#Eagle Shooting Heroes

[cinemacentury]

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

"I said I wanted revenge. I didn't say I was dying."

83. THE EAGLE SHOOTING HEROES (Jeffrey Lau, 1993) - Hong Kong - Streaming - Criterion Channel - 103 minutes. New film #77.

[cinemajunkie70]

A very happy birthday to Brigette Lin!

[lizzymayi]

Side Story of Fox Volant is like if a super Jin Yong fan mixed up elements from their favorite stories and decided to put them into the story of Fox Volant, then some one came along and said, there's not enough palace intrigue and threw that in there too. I still like it.

[dromerace]

The Eagle Shooting Heroes, 1993, Jeffrey Lau.

[fridaypacific]

The Eagle Shooting Heroes on Letterboxd

[byneddiedingo]

Tony Leung Chiu-wai in The Eagle Shooting Heroes (Jeffrey Lau, 1993)

Cast: Leslie Cheung, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Jacky Cheung, Kenny Bee, Brigitte Lin, Joey Wang, Maggie Cheung, Carina Lau, Veronica Lip. Screenplay: Jeffrey Lau, based on a novel by Louis Cha. Cinematography: Peter Pau. Production design: Peter Chang. Film editing: Kai Kit-wai. Music: James Wong, Mark Lui. 

[vintagegeekculture]

The Hall of Amazing Men: Branscombe Richmond

A new admission to the Hall of Amazing Men, Branscombe Richmond is best known for being an actor where he played Lorenzo Lamas’s friend, the Lando Calrissian-like sharpie Dallas Sixkiller, or as Moki, the smartmouth Hawaiian friend of Magnum, P.I. But behind the camera, as a tough as nails stunt coordinator and stuntman, Branscombe Richmond created and developed nearly all the eccentric and eye catching events in the TV series American Gladiators: Atlasphere (the one where people roll around in giant balls), Powerball (done simply because they needed a sport that could be created cheaply because they ran out of money for development) and all the various ones where musclemen shoot tennis balls at people, and where you have to avoid muscular women by jumping on a bungee cord. I don’t think it would be inaccurate to say that with his development (on a really thin budget, no less) of memorable, eye catching sports and events that, with his stunt training he knew could be done safely enough so that even kinda-sporty housewives from Illinois could do them without injury, Branscombe Richmond created American Gladiators. He turned an idea into a realized, practical show that can be done – I don’t think it is inaccurate at all to call him the uncredited creator of American Gladiators.

In his career as a stuntman, Branscombe Richmond, meanwhile, is another one of those faces that shows up over and over playing evil henchmen, members of motorcycle gangs in rough biker bars the hero brawls with karate (if there’s ever a rough scummy biker bar out there, you can bet Branscomb Richmond is in it), and hordes of nunchaku wielding ninja, to the point where if you are, like me, an 80s-90s action aficionado, his face makes you go “oh, hey…it’s that guy!” Can you really call yourself an action fan if you don’t start identifying “your” evil henchman? His IMDB page is mostly roles that are named “Gunman In Jeep,” "Biker #2," and "Terrifying Clown."  

If there is a Evil Henchman Hall of Fame, Brandscomb is there alongside the great Al Leung. You can spot his face as a henchman in Never Too Young to Die (with John Stamos), Action Jackson, Batman Returns, the Hidden, Iron Eagle III: Aces High (objectively the best one as it had Ms. Olympia Rachel McLish), and Star Trek III, where he was a Klingon henchman to Christopher Lloyd who almost got disintegrated and had to feed his disgusting slimy monster dog-salamander. It's comforting to know the profession of henching is alive and well 300 years in the future.

On television, Brandscomb Richmond was on every single cool show from the 80s: Tales of the Gold Monkey, TJ Hooker, Manimal, Airwolf, Knight Rider, Baywatch, and many times attempted to kill the A-Team, especially from motorcycles. Like Chiba, another stuntman-actor, Branscombe Richmond specialized in motorcycle stunts, and he was admitted to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2003. He is, to this day, the guest of honor at whatever motorcycle rally your embarrassing hick uncle attends. I have no evidence for this, but I have long suspected that the reason Richmond was hired to be Dallas Sixkiller in Renegade with Lorenzo Lamas was so they could get his unpaid advice on motorcycle stunts (much like how I have always suspected Warner Brothers hired Ben Affleck as Batman as a "backdoor" way to ask him to direct).

He also played the older brother of the Rock in the Scorpion King, which is an interesting choice because despite getting roles as American Indians (and being beloved in the American Indian community, who, as a whole, deeply love characters who are smartmouth, wiseass sharpies/scammers who get one over on everyone), Brandscome Richmond is in fact, like the Rock, of Hawaiian origin. His first major role in television, that of Moki in Magnum PI, was in fact Hawaiian.

Why are there so many Pacific Islanders in stuntman careers, MMA, and professional wrestling? The answer is surprisingly pedestrian. It’s because Pacific Islanders are a sizable ethnic population in Los Angeles, where movies and television are made, so if you need someone in L.A. that are tough as nails and can take a hit, a Samoan or Hawaiian is a good choice.

Happily, Branscombe Richmond is alive and well, mostly retired as a traditionally large Hawaiian family patriarch. He does occasional voice work, as Gibraltar in Apex Legends, a character physically based on him as well. I imagine he is relieved to be working in showbiz and no longer risking brain damage to do it.

[skywerse]

AVA FERIN MIGHT STILL BE ALIVE

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS IN GENERAL

HEAR ME OUT, READ BELOW THE CUT AND TELL ME IF IT'S SOMETHING OR IF I'M SIMPLY LOOSING MY SHIT OVER NOTHING... BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE TO ME—

Fey Ferin wants R.A.F.T to seize control over the world, and there's nothing that can stand in her way, not even her own family.

There might have been a time when Jayson Ferin was a good man. Based on what May says about him and glimpses we get from Jay's early memories (I recall one with the pin), it appears he once was. Perhaps Jayson desired change for the navy too, but that would be such a pain for Fey to deal with. So, she seems to have brainwashed him for months, possibly years by now (ep 79, Gilly detects corruption in him mixed with good energy), molding him into the perfect soldier who doesn't question orders and neglects his family for the sake of helping his mother to carry out this great fucking world domination plan.

Fey likely harbors resentment towards Drey for not being obedient like his brother, opting for a pirate's life over being loyal to his family and their ideals. Yet, Fey can't bring herself to kill him, so she puts him in a top security prison to let him rot instead.

