#antique fire engines

[uniqueartisanconnoisseur]

Antique Tractor Calendar 2024

Are you ready to start planning for the 2024 Antique Tractor shows, drives and farm toy shows?  If so, here is my 2024 Antique Tractor Calendar. It’s time to start making reservations and marking the calendar for antique tractor fun in the New Year!  Here are my favorites, shows, or those mentioned by friends and family that they love! Note as always, before hitting the road, for events listed…

[larryshapiro]

First motorized fire engine in Apex, NC - antique 1939 Ford Hunter fire engine 

[yuthana]

Vintage retro fire truck litho tin. FD Fire ladder engine truck Japanese 60s tin friction powered & fire sparkling siren. 

(Sold Out)

[crishayle]

Pluto in the houses

Disclaimer. This article touches on unpleasant topics for conversation. Please don't be sad when reading it. Thank you:)

Pluto is responsible in astrology for transformations, death, destruction, power, sex, crises. This planet is one of the most difficult to interpret the natal chart, because it shows skeletons in the closet.

Pluto in 1st house:

1.This is an indicator of mental endurance. Such people have experienced many terrible and difficult situations. For example, the death of loved ones,fire,drugs,alcoholism,depression,suicide attempts. Their life is filled with stages to which they try not to return. What's gone is gone.

2.I noticed that such people always have some unusual scar or birthmark, a mole on their face

3.Such people can really be a leader in a group or is in authority. The paradox is that they are most often not very talkative and energetic and don't like attention, but the people around them respect their opinion and often ask them for advice.

4.They love sarcasm and self-irony, as well as making fun of friends.

5.They have a high sense of empathy for people, so they feel lies or hypocrisy of the interlocutor well. This is a great placement for psychologists, tarologists or astrologers.

6.Most likely, such people have heard more than once that they have a heavy or tired look.

7.Pluto in the 1st house in the aspects with Mars, Mercury or the Sun can indicate manipulativeness, imperiousness and aggressiveness. Before doing this, please also analyse the other placements of the natal chart.

Pluto in the 2nd house:

1.An indicator of a great love for material things. Of course, everyone loves money, but not like people with Pluto in the 2nd house.Many of these people have deposits, are thinking about buying real estate or investing. Don't forget, Pluto is a planet of other people's money, so people with this placement are good in business and sales.

2.With tense aspects with other planets, this placement can mean greed, wastefulness, unwillingness to earn money on their own. Such people like to dream and do nothing.

3.Such people love antiques. I noticed that they can keep memorabilia, postcards and gifts from friends in a box for many years.

4.They always know how to save money. If you want to know where you can buy something at a discount, then ask them. Perhaps such people like second-hand shops.

5.I noticed that such people have faced fraud or theft.

6.Their thoughts often become material. I'm not talking about global dreams, for example, about buying a car. Such people may think about a new bag and get a bonus or an opportunity to earn extra money the next day.

7.Pluto loves change, so it's not surprising if people with this placement can move to another city to earn money. Such people could face difficult choices or risks to succeed.

Pluto in the 3rd house:

1.Good analytical skills. This is a good placement for people working in IT, engineering, economics and psychology.

2.With tense aspects with other planets, it may indicate poor memory, short temper and rebelliousness, problems with focusing attention.

3.My personal observation. This is an indicator that in childhood a person could be bullied, change schools, study martial arts. In general, such people are more likely than others to encounter toxic people.

4.This is a very good placement for speakers. Firstly, they know how to convey their message to the audience. Secondly, they have a pleasant voice (but you also need to look at other placements).Thirdly, such people don't like to be silent. For the same reason, I would advise them to keep a diary or write their thoughts and ideas in notes.

5.This is an indicator of an honest person. He will not lie out of courtesy or for selfish purposes. Ask him anything and you will hear his true thoughts.

6.This is a lover of heart-to-heart talk :)

7.Of course, you need to look at the other placements of the natal chart, but most often such people's brains work better in the afternoon or at night.

Pluto in the 4th house:

1.The 4th house in astrology represents family, childhood and mother. For an accurate interpretation, look at the sun and moon in your natal chart. This is an indicator of parents' divorce, constant moving, strained relations in the family. Such a person could receive insufficient love and attention from his parents. Often this is an indication of strict upbringing.

2.Good intuition. Perhaps someone on the maternal side had esoteric abilities.

3.He likes to do the interior of the house. The house for this person is the personification of his personality. The very type of people who start cleaning if they have a lot of stress or anxiety.

4.It is very important for this person to make friends with his inner child in order not to succumb to his desires. For example, you need to determine what is home and a sense of security for you, what is love and attention of loved ones for you, etc. Until you answer these questions, you will unknowingly create problems in your life.

5.This is a possible indicator of an inheritance or a precious family heirloom (but you also need to look at the 8th house in the natal chart)

6.If the other placements in the natal chart don't indicate a bad relationship with parents, then Pluto in the 4th house may indicate that a person had a strong mother. The child could admire her stress resistance, diligence, integrity.She is a complex, but very interesting person.

7.Such people have matured early. In childhood, they were wise children, with whom adults were surprised.

Pluto in the 5th house:

1.'Sorry,I'm anti-romantic".With tense aspects with other planets (especially Venus) this is an indicator of complete aversion to love. A person is afraid of relationships because of possible betrayal or low self-esteem (you need to look at the rest of the placements of the natal chart).

2.A great placement for actors. People like to watch their emotions and listen to them. Emotionality and a high level of empathy is expressed in artistry, which is noticeable even in ordinary conversation.It is not surprising that this placement is really found in many famous actors (Milla Jovovich, Robert Pattinson, Jon Voight, Lady Gaga)

3.Such a person can really select and create a new personality and image for a particular person, which causes problems in his personal life.For some, he is a cheerful extrovert, for others a homebody, for others an ambitious workaholic.

4.Most often, such people are jealous and demand passion and emotions in a relationship (but you need to look at Venus and the Moon in the natal chart)They want to literally get under their partner's skin and breathe the same air. Their love is constant, but very demanding.

5.Pluto is a planet of change, and the 5th house embodies creativity, so such people can be music lovers, often change their style of clothing and their appearance.

6.I notice that the language of love for such people is a physical touch.

7.A man who loves competitions. Firstly, they know how to win.Secondly, they have good endurance.Thirdly, they do not see obstacles.The only disadvantage is that a person can go against the rules and cheat.It's better not to argue with them.

Pluto in the 6th house:

1.Good immunity.A person rarely gets sick and he is physically hardy.(but you need to look at the rest of the placements)

2.The very kind of employee who wants to improve working conditions. He will not be silent if he is not allowed to go on vacation or on sick leave, not to agree to work overtime without additional pay. Responsible, but very demanding employee. Treats colleagues with respect, but tries not to start a friendship at work.

3.With tense aspects with other planets, this is an indicator of workaholism to your detriment. A person can harm his health due to lack of rest and sleep.

4.An indicator that a person may think too much about their health and body. Often Pluto in the 6th house is found in hypochondriacs, people with an eating disorder.

5.Often such people experience impostor syndrome, as they cannot fully accept their achievements.

6.This is a great placement for leadership positions.Such people know how to manage and motivate people.The only downside is that they can go too far and be too overbearing and demanding of their employees.

7.Their emotional state is stronger than that of other people, affects their health.The stomach and skin are especially vulnerable.

Pluto in the 7th house:

1.This placement is most often found in the natal charts of people who have experienced an unpleasant experience in love (divorce, toxic relationships, infidelity, death of a partner)

2.Many of them have a person who can unsuccessfully seek their hearts for several years.

3.With tense aspects with other planets, this is an indicator that a person can be sacrificial in a relationship. Sometimes I find this placement in the natal charts of people who have been subjected to domestic violence.

4.This is one of the indicators of late marriage.

5.The 7th house represents not only a partner, but also enemies. Such people could survive betrayal from the closest people, after which they began to experience trust problems.

6.A person who gives good relationship advice, but doesn't follow it himself.

7.Such people tend to fall under the influence of a partner. (but you also need to look at the other placements in the natal chart).It is important for them to learn to appreciate their hobbies, their character and their dreams, and not to change them because of a partner.

Pluto in the 8th house:

1.Fatalist. This man has been convinced more than once in his life that everything that is not being done is for the best.

2.An indicator of high libido (but you also need to look at Mars and the Sun).They are active and good at sex.

3.I noticed that these people always had a case when they almost died. Many of them had an accident.

4.They understood what karma is from birth. All the bad things always come back to them, as well as the best. Their enemies always get what they deserve.

5.Strong energy (somewhat similar to Pluto in the 1st house). During a conversation with them, you can be filled with energy for the rest of your life.They seem to be out of this world.

6.Possible mental problems.As well as psychological diseases (depression, ocd, adhd, etc.), and diseases of the central nervous system.Many of them suffer from insomnia, seizures or panic attacks (but for this you need to study the natal chart in detail)

7.Such a person is prone to hyperfixation on something. It is important for him to develop comprehensively so that his thoughts are not limited to one idea.

Pluto in the 9th house:

1.A person who likes to study other cultures.Perhaps he listens to a lot of foreign music, learns languages and watches travel shows.

2.There are two extremes here (you need to look at the natal chart).Or a person completely denies higher education and believes that it is not necessary in the modern world.Or on the contrary, he considers it the most important and seeks to get several.

3.A person who thinking on your feet.His mind is very active, but long-term memory can often be confused.

4.This is a person who is able to get information out of the ground.A good placement for detectives.

5.I often meet this placement in the natal charts of lawyers, police officers, people from social services.They try to change the world for the better because of a high sense of justice.Often there are philanthropists among them.

6.With tense aspects with other planets, such a person could be forced to move to another country or city because of poor living conditions.

7.A very inquisitive person. He's easy to learn on his own, so don't be surprised if he acquired most of his skills from the internet.

Pluto in the 10th house:

1.This placement is most often found in the natal charts of people whose profession literally saves someone's life (doctor, military, firefighter, etc.)

2.They are very purposeful and stubborn people. If they argue, they argue to the end. If they work, they definitely go for a promotion.The type of person who doesn't listen to someone's advice.

3.Such people tend to postpone some savings until old age.For example, to purchase additional real estate or find a source of passive income.In matters of finance, they think very big.

4.They respect reputable people, but they are not afraid of them.They don't care about your position, job and income, you will always be an ordinary person.

5.I noticed that these people are often stalked on social networks.People admire and envy them a little.

6.Their thinking is very practical.(but you need to look at the natal chart) Their logic gets the better of their emotions.They are not cold-blooded, but rather realists.

7.Such people are more likely than others to face rivalry at work or when applying to university.

Pluto in the 11th house:

1.Such people stopped communicating with people more often than others because of changes in their lives.

2.With tense aspects with other planets, such a person may fall under the influence of bad company or toxic friends.

3.This person believes in lifelong friendship and is looking for someone with whom he will be himself, but instead he is even more horrified with other people.

