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chazz-anova · 5 years ago

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My official Far Cry 5 fanfic!

Alrighty everyone! After a LONG time, I’ve finally finished the first section of this fic and I am so excited to start posting it everywhere lmao, so please feel free to leave your comments in the replies I’d love to hear what people think! Now without further ado; here’s chapter 1!

Veronica glanced lazily at the clock, which read 3:28am. She'd gotten off work about 4 hours earlier, but couldn't seem to lull herself to sleep no matter how many drinks she had or smoke breaks she took. Lately, the young sheriff's deputy had felt unsettled, like she was stuck in a rut. Ice clinked in her Crown Royal glass as she raised it to her lips, finishing it with a swig. "What's wrong with me Olive?" She asked the calico cat that padded silently into the room. The cat replied with a dainty mew and climbed into Veronica's lap. While petting her companion, she glanced around her modest townhome.

It was a tastefully furnished two story home with a balcony and a neighborhood pool. She sat on a powder blue couch that was joined by an armchair off to the side. The TV screen in front of her read 'Are you there? Press X to continue" Answering the question aloud, she muttered "Sometimes I wonder if I am still here" She lifted Olive off her lap and replaced her with an engraved silver tray, a baggie of weed, and a Cherry Dynamite flavoured Swisher. She may be a deputy, but some vices she was reluctant to give up.

A few moments later- Veronica stepped out onto her balcony, blunt in hand. She slowly took in the familiar scenery, living right on the outskirts of Hope County afforded her one of the best views. The Whitetail Mountains towered over the town beyond, the neon lights of various restaurants and gas stations glowing upwards and framing the tall peaks in a surreal glow. Her gaze turned up to the stars, dazzling like diamonds on the velvet black sky. As she lit up and the lighter illuminated her balcony, the atmosphere shifted a degree 'Everything will be different soon.' The thought flew through her mind without warning, and she shivered as though possessed. "Jeez..." She murmured and took a long drag of the sweet smoke, shaking her head and praying for rest to come quickly, after this she’d go and try to lay in her bed until sleep overtook her finally.

Running. Feet pounding the ground. Lungs shriveled and screaming for a full breath. Tears welled up in Veronica's eyes as she wind cut at her skin. In front of her, millions of faceless souls reached their hands out; grasping for her as she ran, seemingly suspended between them and what she ran from. The group was insistently whispering "Help. Help us." Veronica turned around, slowing a fraction. Behind her there was a plume of green smoke billowing out of an unseen source, threatening to take her mind and steal her heart if she got too close. The entities in front of her were murmuring "Please help us" "We need you". With each pleading moan their voices grew; louder and louder until their words were a guttural, rasping cacophony of screams. And just as suddenly as they appeared, they were gone and replaced by deafening silence. The air seemed to be holding its breath, and Veronica turned to see the smoke gone as well, leaving her alone in the blackness.

Upon waking, Veronica gasped and clutched her heart, which was fighting to escape her chest with each beat. “Fuck!” She exclaimed and looked around her room. In the darkness she saw everything was normal, her desk and computer stood in front of her and no one occupied the chair in the corner to her relief. She took her phone from the nightstand and saw that it was only 6:20am. “Man, screw this.” She burrowed back under the black covers and pulled them over her head.

The next time she awoke- gentle sunlight streamed in through the half open curtains and her eyes fluttered open. Checking her phone, it was now 10:42am, and relief filled her. Looking underneath the time she saw a message from her co-worker and good friend, Joey Hudson. It read “Come to your shift ready for some bull today!” Veronica sighed, typing out her response “Always do!”

Soon enough, Olive jumped onto her bed and sat, giving her an impatient look. “Alright you little beast, I’ll get up.” She smiled at her furry friend and swung her feet over the side, striding into the kitchen and grabbing the cat food while also setting her coffee pot to brew.

In about 20 minutes- she was sitting on her balcony with a hot cup of mostly cream and sugar with a little coffee, and a quickly rolled joint. ‘Please let today go by quickly...:’ she prayed to no one in particular. Her work outfit looked creased from not being washed recently, and she knew Sheriff Whitehorse would have something to say about that. ‘After this joint I should probably get going.’ V thought, looking through the balcony windows at the clock.

Veronica stepped into the grey/white walled sheriff’s office; seeing Nancy at the front desk on the phone, examining her long nails disinterestedly. She gave her a quick wave before heading back to Sheriff Earl Whitehorse’s office, where a commotion could be heard.

“I don’t care how scared of him all you backwoods hicks are, where I’m from we get shit done!” An aggressive man declared, venom dripping from his words. ‘This must be the aforementioned bullshit Hudson mentioned.’ Veronica sighed before pasting a professional smile over her frown and stepping into the room. “You’ve got no right to just come in here like-” Hudson’s confident voice was absorbed by the same angry voice that had started the yelling, “Oh I’ve got every right missy. Know why? Because I’m a federal marshal, and what I say goes.” The tension in the air was malleable. Between Hudson glaring daggers at the stranger and Whitehorse’s dejected look, Ronnie knew she had just walked into a shitstorm. “Woah, let’s take it down a notch okay?” She said, directed at the man in front of her. He was of a bulkier build, and his stance said he was used to having things his way or the highway. “Oh great, another dumbass deputy to deal with! Sheriff, get your team and your shit together.” The man pushed past Veronica and Joey, shouldering his way out of the room. “Nice to meet you too!” The youngest deputy called before turning back to Hudson and Whitehorse. “So, who pissed in his cheerios?”

Hudson just shook her head angrily, as Whitehorse replied grimly “Joseph Seed.”

“That pastor who’s been causing trouble in Hope County?”

“That’s the one. He’s formed some kind of militia and is kidnapping folks… I’d get yourselves ready, because as soon as the judge fills that warrant we’re all going to pick him up.”

V met his words with an incredulous look, retorting “He’s bad enough that we all get to join Captain Sunshine there on a simple warrant like that? I mean, every time we’ve had to deal with him and his followers it’s never seemed that severe.” Hudson spoke up, pulling her phone from her pocket and presenting a video “Look for yourself. Someone sent this in a couple days ago.”

Grainy footage showed a tall, shirtless man in aviators preaching to a flock of similarly dressed people. The video zoomed in on the man’s chilling blue eyes; and the camera suddenly fell to the ground, showing the owner of the device being dragged forward and put on his knees before the preacher. In a casual manner he reached forward and placed his thumbs against the man’s eyes, pressing while his victim’s screams grew louder and more pained. Soon the man fell to the ground, and Joseph flicked the blood from his hands as though it were water. Veronica’s eyebrows raised in surprise as the scene was cut off and a new image appeared on the screen.

The recording was now taking place outside. There was a sizable wooden stage and Joseph stood in the center, a large curtain obscuring what was on a stand behind him. “My children, we must repent for our sins!” Joseph called while pulling the curtain down with some flourish. Veronica gasped in shock upon seeing the man from before who’d had his eyes crushed. He was lifted up onto a wooden pole, his eyes had been replaced by a white flower in each eye socket. Looking down his body- it was clear someone had mutilated his chest cavity as well, carving out space for a bouquet of the same flowers. On both sides of his head antlers had been impaled into his skull, where dried blood decorated the base of each antler in grotesque detail.

When the video finally faded to black, Veronica handed the phone back to Joey. “Wow, I’m glad I didn’t have anything heavy for breakfast.” She deadpanned, shaking her head. “This is a mistake, we need more people.” Whitehorse murmured and walked out of the room with an exasperated look. “Old man’s taking this real hard… I think he saw something real messed up on the last call out to Joseph’s compound.” Hudson looked after him with worry clear on her face. The other deputy nodded, unable to clear the images from the video from her mind. “Even though he’s clearly an ass, maybe the Marshal is right and we’ll just go snatch him up real quick.”

“Hopefully..” Hudson murmured and left the office as well, leaving Veronica alone.

The rest of the day- Marshal Cameron Burke holed up in a back office making heated phone calls, trying to find a judge to sign his warrant. V spent most of the day riding with another deputy, Staci Pratt. Veronica couldn’t stand Pratt, so every call they went on was a chore. However, the shift was finally drawing to a close as the pair pulled up once more at the station.

As soon as they walked in the door, Burke was on them. “You two, I suggest getting some rest tonight, because I found a judge. Once I’ve gathered everything I need, we’ll be flying out to Joseph’s compound.” Veronica checked the clock in the lobby, nodding “Well it’s 9 now, when are we leaving?” The Marshal sighed, as though responding was a chore, “We leave when I call and tell you we’re leaving.” V narrowed her eyes while crossing her arms, “You know, I’m not sure what your problem is, but don’t talk to me like that. You’re an adult, not a petty child, act like it.” The federal marshal was shocked someone had stood up to him, and unsure what to say. Seizing the opportunity to make her escape before her mouth got her into more trouble, Ronnie rushed past the man, shaking her head. ‘What an asshole!’ She thought as she punched numbers into the timeclock, hurrying out of the building without further incident.

About 20 minutes later, Veronica was speeding down the winding country roads in her beat up Mazda Miata. The roads were entirely empty, save for a deer she saw on the side of the road while taking the next turn. Upon rounding the corner- a large flare of light and an earth-shaking explosion caused her to slam on the brakes. “What the hell…” She peered out of the window. “Guess I should go check on that.. being an officer of the law and all…” Her murmured words were enveloped by another explosion, causing her to jump. Some days the job of a deputy wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.

Ronnie had finally reached the area where the explosions had been coming from, after breaking several traffic laws to get there. Stepping out of the car, she drew her gun and took a preliminary look around the clearing. There were almost cartoon-worthy scorch marks on the ground that had wiped away any sense of greenery on the ground, but no one seemed to be around. V kept the gun at her side and started her sweep of the area. Right as she was going to start heading back to her car to report this to the station, she heard someone walking through the woods to her left. “Note to self, don’t light the fuse before you’re ready to have it blow up..” She heard someone mutter to themselves before she yelled “Freeze! Who are you and what’re you doing here?” A man of medium build walked out of the treeline, holding his hands in the classic ‘I surrender’ style. He wore a green sweatshirt, and a matching ballcap. “Charlemange Victor Boshaw at your service ma’am, I apologise for the bother-”

“You describe an explosion as a ‘bother’?” Veronica interrupted, gun staying trained on him.

“Well yeah. It sure bothered me that it exploded.”

“May I ask what you were exploding?”

“So my totally awesome cousin Hurk gave me some dynamite that he made himself, and of course being a good buddy I told him I would try it out! Well, silly me I didn’t realise that Hurk only knows how to make short-fused dynamite! So when I went to light it, it exploded preemptively so that’s why there’s those scorch marks… ma’am.”

Veronica cocked her head to the side, giving the man an incredulous look, “Would you be offended if I said that was the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard?” He thought about it for a moment before responding sincerely “Nope.” The deputy nodded, saying “Well I appreciate the honesty! Unfortunately, I’ve gotta call the station for this one.” She fished her badge from her pocket. The man crossed his arms, asking “Well what exactly are the charges?”

“Uhm… detonation of an explosive device and illegal possession for one.”

“I supposed I can’t argue with that.” He said amiably, watching Veronica reach for her radio off the utility belt she still hadn’t removed after work.

The pair sat on the curb together, one handcuffed one not. “So you’re the Sharky Boshaw?” Ronnie asked, giving him a mischievous smile. Sharky grinned and shrugged modestly “The one and only!”

“You’re a legend around the station, I’m surprised I haven’t seen you before! Out of curiosity… why choose this spot for blowing shit up?”

“Well I was actually on my way to the store when I saw this spot and thought to myself ‘That would be a good field to set off some fireworks’. Then I remembered Hurk had put his stuff in my backseat, and that dynamite is just a less pretty firework, so here we are!”

When his story was finished, V gave him a look that was part amused, part withering glance. “I can’t tell if you’re joking.” He shrugged with a lackadaisical smile. Before either of them could continue the conversation, a light brown Crown Vic pulled up and the sirens on the roof let out a quick whoop before one of the night shift deputies stepped out. “Hey Veronica! Boshaw, the backseat’s ready for you!” He said, helping Sharky stand and turn towards the car. Veronica stood with him, and gave a curt nod to her coworker, “Thanks for coming out, Sam.”

Finally after that detour, V was almost home. It was a relatively long drive back and forth, but she didn’t mind it. Working with Sheriff Whitehorse was worth it since she’d known him almost half of her life. Veronica and her mom had moved to Hope County when she was only 12, her mom found work as an officer and then an office administrator for Earl until Nancy came along and gave her mom the chance to take her pension, and start a new job as a conservation officer at a small national park nearby called Polebridge.

The actual sheriff’s office was in Missoula, about two hours away from Hope County, making Veronica’s drive home take about an hour since she lived practically in between the two.

Keeping her eyes on the road, she dug one-handed through her purse for her phone. Once it was in hand she said “Hey Google, call Mom.” and a soft chirp came from the device, processing the demand before dialing. Three rings in- a cheery voice answered. “Hey sweetie!”

“Hey, mom, I just had a question?”

“Sure what’s up?”

She paused, rethinking her request for a moment. In that second, her nightmare from last night danced through her thoughts and her mind was made up. “Oh um, well I’m going out on a warrant tonight, and I was wondering if you could watch Olive for me? It’s probably nothing, I just had a weird feeling.”

“Of course! I’d love to see my grandkitty! I’m glad you know when to listen to your gut.”

“Well I learned from the best! I just got home now, can I pack her up and head over?”

