#Open Baladin

[innervoiceartblog]

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[neverendingrelease]

Releasing Today, May 15 2024!

Realm Of I is a fast paced minimal (atari? idk I never know what to call this style) pixel metroidvania. It has a spell based (projectile) combat system. The music is apparently dynamically generated? There's some neat layering going on in here amongst the minimalistic graphics.

Astral Rift is a top down action roguelike. Uh, collect stuff, kill hordes, visit townsfolk?

An English Haunting is a pixel art point and click horror game.

Aeruta is an action platformer with a shop management mechanic, sort of like Battle Chef. It also has a little bit of a coffee shop mechanic where you have to do a DDR input to make (sell?) stuff. I hope it's translated to English though.

Cozy Crest is a whole element-bending open world survival farming chill game? It looks surprisingly put together for what I normally skim through.

Pilapila is a 2d block stacking puzzle platformer.

Deep Beyond is a first person walking simulator/puzzle game about a sea diver trying to figure out why her father disappeared.

Baladins is a co-op...roleplaying game...graphic novel? I'm not really sure how to describe it. It's a multiplayer choose your own adventure that lets you build character stats and then make choices that will be affected by them to change the story.

Mullet Madjack is a roguelike fps that is inspired by the hyper detailed and gory 90s anime that you used to find only on VHS tapes or if you watched Anime Abandon.

[newseventsturin]

Любите пиво? Тогда не пропустите Baladin Open Fest 2024 в Турине! Более 100 пивоварен

Turin Baladin Open Fest 2024 — это не просто фестиваль, а настоящий праздник для всех любителей пива и веселья! Сотня пивоварен, уличная еда, скейтбординг и живая музыка ждут вас на этом уникальном событии. Узнайте, как провести идеальные выходные в Турине, и забронируйте билеты заранее. Не упустите шанс стать частью этого невероятного…

[mygainyear2024]

Day 77-78 Argan Oil & Eid & back to Marrakesh

After a late breakfast on the upper deck of Riad Baladin we’re in search of an authentic argan oil shop, Essauoria was listed as the place to purchase it.  Many stores dilute with water. Felix, the Manager, gave us instructions and instead of showing the two taxi drivers I asked the full instructions, they saw half, as I’d folded the paper in half 🤦‍♀️

A young man approached us and said he’d heard us ask two drivers something and could he help.  He lives in Switzerland and also had a place here and a car.  He offers to drive us. And as I explained to Rose, I just didn't randomly jump in a car with a dude, I did a quick risk assessment! But he couldn’t find it either, again with only half the instructions! Websites and instagram pages led us down more rabbit holes.  He worked out, as I’d seen when I originally google maps the name, it was back in the Medina 🥴😂

We stocked up, careful not to go overboard given the weight! The authentic product is about the same price as the crappy stuff I buy at the supermarket at home, 250 dirham for 250mls.

The rest of the day was spent browsing the shops and grabbing lunch at KSOU rooftop.  The food was good, but we ordered too much. Rose wasn’t keen to come to Carrefour, 2.8kms each way for oat milk and tonic! I walked the back streets and excuse my frankness, it is a “shit hole”! Eva did offer up an alternative destination and perhaps I should have taken her advice, I think it was near Agadir. Carrefour was well stocked and slightly exciting to be honest.  They had mounds of spices, cheese, olives, Moroccan sweets, even fevertree tonic! I forgot to check for coffee pods 🤦‍♀️

Rose decided to come with me for a walk along the beach front.  It was certainly more picturesque than the back streets, but windy and bloody cold. 

Given many restaurants were closed, dinner was at Brunch & Co and it was disappointing. It was my issue in making assumptions, even with google translate. I wanted a vegetable tagine and mistook tagine with egg for vegetable and egg.  It was three fried eggs with some cherry tomato and red onion cooked in the tagine 😂 with more bread 😂 and my fourth egg for the day. Rose enjoyed her quesadilla with fries.

I had a very bad sleep, fever, headache, body aches and pains and a very slow start to day 78, it was hard to stay upright. Luckily breakfast was served to 12 and checkout was 12.

Felix warned us about the sights we might see on the streets. Mainly sheeps' heads being burnt. It was certainly an interesting experience, many huge bonfires with charred sheeps' heads, sheeps' skins in wheel barrows (later we learned they'd be taken to the tannery), sheeps' poo on the streets, burnt hooves and all sorts of bits that the stray cats would no doubt sort out. One man apologised for the site and his mate and I both said at the same time there was no need for an apology, it's their celebration. The more distressing sight was heading around the corner to go back to our Riad and seeing a young woman trying to sweep away the thick blood. Felix was surprised at this as well. He said the sheep are killed on the rooftop and the blood is washed down the drains onto the streets. We had to step into it to get inside.

Riad Baladin is owned by a German beer brewer who has two other hotels, one in Tanzania and one in Italy and they are renovating a restaurant nearby, but not for serving beer!

We caught the bus back to Marrakesh to witness the same sights. Even our driver said it was crazy. We stay at the Riad for dinner, aside from seeing the butchers cutting up the remains of the sheep for sale, there is nothing else opened.

