#Janus Windsor

[apricusnights]

Stories from the past #2.

Time: Several years ago.

Location: Hidden research facility beneath Solis Heights.

"Begin playback, I want to hear everything again." The monitors around him beginning to play audio that he'd painstakingly cleaned up. In front of him were several large containers, still frozen...

Time: Nearing the end of the Great War. "Might Of The Empire" project is in full effect.

Location: Laboratory Alpha, underneath the Royal Palace.

"This is the personal log of Doctor Birchport, I'll be attempting to record both our successes and possible failures for the next few candidates."

"We've had our fair share of both. I suppose that's what happens when the Empire is constantly breathing down your neck. Our work force was partially split, some of the others got sent off to Project Chimera, the rest of us aren't even sure what that is."

"The next volunteer we're working with is a young woman. We've had some luck with a few female volunteers up until this point so I'm hoping this one has what it takes to survive all of the enhancements."

"Volunteer is in extremely good physical condition. She also seems to be quite intelligent. I do question if she's as loyal to the Empire as some of the previous subjects but she seems loyal enough and to be honest..we're not that picky anymore."

"We presented the usual paperwork for her to sign. The same offer we make to every volunteer was made to her. It's extremely possible that she may not survive the procedures. If she does, her body will be irreversibly changed."

"Volunteer agreed to have some assets preserved. After that was taken care of we began the training programs. Physical, and mental training are rigorous, sometimes they even prove to be fatal for those who aren't strong willed."

"It's never pleasant watching what the volunteers go through. Some of these training phases would completely break a normal person. We've learned by now not to refer to them by names. Knowing what will likely occur makes it necessary to avoid any sort of attachment."

"Current volunteer has survived the training and will move on to the next step. This marks the beginning of physical enhancement. Again sometimes it's hard to know exactly what kind of suffering you're putting someone through but it's all for the good of the empire."

"Volunteer has once again proved her superiority over others and survived the enhancement phase. There was an instant where we wondered though. Volunteer exhibits a small bit of memory loss, not completely uncommon due to the nature of the procedures but something we will need to monitor."

"Volunteer has been given her armor, and chosen her weapons. Her next few phases of training will involve being able to properly handle her new equipment. On a side note, she's the first one to receive some slightly upgraded equipment. The armor is just as sturdy but was streamlined slightly to allow quicker movements."

"I hear she's being assigned to the "Sisters". From our understanding it's an all female group. Strangely, she asked about the assets we offered to preserve for her. I admit when I told her the whereabouts were currently unknown she seemed..well not entirely pleased. I am however being honest when I say it was out of our hands."

"It's been several weeks now. Several other volunteers have come and gone. I hear it's possible we may be shut down. If you ask me, the Emperor is panicking and wishing to fast track the Chimera project."

"Some of the previous successes have gone rogue. Some have completely abandoned the Empire. I have a theory that even the strongest mental conditioning may not have been enough to completely re-write someone. If their will was strong enough, perhaps being out in the battlefield caused them to see what they were told to do was wrong."

"Sometimes I question if it's wrong. I doubt there is really much if any forgiveness for me when this is all over. The Emperor's sanity has deteriorated and some of the actions he's taken have been horrific to say the least."

Doctor Birchport's final search was recorded.

Subject Codename: Summer Status: Unknown

[bestialremains]

a door creaking open to a room coated in dust / the tinkling keys of a piano from floors away / a green tie in a double windsor knot / stacks of journals stained with ink and extra pages / the clinking of wine glasses over dinner / two sides of the same weighted coin / the smell of ozone when lightning strikes / a hidden vault beneath the floorboards / a mind like a steel trap, like a labyrinth / the crashing waves of a raging river / a dagger sheathed beneath immaculate suits / the loyalty of a guard dog / the sound of ice hitting the bottom of a crystal tumbler.

basic information

name: amycus octavian carrow.nickname. brother, carrow. age / date of birth. 27 / april 1st (4:31am). place of birth. isleworth, london, england. blood status. pureblood. affiliation. death eaters / the knights of walpurgis. gender / pronouns. cis male / he/him.  sexuality. bisexual. relationship status. single / no longer betrothed. occupation. unspeakable, currently on loan to hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry as the professor of magical theory at request of the board of governors, est. 1068.

physical information

face claim. jonathan bailey. height. 5′ 10½″ / 180 cm. weight. 72kg / 11st 4lb. build. mesomorph / square shaped head, muscular chest and torsos, large heart, muscular arms and legs, even weight distribution, toned arms, lower body fat percentage, fast metabolism. dominant hand. right.  eye color. brown. hair color / texture. black / naturally thick, often swept back, no longer sporting sideburns. scent. nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, grapefruit, lavender, licorice, sandalwood, amber, patchouli and haitian vetiver. recognizable features / scars. warm brown eyes. stubble/beard and mustache. faint burn marks on the back of his right hand from getting trapped in a hand of glory at age seven. dark mark on left forearm. tattoo on his right shoulder of janus, the two faced god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames and endings.  speech patterns / accent. amycus grew up surrounded by the elite -- his mother and father, his twin sister, their assorted cousins and children of appropriate families. as such, he speaks with a received pronunciation accent. he is prone to using what we know would probably refer to as antiquated terms, speaking in a low voice or trailing off sentences mid realization (despite many, many attempts to train him out of this as a rude, common habit.)  voice claim. jonathan bailey. languages spoken. english, french, latin, greek. languages written/read. ancient sumerian, latin, greek, english, french, german, italian, spanish, futhark. 

magical information

wand. bloodwood (prized by the south american magical communities, bloodwood is known for its brilliant red colour. they seek owners of passion and those who are action takers. bloodwood wands are curious - they create an intense bond with their owner and reflect their emotions in the magic produced, especially when it comes to love or anger. one must be very careful with this power as rash and passionate decisions can produce immensely powerful and irreversible magic. these wands are great tools in the hands of an individual who can control their emotions and use it to their benefit. one who has mastered the use of a bloodwood wand is said to be an exceptional dueller. it is said that bloodwood possesses a natural temptation for dark magic, and may cause their ownership to change due to the current owner not being dark enough.) / white river monster spine core (the white river monster is a species of magical fish native to the white river in arkansas. it is a large grey cross between a catfish and serpent, with spines running down it’s back. it can reach lengths of up to 20 feet. river monster spines often refuse to produce magic for any but their first owner; they are “one generation wands” and ought not to be passed on from their original master, because they will lose their power and their skills. this is one of the rarest cores, not often seen, as it is difficult to master, for the creature from which it is taken is one of the most independent and detached in the world. being such a rare creature, this wand respectively seeks a rare breed of witch or wizard, rendering it difficult to place. river monster spine is not well suited to what is commonly referred to as ‘bangs and smells’ magic.) / unbending rigidity (an unbending wand takes its preferences to the extreme, and will totally and utterly refuse to perform magic its first owner would not perform. the unbending wand bests suits a strong headed or stubborn master.) / 10’’ length (longer wands may suit taller wizards, but they also tend to be drawn to bigger personalities, and those of a more spacious and dramatic style of magic. neater wands favour more elegant and refined spell-casting.) / this is not amycus’s first wand, though it is now his primary one that he purchased after experiencing some difficulty with his original wand while conducting experiments for the department of mysteries. patronus. raven. boggart. alecto, on the other side. amortentia. whiskey, petrichor, rosewater, cinnamon. school. hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry. house. slytherin (class of 1969). clubs / extracurriculars. dragon club, slug club, ancient studies club.

psychological information

temperament. choleric-melancholic. positive. resourceful, personable, loyal. negative. calculating, strong willed, obsessive. mbti. entp. moral alignment. neutral evil. element. fire. primary vice. pride / lust. primary virtue. diligence / faith. zodiac. aries sun, aquarius moon, aquarius rising. quote. "hunger was unquenchable desire; it was suffering. to eat god, therefore, was finally to become suffering flesh with his suffering flesh; it was to imitate the cross." - caroline walker bynum, from holy feast and holy fast: the religious significance of food to medieval women. character parallels. klaus mikaelson (the vampire diaries), tommy shelby (peaky blinders), crowley (supernatural), lucifer morningstar (lucifer), petyr baelish (game of thrones).

familial information.

father. ___ carrow (wizard, alive) - coming soon. mother. ___ carrow nee yaxley (witch, alive) - coming soon. number of siblings / placement. one / eldest. siblings. alecto elizabeth carrow (witch, alive) - the tails to his heads, the heads to his tails. two sides of the same carrow minted coin, they share a bond that he prizes above all other familial relationships. his pain is her pain, and vice versa. his loyalty, first and foremost, is to her and to house carrow - then, the rest. pets. gyre falcon named zeus.

