#Muny history

[sfmuniphotos]

Transbay Terminal or Bay Bridge Terminal View of Streetcars and Motor Coaches from Above Fremont Street – August 28, 1947

Marshall Moxom, Municipal Railway Photographer

SFMTA Photo | SFMTA.com/Photo

[valkyries-things]

MUNI LONG // SINGER

“She is an American singer and songwriter. First signing to a record company and trying a music career, she was met with positive critical reception despite failing to chart. She then co-wrote songs for other artists, including the hit singles "Promise This" for Cheryl, "California King Bed" for Rihanna, "Worth It" for Fifth Harmony, "Love So Soft" for Kelly Clarkson, "Imagine" for Ariana Grande, "Who Says" for Selena Gomez & the Scene, and the global hit "Timber" for Pitbull. She returned to her recording career in 2018, and found commercial breakthrough with her 2021 single "Hrs and Hrs", which peaked within the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and led her to sign with Def Jam Recordings. The song won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance. Her 2023 single, "Made for Me", was met with similar success and also peaked within the chart's top 20. She has received three other Grammy Award nominations throughout her career, including for Best New Artist, Best R&B Song ("Hrs & Hrs"), and a nomination for Album of the Year through her work on Back of My Mind (2021) by H.E.R.”

[graph100]

this one goes out to when the announcer lady who had been in the muny band longer than the conductor was alive mispronounced "gymnopedie" and the french exchange student had to simply chuckle in pain

[aricastmblr]

[prabhupadadasi]

śrī nāradaḥ uvāca — Śrī Nārada said;bhikṣubhiḥ — by the great sages;vipravasite — having departed for other places; vijñāna — scientific spiritual knowledge; ādeṣṭṛbhiḥ — those who imparted unto me;mama — mine; vartamānaḥ — present; vayasi ādye — before this life; tataḥ — thereafter; etat — this much; akāraṣam — performed.

Translation

Śrī Nārada said: The great sages, who had imparted scientific knowledge of transcendence to me, departed for other places, and I had to pass my life in this way.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.6.5

[thegolfcoursesofnyc]

First Tee Galleries in NYC

Are you stressed out by galleries watching you tee off on the first hole? Over the past several seasons, I’ve noticed an uptick in the number of players waiting near the first tees of New York City’s courses. This isn’t anything new, though. Seen above is an illustration from an article in the New York Herald, dated October 22, 1899, showing approximately twelve people watching a player hit their first drive at Van Cortlandt. For comparison, I’ve also included photos of the crowds around the first tees at Silver Lake in Staten Island, Forest Park and Kissena Park in Queens, and Van Cortland in the Bronx (circa 2022). I always try not to worry about the onlookers – chances are everyone is going to struggle with their first shot since there are very few opportunities to warm up at most of the City courses.

[neopronouns]

flag id: two images of the same flag with a dark silver background. in the center of the flag are 6 slightly wavy stripes, which dip down near their left edges and go up near their left edges, forming the shape of a waving flag within the flag itself. they are medium light purple, light turquoise, very light yellow-green, cream, soft golden yellow, and tan. in the center of the left flag is a simple, stylized, dark silver symbol of a pencil, which is angled to the right, writing on a piece of paper with its edges rolled like a scroll. end id.

banner id: a 1600x200 teal banner with the words ‘please read my dni before interacting. those on my / dni may still use my terms, so do not recoin them.’ in large white text in the center. the text takes up two lines, split at the slash. end id.

comuniterm: a neogender umbrella for terms conceptually related to participating in mogai/liom community

[pt: comuniterm: a neogender umbrella for terms conceptually related to participating in mogai/liom community. end pt]

concepts included under comuniterm:

coining terms

creating flags

archiving terms

requesting terms

collecting/hoarding terms

using neopronouns, identifying as neolabels, etc.

making edits of flags, masterlists of terms/pronouns, etc. (basically any other types of mogai/liom posts not listed above)

helping others find terms that fit them, either through locating existing terms or coining new ones

knowledge and preservation of liom/mogai history

neolabel, subtliden, and liom inclusionism

running mogai/liom blogs

feeling connection with other members of the community

the joy, community, and creativity found in mogai/liom spaces

and more!

derived terms:

niol: a comuniterm person. plural is niolae.

comut: a comuniterm gender. plural is comuts.

ctin: comuniterm-in-nature (ex: ctingender)

cotermine: having comuniterm qualities. noun form is coterminity.

transcotermine: transitioning towards coterminity/a comuniterm identity. can be shortened to transcoter.

termaic: gender alignment to comuniterm/coterminity.

comu, comut, muni, munit, iterm, term, coter: optional/potential prefixes and suffixes for comuniterm genders.

the term is 'comunité' (old french for 'community') + 'term'! most of the derived terms are just various permutations of 'comuniterm', but 'niol' comes from 'neolabel' and 'liom'!

i've been thinking recently about just how the liomogai community has affected my identity over the years and how those effects feel like aspects of my gender in themselves, so... here's a neogender umbrella!

i took inspiration from the coinergender, requestgender, archivigender, and flagmakergender flags, so i went with cool colors, warm light neutrals, and golden yellow. the flag is meant to look like a flag in an editing software, post editor (as a new post or reblog), or other site/software (ex: being put into a rentry or carrd)!

here's the template if anyone wants to coin comuts!

the symbol is a pencil and paper, inspired by both the flag creation and writing (definitions, tags, lists, etc.) aspects of the community! i made the pencil myself and the paper is edited from scroll (2) in this folder. here's the symbol by itself:

[image id: a simple, stylized, dark silver symbol of a pencil, which is angled to the right, writing on a piece of paper with its edges rolled like a scroll. a blank image is next to the image so that it doesn't take up the whole width of the post. end id.]

tags: @radiomogai, @liom-archive, @macchiane, @genderstarbucks, @sugar-and-vice-mogai

tags cont: @freezingnarc, @skrimbliest, @seraphtrix, @en8y, @spadescrewcoining

tags cont: @mogai-sunflowers

dni link

[aranyaani]

fools are getting confused between Shakyas and Shakas and they're trying to teach our own history to us. He was called Shakya muni. Not Saka muni.

