#Cloven Hoof Brewing

[metalmessage]

BLOOD PYTHON

BLOOD PYTHON • Profoundly spirited incantations

𖤐 With a hypnotic doomy edge, abyssic sworn to real Steel!

Band: BLOOD PYTHON Title: Thunder City Base: Oslo • Norway Style: Occult Heavy Metal Genre: Occult Rock, Traditional Heavy Metal, NWOBHM FFO: Angel Witch, Heavy Load, Mercyful Fate Type: Full-length Format: Digital Label: Independent Release: Sept. 15, 2023

Bulletpoints: 🔘 Second album from the fascinating Scandinavian phenomenon 🔘 Occult & traditional Heavy Metal with a clear 80’s vibe 🔘 Catchy, with depth, soulful atmosphere & occasional experimentation BLOOD PYTHON @ SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/2ZwyjxGoF6AH2PML6CIjf2?si=7wWdf9ZpR5q7npMRKNpwgg&nd=1

OCCULT HEAVY METAL from the eerie forests of Eastern Norway – BLOOD PYTHON rise from the graves of witchcraft, 80’s cassettes and shattered dreams.

Placed upon the sacrificial altar is the tough but brooding new album „Thunder City“, that is testament to BLOOD PYTHON’s struggle through world-spanning plague and the challenges of semi-lo-fi basement music production.

TRACKS:

Witch’s Brew 04:41

Omens 04:12

The Wolves Ain’t Far Behind 04:36

Conqueror 04:19

Empire 04:37

Swamp Sacrifice 07:14

Lord Of Night 03:51

The Gods That Fell To Earth 10:02

total 42:12

Listen on Bandcamp: https://bloodpython.bandcamp.com/ With the first album „Acheron“ laying the foundation and catching the attention of underground Metal bums of Oslo, the hard-hitting, catchy and charismatic music of „Thunder City“, the new album of BLOOD PYTHON seeks to reach the next level.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/e0lGre-bsCc?si=eXYg1Nxb5q7x0CpG [ Acheron • Album 2022 ] DISCOGRAPHY: 2022 • Acheron • Full-length 2023 • Thunder City • Full-length 🕷 Get prepared for strongest late 70s/early 80s vibes, wonderful obscure and sacral atmospheres & deepest artistic dedication! 🦇

🛒 https://bloodpython.bigcartel.com/ 🌐 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙤 & 𝙋𝙍 Action: 𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗔𝗚𝗘 ᴳᴸᴼᴮᴬᴸ • 𝓔𝓼𝓽. 2001 https://www.metalmessage.de/PR_BLOOD_PYTHON_en.php

MEDIA FEEDBACK: 90 / 100 ➤ „… the musicianship is endearingly raw, with almost whispered cleans that tend toward melodic overlays, gritty guitar work and occasional horror-score keyboards … in the emphasis on straightforward catchiness, one can even detect a hint of post-Ghost appeal style … the songwriting have a niche Metal charm that is hard to resist …“ (The Metal Archives)

4 / 5 ➤ „This one caught me by surprise … very raw and unadulterated ore of classic Heavy Metal … definitely has some DNA from protean stuff like Mercyful fate or even Venom … theatrical vibe, like something from Stormwitch or Cloven Hoof … rough, strained voice—like if Quorthon was a bit better … this is a band to check out …“ (The Metal Crypt)

8 / 10 ➤ „… a real talent who deserves your attention … peculiar and yet utterly compelling in its macabre wonder … pure, lethal and at times foreboding Heavy Metal summed up by the majestic ‘Swamp Sacrifice’, which boasts the fluidity and spectral nature of Ghost … a dimension of shadows and spectre worth visiting …“ (Metal Forces)

8 / 10 ➤ „BLOOD PYTHON’s second album will again divide listeners into delighted traditionalists and believers in modernity. ‚Thunder City‘ has charm and warmth because it doesn’t claim perfection, but creates metal from the gut and the heart.“ (Soundmagnet)

7,5 / 10 ➤ „… simple but effective riffs and catchy solos … especially atmospheric, discreet keyboards in the background, which provide a gloomy atmosphere … epic choirs and acoustic guitars … theatrical vocals, which are often performed in multiple voices, mostly in a medium pitch and often a bit rough … cool doom riffs and some New Wave Of British Heavy Metal-like twinleads … production sounds nice old analog, very appropriate to the gloomy mood … oddball old school Metal album … like it well! (Crossfire Webzine)

