#alamo oc possibly...

[lexveryreal]

hm something something math something uhhh anyways william davis drawings

had to crop out the text on the right cuz no spoilers 😼

HUAHASHHHZZZ my only oc that i actually wrote abt and have fully fledged lore on and actually have a plot for 😭🙏

but he's so silly i love drawing him

bonus feature he's in the MIDDLE of the math notes

(next to another oc that may or may NOT be an alamo oc hmm idk)

[sailorgreywolf-legacy]

Have any of your Ocs ever had a near death experience? What was it?

Most of them have actually. But in my opinion, countries can only die when they have been completely conquered and defeated. So long as there are people who still consider themselves part of that country, the personification of that country continues to exist. With that said, I don’t think near death experiences are not that unusual.

The three that come to mind immediately are:

Ale: During the revolution, he was healing so slowly that there was the real possibility that he might basically be mortal and have to suffer bullets like a mortal. He had an experience where he thought he was so close to death that he might cease to exist, but he woke up from it and kept going.

Diego: The Alamo. He was there defending the Alamo when the Mexican army took it. There was a moment when Ale put the tip of his sword against Diego’s chest and Diego saw murder in his brother’s eyes. He thought it was all going to end right there and his only thought was that he hadn’t told Belle how much he loved her.

Belle: Sherman’s March to the Sea. At the end of the American Civil War, she was losing all of her strength and Alfred’s armies were tearing up her land. The burning of Atlanta left permanent scars on her body. She and Diego were both scared that she was going to die if Alfred did not stop his men.

There are many more, during periods of instability and civil war especially, countries fear that they are going to be destroyed by the violence. 

[itsthelastofus]

(another short little oneshot i wrote about my gtav oc (sage) and katie’s (aubrey) to fulfill my love for these two characters we’ve poured so much into. the little text thing is silly and cheesy and i thought it’d be fun to compliment the piece. feedback is lovely btw, as are any questions regarding mine or katie’s character!!) 

Pool Investment (or lack thereof) 

Sage didn’t really mind the drive to Sandy Shores, especially when it gave her an opportunity to be preoccupied with the wind whipping against her body rather than the worries bouncing inside her head. She often took the Great Ocean Highway up the coast of Los Santos until she hit Route 66 to take her into the desert; The road was a long expanse of palm trees and sparkling water that gradually faded into sparse bushes and fields of cacti the closer she drove inland. She always felt liberated driving so far from her tiny apartment in Little Seoul, as if she was once again escaping all of the corruption this sorry world had to offer.

It took her a while to admit it, but the more time she spent in the arid town in which Aubrey resided, the more her fondness for it grew. She liked how quiet it was in comparison to the city— It was a place she could actually hear her thoughts and she was starting to realize that that wasn’t such a bad thing. The air was warm and dry that day as she hurried to Aubrey’s home and she was pushing 80, trying to make it to the desert before sunset. She was promised a beer, a swim, and good company, so Sage couldn’t really complain if she was late to her meeting in the morning with Michael.

She was more than ready to cool off in a nice pool of water as she approached Sandy Shores, her shorts and tank top doing nothing to keep her cool despite the wind sweeping against her bare thighs as she pulled closer to her best friend’s home. It was a little rough around the edges, much like Sage’s apartment back in Los Santos, but it had character. Aubrey had painted the exterior a peachy tan and Sage had helped her pick out some hanging plants that would survive the difficult climate to give a little life to her rickety porch. You could say it was a bit of a fixer-upper, but they both saw the potential.

Sage turned down Aubrey’s street, the sun a burnt orange above head with undertones of pink catching the Alamo Sea below on fire; That alone made the trip entirely worth it as Sage slowed her pace to enjoy the view before her. She was practically walking her bike the rest of the way towards Aubrey’s, soaking up the last heat of the day and wondering if her times here were starting to give her a bit of a tan. She thought maybe the pool investment would help with that.

Aubrey’s house was coming into sight and Sage could hear the low drones of Rebel Radio. She pulled up past her neighbor, Jewel, a self-proclaimed psychic who Sage could swear was a scam artist, but Aubrey promised she accurately predicted what their next mission was going to be. Sage called it conspiracy.

As Sage pulled up to Aubrey, she could see her head of blonde sticking up past her small picket fence and the closer she got the more she could see of what she was doing. She opened the visor on her helmet and tried to squint through the setting sun as she gave her kickstand shove. Swinging her leg over her bike, Sage pulled off her helmet completely and stepped closer to the edge of the fence, her face falling the minute she figured out just what Aubrey meant by swimming.

Sage couldn’t even look disappointed as she fought to keep her eyes from rolling into the back of her head. “I really should come to expect this out of you, you know.”

Clad in a yellow bikini that clashed with her sunkissed skin, Aubrey sat in a lime green kiddie pool, her long legs just barely fitting. Her arms were adorned with floaties as if she could possibly drown in the small puddle, a case of beers dunked in the bottom of it, and one already in her hand. The garden hose was slung over the edge, creating a stream of water that did look refreshing if it weren’t being poured into a four by four foot circle.

Aubrey just had a pleased grin on her face, tipping her beer towards Sage in greeting.

“You’re a little shit, you know that?” Sage asked, no real venom to her voice. “Making me drive all the way out here for this.” She muttered, mostly to herself.

Aubrey’s face dropped in mock offence. “What, you don’t think this is relaxing?”

Sage sighed and stepped over the short fence, not bothering to unlatch it. She stripped herself of her shorts and tank top to reveal her black swimsuit and stepped into the small patch of grass that Aubrey had just barely got to grow.

“Scoot.” Sage said, making to step into the pool when Aubrey halted her.

“Wait,” She exclaimed, “Lift up your foot.” Sage complied as she sprayed down her feet before she stepped in. “I don’t need you contaminating my pool.”

Sage snorted. “If you could call it that.”

“I don’t have to share my beer with you.”

“Oh, after this display, you bet your ass you do.” Sage laughed, sinking back into the cool water that barely covered her stomach and grabbing one from the case.

They stayed like that until the sun was just barely visible over the edge of the sand and in its place arrived one of the fullest moons Sage had ever witnessed. Their pack of beer was nearly gone now, the water keeping it chilled as they were now more than a bit tipsy.