4.This placement is often found in the natal charts of volunteers, school/university activists. Such people like to work in a team and are often led by them.

5.Such people don't really like to express their opinions in a group (but you need to look at Mercury and the Sun).They would rather choose a compromise than defend their choice.

6.A good placement for influencers. Such people have more chances to gain popularity.

7.Also, with tense aspects with other planets, this is an indicator of a social phobe.A person does not trust and is afraid of people.He is comfortable in his loneliness because of trust issues.

Pluto in the 12th house:

1.A person who is used to asking for advice from others.It is easier for him to ask the opinion of several people, think about everything and only then make a decision.

2.This is a good placement for psychologists and psychiatrists. These people are interested in the human soul from a scientific point of view.Perhaps they are fond of philosophy and have read the works of famous psychiatrists and philosophers.

3.The people who keep secrets the best.And their own too:)

4.Such people need to periodically restore their energy while alone and turn off the phone. So don't be surprised if this person disappears for a week, he's just resting.

5.In such people, intuition works most strongly through dreams and signs. Pay attention to information from the outside.

6.Life seems to deliberately confront these people with their fears. Although these people do not seem at first glance brave and courageous, in fact they are very strong.

7.I noticed that such people prefer to work alone.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: On Colour

Describing Colour in your Poetry and Stories

BLACK Shadow Black, Dusk, Midnight, Blackbird, Blackberry, Ebony, Black Honey, Darkness, Jet Black, Ink Black, Soot, Onyx, Licorice, Ivory Black, Pitch, Char, Gloom, Outer Space, Creosote Black, Melanite, Goth Black, Gunpowder

BLUE Blueberry, Sapphire Blue Metallic, Tiffany Blue (Pantone 1837), Cobalt Blue, Denim, Aquamarine, Turquoise, Sky Blue, Topaz, Ultramarine Blue, Azure, Cerulean, Oxford Blue, Periwinkle, Electric Blue, Baby Boy Blue, Pthalo Blue, Robin's Egg Blue, Persian Blue, Marino Blue, Prussian Blue

GREEN Leafy Green, Olive, Moss Green, Jade, Lime, Sour Apple Green, Emerald Green, Mint, Kiwi Green, Phthalo Green, Praying Mantis Green, Viridian, Greenback, Shamrock, Sap Green, Chartreuse, Sea Green, Pistachio, Teal, Bamboo, Sea Salt, Celadon Green, Celery, Asparagus Green, Fern Green, Neon Green, Jungle Green, Pear Green

ORANGE Pumpkin, Burnt Orange, Carrot, Sunset Orange, Tangerine, Persimmon, Salamander, Tennessee Orange (Pantone 151), Jack-o'-lantern Orange, Florida Orange, Summer Squash, Pale Daffodil, Smashed Pumpkin, Saffron, Autumn Orange, Macaroni and Cheese, Cadmium Orange

PINK Pink Flamingo, Neon Pink, Bubblegum Pink, Salmon, Peach, Fuscia, Cotton Candy Pink, Rose, Carnation, Thulian, Apricot, Atomic Pink, Barbie Pink, Hot Pink, Amaranth, Flushed, Glitter Pink

PURPLE Lavender, Purple Haze, Grape, Eggplant Purple, Plum, Violet, Orchid, Psychedelic Purple, Amethyst, Lilac, Boysenberry, Mulberry, Wisteria, Bruised Plum, Indigo, Mauve

RED Blood Red, Copper, Maroon, Strawberry, Watermelon Red, Crimson, Candy Apple Red, Tomato, Brick Red, Scarlet, Cardinal Red, Cherry, Ruby Red, Coral, Sunburn, Hot Lava, Cadmium Red, Auburn, Blush, Alizarin Crimson, Fire Engine Red, Raspberry, Vermillion, Lipstick, Burgundy, Magenta, English Vermilion, Mahogany

WHITE Dirty White, Albino, Chalk, Alabaster, Cotton, Titanium White, Vanilla, Bone White Egg Shell, Marshmallow, Ivory, Pearl White, Almond, Champagne, Blond, Cream, Milky White, Corn Silk, Bleach, Navajo White, Ghost White, Light, Cloud White

YELLOW Canary Yellow, Lemon, Banana, Egg Yolk Yellow, Mellow Yellow, Chanterelle, Mustard Yellow, Corn, Goldenrod, Amber, Pineapple, Metallic Gold, Cadmium Yellow, Wheat, Tuscan Sun, Butter, School Bus Yellow, Yellow Ochre, Citron, Dandelion

BROWN Mud Brown, Beaver, Caramel, Rust, Macaroon, Toasty Brown, Coffee, Sandy Tan, Cocoa, Honey, Chocolate, Burnt Sienna, Mocha, Seashell, Antique Brass, Bronze, Brown Sugar, Chestnut Brown, Taupe, Burnt Umber, Khaki, Dark Sienna, Light Chocolate, Sepia

GRAY Stone Gray, Ash, Metallic Silver, Platinum, Smoke, Concrete Gray, Mercury, Steel Gray, Mist, Titanium, Charcoal, Slate, Sterling Silver, Tungsten, Old Coin Gray, Iron Gray, Chrome, Magnesium, Overcast

MIXED Candy Cane (red and white), Zebra (black and white), Chameleon (many different colours), Ladybug (black and red), Wildfire (yellow, orange and red), Tiger (orange, black and white), Yellow Jacket (black and yellow), Christmas Lights (red, white and green), Rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet), Black Pepper (black and gray), Leopard (spotted gold and black), Creamsicle (orange and white), Candy Corn (orange and white), Iceberg (a bluish gray), Marbled

COLOURS: Symbolisms, Associations & Psychological Effects

Black. Especially in Gothic literature from the West, a black colour choice often represents death, evil, grief, and depression. Associated with fear, the unknown and often has a negative connotation. Black clothes can make you look thinner. A black background severely diminishes the readability of most type. Often the go to colour for funerals and grieving. It symbolizes stability and power, which gives a sense of authority. Thus, the black colour often represents professionalism and expertise.

Blue. Has positive and negative connotations in colour psychology. Some writers may use blue to represent serenity and tranquility, instilling a scene with a calming effect. Blue can also signify sadness, melancholy, or isolation. People who find someone very loyal and faithful are often called "true blue". Blue is often considered to be more masculine which is why it is often the colour of choice when choosing a suit. Lighter blues are associated with tranquility, softness and healing. Darker blues are associated with power, knowledge and seriousness. Blue is actually shown to suppress appetites a bit. The colour blue symbolizes wisdom and hope. It’s the colour of peace and confidence. Blue has been shown to reduce blood pressure and pulse rate. It fosters serenity and a sense of belonging.

Green. The colour green often symbolizes rebirth, growth, peace, jealousy, and greed. Green colours may also represent spring and renewal. It is a colour that is very easy on the eyes. Dark green is often associated with ambition. Green suggests stability, safety and hope. At the same time, it may denote a lack of experience in a particular field. Green symbolizes peace, growth, and nature. It is the colour of success, promoting healing and tranquility.

Orange. The colour orange often represents energy, excitement, joy, and creativity. Since orange is the colour of fire, it may also symbolize heat. Since orange is not as aggressive as red, it can actually stimulate brain activity. It is very useful to catch someone's attention, which is why it's used a lot to advertise food and toys.

Pink. The colour pink symbolizes love, kindness, femininity, innocence, and playfulness. Certain shades of pink can limit aggression. Pink may be associated with unconditional love and caring.

Purple. Often associated with royalty, the colour purple symbolizes bravery, spirituality, and luxury. Light purple usually brings up romantic or nostalgic feelings; while a darker shade can make you feel gloomy or sad.

Red. The colour red symbolizes some of the most powerful human emotions, like passionate love or lust. On the other side of the spectrum, this warm colour is also the colour of blood, often symbolizing anger, danger, and violence. It stimulates the appetite. Red is an emotionally intense colour associated with energy, danger, anger, passion and determination. The symbolic meaning associated with the colour red is passion, excitement, and love. It’s the colour of urgency, power, and desire. Red is said to boost hunger and is believed to inspire confidence and excitement. This colour has also been found to increase blood pressure and heart rate.

White. This primary colour traditionally symbolizes innocence, peace, and cleanliness. In Western cultures, the colour white also represents purity and virginity, while it symbolizes mourning in some East Asian cultures. Usually has positive connotations when used and thought of as safe. Associated a lot with healing, simplicity and sterility, which is why it's used in hospitals and healing centers as much as it is. The symbolic meaning of the colour white is truth and sometimes even indifference. It encourages feelings of safety and cleanliness. Clean, white clothes and linens show sterility since stains are easily visible. That’s why doctors and nurses frequently wear white lab coats and scrubs.

Yellow. Writers may use the colour yellow to symbolize creativity, happiness, optimism, and warmth—think of a yellow ray of sunlight poking out from a dark cloud. A common negative connotation of the color yellow is cowardice, popularized by the phrase “yellow-bellied.” Warming effect which stimulates body and mind. Gold is associated with the highest of luxury. When bright yellow is used with black it's one of the easiest colour combinations to see from long distances; when uses with lighter colours it's not so easy to see. Yellow ribbons are worn as a symbol of hope and used quite often to welcome home loved ones. Yellow is the colour of warmth, kindness, and happiness. It’s often associated with optimism and well-being and promotes energy.

Brown. This warm, earthy brown colour may symbolize dependability, comfort, and a sense of being grounded. Brown is also a neutral colour, and writers may use it to represent dullness and predictability. Brown is a colour that is related to very grounded traits such as simplicity, practicality, common sense and hard work. Can also be associated with those that are frugal and not too flashy.

Gray. Lighter grays are often thought of as more feminine while darker grays more masculine. Gray is considered by many to be a neutral colour; the perfect balance between light and dark / good and evil. Pop up the lighter grays and add a little shine to it, and thought immediately turns to silver, which correlates to wealth.

Sources & other related articles: 1 2 3 4 5

If these writing notes helped with your poem/story, please tag me. Or leave a link in the replies. I'd love to read them!

[v1nsmoke]

𝑭𝑨𝑴𝑰𝑳𝒀 𝑫𝑰𝑵𝑵𝑬𝑹 // 𝑨𝑺𝑳 𝑩𝑹𝑶𝑺. 𝑿 𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑫𝑬𝑹

spooktober week 5 - psycho ace, sabo & luffy

tw: blood, murder, fire, knife/blades, psychos, fire

summary: you accept the kind offer of a man after your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. what you don't expect is that him and his brothers are a little... off

a/n: i lowkey have no idea how this turned out, but oh well. i was thinking of giving it up multiple times too, but i liked the idea so enjoy!

tags: -

wc: 2.3k

Even after hours of driving, the view around you was still the same, empty, dried out grasslands surrounding the motorway you were driving on. No houses, no people, no cars on the road except you. It felt surreal, weird. You were not prepared for this, neither was your car's petrol tank.

