#dabbing showdown

[multi-level-shipper]

Showdown Bandit Inktober #5: “Anything (but as a string)”

What if the puppets...WERE the strings? 

[ask-jack-spicer]

Hit ‘em with a dab!

[thenamesblurrito]

sat down to finish the rainmakers, finished this instead, oh well!

Tailgate is Very Good at getting places he is not supposed to be, such as right smack dab in the middle of a showdown between Autobots and Decepticons. to be fair to him, how else is he supposed to encounter his mysterious celebrity superhero crush Cyclonus?? it’s not like the guy hangs around for autographs post-battle! but uh, mmmmaybe don’t distract him right when Ultra Magnus is calling down a lightning strike, yeah?

[221bshrlocked]

This picture has been doing things to me all day long and I just-

Shutting off the lights of your office, you sigh in relief at finally being able to leave this building after what may have been the longest fucking week of your life. You genuinely can’t remember when you came in this week and you shake your head as you look around and see the state of the desks across the floor. You stand still for a moment, unable to hold back from laughing at how the past few days played out. You don’t recall a case ever being this difficult, and you silently pray that you don’t get a case like that ever again. It took a toll on everyone from beginning to end, and the culmination, or rather, the showdown that unfolded a few hours ago was the cherry on top. Looking down at your feet, you slip out of your shoes and hang them around your shoulder as you make your way to the elevator, hoping that you don’t get a call anytime soon after the shitshow that was today.

You look up from your phone as you walk towards the elevators, only to see the lights in Marcus’ office shining brightly at the end of the hallway. Thinking that he probably forgot them, you walk towards his office and pray that it was unlocked just so you don’t hear about it once he comes back in a few days. Fixing your bag, you turn the knob and push open the door and reach for the lights without really looking around.

“Leave ’em,” you flinch as soon as you hear Marcus’ voice quietly asking from the corner of his room as something clutters loudly on a metal plate. Turning around, your eyes widen in horror and you drop your bag at the sight that greets you. You slam your hand on top of your mouth when you look at Marcus as he bites into his shirt and dabs a cotton ball on top of a still-bleeding wound across the side of his stomach. He looks up for a moment and attempts to smile while still biting his shirt to lift it up, only to wince in pain when he touches the wound a little too long with the disinfectant.

You can’t take your eyes off of him, the way his muscles flex and relax as he tries to clean himself up without irritating his wound any further. Somewhere in the back of your mind, you’re aware that you shouldn’t be ogling him as he literally bleeds, and you swallow the lump in your throat when he pushes his jeans down his hips a little to prevent them from catching any of the dried blood. You knew that Marcus was fit, and he wasn’t as built as the other agents around, but you couldn’t deny the fire sizzling in the depths of your stomach as he grunted and contracted his muscles while he slowly ran the cotton ball across his skin. The lights in his room weren’t making this any better and you wondered how someone’s skin could appear so inviting and smooth under the harsh florescent lights casting down rays and shadows in the most unfortunate of moments. He was beautiful, in every sense of the word, and your heart rate elevated when you saw him look up at you again and blink at you in defeat, as if he was wondering why you were standing there and staring at him at such a vulnerable moment. When he spills some more of the liquid onto the cotton and the gauze, and tries to wipe at the gash, you shake your head and hiss along with him when he flinches and throws his head back in pain.

“Oh my god Marcus, what the fuck?” Your brain finally catches on and you run towards him, lifting up his shirt away from his mouth and pushing his hand to the side to get a look at the wound.

“Jesus Christ, we gotta get you to the hospital! I’m not sure if-”

“Stop, we- fuck, we’re not going to the hospital for something so trivial. I’m o-okay.” For a second, your heart skips a beat at hearing him swear so hoarsely, and you hate the effect his growled excuse has on your breathing, but you set aside your feelings and look up at him, about to attempt to convince him that he was an idiot and that you definitely needed to take him to the hospital.

What you find staring back at you breaks your heart and you fist your hand into his shirt tightly when he puts down the cotton ball and grabs your wrist.

“Why? Marcus, why would you not tell the medics about this? They were around the entire afternoon!” You frown at him when he sighs and shakes his head before putting down the bottle of antiseptic and looking back at you again. He tries to lower his shirt but you narrow your eyes at him and push his arms away, not giving him a chance as you pull the shirt over his head and ask him to lean against his desk. He does as you say and says nothing, barely even hissing again when you pick up the cotton and soak it in the liquid. You look up and apologize when he bites into his lower lip and reaches for your forearm as a reflex. The heat radiating from his body is too much and it takes every ounce of control you’ve trained yourself to reach throughout the years to not lean over and kiss his chest and mark his neck.

Marcus was a beautiful man, a word that you didn’t use lightly with just anyone. You were afraid when he came into the department a year ago that he would just be another one of those entitled assholes, but he was unlike anyone you’ve ever met. He was understanding and intelligent, detail-oriented when necessary and not too anal about the things that didn’t matter too much. He always made sure everyone was on the same page in every assignment the team received and he never once made anyone feel inferior to him. You tried to focus on all of those characteristics to prevent yourself from doing something stupid like leaning into him and kissing his soft lips. You could tell he was staring at you but you paid him no mind and continued to carefully administer the several other liquids across the gash.

“It’s not that deep, I just- I didn’t want to distract anyone. I didn’t even realize there was anything until a few hours ago.”

“A few hours ago? God, Marcus are you making it your life’s mission to piss me off for the dumbest fucking reasons?” You snap at him and regret it as soon as you throw away the cotton and look at him. He looks properly reprimanded and he whispers a quick apology before turning his attention to the flesh wound again.

 “I’m sorry I- that was out of line. I didn’t mean to snap at you, it’s just...Marcus, you’re important to m- to us...as important as everyone else on this team. I’m not saying that because you’re the boss, I really do mean it.” You hope he didn’t catch the slip-up and when he smiles and nod quietly, you sigh in relief and grab some band-aid and gauze.

“Let me know if I hurt you?” You ask as you softly put the band-aid across the wound, thankful that it was no longer bleeding and was at least not as inflamed as it was a few minutes ago.

“I wouldn’t mind getting hurt by you.”

The words hang in the air like a smokey haze and your hands stop for a second before they push the band-aid against the skin. You refuse to look at him as you apply some gauze on top just for extra measure and when you’re done, you begin to throw everything on the metal plate and pray that you can keep it together long enough to avoid his scrutinizing gaze.

You’re about to walk towards the trash can when Marcus reaches out and grabs your wrist. You look down at his hand and feel your chest tighten the harder his grip tightens around you. Slowly, Marcus pulls you towards him and takes the plate out of your hand, not caring for the way you’re practically whimpering at his touches as he drags you to stand in between his legs.

“Look at me.” He whispers lowly and you shake your head in response, choosing to focus on his chest rather than his piercing eyes that would instantly recognize what you’ve been feeling towards him ever since he came, what you’ve been trying to hide from him and everyone else on this floor ever since he smiled at you and introduced himself.

“Sweetheart, please. Look at me.” Marcus pleads again and if it weren’t for the tone of his voice as he begged you to give him that last bit of attention, you would have ran out of the office and handed in your resignation. As you raise your eyes and meet his gaze, you’re taken aback by the soft glow surrounding his broad shoulders and his bronze skin. The lights of his office looked a little dimmer than usual but the shadows they cast across his skin made you feel envious. You wanted to caress his skin the way those lights were hugging him right now.

“What were you going to say?”

Somehow, you know exactly what he’s referring to and you gulp down your anxiety before you take one of his hands into your and raise it to your lips. Marcus holds his breath when he feels your lips kiss his palms, then his wrists, and he doesn’t realize that you’re still staring at him until he looks away from your mouth and to your shining eyes again.

“You’re important...to me. I- I don’t want to lose you, I’m not sure what I’ll do if I lose you. I know how inappropriate this is but I swear I’ve-”

You don’t get to finish the rest of your sentence because Marcus pulls you into his chest and smashes his lips against yours. You’re shocked for a total of three seconds before you melt against him and throw your arms across his neck. He wraps his own firm hands around your waist and tilts his head to the side as he devours your lips. You’re vaguely aware of the wound on his side and try your best to not lean into him too much so you don’t hurt him. But Marcus, sweet Marcus, never half-asses anything and he continues to bring you flush against him while his hand reaches up and grabs the back of your neck to force you to meet his touches better. You gasp at the intensity he’s showing you and don’t bother to fight him, completely surrendering to the desperation wrapping its leather around the two of you.

When the need to breathe becomes too great, you pull away but keep yourself as attached to him as possible, afraid that this was all a dream and that you’d wake up any second and forget what it was like to have Marcus pressing you against him.

“Fuck, I’ve been wanting to do that for so long baby. If I’d known it would take me getting shot for you to finally tell me how you feel, I would have-”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence.” You warn him as you nuzzle into his neck and kiss across his jaw. Marcus sighs and throws his head back, giving you more access to his beautiful skin and his warm, soft body.

“H-how about we finish this somewhere more private?” Marcus asks as you continue to leave a trail of kisses across his body and when you don’t respond right away, he combs his fingers into your hair and tugs you roughly away from him. The moan that escapes your throat is absolutely sinful and you almost apologize for reacting in such a way when you notice the smile etched on his handsome features.

“What do you say sweetheart? Wanna come back to my place and...get a little more acquainted?” He trails off the rest of the question and you get the sense that he was going to say something else but chose to tone it down so you don’t feel more embarrassed.

“Yes please.” You nod frantically at him and look to his lips again while licking your own. He leans down and gives you a quick peck on the lips before bumping his nose against yours. It’s awfully intimate and sweet, yet you can’t help but think over what the rest of the night has in store for you.

“Fuck baby, I do love hearing you beg.”

[amberbeach]

'BEATEN AND BROKEN'

gif belongs to me

He always tried to appear unharmed when he entered the house. But his eyes and the slight twitch of his brow revealed how much his body ached with each step he took. You could never sleep when he never returned home, knowing he was out there in the city - likely injured.