[jurrasicworldcc]

Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous

Corrupt Darius AU idea

Warning: This AU idea is mostly focused on Darius and a more corrupt and insane version of him. I also apologize if I offend any fans of this character.

Basically, the story is that Darius would start to lose his interest/love in dinosaurs following his dad’s death and start obsessing over making friends to help him cope and also gaining symptoms of Apathy Syndrome.

That was in December, 2015, he would discover the Jurassic World video game that started his journey to Camp Cretaceous. He eventually won and got to the camp on Isla Nublar.

There, he met emo athlete, Yasmina Fadoula; Bratty internet girl, Brooklynn; Rich boy, Kenji Kon; Farm girl, Sammy Gutierrez; and germaphobe, Ben Pincus.

The days that passed, the campers started becoming best friends, with Yasmina asking Kenji for dating advice thanks to her crush on Sammy, and Brooklynn teaching Darius how to make the Windsor Knot. That was…until the Indominus Rex attacked.

When the camp was destroyed, Darius’s mental health began to deteriorate due to everyone starting to argue, dinosaurs breaking loose, and also Sammy revealed to be an assassin/spy for Mantah Corp.

The events of the show following “Welcome to Jurassic World” still happen except for in Season 2, when Darius, Sammy, and Brooklynn were getting food and freeing dinosaurs…Two baryonyxes, Chaos and Limbo, attacked and when Brooklynn attempted to climb up the cage that Darius and Sammy were on, her hand slipped out of Darius’s and she is killed by Chaos. The campers mourn Brooklynn and then discover two campers, Mitch and Tiff, and also Ben is alive. After Darius finds out the two adults are poachers, Tiff shoots Sammy and kills her. During the dinosaur stampede, Yasmina dies since she couldn’t get out of her jeep in time and was crushed. In a fit of rage, Darius kills both Mitch and Tiff, and also lights their boat on fire.

With all the girls dead, the boys head back home to camp to mourn. Weeks later in March, 2016, Ben discovers Darius strangling Kenji and is too late. Ben is horrified but Darius only smiles seeing how it’s only him and Ben standing.

He then reveals that most of the deaths that they witnessed were caused by him. He reveals that he dropped Brooklynn on purpose because “she was a bitch,” and also sent a compy to eat the gas cords on Yasmina’s jeep since he believed that no one would care that he “shaved a few years off a stressed athlete’s existence and also Yaz and Sammy are together in Heaven,” and also he had plans to kill Sammy but Mitch and Tiff ruined those plans.

Ben realizes that Darius is insane from his obsession to make his Camp Cretaceous experience perfect, have life-lasting friends, and also his dad’s death. Ben calls Darius a psychopath and then fights him…but Darius wins the fight by snapping Ben’s neck. He also killed Bumpy some point later on.

However, there was still a part of him that values his friends, so he took parts of his friends so they could be part of him, literally. The parts that he gained from them were Ben’s Fanny pack, Kenji’s watch, Brooklynn’s jacket (that he wears), Yaz’s shoe that he used one of his shoelaces to tie the shoe to Ben’s Fanny pack, and also Sammy’s headband that he now wears.

Months later in June, Darius is revealed to have gone completely insane and also the items of his friends show to have some decay to them. It was that he was in the genetics lab, getting ready to get some more food until he discovered a forbidden project that Dr. Wu was originally going to use: Project Janus.

Project Janus was a project that allowed the scientists to travel through time and space to other dimensions. Wu originally intended to use this to travel through a multiverse and find dinosaurs to bring to his dimension, but Claire shut the project down and fired Wu but not before letting him finish the Indominus Rex.

Darius, now learning about the concept of alternate universes, abandons the universe that this AU takes place in and is learning how to make his own universe…

“I told you…I’M YOUR BEST FRIEND!!” Corrupt Darius to a currently unknown person.

[apricuscity]

Catching You Up!

“Hey everybody! It’s your old pal Morely here. I’d like to take a few moments to address YOU. Yes you, the mun behind the muses. See I’m going to break the fourth wall just this once.”

“I know many of you have been real busy and as such may not fully understand everything currently going on in the world of Apricus. So that’s where I step in. I’m here to catch everyone up a best I can so you all have a good idea where everything stands when you decide to return. So sit back, grab some tacos, relax, and enjoy.”

“So ya’ll remember that nasty bit of busy with the Checkmate group right? Then we had ourselves a Tacorific time skip, one year passed by and I can’t tell you how many new menu items Tacos ‘N More came up with!”

“As we entered into the new “season” things weren’t exactly what they seemed. See the notorious Mr. R from Paradise Entertainment started making more appearances than that fella ever did before. He even tried to get himself on the council! Offerin to help the city with it’s lingering repairs.”

“He’s got himself somethin cookin but nobody really knows what his game is yet. Speakin of problems, the Church sure does have it’s fair share! See Sister May activated the Ascension Protocol which let the Templars elect a temporary First Templar. Considerin the old one up and vanished. Some folks don’t believe they were ever even real.”

“Brother Julius got elected and some church folks were none too happy. The High Priestess however didn’t seem to mind one bit. Julius is still the acting First Templar as no one has had enough votes to replace him yet.”

“Brother Julius is still searchin for that secret underground cathedral and thinks he has a few leads so more and more expeditions have been taking place. I imagine they are gonna find somethin sooner than later. But there’s still a lot of internal conflict goin on!”

“Now for the first time in a long time the secretive nation of Crepusculum agreed to trade relations with Apricus, and some other nations out there! They were even allowed to set up some shops right here in Apricus! Some people are real excited over that but others still don’t trust em. Doctor Xanthos, Lord Merek, and High Priestess Lucianna were the “no” votes on the council when lettin Crepusculum in was put to a vote.”

“Mr. Eckerman announced the Hecaball World Cup which kicked off, attracting teams from all over the world. It’s about to wrap with only the semi-finals and the finals left to go. Needless to say this has meant Apricus has gotten A LOT of tourists.”

“We’ve also got ourselves a race to the hidden sea goin on! Some of the pirate lords have claimed they found the entrance and now it’s everyone for themselves. We got the pirate lords, the navy, and every amateur treasure hunter you can shake a stick at all headin out to sea lookin to find some hidden booty!”

“We’ve also learned a lot about what once was in the hidden sea. A super cool civilization ahead of it’s time, a bunch of pirate vaults, a rock made of special metal that fell from the sky, and some creepy intelligent bug monsters.”

“Ya know yours truly has a movie coming out soon! Morely & Friends: Enter The Tacoverse is hittin theaters end of August! Don’t miss it!”

“Finally some more fun facts and history was recently revealed! Including a talk about the Emperors, the most powerful people said to exist! What kind of menu items do you think they’d like? We learned about some incredible troops the empire made near the end of the war, we finally heard some details about the nation of Völsung, and it seems that that evil mastermind Janus Windsor is up to somethin!”

“I think that about catches you up to where we are right now! Plenty of folks are currently visiting Apricus including some world leaders here for the Hecaball games! There’s never been a better time to jump in and get in on the action!”

“That’ll do it for me! Have a Tacorific Night!”

[graemepark]

THIS IS GRAEME PARK: LONG LIVE HOUSE RADIO SHOW 20SEP24

THIS IS GRAEME PARK:

LONG LIVE HOUSE RADIO SHOW 20SEP24

In this week’s Long Live House Radio Show:

Mike Dunn presents The MD X-Spress

MDA Grooves

That Kid Chris

Patrick Topping & Green Velvet

Hysteric Ego x Chicken Lips

Smokin' Jo & D.Ramirez

Mixed Methods & Roland Clark

Tensnake feat. Jessy Lanza

Alan Dixox

Ishmael Ensemble

Billie Ray Martin

Prospect Park

Willlie Ninja

The Fall

Purple Disco Machine and more. 