[harrisonarchive]

Were George and Ivan Vaughan goof friends? I recently read a conversation between John, Paul, Ringo and Yoko after George left, and there John mentions Ivan, but it's a little unclear in what context

Hi, anon,

While I'm not sure how close a friendship it was, they certainly knew each other. Here's a quote, and a photo (of Paul, Ivan, and George) from 1958 shared by Paul on social media in 2020.

Q: “You met Paul first.” George: “Yeah, Paul went to school with me. I met him when I was about twelve years old. So I had this guitar, the one I just talked about, and Paul had a trumpet for some reason. His father, in his earlier days, had been involved in a little dance band. He was a piano player. So there was a lot of music in Paul's house too. But when we started hanging out together, that's when Paul realized that he wasn’t going to be able to sing and play the trumpet at the same time. So he traded it in and got a guitar.” Q: “And somewhere along the line you got introduced to the Quarrymen.” George: “That's right. Paul had a friend who was in his class at school and he lived by John. He took Paul to meet John, and then I met him, and the rest is history!” - interview conducted by Scott Muni, WNEW-FM, 1987

Hope this gives a bit of insight, at least!

[skyloftian-nutcase]

I would like to hear you elaborate :D

-Sky Floor

Well don't mind if I do! :D (Y'all are spoiling me tonight <3)

The noble families and divisions of Hyrule were like this:

To the northwest of the castle lay the Mountains and Forests of Peace, a land coveted for its sacred history. Legend claims that gods descended from the sky here. (The Breach of Demise is here, but at this stage it’s hidden in narrow canyons and forgotten to the world, except for legend – the Master Sword rests here, and hasn’t been touched since Skyward Sword Link placed it there). It’s run by House Serenne. This land would later be the place where Link, Hero of Power, uses the sword to maintain the seal on one of the pieces of Ganon’s soul, and the Temple of the Sacred Sword will be built there in the future. The area is known for its religious history and attracts many pilgrims. Its primary staple, therefore, is tourism. It also houses the Sages, which gives it a great amount of political power.

Directly north of the castle is the Lost Woods. The forest is mostly left alone, but the area outside of it house several villages, and it has a heavy military presence. The people who live here are used to fighting against the strange creatures of the woods and the occasional beast, as well as hunting or their resources as there isn’t much space for farming. They’re hardy and produce many soldiers for Hyrule. It’s known as the Woodlands, and its run by House Laruson.

Northeast of the castle is Death Mountain. King Ozen foolishly auctioned this land off to a rich Hylian family, infuriating the Gorons, though they didn’t have the ability to fight the entire Hyrulian army. It’s run by House Ishita. Zelda works to break the Ishita hold on the area, as Goron uprisings become prevalent after the war when they see weakness they can exploit.

To the south is Lake Hylia, a massive body of water with a few fishing villages lining its shores. These villages also trade with the elusive Zora. South of the lake are more settlements, but they’re not part of Hyrule. They offer trade with the fishing villages, though. This area is run by House Mabe.

Central Hyrule is still ruled by the king. It houses Kakariko Village and is a bustling place for trade. It also boasts the largest population of wild horses and has a booming horse business as a result. Lady Lon is the richest rancher in the land.

To the southwest are the Wastelands – an area that is mostly devoid of settlements except for the few who managed to make a home there. They are among the hardiest of Hyrule, and they are the few who interact with the Gerudo. No noble bothered to claim this land, and it’s therefore run entirely by the marshal of the area. After the war, this area is heavily reinforced and populated by soldiers, bringing trade and business to the area. A general is in charge of the Wastelands until Zelda places a noble in its care – Lady Muni of House Ishita, who agreed to it when she recognized that Ishita was going to lose its power in the Goron lands.

The Gerudo desert is massive – it spans the southern border of Hyrule in its entirety. It has several cities within its expanses, and its center of trade is in the Wastelands. The largest city is Lagema Town, and the two other settlements are Lanayru Village and Roosen Village. Lanayru is the farthest away, resting in the southeast, while Roosen is directly south and Lagema is the southwest. Roosen deals with Ordon Province, an independent province from Hyrule, while Lanayru sits in what remains of the Lanayru Desert. The magic of timeshift instruments has been lost, but glowing crystals and mysterious discoveries of the past still tantalize the few who manage to make it out there. Lagema has a rough history with the Wastelands, sometimes trading and sometimes stealing from them. Lagema is the seat of authority for the Gerudo people. After the war, all three settlements have been destroyed. Hemisi builds Gerudo Town in the southwest, while a scant amount of Gerudo survivors refuse to listen to her rule because of the actions of her father. She leaves them, protecting the rest of her people. Eventually, the Gerudo rebuild themselves but have a shaky relationship with Hyrule.

The Seven Sages

The Sage of Light – Traditionally a member of the royal family. The sage’s seat has been empty, and King Ozen had planned to fill it with Zelda when she came of age. Zelda does traditionally fill this role, though it’s not made official until the other sages try to put someone in there to get power. Eventually is filled by Zelda’s daughter, Missa.

