#27th legion

[flashthescalesian-art]

Silence (a.k.a Jax has rejection sensitive dysphoria)

Jax has ADHD, and I also have ADHD, so of course I had to dump my RSD issues onto Jax too because traumatizing my OCs is how I cope when something is bothering me. I’m not gonna go into detail about my personal issues (I’m okay, just struggle-bussing it through life), but sometimes no matter what anyone says, RSD still manages to convince you that you did something wrong when someone stops talking to you. (Bob belongs to @thehannalyzer, btw, he’s not mine. (Also, I’m not trying to make any commander mentioned out to be a “bad guy” or “mean”, just so we’re clear on that. This is from Jax’s RSD-clouded POV, I’m not bashing anyone else mentioned))

—————

“Something’s bugging you,” Blazer said in lieu of a greeting when he walked into Jax’s office and leaned on the desk with both arms, one hand supporting his chin as he stared at Jax. 

Jax avoided eye contact and tried to pretend he was busy working. Go away. 

“Hey, genius, you and I both know you hate paperwork, so there’s no way you’re so focused that you didn’t hear me.” Blazer grabbed Jax’s datapad and pulled it out of his hands before setting it facedown just out of Jax’s reach. “You gonna talk to me or do I need to make you talk?” 

Jax glared up at Blazer. He looked genuinely worried, if annoyed, and Jax instantly felt guilty. What am I doing? Why am I pushing him away when he’s not even someone I’m mad at? Sighing, Jax rubbed a hand down his face, trying to stay composed enough to explain what was going on in his head. “The others are barely speaking to me. Or, it feels that way, anyway.” He shrugged. “I dunno if I’m just overreacting or if they’re actually ignoring me.” 

Blazer frowned sympathetically as he absently rubbed the scar on his chin with one finger. “Okay. Are they just busy? It’s not like things have been quiet for anyone lately.” 

Jax shrugged again, a lump forming in his throat. Force-dammit. Can’t talk about osik without crying. No wonder the others see me as a baby still. “I don’t know. A couple of them said they’re busy, but others… I haven’t heard from a few of them in weeks.” His eyes stung, so he scrubbed at them with one hand. He felt Blazer’s hand rest on top of the hand that still held his stylus for his datapad. 

“Who haven’t you heard from?” Blazer’s voice was gentle, so gentle. 

Jax couldn’t look at him. “F-Fox. And Bob. And— and Bacara and Neyo.” 

“Well, you told me that Thorn’s been worried about Fox too, so I doubt he’s ignoring only you if his twin is worried about him. Plus you mentioned that Thire sounded worried.” 

“Was that supposed to be reassuring?” Jax asked bitterly. 

Blazer gave a soft sigh. “Yes and no. It’s not a good thing that Fox seems to be ignoring Thorn and Thire too, but it does mean that it’s probably nothing to do with you, if that’s what you’re upset about.” 

“That doesn’t make me feel better,” Jax mumbled, still barely holding himself together. “Even if Fox isn’t mad at me, that doesn’t explain everyone else.” 

Blazer squeezed Jax’s hand. “It is possible that Bob is avoiding talking to you since that fight you two had. It might be good if you don’t talk to him for a while anyway.” 

Jax instantly felt guilt wash over him like a wave, so he buried his face in his arms on the desk, pulling away from Blazer. “I don’t wanna talk about that. He hates me, and I don’t even know what I did wrong.” Sure, Bob had sent multiple apologies after the fight, but that was nearly a month ago at this point. Jax hadn’t really responded since he wasn’t sure he believed Bob, and after a month of silence, it felt even harder to believe that Bob didn’t hate him. 

“So what if he hates you?” Blazer’s voice took on a fierce tone that seemed to color his words any time Jax mentioned that he thought Bob— or any of his brothers, really —hated him. “You don’t need his approval or attention. Same goes for Neyo and Bacara. If they don’t wanna talk to you, that’s their issue, not yours. You didn’t do anything to them.” 

Jax simply wanted to melt into the floor. He knew Blazer meant well, and some angry part of him agreed with Blazer, but he couldn’t shake the little cadet voice wondering why his older brothers didn’t seem to want to talk to him, or why he always felt like they looked down on him. Just the thought of never speaking to any of his older brothers again made that little voice cry out in agony. “But I don’t want to lose contact with them,” Jax whimpered into his arms. 

“If they’re not gonna put in the effort, why should you?” Blazer asked, his raspy voice nearly a growl now. 

Jax felt tears escape, so he pressed his face harder into his arms. “Because I love them,” he whimpered, feeling pathetic. 

He heard the soft thunk of Blazer’s vambraces on the desk, then footsteps that stopped at his side. A hand rested on his shoulder. “You don’t owe them anything. If they don’t want to talk to you, that’s their choice. Don’t let them drag you down. If they don’t think you’re worth the effort, then it’s not a relationship worth stressing over.” Blazer’s voice was much softer now. 

Jax tried to take a breath, but it came out as more of a sob. “But what did I do wrong?” It didn’t make sense that his older brothers would just stop talking to him, so he had to have done something to make them want to stop talking to him. Right?

Blazer grabbed Jax with both hands and carefully guided him out of his chair and onto the floor before pulling him into a tight hug. Jax didn’t have the energy to resist, so he simply buried his face in Blazer’s shoulder. “If you can’t think of anything you did wrong, you probably didn’t do anything wrong. Sometimes it’s not your fault when people don’t want to talk to you anymore.” 

“It still feels like it’s my fault,” Jax choked out, clinging to Blazer. 

Blazer simply held him tighter. “I know. I’m sorry.” 

Jax could only cry harder.

[k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9]

ℑ𝔫𝔰𝔲𝔩𝔱𝔢𝔯 - 𝔏𝔢𝔤𝔦𝔬𝔫'𝔰 𝔏𝔲𝔰𝔱

[weclassybouquetfun]

I have a passing knowledge of Jaime Reyes' Blue Beetle from the character's appearance on SMALLVILLE, BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD and these panels.