LONG LIVE HOUSE RADIO SHOW 20SEP24

Title (Mix), Artist

Git Cho House On (Children) (MD Blackball Main Mixx), Mike Dunn presents The MD X-Spress

One Good Day (Vocal Mix), MDA Grooves

Love Affair, That Kid Chris

Mad Motion, Patrick Topping & Green Velvet

Want Love x He Not In (Sgt Slick ReCut), Hysteric Ego x Chicken Lips

Wish I Didn't Miss You, Haska

In The Night, Smokin' Jo & D.Ramirez

It Started In Chicago (Don't Blink Remix), Mixed Methods & Roland Clark

B-Boys Breakin' In Every Disco (A Tribute To DJ Regal), Nick Faber

Keep It Secret (Les Bisous Remix), Tensnake feat. Jessy Lanza

Nothing But Happiness, Alan Dixon

Fever Dream, Ishmael Ensemble

In The House, Mike Agent x Clark feat. Dr. Tinglefingers

Bott-Ee Rider (Smack That Bott-Ee Mix), Mental Instrum feat. Windsor Goode (again) & Leon Neal

Your Loving Arms (Hands In The Air Mix), Billie Ray Martin

Pacific (Jo Manji Mix), 808 State

Rhythm Is A Dancer (Original Disco Mix), Diva Avari & The French House Mafia

'Til You Surrender (DJ Fudge Disco Mix), Prospect Park

Hot (Louie Vega & Josh Milan Remix), Willie Ninja

Lost In Music (Mix 7), The Fall

Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But The Rent (Mattei & Omich Afro Mix), Mattei & Omich & Re-tide

Groove Maker, Janus Luvring feat. J Fitz

Too Much, Galetta

Bad Company, Purple Disco Machine

[justfor2am]

This isn’t even a request I just wanted to share:

Logan being so sleep deprived he takes a bite out of an orange without realizing. And once he does, he commits to the bit.

Never in my life will i pass up the chance to write logan doing something stupid, nice try 😎 ___ The air stilled. The sides glanced amongst each other at the table, mugs inches from being sipped and spoonfuls of cereal hovering mid-air.

No one wanted to be the one to break the ice. Or at least, Virgil and Patton didn’t want to break the ice; Roman was biting his lip to hold his snicker in, Janus stuck his nose further into his book to hide his grin一 even Remus played along, reaching to the middle of table to snatch an orange for himself, tossing it between his hands with a barely contained cackle.

Virgil hastily glanced around the table, hoping mostly that no one would laugh, but also wishing that someone else would cut the tension first. In a last ditch attempt he nudged Patton, who abandoned the table entirely to get another mug of coffee, whistling as though this were a perfectly ordinary breakfast.

Under normal circumstances, this would be something they all could laugh at for a moment before moving on with their day. But there was something about Logan’s disheveled appearance: his tie in a loose half Windsor knot, shirt collar half up and half down, mostly notably, the rings of exhaustion lining his face, eyelids half drooped shut as he tried to mutter his way through reading a newspaper.

It made the orange sitting innocently in his right hand, with a bite mark clean through the skin feel sad, almost.

But ever the comedian, Remus wasn’t one to let an easy joke pass him by. He stopped his juggling, a quiet giggle escaping him. “Loggie, I didn’t know you liked the peel too!” he said, waiting as Logan slowly and sleepily pulled his eyes from his newspaper to witness Remus swallow his orange whole.

Virgil winced, shrinking down slightly in his seat. Patton whistled louder, as though the shrill noise would distract the group, but to no avail. Roman wasn’t smiling anymore, sharing an expecting look with Virgil. Even Janus peeked up over his book cover, waiting with the rest of them for Logan’s famous bursts of anger.

He hated being silly, after all.

Logan squinted his eyes in slight confusion, glancing from Remus to the rest of the sides before looking back to his own hand. He blinked, inspecting his orange more closely, finally realizing his mistake from minutes prior, noting the bitter aftertaste he could still feel.

A beat passed. He could tell they were all waiting on him.

With a bored shrug, Logan opened his mouth and took another bite clean through the orange’s skin, chewing quietly as he went back to his paper.

Virgil and Roman were gobsmacked. Remus howled with laughter, and the tension melted away. Logan would eat the entire orange the same way, unflinching and seemingly unbothered.

When later questioned about it, Logan would blame it on his tiredness, but a quiet smile lingered on his face. He had to have his fun sometimes, right?

[beyondtheuniversesstuff]

How to see Uranus in the night sky (without a telescope) this week

NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft captured this image of the planet Uranus on Dec. 18, 1986. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Just how many planets are visible without a telescope? Not including our own planet, most people will answer "five" (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn).

Those are the five brightest planets, but in reality, there is a sixth planet that can be glimpsed without the aid of either a telescope or binoculars.

That sixth planet is the planet Uranus. This week will be a fine time to try and seek it out, especially since it is now favorably placed for viewing in our late-evening sky and the bright moon is out of the way.

Related: Photos of Uranus, the tilted giant planet

This sky map shows where Uranus will be located around midnight on Sept. 13-14, as seen from New York City. Look for it in the constellation of Aries, the ram. (Image credit: SkySafari app)

Of course, you'll have to know exactly where to look for it. Astronomers measure the brightness of objects in the night sky as magnitude. Smaller numbers indicate brighter objects, with negative numbers denoting exceptionally bright objects. But Uranus is currently shining at magnitude +5.7, relatively dim on the scale; barely visible by a keen naked eye on very dark, clear nights.

It is currently located within the constellation of Aries, the Ram, about a dozen degrees to the east (left) of the brilliant planet Mars. It's already one-third up from the eastern horizon by 11:30 p.m. local daylight time and will reach its highest point — more than two thirds up from the southern horizon — just before 4 a.m.

It is best to study the accompanying chart first, then scan that region with binoculars. Using a magnification of 150-power with a telescope of at least three-inch aperture, you should be able to resolve it into a tiny, blue-green featureless disk.

An icy, cold world

This week Uranus is about 1.771 billion miles (2.851 billion kilometers) from Earth (only Neptune is farther away). It takes 84.4 years to orbit the sun. The planet has a diameter of about 31,518 miles (50,724 km), making it the third-largest planet, and according to flyby magnetic data from Voyager 2 in 1986, has a rotation period of 17.23 hours.

At last count, Uranus has 27 moons, all in orbits lying in the planet's equator in which there is also a complex of nine narrow, nearly opaque rings, which were discovered in 1978.

Uranus likely has an icy, rocky core, surrounded by a liquid mantle of water, methane and ammonia, encased in an atmosphere of hydrogen and helium. In fact, Uranus has the coldest atmosphere of any planet in the solar system with a minimum temperature

of -371 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 224 degrees Celsius).

A freakish tilt

A bizarre feature is how far over Uranus is tipped. The other planets are tilted somewhere between 3 degrees and 29 degrees, but Uranus' north pole lies 98 degrees from being directly up and down to its orbit plane.

From our point of view, this means that sometimes we see Uranus with its north pole pointing at us. At other times we see it with its equatorial belt oriented vertically instead of horizontally. From the point of view of a hypothetical astronaut visiting Uranus, daylight and darkness would be nothing short of extraordinary. Its seasons are extreme: when the sun rises (as an example) at the north pole, it stays up for 42 Earth years; then it sets and the north pole is in darkness for 42 Earth years.

Accidental discovery

In the late winter of 1781, British astronomer Sir William Herschel had just finished building a new 6.3-inch (16 centimeters) reflecting telescope and began to study the stars through it. On the night of March 13, he had his telescope turned on the constellation of Gemini, the twins. There, to his great surprise, he came across an extra star that was not plotted on any of his star charts. An accomplished astronomer, Herschel was quick to realize that what he found could not possibly be a star, for it appeared in his telescope as a glowing disk as opposed to a twinkling speck of light.

Continuing his observations of this unusual object night after night, Herschel soon perceived movement; it was slowly shifting its position among the background stars of Gemini. Finally, he decided that he had discovered a new comet and he wrote up a detailed report of his observations, which were published on April 26.

The report of a new comet excited astronomers all over Europe, and they all eagerly trained their telescopes on Herschel's discovery. King George III, who loved the sciences, had the astronomer brought to him and presented him with a life pension and a residence at Slough, in the neighborhood of Windsor Castle.

Multiple monikers

Soon, enough observations were made to calculate an orbit for Herschel's "comet." That's when an increasing number of astronomers began to doubt that what they were looking at was really a comet. For one thing, it seemed to be following a nearly circular orbit out beyond Saturn.

