#aside from their middle brother who actively became a part of the guard

[astrummorte-m]

@fortifice [ aryin & gepard ]

"You used to be my hero."

the sharp edges of a familiar outer jarilo-vi accent is marred by talian drawl, as if someone had been speaking too much, too often, too closely with some ranger or three. brows furrow as they say that, curious as to how the guard captain would react. did any of belobog even notice when they were picked up by not the astral express, but by the galaxy rangers, as if they didn't belong in belobog? ( did they even CARE? )

"I used to want to be a Silvermane Captain, like you."

they duck their head down as if in recollection of & reverence to the fallen and forgotten, not sure if gepard had remembered every name of those fallen beyond the walls before the fragmentum had been taken care of - at least in part.

"My brother... he was a part of your guard. At least, was a part of the Guard. He died protecting Belobog, and not a soul came to give the rest of his family well wishes." lips thin into a tight line before they sigh. "I have to wonder, did Tobias mean anything to the Guard? Did my brother's death mean anything to you?" they just sound tired.

for a wanted criminal, aryin stands at ease before gepard.

[reddogcollar]

Oh.

In italics.

Allusion to self harm.

First/Prev/Next

Drew left the Great Oak at midday, feeling more frustrated than last night.

It had taken the entire morning for Bergan and Gretchen to work something out, and they'd started the moment the sun lit the sky.

At the moment, everyone he happened to encounter was talking about Wyld Wolves, and whether the threat was really neutralized, or whether the festival had been cancelled entirely, or whether there were enough Green Capes in the city to defend them, or something else trivial.

It took everything not to snap at everyone who spoke to him, including Gretchen, Bergan, and especially Trent.

He knew everyone had their reasons, the townsfolk were still nervous after the Wyldermen invasion, the soldiers were being strained to make everyone feel safe, and they all needed something that'd get their minds off it.

And it was his job to reassure them all that everything was fine.

But he could only hear the same worries for so long without glaring at whoever he was talking to.

So at the moment he was trying to get away from everyone.

Walking through alleys and behind houses, where he was less likely to run into anyone else, he ended up skirting the walls separating them from the forest.

If he were to leave the city all together, he'd certainly be left alone.

Though, he may also have to explain himself, or run into a patrolling Greencloak, and he didn't want to have to tell anyone they'd been annoying him all day.

He may cross the path of a, or several, Wylderman, and while he did feel like hitting something, he could just as well hit the wall.

He didn't hit the wall.

A part of his job was people being too paranoid and him having to deal with it whenever he talked with them. And he'd need to get used to that.

He wasn't a man of the people. They rallied around him when they needed to, and they'd fought a war in his name, but he wasn't a man of the people.

He didn't enjoy cities or organizing groups or politics.

The life he'd anticipated was a quiet one on the Coast. With livestock, crops, and a minimum of worries beyond the weather.

He'd made the choice to give that up.

So he needed to get used to being a man of the people.

He kept walking.

In the entire city, besides himself, there were four people who weren't worried about a nonexistent threat. Out of those four, there was only one he wasn't frustrated with.

He needed to see Hector anyways, after missing last night.

Still keeping himself out of the crowd, he made his way to the Garrison Tree.

It wasn't hard. The Garrison Tree had been set aside from everything that was more busy, and for everyday life. It'd probably be a bit grim to have a jail in the middle of the market.

Inside, he climbed the stairs till he came to the guard.

With every bit of passive assertiveness they'd been trained in, the guard did not let him pass.

"The Duke's orders, sir." They said, standing stiff in front of the door.

"I'm aware of the Duke's orders. And I can assure you you'll be in no trouble if you let me pass." He said, his voice coming out flat.

Any intonation would probably lead to him snapping and someone who was just doing their job.

"I don't recall the order to not let anyone see him being rolled back, sir." The Greencloak said, their eye contact wavering, unsure.

Drew stared at them for a moment. It'd be easy to lie, and would come at no cost to the guard, if he could help it.

"Well, it did. Don't let this happen again."

The soldier hesitated, before nodding and unlocking the door with an apology.

The door creaked open, and he slipped inside, nodding at the Greencloak. Hector didn't seem to notice.

Drew took a seat, and before anything else, noticed the off-white cloth wrapped around Hector's hand.

"Are you alright?"

He stared at nothing for a moment, before seeming to realize he'd been spoken to.

"Hm?" Hector turned his head, just slightly. The bags under his eyes made it look like he'd gotten into a fight.

"Your hand. Why's it wrapped like that?"

Instead of answering, he simply unwrapped and his hand and shrugged.

A crooked scar ran sideways along his palm. Clearly fresh, though not particularly deep, Drew thought. However old it was, it'd stopped actively bleeding. There were cuts along his fingers as well, but they weren't as noticeable.

"Nothing special." He said.

The sight made Drew itch. Blood had never bothered him, after the war, it was gore that was the problem.

A clean cut was making his stomach roll and his muscles tense.

"What happened?" Hector couldn't have possibly gotten in a fight with anyone, except perhaps the guard. Very few people actually knew who he was, and most of them were Greencloaks.

There'd be an uproar if it became common knowledge that they were housing Blackhand. A guard was the only person who'd know who he was, and want to do something about it.

Hector didn't look at him, shaking out and his hand instead.

"Nothing special." He repeated, his voice flat.

Drew wrinkled his nose. The room felt off. More compressed. Confined.

Darker.

He'd forgotten about the candles when he'd come in.

His stomach flipped, as if he were the one who had a problem with the dark, and he got up to light the candles.

"Don't bother." Hector muttered, stopping him. "It's just a waste of candles."

Drew stayed where he was, stood next to a book shelf that had most of the candles on it. He wasn't sure about leaving open flames next to old, dusty books, but it was the darkest corner of the room now.

"Hector," He asked, stilled poised to light a candle, "Did something happen last night?"

"I'm fine. There's just nothing to be done about it." Hector sighed, sinking into himself, holding his head in his hand and staring absently at the wall.

They both paused for a moment, neither doing anything, before he added on.

"Viles, that is. There's nothing to be done about viles."

Drew glanced at the cluster of candles, hardly any lit, before abandoning them and sitting back down.

"Surely there's some way to dispel them. You got rid of your brother."

Hector snorted, but otherwise didn't move, or even look at Drew. His eyes were glued to the wall, half open.

"I didn't get rid of Vincent, I got away from him. I wouldn't be surprised if his spirit is tied to Bevan's tower now, where he died."

"That doesn't mean getting rid of them is impossible, not necessarily." Drew pushed. Even if Hector was stuck in that room till he died, surely there was a way to get rid of the spirits in it so he could live in peace.

Hector sighed again, rubbing his eyes.

"Maybe. Probably. If it can be done, I didn't find out when I had the chance." He said, his voice becoming edged.

It'd been advised that he didn't ask for any books on magistry or necromancy, or anything of the like. He never tried.

"I really don't feel like talking about this, honestly. How goes it out there?"

Drew paused, annoyed for a second at the change in topic before biting his tongue. He couldn't force help onto someone who didn't want it.

A "man of the people" is a patient man. He'd be patient.

"Trent's caused quite the problem, threatening to maul a Greencloak like that. In the end, he agreed not to step foot in the Dyrewood once he leaves. Bergan's still sore about it though, giving everyone a scare when they're at their lowest." He explained.

"Last night, he and Gretchen bickered back and forth for hours. Eventually they stopped giving useful suggestions on what to do with him, and just argued. And then she brought you into the mix, and started a whole new argument." He sighed.

While he agreed with Gretchen, he wished it could have been brought up at any other time. When Bergan wasn't already feeling argumentative.

"Did she?"

The way Hector spoke made it seem like he wasn't quite listening, like he wasn't all there. Drew continued anyway. If he only wanted to half listen, then he'd give him that.

"She did. She told Bergan he was irrational, and that he's not fit to sentence anyone while he's got you locked up."

Hector paused, thinking over what he'd said, or something else, he couldn't tell. Something was bothering him, clearly. Probably the same things that had been bothering him. Drew didn't want to assume, though.

"Then what?"

"They nearly mauled each other-"

Hector flipped around to look at him before he could finish, looking alert for the first time. And shocked.

"Don't worry, they're both fine-" Drew started to clarify.

Before Hector interrupted him.

"Yes, I heard you, but he nearly mauled his niece?"

Drew couldn't tell if it was shock or outrage on his face. Maybe both.

"I know," He sighed, "None of us were at our best so late at night-"

"There's no excusing this, Drew!"

"I know! I know, its just... They're fine now. You don't need to worry, Bergan wouldn't do anything to hurt her." Drew reassured him, trying to sound as sure of himself as he could in the fact.

If anything, Bergan probably wouldn't attack first, at least.

Hector stared at him, with his brow furrowed and his jaw clenched. He wasn't quite buying it. Nevertheless, the seemed to give up on the matter and went limp, leaning against the back of the chair.

"She shouldn't have done that." Hector muttered, looking directly at the ceiling. "Its not worth it."

"What do you mean?" Drew could guess what he meant, he asked anyway.

"I mean she shouldn't be provoking him for nothing!" Though Hector didn't move, or noticeably change his expression, his voice rose, then fell again. "It's not her place."

"Its her place more than anyone's, she's your cousin."

"If she's going to get herself mauled by a bear, then its not!" He exclaimed, pulling himself back upright to look at Drew. "She's needed in Hedgemoor, she can't go getting herself killed over nothing."

"It's not over nothing, its over you! She's not even getting herself killed, anyways. We're all being as diplomatic as we can." Drew argued back, fighting the urge to stand up.

Towering over him probably wouldn't help.

"Well stop! It doesn't matter! If Bergan hasn't changed his mind already then he won't. It's a waste of your time!"

"We're not wasting our time, and we're not stopping! He's not that cruel. He'll listen." He insisted, trying to keep his voice down. He wanted to stay calm, or look it at least.

"Well maybe he shouldn't!" Hector did not feel the same.

"Hector-"

"Maybe I'm right for once and you should just give up! Even if he listens, what good would it do?" Hector cut him off, leaning forward with his hand on his knee. "Necromancy was all I was good at. Magistery is about devoting your life to helping people and all I could do was the exact opposite! Just give it a rest."

Drew didn't respond right away, his brow knitted together. When he stayed quiet, Hector leaned back against the chair, staring at the ceiling.

There was still no getting through to him. It was all obvious to Drew, that he wouldn't be hurting anyone, that of course Bergan was being absurd, of course he wouldn't stop trying, of course Hector can do good in the world.

He was too smart not to. He'd already been doing good for the last year, good for Drew at least. Every visit had left him feeling relieved. He could only be emotionally closed off for so long before-

Oh.

He understood why Trent was laughing at him.

Drew stood up, so quick the chair almost toppled backward. It startled Hector out of that absent look.

"Get up." He practically ordered him, though he really meant it to be a request.

"I-"

"Get up."

Hector stared at him, like what he was doing was absurd, but got up anyways. Slowly and carefully, never taking his eyes off Drew. Like a cornered animal.

Drew grabbed his wrist the second he was up, taking him toward the door.

A few steps away, Hector stopped, stiff and digging his heels into the ground.

Drew turned to look at him, and the look he got gave him pause.

Hector stood there, wide eyed and frightened looking, with his wrist in a vice. His pulse was hammering, Drew could feel it.

He let his grip go loose, sliding his hand down so he wasn't squeezing his wrist like that.

He was leading him by the hand instead.

"Come on." He said, the edge gone from his voice. It was more of a request than a command.

He opened the door for Hector, and lead him out.