[halfbakedspuds]

Echoes of shadow

Chapter 2

Snow had begun to fall early that year. It was still the month of Jurdis, and although the weather in Rostov would’ve already turned to the bitter crop-withering frosty winds, the snows themselves should’ve only come the next month. Yet the northern sea had already frozen and the ground lay buried beneath a blanket of white.

Sasha pulled her Kaftan tight around her as she trudged toward the dome-ceilinged building near the southern wall of the complex, hearing nothing but the piercing winds and the sound of crunching snow under her boots. The temperature wasn’t helped by their proximity to the icy Northern sea and the wind blowing cold air off it. She could see the shadow of the cathedral’s onion-shaped dome being cast from the center.

In her left hand she had a folded requisitions form bearing the sigil of the army’s mage corps, and that was all that was on her mind as she opened the door and scurried inside.

“Ah, sister Devin” Said the quartermaster, a gruff looking man who’d lost his arm in the war with the Rietland republics a few years before, “What can I help you with on this fine and frigid morning?”

“Probably set something on fire and needs to come get a replacement” Snickered a man in a black kaftan with purple cuffs.

She ignored him and handed the letter to the quarter master, “Got a requisitions form from Sergeant Baladin”

The quartermaster took the former, carefully reading it’s contents, then made a dissaproving noise, “Petra told me she would only need half this many bullets”

“Unfortunately, I’m not military, you’ll have to take it up with her, eh Yuri?” She said.

“Bah, it just means you’ll carry more,” He said getting up to retrieve the ammo boxes from the shelf, neatly packing them into a crate and putting them on the table for her, almost daring her to see if a monk could even pick up that much weight.

She hefted the crate, then lifted it onto her shoulder to help redistribute the weight, all the while maintaining eye contact with the quartermaster. The metalworkers would be practicing how to curve bullets that day, an essential task if they were to be of any use to the Rostovan Empire’s armies. Still, she couldn’t help but feel that metalworkers would be better suited to putting things together then fighting wars in some distant colony, or even in another Merchant’s war if it came about.

Then again, she wasn’t one of the Tsaritsas, and maybe that was for a good reason. Maybe she didn’t have the strategic mind necessary to regulate the empire’s logistics.

“Oh and remember” Said the man in the black kaftan, “None of that fire magic while you’re carrying that, okay? Don’t want half the complex going up in flames”

Sasha stopped with the door still open, “Father Aleksandr, shouldn’t you be preparing for a sermon instead of flirting with the army’s quartermaster? I’m sure he’s a busy man”

She continued made her way toward the Metalworker dorm, leaving the supply building behind.

Once she’d arrived, she knocked on the door.

“Mikhail! I’m freezing my ass off out here.”

She heard footsteps inside as someone came closer, then the rattling of a latch, followed by what was definitely someone throwing their full weight against a door. They stopped and the little peephole slid open to reveal a pair of storm grey eyes. Behind their owner she could see some people playing cards and one particularly talented acolyte who was turning a piece of metal to dust and reforming it into various intricate devices.

“The damn thing is frozen solid, won’t budge” He sighed, “Don’t worry, you ain’t got much ass to freeze off at least”

“Watch it, Krazinsky” She warned, then she backed up a few meters and put the crate down, “Stand back, I’m going to try to fix it”

She saw the pair of eyes go wide as Mikhail realised what was happening, before slamming the peephole shut. She thought she could hear yelling inside and a crash as something- presumeably a table- was flipped over.

She cracked her knuckles and reached out her hands. This particular door was infamous in the complex for freezing solid, with a story going back several hundred years to when the complex had been a fishing hamlet that spoke of a wizard cursing the door to keep his family home during the winter while he went off to do… well to do something, She couldn’t entirely remember the story, only that the wizard never came back and his family ended up starving in their house.

Sasha didn’t believe the tale. Curses were the things of stories. Real magic, the kind Mages used, couldn’t enchant or bless or curse or any of that nonsense.

But it could certainly solve more problems than in the stories.

She felt out the troublesome entyway: A pipe had leaked water into the lock during the night and frozen it solid. She knew this before her power even confirmed it because of how often she’d had to fix the thing over the years.

With considerable effort on her part to not light the ornate door on fire, she applied heat to the ice, feeling it melt.

Once she was satisfied, she picked up the crate again an approached.

“Door. Now, soldier,” she ordered.

The door carefully peaked open and she stepped inside, grateful to be out of the cold. The interior was a rather humourous sight, a table had been flipped and two people were hiding behind it, cards were scattered all around, and a handful of metalworkers with their grey coats and yellow badges were peaking out at her from behind support beams.

“You’re a fireworker?” Mikhail asked as he closed the dor

“Da.” She answerred simply, “Order seven, at least last I got tested.”

“Bozhe…” Mikhail whistled, “Wasn’t general Maxim order nine? You’re fairly close to him then.”

“Yes, but Artyom Maxim was a Matterworker. That’s a completely different ballgame power wise” She said, setting down the crate nearby, “Ammo for today’s practice, as requested”

She moved sit down by the table, leaning back against it. Her own black kaftan stood out quite a bit against the grey uniforms of the soldier mages, “You guys ever done live fire drills before?”