“That’s fine! I’ll be here for a bit. Can I plan on you staying for dinner?”

“Uh… yeah that’ll work, I don’t have any plans. I’ll see you soon, love you!”

“Love you too!”

The line disconnected with a click as Veronica pulled into her driveway and stepped out of the car, fetching her keys from the caribinger she kept it on. As she approached the door, she heard insistent meowing on the other side. “I’m comin’…” She chuckled and pushed the door open to reveal Olive, who immediately rushed to hug her legs as she stepped over the threshold. “Hey monster, ready to see grandma?” She asked in a baby voice and grinned at her, reaching down to pick her up. As soon as she did- the cat clambered up to her shoulder and balanced precariously “Why are you like this?” She joked, removing her before making her way to the hallway closet and pulling out the cat carrier and a half-full bag of cat food.

Once she’d put a few more odds and ends into an overnight bag, she took out her decorative, pink bong and loaded a bowl. The water bubbled and pure white smoke filled the center chamber as she lit the greenery in the bowl. After coughing her lungs up for a few moments she set the glass piece on the table and stood up, “Okay, now we can go!” She declared and bundled Olive and all her things into the Miata.

In a quick 15 minutes- the two of them pulled up in front of her mom’s. It was a tidy ranch style home, painted robin’s egg blue with crisp white shutters. V knocked on the door, Olive’s carrier in one hand.

Her mom answered the door with a sweet smile on her features, immediately wrapping the deputy in a tight hug, “Hi Ronnie!” She exclaimed before pulling back. “Hi mom!” She responded and stepped through the door, setting Olive down. Sarah Rook looked like an older version of Veronica except her hair was a chestnut brown as opposed to V’s dirty blonde; they shared aquamarine eyes and a light spattering of freckles.

The younger woman pulled the zipped and freed the hyper cat, who immediately jumped from containment to survey her surroundings. “Someone’s impatient!” Her mom chuckled and watched the cat sprint off into the hallway. “She takes after me I guess.” Veronica smiled and inhaled deeply, “Is that steaks and mac and cheese I smell?”

“Well I thought I’d at least fatten you up before you leave tonight.” Her mom said and ushered her into the dining room. There was a round white table there that was joined by a tall china cabinet filled with memorabilia. The places had already been set, two red and white checkered table mats sat across from each other at the corresponding seats and the silverware was laid out neatly. “Sounds good to me, I’m starving!” Veronica took a seat and watched her mom buzzing about the kitchen as she put the finishing touches on their meals.

Once everything was done, the table was filled with food. A bowl of salad in the middle, with a basket of rolls to the side. Their plates were adorned with juicy t-bone steaks, mac and cheese, and potato salad. “I knew there was a reason I hadn’t put you in a nursing home…” V joked as she savored a bite of the rare steak, just how she liked it. Her mother scoffed, and took a sip of water, “As if you could.” They both shared a smile and then turned to see Olive padding into the room, her head in the air as she scented the air. “What a brat.” Veronica said as she jumped up on the table expectantly. “You did say she took after you!” Her mom retorted, picking up the naughty cat and setting her on the floor. “So, what’s this warrant you’re going on?”

“Mom, you know I’m not supposed to divulge any details...”

“Oh please, I used to be in the game, and still kind of am. I worked for Whitehorse long before you did, I don’t think I need to be counted as a citizen.” She said, rolling her eyes. Veronica looked uneasy as she considered it for a moment, then relented; “It’s some doomsday cult leader… Joseph Seed. Something about him really freaked me out.” She confessed, almost hanging her head. Being freaked out was not the norm for this deputy. “Why’s that?”

“I think it’s just his ability to brainwash all of these people… anyone who can do that has too much power. Also Earl is scared of him, which is weird. He’s usually so gungho about catching the bad guys, but he doesn’t even want to go on this warrant.”

“That’s certainly odd. I’ve never seen that man back down, there must be something seriously bad going on.” Her mom looked off, her brow furrowed in deep thought. “Hopefully this mission will just be in and out. That way I can get back to my baby!” She said the last part in a higher pitch, directing it at the cat, who was sitting in the window behind them. “I hope so too sweetie. People like him are the reason I’ve got a bunker.” Ronnie smirked, saying “Yeah you and everyone else in Hope County, it seems like.”

“It never hurts to be prepared!”

“I guess so.” She relented, standing and grabbing their dirty dishes.

After all the dishes were cleaned and hugs were shared, Veronica stretched and glanced at the clock which showed 10:45pm. “Man how’d it get so late so fast?” She mused and stroked Olive’s soft little head. “Hopefully a late dinner won’t give you any nightmares.” Her mother thought out loud and wrapped Veronica in another suffocating hug. “It was nice having dinner with you baby, I love you!” She smooched Ronnie on the cheek before pulling away and giving her a loving grin. “I had a good time, and the steaks were amazing. Thanks for having me over, I love you too!” She returned the kiss on the cheek and put her hand on the doorknob. As she stepped out her mother wished her luck on the warrant later, and then she was in her car once more.

20 minutes later, V was brushing her teeth, staring at herself in the mirror wearing a simple black night dress that fell to her thighs and was fringed with lace at the bottom. Long day… who knows when that asshole Burke is gonna call me.’ She thought, spitting out the toothpaste and wiping her mouth with the back of her arm. As she flopped into bed, the black sheets felt cold without Olive’s presence, but she felt it was for the best. It was 11:11pm as she glanced at the clock. “Make a wish…” She murmured while her eyes shut, the feeling of a full stomach lulling her to sleep.

A blaring ringing tore through the dark silence in Veronica’s bedroom. It was her phone, blasing her generic android ringtone. Her eyes snapped open and she grasped for her phone, having to blink the bleariness away before seeing that it was Hudson calling her. She looked at the clock for the second time that night to see only two hours had passed, making it around 1am. She slid the green answer icon across the screen and answered, her voice thick with annoyance, “Hello?” Instead of Joey’s pleasant voice, she was met with Marshal Cameron Burke’s gruff one, “Rook, get your ass up and get dressed. We’re executing this warrant now.”

“Do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Yeah, time to arrest that asshole Joseph Seed.” Burke practically shouted, and then Veronica was met with a dial tone. She scoffed, pulling the phone from her ear to look at it and see only her lock screen, a photo of Olive in a taco costume. “Guess I’m getting ready.” She grumbled and turned on the lamp sitting on her nightstand. The light flooded every corner of the room, forcing V to squint as she flipped the covers off and walked over to a chair in the corner of the room that was covered with clothes and blankets. She snatched her green work button up before finding a tank top and some jeans. On top of her dresser, she eyed her jewelry box and plucked out a rose gold heart-shaped locket with a matching chain. It was engraved ‘To Veronica, Love nana’ Once she was dressed, she buckled her utility belt and hurried down the stairs to the front door.

Something forced her to stop and take a look at the open plan townhome. All was calm and nothing stirred in the living room, yet she felt eerie as she left. Almost like she was abandoning her castle. She shook her head, shaking the thought off and stepping through the door to lock it. As she was walking to the car she pulled out her wallet from her back pocket, it was a replica of the one used in Pulp Fiction that said ‘BAD MOTHERFUCKER’ on the side. She opened the zippered secret pocket, pulling out a faded scrap of paper. On it was written ‘Good luck on your first day! -Mom’. She’d slipped her that on her first day at the sheriff’s department. At the time, V had laughed and said “I’m not a kid!” But stowed it away nonetheless as a good luck charm. A sudden, bone-chilling breeze whipped across the land, forcing a shiver to wrack her body. Veronica stepped into her car, feeling like this was going to be a long night.

The deputy’s hands clenched the steering wheel- frustration written all over her features. She’d already been to the station only to get redirected to some field by Nancy, who was the only one not joining this adventure. Apparently the sheriff had asked her to come in and man the scanner, just in case things got out of hand and they needed to call reinforcements. Ronnie shook her head as she saw Hudson, Whitehorse, Pratt, and Burke standing in front of a matte black helicopter that had a badge on the side. Upon walking up to join them, Veronica called “Well this is fancy!” Staci stepped up next to the marshal, exclaiming “Yeah, the feds decided to help us out on this one!” He clapped Burke on the shoulder- earning him a heated glare. “Anyways… everyone pile in. Hudson, you’re flying us.” The grumpy man got to the point, motioning everyone into the copter.

In no time they were in the air, flying to Joseph’s Compound on an island in the middle of Hope County. Veronica looked at the screen of the gps in the front, searching for the time. She found that it was 2:37am, and asked “So what exactly is the benefit of going to get him so late?” Cameron replied- his voice dripping with unearned confidence “The benefit, Rook, is catching him by surprise.” As Ronnie was about to speak up, Pratt cut in with, “You don’t catch men like Joseph Seed off guard.”

At that moment Joey spoke up, “Crossing the Henbane now.” Everyone looked out of the wide windows, only to catch sight of a perfect rendition of Joseph Seed’s face captured forever in stone in way of a towering monolith. “Crazy motherfucker…” Burke murmured, his gaze held by the monument. “Jesus Christ.. we’re officially in peggie country.” Hudson shook her head before looking back to the skies. “You know, they call this Angel’s Peak. It’s a holy place for them.” Pratt said, sounding almost wistful.

“How much longer?” Cameron asked.

“Just long enough for you to change your mind so we can turn this bird around.” Whitehorse insisted. “You want me to ignore a federal warrant, sheriff?” Burke scoffed.

“No sir, I want you to understand the reality of this situation. Joseph Seed… he’s not a man to be fucked with. We’ve had a few run ins with him before and it hasn’t always gone our way. Sometimes.. sometimes it’s better to just leave well enough alone.”

Burke scoffed, lifting up the warrant. “Yeah, well we have laws for a reason; and Joseph Seed’s gonna learn that.” Instead of replying to that, the sheriff radioed Nancy to make sure she was still there, and told her that if she didn’t hear from them in 15 minutes to call backup. V looked down and saw a white church surrounded by other smaller buildings, she was mystified. The whole situation didn’t even seem real. ‘Maybe it’s just because it’s late and I haven’t gotten any good rest lately.’ She thought, trying to comfort herself. Somehow it didn’t help.

“So what’s with calling them ‘peggies’? I’ve never heard anyone at the station call them that.” Veronica asked, hoping to lighten the mood. “Project Eden’s Gate. P. E. G. It’s what the locals call them.” Earl explained. Somehow she knew he was trying to distract himself as well.

As they got closer, it was obvious there were people everywhere. “So much for taking him by surprise.” She muttered, shaking her head and thinking ‘I could be asleep right now.’ The helicopter jerked slightly as it landed on the ground, the blades whirling to a stop. All of them exited the bird, taking in their surroundings. Peggies surrounded them on all sides and the compound had as many as 12 buildings; dorms, a barn, and various other houses. The cult members regarded them suspiciously, casting daggers their ways and muttering insults. Ronnie looked to her left as they walked down the main path, there was a man wielding a flamethrower and keeping a pire of fire sufficiently lit. “They don’t fuck around…” V commented, her brow furrowed.

The group made their way into a fenced corridor topped with an arch that said ‘Church of Eden’s Gate’ with the cross adorning the center. As they walked, a creaking then metal clanging could be heard behind them, causing Veronica to whip around only to witness them closing the gate behind them. “Why are they closing the gate?” Joey asked, looking to her partners for answers but receiving nothing. They approached the door to the church and could hear a choir of members singing a hymn as Whitehorse motioned for them to hold up. “Going in there, we do this my way, quietly.” He said sternly, mainly for Burke’s benefit. Cameron smirked and put a hand on Earl’s shoulder, “Relax sheriff. You’re about to get your name in the papers.” Veronica couldn’t help but shake her head, something was wrong here.

As the white double doors swung inward, V took in the scene and was enthralled. Joseph was standing at the front of the church delivering a sermon, “Something is coming… you can feel it can’t you? We are creeping towards the edge, and there will be a reckoning. Because we know what happens next; they will come for us… to take from us. Take our guns, take our freedom, take our faith. We will not let them!” The church patrons were captured by his presence, hanging on every word.

The deputy, marshal, and sheriff made their way to the platform Joseph stood on. White candles surrounded him, casting a holy glow on his features. “We will not let their greed, their morality, or their depravity hurt us anymore!” The preacher’s voice grew as Marshal Burke reached him and held the paper warrant aloft. Whitehorse murmured “Goddammit…” and Cameron said forcefully “Joseph Seed, we have here a warrant for your arrest, under suspicion of kidnapping with intent to harm. I’m gonna need you to step down with your hands where I can see them, and come with us.” Veronica noticed three figures she hadn’t seen practically melting out of the shadows to stand behind The Father.

“Here they are, the locusts in our garden. They’ve come to take me from you, to destroy all we’ve built!” The peggies started to converge around Joseph, their voices joining together as they objected. He parted through them, his calm demeanor quieting their shouts. “We knew they would come. This is what we’ve prepared for. Go…” He sent them off and came to stand in front of the pews, raising his hands up. “I saw the lamb of the first seal and I heard the noise as if of thunder as one of four beasts sang ‘Come, see’-”

Cameron cut him off, “Step forward!” Joseph stepped closer- undertered from preaching, “And I saw and behold, it was a white horse... and Hell followed with him.” He finished while looking from Earl to Ronnie and finally holding out his hands, a worn brown rosary dangled from his wrist. “Rook, cuff this son of a bitch.” Burke growled.