Eventually it was determined that Herschel's "comet" was in fact a new planet. For a while, it actually bore Herschel's name, though Herschel himself proposed the name Georgium Sidus — "The Star of George," after his generous benefactor. However, the custom for a mythological name ultimately prevailed and the new planet was finally christened Uranus.

Prior to its discovery, the outermost planet was considered to be Saturn, named for the ancient god of time and destiny. But Uranus was the grandfather of Jupiter and father of Saturn and considered the most ancient deity of all.

It probably was for all for the best. After all, if Herschel's request was granted, just think of how we might have listed the planets in order from the sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and ... George?

And then came Neptune by plotting the path of a planet, astronomers can draw up a table (called an "ephemeris") that can show them exactly where the planet will be at any given time. So, after the discovery of Uranus, they set about determining an ephemeris for it.

But this method didn't seem to work; sometimes Uranus turned up ahead of its predicted position; sometimes it lagged behind. It seemed to astronomers that some unknown body was somehow perturbing Uranus's orbit.

Adams was a student at Cambridge University, and he sent his results to Sir George Airy (1801-1892), the Astronomer Royal, with specific instructions on where to look for it. For some unknown reason Airy delayed a year before starting the search. In the meantime, Leverrier wrote to the Berlin Observatory requesting that they search in the place he directed. Johann Galle and Heinrich d'Arrest at Berlin did exactly as instructed and found the new planet in less than an hour.

The naming of this new eighth planet was more complicated than for Uranus. Initially, Janus and Oceanus were suggested. Leverrier wanted it to be named after him. But while the population of France seemed in favor of this, the other European countries resisted this moniker. Eventually, it was named for Neptune after the god of the sea.

Ice giant

Neptune is slightly smaller than Uranus, measuring 30,599 miles (49,244 km) in diameter. Like Uranus, Neptune is a frigid world, with temperatures at its cloud tops of -361 degrees F (-218 C). Because they are similar both in size and temperatures, Uranus and Neptune are referred to as "ice giants."

Because of its gaseous composition, its speed of rotation varies from 18 hours at the equator to just 12 hours at the poles. This differential rotation is the most pronounced of any other planet and results in exceedingly strong winds reaching speeds upward to 1,300 mph (2,200 kph). Most of the winds on Neptune move in a direction opposite to the planet's rotation.

Finding Neptune

This sky map shows where to find Neptune will be located around midnight on Sept. 13-14, as seen from New York City. Look for it in the constellation of Aquarius, to the right of the bright planet Mars. (Image credit: SkySafari app)

Unlike Uranus, Neptune is much too faint to be viewed with the unaided eye, lying at a mean distance from the sun of 2.8 billion miles (4.5 billion km); the most distant planet. It's about seven times dimmer than Uranus, but if you have access to a dark, clear sky and carefully examine the map above, you should have no trouble in finding it with a good pair of binoculars.

September is Neptune's month. It will be at opposition to the sun on Sept. 11, so it will be in the sky all night long, reaching its highest point in the southern sky at around 1 a.m. local time. Neptune can currently be found among the stars of Aquarius, the water bearer.

With a telescope, trying to resolve Neptune into a disk will be more difficult than it is with Uranus. You're going to need at least a 4-inch (10 cm) telescope with a magnification of no less than 200-power, just to turn Neptune into a tiny blue dot of light.

[cutthroat-bxtch]

Art Piece For Sell

Original piece by me. It's called "Janus's Clock"

12x12

Gouache and acrylic. Varnished with Windsor and Newton gloss varnish

It's $10 and is love to frame it and send it to you. DM me for details

[apricusnights]

The nature of power.

Somewhere beneath Solis Heights in a hidden research facility.

“Fascinating isn’t it?” Pointing at one of the screens that had just played Kusunoki’s latest presentation. “The different ways nations determine power, who has it, why they have it, what they can do with it, who accepts it, who simply lives with it, and so on.”

“Monarchies are interesting. Power is typically handed down through the families with no one ever really bothering to question it. It’s just the way things are. Could go on for generation after generation. Most of the time it’s just considered the normal way of life.”

“Of course it doesn’t always last forever. All it takes is one stupid decision by the person in power, just one mistake and everything crumbles. It could be angering the wrong nations, ones you can’t defend against. Suddenly you’re being overthrown.”

“However, most of the time the threat actually comes from within. The mistake is made, suddenly your people aren’t fond of you. Suddenly they are beginning to rally, suddenly you have a revolution on your hands, and the wolves are at your gates.”

“But every once in a while it’s even worse than that. Every once in a while only one person notices the mistake. That one person decides that you’re wrong. That one person who is often closer to you than you think. Suddenly, it’s all over.”

“Power is..funny like that. It’s often hard to acquire, and incredibly easy to lose.” Glancing at another monitor. “You know, I used to consider that power could be something passed down. Not just because of your surname, not that kind of power, REAL power. I spent years researching if genetics had any effect on things like awakened abilities. Only to come up with inconclusive results.”

“One day though, I happened upon something that was thought to be long lost. A surviving laboratory located directly under where the old royal palace once was. Hidden almost in plain sight. Do you know what I found in there?”

Tilting her head as she pointed over into the next room.

“Precisely.” Swiveling his chair so he could face the room that was filled with what seemed to be various frozen canisters. “Now don’t get me wrong, I knew I wouldn’t be able to recreate what once was. But a part of me wondered if perhaps my theory about genetics was only slightly off. I may be unable to prove anything regarding awakened abilities however..if the subjects has superior genes even before their procedures..well who knows what I could do with a little bit of tinkering.”

Turning back around to the monitors again. All of them flickering on to form one single picture. A small family farm out in the Gardens.

“Power is..funny after all. Sometimes all it takes is a little push to get things started. Then all you have to do is wait and see what happens..”

Looking at the image as two figures walked into view.

[fadingstudentperfectionstuf-blog]

The Ostroy Report



The Ostroy Report

The Ostroy Report is an aggressive voice for Democrats, the progressive agenda and serves as a watchdog of the Republican Party and President Trump.

Thursday, June 28, 2018

Dear America: Wake the Fuck Up!

The sudden announcement by Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy of his retirement next month sent terrifying shock waves through democratic circles. But make no mistake: the almost certainty that President Trump will replace the swing-voting Kennedy with a hard-line conservative like Neil Gorsuch, thus giving the court a solidly right-wing majority for the next 30-40 years, should terrify everyone except wealthy, white Christian men.

Those on the about-to-be-royally-screwed list include women, seniors, immigrants, Muslims, blacks, Hispanics, Jews, LGBTQ, students, workers, unions, the sick (especially those with preexisting medical conditions), the poor, the middle class, the environment, small business, campaign finance, our free and open press, the intelligence community, our national security and the rule of law.

Strap yourselves in. It's about to get crazy. The first hot-button issues a newly constituted conservative court will seek to reverse are abortion, same-sex marriage and affirmative action.

At least two dozen red states will assuredly move immediately to ban all abortions given this new judicial landscape. They'll be betting that when these laws are ultimately challenged in the Supreme Court, the 5-4 right-wing tilt will make their Draconian dreams come true in finally overturning Roe v Wade, the 1973 landmark ruling which currently protects a woman's right to have an abortion.

With regard to LGBTQ rights, Kennedy was either the swing vote, one of the swing votes and/or wrote the majority opinion in many critical rulings protecting LGBTQ people's basic human/civil rights and freedom to marry whom they choose: Romer v. https://www.the-essays.com/coursework , 1996; Lawrence v. Texas, 2003; United States v. Windsor, 2013; Obergefell v. Hodges, 2015. Kennedy's loss in this evolution is devastating.

Kennedy has also been a moderate voice regarding affirmative action. In 2016's Fisher v University of Texas ruling, he was the swing vote in upholding the school's affirmative action policy which considered race as a factor in the admissions process.

(Note: roughly two-thirds of Americans are pro-same-sex marriage, pro-choice and pro-affirmative action).

To be sure, it's been a lot of fun and games so far for Trumpsters, who've basked in Dear Leader's braggadocious, bulling bluster. You guys love the tough talk, the "un-PC" behavior and the exciting circus-like rallies. But Kennedy's retirement is a game changer. You now need to decide if you want to be one of the gazillion people who'll get hit by the wrong end of the shit-stick from a staunchly conservative court.

