#go latent fire elemental angel go

[bubblergoespop]

if some major traumatic event actually does happen at the double wedding then i need it to be the thing that leads to the manifestation of angel’s powers

[desmorotu]

more redacted headcanons!!!

some might be angsty? most of them?

꒱࿐♡ ˚.*ೃ

- i saw a hc where milo isn’t necessarily short, but the other guys are just unbelievably tall. in my head milo is 5’11, ash is 6’5, and david is 6’9. tank is the only one who looks deceiving bc they’re like 5’10 in my head but their wolf is as big as david’s. ppl from the outside make the joke that shaw security is secretly a tall person club

- guy was a music major before he switched to writing. i mentioned it in his playlist post but i get those vibes HARD. he also writes honey poetry because he knows they secretly like it

- i like the idea that darlin and angel came from a rough family upbringing because 1. it’s relatable to a lot of ppl and 2. it would explain why tank shoves themselves into harms way and why angel is so outgoing now. it shows different responses to trauma imo.

- babe sometimes has crippling panic attacks on the thought of angel being a latent empowered and leaving them alone as the unempowered person of the group, but in my mind babe is the latent one and they’re a fire elemental.

- sweetheart feels guilty sometimes for being empowered while the other mates aren’t. they know it has absolutely nothing to do with them and that they can’t do anything about it, but sometimes they feel a pang in their heart at the fact that the other two won’t feel their core swell and warm up when looking at their mates.

- starlight has night terrors about the time they fell down—both times. they also think about when avior fell and they can’t help but intrusively picture what he looked like when he finally landed. it makes them physically ill. avior has to be extra careful when talking back about their experiences sometimes.

- lovely is still goes to therapy every week to work through the trauma of adam, dying, and now they’ve added the summit on top of that. they’re withering away into a husk of themselves. they’re so exhausted with dealing with all of this pressure, but they’d do anything for vincent (and i think that’s going to be their downfall).

- gavin has been brought to tears on multiple occasions at the thought that freelancer loves him for him and not just because he’s an incubus. he’s had to muffle his sobs because he genuinely does not know how he deserved someone so loving. he hasn’t brought it up to them yet.

- i think that freelancer is on the ace spectrum (greysexual maybe?) and that gavin was the only person they’ve ever really had sex with, or wanted to have sex with. they trusted him enough to “show them the ropes” and he built their confidence to where it is now. gavin helped build their relationship with sex and while they’re still on the spectrum, they’re more positive about it and they enjoy that kind of intimacy with him.

꒱࿐♡ ˚.*ೃ

that’s all that i can squeeze out of my brain rn >:( i haven’t been on tumblr that much and UGH it’s just bc my real life is more interesting than my redacted life (which is a very good thing, but still it makes me sad) and i have no motivation to post 💔 but here are some hcs that have been on my mind lately :3 i hope they make sense

k byeee 💟

[polydamnory]

General Headcanons!

For their birthday, Asher got Darlin one of those joke Hozier shirts (like the ones that say Hozier but just have a bunch of pictures of someone else like Dan from NSP) but instead of pictures of Hozier it has pictures of Sam on it. Darlin found it hilarious and Sam has… mixed opinions on it. For the most part he just insists they don’t wear it outside the house.

Caelum goes to check in on the Applicant (a.k.a. Baby 2.0) and Ivan occasionally - he’s very happy to see their both doing well and he definitely keeps Camelopardalis updated

When Freelancer’s emotions get away from them, or they just get overwhelmed, their psychokinesis acts up a bit, with random little things around them starting to levitate just the slightest bit, similar to how the guys elemental magic acts up when they’re overwhelmed (e.g. Damien accidentally setting things on fire)

When Lovely is feeling down about the loss of their powers and they specifically want to talk to someone about it who they know “gets it,” they always go to Sam (gonna push this Let Lovely Talk To Other Characters Agenda hard)

Sunshine was incredibly kind of terrified intimidated by Aaron first time they met him

Cutie used to be incredibly insecure (they still are, it just used to be way worse) and would constantly be reading their friends minds with the main purpose being to make sure they still liked them

Asher knows all the words to the Monster High Fright Song - trust me he told me himself

Angel keeps sending pictures of dogs and cats fighting/snuggling to David captioned “us <3”

Darlin is straight up AWFUL at remembering names. I’m talking like Fantasy High Kipperlily Copperkettle a.k.a. “Littledoggy Girlcollar” awful (please tell me someone gets this reference)

On that note, I could see a LOT of the shenanigans that happens to The Bad Kids in that show being pretty parallel to the chaos that would ensue if the D.A.M.N. crew played DND

Caelum and Freelancer made themselves and the rest of the D.A.M.N. crew matching friendship bracelets

Sunshine and Elliott also have matching bracelets with little sun and moon motifs

Baaabe has snacks on them at all times - not even for themselves, for Asher

James and Spouse aren’t just childhood friends, they’ve known each other since they were LITTLE little and Spouse was the first person he told when his powers first manifested (going off the assumption that he’s human born based off his imperium audio - he mentions the department “found him” and I doubt they’d have to do that if his family was also empowered, even if he were latent)

[600shekels]

What is a Pusher?

Pictured, Angel Radueriel, "The Pusher."

The word Maacah מעך in Hebrew means to push, to press or squeeze. It is associated closelywith the Menorah, that which presses the desert to give bloom. Menorahs and the Tabernacle go together of course and serve a unique purpose in the delivery of the Scripture where it stirs up the latent sentience in mankind:

The tabernacle, very clearly, was a device designed to contain a highly energetic process; something that brought about the כבד יהוה (kabed yhwh); the glory, or rather: heaviness of YHWH, which appeared in the form of a cloud over a fire (Exodus 40:34-38), also known as the Shekinah.

This device could be turned on at will (on the proviso that the operators stayed clear of the core and wore special protective clothing; Exodus 28) and off again and even dismantled and transported with its elements safely inert instead of spreading plagues and curses.

This device appears to have mined certain regions to exhaustion (Exodus 40:36), after which the whole enterprise was moved, but it's not clear whether it mined earthly regions or perhaps cosmic ones, and to what purpose.

We're guessing that the tabernacle was an advanced fertility machine. It made the "desert bloom," but not simply through irrigation — it was a life-maker and appears to have somehow worked directly on DNA; not creating it but stimulating the existing codes. We happily admit that we're clueless about how this thing may have worked, or even on which principles, although we generously suppose that it worked on principles not yet re-discovered by moderns. 

The angel associated with the Menorah and Sentience itself is called Radueriel and there is hard evidence he has been visiting the earth since around 250,000 BCE, and teaching primitives and advanced civilizations alike how to become increasingly intelligence via the power of the Menorah, symbolzed by an "X" shape in Cuneiform.

The Gematria for Radueriel which means "whose utterances create lesser angels" is 404, which means dophsad, "to go into the desert and bring the hiss from the snake" a clear allusion to Eden.

Through the study of the Tanakh we have this ability, as the etymology explains. to push ourselves on our own in tandem with the assistance of angelic beings who are all around us.

In the previous section the pressure was exerted by men of iron and bronze, Menorahs who pushed people to learn the Lessons. They come from somewhere and their ancestors came from somewhere.

As the Tanakh says, It is now our turn to be Menorahs and push maintaining the energetic process that gave rise to intelligent, thinking and feeling life and eventually become overachieving ancestors ourselves.

The key in the ignition for this process is what is called vashti, "a certain person who wakes up what is stored", from the following etymology:

ישן  שנן  שנה

The forms ישן (ysn), שנן (snn), and שנה (snh) are closely related, and their meanings also appear to be in each other's close vicinity. Then there is the verb שנא (sane'), which looks identical to a noun derived from the verb ישן (yashen).

At the heart of all these words sits the creation of distance between elements, often preceded by a breaking apart, and followed by a removal or storage. The latter usage is demonstrated in Leviticus 26:10, where our root ישן (yashen) is used three times:

Leviticus 26:10

ואכלתם

and you shall eat

ישן

old

נושן

what has been put to sleep (i.e. put in storage)

וישן

and old

מפני

because of

חדש

new

תוציאו

clear away

ישן

The verb ישן (yashen) means to sleep and is used in every sense of our English verb to sleep, even in its figurative meanings. The adjective ישן (yashen) means sleeping, and the nouns שנה (shena), שנא (shena') and שנת (shenat) all mean sleep.

The only odd one out is the noun ישן (yashen), which means old. BDB Theological Dictionary proposes that its original meaning may have been "withered or flabby, like a lifeless plant with top hanging down as if in sleep" (Leviticus 25:22, Isaiah 22:11). But perhaps, in the experience of the Hebrews, our verb ישן (yashen) meaning to sleep was closely akin to the verb שנה (shana III; see below), meaning to repeat.

שנא

The verb שנא (sane') is identical to the noun שנא (shena') meaning sleep, save for the symbols that at some point in the middle ages were added to the ancient Hebrew text by the Masoretes to preserve its assumed original pronunciation. Our verb שנא (sane') means to hate and is the antithesis of the verb אהב ('aheb), which means to love. This latter verb is not as emotionally charged as our English verb to love; it mostly describes a motion towards someone or something in order to acquire it, join with it or become intimately acquainted with it. Our verb שנא (sane') means precisely the opposite: a motion away from someone or something with the intent to disassociate from it and forget about it.

שנה I

The verb שנה (shana I) means to change (Lamentations 4:1) or to create a difference (Esther 1:7). It may be used to indicate a change of clothes (Jeremiah 52:33), or a change of mind (Psalm 89:34). It may also denote a perversion of justice (Proverbs 31:5) or even the act of disguising oneself (1 Kings 14:2).

This verb's sole derivative is the feminine noun שנה (shana), meaning year (שנת means 'year of' and שנים means 'years'.). The temporal unit year primarily denotes the repeating cycle of seasonal change, and in plural it is used to indicate a period that spans several years (in the formula "during the years of" this or that king).

There are several expressions in the Bible that use this noun שנה (shana) to indicate a certain (prolonged) event that marks a profound change: The "year of favor" (Isaiah 61:2), the "year of release" (Leviticus 25:10, Ezekiel 46:17), the "year of Jubilee" (Leviticus 25:13), the "year of remission" (Deuteronomy 15:1), the "year of vengeance" (Isaiah 63:4).

שנה II

The meaning of root שנה (shana II) is officially obscure. BDB Theological Dictionary submits that there is an Arabic verb, which is somewhat similar to this Hebrew root, which means to shine. And in Ethiopian exists a comparable verb that means to be beautiful. A Hebrew audience, however, would probably have associations with either שנה (shana I) meaning to change, or שנה (shana III) meaning to repeat.

The sole extant derivative of our root שנה (shana II) is the masculine noun שני (shani), denoting the color scarlet. Perhaps the Hebrews figured this noun to match שנה (shana I) because cloth dipped in scarlet dye changes from being ordinary to something worthy of God's tabernacle (Exodus 26:1, 26:31). Scarlet also seemed to have symbolized the process of purification (Leviticus 14:4, Numbers 19:6), and in the case of Rahab the prostitute, showcasing scarlet meant salvation (Joshua 2:18). But why?

HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament suggests that "since shani was the color of blood it would be its natural symbol in such a ceremony". But why would Israel need to symbolize blood with a dye while there was so much real blood readily available, and the dispensing of this prescribed in so much ritual?

The prophet Isaiah seems to disagree with HAW as he doesn't link scarlet to blood but rather to sin: "Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow . . . " (Isaiah 1:18).

A scarlet item was known as something that had changed from natural to permanently tainted, and obviously through a process of repetition. Snow, on the other hand, covers everything in minutes but is easily removed by warmth and vanishes without a further trace.

This is seen during the translation of the Will of God into the creation of civilized man, via His influences on inert matter, then by the pushing of the angels on our conscious minds till we realized our potential for great things through the upward spiraling of our intelligences, at the top of which is great gratitude for them Presence of God Himself.

The opposite of this is the presence of the Other, the process is sin, and the result is the death of the soul:

Sin, Isaiah seems to say, is not an isolated event but a condition of repeated failure that leads to permanent alteration and ultimately death. Confessing sin, as Rahab did, is the first step to having this persistent dye changed into utterly elusive snow.

τις I

The particle τις (tis I) is an enclitic indefinite pronoun, which means that it is rather unstressed in a sentence and points at something vague: "one", as in "someone" or "one of those" or "some or other". When it comes with a numeral it means roughly/approximately (roughly so many). It may mean some as in "some days" and on occasion it denotes a specific few from an indistinct some: some-two (LUKE 7:19, ACTS 23:23).

Our particle may also assume a more definite character when it's attached to a substantive: (some)one laughing, or one (certain) person, or even somewhat happy, in some measure or in some way somehow.

It sometimes precedes εις (heis), meaning one, to form "some one" or "a certain person" and in the genitive case it may mean "one of (some group)". On rare occasions it may attain a similar emphasis as is expressed in the English "he is someone".

The Talmud in Folio 2a says this person is Achafez, "the Messenger in the Red Hat Who is Happy in Some Way" who will come and prove God did not waste His Time by giving us liberal freedoms during this life.

[starlitangels]

What if- and hear me out here: Angel’s finally on their own after Inversion, just so relived everyone was alright, but go angry that it happened. And seeing David like that absolutely broke them. Something felt different inside as the feelings overwhelmed them. They were just so upset that they couldn’t do anything- so they just like start yelling to themselves, trying to let everything out affectively. And just as they release another sorrowful “FUCK!” Fire just swirls around them. (Literally cuing latent fire elemental Angel) and ofc they freak out, but the anger wouldn’t leave them alone, so they drag their hands down their sides to settle themselves: but it’s so fucking hot and they literally burn their skin.

Thinking of Angel, alone in like an empty gym or whatever, sending fire all around them in a bout of grief and anger. Their hopelessness fueling the flames (literally), and that gym gets so fucking got the windows fog up.

-also cue Angel freaking out and never telling David because “he’s already going through enough”

Yes, but consider this:

Once Angel manifests, Davey will be able to feel their aura

They get home and Davey feels it and is like, "what the—what happened?" and Angel can feel his aura for the first time and just breaks down again—and then the flames start all over again

And it takes David a few minutes, but he calms them down more effectively than they were able to do themselves

[palmtreefriend]

I just had the most angst filled thought I've had since getting into the redacted universe.

Reynolds Pamphlet - Stay Alive Reprise/It's Quiet Uptown but it's David as Hamilton and Angel as Eliza. I just- Stay with me, okay?

David has an affair while Angel and their son went off on a trip. David stayed behind because of some pack conflict going on that needed his undivided attention. The affair ends maybe a week before Angel comes back because someone threatened to blackmail him if he didn't offer his protection. Somehow it gets out to everyone in the empowered world. Like everyone's talking about it. The Shaw Pack, other packs, students at colleges, and even the Solaire and other vampire clans know about it.

Burn would just be Angel talking to David about the emotions they're going through (Their son, Benjamin, is at Asher's place) . Mostly anger and sadness. And that's how we find out Angel is a latent fire elemental. Eh? Eh? Get it? 'Cause- The song- Y'know- I'll stop.

Few years later, Ben's all grown up and hears some dude (I'm thinking either a shifter from another pack or a vamp) talking crap about his dad. And, while what David was incredibly wrong, Ben loves his dad. So, you know what that means? Duh, Ben should fight this dude. Which he wanted to do anyway. So, he challenges this dude to a fight. Dude says yes. They schedule this fight for some reason. Ben goes home to tell David because he is just Angry TM. David gives some advice about just knocking the dude out and walking away. It doesn't need to be a real fight. Ben goes, "Wow, okay. I guess I was being a little irrational." And goes off to the fight. Bada bing bada boom. The dude fights dirty and Ben gets fatally injured. Dude then runs off, leaving Ben to die and all that.

Surprise. Darlin' finds Ben dying out and takes him home to see Sam, calling David on the way and then calling Angel. David arrives at Sam's place and asks him if Ben's okay. Sam, who's no longer a recently turned vamp, has basically lost a big chunk of his healing powers that would've helped Ben but he did his best to help but Ben's most likely gonna die unless he's turned. Ben refuses to be turned for whatever reason and that's when Angel shows up to their son dying on the couch.

Blah blah blah, death angst depression.

I'm gonna keep this bit open ended because my brain is slowly falling apart trying to explain itself. So, whether Angel and David make up after Ben's death or not can be up to you

[dollscircus]

Am I the only one who gets Latent Fire Elemental vibes from Angel

You know what?

No you aren’t. I can see that 100 percent.

I’m personally imagining Quinn attacked the pack to get to Darlin, going for Angel.

He’s got the pinned down somewhere and about to rip them apart when flames suddenly swallow Quinn, he barely pulls away, burnt a little.

He’s staring at Angel who gasping and instead on a fearful expression they are scowling with pure rage while flames swirl around them.

[imnotrevealingmyname]

ninth

Loki X Fem!Reader one shot

A/N: This is so soft *gently holds* :') @latent-thoughts thanks for the help ❤️❤️

Warnings: Excessive fluff

↩️Back to series masterlist

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Grow a garden together.

The two of you didn't live together (yet, as Loki had so succinctly interjected), so you decided to go with matching hanging balcony gardens in your respective apartments.

You didn't have a green thumb, per se, but you'd learnt a lot about plants from your mother, mostly by osmosis. Loki, however, seemed to be in his element.

When it came to figuring out the decor, however, Loki seemed mostly clueless. You were all too happy to step in. The appreciative grin that adorned his face when your shirt rode up a little too high as you tried to hang the baskets up didn't go unnoticed by you, though.

The chair had somehow, magically, slipped out from underneath you, then. Loki caught up with ease, letting his hand linger over that little sliver of skin for a few moments longer than was strictly necessary.

You spent the rest of the morning with your cheeks on fire, trying not to stare while Loki wiped sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand and left behind a smudge of soil on his cheek. Or while he complained about the heat and ended up taking off his shirt.

What was arguably the best part of the date came a few days later, though. You hadn't expected it would make your heart thud so damn loudly to see the little saplings that the two of you had planted together emerge from the soil. Loki had, of course, waxed poetic, pressing his mouth to your neck and murmuring about how the saplings were symbolic of your love.

Maybe love was watching your gardens blossom while your hands and hearts warmed each other, then.

Seems nice.

----

Tags: @myraiswack @ohdearhiddles @whatafuckingdumbass @poetic-fiasco @your-favourite-skittles @xlehukax @kellatron55 @shiningloki @latent-thoughts @loki-yoursaviourishere @kiara-36 @toozmanykids @allegra-writes @me-ep @shinisenko @lucywrites02 @hufflautia @buckyandlokirunmylife @gaitwae @piccolaromana @caffiend-queen @a-midwinter-night-dream-86 @high-functioning-lokipath @moumouton4 @sigridlaufeyson @alsieswitchbook @theaudacitytowrite @idunnomayn @tenshi-angel-of-healing @emilythezeldafan @paradoxiii @lokiperfection @charistory @lowkeytesss (lmk if you want to be added or removed!)

[kneipho]

Hope Springs Eternal Part 1

I shivered

palpably in response to the stimulus of this auspicious winter morning as though I were a nervous acolyte on his first day of probation.

It was that benchmark event called my Birthday.

Like Christmas and Easter they have this annular ring in every sense.

Dates and their import. I was raised to have the healthiest respect for them.

A rendezvous of another kind awaited me later in the day that was seasonal in another sense.

But that just added a certain spring to my step.

Entering my eight decade on earth I dragged that motley crew of bones about me.

Like a hod carrier carting clusters of smokeless polish coal for some imperious client.

But the mind has immense powers waiting to be tapped.

A mineral rich load, a vein of resources with targeted thoughts that were the match for any prescription medicine.

Age is but a number and they can be sung in harmony with one’s universe or jarringly and at odds.

I’m a late in life poet with lines very gingerly crafted at this point in time.

My aunt Virginia who raised me when my mother died started the revolution in my thinking.

“Your mind should be a diary.

Always take note of what’s happening around you and when it happened.

Time, dates, everything.

It always comes in useful.”

She said in that nuanced tonic sol fa accent of hers.

Virginia instilled in me this most functional regard for which I am eternally grateful.

Her words about dates and time echoed continually through the recesses of mind to my ultimate benefit.

I had the required notepad and pen at hand to record anything I could sculpt into a creative ode.

As of yet

a title eluded me but maybe something lustrous, radiant romantic would be apt.

Quite a lot has been composed already much to my surprise.

Virginia’s advice and the embryonic epic planted fertile shoots in my head as I entered the kitchen.

I called it my domain.

Structured in an algebraic fashion with proximity dovetailing elegance it resembled a gallery.

The sink and shrouded tap heads my first port of call.

Stooping over archly I filled a gleaming white plastic jug kettle for that morale boosting first cup of tea.

As I sipped my tea the insights Virginia kindly bequeathed started flooding back.

Those condensed pearls of wisdom regarding time and it’s ambience.

Optimism and cheer were her other passions.

As well as paying attention.

“Focus on your environment. There is joy in abundance.” Virginia opined.

“A treasure trove awaits for those who concentrate.” She said.

“Where there is joy there’s hope.

Time and hope are intertwined.”

Never losing a chance to stress matters time-related.

Typical Virginia logic.

I’m taking it more seriously now as my respect for that statute of limitations called life expectancy approaches.

This lady’s pointers were manfully ingested as my tea stained cup wobbled in my right hand with it’s rivulet of veins.

The tea leaves scattered wildly in that microcosm of a drinking vessel had a fleeting fascination for me.

But as I scanned my surroundings with the eye of a keyhole surgeon I couldn’t help but notice something else.

The kaleidoscope of colour filling the french panel window in front of the kitchen sink.

Window drabness red carded with the zeal of a strict umpire dismissing an offending player.

My intuition told me to brace myself for events both surprising and anticipated .