[multiverseforger]

Edit

The Mole Man was originally Harvey Rupert Elder, an American nuclear engineer and explorer. Elder was socially shunned due to a combination of his abrasive personality and his homely, dwarfish appearance. Furthermore, his fellow explorers ridiculed him for his eccentric, crackpot theories regarding a Hollow Earth. In 1956, while following the group of explorers called the Monster Hunters, he stumbled upon Monster Isle, which was at the time a base of the Deviant Warlord Kro.[volume & issue needed]

When Elder fell into a massive cave leading deep into the underground realm of Subterranea, he decided his theories had finally been vindicated. However, he suffered permanent damage to his eyes when he gazed directly upon a highly reflective deposit of diamonds. Partially blind and apparently secluded from the surface world forever, Elder dubbed himself the Mole Man and began exploring his new home. He eventually became the ruler of the branch of Subterraneans now known as the Moloids, and the ruler of much of Subterranea and the caverns of Monster Isle. He used the Deviant-derived creatures and technology that he found in Subterranea to strike back at the outer world in numerous attempts to rule or humble the world that had rejected him.[volume & issue needed]

The Mole Man conducted attacks on the surface world by destroying nuclear power plants in the Eastern Bloc, Australia, South America, and French Equatorial Africa, attracting the attention of the newly-formed Fantastic Four in their first adventure. After the group arrived on Monster Isle, he captured Mister Fantastic and the Human Torch and told them his plans to invade every major urban area on the planet via a network of tunnels. When he released a horde of monsters the Human Torch sealed his realm's entrance. The Mole Man appeared to have destroyed Monster Isle in an atomic blast.[4] The Mole Man's Deviant-bred monstrous mutates, collectively known as the "Mole Man's Monsters", include the three-headed Tricephalous,[volume & issue needed] the horned Megataur,[volume & issue needed] and the flying bird-insect creature known only as "Skreeal".[volume & issue needed] The Mole Man also has a group of superhuman allies called the Outcasts.[volume & issue needed]

The Mole Man later stole buildings from New York City, but was thwarted by the Fantastic Four and appeared to be killed in an explosion.[5] With the Red Ghost, he next battled the Avengers and tried to use a machine that caused earthquakes to take over the world by threatening to destroy all life on Earth, capturing Giant-Man who had been warned by ants of the earthquakes as they sensed them first. Later the Wasp released Giant-Man and he shrunk down to ant-size and sabotaged the machine. Iron Man then sealed the tunnel entrances. The Red Ghost then broke up the partnership.[6] Mole Man was among the criminals later assembled by Doctor Doom's mind-control device to attack Reed and Sue's wedding.[7] Mole Man then fought a war against rival Subterranean ruler Tyrannus, capturing the Fountain of Youth which allowed Tyrannus to stay young. Tyrannus teleported the Hulk underground to help him regain the Fountain. Finally, he was able to restore himself.[8] Mole Man used the original X-Men as pawns in his war against Tyrannus.[9] The Mole Man later trapped the Fantastic Four in a house of his own creation that temporalily blinded them.[10] Mole Man continued to fight his war with Tyrannus.[11]

He later teamed with Kala, the queen of the Subterranean Netherworlders, and fell in love with her. He plotted to destroy the surface world, but was betrayed by Kala and Tyrannus.[12] Some time later, Mole Man and Kala were betrothed to be married. Namor, the Atlantean prince, helped out the Moloids when a conquering force was slaughtering many, while using the rest of them for slave labor.[volume & issue needed]

Much later, Mole Man befriended the Thing and then plotted to raise a new continent at the cost of sinking California, but was again thwarted by the Fantastic Four.[13] He was captured by Lava Men later.[14] Mole Man then attempted to bring peace to Subterranea, but was attacked by Fantastic Four clones.[15] He contended with Skrulls, and tried unsuccessfully to capture a Skrull technotroid egg.[16]

Mole Man later allied with Grotesk and Tyrannus against Deviants led by Brutus. He aided the Hulk in fighting Brutus's Deviants. Together with his allies, he triumphed over Brutus, and welcomed back Kala as his consort.[17]

Mole Man became involved with the West Coast Avengers when one of his monsters attacked Los Angeles. His Moloids were caught in the middle of a Skrull revenge scheme on the Fantastic Four. A replacement Fantastic Four, consisting of Spider-Man, Ghost Rider, the Hulk and Wolverine were tricked into entering the Mole Man's territory and battling his forces.[volume & issue needed]

He later battled the West Coast Avengers along with the U-Foes during the Acts of Vengeance, but their attempts met with failure.[volume & issue needed]

ReformationEdit

Later, he surrendered his desire for conquest and revenge and began assembling a sanctuary for others who had been rejected by the surface world. His two attempts to do so led to the deaths of most of the visitors to his sanctuaries. Briefly, the Mole Man allowed Adam Warlock's superhero team, the Infinity Watch, to use Monster Isle (more specifically, a castle located on its grounds) as a base, on the reasoning that they could help protect him from any meddlers, which they did on several occasions. They proved helpful when the United Nations invaded the island. The Watch, primarily Gamora, drove away the invading force with an absolute minimum of harm. The Avengers assisted with the United Nations, then recognized the Mole Man's rulership over the island.[volume & issue needed]

Mole Man tended to keep out of the way when the cosmic plans went on. The Watch occupied the Monster Isle castle until their dissolution as a team. Following their departure, the Mole Man apparently returned to his solitary, vengeful existence. Aside from occasional fits of hostility, he seems for the most part content to rule his subterranean kingdom, and for the past few years his surface activities have mostly been limited to reacting to threats (real or imagined) to his people.[volume & issue needed]

Attacking againEdit

In one incident, he was causing property damage purely to help the Moloids, whose water and food had become polluted.[18] He appeared in The Mighty Avengers having led an attack on New York, claiming retaliation for his underground home, which he says is destroyed. He was humiliated by a female-formed Ultron, who destroyed his remaining monsters, and he was arrested.[19]

Mole Man was also behind a series of Chupacabra attacks in Puerto Rico. His motive was to protect the blood-drinking race from extinction. He was defeated by the Fantastic Four.[20]

In the "Live Fast" story arc of Runaways, the Runaways are fighting a huge tall sky-scraper sized monster. When Victor suggests Nico shrink it, Nico mentions she already used that spell on Mole Man.[volume & issue needed]

Mole Man witnessed the return of the Hulk, which pleased him. However, when the Hulk was defeated and his stone ship destroyed, various creatures from planet Sakaar were released into the underground. Mole Man trained the alien beasts and led them to attack New York once more. However, the creatures were really waiting for the arrival of Skaar, the Hulk's son. However, Tyrannus rose to challenge Mole Man's claim and used magic to pervert the aliens so that they could destroy the surface. Skaar went into a berserker rage and thus both Tyrannus and Mole Man fled.[21]

Mandarin's White Light Ring approached Mole Man in order to help it and the other rings have revenge on Tony Stark where he became Mandarin-Six. Mole Man and the other Mandarins later travelled to Svartalfheim in order to confront Malekith the Accursed, who had hunted down other three Mandarins and had taken their rings from them.[22] The Mandarins thwarted any attempt of Malekith to hide or flee, as the rings could locate each other. Malekith made a pact with Iron Man (who was also at the time in Svartalfheim to retrieve the rings) disposed of his ring and escaped to safely, as he could no longer be tracked. Following their failure to kill Malekith, the Mandarins resumed their own paths.[23] The Mandarins joined forces once more to help Mole Man's plan to create ring-powered weapons with which destroy cities from their base in Sinister London. A test was thwarted by the Fantastic Four. Before they could release one of the actual machines, Iron Man pinned them down along with the Trojan Guard and Abigail Burns. The Mandarins failed to escape as Iron Man's ally Dark Angel used magic to prevent them from teleporting.[24] After the other Mandarin's are defeated, Mole Man's ring declared him the Prime-Mandarin. Instead, Mole Man abandoned his ring and retreated.[25]

Mole Man was later contacted by unknown individuals to bring them Athol Kussar, the half-brother of mine owner Faust Swart who laundered money to fund HYDRA's African base after he knew about his half-brother's actions and had been previously imprisoned in a mine by Swart while evading the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. When Mole Man broke into Kussar's cell, Kussar did not want to leave due to a bomb inside his body that would detonate if he left his cell. Mole Man was attacked and knocked down by Invisible Woman who disposed of the bomb and placed Kussar in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody.[26]

As part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel event, Mole Man and his fellow Subterraneans ended up in a civil war with the Subterraneans that are on the side of his son Mole Monster.[27]

When Squirrel Girl's friends, Nancy, Tippy Toe and Koi Boi, help set her up an online dating profile, it leads to many unsuccessful dates, one of which ends with an encounter with Mole Man, who is angered by how Doreen's earlier suggestions to Kraven has affected his home. Doreen apologizes to him and the two have a conversation about his situation, leading Mole Man to proposing to Doreen on the spot and a number of follow-up schemes to get Doreen to go on a date with him. He threatens to bury a number of worldwide landmarks if she does not date him, and after Nancy is nearly kidnapped by him and being swarmed by the media, she goes to confront Mole Man only to find that Tricephalous is in love with him. She lets Tricephalous defeat her to woo Mole Man and they leave for good.[28]

Mole Man later appears attacking New York with a group of monsters, but he is defeated by Hulk, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.[29]

During the Secret Empire storyline, it is revealed that Mole Man has struck a deal with Captain America to use the tunnels of his subterranean kingdom for his smuggling operation in exchange for specific items from the surface world, such as DVDs. When Captain America arrives with the Underground Resistance, Mole Man's kingdom is attacked by Dreadnoughts sent by Hydra. Though the heroes manage to defeat the Dreadnoughts, Mole Man puts an end to his truce with Captain America and lets the heroes leave.[30

[summahsunlight]

We Belong to the Stars, Ch. 24

Rating: Mature (18+ only)

Word Count: 1783

Pairings: Poe/Skywalker!OC

Characters: Poe Dameron, Leia Organa, BB-8, Kaleb Skywalker (OC), Evelyn Skywalker (OC), Karé Kun, Iolo Arana, Snap Wexley, Jessika Pava, BB-8

Read on AO3

Poe was certain he had been in worse situations than this before. Just at the present time he couldn't think of any. 

As if being left to fend for themselves in the middle of a prison, and then having to literally fight their way to Grakkus the Hutt's home, Poe thought their bad luck had run out.  That is until the Hutt made mention that Evelyn wasn't present--like he had been expecting her to be with Black Squadron.  Poe didn't get to question it, the Hutt took his comrades hostage, taking their weapons and demanding that Poe follow his rules. He had been left with very little choice. 

Glancing at his team before he disappeared inside Grakkus home, Poe felt on edge.  Something was off.  First of all, someone else had paid the prison more money to let Black Squadron venture to Grakkus on their own, the Hutt knew who he was, knew that Evelyn was usually a part of their squadron--this only solidified Leia's decision to keep her back on D'Qar. Poe was grateful Evelyn wasn't here--and now Grakkus claimed to know why Poe was here.

"How do you know all this?" the commander asked as Grakkus opened a door to a private chamber.

"Oh, hello, Commander," Terex said, standing in front of Poe, smiling. "So nice to see you again.  I see you left her behind."

"Yeah... I left her behind," Poe snapped, irritated that Terex had beat them to their location yet again. "She's safe from you."

Terex chuckled. "If that's what you like to think, then so be it, Dameron." 

Poe felt chills run up his spine. "What is that suppose to mean?"

"You cannot keep her safe from the First Order forever, Commander."

"As long as I'm still breathing I can."

"And I told you on Scarif, your demise can be arranged."

Grakkus seemed annoyed with their conversation. He grunted, loudly, and spat something at them in Huttese, turning the men's attention on him. "Gentlemen, I'm not in the mood for your petty quarrels.  Now--we had a deal."

Terex frowned at him. "Yes, we had a deal.  As soon as you give me the location of Lor San Tekka--I will get you out of here."

Poe crossed his arms over his chest, realizing that the Hutt had played both of them. The only thing that mattered to Grakkus was getting out of Megalox. "I think the deal has just changed.  Am I right, Grakkus?"

"You are correct, Mr. Dameron," Grakkus replied. "Whoever gets me out of this prison first, will get the information."

"You double-crossed us," Terex sneered.

"He's a Hutt--in all honesty--you should have seen that coming," Poe snarked.

Grakkus chuckled while Terex stormed out.  Poe let out a little sigh, glancing at the crime lord.  It didn't surprise him that the Hutt had double crossed them, he'd been prepared for it ,actually. Terex apparently had not, which meant it might take him longer to figure things out, to come up with a plan to get Grakkus out of Megalox Beta before Black Squadron. Fortunately for Poe-- he already had a back-up plan.