“This pool,” Sage drawled, tipping her head over the edge so she could see the stars while the grass prickled the back of her head, “Not a bad investment.”

“Cheers to that.” Aubrey replied, trying to take a sip from her empty bottle.

[junker-town]

Oklahoma State might be the most fun football team on the planet. That’s ... good and bad.

Defense will determine whether this is a Playoff contender or an explosive team with a suddenly interesting head coach.

This preview originally published May 23 and has since been updated.

For coaches, media season begins each July. That’s when the Media Days gatherings are initiated, the words “Bristol Car Wash” become an ESPN term everybody accepts, and coaches show up on your television again.

For the most part, these coaches look the same as they did. Creating a personal style is down the list of head coach priorities, behind things like “calling 17-year-olds at midnight, the moment a dead period ends,” “giving the proper fake smile to that one booster who knows what you need to do to fix your offense,” and “judging the latest edit on the season ticket hype video.”

“Typically” doesn’t mean “always,” however.

Long story short, Mike Gundy reappeared in the public eye last July sporting the beginnings of a mullet. By the end of the season, it had taken glorious form. And so far this offseason, he has donned a singlet for the OSU wrestling team and gone rattlesnake hunting during the OSU basketball team’s NCAA Tournament game.

After years of keeping it pent up and out of the public eye, Gundy is letting his Okie freak flag fly. And it’s rubbing off on his team.

Last fall, six FBS offenses racked up fewer than four passes of 40-plus yards: Army, BYU, Minnesota, San Diego State, Wisconsin, and Tulane. Five of these teams went to bowl games, one won its conference (SDSU), and another won its division (Wisconsin). Long bombs aren’t a requisite for success, but they were are fun.

Oklahoma State, meanwhile, had four passes of 80-plus yards.

Since 2010, only one other FBS team had done that (2014 Washington State). Two of OSU’s came in maybe the most underrated-ly crazy game of the season, a 45-38 win over Pitt; the Cowboys scored on a 91-yard bomb 16 seconds in, then set up the game-winner with an 86-yard bomb in the last two minutes.

Quarterback Mason Rudolph throws a lovely deep ball, and Gundy and coordinator Mike Yurcich have elected to use it. In 2015, Rudolph averaged 14.3 yards per completion with a 62 percent completion rate and a 2.1 percent interception rate. In 2016, Rudolph averaged 14.4 per completion, completed 63 percent, and threw just four picks all year, an INT rate of 0.9 percent.

“Screw it, we’re going deep” is the most enjoyable philosophy possible, especially if you have no rooting interest in the outcome. It’s going to be a massive success or a massive failure, and either way, explosions are fun. But for OSU in 2016, it was mostly successful. The Pokes ranked in the Off. S&P+ top 10 for the first time since 2012 and won at least 10 games for the fifth time in seven years.

After a slow start — sandwiching the win over Pitt were a 35-24 loss at Baylor and a 30-27 “loss” to Central Michigan that left OSU 2-2 — the Pokes ignited. They ripped off a seven-game streak, scoring at least 37 in six of those games and allowing 20 or fewer in three. And following a 38-20 loss at Oklahoma in the Big 12’s de facto championship, they responded by destroying Pac-12 runner-up Colorado, 38-8, in the Alamo Bowl.

The defense was up and down, but the offense just kept getting better. The Cowboys averaged 5.8 yards per play in their first four games, 6.4 in their next four, and 7.8 in their last five.

Those early bombs forced safeties to play really deep, and the emergence of freshman running back Justice Hill and senior Chris Carson (combined average: 212.5 rushing yards per game and 7.1 yards per carry over the final four games) created the ultimate pick-your-poison situation.

After years of seeing his name linked to other jobs, Gundy spent 2016 acting like a professor with tenure, like a man comfortable with who he is and what he wants his team to be. And while he has a couple of weapons to replace — Carson, Seales, and all-conference tackle Victor Salako — he has as many proven weapons returning as anyone. Rudolph, Washington, and Hill are back. So are junior possession receiver Jalen McCleskey and Marcell Ateman, who averaged 17 yards per catch in 2015. This is a terrifying offense.

Unfortunately, the Pokes have to play defense, too. That’s been an issue. After surging to ninth in Def. S&P+ in 2013, Glenn Spencer’s unit has ranked 76th, 70th, and 67th the last three years. And now the Cowboys have to replace four of their top six defensive backs and two of their top three running backs.

With this offense, it won’t take an incredible defense to make OSU a Big 12 contender, but it will probably take a top-50 performance. That’s far from a given.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Gundy

2016 in review

2016 OSU statistical profile.

OSU’s 2016 took on a similar shape to its 2013; that year, the Pokes lost to four-win West Virginia early on and looked only alright in wins over Kansas State and TCU. But they scored at least 38 points in five straight games, obliterated undefeated Baylor on national television, and reached the Cotton Bowl on the power of a seven-game streak.

Granted, that 2013 team had a good defense. But the flow of the season was nearly identical.

First 4 games (2-2): Avg. percentile performance: 56% (~top 55) | Avg. score: OSU 39, Opp 28 (plus-11) | Avg. yards per play: Opp 6.0, OSU 5.8 (minus-0.2)

Next 4 games (4-0): Avg. percentile performance: 68% (~top 40) | Avg. score: OSU 42, Opp 26 (plus-16) | Avg. yards per play: OSU 6.4, Opp 5.9 (plus-0.5)

Last 5 games (4-1): Avg. percentile performance: 78% (~top 30) | Avg. score: OSU 35, Opp 27 (plus-8) | Avg. yards per play: OSU 7.8 Opp 5.9 (plus-1.9)

The offense trended upward, and the defense stayed almost exactly the same. When the Pokes scored 30 points, they won. When they didn’t, they lost.

Offense

Full advanced stats glossary.

The OSU offense occasionally falls apart and has to get put back together. In 2009, after two seasons in the Off. S&P+ top five, the Pokes fell to 48th. And after ranking fifth, first, eighth, and 20th from 2010-13, they plummeted to 78th in 2014.

In 2015, Rudolph took over, and the passing game flourished. OSU ranked 18th in Passing S&P+ but was held back by a miserable run game (114th in Rushing S&P+). Midway through 2016, the run game found its place again.

