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inkinmyheartandonthepage · 1 year ago

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Stand Still

We Forgot Peter part 221 - Read it on Ao3

Peter Parker isn’t proud of it.

A giant purple alien (Thanos, if Peter caught his name correctly. He’s not entirely sure he had it right but now isn’t exactly the moment to ask) had him around the neck, attempting to choke the life out of him. His throat burned with the tight grip, his lungs aching with the need to breath. It was out of pure instinct that Peter opened his mouth to try and suck in a desperate breath, but he couldn’t get any air in.

He blamed the lack of oxygen for the way he sunk his teeth into the skin of Thanos without a thought.

The hand around his neck slackened with the shock and Peter fell to the ground. He only just managed to stay on his feet, gulping in lungful after lungful of air. As his chest heaved and his hands shook, it took him a moment to realise that the fight had been paused, everyone staring at him.

It took several more gulps of air for him to realise what he had done.

He had bit Thanos.

Aunt May’s voice filtered through his mind; a forgotten memory dragged to the surface.

Peter, honey, no. We don’t bite people. Biting his bad. Apologise to your Uncle Ben.

“I’m sorry,” Peter blurted out into the silence of Titan. “Mr. Mad Titan – uh – Thanos, sir. Is that right? Thanos? I’m so, sorry. Biting is bad. I shouldn’t have – I’m so sorry. It was an accident!”

Peter’s heart raced in his chest as everyone just stared at him. Heat pooled in his cheeks and the racing of his heart had nothing to do with the adrenalin of the battle but the utter embarrassment of his actions. Peter fidgeted, the silence closing in on him –

Drax let out a bark-like laugh. “He bit him. Just like a fierce warrior. Bravo.”

Drax’s words seemed to have un-spelled them all. Thanos made a motion to move but Tony Stark was faster. He blocked the mad titans strike, giving them all an opportunity to strike and the battle continued.

The embarrassment disappeared just as quickly as it had come as Peter fought. Fear and adrenalin crashed through his body like a tsunami, and it was Peter could do to not drown in it. Thanos was like no other opponent Peter had ever come across and it scared him right down to his very bones.

Then Strange was wrapping the titan in red, glowing, whips and Quill was trapping his other hand in some magnetic, crackling like lightning trap and Peter was wrapping his web around the alien, pinning him down –

Then Thanos stopped struggling.

It was as if his limbs had locked tight, his body freezing and turning to stone like he had stared into the face of Medusa. Peter wondered if maybe Medusa was there. At this point, nothing would have surprised him.

“What’s going on?” Peter asked, cautiously loosening is grip on his webs. Thanos didn’t struggle against them, frozen where he stood wrapped in their traps.

Tony landed close by, hands raised and ready to fire. After a moment of examination, Tony’s voice came through his mask. “He’s frozen.”

Nebula approached, knifes up. Peter could only gape as she strode right up into the titan’s space without fear, the tip of her knife poking into to his cheek. She pressed the tip harder until blood dripped down the blade. The only thing that moved was Thanos’s eyes.

“He’s paralysed,” Nebula said, her expression never changing.

“How?” Tony demanded.

“Who cares,” Quill snorted. “Let’s just get the glove off him.”

“Underoos,” Tony called.

Releasing his webs, Peter hurried to Tony’s side. He went where Tony directed him. He curled his hands around the rim of the glove and started to yank with all his might. He kept sneaking glances at Thanos, wondering why he was paralyzed. It’s not like any of their weapons had –

“Holy crap,” Peter gasped out, the glove popping off the Titan’s hand, sending Peter and Tony sprawling to the ground.

“Kid, you good?” Tony demanded, scrambling to get to his feet.

“I bit him,” Peter said, staring up at Tony where he held the glove tight to his chest.

“Yeah, and then apologised, which we need to talk about that later,” Tony said, his voice calm but his eyes frantic as they roamed over Peter’s face. His eyes were pinched tight, and Peter could feel the worry pouring out of him.

“Have you got it?” Nebula asked.

“Got it,” Tony called over to them.

Peter watched as Nebula stared at Thanos, her eyes narrowing.

“If only Gamora was here to watch this,” Nebula said. “How she would have loved to watch me cut your head off.”

Peter watched as Nebula raised her knifes up high –

Then Tony stepped in front of him, blocking her from his sight. That didn’t stop him from hearing the wet sound of a blade sliding through skin and the heavy thud of something falling to the ground, followed by an even heavier thump of something slumping to the ground.

Peter let Tony help him to his feet. He automatically pressed his face into Tony’s armored chest, shuddering as Tony arms came around his shoulders to hold him close.

“I bit him,” Peter said into Tony’s chest.

“Kid?” Tony’s gloved hand brushed his sweaty hair back from his forehead, tilting his chin up at the same time so they were looking at one another.

“Mr. Stark, I forgot I had venom.”

Tony blinked at Peter for a beat before his lips started to twitch.

“Don’t you dare,” Peter growled, hugging the glove closer to his chest.

“Oh kid,” Tony begun to chuckle.

“You can’t tell anyone,” Peter rasped out, hands shaking around the glove. “Promise me. You can’t tell the other Avenger’s.”

“Oh Pete, that’s not a promise I can keep,” Tony chuckled.

Peter moaned, burying his head into Tony’s chest again. His whole body trembled as the adrenaline begun to wear off. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry or curl up into a tight ball and scream.

“I’ve got you,” Tony said, holding him closer and running a now non-gloved hand through his curls. “I’m so proud of you kid. So proud. It’s over. It’s all over now. I’ve got you.”

Peter let himself sink into Tony’s grip, letting the words wash over him and sooth his trembling. When he was sure he had control over himself again, he pulled back. He looked up at Tony who was waiting patiently, ignoring the gathered group behind him.

“You good?” Tony asked.

Peter nodded, not trusting his voice to not come out in a squeak.

“Time to end this field trip,” Tony said with a small smile. “And tell everyone that you stopped the mighty Thanos by biting him.”

“Just don’t tell May,” Peter blurted out. “I don’t want another lecture on why biting is bad.”

Tony let out a gleeful grin as he led Peter towards Doctor Strange who had been waiting patiently for Peter. It didn’t escape his notice that Tony was blocking his view of Thanos and for that he was grateful. When they reached Doctor Strange, Peter all but shoved the gauntlet into his hands, eager to be rid of it. Holding it had sent his sense haywire, the urge to yet it across the planet strong.

“Well done,” Doctor Strange said, over Peter a smile.

“So, in all your little jaunts into the future, did you see this one coming?” Tony asked, raising an eyebrow at Strange.

Strange’s eyes twinkled with mirth and Peter bit back a groan.

“Why spoil the surprise,” is all Strange said.

“Can you get us back to Earth?” Tony asked and Peter knees almost buckled at the thought of going home.

Maybe he had fallen asleep on the bus, and this was all a horrible dream? Maybe at any moment Ned was going to shake him awake and he would find himself back on the bus with marking on his face from where Flash had drawn on him.

“I can,” Strange said. “If we are all ready.”

Tony’s hand clamped down tightly on Peter’s shoulder, squeezing his hard. Okay so maybe he wasn’t going to wake up on the bus but at least Tony was there. Everything was going to be okay as long as Tony was there and Peter pressed him back to Tony’s chest, drawing comfort and the knowledge that they were both alive and that they were both going home.

#ao3 fanfic #spiderson #irondad and spiderson #irondad #peter parker & tony stark #peter parker #tony stark #tony stark lives #ao3fic

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meetinginsamarra · 6 months ago

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mayprompts2024, #30 journey

Chapters 1 to 6 here on AO3

If you like the tattoo AU give it some love on my AO3, please. It would mean a lot to me. TYSM!

+++++

White Pony Tattoo - Part Ten (journey)

Eight days later, once again, John found himself hovering in front of 221 Baker Street. He wondered if there would ever come a time when he would be able to simply just walk inside because he was sure about it like every other normal person would probably do.

The days since he had last seen Sherlock had flown by, with John barely noticing the passage of time. He had thought a lot about what Mrs Hudson had said to him in her kitchen. Not the threat she had uttered. But the thing about Sherlock having had a hard time in his past.

John had pondered about what might have happened to him, what had hurt Sherlock so much that he had needed to put up that wall of protection around himself. To build an armour around his heart.

Of course, John wouldn’t ask. He also promised himself not to stalk Sherlock on the internet any further. If Sherlock wanted to trust John with telling him anything about his past, it was solely up to Sherlock to take the first step into this direction.

Calais Reno, the movie star, whom John had begun to follow on Instagram out of sheer curiosity, had posted a picture of the newly acquired tattoo yesterday. It had been placed on the outer side of the right calf and reminded John of a mixture between HG Wells’ steampunk-inspired time machine and Doctor Who’s Tardis. It was intricately detailed and although it was very close to a technical drawing, the image seemed three-dimensional. Given that the movie star was known to be a fan of stories about time travel, it was the perfect choice.

John would have expected nothing less, coming from Sherlock.

Which made him more and more curious about the phoenix Sherlock would put onto him this afternoon. Excited. Also, a bit anxious. What if he didn’t like Sherlock’s design after all? Sherlock had only texted John, giving him a time and a date when the tatooing would take place but he had not given the tiniest hint concerning its design.

John remembered very well the part of Sherlock’s shop sign that demanded no arguing. He would just have to trust Sherlock, John supposed.

Into battle. John opened the door.

Sherlock, dressed in a deep green shirt today, was already waiting and welcomed John with a radiant smile. This time, he reciprocated John’s firm hug with much more comfort and surety.

Without further ado, John was led into the tattoo parlour behind the curtain and Sherlock wordlessly gestured at the computer screen. It showed a black-hued phoenix. In a realistic 3D view that turned from side to side in an endless loop as if John was moving his arm. The firy bird totally eclipsed the Virgin Mary tattoo, depicted in faint red hues underneath, leaving not even the least bit of ink uncovered.

John stared with his mouth hanging open and didn’t know what to say.

“Given that you just perform the perfect impersonification of a gold fish, I take it that the design pleases you.” Sherlock deadpanned.

“Holy cow, Sherlock, this is,” John’s voice was hoarse as a multitude of feelings rushed through him, “this is… perfection.”

John must have chosen the right word because Sherlock’s face flushed red.

“It had to be. More than any tattoo before.” Sherlock swallowed, fiddling awkwardly with his hands. “I made it for you, John.”

“Sherlock, I…”

But Sherlock launched into a flurry of rapid movements, starting to set up everything for the tattoo session. It looked like a meticulously rehearsed ballet performance and John was transfixed by the lithe beauty and grace.

“Get comfortable in the seat,” Sherlock said whilst putting various needles, phials and two tattoo guns onto a tray, “I estimate that it will take three and a half hours to tattoo the phoenix. If you need a break, to move or stretch, just say so.”

John did as he had been asked and then Sherlock took off his dress-shirt to put on sterile surgical gloves. Underneath it, Sherlock wore a skin-tight black t-shirt where the short sleeves had been cut off. For the very first time, John saw Sherlock’s arms and the sight made him grateful that he was already sitting.

Sherlock’s arms were nothing short of spectacular.

Beautifully muscled, like a dancer’s, skin milky-white and smooth like marble. His right arm was not tattooed, but the left was wholly covered with intricate lines of deep black and brilliant red. From John’s point of view, they looked like dancing flames.

Sherlock apparently felt John’s eyes on him because he suddenly kept still. He turned, stepped up to John and held out the tattooed arm so that John could take a look at its front side. He carefully watched John’s reaction.

“You also have a phoenix on your arm!” John gasped. “A huge phoenix surrounded by flames!”

“Brilliant observation, John.”