At the age of sixteen, Evelyn had stolen her father's x-wing and traveled to Kijimi in search of Poe.  She had gone in the hopes of talking him into coming home to Yavin--unaware that the whole reason he was on Kijimi was because he was working undercover for the Republic.  To this day Leia wasn't sure how Poe had managed to convince Evelyn to go home--without him--and without breaking his cover.  As she stepped into the hanger on D'Qar, she half expected to find that Evelyn had taken off again in search of Poe.  

Evelyn was seated underneath her fighter, legs crossed and tinkering with some parts.  Her long hair was draped over one of her slender shoulders and Leia recalled that Sela often would sit that way underneath her own fighter during the days of the Rebellion.  Feeling a sense of loss for her friend and sister-in-law, Leia sighed and pulled up a crate.  Sitting down she waited until her niece glanced up at her to speak. "I know you're angry at me."

"I should be out there with my squadron," Evelyn responded, tightly.

"Your squadron is infiltrating a prison right now to break out a Hutt," Leia pointed out.

"Poe said they would have armed guards with them."

"Evelyn, it's just better if you stay here."

She angrily tossed the part she had been fiddled with aside. Her blue eyes flashed with rage. "You didn't tell my father to lay low when Vader was looking for him! Why are you forcing me to sit around?"

Shaking her head, Leia sighed. "This is different, Evelyn.  Times are different.  I couldn't afford to have your father sitting around--the Rebellion needed him."

Evelyn stood, tears running down her cheeks and absolute anguish flashing in her blue eyes. "So... what you're saying is that you don't need me, is that it?  I can leave if you want! Maybe Uncle Han could use my help!"

Leia got to her feet and instantly pulled her niece into her arms, hugging her tightly.  Evelyn sobbed against her shoulder. "Sweetheart, I do need you. I need you to stay safe, I need you here when the time comes for you to get back in that x-wing with Black Squadron. You are important--very important." Gently, she rubbed Evelyn's back. "You're a light, Evelyn, you always have been--especially now in these darker times."

"I wish my father was here," Evelyn whimpered, taking Leia a little off guard. "Why did he have to go when I needed him the most?"

"Oh, sweetheart," Leia whispered, wishing she had the answers for her. "I don't know."

All she wanted was to go back--to the way things where--when her family was together; but Evelyn knew that they couldn't go back, so she had to settle for her aunt's comforting embrace.  Even that couldn't last--the General was being paged.  Leia let got of her, wiping the tears from her eyes with her small, delicate hands.  "Remember--no one is ever really gone, Evelyn."

Eyes watering, Evelyn nodded watching as Leia exited the hanger.  The General proceeded back to the surface of the planet, immediately recognizing that Black Squadron had returned. There was a flury of activity on the flight pad as technicians guided the fighters back to their landing spots.  She crossed her arms over her chest, hoping that Poe and the others had been able to get the information that they had paid a lot of money for.

Poe approached her, looking tense and he handed her a data pad. "It wasn't easy getting this, General.  Grakkus tried to play us--not surprisingly--all he wanted was out of that prison."

Leia quirked an eyebrow. "I take it you managed to get him out."

"Yeah, we did," the pilot said with a curt nod, "but not before Agent Terex showed up."

"I can only imagine--looking for Evelyn?"

"He was disappointed that I left her behind."

"She was too," Leia lamented, gazing over her shoulder in the direction of the hanger she'd left her niece in.

"It was for the best," Poe reminded her. "Are we sure this is legit, General?"

Sighing, Leia glanced at the data pad. "It sounds like someplace Lor San would go."

Poe nodded and ran a hand through his hair. "When do you want us to go after him?"

Leia glanced up, tensely. "We have a bigger issue, Commander--we need to find out who passed on the information to Terex that Black Squadron was going to Megalox."

His jaw clenched, his brown eyes became dark with anger.  Poe took a steadying breath. "The only ones that knew about this mission were Black Squadron, you, Dane, and Evelyn."

She gazed at him apologetically, knowing how much his squad meant to him. "I know--that means, Commander, that one of them betrayed the Resistance-betrayed you."

BB-8 regaled his tale of heroics on the latest mission--how it had been him and the other droids that had helped Black Squadron escape and return back to the Resistance-- to Evelyn while they walked towards the mess that night for dinner.

Evelyn smiled, affectionately at the little droid when he was done telling his tale. "It sounds like you were very brave, BeeBee."

Poe chuckled while his droid bristled with pride.   His eyes met hers, and she smiled at him, warmly, but he couldn't find the energy to return it fully.  Immediately, she knew something was wrong and her brown furrowed in concern.  Poe reached for her hand and grasped it, tightly. "We wouldn't have gotten that information if it weren't for BeeBee and the other droids."

"Are you okay?" she asked him, softly. 

"Fine," he replied, curtly. "Exhausted. It's not easy breaking a Hutt out of jail."

"I wish I could have been there to help."

"I'm glad you weren't; one less thing to worry about--your safety."

"Did Aunt Leia give you another mission yet?" Evelyn inquired, changing the subject.

"Ah... she did," Poe said, biting his lower lip. Technically because she knew about the mission to Megalox Beta--she was a suspect for giving up the information to the First Order. No, she would never do that.  She isn't the mole.  "The General wants me to figure out who keeps informing the First Order about Black Squadron's missions.  I hear your brother was able to retrieve the next part of Agent Lothor's transmissions without a problem--which means, the First Order is interested in our squad, Evie."

Evelyn nodded, softly. "He did; Kaleb reported that there was no sign of the First Order when they arrived--or that the First Order had even been there.  Intel has been working around the clock to decipher everything that has been recovered so far--they managed to confirm what BeeBee told us on the first mission--that the First Order seems to be building some kind of super weapon."

Poe sighed, heavily. "Fantastic.  Going back to the old tactics of the Empire by using fear to keep star systems in line." He gave her hand a squeeze as they stepped inside the mess hall. "I don't like this, Evie--someone from our squadron betraying us.  We've both known L'ulo our whole lives, there's no way he would do this... and Snap, Jess? They could have been killed because the information was leaked.  And Karé, I've flown with her for years." 

She watched as Jess waved them over to a table. Poe led Evelyn through the crowd, towards the line to get dinner. Once they had their food, they joined their squad mates.  He felt a pain in his chest just looking at them--just thinking about one of them betraying him and the Resistance. There was no way--none--that any one of these pilots had sold information to the First Order. So that leaves... Poe's dark brown eyes found the spy across the room, Dane's face was bruised from the fight they'd gotten into, but there was clearly a scowl on his face when he met Poe's eyes. The spy was vengeful--vengeful enough to sell information to the First Order.

[waywardaardvark79]

Come Back to Me: Part 8

Summary:  Y/N, a WW2 army nurse spends her days caring for and patching up injured soldiers. The last thing she ever expected was that one of the soldiers that she saved would steal her heart. A story of two people and the insurmountable obstacles they overcome to always come back to each other.

Pairing: Dean x Reader, Benny x Reader (platonic)

Warnings: language, character death

Word Count: 4,754

A/N: Updates should be at least once weekly. No set schedule. 

Dean sat on the edge of his bunk, his mind racing with everything they still had to do. What started as a two man escape plan with a two month time frame had quickly proved to be far more difficult than Dean or Benny every thought it could be, and they both started out knowing that it would be damn near impossible. 

Both of them quickly realized that two months was an unrealistic goal, and so was having only two people to do all of the work, so here they were, ten months later, the plan they had slaved over only hours away from execution. 

Dean sat there on the edge of his bunk, his eyes focused on the door as he waited for Benny to return with the last thing they needed for their escape, the last ten months of planning and work playing over in his head. 

                                           Ten Months Ago

"So, where do we start?" Benny asked. 

"We gotta find out everything we can about this place and fast." Dean said. 

That first month flew by without much planning, both Benny and Dean just trying to get used to their new roles as prisoners of war. Dean wasn't really able to leave their bunk house in his condition so most of the early scouting was left to Benny, and at the end of that first month they had a basic layout of the camp and the day to day activities that occurred. 

The end of month two wasn't much better. They didn't seem to accomplish much. They had both talked to other prisoners, and learned as much as they could about the past escape attempts, each of them committing to memory the mistakes that caused those plans to fail. 

Benny and Dean were sitting around the stove, everyone else in their bunk house already in bed. 

"How's it feel?" Benny asked, nodding his head towards Dean's leg. 

"I fell straight on my ass the minute I stood up after the doc had taken it off." Dean said, looking down at his cast free leg. 

"It's just gonna take awhile to build your strength back up. You'll get there." Benny said. 

"We were supposed to be on our way out of here by now, but we got nothin'. The only thing we know is what's not gonna work." Dean said, frustrated. 

"Well, that's something." Benny said, trying to look on the positive side. 

Dean shook his head, "If we want this to work, we're gonna need more people." Dean said, glancing back over his shoulder at the sleeping men. 

"I think you're right, brother." Benny said, Dean nodding his head. 

"I want a plan in place before we start recruiting people, and I think I know what we need to do." Dean said. 

"Yeah, and what's that?" Benny asked. 

"Everyone else that has tried to get out went over the fence, or tried to." Dean said. 

"Yeah, and that worked one time with only a few guys gettin' over before they were caught." Benny said. 

Dean nodded his head, "So, we don't go over. We go under." Dean said. 

By the middle of month three Dean and Benny had a basic plan laid out. They had decided to dig two tunnels, one in their own bunk house and another in the communal bath/shower that they shared with the bunk house next to them. Morgan and Miller were in that group of men, and Benny and Dean knew that they could trust them. Now, all they had to do was figure out who else they could trust and bring them on board. 

By the end of month three Dean had taken on the role as leader with Benny as his second in command. All of the men from his own bunk house and Morgan and Miller's were fully on board with the plan. That gave them a total of twenty men, counting themselves. Now, it was time for the hard work to begin. 

Dean and Benny decided to start work on the tunnel in their own bunk house first, both of them agreeing that the entrance of the tunnel would be underneath the stove. Every man involved was instructed to start saving supplies, the wood from the Red Cross parcels, actually any wood that they could get their hands on,  the Klim tins that held powdered milk, and basically any other odd and end that could prove useful. 

They started with the Klim tins, the metal proving quit useful. They shaped the metal into various tools to dig with, one of the men was even able to show them how to make lamps. They used fat skimmed from soup served at the camp as fuel and pieces of old clothing for wicks. This allowed them to light the tunnels and made digging much easier. However, the most important use of the Klim tins were as ventilation ducts, Dean and Benny finally figuring out a design that would allow them to pump air through the tunnels. 

The lack of supplies to brace the wall of the tunnels was a problem they faced. The Red Cross parcels were too far and in-between to really make much difference. So, they started to scavenge the camp for any scraps of wood they could find. They broke apart wood furniture, and even resorted to using the boards that held up their mattresses. Each man responsible for gathering as many as he could from the other bunk houses without raising suspicion. 

The next problem they faced was what to do with all of the excess soil from digging. At first their main method of disposal was to scatter it discreetly on the surface, figuring that the Germans wouldn't notice small amounts here and there, but as both tunnels got underway the amount of soil to dispose of became more difficult. 

Half way through month seven the overwhelming amount of soil they were digging up was their biggest obstacle. They had run out of places to discreetly store it, and Dean and Benny decided to stop work on the second tunnel, using it as a place to store all of the extra soil and supplies instead. 

With the second tunnel being abandoned, work on the first one went much faster. Both Benny and Dean had managed to befriend two German guards, both guards were sympathetic to their cause, and neither man supported what the Nazi party stood for. 

Both guards proved to be extremely helpful. They were able to smuggle in civilian clothing, making it easier for the men to travel by train after escaping. They also managed to smuggle in maps, railway timetables, and many official papers so that they could be forged, the travel permits being the most important. All of these supplies were stored in the abandoned  second tunnel, laying in wait until the night of the escape. 