Ava was the ideal soldier—strong, brave, and revered by all. However, for Fey, Ava's kindness, compassion, and desire for change is simply another pain to deal with. But of course, she would not kill her own family. And she couldn't let her just vanish either.

Perhaps Fey suspected that Ava had a soft spot for pirates, given her upbringing in Eagle's Den and being raised by such a softhearted daughter-in-law. But perhaps, on one occasion, someone witnessed Ava together with a pirate, and somehow that information reached Fey. And after learning that her granddaughter, her esteemed captain, had feelings for a pirate from the crew of the last remaining pirate lord she aimed to get rid of, Fey simply couldn't let this opportunity slip by.

Maybe Ava cooperated willingly, fought like hell, or simply was faced with a deal she couldn't refuse. R.A.F.T. wouldn't just eliminate their top captain, such a vital asset for the upcoming war. Instead, they created a doppelgänger, and chucked the real Ava into some top-notch secret confinement. Letting the dopple to become their pawn. A perfect martyred hero to be killed by those bad bad pirates. A perfect excuse to wage a war over.

But the doppelgängers aren't perfect. So when Lizzie tells Ava about a pirate who is like a father to her, Ava doesn't remember. And when Lizzie begs her not to fight, Ava doesn't listen because she doesn't remember the numerous times they sneaked out together to simply talk like normal people do. And when there's an order to shoot, Ava doesn't move away, as she remembers she was only created to destroy and to be destroyed.

Would Jayson know? Probably not. His hatered toward the pirates responsible for his daughter's death would likely fuel his brainwashed self even more. Very convenient for the long run.

Fey might permit her youngest granddaughter to infiltrate the pirates, banking on her own hatered over her sister's death to maybe one day make her an even better soldier than Ava ever was.

But maybe Fey was wrong.

And she knows it when she receives news of her son's escape from prison, and when her other son suddenly takes leave, or perhaps when a navy base on the Black Sea is breached.

So, when her promising soldier begins to rebel, it might be time to reveal the secret that she's been keping. Maybe it will help her granddaughter decide which side to choose in the end.

me rn:

But idk, that's just my speculation. If it turns out to be a load of bullshit you can point and laugh, but at this point it makes so much sense in that smooth brain of mine as I'm writing this at 7am after getting no sleep whatsoever.

ALSO, just something fun to think over:

In the rolled for 114, Grizz mentioned that the doppel/brainwashing machine had buttons with dates on them. And if pressed, it would display the people who had previously used it. I can't help but wonder if my theory about Ava is true if she might have showed up there. Or maybe it could have shown Jayson getting his fucking brain blasted. BUT WELP, someone rolled like shit (pointsatgillionpointsatgillion) and we'll never know now—

[sehtoast]

Happy Birthday (Homelander x Reader)

Fluffy drabble in honor of Antony Starr's birthday today. Gender Neutral Reader. Reader has spider powers. | Fic Directory

On the morning of his ‘birthday,’ he’s a grumbling, grouchy mess.

Homelander pinches the bridge of his nose. “It’s not even my fucking birthday,” he tells you as if he hadn’t said it every single year since you’d both grown close. “Just what marketing thought would sell me better.”

Not only that, but he has to work on his ‘birthday.’ Run around for TV appearances, do his big, live-streamed save of the day to show the world that heroes don’t take a day off. They’ll always be there to save everyone, even if doing so is nothing more than a sore reminder of just how fabricated their lives really are.

Sure! He’ll zip around the state to appease his corporate overlords. Wave to the masses no matter how torn he is between loving and hating them, lift a car off some poor soul or catch another jumper. It’s what he does, right?

Because he’s a hero.

Right?

He’s not allowed to be like everyone else. Can’t kick his feet up and relax. There would be no day spent with you, no sleeping in, no lazy moments spent listening to your heartbeat before you wake.

He gets pepperings of you throughout his day, though.

You appear, in costume, at his birthday save. It’s the only reason he smiled when he touched down with that bozo who nearly leapt off the roof of an apartment complex. The emotive lenses of your mask let him know your smile reaches your eyes without even having to peer through the fabric.

It was your cheering that made it feel real.

He catches the sight of you blowing a kiss from behind the set camera during an interview. He worried his mask may have cracked on screen from how he smiled wider. He kisses you hungrily afterwards, away from prying eyes, before you’re both due to return to your respective duties.

You swing by during one of his meetings in the conference room, having taken the tray of coffee and stacks of paper from whichever employee was originally heading that way. You set a mug down for him and left the others to retrieve their own. The most you can give him is a friendly pat on the back– secret relationship things, y’know? But it means the world to him. You shoot him a wink before leaving.

It’s the only time he’s ever actually drank a meeting room refreshment.

When all is said and done for his big day, the sun has set. He finds you on top of the Chrysler Building, waiting for him atop one of the eagle perches. You’d set up some sort of picnic. He hears a song playing faintly from your phone– one he remembers you saying reminds you of him.

He lands with a sappy little grin.

You baked him a cake. How you managed to swing it to the top without any damage is a mystery to him, but he supposes most things you do are that way. How you love him, soothe him, free him… How your smile lifts the weight from his shoulders every single time.

“Make a wish!” You giggle before he blows out the candles. He takes a moment to admire the smudgy, wrinkly icing and awkward cursive ‘happy birthday, pumpkin!’ you’d written on top of it. More beautiful than that, there’s also you, bathed in the warm glow of the candles. It never gets old.

Yours are the only birthday cakes he actually likes.

His lips quirk into a lopsided grin when you lean in to kiss his forehead as he blows out the flames. He wasn’t sure what he wished for, but he thinks it must have been that. You tell him that his present has to wait for later since you didn’t trust yourself to carry it and the cake up the tower. He doesn’t care about that.

Not now.

Not when there’s a speck of icing to be dabbed on your nose and serenity to be had.

He takes you up above the clouds. The moon glows bright and full, but he has only eyes for you as you sway together. The music had long since ended, but you two dance nonetheless. Your hand rests in his, his arm wraps around your waist, and he floats you in a slow spin.

He thanks you for wiggling into his day as much as you could.

“S’what I do best,” you say, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “I love you, Johnny. Happy birthday.”

He wraps his other arm around you, pulling you infinitely closer, no longer spinning. He’d rather focus on holding you. Taking in the moment, being here, now, with you.

He’s happy.