Milagro, you are so real for this.

And this is where my true knowledge about Blue Beetle comes from - Ted Kord's Blue Beetle and his friendship with Booster Gold.

Blue & Gold Forever.

So with only knowing the bare minimum about Jaime I was able to watch BLUE BEETLE with no expectations. It's an incredibly vibrant, fun and heartfelt film. I'm concerned at its low box-office showing, but films with bigger leads and bigger budgets have also failed at the box office, or at the very least, didn't recoup it's budget and marketing. There has never been anything that was a guaranteed box office success. I would rather it tried to get eyes in theaters than get lost on HBO Max where it was originally slated for release. Here's hoping National Cinema Day on Aug 27th (where theaters are selling tickets for $4 for all formats) will bring more people to the tent.

Too true.

My thoughts on BLUE BEETLE

Nothing but SPOILERS.

THE GOOD

Xolo Maridueña (COBRA KAI) is a great Jaime. If you have seen Maridueña across these five seasons of COBRA KAI, it's not surprising. He has shown consistently that he can play humour, dutifulness, vulnerable and excel at action.

Big up to COBRA KAI's annual blow-out fight sequence.

Oddly enough, at the end of the film I didn't think we got to know Jaime beyond a cursory level, but I'm sure if they did a deep dive on him I would complain about that too as my issue with origin story films is that so much real estate is given to building up the history of the character, that the plot and action seems relegated to the final act. But I guess BLUE BEETLE gave us all we need to know about Jaime.

Good egg, duty bound, gets hard from hugs (and kudos to this film for actually having a character who gets horny. Comic book films are nearly always a sexless thing, but my guy Jaime pulling his shirt down to cover his crotch after Jenny's (Bruna Marquezine) tale of woe was refreshing.)

-Really liked Jenny Kord. She wasn't the typical damsel in distress. She's formidable in her own right. She and Jaime doesn't feel rushed or shoehorned in. I especially loved the fact that they didn't just make her the love interest,

Though she and Xolo are great together,

but also gave her - in the Reyes - a new family. If she and Jaime were to go pear-shaped we can just know that Jenny still has a place within the Reyes clan.

-We have not one, but two new members to the Legion of Great DCEU Family Members. Joining the mom and dad of SHAZAM, AQUAMAN's dad, THE FLASH's mom is BLUE BEETLE's Alberto Reyes (Damián Alcázar) and Nana Reyes (the Oscar nominated Adriana Barraza).

Still waters run deep and Nana proved that. She's not just up in her room sewing and watching reruns of "María la del Barrio". She is sitting back waiting to showcase her experiene while fighting in the revolution.

And Alberto Reyes! He was this film's King T'Chaka. Always with a wise word, strong, caring. I hate that he had to die and I think it's a worn out trope that a hero has to suffer loss in order to come into their greatness, but it worked. Long Live Alberto Reyes!

Just enough George Lopez to not be annoying. He's funny, but only in small doses IMO so he was just good enough and used well enough that it wasn't eye-rolling. I really loved that he wasn't just there for the obvious comic relief, instead Uncle Rudy is a brain.

The opening along had me hyped. It set the tone and it lent to idea of the scarab being from space, but the inclusion of a classic Blue Beetle comic sketch just ::chef's kiss:

-Director Ángel Manuel Soto listed which stories he pulled from for this film,

but I see a lot of BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD episode "Fall of the Blue Beetle" in the bits where they go to Ted Kord's home/lab.

-The way they took OMAC/Kevin Kho backstory and merged it with Carapex's. In the comics OMAC was a Cambodian child of war, in this film Ignacio/Carapex was left an orphan and trained by the School of the Americas (rebranded Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation) whose training manuals advocated tortuing and blackmailing civilians. Using Kord Industries as not just a amorphous shady big tech corp, BLUE BEETLE's writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer and Soto tied Kord Industries to the realties of what big corporations are doing globally.

This ties into another thing I loved about the film - it had a strong cultural identity. From Nana using Vivaporú (Vicks Vapor Rub) as smelling salts to rouse Jamie, to El Chapulín Colorado(!!!).

The idea of gentrification that affects people across colour lines and specifically targets people of lower income.

The full integration of Jaime and Khaji-Da being exemplified by Khaji-Da (voiced by singer/actor Becky G) speaking Spanish.

THE BAD

-Is there someone with less screen prescence than Susan Sarandon? I don't know how she was ever a thing. I guess they needed a "name" but there several other actors like Anjelica Huston or Sigourney Weaver who would have done something more with that role. Carla Gugino. Anyone else!

-The establishing CGI of Kord Entrerprises was basura. There was a tangible change in F/X as if mid way through post-production they found out WB-Discovery was moving it to theatrical release and they effects crew got a cash infusion.

-While I came around on the character towards the end, I wasn't a fan of Milagro. Glad they aged her up but she fell into the trope of annoying movie sibling and it grated.

THE REST

-Harvey Guillen's character died in the film (good!) and he appears to be dead again on HARLEY QUINN (not good. There is no way Nightwing's death sticks).

-Soto and James Gunn says that Jaime has a future in the DCU. While an interview snippet is making the rounds where Soto says he would like Jason Sudeikis (TED LASSO) to play Ted Kord, I don't really believe that is true as the source is from an online site I'm not familiar with and people lie for clicks.

Yes, Buster. All. The. Time.

-While comics! Jaime lives in El Paso, Texas, film! Jaime lives in Palmera City - on El Paso St. - which was created for the film (and appeared in the comics months ahead in a tie-in). Soto found inspiration in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico. But I wonder what Palmera City's real-world city will be when James Gunn finishes the DC Map that he say is being redone. Maybe because over the years Metropolis has been Chicago/Delaware/New York.

Metropolis is not in Delaware, GTFOH.

[haastera-001]

Timeline Issues

Tessa being CYN, or at least not fully human would solve the frustrating timeline issue I've had up until now.

In the flashback, Tessa is at a minimum of 10 years old, more probably around 12-15.

Now she looks like she's in her 20s, 30s at the absolute most.