A couple of weeks into the tenth month work on the tunnel was completed, and Benny helped Dean move the stove from the tunnel entrance, Dean wanting to do a run through to see just how much time it would take to get all the way through the tunnel. 

"Alright, I'm gonna time it, see how long it take to get through, so we can figure out how much time to leave between guys." Dean said, Benny passing him one of the lamps made from the Klim tins. 

"Be careful with that down there." Benny said, nodding his head toward the tin, "Last thing we need is you settin' yourself on fire." 

"Just make sure you work the pump." Dean said before lowering himself down into the tunnel. 

It was a tight fit, Dean's shoulders nearly scraping the sides of the tunnel as he worked his way through, his pace slower than what it would be if he didn't have to hold the tin, but the light was needed. 

He was surprised how well the ventilation duct worked, and was relieved. He had feared that it wouldn't, and he honestly didn't want to devote any more time to it. He had been there long enough and he was more than ready to get as far away from that place as he could. He needed to get back to you. 

Dean had reached the end of the tunnel, and he pushed the thin board that covered the exit aside before raising up just enough to peer out. 

The tunnel ended at the start of a dense wooded area, and Dean couldn't help the overwhelming urge he had to run, to climb up out of that hole and never look back. He was breathing free air for the first time in ten months, and he couldn't explain the feeling it gave him. 

Dean thought about you. This was the closest he had been to being able to make his way back to you since he was captured. Part of him wanted so badly to just go back for Benny, grab the travel documents the two of them forged for themselves and leave, but he couldn't do it. 

His sense of loyalty wouldn't allow him to do it. He owed it to the other men, the men he now considered his, to follow through with the plan. Those men put their blood, sweat, and tears into this plan, and none of them had to do it. None of them had to take the risk, but all of them did. Even though they all knew that if they were caught they would likely be shot. So, as bad as Dean wanted to go, he knew that he couldn't do it. He couldn't leave any of them behind. 

Dean put the board back over the exit, and started to make his way back through the tunnel. He placed the tin he was carrying on the floor of the bunk house before pulling himself up, Benny putting the homemade bellows used to pump the air through the tunnel down once Dean was out. 

"We're not gonna be able to give everybody a lamp. One, we don't have enough, and two, you have to go too slow when you're holdin' one." Dean said, putting a board over the entrance before Benny helped him move the stove back over. 

"What do you want to do then? I mean, we can't have guys going through blind." Benny said. 

"Yeah, I know." Dean said, making his way to his bunk, the leg that he broke so long ago aching terribly. 

"How was the air?" Benny asked. 

"Worked a lot better than I thought it would." Dean said, running his hands through his hair. "Ok, we need to figure out the order we're sending everybody through in, and some way to light it." 

"We could put a couple lamps in the staging areas." Benny said, the tunnel having three places where it was dug out wider, the men using the areas to store tools during construction. 

"We could send the first three people through with a lamp. The first guy could leave it at the last station, the second at the second, and the third at the first. At least that will light it some. Part of the crawl is gonna be in the dark, but I think it's the best we can do. We can't afford to move that slow." Dean said, Benny nodding his head in agreement. 

"It'll do." Benny said. 

"It'll have to." Dean said. 

Benny walked through the door, the sound of the door closing after him pulling Dean from his thoughts. 

"Did you get it?" Dean asked, standing up from his bunk. 

"Yeah." Benny said, nodding his head as he pulled out a rolled up piece of paper from his coat. 

Dean took the paper from him and unrolled it, his eyes scanning over it, "This is it." he said, unable to tear his eyes away from the paper in front of him. "This is how we get back." he added, as he looked at the map, every train station they would need to get back to their base marked. 

"Listen, he said he overheard some of the other guards talkin' about a surprise search. He said some of them are startin' to get suspicious, and that they're tossing the bunks around midnight." Benny said. 

"Shit. That's gonna set us way back." Dean said, shaking his head. 

"I know. We're gonna have to make sure that nobody has anything on them, no papers, nothin'." Benny said. 

"Yeah, then we're just gonna have to haul ass to get everything ready after the search. You go make sure Morgan and Miller has their bunk under control, and I'll do this one." Dean said. 

All of the men in Dean's bunk house, including Benny and himself were laying awake in their beds, each man waiting for the search to begin. All of them were hoping that the search would go quickly, each one of them eager to get the plan underway. 

"Up! Up!" one of the German guards bellowed as he burst through the door, every man climbing from their bed at the order. 

The guard turned to the three men behind him, ordering them to start the search. Dean and his men waited patiently beside their beds, all of them watching as the guards started to flip mattresses, one of them pointing out the missing boards that held up the mattresses. 

"What happened here?" one of the guards asked, in a thick German accent. 

"We had to burn them for warmth, sir." Dean said, hoping that his lie was believable enough. 

The guards slowly made their way around the small room, looking in every nook and cranny, but coming up empty. Dean watched as one of the guards knelt down by the stove, his heart racing in his chest when the guard leaned down to look underneath it. 

Dean knew that was it. The guard was going to see the board, even though Dean had done his best to cover it with ashes from the stove. He knew that it wouldn't be long before the tunnel was discovered, and all of their hard work would be for nothing. 

Dean was so busy trying to think of a way to get them all out of it that he missed the guard standing back up. 

"Back to bed!" one of the guards yelled, Dean trying to get his facial expression under control so that he wouldn't give away how relieved he was. 

Benny crossed the room, "You think an hour would be enough time to wait? You know, before we start everything. I mean, I don't think they'll come back, but I want to be sure." 

"Yeah, an hour should be good." Dean said, his heart still pounding in his chest. 

"Hey, brother, everything is gonna be fine." Benny said, clapping Dean on the shoulder. 

An hour later, Dean and Benny sent a couple of men over to the second tunnel to get all of the supplies. Each man tucked a change of civilian clothing into their coats, alone with some makeshift weapons, and the necessary travel documents. 

"All right, listen up." Dean said, all of the men turning their attention to him. "We're gonna send the first three men through with a lamp. Those lamps are gonna be left at the staging areas, and you'll have to make the rest of the crawl in the dark. Remember to move quickly and quietly, and when you get to the end...you get into that tree line as quickly as possible. Is that clear?" Dean asked. 

"Yes, First Sergeant." the men answered in unison. 

"All right, Benny is gonna go first. He'll be there to help each of you out." Dean said, as Benny readied his supplies. 

Dean was holding the bellows in his hands, ready to start pumping air when Benny walked up to him, "I'll see you on the other side, brother." Benny said, Dean nodding his head as Benny lit the wick of his tin. 

"Be careful and watch yourself. If there's any sign of trouble you go." Dean said. 

"There ain't gonna be no trouble. Now, I'll see you on the other side." Benny said before lowering himself down into the tunnel. 

Dean gave Benny a five minute head start before sending the next man down. 

"Now, remember to leave your lamp at the second station." Dean said, the man nodding his head before going into the tunnel. 

Everything was going smoothly, they were moving a little slower than Dean would have like, but all in all he couldn't complain. 

Dean had just sent another man down the tunnel, leaving only him and Morgan in the room. 

"You're up, Morgan." Dean said about five minutes later. 

Morgan walked to the edge of the tunnel entrance, and started to lower himself down before quickly standing back up. 

"I...I can't do this." he said, panic in his voice. 

"What are you talkin' about?" Dean asked, still pumping the bellows. 

"I...I can't do it. It's...it's too small." Morgan said, backing away from the tunnel. 

"Listen to me, Morgan. Everything is gonna be fine. Now, you get down there and crawl." Dean said. 

"I can't. Just leave me here." Morgan said, looking away from Dean. 

"Morgan, look at me." Dean ordered, his voice stern, Morgan not turning around. "Look at me." he said again. 

"Just leave me." Morgan said, turning to face him. 

"Nobody is getting left behind. Now, you get down there and crawl, Soldier. All you have to do is keep going and then all of this will be over." Dean said. 

"I...I should have never agreed to do this. I...I knew I couldn't do it, and it's not so bad here. I'll just wait. The camp will be liberated soon. You go without me. I promise I won't tell them anything. I won't say a word." Morgan said. 

"Everyone here is living on borrowed time. This isn't gonna end with our guys stormin' in here and saving our asses. Liberation is not a sure thing, and the longer we stay here...the worse it gets. Now, you either get down there and save your own ass, free yourself, because that's the only liberation you're gonna get, or you stay here and die lookin' down the barrel of one of their guns." Dean said. 

Benny stood in the tree line, anxiously waiting. The next man should have come through by now, and  Benny knew that Dean and Morgan were the only ones left. He stepped out from the tree line, looking at the camp to see if he could see any sign of trouble, any sign that they had been found out, but he saw nothing. The camp was quiet, only a few guards patrolling the grounds. 

Benny stepped back into the tree line for cover, scared that he would be spotted if he stood out there much longer. He decided to wait a few more minutes, thinking that maybe one of them forgot some of the paperwork they needed and had to go back for it. 

Those few minutes came and went with no sign of Dean or Morgan, and Benny knew what he had to do. "God damn it." he sighed to himself, as he made sure the coast was clear before stepping out of the tree line, and walking back to the tunnel. 

Benny made his way back through the tunnel, thinking to himself how crazy it was to be going back inside the place they were trying to escape from. 

"What's goin' on? What's the hold up?" Benny asked as he pulled himself out of the tunnel, Dean and Morgan just standing there looking at each other. 

Morgan looked over at Benny, "Tell him, Benny. Tell him to just leave me here. I...I can't go down there, and I already told him I wouldn't say anything. I won't tell 'em anything. Just please go." Morgan said. 

Benny looked over to Dean, both of them knowing that Morgan would crack. He would talk, and he would tell them everything he knew if they pressed him hard enough. Both Benny and Dean knew that the Germans would do whatever they had to do in order to get the information from him, and he knew exactly where Benny and Dean were headed. He knew everything. 

"Look, Morgan, I'll go through with you. It's not that bad, and it won't take long, but we gotta go now." Benny said, Morgan shaking his head. 

"No! I'm not going! How many times do I have to tell you that! I can't fuckin' do it!!" Morgan yelled, Benny and Dean both tensing up, afraid that the guards heard him. 

"Be quiet." Dean warned, looking at the door and waiting a few minutes before speaking again. "Look, if you stay behind they'll kill you. They will get what they need from you and then they'll kill you, and I can guarantee you that it won't be a quick death. You won't get to sit here and wait for the camp to be liberated because you'll be dead. So, you have two options. You tough it out for a few minutes and get down there or you die." Dean said. 

Morgan stood there in silence, thinking over what Dean had just told him, "Ok." he said, nodding his head. "I'll go. I'll try." 

Benny let out a slow breath, "I'll be right behind you, Morgan." he said as Morgan lowered himself down, turning to Dean once Morgan was out of sight, "You follow right after me. We don't have time to wait. I'm scared that one of them might have heard that." Benny said, Dean nodding his head in agreement. 

The three of them were in the tunnel, and they hadn't even reached the first staging area when Morgan started going into a full blown panic. 

"I...I can't breath. I got to get out of here. Go back and let me out." Morgan pleaded, no longer moving. 

"Keep going." Benny said, pushing at his feet. 

"Oh God. Oh dear, God. I can't. I can't breathe. Help! Somebody help me!!" Morgan screamed. 

"Shut your fuckin' mouth, Morgan, and keep goin' or I'll kill ya here and now." Benny said, his patience for the man gone. 

Morgan whimpered, but finally started to move slowly. Benny and Dean following after him at a snail's pace. They had just made it to the first staging area when Dean heard noises from the end of the tunnel, and he looked over his shoulder to see a light shining down into the tunnel's entrance. 

"Shit." Dean said, knowing that they were caught. "Move! Now!" he ordered. 

"Move your ass, Morgan." Benny urged. 

Benny came to a stop when he couldn't hear Dean moving behind him anymore, and he looked over his shoulder the best he could to see Dean still in the same spot. 

"Dean, what are you doin'? We gotta move." Benny said. 

"They don't know where the exit is. You still have time to get away." Dean said. 

"Yeah, I know. So, move your ass, man. Let's go." Benny said.

"You'll have time to get away if they're busy with me, and if they can't get through here." Dean said, his mind already set on what he was going to do. 

