#lightning in the air

[geothewriter]

Vermillion Seas Cardinal Skies: Chapter 22 - A Second Chance

Azula's assault on the Western Air Temple commences. She is confronted with some harsh realities. The Avatar is forced to make a choice.

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This chapter marks a return to form for quite a few characters! There's a saying that many authors will write entire books around a few specific scenes. For me, this chapter contains one such moment. I'm sure you'll pick it out of the bunch!

Thank you, as always, to my most amazing beta reader/editor/friend @achillmango for spending the time and effort to help me polish this chapter!

Here, have a snippet to get you started for this chapter update <3

Wind rushes past her face, pulling at her impossibly perfect hair, and threatens to give her a chill. And it would, if not for the inferno blazing within. It’s odd. Being so high in the sky feels liberating. A change. It’s as though nothing can stand in her way, certainly not treacherous former friends or soon-to-be ex-brothers. Honestly, she still can’t believe Mai would turn on her like that. What a farce of a friendship. Fury grows within her but quickly falls, forgotten at the sight before her. The distant clouds rise like mountains, towering into the sky, and it elicits a small wonder deep within. Could she simply explore the distant peaks? It wouldn’t be an appropriate use of her time, nor that of the crews aboard the ships, but interesting… No. She has a job to do. She will make an example of the escapees, and she will see to it that the Avatar is properly slain, and she will put her stupid brother in the ground. This time around, she won’t let a single one of them esc– Honey, don’t you think this is too much? Too far? The woman’s words float on the wind, painting a frown on Azula’s face as she concentrates, trying to ignore them. Why must these ethereal voices return to her at the most inopportune times? Not only must she fight her physical enemies but also the Agni-damned voices in her head. Whatever. She’ll deal with it. It isn’t like her to shy away from a challenge. After all, she considers Father’s decision to send her to the Boiling Rock a challenge, not a punishment. Father punishes people like Zuko, not her. He knows her potential. That explosive attempt to lightning bend was a fluke, nothing more. Anyone could see that. Obviously.  Holding her still-recovering seared hand in front of her, the cool wind drives needles into her flesh, almost making her flinch. She won’t let it impact her. She won’t let him down. She won’t let herself down. She is better than that. She looks back to the mountain-like clouds in the distance, smiles, and takes in a deep breath of cold air. She really could get used to traveling like this. She isn’t sure whether it's the lack of impeding anything or just being closer to Agni’s fire, but whatever it is, this elevated perspective on the world feels good. Who is she to have ever questioned the superiority of traveling through the air? She vows never to travel by inferior means like ocean-bound vessels again. A young man’s voice breaks her reveling. “Princess Azula, we are nearing the Western Air Temple. Are we to maintain formation?”

Continue Reading on AO3!

[somewhereincairparavel]

percy had an 'im a big three son' moment when he choked a goddess with her own saliva (controlling a fluid that was INSIDE her body) annabeth was terrified.

nico had an 'im a big three son' moment when he disembodied bryce lawrence (quite literally dissipating and shrinking his LIVING soul into a spirit) and threw him to the underworld, smashing his zombie warriors. reyna was terrified.

yet we were robbed of jason's 'im a big three son' moment where he sucks the air out of someone's lungs and makes them stop breathing, or damaging a person's nervous system with his lightning control, and literally cause internal bleeding, or a damaged/fried skull if he electrocuted hard enough (look up the effects of lightning damage on body y'all will get a whole list, tbh he doesn't even need lightning to do any of this, air control is more than enough since air takes charge of everything going inside the body, but this is just an added effect.) he could give people STROKES if he wanted to. he's the literal definition of burnt out kid who was suppressed from discovering the magnitude of his abilities, because one, his dad's ego wouldn't be able to handle it, two, because he, for some reason, can't be allowed to do anything other than get knocked out :/