V stepped forward, about to pull out her cuffs when the people behind him caught her eye once more. She recognised them to be his family. From right to left; there was a gruff looking man with scar tissue climbing up his side, next to him a beautiful young woman wearing no shoes and a lacey, floral dress. Veronica’s gaze lingered on her a moment before she took in the last figure- a tall man wearing an expensive looking duster. His piercing stare found hers and she felt as though he was seeing straight into her soul. Ice filled her veins and she froze in place, suddenly feeling like a gazelle who had just realised the lion was upon her but only when it was already too late. There was so much animosity in the man’s eyes, like he hated her for even thinking of taking his brother.

“Earth to Veronica.” Burke’s annoyed voice snapped her from the trance she was in, causing her to shiver before finally producing the cuffs. The metal clinked around Joseph’s small wrists, and right as she was about to secure the second ring, he turned his hand to grip her wrist tightly and V looked into his eyes. “God will not let you take me.” He said calmly without an ounce of doubt. “Good thing God doesn’t get to decide in the end.” She retorted before shaking off his hand and slapping the final cuff on with a resounding click.

As they walked out the church doors with Joseph in cuffs, armed peggies started to surround them. “Back up!” Hudson yelled, taking lead. Burke pushed a woman down when she got too close, and the crowd became more riled up, closing in as they walked to the helicopter. Soon, they started throwing rocks at the group and screaming, trying to defend their Father. The whole time Joseph stayed eerily silent, even as they were getting into the copter. Pratt fired off a few warning shots to the cultists that were trying to mob the vehicle, Veronica and Burke pushed a few of them from the copter as they gained height, yet the peggies continued trying to swarm them.

One of the cultists did something, because the helicopter went into a tailspin, and the engine sputtered. Joseph looked skyward and began singing Amazing Grace, his tone calm despite the chaos. They made impact with a tree, then another and everyone but Joseph was screaming, their lives flashing before their eyes. Upon impact, the whole world cut out and everything was black.

Veronica’s eyes opened, and the world spun in streamers of color. Nancy’s frantic voice could be heard over the ringing in her ears, she was yelling into the helicopter’s headphones. She looked around and saw Burke across from her, dangling by his seatbelt, Earl was next to him, doubled over; and Joey was to her right. She tried to take in a deep breath and sputtered on thick smoke that was no doubt coming from the engine. Before V could swing forward and grab the headset to alert Nancy, she was pushed lightly back into her seat by a battered Joseph Seed. He smiled at her softly, grabbing the headset on his own while maintaining eye contact. “I told you that God wouldn’t let you take me…” He murmured soothingly. “We’ll see about that…” Veronica persisted. He shook his head and spoke into the headset mic, “Dispatch? Everything is just fine here. Call no one.” Veronica scoffed, ‘Surely Nancy will know something is wrong-’ The thought began to cross her mind before she heard her last hope’s response: “Yes, Father. Praise be to you.” Her mouth dropped open in shock and horror, watching the man she came to apprehend smirk before whispering “No one is coming to save you.”

He climbed from the wreckage and met a handful of his flock, reassuring them in a hushed tone. V started to struggle against her seatbelt, which was stuck fast. “Fuck, fuck, fuck..” She muttered and beat at the clip. Her companions began to wake and she turned to see Joseph standing on the hood of a car, his hands raised as he delivered an impromptu sermon, “The first seal is broken… now we must take what we need, for this world will be no more. We must stop all those that stand in our way- including these harbingers of doom. Begin the reaping!” He screamed the last sentence into the night air, his followers cheering.

They swarmed the copter for the second time that night, Veronica, Joey, and the others squirmed trying to get free. Hudson freed herself finally, only to be savagely pulled from the wreckage kicking and screaming. “Joey!” Veronica yelled, reaching after her only to just miss her hand. More peggies ran over and were about to reach in, when a ring of flames surrounded them instead. “Fuck!” V exclaimed, pulling frantically at her seatbelt. Burke was able to free himself and dash out of the small opening in the wall of fire. Heat was searing her skin and desperation made her claw at the restraint harder and harder, finally the belt snapped and she tumbled forward to what used to be the roof of the vehicle. Ronnie caught herself just barely and found herself sprinting away into the foreboding woods.

Branches whipped at her face, scratching her cheeks and forcing her to hold her hands out in front of her. Not far behind, the men who hunted her yelled, “She’s escaping! Grab her!” Emotions overwhelmed her; panic, fear, anger, confusion. “Goddammit give me a break!” She huffed, breath ragged from sprinting. She spotted a soft light in the distance, a campfire. V ducked behind a thick tree trunk- whipping her head around in both directions wildly, adrenaline and fear coursing through her. The angry voices were distant enough for her to turn and survey the campsite.

There were two lawn chairs on either side of the fire, and a cabin beyond that. One of the cultists patrolled the perimeter, both hands on his handgun. She caught sight of a sizable branch in front of the fire, and knew what she had to do. Ronnie crept forward on the balls of her feet, trying to avoid any stray twigs as she made her way to the branch. Finally she was there, taking the worn wood in her hands and feeling the weight of it. ‘This should do..’ She thought with a grim look. The deputy continued forward, waiting for just the right moment to slip behind the guard. Veronica gripped the bat harder and was about to swing when the guard turned around, surprise on his features. She wasted no time slamming the branch down on his head with a crack as he turned his gun towards her. The first blow slowed him- and for good measure she delivered the finishing blow. Through the branch, she could feel his skull give and an initial spray of blood shot from the wound, flecking V’s face in red freckles. She gasped and looked down to see his body twitch twice more before stilling, his heart steadily pumping out his life force.

Veronica felt cold as she watched the light drain from his eyes, shock starting to take over. She’d never actually killed anyone before. The world faded back piece by piece as she grabbed the man’s gun, and more screams came from the woods. She had to keep moving. A small drop off into the woods was her escape, and she crouched in the ferns on the woodland floor. There was another fire in the distance, and her enemies were scouring the area for her and Burke.

Suddenly- her radio crackled, causing her to jump and grab it from her belt to muffle the speaker. “Hello? Hello.. it’s Burke… I think I lost them.. I see a trailer ahead across a bridge and I’m going to try to get inside. If anyone is still alive, if anyone is out there...” The signal was lost and it cut out. “Well I guess that’s where I’m going.” V sighed, and started slowly making her way through the woods. She passed the second fire, narrowly avoiding detection by two guards standing there. From there, she ascended a small hill that led to the bridge the marshal had mentioned. It creaked as she took to the wooden planks, practically crawling her way to the other end. When she got there, a white trailer with a green roof stoof in front of her. There were steps leading up to the back door which she pushed open cautiously, eyes darting side to side straining to catch any movement in the darkened abode.

As soon as she cleared the door Burke was to her left, hands out and ready to attack. Veronica grabbed his arms, stopping him in midair before he regonised her. “Oh my god, Rook… you’re alive!” He cried with relief. “Yeah, no thanks to you, asshole. You left me to die back there!” She scoffed, glaring daggers at him. “I… It was just fight or flight, I was-” He struggled to defend himself.

“It doesn’t matter. Whitehorse told you this was a bad idea, this is your fault no matter what you have to say.” Ronnie cut him off, pointing an accusatory finger at him. When he had no retort she continued, “Now we have to find a way out of this shit show, and to rescue the others. Did you have a plan?” Burke sighed, walking further into the trailer, motioning for her to follow. The walls were wood panelled, and words were scratched into most of the walls; ‘The Father’, ‘Walk the path’, along with other mantras and bible verses. Pictures were also posted all over the spots that had no words. They all depicted the members of the Seed family in various poses and situations. One such picture was a framed portrait of all of them, Cameron grabbed this and stared into their eyes. He looked haunted.

“The plan is to put all of these fuckers in jail. No matter what it takes.” He gathered himself before tossing it on the table and going to point out of one of the front windows. “To get out of here, I was thinking I could try to hotwire that truck, unless the keys are in it. It’s probably only a couple hours back to Missoula, then we’re gonna come back here with the National fucking Guard, and take care of these lunatics.”

“Fine, let’s just get out of here before-” Veronica was cut off by a shot ringing out, and one of the windows behind her shattering into a spray of glass. “They’re in there!” Screamed a man, and more shots were fired at the trailer. “These guys just don’t give up!” She exclaimed, exasperated. Burke took shelter against one of the walls, pulling out his gun to fend off the attackers. V scanned the room and found a gun mounted on the wall, she grabbed it and cocked it before crouching under the shattered window, sitting up to aim outside. There were four peggies firing at them. She took aim at the first, shooting him square in the chest and knocking him to the ground. Burke took out one on the other side then turned to say “Cover me! I’m gonna go get that truck started!” Veronica nodded curtly before turning to shoot out the window twice more.

Even more cultists were arriving at the scene and taking up arms, it seemed almost hopeless. V fired shot after shot, taking out as many as she could until she finally heard the sweet roar of an engine, and Cameron shouted for her to join him in the truck. “Finally, fuck!” She gasped, dashing from the trailer and ripping open the door to the vehicle. “Let’s fucking go!” He yelled while she slammed the door and immediately leaned out of the window to shoot at the peggies behind them. Burke careened down the simple dirt road, Veronica shooting at their enemies as they approached a chain link fence and busted through the gate with no problem, then they were crossing a bridge to the main road.

Burke was gasping, close to panic, while V just felt numb. ‘Shock must be setting in, great.’ She thought distantly. “God, I had no idea Rook. I didn’t know how bad it was, how right Whitehorse was… I wish we’d never served that warrant.” He rambled, glancing between the deputy and the road. “It’s too late for wishes, Burke… they’ve got the road blocked!” She exclaimed at the sight before her; peggies had their trucks and sawhorses blocking off the next section of street. She lifted her gun once more, shooting at them while Cameron swerved wildly to avoid the obstacles. One of the cultists to their right set off a flare, letting the rest of them know where they were.

The pair crashed through another barricade, and Ronnie kept shooting at the people pursuing them that were in an identical looking truck. “We aren’t losing them marshal!” She shouted. “Alright, I guess we gotta try something else.” He huffed before taking the truck off road, almost going airborne as they crashed through a wooden fence. Blinding headlights were blazing behind them as more and more peggies joined the chase. Veronica happened to glance in the bed, and spotted some red sticks. “Oh fuck yeah.” She chuckled, reaching out of the window and grabbing a stick before producing her simple purple lighter that had miraculously stayed in her pocket. She lit the fuse on the dynamite, squinting her eyes as the cord came to life and the flame hissed. V chucked it at one of the trucks behind them, causing a loud boom and fire bloomed from the wreckage. “Shit! That’s pretty satisfying.” She commented, turning to Burke who still looked too scared to be impressed.

After lighting a couple more sticks and tossing them out, causing some major chaos, they found themselves about to go under an overpass. Right before they passed underneath, a sleek white plane flew out of the clouds and began shooting at them, hitting some green crates on the side of the road only for them to explode. Keying into this as they finally passed under the bridge, she fired quickly at the crates scattered around an upcoming roadblock, sending people flying in every direction. “A plane, are you kidding me?” Burke yelled and pounded a fist against the wheel.

A gargantuan bridge waited on the other side of the roadblock, there was a sign mounted near the top that read ‘Henbane River Bridge’. As they raced across, Cameron took a deep breath before saying “Home free, after this we are home free!” Veronica wasn’t so sure as more planes swooped overhead, and suddenly a high-pitched whistling could be heard getting closer and closer, before V yelled “Bomb!!” and orange flames whooshed across the bridge, enveloping their truck and sending them tumbling into the river below.

The vehicle was in a freefall with chunks of concrete, the river’s waters rushing up to meet them. Neither of them had time to say anything before they made impact. Veronica was incapacitated for a moment and when her eyes opened they were underwater, trapped once again. She saw Burke across from her pounding on the window, shattering it on his third try and swimming up to the top, leaving her to drown. Ronnie gathered together her last bits of energy, slamming her elbow into the passenger side window until it finally broke, and she maneuvered her way from the descending car. Her arms flailed as her lungs screamed, daring her to take a breath before breaching the surface, and then it went black.

Not too long later, her eyes snapped open and she grasped at the wet silt underneath her, she was on the shore. On the bridge there were countless flashlights casted down upon the water, looking for her. She heard Marshal Burke yelling off in the distance, and saw a group of peggies pulling him away as he shouted “I am a federal marshal! You can’t do this!” Veronica tried to get the will to get up and run, knowing she was next; but her muscles screamed with exhaustion and wouldn’t cooperate. She was able to lift herself to crawl maybe a foot before collapsing once more, staring up at the sky and trying to accept that this was the end.

A figure came into her field of vision and the barrel of a shotgun was dangerously close to her head, she didn’t even have the energy to protest as the person lifted her over their shoulder with a grunt, and began carrying her through the woods. Her vision faded in and out, allowing her to see them pass by a radio tower and then a cabin, only to walk down some metal stairs. Then she could fight no more; and everything went black.

#my writing #veronica rook #john seed #joseph seed #faith seed #jacob seed #earl whitehorse #staci pratt #joey hudson #cameron burke #sharky boshaw #fc5 #far cry 5 #...and hell followed with him #ahfwh

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self-proclaimed-chaotic-good · 5 years ago

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Carry On My Wayward Family | Detective Loki x Reader (Oneshot)

Word Prompt: Family

Words: 3450

Fandom: Prisoners/SPN

A/N: Trying to catch up with @writersmonth (Day 28) when my wifi went down

Summary: Continuation of I Can Explain. Detective Loki is forced to take a week off after running himself to the ground, when he unwittingly finds himself in a case that’s more of a supernatural nature and calls for you to help. Through you, he finally experiences not only a taste of the hunting life, but also the family that you make from it.