This timeline does not work now that we know the mansion incident came first.

UZi is at least 18 years old given the age bracket of her fellow classmates. She has made it clear she's lived for as long as she can remember inside the outpost, never knowing her mother.

Even if Khan met Nori and had UZI before the core collapse, which is highly unlikely, the collapse had to have occurred at least 15 to 20 years ago.

At Cabin Fever labs all the whiteboards have (work) week 627 written on them. (627(7)/365 = 12 years

(On a side note the collapse occurred on the 26th or 27th based on the calendar markings).

Even if we disregard this it's clear that they had to have been working there for at least a couple years prior to the collapse.

Earth and 2 other planets were corrupted by the solver before C9 according to episode 6. The way Tessa describes what happened & the pictures imply what occurred on Earth wasn't an instantaneous event, and it likely wasn't on the other worlds.

(Side note 2: The little simulation showing the solver corruption spread looks like a Murder drone pod, raising an interesting question as to how exactly those 2 planets were taken over. Did they somehow get core-collapsed as well, or were they invaded by legions of Murder drones?)

This is all to say that the events in the mansion had to have occurred at least 30-40 years ago, maybe even 50 or 60.

So either Tessa looks really, really, really good for her age, or this Tessa is not quite human anymore.

[deimos-awaits]

Colonel Algea Moloch, Captain of the Armageddon Steel Legion regiment (reluctantly) escorting the Deimos First Exploratory Fleet through Imperium Nihilis im imaginign this person as a the leader of the collective guard units being transported and utilized by the 27th solar auxilliary fleet. Colonel Moloch Hates all the other leads of the FDEF's expedition and is praying to the golden throne to be transferred back to a useful guard unit with the Space Wolves.

@cannibalcaprine thank you for the character name

[familyparadox]

The audio story Lies in Ruins all ways makes me so stressed. Like Benny has a relatively linear relationship to the Last Great Time War and the War in Heaven, but Lies in Ruins is the one story which does not fit. You do need to jiggle the New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield around a bit to have it fit but even then you can make it work.

The Virgin New Adventures with Seven pre War

The Solo Vergin New Adventures war in Heaven

Bernice Summerfield Season 2-11 War in Heaven

Bernice Summerfield Legion Era Boxsets Post war

The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield Pre Time War post Restoration of Gallifrey (these take place after the legion Boxset but Benny is still living on Legion)

Big Bang Generation Post Time War and Post Second Restoration of Gallifrey

Only lies in ruins which has to be post Legion era as Benny is a Professor at the Lunar University in the 51st century is set during the Last Great Time War. It doesn’t make sense like originally I tried to fit it in during legion era but pre big bang but it does not fit their. Not to mention it contradicts Predating the Predators which have Benny still being in the 27th century as Old woman. (This is a the major problem) none of this is a major problem but when someone seems to be the only person to have a neat relationship to the Wars have just one massive breach in the linear relationship to the Wars. It just makes me rather annoyed.

Of course Predating Predators also can not happen and must have been erased due to the machinations of Irving Braxiatel as Benny is still involved with the war as an old person.

[eienias20]

Became a BanG Dream! fan this year

Title says it all, so how did this happen? Two reasons. First was Hoshimachi Suisei, she's a hololive vtuber who on March 22nd, 2023 had a 3D live where she sang her original song Michizure with LAYER and then performed Hell or Hell with all of RAS. I thought they were pretty awesome and a holofan I follow on Twitter was posting a lot about BanG Dream! after that, got me interested.

Of course even when I say "Imma watch that" it still takes me months to commit and it did. It wasn't till late 2023 that I started watching the anime, finishing season 1 on January 27th 2024.

But then? Well I watched and finished season 2 in April and then was watching everything else all through the month of May, that's 3 seasons of the anime, the film lives, roselia specials, morfonica special, circle party and its mygo, all of that in rapid succession solidifying me as a new fan.

idk how else to describe my journey through all the anime content beyond just saying that I had a blast.

It was so entertaining, the music was great, absolutely loved the cg animation from season 2 on and it kept getting better. above all are the characters, everyone is so easy to love and I can see every single character having a whole legion of fans. For me personally, Arisa is my favorite.

I'm so deep I downloaded the mobile game Girls Band Party! on my phone and I've ben playing it a little every day. I've played rhythm games in the past, mostly guitar hero but playing on the phone is super different.

I don't even know what to specifically point out and praise but I made a series of reddit posts after each major moment to give better thoughts on the things I loved about the show. Sharing that below.

Also someone shared with my a spotify playlist of pretty much all the bang dream music that I've been listening to (its 600 songs long) so that's been fun.

I really like this series, thinking about it makes me happy.

Thoughts on BanG Dream! Season 1 - 3 (LINK)

Thoughts on Film LIVEs, Episode of Roselia and Poppin Dream (LINK)

Brief Thoughts on starting Girls Band Party (LINK)

Thoughts on CiRCLE Thanks & Morfonication (LINK)

[loshappreciationweek]

There's less than a month left until the fifth iteration of the Legion of Super-Heroes appreciation week (and the Legion's 65th anniversary), and what better way to celebrate that than to reveal some themes!

This year the week will take place between the 27th of February and the 5th of March. We'll be using the tags #loshweek and #loshweek23 and you can also tag @loshappreciationweek in your post or submit it to us.

Rules and info can be found here. Feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions or ideas!

[docgold13]

365 Marvel Comics Paper Cut-Out SuperHeroes - One Hero, Every Day, All Year…

November 27th - Legion 

David Haller is the son of Professor Charles Xavier (founder of the X-Men) and Gabrielle Haller (an Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom). Charles and Gabrielle had an affair in Israel nearly two decades ago, and Charles was unaware when he left that Haller was pregnant with his son. Haller concealed the fact that Charles was the father of her son, David, and Charles himself only learned that he was David's father some time after founding the New Mutants. David was born a Mutant possessing tremendous psychic abilities.  