It was almost out of fuel, it was a miracle that it was still moving, but it didn't seem like you will come across any gas stations anytime soon. You already tried to call for help but there was no connection here in the middle of nowhere, your phone was deemed useless.

Just a matter of time and you will be stuck in the middle of the road alone, with no food or drinks. The chances of anybody helping you out were extremely low, given that it has been hours since you saw anybody on the road.

And there it was. Your car gave up, the engine giving out a strange sound, the gas pedal now not doing anything as the car spluttered to a halt. You let out a frustrate sigh, resting your head on the steering wheel in front of you.

What will you do now? No connection, no fuel, no people. Just you alone, surrounded by empty fields filled with nothing. You didn't expect this journey to take so long, so you didn't even bring food or drinks. Not to mention the hot weather. The only reason you were able to endure it was because the car's air conditioner, but now it stopped along the car.

So, you decided to wait. Just when despair started to pull your spirits into the abyss, you heard someone calling out to you. Suddenly, a beat up truck pulled up beside you. You stepped out of your car cautiously.

A black haired, freckled man sits in the drivers seat, pulling down the window. He took a look at your car and determined the problem quickly.

"Out of fuel?" He jokingly asks, already knowing the answer to his own question. "Seems like it" you shrug.

"You know, me and my brothers live close, I can offer you a ride." He offers with a wink. You accepted hesitantly, wondering what kind of person he might be.

You still had doubts, but you followed him anyway, getting into the seat next to his. You were unsure about the situation, but it was better than being stranded here without anything.

It was a mostly quiet ride on your side, meanwhile Ace was blasting his music while singing along, sometimes asking questions and trying to spark a conversation between the two of you. But you always responded with the least words, not fully trusting this guy you just met.

After about twenty minutes, a house comes into view. Ace slows down near it as he takes a right turn, entering the dirt path leading trough the dry grass to the house, a red barn a bit further, surrounded by tall, unkept grass. He parks the truck next to the house, sighing and sending a smile your way as he steps out.

You didn't want to be left behind, so you did the same, following him. You eventually reached a large, dilapidated house. It was bit further from the road, but at least it had a few trees near it. You felt nervous but Ace urged you to come inside.

Inside you found a sprawling house filled with old furniture, paintings, and antiques. It was surprisingly anything but cozy and inviting. The walls were all an old, discoloured yellowish colour with a few slight stains, which was likely plain white wall when the house was built.

The lighting was dim, just some old table lamps. The furniture was dark and wooden, and upon entering the kitchen connected to the living room, you noticed that the couch was a dusty, olive colour. Ace’s brothers Sabo and Luffy were also there.

You immediately grabbed their attention, both of them turning to your direction and they scramble themselves up, now standing in front of you. Both were tall, though the blonde looked older. Was he Luffy or Sabo? You knew their names because Ace just wouldn't shut up about them.

Though, there was something a bit unsettling about them. You couldn't put your finger on what made you feel like this, but you just decided to shake it off, thinking it was because you don't know the brothers yet. They both had wild eyes and unkempt hair but smiled warmly as they greeted you.

Ace joined the three of you, greeting his brothers with a hug.

"This is Sabo, the middle child, and Luffy, the youngest." He motions at the blonde first, then the black haired guy. They both had scars, Sabo a burn mark over one of his eyes, and Luffy had what seemed like a cut under his eye.

They looked homeless if you were being honest, their house giving off similar vibes. But after a short talk, they seemed like nice people, and the mood was not that bad. Luffy was a little stupid, getting into smaller arguements with Ace, while Sabo was acting like the big brother, despite being the middle child.

But as the night went on, the atmosphere in the house changed. The brothers started to act strangely. They began to whisper and laugh, looking at you with a manic glint in their eye. It became clear that something was wrong.

The brothers asked you to join them for dinner. You hesitantly agreed, not wanting to be rude. You were worried that if you refuse they will throw you out. Were they going to poison you? More and more negative thoughts started to fill you head, leading to a loss of confidence. Maybe it wasn't a good idea, especially after they started taking out the food which was supposed to be your dinner.

It was almost rotten, the disgusting smell filling the air. Yes, this was definitely a bad idea. It was time for you to go before they end up poisoning you. So, you take a few steps back, slowly inching towards the front door.

"Stay." Sabo sternly says. You gulp, attempting to swallow the lump in your throat. You were fucked. They probably had weapons, though anything can be used as a weapon if you use it well. If you tried to leave, they can kill you. And let's be honest, you didn't want to meet your end here.

So, your only option was to stay.

"I was just looking around." You lie.

"Sit down." Ace demands, his cheery tone not present in his voice. It was like it was not even the same man you were talking to in the truck.

Over dinner, the brothers made it clear that they knew more about you than you did about them. They kept asking the same questions, and judging your answers. You felt like you were being put on trial. As the dinner went on, they began to ignore you and forget you were even there.

Once most of the dinner was eaten, Ace gave you a look that sent chills down your spine. It was clear that he wanted you to leave. Sabo and Luffy went out and started a fire, while Ace talked to you in a monotone voice. Suddenly, you were grabbed from behind, and you realized that the brothers had been watching you the entire time.

Suddenly Sabo and Luffy jumped up and grabbed you. Panic took over as you began to understand their plan. The brothers were psycho and were planning to kill you. You screamed and struggled as you tried to break free, but it was no use.

"You know, nobody even comes here anymore!" Sabo maniacally laughs, holding a knife to your throat while standing behind you, your back pressed to his chest.

"Maybe because we made sure that the few people never leave, you stupid!" Luffy adds.

"Oh, right." The blonde sways, still holding you close.

"You know, I kinda liked you. Shame that this is it for you." Ace enters the conversation. "Lucky for you, I'll do the honour instead of this dumb blonde."

"No way that's going to happen. I like her more, I should be the one to kill her!" Luffy raises his voice.

"She likes me the best, is that right dear?" Sabo places his chin on you shoulders from behind, looking up at you with his frenzy-filled eyes.

They had some shine to them, the dim, yellowish lighting reflecting in his blue orbs, his pupils slowly dilating the more he stares at you, waiting for an answer.

"Bullshit! I was the one who drove her here!" Ace counters.

"And I- uhhhh I don't know what I did." Luffy tries to argue, but nothing comes to his mind at the moment.

You were stressed, the knife still at your throat along with Sabo's head resting on your shoulders. Somehow this made you feel less uncomfortable, though you would love to escape from here. But how? Three guys ready to murder you any second, no car, no weapons. Hopeless.

"Why don't we let the guest choose, hm?" Sabo's eyes meet yours, animalistic instincts glistening in his eyes like he will tear your flesh apart this second, some of his blonde hairstrands falling in his face.

"Go to hell!" You scream, swinging your leg, landing a kick on Sabo's leg.

The blonde hisses in pain, letting you go, though his knife manages to scrath your neck. It was time to make a run for it. You wanted to call for help, but the house was isolated, in the middle of nowhere, without any signal. Not even your phone could work here.

But still, you had to get out.

"COME BACK HERE!" Ace shouts, his breathing becomes faster as rage fills him. His boots clatter loudly on the wooden floor as he runs after you with big strides, a lighter in his hand. Luffy runs out the backdoor, likely already having a plan.

Meanwhile, you were already outside. You glance behind you and your heart skips a beat. The three psychos are still chasing you. You knew they were coming, but you hadn't expected them to be so fast.

Your feet kick up dust as you sprint through the tall grass. You weave in and out of the tall stalks, hoping that you can outrun them. You can hear their footsteps behind you, and you can almost feel their breath on your neck.

Tall grasses and wildflowers adding color to the otherwise grey and lifeless land. You can feel the sweat dampening your back as your heart races in your chest.

Suddenly, you come to a dead stop. You glance around wildly, searching for a place to hide, but there's nothing, just an endless field of grass. You take a deep breath and prepare to face your pursuers.

But then you remember the barn. It's on the other side, and if you can make it there, you might have a chance. Maybe it even had a shotgun hidden or just a rake. You take off running again, not bothering to look behind you. You can hear them getting closer and closer, but you don't stop.

Finally, the barn comes into view, and you dive inside. You close the door just in time, and you can hear the brothers pounding on the door, trying to get in. You're safe. At least, for now.

They will likely break trough it, it's just a matter of time. You can hear your own breath reverberating in your ears as you search the barn in hopes of a weapon.

"Dear, come out. I don't want to hurt you, it's just Ace and Luffy who want to have you for dinner!" Sabo says from the other side of the door, his voice laced with honey. Was he joking? Who knows. Probably not.

And then you saw it: a tractor, but with a mulcher installed front. Just perfect for you. There was a nail in one of the pillars holding the barn up, a key hanging from it.

Just then, the doors of the barn catch on fire. This was likely Ace's doing, who rushed after you with a lighter. It was now or never, you had to escape. So, you snatch the key, entering the tractor. You were right, this is what the key was for. You turn the key, igniting the engine of the machine.

Sabo's brows furrow in confusion as he hears the strange sound coming from inside the barn.

"Do you guys hear it too?" He quietly asks, his voice trembling.

"Yeah. She's probably just hungry and it's her stomach." Luffy gives a reply.

"Nah man you are just dumb as fuck."

"SHIT! GET AWAY!" Ace screams as something bursts trough the door.

The pieces of burning wood fall to the ground, the dry, tall grass catching on fire. The brothers make a run for it in hopes of escaping their brutal fate. They had two choices: burn to death in the tall grass, or get shredded to pieces by the tractor equipped with a mulcher in front, driven by none other than you.

Ace was a nice guy at first. Offering helpto a stranger is a kind action. Trying to kill them? Not so kind. Cause of death? You drove too close to him. Oopsie.

Luffy didn't do much harm. Maybe he was the sanest out the three of them. Guess you'll never know, poor guy burnt to death.

Sabo was attractive. And sweet too. Maybe if he wasn't such a psycho you would date him. Oh well, in another universe.

portgas d ace, monkey d luffy and sabo belong to eiichiro oda

© v1nsmokes 2023. Do not modify, translate or rewrite.

[uniquevoidflowers]

random lu incorrect quotes based off of a generator cuz im bored

Twilight: Hey, do you know the password to Legend's computer? Wild: Fuck you, Twilight. Twilight: Hey!! Wild: No, you misunderstood, the password is "fuckyouTwilight". Twilight: Oh, no numbers? Not very safe.

Legend: When life gives you lemons, don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back! Get mad! I don't want your damn lemons, what the hell am I supposed to do with these? Demand to see life's manager! Make life rue the day it thought it could give Legend lemons! Do you know who I am? I'm the person who's gonna burn your house down! With the lemons! I'm gonna get my engineers to invent a combustible lemon that burns your house down!

Wild: Hey, you wanna know a secret? Legend: No. Wild: Okay. Legend: Legend: Do you smell smoke? Wild: The secret is that the house is on fire.

