#and he is spending millions on the meteorites

[layla4567]

The stars are closer

Loki x female reader

Summary: You spend a pleasant night stargazing with Loki

Warnings: none i guess, fluff that rots teeth

WC: 832 (short but soft drabble)

A/N: inspired by the song "all the stars" by kendrick lamar and "car's outside" by james arthur

Loki was on the balcony of his room, resting his arms on the railing, contemplating the dark night dotted with stars and a fat, white moon serving as a spotlight above his head. Suddenly he saw you standing in the middle of the patio surrounded by tall pine trees, you seemed to be contemplating the infinite sky wanting to count the millions of stars.

Loki left his room and went to the patio where you were, it was a little cool but it wasn't freezing. Stealthy as a cat, he approached your side, not wanting to interrupt your silent ritual. You had your gaze lost in the stars and your eyes shone with the same intensity as them. Every once in a while your mouth twists into an open smile. Loki loved seeing you like this, so happy with something simple, he could feel the tranquility and emotion that your body emanated. He decided to break that spell that had you trapped by clearing his throat slightly.

"It's a beautiful night today, right?"

You were startled when you heard his deep voice very close to you and you turned to look at him, a wave of shame lightly enveloped you.

He laughed softly "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"You didn't scare me".You said downplaying it and shrugging your shoulders. "I just wanted to see the stars, they are very bright today"

"You're right"

But Loki was not looking at the sky but at you, you were his most beautiful and bright star and he had you right by his side. He loved how your eyes seemed to contain the entire galaxy in two fragile pupils and how your mouth opened slightly in amazement when you found a new constellation.

Oh darlin all of the citylights, never shined as bright as your eyes

"Look at that star, it's very bright!".You said pointing a finger towards a part of the sky.

"It's not the brightest".He said without stopping to see you

"No? And for you, which one is the brightest?"

Oh if you knew that I already have it in front of me

Loki looked at the sky trying to look for a brighter star although he knew it would be impossible, suddenly he pointed his finger at any star.

"That one over there"

You looked where his finger was pointing and smiled, you didn't think it was that bright but it was nice.

"it's quite pretty"

"I think so...".Loki said smiling at you.

Suddenly you thought you saw something passing quickly through the night sky, like a trail of fiery and fast light.

"Look darling at a shooting star, make a quick wish my dear"

You gasped and quickly squeezed your eyes shut and wrinkled your nose trying to think of a nice wish, Loki laughed at the look of concentration on your face. He also silently closed his eyes and thought of a wish that would involve you for all eternity. Almost at the same time you two opened your eyes.

"Loki.."

"Mmh?"

"Did you also make a wish?"

"Yes dear, these Midgardian traditions can be interesting sometimes"

You laughed softly. "And what did you wish for?"

Loki raised a finger and moved it from right to left. "I won't tell you, miss naughty, or else the wish won't come true."

"You're a fast learner"

Suddenly a cooler breeze began to blow and since you had not brought any jacket you began to feel cold in your arms, you surreptitiously hugged yourself to give yourself warmth but Loki noticed your tremors and taking off his green cloak he placed it on your shoulders lovingly.

"No Loki, there's no need"

"Please darling, I insist"

You both sat on the grass curled up, you rested your head on his shoulder and he put his arm around your waist and kissed your hair. The night couldn't be more perfect and suddenly thousands of stars seemed to fall from the sky, but they weren't stars, they were meteorites. An enormous shower of small meteorites crossed the sky quickly as if it were a race, just a fleeting flash and then they went out. You and Loki lay down on the fine grass and linked your hands, admiring the landscape while the pine trees surrounded you and served as protection. You suddenly turned your head to see Loki.

"Loki tell me the truth.."

He looked at you confused.

"That wasn't the brightest star you saw, was it?"

He smiled softly. "The truth is no… because I'm seeing the brightest star right now."

His confession took you by surprise and you opened your eyes and raised your eyebrows, but then your face relaxed and you smiled until wrinkles appeared on the sides of your eyes. You brought your face closer to his, almost touching your noses. You couldn't contain yourself any longer and crashed your lips against his. While the stars, meteorites, the moon and the entire universe were silent spectators of your infinite love

[lesliesknopes]

We can be heroes just for one day

aka what if Chimney was struck by lightning.

maddie/chimney | rated t | chapter 2/2 | 10k words

Chimney was well acquainted with the knowledge of freak accidents. It was hard not to when his (hopefully) soon to be brother in law had a habit of turning into a walking encyclopaedia of useless knowledge whenever Chimney went near.

The odds of having a vending machine fall on you and inevitably crush you to death were 1 in 112 million.

The odds of being killed by a meteorite were 1 in 250 thousand.

The odds of being struck by lightning were 1 in 10 million however, as Buck made sure to add the jury was still out on that one and many people have disputed the statistic.

Usually Chimney took comfort in these statistics because the chances of these accidents ever happening to him were so slim that spending your life worrying about them would ultimately turn out to be a waste of time.

Especially if you were to look at the odds of being born - 1 in 400 trillion (again, thank you Buck). Why would you waste your life worrying about dying when it could almost be considered a miracle that you were born in the first place. No scrap that it was a miracle that you were born and Chimney had been witness to many miracles in his time.

That thought paired with the knowledge that ninety percent of people survive getting struck by lightning made it even more comforting.

So, earlier that morning when he and Hen squashed together on the couch, flicking through the channels on the TV, they settled on the news channel to watch the weather. They purposely made sure to stay clear of Channel 8 (the last time they had it on Buck had walked into the loft, stared dead ahead at the TV where she was presenting and promptly walked out without saying a single word).

Anyway on the news channels they had chosen, which wasn’t channel 8, the presenter was a blonde woman with crumpled shoulder length hair and she wore a purple floral dress with a skirt that bounced with every step that she took which was a lot. He had never seen someone so incredibly impassioned over the weather and constantly moving from the left of the screen to the right.

She must be new. Must be.

He was so distracted by her exaggerated hand movements and body language he managed to miss half of what she was saying and only managed to catch the ending. Something about how there was a big storm forecasted to hit the city later that evening and all citizens were to be advised to be extra cautious.

Not that he was worried about missing the rest because he could just quiz Hen on it when the report finished.

Her massive, and beginning to become overwhelming smile never left her face as she continued to communicate the dangers of the storm. Saying the words destruction and harm with the worlds biggest smile on her face caused for Chimney to shuffle unnervingly in his seat and he wondered for a good second if her face was just stuck like that, like she was part of one of those childhood stories adults told their children to stop them from pulling funny faces.

If you keep pulling that face you will get stuck like that.

read more on ao3

[catboyebooks]

i doubt this is a shock to anybody (if it is, are you like new here or something?) but i decided to spend free time with komaeda once again. though i remembered the info we learn from this scene, i didn't really remember the scene itself, and of course this is another interesting one.

first, the two of them spend some time talking and hanging out in the strawberry house, which i wanted to mention because the previous couple of hangout sessions have been rather more awkward (there was one where they just stared at each other and then another where komaeda did most of the talking and hinata found it frustrating to listen to).

once the actual scene starts, komaeda tells hinata he's really happy that hinata still wants to spend time with him after getting to know him better. hinata's like, hey, don't get the wrong idea, i'm just afraid to leave you alone because i still don't get what your deal is. komaeda says, well, it takes a lot of courage to try and understand something you can't make sense of, you definitely embody hope, your talent must be really cool, i wanna find out what it is asap, etc. hinata doesn't really seem to want to talk about this because he says "who cares about me, let's talk about you" and komaeda agrees, cracks a joke about how he'll start by talking about his own birth, then gets serious and says he wants to ask hinata something first. what does hinata think good luck is?

this is multiple-choice. the options are "the opposite of bad luck," "being lucky," and "absolute power." as may be clear from the fact that we already know komaeda's good luck is not the opposite of bad luck and the second answer is a non-answer, "absolute power" is correct. this is where things start to get really interesting.

when hinata gives this answer komaeda says that yes, his good luck is a form of absolute power, but since he can't actually control his luck it often winds up having "terrible results" for him. to try and explain, he gives hinata a few examples of how his luck cycle works, but this time they're personal examples rather than hypotheticals.

his first anecdote is about how when he was an elementary schooler, his family took a trip to the dominican republic. the airplane was hijacked (bad luck) but then a small meteorite fell from the sky and struck the hijacker, killing him (good luck) but also killing komaeda's parents (bad luck), but komaeda himself was fine and inherited all his parents' money (good luck). he recounts this story in an upbeat tone, as though he's really convinced himself that the entire sequence of events worked out just fine in the end. hinata doesn't really know how to react.

the second anecdote is about how when he was in middle school a murderer kidnapped him (bad luck), but he found a lottery ticket in the trash bag the murderer stuffed him in. once the police rescued him, he decided to check the numbers on the ticket and discovered he'd won $300 million (good luck).

komaeda then starts into a final example of something that happened to him right before starting at hope's peak (this must be him getting diagnosed with lymphoma and FTD) but then stops himself and says he shouldn't tell this story, he doesn't want to burden hinata with his "pointless situation." he then laughs it off and walks away.

hinata comments in his narration that he still feels like he doesn't know much about komaeda, but he at least gets what the hope fixation is about and thinks it's understandable, all things considered.

going to add some more thoughts to this in a reblog, hang on

[ledenews]

How to Write a Song By Adrian Niles

The singer/songwriter composes in his mind constantly while doing the day job, and he’s been known to record a video or two playing those tunes and sharing them on his “music” Facebook page. The inspiration comes from just about anything. Sunny days and gloomy ones, too, and history, architecture, cracked sidewalks, and, at times, how another person’s story relates to the one he’s been writing since he first picked up a guitar at age 8. “That doesn’t mean it’s not garbage,” insisted local performer Adrian Niles. “Because most of it is, but that’s just part of the writing process.” Fellow musicians ask Niles about his process from time to time but he never answers. Never. It’s not because it doesn’t want to. He would if he could.  “I really don’t know how to answer that question because there are times when I try to write a song and yeah, it’s just not that good. Then there are other times, though, when what I write comes out pretty cool,” Niles said. “OK, so this past Sunday I was sitting there just flipping through Facebook and I saw this picture of this meteor crater that a lot of people think it was formed 50,000 years ago out in Arizona. Something clicked in my head. I knew I needed to know more about it, but I didn’t know why. “I thought there was something there for me, so I did a little more research and I found out about the dude that bought the property where the crater is,” he said. “It turned out that the guy had millions of dollars but he spent it all trying to find something worth something in that crater and he ended up spending his entire fortune on it back in the early 1900s. He was searching for the meteorite and he spent all of his money." OK, so? “I ended up writing a song.” But why? “Well, when I thought about it … that he lost everything trying to find something … I thought, aren’t we all just doing that during our lifetimes? It’s about finding the right way to live your life and have a good time doing it, right? So, that’s why I wrote a song about that man and his search for something.  “A lot of people told him it was a dead volcano, but he knew there was more than that,” Niles said. “He ended up losing all of his money trying to find out." This is the news report someone shared on Facebook about "Meteor Crater" in Arizona. Powered by Steam The miner’s name was Daniel Moreau Barringer, and “Meteor Crater” now is the most protected meteor impact zone in the world.  Barringer, according to the article published five years ago, spent 27 years searching for the actual meteorite but passed away before his theory was proven. His decedents, however, have realized the crater’s true worth. The entrance to the “Meteor Crater’s” visitor’s center is a mere 36 miles east of Phoenix, Ariz., and a trip to the oddly smooth crater bottom will take a person 600 feet below the surface. The site is open 12 months per year and at this time of year it is open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Admission is $18 for adults, $9 for those 6 to 17 years old, and free for children younger than 5. “He believed there was something but never found out for himself,” Niles concluded. “That seems to happen a lot.” Here are the lyrics Niles’ ode to Mr. Barringer: Fireball  I got a trailer near a crater one mile wide I rode a wild wooly mammoth here but he died I hung his skull on my wall and I sold his hide to the spirit of the fireball that fell from the sky The moon is made of paper and the sun is a dream That’s what the dust tells me when it hits the bloodstream  A prospector by trade, but a sculptor at heart The fireball fell a long way from a distant ark that sailed the cosmic sea, it tore him apart, and scattered his many oddities into the deep dark The stars are neurons and the mind is a galaxy That’s what the dust tells me when it hits the bloodstream  I’ve a map in a box where I keep a few tools A shovel, a telescope and my rocket fuel I’m searching the desert land hot dry and cruel for the fireball out here somewhere underground keeping cool The mountains are a spaceship powered by steam That’s what the dust tells me when it hits the bloodstream Niles (on right) has been a live performer in the Upper Ohio Valley for the past three decades. One Tale and Then Another That was Sunday when Niles wrote “Fireball,” and, well, that was days ago now. Niles has written a few more since and , truth be told, an audience may never hear Niles perform “Fireball” during one of his shows.  “That’s just the way it goes when it comes to me and music. I write it, put it to music and may even record it and put it out there, but who knows from there,” he explained. “It’s all part of the process. You just don’t really write a song, but that’s not something I can’t explain to anyone.” BUT!  But if he is asked the question, “How do you go about writing a song?,” his best answer goes a little something like this:  “What I would tell someone is that they have to write a bunch and it will all be terrible,” Niles said. “That’s what I did for many, many years, and sometimes I think I’m still in that stage because I do have periods of time when everything is garbage. But then something comes and you just know. “You have to open up yourself to the possibility of a song. That’s all you can do. I don’t think you can just sit down to write a song. That’s not how it happens, at least not for me,” he said. “If you do, I would think it’s going to sound like some pop-music garbage and we have enough of that in the world. Instead, you just have to let it go and let it come.” Read the full article

[rabbitcruiser]

National Collect Rocks Day

Collect Rocks Day is on September 16 and we are already getting our tools ready to start digging and collecting. This day allows us to have a nice day out but also learn more about the planet we inhabit and how it’s formed. Here are some ideas on how to celebrate this day.