When he did finally return home, you had the first aid kit that was bigger than the average households, but you wanted to be prepared for anything. And when he returned home, his hand on his side, you were by his side immediately, guiding him to the sofa.

Carter sighed as he took of his shirt, wincing and you stepped in to help him.

His eyes were on the floor as you dabbed the solution against his cuts, missing the way your eyes teared up at the sight of the bruises littering his side. He knew you wanted answers, so he explained what happened during their latest showdown with Vypra and how the team had lost the fight that night.

You blinked them away, turning to fetch a bandage from the kit, wrapping it around his waist. Once you were satisfied that he was going to be alright, you packed everything away, and took the bag to the cupboard in the hallway, letting a few tears fall.

You went to the bathroom, closing the door quietly, before sitting on the edge of the bathtub, covering your mouth as you let more tears fall.

You hadn't realized how much time had passed until Carter knocked on the door. "Everything alright in there?"

You wiped your cheeks, "Y-Yeah, I'll be out in a minute."

Carter's eyebrows furrowed when he heard the tremble in your voice, turning the handle, entering when it was unlocked. You turned, drying your tears on a towel.

"Y/N..." His concerned eyes met your teary ones.

He reached out to rbing you to his chest, but you moved away, shaking your head. "You should watch what you're doing -"

"I can hug my girlfriend." Carter brought you into a warm embrace, kissing your head. He noticed the way your hands hesitantly rested on his back and knew why you had hidden away. "I'm fine."

"I counted twenty six bruises, and at least five cuts. You are not fine."

Carter sighed, pressing his lips against your temple.

"One day I won't be enough..." You began, making him pull away to meet your gaze. "One day I'm afraid that you won't come back at all."

"I'll always come back." Carter placed his hands on your arms. "I promise."

You stepped away, "Don't make promises you can't keep, Carter." You walked away, heading upstairs and Carter sighed as he watched you go.

He steered clear for twenty minutes before coming upstairs, getting changed into his pyjamas, looking at you over his shoulder as he sat on the bed. You laid with your back turned to him, not sparing him a glance.

"You're right. I can't promise that I will always come back because each threat is different - stronger even. But I'll always fight to return home to you." As he spoke, he laid down behind you, placing a hand on your arm. "I love you." He kissed your shoulder and you closed your eyes, holding back fresh tears.

You turned around to meet his gaze, "I love you too."

Carter placed a hand on your cheek, kissing you tenderly. He wrapped his arms around you when you both pulled away, and you rested your head on his chest gently.

You were always concerned for his wellbeing during his day job as a fireman, but when he told you he had joined the Rangers, you were far from thrilled - aware the danger he would be facing was different. The mosters he was facing were reported on the news, and you feared that one day Vypra would succeed and you would be waiting for a man who would never return home.

But you knew that no matter what happened, Carter would go through hell if it meant seeing you again.

[shadow-feather]

Oh ya know, arin hanson dabbing at scribble showdown

[juls-writes]

find the word!

more find the word! I have two tags rn so I'm just compiling them - @pinespittinink gave me sunlight, ribs and lungs, and @legiomiam has given me leg, build, egg, spin, and suddenly.

sunlight

On the outside of the amorphous dome of swirling darkness is sunlight, holding the entire thing up like an oversized circus tent as high as the clouds. Light and dark are opposites – irresistibly drawn to each other – so play them against one another, and they act in tandem. It’s actually super cool, but I don’t think Ivos would appreciate a lesson at this moment. If he knew he could simply run to one end and duck under the spell, he’d hate me more than he already does.

ribs

“Sleep well?” he asks. He leans back again, and I can taste the alcohol on his breath. “Your shoulder’s digging into my ribs.” “Then try and get away,” he replies, with what I can only assume to be a shit-eating grin.

lungs

I lift a hand to wipe blood from my chin and then swing a backhand across Delano’s cheek. In the silence following the slap, he grins through red staining his stubbled jaw and lifts his knee into my gut. He uproots me effortlessly and throws me down into the underbrush. My lungs empty in a fell swoop, and I find myself both grateful and annoyed at the soft mossy ground eagerly soaking a chill through my robe.

leg

I cough. Feign exhaustion. Struggle, fake, against his grip. Let my legs give out.

Delano doesn’t let me fall. The crowd is cheering, jeering. There’s a silent disappointment somewhere in there I hope I’m not making up. After years as the most powerful sorcerer on the continent, the showdown between me and Delano – a man with ever more fantastical a reputation than me, without even using magic – should have been incredible. A close match, a spectacle.

Not a street brawl over in under a minute.

build

It is a jungle of a city, replacing the real, natural one that once existed here and is now relegated to the space between buildings and the occasional abandoned plot. Walls slice through in misshapen rings, relics of old town borders now grown past. The palace sits smack dab in the centre, where I stand soaking in the bird’s eye view. Across from me, a sloping tiled rooftop leads the way to another series of towers, clambering over another as if in a race for conquest.

egg

This is supposed to be shameful, I’m sure, but the crowd watching me is silent. There’s no egg or produce thrown my way, nor are there any cheers or raucous celebration for Ivos and Theoreos in catching me. The eyes I do find, and the expressions I see, are more reverent than anything. I know it. They know it. I did them a favor.

Doesn’t mean I’m not still marked as insane. Doesn’t mean I’m not a criminal.

spin

“Yeranos,” he says, like he’s talking to a cat with behaviour issues. 

“Delano,” I reply, in the same tone but far stupider.

I turn the rope into a ten foot cobra.

Delano curses and I run again, throwing the tail behind me. This time I veer sharply to the left, grab a tree to spin myself around, and as Delano drops the snake and runs the other way, I catch him in a grapple.

suddenly

My throat’s gone dry. I wish it was just the heat and exhaustion from the fight, but it’s neither. I hate myself suddenly. I used to think I did, when I made poor choices or effectively ostracized myself from society, but this feels like my soul is rotting. Destiny was supposed to heal me and send me on a path righteous for myself, in spite of the world and its rules; there was no reason to believe it would hurt so much.

I know @legiomiam is always game for the tags (and so am I, fwiw) - otherwise this is open to anyone that wants it! Your words are method, rumor, impossible, tear, continue

[markleesthighs]

Can you make a part 2 for “Forbidden Moonlight”? I’d like to see some gun fighting, some car chasing, some actual mafia jaemin action with the “I would die and I would kill for you!” kinda spirit? I mean the one who requested it has great theme ideas, it is definitely chef’s kiss and I don’t think it should be left off in just 1 part. We gotta know what the ambassador offered to jaemin.

-i'm on a break, so i finally got a chance to write it! I Sorry requests have been taking long, haven't gotten a chance to write in a while. I hope you all enjoy!

read part 1 here

You missed school for the rest of the day. You didn't even have a chance to explain your situation to Jaemin, feeling guilty. In your limo ride home your dad kept scolding and yelling to you about Jaemin. He went on and on about how stupid you were. To be fair, you had no idea Jaemin was associated with the mafia as well as your dad so you brushed off his comments. When you arrived home you didn't bother to talk to your parents as you stormed up to your room.

"There you are, m/n."

"JAE-"

Jaemin rushed to shut your mouth with his hand.

"How did you know where I was?"

"I have a tracker on your phone." "You psycho."

"But you love this psycho."

"What are you doing here?"

"I thought since you've had a pretty shitty day that you'd want to come with me to a drag racing competition."

"Jaemin, you know I'd love to but my parents-"

"God, have you never snuck out before? Just do the thing in the movies where you use pillows to make it seem like you're in bed sleeping."

"Fine."

You piled up your pillows and covered them with a blanket and added a wig to really sell it.

"Let's go."

Jaemin climbed down the lattice below your window that had vines growing on it. You rolled your eyes figuring that's how he got up here. You also saw the busted circuit breaker box, showing how Jaemin got past your tight security. Jaemin jumped over your gate and helped you up and over for your escape. He pulled you onto his motorcycle and you both rode off to the underground drag race arena.

When you arrived it was everything you imagined. Intimidating guys and girls left and right. The security stopped you (clearly since you didn't fit in with your preppy outfit) but Jaemin reassuring the guard saying you were with him. You were expecting Jaemin to be one of the top betters or backers behind a driver but Jaemin started to get changed into a racer uniform. Part of you was worried and Jaemin could tell.

"Don't worry baby, I've done this a dozen times."

You still pouted.

"And yes, I've won every time, and I'll win again for you."

He pecked your lips.

"You better."

He chuckled at your comment as he got into his car. You were standing among his mafia members will visibly worried.

"On your mark racers!"

You heard the loudest rumbling you've heard come out of a car, covering your ears.

"Get set!"

The smell of burnt rubber came towards your nose and the cars became even louder.

"Go!"

The cars sped off with a huge cloud of smoke blowing behind them causing you to cough.

"First time?"

A very tall handsome guy looked down at you that looked like he could tear you to pieces in a second. You nodded in response.

"You must be m/n. Jaemin's talked a lot about you, I'm Johnny one of his members in his...company."

"I know he's in the mafia business, you know?"

"Oh, well at least he told you the truth."

Your conversation was interrupted by the sound of the cars approaching you heard all the screams and cheers as you saw Jaemin's car approaching. But you also saw the other one not too far behind. It was intense watching the cars quickly approach the finish line, your heart was beating rapidly with adrenaline. Jaemin was leading before the other car caught up and they kept going back and forth it was causing you to have anxiety. But at the last second, you saw Jaemin pull ahead and crossed the finish line. You and the other members screamed loud cheering and hooting. Jaemin got out of his car and you ran up and hugged him.

"I was so worried."

"Aw, my baby was scared? What did I tell you I'm a professional."

You saw people exchanging money and people cashing out after betting on Jaemin, you assumed everyone bets on Jaemin. Suddenly gunshots were fired and you heard cop sirens getting closer.

"Fuck, which one of you called the cops?!"

