#flying diamonds fins

[bubblegum-gf]

world where marina and the diamonds is marine and the diamonds:

I'm miss sugar scales, flirty flirty fins

Hit me with your fly rod, steal me with a swim

I'm miss sugar scales, flirty flirty fins

I'm gonna be your bubblegum fish

I'm gonna be your bubblegum fish!

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

I've been dreaming of the Undersea Marauder.

There are so many rules in this world. So many shackles to keep him down.

Let nothing obstruct his errant path.

How does a moment last forever? How can a story never die?

A fish is bound to the water his entire life.

It’s not a life for him.

Floyd is on his back, set adrift in the face of the Coral Sea. His hands cradle the back of his head, and he finds himself staring up. A flock of birds form an arrow, slicing through the sky. He wonders where they're going, what they'll do there.

Some merpeople dreamed of trading scales for skin, but Floyd thinks about giving up his fins for feathers. A pair of wings with which to witness all manner of strange things…

He chuckles soft.

Wouldn't that be so freeing?

“Eheheh. I wanna try it, too! Wait up for me, birds. Here I come…!”

Floyd rights himself and dives unto the frigid waters. His powerful tail undulates like a teal ribbon, propelling him after and faster. He steadily gains, chasing the shadows of the birds that skim the surface of his home turf.

Floyd approaches, lifting himself toward the shimmering boundary between sea and sky. A second later, he breaks through with a mighty splash.

His body elegantly arcs in the leap. He’s a skipping dolphin, a flying fish.

Free.

Floyd launches higher and higher, zipping past the flock. He collides with some birds, screeching with laughter as they spin like cars out of control.

Here come the clouds now—he easily bursts through them. They’re made of cool and fine-grained beads of water, refreshing him as he flies.

And higher still he goes, the sky dimming, a gradient of light to dark.

Floyd is among the stars, each twinkling like diamonds in greeting. The planets, like massive globes of sugar orbiting him.

The eel is weightless, effortlessly floating through space. With his arms, he paddles--and though there should be no gravity, the space warps and gives like water, letting him sail as smoothly as a ship after a storm.

He reaches out and plucks a star out of the cosmos, giving it a curious lick. The taste is like sweetened milk, and so he pops the entire thing into his mouth.

Then begins his descent.

At the peak of his jump, surrounded by the stars, he bends downward and plunges.

But there are no longer any waters waiting for him.

He crashes through a canopy of leaves. They scatter like papers, raining down verdant, brown, scarlet, tangerine, and gold. Sunlight pierces them, giving each a magical glow.

Roots come, skittering by him like a snake might slink. Thin tendrils extend from them, brushing his face.

Maybe there is some other name for them? Hyph-something, myce-whatever. Floyd does not care to remember his twin's excitable rambling.

Alarmingly, he spies an ugly bulbous cap poking out from a root. His nose crinkles with disgust.

Shiitake mushroom.

Floyd paddles through the fungi and plants, the scent of dirt and chlorophyll filling his nostrils. It's fresh and green mixed with damp and earthy, nothing like the salty smell of the sea.

Jade would like this, he thinks.

Daisies push through, their petals tickling his skin. He takes a shaky breath, holds, shakes again, and...

Sneezes!!

A great gale is unleashed, clearing his surroundings in an instant. Floyd is sent flying up, up, and away--

He shoots out of the dunes. Sand scatters from the force he emerges with, throwing particle clouds up into the air. Floyd flails, trying to balance his body. No use--he flops uselessly under the pull of gravity.

A scream rips from his throat. Not of terror, but of joy.

The landscape unfolds into a sandy expanse. In the distance, he sees an oasis guarded by palm trees. And below, a great city crowning the desert.

There are bright tents and stalls pitched, merchants hawking their wares. Vases and lamps with unique patterns, ripe fruits, adornments in a variety of designs.

Families and friends mill about in the packed marketplace, satisfied with their mundane lives, the schedules they keep. So content, so peaceful.

Floyd grins.

And he lets himself plummet straight into a stall.

The weight of him collapses it with a loud THUD. The merchant looks on, horrified, and his circle of customers gasp, putting distance between themselves and Floyd. Sticky with fruit juices, he removes the strand of black hair that clings to his cheek.

"Eh, guess it could be worse," Floyd shrugs, tossing off a chunk of watermelon sitting like a hat on his head. A line of juice dribbles down his forehead.

He notices the crowd staring and wiggles his tail in a casual pseudo-wave. One person immediately faints--but luckily, they're caught by a concerned onlooker.

"Riffraff!" the merchant shouts, waving a fist. "Scoundrel!! I demand compensation for what you've wrecked!"

Floyd rolls his eyes. He sounds like Azul.

The eel hauls himself off the pile of fruit--and peels right past the feet of the customers. The merchant's face heats.

"Guards! GUARDS!! Come quickly, HELP!! There's a sea monster on the loose!!"

Floyd rapidly drags himself across the market, digging his talons into the ground, his tail pushing him forward. He gleefully writhes as people scream and flee, clearing a path for him. His laugh, cackling.

He's at the waterways that thread the city when heavy footsteps spill into the street.

"He went that way!!"

Floyd doesn't look back before he dives back into his natural element.

The water welcomes him, its streams washing off the sand that paints his skin, loosening the hair that clumped from fruit juices. A tender kiss, a kind hand.

He has returned to the sea.

The channel goes deeper than Floyd thinks. It widens, becoming an entire ocean bathed in sunlight. A coral reef teeming with life stretched out below him, and when he runs his hand along it, tiny seahorses escape and trail bubbles.

He turns his head this way--a school of rainbow tropical fish race by. The other way, a band is in full swing. A carp on the harp, the plaice on the bass, bass on brass.

Floyd twirls as he passes, happily humming along to the tune. The music wraps around him, giving a warm embrace. He almost misses his name being called, almost forgets himself.

"... od....... loyd... Floyd! There you are."

A face that matches his appears beside him. He is followed by a boy with lilac skin, a series of squirming tentacles at his beck and call.

“Where did you vanish off to?” Jade asks. “Azul and I were starting to get worried about your whereabouts. Weren’t we, Azul?”

“I’m more concerned for the places he visits rather than Floyd himself. Who knows how much collateral damage he could cause unsupervised,” the octopus merman grumbles.

“Oya, Azul… Could it be that you lack faith in Floyd? Even though he has unquestionably served you since middle school?"

"You're saying strange things again. I recall him losing interest and changing his mind last minute more often than 'unquestionably serving'." Azul raises a brow. "So? Where were you all this time?"

Floyd flings himself at the duo, slinging his arms around their shoulders and pulling them close.

"F-Floyd?! What is the meaning of this?" Azul sputters, struggling against his binds.

"I was everything and everywhere all at once," he responds with a laugh. "I was as free as a bird! I'll tell you guys about it~"

"Fufu, it sounds as though you've been away on quite an adventure. We would, of course, be more than happy to hear of your escapades."

[i-should-have-studied]

Mod 2 General Topics

Types of Fins

Fins are thin, broad folds of integument internally supported by fin rays, they aid in locomotion in various ways depending on the type of fins.

There are 2 kinds of adult fish fins: unpaired median and paired lateral.

Unpaired median fins include 1-2 dorsal fins along the mid-dorsal line, a ventral anal fin behind the anus/cloaca and a caudal fin around the tip of the tail.

Paired lateral fins include pectoral fins anteriorly and pelvic fins posteriorly. Pelvic fins are called thoracic when located below the pectoral fins and abdominal when located just above the anus. Absent in some.