History of National Collect Rocks Day

The history of Collect Rocks Day can be traced back to two main subjects: 1) the history of our home — Earth and 2) the history of the science that studies the solids, liquids, and gases that constitute our planet — geology.

It’s difficult to give a brief explanation of how Earth was formed so we’re going to skip forward a few million years and learn about geology. After all, this is more in tune with the day we want to celebrate. Humanity has always been curious about how rocks are formed. Ancient civilizations would find explanations that were based more on superstition than scientific rigor.

James Hutton is considered by many to be the first geologist. He was a doctor and farmer who retired to dedicate his time to study the formation of rocks. He disputed some popular beliefs amongst the scientific community around the assertion that all rocks were formed under the sea.

By the 20th century, studies in geology helped push theories about the exact age of planet Earth and how continents were shaped. Advances in this science have been so great that humans not only study the formation of rocks on Earth but also on other celestial bodies such as the Moon.  Geology has contributed a body of knowledge that helps us understand the planet we inhabit and the effects our activities have on it.

Collect Rocks Day timeline

1741Geology is First Taught

The National Museum of Natural History in France creates the first courses specializing in geology.

1788James Hutton Publishes, “Theory of the Earth”

This is a ground-breaking publication intending to show that the formation of Earth was a product of natural forces.

1969The First Lunar Sample Return

Collect Rocks Day is taken to another level by Apollo 11 astronauts who bring back the first samples of lunar rocks.

2015An Official Celebration

Collect Rocks Day is celebrated for the first time.

Collect Rocks Day FAQs

Is it the same as Earth Day?

No. Earth Day is observed on April 22.

Do museums give discounts for this day?

This will entirely depend on the institution you are visiting. Be sure to check their website.

Are all rocks safe to pick up?  

Bear in mind that picking up rocks in protected natural reserves may be against the law.

How to celebrate Collect Rocks Day

Visit a natural history museum

Get your hands dirty

Get creative

Museums are informative and fun! Schedule a trip to your nearest museum on this day.

Whether it’s collecting pebbles for home decorations or digging rocks in the backyard, we are certain it will be a good time.

There are many ways to display your findings. How about spending an afternoon painting rocks?

5 Solid Facts About Rocks

There are three different types of rocks

Space rocks crash on earth

There’s gold and silver in some of them

Humans have always used rocks

Some of them come from lava

Igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.

That shooting star you saw? It was a meteorite falling to earth.

These rocks are called ore.

Early humans made weapons with them — now, we make everything from writing tools to construction materials

Igneous rocks come from molten magma that has cooled down.

Why we love Collect Rocks Day

It gives us an opportunity to learn about our planet

Everyone can find an activity to do

It’s a great way to introduce kids to geology

And that’s the perfect way to understand why it’s so special and in need of care.

It doesn’t matter how old you are, Collect Rocks Day can be enjoyed by everyone. Kids might attend geology-focused lessons in school but adults can enjoy a relaxing rock-picking stroll.

Celebrating the importance of geology might inspire a few young ones to pursue it later in life.

Source

[helliontherapscallion]

pspspsp can I just request an immortal reader who's life is just dull/sad as hell since they've seen their loved ones leave or die in front of them so many times

but when they meet SBI or anyone, their life just suddenly brightens up? (Platonic and it can be any type of fic!)

(A/N): I got waaaayy too carried away with this. Star god reader my beloved (also, I’d imagine that your cloak looks like this guy’s but on the inside with the outsides being any color of your choice (credit goes to original artist))

If you want more god!reader content with the dream smp, @wooloo-inc has a really good series about a male!nature god!reader (aka, the god of dilf collection)

In the beginning when DreamXD created you (which if you think about it, that makes him your father, but I digress) from stardust and meteorite shards, you were a ball of fun loving sunshine (well, starshine?)

You loved watching over all of humankind, admiring their determination and bonds with other humans (both romantic and platonic)

Your older brother, the god of the moon, told you about how they viewed you and you were amazed

“Oberon?” You ran up to your older brother and tugged on his cloak making him hum in question, not looking up from his parchment scroll. “What- what do the humans think of me?”

He scoffed and glanced at you with his lily white irises, “why are you on about them again? They are lowly creatures compared to us, filled with greed and misfortune.”

“They worship us and that’s how you speak of them?”

“(Y/n) believe me, you have not seen the brutality they are capable of. War, famine, greed, plague, genocide, it’s all something you have not witnessed before. You have only seen the good in those things.” 

“But Oberon, I wanna-” he lightly smacked the side of your head, “use proper English. We are gods and you will behave as such.”

You huffed, “I want to know about how they view us! I do not care about the bad things they have done! Plleeeaaassseeeeeee Beri?” You willed the stars that constantly gleamed in your eyes to shine brighter as you fluttered your eyelashes at him. He may seem like he hated everyone and everything (especially his siblings), but he had a soft spot for his youngest sibling. He just stared at you for a bit before he sighed and shifted in the massive throne so that you could hop up onto his lap. With a wave of a slender pale hand, he conjured up various images of humans with stardust gazing at the stars and the moon with carefree swipes of his hand. 

“They view us as… poetic of sorts. They compare us to romance,” an image of two human males kissing then gazing into the stars laying down on a cliff came into view, “fortune tellers,” an image of the Aquarius and the Capricorn constellations popped up making you squeal in happiness. He chucked and changed the picture to a mother and son standing over a grave looking up in amazement at a shooting star, “and most importantly, as a sign of hope. 

“They see us as complementary, the moon and the stars cannot be as beautiful without the other. We hold the power of the night and everything it touches, (y/n). This is our kingdom, do not forget that,” the image changed to the moon surrounded by stars and swirling blues and purples of nebulas.

You looked at the images with awe, absorbing every word that fell from his mouth. “Beri?” He once again hummed, his deep baritone voice sending vibrations along your back. “Will we be together forever?”

His lanky arms wrapped around your much smaller frame, “for all of eternity. The moon is nothing without the night sky and all of the stars it holds.”

Centuries passed and your fascination with humans only grew from there

When you eventually asked if you could meet a human Oberon reacted angrily and forbade you from speaking of humans again in your shared palace, worried for your safety

When he caught you attempting to sneak out, he locked you in your room for months on end

Humans wondered why the stars hardly appeared in the night sky anymore, forming the theory that they had somehow angered you

They prayed to you more and more, begging and groveling for forgiveness

They left more offerings at shrines

You heard their every word, feeling your heartbreak with sorrow and guilt for your lovely humans

You snuck out of the palace that night determined to make it up to the humans

You quietly snuck past the main room where you and Oberon used to sit on your thrones together and control the night. The large doors were cracked open showing your older brother watching the night with boredom. As you passed, his voice startled you, “I just cannot stop you can I?”

He appeared in the doorframe looking at you emotionlessly, his eyes glinting with hidden pain. “Do you realize how cruel of a place that world is? How cruel humans are?”

“I do not care, brother! They are in anguish because they think I am angry with them! Because you locked me in here!”

“I have told you time and time again, they are ruthless creatures. Humans are constantly clashing with their own kind for the slightest bit of power, they’re greedy creatures! Have you forgotten what happened to Arachnia?”

A shiver went down your spine at the mention of your fellow deity. She wanted to be with humans but they stripped her of her grace and virtuosity, torturing her when the moon would rise. That is the reason spiders attack humans in the night when the moon and stars show themselves and are dormant in the daytime. However, that did not deter you. 

“I have not forgotten what happened to Arachnia, her tale fills me with grief. But not all humans are like that! They are compassionate, loving, and sweet creatures deep down, each and every single one of them!”

“They were not showing compassion or love when they tore Arachnia limb from limb! When they languish in riches while millions die around them! What part of that is compassionate?”

“Sure they do bad things sometimes, but have you forgotten the love they hold for each other? The determination and hope shining from within them when they pray to us? Have you forgotten that?”

“THEIR ACTIONS ARE NOT JUSTIFIED IN ANY WAY!”

“AND OURS ARE? YOU ARE BLIND, OBERON. HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN THE CRUELTY THE GODS HAVE SUBJECTED HUMANS TO? WHEN OUR FATHER TOOK YEARS AWAY FROM THEIR LIFESPANS SOLELY BECAUSE THEY STOPPED WORSHIPPING HIM AS OFTEN AS THEY USED TO? WHAT PART OF THAT IS JUSTIFIED?” 

He just stared at you with angry irises and his chest heaving before he ran a hand through his long ivory hair and turned around, the flowing white cape flowing wildly behind him with unseen air. He walked back into the observation room and back to his throne. Without a second glance to you, he worked on the transition of power between the sun and moon. You could imagine your sister Aelia grinning brightly as she rose the sun for the day.

“You are to never return here if you step foot out that door. You will still have control of your duties of the night. However you will never return. Do not come back groveling for forgiveness when I have given you constant warnings of their cruelty. If I see your face show up here, I will make sure father smites you down. Now get out of my sight.”

You huffed and whipped around to the front entrance, the stars that constantly twinkled and the nebulas that constantly swirled in the inside of your cloak illuminating the white floors below you as you ran. You left the palace without a second thought, leaving your old life behind in favor of spending it with the humans.

When you came crashing to the Earth in a shooting star, you were amazed by the beauty of it up close and in person

It was everything you expected and then some

You heard the humans cheering and thanking you in their prayers when the stars returned brighter than usual

You being completely enamoured by all of the humans, even if they recognized you or not you loved them all unconditionally

You set up a little cottage in the tundra where you could see the night sky clearly with the occasional aurora borealis 

From the roof, you controlled the stars

The tales of you defecting from the heavens was a popular one, and you became somewhat of a symbol of the hope that humanity should hold for themselves and compassion

Occasionally sending shooting stars over humans you knew were stargazing

You have met many lovers, friends, and even your own adopted kids over the next millenia, all of them accepting your immortality and everlasting duties

But it’s all the same in the end: they come, they leave, and they die

With each death of your loved ones, you could feel your will to keep going dissipate

The stars grew dimmer gradually in the night sky

The humans gradually stopped worshipping you as you disappeared from the night skies

You became a distant memory for elders to tell children 

Disappearing from the face of the Earth for a few centuries when you could not take the constant deaths any longer

Nobody knew where your cabin laid so you were undisturbed for centuries on end, left to your grief

That was until a knock sounded at your door

The knock startled you out of the comfort of your bed. Reluctantly, you left the warmth of the multitude of blankets and donned your cloak to hide your unkempt appearance. When you passed the mirror hanging in the hallway, you could see that your face was shrouded by darkness with the exception of a single glint where your eyes were caused by the lone star that was a constant reminder of your position. Before you fell into a deep depression, the stars would illuminate your entire face if you put your hood up. 

You opened the front door without a care in the world. If the beings on the other side were humans that would take you away and torture you, you didn’t care. You’re long past the point of caring for your own well being.

On the other side was a man of average height and long shaggy blond hair pulled into a slick ponytail. He was dressed entirely in green with a green and white striped bucket hat placed on his head. Past you would’ve been cooing at the object, but now you dully looked at the man in front of you. You glanced behind him and your eyes widened at the huge black wings sprouting from his back. You know who he was the second your eye caught the black feathers; he was the Angel of Death.

“Hello, Angel of Death.”

He tried to peer into your shrouded features, only seeing two pinpricks of light where your eyes should be. He gave you a friendly smile, brushing off the snow that gathered on his shoulders. “(Y/n), the God of the Stars and the Night Sky. Giver of compassion to the human race, it’s an honor to meet you.”

“Why are you here? Last time I checked, my last lover died centuries ago.”

“Yes, my condolences. They were lovely when I guided their soul to the afterlife.”

“You still have not answered my question, Angel of Death. Why are you here?” You grit out the last sentence through a clenched jaw. He has no right to talk about them when he assisted in taking them away from you. Him and your cousin, the Goddess of Death Kristin. They took everybody you loved away from you. You knew that their deaths were unavoidable since they were human and you were immortal, but you still couldn’t help but resent them.

“The Goddess of Death sent me. The God of the Moon and the Goddess of the Sun sent her a request to send me to check on you.”

You stared at him for a few moments before you saw him shivering slightly and sighed. You always had a soft spot for humans, even if the being in front of you was not a human in the slightest. He reminded you of an old friend. You stepped aside and gestured lazily inside the house, “come in.”