➤ „… this new album just takes things to the next level – both in terms of music and lyrics … so we are dealing with a very talented one-man band – and one of the kind I would definitely recommend …“ (Rancor Metalzine)

➤ „The songs exude a charm that surrounds the dark aura … can satisfy many hearts … a very own, rich, powerful Heavy Metal sound … a really interesting Heavy Metal band for those who like traditional sounds … spicy to wholly savory to fullest deliciousness …“ (Noisewriter)

➤ „This is a creator that knows his way around early 80’s traditional Heavy Metal for sure … the somewhat closed in mix that has been applied also gives the material the proper sound aesthetics of the time, comparable to the kind of albums released by cult labels such as Mausoleum Records and Black Dragon Records back in the day … to seek out by those who love and treasure early 80’s traditional Heavy Metal and who enjoy this specific style as well as the sound aesthetics you generally found among the underground metal bands some 40 years ago.“ (The Viking In The Wilderness)

➤ „… excellent grasp of traditional-Metal form and function … has the potential to be a Norwegian classic … an album that scrapes close to the edge of excellence and should definitely make a name for itself among Norwegian fans of 80s narrative Metal …“ (Metallurgi)

➤ „… an impressive work … the dark mysticism and 80s vibes make it a must for fans of Occult Rock and traditional Heavy Metal …“ (AM:plified Mag)

➤ „… what BLOOD PYTHON really does is create atmosphere! The album is imbued with a darkness, an unpolished underground aura … carries the gloom/horror heritage well, tidy, no frills … should be given a chance …“ (Forgotten Scroll) etc. [ Logo: Blood Python ] [ Pic: Johnny Normann Berg ] [ Artwork: Erik Alm ]

[themetalwanderlust]

Show Review: Into The Darkness Fest - Westside Bowl, Youngstown, Ohio - July 29-30, 2022

Into The Darkness Fest happened two weeks ago. Vuk is still recovering.

[gentlemancrow]

Even though In Scientia, Magicae is on hiatus right now, and likely will be for another week after this >> I thought I would honor my usual update date with a little SNEAK PEEK of what I have brewing for chapter 10!  (Hint it’s a dream sequence hehe) Symbolic dream sequences are one of my favorite tropes and favorite things to write so I thought I’d post this one up as a treat!  Also to promo the fic a little since in lieu of an actual update :T. SO!  Already read the fic?  AWESOME!  I LOVE YOU <3  I am dragon hoarding all of my readers in a comfy little basket like kittens I will dote on you forever.

New to it or curious?  Now’s a great time to catch up!  If you like fantasy AUs (And also Beauty and the Beast inspired ones!), vaguely steampunky worldbuilding (Which will factor in a LOT more in the coming chapters!), Monster!Jon, slow burn romance, and a weird treatise on the nature of magic vs. science in a fairy tale inspired setting!  Perhaps In Scientia, Magicae is for you!

Clicky here to head on over to AO3!

SMOL Sneak preview of Chapter 10 incoming!

That night, Martin dreamed again.

He fell.  He fell, freewheeling, once more through the boundless space that had not let him go just yet.  He fell in absentia of fear, as before, serene in the intoxicating cocoon of ozone and stardust.  He fell until the atmosphere reached up and gripped him in warm fingers of wind that tugged and pulled to anchor him back to the solid earth waiting below.  The lapis lazuli sky streamed around his awareness filled with hollow notes of longing that sounded long enough to hear the chorus once and only once, before it died a soft, muffled death atop the leafy crowns of a canopy of cobalt trees as he passed through them as naught but mist.  An echo of a voice without the voice.  Alighting on the flooded forest ground, barefoot, the mirror surface of the water rung like percussed crystal and rippled in pulsing silver circles outward where his toes touched down featherlight and afloat on the surface.  Martin watched the swells, transfixed, as they scurried away in thinly bright radials and promptly shattered into a kaleidoscope of fractured, resplendent carnage as they collided with another set.