In the peaceful suburbs of Mery City, a woman walks out of the local veterinary clinic, humming softly to her drowsy cat in her carrier after receiving a shot. The woman places the carrier in the passenger seat and climbs into the driver’s.

It was an ordinary ride home, the car having to stop every now and then at the crosswalk as school had just finished. She drums her fingers against the steering wheel, checking on her cat sleeping soundly in the carrier.

They arrive home, the woman gently placing the carrier down and opening the door. She goes to the kitchen for something to drink when she finds something in the fridge. Her eyes widened as she staggered back screaming for her cat. She scrambles back to the cat carrier to see her cat waking up from her scream.

She whimpered, gathering her cat into her arms and hugged him before her stomach began to turn. A bright light bursts from the both of them, but only the cat was still present when it was over.

The front door opens and a pair of heavy boots stalks in. They stop, seeing the cat, who hisses at them, before picking them up and walking back out of the house.

It really was the last straw as Loki swiped the files off of his own desk and slumped in his chair, holding his head in frustration. The chief grimaced at the mess and worked out how to fix the situation. He waited until Loki had finished his recent case to call him into his office before he could pick up another one.

“Look, if you’re going to lecture me about calming down-”

“You need a vacation,” the chief said firmly, holding his hands on his desk.

Loki blinked, leaning back in his chair. “Excuse me?”

“You need a vacation,” he repeated, “Take a break, David. You’ve been working nonstop. It’s okay to step away for awhile. If we need the extra hand, we’ll let you know.”

“I don’t need a vacation,” Loki insisted, blinking again.

“Yes you do. If you don’t, you’re going to go insane or collapse, whichever comes first. Take a break, and that’s an order from your chief.”

Loki glared at him, but his superior wasn’t backing down. Working with Loki for so long, the chief was already familiar with his temper and seemed unfazed during his outbursts and curses. That’s just how he is and at least he gets the job done.

“Maybe a week or two should suffice, detective?”

Loki huffed, stuffing the last bag into his trunk before slamming it closed. What the hell was he going to do for a whole week? He leaned against his car and pulled out his phone, eyes blinking as he scrolled through his contacts until he found what he was looking for.

The line beeps two times until you finally answered his call. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite detective,” you said, a smile on your face. You stepped away from the kitchen and threw yourself on the couch. “And to what do I owe the pleasure of your lovely voice?”

“Chief gave me a week off,” he grumbled, forgetting why he was calling you out of all his contacts in the first place.

“Wow, you seem happy about that,” you said sarcastically, “I don’t suppose you had ever gone on a voluntary day off or called in sick.”

Claire and Alex sits across from you with a smirk on both their faces. “Who’s that?” Alex asked loudly.

You rolled your eyes. “A friend,” you said pointedly.

“I’m your friend now? When did this development take place?” Loki asked, climbing into his car.

“Since we’ve been talking for several months now.”

“Oh, is this the hot detective that you were talking about?” Claire piped in, loud enough for Loki to hear.

“Hot detective?” You could practically hear the smirk in his voice as he said it, too.

“Anyways, why did you call me?” you asked, changing the subject.

“I told you, chief forced me to take a vacation but I don’t know what to do.”

“My, god. You really haven’t taken a day off, have you?” you said, “What about going to the bar and drink with friends? Take a short road trip? Visit some friends and family-”

“I was in a Boys Home, remember,” he interrupted.

You winced at your slip. “Right, sorry... “

“And… and I don’t have that much friends,” he continued, speaking more slowly, “I… I’m sorry for calling you. I should go. You’re right, I can find something to do, maybe head to the city for a couple of days.”

“No, um…,” You felt the need to say something, but you didn’t know what.

Alex and Claire were persistently mouthing things for you to say. ‘Ask to see him’. ‘Invite him over’. You shake your head at their suggestions. You and Loki had only talked through calls or texts, but you haven’t seen him since that case in Conyers. Honestly, you were surprised that the two of you kept in contact for this long. Inviting him over might overwhelm him.

“You know what, I’m just going to take a road trip and visit a friend who transferred out of Conyers,” Loki said.

“Oh, okay. That sounds good. Have fun, detective,” you said before quickly hanging up. You were overwhelmingly awkward that you facepalmed. “I’m so stupid.”

“You don’t really go out on dates, do you?” Claire teased. Your grimaced answered for you.

You had gone ahead to help Jody get ready for the upcoming holiday, running errands and putting up decorations. Jody had invited you and the boys over for a special holiday dinner and you would have to be soulless to say no. On your way there, the boys heard a case near Iowa and decided to check it out before going over to Jody’s.

Detective Harold Goodman had never dealt with a kidnapping like this before. Five people within the last month, all around the same area. No pattern, no apparent motive, nothing. Well, except that they were all pet owners. If it was some kind of sick animal hater, or obsessed animal lover, why go after the owners, too? Two federal agents had stopped by to investigate, but they went missing, too.

He downed his third coffee that morning when he saw a familiar face. He smirked, slamming him mug down and stood up. “Now why is your dumbass face here in Mery City, Iowa? Tired of the small town life up there in Conyers?” Goodman remarked.

Loki smirked, punching his friend’s arm. “Apparently I’m a workaholic. Don’t know where the chief got that idea,” he said.

They squared each other up, almost inches from each other’s face before breaking out into a smile. Goodman shoved him away and invited him to sit with him. Loki took the seat across and ordered a cup of coffee from the server.

“But, seriously, Dave, why are you here?”

Loki shook his head and sighed. “I don’t know. Been busy with cases that I didn’t know what to do when I don’t have one.”

Goodman studied his friend for a moment. “No girl… or guy?” He saw a hint of a smile on Loki’s lips before he schooled his face again. “Who is this person that managed to get your cold dead heart pumping?”

“We’ve been talking on and off. Long distance stuff and… we’re just friends, that’s all.” The server came and placed his cup of coffee down. He thanked her and took a sip before leaning back, ignoring his friend’s curious look. “I’ve heard what’s going on in the news. Anything I could help with?”

Goodman laughed. “You’re on vacation, Loki. But… if you must know, and you never heard this from me, but there’s been some missing persons within the last month. I know this is kind of your thing, so I want a second brain to help me think this through.” Loki nodded at him to continue, so he proceeded to give him the gist of the missing persons cases. “It got so bad that the feds got involved. These two guys that look like Calvin Klein models-”

“Two tall brown hair guys that drives an Impala?”

“Y… yeah. How did you-”

“Was there another person with them?”

“No, it was just them. Agents Jessie and James. You know them?”

Loki nodded. “Yeah, they came by Conyers a few months ago when we had those crazy animal attacks. You say that they’re here?”

“Yeah, but I haven’t seen them for awhile. They weren’t at their motel, they haven’t answered their phones, but their Impala is still in the parking lot. You thinking these kidnappings are more serious than we thought?” Goodman asked, frowning.

“Maybe. Look, I know I can’t do anything since it’s not my county, but I know someone who could.”

It’s been awhile since you’ve done a case on your own. Being part of the Winchester’s hunts, you were used to having a towering body walking into the police station with you, giving you a bonus in intimidation so they could take you seriously.

You got the call from Loki that Sam and Dean were missing, so you had to excuse yourself for dinner and stop by Mery City to check it out. Jody wished she could go, too, but she had responsibilities with the girls and Sioux Falls. So, you had to go by yourself, taking your motorcycle all the way to Mery City and met up with Detective Harold Goodman.

“My friend, Detective Loki said you could help with this case. There’s been a recent case, but this time, the dog’s still here,” Goodman said.

“The dog?” you asked.

“Yeah, the missing persons seem to be pet owners, going missing along with their pet,” he explained with a shrug.

“I’m going to have to check their houses and look at the testimonies from their friends and families,” you said, placing your hands on your hips.

“Sure, anything that’ll help.”

After looking into the case files of the first five people, reading through the testimonies, and going through Sam’s notes on the cases, you moved on to investigating into the most recent case, searching the house for clues. The latest victim had a roommate that usually kept to himself, having only seen the victim when he’d come out of his room.

“It’s weird,” the roommate said, “He usually comes home on time and feeds Jerrold.”

“Jerrold?” you asked.

“Yeah, Steven’s pet crested gecko. I thought I heard him, then I heard a scream, and when I rushed out of my room, Jerrold was on the ground, but no Steven,” he said, gesturing over to Steven’s room.

“Mind if I take a look around?”

“Go ahead. I’m going to be heading out soon.”

This Steven was a neat freak that would put your room to shame. Desk neatly organized with a calendar that’s color coded, sheets clean, dirty laundry all thrown in the hamper and not scattered around. You inspected the glass tank, the bottom filled with pellets and a long branch rested from one corner to another. Perched on that branch was a cute fiery colored crested gecko.

You moved on, searching for anything out of place. It wasn’t until you reached the cabinet where Steven stored the food and equipment for his gecko did you find anything. You carefully pushed a few boxes aside and reached for the small pouch tucked away in the corner. This was definitely a hex bag, but of what kind?

You stood up and went to leave when the gecko climbed out of its tank. You picked Jerrold up and tried to place him back inside, but he kept struggling. A glint of metal reflecting off of the glass caught your attention. You just about dodged the attack, rolling out of the way of your assailant dressed in black with heavy set boots.

Your eyes darted around for a potential weapon, grabbing a metal ruler from the desk. The man stalked towards you with a meat cleaver, raising it above his head. You breathed in deeply before rushing at him, knocking the cleaver out of his hand with the ruler. He hissed, turning to the empty tank and growled in frustration. He ransacked the tank and cabinets before turning back to you. You rushed for the meat cleaver, his giant hands reaching it first. You backed away slowly, trying to read the masked man.

He was clearly looking for something, that much was obvious, and you’re only in the way. So far, he seemed human. You refused to draw a gun on him until it was absolutely necessary. But he was also big and heavy weight, which means you couldn’t tackle him easily.

Just as you figured out the right course of action, a flower vase was smashed onto his head. You backed away as he landed forward with a loud thud. Alex and Claire glared down at the man and had the decency to look sheepish at you. Their eyes then flickered over to your shoulder where Jerrold was quietly perched.

“How did you guys get here,” you demanded, “Does Jody know?”

They exchanged a look, then shook their heads. You sighed, unable to stay angry at them for long. They were old enough to go hunting, but you didn’t want Jody to worry.

“We were hoping to see the hot detective,” Claire said.

“And also help you save Sam and Dean,” Alex added.

“Right, well, you two order something and I’ll fill you guys in.” They grinned. “But, you guys have to call Jody first.”

They went ahead to call their mom while you try to reach the boys again. Whatever was going on, it involved witchcraft and the animals. When the boys didn’t pick up, you opened up your laptop and went into researching the type of hex used. You were a bit out of touch with witchcraft, being so engrossed with your research, you didn’t notice Alex and Claire whispering to each other and a figure making their way over to your table.

“Glad you could come over and help,” Loki said, taking the empty seat next to you.

You looked away from the screen and raised an eyebrow at him. “You’re supposed to be on vacation,” you scolded.

“What does that even mean?”

Your lips were drawn into a thin line, not amused by his remark. “Anyways,” you said, turning back to the girls, “This is definitely witchcraft. I found a hex bag in Steven’s room. This type that was used to bind a soul to another living being, using the essence of both subjects. For example,” you paused, holding up the hex bag, “This one has his hair and the tip of his gecko’s tail. Meaning…”

“Steven is in Jerrold?” Alex asked, looking over at the small cage placed at the end of the table where Jerrold was listening.

“We just need to burn the bags, right?” Claire said, looking at the hex bag.

“Right, but we need to find where everyone is. Detective Goodman has one of the dogs over at the station. For some reason, this man is after them. Find the animals, find the hex bags, we find the witch and we find the Winchesters. Got that, Loki?” You turned to the detective who looked blankly back at you.

“There are witches?”

“Since this is your version of a vacation, want to go on a hunt?”

Alex and Claire smiled, having been watching the two of you interact the entire time. It was no secret that your eyes would light up every time you looked at the detective, and Loki would always smiled softly when he looked at you. For years, you were like an aunt to them and they want you to be safe and happy. One slip up from detective Loki, and they’ll give him hell.

You’ve split into two teams, you with Alex and Loki with Claire, searching for the hex bags for each missing person. Detective Goodman helped looked into the assailant and found that their own pets had been either stolen or poisoned by heartless strangers just because. You went in to question him and found that he had been using witchcraft only recently and the other animals along with Sam and Dean were hidden away at an old family barn outside of the city.

You had the girls consolidate the hex bags and burn them while you, Loki and Goodman went out to search for the barn. By the time you reached there, Sam and Dean had broken the others out from below the barn and were checking that everyone was alright. Goodman had called backup to help transport them back to the city while you rushed at your boys, jumping up to wrap your arms around them.

“Jody would have been so pissed if you missed Christmas dinner,” you mumbled.

“No kidding,” Sam chuckled.

“Yeah, you saved us, kid, but what the hell is Batman and Joker’s lovechild here?” Dean asked, narrowing his eyes at Loki.

You turned back to Loki and smiled. “Long story. Maybe over at dinner?”

Loki blinked, startled. “Wait, are you asking me…”

“Got any place better to be?”

“Well, if it’s alright with everyone,” he said, looking between the two brothers.

You turned to Dean and gave him your best puppy eyes. He let out an exasperated big brother sigh with a roll of his eyes and threw his hands up in defeat. You gave him a tight hug before dragging Loki, who was hiding a smile, back to the car.