He started to visit more and more over the next century

He eventually befriended you about half a century into the visits

It was extremely difficult to do because of how guarded you were, but he managed to break you out of your shell

You realizing how kind he was and how much he cared for you

You quickly came to the realization that he was immortal as well after reading up on the Angel of Death

After another fifty years, he became your best friend

You both opened up and comforted each other about everybody you both lost over the years

When he adopted Technoblade and then Wilbur not long after Techno, you were extremely hesitant to get close to them

Even going as far as telling Philza that you thought that it was an extremely bad idea

Mortals always end up leaving in the end anyways, it’s best to avoid the endless cycle of hurt that came with having mortals around

You told him about your own adopted children that have died over the years

You refuse to meet them, cutting off all communication with Philza for a year or two

Eventually meeting his three adopted kids when you reluctantly accept a dinner invitation one day

You attempted to appear cold and uncaring, but your love for humans (especially baby humans) shone through when an infant Tommy started to play with your cape

It seemed that the stars and the moving nebulas within the fabric entranced him

From then on whenever you visited Philza, you always held Tommy until he was too old for you to do so

Becoming very attached to the blond with your strong innate parental instincts

You introduce Techno to mythology, sharing stories of your personal interactions with certain gods and entities throughout the years

You teach Techno how to cope with the voices as you constantly hear multiple prayers to you from humans at the same time

You arrange a meeting for Wilbur with the Goddess of Music when he asks you about her

Arranging for her to start giving him lessons in exchange of a favor that will be cashed at a later date

You help raise all three of them, often taking them off Philza’s hands for a night or two 

Their favorite activity with you is watching you raise the stars and turn the sky dark

They always loved to watch you move the stars and summon shooting stars for them

The stars gradually returned to your eyes and a constant ecstatic smile slowly became synonymous with your face again

Humans started to worship you again when the stars in the sky became brighter

You became your old self again after centuries of feeling lost 

To repay them for everything they’ve done for you, you decided to rearrange the stars for one night 

One night of having a different star pattern couldn’t hurt 

Sure, it’d make a few theories pop up among the humans, but those are fun to overhear sometimes

The young boys and Philza behind you watched in awe as your eyes started to glow brightly and you slowly moved your hands gracefully raising the stars with the moon, your cloak starting to flow with nonexistent winds. They’ve seen you raise the stars thousands of times, but it never ceases to amaze them. It was just so… entrancing. 

You broke into a slight sweat and started to move the stars from their original positions in the sky. Shaking slightly, you pushed back against the strain and slight pain that it brought you. You’ve never done this before, so you really didn’t know what you were expecting. You felt someone put a hand on your shoulder.

“What’re you doin, mate?”

“Uh Dad?”

“Not now Techno. Mate, are you alright?”

“Dad, look up. They’re rearranging the stars,” Wilbur breathed out.

You could hear Philza gasp slightly as he watched star after star move until they locked into place. There in the twinkling night sky was each of their names gleaming brightly in small lettering. When you were done, you fell into a kneel onto the ground and rubbed at your aching head panting lightly. 

You could hear the boys around you panic slightly as you regained your breath. As you heard them approach you you looked up at them and smiled, the stars gleaming brightly in your irises. “Do you like it?”

“Y-yes but gods, (y/n) are you alright?”

“I am fine, but stars, I have never done that before. Are you four ready for stargazing?”

“That was so pog, (y/n)! How’d you do that?”

“I hold the power of the stars and the night sky in my hands. My brother once told me that the night is our kingdom.” You laid down onto the grass and took off your cloak to cover up a shivering Tommy and Wilbur next to you. You sighed as you thought about your siblings; you wondered how they were doing. 

“I will gladly move the stars themselves for you four. You are my family.” There was a stretched out moment of comfortable silence as you five watched shooting stars blaze by. Eventually, you saw an aurora borealis materialize above you. Furrowing your brow, you looked at it in question. They don’t appear this time of year, so why-

“Aelia,” you breathed out as you watched the greens flow above you. She must’ve sent a gust of solar wind your way. 

“Isn’t Aelia the Goddess of the Sun?” Wilbur asked you.

“Yes, she is my oldest sister. She must have redirected the solar winds over here.” 

“Damn, what’s with the gods changing everything tonight? You guys need to fuckin chill.”

“Tommy!” Philza scolded and was about to continue before he heard you start to laugh. They’ve only heard you genuinely laugh only a couple of times, so the sound that left your mouth immediately brightened the mood. 

“Yes Tommy, I suppose we do need to ‘fucking chill’.”

“You swore! Fuckin pog,” Tommy cheered to himself as the others looked at you in slight shock at your words. If you’re being completely honest in all of the years you spent alive (which is since basically the beginning of time), you’ve never sworn once. You were raised differently than that. When you realized that the others were staring at you, you smirked at them. The stars twinkling and giving your eyes even more of a mischievous glint, “what? Have you never heard a god swear before?”

General taglist (comment if you want to be added):

@crybabyjabby  @izzybobizzy13  @goldenstarofthunderclan  @bunnyz-pxstel  @averytiredfanfictionwriter  @dcml04  @sparkling-gayyyy  @bbigbbrainn  @thaticecreambish  @kiinokochii  @satansphatass  @bxkubitch  @bxmentchildxx  @roxy3457  @montygator17  @feverish-dove  @the-fictionwriters-hairdo  @jichuuchaeng  @404rynnotfound  @luluwinchester  @laura--444  @the-cult-classic-bitch  @youngstarfishdinosaur

[reidandweep]

Something Bigger Than Us

Spencer Reid x Reader (female)

A/N- Hi guys, I am back after an eventful few months. Had to deal with some personal stuff, but I am back now and writing more! So, to celebrate, heres some fluff with our favourite genius!!

Word Count- 4026 words

Warnings- Fluff, mention of bodily liquids in the case, mentions of murder.

The beauty of love is that, you can fall into it with the most unexpected person at the most unexpected time. - Ritu Ghatourey.

Sitting in the subway cart, Spencer indulged in the book in his hands. It had been a gift from Penelope as she had always told him he had to read more fictional works. So, there Spencer was, on his day off, travelling to the science museum and reading ‘The Maze Runner’. He was taking more time than he needed; slowing down his reading speed to prolong the story to fit his entire journey. He was so engrossed that he nearly didn’t notice the subway cart come to a stop and the doors open, a woman walking inside. What made Spencer glance up from the novel in his hands was the slight change of weight near his feet. Looking away from his novel, he didn’t expect to see said woman sitting on the subway cart floor. Spencer glanced around to see multiple seats available, yet there this person was. Sat on the ground.

“Did you want to sit here?”

Spencer had found many women pretty in his life. He had found a few to be gorgeous. But this woman, she was breath taking. As she lifted her gaze to stare into his, Spencer felt a warmth he never felt. A moment. A spark.

The woman smiled up at Spencer.

“No, it’s okay. I quite like sitting on the floor. I can feel the wheels moving more.”

Spencer looked at the woman puzzled.

She couldn’t help but let her smile grow.

“Sit down and feel.”

Spencer’s brain went blank at the woman’s request. He knew how much bacteria there was on the floor and could not imagine doing such a thing as sitting on it.

“On average, more than 9 million people ride the subway every day. That’s 18 million feet on that floor. They could have stepped in anything. The number of bacteria is unimaginable.”

The woman shrugged.

“So, that’s 18 million feet and my butt. At least I can say I enjoyed my subway ride more because I felt the wheels on the tracks.”

The warmth in Spencer’s chest spread the more he looked at her. Before he even realised, Spencer found himself sliding from his seat and onto the subway floor next to her. She was right. You could feel the wheels thumping against the tracks.

“It’s like a heartbeat.”

The woman looked at the floor of the carriage with a smile.

“People ride the subway every day and never think about how amazing it is that this thing was created. That we can hop on something that could take us wherever we desired to in our city. They treat it like it's nothing. But it moves like we do, and it stops like we do.”

The woman looked up at Spencer.

“It has a heartbeat. Just like you and I.”

In his whole life, Spencer had never heard someone describe anything in such a way that made it feel human; that made him feel so human.

“So, where are we going?”

“We?”

The woman smiled and stood from the ground, holding her hand out for Spencer to take. He did so without a thought. It was like being around her made him forget everything.

“Yes, we? I had no plans but then I met you and it seems you had plans so now I do to. So, where are we going mister…?”

Spencer straightened his satchel, his hands gripping the straps. The warmth that had spread from his chest now burnt in the hand he had held hers with for those few seconds.

“My names Spencer. Spencer Reid. I’m actually a doctor but not a medical one. I have three PHD’s and three bachelor’s Degrees, but none of them are remotely medical. I could go into that field if I wanted to but…”

Spencer stopped himself as he realised, he was rambling.

The woman leaned against the pole to her side and looked at Spencer in earnest.

“You were saying you could go into the medical field if you wanted to but…”

She was actually listening to his rambling and she even seemed to be interested.

Spencer’s hands gripped his satchel tighter.

“But I have enough to focus on with work already.”

The woman nodded her head in understanding.

“Well, Dr Spencer Reid, my name is Y/F/N. Y/F/N Y/L/N. My title is just regular old miss. Unfortunately, I have no PHDs, but I do have a bachelor’s degree in Film Studies which I’m presuming is nowhere near exciting as what you have yours in. I could never have gone into the medical field because I hated biology and preferred chemistry at school as I liked drawing the chemical equations more than learning about photosynthesis. The only part I liked about biology was learning about thalidomide, which is really grim, but it was fascinating.”

Whilst she spoke, Spencer couldn’t help but notice the movement of her hands. Her nails on her right hand were painted a different colour to the ones on her left. Just like how he wore different socks on each foot. He liked that they unknowingly matched.

“Now we are no longer strangers, I think you need to tell me where we are going?”

Spencer looked towards the doors and noticed that they were actually soon to arrive to his stop.

“I was going to visit the museum. The next stop is my one.”

Y/N looked at the door and nodded.

“Cool. So, can I join?”

Even though she had already said she was joining him twice, Spencer did not think she actually meant it. He stuttered through his words as his thoughts blazed around his head.

Y/N could see his mind going into overdrive.

“Hey.”

Spencer looked down at the shorter woman in front of him. He wondered why she seemed so worried.

“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I tend to come off as quite strong but something about you tells me I need to know more. I want to know more. Spend more time with you. I’d love to see the things Dr Spencer Reid, who has three PHDs and was reading one of my favourite books when I hopped on the train, had planned to see today. I will only join you if it is something you want.”

Spencer felt the subway cart come to a stop and saw the doors in his peripheral open.

He was tired of living life through the view of work before anything else. The few moments of happiness he had was taken away by not allowing himself to be spontaneous. To be with them in person. So, for the second time that day, Spencer grabbed a hold of Y/N’s hand, ignoring the facts and statistics of germs and bacteria running through his mind.

Pulling her towards the doors, the pair stepped off the subway cart and onto the platform.

People walked around the pair as they stood facing each other, staring at one another with their hands entwined.

Spencer swallowed the lump in his throat.

“I would like if you would join me to the museum. I would like to spend more time with you too.”

Y/N smiled at Spencer’s words. With the hand still not in his grasp, Y/N lifted her arm towards the subway exist.

“Well, lead the way Dr Spencer Reid.”

Spencer did just that.

In silence the pair walked the short distance from the subway station to the museum. Their hands interlocked at their sides as Y/N looked around at the buildings by them. Spencer couldn’t help but glance towards the woman. He couldn’t understand why he felt so different with her. The warmth in his chest was still there, and it felt as though it was growing and spreading with every breath he took. His hand in her own was something he wished to never lose. It was like being enveloped in the softest blanket known to man. This stranger who sat by his feet on the subway has made him feel more comfortable and step out of his comfort zone more than any of his friends or family ever have. But why?

Coming to the doors of the museum, Spencer opened the door for Y/N to enter before him; letting go of her hand to do so. He felt empty without her hand in his. He couldn’t believe how empty his palm now felt.

“I’ve never been to this museum before.”

Y/N couldn’t help but laugh at the shocked look on Spencer’s face. As though what she said was the most shocking thing he had ever heard.

Before she could even make a joke about his expression, Spencer suddenly turned down a corridor.

“Woah! Slow down Doc!”

Spencer slowed down his pace.

“I’m sorry. It’s just this is my favourite place and I want to show you everything it has to offer.”

Y/N smiled at Spencer’s bashful behaviour. She couldn’t help her own cheeks blushing at the thought that this kind man wanted to show her around his favourite place. To think she had only met him a mere hour before.

Giving Spencer’s a comforting smile, Y/N bumped her shoulder with his own.

“I have a feeling that I am going to learn a lot with you as my tour guide.”

Spencer led the way as they walked through the corridors, reciting information about each exhibit they come across, stuttering when he felt Y/N’s hands brush his own as they walked side by side.

Just as Spencer was about the point Y/N to the next exhibit, he felt her hands slowly clasp around his own. Her smooth fingers fitting perfectly into the gaps between his rough appendages.

“Is this okay?”

Spencer smiled in delight, squeezing her hand in reassurance as he pulled Y/N in the direction they had been heading.

Walking hand in hand down the hall, Spencer silently led Y/N to one of his favourite parts of the museum. As they entered the room, Y/N’s eyes could not miss the large rock exhibited in the middle of the room, people sporadically standing around the object.

“What is that?”

Spencer’s chest became warm at the look of wonder on Y/N’s face as they walked closer to the exhibit.

“That is the Willamette Meteorite. It was found in Oregon and is the largest ever meteorite found in the United States and the sixth largest in the world. The smooth surface melted during its blazing entry into the atmosphere, while the pits formed on the Earth's surface. Iron meteorites form when large enough asteroids have had molten interiors catastrophically collide with other asteroids. These huge collisions blast out material from the molten iron core of the asteroid on orbits that reach Earth after millions of years.”

Y/N continued her wonderous gaze as they let go of Spencer’s hand, walking around the meteorite, taking in every crevice and crater. Spencer could usually spend hours staring at the meteor, but right now he could not tear his haze away from Y/N as she took her time looking at the artefact.

