#Heat Plate for Saturn

[lonestarflight]

Apollo 6 falling pieces and darkened area of SLA at 02:13.

"The problem with the SLA shedding parts of its outer skin during ascent was found to be due to a splice plate bond void in its honeycomb aluminum panels. Moisture had built up inside of the honeycombed structure resulting in an increase in pressure as the panel experienced aerodynamic heating during ascent. With no way to relieve the pressure, the panel’s skin failed at a splice and blew off. This problem was solved in the SLA to be used on the Apollo 7 mission (which would experience a less stressful environment during ascent on the Saturn IB) by drilling a series of holes in the panels to help equalize the pressure. On the SLAs to be used on Apollo 8 and subsequent Saturn V flights, a layer of cork was also added to the panels to help keep them cooler and absorb moisture."

Date: April 4, 1968

NASA ID: S68-3817

[crowandmousewritingco]

Pairing: Ezra x trans!reader

Words: 850

Rating: M (nothing explicit but dynamics implied)

Author: Mod Mouse

Summary: You are the center of attention at Ezra's gathering.

Notes: Thanks to @jennaispunk for reading it over!

The candles burn low in the intimate room casting shadows on the walls behind you. But you didn��t notice. You were looking ahead just like you were instructed to do. All you saw were the sparkles that danced on the floor from the multitudes of stars that graced the wall. Your dom had jumped on the idea of a celestial themed night at the club. 

The guests for tonight filed in one by one, escorted to their assigned seats by the attendant. Wine was poured and chattered filled the space as slowly each spot was taken. A soft music from a string quartet wafted through the room, giving a high class feel to the space. 

Once the last guest sat at their plate, the lights switched off sending soft murmurs throughout the crowd. All except for the spotlight on your figure. You were the center of attention for tonight. Legs spread to shoulder width, arms braced behind your back, and nude as the day you were born. Goosebumps prickled your skin as you waited patiently for your duty. 

Soft footsteps ascended the raised dais to where you stood as a soft applause rippled through the crowd. You could feel the presence of your dom standing next to you, and your fluttering heart calmed. The soft fabric of his suits brushing against your chilled skin. How you ached to nuzzle into his side like you could in some scenes, but this wasn’t one of them. He had the ropes tonight, and you were the canvas. 

“Welcome esteemed patrons! Thank you for joining us this twilight. Tonight we have a beautiful array of presentations for you. But first we must prepare the highlight of this carnal evening. So let’s not waste a singular moment. My ropes please.” Ezra spoke as another pair of footsteps came closer. 

The attendant set the rope in Ezra’s outstretched hands. “Thank you. Now maestros, a melody.” 

Soft violin music drifted through the space filling the ears of the attendants. A gentle touch on your shoulder alerting you to his orientation, but you kept your head down. His gloved hands caressed down to your shoulder blades and you instinctively lifted your arms. 

“Such a stunning specimen.” Ezra praised as he slid the rope around your chest, mindful of your scars. Slowly he pulled the two sides of the rope to your back. 

“Mercury takes its place as the sovereign planet keeping close to the warmth of the center of our cosmic asylum ” Ezra recited as he pulled the rope around your chest once again securing the line with the first loop.  

“Venus the next sphere. Brightest amongst her peers shines as a point of lust and love in the darkest of skies.” He continued as he pulled the rope through all three loops containing your torso in the intricate ties. 

His hands never leave your body as he takes his time moving in front of you. You dared take a peak at him and your stomach flushed with heat. Ezra appeared diving in his dark blue suit that glittered in the light from the intricate celestial embroidered sleeves. How you wanted to kneel for him. 

“The mother Earth that houses our great inventions, and keeps us grounded.” He pulled the rope over one shoulder securing it to the front loop before repeating the step with the other shoulder. 

“Mars that brings vengeance and scarlet across the horizon, and yet hope for the future of our kind.” He brought the rope back behind your back making sure everything was secure. 

Ezra returned to your back as he attached another rope to the other ropes. “Jupiter whirls as the storm in his soul, and commands the legions of moons as the army of the skies.” He pulled your arms back, joining them to the knots in your back ties. 

“Saturn with the rings as rich as any royalty's jewelry spinning at such incomprehensible speeds ” Adding a rope around your thigh and the other on your ankles.

“Uranaus and Neptune, the blue giants that are as frigid as their outward appearance.” A steel ring descended from the ceiling. Carefully he joined all three ropes on the ring making sure they were all tight. He turned his head and slowly the circle ascended pulling your body up slowly.

Your head dipped as the meditative sway of suspension took over your psyche. Gently you hung as the art piece you were designed to be. With one knee in the air as if you were kneeling, you drifted as the ropes subtle twisted and turned with the air. 

“Ethereal!” Ezra exclaimed as applause rippled through the room “I present my solar system!” Colorful globes descended and surrounded your form representing the mentioned planets. Lazily they orbited you in slow rotation. You were his sun and he wanted everyone to know that. 

Your eyes gazed down to Ezra as he watched his muse above him. Only adoration for you graced his features, and your heart fluttered in your chest. You closed your eyes once more as you fulfilled your duty to the night: Ezra’s chandelier.

Credit: @inklore

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[saturniandragon]

Systema saturnium (fictional alien civilization based on Saturn)

Word count: 1842 words

Kingdom of Saturnia, Saturnia, or simply just Saturn, is a planetary kingdom in the solar system based on Systema Saturnium*, the sixth planet from the sun. The homeland of the so-called Saturnians, an alien race resembling a humanoid dragon or reptile, it orbits the host star at an average of 9 AU (9 times the Sun-Earth distance), with orbital period of a little under 30 Earth years.

What once was thought to be a gas giant from the outside with an extensive and prominent ring system is hiding an extraterrestrial intelligent civilization underneath the super thick clouds of hydrogen and helium. Said civilization is sitting on top of a spherical rock about five times the size of Earth, although with relatively low density. Surface gravity is very similar to Earth's at around 10.6 m/s^2 (Earth = 9.8 m/s^2), with a surprisingly similar solar day duration of 24 hours. 40% of the surface is covered in liquid water as found on Earth. The complete absence of tectonic plates means the complete absence of earthquakes (or saturnquakes) all year round. Magnetic field of Saturn is only second strongest in the solar system after Jupiter.

The atmosphere is composed of a violent hydrogen and helium clouds on the upper part (the atmosphere visible from space) and a much more tame, livable layer underneath. It is unknown what form of alien technology is applied to achieve this seemingly impossible, unnatural and physics-defying atmosphere layers. Axial tilt of 26.7° (Earth: 23°) gives a periodic cycle of seasons on Saturn, much like seasons on Earth. Average surface temperature is -15°C, with maximum recorded temperature of 29°C in the equator and lowest recorded temperature of -70°C near the poles. Given how far the planet is located from the sun, it is also unknown what form of alien technology is applied to heat the planet internally to achieve this temperature range. The sky is a bizarre brownish-gold during the day, with bluish purple sunrises and sunsets.

The similarity of Earth’s atmosphere and Saturn’s internal atmosphere, as well as almost matching day-night cycle, has allowed humans to also live alongside the alien race relatively peacefully, albeit in very limited numbers. Conversely, some Saturnians have also found themselves living on the third planet from the sun although this is an act that’s considered insulting or offensive in some Saturnian culture. Human settlers tend to live on the equatorial region of Saturn, while Saturnians tend to settle near the polar regions of Earth, due to comfortable temperature requirements. It is unknown what sort of long-term effects of either race living in each other’s planets.