It took a little while. Rennie Childs struggled all year, and Carson missed a few games early in the season. But Carson and Hill formed quite the thunder-and-lightning pair late, and after a couple of shaky seasons, the OSU line began to look like the line of the early 2010s.

This isn’t an “Every contributor returns!” situation, but enough do. Up front, left tackle Victor Salako is gone, but he’ll likely be replaced by 6’8 Cal transfer Aaron Cochran, who started 16 games for the Golden Bears. Three other seniors should grace the lineup, along with guard Marcus Keyes, who was honorable mention all-conference as a freshman.

That will make Hill’s job pretty easy. The mid-three-star sophomore combined decent efficiency with some big-play pop, and with him next to Rudolph in the backfield, the OSU run game should take advantage of defenses distracted by the threat of the deep ball. There’s concern if Hill goes down — Carson, Childs, and Barry J. Sanders are gone, and the backup will likely be a true freshman (Chuba Hubbard) — but at worst, the Pokes will be able to lean on one of the nation’s best passing attacks.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Justice Hill

Mason Rudolph's TD to INT ratio in 2016: 28 to 4! That's insane for any number of reasons.

The 28 touchdowns were in the nation's top 20.

Rudolph was the only QB to throw more than 400 passes and fewer than five picks. Hell, only one other did that in 300 passes (WMU's Zach Terrell).

He was also one of only 10 qualifying quarterback to average at least 9 yards per pass.

Two of the interceptions happened in one game! Kansas State picked him off twice in a game in which he otherwise completed 29 passes for 457 yards, five touchdowns, and a 210.2 passer rating.

You're just not supposed to be able to throw this aggressively while remaining this mistake-free. You’re not supposed to be able to do it after losing one of your best receivers to injury before the season. Marcell Ateman sat out the year with a foot issue; he averaged 17 yards per catch with a 64 percent catch rate in 2015, and he’s back. So, too, is maybe the most fun receiver in the country.

Over his last 22 games, James Washington has posted at least 100 receiving yards in 11. Against Texas Tech in back-to-back weeks in 2015, he caught nine passes for 384 yards. He caught nine for 296 against Pitt last September. He had nine for 171 in the bowl romp over Colorado and its awesome secondary.

OSU’s passing game slowed down over the last two weeks of the regular season — Rudolph completed just 28 of 59 passes with one touchdown against TCU and Oklahoma — but the Pokes still scored 51 points in those contests because the run game had also perked up. Ateman’s return and the addition of LSU transfer and former blue-chipper Tyron Johnson make this pass attack even more explosive, but the efficiency aspect could still use some work at times. That’s where possession options like McCleskey and Chris Lacy come into play.

Being able to throw the deep ball like this opens up so many other options. By the end of the season, Yurcich was exploring all of them. He should have a lot of fun pulling the strings this fall. As long as Hill doesn’t get hurt, anyway.

Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

Marcell Ateman

Defense

Gundy has no problem taking risks. In 2013, he had to replace offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who had taken the Southern Miss head coaching job; he ended up choosing Shippensburg OC Mike Yurcich because of stats he found online. That same offseason, he replaced seasoned defensive coordinator Bill Young after four straight seasons of good, but not good enough, defense.

OSU had ranked between 20th and 43rd in Def. S&P+ from 2009-12, but Gundy was aiming higher. He promoted Glenn Spencer from LBs coach, and a more aggressive defense surged to ninth. Great move!

The next year, OSU fell out of the top 60. The Pokes have yet to return.

The individual talent has still been there to some degree, but the product has been lacking. And while the Pokes were aggressive against the run last year — 22nd in stuff rate, 12th in power success rate — they were also flexible against the pass. Opponents’ passing success rate was 46.2 percent (115th in FBS), their completion rate 61 percent (92nd).

OSU was just about as good as ever on passing downs (23rd in PD S&P+) but awful at forcing them (86th in Standard Downs S&P+). And now the Pokes have to replace a lot of last year’s most productive players, including a pair of defensive tackles (Vincent Taylor and Motekiai Maile) who combined for a lot of that disruption. [Update: Latu Maile, Motekiai’s 300-pound brother, is coming over from the JUCO ranks.]

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Tralund Webber

If junior tackle Darrion Daniels begins to prove his four-star recruiting ranking, that will solve one problem. OSU has a nice set of ends in Cole Walterscheid, Jarrell Owens, and Tralund Webber (combined: 20 TFLs, 10.5 sacks), and senior tackle DeQuinton Osborne is an all-or-nothing force in the middle — 5.5 of his 11 tackles were behind the line. But Daniels will be counted on for down-to-down consistency.

If the tackles hold up, then middle linebacker Chad Whitener should be capable of cleaning up in the tackles department, and I’m not too worried about the Cowboys having to lean on career backups like Justin Phillips and Kenneth Edison-McGruder or youngsters like Kevin Henry or Calvin Bundage at linebacker.

I do have a few concerns about the secondary, though. Granted, replacing pieces of an iffy unit isn’t as scary as replacing All-Americans, but this was a shaky secondary with safety Jordan Sterns and corners Lenzy Pipkins and Ashton Lampkin.

The safety position, guided by seniors Ramon Richards and Tre Flowers, is probably fine. But OSU will desperately need Clemson transfer Adrian Baker to dominate from the get-go. And even if that comes to pass, the Pokes will still be ultra green at the other corner spot(s), likely relying on unproven options like sophomores Madre Harper and A.J. Green or a career reserve like Darius Curry. Maybe new blood brings new energy. Or maybe this is the biggest question mark on the OSU defense for a second year in a row.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Adrian Baker

Special Teams

Even with a dreadfully inefficient pass defense (in a pass-heavy conference), the combination offensive firepower and a couple of huge legs nearly made Oklahoma State the best field position team in the country last year. The Cowboys’ average starting field position was 8.8 yards better than their opponents’; only Michigan (plus-9.1) could top that.

The legs are back. Zach Sinor averaged 42.8 yards per punt, and only 16 of his 56 punts were returnable. Better yet, those 16 returns netted a total of 15 yards. Meanwhile, nearly half of Matt Ammendola’s kickoffs resulted in touchbacks, and opponents averaged only 17.9 yards per return (13th in FBS) on the others. Sinor’s a junior, and Ammendola’s a sophomore, so this isn’t going to change for a while.