The Sage of Shadow – Peloz, a female Sheikah who is very powerful in magic. Aunt to Chief Impa. Very strongly in league with the royal family. Did not like the coup, and did not acknowledge Zelda as the rightful ruler until Link married her.

The Sage of Water – Bansen, a Hylian male from the region of the Wetlands, where Lake Hylia is. He has good relations with the Zora, a mysterious water species of people that Hyrule has had trouble having any kind of relationship with. He’s pretty neutral in terms of loyalties; tries to do his duty, but he won’t sway the Zora one way or the other, and he does not want to get involved in the political war brewing, but also doesn’t want his life to be a living hell, so he’ll sway for whoever pressures him the most.

The Sage of Time – Another traditional position of the royal family. Tradition was broken when King Ozen gave it to one of his lovers, Ora. She holds no magic over time, but it was an open position to be filled. As such, she’ll do anything to maintain this position as it gives her prestige and power. Usually does so by sleeping with whoever she needs to. She tries this with Link and it does not go well. However, they can’t just throw her out despite the dishonor she tries to push on Link, and he despises that. It’s another point of contention between him and Zelda. Eventually, Zelda finds a way to get rid of her, and Sonia takes her place.

The Sage of Fire – Kuzu, a Hylian male from House Ishita. Given the fact that Zelda seems keen on giving the Goron lands back to the Gorons, lands which belong to House Ishita, Kuzu is very staunchly against her.

The Sage of Spirit – Ophea, a member of House Serenne. Her family traditionally fills this role, which is another reason they managed to become powerful enough to rule the entire region. Clearly not going to be in favor of Zelda since she overthrew the man who gave her family more power.

The Sage of Lightning – Originally Elkan, a warrior known as the Thunder Knight due to his booming battle cry and powerful fighting abilities. Staunchly loyal to the royal family. Died during the war. One of Zelda’s first tasks is to replace him at the end of the war, and she chooses Elkan’s son, Molik. Molik is not as strong a warrior, but he is just as proud and wishes to do his part. His loyalty to the queen is what earns him this position.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

#20yrsago Asimov’s magazine on DRM, copyright and Creative Commons https://web.archive.org/web/20041020235706/https://www.asimovs.com/_issue_0412/onthenet.shtml

#15yrsago MPAA shuts down entire town’s muni WiFi over a single download https://web.archive.org/web/20091114054844/http://www.coshoctontribune.com/article/20091109/UPDATES01/91109015

#15yrsago EFF lawyers grin like holy fools, surrounded by a fan of formerly secret government documents https://memex.craphound.com/2009/11/11/eff-lawyers-grin-like-holy-fools-surrounded-by-a-fan-of-formerly-secret-government-documents/

#15yrsago McDonald’s Gitmo is hiring! https://web.archive.org/web/20091112101249/http://www.azcentral.com/offbeat/articles/2009/11/10/20091110guantanamo-mcdonalds-ON.html

#15yrsago EFF to represent Yes Men in Chamber of Commerce lawsuit https://www.eff.org/press/archives/2009/11/11

#15yrsago Pratchett’s “Unseen Academicals” – a gift to Discworld lovers and an argument for the importance of sport https://memex.craphound.com/2009/11/11/pratchetts-unseen-academicals-a-gift-to-discworld-lovers-and-an-argument-for-the-importance-of-sport/

#10yrsago Net Neutrality activists blockade FCC Chairman Wheeler’s house https://popularresistance.org/breaking-net-neutrality-activists-blockade-fcc-chairman-tom-wheelers-house/

#10yrsago DOJ helps local cops get around state limits on civil forfeiture https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2014/nov/10/asset-forfeiture-article/

#10yrsago New KKK organization open to people of color, Jews, LGBT https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ku-klux-klan-opens-its-doors-hispanic-blacks-jews-gays-1473907

#10yrsago Italian scientists acquitted of culpability in L’Aquila quake https://web.archive.org/web/20160826014632/https://www.dw.com/en/court-acquits-natural-disaster-experts-over-laquila-quake/a-18055155

#10yrsago Expat activists and journalists leave USA for Berlin’s safety https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/09/berlins-digital-exiles-tech-activists-escape-nsa

#10yrsago Senate races were won by dump-trucks full of “dark money” https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/09/opinion/sunday/dark-money-helped-win-the-senate.html

#10yrsago The Oatmeal to Ted Cruz: Net Neutrality is not Obamacare https://theoatmeal.com/blog/net_neutrality

#5yrsago AOC really plays in Iowa https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/11/turns-out-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-is-huge-in-iowa/

#5yrsago Bill Gates just accidentally proved that even “unsuccessful�� antitrust enforcement works https://memex.craphound.com/2019/11/11/bill-gates-just-accidentally-proved-that-even-unsuccessful-antitrust-enforcement-works/

#1yrago "Brand safety" killed Jezebel https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/11/ad-jacency/#brand-safety

[sfmuniphotos]

Muni's Original Streetcar 1 from 1912 Next to New Boeing Light Rail Vehicle at Muni Metro Rail Yard on June 3, 1980

SFMTA Photo | SFMTA.com/Photo

[radical-revolution]

Dear Friends,

Mr. Kris Kringle has never really had an impact on me. If anything, the rosy cheeks, snow-white beard and deer might be the perfect remedy for a nightmare. In fact, I do useless shopping anyway, with or without the excuse of a Kris Kringle.

Still, I have always been fascinated by the amazing karma of the son of Joseph, the co-father, to help create such power to love, care, forgive, inspire, redeem, disorient, unsettle, and mould entire cultures and billions of people, and to be used as a tool by the great bullies of history.

