#Full Truck load Shipping

[alertbrilliant4204]

Enhances Distribution Network for Multi-Location Operations

FTL services in Bangalore support businesses with multi-location operations by offering centralized, bulk shipments to various branches or warehouses. This streamlined approach ensures efficient distribution and helps companies maintain a steady supply of goods across all locations.

[prestigelogistics]

Full Truck Load Shipping is a rapid and inexpensive service. With load shipment, you may reduce transportation expenses while maintaining product quality and on-time delivery. Prestige Logistics will provide you with the greatest and most dependable shipping service, so you can count on them. Working with Prestige Logistics could help you save time and money because they offer the best services and prices.

[whyloyalty]

The Benefits of Partnering with a Full-Service Trucking Transport Company

In today’s fast-paced business environment, efficiency and reliability in logistics are paramount. One of the most effective ways to streamline your operations is by partnering with a trucking transport company that offers comprehensive services. This partnership can significantly enhance your supply chain management, ultimately driving success in your business. At Loyalty Logistics, we understand the intricacies of cross-border and domestic shipping, and we are committed to delivering excellence with every shipment. Let’s explore the myriad benefits of working with a full-service trucking transport company.

Streamlined Operations and Increased Efficiency

One of the primary advantages of collaborating with a full-service trucking transport company is the ability to streamline your logistics operations. Managing multiple carriers, each with their own schedules and regulations, can be a cumbersome task. By partnering with a single provider like Loyalty Logistics, you simplify the process, allowing for smoother communication and coordination. Our expertise in managing high-volume, specialty cargo throughout the USA, Canada, and Mexico enables us to handle your shipping needs efficiently.When you choose a full-service provider, you also gain access to a wide range of transportation options tailored to your specific requirements. Whether it’s a refrigerated truck for pharmaceuticals, a flatbed for oversized goods, or LTL (less-than-truckload) services, a dedicated trucking transport company can help you select the right solution for your cargo. This not only saves you time but also ensures that your shipments are delivered intact and on time, enhancing your overall operational efficiency.

Cost Savings Through Expert Logistics Management

Cost is always a consideration in business, and logistics can significantly impact your bottom line. By partnering with a full-service trucking transport company, you can benefit from cost savings that come from their expertise and industry knowledge. At Loyalty Logistics, we pride ourselves on our ability to challenge logistics conventions and create innovative solutions that save both time and money.Our experience in the industry allows us to identify the most cost-effective routes and methods for transporting your goods. We have successfully saved our clients hundreds of thousands of dollars by optimizing their shipping processes and reducing unnecessary expenses. Additionally, by consolidating your shipments through a single provider, you can take advantage of better rates and more favorable shipping terms, ultimately benefiting your budget.

Reliability and On-Time Delivery

In logistics, reliability is key. Delayed shipments can lead to dissatisfied customers, lost sales, and a tarnished reputation. By partnering with a full-service trucking transport company, you gain a partner committed to delivering your products on time, every time. At Loyalty Logistics, we boast a remarkable 98% on-time delivery ratio, a testament to our dedication to excellence.Our team of professionals is driven by passion and purpose. We understand the importance of timely deliveries, and we go above and beyond to ensure that every shipment is handled with care and delivered as promised. With our advanced tracking systems, you can monitor your shipments in real-time, providing you with peace of mind and the ability to keep your customers informed.

Sustainability Initiatives for a Greener Future

As the world increasingly focuses on sustainability, partnering with a full-service trucking transport company that prioritizes environmentally friendly practices can enhance your brand’s image. At Loyalty Logistics, we are committed to sustainability and have implemented unique green initiatives that not only minimize our carbon footprint but also align with the sustainability goals of our clients.By choosing a trucking transport company that values sustainability, you can make a positive impact on the environment while fulfilling your logistical needs. We offer programs such as our Loyalty Green Rewards, where we plant trees in your company’s name for every shipment you make with us. This not only contributes to reforestation efforts but also showcases your commitment to corporate social responsibility.

Personalized Customer Service and Support

When it comes to logistics, personalized customer service can make all the difference. A full-service trucking transport company like Loyalty Logistics offers dedicated support tailored to your business needs. Our team is available 24/7, ensuring that you receive the assistance you need whenever you need it. We believe in building strong relationships with our clients and are committed to providing an efficient, honest, and candid service.Whether you have questions about your shipment, need assistance with tracking, or require guidance on choosing the best transport options, our knowledgeable professionals are here to help. This level of customer support not only enhances your experience but also fosters a collaborative partnership aimed at your success.

Conclusion: The Path to Success with Loyalty Logistics

In conclusion, partnering with a full-service trucking transport company can bring substantial benefits to your business. The ability to streamline operations, achieve cost savings, ensure reliable deliveries, embrace sustainability, and receive personalized support makes this partnership invaluable. At Loyalty Logistics, we are dedicated to delivering exceptional transport solutions that meet and exceed your expectations.Your success is our success, and we are here to help you navigate the complexities of cross-border and domestic shipping. With over 10,000 loads successfully delivered and a commitment to excellence, we invite you to experience the Loyalty difference. Choose a trucking transport company that prioritizes your needs and helps you achieve your business goals. Contact us today to get a quote and discover how we can support your logistics needs effectively.

[cjdarcllogistics]

The Advantages of Full Truck Load (FTL) Shipping

In the logistics industry, Full Truck Load (FTL) shipping stands out as a preferred method for transporting goods efficiently and cost-effectively. Unlike Less Than Truck Load (LTL) shipping, where multiple shippers share a single truck, FTL involves dedicating an entire truck to a single shipment. Here’s why FTL can be a game-changer for your supply chain:

Cost Efficiency: While the upfront cost of FTL might seem higher, it often proves to be more economical in the long run. With FTL, you avoid the cost of handling multiple shipments and reduce the risk of damages and delays associated with frequent stops.

Speed and Reliability: FTL shipments travel directly from the origin to the destination without unnecessary detours. This streamlined approach means faster delivery times and fewer chances of delays, making it ideal for time-sensitive shipments.

Reduced Handling: By dedicating a truck solely to your goods, FTL minimizes the handling of your products. Less handling reduces the risk of damage and ensures that your goods arrive in better condition.

Simplified Tracking: FTL shipments are easier to track since the entire journey involves a single truck. This simplicity translates into better visibility and more accurate delivery estimates.

Customizable Solutions: FTL offers greater flexibility in terms of load configurations and specialized equipment. Whether you need temperature-controlled transport or specific loading arrangements, FTL can be tailored to meet your requirements.

In summary, Full Truck Load shipping is a strategic choice for businesses looking to optimize their logistics operations. By leveraging the benefits of FTL, you can enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and improve overall supply chain performance.

[nffica]

Choosing Between Truckload and Intermodal Freight: Which Suits Your Shipping Needs?

Navigating the complexities of freight shipping options is crucial for optimizing logistics and ensuring timely deliveries. At NFFI, we prioritize helping you understand the various shipping methods available, focusing particularly on truckload and intermodal services. By distinguishing between these two, we aim to guide you in selecting the most effective shipping strategy for your specific requirements.

Understanding the Differences: Truckload vs. Intermodal Shipping

Transit Times: Speed vs. Schedule Flexibility

Truckload shipping generally provides faster transit times compared to intermodal shipping. While intermodal might take additional days due to transfers between railroad lines, it’s worth considering for busy routes where rail transport can avoid traffic delays, potentially offsetting the extra transit time.

Flexibility in Origin and Destination Pairing

Truckload shipping offers unparalleled flexibility in terms of pick-up and delivery locations. Unlike intermodal shipping, which relies on fixed rail ramp locations, truckload services can cater to a wider range of origin-destination pairs, making it ideal for customized logistics solutions.

Scalability and Volume Handling

Intermodal shipping excels in scalability. Capable of handling the equivalent of 280 trucks at once, it is well-suited for large-scale transportation needs, where numerous shipments are moved simultaneously, providing a streamlined solution for bulk freight.

Dependability and Rigidity

While truckload shipping provides direct transit with fewer interruptions, intermodal might face challenges such as delays due to rail system issues. The rigid nature of rail transport means less flexibility in addressing mid-transit complications, potentially impacting delivery schedules.

Environmental Impact and Sustainability

Intermodal shipping is significantly more sustainable than truckload shipping. With the capacity to move a ton of freight up to 450 miles on just a gallon of fuel, and reducing road congestion and associated emissions, intermodal is an excellent choice for eco-conscious businesses aiming to reduce their carbon footprint.

Conclusion: Making the Right Choice for Your Freight Needs

Deciding between truckload and intermodal freight shipping services depends on your specific needs related to transit times, flexibility, volume, reliability, and environmental impact. At NFFI, we are dedicated to providing tailored shipping solutions that align with your logistical requirements and sustainability goals. For further assistance and to explore our freight shipping options, we invite you to contact us via our website.

[0097linersb]

Sour Candy (m)

Pairings: Mingi x Reader

Genre: Smut

Word count: 5k~

Warnings: Very very very needy Mingi, wouldn't say exactly sub!mingi but kind of sub!mingi u know, good boi´s just very desperate. consent lines are kind of blurred in this one so pls skip if it makes u uncomfortable, this was just written in like an hour with absolutely no thoughts or grammar-checking, head empty only filled with crying whiny men <3

Follow me on twitter: wooyosgfreal <3

────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──────

“What time did Yunho say he was coming back again?” You asked for about the fourth time that afternoon. 

“In like an hour or two,” Mingi answered patiently like he did all the other times you asked before. “Bro, why do you hate me?” 

“Because you keep making me play this boring game and it really fucking sucks.” 

“That´s just because you´re bad at it.” 

“You´re literally worse than me.” 

“Maybe modernity was wrong all along, maybe women really shouldn´t be allowed to have opinions.” 

“It is a fact, not an opinion. Maybe you men should still be in planes being shipped off to war and leave us alone.” 

“Fine. Do you want to play something else, princess?” 

“Let´s play Overcooked,” You squealed.  

Mingi didn´t even groan this time when you mentioned the game you and Seonghwa were obsessing over lately, simply going back to the home screen on Yunho´s Playstation and looking for the colorful icon. He knew there was no arguing with you. 

