#but equally surprised that this piece of jewelry she’s seen him with 100 times is a tool????

[theoneringpop]

He didn’t know she had been captured, he was probably pretty sure she was dead. It’s not a new brooch, he’s worn it in other episodes.

Elrond, pal, you just have a lock pick built into your brooch?

[stardust-and-blades]

As the Ice Breaks

A Lotura Titanic AU! My (late) secret santa gift to @shehungthemoon @voltronsecretsanta2k18 here it is! 

When the ship hits the iceberg, Allura was not in bed when she should have been. Not like the lady Zarkon desired as a future wife to his adopted son, Sendak. She was not gossiping to her maid, Romelle, about the wedding set in place upon the Titanic’s destination. She was not staring at her blasted engagement ring, which she saw more as a shackle than a beloved promise. In fact, she had stripped away the ring and shoved it in a random jewelry container, resenting the jewel with every fiber of her beating heart. And she certainly was not visiting Sendak in hist quarters, breaking every rule of etiquette she was taught from the tender age of six from a nanny who dotted on her, but society did not.

No, she was dancing in the small quarters of the third class, ring missing from her finger and a bright smile stretched across her naked, pink lips. Her hands were clasped by a different male; a man with white hair and dark, starking blue irises. Kicked out on the streets by Zarkon, deemed the failure of the family and disowned, Lotor made his way on the ship for a new life, not aware of the woman he would meet and cross paths with his former family.

He was penniless, but provided an understanding of Allura; an offer of equality and unconditional love in their short time of knowing each other. He had stumbled upon her weeping on the deck of the ship late at night, wishing she did not have to marry a horrible man, praying her parents were still alive and she didn’t have to marry for money and status. To not leave behind her friends and dear nanny, who was declared too problematic to remain in Allura’s life by her new caretakers. She does not dare dignify them with a name, for they are nothing her and only provided a roof and high standards, not respect and love as her late parents did. Sendak was all about money and reputation; marrying her out of obligation than love. For marriage was seen as a form of upgrade in terms of financial capabilities and social status, not a reunion of pure adoration and fairy tale happily ever afters.

Marriage was a prison for Allura. But at the moment, she was free. She was barefoot in the lower class quarters, her sakura pink nightgown flowing with ease as Lotor spun her into his arms, the two laughing out of giddiness and the makeshift music his friends, Ezor and Zethrid, were making for the couple. Acxa, Lotor’s best friend, was looking on the sight with content, whispering to the dark haired fellow about how happy she is to see Lotor shining so bright with Allura.

She was ice around Sendak. But around Lotor, she is fire. She is raging, free from the cold depths of solitude and duty. Her light, forced to be shriveled to nothing but the size of a candle flame, was bolstering from its confines and turning every piece of ice into mist. She eradicated the burdens laid on her chest, screaming against those gagging her spirit and chaining it to a man who knew nothing of compassion; of white hot passion and sweet endearment.

Sendak was a prison. But Lotor gave her the key out.

And it is that reason why she is surprised by the sudden interruption of the ship swaying; metal creaking from the impact and screams of delight turned to screams of terror.

She lost her footing, close to colliding with the decks of the ship until Lotor caught her, concern morphing his features. His brows creased as he looked towards where the noise could have come from, the small crowd in the dining area quiet. As they waited for something  catastrophic--for someone to come yelling down from above to describe what occurred, slowly water began to seep past the cracks of the wood.

“The hell?” one of the passengers yell. It was a young latino boy with blue eyes, the soles of his shoes drenched in the salty liquid. The other passengers began to talk, the silence breaking into harsh whispers and some running up the stairs to see what had happened. The dark haired boy, who Lotor said is named Keith, ran out with a taller, muscular man with tufts of white bangs shadowing his eyes. Allura glances down at her own feet, instantly regretting she ran down with nothing but a nightgown and no shoes.

“Something must have happened with the ship,” Allura said, worriedly turning to Lotor. His face is pinched; his lips pursed and tight.

“Yes,” Lotor said in agreement. “Something tells me we shouldn’t remain here.”

Allura nods, motioning with her arm for the small band of misfits to follow along. All except one: Acxa.