Martin gasped, followed them to the four cloven-hoofed black legs from which they had originated, and looked up, stunned, into a pair of eyes fashioned from bleeding droplets of the aurora borealis.  Deep set into the featureless shadow of a stag woven through the pockmarked white birch, they left a dizzying afterburnt trail as it tossed its great antlered head, pawed the reflecting pool, and regarded him in noble silence.  Steaming, starlit mist coiled from the nostrils as its heavy breath reverberated the atmosphere from quivering flanks, invisible muscles tensing, waiting.  Martin’s heart skipped a beat and his mouth opened to call its name, but it fled from his mind and his tongue the moment they tried to form the sound and shape of it.  He frowned and put cold fingers to his lips.  He knew it.  It was just there, somewhere in the dark periphery of the twilit space between asleep and awake, but he could not dredge up even a filament of its creation to speak it into existence.

The stag shied back with a snort like the ringing of a bell, and bowed its head as if in silent apology.  Martin reached out his hand, skin glowing lunar white, and his voice a breathless whisper in his own ears.

“Wait…”

The moment he pierced the sacred grove with the jagged edges of his human tongue, the stag startled and reared as if struck through the throat by a hunter’s shot.  The aurora eyes closed, leaving one last streak of pernicious jade green across Martin’s retinas and scoring out the shadow as it turned and bounded, fleet-footed and silent, into the woods.

“Wait-!” Martin called again, tears springing to his dream eyes, “Don’t go!”

Sudden panic rose in his gut, and the forest peeled open around him.  He was running.  There was no sign of the stag other than the painfully faint ripples in the liquid mercury floor that grew dimmer and further away no matter how hard he forced his legs to move.  He wove effortlessly around the wiry trunks of the trees, a brightly shining will-o’-the-wisp leading himself to ruin as he chased the trail of the stag to its extinction.  The forest ended when the fragments of light did, and Martin found himself suddenly on the precipice of a towering cliff overlooking a stormy sea.  The saline spray crashed into his face as lightning struck soundlessly on the horizon of the churning waters that roiled and tossed the light of a thousand stars and a thousand galaxies stretching in an infinity of purple, green, and blue fires.

Unknowable, unfathomable in their boundlessness and their multitudes, Martin could do nothing but watch them in their cosmic ballet while his body forgot to breathe.  Mote by mote, atom by atom, the gravity of the sea picked him apart and sucked the dusty pieces to its unseen singularity somewhere in the trenches beneath.  He lifted his trembling hands up, and watched as his fingertips faded and turned to a glittering mist of stardust before his very eyes.  They wafted out like smoke over the sea, unspooling him, dragging him with deliberate purpose into whatever it was that lurked beneath.  The same voice whispered directly into his ear.

“It is always watching…”

[bewitchingbooktours]

Annihilation by Kaylin McFarren  #UrbanFantasy #Giveaway

Annihilation

Gehenna 

Book 2

Kaylin McFarren 

Genre: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

ISBN: 9781685640569

ASIN:  B09KMNBNQG

Publisher‏: ‎ Creative Edge Publishing LLC 

Publication date: ‎ February 3, 2022

Number of pages: 493

Word Count: 143,000

Cover Artist: Amanda Tomo Yoshida

Tagline: You can’t escape from what you are

Book Description:

With the death of Lucifer, Queen Lucinda assumes control of Hell, ordering her soldiers to prepare for a doomsday war with Heaven. Craving eternal power, she devours the souls of gifted demonic beings, acquiring their abilities to destroy her perceived political enemies.

Meanwhile, the Black Crows meet with the Knights of Darkness in their hidden headquarters, plotting against Lucinda in their efforts to maintain peace and the balance of power. Consumed by hatred over Crighton Daemonium's unrequited love, Lucinda is unaware of the secret conspiracy brewing, or that Lucifer's spirit has returned to Hell inside the body of a soul–trapped demon.

Reclaiming his throne, Lucifer punishes his daughter for her act of treason. However, his obsession with Samara, Crighton's beautiful daughter, leaves him incapable of controlling his stolen body. After forcing her into submission, he names Samara the new Queen of Hell yet continues his authoritarian rule. When an insurgency breaks out on Earth, he becomes distracted long enough for her to be kidnapped by Nexus rebel forces, believing her to be the prophesied savior of their planet.

Is Samara the Phoenix, destined to destroy Lucifer? Or is she his soulmate and the true Queen of Hell?

Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/0Wxvtzl3UHs

Amazon

Reviews

"Annihilation, the sequel to Kaylin McFarren's award-winning Soul Seeker, is a decidedly Shakespearean thriller. Amidst the supernatural world, the novel is essentially a classic story about love, betrayal and power between and among royal families. McFarren's blatantly "human" portrayal of Samara Daemonium's youthful obsessions set her up to be both victim, royal and a star in a wholly compelling coming-of-age story. To get this most out of Annihilation, readers are highly encouraged to read Soul Seeker first." -- Bella G. Wright, BestThrillers.com

 "Get ready for the steaming, twisted plot of Kaylin McFarren's Book 2 in the Gehenna series - Annihilation—where nothing is as it seems, and enemies are closer than anyone may think. Recommended!" - Chanticleer Reviews

"Simply couldn't put this book down, even when every hair on my neck was raised. It's that good!" -- Angela Fox, Publisher, Clackamas Review/Oregon City News

"This story is dark and decadent, and fans of such fare should find it largely entertaining." -- Blue Ink Reviews

 "Hell has a new ruler, Queen Lucinda. A thrilling venture into the depths of Hell offers unrelenting intrigue and fearsome characters, including timeless stories of love, friendship, sacrifice, and identity... plot twisting toward an epic battle." - RECOMMENDED, The US Review of Books

"Annihilation is truly absorbing, shocking at times, and virtually impossible to put down!" - Theodocia McLean, Book Marketing Global Network

"Left on a cliffhanger and ready for the next book in this fiery series, Annihilation is an intense, dramatic power struggle and like a jigsaw puzzle, lots of different pieces hide the bigger picture until the end. We are happy to add this book to the Indie Books We Love section of the LoveReading website." - Charlotte Walker, Love Reading

Excerpt: Chapter One - Annihilation by Kaylin McFarren

Two regiments of ram-horned, cloven-hoofed demons marched through the blazing corridors of Hell in preparation for the Red War against Heaven. Their stomping feet and thumping spears shook dust loose in the solid rock tunnels leading to twenty massive cellblocks, each identified by their cardinal direction: north, south, east, and west. Confined in one of the cells on the lowest level was Hecate, the Woodland Goddess and Queen Lucinda's loyal friend. Within a month of assuming control of Hell, word had reached her that Lucinda's new regime was responsible for numerous beheadings, boiling demons to death, and implementing monstrous atrocities against woodland creatures and outspoken opponents within her own council.

Believing their friendship would make a difference, Hecate arranged a meeting with Lucinda two weeks earlier and pleaded with her to abstain from cruel acts against mankind. "Think of your legacy...the positive impact you could make." The briskness she put into her voice was belied by the unshed tears glistening in her eyes. She shifted her position in the high-back chair and drew a deep breath. "Lucifer was brutal throughout his rein...up until the day he died. You've always made brilliant choices, Samara. I know that better than anyone. Lucifer made the worst decision of his life by sending Crighton to England, and only the Sovereign Sector is responsible for the consequences that followed. I'm just grateful that Lucifer didn't survive after that nasty battle with his brother, Castiel. If he had, who knows what would have happened?"

The Queen rested her chin on her fisted hands. "Indeed. But you need to remember that my name is now Lucinda. I changed it after meeting with the Knights of Darkness and taking control of Hell."

"Yes, of course. I'll never forget the day before that happened. I was in the old arena when Crighton's mother stabbed your father repeatedly," Hecate said somberly. "I understand she was welcomed into Heaven along with her soulmate, though I don't understand why..." She let her voice trail off, shaking her head. "I guess we should thank them for your justly-deserved position."

"I already have...thanked Crighton, I mean. I offered him a more substantial token of my gratitude as well, but he turned it down."

"Politely, I hope?"

"I was afraid to sit on the throne," she admitted. "That's why I waited so long to make changes. Tyrus helped Crighton escape from Hell, and Lilith played a large part in saving Ariel. But I was responsible for saving them all by agreeing to take my father's place."

"True enough, Lucinda." Hecate felt her eyes burn once more. She drew another deep breath before adding, "I'm sure your generosity will never be forgotten and will be celebrated for years to come."

"Since I managed to keep them alive, I suppose it's time for the three of us to assume our rightful responsibilities."

"Three of us?"

"That's right. Crighton, Tyrus and myself. We have a lot of unfinished business to resolve."

