#coil upender machine

[kyofunokinko]

writing sample - being and becoming

My name is Junpei Yoshino. And I used to be dead.

Dead. To die. To expire. To pass on. To kick the bucket. To blink for an inordinately long amount of time. The Universe's way of saying "take it down a notch". No Way, Jose. No Chance, Lance. To become a member of the Choir Invisible. To be shuffled off the mortal coil. To unalive.

I lay in the Jujutsu Academy's hospital room with an IV put into my arm and my hands and feet shackled to the bed. The quiet "BEEP BEEP BEEP" of the EKG machine was my only companion. My eyes were assailed by bright light. My skin was assailed by cold. Sensation, bright and sharp and clear, was all around me and I was left alone with the gravity of everything that I had done and what I had become.

Monsters aren't born. They're made. To borrow a line from a certain clown, madness is a lot like gravity - it just takes a little push. And that little push had been exactly what I had needed to fall out of the blue... and into the black. Mahito had used me. Betrayed me. Wound me up like a tin soldier and marched me off to wreak as much havoc and destruction as he desired, and for no other reason than he thought it would be a lark. My entire life upended, people hurt, my mother dead, and that grinning son of a bitch was probably laughing his stupid head off at how easy it had been to take a wounded, bullied teenager and send him off on a glorified revenge quest. It would have been funny if it wasn't so pathetic.

And I am indeed pathetic.

[fhopepackcom]

Our team with more than 15+ years experience in providing customized solutions according to your requirements in load shape, Max.Loading, handling method... Industrial upender machine & tilter designed mainly for lifting or turning over the big and heavy load, such as mold Upender, coil Upender, roll Upender

[dragons-ire]

Blood of the Dragon

(tw: violence, gore)

For some time afterwards, he could still see that brilliant corona when he closed his eyes. He could see the after-image of it when he opened them. The moment they'd breached the lab it had been running like a timer. Like a piece of machinistry in perpetual-motion, coiling like clockwork down in his bones. Every footfall on the rough metal floor, every motion of his lance. Cold Watch flown behind him as he raced ahead. His feet barely touched the ground; finding targets to subdue, things to destroy.

The aether that coiled from his bones and down the length of the lance shone pale blue like witchlight, coiled like a serpent, like a ghost. It pulled the machine of his body taut, every limb and tendon and muscle and sinew working with perfect synastry as he leapt towards one of Oberun lux Icarus' terrible magitek devices. Drove it all downward from the weapon with every bit of strength he possessed.

A stray bullet from a gunblade hit his shoulder, ricocheted off the spikes of his drachen mail. He jolted. The world beneath his helmet shifted briefly red. The aetheric coils around him shifted color accordingly.

It took an agonizing moment to pulls his focus in. To catch it on the curved edge of his lance as he hurled himself towards the ceiling. The air was impossible thin at the top of the room, thinner like he was much higher in the atmosphere. Armor tight around his ribcage, squeezing the air from his lungs. The aether bleeding from his bones, from his breath, spiraling around him in hazy red/blue/red-and-blue like a halo. Like the corona around an eclipse. He pivoted in mid air and sent the whole thing slamming into the remnants of the machine like a meteor. The sound and the sight of it burned into his ears, seared his retinas under the visor of his helmet. It followed him out in to the Yangxian night, back to the Lotus. Tailed him all the way back to the office in the Goblet where, a year ago, he'd put the armor of his past on a stand inside a working space that occasionally seemed like more of a museum than anything else. He was there, checking the clasp of a gauntlet before re-displaying it, when the world seemed to come back to him fully. His hearing returning like a rush of cool air. He picked up his left pauldron and turned it over. Braced his hand between the spines as he upended it. Whatever he'd tucked inside before departing shone in faint gold. Picked up the gold of his own eyes, brightening them a little. He snapped the gauntlet over his hand before reaching to pick it up and hold it to the light. He carried it back behind the alcove, not quite looking at it as he did.

[mhyk [errrrrrnn] [m 

h

 y 

k] "...back you go."  He dumped it unceremoniously back into its hiding place, absently traced the pattern of the wards. The room grew quiet and still. He went back to the armor, checking hinges and fasteners, brushing dust out of crevices and around spiked protrusions,  making a note to have the place where the bullet had struck hammered back into place. It all went back on the stand like the precious treasure it was. The irreplaceable relic of an era that had ended. For his life, for the world. When he'd taken the drachen mail off after the war, he'd never imagined a time that he might wear it again. Why not, though? He'd earned it; it was iconic, made for him specifically. It was enchanted with the powerful magics of the Holy See to enhance his own potential.

Why be afraid of any tool in his arsenal, at his disposal, if it was needed and necessary. If it helped, if it helped people He'd never thought he'd be in a situation where that kind of heavy protection and potential was appropriate, more like. Not in the year since he'd met with Otolin and Severine in her apartment. Not since he'd moved into this office. He couldn't recall at what point that had shifted. With the little jobs he'd picked up out of Ishgard, that had rolled together on a theme (Garleans. Their sciences) and seemed to escalate and build until they'd reached a breaking point in him somewhere. With Emelyn Stone and all that had followed in the wake of that job - the way it had seemed for a time that they might be breaking apart. The way the end of it had squeezed his heart, left him almost hungry for rougher and more violent work. 

Just gagging for it  - until he was drinking in the Lotus with Valka with blood and vitreous humor under his nails, knowing there was only one way through that kind of horror and that was to just keep going through it. But now, it was over. For a time, at least. So he assembled it on the stand and affixed the lance - Cold Watch - behind it. And he opened a bottle of wine and settled on one of his couches with one of his journals and the stub of a drafting pencil and worked quietly in the silence, by himself. And when he caught himself nodding forward, he closed the book and did himself a favor and went back to put himself to bed. He tried not to think about what kind of thing would have to happen for him to need to do that again in that particular way.

[rueitae]

Roommates in Disguise

Read the fic on Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19901668/chapters/47138743

Lance makes a hasty decision that lands him in the clutches of the Green Starling, one of the city’s most notorious super villains. Thankfully she doesn’t seem to know he’s actually her nemesis, the superhero Icebound. His captivity puts him in contact with Katie, a fellow college student. Concerned she may be targeted again, Lance befriends Katie. He doesn’t expect to end up moving in with her. 

Katie will do anything to find her family, that includes becoming a super villain to expose a Galra Corporation that has the city wrapped around its metaphorical finger. When Lance literally falls at her feet, claiming to be friends with Icebound, she jumps at the chance to find the connection between Galra Corp and the sudden appearance of super heroes two years ago, not long after her family went missing... 

Neither anticipate a friendship and a blossoming romance. 

Rated: T

Tags: enemies to friends to lovers, alternate universe - superhero, explosions, comic book level violence, experimentation, human lab rat, domestic fluff, roommates/housemates, Pidge is an anti hero, Galra are still the bad guys, action, secret identities, captured, companionable snark, collaboration

Art by @mybluelionlancylance. Look at it!

https://mybluelionlancylance.tumblr.com/post/186452499757/this-is-art-for-the-plance-mini-bang