This afternoon’s engagement is to the forefront of my mind and for good reason.

Think I’ll leave the cell phone behind.

Or did I hear it go off?

My device was of the more crowded cumbersome type with stubborn square buttons that even the more dexterous hand would find difficult to navigate.

The fingers slipped involuntarily like I sometimes did on those treacherous black ice patches.

“It’ll wait. Can’t really be that important.” I said to myself.

It was one of those phones that emitted this discordant buzz when some arrant nuisance rings at the most inopportune time which is often.

“No … face the morning and it’s canvas of brittle prospect.” Speaking with eloquent pride to myself, Hamilton Lake.

Walking outside on this my 78th birthday could be seen as an obstacle course.

I’ve always had a thing about posture.

The feet must be properly positioned and ready for anything unexpected.

The steps from my house could be awkward and angular with hidden crevices.

Those rugged pockmarks gouged out by the chisel of that tyrant called the elements.

The inherent beauty of garden plants, on the other hand,

purged whatever sluggishness there was in my frame.

Their spectral tint and gravity defying droop gave my eyes an optic fillip.

Green border shrubs and yellow rose petals bore a magic that defied description.

Albeit with telltale winter stains.

But the mindfulness of gait and knowing that slippage could be fatal moderated my enthusiasm about my settings.

Onto the yard and then the slope towards town with a propensity for the occasional wobble notwithstanding.

A downward denouement laced with grit and optimism.

The verges on the fringe of each footpath were covered with tufts of flickering grass cavorting about in a light south east breeze.

Haywire brambles whose overlapping tentacles were embedded in every mound or patch.

Star shaped brown leaves as veiled cover for those sharp spines sticking out.

The bane of every bulging blood vessel.

An ice clad descent that can either capsize or upend even the most determined stride.

Ice that most deceptive gloss that far too easily masks it’s latent perils.

Irrespective I continued unabashed.

The heart, portent of fragility, bruising barometer of one’s twilight moment can be an ally.

A motivator of noble human impulse.

My rainbow tipped walking stick was my elder compass.

A bearing locator for crazy paving pavement slabs.

Those structures fractured by peculiarities of sudden temperature with their plummets and summits!

But focus though impaired was motivated by a stoic forbearance imbued with fire in the soul.

Virginia’s velvet toned voice enjoined on us at home to watch the clouds.

The wispy contours, greyed over forms, wooly frills and outlines drifting overhead.

She also warned of their penchant for unleashing torrents which could spoil the daily strolls of even the most ernest of ramblers.

Today the clouds weaved their way across that azure blue path called the sky.

Curiously enough the self same clouds added to their repertoire by the graceful skirting of rooftops and faraway rock formations on the outskirts of town.

“Clouds are a heavenly canvas. A floating exhibit of the firmament.

They inspire poets, works of art.” Virginia said.

They were doing just that in my case with aplomb.

The planned mysterious link up was never lost sight of amid Virginia’s majestic musings.

“Use your imagination or your imagination will use you. The borders between make belief and the real world must always be maintained.

Imaginings of every kind can be triggered by just about anything familiar.

They can assume a life of their own.”

Wonderful counsel from a wonderful woman.

Virginia, however, unlike some philosophers had a marvelous sense of humor but abhorred the canned, corny variety.

Although such humor couldn’t always be avoided I was mindful of her sensitivity on the subject.

Meticulously taking out that pad again I scribbled a few more lines.

It’s beginning to fill up.

The only thing that remains is to have someone to dedicate it to.

The human eye, a person’s best camera turned to the leach like ivy carpet which clung with tenacity to the grey grained stone wall narrowly to my right.

Preserving their corporeal integrity and playing their part while going largely unobserved.

Fir trees, enclosed by pavement railings and gardens had an overwhelming stillness about them.

An unyielding rooted presence.

They too are age defiant when cultivated and getting the right supports.

These trees act as filters for the dust, smoke and fumed manifestations of the modern manufacturer.

Urban heat island effect offset and mitigated.

All these details forensically noted.

A sudden wakening ensued.

“Hi there, Hamilton. Lovely morning for a stroll.”

My inner space rightly interrupted for a different reality.

“Maybe we’ll meet later at one of your favourite spots or a coffee shop.”

Local teens, Sonia and Winfred with whom I regularly crossed paths and swopped pleasantries of a deeper heartfelt kind.

They alighted from their bicycles

“It’s your birthday today isn’t it?

You’d put people half your age and mine to shame.” The young lady Sonia said.

Winfred her boyfriend agreed.

“Such generosity I rarely encountered from my own group.” I thought to myself.

Sonia, a vibrant vivacious youth whose tactful airborne words shone as brightly as her arched angelic face.

Winfred, her boyfriend had a slightly bulging chin and matted haired that looked as if it had been constantly drenched.

His was a handsomeness harrowed out by high jinx and crack of dawn capers.

After a friendly departure this couple dashed off with a daring and delight so dirigere of the young.

As well as the young at heart.

–

Sunday Submission: @mantrabay

Photograph and short story by mantrabay copyright protected.

Part two will be submitted next week with your kind permission.

[mantrabay]

Hope Springs Eternal Part 1.

I shivered

palpably in response to the stimulus of this auspicious winter morning as though I were a nervous acolyte on his first day of probation.

It was that benchmark event called my Birthday.

Like Christmas and Easter they have this annular ring in every sense.

Dates and their import. I was raised to have the healthiest respect for them.

A rendezvous of another kind awaited me later in the day that was seasonal in another sense.

But that just added a certain spring to my step.

Entering my eight decade on earth I dragged that motley crew of bones about me.

Like a hod carrier carting clusters of smokeless polish coal for some imperious client.

But the mind has immense powers waiting to be tapped.

A mineral rich load, a vein of resources with targeted thoughts that were the match for any prescription medicine.

Age is but a number and they can be sung in harmony with one’s universe or jarringly and at odds.

I’m a late in life poet with lines very gingerly crafted at this point in time.

My aunt Virginia who raised me when my mother died started the revolution in my thinking.

“Your mind should be a diary.

Always take note of what’s happening around you and when it happened.

Time, dates, everything.

It always comes in useful.”

She said in that nuanced tonic sol fa accent of hers.

Virginia instilled in me this most functional regard for which I am eternally grateful.

Her words about dates and time echoed continually through the recesses of mind to my ultimate benefit.

I had the required notepad and pen at hand to record anything I could sculpt into a creative ode.

As of yet

a title eluded me but maybe something lustrous, radiant romantic would be apt.

Quite a lot has been composed already much to my surprise.

Virginia’s advice and the embryonic epic planted fertile shoots in my head as I entered the kitchen.

I called it my domain.

Structured in an algebraic fashion with proximity dovetailing elegance it resembled a gallery.

The sink and shrouded tap heads my first port of call.

Stooping over archly I filled a gleaming white plastic jug kettle for that morale boosting first cup of tea.

As I sipped my tea the insights Virginia kindly bequeathed started flooding back.

Those condensed pearls of wisdom regarding time and it’s ambience.

Optimism and cheer were her other passions.

As well as paying attention.

“Focus on your environment. There is joy in abundance.” Virginia opined.

“A treasure trove awaits for those who concentrate.” She said.

“Where there is joy there’s hope.

Time and hope are intertwined.”

Never losing a chance to stress matters time-related.

Typical Virginia logic.

I’m taking it more seriously now as my respect for that statute of limitations called life expectancy approaches.

This lady’s pointers were manfully ingested as my tea stained cup wobbled in my right hand with it's rivulet of veins.

The tea leaves scattered wildly in that microcosm of a drinking vessel had a fleeting fascination for me.

But as I scanned my surroundings with the eye of a keyhole surgeon I couldn't help but notice something else.

The kaleidoscope of colour filling the french panel window in front of the kitchen sink.

Window drabness red carded with the zeal of a strict umpire dismissing an offending player.

My intuition told me to brace myself for events both surprising and anticipated .

This afternoon’s engagement is to the forefront of my mind and for good reason.

Think I’ll leave the cell phone behind.

Or did I hear it go off?

My device was of the more crowded cumbersome type with stubborn square buttons that even the more dexterous hand would find difficult to navigate.

The fingers slipped involuntarily like I sometimes did on those treacherous black ice patches.

“It’ll wait. Can’t really be that important.” I said to myself.

It was one of those phones that emitted this discordant buzz when some arrant nuisance rings at the most inopportune time which is often.

“No … face the morning and it’s canvas of brittle prospect.” Speaking with eloquent pride to myself, Hamilton Lake.

Walking outside on this my 78th birthday could be seen as an obstacle course.

I've always had a thing about posture.

The feet must be properly positioned and ready for anything unexpected.

The steps from my house could be awkward and angular with hidden crevices.

Those rugged pockmarks gouged out by the chisel of that tyrant called the elements.

The inherent beauty of garden plants, on the other hand,

purged whatever sluggishness there was in my frame.

Their spectral tint and gravity defying droop gave my eyes an optic fillip.

Green border shrubs and yellow rose petals bore a magic that defied description.

Albeit with telltale winter stains.

But the mindfulness of gait and knowing that slippage could be fatal moderated my enthusiasm about my settings.

Onto the yard and then the slope towards town with a propensity for the occasional wobble notwithstanding.

A downward denouement laced with grit and optimism.

The verges on the fringe of each footpath were covered with tufts of flickering grass cavorting about in a light south east breeze.

Haywire brambles whose overlapping tentacles were embedded in every mound or patch.

Star shaped brown leaves as veiled cover for those sharp spines sticking out.

The bane of every bulging blood vessel.

An ice clad descent that can either capsize or upend even the most determined stride.

Ice that most deceptive gloss that far too easily masks it’s latent perils.

Irrespective I continued unabashed.

The heart, portent of fragility, bruising barometer of one’s twilight moment can be an ally.

A motivator of noble human impulse.

My rainbow tipped walking stick was my elder compass.

A bearing locator for crazy paving pavement slabs.

Those structures fractured by peculiarities of sudden temperature with their plummets and summits!

But focus though impaired was motivated by a stoic forbearance imbued with fire in the soul.

Virginia’s velvet toned voice enjoined on us at home to watch the clouds.

The wispy contours, greyed over forms, wooly frills and outlines drifting overhead.

She also warned of their penchant for unleashing torrents which could spoil the daily strolls of even the most ernest of ramblers.

Today the clouds weaved their way across that azure blue path called the sky.

Curiously enough the self same clouds added to their repertoire by the graceful skirting of rooftops and faraway rock formations on the outskirts of town.

“Clouds are a heavenly canvas. A floating exhibit of the firmament.

They inspire poets, works of art.” Virginia said.

They were doing just that in my case with aplomb.

The planned mysterious link up was never lost sight of amid Virginia’s majestic musings.

“Use your imagination or your imagination will use you. The borders between make belief and the real world must always be maintained.

Imaginings of every kind can be triggered by just about anything familiar.

They can assume a life of their own.”

Wonderful counsel from a wonderful woman.

Virginia, however, unlike some philosophers had a marvelous sense of humor but abhorred the canned, corny variety.