Gabrielle Haller married Daniel Shomron when David was a child and the family relocated to Paris.  Their home was attacked by a group of terrorists who shot and killed David’s stepfather in front of him.  The shock of having witnessed this awoke David’s telepathic powers and he instinctively released a psychic shock that killed the attackers, frying their brains.  Unfortunately, David experienced each of these deaths through empathic connection and it left him in a catatonic state.  

The trauma acted to fragment David’s mind.  He cultivated countless alternate personalities as seen in cases of Dissociative Identity Disorder.  One of these personalities was based on the leader of the terrorists who had attacked him, a man named Karami.  The recreation of Karami that David generated was so fulsome as to truly believe itself to be the real Karami trapped within the young man’s mind. 

As a teenager, David recovered from his catatonia but remained highly disoriented as the various personalities in his mind jockeyed for control.  This led him to be misidentified as suffering from a severe type of autism. 

David ended up in the care of Dr. Moria MacTaggart on Muir Island.  Dr. MacTaggart identified David as Charles Xavier’s biological son and correctly diagnosed him as experiencing dissociative identity disorder significantly compounded by his psychic powers.  Herein David began referring to himself as ‘Legion’ based on the Biblical passage from the Book of Mark.  

As Legion, David would go on to have many adventures.  Although he possessed a host of highly formidable psychic powers, his ability to use them were frequently hampered or misused by various alternate personalities periodically taking over.  

David’s great power, coupled with the fragile state of his psyche, attracted the attention of the psychic villain, Amahl Farouk, also known as the Shadow King.  Farouk’s original body had been killed in conflict with Charles Xavier, but his mind remained on the astral plain and he targeted David as a means of obtaining great power, regaining physical form and taking revenge on Xavier.  

Once possessed by The Shadow King, Legion became an adversary to the X-Men and it took all their might to defeat him.  David fought back and ultimately purged himself of Farouk, but it resulted in his being rendered entirely comatose.  

The Mutant precognitive known as Destiny had been killed by The Shadow King whist in possession of David’s body.  In the process, David manifested a recreation of Destiny’s psyche who became yet another of the countless personalities populating his mind.  This version of Destiny convinced David that his father’s dream of peace between Mutants and humans would have come to fruition had it not been for the actions of Xavier’s frequent rival and fellow Mutant, Magneto.  

The certainty of this shocked David free from his coma and he used his powers to travel back in time in an effort to assassinate Magneto so that his father could fulfill his dream.  The effort went awry as the younger Xavier triued to save Magneto from David and was himself unintentionally killed.  Xavier’s death in the past created a hellish alternate reality in the present where most of humanity had been killed by Mutants and the planet was ruled by the menace known Apocalypse; and the world’s only hope were a band of rebel X-Men led by a now heroic Magneto.  

The time-traveling Mutant, Bishop, was able to determine how this all came about he traveled back into the past to put things right.  Bishop was able to prevent Xavier’s assassination and David was seemingly destroyed, resulting in reality reverting back to how it was prior to this Age of Apocalypse.   

David would eventually return and embarked on further adventures, on his own, at the side of the X-Men and accompanied by his girlfriend, the young Mutant precognitive the known as Blindfold.  Following the creation of the Mutant nation of Krakoa, David was captured by the villainous organization, Orchis.  The young man was killed and dissected in the hopes of finding a way to defend against Mutant psychics.  With he nature of his power, however, David found that he no longer needed a corporal form.  Legion still existed on the astral plain perhaps now more powerful than ever.  

A version of David Haller featured in the FX television series, Legion, portrayed by Dan Stevens.  The trouble young hero first appeared in the pages of  New Mutants Vol. 1 #25 (1984).

[leareadsheresy]

“The Dark King”

This post contains spoilers for "The Dark King," by Graham McNeill, first published as a short story in the 2007 Games Day exclusive two-story anthology Horus Heresy Chapbook on (as nearly as I can tell) September 23rd, 2007, and later republished in the anthology Shadows of Treachery on September 27th, 2012.

This story is about how Konrad "the Night Haunter" Curze, Primarch of the Night Lords Legion, named after Joseph Conrad and the character Colonel Kurtz from Conrad's story "Heart of Darkness," is a monster and has been for a lot longer than the start of the Heresy. It's told through a series of three scenes, connected disjointedly, because Curze suffers from nightmare visions of the future and seems to experience time out of joint.

In the first scene, Kurze is leading his Space Marines in the execution of a bunch of humans whose world the Night Lords and Imperial Fists are in the process of conquering. Rogal Dorn, Primarch of the Imperial Fists, shows up and is unhappy that Curze is just executing a conquered people, and Curze goes into a speech about how only by demonstrating the consequences of resistance will the rest of the galaxy be convinced to fall in line. They argue a bit and it's better than the usual McNeill arguments. Curze points to the next guy due to be executed and loudly proclaims that whatever he does, he's not to be punished, and then hands him a gun; the guy tries to shoot Curze and Curze turns around and punches him in the head so hard his skull explodiates, then turns to Dorn and goes "See? He wasn't resisting until he thought he wouldn't be punished." Dorn says that when this campaign is done they'll have words, and that Curze's way is not the way of the Imperium, to which Curze says "...you may be right," and then Dorn leaves.

It then cuts very abruptly to Curze imprisoned by Dorn and Fulgrim; Curze is visited by his equerry who says Dorn is recovering from the injuries that Curze inflicted with his bare hands and teeth, so that talk went really bad. Fulgrim signed off on Curze's imprisonment because around the same time, Curze spoke to him in confidence about visions he was having of a dark future of the galaxy embroiled in endless war and how the Emperor was going to try to kill him (Curze), which Fulgrim took as talk of treachery. Anyway there's a big jail escape scene where Curze plays the part of Batman leaping around between rafters in the dark but with more murder, kills all his captors bloodily, and escapes to the Night Lords fleet who were maintaining formation with the Imperial Fists and Emperor's Children, and they run off.

