get underway.â
âWe probably should get to business, yeah,â Kim said. She tapped the side of her metal head. âIâm going to scan the lab. Vell, you talk to the elephant and make sure everythingâs above-board.â
âAbov- oh, right,â Vell said. âSorry, not exactly used to being able to ask animals if they agree to animal experimentation.â
âExperiment,â Mae said.
âYeah, experiment,â Vell said, as he turned to Mae. âSo, Mae Noi, this experiment might hurt, do you know that?â
âExperiment. Hurt. Elephant,â Mae Noi prodded. âExperiment. Help. Elephant. Help. Baby.â
âHelp baby?â
âBaby. Baby. Elephant. Sick. Baby. Sick.â
âWeâve explained the nature of her condition to Mae Noi as best we can,â Dr. Chanthara said. âShe has several children, and is concerned they might be similarly affected.â
âHelp. Baby,â Mae Noi said. âExperiment. Help.â
The way Mae Noi frantically tapped the buttons tugged at Vellâs heartstrings, but he choked those emotions down.
âSo you want to do this experiment to help baby, got it,â Vell said. âEven if it hurts you?â
âElephant. Old,â Mae Noi said. âHurt. Okay. Help. Baby.â
âHuh. Well, that does sound like informed consent to me,â Vell said. âPasses ethical muster, at least.â
The campus rules allowed students to be experimented on, with their consent, so Vell saw no reason not to apply the same standard to an elephant.
âYou speak up if you change your mind about the experiment, okay?â
âStop. Stop. Stop,â Mae said, mashing the same button a few times. âYes.â
âYou got it. Iâm going to go help my friends check things out,â Vell said. âGood talking to you, Mae.â
âGood. Talk. Friend,â Mae said. She waved goodbye with her trunk, and Vell waved back. He wandered away from Mae Noiâs pedestal and found Kim and Hawke carefully examining rows of beakers and various other supplies.
âNothing sus yet, boss,â Hawke said.
âNothing caustic, mutagenic, or explosive?â
âWell, something mutagenic, but itâs supposed to be,â Kim said. She had scanners built into her body much like those that had once been in Vellâs glasses, allowing her to analyze the complex chemical formulas at a glance. âTheyâre going for some gene editing similar to what weâve tried to do on human cancer patients. Low success rate, but not harmful. Some adaptations to work on elephants, of course.â
âRun it by any of our chemistry and biology student friends yet?â
âA few,â Kim said. âHavenât gotten anything back yet, though.â
âMaybe run it by Skye, too,â Vell said. âSheâd recognize anything thatâd mutate an animal.â
âShe does love to mutate things,â Kim said.
âBenevolently,â Vell insisted. âJust show her. Iâm going to check for any stray equipment.â
The presence of an unusually large test subject had resulted in the lab being rearranged and reshuffled, so Vell did a quick scan for any misplaced equipment that might pose a threat. He found, to his surprise, a tidy and well-organized environment, with any and all extraneous materials securely locked away. There wasnât so much as a shrink ray out of place. Vell did another loop just to be sure, but returned to his friends empty-handed.
âThis place has less safety hazards than my lab,â Vell said. Hawke stared at him for a while.
âWhy does your lab have safety hazards?â
âI do runecarving, thereâs like, hammers and chisels,â Vell said. âThose can hurt people.â
âMm, true,â Hawke said. âSo you really didnât find anything?â
âNothing,â Vell said. âThis place is secure as Iâve ever seen a lab be.â
âItâs like I said,â Kim began. âWe got an actual warning about it, so obviously nothingâs going to go wrong. Thatâd be too easy.â
âMaybe,â Vell said. âThings can get teleported in, or someone could cast a spell, or something.â
âYeah, but that applies to anywhere, at any time,â Kim said.
âKimâs right,â Hawke said. âI say we go business as usual.â
âI guess,â Vell said. âWe have to branch out a little, at least. Canât keep an eye on one room all day.â
The trio stopped sulking around the outskirts of the lab and returned to Dean Lichman and Dr. Chanthara.
âEverything looks good,â Kim said. âProbably the safest lab Iâve ever seen.â
âIâll choose to take that as a compliment,â Dr. Chanthara said.
âWe have very high safety standards here at the Einstein-Odinson,â Dean Lichman said, defensively. âRelatively speaking. Innovation requires some risk.â
âI understand perfectly. So does Mae.â
âHurt. Okay,â Mae said.
âNot that okay,â Vell said. âNice meeting you, Dr. Chanthara. You too, Mae.â
âWait.â
Mae prodded one of the buttons on her pedestal and then pointed her trunk at the three of them. Hawke looked deeply concerned, but stepped forward alongside Vell and Kim. Mae Noi appraised them with massive brown eyes, and then moved her trunk back towards the pedestal. Vell noticed a distinctive scar on the bridge of her long nose just as Mae Noi pressed another button.
âJoke.â
â...Joke?â
Dr. Chanthara sighed and rolled his eyes.
âJust go along with it,â he said. âShe likes to tell her joke.â
âUh, okay,â Vell said. âLetâs hear it.â
âWhat. Elephant. Favorite. Part. Tree.â
âUmm...I donât know, Mae,â Vell lied. Heâd heard this joke from a kid, once. âWhat part?â
âTrunk,â Mae said. She gave a loud bray of amusement and then slammed her trunk down a few more times to emphasize the punchline. âTrunk. Trunk.â
âOh, ha, I get it,â Kim said, hoping her feigned laugh was convincing. Sheâd never tried to lie to an elephant before. âGood one, Mae.â
Mae Noi shifted from side to side, looking pleased with herself, while the trio took a step back and stopped their feigned laughter.
âDid you give her buttons just to tell that joke with?â
âShe gets upset,â Dr. Chanthara said. âIâm not even sure she understands the pun, she just likes peopleâs reactions.â
âAs long as sheâs having fun,â Hawke said.
âWeâll get out of your hair now,â Vell said. âGood luck with the experiment, feel free to let us know if you need a hand with anything.â
âIâll keep it in mind,â Dr. Chanthara said. Some of his earlier skepticism seemed to have softened, but he did not seem entirely onboard with three strangers mucking about with his experiment. Vell and his friends left before they stretched what little goodwill they had any further. Mae Noi waved her trunk goodbye as the three left the lab and stepped back onto the quad.
âIâm going to try and sneak some classes in,â Hawke said. âLater.â
âIâll check some of our usual hot spots,â Kim said, before she too left. Once again alone, Vell headed to one of his own classes, and called up Samson.
âHey, Samson,â Vell began. âSee anything interesting while we were playing with the elephant?â
âWell, I thought I clocked someone acting suspicious, but it turns out he was only sneaking around to go see his boyfriend,â Samson said. âNothing apocalyptic, but I did get called a homophobe, which is pretty emotionally devastating.â
âIâm sure youâll recover someday,â Vell said. âKeep an eye out. Usually the safer things look, the more dangerous things end up being.â
âWill do,â Samson said, before saying goodbye and hanging up.
***
Vell got increasingly nervous the longer the day went without its daily disaster. He thought about checking in on Mae Noi again, but then recalled Kimâs warning about it being too obvious, but then remembered that nobody had seen anything suspicious anywhere else, but then remember that Mae Noiâs lab had looked perfectly safe-
âVell.â
âHuh?â
âYouâre spiraling,â Kim said.
âIâm not spiraling, Iâm just,â Vell said, with a pause for contemplation. âConsidering multiple options.â
âIn a spiral fashion,â Kim said. âEat the damn french fries. Honestly, whatâs the point of ordering so many if youâre just going to let them get cold?â
âItâs not like theyâre going to go to waste,â Vell said. The same time loop that allowed him to eat massive amounts of french fries without fear of gaining weight also allowed him to avoid food waste. One of the upsides of life in a time loop.
âJust eat, Vell,â Kim said. âYou worry too much about all this shit.â
âIâm in charge, itâs my job to worry about it,â Vell said.
âItâs your job to handle it,â Kim said. âThereâs no point thinking about this shit before it happens, you spend all day thinking about an elephant and then the universe drops, like, a bat with tentacles on your head. Just deal with as it comes, Vell.â
Vell leaned on the table and managed to chomp down on a french fry or two.
âYou know, next year, when Iâm not running the show anymore, Iâm going to call and see if you still think itâs that easy.â
âI sure hope so,â Kim said. âIâm saying all this shit trying to make myself believe it too.â
âOh good, youâre lying to both of us,â Vell said. âThatâs cool.â
âFake it âtil you make it, Vell, thatâs how it goes,â Kim said. âEat your damn french fries.â
Vell rolled his eyes and returned to his fries, which were now starting to cool. Thankfully he would not have to worry about finishing them. A loud crash from across campus interrupted him mid-bite and nearly made Vell choke on his fries. He painfully swallowed the half-chewed food and then looked over his shoulder.
âSon of a bitch, finally,â Vell said. A few years ago heâd found it weird whenever he was relieved about a disaster, but now he was just genuinely glad to get it over with. The waiting was as killer as the apocalypse. He tossed his fries in the trash and headed toward the sound of chaos, with Kim right behind him.
âAlready told everybody?â
âWell, I may or may not have left Alex and Helena out of the loopâŠâ
âKim.â
âTheyâd find out anyway,â Kim said. âI got to use my brain parts to get in touch with them, even over wi-fi that shit feels dirty.â
âJust get in- stop.â
Vell held out his hand. Kim froze in place and did not move. Not intentionally, at least. There was a small amount of unintentional movement. The ground was vibrating.
âAlways love a good earthquake,â Kim said.
âThatâs not a quake,â Vell said. âThatâs...footsteps!â
Vell grabbed Kim and dove out of the way just in time for something to barrel through the walls of the dining hall and stampede across the room. Tables, chairs, and more than a few students were crushed under the feet of a hulking, brown-furred behemoth as it charged. Kim picked herself and Vell up off the floor and tried to trail its progress.
âThatâs a- oh fuck me,â Kim said. âPlease donât say you told me so.â
Vell got his bearings and looked across the room at the titanic form of a woolly mammoth. Though it was definitely recognizable as an archaic mammoth, the ancient creature was also heavily mutated, unnaturally large even by mammoth standards, and with multiple curled, jagged tusks protruding from a slobbering maw.
âWell that could be unrelated,â Vell said. âMammoths can come from a lot of places, cloning accidents, time machinesâŠâ
The mammoth reached a wall, and rather than barreling through, turned around, facing directly towards Vell. A prominent scar covered the bridge of its broad trunk.
âOh, nope, thatâs definitely Mae,â Vell said. The scar was in the same place and at the same angle. Even a clone wouldnât have an identical scar.
Once the revelation had struck, Mae took her turn. Vell found himself staring straight down the barrel of a very angry mammoth coming right at him at Vell-squishing velocity. Luckily heâd been charged at by a lot of creatures over four years of looping.
Vell jumped up and to the side, and latched on to one of the curled tusks, which made for very convenient handlebars. Kim did the same on the opposite side of Mae, and punched her in the head.
âWait, wait, hold off on the violence for a second,â Vell shouted. He tried to wave at Kim to stop, but Mae was thrashing so violently he had to grip the tusks with both hands.
âGood plan,â Kim shouted. âCan you get Mae on board?â
Another set of tables got crushed underfoot. Thankfully the other students were out of trampling range by now, but Mae Noiâs feet were still coated in the blood of earlier victims.
âMaeâs smart, maybe we can calm her down,â Vell said. He then ducked to dodge a swat from Maeâs mutated trunk.
âCall me crazy, Vell, but I think this is more than just a bad mood,â Kim said, as she climbed up Maeâs seven jagged tusks like a ladder.
âWe have to try,â Vell said. The loopers rule against hurting other intelligent life forms had some flexibility for blood-crazed mutants on violent rampages, but they had to at least try to reason first. Vell climbed up on of Maeâs tusks and looked into one of her bloodshot eyes for any sign of recognition. âMae! Itâs Vell, do you remember?â
The only response Vell got was an enraged trumpet, which he didnât think was a âyesâ.
âCome on, bud,â Vell said. âWhatâs an elephantâs favorite part of a tree, right? The trunk?â
The massive brown eye staring at Vell blinked, and he felt a brief glimmer of hope. He then felt a brief glimmer of his lungs being crushed as Mae swung her head and slammed her tusks into the wall, and Vell along with them. Kim punched Mae in the throat and then jumped across the tusks to grab Vell and carry him to safety.
âYou okay, Vell?â
He opened his mouth to respond, and a pint or two of blood came out instead.
âApparently not,â he mumbled. âI might be down a few ribs. And a lung. Or two.â
Kim carried Vell a safe distance from the fight and set him down on the ground, where he promptly spat out another mouthful of blood.
âOkay, uh, you just lie there and try to die peacefully, I guess,â Kim said.
âWay ahead of you.â
***
âWas that last bit as funny as I thought it was?â Vell asked. âI think the blood loss was affecting my sense of humor.â
âIt was kind of hard to appreciate in the moment,â Kim said. âBut as far as dying jokes go, it was pretty good.â
Vell and Kim walked into the lair for their morning meeting and joined the loopers that had already gathered.
âOkay, whatâd I miss while I was dead?â
âWell, after Alex was done getting herself killed,â Samson began.