Although such humor couldn't always be avoided I was mindful of her sensitivity on the subject.

Meticulously taking out that pad again I scribbled a few more lines.

It’s beginning to fill up.

The only thing that remains is to have someone to dedicate it to.

The human eye, a person’s best camera turned to the leach like ivy carpet which clung with tenacity to the grey grained stone wall narrowly to my right.

Preserving their corporeal integrity and playing their part while going largely unobserved.

Fir trees, enclosed by pavement railings and gardens had an overwhelming stillness about them.

An unyielding rooted presence.

They too are age defiant when cultivated and getting the right supports.

These trees act as filters for the dust, smoke and fumed manifestations of the modern manufacturer.

Urban heat island effect offset and mitigated.

All these details forensically noted.

A sudden wakening ensued.

“Hi there, Hamilton. Lovely morning for a stroll.”

My inner space rightly interrupted for a different reality.

“Maybe we’ll meet later at one of your favourite spots or a coffee shop.”

Local teens, Sonia and Winfred with whom I regularly crossed paths and swopped pleasantries of a deeper heartfelt kind.

They alighted from their bicycles

“It’s your birthday today isn’t it?

You’d put people half your age and mine to shame.” The young lady Sonia said.

Winfred her boyfriend agreed.

“Such generosity I rarely encountered from my own group.” I thought to myself.

Sonia, a vibrant vivacious youth whose tactful airborne words shone as brightly as her arched angelic face.

Winfred, her boyfriend had a slightly bulging chin and matted haired that looked as if it had been constantly drenched.

His was a handsomeness harrowed out by high jinx and crack of dawn capers.

After a friendly departure this couple dashed off with a daring and delight so dirigere of the young.

As well as the young at heart.

Photograph and short story by mantrabay copyright protected.

[spirit-science-blog]

“Time not important… only life important.” yep, we’re going there, things are about to get a little bit philosophical now that we’re dealing with the Fifth Element...no..not the Alchemical Quintessence, but close! That crazy 1990s Sci-Fi about a killer planet, the power of love… and… You know, Bruce Willis’s Wacky Taxi Adventures... and all that…

So, major spoiler alert… The fifth element is Love. Well, kind of...it’s this woman called Leeloominaï Lekatariba Lamina-Tchaï Ekbat De Sebat… For short, Leeloo is the fifth element, and in essence: a perfect, supreme being of sorts. In a way, she’s kind of like Avatar Aan, destined to unite with the other classical elements in an ancient Egyptian temple to act as a defense system against this super evil Dark Force called Mr. Shadow - which takes on the form of a cruel planet, whose only goal is to destroy life in a cosmic cycle every 5000 years.

It’s a movie that’s had its fair share of criticism, especially in the gender department… Leeloo is the only real female character, with others appearing randomly throughout as passive objects, sex objects, or with most of their femininity stripped away like Major Iceborg. Aside from the fifth element herself, there’s a real lack of divine feminine in this story, but then again, her nature itself does embody many characteristics of the divine feminine: powerful, unique, and beyond the understanding of nearly everyone that she meets.

Regarding the plot, we have kind of a Raava vs. Vaatu thing happening like from Legend of Korra… and it’s hard not to draw lines to Avatar here considering the whole elemental theme huh? In the intro, we see an archaeologist deciphering ancient words regarding the conjunction of celestial bodies, something we should all do more of you know? Which, by the way, if you haven’t picked up your edition of the 2021 Almanac of the New Age, I might highly recommend it, because it helps you do just that without being randomly surprised by a giant robot-alien! Before they show up though, the archaeologist has to keep yelling to Aziz to wake up, as the kid keeps nodding off… I wonder if this is subtly depicting how humanity keeps falling asleep and thus the light that illuminates sacred knowledge is not currently stable. Yet when the advanced beings come to show the way, the light is blinding… Powerful and concrete.

There’s also a sense here that humans are the custodians of Earth, so we have to protect it from darkness and destruction ourselves, and while these higher beings help when the time is right, they cannot do it for us. While Love is shown as this mythical force that these advanced beings can use to defeat the darkness, it could also be said that Love is neutral energy between Light and Dark, one that is capable of harmonizing both sides, ultimately resetting the cycle, something that is echoed in Zorg’s speech later on.

All this knowledge is of course passed down through a secret brotherhood of priests, acting as keepers through the generations, of which there are many stories of secret societies doing the same in our history, and amazingly in the future where the main story takes place, Priest Cornelius is also an “Expert of Astrophenomenon”. He’s not just an expert on the metaphysical, but also seemingly the scientific study of space, and there’s certainly a sense that he’s got that whole balance thing down to a tee, working to better his understanding of both science and spirit by combining the two fields.  

So when the military fires a bunch of missiles at Mr. Shadow, it’s interesting to see how they treat Cornelius, who tries to explain to them what Mr. Shadow is, to which he is mostly ignored, and they continue trying to brute force the problem. Yet Evil begets more Evil - as Cornelius explains, subtly referencing that the military's weapons, or at least their intentions. Mr. Shadow - symbolic of “our” shadow selves, demonstrates that it will grow in power if you try to destroy it with the same mindset that created it. The only way to truly harmonize the darkness is through love.

Even more impressive is this disconnect between the President of Earth and Earth itself. While, of course, they are trying to protect the earth and all of its life, when we see the world, we have to ask… are those living? Police and robots so heavily control everything, it’s smoggy, you see some crazy representations of people like the guy who tries to rob Korben in his apartment, and I’m not sure I saw a single tree…

Now, Major Dallas, to that end, of course, represents the divine masculine, also fulfilling the warrior archetype. While, of course, he checks all the classic hero tropes of the ex-lone warrior destined to save the world and fall in love with a perfect supreme sacred woman, the way it plays out DOES provides us with a bit of wisdom for ourselves concerning synchronicity. He describes that what he wants is to meet that perfect woman, and she falls from the sky into his cab. Perhaps this is a nod to manifestation in some way, as it’s their love story that’s the key to resolving the movie's conflict. It’s also a reminder for us that when we stumble into synchronicity, we have to be willing to take that leap of faith and follow where it leads us. For Korben, he has an opportunity to give LeeLoo up to the coppers but ends up putting his whole life at risk for her instead, but it’s THIS path that leads to the world being saved. Korben has to ask himself what’s important, following his heart and helping someone in need or earning more points on his taxi license…

Now, Leeloo on the other hand, through her character explores the nature of spirituality, DNA, and the physical capabilities of our souls within a body. A big topic in spirituality today is the science of ascension - we made a whole workshop on that which you can watch for free if you like - and what enlightenment might look like or do to our physical bodies. Leeloo’s DNA is perfect.. But it isn’t inhuman. There’s nothing really out of the ordinary about her DNA, she has the same genetic composition as us, just more of it, more tightly packed, allowing for greater inherent genetic knowledge and potential. Perhaps there’s a message here that the human genome is already whole, we just need to utilize its latent capabilities to find inner harmony, leading to a leveling up of what we are truly capable of.  

So if Korben was like Link and LeeLoo was Princess Zelda, Zorg would be Ganondorf, completing the trinity. Zorg actually drops some pretty interesting wisdom in his discussion with Cornelius. Despite his “evil” role, his whole name is Jean Baptiste Emanuel Zorg, being named after the prophet and saint in many religions, and Emanuel meaning ”God is with us” in Hebrew. Zorg explains that life itself results from chaos and disorder at times. He believes that by creating a little destruction, he is encouraging life to renew itself, so the Priest and he are really in the same business… while it might just sound like he’s been brainwashed by the Shadow, when we look deeper, we do find some hidden spirituality!

His ideology is in alignment with the wisdom of the importance and honorable role of darkness in our reality. Much like the tower or death card in the major arcana or the shells of the Qliphoth in the Kabbalah, agents of darkness often come to give structure, boundaries, and direction for light to move through, as well as clearing stagnant energy to make way for new and evolved paradigms. Much like the cycles and sine waves that move through nature, energy flows through peaks and valleys that balance each other out.

Zorg knows he is a monster and is proud of it. He’s a businessman at heart, powerful from the money of capitalism, and a reflection of society's state of awareness and evolution. As we mentioned, this future society is portrayed as consumerist and still dwelling on issues of pollution and crime, even in spite of great new technologies. Perhaps that’s why the Darkness had to come, to help propel the evolution of consciousness forward and bring about divine love. However, while the love between Korben and Leeloo is highly symbolic, it doesn’t seem to affect basically anyone else, which might call us to ask ourselves… would it have been better for humanity and its pollution to be destroyed? This - at the very least - seems to be the underlying thinking behind Zorgs criminal activity. Ultimately, in the face of darkness, humans must come together to accomplish things and stop evil, something we wouldn’t do otherwise… This is what makes us evolve as a species.

Zorg perfectly encapsulates his philosophy in his quote about glass, saying “this glass is serene and boring, but when destroyed, a lovely ballet ensues full of form and color”. He then knocks it off the table and a bunch of little vacuum cleaner droids come and clean it up. Describing that the “People who created them, technicians, engineers, now have money to feed their children. They are part of the chain of life".

Interestingly though, Zorg is only a monster because life experiences took him there, but he started like any of us. There is a nice lesson from Cornelius about how fickle life is: all of Zorg’s power counts for absolutely nothing when his entire empire comes crashing down because of one little cherry. Cornelius saves Zorg’s life regardless, showing us the virtue of the angels, even towards the demons.

When the team finally makes it to the alien space opera, we get to meet Ruby Rhod and Plavalaguna. Ruby is one of the most unique parts of this movie… Crazy sexual antics aside, he is unapologetically authentic to his true nature, bending gender standards and seemingly embodying masculine and feminine with grace and humor. Perhaps the epitome of the wacky human spirit. And then as for Plavalaguna, she has some very ascended master vibes. The Mondoshawans entrusted her with the safekeeping of the elemental stones, who actually carries them inside her body as a safeguard. From a Spiritual perspective, this seems to describe how we all embody the classical elements within us. She even senses Leeloo's presence behind a wall down the hallway, implying she has some measure of clairvoyance. Interestingly, like the Mondoshawan from earlier, she doesn’t seem overly concerned with her own death, echoing the movie’s sentiment that time is not important, only life. Deeper though, it appears that she knew she was going to die all along, in order for the stones to get out of her…. We’re not even gonna ask how she got the stones inside her in the first place...that’d be one hard pill to swallow, let alone perform an entire opera with these giant rocks in your belly. Mad props to her.

Perhaps the reason superior beings don’t fear death as we do is that they know the bigger picture, they know these lives are transitory, so they don’t mind dying for a cause, as they understand the purpose of this life in the bigger scheme of things. Knowing that the flux and flow between life and death is transient, they’ll be back in the right place and the right time as life requires it. In the same way, in traditional tarot the horse Death is riding, is stepping over a prone king, which symbolizes that not even royalty can stop change. Plava understands her role and accepts her death, after imparting wisdom to Dallas that Leeloo is still fragile and somewhat human, despite her seeming physical evolution.