Under unpaired fins there are many types of caudal fins. Caudal fins are well developed in most fish because of its important contribution to forward propulsion during swimming. The 3 main types are: diphycercal, heterocercal, and homocercal.

Diphycercal Fins:

The most primitive, not exhibited by many living fish.

Vertebral column extends straight back to the tip of the tail, dividing the fin symmetrically and equally into the dorsal and ventral lobes.

Occurs in cyclostomes, primitive sharks, and lungfish.

Presence of diphycercal tail in developed fish is due to secondary modifications.

Heterocercal Fins:

Intermediate type.

The caudal fin is strongly asymmetrical.

Vertebral column bends upwards and reaches up to the tip of the more prominent dorsal lobe.

Characteristic in bottom feeders with a ventral mouth, the stroked of the large dorsal lobe directs the fish downwards.

Occurs in modern sharks.

The opposite, a large ventral lobe, is found in flying fish to propel them upwards. This type of fin is called hypocercal.

Homocercal Fins:

The most advanced type and the most common.

Characteristic of most higher bony fishes.

Externally symmetrical but internally asymmetrical.

The original dorsal lobe or epichordal is suppressed, the original ventral love is developed into a single or 2 symmetrical lobes.

Characteristic of fishes with a terminal mouth, its strokes force the fish straight forward.

Types of Scales

There are 5 types of dermal scales: Cosmoid, Placoid, Ganoid, Cycloid, and Ctenoid.

1. Cosmoid Scales:

Does not occur in living fish, only fossilized fishes.

2. Placoid Scales:

Characteristic of sharks.

Each scale has a backwardly directed spine arising from a round or rhomboidal basal plate embedded in dermis.

Spine is enamel-like and basal plate is of dentine-like bony material.

A pulp cavity inside the spine opens through basal plate.

Placoid scales are closely set together in skin; giving a sandpaper like texture.

3. Ganoid Scales:

Thick, rhomboidal, or diamond shaped plates closely fitted side by side. Tile like, provide a bony armor to the fish, might overlap in some.

Characteristic of holosteans.

4. Cycloid Scales:

Thin, flexible. translucent plates. Circular in outline and thicker in the center.

Marked with several concentric lines of growth which can be used to determine age.

They overlap each other, each scale is embedded in a small pocket of dermis.

Found in lung fishes, carp, cod, etc.

5. Ctenoid Scales:

Similar to cycloid scales in form, structure, and arrangement.

But is more firmly attached, their free hind parts with are not overlapped, bear numerous small comb-like teeth or spines.

Characteristic of modern higher teleosteans like perch and sunfish.

There are some intermediate types of scales found in between cycloid and ctenoid, and some fish like flounder have both.

Neoteny and Paedogenesis

Neoteny refers to the retention of a larval or embryonic trait in the adult body. For example the retention of larval gills in adult salamanders.

Paedogenesis refers to the development of gonads and or production of young by an immature larval animal. Examples are scattered in several groups or animals such as gall fly, liver fluke, and salamanders.

Neoteny emphasizes the retention of larval traits in the adult body while paedogenesis stresses the development of adult like gonads in the larval body.

The best example of neoteny and paedogenesis is ambystomata. Normally they live through an aquatic larval stage and transform into an air-breathing terrestrial adult. However, under certain circumstances, the larvae does not undergo metamorphosis, retains it's gills and aquatic nature, but becomes sexually mature. This sexually mature larval stage with external gills is called an axolotl.

For a while axolotls were thought to be an entirely separate genus, Siredon.

Environmental factors affect metamorphosis in many ways. Abundance of food, cold temp., and insufficient iodine may cause failure of metamorphosis and paedogenesis. This is known because drying of swamps, lack of food, and rise in temp induce axolotls to metamorphose. When treated with thyroxine or TSH, they lose their gills and become adults.

There are 3 types of neoteny, partial, intermediate and total.

Partial neoteny is then metamorphosis is delayed due to temporary ecological or physiological changes, seen in tadpoles over winter.

Intermediate neoteny is when the organism is sexually reproductive and can undergo metamorphosis under the correct conditions, seen in axolotl.

Total neoteny is when they remain larval throughout. Even after treatment of thyroxine, they fail to metamorphose. Seen in Siren.

Parental Care in Amphibians

Parental care is the act of looking after the eggs or young until they are independent enough to defend from predators.

Amphibians exhibit various types of parental care in two broad groups: Protection by nests, nurseries, or shelters and direct caring by parents.

Protection by nests, nurseries, or shelters:

1. Selection of site: Many amphibians lay their eggs in protected moist microhabitats. Some frogs and toads lay eggs on land near water. Many tree frogs lay their eggs on leave and branched overhanding water by gluing their eggs, they fall into water free of predators when hatched. Some tree frogs deposit eggs in water that accumulates in epiphytic tropical plants, free from aquatic predators.

2. Defending eggs or territories: Male green Rana frogs maintain territories and attack small intruders to protect the eggs. Both male and female Mantophryne frogs guard the eggs. The male actually sits over and holds the gelatinous envelope containing 17 eggs.

3. Direct Development: In some frogs such as Hyla, the eggs hatch directly into little frogs, thus avoiding the chance of larval mortality. In the red backed salamander, the hatchlings are miniature adults.

4. Foam Nests: Many amphibians convert copious mucous secretion into nests for young. Japanese tree frogs dig a hole or tunnel into which eggs are left in a frothy mass to avoid desiccation. During rain, the hatching tadpoles are washed down the slopping tunnel into pond or river water for further development. Some frogs lay eggs in nests of foam floating on water. The female emits a huge amount of mucus that she can beats into foam with her hindlegs to lay eggs in. When tadpoles hatch they drop from foam into water.

5. Mud nests: Brazilian tree frog, Hyla, the male frog digs little holes in the mud of shallow water for the female frog to lay eggs in. The nest is 30cm in diameter and 5-8cm deep. Tadpoles hatch within this safe place and develop until they are large enough to defend themselves.

6. Tree nests: The South American Tree frog, Phyllomedusa, lays eggs in a folded leaf nest with margins glued together with cloacal secretions. The tadpoles when formed fall straight into water below.

7. Gelatinous bags: Salamandrella, a small aquatic salamander, deposits 50-60 small eggs in a gelatinous bag which is fastened to aquatic plants.

Direct Carrying By Parent

1. Coiling around eggs: In certain caecilians like Ichthyophis, the female lays large eggs in burrows in damp soil and carefully guards them by coiling her body around them until they hatch.

2. Transferring tadpoles to water: Some species of small frogs in tropical Africa and South America deposit their eggs on ground. Once the tadpoles hatch, they fasten themselves to the back of one of the parents with their sucker like mouth so they can be transported to water.

3. Eggs glued to body: Many amphibians carry the eggs glued to their body. In the Sri Lankan tree frog, the eggs are glued to the belly of the female. In the European midwife toad, Alytes, the mall entangles the eggs around his hindlegs so he can carry them with him until they are ready to hatch. When the time comes they release the tadpoles into the nearest water body.

4. Eggs in back pouches: In a group of tree frogs called marsupial frogs, the female carries the eggs on her back. Either in an open oval depression, a closed pouch, or individual pockets. The eggs develop into miniature frogs before leaving their mother's back.

5. Organs as brooding pouches: Males of the terrestrial South American Darwin's frog, Rhinoderma, pushes at least 2 fertilized eggs into his large vocal sacs. There they undergo complete development to emerge out as fully formed froglets.