And then there’s this thing called a new year – not only a western one but a Tibetan one, a Chinese one, and of course how can I forget the new year of my beloved country, Bhutan. It’s puzzled me that all these new years fall around so-called winter time. Maybe there are new years in the sub-Sahara or Caribbean that fall in the spring or summer?

Anyway, I have some trepidation in saying Happy New Year this year, because that’s what I said with millions of others at the end of 2023 and look what happened in 2024! If anything, it only showed what an angel George Bush was. You might wonder why I am singling out an American president here. That’s only because they have singled themselves out as guardians of the world.

So this year I have no inclination to go through all the rigmarole of designing new year cards, deciding who for, and then sending them by hand. It feels a bit like those childhood obstacle games where kids have to race wearing a sack. Those kinds of things just don’t amuse me any more. New year cards feel a bit like that and I wonder why we even do it. Nor do I claim any wholesome motivation like saving the planet by wasting less paper, though if even one less envelope contributes to that, I’ll see that as a bonus.

So when you don’t get a new year card, friends and those connected to me should not take that as neglect or rejection. Just remember that we’re so deeply intertwined and bound and the power of karma is so strong that such rejection is not even possible. Whether you’ve been annoyed, irritated, envious, or disgusted by my appearance, actions or mere presence, or whether you’ve loved, cared, followed, been devoted to or inspired by me – all of that is the result of causes and conditions through so many lifetimes from what both you and I have done.

I try not to take advantage of our connection by over-using your precious time, energy and resources. But, no matter what kind of connection you have with me, I want to say that I genuinely aspire that, new year or not, our own connection will keep you connected to Gautama, the Prince of Shakya, and that you will never stray from the great Muni.

In this so-called holiday season, I also pray that while you are alive, you always remain under the gentle, protective palms of Arya Tara, and that the subjugator of all phenomena, Padmasambhava, remains in your heart whether you remember him or not. And when this act of so-called living ends, may we all be awakened with the act of the copper-coloured mountain or Suhkaviti.

I also aspire that everyone, and especially those who claim to be practitioners, will truly and deeply realize that life will never be perfect, but that the true nature of our mind is primordially stainless. That is something of which we can be proud, which is worth maintaining and cultivating, and developing the genuine wish that others will also be interested in this.

Yours in the wondering and therefore wandering,

DJK

[vintagetvstars]

little bits of propaganda for claude rains!

-was good friends with bette davis! she called him her favorite male costar and they worked on four films together. also, she had a FAT crush on him and she visited a lot!

-speaking of where he lived, claude owned and worked on farms! he was proud to grow and cultivate land, often restoring and preserving whatever he could and loved the history behind things! he raised cattle, grew crops, and tilled the land himself

-is literally the wikepedia subject for the term 'character actor' - he said it himself on his versatility as an actor, saying "i can play the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker

-eleanor roosevelt saw him in 'darkness at noon' on broadway and personally praised him for his performances

-he served in ww1 and was gassed, resulting in 90% blindness in his right eye and damaged vocal chords - giving him his signature voice

-was nominated for 4! academy awards for best supporting actor and also won a tony for best leading actor in a play

-taught at the royal academy for dramatic art, teaching students like john gielgud and sir laurence olivier

-was cast in the invisible man soley on his voice, to quote director james whale, "i don't care what he looks like, i just want that voice!"

-depending on who you ask, he was the first actor to receive a million dollars for a role (as well as risking his life traveling overseas to england during ww2 for filming on 'caesar and cleopatra'

-claude probably worked with your favorite star! his list of co-stars was endless and included people such as bette davis, james stewart, humphrey bogart, paul henried, gloria stuart, basil rathbone, cedric hardwicke, errol flynn, cary grant, ingrid bergman, ronald reagan, and paul muni to name a few.

all in all, i'm pledging my vote for claude rains!!

Hi, thank you for the Claude Rains propaganda!

Friendly reminder to please try to keep things focused on actors TV careers as this is a TV focused competition. Sharing about an actors life is great but we like to steer things away from talk of their movie, theater, or music career and focus on what makes them a hot television star!

- mod vintage

[aricastmblr]

¡"Angel Pt. 1" ocupa el puesto número 65 en el Billboard Hot 100 de esta semana! 

 ¡Jimin logra la mayor cantidad de entradas de canciones Hot 100 por un acto asiático este 2023 y la mayor cantidad por un solista asiático en la historia!

¡Park Jimin es ahora el acto coreano y K-pop más rápido en ingresar al Billboard Hot 100 con cuatro canciones en la historia! 

¡Lo logra en cuatro meses!

#65 Angel Pt. 1 [NEW] 

#1 Like Crazy 

#30 Set Me Free Pt. 2 

#76 Vibe

¡Park Jimin es ahora el solista coreano y K-pop líder de todos los tiempos en número de entradas de canciones en las principales listas de sencillos de EE. UU. y Reino Unido! 

Entró en ambas listas con cuatro canciones como solista solo en 2023:

Angel Pt.1.

Like Crazy

Set Me Free Pt.2

Vibe

En 2020, la canción en solitario de BTS de Jimin, "Filter", se convirtió en la primera B-side en solitario de Corea y K-pop en ingresar también a las listas principales de sencillos de EE. UU. Y el Reino Unido.

[okalanissolis]

⌖ ๋࣭ ⭑♚₊🗡 ๋࣭ ᴅʀɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ᴍᴏᴏɴꜱʜɪɴᴇ ᴀ ᴄᴇʟᴇꜱᴛɪᴀʟ ᴍᴀꜰɪᴀ ᴀ.ᴜ.