Beta-ed by @whyamistillhungry

For @planceminibang

Myself and @fallen-angel-nightshade have worked together to provide ten chapters for your enjoyment! We’ll be posting once a day in alternating POV. I have Lance, she has Pidge. Watch for Nightshade’s chapter two tomorrow!

~~~~~

Lance wondered if heroes in comic books ever had bad days like this.

Not for the first time that day, or even week, Lance cursed his horrible luck. Dust gathered on his dress shoes as he ran desperately along the upended street. He loosened his tie for easier breathing, disoriented and light headed as he crashed into a mound of concrete that used to be part of the road. 

The meeting with his boss hadn’t gone well - he was epically failing his internship, though that was no surprise considering his absences and late assignments. There was no way they’d hire him when he graduated. 

If he lived to graduate in the first place. 

Well, at least he could try to save some people from today’s villainous rampage. 

Pausing for a moment's rest against the wall of concrete and pavement, he closed his eyes to construct peace and quiet as streams of shrieking bystanders raced by in the opposite direction of his travel, towards the center of chaos. There was no opportunity for him to hide and transform into his hero persona. Icebound would be able to traverse this trashed landscape with no problem, but he couldn’t give away his secret identity. His enemies wouldn’t give him any peace.

Enemies he never would have had, had he not been delivering lunch (with ice cream dessert, oh does he remember that ice cream well - all that awful stickiness!) to the Galra Corp building when the lab exploded. So of course he had ice powers. 

It wasn’t as easy as comic books made it out to be. Lance extended a wave of sympathy towards Clark Kent - but at least he had convenient telephone booths to work with. Lance liked to see what he would do in the age of cell phones.

A growing chorus of panicked screams rang out in the near distance.

With a deep breath, determination set in. He had to do something, or innocent people would get hurt. 

He heaved, pushing himself up and over a piece of raised road, making Lance grateful for all those years of gym class. He rolled over his back before sitting up on his knees, assessing the situation. 

A group of students from his university were huddled together, surrounded by strings of green-colored energy that emitted from three black poles embedded in the pavement.

His heart dropped into his throat. They were trapped, and the design and coloring of the contraption told him exactly who was behind it. 

A black spire impaled the ground next to him - it may have well struck through his heart with the way it skipped a beat. He screeched as it missed his arm by a hair’s breadth, forcing him to blunder backward. Elbows scraped against the concrete and he hissed in pain, though it was a small price to pay to avoid a head injury.  

Dread grew by the tick, perspiration trickling down his temple as he craned his neck upwards. Towering above him, the cause of the destruction sat atop her prized machine in a half-circle cockpit surrounded on all sides by control panels, the tall legs lifting her a full story above ground level.

“Well, what do we have here?” the Green Starling, or Pidge as he’d grown to know her, mused. Lance scooted backward but another leg of her octopod caught a piece of his nice slacks with precision and purpose, pinning him to the spot. “Not really who I was expecting to be running into danger.”

This was not the most ideal way to face one of the city’s most dangerous villains, Lance fretted. He wasn’t in costume, but he had to do whatever he could. 

Frostbite formed on his fingertips despite his racing heart. His chilly core begged for release to encase his body and unleash his full power. He had some access to his powers while not in disguise, but not enough to defeat the imposing sight before him. Worse, she’d learn his identity and Lance knew she’d take full advantage of it. Her hacking prowess had landed him in hot water before, mostly in the form of turning machinery against him; she’d find his name and address before he could get home. 

He curled in his cold fingers, hiding them on an otherwise warm and sunny day. “Let them go,” he pleaded, “they’re innocent!” He still had his words. She’d listened to him before - well, Icebound anyway - and left civilians alone. Lance was convinced she had a good heart. She just needed a reminder of it from time to time. 

Pidge rested her elbows on the machine’s console, chin sagging into her palm. The slightest of amused smiles teased on her lips and Lance swore there was a sparkle in her eye. “You’re playing hero - that’s cute.”

“Someone has to,” he retorted, perhaps a bit too quickly, though his heart pounded and he swallowed hard. “What are you even after?”

Pidge rolled her eyes, squashing his hope she’d listen to him. “I needed Icebound’s surrender yesterday,” she said. “I figured surely he’d come out with a mess like this. So unless you know where he is, I don’t have any use for you.”

Lance gulped. Oh if she only knew. 

Though, a sense of pride swelled in his heart that she’d focus on his meddling verses the other two heroes in the city. Not that they were a common sight and Lance begrudged the idea that, despite how irritating Flame-o Brain-o always managed to be, he wouldn’t mind a little help with hero work now and then to catch up with his civilian life.  

The attention to him specifically boosted his confidence and a smug grin tugged up the side of his face. Maybe he could use this to his advantage. 

��It’s your lucky day then!” Lance said cockily, despite being pinned down by a giant robot. “Why hold a bunch of people hostage, when you can just take Icebound’s best friend?” 

Pidge raised a critical eyebrow. “You?” she questioned, pointing a lazy finger in his direction. 

“Yes, me,” Lance responded, momentarily annoyed. Why wouldn’t he be a hero’s best friend if he wasn’t already the hero? He was an awesome friend! 

But a shallow argument wasn’t going to free the civilians. Lance closed his eyes and took a calming breath. He needed to swallow his pride and make her take this deal. “Take me hostage and let the others go,” he pleaded as sincerely as he could muster. “It’ll be just as effective, and you’ll only have one body to worry about.” He had no idea how he was going to free himself later, but as long as the students were safe, it was a risk worth taking. 

After a long moment of considering, Pidge pulled down definitively on a lever. Two thick cables snaked down from either side of the machine. Lance fought his instinct to retaliate as they wrapped under his arms and around his chest, pulling him into the air helplessly. He gripped the coils for some sense of security as he was hoisted to the villain’s eye level. 

Without prompting, she released the students. They scattered and scrambled in all directions. Lance breathed a sigh of relief.

“For your own sake, I hope you’re telling the truth,” Pidge said ominously as she turned her vehicle and moved towards the suburbs. “Because if Icebound doesn’t show up for you, I have plenty of use for you in my lab.”

“You actually have a secret lab?” Lance perked up, his voice rising steadily in alarm. The methodical movement of the machine was making his stomach twist about. each step it took jiggled him about in the smooth coils and it felt like he could slip out if he doesn’t hang on with all he had, legs dangling uselessly a story above the ground. 

He forced a laugh that didn’t feel entirely humorous, keeping a weather eye on how far away he was from the ground. “I never pegged you for being the ultimate villain stereotype.”

Pidge raised an eyebrow at him.“We only just met and I’ve done nothing but hit the super villain checklist.”

Oh right. He couldn’t mention any of their past meetings in costume. He laughed nervously. “Icebound tells me about you all the time. He says you’re the smartest and most creative bad guy he knows.” Add a wink to the compliment, wiggle the raised eyebrow - be irresistible. 

“Flattery won’t save you from my death ray if you’re lying.” Her threat was so monotone that it sent a chill up his spine faster than ever. So much for flirting his way out of this.

Their ride took an extra heavy stomp and he slipped down, scrambling to catch hold of any part of the coils that might offer more grip. His belly button was left exposed, shirt riding up his stomach.

Maybe, if he’s lucky, one of the other two heroes would find him before he’s forced to reveal his identity to Pidge. 

Urgh. Getting saved by Flame-dude would suck. 

[antiquechampagne]

Beastly Kingdom: Chapter 14 Knock’em Down

“FALL BACK!” Liz screamed, digging her heels into Mama’s sides. From behind her came the distinct thwum of a laser. A pile of rubble to the right of her became a giant glowing pile of slag. Looking quickly back over her shoulder, she saw the giant robot shamble forward, reaching behind its back. Slowly it produced a gigantic warhead and lifted it over its shoulder like a colossal nuclear football.

“AMERICA WILL NEVER FALL TO A COMMUNIST INVASION.”

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she muttered under hear breath, pressing Mama to gallop faster. Unconsciously, she ducked as she heard the missile whistle over her head. The bomb must have fallen short. As the shock wave washed over from behind, Liz trusted a few people got out of the way in time.