6. Viviparity: Some anurans are ovoviviparous. They reatain eggs in the oviducts and the female gives birth to living young. For example African toads give birth to little frogs.

[thegloriouspapernapkin]

@notartisticdraw a neuron just activated in my smooth little brain and I thought you’d like it

I was drawing more squid parasites for fun and I had a terrible brilliant idea: dude, what if there were different kids of parasite? and cephalopod themed, too, like goulash? like what if there were different categories and they all specialized in certain kinds of parasitic behaviors?? just think about it (cephalopod facts ahead)

- Humboldt squid grow to adulthood in like 3 years, so they require lots of food and often devour anything smaller than them (including other Humboldt squid). They also group together in the hundreds, communicating with each other by flashing red and white in different patterns. there have been multiple instances of these squid trying to drag humans down into the abyss of the ocean. they constantly attack cameras and lights, lashing out at anything new with lightning speed.

- diamond squid. they look like a disco ball. they have bizarre diamond-shaped fins, and use them to slowly travel through the deep sea instead of propelling itself with jets of water.

- vampire squids can turn themselves inside out to hide their photophores from potential attackers, and apparently they can spew this bioluminescent mucus from the ends of their tentacles. it has this weird web that connects all its tentacles, too. they actually aren’t squids or octopus at all, just a funky little offshoot that managed to survive to present day.

- colossal squids. just colossal squids. they might actually be quite calm compared to your average squid, but they have hooks in the little suckers on their tentacles. and they are enormous.

-giant squids too?? even as babies they’re the size of an average adult squid, with razor-sharp suckers that shred prey before it even gets to the beak. they are also enormous.

- Japanese flying squid. dude, they can propel themselves out of the water by literally launching themselves into the air. what’s not to love???

- striped pyjama squids are really small and adorable, but they’re from Australia so you know that’s a lie (they’re poisonous. or venomous i forgor)

- firefly squid. I love them dearly. they group together and create these mesmerizing patterns using their bioluminescence and it is gorgeous.

- long fin inshore squids are commonly seen by divers in shallower waters, renowned for their speed and camouflaging abilities. they congregate into huge groups when migrating, turning the water black sometimes.

dude, there is so much potential for what these parasites could be!! I’m already working on turning the idea of a multiverse full of inexplicable ecosystems like this into an actual story, so this has been at the focus point of my braincells lately and I must stick the words here. but imagine how this could work!!! (totally might use these for said au becasue im feeling silly but idc if you or anyone else takes inspiration from/uses em)

giant parasites floating aimlessly, miles below the AUs just waiting for something edible to fall down, or maybe specifically going after larger monsters. little skittish parasites living off the coast, paralyzing monsters that get too close and crawling inside their eyes. parasites bringing their hosts together in the darkness, slowly amassing a pile of corpses as they crawl out to create a dazzling light show in the dark. i am losing it because of these little goobers asxkjasdasldblasij i just needed to post about cephalopods im sorry

[es46]

I am ecstatic to present an improved rendition of prior upload Daemona Xocoe, as provided by the superb artist Bishyantir - Diamond Graphics (@Bishyantir) / X (twitter.com) This piscine wyvern is a fascinating creature adapted to high-altitude environments such as the Coral Highlands and other mountainous zone with strong updrafts. Supported by wing-like fins and internal gas bladders, Daemona Xocoe is an apex predator adapted to hunting down other flying monsters. Its first line of attack is the bioluminescnet membrane extending from its jaws, which can induce Confusion in both prey and rivals, making easy pickings. To close in on targets, vents on its limbs and tail combust and expel its internal gas flow in a fiery fashion, reminescent of the Hellfire used by Magnamalo.

[stealing-the-smp]

Where some is in the

Left On Their Own Terms Au

Or the new canon dsmp ending rewrite bc yeeee <3

First to go was Vian who of course headed to Utah where he actually has made a friend and she’s helping him become a better person by being his friend

Mahogany would decide to go find Vian and would have Whiterose come along to protect them but they drop the royalty and knight theming pretty fast to instead wear cottagecore outfits like Mahogany’s embroidered strawberry shirt! From back in Lmanburg :0

Myotis found Mahogany’s cave and now the vampire tells people stories abt the monster of the caves gigantic canine creature with freaky white eyes (he also likes looking through Mahogany’s stuff)

Next to head out was the syndicate(+komo) who went to the end and they can’t really get out given they befriended the Ender dragon given she’s conscious

Nutmeg managed the revival project especially given a certain item Mahogany left for him before leaving of a revival book so he revived Ender first then Comet and now Comet and Nutmeg are out on their own adventure

Ender got revived and actually went with Mac to the nether so the kid could keep growing up there and Ender also took Morgan bc Hydra and Komo were missing

Bee started becoming a merchant and often brings gold to Ender and Mac in the nether given that’s his family!

Frog decided it was time to go finally leave his mistakes and Sam went along showing a bit to Frog he’ll always have his mistakes…..maybe he should stop seeing them as mistakes?

Aloe went with Frog and Sam definitely not bc she’s looking for a end portal given she’s definitely not a syndicate member

Wisp was planning to get back to walking and actually suggested Cas come with him which Cas was hesitant but he just got himself and Coin ready and now out there there is three fox anthros walking south given south has less people

Coal made a big decision and cut his deal to be friends forever with Bee given the total memory wipe that would happen given currently Coal can have help with that but if he stayed longer he possibly couldn’t so now he’s in the nether with his family following! Muffins is teaching her kid how to survive the nether while Diamond watches

Mantis is with them but with something interesting….the egg hatched and Trix is along for the ride

Patch learned he was the time and dream god and with that has just gotten all the tales people back then he worked with Carrot on they’re deal and now Patch leads a group of friends from other times and Carrot is in the back making sure no one runs off

Hanulilly was the next to leave just using her fairy wings to maybe fly out somewhere where she can be a good person again or just lay in a flower field till she passed…..she did the ladder………..

With so much less customers to the McKomo’s Milkweed just left universe back into the multiverse

Demi learned he was top god so first dropped Antler off with the tales group then Demi began to do too god stuff no longer having time for much in between top god stuff and helping Fin and Frazer learn how to be gods

One time when Cypress wasn’t gambling and with the knowledge they were severely understaffed Franklin decided Las Nevadas was over and just told Slime then the two blew it up and left on a boat giggling abt how they just destroyed the entire legacy while drunk…..even when sober they believe it was the right decision

Cypress after Las Nevadas was destroyed now just spends time looking around the server and taking care of everyone’s old pets……especially the ones Hydra had in the underground city……….he wishes he could make it up to her but she’s just missing so he’ll take care of a cat and a enderman

Astin had had a chance to actually go back to space back when Whiterose got something working so Whiterose could send his kids back to space out of this but….Astin didn’t take it instead him and Chord are living in a cottage with a bunch of sheep and are raising Saylor together while Chord also has tamed a dog recently and is training the dog with Champ’s tasks? Astin isn’t seeing Champ is getting old but Chord is so is preparing something for him

Mahogany would eventually talk to Vian then track everyone down and say their goodbyes before leaving universe at peace on their own terms back out into the multiverse onto another adventure

[powdermelonkeg]

Tears of the Kingdom: The Final Analysis

Part 11

Part 10 here

A monster chases Link in Skyrule, with a glowing purple mouth and eyes. It splashes through the otherwise-rock-solid ground as if it's mud.

Blue sparks are still flying around the area, and there's a block of luminous stone up at the top of this isle over here.

And the lower part of this island doesn't have the blocky, dirty look the golden forest isles have. A sky dungeon? The City in the Sky from the very beginning of the trailer seems a likely candidate.