⌖ ๋࣭ ⭑♚₊🗡 ๋࣭ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴋɪɴɢ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ ๋࣭🗡₊♚⭑ ๋࣭⌖ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴘᴀꜱᴛ ɪꜱ ᴄᴏɴꜱɪᴅᴇʀᴇᴅ ᴘʀᴇᴠɪᴏᴜꜱ . . . pt. i | | series masterlist

focus on: muni sarang (diane meunier) word count: ~4.1k warnings: language, intermittent Lore Dumping™, mentions of violence, occasional graphic imagery, mentions of semi-main character death

ᴛᴄᴅᴜ (ᴛᴏᴏ ᴄᴏɴᴠᴏʟᴜᴛᴇᴅ, ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀꜱᴛᴀɴᴅ) ɪꜱ ɪɴᴄʟᴜᴅᴇᴅ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇɴᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ !

⌖ ๋࣭ ⭑♚₊🗡 ๋࣭

lilo's mic: we start this story with essentially a history lesson, to keep you up to date on all of the Complex Relational Lore between all of our characters. also, before this past is considered previous is currently the only part of the story i actually have planned. so. enjoy it, this part of the story will probably be the only part that truly makes complete coherent sense. but, in the wise words of okalani akana in her swag girl era: fucka dat, we he'e nalu.

⌖ ๋࣭ ⭑♚₊🗡 ๋࣭

⌜ i kick a rhyme drinking moonshine / i pour a sip on the concrete for the deceased ⌟

ᴅʀɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ᴍᴏᴏɴꜱʜɪɴᴇ ๋࣭🗡₊♚⭑ ๋࣭⌖

— in hoku city there were three gods that everyone prayed to and, in secret, one power that bound them. supplication for the latter was far more clandestine, whispered and sequestered — in exile, made strange. ʜᴏᴋᴜ, ɴᴇꜱᴏɪ, ʙᴀᴅᴀ. star, earth, sea. the three gods that, when destiny conspired and came crawling, created the refuge of the bay on which hoku city was erected. favoritism named the city hoku when it was nesoi who ruled over land, and bada that, with her heaving oceans, carved the bay. but hoku was a star, and the city fell right beneath it's never blinking truth. it was only inevitable that one would be remembered more than the others, and in hoku's complacency, it would only be fair that bada's volatility and nesoi's jealousy would grow.

the ꜱᴇʀᴘᴇɴꜱ was the intensity that kept the city from eating itself whole.

— serpens, short for the serpens syndicate, was no true god, though certainly you'd be forgiven for thinking as much.

— formed generations ago (eight? six? what did it truly matter when the bones of them no longer existed, long pulverized, buried then exhumed, desecrated, then revered on an altar?) when a woman stepped off of a boat and onto the anticipating shores of a fetal city, barely christened with the name of hoku — the recrowning of a deity once forgotten, now animated anew and worshiped again, a cycle beginning at it's center. she had a dream of creating an empire — a whole world that would bend to her whims, small enough to swallow whole, powerful enough to seat her progeny for millennia — and create it, she had. first as a true business, a coalition of handpicked merchants who would come to rule the city with the foresight of a deified star, the omniscient eye, and the volatility of the omnipresent sea that raged around them. their trade was primarily alcoholic spirits and all manner of goods that could be sourced from the omnipotent abundance of the earth.

in those days, the prohibition had yet to emerge. in some ways, it was harder, more convoluted — byzantine. to hold the stopper on someone's desires is so much simpler when you are the only voice commanding vice. to control the flow of sin is a straightforward, near effortless task when there is only one fount, and you it's supplier.

— generations ago, when the world was less complicated, and the laws held with a velvet glove rather than an iron fist, the serpens syndicate was formed. not yet a godhead, something commonplace and admired. perhaps sharper, then, as it navigated streets it did not yet own and, with lazy skill, intricately wove itself into the desires of the people there. and with time, the corrupting influence of that diety named ꜱᴀᴍɢᴏɴɢ, that which is illicit becomes so much more tantalizing to hold. first it was little things, and then the shadows came to dance closer to their vision, and serpens had no choice but to embrace them or be swallowed whole.

— eventually, the elders of the serpens died and their prestige passed to the children beneath them. markets swelled and companies rose, and other things, still, ebbed with the water and, violently, were pulled to sea. only the serpens was strong enough to survive. only the snake born of sky and sea, tending to the ground beneath, could curl itself into the heart of the city and, triumphant, keep it's watchful eye keen.

and when prohibition came knocking, an unfortunate response to the political fear of a red light district growing stronger than it's keeper... well, who were the serpens to venerate: the gods that birthed them, and by favor, swelled their size? or the lawmen that cowered in fear, clawing at what never belonged to them to start?

— it was an easy choice, the former. and an evident decision for the people of hoku to raise the serpens up and, in their devotion, both conceal and empower them.

— when the prohibition hit, the serpens was headed by the mysterious ᴇʀɴᴇꜱᴛ, eldest of the meunier family and heir to the most vast and impressive organization hoku would ever see. open and inviting by name, but hidden yet renown, envied and feared, by reputation.

it was he who expanded their previous business, opening more hidden speakeasies — nips for the well to do that just needed something to take off the edge, bars for those who only wished to partake in their established addictions, and more clandestine holes in the wall for those that were used to the darker shades and umbra the Serpens had long been expected to supply: canned heat, bottled torment, and tinned apparitions of ebullient euphoria.

bootlegging, drug peddling, pleasure dealing, death. the gods could save you from misfortune and lead you from disgrace, but the serpens could command all that sin and vice and all those evils that itched the back of your screaming throat.