Jaemin grabbed your hand along with the other members following you to the back alley where their motorcycles were. A few gunshots were fired in your direction and Jaemin blocked you from the shots. You saw a bullet hit Jaemin.

"Fuck!" "Jaemin! Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine, m/n, if it came down to it, I would die for you."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Can you two lovebirds quit it for one second!?" Mark yelled.

You hopped onto Jaemin's motorcycle as he sped up getting ready to leave. Johnny and others were yelling at him to go ahead and that they'll hold the cops off. Jaemin thanked them and you two sped off into the streets and onto the highway back to his house. Luckily, you both arrived safely at the house with Jaemin's guards being attentive. You sat silently in his living room awaiting the other members who were slowly trickling into the mansion. You saw the maids rushing to give Jaemin a first aid kit before he brushed them off saying he could do it himself. Jaemin was struggling to reach the bullet on the back of his shoulder and he was cutely trying to reach to remove it. You giggled telling him you could remove it for him.

"Are you sure m/n?"

"Yeah, I'm studying to become a doctor so don't worry. "

Jaemin stared as you remove the bullet from his shoulder as he hissed you apologized kissing his cheek. He looked at you stare at his shoulder with such care as you delicately dabbed his wound with rubbing alcohol. As he thought about it he never had someone who cared for him this much, most of them wanted him for sex, money, or reputation. You'd always ask him if something hurt and warn him about you stitching up his wound for him. You wrapped his arm up and you looked up at him to make sure he was ok and Jaemin looked at you with pure love in his eyes. He smiled at you and softly kissed your lips.

"God I love you."

You laughed "I love you too, Jaemin."

He kissed you passionately, leading your kissing to become faster and deeper. As Jaemin was about to take off his shirt, one of his members interrupted the two of you.

Jaemin groaned screaming "What the fuck is it now?! Can't you see I'm busy?!"

"It's Mr. y/l/n."

Jaemin immediately froze, got off of you, and basically commanded that you stay where you were. But you weren't about to miss a showdown between Jaemin and your father, so you followed shortly after. You eavesdropped around the corner of the entrance where your dad and his associates stood along with Jaemin and his associates.

"I know you have him. I want my son back. I don't need someone like you to ruin his future."

"Funny, because last time I believe you offered me a lifetime get out of jail free cards, airway travels, and millions of cash whenever I asked."

"You know that wasn't the deal Jaemin, I told you to leave my son alone for those offers, but you don't seem to hold up your end of the bargain."

"What can I say? Despite you being a complete dickhead, your son is quite a lovely darling."

"Well, would your 'lovely darling' like to see this?"

Your father pulled up a video on a laptop his associates were holding, it was Jaemin and his buds in a club, but you can clearly hear what they were saying.

"Jaemin, I heard you 'found the one' you lucky piece of shit," Johnny spoke.

"Yeah, he's been treating him to everything, it's funny how those lovebirds act around each other," Taeyong added.

"There's no way Na Jaemin found someone to 'settle with', boss you're basically a god, you can get whoever the hell you want." Jaehyun drunkenly spoke.

"I can't believe you got lucky with m/n, he's basically the ideal leverage we need to take this gang to the next level," Lucas said.

Your heart stopped, leverage? What the hell was going on? Jaemin was still silent at this point.

Ten then jumped in "There's no fucking way you're actually in love with m/n right? He's not even that good-looking."

"Fuck yeah, the only thing good about him is his daddy" Haechan responded.

"Don't worry guys you know the only reason I'm keeping m/n is so I can milk out m/n's daddy of his money like a cash cow," Jaemin spoke.

You felt the tears starting to pool up in your eyes as they silently fell down your cheek. Is this what Jaemin really thought about you? What the fuck? So all of this was a joke? You were just fucking money to him? You hated yourself for thinking Jaemin actually loved you. Your dad was right, you didn't need a liar and manipulator like him in your life.

After Jaemin's words were played your father's laptop closed.

"What's wrong, Jaemin? Why so silent?"

"You can't do this."

"Who's going to stop me, think about it, it's my word against yours."

"Blackmail is a fucking cheap way to get what you want."

"How else did you think I got to this position? Beating those who get in my way. Now got get my son, get him for me, or else I'll send this to him to watch for eternity."

"...Yes, Mr. y/l/n."

"Oh and for the future Jaemin, do not think about seeing m/n ever again. You know the consequences."

"...Yeah yeah."

You quickly scurried back to the couch and wiped your tears off your face. You pretended to lie down and be asleep. Jaemin shook you to wake you up.

"Hey, baby?"

"Jaemin? What's up?"

"You...you have to go..."

"W-why?" You said trying not to break in front of him. You gazed into his eyes, is this really someone who didn't love you? You can't trust anyone anymore.

"Your dad is a ruthless man, and he has leverage on me, it's something that will change the way you look at me forever. To spare you the pain, I have to let you go now."

"J-Jaemin...fuck you."

You got up immediately but Jaemin grabbed your wrist.

"m/n...just know that I still love you, I sw-"

"You're just a fucking liar, I hope milking my dad's cash cow was worth losing the person who loved you most."

Jaemin realized you heard everything and was stunned. He watched you walk over to your father who embraced you in his arms with fake responses saying how he was so worried and other bullshit like that. Jaemin ran out to the front in hopes of you turning back. He wanted you to turn back, he doesn't want to lose the love of his life. He didn't want your dad's money, he wanted you.

"m/n! Please! I'm so sorry!" Jaemin was crying pleading on his knees.

He looked up at you, the full moon was behind you, beaming through your beautiful hair, reflecting off your soft smooth skin, just like the first night he met you. But this image was different. The moon shined on your tears and the streaks that fell down your cheek. He saw you with endless tears as each drop sparkled like a crystal in the light. You looked down at him and slapped his face.

"Fuck you Na Jaemin, I hope this was worth it."

You hopped into your car with the moonlight shining through your window as you took one last glance at Jaemin. He was broken and defeated. No wish on the moon could save him now.

[dappercritter]

Godzilla vs Kong: Brutally Honest Thoughts

(Took me long enough, eh? Depending on home video releases be like that.)

So first things first, I have a confession to make: I spoiled the movie before I watched it. I was impatient and they had only announced an HBO Max premiere in the states and a theatrical run in Canada at the time. Afterward, I got heads-up from a friend and immersed myself in the opinions of those lucky enough to see it early. I’m just saying that I have some preconceived opinions that I’m sticking to.

That said, Godzilla vs Kong turned out to be more fun than I expected! But you already knew that. Everyone did. The two kings of movie monsters had their rematch and this time it was with glorious Hollywood SFX powering it this time.

The human story was fun but it’s clear they stopped trying at this point. Team Kong stole my heart, especially Jia. Team Godzilla (although the Conspiracy Crew would be a more fitting term since they spend more time chasing down mysteries than trying to back or understand Godzilla) was more fun than I expected and their dynamic was surprisingly enjoyable. Bernie is actually kind of funny, it's nice to see Madison acting more assertive, and Josh was fine--he was the only sane man of the bunch but he was also the butt of the jokes. Still, all the hardcore conspiracy jokes got old fast and it feels off seeing the daughter of two scientists turn into an edgy conspiracy crackpot. Why not an edgy science major?

Team Apex are fun villains, especially Walter Simmons who's a great megalomaniacal CEO type, but Ren Serizawa is a joke. I like his actor's performance but he's just another footnote. Nobody bats an eye at his last name, although the only heroes he interacts with are Nathan Lind and he just misses Team Godzilla. He really could have just been any other villain, but instead, they had to sully Serizawa’s legacy further while robbing a good actor of some interesting material. (As is, it turns out he was just an egotistical jerk with daddy issues--an easy puzzle to solve on day one--after all...)

However, I still cannot and will not approve of the fact that somebody thought it would be a good idea to make the heroes of a sci-fi story into hardcore conspiracy theorists in this day and age. Likewise, I’m not a huge fan of how they essentially made the Hollow Earth into its own universe complete with a crazy portal and an environment with its own laws of physics, nor am I totally crazy about the huge leap in technology that was made between this and KOTM, or G’14 for that matter.

The monsters as awesome as they are, are the biggest mixed bag in the show.

Kong is at his best in ages, and while I am all for the new heroic warrior character that Legendary have crafted and I acknowledge that making him a worthy opponent for their god-tier Godzilla was going to be a hurdle, I think they did a splendid job. Seeing Kong using agility and acrobatics was a glorious sight to behold, and something about Kong becoming a tool-user and weapon wielder just feels right. It’s a far better demonstration of Kong as a “thinking animal” (*wink, wink*).

I’m much less thrilled about their treatment of his greatest opponent ever. After everything they’ve done to build up Godzilla as the incredible force of neutral good fighting to maintain balance and all the build up to ancient rivalry debating back to a great Titan war--even going as far as putting his name in front Kong’s this time!-- they’ve reduced Godzilla back to glorified bully for Kong. He only gets the minimum amount of sympathy from the cast of his movie before they go off to deal with the conspiracy plot or focus on Kong and the Hollow Earth. Worse still, he is somehow more powerful and more aggressive than ever for a good chunk of the movie which leads to an outcome I’m sorry to say we all saw coming. Somehow, I suspect that the reason behind this was how Wingard cited Godzilla vs. Mothra, vs. Destoryah, and Shin-Godzilla as influences for the monsters scale and story, which while cool and all, are all movies where he was played up as a mostly stoic antagonist rather than a three-dimensional character like Kong. (Though ironically vs. Destoroyah and Shin did a better job of making Godzilla feel more sympathetic and in both of them he was a walking nuclear reactor meltdown.)