Skidding to a stop behind the prep school, Mama panted, her tongue lolling. Liz vaulted off her saddle, pushing her way through the chaotic throng in the HQ courtyard.

Liz raised her voice over the din. “MAGS!” She huffed. “Where the fuck are…”

Mags seemed to materialize before her, her eyes wild with fierce determination. “Yes, Boss?”

Liz grabbed a large heavy duffle bag off the floor, upending it, the papers it held spilling across the floor. “Fill this up with as many explosives as you can find. The bigger the boom, the better,” she ordered.

“Just what the hell do you think you are doing?” Nate raised a hand at her as if she was a misbehaving puppy who chewed on his expensive dress shoes.

“You got a plan for Prime, big man?” Liz shot back.

Nate seethed angrily, but he was flustered. “This wasn’t something we had contingencies for. All of our intelligence said-“

Liz cut him off. “Are you serious? You didn’t once think that the enemy could feed you false information?! What the fuck kind of ‘general’ are you? What horse shit!”

Mags returned, struggling a bit with the now awkwardly heavy bag. Liz grabbed it and slipped it over her shoulder, securing it behind her back.

Nate attempted to save face. “And, I take it, you have some kind of plan?”

Liz shot him a deadly glare. “Of course I do.” She turned back to Mags. “I lost my stealth boys when I scuttled my armor. Find me a couple. NOW.”

Liz squared herself off across the table from Nate. She took a quick breath to calm her nerves. She needed him on her side if this had any chance at working. “I need everyone to fall back and keep out of Prime’s way as they can. By the looks of things, the Brotherhood didn’t get it fully operational. It’s slower than it should be and its aim sucks brahmin balls. It’s dragging its right leg for some reason.” She pressed her fingers against what was left of the bridge of her nose. “I need two things from you. One: keep Prime distracted, I don’t care how. Two: pelt the Prydwen with as much artillery as you can. We need it out of the sky… Oh and three: take out as many vertibirds as you can. Those things are fucking annoying.”

Mags returned with a pair of stealth boys and handed them to Liz.

“What are you going to do?” Nate asked.

“I’m going to shove this bag as far up Prime’s ass as I can and pull the pin.” Liz turned to leave.

“Wait!” Nate called after her. He turned and quickly dug through another crate near the table, retrieving an off-white block of explosives and strange looking gun with a huge red trigger. “This is a remote detonator and C4. They should make things a bit easier.”

Liz quickly looked over the explosives before shoving them in the bag with the rest. She gave him a satisfactory nod and headed out.

“See you in hell!” she called back jovially.

Once outside, Liz scratched Mama’s chin to get her attention. “Listen, Mama,” she cooed. “I need you to get me to that big nasty robot as quietly and quickly as you can. Here’s the kicker… you can’t touch anyone on the way in, okay?” Mama cocked her head to the side. “I know, I know… I told you earlier you could have a full day of fun today, but this is really important, okay?” Mama snorted, then her luminescent tongue licked Liz’s scarred cheek. Liz thumped the side of Mama’s thick neck affectionately. “Good girl.”

In the distance, Prime’s eye laser cut through a crumbling building, setting the ancient beams on fire with a bone rattling boom.

“Ready?” Liz pulled herself back up into the saddle. She slotted one stealth boy into a slot on Mama’s armor while she clipped the other to her belt before turning them both on. The air around them shimmered. Digging her heels into the deathclaw’s sides, she guided Mama as silently as she could across the battlefield.

As the smoldering wreckage of her destroyed power armor came into view, Liz started to curse to herself. The doors were just barely ajar. She noticed a whistle above her head. She stifled a ‘whoa’, slowing Mama by sheer force, steering her away from the entrance as a barrage of mortars hit their target, blowing them clean off their hinges. Before the smoke could clear, she guided Mama through the burning metal gap, hoping the smoking remains of the gate would hide their advance.

Past the firing line of the wall, it was much easier to avoid the smattering of distracted troops, each focused on some task supporting the front line. Slipping around, they slowly made their way in a wide arc behind Prime.

From this vantage point, Liz’s early observations were confirmed. The robot was not combat ready. Its limbs hitched and ground as it tried to advance and target enemies. On its back, Liz could make out a stack of warheads waiting in a huge clip for a hydraulic metal hand to reach back and grab one. Luckily, there appeared to be a limited stock loaded into the carriage.

Quickly studying the giant, Liz realized that even with Mama’s considerable height, she was going to have to do considerable amount of climbing before she would have any chance of securing her payload for maximum effect.

“Get me close, Mama.” She coaxed her glowing companion within an arm’s reach of the trailing leg of the robot. Gathering her strength, Liz stood and balanced on Mama’s back, carefully gauging the gap. Springing into the air, she reached out and grabbed ahold of the scaffolding supporting the robot’s massive hydraulic thigh. Once she found her footing and steadied herself, she glanced down to see Mama peering up at her, reluctant to leave.

Liz pointed back towards the front line. “Go!” she hissed, trying to keep her voice down but still issue an order. “Go kill some fuckers!” Mama chuffed before bounding away at full speed.

Liz steeled herself and began to pick her way up the metal leg. As she approached Prime’s midsection, she had a quick decision to make. If she lingered too long, the robot could pivot, crushing her between the bomb chassis and its colossal hips… but the alternative was to climb onto the ladder-like chassis. This path had her dangling precariously and exposed off the giant’s back. Her choice was quickly made for her as Prime turned to target something on the other side of the field. On reflex, Liz scrambled onto the chassis before it fatally pinned her to Prime’s left hip. Liz let herself exhale the breath she was holding only when she reached the robot’s solid shoulders. This area had a smattering of strategically placed handholds, which made scaling the beast slightly easier. Between the array power coils jutting from Prime’s back, Liz happened upon a sizable hatch, most likely for maintenance.

Just as she was debating how she might pick the lock on the hatch, Prime began to reach back for, reaching for another nuke.

“COMMUNIST TARGET ACQUIRED.” It bellowed ominously.

Realizing that time was not on her side, she tossed all thought of subtlety out the window.

“Screw this!” She reached for her back up weapon, a short crowbar from her belt loop. She savagely started peeling open the access hatch, her stealth field failing as she jabbed at the steel behemoth skin. The hatch started to bend, the latch giving with a satisfying snap just as a handful of laser bolts scorched the metal next to her. Soldiers from the ground had spotted her.

Liz opened the hatch. She shrugged her deadly cargo off her shoulders, sliding it into the open cavity. She was just about to close the hatch when something familiar caught her eye. Inside, nestled in among the guts of the machine, was a commonly used combat inhibitor. She had seen countless numbers of these units as she tinkered on robots over the years. With a quick twist and yank, the circular component popped out.

Liberty Prime suddenly reared back, nearly sending Liz spilling over the edge.

“DEATH IS A PREFERABLE ALTERNATIVE TO COMMUNISM!” Prime took aim at a passing vertibird and opened fire with its laser, catching the tail and sending it plummeting to the ground, before tossing the nuke in the direction of the airport building.

More gunfire hit Prime around her. Liz wasn’t sure if more Brotherhood soldiers had seen her meddling with their toy or if they realized Liberty Prime was now firing indiscriminately at anything in its field of view. Either way, it was time for her to make a quick exit before someone hit something vital. And, in her mind, there was only one way down. The hard way down.

With one hand, she held onto the detonator. With the other, she reached into a deep pocket and pulled out a handful of chem syringes. She didn’t even bother to read which ones she grabbed before she jabbed a half dozen into her thigh and smashed the plungers. Time slowed to a crawl as she jumped, propelling herself off the giant’s shoulder with a feral scream. Her heartbeat deafened her ears, drowning out any sounds of the war waging around her. If she could have flown by pure force of will, Liz would have risen into the clouds and tore the Prydwen apart with her own two hands. As her slow and dreamy trajectory took a notable but expected arc downward, she pulled the red trigger.

Reality and time snapped back violently. Her fall was suddenly interrupted by a colossal explosion. An intense wave of heat and shrapnel threw Liz’s body sideways, flipping her chaotically ass-over-teakettle. She had one last glance at the sun in the sky before she hit the ground and everything went black.