"Of course, Your Majesty." Hecate smiled at her, believing she was making progress.

"But first," Lucinda said, "I'd like to discuss your view on the way Tyrus' allies are likely to respond to our meeting. Especially with them opposing me at every turn. Then I'd like your personal impression on how the loyalists in my council will interpret your views on diplomacy in the woodlands. After that, there are a couple of treasury issues I promised to investigate. It's past time that my advisors and I established a tax structure and common currency. And now that we have the Imperial chambers remodeled and relaxed rules in place regarding horns, tails, and bat wings, we can start thinking about other things like enforcing appropriate punishment where it's due."

"Since you brought it up, don't you think it's a bit extreme...the way punishment is being handled? I thought you wanted to be a just ruler...the exact opposite of your father. If that's true, then why are you taking extreme measures with outcasts, human souls, and defenseless creatures? They would sing your praises if you allowed them to– "

"–run rampant and refuse to obey my laws?" Lucinda growled. She stood up with her eyes blazing red hot and her thin lips frowning. "So, that's why you're here. Not to support me but to oppose me like the rest of the ingrates in my kingdom. Leave and never come back here again! Your deception will not be forgiven or forgotten. Is that understood? I want you out of here...NOW!!" she screamed.

About the Author:

Kaylin McFarren has received more than 60 national literary awards, in addition to a prestigious RWA Golden Heart Award nomination for FLAHERTY'S CROSSING - a book she and her oldest daughter, New York Times/USA Today best-selling author Kristina McMorris, co-wrote in 2008. Prior to embarking on her writing journey and developing the popular THREADS psychological thriller series, she poured her passion for creativity into her work as the director of a fine art gallery in the Pearl District in Portland, Oregon; she also served as a governor-appointed member of the Oregon Arts Commission.

Her award-winning time-travel adventure, HIGH FLYING, asks challenging questions that will linger long after the final twists are revealed. Jumping to the supernatural-horror genre, Kaylin's clever GEHENNA series leads readers into the pit of Hell, through the mechanisms of secret societies, and across the Earth’s crust, ever raising the stakes for her leading duo—a wicked demon and guardian angel presented with shocking revelations.

With each story she writes, this author delivers unexpected twists and turns and keeps her readers on the edge of their seats, leaving them guessing and thoroughly entertained. When she's not traveling or spoiling her two pups and three grandsons, Kaylin enjoys giving back to her community through participation and support of various charitable, medical and educational organizations in the Pacific Northwest, and divides her time between her homes in Portland, Oregon and San Diego, California.

FUN TIDBITS

Kaylin is proud of the fact that her great aunt Bessie B. Cordell, an evangelistic missionary during WWII, was instrumental in opening an orphanage in Tientsin, China and also wrote two published novels, Precious Pearl and Blossoms of the Flowery Kingdom, documenting her dangerous, harrowing experiences.

She keeps a glass of wine close by while writing love scenes, Kleenex on her desk while writing heart breakers, and has been known to empty a box of chocolates when she's completely stumped.

A consummate "pantser" and perfectionist, she writes and edits as she goes, and uses photographs of models and actors from tabloid magazines to visualize her characters.

She loves her husband of 48 years dearly. However, if Josh Holloway, Hugh Jackman or Ian Somerhalder came knockin', well... their marriage just might be put to the test.

https://twitter.com/4kaylin

https://kaylinmcfarren.blog/  

http://www.kaylinmcfarren.com/

http://www.creativeedgepublishing.com/

https://www.facebook.com/kaylin.mcfarren

https://www.instagram.com/4kaylinmcfarren/

https://www.amazon.com/Kaylin-McFarren/e/B003BCPKE0/ 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3184417.Kaylin_McFarren

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bonus Giveaway

Enter to win this Phoenix necklace (which refers to the Phoenix in the story), here are the simple rules:

Order a copy of ANNIHILATION by Kaylin McFarren on Amazon.com (ebook or paperback) then add your name to this Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/kaylin.mcfarren/posts/10223607520167331 

Kaylin will be drawing a winning name on March 3rd 

[violettesiren]

Shrive me, father,

Shrive my soul

Ere I am laid

In the deep black hole.