---

Legend: I hate you sometimes. Warriors: Well according to this picture Sky drew of us holding hands that's not true. Legend: Wars, you drew that. Warriors: It doesn't matter.

---

Legend: *shatters a window and climbs through it* Legend: *turns around and helps Hyrule through it* Breaking and entering is wrong Hyrule. Hyrule: Okay.

---

Wind: Let's all agree that going up the stairs on all fours is actually the best experience on earth. Time: Conversely, going down the stairs on all fours is actually the most terrifying experience on earth.

---

*The chain's reaction to being told they're the chosen one* Hyrule: I will not let you down. Warriors: Sounds fun. Wind: K. Legend: No, I'm fucking not. Wild: Do I have to be? Time: Please god, I am so tired.

---

Legend: How does one turn their emotions off? Hyrule: Okay, so first go to settings. Hyrule: I'm a fucking idiot, I thought that said emojis at first. Legend: No, I'm still willing to try this, go ahead. I'm at settings, what do I do next?

---

Hyrule: So I can either do something dumb that could very well get me injured or I can listen to Sky and not do the thing, Hyrule: Well there’s a clear right answer here. Hyrule: *proceeds to throw five packs of mentos into a barrel full of diet coke*

---

Legend: You are a solid 11/10. Warriors: Aw, thank- Legend: Which is 1.1 because you look like shit.

---

Legend: What is the one thing I told you not to do? Hyrule: Burn the house down. Legend: And what did you do? Hyrule: I made dinner. Legend: Hyrule: Legend: Hyrule: And burnt the house down.

---

Time: .. .----. -- / … --- .-. .-. -.-- (translation: I'M SORRY) Legend: What's that? Time: Remorse code. Legend: I'm even angrier now.

---

Hyrule, holding an antique bottle: Is this whiskey or perfume? Wild: *grabs and chugs the entire bottle* Wild: Wild: It's perfume.

---

Malon: We're having a baby. Twilight: Oh, congradu- Time, slamming adoption papers onto the table: It's you, sign here.

---

Twilight: Is anyone going to tell me what's going on in here?! Hyrule: It's kind of complicated, but Wild- Twilight: Got it. Forget I asked.

---

Twilight: Made you all playlists! Twilight: Legend, yours has only heavy metal, and is dark like your soul. Twilight: Sky, yours has sad songs and blues to pair with your crippling depression. Twilight: And Warriors has the ABBA Gold album.

---

Legend: Do you want to be the Sun in my life? Ravio: Yes. Legend: Good, then stay 92,935,700 miles away from me :)

Generator:

[jpitha]

Hobbies.

Having hobbies isn't that unusual among sapients. One of the whole things about being sapient is having a curious mind and free time. After all, Mzurr wouldn't stop talking to anyone who would listen about the time he went rallying on Earth. He would show off his collection of models and facts about human rally cars every chance he got to anyone within 3 meters of him. It could be tiring really, but he was so excited. It was infectious.

No, what was unusual about the Humans was how hard they went into their hobbies.

When Fennipen - the K'laxi head of security - heard that the Human Emery down in Little Earth had assembled an entire antique steam engine from Earth's past in his quarters and wheeled it out to the common area, he paid him a personal visit. Station was worried, but they couldn't articulate why. "That Human is up to something worrying" was all they could tell Fennipen. “I can feel it.”

As Fenn approached, his olfactory system was assaulted with the smell of oils and metals and paint. It stood maybe a meter and a half tall, only a little taller than Fenn himself. It was...something. It was black metal with silver metal parts and a large brass wheel on the bottom. it was well oiled and like all Human machines looked uncomfortably like it was alive. Fenn’s fur poofed out angrily.

"Emery, what in the *untranslatable*, [oath against sanity] is that?" Emery's translator did its best, but he only got the description which he decided meant it was a good swear. When the translator failed to translate, which wasn’t often, Station chimed into his earpiece “Fenn is concerned and worried about your machine, Emery.”

“I got that, Station, thanks.”

“No problem! Happy to help!”

Emery turned to Fenn. "It's a vertical steam engine! It's a little one, but it's all here! Took weeks of shipping and assembly and getting all the little bits and parts. I even had to machine some of the bearings myself. I must have watched hours of videos about Babbitt Metal. Finally though, it's ready to go!" He spun the wheel at the bottom and surprising Fenn the massive thing spun easily and nearly silently, clicking and hissing as the seals moved up and down. "It's ready to fire, but Station said under no circumstances will they allow open flames. They were rather insistent, so I'll just use compressed air. It’s not exactly the same, but you’ll get the idea.”

“But why?” Fenn’s ears twitched in irritation, but his fur started to flatten.

"Just look at it!" Emery was beaming "It's so neat! And it was made back at time when we didn't have computer controlled precision machinery or even plastics. It's all steel, and brass, and oil, and leather, and felt."

By now a small crowd had gathered in the common. It was a mix of Humans and K’laxi and they were looking on at the machine and Emery and Fenn with mild interest.

Noticing the crowd, Emery opened the valve on his tank of compressed air with a flourish. Whooshing and with an odd susurration, it spun to life. After it was clear that nothing else was going to happen, the crowd made polite noises, and started to walk away.

Watching the machine, Fenn thought it was odd, but no more so than any other strange thing Humans did. He had to admit, the machine puttering away to itself was pretty fascinating. "What's that assembly of pipes on the top?" he found himself asking."

"Oh, that? It's a 5 chime whistle, here check it out!" and Emery pulled the chain hanging off the bottom. ****

Later that day, Fennipen was released from the infirmary with he physician complimenting him on wearing his active hearing protection. He only received "minor" hearing damage and did not need any further work done. Station reported that the sound of the whistle was heard nearly throughout the whole 10 kilometers of themselves. They also mentioned that at least 3 humans startled themselves into a bathroom ‘incident’ and 8 K’laxi ran for their suits thinking it was a pressure alarm.

Emery apologized profusely and was allowed to keep his steam engine - without the whistle - so long as he reported to Station one day in advance of wanting to operate it.

When it comes to hobbies, Humans go hard.

[carionto]

I heard in the canteen that the humans once used a few antique combustion engines to start one of their portable stars. Any truth to the rumor?

Ah jeez, that was one hell of a day for that guy.

Yes and no. Where do I even being...

Okay. So this place up in Greenland called, uh... I'm gonna butcher this so bad, Hjeilhornhentrotnenheim, has an engineering museum, right? Right, and the guy in charge, his name is, ah fuck this is gonna be bad too ..., Hansinguaq Bjerresvontsgaardsen (I'm just gonna call him Hans from now on because uh yeah, no), collects all the things not fit for display in his personal transport ship. He's essentially converted it into his private mobile museum.

Not long after we established diplomatic channels and preliminary trade routes, Hans eagerly went off on his own to visit Alien equivalents to museums and such. Spent a solid three weeks traveling, sight-seeing, and adding things to his collection.

During a stop on the outer reaches of Coalition space his computer blue screened and forcibly shut down the reactor and pretty much wiped his communication array address book among other less relevant components. And no, I have no clue why he went so far out. He's 46, midlife crisis is my guess, telling him to go out on daring adventures or whatever. Anyway, he couldn't restart the fusion reactor while the inhibitor rod chambers were open, they open and shoot out the star canceler in an emergency shutdown, but one was stuck with the rod half-way in, so Hans had to manually open the reactor and fix it by hand.

Problem is, his transport ship, the Veritable Greenhorn, is fairly big, and the reactor's outer diameter was about 37 meters. Even in zero-g that's a lot of mass for one person to move, not to mention how much force you'd need to pry out a hyper dense metal alloy rod from a gate meant to withstand the pressure of a star right next to it. But he did have a lot mechanical power at his disposal, it just needed to be... rearranged.

Now, he did have backup generators that quietly hum in the background like on every Human vessel, but these are passive and nowhere near enough to charge the hyperdrive even if he could tell it where to go, let alone power machinery to counter a thousand ton jammed deadbolt. He needed something that had a kick to it, something you could really rev beyond its limits just long enough. He needed his V6s and V8s.

After almost two days of DIY engineering details I won't bore you with because I fell asleep when he explained them himself, Hans fired up the engines. It was a very tedious five hours of the engines rythmically tugging the deadbolt a tenth of a milimeter open and what is basically a massive jackhammer pummeling the rod back in. At one point he ran out of gas and was forced to sacrifice his alcohol collection.

Suffice to say it barely worked, all of the machinery he cobbled together became practically unusable, but it worked and he was able to restart the fusion reactor.

Oh, he didn't come home or anything by the way. Like I guess, midlife crisis. If anything, success has made him think nothing can get in the way of his Galactic exploration quest.

So that's the story. No, he didn't use combustion engines to start the reactor or anything, but lacking any other means to fix a problem I honestly didn't know could happen, the petrol guzzlers gave him the right kind of horsepower.

By the way, if you get a chance to tour the Veritable Greenhorn, I'd recommend it. I can't even begin to describe how that contraption looks, it's one of the main displays. I guarantee it's the most specific purpose built and rough pieces of Human engineering you will ever see.

[physalian]

What No One Tells You About Writing 8— “Anyone can write a book”

Yes. But actually no. I say “writing is easy” in that it doesn’t take a degree and textbook learning to understand. You can get an English or lit degree if you want, but writing is incredibly subjective. It’s not even like an art degree that has you study different mediums and historical styles. “Writing is easy” in that it’s about feeling, and instinct, and a little bit of common sense. Anyone can do it in that it doesn’t take financial investment to start. Steal a tchotchke pen and paper from a hotel room—you’ve got all the tools you need. I have a communications degree and 9 years of experience, and I'm about to publish my first supernatural fantasy novel.

Writing is not easy, however, if any of the following applies to you:

You want to make enough money to do this full time

You want to appeal to mass audiences

You want to be a NYT bestseller**** or get an adaptation

You want to be regarded as the best of your generation and fill bookstore shelves

1. It takes a healthy dose of self-awareness and a reality check

 I beta’d for an author who thought that he was comparable to GRRM, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, because both have adult themes in their book and if GRRM can do it, why can’t he? The sheer vastness of the divide between ASOIAF and this awful, awful manuscript wasn’t worth putting into words for the amount I was being paid, though I tried.

Yes, you can write whatever you want. Yes, you can write to please yourself and stroke your ego. You can write the hammiest wish-fulfillment author insert that you desire. But you can’t expect anyone else to want to read or pay money for it. It’s great to have confidence as an author and envision your success, but starting right off the bat with “everyone will love this book because I’m really smart and I love this book” is only going to leave you bitter and penniless.

2. You might be an expert in your given field, doesn’t automatically make you an expert at storycrafting

I really, truly want the above godawful toe wart of a human (who tried to justify pedophilia in his book with the Israel-Palestine conflict) to stop featuring in my writing advice, but I know he’s not the only person out there who thinks like this. You might have a doctorate in engineering, medicine, political science, chemistry, physics, history, paleontology—any field you want. That does not mean you can successfully translate your expertise into a well-crafted and compelling narrative. It means you can write a college textbook lecturing your readers for 300 pages. Heck, if you can't explain what you do like I'm 5 years old, then you're not an expert in your field.