And you Trump women: his macho sexist rhetoric, for example, isn't a big deal until you can no longer buy contraception. Or get an abortion. Or have healthcare which covers your reproductive rights. Remember when Trump said women should be "punished" for getting abortions? Think about that. Think about being arrested and jailed for it. Think about sitting in cages, without rights, like those defenseless immigrant kids at the border.

What about your mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, aunt, uncle, cousin or best friend who's gay? People you love. Do you want them stripped of their rights? To be discriminated in the courts, in the workplace and by healthcare & insurance companies? To not be able to marry whomever they want?

And to you Log Cabin Republicans. I never understood how, as members of the LGBTQ community, you could support a party that hates you for who you are. Well guess what? It's 100 times worse now. The judicial safety-net you've come to rely on of late, as you comfortably pursue your conservative agenda, will be gone. You will be shamed and scared back into the closet by the party you've dedicated yourselves to and who, in return, systematically demeans you and discriminates against you.

And if you're black or Hispanic and support Trump? It's serious reality-check time. If you haven't gotten this by now, Trump doesn't give a shit about you. Nor does your party. Your world is about to change as this court becomes a 5-4 right-wing majority.

'But the court won't change existing law' you say? No one should feel comforted by the 'doctrine of precedent' known as stare decisis (Latin for “to stand by things decided”). This assumes that the Supreme Court would be compelled to uphold the settled law of the land (i.e Roe v Wade). But Kennedy himself said “stare decisis is not an inexorable command” in his recent South Dakota v. Wayfair majority opinion, a ruling which overturned the landmark 1992 Quill Corp. v. North Dakota use-tax ruling. And the court just this week reversed the 40-year-old Janus v. AFSCME decision, ruling that nonunion workers cannot be forced to pay fees to public sector unions.

But perhaps the most significant reason to fear a right-wing court is with special prosecutor Robert Mueller's RussiaGate investigation. It's almost certain that the decision on whether Trump can be subpoenaed to testify will come before the Supreme Court. Fill in the blanks. It's chilling to think that, as it did with 2000's decidedly non-Federalist Bush v. Gore ruling which essentially handed the presidency to George W. Bush, the highest court in the land will put partisan politics before national security and the law. especially over an issue with such critical foundational consequences.

Even more alarming, what happens when and if Mueller hands Congress incontrovertible, beyond-a-reasonable-doubt proof that Trump conspired with Russia to steal the election, and has since been engaged in a 24/7 campaign to cover up his high crimes and misdemeanors? What happens if this heretofore complicit GOP continues to turn a blind eye to The Manchurian President's dirty deeds?

The Senate cannot allow Trump to appoint anyone other than another moderate, swing vote justice. And it will come down to Republicans such as Jeff Flake (AZ), Susan Collins (ME) and Lisa Murkowski (AK) to vote their conscience and principles, not their party. With a 51-49 chamber, democrats must pull out all stops to convince at least two Republicans to vote with them. Maybe even dangle the border wall in exchange for a moderate jurist. Or even put Merrick Garland's name back in play for the wall. In the past, Garland had bi-partisan support. If Trump were truly smart and politically calculating, he'd consider how such a nomination would provide a tremendous boost to his popularity beyond the base; how it would quickly move to repair the divisiveness in the country; and the coup it'd be legacy-wise. But that's not Trump, so don't hold your breath.

Complicating matters for democrats is that Senate incumbents such as Jon Tester (MT), Joe Manchin (WVA), Claire McCaskill (MO), Joe Donnelly (IN) and Heidi Heitkamp (ND) face tough re-election campaigns in states Trump won. For these moderates, they're forced to choose between political self-survival and satisfying their liberal constituents. Won't be a surprise if at least one opts for job-security.

The time is now for mass protests in the streets. Like the 1960's. Non-stop. Voters must demand that politicians vote in a manner that's consistent with the moderate views of an overwhelming majority of Americans. while demanding that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell abide by his own rule of not allowing presidents to appoint Supreme Court justices in an election year (which is how he robbed Barack Obama of Garland's seat). Voters must make this a central tenet of every protest between now and the November midterms. To shame McConnell and Republicans with their own hypocrisy, duplicity and shameless partisanship at the expense of America's national security and best interests. Democrats must give voters a clear choice in the election: country vs party.

[apricuscity]

New Season Intro.

"What are you willing to give up in order to find out the truth?"

Scenes are shown of Janus Windsor watching two children grow up. Time passes and we see Ruby walking down a hallway toward her tournament match. She passes by a masked woman, both look at each other for a moment before moving on. Windsor and Chimera are once again shown watching both women.

Queen Titania of Fae is shown watching a tournament broadcast. She reaches towards the screen when Puck is shown fighting. She tries to remember but Hades' shadow clouds her mind.

Talos, Valerie, and Pierce are watching several monitors as the tournament progresses. Scenes of Kara, and Evander fighting against various opponents are shown. It cuts to multiple people around Apricus watching at the same time, one in particular watching Grandpa Mashiro's matches.

"What are you fighting for?"

Scenes are shown of Skuld Kraka training in her homeland before leaving for Apricus. She and her sister depart for the Olympus. She's seen battling against several opponents. Meanwhile her parents are seen watching the matches as someone approaches their location unnoticed.

Tendo is seen training on the ship with Koko watching but The Demon's shadow looms over them both.

We see scenes of Hugo, Cerise, Sunil, and Puck training before their matches as Night watches.

Several council members, world leaders, and faction leaders are shown talking to their representatives. Everyone's individual goals flash across the screen.

Gouki is seen watching several of Paradise Entertainment's members as they make their way around the ship. One seems to notice her before turning a corner and vanishing from view.

"Can you do what is necessary to stand before a god?"

Multiple fights are shown from different rounds. Weapons clashing, abilities activated, fighters standing back up after being on the receiving end of strong attacks. Some going on sheer willpower.

The Five Emperors are shown watching the tournament from their palace. Each seems to be paying attention to certain fighters.

"Time to put it all on the line! Roll the dice and see what fate has in store for you!"

The entire tournament roster is shown.

A hologram of Mr. R is shown projected from a table the other Paradise Entertainment members are seated at.

One of Paradise Entertainment's "Senior Partners" walks into the room and reaches up to remove their mask but the camera cuts before anyone is shown.

Fight scenes are shown once more as Emperor Clarion smirks and moves a piece across the chessboard.

The final shot is the Olympus ship sailing across the sea.

[churchillacad]

Janus: the Roman god of transitions, beginnings and endings

This week, at the end of the academic year, I have been conducting my assemblies with students and talking about the Roman god Janus. Janus was always depicted with two faces: one, looking forward into the future; the other, looking back into the past. I have been doing some Janus-like reflection as we reach the end of this year and look forward to the next.

Olympic lessons

https://twitter.com/ChurchillAcad/status/887732031844753410

I started this year on the Headteacher’s blog with Lessons from the Olympics. Inspired by Rio 2016, I looked back on the inspiration of Ruby Harrold, a Churchill alumnus who represented Team GB in gymnastics. This week it was my pleasure to meet Ruby, who passed on her inspiration to some stars of the future.

Churchill at 60

We have all been looking back this year on the history of Churchill Academy & Sixth Form, both on this blog and on the dedicated page on our website. This week, I had the great privilege of meeting Ivan Devereux, our first ever Head Boy, who joined the brand new secondary school in 1957 from the old V.C. Church of England school which used to stand by the crossroads. He remembered starting in the very first classes, including the names of the teachers listed in the School Log Book! He was given a tour of the Academy by our new Tudor House Captains, and showed us the dictionary he was given as Head Boy with a signed bookplate from the first Headmaster, Reginald Dennis. I was fascinated by the old school badge: like our current one, it reflects the four houses of Windsor, Stuart, Hanover and Tudor, but using symbols instead of colours. House pride has been part of the school for as long as there has been a school here! It was fitting, therefore that this week I have officially welcomed our new House Captains with their embroidered polo shirts at our Celebration of Success events.

Looking ahead, we have our 60th Anniversary Gala Evening to mark 60 years since the official opening of the school taking place on 23rd September. You can buy your tickets here for what promises to be an incredible night to celebrate the history and the future of Churchill.