In the third scene, the first two scenes are framed as Curze reminiscing aboard his flagship, having taken his whole fleet back to his homeworld Nostramo (also named after a Joseph Conrad thing). For context, Primarchs were genetically engineered on Earth by the Emperor to serve as super-generals but then the gods of the warp stole their growth pods and scattered them around the galazy; Curze landed on Nostramo, a cyberpunk world of high crime rates, which he murder-batmanned into perfect compliant order before the Emperor found him. Here he's pondering how since he left, the planet has backslid into cyberpunk high crime, so to send a message to the galaxy he Death Stars it, just in time for Imperial fleets sent in pursuit of him to witness the destruction but not in time for them to stop it or to stop him from escaping back into the warp. End of story.

The exact temporal relationships between the three scenes are not clear, like, we don't know how much time passed between them, which I like; I enjoy a tone piece where the reader is given no more information than needed to establish tone. Graham McNeill continues to improve by virtue of structuring his writing so that the things he's weak at (subtle ideological and practical conflicts expressed deftly and intelligently) do not appear. The conflict between Dorn and Curze is not subtle. The story is also very short -- significantly shorter than "The Kaban Project," which helps; it's easier to be punchy when you're working in short form.

It does kind of raise the question of why Dorn thought the Night Lords would be a suitable force to include in the backup force sent to Istvaan V, but I'm not interpreting that as a plot hole; I assume there'll be some narrative later explaining how the Night Lords were brought back into the Imperial fold somewhat following the events of the second scene of the story, and I also believe it later turns out that the third scene of the story takes place significantly after the events in the Istvaan system.

The only thing that really annoys me is that it occasionally calls him Night Haunter, and my personal preference when addressing a fictional character with a name that's a title is that the "the" always get stuck in front of it, so he should be the Night Haunter, not just Night Haunter. But again that's just me being ultra-picky. Good job, Graham McNeill, solid improvement.

[the-sisters-library]

From Deliverance Lost: Corvus Corax and his battle barge of battered survivors from Isstvan V arrive in the Solar System, only to be greeted by the captain of a much smaller Imperial Fists vessel who keeps insisting on proper identification. Branne is pissed off, Corax is doing his best not to bust out laughing.

**

"' I am not at liberty to indulge you, primarch aboard or not,' came Noriz's terse reply. 'All non-sanctioned vessels are to be inspected. If you have not noticed, one legionary's word to another doesn't count for much anymore. We will board and if you refuse, your vessel will be destroyed.'

His jaw clenching with anger, Branne reached for the transmit button, but he was stopped by Corax. The primarch gently pushed the commander aside and bent down to the communication array. 'Captain Noriz, your attention to duty and protocol is admirable,' said the primarch, his deep voice edged with humour. 'I am more than happy to welcome a delegation from any brother's Legion aboard, but please dispense with the threats. This is a battle-barge carrying several thousand legionaries, you have a strike cruiser with a complement of fifty legionaries.' More silence followed, longer than the previous pause.

'Please identify yourself.'

Sighing, Corax shared a glance with the others around him before he activated the transmit switch. 'I am Lord Corvus Corax, Primarch of the Raven Guard, Saviour of Deliverance, Commander of the 27th and 276th Expeditions, acting Marshal of the Therion Cohort and lauded conqueror of a thousand words. Please come aboard and I will show you my other credentials.'"

**

"Be nice, he is only doing his duty,' the primarch told Branne. 'The quicker we sort out this inspection, the sooner we can be on our way.' 'Aye, but he doesn't have to be so stiff about it, does he?' said the commander.

'He's an Imperial Fist,' replied Corax. 'He can't help it.'"

[flashthescalesian-art]

Little vent doodle with my tormented boy Krayt. Been feeling super lonely lately and I’m not sure what to do about it when I have nowhere local to make friends.

I’m not going anywhere, but this is why I’ve not posted much beyond the occasional random text post.

Found an anti AI filter I can use from my phone tho, so that’s nice.

[gardenofkore]

« First [sic] wife of Francesco Crispi. With him, she conspired for the sake of the unity of the Homeland. With him, she took part in the legendary Expedition of the Thousands. Sole woman in the immortal legion, she became its heroine. She enjoyed Mazzini’s trust and Garibaldi’s friendship. An example for Italian women of male patriotic virtues and gentle domestic virtues.»

Epitaph of Rose Montmasson, carved on her tombstone in Verano Cemetery, Rome [my translation]

Rose (also known as Rosalie and, more commonly in Italy, Rosalia) Montmasson was born on January 12th 1823 in Saint-Jorioz, a small village in the Haute-Savoie region, at that time still part of the Kingdom of Sardinia. She was fourth of five children and her parents, Gaspard and Jacqueline Pathoud, were humble farmers. As a child, Rose helped her parents both at home and in the fields, and received a simple education, she learnt to write, read and do maths.

In 1840, the death of her mother, aggravated the already unstable economic conditions of the family, forcing Rose to move to the more economically vibrant Torino in search of a job. Starting 1849, she worked as an ironer and, through her job, she met the Sicilian patriot and lawyer, Francesco Crispi (1818-1901). His first wife, Rosina D’Angelo, had died in 1839 due to complications in childbirth, after two short years of marriage. The baby, Tommaso, died a couple of hours later and, five months later, mother and son were followed by 2-years old Giuseppa, Francesco and Rosina’s first child. Following his wife and children’s deaths, Crispi became romantically involved with a Felicita Vella (called Ciuzza), with whom he fathered a son, Tommaso. Because of his liberal and democratic ideas as well as his active participation in the Sicilian revolution of 1848, Francesco Crispi had been forced to exile and his first destination was Piedmont.

Having met because Rose used to iron Francesco’s shirts, they started living together in 1850. Unfortunately, their cohabitation was soon disturbed when Felicita Vella moved into the same neighbourhood. Indeed, the scorned woman started harassing the couple, arriving to report Rose for mistreating young Tommaso.