— so pray to them. buy a bottle of their greed and spill a drink onto the pavement. the cops would never know if it was you that offered the liquid, or them that spilled it in confiscation. but the serpens would know. they were in every window, on every street corner, just around the block. they would see you downtrodden, and they would appreciate your awe, and they would raise you, when the moment became opportune.

to the serpens, master of all three: the omniscient eye, the omnipresent sea, the omnipotent abundance of the earth.

ᴅʀɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ᴍᴏᴏɴꜱʜɪɴᴇ ๋࣭🗡₊♚⭑ ๋࣭⌖ ᴄᴏɴᴛ.

— ernest was a man that, however paradoxically, lived up to his name. warm. friendly. true. and yet, to those who would interfere with his business and create problems or messes (things less than ideal), he was unequivocally feared. his ire was your death; your mistake his boot on your broken neck, a miscalculation...? something bloody would be trickling into the rust-stained drain, the slow drip absinthe that was distilling into liquid gold in the serpen's hands.

most of the grotesque work — the unrefined, the unsightly brute force — was left to the delegation of ernest's right hand: ʙʏᴇᴏɴɢ-ʜᴡᴀ. a man to be equally feared, a name to invoke misfortune and curse. how the two met was a secret all-too-well kept. one day he appeared: the shadow of a crime lord, the brass knuckles of his right fist.

— even when they became fathers their resolve never weakened, their terror never lifted. ꜱᴏʏᴇᴏɴ, born in august, the daughter of a kingpin's right hand, and ᴅɪᴀɴᴇ, born two months later, the dauphin of a power much larger than the self, a weapon so deadly even ɪᴋᴜ himself — death incarnate — could only fathom the shallows of it's striking blow.

if anything, the rise of the next generation simply made them all the more careful in their planning — more visionary, more cutthroat.

— soyeon was born the eldest, and the shadow in her fathers deeds caressed the hair on her head and worshiped the light in her eyes until they were as dark as all that she would be groomed to do. diane was her opposite and not-quite-equal — someone on a pedestal already raised, above in rank and not apologetic of it... yet.

— when it came to diane — darling of hoku's underground world, devoted of that which sat above — many things would sink in slowly, overtime: eat their way through her thickened skin and gnaw at the tenderness encased within. yet was her eventuality, yet was all that she could not abide, and yet would be the knife pointed at her treasonous heart at the beginning of what lies beyond.

it was her father's fault, if we're to place blame.

after all, was it not him, that, in the giddy delight of having a daughter, suggested to his wife that his progeny should have a name no less witty and ironic than his own? ernest for a kingpin. truth for a crown of deceit. they should name her something cynical — acerbic when you faced it unblinking, bathed in truth. sarang, he said, through bubbling laughter: love, when it would be most impossible to abide.

and it had stayed that way: her second identity, her secret name. the epithet she only used with the closest of her kin, the appellation she only whispered through unsteady breath. sarang. love. oh, how it betrayed her. oh, how it shackled her to the floor of her deception and ever-growing lies.

— daughters of monsters and daughters of men. hoku crawled with them and it was the power of ʜᴏʀᴋᴏꜱ — oath — and that almighty mixture of convenience and duty that combined to draw the fates of diane and soyeon ever close, so they would tangle upon bloom.

after all. when there was an education for one, why should there not be opportunity for both? when there was such rich history between the fathers, why not a friendship and devotion for the daughters?

so knit their lives to be experiences in tandem. cut the cloth so their fraying edges could tangle rather than break. school together, extra circulars joint, assembled schedules with collective goals; if their lives were in constant collaboration and concert, their goals and dreams, too, might coalesce and unify — perhaps their bond would triumph over that of even their fathers and their leverage, in the end, would eclipse all the control and power the serpens had ever known.

— from their youngest years, diane and soyeon were together. it was only natural that companionship should rise, and no one celebrated it more than the demon of hoku and his calloused right hand.

byeong-hwa and his quiet pride (the secret, near half curve of a schadenfreude smile; the confident satisfaction of a brief exchange of half-muttered words), the mastermind of an empire didn't express much, but in his silence was a world of self gratified honor and his daughter and her closest companion were at the epicenter — all he could focus on, all he could contain. his blessings were all skills they would hone to a knifepoint, his devotion a paved road.

ernest, by contrast (a man indulged in his freedom, so high above the rest that he bound those that would not be bidden and answered to only those he so carefully chose), delighted in the two girls with ripe expression and open hands near constantly filled with the tangible, though on rare occasion and most cherished, the cerebral. diane, to whom he gave all his wisdom and wove all of his bleeding love, and soyeon, who he blessed with clairty of vision for all her ambition.

— two fathers, two daughters. and all that to say nothing of the mothers who bore them and ever after rose them up. and for a moment longer than the stasis that holds you at the fear of death, and in am embrace softer than the hands encircling your eiderdown throat, the two girls received all that virtue and knowledge surrounding them, and they were happy.

"i thought your name was diane."

"it is."

"then why does samchon ernest call you sarang?"

"it's my secret name," and the younger girl giggled, flipped upside down on the stairs she would climb like monkey bars, dreaming that this staircase was a freedom beyond one she would be granted at this age, still prepubsecent, a liberty perhaps not reached even in the whole of this life. "only the people who know me best call me that. family."

and for a long moment soyeon just stared at diane. upside down as well, moreso hanging than dangling, too stubborn to admit to the vulnerability in suspension, she looked at the girl beside her — this built in friend, this given companion that she grew to care for more dearly than any other — soft. then... "can i use it, too?"

"of course! i was waiting for you to."

— and it would be only too familiar when such familiarity would rot and envy sink in her teeth, anchored deep with her claws.

