#Bleed out

[tmglineaday]

I'm doing this for revenge

[jennying-my-thebes]

" haven't checked a mirror in years

don't need to know the bad news "

[black-arcana]

Sharon den Adel 📸© SetVexy

[thetrial]

Bleed out at Rialto Theatre, 31/01/2024

[doctorskelegoats]

This song (if not the entire album Bleed Out) is very Nav coded: We worship nothing in the foxholes, Thanks to DeviantArt's Merwild for the art and @karmicbias for the truly excellent idea.

[kindapunkyrocky]

why doesn't anybody who likes the mountain goats post about bleed out.... honestly my fave tmg album and it's ridiculously underrated

[emohorseboy]

‘I’M DOING THIS FOR REVENGE’ I shout to myself as I try to eat a proper meal

[defnotcatgrass]

please. understand me

[sunshineonashelf]

[tboykrillin]

[ID: The inside cover of the cassette for Bleed Out by the Mountain Goats, which has white text over a grainy picture of a building. Big blue words at the top read "Out in the Streets". Body text reads:

"the mood was unstable so we found a place in the woods. On safer days, we're almost always at the clubhouse, but these were weird times, so it was good to gather and break bread. Everybody seemed to have ducked the radar during the long raids: Rochester Pete with his whitewalls and his mutton chops, Money Matt immaculate as usual, the Harleysville kid somehow looking even better than he otherwise does, and me, blinking my eyes against the daylight. A little dirty. Something raw inside me, something brittle that didn't want to break.

Alicia the Architect pulled up in her pickup with a dog riding shotgun and an arsenal of inconspicuously housed weapons in the bed. In those cardboard-and-canvas cases lay the story of our week ahead: big scores, wild times. Right behind her was the fixer, the one they call Young Shalini, fresh talent from the mid-south, sharp as tacks, no arrests and no convictions. They say it takes a lifetime to learn how to read a rifle sight, but Young Shalini does not miss.

I'd put together the plans for the caper quickly, over the course of a month in December. I used to work this fast all the time, back in the early days; muscle memory brought it all back to me now. I studied the soldiers who'd gone before me, and I memorized their moves. We spent about half a day at the range, sizing up targets, and then we took our work out into the field: six of us, stir-crazy, starved for action, finally free to show some aces to a world that had been dealing us hard hand after hard hand for almost a year; and most noir tales like these are fantasy, but for four friends who in normal times get to play music together practically every month and who'd been forced into hiding by the circumstances of the Year of Our Lord 2020, this was the real thing. Late meals shared around a common table. Tales from solitary to share. Stacking our chips in secret, rolling dice until dawn. A few blazing muzzles in the wintry night. Made ready by circumstances for whatever came next, but not yet ready to bleed out." End ID]

[formyths]

got to do a poster for the mountain goats' initial bleed out tour in the US - i believe you can still get leftover copies on their merch store. was very excited to channel my love of gangster films into this

site / prints / newsletter / other links

[thatcupofdirt]

commission for @nicholalia 💥🏙️

like what you see? please, dear g-d, commission me here

[sengardet]

Terra's Target #4 The Dictator

A thirst for blood turns quite literal in a strange betrayal of medical trust.

Terra Unigwe was on a mission to take out a ruthless, dictatorial queen who had well-connected political opponents. Another assassin had already failed to poison the queen, so Terra had to swoop in.

Disguising herself as a doctor, having dispatched the real one, Terra infiltrated the queen's palace. She had studied medicine extensively for both harm and healing, so she was especially suited for the task. As she walked through the lavish halls, her mind raced with the anxiety of being dead if found out.

Finally, the moment arrived. Terra was escorted into the queen's private chambers, where the monarch lay on a luxurious bed, surrounded by opulent furnishings. The queen, pain in her eyes, looked to Terra for healing.

"You're not my usual doctor," the queen remarked, her voice cold and demanding.

Terra bowed her head respectfully. "Your Majesty, your regular physician is ill. The royal guard has received her letter of recommendation. As her mentor and sister, I am here to ensure your well-being."

The queen nodded, wanting anything to alleviate her breathlessness, and fatigue. She allowed Terra to approach.

Terra picked up the ultrasound wand and gel from the tray, her slender fingers gripping the cool plastic. She kept her expression neutral, despite the adrenaline starting to buzz through her veins. This was the moment she had been waiting for.

"I'm ready to begin the exam, Your Majesty, if you'll allow me," Terra said calmly, meeting the queen's piercing gaze.

The regal woman held up a hand, motioning to the guards stationed at the door. "Leave us." The armored men bowed and exited without a word, pulling the heavy doors shut behind them with a thud. Terra was now alone with her target. She took a slow breath to steady herself.

The queen reached up and undid the laces at the front of her gown with deliberate motions. Terra watched, transfixed, as inch after inch of smooth, pale skin was revealed, Her body freed from the confines of silk and lace. Dusky pink nipples stood out in the cool air.

Terra stepped closer, gel at the ready. "With your permission, my queen."

At the monarch's nod, Terra squeezed a generous amount of the slick substance onto porcelain skin that pinkened slightly where she rubbed the gel in. Setting the bottle aside, she switched on the ultrasound machine.

Queen Delora sat still on the side of her bed; her regal gown bunched around her waist. She kept her eyes fixed on the stone ceiling as Doctor Terra ran the ultrasound wand over her chest, the cold gel making her shiver. Terra looked at the monitor, and the image was clear, a dark halo surrounded Delora’s heart.