(It would help if Ammendola is as effective in the place-kicking department. He likely takes over for Ben Grogan this year.)

2017 outlook

2017 Schedule & Projection Factors

Date Opponent Proj. S&P+ Rk Proj. Margin Win Probability 2-Sep Tulsa 77 17.8 85% 9-Sep at South Alabama 108 21.6 89% 16-Sep at Pittsburgh 33 2.4 56% 23-Sep TCU 21 2.3 55% 30-Sep at Texas Tech 66 8.0 68% 14-Oct Baylor 28 6.2 64% 21-Oct at Texas 16 -4.5 40% 28-Oct at West Virginia 69 9.6 71% 4-Nov Oklahoma 5 -7.6 33% 11-Nov at Iowa State 57 6.8 65% 18-Nov Kansas State 35 7.8 67% 25-Nov Kansas 107 26.4 94%

Projected S&P+ Rk 22 Proj. Off. / Def. Rk 3 / 69 Projected wins 7.9 Five-Year S&P+ Rk 9.9 (25) 2- and 5-Year Recruiting Rk 40 / 36 2016 TO Margin / Adj. TO Margin* 11 / 8.5 2016 TO Luck/Game +1.0 Returning Production (Off. / Def.) 67% (78%, 56%) 2016 Second-order wins (difference) 9.3 (0.7)

Engage in a shootout with the Cowboys at your own risk. As constituted (i.e. without taking potential injuries into account), this is a top-five offense. I have concerns about running back depth, but you never know how, when, or where a team’s depth will be tested.

Combining an elite offense with powerful field position weapons in special teams gives you the makings of a Big 12 contender. But the defense has to figure out a way to improve despite turnover at defensive tackle, outside linebacker, and cornerback.

OSU was ninth in Off. S&P+ and 67th in Def. S&P+ a year ago; the Cowboys are projected third and 69th, respectively, this fall. Make that more like third and 50th, and that potentially makes them a favorite in 11 of 12 games this fall. There are plenty of challenges — trips to Pitt, Texas, West Virginia, Iowa State, and Texas Tech, plus visits from Tulsa, Oklahoma, TCU, etc. — but OSU can go blow for blow with anybody on the schedule. A small handful of stops could be the difference between 8-4 and 11-1.

Team preview stats

All power conference preview data to date.

[ithappenedinadreamcomic-blog]

It Happened in a Dream! Part 1: Ready for Abduction

Keywords: emo soldiers, the manic pixie dream girl trope, Star Wars, Star Trek references, shenanigans

Genre: Crack fiction, Comedy, Original Story, Original Characters in Canon Universe

Characters: Kylo Ren, Captain Phasma, General Hux, Supreme Leader Stoke, OCs

Rating: PG to PG-13

Trigger Warnings: Cursing, violence sometimes, sexual innuendos

A LONG TIME AGO IN A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY............

............

............

............

Actually, we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves here. There are a few things we need to explain before we can get to the galaxy far, far away part. First of all, like many stories, this is a love story. A story about gross, disgusting, mushy-gushy love.

NO, NO, WAIT! COME BACK! I'm just kidding! Love is boring, right? You're so right!

This story is about Star Wars! You still here?! Yes?? Okay! *ahem* Alsoit'samusicalaboutlove. *ahem* Hmm? No, I didn't say anything else. Anyway! Moving on!

Our story begins with a girl. This girl lived in a galaxy not so far away. In fact, this girl lived in our galaxy and on our planet Earth, in a little place called Los Alamos, New Mexico...

---

“Ms. Vasquez. Ms. Vasquez? Earth to Ms. Vasquez, do you read me?”

Melanie's pursed mouth flattened, allowing the mechanical pencil that was perched precariously between her upper lip and her nose to flop back to the surface of her desk. Her previously vacant expression dissipated, and she lifted her gaze to her coworker, Mr. Brown, who was frowning at her from behind the wall of her cubicle. The cubicle, sprinkled with an eclectic array of stickers, figurines, and postcards, had somehow failed to occupy him during the absence of Melanie's attentions.

“Oh,” Melanie said, sniffing. “Sorry, what did you say?”

“Did you get my e-mail?” he asked again. “You need to send your analyses over to Mrs. Patel right away.”

“Yeah! Yeah. I'm on it,” Melanie said, and began to type away at her laptop. As soon as Mr. Brown had returned to his own work space, Melanie leaned back in her chair and sighed heavily. Melanie truly enjoyed working at the Los Alamos National Laboratory as a chemical engineer, but data entry only entertained her spastic brain for so long. She longed for the day when her bank account balance would allow her to take a long, exciting vacation clear on the opposite side of the planet!

...Little did Melanie Vasquez know that she was about to have her extended vacation, albeit in a much farther place than she anticipated!

---

“C'mon, Mel, it's Friday!” the engineer moaned from a pile of blankets, pillows, and a gray tabby cat plushie named Mr. Pickles. “All you gotta do is put on your clothes, work for eight hours, and then you can par-tay all weekend like it's 1999!”

Except it was actually 2017, and Prince had passed on, in the evil, evil year 2016.

Melanie floundered with the blankets, eventually knocking various pillows off of her body onto the floor, and reluctantly slipped out of the bed with tousled auburn hair. She eventually dragged herself to the bathroom. She gaped at her tired face in the mirror for a few moments before brushing her teeth. No matter how much “beauty rest” Melanie indulged in, the bags under her eyes refused to disappear. Not that it mattered. She wasn't trying to impress anyone; not for a while, anyway. Her bedroom was decorated top to bottom in juvenile, bright trinkets that ordinarily did not suit a 25-year-old woman's tastes. But it worked for Melanie.

After patting on a thin layer of foundation, black mascara, and a pink lip gloss, Melanie turned to her closet. “Hmm...What should I wear? Mr. Pickles, any recommendations?”

The cat plushie remained silent from its current position on the floor.

Melanie settled on a dusty pink blouse and a crimson pencil skirt. She hopped into a pair of shiny dark flats, and grabbed her matching crimson suit jacket on the way to the living room.

“Oh, crap! I think my phone said it was going to rain,” she said to no one in particular. “Better check outside the window first!”