 Consciousness came back in scattered flashes. First, light leaked in as Liz’s eye and brain began to argue over the exact mechanism by which shapes should be in focus. Something warm and wet coated one of her cheeks, the other pressed on something coarse and cold. Why did she smell mutfruit jelly? She groaned, trying to roll over. Something in her shoulder ground together so loud she swore she could hear it more than feel it. Her head swam as she propped herself up on one functional elbow. In the back of her mind, Liz was aware that many parts of her body were on fire with pain but somehow, but that information didn’t seem to be all that pressing at the moment.

Out of the fog walked a hulking figure. The ground reverberated with each heavy step as the drab green power armor advanced, a glowing laser musket throwing pulsing red light over the metal chest armor. It reminded Liz of prewar Christmas lights.

Liz tried to reach for her crowbar, fumbling as her shoulder refused to cooperate before remembering that it was gone, lost in the explosion.

“Damn it…” she mumbled, just as more movement in her peripheral vision caught her attention. Something colorful and large.

“BOSS!” Mason ran to Liz’s prone body. “Boss?! Are you alright?” He started looking her over. Liz could read his grimace like a highway billboard. She was not alright.

“What fuck do you think? Ghoul’s weren’t meant to fly.”

The power armor towered over her, it pointed to her leg. A multitude broken needles still protruded from her thigh, the broken glass and shredded metal looking like a deadly bouquet.

“What chems did you take?” Nate’s voice crackled out of the helmet’s exterior speaker.

“Hell if I know. All of them?” Liz started to pluck them out, the grinding in her shoulder forcing her to stop after the first few. Mason took over, pulling the remainder out before opening his own med pouch.

The General put a hand on Mason’s shoulder. “Hold on.” Her pointed at Liz’s other leg. “We need to get that out first.”

Liz moved her one leg, revealing the other beneath it. Clean through the meat of her thigh jutted a jagged and bloody board. The sight seemed to break her from her shock induced haze. Against her internal protestations, Liz’s mind swam, the edges of her vision dimming. Pain burned through her body from what felt like a thousand places.

Suddenly, bullets began to pelt the group, bouncing harmlessly off Nate’s armor. One grazed Mason’s arm. Both men returned fire, turning the wounded scribe who was trying for a lucky shot into a broken heap.

“We need to move the Boss out of the open,” Mason looked around, calculating their best route. “But I’m going to need a hand.” His wound was bleeding profusely, his hand limp held tight at his side.

Nate wordlessly scooped Liz from the pavement. This was the first time she had a chance to see where she had landed. She nearly started to chuckle. She had smashed through a picnic table, complete with scattered food and smashed place settings, but the pain cut her off before she could. Guess that is where the smell of mutfruit came from!

Nate carried her swiftly through the fray, heading towards the school, Mason in tow. Another deafening concussive wave stop them in their tracks. Nate nearly dropping Liz as he ducked reflexively. Instead, he just ended up jostled her broken body. Around them, screams and whoops erupted. Turning, Liz could see the Prydwen in flames, listing dangerously. Liz let out her own triumphant yelp, but it was cut short when Nate decided to continue his jog back to the HQ.

Once in the courtyard, Nate handed Liz off to a waiting medic. Mags was quickly at her side, giving the medic an icy death glare as she gave Liz various reports. Liz was a bit disappointed she was left behind during the final offensive, the sounds of battle farther away than she liked. The medic was swift and efficient. They hopped her up on more Med-X before pulling out the offensive plank from her thigh. Once the wound was cleaned, they checked her various other wounds, stabilizing her crushed shoulder. After administering a handful of stimpacks, Liz felt well enough to hobble over and watch the once proud air ship crash and sink, flaming, into the sea.

[china-vpn]

Double head automatic decoiler(8 tons+8 tons) The machine adopt with cantilever type structure. Including Machine frame 、cantilever type extension、ancillary shoring、decoiler driving system (by motor)、Hydraulic system、electric control system Etc, with the function of install and uninstall the coil. Main parameter 1、Capcity 8T (each head) 2、ID of the coil φ508mm 3、Width of the coil 1000-1250 mm 4、OD of the coil φ1250mm 5、Speed of decoiling: ≤ 45m/min Hangzhou Roll Forming Technology Co., Ltd. Website: www.hzrollforming.com Email: jean@hzrollforming.com WhatsApp: +86 178 1606 1817 #Decoiler #Stackmaster #Printing #Curving #Upender #Crimping #Purlin #doorframe #windowframe #Doubllayer #rollformingmachine #coldrollformingmachine #rollformingline

[darklingandy]

Spirits of the Earth and Air

Chapter Twenty-Six: Forms of Imprisonment

Hiccup had spent much of his childhood at Astrid's house and therefore knew where everything was. He cleaned up the potion mess and swept up the broken glass, while Jack perched on one of the kitchen stools, watching. Then he made coffee with the Hofferson's fancy machine for both him and Jack. He was still tired and hungover. He wanted the routine of it, the normal human feeling of making coffee in the morning.

"Here." He pushed a mug of frothed latte toward Jack. Then, as an afterthought, he got out a bottle of chocolate syrup and handed it to Jack as well. Sure enough, after Jack took a tentative sip and wrinkled his nose, he took the bottle and upended it over his mug, pouring in enough chocolate syrup to give an army cavities.

"Wow," said Hiccup. "Do you like coffee with your chocolate syrup?"

"How do some people drink this without sugar?" Jack demanded, sticking his finger in to stir it. The coffee cooled and began to frost, and Jack ended up with something that resembled a milkshake more than actual coffee. He seemed pretty happy with that though.

"I don't know," Hiccup admitted, accepting the Hershey's bottle back and using a much more reasonable amount of it.

They smiled at each other over their mugs.

"We did it," Jack said. There was a touch of reverence and excitement in his voice. "You did it. You gave Astrid The Sight."

"Yeah." Hiccup set his mug down. "And we still need a plan. How are we going to get to Pitch?"

Jack grinned. His eyes cut toward Toothless. "What about your bairseach? He can help too."

"What?"

Toothless, who had been curled up on the counter dozing, let out a small "merrr?" and raised his head to narrow his eyes at Jack.

Jack tipped his head at the cat. "Your bairseach."

"Hold on." Hiccup's eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. A flash of memory: Jack shouting something as they leapt through the swirling portal into Faerie. "You called him that before. You know what Toothless is?"

Jack snorted. "Well, he's a bairseach."

"I don't know what a bairseach is."

"It's a…" Jack licked his lips and left his tongue there, tiny pink tip trapped between his teeth while he thought. Like a cat. "He's a shapeshifter. Sometimes creatures of our realm are born with that ability. That's what we call them." He caught sight of Hiccup's face. "You didn't know what he was?"

"No. I just thought he was a normal cat until two days ago."

Jack gave Toothless a wry look. "That wasn't very nice."

Toothless, at least, had the decency to look ashamed of himself. His ears drooped. He slunk down from the counter and leapt to the island to bump his head against Hiccup's shoulder in apology. "It's okay, bud." Hiccup ran a hand down his back.

"I wonder what his original form is." Jack tipped his head back and downed the rest of his milkshake. "Why did he attach himself to you of all people?"

"Uh, excuse me? 'Me of all people?' Look who's talking! You," Hiccup pointed an accusatory finger at Jack, "spent several weeks following me around before you even spoke to me, and you didn't even know I could See you."

"Oh…Right."

Hiccup rolled his eyes and continued petting Toothless. "I always knew he was way too smart. He always acted like he could understand what I'm saying to him."

"He can." Jack slid off his stool in one fluid movement and stretched. "How about it, Toothless? You gonna help us?"

Toothless chirped at him and whipped his tail back and forth.

"Alright, let's go see what you can do." Jack headed toward the door.

"Go?" echoed Hiccup.

"You want him to transform in here?" Jack called back. "What if he gets big? Or, I don't know, turns into something messy?"

Toothless blinked at Hiccup. Then he nodded his head once, leapt down, and ran after Jack.

Hiccup's mouth hung half open. "Transform…?" A well of excitement bubbled up as it dawned on him what was going on. So Toothless was magic, he wasn't just a cat, he was going to help them — and Hiccup was going to find out what Toothless was. For real. He followed them outside.

Toothless was spinning in circles in the middle of the driveway while Jack formed small snowballs in his hand and tossed them at Toothless. "Go," he kept saying. "Change! Transform!"

Toothless leapt up and smacked the snowballs away, kept landing and shaking out his coat, but nothing else was happening.

"Uh…" said Hiccup, watching them both. "Is this how it's supposed to work?"

Toothless yowled in frustration.