“No” said Pyotr, a little man from Ulyensk who’d enlisted to help bring down an uprising in his colony, “But with power like ours, no bullet will ever touch us!”

“I’m pretty sure those were Maxim’s exact words before he blew himself and half a city to the nine hells” Petra. An older metalworker. Higher order to the point where she could probably be reclassified as a Matterworker herself, but she hid it well. Sasha liked her. She waved her hand and all the scattered cards gathered back into a neat deck. More so a Windworker skill than a Metalworker one, further solidifying Sashsa’s theory that the old seargent was a Matterworker

“Show some respect for the dead! He did Rostov a great service in the war with that” Said a disgruntled Mikhail.

“And did he bother leaving behind so much as a notebook to explain at least what he did?” She asked, “I thought not. That fool reached too high, too fast and deprived us of something that could’ve made the entire world fly the Rostovan eagle standard” she sat forward, “A lesson to be learnt, to be sure. Now deal, Krazinsky”

“Yes, Ma’am. You joining us, Sister Devin? Friendly match, no bets”

“Honestly, the less the Yepiskop sees me, the less work he’ll think up for me.” Sasha admitted, “If you don’t mind having a fireworker around, I’m in”

“Just don’t burn the cards if you lose,”

She swung around on her chair, leaning forward over the backrest while Mikhail dealt them each a hand.

“What’s the game?” She asked

“Trekker’s Scandal. One of those strange ones the Rietland republics came up with,” Answerred Petra, “You know how to play?”

“To an extent,” She said, and so they began.

The snow continued to fall outside as they dealt and let the morning go on. Occasionally, one of them would forfeit to go see to some task around the dorm, but soon enough they’d return and be dealt in for the next round.

“If you don’t mind me asking, Sasha,” Pyotr asked, “But order seven? Has the army really never tried conscripting you?”

“Oh, they definitely tried. But the Yepiskop feels I serve more purpose to the church than to a war in the colonies” She opened her palm and allowed a flame to dance across it, forming into the figure of a soldier marching through thick shrubbery. She shook it away and played a card.

“What use does a fireworker serve to a cathedral in Poliszapad?”

Sasha shrugged, “Damned if I know”

“And if you could choose, would you stay or go?” Pyotr asked.

“Honestly, I would go. Not as a soldier, that life is not for me.” She said, sitting back, “But neither is this, being cooped up in a cathedral for eighteen years. I want to see the world. And not just the empire, I want to see everything from Neureich in the east to the Genesh spice colonies in the west!”

“Sounds like a wonderful dream,” Said Pyotr

“And what of you, Petra?” Sasha asked

“Me? Well, I want to marry a nice young man or woman, then move to the tropical colonies and spend my golden years growing fat and lazy under the maritime sun,” Petra answerred as she threw down her her cards, “Forfeit, I’m not winning this one,”

“You’re not even that old!” Complained Mikhail and Pyotr as one.

“Excuse you, I fought in the Merchants war.” She answerred.

The table became eerily quiet at that kernal of information. They’d all heard enough stories of that particular bloody conflict to not feel entirely comfortable talking or making jokes about it.

“Oh for Bozhe’s sake, you kids take everything so seriously” She said with a laugh, “I enlisted near the end of the war. Shipped out for Neureich just as the cartels finally signed a peace treaty with the continent. Ended up getting a nice three week holiday with the rest of my platoon before they shipped us back to this frigid hellhole”

“So you are that old?” Mikhail asked, “Babushka,”

“Whelp,”

Before more interesting insults could be thrown out, someone knocked on the door, causing not a few people in the dorm to turn their heads.

“Sasha Devin?” A voice called from outside.

“Eyes of Legion” She swore. Only Petra seemed to notice the strange expression, and Sasha shot her glance saying that she wouldn’t be explaining, then put down her cards, “I’m coming!”

“Cheers,” said Mikhail, “Send the ferryman my regards, Sasha”

She opened her palm and a small spark popped right in front of his eyes, forcing a yelp from his lips, and she hid her own amusement as she shouldered the already-refreezing door.

The man outside was dressed in a black kefta, but wore the church’s emblem on his neck: A crescent moon like a smile with a beam through it’s center.

“Good morning, moi yepiskop” Sasha said with a bow, then closed the door behind her.

The Yepiskop looked at her, then gestured up to the Cathedral, “Davai”, come on.

She followed him as he led the way, focussing on her body under the Kaftan and raised the temperature inside to be a bit warmer. When they reached the door to the Cathedral, the yepiskop raised his hand and the door opened. Sasha felt her skin crawl as he did. This wasn’t magic, it was something else entirely.

Still, she’d felt it many times before. It didn’t bother her.

She followed him inside and heard the door close and lock behind her.

“You should not be socialising with the heathens, Sasha” He said in a voice like gravel.

“Let them have their false god, moi yepiskop” She responded, “But we can’t cut ourselves off from the rest of Rostov because of a difference in religion.”

He looked at her, and for a moment she expected a lecture on the purity of their gods.

Instead, he said, “You’re steaming”

She looked down at her hands and sure enough, steam was escaping from her sleeves. She concentrated on cooling back down to the room’s temperature.

“You wanted to see me, yepiskop?” She asked as soon as she was back to normal.