This thing looks about as big compared to Link as a guardian, and it burrows back into the ground just as easily as it emerged.

I backed up a few frames to get a better look at it—it has fins along its sides, and doesn't appear to have any feet to walk around with. Defeating it means you'll need to draw it out of the ground and stun it, just like a molduga.

The next shot has Link and Tulin diving alongside each other. Tulin carries a Swallow Bow.

This is important for when we see him later.

At last, we get to Mystery Girl. Lovely, sweet Mystery Girl. At first glance, I thought she was Zelda, however, let's do a quick comparison:

Here we have Zelda in the same position, so we can minimize any POV differences.

Mystery Girl's ears are much longer, and lack any kiknd of curve to their edge.

They're much more like Skyward Sword Zelda, in that regard.

Mystery Girl's eyes, while the same color, are more narrow and slightly more angular along their lower and inner edges. Her eyebrows are thinner, and her lashes are longer.

Her nose is much more aquiline than Zelda's turned-up button nose.

This is more clearly seen from the back of the Japanese TotK download card, if you'll forgive the low quality.

And, in regards to TotK Zel's design:

Zel has one tear while Mystery Girl has four.

She lacks any sort of markings on her neck.

As well as on her right shoulder.

And while they both appear to be carrying the same tear in its upright position, they have different necklaces holding them in place. In short; I think everything lines up for these two to be different, albeit related characters.

Moving on, the tear glows as Mystery Girl powers up her beam. It's powering up, if not outright causing, the light magic that follows. However, that same glow looks very similar to the one we saw earlier.

It's the same shade of yellow, with the same particle effects surrounding it.

And then this bit here-

Looks both like Hylia's crest, and like the crest on the front of the Spirit Tracks train.

In favor of Hylia, it has a similar angle to its feathers, as well as a detached central diamond-like piece. However, the Spirit Tracks emblem has two feathers on either side, plus an inverted triangle at its top.

When she casts her beam, we can see the white stone of the structure she's standing on, with some pine trees in the back.

Partnering that with the moldugas she blasts into oblivion, we can pretty safely say that she stands just in the cold zone of the Gerudo Highlands.

And her beam blasts FAR. Look how high it goes into the distance there!

You can only barely see it among the dark pixels, but that's the cliff edge. That's how high up and far away she is. This isn't just fighting off monsters, this is a show of sheer power.

Also, take a look at this rock here. That's not Gerudo sandstone. Are the moldugas trying to leave the desert?

We next see Riju pulling off Urbosa's Fury. She spins around, carrying Urbosa's own blades, then-

BAM. Lightning.

Out of images again, Part 12 coming up!

Edit: Part 12!

[asknamelessghoul-shiek]

SUPER long post but I found an intro template, and Pinterest likes to give me silly ideas, and basing off this photo I found (Wasn’t able to find artist, if you know them lmk :3) and YIPPEE it’s all under the cut.

Chimaera intro

Character Chart

Character’s full name: Chimaera Garr Heller

Reason or meaning of name: Chimaera based off appearance, mainly the hair details and the wings.

Character’s nickname: Mae, Gar, Hell.

Reason for nickname: Shortened versions of name, usually given by family or close friends/partners.

Birth date: 09/04/04 Gender Orientation: Genderfluid, demiboy. (AFAB) Sexual orientation: Pansexual, male preference.

——Physical appearance——

Age: 20

How old does he/she appear: 18

Weight: Around 115 lbs

Height: 6’0”

Body build: Lean / Athletic

Shape of face: Diamond shape, with the shape of the muzzle.

Eye color: Muddy orange

Glasses or contacts: None

Skin tone: Varying shades of grey, with mostly dark gray and highlights of lighter gray.

Distinguishing marks: Bat wing tramp stamp tattoo above the happy trail, and Frankenstein Stich tattoo marks under the breast on each side.

Predominant features: Dim but vivid orange hair coloration, wide septum piercing, long curved upper fangs, long claws/nails, and wings on their middle back.

Hair color: Pumpkin orange.

Type of hair: 3A, but very easily ratty and random.

Hairstyle: Shaggy/wolfcut

Voice:

Overall attractiveness: From 1-10 a 8.5 to most.

Physical disabilities: Cannot fly, has an absolute (slight) hunch from being a gargoyle.

Usual fashion of dress: Grunge. Lots of bands and worn shirts, and baggy jeans or sweatpants.

Favorite outfit: Black ripped jeans that show knees and shins, that have a few bands written in them in paint marker, and a work tank top that’s cut to show the ribs as well.

Jewelry or accessories: bracelets, lots of piercings, and a belt or two.

Good personality traits: Very leisurely often, so an almost entirely calm persona, has a sense of humor, provides for companions.

Bad personality traits: Is a bitch sometimes, has a habit of having dark humor or making bad jokes, and sometimes gets snippy.

Mood character is most often in: Calm or chill (always stoned, in both senses)

Sense of humor: Dark/mild

Character’s greatest joy in life: The fact that dilfs exist, lots of good food, and friends.

Character’s greatest fear: Being shattered or broken when stoned, being left alone, and dying.

Life philosophy: As long as you don’t bring anybody into this world or take anybody out of it, what you did wasn’t that horrific. And never too much sleep.

If granted one wish, it would be: To not turn to stone in the morning.

Character’s soft spot: Dogs, or Lycanthropes. Sweet talk, and being pet to fall asleep.

Is this soft spot obvious to others?: Not very much.

Greatest strength: Has the bite force of 1 Tonne if threatened to the point of it.

Greatest vulnerability or weakness: Does not stand much a chance in direct sunlight, will turn to stone.

Biggest regret: Not telling immediate family the fact they were genderfluid, or had surgery until years later.

Minor regret: Not saving money for a little more weed.

Biggest accomplishment: Getting Top surgery.

Minor accomplishment: Not dying after 20 years.

Past failures he/she would be embarrassed to have people know about: One time they fell off the roof one night and cracked their wrist after being un-stoned.

Character’s darkest secret: They once slept with another gargoyle and they both got stuck at morning, but somebody took photos of it thinking it was just statues.

Does anyone else know?: Never.

Immediate goals: Save up some money to get nicer clothes and some gifts for friends.

Long term goals: Eventually live alone instead of with their Father and sibling.

How the character plans to accomplish these goals: Working some more hours, getting money from friends via small trades.

How other characters will be affected: A few friends may lose about $10.

——Past——

Hometown: Westminster England

Type of childhood: Fine for the most part, other than lack of mother.

Pets: Two to Five crows and Ravens that visit often and leave bottle caps in exchange for seeds.

First memory: Seeing their first thunderstorm after around roughly ~2 years of being ‘alive.’

Most important childhood memory: The day they lost their Mother, whom fell from her perch on the Westminster Abbey.

Childhood hero: Father.

Dream job: Bassist or grave digger

Education: Late Middle-school Education (horrible memory and unable to visualize things like math.)

Religion: Satanist, theistic to be specific.

——Present——

Current location: Vancouver Washington.

Currently living with: Father and older Sibling.

Pets: Three cats, Jiffy, Rat, and Sherlock.

Religion: Satanist, leaning between both theistic and atheistic.

Occupation: None currently.

—-Family—-

Mother: Emilien Lilly Heller

Relationship with her: None.

Father: Alexandre Ace Heller

Relationship with him: Good.

Siblings: Merlot Dahl Heller

Relationship with them: Good.

Favorite Color: Sanguine or Wine red.

Least favorite color: Fuchsia.

Music: Rock, Metal, Indie, lofi.