Melanie plucked an apple from a basket on the kitchen counter and shoved it into her open mouth. She walked across the joined dining-living room to the window, taking one bite out of her apple before promptly dropping it with a curse.

There, outside her window, she saw a pitch black void, swirling with hundreds of galaxies and millions of stars.

Melanie glanced at her fallen apple and then rubbed her eyes a couple of times. She looked out the window again. The foreign scenery did not change. The stars and nebulas lazily passed by her window, as if her townhome was drifting slowly through space. She gingerly touched her palm to the glass. It was freezing-cold to the touch, as expected. Was Melanie hallucinating? Had she finally watched too many episodes of Cosmos with Neil DeGrasse Tyson?

“What the fu--”

Melanie snapped back to reality with the sound of her creaking front door. She whirled around, took one look at the milky-white, big-eyed entity floating into her living room, and fainted.

---

“And that's when I met the Ethereum,” Melanie Vasquez said from her chair in the conference hall, which was lined with rows of other empty chairs and tables.

“Who are you talking to?” Frank asked. The spaceship room was empty save for Frank and several other Ethereum floating in Melanie's vicinity. Frank was Melanie's “keeper” alien, so to speak. He, like the other Ethereum, had long, glowing eyes and an emerald-colored crystal stuck to the center of his forehead. To be honest, Melanie was not sure if he was a “he” or not.

“No one,” Melanie said, but glanced toward the fourth wall suspiciously.

She cleared her throat. “So what's the plan, Frank?”

“I told you, that is not my name,” Frank said.

The Ethereum were capable of speech, but it seemingly came from nowhere. They did not have mouths or any other orifices that the sound could reverberate from. The beings were nothing like Melanie had seen before. The closest equivalent to them that the human imagination could produce would be milky-colored and wispy ghosts with elongated, unsubstantial arm-limbs.

“We are having a meeting shortly,” Frank continued, floating closer to the human--or rather, the Terran, as denizens of their galaxy seemed to call her. “In exchange for political neutrality, my people must report our research findings to the Order whenever we cross Sky River.”

“Earth” was known as “Terra” in the Sky River Galaxy. As far as Melanie knew, the galaxy Terran scientists knew as Messier 31 was called “Sky River”, and her Milky Way galaxy was known as Silver River”. The Ethereum themselves hailed from the Andromeda galaxy, or “Gold River”, but since Sky River was more heavily populated by intelligent beings, they spent more time traveling there. The Ethereum were first and foremost knowledge-seekers that yearned to learn as much about the three galaxies they frequented as possible, and as such were a source of information for all the other species living in the galaxies...Except for the Terrans, of course. The Terran species as a whole was not yet mature enough for First Contact with extraterrestrial lifeforms. That didn't, however, stop the Ethereum from abducting one of them for research every couple of centuries or so, as their treaty with Sky River allowed. It was all very confusing, but Melanie tried her best to understand, even with her “limited Terran intelligence”.

The metal doors on the other side of the empty chamber parted mechanically. Various humanoid men and women in tailored, dark gray uniforms began to file in and take their seats opposite Melanie. It confused her a little to see so many beings resembling herself, but she knew she was the only Terran in Sky River. (According to Frank, anyway.) As human as these people seemed, they were not like Melanie at all.

The Ethereum had implanted nanomachines into Melanie's brain, lungs, and bowels—into her brain to translate Sky River's Galactic Standard language, into her lungs so she could endure Sky River ship and planet atmospheres, and into her bowels to automatically filter alien toxins and bacteria from her body. Without this technology, Melanie would have been unable to survive the conditions of Sky River. The differences in her biology were proof enough that she had little in common with the humanoids occupying the Order.

After the chairs in room had mostly been filled up with Order officials save for at one long, empty table, a procession of armored soldiers led one final pair of uniformed men into the room. Melanie, who was sipping water from a cup, spat a mouthful onto the artificial floor. She experienced war flashbacks to the fallen apple in her living room, three months ago when the world as she knew it had been turned upside down. She was now experiencing another such upheaval: the fact that she recognized one of the uniformed men.

He was none other than General Hux of the First Order--The First Order pictured in the latest Star Wars movie.

General Hux, a ginger, bonafide Space Nazi, seated himself at the farthermost table in the room, closest to the exit. A brown-haired man sat to his left, and a young black-haired woman to his right. Melanie could barely make out her pointed ears from this distance. Actually, based on her ears and the slant of her eyebrows, she resembled a Vulcan from the sci-fi television series Star Trek.

'I will call him Space Nazi, and she will be Secret Vulcan,' Melanie thought to herself.

Secret Vulcan stood up, calling attention to Hux's table by announcing, “we will begin now”, and returning to her seat.

General Hux regarded the sitting Terran sternly from the opposite side of the room. He did not stand, nor did he speak at all for a few moments. Finally, he said, “State your name.”

Melanie Vasquez decided, right then and there, that the Star Wars movie universe could never exist in reality, and as such, everything that she had experienced from her abduction up until now was an elaborate coma fantasy. She must have had a brain aneurysm while sleeping, or something like that, and her unconscious brain had invented an alternate world for her to reside in until she came to in the hospital. If she had died in her sleep, she reasoned, she would certainly not be here with General Hux.

Melanie threw any and all propriety she had out of the metaphorical window. If she was going to be stuck in the freaking Star Wars universe for now, then damn it, she would have some fun!

“The name's Melanie,” she said, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair. “Melanie Vasquez, Terran extraordinaire! But you can call me 'Mel'. Oh, and I'm a chemical engineer, too.” She winked cheekily.

Frank the Ethereum would have gawked at her audacity, if he'd had a mouth to gawk with.

General Hux quirked an eyebrow at “Mel”, but he appeared unperturbed for the time being. “Secretary Revik, please continue.”

Secret Vulcan, also known as Secretary Revik, cleared her throat and resumed questioning Melanie.

“What is your current stage of biological development, Terran?”

“I am twenty-five years old, or I have been alive for twenty-five orbits of my planet around my solar system's sun...I supposed that's an arbitrary measure of time to y'all,” Melanie mused, “But I am considered a young adult, and I am about a quarter through my species' lifespan.”

“How would you rate your experience in Sky River?” the secretary asked. “Do you wish to return to your home world currently?”