Allura stopped in her tracks, allowing the crowd to go before her. Her hand remained in Lotor’s, the man stopping with her.

“Acxa, aren’t you coming?” Allura asked.

“I’ll be up there in a bit. The shift and water is a concern, but most of the people are asleep. I’m going to wake them up.”

Allura opens her mouth to push for Acxa to come with them, but stopped. The potential crash was big enough to awaken anyone on the bottom of the ship, the upper class less likely to notice. Yet Allura had a feeling Acxa is not wrong in checking in on the rest of the third class. They could be deep sleepers, or 100% believe the ship was unable to be destroyed and knocked the shift as a minor setback.

Whether it is a mild problem or not, it is better safe than sorry.

“I’ll join you.” said Allura, letting go of Lotor’s hand to follow the other woman. But as her hand slacken to release him for the upstairs and find out what’s going on, his grip tightened.

Allura glances at him. “Lotor, you should go. Me and Acxa will be right behind you as soon as we wake up the others.”

“No, I’ll come with. Where my friend and you go, I follow.” Lotor states. “There are enough people heading to the deck that we will have our answers soon. For now, let us retrieve the others.”

Noticing her worry, Lotor gives Allura a gentle smile and squeezed her hand, calm in the face of danger.

“We are in this together.” He whispers. And that is enough for Allura, for the next thing she knows is they are dashing up and down the third class level, the water moving from their ankles to their knees in a matter of minutes. But they paid it no mind, too busy banging on doors with their fists and explaining to families and single units of people of the crash. Most did not need convincing, not with the water rising at a rapid pace. So fast that Allura wonders if the ship will be evacuated; if there are enough lifeboats for the thousands of people who had boarded the termed “unsinkable ship”.

Sure enough, one of the people from upstairs came charging back, the dark haired boy named Keith alerting Lotor, Allura, Acxa, and whatever passengers that remained in earshot of the ship’s status.

They had hit an iceberg. And while the crew is playing up a calm facade by stating everything will be fixed and for people to go back to their rooms, their mask was cracking. Their faces were slack, but their eyes screamed terror. That they do not have everything under control--not as they wish they did.

What’s worse, Keith noted while running back down that some hallways were being locked off, preventing from passengers in certain areas unable to retreat to the above ground.

They were sinking, and they were sacrificing the third class to prevent a current of panicking people from overriding the staff.

Allura’s normally bright eyes darken, predicting who exactly they will be evacuating first if the sinking is confirmed. First class will gain the luxury of being placed in the safety boats.

Judging by her previous intake of the deck and how many boats she counted as she was meandering with her horrible fiance one early afternoon, there was a problem with the ship’s evacuation system.

The amount of boats did not equate to the number of people on the ship. At max they can save maybe 300 to 400 people. But the boat itself comprised of over a thousand civilians, the most filled being the third class. The first class is undoubtedly safe from a cold, slow death. But the rest, even the second class, is under an ambiguous, unjust fate.

“What gates aren’t closed off?” Lotor asked Keith, no doubt coming to the same realization as Allura.

“There are some left open towards the end,” Keith replied, out of breath from running up and down the stairs and shoving past a mass of people, losing Shiro in the process. Though Allura can tell he is not bothered by that fact--as long as shiro remained on the surface and safe Keith remained collected. “But we have to hurry. Most of the staff is closing gates on people and refusing to open them back up. They are even threatening passengers with guns.”

“They’ve gone mad,” Lotor comments with a grimace. “There are families--children down here.”

“Which is why we have to hurry. I’ll try to keep them from locking us out.”

“Will you be alright?” Lotor asked, concerned. “They may harm you.”

“I grew up on the streets. Nothing I haven’t experienced before.” Keith started to back away, heading to the nearest openings. “Just make sure to lead them to the right exits.”

“Wait, Keith!” Allura piped up, letting go of Lotor’s hand. “I may be of use with the staff. I know some of them personally, so hearing from a familiar face may help.”

Keith looks to Lotor, as if to ask if he was alright with the separation. The stakes were high; the situation dire. Keith isn’t a hundred percent sure he will make it back in one piece. When survival instincts go into effect, it tends to override a sense of morality; a conscience of sorts. It can make even the most noble of people to commit a dastardly deed. If Keith isn’t sure of his return, he cannot ensure Allura’s either. No matter her status, she is human. She is not immune to a bullet or a hard blow to the head anymore than Keith is.