The denizens of the ring world occupy about 50% of the dry lands, with population of around 10 billion Saturnians. This is far below the estimated population size calculated by humans of around 25 billion Saturnians, given the solid part of the planet is 5 times bigger than Earth and the surface area is 25 times larger.

Flora on Saturn rely on chemosynthesis rather than photosynthesis, exploiting the rich Saturnian soil to thrive and feed the fauna as well as Saturnians themselves. Solar power is relatively unheard of in Saturnia due to the distance between the Sun and the ringed planet. Majority of power consumed for advancement of their race is harvested from wind farms, both on-ground wind farms as well as floating wind farms located high up in the atmosphere, exploiting the kinetic energy carried by the violent hydrogen and helium clouds.

Wind farms accumulate to 60% of Saturnian power requirements. 35% are from geothermal powerplants while the remaining 5% are from various sources such as organic fuel, hydroelectric generators and fusion reactors. Solar power, while currently not used for powering homes, is being experimented.

Saturnians themselves as a race are interesting relative to humans. Adult Saturnian typically stands at a global average of 185 cm across male and female sex. Certain regions are known for taller-than-average Saturnians, such as the region of Intera with their 200 cm-tall adults. Sex distribution sits at 100 to 101 ratio between male and female sex according to official Saturnian census data. Global weight average is around 78 kg, with males typically slightly heavier than female.

They are notable for their slow metabolism which in turn contributes to very long average life expectancy of around 450 to 500 years, with the recorded longest living Saturnian clocking in at 788 years. This very long life expectancy is offset by the fact that Saturnians have relatively low population growth rate and low healthy birth rate. Approximately in 10 to 11 Saturnian eggs, only 7 will hatch a healthy youngling while the rest dies in the shell. Saturnian technological advancements have achieved many wonders that ease and help everyday lives, although it hasn’t yet solved the low healthy birth rate problem that the race has been having for over 1.7 million years that they’ve existed.

Aside from their reptilian or draconic head appearance, they’re also notable for numerous other unique biological features. Adult Saturnians, both male and female, typically possess a pair of horns growing from behind their heads, although there have been historical records of specific figures growing up to 2 or 3 pairs of horns. A row of “sails” grow from on top of the skull, trailing back down the spine and ending at the back of the neck. Their “skin” is composed off uncountable millimeter-sized scales covering the entirety of the body. The eyes are bizarre with bioluminous “ring” surrounding the iris that glows green in low light areas, likely to help with vision.

Possibly the least notable but still impressive part is the thick “plates” made of chitin that cover their frontal area, from the neck, torso, abdomen and all the way to the tail. Females tends to have thicker plates at 25mm while males average on 12-18mm thick plates. These natural plates protect the vital organs like the lungs and the two hearts from frontal stabbing or slashing, while also flexible enough to allow agility and degrees of fidelity. Certain experiments have shown that the torso plates can deflect a small diameter projectile if hit at the thickest part and at just the right angle, although this is highly inadvisable due to safety concerns.

Their tail is distinctive for always having an exposed sharp bone at the end, with its form being unique from one individual to the next. Used for balance, it spans a length of at least half of their body height. In certain situations, the sharp bone part of the tail has also been used as a weapon or cutting implement. Like the arms and the legs, the tail is fully movable.

Saturnians don’t have a concept of “religion”, or rather they don’t have a word in their language for it. What they have resembles a communal belief that the entire planet of Saturn is “alive” and they actively integrate that belief in their day-to-day activity, treating the whole planet as a giant creature. Certain Saturnian cultures have slightly different interpretation, believing that the planet is what humans would call a god or deity, although Saturnians don’t have concept of god or deity either, or at least not in the same way as humans portray god, deity or higher power. Nevertheless, they behave as if “worshipping” the planet, sometimes making sacrificial “rituals” such as the so-called “blood ritual.”

Saturnians believe that the planet "give birth" to them. In days of old, at least once in every Saturnian year, individuals must partake in a "blood ritual" or "blood sacrifice." While the name may sound horrifying, the concept is relatively simple. One would gather a seed of a rare plant called xilavi plant, a flora considered sacred in Saturnian culture. The individual would then bury the seed in the soil (planter or pot forbidden from use) and -quite literally- use their own blood to "feed" the plant by cutting themselves in the wrist until their blood spills out. Amount varies from sources, but on average, about 100 mL of blood was considered sufficient.

Typically only performed by adult Saturnians (minimum 100 human years of age, according to various accounts), and supervised by a priest or a medical personnel to avoid losing too much blood. This ritual is believed to signify their concept of life cycle; they were born from the soil, so they must return to the soil they once came from. Others believe it's a way to repay the planet for providing them resources and materials to survive.

In modern times the practice has gone out of trend with their technological advancements. Many Saturnians now will rather donate blood for medical purposes, although certain priests that still hold the tradition highly still perform the ritual.

Extremely intelligent beings, Saturnians are close to being classified on Type I civilization on Kardashev scale.

Saturnian technology is incomparable to human technology, due to vast differences in how they design tools and manufacturing equipment, and how they approach it. Large settlements such as the capital city of Saturnia offer the most technological wonders. Electrified roads for levitating electric vehicles, super efficient water filtration system, and extensive use of artificial intelligence, to name a few. Less populated areas still provide similar level of technological advancements, although with less utilization for economy, effectiveness and energy conservation. Public transport, logistics and other public services are handled by artificial intelligence, only being supervised by engineers from time to time to make sure the standard is met.

Perhaps the most impressive technological wonder currently in deployment is levitation technology. The capital city of Saturnia, which is laid out like a hexagon when viewed from above, offers a public attraction in the form of a replica of the rings of Saturn, with a diameter of 1 kilometer, floating in the air with zero structural support from the ground, 600 meters above ground level and “orbiting” the government building complex in the heart of the city, the tallest artificial structure on the planet. Originally conceived as proof-of-concept of levitation technology, it’s become a pioneer of levitation technology used in public transport and numerous other vehicles, and now a tourist attraction and icon of the capital.

Despite all the differences compared to human species, both races still enjoy similar cultural aspects such as music, art, philosophy, language, and numerous others.

-----

*Systema Saturnium is a book by Christiaan Huygens, who first described the existence of ring system around Saturn in 1659 as a flat disk orbiting the planet. Galileo first discovered Saturn in 1610 with a telescope, but couldn’t make out the ring system around the planet and thought the rings were “ears” of the planet.

“The planet Saturn is not alone, but is composed of three, which almost touch one another and never move nor change with respect to one another. They are arranged in a line parallel to the zodiac, and the middle one (Saturn itself) is about three times the size of the lateral ones." –Galileo, 1610.

“Annuto cingitur, tenui, plano, nusquam coherente, ad eclipticam inclinato ([Saturn] is surrounded by a thin, flat, ring, nowhere touching, inclined to the ecliptic).” –Huygens, 1659.

[blacklight-ghoulette]

Remade the model, did a rest run. Broke it removing them from the build plate, but I managed to fix it.

I'm not used to the printer I used (my husband's Mars 2, that has sat sad and unused for over a year) so I gave it a whirl since being a much smaller resin vat I could heat the resin up easier till I fixed up a heated enclosure for my Saturn. It's a lower resolution, but it did pretty alright.