Turning to look at Spencer, Y/N wanted to find out more.

“How was it made? Like is it a piece of something much bigger?”

Spencer looked at the meteorite that stood much taller than all of them.

“The internal structure, made of metallic iron, suggests that billions of years ago, an early planet orbiting the Sun was shattered, perhaps in a collision with another protoplanet. The fragment was probably part of the planet’s iron-nickel core. While planets, including Earth gradually formed and matured, this fragment orbited the Sun. It was hit at least twice by other planetary fragments, knocking it into a collision course with Earth. Over many centuries, rainwater interacting with its iron sulphide deposits produced sulfuric acid, which slowly etched and carved large cavities.”

Spencer waited for a response, but as the seconds passed in silence. Had he freaked her out? Had he gone too far? Spencer moved his gaze from the meteor to Y/N, to see her staring at the meteorite in awe.

“Woah.”

Spencer laughed at her exclamation. His head dipping down to try and cover his reddening cheeks.

“Woah indeed.”

Y/N couldn’t help the blush now invading her cheeks. Walking back towards Spencer, Y/N nudged the genius’s shoulder with her own, gaining his attention. Spencer turned his head to look back at Y/N.

“It’s crazy how we get to look at something that was once part of something much bigger. Something that could have housed life and all sorts of wonderous things and yet, here sits part of its core, on our planet, in one of our museums. Now a part of something much bigger again.”

Spencer and Y/N looked at each other in silence. Taking in the moment and her words. Both of them acknowledging that they too were part of something much bigger, much more meaningful than they had every thought about.

A clicking sound broke the moment.

Turning around, Spencer and Y/N both saw an older gentleman pointing a polaroid camera towards the pair.

Realising that the pair had turned around the gentleman walked up towards them and handed over the picture.

“It still has to develop.”

Y/N looked down at the picture in Spencer’s hand as it slowly developed.

“Can you take another one? Just so we can have one each.”

The man nodded at Y/N question, stepping back to where he stood before.

Y/N moved her hand to clasp Spencer’s once more, tilting her head to lay on his shoulder, a smile blossomed on her face as she looked towards the camera.

Spencer’s own gaze was fixed on her. His eyes taking in the slope of her nose and the feel of her hair tickling his neck. Usually, if he was ever this close to anyone, let alone a woman, he would start to sweat and panic. And yet, all Spencer could feel was what he could only describe as serene. Spencer had never felt serene until now.

Being shaken out of his stare by the click of the man’s camera once more, Spencer looked to see the man handing Y/N the picture as she rummaged through her bag.

“No need to pay me.”

Y/N shook her head.

“I insist.”

The man moved forward, placing his hand on Y/N’s shoulder.

“I gave you the picture because sometimes it is nice to look back where it all began.”

The old man looked Spencer in the eye and gave him a wink, causing Spencer to blush.

“Both of you, enjoy your day, and may I suggest if you get hungry, try Giovani’s Café down the street.”

Spencer cocked his head.

“Is it good?”

The man laughed as he walked backwards, nodded his head.

“I should know, I am Giovanni after all!”

Laughter rumbled from the pair as they watched the older gentlemen walk out the door, his polaroid camera in hand. As their laughter died, Y/N looked down at the now developed picture in her hand. Spencer in turn looked at his own.

The picture was beautiful. With the light from outside cascading through the windows, creating almost a halo of light around the pair, the meteorite had never looked bigger than when Spencer saw the back of his and Y/N’s figures standing in front of it. But what Spencer couldn’t take his eyes away from was the fact that in the picture, Y/N was not looking at the meteorite. She was looking at him. If he looked hard enough, he could see a smile on her face. So soft and so beautiful.

The comforting silence of the pair looking at their polaroids was suddenly shattered when Spencer’s ringtone filled the air. Spencer couldn’t help but let his shoulders drop in disappointment.

“I’m so sorry, I just have to take this.”

Y/N smiled in acknowledgment,

“Go ahead, I’m just going to take a look over here.”

Spencer nodded as he watched her walk across the hall, examining the pictures and their information plaques as he answered his phone.

“Hello.”

“We got a case Pretty Boy. Wheels up in 50 minutes.”

Spencer rubbed his head at Morgan’s voice.

“Okay.”

Morgan could hear the disappointment in Spencer’s tone.

“Are we interrupting something?”

Spencer kept his eyes on Y/N as he took a second to answer.

“Yeah. But I’ll be there in 30 minutes.”

Morgan chuckled.

“Okay, Genius, see you later.”

Spencer hung up his phone. Walking towards where Y/N still stood, he tapped the woman on her shoulder.

As she turned, Y/N took in Spencer’s solemn look.

“Is everything okay?”

Spencer shook his head.

“Work called. I have to leave. I’m sorry.”

Y/N smiled in understanding.

“Work is work, whatever it may be. No need to be sorry. I had an amazing day that I didn’t think I would have.”

Spencer stared Y/N in her eyes, a little smile adorning his face.

“I did too. I have to go. But can we meet again?”

Y/N nodded her head, her own smile lighting her face.

“Yeah. I would like that.

Spencer grinned as he began to turn around, walking towards the corridors exit, waving as he left. He began to walk down the stairs when he suddenly heard his name.

“Spencer, wait!”

Spencer turned around to see Y/N running down the stairs towards him, polaroid in hand.

Stopping in front of him, as Y/N stood on the steps above Spencer, she was nearly as tall as the boy wonder.

“You dropped this.”

“Thank you.”

As Spencer went to reach for the picture, Y/N pulled it out of his reach.

He watched with bated breath as she carefully put the picture in the breast pocket of his jacket, tapping his jacket where the picture now safely sat.

“Now go before your boss gets angry at you for being late.”

Laughing at her truthful words, Spencer once again waved towards the girl, rushing down the steps as he looked at his watch, realising that he was going to be late. But even with that knowledge, as he opened the exit door of the museum, Spencer turned to wave goodbye to Y/N once more. Watching as she waved back, before he allowed the door to close behind him.

Spencer walked to the jet as briskly as he could, breathing heavily from the sprint through the airport, just about getting through easily with his badge.

Trotting up the steps, Spencer leaped into the jet, quickly taking the seat next to Emily, his breath heavy as he took in deep breaths.

The team ceased their conversation, all looking at Spencer in confusion and worry.

“Sorry I’m late, what’s the case?”

Spencer ignored the strange looks and elongated silence.

Hotch quickly broke it.

“We’re heading to Akron, Ohio. We got two murdered couples with the men both being found with used condoms on and Viagra in their systems. In both cases, the husbands were killed with a silenced 9-millimeter, the wife was stabbed multiple times. We’re meeting up with the Akron P.D when we get there. Everything you need is in the file.”

Spencer nodded his head as he grabbed the file from Hotch, opening the papers as the plane took off.

Briskly looking through the file, Spencer began to detail notes in his notebook about possible suspects and details the others may have missed. But as he scribbled, Spencer could feel the stares of Emily, Morgan, and JJ as they all sat by him. Fed up, Spencer lifted his head, flittering his gaze between them all.

“Can I help?”

“Why was you late?”

Spencer looked at Morgan.

“I was at the museum.”

“That’s the truth but why was you late?”

Spencer turned his eyes to Emily, confusion littering his features.

“I was at the museum, I had to get on the subway and get here.”

JJ tilted her head as Spencer looked between the trio.

The weight of their gazes quickly caused him to break.

“I was late because I was at the museum with someone.”

At his statement, everyone on the jet turned towards Spencer. Even Hotch had Spencer’s undivided attention.

Emily twisted to face the genius, a smirk on her face as she crossed her arms.

“Go on Romeo, tell us all about them.”

Spencer knew he could not get out of this. So, he began to begrudgingly tell his team about his day and the person he spent it with.

“Then after the gentleman took our picture, I got the call. I said goodbye and rushed over here.”

The team all looked at Spencer with mixtures of pride and happiness.

“Did you get her number?”

The looks soon turned to disbelief as Spencer bowed his head in shock.

“You had an amazing day with a woman you don’t know, which is something unlike you, and you failed to get her number? Pretty boy, I am very disappointed. I’ve taught you better than that.”

Shaking his head at Morgan’s playful words, Spencer couldn’t help his own disappointment take over. He can’t believe he didn’t ask her for her number. Rossi walked over and patted the man on his shoulder in reassurance.

“At least you got a picture to remember her.”

Spencer slowly nodded, solemnly reaching into his breast pocket to pull the picture out. But, as Spencer looked at the picture, he realised that she had handed him the second picture they had taken.

Spencer looked at the polaroid and couldn’t believe how comfortable he looked with her. Their hands interlaced as Y/N smiled brightly towards the camera. Spencer’s smile was directed towards the woman next time him, warm and content. He had never looked so at peace before. Yet, he still forgot to ask for her number.

As Spencer was about the place the picture back in his pocket, he paused his movement as Hotch spoke up.

“If I was you, I would check the back of that picture Reid.”

Looking at the people in front of him, he could see that they were all now smiling, looking at him expectedly, waiting for the man to look at the back of the picture. Flipping the picture over, Spencer couldn’t help the smile that blossomed over his face. His eyes crinkling from how large it was. On the back of the picture, a message was written.

“Meeting you made me feel part of something much bigger. Something I would love to explore. Give me a call if you want to as well.”

Underneath the message lay Y/N’s phone number.

Spencer lifted his head and looked around at his team. Pointing his thumb over his shoulder, he began to stand.

“I’m just going to…”

Emily pushed him up as the rest of the team laughed.

“Hurry up and call her Spence, no point in waiting!”

Spencer nodded his head in a flurry as JJ shooed him to the back of the jet.

Walking passed the team, Rossi and Derek patted him on the back, as Hotch nodded his head. They were all happy for him.

Walking into the jet’s toilet, Spencer locked the door and pulled out his phone. Flipping the picture in his opposing hand, he quickly dialled the number, clicking the call button before he could change his mind.

Just as he contemplated hanging up, the ringing stopped, and he heard an answer.

“Hello?”

“I want to be a part of something bigger. I want to explore it too.”

“Really?”

Spencer could feel the smile radiating from Y/N over the phone. A breathy laugh leaving his mouth as he realised, he was nodding his head instead of talking.

“Really.”

Spencer was not the type of person to sit in the bathroom on a plane talking to someone on the phone that he only met that morning. Even more so, having met that someone because they sat on the floor of the subway instead of the seats. Yet, here he was, in the bathroom talking to Y/N and getting to know her more. Spencer felt like the Willamette Meteorite. He had been broken and steered down different courses over the years, feeling like he would never be part of anything bigger than the family that was his team. But now, he felt like he was finally going to be a part of something bigger. Something extraordinary.

Never expected to meet you. When I met you I never expected you to become my everything and more than I could have ever dreamed of. - Maria Ana Bulquerin.

A/N- Thank you for the support. If you wish to in anyway, Please donate to the link below.

[the-fae-folk]

The Urizumble’s Collection

In a distant place, where the hemlock roots drink deeply and the stone hollows and holes catch any water in their uppermost basins as it falls from the earth to the sky, that is where it lives. The Urizumble. A quiet and solitary creature who most closely resembles the tomopteris worm, were such a worm to swim through the air as easily as the water, be the size of a small kitten, have limbs covered with a soft silvery fur that glows blue in the shadows, and a ferret like face that sniffs about with unbridled curiosity. The Urizumble is not particularly frightening or fearful, nor is it overly concerned with wars or politics. It likes its solitude and spends a lot of time playing in the upside down pools in the roof of the cliff-side caves. Some might doubt it, but this too is a Faerie Creature. It too could be dangerous, if it wished to be. But it simply has no desire to involve itself with anyone at all, human or its own people. It will defend its territory if it truly must, or run away if it is forced. Humans it tolerates and will treat with polite disinterest, though it may very very rarely allow for an offered treat of honeycomb. Most of its time and efforts are spent in the gathering of its greatest and most fascinating of treasures. Old Boots. For whatever unfathomable reason the Urizumble presumably has for being so concerned with such derelict footwear, it certainly is willing to go to a great deal of effort to gather them. It dredges them from stream beds, rescues them from power lines and roadsides, digs them out of garbage cans and trunks in dusty attics, and even steals a few from unobserved back porch steps. Each specimen the creature has found is arranged carefully in its den, which is a deep warren of tunnels and small caves underground, reaching miles and miles and lit by something softly luminescent left behind when the Urizumble brushes its silvery fur upon the walls. It is almost a museum of a kind, with boots from all over, and from many different time periods. This creature has been gathering such footwear for a very long time. Occasionally it does get rather confused, as is evidenced by the pair of slippers in one of the mostly unused back dens. This particular pair of shoes was made from Great Sand Sea Glass, formed from a meteorite impact in the deserts of Eastern Libya. It’s natural pale yellow and almost colorless shades were found beautiful by a craftsman of Egypt, somewhere around 29 million years after its initial impact and formation, and he took the largest pieces and carved them into the most perfect and detailed glass slippers for a pharaoh to be buried in, though the city they were in was attacked and the slippers lost before the gift could be given. It is difficult to follow their history, though at some point they resurface very briefly in France when writer Charles Perrault suddenly produced them out of nowhere in 1682, and sold them in order to make up for his lost pension after having been forced into retirement and then being removed from his various other appointments. Then they vanish once more from history only to later show up when given by a young girl to the Urizumble as an offering of thanks. The Urizumble accepted them as they were footwear, but remains very confused to this day about what exactly is going on with them. Clearly, they are meant to go on feet, but they are simply not of the high quality leather that it knows is an absolute essential feature of prized human footwear. Despite this, it kept them because it knew it would be very rude to refuse or throw away a gift such as that. So in the unused back den they remain, while a thick and sturdy pair of 11th Century Norman Cavalry Shoes with two wooden buttons holds the special place of honor near the Urizumble’s nest. Due to its habits and its unique interests, the Urizumble is not in any way related to any of the long histories of Faerie, nor does it have any desire to ever be involved in them. Its mention here is entirely thanks to the dedicated work of Fae Archivists who collect and record Faerie’s history for posterity’s sake. The writer of this very Fae blog was thrown unceremoniously out of the archive when they pointed out that the archivists will still be here in the future, being immortal and all, and that the word posterity didn’t really work in this instance. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hi! If you enjoy my writing, consider leaving a small tip at my Ko-Fi page. It helps keep the blog running and eases my finances a bit. If you can, it’s very much appreciated. If you can’t, no worries. Enjoy your reading!