Following the failed anti-Austrian uprising of 1853 in Milan, Crispi was once again forced to exile. He reached Genova and, from there, he sailed for Malta, where he was joined by Rose. On December 27th 1854 the two got married. Since, for the nth time, Francesco was compelled to abandon his asylum, they didn’t have enough time to plan the wedding and couldn’t, in that short time, provide the necessary documents. Because of this, no priest was willing to celebrate the wedding, until they convinced (for a fee) a wanderer Jesuit, Luigi Marchetti, to perform the ceremony. Only later, it would turn out Marchetti (who was also a patriot) had been previously interdicted and suspended a divinis, and this would later bear tragic consequences for Rose.

Three days later, Crispi sailed for London, while Rose stayed in La Valletta, waiting for the act of marriage to be registered in the parish of St. Publius and for the notary’s endorsement of the certificate. She then set out to join her husband in England, stopping at Saint-Jorioz to announce to her family she had finally got married (her father and siblings didn’t approve of her living together with a man who wasn’t her husband). At the beginning of 1855, she was finally in London. In the British capital, Rose navigated between befriending many of the fellow Sicilian exiles and patriots  (like Giuseppe Mazzini) and taking care of her husband. As Tina Scalia (daughter of a couple of those refugees) would put it: to Rose wifely love consisted in being for Crispi “a cook, a laundress, and an errand girl”. Her devotion for her husband and his cause went beyond her household chores. The brave woman put her own life in danger by acting as a connection between Mazzini and his followers in France and elsewhere. She secretly conveyed his messages, plans and instructions, hiding the papers in haunches of game and smuggling them past customs officers and gendarmes. In 1856 the Crispis moved to Paris, and there Rose devoted herself to the logistical coordination of the Italian clandestine network. She didn’t even neglect to look after Francesco’s recently orphaned nephew, Felice Caratozzolo (son of Anna Serafina Crispi, also called Marianna), who had just reached Paris at the wish of his uncle, who wanted to provide the teen with a better future. Because of Francesco’s  frequent trips, Rose found herself often alone. Felice proved to be an unruly kid, with no respect for rules and who didn’t acknowledge his aunt’s authority. At some point he even left the house and came back only when his uncle returned from his trip, and managed to convince his nephew to come back home. Luckily for Rose, her partner took her side when Marianna Crispi (who clearly only got her son’s side of her story) wrote his brother a letter lamenting her son’s mistreatment at the hands of Rose. Francesco answered that his wife took by heart the idea of taking care of Felice as he was her own child, spurring him to study and behave. Moreover, since she loved and feared her husband, she would have never done something which would have enraged him like mistreating Felice. As for Francesco, he regretted never having hit his nephew as it would have done him good.

In 1858, the Crispis, together with young Felice, had to leave France since Francesco had been suspected to be in league with Felice Orsini (the Italian patriot who had tried unsuccessfully to assassinate Napoleon III the year prior). They went back to London where he got again in touch with Mazzini. 1859 marked a turning point in Crispi’s patriotic experience. The Kingdom of Sardinia, together with Napoleon III’s France, had defeated the Austrian Empire. The Austrians had ceded Lombardy to France, whom, in turn, passed it to Sardinia. The year after Sardinia had exploited the situation and annexed the Duchy of Tuscany, the Duchy of Parma, the Duchy of Modena and Reggio, and the Papal Legations. Nice and Savoy were ceded to France as compensation for assisting the Sardinians. The outcome of the Second Italian War of Independence had suggested Crispi that, unlike what Mazzini (and Crispi with him) had advocated, perhaps Italy’s future was monarchic rather than republican.

From London the Crispi couple moved to Torino and Genova. In July 1859, Crispi reached Messina incognito, convinced that he could arrange an anti-Borbonic revolt with the support of the Sicilian mazziniani. The uprising (planned for October 4th) was delayed indefinitely. This convinced Crispi that a future revolt in Sicily needed the support of the population rather than committees and that a military expedition was fundamental to back up the insurrection.

In order to plan this uprising, in March 1860, Rose embarked on a steamboat headed for Messina to get in touch with Sicilian patriots Rosolino Pilo and Giovanni Corrao. She reached Malta to meet with fellow patriots Nicolò Fabrizi and Giorgio Tamajo with whom she exchanged information and letters she took with her when she returned to Genova.

Two months later, Rose embarked on the steamboat Piemonte headed once again for Sicily, the only (official) female member of the Expedition of the Thousand. Her husband had been against her participation, while Garibaldi, despite the initial veto, had given his consent (“Come then, if it pleases you. However bear it in your mind that you’re putting yourself in great risk and peril, and I won’t answer to it”). In Sicily, armed with a gun, she risked her life to fight in Marsala, Calatafimi and Palermo. She also helped tend to the injured soldiers, quickly becoming a familiar and dear figure. The Sicilians quickly renamed her Rosalia, after St. Rosalia, the much beloved saint patron of Palermo, and with this name, she would be remembered.

If Rose thought the desired and fought for the Unification of Italy in 1861 would mark the beginning of a much happier and more secure future, she quickly realized how wrong she was. The only one who benefited from it was her husband. The couple moved back to Torino and then Firenze, where they spent their last period of relative happiness. In 1861 Francesco was elected deputy of the Parliament of the newborn Kingdom of Italy (and would later become one of its Prime Ministers) and quickly turned his back on his republican ideal becoming a staunch monarchist. Rose (as well as many of his old friends) must have seen it as a betrayal and it must have made their relationship even rockier. Crispi didn’t just betray her in terms of shared political ideals, but also in more personal terms. He had various flirts with women much younger than his wife and even fathered illegitimate children with them. He reached his worst in 1878 when, after repudiating Rose (claiming their Maltese marriage was irregular), he married Filomena (Lina) Barbagallo, with whom he had a child five years prior. This caused such an uproar (and the accusation of bigamy) that, during a public event, Queen Margherita refused to shake his hand. As it came to light the fact that brother Luigi Marchetti, who had performed the wedding ceremony, had been interdicted and thus Rose and Francesco’s marriage was null.

The betrayed woman moved to a modest house in Rome, where the couple had previously moved when the city was declared Capital of the Kingdom in 1871, and the whole court had moved there.