While the game was loading, Mingi handed you the main controller and stood up, fixing his shirt that had scrunched up and stretching his back, “Set everything up, I´m gonna go find some snacks.” 

You happily did as told, driving your little animated truck towards the level you had last failed at and playing with your phone to wait for your friend, at least until your vision was blocked by said friend pushing a red plastic bag in front of your face. 

“What´s that?” You asked, already reaching into the bag and picking up one of the soft candies inside. 

Mingi simply shrugged, already chewing on one of the jellies, “Dunno, found them in the kitchen. They´re pretty good though.” 

You trusted his words, popping the candy into your mouth and waiting for the flavors to kick in - and hell you wish you didn´t. 

“Oh my god this is disgusting,” Your face contorts in distaste. 

“It´s cinnamon,” Mingi stares you down, clearly not amused.  

“Yeah, with candle wax. Ew.” 

“Just swallow it and stop being a baby.” 

“I will literally kill myself.” 

He gave you another judgmental glare and sat down next to you on the couch once again, already reaching for his third candy from hell as you forced yourself to let it slide down your throat. You handed him the main remote and picked up the secondary one, coughing to see if flowing some air into your lungs would get the taste of rotten papaya out of your mouth.  

“Maybe it´s poison that Yunho left out as a trap because you keep stealing his food.” 

“Nah, it was right on top of the counter,” He waved it off, pressing play on the game. 

“My point stands.” 

“Yeah, whatever.” 

“You´re very eloquent today.” 

“You´re very annoying today.” 

“The salmon Mingi, the fucking salmon!!” 

“I´m getting it!” 

“Bro, you gotta throw it!” 

“Fuck. I know, but if I leave the fucking rice is going to burn.” 

“I´m throwing you more rice.” 

“I don´t need it.” 

“Yes, you do. Oh my god.” 

“What I do need are some clean plates.” 

“Oh, yeah. On it.” 

“Why do you like this game?” He groaned, cleaning the sweat from his forehead and reaching for another candy in the bag. “You´re making me stress eat.” 

“Doesn´t it make you feel pumped?”  

“Yeah, pumped to punch the TV.” 

“We have one more minute, we can do it if you stop being dumb.” 

“There are literally two plates on the counter ready to go and you haven´t delivered them yet.” 

“Jeez, done. Can you slice me some tomatoes?” 

“One sec,” He answered, mouth full of yet another candy. 

“It would be faster if you would just stop eating.” 

“We´re not making it anyways, let me enjoy one thing at least.” 

And he was right: a few seconds later the TV screen was filled with the sad numbers displaying how you didn´t reach the minimum score - didn´t even come close to it in fact. 

Mingi let out his frustrations by popping the nth white jelly past his lips and you stared at him in disgust, reaching for the bag to understand what that malevolent creation even was.  

“Huh...” 

“What?” He asked. 

“Hm, I mean, this is all in German or Dutch but I´m pretty sure this word means aphrodisiac.” 

“Come again?” His mouth was hanging open mid chew, unblinking eyes staring at you. 

“Hm, yeah. Wasn´t Yunho´s friend just in Amsterdam? The one with the big smile? Maybe he brought those as a souvenir, since you know, it´s Amsterdam. Like, ‘haha look at this candy that makes you horny´.” 

“Oh, yeah. But it´s like a placebo touristy thing, right?” He laughed nervously. “Like, these won´t actually make me horny, right?” 

“Nah, I don´t think this kind of stuff works. It´s probably just for shit and giggles. Do you feel any different?” 

“I don´t know, my heart is beating faster. I think I´m going to die.” 

“Mingi, relax. Now it´s probably just because you´re nervous.” 

“No, what if there´s some kind of drug in these? I ate almost 10 of them! Oh my god I´m going to die. Am I going to overdose, Y/N? What if I start hallucinating?” 

He was being a bit overdramatic, but he did have genuine concerns. 

“Wait, let me call Yunho.” 

Mingi didn´t even hear you, too busy at his own pity party as he whined and stared at the bag´s labels like he could suddenly speak Dutch.  

“Y/N?” Yunho´s voice filled your ears. 

“Hm, hi. Sorry to bother you at work but we´ve kind of got a situation.” 

“Oh my god, did Mingi break my door playing with the bar? I already told him-” 

“No, nothing like that. Huh, do you know that candy that you left on the kitchen counter?” 

“What? No. What cand- Oh. Oh.” 

“Huh, yeah. So... Mingi found it and ate like 10 of them?” 

“Y/N.” 

“Is that bad? He´s kind of freaking out, he´s afraid there´s like drugs in them or something.” 

“There are some stimulants in them but like, in minor quantities. He won´t die because of it. But bro, bro.” 

“What?” You whined, Yunho´s tone making you anxious. 

“He had 10 of them? San had like 3 and said he was at it for hours.” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah, oh.” 

“So I guess these do work, huh?” 

“Haven´t tried them, but from what San says it´s some strong shit. Did you take any?” 

“Just like one, tastes like organic trash.” 

“Yeah, good. Let me know how it goes, please just stay out of my bedroom.” 

“Your bedroom? Why would- What are you trying to imply, Jeong Yunho?” 

“Oh shit, client calling. Byeee,” He laughed. “Stupid.” 

As soon as you put your phone away, Mingi stopped talking to himself like a mad man and stared at you with big hopeful eyes. 

“I have good news and bad news.” 

“Am I going to die?” 

“That´s the good news: no, you´re not. No.” 

“And what are the bad news?” 

“Apparently you will get very horny, though.” 

He froze at your words, looking down at his pants, “I don´t feel it, though.” 

“Maybe you won´t, it might be different for everyone,” You shrug, standing up and grabbing your sweater. “All I know is that I am leaving because if it does happen, that´s not a sight I want to be here for.” 

“Please no,” Mingi whined, literally throwing himself on his knees to catch your arm before you could walk away. “Don´t leave me alone here. I just ingested unknown substances, what if my body reacts badly and I actually die? What if I throw up and drown in my own puke here all alone?” 

Once again, over-dramatic but right.  

“Yeah, you´re right,” You sighed. “I would still rather die than see you with a boner so here´s what we´re gonna do: I´m locking myself in Yunho´s room and you can freely roam the apartment and do whatever you want, I´ll check up on you every few minutes. Sounds good?” 

“Yeah, ok,” Mingi agreed. 

“Also, if you´re going to like - ” You motioned vaguely towards his pants hoping he would get what you were trying to say. “Give me a heads up so I can put on some earphones.” 

“Oh my god,” He whined in shame, cheeks going flush. “Yeah, ok.” 

“Ok, good. Huh, bye,” You awkwardly waved as you made your way towards Yunho´s room. “Good luck.” 

You closed the door behind you, hearing as Mingi opened some other game back in the living room. There was not much to do in Yunho´s room so you decided to lay in bed and scroll through Tiktok until Mingi stopped thinking he was going to die and you could leave. Also, you did eat one of the candies too, so you guessed that if they did work, you would feel it as well. 

10 minutes later you still heard Mingi normally playing and cursing outside, but you still decided to yell out an “Everything good?” just to be sure. 

“Yeah!” Was his answer. 

Another 15 minutes went by, and you shot him a text. 

Not dead yet? 

Mings: Still good, I don´t think these things actually work. 

Maybe Yunho was just messing with us.  

Mings: Yeah, fucking asshole. 

You went back to watching your silly little videos, not even noticing the time passing or how everything suddenly went quiet outside. Over half an hour had gone by when your ears finally perked up at the lack of your friend´s loudness.  

You sat up in bed worried. 

You good? 

No answer. 

Mingi? 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. 

You were already picturing his dead body looking all stupid on Yunho´s carpet, thinking about how you were going to explain to the paramedics that he died because he ate too much horny candy.  

No, even worse: How would you explain this to his family? 

Oh, no. Not your best friend. How would you live without him? You liked teasing him and you bickered a lot but you love- 

Your little spiral of insanity was interrupted by a knock on the door and your body was finally able to move after how it had been paralyzed with fear for a few minutes. 

“Mingi?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Oh, thank god. You scared the shit out of me,” You took a deep breath in relief, staring at Yunho´s white door. “What´s up?” 

“Huh, can I come in?” 

You furrowed your eyebrows at his tone.  

Something sounded weird about this.  

“Sure,” You answered skeptically.  

Mingi opened the door and came in, head cast down and gaze not meeting your eyes. 

“What´s wrong-” You started asking worriedly, about to jump out of the bed to go check up on him before your eyes finally zeroed in on the very prominent bulge in his pants. “Song Mingi! What the fuck?” 

“I- I don´t know what to do,” His eyes finally met yours, cheeks tinted in pink and hands trembling. He looked at you like a kicked puppy.  

“And what do I have to do with it? Go deal with it yourself. Eeew, we talked about this,” You raised your hand in the air to try and block the bottom half of Mingi from your line of vision.  

“I already did,” He groaned, rubbing his face in frustration. “Twice.” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah. Nothing fucking works - and also, I just can´t stop thinking about you.” 

“What?” You never heard your voice go so high before. “Nuh uh, we´re not going there. Absolutely not.” 

“I´m not happy about it either, ok?” His fingers were squeezing the corner of the door so thigh they were almost white. “Just please, help me out this once. Please.” 

Oh. 

Oh. 

Oh. 

You just prayed that the reason you started clenching around nothing was because the candy was finally kicking in and not because stupid Song Mingi was practically begging in front of you. 

“No!” You screeched, weirded out by your own sudden reaction. “This isn´t you talking, it´s just th stupid candy, you´ll regret it after it wears off -” 

“No but I won´t,” He disagreed, closing the door and rushing towards you like a madman in three large strides. 

You had never seen him like this, you never once in a million years could have gone as far as even imagining the look in his eyes right now. 

“Fuck. It´s just - your skin is so soft, you know?” Mingi pushed the covers to the side so his hand could squeeze your thigh, his knees dipping into the mattress as he crawled on top of you. You were too shocked to move away, frozen in place with your mouth open wide, not really knowing what to do as he rubbed the palm of his hands up and down your skin, squeezing it occasionally with a heavy breath like he had just reached heaven´s gate. 