Also, resin is a few months out of date so it was all a fun experiment to see 'will shit even work?' and, glad to see that it did. Mostly. There's some issues with some edges coming out rather flat, so we'll see when I print them on my regular good boy printer.

[interstellar0range826]

New project Lore dump!

Yup, it's time for another new project. It's a setting I've been kicking around d for a while. This blog will probably be used as a form of personal notes on it too so be warned. But back on topic! The settingis called The Deep Dark! The Deep Dark is analogous to the solar system, but instead of being in the empty void of space - its in a vast underground. The Deep Dark was created by a creation diety known as "the maker". In the beginning, there was nothing. Only the maker and infinite ever permiating energy. The maker chose to shape the vast energy into something new. The maker made a set of lesser creatures known as "the glowy men". The glowy men are semi solid, humanoid creatures made of energy. There are nine major Glowy men with smaller, less powerful ones coming later. When the maker created the deep dark, they tasked each of the nine glowy men with a different job to help create the Deep dark. In the beginning, the deep dark was an infinite expanse of stone. Each of the glowy men were tasked with adding something to the stone.

Of the nine glowy men:

Jupiter, Giant of the glowy men, was tasked with carving the walls and ceiling of the deep dark.

Venus, gave heat to the deep dark, allowing magma and plate tectonics to renew old rock. This gave warmth and light.

Mercury, littlest of the glowy men, filled the rocks with valuable ores like iron, nickel and coal to be used as fuel by future civilizations.

Saturn (similar to Mercury) gifted the deep dark with precious gems and crystals, giving g beauty to the deep dark.

Uranus was tasked with filling the upper levels of the deep dark with ice and cold temperatures. This was to balance the heat given by Venus.

Neptune filled pockets of the deep dark with water. This allowed rocks to erode and minerals to build up in the water.

Mars was tasked with exploring the deep dark. Carving tunnels and networks for future explorers to discover.

All these set in place allowed Terra Firma (Earth) to gift the Deep Dark with life. Starting simple with basic plants, fungi, and Lichens.

Lastly, Pluto, oldest of the glowy men, filled the deep dark with a unifying darkness.

(More to come . . . )

[the-firebird69]

And yeah these people assholes this lady wants to send in her legs are a mess and her back is a mess and she has a cart right in front of her won't use it because our son has been using it yes repulsive they're so stupid so just walk around ruin it that's what happens

-but this other huge things occurring today and coming up very soon within the hour I wonder if Mars and it's attracting all the winners on some reason other groups are not going there yet and in large numbers we're there two degree but wow that's a lot of ships.

-so big huge incident going on shortly probably will give me the hour or 1 hour it is nearby planet no Saturn other fleets are headed there and in Mass it's almost like the idiots are idiots and don't have the information but they want to use Mars to try and get the Saturday if they can get it together before Saturn and that's our goal and they will attract the pseudo empire which is beginning to heat up and it will be a war so they're all jumping around saying that they're operatives and all this other stuff it is just as bad as it used to anyway just as dumb except there a little bit more detached and more dangerous

-and what's going on now it is going on now there's a couple more things that we're going to mention we have about 50 people who are very lame. Besides Saturn and there's a large large amount of ships going that direction. So far 2 billion pseudo empire are going to head out to Mars and three billion will head to Saturn and the empire is heating up 2 billion the foreigners are heating up with 3 billion and the appointed to send one billion to Mars it's going to be a huge war in space shortly and I didn't even know what happened last time but some people think they know and it's a good detected stuff and the more luck don't believe that kind of thing so that's what happened

-this other huge things occurring and it's starting today it is about this area there's a huge number of people who are unfit for duty and they can't really tell

-huge news today decide the humongous to space battles there are large space battles occurring off Venus and it'll be constant and they're trying to threaten to get stuff in space and it's horrific? Hera has gone through before but not with battle groups this large we do have solutions now though

-there are other items happening if she'd like to have a word

Thor Freya

I am very displeased with their attitude their method their behavior with a bunch of adolescents and jerks and they had an act in westborough and it was unnerving and frightening now their stuff is so bad we just need to reduce them rapidly and it is my suggestion there are too many and stuff that are complete nuts and it's dangerous

Hera

We're doing that and we are on it and we have a huge horses heading in and we activated all of our troops and we are also actively recruiting at this very moment in a rush mostly for interplanetary defense

Hera says thank you and Zeus

-are there other things occurring and the big news in Charlotte county city of punta Gorda the comptroller I was relieved of duty and yeah they were kind of working 4 hours or 4 days a week or something and there are others who are getting fired from punta Gorda the controller was released this morning I understand and by the pseudo empire. There's other things happening and they are pretty large in Charlotte county the county commissioner was relieved of duty and he is one of John Reema Lord clothes and there's others in his staff half of it the people who do the accounting we mentioned the tax assessor tax collector that entire department was giving you x and for doing it legal activities constantly. And there's another one too since they're tax assessor offices the DMV and RMV and they can't decide what the thought they replaced half the staff although that staff just keeps pumping out and plates for no matter who no it's going to take it's incredibly difficult and they would not let us have one for the crack of dude which is happening now and they're going to be gone the same stupid s*** like this idiot and green and their clueless okay and there's also some of them who get it most of them don't. And the building department is speaking of which half of them in punta Gorda where are we released and three quarters in Port Charlotte and they're just out. And they will release the rest of them on Monday they're completely idiots and they're not even inspecting what's going on and there's a lot of construction.

Thor Freya

Olympus

Good today is a good day so far. I do need protection though

Hera

You're heading there with more battle groups and we heard you and we did consultant they did say so and these are killer you would be pleased if we could tell you what they were

Savage opress

I see they're probably starcraft class Armada which is probably the best and that's my husband say it and he says yes some of them and they kick ass and they're moving out which is great

Hera

Olympus

[spacenutspod]