Rose spent the last part of her life in financial hardship, economically helped by her friends. Through common friends, Agostino Bertani and Giorgio Tamajo, she reached an agreement with her former husband, who agreed to pay her a life annuity. When Crispi died in 1901, Rose (as a former Garibaldina) was offered a meagre Royal pension, who allowed her to live her last couple years in semi poverty.

Rose Montmasson died in Rome on November 10th 1904 after suffering from a stroke. She was 81. Since she couldn’t afford it, she was buried in a simple grave, freely granted by the Campo Verano Cemetery. According to her wishes, she was dressed up with a red shirt (symbol of the Thousands), and her medals were displayed on a pillow placed before her coffin. Her funeral (a secular ceremony) was attended by many Garibaldini, and people she had personally helped during the Expedition, but no representative (except from Senator Francesco Cucchi, who had personally known her during the Sicilian adventure) of the Nation she had helped made.

Sources

- CASALINI Fabio, Rosalia Montmasson, l’unica donna tra i Mille di Garibaldi

- FERRI Marco, Rosalia Montmasson;

- ODDO Giacomo, I mille di Marsala: scene rivoluzionarie;

- PAGLIUSO Antonio, Rosalia Montmasson: la Storia dell’unica Donna tra i Mille di Garibaldi;

- PALADINO Francesco, Crispi, Francesco;

- PALAMENGHI CRISPI Giulio, Rose Montmasson;

- Rosalia Montmasson;

- Rose Montmasson Crispi;

- ZAZZERI Angelica, Montmasson, Rosalie

[aoicourier]

October 27th, 2281

Hello, Pip-Boy. How are you? I'm a little roughed up, but I'm still alive and there's a lot of alcohol in this room, so things could be worse. I'm currently in a comfortable motel room in the town of Novac. That's right, the Legion haven't burned it down… yet. I think I may be here for a while. It's nice to have a room with a door that locks. And it's nice to have a fridge to keep all this booze cold, compared to the warm Sarsaparillas I've been drinking for days.

A lot has happened since I last wrote an entry on you. I'll try not to miss any details, but my mind is a little fuzzy from the Med-X the doc gave me, and maybe just a little from the vodka I drank before I started writing.

After a sleepless night in Nipton, I got back on the road as soon as the sun came up. I stopped by the NCR's Mojave Outpost and let the people there know about the town's fate, and that the Legion had advanced this far west. Then, I trudged back through the smoking remains of Nipton, avoiding eye contact with the crucified corpses baking in the afternoon sun, and trekked up the winding road towards Novac. There were a few shooters in the hills, and a squad of Legion soldiers I had to sneak around, but nothing I couldn't handle. I spent the night at a tiny NCR outpost, Ranger Station Charlie, and pressed on towards Novac at first light. Walked along railway tracks in silence, black power lines above me cutting the dawn sky into pink squares.

I saw the dinosaur before I saw the rest of the town. A huge hollow statue of a T-Rex, looming over the buildings, most of which are still intact. Turns out the dino is called Dinky, and it's the town's mascot. There's a gift shop inside its body (I bought a little dino toy there), and a pair of snipers take shifts inside its roaring mouth to watch for approaching threats. The Legion have taken over Nelson, to the east. I wonder if that's where Mr. Fox is.

The town's name comes from the motel that I'm staying in, or rather, the neon NO VACANCY sign out front. Only the first five letters still light up, so it's just "NO VAC" now. The people here seem decent. Prospectors are already talking about Primm having a new sheriff. Woman who runs the motel is named Jeannie May; she said the Checkered Coat Man had stayed there and was, quote, "no gentleman". Seems he didn't get caught up in the Legion's destruction of Nipton, for better or worse. His Great Khan bodyguards apparently knew Manny, one of the town snipers. I paid her 100 caps for the room; she said I could stay until "busy season", whenever that is.

The two snipers are Manny and Boone: I haven't spoken to Boone yet, but Manny was cordial enough. He knows the Checkered Coat Man, may even know where to find him. He was part of the Great Khans of North Vegas himself, before he joined the NCR. Now he's retired, and settled down in Novac. Naturally, he won't tell me about my quarry until I help him ensure the town is safe. You get nothing for free out here in the wasteland. There's an old rocket factory up the road, REPCONN, and feral ghouls have been leaking out of it like radiation, attacking the town. He can't leave his post, and wants me to find out what's going on over there.

On my way around town I met a few more of the townsfolk. Andy, a former NCR ranger who was crippled when the Legion employed a little kid to drop a grenade right at his feet. He's still got some fight in him; even taught me a takedown move that may come in handy if I'm ever caught without a weapon. Daisy, a former NCR pilot and a tough old bird herself. Bruce, a singer from New Reno who stole money from a casino boss, and had his way with the guy's daughter to boot. He's hiding out in Novac now, and for good reason. A strange old man they called "No-Bark", who span me a fanciful tale about Commie ghosts and invisible chupacabras with automatic weapons.

Most unexpectedly, I also met a familiar face from Goodsprings… or rather, a familiar screen. Victor, the Securitron robot who dragged me out of my shallow grave. He didn't seem to know what he was doing here in Novac, only said he "got the notion" to start heading towards New Vegas. It's too much of a coincidence, but I held my tongue for now. I'll just keep a careful eye on him, see what he does next.

I started up the road towards the REPCONN rocket site, and that's where it all went wrong. The twisted, radioactive corpse lying in the road was the first bad sign. Then came the radioactive corpses who were still on their feet. Half a dozen feral ghouls, hungry for my flesh, stumbling down the road. I gunned them down, but one of them - a bastard glowing green like a Christmas tree - gave me a real beating, and my skin burned where he'd touched me. I turned back towards town, and by the time I got there I could barely stand. Thankfully, I ran into the town doctor, a woman in a bloodstained white vest, and she got me patched up and dosed me up with painkillers. Charged me 100 caps for the privilege, but I'm not gonna complain. She saved my life. I didn't even get her name, come to think of it.