“Mingi,” You warned, but your voice didn´t sound that threatening anymore. 

“Please, just once,” He breathed out, practically rubbing himself against your body like a cat in heat forcing you to slowly lie back in the bed, his hands gently guiding yours over your head as you slid down. You looked up at his glazed eyes, at the way his hands were shaking around your wrists, the way he was discreetly rutting against your thigh without even realizing he was doing it. He looked so vulnerable and frenzied – And it was doing something to you. 

“Mingi,” You whined, not even sure what you were trying to say or do. 

“You kept walking around with this white top all day,” He let out a broken groan, looking down at said top. “Your boobs look amazing in it. I just- I – Can I?” 

His begging eyes were enough to get you automatically nodding before even realizing what you were agreeing to - When you did process what he was asking for though, his right hand was already squeezing your boobs and kneading at them like his life depended on it, his calloused fingers firm on your body. You could feel how hard he was every time he subconsciously ground against you, shaky hot breaths leaving his lips and hitting the sensitive skin on the side of your neck where his plump soft lips kept lightly brushing against with every move. 

Mingi took advantage of the position, sucking against your vein and leaving pleas in the form of little kisses around your skin. His thumb played with your nipple and your hands were still abandoned on top of your head against the sheets, not sure if you would really let this happen yet - but Mingi didn´t seem to mind, too lost in worshipping you into compliance.  

“I need to fuck you. Like, right now. I´ll - I´ll make you feel good too, I promise,” The shakier and breathier his voice sounded the wetter you got. “I promise. I promise. Please. We -we don´t even need to fuck I can – I can – Let me – Just the tip- Anything-” 

“Just the tip?” 

“Yeah,” He eagerly nodded, his eyes so hopeful you could melt. 

“Ok,” You agreed, physically not being able to say no to his pleading eyes.  

“Fuck,” He groaned in surprise, not actually thinking you would agree to it - But since you did, he wasted no time and made quick work of practically ripping your cotton short down your legs in one harsh tug. “Under normal circumstances I would, you know – But, I – right now I – I can´t.” 

“It´s ok,” You assured, afraid he would actually cry if you made him wait another single second with how desperate he was. 

He hooked his finger on the bottom of your panties and pushed them to the side, not even being able to take them out. He stared at your pussy for a moment, his eyes looking even more insane than before at the sight, like he would actually growl at you. 

“Fuck,” Mingi cursed as he went out of the little trance he was in, pushing his sweater pants and boxers down in a rush - once again not even bothering with taking them all out.  

And oh fuck. 

His cock was so hard you could imagine how it actually hurt; it throbbed against the skin of his abdomen without even being touched, looking swollen and angry with all the veins surrounding it - And man were you glad you agreed on just the tip because there was just no way that would fit without a lot of preparation first. Even with how wet you were right now. Who knew? 

Mingi leaned on top of you once again, one arm supporting the weight of his body in between your legs as he gently guided his dick up and down your folds, his eyes closing at the feeling, a violent shiver taking over his thighs and up his spine with a loud groan.  

Like he had absolutely no control over his body, Mingi positioned himself against your entrance, slowly pushing just a little bit in as promised. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck,” His groans sounded so raw against your ear as he cursed over the initial resistance of your walls, his forehead meeting your neck to try and ground himself. 

You even let a moan out yourself because this was absolute madness, it felt insane. Your whole body was buzzing like you were electrified, your fingers ached to scratch Mingi´s back and pull him all the way in - Damn, those candies were good.  

And you only had one. 

“Y/N, fuck,” Mingi gasped as he started moving his hips in shallow little thrusts so he wouldn´t break your agreement. “Ah - Ah. I can´t think strai - You´re so pretty. Fuck, fuck.” 

His lips met your neck once again, messy kisses full of saliva and teeth as he shuddered on top of you, leaving marks that would soon turn purple. You could feel how tense every single muscle in his body was as he fought against himself to not rut deeper into you every time he moved, and you were biting onto your lip so hard to keep the noises inside that you could taste blood.  

“Thank you, thank you,” You shivered at the way cold air hit your neck when Mingi pulled back a bit to look you in the eye, “Can I go ah- a little deeper, please? Just a little. It feels so good, I need ah- more. Fuck.” 

“Mingi.” 

“Please,” He cried out and you just couldn´t believe the sight in front of you. 

Tall big strong Song Mingi with the deep voice, reduced to a disheveled delirious mess. His ashy blond hair rumpled, his cheeks burning pink and skin glistening with sweat, his pupils huge and shiny and he just looked so disheartened that it was breaking your heart to not let him just use you however he wanted.  

“I need you,” He agonized, his right arm clinging onto your shoulder like you would run away from him if you could, so out of it that he was already pushing deeper into you without even noticing, eyes shut so tightly at the sensation of your walls around him. “Please, please, please, please,” It was like a mantra. 

He was far gone. 

And kind of so were you. 

You whine in pain and raspy moans left Mingi´s soft lips every time he thrust back into you, hitting farther each time, “I´m sorry, baby. I´m sorry. You can take it right? Ah – Just a bit more, I promise. Fuck. I´m almost ah- in. Why do you smell so good? It´s driving me ah – insane.” 

It hurt, it did hurt, but you also didn´t seem to mind that he was practically splitting you open when his voice sounded this pretty apologizing for it. 

The speed and strength of his hips started picking up to match his urgency, his plush lips were open so captivatingly and his weight was now supported by both arms so he could pistol into you. He didn´t have a specific angle or rhythm to it, his moves were strictly instinctual and carnal, your nails finally finding your way down his back to keep yourself anchored to reality. 

“You´re so so so beautiful, fuck. Your lips - can´t stop thinking about them around my ah- cock. Will you show me?”  

You loved how broken his voice sounded. 

“Yeah, baby. Whatever you want.” 

He shuddered once again at your words, “I´m so close.” 

“Me too,” You nodded, still doing your very best to not let noises of pleasure escape past your lips – and kind of failing. 

“Let me hear you,” Mingi growls, managing to somehow snake his hand in between your bodies to start drawing quick circles on your clit. “Please, I love your voice.” 

You wouldn´t be able to hold back even if you wanted to.  

His chaotic rhythm had an appeal of its own, every broken moan that left his mouth drew you closer to the edge until you finally reached it. Your vision went black, nails digging into Mingi´s biceps so harshly you would feel bad for it later, every muscle in your body tightening as it all washed over you in a devastating wave, leaving your body in the form of gasps and breathy moans. 

“Oh my god, fuck,” Mingi cursed at the way your walls were clenching so tightly around him. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” 

He wouldn´t slow down and you were still coming down from your high, twitching with the aftershocks as the oversensitivity quickly began to rise, but you decided to ignore it the best you couldand push through it - you could tell Mingi was close anyway with the way his thrusts became even more erratic, and his voice went up with every moan.  

You were mesmerized by his glossy unfocused eyes, the frown on his forehead, so frantic to get what he needed by ramming into you. He looked so pretty like this, you wanted to destroy him-  

Wow. 

Wait. 

Now where did that come from? 

“Shit, I´m gonna- Fuck, fuck.” 

You watched as his whole body froze for a second before violently shaking, his eyes shot so tightly he was probably seeing white as he continued thrusting into you to ride his orgasm to the end as you felt something warm hitting your walls. And his moans, oh his moans – I mean, you were not deaf, you had always been well-aware that Mingi had an attractive voice, but to hear it like this, so raw and relieved, was truly something else. 

Mingi let out one last broken cry as he slowly stopped moving, dropping his weight on top of you to catch his breath, chest heaving up and down against your ribcage as his muscles continued twitching here and there. You took advantage of the moment to get yourself together too, stabilizing your breathing and trying to figure out what the hell just happened as you two went down, but you also kind of expected Mingi to say something or try to joke around a bit to lessen the burden of the fact that the two of you just fucked - and when he didn´t, well, you started getting worried. 

You were mustering up the courage to say something after the two minutes of silence when the last thing you expected to happen, happened.  

Your eyes were blown wide, “Mingi-” 

“I can´t stop, I´m sorry-” He whined, his still rock-solid cock now slowly moving inside of you once again, rutting into you like he had absolutely no control over himself. 

He was still hard? 

Wasn´t this like his third time already? 

His whole body was shaking in overstimulation but he wouldn´t stop grinding into you, “I´m sorry.” 

“Mingi,” You tried pulling away from him thinking that´s what he was asking for. 

“No, don´t. Ah- Need you,” He desperately grabbed onto your thighs and wrapped them around his hips, your chests flushed against each other's as he hid his forehead on your neck to keep fucking deep into you. Literal whines of pain were leaving his lips, it was like he was an animal incapable of rational thoughts, and it was making you feel dizzy. 

“Mingi, love. You´re going to hurt yourself.” 

“No, feels so ah- Just one more,” He moaned, body shuddering. His whines got you clenching involuntarily around him, suddenly realizing you were kind of close to the edge already. “Please.” 

You felt a strong bite on your shoulder disguising a groan, the animalistic act crashed with how smoothly he was sliding in and out of you, but it also showed how deranged he was at the moment. You tightened your thighs around Mingi´s hips and pulled at the hair on his nape, not bothering with trying to cover up your moans anymore. 

Mingi took the action as permission and started gradually moving his hips faster, broken little whines getting louder and more frequent each second until he was once again supported by both his arms and pistoling into you.  

“I can´t - I can´t,” His voice was so shaky, so broken. “I - Please.” 

And then your whole world stopped as you watched the first tear roll down Mingi´s cheek. 

You were mesmerized, you wanted to frame it.  

“It hurts,” He whimpered, another tear falling, followed by another and then another.  

“You´re almost there,” You cooed, deciding to be useful to the poor giant man breaking down on top of you. “Aren´t you? So close.” 

Mingi nodded, blinking harshly to clear his vision which resulted in more tears running down his face. You just couldn´t help supporting your weight onto your elbow so you could lean up and hold his jaw, kissing the salty traces across his cheeks until his face was clean. He immediately started shaking, moans growing whinier and choppier, his thrusts started losing their patterns as he plowed into you like his life depended on it, entering a mental state he never knew existed before. 