“Not me.” He turned as a they entered a room to the side. A man in ornate white military dress was standing there, looking out of the window at the falling snow, occasionally taking a bite out of a bloodred apple. He was blonde, not a surprising colour for a Rostovan, but it looked more bleached than natural, as if he had purposefully had the colour drained by a Bioworker in order to fit in with a group.

“Moi Tsarevich” The bishop said and bowed.

Sasha was so shocked by the sight of the bishop actually bowing to someone that she almost didn’t realise who the man was in time, but managed to drop into a bow before he turned around.

“Is this the Fireworker you spoke so highly of?” The man asked.

“Da, Prince Grigorii” The bishop rose, while Sasha remained in a rather uncomfortable bow, waiting til addressed to rise. The way protocol demanded, “Order seven, the best our church has to offer”

Sasha felt herself blushing at the compliment.

“Is this true, acolyte?” Grigorii asked her.

She was about to say that she was, when a different thought crossed her mind, a way of proving her worth.

“Permission to speak freely, moi tsarevich?”

“Granted,”

“Just what do you think you’re doing, acolyte Devin?” The Yepiskop said, grabbing her by the sleeves.

“Easy there, Ilya, from what you’ve described I don’t think you want to provoke her power,” The prince said.

He shot another warning look at Sasha, then let go, “Of course”

Sasha steeled herself, “I could go on all day about how much I can accomplish with my magic,” She shot a glance at the Yepiskop, “Or how much I’ve had to practice in secret because of certain individuals. But I believe a demonstration would be better, would it not?”

“What do you propose?” He asked

“Depends on what you need me for, your highness”

Grigorii considered this for a moment, then said “I need a fireworker who can melt the ice as a ship moves, a way to secure immediate transport past the northern seas. How about we see whether you could do that much?”

“Of course, Moi tsarevich,” She tried to hide her dissapointment. More mundane work, still, she didn’t wish to dissapoint a member of the royal family, so she instead decided to discuss logistics with him, “The problem with ice is that it can’t immediately turn to water. It needs to be kept at such high temperatures for a few minutes at least.” She said, moving towards a the map on the wall. She found Poliszapad on the map and pointed at an island chain to the east that ran from the permafrost Kingdom of Angeheim to the north of Rostov deep into the far south, almost crossing the equator. It had been labelled as the V.O.S. by the map’s creator.

“The Vosch have firetowers along all their northern-most islands, each manned by fireworkers with the express purpose of keeping their shipping routes open year-round, and the closest one is only twelve miles that way” She pointed out of the window into the bay, “Instead of constantly melting the ice around the ship, I could carve a corridor through the ice right into their territory, then the ship could simply ride their routes into warmer waters before slipping out of the V.O.S. and going wherever you want it to go.”

He pondered this for a moment, looking at the map and doubtless calculating a new plan. He turned to the Yepiskop, “You never mentioned she was a student of strategy”

“A thousand apologies, moi tsarevich, but that is a detail even I was not fully aware of,”

“Could you truly do something so drastic?” Was his only question.

“Gladly”

“Then show me”

The news had spread quickly throughout the ranks of both monks and the mages training in the complex that Prince Grigorii himself was visiting and that Sasha Devin had been asked to do a demonstration. Many already knew of the fireworker from chasing her out of the kitchens at some point or playing cards with her or even from late nights where they’d had the sacred hell scared out of them when she was practicing her power as a child.

And so, whether to encourage her or watch her fail or simply because the ordeal had put an end to training for the day, two hundred people had gathered to watch her demonstration by the lake.

“Grigorii Belosselsky, as in the prince of Rostov asked you to do this? As in the duke of Ulyensk?” Mikhail asked her as she prepared, “Hero of…”

“For Bozhe’s sake, Nazinsky, let the poor girl get ready without ruffling her kaftan” Pyotr chastised him. Sasha had to smile as the two began to bicker.

The door opened and an icy draft drifted into the barracks. The three turned to see Petra striding in. She gestured and the door slammed behind her.

“What in the nine hells were you thinking, girl?” She said, leering over Sasha.

“He offered me a chance to show what I can do, and I accepted” She answerred simply.

“You offered to clear a twelve mile path for a ship to travel through, are you perhaps short of a marble?”

Sasha stood up and stared the old metalworker in the eyes, “Maybe. But do you know what else I’ve been short of? Recognition for what I can do. The church has been suppressing my power for far too long, today I intend to spread my wings”

She pulled on her gloves and made for the door with the other two three following her through.

Petra ran up beside her as they walked up the hill.

“Trust the matterworker, the effort will kill you!” Petra said

“I thought you were a metalworker?” Mikhail asked

“The distinction is irrelevent, I can do all you lot can” She snapped, then turned back to Sasha, “And if it doesn’t, you’ll be humiliated! Please, call this off!”

Sasha stopped abruptly, “Even if I wanted to, how would I? I can’t exactly go up to the prince and say ‘Oh, you know what, I might’ve gotten a bit big for my britches, do you mind if I opt out?’. I’m in this for the long haul now.”

And with that, she continued marching up the hill, through the crowds of spectators.