Food: Grilled cheese, fruit salad.

Literature: Old short stories, dark fiction.

Form of entertainment: Usually music.

Expressions: Resting bitch face. (From their father)

[darkstarlight82]

🧜🏼‍♂️My Merman🧜🏼‍♂️

🐚Merman!Levi x fem!reader AU Part 1🐚

'Time and time again I come out here and all I get is clams and tiny fish that can't be used. This sucks so bad.' I think to myself as I feel backwards onto my raft. It has been a month now being out here by myself. Being an only child and a girl ment I couldn't go hunting with the men, not to mention that I was looked over at having a mate, being of lower class. "I hate this village. I wish the lake god would just capsize my raft." I said out loud not thinking someone would hear me. I was so wrong. Next thing I knew it the water was getting choppy and the clouds started to get dark.

The waves were getting out of hade and I had no way to let anyone know that I was out here. I was in the middle of the lake and I didn't tell anyone I was coming out here. 'Holy shit an I going to die.' I asked myself. At first I was scared but then remembering that I will not be miss by anyone in the village I was ready for my faith. Closing my eye I let my raft go under.

As I was pulled under the water I was in aww at what the depths showed me. Different planet life. All sizes and colors of fish. 'Now this isn't a bad way to die.' I thought as I could feel water fill my lungs. It brought me peace to see something so beautiful that was beneath something so scary. As closing my eye for the last time my body felt light. Like I was flying. Or so I thought was the last time.

When I came to my lungs felt like the were on fire and I started coughing like crazy. When I stopped and was getting my breath back I looked around to see where I was at. "How did I get to the other side of the island. And how am I alive." I said out loud thinking no one was around. "Getting here was mine doing, and you being alive was my doing too." I turned to where I heard the voice was coming for. What I saw was or rather who I saw made my heart stop. There in front of me was what I thought was nothing but a fairytale that was told to the children, something to put them to sleep. There in the water resting on a rock was a Merman.

"Okay I must be dead because your not real and this is the afterlife." I said with my head in my hands. I hear what sounds like a wind chimes. "Are all humans this funny?" He asked bring his fin out of the water.What I saw was the most beautiful thing that I ever saw. His tail was a mix of blue green and white. The scales sparkled like diamonds. "So do humans have names or do you call each other by gender?" He asked putting his tail bake into the water.

It took me a minute to get my hand back together. "Y/n, I'm Y/n. What do I call you?" He looked at me with curiosity. "Levi. You have a very pretty name, It fits you. So what where you doing out in the water. You know it's not safe out here." I looked over to what was left of my raft. "I was fishing, trying to get food for my village, then the water got bad and next thing I knew it, my raft capsized and then you save me." I took a breath and closed my eyes. "Can't they fish for themselves? Why would they send a female?" I looked at him a little offended. "Woman aren't trained in hunting so we do other things for the village." He got off the rock to come closer to the shore. "Why don't you have one? I have many men in my clan that would fight over your hand." I felt my cheek get warm. "I'm of lower class so I'm not the first choice for the men in the village." He got onto the shore next to me, he brought his hand up to my face rubbing his thumb on my cheek. "That doesn't matter to my clan, you make such a beautiful bride." He slowly pulled me to him being his face close to mine. He put his forehead to mine. "Can I see you tonight so we can talk more?" I shook my head yes. "Tonight I will see you then." He pulled away making his way back into the water. I sat there watching him disappear into the depths.

Divider by @cafekitsune

My weebs: @tokyo-chainsaw-dragon @tomuraslut @arlerts-angel @arlertwitch @i-literally-cant-with-this @randompurr @tootiecakes234 @sluttyshigaraki @romantichomicide95 @postwarlevi

[mako-and-tails-and-stuff]

Mako Mermaids F/Feb Day 19 For Sure

Day 19 For sure, Ondina/Weilan, 657 words, Rating T

Everything was perfect. Weilan had spent all afternoon getting every single detail as perfect as she possibly could. Rose petals starting in the hallway and leading to their bed, a heart drawn out in petals on top of the sheets. Candles too, so many candles. Little tea lights each once spaced equally apart, bathing the apartment in soft romantic lighting. 

She had a bath all ready to go too, bubbles piled high and more candles dotted around the bathroom. 

The most important thing was on her person and had been all afternoon. A ring. Silver with a tiny diamond tucked away in a little black box in her pocket.

Weilan went to pat her pocket and found it empty. Oh fuck. 

She searched everywhere. Ondina would be home any minute and she had lost the goddamned ring. In a flurry she threw one of the pillows off the bed sending it flying across the room. 

It worked, the black box sat just partially buried under the other cushion. Weilan grabbed it and opened it - the ring was still safe inside.

“Um Weilan? Why is there a pillow on fire?”

Weilan spun round to see Ondina standing there and the pillow she had just thrown beginning to smoulder into flames.

“Oh fuck!” Weilan snapped out her hand and condensed the water from the air into a blob before chucking it down onto the pillow.

“Weilan don’t!”

Ondina sighed as she fell to the ground. Her tail thumped into the rose petals, the motion of her fin sending some floating around. 

“Oops.” Guess some of it splashed on Ondina. 

“What’s all this for?” Ondina asked, looking around the remains of the rose petals. The ones on the floor were disturbed by Ondina falling, the ones on the bed wrecked by Weilan throwing her pillows and not to mention the charred pillow on the floor. 

“I had something planned but I think I’ve ruined it,” Weilan let herself sink down onto the floor at the foot of the bed and avoided Ondina’s eyes. She had tried so hard and it just all went wrong. 

“My answer is yes.”

“Wait what?” Weilan’s head snapped up.

“That’s a ring right? In your hand? You were going to ask me to marry you?”

“You really want to marry me?” Weilan asked, “Even after all this?” She gestured around the mess she’d created. Looking closer she could see some of the candles had spilt wax on their carpet, 

“For sure.”

Weilan wanted to squeal and jump in that moment, instead she opted for her language of love - sarcasm and jokes.

 “You can’t say that at the altar you know, or in front of whatever High Priestess marries Mermaids. Typically it’s ‘I do’ people say.” 

Seven Months Later

“And do you Weilan take Ondina to be your Mer-wife? No matter what the oceans and tides throw at you?” Evie asked, standing between the two. Ondina still didn’t officially exist, so an official land people ceremony with a registrar was out of the question. So Evie was asked to do it. 

Zac and Cam were Weilan’s Bridesmaids, standing to one side. Mimmi and Sirena were Ondina’s bridesmaids, both wearing soft blue dresses matching the boy’s ties. Weilan had gotten Rita to walk her down the aisle for this land ceremony; her grandmother having been there for their official vows under the Full Moon where the Eastern Pod’s version of Mako’s High Priestess had joined them together. Ondina had also stolen Rita to walk her down the aisle much to Rita’s amusement. 

“For sure,” Weilan grinned, unable to resist the call back to the proposal. 

Ondina laughed, their friend’s joining in and the pair leaned in resting their foreheads against each other.

“And do you Ondina take Weilan to be your Mer-wife? No matter what the oceans and tides throw at you?”

“For sure.” 

“I now pronounce you wife and wife, you may now kiss the bride!”

[dansnaturepictures]

Some magical moments from our Scotland trip over the past week

We enjoyed fine views of colourful Oystercatcher and rustic Common Sandpiper shuffled along Lochindorb’s shore. Then we were mesmerised as a slick, otherworldly and stunning bird surfaced extraordinarily close to the shore, a summer plumage Black-throated Diver. It was an honour to watch this exquisite bird and its partner swim, stick their head under the water and dive. What an honour to see these sensational birds in their breeding grounds so intimately. Not long after a scene evocative of the moors captivated us, a pure and prepossessing Red Grouse on the roadside. In a daze of a few minutes it was wonderful to focus on and admire the bird, letting its gargling call wash over us.