âYouâre saying that as if itâs something to be ashamed of,â Alex said. âVell also died.â
âYeah, but he got killed trying to do something good. You got killed trying to do something stupid.â
âTrying to eliminate a threat is not stupid,â Alex said.
âWe donât kill intelligent creatures,â Hawke said. âSometimes we punch them into a coma, but we donât kill them.â
âWhen a dog bites, you put it down, I donât see why the same principle doesnât apply to a mammoth thatâs crushed seventy people.â
âThat wasnât Maeâs fault,â Vell said. âShe got mutated, or something. On that note: did you guys figure out what happened to Mae Noi?â
âNothing,â Hawke said. âLooked like Mae smashed up the entire lab, trampled everyone involved in the experiment too. Nothing left to investigate, and nobody left alive to interrogate.â
âTypical,â Vell sighed. âAt least we have an easy out. Dean Lichman was really concerned about the ethics of that whole experiment. We raise some kind of complaint, we could probably get the whole thing shut down.â
âThe problem is getting the complaint,â Hawke said. âThat lab was airtight, Vell.â
âApparently not completely airtight,â Kim said. âI can camp out in the lab and raise an entirely justifiable stink whenever something capable of making a murder-mammoth shows up.â
âAnd what if it happens so suddenly you canât complain about it?â Samson asked. âFor all we know that couldâve been some kind of dimensional rift, or time anomaly, or something. It might not be as simple as somebody just putting in the wrong syringe at the wrong time.â
âHeâs got a point,â Vell said. âWe might want to shut this down before it gets there.â
âSeems like our best option is to plant evidence, then,â Alex said.
Everyone else at the table spent a few seconds brainstorming ways to prove her wrong, and much to their frustration, could not.
âOkay, fine,â Vell said. âBut it needs to be something incidental, not something anyone would get blamed for. We want to cancel the experiment, not get anyone in trouble.â
âI could have a seizure on some sensitive equipment,â Helena offered. âItâll break something and nobody would dare get mad at me.â
âCan you fake a seizure?â
âNo, but Iâm allergic to elephants, so Iâd probably have one anyway the moment I stepped in the lab,â Helena said.
âI donât feel entirely comfortable sending you into anaphylactic shock for a bit,â Vell said.
âOfferâs on the table,â Helena said. âIâll live. Wouldnât have made it through that trip to the zoo otherwise.â
âAnybody have any non-medical emergency suggestions?â
âSeagull in the air vents,â Kim said.
âWill that work?â
âIt happens now and then,â Kim said. âSeagull gets in, and Dean has to close down the whole lab for potential material damage and biohazard risks if they shit in the vents.â
âReally? Weâve never had to deal with anything like that,â Hawke said.
âIt may shock you to learn that sometimes minor, tedious bullshit happens that we have nothing to do with,â Kim said.
âThat is kind of surprising, actually.â
âEnough. Kim, can you grab a seagull?â Vell asked. He shouldered his bookbag, and stuck a hand into the extradimensional pocket that existed within it. âI can probably smuggle it in with my bag.â
âYeah, I can get you a seagull,â Kim said. Since she did not need to sleep, she had to find ways to keep herself entertained at night, seagull-grabbing being among them.
âAlright, weâll go grab one and put it in the bag,â Vell said. âThe rest of you, be ready to meet us when I call.â
***
Roughly three minutes later, Vell put out the call and they reconvened in front of the biology lab.
âYeah, that was much faster than I thought it would be,â Vell said.
âIâm great at grabbinâ birds,â Kim said. Seagulls were among the easier birds to snatch, even. They were suckers for food, and many of them were attracted to her shiny metallic body anyway.
âLetâs just get this over with,â Vell said. âI want this thing out of my bag ASAP.â
Even though the seagull was safely within a pocket dimension, Vell would swear he could still feel the bird thrashing and squawking inside his bag. He tightened his grip on the shoulder strap and led the way towards the zoology lab entrance. He grabbed the handle and held it as he froze for a second.
âVell, whatâs up? Is this bird escaping?â
âNo, the handleâs vibrating,â Vell said. It was shaking the same way a wall near an incredibly loud speaker might. He pressed his ear to the door and listened closely. He opened the door immediately, and let all his friends hear the frantic trumpeting of a panicked elephant.
Inside the lab, Mae Noi was stomping her feet and trumpeting as loud as he long trunk would allow. She swayed from side to side in her pen, bumping against the walls not quite hard enough to damage them, but hard enough that it was clear she was doing it on purpose.
âWhat the heck is happening here?â
âAh, Vell,â Dean Lichman said. He hustled over to Vellâs side and gestured to the entire room. âMaybe you can figure out whatâs going on.â
Mae Noi stopped braying long enough to start mashing her trunk against her pedestal, mashing out the word âBadâ over and over again.
âOur test subject, Mae Noi, has been throwing an absolute fit ever since she got here,â Dean Lichman said. âDr. Chanthara, these are the students I was telling you about earlier.â
While Vell reintroduced himself to Dr. Chanthara, Kim and Hawke stepped up to examine Mae Noi and her enclosure. It was a far cry from the peaceful, orderly scene they had examined on the first loop. They were half an hour earlier this time than before, but Kim found it unlikely that they had been able to calm Mae Noi down, clean everything up, and get back to work in such a short amount of time. They hadnât mentioned any of this panic on the first loop either. They were soon joined in their confusion by Chanthara and Vell.
âWeâve tried everything; food, water, her favorite toys, even videos of her children,â Dr. Chanthara said. âWeâve even offered to call off the experiment, but she wonât listen.â
âShe is an animal,â Alex said. âSometimes they do things arbitrarily.â
âNot Mae,â Dr. Chanthara said. âSome of our sanctuaries residents from traumatic backgrounds can have outbursts, but Mae was injured in the wild. Sheâs never been like this.â
âMaybe some experiment on the island is upsetting her,â Vell said. âA sonic experiment only she can hear, or somethingâŠâ
Vell stopped and thought about it. If there had been such an irritant, it wouldâve been there on the first loop too. Everything always repeated exactly the same, except for-
âCould you, uh, take a step back for a second?â Vell mumbled. âI want to try talking to her.â
âDonât get close,â Chanthara warned him.
âIâm not, Iâm not,â Vell said. He didnât need to get very close to tell a joke.
The massive brown eyes of Mae Noi stayed locked on Vell as he approached, and she continued to mash the âBadâ button on her pedestal.
âI know, I know, bad,â Vell said. âBut, uh, do you want to hear a joke?â
Mae Noi stopped. She locked eyes with Vell for a few seconds, and then cautiously tapped a button on her pedestal.
âJoke.â
âRight, joke,â Vell said. He tried to recall the exact sequence of words Mae had used on the first loop. âWhat elephant favorite part tree?â
Mae didnât blink.
âTrunk,â Vell said.
After a moment of contemplation, Mae Noi let out one final, fervent, trumpet, and then started mashing buttons on her pedestal again.
âBad. Help. Help. Experiment. Bad. Help. Bad. Help.â
âYeah, bad help, one second,â Vell said. He turned away from Mae Noi to look at Dean Lichman. âHey, uh, excuse me, Dean? Hey, uh, if I remember correctly there are some pretty complicated rules on having intelligent animals on campus, yes?â
âWell, yes,â Dean Lichman said. After hearing of some questionable ethical practices involving an octopus back in first year, he had instituted a few clauses into the schoolâs ethical code of conduct regarding intelligent animals like elephants, octopuses, and dolphins. âMaeâs presence here is a bit of an outlier, but there were workaround, given her apparent consent to the experiment.â
âYeah, about that, is she, uh,â Vell began. âIs she registered as a student?â
âYes.â
Vell pursed his lips. It took a few seconds for his friends to catch on.
âYou have got to be fucking kidding me,â Samson snapped. He turned his back on the crowd and leaned against a wall while Hawke put his head in his hands.
âThe first rule of looping,â Alex said quietly. âLoopers are randomly selected-â
She looked up and locked eyes with Mae Noi.
âFrom all registered students.â
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2024.05.22 01:43 yeahchristhing Get $30 when you spend $30 ! - Rakuten Canada pays you to shop - Amazing sign up bonus with referral. It is like getting something for free
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2024.05.22 01:22 mot_lionz Irvine City Council Mayor Farrah Khan and Vice Mayor Larry Agran called out in Daily Journal
| Local leaders matter now more than ever City Councils are attempting to direct U.S. foreign policy and override the authority of local police, with some officials promoting hate and anti-Israel foreign policy inside City Hall. City Councils are usurping power. Engaging in subnational diplomacy, these officials are attempting to direct U.S. foreign policy and override the authority of local police. Candidates for local elections are hardly vetted and rarely state their positions on geopolitics. Political action committees concerned with international affairs don't even engage in municipal races. Yet, these local leaders advocating for "trickle up" foreign policy are charting the course of America's future. On Oct. 23, 2023, Mayor Farrah Khan of Irvine met with the California Attorney General in support of the State's anti-hate reporting system. Mayor Khan said, "There is no place for hate in Irvine." Yet, Mayor Khan has been promoting hate and anti-Israel foreign policy inside City Hall for the last six months. Irvine proudly boasts that it is the "safest city in America," but segments of the local population are feeling increasingly insecure. Diverse Orange County, formerly conservative, now deeply purple, serves as a warning call for what happens when the electorate doesn't pay attention to local elections. On April 29, 2024, Khan publicly asked law enforcement to "stand down" and not disrupt any encampments and anti-Israel activities on University California Irvine's campus. According to a May 9 letter from student leaders, it was only after Mayor Khan intervened that police stopped enforcing the law against encampment protestors. Khan does not have jurisdiction over UCI. Pursuant to the California Education Code violations of public safety, and illegal encampment must be left to the Chancellor of UCI, UC Police Department, and local law enforcement agencies. Khan should be supporting the impartial and fair application of all laws. The Chancellor has declared the encampments illegal and in violation of the University's code of conduct. Instead of deferring to law enforcement to know when actions cross over from free speech to illegal activities, Khan is insisting law enforcement unconditionally protect certain students at the expense of the safety of others. Previously, Khan has deferred to law enforcement to protect First Amendment rights and ensure public safety. She has not appeared at Irvine rallies held to protest the regime in Iran. She has never joined local protests advocating for the release of the hostages in Gaza. Yet, on April 29 Mayor Khan felt the need to be physically present at the UCI encampment to bully local law enforcement and campus administrators. Mayor Khan returned to the UCI encampment on May 4 where she declared that "We don't want our tax dollars going to this genocide. Divestment is the least the University can do." On May 6, Mayor Khan tweeted, "Student protestors were showing the world how to build a better community while standing up for humanity and rejecting colonialism/capitalism/Zionism." This isn't only anti-Israel, it's flat-out anti-American. Meanwhile, Congresswoman Michele Steel who was actually elected by Orange County to represent the electorate at the national level has condemned the UCI encampment. In 2020, Khan refused to sign a resolution acknowledging violence in Azerbaijan. At the time, she explained that international issues were outside the scope of the Irvine City Council. She pointed to a code section that prohibits the Council from acting on any non-municipal affairs. Now Khan, with the support of her Vice Mayor, Larry Agran, is ignoring that same code. Mayor Khan and Vice Mayor Larry Agran have now held eight City Council meetings dominated by foreign affairs. They have allowed Irvine City business to be disrupted by calls to pass a ceasefire resolution and divest from Israel. When it comes to her anti- Israel agenda, Khan has created an exception to the ban on non-municipal matters. There is currently a recall effort against Irvine Councilmembers Kim and Tresseder for having the audacity to do their jobs for which they were elected and not wade into international politics. That two councilmembers have faced constant harassment and now political attacks for refusing to pass City Council measures on the Middle East. The Middle East Forum showed Khan's ties to Azerbaijan, Pakistan, and Turkey. In 2019, Khan was investigated for visiting Azerbaijan on a trip paid for by its government. In her mayoral campaign, she took money from agents of Turkey and associated herself with lobbyists who advocated against the recognition of the Armenian genocide. Khan's authoritarian streak was on full display when members of the community first questioned the authority of the City to pass a ceasefire resolution or send city dollars to support "humanitarian relief" in Gaza. The mayor concluded that Council meeting by stating, "I am not defined by my title. I define my title." Local officials are attempting to direct geopolitical policy, matters they were not elected to govern. These municipal leaders are not subject matter experts in the Middle East, constitutional scholars properly-suited to interpret the First Amendment, nor trained law enforcement versed in how to best maintain public safety. Irvine City Council, along with other local councils across the country, have been consumed with alleged peace protestors ironically calling for global religious war. Now, those leaders who have fostered hate inside local governmental chambers are giving a megaphone to agitators on college campuses. These leaders are not protecting free speech; they are promoting lawlessness. submitted by mot_lionz to SafeHavenIrvineCA [link] [comments] |
2024.05.22 01:19 Snappiarduke502 Offseason Primer
Capfriendly has the Avs July 1st cap space at $15,916,250 with 11 roster spots open.
Pending RFAs -Casey Mittelstadt: -62gp 14G 33A 47pts w/ Buffalo -18gp 4G 6A 10pts w/ Avalanche -Mittelstadt is the main piece to sign this offseason as he has stepped into the 2C role and thrived after being acquired from Buffalo, and at only 25 he is a piece to lock up for the future.