Content.

Peaceful.

Loved.

Completely and utterly tranquil in the gravity of you.

“I love you, too.”

A very happy birthday and many, many more to our shining Starr himself <3

[tylermileslockett]

Heracles 7: Other Notable Feats

         According to Diodorus and Apollodorus, Heracles has many other notable adventures and achievements during his quests to fulfill his labors. Some of these events (but certainly not all), are as follows:

         The 1st Olympic games: After capturing the Cretan bull, Diodorus tells us that Heracles Founded the first Olympic games in honor of his father Zeus. Heracles chose the laurel wreath crown as the prize and, as is fitting his demigod prowess, won first place in every event!

         The gifts of the gods: Diodorus also lists the boons gifted to Heracles by the gods upon return from his labors: a robe from Athena, war club from Hephaestus, horses from Poseidon, a sword from Hermes, bow and arrows from Apollo, and the Lesser mysteries, instituted by Demeter to purify him of the Centaurs murders.

         The rescue of Prometheus: The titan Prometheus, for stealing fire from Zeus and gifting it to mortals, was punished by being bound to a mountain rock and having the giant Caucasian Eagle come and peck out his regenerating liver every day. Heracles, coming upon this tragic figure, shoots down the eagle with his arrows, rescues the titan, and persuades his father to calm his anger for Prometheus’s transgressions.

         To get a deeper look into his further adventures during these times, I urge the reader to review the section on Heracles in Diodorus’ Library of History and Apollodorus’ The Library. Many more feats are listed such as Killing the Libyan giant Antaeus in a wrestling match, constructing the Pillars of Heracles to mark the end of the known world, fighting the giants of the earth with the help of the gods in modern day Italy, praying for divine intervention in the bothersome sounds of crickets at night, escaping capture and being a sacrificial victim in Egypt by King Busiris, amongst many other episodes.

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[thisisnotthenerd]

and the other half of round two, the sidequests!

feel free to give reasoning/propaganda as you like!

the intrepid heroes poll

quick episode descriptions:

volcano of violence: all of the lotr parallels in one place. leiland being a cringefail after casting circle of death. markus negotiating with an eagle. the combination of grasping web and reverse gravity. balloon elf. sokhbarr raising the lava mog. the concept of galfast hamhead. efink facing her father and husband and beign conflicted

the great chase: caravan chase, mad max style on the teenager's bed. ti wants to blow up the boy. car-go and bean are remarkably effective. boomer is a boarding party. jizz balloons. lots of toy vehicles. car-go transforms with felix inside.

the horizon beyond the squall: marcid attacking a chimney. you wrote a whole song just to be mean to me. cheese, prince bitch. no kings for this captain. nat 20 medicine check to revive myrtle. destroy undead. beating a motherfucker with another motherfucker. bob's inflict wounds. ending with cheese getting a ship and the buccaneer buddies sailing off.

unfinished business: splitting up to resolve the mystery. buckster's legendary nat 20 persuasion to give advantage on stealth. daisy and the vicar sneaking in. sylvester failing at climbing the tower. lars killing the constable and pretending to be a ghost for lucretia. gangie and the vicar undulating. daisy and sylvester simultaneously arriving. shitting out of a window to "provide a cushion". daisy getting her story with sylvester's help. gangie falling into mrs. molesly's room. sylvester almost dying but getting a nat 20 death save with buckster's help. a wedding and bacchanal.

we're the heroes: one of these things is not like the others. collecting the bag of socks. jammer crying about weights. sam and philtrum. dates at the questing beast. the tournament. dream's cinderella moment. where did those mice get lithium. you don't get wet fire. i disavow you. what do you want me to tell your family. he had enough. blast him to the underworld. you can gps a phone. my girl just glinda'd your ass! that's some american magic, bitch! evan and dream lock up tallulah's wand in an orb.

i fucking love you: no one is surprised. incendiary cloud. OSTENTATIA'S DIVINE INTERVENTION ON A 19. god wants a bag from ostentatia. antiope will not submit. penny texts i'm in. nta 20 counterspell on finger of death. nonna wallace approves. katja trips a snake. i didn't even know you could trip a snake. antiope's incredible action surge turn that ends with showing her ass. sam is power word killed. that's my sister. danielle channels anima. revivify. bringing talura through the doorway in death. ending with graduation and 'take us to the book!'.

waylaid by werewolves: the werewolves are girls. zarb mini with six buttholes. chewing gum mist. fifi. shooting through the flamethrower. losing dracula. drago was the star. fifi becomes a werewolf. reading a letter in the middle of battle. florina under the carriage. enraged frenzy. i've heard of a cat scan. i make the horse fly. something seems very familiar about her. the dog is my wife! izzy holds with disappointment. a monster has been eating my letters to you.

duel on the southern lawn: rumor phase. rue writes the letter and commands wuvvy to burn it. i drank tea and went to bed. letter to wrackingspelt. rue's assistant. hob getting clocked by rue. wuvvy demanding satisfaction. andhera demanding satisfaction. wet wrestling. this is the biggest stretch of a fuckin' lifetime. nat 20 to be a slippy boy. hoisting andhera up by his taut cotton pants. accepting the hand of friendship.

yonder where the fruit do be lyin': quichei. deli's perception roll. raphaniel as a youth pastor. giant radish head. colin is covered in blue. extremely realistic fake orange. rick perry, you dog. silence. queen's losing it. raphaniel gets the orange down. banana boat guy. come on provolone! deli attacks queen pamela rocks. subtle spell shatter in the carriage. brennan kills pamela rocks again. you died for nothing. chasing and murdering the mushroom guy.

in the heart of death: brennan walks jujubee through an optimized turn. 49 damage immediately. troyánn slips. keekee starts falling. scorching ray. the devil works hard, but d20 works harder. buddy bear shoves zaria into the pit. lightning javelin in the titty. fireball. princess does like 70 damage and pushed kerwyn into the abyss. troyánn goes down. princess gets keena. nat 20 counterspell. twyla crits on morgan to end the battle.

case closed: the party converges on oblongata station once more. they're facing down the don and madam loathing, who can turn them against each other. imelda and dan flash the gangsters to wildly differing results. ivana rolls a 59 on hunch and he still comes back. elias punches his boss. dan goes down. the fix eats the key. conrad rolls a 57 [the number of heinz varieties] to bring down madam loathing. elias steals a birthday cake and runs out into the street, gets a date and reconciles his childhood trauma as he goes into witness protection.

evolution & revolution: warning the populace. pitching scam calls. driving the truck. phoebe is jaegering dr. wenabocker in a very gross maxi. the ground collapses. revenants are charmed. viola is very efficient. thorn calls lightning. tula attacks her son for 67 damage. ava attacks the groun for 109 damage and a long rest. jaysohn gets phoebe. lila fireballs. viola crits twice and kills one guy with paladin/fighter shenanigans and then kills the rest by kicking the trigger of a gun and hitting a gas tank. tula heals jaysohn, lukas, and herself a little bit. battle is over in 1.33 rounds.