[lupin-the-3rd-case-files]

Operation Return the Treasure

Target: Trick Diamond / Sagrada Familia Spectacle

Operation Return the Treasure is a nice reversal of expectations. Instead of solely looking to steal the treasure this time around, Lupin must go around to various locales and return treasures his old rival stole. It presents a really unique series of challenges for Lupin because he doesn’t want to get caught returning them. It’s a wacky change of pace that I absolutely adored.

I also loved how well the main cast was utilized in this special. The secondary characters not so much but I don’t watch these specials for them so that’s moot anyway. Jigen gets captured partway through and has to escape, Fujiko is trying to auction off the Trick Diamond before they even get it, and Goemon suffers a serious injury while fighting the antagonist who happened to kill a friend of his. No one feels shoehorned in this go around and that’s great.

My favorite running gag in this special is Lupin getting captured by Zenigata and blowing up the prison he’s in to get out. Each time is funny to me, don’t ask why. This is also strangely the most competent Zenigata has been in a special, successfully capturing Lupin three times, all that while also being a lovable oaf that still manages to lose them. Still, three captures is more than any other special so he’s got a new record!

If I’m being honest I struggled to follow the background story for this special because I’m not familiar with the story of Gaudi or the Spanish Civil War. I obviously picked up some context clues but the special didn’t really spell out who he was at all, it expected you to know. That’s not a failing on the special’s part I feel, that’s more of a failing of my own education (and the public school system of America if you ask me). 

So the treasures this time around each have to do with the Sagrada Familia, a cathedral in Spain. The first is the Trick Diamond, a piece of meteorite/ufo Gaudi took a long time ago that’s needed to find the second treasure. The special values the diamond multiple times but something was pretty confusing. The subs initially say that Rats (the villain) will pay $10 million for the diamond. Fujiko later tries to auction off the diamond on not-ebay and it gets valued for...seemingly less? Like I think it said over $200k. But she says “With this I won’t need Rats anymore,” which makes me guess the value was just displayed weird. Later Lupin sees that to bid you have to pay over $5 million so clearly something was just weird with how they displayed it. Sadly I couldn’t get a direct estimate because of that.

The second treasure is a spectacle from the Sagrada Familia, an illusory cathedral appears while playing organ music throughout the city. It’s a beautiful treasure, but not one Lupin can steal and take with him, even in his own words. It’s beautiful, but valueless.

Lupin does briefly steal a suitcase of money from a casino in the opening sequence, but spends half of it on a plane that blows up minutes later, and then supposedly spends the rest just traveling according to the man himself. So while he had money initially, he ends the special with none.

Lupin’s Reward: $0 but a beautiful view of the Sagrada Familia

This is the second special to involve aliens, hilariously enough, and I know that the most recent movie also involved aliens. I find it funny that aliens are just an accepted existence in the Lupin universe.

Anyway this special was an absolute blast for me. I loved the reversal of returning treasures to their rightful place instead of stealing them, it was a unique challenge for the Lupin gang. I’d definitely watch this one again. It’s up there as one of my favorite specials right now.

Next up is Stolen Lupin. I have no idea what that title entails so I don’t really know what to expect. Here’s hoping it’s as good as this one, though!

[lovelyblogtime]

You know what I want/would love from Stardew Valley?

To have Zuzu city available to travel and have like 12 more people to date.

Like yes we have npc mods and Ridgeside Village, but I would love to have an additional storyline where the mayor of Zuzu city sees how profitable our little valley is and tries to buy up the village, kinda like what Joja did but I want new fundraising events and even more ways to improve the town so we can 'save' the village. And since we probably came from Zuzu city, it would be cool to have some small flashbacks of how lonely our life. Maybe even meeting our family (who probably still lives in the city)

Like give us apartments for the teens who want to move out and get their own space (like maybe Seb and Sam), maybe Lewis could stop being such a money pincher and do something to help the village and finally confess that he and Marnie are dating.

Like the new stuff from 1.5 was fun but if you hate doing puzzles over and over (like I love a good puzzle but I don't want to do 5 or 6 to gain stuff I need), then having a new place to meet people would be great.

Like I love playing this game but I basically finished the 1.5 storyline in like 2 days.

I just want more people, more romance, more drama. I need some jealously from people I'm trying to romance, some rivals dating each other.

I would love:

*A city slicker who buys land just west of Robin's cabin and tries his hand at farming (his heart events would be us giving him farming advice)

*A young adult who bonds with Willy over fishing and they go on fishing adventures together (you'll get to see them around town fishing)

*I want Elliot to become a humble book millionaire who upgrades his cabin into a nice house with a huge library

*Maru could build her own laboratory, maybe east if the museum and we could have our own little science and artifacts section, with maybe a zoo area or a building dedicated to creating minerals so we can donate them to the museum

*I also wanna build a much nicer tent from Linus, the poor man deserves it.

I want people with money to blow and have them buy a ton from Pierre or Gus

*Teenagers who make a small group to go explore the mines with Abigail and Marlon

*Fashion forward people to make clothes with Emily and Haley

*Lewis could gather money to actually have Robin build a school and hire a teacher or two

*I need a coffee shop where the moms and teens can hang out

*I want the ability to anonymous donate money to people and see them get happy and slowly get house upgrades from Robin. (Like have a secret community board that magically gathers what people want. Just like the community board but its stuff you'll see wound town like Pierre might want 10,000 G to update his shelving units and then they'll look much better afterwards.

*A bigger playground for the kids, with tree houses and play houses please.

*I also need more furniture because I need more rugs and couches in my house

*I know Krobus can live with us as a roommate but can I spend some money to make his sewer life Hella fancy?

*I want an arcade, with at least 10 mini games and each giving the player special items (like a free coffee voucher or a treasure map)

*I need to meet the Witch and see what it takes to reunite her with the Wizard or find her a better man, because I need to know her story

*If Zuzu City does become available, I wanna meet Morris and potentially buy out Joja Co. and transform it into a better company. (I'll grind my blueberry empire for millions if I have to)

*I want a pet store. Let me become a cat lady

*Let my kids (and the other kids) grow up and find their place in town. Would I love to play sports with an older Vincent? You bet

*I also wanna know Mr. Qi's backstory like whats up bro, how are you blue? Did you piss off the wizard years ago?

*I want a shooting stars night where there's a very rare chance we get a meteorite on the farm or maybe we could come across something magical

Like I have more ideas and those above ^^ are a lot but I would pay for any of it. I've spent hundreds for the The Sims, both 3 and 4 and when 5 comes out too. So my wallet is completely open lol and if anyone wants to make any ^^^ of those, pls let me know cuz I'll definitely be on the lookout for it.

[the-firebender-girl]

Fire Lotus (Sokka x Reader) Part 1/2

-> During his apprenticeship under Master Piandao, Sokka met an unexpected someone.

It’s officially the third day of his training, Sokka is exhausted yet more determined than ever to prove his worth to the stoic master. As he walked up the steps of the main courtyard, an unusual view greeted him.

The usually empty foyer has someone in it, a girl. She’s sitting cross legged on the floor in front of a tea table that she’s currently using for writing. One slender elegant hand wrap around an ink brush. Hair slightly falling forward, concealing her face away from his sight.

“Ehem” The sound of his master clearing his throat breaks Sokka’s intense observation of the newcomer. But it also pulls her attention away from her parchment.

Their eyes meet, blue clashes with (Y/E/C).

“She’s beautiful” He can’t help but thought to himself.

“Well are you ready to train or do you want to spend the whole day staring?” Piandao’s voice once again interrupted him.

Embarassment flooded through him, whether from getting caught staring or giving another reason for Piandao to doubt his determination, he wasn’t sure which.

“Yes, Master i’m ready to train” He replied, making sure to sound steady and prepared.

“Good, come now” Piandao said before turning his back and making his way to their usual training spot.

Sokka can’t help but sneak a glance before following him but to his surprise she’s already looking his way. The girl gives him a soft smile and an encouraging nod. He nearly swooned on spot, how manly of him.

“Sokka!” Piandao’s voice rang with annoyance had him sprinting all the way to the training ground, the mysterious girl laughter also enters his ear, definitely amused at the situation.

———————————————————————

Yesterday they had spent the day in the sword-making foundry, crafting Sokka’s first sword, and now it’s ready to be used.

“Sokka, when you first arrived, you were so unsure. You even seemed down on yourself. But I saw something in you right away. I saw a heart as strong as a lion turtle, and twice as big. And as we trained, it wasn't your skills that impressed me” As Piandao was saying this, Fat, his ever-disgruntled butler kneels to Piandao and gives him the sword.

“No, it certainly wasn't your skills. You showed something beyond that” Piandao unsheathes the sword, showing its gleaming black blade made of meteorite, and gives it a few masterful swings as Sokka stares at his new weapon with awe.

“Creativity, versatility, intelligence... these are the traits that define a great swordsman” He sheathes the sword back into its holster.

Piandao kneels and presents the sword to Sokka, “And these are the traits that define you”

“You told me you didn't know if you were worthy, but I believe that you are more worthy than any man I have ever trained” He finishes while he stands back up.

“I'm sorry, Master. You're wrong. I am not worthy. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not from the Fire Nation. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe. I lied so that I could learn swordsmanship from you. I'm sorry” Sokka said as he offers the sword back.

Piandao has an unreadable expression on his face, it shows no emotion and yet Sokka has never been more scared of his master, “I'm sorry, too”

Piandao quickly turns back around and swings his sword at Sokka who stands and avoids the attack. Unsheathing his brand new sword, he proceeded to block a thrust from Piandao.

And so the fight ensues.

———————————————————————

Drenched with sweat, Sokka manages to hold his own, but despite all that he finds that Piandao was not even mad in the first place.

“You might want to think of a better Fire Nation cover name, try ‘Lee’, there's a million Lees” Piandao says as he sips his tea.

“But why would you agree to train someone from the Water Tribe‌?” Sokka asked, still in disbelief at the predicament that he founds himself in.

“The way of the sword doesn't belong to any one nation, knowledge of the arts belongs to us all” Is the answer that he gives.

“Sokka, you must continue your training on your own. If you stay on this path, you’ll be greater than Y/N who is my finest prodigy and I know that one day you will become an even greater master than I am”

Although very much elated at his words, Sokka can’t help his curiosity, “Wait but who is Y/N?”

“Well you just met her earlier” Piandao replied while raising one of his brows.

“WAIT WHAT?! you mean the dainty girl in the foyer? that’s your prodigy? but how?” Sokka starts to freak out as he can’t even begin to comprehend this revelation, hell he can’t even imagine her holding a sword let alone wield one.

“What? you don’t believe me? do you need me to call her here because of you doubting her abilities?”

“No no no! don’t do that, please don’t” Sokka literally begged Piandao not to.

“Well then if that’s all, I ought to take my leave” He said as he stands up and walk the other way.

Sokka stares in the direction of the foyer, wondering if the mysterious Y/N is still there.

He decided to take his chances, this is going to be interesting.

———————————————————————

Sokka cursed his luck because she’s nowhere to be found, he even looked in the surrounding hallways yet there’s still no sign of her.

He sigh, shoulders slumped, looking crestfallen, about to turn around towards the main courtyard and go back to the Gaang when he feels a breath next to his ear.

“Looking for me?” Eyes wide, he feels his breath hitched and he gulps, turning his head slowly to the side.

“Umm no! why would I do that?” He tried to come up with an excuse but his eyes gave it all away.

She only stares at him back, right in the eyes. One corner of her lips formed a taunting smirk, as if saying “Go on, just dig a deeper hole for yourself”

“I was looking for my sword okay?!” Now this definitely got her raising one of her eyebrows, tilting her head to the left.

“But... you’re holding it, genius” She said as she direct her line of view towards his left hand then back again to his face that’s now as red as the walls behind it.

Sokka exasperatedly throws both of his hands up, “Okay fine! you caught me”

“I was looking for you” He added, mumbling.

She extended her right hand towards him, “I guess an introduction is in order then, i’m...” before she could even get her name out, Sokka cuts her of.

“Y/N right?” The girl’s mouth formed into an O, clearly surprised that he already knew.

“Master Piandao mentioned you earlier”

“Ahh that explains it, and you are?” She asked in return.

For a moment he thought about Piandao’s word, it’d be a lot safer if he gives her a fake name but deep down he doesn’t want to be someone else in front of her, he wants her to know him as him, as Sokka, so he did.