After months of waiting, SpaceX made its second attempt at an orbital flight this past Saturday (November 18th). During their previous attempt, which occurred back in April, a fully-stacked Starship (SN24) and Super Heavy (BN7) prototypes managed to make it off the landing pad and reach an altitude of about 40 km (25 miles) above sea level. Unfortunately, the SN24 failed to separate from the BN7 booster a few minutes into the flight, causing the vehicle to fall into an uncontrolled tumble and forcing the ground teams to detonate the onboard charges. Things went better this time as the SN25 and BN9 prototypes took off at about 7:00 AM local time (8:00 AM EDT; 05:00 AM PDT) from the Starbase launch complex. The SN25 successfully separated from its booster two minutes and fifty seconds later – at an altitude of 70 km (43 mi) – and reached an altitude of about 148 kilometers (92 miles), just shy of SpaceX’s goal of 150 km (~93 mi). However, the booster stage was lost about 30 seconds after separation, exploding over the Gulf of Mexico. The SN25 also exploded about eight minutes into the flight, reportedly because its flight termination system was activated. Elon Musk chimed in on X after the launch, reposting the company’s live video of the flight test (as well as a shorter slow-motion closeup video taken from the launch tower). Musk also posted pictures of the launch pad the day after the launch to confirm that there was no damage this time around. “Just inspected the Starship launch pad and it is in great condition!” he shared on his X page. “No refurbishment needed to the water-cooled steel plate for next launch. Congrats to @Spacex team & contractors for engineering & building such a robust system so rapidly!” Post-launch images of the landing pad at Boca Chica. Credit: SpaceX This is a big improvement over the first launch attempt, which caused significant damage to the landing pad and sent debris in all directions, causing collateral damage to the facility. This was avoided thanks to the water-cooled steel plate, a deluge system installed after the last test. This was one of dozens of corrective measures recommended by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which engineers at Boca Chica have spent months integrating. This included the addition of a forward heat shield interstage to the Starship and expanding the Area of Potential Effects for cultural resources. Another improvement over the previous test flight was that all 33 of the booster’s Raptor 2 engines ignited this time, whereas 31 ignited the last time. “The real topping on the cake today, that successful liftoff,” said SpaceX commentator John Insprucker. The successful separation of the Starship from the Super Heavy was another major success, as was the altitude achieved, just two kilometers shy of the goal of 150 km (93 mi). “We got so much data, and that will all help us to improve for our next flight,” added commentator Kate Tice. After the launch, the FAA released a statement about the test, saying that a “mishap” led to the loss of both the spacecraft and booster. “The anomaly resulted in a loss of the vehicle. No injuries or public property damage have been reported,” they said. They also reported that an investigation was underway to determine what went wrong, which is standard procedure whenever a spacecraft is lost. Like the last test flight, SpaceX will not be cleared for more launch tests until the review is complete and corrective measures are taken. The Starship and Super Heavy is the biggest and most powerful launch system in the world, standing 121 meters (400 feet) tall, weighing 5 million kg (11 million lb), and capable of generating 75.9 meganewtons (MNs) or 17.1 million pounds thrust (lbf). This exceeds the three-stage Saturn V rocket that was the workhorse of the Apollo Program and (until recently) the most powerful rocket ever developed. It also exceeds NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) that will send the Artemis astronauts to the Moon in the coming years. The launch vehicle will also play a vital role in the Artemis Program in the form of the Starship Human Landing System (HLS). In April 2021, NASA awarded SpaceX a $3 billion contract to develop the human landing system that will land astronauts on the Moon by 2025 as part of the Artemis III mission. This will consist of four astronauts in an Orion spacecraft launching atop an SLS and rendezvousing in lunar orbit with the Starship HLS – which will launch separately. Two astronauts will transfer to the Starship HLS and use it to descend to the surface, then return to orbit about a week later. Musk has also been clear that the ultimate aim of the Starship and Super Heavy is to conduct regular missions to Mars that will culminate in the creation of the first self-sustaining city there. Other objectives include sending crews and payloads to the Moon to assist NASA’s plans for a “sustained program of lunar exploration and development” and launching batches of Starlink 2.0 satellites to provide high-broadband internet access to the entire world. With this latest test, SpaceX has taken a significant step in that direction. On the downside, the booster and spacecraft were lost before the ground teams could attempt the all-important retrieval phase. This is vital for the “entirely reusable” Starship and Super Heavy launch system and Musk’s long-term vision for conducting regular flights to orbit, the Moon, and Mars. On the plus side, this test flight lasted twice as long as the first attempt, and the launch system managed to make it past the Karman Line: 100 km (62 mi) above sea level, the official boundary of “space.” This essentially demonstrated that the Starship and Super Heavy are capable of orbiting flight. Granted, the rockets need to stop exploding first, but such has always been the way with SpaceX’s rapid prototyping and testing approach. Every launch, even the ones that go “kaboom” – no, especially the ones that go “kaboom” – is another step towards success. Further Reading: Phys.org The post SpaceX Tested Its Starship Again. Successful Launch But Both Vehicles Were Destroyed appeared first on Universe Today.

[vorphyxredtech]

Learn Something New About Earth And our Solar System

We have all looked up to the night sky to enjoy the sacred beauty of the universe. We have always been curious about the vast expanse of the universe and its remarkable collection of unique planets and shining stars.

Today, let's embark on an exciting journey to learn something new about our home in the galaxy - Earth and our Solar System.

THE EARTH:

The warm atmosphere, plenty of water (about 71% of the surface cover) and habitable temperatures make life on Earth possible. The Earth is not a perfect sphere. It swells by 0.3% at the equator as it rotates on its axis at about 1,674 km/h. It is also tilted on its axis by about 23.4 degrees, causing our annual cycle of seasons.

The Earth's outer core is made of molten iron and nickel, which generates an electric current. The rotation of our planet causes a dynamo effect that creates a magnetic field around the Earth, protecting us from solar radiation.

Then comes the mantle, which is made up of magma, which is molten rock. The outermost layer, called the crust, has several regions with tectonic plates. Magma in the mantle causes these plates to move and collide, causing earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, mountain formation and ocean trenches.

This process recycles carbon as microscopic organisms and plants fall into the space created by the moving plates. This process extracts carbon from the atmosphere and creates a cool crust as the magma solidifies.

Thanks to these favourable conditions, life thrives on planet Earth. Solar systems:

About 4.5 billion years ago, a dense cloud of interstellar gas and dust collapsed and formed a spinning disk of matter called a solar nebula.

Gravity pulls more matter into the center and the core is so compressed that it combines hydrogen atoms to form helium. It released an enormous amount of energy, creating our Sun.

Going deeper into the disk, the matter has aggregated and formed larger objects. Their gravity shapes them into spheres, and this is how our planets, asteroids, and moons are formed. Now that we know our history, let's learn an interesting fact about each planet in the solar system.

Mercury takes about 58.6 Earth days to complete a day!

Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system due to its toxic atmosphere of clouds of carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid, which traps heat and maximizes the greenhouse effect.

Rocks on Mars are mainly composed of iron, which oxidizes and turns red. Mars appears red when this rusty dust is thrown into the atmosphere

The infamous Red Spot on Jupiter is a giant storm, even bigger than the earth! It has been raging for over 300 years already!

Saturn's rings are fragments of comets, asteroids, broken moons, and dust particles that are ripped apart by its gravity before entering its atmosphere.

Uranus is tilted on its axis by an angle of 97.77 degrees, causing it to turn to the side.

Neptune takes about 165 Earth years to orbit the sun!

We hope you now have a better understanding of our home in the universe. But don't be intimidated by the universe, because the purpose of the universe is not to feel small in comparison, but to be grateful to be a part of something so great.

[moa-broke-me]

wait hold on, let me try (i've been wanting to do this for a while but I wasn't sure you'd appreciate it, with the third chapter already out and all. maybe it could take place before they woke up, idk)

-

Luke's heart squeezed as he walked in on the two of them cuddling in bed. He should've known better than to separate them, they were obviously attached at the hip.

Don't be ridiculous, Kronos chided. We want soldiers, not babies. We can't coddle them the way you did Annabeth.

Luke winced at the mention of his owlette. She probably hated him now. 'I can't just push my nature aside like that.' He mentally argued.

Sure you can. You did it last summer.

Luke winced again. He'd never stop feeling guilty about poisoning Thalia.

He sighed and kneeled down to shake them a little. "Hey, it's time for breakfast." He muttered.

Nico groaned awake, and then shook Leo. "Yeah? What is it?"

"Time for breakfast," Luke repeated. "get up."

Leo and Nico both groaned and got up, Leo following behind Luke, and Nico behind them both.