Elements of good storytelling include well-rounded characters, solid pacing, compelling themes and motifs, an engaging main conflict and character arcs and edge-of-your-seat action, romance, debates, and arguments. It’s so much more than “I’m going to write a textbook, but have my character tell it to you, and everyone will love it”.

They won’t.

3. “I’m gonna be a millionaire like JKR”

The frustrating thing about making money writing is that at the end of the day, you are still selling a product. Which means that it doesn’t matter how amazing you think it is, if it’s not what sells. The Fifty Shades series is hardly a poetic epic with deep, meaningful characters and themes, but it sold. It got adaptations. Why? Because it was a product people wanted and its writing style appeals to mass audiences who aren’t entertained by fluffy, antiquated prose. I hated the Divergent books. They soullessly and shamelessly fed off the success of Hunger Games. But they sold because “teen dystopia HP houses” was what audiences craved and what Hollywood was pushing to make movies out of.

Personally I don’t have any nostalgia for Harry Potter and I both wish I did so I could have one more beloved series and fandom to participate in, but also am glad I don’t because of JKR. HP is chock full of plot holes and “fuck it we’ll do it live” worldbuilding and so many concepts that look cool on paper until you really start thinking about it.

JKR didn’t make a million dollars because she wrote the greatest fantasy series. JKR made a million dollars because she wrote a book that sells every goddamn piece of lore for $15.99 or more and collects on all those sweet, sweet royalties. She understood that she’s selling a product, not just a story, selling everything from Slytherin ties and wizarding robes to golden snitches, sorting hats, wands, chocolate frogs, and every other prop seen in the movies.

You sure can chase trends and I’m sure Divergent is somebody’s favorite book and you can hock chocolate frogs. Everyone’s writing goals are different.

4. “But GRRM did it” (or, adhering to genre expectations)

Circling back to this one. Once again, you can write whatever you want, no one is stopping you. However, books are products and if what’s in the summary and on the cover isn’t what’s on the pages, you’re going to upset and annoy your readers. For example, if I slap a chiseled six-pack of man meat on my book cover with flowy calligraphy for the title that reads something like Sex and Pink Champagne and my summary is all about how protagonist girl gets the adonis of her dreams, you’re not going to be happy if, 200 pages in, the plot detours and Mr. Sexy fucks off to sell NFTs.

It doesn’t meet genre expectations.

GoT kicks off with incest and child defenestration. It tells you *exactly* what you’re getting into immediately. You can subvert plot expectations all you want. You can subvert tropes and archetypes and throw in all kinds of twists and turns. But if you’re writing a YA novel and 100 pages in after campfire songs and the power of friendship, Protagonist gets assaulted in a 7-11 parking lot because you wanted to be ~edgy~ you’re going to piss off your readers.

Take Mulan for example. It has a dramatic tonal shift so powerful, the musical stops being a musical because it’s traumatized. Mulan doesn’t drop in the grizzled and horrifying wasteland of a battlefield with thousands of dead soldiers in an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. It’s already a war movie, the possibility is already there.

If you want to write adult content, then write a book for audiences who are prepared for and want to read adult content. Otherwise you’re setting yourself up for failure.

5. “Okay but it’s not entertaining”

Your first job as an author is to entertain (your second is to do it responsibly imo). There’s millions of books out there—why should someone read yours? Whether that’s entertainment through a feel-good romance or a gut-wrenching tragedy, you need to keep convincing your readers to stay invested in the story, otherwise they can and will put it down to read something else. No one is obligated to read your book to the end.

So, yeah your protagonist might have all the elements of your own personal tragedies and it sure is meaningful to you, but the way you wrote it is incredibly boring and no one will care. It might be the most brilliant heist plot ever conceived, but you focused on all the wrong elements, the pacing is whack, and your protagonist is annoying, so no one will read it.

Very few individual elements can be good enough to carry the entire manuscript and the likelihood of an author being really good at one thing and awful at the rest is slim. Readers can quit a book over the most arbitrary reasons. Do you want to die on a hill of “I’m not changing my annoying protagonist, I’m right and they will see”? They won’t. The arguments authors get into with me over how I hated their protagonist or I told them which parts were boring and dragged because I “didn’t understand the story” are pointless. If it’s boring or confusing or annoying, no one will read it.

6. First Drafts are drafts for a reason

Actually writing is less than half the time and effort spent on getting a book to publication. Probably less than a quarter. The rest of that time is spent editing and rewriting. Some first drafts will be better than others, not arguing that, but your first run through your story has a non-zero chance of needing revisions, even for something as small as typos and punctuation.

You have to edit for pacing and tonal shifts, erroneous details and entire scenes, character inconsistencies and goals. You have to make sure your conversations flow believably, that you hit every talking point that scene requires. You have to make sure your character’s motivations don’t create plot holes and that they’re always on track like a real person and not a creation of your imagination. You have to make sure your action scenes and sex scenes are legible and as thrilling for a reader as they are for you. You have to make sure your worldbuilding is consistent and logical and easy to understand.

Some people outline heavily before starting page one. Some people have a sticky note of “beginning middle end” and run off that. Some have whole folders of different documents to keep track of all their elements. Everyone’s writing process is different, but it is a process, not a one-and-done. It requires revisions, seeking feedback, implementing that feedback, and more revisions until it’s as good as it can be.

Yes, you need to edit. No, you’re not the writing god who penned perfection on your first try. Maybe a piece of your story is perfect on the first draft, but not the whole thing from start to finish. It’s okay that your story isn’t what you thought it would be when you started, and it’s no failing of you as a writer to need edits or even massive changes. It happens to everyone.

7. “Writing is easy, thus it’s not a real job”

Really the notion that creatives are lesser than corporate business people solving problems that their business created. But specifically for writing, the idea that it’s just putting words on a page, thus it’s easy and anyone can do it, so it’s not impressive or deserving of praise and you really need a real job (you probably will because writing doesn’t make much money for most people, but that’s just how it shakes out).

I know ENNS won’t appeal to everyone. I know there will be people who hate my characters, who don’t understand them or don’t agree with their philosophies or find my writing trite and too lean and not ~immersive~. I know there’ll be homophobes out there who won’t even read it but hear about it and make assumptions and will leave me crap reviews. I know it’s not the greatest supernatural fantasy novel ever written.

I’m not in it to make money or get a movie deal and see my merch all over the shelves and get my own theme park. I write so that even one reader might see themselves in my characters and know they’re not alone. So that even one reader has one of my characters as their favorite and that character motivates them to do the Thing or keep moving forward or be brave enough to finally do whatever they’ve been too afraid to attempt before. I want to help people, even if at the end of the day, my writing only helps myself.

Yes I need supplemental income (who doesn’t these days). It’s the way of the world. But I’m doing what I love in my free time and it is a real job because it takes work, and it might not have monetary value but its value to me is priceless.

[lionmom-svenomverse]

Sharing the concept art for my Chryslestia family! Gonna have to snip a lot of HCs/notes so you can find the full thing over on my dA. Anyways, more info under the cut!

💙 Queen Celestia - Ruler of Equestria. Sun Deity. Royal Batpony Alicorn (With Heliacorn Attributes). Agender (She/he/it/they), Pansexual Demi 💙 Queen Chrysalis - Ruler of Equestria, Former Queen of the Changeling Hive. Reformed/Former Villain. Non-Reformed Queen Changeling. Nonbinary (It/xey/they/she), Bisexual Demi 💙 Princess Antlion Aphid - Princess of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Solar Astronomer/Engineer. Has anxiety. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Nonbinary (It/its and She/her mainly), Lesbian. Likes studying the sun, sundresses, large hats, hosting parties, yoga, calligraphy and diplomacy. Aphie is based off of antlion larvae, not so much aphids but it's a cute lil addition to her name. Special talent is using the sun to power technology! 💙 Princex Hercules Metalmark - Princex of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Armorer. Has autism. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Agender (They/them and xey/xem mainly), Trixic. Likes puzzles/cipher cracking, keeping fit, fruit, fire, sappy movies, giving gifts and winter. Inspired by the Hercules Beetle and the Metalmark Butterfly! Special talent is crafting enchanted armor! 💙 Prince Joro Orb Weaver - Prince of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Seamster at Carousel Boutique. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Transmasculine/Nonbinary (He/him, It/Its, She/her), Bi. Likes designing outfits, spoken word poetry, spiral patterns, fantasy shows/books, posters, journaling and social events. Inspired by the Joro Spider and the common Yellow Garden Spider/Orb-Weaver! Special talent is sewing outfits! 💙 Princex Tsetse Deathwatch "Click" Beetle - Princex of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Nurse. Gravedigger. Mute. Has autism. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Genderfluid (They/them and it/its mainly), Omni. Likes history documentaries, playing the guitar, baggy clothes, cemeteries, volunteering, birds and brownies. It was initially named "Princex Malachite" and based off of the Malachite butterfly, but since I've changed its' name it doesn't really resemble what its' currently named after: the Tsetse Fly and Click/Deathwatch Beetles. Special talent is healing creatures! 💙 Princess Venusta Orchard Mason - Princess of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Gardener. Builder. Farmer. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Transfeminine/Nonbinary (They/them and She/her), Aro/Sapphic. Likes worms, pottery, lemonade, architecture, foraging, climbing trees, falling leaves and making friends. She's mainly inspired by the strikingly blue Orchard Mason Bee, which I first saw around my early high school years iirc and fell in love with it. The other half, Venusta, comes from the Venusta Orchard Spider! The 'Venusta' part of their name actually wasn't initially there, but I thought it'd be a pretty edition, especially since the two bugs share the word 'orchard' in their names. Special talent is building strong structures! 💙 Prince Rosy Maple Brimstone - Prince of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Influencer. Disc Jockey. Party Thrower. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Intersex (He/him), Ace/Queer. Likes hyperpop/house music, makeup, bright colors, flea markets/antique malls, soap carving, blogging and raves. Rosy is mainly based on the Rosy Maple Moth, but the other part of his name comes from the Brimstone Butterfly! Special talent is DJing and music production! 💙 Prince Atlas Adonis Blue - Prince of Equestria. Heir to the Sun. Drag Queen. Royal Alicorn-Changeling Hybrid (With Batpony/Heliacorn Attributes). 35 y/o. Demiboy (He/him and They/them), Gay. Likes singing, the stars, glowsticks, finance, karaoke, collecting mugs, clubbing, glitter and cleaning. Atlas is of course inspired by the Atlas Beetle and the Adonis Blue Butterfly! Special talent is performing!