Due to the unfortunate time constraints of the three-way deal between Toho, WB, and Universal at the time this was in production, Kong was unable to secure a proper sequel that could develop his skillset like Godzilla’s did. Nevermind the fact the filmmakers completely surrendered to the “nothing matters but the monsters” mentality that a chunk of the fanbase has been spouting since this universe unofficially kicked off almost 10 years ago. (Sidenote: Oh god, I’m turning in an old fart already.) As a result, the movie trips over itself trying to set up Godzilla and Kong’s rivalry as well as building up Kong as a worthy opponent to Godzilla while expanding on their shared lore, and as a result countless plot points set up in in the previous movie and tie-in movie are thrown out the window. I’m sorry to say but in spite of all hopes and illusions of grandeur, it’s safe to this damn thing is a Kong movie with Godzilla as the bad guy.

...at least until HE shows up. Yup, Mechagodzilla. The biggest spoiled twist of the centuries steals the show so the movie can pull a Dawn of Justice. But! It does it much better than the fractured DCEU’s most controversial entry ever could. Mechagodzilla’s inclusion gets a decent amount of build up thanks to Team Godzilla/the Conspiracy Crew, and when he shows up, does he make an impression! At first, I wasn’t sure how to feel about his inclusion or his design, but I’ve come to like this one. He’s basically a kaiju terminator built in Godzilla’s image made purely out of heavy machinery piloted by the best Ghidorah head. It’s a jarring change of pace compared to previous MechaG’s but it grows on you after a while. With the abundance of weaponry stuffed into him, he feels like a fitting update of the original killing machine, and even if his inclusion feels like an easy way out of the big showdown, it’s fun to see him played as a literal colossal heel for the kings to team up against. Not to mention he looks shockingly good with those red highlights. However, one still can’t help but wonder how and why he was made in this universe, or how he feels like pure heavy machinery one minute and then an extra-large Ultron unit the next.

As for the the big throwdowns we’ve all been waiting for... well, we’re still in the mixed bag deparment. While the fights are all exciting and excellently choreographed, and benefit from some more eclectic lighting and cinematograph, I’m sorry to say that as far as the rematch of the century goes they dropped the ball on this one.

Don’t get me wrong, the fights are all great in their own ways, but there’s a drastic change in the feeling of weight and power with the monsters. Godzilla, Kong, and even Mechagodzilla all feel strangely floaty in most of their fights. One moments they feel like true behemoths shaking the very earth with every movement and then it’s like they’re in Godzilla Unleashed, running, jumping, and throwing each other around with speed that feels that almost makes you wonder if the Hollow Earth’s gravity inversion stuff is leaking out into the world. While it’s all perfectly cool, you can’t help but wonder how Kong is able to leap between aircraft carriers and buildings, when Godzilla got the ability to blow a hole through the Earth itself, or how a colossal machine is able to move so nimbly or why it has to be flashing blue all the time.

It’s fascinating and fun but you just can’t help but wonder how we got from almost posthuman disaster and war movies exploring how we’re at the mercy of the ancient almost mythical forces beyond our comprehension, we’ve found ourselves smack dab in the middle of Bayformers meets Jurassic World levels of Hollywood absurdity where anything and everything can and will happen in the name of getting to the monster fights. Although I can’t say I’m surprised given the director’s take on Death Note made some questionable choices with it’s take on the infamous cast while still coming up with some genuinely inspired choices. Still, all things considered we could have gotten worse compared to ther cinematic universes made by WB and Universal.

As for some misc. thoughts to close up this rambling mess:

-The soundtrack is fantastic. A great continuation of the feel of Skull Island’s mixtape with some truly wonderful picks. Special mention goes to the opening and ending songs, and they GOT AN ELVIS PRESLEY SONG IN HERE! YES!!! The three kings of pop culture together at last!

-While this movie didn’t need to be any more overstuffed, it would have been nice if the rest of the Titans didn’t disappear entirely from this movie. I get that Godzilla: Dominion already explained what happened to them all more or less, but it really is a missed oppurtunity that we never got to see another Titan war. Or Rodan attacking Kong to avenge his pterosaur bretheren from days long past. Speaking of which...

-“Save Mothra” jokes be damned, Mothra would have been a welcome gues star, not just to help break up the big fight, but to show off Godzilla’s softer, more protective side. And yes, I want more Mothzilla. Shut up, we deserve it.

-Boy, Monarch sure does a whole lot of nothing up-top, huh?

-The cinematography is a great update but there’s a little too much neon lighting, especially in the Apex HQ and the Hollow Earth throne room. It feels like they’re trying just a little too hard to sell the more futuristic, Hollywood sci-fi feel.

-The score is... great but not that great. Of course, I’ve always had mixed feelings about Tom Holkenburg (AKA Junkie XL)’s music. I liked Kong’s themes, but they REALLY dropped the ball with Godzilla’s theme. Mechagodzilla’s works really well as long you ignore that it’s just Godzilla’s theme in this movie with an ominious choir added in.

-The new Hollow Earth creatures are all perfectly fine. Actually, I thought they were another highlight! Especially the Warbats, Hellhawks, and Doug the Titanus Foetodon Man.

-I want to do a release the extended cut campaign but I don’t think any of us have the energy for that s**t anymore.

[chaotic-tired-fox]

Things at Scribble Showdown Dublin that were the best

The on going joke about Spice Bags and Chinese Restaurants that only people from Ireland would understand

Ross spelling Guinness with one N and the whole crowd freaking out about it

James drawing a pint of Guinness like a Duff Beer from The Simpsons and the whole crowd freaking out about it

Ross’s story about downing a whole pint of Guinness in one go and being unable to move for a few minutes

Arin deep dabbing and everyone talking about his ass

The little six year old that got picked to give an answer to Arin about who they thought was the most annoying person in the world to them.

Someone in the crowd: You

Arin: I was asking MATILDA! Go ahead sweetie. :)

Matilda: The news. (Spelt with two Ns drawn by Domics)

The little kid near me that held up a handmade poster for James and made him smile.

Jaiden drawing a kids little brother for the thing that scares them most in the world.

Ross’s drawing of Mr Tayto as something no one would want to be chased by. He was T posing and everything. Nightmare fuel.

Literally most of the crowd being LGBTQ+ I felt right at home :’)

RTGame was apparently in the crowd and no one noticed.

Ross’s family got to see him preform live! He mentioned they’d be upset about him spelling Guinness wrong

Arin being an absolute amazing host and looking fabulous in his gold sparkly suit.

Domics 10 second drawing of Sonic that was just a blue blob.

[ruzek-halstead]

Hello. #86 and #100 for this mashup. Upstead, please :)

Thanks!

i didn’t mean to turn you on & accidentally saving the day 

ok this one really got me thinking lmao and it’s probably going to be hella short but let’s get to it

they were working a case and trying to track down a few high-level drug dealers who were trying to go underground. the team was hitting all their last known addresses and frequent stops in hopes they would catch a break but it wasn’t seeming likely 

jay and hailey finished checking out their list of addresses and decided to make a coffee run before they made it back to the district. hailey stayed in the car while jay ran inside the coffeeshop (they chose one near their last address bc i said so) 

as jay’s waiting in line, the customer being served turns around to walk out and jay recognizes him from facial rec matches and the pictures on their board. the guy sees jay’s badge and instantly throws his coffee all over jay and makes a run for the door (lmao sorry jay)

jay takes off after him, weaving down an alley, while hailey slips over the console into the driver’s seat and floors it to where they’re headed. as she comes to a harsh stop, she watches jay tackle the guy, but he doesn’t go down easy and there’s a small scuffle. eventually jay gets him in a chokehold and hailey jumps out of the truck to arrest him. 

when she gets him into the back seat, she turns back to jay and she’s slightly laughing bc he's covered in coffee. “don’t even” he grumbles, but hailey’s a bit distracted bc she wasn't expecting his little showdown to excite her as much as it did

when they get down to the district, jay excuses himself to clean himself up and hailey brings down their suspect to platt so one of the officers can process him. hailey goes into their locker room, looking for jay. he’s in front of the sink, his shirt off as he dabs at his chest and abs to wipe off the coffee. 

she creeps up behind him, and stretches up on her tiptoes to kiss his neck and mumbles, “mmm, you smell good” but he’s all grumpy and he’s like “i smell like coffee” and hailey goes “exactly”

so she pulls on his arm to turn him around and he’s all pouty and covered/smells like coffee and hailey is weirdly turned on for some reason so she pulls him into a kiss. jay gives in for a second but then he pulls back all confused, “hails we’re at work” but she kisses him again and mumbles “i really don’t care” so they make out for a little, maybe hailey gets some under the shirt action but they bring it back down to pg when they hear a noise outside 

jay smirks as hailey helps him clean off the rest of the coffee, “what was that for” but and hailey just shrugs, smiling, “you’re just really hot when you take down a suspect”

and jay accepts that bc he’ll take any excuse to make out with his hot girlfriend (especially at work - breaking the rules was kind of a thrill)

the end :)

okay WHAT THE HELL I ACTUALLY LOVED THIS (and it’s not even that short lol) and i lowkey want to write it properly. thank you for suggesting this bc i had so much fun with it, i hope you like it!!!!!

[ms-demeanor]

About your George in the Jungle, isn't that film sexist? Objectifying men? How can feminism claim to say objectifying women is bad, not not men? Sounds like hypocrisy to me. George's entire character is that he's attractive and nothing more. Where are the women pointing out how sexist this film is?

*Sigh*

Point by point.

No the film isn’t sexist.

The film derives some humor out of subverting the trope of objectification by having some characters briefly objectify George but the *film* does not treat George as an object. (For instance in the “what is it with women and horses” scene the men who don’t understand that the women feel lust and sexual attraction are part of the joke, but so are the women who got so horned up by seeing George in a field that they had to stop and stare dreamily - it’s the “got distracted by a hot lady and walked into a pole” cartoon bit)

Feminism in general doesn’t claim that objectifying women is bad but objectifying men is not. Typically feminism doesn’t support objectifying *anyone.*

It sounds like hypocrisy to you because you’ve built this strawman to be a hypocrite.

No it’s not. George’s personality MUCH more than his body and it’s really disappointing that you would overlook his characterization as a sweet generous person and pathos of him being a stranger in a strange land because you can’t see past his body, omg that’s so shallow.