So here I am, back in my room at the Dino Dee-lite Motel, half drunk and dozy from painkillers. My plan is to get a good night's sleep for the first time in a while, and then make another attempt at the REPCONN factory tomorrow. Maybe it's full of hundreds more ghouls and I don't come back alive, but this is the path I'm on, and I have to keep walking.

Well, I think that's everything. I'm going to finish this vodka before I pass out. Goodnight, Pip-Boy.

[phonemantra-blog]

Hold onto your controllers, mobile gaming enthusiasts! The highly anticipated Lenovo Legion Go is finally making its Indian debut on June 27th, 2024. This powerful handheld gaming console, packing a punch with Windows 11 and AMD Ryzen processing power, is poised to shake up the market. Let's delve into the details, exploring the expected launch date, pricing, specifications, and features that make the Legion Go a compelling option for serious mobile gamers. Lenovo Legion Go Blasts A Competitive Landscape: Why Now for the Lenovo Legion Go in India? The handheld gaming market in India has seen a significant surge in recent times. Devices like the Asus ROG Ally, Steam Deck, and MSI Claw have captured the attention of players seeking a portable and powerful gaming experience. Recognizing this growing trend, Lenovo is strategically entering the Indian market with the Legion Go, offering a compelling alternative for gamers on the go. Expected Launch Date and Pricing for the Lenovo Legion Go in India Mark your calendars! The official launch date for the Lenovo Legion Go in India is set for June 27th, 2024. While the global launch price was set at EUR 799 (roughly Rs 71,600), industry experts anticipate a more competitive price tag for the Indian market. Given the slightly later entry and established competition, the Legion Go is expected to start under Rs 60,000, making it a potentially attractive option for budget-conscious gamers. Unveiling the Powerhouse: The Lenovo Legion Go Specifications The Lenovo Legion Go is more than just a pretty face. It boasts impressive specifications designed to deliver smooth and immersive gameplay: Operating System: Windows 11 Home - The Legion Go utilizes the familiar and versatile Windows 11 operating system, allowing gamers to enjoy a wide range of titles optimized for PC. Processor: AMD Ryzen Z1 Series Processors - Powering the Legion Go are the latest AMD Ryzen Z1 series processors, known for their robust performance and ability to handle demanding games. Graphics: AMD RDNA Graphics - Integrated AMD RDNA graphics ensure smooth visuals and stunning graphics capabilities. RAM: Up to 16GB LPDDR5X RAM (7,500MHz) - Experience lightning-fast responsiveness and seamless multitasking with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM running at a blazing 7,500MHz. Storage: Up to 1TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD (Expandable) - The Legion Go offers ample storage space with configurations reaching up to 1TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD. Additionally, a microSD card slot allows for further storage expansion up to 2TB, ensuring you have enough space for your favorite games. Battery: Dual-Cell 49.2Wh Battery with Fast Charging - Stay in the game longer with the Legion Go's dual-cell 49.2Wh battery. Fast-charging capabilities ensure you can quickly power up between gaming sessions. A Feast for the Eyes: The Legion Go's Display The Legion Go boasts a vibrant and immersive display, perfect for showcasing stunning visuals: 8.8-inch QHD+ LCD Touchscreen: Immerse yourself in the action with a crystal-clear 8.8-inch QHD+ LCD touchscreen. High Refresh Rate (Up to 144Hz): Enjoy smooth and tear-free gameplay with a refresh rate reaching up to a remarkable 144Hz. Keeping Cool Under Pressure: The Legion Go's Thermal Management Intense gaming sessions can generate heat. Lenovo has addressed this with a sophisticated thermal management system: Liquid Crystal Polymer 79-Blade Fan: The Legion Go utilizes a liquid crystal polymer 79-blade fan to effectively dissipate heat, ensuring optimal performance during extended gaming sessions. Designed for Gamers: Features and Connectivity Options The Lenovo Legion Go is meticulously crafted with gamers in mind, offering a comprehensive set of features and connectivity options: Comprehensive Connectivity: The Legion Go features a variety of connectivity options to enhance your gaming experience. These include: USB-Type C ports with USB 4.0 support DisplayPort 1.4 Power Delivery 3.0 MicroSD Card Slot 3.5mm Audio Jack Wi-Fi 6E Bluetooth 5.2 Immersive Audio: Two 2W speakers and a dual-array microphone deliver crisp audio for both gameplay and communication. Frequently Asked Questions: Q: When is the official launch date for the Lenovo Legion Go in India? A: The official launch date for the Lenovo Legion Go in India is set for June 27th, 2024. Q: What is the expected price of the Lenovo Legion Go in India? A: While the global launch price was EUR 799 (roughly Rs 71,600), industry experts anticipate a more competitive price tag for the Indian market. The Legion Go is expected to start under Rs 60,000. Q: What are the key specifications of the Lenovo Legion Go? A: The key specifications of the Lenovo Legion Go include: Windows 11 Home operating system AMD Ryzen Z1 series processor Up to 16GB LPDDR5X RAM (7,500MHz) Up to 1TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD (Expandable) Dual-Cell 49.2Wh battery with fast charging 8.8-inch QHD+ LCD touchscreen with up to 144Hz refresh rate Detachable Legion TrueStrike controllers

[fanthatracks]

Costuming groups are hitting events and conventions around the UK and here on Fantha Tracks we will be letting you know where and when to find them. We continue with the Rebel Legion UK, and their public UK events for Friday 2th - Monday 27th May 2024*. Friday 24th May ECHC Fundraising, Edinburgh Waverley Station MCM London, Excel Centre Saturday 25th May MCM London, Excel Centre Sunday 26th May Motorbike Meet. Erskine Veterans Village MCM London, Excel Centre Monday 27th May Falcon Funday, Pembroke Dock Want to join the Rebellion? https://www.rebellegion.co.uk/join-us/ Want us at your event? https://www.rebellegion.co.uk/book-us/ *Be aware, all events are subject to change and/or cancellation so check with the relevant venues. [amazon box="B0D18PNXNL"]