-Alex Beaucage: -21gp 1G 6A 7pts w/ Colorado Eagles -29gp 11G 14A 25pts w/ Utah Grizzlies -At 22, he is likely looking at a deal coming his way this offseason. Slotted to be with the Eagles for the time being, if he performs well, he could become a float between Denver and Loveland or see himself being moved in a more âwin-nowâ focused deal
-Jason Polin: -7gp 1G 0A 1pt w/ Avalanche -42gp 4G 6A 10pts w/ Colorado Eagles -An Eagles mainstay this season, who spent some time with the big club this year, he is likely looking at another year primarily with the Eagles, and at 24 another cheap deal is likely in the Avs best interest.
-Wyatt Aamodt: -60gp 6G 8A 14pts w/ Colorado Eagles -An AHLer this season and not much else, he is looking at more playing time with the Eagles this upcoming season. Will likely see a qualifying offer.
-Gianni Fairbrother: -1gp 0G 0A 0pts w/ Colorado Eagles -8gp 1G 2A 3pts w/ Utah Grizzlies -Part of the Newhook trade in 2023, Fairbrother is a young, only 23, developing defenseman who could see increased playing time in Loveland, and Utah, but is a way away from being a potential AHL call-up.
Pending UFAs -Andrew Cogliano: -75gp 6G 13A 19P -At 36, the NHL journey is coming to an end for Cogliano in the near future, it appears he likes it in Colorado, and Colorado likes him. For the right price, Cogs will be back in the burgundy and blue as pillar of the bottom-6.
-Jonathan Drouin: -79gp 19G 37A 56P -A guy who has come into his own this season in Denver, while a new contract will be expensive, it is in his best interest to stay in Denver and playing next to his QMJHL buddy MacKinnon.
-Brandon Duhaime: -62gp 4G 4A 8pts w/ Minnesota -18gp 1G 4A 5pts /Colorado -A high energy player who is not afraid to play the body and muck it up in the o-zone. At 26, for the right price, the Avalanche could benefit from a deal.
-Joel Kiviranta: -10gp 3G 6A 9pts w/ Colorado Eagles -56gp 3G 6A 9pts w/ Colorado Avalanche -I donât see Kiviranta coming back next season, I feel the Avs can replace his production and energy from within.
-Yakov Trenin: -60gp 10G 4A 14pts w/ Nashville -16gp 2G 1A 3pts w/ Colorado -Another piece in a crucial bottom 6 for the Avalanche, for the right price, would be welcomed back with open arms.
-Jack Johnson: -80gp 3G 13A 16pts w/ Colorado -At 37, I am not sure he fits into the window for the Avs anymore. His production can be replaced from within, or through a younger free agent on the market. But his veteran presence is likely highly important in the locker room
-Caleb Jones: -12gp 0G 6A 6pts w/ Colorado Eagles -25gp 0G 5A 5pts w/ Colorado Avalanche -Not expecting Jones to be back with the team next season, while high-energy, the production is just not at the level it needs to be at across the board, another case of he can be replaced from within.
-Sean Walker: -63gp 6G 16A 22pts w/ Philadelphia -18gp 4G 3A 7pts w/ Colorado -Unfortunately, Walker has likely priced himself out of Colorado and will be wearing a different logo come October. Giving up a 1st stings for a rental, and I would expect the Avalanche to kick tires and see if an agreement can be made.
-Fredrick Olofsson: -20gp 3G 9A 12pts w/ Colorado Eagles -57gp 3G 6A 9pts -I would not expect Olofsson back in Colorado in 2024-25, his production can be replaced, and did not play with the big club during the most important part of the year
-Spencer Smallman -53gp 12G 9A 21pts w/ Colorado Eagles -Another AHLer who is likely looking at a deal to be mainly a piece in Loveland, donât expect to see Smallman play with the Avalanche
-Riley Tufte: -67gp 23G 22A 45pts w/ Colorado Eagles -5gp 1G 1A 2pts w/ Colorado Avalanche -A high-energy and hungry player during this sort stint with the Avalanche this season, I expect him to have a new deal and be fighting for a mainstay spot in the Avalanche roster at training camp.
-Nathan Clurman -37gp 1G 4A 5pts w/ Colorado Eagles -At 26, Clurman is likely an AHL only defenseman, and is likely low on the pecking order when it comes to call-ups, I think a deal is negotiated for cheap. Also heâs a Boulder native.
-Brad Hunt -70gp 16G 33A 49pts w/ Colorado Eagles -As captain of the Eagles this season, I definitely think Hunt is due for another deal here in Colorado, as well as being a call-up candidate in event of injury
-Corey Schueneman: -64gp 4G 18A 22pts -Another likely AHLer, weâll see what happens. Could go either way.
-Ivan Prosvetov: -11gp 8gs 4W-3L 3.70GAA .881SV% -At 25, Prosvetov is likely wanting to find a place to prove himself in a backup and potentially starting goalie, I feel the Avs want to keep him to depth purposes, but I donât see Prosvetov staying.
Resigned: Mittelstadt, Drouin, Trenin, Tufte and others
Resigned for the right price: Walker, Duhaime, Cogliano, Johnson, Prosvetov, and any of the other AHL guys who want to stick around
Mittelstadt and Drouin will eat a good portion of the cap space we have, leaving 9 roster spots open with under 10 million to spend.
League UFAs(Top 10 on Capfriendly) -Steven Stamkos -Sam Reinhart -Matt Murray -Jake Guentzel -Tyler Myers -Adam Henrique -Anthony Mantha -Tyler Bertuzzi(đ€ą) -Teuvo TerĂ€vĂ€inen -Jason Zucker
We are unfortunately probably priced out of most of the premier talent in this years free agency class. We are likely targeting bottom 6 forwards and bottom 4 defense as depth, our top players are payed for a reason, need to find the complimentary pieces. Not sure what realistic options would be.
Promotion from within options -Riley Tufte(pending UFA) -Oskar Olausson -Jean-Luc Foudy -Sean Behrens -Sam Malinski -Nikolai Kovalenko -Calum Ritchie -Mikhail Gulyayev(Under contract with Avangard Omsk until 2025/26)
-I think the lack of money to play with is the perfect opportunity for our young talent to step in a prove themselves, or can become trade pieces to improve. Olausson and Foudy are the most dire in need to make the jump, we are running out of time on their development as prospects. A full season will undoubtedly help Kovalenko, as he can adjust to the North American game and can likely become a valuable piece on the 2nd or 3rd line. Ritchie will have to wait until training camp to see if he is ready for the jump, at only 19, he can afford to wait to make the move full time and flesh out his game. Gulayayev is a pipe dream this year, although I believe once he makes the move he will be a quality defenseman who will inject some youth in a d-core that is starting to age.
Definitely leave your thoughts, opinions and other comments. Iâd love to discuss.
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2024.05.22 01:01 FurnitureGuides Best Memorial Day Sale Couch & Sectional Sofa Deals
I am trying to take advantage of the memorial day sale for couches as I heard it is usually the best time to buy sofas.
I have been doing my research and seems like a lot of people recommend these companies, but would like any input on these are any other suggestions.
- What A Room is having a 10% Off, but they emailed me a coupon code for 15% (MDS24-EM15). I've been reading that people have great customer service experience with them as they have a lot of customization with a lot of sizes/configurations, free fabric samples with a lot of options, different cushion firmness. I really like that you are able to choose different depth levels as there are some sofas I really like from other brands but limited customization options as I am a bit taller so having a deeper sofa would be nice.
- LoveSac is having a 30% off which seems like one of their better deals. I like that they are modular and that I can always add additional parts if I need to add more seats. Also their covers seem removal so its nice that you can change it up or replace it when necessary. Heard good things about them, but their options are quite limited, but they are quite expensive so 30% seems like a steal.
- Crate & Barrel is having a few couches on sale at about 20% on their Unwide slipcofa sectional sofa or their Lounge deep sofa is 10% off. They are also having a promo with 20% rewards if I sign up for their Credit Card which seems quite promising. I don't know their credit too well though but may seem worth it if I buy more furniture from them later on.
- I am looking for mostly a quality sofa that would last longer than 5 years so these are the one's I narrow down to for now.
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2024.05.22 01:01 MerkadoBarkada VREIT Q1 div drops 23% q/q; Ayala Land sells P3.2-B block of AREIT; Figaro confirms "double-digit growth" plan; Alliance Global injects P2.6-B into Megaworld (Wednesday, May 22)
Happy Wednesday, Barkada --
The PSE lost 49 points to 6634 âŒ0.7%
Shout-out to
Jing for alerting me to the crypto pump, to
Rat Race Running for knowing that when talking about FILRT it's all about the context, to
Atot for the positive feedback on Raymund's "would you rather" question on DDMPFILRT, to
ApCap for simply laughing at FILRT, to
Bestpupever for remembering MVP's botched Skycable deal, to
grinsken,
princessybyang,
VodkaMartini_007, and
Nv21 for the happy bday wishes, and to
arkitrader for the accurate Tuesday meme.
- VREIT Q1 div drops 23% q/q
- Ayala Land sells P3.2-B block of AREIT
- Figaro confirms "double-digit growth" plan
- Alliance Global injects P2.6-B into Megaworld
âMain stories covered:
- [DIVS] VistaREIT Q1 dividend drops 23% q/q... VistaREIT [VREIT 1.75 âČ0.6%; 0% avgVol] [link] declared a Q1/24 dividend of â±0.04132, payable on June 27 to shareholders of record as of June 5. The dividend has an annualized yield of 9.4% based on the previous closing price, which is considerably smaller than VREITâs pre-dividend yield of 12.3%. The total amount of the dividend is â±310 million, which is 100% of the â±310 million in distributable income that VREIT declared for the quarter. Relative to VREITâs IPO price, the div increased VREITâs total stock and dividend return to 18.55% (up from 16.19%). The VREIT Q1 dividend is up 5.4% y/y, but down 23.2% q/q.
- MB: I donât know enough about VREIT to understand the quarter-on-quarter drop. This is the first dividend decrease in VREIT history, so we donât have a past narrative of a Q4 to Q1 dip to gain comfort that this is just part of the regular business cycle for a malls-based REIT. Last year, VREITâs dividend actually increased 1.5% between Q4/22 and Q1/23. But a 23% drop? *FILRT** be like: VREIT, I owe you an apology, I wasnât familiar with your game. Does anyone have context to help me understand this one?*
- [UPDATE] Ayala Land sells â±3.2-B worth of AREIT in block sale... Ayala Land [ALI 29.00 âŒ2.4%; 121% avgVol] [link] disclosed that it sold 98 million common shares of AREIT [AREIT 33.00 âŒ3.4%; 848% avgVol] in a private placement block sale at a price of â±32.45/share. ALI said that the transaction was two-times oversubscribed at the clearing price, which was 5% under AREITâs closing price from the previous day. The transaction raised â±3.18 billion for ALI and increased AREITâs public float to facilitate the planned property-for-share swap between ALI and AREIT.
- MB: While I didnât know exactly when this second block sale would happen, I did know that it was going to happen and I speculated back in January that it would probably come as a surprise and at a discounted price to AREITâs market price at the time. Hereâs a link to that analysis if youâre interested. At the end of the day, the first sale was at a 7.2% discount whereas this one was only at 5.0%, and the public float is now prepped to handle the SECâs eventual approval of the transaction (whenever that happens) without plunging AREITâs shareholders into chaos and confusion like what happened to *SP New Energy** [SPNEC 1.05 âŒ0.9%; 85% avgVol] when the SEC approved its share swap and caught Leandro Levisteâs management team flat-footed.*
- [NEWS] Figaro confirms â±1-B FY24 capex and âdouble-digit growthâ target... Figaro [FCG 0.75 âČ1.4%; 95% avgVol] [link] confirmed statements made by its Chairman, Justin Liu, in an interview with Manila Bulletin. In that interview, Mr. Liu said that FCGâs FY24 capex target is â±1 billion, that theyâre looking to open 70 to 80 new stores this year, and that he expects this expansion effort to push earnings to grow âdouble-digitsâ this year. FCG confirmed all those statements. FCGâs indicated that it would expand from 150 stores at the end of 2022 to 300 stores by the end of 2029.
- MB: According to its Q1/24 press release, FCG ended 2023 with 203 stores after adding 68 stores that year. If FCG were to put up another â70 to 80â stores this year, that would leave it with 273 to 283 total stores by the end of 2024, and give FCG plenty of time (5 years!) to complete the remaining 127 to 117 stores. Usually in the quick service restaurant world, periods of intense growth donât correspond with periods of great profitability, so the âdouble digitâ earnings growth target is what stands out to me the most. FCG net income was up 7.2% y/y last quarter, and thatâs actually considerable given the previous yearâs expansion and the current expansion, but thatâs not double-digit growth. One thing that confuses me, though, is that in its Q1/23 quarterly report from a year earlier, FCG said that it ended 2022 with 150 stores. If it had 150 stores at the end of 2022 and then added 68 stores in 2023, shouldnât it have 218 stores by now, not 203? I know, I know: 15 stores isnât that big of a deal. Maybe itâs just a miscommunication between marketing and operations. Maybe there was a little bit of internal pressure to count 15 nearly-completed stores as completed stores in order to hit that IPO prospectus goal of 150 total stores by the end of 2022, and then they double-counted those 15 stores as part of the 2023 completes? I donât know. Iâm just going by the info they tell me. Any readers have any insight?