They’d erected a wooden platform on the hill, adorned it with wreathes and strung up lanterns. A vibrant banner yellow and white stripes stood on both sides of the platform, adorned each with the double headed eagle standard of Rostov.

Sasha paused to salute the flag. People talked excitedly amongst themselves as the four made their way up.

She stopped at the wooden steps, and turned back to her friends.

“Wish me luck.” She said, then raised her fist in a salute, “Ura!”

“Ura!” They echoed. One or two rather confused looking mages nearby did the same.

Sasha turned and ascended the steps, feeling the eyes of hundreds on her back as the view of the seaside town of Poliszapad. Ships had been frozen into the harbor, and out on the sea a Tuitisch vessel had been icelocked early in the winter. Luckily for them, they were close enough to shore that some hunters with sleds could help them move their crew and cargo to the town, but there was a good chance the ship would not be setting sail again any time soon.

She realised in hindsight that she should’ve sent a message to their captain that she’d be freeing their ship as a consequence of her demonstraton, then shrugged it off. There was no way the ship would realistically manage to dock in time anyway.

“Whenever you’re ready, Sister Devin” The prince said, then in a lower voice, “Eyes of legion watch over you”

This startled her. The prince was one of theirs?

She shook her head and raised har hands to her side. There’d be time enough later for questions.

She felt out the sea. It was cold. Ridiculously so. To warm it up evenly to melting point would require the power of a small sun. Still, she could feel out impurities in the ice, places that would melt faster, and that gave her an idea.

She shifted her focus elsewhere, to the caverns beneath the complex. She knew that noone had been down there in centuries on account of all the toxic gasses, the heat and the fact that it was more than a hundred meters underground, she only knew it existed because a volcanic geyser flooded the cave’s interior with an enormous amount of heat, and it was one of the first ways she’d learnt about the specifics of controlling heat.

The universe was like a perfectionist tax collector. It would not allow it’s records to be unbalanced, and thus it would not allow for the creation or deletion of matter or energy, and would react rather violently to anything tampering with it’s fundemental forces. In fact, one of her theories about the Doringpoort bombing during the Frontier war was that Maxim had- for some unknown reason- created a particle of some incredibly energy dense element, and the universe had responded by blowing it up in his face.

But what she had learnt in the meantime was not present in any of her textbooks, and she was keen to do some research to see if she even understood what she was doing right, but she’d quickly realised that the universe didn’t care about the creation or deletion of matter so long as enough of the contrary was done to balance out it’s records again.

And thus she’d learnt how to remotely harness heat without moving it through the air like many other fireworkers. This was the skill that had made her an order seven in her examination.

She reached deep into the cavern to a place hot enough that the rock began to melt off and took heat from it, forcing it into the imputies in the lake on the lake.

For a moment, her concentration wavered and a blast of heat was released in the mountains behind them. Nothing audible, but enough to leave a starburst shape of melted snow that would no doubt confuse some poor hiker in half an hour’s time.

She concentrated, feeling all that energy snaking in, filling every impurity.

Suddenly, ice in a four mile radius of the town uniformly cracked with a sound like a support cable of a bridge that had just been struck, leaving visible cracks and sheets of ice in the water. Cracks that steamed with the water from below, forming a great mist.

“Looks good so far” The prince said beside her, “How goes it?”

She struggled for a few moments to get her grip, then pressed even more heat into the gaps.

“We may need a few windworkers to lift the mist, moi tsarevich” She recommended, then returned to her job.

Grigorii barked an order to a group of army soldiers with cyan badges marking them out as windworkers. They called out an affirmative and set to work dispersing the fog by rolling it up and over the mountains into the plains. It crawled and ran like one of the monsters from Sasha’s demonology textbooks, and had she not been so strained to do her job right, the thought may have made her shudder.

Yet as it left, she began forcing the heat back into the cavern below, leaving the water’s surface just warm enough to prevent freezing.

The people muttered amongst themselves. Despite the white snows and the bite of General winter’s winds, the sea was open, baring black waves for all to see. It looked almost like it would in half a year’s time when summer rolled around once more.

“A defrosted sea, as you asked” She said, “Should be considerably easier to carve just a straight line”

“As you can see, moi tsarevich,” The yepiskop said, “The church provides only the finest for the motherland.”

The church can gladly almost train its arse into a coma if it wants to provide a service like that, She thought, but she said nothing of the matter out loud.

“I can see that. I believe we should discuss terms of a contract, should we not?” Grigorii said, turning to Sasha, “After all, power like that would serve our mission rather well beyond just the original journey I think”

“Of course, your highness, if you’d kindly come to my office we can-”

“Ilya, I do not remember you performing such a show of power. I will discuss this with sister Devin for she will likely be on the mission herself” He turned back to Sasha, “You look tired, do you know of a place we can discuss in relative privacy?”

They had elected the Metalworker dorm so that the church couldn’t use one of it’s many methods of spying on them before a deal was struck. Grigorii had taken up a position by a window overlooking the sea. Sasha was leaning against a wall. Her cheeks were flushed from using her power, her heart was racing with excitement. She felt alive.

“It’s incredible, really” Grigorii said looking at the churning waves, “How old are you now, sister Devin?”