John realized that every time Sherlock had become sarcastic before, at least when he had talked to John, it had been an indicator of Sherlock being nervous. Something that he would never openly admit.

But what should Sherlock be nervous about?

The tattoo was beautiful and perfect and then John remembered what Sherlock had said about perfect tattoos. That they had to connect to their wearer’s personality and history. The implications of Sherlock’s professional credo in connection with chosing a phoenix for himself made John dizzy.

Did that mean…

“Are you a survivor, too?” John blurted, overwhelmed by his sudden epiphany.

Sherlock sighed. He fought an inner battle, the pros and cons of the choice he was about to make clearly written on his face.

John didn’t say anything, knowing Sherlock needed time for what this was. To find the courage and the trust to tell John about it.

When Sherlock had made his decision, he straightened his back and carefully wiped every emotion off his face, but his eyes stayed wary and apprehensive and he looked right over John’s head.

“It’s been a long journey before I’ve arrived where I am now.” Sherlock gestured with his hand to the tattoo parlour. “It’s not been a joy ride for a very long time. I’ve literally died, John! My heart had stopped and I’ve been brought back to life.”

John simply nodded one time. He did not dare move another muscle, lest Sherlock might get spooked and retreat back into his shell.

Sherlock took a deep breath, gathering his strength. He slowly searched for John’s eyes. After finding them, he asked silently.

“Have you ever wondered why I chose the name White Pony Tattoo?”

++++++

tagging some people @totallysilvergirl @peageetibbs @lisbeth-kk @raina-at @calaisreno

#mayprompts2024 #number 30 journey #my sherlock fanfics #white pony tattoo #no beta we die like (wo)men

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hot-take-tournament · 1 year ago

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HOT TAKE TOURNAMENT!

PRELIMINARY #221

Submission 664

buggy isn’t hot

he’s just not. look at him. yeah yeah he’s got tits and a detachable dick but he’s so cringe and fail. i would not fuck him personally.

Submission 746

buggy the clown is not fucking hot

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN. HAVE YOU LAID EYES ON HIM. i’m extremely homosexual for men and yet i have not even an inch of attraction to this little blue haired and pronouned bastard. yes he has three boyfriends but if you see me as one of them shoot me, that’s an evil clone, i would never willingly put my penis inside of buggothy theodore clownsworth.

We're on a One Piece kick tonight.

Propaganda is always encouraged!

And remember to reblog your favourite polls for exposure!

#hot take tournament #tournament poll #tumblr poll #tumblr tournament #tumblr bracket #hot take #unpopular opinion #buggy the clown #captain buggy #buggy one piece #one piece #one piece live action #one piece netflix #buggy #cw clowns

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winnipegwinterpeg · 8 days ago

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Access For All. Period.

Free pads and tampons are now available throughout Manitoba as part of the Access for All Period program, led by the Manitoba government. This program is focused on ending period poverty by providing equal access to menstrual products for all.

What is period poverty?

Period poverty is the inability to access or afford menstrual products, preventing youth and adults who menstruate from participating in their everyday lives.

Why is this important?

Removing barriers to access menstrual products is crucial to the physical and mental health of all who menstruate. A lack of proper access can result in dangerous situations, leading to both short and long term physical harm, as well as mental health issues including anxiety, depression and self-isolation. For students, it can negatively impact attendance and participation, affecting long-term achievement and resulting in missed educational and employment opportunities.

How does the program work?

The Manitoba government, in partnership with Shoppers Drug Mart, is providing readily available pads and tampons free to those in need. Products are available to all Manitobans in schools and community organizations as listed below. Free menstrual products are also available at participating shelters throughout the province through the Access for All Period program.

Where can I go?

You can access free menstrual products at the following locations (38 total, 26 in Winnipeg) under the cut:

* Andrews Street Family Centre, 220 Andrews Street, Winnipeg

* Blue Thunderbird Family Care, 998 Sargent Avenue, Winnipeg

* Acorn Family Place, 222 Furby Street #202, Winnipeg

* Canadian Muslim Women's Institute, 61 Juno Street #201, Winnipeg

* Community Ambition, 266A Linwood Street, Winnipeg

* Elmwood Community Resource Centre, 545 Watt Street, Winnipeg

* Family Dynamics, 393 Portage Avenue #401, Winnipeg

* First Nations Family Advocate, 286 Smith Street #200, Winnipeg

* The Food Vault and Community Resource Centre, 24 Hampton East, P.O. Box 881, MacGregor

* Fort Garry Women's Resource Centre, 1150A Waverly Street, Winnipeg

* Holy Names House of Peace, 211 Edmonton Street, Winnipeg

* Interlake Women's Resource Centre, 87 - 5th Avenue, Gimli

* Lakeshore Family Resource Centre, 9 Main Street, Ashern

* Madeline's Closet, 40 Main Street, Inwood

* Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre, 445 King Street, Winnipeg

* Marlene Street Resource Centre, 27 Marlene Street #6, Winnipeg

* Men are Part of the Solution (MAPS), 117B Commercial Place, Thompson

* N'Dinawemak, 190 Disraeli Freeway, Winnipeg

* Ndinawe, 472 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg

* North End Women's Centre, 394 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg

* North Point Douglas Women's Centre, 221 Austin Street North, Winnipeg

* NorWest - A Woman's Place, 945 Notre Dame Avenue, Winnipeg

* NorWest - Community Health, 785 Keewatin Street, Winnipeg

* Pluri-elles, 114-l420 Des Meurons Street, Winnipeg

* Samaritan House, 1610 Pacific Avenue, Brandon

* South Winnipeg Family Information Centre, 800 Point Road, Winnipeg

* Steinbach Family Resource Centre, 101 North Front Drive, Steinbach

* Swan Valley Crisis Centre, 119 9th Avenue North, Swan River

* The Counselling Centre, 335 9th Street, Brandon

* The Pas Family Resource Centre, 103 Edwards Avenue, The Pas

* Thrive Community Support Circle, 3-406 Edmonton Street, Winnipeg

* Wahbung Abinoonjiiag, 225 Dufferin Street, Winnipeg

* Winnipeg Central Park Women's Resource Centre, 400 Edmonton Avenue, Winnipeg

* Women's Safe Haven, 228-35 Main Street, Flin Flon

* West Central Women's Resource Centre, 640 Ellice Avenue, Winnipeg

* Western MB Women's Regional Resource Centre, 729 Princess Avenue, Brandon

* YMCA Winnipeg (Downtown Branch) 301 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg, (West Portage Branch) 3550 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

#Manitoba #Winnipeg #menstrual health #menstrual equity

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dailyanarchistposts · 5 months ago

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F.8.5 What about the lack of enclosures in the Americas?

The enclosure movement was but one part of a wide-reaching process of state intervention in creating capitalism. Moreover, it is just one way of creating the “land monopoly” which ensured the creation of a working class. The circumstances facing the ruling class in the Americas were distinctly different than in the Old World and so the “land monopoly” took a different form there. In the Americas, enclosures were unimportant as customary land rights did not really exist (at least once the Native Americans were eliminated by violence). Here the problem was that (after the original users of the land were eliminated) there were vast tracts of land available for people to use. Other forms of state intervention were similar to that applied under mercantilism in Europe (such as tariffs, government spending, use of unfree labour and state repression of workers and their organisations and so on). All had one aim, to enrich and power the masters and dispossess the actual producers of the means of life (land and means of production).

Unsurprisingly, due to the abundance of land, there was a movement towards independent farming in the early years of the American colonies and subsequent Republic and this pushed up the price of remaining labour on the market by reducing the supply. Capitalists found it difficult to find workers willing to work for them at wages low enough to provide them with sufficient profits. It was due to the difficulty in finding cheap enough labour that capitalists in America turned to slavery. All things being equal, wage labour is more productive than slavery but in early America all things were not equal. Having access to cheap (indeed, free) land meant that working people had a choice, and few desired to become wage slaves and so because of this, capitalists turned to slavery in the South and the “land monopoly” in the North.

This was because, in the words of Maurice Dobb, it “became clear to those who wished to reproduce capitalist relations of production in the new country that the foundation-stone of their endeavour must be the restriction of land-ownership to a minority and the exclusion of the majority from any share in [productive] property.” [Studies in Capitalist Development, pp. 221–2] As one radical historian puts it, ”[w]hen land is ‘free’ or ‘cheap’. as it was in different regions of the United States before the 1830s, there was no compulsion for farmers to introduce labour-saving technology. As a result, ‘independent household production’ … hindered the development of capitalism … [by] allowing large portions of the population to escape wage labour.” [Charlie Post, “The ‘Agricultural Revolution’ in the United States”, pp. 216–228, Science and Society, vol. 61, no. 2, p. 221]

It was precisely this option (i.e. of independent production) that had to be destroyed in order for capitalist industry to develop. The state had to violate the holy laws of “supply and demand” by controlling the access to land in order to ensure the normal workings of “supply and demand” in the labour market (i.e. that the bargaining position favoured employer over employee). Once this situation became the typical one (i.e., when the option of self-employment was effectively eliminated) a more (protectionist based) “laissez-faire” approach could be adopted, with state action used indirectly to favour the capitalists and landlords (and readily available to protect private property from the actions of the dispossessed).

So how was this transformation of land ownership achieved?

Instead of allowing settlers to appropriate their own farms as was often the case before the 1830s, the state stepped in once the army had cleared out (usually by genocide) the original users. Its first major role was to enforce legal rights of property on unused land. Land stolen from the Native Americans was sold at auction to the highest bidders, namely speculators, who then sold it on to farmers. This process started right “after the revolution, [when] huge sections of land were bought up by rich speculators” and their claims supported by the law. [Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, p. 125] Thus land which should have been free was sold to land-hungry farmers and the few enriched themselves at the expense of the many. Not only did this increase inequality within society, it also encouraged the development of wage labour — having to pay for land would have ensured that many immigrants remained on the East Coast until they had enough money. Thus a pool of people with little option but to sell their labour was increased due to state protection of unoccupied land. That the land usually ended up in the hands of farmers did not (could not) countermand the shift in class forces that this policy created.

This was also the essential role of the various “Homesteading Acts” and, in general, the “Federal land law in the 19th century provided for the sale of most of the public domain at public auction to the higher bidder … Actual settlers were forced to buy land from speculators, at prices considerably above the federal minimal price.” (which few people could afford anyway). [Charlie Post, Op. Cit., p. 222] This is confirmed by Howard Zinn who notes that 1862 Homestead Act “gave 160 acres of western land, unoccupied and publicly owned, to anyone who would cultivate it for five years … Few ordinary people had the $200 necessary to do this; speculators moved in and bought up much of the land. Homestead land added up to 50 million acres. But during the Civil War, over 100 million acres were given by Congress and the President to various railroads, free of charge.” [Op. Cit., p. 233] Little wonder the Individualist Anarchists supported an “occupancy and use” system of land ownership as a key way of stopping capitalist and landlord usury as well as the development of capitalism itself.