- [UPDATE] Alliance Global injects â±2.6-B into Megaworld... Megaworld [MEG 1.89 âŒ0.5%; 156% avgVol] [link] clarified the recent subscription of its parent company, Alliance Global [AGI 9.30 âŒ2.8%; 185% avgVol], to 1.375 billion common shares at â±1.90/share to say that it is part of a plan to increase MEGâs outstanding authorized capital stock by â±5.5 billion (from â±40.2 billion to â±45.7 billion). MEG explained that it âintends to submit its application for increase in authorized capital stock... by around June 2024â, and will list the shares issued to AGI once the full payment of the subscription price is received. MEG said that the purpose of the sale and the larger transaction is for âsupporting growth and future business expansions of [MEG] in line with [MEGâs] strategies and directions.â
- MB: Once approved, this will give MEGâs management team 4.125 billion common shares that it can sell to fund its ambitious capex for FY24 and beyond. If MEG sold the remainder at the same â±1.90/share price, that would bring in an additional â±7.8 billion. If I were a shareholder, Iâd be less concerned by the details of the transaction as I would be about the meaningless word salad of the rationale behind it. I know many MEG shareholders who are frustrated with the stockâs laggard price performance. MEG just recently touched a 12-year low, and is trading at prices that the stock has not seen since early 2012. Itâs down 4% year-to-date, down 8.7% over the past 12 months, down 34% over the past 3 years, and down 69% (not nice) from its all-time high that it set back in July 2019. Whatâs the plan? So far it seems all I hear is âtownships townships townshipsâ but that âstrategy and directionâ hasnât been profitable for shareholders for almost 5 years now.
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2024.05.22 00:47 A_K_15 [TX] Getting full custody on my 4 year old.
Hello I turn to Reddit as I am getting a bit confused and donât know where to turn to or how to proceed with this so if anyone can be kind enough to give me some advice/tips etc. anything helps đ
I live in Texas and am trying to get started on getting full custody of my 4 year old daughter. There is not a pending case yet and I am not married to him. I think as it stands the custody is 50/50 and he is on child support. He currently owes $7,248.89 of current/retroactive. His last payment was on October 2023 for $20 and the payment before that was on May 2022 for $66.61. I only add this as reference that he really has not been there for her financially and physically. The last contact I had with him was in September 2022 where he sent me a message that him and his girlfriend were selling t-shirts and that he misses her but heâs busy. The time before that it was on February 2021 where I asked him if he wanted to cooperate on her first birthday party and was left on read and he has pretty much cut contact since then. Needless to say he is absent and not active. The last time he physically saw her was in December 2020 and has not tried to reach out or ask about her etc since then. I would like to get full custody and terminate his rights. I am not sure if just getting an affidavit of voluntary relinquishment and having him sign and notarized would be enough to do that.
I am sure he is willing to sign but would like to avoid contact with him since it was an abusive relationship but obviously at this point I just need to get it done so I am willing to do anything.
I did read somewhere that Involuntary Termination is a thing. Would this be able to fall into the âThe parent abandoned or did not support the child and expressed no intent to return.â category? or would I have to go to court for this? It seems a bit redundant since he will not fight for her but I will do what is necessary as my daughter does not need this. I also believe he might have a geographical restriction (not sure) and I would like to move since my current partner is getting a federal job somewhere out of Texas so obviously no matter what we are moving. I did try speaking with a free attorney since truthfully I cannot afford to get one atm but obviously if it is necessary I will. I have yet heard back from them and itâs just eating me up that I should be doing something else and that Iâm not well informed no matter how much I read up on it etc.
Thank you!
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2024.05.22 00:39 Captain_Hook_ Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, better known as Paracelsus - details from the infamous "Book on Nymphs, Slyphs, Pigmies, Etc." - c. 1530
CAPUT I
...
Know, therefore, that the purpose of this book is to describe the four kinds of spirit-men, namely, the water people, the mountain people, the fire people and the wind people. Included among these four kinds are the giants, the melusines, the Venusberg and what is similar to them.
...
How things are in relation to us will have to be described in the following order:
First, their creation and what they are;
second, their country and habitation, where they stay and what their mode of living is;
third, how they come to us and let themselves be seen, how they mix and have intercourse with us;
fourth, how they perform some miraculous works, such as Melusine, the Venusberg and similar stories;
fifth, the birth of the giants and their origin, and also their vanishing and return.
...
CAPUT SECUNDUM
...
The flesh must be understood thus that there are two: the flesh from Adam and that which is not from Adam. The flesh from Adam is a coarse flesh, for it is earthen and is nothing else but a flesh that can be bound and grasped like wood or a stone. The other flesh which is not from Adam, is a subtile flesh and can not be bound nor grasped, for it is not made from earth. Now, the flesh from Adam is the man from Adam. He is coarse like the earth which is compact. And, therefore, man cannot go through a wall. He must make a hole to slip through, because nothing recedes before him.
But before the flesh that is not from Adam, walls recede, which means that such flesh does not require doors nor holes; it goes through intact walls and does not break anything. They are both flesh, blood, bone and so on, whatever belongs to a man, and in their whole nature they are like manâs. But they are different in that they have a double origin like two cousins; they are in equal way like a spirit and like man. The spirit goes through all walls and nothing locks him out; man, however, not, for he is locked out by the bolt or the lock.
...
With all this, they bear children, talk and eat, drink and walkâthings that spirits do not. Hence, they are like the spirits in speed, like man in gestures, figure and eating, and so they are people who have the character of spirits and also that of man, and both are one in them. Although they are both spirit and man, yet they are neither one nor the other. They cannot be men, since they are spiritlike in their behaviour. They cannot be spirits, since they eat and drink, have blood and flesh. Therefore, they are a creation of their own, outside the two,... It must be understood further that although they are spirit and man, yet they are neither. Man has a soul, the spirit not. The spirit has no soul, but man has one. This creature, however, is both, but has no soul, and yet is not identical with a spirit. For, the spirit does not die, but this creature dies. And so it is not like man, it has not the soul; it is a beast, yet higher than a beast.
...
Now, they are separated from us because they are not from Adam and do not participate in the same earth from which Adam was made, but God has decreed that we may see them miraculously, which has a particular meaning, as will be discussed in the last treatise. They have children and their children are their kind, not ours. They are witty, rich, clever, poor, dumb like we who are from Adam. They resemble us in every way. Just as one says: man is the image of God, that is, he has been made after his imageâin the same way one can also say: these people are the image of man and made after his image.
...
And so they are men and people, die with the beasts, walk with the spirits, eat and drink with men. That is: like the beasts they die, so that nothing is left; and neither water nor fire harms them, like the spirits, and nobody can lock them up, like the spirits, but they reproduce like men and therewith share his nature. They have manâs diseases and his health but their medicine is not from the earth from which man is made, but from the element in which they live. They die like men, but are dead like the beasts. Their flesh rots like other flesh and their bones like other menâs bones and nothing remains of it. Their customs and behaviour are human, as is their way of talking, with all virtues, better and coarser, more subtile and rougher. The same applies to their figures : they are very different, like men. In food they are like men, eat and enjoy the product of their labor, spin and weave their own clothing. They know how to make use of things, have wisdom to govern, justice to preserve and protect. For although they are beasts, they have all the reason of man, except the soul.
...
TRACTATUS II - ABOUT THEIR ABODE
...
Their abode is of four kinds, namely, according to the four elements : one in the water, one in the air, one in the earth, one in the fire. Those in the water are nymphs, those in the air are sylphs, those in the earth are pygmies, those in the fire salamanders. These are not good names, but I use them nevertheless.
...
The name of the water people is also undina, and of the air people sylvestres, and of the mountain people gnomi, and of the fire people vulcani rather than salamandri.
...
Now you must know that if their regions have to be described, they must be divided into their parts. For the water people have no intercourse with the mountain people, nor the mountain people with them, nor the salamanders.
...
The undinae have their abode in water, and the water is given to them as to us the air, and just as we are astonished that they should live in water, they are astonished about our being in the air. The same applies to the gnomi in the mountains: the earth is their air and is their chaos. For everything lives in chaos, that is: everything has its abode in chaos, walks and stands therein. Now, the earth is not more than mere chaos to the mountain manikins. For they walk through solid walls, through rocks and stones, like a spirit; this is why these things are all mere chaos to them, that is, nothing. That amounts to: as little as we are hampered by the air, as little are they hampered by the mountain, by earth and rocks.
...
Since water is the fishâs air, the fish does not drown, and so the unda does not drown either. As in the water, so in the earth: the earth is air to the gnomi; hence they do not suffocate. They do not require our air, we do not theirs. Thus also with the salamanders: fire is their air, as our air our air is. And the sylvestres are closest to us, for they too maintain themselves in our air, and they are exposed to the same kind of death as we, namely: they burn in fire, and we too; they drown in water, and we too; they suffocate in the earth, and we too. For, each remains healthy in his chaos; in the others he dies.
...
Let us philosophize further, about their food ... The sylphs are like men, nourish themselves like men in the wilderness, on herbs in the woods. To the salamanders the soil is earth, their heaven is the air, and fire their chaos. Thus food grows to them from the earth and from fire, and the constellation from air is their heaven.
...
About their clothing: they are clothed and cover their genitalia, but not in the way of our world, in their own way. For they have modesty and similar qualities, as men must have, have law and similar institutions, have their authorities, [etc.] ... To the beasts clothing is inborn by nature, but not to these people. To them nothing is inborn by nature; they must work for it like man whom they resemble. Their work, like manâs work, is in the nature and kind of their own world and earth on which they live.
...
**About their figures, know that they are different. The water people look like men, both women and men. The sylvestres do not conform, but are cruder, coarser, longer and stronger than both. The mountain people are small, of about two spans. The salamanders are long, narrow and lean. Their place and abode are in their chaos, as was mentioned before. The nymphs live in water, in running brooks, etc., so close that they grasp the people who ride through or bathe therein. The mountain people are in the mountain chaos, and there they build their houses. This is why it often happens that one finds in the earth an attic, vaults, and similar structures, of the height of about a yard. They have been build by these people for their abode and dwellings.
The water people do the same in their various places. Know also that the mountain people live in the caves of the mountains and this is why strange structures occur and are found in such places. These are their work. Know also about the fire people whose yelling, hammering and working can be heard in volcanic mountains. It can also be heard when the elements are incinerated. For all these things are the same as with us, but according to their secret quality. Those who travel through wild regions learn the reason for such beings and obtain information. There these beings are found. In the mines also, close to good ore, etc. they are found, and in waters the same also, and the vulcans near the Aetna. And there are many more marvellous things, about their coins, payments and customs, which would be too long in this connection, but will be described in their place.**
TRACTATUS III - HOW THEY COME TO US AND BECOME VISIBLE TO US
All that God has created, he reveals to man and lets come before him, so that man has and attains knowledge of all happenings of the creatures.
...
And in order that we may have a good knowledge of things, the water people have not only been truly seen by man, but have married him and have born him children. Thus also, the mountain people have not only been seen, but people saw them, and talked to them, and received money from them and blows and similar things. The same happened with the forest people, as was mentioned before, the people saw them and dealt and walked with them. Thus also, with the vulcans, who also, as mentioned before, appeared to man, and revealed themselves essentially, who they were and what had to be understood of them all.
...
The nymphs, namely, become apparent to us, but not we to them, except in what they tell about us in their world, as a pilgrim would, who had been in foreign lands. They do not need such rapture, the way the mountain people enrapture us, or the water people. For they have no power over man, and their world is not such that they could adopt us. Man is not subtile in body, but coarse in body and subtile in chaos, while it is the contrary with them. Therefore, they can well stand our chaos, but not we theirs. Their element also is in itself their chaos, which to us may not be chaos. Thus they appear to us, stay with us, marry with us, die with us, and also bear children.
...
This happens with the water people. They come out of their waters to us, make themselves known, act and deal with us, go back to their water, come againâall this to allow man the contemplation of the divine works. Now, they are men, but on the animal side alone, without the soul. From this it follows that they marry men. A water woman takes a man from Adam, and keeps house for him, and gives birth to children. Of the children, we know that they follow after the father. Because the father is a man from Adam, a soul is given to the child, and it becomes like a regular man, who has an eternal soul. ... Just as the condition of these people is, when they are in union with man, so is the condition of man, when he is in union with God.
From this it follows that they woo man, and that they seek him assiduously and in secret. ... they seek love with man, so as to be in union with men. With them all intelligence and wisdom are outside the qualities of the soul, and not the soul.
...