One of the Black-throated Divers

Fresh from picking out Puffin and Common Scoters out to sea we were fixated on another fine diver at the shore of Spey Bay, the ruby throated gem that is the Red-throated Diver, alongside another further out still in winter plumage. It was electrifying to watch this excellent and eye-catching bird. Then all of a sudden where seabirds gathered further out breaking the surface were dorsal fins of Bottlenose Dolphins. Glee filled minutes followed as we saw the dolphins feed, getting exhilarating glimpses of more of their shiny bodies as they leapt out of the water surrounded by the white splash from their movements. We felt invigorated. Soon after the sky was filled with the colossal fish hunter overhead, more thrilling moments as a charming Osprey soared over.

One of the Bottlenose Dolphins

More rulers of the sky were enjoyed at Strathdearn, White-tailed Eagles against the mountainside with their rectangular wings and pointy diamond tales. With White-tailed Eagle and other raptors in the air again we spotted the icon of wilderness, a young Golden Eagle with its more crescent tail and succulent white infused in its plumage giving it an exotic feel. They circled in the bright blue sky above a line of pines; carefree, effortless as if all was well in the world. Scenes to see which inspire the soul, epitomize wilderness and bring awe and wonder.

The Golden Eagle

Oystercatcher

Common Sandpiper

The Red Grouse

Common Scoters flying over the sea

The Red-throated Diver

Osprey

White-tailed Eagle

[remys-rockets]

L2 Certification Attempt

After obtaining my L1 attempt, I had originally planned to fly for an L2 attempt on the same rocket. However, I attended a VRA club night where a swap meet was being held and ended up with a Rocketry Warehouse (now Madcow) Broken Arrow 54. Sometimes a great deal is a great deal.

This was a pretty big step up from the cardboard and plywood construction I was used to, being entirely filament-wound fibreglass. Its large diameter/length ratio combined with its small split fins also made it intimidating. This kit is also intended only for dual-deploy, which is something I had never done before. I decided it was a good opportunity to challenge myself.

Build

The kit was pretty bare-bones, meaning I had to source a retainer and much of the hardware for it. I ordered a 38mm Aeropack retainer, and then I began the build.

The process was relatively simple, with through-the-wall fins like all my previous builds. However, this time they did not fit into divots in the centering rings, so I 3D printed a fin jig to hold them in place while the epoxy cured.

Speaking of epoxy, I moved away from the 5-minute Araldite I had used for previous builds in favour of a more serious adhesive. I used JB Weld for anything motor-adjacent because of its thermal tolerance, and Epiglue for all other structural attachments and fin fillets. This was recommended to me by a friend in Perth who flies truly ridiculous rockets and has used it on flights of up to Mach 2. It is also available from a local marine supplier, meaning I didn't have to pay through my nose to get hold of Rocketpoxy or West Systems. I was very pleased with how nicely it went on and how strong it was.

By this time I'd also nailed down my epoxy application and filleting methods - I use cheap silicone sculpting and grouting tools which can simply be cleaned with acetone after I'm done. For filleting, I also found that mixing the epoxy in a ziploc bag and piping it on like icing worked a treat.

My work gets cleaner with every set of fillets I lay down. These ones don't look fantastic, and the split fins were something I had never dealt with before, but that didn't matter for reasons that became apparent shortly after the epoxy had set.

The morning after I applied these fillets, I got up to continue working on the rocket when I noticed that something had shifted overnight. The motor mount tube was somehow at an angle, as shown in the image above. I know I installed it perfectly level, but I didn't secure it while it set so I think it slipped as it cured. In my defense, I was quite sick and not firing on all cylinders when I had completed all the work up until now, but the realisation of what I'd managed to do was pretty disappointing and a bit of a knock to my confidence. Some measurements and a bit of trig suggested that the offset was only a degree or two, but the image suggests otherwise. I consulted some friends who are far more experienced flyers than I, and the consensus was a mix between 'send it' and Do Not Fly That Rocket, with more in favour of flying it than not. I looked at my OpenRocket sim for stability characteristics, and read some old Rocketry Forum posts about this model, all which pointed to it being rather squirrelly. In hindsight, I feel like I made the right decision, as I just couldn't ignore my gut feeling. I decided to rip it apart and rebuild it completely.

I did not take photos during this phase due to being completely covered with fibreglass dust, but I ended up using a diamond Dremel cutting wheel to first cut the fin can off, then cleanly slice the fins out of the body. I cannibalised a small section of the avionics bay tube to use as a coupler to reattach the aft section. I was then able to epoxy the whole thing back together, sand it all down, and it looked no different - apart from the motor mount being at the correct angle of zero degrees. I re-filleted the fins with a larger radius than before, as I wasn't happy with how they looked initially. I was very pleased with this effort, and confident to a) present this rocket to an RSO and b) fly it safely.

I also took the opportunity during this rebuild to modify the rocket to be motor-eject capable, by removing the bulkhead to which the recovery harnessing would be attached. I cut a small divot in the forward centering ring and attached a looped piece of kevlar around the motor tube before reinstalling it. This 'leash' provides the anchor point for a longer recovery harness to be attached to. I am very glad I did this, as not long after I was informed that my university club possessed a grand total of two (2) grams of black powder. Traditional dual-deploy would no longer be an option. More on that later.

To finish off the construction, I 3D printed rail guides from ABS and bolted them to the body, with a bit of JB Weld in there for good measure. I drilled pressure relief holes in the forward and aft sections of the body, and another in the avionics bay for altimeter readings. I then drilled a more smaller holes and installed screws to pin the nosecone to the forward section, and the forward section to the avionics bay. Since the flight would no longer be traditional dual-deploy, the rocket would not need to separate at these points. Finally, I gave it a purple paintjob and the name of CRUNCHWRAP 3.

At some point, Taco Bell might see these and send me a cease and desist. I am going to keep building and flying them until they do.

Recovery

With a proper dual-deploy ejection now out of the question, I turned to my backup plan. My team calls it the 'poor-man's dual deploy', even though it's arguably actually more expensive than using black powder. This involves deploying a drogue with the motor charge, then using a JollyLogic chute release device to deploy the main at whatever altitude you have chosen. There is a substantial risk of the harnessing becoming tangled using this method, but I didn't really have a choice. I used a 4.5m nylon shock cord, tied to the anchored kevlar leash. I divided the cord into thirds, tying a loop at each third. I attached the drogue to the forward-most loop, and the main to the aft loop. Both chutes were on quick links and swivels to reduce the risk of tangling as much as possible. Each of these chutes were wrapped in their own nomex protector, and then placed in the aft section of the rocket with their harness. I used a 36' (91-ish cm) main chute from Loc Precision, and a 40cm 4-gore drogue which I sewed using Scott Bryce's fantastic Spherical Parachute Pattern Generator.

Avionics

Although it ended up not being needed, I decided to send the flight computer I got hold of along for the ride. I thought it would be cool to get an altitude reading to compare with the simulated apogee. A buddy of mine in the US was getting rid of a few bits and pieces, so I bought his RRC2+ off him with the intent of flying it for my L2 attempt. First, though, it needed somewhere to live.