“You can call me Sokka” He said, extending his hand to shake hers, as he (attempt) to give her what he thinks is a charming smile.

“Nice to meet you Sokka! it gets boring around here you know... but you.. I can tell that you’re a lot of fun” At this he possibly lights up like a christmas tree.

“Nice to meet someone with a good taste in companion, but how come i’ve never seen you around before?”

He made a move to stand beside her and they both walk side by side towards the balcony that overlook the rock garden.

“I live here actually, but when i’m not training or studying, I mostly spend time in my room that’s probably why” She answers as she folded both of her hands and put it on top of the railing.

“Wow you live here? are you related to Master Piandao?” He asks again while closely watching her face, trying to decipher the enigma that is Y/N.

“No... but he’s almost like an uncle to me I guess, I’ve studied under him since I was little, he used to know my father”

Sokka starts carefully, “Soo.. your father?”

She lets out a sigh, “Yeah my father, Master Piandao used to be in the Fire Nation Army under my father’s command, he’s a general”

“Ohh... I see” He replied, trying his best to make his voice sounds comforting and convincing her to dump whatever burden she’s carrying around to him.

“My father knew that Master Piandao is a great calligrapher, that’s why he wants me to learn from him, and I actually enjoyed it a lot. As I grew older, I begged him to give me lessons on how to use the sword, in secret of course. My parents wouldn’t have approved of me learning how to fight as I am a lady” She really has no idea why she’s telling him all this but his presence touched her in more ways than one, and she just feels at peace, like she could tell him anything.

“After Master Piandao deserted the army, our lessons stopped, I tried looking for him but words on the street is that he’s traveling to the other nations so it’s impossible for me to track him down”

“A few years after, I heard a whisper that he’s here, in Shu Jing. And so I seeked him out, I feel betrayed by his decision to leave, and the things that my father said at home about him doesn’t help either, but I know that I needed an explanation, hear it from his own mouth. After all he’s like family too to me”

She stop and just look straight ahead, eyes roaming over the rocks formation and green grass spread below, Sokka thought she was done sharing before she turns her head and look at him.

Looking for any sign of judgement or negative reactions coming from him, but she founds none, so she continues.

“And that’s how I found out about the ugly truth of the Fire Nation, about what kind of evil and monstrosity it is that i’m a part of. That my family plays a key role in. I was disgusted, horrified, shocked. It’s like all this time I was living in a lie, me and everyone else. We were fed all sorts of propaganda since we were born, a twisted version of history” Her voice cracked as she said this, sounding very much pained and ashamed.

“Hey hey that’s okay?” Sokka said as he reached out to take her hands in his, “You didn’t know, you were all lied to by the Fire Lord and his predecessors. What matters is now you know what is right”

She stares at him, her (Y/E/C) eyes glistening with slight tears. He swears that he can feel his heart breaking, seeing her this broken is awful.

“So I made my choice. I ran away from home, only left my parents a note so that they won’t think that I was taken by force. And I went here, to Master Piandao, thankfully he took me in. I wouldn’t know where else I would go if he hadn’t”

“And yeah.... that’s basically it, here we are now” Y/N attempts to play it down, as if she’s not bothered by it anymore, but Sokka can see clear as day that it still does.

“Do you miss them? your parents?” It is a stupid question of course, he knows that, but he just wanted an excuse to keep the conversation going.

“I do... I know that my father’s a bad person... well either that or he made all the wrong choices but still he’s my father. My mother on the other hand is too good for this world. She never did anything bad but she loves my father too much, that’s her downfall. That’s why she still stays despite everything, I can always tell that behind her composed mask, it’s eating her conscience”

“Hey Y/N?”

“Yeah Sokka?”

“Thank you for sharing this with me, you don’t have to but you did and I know this must be hard for you, but I think you’re very strong, never forget that” Sokka said while giving her a genuine smile, eyes softening at the sight of her smiling back in return.

She rubs her eyes, wiping out the tears. Taking a few deep breaths in and out, composing herself back to before her pouring-her-heart-out-for-absolutely-no-reason-at-all session.

“So...” She starts out again, this time in a more cheerful tone, “Are you done with your training?”

“No actually, not even close. I still got a long way to go but i’m on limited time right now so I have to go”

“Oh... so you’re leaving already” She can’t help but feel down over this, she’s just starting to warm up to this guy after all.

An idea pops into Sokka’s head, it may be a dumb and not a carefully thought out one, but still.

“Would you like to go on an adventure with me?” He said, extending both of his hands to the side, as if offering a hug.

She couldn’t possibly look more dumbstruck than she is right now. I mean it’s a crazy proposal right? she just met him and barely knew this person.

“Look I don’t have much time but let me give you a brief explanation and catch you up to the situation”

And so Sokka proceeded to tell her all about his Southern Water Tribe identity, meeting the Avatar, and all the crazy adventures that comes after that in record time.

Key word being tried, he’s just about to form bubbles in his mouth from how fast it’s moving and spitting out words, and he’s even more thirsty by the end of it than the time he accidentally drank cactus juice.

But thank the spirits she got the gist.

Y/N jaw had dropped to the floor somewhere between his many stories, eyes wide her eyeballs might as well just pop out of its socket. Did this guy actually said that he’s from the water tribe? and then what about the part that he said he’s friends with the Avatar? is this for real or is he just clowning her for whatever reason.

“Ehem” Sokka clears his throat uncomfortably while staring at Y/N that had gone as stiff as a statue, “You okay there?”

“I don’t know what to say” She said quietly, it’s almost a whisper, still pretty much in shock.

Sokka snap a finger right in front of her face, and she jerked back as if waking up from a daydream. That seems to do the trick.

“Earth to Y/N? have I broken you or something?” He said in a teasing tone, trying to rile her up for the fun of it.

A scowl formed on her pretty face, the nerve of this guy.

“So is it a yes or a no?”

She takes one last look at him, contemplating about this crazy person that just pops out of nowhere and into her life. But at this moment, it’s possible that she’s the even crazier one out of them two.

“You know what? i’m game, count me in” She said with a wide grin.

Sokka hollers and throws his hands up in celebration.

He grabs her so fast, putting one hand on her back, guiding her.

“I knew I like you for a reason! come on then i’ll introduce you to the Gaang, you’ll love them, I hope” He starts blubbering again and she just shakes her head in wonder.

What have I just got myself into?

———————————————————————

A/N: Whoop whoop so that’s it for Part 1! I really hope that you enjoy this as much as I enjoy writing it. Feedbacks are very much welcome and appreciated ♥️ this is my first Sokka story and I hope I did it justice

[doctorsurferbro]

you are the sun (and i am just the planets spinning around you)

word count: 1252

Bryce x MC

aight so i decided to make a fic when I have two essays due in two days but it be like that sometimes. anyways, it’s missing Bryce hours and I have to get my fill somehow (since i already read all of the fics here twice) title from FOB’s The Last of the Real Ones

Loving Bryce Lahela shouldn’t be this easy. She somehow finds herself falling into an effortless routine of quick meets—nothing dirty, usually, just a quiet minute from their hectic lives where the two can just breathe—in supply closets and on-call rooms, flirtatious winks and passing comments that left her floating, and sleepy moments at the dawn of night, legs entangled and talking about everything and nothing all at once.

Loving him really shouldn’t be this easy. They are, after all, busy residents at a very prestigious hospital, working long hours well into the night. Only fools would try to maintain a relationship amidst the chaos of bizarre schedules and stressful hours, hence why she hasn’t been in a serious one in years. This friends-with-benefits situation they found themselves entangled in seemed perfect. They are, after all, attractive—and oh, she thinks, how attractive just didn’t seem to do Bryce justice—consenting adults who couldn’t afford a real relationship. They couldn’t handle anything serious, didn’t need the stress of a relationship when they already have mountains of it from residency. It had crawled upon her gradually, like the glow of a candle enchanting the room with its calming fragrance. It was in the way her eyes lit up every time she saw golden skin and twinkling eyes; it was in the way he never hesitated to offer a hug or comforting words of affirmation; it was in the way her first reaction to every victory and accomplishment and literally anything was to share and celebrate it with him first; most of all, it was in the way he’s just Bryce and the way she could just be her. In an atmosphere of death and sickness, Bryce is the sun, filling her darkness with warmth and light. He is something remarkable, a work of art sculpted by hands as delicate and precise as his (when she tells him this sometime between the tender hours of twinkling twilight and the low glow of dawn, he shoots her a smile, his body hovering over hers. I know, he beams, the words grinning of confidence, the tone whispering of wonder.) She has no idea of when this started to feel less like a… flirtation and more of a relationship, and if she’s being honest with herself, she can’t bring herself to care. Because at the end of every stressful day and the beginning of every serene night, she was with Bryce Lahela, and curled in the comfort of his strong embrace, she knows that everything was going to be just fine.

Loving him really shouldn’t come easier than breathing. “This means something to me,” she says. The words fall as easily as rain, but time slows like the short moments of an eclipse. She swallows, meeting his gaze with delicate vulnerability. “Does it to you?” He blinks at her, long eyelashes forming wet daggers under the hot shower steam as a soft smile etches its way across his handsome face. “Can’t you tell?” he asks, warm eyes of chocolate melting into her soul. She thinks about everything, the affection in his twinkling eyes, the look of moonlight on his golden skin, the way her heart beams in his presence, and she smiles back, gentle butterflies fluttering a soft flush onto her skin. “Yeah,” she says, offering him her heart, her soul, her everything. “I guess I can tell.”

Loving him shouldn’t be this easy because love never was. Bryce may have an overly confident (she thinks, however, that he deserves every praise, every compliment, every bit of admiration and more), happy-go-lucky exterior, but she knows better. The man had secrets, was more than just a scalpel jockey. It wasn’t easy being in a profession of death and darkness. Despite his bright grins and easy attitude, she knows that this job plagued him as much as it did the rest of them. Patients—people with families, with friends, with lives they can no longer live—lost under fluorescent lights and distant walls. They know that they aren’t at fault, but when faced with the mournful sobs and the cold hard truth of death, it’s difficult to place blame on anything but the hands that could’ve, should’ve, done better. “I don’t want you to see me like this.” His bloodshot eyes dart to hers across the very same dark supply closet he found her in so long ago. His head falls into his hands once again as she crouches down beside him. She murmurs soft affirmations, wrapping her arms around him, her thumb tracing comforting circles into his green scrubs. She doesn’t respond, choosing to press a kiss into his shoulder instead. I’m here, the squeeze she places on his arm says. Thank you, the head he places on her shoulder responds. In a supply closet, miraculously undisturbed and in a soft embrace, she thinks always, her heart beating in rhythm with his, and she means it. She knows she’s falling for him like a blazing meteorite, willing to fight a million battles just to see a smile grace his face, and she’s terrified. Love, this emotion she can’t explain, just this gut feeling she has ever since she first laid eyes on his bare chest and twinkling eyes that her soul pointed at his and whispered “him.” She thinks that she waited her entire life to meet him, and he was worth every minute, and she’s determined to spend at least a billion more by his side, through all the good, the bad, and the ugly. Always.

Loving him shouldn’t be this easy, but oh, how it was. His laughter is contagious, enlightening the open space with its melodic sound. They walk past the many colorful booth and rides, their enclasped hands swinging. “Wait, you’ve got some ketchup on your cheek.” He stops her to wipe the offending condiment left from the corndog she holds in her hand. “Ew, you’re so gross.” She wrinkles her nose jokingly when he proceeds to lick the sauce off his finger. “What? I’m not gonna let good ketchup go to waste.” He wiggles his brows suggestively, playfully nudging her. “Besides, I didn’t hear you complaining when I’m being gross.” She rolls her eyes, but the enamored smile on her lips betrays her attempts to look annoyed. “You’re lucky I love you.” “Oh yeah?” he grins, his eyes gleaming with happiness. His smile is broad, soft and tender like warm rays of sunlight, and she can’t look away. “Yeah,” she breathes, squeezing his hand gently. “I love you.” “Cool,” he beams, “I mean, who wouldn’t?” At that, she laughs freely because the response is just so undeniably Bryce, and the scent of fresh flowers and green grass and possibilities in the wind sweeps her hair. He tilts her head and kisses her, a million worlds in his fingertips. It couldn’t have lasted more than a minute, but she tastes lifetimes in his swollen lips, feels galaxies in his hair (she can’t help but think, however, that in those million galaxies, she’s lucky to be in this one with him). “Good,” he says breathlessly, their foreheads touching, “I love you, too.” They share a smile, their hands soon entangled again, swinging with a freeness only fools in love have. “Ooh, you wanna win me a teddy bear?” “Baby, you know you got the real prize right here.”

Loving Bryce Lahela was easy, she thinks, a fond smile gracing her face as glowing stray rays of golden light illuminate his sleeping form, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

.

yes i could’ve used the whole keiki situation and his past but when I thought of it was almost done so eh. and besides, thought it would be nice to have MC comfort him when he usually does her. anyways, i love bryce lahela and come on PB let me make him my husband already

[lindoig8]

A rest and some exploring

Saturday-Wednesday, 1-5 May

After our stint in the desert, we decided we needed to take it easy for a few days to let Heather (and me) recover completely – and to catch up on a few things we wanted to do.