[larryshapiro]

Yreka, CA antique Seagrave apparatus for #TBT

[whencyclopedia]

Junkers Ju 88

The Junkers Ju 88 was a two-engined medium bomber plane used by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) throughout the Second World War (1939-45). Ju 88s were involved in the Battle of Britain and London Blitz as bombers, but this versatile aircraft saw action in many other theatres of the war, primarily as a dive bomber and a night fighter.

Design Development

After much debate between the German high command and the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), the Luftwaffe bomber command (Kampfwaffe) was obliged to adopt the position that bombers should primarily be used strategically to assist ground troops. This meant that unlike, say, the British Royal Air Force, the Luftwaffe concentrated not on heavy bombers but building squadrons of more versatile medium bombers.

In August 1935, aeronautical companies were invited to provide an answer to the German Air Force's requirement for a two-engined, medium-sized and high-speed bomber (Schnellbomber). Junkers came up with the Junkers 88, with various prototypes given a V designation plus a number 1 to 5. The first prototype, the Ju 88 V1, flew in December 1936 and impressed with its high speed. By March, the Ju 88 V5 was capable of speeds of over 300 mph (500 km/h) and so broke several records.

The decision in 1937 to give the Ju 88 a dive-bombing capability meant that the design process now became fraught with delays and constant revisions. As the historian J. Holland notes, "some 25,000 changes were made to the original design" (216). Most significant of these changes, perhaps, was the strengthening of the wings to take the force which resulted from steep dives, the addition of brakes to arrest the plane at the nadir of the dive, and the lengthening of the fuselage to admit extra crew members. The consequence of all this was that the plane ended up being much heavier and slower than the original plan, a situation that led Field Marshall Erhard Milch (1892-1972), one of the founders of the Luftwaffe, to disparagingly describe the Ju 88 as a "flying barn door" (ibid). The problems of weight and speed were partially alleviated by adding rocket boosters for takeoff when carrying heavier bomb loads. The design changes kept on coming, too, notably an increase in the wingspan. As a result of the complex design, the Ju 88 took more time to build than many other aircraft types.

Introduced into Luftwaffe service in September 1939, just as WWII started, the Ju 88s' challengers as the medium bomber of choice within the Luftwaffe were the antiquated and poorly armed Dornier Do 17, the equally vulnerable but faster Dornier Do 215, and the tried and tested Heinkel He 111, which was overall the best of the three at the beginning of the war. The Junkers Ju 88 was smaller than the other three medium bombers but faster than the He 111 and the Do 17, and yet it was capable of carrying as heavy a bomb load as the He 111. As a consequence, gradually the Ju 88 took over from the He 111 as the bomber of choice but both saw service right through the war. All of these planes had two engines, which fundamentally restricted their bomb loads and range compared to Allied heavy bombers like the B-17 Flying Fortress and Avro Lancaster bomber.

The upside of its checkered design history was that the 1940 version of the Ju 88 was more versatile than originally planned, making it perhaps the most versatile of any aircraft of any air force in WWII. The Ju 88 could perform as a bomber, dive-bomber, and night fighter. Other duties performed by the Ju 88 included long-range reconnaissance (when they were fitted with extra fuel tanks, radar, and cameras), attacking shipping, and minelaying at sea. Finally, one distinct advantage of the Ju 88 was that its frame was built in such a way that it could withstand tremendous punishment from enemy fire. Factories dedicated to Ju 88 production included those at Brünn (now Brno in the Czech Republic) and Graz and Vienna in Austria. Air forces which operated Ju 88s besides the Luftwaffe included the Finnish, French, Hungarian, Italian, and Romanian.

Continue reading...

[melodymunson]

Baron Lamram (Marmalade) x fem!reader blurb

Baron Lamram was the perfect Southern gentleman. The best part about him was that he was yours. There was never a dull day with him around. Having him in your life and his mama Eda who considered you to be a daughter to her meant so much to you. Baron loved that his mama supported his relationship with you. It all started when you were traveling cross-country on a road trip. Once you ended up in the South little did you know your life would change forever. In the park, you were sunbathing and that's when you met Baron by the lake. Not only was he respectable but he had the most adorable lopsided smile. You introduced yourselves to each other and it was all uphill from there. Soon you started dating and he would take you out on the cutest dates imaginable. The best dates were simple and fun like going on a picnic, swimming at the lake, the diner and ice cream parlor, and the local carnival. You were his first lover and first real official relationship. He gifted you matching promise rings once you were dating for a year. His home was now your home too. Baron loved vanilla ice cream cones and would get them every time you went to the ice cream shop together so you did too. It was simple but delicious.

Soon after you had a pregnancy test taken and it was unfortunately a false positive. Baron and you both wanted to be parents. Then the robberies started because Mama Eda was sick and working at the local supermarket together with Baron wasn't enough to make ends meet. Baron's mama meant a great deal to you and she appreciated all your help around the house with cooking, buying groceries, cleaning, helping the household with your job co-working with Baron, and tending to her by her bedside. One day out antique shopping you had the best idea- to buy masks. They were unique and had 3 distinct faces. Soon you and Baron mapped out and planned your first bank heist. The day came and you were incognito with the best disguises. Baron had confided in you he wanted to also dress as a woman but in drag. It was hot and sexy and it turned you on so much that you decided to make passionate love. Lady Baron had the prettiest makeup and the nicest jewelry. The black lacy Madonna-like gloves and fire-engine red lipstick truly completed the look. Lady Baron loved to get pegged and she loved to dress in your clothes completing her look with scarves. The blouse/skirt combination. The dresses she wore were gorgeous and some of them were silky. Your favorite outfits of hers were the black and red dresses, as well as animal print, especially leopard and zebra.

On the day of the robbery, you were the getaway driver and he went in gun in tow and held them up. Before the bank robbery, you wished Baron good luck and kissed him deeply and passionately as if it could be the last time he would ever kiss you. Coming back to the car with the money and goods like expensive watches and jewelry, you and Baron got away. After a few more robberies he was arrested and you made your getaway. He convinced the police it was all on him. In prison, you visited him and had the best conjugal visits with wild and crazy back-scratching sex. Soon you worked as a guard and helped him to escape prison. On the run now you had to get even better disguises and he changed his look by cutting his hair short and going a bit incognito. Lady Baron still made a presence though as you were dressed as a man and Ms. Lady Baron drove the getaway car evading officers. Driving far away from his hometown to visit his mom who was sick in hospice and bringing her the pills was the most important task. The money you had stolen counted up close to a million and with that money you bought a better and nicer car that was a sleek red Corvette. You eventually got matching tattoos of flaming hearts. Soon you got married at a little ceremony with Mama Eda and an ordained wedding officiant. The honeymoon was in Brooklyn, New York City, and Niagara Falls NY was the best part of it. When the time was right you got a puppy together she was a pomeranian from animal control. You named her Spike. Spike didn't like many people except for you, Baron, and Mama Eda. For the longest time, you tried hard for a baby and soon you were pregnant with a beautiful baby girl. You named her Eda. Less than 2 years later you had a boy then another girl. You named the kids Bonnie and Clyde. Thanks to the best doctors and medicine, Mama Eda got the best treatment and recovered gradually. Now living out in the country you had a farm with horses, ducks, goats, and cows. It was a nice farming life and you loved Baron more than anything else. The feeling was mutual.

tag list: @corneliuswatkins @keeryatmosphere @jadeylovesmarvelxo @ali-r3n @mrprettywhenhecries @daisy-is-a-writer @stevesxyellowxsweater @koskeepsake @munson-mjstan @rowanswriting @edsbug @babygorewhore @steveslittlesunflower @emsgoodthinkin @seatnights @probablyin-bed @corrodedcorpses @lovelythoughtfulcupcake @brinasdead @thescoopstroopers @ellharrington @dollalicia

[fantasies-fairytales-n-fics]

Thranduil and Josie Pt. 154- Rise From The Ashes

Summary: Garrett is alive, befuddled, angry and impaired. Josie senses the truth and acts. The Elvenking is evolving. Legolas is leery of daddy dearest more than ever. The Prince and his company are delayed. Raven pleads and warns. Tauriel is forced into submission. A strange pair arrives. An unpleasant throne gathering takes place. From the ashes, the evil dead rise.

*Warnings* DARK!!!! language, angst, alcohol use, suicidal thoughts, child death/loss

Stories Stories Stories Masterlist

Garrett stood dumbfounded and yet relieved as the blazing flames vanquished within seconds of covering his body. Gasping, he held his shaking hands out to see not one ounce of burned or boiled skin, nor had his clothing even been the least bit singed. He then, in panic, began patting his face and hair, finding it all in tact.

"What in the jinky... ass....fuck!!!" he shouted and kicked the gas can like a football with his vampire force, hurling it far into the woods.

"AMARA!!" Garrett howled into the broad open countryside to the Seelie Queen. "Get your short faerie ass out here! That's right. I called you short! What are you going to do about it, because you certainly cannot KILL ME! You know how I know, besides the obvious fact that I'm not a burnt gooey marshmallow right now? because last night I had my usual evil man tv dinner for my last meal and then I drank his blood after he died...and guess fucking what?? Ding ding ding! Heeeeere's GARRETT! I'm still a dead man walking! I know you can hear me Annabelle wannabe because your stupid little birds, bugs and the trees will nark on me!" he continued on his mocking rant with his arms stretched out wide, furrowed brows, fire engine red eyes and a grimace as he turned in circles.

There was nothing but silence for miles that his keen vampire ears could pick up.

"What are you waiting for huh??? I know what you did last summer! ok..well, this winter! with your little protection mark you put on me!"

Still, the silence was deafening and it enraged him even more.

"Fuck me...I've watched too many horror flicks." he snarled and stomped back into the cabin, damn near breaking the wooden steps with his angered strength.

Garrett stormed about the cabin, the old floor creaking beneath him as he guzzled one of the two bottles of whiskey he took from the dead man. He wasn't sure why because he certainly could not drink himself to death....but he could get shit faced and that was now his new plan.

After a night of drinking and plotting other ways to off himself, Garrett gave up as the twilight hours were leaving and breaking dawn was slowly on the rise. He plopped down on the antique couch, feeling depressed as he held an almost empty bottle in his hand. A vast cloud of dust puffed into the air upon his powerful impact which snapped one of the hand crafted legs off and it went spinning across the floor.

"Ruh Roh Raggy." he jested in his best Scooby voice and laughed so hard that he tipped over on his side in his inebriated state due to the now slanted couch.

Garrett was now face to face with his faithful guitar resting against the coffee table. He clumsily swiped it up and sat in silence to think of what he was going to play...or attempt to play, for he knew it was going to make the wolves howl in agony and also break his heart. It would be about you. It was always about you.

And of course, he chose a Bon Jovi song as he began to play, changing up a few words here and there in his poetic maudlin.