"No," said Jack. His eyes glittered as he watched the cat jump into the air and land again on his feet, definitely still a normal cat. "Maybe he's been in one shape too long."

Toothless yowled again.

"It's alright," Hiccup told him. He crouched down. "Relax. Don't worry about it." Toothless stuck his head against Hiccup's palm, and Hiccup ran a finger down his spine, feeling how the vertebrae shifted under the skin. He rubbed between Toothless's shoulder blades and Toothless rolled his head comfortably.

The bones cracked. There was a dizzying moment, for Hiccup, where Toothless was all the wrong shape and size, and he was yowling and screaming. Hiccup was knocked backward.

Toothless's shrill cat yowl warped and deepened until it was cataclysmic, until birds were fleeing into the sky, until the ground reverberated with it and Hiccup could feel it vibrating in his chest. He squeezed his eyes shut against it until it faded.

Jack let out a whoop in the stillness.

Toothless stood in the driveway, but he wasn't a cat. Shaped anew, he was colossal, prehistorically monstrous, all sleek angles and muscles over sinew.

"Holy…" Hiccup scrambled back, staring wide-eyed.

"He's a dragon," Jack said in awe.

Toothless unfolded his wings — enormous, bat-like, rustling, like black sails against the sky — and shook them out in satisfaction, giving a pleased rumble. His tail twitched. There was still something very cat-like about him, or maybe there had been something dragon-like in his cat form. There was a rushing in Hiccup's head, and he swayed a little in shock.

"You have to try riding him!" Jack bounced on the balls of his feet. "Hiccup! You have to ride him!"

"I don't…" Hiccup couldn't finish his sentence. His mouth had gone dry.

This was still Toothless…right?

This was still the same creature that had dogged his footsteps, had slept in his bed, had made himself nests with Hiccup's shirts for years. But now Hiccup felt like he'd never known him.

Toothless caught the scent of Hiccup's unease and lowered his head to approach him. Hiccup took half a step back then made himself stay still, one hand outstretched toward the dragon, fingers trembling a little. Toothless inched toward him.

He was so close, and he was huge; drawn up to his full height, he would tower over Hiccup. Toothless and Hiccup stared at each other a moment. Then Toothless pressed his nose into Hiccup's hand, feather-soft. A sound came from his chest that took Hiccup a moment to recognize: Toothless was purring.

It was more like the engine of a car rumbling, but a breath Hiccup hadn't realized he was holding rushed out of him. Toothless skin — hide now, scaled and not furred — was warm, smooth, and much softer than Hiccup had expected it to be. Still hesitant, he ran his hand over Toothless's head, feeling the different shape of it, the ridges and flaps and things like rounded spikes or ears or whatever. Encouraged, Toothless shoved his face into Hiccup's chest like he always did as a cat, but now he was too big for it, and Hiccup staggered back.

Then his brain processed what Jack had been saying to him. You have to try riding him.

"Okay..." he said slowly, a smile beginning to light up his face. "Let's do this."

They needed more room. They went up to the roof — Hiccup had to go through the house and climb out a window — and Toothless seems happy to be even a little bit off the ground, sniffing at the breeze and raising his head toward the sky, eyes half-closed in contentment.

Hiccup stood a little back. "Is this a good idea?"

"It's a great idea."

Hiccup couldn't deny that he was excited; the excitement was there alongside the thrill, burning beneath his skin. Hadn't it always been like this where the fey were concerned though? Dangerous and exhilarating?

Toothless turned to look at him, then lowered himself for Hiccup to climb on top. Hiccup took the cue and settled himself behind Toothless's head, his knees clinging tight above his shoulders. "Okay, here we go," he muttered to himself.

"Hey." Jack hovered at his side. Hiccup turned, and Jack reached out to brush Hiccup's hair out of his eyes. Hiccup's heart stuttered at the contact; he hadn't been expecting it, and Jack's fingers felt cool and reassuring. "You're gonna love it."

He gave Hiccup a wide, mischievous grin. Then he stepped back to the edge of the roof, stretched his arms out to his sides, and let himself fall.

The wind caught him before he could go far. He became a blur of blue sweatshirt that zipped upward toward the sky with the sound of delighted yelling.

Before he could think about it too much, Hiccup dug his heels into Toothless's shoulders. Toothless didn't need the encouragement. He was already crouching down, coiling for a leap - then he catapulted into the air. The world faded away beneath them, the tree-line growing small, and everything was a rush of cold air, the sound in his ears was his own screaming.

It broke up into laughter spilling from his mouth. This was a thousand times better than being carried by Jack, better than anything he'd ever experienced. His blood singing in his veins, his heart thundering wildly, the wind dragging itself through his hair — he felt so vibrant and alive.

He leaned forward and Toothless seemed to read his mind, leveling out so that they soared over the town. "Alright, bud, let's take it slow and see what we can do," Hiccup said into Toothless's ear. Toothless nodded in agreement, and Hiccup wasn't sure how he could tell that's what it was, but he could.

"Nice!" There was Jack, drifting alongside him, his head mock-pillowed on his folded arms as if he were dozing off up here in the atmosphere. "Tell me you love it."

Hiccup didn't answer, just bit off a wild grin at Jack and leaned forward more, urging Toothless onward. Jack followed him with another cry of delight.

They climbed higher and higher into the atmosphere, turning wide circles over Berk. Oh, there was nothing else on earth like this, could never be anything else like this. So high up in the air, Hiccup felt more grounded than he had in a long time. He felt real.

Maybe he'd always been meant to be who he was. Maybe he was always supposed to be like this, with one foot in the human world and one foot in Faerie, halfway between two places, being two things at once. He and Toothless pushed forward in sync, faster and faster, taking sharp turns and curves, dipping below to thread in and out of the trees, and it occurred to Hiccup that Toothless was like him: halfway between, both one thing and another. And Jack too. He kept on their tail, zipping after them recklessly. Every once in a while, Hiccup would catch a snatch of elated laughter.

Determined to find out what was possible, Hiccup urged Toothless into a barrel roll, hanging on by his hands and knees. Gravity pulled and made his stomach swoop, but he only felt light. They could do better. They could do more.

They went too far.

Hiccup, laying flat against Toothless's back now, tilted them upward into a loop. Toothless rose higher, higher against the sun — and stalled, checking his wings at the zenith so they entered free fall. Hiccup's mouth opened to cheer him but—

—His knees had loosened around Toothless's shoulders, and his hands weren't enough to keep them tethered together. He clung on desperately, but Toothless pulled away from him, and, oh god, he was falling for real now, separated from his dragon, falling alone miles above the earth.

His cheer turned into a shriek that was instantly swallowed up the rushing atmosphere. He felt dizzy; his mind blanked out. Distantly, it occurred to him to try to get back to Toothless, but which way was Toothless? He was spinning, he could only see a dark shape tumbling downward sometimes in the edge of his vision getting farther and farther away above him, and he couldn't tell which way was down except that 'down' was a wide green space spinning around him, and Jack! Where was Jack!?

A terrified screech split the air as Toothless realized what had happened, but he couldn't get to Hiccup. A far-off sound beneath it — "Hiccup! Hiccup, no!" — was Jack.

The dark expanse of the ground was getting close. Hiccup was going to die.

Something seized him by the back of his shirt and he was yanked, hard, into a more controlled fall. Another pair of hands grabbed at his and pulled hard enough that his shoulders ached, but he slowed down. The dark shape of Toothless swooped under him, and then he was back on Toothless, scrambling for something to grab. The trees were too close beneath them. He made it onto Toothless, barely conscious of the fact that the weight against his back now must be Jack, clinging to him. They were going too fast.

Toothless struggled to level out, swerved a few treetops, and then didn't make it over one that clipped his wings and sent him spiraling. They were crashing. Toothless writhed and Hiccup and Jack were thrown from his back, only to be grabbed up by claws. Toothless curled into a ball around them. There was a terrible sound — crunching, crashing, breaking — and they were jostled painfully.

Then everything was still.

Toothless unfolded.

They were in the forest. All was quiet. The three of them lay in a pile at the foot of a giant pine tree, and an enormous skid mark stretched from where they lay out for dozens of yards, a great wound in the earth. The air was crisp and cold. Loose pine needles were drifting downward around them, streaks of bright gold and green in the sunlight, and settling in a slick blanket on the ground. One stuck in Jack's hair and Hiccup reached over to pull it out, ignoring the way Jack automatically leaned toward Hiccup's touch, eyes closed as he tried to catch his breath. Hiccup's heart was beating so fast he was shaking.