Curuck, curoo, curuck, curoo

How high we flew, how fast we flew

Over the steeple, over the roof,

Fair young witch and cloven hoof,

Snout and claw and shaggy hide,

Faggots are horses when witches ride

Down the wind in screaming flight—

But who will be his bride tonight?

Ave, Sathanas, ora pro nobis!

Light three tapers

At my head,

Give me the oil

And the holy bread.

Curuck, curoo, curuck, curoo

The bog fires glimmered green and blue

While we greased the pot with gallows’ sweat

Wiped from the thing a-dangling yet

Dead on the creaking gibbets’ shank—

The dark brew bubbled and boiled and sank

Spattering warm blood left and right—

But who will be his bride tonight?

Ave, Sathanas, ora pro nobis!

Give me the cross

That I may kiss

The one who died

To give me bliss.

Curuck, curoo, curuck, curoo

Thrice the sable cockerel crew;

Chant your masses, demon choir,

Prepare the couch and the crown of fire!

Shriek, O fiends and devils, shout,

Turn the holy cross about!

Sharper his kiss than Death’s own bite

Though I shall be his bride tonight!

Ave, Sathanas, ora pro nobis.

A Witch Passes by Muriel Cameron Bodkin

[howler518]

Kratos x Faye: The Stranger

The forest was calm and dim. Errant rays of sunlight shot through the heavy cover branches. A hunter moved silently through the thick shadows. The morning frost had made the foliage stiff under her boots, and small puffs of fog rose from her nostrils.

Faye inhaled deeply, sampling the air on her tongue. She could almost taste the stag. There was a bitter musk, nearly undetectable among the mix of scents in the forest. Faye followed the currents of wind where she could catch the scent of her prey. She followed the trail the cloven tracks made in the spongey earth.

Faye crouched, tracing her fingertips along the edges of the hoof-marks. The imprint was nearly as large as her spread palm. A grin quirked on her lips. It would be a large catch today. A creature that size could feed her for months with good preserving. She itched at the anticipation of a new pair of boots, knowing that her current pair wouldn't last much longer. But first, she had to catch the elusive creature.

Wildlife had grown more and more scarce since the Desolation. Each season proved harder to provide enough resources to last through the long cold months. She hovered her hand over the track and focused her senses. Shutting out the forest around her, silencing her mind of the chatter of birds and the babbling streams, Faye could catch the faintest warmth emanating from the earth. She had grown closer to her goal.

Faye bounded through the forest she had come to know these past winters. So many had winters had passed since her kin had fled Midgard, leaving her to guard the realm alone. Had it been eighty, gods, ninety winters? The exact number escaped Faye's mind.

By now, she knew every rock and every stream. She knew the varieties of every shrub, and herb, and flower. She even knew the names of the trees by heart. The ones forgotten by time and by tongues, ones she could only hear whispered among the branches. They called to Faye now, but in her singular focus, she too had shut them out of her mind.

A stranger walks here, they warned her. But she could not hear their gentle words.

Faye found the stag drinking from a stream, unconscious of her presence as she crouched a couple yards away. A gentle breeze carried the scent of the stag towards her, filling her nose with its musky scent. Strands of auburn hair tickled her cheeks and she knew that she was downwind from the creature.

Faye nocked and arrow and hooked her leather-guarded fingers around the bowstring. On a slow inhale, she reeled her arm back and drew the bow. Holding the bowstring taught, her ice-blue eyes narrowed on the stag's chest. The animal straightened, it's large dewy eyes not seeing the imposing danger. She watched the beast exhale a long puff of fog from its mouth.

A twig snapped in the distance, breaking the spell. The stag froze as it suddenly became hyper-aware of its surroundings.

Before Faye could loose her arrow, a figure burst from the foliage with a howl of rage. At first, Faye thought the beast to be a troll or perhaps a wulver. Her heart pounded in her chest, her instincts caught off guard.

The poor stag released a wail of pain as it was wrestled to the ground by the feral beast. But it was no beast, Faye realized, but a man. He had a stone grasped in his pale hands. He brought the stone down hard on the stag's skull. Blood exploded from the creature's face.

Though no beast, the man was feral. He roared as he brought the stone down again and again. The sound of bone crunching wetly under the force of impact made Faye nauseous.

She had seen reavers scavenging in the forest and old ruins, but none like this. It all happened in a matter of moments and the stag grew still under the man.