This change in the appropriation of land had significant effects on agriculture and the desirability of taking up farming for immigrants. As Post notes, ”[w]hen the social conditions for obtaining and maintaining possession of land change, as they did in the Midwest between 1830 and 1840, pursuing the goal of preserving [family ownership and control] .. . produced very different results. In order to pay growing mortgages, debts and taxes, family farmers were compelled to specialise production toward cash crops and to market more and more of their output.” [Op. Cit., p. 221–2]

So, in order to pay for land which was formerly free, farmers got themselves into debt and increasingly turned to the market to pay it off. Thus, the “Federal land system, by transforming land into a commodity and stimulating land speculation, made the Midwestern farmers dependent upon markets for the continual possession of their farms.” Once on the market, farmers had to invest in new machinery and this also got them into debt. In the face of a bad harvest or market glut, they could not repay their loans and their farms had to be sold to so do so. By 1880, 25% of all farms were rented by tenants, and the numbers kept rising. In addition, the “transformation of social property relations in northern agriculture set the stage for the ‘agricultural revolution’ of the 1840s and 1850s … [R]ising debts and taxes forced Midwestern family farmers to compete as commodity producers in order to maintain their land-holding … The transformation … was the central precondition for the development of industrial capitalism in the United States.” [Charlie Post, Op. Cit., p. 223 and p. 226]

It should be noted that feudal land owning was enforced in many areas of the colonies and the early Republic. Landlords had their holdings protected by the state and their demands for rent had the full backing of the state. This lead to numerous anti-rent conflicts. [Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, p. 84 and pp. 206–11] Such struggles helped end such arrangements, with landlords being “encouraged” to allow the farmers to buy the land which was rightfully theirs. The wealth appropriated from the farmers in the form of rent and the price of the land could then be invested in industry so transforming feudal relations on the land into capitalist relations in industry (and, eventually, back on the land when the farmers succumbed to the pressures of the capitalist market and debt forced them to sell).

This means that Murray Rothbard’s comment that “once the land was purchased by the settler, the injustice disappeared” is nonsense — the injustice was transmitted to other parts of society and this, the wider legacy of the original injustice, lived on and helped transform society towards capitalism. In addition, his comment about “the establishment in North America of a truly libertarian land system” would be one the Individualist Anarchists of the period would have seriously disagreed with! [The Ethics of Liberty, p. 73] Rothbard, at times, seems to be vaguely aware of the importance of land as the basis of freedom in early America. For example, he notes in passing that “the abundance of fertile virgin land in a vast territory enabled individualism to come to full flower in many areas.” [Conceived in Liberty, vol. 2, p. 186] Yet he did not ponder the transformation in social relationships which would result when that land was gone. In fact, he was blasé about it. “If latecomers are worse off,” he opined, “well then that is their proper assumption of risk in this free and uncertain world. There is no longer a vast frontier in the United States, and there is no point crying over the fact.” [The Ethics of Liberty, p. 240] Unsurprisingly we also find Murray Rothbard commenting that Native Americans “lived under a collectivistic regime that, for land allocation, was scarcely more just than the English governmental land grab.” [Conceived in Liberty, vol. 1, p. 187] That such a regime made for increased individual liberty and that it was precisely the independence from the landlord and bosses this produced which made enclosure and state land grabs such appealing prospects for the ruling class was lost on him.

Unlike capitalist economists, politicians and bosses at the time, Rothbard seemed unaware that this “vast frontier” (like the commons) was viewed as a major problem for maintaining labour discipline and appropriate state action was taken to reduce it by restricting free access to the land in order to ensure that workers were dependent on wage labour. Many early economists recognised this and advocated such action. Edward Wakefield was typical when he complained that “where land is cheap and all are free, where every one who so pleases can easily obtain a piece of land for himself, not only is labour dear, as respects the labourer’s share of the product, but the difficulty is to obtain combined labour at any price.” This resulted in a situation were few “can accumulate great masses of wealth” as workers “cease … to be labourers for hire; they … become independent landowners, if not competitors with their former masters in the labour market.” Unsurprisingly, Wakefield urged state action to reduce this option and ensure that labour become cheap as workers had little choice but to seek a master. One key way was for the state to seize the land and then sell it to the population. This would ensure that “no labourer would be able to procure land until he had worked for money” and this “would produce capital for the employment of more labourers.” [quoted by Marx, Op. Cit., , p. 935, p. 936 and p. 939] Which is precisely what did occur.

At the same time that it excluded the working class from virgin land, the state granted large tracts of land to the privileged classes: to land speculators, logging and mining companies, planters, railroads, and so on. In addition to seizing the land and distributing it in such a way as to benefit capitalist industry, the “government played its part in helping the bankers and hurting the farmers; it kept the amount of money — based in the gold supply — steady while the population rose, so there was less and less money in circulation. The farmer had to pay off his debts in dollars that were harder to get. The bankers, getting loans back, were getting dollars worth more than when they loaned them out — a kind of interest on top of interest. That was why so much of the talk of farmers’ movements in those days had to do with putting more money in circulation.” [Zinn, Op. Cit., p. 278] This was the case with the Individualist Anarchists at the same time, we must add.

Overall, therefore, state action ensured the transformation of America from a society of independent workers to a capitalist one. By creating and enforcing the “land monopoly” (of which state ownership of unoccupied land and its enforcement of landlord rights were the most important) the state ensured that the balance of class forces tipped in favour of the capitalist class. By removing the option of farming your own land, the US government created its own form of enclosure and the creation of a landless workforce with little option but to sell its liberty on the “free market”. They was nothing “natural” about it. Little wonder the Individualist Anarchist J.K. Ingalls attacked the “land monopoly” with the following words:

“The earth, with its vast resources of mineral wealth, its spontaneous productions and its fertile soil, the free gift of God and the common patrimony of mankind, has for long centuries been held in the grasp of one set of oppressors by right of conquest or right of discovery; and it is now held by another, through the right of purchase from them. All of man’s natural possessions … have been claimed as property; nor has man himself escaped the insatiate jaws of greed. The invasion of his rights and possessions has resulted … in clothing property with a power to accumulate an income.” [quoted by James Martin, Men Against the State, p. 142]

Marx, correctly, argued that “the capitalist mode of production and accumulation, and therefore capitalist private property, have for their fundamental condition the annihilation of that private property which rests on the labour of the individual himself; in other words, the expropriation of the worker.” [Capital, Vol. 1, p. 940] He noted that to achieve this, the state is used:

“How then can the anti-capitalistic cancer of the colonies be healed? . .. Let the Government set an artificial price on the virgin soil, a price independent of the law of supply and demand, a price that compels the immigrant to work a long time for wages before he can earn enough money to buy land, and turn himself into an independent farmer.” [Op. Cit., p. 938]

Moreover, tariffs were introduced with “the objective of manufacturing capitalists artificially” for the “system of protection was an artificial means of manufacturing manufacturers, or expropriating independent workers, of capitalising the national means of production and subsistence, and of forcibly cutting short the transition … to the modern mode of production,” to capitalism [Op. Cit., p. 932 and pp. 921–2]

So mercantilism, state aid in capitalist development, was also seen in the United States of America. As Edward Herman points out, the “level of government involvement in business in the United States from the late eighteenth century to the present has followed a U-shaped pattern: There was extensive government intervention in the pre-Civil War period (major subsidies, joint ventures with active government participation and direct government production), then a quasi-laissez faire period between the Civil War and the end of the nineteenth century [a period marked by “the aggressive use of tariff protection” and state supported railway construction, a key factor in capitalist expansion in the USA], followed by a gradual upswing of government intervention in the twentieth century, which accelerated after 1930.” [Corporate Control, Corporate Power, p. 162]

Such intervention ensured that income was transferred from workers to capitalists. Under state protection, America industrialised by forcing the consumer to enrich the capitalists and increase their capital stock. “According to one study, if the tariff had been removed in the 1830s ‘about half the industrial sector of New England would have been bankrupted’ … the tariff became a near-permanent political institution representing government assistance to manufacturing. It kept price levels from being driven down by foreign competition and thereby shifted the distribution of income in favour of owners of industrial property to the disadvantage of workers and customers.” This protection was essential, for the “end of the European wars in 1814 … reopened the United States to a flood of British imports that drove many American competitors out of business. Large portions of the newly expanded manufacturing base were wiped out, bringing a decade of near-stagnation.” Unsurprisingly, the “era of protectionism began in 1816, with northern agitation for higher tariffs.” [Richard B. Du Boff, Accumulation and Power, p. 56, p. 14 and p. 55] Combined with ready repression of the labour movement and government “homesteading” acts (see section F.8.5), tariffs were the American equivalent of mercantilism (which, after all, was above all else a policy of protectionism, i.e. the use of government to stimulate the growth of native industry). Only once America was at the top of the economic pile did it renounce state intervention (just as Britain did, we must note).

This is not to suggest that government aid was limited to tariffs. The state played a key role in the development of industry and manufacturing. As John Zerzan notes, the “role of the State is tellingly reflected by the fact that the ‘armoury system’ now rivals the older ‘American system of manufactures’ term as the more accurate to describe the new system of production methods” developed in the early 1800s. [Elements of Refusal, p. 100] By the middle of the nineteenth century “a distinctive ‘American system of manufactures’ had emerged . .. The lead in technological innovation [during the US Industrial Revolution] came in armaments where assured government orders justified high fixed-cost investments in special-pursue machinery and managerial personnel. Indeed, some of the pioneering effects occurred in government-owned armouries.” Other forms of state aid were used, for example the textile industry “still required tariffs to protect [it] from … British competition.” [William Lazonick, Competitive Advantage on the Shop Floor, p. 218 and p. 219] The government also “actively furthered this process [of ‘commercial revolution’] with public works in transportation and communication.” In addition to this “physical” aid, “state government provided critical help, with devices like the chartered corporation” [Richard B. Du Boff, Op. Cit., p. 15] As we noted in section B.2.5, there were changes in the legal system which favoured capitalist interests over the rest of society.

Nineteenth-century America also went in heavily for industrial planning — occasionally under that name but more often in the name of national defence. The military was the excuse for what is today termed rebuilding infrastructure, picking winners, promoting research, and co-ordinating industrial growth (as it still is, we should add). As Richard B. Du Boff points out, the “anti-state” backlash of the 1840s onwards in America was highly selective, as the general opinion was that ”[h]enceforth, if governments wished to subsidise private business operations, there would be no objection. But if public power were to be used to control business actions or if the public sector were to undertake economic initiatives on its own, it would run up against the determined opposition of private capital.” [Op. Cit., p. 26]

State intervention was not limited to simply reducing the amount of available land or enforcing a high tariff. “Given the independent spirit of workers in the colonies, capital understood that great profits required the use of unfree labour.” [Michael Perelman, The Invention of Capitalism, p. 246] It was also applied in the labour market as well. Most obviously, it enforced the property rights of slave owners (until the civil war, produced when the pro-free trade policies of the South clashed with the pro-tariff desires of the capitalist North). The evil and horrors of slavery are well documented, as is its key role in building capitalism in America and elsewhere so we will concentrate on other forms of obviously unfree labour. Convict labour in Australia, for example, played an important role in the early days of colonisation while in America indentured servants played a similar role.

Indentured service was a system whereby workers had to labour for a specific number of years usually in return for passage to America with the law requiring the return of runaway servants. In theory, of course, the person was only selling their labour. In practice, indentured servants were basically slaves and the courts enforced the laws that made it so. The treatment of servants was harsh and often as brutal as that inflicted on slaves. Half the servants died in the first two years and unsurprisingly, runaways were frequent. The courts realised this was a problem and started to demand that everyone have identification and travel papers.

It should also be noted that the practice of indentured servants also shows how state intervention in one country can impact on others. This is because people were willing to endure indentured service in the colonies because of how bad their situation was at home. Thus the effects of primitive accumulation in Britain impacted on the development of America as most indentured servants were recruited from the growing number of unemployed people in urban areas there. Dispossessed from their land and unable to find work in the cities, many became indentured servants in order to take passage to the Americas. In fact, between one half to two thirds of all immigrants to Colonial America arrived as indentured servants and, at times, three-quarters of the population of some colonies were under contracts of indenture. That this allowed the employing class to overcome their problems in hiring “help” should go without saying, as should its impact on American inequality and the ability of capitalists and landlords to enrich themselves on their servants labour and to invest it profitably.