I found the supplied parts for the av-bay were a little lacking, so I added some modifications - the main one being drilled holes for two threaded rods to pass through. I used two for redundancy, since the idea of a single rod made me a little uneasy. I used wingnuts on these so I could fasten them nice and tight without the need for a spanner. It was also missing enough eye bolts, so I grabbed some from Bunnings.

I then designed and 3D printed a sled to fit onto the threaded rods and provide a mount for the battery and the flight computer. A very simple setup. The sled looks objectively awful since the printer was having a bit of a sook at the time, but the actual functionality was not affected and it serves its purpose just fine.

Motor

With an unbelievably limited amount of motors available in Australia at the time of writing, I had to work with what I could get hold of. I was lucky enough to snag was a CTI J-316 (pink!!) through my university team, which is a 38mm 5 grain reloadable motor with an adjustable delay of up to 17 seconds. Unfortunately, we didn't have a 5-grain case so I made do with a 6-grain case and a spacer. I only became aware of that the night before the launch, so I had to very quickly revise my recovery packing technique to account for the now limited real estate inside the body.

It provided an average thrust of roughly 316N, with a max of 450N, over a burn time of about 2.1sec, for a total impulse of roughly 650Ns. A pretty tame J motor, but still far more powerful than anything I'd ever flown before.

Simulation

After carefully weighing every single component of the rocket and entering them into OpenRocket, I simulated the flight on the motor above. The entire vehicle weighed 2.7kg, with a length of 1.41m. It was simulated to hit Mach 0.77, and fly to an apogee of 5191ft.

Theoretically, the centre of pressure and centre of gravity would be 0.86m and 1m respectively from the tip of the nose cone. This would give a stability calibre of 2.44 at Mach 0.3 - however, this rocket is quite a bit faster than that. Also, the 'rule of thumb' which says a rocket's CG should be roughly 1.5 body diameters in front of the CP is not as helpful on rockets with a length/diameter ratio of over 10, such as this one (which is 24). Here, the CG should be roughly 10% of the overall length in front of the CP, which it was, almost (9.6%). The stability calibre off the rod was predicted to be only a little over 1.5 (6%), but given that it would be going 31m/s I was confident this would be fine as long as it didn't launch into a strong wind gust. At motor burnout, stability would be up near 3.8 (15%), which I was happy with.

I set the motor delay to the full 17 seconds for the simulations, as anything shorter would have the recovery devices deployed before apogee. This would a) cut the flight short and more importantly b) place a huge amount of strain on the harnessing and chutes due to a very high deployment speed. With the full delay, deployment would be at 11.3m/s, which the harness and drogue could handle easily. Ground hit was simulated to be a brisk but not destructive 6.8m/s.

As an aside, OpenRocket includes a little disclaimer about 'jagged edge fin predictions may not be accurate'. I bore this in mind through the whole process, but based on others I'd seen fly and forum posts I'd read online, I was comfortable with what I was doing.

Flight

L2 certifications require passing a written exam with two sections - technical knowledge and the Tripoli safety code. I had already passed the exam (100%, don't mind if I do) at a previous date, so all I had to do was install my motor, altimeter, and recovery gear. I didn't even have to drill out a delay. After a quick field CG test and a visit to the RSO tent, I was ready to rack up.

A few new recruits to our team came out to the launch day, so I enjoyed an opportunity to show them how to set up for flight, install an igniter, and test for continuity.

After a small delay to clear the range and ensure the skies were clear overhead, the LCO hit the button.

The rocket flew straight and fast on a frankly gorgeous purple flame, and almost instantly got high enough that we struggled to keep a visual on it. A puff of smoke indicated the ejection charge had blown, and then I was able to see the fluoro yellow gores of the drogue as it opened. The rocket began to drift slowly as it came down, as there was a fairly stiff breeze blowing at the time. I had programmed my chute release to 500ft, and it performed as intended. The main chute deployed and thankfully none of the recovery gear got tangled. I watched it gently descend, albeit with a decent drift going on, and set itself down in a field about 800m away. After a gentle stroll (read: powerwalk to warm up, it was freezing), we arrived at the rocket. It had been dragged a little and the chute had become tangled on the ground, but all was intact. One quick pitstop at the RSO tent later, I had my L2!

Upon reflection....

Things to improve

Use a much smaller drogue. The one I flew was about twice as big as it needed to be, and it was far too windy for such a chute. I simply didn't have a smaller one, although making one would have only taken about an hour.

I didn't get any useful readings from my altimeter. I don't believe I set it up properly, so I need to make sure I learn to do that and fly it as a passenger on at least one more flight before I use it as a deployment computer. I am disappointed that I couldn't get a figure to compare with the simulation.

Use a proper stand to rest the rocket on, perfectly horizontally, during construction. This would have avoided the whole debacle of the motor mount slipping and me consequentially having to rip it apart and rebuild.

Things that went well:

Being absolutely prepared and packing my car the night before, and bringing spares of most components, made launch prep a breeze

That was the first flight of my homemade drogue, and upon inspection afterwards there was no damage. I can now be confident that others of the same design and similar construction that I have planned for bigger rockets will perform in a similar way.

The recovery technique worked as intended, with no tangling. This is probably not a viable option for rockets going any higher, but it's nice to have in the back pocket for projects of this scale if black powder and/or avionics access might be an issue

I am also extremely relieved that this certification only took me one shot, rather than the three that my L1 took. I think it reflects well on my progress.

Next:

Fly it again with proper dual deploy, if I can get my hands on some black powder

Scratch build of a rocket of similar scale

...... L3?

[kawaiichaoscomputer]

ONCE again in a life time

Once upon a time, in a magical land where fairies and mermaids lived side by side, there was a beautiful mermaid named Mira. Mira was known as the most stunning mermaid in the entire ocean. Her blue scales sparkled like diamonds when she moved, and her long blonde hair flowed just below her waist like a river. Mira loved being in the ocean and exploring its depths. She would dive to the deepest parts of the ocean and search for lost treasures or rare creatures that inhabited the depths.

One day, Mira decided to go deeper than she ever had before. She dove down into the depths of the ocean, hoping to find something new and exciting. The water was cooler than she expected, and she began to shiver as she swam. Her heart started to race as she swam through an area of the ocean that was mysterious and unexplored. Suddenly, she spotted something shining in the darkness.

It was a small, shimmering object that caught the light. Mira swam closer and saw that it was a small pearl. She held it in her hand, amazed at its beauty. Suddenly, she heard a dim voice in the darkness.

"What are you doing down here, Mira?"

Mira turned around and saw a mermaid with black scales and red fins, with a friendly smile on her face.

"I'm exploring the ocean," Mira replied, feeling a bit nervous.

"Well, you're not supposed to be down here," the mermaid said, her eyes narrowing. "This is not a safe area for fairies."

Mira looked down at her pearl and smiled. "I'm a fairy. I can handle anything," she said, holding up her sparkly wings.

The mermaid looked at her critically. "All mermaids can fly, Mira. But only a few can actually control their wings," she said, looking a bit skeptical.

Mira had always been able to control her wings, but she wanted to impress the mermaid. "What can I do to prove myself to you?" she asked.

The mermaid thought for a moment. "Well, I suppose you can fly me through the mermaid portal," she said, pointing to a small hole in the sea floor.

Mira nodded and held out her hand. The mermaid grabbed it and, before Mira could even blink, was lifted up out of the water and into the air. Mira's wings spread out in the air, and she soared through the air, feeling the wind in her hair.

When she landed, the mermaid was waiting for her. "Well done, Mira. You may pass," she said, smiling.