The Academy Site

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Looking back over the course of this year it’s hard to believe that the Alan Turing Building was an empty patch of earth in September, and is now a fully operational facility for our students with brand-new computer rooms and classrooms. Looking ahead, work is due to start in August on our fourteen-classroom Science and Technology building, which will transform the opportunities for students in those subjects and lead to the decommissioning of the original 1956 Tudor building.

Over the summer there are lots of other works going on across the Academy to redevelop our learning environment, including the new Student Services facility above the Library and brand new study facilities for our Sixth Formers.

Rest, relax, recharge

The students and the staff have worked really hard this year, pushing themselves to go that extra mile every single day. At this week’s Celebration of Success events, it has been a privilege to recognise some of those hardworking, dedicated students and present them with their certificates. I wish everyone in the Churchill Academy & Sixth Form community a restful and relaxing summer break, and look forward to seeing you in September refreshed, recharged and ready for the next challenge!

New on the Headteacher's Blog: Looking Forward, Looking Back This week, at the end of the academic year, I have been conducting my assemblies with students and talking about the Roman god Janus.

[apricusnights]

"I took care of it.."

"Well done. Now all we have to do is wait and see what unfolds.."

[apricusnights]

Forces at work.

Location: Solis Heights.

"Interesting view you have there." Tilting her head at the several monitors in Talos' office. Some of the had various camera feeds from the Olympus Tournament. One however looked like it was from a first person point of view, as if the camera itself was walking around.

"I assume that isn't a broadcast just anyone can access."

"Just a little something I added in as a bonus. Seeing the fights this way provides better insight. Kara played around with that girl too much, she could have ended it earlier."

"Let her have her fun. I'd be more worried about the fact your camera man will eventually have to fight."

"All the better, now I can see how the opponent fights firsthand..."

Location: Olympus Ship

Somewhere in a private suite...

"That's the girl isn't it?"

"Oh yes, rather impressive I'd say. A first round loss means nothing in the end. She shows potential. Perhaps not as much brute strength as I had originally planned but it's impossible to completely replicate the original process."

"That being said...I do have my eye on someone else as well.."

Location: Paradise Entertainment's private meeting room on Olympus.

A hologram appeared in the middle of the table.

"Let me be the first to say this is bullshit. A few of us are actually fighting in this thing and we aren't even sure of why."

"Up until recently I'm fairly sure we never had any so-called "Senior Partners"...so I'm once again calling bullshit. None of us have ever even met them."

Another hologram suddenly appeared..

"Everyone needed a little help after the Checkmate incident. We simply stepped in to offer a hand. Mr. R graciously accepted. Now I suggest you stop concerning yourself with us and go back to enjoying the show.."

Communication closed.

[apricusnights]

Nothing is lost forever.

Location: Somewhere deep below Delta Town.

Getting past the tunnels was one thing, getting past the vast network of sewers was another, but winding your way through a seemingly endless amount of caverns that often led to dead ends or right back to where you started? That was something all on it's own.

People had spent lifetimes looking for hints of the so called Underground Cathedral. Just one of many buildings that were said to be constructed by the empire in it's dying days. Designed to hide treasures, manuscripts, artifacts, who knows what else.

There was always a small amount of proof it existed, always something pointing to it's construction. Unfortunately it was hardly anything to go on. Sometimes people would stumble upon similar safehouses but never exactly what they were searching for. The church itself had mounted several expeditions over the years. More recently evidence of the cathedral's location was found by a group of Templars.

The cavern was gigantic, clearly it wasn't entirely man-made. There were several buildings lining both sides of what could be called a street. A small river of sorts flowed through the middle of the cavern. Every now and then old abandoned tunneling equipment could be found.

Generators were hooked up to the buildings but had long since ran out of fuel. Most of the buildings were likely places the workers, and soldiers had stayed during the construction. Perhaps something worth looking into but not the true prize. No, that lay at the very end of the cavern.

The cathedral in all it's glory. Somehow as pristine as the day it was constructed. Two figures wearing masks, and hooded cloaks approached the gigantic wooden doors. Both lit one of the torches on each side before attempting to push the doors open.

"The doors are stuck..."

"You expected it just to be completely unlocked?"

"Nobody has been down here in ages, why would it be locked. Why would you lock something that no one was intended to find? Forget it, I'll just bust it open."

"Stop it. We're not supposed to leave any trace of anyone being here. You can't just break the door down. Stay here.."

Lilith made her way up one of the cathedral walls, finding an entrance through a small section of the roof that had given way. After a moment she pushed one of the doors open just enough for Morrigan to enter.

"Fascinating.." Making his way in after Lilith, and Morrigan. "Think of the knowledge contained in this building alone.."

"Remember the deal Doc. You're allowed to look at any of the books you want, scan everything if it makes you happy..BUT you're not allowed to take anything with you. It all stays here."

"But with that out of the way, I gotta ask. What is so interesting to you down here? Isn't most of this religious stuff? Holy this and sacred that? Why do you care?"

"You'd be surprised what the empire considered holy. For instance the entire chimera project was meant to be a divine solution. Sanctioned by the bishop to wash away the sinners who opposed them. The sinners being the revolution of course.."

Motioning at a few specific books she'd located amongst the piles of them scattered around.

"Ah, if you'll excuse me, I believe my companion may have found something of interest."

"Here.." She'd been wandering the cathedral as if looking for any small discrepancies in the walls. Eventually finding a way to open a hidden passage that revealed a spiral staircase.

Another cloaked individual made their way past her, holding a torch as they descended the staircase.

At the bottom was a long obviously trapped hallway but the individual seemed to have no issue navigating it, nor did the giant puzzle lock on the stone slab functioning as a door pose them any problem.

The slab slid out of the way. Behind it was a small room filled with all sorts of relics. In the middle there was a skeleton dressed in ceremonial robes. The last bishop of the empire.

The cloaked individual made their way over, running their hand across the stone sarcophagus sitting in front of the bishop. With a few presses of some hidden buttons it slid open.

Inside was one item. An ornate golden staff...

The individual pulled the hood of their cloak down before bringing their aShine up.

"It's here.."

[apricusnights]

Chapter Twenty-five: Destiny.

Location: The Spire.

The lightning rod was finally struck, the full charge flowing down into the spire, into the strange container. The machinery connected to the container began to overload, sparks flying as Chimera ducked for cover. Janus Windsor however refused to miss even a second of his plan finally coming to fruition.

The entire spire began to shake as unbelievable amounts of energy poured into the container; it seemed the building was only barely able to hold itself together. After several unstable moments, the shaking ceased. The machinery that wasn't destroyed during the process was slowly shutting down.

Janus approached the container, reaching down and unlatching the lid before pushing it off. Chimera cautiously approached, standing next to her employer and looking inside the container.

Chimera: "Is this...?"

Janus: "The beginning of a new era, of MY era."

Whatever was inside the container pulsed with power. Janus reached down and took hold of it. Strange energy began to flow through his veins as he struggled to hold himself together.

Janus finally pulled his arm back. He beckoned Chimera closer, holding out a closed fist.

Chimera leaned forward only to be struck by a blast of energy as Janus opened his fist. Her mask shattered as she cried out in pain.

Janus: "Don't worry my dear, it may be quite agonizing, but I assure you it's only temporary. Soon you'll fully grasp the power of Project Sunrise..."

Janus: "Soon you and I will begin to create a new world!"

Location: Apricus City.

Mayor Lowell: "Good evening Apricus. I'd like to thank you for your time, I promise you this won't take long. I was going to wait a bit before I made this announcement however sometimes you just get a gut feeling that tells you when to change plans."

"As we all know, none of us will be around forever. Well, except for Captain Larsen and President Styles who may just use spite to defy the reaper." Chuckling at his own joke before shuffling the papers in front of him.

"This is why I'd like to take this time to introduce the young man who will be serving as my new deputy mayor. Some of you have likely heard the rumors already, and I'm sure many of you have a mixed reaction. I just ask that you give him a chance."

"This young man has grown up before our eyes. He's had his fair share of issues, he's made his fair share of mistakes, but haven't we all? He has proved he's a team player, being a member of a championship Hecaball team."

"He's proven his loyalty to the city. Even being willing to sacrifice himself during the Checkmate invasion in order to stop a foe he likely had no chance against. He's someone who I believe has earned our respect. Someone who deserves a chance."

"With that said, I ask you all to trust in me, and trust in him. Your new deputy mayor, and hopefully future mayor once I step down, Mr. Jaime Baskerville." Clapping for Jaime and stepping away to let him say a words.