“I don't know. I haven't been here that long. And not particularly,” Melanie admitted. She bounced her leg absentmindedly. “My parents were really annoying sometimes...Overprotective mom, grumpy dad... Parental units, amirite? I worked long hours as a scientist, and I didn't want to get married. I think that annoyed them. They wanted grandchildren, like, ASAP.”

Secretary Revik frowned. “What is...'ASAP'?”

General Hux waved his gloved hand impatiently. “Enough about her personal life. I wish to learn more about the planet Terra, and their military advancement.”

The secretary's cheeks flushed. “R-Right. Please, Ms. Vasquez, what sort of technological feats has your species accomplished thusfar? Have they achieved interstellar travel?”

Melanie snorted. “Um, no. We sent some astronauts to our planet's moon...And we have sent a lot of satellites and probes to other celestial bodies in the solar system...But that's literally it.” She eyed General Hux. “We can't blow up planets or stars yet. But, speaking as a Terran who specializes in fuels and chemical energy sources, we do have the means to blow each other up, which we do pretty often! We even have nuclear weapons capable of rendering our planet completely uninhabitable if we aren't careful. Pretty appalling, if you ask me!”

“Hmmm...” General Hux leaned forward on his elbows, resting his chin atop his folded hands. “It sounds as though Silver River is ripe for conquest.”

Melanie giggled. General Hux was certainly as creepy as she remembered, though. “Hold up, Space Nazi,” she teased, “Maybe my people can't do the star thing yet, but we could still rough you up a little! Plus, I have a kitty back home...So if you mess with him, I will mess with you, too!”

The man seated beside Hux leapt to his feet, slamming both palms of his hands hard on the surface of the table. “You impertinent child!! How dare you threaten our general?!!”

“Calm down, Lieutenant. She is already a captive. She hardly poses a threat to anyone. Besides...” Hux smirked. “Something tells me she is not combat-trained.”

“You are correct, sir!” Melanie chirped.

Suddenly, an armored soldier trotted over from the corner. He leaned over to Secretary Revik and whispered in her pointed ear. She sighed heavily.

“My apologies, General. I did not wish to interrupt your conference with the Terran, but it appears that there is a situation on the command deck that you alone can attend to.”

“Ah, well. If it cannot be helped.” General Hux stood slowly, clapping a hand on the Lieutenant's shoulder. “Captain Phasma should be up shortly, so I will leave her in charge of finishing the interrogation. See to it that you record the Terrans answers completely.”

“Yes, General.”

---

Melanie breezed through the rest of her interview with Captain Phasma, who actually removed her helmet for its duration. After answering a variety of questions such as “is all of Terra united under a single government” and “does Terra have knowledge of life outside of their planet”, the meeting was finally adjourned. All of the First Order officials present, save Phasma and a few other armored soldiers, cleaned up their belongings and left the room.

Phasma moved to the front of the room, and addressed Frank directly. “We request that you and the other Ethereum join us in the mess hall for lunch,” she said. “Our Supreme Leader Snoke will want to you to introduce the Terran to his protege, Commander Ren. Afterwards, you are free to leave the vessel.”

Melanie grinned. “Commander Ren, you say?”

“Yes.” Phasma's blue eyes sparkled with mirth, though she remained complacent overall. “It will be interesting to see you both....interact.”

Frank exuded worry from every nonexistent pore. “Commander Ren is known for his short fuse. You must behave, Melanie.”

Melanie's grin widened further, if humanly possible. “Can't make any promises,” she said.

Kylo Ren was Melanie's absolute favorite Star Wars character, and she already had a plan brewing. Their first face-to-face meeting would assuredly be unforgettable, for all parties involved.

[junker-town]

Oklahoma State might be the most fun football team on the planet. That’s ... good and bad.

Defense will determine whether this is a Playoff contender or an explosive team with a suddenly interesting head coach.

For coaches, media season begins each July. That’s when the Media Days gatherings are initiated, the words “Bristol Car Wash” become an ESPN term everybody accepts, and coaches show up on your television again.

For the most part, these coaches look the same as they did. Creating a personal style is down the list of head coach priorities, behind things like “calling 17-year-olds at midnight, the moment a dead period ends,” “giving the proper fake smile to that one booster who knows what you need to do to fix your offense,” and “judging the latest edit on the season ticket hype video.”

“Typically” doesn’t mean “always,” however.

Long story short, Mike Gundy reappeared in the public eye last July sporting the beginnings of a mullet. By the end of the season, it had taken glorious form. And so far this offseason, he has donned a singlet for the OSU wrestling team and gone rattlesnake hunting during the OSU basketball team’s NCAA Tournament game.

After years of keeping it pent up and out of the public eye, Gundy is letting his Okie freak flag fly. And it’s rubbing off on his team.

Last fall, six FBS offenses racked up fewer than four passes of 40-plus yards: Army, BYU, Minnesota, San Diego State, Wisconsin, and Tulane. Five of these teams went to bowl games, one won its conference (SDSU), and another won its division (Wisconsin). Long bombs aren’t a requisite for success, but they were are fun.

Oklahoma State, meanwhile, had four passes of 80-plus yards.

Since 2010, only one other FBS team had done that (2014 Washington State). Two of OSU’s came in maybe the most underrated-ly crazy game of the season, a 45-38 win over Pitt; the Cowboys scored on a 91-yard bomb 16 seconds in, then set up the game-winner with an 86-yard bomb in the last two minutes.

Quarterback Mason Rudolph throws a lovely deep ball, and Gundy and coordinator Mike Yurcich have elected to use it. In 2015, Rudolph averaged 14.3 yards per completion with a 62 percent completion rate and a 2.1 percent interception rate. In 2016, Rudolph averaged 14.4 per completion, completed 63 percent, and threw just four picks all year, an INT rate of 0.9 percent.

“Screw it, we’re going deep” is the most enjoyable philosophy possible, especially if you have no rooting interest in the outcome. It’s going to be a massive success or a massive failure, and either way, explosions are fun. But for OSU in 2016, it was mostly successful. The Pokes ranked in the Off. S&P+ top 10 for the first time since 2012 and won at least 10 games for the fifth time in seven years.