He felt so stupid. For a time he'd felt like he was supposed to be part of Faerie, but he was mortal. He could die. I can't believe I… I thought I could handle the fey.

He untangled himself and staggered to his feet.

Toothless rolled himself upright, shaking off Jack, and nosed at Hiccup to make sure he was alright. Hiccup placed a hand on his head reassuringly. "Thank you," he said.

All three of them were panting hard. Jack's eyes were dilated, his face flushed pink. He sat disheveled on the forest floor, but then he raised his arms and let himself fall back so he could stretch out spread-eagled. "We lived." Heavy relief colored his voice.

"This was a bad idea." Hiccup wrapped his arms around himself. They ached. "I shouldn't have…I can't do this again."

"What!" Jack bolted upright, and at the same moment, Toothless let out an incredulous noise like a scoff.

"I shouldn't have done this. I can't fly again." He gazes up at the sky, trying to figure out which way 'home' was, and set off the best direction he could guess.

Behind him, Jack pushed himself to his feet. "Hiccup, you can't just—"

"Don't," Hiccup cut him off. His voice wavered a little, but Jack didn't comment on it. He set his jaw and trailed after Hiccup, and after a moment, Toothless slunk after them both. They were a sad, strange little parade. Hiccup's ankle hurt from landing on his leg weird, and he limped back, shoulders tight with apprehension.

It was a long walk back.

It was a while before Hiccup calmed down. When his heartbeat became normal and he could breathe, his mind cleared, and he felt the weight of the awkward silence. To cover it up, he voiced something he'd been wondering since that morning.

"Hey Jack?" he started.

"Hm?"

"What's a teind? You must know."

Jack stopped dead in his tracks. When Hiccup turned to look at him, Jack's eyes were dark with some unnameable fear. His mouth had thinned into a white line, and his face had gone so stark white that he looked frozen through. His lips cracked open. "How do you know about the tiend?" His voice was a hoarse whisper.

Hiccup stared at Jack. "Something in my mother's journals. What is it?"

Jack's gaze fell so Hiccup could no longer look him in the eyes.

Unease crept up Hiccup's spine, and he was seized with the idea that he has to know. "Jack. What is it?" he repeated.

"Tithe," Jack murmured.

"What?"

Jack took time to answer. Silent, he began to walk again, stepping carefully past Hiccup, but Hiccup followed. He fell into step beside Jack, trying to ignore the shiver that ran down his back. Under their feet, the pine needles made soft whispers as they slipped over each other.

Jack cleared his throat. "It is a ceremony," he began in a low, restrained voice.

"What kind of ceremony?"

"Hiccup. You have to understand, this… normally we don't talk about this to humans. Even among ourselves, we don't talk about it much. It's ancient. Deep magic."

"I'm not exactly a normal human." Hiccup tilted his head, waiting for Jack to go on.

Jack bowed his head. "The king of the shadow court ritually sacrifices someone. By that sacrifice, all the fey swear their loyalty to him in exchange for leadership and protection. That's how the court is made. It…keeps order."

He wouldn't look at Hiccup. There was something in his aura, in the tense set of his shoulders, that said he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. It spoke of fear, of shame, of regret.

The forest was quiet. The chill of an early winter had crept into the air, and clouds had begun to streak the sky, making the sunlight weak and pale. The air was still.

"Sacrifices someone?" Hiccup's voice created ripples in the silence, ghostly and echoing. His fingers were cold and stiff.

With a deep sigh, Jack ran a hand over his face. He was walking rigidly, deliberately keeping distance between his body and Hiccup's so they wouldn't brush into each other. So unlike him. "Pitch…he sent a faery to keep an eye on Berk. A faery to choose a victim for the teind."

There was a beat of time passed in the space of breathing. Hiccup couldn't stop staring at Jack. A cold breeze ruffled their hair but he hardly noticed it.

Behind them, one of Toothless's wings bumped the trunk of a tree, and a flock of birds startled from it, dark specks streaming into the clouding sky. Toothless watched them go with his ears perked.

And Jack still wouldn't raise his eyes to look back at Hiccup. "That's my job. He sent me."

Something dark inside Hiccup cracked open a little.

"You…came here to kidnap someone. For a human sacrifice," said Hiccup, voice hollow.

"Yes. Pitch needs someone outside the court, with free will. He sent me to choose a someone from Berk. You know how faeries are. They're," Jack took a deep, too-controlled breath. "We're…bad."

"Yes, I know how faeries are," Hiccup said slowly. He knew all too well. Another idea was sneaking into his mind and growing there, unwanted but insistent. It voiced itself almost before he knew what it is. "Who were you going to sacrifice?"

Jack pressed his lips together, squeezed his eyes shut. Faeries couldn't lie.

And because Hiccup had to know the truth, he pushed on with the feeling of hurtling towards certain misery. "Jack."

"You," Jack confessed. Tension leaked out of him, leaving him wilted, shoulders drooped, head hanging. "I didn't have a choice. It was going to be you, but…obviously not…not anymore…"

A great cavernous space opened up inside Hiccup, something cold and dark and echoing, something carved of loneliness and hurt. He felt like the world had disappeared beneath his feet. He felt like he was falling again, and this time, there was no one to catch him at the bottom; there was just endless darkness, just emptiness. It was such a deep ache in his chest.

How could Jack do this?

He was going to sacrifice me. Expression blank, eyes unseeing, Hiccup stumbled onward, ignoring Jack at his side, thoughts running wild. That's why he really started following me around. He was going to take me.

But they'd been through so much now. He remembered Jack pleading for his memories back, remembered the cuts in his sides leaking red, remembered Jack's the edge of panic in his voice that night in the court.

But why didn't he say something sooner?

"Hiccup?" Jack's voice quavered with uncertainty.

But a harsh edge of anger kept Hiccup from looking at him. "When were you going to tell me?" His voice came out flat, toneless, empty. Emotion on lockdown. Nothing seeping through.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know how." In contrast to Hiccup, Jack's voice was stained with panic. He stared down at the ground again, kicking at the pine needles. His hair fell into his face, covering his eyes, hiding them. "I should have told you earlier, but…how was I even supposed to do that? Oh, hey Hiccup, by the way, I was totally going to kidnap you and let you be killed in front of the entire court." He dragged in an agonized breath. "And then you turned out to have the Sight and that was so much worse somehow." Jack's face twisted and he drew into himself.

"You could have told me last night."

Oh gods. Last night. With the pond and then the campfire, and the flickering lights playing over Jack's face, and him being so close, everything warm and soft and feeling safe… A pang went through Hiccup.

"We were busy."

Hiccup cracked, just a little. "Before the dancing, snowflake."

He'd meant for the nickname to sound harsh, but it came out far more endearing than anything, and Hiccup immediately winced at himself.

Jack just wrinkled his nose at it. "I know, I'm sorry."

Hiccup stomped onward.

"How much do you hate me now?"

Hiccup didn't answer. He was struggling with something that closed up his throat, made his eyes burn. Something between anger and sympathy and sadness.

Jack grabbed Hiccup by the wrist, forcing him to turn around and look at him. "Hiccup?"

Jack was still Jack.

He let go of Hiccup's hand as he caught sight of Hiccup's face, but he didn't back off. Hiccup clenched his teeth. Jack's eyes were wide and pleading, with none of his usual mischief.

"Listen, please. I… you know I would never." Jack was speaking fast, his words tumbling over each other in an effort to get them all out quickly. He looked stricken. "I wouldn't do that, I never wanted to be a part of it, I just couldn't see any other…things are different. You know I'm not going to sacrifice you."

"What choice will you have?"

Jack's eyes widened. "I won't let him order me into it. I swear. I would die rather than be forced into giving you up for the teind."

Oh.

Hiccup knew what Jack is saying was impossible. If it comes down to it, if Pitch gives Jack a direct order without any loopholes or any way around it, Jack will not have a choice. He will have to turn Hiccup over. If Pitch orders it, Jack would have to drive the knife in himself and he would be powerless to stop it. But that fact that Jack was saying it, that he would rather die…

Hiccup swallowed. His heart was beating too fast, pounding in his ears. There was a tangle of emotions lodged in his chest that he was afraid to look at too closely. It felt more comfortable to be angry right now, safer. He licked his lips. "You should have told me," he grits out.