His right hand grabbed your thigh with enough force to bruise it badly as he came for what you imagined was the fourth time in an hour, holding you so close that you could feel his cock hitting impossible places deep inside of you. Mingi was breathing so hard you were kind of worried for his well-being but the noises leaving his lips assured you he was feeling pleasure at least as his nose found its place on your neck once again. 

“Feeling better?” You asked once he had calmed down a little. 

“Kind of,” He pushed back to look at you with a low chuckle, his eyes looking a tad bit saner already. “But I also kind of need to eat you out.” 

You felt his dick twitch inside of you at his own words and how the fuck was that even possible? 

A painful whimper left his lips at the slight stimulation, already way past oversensitive, “Please?” 

 He had the nerve to pout. 

[primus-why]

More on the MegOp-centric Orion Pax arc we deserved 😤

Okay but imagine during the Orion Pax arc in TFP if it lasted longer. Imagine if Orion started to get to know some of the Vehicons (or even another large truck like Breakdown?) and would periodically hang out with them in the mess hall during fuel breaks.

Imagine, if you will, that Orion had also taken the time to research his own frame schematics. The change from his old frame was visibly obvious, but what other secrets did it hold? Turns out he is well-stocked with weapons, and has an increased stamina to accommodate them. Clearly, he is built for battle and for hauling large loads, no longer a mere archivist. And because of this, he thinks he could be doing more to help out Megatron and their cause...

Fast forward a bit, and Orion decides he wants to help move some of the energon ore that has been mined that day while on a fuel break. He assures the other Vehicons that it's no trouble at all before stepping through the ground bridge to the mine.

Suddenly, as if lured to their location, the Autobots arrive and make a direct assault on the mines! Orion ducks behind a part of the cave, preparing to online his weapons and defend his comrades...

... only to find that he can't!

His processor races, trying different commands to release the weapons, but they won't engage. A pair of Vehicons spot him while hiding in a similar spot, and they urge Orion to run back to the bridge.

"We'll cover you!" One of them says, just as the other steps out of their hiding spot to return fire.

Orion doesn't really get a chance to answer. He didn't want to leave without them, so he doesn't move right away. In that moment of hesitation, he watches as the other Vehicon is struck by blaster fire, and their companion steps out to pick up where they left off.

Orion is moving before he even realizes it. As other Vehicons pull back to retreat to the bridge, Orion moves across to reach the wounded Vehicon and their companion, who is now one of the last Cons still providing cover fire.

"Pax!" They say, "You need to get outta here! Megatron will--"

"-- Not without you! I won't leave a fellow Decepticon behind." And he means it. Orion doesn't care that he can't activate his weapons, he can still bring the wounded to safety.

Just as he scoops up the fallen Vehicon, some blaster fire catches the remaining Vehicon on the arm, grazing them and coming extremely close to Orion. He feels something shift, and before he knows what he's doing he's pointing one of his servos in the direction of the blast...

... only, it's not just a servo! He's got a blaster now too!

Orion acts on instinct, providing some additional cover fire while he and the rest of the Vehicons eventually escape. Once back, he delivers the Vehicon in his arms to the medbay and they thank him, their voice full of awe.

(Once out of audial range Knock Out advises the Vehicon to not let Lord Megatron catch them looking at Orion like that, as he doesn't tolerate "challengers" of any kind. 🙃)

Orion of course gets an audial-full from Megatron on how he is not to go into battle. It's far too dangerous! And Orion agrees somewhat-- he explains that he's learned of his weapons schematics, but since his servo transformed back after they returned to the ship he hasn't been able to re-engage the blaster.

"Perhaps... you could train me? To use my weapons, this frame more effectively?" says Orion. He sighs, "... I just want to help."

"And you are helping." Megatron assures him, "We need that database decoded--"

"-- Soundwave can do it just as well, yet he enters the field from time to time." Orion pouts, which is an expression Megatron hasn't seen in a very long time.

The silver mech chuckles. "Soundwave was a gladiator. His frame might be different than it once was, but as you say-- he's effective."

Orion slumps in defeat.

"Tell you what," says Megatron, "if you reach a point where you can reliably engage and disengage your weaponry on command, I will train you in the basics of combat."

Orion perks up at that, looking more determined.

"I'll get there. I promise, Megatron-- I won't let you down."

Megatron holds his gaze, smiling softly, "I know. You never disappoint, Orion."

Fast forward again. Orion is talking to the Vehicons about built-in weaponry (since they have blasters in their arms similar to his own schematics.) He still can't seem to do it on command, however.

One of them suggests he recreates the circumstances that brought it out the first time. (Another helpfully reminds everyone that would involve Orion facing down angry Autobots, which isn't likely to happen since Megatron has banned him from leaving the Nemesis until he's combat-ready.)

Orion offers to let them fire upon him in one of the training rooms, to which they all vehemently refuse.

"If Lord Megatron heard you were in the medbay because we shot you?? He'd snuff our sparks!"

Then one of them proposes that perhaps it wasn't actually blaster fire that caused them to activate, simply the encroaching threat.

"What if all Orion has to do is convince his frame he's in danger?"

After some more thought, they put a plan into action a couple days later: Orion will jump from the highest level of the engine room, and the threat of impact will cause his weapons to engage. He will study his frame's reaction in a controlled environment, ideally being able to remember how it feels to engage his weaponry, and therefore would be able to (in theory) recreate that feeling. Of course, before he hits the ground one of the flight frames will catch him, or at the very least slow his fall so he's not hurt too badly. It's brilliant! What could possibly go wrong?

After gathering some courage, Orion finally takes the leap, careful to study his internal reactions along the way.

"So... aren't you gonna go after him?" He hears one of the Vehicons above him say.

"What?!? I thought you were gonna--"

Wait... what?

Oh scrap. Scrap!! They're not flight frames! He's falling to his death for real!!

Orion scrambles for purchase on the sides of the smooth walls, to no avail. Sparks fly off his servos as he tries desperately to slow his fall in any way he can, knowing no one is coming to save him.

Suddenly, he spots a maintenance team emerging on the ground floor below, clearly there to do a routine inspection.

"Look out!!" Orion yells, "Move out of the way!!" He would hate to see anyone get sent to the medbay due to his own foolishness...!

Just as the Vehicons scramble back from whence they came, another figure emerges casually sipping energon, entirely unphased by the commotion.

"Megatron! Watch out!" As Orion calls out to his friend, he can spot the exact moment Megatron recognizes him. The silver mech's optics flare to their widest setting and he drops his cube, spilling precious fuel on the ground. His arms move up, as if to catch him...

... just then a ground bridge appears below Orion, which he goes through immediately (not that he had much of a choice in the matter.) When he comes out the other side, he discovers he is... falling upward?? And significantly closer to the ground from where he last left off, at that. Soon gravity takes hold and he falls back down again, but not nearly as drastically. With his descent successfully slowed, the bridges wink out of existence as quickly as they came, and Megatron swiftly catches him.

"Yes. Thank you, Soundwave." The silver mech says into his comm before turning to the mech in his arms, "Orion, what in the Pits possessed you to jump down the main engine shaft?!?!"

"I-I... uh..." was all Orion could manage to stutter. His processor was still overwhelmed, having just narrowly avoided a painful injury or worse.

Among his racing thoughts, an unbidden memory file queued up-- one where Megatronus was holding him in a similar fashion during one of his many visits to Kaon. The gladiator had literally swept him off his pedes, insisting he carry Orion the rest of the way to their destination, lest the archivist get too tired. Orion knew he could have protested-- he wasn't tired in the least-- but he wanted... by Primus, how he had wanted to be close to Megatronus...

Back in reality, the parallels of the situation sunk in, and Orion felt a blush creep onto his faceplates-- again, not unlike that particular memory. He had been smaller then, much easier to excuse being picked up by his larger companion, but now his frame was bigger and stronger. It should have been embarrassing. There was no reason to be carried, so he had accepted early on that there was no chance of repeating such an indulgence. Yet, here and now, Megatron was holding him; he had caught him, and Primus below it's like he was an archivist again, back when he weighed practically nothing to the gladiator--

"... I'm sorry." He said lamely, acutely aware of all the optics on him now. His blush deepened, wishing not for the first time he could hide behind the facemask that came with his new frame. "There's no excuse, I was being foolish. It won't happen again."

Megatron regarded him for a moment. "Your servos..." he eventually said, and Orion finally noticed just how badly he had scraped up his digits.

He let out a hiss as he flexed, inspecting the damage. "Right... I should probably visit the medbay." He made a move to get down, but Megatron simply readjusted his grip and turned around.

"Uh... Megatron?"

"I'll see to it you get there." Said the silver mech, like it was the easiest, most logical thing for him to do in the world.

"... Oh. Thank you, I... but I can still walk." He huffed out an awkward laugh, "Besides, I think we can agree I've troubled you enough for one day."

Megatron stopped walking and looked at him.

"Do you... want me to put you down?"

Surely he doesn't mean... he's not actually giving him the choice, is he??

"I-it's just that... I don't want you to strain yourself! I'm not as light as I used to be..." Orion couldn't bear to meet Megatron's optics, because he feared his friend might see right through him.

But the silver mech simply shrugged, "You're not that heavy. I don't mind." He paused for a moment, as if waiting for something.

"... If that's your only objection, then..." and with that he continued down the hall, making sure he took the long way to the medbay.

Megatron continued to steal glances at Orion when he could, noticing his flushed faceplates.

'... Cute.' He thought. 'Reminds me of that time I picked him up in Kaon. He blushed nicely then, too.'

Eventually the mech in his arms relaxed enough to rest his helm on his chassis with a small sigh, making his spark flip. However he was still aware of his archivist's bleeding servos, and the fact that Orion would probably start to wonder why he hadn't called for another bridge into the medbay. Megatron stayed his course, but picked up the pace a little.

'Forgive my indulgences, Orion... I want to stay by your side just a little longer...'