"Dean, brother, we're so close. We're almost there. Listen to yourself. You're not makin' any sense. Let's go." Benny said. 

"Go, Benny." Dean said, voices growing louder from the end of the tunnel, Dean knowing that more guards were now in the bunk house. 

"Dean-" Benny tried to argue before Dean interrupted him. 

"That's an order, Lafitte." Dean said, turning back to face Benny. "Go! Now!" 

"I'm not leaving you here." Benny said. 

"You will. You'll go, and you'll make your way back. You have to take care of her. You have to keep her safe. I need you to do this for me." Dean said.

"Don't do this." Benny pleaded. 

"Tell her that I love her, and that I'm gonna do my best to keep my promise." Dean said, looking down. "But...if I can't do it, Benny...if I can't make my way back, I gotta know that you're gonna take care of her." Dean said. 

"If you would just come with me you could take care of  her yourself." Benny said. 

The light at the end of the tunnel grew brighter, and Dean knew that one of the guards was working his way through, "Just promise me, Benny." Dean said. 

"I...I promise." Benny choked out. 

"Now, go." Dean said, looking back over his shoulder quickly before turning back to Benny, "Go, Benny." 

Benny hesitated to go, he couldn't just leave him behind. He knew what would happen, and he didn't want Dean to face that fate alone. 

"Go." Dean said, "I need you to do this for me." he quickly added, knowing they were running out of time. 

Benny started to move, the hatred he had for himself, and the guilt he felt for leaving Dean behind growing with each inch he covered. A noise stopped him in his tracks, and he looked over his shoulder to see Dean pulling down the board at the end of the staging area, dirt falling down and sealing off the tunnel. 

Benny moved faster, knowing that the whole tunnel could cave in at any second. He finally managed to pull himself from the tunnel, sirens sounding from the camp as he ran into the tree line. 

He ran for cover, noticing Morgan cowered down next to a large tree, and Benny couldn't help the rage that coursed through his body. 

"This is all your fault." he said, jerking the man up. 

"I'm...I'm sorry. Please, Benny. I...I don't know what to do." Morgan said, his eyes wide in fear. 

Benny shook his head, "Fuck you. You can rot here for all I care. We should have left your ass. You should be the one in there, not Dean." Benny said, dropping Morgan back to the ground. 

"They'll catch me if you leave me here." Morgan said. 

"Good. That's what you deserve." Benny said, walking away from him. 

"I'll talk. I'll tell them everything I know. I know I will. You have to take me with you." Morgan said, Benny stopping and walking back to him. 

Benny pulled him to his feet, "I'm not taking you with me, and you're not gonna talk." he said before snapping Morgan's neck, his body falling lifelessly to the ground with a thud. 

Benny looked down at him, feeling only anger, no remorse at all. He could hear the sounds of dogs barking and he knew that he had to run. He knew that the Germans would be combing the area, searching for the escapees, and he had to get out of there. So, he ran. He ran as fast as he could, knowing that he had to put as much distance between himself and the camp as he could. 

Dean's words were running through his mind as he pushed himself on, and he hated himself more with every step that he took, but he did what he had to do, and he ran. 

Dean crawled out of the tunnel, his hands raised, four guards staring him down with their guns pointed at him. 

"Take him." one of the men ordered, the other guards seizing him. "Take him to Vogel." the guard added before turning to the man that brought Dean out of the tunnel, "How many more?" he asked. 

"I don't know. He made it collapse." the guard answered. 

"I want everyone we have out there now. I want all of them found." the guard who seemed to be the one in charge ordered before turning to face Dean, "You're going to be sorry that you ever did this. We are going to find them all, and you'll watch while they all die. Vogel doesn't take escape attempts lightly." 

Dean tensed up at the name. He had heard some of the other men talk about him, and he knew that when someone had been taken to him in the past, they never came back.

"Take him." the guard said, the men holding onto him starting to lead him out of the room. 

Dean knew that he wasn't going to have it easy, and part of him thought that he wouldn't make it out alive, but he knew that wasn't an option. He had to make it, and as the guards were dragging him away he vowed that he would do whatever he had to do to stay alive. He was getting out of that place, and he was getting back to you no matter what. 

Tags: @miraclesoflove​ @22sarah08​ @flamencodiva​ @divadinag​ @backseat-of-deans-67chevy​ @superflurry​ @familybusinesswritingbro​ @briagallen​

[dvstbunny]

hey my friends!! i am finally bringing in my danzig fc which i have meant to do for literal month but i always struggle with him the most muse-wise and i’ve revamped this particular muse with his fc multiple times... so we’ll see how well it goes this time and fingers crossing i can keep him around! this muse of mine may be a little less active at the moment while i try to find my footing with him, but i’ll be trying my very best! four is usually the maximum of muses i can keep up with because i prefer being as active as possible on my muses rather than sporadic and i had to debate long and hard about picking up another, so we’ll test the waters and see how it goes and if it doesn’t work out... it doesn’t work out! anyway he’s the most chaotic energy second to cy so... enjoy

TRIGGER WARNINGS: eating disorders, violence, cults, drugs, alcoholism, neglect, abuse

{ Dustin ‘Dusty’ Graves } is { 28 } originally from { Suicide Creek, Canada }. They spend their time as a { model, hairdresser, and drummer of Avant-Garde Society }. They live in the { The Chalet } and have been known to be { callous and flamboyant } but can also be { moxie and cosmopolitan }. They strongly resemble { Dustin Bates } and go by { he/him } pronouns.

name: dustin solara graves

nicknames: dusty, dustbin, dustbunny

birthday: may 25, 1989 (age 28)

hometown: suicide creek, canada (later los angeles, ca)

occupation: model, hairdresser, drummer of avant-garde society

orientation: panromantic pansexual

relationship status: single

children: none

education: bachelor’s in scientific research, cosmetology license

VARIOUS INFORMATION AND FACTS:

call him bash if you’re not close to him and he’ll probably kick you in the face

though his mother is originally from canada, he was born in paris, france, where she had moved a few years prior to his birth to follow the love of her life, a french businessman. the businessman wanted nothing to do with the baby and she was forced to return to canada and unable to afford him with her occupation, she abandoned him at an orphanage and subsequently, he grew up never knowing who either of his birth parents were, only his birth name

essentially raised in a monastery, one would think he would grow up to be rather religious. instead, he had too many questions and received answers that didn’t quite satisfy him and started to gravitate toward analyzing every piece of religion in the monastery that he could grasp and unfold it in a way he thought was most logical

throughout his childhood, dustin was extremely alienated by other kids in the monastery and the lack of attention and connection with the other children prompted him to begin growing more and more bitter with every passing year as he got older and began to vie for negative attention from the others and positive attention from the adults at the monastery

with a knack for exploring, he made a terrible mistake when he was around the age of eight: he wandered off the property and into the woods in the canadian winter. being he was still an adolescent with no cellphone and too deep in a place that he had no idea how to find his way out of, he found himself lost and unable to make his way back to the monastery and as the night hit and temperatures dropped, the cold and hunger began to set in, distressing the young boy

miraculously, a local hunter came across him a couple days later when an angry bear (likely woken from hibernation by starvation) tried to attack him. managing to get away with only a few scratches, the hunter took him back to his cabin to clean him up

to his misfortune, he wouldn’t be going back to the orphanage. this hunter in the middle of nowhere seemed to have darker intentions for him: as part of a strange- and likely satanic- cult, he wanted dustin to learn from his ways. those ways were not the kind any eight year old should ever be raised by, though, often violent and bloody with other people who were typically strangers and animals, acts of violence served as a marker for the older man’s idea of salvation or worship

living the rest of his youth in the middle of the woods like this, aside from going to school, he reluctantly took a part in what this father figure wanted from him. given he was so young when he was taken in, he never really thought to get out of the situation, simply letting it be for what it was. hating every minute of it, school became his only escape, opting to stay there as much as he could to work late on science projects that would win him hefty prizes and acknowledgements from his peers

his father figure was baffled by his love for education and instead of receiving pride for his excellent marks in school, dustin was physically and verbally abused with the accusation he was putting too much focus on it and not enough focus on the homefront. outside of his accomplishments, his father figure took little interest in what he did outside out of the house and often ignored him when he wasn’t expected to be doing something. frustrated by his father figure’s lack of care for him, he began acting out again, which only led to more violence between the two

eventually, the neglect and the abuse he received when he acted out took a toll on him, and he grew up to be a rather selfish person, and became incredibly guarded and mistrusting of letting other people in, struggling to make connections and holding people at arm’s length

he swore to himself that when he graduated at eighteen, he would never see him again and make a better life for himself. on the day of his graduation, he packed all his belongings up and quietly left the house, only to dump it elsewhere in the woods on the way to the high school and set fire to it with gasoline. after the ceremony was over, he asked his friend to help him get to los angeles on account of obtaining a full ride scholarship to attend as a student in the department of science at USC

almost immediately, he was signed onto an eight million dollar modeling contract with men’s vogue, and he couldn’t think of anything else he had ever dreamed of as much as that moment in time, free to stay in the country and as far away from his father figure as possible

ever a popular person, he quickly excelled and made his way through the business, getting to know all kinds of people in high places and experiencing the luxurious life for himself on his own- the good and the bad sides of it

though he had delved in plenty of partying in his high school years, and dabbled in social drug use at said parties, he never developed an addiction. when he was in hollywood, everything changed, starting with the development of his addiction to alcohol when he was nineteen, finding it as a way to cope and to tone down the harsh shades of his personality that blossomed as a result of his childhood

as always, the modeling business wasn’t as glamorous as it seemed, either. behind closed doors, he faced pressures to either lose weight or dehydrate himself in order to gain the illusion of the “ideal” body image of men- naturally wanting to keep the business happy and unable to deal with the anxiety every time he looked at the scale and felt as if he were still missing the mark, bulimia and anorexia reared its ugly head in dustin’s life

among the societal expectations of the modeling business and the partying, he faced other abuses that often remained hidden. someone was too rough here and there during a photoshoot- a manager, maybe- and he would leave covering a bruise, or the sketchier photographers of the business would drug him out of his mind to achieve the intended “look” and “aesthetic” of the shoot. in a way, he felt that at least on the bright side, it deterred him from ever considering doing drugs again, disgusted and mortified by the experiences he would endure, and at times still does

dustin chose to turn his life around when he was twenty, convinced by a mentor that he should check himself into rehab after news that cy’s sister was involved in a drunk driving accident that nearly killed her and cy’s brother, reluctantly- and grudgingly- giving in to accepting help from others, coming out the other end feeling more rejuvenated than he had in the past several, miserable years

life went on and he continued the same routine of frequent travel and business calls and so on, so forth over the next few years, purchasing a summer home in paris, and he graduated with his bachelor’s in scientific research a year early at twenty-one with high honors

unfortunately, the road to recovery couldn’t last forever, and he slipped back into the arms of his vices when he was twenty-two, drinking himself out cold one day when he was twenty-three and waking up in a hospital on the premise of a friend finding him and concerned by his extremely low pulse

luckily, the situation was enough for him to receive a wake-up call loud and clear and taking it upon himself this time to check into a rehab facility, searching for his own happiness and perhaps a scrap of self-love. at this time, he decided to take up cosmetology school on the side of the band he ended up in at twenty-four and managed to obtain his license

lacking confidence in himself to remain on steady ground after the first round, unable to find it in himself to make up for his lack of self-love, the sobriety only lasted until he was twenty-seven and he found himself crashing and burning back into old ways when he moved to queens in the big apple, entranced by the bustling life and atmosphere of it in a lonely way that drew him back to his demons

still has an apartment in los angeles and a summer home in paris, owns his own cosmetology studio in queens where he primarily deals with hair, but has other employees specialized in nail art. still a science nerd but isn’t really sure what he wants to do with that degree at the moment

despite his wayward upbringing, he remained to have a strong moral compass and actually grew to despise violence and lack violent tendencies

has a hobby of photography and painting, a soft side he doesn’t expose to many people to avoid being taken advantage of more than he already is, has never owned a pet in his life because he can barely care for himself, and can come off as an emotionless void with how terribly guarded he is, incredibly vain to the point he has to fix his hair when he walks by a mirror and has a rather sarcastic sense of humor

despite seeming like an asshole outright to try to keep people from getting close to him, anyone with patience or kind words can quickly gather that he is nothing short of a gentleman when it comes down to it, very hard-working and dedicated, and underneath a seemingly selfish personality is just someone who’s never experienced much affection and likes to pretend he’s allergic to it

probably carries a comb in his pocket, trims his own hair over his bathroom sink, wears nerd glasses, lives off of takeout but is an exceptionally decent cook, too many suits in his wardrobe and not enough normal clothes, passed out in the afternoon unless it’s work-related, and would stab someone in the back if he was given a reason to, terrible habit of smoking and cannot make coffee to save his life, lives life in the fast lane

still actively struggling with his alcoholism and eating disorders, starting to slowly come apart at the seams over the last year in the city out of struggling to make connections that really seem to matter

[selfinsertbartender]

D&D Pride

I’ve seen a bunch of people celebrating their LGBT+ tabletop RPG characters this month both on here and on twitter, and I wanted to get involved! Seeing as I don’t have much in the way of artistic talent, I figured the least I could do is list the LGBT+ characters I’ve played in the past and some of their exploits, from earliest to most recent! 