Mira flew back to her home in the ocean, feeling proud of herself. She had just proved herself to the mermaid who had once been suspicious of her. From that day forward, Mira felt like the world was hers, and she could do anything.

However, things would not always go smoothly for Mira. Just as she had gained the trust of the mermaids, she encountered another who did not trust her. This mermaid was known as the Queen of the Ocean, and she was feared by all who lived beneath the sea. Mira had never met the Queen, but rumors spread quickly among the mermaids about her cruelty and power.

One day, Mira was swimming in the ocean when she saw the Queen's ships passing by. The Queen was coming for her, it seemed. Mira knew that she had to leave and find a way to protect herself, her family, and her friends. She decided to fly to the surface and make a warning to the mermaids of the ocean.

Mira flew all the way up to the surface and signaled to the other mermaids that the Queen was coming. They all knew what had to be done, and they joined Mira in her fight against the Queen.

The battle was long and fierce, but in the end, Mira and her friends emerged victorious. The Queen was defeated, and her ships were sunk or captured. Mira had saved the ocean and its mermaid inhabitants, and she had earned the respect and admiration of the entire community.

From that day forward, Mira was considered a hero by all the ocean's denizens. And though she had started out as a humble and curious mermaid, she had become a powerful and courageous champion of the mermaid community.

[ivanreycristo]

Sabías VIRGINIA MAESTRO..q el tema RECONSTRUCCION del cd homonimo de DE LUXE o grupo de Xoel LOPEZ [con el q cantaste en el MONASTERIO DE NUESTRA SEÑORA DE LAS CUEVAS o CENTRO ANDALUZ DE ARTE CONTEMPORANEO en cuyo patio PADRE NUESTRO esta la pintada MONEY HAVING SEX de Jessica DIAMOND con dibujo del Cigarrillo POST_COITAL=SEXO DE LA FALSA MORAL O DINERO Y SUS VICIOS] posterior a cd FIN DE UN VIAJE INFINITO y de cd LOS JOVENES MUEREN ANTES DE TIEMPO..q grabó en VIRGIN records..esta basada en un CANTICO en sala LA RIVIERA [donde por cierto..hoy toca Joe SATRIANI q acuso a COLDPLAY de piratearle VIVA LA VIDA al copiar parte de su canción IF I COULD FLY] o la RIVERA DEL MANZANA+eRES..según dijo en el BOTANICO de VALENCIA como telonero de LA CASA AZUL=CD LA REVOLUCION SEXUAL

[flyingdiamondsca]

Flying Diamonds of California is a collaboration with elite surfers to utilize their knowledge and expertise to design premier surfboard fins and accessories built to take your surfing to the next level. Like this page to see all the latest products and stay in touch with the surfers creating them.

[thecreaturecodex]

Mahar

“Mahar” © Philip Rice, accessed at his gallery here

[D&D owes a lot to At the Earth’s Core and the rest of the Pellucidar novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. The idea that the interior world is full of strange psychic slavers is a classic D&D trope, what with its aboleths and illithids, and they owe a lot to the mahars here. Also, I can’t believe it took me this long to realize, but the quaggoths of D&D are clearly inspired by the mahar’s favored minions, the sagoths. I like this art because it tries to make the mahar look like a rhamphorhynchus, as opposed to just a generic winged humanoid. I love you, Frazetta, but your mahars don’t look a damn thing like pterosaurs.]

Mahar CR 8 LE Aberration This creature looks like a man-sized pterosaur, with full hands growing from its wings. It seems capable of walking on both two and four feet, and has a long tail ending in a diamond-shaped fin. Its hands and feet are webbed, and its beak has small, sharp teeth.

A mahar is a strange pterosaur-like creature of the Hollow Earth with dangerous psychic powers. They are distant relatives of the rhamphorhynchus, but have much larger bodies relative to their size—they stand around six to seven feet tall. They have altered their forms through selective breeding and alchemical mutations—they can swim like a seal, have prehensile hands able to manipulate tools, and are all female. Once the female mahars learned how to engineer their hormones to lay eggs parthenogenically, they exterminated their males. Rumors exist of male mahars living in less “civilized” regions, but whether such creatures are unusually small or unusually large varies with the telling.

Mahars are more than a physical match for an ordinary human, but prefer to use their psychic powers to render such comparisons irrelevant. They can command the minds of creatures to approach them as if in a trance, whereupon the mahar can rip them to shreds without resistance. The hypnotic stare of a mahar addles the minds of their foes, clouding their judgement and opening them up to devastatingly precise attacks. Mahars prefer to fight in groups to alone, preferably behind an army of slaves, and rapidly flee if their mental powers are resisted or their slaves defeated.

Mahar society is built around slavery, with the mahars as masters commanding lesser beings through telepathic threats. Quaggoths are a favorite servitor race, and thipdars (giant pterosaurs—treat as an advanced quetzalcoatlus) are used as beasts of burden. Mahars are completely deaf and incapable of vocalizing, but intricate dances, performed either by the mahars themselves or by their slaves, hold a similar social position to music. Mahars are carnivorous, but limit themselves to fish and reptile meat as a matter of course. Eating a mammal as simply a meal is seen as taboo, but humanoid slaves are killed and eaten as part of religious rituals. 

Mahars advance by character level. Psychic and mesmerist are the most commonly taken classes, but some mahars train as alchemists.

Mahar                       CR 8 XP 4,800 LE Medium aberration Init +6; Senses darkvision 120 ft., Perception +16 Defense AC 20, touch 13, flat-footed 17 (+2 Dex, +1 dodge, +7 natural) hp 102 (12d8+48) Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +11 Immune language dependent effects Offense Speed 20 ft., fly 40 ft. (poor), swim 40 ft. Melee bite +12 (1d10+3), 2 claws +12 (1d6+3) Special Attacks mahar’s stare (-3 Will, +6/+4d6 damage), psychic beckoning Statistics Str 16, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 19, Wis 16, Cha 16 Base Atk +9; CMB +12; CMD 25 Feats Combat Expertise, Dodge, Fatiguing Stare, Improved Initiative, Mobility, Spring Attack Skills Bluff +13, Craft (alchemy) +14, Fly +11, Intimidate +16, Knowledge (arcana) +17, Knowledge (dungeoneering, nature) +14, Perception +16, Stealth +15, Swim +20 Languages telepathy 100 ft. SQ deaf/mute, hold breath Ecology Environment underground Organization solitary, flock (2-6) or council (7-12) Treasure standard Special Abilities Deaf/Mute (Ex) A mahar cannot hear, and cannot make Perception checks based on sound. It cannot speak or make vocal noises of any kind, including verbal components or command words. It does not suffer an initiative penalty for being deaf. Mahar’s Stare (Su) A mahar gains the hypnotic stare and painful stare abilities of a mesmerist of a class level equal to the mahar’s HD. Mesmerist levels stack with mahar HD for the purposes of advancing these abilities. This is a mind-influencing effect. Psychic Beckoning (Su) As a standard action, a mahar can implant a compulsion into the mind of a creature within 60 feet. If the affected creature fails a DC 19 Will save, it approaches the mahar, following it until it moves into an adjacent space. Once adjacent to the mahar, the creature is dazed until the mahar moves, whereupon it follows, or the mahar attacks. A creature that takes damage from any source other than the mahar can attempt to save again. The beckoned creature is treated as flat-footed by the mahar, and can act 1 round after the mahar attacks it. A creature that succeeds its initial save against the psychic beckoning is immune to that mahar’s psychic beckoning for 24 hours. This is a mind-influencing compulsion effect, and the save DC is Charisma based.