Allura is aware of this as well, but knows Lotor cannot stand in her way. Not like Sendak, who would most likely seize Allura by the wrist and shove her to where he wanted to retreat, leaving behind those who could be saved.

Lotor is aware of Allura’s fighting spirit, and knows he cannot stop the separation. For her heart is in the greater good, not in survival of the fittest.

She faces Lotor head on, his gaze shifting from steel determination to a withering melancholy. He didn’t want her to leave. He did not want her to retreat into the unknown, placing her life at risk and leaving fate up for the decision of whether they would see each other again.

But as the water grew to their thighs and urgency of the matter slammed onto their shoulders, he knew he had no choice in the matter. In the end, he will not tell her what to do, even if he wants to be selfish. Even if he wants her safety to be confirmed. A part of him wished he could tell her Allura to just head to the deck and jump in one of the lifeboats, knowing they will be boarding women and children in the first class as priority.

But he also knew if he suggested such a thing, it would be an insult to her character; a slap in the face to who she is and moral compass.

Her loyalty is not with her class. It is with the innocent lives at stake.

So with a heavy heart, he took a step back, ready to follow Keith’s instructions, ready to possibly never see the woman he loved again.

“Go, love,” He whispers. “If destiny is kind to us, we will meet again.”

Allura’s heart swells, her love for the man before her brought tears to her eyes. He didn’t want to let go, but he does because it is what she wants. Because he has to, and if you love someone enough you are more willing to release them from your grip than restrain. Oh how she wanted to remain by his side in the darkest hour, but it isn’t in her soul. It isn’t her nature, but she prays to whatever deity that exists for her to meet up with her love one more time.

Which is what prompts her to step closer to him and, without a moment of hesitation, kissed him. She cupped her hands on his face, pushing her body against his as she laid a passionate, deep, maybe last kiss with him. And he, taken aback by the onslaught, quickly circles his arms around her and returns the passion.

“We will reunite, I swear it.” Allura said when they separate. Lotor nodded, and as they step away from each other, as they walk different paths, their gaze never faltered. Not until they were out of sight, Allura up the stairs and Lotor down with Acxa, leading the people to temporary safety.

Yes, they would reunite. Allura would make sure of it. Not the staff, not Sendak, and not even death can strip away her desires.

[photomaniacs]

Delta Airlines Did $8,000 in Damage to My Camera Gear http://ift.tt/2s6bjtp

The Wells Fargo banker cocked his head, bit his lip, and spoke slowly. “You want a personal loan for a camera lens?”

I grinned. “Yep,” I said.

“$5,000 must buy a heck of a lens,” he said.

He was right about that. After a decade in semi-corporate America, after countless hours of researching, after much drooling over photos taken with arguably the best dedicated telephoto lens in the world, I was in a position to put my name on one.

“Well,” the banker said, “you’ve got great credit. I can give you a cashier’s check or it can go straight into your account.”

I had him put it in my account, where I knew it would remain for all of about twenty minutes, the time it would take me to go online and order my Nikon 500mm f/4 VR.

It arrived at my Billings, Montana, home from Seattle a couple of days later, a nine-pound piece of flawless optical engineering which, when mounted to my Nikon D810, revealed parts of the world in detail I’d never seen.

“An entirely different ballgame,” I thought to myself when it locked focus on a flying short eared owl a few nights later.

Even before I realized I could see the tongue of a yellow-headed blackbird, count the individual down feathers on a great horned owl chick, see the claws of a rough legged hawk in crazy sharpness or freeze a Montana sunset like never before, I was in love – more than convinced that the monthly payments were entirely worth it.

I bought a Tamrac pro-model lens case to hold both camera and lens and have been nothing short of thrilled with its performance. It fits snug, has plenty of padding, comfortable backpack-style straps, and a great waist belt. If there’s a better way to carry this camera/lens combo I’d be surprised.

On June 7th, I showed up at the Burlington, Vermont, airport with it after a week in Northern Vermont where I grew up. I was flying Delta back to Montana by way of Detroit and, after seven days of nearly continual rain, was happy to have clear skies for the trip over the Adirondacks and Great Lakes.