After a slow start — sandwiching the win over Pitt were a 35-24 loss at Baylor and a 30-27 “loss” to Central Michigan that left OSU 2-2 — the Pokes ignited. They ripped off a seven-game streak, scoring at least 37 in six of those games and allowing 20 or fewer in three. And following a 38-20 loss at Oklahoma in the Big 12’s de facto championship, they responded by destroying Pac-12 runner-up Colorado, 38-8, in the Alamo Bowl.

The defense was up and down, but the offense just kept getting better. The Cowboys averaged 5.8 yards per play in their first four games, 6.4 in their next four, and 7.8 in their last five.

Those early bombs forced safeties to play really deep, and the emergence of freshman running back Justice Hill and senior Chris Carson (combined average: 212.5 rushing yards per game and 7.1 yards per carry over the final four games) created the ultimate pick-your-poison situation.

After years of seeing his name linked to other jobs, Gundy spent 2016 acting like a professor with tenure, like a man comfortable with who he is and what he wants his team to be. And while he has a couple of weapons to replace — Carson, Seales, and all-conference tackle Victor Salako — he has as many proven weapons returning as anyone. Rudolph, Washington, and Hill are back. So are junior possession receiver Jalen McCleskey and Marcell Ateman, who averaged 17 yards per catch in 2015. This is a terrifying offense.

Unfortunately, the Pokes have to play defense, too. That’s been an issue. After surging to ninth in Def. S&P+ in 2013, Glenn Spencer’s unit has ranked 76th, 70th, and 67th the last three years. And now the Cowboys have to replace four of their top six defensive backs and two of their top three running backs.

With this offense, it won’t take an incredible defense to make OSU a Big 12 contender, but it will probably take a top-50 performance. That’s far from a given.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Gundy

2016 in review

2016 OSU statistical profile.

OSU’s 2016 took on a similar shape to its 2013; that year, the Pokes lost to four-win West Virginia early on and looked only alright in wins over Kansas State and TCU. But they scored at least 38 points in five straight games, obliterated undefeated Baylor on national television, and reached the Cotton Bowl on the power of a seven-game streak.

Granted, that 2013 team had a good defense. But the flow of the season was nearly identical.

First 4 games (2-2): Avg. percentile performance: 56% (~top 55) | Avg. score: OSU 39, Opp 28 (plus-11) | Avg. yards per play: Opp 6.0, OSU 5.8 (minus-0.2)

Next 4 games (4-0): Avg. percentile performance: 68% (~top 40) | Avg. score: OSU 42, Opp 26 (plus-16) | Avg. yards per play: OSU 6.4, Opp 5.9 (plus-0.5)

Last 5 games (4-1): Avg. percentile performance: 78% (~top 30) | Avg. score: OSU 35, Opp 27 (plus-8) | Avg. yards per play: OSU 7.8 Opp 5.9 (plus-1.9)

The offense trended upward, and the defense stayed almost exactly the same. When the Pokes scored 30 points, they won. When they didn’t, they lost.

Offense

Full advanced stats glossary.

The OSU offense occasionally falls apart and has to get put back together. In 2009, after two seasons in the Off. S&P+ top five, the Pokes fell to 48th. And after ranking fifth, first, eighth, and 20th from 2010-13, they plummeted to 78th in 2014.

In 2015, Rudolph took over, and the passing game flourished. OSU ranked 18th in Passing S&P+ but was held back by a miserable run game (114th in Rushing S&P+). Midway through 2016, the run game found its place again.

It took a little while. Rennie Childs struggled all year, and Carson missed a few games early in the season. But Carson and Hill formed quite the thunder-and-lightning pair late, and after a couple of shaky seasons, the OSU line began to look like the line of the early 2010s.

This isn’t an “Every contributor returns!” situation, but enough do. Up front, left tackle Victor Salako is gone, but he’ll likely be replaced by 6’8 Cal transfer Aaron Cochran, who started 16 games for the Golden Bears. Three other seniors should grace the lineup, along with guard Marcus Keyes, who was honorable mention all-conference as a freshman.

That will make Hill’s job pretty easy. The mid-three-star sophomore combined decent efficiency with some big-play pop, and with him next to Rudolph in the backfield, the OSU run game should take advantage of defenses distracted by the threat of the deep ball. There’s concern if Hill goes down — Carson, Childs, and Barry J. Sanders are gone, and the backup will likely be a true freshman (Chuba Hubbard) — but at worst, the Pokes will be able to lean on one of the nation’s best passing attacks.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Justice Hill

Mason Rudolph's TD to INT ratio in 2016: 28 to 4! That's insane for any number of reasons.

The 28 touchdowns were in the nation's top 20.

Rudolph was the only QB to throw more than 400 passes and fewer than five picks. Hell, only one other did that in 300 passes (WMU's Zach Terrell).

He was also one of only 10 qualifying quarterback to average at least 9 yards per pass.

Two of the interceptions happened in one game! Kansas State picked him off twice in a game in which he otherwise completed 29 passes for 457 yards, five touchdowns, and a 210.2 passer rating.

You're just not supposed to be able to throw this aggressively while remaining this mistake-free. You’re not supposed to be able to do it after losing one of your best receivers to injury before the season. Marcell Ateman sat out the year with a foot issue; he averaged 17 yards per catch with a 64 percent catch rate in 2015, and he’s back. So, too, is maybe the most fun receiver in the country.

Over his last 22 games, James Washington has posted at least 100 receiving yards in 11. Against Texas Tech in back-to-back weeks in 2015, he caught nine passes for 384 yards. He caught nine for 296 against Pitt last September. He had nine for 171 in the bowl romp over Colorado and its awesome secondary.

OSU’s passing game slowed down over the last two weeks of the regular season — Rudolph completed just 28 of 59 passes with one touchdown against TCU and Oklahoma — but the Pokes still scored 51 points in those contests because the run game had also perked up. Ateman’s return and the addition of LSU transfer and former blue-chipper Tyron Johnson make this pass attack even more explosive, but the efficiency aspect could still use some work at times. That’s where possession options like McCleskey and Chris Lacy come into play.

Being able to throw the deep ball like this opens up so many other options. By the end of the season, Yurcich was exploring all of them. He should have a lot of fun pulling the strings this fall. As long as Hill doesn’t get hurt, anyway.

Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

Marcell Ateman

Defense

Gundy has no problem taking risks. In 2013, he had to replace offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who had taken the Southern Miss head coaching job; he ended up choosing Shippensburg OC Mike Yurcich because of stats he found online. That same offseason, he replaced seasoned defensive coordinator Bill Young after four straight seasons of good, but not good enough, defense.

OSU had ranked between 20th and 43rd in Def. S&P+ from 2009-12, but Gundy was aiming higher. He promoted Glenn Spencer from LBs coach, and a more aggressive defense surged to ninth. Great move!

The next year, OSU fell out of the top 60. The Pokes have yet to return.

The individual talent has still been there to some degree, but the product has been lacking. And while the Pokes were aggressive against the run last year — 22nd in stuff rate, 12th in power success rate — they were also flexible against the pass. Opponents’ passing success rate was 46.2 percent (115th in FBS), their completion rate 61 percent (92nd).

OSU was just about as good as ever on passing downs (23rd in PD S&P+) but awful at forcing them (86th in Standard Downs S&P+). And now the Pokes have to replace a lot of last year’s most productive players, including a pair of defensive tackles (Vincent Taylor and Motekiai Maile) who combined for a lot of that disruption.

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Tralund Webber

If junior tackle Darrion Daniels begins to prove his four-star recruiting ranking, that will solve one problem. OSU has a nice set of ends in Cole Walterscheid, Jarrell Owens, and Tralund Webber (combined: 20 TFLs, 10.5 sacks), and senior tackle DeQuinton Osborne is an all-or-nothing force in the middle — 5.5 of his 11 tackles were behind the line. But Daniels will be counted on for down-to-down consistency.

If the tackles hold up, then middle linebacker Chad Whitener should be capable of cleaning up in the tackles department, and I’m not too worried about the Cowboys having to lean on career backups like Justin Phillips and Kenneth Edison-McGruder or youngsters like Kevin Henry or Calvin Bundage at linebacker.

I do have a few concerns about the secondary, though. Granted, replacing pieces of an iffy unit isn’t as scary as replacing All-Americans, but this was a shaky secondary with safety Jordan Sterns and corners Lenzy Pipkins and Ashton Lampkin.

The safety position, guided by seniors Ramon Richards and Tre Flowers, is probably fine. But OSU will desperately need Clemson transfer Adrian Baker to dominate from the get-go. And even if that comes to pass, the Pokes will still be ultra green at the other corner spot(s), likely relying on unproven options like sophomores Madre Harper and A.J. Green or a career reserve like Darius Curry. Maybe new blood brings new energy. Or maybe this is the biggest question mark on the OSU defense for a second year in a row.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Adrian Baker

Special Teams

Even with a dreadfully inefficient pass defense (in a pass-heavy conference), the combination offensive firepower and a couple of huge legs nearly made Oklahoma State the best field position team in the country last year. The Cowboys’ average starting field position was 8.8 yards better than their opponents’; only Michigan (plus-9.1) could top that.

The legs are back. Zach Sinor averaged 42.8 yards per punt, and only 16 of his 56 punts were returnable. Better yet, those 16 returns netted a total of 15 yards. Meanwhile, nearly half of Matt Ammendola’s kickoffs resulted in touchbacks, and opponents averaged only 17.9 yards per return (13th in FBS) on the others. Sinor’s a junior, and Ammendola’s a sophomore, so this isn’t going to change for a while.

(It would help if Ammendola is as effective in the place-kicking department. He likely takes over for Ben Grogan this year.)

2017 outlook

2017 Schedule & Projection Factors

Date Opponent Proj. S&P+ Rk Proj. Margin Win Probability 2-Sep Tulsa 77 17.8 85% 9-Sep at South Alabama 108 21.6 89% 16-Sep at Pittsburgh 33 2.4 56% 23-Sep TCU 21 2.3 55% 30-Sep at Texas Tech 66 8.0 68% 14-Oct Baylor 28 6.2 64% 21-Oct at Texas 16 -4.5 40% 28-Oct at West Virginia 69 9.6 71% 4-Nov Oklahoma 5 -7.6 33% 11-Nov at Iowa State 57 6.8 65% 18-Nov Kansas State 35 7.8 67% 25-Nov Kansas 107 26.4 94%

Projected S&P+ Rk 22 Proj. Off. / Def. Rk 3 / 69 Projected wins 7.9 Five-Year S&P+ Rk 9.9 (25) 2- and 5-Year Recruiting Rk 40 / 36 2016 TO Margin / Adj. TO Margin* 11 / 8.5 2016 TO Luck/Game +1.0 Returning Production (Off. / Def.) 67% (78%, 56%) 2016 Second-order wins (difference) 9.3 (0.7)

Engage in a shootout with the Cowboys at your own risk. As constituted (i.e. without taking potential injuries into account), this is a top-five offense. I have concerns about running back depth, but you never know how, when, or where a team’s depth will be tested.

Combining an elite offense with powerful field position weapons in special teams gives you the makings of a Big 12 contender. But the defense has to figure out a way to improve despite turnover at defensive tackle, outside linebacker, and cornerback.

OSU was ninth in Off. S&P+ and 67th in Def. S&P+ a year ago; the Cowboys are projected third and 69th, respectively, this fall. Make that more like third and 50th, and that potentially makes them a favorite in 11 of 12 games this fall. There are plenty of challenges — trips to Pitt, Texas, West Virginia, Iowa State, and Texas Tech, plus visits from Tulsa, Oklahoma, TCU, etc. — but OSU can go blow for blow with anybody on the schedule. A small handful of stops could be the difference between 8-4 and 11-1.

Team preview stats

All preview data to date.

[lexveryreal]

that other oc... heh... let's just say bro isnt simply an alamo oc

she technically was involved in the alamo tho

even heard of refraction au? it's basically that i'll explain later

hm something something math something uhhh anyways william davis drawings

had to crop out the text on the right cuz no spoilers 😼

HUAHASHHHZZZ my only oc that i actually wrote abt and have fully fledged lore on and actually have a plot for 😭🙏

but he's so silly i love drawing him

bonus feature he's in the MIDDLE of the math notes

(next to another oc that may or may NOT be an alamo oc hmm idk)