They sat at the covered bench at their campout, with a small bowl of oatmeal, a glass of milk, and half a slice of toast each. Luke had hoped that he could get some of the enchanted plates from the cafeteria back at Camp Half-Blood, but for now, supplies were running low. Normally, they relied on the few Demeter kids that ran off with the TA to grow their food, but it was winter, and a particularly harsh one at that. Any crops they did manage to grow were so small that it was more economical to just sell them and use the money to buy oatmeal and powdered milk in bulk. And even then, they couldn't be sold for more than ten cents or so each, so it was a waste of their strength to bother growing them at all.

Both of the boys had finished theirs in under a minute, and he felt so bad for them, knowing for a fact it wasn't enough to feed a baby.

Don't. Kronos advised. They need to learn to live with this kind of hardship sooner or later.

Luke wanted to scream, but he would sound like he'd lost whatever sanity he'd had before. So he settled for clenching his fist tightly, looking down at his own untouched plate. He sighed, and gave Leo his oatmeal, and Nico his toast. He'd just have to subsist on milk for now.

Luke could almost see Kronos face-palm, his seven halos, representing Saturn's rings, jostling from inertia. What are you doing? You're the general here, you're the leader, and by far the strongest demigod soldier we have! And you're gonna give up your food for the sake of two scrawny little brats?

This time, he argued back under his breath. "You said we were supposed to let them heal, how can we expect them to get better if we don't feed them?"

They've gotten fed just as much as everybody else here. They shouldn't get special treatment just because they're your personal projects!

Kronos' scolding was interrupted by a cheek resting against his shoulder. Nico had closed his eyes, asleep again. Luke stroked his hair sentimentally, looking back to Leo. "You wanna go back to bed too, Leo?"

He yawned. "Okay."

Luke stood up, carrying Nico on his hip. He was so tiny, so fragile. He's been through enough hardship already. "Ok, come with me." He held his hand out, and reluctantly, Leo took it.

He led Leo to his tent, which was the biggest and closest to the kitchen, which made it nice and warm. "We can get your things from your tent later, if you want."

Leo sat on the blow-up mattress that Luke had, before curling up on it like a cat on top of a heating vent. "Thank you."

Luke laid Nico on the bed next to him, and he curled up to Leo in his sleep. "No problem, kid."

No matter what Kronos said, he'd take care of these kids. He would look after them, make sure they were safe and healthy, grant them any softness he could spare in such a hard and unfair world.

Ugh. What a sucker. Why did I pick you again?

Chapter 2 of the Valdangelo AU!

Tw: Cringe Man's POV

"Master Kronos, they're just kids. They're hurt, sick."

We'll let them heal and train them to fight like warriors.

"That doesn't make us any better than the Gods, we-"

DON'T YOU DARE COMPARE ME TO THOSE IMBECILES!!! Kronos yelled, the ground shaking. Luke wasn't phased at all.

You aren't any better either. You used those girls and their little friend. These kids are powerful. We do what needs to be done. Do you understand? Luke thought he did. It was the same situation as the Percy kid, so why did it feel wrong? He shook his head. Kronos was right. Besides, the training takes years. They won't go into actual battle until they're way older.

"I understand. I apologize for my incompetence. They'll turn out great."

-------------

When Nico woke up, his first thought was fire. Fire, he saw fire. And Leo. Leo.

"Leo!" He yelled, sitting up quickly, which only caused his head to swim and his stomach to churn. He leaned over the bed and puked on the floor. He regretted it a minute later but shook his head having more important things to worry about. He saw a cup of water on the desk next to him and drank it with shaking hands. He shook in pain and layed back down, his surroundings not familiar in the slightest.

Then he remembered someone carrying them. Are they in danger? Did they get kidnapped?! The questions made his head hurt more, tears falling so he made himself relax. When he was, he couldn't help himself and fell asleep.

-------

Leo woke up on a stiff matress, warm, comfy. Which made him confused. Warm? Comfy? He couldn't remember what happened. He sat up and got dizzy but shook it off and got over it quickly. Then it all came flooding back to him. Nico was dying. Fire. He had to use fire. Some blonde guy. Blue eyes. Scar. Name? Luke. Luke offered help. Leo was crying. Hysterical. Couldn't think. Agreed.

Mierda. He thought and stood up. He needed to find Nico. But he didn't want to alert anyone who might be here. He stood up slowly and froze when he looked around. He just now realized where he was. A tent. He started panicking.

Oh dear God, I shouldn't have trusted him. This is the start of like all True Crime stories, I need to find Nico. He thought sneaking out. He kept going towards the sounds of talking but stopped when he saw monsters. Tons of monsters just everywhere in the middle of the forest. There were people here and there, but he hid behind a tree anyway. Until, they transformed into a green lady who rolled her eyes and left, showing him to everyone - thing? - there.

"Shit."

--------

Nico felt much better the next time he woke up. So he got up and looked around. The throw up was cleaned up, and he felt anxious. Someone else was in here. He got out of the tent and closed the curtain, and shook his head. Monsters. Lots of monsters. He spent so much time out of camp that he forgot he was a demigod. Maybe he wanted to forget he was one completely.

He shook his head and took a breath to prepare himself. He just needed to sneak past them, find Leo, and escape. Simple. He took another breath and stuck his out, looking for a way to get past them. He sighed when he didn't see a way out and was about to go back in, but he spotted someone running past. A person. Curly hair. Leo. He smiled and ran after him the attention on him too now. He didn't care.

"Leo!" He yelled and he stopped and turned around. They hugged tightly, Leo digging his face into his shoulder.

"Nico, what's happening?"

"I-I don't... I don't know." Then someone touched Nicos shoulder, and he flinched and took out his sword.

"Stay back!" He yelled, and they all backed away.

"Hey! It's okay! It's me! Remember?"

"Luke?" Leo asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah... I brought you here to help you remember?" He asked, and he nodded.

"But-but what's happening, who-what-who are these people? Everyone... they said I was insane. Please tell me this is real." He cried and Nico grabbed his hand.

"Hey. Breathe. You're not crazy. This is real. Everyone who said you are are mortals. I don't... know if you're a demigod but I'm... one."

"A... demigod?"

"Half God, Half Mortal. Like me. Hermes."

"Hades."

"He's definitely a demigod." A monster said, and Leo sat down.

"How did you find out... who it was?"

"It's called claiming. A glowing symbol of the Gods signature will appear above your head." Luke explained and Leo covered his face.

"Are you... okay?" Nico asked, and Leo nodded.

"Just... need a minute."

"Let's go back to the tent I was in." He said, helping him up and walking away with him. They sat on the bed, and Leo broke down.

"I almost lost you." He cried, and Nico grabbed his hand, trying to hide his tears.

"It's okay now. I'm here." His voice cracked and they hugged and just held onto each other the rest of the night.

-------

@moa-broke-me @yonemurishiroku @pjo-hoo-toa-freakazoid @potatoman-taterdude @unidentifiedimp @the-demigod-slytherclaw @im-always-lost-in-a-book @stillcarmine @art-randomness @cryptic-ember

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[jujutsubabe]

“That’s such a Capricorn thing to say”

Megumi x reader

Word count: 1.1k

A/n: this is old and has been in my drafts for a month😭 it’s time to post it.

Megumi glared your way as you smugly stared back, you were teasing him... right?

You had been telling him this for days, almost a week now of you going on your astrology binge and commenting on anything anyone did as a very “horoscope” thing to do.

If only he didn’t answer you when you asked “hey what time were you born? I want to find your birth chart.”

He didn’t know answering that question would lead to where he was now. If only he kept his mouth shut instead of telling you, every day made him regret that choice.