I was seated in 01D — a long way ahead of the wing seats I seem always relegated to — on a regional jet, flight 4058, and I was perhaps the fourth person to board the plane. My Tamrac, containing my D810 with my 500mm lens fits in all overheads, including the smaller ones like the jet I’d just stepped aboard. While there was no overhead compartment above my seat, there was one across the aisle, and I lifted its lid to find a pair of green, oxygen-style containers already in it.

With people backed up behind me, needing access to their seats, I stepped into my seat with my camera bag. Almost immediately, Delta’s flight attendant, Salvador, noticed me standing there with my bag and said that I would have to gate check it along with my much smaller Lowepro camera bag containing a Nikon D500, a MacBook Pro laptop, and three Nikkor lenses.

I have flown numerous times, almost exclusively on Delta, and have used overhead space for my telephoto while placing my Lowepro under the seat ahead of me. Both are within Delta’s size limits for carry-ons.

I explained, very carefully, to Salvador what my bags contained and my desire to use overhead space for at least one of them once the aircraft was fully boarded. I said that if I traveled to the rear of the plane now I would have to fight my way back through a steady stream of passengers to my seat or remain there until everyone was on board. I told Salvador, word for word, that my bags contained “very expensive, very fragile, professional camera gear, lithium batteries, Nikon lenses, and a laptop.”

Salvador nodded and placed my bags immediately behind the cockpit door. I said I have flown many times with them, have never checked them, and wasn’t comfortable with that. I said I was certain there would be ample room for them when people finished boarding and that I did not want them going with general cargo.

From less than four feet away, Salvador looked at me and said, “It will be fine.”

The flight was fine, and I want to say that I’ve always been impressed with Delta’s pilots. They do an amazing job, not always in the best of conditions, and I’ve never felt anything less than completely at ease aboard their jets. Hats off to these men and women.

When we landed in Detroit, I waited on the jet bridge for my camera bags. I noticed a man looking out a small window onto the tarmac, waving his hands, obviously agitated. I approached, looked out the window with him, and saw two men unloading our gate-checked luggage. One pulled pieces from the aircraft and, with gusto I find difficult to believe wasn’t intentional, slammed them to the ground, while the other worker stacked them onto a cart.

I watched both my camera bags come out this way, treated absolutely as poorly as they could be, short of simply heaving them out from cruising altitude. I took pictures and video with my cell phone (a lawyer has advised me not to share them for now in case this goes to litigation).

The instant I had my bags, I went to Delta’s customer service counter in the Detroit airport. I complained to a woman working there about the treatment of my luggage, and she was helpful. She gave me an 800 number which I called and relayed what had happened to a Delta employee on the other end of the line.

I then opened my Tamrac case to find that my 500mm Nikon, the crown jewel of my photography equipment, had been sheared off from my camera. The better part of $8,000 worth of damage had been done.

I was shocked. I went immediately back to the customer service counter and demanded to speak with someone there, in person. The woman who had given me the 800 number called her supervisor who showed up shortly. I showed her the damage to my camera and lens, and was repeatedly told Delta would “take care of it.” She got online, made some notes, presumably in some record of my flight, gave me a meal voucher and a $100 credit toward a future flight. She told me that the flight attendant in Burlington should never have insisted my bags be checked into luggage.

I told her that I wanted to speak with a supervisor for the company Delta uses to unload its luggage, Simplicity, and she was helpful arranging that. I voiced my extreme displeasure over what I’d witnessed and the damage incurred. Again, Delta’s supervisor told me that Delta would “take care of it,” and to be sure I filed a claim when I got to my final destination in Montana.

Shortly before midnight, after two more excellent flights, I landed in Billings. At the Delta ticket counter, I spoke with Jamie Robinson and carefully told her what had happened, showing her my camera and lens. Like the woman in Detroit, she said my equipment should not have been placed in luggage. She asked me to leave my camera and lens with her so that she could show Bryan Bochy, the person who handles claims from Billings. I left the equipment with her as she requested.