— diane was the heir to hoku, and soyeon her second fiddle. a weapon for diane to one day direct, a voice in her ear that could be disregarded or misattributed.

it began in those meetings, almost mock sessions — child's play — where diane would speak her beliefs into action, her desires into assignment, and soyeon would see the heart of the blonde leaping from its place and tumbling out of her uncertain throat. soyeon would challenge that, the way she had their whole lives, the counsel she was bred to provide, and her tutors would set their jaws and flicker their eyes.

when she speaks, her word is law, her ambitions reign.

never mind the softness that turned her bile into forgiveness, the compassion and love within her yielding and spreading thick, a knife turned to it's side, indulgence forgetting the edge to favor the spine.

— they were little moments, and the thoughts, though poisonous, petty. diane's tenderness would blind her one moment, and the next she would dictate a torture graphic and bloody to the fool who had dared to break byeong-hwa's good knee. the resources of her station could enable her volatility, but without the fervor of passionate emotion, it was a tendency more likely to dull from lack of use.

and so it was a simple question of fitness — a lingering hypothetical of what if that rooted itself in the dark places where twisted things like to grow, and, by degrees, spread it's uncertainty into the deeper beliefs in soyeon's mind.

ᴅʀɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ᴍᴏᴏɴꜱʜɪɴᴇ ๋࣭🗡₊♚⭑ ๋࣭⌖ ᴄᴏɴᴛ.

— it was a sort of self gratifying joke in the meunier household that sarang could see the truth of people and diane could see their use.

sarang, imbued with love from the moment she was a thought in the minds of her parents (a hope, a joy — something to be cradled and held — cherished, for all innocence in hoku city was fleeting and met a tragic demise) , could always see the truth of someone despite any will to hide — verity and devotion bowed before her: unblinking, unmotivated, bare.

diane was less romantically inclined. she had to be, by nature of her role — her existence, her duty, her reign. she could only see the use of people. it was her only saving grace. if she began to entangle herself in the hearts of men, bog herself down in the histories and vulnerabilities of their lives, it would be impossible to do her work. it would be foolish of her: imbecilic to see the heart of people — to focus on all their love, all their life, all their vibrancy, still bleeding and not yet cold. it wouldn't serve her in the end, and so diane had to let those ideals rest.

— it was certainly a work in progress — this distinction between the two parts of herself.

which was more true? which would win in the end? these were questions without answers, quandaries lacking resolve. who are we really? that which we project or that which we feel tearing us limb from limb, clawing inside out, feasting on our rotting flesh, and undeterred, forever starting again?

— but let us begin here with the duality of sarang and diane. the same person - two different people — the same values, different ideals. diane neatly dissected herself on the daily — crafting identities and electing character (cherry picking the best of her, discerning those weaknesses that fit the narrative, burying those foibles that could not), a vulture that picked herself clean and only consumed that which would not fester between her teeth.

— and when she would go out and into this world that would only see her by degrees, she would often keep another name in her back pocket. secrets upon; secrets lies upon lies. you could never truly know her because you only knew a half, a part, a fragment. when she was old enough to hold her own and old enough to where her educational needs differed from that of soyeon and the two of them on occasion would part only to return again, half changed, diane chose a second friend. a bodyguard, mainly. a protector in name.

— his name was ꜱᴀɴ. a year younger than her, but with a built twice her size. fearless, intense, courageous, genuine. how he found his way into the underbelly of hoku city was a predictable tragedy, a commonplace loss; but how he managed to safeguard the softest parts of himself in a place protected and secure, still half transparent to be seen by the eyes of one so clear as sarang was his true peculiarity.

it was unsurprising, in the end, when diane chose him to be her armed weapon, her chosen conspirator, her useful friend.

— once, when san was newly appointed, and diane hoped to hide a fascination she had with the softness of humanity, she slipped away from san in the crowd. he'd caught up with her and all of his barreling force of anger burnt into ash when he realised what she stooped over was a stray puppy — still infant, terrified and matted and cold.

"you could take him to the complex. the demon of hoku would never say no."

"i know." and sarang was uncharacteristically quiet, like this was some secret, some vulnerable part of her character that untombed itself and didn't belong here — at least, it was still somehow premature. "but innocence has no place in the serpens. i don't want him to bury himself alive and resurface as something changed."

and they stood there, the guiltless whelp before them, whose only sin was not being loved to the point of sanctuary.

"don't slip away from me again. your father is on every corner of this city and if i'm seen without you and a hint of concern, it will be my head." and it was sarang, then, that nodded her apology and agreed. "you don't have to hide softness from me."

— and it was that sort of understanding, that sort of freedom, that compacted and grew, spiraled and engorged — feasted on opportunity as any serpent might — and became the monster curled in the little demon's lap.

it certainly led them to where they were, now.

— the courtyard of the police academy was simple and no nonsense, by a general rule: bare. but during special events like the one being celebrated today, blue ribbon (with shades from the deepest midnight to the softest powder blue) was wrapped around columns and set to flutter in the mild breeze. whole families sat, poised and proper, in unyielding folding chairs. they clapped politely when names of graduating students were called, and peacocked, beaming, when the name was an honor their own.

diane sat comfortably toward the back, her eyes following police academy hopefuls, then the crowd that so warmly received them, by turns.

san was alongside her, as always, but their conversation was nothing but niceties for the duration of the ceremony — nothing like the conversation they'd had before they'd resolved to arrive.

"why are you so set on seeing the police graduates anyway?"