Sam gave a teasing smirk to Dean. “Shut up, bitch,” Dean grumbled, pushing passed him.

“Jerk!” Sam called out after him.

When Sam and Dean rolled up to Jody’s driveway with Alex and Claire behind them, Jody was already waiting with her arms crossed. She hugged the brothers, glad that they were okay before moving on to her girls who she had also hugged, knowing that they’re safe. You parked your motorcycle near the mailbox, Loki holding on for dear life behind you. It was his first time riding a motorcycle, but he didn’t want to admit how nervous he was, though he did enjoy the fact that he got to hold you throughout the ride.

You helped Jody bring the food over as Alex and Claire set the table up. Jody didn’t want the boys to be sitting around and having the women do all the work, so she had them clean up the house and finish putting up decorations.

“I like him,” Claire suddenly told you.

“What do you mean?” you asked, looking over at Loki who was frowning at the tinsel decorations.

“Well, I spoke to him while we were searching through the houses and he seems pretty cool, though he did say he had a temper. I think he’s more like Dean in that sense,” she said, “You seem happy that he’s here.”

You shrugged, the corner of your lips turning up. “Well, I don’t think he had a chance to have a dinner like this, so I just thought it’d be nice to bring him, you know? He did help by calling me over to stop the witch.”

“He’s pretty cute, too,” Jody piped in, winking at you, “Awkward, but cute.”

“That’s enough from you guys,” you said, rolling your eyes.

For the first time in a long time, the dinner table was full. Jody, Alex, Claire, Sam, Dean, you, and Loki. Cas and Jack came later, along with Donna who had made her way over from Minnesota. The ten of you held hands and said grace, thanking whoever that cared to listen for this strong, wayward, found family that you had all made along the way. You looked over at Loki, who had a strange look on his face, and squeezed his hand. He blinked a couple of times and smiled at you, squeezing your hand back.

“Alright, let’s dig in. I’m starving!” Dean said, grabbing the nearest plate of food over.

To think in your hectic lives of being a hunter, there could be moments like these that you could relax and enjoy with the people you love. It made you wonder if it was possible to have many more like these, moments of peace, if the fighting would ever be over, and what would you do if it did. Anger, sadness, grief, pain in every sense of the word, are what hunters have to endure, mostly the Winchesters, but it’s all worth it when you save people so they don’t have to go through it. Then, you just simply carry on.

#writersmonth2019 #Detective Loki x reader #Detective Loki #Spn x prisoners #Prisoners (2013)#supernatural #supernatural imagine #David Wayne Loki #Continuation of I Can Explain #Oneshot #Catching up with writer's month #jake gyllenhaal #jake gyllenhaal imagine

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corruptedspacecore · 6 years ago

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My Titanic Conference 2018 Experience and the Adventures Before and Afterwards: A Detailed Summary

Please Note: This is a long post with a red more break. Please click “keep reading” to see the whole thing, or you’ll miss a lot of stuff.

After 8 days of trains, cars, hotels, and conference sessions, my long trip to and from the Titanic Conference in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee is over. Before the trip, this was the general travel plan:

Red marks the Amtrak route, blue the car route. I would take Amtrak to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where I would meet up with colleagues of the Titanic: Honor and Glory project. I would then ride in a car with Tom Lynskey, Matt DeWinkeleer, and Tom’s fiancee Emma to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, where a 3-day Titanic conference was being held. Afterward, we’d all drive up to Chicago, where Matt would fly home and I, Tom, and Emma would take an extra day for Chicago for work related to the Eastland Disaster. After that, they would leave me and drive home to Pennsylvania again. The actual trip deviated slightly in a couple parts, however. There were many sights along the way, many new places for me, and a great Titanic experience.

Now, this will be extremely long, with many photos, so I’m confining most of this post to the read more section. Please click “keep reading” to see the rest. Now, here’s what happened...

On the afternoon of August 14th, I took the South Shore train from Northwest Indiana to Chicago, where I would then board Amtrak’s 50 Cardinal for Washington, D.C.

I decided to go in my new suit, partly because I wanted to look good, but mostly because I had no room in my bags for it. That was probably a mistake, though, as I would learn as I trudged through downtown Chicago on a hot day while trying to find an iPod charger at Staples and Target.

The South Shore itself offered a few nice views, ranging from greenery and suburbs to the gritty and small downtown of Gary, Indiana to the skyscrapers of Chicago, Illinois.

After hunting down a new iPod charger at a Target (because I forgot my tablet charger at home and didn’t realize it until I was on the train), I continued making my way through downtown to Union Station. I made a quick stop at Federal Plaza, with the famous Flamingo sculpture by Alexander Calder. In 2011, I was accosted by a guard, cop, or agent (not sure which) while I was taking photos of the sculpture. Supposedly the government frowns upon photography around Federal Buildings. Now, in 2018, I decided to try taking some more photos, plus a selfie. Nobody stopped me this time.

I then made my way past Willis Tower, its base surrounded by construction activity as they prepare to build a new mall at street level. The Chicago River offered up a nice view with its historic bridges and green water.

The first thing I did when I got to Union Station was find food.

Chicago’s Union Station is a historic, old structure, and so it has lovely architecture, common among many old U.S. train stations.

Because I had a business class ticket on Amtrak, I was able to access Amtrak’s Metropolitan Lounge with a wave and a mark of the ticket. It’s newly redesigned and was a great, quiet place to relax until my train boarded.

The upper level of the lounge was especially impressive and relaxing.

Once on board the train, I could finally relax for the next 24 hours until D.C.

I ended up with a seat near the center service area, whose lights were always on and curtains always open, but that was remedied at sleep time with a hat, eye mask, and blanket over my face. After leaving Chicago, I attended dinner in the dining car, sharing a table with a couple of nice older people from different places. I got to talking about Titanic with them and it was quite a conversation.

Before trying to sleep, I had the run of the onboard lounge.

When you ride trains in America, you’ll come across many different scenes and cities. The first major city was Indianapolis, Indiana (above), which we got to right before I passed out.

The next major city we stopped in was Cincinnati, Ohio, which I happened to see after briefly waking up an hour into my sleep. While I slept, we also went through a couple towns in Kentucky, as well as Liberty, Indiana, once mentioned in an episode of Sherlock.

When I finally woke up early the morning of the 15th, I was greeted by the sight of Huntington, West Virginia (above).

As we made our way up the line, we also stopped and passed by Charleston, West Virginia, a nice little riverside city. Larger American cities are impressive, but there are many smaller ones that have their own lovely characteristics.

At one point, we stopped in the tiny town of White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia. Near the station was the entrance to the nearby Greenbrier golf resort, famous for being the site of the first golf course in America and the location of a formerly secret bunker designed to protect members of Congress and the government in the event of a nuclear attack.

As we made our way through West Virginia and then Virginia, the scenery outside was simply stunning. Rolling green hills and low mountains, the tracks sometimes cutting right through the rock with short tunnels.

Eventually, I sat down for breakfast; French toast and a breakfast biscuit. It was delicious, and there’s something to be said for eating breakfast while beautiful scenery goes by outside. I also tweeted the above photo of my breakfast, which was then retweeted by Amtrak’s official main account, so my breakfast became a little famous.

On our way through Virginia, we stopped at Charlottesville. I need not recount the events that occurred there nearly a year to the day (off by 2 days) in that city, but it was otherwise uneventful, I didn’t see any Tiki Nazis anywhere, and the city itself otherwise looked nice.

On our approach to Washington, D.C., we made a stop in Alexandria, Virginia. Pictured above is the George Washington Masonic National Memorial.

Our train then crossed the Potomac into Washington, D.C., offering a breathtaking view of the bridges and monuments.

Having arrived less late than expected, I decided to take a quick walk a couple blocks down to the U.S. Capitol Building. Before leaving, I had to admire Union Station...

Outside the station, I was blasted by hot, humid air. Still in my suit with a heavy backpack on my back and a rolling suitcase and camera bag to haul with me, I knew this wouldn’t be fun, but I wasn’t going to pass up this opportunity.

You see the Capitol Building everywhere in media, in photos, on TV, in films, but you don’t appreciate the size of it, and its beauty, until you’re standing in front of it. It’s absolutely massive, and it’s a doozy to even walk half-way around. You also gain a greater appreciation for the history in this location. In the spot pictured above, a strange and debatable event occurred on January 21st, 1017. It’s also where our Presidential Inaugurations are held, the last one being on January 21st, 2013.

What’s a visit to D.C. without the obligatory tourist selfies?

I was also fortunate to be in D.C. at the perfect time of day. The sun was going down, casting a lovely warm glow on the white stone of the Capitol and other buildings, while giving the Washington Monument a dark silhouette and a sunset backdrop.

Hot, tired, sore, sweaty, and running low on time, I decided to go back to the station and find my next train. The train had other plans and was ultimately 1 hour and 30 minutes late. Once I boarded, though, the last leg of the Amtrak trip went by fast.

After going through Baltimore, Maryland in total darkness, the last city I saw before my arrivial in Philadelphia was Wilmington, Delaware. It was fitting as I would eventually learn that a major and important Titanic convention was held there some years back.

I arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania right at midnight, and took a few minutes to admire 30th Street Station while Matt searched for me and the others waited outside. I only had an iPod Touch for a mobile device and WiFi was impossible to come by here, so it made finding me a little difficult.

After picking me up and getting some food, we stopped off at a Red Roof Inn for the night, getting only a little sleep before an early start the next day.

Early morning, August 16th, we departed in a Jeep SUV thing for Pigeon Forge, a drive that would ultimately take 13 hours.

After leaving Pennsylvania and passing quickly through Maryland and West Virginia, making only quick stops, we found ourselves in Virginia, a state of both great beauty and endless driving. We decided to stop off at an antique store which turned out to be part-junkyard. It wasn’t a total bust, though; I picked up a lovely sparkling purple amethyst stone and a tube full of a variety of geologic samples. After that, we promised ourselves no more antique stores. They’re too tempting and will take all your money if you’re not careful...

After a short debate, we decided to break our own promise and get off the highway once more for the Rolling Hills Antique Mall in Harrisonburg, Virginia. We gave ourselves just 30 minutes (or was it 20?) to browse. Matt and Tom looked through several boxes of postcards they had, specifically looking for ships. They found some. I spent most of that time just wandering and looking around. While doing so, I spied a black and white cat meandering towards the front desk. His name was Tux and he was the resident cat and mouse hunter of the antique mall, popular with all who come in, oft-photographed, and cute and friendly as heck. Tux wasn’t the only surprise, however...

As time was running out and we were about to leave, I decided to look through the postcards myself after the other finished up with them. I found a few of ships I wanted, as well as a particularly nice one of the RMS Carpathia, the ship that rescued Titanic’s survivors (and which my great-grandfather sailed to America on). And then I found it, a postcard of the RMS Olympic, One of Titanic’s sister ships, the first of the White Star Liners, on her maiden voyage arrival in New York. The writing on the back described it as such, and its postmark appears to say “1911″ for the year. Nobody I’ve talked to yet in the Titanic community has seen the photo before, which is a real photographic print. While it’s possible and likely that other copies may exist out there, it would seem this card and image is somewhat rare. I await further feedback to find out whether or not it really is anything special.

We left the antique mall and continued on, stopping for gas later on. Tom tried pranking me, making me think they had left without me (taking my postcards with them), but it didn’t work and I found where they parked right away. (Tom would later try the same prank again in Indiana, to no avail.)

Finally, we arrived in Tennessee and eventually Pigeon Forge. The Titanic Museum Attraction greeted us on our way to our hotel, the Spirit of the Smokies Lodge, where the conference was also being held in their conference room.

Matt and I shared a room on the 5th floor, the top floor, while Tom had trouble with his room. The room I was in had a great view of Pigeon Forge and the mountains beyond. After getting settled in, we headed down to a greeting session in the conference room where we met some people and gathered our conference materials, including badges and schedules. We then turned in for the night, ready to get an early start the next day, the first day of the convention, August 17th.

Sadly I was late getting ready and missed the first session about the Goldsmith Family. Others did, too, so I wasn’t alone. Once I got there, though, there were interesting things to be heard. A woman named Shelley Binder gave a talk about how a relative of hers was saved from the Titanic. Another named Julie Hedgepeth Williams gave a talk about the fantastic journey her relatives took before, during, and after surviving the Titanic sinking. I later got several books and items by them and signed by them. I missed part of another session (and would miss more later) due to some obligations to one of the guests we were there to also meet and talk to and my being the designated helper, but otherwise the first day went well. Between the earlier talks, we had lunch and hung out a bit.

Above, left to right: Myself, Matt DeWinkeleer, Matt Howell (a THG fan and one of three Matts), and Tom Lynskey.

After the main sessions were done, we started preparing for the roubtables; designated times where people have displays at tables and can share what they have with and talk with others at the conference. Ours primarily involved displays of prints we’re selling and a couple PCs with a big non-VR demo and a VR demo with Vive set up for people to try. It took a while to get our stuff set up and the big demo going, so Bill Willard, the host of the concerence, graciously offered to open up the room later that night so we could present our content.

The displays all set, everybody at the conference got dressed up and ready for a special dinner in the “secret dining room” at the Pigeon Forge Titanic Museum Attraction. It began with a presentation by the attraction’s co-owner, Mary Kellogg, a veteran executive of several major networks including Disney. Her 30 years of executive experience showed; the presentation about how the attraction came to be had a very corporate, business-y bent. Once that was done, we had dinner, which consisted of salad, chicken, and cheesecake, with a selection of wines, teas, and water. Not really my kind of meal, to be honest, but I did enjoy some of the cheesecake. Just to be there, though, was really nice.