[anghraine]

The BFF wanted to celebrate Independence Day by watching Independence Day, the formative film of his childhood (we're the same age but it wasn't so much Young Anghraine's thing), so he, Ash (our housemate, his other closest friend, who had never seen it), and I just finished watching the whole thing.

I knew of its reputation for being jingoistic but the rumors fell so far short of the reality that noticing it started to feel less like shooting fish in a barrel and more like shooting fish in a fishtank. I don't think I've ever seen a more U-S-A! U-S-A! film in my entire life.

I do appreciate that a) nukes turned out to not be the answer; RIP, Houston, b) there was emphasis on the mysterious murderous aliens being basically "just like us" (even their extreme resource extraction is readily comprehensible to the characters, though there's ultimately not really much to talk about with them even through the rachni-style conversation), c) the heroes don't actually prevent quite a bit of the damage to life and infrastructure, and the world is facing apocalyptic disaster no matter what, d) the explosions still look good even if they can be escaped by dogs and small children, and e) Jeff Goldblum was a bit of an obnoxious manchild yet also enjoyable in a vaguely "dude Entrapta with very slightly more social skills and a lot more environmental concern" way. Will Smith is also fun as the most intensely US American human being imaginable. And the use of Earth's own satellite system by the aliens was genuinely interesting as a device. It was kind of morbidly funny that they keep bringing up President Bill Pullman's unsightly youth and unpresidential sense of decency, though.

Mostly I laughed a lot at the sheer silliness of almost everything and the film's profound disinterest in anything happening outside a) the continental USA or b) space. (Me: It's been awhile since they heard anything from London, hope it's okay!) The BFF's childhood dream was growing up into Jeff Goldblum's character (a hot Jewish environmentalist geek hacker with minimal ambition but a lot of competence) and we definitely enjoyed him and his dad the most. (The BFF has decided "Nobody's perfect" will now be his standard response to dealing with Christian nonsense, lmao.)

Anyway I'm surprised a bald eagle didn't spontaneously materialize in our house or my pride flag turn into a star-spangled banner, but it was a good time for what it was.

[struggling-author]

Imagine a spy x family au of clark Kent (Superman) as yor forger and Bruce Wayne as Loid

lmao that actually works surprisingly well!

I am tempted to make this for WonderBat but I will resist

So Bruce is still Batman in this universe, but the villain he is currently after is Ra‘s al Ghul, who never shows his face in public except for at the private school his grandson attends.

Since he is also still Bruce Wayne, getting in won‘t be a problem but well… he needs a kid for that, and unfortunately he is fresh out.

Luckily, on the day Ra‘s trail leads him to the school, he runs into reporter Clark Kent who is writing a piece on Eden College. As they talk, Clark mentions how his son Jon dreamt of getting into the school, but unfortunately he couldn’t afford it, so immediately a plan forms in Bruce‘s head. He and Clark will pretend to be married so he can use his Wayne money and influence to get Jon in. Clark of course refuses because he can’t ask that of someone he just met - though in that very moment his super senses pick up on something, Bruce has been followed (he’s not as careful in this Universe I guess, bear with me I need this for the story lol) and a sniper is about to shoot him. Clark reacts on instinct throwing himself at Bruce, pushing him out of the way, then takes his hand to run into an alleyway. Some shots hit Clark but he is unaffected and Bruce pretends not to notice. The sniper catches up to them from the roof above, so Clark knowing nothing else to do takes a pebble and throws it with just the right speed to knock him out without killing him (assume this is possible, Idk). His excuse is:

„I used to be pebble throwing champion at the eagle scouts, I have a badge to prove it“ (he actually does lol)

Bruce is not an idiot and doesn’t buy it, but he seizes the opportunity to say that now after Clark saved him he is in his debt, so he will help his son get into the school. Clark still tries to interject, but Bruce stops him by pulling a clip from his pocket (usually used for grappling lol) and grabbing his hands.

„I swear to you, for saving my life, I will do everything in my power to get your son into Eden College, and until my debt is paid, I will be your husband and this ring shall represent my promise.“ as he puts the clip on the finger of a very flustered Clark.

And so it happens that Clark and Jon move into Wayne Manor and Bruce gets Jon into Eden, where Jon meets Damian and they become immediate rivals.

Shenanigans ensue as Bruce tries to get Jon closer to Damian without being too obvious, while also trying to figure out wtf is up with his new husband and adopted son because they are clearly not human and very bad at hiding it. He gets struck by Loid Forger loveblindness though, so he never makes the connection to Superman (who he knows exists but has probably never met) and over time he starts caring less and less about it because he has always wanted a family and it feels so good after being alone all his life and he doesn’t wanna ruin it it’s just for the mission anyway and Clark is clearly too good a person to be a threat so it doesn’t matter. Or maybe he figures it out immediately and spends the rest of the story pretending to ignore the blatantly obvious ways in which Clark reveals himself and nodding at all his ridiculous excuses. (I might prefer this one tbh 😆)

There‘ll probably also be an arc where Bruce learns Damian is actually his biological son and has an emotional crisis.

Clark spends all his time badly hiding his identity, all the while never realizing his partner is actually Batman, despite him sneaking out every night and coming back with bruises (he knows that from his powers but he thinks it’s not his business what Bruce does in his private time, so he tries not to think about it)

So both still go on their superhero missions and if you want they can meet as heroes too and then you basically get Miraculous Ladybug lol

Maybe they also adopt Krypto for Jon.

Oh and I‘m imagining Lois died at some point when Jon was still very young, so him and Bruce really bond over that and Bruce remembers the reason for his mission, so that no child would ever have to lose their parents again (which gets complicated as he still fully plans to leave them once he has captured Ra‘s)

Franky is Alfred btw so Jon still gets a cool Uncle.