We had to go to the supermarket and pharmacy one day and whenever we are out, we take the opportunity to stock up on wine because it is quite hard to buy wine in quantity in the Northern Territory. We also needed to arrange the repairs to our caravan so called in at a recommended place and booked it in for the day we leave Alice Springs for Gemtree. That was scheduled for a Sunday so we extended our stay here for an extra day and booked the van in for the Monday. The husband-and-wife team at the workshop were a bit strange – customer relations is definitely not high on their agenda, despite friendliness and pleasant people being mentioned several times in the testimonials on their website – maybe they wrote them themselves. They openly ridiculed us for breaking their cardinal ‘15/25’ rule. They say the roads are so bad around here that nobody should drive with tyre pressures above 15 psi or speeds exceeding 25 kph. Had we complied with their ‘rule’ I suspect we would still be on the road to Alice Springs and would have missed our camel trek entirely. Despite them verging on the offensive, we are told they do good work and do it quickly, so we made our booking and are certainly hoping that the advice is correct.

We also bought a few bolts (so we had some spares) in order to restore our towball and trailer hitch to its correct state. We had lost one of the two bolts holding it in place on our way here and the hitch was hanging at 45 degrees instead of horizontal as it should be. It was quite a ticklish job, but I eventually repositioned everything and inserted new bolts, but tightening them sufficiently was another challenge. In the end, I had Heather holding one wrench to stop the bolt turning while I swung on another one turning the nut until I thought it was tight enough. We will know once we reconnect the caravan and do a few clicks (at 25 kph???) on the rough roads out here.

Thursday, 6 May

Having rested up a bit and caught up (a little bit) with our blogging and email, etc., we had a day out in the West MacDonnells. We called in to Simpson’s Gap for a start. We have been there before, but there were many fewer people there this time and we enjoyed wandering around looking at birds and plants, and we even found some rock wallabies. It is a dramatic cleft in the mountain range and has a wonderful stream and small lake – effectively preventing us from walking through to the other side. The rocks are simply amazing, rugged and beautifully coloured – my photos don’t even hint at how majestic it is.

We called in at Standley’s Chasm next: expensive and so crowded that many of the visitors’ vehicles rimmed the road well outside the huge parking area. It was even worse than last time we visited – and we chose not to stay last time. The same this time! Although people say it is wonderful, we are not into lining up and paying to fight with the hordes that jostle along a path in the hope of seeing something more special that the free, peaceful wonders in the wilderness outside the gates. We just did a quick loop around the carpark to the exit and kept driving.

We drove a short way off the road to eat our lunch and we were surrounded by hundreds of budgies, maybe thousands. They were everywhere – far more than we have seen on other trips – but they are too small and too flighty to get a decent photo of them.

We went on to Hermannsburg but just drove around for a few minutes and out again. We have booked a tour for next Wednesday that will take us back there – and we have seen the area around the mission a couple of times before. The aboriginal settlement looked a lot bigger than I recall but nothing looked new so maybe it is my memory that is fading rather than the settlement growing.

Perhaps the most spectacular thing we saw on the day was Gosses Bluff.

I don’t recall much about it from our previous visit, but it is fantastic. There was one couple having lunch when we arrived, but they left soon after and we had the entire place to ourselves. It is the remains of a massive crater created millions of years ago when an asteroid/meteorite (or comet) a kilometre across crashed into the area with a force greater than a million Hiroshimas. (I have since read that it was a comet rather than a meteorite - that is one big iceblock! - as big as many of the icebergs we saw in the Arctic and Antarctic. And how much bigger it would have been if such a lot of it hadn't melted and evaporated as it tore through our atmosphere.) It created a crater more than 20 kilometres across, but that has now completely eroded. What is left is just the central blip that formed in the same way that a droplet forms when you drop a stone into a pond – a mere 5 kilometres across. It is a circle of hills with some smaller hills inside, but you drive a few kilometres between more hills on the way into the residual crater. I will post some photos as well as two videos I took from the top of one of the hills – yes, I climbed to the very top. Each video covers about 180 degrees, but I couldn’t get into position to make a 360-degree sweep. I will also post another photo taken from a lookout about 10 clicks away that shows what is left of this gargantuan asteroidal phenomenon. We walked around a longish loop path meandering around the base of one corner of the crater and back to the carpark. It really was spectacular.

We called in very briefly at a few other places along the road, but it was getting late and it was after dark when we arrived back at the caravan at about 7.30.

Friday, 7 May

We spent almost all day in the caravan. I had decided to attempt to claim some of the cost of our abbreviated camel trek against our travel insurance and spent virtually the entire day on the claim form. Obviously, insurers go out of their way to make it as cumbersome and difficult for anyone to lodge a claim and NIB is no exception. They would not accept a long email I wrote containing all the relevant details and said I had to fill in their 11-page claim form – helpfully attached. But it is in pdf format and can’t be completed without printing it – and we don’t travel with our printer. More emails back and forth to discover that there is an online claim form that they hadn't told me about. Alas, after spending an hour or two online, frequently having to find 2-year-old emails for irrelevant details, I reached a point where I had to specify what our actual loss was. The only choice you get is to start by detailing the airline you flew with and a raft of information about that – and until you complete that, remembering that we didn’t fly anywhere, you can’t get any further with your claim. More emails to be told that I had no choice but to complete the hardcopy form. I eventually paid the caravan park to print the form for us and more hours went into handwriting all the information in my original email to them – all 11 pages of it! And despite the incident or our claim having absolutely nothing to do with our normal GP (or any other GP for that matter), it is obligatory to have him complete another page and a half of details covering (inter alia) decades of Heather’s medical history. Fortunately, we have a great GP and he agreed to do it so I bundled everything up and posted it to him with a stamped/addressed envelope for him to submit the claim when completed. There was yet another raft of (entirely irrelevant) stuff they require to ‘substantiate’ the claim, but fortunately, I had all of that in electronic form so I have compiled that into a document and will send it all off to the insurer to attach to the claim when Justin posts it to them. That was virtually a full day’s work – and I have zero expectation of seeing a cent as a result. Not that I think all insurers are dishonest rogues, but I am sure they are!!!

We did sneak out of the van for a few minutes to check out the restaurant in the brewery next door to the caravan park – and booked for dinner on Sunday: Mother’s Day and my birthday. We also booked for lunch at a the Ooraminna station in the East MacDonnells for Sunday lunch when we were in the office arranging to have the claim form printed. We love the eastern ranges and there is a lot we want to see out there again – perhaps some of it from Gemtree in a couple of weeks’ time.

While I was swearing at our travel insurer, Heather did some washing and cleaning as well as sorting photos and posting to Facebook and her blog. We seem to fill in every minute even when we are supposed to be resting and recovering from our adventures – or planning and arranging more.

[andromeda1023]

What Happens to Your Body When You Die in Space?

On July 21, 1969, when the Apollo 11 crew was due to depart the lunar surface after a 22-hour visit, two speeches were placed on President Richard Nixon’s desk. “Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace,” read the contingency speech. Would Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong live out the rest of their days staring at the blue glow of Earth from 250,000 miles away?  

We’ve lost only 18 people in space—including 14 NASA astronauts—since humankind first took to strapping ourselves to rockets. That’s relatively low, considering our history of blasting folks into space without quite knowing what would happen. When there have been fatalities, the entire crew has died, leaving no one left to rescue. But as we move closer to a human mission to Mars, there’s a higher likelihood that individuals will die—whether that's on the way, while living in harsh environments, or some other reason. And any problems that arise on Mars—technical issues or lack of food, for example—could leave an entire crew or colony stranded and fending for themselves.

No settlement plans are being discussed at NASA (leave those to pie-in-the-sky private groups like Mars One for now), but a crewed mission has been on the docket for some time, and could touch down as early as the 2040s. NASA's "Journey to Mars" quotes an estimated three-year round-trip, leaving plenty of time for any number of things to go wrong.                    

"The real interesting question is, what happens on a mission to Mars or on the lunar space station if there were [a death]," says Emory University bioethicist Paul Wolpe. "What happens when it may be months or years before a body can get back to Earth—or where it's impractical to bring the body back at all?" 

Today’s astronauts travel to space by way of the Russian Soyuz, then spend a few months on the International Space Station. Because astronauts are in impeccable health at the time of launch, a death in the ISS crew would likely result from an accident during a spacewalk.                    

"In the worst case scenario, something happens during a spacewalk,” says Chris Hadfield, Canadian astronaut and former commander of the ISS. “You could suddenly be struck by a micro-meteorite, and there's nothing you can do about that. It could puncture a hole in your suit, and within a few seconds you're incapacitated." 

This hypothetical astronaut would only have about 15 seconds before they lost consciousness. Before they froze, they would most likely die from asphyxiation or decompression. 10 seconds of exposure to the vacuum of space would force the water in their skin and blood to vaporize, while their body expanded outward like a balloon being filled with air. Their lungs would collapse, and after 30 seconds they would be paralyzed—if they weren’t already dead by this point.                    

The likelihood of death on the ISS is low, and it’s never happened before. But what would surviving astronauts do if it did? 

ISS and shuttle astronaut Terry Virts served two expeditions on the space station and one mission on the space shuttle. In total he’s clocked 213 days in space. But the astronaut says he’s never been trained to handle a dead body in space. “I did quite a bit of medical training to save people, but not for this.”                    

NASA's official statement to Popular Science on the subject left a lot to be desired:  "NASA does not prepare contingency plans for all remote risks. NASA’s response to any unplanned on-orbit situation will be determined in a real time collaborative process between the Flight Operations Directorate, Human Health and Performance Directorate, NASA leadership, and our International Partners."                    

“In my 16 years as an astronaut I don’t remember talking with another astronaut about the possibility of dying,” Virts says. “We all understand it’s a possibility, but the elephant in the room was just not discussed.”                    

But NASA’s out-of-sight-out-of-mind policy on death may not be the norm. Commander Hadfield tells Popular Science that all international partners who train for missions to the ISS (including JAXA and ESA) do in fact prepare for the death of a crewmember.                    

"We have these things called 'contingency simulations' where we discuss what to do with the body,” he says.                    

Hadfield discusses these 'death simulations’ in his book An Astronauts Guide to Life. He sets the scene—“Mission control: 'we’ve just received word from the Station: Chris is dead.' Immediately, people start working the problem. Okay, what are we going to do with his corpse? There are no body bags on Station, so should we shove it in a spacesuit and stick it in a locker? But what about the smell? Should we send it back to Earth on a resupply ship and let it burn up with the rest of the garbage on re-entry? Jettison it during a spacewalk and let it float away into space?"                    

As Hadfield points out, a corpse in space presents some major logistical problems. The fact that a dead body is a biohazard is definitely the biggest concern, and finding the space to store it in is a close second.                    

Since NASA lacks a protocol for sudden death on the ISS, the station’s commander would probably decide on how to handle the body. "If someone died while on an EVA I would bring them inside the airlock first," Hadfield says. "I would probably keep them inside their pressurized suit; bodies actually decompose faster in a spacesuit, and we don't want the smell of rotting meat or off gassing, it's not sanitary. So we would keep them in their suit and store it somewhere cold on the station."                    

If submarines lose a crew member and can’t make it to land right away, they store bodies near the torpedoes—where it's cold, and separate from the living quarters. The crew of the ISS already stores trash in the coldest spot on the station; it keeps the bacteria away from them and makes smell less of an issue. "I would probably store them in there until a ship was going home, where they would take the third seat on the Soyuz,” Hadfield says. They could also store a body in one of the airlocks.                    

Freeze-Dried Funerals

NASA may not have specific contingency plans for a sudden death, but the agency is working on it; in 2005 they commissioned a study from Swedish eco-burial company Promessa. The study resulted in a yet-to-be-tested design called "The Body Back." The creepy-sounding system uses a technique called promession, which essentially freeze-dries a body. Instead of producing the ash of a traditional cremation, it would turn a frozen corpse into a million little pieces of icy flesh. 

Freeze Dried Funerals and other thoughts:  https://getpocket.com/explore/item/what-happens-to-your-body-when-you-die-in-space?utm_source=pocket-newtab                 

[architectnews]

ABIBOO envisions cliff face city as "future capital of Mars"

Architecture studio ABIBOO has designed the concept for a self-sufficient and sustainable city on Mars named Nüwa that could be built in 2054. Its architect explains the project to Dezeen.

Set within a cliff on Mars, Nüwa was designed for non-profit organisation the Mars Society to be the first permanent settlement on Mars.

The vertical settlement, which could eventually house 250,000 people, would be embedded into the side of a cliff and built using materials available on the planet.

Mars city Nüwa would be built into a cliff

ABIBOO founder Alfredo Munoz believes that building a permanent, large-scale habitat on Mars is feasible this century and that the planet may have more potential for settlement than the moon.

"Permanent habitats on the Moon that are self-sufficient would be challenging, including the lack of water and critical minerals," he told Dezeen.

"On the other hand, Mars offers the right resources to create a fully sustainable settlement."

Food will be grown at the top of the cliff

The city, developed with scientific group SONet, would be built into a one-kilometre-high cliff face to protect the residents from radiation and allow for a large city to be built without constructing huge enclosures.

"Nüwa solves all the core problems of living on Mars while creating an inspiring environment to thrive, architecturally rich and using only local materials sourced on Mars," said Munoz.

"It is a sustainable and self-sufficient city with a strong identity and sense of belonging. Nüwa is conceived to be the future capital of Mars."