“I am two and twenty years of age, moi tsarevich” She replied.

“Please, just Grigorii will do” He said, “Artyom Maxim was twice your age when he fought in the frontier war. I’m confident you could surpass him if you continue training”

Here’s hoping I don’t blow myself up, “Thank you… Grigorii”

“Yes. Now, this mission is of the utmost secrecy. Not even my mothers know of it. They believe I am in Belagorod for some military expo.” He took a sip of Kvas, “There is a new cult in Ost-Rietland. I am sending a team of investigators to assess whether they are loyal to the Rostovan crown, the Rietland republics, or to some other political force.”

“You intend to use them to start another frontier war?” Sasha asked, suddenly second guessing what she’d just gotten herself wrapped up in.

“You mistake me for Mater. If anything, I admire the Rietland republics.” He took another sip, “There is a war coming, sister Devin, and I want as many allies on our side as I can get. Your job, and the jobs of various other occult specialists in this mission, is to ascertain whether this new church is an ally or something to be swept aside”

“And I’m guessing I’m there to burn away the bastards if they seem to be more trouble than they’re worth”

“I wouldn’t have put it as crassly but yes” He said, and set down the glass, “Now, what are you looking to get out of this?”

“If I am to be part of the clean-up crew, I’ll need three individuals to help me fight if it comes to it”

“Name them”

“Sergeant Petra Baladin, and riflemen Pyotr Antonova and Mikhail Krazinsky”

“Consider it done.” Grigorii said, “Anything else? Money? Land?” He turned to look at her, “A place as my court mage in Ulyensk?”

“I want to be moved to the Komishyug colony,” Sasha said. The Southern Rietland was still Rostovan, even if the majority of the area belonged to the republics, “With enough money to start a life for myself”

“Any particular reason?” the prince asked.

“I was raised in these walls, you know” She said, “My parents died in a fire when I was a child, and the examiners think that memory being seered into a child’s mind is what gave me my powers.” She turned to him, “I owe everything to Legion’s eyes and to his church for keeping me alive until now, but they’ve suppressed my power and denied me the outside world. I want to see a what’s out there. I want to carve a life for myself, free of the church’s demands. In Komishyug, I’d be in completely new territory, but I’d still speak the language. A fresh start”

Grigorii thought about this long and hard,

“And what if I refuse?” He said, “What if I tell you to do this freely as a duty to the crown? That refusing the prince would be treason?”

Sasha stood and walked up to him, maintaining eye contact until she was right beside him.

She raised her hand and snapped her fingers. Outside, she could hear the distant cracking of ice, and they both turned to watch as patches of white spread out over the water, returning the sea back to how it had been only half an hour before: A frozen white wasteland.

“Then I’d say the ice is thick enough and you’re free to walk if you wish,”

The prince looked on in shock with perhaps the slightest hint of worry on his face, then shook his head and laughed.

“Ambitious aren’t you? Just be wary of which threats you can make good on and you’ll go far, Sasha Devin,” He said, then held out his hand, “You drive a hard bargain. I will see to it that your demands are met,”

She shook his hand, “Glory to Rostov,”

“Glory to Rostov, indeed,”

[autisticbokutoenthusiast]

set 3 has been a RIDE. i opened this up expecting to talk about turkiye's comeback and while they did start playing well, netherlands (BUIJS!!!) got it back together too. anyones game this point in the set 23-22 to TUR, 24-22 TO TUR, AND TURKIYE TAKE THE SET NOW THIS IS A COMEBACK LETS GOOOOO diken and cebicieglu doing they jobs! also vargas!

orge youre amazing sweetie keep going

cant wait to see what happens in set 4. starting lineup has changed. baladin, kalac, erdem, vargas, sahin, diken. lets see what happens

im in between sets 2 and 3 on this netherlands v turkiye match and...

turkiye whats going on babes!?!? we have several complete missed connections from both setters, hits not landing, errors, it just doesn't feel like them.

i hope they get themselves together cause one thing ive been saying about them these past few years is that they need a few more veterans cause when they lose it they lose it. like they have such a hard time getting their rhythm back if they lose it

netherlands on the other hand fully locked in today like damn they not playing about wanting to win this match

[lascatolagialla]

Grande esposizione #10LABORATORIPOP!

DOMENICA 8 OTTOBRE non perdetevi la GRANDE ESPOSIZIONE delle opere create dai ragazzi nel corso dei #10LABORATORIPOP. Tre sedi espositive nel centro della città di Cuneo. Nel chiostro del Complesso Monumentale di San Francesco esposizione dei fantasiosi mobili creati nel corso dei laboratori LA STANZA MAGICA e del grande tappeto natura di UN’ALTRA NATURA. E a partire dalle 18.00 presso l’Open…

[aziggystardust]

💦 @openbaladinroma (presso Open Baladin) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4Iw_JloGED/?igshid=17eisjhvlxx6g

[2to-go]

Day 5 - Roma

We started our first full day in Rome with the obligatory visit to the Colosseum, complete with tour, and the Forum Romanum.

For lunch we had porchetta at Pane & Vino. I have to say: this Roman snack with crispy bits beats the Florentine lampredotto hands down!