"I'm afraid there is significant fluid accumulation around your heart, my Queen," Terra said softly, as she studied the shadowy images on the screen.

"To prevent further complications, I must drain it immediately." Even so much as a squeal and the guards will come rushing in. Terra had to be patient and had to be willing to leave this room with a successful recovery and a failed hit if need be.

Delora swallowed hard and gave a curt nod. "Do what you must, Doctor."

Terra loomed over her, the contrast stark - ebony skin against ivory, crisp white coat over exposed royal flesh. "Please try to relax and breathe normally, your Highness. You may feel some pressure."

Delora inhaled deeply as Terra positioned the long needle above her heart’s apex, then slid it a little further to the left. Delora's muscles tensed. At the first sharp sting, her eyes snapped shut, fingers curling into fists at her sides.

Terra carefully guided the needle into the pericardial space, eyes flicking between the ultrasound and her target. Clear liquid with a sunny tint began to flow into the syringe. Despite her initial purpose, concern filled her mind as she pushed the needle deeper into Delora’s chest.

"You're doing wonderfully, my Queen," Terra assured her. "It will be over soon.” She assured the queen as she drew out the slightly yellow fluid. Delora focused intently on the rhythm of her own measured breaths, trying to remain calm and still despite her racing pulse.

As the syringe slowly filled, Delora's heart tapped urgently against the needle's shaft. The delicate yet vital organ pumped hard and fast, straining to circulate blood to the rest of her desperate body as some of the smothering pressure around it was alleviated.

Terra's dark eyes flicked up to study Delora's face – relaxed, vulnerable, trust strengthened by the rush of relief. platinum blonde hair flowing over her shoulders, rosebud lips parted as she took long breaths. It took all of Terra’s efforts not to harm the woman’s delicate heart as the vigorous thing pushed the needle around in her hand. A Would she even notice?  

"Just a bit more..." Terra murmured soothingly. a bold thought crossing her mind. This was her chance…

As she stood there feeling the woman's heart forcefully pushing the needle tip, Terra pulled back slightly, angling it just behind the apex, toward center of the pumping mass, then pushed the needle through the soft meat of the right ventricle and deeper into the left.

Bright crimson flooded the syringe as Delora's own heart pumped it full of blood. The woman didn't even flinch, her icy blue eyes fixed blankly on the ceiling, unaware of the assassin's handiwork. Terra watched, captivated, as the woman's life force flowed into her hand. However, she had to act fast, to stop Delora from seeing her blood and alerting the guard.

Terra's slim fingers clamped over Delora's mouth, muffling her scream. With a swift motion, the assassin straddled the blonde dictator, pinning her writhing body to the bed. Delora's wide blue eyes stared up in shock and dawning horror.

As Terra removed the blood-filled syringe, spurts of hot blood jetted from the hollow metal tube, spraying across Terra's bare ebony chest in crimson streaks. The warm, sticky fluid oozed down between Terra's breasts, leaving glistening trails on her smooth skin.

Delora's blue eyes went wide with shock and betrayal. Her heart pounded frantically, each frenzied beat pumping out more of her vital essence in thick, pulsing gushes. It was a pathetic sight, once a fearsome queen, now a squirming, pale little woman whose heart squeezed out little torrents of her panicking life onto her assailant.

There was a sense of excitement in the assassin’s eyes as she looked down at the pathetic sight. Terra pressed her finger over the needle protruding from Delora's chest, stemming the crimson flow. Her chest billowed beneath Terra’s hand; her life suspended by a playful little brown finger. her icy blue eyes pleaded silently with the woman who held her life in balance.

“Poor little thing, you make it hard not to feel for you…” Terra said, watching Delora’s eyes soften. “But you also made it easy for someone to hate you” Terra continued, talking of her client. The pathetic squirming continued soon after.

Leaning down, Terra removed her finger from the top and wrapped her full lips around the base of the needle. Delora's eyes flew wide with shock and dawning horror, a strained muffled yell escaping her throat as Terra began to drink.

The taste was coppery on Terra’s tongue, but as the hot vital fluid flooded down her throat, an overwhelming desire for more filled her mind. Delora's eyes rolled back as Terra gulped the blood greedily from her heart. The stuck organ spasmed hard and erratically, jerking the needle and filling her cheeks with each satisfying beat.

Delora's heart seized and fluttered frantically against the disruption of the delicate balances of pressure that allow it to beat, the muscle straining in a futile attempt to keep pumping for Delora’s increasingly demanding body.

As Terra hummed in satisfaction, Delora whimpered; blue eyes wide with horror, yet she could do nothing but groan and squirm as Terra drank her beating heart.

Terra lifted her head, Delora's blood staining her full lips. She laughed cruelly. "Control yourself, I’m not even full yet!"

Blackness crept into the edges of Delora's vision as her struggles grew feeble, strength leeching away with each greedy pull on the needle in her heart. With a final shuddering sigh, Delora's body went limp, heart surrendering its last precious drops to Terra's thirsting mouth with periodic contractions.

Terras felt it a shame she had to leave. A part of her enjoyed the moment so much that she would love to restore this pitiful life for another feast.

[tmglineaday]

But the strings will keen, and the horns will cry, when it's just me against the sky

[secondimpact]

It's time for a training montage

[themountaingoatstruisms]

I WILL GO DOWN PUNCHING, BUT I WILL GO DOWN