It was while I was making this list that I realized I’ve accidentally made almost every single character that I’ve played for more than just a couple of sessions queer. Oops? Anyways, full character info under the cut!

* Ramiel Uroven - Asexual      Ramiel was my second character of my first serious D&D group (I changed characters several times for various plot reasons)! Growing up on his family’s farm outside of the Human capitol city, Ramiel always admired the Paladin Corps and was eager to become a knight when he grew up. Upon reaching the age when he could be certified, he was barred from joining the Corps after it was discovered that he was technically a Tiefling (in 3rd edition, Tieflings were humans with demonic ancestry; in Ramiel’s case, his great-great-great-great-grandfather married a succubus, making him just 1/64th demonic). Ever the upbeat young man, having been denied his dream of becoming a Paladin, he decided to do the next best thing: turn around and join the anti-Humanist Theroubrian Empire as an Antipaladin in service of Hextor, the god of war and chaos (keep in mind, at the point where Ramiel joined the party calling them “morally gray” would have been generous). He didn’t join out of any sense of solidarity with the Cult of Hextor’s dogma, he just wanted to be a knight. He eventually went on to become the Avatar of Hextor (after a series of like, four nat twenties in a row?? it’s a long story) and was promoted to a General position in the Empire’s army. He eventually parted ways with the party after some... personal differences (he was ordered to kill the two leaders of the party for betraying the Empire, and he’s nothing if not loyal).      A more recently rebooted version of Ramiel had him have distant Fae ancestry instead, He was actually successful in becoming a page for a local lord and starting his own knighthood training, but he was kicked out after it became clear he just stopped aging. In this version he was still asexual but more homoromantic, as he’d had a sort of illicit relationship going on with his lord.    

*Ariel Ophanim - Pansexual/Nonbinary      After fleeing from the Theroubrian Empire, the party joined up with a group devoted to keeping the world’s forces of good and evil locked in a stalemate known as the Defenders of Balance (note: this campaign was a good year before The Adventure Zone even started!). Assigned to watch over the new recruits upon their induction was Ariel, an Aasimar rogue and long-suffering right hand of the leader of the DoB. Ariel was the image of a covert field agent: sneaky, no-nonsense, and very, very pretty, and they knew it! So imagine their disdain when they were instead assigned to babysit a wild bunch of ragtag asshole newbies for their first real mission. The leader of the DoB had taken Ariel in when their home had been ravaged in the war between the Humans and the Theroubrian Empire, however, so they felt that they owed it to the leader and reluctantly accepted the assignment. Ariel filled a much-needed leadership role in the party and even managed to herd the group into completing some respectable work for the DoB investigating claims that their former employers were attempting to open a portal to the Demonic Plane. Ariel ended up sabotaging the ritual to summon the hell portal when they threw themself in front of Dimitry, an NPC ally with whom Ariel had a burgeoning romantic relationship, and became the ritual’s sacrifice in Dimitry’s place. Ariel’s sacrifice still opened a portal, but instead of dragging everyone present to the Demonic Plane, it instead dumped the party, Dimitry, and Cree (the succubus wife of the leader of the Theroubrian Empire, responsible for opening the portal and killing Ariel) into a pub that existed between planes.

*Saoirse (aka “Yew Mann”) - Gay         Within the extraplanar pub the party met a knight in antique armor and a horned helmet claiming to be a human paladin of a long-dead god. This knight, who claimed to be called ‘Yew Mann’, joined the party as they went hopping between planes (which actually consisted of our group playing a bunch of oneshots of other tabletop games using our characters) looking for a way back home. When the party got suspicious about Yew’s refusal to remove her armor with anyone else around, it was eventually revealed that she was not, in fact, a human paladin. She was actually a young Rakshasa sorcerer from the Demonic Plane named Saoirse who fled to the inter-planar pub after her lover, a female Tiefling, disappeared under mysterious circumstances. She took on the form of her lover to appear less obviously demonic, and at the pub she made friends with an old paladin who came from the Material Plane at a time hundreds of years before the present. After hearing his tales about humanity and the paladins and their heroism, she desired to live as a hero in the Material Plane herself. She received the old paladin’s armor and spear with the intention of disguising herself as a human once she figured out a way to get to the Material Plane (which, of course, is when the party arrived....)      She told all of this to Cree, the Theroubrian Empress, in confidence, and in return Cree started to convince her to accept herself. Their friendship would eventually save the human Paladin Corps from a Theroubrian attack, as Yew pleaded with Cree to call off their mind-dominated Terrasque (again, a long story). After the Theroubrians retreated, Yew decided to leave the party so that she could serve on the Theroubrian council and act as a sort of moral compass for Cree and the Emperor.

*Ewan Saxton - Gay      Real name Ewan Uroven, he was Ramiel’s younger brother and was forced to hide his familial ties (and his heritage, as a Tiefling) in order to be accepted into the Paladin Corps’s college of magic. At first Ewan struggled to adapt to his new environment and at learning how to harness his magic, but a boy his age named Tomar began to help him. While Ewan struggled with most schools of magic, with the help of Tomar he found that he excelled at Abjuration and made it his goal to become a great antimagic wizard. Ewan only got so far as to share a kiss with Tomar before his relationship with Ramiel (younger sibling of an enemy general) was discovered and he was forced to flee the Paladin Corps capitol with the party. During his time with the party there was an attack on the Paladin Corps in which the mage college destroyed, leaving Ewan uncertain about the status of his boyfriend (our campain went unfinished shortly after this). *F.E.I. - Bisexual/Trans*      Born under a different name, FEI was the youngest of six children of a Kenku adventurer-hero and a former petty criminal. She wasn’t the most well-behaved kid, and she took her affluent childhood for granted up until the day that her mother took ill and died soon after. FEI’s father, who could never quite leave his criminal behavior in the past, stole all of her mother’s fortune and abandoned his children, forcing the six of them into becoming criminals themselves in order to fend for themselves. This tragedy drove FEI down a dark path, until she fell in love with a girl who taught her that she had to live her life to the fullest. This, along with her mother’s dying encouragement to be truer to herself, drove FEI to leave her home behind and start anew, living as a woman for the first time in her life in a new city and with a new name.      Initially she intended to leave her criminal past behind her, and despite predjudices against Kenku she managed to join the local city guard. However, her shame and self-loathing still remained in the back of her head, a lack of self-worth which, like most Kenku, she felt could only be medicated by the accumulation of wealth. Thus, despite her desire to leave that life behind, she fell into a gang of Kenku criminals called the Blackbirds. FEI currently works as a corrupt mole within the city guard, though perhaps the appearance of a group of dangerous assholes within her city might push her into abandoning her criminal activity for good and finally follow in her mother’s footsteps. And that’s it for the LGBT+ characters! The canonical ones, at least. I have a handful of others, all of whom (aside from one) I really only played for a couple of sessions and didn’t get much of a chance to delve into their stories. But in the spirit of D&D Pride, fuck it, let’s queer them up too. *Ernbrecht Stonefist - Asexual       A Dwarven druid of the stone and the middle son of a noble family. He adhered to a strict set of rules and guidelines while essentially serving as his family’s “eyes” to the world outside of the Dwarves’s island. My very first character of my first serious D&D group, he didn’t remain with the group for very long (because he wasn’t very interesting/fun to play with a brand new party). Glad not to have the burden of the expectation to produce heirs, since he won’t be gettin it on with anyone anytime soon.

*Sirocco - Aromantic/Agender       A half-Giant cleric of Varuna, god of the celestial seas. Varuna whispered to Sirocco and told them to baptize the world, that all may join Varuna in the celestial seas beyond the planes. In reality, Sirocco was a cleric of the water and madness domains, and Varuna was actually just some demi-fiend fuckin with them and making them drown people in their Bag of Holding, which was filled with water (the DM let me get away with this because he thought it was hilarious). Didn’t get a chance to play them long (campaign got interrupted by summer break), but they were a lot of fun. Their crowning achievement was single-handedly digging out and creating a river, building a village alongside it, and starting a cult (all of which was constructed above another player’s lich dungeon. Long story). Doesn’t care for romance, too busy being a vessel for their god.

*Weone Harksted - Gay      Literally only played as her once, so I don’t even really remember what I was going for. She was a Dwarf cleric of light and I’d interpreted that as being a “sun mage” or something. She was an avid scholar and had some horrible ancient secret book and was more than prepared to destroy a civilization to get to the bottom of that mystery. Also, she likes girls now. 

*Musca - Bisexual      Ah, Musca. My big, beautiful Gnollish bard. Such a kind heart. Such an indomitable spirit. Also, he swings both ways. I’ll find a group that will let me play as you one day.

[reblogthiscrapkay]

a tolkien-proof character meme: 1. Haleth 2. Caranthir 3. Prince Imrahil (of Dol Amroth, not the other one)

Haleth

1-3 things I enjoy about them1. That she was really the only female leader in Beleraind. There wasn’t another female ruler until Tar- Ancalime hundreds of years later. And she was so important the Haladin became known as the House Of Haleth.2. The fact that she was independent and wouldn’t take handouts but the Haladin overall were really open to outsiders (they let the Druedain run with them when everyone else thought they were weird).3. Her personal guard of women warriors.

Something interesting about them based on tenuous circumstantial evidenceI think Haleth specifically didn’t want to get married because she was cautious of the fact that a man might reduce her power. I also think she was barren as a result of a wound and so the idea of marrying never made sense. Instead she raised her nephew like her son.I know a lot of people headcanon her as a lesbian and I totally get why but I always saw her as kind of bi and demisexual. Like, she had sex with a man and then a woman and both times thought, “that was fine but whatever.” She doesn’t fall in love easily at all. But I also headcanon her as Caranthir’s secret wife so yeah.

A question I have about themHow did she convince Thingol to let the Haladin stay on his lands. He hates everyone. What did she even SAYA random relevant line I likeAny line about her honestly.My preferred version, if there is more than one version of their story (or part of their story)There aren’t different versions as far as I know but I think I do have a tedency to age her down in my mind. I think she’s supposed to lose her father and brother when she’s in her forties but I alays age her down to anywhere in the 23-35 range.Favorite relationship(s)With Caranthir, either platonic or not. I like how they learned a lot from each other and Caranthir became more tolerant of Men as a result (although this did bite him in the butt later). I like how they seemed to form a real alliance. I like how they are both very stubborn and strong leaders. In a non-platonic sense, I like the idea of them marrying in secret and then having limited contact after she leaves Thargelion because they both know their relationship is doomed anyway because she will die. I like the idea of Caranthir telling people he’s married but never getting into specifics about how she was a human. I like the idea that they were able to sort of feel each other’s thoughts from far away because of the bond so they never really left each other in a way.How would they react to Tom BombadilCuriousity. First she’d want to know if he was friend or foe and be ready to fight but then she’d just want to know what he is and why he’s here. She’d probably offer to let him roll with her crew and then become disinterested when he says no.Optional: Something about them that I think people forgetI already included a bunch of these before so I’ll go broader. I think people forget that the Dunlendings are descended from the Haladin. This is actually really importat to be especially because of the fact that the Dunlendings are portrayed in LOTR as the aggressors against Rohan when from their perspecive Rohan stole their land. This is made even more interesting when you consider that the Dunlendings are often portrayed as people of color (usually kind of hispanic looking). As a result I think of the Haladin as people of color too (in canon they are described as having dark hair and eyes and being shorter than the Beorians or Hadorians).