The cliff would protect the city from radiation

A system of interconnected tunnels would be bored into the Martian rock, with light entering from the cliff tunnel ends at the cliff face. The area at the top of the cliff would be used for growing food.

According to Munoz, Nüwa combines the benefits of previously proposed surface and tunnel dwellings.

Some tunnels would project from the cliff face to let light into the city

"Some past solutions for habitats on Mars propose exciting buildings on the surface of the red planet," he said.

"The challenge with these solutions is that to protect effectively and long-term from radiation, the buildings' skin needs to be thick and opaque."

"Alternative past solutions on Mars are underground, located inside lava tubes or craters," he continued.

"Such building configurations might provide a more efficient and safe technical solution than those on the surface. However, access to light is essential for humans' phycological well-being, and spending long-term underground might not be the ideal solution."

Nüwa could house 250,000 people

ABIBOO's Martian city would be built using tunnelling technology that is"already available on Earth" and steel obtained by processing water and CO2 found on Mars using a system that will need to be developed.

While the studio believes that hydroponic systems for making food and solar generation systems for making electricity already largely exist, it sees manufacturing breathable air as the biggest technical hurdle to overcome to make the city viable.

Construction could begin in 2054

The architect also highlights transporting goods and people to Mars and funding as potential barriers, but believes that construction could begin in 2054.

"We estimate that by 2054 we could be able to start building a settlement like Nüwa," Munoz said.

"However, this date is tentative as there are many critical paths associated with a city on Mars," he continued.

"If the right resources are in place and some of the required technologies on Earth support the speedy implementation, Nüwa could be finished by 2100."

Read on for the full interview with Alfredo Munoz:

Tom Ravenscroft: What is the core concept for Nüwa?

Alfredo Munoz: Nüwa is a vertical city inside a cliff. The town protects its inhabitants from deadly radiation, potential impacts from meteorites, and extreme temperature changes on Mars by this configuration. Additionally, its modularity provides a highly scalable solution that can be standardised while giving a very diverse experience to its citizens.

Nüwa solves all the core problems of living on Mars while creating an inspiring environment to thrive, architecturally rich and using only local materials sourced on Mars. It is a sustainable and self-sufficient city with a strong identity and sense of belonging. Nüwa is conceived to be the future capital of Mars.

Tom Ravenscroft: How does this differ from other prospective designs for living on Mars or the moon?

Alfredo Munoz: Permanent habitats on the Moon that are self-sufficient would be challenging, including the lack of water and critical minerals. On the other hand, Mars offers the right resources to create a fully sustainable settlement.

Some past solutions for habitats on Mars propose exciting buildings on the surface of the red planet. The challenge with these solutions is that to protect effectively and long-term from radiation, the buildings' skin needs to be thick and opaque.

Additionally, the pressure difference between the inside and the outside requires structures that prevent the building from exploding. For small buildings, this is not a terrible challenge because the design can absorb the pressure.

Still, the more ample space, the tension grows exponentially. As a result, on-the-ground-building is not reasonable to accommodate a large population, as the amount of material associated with their structure would be vast and expensive.

Alternative past solutions on Mars are underground, located inside lava tubes or craters. Such building configurations might provide a more efficient and safe technical solution than those on the surface. However, access to light is essential for humans' phycological well-being, and spending long-term underground might not be the ideal solution.

Nüwa is excavated on a one-kilometre-high cliff oriented to the south with tunnels that extend towards the cliff's wall, bringing indirect light and creating buffer spaces for the community to thrive and socialise.

Being inside the cliff protects from radiation and meteorites. The rock absorbs atmospheric pressure from inside and provides thermal inertia to avoid temperature losses, as the outside can be below 100 degrees Celsius.

Density is critical on Mars as every square meter is costly. Reducing the space required for infrastructure, logistics, and inter-city transportation is of utmost importance on Mars. The location of Nüwa inside a cliff ensures such space is minimised. Finally, the cliffs have a mesa at the top that is usually relatively flat, which is ideal for locating the vast areas required for the generation of energy and food.

Tom Ravenscroft: How did you aim to ensure that this is a feasible design?

Alfredo Munoz: Nüwa is the result of months of work of 30 plus global experts from different fields. ABIBOO headed the architecture and urban design. Still, the project's innovative solutions would have been impossible without the close collaboration with top global minds in astrophysics, life-support systems, astrobiology, mining, engineering, design, astrogeology, arts, and many other fields.

Tom Ravenscroft: What were the main factors that impacted the design of this concept?

Alfredo Munoz: The first factor was the Mars Society's request to provide a large-scale permanent settlement on the red planet. Creating a temporal solution or even a building for a small community of future Martian requires completely different strategies than those needed for a city where people will live and die.

Ensuring that the citizens have the right environment for an enriching life was critical for us. Public areas and vegetation are the core of life at Nüwa.

The second factor was our determination for Nüwa to be a self-sufficient and sustainable city on Mars. This requirement was critical when conceptualising the design because we needed to use simple, scalable, and affordable solutions to provide a massive construction volume.

Nüwa accommodates 250,000 people and provides 55 million square meters of total built-up area and 188 million cubic meters of breathable air. The modularity, urban strategy, and configuration inside a cliff are the results of such self-imposed constrain.

Tom Ravenscroft: What do you think the main barriers to building on Mars are?

Alfredo Munoz: The tunnelling systems, which are one of the most critical technologies required in Nüwa, are already available on Earth. Steel would be the primary material for civil work, as it can be obtained through processing water and CO2, which are available on Mars. While the team of scientists feels comfortable that such processing is possible, the technology has to be developed and tested on Earth.

However, considering the relevance of mining and excavation in Nüwa, a geotechnical analysis should be performed on the ground by astronauts to thoroughly verify and analyse if the conditions are adequate for extensive excavations on Tempe Mensa or new locations have to be scouted.

As a result, until we cannot send a limited number of humans to Mars, we will not have the intel needed to develop the detailed construction plans. While a lot of work can be performed with prototypes and analogues on Earth, astronauts should validate everything on the ground.

From the life-support point of view, the processing of oxygen is the most challenging technology that has to be developed. Although the vegetation in Nüwa provides oxygen, a large percentage needs to be "manufactured".

We still do not have the technology to create such a breathable air volume, which is a critical path for Nüwa's feasibility. On the other hand, the solutions regarding food, such as hydroponic systems for the crop, cellular meat, or microalgae-based food, are almost currently ready.

From the energy aspect, the solar generation systems of Nüwa are based on photovoltaics and solar concentrators, which are also available nowadays on Earth. The most significant problem we have on Mars is that solar power does not work during common sand storms. During those times, alternative energy sources need to be provided. While Nüwa is considering a small nuclear plant, further technology should be developed as an ideal alternative.

Even if Nüwa could be technically possible during the following decades, we still need to transport such an amount of people. Sending so many people is a massive challenge, as we only have a window of opportunity every two years due to the distances and orbits of Earth and Mars. Elon Musk and Space X might help during this in the next decade, but a colossal technology improvement on space shuttles needs to happen for Nüwa to be open its doors.

Finally, the resources and the will have to be in place for Nüwa to be a reality. The Panama Canal required decades of work and massive sources. Similarly, a city on Mars will require a long-term vision and commitment.

Tom Ravenscroft: When do you expect a city of this scale could be constructed on Mars?

Alfredo Munoz: Based on the summary of barriers that I explained before and considering preliminary technical analysis with the scientists we estimate that by 2054 we could be able to start building a settlement like Nüwa.

However, this date is tentative as there are many critical paths associated with a city on Mars. If the right resources are in place and some of the required technologies on Earth support the speedy implementation, Nüwa could be finished by 2100.

Images are by ABIBOO / SONet

The post ABIBOO envisions cliff face city as "future capital of Mars" appeared first on Dezeen.

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Inkayacu paracasensis

By José Carlos Cortés 

Etymology: King of the Water

First Described By: Clarke et al., 2010

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostaylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Aequorlitornithes, Ardeae, Aequornithes, Austrodyptornithes, Sphenisciformes, Spheniscidae

Status: Extinct

Time and Place: Between 37.2 and 33.9 million years ago, in the Priabonian age of the Eocene of the Paleogene 

Inkayacu is known from Yumaque Point of the Otuma Formation in Ica, Peru 

Physical Description: Inkayacu was an extinct penguin, and had a lot of similar traits to other extinct penguins - though resembling modern forms, extinct ones were unique in having extremely large bill size and just large body size in general. Inkayacu was about 1.5 meters long, which is a significant jump from the biggest living penguin (the Emperor Penguin at 1.2 meters long), and Inkayacu wasn’t even the biggest penguin at the time. It had a long, pointed bill, much longer than those seen on living members of the group. And - uniquely - we know the color of Inkayacu! Unlike living penguins, which are all varying shades of black and white with some splashes of other colors elsewhere, Inkayacu was grey and brown. We only known these colors form the flippers (wings), which show grey backs of the flipper and brown fronts, but it’s reasonable to suppose this pattern would follow the patterns of living penguins, where the color of the back of the flipper extends throughout the back of the animal, and the color of the front extends to the front. Thus, we depict Inkayacu with a grey back and a brown front, but this is still a conjecture. The melanosomes are similar to modern birds, long and narrow within the feathers - living penguins actually have wider ones. Other than that, the feathers of Inkayacu are similar to modern penguins in other ways, indicating that it had the same aquatic lifestyle. As such, it was flightless.

Diet: Inkayacu, like other penguins, would have fed on a wide variety of fish and aquatic invertebrates. 

Icadyptes and Inkayacu by Apokryltaros, CC BY-SA 3.0 

Behavior: Though shaped in a lot of ways like living penguins, Inkayacu was different in a number of ways. It had fewer melanosomes in its feathers than living penguins - and these melanosomes provide rigidity in modern penguin feathers that help with deep-sea diving. Without such melanosomes, Inkayacu might not have been as well adapted to deep diving. Still, it was clearly adapted for spending its life in the sea, diving and sea-flying all over its habitat. It would have used its long beak to stab and grab food, especially slippery food that might be hard to get a grip on. Using its flippers, it could propel itself through the water. Its feet were small and not good for moving, so on land it would probably waddle. This is not an uncommon bird to find, fossil-wise, and so it stands to reason that it would have been very social like living penguins. It would have probably laid its eggs on land, and took care of its young with mated partners. Given it lived in Peru, in the Eocene, it was more adapted for warm weather than cold, and wouldn’t have ventured very far south. 

By Julio Lacerda, used with permission from Earth Archives 

Ecosystem: Inkayacu lived along the Pervuian Priabonian coast, the Western coast of South America right as the global rainforest of the Eocene was collapsing and being replaced with more varying and arid climates. This was also a time of notable climate change and effects on the ocean, leading to a small mass extinction (especially in the oceans) at this time - killing off many iconic forms, including proto-whales. The conditions of this mass extinction actually allowed the penguins to flourish, and Inkayacu was a part of that flourishing. Inkayacu lived alongside proto-whales like Cynthiacetus and Mystacodon - a toothed baleen whale. Inkayacu wasn’t the only penguin in this area, but was joined by the larger and longer-beaked Icadyptes. As for proper fish, there were ray-finned fish like Engraulis and Sardinops, and unnamed sharks. There may have also been the marine snake Pterosphenus. There were many kinds of invertebrates as well. Inkayacu would probably have had to look out for the sharks and whales, though the fish would have had to look out for it! The coast that Inkayacu would have spent its time on would probably have been more rocky than sandy, though it’s uncertain either way. 

By Ripley Cook 

Other: Inkayacu is very closely related to living penguins and is just outside the group of modern penguins and their closest relatives, so it showcases the evolution of penguins towards what we’re familiar with today. It’s interesting to note that short beaks seem to be characteristic of the modern crown group of penguins, and that long beaks were found in penguins even as close to the crown group as Inkayacu.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut 

Acosta Hospitaleche, C., and M. Stucchi. 2005. Nuevos restos terciarios de Spheniscidae (Aves, sphenisciformes) procedentes de la Costa del Peru. Revista española de paleontología 20(1):1-5

Clarke, J.A.; Ksepka, D.T.; Stucchi, M.; Urbina, M.; Giannini, N.; Bertelli, S.; Narváez, Y.; Boyd, C.A. (2007). "Paleogene equatorial penguins challenge the proposed relationship between biogeography, diversity, and Cenozoic climate change". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 104 (28): 11545–11550.

Clarke, J. A., D. T. Ksepka, R. Salas-Gismondi, A. J. Altamirano, M. D. Shawkey, L. D’Alba, J. Vinther, T. J. DeVries, and P. Baby. 2010. Fossil evidence for evolution of the shape and color of penguin feathers. Science 330

Hoffstetter, R. 1958. Un serpent marin du genre Pterosphenus (Pt. Sheppardi nov. sp.) dans L’Éocène supérieur de L’Équateur (Amérique de Sud). Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France 6:45-50

Hooker, J.J.; Collinson, M.E.; Sille, N.P. (2004). "Eocene-Oligocene mammalian faunal turnover in the Hampshire Basin, UK: calibration to the global time scale and the major cooling event". Journal of the Geological Society. 161 (2): 161–172.

Ivany, Linda C.; Patterson, William P.; Lohmann, Kyger C. (2000). "Cooler winters as a possible cause of mass extinctions at the Eocene/Oligocene boundary". Nature. 407 (6806): 887–890.

Köhler, M; Moyà-Solà, S (December 1999). "A finding of oligocene primates on the European continent". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 96 (25): 14664–7.

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