Maybe there is also a subplot where Clark spends his whole time fending off enemies trying to attack his completely normal civilian husband (how weird of them, right?) because the sniper managed to escape and leaked his identity. Luckily most his villains don’t believe such a ridiculous conspiracy theory (I mean spoiled billionaire Bruce Wayne as Batman? how laughable!) so only some local gangs come after him.

That’s all I got for now, feel free to add on lol and thanks for the ask.

[whencyclopedia]

White Plume

White Plume is a hero tale of the Sioux nation featuring the supernatural trickster figure Unktomi (Iktomi) who serves as a catalyst for transformation, whether for good or ill. In this story, Unktomi is the villain whereas in others, such as The Bound Children, he is a force for good. The tale is among the most popular Sioux legends.

Text

The following is taken from Myths and Legends of the Sioux (1916) by Marie L. McLaughlin. It has been edited for space considerations, but the unabridged tale will be found below in the External Links section.

There once lived a young couple who were very happy. The young man was noted throughout the whole nation for his accuracy with the bow and arrow, and was given the title of "Dead Shot," or "He who never misses his mark," and the young woman, noted for her beauty, was named Beautiful Dove.

One day a stork paid this happy couple a visit and left them a fine big boy…Time passed, and the boy grew up to a good size, when one day his father said: "Wife, give our son the bow and arrows so that he may learn how to use them." The father taught his son how to string and unstring the bow, and also how to attach the arrow to the string. The red, blue and yellow arrows, he told the boy, were to be used only whenever there was any extra good shooting to be done, so the boy never used these three until he became a master of the art…

One day the boy came running into the tent, exclaiming: "Mother, mother, I have shot and killed the most beautiful bird I ever saw”…The parents decided to give a big feast in honor of their son killing the strange, beautiful bird…The guests soon arrived…The great chief and medicine men pronounced the bird "Wakan" (something holy)…, the chief and councilmen bestowed upon the boy the title of White Plume.

One day, a stranger came to the village, who was very thin and nearly starved…After he had eaten and rested, he told his story.

"I came from a very great distance," said he. "The nations where I came from are in a starving condition. No place can they find any buffalo, deer nor antelope. A witch or evil spirit in the shape of a white buffalo has driven all the large game out of the country…Another evil spirit in the form of a red eagle has driven all the birds of the air out of our country…Many a marksman has tried his skill on this bird, all to no purpose…Another evil spirit in the form of a white rabbit has driven out all the animals which inhabit the ground, and destroyed the fields of corn and turnips, so the nation is starving, as the arrows of the marksmen have also failed to touch the white rabbit. Anyone who can kill these three witches will receive as his reward, the choice of two of the most beautiful maidens of our nation. The younger one is the handsomer of the two and has also the sweetest disposition. Many young, and even old men, hearing of this (our chief's) offer, have traveled many miles to try their arrows on the witches, but all to no purpose. Our chief, hearing of your great marksmanship, sent me to try and secure your services to have you come and rid us of these three witches."

Thus spoke the stranger to the hunter. The hunter gazed long and thoughtfully into the dying embers of the campfire. Then slowly his eyes raised and looked lovingly on his wife who sat opposite to him. Gazing on her beautiful features for a full minute he slowly dropped his gaze back to the dying embers and thus answered his visitor:

"My friend, I feel very much honored by your chief having sent such a great distance for me, and also for the kind offer of his lovely daughter in marriage, if I should succeed, but I must reject the great offer, as I can spare none of my affections to any other woman than to my queen whom you see sitting there."

White Plume had been listening to the conversation and when his father had finished speaking, said: "Father, I am a child no more. I have arrived at manhood. I am not so good a marksman as you, but I will go to this suffering tribe and try to rid them of their three enemies. If this man will rest for a few days and return to his village and inform them of my coming, I will travel along slowly on his trail and arrive at the village a day or two after he reaches there."

"Very well, my son," said the father, "I am sure you will succeed, as you fear nothing, and as to your marksmanship, it is far superior to mine, as your sight is much clearer and aim quicker than mine."

The man rested a few days and one morning started off, after having instructed White Plume as to the trail. White Plume got together what he would need on the trip and was ready for an early start the next morning. That night, Dead Shot and his wife sat up away into the night instructing their son how to travel and warning him as to the different kinds of people he must avoid in order to keep out of trouble. "Above all," said the father, "keep a good look out for Unktomi (spider); he is the most tricky of all, and will get you into trouble if you associate with him."

White Plume left early, his father accompanying him for several miles. On parting, the father's last words were: "Look out for Unktomi, my son, he is deceitful and treacherous."

"I'll look out for him, father;" so saying, he disappeared over a hill.

On the way he tried his skill on several hawks and eagles, and he did not need to use his painted arrows to kill them, but so skillful was he with the bow and arrows that he could bring down anything that flew with his common arrows. He was drawing near to the end of his destination when he had a large tract of timber to pass through. When he had nearly gotten through the timber, he saw an old man sitting on a log, looking wistfully up into a big tree, where sat a number of prairie chickens.

"Hello, grandfather, why are you sitting there looking so downhearted?" asked White Plume. "I am nearly starved and was just wishing someone would shoot one of those chickens for me, so I could make a good meal on it," said the old man. "I will shoot one for you," said the young man. He strung his bow, placed an arrow on the string, simply seemed to raise the arrow in the direction of the chicken (taking no aim). Twang went out the bow, zip went the arrow, and a chicken fell off the limb, only to get caught on another in its descent.

"There is your chicken, grandfather."

"Oh, my grandson, I am too weak to climb up and get it. Can't you climb up and get it for me?"

The young man, pitying the old fellow, proceeded to climb the tree, when the old man stopped him, saying: "Grandson, you have on such fine clothes, it is a pity to spoil them; you had better take them off so as not to spoil the fine porcupine work on them."

The young man took off his fine clothes and climbed up into the tree, and securing the chicken, threw it down to the old man. As the young man was scaling down the tree, the old man said: "Iyashkapa, iyashkapa," (stick fast, stick fast). Hearing him say something, he asked, "What did you say, old man?" He answered, "I was only talking to myself."

The young man proceeded to descend, but he could not move. His body was stuck fast to the bark of the tree. In vain did he beg the old man to release him. The old Unktomi, for he it was, only laughed and said: "I will go now and kill the evil spirits, I have your wonderful bow and arrows and I cannot miss them. I will marry the chief's daughter, and you can stay up in that tree and die there."