"This Romeo is bleeding but you can't see his blood. It's nothing but some feelings that this old vampire kicked up. It's been raining since I left you, now I'm drowning in your blood. You see, I've always been a fighter but without you, I give up. I can't sing a love song like the way it's meant to be. Well, I guess I'm not that good anymore but baby, that's just me. And I will love you, baby, always. And I'll be there forever and a day, always. I'll be there 'til the stars don't shine, 'til the heavens burst and the words don't rhyme and I know when I die, you'll be on my mind and I'll love you, always. Now your haunting face that you left behind are just memories of a different life. Some that made us laugh, some that made us cry, one that made me have to say goodbye. What I'd give to run my fingers through your hair, to touch your lips, to hold you near. When you say your prayers, try to understand, I've made mistakes, I'm just a man. When Narcisse holds you close, when he pulls you near, when he says the words you've been needing to hear, I wish I was him with these words of mine to say to you 'til the end of time that I will love you baby, always and I'll be there forever and a day, always. If you told me to cry for you, I could. If you told me to die for you, I would. Take a look at my face, there's no price I won't pay to say these words to you. Well, there ain't no luck in these loaded dice, but baby if you give me just one more try, we can pack up our old dreams and our old lives. We'll find a place where the sun still shines. And I will love you, baby, always........"

"Just say the word baby." he muttered and he closed his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks as he set the guitar down, remembering your secret code to take you away.

How he had hoped you and him really could go away together someday and just be happy, Leean too. But he knew you wouldn't want her in a vampire world and he couldn't blame you, for he didn't even like it or himself even. He just couldn't get over you seeing him like you did that night, his true form, although your sexy spitfire self would argue and tell him his true form was the man sitting there right on that broken couch, just as he was broken.

Garrett smiled and pictured your face as he laid his head back on the lopsided couch and spoke to you in a fading voice before drifting off into much needed sleep and sobering up.

"I'm your Tommy and you're my Gina, but all I am doing now is living on a prayer.

Garrett's singing traveled through your dream again and then you heard him speak, startling you awake.

"Garrett???" you gasped as you swiftly sat up to see Lola feeding Leean the magical Mirkwood water and the sun shining in the windows.

"Josie? Another dream?"

"I...I...how did...I don't remember falling asleep and..."

Your hands went to cover your face as you began crying, remembering what happened.

"It's not true...it can't be true.." you sobbed. Once again you were mourning someone you loved and you didn't know if you could live through it again, for you were still in mourning over Thranduil and it was all just too much.

Lola brought Leean to you as she sat beside you. "Maybe your visions are just like your dreams sometimes? Maybe they aren't what they appear to be?"

You took Leean and cuddled her so tight. Her little heart shaped lips curled into a smile at the vision of your face and her father's moonstone eyes danced in yours as she squealed in delight.

"Oh my little one, momma loves you so much." you told her and kissed her tiny perfect nose, trying to hold back any more tears after you realized what you had just called her.

You began to breast feed her and tried to focus on her face and not the haunting flashbacks of Garrett burning to death. You called to him over and over in your mind, but as usual, there was silence. How did you just hear him singing again? Was it solely just a dream and not him coming through? Something didn't feel right.

Your eyes caught sight of the Bon Jovi album on the desk that had felt like fire last night when you picked it up. You carried Leean with you and went back to it, hesitantly reaching out to touch it again. As you did, it was now cool to the touch and it surprisingly had not been damaged, just like when you had thrown it.

You placed your palm over it and closed your eyes, hoping to see another vision, hoping to see him alive....but again...there was nothing....although you faintly could hear the song again...you knew it too, but it wasn't on this album.

"Lola...can you change her and lay her down please?"

Lola did as you asked and you went to your cloak, pulling out the letter Garrett had given Selene to give to you. God, if you could only find Selene and talk to her. Surely she would know something by now.

Your eyes stung as you read it again, hoping you could find some clue in it that you missed before. A clue...it made you think of Daphne from Scooby Doo and you lightly giggled, thinking of how he always told you that she reminded him of you and always had to add that you were much hotter though.

"This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do. I am leaving Devil's Island. You will not see me again. You know you and I could never be and I cannot bear to look you in the eyes again after you saw the real me. I would rather be truly dead than to feel this kind of pain. Hopefully I can make that happen. The dumbest thing I ever did was fall in love with you but it's the happiest I have ever felt. I will carry the memories of you with me until my last breath. I am so sorry I have ever hurt you. I love you. Forever. Goodbye my little one....- Roman"

Jesus, how did you not see it before? Well, you did, but...you didn't really believe he would try to end his life. Then there was the fact that he signed his real name, for it was not Garrett writing those words.

You began to feel hot and nauseated. Were you feeling what he felt by touching his letter?? It couldn't be...it just couldn't be true! But then again, you had thought the same about Thranduil too...and it was. It was very true.

You sat down, feeling as if you were going to pass out.

"Josie?? Do you want me to get Haldir?" Lola asked in quick concern.

You remembered Haldir's words last night. That he was truly sorry. Like hell he was. He was probably down in the cellar, indulging in the wicked ale in celebration. Narcisse was probably with him too, sharing a toast and then they would head out to the archery and shoot arrows at a bullseye of Garrett's face. The thought made you roll your eyes.

"No...he does not care that Garrett is.....no damn it. I won't say it. I am going to go find out for myself...somehow."

"What? Go where Josie?? You mustn't leave or even go outside with Harker bei...."

"Fuck Harker. Something is wrong and Garrett needs me. I should have known it before." you proclaimed and began quickly dressing.

"At least tell me where you are going so..."

"So you can tell Narcisse and Haldir? They don't give a shit about him Lola."

"But they give s shit about you! and so do I! and so does Leean!" she snapped, shocking you.

You quickly hugged her. "I...I'm sorry. I know you do and I love you Lola. I just need to try and somehow find Selene, or Amara even. I feel that Garrett is why I saw the Seelie here yesterday. You know, my intuition and all."

"But...the Seelie Queen...her portal is in the dark forest...Josie, you cannot do this!"

"Lola...have you no faith in my powers? Did you forget I took Harker on all by myself yesterday?"

"And you only got away because you had help, which had scared him off."

"I could have taken him. The big bad wolf is no match for the rage that lives inside of little red riding hood."

"Josie...if you go...I will have no choice but to inform the others, even if it makes you angry with me."

"Then so be it...tell them. Garrett has saved my life more times than I can count...and your Legolas too!! I have to help him. He has no one but me."

"But... what if he really is dead?"

"No, no no..." you huffed and walked away, continuing on as you sat to tug your boots on. "But he will try again. I think Amara's mark protected him. I will not sit by and let the people I love be hurt. I was given my gifts for a reason Lola and it's damn time I use them and be who I'm meant to be, just like Sarah said. I will fight just as my King would fight for what he loves."

You then stopped to look in the mirror on your way out, speaking to yourself.

"To the gypsy that remains, she faces freedom with a little fear. Well, I have no fear. Thranduil my love...you see your gypsy...I still see your bright eyes...give me your strength."

Thranduil mumbled strange words in his sleep before opening his eyes to find himself in his bed with a splitting headache and no memory of how he got there or what happened.

"She is dancing away from you now. She was just a wish. Her memory is all that is left for you now. I see my gypsy."

The wicked wine made a sensible answer to him as he glanced at the three empty carafes.

He arose for the new day, not realizing the words he just spoke, and took his morning swim, accompanied by a tall glass of wine from a reserved carafe to ease his throbbing mind.

"Legolas. Are you there my son?"

The Prince was just packing up the boats after the night's rest when his father's voice rang through his mind loud and clear.

"I am here Adar. Is all well?"

"All will be well when you have fulfilled my request of returning my wife and child to their rightful places. Where are you now?"

"We are preparing to depart on the River Running. I estimate our arrival in Dorwinion by the next day's end."

"Very well. Do not fail the task my son. I expect what belongs to me to be in my sight and reach by the next week's end."

"Task? Is that what your wife and child are to you? You speak as if they are material belongings."

"Is that not what they are? Just as you are."

"They are not property, nor am I."

"I do not time for this Legolas or your weak sentimental heart. Do as you have been commanded. Insubordination will not be tolerated."

"You may be my father and my King, but you do not control my heart." Legolas fumed and shut Thranduil off.

"Legolas. Is everything alright?" Aragorn asked, noticing the elf's turmoil.

The prince was lost in thought for a moment to answer, for his father's behavior was still not sitting right with him, even after Thranduil had claimed he was healed.

"I am uncertain, for I am uncertain if I am doing what is right."

"You speak of King Thranduil's orders to bring the Queen and child back to Mirkwood?"

"Yes. Also, I am wary to even inform her of his survival. Something is amiss. I can feel it. I do not want to cause her more harm, for if my father is still under Jareth's mind conditioning, it will do just that."

Aragorn placed his hand on Legolas's shoulder and spoke to him with all sincerity.

"You must make a choice my friend and trust your heart, for as you just told your father, he does not control that part of you."

Legolas looked upon the kingly ranger with great trust of his wise words.

Their bonding moment was interrupted by Boromir appearing from the forest in a fraught.

"Orcs...orcs are upon us!"

"Well in that case, let us go hunt some orcs." Aragorn grinned, as did Gimli and Legolas, then all ran off to eliminate the tracking threat.

As Thranduil exited his pool, exasperated over his son cutting him off, he quickly selected his garments and groomed himself to go verify that all was being attended to by Tauriel regarding Raven.

His attention was caught by the gems laying upon the desk, yours and Jareth's, which suddenly sparked his memory of seeing you kissing Narcisse. There was no anger and jealousy this time, only a stronger desire to see you suffer as he locked your gem in a box and stuffed it away... out of sight, out of mind. The citrine, he then slipped upon his finger for it to get used to it's new owner.

The King made his way through his halls feeling quite unstoppable today, he heard Raven's squabbles with Tauriel as he neared the she elf's chamber. Upon entry, the vision of the dhampir tethered to the bed by all fours in iron shackles was quite the pleasureful image. Tauriel had chained her up after Raven had passed out the night prior, for she knew there was no other way to rid of the foul fetus when Raven had power.

"Well done Tauriel. Putrid as a dhampir is, powerless as she should be. Tell me, how did you come about the citrine and why were you concealing it from me?"

Raven saw the ring sparkle on his finger and the difference in his eyes, that being of Jareth's evil.

"Take it off!! You must take it off!! It will make you crazy like Jareth because your heart has been blackened by him!" Raven pleaded with eyes of fright as she hopelessly struggled, weakening by the minute from the iron.

Even Tauriel's eyes were of concern as she noticed the ring and changed demeanor of the Elvenking, which was not for the better. It was even in the way he held himself and moved about...like a slithering snake.

"It is futile to squirm and squawk. The deed will soon be done and then I will reclaim you at my side. Tauriel...finish it. I will then expect your presence at my throne for the meeting, for many changes are in need of addressing."

"Y..yes my lord..." she replied with a shaky tone, which Thranduil instantly noticed as he snapped his head towards her.