As well as allowing unfree labour, the American state intervened to ensure that the freedom of wage workers was limited in similar ways as we indicated in section F.8.3. “The changes in social relations of production in artisan trades that took place in the thirty years after 1790,” notes one historian, “and the … trade unionism to which … it gave rise, both replicated in important respects the experience of workers in the artisan trades in Britain over a rather longer period … The juridical responses they provoked likewise reproduced English practice. Beginning in 1806, American courts consciously seized upon English common law precedent to combat journeymen’s associations.” Capitalists in this era tried to “secure profit … through the exercise of disciplinary power over their employees.” To achieve this “employers made a bid for legal aid” and it is here “that the key to law’s role in the process of creating an industrial economy in America lies.” As in the UK, the state invented laws and issues proclamations against workers’ combinations, calling them conspiracies and prosecuting them as such. Trade unionists argued that laws which declared unions as illegal combinations should be repealed as against the Constitution of the USA while “the specific cause of trademens protestations of their right to organise was, unsurprisingly, the willingness of local authorities to renew their resort to conspiracy indictments to countermand the growing power of the union movement.” Using criminal conspiracy to counter combinations among employees was commonplace, with the law viewing a “collective quitting of employment [as] a criminal interference” and combinations to raise the rate of labour “indictable at common law.” [Christopher L. Tomlins, Law, Labor, and Ideology in the Early American Republic, p. 113, p. 295, p. 159 and p. 213] By the end of the nineteenth century, state repression for conspiracy was replaced by state repression for acting like a trust while actual trusts were ignored and so laws, ostensibly passed (with the help of the unions themselves) to limit the power of capital, were turned against labour (this should be unsurprising as it was a capitalist state which passed them). [Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, p. 254]

Another key means to limit the freedom of workers was denying departing workers their wages for the part of the contract they had completed. This “underscored the judiciary’s tendency to articulate their approval” of the hierarchical master/servant relationship in terms of its “social utility: It was a necessary and desirable feature of the social organisation of work … that the employer’s authority be reinforced in this way.” Appeals courts held that “an employment contract was an entire contract, and therefore that no obligation to pay wages existed until the employee had completed the agreed term.” Law suits “by employers seeking damages for an employee’s departure prior to the expiry of an agreed term or for other forms of breach of contract constituted one form of legally sanctioned economic discipline of some importance in shaping the employment relations of the nineteenth century.” Thus the boss could fire the worker without paying their wages while if the worker left the boss he would expect a similar outcome. This was because the courts had decided that the “employer was entitled not only to receipt of the services contracted for in their entirety prior to payment but also to the obedience of the employee in the process of rendering them.” [Tomlins, Op. Cit., pp. 278–9, p. 274, p. 272 and pp. 279–80] The ability of workers to seek self-employment on the farm or workplace or even better conditions and wages were simply abolished by employers turning to the state.

So, in summary, the state could remedy the shortage of cheap wage labour by controlling access to the land, repressing trade unions as conspiracies or trusts and ensuring that workers had to obey their bosses for the full term of their contract (while the bosses could fire them at will). Combine this with the extensive use of tariffs, state funding of industry and infrastructure among many other forms of state aid to capitalists and we have a situation were capitalism was imposed on a pre-capitalist nation at the behest of the wealthy elite by the state, as was the case with all other countries.

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addledmongoose · 4 months ago

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Good Omens Fanfic Rec (19 Jul 2024)

Started off as a human AU week, but I eventually read some canon stories.

Miracles on Ice (131K; Rated E) by @henriettarhippo-hrh

Human AU/Enemies-to-lovers. Holy cow, this was an absolutely fantastic, addictive read. I stayed up until 4am every night until it was done. This is the "Blades of Glory" Good Omens you never knew you needed.

Aziraphale and Crowley are Olympic men's figure skaters who loathe each other. After a fight on the podium gets them banned for life, they find a loophole that allows them to compete in pairs.

Of course, this being Good Omens, there's a lot more romance and sex than the Jon Heder/Will Ferrell movie. Gabriel is a real standout in this one as Aziraphale's (and eventually Crowley's) coach. He's a genuinely good person. Oh, and Crowley does not look good in this one at first. He's the main instigator of the public feud between them. (Not that Aziraphale is completely blameless). And in a first, the villain is Anathema (it's in the tags; I'm not spoiling by saying this).

***

The Invisible Touch (31K; Rated T)

Human AU. A really sweet story with little actual angst, though Aziraphale is both oblivious and has pretty low self-esteem, so he creates more angst in his mind than he deserves. The author, Appleseeds, is also a magician, so there's an element of verisimilitude to the story.

Aziraphale is reduced to a quivering mess just looking at Crowley’s face smiling up at him from the programme, let alone sitting in the front row of the theatre watching him perform, or standing face-to-face with him, with Crowley's hand on his arm, after he summons him to the stage to help him with one of his tricks...

When Aziraphale reveals that he too is a magician and the two actually become friends, Crowley soon realises that someone has severely knocked Aziraphale’s confidence, and becomes determined to do whatever he can to restore it.

***

Endless Night (32K; Rated T)

Human AU. University student Crowley has been crushing on his flatmate, Aziraphale, for months now, and when the opportunity to spend time with him in a haunted mansion presents itself, he jumps at the chance. He didn't expect to get stuck in a time loop, redoing the night over and over until he gets it right.

***

Dark Was The Night (20K; Rated E)

Reverse Omens AU. The author packs a lot into this story set in 1640. It's the first of "The Dove and the Dragon" series of cryptid stories with the demon, Azrafael and the angel, Crowley.

Wendigo: a mythological cannibalistic monster in the spiritual tradition of North American Algonquian-speaking tribes. It is associated with winter and described as either a fearsome beast that stalks and eats humans or as a spirit that possesses humans, causing them to turn into cannibals.

In the winter of 1640, Hell has claimed responsibility for the massive death tolls caused by the French/Iroquois War, and the desolation wrought to colonizers that have taken up residence in New France. Anthony has made it a personal mission of his to do everything to protect the peoples afflicted by this devastation, unaware of the magnitude of Hell's influence on these poor souls.

Meanwhile, Azrafael discovers Hell has unleashed a very powerful species of demon into the world, intent on destroying all life in the area, with Heaven's permission. The Wendigo has risen, and they have abducted Anthony. With the clock ticking, Azrafael sets off on a rescue mission to save Anthony before the Wendigo demons can consume his Grace and banish Anthony's soul to the void for eternity. The question is: With as powerful as these demons are, feared even by Lucifer himself, will Azrafael succeed in saving his beloved angel?

***

All the Desires of Rome (5K; Rated E) by @lemon-tart-221

Part of Lemontart's "A Special Ineffable Arrangement" series, through-the-ages one-shots of Crowley and Aziraphale meeting up for sex and friendship. This one is set in a Roman bathhouse after hours.

***

And if you enjoyed the previous Roman bathhouse story, may I also suggest

A Bathhouse Pretense (18K; Rated E) by @doonarose

Aziraphale seeks Crowley out in a Roman bathhouse that happens to be hosting an orgy. Aziraphale is there to discuss business, but when one of Crowley's demon enemies shows up, it gives them a flimsy excuse to turn it into more.

#good omens fanfiction #fanfic friday

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bratshaws · 1 year ago

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through the hourglass 262. brb x oc

a/n: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA (comments and reblogs are super welcome and encouraged!)

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none uwu

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

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/225/226/227/228/229/230/231/232/233/234/235/236/237/238

/239/240/241/242/243/244/245/246/247/248/249/250/251/252

/253/254/255/256/257/258/259/260/261

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! )

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @novastories @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix @lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

@peachiicherries @mak-32 @lizziespidiepridie @roosterswifey @ollyoxenfrees @piceous21 @sqrlgrl22 @hofficoffi @lexhalstead3 @lorilane33 @legendarydreamersharkparty @luckyladycreator2

@emilybradshaw @louisahale @leobabbyyy @booklover2sblog @ktjmac @graciereads @bigpoppajes @taytaylala12

@caitsymichelle13 @becks-things @caatheeriinee07 @fanboyswhore9 @jesfreedark @katiemcrae @lilmonstrjedi @hobiismyhopeu @teacupsandtopgun @insominac23 @gh0stsgoodgirl @mygyn @chavivaelisheva @kmc1989 @enchantingharmonyalpaca

He was a bit nervous, okay he was very nervous, lies all around. But at least he was surrounded by the people he worked with and cared for. He looked around for Beatrice for a bit until he saw her head peeking out of the corner.

Her eyes lit up when she saw him, “Well,” she begins, crossing her arms as she slowly approached him with a pleased nod, “You look really handsome,Mr.Bradshaw.”

Rooster tried to reply but Marcus’ assistants, the ones helping him get ready for the photoshoot, told him not to move. ‘Thanks,gorgeous.” he says, holding his head high so they could fix his neckline, “Was it like this when you had your first photoshoot?”

The room was a whirlwind of activity as the crew, makeup artists, and assistants rushed around, making sure everything was perfect for the day's shoot. Rooster couldn't help but feel a rush of nerves coursing through him.

He had never been opposed to enjoy being the center of attention, but the idea of posing for photographs in various outfits and settings was enough to make him break out in a cold sweat.

Beatrice chuckled softly, her eyes soft as she leaned against the wall. "Oh, it was worse. I was a bundle of nerves,I almost backed out.But trust me, once you get into the groove of it, it can be quite fun."

Rooster couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, skeptical of her claim. "Fun?"

She nodded, her smile widening. "Yes, fun! You get to play different roles, try on different outfits, and experiment with different expressions. It's like stepping into another world for a little while."

Rooster took a deep breath, trying to muster some enthusiasm for the day ahead. "Alright," he said, his tone more determined, "I'll do my best to embrace the experience and have some fun with it."

Beatrice grinned "That's the spirit! And don't worry, I'll be right here to support you every step of the way."

“Good.” he grunts a bit, his arms hurting from holding them up for so long, “Can I lower my arms now?” he questions the crew who nod before stepping back. He groans happily, his shoulders immediately relaxing as soon as he relaxes them, “Holy shit.”

Bea steps closer to him, seeing that the assistants were busy helping the rest of the Dagger Squad get ready, leaving them alone. She smiles at him, then runs her fingers down the lapel of his jacket, before fixing his collar, “You look really handsome.”

Rooster couldn't help but smile at Beatrice's compliment. Her touch and words had a calming effect on him, easing some of the tension that had built up in the hectic preparation for the photoshoot. “Thanks, Bea," he replied, his voice softening as he looked into her eyes. "You don’t look that bad either."

Beatrice chuckled, her fingers still lingering on his jacket. "Flattered,I’m still wearing what I left home with. Marcus decided that me and the girls will do ours later."

Rooster couldn't help but admire Beatrice's beauty. Even in the midst of the whirlwind of activity, she exuded…such a calmness that drew people - and him specifically - to her. Her presence was a source of comfort amidst the chaos of the photoshoot preparations.

He leaned in closer, his voice low as he spoke to her. "You always manage to look stunning, no matter the circumstances."

She blushed slightly at his compliment, her fingers finally leaving his jacket as she stepped back. "You're too kind, Rooster. But remember, you and the others are the stars of the show today."

“Yeah,I know.” he mutters, looking down at his outfit and then sighing as he slid his hands in his pants’ pockets, “How’s Nikki?”

She looks back to where their daughter was, happily playing within the playpen Marcus prepared just for her, within sight and reach for both of them, “She’s…discovering that Versace has several toys.” cue to Nicole grabbing a very expensive looking teddy bear and then shaking it like no tomorrow, “But she’s fine, I prefer she stays there than wandering around the studio, it’s not going to be safe for her once we start.”