The stranger remained crouched over the animal, his chest heaving as he panted. She couldn't see much of him. He wore a makeshift cape of bear-hide and a pack was slung over his back.

Faye released a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Before she could make a swift exit, the man's eye's shifted from the animal. Piercing gold eyes met hers.

Faye's fingers slipped. Shit.

The arrow sang through the air and struck the man in the shoulder. He grunted but didn't seem to take the impact. For a moment, Faye wasn't sure if she had actually shot him.

The man regarded the arrow, grit his teeth, and snapped the shaft off in his fist. Adrenaline flooded Faye's bloodstream, her chest pounding hard with her stranger stood and faced her head-on, his face twisted in rage.

She nocked another arrow.

"Stay back," Faye warned. When she spoke, his expression only soured further. He seemed more annoyed than anything.

She stood amongst the shrubs and other foliage, the space between them feeling immensely smaller. He was a giant of a man, at least a head taller than her and broad with thick bands of muscles.

The man dropped the bloodied stone at his feet. With bloodlust burning in his gaze, he took a step forward. Faye's heart stuck to the downbeat she fired another arrow at him.

This one hit him square in the chest. Again, he didn't seem phased. He took another step, a snarl brewing on his lips.

Her eyes darted to the bloodied, crushed face of the stag to the stranger. The sirens in her mind screamed.

She fired two more arrows in quick succession.

The man dropped to a knee.

Stay down, Faye thought. Though she didn't know how he was still conscious in the first place. This was clearly no ordinary man.

The man looked down at his chest and Faye could see that his mind must have caught up with his body. The energy drained from him almost instantly as his hand gripped an arrow. He winced, saying something under his breath in a language that Faye did not recognize. It was coarse and foreign, escaping her knowledge of all the languages in the nine realms. The rage that was burning inn him before deflated and his golden eyes lulled.

The man drifted backwards as he lost consciousness. He hit the earth with a heavy thud that echoed in Faye's chest. Her heart raced, her mind churned.

Silence returned to the forest.

Suddenly, a sharp twist crawled from Faye's gut, up her spine, to her forehead. She gasped, images flooding her mind.

A young boy with auburn hair and ice-blue eyes darts through the trees. The pale, tattooed man follows him, wielding the Leviathan axe. Her axe.

The images receded like the ebb of a tide. Faye's stomach turned as she looked at the man lying in a heap next to the dead stag.

Indeed, this was no ordinary stranger.

[shantiyogalove]

Jus an independent, local studio owner owner celebrating #independenceday sampling the craft brews at an independent, local brewery after leading a class for a great group of yogis. Best #july4th yet! #shopsmall #shoplocal #smallbusiness #supportlocalbusiness #smallbusinessowner (at Cloven Hoof Brewing Co.) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ6ZBxVrz-p/?utm_medium=tumblr

[knowledgeistreasure]

Legends Say Mysterious Women Built the Megaliths of Portugal

Prehistoric Europeans told legends about powerful, mysterious females who made European stone tombs called dolmens and cromlechs. On the one hand, they were said to bestow riches and fertility on individuals, and fantastic gifts like the skills of brewing beer and farming; all they wanted in return was a little milk.

On the other hand, they were described as angry snakes guarded by bulls, cursing people, and hoarding the very gold of the sun. They were imagined as beautiful cloven-hoofed, snake- or bull-women, who guarded the dolmens and could speak with the dead, spin the rays of the sun, and even create the world...

Carbon dating shows the people of Europe began building megalithic tombs between 4,800 and 3,800 B.C., corresponding to about the beginning of the New Stone Age or Neolithic period. At first, the megaliths were menhirs, or single standing stones; then people made cromlechs, or stone circles. There are thousands of known megaliths in Iberia alone. People in Portugal were among the first to build megaliths, around 4,800 B.C.

As for the women who built them, “Folklore makes it clear that these women are about omnipotent—they have everlasting life, youth, beauty and riches, wisdom and skills, which they [taught] to people. [A] big part of these skills connects the Mouras … to the Neolithic revolution—Mouras taught people spinning, weaving, cheesemaking, brewing, and plowing, and gave sheep, pigs, and cows as gifts for people,” Lindstrom wrote....

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/1398233-legends-say-mysterious-women-built-the-megaliths-of-portugal/