They’re busy losing to you in the arguments you have in your head when you shower. Don’t pretend that if someone sat down and talked about how Batman is sexist against men you wouldn’t roll your eyes and do the jerkoff motion.

I like that you can really tell how you’ve read and considered that post because George’s entire character arc is that he is kind and curious and takes care of his friends and family. That Whole Ass Post is about George as a model for healthy masculinity.

If you think that a film that is objectifying a character simply because he’s got abs you could grate cheese on and an ass like a peach while doing all of that (being generous and listening and aiding an escape instead of having a big final fight showdown) then your consideration of the film isn’t very important to me because you’re looking at the shallowest aspects of it instead of analyzing it with any depth.

HOWEVER

If you want to talk about the fact that Brendan Fraser was probably dehydrated and starving during much of the filming in order to be that cut in a movie where he’s almost always shirtless and if you want to talk about the fact that there are major issues with Hollywood presenting unrealistic body standards for people of all genders OR if you want to talk about the fact that Brendan Fraser was sexually assaulted by a producer after filming George of the Jungle and was punished by the industry for talking about it and that male assault victims are still largely dismissed and ignored by society then I’m fuckin’ HERE for it.

I am *ESPECIALLY* here for it if you want to discuss the way that fit, muscular men in particular experience victim blaming when they make the decision to disclose assault and I would LOVE to talk about how that specific type of victim blaming is explicitly about punishing very masculine people for their “poor” performance of masculinity in ADDITION to punishing them for attempting to seek justice for their assault.

And I would LOVE to talk about how “you’re so big and strong, you should have been able to fight him off, you must have wanted it or you must be lying” directly ties in with excessive praise for bravery when a victim DOES fight off an assault and how BOTH of those things erase the fact that power dynamics outside of pure physical strength are behind a LOT of sexual assault and how those things reinforce the idea that sexual assault is a purely physical crime instead of one that frequently involves a physically weaker person injuring a physically stronger person.

Anyway.

*Dabs*

George of the Jungle is a good movie, y’all should watch it.

[gdwessel]

Ishii v. Moose Added To Resurgence, Tanahashi & Ishii Added To Fighting Spirit Unleashed; NJPW Strong Tapings In Texas, Philly Announced, Fueling Speculation About Jay White & FinJuice in G1 Climax 31; RIP Bobby Eaton (8/14/1958 - 8/4/2021)

New Japan of America has had a busy couple days of announcements. 

First off, another match has been added to NJPW Resurgence on 8/14/2021, as Tomohiro Ishii will face off against Impact Wrestling’s Moose. Neither man were originally advertised to be on Resurgence. The pair last fought at ROH/NJPW War Of The Worlds Night 1 on 5/9/2016 (I’m sure the writeup is somewhere here on this blog), back when Moose was still in ROH, with Ishii getting the victory. Since that time, Quinn Ojinnaka’s 2009 arrest for domestic battery from when he was an NFL player has become more of public knowledge amongst wrestling fans, and it’s been recently revealed he pals around with known registered sex offender Chasyn Rance. Suffice to say, not very impressed, especially after the stench of Chasyn Rance already cast a pall on a NJPW branded show on 6/29/2018. Between this and the very high possibility that Jon Moxley’s mystery partner is Sami Callihan, I have to say, there’s another wrestling show running that night in AAA Triplemania, and that might have my attention a week from Saturday. Just saying.

Also announced, is the addition of Ishii and Hiroshi Tanahashi to the NJPW Strong tapings on 8/16/2021. It will be Ishii’s debut, and Tanahashi’s in-ring debut, as he has been one of the Japanese commentators on NJPW Strong since the show started.

In addition, NJoA announced two more sets of NJPW Strong tapings, also travelling. The Autumn Attack shows will happen on 9/25 & 9/26/2021, from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX, the site of a recent AEW Dynamite Fyter Fest episode. Meanwhile. this year’s edition of New Japan Showdown will take place on 10/16 & 10/17/2021 at the old ECW Arena in Philadelphia, PA.

One thing you may note is, these shows take place smack dab in the middle of G1 Climax 31, and very many names who you’d think would be part of G1, including Jay White, Juice Robinson and David Finlay Jr., are all listed for these tapings. There is some discussion on the internet that the three of them opted out of G1 Climax this year, and decided to stay in the USA for the time being. Given how much COVID-19 is resurging in Japan during the Olympics, this is not the worst idea. Given how much COVID-19 is resurging in the USA, including and especially Texas and Florida, where Jay White is said to be residing now, this seems like a very dicey proposition at best. I believe it, however the main source for this report is also the one who reported an imminent revolt in the NJPW lockerroom among the non-Japanese wrestlers, and we all know how that worked out. Whatever the case, unless teleportation suddenly becomes a thing, we can safely rule out Switchblade, Juice and Finlay from G1 Climax 31.

Also of note, Lio Rush is still listed as being on these shows, so this retirement may not be as immediate as previously thought, if it indeed is still going on.

One of the greatest tag team wrestlers of all time has passed away. “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton, the most consistent member of the classic Midnight Express tag team, passed away in his sleep yesterday at age 62, just 10 days shy of his birthday (shades of Hideki Hosaka earlier this week). Eaton had been fighting cardiac, high blood pressure and diabetes-related issues for a number of years now; his wife Donna (herself the daughter of wrestler Bill Dundee) passed away in May of this year.

As one-half of the Midnight Express (with both Dennis Condry and Stan Lane), Eaton was a multi-championship winning wrestler, and one of the main icons of Southern tag team wrestling. He was also frequently considered one of the nicest people in wrestling, often looking out for other workers who needed help of some kind. I really can’t go into everything he was about, suffice to say, he had a long and glory-filled career. Look him up, read about him. Truly a wrestler’s wrestler.

Despite all that, Eaton did not make it to NJPW, or Japan in general, until 1993, whilst working for WCW, a company he would be with since it was Jim Crockett Promotions, and stay with until the bitter end in 2001. Eaton had exactly 30 matches in NJPW, on the Explosion Tour 1993, Fighting Spirit 1994 and NJPW WCW World In Japan shows in 1995. The biggest match he had in NJPW was an IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team title challenge on 6/14/1993, teaming not with either Midnight Express partner, but Tony Halme, falling to the champions the Hellraisers, Road Warrior Hawk & Power Warrior (Kensuke Sasaki). 

Our thoughts and condolences to his family, loved ones, friends, and anyone who was thrilled by Eaton in the ring.

[dailyaudiobible]

01/15/2021 DAB Transcript

Genesis 31:17-32:12, Matthew 10:24-11:6, Psalms 13:1-6, Proverbs 3:16-18

Today is the 15th day of January welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian it is great to be here with you today. I guess we’re pretty much as close to the center of the month as we can get. So, we can pat ourselves a little bit on the back and say we meet halfway through the first month of the year. And takes about that long to kind of settle into the rhythm. But we’ve got a good rhythm going and this rhythm is actually a strong rhythm, it will carry us all the way through the year, day by day step-by-step. And, so, let's…let's take the next step forward. We’ve been working our way through the book of Genesis, which is what we will continue to until we finish the book of Genesis. We’re reading from the New Living Translation this week. Genesis chapter 31 verse 17 through 32 verse 12. And by way of reminder, we are working through the story of Jacob right now. And Jacob has a desire to go back to his homeland after all of the years of serving his uncle Laban and he's got a family now, quite a family, in fact, a very important family, one of the most important families if not the most important family in the world. This family is going to grow up to be the children of Israel and the tribes of Israel and their story permeates most of the Bible. So, let’s take the next step beginning in Genesis 31.

Commentary:

Okay. So, this I guess is as good of a day as any to talk about something pretty important for us, expectations. We can think that we don't have expectations about our spiritual life are our physical lives or our relationships or whatever but even if we think that we don't have expectations we actually do because if we didn't then we would have completely let go and any set of circumstances that presented themselves would be okay. It would be just part of the flow of things and we would just keep moving. We didn't expect anything to happen. But when our expectations go unmet. Even if they’re, like not conscious expectations, when things don't go the way we had hoped or planned that usually sets us sideways depending how big of the issue it is. But in any way, even small, it just sets us off or it can set us completely sideways and ruin our day or month or year. So, here we are pretty much dead center of the month, the first month and we came into this journey with expectations. I mean the spiritual journey that we are on through the Bible may be dovetailing with other resolutions - diet, health, whatever, job, whatever - but we have expectations. And a lot of times when we think about our relationship with God and we think about our expectations we think that God is supposed to make life easier for us. It's…that's like His job. His job is to make the trouble or the trial or the challenge or the thing that we have to endure just to make it easier to make it go away. In fact we can make a complete mess of our lives and expect Him to just make it all go away and then still get mad at Him for what we've done. So, we have expectations, and we may be expecting that life by default since we’re reading the Bible every day is gonna get easy. So, let's just read a little bit from the Scriptures today, starting with the Psalms. This is from David, the king of Israel. “O Lord how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul with sorrow in my heart every day?” So, like I know there's thousands of us hearing those words and saying, “that sounds like my life.” And then there are thousands of us that are like, “I know what that feels like.” And then there are thousands of us going, “I'm glad that's not what's going on with me right now”. But we generally understand what's being said here, the cry of the heart. So, this is an ancient king of Israel voicing these things. So, another way of looking at it is that he faced unexpected challenges, even as the king and a man that the Bible tells us was a man after God's own heart.

Let’s go to Genesis. Jacob is in the in between. He has fled to Laban his uncle in Padanaram and he has spent over two decades building up his household and he is going back to his homeland where his father is. And he's right in between. Laban his uncle finds out that he's fled and so he gathers his men, and they go in hot pursuit of Jacob. And we see that confrontation and we see that showdown and we see a covenant being made. And as soon as that's over Jacob…Jacob continues his journey and sends word to his brother Esau. The last time those two guys saw each other they were mortal enemies. Like Esau was planning how he was gonna kill Jacob. And the next thing Jacob knows there's a 400-person army in hot pursuit of his household. Like he's getting it from both angles from behind him in his past and coming at him in his future. He’s like stuck in the middle.