also adding on, hardcore pjo fans know that after the ending page of boo, there's this fan story that rick chose to publish in the last few pages of the book where a fan reimagines the ending of hoo, in that work, annabeth collapses from an attack and percy sobs clutching her body. jason calmly asks him to step aside, and kneels before annabeth, jason regulates her breathing using his wind/lightning powers and brings annabeth back fully from her cardiac arrest, causing percy to be relieved. (I wanted to link the pics of the pages here so bad but I didn't have the hard copy of the book with me, and this isn't available anywhere online either, only in the original covers of boo uk and us version, so I edited this post and asked people to reblog this post w the pics if they have the hardcopy, and a kind blogger found the story I'm talking about and reblogged the pictures of the pages, you can check my reblogs of this post for the pictures of the almost all the pages after this scene) considering rick approved and even liked the fan's work well enough to publish it in the official boo book, I'd say rick was aware and never completely ruled out expanding jason's abilities and had them in mind, he simply didn't incorporate it into the books. (also W fan for giving jason the rep he deserves, I will always remember you, you saw the VISION before any of us did, the story was very well written, with great dialogue.)

[dykealloy]

what do you mean jennifer saunder's shrek 2 cover of Holding Out for a Hero didn't play over the entirety of dressrosa arc

[stone-cold-groove]

Your Lightning has outscored the Axis wherever it has fought. U.S. Army public morale poster - 1943.

[dailydccomics]

Justice League Unlimited #8 by Mark Waid and Dan Mora

[phoenixcatch7]

Okay but it's super interesting how

Din = Power = Ganondorf

Naryu = Wisdom = Zelda

Farore = Courage = Link.

Because Din, in the hylian creation myth, created the physical world. Naryu then created the laws - gravity, time, etc. And Farore finally created life - plants and people.

Din created the body, naryu the mind, Farore the soul.

And the triforce and its wielders so perfectly reflect that.

Ganon is physical power, he is big and intimidating and he breaks things. He is cunning and determined, but that's not what he focuses on. He is might makes right.

Zelda is wisdom and cleverness. She is stall tactics and information and team work. She is a powerful mage with a spine of steel, but that's not how she'll win. She is the pen being mightier than the sword.

Link is courage and persistence. He is the wild card sneaking behind enemy ranks, always moving, plunging into terrifying situations head first. He's a phenomenal fighter with a keen wit, but that's not what will get him through his challenges. He is bravery not being the absence of fear but the triumph over it.

They sit in perfect parallels to each other.

And ganon is reborn through his body - his resurrection is immortality. No matter how low he is cast, as long as he has a body he can claw his way back. He can cling to his power, build it ever higher.

Zelda is reborn through the magic of her bloodline. It's the accumulated knowledge handed down for generations, the unique power she must master, the skills she must develop to survive and get her kingdom out the other side intact. Even her name, the knowledge of herself, is handed down from all the way from the very first. Her ancestors knowledge of her future presence, her stability, is what gives her the edge.

Link is reborn in spirit. He is not bound by flesh or blood. Just like his wanderlust soul he can reappear in any time or place. His variation, his unpredictability, is exactly how he fights. It's what makes him so hard to pin down.

Ganons need to build strength means he can't chase after link. Links impulsiveness means zelda can outwit him. Zeldas stationary predictability means she's an easy target for ganon.

But the other direction?

Fire melts ice, ice redirects lightning, lightning burns fire.

And that's the very essence of the triforce.

[veroinfaciem]

[krumpkin]

Lockheed Martin F35 Lightning 😊

[us-air-force-historical-society]

[bazookaboi]

How do you feel about drawing machinary :]

Woah- you’re in luck! I drew these very recently as practice.

They are a bit wonky… I wanted to purposefully challenge myself by not using any sketch. Full pen head on. And of course, that combined with the fact that these glorious aircrafts are inorganic, very symmetrical and in perspective in most of the reference images makes it way harder. Worth it though!

I. love. Machinery. I’ll be ecstatic to draw any prompt regarding it!

[ghostwarriorrrr]

[usafphantom2]

Name those squadrons…

@CcibChris via X

[chocolate-gore]

Silly little Pitcher Chibi I doodled during a break from uni work ~

[love them and their MF DOOM mask]

[my chibis have animal crossing hands :>]

[fuck shoes]

[dailydccomics]

Black Lightning being the leader we need Justice League Unlimited #7 by Mark Waid and Travis Moore

[nocternalrandomness]

65th Aggressors F-35 participating in Red Flag 2025 departing Nellis AFB

[enriquemzn262]

The might of the United States Air Force

A pair of Rockwell B-1B Lancer bombers being escorted by two squadrons of General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon and Lockheed Martin F-35 Lighting II.