[mci-writing]

Warmth (Midoriya Izuku x Reader)

Warnings: Obsessiveness (near the end), implied major character death, reanimated corpse (it’s Deku), necromancy, Deku is the equivalent of Frankenstein’s monster kinda, a little ooc, mentions of pain, descriptions of skin burning (not exactly but yeah idk how to explain it)

Kofi

Viridian irises glance over the form laid before them, a longing sigh passing through chapped lips and landing on deaf ears. Fingers, cold to the touch and tinted blue from lack of flowing blood and oxygen, slide across the small expanse of exposed (s/t) skin, the thumb stopping just under a closed left eye and softly, lovingly, tenderly rubbing the area. It leaves the warmest goosebumps, so warm it should ache, dulling once the contact is distanced.

Whispers of ‘patience’ sound through the air, chilling down to the bone and causing him to pull away out of instinct. The reactions of those around him tell him that they aren’t really there, but he can’t help his response after being told such for so long. For so achingly long.

“Deku-kun,” He feels himself straighten at the voice beside him, a hand setting itself at the small of his back. The thumb rubs small, circles in an attempt to soothe his worrying, “If you keep tugging at your lip like that, you’ll rip it off.”

He becomes self-aware of his habit after his companion points it out, cheeks warming as he quickly lets it go. He wets his lips with his tongue after, teeth grazing over the bottom one as they pop out. He’s unable to stop the awkward chuckle that follows or the way his eyes flit from those around him to the body on the table.

“I’m sure (L/n)-San wouldn’t mind reattaching it once they wake, Uraraka-San,” Todoroki stands near the door, his eyes never straining from beyond the frame as he speaks to them. It’s hard to miss his tense demeanor from where they’re placed, one of his fangs pointing past his lips.

Izuku feels himself sweat at that, a wobbly smile forming on his face as he brings his full attention back to the other members of their group. The best he can manage out is a small “T-Thanks, Todoroki-San” as his hand connects with (Y/n)’s and laces his fingers through theirs.

Silence fills the room again after that. Midoriya can hear his heart racing and feel (Y/n)’s faint pulse. They pump in tandem together, like always. Yet, it does nothing to ease his fears. He knows that spell they cast was powerful, but they’ve been out for a few days now. The only reassurances he’s received of them still being alive was the small noises they’d make as they rested, the way their hand tightly holds his each time he holds it, and the addictive burn he receives with each touch to their skin.

The book of necromancy did say that some spells would be harder to cast for users with less experience, but Midoriya didn’t realize that translated to needing to rest for so long to regain the little strength of power (Y/n) knew how to use. He would’ve tried harder to suggest something else for their escape.

“Oi, Deku!” The rough voice of his childhood friend wakes him from his thoughts, his thumb and forefinger making themselves known on his lips as they tightly squeeze from the small jump he makes. He’s being side-eyed by shades of crimson, but not many would catch the soft worry behind them, “Me n Shitty Hair’s got the ship waiting at the dock. Cargo truck’s outside.”