He’d twist his head before shaking it, better not to ask.

If he slipped his hand out of yours in public?

If he slipped his hand out of yours in public?

“Ah right, Capricorn’s aren’t too into PDA.”

He furrowed his brows, about to say something before giving up and rolling his eyes.

If you caught him organizing his desk?

“Ah, cleaning and organizing in your free time? Very Capricorn like.”

He twisted his face. What does that even mean??

What’s worse was you didn’t just stop with him. Every conversation with anyone else was like this, it only got worse when you brought horoscopes up with Gojo.

It was as if the two of you only talked about horoscopes, every conversation he happened to walk into were when you and him discussed star signs.

This all led to now, you were rambling on and on about how important it was to know the planet signs, with Gojo adding onto the conversation with hums and more information.

“But that’s why I think Nobora, Itadori and you are so similar, you’re all fire signs so you’re like different fonts of the same person. With Megumi being an earth sign he’s the calm that holds the group to ground level, I think its such a fiery balanced group that...” you continued to ramble on and on.

Megumi couldn’t help but twitch. You talked about this. Daily. “Is that all you can talk about...?”

You clicked your tongue, “That’s such a Capricorn thing to say...”

Gojo nodded, “I can’t believe how accurate it is!”

Megumi considered switching schools that day.

That was until a shift occurred. A subtle change he happened to notice when the two of you were in his room.

The normal, laying on his bed and cuddling or scrolling through your phone turned into you… randomly tidying up his room. Like making his bed or color coordinating his clothes as you hung them up, something that softened him up.

It was so odd but domestic. You would pop in at times with homemade foods, and he was such a sucker for anything homemade, when you brought him a plate for dinner, his heart did a little tumble roll.

The two of you were sitting on his bed as you ate, with you glancing up at him to see his bright expression every time he took a bite.

He wiped his mouth, “I didn’t know you could cook.”

“Of course I can cook.” You recalled the way your past meals blew up in flames out of nowhere, making you reconsider your words. “I mean I mess up sometimes… but still.”

“I didn’t expect you to be so nice this week.”

“You’re welcome?” You cocked your head, how exactly do you respond to that.

His eyes followed you as you got up to take the empty plates away, “Did you want me to pay you back?”

“For what?”

“For helping me. Is there an ulterior motive...”

“Really?” You held a flat look on our face, “I like helping you every once and awhile. Since you do so much for me already.”

“Oh.”

You caught him off guard with that one. He could feel his face heat up and desperately hoped he wasn’t blushing.

“I didn’t know.” His eyes dipped down as he scratched his neck, he felt. So. Soft. Mushy. Having someone care for him this way wasn’t common. “Did you want to lay with me?”

You grinned, placing the dishes on his desk, you could deal with that later.

He adjusted his legs as you hopped between his legs, letting him bear hug you from behind and rest his chin on your shoulder.

He always managed to sucker punch the air out of you when he held you this close, his light breathing down your neck sent too many butterflies for you to catch.

“I love you.” He mumbled into the crook of your neck, placing the lightest paper light kiss onto it.

Your eyelashes fluttered shut, a content hum leaving your throat. How does anyone keep their composure in this situation?

There was a silence as he held you so close, like a question was to be posed.

“But…” he looked at the side of your face, “does any of this have to do with horoscopes…?”

You paused. “How… how did you know?”

He pursed his lips as you laughed. “It was too specific,” he knew there was something fishy going on. You turned him into an experiment, a very romantic way of turning your boyfriend into a test dummy. “Was it a love language?”

“Yes, acts of service,” you pulled out your phone, scrolling through hundreds of tabs relating to ‘how to make your Capricorn boyfriend happy.’ “I wanted to see if it worked.”

He smiled as you began to close them out, then you turned to him, “I mean did it work?”

Duh. He rolled his eyes, not even responding to your question. This man was whipped for you, and he wasn’t going to lie… you putting in that much to make him happy just bursted a confetti of butterflies in him.

He squeezed you closer, burying his head into your shoulder. To be loved this much, to have someone do anything to make him happy, it was a gentle feeling that washed over him.

“Yes.”

Of course it worked. Whatever you did always made him happy.

Extra:

“People get it mixed up a lot but your moon sign is how you are in your inner world! Not the sun sign, it’s the sun sign that shows how your zodiac personality is, like people say it shows what you want and moon sign shows what you need! It’s so interesting, and the signs are ruled by planets, so you know Capricorn is ruled by Saturn and when it gets into retrograde then...”

You looked back to see if he was catching on.

He stared back at you. Still wondering what the hell a Capricorn even was.

[tryingmyves]

The Vampire Masquerade

PAIRING: vampire!Tenya Iida x female!Y/N

a/n: i have brain rot from vampire!iida whoops

c/w: implied smut smut golf

tagging the iida army: @peachiileaf + @saturnity + @honeypirate + @coleluuviida + @uwu-iwanttodie + @high-on-potats + @khai-luvs-iida ✨

The warnings of the serious and sinister man in the castle north of your village rang in your ears endlessly as a child. It was said that he was cruel and handsome, with crimson eyes that always looked hungry. Scary stories of how he moves silently through shadows, too swiftly for sound to catch, remind children to be home before dark. For some time you listened to them. However, as you grew so too did your curiosity and unearned confidence.

You wandered in the woods near the castle grounds on occasion, hoping to catch a glimpse of the mysterious man. Lingering after the sun had set, testing him to take you away. He did. But not in the way you were warned. You had been traipsing through the forest each evening for nearly a week before he appeared. He did so suddenly and without warning, apparating behind you soundlessly. His presence only noticed when he spoke, “Hello, miss.”

You had gasped at the unexpected voice, turning to see him behind you. He was tall and muscular, though not in a way that made him bulky. A loose cotton tunic draping over his toned chest. He wore trousers and formal shoes, remarkably unusual for your surroundings. Yet he moved with such grace it was as if he controlled the very ground beneath him.

With a slight bow he extended an icy hand, “It’s quite late for a lady to be out in the woods. Please allow me to walk you to town.” His eyes were not hungry like you had expected, but filled with a curiosity that was reflected back at you in the stained mirrors of your home. You allowed him to escort you back to them that night and he did so with kind conversation. He was nothing like the devil described in the tales of mothers. He was chivalrous and beautiful. And you were helplessly drawn to him. So the next evening you ventured back into the forest and he escorted you home once more. The two of you fell into a waltz of orchestrated happenstance. Lord Iida was aware of your intentions and masterfully manipulated them into his own.

Soon you were living in his castle, an honored guest. You dined on decadence daily and bathed in velvet silks. The Lord never feasted himself, only sipped a deep red wine from a goblet. You were allowed access to his library and spent the days exploring the castle and it’s secrets. In the evenings Lord Iida would lead you to the ballroom, now in a dance of his own design. You had possessed him and he was determined to have you. However, always the gentleman, Lord Iida had to court you first. He did so effortlessly; in a fortnight you were madly in love.

This evening Lord Iida sits with you as you eat, but his usual goblet is absent.

“Lady Y/N, may I make a proposal?”

Your cheeks heat from the way he says your name, “Please, my Lord.”

“After you’ve finished your meal this evening, perhaps I may escort you to my chambers instead of the dancehall.”