One must also know that not all of them may be married to us. The water people come first; they are the closest to us. Next after them come the forest people, then the mountain and earth manikins who, however, rarely marry humans and are only obliged to serve them. The vulcans never attempt to enter into union with humans, and yet are apt to serve them. Know also that two of them, namely the earth manikins and vulcans, are considered spirits and not creatures, being looked upon as a mirage only, or as ghosts. You must know, however, that just as they appear, thus they are, flesh and blood like another man, and with that, quick and fast like a spirit, as was told in the beginning. They also know all future affairs, present affairs and the past, which are not apparent but are hidden. In that they can serve man, protect, warn, guide him, and such like. For they have reason in common with man (except in regard to the soul). They have knowledge and intelligence of the spirit (except in regard to God). Thus they are highly gifted, and they know and warn, so that man may learn about such things, and see them, and believe in such creatures.
...
It is said of the nymphs, that they come to us from the water, and sit on the banks of the brooks where they have their abode, where they are seen, taken also, caught, and married, as we said before. The forest people, however, are coarser than they. They do not talk, that is, they cannot talk although they have tongues and enough of all that is needed for speech. In this point they differ from the nymphs, for the nymphs can speak in the languages of the countries; the forest people, however, cannot but they learn easily.
The mountain manikins are endowed with speech like the nymphs, and the vulcans speak nothing, yet they can speak but roughly and rarely. The nymphs appear, as was said before, in human clothing, with human features and desires. The forest people are like men, but shy and fugitive. The mountain people are like men, not tall, short; sometimes they reach about half the size of man or so, sometimes more. Thus and in the same way, the vulcans appear, fiery, and fire is all over their features and clothing.
They are the ones of whom one says: a fire man or spirit is going through the house; there goes a burning soul, etc. It often happens that such figures are seen. They also are the flames that are frequently observed as glowing lights in meadows and fields, running through each other and towards each other. These are the vulcans, but they are not found living with man, on account of their fire. They are often found with old women, however, that is, with witches, wooing them.
...
You must know, however, that there is danger with the fire people, because they are commonly possessed, and the devil thus rages in them, which causes great harm to man. Know also that he equally takes possession of the mountain people and thus makes them subservient to him, and of the forest people also. He then can be found in the forest possessing sylphs and venturing to make love to women who live in forest regions. But they all become like lepers, scabby and mangy, and there is no help for them either.
When these beings are not possessed by the devil they are human and seek union as has been mentioned. But they keep the way of spirits, in that they disappear. One who has a nymph for a wife, should not let her get close to any water, or at least should not offend her while they are on water. And one who has a mountain manikin with him, should not offend him, particularly not at places where they get lost. But they are so much obliged to man and so closely bound to him, that they cannot get away from him, unless there is a reason for it, and this happens at the place from which they come. If one has a wife, she does not get away from him, unless she is provoked while they are on water. Otherwise she will not disappear and can be held. The mountain manikins also must keep their pledges, when they are in service and have been pledged.
But obligations to them must be kept also, in all that is due to them. If duties are kept as should be, they are honest, constant, and intent on their work. And one must know that they are particularly loyal to man and much inclined to spending money. For, the mountain people have money, because they themselves coin it. This is how it must be understood. What a spirit wishes to have, he has, and their wishing and desiring is thus: when a mountain manikin wishes or desires a sum of money, if there is need for it, he has it, and it is good money. Thus they give money to many people in the galleries of mountains, to make them get away; they buy them off. All this is divine orderâ that they thus appear to us and that we see what is incredible to tell. Man is the most earthbound of all creatures. What he must have and wants, he must make for himself, and he obtains nothing by wishing and desiring it. But those people have what they need and desire, and man does nothing for it. They have it without work.
TRACTATUS IV
As we came to the end of the treatise, we had sufficiently discussed the necessities of these beings, and how they come to man. You must now, furthermore, know about their disappearance from man, and about their doings with us, with many such tales and stories that have happened with them, in many queer ways.
...
It also happens that sirens are born. They are water women too, but live more on the water than in it. They are not split like fish, but are more like a virgin, yet their form is not quite that of a woman. They bear no children but are monsters, just as a strange human being can be born from two normal parents. I would like to put it thus: the water people reproduce themselves like humans, but when it happens that they produce a monster, these monsters are sirens that swim on the water, for they repudiate them and do not keep them. This is why they occur in many forms and figures, as it happens and is the case with all monsters.
Thus we marvel not only at the water people but also at the sirens, who have many strange features and are very different from people. Some can sing, some can whistle with reeds, some can do this and that. Monks are also born from nymphs, that is, a monster which is shaped just like a monk. This you must know, namely, that such growths that are comparable to men and are found in some places, come from men, that is, they come from water people, earth manikins and similar beings.
...
To continue the discussion of these beings, know that such people also convene and assemble in one place, where they may live together and seek intercourse with man, for they love him. ... There are more women than men in such groups, few men, many women; hence they are after men whenever they have a chance. From such people a group originated that is called the Venusberg. It consists of nothing else but a kind of nymphs, thrown together in a cave and hole of their world, yet not in their own chaos, in manâs chaos, but in their regionibus. Know about them that they reach a very old age, but you cannot notice it, because their appearance remains the same from beginning to end, and they die unchanged. Venus was a nymph and undine who excelled others and reigned for a long time, but she died and the succeeding Venus was not as endowed as she had been. She died in the course of time and her kingdom vanished. There are many tales about her.
...
There is a story about a different beginning. It tells of a queen who resided there and sank into the earth. It was a water woman who resided there. She went into the mountain, under the pond that was above her, in her region. There she took her abode, and for making love, she built a gallery, for her to get to the lads and they to her. Such strange things happened there that nobody was able to report about these beings, what they were or where they were from, until it came to an end. It is quite possible that this could happen again should another nymph come, equal to her.
...
There is also a true story of the nymph in Staufenberg who sat on the road in all her beauty and served the lord she had chosen. ... Our nymph was a water woman. She promised herself to von Staufenberg and stayed also with him, until he married another wife, and took her for a devil. Taking her for a devil and considering her such, he married another woman and thus broke his promise to her. Therefore, at the wedding, she gave him the sign, through the ceiling, during the banquet, and three days later, he was dead.
...
We must pay equally great attention to Melusine, for she was not what the theologians considered her, but a nympha. It is true, however, that she was possessed by the evil spirit, of which she would have freed herself if she had stayed with her husband to the end. For such is the devil that he transforms these beings into different shapes, as he also does with the witches, transforming them into cats and werewolves, dogs, etc. This happened to her also, for she never was free of witchcraft but had a part in it. A superstitious belief resulted, that on Saturdays she had to be a serpent. This was her pledge to the devil for his helping her in getting a man. Otherwise, she was a nympha, with flesh and blood, fertile and well built to have children. She came from the nymphs to the humans on earth and lived there. But then, as superstitio seduces and vexes all beings, she went away from her people in her superstitious belief, to the places where the seduced people come who are bewitched in superstitionibus and spell-bound. Mind you, she remained the same serpent to the end of her life, and God knows how long it lasted.
...
TRACTATUS V - DE GIGANTIBUS - On Giants
You must know further that there are two more kinds that belong to the kind of nymphs and pygmies, namely, the giants and dwarfs, who are not born from Adam. Although it is a fact that Saint Christopher was a giant, yet he took birth from human seed, and hence we shall not write about him. But we shall write about the other giants, referred to in the stories of Bern, Sigenott, Hiltbrant, Dittrich, etc., also about the dwarf Laurin and others. Such stories are frequently rejected, but you must know that the same people who reject them, reject also much more important truth.
...
To come to an end, know that such people, giants and dwarfs, may well make women from Adam pregnant, because same likes to meet same, and nature may permit it. Yet you must know that the monsters are not fertile, although they are monsters only so far as their strength and size is concerned; they are not misbuilt. But they have only one seed available, that is, they do not attain the third, fourth, etc. generation. Know also that when they get into manâs kind, the result is uncertain. If the childâs body takes after the mother it falls into her kind; if not, it becomes a beast like the father. It is not possible for it to become a mixed being because the seed of one of the two always prevails. It happens otherwise that both become one seed, but here not. And if it were one seed it would have to be qualified by the one partner who gives the soul. More is said about this subject in other philosophical treatises, and there is no need to tell it here. Their kind, however, has died out and they have left no descendants to replace them.
TRACTATUS VI - ON THE CAUSES OF SUCH CREATURES
Now that we must reflect in terms of natural philosophy about the causes of these creatures we must remember the facts, all the points, many of which have been discussed in the previous treatises. We need not repeat them here. Further causes that may be explored are these: namely, that God has set guardians over nature, for all things, and he left nothing unguarded.
Thus gnomes, pygmies and mami guard the treasures of the earth, the metals and similar treasures. Where they are, there are tremendous treasures, in tremendous quantities. They are guarded by such people, are kept hidden and secret so that they may not be found until the time for it has come. When they are found, people say: in times-of old there used to be mountain manikins, earth people here, but now they are gone. This means that now the time has come for the treasures to be revealed. The treasures of the earth are distributed in such a way that the metals, silver, gold, iron, etc., have been found from the beginning of the world on, and are being discovered by and by.
...
[Now of] the fire people. They too are guardians, of the fireplaces, in which they live. In these places the treasures, that others guard, are forged, prepared, made ready. When the fire is extinguished, it is the earth manikinsâ turn to be on guard. And after the earth manikinsâ guard, the treasures are revealed. It is the same with the air people. They guard the rocks that lie on the surface, that have been made by the fire people, and put at the place where they belong, from where they get into manâs hands. They guard them so long, until the time has come. Wherever there are treasures, such people are on hand. These are hidden treasures that must not be revealed yet.
...
The nymphs in the water are guardians of the great water treasures, that lie in the sea and other waters, that have also been melted and forged by the fire people. It is, therefore, commonly understood that where nymphs are, there are considerable treasures and minerals and similar matters which they guard. This is apparent in many ways.
...
The cause of the sirens, giants, dwarfs, also of the will-oâthe-wisps, who are monsters of the fire people, is that they predict and indicate something new. They are not on guard, but signify that misfortune is threatening people. ... when this is going to happen, signs occur. These beings are such signs, as has been said, but not they alone; there are many more. You must know that the signs change each time. They do not appear in one way, but are hidden to our eyes.
And, finally, the last cause is unknown to us. But when the end of the world will come close, then all things will be revealed, from the smallest to the largest, from the first to the last, what everything has been and is, why it stood there and left, from what causes, and what its meaning was. And everything that is in the world will be disclosed and come to light. Then the fake scholars will be exposed, those who are highly learned in name only but know nothing by experience. Then, the thorough scholars and those who are mere talkers will be recognized for what they are, those who wrote truthfully and those who traded in lies, the thorough and the shallow ones. And to each will be measured according to his diligence, earnest endeavor and truth. At that place, not everyone will be or remain a master, or even a doctor, because there the tares will be separated from the wheat and the straw from the grain. He who now cries, will be quieted, and he who now counts the pages, will have his quills taken away. And all things will be revealed before the Day of Judgment breaks, order that it be found of all scholars, from the past to that very day, who had knowledge and who not, whose writings were right and whose wrong. Now, in my time, this is still unknown. Blessed will be the people, in those days, whose intelligence will be revealed, for what they produced will be revealed to all the people as if it were written on their foreheads. For that time I also recommend my writings for judgment, asking that nothing be withheld. Thus it will be, for God makes the light manifest, that is, everyone will see how it has shone.
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2024.05.22 00:38 AnorXicLigament Business VS Consumer
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2024.05.22 00:25 bulbasauric Was anyone else wildly frustrated by this movie?
Just out of The Strangers: Chapter 1, and I either need validation/vindication, or to be convinced that I'm wrong (and I'm open to that, by all means).
I'd avoided delving too deep into any backstory of this film. Initially I'd thought this was going to be a prequel-series of films, given how Prey at Night ended (two killers dead, one almost certainly dead). So I went in with my back up, as you always should with a horror prequel, or indeed series - what's the actual risk to the villains if they'll allegedly appear in the future (be that the in-universe future, or a future film)?
Within the first few minutes, our lead lady is using a smartphone/Google Maps, and shortly thereafter an AirBNB is mentioned.
So we're in present-day, and it's not a prequel - that's fine. Once we meet The Strangers, The Man in the Mask showed no burns or signs of injury from the previous film, and is wearing significantly different clothing than he usually would. Pin Up Girl and Dollface were hella dead by the end of that film.
With all of this said, I'm to believe we have a new trio of killers donning the masks, right? Great. And yet, it all felt wasted. Nothing new, nothing interesting happened.
Our lead characters were not especially likeable. The dialogue in the car was pretty forced and expository, and they just felt very generic. They looked great and I've no problem with the actors, but feel they weren't given much to do.
In fact, nobody is very likeable in this film. The okayest-character was the girl in the diner who gave them a lift to the house, and even that was probably part of the killers' setup.
Everyone in town... was just downright awful, for no apparent reason. Sneering because the central couple come from the city. Literally making multiple "Huh, she's a VEGETARIAN?" jokes - seriously, was this film written in 2002 and mildly modernized, or something? What the hell are we doing here?!
Our lead characters were also just not smart. Examples:
- Maya is alone in the house. A stranger has come knocking (twice), refusing to elaborate on their intentions. She smokes a joint and takes a shower to relax, while still alone. The power is cut, she meets an unknown individual in the hallway, and runs upstairs to hide in a closet. Then, because she smoked the joint, Ryan convinces her she may have imagined it. She also leaves her phone down (I honestly don't remember what became of it after she asks "Where the fuck is mine?").