Emerald eyes meet the fiery shades, an understanding spoken between them that only their little bubble could process. Without a beat, Bakugou comes forward and lifts the end of the slab they're laying across and Todoroki is quick to grab the other end. They load it into the cargo truck's trunk, careful to ensure they're strapped down in the back before Todoroki hops out. Midoriya watches on, eyes longing for the warmth he’s just lost.

~~~~~

The car only holds four people, debatably three if you wanted to argue whether or not Midoriya could still be counted as human in his current form. He was undead, that much he could confirm from the way his body had been stitched together and the ice cold feeling of his skin when he wasn’t within a certain proximity of (Y/n). He was something like Frankenstein, but the context seemed less science fiction and more fantasy. He had no clue why he had been brought back to life, just that he had been. (Y/n) and Kacchan always avoided the question when he’d ask how he’d died.

That’s another thing, it’s always the three of them. Even now, only Kacchan and (Y/n) were going to board the boat with him. Kirishima was only here to take them there and back.

His gaze pans away from the passing scenery outside to the body pressed against his. His cheeks warm as bright a red as they possibly can at the proximity, yet he can’t force himself to move away from the burning sensation of their skin touching. It hurts in the nicest way possible, making him feel way more alive than he thought possible. It’s why he thought he had just woken from a long sleep instead of immediately thinking he’d come back to life, the warmth too comforting for him to question anything at the time. Both of his companions joked about it being out of character for him.

He takes in the low rise of their chest and the serene look of their face. It’s one of the very few times he hasn’t seen them worried out of their mind since being brought back to life. He’s tried not to keep count of their smiles, one of his favorite aspects about them. If with their lips held in a neutral shape, he’s fighting the urge to kiss them until they swell.

He feels himself warm more at the repeated thought of laying a kiss on their unconscious form. He should be ashamed, but he’s been wanting to be intimate with them for a while now. It’s gotten so bad he gets a little jealous when he catches them and Kacchan away from him, whispering between themselves in a bubble of their own that he feels he won’t fit in.

That thought sours his feelings a little, especially when he knows he could never take them from Kacchan and he could never take Kacchan from them. The idea of them moving forward without him, leaving him out, and further pushing him away from the picture he'd perfectly fit in before his current state, gives him a deep pit feeling in his chest that he doesn't enjoy dwelling on for too long.

But right here… Right now…? He could just give them a quick peck and pretend it didn’t happen. No one would know… Unless they woke up from it or something…

He weighs his options, emerald eyes measuring and tracing the outlines of your lips. He has vivid memories of the one time he managed to get a kiss from them, in the dead of night when the only witnesses aside from themselves were the twinkling constellations. He doesn't remember how long ago it was, but he can perfectly picture the sight of them shyly smiling, their face warm, and (e/c) eyes dilated like a super moon. Their lips fit perfectly against his, slated and locked like they were meant to be attached for eternity, and delectably soft like fresh baked goods straight from the oven. He'd press his lips against them as much as he possibly could, suffocate against them even.

The cons would be them waking and beating the shit out of him... Or Kacchan catching him and beating the shit out of him...

Midoriya leans forward, hand burning as he cups their cheek. He rubs his thumb against their skin as his lips finally meet theirs again. It feels like home, his lips feverishly sucking against the plump flesh like he'll never be able to do so again.

He pulls away once he realizes he's being too greedy, too desperate. He sucks in a deep breath, the butterflies rising to his chest as his heart pounds against his ribcage. He can feel the warm honeydew in his cheeks, worsening when his eyes dart up and meet a certain pair of crimson ones. They stare at one another for a moment, but Midoriya can't read what Bakugou is thinking at all. Bakugou sends him a small smile, or something close to it. His lips quirk upward on one side before he turns back to the road. Kirishima is talking about something, but he's obviously not paying attention.

"'Zuku?" The soft call of his name has him looking down, meeting the dazed stare of (Y/n). They're still relatively exhausted from their overuse of magic, a bit of light missing from their pupils. They press their cheek into his hand, the bags under their eyes heavy, "Are we... heading there?"

"We're going to the dock right now, (Y/n). Kacchan's in the front seat and Kirishima's driving us there," Midoriya informs them, voice low as to not cause them any discomfort. He knows they typically suffer from headaches after too much use of their necromancy abilities, "I'm sure you should be able to rest a bit longer-"

"No, no," They begin to sit up, getting a grip on his shoulder and using it to push themselves up. They let go and force themselves to sit up on their knees, getting in a position where they can easily look out the window, "I have to check that... we're not... Not being..."

Their voice trails off as they grab their head, another splintering headache racking their body from the sudden movement. Midoriya is quick to grab hold of them, leaning their body against his. Gravity lays them back across his lap, their face pressing into the fabric of his shirt while they close their eyes. Out of instinct, he presses his fingers against the nape of their neck, slowly sliding them upwards to press at various spots in the back of their head.

"No one's following us, (Y/n). We made sure of that..." He murmurs, pushing their hair out of their eyes. His hand eases down the side of their face, fingers hooking under their chin and pushing it up so they can see him better, "Get your rest."

"Izuku...," They stare at him for a moment, different emotions flashing through their (e/c) eyes. One of their hands reaches up for his cheek, the flesh feeling as if it'll catch on fire at any moment. They pull away too quickly for his liking, the same stricken look reaching their eyes like every other time they touch him and they're reminded of their afflictions. He's heard them apologize to him in the late hours before.

With little thought, he grabs their hand and presses it back to his flesh. He feels just a little closer to being human again at the touch. He nuzzles into their hold, keeping eye contact with them and watching the confliction beyond their irises. He doesn't care about the way his body screams to flinch away from the heat, pressing more into it as opposed to as opposed to running from it. He tightens his hold when he feels them try to tug away from him.

“Izuku, stop. You’re hurting yourself-,”

"No, it's okay," He responds too quickly, leaning into their touch. He presses his ear to their chest, listening to the steady beating of their heart and the movement of their breathing in their chest. The heat isn't as excruciating, simmering to an addictive warmth adjacent to bodies entangled in a hug. It crawls over his skin and wraps around him like a blanket, "Everything is okay..."

He never wants to leave from (Y/n)'s hold, (Y/n)'s warmth, ever again. He doesn't know how he could ever live without it, especially not now when the cold is even colder than before...

[mesetacadre]

The collective farm, as we have seen in an earlier chapter, fits in admirably to the military organization; it already has its defense group, its labor battalions, its organization for caring for children and the weak. If the farm is in the immediate rear of the Red Army, its activities are those typified in the Ukrainian village “K.” Through its formerly quiet streets roll endless truckloads of fuel and ammunition bound for the front; in case of need, the collective farm’s machine shop offers minor repairs. Many of the farmers are now in the Army and are replaced by women. The remainder have rapidly harvested the crops and threshed more than half of them, taking them to the railroad for transport to the rear. During a brief lull on the front, fifty Red Army men came to assist in the reaping and threshing; they accounted for fifty acres of peas and forty acres of wheat before they had to go back to fight. Some forty of the farmers are working full time repairing roads for the Army. Gangs of girls and women, under the direction of Army sappers, dig trenches and camouflage them with foliage. This organized dovetailing of the activities of Army and people continues without a break if the Army is forced to retreat. Some of the civilians retreat with it as labor gangs. They destroy the village completely before they go. A detailed account of this “total destruction” was given by a village designated only as “X.” When the Germans approached, a group of young people entered the granary, loaded nine trucks, and sent them to the railway station camouflaged under green boughs. Four tons of barley and vetch, which could not be removed, were burned. The tractors plowed down and uprooted the beets. The milkmaids drove the cows through the maturing wheat and rye; they were followed by eighty girls and women with sickles and scythes who chopped up what was left. The mechanics broke the fuel tank; the blacksmiths destroyed the harvesters and thresher. The broken machinery was thrown down a steep precipice. The people burned the pigsty, cowsheds, granary, beehives, and the new stable. The best horses were driven to the forest for the use of guerrillas. Fourteen fattened pigs were slaughtered for the Red Army commissary, the rest were driven to the railroad and shipped to the rear. The wells were filled with earth, and the water from the pond was let out by breaking the dike. Even the green apples were picked by the gardener with the remark, “They shall not ripen for the robbers." If possible, the entire population of the village scatters in an organized manner. If there is time, the children and weaker adults are evacuated by train to the interior of the country; a fortnight after the war began, trains of evacuated people began arriving in Sverdlovsk and other towns of the Urals, where jobs or accommodations in rest homes were at once available for the newcomers – a fate quite different from that which befell the refugees of Western Europe. The most able-bodied of the population go into hiding in the woods as a guerrilla organization that harries the enemy’s rear under direct orders from the Red Army and often in co-ordination with the fighting at the front.

The Soviets Expected It, Anna Louise Strong, 1941

[a-world-with0ut-dr34ms]

Burn the Witch

From Control - Full Story in Progress on AO3!

Soap x Shadow!Reader x Ghost Light Graves x Reader

This is your first operation away from Shadow Company, as your skills as an undercover operative will be put to the test on your hunt for Hassan Zyani. With help from the 141, things should go smoothly. You could only hope...

Word Count: 2.2k

Tags: Foreshadowing Future Action, Drama, Suspense, Slow Burn, Tension, Light Romantic Tension, Canon-Compliant, Foreboding, Probably Military Inaccuracies, Reader has hidden agendas, part one of two for these next two chapters basically

Masterlist

Let me start by saying I HATE this chapter with a burning passion. It took me a month to try and brainstorm every possible way I could convey the plot how I wanted without it being boring. But alas, I've said fuck it, because it's been over a month and we've gotta keep it pushin'.

The chapter's slow, obviously meant to be the prologue to the next chapter. Once again, I'm sorry I made you all wait so long for this. However, with this mundaneness out of the way, I hope the next chapter improves.

Please enjoy.

Chapter Twenty-One - Burn the Witch

What does it mean to be ready for the inevitable? You've pondered that a lot lately, though it sparks in your mind more so once the trucks have parked and your team has offloaded onto an airstrip swirling with chaos and urgency.

Helicopters raged above you, convoys and other armored vehicles driving to their designated areas, ready to ship you all into battle. All the while, the night sky sits plainly above you. An empty sea of black set fit to remind you of the uncertainty which lies ahead of you.

In five minutes you would be heading out.

By now air support has most likely already started bombing the AQ bordering your LZ, meaning the firefight starts the second your flight touches the ground. The rest of the details involving your mission came to you as hectic as the night had already been. Comm chatter blistered on every channel, new information getting spoon-fed to you by every half-hour mark.

There had been no time for any other thoughts, in fear of missing something crucial. But one detail had been an especially hard pill to swallow, all things considered.

They're splitting everyone into two teams, both tasked with sweeping separate areas for Hassan. Once each building has been neutralized, the teams will regroup, with Hassan either dead or alive in your custody.

A sound strategy as any you've heard before, though you would have preferred to stay placed on the same team as 141, had you any say.

Instead, you were to lead Team Alpha in there stead, as Ghost and Soap lead Team Bravo.

Your placement had been deliberate, to say the least. Shepherd always had a way of pulling the strings to his advantage in the background, and you had just become his latest puppet.

Your real briefing came to you via a quick, virtual meeting, having had to wait for the others to break off and start loading up their gear before you could slip off somewhere secluded to meet. From there, you'd gotten the video up and prepared yourself to be greeted by your two-faced general.

But instead of some old, bald man appearing before you on your screen, you had been greeted by a pair of steel blue eyes, sharp, and consumed in all sorts of stress and business.

Your commander.

It took your breath away to see him again, still with his authoritative look and short, blond hair he's spent the last few minutes combing his fingers through, you're sure. Even through the screen, you could have sworn you might have seen the light come back in his eyes. Then, you're reminded of how you two left things off, and the radio silence that had fallen soon after.

He hadn't changed a bit, you'd say.

You frown, not wanting to reward the man with any expression beyond mild irreverence, even as he smiled at you like nothing changed. You knew a mask when you saw one, and frankly, it was getting old.

You have more important things to worry yourself to death over.

"You're lookin' good," he compliments.

You pause, taking another second to look over your commander again. What you can see is the small joy he feels, having caught you doing so. But before you've allowed him to speak, you've made his mind up for him.

"The briefing? Commander?"

Graves cleared his throat, straightening himself up on the other end. He hadn't expected to still be so taken aback seeing you after what felt like over a month now. "Right then," he begins. "Your mission..."

Graves did his best to give you the highlighted version of whatever it was Shepherd told him about your orders. While the clarifications had made things more clear, it didn't make tonight any easier.