So saying, he put on White Plume's fine clothes, took his bow and arrows, and went to the village. As White Plume was expected at any minute, the whole village was watching for him, and when Unktomi came into sight the young men ran to him with a painted robe, sat him down on it and slowly raising him up they carried him to the tent of the chief. So certain were they that he would kill the evil spirits that the chief told him to choose one of the daughters at once for his wife. (Before the arrival of White Plume, hearing of him being so handsome, the two girls had quarreled over which should marry him, but upon seeing him the younger was not anxious to become his wife.) So Unktomi chose the older one of the sisters and was given a large tent in which to live.

The younger sister went to her mother's tent to live, and the older was very proud, as she was married to the man who would save the nation from starvation. The next morning, there was a great commotion in camp, and there came the cry that the white buffalo was coming. "Get ready, son-in-law, and kill the buffalo," said the chief.

Unktomi took the bow and arrows and shot as the buffalo passed, but the arrow went wide off its mark. Next came the eagle, and again he shot and missed. Then came the rabbit, and again he missed.

"Wait until tomorrow, I will kill them all. My blanket caught in my bow and spoiled my aim."

The people were very much disappointed, and the chief, suspecting that all was not right, sent for the young man who had visited Dead Shot's tepee. When the young man arrived, the chief asked: "Did you see White Plume when you went to Dead Shot's camp?"

"Yes, I did, and ate with him many times. I stayed at his father's tepee all the time I was there," said the young man.

"Would you recognize him if you saw him again?" asked the chief.

"Anyone who had but one glimpse of White Plume would surely recognize him when he saw him again, as he is the most handsome man I ever saw," said the young man.

"Come with me to the tent of my son-in-law and take a good look at him, but don't say what you think until we come away."

The two went to the tent of Unktomi, and when the young man saw him, he knew it was not White Plume, although it was White Plume's bow and arrows that hung at the head of the bed, and he also recognized the clothes as belonging to White Plume. When they had returned to the chief's tent, the young man told what he knew and what he thought.

"I think this is some Unktomi who has played some trick on White Plume and has taken his bow and arrows and also his clothes, and hearing of your offer, is here impersonating White Plume. Had White Plume drawn the bow on the buffalo, eagle, and rabbit today, we would have been rid of them, so I think we had better scare this Unktomi into telling us where White Plume is," said the young man.

"Wait until he tries to kill the witches again tomorrow," said the chief.

In the meantime, the younger daughter had taken an axe and gone into the woods in search of dry wood. She went quite a little distance into the wood and was chopping a dry log. Stopping to rest a little she heard someone saying: "Whoever you are, come over here and chop this tree down so that I may get loose."

Going to where the big tree stood, she saw a man stuck onto the side of the tree. "If I chop it down the fall will kill you," said the girl. "No, chop it on the opposite side from me, and the tree will fall that way. If the fall kills me, it will be better than hanging up here and starving to death," said White Plume, for it was he.

The girl chopped the tree down and when she saw that it had not killed the man, she said: "What shall I do now?"

"Loosen the bark from the tree and then get some stones and heat them. Get some water and sage and put your blanket over me." She did as told and when the steam arose from the water being poured upon the heated rocks, the bark loosened from his body and he arose. When he stood up, she saw how handsome he was.

"You have saved my life," said he. "Will you be my wife?"

"I will," said she.

He then told her how the old man had fooled him into this trap and took his bow and arrows, also his fine porcupine worked clothes, and had gone off, leaving him to die. She, in turn, told him all that had happened in camp since a man, calling himself White Plume, came there and married her sister before he shot at the witches, and when he came to shoot at them, missed every shot. "Let us make haste, as the bad Unktomi may ruin my arrows."

They approached the camp and whilst White Plume waited outside, his promised wife entered Unktomi's tent and said: "Unktomi, White Plume is standing outside, and he wants his clothes and bow and arrows."

"Oh, yes, I borrowed them and forgot to return them; make haste and give them to him."

Upon receiving his clothes, he was very much provoked to find his fine clothes wrinkled and his bow twisted, while the arrows were twisted out of shape. He laid the clothes down, also the bows and arrows, and passing his hand over them, they assumed their right shapes again.

The daughter took White Plume to her father's tent and, upon hearing the story, he at once sent for his warriors and had them form a circle around Unktomi's tent, and if he attempted to escape to catch him and tie him to a tree, as he (the chief) had determined to settle accounts with him for his treatment of White Plume, and the deception employed in winning the chief's eldest daughter.

About midnight, the guard noticed something crawling along close to the ground and seizing him found it was Unktomi trying to make his escape before daylight, whereupon they tied him to a tree. "Why do you treat me thus," cried Unktomi, "I was just going out in search of medicine to rub on my arrows, so I can kill the witches." "You will need medicine to rub on yourself when the chief gets through with you," said the young man who had discovered that Unktomi was impersonating White Plume.

In the morning, the herald announced that the real White Plume had arrived, and the chief desired the whole nation to witness his marksmanship. Then came the cry: "The White Buffalo comes." Taking his red arrow, White Plume stood ready. When the buffalo got about opposite him, he let his arrow fly. The buffalo bounded high in the air and came down with all four feet drawn together under its body, the red arrow having passed clear through the animal, piercing the buffalo's heart. A loud cheer went up from the village.

"You shall use the hide for your bed," said the chief to White Plume.

Next came a cry, "The eagle, the eagle." From the north came an enormous red eagle. So strong was he, that as he soared through the air his wings made a humming sound as the rumble of distant thunder. On he came, and just as he circled the tent of the chief, White Plume bent his bow, with all his strength drew the arrow back to the flint point and sent the blue arrow on its mission of death. So swiftly had the arrow passed through the eagle's body that, thinking White Plume had missed, a great wail went up from the crowd, but when they saw the eagle stop in his flight, give a few flaps of his wings, and then fall with a heavy thud into the center of the village, there was a greater cheer than before.

"The red eagle shall be used to decorate the seat of honor in your tepee," said the chief to White Plume.

Last came the white rabbit. "Aim good, aim good, son-in-law," said the chief. "If you kill him, you will have his skin for a rug." Along came the white rabbit, and White Plume sent his arrow in search of rabbit's heart, which it found, and stopped Mr. Rabbit's tricks forever.