Mayor Lowell steps off to the side and stands next to Commander Fisher.

Fisher: "I hope you're right about this."

Lowell: "I know in my heart he's the right choice."

Fisher: "This is about the Crepusculum meeting soon, isn't it?"

Lowell: "Partially. Should anything happen in the near future I needed to have someone I believed in, in place to lead the city if need be."

Fisher: "Well he's not a bad public speaker, I'll give him that."

The broadcast concluded after Jaime had finished speaking.

Location: Hidden Sea.

Night: "So I was wondering if? Nah. Hey, how about we? No. Would you do me the honor of? Maybe..."

Sable: "What are you going on about?"

Night: "I'm uh.."

Hugo: "Bro is practicing to ask his girlfriend to marry him. Of course, he's an idiot and can't get it right."

Sable: "Awww how cute! Hey why haven't you.."

Hugo: "Check it!"

The three of them had found what they'd been looking for. One of the smaller islands that was connected to the central one via a makeshift bridge was the impact site. What remained of the space rock still sat in the crater.

Hugo: "Think of what I could make with this..."

Sable: "Wonderful dear but how are we going to get this out of here? It's too heavy to move the whole thing and we're already unsure of how to get back home."

Hugo: "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Night and I can start chipping away at it, we'll just load smaller pieces into bags and bring them back."

Sable: "You have bags?"

Night: "Course! Never leave home without everything you could possibly need!"

Sable: "Those are Tacos 'N More bags, aren't they?"

Night: "Yes but don't remind me."

Hugo: "If they are strong enough to hold several taco buckets they should be fine. Get your ass down here and help me chisel this thing."

Night slid down into the crater next to Hugo and grabbed one of the tools Hugo had brought with him. The two starting to break away mall pieces of the large rock. This however proved problematic due to how hard the material really was.

Sable had dozed off and was woken up a bit of time later when she heard something scurry around in the jungle on the other side of the crater. Rubbing her eyes and taking a look only to see nothing.

Sable: "Hey, did you guys hear anything?"

Hugo: "Only this baby complaining about hard work."

Night: "Shut the fuck up..."

Sable: "I'm serious!"

Hugo: "Relax babe, probably just a bird or a monkey or something."

Sable moved closer to the jungle, leaning forward to look through the foliage.

Moments later Hugo, and Night heard a scream and saw Sable running past them.

Night: "Think she saw a bug or something?"

Hugo: "Probably."

Night glanced up a second later only to see several large insect-like creatures looking down at them.

Night: "I think..maybe she had the right.."

Hugo had already grabbed a few bags full of rocks and started running up the other side of the crater.

Night: "Hey!" Grabbing two bags and following after.

The three making their way across the makeshift bridge pursued by a horde of the strange creatures. One extremely large one seemed to be directing the smaller beasts.

Puck and Sunil were surprised to suddenly see Sable, Hugo, and Night run through the jungle past them on the central island.

Puck: "Oh hey, we were looking for.."

Sunil: "We should run."

Not even bothering to question it, the two turned and followed the group through the jungle towards the beach.

Cerise meanwhile was gathering up supplies on the beach when she heard the commotion. Looking over to see everyone running towards her. Everyone stopped to catch their breath as the creatures continued their pursuit. Waves starting to pour out of the jungle and on to the beach.

Cerise: "The fuck did you do?!"

Night: "Nothing! But since we're about to be eaten by bugs from space.."

Puck: "They might not be from space."

Night: "Not the point! Cerise, if we don't get eaten by bugs you wanna get married some time?"

Cerise: "What?! I...yeah sure but we aren't having a stupid big wedding."

Sable: "I want a stupid big wedding!"

Hugo: "Whatever you want babe!"

Sunil: "You think?"

Puck: "Well.."

The group grabbed their weapons and were fending off whatever bugs got close to them while arguing about things.

Cerise: "Hey! Dickheads! If you're listening, I want my prize! Get us the fuck out of here and we're good!"

As if on cue the emperors heard Cerise's request and opened a portal behind them.

Night: "What.."

Cerise: "Remember I was a tournament winner? I'm using my prize to save our asses. Everyone go!"

Sable, Puck, Sunil, Hugo, Night, and Cerise rushed through. Hugo, and Night carrying a few bags full of the space rocks. A bright flash of light followed before they found themselves dropped off somewhere in Smokey Gardens.

Unbeknownst to them, several of the smaller creatures and one larger one slipped through the portal and scurried off into the woods before the portal closed.

Night: "I am never going on a boat ever again..."

Location: Völsung.

Skuld had resumed her training after attending a few meetings that discussed the upcoming combat. Despite doing her best to focus, there was always something in the back of her mind. What happened to her father? Why could no one explain what the sudden illness he had was?

Where was he when it took hold? Who was around him? The timing lined up a little too well with her family having their right to rule challenged by an old foe. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and paused for a moment to catch her breath.

Skuld: "You're still watching me."

Emperor Vili: "I've told you before, everything that happens here concerns me. This is my land, my people. I do not interfere, but I must observe."

Skuld: "You know what's going to happen, don't you?"

Vili: "Not entirely. The battle will determine who is right and who isn't. Such is the way of things, the only true way to settle a dispute. However, I fear that Clarion has something in mind that I am unable to see."

"I will do my best to stop him from sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong, but he may have already set events in motion. In the end it'll be entirely up to you to deal with what may come."

"There is one other thing you need to hear.."

Skuld: "Make it quick."

Vili: "One way or another I believe your father's reign is coming to an end. What I am unable to see is who will take the throne. Perhaps your family's time is over. Your sister's fate hasn't been sewn into the great tapestry yet."

Skuld: "I won't fail. I can't."

Vili: "Perhaps not, however the outcome may remain the same. It may not be your sister's time to lead your people, it may end up being yours."

Skuld paid no attention to the statement, instead going back to her training.

Vili: "Destiny is known to change her mind on a whim. Sometimes things you believe are supposed to happen are shifted in an instant. When it's your time to fight, do so with everything that you are. Fight with every ounce of fury in your heart! You will be where you are meant to be. Fate will be revealed once it's said and done. One way or another."

Skuld continued to train for what would be the most important moment of her life, trying not to dwell on the emperor's words too much.

Meanwhile in another camp, Emperor Clarion approached Skuld's future opponent...

Location: Solis Heights.

Onyx was flung across the room for what felt like the tenth time. The moment he entered the training room was the moment his father had decided to test how far he'd come. To his credit Onyx had landed a few blows but Tyrael shrugged everything off and continued to attack.

Onyx groaned as he was barely able to dodge his father again. Tyrael struck the wall with such force that his fist got stuck for a moment. Onyx took the time to create a bit of distance and switch his gauntlets to a new mode his sister and Morado had helped him create.

Tyrael would berate Onyx for not attacking him more often. That if Onyx was going to take his place on the council, he'd have to be stronger and more skilled than this. Onyx refused to reply, simply angering his father even more.

Every time Tyrael charged or swung, Onyx dodged and took a shot at his father with his wires. Normally Tyrael was able to avoid them or just break through but on one occasion Onyx wrapped enough of them around his father's legs that it made him stumble just for a moment. Enough time for Onyx to slide by and launch himself up, one of the claws of his gauntlet leaving a scar across his father's face. It wouldn't equal the ones his father had left him with but at least it was an indication that Onyx was learning.

The two continued to fight, Onyx firing off the claws of his gauntlet, but Tyrael would deflect them, sending them into a wall and leaving them stuck. As Tyrael approached, he once more berated Onyx about not learning anything from Cal. Onyx however simply waited for his father to swing one more time.

Onyx dodged and spun around his father, wires wrapping around the larger man. Tyrael attempted to break free, but the claws Onyx fired earlier activated and connected to the wires, pulling Tyrael into the air and leaving him stuck there.

Onyx looked up at his father before walking over and picking up his hat. He turned and looked at his father laughed and congratulated him before walking out of the training room.

Lilac: "Nice job, but you know he'll be ready for that trick next time."

Onyx: "I have more important things to concern myself with now." Looking at his aShine as Violet messaged for a "Team OLIV" meeting. He still hated that name. He was also surprised Ivory was willing to pull herself away from her new girlfriend May to actually attend a meeting. Nevertheless, he'd leave the manor to meet up with his...friends.