This idea of Leeloo still being human, however, forms a key part of the ending, as up until this point she has been learning all of human history via an alphabetical database… When she learns of war, she loses hope in humanity after seeing the darker sides of our past. Certainly, we can’t blame her, humans are the only species to cut down a forest to make room for a billboard that says “stop deforestation”, I’d be pretty shocked about our history too. However, Korben’s love shows her that love is an undefinable thing, it’s not a stone like the other elements, but a feeling between people that permeates everything and is worth fighting and caring for.

It’s pretty funny that when it comes down to it, none of the characters actually know how to activate the super-love bomb. Leeloo doesn’t know what will happen, but she continues to follow her divine calling to be on that platform without second-guessing herself, even if she didn’t know at the end how to activate the final “weapon”..she follows her own inner voice and calling and is guided into defeating the darkness, speaking to the importance of following our intuition and own inner guide.

Ultimately love is shown to be something with no boundaries, no clear explanations, but still exists through us, changing our lives in powerful ways. And through thousands of years, it will stay as the most important thing worthy to fight for. It’s no accident that in a time of such modernized technologies and possibilities humanity once again has to turn to nature for help in the form of the elements. It reminds people that technology cannot always provide protection, it is nature that always has been the source of power, as it exists forever. And only things that are eternal, like nature and love, are of true significance. Today, it seems people either love or hate this movie, but whatever way the coin falls, it is undoubtedly a fun experience, and packed to the brim with spiritual wisdom!

So until next time, be mindful of what you do with the gift of life, cause we never know when a sentient evil planet might try and eat us. Toodles!

This video was created by Team Spirit Connect with the team at https://spiritsciencecentral.com/about

[dontshootmespence]

Swan Song

Chapter 10 - Emily Prentiss & Allyson Reid

Alex smiled softly lifting her hand up to shield against the sun. That was really all she’d ever wanted. She’d never had anything against Strauss, except her latent rage toward her mother when she lost all those years ago. “I’d like that,” she replied.

A buzzing sound whizzed by her ear and then another just a few seconds later.

“Get down!” Strauss screamed.

Pop.

Pop.

Pop.

“Where the hell are they coming from?” Alex cried, watching as bullets flew by at the speed of light. 

Both women looked around frantically, trying to ascertain where they were coming from. The bullets kept missing and then out of nowhere a man barreled toward them, his aim no less horrible up close. This was obviously a man not used to firing a gun. 

He strode between Alex and Strauss separating them and leaving Alex open to the assault. “What the hell do you want with me?” She asked.

“Not you,” he replied. “Wrong place, wrong time.”

He was after Strauss.

“This is my only choice.”

What the hell was he talking about?

“Please, you don’t need to do this.”

Like a movie, a chair rose up behind him, knocking him out and smacking him to the ground. “You okay?” Strauss asked.

Her rattled breaths said otherwise, but she was physically fine - just confused. “Y-yes, you?”

Strauss grabbed the gun out of the man’s hands and insisted Alex call the authorities. “I’m okay. What did he say to you?”

“He said it wasn’t me he was after. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Strauss’s expression dropped. “He was after me?”

The Korean authorities were on point, arriving just five minutes after Alex made the call. “Congratulations,” the lead detective Dae-Jung Lee said, his accent thick but English perfect. “You’ve apprehended one of our most wanted drug dealers.”

“What?” Strauss and Alex said simultaneously. 

“His name is John Curtis. He’s been funneling a range of different drugs from recreational to performance enhancing for years. I’m sure we’ll find he’s part of the doping scandal here.”

That would make sense, Strauss thought to herself. “He was after me. He told Alex as much, which would make sense because I’m the face addressing the doping scandal.”

The lead detective could sense Strauss’s fear. It sounded like someone wanted Erin Strauss out of the picture. “We’re going to give you a protective detail until you leave.”

Who wanted her dead?

“This is your element, Ally,” Spencer said, trying to help combat his sister’s nerves. “You are the daredevil. The one who loves being up in the air. The one who insisted she was going to nail the biggest tricks that the boys did when we were six years old. You’ve got this.”

Ally huffed and puffed, Olympic pressure getting to her more than she wanted to admit. “Right, of course. I’m good?”

Spencer chuckled and gave her an enormous hug. “Take a deep breath. Go out there and do what you love. Scare the crap out of me.”

“Now, that’s incentive.”

Big Air was a new event this Olympics. It consisted of traversing down this enormous hill, pulling the biggest trick and landing it. Biggest score wins - a simple but exhilarating event.

She’d already landed a 900 and was in second place, but if she wanted to win she was going to have to nail the 1080 - none of the women had yet.

After watching two more girls take their final runs, Ally took her place at the top of the hill with just one more woman to go after her. She was up impossibly high. It was amazing. The feeling of being up so high had never scared her. It only drove her. Thankfully, the nerves fell away as she looked down the hill and then she was making her way down, speed picking up.

She’d landed the double cork 1080 before. As long as she god enough power going into it, she was golden. 

In the air, Ally felt on top of the world. She completed her two flips and one full spin, placing her board down on the snow in what she would call her “crispiest” landing yet. The crowd went nuts as she pumped her hands into the air and fell to the floor.

“I did it!” She screamed happily when she saw Spencer standing over her.

Extending his hand, he helped her up. “I knew you would, you dork!”

“Shut up, nerd!”

Sure there was one more woman left to run, but Ally was going to medal and considering all she’d ever wanted was to prove she could do exactly what the boys did, she considered herself pretty lucky right now.

Emily already had the gold in halfpipe and a date with a champion luger to show for herself this Olympics. Adding another medal of any color would be a bonus, and considering that her second and final event was ladies’ snowboard cross, any color medal or no medal at all was totally possible. 

Snowboard cross was a speed event. Tricks did you no good here. If you got out in the front of the pack, it was less likely you’d fall and be hit out of the course, but if you found yourself at the back of the pack, then staying upright on your board was a fight in and of itself. When the sport first started, she was intrigued by it, because it was so different than her halfpipe experience, but this was the first Olympics and probably last, that she would be competing in two very different events. 

Thankfully, her qualifiers had afforded her a good starting spot, right in the middle of the six racers and the semifinal runs went well. She earned the second best starting spot. 

The nine-foot drop into the course at the start was the least of her worries. Snowboard cross really was about staying upright and gaining speed where you were able, otherwise it was kind of a shitshow - and that’s what Emily loved about it.

With a kiss from Tara to inspire her, she found herself neck and neck with one other woman. The crunch of the snow behind her told her that at least one other racer was directly behind them.

Right after the first big jump, things became quieter. If she decided to look back she’d probably see that at least two of her fellow racers had fallen, but she wasn’t about to take her eyes off the course. 

Through the turns, Emily pumped her legs, getting as much speed as she possibly could going into the last section of jumps. As her board touched the ground, the woman next to her grunted and she thought she was going to fall, but they were still way too close to call. Into the final jump, they both got decent air, but managed to land cleanly and coast toward the finish line. 

When it approached, they both leaned forward hoping to cross first, but even the crowd could see it was a photo finish.

“How are you feeling?” Tara asked, yelling over the roar of the crowd. 

“Pretty good. I actually did that race for me, you know?”

Tara understood. Trying to gain the attention of a parent when it wasn’t freely given was exhausting and sooner or later, you just had to let it go. “I do. Aren’t you gonna look for your time?” She asked.

“No,” Emily smiled. “You tell me.”

When the times came up, Tara pumped her fists in the air. “Silver! Gold was 2 thousandths of a second ahead.”

“I’ll take it,” Emily replied. “This was all for me.”

“Lock me up!” Curtis screamed. “Right now! If you don’t I’m as good as dead.”

Lead Detective Dae-Jung Lee laughed at the desperate criminal’s pleas. “Don’t worry. That’s exactly where you’re going.”

With Lewis still out there, Curtis feared for his life, whether he was in prison or not. He was going away. There was no denying that. “Don’t let Lewis know you’re coming or you’ll never catch him!”

@jamiemelyn @prettyboyeffect @iammostdefinitelyonfire26 @unstoppableangel8 @rmmalta @lukeassmanalvez @veroinnumera @lookwhatyoumademequeue @kalie-bee @remember-me-forever-silent-angel @beereadsthings @cherry-loves-fanfic @bitchinprentiss @original-criminal-fanfics @marvelfanlife @tenaciousarcadeexpert

[whorefordarlin]

Or you could also go for latent fire elemental Angel setting shit on fire and panicking because they thought they hurt Babe but they're actually untouched (because as twilight sparkle once said, friendship is magic) and they call Sweetheart like 'help pls' while Babe calls either Asher or David like 'yeah Angel was just on fire so???'

Currently ignoring canonical aftershock and thinking about Babe and Angel hanging out after Inversion, maybe doing something like makeup, nails, face masks, or just playing a game when one of them just,,, breaks down into tears because the stress from what happened in Inversion, and the guilt because 'I didn't go through anything, not like my mate did, so I have no right to complain' and the feeling of disconnect between themselves and their mates and being in the presence of the only other person who would understand and just feeling so safe and comfortable and known and seen that they just break down and the other comforts them and once they calm down they move on like it never happened (or maybe someone texts a mate and some very important talks happen---)

[starlitangels]

Latent Fire Elemental - Pups AU Edition!

So... the major part of the request for this was “Latent Fire Elemental Angel Pups AU like it gets triggered while the pups are with her and it sets off.” But I felt the need to give context for some reason And this got long as hell Hope you enjoy! Also! This one is not, technically, canon to the greater Pups AU! It’s one of those that’s just for fun! As in, Fire Elemental Angel isn’t going to carry forward through the other stories. Also, also!!! The wording of the request said “her” so I interpreted that as the requester wanting fem!Angel so... have fem!Angel! Darlin’s POV section is still gender-neutral, for what it’s worth? 5.1k words (pretty much exactly) CW: character peril, possible death?

—

Micah was pacing in the Shaw living room, chewing on her lip, when Natalie and Gabriel ducked into the house. Her parents were talking quietly in the dining room. Evelyn was sitting on the couch next to Uncle Asher, who was nervously fidgeting. His mate was on the arm of the sofa.

“What’s wrong?” Natalie asked immediately.

“No one has seen or heard from either of your parents all day,” Evelyn said.

“Not even me,” Asher put in. “I talk to David every day about work. He hasn’t replied to anything. That’s not like him. At all.”

“Okay…” Gabriel said.

“Did you notice both their cars are still in the garage?” Micah asked sharply.

Gabriel and Natalie exchanged a look and ran to the garage to verify. Gabriel yanked open the door to the garage. Two familiar cars sat in their usual places. Gabriel swore under his breath and looked down at his sister. Her eyes were wide as she looked up at him. Gabriel knew Natalie—she was as fearless as both of their parents. Always had been.

This was fear like he’d rarely seen on her. Sheer, unadulterated terror.

“What do we do?” she asked.

Gabriel took a step back. “Why are you asking me?”

She clenched her fist so hard a knuckle popped. “Because you’re the beta! In the absence of the alpha, leadership falls to you.”