Rooster chuckled at the sight of their daughter causing chaos among the designer toys. "Looks like she's having a blast, even if it's at Versace's expense."

Beatrice nodded, a fond smile on her face as she watched Nikki's little adventures. "She's quite the wild one. Takes after her father, I'd say."

Rooster grinned. "Well, as long as she doesn't start demanding designer clothes at her age, we'll be fine." he pauses, squinting his eyes, “I’m sorry,” she starts giggling, “Did you just say I’m a wild one?”

Beatrice playfully nudged him. "Who,me?Never.” she giggles again, “I mean, you do have your moments…you know I love them no matter what.” her husband didn’t appear amused, well,he was. He was trying very hard not to show his smile, “I love all your little quirks,Roos!”

Her laughter was like music to his ears, a melody that could lighten up even the most stressful moments. He leaned in to give her a quick peck on the lips. "I guess I can be a handful sometimes, “ his eyes drop to her body, slowly, “But there’s always a reason to.”

“Mhm.”

“And I swear,” he leans closer, speaking through his teeth while lowering his lips, “If we were completely alone, I’d just show you,” he kisses her lips, “How much of a handful I can be.” and she laughs against his lips, meeting his mouth before swatting his chest gently.

“Bradley Nicholas, don’t you start.”

“Because I always finish.” he coos, about to pinch her ass cheek but stopping when he heard footsteps approaching the small area they were. He stands straight, poker face on, as Marcus wanders in.

“Ah,my favorite couple.” he smiles, holding his camera in one hand, “How are you two? Oh,Bradley you look fantastic darling! I knew that blue would be perfect for your skin tone–” he then turns to Beatrice, “And you darling, you okay? How is little Nikki?”

Beatrice smiled warmly at Marcus as he approached, appreciating his compliment. "Thank you, Marcus. We're doing well, and Nikki is having a great time um…” she looks back to where their daughter was, “Discovering luxury brands.”

Marcus chuckled and gestured toward the playpen where Nikki was still enthusiastically interacting with the toys. "Well, it's always a delight to have her here. She adds a certain charm to the studio. She’s a little fashionista in the making."

He then grinned. "Now, speaking of which, shall we get started with the shoot? I have some incredible designs to showcase, and you,” he points at Rooster, “Is up already,sir. Everyone else is waiting for you."

“They are?”

“Mhm,” he looks down at his camera, “All your pilot friends are ready to join you in this…journey.” he smiles up at him, “Now, if you two needed a few more minutes, some pep talk,I’ll be waiting outside,yes?”

Rooster inhales a bit, then looks down at Bea.She gave Rooster an encouraging smile, her eyes shining as she keeps her vision on him, “Well…then I don’t see why wait,huh?”

“Marvelous! Follow me!”

With that, Marcus led them to the main studio area where a backdrop featuring a sleek, modern aircraft had been set up. The lights were positioned perfectly to illuminate the scene, and various props were scattered around to enhance the theme

Rooster couldn't help but be impressed by the setup. "This looks amazing, Marcus. You really know how to create an atmosphere." and while it was obviously a backdrop, Rooster did step closer to the aircraft with his hands on his hips “...this looks like a F-22 almost.” he gestures to it, leaning even closer, “Damn I can even see the bolts that keep it together.”

Marcus beamed with pride as Rooster appreciated the attention to detail. "Ah, I'm glad you noticed, darling! I wanted everything to be as authentic as possible. This is indeed modeled after the F-22."

As Rooster examined the backdrop, Marcus turned his attention to Beatrice. "And you, my dear, are you going to stay and watch your husband do a good job?”

Beatrice blushed as she looked back at Rooster, who was getting himself accustomed to the whole scenery, “Yeah,” she then points to Nicole’s playpen, “I can see Nikki from here too,so I think it’s perfect. I’ll keep quiet here.”

Or try to, after all,Shells was in the building as well.

Marcus nodded with a knowing smile. "Excellent, darling. We'll make sure to keep you posted on the progress. And don't worry about Nikki; I've arranged for a babysitter to keep an eye on her. She'll be just fine."

“You–what? Marcus, no it’s fine I–”

“Sssh!” he taps her nose, “Don’t be like that, she’ll be safe and okay, don’t you worry.”

With that settled, Marcus turned his attention back to Rooster, who was still admiring the F-22-inspired backdrop this time alongside Payback . "Alright, my star pilots, let's get you prepped and ready for your moment in the spotlight."

Payback looked back at Marcus, “Yeah,uh,about that, do we…what do we do?’ he gestures to the rest of the pilots who were just standing by, “Are you going to pose us or something?”

Marcus smiled and clapped his hands together. "Absolutely, darling. We have a vision here, and we're going to make you all look like the stars you are. Now, gather around, everyone."

"First things first," Marcus said, “Let’s see…Phoenix,darling.” he gently holds her hands and brings her forward, “You stay…here, perfect.”

Beatrice watched Marcus move the pilots around carefully, as if they were children themselves and she hated to admit how hilarious that was. They all looked terrified yet intrigued by what was happening. As she watched from the wall, a presence appeared next to her, followed by a loud crunch of an apple being bitten.

“Hey Shells.”

“Hi babes.”

She looked over at the blonde who was chewing apple slices while looking ahead just like she was, “Snacking already?”

Shells shrugged nonchalantly, "Gotta keep my energy up for all this posing, you know? Plus, these apples are surprisingly good."

“Yeah?”

Shells grinned and took another bite of her apple. "I think they are imported or something.” she mutters, chewing the piece in her mind, “Anyway,they are doing well so far,huh? Look at my Bob.” she waves at the spectacled officer who smiles and reciprocates just as quickly, “You are doing great sweetie!”

Bea just smiles as she crosses her arms, looking over at Rooster - her tall husband looked so confused, it was adorable. “They are doing okay, honestly I’m just glad we are able to do this before Rooster and Nikki’s birthday next week.”

Meanwhile, Marcus continued to work his magic, shifting the pilots around and providing them with instructions. He had a talent for making people feel at ease, even in situations as potentially awkward as a group photoshoot.

After a series of group shots, Marcus decided to focus on individual portraits. He called out names one by one, guiding each pilot to their designated spot and giving them personalized instructions. It was clear that he had a vision for each person and was determined to capture their unique personalities.

"Rooster!" Marcus called out,making the tall officer blink up at him.

Beatrice couldn't help but grin as she watched her husband, Rooster, step forward enough uncertainty in his step that he quickly hid before it stopped him.

"Rooster, darling," Marcus began, placing a hand on Rooster's shoulder, "I see strength, determination, and a touch of vulnerability in those eyes. Let's capture that."

“Wha?”

“Yeah, it’s okay, relax.” he smiles, “You can take a few steps back.”

Rooster nodded after a while, he looked back at the rest of the squad and they just gave him a thumbs up. When he turned to Beatrice,who was watching this from a distance, he could feel part of his anxiety disappear because she mouthed the word ‘relax’ while giving him a sweet grin.

“I…uh…what pose should I…be?” he asks Marcus, because in a group shot he could work with anything, but like this? That was a bit freaky, he couldn’t lie

Marcus looked at Rooster thoughtfully, studying his features for a moment. "Well," he began, "let's start with something natural. Just stand there, relax your shoulders, and look directly into the camera. Imagine you're flying, the thrill of being up there in the sky."

Rooster nodded, trying to channel that feeling of freedom he experienced when piloting his aircraft. He took a deep breath, letting go of some of his nervous tension, and assumed the pose Marcus had suggested.

"That's it," Marcus encouraged, his camera clicking away. "Now, let's try one with a slight smile. Think of something that makes you genuinely happy."

Rooster eyes immediately moved to Beatrice and Marcus smiled because that was his plan all along.Bea was holding Nicole now, the little girl focused on what was going on while pointing to her father and voicing something only for her mother to nod. A small, genuine smile crept onto his face, and Marcus captured the moment quickly.

"Perfect," Marcus said, reviewing the shot on his camera. "You have a great smile, Rooster. Let's try something a bit more serious now."

Rooster adjusted his expression, even if he did want to keep looking over at Bea.

"Excellent," Marcus praised. "You're a natural, Rooster. Now, one last shot. Let's go for something more relaxed again.”

Rooster relaxed his posture once more, letting go of the tension that had built up during the shoot. He had to admit, it was fun, it was really fun. And he knew that Beatrice liked it too because he could hear her soft laughing from behind the camera.

"Fantastic," Marcus said, lowering his camera. "You did great, Rooster. "

Rooster let out a relieved sigh, feeling grateful for Marcus' patience. "Thanks, Marcus. That wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."

Marcus grinned. "See, I told you there's nothing to worry about. Now, let's move on to the next pilot. Coyote! Come on up!"

Beatrice, standing to the side, couldn't help but feel a swell of pride as she observed each pilot step up and do a great job. She grew to adore them immensely, who knew it’d end up like that? They had become like a second family to her and Rooster.

After the individual portraits were done, Marcus gathered the pilots for one final group shot. They stood in formation, looking sharp and confident in their outfits . Marcus climbed onto a ladder to get the perfect angle,making some of his assistants freak out because that was not part of the shoot, and the pilots held their poses looking a bit up towards him.

"Alright, everyone," Marcus called out, "one last shot, and we're done."

As the camera shutter clicked,Beatrice clapped her hands - the best she could since she was carrying Nikki- and then told Nikki to clap hers because ‘Dada did it!”. She clapped her hands excitedly when Marcus announced they were done for the day, jumping out of the ladder and making his crew almost faint because of it.

The energy on the set was palpable as the pilots and Marcus's crew celebrated the successful photoshoot. Beatrice watched with a fond smile as Rooster and his fellow pilots exchanged high-fives and pats on the back.

Rooster made his way over to Beatrice, a proud grin on his face. He gently scooped up Nicole from her arms, holding her high above his head. "Did you see, sweetheart? Daddy did it!" he exclaimed, eliciting a delighted giggle from their daughter.

Beatrice laughed, her heart warmed by the sight of her husband and their daughter. "Yes, Nikki, Dada did amazing!" She leaned in and kissed Rooster, cupping his cheek with her hand, “You all did great.”

"Thank you, baby," Rooster whispered, "I couldn't have done it without you."

Beatrice smiled warmly, her eyes reflecting her love for him. "You don't have to thank me, Rooster. We're always here to support you, no matter what." she says, “And now, a break, then I’ll go and have the shoot done.”

“Shells too,right?” he asks, looking back to the blonde who was busy peppering kisses on Bob’s face, “Ev isn’t coming?”

Beatrice shakes her head, “Not with Jake Jr- feels so weird saying that name–” he mutters a ‘you have no idea’ “He’s too young to be left alone like that, Marcus understood though.” she smiles up at him, “Join me before I go?”

He smirks, kissing her forehead, “You bet,gorgeous.”

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x oc #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x named reader #tgm oc #tgm fic #tgm fanfiction

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experimentkc · 2 years ago

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HOLY CHOOTA! 😲😱

For the first time in years, we Westerners are finally getting more experiment merch beyond Stitch, Angel, and to a lesser extent, Leroy and Reuben!

Previews World says that these bag clips, which are the fifth series in Monogram's Lilo & Stitch ("Disney Stitch") 3D foam bag clip collection, will release in stores on June 28, 2023. Just in time for Stitch Week on the eve of Leroy Day!

While there are still yet more Stitch variants, there are only three of him this time; one of him holding a lot of food, one of him in his Experiment 626 form and red spacesuit, and one of him picking his nose with his tongue.