Caranthir

1-3 things I enjoy about them1. His capacity to learn and change his opinions about others. He shows so much personal growth for a Feanorian. Possibly the most. He might be the only one who becomes an actively better person.2. The fact that he is really independent compared to his brothers. He ruled his land entirely alone and showed very little interest in the Oath.3. The fact that he’s the only person in Beleraind who seems to know how to run an economy.

Something interesting about them based on tenuous circumstantial evidenceI have tons of these.I imagine that he likes the finer things in life but is not excessive or flashy. He’ll spend money on good food but his home and clothing are very elegent and understated. He also wears darker colors which I kind of base on his insular, independent-ness.I imagine he was trained in smithing but that he was not very technically skilled. Specifically I think aside from Curufin that Maedhros and Caranthir got the most smith training (Maglor’s early musical talent excused him from it and Celegorm kept fucking off to hunt). I think Maedhros had expert percision and could made superior weaponry but he had no creativity or innovation to truely make him Feanor’s heir. Caranthir was the opposite: sloppy execusion but very creative. I imagine he made things for the Haladin (specifically a crown type thing for Haleth).He was closer with his mother. She seemed to have some slight foresight (i.e. let one of the twins stay) and that Caranthir was the one who inheirted it. This made him a little weird as a kid and made him closer with his mom especially after Feanor directed his attention to Curufin. She was more appreciative of his logical and mathmatical skills than Feanor who prioritizes the ability to invent over the ability to know.Caranthir’s famous anger is not always of the “throw things across the room” variety. It is often quiet and judgemental.

A question I have about themThis is so dumb but I want to know if you can swim in the black lake. Is it dangerous. What lives in it.A random relevant line I likeThe one where he goes off on Angrod.My preferred version, if there is more than one version of their story (or part of their story)Well in the History Of Middle Earth it said Caranthir had a wife but there was absolutely no information given about her. It’s Haleth. Fight me.Favorite relationship(s)See everything I wrote above under “Haleth.”How would they react to Tom BombadilHe’d try to trade with him.Optional: Something about them that I think people forgetHe constantly gets thrown in with Celegorm and Curufin as a set but Caranthir has virtually nothing in common with them. Celegorm is an attempted rapist and kidnapper and Curufin is his dumbass accomplice. The strongest connection Caranthir has to them was that the three of them died during the Second Kinslaying.

Prince Imrahil(This is going to be hard since I remember very little about him)

1-3 things I enjoy about them1. That he carried Faramir back to Minas Tirith after he nearly died AND that he noticed that Eowyn wasn’t dead yet. They kind of owe him.2. He was pretty much third in line to the throne of Gondor after Aragorn and Faramir.3… . that he’s from Dol Amroth and I would want to live there if I was in Middle Earth. Wait, am I misremembering this or was Imrahil the one who told Legolas about the sea and Legolas knew he wasn’t supposed to go there because then he’d never want to return to the forest but Imrahil made it sound so great that Legolas basically messed up his life. Not sure.

Something interesting about them based on tenuous circumstantial evidenceThis is definitely coming from fanfiction but I feel like Imrahil was a cool uncle. I imagine that he and Faramir had a close relationship specifically because of the way that Denethor kind of ignored him and because I always imagined that Faramir reminded Imrahil more of Finduilas than Boromir did.I imagine all his kids are really educated because he made this a specific priority for them. 

A question I have about themI kind of wonder how he gets along with Eomer since his daughter married him and I view Rohan culture and Gondor culture as being different enough that marriages between the two can be awkward.A random relevant line I likeThat line about how they are nuts for attacking the Black Gate with so few soldiers.My preferred version, if there is more than one version of their story (or part of their story)As far as I know, this is all we got.Favorite relationship(s)Well we don’t see much in the story so I’m going with Imrahil and Faramir.How would they react to Tom BombadilHe’d be very respectful and polite and not badger him with questions.Optional: Something about them that I think people forgetThat his army were called Swan Knights and I’m guessing they had some pretty silly uniforms.

[kansascityhappenings]

Female war hero leads new wave of veteran candidates running for office

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MJ Hegar does not hold back.

“I’m an ass kicking, motorcycle-riding, Texas Democrat. That’s who I am!”

She said that emphatically, unblinkingly and unapologetically to a constituent at a political meet-and-greet in a suburban Austin, Texas, home. And she was talking to someone she needs to win over.

“I’m a Republican,” the woman said to Hegar. “I’d like to know, in a county that is predominantly Republican, what makes you different from our current congressman?”

That question hit on the central challenge facing Hegar who, in order to defeat incumbent Republican Rep. John Carter in November, will have to win over GOP-leaning voters. Hegar’s response — “I’m an American. I’m a veteran. I’m fighting for this country.” — is how she hopes to do it.

Hegar served in the US Air Force and is one of many veterans running as Democrats in the 2018 midterms. She’s part of a broader strategy Democrats have used — recruit decorated veterans with compelling biographies to reach disillusioned moderates.

And these days, in this year of record numbers of female candidates running for Congress, many of them are battle-tested women.

“We worked tirelessly to recruit a historic number of candidates with records of service, including female veterans,” said Molly Mitchell, the Director of Media Affairs for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the campaign arm of Democrats in the House of Representatives. “These candidates have powerful personal stories and strong independent profiles that excite the grassroots base and prevent Republicans from successfully putting our candidates into ideological boxes. The DCCC knew that voters would flock to the stabilizing influences of veteran candidates.”

Outsiders with proven service

That deliberate recruitment is reflected in the current party affiliation of veteran candidates still in the running for national office.

And it’s also a shift in what those veteran candidates look like. Current numbers in Congress show 65 percent of lawmakers who are veterans are Republicans, the vast majority of them male, said Rye Barcott, CEO and co-founder of With Honor, a super PAC formed to elect more veterans to office, regardless of party affiliation.

Congressional candidates still in the running are now equal in party division, Barcott said, reflecting a surge in Democratic veterans, especially among women with compelling stories.

“The candidates who are advancing and who we find are most successful this year, the quality they share is that they’re authentic,” Barcott says. “They haven’t been overly coached by the DC political establishment because they’re outside of it. There’s a hunger for outsiders by voters. Candidates who are true to themselves, speak truth to power and can serve with civility, courage, integrity.”

With Honor says it’s tracking approximately 400 candidates who are veterans, with most of those candidates being first time politicians. The organization has endorsed 30 candidates from both parties for federal office, including MJ Hegar.

Hegar faces headwinds trying to flip a strong Republican district. But she became the darling of Democrats when she sprung into the national spotlight with a campaign video titled “Doors.”

The more than three-minute video introduces Hegar, a retired major and pilot in the Air National Guard, and reveals her compelling biography — from three tours of duty piloting a rescue helicopter, how that chopper went down and how, even injured, she shot at the Taliban as she herself was rescued.

That day brought her a Purple Heart, the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor, one of the few women in history to earn it, and many scars that she now hides with tattoos. The video continues to her fight with the Pentagon about women in combat and describes how she says she was shunned by Carter, her congressman.

“To this day, I’ve never met John Carter,” said Hegar, who adds that as a former Republican, she voted for Carter, a 15-year incumbent. Absent to her then, Hegar said today, Carter remains absent to constituents in her district.

“The Republican leadership has gone off the frickin’ rails. And the things that the Republican Party stands for now are not representative of the values of the people in this district who voted Republican. I’m connected to this district, I understand the values of this district, I represent the values of this district, because I am this district.”

Todd Olsen, a spokesman for Carter, called that charge “the exact opposite of the truth.” Olsen added, “The congressman has won election after election because he’s a fighter and takes nothing for granted.”

In Hegar, Carter faces a unique challenger. Hegar’s tattooed body, motorcycle riding attitude and sometimes R-rated language is igniting an energy among progressives in Texas-31 — which includes part of the area surrounding Fort Hood — for the first time in more than a decade.

“These people listen to her. That military tag carries credibility,” said Tom Mowdy, a veteran and Democrat in the district, who came to meet MJ in person at a Democratic mixer. He beamed as MJ spoke. “Isn’t she great!”

Coming of age

One reason there are more women veterans running for Congress now is simply timing: many members of the military who joined post-9/11 are retiring and coming to an age when it’s feasible to run — their late 30s to mid 40s — and more of them are women.

Mikie Sherrill is right in that “coming of age” group. Sherrill is the Democrat running in the open seat in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District. The district has been a safe-Republican seat for generations, but Sherrill is poised to flip the seat for Democrats.

She’s in that position because she jumped into the congressional race early, cleared the field with early endorsements and strong fundraising.

The mother of four and former federal prosecutor also relies heavily on her Navy combat pilot biography to open the door to moderates in her district, especially as a first time candidate. The graduate of the US Naval Academy spent 10 years on active duty with the Navy, flying a Sea King helicopter through Europe and the Middle East. She was a Russian policy officer and worked on the implementation of US nuclear treaty obligations.

Throughout that decade of service, Sherrill never asked which political party her fellow sailor or officer belonged to.

“I served with people from all backgrounds. Politics was never an issue when it came time to completing the mission,” Sherrill said.

Her military background allows her to walk seamlessly through a Hispanic street festival to a middle class political fundraiser.

“A lot of people serving today are members of the Hispanic community,” said Sherrill, on a day she posed for pictures with Colombian dancers and Costa Rican immigrants. “I think they look at myself and a lot of the veterans running who have served before have always put the country first so they expect us to do that in Washington.”

A welcome, from brothers in arms

Both Sherrill and Hegar are endorsed by Serve America, the Democratic PAC founded by Congressman Seth Moulton. Moulton, who served as a Marine officer in Iraq, has raised nearly $3 million to help elect veterans for Congress, state and local races, who often lack the funds to run for office because they’re busy serving their country.

Moulton made waves in his first run for Congress, running against a Democratic incumbent. Then in office, he again bucked the Democratic establishment by calling for a new generation of leadership, saying the party leadership was “out of touch.”

That kind of independence from the party is exactly what Washington needs, Moulton said as he pointed to former Marine pilot Amy McGrath, the Democrat running in Kentucky’s 6th district.

“Candidates like Amy are running against the establishment,” said Moulton, whose PAC has endorsed McGrath. “They’re rebelling, putting country over party and it is resonating. At the end of the day, members of the military set aside differences for the country. That’s what Americans should expect from Congress as well. We represent different districts, but we ought to be able to find common ground.”

Moulton believes President Donald Trump, whom he referred to as a five-time draft dodger, continues to propel Democratic veterans running for office.

“He’s the best recruiter we got. Veterans are concerned about the country.”

On the other side of the political aisle in Congress, Moulton cites Republican veterans as members he can argue with but also find some shared goals with as Americans. Among them is Wisconsin Rep. Mike Gallagher, who served in the US Marine Corps and deployed to Iraq.

Gallagher, a Republican, represents a strong pro-Trump district but has broken sharply with the White House on the firing of ex-FBI Director James Comey and the Russia-related investigations. While he often disagrees with Moulton, Gallagher cites their military background as common ground for why they break from their party leadership.

“We approach these issues not for what’s good from my party and how do I score political points, but what’s good for my country?” Gallagher said.

That sentiment is echoed by Republican Rep. Brian Mast from Florida, who served in the US Army for more than 12 years, including as a bomb disposal expert in Afghanistan. The last improvised explosive device Mast found injured him so badly, he lost both his legs.

“I wanted to keep serving,” said Mast, currently in his first term.

Public office gave him a new purpose, and he wants more brothers — and sisters — in arms to join him, whichever party they represent.