"Your resistance is one of them! Do you take me for a fool? My orders stand and they will be fulfilled, or I will fulfill your new destiny of eternity in my dungeons to rot."

Tauriel lightly gasped and gulped as tears stung her eyes, for she now knew the King had been fully taken over by Jareth's evil.

She stood firm and swallowed her tears. "Yes my lord Thranduil. Thy will be done."

"Nooo!! Are you both insane?? Do you not see what has happened?? Jareth has complete control of you now with that ring on your finger! It is his plan!! You destroyed his kingdom, now he will destroy yours! He has you trapped!"

"The only one that is trapped my dear dhampir, is...you." Thranduil smirked with a snicker as he confidently left the room.

"Tauriel, you can't do this! Please!! It is a child! If it were yours, would you let this happen???" Raven begged after Thranduil was out of sight.

"I...I am sorry...you know as well as any other the price I will pay at the King's wrath, especially now."

"But it will be far worse if you do it because Jareth wants his child! He told me so!"

"Then why would Jareth do this?? Besides, you and I both know the life this child will have if raised by that monster. This is for the best. I am sorry. I truly am. I do not want to do this, but I must."

"You selfish bitch!! You're doing this for yourself. Karma will find you. Jareth will find you. I will find you!!! No iron bars will keep him or his army of the dead out of this realm. You are no better than the goblin king!"

"Since when do you care for a child??? After what you have done to the dozens in Lake Town??"

"Since it is MY child! I am done explaining myself for what happened. I was a child myself!"

"Your child will be a threat to all of middle earth. Jareth will claim it and it will become a monster just like him. Keep wasting your breath and strength all you like. I am going to prepare now."

"No...Nooo NOOO! Somebody help me!!!!" Raven screamed and cried until she unwillingly became faint from exhaustion.

Tauriel mixed up an array of poisonous herbs in a bowl consisting of Belladonna, Silverbane, Wolfsbane and Oleander, in which it became a crimson paste. With tears in her eyes, she spread it about Raven's stomach and began the black magic recital of ominous words. When she was finished, she sat in the chair and cried, knowing it would only be a matter of minutes before it was all over.

And then it was. Tauriel fell out of the chair to her knees, shaking with both fear and rage as she watched a pool of blood seep out of Raven's pants. Before she cold collect herself and clean up the mess, the horns of border breach sounded.

Tauriel ran to the windowless window to see hundreds of elven guard scouring the perimeters of the halls and some heading into the forest. Gasping, she ran off to assist in her duties as captain of the guard, leaving the sleeping dhampir unattended.

Raven awoke to the blurry vision of two figures and muffled male voices, feeling as if she were either drunk or dying. Someone was vigorously rubbing and wiping her stomach with a cloth while she heard the snap of her iron shackles, one by one.

The scents, she recognized. One in particular as that of an unfamiliar vampire smelling of lavender and vanilla, and the other of a warlock she knew very well.

"Raven, can you hear me?" one voice said near her face, his breath smelling of...clover... and then her vision slightly cleared enough to see the eyes of the voice. One was brown, one was blue.

Instantly, she panicked and tried to scream, believing it was Jareth, but a large hand quickly covered her mouth.

"Raven! Shhh, it's me! it's me....Jace."

Her eyes then began to focus and widened in sheer joy. He had came back for her just like he promised.

Raven's attention then drifted to the other figure, the vampire she did not know.

"Who...who is that?" she asked of the tall, dark and handsome vamp with eyes of the ocean and a very distracting stone around his neck of a blushing rose color.

"Shhhh." the one like her whispered as he stared her down, then looked at Jace. "Jace...we must go...now."

"Raven...hold onto me." Jace commanded as he slid his arm under her legs and the other under her back.

She gazed up at him with smitten and stoned eyes. "Are... you going to take me away from this awful place...my..king?"

Jace sweetly grinned. "I am no king, but I will do just that."

Raven's arms gripped the warlock's neck tight as she burrowed her face into his intoxicating neck and he then shot out of the window as the mysterious vampire followed in a flash.

A vast majority of the Mirkwood elves surrounded Thranduil's throne, Tauriel and Feren before him as he paced about it in his scarlet robe with a look of darkness and disappointment upon his face. His voice was flat and sinister as he halted before them, leering down at the two speechless elves.

"How is it that with my two greatest captains and a regiment of highly skilled elven guard allowed two simple enemies to invade my lands and enter my halls, thus taking that of which does not belong to them??"

Thranduil's eyes narrowed at their silence and lowered eyes.

"If the cat does not release one of your tongues, my twin swords will."

"M..my lord...please...the horns sounded. I had to withhold my duties and aid in..." Tauriel swiftly answered, finally finding the courage to speak.

"Your duties were to guard the dhampir! As for the rest of you, there is no way to palliate the incompetence of your simple task in guarding my kingdom!" he snapped and slowly turned to pace about once more as he gathered his temper.

"I am reminded of the orc invasion on my docks many years ago and how thirteen diminutive dwarves escaped my dungeons under the nose of my guards. How convenient that one of those putrid greedy beings was that of your lover...Kili was it? Yes, I do believe that was it. That greed of desiring a lowly elf such as yourself caught up to him in the end, much like it did my son. Your soft spot for others, including the dhampir, is not compatible to the protection of this realm. The question now is, what do I do with you? For I feel there are no persuasive words for you to tell me."

Thranduil placed his arrogant nose in the air and walked off, gracefully wielding his sword and sheathed it, waiting on her reply.

Tauriel's eyes glistened of exasperated tears with the hurtful and intentional mention of Kili. How dare he, after all the hypocritical king had done himself. A king who believed his crown made him errorless, for all he had made was mistakes in his reborn state and then placed the fault on others.

Thranduil slowly turned and crept back to her with eyes of a lion targeting it's prey, serving intimidation as he leaned down, inches from her trembling lips and softly whispered.

"Your audacious tongue is fearless in your mind, but you have seemed to have forgotten that I can hear your thoughts at will, any day, any hour. Even when you sleep. Even the impure ones you have of myself. Maybe we can come to an arrangement to make them a reality this coming night."

Tauriel closed her eyes, letting the tears escape them as she searched for the right words to save her.

"M...mm..my lord...I..I have completed the task you asked of me. Surely that must count for something?"

"Is that so? Well then...you have nothing to fear."

His tone and eyes told her that she did...that she very much indeed had everything to fear.

"Now...Feren. You have been loyal beyond measure in all of your centuries here and are proficient in the responsibilities of supervising and maintaining this kingdom at my absence, as well as my son's, all which you have done commendably, with the exception of the care of my elk. The spider infestation, although not to my standards, has been kept to a manageable minimum. You have fought faithfully at my side in many of battles and destroyed the enemies. Your discernment is why you have remained here and yet, this day, a simple warlock and vampire eludes my people, including you."

"My lord...they...fly. We...cannot."

"We cannot fly? Hmm. It must be because we are ELVES. Tell me Feren, has all of your bows with arrows tainted with dead man's blood malfunctioned?"

"Well, no? my lord. They flew...too high for our reach."

"Oh...so what you are, in layman's terms per se, explaining to me is that it is actually the highly skilled archers that have malfunctioned? If you and my vast army cannot terminate TWO filthy fiends, do tell me how Jareth and his army of the dead can be defeated when they come...and they will come!!"

"Army..of the...dead..my lord? What does that mean?"

Thranduil's eyes fell shut as he heavily sighed and gritted his teeth.

"Not only did you go blind upon my arrival here and upon this day, but now you have gone deaf as well. What good are you to me?? It means that Jareth plans to unleash a weapon so great, it will destroy all before it." Thranduil explained with an ominous tone as he descended his platform.

"I want the watch doubled at our borders, all roads and all rivers, including the top of these halls and trees for air view. Since you are aware elves cannot fly, then be aware that they can climb and jump. If anything moves...kill it. That includes Jace Wayland and Matthew De Clermont. Find the dhampir and return her to me unharmed. No one enters this kingdom...and no one leaves it."

Jareth sat in the ruins of his kingdom that Thranduil had destroyed by dragon fire, knowing what the Elvenking had done to his child. His eyes, full of vengeance, were lost in the view of the dead forest as he twirled his three crystals round and round and round in his hand, for something inside of him had snapped far beyond the evil that he already was.

A part of him knew that Thranduil's revenge was justified, taking all that he loved as he had done to the elf lord, but that did not matter. Thranduil would pay a most dear price, this he vowed, as the wheels in his brain turned like the spheres in his hand. An eye for an eye for a final eye was where it all was at now by Jareth ending the vicious cycle once and for all and destroy all of middle earth, and he would have a child to replace the one taken from him as well.

"I will have the babe." he muttered through his teeth and then headed out to the special place where all had been prepared for the ritual to raise the evil dead by none other than his mind warped brother, Julian.

A pentagram had been displayed on the dusty floor of an old church not far from his labyrinth and the three pages from the book of the dead laid upon the altar, glowing in the candlelight.

"Time is short and it has come dear brother Julian. All will rue the day for those whom have ever crossed me. Like a thief in the night, the worst nightmares of every soul in middle earth will come true and I will take my rightful reign with my brothers and the demons of hell at my side and command. BEGIN!" Jareth howled.

"Yes bother."

Julian gathered the pages and took a seat. Flames formed over his hand as he smiled, swirling it about and then began to translate and read aloud the words of black magic, the blackest of them all.

The names of the dead were spoken and the list was quite long, but it was only a fraction of what would be released upon the world that night.

The sky darkened into a frenzy of Jareth's fellbeasts as wind, thunder and lightning consumed the dark realm in response to Julian's conjuring.

The names Julian vocalized were ones the woodland realm and beyond would personally know, for the Elvenking and all that he held dear, were the goblin king's main targets.

Those that were once evil before death, just as Jareth, would be far more diabolical than the devil himself and those that were of light would faithfully join the army of darkness in the destruction of all before them.

"Caroline, Carrie, Peter, Asher, Alfrid, Darken Rahl, Morwen, Malsha, Malsin, Maldyr, Kili, Viktor, Craven, Sally, Joliel, Kate, Orodreth, Olivia, Oropher, Carandolel, Smaug....."

A beam of fire spawned from the pentagram as a now cloaked Julian prepared to open the gates of hell.

The list from Julian's lips continued even further as he spoke into the blaze, including his four dead brothers and father Jasper, then carried on with Caroline's dead sisters and father as well.

And then....the portal to the world was opened and all of the dead were set free to wreak havoc and hell at their own will.

No dead were spared as hell on middle earth was unleashed, including Jareth's fiery wendigos, his sinister spies and killing machines.

"Go...assist in my take over. Eat drink and be merry! Kill them all! On Dasher, on Donner, on Prancer and Vixen, on Comet, on Cupid, on Donner and Blitzen! Rise from the ashes!!!" Jareth commanded as he bellowed in malevolent laughter.

"There will be only one king. One king to rule them all!!!"

@redeemer46