There’s a brief stutter in your heart at his words. He has been so proper with you. Despite your longing the Lord had not even kissed you yet. He only ever graced your knuckles with his lips. He’d hold you while dancing in the great hall, but never anything more. But now, he’s asking to whisk you away to his chambers. You put down your fork with as much delicacy you can manage and place the folded silk in your lap onto your unfinished plate.

“I’d quite like that, my Lord,” you say, standing.

And so he does. Flashes of lightning from this evening’s storm illuminate your journey through the castle halls; your heart keeping rhythm with the patter of raindrops on the stained glass, cathedral windows. You're in his room before you have a chance to tame the beating contraption. His lips are on yours in an instant, his tongue snaking into your mouth. With ease, he lifts you from the ground, your legs instinctively wrapping around his torso. He stalks to the bed, throwing you on to the feathered mattress. And now you see the hunger that you had been warned about all those years ago.

[tempestaurora]

in another time, a gladiator stucky au by @tempestaurora​

image IDs under the cut

IMAGE ID:

FIRST IMAGE: 

i.

 Sunlight dappled across the stone floor, casting cool, dancing shadows in the summer heat. Bucky yawned and stretched, flexing his toes into the sunspots and smiling from the warmth. He watched the newest boy to the school, a scrawny thing called Steve, stand alone in the courtyard.

He tipped his head to the side and called out, “New boy! Over here!”

Steve had straw blonde hair and eyes like the Aegean Sea. He seemed hesitant for a moment before heading over. When he arrived, he looked at Bucky like he might bite, but after sitting, he simply melted into the sunspot Bucky had found.

“You’re pretty small,” Bucky observed. “Your family sell you?”

“What? No, they didn’t.” Steve’s eyebrows furrowed; he seemed insulted by the mere notion. “Your family sell you?”

Bucky shrugged. “Indentured, actually,” he replied. “But they’re practically the same thing. Why are you here, then? You have dreams of being a gladiator?”

Steve scoffed. “No. I don’t. But it was either this or live on the streets.” He paused, twisting his fingers into his tunic. “My mater died, recently. She was all I had.”

Bucky stilled. “Oh,” he said. “Perhaps she is better off now; perhaps she is in the Land of Joy.”

Steve nodded, barely. “There are few places better than the underworld, these days.”

SECOND IMAGE:

ii.

Steve may have been small, but he was fast. He twisted and turned in combat, picked up the skills with ease, and learnt to use his size to his advantage. If he got hit, he was down, so Steve learned to avoid the punches thrown his way.

They trained year-round, through summer heat and winter snow, and soon they grew. Everything Steve learned about being small and fast was discarded when he hit his growth spurt at fourteen, suddenly taller than half his class and finally able to make the attacks, not simply dodge them. He watched Bucky often; the two of them nigh inseparable since his arrival at the school. Bucky was not a golden student, but he was a golden boy; his eyes were like Jupiter’s sky and his hair grew thick and dark in a shaggy mess.

There were few things Steve found himself caring about more than the only boy in all of Italia who knew him, inside and out.

[Beneath is a photo of  the ruins of a temple of Saturn, backlit by the sun. It is ethereal and quiet-looking, with green fields interspersed with crumbled architecture.]

THIRD IMAGE: 

iii.

 They had climbed up onto the roof of the gymnasium to gaze at the sweep of stars painted high above their town.

“Do you think you’ll be up there one day?” Steve whispered in the dark.

“In the sky?”

“The stars,” Steve clarified. “All the great heroes are immortalised in the stars.”

Bucky shook his head. “I don’t think I’ll be a hero – there’s not a drop of godly blood in me. What about you?”

“I don’t want to be a hero,” Steve replied. “I just want to travel; to see all of Italia and beyond. Pompeii and Corinth – maybe even see the Oracle of Delphi, one day.”

Bucky smiled. “I’d like that. I don’t want to be fighting forever.”

“Come with me,” Steve said. “We could go anywhere. We could go everywhere.”

Bucky stared at Steve under the star-lit sky and smiled.

FOURTH IMAGE:

iv.

                                        When they were eighteen, they moved to Rome. The Ludus Magnus gladiator school sat in spitting distance of the coliseum, and this was where they trained. They had long been learning their preferred style of combat – Steve, after shooting up and broadening, fought as a Thracian, with his broad-rimmed helmet, small rounded shield and curved sword. His only armour consisted of thigh-length grieves, while Bucky was granted a chest plate and greaves as a Dimachaerus, dual-wielding two swords.

They fought regularly in practice, but never in the ring drawn into the sand in front of an audience. There was a palpable fear Steve felt at making Bucky bleed. Some nights, he whispered prayers to whatever god might deign to listen – perhaps Mars, for war, or Venus, for love – and pleaded with them to never pit him against Bucky.

[On the right hand side is a close-up of a temple’s columns, with sunlight poking between.]

FIFTH IMAGE: 

v.

 Bucky knew Steve was watching from beyond the Gate of Life as he stepped into the ring for his first gladiatorial combat in the arena. Steve had already won his earlier that day in front of roaring crowds and amused royalty in the Emperor’s box.

Now it was Bucky’s turn, and he twisted his swords in his fingers, facing down his opponent across the ring. Bucky knew their job was to fight – fight and possibly even die – but he also knew his job was to give them all a show.

And Bucky was nothing if not a showman.

In the end, blood stained the sand a vivid red, but Bucky strode towards the Gate of Life, triumphant.

SIXTH IMAGE:

vi.

 There were always popular gladiators, and Steve didn’t know how to react, finding himself to be one of them. Women lined up outside the bathhouses he frequented; shared rumours that dipping their hairpins in his blood might bring them love, that his sweat would work as an aphrodisiac.

“I can see their point,” Bucky whispered one night, his mouth ravenous against Steve’s after a long day of training. Their bodies were always animalistic in these moments, whilst the school was empty and the others were out drinking the night away. They took everything they could get from each other; swallowed each sensation whole.

Steve never wanted these moments to end. He would throw all the glory and money away for more time with Bucky, for more nights like this.

SEVENTH IMAGE: 

vii.

 After amphitheatre fights, admirers and buyers alike would flock to the school where the gladiators lounged on cushions and benches, drinking wine and eating expensive foods. These were the nights Bucky enjoyed the most. No one was allowed to approach unless beckoned by a gladiator, and Bucky would often spend time toying with the admirers, allowing one or two over before sending them away again. Eventually, after the show, he’d slip away into the sleeping quarters or empty storage cupboard, and find Steve waiting there for him.

There was a miles-long list of things Bucky loved about Steve’s body, but number one on the list was how it fit against his own in the dark.

[Cut into the left side is a photo of the Coliseum in Rome.]

EIGHTH IMAGE:

viii.

 A few days before the festival, culminating in three days of games at the coliseum, their master told Steve and Bucky that they were scheduled to fight.

“It’ll be fine,” they told each other in the dark. “The fights rarely end in death. We’re not fighting to kill. We’re fighting to entertain.”

“We’re performers,” Bucky would say. “We’re just there to give them a good time.”

“Don’t act like no one ever dies,” Steve would reply, each and every time. “Don’t act like we haven’t killed our opponents before.” Sometimes, friends would enter the ring with them and never leave it. Sometimes, the audience called for their deaths.

It was blood lust, through and through. The men caught hold of that first splash of red and couldn’t let it go; they had to see more, they had to see death in all its forms. The gladiator could’ve fought bravely, wonderfully, and they might still end up slumped in the sand afterwards.