Jack's mouth shut. "I know," he said. "You have all my apologies. Just tell me you won't …you don't…" A slow sigh escaped him. "I just need my memories back," he said quietly.

Hiccup shook his head. "I'm not going to stop helping you. I promised I would help you get them back. But you can't just…I can't…" Unsure of what he was trying to say, Hiccup fell silent.

The relief in Jack's face broke Hiccup down a little. "You're not angry?" He reached out as if to hug Hiccup, but Hiccup smacked his hand away.

His heart wouldn't stop pounding. "Oh, I am." Even if it was choking him.

Jack's face crumpled and then closed off. His hand opened and closed at his side, curled into a fist, and stopped moving.

Hiccup turned away. There was too much going on in his head right now; he couldn't think clearly. He didn't want to listen to Jack, but he didn't want him to leave. He wanted to trust Jack, but he was afraid of where that would leave him. What if he'd never slipped up and revealed to Jack that he could See him? Where would he be now? The worst part what that he didn't know if Jack wouldn't have kidnapped him, or if Jack was good enough that he would have found another way. Jack was still fey, after all.

He just… I just want to stop thinking for a while.

The rest of the long walk back to Berk was traveled in silence.

In the gloom between the tree trunks and boulders, a pair of watchful eyes tracked them. A boney creature observed them heading home until they had disappeared from sight in the direction of the human town. "Mmmmm," it said to itself. "The king will like to hear about this."

next chapter >>

[myspookysunshine]

Original Poetry Dump Post

These were written under dustyirish, my other url, so I promise I am not plagiarizing myself. Bad poetry, but what the fuck. It was heartfelt at least. : )

NYC

I got your number. NYC; confusion, cacophony, crazy smell of taxi exhaust inexplicably smothered by the smell of roasted beans mocha latte grande whatthefuckever just give me Coffee boring and hot you laugh and it sounds genuine but my hearing isn't what it used to be. the horde floods past, fighting for air threatening to sweep us up in the flow you stand firm and vanish them with a drawl southern magician in a Ramones tee your hand brushes my arm accident or promise? that pinky sure felt like promise. yeah I got your number better yet I got your smile.

*************************

Discordance

Every night, 9:00 a solo goose flies overhead, late to the party offering his lonesome song to the night he's easy to single out the notes are slightly strange; a hoarse, desperate honking not quite like the others waiting at the pond 9:00, on the nose, I hear his tone deaf journey I always look up and smile. I can relate.

******************

Yarrow

Dawnlight breaks across the land birds call on the hill but in the valley down below the farm lies strangely still cows low crossly, needing milked morning chores gone unattended wash forgotten on the line a rocking chair upended bright flowers bent and broken by a shadow come to pass something that is not paint spilled upon the blades of grass wheat sways gently in a breeze that reeks of secret sorrow and last night's sin lies waiting amongst the fields of yarrow.

****************

Grandmother

You laugh at the sky. The picture's in black and white, but I know that ugly blue bathing suit scuffed in the rear from years of poolside sitting one strap permanently twisted from some washing machine trauma I was mortified by it then; I would give anything to see it now. You laugh at the sky, carefree and wild/beautiful, wind whipping dark hair into something approaching chaos Bettie Page on the edge of a hurricane. Your arms reach for me; I, that sepia child, race for them. As I recall, there was an embrace and promises of baby bunnies but memories are funny things; they seek one another, merge, then hide themselves away in corners.

You're in color now, though the room is kept dim machines beep a monotonous rhythm that some dark part of me wishes would just go silent. I stand, arms outstretched, waiting for my embrace. Time and tubes and coma be damned. You're still laughing at the sky.

************************

Solitary Duck

Eighteen months and here in this youless reality tattered grocery lists become relics tears are shed over cow slippers a stray Butterfinger wrapper lies under the bed, coiled, ready to strike I would pick up a sword to protect a voicemail I would sell my soul to still believe in ghosts.

They said malignancy I became five again; all I wanted was my mommy I settled for sharing the news with a rectangle of sod and a solitary mallard on the duck pond.

Isn't it funny how shared laughter sounds like music the same joke, told alone, sounds like madness

I live to pluck words from the ether The most elusive (and the one I fear most) is goodbye.

Leprechaun

It was a day for celebrating. Exactly what was being celebrated she had forgotten (if she ever knew) but attendance seemed to be required.

So she went.

She took a deep breath, steeled herself and walked into the gathering.

A shirtless leprechaun sat in the corner, softly crooning The Doors 'Love Street', plucking out the notes on a tiny piano held in his lap.

He was no Jim Morrison, granted, but was anyone?

She stepped further into the room and the atmosphere changed.

Whisky bottles were festooned with shamrock stoppers, green beer flowed freely from taps, a musky green scent perfumed the air.

Pretty people getting ugly drunk.

A shoving match broke out between a tall man and a misplaced clown. She side-stepped the melee with ease.

She had crafted invisibility into an art form.

In the center of pushed-back chairs, couples danced to contemporary music. Their bodies moved to the pulsing rhythm but their eyes were dead.

She tried a bit of everything on offer, musky green burning between her fingers as she retraced her steps, back towards the known.

No one asked her to dance, and this was not necessarily a bad thing. She was afraid to be swept up in their nothingness.

There once was a yesterday bride seeking happiness somewhere inside she was dimly aware that the spark was still there But that fucker, it knew how to hide.

In the end, she returned to the leprechaun.

His head rested back against the plaster, hair flowing in loose curls to his shoulders. He had moved on to 'Soul Kitchen' and he was suddenly beautiful.

She slid to the floor beside him, lay a hand on his ankle and closed her eyes.

What she lacked in visibility she made up for in imagination.

********************

Three

His kiss is wildfire, eager and consuming Yours a gentle rain to temper the flames laid down together they alter my landscape forever make way for new growth

(you both taste of conviction)

His eyes shout for desperate truth Yours whisper questions and secret pain combined, they stare into the depths of me clear my path to perception

(you both see into the shadows)

your breaths mingle on my skin which touch is which has lost meaning there is no division here oneness rough and smooth sharp and drawl chaos and peace the differences blend into something nearing perfection Twenty fingers twine, seeking my heart

finding my soul

I take you both into myself and in doing so perhaps I can absorb his laughter and your tenderness

(you are both strength)

two men, one woman evolve into the unknown.

******************

Knotted Noose

I was there when the songs formed in basement band trial and error in beer and sweat and frustration in epiphany I slipped away then you Slipped Away I never heard the music that was formed after you lost yourself among the masks and pharmaceuticals you've been gone so long now memories have faded down to driving, pulsing bass a worn high school jersey and the places where you liked my tongue.

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Cancer

I look in the mirror my silhouette is off-kilter I stand, lopsided and pining for something I never thought I would miss. Two hours under the knife equals twenty years of aging biology isn't supposed to work that way the math is wrong, goddammit. Now, even in my dreams, I am unwhole I am old there is hesitation in reaching hands there is hesitation in my reaching back If I could ask this disease one question it would be this : Was that truly necessary; couldn't you have left me my dreams?

***********

Cowboy Prince

Full Texas moon tinged with blood above a half-gone bottle of Jameson rolls in time with your hips your balled-up army jacket cradles my head your heartbeat cradles my senses your body is the only warmth I need against the chill in the air Zombie on vocals backed by coyotes we merge in this wonderland where a rusted out Silverado becomes a horse-drawn carriage you are my cowboy prince and a hi-top sneaker turns to glass.

******************

Yo--Ville

was what we called it I don't know why but it seemed to fit

(maybe it was a vibe thing)

music never ceased within its walls 24/7 lullaby the tunes created weren't good

(but the intentions were)

tofu was a confusing concept to my young mind and I rode on the back of a Harley in a miniskirt

(that scar is all I have left)

a drifter lived silent in the corner bedroom he carried his life in a backpack he could speak but chose not to

(and nobody thought it was strange)

The singer was a woman who dressed in tattered tie-sye she was angry and mysterious and beautiful

(I wanted her desperately)

Jesus was a man named Bob He never walked on water but we all believed he could