But clearly, the real stars here are his cousins! X-629/Leroy, X-625/Reuben, X-624/Angel (who has been in a couple previous series), X-258/Sample, X-254/Mr. Stenchy, and X-010/Felix can also be found in many of these bags. X-601/Kixx and X-221/Sparky are also found as chasers, so they will be harder to find compared to the others. Yeah, it's a bit unfortunate that these are in blind bags, but at least it's something as we enter the twentieth anniversary of Lilo & Stitch: The Series later this year!

You can preorder six bags in the link at the top, preorder just one over here, or splurge on a whole display case of twenty-four bags over here.

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boinin · 1 year ago

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Blue Lock Manga

Scanlation of Chapter 220, "See-Saw Game", just dropped! Chow time!

Thoughts under the cut. There will be two weeks between this release and Chapter 221, which will release in Japan on 7 June I believe.

Previous chapter analyses

I love this goofball. Can't start without saying that.

Anyway, what a chapter. It's very action orientated, and that speaks for itself: holy fuck Kaiser. But as usual, I have brain worms, so I'll share as is routine.

In one chapter, Kaiser collectively reminded the fandom why he's NG11, why he's been manmarked by another NG11 since the beginning of the match, and of the gap between him and the other players. No sweat for the 👑 Also, clear Predator Eyes in action, right? 🐱

It's an excellent play. He scored in spite of being pressed by two defenders, through the legs of another and past the goalkeeper. It got so close to Aiku, man must have feared for his future baby-making capacity 💀

Isagi's good. Kaiser is on his own level.

It's spelt out in the chapter: in the face of opposition from Aiku, Isagi did the rational thing and passed, forsaking a score on his own terms. In much worse circumstances, Kaiser believed in the impossible and scored. This is the fundamental difference in their ego and approach to football. I hope they revisit this theme in the next chapter.

It's going to be titled "Take Me" 👀 I'm dying to know who that refers to, especially if it ends up being shipbait. Ness? Isagi? Hiori? Who knows?

A shout out to our newly minted redhead. He gets clowned on, but I liked seeing him swap to a defensive role. Noodle legs, go! 🍜 It shows how well Ubers, and in particular the former U20s team members, can reforge themselves around new strategies and playstyles.

Also, Aiku is one of those captains with a coaching/affirmative leadership style. He endorses Sendou here, and Niko in the chapter before. Can't help but simp for the guy, even if he's a scumbag in how he treats women. 🐍

I don't have much more to add! Art-wise, it was glorious: Kaiser's goal is rendered vibrantly, from multiple perspectives. As usual, the reader gets a great sense of where everyone is, and their reaction. To the end, Ubers put up a good fight, and as mesmerised as you are by Kaiser, I really enjoy that the artist knows where the other players are in the context of the goal. Great spacial awareness, Nomura-sensei!

My favourite panel outside of His Excellency's is the one where half of Isagi's face is dissolving into puzzle pieces. It's more grotesque than it usually is, maybe showing how pissed off yet amazed he is by Kaiser. I love that Isagi hates him, but doesn't deny his talent. The best sports anime protagonist *pats head*

Random thoughts corner: Yukimiya didn't get much to do, but Lorenzo abandoning his mark is an indicator that he posed a significant threat to the goal. I'm kind of hoping he gets the next BM goal (if BM indeed win). I say him over Kunigami, because Kunigami HAS to get a goal against PXG (else we riot).

Speaking of, Kunigami is specifically mentioned to have vacated the goal area by Isagi. Wonder why? He's a goal poacher, so you'd think he'd be around somewhere... I'm kinda hoping he calls out Isagi for that ball steal last chapter, although that's my bias showing haha. In chp 219, Isagi's rationale for stealing was that Kunigami didn't have the capacity to evade the defenders. But Kunigami's levelled up his dribbling and speed since the Manshine match... I imagine he's nurturing some resentment in that little emo brain of his. Remember, he and Isagi are rivals to unseat Kaiser and become BM's lead striker in the NEL.

...just give us some Kunigami development. PLEASE.

Ness has done absolutely nothing but whinge since chapter 218. Kaiser just proved he doesn't need assists to score... in light of Ness's derailment, is it time for a substitute? manifesting that hiori sub c'mon

Last one: how many Ubers broke ranks this play? Sendou's a forward that ended up tackling Kaiser in the centre back lines. Lorenzo left his mark too. Now, arguably it was his only choice, in light of Yukimiya being unmarked and a valid threat to the goal, while Kaiser remained deep in defender territory, but nevertheless... will we see any remorse from Ubers? Any comment from the GOAT coach himself, Snuffy?

Two weeks until we find out 🥹

Prediction tracker

(alternatively: how wrong can one nerd be week to week?)

Last week, I predicted: Isagi will try to beat Aiku one-on-one, or maybe use Yukimiya as a decoy to do so. This is based on the recurring references to winning one-on-one duels being the key to beating Ubers. Also, Isagi’s got a hang up about passing near the goal, which he’s got to overcome at some point.

What I’m (and mostly everyone else) certain of is, Isagi’s not scoring the next goal. There wasn’t a peep out of Kaiser this chapter… maybe he’ll spring a surprise Kaiser Impact on Ubers while they’re busy fending off Isagi?

Actuality: Isagi passed, Yukimiya gets blocked by Lorenzo. Isagi himself was the decoy, and Kaiser manages to execute a brutal goal.

I got some of it! /copium Kaiser scoring was a foregone conclusion though, so not throwing everything away to go into fortune telling just yet.

Three more chapters for Hiori get subbed in. Otherwise, one of my hats is in danger... 🐑

Chapter 221 will be both teams reckoning with this goal. We'll likely get input from both Ubers and BM, and some sort of change in dynamic--be it a substitution or the coaches opting to play (reeeally doubt this will happen though, unless they get a nudge from Ego). In particular, I'm eager to see how Lorenzo and Hiori process this. Also, someone's going to yell at Isagi. Kunigami or Raichi are my guess.

#bllk chp 220 #text post #blue lock spoilers #isagi yoichi #michael kaiser #don lorenzo #aiku oliver #sendou shuto #yukimiya kenyuu #kunigami rensuke #mine #bllk #bllk manga spoilers #bllk manga #blue lock #boinin talks bllk

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anotherrosesthatfell · 10 months ago

Note

Is there any ending where Crescent or Merciless become the king?

Sorry for the late response, anyway-

No there's no such ending where Crescent become a king but there's an ending where Merciless did.

It's called unexpected ending and @itzcherrybonbon Discussed it a few days ago and it was wild!

So unexpected ending wasn't like any other ending that only can be achieved at timeline 221. Palette come up with an idea at timeline 120 by guilt tripping convincing Merciless that he can be much more than just an abandoned prince.

So Palette stole the Holy sword and gave it to Merciless to kill Alphonse and boom, he took the throne. Just as Merciless took over the throne, the game is over and Palette achieved an 'unexpected ending'

Now, why do I called it unexpected? Because Merciless kinda- Well he made a lot of unexpected decisions. So yeah, this ending is focusing on Merciless entirely now yahoo-

Of course most of it are good decisions but hey we didn't expect for him to be a good person (kinda?) but he did-

So Merciless fix the kingdom and actually ruled it correctly thanks to Dream guiding him.

BUT

Here's a catch, we all know once Passive rest in peace. Lux will gain her old personality back and lost all her memories for the pass 10 years...? Yeahhh she kinda also lost her feelings (that she never have-) for Merciless because she doesn't remember him.

Well sure in surprise ending, they still ended up together but only because Cross was there to watch them communicate-

but we all know Merciless- the obsessive lovesick. Like oh my God, in bad ending he's a bit of a jerk-

Anyway, yeah so Merciless locked Lux in a cage. Very unexpected like we didn't expecting a dog never bite his owner suddenly make such decision... 😬

Overall this ending is cool because I love angst and desperation. Plus I can write how Lux cried because she can't remember shit and being scared of Merciless. Beautiful <3

#evil lux au #[e.l.a] ask #merciless sans #unexpected ending #bad ending #good ending #lux sans #palette sans #ship child #undertale au

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tabletoptrinketsbyjj · 2 years ago

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Trinkets, Books, 12: An eclectic library of dusty tomes, fictional textbooks, pocketbooks, paperbacks, hardcovers, booklets, leaflets and magical manuals. Paper leaves and the binding surrounding them can help define a character, kick off a subplot, fuel a fetch quest or simply serve as a generic macguffin. Commonly seen in video games such as Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, World of Warcraft and Skyrim, book items are a way to subtly world build while still handing out sellable loot. A wizard has a spellbook, a cleric has a holy text and now you have a trinket list.

Anti-dictionary: A huge, leather-wrapped old book with no title, containing thousands of words along with their definitions in the common tongue. Each time it is perused, the reader forgets one random word, and it appears in the dictionary as a new entry.

An Arbiter's Log: A collection of annotated records of a member of the Arbiter's Guild: the nonpartisan body which referees official duels. The Arbiter in question, one Fralina Dailina Tailor Livii, from Empereoux, governed 221 duels over a career of 30 years in six countries. Her records, put down with both attention to detail and biting wit, serve as a remarkable recent history of dueling.

A collection of maps of the nearby provinces bound in an ebony cover.

Dhol Chants: An aged wood bound book without markings or a title on its exterior. Knowledgeable PC's will notice that an ink stamped marking on the inner cover shows that this book used to belong to the Miskatonic University's library. The object is not just old...it's ancient. The words inside are arranged into stanzas, but the language... It is the tongue of the lumbering dholes of the distant Vale of Pnath, where worlds collide and time does not exist. The letters form meaningless phrases, but if read aloud, somehow become understandable.

An apocryphal holy text used by an infamous heretical sect of Random Evil Domain.

Tome of Eternal Darkness: A mysterious book that rests cradled in what appears to be a leathery human hand. The tome is bound in human skin and intricately decorated with shrunken bones. The sigil of the God of Chaos is carved into the tome's clasp. The object beckons and yearns to be possessed and rewards those who truly grasp its pages with a cursed, short life of hysterical dementia. Its pages are written in a maddening, indecipherable scrawl. Only a randomly select few are able to read it, no amount of cryptography or magic can decode it. These special few that can read the tome do so regardless of their native language or literacy level. An uneducated, illiterate child slave may be able to understand its contents perfectly well, while a centuries old, elven polyglot archwizard may spend a lifetime failing to discern a single sentence.

A neatly stacked arrangement of professionally bound and labelled debtors’ records. Minimal indication is given as to the nature of the debts. Knowledgeable PC’s will be able to recognize some of the names or addresses within the book as persons or locations from the nearest large city.

Advanced Human Necrosplicing: A step by step process for magically combing human beings with body parts of beasts, monsters, and magical beings. Some of the results may not be proven to be effective and most subjects will die within seconds of being combined. That’s apparently not a barrier though as the magus was attempting to wed the schools of transmutation and necromancy together by creating augmenting humanoids with the physical traits of animals then raise the chimeric aberrations as particularly nasty undead.

A small sketchbook with various poorly executed drawings of everyday things, places, and people. The artist made small improvements as time went on, but even the very last page isn’t really that good.

A book consisting of pieces of unweatherd, thick parchment, lined by a thin string of gold woven into the paper. To anyone who cannot read magic, they are always blank and featureless. However, someone who can read magical notation or cast spells, the tome contains a multitude of information of the nature of divine magical arts. Descriptions of spells that clerics, paladins druids and other casters who channel their arcane power from divine or primal sources are listed here in great detail.

—Click Here to be directed to the Hotlinks To All Tables post, which provides (As you might have guessed) convenient links to all of the loot and resource tables this blog has.

—Click Here for additional Book Descriptions to give these objects even more personality.

—Keep reading for 90 more books.

—Note: The previous 10 items are repeated for easier rolling on a d100.

A collection of maps of the nearby provinces bound in an ebony cover.