The chief then called all of the people together and before them all took a hundred willows and broke them one at a time over Unktomi's back. Then he turned him loose. Unktomi, being so ashamed, ran off into the woods and hid in the deepest and darkest corner he could find. This is why Unktomis (spiders) are always found in dark corners, and anyone who is deceitful or untruthful is called a descendant of the Unktomi tribe.

Continue reading...

[abarbaricyalp]

🃏 - Are you joking right now? For the SamBucky ask.

🃏 - Are you joking right now? I feel like this is a phrase that gets passed around between them quite often

There was a book that Sam read to the boys that made them screech with laughter, even as Cass got older and AJ got more discerning. It was about a maid who took things literally (which would be a joke in the book where she stole items away). Even Bucky found it amusing when the author managed to find a turn of phrase he hadn't thought of. Also, he just liked the sound of Sam reading with an exaggerated posh accent and feigned shock.

In reality, Bucky liked literal people a whole lot less, especially when it was some wizard who was such a caricature that it almost had to be on purpose. He even said bippity-boppity.

Bippity-boppity fame, let's play a game. What's in a name? Bippity-boppity lame.

Whatever the hell that meant. That wasn't even a spell. Still, all that glowy-magic-shit had swooshed around the air and all of a sudden, nothing was as it seemed. Where Bishop had just been standing, there was a hawk with robotic eyes. A disgustingly large spider had appeared where he'd last seen Belova, and Khan had turned into...a mini galaxy?

What the fuck?

Bucky did a quick scan of himself and was thrilled to find he was still apparently human. It wasn't until he tried to take a step and nearly face planted in the ground that he realized his feet had become frozen to the ground. And when he threw his hands up to brace his fall, ice and snow shot from his palms.

"Sam!" he called out, breath fogging in front of his face. "What the hell are we dealing with?"

Bucky wasn't sure why he was surprised to hear the rustling of feathers. He turned on his heel, breaking more ice in the process, and looked at Sam, who had been right on his six just a handful of seconds ago.

Now a giant bird stood there, shaking out wings and puffing a chest, all of which were colored like his Cap uniform, blues and reds and whites that still cut an impressive figure on a bird's body. A bright star of feathers expanded and contracted as he breathed.

"Oh, you have got to be joking," Bucky breathed. At least he wasn't an eagle, Bucky supposed.

"Fix them!" he called up to the wizard. "I'm not dealing with this bullshit!"

"Winter Soldier, what to do, what to do? You're in charge. That's new," the wizard called back, voice echoing around the cavern they were in. Because of course the ridiculous wizard had a cavern. "Are you sure? Are you going to shoot the cure?" he asked, appearing in front of Bucky long enough for Bucky to swing out, disappearing before Bucky could make contact. A slab of ice fell to the floor and shattered.

Bucky half growled, half shouted. He shook ice from his feet again and bounced on his toes to keep more form forming. When Belova started to move--on too many legs--he held up a hand to her. "Don't even think about it. You stay way over there."

She rolled eight eyes at him, but didn't move closer to him.

"I'm not in charge," he called. He swallowed his pride, squeezed his eyes shut. "You are. Tell me more."

The wizard appeared behind Sam and Bucky whirled around in time to watch Sam propel into the air. The gust of his wings was enough to knock Bucky out of rhythm with his hopping. "Who are they? Who are you? This will be a long day."

"You are so fucking annoying," Bucky snapped. He looked at Sam, who had settled on the ground again. "You're Sam Wilson," he told him. "Son of Paul and Darlene. Brother to Sarah. Uncle to Cass and AJ. You're Captain America. You're my partner, my best friend."

Birds didn't have eyebrows, but it seemed like Sam had raised an eyebrow at him. Nothing happened. Bucky shouted at the ceiling again.

"Yelena Belova. Sister to Natasha. A Black Widow, a savior of Widows. Kate Bishop, Hawkeye, Bishop takes King. Kamala Khan, Miss Marvel, Little Miss New Jersey, ray of cosmic light. Little Avengers. New Avengers. Brat Pack. New Age Heroes. An Annoyance of Heroes. What do you want from me?!"

"Time's up, wrong line up." the wizard said, appearing in front of Bucky to shove him backwards hard. Bucky went flying back, which he wasn't expecting. He hit the rock hard and let the air get knocked out of him. It cleared his head, felt like it realigned him.

"Bucky!" the stars that made up Khan shouted. Bucky didn't know she could do that.

He pushed himself back to his feet and heaved in a breath of freezing air. "Right. I'm Bucky Barnes," he said. "I'm not the one known for saving people, am I?" He touched the wall behind him and sent ice crawling over every surface.

The wizard fell from whatever perch he was on, then scrambled to find his footing. Bucky caught his legs in ice before he could. "If you wanted a fair fight, you should've left Sam in charge of negotiations." He stalked across the ice, hoping he didn't slip because that would put a dent on this whole picture. "Turned me into a snowman or something. Left him with the vocal cords." He put his left hand against the wizard's throat and held his right just over his mouth. "Fix them, or you're gonna lose your vocal cords instead. I won't even have to use ice for it. I'll save that for making sure you can't scream."

"Oh my God?" Bishop squawked. The hawk flew down beside him, hovering for a second before she perched on his shoulder.

"Oh my God, it was just a joke!" the wizard cried, trying to thrash away from Bucky's hold. He popped his knee in the process and let out a string of curse words that definitely didn't rhyme. The old man charade faded off of him, revealing a scrawny teenager, still pockmarked with acne. "Stop, stop, stop!" he cried.

Bishop came out of it first. At least, Bucky noticed it first, because there was suddenly an arm around his throat as she fell off of his shoulder and tried not to hit the ground. They hit the ground anyway.

The ice was gone and the wizard had scrambled away as soon as he could. Belova had crossed her arms over her chest, standing behind Khan by a few steps, pretending not to assess her status. It was kind of ridiculous how well her unimpressed expression had transferred to the spider, actually.

Khan's eyes were bright and she was practically vibrating with excitement. They were never hearing the end of this. Bucky kind of didn't mind the concept. He might've missed her voice when he thought he wouldn't get to hear it again.

"Okay, but can I keep the wings?" Sam asked.

Bucky untangled himself from Bishop so quickly he almost stepped on her hand in doing so. "Sam?" he asked, almost scared to approach.

Sam held out his arms to prove he had them again. If they were alone, it might've acted like a magnet that sprang Bucky up against him. However, they weren't alone. Everyone turned to face the wizard, who was spitting new curses and scrambling to free himself from where Belova had ahold of his wizard's clock collar.