And we move into the book of Matthew and walk alongside Jesus and we hear Him say, “I, the master of the household have been called the prince of demons. The members of my household will be called by even worse names.” Maybe you can see the theme here if you can see the theme screaming out of all the different sections of the Bible, that it's not always gonna be easy. And that has nothing to do with whether we are growing spiritually. In fact, it's in the challenging times that we do grow spiritually. Jesus goes on, says some really provocative things. “I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. Your enemies will be right in your own household. If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you're not worthy of being mine. If you love your son or daughter more than me, you’re not worthy of being mine. If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life, you will lose it, but if you give up your life for me you will find it.” Wow. What is being said here? How do we live into this? Essentially what we see happening in the life of Jesus is borne out in the words that He says. Jesus is a sinless human being living true and operating in this world as God intended it. How do we know this? Because Jesus is God in the flesh. So, it's obviously His intention. And what do we see Jesus doing continually? Calling the truth out of the shadows. In other words, calling the light out of the darkness or shining the light of truth into the dark shadows. But if you are hiding in the shadows and the light of truth exposes what you are doing, what do you do? You scramble for cover, you put up the smokescreen, you do all kinds of deceptive things to make it not be your fault that you were in the darkness. The Bible tells us, but we know this already, the darkness hates the light. That’s the most basic metaphor for the cosmic struggle of all things. The darkness hates the light. When the light exposes what is in the dark what is in the dark fights against the light to shut it down so that the status quo can remain the same, the darkness can permeate so that all of the devious deceptive things that happen in the darkness can continue forward. So, Jesus isn’t saying like, “I've…it was my mission to make a son be at enmity with his father and a daughter against her mother. Like I'm here just to make mayhem upon the earth.” What He's saying is, “this is what happens when the truth comes.” And everyone who is not going to let go and surrender into the truth and live in the truth is going to be exposed. And the people that don't want to be exposed, yeah, then you have a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And Jesus is saying, “if you love your father or mother more than you love me” in other words, “I am the way”…this is Jesus…”I am the way and the truth and the life. I am the light. I am showing you the way to go. If you love even the closest people in your life more than you love the truth, if you would rather stay in the dark and facilitate that instead of just dealing with the disruption of being true then maybe you are where you think you are.” And what fundamentally is going on here? Jesus is talking about expectations. And in the very next scene in the book of Matthew we have John the Baptist's disciples coming to Jesus showing their expectations. “Are you, the one or should be…we be waiting for somebody else because you're not doing what we thought you were going to do? Our expectations aren't being met.” And their expectations were that a Messiah, the anointed one would come, and His mission would be very immediate to their situation. He would be a godly devout person who would be able to communicate and raise up a resistance that by the hand of God would succeed in defeating the Roman empire, at least in the region of Syria where Jerusalem and the Galilee were. So, John's disciples are going, “are you the one or should we expect somebody different.” And Jesus said, go tell John what you see happening. You have got to stop with this military overthrow mentality. Go tell him what you've seen. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured the deaf hear, the dead are raised, good news is being preached to the poor. In other words, your expectations are clouding the fact that the kingdom of God is breaking in all around you. Everything foretold, this is what to expect. This isn't gonna be some worldly military overthrow. This is gonna be an onslaught of the love of God descending upon the earth and revealing his kingdom. Go tell John what you've seen and heard. So, my brothers and sisters we’re exploring like from all over the Bible today this kind of theme of what we expect to happen. And what we do when that doesn't happen reveals itself and its very, very penetrating. It actually goes to the bed rock of our faith, because if our faith is based upon our expectations, well, I guess we all know where that roads gonna go, not only from life experience but from the Bible itself. And, so, let's do some re-adjusting as we continue to move into this year. Let's re-adjust what we’re expecting to happen. What will happen if we will surrender is transformation. The way we look at the circumstances that are facing us, the way we face them and deal with them. But the circumstances themselves that life presents as challenges, those aren't going to go away. It's how we’re going to deal with them that will change. And that can change everything about the rest of this year in our lives.

Prayer:

Jesus, we come into that. It's not our favorite topic. We like the stories that turn out “and they lived happily ever after.” And that is our story, but in between here and there is much learning and growing and resistance and endurance and challenge. And so often when we feel overwhelmed by the challenges of life it feels like we’re alone and its easy…easy for us to wallow in it. We get self-absorbed about it, we get angry about it, and we get angry at You about it when You have never left us. You have never abandoned us. And had we listened to You, had we listened to the voice of wisdom we may have been able to navigate much better. But life is full of challenges and this is how we grow. So, come Holy Spirit and reframe how we look at these things so that our expectations are growth and not ease. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it is home base, it’s where you find out what’s happening around here. So, yeah, be sure to stay tuned and stay connected.

The Community section’s where to get connected.

The Daily Audio Bible Shop is there and we’ve talked some…about some of the resources that are there to help us move through the Bible, like the Promised Land films so that we can see some of these places with our own eyes. So, check that out. And, yeah, I mean we have been at this a long time and so we've considered and created over the years different things that will help us get context because it's so important that we get some sort of context for what's happening. And Promised Land, the films allows us to see into some of these places where the Bible actually happened. So, yeah, check that out. And there are number of other resources for going deeper in the Daily Audio Bible Shop. So…well…check it out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com. There’s a link on the homepage. If you’re using the app you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174. And I thank you. I thank you with all of my heart for your partnership. The truth is, we wouldn’t be here if we weren't in this together. If we weren’t throwing logs on the Global Campfire together then…then we wouldn’t be making this voyage that we’re on. And I’m so deeply humbled. I’m so, deeply grateful that this can happen. And, so, if this is life-giving to you than thank you for your partnership.

If you have a prayer request or encouragement you can hit the Hotline button in the app, which is the little red button at the top no matter where you are. I love that we have a hotline. Like I love that it’s in our pocket, it's on our device, our phone, our tablet or whatever, and no matter where we are, no matter what's going we have that. And, so, you can hit that and share your message no matter where you are in the world. If you prefer the telephone, we have phone numbers depending on where you are in the world. In the Americas 877-942-4253 is the number to call. If you are in the UK or Europe 44-20-3608-8078 is the number to call or if you are in Australia or that part of the world 61-3-8820-5459 is the number to dial.

And that's it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hello Daily Audio Bible this is Jeremy Neff from Southern Oregon. I just want to say thank you Brian and Hardin and family for all the efforts you put into reading this Bible like this. It always amazes me to hear that you’ve been doing this for 15 years and I just found out about a year ago. I can’t believe it. I always wanted to read through the Bible in my lifetime at least and this was the first year that I was able to complete that. And, so, I’ve appreciated this, and it’s helped me to get to the whole Bible and broaden my study time and getting into the word of God. And I just need this so bad. It’s hard for me to talk here. I…I talked earlier. I’m a cancer patient and I’ve been given just months before hospice and months to live and I really don’t have a lot of time to, but I just covet your prayers for everyone here and I thank you all for your prayers in the past. I’ve asked for prayer before and I just want to know I love you all and look forward to hearing you every day. And I just pray that God will bless each everyone in this year ahead. Thank you so much for your faithfulness Brian and…and I just pray that God will bless this country as we’re such in dire straits. And I worry about my family if I should go that my family will be left to deal with all this. So, I’m praying for my family and my wife and my grandkids. And I just pray that you’ll include them in your prayers too. Thank you. God bless each and every one of you.

Hello DAB family this is Abiola calling from New York. I called and once before, but I used a different name for 2021. Happy new year everyone. I’d like to be a lot more communicative with our community. You guys are such a blessing. For anyone that is new, stick with it. This is such an awesome community. The love that resonates through here is felt wherever you are. The growth that you will see is undeniable. Thank you so much Brian, Jill, and China for shepherding and leading this community the way you do. We are completely, completely blessed. So, I really like you guys to get to know me more. I like to pray with you and pray for you. 2020 was a crazy year and I was a little scared to listen because I wondered as a black female what I would hear, but the love, the outpouring of love, the overflowing of prayers and…and…and….and motivation and encouragement is incredible, and it was really, really a necessary tool in 2020. So, thank you guys. I would love to let you get to know more about me as time goes on. Tonja with a J, what I think you so much. God bless you for your enthusiasm finishing the Bible in a year. Thank you for reminding us that we should not be complacent about what we have here in this community. I want to pray that you keep up the strength. Do not lose heart. God bless you all.

Heavenly Father I want to pray for those who are out there that are feeling despair, that are feeling hopeless, that are feeling depressed Lord or at the end of their ropes or not sure what to do or are at a point where they are…are just down and out. And we all have times where we feel that we are down and out. But I know Lord that You have given us Your spirit, You have given us Your comfort. And I pray for them today and I ask Lord that You be with them, that You comfort them, that…that Your Holy Spirit speaks to them, that You pull them out of these…that place of despair and hopelessness and…and feeling depressed and in a place where they are not sure, especially when we go through really difficult circumstances or experiences or don’t even understand why we’re going through those experiences. But Father I know You’re the God of hope. You have given us hope. You have given us Lord Your…Your…Your love Lord. You have…You have spoken clearly in Your word when You have said that You’ve not given us that spirit of fear Lord but, You know, of love and of a sound mind Lord. I pray Father that You would go ahead and touch all individuals that are feeling this way and may they experience Lord Your love. May they know You love Lord. May they know Father that there is nothing God that they can do on this earth in their past and their present and their future that can separate them from Your love. Father I pray for them in Jesus’ name.