“I’m nineteen!” Gabriel looked back to the gathering of the other pack members. His eyes landed on Asher. Ash had been the beta for almost twenty-five years by the time Gabriel turned eighteen. “Uncle Ash, I need help.”

Asher and Evelyn got off the couch and moved closer. Gabriel met them halfway. Ash put his hands on Gabriel’s shoulders. “You can do this, little man,” he said. Gabriel was three inches taller than Ash, but the curl of his shoulders put them at pretty much the same height. Ash had been calling Gabriel “little man” since Gabriel was a baby, and hadn’t stopped when Gabriel stopped growing at 17 and ended up being 6’5”. “First thing you gotta do is figure out where to start, and that’s always the hardest part.”

Gabriel nodded. He looked around. Sam, Tank, Asher, his mate, both couples’ daughters. His sister behind him. The girl who’d joked about wanting to be beta if he didn’t want the position. He’d never known how much was a joke and how much was her genuine desire.

He met her gaze.

“We have to track them down,” she said softly.

He nodded. “That’s where we’ll start. Sam?”

Sam emerged from the dining room.

“Can you follow a scent trail from here?”

Sam took a deep breath. “I’ve been tryin’ to find one,” he said. “Whatever happened, a large radius around the house is clean of any trail.”

Gabriel swore under his breath. He glanced at Evelyn. “Call the Greers. We’re gonna need Milo, his mate, Lily, and Danny on this.”

Evelyn nodded and yanked her phone out of her pocket, disappearing through the dining room and into the kitchen behind. “Hey Uncle Milo,” her voice said as it faded a bit.

Gabriel looked back at Sam. Tank and Micah flanked him on either side. “Collins family, search the woods,” he said, nodding toward the back of the house. The Shaw property bordered the woods. Most pack members lived on properties that bordered the woods. All three of the Collins family nodded.

Gabriel looked at Asher. “You and Ev go down the street to the left. Natalie and I will go to the right.” He looked past Asher to his uncle’s mate. “Are you comfortable staying here? In case they come back?”

Asher’s mate nodded.

Evelyn reappeared. “The Greers are on their way,” she said.

Gabriel acknowledged the statement with a thumbs-up as he turned to Natalie. “There’s no way I can convince Danny or Lily to stay here, is there?”

“No,” she replied, shaking her head with a flat expression. “If we’re goin’ north and Ash and Ev are goin’ south and the Collinses are going east, you gonna send the Greers west?”

“Maybe not all four of them,” Gabriel muttered. He swore. Not under his breath this time. “But if both of our parents were snatched we might have to go in more than pairs.”

“But we’re going in pairs of empowereds. Most of us shifters. If our parents were abducted, Dad would have been at a major disadvantage, trying to protect Mom—his unempowered mate. Which concerns me for leaving Uncle Ash’s mate here.”

“Any abduction attempts would mean someone would have to get the jump on Dad. And I would love to leave one of the Greers with Ash’s mate but you know they’ll all want to go out and hunt. They’re Greers. Milo’s one of the best damn trackers in the pack and his mate’s an investigator for the Department. They’re the only one with actual authority to hunt like this.”

“As a beta with a missing alpha, you do too,” Asher said.

“What?” Gabriel asked.

“Provisional authority to protect and defend your pack. Beta privileges,” Natalie supplied. Gabriel and Asher both turned surprised eyes on her. She shrugged. “I listen in school.”

Micah snorted, but there was no sarcasm in her face. Just pride.

“I can stay,” Tank said with a heavy, reluctant sigh. Sam and Micah glanced over in blatant shock. Tank folded their arms. “I’ll stay with Asher’s mate.” They glanced at Sam. “You and Micah can handle the woods. I trust you both. And despite my asocial inclinations, Asher’s nightmare of a mate is… my friend.” Tank smiled at Asher’s mate. They beamed right back. “I’ll keep them safe if anything happens.”

Sam shuffled on his feet.

Gabriel clocked the movement for hesitation. “Do you have an idea?” he asked.

“Would you allow me to call Vincent? He and his partner are just as good as I am at trackin’. Better, even.”

“And their daughter is unempowered,” Gabriel said. He met Micah’s eyes. “I don’t know that I could willingly take her parents away in a situation like this when she has no powers.” He shook his head. “I appreciate the thought and I respect your clan’s alliance with our pack but—”

“Astoria,” Micah said quietly. “Uncle Vin and his partner can leave Rose with Will and Astoria. She passed two-hundred a few months ago and no one would ever dare mess with William directly unless they had a deathwish.”

“It would just waste time,” Gabriel said. “Waiting for them to drop off Rosalind and then meet us here even with us waiting for Uncle Milo and his family to show up—”

Knock-knock-knock!

Natalie yelped and about jumped out of her skin. She whirled toward the front door, glanced back at her family and realized she was the closest one to the door, and then slowly crept toward it.

Gabriel set a hand on her shoulder and pulled her backward as he moved around her protectively. “Let me,” he said quietly.

She didn’t protest. Certainly a first for her.

Gabriel went to the front door and—Core burning hot to shift in the blink of an eye—yanked it open.

Vincent Solaire and his partner stood there, faces a bit sweaty and Vincent’s particularly pale tone flushed pink from running but otherwise fine. “Sorry we’re late,” Vincent said. “Had to drop off Rose with her grandpa.”

Gabriel shot a glare at Sam. Sam pointedly didn’t meet his eyes, looking past Gabriel’s shoulder at Vincent with an impish grin. Gabriel rolled his eyes. He considered telling Sam off for patently undermining his authority as beta in a pack matter, but he really did appreciate the extra trackers. And vampires would always be better at it than shifters. Not by much, but it would be enough.

So he just clenched his jaw and welcomed Vincent and his partner into the house.

“You didn’t have to come. This really isn’t a problem that concerns you.”

Vincent shrugged. He was tall and slender. Slimmer than Gabriel and a bit shorter, but Gabriel guessed Vincent about had Asher beat in terms of height. “Your father commands a lot of respect in this city. Someone messes with him and the people who respect him emerge in his defense.” Gabriel shut the door behind them.

“Well, thank you. I appreciate your willingness to help.” Gabriel took in the group. Apart from the Greers, who were on their way… “If you don’t mind, could you scout the woods with Micah and Sam? There’s a lot of square miles out there.”

“We’re here to follow where you tell us to go,” Vincent’s partner said, silver eyes shining bright. “These are your parents who are missing. As their son and your pack’s beta, we serve at your command.”

Gabriel blinked. A bit nonplussed.

Natalie full-on snorted. “We’re shifters. We don’t really do… formality like that.”

“But we appreciate the gesture,” Gabriel said with a pointed look at his sister. She quieted down her amusement.

Gabriel tapped his foot, biting the inside of his cheek. “I’m reallocating assignments,” he decided. “Tank, go with my sister. Keep her safe. I’ll stay here.”

“Don’t you want to hunt down whoever messed with your parents—”

“Of course I do. But as the beta I should be the one staying behind to coordinate the search effort. I’ll stay here with Asher’s mate and when the Greers get here I’ll send them out on their own assignment. And you guys can all leave now before any trail that might exist gets even colder than it already is.”

“Gabe,” Natalie said quietly. Tank and Asher both flinched. The Shaw siblings didn’t seem to notice.

He shook his head. “This is something I have to do. I’d rather go out and hunt too but what I want doesn’t matter right now.”

“I can stay—”

“Natty. You’re a better tracker than I am. Always have been. I need you out there with Tank. And I need Tank out there too. You know if it comes down to a fight both of you have a better chance than I would.”

Natalie took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said.

“I’m trusting you. If you find our parents, give the people who took them from us hell.”

“Yes sir,” Natalie said as a wicked smile twisted her face.

Tank approached Natalie from behind, looking over her head at Gabriel. “I’ll keep her safe,” they promised.

“I know,” Gabriel said. “Get going. All of you.”

Evelyn and Asher dodged out the front door first. Vincent made a quiet comment to his partner that the Shaw home was well-decorated before the two vampires followed Sam and Micah out the back door and took off for the woods. Even for her age, Micah kept pace with the vampires fairly well as she leapt the garden wall.

Tank rubbed Natalie’s shoulder comfortingly as they followed Asher and Evelyn out the front door.

Leaving just Asher’s mate and Gabriel.

Gabriel sighed and shifted, curling up on the area rug in the living room. Asher’s mate climbed off the couch and sat next to him, scratching at his fur gently. They’d become like another parent to him, growing up, and he wasn’t too prideful to pretend not to like the gentleness. He leaned into their touch.

Keep me updated, he sent down the mental link.

Five voices chorused, Got it.

—

Darlin’

Tank! Little Natalie’s voice exclaimed. I think I have something! It’s faint but it smells like my parents!

I nodded. Follow it. I’m right beside you.

Natalie’s giggle echoed down the mental link. You sure you can keep up, old-timer?

I rolled my eyes. You and Micah are little nightmares, you know that?

Take pride in it, actually. She kept laughing. The sound so much like her mom—David’s mate—that my heart ached for a second. What if we didn’t find them…

No. Like hell. We’d find them. We would. I wasn’t going to let the man who’d become a brother to me and his mate leave my daughter’s best friend and older brother (who she was not-so-secretly crushing on) without their parents. If I had to follow David straight into Death to drag his ass back to his kids, that’s exactly what I would do, even if Sam gave me hell for it.

Why doesn’t that surprise me?

Well, you raised one of us, Natalie pointed out.

You’re being quite chipper, despite the situation.

If I don’t put on a positive face, I’m gonna break down or explode with anger. This is how I handle things. It’s what garnered my friendly, optimistic reputation before anyone found out how hot-headed and grumbly I really am under the surface.

I couldn’t help but chuckle. You are your father’s daughter.

Natalie huffed out her nose and we took a quick right as she pivoted. Funny you say that. My dad says that until I frustrate him. Then he says I’m my mother’s. Then she says I’m hers until I frustrate her, and then I’m my dad’s.

Sounds about right for parents.

Natalie didn’t reply immediately. Their scents are definitely getting stronger. Fresher. Can you run back a little bit to get back in range of Gabriel’s mental link and let him know? I’ll be right here. I don’t want to lose their scents.

If Micah had asked, I would have hesitated because of her recklessness and impulsiveness. She’d say, “I’ll be right here,” and then take off to keep following the trail the second I was out of sight.

I wondered if Natalie would do the same. She was a Shaw, through and through, and I hoped that led her to being responsible enough not to take off following the trail once I was gone.

Yeah. But actually stay here. If you’re not right here when I get back, you and I are going to have a talk that you won’t like.

And you say I sound like my dad, Natalie grumbled.

You do when you grumble like that, I retorted.

She slowed to a stop and sat on her haunches. I’ll be right here. Go tell Gabriel.

I ducked my head, turned tail, and went back the way we came.

—

Natalie shuffled her paws and looked around the unempowered neighborhood. Her black fur blended pretty well into the shadows and it was quite late. So she wasn’t terribly worried about breaking covert or getting Animal Control called on her. The wolfish instincts in her were itching to hunt, run, protect—it took a lot of self control to stay where she was.