Location: Cherry Hills.

Bea was waiting, it seemed like she'd been waiting around the entire day. She'd had it, she was going to get her answers one way or another. Nobody was making any progress in their investigations, and nobody was going to believe her even if she went into detail.

She knew her friend was alive, at least what was once her friend. She didn't know who or what Leiko was now. She didn't know who she was associating with. She didn't know why that woman from Crepusculum slaughtered them all. She didn't know anything. Just when her life was taking a turn for the better, it seemed like everything had come crumbling down.

This time though, this time was going to be different. She was going to get her answers. She was waiting near the front gate of Cherry Hills after nightfall. Sure enough a cloaked woman left the district, Bea knew it was Chiyo.

She followed her until the woman was about to head down into the tunnels before grabbing her and pulling the cloak off. Chiyo was shocked but before she could say a word, she found herself punched in the jaw with enough force to knock herself off of her feet. Bea glared down at her.

Bea: "You get one chance. Where is she and what did you do to her?"

Despite her situation Chiyo remained calm. She brushed herself off and stood up. Bea had a nice punch, something she didn't expect.

Chiyo: "I can show you.."

Location: Upper Docks.

Van: "Hey Nava, thanks for coming on such short notice. Didn't want to bother you but the captain has something to tell you. Head inside."

Nava: "You're not coming with?"

Van: "Nah, this is between you and him."

Nava nodded and walked into Larsen's office, shutting the door behind her.

Larsen: "Not gonna waste your time. We found your family's yacht. Only the yacht. We searched all over the place and found no trace of survivors or any deceased. The lifeboats weren't even deployed. It's like something happened and everyone just vanished at once. Hell, there were half empty wine glasses still sitting on the tables."

Nava: "Did you find anything? Security footage?"

Larsen: "Viridian said it was wiped. The last recording was right after the ship left Apricus. Did find something interesting though. Seems he was able to trace the last person to access the ship's logbook."

Nava: "Amorette.."

Larsen: "You guessed it. Apparently, she was looking for something in there. Now she's suddenly running the show at your family's company."

Nava: "As much as I want to do what my fiancé would suggest and march into the headquarters bashing someone's skull in, we don't actually have any solid proof of anything."

Larsen: "I can't "officially" back you on this but that doesn't mean I can't help you out. Just give Viridian some time to put together a plan. We're going to get answers from that bitch and find your parents."

Nava nodded, holding herself together as she left the office.

Van: "Seems like we've got some training to do!"

Nava: "You were listening?"

Van: "Captain Larsen speaks pretty loudly, kinda hard not to hear. Besides, it gives us a chance to work together again. Team VNLA!"

Nava: "No."

Van: "Come on, it's a good name!"

Nava sighed but smiled as she saw Lye, and Jae approach. Ajax, Bonnie, and Amias were right behind them. Was this what it was like to actually have more people who really cared about you? She still needed to get used to that.

Van: "And just in case we need em...I do have some backup."

Lye: "You don't mean.."

Van: "The Crime Bois reunion tour!"

Jae: "Crime Bois? Isn't Kash's sister Esmeray with you all now?"

Van: "She's an official Boi. It's fine."

Ajax: "Is this what I'm marrying into?"

Nava: "No backing out of it now honey, I already designed your tux."

Bonnie: "Speaking of weddings.."

Van: "Oh..uhm yeah hey look at the time, we should get training!"

Lye smirks and looks at Amias as everyone grabs their weapons.

All the while though, several individuals in rabbit masks seemed to be watching Lye, and Van from a distance..

Location: Guardian District.

Fisher: "So this "Betrayer" is someone you actually know?"

Oct: "Someone I knew once. An old teammate who I thought was dead. He claims he orchestrated everything that happened. He was responsible for what happened to our team, what happened to me."

Fisher: "I know you want to find this guy, but I can NOT have you running around the city fully armed, breaking into buildings and questioning every single criminal we bring in. The city is already dealing with too much."

Oct: "I AM going to find him. One way or another I am going to track him down and beat the answers out of him. I'll play by your rules for now but the second he shows up again all bets are off. You can either help me or get out of the way."

Fisher: "I'm not going to stand in your way. I just need your help with other pressing issues. Speaking of that, you've gotten a request to help train a friend of yours and her sister. She still isn't ready to spend any time with her mother but everything she'd been through just makes her want to get stronger."

Oct: "Just tell me when and where to meet them. As for everything else, you've got ways to contact me. Just promise me that if you get any reports of..him..you'll tell me first."

Fisher: "You've got my word. Before you leave though head down to R&D and talk to Hadrian. He's got a few things cooked up for you."

Oct saluted and exited the office. One thing was for sure, next time he was going to be ready for his old friend.

Location: Capitol Square.

The city council gathered around their usual table. A hologram of Highfather Coeus was project in the center of the table.

Highfather Coeus: "I would like to thank you again for your time. I'm afraid with everything happening recently I find it hard to match my schedule with anyone else's."

Lowell: "Oh it's quite alright Highfather. We appreciate you taking a few moments to speak with us."

Larsen: "What the hell do you want?"

Lowell: "That took longer than I expected.."

Coeus: "I only wish to extend an offer Captain. You see with the world becoming more and more unstable, Crepusculum is doing its best to keep things calm."

Styles: "By selling your fuckin weapons and energy shields and robots and whatever the fuck else? Seems to be like you're just gearing everyone up, so they start to depend on you."

Coeus: "I see not everyone is thrilled with this meeting. A shame considering how well our relationship has progressed. The trade agreement has been mutually beneficial has it not? Despite the objections from some of your members." He glances at Merek and Lucianna before turning back to Lowell.

Fisher: "I'm not sure the paranoia that has gripped the city recently is worth having a few of your merchants bringing in some extra credits."

Coeus: "We've provided you with aid in trying to track down those who infiltrated your society. The ones who perpetrated attacked did so in several other nations, mine among them if you remember correctly."

Lowell: "Be that as it may, I'm sure you can understand some people here being a bit wary."

Coeus: "Of course. In fact, it's partially why I'm here. I wish to extend an offer to your fair city. An offer to join my growing alliance. Only through unity may we overcome the conflict that threatens to keep the world fractured."

Lowell: "This is...the first I've heard of an alliance. Usually there are more official meetings about this sort of.."

Larsen: "Who's in charge of it? Let me guess, you?"

Coeus: "There would eventually be a council of course but in the beginning, I find one person is the better option. No squabbling, no backstabbing, no worries. Just security, strength, and safety for everyone involved."

Xanthos: "And what exactly happens if the city isn't interested in turning over control to someone like yourself?"

Coeus: "Nothing. It's only an offer. You're free to decline it and remain on your own."

Styles: "Well consider it declined and consider yourself told to fuck off with that dumbass idea."

Coeus: "Unfortunate. Still, I respect your decision. You may however find yourself changing your minds in time. As I stated, the world is quite unstable right now and who knows what may happen to those who decide to stand alone."

Larsen: "Is that a threat?"

Coeus: "Of course not. Just something to think about for the future. Ah, I must be going. Thank you again for your time.."

Styles slams the table and deactivates the hologram.

Fisher: "He's going to come for us eventually. I think we all expected that from the start."

Larsen: "So we kick all of his cronies out of the city and get ready."

Lowell: "No. Doing that would cause more panic and paranoia. We let them stay. We have enough ways to monitor anyone without drawing extra attention."

Merek: "I suggest we begin making preparations for the inevitable. All we have now is time, and we don't know how much of it."

Lowell: "No matter how short or how long we have, we'll be ready for whatever comes our way."

Several teams are shown practicing together.

Nava clenches her fists as she glances at Bundles of Lavender HQ.

The White Rabbit Queen watches as Cye and Lacie exit their home.

The Apricus Council begins to prepare for whatever Crepusculum sends their way in the future.

The strange creatures from the Hidden Sea have begun to create a lair under Smokey Gardens.

Skuld meets with her sister but is unable to see Clarion standing in the back of the room.

Bea and Chiyo enter an old warehouse where several others have been waiting for them.

Oct starts training with Ruby and Yang.

Highfather Coeus oversees the secret production of his new war machines in Crepusculum.

Janus Windsor and Chimera look out over the city from the spire.

Lowell and Jaime discuss the future as the sun begins to rise.

The end?

The beginning.