Good morning and happy new year family brother Chad from JOMO. It is the 11th January and I just got through listening to the 10th of January and Tonja with a J called in and I want to tell you I sat here celebrating with you. I mean, I was crying, I was clapping because I remember the first time that I finished the Bible in a year. I read it in a year before, but I don’t know. It was something else about sharing it with everybody around the world, with…with Brian and his family. Pretty much when this all started, I think I started in the second year or maybe the third. Anyway, I’ve been doing it for about 12 or 13 years. So, it was about the third year. Anyway, and it was it was joyous it was joyous celebration it really was. I just…I…I felt it all over again with my sister Tonja with a J when she hopped on here it just put a huge smile on my face. She brought tears to my eyes and I wanted to call and tell you I love you and am celebrating with you. Congratulations and keep on go and sister. Pull out your Bible. Follow along in your Bible. It actually helps you grow and learn further when you’re seeing the words while he’s reading them to you. It’s actually a blessing. I highly recommend that. It’s just a...it’s…it will help you dive in deeper and grow stronger. And we’re in those days where it’s important that we have the word hidden our hearts and we have the understanding of the entire counsel of the Lord because there’s much much going on in the world today that’s…that’s not exactly on our side. So, you stay strong, stay faithful, keep on listening keep on reading and you, I bless you. I bless and I thank you sister. I…I…just you made me…you made me happy, put a smile on my face. God bless you all have a blessed week. Brother Chad from JOMO.

Hello, my beautiful family this is Suzanne calling from Albuquerque. I just want to call and share something what I’ve been going through the last could of months. As you know I’m the only Christian in my family and it was so hurtful last year and really there was a lot of verbal abuse and rudeness and the more time that went by where nobody acknowledged how they treated me, the deeper the wound got and I was digging the hole. It was festering. It was like a weed and it was growing and the more I focused on what they had done to me the worse it got. I was watering the weeds. So, anyway I…I had to pardon this big time because it’s really up to me as a Christian to…to take my eyes off of that pain and just focus on Jesus. And the whole process of forgiveness, it’s a process because you can easily go back and start thinking about whatever it is. But I realize the moment I take my eyes off of Him and start looking at all this other insignificant really, insignificant stuff that…and my heart’s in danger. And, so, I’m getting a real clear picture of what the proverb means, “above all else guard your heart.” So, the moment I chose to make forgiveness the mainstay of my day the…that pain just lifted from me immediately. And, so, I’ve got peace in my life again and it’s because of Jesus and it’s because of forgiveness. They don’t have Jesus. So, I really need to start praying for them. And thank you family for being there.

Hi Daily Audio Bible family it’s a daughter of the king in Australia just wanting to touch base with people and especially people who are struggling with depression and anxiety and those sort of things. I want to remind myself and encourage others to really to give thanks just praise God for anything, especially for those of us who are struggling with depression. It’s a __ that’s a really wonderful and powerful thing to do and I…and I really think that it’s got some real breakthrough power. And, so, I have found that to be helpful for myself. So, I’m just at the beach. It’s summer in Australia so it’s really beautiful and I’m enjoying creation. And, so, it is so easy for me to thank God and praise Him for His beautiful creation and this beautiful climate and the beautiful sea and the sunset, just…and the rocks. It’s just too easy. So, I just want to pray really quickly. Father God I lift up everybody who’s struggling with depression and anxiety. And Father I pray that You would really minister to their hearts and encourage them and really draw them closer to You and…and just help them to even look at things from a little bit of a different perspective. Help us all to do that and encourage us to praise You even if it’s for one thing just each day at least. Alrighty. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

[nohshinwoos]

dan and phil videos i watch when i’m anxious, depressed or just generally feel like shit

hi guys!

so the other day i was feeling very anxious and one thing that always helps me to feel less anxious is watching dan & phil videos, so that’s what i did for a while to get my mind off of things. it’s something about their voices that really calms me down and helps me through my anxiety.

that got me thinking about making a list of some of my fav videos that help me when i don’t feel well, in hopes it might help any of you feel better when you have shitty days too. 

so, without further ado, here’s the list! (well, under the cut because it got longer than expected...)

(these are in no particular order btw.)

phil’s channels

any day in the life video or the week in the life video

ditl manchester

ditl london

ditl japan

festive ditl

ditl australia

witl

(i like all pinofs but these are probably my favs)

pinof 1

pinof 2

pinof 9

pinof 10

the tree

the wardrobe

halloween baking: brownie graveyard!

dyeing my hair blue!

i got attacked by a squirrel

phil’s favourites | poo-purri!

i’m in a movie!

reacting to old photos!

6 things i regret buying!

a sleepless night with phil

another sleepless night with phil

blindfolded cat face game

would phil survive this anime?

easter baking - extreme tripple chocolate nests

halloween baking - spooky cupcakes

the not-milk challenge

the cheese challenge

will dan and phil survive australia?

dan and phil pastel edits in real life!

why i can’t go back to the gym...

predicting dan’s future!

dan curls my hair!

viewers pick my outfit!

5 things i regret buying - inflatable halloween costume!

dan and phil and dogs!

easter baking - bunny biscuits!

what dan and phil text each other

dan and phil massive pizza mukbang

dan and phil try pumpkin carving

reacting to myself on a tv quiz show!

clicking on risky links people send me!

trying to see things without my glasses

kracie - popin' cookin' mystery flavor diy sushi

shocking amazingphil footage!

cat café!!

z-day!

pranking dan with chilli gummy bears

––

dan’s channels

amazingdan

giving the people what they want

how to get out of bed

the story of my hamster

sexy internet dating

sexy internet dating - london

dan’s diss track - roast yourself challenge

how to get out of bed

drama llama

innuendo bingo

personal space

how to speak internet

ironic appreciation

the photo booth challenge

psycho thoughts

how to ruin a meme

i talk to myself

the time i got sunstroke

dan and tyler being offensive

who’s more likely to - dan or phil?

dan and phil blindfolded makeup challenge

i mumble

how to speak lad - with dan and connor!

halloween baking - pumpkin spice pumpkin cookies

halloween baking - monster pops!

halloween baking - creepy crispy cakes conjoined challenge!

my bahamas travel disaster

the top dan memes of 2017

pinof 9 bloops

pinof 10 bloops

––

danandphilgames

dan and phil play can your pet?

the final google feud

dan vs. phil - the final battle

dan and phil play bucket of doom!

dan and phil play anime bucket of doom!

the quick draw marshmallow showdown

portal co-op blindfolded

‘stormy ascent’ - the hardest crash bandicoot level ever

it’s all ogre for dan and phil - swamp simulator!

morphing youtubers

morphing our faces (disturbing content)

dan and phil play minecraft

dan and phil play cards against humanity!

the literal embodiment of rage - dan and phil play: getting over it!

dan lost his voice so we’re playing charades

🌈🌈🌈taste our rainbows🌈🌈🌈

how not to drive with dan and phil!

weird things humans search for

what if dan and phil were gods?

who should we date? dan and phil play heart♡throb!

danisnotfireboy and amazingwatergirl!

no more ladydoor - dan and phil play: fireboy and watergirl #2!

a festive female-exit! dan and phil play: fireboy and watergirl #3!

what team? - dan and phil play pokemon go! #2

dan and phil play five nights at freddy’s 3

licking nintendo switch game cartridges

1-2-switch - dan vs. phil!

making a phandwich - dan and phil play: overcooked #2!

is this the end? dan and phil play the impossible quiz! #6

save med daddy! - dan and phil play: who's your daddy

14 year old phil’s game! - dan and phil play: the mark of oxin!

the best game ever made - dan and phil play: the mark of oxin #2 (end)

howell and lester’s kitchen nightmares - overcooked!

danandphilgames bloopers!

the jumpscare showdown - dan vs. phil: hide and shriek

not my arms challenge - mario kart!

the chopstick challenge!

dan vs. phil - extreme tetris!

dan (scared of spiders) explores a cave (literally full of spiders) - skyrim vr!

dab and evan ‘mess around’ - dan and phil play: sims 4 #54

spicy marshmallow roulette - food fantasy!

[capricornus-rex]

A Path I Can’t Follow (6)

Chapter 6: Wounded Morale, Troubled Mind | Cal Kestis x Reader

Summary: It was a matter of life and death—the question is, should it be the life of many or one, the death of many or one? Cal Kestis makes what ought to be the biggest and hardest decision of his life as he is pitted with a question of high stakes and morals. He descends to the Dark Side and becomes an Inquisitor. A choice he openly made for the sake of saving you, even if you didn't know you needed it until it was too late.

Tags: Dark Side! Cal Kestis, Inquisitor! Cal Kestis

Also posted in AO3

Chapters: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 | Previous: Chapter 5 | Next: Chapter 7 | Masterlist

6 of ?

The Varans galloped in a much faster speed compared to when you and Cal got to the temple. Cal’s entrance startled the townsfolk as the creatures croaked, their sound echoing up to the mountainside. You were on the verge of unconsciousness, Cal managed to ride faster to reach the town.

“Help! Please help!” Cal pleaded in the top of his lungs. “She’s wounded!”

More of the villagers appeared out of their homes, witnessing the arrival of the young redhead boy bringing two Varans and a wounded companion.

Razh and three of his men arrived to the scene at the sound of their Varans doing their call. The town leader immediately recognized Cal and sprinted towards his direction, he had his men hold down the creatures.

“What happened to her?”

“Enemies came and attacked us,”

Cal dismounted and turned back to you, he was about to scoop you off the saddle and carry you instead; however, you have become enough a burden to him long enough ever since you’ve left the temple.

“I can walk,” you insisted.

You tried to dismount the creature, but you nearly fell off its back without any support to hold onto. Luckily, Cal was there to catch you. He took your arm and hung it around his shoulder while his other hand supported you at the small of your back.

“Thanks,” you whispered to him.

“Come, Miera can help you with her wounds,”

“Thank you,” Cal gasped, following the kindly leader with great urgency.

The crowd that had gathered close to the scene gave way for the leader while Cal—with you in his arm—followed until you’ve reached the cottage. Razh abruptly opened the door and his wife immediately sensed that something was wrong, she sees you hanging onto Cal and dear life, and so she dropped everything and escorted you to a room.