Maybe I should have called some of my school friends. Like Andie, she thought, scratching her claws against the pavement and panting, tongue lolling out just a little. She wanted to shift back to save magic and not look as weird—giant black wolf sitting in the shadows? A lot weirder than a seventeen-year-old girl in shorts and a tank top—but she needed access to the mental link. So she stayed in wolf form. Scratching her claws lightly on the pavement. Letting the heat of her run stay built up in her coat.

She stayed on high alert in case anyone happened to spot her and tried not to let her hackles raise too much.

After a few minutes, a familiar grey-and-tan coat of fur emerged from around the corner.

They’re all converging on us, Tank reported. Including Gabriel.

What about Asher’s mate? Natalie asked.

Vincent’s partner is going to keep an eye on them.

Really?

Tank nodded. That group searched the woods and Vincent’s partner tired themselves out. I know them—they drive like a maniac and they overdo it with their vampire speed all the time. Vincent’s been a vampire for pretty much twenty-two years longer than them so he’s faster naturally, despite the fact that his partner is also really fast. They tried to keep up and wore themselves out. They’re going to keep an eye on Asher’s mate and Gabriel’s coming with us. Just a few more minutes to wait.

Every second we wait is a second wasted. My parents are out there somewhere—possibly kidnapped—and I have to wait for people to show up.

Natalie, look at me, Tank said. She did. I know how you feel. I really do. It feels easier to just go off and handle things on your own so you don’t have to wait for others to catch up or you don’t want to put them in danger or… a million other little reasons to not handle things as a group. But we’re wolves, Natty. Like it or not, we really are built to hunt in packs. It took me a long time to figure that out and accept it for myself. I still struggle with letting others help me. Even Sam and Micah. But I’ve learned how to lean on my pack and trust them to have my back when I need them to. It’s something you’ll get to learn too.

Natalie inhaled and sighed out her nose.

The mental link lit up with more connections. Almost to you, Natalie, Micah said.

Start tracking, we’ll catch up, Gabriel ordered.

Finally, Natalie said. Yes, sir.

She turned and bolted down the road, following the scent of her parents. She could pick out their scents in a crowd. Once her powers manifested and her senses got so much more heightened, the vaguely familiar smells of her parents burned into her brain.

Tank kept pace beside her, running close enough that their fur brushed occasionally. Comfort and reassurance. Natalie knew that was why they stuck so close to her side.

Natalie followed the scents of their parents through the suburb of Dahlia. Leading out toward the warehouse district on the very fringes of the city. Heading for the warehouses, Natalie reported.

Gabriel’s acknowledgement was barely more than a thought, “Hmm.” There was a pause before, Everyone keep tracking Natalie’s path. Keep converging. Micah, let your dad know?

On it, Micah’s voice said.

You’re running hard, Natalie, Tanker pointed out softly, directly to her instead of over the general link. Don’t exhaust yourself before we get there.

I’ll find the energy, if I need to.

God, you sound like me when I was your age.

We’re all family here. Not surprised.

Now that sounded like your dad.

Natalie Hmmed and kept running. The scent of her parents was getting stronger. And it was much more present than a decoy. She wondered if kidnappers would even know that. If they’d laid a decoy scent trail elsewhere in the city, would they know that a shifter’s nose (especially in wolf form) was sensitive enough to tell the difference?

This trail was real. The chemicals released from emotions were underlying the general scent of her parents. She could smell her dad’s anger—her mom’s fear. Her dad’s fear. The thought made a growl rumble deep in Natalie’s chest. Anything that could make her father afraid… the thought of David Shaw experiencing fear was enough to push Natalie to keep running, even as her lungs burned and the pads of her paws stung. Wolves weren’t meant to run on pavement. She was dealing with it.

Hard right, she announced as she pivoted on a dime around a corner.

Right behind you, Gabriel said. Saw your tail disappearing. Tank’s too.

Great. I’ll try and leave some of the bad guys for you. But I make no promises.

—

Angel

A piercing howl jarred me awake. I looked around wildly. I was tied to a chair with a single bright light on me. David was nowhere to be seen.

But that howl wasn’t David’s. I knew his howl.

Fortunately (or, maybe unfortunately), I knew the howl that woke me too.

“Gabriel, no,” I whispered.

My son’s howl was immediately answered by several more. I knew every single one. All howling on different notes.

Asher. Milo. Lily. Evelyn. Tanker. Micah.

Natalie.

My stomach dropped. While I was grateful that the pack was coming for us, I couldn’t help but be terrified. My children were among the ranks of those on their way. My babies. The kids I was supposed to protect—not the other way around.

My heart started pounding in my chest and blood was roaring in my ears, nearly drowning out the continuing chorus of wolves. Well, they lost the element of surprise, I thought.

Then I realized what they were doing.

Telling David and I they were here.

And threatening the people that abducted us. Natalie’s howl rung the loudest. There was nothing mournful or keening in it. No searching for pack. Hers was, undoubtedly, you’ve done something wrong, and now you’re going to pay.

Just like her dad.

Snarls and growls got closer. I heard human shouts—and screams. My heart was going to blow out of my ribcage from how fast it was beating and I felt sick to my stomach with anxiety. My babies…

The door to my room burst open. Two black wolves crashed in. One pure, pitch black, my own eye color sweeping the room. The other with a streak of grey going back his forehead and down his chest—vibrant green eyes the same shade as David’s narrowed. The grey-streaked wolf turned and barked toward the way they’d come in. A pair of grey wolves and a rust-colored wolf kept running.

In the blink of an eye, my kids were standing in human form in front of me. I could hear Natalie calling out for me—“Mama!”—but it was distant, through cotton in my ears.

Then Gabriel was working on undoing the knots tying me to the chair.

“Hey, idiot,” Natalie said to her brother as my blood stopped roaring so much in my ears. “Turn back into a wolf and use your claws.”

“Are you kidding? I could scratch her arm open!” Gabriel snapped back.

Natalie circled around me. I heard the impact of her shouldering her brother out of the way. “Then let me do it—since you’ve got no finesse or coordination.”

“You’re talking to your beta,” Gabriel growled.

“No. Right now I’m talking to my brother,” she snapped back. I heard the familiar sound of shifting magic—and the ropes disappeared from around me.

“Okay. That was good,” Gabriel admitted begrudgingly.

Natalie was human again in an instant, laughing. “I know,” she said, flipping her braid off her shoulder. She started looking me over. “Mom—Mom, are you okay?” Her voice was small and concerned, unexpectedly. “Look at me? Please Mommy?” I met her eyes. She reached out to help me up. “Let’s get you out of here. The Collinses and the Greers are looking for Dad. But we gotta get you outta here.”

Three wolf heads peered into the room, quietly growling.

“Well, Micah, Lily, and Evelyn are here with us too,” Natalie added. “The adults are gonna find Dad. We figured numbers versus skill. We’ve got the numbers, the adult wolves have the skill.”

The grey wolf with the white “sock” on her left foreleg—Micah—yipped in warning.

The three girls rushed into the room as a bolt of lightning streaked down the hallway where they’d been.

Gabriel swore. “I didn’t think they’d have Energetics,” he muttered.

“Language, young man,” I chided half-heartedly.

“Better than Stealths,” Natalie said quickly. “Time to regroup.”

“Girls. Human form,” Gabriel said.

Evelyn, Micah, and Lily stood in front of me in an instant as Natalie helped me out of the chair. “Gabriel, we don’t have time to regroup,” Micah said, also speaking fast. “They’re coming!”

“She’s right,” Natalie agreed. She met my eyes. “Get on Evelyn’s back. She’s the fastest runner. The rest of us will hold them off.”

“Natty—” Evelyn tried to protest.

“This isn’t up for debate!” Natalie snapped. “We don’t have—”

She was cut off as a bolt of lightning arced inches behind her and hit the concrete wall. A tendril of electricity struck her in the back. Her entire body seized up and crumpled in the next instant.

“Natalie!” Gabriel shouted at the same time my daughter’s name left my own mouth.

Micah, Lily, and Evelyn all whirled toward the entrance as Gabriel and I bent to grab Natalie. Three wolves growled toward the door.

“Get out of here,” Natalie rasped, her eyes meeting mine. “I’ll be fine. I’m tougher than I look. I just—need to shift…”

Fury built in my blood as I looked up to see three humans standing in the doorway, each one priming some sort of magic in their hands. The lightning I recognized. The other two’s magic wasn’t visible.

Heat built in my chest, crawling up my face and down my arms. Settling low in my stomach. My daughter. They’d hurt my daughter.

I didn’t have powers—but that wasn’t going to stop me.

Something deep inside—that maternal instinct that had activated the day I held Gabriel in my arms for the first time—compelled me forward. Protect. Defend. As the rest of my mind whispered, Those are my kids!

“Girls,” I said, voice deathly calm. “Get behind me.”

Evelyn, Lily, and Micah all gave me the same confused glance.

“Now!”

Apparently all three of them knew better than to disobey that tone, because they all moved out of the way, moving behind me.

The humans in the door all looked confused and skeptical.

“Gabriel, pick up your sister,” I said.

My son didn’t question me. Just grabbed Natalie around the waist and knees and hauled her up into his arms. She could barely move.

Every fiber of my being felt like it was going to combust—

And then it did.

Fire surged out of me, toward the three in the doorway. They screamed. I’m pretty sure I also screamed. The kids behind me yelped in surprise.

I poured everything into the fire, not even sure how I was doing it. My anger, my fear, my overwhelming desire to protect my children and their best friends, all standing behind me; and my need to find and protect David from whatever was happening here. Everything turned into the inferno raging in front of me.

“Mom!” Gabriel called out to me. I heard fear in his voice.

That same instinct inside withdrew the fire immediately. Don’t scare your baby, it seemed to say.

The three humans who’d been in the doorway were no longer there. I hadn’t seen past the flames on whether they ran before the worst of the fire blasted them… or if I’d just turned them to ash.

I looked back at the kids. Gabriel’s eyes were the widest, but they all looked appalled.

A wave of lethargy swept me.

“Grab her!” Natalie said.

As I stumbled, Micah and Evelyn’s strong arms caught me. I hadn’t even heard them shift back to humans. Evelyn was the next-tallest after Gabriel at 5’10”, but all the kids were athletic. Evelyn hauled me up into her arms. I watched Natalie—stiffly—climb out of her brother’s hold.

“We have to get out of here. Fast. Ev, carry Mom. The rest of us will hold off whoever else is cowering in the warehouse. They’ll learn why no one messes with the Shaw pack.” Her eyes—my eyes—met each of her friends’ in turn. “Wolves, let’s move.”

She shifted, but I caught the grimace of discomfort before her face changed.

Lily and Micah preceded Gabriel and Evelyn carrying me from the room. “She’d make a damn good alpha,” Evelyn joked. “You hear how authoritative she sounded?”