(if he could only find the ambition)

I was on a path back then and somewhere between there and here I strayed and lost myself.

********************

Perspective

Yes, it's true.

There are scars under my fingertips when they whisper along your thigh I run my tongue over teeth that aren't aligned with precision I have to pause ecstasy for a moment to kiss stray tears from your cheeks My arms stay around you in sleep to ward off demons I can't see

It's all true.

But what you don't realize is that your imperfections make you my perfect.

***************

Lesson

don that mask, hide yourself away whisper sweet lies in my ear lay your heart bare to be trod upon drown yourself in fear side with monsters, fight the light let the decades take their toll be the bringer of Death if you must but never whore your soul.

************

To The Unknown

Here you sleep, under cold pink marble and sentiment - well-meant but generic - in lieu of identity. I never knew your heart; if it was nurtured with kindness or made to hide away and beat in fear. I never saw your smile; if it was a shy, sweet blossoming or if it burst like sun flare, lighting up your eyes. I never heard your voice; if it was soft and melodic or booming and brash, filled with mischief. But oh I wish I could hear it now, whispering a name to etch upon this stone.

*************

Effigy

The scent of you lingers on pillowslips the mattress still holds your shape I use an old flannel for a nightshirt an acoustic guitar for a teddy bear I'm left with all the pieces that don't make up a whole You are only here in effigy and I can't find a match.

**********

Zephyr

I was numb before I met you soul shot full of novocaine I'm numb after I left you it's a numbness of the brain you whispered soft instruction a curriculum to maintain you first taught me oblivion then you taught me pain nothing much left standing now only crumbling walls remain you came in like a zephyr and went out a hurricane.

***********

Wish

Last night I discovered your words tucked away among dusty knickknacks on a back garage shelf.

I wish I knew how they had come to be hidden. I wish they had found a more dignified resting place. I wish you could have spoken them aloud. I wish I didn't understand the whys. I wish I had opened that box earlier. I wish I had never opened that box.

Last night I found your goodbye and today I wish I was still unaware that a heart can break twice.

*************

Taboo

The only two left floating high and exhausted in a sea of beer-swept men couch springs prod your spine but he is familiar comfort his lap a favorite pillow a slight shift of your head a slight shift in your friendship and lips are tracing denim steel you know the unspoken language of him you are fluent in his groans this one screams fucking finally fingers catch in your hair ghost along your inked bicep interpreting the coded message

'Break glass in case of emergency'

his cock pulses against your tongue your own thrums in time a driving, crescendoing drum beat he belongs to someone else you don't belong even to yourself together, here, you belong Wrong? Forbidden? Taboo? you wouldn't know as the taste of him floods your mouth words have ceased to exist.

***********

Horse

We flew, you and I, across years wind in my hair, dust in my nostrils wildfire under my skin we rode on trails of deception under the illusion that I held the reins.

One day you balked and bucked me hooved death came down beside my head knocked some courage loose I corralled you, slammed the gate and limped away bruised but triumphant.

I never was good at mending fences.

You've broken free and galloped back whinnied softly against my ear and I can only savor the ride as I settle into this well-worn saddle molded to the shape of me.

*************

Just Be

I first saw you on your rooftop sanctuary hiding tears behind a cigarette you'd forgotten where you put your laughter but managed to find where I'd put my soul your shadow was beautiful Just Be, I whispered you sobbed against my shoulder smoke and cologne and tears and I fell, far more than the three stories to the ground fear of not being everything Just be, I whispered, and guided you into me and it was imperfect perfection I can be strong enough for both of us the sanctuary of my mind the lesson held even if we didn't I saw you yesterday, up on stage doubt in your eyes I closed my own and whispered Baby, just be.

**************

[riskhedge]

5 Charts That Explain Disruption Investing

“Stephen… what is disruption investing exactly?”

I often get asked this question.

Most folks know me as the “disruption guy.”

I recommend disruptive companies that upend entire industries and invent the future.

In this article, I want to show you five charts that will help you understand the driving forces behind disruption.

$10-billion companies are being built faster than ever

The world’s second-largest publicly traded company Apple (AAPL) was founded in 1976.

It took 23 years for it to reach a $10 billion valuation.

Electronic cigarette company JUUL Labs just achieved a $10 billion valuation in seven months, according to venture capital database PitchBook.

As you can see in this chart, companies are hitting the $10 billion mark faster than ever.

Takeaway for Disruption Investors: Today’s truly disruptive companies are building their fortunes faster than ever before. That means their investors are getting rich faster than ever.

(By the way, in my special report, The Great Disruptors, I revealed three disruptor stocks my research suggests could double in the next few years. You can get your free copy here.)

Companies Are Being Disrupted Faster Than Ever

Since 2000, half of all Fortune 500 companies have either gone bankrupt or been acquired. They ceased to exist in less than two decades.

Over the past six decades, the average lifespan of an S&P 500 company has plunged from 58 years to 18 years.

Takeaway for Disruption Investors: Businesses are being disrupted at a faster pace than at any time in recent history. That’s why it’s so important you be on the winning side of disruption.

$100 Million to $100 in 20 Years

Scientists have long known that our DNA holds the key to our health.

The problem was that accessing the secrets within our DNA has been prohibitively expensive.

It took scientists 13 years and $3 billion to complete the Human Genome Project.

Just 17 years ago, getting your personal DNA mapped would have set you back $100 million.

But this is all changing. Today, in 2019, it costs about $1,000 to map a human’s DNA. And according to leading maker of DNA mapping machines Illumina (ILMN), within a few years it will cost only $100.

That’s one-millionth of what it cost in 2001.

You can see the staggering plunge in cost right here:

This will be a game changer in the healthcare industry.

Takeaway for Disruption Investors: Truly disruptive companies are pervasive across all industries, not just technology.

The End of the Steering Wheel

Auto companies like Ford (F) and General Motors (GM) have a special place in American history. But I’m predicting the rise of self-driving cars will gut the auto industry like a fish.

In December 2018, a company called Waymo launched a fully operational self-driving rideshare service to the public.

Waymo is a subsidiary of Alphabet, formerly known as Google (GOOG).

Waymo’s driverless fleet has already covered 11 million miles and continues to amass 1 million miles per month today. This is critical because its cars learn from every mile driven.

The company has been testing driverless cars since 2009. As you can see in the chart, its progress has gone parabolic in the past year.

Also note that Waymo is absolutely dominating its rivals.

Uber, Ford, GM, Tesla, and Nissan’s self-driving programs have only driven about two million miles combined—less than 1/5th of Waymo’s 10 million+.

Takeaway for Disruption Investors: Even age-old industries like autos are now being disrupted by nimble start-ups. And many of the next-generation disruptive trends like self-driving cars, genomics, and advanced computer chips are closer than you think.

Disruption Has Completely Changed the Advertising Industry

In 2017, for the first time in history, companies spent more on digital advertising than on TV advertising, according to IPG Mediabrands.

Take a look at the rise of digital ads on this chart. The American internet ad industry alone now rakes in $90 billion a year… as much as the global toy industry.

This trend has helped Google (GOOG) and Facebook (FB) to grow into two of the world’s six largest publicly traded companies. They earn almost all their revenue from ads: 98% of Facebook’s revenue and 87% of Google’s comes from selling online ads.

Takeaway for Disruption Investors: As old mediums of entertainment like TV become obsolete, pay close attention to where companies are shifting their spending.

Have you Missed Out on Amazon, Google, and Netflix-level profits of 500%+? Here’s Your Second Chance

If you looking for stocks coiled for big gains, grab my recent special report The Great Disruptors: 3 Breakthrough Stocks Set to Double Your Money.

In it, you’ll find in-depth research and exact stock tickers along with our buy prices and target prices—so you can invest confidently today.

These stocks will hand you 100% gains as they disrupt whole industries. Claim your free copy here

.

[coupleretreatsw]

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