With you separated from 141, the General's hopes had been for you to investigate what you can about the missiles and "take care" of Hassan. With no suspicion or incident. It only figures that regardless of what the AQ General knew about his missiles, Shepherd would want him dead. And if he wanted him dead, then that's just what you had to do.

Anything to put an end to this.

"Get this done, and we're one step closer to being home free," he feels the need to remind you again. Only lately you've wondered what that even means anymore. It didn't help that trapped sensation you'd been unable to shake all night.

"I've heard that before," you roll your eyes.

"Don't make it any less true," he says. And then he pauses, hesitant from the looks. Silent. You knew what often came after that.

"Are you... Have you been doin' alright?"

His question doesn't come as a surprise to you, however, you admit you're unsure how to answer him. You wish he had asked you weeks ago.

But he hadn't.

"I'm fine."

Graves opens his mouth to say more, however, something stops him. Perhaps the look he sees in your eyes, or the lack thereof. He knows bridges have been damaged between you two, if not burned. He's not an idiot. He's also only human.

"Don't get yourself killed, OK?"

Though it made you feel rather pathetic, his words felt more riveting than you had wanted them to be. And you had missed it.

"No promises, Commander." You wink.

You tap your leg against the metal floor below you, feeling it shift and sway as the heli races through the dark skies of Al Mazrah.

Two minutes now and you would be separated from the 141. Alone and on a mission of your own. One only you were aware of. Your mind needed to be right.

You take a look around at the soldiers gathered around. They had everyone crammed into the heli like sardines, your rifles hugged to your chest and your eyes forward. Awaiting the sound of gunfire.

"No songs to whistle?"

Ghost's gruff voice from across the heli brings your eyes back from the row of dark boots your eyes had been glued to. They had been all down there all night, doing whatever possible to ignore the eyes of Ghost's on you all flight long.

Your behavior tonight had been a stark contrast to the last op he'd run with you, where there you'd been jovial and nigh overconfident, chatty in most instances. Tonight, you had been completely quiet, eyes razor-focused, and mind everywhere and nowhere all at once. It gave the man a rough feeling about tonight, and watching you tap your leg finally drew him to a point of speaking, it seems.

You look up at the lieutenant, more wide-eyed than intended. Everything needing to be done tonight had been buzzing through your mind so much this past hour, it hadn't even crossed your mind to calm yourself to a tune.

"I can't think of one," you admit. "But I take request."

Ghost holds his gaze with you for a moment, his eyes so dark in this interior that he almost appeared inhuman, the large shadow that he was sitting across from you. Meanwhile, he wondered if there'd ever be a day you weren't trying to delve in a subtle way and hear his music taste.

Perhaps you've finally worn him down. Ghost looked as though he were about to actually answer you for once.

And then, the comms cut in.

"Approaching the LZ."

All casual conversing had now just ended.

Bombs and gunfire grow louder outside the heli, replacing the rumble of the spiraling blades and the vibrations of its metal. Like a song drumming you into battle, you hear it beckon you all near.

"Bravo Team offloads here." Ghost stood from his seat to address both teams now, his entire aura changing from endearing to brutish in the blink of an eye. "Alpha Team stays onboard to land downrange. Both teams meet in the middle. Remember, we want Hassan alive, but this is capture or kill."

You watch as Bravo Team stands from their seats, gathering near the end of the heli to exit. Your eyes track Soap, who passes by your peripheral briefly until he's paused right before you.

With all his gear on, helmet strapped tight, and weapon loaded and ready, he looked a man ready for anything. He always seemed to be in most cases.

You'd been aware of Soap's watchful gaze since boarding together. He had smiled every time you looked his way, giving you an assuring nod, and sharing a comment when a thought would come, but you see the worry he held for you in his eyes. He had just wanted you to be OK.

His positivity alone hadn't been enough to ease your troubles, even as the man desperately wanted it to be. He only feared not having more to offer you beyond a smile and promise to keep you safe. He'll keep making that same promise 'til he's blue in the face if he has to.

Soap raises a fist to you gently, giving you a warm smile.

You tell him, "Try not to have too much fun."

Soap had wanted to say more, by the way his lips parted and the glint in his eyes twinkled, even beneath the red lighting. But he holds his tongue, knowing he must prioritize the mission. Duty above all else.

"Aye, aye lil' bird."

Soap gives you a parting wink, and then joins Ghost and the others at the front of the heli. You watch him the entire way, until the doors open, and a gust of wind barges into the heli, whipping through the fabric of your uniforms. This didn't feel real until now.

From where you still sat, you watch the lieutenant give him a scolding look, the men preparing to exit. "Keep up, Soap," he says.

The heli doors shut behind them, leaving you in a metal coffin shared between other marines you knew no better than the men you were about to fire on. With Ghost and Soap no longer around, it now leaves you to lead this team through thick and thin.

Gravity feels a lot heavier all of a sudden.

You hear the pilot speak into the comms, "Razor-1, all Bravo deployed. Moving to secondary HLZ."

The heli shift to the side, and you feel yourselves soar through the night sky, the sounds of gunfire increasing at every second.

"Alright," you call out to your men. "It'll be hot once we've landed. Check your gear and weapons now while you can. The faster we get this done, the faster we can call it a fucking night."

The marines all give you an affirming cheer of agreement, and for the first time all night you start to feel more positive about how things will go.

Yeah, you told yourself. This mission's like no other you haven't done in the past. Find your target, neutralize the situation, and get out. Simple.

You adjust your grip on your rifle and straighten up, your leg tapping even faster than your heartbeat. No word from Ghost or Soap on the comms yet. That had to be a good sign.

The helicopter dives to the right suddenly, sending you all back into your seats, before the chaos outside is instead drowned out by the sound of blaring alarms from inside the heli.

"All stations- Razor-1 is bracketed," the pilot chimes in. "We're getting lit! Incoming- Flares! Flares!"

Your heart sinks, your insides shifting and moving like waves in the ocean at every quick sway and dive the helicopter took in its evasive actions. Helplessly, you sit, not even able to see the enemies that fired upon you, bitter to not even of had the chance to step foot on the ground yet before this happened.

You all grab hold of your seats, doing what you can to remain stable. The heli sways, the sounds of flares deploying outside ripping through the rocket fire. The flight settles and a few seconds go by. It isn't until the warning alarms have been silenced that you finally release a breath of relief.

A narrow dodge.

But then, it shifts again, only this time you're not so lucky.

There's a loud crashing noise, followed by the erupting pop of an explosion, as it twist the metal of your helicopter, tearing it open.

"Razor 1 going down!" The pilot shouts. "We're going down!"

You watch in horror as one of the marines is sucked out of the hole, screaming the entire way out as they're eaten alive by the flames of your crashing coffin. You see the dark world outside painted in the passing glare of gunfire, spinning around you, your helicopter falling from the sky.

You clutch onto the straps to your seat and brace yourself for impact. Closing your eyes, you hold your breath and simply await the inevitable, doing your best to be ready. Just as you've been trying all night.

Metal and fire twists around you in a loud hurricane of booms and clashes, before all sense of the world around you became nothing but a cold, quiet air.

Dark.

An endless void.

You're not sure why, but the first thing that came to mind was Soap. You hadn't wanted to think of the horror he must be experiencing having just watched you get shot out of the sky. What flurry of emotions now twisted in him because of you.

So instead, you thought of him as he was before. Of his smiles, his eyes, the warmth of his embrace and the safety you felt with his words, even if he promised the impossible. You'd give anything to have John by your side now.

You still needed to tell him your name.

To Be Continued...

[spinningbuster98]

Metroid Other M Part 8: The hallow ending

You know...I’ve noticed that Sakamoto’s Metroid games seem to have issues in regards to their endings

With the exception of Super, most of his other games tend to have some sort of weirdness to them. Fusion’s ending is too abrupt, with the AI turning good on a whim simply because Samus just happened to pronounce the magic word by accident, which effectively resolved the X-threat right then and there. Zero Mission ends on a bit of an anti-climax due to the added stealth section ending with a fight against a random Ridley robot. Samus Returns’ Ridley fight is wholly unneeded and goes against the feel of the original Metroid 2. Dread’s ending is clearly rushed with Raven Beak pretty much just dumping a truck load of exposition at you with little explanation.

But none of them even comes remotely close to the absolute train wreck that is Other M’s ending

So let’s run this shit by the order in which it happens shall we?

So Samus fights and kills a Metroid Queen that Madeline sicks on her. Y’know what? This is actually the one useful thing that Samus does in this entire game: had she not taken care of this thing, MB may have used it to eliminate the Federation guys that had just arrived, including Anthony. So yeah, after all this time, Samus does one useful thing

She kills a walking plothole

Why is there a Queen on the Bottle Ship? It had been long established, since at least Fusion, that Metroids are only capable of evolving into their mature forms when they are raised in the environment of their homeworld SR388, which is why the BSL had a whole Sector dedicated to imitating that place, as ADAM explained. The Bottle Ship was not modelled after SR388, in fact Samus compares it more to Zebes. Now to be as fair as possible: Fusion never outright states that Metroids ABSOLUTELY need their homeworld to evolve, ADAM could’ve just meant that it was more ideal and easier. However whatever the initial intentions may have been that’s not what the series ultimately went with, as the Prime games feature Metroids evolving into different subspecies, such as the Tallon Metroids, as explicitly demonstrated by that one room on the Pirate Homeworld in Prime 3, which featured autopsies of Metroids of various origins. Normally I’d say that the two subseries should be kept relatively seperate so as to not create any clashings, but in this case the Prime games simply evolved a concept already hinted at in a 2D game, so in the interest of continuity Other M should’ve kept this into consideration. I mean this didn’t need to be a Metroid Queen, its narrative role could’ve easily been fulfilled by just any other big monster, it’s only a Queen because fanservice and nothing else. We lost continuity due to dumb fanservice and now Samus’ most substantial contribution to this plot is getting rid of a plothole. Just great.

MB is the mastermind behind it all! So now the game enters full movie mode in order to quickly explain to me her generic backstory just before she’s killed off so that I can feel sorry for her. Samus’ narration during the ending is flat out laughable, she’s literally explaining to us why we should feel sorry for MB and how her character worked because the story itself could not be arsed to.

This doesn’t work for so many reasons, first of all being that MB’s backstory is built on some impressive levels of stupidity and unclear logistics. These dumb asshole scientists created an AI based on Mother Brains. MOTHER. BRAIN. The AI infamous for betraying her creators and trying to conquer the galaxy. You base your AI on that thing’s “thought patterns”, put her in charge of your station’s Metroids and other highly dangerous creatures, take absolutely no precautions whatsoever, and then you go full surprised Pikachu face when she starts to grow independent? And then when you decide to reprogram her you do it by trying to forcefully restrain her when you know her android body is stronger than normal humans and can telepathically order every creature on the station to rip you to shreds? I’ve seen time travelling demons with Deviantart-level designs with better layed out plans than this!!

We are not informed about MB’s personality in any way whatsoever, aside from her developing a daughter-mother bond with Madeline. She has literally no personality beyond that. Which was also the case with Mother Brain, but at least past games never waxed poetry about how deep the characrer was and why I should be feeling bad for her! The best thing I can say about MB is that her tricking Samus into walking to her death in Sector Zero was actually pretty smart, but that’s it. That’s all there is to her. She’s a fucking muppet otherwise, which is pretty funny, given that her “developing emotions” was the crux that started this whole shitshow in the first place

I must also ask: how DID they analyze Mother Brain’s “thought patterns” to create MB? Mother Brain was a literal brain in a jar who never left Zebes. Sure the Federation was aware of her existence, so I guess she must’ve come into contact with them in the past I...guess through telepathy? Crossing galactic distances? Whatever.

And of course Samus doesn’t even take her down. No that honor goes to Madeline and the GF troops, followed by Anthony being revealed alive and as the one who previously stopped the engines of the station and is now allowing Madeline to be brought in for questioning. I mean why should Samus even do anything after all? She’s just an outsider as Adam put it at the start of the game: all this shit that’s been going on isn’t her story, it’s Adam and his men’s!

Oh and, just to put this here real quick, it’s sometimes said that the japanese version makes a distinction between the broader Galactif Federation and the guys behind the scenes here, who are supposed to be part of the Army, which is absent in the English version...except that’s not true. The English script certainly uses the terms “Galactic Federation” and “Galactic Army” pretty interexchangeably, but the distinction is there, especially with Adam flat out calling these guys a group of Ringleaders, saying that the broader GF was indeed contemplating making Metroids but that Adam conviced them otherwise with the exception of these guys, so the whole “the Galactic Federation as a whole is not corrupt, only a select few members are” idea has always been there in every version of the script. I’m more interested in knowing if this idea also existed in Fusion and was already a thing back then or if it’s a retcon that Other M came up with as a way to justify Samus still working with the GF in later games like Dread.

Anyway the day is saved! The villain was anti-climactically disposed of! Adam was a dick head to the end and died uselessly! Samus seems to have gotten over her issues for some reason, but hey if she’s happy then who am I to complain right?