An apocryphal holy text used by an infamous heretical sect of Random Evil Domain.

Four Things You Should Know About Bad People: A book that appears at first to be a thriller about three gang lords trying to outfox each other quickly evolves into a romantic comedy, as each falls in love with a complete idiot that foils their schemes unknowingly and by accident. Jumping between their perspectives, the reader learns the things that set the idiots apart from the genius criminals are matters of the heart, not the mind. The morals of the story teach the reader something fundamental about being alive, and leaves them happier and wiser.

The Fey; Creatures of Endless Mischief: A simple, leather-bound book with seemingly no author; the penmanship has an odd style unlike any academic the reader has ever read or seen before. The volume is not always at the last place is was left, sometimes moving a few feet to a new location or disappearing for days at a time only to reappear somewhere incredible obvious. When it is opened, the reader goes into a dreamlike trance for 1d4 hours (Or until he is touched, yelled at or suffers damage) while he stares at the book’s pages.

Thus Spoke Asmodeus: A comprehensive guide to devilology, dealing with the basic principles of conjuration from the lower planes, subchapters about ritual preparation (Attire, material components, time of abstinence to ensure success), probability of survival, the ethics of human sacrifice to the dark lord, and much else. It was written by Sauthes The Desecrator.

On the habitat, diet and behavior of mimics by Eldaskri the Unnoticed: A book, hard-bound in richly lacquered wood with brass hasps and lock. Printed along the spine in golden script is the title. The book is actually an intelligent mimic that will give lectures about mimic behavior, history and biology once bribed with food.

The Tome of Anguish: A wizard’s spellbook bound in black velvet. A single crystal tear falling from an eye carved from ivory and ruby adorns the center of the front cover. The pages are vellum. The spells inside inflict mental and emotional pain. Each spell can only be learned by shedding tears onto the page from feeling the type of pain described by the spell.

The Gauntlet: A fictional tale of a benevolent wizard who helped all those who came to him, no matter how insignificant the person or task. However, the constant frivolous and inane requests eventually started to drive him crazy. To combat this he, surrounded his tower with "The Gauntlet" to keep out all but the most determined and desperate who actually needed his help. The Gauntlet was an ever changing maze of traps, puzzles, & challenges designed to frustrate and dissuade most people by means of painful (Though nonlethal) injury, humiliating defeats or exhaustion from the ever-shifting mazes.

How to Succeed in Magic Without Really Trying: A book of the self-help style penned by an unknown author. It describes the journey of a wizard from apprentice to master. They never actually worked for their success and just always happened to be in the right place at the right time. Goes into detail on the important of knowing people in high places.

A gold banded spellbook set with obsidian and bloodstone gems, all the pages ruined by water.

A detailed diary of a local historian.

Golden Chains: A notable financial guide providing in-depth, professional explanations of borrowing, investing, saving advice, experienced market theory and a history of the standard gold coin. Most especially, it concerns how to best deal with fickle dwarven banks.

A book of collected royal decrees bound in the hide of a hydra.

A dog-eared copy of Man of Her Dreams, a novel by Simone Vertices, in which the heroine falls in love with a man from her own dreams and quests through the Dreamlands to bring him into reality. Halfway through, a scrap of paper serves as a bookmark; upon it is written “Meet me at the Gilded Graveyard, north entrance, midnight. Bring shovel.”

A book of historical knowledge that seems to detail an epoch approximately 2,000 years from the present and has been rather clumsily translated into Common. A handful of current powers and states are still vaguely visible in this future time but have become barely recognizable. This is either a work of artful science fiction or a translation from an authentic future history procured via time travel.

Great Escapes: A book banned in prisons, jails, and places of holding as a security risk, the text is full of tales of daring and often successful prison escapes, some of them from high security prisons that were seemingly totally escape-proof. It is thought that a few copies have been smuggled into prison and are providing secret entertainment for prisoners.

A Discerning Eye Regarding the Fine Arts of Gantref y Cwaelod, Gelig ap Hlannog, and Benmaenmavr; One's Studies of the Forms, One's Time Thereof, One's Difficulties and Arduous Physical Trials - A Complete Treatise: A hefty tome filled with purple prose and absolutely no art or diagrams, the text laboriously catalogues and attempts to describe fine art, music, and culture from a set of kingdoms that have literally sunken beneath the waves for hundreds of years by the time of the author. The author claims to have experienced the original works firsthand, but gives no explanation for how that was possible. Despite being titled 'A Complete Treatise', the book is maddeningly incomplete and spotty, and describes works of art that have been seen by no other living person. The author may or may not still be alive, having disappeared from the public eye some time ago.

Senate Report: A plainly bound book with a rather uninteresting title, but in fact it is a secret fact-file created by the secret service of one country about 30 Politicians of another country. Compiled from both public sources and the reports of secret agents, it contains their political views, strengths, weaknesses, secret affairs and how corrupt and bribable each one is. The sort of book that would be very useful both for blackmail and for discovering the weaknesses of the listed politicians, and is the sort of book that an aspiring politician would pay a band of adventurers highly to recover, by force if need be.

How To Hunt The Undead Without Getting Yourself Killed: This book has sections on all kinds of Undead, from the True Vampires and the exotic Bandage Beasts, to the metal plated Ironbones the burning issue of the Urn Beast and many more. Each section explains the strengths and weaknesses of a different kind of Undead and how to successfully kill it, or at least banish it if killing it is not physically possible. It warns against looting the Funeral Gold and Grave Silver often found with some types of Undead, as this can bring bad luck or even worse to the taker.

A History of Sunreturn Customs through the Ages: A written history of the winter celebrations of various religions, it shows how people have fun at the darkest, coldest times of the year, and has plenty of suggestions for how to throw parties in tight quarters with limited resources. The book has a chapter on Mythical Gift Bringers, including Father Olaf and his famous Sleigh of the Storm.

Shorthalt's Journal of Awful: A little black book inscribed with scrawlings of horrific poems. There are also bizarre, childish drawings of humanoids doing various acts of vile behavior.

An ornately illustrated book of prayers, consecrated to the specific local God of Random Domain.

Slaying Dragons: A hefty tome wrapped in leather created from the skin of a black dragon, Slaying Dragons presents impassioned reasons and techniques for hunting some of the most deadly creatures in all creation. It is somewhat ironic, however, that proclaimed dragon hater and the author of this tome, one Cevinar of the Saffron Robes, died a very public death on the claws of a red wyrm some eighty years ago. Despite his untimely demise the wizard was thorough in his research, his surviving work being a testament to that.

Unaussprechlichen Kulten: A book bound in heavy leather with iron hasps that contains information on cults that worship pre-human deities such as Ghatanothoa and includes hieroglyphs relating to the latter. There is also information on more recent cults including that of Bran Mak Morn, The Dark Man. It is from this work that the tale of the doomed heretic T'yog is most commonly sourced. The copy contains detailed descriptions of dark rituals and occult practices that in this day and age are considered particularly malevolent. Knowledgeable PC’s can tell that the book is a fairly decent translation from the original text (The translated title is Nameless Cults), which makes the knowledge it reveals all the more nauseating. An excerpt of one of the pages reads as follows; "If one wants to use the ritual of seven desecrated graves, brought by the horrible Ikvabe, rising the six serving undead, you will need to create a wand from oak or maple. The carvings on it should be made with an iron knife soaked in the blood of a fallen woman and the sperm of a sorcerer. While placing the signs, one should chant the following: "Fayn Eho Azarak Soh Nar Zkmelak Ole Ole Barrabas Ole Ole Hushitas", while holding the wand of the north.

A large book with a leather cover protecting hundreds of blank pages. It remains covered in dust no matter how often it is cleaned.

Campfire Cooking: 101 Recipes for the Hungry Adventurer: A simple cookbook with vibrant images of wildlife that identifies edible plants, poisonous plants, and more.

Cryptography, Iconography, Symbology, and More: A heavy, thick tome filled with riddles, symbols, and theories on their meanings and how one might weave or unravel them.

Evelyn's Encyclopedia of Enigmatic Entities: A thick, well-worn book that comes with a leather carrying pouch. The pages of this book contain diagrams and detailed information on all sorts of illusive figures from across the Prime Material Plane.

Grifting 101: A curious pamphlet that has a pyramid emblazoned across the front of it and at first glance appears to be the ramblings of a religious fanatic. Closer investigation reveals a cypher that unlocks the hidden meaning within the text.

How to Spot an Assassin; A Critical Analysis: A short manual authored by the former bodyguard of powerful noble that was targeted for assassination a number of times - each of which was thwarted. The text has useful information on how to properly guard an individual as well as how to spot traps, poisons, hidden weapons and body language of assassin’s trying to blend in.

Mordenkainen's Common to Primordial Dictionary: A book with a finely crafted leather binding with exceptionally thin-yet-sturdy pages. It is a well-renowned linguistic reference work authored by the Mordenkainen. The text allows the reader to translate common into primordial and back again as well as apply the subtle inflections and accent characters for the regional dialects of Auran, Auquan, Ignan and Terran.

Osbourne's Guide to Heavy Metallurgy: A large tome with a stark black cover bearing the disembodied head of a bat embossed into it. Its bindings of a red steel and the text relates to all things metal.

Swords and Gourds: A large well folded pamphlet that was once distributed by militias amongst small farming communities to help locals better defend themselves. It outlines simple straightforward safety measures that men and women with no formal military training can use to defend their homestead or village from packs or wolves, groups of bandits or a small goblin tribe. Most of the advice boils down to creating a big show of strength and focusing on a big group armed with slings, torches and pitchforks to cause the invaders to believe that it’s not worthwhile to attack, thus saving the defends from the brutalities of actual combat.

The Art of the Quickdraw; How to Shoot First and Ask Questions Later: A book of battle tactics that implores the reader to focus on making the first strike in combat. The text concurs that the majority of fights a lone man or band of adventures will be involved in are small skirmishes, no more than 6-18 seconds long from the fight blow to the last. In these cases, getting your first blow in before the enemy and making it count is the difference between sleeping well that night or sleeping forever.

The Village Bike: A small book with the image of a lotus flower on its cover, this tome is an anthology of debaucherous romance stories that go into rather explicit detail.

Top Ten Lockpicking Secrets: A small, silver leather-bound book that can easily be stashed in the inner pocket of one's garb. The foreword to this book simply reads: "A thief's best friend."

A Rogue's Guide to Rooftop Running: A thin, twine bound set of papers, this volume instructs the reader on specific maneuvers that entail unorthodox movement including rolls, vaults, and landings.

Baldur's Gate Boxing Program: A short pamphlet with seven different exercises to help a reader improve their physical strength. These techniques do not require equipment or a partner and seems to be aimed at those who travel frequently or lack the financial resources of more seasoned brawlers.

A pocket instruction manual depicting bizarre fighting stances of leaping, spinning and holding weapons by the wrong end.

An aged inquisitor’s handbook whose yellow pages are held between the heavy silver covers. The pages hold anatomy diagrams of various demons along with instructions on dispatching them.

A large, heavy book bound in scarlet leather. Inside it lists and illustrates all the common planar beings along with their reward preferences and favoured negotiation styles. It would be extremely useful for summoners who routinely call forth and bind or ally themselves with planar creatures.

Dark Secrets Revealed by the Opening Eye: A book of unintelligible prophecies spoken by a mystic from the Roof of the World Mountains and written down by one of her disciples. The visionary text is covered in a yak pelt.

Law and Duty: A book of morality bound in purple leather with two clasped hands in gold leaf on the front cover. The text outlines the rules and behaviours for the faithful followers of Conn the Lawgiver.

Travels in the Southern Lands: A book bound in black leather embossed with gold merchant’s scales. The text is a travelogue with detailed maps of trade routes and information on foreign markets written by noted explorer and merchant Gosten Almar.