- Ryan shoots the goddamn owner of the house, not caring that he wasn't wearing a mask - pointless callback to the first film where the lead man accidentally shoots his friend, btw - and then doesn't shoot Pin-Up girl in the forest when he has her at point-blank range. Why do people never shoot people in the feet/knees? They (probably) won't die, and they'll know you're not fucking around. But no, plenty of time for a dude to come knock you out with the butt of an axe.
- The truck-ramming scene was incredibly forced, and annoyingly danced around dad-truck-murder scene in Prey at Night. Both characters sucked here (he checked the front and back seats, but not the very back of the jeep - I was surprised they didn't have one of the killers climb over the seats).
As I watched, I thought "Okay, chill - it's not as if they
know they're in a horror movie. People get jittery and make mistakes when under duress". But I think nowadays, horror movies in general have just surpassed this kinda stuff. They don't - shouldn't - get a free pass for characters being outright stupid, just to make plot happen. Especially when they're the ONLY characters we're following for the whole film. If you wanna introduce a dopey hyuck friend for some death fodder, go right ahead. But it's asking a bit too much nowadays to root for a character who makes stupid choices for just no good reason.
I'm no expert, but I do love my horror movies, and after the direction Prey at Night took, I just expected... more. This was very much a paint-by-numbers horror movie, and it really did come off as a weak copy of the first film. The fact that Maya survives was.. something different. But now it means we'll be following her through the next film. I find this more worrying than interesting, because it may mean there's going to be some contrived revenge plot, when really I want to see more of the killers, and I want to see them get killed.
There are just few things more frustrating than a film series providing more questions and no answers, all in the name of cranking out more of them. All we know - all we can suppose - is that there are three new people wearing these masks. That's all. And for the third film in a franchise - whether it's starting its own story arc or not - that's not good enough for me.
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2024.05.22 00:03 Stormcoming7 [M4F] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends her, and offers to guide her where she needs to go. They face a danger together, and she learns that he is not what he seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, he is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by himself.
Authorâs Note: And also the flipped version, for the draconic gentlemen out there!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
F4M version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess she could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe sheâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, sheâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny her armor is. And itâs
only her armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what sheâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs she talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And heâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to her.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice sleazeball. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd she go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Typhon*.* Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Sheâs
smooth, isnât she? I was expecting all armor, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a manâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that he didnât harm any humans for decades. He-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing heâs a âhe?â I did see him once, flying overhead, though, and he looked like a boy dragon. Kind of stocky.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure he wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a beautiful knight. Thereâs no chance she could possibly beat me on her own, so sheâs going to end up- wait, on her own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did she ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give her a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? SHE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that she has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to kill herâ to âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. Well⊠*{resolve}*Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage her, maybe I can even convince her I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would she have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting her off my trail, and maybe getting to know her in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Typhon! Sheâs literally trying to kill you. She is
not a prospective mate, she isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} She is gorgeous, though, especially when the light catches her armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before he- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh her eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay her hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside her, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And she wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If sheâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does she mean by that? And why does she have to be this lovely as she says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Sheâs gonna get herself killed if I donât help her- wait, what?
{taken aback} Sheâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs she looking back⊠Is she
angry? What?
Sheâs yelling
something⊠She wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- She thinks Iâm in danger, and sheâs trying to protect me! She wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help her here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like she has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on her, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for her later, and she can be happy that she kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with her, oh, looks like sheâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of her as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, lady kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, lady knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground. {amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Lady knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
submitted by
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2024.05.22 00:02 TheRealReplicator â FashionReps 2024 Beginner Guideâ Agents How to Buy Trusted Seller List FAQ
Welcome to
/FashionReps! In this post you will find out how to buy reps, where to source them, the trusted seller list, and how to use an agent.
"Where do I start?"
First, it is recommended to sign up for an agent. An agent acts as a middle-man service to protect you from malicious sellers who may try to bait and switch products, deny refunds, or never send the goods.
Go to the Trusted Agent List and pick an agent.
Infinite HooBuy 10% Off Coupon
How to use an agent
Read the how to use an agent guide
"Now that I've picked an agent, where do I find stuff?"
You can utilize the finds flair to sort posts by user-submitted links finds
You can also utilize the following tools to help jumpstart your journey
If you're on mobile download the google sheets app to zoom out and view these HooBuy Spreadsheet
SuperBuy Spreadsheet
SuperBuy Shoe Spreadsheet
CSSBuy & Basetao sheets coming soon
You can also visit the TSL which features hundreds of sellers who have been deemed trustworthy by the community.
Terminology
Great! Now that you know how to purchase, you need to learn common rep terminology!
Read the terminology you need to know
Frequently Asked Question
Commonly asked questions can be found below. It is highly encouraged you understand these basic questions before beginning your rep journey.
FAQ page can be found here
Why are my posts not showing?
As a new member to /FashionReps your posts will automatically be hidden. This is to prevent spam. Once your surpass 100 karma your posts will automatically be approved unless they're missing specific critera.
Some common removal reasons: * No flair assigned * Low quality post * Automatically flagged for banned content (EX: Blacklisted Agent, Seller, or brand)
Feel free to tag TheRealReplicator in the comments for approval if you believe your post was wrongfully removed.
Ending Notes
If you have any specific questions that may have not been answered in this post then comment below so a moderator or user can help answer it!
FashionReps Discord
Message Moderators
submitted by
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2024.05.22 00:02 Stormcoming7 [F4M] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends him, and offers to guide him where he needs to go. They face a danger together, and he learns that she is not what she seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, she is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by herself.
Authorâs Note: God, this took way too long to write. A couple months, if you count when I had the idea and when I wrote the first few sentences. Well, itâs here now, and I hope itâs not too disappointing. Prequel series go!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
M4F Version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess he could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe heâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, heâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny his armor is. And itâs
only his armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what heâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs he talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And sheâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to him.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice skank. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd he go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Tiamat*.* Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Heâs
smooth, isnât he? I was expecting all muscle, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a womanâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that she didnât harm any humans for decades. She-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing sheâs a âshe?â I did see her once, flying overhead, though, and she looked like a girl dragon. Kind of slender.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure she wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a handsome knight. Thereâs no chance he could possibly beat me on his own, so heâs going to end up- wait, on his own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did he ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give him a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? HE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that he has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to kill himâ to âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. Well⊠*{resolve}*Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage him, maybe I can even convince him I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would he have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting him off my trail, and maybe getting to know him in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Tiamat! Heâs literally trying to kill you. He is
not a prospective mate, he isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} He is handsome, though, especially when the light catches his armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before she- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh his eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay his hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside him, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And he wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If heâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does he mean by that? And why does he have to be this handsome as he says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Heâs gonna get himself killed if I donât help him- wait, what?
{taken aback} Heâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs he looking back⊠Is he
angry? What?
Heâs yelling
something⊠He wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- He thinks Iâm in danger, and heâs trying to protect me! He wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help him here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like he has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on him, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for him later, and he can be happy that he kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with him, oh, looks like heâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of him as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, sir kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, sir knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground.{amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Sir knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
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2024.05.22 00:01 ikieneng My fanfiction - episode 4!
| The next part is here! This episode is so long that I had to split it, and today, you're finally getting part 3 of 3. You can find the previous episodes in the side bar! (Community info page in the app) DISCLAIMERS (the same ones as before) The point of this fanfiction is not to be a straight-up continuation of events with the same themes, intensity, and tone. If you go into it with those expectations, you are probably not going to like it. Rather, itâs supposed to be how I wish things went if these events were real life. The resolution you want for a real-life situation isnât often the right choice for a show, but it can be incredibly beautiful. Think of what youâre about to read to be a separate show then. Episode 1 of this fanfiction begins after the episode â2:00â (season 2 episode 4), so it replaces the episode âCakeâ and the ones that follow it. This fanfiction expects you to have seen the entirety of seasons 1 and 2, so you should watch those first. I myself am bursting into the story here. The narrator and me are the same. While my character is like 95% real me, donât take events about my life described here as facts. Some aspects of my life have been changed for the story. In my head, I started writing like an âalternate meâ character in 2016, fulfilling a lot of the things that I wish I had in life, adding that to my story. Iâm not really from Ukraine. I speak fluent Ukrainian as a foreign language, I started learning it in 2014, and Iâve talked to tons of people from there, but Iâm not from Ukraine. I also donât have as much money as I do in the story. I wish lmao. If you want to post your own fanfiction, feel free to do so! To get your own post flair for your fanfic, and to appear in the side bar, please message me. Part 3 (days 3 and 4) Weâd wake up on day three, and still, nothing would be any different - weâre still locked up. Weâd both feel really worried not knowing if weâll have to forfeit our whole plan because we might run out of food and water and take the risky route - calling the police and getting ourselves into a situation where weâd have to be freed by force, which would be so dangerous because the Turners have proven that thereâs nothing theyâre not prepared to do to us to âget Jericho backâ. Leanne would ask me âWhat do we do if we call the police, and Mrs. Turner comes up here and tries to hurt us?â At first, Iâd insist that we start thinking about that when we do run out of food the next day, but sheâd insist we should come up with a plan. Iâd point at the corner on the edge of the attic facing Spruce Street, the corner thatâs to oneâs right when coming up into the attic, https://preview.redd.it/knoz0zwpou1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=bd1694f292bb546ea45339ebecea7ffacfe33541 and say âThen youâd curl up and hide over there, and Iâd take the radio, youâd take the metronome, and Iâd sit down in front of you, shielding you, and if she gets in here before the cops do, weâll defend ourselves. And weâd record everything on my phone. And we should probably hide behind the sofa. Maybe then, she might not notice weâre still up here at first. Sheâd probably be in a state of panic.â Sheâd look at me with sad, but touched eyes and just hug me and say thank you. Iâd reply âOf courseâ. After some silence, Iâd tell her âIf anything happens to me⊠Please bring me backâ. Sheâd be touched by that, but say that if she reanimates me, the Church of Lesser Saints will come after ME as well because theyâll believe that Iâll be obligated to join. With a worried smile, Iâd say âI know... But theyâre probably already gonna do that, right? Because I wonât let them get to you!