The following day, I spoke with Bryan, told him everything that had happened, provided him a detailed, written statement, and let him know my damaged camera and lens were there at the airport for his inspection. I told him, as I’d told everyone I’d spoken to up to that point, what replacement cost was.

On Saturday, June 10th, I received a “do-not-reply-to” email from Delta, addressed to “Mr. Moser,” outlining a claim, including a comments section written by someone other than myself. It was, as I told Bryan Bochy in the email I forwarded it to him in, devoid of so much critical information that no one could make a reasonable judgement of fault based on what it said. It appeared as though I had completely disregarded Delta’s policies against checking electronic equipment into luggage and had done just that of my own accord.

The comments section is attached here:

My gate checked bag number 9006861497 arrived in to Detroit and my Nikon D810 was damaged the connection between the lens and camera was broke it has a 500 mm lens…

Bryan told me he would begin another claim, sending it directly to “Delta Corporate.” I told him that there was some urgency here because without my equipment I can’t take the photographs which I am trying to supplement my income with.

Five days passed. On the morning of June 15th, I received this email from Delta, pasted here in its entirety.

Dear Mr. Moser,

Please accept our sincere apologies for the difficulties you must have encountered when your luggage did not arrive with you on your recent trip. We realize it was a trying experience, and we regret that it happened.

We are equally concerned by your report as we place a great deal of emphasis on the care and protection of baggage and other checked items. Please be assured that every precaution is made to have a passenger’s luggage arrive in the same condition as when it was checked into our care. We succeed with few exceptions, and regret the mishandling on your trip.

The tariff rules and the ticket contract covering your travel exclude responsibility for cash, medication, securities, negotiable papers, irreplaceable documents, jewelry, silverware, precious metals, works of art, camera, electronic, and computer equipment, as well as any other items that cannot easily be replaced, in checked baggage. Consequently, we must respectfully decline your request for payment.

If you have insurance coverage that will provide reimbursement for the excluded items, we will be glad to cooperate with your insurance company in their investigation.

This, we know, will be a huge disappointment to you but trust that you will try to understand our own position as well.

Sincerely,

LaToya Riley Claims Manager Consumer Affairs – Baggage

Evidently, luggage which I had checked, containing items Delta won’t cover if lost or damaged, “didn’t arrive,” but I should try to understand the airline’s position when it comes to claims denial.

Yes, I do understand that, and I find it quite reasonable. Which is precisely why I travel with my camera equipment in hand. What I don’t understand, and what I don’t find reasonable follows…

I’m a Silver Medallion flyer on Delta (which means basically I’ve spent a lot of money on their flights). I will readily acknowledge that their service as a whole has been exemplary. But when their flight attendant insisted I gate-check my camera bags, knowing full well what they contained, against my strongest argument, Delta then took responsibility for their safe transport.

The two men I saw working for Simplicity in Detroit, both acting as agents of Delta, have zero regard for the property they handle. They have difficult jobs, no doubt. It’s a noisy environment at the mercy of the elements, and I hope they’re paid appropriately, and I hope more that their supervisor has taken steps to ensure future flights’ baggage is treated with more care.

I didn’t choose to check my camera and lens. I was given a crew member’s instructions, and I think everyone knows how scenarios play out when those instructions aren’t followed. I have been professional with everyone I’ve dealt with, never so much as raising my voice, making certain to thank each Delta employee who I’ve talked to.

In light of these facts, my treatment has been outrageous. Many days have passed since my equipment, through absolutely no fault of mine, was ruined. The only early communications I had from Delta Corporate, where any compensation must come from, were form letters addressed to my misspelled name full of inaccuracies, sent off with no fact checking whatsoever. That’s not acceptable.

A Delta rep finally called me on Sunday, June 18th, and asked that I take my camera and lens to a certified repair center for a quote to repair. Things are moving… finally. It remains to be seen, however, what Delta will do and when.

About the author: Jake Mosher is a wildlife photographer based in Montana. The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. You can see and purchase his work on his website. This article was also published here.

Image credits: Header illustration based on photo by Eric Salard and licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Go to Source Author: Jake Mosher If you’d like us to remove any content please send us a message here CHECK OUT THE TOP SELLING CAMERAS!

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June 29, 2017 at 08:00PM