“Soon,” they would say, “we’ll retire and leave this for good. Soon, we’ll travel the world, like we always planned.” They would whisper lies and truths to each other, desperately tangling them together until they couldn’t tell them apart.

NINTH IMAGE:

ix.

 On the day of the fight, Steve stepped into the ring opposite Bucky and breathed in the cheering crowd; the hot, midday sun. They had kissed in the shadow of the underground corridors, and now faced each other, weapons raised, poised for battle.

It was bloody from the get-go; they were entertainers after all, and the audience was only entertained when they saw the streak of blood dampening the sand. They twisted and turned as if they were dancing, as if there was music playing and this was them, centre stage, having the time of their lives rather than anxiously hoping their blades wouldn’t cut too deep, that the bruises would soon heal.

And then Steve’s sword slashed too harshly at Bucky’s side and he faltered, hissing.

“Bucky—” Steve said, not moving in on the advantage, not moving at all.

Bucky straightened, removing his hand from his side, darkly red. “What are you doing?” Bucky asked, before raising his swords once more. “Fight me.”

“Bucky—”

“Fight me,” Bucky hissed, slamming his swords forward. Steve barely had time to raise his shield. He couldn’t stop staring at the thick blood leaking from Bucky’s ribs.

“No—”

“Steve—”

“No.”

Steve stepped back, feet almost at the ring’s edge. He dropped his shield, his sword to the sand. He held his arms out, palms towards Bucky, and said, “I won’t fight you, Bucky. Not ever again.”

So Bucky took the win, and the crowds jeered at Steve, and the Emperor held his thumb outstretched, unamused by the champion’s surrender.

“You won’t fight me,” Bucky spat, “but you’ll make me kill you instead?”

[Cut into the right hand side is an edited shot of the movie Gladiator; two gladiators rush towards each other to battle, with the crowds filling the stands. Much of the image is in shadow, with streaks of sunlight pouring down from the left side.]

TENTH IMAGE:

x.

 The sand was hot beneath Bucky’s feet; no lazy afternoon shadows in the centre of the amphitheatre. In front of him, Steve knelt facing away, his head tipped low to bare the spot at the top of his spine, all smooth skin tanned and unblemished.

The crowds roared around them and Bucky lifted his sword, pressing the tip at the base of Steve’s neck.

Steve flinched and said, just barely loud enough for Bucky to hear: “Perhaps I’ll go to Elysium… I hear there are few places better to be than the underworld, these days.”

But Bucky knew Steve would not go to Elysium. He was a warrior, but he was not dying righteously, not for fighting well. He was dying for surrendering, for caring about Bucky more than himself.

And Bucky—well he cared for Steve more than himself, too. They were the same that way. They always had been.

So Bucky stepped back, lowering his sword in his hand. He looked up to the Emperor, shadowed in his private box, and shook his head.  

“I won’t kill you, Steve,” he said, and Steve looked around in surprise, like it was really all that out of character. He held out a hand and pulled Steve to his feet, ignoring the roaring of the crowd, the anger that came from mercy.

“They’ll come for us,” Steve said, eyes wary. “They’ll kill us both.”

With one hand, Bucky cupped Steve’s cheek, thumb against his cheekbone, and with the other, he lifted the sword and twisted it. “Let them try,” he said. “But we have plans to travel the world. We’ve got no time for dying, Steve.”

And in the summer heat, they ran for the Gate of Life.

ELEVENTH IMAGE:

[A close up of two marble statues kissing.]

[END OF IMAGE ID]

[reflectionsofneptune]

little thoughts about capricorn placements

Capricorn Sun

― a desire to be recognised for their efforts to build structures in society which stand the test of time. the ego is connected to work and the results that come from it. mastery, over themselves/and or others. feels like they have the right to take over when the ship is sinking. levels of vitality are connected to their judgement of their current position in life. material success is desired, but it won’t satisfy them wholly. incredibly resilient; they’ve often had to be solution-focused for themselves and others. can hold themselves back by focusing on things of a base nature, as opposed to integrating the spiritual side of life, too. can provide encouragement to others on perseverance and moulding the future to how you would like to see it. 

Capricorn Moon

― structure is given to the changeable nature of the moon. the heat of the moment extended. too much self-imposed restraint could hinder them when it comes to relating to others. could worry about appropriate ways to display emotions. there can be a strong emotional need to be respected by their peers, family, and society. often goes through tough times with just themselves to comfort them. hates feeling like a burden to people. may prefer to socialise at work events where structures are in place. not ones to ask for advice, unless they really want to hear what you have to say. prefers brutal honesty from people, because they know they can take it. needs to be careful that they don’t use their suffering in life/what they’ve been through to demand respect from others. sensitive to disappointment and favours, with strings attached. 

Capricorn Mercury

― a mind tinged with seriousness as they tend to think in terms of longevity. a cynical outlook on life can alienate those around them. great at schmoozing with those they respect. great at giving age-old advice to those they care about. in conversation, they are ones to hold back so they can gauge the other person’s character. they are motivated to learn by persistence, ambition and steady progress in life. methodical and thorough in whatever they do. needs to be able to apply what they learn to the real world. the mind can be too preoccupied with the next step to appreciate the present moment. the straight and narrow may offer them a sense of comfort. can be great at brainstorming ways to revamp something that will hold up in the long run. 

Capricorn Venus

― relationships either have potential, or they don’t. appreciates a partner that wants to make something of themselves. independent lovers from the outside looking in, but they can be real dorks with their partners. may struggle putting themselves out there due to low self-esteem. may cringe at compliments about their beauty but do better with hearing how powerful, independent, strong, focused they are for example. an aloof, impersonal approach can have them feeling protected but ward off potential suitors. the type of people to dress humbly but the labels tell a different story. doesn’t need a huge friendship group, just solid people. attracted to people that step up to the plate with them, not add more weight for them to carry in a partnership. 

Capricorn Mars

― a savvy nature that encourages making decisions to set themselves up for success in the future. acknowledges goals take time and effort. may feel that once they tell people about their ambitions, they may face criticism or rejection. positions of importance may be easy for them to obtain, but they need to be careful that they wield this power wisely. the comeback kid. anger can appear restrained, but it’s more so that they will not waste their breath on something they consider below their standards. discipline is highlighted with this placement, the lack of or the abundance of; usually there isn’t a middle ground here. motivated by material security.  when it comes to sex, they like to call the shots, and then sometimes move the pieces on the board.

Capricorn Jupiter

― seeks to grow and improve themselves by doing right in society and/or their personal ambitions. opportunities for expansion can manifest when they surround themselves with the people they aspire to be like, implement the habits of the movers and shakers in society and share what they’ve learnt in life. the risk-taking ability can be stifled by wanting to know the outcome. needs to recognise intuitive hits and act on them. should follow their dreams, not what they think a dream is. their outlook on life may be something passed down in their family. they can teach others about the significance of determination, character and grit. great at building people up. 

Capricorn Saturn

 ― can feel blocked in their ability to make something of themselves in the material world, feeling resentment when they see their peers being rewarded in terms of wealth or positions for example. giving up before they start is something they need to watch out for. but usually, success does come but later. tradition often plays a major role in the life with some feeling it is something they have to live up to or sometimes defend themselves against. skilled at navigating the social ladder and attracting respect from those higher up than them who could open doors for them. often take on more they need to carry and experience burnout. needs to take a break sometimes, and not berate themselves for it. 

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