"What was the answer?" Bishop asked. "He said our names. He knew us. We knew ourselves. Well, I knew me. He could've known me better. Really, a newspaper headline?" she asked Bucky over her shoulder.

"There was no answer," the wizard half exclaimed, half sneered. "I was just supposed to distract you."

"Distract us from what?" Belova asked and shook him. "Who are you working with?"

"I don't know!" the wizard defended. "They just gave me a magic relic to do it. I didn't ask questions."

"Uh, guys?" Khan said, from the entrance of the cave. "I think our jet is being stolen?"

Quad identical groans echoed through the cave.

"Come on," Sam called, jogging ahead of everyone. "I'll stall them. You get down as fast as you can."

He got to the edge of the cliff and spread his wings to take to the sky. Bucky watched bits of fabric and feathers flutter in the downdraft. He watched Sam's falcon wings catch the wind, send him a little off course before he corrected.

"Oh, you have seriously got to be fucking joking," he repeated, jogging after Sam. "Khan, restrain him and bring him with us. Can you make a bridge down to the ground? Belova, you go ahead. Bishop, you stay--"

Sam still had wings. Subtly, Bucky pointed his palm down at the ground. He probably was just imagining the tingling against his skin and the way his foot slipped on the rock. Probably.

[gravesung]

DRAKARTH CONSERVATORY for Arcane Excellence and the Drakarth Archival Preservation Society (called the Archive for short) are technically one and the same. The Archive came first, with the Conservatory built next to it by arcane researchers who wanted to mold from each generation an upper echelon of societal perfection: soldiers, politicians, researchers to lead the charge into every new era. Drakarth, crowned by its star arete student and its globally-recognized faculty, stands as an institution to strength that, if you can survive it, guarantees a successful life.

Key phrase: if you can survive it. Not all is well here, and the people who uphold Drakarth's ideals would do just about anything to keep their secrets buried.

Be careful, now, and don't follow the moths.

STRUCTURE & EDUCATION.

Honor, virtue, reason and might are the four tenets of what Drakarth sees as excellence. Each class attends three years of school: the honing year, the building year, and the trial year. The honing year is spent on basic training, though its true purpose is weeding out those with outstanding potential from the crowd. During finals at the end of the year, all of the freshmen are pulled solo, in pairs, or in threes for individualized Surprise Tests made to test their weaknesses and push them to their limits. These can be anything: 1v1 tournaments, grueling survival challenges, written exams, dungeon delves... the list goes on.

By the end of year one, less than ten percent (80-100) of the students pass their trials and continue on. The rest are shunted into Drakarth's sister schools and outer universities for lower-intensity studies. The ones who pass are called CENTURIONS, and even if they don't graduate top of their class, the title in itself is incredibly prestigious.

Year two, the building year, is spent exploring what makes each student special. Their advisors craft and constantly adjust custom curriculums that balance the student's strengths and weaknesses within the four tenets.

It's supposed to be individualized, that is. The academic system fails so many young people, and Drakarth is not only no exception to this, but a stunningly cruel example of it. (hiii jupiter.) Some of the students who are rejected, or who drop out mid-year, are literally never seen again by their peers. No clue where they went, no contact, nothing. No one seems to think this is weird. They just couldn't cut it, you know.

Third year: tournament arc! Students spend their time fine-tuning the skills they have built over the last two years and training for a schoolwide capstone tournament after finals. These serve as a display of Drakarth's newest exceptional stock to interested parties: military, government, scientific agencies, like sports recruiters coming to games.

Being top of the class each year is a high enough honor in itself. At least, from an outside point of view. Those in the school, the faculty and staff, and the attached families know the truth: there is one particular honor that everyone is chasing.

There is an opportunity every year for someone to be awarded the title of ARETE. For the last two decades, that opportunity has come and gone: the Conservatory and Archive staff simply haven't seen a student who exemplifies the four tenets at an outstanding, better-than-perfect level.

That doesn't stop every student from shooting for it, though.

Drakarth's arete is treated somewhere between a political hero and a messiah. They become the face of the Conservatory and, to an extent, the country it resides in. They attend conferences and war meetings, make speeches to young hopefuls, fight in wars — essentially, they go where the society needs someone to look up to.

LAYOUT.

The Conservatory itself is built from a set of old stone buildings, their architecture Gothic with a twist of occasional surrealism and a focus on open space. At the entryway, flags bear the school crest: two eagles locked in combat in front of a crossed pen and sword, framed by the area's native wild roses. The eagles represent might, the pen represents reason, the sword represents honor, and the roses represent virtue. 

The ballroom, where public-facing functions and schoolwide formals take place, resembles a modified cathedral without pews. Along the back wall, where altars may sit, the leftmost refreshment table bears stacks of wine glasses filled with red, white and bubbly varieties. The center table is adorned with savory hors d'oeuvres, and the rightmost table shows off sweets and pastries of many types: tiny cakes, croissants and canele and cups of custard, spiced honey cake and filled buns, and more. The food and drink items seem to replenish themselves. 

The Archive, directly adjacent to the ballroom, is two floors high and three floors deep. The ground floor acts as a public library for basic arcane knowledge. The second floor acts as the Conservatory’s private library and study space. Underground levels are for artifact storage and Archive property that is only accessible with a research permit and an approved written request detailing what exactly will be used or studied. 

There is definitely not an ancienty secret society involved. There is no eldritch deity of forbidden knowledge sealed under the Archive. Don't follow the moths.

The school training grounds take up about a football field's worth of outdoor space, different sections of the field set up for different types of training. A large dirt square provides space for hand-to-hand combat; dummies of different materials provide resistance to elemental damage for spellthrowing; one entire half of the field is for sports rather than combat. Things do get mixed up sometimes. 

This field is also cleared out when it comes time for end-of-year trials, challenges that test the might, honor and knowledge of each year's students. Most don't make it out of them alive. That's just how things are. The trials with the most fanfare are Tournaments, which are the capstone of Drakarth's graduating class. The students are placed in small groups and pitted against what is essentially a public dungeon crawl. Those who succeed receive a magical artifact and graduate from the Conservatory, some with honors and some simply good at surviving. 

And, of course, there's the college town. Drakarth is out in the countryside, but establishments, homes and businesses have been built around it over the centuries as many alumni and their families end up teaching after they graduate. Favored by Conservatory students is CODA, a lounge that transitions from a cafe to a classy bar in the evenings.

Questions?

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