Of course we had to visit the Imperial Fora as well, in particular that of my favourite emperor Traianus, before we had our first beer of the day at Johnny’s Off License, a beer shop where you can drink in as well.

In the evening we first visited the bar that once was the only craft beer bar in town: Open Baladin. We then crossed over to Travestere for Ma Che Siete Venuti A Fa' and Bir & Fud.

[foreignmusicdownload-blog]

Nigerian Music Videos - Treading Up The coffee quality Game

foreign music download The particular foreign music videos were being better than our close to you made ones. Despite visitors including: Nico Mbanga (Sweet Mother), Osita Osadebe (Osondi Owendi), Oliver de Emballage (Boni boni identity), Mandy Brown leafy (Taxi driver), Onyeka Owenu (One Love), Lorine Okotie (His love is definitely that medicine), Charly son (Before Before) Chris Okotie (ABC), Evy Edna Ogoli( Happy Birthday), Felyx and also Mozes( Free), Felix Liberty(Ifeoma), Stella Monye (Nigeria head out survive), while seen within one of my articles or blog posts "The blossoming Of Typically the Nigerian Music Industry", baladin didn't make the sought after impact from the International arena, based within other stuff on the colossal inferior video quality account.

foreign music download

Often the 90's era was definitely not drastically better than often the 80's, likely the mid 90's when the category associated with music towed the way regarding rap / rap along with the use of each of our neighborhood parlance in sounds begun to make the tunes industry considerably more entertaining seeing that opposed to the 80's. The actual Remedies (Edris Abdulkareem, Eddie Montana, Tony tetwila) keyed into it in addition to became the excellent involving the moment at in which time. Sugar plantation Boyz (Tu face Idibia, Faze, Black color Face) ended up incredible as well as soared to help greater heightened levels before the set separated. The launching connected with Th face Idibia's by yourself employment with his hit trail "African Queen" catapulted the pup to the top. Nearly all Nigerians liked his initially online video, but unfortunately he / she had in order to re-shoot a different in acquiescence with the actual direction of a common foreign music TV approach. Style Plus's "Olu Fumi" also had a wonderful videos in comparison using many that stormed all of our TV sets. Paul holmes Play's hit song "Angel associated with my life" in addition acquired a cool video.

Conceivably, the turning point to get the doing of fine quality videos is due to the particular stable of P- Block with the video with regard to their hit song "Do me" which was shot inside Newcastle, south africa. The video absolutely hit typically the International typical mark with different music prepared TV shows throughout Nigeria, constantly showing the item. Baladin challenged by the sound production began to take a trip Newcastle, south africa, USA, and pieces of European union to photograph videos in their songs. Many people also featured light skinned ladies dancing inside movies. Most top rated histrion patronise directors who get wooden niches for their selves in the fine art regarding making quality videos. Best on the list are usually DJ Golf tee, Clarence Peters (CEO involving Capital Hill) and Bobby Hai.

The particular rise connected with Cally Ikpe's "Nigerian New music Video Awards" (NMVA) and also Sound Urban center Music Videos Awards (SMVA) aimed at worthwhile baladin with top notch video clips have also contributed to be able to the grow of excellent quality productions. Furthermore, histrion who have good video have easy access for you to enjoy airplay on MTV Base, Approach O along with other International new music avenues, opening wider, opportunities which will tend to give these individuals admission to fame and bundle.

Excellent, creative videos are generally snappy and draw awareness to often the artistes in addition to of course, the home. Quality music videos this have manufactured waves with Nigeria and perhaps beyond include things like but not on a: P- Square (Do my family, Jiggle it, Ifunnaya), Are brave enough Fine art Alade (Not the lady, More), Tu face Idibia (If love is a crime), Kel (Too fine), Keffi (kokoroko), Naeto C (Kini big deal), Bouqui (Take you away), Infinity (Olori oko), Asa (Fire for the mountain), TY Bello (Green land, Ekundayo), Gino (No be God), Djinee (Lade), DJ Jimmy Jatt (Too much ft Sasha, Blaise, kemistry, Bouqui), Alabai (Voice of God), Mo arised all stars (Pere), Omawunmi (In the music), Nikki Laoye (Never felt that way), Steel (South Cameras girl).

Nigerian music video tutorials include certainly helped baladin to help clinch international specials and awards and usually are getting better regular. Typically the duo of P-Square clinched the KORAH prizes organised in 2010 at Burkina Faso for the "Artiste with the year" category. Often the twins was home having the jack pan treasure of $ just one zillion!.

[koufax73]

Marlene Kuntz: la gallery del concerto al Birrificio Baladin di Piozzo

In attesa dell'uscita del nuovo album "Karma Clima" pubblichiamo una gallery delle foto che Daniele Modaffari ha fatto ai Marlene Kuntz in occasione del concerto al Baladin Open Garden di Piozzo (Cuneo)

In attesa dell’uscita del nuovo album Karma Clima pubblichiamo una gallery delle foto che Daniele Modaffari ha fatto ai Marlene Kuntz in occasione del concerto al Baladin Open Garden di Piozzo (Cuneo).