After the dinner, we attended a musical performance by Shelley Binder in the music room, and then we all lined up on their Grand Staircase recreation for a group photo. (I’m in the blue suit with green tie.)

On our way out, I turned back for a quick shot of the attraction at night. The windows don’t appear to be lit, but it looked nice regardless.

Back at the hotel, quite a few people turned up for our late-night impromptu Titanic: Honor and Glory presentation. Above is one of those who stuck around, a woman named Cathy, along with myself (left), Tom, and Matt.

During the presentation, I showed off a special demo for the conference while Matt helped people try out the VR and Tom did some talking and filming. One thing he filmed was a video about an old type of stereo viewing device, a sort of black and white, static precursor to VR. Historian Bill Sauder talked on the subject, and I got to try it out, too. Several people tried out the VR itself, including Shelley Binder. It was a heartwarming experience for her, seeing, in virtuality reality, more or less what her relative on the Titanic would have seen.

We went very late, with people trickling out slowly as the night went on. It wasn’t until about 1 AM when we finally started shutting stuff down for the night and retiring to our rooms for some much-needed sleep. We were a hit.

The next morning, August 18th, we all gathered back at the Titanic Attraction for a group photo by the bow, and then headed inside with 2-day passes we received and toured the museum.

Photos weren’t allowed inside most of the museum, but they were in the last gallery, that of the famous Lego Titanic created by Brynjar Karl, an Icelandic kid with autism. I’ll be honest, the extent to which the autism element has been played up by both the media and the museum itself is at a cringe-worthy level, I imagine worst of all for anybody who has autism, but otherwise, the exhibit was really nice. I had seen the Lego Titanic before, watched the videos of it, but I had no idea just how massive it is. The photos do it no justice at all. I want to faint at the mere thought of the cost of all those Lego bricks.

After concluding our first tour of the museum attraction, we came away mostly of the opinion that, by the by, it’s actually not that bad. The guides who work there, I suppose like many Titanic museums and exhibits, and while they are restricted in what they can say by scripts and what management wants them to say, do have a passion for the Titanic that occasionally shines through.

Before leaving the attraction again, a bunch of us stopped for a group photo. From left to right: Matt Hughes (a THG fan), myself, Matt Howell, Matt DeWinkeleer, Tom Lynskey, and Emma.

At dinner later in the day, a bunch of us went to a huge buffet restaurant. From left to right around the table: Alan St. George (founder of Mascot company Facemakers and, first and foremost for us, a sculptor who creates stunningly lovely and accurate recreations of various Titanic decor elements, some of which are sold in the Titanic Museum Attraction), Shelley Binder (professor and descendant of Leah Aks, a Titanic survivor), Matt Hughes, Matt DeWinkeleer, Matt Howell, Bill Sauder (historian and draftsman), Jebediah (a young fan of the game and budding Titanic historian), a fella whose name escapes me honestly, myself, Tom Lysnkey, and Emma.

In the afternoon of the 18th, myself, Tom, and Matt gave a presentation about T:HG, showing some footage, previewing an improved sinking animation, and talking about our work, all of which was live streamed on Youtube. There were a couple more sessions after us, but we unfortunately missed them due to prior business obligations with someone at the conference. We went to that dinner once the talk was over.

Not content with depriving others and ourselves of sleep for just one night, we went late on the 18th, too. Like the night before, we presented the interior demo and had more people try the VR while Tom talked extensively about this and that.

In a particularly powerful moment that took all of us by surprise, one woman, upon glancing down at a railing in VR and seeing the wood grain on it, broke down into tears. The experience of seeing Titanic like that shook her so much, she had to leave for a while before coming back later to urge others to experience the VR for themselves. We were all left a little humbled and shaken after that. Still, the night went on.

Bill Sauder, one of our main consultants, also gave a short presentation on something he's working on. I’d tell you more, but then I’d have to kill you. Not those who were at the presentation, they’re fine.

The morning of the 19th, the conference had its last day. There was one last session, a remembrance, and closing statements. We all wore shirts honoring a group of people who all came from a small Irish town and were on the Titanic, and gathered for one last group photo at the end of the conference.

As people departed, I gathered a few signatures and talked more with Shelly. I ended up giving her a couple postcards I found, as one of them was far more special to her than it ever could have been to me. As more people left, we talked with the few who remained, including Alan St. George. Alan is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met and was a pleasure to talk to during the conference. He has a story that has its share of tragedy but is also full of love. He’s a fairly wealthy man, owning a successful company and an entire 60+ room castle in Illinois (which he has open to the public for tours), but he’s one of the most down to earth people you’ll meet, and we received some incredible gifts from him upon the end of the conference.

After leaving the conference, myself, Tom, Emma, Matt, and the two other Matts went for lunch, and after one of the Matts left, the rest of us took one more tour of the Titanic attraction before it closed for the day.

Inside, one of the tour guides had what could only be described as a fangirl moment. He’s a huge fan of Titanic: Honor and Glory, and watched all of our content, and was familiar with us from our videos. We spent a good while across a couple exhibits talking with him about various aspects of the Titanic and its history. Sadly he had to say bye and run off after a senior employee spied him talking to us and management appeared to chastise him for spending too much time with us. He was extremely nice and a truly enthusiastic individual for Titanic history, and I hope he didn’t get into too much trouble.

Speaking of trouble, I snuck a selfie in the mirror hallway, because that’s what everyone does, right?

After that, we left the museum, parted ways with the last of the conference guests and fans, had a little dinner, headed back to the hotel, and turned in for the night, preparing for a long drive the next day.

Early the 20th, we packed up and deserted our rooms. Despite quite a number of issues with the hotel - broken AC in the conference room, hot, slow elevators, creaky carts, shower and toilet pressure that was non-existent, dated and peeling decor, and more, it was sad to leave. It was my home away from home for a few days and I was getting used to the view from the glass elevator. But be that as it may, it was time to drive to Chicago so Matt could make his plane home.

As we drove out of Pigeon Forge, I managed to grab one last quick photo of Titanic.

As we drove up through Tennessee and then Kentucky, we saw more beautiful scenery. We saw a radio tower so high that it disappeared into the clouds. We saw endless rolling hills and mountains. And we got briefly trapped in the University of the Cumberlands parking lot when it teased us via GPS with an unreachable Chick-Fil-A. We also made a stop at one more antique mall near Knoxville that was going out of business, but it was a bust.

Soon we got into Indiana and drove a couple more hours, eventually going through Indianapolis. Not my first time going through at that point, but it was nice seeing it during the day.

As we made our way north of Indianapolis, we began driving through a seemingly endless forest of wind turbines. They can be kind of a scary sight on regular days, but that day storm clouds were approaching all over and rain was coming in. I thought of past instances of turbines spinning out of control and wondered if that ever happened around here. Still, they seemed safe enough, and they stood out against the stormy backdrop.

And then the rain came. It rained so hard, we had to pull over on the highway until it settled down. As we waited, the combination of partial sunlight, slightly clearing sheets of rain, puffy clouds, and wind turbines, with trucks passing by and throwing up water and mist, made for a rather surreal sight.

When the rain was over (at least for the time being), there was a double rainbow over the turbines.

The rain didn’t stay gone. We got into northwest Indiana, stopped by Tom and Emma’s hotel, then by my house so I could drop stuff off and change, then headed out again for Chicago Midway airport. It got darker as we drove, and the rain came again, this time with copious lighting over the Chicago skyline.

While I’ve been to Chicago many times (mainly in my younger years), I’ve never seen it quite like this. There was so much lightning, we were recording the skyline on the off chance that lighting might strike Willis Tower. Or Sears Tower for you sticklers.

We made it to the airport and left Matt to his own devices. Luckily the storm didn’t delay his plane long (if at all), and he made it home safely later that night.

As we left Chicago, we played “The Night Chicago Died” on the car stereo. A fun time was had by all as the skyline of Chicago receded.

The next morning, the 21st, we all got a late start, partly on my count. We first decided to visit several antique stores in and around my town. One was closed, the rest were busts in one way or another, though we did find a couple tiny unimportant things, including a few books for myself and some Pennsylvania Railroad silverware. One antique shop full of glassware was literally a bust when I lost my footing in one of its extremely cluttered aisles and knocked over a $95 glass dish, breaking it. Luckily the old man running the place didn’t seem interested in seeking $95 for it, so we escaped with most of our money intact.

After the shops and a jaunt to Wendy’s, we headed to the beach in my town. The waves of Lake Michigan were quite high and rough, drenched the breakwaters. The wind was coming in hard, with some people taking advantage by surfing. After Tom and Emma decided to go out on the breakwater and get drenched, we left the beach.

Our original plan was to possibly head up through Chicago, film for a short time some content for a future shipwreck video, then head up to Wisconson or possibly maybe even Iowa. As it turned out, our start was too late and we spent too much time doing other things, so that simply wasn’t going to happen. Instead, we went to Michigan City, Indiana, a location relevent to the aforementioned shipwreck.

At the beach there, we filmed some footage of Tom talking, got some B-roll, then left.

Since it was only a short drive away, we decided to visit one more place: New Buffalo, Michigan. We got in when it was just getting totally dark and everything was closed, so we only walked around a bit, then we started on our way back to my house. I collected the last of my things, check the car, then we said our goodbyes, until whatever or whenever the next time may be.

With that, they drove off, staying one more night near my town before driving home on the 22nd. And now, on the 23rd, I’ve finished going through all these photos and compiling this little account.

Despite a few fairly minor issues and other events and how some things played out, not to mention the venue, Titanic Conference 2018, and my journey to and from it, was truly a one-of-a-kind experience, especially with the things I found or received and the people I met along the way. The people were really nice, the southern accents were so charming that I damn near started taking on an accent myself, the scenery was stunningly beautiful, the Amtrak ride was a real experience, and there was hardly a dull moment. I’m glad to be home so I can get as much sleep as I need and relax, but I do wish I was back on that train, watching the scenery go by, or in Philadelphia, taking in its history, or Virginia, taking in the fresh air and green, rolling terrain, or even Pigeon Forge or southern Indiana. I do have to make my way back to Chicago for a bit of unfinished business regarding that wreck, so I suppose that’ll have to do...

#personal #titanic #rms titanic #me

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imagine-loki · 7 years ago

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Irked

Title: Irked

Author lokilover9 Chapter 8

Warning: Teen

Original Imagine: Imagine due to having highly effective telekinesis, Tony Stark seeks you out and hires you. Loki’s been forced to live there by Odin and help on missions when needed, making penance to Midgardians. Prior to moving into the Tower, you learn of his superior and arrogant attitude and upon being introduced, immediately dislike him. Particularly because he looks at you like your his next meal.

Tony had been collaborating with Phil and several others for almost three weeks when requesting Loki, Shandi, Natasha and Clint for a meeting in the main staff room. All sat clueless as to why when he and Thor entered.

“Good morning everyone, I’ll get right down to business. I’m sure you’re all familiar with an old ‘acquaintance’ or preferably an ‘asswhole’ I once knew named Obadiah Stane?” They nodded and he continued. “It would appear said asswhole sold one, or possibly more copies of the technology for my Sonic Tasers while alive.”

Shandi seemed unsure of what he was referring to so Loki spoke up. “It’s a weapon that incapacitates one by exposing them to a specific sonic frequency.”

Everyone stared at him with raised brows, including Tony. “I’m impressed Cactus.”

Loki responded matter of factly. “It’s wise, to one’s best ability, to be educated on the weapons of our enemies. Is it not?”

Tony’s brows furrowed and Loki rolled his eyes.

“I mean when we were as such? To remain prepared for war, we were taught as Asier princes to learn what we could of the arsenals of other realms.” He looked to Thor. “Correct?”

Thor nodded. “That is true.”

“Fine.” Said Tony. “On a forward note, an investigation of the criminals from the last bank robbery Cactus halted, lead to the investigation of a particular street gang. The leader’s home was eventually searched and twenty prototypes of my Tasers were found hidden in a ‘secret’ sub room off this idiots basement, amongst several other illegal weapons.”

“Shit.” Said Clint.

“It gets worse.” Said Tony. “He wouldn’t talk and when questioning his counterparts, we discovered one was not only seventeen, but an illegal immigrant whose mother and younger sister are too. After a year of living in here squalor, he was befriended by another member and offered a job. Desperate, the kid took it.”

“Oh no.” Said Nat. “Tell me S.H.I.E.L.D didn’t?”

Tony shook his head. “No, he was terrified and wouldn’t talk either. With no proof he’d committed any crimes, I convinced S.H.I.E.L.D to let him go and agreed to ‘keep an eye on him?’”

Nat smiled and nodded, suspecting what he’d done. “Details?”

“Later Toots, I’m short on time.”

“Carry on then.”

“So yeah. This kid had overheard some conversations amongst his so called peers and after ‘pressuring’ these bastards and S.H.I.E.L.D doing some further investigating, it was discovered these prototypes may be connected to a ‘Mr. Shamus O'Donnell’ of the O’Donnells of New Jersey.”

Clint sat back in his chair. “You’re shittin’ me.”

Tony shook his head. “I’m afraid not my friend.”

“Who is this person?” Asked Shandi.

“He’s a Federal Court Judge Doll.”

“His father was a Supreme Court Judge.” Said Clint.