â Weâd both nod with the same half-happy, half-worried expression. âAnd if things go terribly wrong and you have to bring me back, we can try again!â Iâd ask if Iâm getting it right that the âgreat sinsâ they think sheâs committing are not spending time with the Church and helping another family from the one that was assigned to her. Sheâd say yes and add that thereâs a lot more they hate her for, like her âdisobedient and rebellious streakâ, disobeying their instructions, putting curses on people, and now, leaving the Marinos. https://preview.redd.it/4obn4r9uou1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=1e77adafbde221c320999ba1169adb0a1c6b2b17 After a few seconds of silence (out of shock that this is how the Church of Lesser Saints frames it), Iâd be like âIf you disobey so many of their instructions, then...â, look her directly in the eyes, and go âGood! Keep on disobeying them! Iâm actually kind of stunned that this is how they frame your actions, because that is so manipulative. Wanting to have a life where you donât have to worry about your every step being watched and controlled, where you can actually freely explore what you believe â not what they tell you to believe, but what YOU believe, where you can do totally normal human things like listen to music, and where you can go wherever you want and make some basic decisions for yourself and work wherever you want, that doesnât make you...â (doing the âquote-on-quoteâ with my hands while I say it) âquote-on-quote âdisobedientâ or ârebelliousâ, it makes you a normal human being. If they forbid every little thing that people do that makes you happy, if you then look for happiness elsewhere, thatâs on them. You canât take every bit of joy away from people and then expect them to just deal with it. You wanting to run away, thatâs the logical result of their bullshit. And you didnât âleaveâ the Marinos, you were taken. Donât let them think youâre at fault in any way!â She might have never heard any verbal confirmation before that her feelings about leaving are valid, and this would be so reassuring to her. Sheâd tell me that whenever she did things like not be there for meals at the Church, skip assemblies, or curse people without permission, she would be brought before May and the rest of the community, get questioned about her behavior, and sheâd have to self-flagellate to receive forgiveness. https://preview.redd.it/roex7c20pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=32cecf94a41a97e66b1c74967cb074ca89321777 Iâd go really still and quiet when she mentions the self-flagellation, which sheâd then explain is a frequent punishment. That would freaking break my heart... Iâd ask her when was the last time she hurt herself, and it was a little less than two weeks ago, before she was forced to leave the Turners. Very carefully and quietly, Iâd ask her if it would be okay if she can show me her scars and add âYou do NOT have to if youâre not comfortable, PLEASE donât do it if youâre notâ, and after a second, sheâd nod and show me her back. My heart would break for her even more seeing her scars, Iâd just express how horrible it is that they made her do that⊠Iâd show her some of my cut wounds from when I self-harmed, which I hadnât done in like three and a half years at that point. Iâd want her to know that way that I get the urge, that I really do, but Iâd tell her that hurting oneself achieves nothing. All it does is make you feel horrible mentally and physically, and every time you do it, thereâs a risk of infection and even death. Iâd just tell her I understand while taking her in my arms. Iâd ask her to please look me in the eyes and tell me she wonât hurt herself again, and that when she feels like doing it again, to please talk to me first. Sheâd quietly say âI promiseâ while looking me in the eyes, and after some longer embraces, weâd both smile a bit, that would make me really happy to hear! Iâd ask that when weâre out of here, if we can call a doctor sometime soon and get them to look at her scars to make sure none of them are infected, if sheâs comfortable enough, and sheâd nod and smile at me a little bit some more. Weâd eat after that. Weâd run out of tomato soup that meal, and Iâd tell her that when weâre getting out of there, Iâd get her all the tomato soup in the world! âWeâre gonna fill a whole hotel fridge with tomato soup!â âAnd with Ben & Jerryâs?â, sheâd ask, and Iâd say yes and say that weâre probably gonna need more than one fridge. Iâd say weâre gonna pick the nicest and most expensive hotel to stay at, an idea that sheâd love! âYou still think Allentown is a good idea?â, Iâd ask her, and sheâd think my reasoning from the day before makes sense and say yes. Weâd look for the nicest hotel in Allentown online and see that there are âonlyâ three-star hotels in Allentown. Leanne would ask if getting such an expensive place to stay is really okay, and Iâd say âMoney is not an issue, donât worry about itâ while reaching across her back and like caressing her right shoulder, looking her in the eyes, and smiling. âAnd besides, letâs spoil you, you fucking deserve it after all this!â We wouldnât book anything yet because we wouldnât know when we can get out of there yet, but looking at all those insanely nice hotels would lift our spirits a bit. After eating the first half of that dayâs rations (only two half dayâs rations would be left after thatâŠ), weâd think that it would probably be a good idea if we started writing the document for the police right now. Writing it can take hours upon hours, and thereâs no point in delaying the rescue to write the document after I leave if we can do it right now, so weâd begin right that moment. It would begin something like âMy name is Daria Horenko, born July 30, 1999 in Odesa, Ukraine, residing in 501 Pembroke Ave, Philadelphia 19050, Pennsylvania...â (I donât live there. I have no idea who does. Please leave them alone lmao) â...I sent this statement to my Facebook friend Liam [...] (residing in Tipperary, Ireland, using Facebook as Liam [...]) as a PDF file and told him to call the Philadelphia police and read this statement to them if I donât come back online and confirm that Iâm okay by 10 PM Philadelphia time / 3 PM London, UK time on December 22, 2022. If he is reading this to you, it probably means that there was no sign of life from me by that time, and that Iâm not safe, probably kidnapped and locked up by Dorothy Turner, Sean Turner, Julian (Iâm not sure about his surname, but Iâm referring to Dorothy Turnerâs brother - redhead, not very tall, moderately overweight) in the attic of their residence at 9780 Spruce Street, Philadelphia 19139, Pennsylvaniaâ, and then document everything Iâve seen in chronological order and everything that Leanne has told me, with a link to our video and photographic evidence, references to DNA evidence that can probably be found in the hole in the basement if they havenât covered it up by now, and a statement at the end saying that Iâve written it together with Leanne to make sure that everything is correct. That would take a really long time, hours for sure. But when itâs done, Iâd run spell- and grammar checks on it and send it to my printer at home, to be queued for printing when I get home and turn it on. Weâd also know that today (December 21) or tomorrow will be the day when we leave one way or another, so Iâd schedule a text message to 911 in 30 hours from that moment. The message would say âThis is a scheduled message. If youâve received it, then Leanne Grayson (born October 13, 2001)...â (We only ever learn Leanneâs birth year from the gravestone. October 13 is Nell Tiger Freeâs birthday, so October 13, 2001 being Leanneâs birthday is kind of my headcanon) https://preview.redd.it/0hr9niq1pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=4dbead2015781ed8beee236188b8273aac1b3fb0 â...and me (Daria Horenko, born July 30, 1999) are probably not safe, abducted and locked up against our will by Dorothy Turner, her brother Julian, and Sean Turner in the attic of their house at 9780 Spruce Street, Philadelphia 19139, Pennsylvania or somewhere else on the property. We need help immediately. The Turners should be considered dangerous and very clearly willing to use violence and intimidation. We need help NOW. Details in our prepared statement: [the link]â. Because weâre holding out hope that we wonât have to call the police from inside the attic, the document would include information on what our plan is to get Leanne (and me) out of there as safely as possible and call the police from the taxi, but that if we run out of rations, we wonât have a choice but to call the police while weâre unarmed and while the Turners still have the upper hand. We would debate whether we should include information about the Church of Lesser Saints right away or tell the police about them later because we know how that sounds, considering that this would hurt the credibility of our testimony, https://preview.redd.it/sinvabf3pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=e37811b53eb90cb8a066bfcb30f6244bb9f34ad4 but weâd modify the document and include the most important information about them as well, with more believable explanations - how they forced Leanne and other members to self-harm (meaning that current members or those who recently left), where theyâre currently operating from in Lancaster, https://preview.redd.it/mxbm8445pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=1f9b5f1c671c15afce7149eeb90926c2c29b9bdb that they faked their deaths, that they forced Leanne to leave the Turners, and the necessary lie that they took the real baby, and that Leanne hasnât seen it since that day and doesnât know where theyâve taken it. Weâd also include names and stuff, and most importantly, reference the baptism tape and say that it shows May and George watching us from the sidewalk outside the church less than three weeks ago, and that piece of evidence would change everything in regards to investigating the Church of Lesser Saints and make the police believe us. Weâd add that itâs probably among the other DVDs in the Turnersâ living room, and that Iâll try to get it when leaving the building if our original plan is still going to be an option, rip the DVD at home, and add a link to the video file to the document. Weâd modify the scheduled text message as well, and weâd charge both phones, mine first because the scheduled message is so important, but itâs an iPhone, so we could charge it to 100% rather quickly and then charge hers. And weâd add that weâd want the police to get Leanneâs things from the Marino estate. All her stuff being there would be further evidence that she was taken suddenly and against her will. Weâd also add what number Leanne can be reached at for now with the Samsung Galaxy phone. And then, Iâd send the document to Liam on all platforms where I know how to reach him, followed by a message to alert the authorities if Iâm not back online confirming that weâre both okay in whatâs now probably more like 29 hours, the phone number of the Philadelphia police, and caps at the beginning saying that itâs an actual emergency. Out of nowhere, Iâd ask her if sheâs seen âTitanicâ lmao, and with her near total isolation growing up, she wouldnât have seen it. âIâve only seen movies on TVâ. Iâd be like âI can show you lots of movies if you want! I got several subscriptions to streaming services, and also a bunch of stuff offline on an external drive at home.â https://preview.redd.it/lr58woa7pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=63537b149270faeebb2c3f1be9ba2af0d259e1b7 Back on talking about âTitanicâ, Iâd tell her itâs wonderful and so freaking romantic, albeit over-the-top at times for sure and a bit overrated. It has that glossy feeling and some superficial characters to it that all James Cameron movies have, but itâs still really wonderful. After explaining the plot to her (since sheâs grown up so isolated), Iâd tell her about one scene that Iâm thinking about a lot from time to time - near the end of the movie, when old Rose is done telling the researchers her story, she says that she doesnât even have a picture of Jack, and that has hit me so hard from the first time Iâve seen the movie. https://preview.redd.it/96bgw8s8pu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=476c1a4cbee498c26a0be4651ef83258f0aa7748 She has no physical memories of him, she can never see his face again, and she can never show people what he looked like. That just rips my heart. Iâd ask Leanne if we can take some pictures together. Weâd look pretty horrible because we havenât been able to shower in days, but we wouldnât care and take them anyway and really, genuinely smile so hard. Iâd send them to her email address (leanne_ grayson@icloud.com, that email address is on her resume in the show), https://preview.redd.it/frfz9e7apu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=1b65065ab622e71f52edc6e9b84a2974e7efe9cb manually sync my gallery with iCloud, and Iâd send them to Liam. Iâd ask what phone she got back at the Marinosâ and if sheâs got any pictures of herself in her iCloud gallery, but sheâd tell me sheâs rarely ever taken pictures of herself, only for the resume she applied at the Turnersâ for, and Iâd be like âWhaaaaat? But youâre so beautiful!â, and sheâd smile hard, a bit embarrassed. Iâd look her straight in the eyes and say it again and say that I mean it for real, she is so incredibly beautiful! Itâs probably so rare that anyoneâs ever said that to her in her entire life (her mother definitely didnât, and given that the Church of Lesser Saints believes that anything that feels good is dangerous, https://preview.redd.it/msylzejbpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=b343bf8d10b86f7c731eed3c8a5204460daec4d4 itâs rather unlikely that they did), Tobe saying it in âBalloonâ might even have been the only time ever⊠https://preview.redd.it/jdce6tndpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=c9edaacd72634c3dbe7dbf29abcc84f2412a10d4 Iâd then add âInside AND out!â, and sheâd smile some more in a bit of embarrassment and then look me in the eyes and say âYou, too, Daria!â, and as youâd expect, Iâd smile so hard and even with my eyes! It would be rather late by then, so weâd eat and listen to some more music together from the Spotify playlist I created for her and talk so much about what weâre hearing. After dinner, sheâd bring the topic up on her own (this is kind of making fun of these fan theories) - sheâd tell me that some in the Church of Lesser Saints think sheâs the Devil or Lilith because of her rebelliousness, and how sheâs inspired doubt in some people in the Church. Iâd make such a weirded-out face. After realizing sheâs serious, Iâd say âIf you are the Devil, then hail Satan! Like, seriously, if YOU are what God is threatening will happen if we donât follow him, then thatâs literally the weakest threat Iâve ever heard of. Then God is the villain here. We need more people like you in the world!â Shy as she still is, sheâd still be almost embarrassed to hear this (sheâs so not used to compliments), and Iâd make it clear Iâm serious, that I really think sheâs fricking wonderful and the sweetest, and that she clearly has a huge heart full of so much love, and that she deserves so much better than what sheâs ever experienced! Almost in denial, sheâd see in my eyes that I really mean it and just smile and hug me, and then, weâd both smile even more! Iâd rub her back a lot in that moment and promise her again that everything will be okay. âIâll make sure of that!â After some more music together, knowing that tomorrow will be the day we leave, no matter which plan weâll go with, weâd make sure we havenât forgotten anything. Looking around, Iâd realize I have to give her my earphones with a cord because the internal mic of my Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini is essentially useless. Iâd tell her that when I call her the next day to tell her itâs safe to come downstairs now, she should answer the call, plug in the earphones, and then, it will take a few seconds until I can hear her, but then, it should be fine. Weâd set a code phrase that Iâll mention to let her know if the Turners got me and itâs NOT safe to come down. Sheâd suggest âtomato soupâ, and Iâd smile and say yes, thatâs gonna be our code phrase. âAnd if it IS safe to come down?â, sheâd ask, and Iâd suggest âice creamâ. Iâd realize that we should probably find her fresh clothes in the attic and a coat right now, so as I said, itâs not too obvious that sheâs been locked up for a long time the second she walks out of the door, because if sheâs in dirty clothes or nightwear, with it being obvious that she hasnât showered in days, and I get her out of there and into a taxi to drive off while I got a gun, it would look as if I was kidnapping her, so weâd find her a nice dress and coat up there, and Iâd turn around and close my eyes while she puts it on, and when sheâs done, Iâd tell her again that she looks amazing! đ https://preview.redd.it/zp5gbjwfpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=777d2120f72b5002e2d5e5e9ffe4760ab2d5fada And sheâd smile and thank me this time, sort of the way she says it to the makeup artist at the street fair in S3E5 âTigerâ in that typical way of hers thatâs so adorable for real, https://preview.redd.it/fuu6x7ohpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=ec5f23b8de4568996bd6e4c706ab4f95b8f98063 and sheâd look in my direction and say âYou look really beautiful, too!