Gabriel chuckled. “Yeah. She’d probably be a better leader than I ever will.” They left the room. “I’ll be watching your six, Ev.”

“You always do,” Evelyn said before Gabriel shifted.

—

“The kids told me what happened,” David said as we sat on the couch. Gabriel and Natalie had both gone to bed after Sam had double-checked Natalie to make sure there was no lasting damage from the lightning. They were both exhausted from the running and the adrenaline wearing off. “I can feel your aura now. You’re definitely a Fire Elemental.”

I sighed, putting my face in my hands. “David, I’m in my fifties. I’m too old for a major life change like this. I’m too old to… to learn magic. I’ve watched you and our kids shift and Milo’s mate and son use magic but I never expected I’d have to.”

“Get to,” David corrected. “And you don’t have to use it. It’s not like it’s going to build up and drive you crazy. It’s just… an extra resource that you have access to now.”

“Davey…”

“Angel, no one’s going to put any pressure on you about all this. Least of all me. But from what I’ve heard, non-shifters trying to suppress their powers doesn’t end well. Don’t fight the magic, but you don’t have to use it either. I would recommend learning some basics, and leaving it at that, if you don’t want to get anymore involved in your magic.” An almost sly smile appeared on my mate’s face. “You find Psychokinesis to be really helpful. And maybe healing.”

I made a face. “I’ll try, David. I just… I feel too old.”

“Hey, the phrase about old dogs and new tricks is absolutely false—and you’re a Fire Elemental, not a shifter.”

“Was that a joke? Did big, scary alpha wolf David Shaw just make a dog joke?”

“No.”

“That’s too bad. It was a really good one,” I teased, poking him in the side. He moved away to avoid the ticklish touch. “Can we just go to bed? I’m tired.”

“Yeah. Let's go to bed. You were lucky to stay conscious after expending that much magic all at once as your first time ever using it. I’m surprised you’re still awake.” He got up. Despite the fact that we were both getting older, he scooped me up and carried me upstairs to our room.

“Those people who snagged us… what did they want?”

“No one stayed long enough to find out.”

“But they told you something, didn’t they? After they separated us?”

David was quiet as he set me on our bed. His eyes were fixed on the carpet. “They wanted information on the Department. Information I don’t have. They thought I would because I’m a prominent alpha in the area. But it was ultimately futile.”

“Were they using me as a bargaining chip?”

“They tried. Then I heard Gabriel and the others howl and I knew you’d be safe.” He kissed my hair. “Get some rest, angel. We can figure out the rest in the morning.”

I nodded. “G’night, Davey. I love you.”

“Love you too. And, hey, at least now we know why you generate body heat like a damn furnace.”

I laughed.

[mystarsforanempire]

meta: GODHOOD & ITS EFFECTS

mmm, u can reblog this if u wanna, but @ other gods & divine figures, you don’t necessarily have to Buy Into this concept, this is just what i run with on this blog and with any other figures i write that have ascended to godhood (e.g. like, hades and other greek figures)

i’m gonna try to lay stuff out in simple language that focuses on the sensation of belief and what effect it actually has on those who are Believed In in a literary sense. this bears some similarity to neil gaiman’s + terry pratchett’s concepts of belief in literature but i play with some earthier concepts that are much more based in the telepathic energy + the connection that fosters

this builds on the foundation of my concept of magic within the marvel universe, but to summarize that concept: magic exists throughout the universe, running in rivers across star systems and following, for example, ley lines upon earth while branching outward, kind of like groundwater but in three dimensions. magic is worked by drawing magic into the body (into dedicated “veins”), then running it out along previously laid-out “paths” (spells or rituals) or by utilising a higher telepathic ability to coax the magic into transforming into something else. 

2 notes:

- the word “god” is used to refer to BEACONS OF BELIEF, but the beacon may not be a god. faerie, demon, angel and other spirits affected by the ebbs and flows of belief (vague or not) could be transplanted into this consideration, but on a lesser scale. based on my own philosophy i would argue that a “spirit” is something that comes into form/being as a result of belief rather than ascending to godhood post-belief but honestly, that’s flexible

- this is really long and i’m trying to lay stuff out in relatively plain language for both my own understanding when i read back but also so people can Get Me, but totally feel free to shoot me questions about this because it’s like philosophy in that it’s vaguely scientific sounding bullshit, but can also seem simple to one person and really complex to another from the same angle!

strap urself in and hold onto ur tits, it’s time for ABSTRACT DISCUSSION OF BELIEF AS A MANIFESTATION OF TELEPATHIC ENERGY THAT CAN HAVE A PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECT ON THOSE THAT ENTER INTO ITS COVENANT

                                        WHERE DO GODS BEGIN?

the vast majority of gods exist before they are believed in. that is to say, they start off as figures usually a different species to those they are then worshiped by (although this is not always the case), and then, through a natural process of ingratiation, which becomes demonisation and/or idealisation, which becomes worship. 

not all beings can become gods, and very specific yet often incalcuable specifications must be met. the difference between non-god and god can occur within the space of seconds, and the elevation comes suddenly and impermeably: it is difficult to reverse.

one ascends to godhood by starting off as a figure of renown and high consideration: for some reason, the peoples that look up to them consider themselves separate. this might start off as a separation of class (either with firm boundaries, such as a huge difference in social class, or something like extremely remarkable appearance/personality), then becomes something which is GIVEN AND TAKEN between the god-to-be and their worshipers. 

a god of beauty begins as a figure of renown, to be looked upon with desire and delight: there comes a tipping point where the admirers become worshipers, and the god-to-be allows and welcomes the worship. a goddess of fertility may begin as a mother, but might then render advice or assistance (with magic or otherwise), and then become a figure to be admired... then worshiped. a figure of fire may be feared, even demonized, but then comes the tipping point: this god may be worshiped simply to appease.

make no mistake: when one enters GODHOOD, a covenant is made. the very spirit of that god becomes imbued with power (if they did not have it before) over their sphere of specialty, although these powers can be unreliable and patchy in places, depending on the extent to which different elements of the figure are worshiped. in the matter of apollo, for example, different devotees would examine him differently across the dozens of states in what we refer to as “ancient greece”, and subsequently that would have an effect on how absolute his power would be over particular subjects, perhaps even changing based on his closeness (telepathically, not geographically) to specific groups of devotees.

does this all sound vague??? does it all sound complicated? GOOD. no one sets out to be a god, not at first. and when it comes, it comes all at once.

                               WHAT POWER COMPELS THE GODS?

BASICALLY, it’s telepathic energy. if magic runs in natural rivers throughout the universe, being worked into grooves when spells are used, the channel of telepathic power that runs between god and believer is a groove in its own right. just as the telepathic command of a sorcerer affects the magic to change and become something else, this telepathic energy will affect the very being of the god.

this does not mean a god is controlled by their worshipers. the very nature of belief is flimsy and yet stark and block-like in the psyches of believers: belief is tended to subtle change from one worshiper to another, meaning that when many thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, or billions believe in a god, they will be different to how they would be if few people believed in them. 

a million believers may believe in some key elements, but others may be subject to change, meaning that the god figure will become blurred at the edges, will have hazy elements where something might be simultaneously true and not true. at the zenith of worship, a god’s memories (and vision of the future, which ill get onto in a minute) will be subject to what its worshipers believe of them, including their base personality, their powers & specialist knowledge & their connections to others.

this state of being, from the belief alone, is confusing and frenetic for some gods, peaceful and calm for others. it depends entirely on what others expect of them. 

                                      WHAT OF SACRIFICE & RITUAL?

energy becomes energy becomes energy: it is a fact of the universe that energy cannot be conjured from nowhere... but it can be conjured from magic. magic, in fact, is a universal lubricant that will serve to allow ONE THING to become another. what does this mean when it comes to ritual?

well, a sacrifice made up for a god is an offer of 2 things: telepathic energy (which in big enough quantities will undoubtedly affect, for example, the power at a god’s disposal and even their latent energy, such as their lifespan) and a GIFT, whether that gift exists in manifestable object/energy (e.g. offering a morsel of food, a sacrifice of meat + life energy, offering a pretty gem) or whether it is representative (e.g. offering a god your artistic thoughts, your dreams, your anger)

so like, this defo applies to loki and the other norse gods of my canon where i envision them as like, feral things at the zenith of belief in them. and that feralness is coming from the fact that you have a lot of people who are full to the brim with energy believing in them (and thus affecting them with similar energy), but also the nature of the sacrifices themselves. 

at the very high point of their worship, loki, thor and the other gods had continuously full mouths. full of blood, of half-cooked flesh, of wine; their minds would be full to the brim with prayers and wishes, askances and considerations. it is a deeply chaotic thing, and the minds of gods must become wider and ever full of other things. 

even if a god keeps up a concentration, settling upon their own lives rather than on the lives of their worshipers, that energy is constant upon them: it is difficult and sometimes painful for a god to turn down a sacrifice or an offer of worship, and it comes with its own psychological costs.

                                                      DESTINY & BELIEF

Magic flows like a river through everything - this includes time itself. although not everything is set in stone, the gods exist along a frame where some parts of the future are destined, are foretold, will inevitably occur.

some of these things are just natural aspects of destiny, but others are more centred to gods in that...

if all your worshipers know the story of the way you are killed, the way you will be killed, the way you were killed, that is probably how you will die. that telepathic energy affects magic, which will affect time itself, and thus destiny. what is destiny but foreknowledge?

and here’s the tricky part. i know that i said before “individuals become gods” and that that’s a kind of ephemeral process, difficult to imagine, except... magic knows what time doesn’t. if you are going to become a god in the future, retroactively you ARE a god now, and you were always a god, and you will always be a god, even when the only person still believing in you is yourself. fun, huh?

so that complex bit of mental gymnastics aside, i want to talk about a concept that’s very central to my portrayal of loki, and that’s FUTURE PAINS. so, imagine it: loki’s like, the equivalent of eight years old, and during a lull in the evening’s activities, when the sun is setting and the magic is flowing a certain way, he lets out a sound of pain, and clasps at his mouth. there is no wound there, and yet he knows that there is a wound, that there will be a wound, that there always was a wound. if he really concentrates, he feels the scars between his lower and upper lips, and if he really concentrates, he can feel the needle that will make them, that is making them, that will have made them.

because of the stream of belief that follows a god in every direction, the scars and the main events they’ll undergo are kind of accessible from all angles, regardless of where they are in the course of their own life: this means that a god will almost always know, on some level (likely deep in their unconscious mind) how they will die. think of it as an eternal sensation of déja vu that you effectively train yourself to ignore, simply to stop yourself going entirely mad.

                             WHEN IS A GOD NO LONGER A GOD?

when they die.

(and even then, it’s flexible.) 

[dollscircus]

Good morning my love!!

I’ve been spam liking all your posts I’m sorry-

Also is this one an I’m pretty sure @starlitangels made a fic with latent fire elemental Angel!

Good afternoon beloved!

Yeah I noticed! You always just got through liking posts before saying hi!

Yes! I was told about that. I’m going to give it a read later!

How are you today?