“Yep. Shamus Sr. was found shot to death on a country road with his mistress in the late seventies and the murder was never solved. It was rumored shortly after he had links to organized crime, but nothing was ever proven.”

“Were he and Obadiah connected in any way?” Asked Nat.

“Good question. Out of concern for my company, I did some investigating into Stanes financial activities after his death. He sat in on four high stakes poker games in Vegas and L.A. two years prior and on a hunch, I recently obtained a guest list from his hotels. Shamus was there on three out of the four occasions. A coinkidink, don’t ya think?”

“I’ll say. So now what?”

“Shamus resides in the Palisades. As it turns out, I’ve a friend who owns a house there he rarely uses.” He looked to Loki and Shandi. “You two are now Mr. and Mrs. Clifford and Elizabeth Bradshaw, who will be renting the place until searching for your own home after your baby is born.” Then he turned to Nat and Clint. “And you two are Gustav and Ella Shriner, a retired couple in their fifties, who will be renting a nearby cottage for the summer.”

Shandi cleared her throat. “Might I ask something Tony?”

“Sure.”

“Is the mission actually expected to take that long?”

“Hopefully not Doll, but the house is high atop a hill. When you need a break from Loki, you can shove him off the balcony that overlooks the woods and watch him roll down.”

She pursed her lips in a smirk. “I was just curious.”

Loki rolled his eyes then snickered at Clint and Nat. “He he. You two have to wear troublesome disguises.”

“Seriously?” Said Tony. “Let discuss yours.” What he said next wasn’t spoken rudely, just firmly and to the point. “Out of concern for trust issues I still have with you, I sent big brother here to visit dear old dad and learned something very interesting. As a result, he’s now put Heimdall on higher alert. If you even ‘attempt’ to use ‘any’ kind of trickery to slip through my fingers, or intentionally screw up this mission, you’re back in Asgard. Is that clear?”

Not once did Loki look away from him and responded with no rudeness, or sarcasm in his tone. “I understand completely, but what did you learn?”

They’re eyes remained locked while Tony attempted to read any disdain within Lokis. “I’ll get back to that. Let’s finish with O’Donell first.” He re addressed everyone. “We’ve learned Shamus is quite the snob and very choosy of his friends. Only a select few are ever invited to his house and it’s rumored many have desired to be on that list.”

“Why?” Asked Shandi.

“He and his wife are the pillars of their community. To be accepted by him means you’re ‘special’ and could gain you prestige amongst others like them.”

“Oh brother.” Said Nat. “Time to polish your sharp wit Loki.”

“Apparently so.” He replied. “And thank you for the compliment.”

“It’s not only sharp wit you’ll need to hopefully earn a step through his door.” Said Thor. “Shamus is quite the intellect and is known to choose his peers based on theirs. We know of some hobbies he enjoys and learning what you can of them could be good conversation openers.”

“If this man is so snobby, how will I get chance to interact with him?”

“Through the wife.” Said Tony. “Alice is said to be much friendlier and adores children, especially babies.” He looked at Shandi. “Which is where you come in. We’re hoping your pregnancy will spark a friendship, eventually earning you both a step through the door.”

“He must be ‘very’ snobby if that’s our only hope. How did you learn all of this so fast?” She asked.

“S.H.I.E.L.D found some previous maids who were willing to reveal what they’d learned of the couple. They’ve no clue why the information was requested, but were pissed they couldn’t tell us more. Not only does Shamus rule the household, but he’s very secretive and very sneaky. Each claimed he sexually harassed them, yet were too afraid to report it.”

“Sounds like a real peach.” Said Shandi. “So how will I get a chance to interact with Alice?”

“It’s a tight knit community Doll and she’s very curious of newcomers. You and Loki will need to be seen amidst it every day prior to the county fair, so she can learn of your existence. Her closest friend owns a maternity store in town and after the grocery store on your first day, this should be your next stop. That’s when you four meet for the first time and Nat will strike up a conversation. I’ll explain more later, but what’s to happen during this encounter is ‘extremely’ important because of your empathy bellies.”

“When’s the county fair?”

“In two weeks.”

Loki was grinning inside like a Cheshire Cat, yet hid it extremely well.

“Alice and her friends are famous for their baked goods there.” Tony continued. “Hopefully, you can strike up a conversation with her and get the ball rolling. Without any definitive proof against Shamus, you and Loki are our only hope of getting this done quickly without anyone knowing we were involved. Legally, it could be disastrous.”

After Tony explained all the remaining details, everyone watched with curiosity as he presented a magazine before Loki. “And now back to what I’ve learned about you.”

“Designer Suits 2017. What’s this for?” He asked.

“Father was uncertain if Tony knew of your shape shifting abilities and I was told to inform him.” Said Thor.

Loki remained silent as everyone’s mouths fell open.

“Holy fuck.” Said Clint. “And I thought the clones were clever.”

Shandi still hadn’t completely processed either of the God’s natural abilities, including Lokis clones, so this really had her baffled. “P..pardon? How can one..I mean…”

Nat slid a hand over her forearm and she went quiet.

“Hence Heimdalls thicker glasses Doll.” Said Tony. He looked back at Loki and gestured towards the magazine. “Now pick a model likenes please?”

Loki gandered through it and chose a man with wavy Raven hair that was cut just below the ears. His lips were a little fuller, face a little rounder, body a tad more muscular, but his skin tone and height were the same. “May I at least keep my own eye color?” He asked.

Tony crossed his arms. “Let’s make a deal, shall we? As I’m so familiar with how annoying you can often be, promise you’ll refrain from being so to your new ‘wife’ and you may keep your shiny emeralds. If not, I’ll come toss you over that balcony myself.”

“What makes you think I annoy her now?”

“Oh I don’t know.” Said Tony. “Her abrupt concern for the missions length maybe?”

“Let him keep them.” Said Shandi. “Even if he becomes so, he’s nothing I can’t handle.” Everyone cackled when the front legs of Lokis chair hastily lifted from the floor, tilting him backwards and his limbs slightly flailed. She stared at him while still addressing Tony. “See? It’s all good.”

‘Very amusing darling.’ Loki Thought. ‘I do love a challenge.’

Tony replied with a smirk. “Okay then. All of you need to come to S.H.I.E.L.D for ID photos.” He handed everyone but Loki a duffle bag. “You’re dismissed Cactus until everyone’s ready. Can you stay behind a minute Shandi?”

Loki was the last one out and purposely left the door open. “Thank you God of annoyance!” Tony shouted.

“You’re welcome Tin Lips! Kisses!”

Tony got up and closed it. “Blech, where’s Caps shield when I need it. Nice move with the chair by the way.”

Shandi chuckled. “Thanks.”

“You are aware this is Lokis first mission, right?”

“Yes.”

Are you ‘sure’ you don’t mind working with him? He may be an arse of sorts and I can switch you with up with Nat.”

“He might be dead before the fair then.”

Tony thought about that for a minute. “True, good point.”

She chuckled at him again. “I’m okay with it, honest.”

“Alright then Doll, I just wanted to make sure.” He headed for the door. “Nat will show you how to properly apply your wig, contacts and makeup. She’s probably already at your door.”

He opened it and Nat was staring at him.

“Or she’s stalking me outside mine.”

“You’ve set that kid and his family up haven’t you.”

The three began walking together.

“Right, details.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Last I heard, they disappeared.”

“Uh huh. Suuure they did Tony.”

“Honest. For all I know, they could be in another state, starting whole new lives..with brand new identities.”

Both women smiled and Nat nudged him with her elbow. “I always knew the Tin Man had a heart.”

“Yeah well, don’t be spreading that around as I’ve a reputation to keep up. Genius, billionaire, playboy..infamous hard ass. You know the drill.”

Nats brows rose. “Playboy? Does Pepper know this is still a hobby?”

“Yeah boss.” Said Shandi. “What up with that?”

“You ladies aren’t going to snitch on me are you?”

They spoke in unison. “We are.”

Tony shrugged his shoulders. “Okay. We can always pretend I never said that, right?”

They spoke in unison again. “Good idea boss.”

Tony stared at them as they walked away. “That was weird.”

#Loki #Angst #God of Mischief #Submitted fic #submission #irked #chapter 8 #lokilover9 #tony stark #hires #odin #mission #penance #tower #superior #arrogant #introduced #dislike

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hydraelwrites · 5 years ago

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Welcome back to our ongoing series about things to ask your Beta readers. Check out last week’s post, questions about characterization.

This week, we delve into the nuts and bolts of your book – the plot, the conflicts, and the structure. I’m focusing on this in order of what is most essential for a story. Good characters can carry a bad story better than anything else, and poorly handled characters will kill an otherwise good story like a knife to a heart. If you survive the character challenge, however, the next thing that will choke your story to death is if it falls apart in the analysis.

What’s interesting about these kinds of structural things is, if you do them well, the reader won’t notice them. Outside of the most hardcore bookworms, most people don’t praise a book for having good pacing, or a well-drawn conflict. Plot is really the only thing that most people will talk and care about. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t notice them. Think of the structural stuff like the CGI in a movie – if it’s well done, you’ll completely overlook it. If it’s poorly done, it will be painfully obvious. And if it’s amazingly done, it will draw attention for all the right reasons

Look at those claws. Look at them. (from Screenrant)

Let’s get to the questions you’ll want to ask.

What were any consistencies you noticed?

This is a broad question that covers a lot, and you’ll definitely want to plan some follow-up questions to make sure you hit all the angles it has to offer.

First of all is checking to make sure things besides characters were consistent throughout. Did the reader have a good sense of where things were and what was going on in them? Were there breaks in the internal consistency of your novel, or did it all hold together well? This will also cover plot holes, although you might want to read this post to decide when it’s actually important.

The next thing to check is if the things you meant to have consistent were, in fact, consistent. Did you have a symbol you wanted the reader to notice through repetition? This is where you check for that. Same goes for motifs or themes (which we’ll cover more later.) Were they noticeable enough?

Finally…this is also where you find out if you had repeated phrases or ‘ticks’ that were distracting or annoying. This one is easiest to explain with examples. When I was first starting off as a writer, I tended to have people quirk their eyebrows all the time. Surprised? Quirk an eyebrow. Curious? Quirk an eyebrow. Annoyed? Quirk an eyebrow. Flirty? Quirk that thing! Confused? How else do you express that besides quirking your damn eyebrow?

My characters walked around looking like this. Constantly.

It could get that bad. I once had, in a room with five characters having a conversation, every single one quirk their eyebrow at least once.

I fixed that particular tick years ago but developed a new one that my editor had to point out to me. In the first draft of Strange Cosmology, I had a habit of my characters only emoting through either their eyes or through smiling. Sometimes, occasionally, foreheads. I almost never utilized body posture, breathing patterns, or hand gestures. It’s something I’m working on currently, and it’s helping my characters feel even more human and organic.

What is the primary conflict of the book?

And after that complicated question, we’re moving onto a fairly straightforward one. Like the protagonist and antagonist question from last time, this one should be obvious to you. Odds are good you already know exactly what you have in mind for your primary conflict. However, that doesn’t mean the reader knows.

Let’s pick an example from a movie that just so happens to give me an excuse to use my favorite gif. What was the primary conflict on Spider-Man 3?

You didn’t think we were done with this, did you?

Was it Spider-Man vs Sandman? It can’t be that, because he spent the second act of the movie pretty much gone. Was it Spider-Man vs Venom? You’d think so, but Venom wasn’t actually a character until act three – and Venom becoming a character in act three meant that Spider-Man’s internal conflict with the symbiot definitely wasn’t the primary conflict, because it gets resolved before the climax. Also, Harry was an antagonist in that movie, although it made no damn sense and was just a mess even by Spider-Man 3’s standards.

If a beta-reader had been asked that question, they could have pointed out that the movie was a disaster in this regard. The movie should have picked one of those to be the primary conflict, then relegated the others to secondary or tertiary conflicts. This question will help you make sure you didn’t create a Spider-Man 3.

No one wants to create a Spider-Man 3.

What would you call the climax of the book?

You might start picking up another trend here. These questions are a bit like what you might have answered in English class, and that’s not accidental. Your reader should be able to break it down like a classroom assignment because anything they can’t answer is something you need to revisit.

This is especially true of the climax.

If your climax isn’t easy to spot, it doesn’t have the impact it needs. Perhaps it’s because you don’t have a clear primary conflict, or perhaps the climax doesn’t hit the way it should. Maybe you need to make the resolution clearer or ensure it has a solid impact. Or perhaps the problem isn’t in the climax itself.

If the reader points to the wrong thing as the climax, or can’t identify it, ask probing questions to find where you went wrong. Is it in the climax itself? Did you not build up to it properly?

That latter one is a common problem even among famous and talented authors. For example, I love Brandon Sanderson’s books. However, they sometimes have…problems in the climax. My personal favorite example is for Elantris. I’ve talked about this before, but Brandon Sanderson spent the entire book building up an interesting political conflict and an intriguing mystery. Then, right at the climax we are introduced to…well, I don’t want to spoil, so imagine that season 8 of Game of Thrones had ended with a sudden attack by Xenomorphs, and the climactic battle had been Drogon vs. the Xenomorphs. That’s how out of the blue it felt.

Although admittedly, that would have been rad as hell.

Also, I got through that entire segment without making a joke about climaxes. I just wanted to get proper recognition for that.

What were the themes of the book?

It’s a bit of writing wisdom that revision is where you develop the themes. That’s very true, but when you’re writing a book themes tend to begin to emerge organically, especially in the early drafts. Unless you’re actively avoiding putting in themes, you’re going to have some part of your story develop them – and even if you were, they probably still arose.