The Courage of Sir Ector: A book bound in red leather with gold tooling and edges. Written by Vinek Bezmer the text is the illuminated life story of the famous paladin.

An illustrated manual covered in chainmail entitled “Beginner’s Guide to Polearm Fighting”.

Dangerous Beasts of Kjarran: A bestiary bound in krenshar fur and held closed with clasp made from its teeth. The text focuses on monsters who commonly manifest supernatural abilities.

Wyrms of the Northlands: A tome bound in white dragonskin with a black ribbon marker with wyrmling talon dangling on the end. It is an illustrated who’s who of notorious dragons.

A thaumaturgist’s grimoire bound in green demonskin and marked with eldritch symbols. It contains the true names of certain minor demons and the arcane instructions on how to contact other planes, dismissing outsiders and binding lesser demons.

An elvish lexicon with a green velvet cover with mithral tooling and inlaid gemstone cover.

Fists of Iron: A martial arts treatise with copious illustrations, handwritten on a very long scroll written by Leaping Mantis.

A sea-green paperback novel with gold lettering entitled “The Trench”. The illustrated manuscript, tells tall tales of a mighty Triton ruler and his exploits beneath the waves.

A small red volume, that looks like it was mass produced with cheap printing methods. Entitled “The Little Tome Of Charms” the books content is a series of worthless nonsense spells that wouldn’t be useful even if they worked in the first place.

A small leather case with gold trimmings. The case protects a small deck of cards which bear sumptuous illustrations of various humanoid creatures engaged in lewd acts. The face cards of the suits move slightly and the jokers wink at you when you look through the cards.

A small book, very thick but only as wide as a grown adult’s hand. It is simply bound and filled with esoteric philosophy and explanations of the movements of the heavens, in complex verse.

A small brown book, no larger than a man’s hand but as thick as a wrist, with the word “Ecchli” on the cover. The pages are filled with tiny, unreadable words tightly compacted together. There is an aura of knowledge about the book, but it is also clear that great effort will be required to unlock its secrets.

Anzil and Lightning: A stone bound tome of Dwarvish history, written in the stoutfolk’s native tongue. The book explains about the formation of the Dwarven Kingdom and the differences between the various Dwarvenkin.

A black leather notebook filled with half-finished poems.

A blank book that when written in, causes the words to be spoken out loud.

A long book full of elven advice, most of which amounts to “stay the course and outlive the problem”.

A bundle of religious texts consisting of thick ivory parchments wound onto black bronze scroll rods tipped with golden ferrules studded with amber and coral, all tied with scarlet ribbons. All of the topics address the divine concept of Random Domain in one way or another.

The Necronomicon: An eerie book wrapped in a rough leather, akin to human skin. The front of the tome even has a stretched human-like face on it, warped in an expression of eternal horror. Inside its pages, are illustrations of fiendish monsters, impossible aberrations and disgusting warpings of flesh and bone. Its contents are filled with incantations, ramblings and grave warnings. While a chronicle of dark things witnessed by the author, the tome itself has a dark surprise; it’s very much alive...

A small spellbook, which is little more than a collection of pages bound with willow bark. It a handful of pages are covered in rituals and notations in no known language and bearers who have it in their possession, swear it whispers from time to time, as quiet as wind rustling a willow-tree.

A recipe book filled with numerous ways to prepare the flesh and organs of various species, focusing on children and adolescents. Additional notes in a newer hand remark on changes to each recipe.

The Tome of Strahd: A book bound in a thick leather cover with steel hinges and fastenings containing brittle parchment pages. The tome is an ancient work penned by Strahd von Zarovich, the vampiric dark lord of the valley of Barovia and is the tragic tale of how he came to his fallen state. Most of the book is written in the curious shorthand that only Strahd employs. Stains and age have made most of the work illegible, but several paragraphs remain intact.

A small travel diary with a memoir that tells the story of a terrible storm that lasted for a week. It was written by the youngest cabin boy aboard the vessel and is heavily water-damaged.

A ship's log describing a slow descent into madness by the crew.

A book with several self-portraits of one of the PC's that they don't remember making.

A book of dried flowers with botanical information about them. Each time it is opened, the book smells of a different flower inside.

A large bundle of rough thick pages held together by reindeer sinew. They describe edible parts of beats found in artic climate.

A tiny book made of exquisite porcelain reliefs, bound in thick quilted padded.

Enchiridion of the Unusual: A book whose cover is blood red, the title in silver its only ornamentation. No gilt, no gold leaf, just simple sturdy paper bound with thread. The pages, however, are a wonder: arcane formulae and diagrams in a dozen unrecognizable languages. It is a spellbook. It is a laboratory log. It is a treatise on war machines. It is a study on dragons. And a dissertation on a dozen other unimaginable things.

The Complete Draconic Lexicon: A sizable dictionary is for the Draconic language including detailed etymology, all written in flourishing script. A creature that can read Common may communicate with a creature in draconic using this book at a rate of one word per minute, even if they spoke no draconic at all.

A tattered, pocket sized travel notebook, binding a collection of withered and illegible pages. A thorough investigation will reveal a single line of unmarred text near the back of the book that reads “The king has demanded eternal life, though I doubt he is willing to accept the toll of blood and earth it demands.”

The Pattern Of The Ages: An oddly compelling tome outlining a dualistic world between two warring deities. Its descriptions of magic are highly elemental and it suggests a cyclical pattern to history. It warns of thirteen powerful servants of the evil deity from a more advanced era who are sealed away and must not be released. Could this be accurate, or is it just a fantasy?

A battered leather cover journal that rejects any ink; only fiendish ichor seems to seep into the pages.

A beginners guidebook to vile necromancy and enchantment spells entitled “How to make friends and influence people”

The Utterings of Hermaeus the Wise: A bound collection of the "words" eschewed by the late wizard Hermaeus the Wise, collected by his former apprentice. At the time, Hermaeus had attempted to gaze deep into the heart of the Elemental Chaos, to gain wisdom and insight into the nature of the universe. Unfortunately, Hermaeus' mind quickly unraveled at the sight of the place, and though his apprentice attempted to save him, the wizard died shortly after the attempt. It's said that the text is, to the apprentice's best efforts, a copy of the exact sounds that Hermaeus produced (Though few could be realistically interpreted as spoken language of any kind), with some pictograms indicating the movements of the wizard's body as he made these sounds. Strangely, readers of this text have described odd phenomena during and after reading: text that seemed to move and shift as they read it, odd voices that could be heard up to several days after completing the reading, sudden and strange desires to do odd things such as attack a companion or develop various phobias and compulsions.

Final Dawn: A small journal containing a long-forgotten cult leader's teachings on beginning and maintaining your own cult. Extremely knowledgeable PC’s can discern that the book was actually written by an arch-devil who is using hidden tactics to get an unsuspecting reader to summon him into the material plane.

A Mind is a Terrible thing to Waste: A tome dedicated to using the brains of intelligent creatures in various magical applications, mainly detailing Golemancy and Alchemy. It details using various necromancy spells to resurrect just the brain, and incorporating it into creating magical golems or mechanical constructs. Depending on the spells used the golem could be smarter and more autonomous, even in some cases having the capacity to grow a personality. Or the mage can create a golem that acts like a feral undead, killing any living thing it comes across.

The Writings Of Theon Ganderson: A small black journal kept by a man who claimed to have spotted a “thing” living under his farm house. This “thing” turned out to be a small elder being that began eating Theon's livestock. The journal ends abruptly during a passage where Theon is describing hearing something underneath his bedroom floorboards.

The Koraktor: A heavy tome bound in unfamiliar leather. It describes a dark ritual that allows the sacrifice of an intelligent being to have its remaining lifespan transferred to you. The catch is, that with each use, the effect is halved; the second sacrifice gives half its lifespan, the third gives a quarter and so on.

Nature's Wrath: A tome written by a powerful ancient druid that was angered by civilization and its disrespect of nature. It contains dozens of powerful rituals for summoning deadly natural disasters, including plagues, earthquakes, tsunamis and hurricanes.

The Howling: A journal bound in skin of a deer, the yellowed parchment pages contain page upon page of handwritten unintelligible script. The book is said to have been in the position of a Wendigo for several decades before coming to rest in Blackoak Restorative Manor for the Mental Infirm. The only legible content within the book is a series of signatures on the back page; believed to have been former owners of the volume. To date, every owner of the book has either died of starvation, regardless of financial means or physical health. Or has descended into the depths of animal savagery and cannibalism. Some anecdotal records at Blackoak from patient interviews suggest the book contains the last rational thoughts of all its previous owners. However, as these testimonies come from individuals who would go on to own the volume themselves or succumb to the harsh nature of their treatments; they are discredited among learned individuals.

Bargains of the Underworld: A mysterious memoir whose crimson cover is unnaturally cold. It is a recording of the author's descent into madness after murdering his family and his journey into the plane of the dead to plead their forgiveness. It contains locations of planar portals, and describes ways to communicate with the dead.

Zahhak: A journal written by the famous explorer Zhelim Alasam, documenting his experiences of his last journey. It starts off as all of his journals, but quickly escalates as Zhelims ship sinks in a storm and he is stranded on an unknown island. Through his writings, the reader learns how Zhelim found strange ruins on this island and his curiosity takes over. For several days, he wanders these strange alien halls, describing murals, architecture and an unknown language chiseled into the walls. The last page documents Zhelims growing fear of the darkness and voices in his head that tell him to go deeper into the ruins...

Der Abenteurer: A highly controversial exploration of power and hierarchy, heavy with economics and philosophy. The book posits that the contemporary societal structure of roving adventurers questing for artifacts, slaying everything in their path, is a degenerate state that perpetuates an unfair system of oppression. It urges monsters, brigands, and all creators of loot to rise up, move beyond boundaries of species, and present a unified front against those that wish to plunder their lairs.

The Assassin's Textbook: A book filled with firsthand accounts of successful high-profile assassinations. Each entry places heavy focus on preparation and planning, and was written by the assassin who did the deed. There are numerous blank pages at the end of the book, and a note on the inside cover demands that the reader must write down their own story if they succeed in killing someone, then hide the book in a public location at night. The first several entries were written by the same person using the pen name 'Splattershrike.' Knowlegeable PC's have heard speculations that Splattershrike collects and reads any used copies of the book and makes new editions of it to include his favorite additions.

A book written by Pepeq Gufgord, a necromancer of some renown entitled “Loving Return”. The binding is pale green with black lettering and an embossed cartoonish skull in the center of the cover. Inside this book is a tale in the style of a children's story about losing a loved one and how to bring them back from beyond the grave. Disturbingly the book gives a fully functional process of ritually summoning an undead with such ease that a child may perform it with little difficulty.

The Convergent Truth: A ironbound book containing a detailed explanation about why the plane you are in right now is a demi-plane, an exact copy of the material plane, used to lure something called The Devourer away from the true material plane. In the back of the book are commendations to this reality, each from a different volume of this book. This one is Volume VIIICMVII.

The Material Era: A book that, starting from explaining in excruciating detail the mechanism behind spells like Dispel Magic and Antimagic Field, starts studying in what way magic can be stopped from interfering with the world, like stripping a caster from its power, creating zones of dead magic and finally showing how one could stop all magic from existing in the whole Material Plane, forever, enjoying in the hypothetical consequences of this actions.

Treatise of Abyssal Lore: A large book made from the skin of hundreds of humanoid hides from across the multiverse. The words are penned in sanguine ink that constantly shifts and swirls, making it extremely difficult to comprehend. Highly intelligent readers are able to decipher the cryptic language and learn a great deal of information about the different species of demons.

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