— establishing a civilian face in the most unlikely of locations. taking stock of who was still trusted with the youngest recruits. finding an exposed and vulnerable underbelly that soon enough, could be exploited, gutted, turned. the police were slowly understanding the profile of turncoat that the serpens was partial to adding to their payroll. it had been soyeon's idea to poach where they were least likely to expect: idealized graduates, still wet behind the ears with nothing of value, yet, but the potential and fire of youth.

there was another younger serpens member hidden somewhere in the crowd, sharp minded ꜱᴇᴏɴɢʜᴡᴀ who ernest, these days, was partial to favoring whenever he needed another mind of judgement than just diane and soyeon was busy, aiding the few senior members to fill the gaping hole left by byeong-hwa.

(he'd died last fall, days before he swore he'd finally retire. a bad omen, some had said: vengeance and penance would always force the worst to reap what they sow. there had been a few retirements after that, some loyal enough and peripheral enough to be true resignations, some far too close to the trigger to see any reprieve other than what lay on the other side of a bullet and it's ashen powder. they were of an age, it was understood. for some of them, there was no expertise, just liability. according to the laws of the gods, a roulette with fate and a handgun was the most they deserved, and an honor they could rest easy with on another plane.)

at the end of this ceremony, diane would convene with seonghwa and together, they would find the rabbits easiest for the blow. perhaps the girl few clapped for beyond polite acknowledgement; ever still, the boy with a smothered nervousness in his gait, like if he looked over his shoulder, he'd draw attention to his own smoking gun.

— one of the graduates had a grin that near broke into a boisterous laugh when his name was called "ʙᴀɴɢ ᴄʜᴀɴ." the row in front of diane erupted into the most fearsome of cheers, and they stood, perhaps to make up for their sitting so far back.

diane stood, too, if only to size up this boy that had made her very ground shake with raucous thunder.

when somehow they locked eyes, it was all her power to not immediately falter.

— when the speeches were through, sarang sat to linger.

she and seonghwa shouldn't leave and arrive at their mutual second location quite so noticeably. even in the hubbub of a graduation ceremony. even on a night the nips were sure to be bought dry with young people looking to celebrate, hiding their illegalities under the alibi of youth.

— she could have moved. anticipated the movements that would wrap her string of fate around her neck like a noose.

she stayed rooted to her spot.

— bang chan, the ebullient graduate from before, came proudly over to his family before long. he caught her gaze, big brown eyes flicking briefly to the muscle beside her, before turning to who must have been his sister and laughing, pulling her into an embrace.

it took less than one whole look for san to disappear from beside her, and when bang chan was done receiving congratulation from his sea of adoring family, sarang — diane — was quite alone.

"hi."

and she echoed his greeting before finding more of her voice. "congratulations on your graduation."

"ah, thank you." and he was bashful, rubbing the back of his neck. "it wasn't anything anyone else hadn't done."

"the whole courtyard burst with applause."

and he had all the humility of laughter. "that was just my family." and he waved to the group of familiars retreating out of the archway, a promise to catch up soon. his smile twisted into something still warm but searching. "i saw you standing, though. we can't have met before; i know i would have remembered you."

and for a moment, there was a sound on the tip of her tongue, sly and smooth, serpentine sooth. but a different moniker tumbled out when she thought better, a contrasting life.

a fake name. chan savored the taste of lies on his tongue.

"are you here for anyone i might know?"

"no," and a half truth was followed with falsehood, the genuinely twinkle in her eye accompanied with a smile she could not truly own. "i came to get out of the house, and this is one of the few places my father allowed — so long as i brought my cousin, of course."

chan's eyes brightened, then. relieved. he pressed slightly closer, conspiratorial, light. "your bodyguard."

"that's the desired affect." a laugh. then here, a half calculating, half hopeful hint. "but a push over. give him money for ramyeon and he'll vanish."

and when he left, it was with the parting wish that he would see her one day, again.

— when san appeared at diane's side as though he'd never left, it was mutually understood that they'd never speak of this bang chan and report only to seonghwa those names easily overtook: cho miyeon, seo changbin.

in the end, nothing would come of nothing and only dust follows dust; those things we do in the space between living and death — where nothing can live and no one can die — are always clandestine but teeter on meaningless. we can only have that which we are given to hold, and if there are no hands in this space of oblivion, and the omniscient eye cannot see, are we held in contempt for the arteries we burst and the chambers we disintegrate on our way to be free?

⌖ ๋࣭ ⭑♚₊🗡 ๋࣭ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴋɪɴɢ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ ๋࣭🗡₊♚⭑ ๋࣭⌖ pt. i | | series masterlist

ᴛᴄᴅᴜ (ᴛᴏᴏ ᴄᴏɴᴠᴏʟᴜᴛᴇᴅ, ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀꜱᴛᴀɴᴅ) :

1 - hoku city is a port city where there is currently one major gang at play, named the serpens syndicate. the serpens is an old organization that was started long ago as a legitimate business selling alcoholic beverages. as time went on, they expanded their business to things less than legal, and their control over the port makes them strong and rich.

2 - hoku city recently became a prohibition city though it is not well maintained. the serpens is older than the prohibition laws and has many ways to circumvent the system, though the police force is becoming savvy to their m.o.

3 - the current leader of the serpens is ernest meunier. he has an heir, diane meunier. ernest's right hand man was the late byeonghwa, who has a daughter, soyeon. byeonghwa died and soyeon, groomed to inherit his place, keeps ernest informed with the aid of older informants, who are slowly "aging out" of the life of crime.

4 - diane meets bang chan, a recent police academy graduate, when scouting for police officers the serpens will add to their payroll. she keeps their meeting and acquaintance a secret from all others, barring san, her bodyguard and friend.

now onto pt. ii . . .