[desiredtastes]

🍺 🍺 🍺 📍 Via degli Specchi, 6, Rome, Italy 🍻 @openbaladinroma #Beer #CraftBeer #Bottles #BeerHall #Birra #Bar #Pub #Beerstagram #BeerTap #OpenBaladin #Rome #Italy #Travel #DesiredTastes (at Open Baladin) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci6J9O-DFK7/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[exclusiveaccommodationrome]

Dove mangiare a Roma

Uno dei primi pensieri quando si arriva a Roma, o in una qualunque città italiana, è quello di farsi una bella guida sui posti migliori dove provare la tanto rinomata e decantata cucina italiana.

Il centro storico, e in particolare il quartiere di Trastevere, restano i luoghi più adatti dove ritrovare la tipicità di certi piatti, e l’atmosfera rustica di Roma.

Abbiamo stilato per voi una piccola lista di luoghi dove gustare i vostri pranzi e le vostre cene, a partire dalla colazione e finendo con il dessert.

Potreste scegliere di cominciare la giornata nel “Bar Settegrammi”, a Piazza Cairoli, nel quartiere di Campo de Fiori. Un piccolo, ma gradevole café & lounge dove troverete ogni genere di cibaria e dolci tipici di Roma, oltre a un’ampia scelta per un pranzo rapido. Accanto, troverete il “Bar Roscioli”, e a una traversa, l’”Antico Forno Roscioli”, una vera istituzione romana. Un ristorante storico con un menu fondato su grandi ingredienti, sul dialogo costante con il banco dei salumi e formaggi e su una cucina vera, romana e italiana.

All’ora di pranzo, però, la fame torna a farsi sentire più che mai, soprattutto dopo aver camminato a lungo tra le vie del centro. E allora sarà il caso di fermarsi in uno dei tanti ristoranti tipici che offre la città, a cominciare da “Fortunata”. Restiamo nel quartiere Campo de’ Fiori, e troviamo un locale semplice e rustico, la cui forza si basa soprattutto sulla pasta fatta a mano, proprio davanti agli ospiti! Un’altra ottima scelta può essere la locanda di “Ivo a Trastevere”, un ristorante aperto da 60 anni nel cuore di Trastevere, partito da un semplice forno per dolci, e arrivato oggi a essere un vero ristorante-pizzeria. Anche il ristorante Tonnarello è un’istituzione nel cuore di Trastevere, e regala i piatti della tradizione culinaria romana, con una grande attenzione alla qualità. Se ordinate la pasta, al posto del piatto, ve la serviranno in una padella!

Meglio riprendere a camminare, per digerire tutto il ben di Dio culinario che il vostro palato avrà assaporato in questo succulento pranzo. Ma a pomeriggio inoltrato, il languorino che avvertirete potrebbe portarvi a volervi fermare nuovamente per un piccolo stuzzichino. A Piazza Navona, il “Tagliere Toscano” potrà deliziarvi con panini e taglieri della tradizione romana e toscana, per cui troverete cinta senese, tartufo, bufala, porchetta e tanto altro! Per gli amanti della birra, potrebbe invece interessarvi “Open Baladin”, un pub con un’intera parete di birre artigianali, oltre a panini e altre sfiziosità!

Nelle calde sere d’estate, un bel gelato è quello che ci vuole! Su Via del Corso, troverete “Fatamorgana” che vi delizierà con gusti insoliti!

Questi sono soltanto alcuni dei suggerimenti per i vostri pasti a Roma, ma il bello è anche andare alla scoperta!

E per soggiornare, scegliete uno dei nostri b&b economici al centro di Roma! Vantiamo una posizione invidiabile, nel vero centro storico di Roma!

Visitate i nostri siti per trovare la struttura che fa per voi, e prenotate una vacanza a poco prezzo!

[ambitionworld-blog]

Quando organizzazione e compagni di avventura sono perfetti, il divertimento è assicurato. Grazie a Star Comics per la magnifica serata. #lericettepirateschedisanji #edizionistarcomics #openbaladintorino #emanuelapacotto #giorgiovanni #massimostano #edoardomecca #shinhai.v #maxlonghi #carola_carulli #cristianposocco #animeclick_official #babylon #maxambition (presso Open Baladin Torino) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVII5XYsvco/?utm_medium=tumblr

[misterlivingstone-blog]

Pausa birretta? Vi consiglio un locale molto carino che ho provato ieri sera che si chiama Baladin: si trova a Torino, hanno una magnifica birra artigianale di loro produzione ed è pure possibile scofanarsi un mega haburgerazzo grasso. Molto carino. #baladin #torino #birraartigianale #alchol #beer #barcounter #pub #sparkling #lager #blondebeer #blonde #curved #likethestreettohome #lifestyle #craftbeer #movida #nightlife #fun (presso Open Baladin Torino)

[baeyo-nd]

What’s your favourite burger topping? Gimme cheese & bacon all day please 😍🍔 🔁 follow @baeyondtravel @baeyo.nd ・・・ #food #foodphotography #foodiesofinstagram #foodporn #foodstagram #foodie #photography #travel #foodblogger #burgers #italy #italyfoodporn (at Open Baladin Torino) https://www.instagram.com/p/CAD7QvxIH1R/?igshid=1qaxib2x1dykz