“We served with people from every religion, every skin color, the poorest to wealthiest background, and yes, gender. We served with all those men and women under the most difficult conditions. And we men and women get the job done.”

from FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports https://fox4kc.com/2018/08/09/female-war-hero-leads-new-wave-of-veteran-candidates/

from Kansas City Happenings https://kansascityhappenings.wordpress.com/2018/08/10/female-war-hero-leads-new-wave-of-veteran-candidates-running-for-office/

[lubay-nue]

Data Madre

Chapter 7 "... I'm still alive ..."

Cap notes:

Wow, excuse me, this time if it takes me a while to put the next part, but I've been seeing other things, I'm not going to lie, also, because I've finished publishing this fic, I'm going to upload all the chapters here right now, so this will be a mega mass publication XD I hope and like it

To read! Why the thing gets ... intense XD

Chapter 7 "... I'm still alive ..."

The day after Sans was once again reunited with Gaster ...

... ... ...

He arrived home without problems, in fact, as early as usual, claiming that he was only going to "eat"; she had returned home with no time to lose, she could see the same just from that time, but she really did not care, just see at the table in the middle of the room ... only this time, she did not see any note

And he ran, not fast way, "I RUN" until arriving at it, searching and searching with speed; he wanted to imagine that maybe the note had fallen off the table, that maybe a cold wind moved it from its place ... even every 5 minutes he checked the time ... but there was no note

Even being able to turn the house upside down, there was no sign of a new note. I search the whole house, throwing everything away, leaving it as a complete disaster that even a hurricane would not achieve ... but no, today, this time ... there was not a note ...

A couple of hours later to search for perhaps fourth or fifth time around the house and between the disaster that has created ... is dropped on the floor saton, looking at the front of the table that is on its side, thrown and the sofa from which he even found more gold than Sans himself had saved ... it was only at that moment that he allowed himself to fall backwards, observing the void of that chaotic house ...

Was it ... perhaps Sans ... had already died? Site that even his arms and legs became gelatin, which could not hold even when he was sitting on the cold ground; for a few moments he felt everything so distant and that his gaze moved in slow motion when he fell into that ... he tried to stay focused, hitting his head slightly, little by little he felt the energy returning, but now, a hole became as big as a black hole ...

The same gap that Sans had left after his departure, now became bigger, deeper and even darker than he wanted to accept ... he knew, his brother, although he did not say "hello" or a "goodbye" he knew, after the second and third note, that he would really write to him, every day, to know, to tell him that at least he was still invited ... even if he did not say anything, even if he seemed cold with his insignificant number of words ... so it helped him less to know that he was still alive, even if he did not know if he was "okay"

But ... if Sans did not send a note throughout the rest of the day, unpleasantly, he could guess that Sans ... was dead

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

After Gaster appeared at night calling him, Sans was obliged to follow him in silence, taking care not to be followed by anyone else so as not to put anyone in danger. He was quietly guided to another extreme far away and different from where he had come, almost reaching a point that he could not recognize but that with the help of the Data Mother he could know that it was not good ...

-What the hell are we doing here? - asked sullenly to his companion who had kept quiet all the way, showing him a door that appeared as if it were an illusion, Sans observed annoying the tallest, with a look full of threat, without However, even with that, Gaster was completely calm

-destroy- said being opened the door immediately, Sans opened his eyes with surprise, sharpening his gaze and denying

-You must be kidding! I do not do that anymore! Damn! - I scream annoyed seeing him fixedly, with all that hatred and a sudden fear that I thought was already forgotten, although Gaster only observed him with that fallen look, in the same way I saw him when everything at that moment was in full swing ... Gaster really had no interest in arguing with Sans and his eyes made everything clear

-destroy what is inside, "he said, activating magic in both eyes, showing a violet purple color, made manipulation of the soul of the opponent, throwing it directly into the interior of that door; just Sans fell in this, the door disappears, leaving it completely dark

He got up with work, seeing everywhere, he did not feel well, he had a very bad feeling, but he chose to start walking, even in the middle of the darkness, active his left eye, prepared to have to fight if necessary, mumble in short how much he hated Gaster and had to find some way to put it aside, to be able to return it from where it had come out ... or in any case, to think how it was that he had managed to get out in the first place ...

-graaaaaaaaa- I hear a tremendous growl in the middle of the darkness; He swallowed hard as soon as he realized that he was not completely alone and without waiting, active in passing his right eye

/ processing possible threat ... /

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

- have there been news of Sans? - Frisk asked again, being followed by that flower Flowey, Papyrus felt in a certain way, angered by the question, but preferred not to say anything, just look away tiredly

-is still alive- was all he said, it was all he had said after a certain time, after Frisk kept insisting ... and although he could see the tranquility of the little human, he could not feel at all "calm" especially the Yesterday I stopped receiving the notes

That day, by stories of both the human and Alphys, the annoying dog that worked as the Data Mother, even that talking flower had been acting in a rather strange way, the dog just stood still, refused to move from its place, even showing a pretty sore face, Flowey had not been different than the opposite, barely speaking to the human who was concerned about both beings

The curious thing had been that, that precise day, some things had appeared with cracks, others destroyed and not only in Snowdin, but in all the Underground, cracks appeared, things broke or became dust and others, they were so weak, particularly the weaker monsters, they looked terribly sick, on the part of the "monster bosses" at least it was not so notorious, but it was a fact that they were terribly exhausted and slow

But even with that Papyrus had refused to stop moving, as every good gentleman of the royal guard, had only focused on his work, had only focused on continuing to train despite his strange and unusual exhaustion ... and ran to his house in search of the note of the day of his "still unusable brother" and when he did not find it, it was, as if they took away more than half of his already exhausted life at that moment ...

At night, Papyrus felt that he was about to die for some reason, a feeling full of suffocation that forced him to wake up suddenly from his battered and destroyed bed, I look everywhere, worried, feeling a strange regret in his chest, a restlessness that refused to disappear, almost forces him to look like a caged wild animal, looking for a way to escape, to be able to go to the place he should ...

The nascent need to fight, to fight to "survive" suffocates him; when leaving his house, half dressed, he can see that he is not the only one, even at late hours of the night, he can see all Snowdin coming out of their houses, fighting, hitting places at random, the others shouting, they embrace each other pleading not to die, it feels strange, it seems that everyone is in the same way

So he runs, with the few strengths he has, with that desperation to reach some point where it is necessary, he runs, unknowingly reaching Hotland, entering without invitation to Alphys's laboratory, he finds her kneeling in front of the annoying dog, in front of the Data Mother who is being embraced next to Flowey by the human

This one, with his eyes closed strongly shows his human soul, delivering a crimson shine that calmly soothes both beings, the human is really exhausted, but refuses to stop what he does, Papyrus goes a couple of steps further, to be at side of the monster woman who looks nervously at the situation

-What's happening? - Asks with work while taking one of his arms, almost wishing to tear his own bone, detaches the look of the group that is on the bed to see the scientist who refuses to stop seeing them

-I do not know ... the Data Mother ... began to act like that out of nowhere ... we can not do ... to stabilize ... not even ... Frisk- whispered with work, as if he were receiving large wounds and still, drowning them in his chest , glimpsing the human who seems equally hurt, Papyrus observes the scene and approaches another little human, taking with care one of his hands that hugs the annoying dog, both look at each other, the tears jump from the human, something that had not seen until then and without thinking about it to be able to transmit even a bit of tranquility

Frisk closes his eyes again, hugging the dog and Flowey more, trembles slightly and Papyrus only sighs slightly. The moment stretches another time, maybe half an hour until everything suddenly stops, just like that, out of nowhere ... the suffocating feelings disappear giving way to a moment of tranquility and confusion for all, only the dog and Flowey seem to fall unconscious while they light up slightly, Frisk is silent, watching the situation, Papyrus looks at Alphys who can stand and once the scientist has approached to see the group of 3 who is in bed, Frisk looks directly at Papyrus

-The Data Mother is safe ... said there was no danger- Papyrus nodded confused to his words -I wanted you to tell her- was the last thing he could answer, because now he has noticed how it was now Frisk who fell to the side of the bed, also unconscious

-What do you mean by that? - Papyrus asked more confused than before, though, Alphys was silent for a moment, trying to weigh the information ... understanding something that she preferred to keep quiet

* apparently ... we have been cheated ... maybe Sans? * deduced Alphys seeing everywhere

-I do not know, but for now it's better to rest again- he said dryly. Being helped by Papyrus, the human Frisk, the annoying dog and the speaking flower were taken to different beds in the same room so that they could rest, a while later, all the people finally returned to their homes, quickly disappearing the crowd in its streets and returning to the silence of the quiet night

Papyrus could only think of his brother ... even when he already assumed he was dead, he wanted to think that he was still fine ... that maybe he was still "alive" ... secretly, even so secret to himself ... he was asking for his older brother to be well ... and I still live ...

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

Her entire skeletal body ached once more ... in fact, with a lot of work, she managed to return to the house she shared with little Nick; even crawling on principle, it had to take several hours to really move ...

He still could not believe that he had managed to get out of that hell he had been thrown into ... the Data Mother had immediately processed the data of the creature that was so fierce and for once, he felt more suspicious than usual when he saw that Gaster had forced him to destroy a creature "as in the past" but that, unlike the previous ones, it was really a danger ...

The Data Mother had been looking for that creature for a long time, even with her knowledge, without being able to find him, and thanks to Gaster, now she had finally "erased" him but of course, Sans had had to survive by miracle, her own instincts for continue to be invited, maybe and too much; taking the power of the Data Mother for help, transmitting that feeling of fear and desire to stay alive ... knows in advance that it dragged all Underground, apparently, that place was specifically the most vulnerable to the Data Mother and the most influenced by the same ... so, I guessed well that he was the one who most felt that terrible terror of dying ... I just hoped it would not happen again ...

I arrive with work, dragging his feet more than usual, even his clothes were completely torn, but anyway, I manage to get to that house, in complete silence, I did not have the strength to use one of his teleports and luckily, when he left "By a miracle" he did not see Gaster ... so, carefully, he dropped into his bed, closing his eyes and finally falling unconscious

/ saved ... regenerating ... / was the last thing he was aware of

... ... ...

He felt uncomfortable the position he was in and trying to move felt an extra weight on him, he moved with some annoyance but hearing a slight snore that he did not recognize finally opened his eyes, looking down he found the little Nick sleeping above him, almost snoring slightly ... he remained silent for a few moments, observing him without real thoughts ...

He dropped his head heavily back to the bed, focusing a little, at least breathe easy to see that his hp had been recovered at last and now was intact, but of course, was more exhausted than usual ... assumed that the Data Mother he used his power to recover whatever was destroyed while they were fighting in the depths of the earth

I take a breath of air and activate his power, manipulating Nick's soul I raise him in the sky, low with care of the bed, letting out a tired sigh and leaving the little one in his place, he stretched tired, listening to the crunching of his bones and walked slowly, noticing that it was very, very late, he looked away with nerves ... again his nerves again ... he growled slightly and went to the small desk that he had, ripped off another small piece of paper and hurried to write with speed

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

He was watching television, he felt some thirst and went to his kitchen to drink a glass of water, he was not a little hungry and he did not want to see the human or his "friends" that day, with steps heavy back to his place, surprisingly finding a small piece of paper that had not seen

Released the glass breaking instantly but did not even pay attention, just took with desperation that piece of paper, seeing the same letter of Sans, opened his eyes with surprise and read several times the only 2 words that had been written

** … I am still alive… **

It was everything he said ... silently, he could feel small tears falling from his eyes passing down his cheeks, some falling into his mouth, even others falling into his hand ... he felt a tremendous relief letting himself sit carefully on the sofa, forgetting olimpically television, he only knew how to whisper

-You're still alive- I exhale with relief, hiding his gaze with his free hand, allowed himself to hiccup gently resting on his knees -You still live- I whimper in silence

Final notes:

Well, as always, it's not much but it's something, also, from here, things continue to get depressed so to speak, anyway, I do not say more XP

Did you like it? Have a nice day Comment!

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