Gently, Cal lays you down on a cot, resting your head on a pillow, you try to fight the pain in any way you can—biting your lip, breathing in sharp inhales and exhales, and focusing on the room around you as well as Cal—all this while your wounds were constantly stinging. He sat down by your left side, wiping away the sweat off your brow, and brushing back your hair into place.

“Let me fetch the medical supplies,”

“Please, thank you,” Cal then turned to you when Miera made herself busy in collecting supplies. “I’m gonna have to take off your jacket, okay?”

You and Cal coordinated on taking your clothes off as carefully and painlessly as possible. Your good shoulder was the most difficult part—Cal tried his best in stripping your jacket off while making sure you’re comfortable and not in pain while doing so.

“Now,” he gulped, dazed at the urgency and how fast everything is happening, “We’re gonna have to unbutton your shirt so I can have a better look, okay?”

“Yeah,” you nodded obediently.

Cal had the four buttons of your shirt undone, he carefully shoved the neckline down—exposing a portion of your chest and shoulder—and then the wound was already in sight: the flesh had been seared, white fluids foamed at the edges of the cut and the blood curdled along it.

“Is it bad?” you mumbled.

He looked at you, focused on your half-opened eyes—he can barely see the whites in your eyes as you fought your drooping eyelids—but even then, he knows that you demand an honest answer. Cal knew that whenever you get wounded and ask how the injury looks, you don’t like it when he sugarcoats it.

“Yeah, pretty bad,”

You take a deep breath and you bring your uninjured arm to the hem of your shirt, revealing another wound along the side of your stomach. Compared to the one on your shoulder, the gash along your torso was only a pink graze with curdled water pooling over the wound itself like a thin layer of gloss; the Eighth Sister had managed to break your skin there, but not as deep as she wanted it to be.

“What about this one? I really can’t toss and turn right now, it hurts when I do,”

“It doesn’t look bad. This one looks kinda shallow,”

“My back was hit too,” you added.

“We’ll take a look in a little while,”

You couldn’t do or say much for a reaction. You simply took a deep breath and sighed. Miera barges into the room with both of her arms full with a steel basin and a container box of supplies.

“It’s not much but it will help with giving her some relief over those wounds,”

“These will do. Thank you, Miera,”

Miera lent her hand in patching you up. She soaked and then wrung a towel in the water—which was noticeably dark green in color, you were curious and weirded out at the same time.

“What is in the water?” you grumbled.

“Simmered volcanic Magyon herbs. They are most potent when they’re extracted this way,” Miera explained as she ever so carefully dabs the greened-out towel on your wound.

You wince and gasp at the sensation of the herbal fusion seeping into your wounds. Miera apologizes as she continues the pattern of soaking, wringing, and then dabbing on your skin.

“This disinfects and cleanses the skin,” she added. “It stings because I added the zest of a Calam lime, a fruit with antiseptic properties.”

“Are you a doctor?” you asked, intrigued at the wife’s knowledge of herbal medicine, she somehow reminded you of Merrin—who was always watching over the terrarium and asking Greez for samples to make her potions.

“Yes, I was the town healer before I married Razh. But now there are more of us in the apothecary,” she smiled and finally dunked the towel back into the basin, she wiped her hands and turned to the boy. “Cal, would you please get that vial of Bacta gel?”

She pointed at a shelf hanging on Cal’s left side, he finds and takes the said vial of Bacta, and she allowed him to apply it on you. After daubing the healing gel on your shoulder and stomach wounds, the next step was dressing them. Miera fishes out a roll of bandages from the container she had brought with her.

“Can you sit up?” Miera asked worriedly.

“I… I can try…”

Immediately noticing that you were straining yourself, Miera caught you and supported you front and back. She hands over the bandage roll to Cal for him to do it, seeing that she’s got her hands full holding you. The sound of the baby crying had interrupted your procedure, Miera apologized and excused herself, assuring her that you and Cal can handle it. She thanked you before running up the stairs to attend to her baby; Cal figured this was the perfect opportunity to talk about your new enemies, you had sensed that he had been wanting to talk about it.

You slowly turned your head to the door to see if Razh was in the premises too. You toned your voice to a reserved, quiet volume only audible to Cal.

“Do they know?” you started.

“Do they what?”

“Did you tell them that it was an Inquisitor that attacked us?”

Cal shook his head.

“Do you think we should?”

“No, it’ll just cause panic in the town and we’ll lose Razh’s trust. He believed that we didn’t come here for trouble, nor did we bring it with us,”

“It rather followed us, if you asked me,” you blurted.

Cal was finishing the first layer of bandages on your torso, some parts of your gash was still visible—he meant to cover them up in the next layer.

“Who was the Inquisitor you fought off?” Cal asked while doing his job.

“She called herself the Eighth Sister,”

“Come to think of it, I think I heard the Fourth Brother mention a name—like, an actual real name,”

“So, you’ve met one yourself,” you said in surprise, although in a soft tone. You smiled and scoffed. “No wonder it took you so long to get to me.”

The two of you exchange giggles. Cal was relieved that your spirit doesn’t seem to be broken by your showdown with the Eighth Sister, but his smile vanished as fast as it came.

He was arguing with himself whether or not to mention the Grand Inquisitor to you and the plan that he disclosed to Cal earlier in the temple, he even though about warning the villagers that the town will be raided by the Inquisitors’ army once they have the Holocron. But what was his proof? You and he only came to this planet with the sole objective of retrieving the Holocron in the temple—not to bring trouble at your tail.

He wrapped your stomach in the bandage until your gash was fully covered—not a single bit of it could be seen peeking out of the bindings. Later, Miera came back and she switched roles with Cal, she made it up to you by volunteering to do the bandages on your shoulder instead.

“You were lucky to even get out of there alive,” Miera commented.

“I honestly thought I was a goner,” you admit.

“And here you are now,” she cooed, finishing the wrappings with a tight knot over your shoulder. “There, that should do it.”

And with the final step of the procedure, BD-1 opened his stim tray for Cal to get one out of him.

“Thanks, bud,” Cal smiled.

He injects the stim into your arm, there was a relieving and soothing sensation as the substance leaves the green cylinder and enters your bloodstreams. The needle was ejected and left a pinprick on your skin.

“You need to rest. I’ll make some broth for you two. You’re obviously exhausted,”

“Thank you,” you and Cal say in unison.

“You’ve done… too much for us already. We’re really grateful,” you added.

“Aren’t you just sweet? It’s my pleasure, you two. Now, sit tight and wait for your supper.”

When Miera disappeared into the kitchen, Cal turned to you and combed your hair with his fingers. You closed your eyes for a while as you waited for your supper. The town leader’s lovely wife didn’t make you wait that long, she eventually entered your room and handed over the two bowls to Cal. You made an effort to sit up and feed yourself. You were confident that you weren’t too weak to hold a spoon to your mouth.

“I’ll be out when you need me,” Miera said before dismissing herself and returning to her husband and son.

There was little to talk about between meals. The two of you peacefully enjoyed your dinner, exchanging glances and small smiles was communication enough, until Cal couldn’t take the silence after finishing his meal.

“How are you feeling?”

“Better,” your eyes shift to BD-1. “Thanks to you and BD-1.”

The droid chirped back a “You’re welcome” in droidspeak, his antennas happily jerked up while doing so. You managed a weak smile, but it easily faded as soon as the bad thoughts come flooding in.

“Look, Cal, I’m really sorry,” you muttered within earshot. “I was so close… I just got caught up with fighting the Eighth Sister and…”

He shushed you tenderly, cupping your cheek, and squeezing your hand.

“No, no… I keep telling you, it wasn’t your fault. I know, I understand. You don’t have to beat yourself up about it.”

“I just… I think I messed up back there. You know? If I dodged her attacks better, then we wouldn’t be here—we would still be in the temple,”

“The universe has a funny way of telling us that we’re in the right place at the wrong time,”

Those words were true and you can’t help but agree with him. You mouthed a hushed “You’re right,” finally concurring with him and relaxing yourself, ceasing all thoughts of blaming yourself that you weren’t able to recover the Holocron.

“But we have to get them before the Inquisitors do. This village shouldn’t be involved in this mess,” you said in a hushed voice only within Cal’s earshot. “I don’t think they stand a chance against them.”

Cal’s eyes shifted, there was a cautious glint in them as he heard you, both of you were watchful of Miera and Razh in the other room—careful not to let your exchange be heard of from the town leader and his wife. The exchange became more private and discreet, making sure that only the two of you could understand.

“I know. Hopefully, we can get the Holocron and take them down before they could even catch a glimpse of this place,” he added.

Suddenly, the words of the Grand Inquisitor repeated in his mind, his voice rang vividly in the young Jedi’s mind. He couldn’t bear to keep this away from you. He didn’t want to worry you of the things that are at stake under the promise of the Grand Inquisitor.

An army like never before! The haunting last promise of the Grand Inquisitor lucidly screamed in Cal’s ears.

He winced, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine… Just a sudden headache. Nothing to worry about,”

“Oh, okay,” your eyes trailed for a bit. “Could you sleep next to me?”

He smiled, “Of course.”

He lies down on the bed right next to you, careful not to hit your shoulder and accidentally hurt you. He gently wrapped his arm around you as you cuddled, he nuzzled his cheek against your head, his hand playing with the strands of your hair until you fell asleep.

The thought of the Inquisitors that he had faced earlier—especially the Grand Inquisitor and his menacing promise—has been running around in his mind all day now. He couldn’t bear to keep on hiding this from you. He had already begun when he didn’t mention the Grand Inquisitor to you moments ago, he feared how long it will take for him to hold his silence and the truth from you.

“I swear I’ll do anything to not let you get hurt ever again.” He whispered to you, already dozed off like a baby. He snuck a kiss on your forehead as he caressed your face with his thumb.

He figured that it was a race against time.

Something needs to be done. But what?