â, really shy, before peeking me in the eyes for a moment, and weâd just look at each other for a moment. âCan I have your pictures?â, sheâd ask me, and Iâd say yeah, open my iPhone, and select ALL pictures of myself in my gallery and send them to her email address, and send her those that are too large via a Google Drive link (iCloud isnât great for sharing files lol), and then, Iâd take her Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini, download them all (which would take a while because that phone is ancient), and set one of the pictures weâve taken together as her wallpaper, and then set it as my wallpaper on my iPhone as well! đ Weâd consider if thereâs anything else weâve missed. Sheâd mention that parts of the floor screech, especially one tile, so when I sneak out, I gotta be careful on the stairs, especially with that one tile. https://preview.redd.it/nijqz08jpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=6f6756ae6c304a5f5133c21ef857e0f91c6c91d7 After a few seconds, sheâd ask me if we wanna book a hotel now, and Iâd smile and say sure! âDid you like any hotels in particular, out of the ones we looked at?â Sheâd say âThe one with the big jacuzzi looks greatâ with big eyes and enthusiasm in her voice, like she does during some of her conversations with Tobe in S3E5 âTigerâ. âYouâve ever been in a jacuzzi?â, Iâd ask her, and sheâd go âNooo, but I wanna try!â in the same tone, https://preview.redd.it/6rh2p63lpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=987a19161b85fe5ee6a500f452c168ba7dec961b and so, after lying down now, weâd look up which hotel she was talking about and book a two-room suite in that hotel in Allentown for three weeks. Iâd add âSo we can easily look out for each other, and so youâll also have some privacy.â, and sheâd smile and nod, that consideration would probably mean a lot to her. Weâd then get ready for bed. For the next day, Iâd get some better clothes as well and put them on while sheâs turned around with her eyes closed. Iâd take the last ration of food out of my backpack, put the clothes I just took off at the bottom of it, above Leanneâs Bible (the porcelain baby and card are already in one of the other pockets), and put my phone and the chargers in another pocket. Iâd look around and ask her if thereâs anything else I should take with me to safeguard, and at first, sheâd also look around because she wouldnât know how to answer right away, but sheâd then point at Mrs. Barrington with her face, https://preview.redd.it/amqsh2mmpu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=12d0bfe376210a8798671d45f31e96e28037870b and Iâd be like âWell, I think sheâs a little too big for my backpack, but I can talk to the police when weâre out of here, maybe we can try to get her!â, and Leanne would nod with a big smile again. Weâd lie down on the mattress and share the covers again. Just like the night before, Iâd lie down on the side of the mattress thatâs closer to the stairs, in case Dorothy changes her mind and tries to assault Leanne again⊠On the mattress, sheâd suddenly hug me really tight, break into tears, and thank me over and over again, and Iâd just hold her tight, say âOf courseâ, and assure her that everythingâs gonna be okay, that weâll get out of there tomorrow. Iâd wipe some of her tears off her face đ„ș On the mattress, weâd just look each other in the eyes and both just smile more and more, and after a minute or two, sheâd kiss me on the lips for a tiiiiny moment and then, weâd just smile at each other even harder! Sheâd say âIâm not supposed to do thatâ while still smiling just as hard and looking me directly in the eyes! âSays who?â, Iâd reply. She goes âMy aunts and unclesâ, and Iâd say âI donât think theyâre a reliable source!â, and weâd kiss each other some more and longer, and both feel each otherâs smile on our lips, and peek at each other a few times in between đđ„°â€ïž Weâd both put our arms around each other before telling each other good night and before I promise her one more time itâs all going to be okay! https://preview.redd.it/08fqmdqspu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=477498f6f3e6260f2a0429defebf98475b14eda1 At some point during the night, sheâd wake me up, and when she does, Iâd realize I had a nightmare, like, not from my night terrors, and sheâd tell me I had a nightmare, that I was sniffling in my sleep, and that I told her two days earlier to wake me up if this happens. Still feeling terrible (the feeling of immediate dread always takes a while to subside for me), Iâd thank her. Iâd ask what I was saying, and sheâd say that I wasnât speaking English. Iâd consider if I should tell her for a moment, but then, Iâd take a deep breath, look up for a second, and with a heavy voice, slowly say âWhat if we try plan A tomorrow, and I fail? Iâm scared⊠I donât wanna mess this up⊠I donât wanna fail youâŠâ And sheâd slowly look at me and just say two words: âYou havenât!â Iâd look at her and almost laugh a bit out of joy. Iâd smile and just cuddle up to her a bit, and sheâd do it back. Iâd say Iâll try to listen to music for a while to calm down because doing something else makes it much easier for me to zone out of the feeling of dread again. âWhy only you?â, sheâd ask. âI donât wanna keep you awakeâ, Iâd say, âYou need the sleepâ, and sheâd say âItâs okayâ and just smile a bit, and so, weâd listen to some music together for about half an hour. Iâd tell her that my sleep is so horrible (sheâd say she can tell) because I donât have my meds, and Iâm really fricking looking forward to taking them again. Without them, the quality of my sleep is terrible, and it takes so long for me to fall asleep at all if I donât take them. Sheâd ask if Iâve taken them for a long time, and Iâd say that I havenât taken these particular meds for long because whatever I take, my body builds up some resistance to them pretty quickly, so after a while, I always have to get new ones, but Iâve taken sleeping meds for years now. âIt sounds like theyâre really helping you, right?â, sheâd ask, and Iâd nod and say âYeah, they really do. Iâm also taking antidepressants, and they were an absolute gamechanger for me. Itâs okay if I donât take them for a few days because they donât work in the moment, but they like rewire your brain over time, and theyâre the best thing thatâs ever happened to my mental health. Before I started taking them, it was so hard for me to avoid bad thoughts or resist them, like, it was hell, but ever since then, it got sooo much easier, and not letting things get to me or not letting bad things really take over me is just so much easier now.â After a while, Iâd say âI was at a psychiatric clinic voluntarily for six months, but I also had nowhere else to go, and the doctors and employees really abused their power. They only intervened when there was physical violence, they didnât intervene in any other conflicts, so because of them, the patients constantly bullied each other. My doctor switched to another department while I was there, so I got a new one, and the new one wasnât perfect, but at least, she cared. I got really lucky to get a place at a living group for mentally ill people, which was when I could finally leave. But honestly, all my experiences with mental health professionals since then have been better. I went to a different clinic for four or five days voluntarily in 2019, and even they were far better. âThat sounds scaryâŠâ, sheâd say. Iâd reply âIt was. But things got much better after that. I had lots of setbacks, like, you know, but if you get help, itâs always better.â After the current songâs over, weâd lie down to try and sleep again. Weâd smile at each other again in bed, and Iâd give her a short-ish kiss before saying good night, and weâd both smile even harder after that đ And we would fall asleep for good after a while (it would still take me longer than her). In the morning, Leanne would wake me up again. Sheâd show me that the door is unlocked and open by a little bit now (theyâre âlettingâ her out for a few hoursâŠ), https://preview.redd.it/sqql9udupu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=b2505bc6f7795639777433a1897f0d31e5753d67 and weâd both just embrace and chuckle in huge joy, as we can go with plan A now, the less risky one! Weâd remember to quiet down after a few seconds and whisper from then on out. Iâd go to the toilet roll, take eight pieces, rip them into two bands of four pieces each, and roll each of them up into a little bunch. Iâd give them to her and tell her to put them into the wall pieces of the door when she gets out (so it looks like the door is closed while it canât actually lock) and give me an audible signal when the third floor is clear, so Iâll get out with my backpack, take out the toilet paper, and hide in her room. https://preview.redd.it/bzze2o6wpu1d1.png?width=304&format=png&auto=webp&s=aaa155b611408db6e9960485f6f726125fc2698d âIs there anything you want me to get from there?â, Iâd ask. âNo. Everything is here or at the Marinosâ.â Iâd go âOkayâ and move on - since Iâm almost definitely unable to come down to the second floor right away (Iâm using American English in all of these episodes. âFirst floorâ in American English = âground floorâ in British English; âSecond floorâ in American English = âfirst floorâ in British English; âThird floorâ in American English = âsecond floorâ in British English, etc.), sheâd give me a signal when coming back upstairs. Weâd agree that when she comes back upstairs, if itâs safe to go to the second floor, sheâd shout something, maybe in conversation, maybe some sort of cry, doesnât matter, and if not, sheâd kick something. Sheâd be locked upstairs again after that, so Iâll have to tell when to get further downstairs myself, which Iâd do as soon as Iâve heard absolutely no sounds from inside the house for at least a few minutes. On the first floor, Iâd get the DVD from March 11, 2001, and if the baptism tape isnât clearly labeled among the tapes, Iâd unplug the DVD player from the TV, turn on the player, open the DVD slot, and if the tape isnât in there, Iâd take all unlabeled tapes. Iâd then listen in on the basement door for a few seconds, and if I hear no sounds from down there, Iâd quietly open the basement door and go downstairs, and if no oneâs there, Iâd get out through the side entrance down there, out through the back gate, walk back to Spruce Street, drive my bike home, take a shower, watch the tape from March 11, 2011 like she told me I could, hide it somewhere at home, print out the document for the police, take it with me in an envelope, print out a second version of it to give to the taxi driver, so I can say âIf Iâm not back in an hour, please call the police for me and read this to themâ. Iâd then call a taxi (a taxi with a large trunk whose driver is allowed to drive to Allentown and back), load my gun, and leave for the Turnersâ and get Leanne. Weâd see that Liam has replied by now. Of course, heâd be super worried, but heâs got our backs for the plan, and that would be really reassuring. Weâd look each other in the eyes, and then, Iâd hug her sooo tight for several seconds, and weâd have one loooong kiss (hoping itâs not the last time we see each otherâŠ) before she goes downstairs while looking back at me on the way before putting the toilet paper in the door. Iâd then put on my backpack. Once Leanne loudly shouts âMister Turner?â, that would be my signal, and Iâd hide in her room for about 45 minutes before sheâs âletâ back upstairs and shouts âYou can lock me in now, Mrs. Turnerâ, https://preview.redd.it/uy9loclypu1d1.png?width=975&format=png&auto=webp&s=16abd51170405f1ef3123ff22f4559642a0c0c92 which is when Iâd sneak into the storage/guest room and wait. It would take like five hours until I hear nothing for a while, which is when Iâd sneak onto the first floor, look around to make extra sure no oneâs there, and go to the living room. Iâd get the tape from March 11, 2011, and the baptism tape would be among the labeled DVDs, and Iâd put it into the box of the March 11, 2011 tape (Iâd put the original DVD loose in there and use the spot inside the box for the baptism tape because itâs probably more important. I then wouldnât hear anything from the basement, so Iâd slowly and quietly go down there. No one would be there, so Iâd leave as planned and go home and take a shower. Iâd watch the March 11, 2011 DVD. Iâd be surprised to see the interaction between Leanne and Dorothy for sure, but sort of knowing her, I wouldnât think anything bad of it. Iâd actually get it because of my past celebrity crushes (which I know isnât what she was feeling for Dorothy) and the desire to meet them, especially with Blanche. Iâd get why Leanne wouldnât want the police to see it, it would look bad for her. Iâd wrap up the DVD in a thick piece of paper and tape it to the back of my closet, between the closet and the wall. Iâd burn the piece of paper in the DVD case in my bathtub with a bucket of water next to me just in case. Iâd test if the DVD of the baptism tape still works (it does), rip it, upload the video file to Google Drive, add it to the document for the police, cancel my printing queue, print the document (two versions of it. The one for the taxi driver would just have a short introduction at the beginning, like, that Iâm the person who ordered the taxi), order the taxi, pack my things for the next couple of weeks and anything that Leanne might need, so Iâd include any clothes that I think could fit her, and go to the taxi. Iâd tell the driver to get me one block away from 9780 Spruce Street (which isnât actually a real address, by the way) and wait there for me. Before leaving for the Turner house, Iâd give him the envelope with his version of the letter for the police and tell him what I said I would tell him. Iâd then get my backpack with the gun in it from my luggage in the trunk, and walk to the Turnersâ house. I have already "written" so much more in my head, but I've now reached the end of what I've actually written down, so it will take longer until the next episode is out now! Hope you've enjooooyed this one! submitted by ikieneng to teamleanne [link] [comments] |
2024.05.21 23:58 Jim-Panzy Quick question about stolen, then sold items.
So, this has been eating away at the last few remaining braincells I have left for months, (the good news is that I should be a vegetable by noon tomorrow. yay!) ever since my account was âhackedâ⊠I use quotes because I really donât think they had to do much to get in. 2 point verification must mean that steam gives you 2 ârad pointsâ for signing up, allowing them to treat your account like a house that has a âfree candyâ bucket on halloween⊠because it sure as sugar doesnât stop theives!
Let me get to the freakin point before I start ranting about something else unrelated!
What is the actual reasoning that steam gives for not reimbursing items that are stolen/traded/sold? **To be double clear, Iâm not asking what the BS con artist line they feed us is when it happens, Iâm basically asking what legal loophole do they use, or how can they get away without reimbursement when
A. I actually have one account (out of who knows how many involved) who was in on the theft without a doubt! Because they showed up in my friends list right before it happened, and I literally donât accept friends I donât know in real life⊠there are 3 legit people there!!! (worst case scenario, the items are digital, so they can just copy/paste)
B. the account buying has at least a 50/50 chance of being in on the theft. How could they set up a sale for items they didnât yet have, yet sell them all within a few minutes of getting into my account?
C. So to explain above, I happened to catch my theives in real time, and there is absolutely nothing you can do to as far as contacting someone - customer service doesnât exist, nor is there any âemergency freezeâ for your account should you notice anything happening (I spammed the shiz outta them with whatever button I could find that even resembled âhelpâ, which I think stopped a lot more loss!)
So to sum it up, Iâd say thereâs an insane amount of negligence on their part, and I think for over 10 years I did about as good as one could to prevent anyone in, yet it happened! Has nobody ever called the better business bureau, or tried a class action with this? Because itâs mind blowing that these con artists are #1 with how little thought they put behind 90% of their actions, and never address the most important things like security, but will sink lord knows how much money into âŠa store facelift?!?! Are you pulling my wang-jobber?!
Iâm getting just as enraged now as when it happened, someone has to have a worse story than this, but I donât know if I should hear about it?
Help Dear Abby!!!
submitted by
Jim-Panzy to
SteamScams [link] [comments]
http://rodzice.org/