For an example I’ve cited before, J.R.R. Tolkien famously said that he “disliked allegory in all its forms.” Yet so many people have pointed out that there is a clear theme of naturalism vs industrialization, especially in The Two Towers.

Literal trees tearing apart a dam to flood a city that has stripped away all forest in the area? Yeah, no allegory here at all.

This is where you check your themes. If you put some in deliberately, it’s good to know that they can be identified. You’ll still want to strengthen them in the revision process, but if you were writing a dystopia where the evil government controls its citizens through hypnotic cat videos, and you’re trying to make a point about how much time we spend online, it’d be good to know that you’d laid the groundwork properly.

On the other hands, if you weren’t trying to introduce any particular theme, it’s good to know what themes you were letting into your novel accidentally. Maybe those are the themes you want to develop in revisions to expand and give more depth too. Maybe, on the other hand, you’re accidentally including a theme you didn’t mean. For example…well, the Star Wars prequels are a fertile ground for bad writing decisions.

Stuff it, Binks.

I don’t think George Lucas is racist. I don’t think he meant to code Jar Jar Binks as an offensive minstrel character straight out of the 1920’s, Watto as a flying greedy Jewish caricature, and the Trade Federation as a hodge-podge of Asian stereotypes. I’m sure that was not his intention.

And yet, this is where he would have found out that he’d actually done that, and thus created the accidental theme that other races are stupid or dangerous.

Which segues nicely into the last question you should ask your Beta Readers…

Was there anything that really bothered or offended you?

Never, ever skip this question. It’s vital to know if there’s something offensive in your books. For me personally, you know who I want to read every single one of my early drafts? A woman. Why? Because I’m a male, and I’ve read enough twitter threads about male authors writing women and how often it goes wrong. I don’t want to be that guy. If I’ve got male gaze going on, I want to know about it, and this question is where I could find out.

You never, ever want to be the kind of writer this person is mocking.

Now, I’m not saying that something bothering someone or offending them means you should delete it or change it. These days, it’s very difficult to avoid offending someone. If you really want to see how hard it is, go to the review section of any major book and look for the one star reviews.

You’ll start seeing some that are offended in some way or another. Some people get offended because a book has too much swearing. Some get offended because it has any kind of sex scene. You’ll see people who take horrific offense to anything that depicts – even in a negative light – violence against children or animals. There will be people offended by too much violence. And if your book does none of those things, there will be people who are offended you’re ‘playing it safe.’

However.

Once you know where your book is offensive, if anywhere, you can make a decision about if you are going to leave it in or take it out. No matter what you find here, the important thing is to discuss it and be aware of it – you need to know what is offensive so you don’t do it accidentally. It should always be a conscious choice.

And once you know about it, you have to decide if you’re going to keep it. I’ve talked about this before, but in more vague terms. Let’s get blunt this time – In Weird Theology, my editor and I fought about two things. One was how much Enki swore, and one was about Crystal and Ryan having sex. Both parts bothered her. We really went back and forth about those two bits. By the time we were done, I realized she was absolutely right about removing Enki’s verbal tick of dropping the word ‘fuck’ at least once a sentence, but I stood by and stand by the fade-to-black sex scene – although I did agree that it needed the rewrites it got to work better.

The point is, you are the author. You have decisions to make. Ultimately, it is your work.

Just don’t let this one become something that happens by accident.

Come back in the future, where we will go over the last critical questions you ask your beta readers – how immersive your story is.

Any you’d like to add in this category? Tired of me using the Spider-Man 3 gif? For the first one, let me know in the comments below! For the second, all I have to say to that is…

And while you’re here, grab your free book. Dancing Spider-Man demands it.

Things to Ask Your Beta Readers Part 2 – Analysis Welcome back to our ongoing series about things to ask your Beta readers. Check out last week’s post, …

#beta readers #creative writing #publishing advice #self-published #Writing Advice

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plogan721 · 5 years ago

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Let the flood gates begin

This post may contain affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links within the post, I may receive a commission for your click and purchase. You do not have to make a purchase to enjoy this post, I only highlight products to help with the cost of running the blog, and I only post links to products relevant to the topic in that post and to companies I use and trust.”

Please Note: I started writing this blogpost in pen and paper. You know, the old-fashioned way of writing. I got the idea from an episode from Star Trek: Voyager where one of my favorite captains, Captain Janeway was sick of technology, after dealing with species 842 and the Borg. This was the episode that introduced Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine, a former Borg drone brought back by to her human self by The doctor, authorized by Captain Janeway. Captain Janeway decided to take to writing her captain’s log by this method. It is a practice that we should all do in the wake of this pandemic. To me, even though you are seeing my post in digital form, it was a way of getting back to things in a natural way.

Photo by Pixabay

This was the week when my city reopened for retail. Today was the day I ventured out to a new norm of new rules (other than what was already in place). As I drove, doing my errands of depositing money in my business checking account and going to a grocery store that carried a Starbucks kiosk, because the Starbucks down the street lied about being open, I was thinking, “was it all worth being quarantined for the past 2 ½ months?” The only difference was Columbus, Ohio all of sudden looked like a Japanese prefecture, with mask-wearing people out and about in the 70° plus weather. This is something that the Japanese and other Asians are used to doing, not Americans.

Americans are used to having the freedom to do whatever we want to do, and how we want to do it. If it puts us in jail, so be it. When we get out, some of us will try it again until someone ignores us, then it becomes a norm. If we have to protest, that is fine, it makes an interesting news story locally and/or nationally.

I am not sure how I feel about it.

OK, let me explain….

Since this whole Covid-19 started, I have been squeamish about a few things and those are:

What is my new norm?

How is the country supposed to work now that there is the new little bug that can wipe us out, especially in places like the city where I live and places that I love, like the Caribbean and Walt Disney World.

What is my new norm?

I have been a quiet person all my life. I get it from my mom. So, I do not mind being isolated during this time period. My only problem at first was wearing the mask and gloves, and I get it. I had no problem putting them on, the problem comes because my hands are the same size as a child. There are people who cannot be around others because of their immune system and they are the elderly and the young. I have 6 people I have to respect that. My parents and aunt all have pre-existing conditions and they are elderly. I have a niece who will be 3 months old next week, I have a friend who also has a pre-existing condition and a pastor who has a pre-existing condition. I also have to watch it because I have high blood pressure and I am pre-diabetic. Depending on the doctor, I either have diabetics, or it can come at any time. Either way, I have to watch my diet and my weight. Thank you, Corona for giving me the sense of ignoring those two things. I am much better at doing that now.

Also my new norm: My business. I could tell you that I have the easiest job I could ever have, but like most businesses, there is the struggle of getting gigs. There is a struggle of getting money for this business. I also could say that I like the stimulus package for small or even home businesses. I do not have a small business, I have a home business, and as a home business owner, we often get lumped in with small businesses. What Is a home business? It is a business that is operated out of the home and if you do have any employees, it is usually an assistant. Your revenue is lower than a small business. A good year is when a person is able to earn $1,000 plus per month.

Why offer help to small businesses if big businesses get approved?

Well, to be honest, the EIDLE and the PPP portion of the first stimulus package has done nothing for me and my business because of companies like Potbelly and The Lakers basketball team, who should not have been allowed to apply in the first place, nor their applications should never been approved. Potbelly has returned the money and I believe so has The Lakers. That still does not help P. Lynne Designs. I applied twice. The first application was on Go Alice, while the second application was on the SBA.gov site. I have not heard back, and I doubt I will at this point. I do not have any employees. This is just to maintain the business of one, and for growth. The government did not handle this process very well. I chucked as “I am getting no help as usual” and went about my day. Update: Last night, I was able to file for unemployment, a right that was not given to people like freelance writers and freelance graphic designers, which I am. I pray and hope they approve it.

So let us go back to what I was talking about

THE RETAIL STORES

I do not mind the retail stores being open. Personally, I will not be going in the very beginning. Actually, I am having fun online ordering. I do not have to worry about donning on a mask, fighting crowds, not finding what I want. In fact, I ordered a mystery Die cut bag from Tonic Studios at 3 am this morning. That is how much fun I am having to order online. Yes, I can always order online, then pick up at the store like Walmart.

Amazon has been my store of the hour, and ever since I was told by my governor that even pickup was impossible in the craft stores in my state, I said “okay”, and started ordering online. Ordering online is natural for me anyway, so it did not bother me that I could not go to any of my stores, except Ikea. That is another story for another day.

I have been to two grocery stores since lockdown. One was for last-minute stuff as I found out just today that the second store only allows me to do pickup ordering if the order was over $30. The reason: Cat food. Well my nephew came through with the cat food, so now I do not have to buy that.

It is best if all stores keep in mind a level of safety. My feeling is this since I do have pre-existing conditions, as well as my parents, I do not want to spread the super germs. I am calling Corona that until we find a vaccination for it

My hardest hit yet, Walt Disney World

I am having the hardest time with a Disney Vacation. Last May, I booked a stay for 12 at The Bay Lake Towers at The Contemporary Resort (its official name) for the time of December 15-20, 2019, with all the bells and whistles as this might be the last vacation with my parents, who are in their 80s.

This was a well-meaning trip as two things went wrong from the start: how to pay for a $30,627.00 trip that included a 3-bedroom villa, tickets to the parks, and a deluxe dining plan, and how to tell a Disney-hating father that we were going to the “land of the mouse” times 4 (The Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and The Animal Kingdom theme parks). It would not be a requirement for my parents to go into the parks unless they wanted to. In years past (1998, 2004, and Disneyland in 2007 respectively), my father stayed at the resort or drove around the property, Orlando, and surrounding cities (Cape Canaveral, Kissimmee, and Tampa are close by). This time, my mom, who loves the parks will join him if she wants to. She is not too keen on using a riding scooter.

We were going to drive down instead of flying. We were coming back home that Sunday so that my siblings and my nephew and niece can get back to work by that Monday before Christmas. The kids (Nephews (age 12 and 9) and niece (11)) was being pulled out of school. Ohio has a funny winter break schedule where they are out either the day before Christmas eve or a couple of days before Christmas. Either way, it would have been fun. I pulled the plug on that trip on October 15th, one month before our last cancelation date of November 15th. I did not cry because I was going to call them the day after Christmas with a new date of December 12-19, 2020.

Well with Ms. ‘Rona on the prowl, and for the first time ever since Walt Disney opened Disneyland in 1955, all the parks were close, due her not wanting to play fair, I decided to see what Disney is going to do with the guidelines that they and the State of Florida government, as well as the federal government, was going to say about a reopening date. For the moment, Disney reopened Shanghai Disneyland Monday, Disney Springs, Walt Disney World’s shopping area is reopening on May 20th, and Walt Disney World is excepting bookings starting July 1 (it has been delayed from June 1st).

I do not want a vacation in 2020. I feel like it is too soon to book a vacation and go in 2020. So, I have decided to wait until December 15-19, 2021 to take the trip. This all depends on two things: the health of my parents and the health of our savings. There is one more factor and I am not depending on whether I do or do not do for this vacation and that is to get another Disney Vacation Club membership. This will affect how we pay for this trip. Naturally, this membership is a timeshare, and I have spoken about timeshares before on this blog. That is a talk for my yet to be created a new blog, which will be Disney-related. I took all the travel stuff off of my blog, Home Prep because it is not related.

Some good has come out of all this…

My stories are not all bad, in fact, some of them quite funny.

Last week, a friend had a birthday. She announces it each year 6 days in advance. This year was no different. What I love about Facebook is the ability to have people donate to your favorite charity in loo of presents for your birthday. I am going to do one, I am not sure where yet. July 21 has not gotten here yet.

Anyway, her sister and mother thought that since Ms. ‘Rona decided to cancel my friend’s plans, a surprise drive-by birthday salute was in order. Can I tell you that I do not know how to do one, LOL?

First, I told her mother that I was coming by via Facebook invite. I have seen lineups, so I thought that I was going to meet at her mother’s house, and we would fall in line to go to my friend’s apartment. After all, it was a surprise. Since I am one of those people who would show up late to her own wedding if given a chance, I decided to arrive early so my friend’s mother cannot say that I was late. So, I drove to the house at 4:46 and I did not see any cars. “Good, I am the first one,” I thought, so I went the next street over to turn around. Okay, next thing I knew, I saw my friend’s daughter, who is 3, then my friend. I thought, “Oh, Crap”, and I drove off to my parent’s house who live around the corner. This drive-by was at 5, so I killed some time at my parent’s house and went back over there. It turned out to be an “individual” happy birthday, as my friend and her mother sat there while people drove by, wishing her a happy birthday. It turned out great, and this goofy person now know the proper drive by, LOL.

Business Dealings….

I was able to get some things done for my business while on lockdown. I was approved for an affiliate that I have been wanting since 2017. You know how much I love Erin Condren products, so you will be seeing more affiliate links from that company. As always, I only support companies that I love and believe in, and you are not obligated to make a purchase, but it would be nice for the support. It is a way to put money back into my business. Some of these companies with affiliates, like Erin Condren, Cricut, and Amazon may have links that will help you save money as well. So in that case, if you need the product, it is good to help out a blog and save money at the same time.

I am also working on some things that will help improve this blog, including the infamous blog move.

Even though I was down and out during this period of time, I am fine now and living a new norm. For the moment, my state is wrapping being on lockdown. This is the reason for this title. Let the flood gates open!!! Well, I am over my limit. Be well and safe. Wear a mask, and I will talk to you later.

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