Unfortunately we’re not quite done yet. We still have a little bit left before it’s truly over

[ironwoodprotectionsquad]

Is absolutely no one doing nitpick November this year? Yep. Did I just have a nitpick come up due specifically to work today and all the bullshit that comes with shipping. Yes. (I promise it’ll make sense in a minute)

So at the beginning of volume 6 we see Qrow sending off a letter to James. Cool fine whatever but then I thought about it and have to wonder…how does mail work in a world full of soulless man eating monsters? Do they only leave a town with a full truck load? How is it not extremely expensive to send out mail because realistically hunters would need to be assigned to the trucks and we know they can charge insane amounts of money. Hell mailing out things can be stupid expensive for us in a world with roads to most towns reliably and no monsters while Remnant has large areas seemingly without roads built for vehicles and aforementioned monsters. I know at the end of the day it’s not like huge to the story but I just have so many questions about the logistics of it all as someone who deals with mail and freight daily.

[imtheband28]

Never Grow Up

Hiii, this is my first little story that im posting, i hope you like it. I wanna dedicated to @harrywavycurly since she gave me a lot of motivation to do so. Thank you Sarah (go check her stuff) ❤️

Warning: None

I would love to go back to one of those first moments and tell you to calm down and not be in a hurry for anything. 

You had a little bed with airplane sheets that you loved and made you think every night that you wanted to get on one in the seat next to the window with your mother next to you who had just tucked you in, kissed you on the cheek saying "For you I put up with everything" and with a smile that you didn't know was broken closed the door behind her to let you sleep.

Oh little one all the dreams felt so real and everything but absolutely everything seemed funny to you. You played with the few toys you had, some new ones you found in unexpected places left behind by careless children and others that had seen better days. The courtyard of the small two-room house where you had lived until you were six years old seemed to be huge and to contain the whole world where all your fantasies of flying, secret excursions and fighting dragons came true.

The day your mother came running with her long curly hair flying around her to fetch you from the yard and take you out of your world of pirate fantasies I remember better than anyone knows you were about to jump over the plank of the ship that was really just a rock and jump into the grass covered with flowers that you said were sharks.

You thought your mother's desperation was because she was excited about something, but you didn't realize the terror she felt, which she covered with a very convincing smile that years later you began to copy. Who knew how many things one hides behind something as simple and reassuring as a smile. Had you known your mother's true feelings I know you would have grabbed her hand and told her what you believed with all your heart at the time: Everything is going to be alright.

A car horn honked and you climbed in loaded with two garbage bags full of clothes for both of you and your small school bag with your few toys on your back. Arriving at one of your favorite places in the world, your Uncle Wayne's house, your mother said it was just a big sleepover for a few days. Your uncle, always happy to see you, gave you great comfort and made you forget for a moment about the big flutter that was forming in your stomach from the tension that seemed to be getting thicker by the minute. Carrying the bag with your clothes and backpack to the room where your uncle said you would be for the next few days you couldn't help but hear "This time it's for real", "Who told the police?", "I did it Wayne, I can't take it anymore, it only exposes him to tremendous danger". 

At the door of the trailer your mother knelt down in front of you, pushed aside the curls that fell in front of your eyes and looking at you with an enormous intensity she told you that she loved you and that she would come back soon to take you and make your dream of sitting by the window and flying holding her hand come true. When she gave you one last kiss on your forehead and you saw the look she exchanged with your uncle before she got into the car with another woman you didn't know, you weren't sure if she would really come back as soon as she said she would.

She never came back.

Your uncle did his best to make you forget about the confusing and awkward moment you were going through. He helped you build forts in the living room in front of the TV, showing you his favorite vinyls with his favorite songs. When it was time to go back to school he bought you another backpack, two notebooks and a new pack of colored pencils, he combed your hair the best he could and put good softener on the clothes you were wearing, every week when they met after work and school brought you a new cap that his truck driver friends gave him just for you. The collection became so big that you saw no other solution than to start hanging them on the wall.

With the passage of time you got used to life with your uncle, you understood from almost the beginning that there was no other. When you were older, your uncle explained to you that your father got into a lot of problems and everyone had a limit, even patient and sweet people like your mother, but that wasn't an excuse not to come back to you. You told yourself that it didn't matter anymore and that you were going to move on with the person who was pushing you to do it. But in the long and silent nights of your adolescence when Wayne started working at night, the memories of an interrupted childhood and a change of protector without a real explanation made you feel that you were easy to forget and maybe a problem that's why your uncle had to work too much. When you got fed up with the noise of your thoughts and the tears your music was there, that's when you started buying cassettes and filling your walls with posters, you saved every penny Wayne gave you to buy your most precious possession. That guitar that gave you back an emotion that you only felt in your fantasy world in the courtyard of the one that was once your home. 

I wish you had stayed as small, as creative and excited about the world as when you were six.

 Your friends who formed the Hellfire Club with you cheered you up by making sure you looked good with a shaved head after some idiot in class put a piece of gum in the middle of your hair that was already getting past your neck. Those friends who decided to leave the club because of the constant teasing from others or who simply graduated earlier and didn't look back. You realized that the older you got the more afraid you got to love something or rather someone since everyone moved by themselves and you didn't know if you were in their plans so you decided to be selfish too, you felt that you were in your right and then you put on the leather armor that you always wear and the sword of your personality.

I wish I hadn't grown up, Wayne has more and more wrinkles, gray hairs and looks more tired than ever and that scares me but I try to make him forget about his problems that he never really talks to me about as well as he once did with me. Thinking about him, I did what I did.What once brought me immense joy today did it once again but it's not just a simple guitar anymore, it became a weapon that distracts bats. Keeping them from going to the place that Wayne made my home in the real world where everything wasn't dark and cold like here.

Ironic as the thing that scares me the most is what brought me here, I who no longer wanted to love anyone for fear that they would leave ended up loving, I knew them for a very short time but the very fact of thinking that something would happen to them, especially to Dustin made me make the decision I made.

God, that little one that reminds me so much of me, so much passion, so much energy, so much of everything. I loved him and I told him so and for a few moments I felt loved again before going away. Before just laying in this unknown horrible other world made by a monster  where everything seems to die.

I wish I hadn't grown up.

[cjdarcllogistics]

What is Third-Party Logistics (3PL)?

In today's fast-paced and highly competitive business environment, effective logistics management has become a critical component for success. Third-Party Logistics, commonly known as 3PL, plays a pivotal role in streamlining supply chain operations and enhancing overall efficiency. But what exactly is 3PL, and why is it so essential for modern businesses?

Understanding Third-Party Logistics (3PL)

Third-Party Logistics (3PL) refers to the outsourcing of logistics and supply chain management activities to a specialized external service provider. These activities can encompass a wide range of services, including transportation, warehousing, inventory management, order fulfillment, packaging, and freight forwarding. By leveraging the expertise and resources of 3PL providers, companies can focus on their core competencies while ensuring their logistics operations are handled efficiently and cost-effectively.

Key Benefits of Third-Party Logistics

Cost Savings: Outsourcing logistics to a 3PL provider can significantly reduce operational costs. 3PL providers benefit from economies of scale, advanced technology, and established networks, allowing them to offer competitive pricing and cost-effective solutions.

Expertise and Experience: 3PL providers possess extensive knowledge and experience in logistics and supply chain management. Their expertise ensures that logistics operations are executed with precision and efficiency, minimizing errors and delays.

Scalability and Flexibility: 3PL services are highly scalable, allowing businesses to adjust their logistics needs based on demand fluctuations. This flexibility is especially valuable during peak seasons or periods of rapid growth.

Advanced Technology: Leading 3PL providers invest in cutting-edge technology to optimize logistics processes. From real-time tracking and inventory management systems to data analytics and automation, these technological advancements enhance visibility and control over the supply chain.

Focus on Core Competencies: By outsourcing logistics functions to a 3PL provider, businesses can concentrate on their core activities, such as product development, marketing, and customer service. This strategic focus can drive innovation and competitive advantage.

3PL Services Offered

3PL providers offer a comprehensive range of services tailored to meet the unique needs of businesses. Some of the key services include:

Transportation Management: Efficient movement of goods from origin to destination through various modes of transportation, including road, rail, air, and sea.

Warehousing and Distribution: Secure storage facilities and efficient distribution networks ensure timely delivery of products to customers.

Order Fulfillment: Accurate and timely processing of customer orders, including picking, packing, and shipping.

Freight Forwarding: Management of international shipping and customs clearance to facilitate global trade.

Inventory Management: Real-time tracking and optimization of inventory levels to prevent stockouts and overstock situations.

Packaging and Assembly: Customized packaging solutions and assembly services to meet specific product requirements.

The Role of 3PL in the Indian Logistics Industry

The logistics industry in India has witnessed significant growth in recent years, driven by factors such as e-commerce expansion, infrastructure development, and government initiatives like Make in India. Top logistics companies in India are increasingly turning to 3PL providers to enhance their supply chain efficiency and meet the demands of a rapidly evolving market.

India's diverse and geographically dispersed market presents unique logistical challenges. By partnering with 3PL providers, businesses can leverage their extensive networks, local expertise, and advanced technology to navigate these challenges effectively. This collaboration not only improves operational efficiency but also contributes to cost savings and customer satisfaction.

Conclusion

Third-Party Logistics (3PL) has emerged as a crucial enabler of efficient supply chain management. By outsourcing logistics functions to specialized providers, businesses can achieve cost savings, scalability, and enhanced focus on core competencies. In the dynamic and competitive landscape of the Indian logistics industry, 3PL services play a vital role in driving growth and success.

For businesses looking to optimize their logistics operations, partnering with top logistics companies in India that offer comprehensive 3PL services can be a game-changer. Embracing 3PL solutions can pave the way for improved efficiency, customer satisfaction, and long-term business growth.

[nffica]

WHEN SHOULD YOU USE TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED TRUCKS?

When it comes to transporting freight, numerous methods are available to ensure that your goods reach their destination safely. Understanding which option best suits your shipping needs can be challenging. To assist with this, the experts at NFFI have gathered information to help you decide whether temperature-controlled trucks are suitable for your specific requirements.

WHAT DOES TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED FREIGHT SHIPPING ENTAIL?

Temperature-controlled freight shipping involves the careful handling and storage of products sensitive to environmental conditions during transportation. The primary objective is to maintain consistent temperatures throughout the journey, using either cooling, freezing, or heating mechanisms in the truck trailer, depending on the weather and the nature of the cargo.

GUIDELINES FOR PACKAGING REFRIGERATED FREIGHT

Given that temperature-controlled trucks have additional insulation, they typically offer less space than standard dry van trailers. It’s crucial to consider this space limitation when packaging goods for transport in such environments. Employing materials like polyurethane foam, radiant barrier films, and expanded polystyrene foam can effectively shield your items from heat during transit. For particularly heat-sensitive items, such as cold products, adding gel coolants or dry ice can help maintain low temperatures throughout the shipping process.

WHAT ITEMS ARE BEST SUITED FOR TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED TRUCKS?

Certain items are particularly susceptible to damage from extreme temperatures or humidity and are best shipped in temperature-controlled environments:

Produce and Plants: These items can wilt or over-ripen quickly under unfavorable temperatures, potentially speeding up the spoilage process for other goods in a standard trailer. Animal Products: Items like meat, eggs, and dairy products need to be kept at specific temperatures to preserve freshness and prevent spoilage. Pharmaceuticals: Many medications and vaccines must be stored at controlled temperatures to ensure they remain effective and safe for use. Beauty Products: These products can also degrade if subjected to temperatures outside of a certain safe range.

For further details on our freight solutions or to discuss your specific shipping needs, please contact the team at National Freight Forwarding Inc. We are available via our online contact form and look forward to addressing any questions you may have regarding our services.