#mauth the author

[murderofsomeone]

I know you're whimsy filled once again, But! I like asking questions, so, what's the lore behind Lorekeeper md? What's that guy all about?

lorekeeper MD is the only survivor of the lunaras multiverse project explosion who had way too much lore, but given the new context I've inserted them into, I have a bit of a blank slate here. other than their personality, which is the same (for the better or the worse)

born from a weird conversation involving murder and the obama prism for some reason, this character was initially made as a joke but then became insanely compelling and also hilarious. they're a jerk, they do nothing to hide this, they love it when someone breaks their code of rules so they can live in the exciting moment of the chase and eventual death of their prey. they literally have the power to shred someone atom by atom across the multiverse as a method of making sure they have no ability to ever come back to life. do they have some reason for all of this? no lol

in actually though, they're a demigod curator of the eternal library in the center of the multiverse. a living thing containing every piece of literature from every timeline and universe that shifts and expands seemingly endlessly. this place is kinda like the backrooms in a sense that it's easy to screw up reality enough to just clip into here and get lost forever. there are exits, nobody just bothers to ask md where they even are. which comes back to the topic at hand.

md actually enjoys their job quite a lot, and they are helpful, they just either get tired of people very quickly or torment them until they snap. this is entirely because they're bored and think this is funny, probably due to the fact that most people don't go to the library for normal reasons. their favorite patrons are the quiet ones who actually bothered to read the rules instead of just coming here to steal knowledge.

they're a real piece of shit but it's funny so they can keep doing that

additional stuff under the cut

they used to have a tailcoat but considering that's a remnant of their original world building i scrapped it and replaced it with something that makes more sense

believe it or not there is absolutely no bill cipher inspiration

yes they have a second form (seen above in the second image). they still talk exactly the same, you're just very likely on the cusp of death if you see it due to the fact that that's their "I'm killing you" design

those little stars that float around them act as library guides, but can also be terrible weapons. they randomly warp and teleport matter when one makes contact so it's best to avoid them when you aren't using one as a guide

they do have a real name and the "md" is part of it. I lied about it meaning moon demon.

the little magnifying glass is in fact used as a magnifying glass

they're disabled! something that wasn't originally canon because their cane belonged to someone else, but it's canon now because that lore doesn't exist anymore

they can float and teleport

canonically aroace and probably aplatonic too

my favorite chronic hater 🤍

makes fun of monolinguals

in conclusion: reader beware you're in for a scare! that's only a tiny bit of insight into this guy who means a lot to me

[elephantinparis]

A Sky beyond a Storm Review

If I could give this book -∞ rating I would. This review won’t be spoiler free, so if you haven’t read the book don’t read further. Now that that’s out of the way let’s get into it.

First of all, I want to start by saying how sad and angry I am to be writing this because this series had become one of my favorites and it completely disappointed me in the end. I’m not sure disappointment is even a proper word for what I’m feeling at this point. I also want to mention that yes, I am a huge fan of Nightbringer, but I wasn’t expecting a hea for him. What I was expecting was an arc true to his character from previous 3 books. Instead, what I got was a complete character assassination. It all started from the very first chapter–Nightbringer kills a small child, but at that point I was still trying to defend the book and genuinely thought: yes, it fits his character since he despises scholars. So even though I didn’t like it I understood. But then the complete character destruction started. First, we had a moment when he saw a happy family and went: yeah, I’ll kill the mother and the kids out of nowhere because they remind me of my family and if I can’t be happy no one can. Now, let me explain why this is ooc behavior: The Nightbringer as we knew him always had a beef with scholars only. The family he randomly kills are not scholars. Another thing: why would he put someone through the same agonizing pain when he is always specific about the deaths having meaning to him and that he doesn’t kill in vain(scholar killings are not in vain for him) other people, however, don’t fall into that category. Another ooc behavior moment was when he put one of his jinn in chains (yes only for a second and yes the jinn tried to use her influence on him), but the Nightbringer I know would never put his people through that after them spending an actual millennia in a prison. He spent so long trying to get them out, he would never put them in chains again. Then the cherry on the top of the cake was that all throughout the book the author tried to drive it home how much Nightbringer wanted Laia dead and how much he wanted, and I quote: “Open her up.” Another inconsistency since in Reaper he saved her more than once and completely let her go (because we know he loves her). Yes, he wanted to know what magic she possessed since the moment in Torch, but he had multiple opportunities to kill her and he never did. But in this book, he more than once physically assaults her when she’s in no position to truly hurt him and from his previous behavior that’s ooc actions. And you can come and say: but wait a minute Laia is a real threat now and that’s why he wants to kill her after he “opens her up” and I’ll point you to the chapter where he finally learns of his wife’s betrayal and understands what magic Laia possesses. And what does he do? He walks away. The man who spent the entire book hunting her down has her vulnerable, alone, he finally figured out the mystery of her powers and I am to believe from all his previous actions that he’ll kill her, but he DOESN’T. Because, of course, it’s not in the nature of his character to kill someone he loves even if they’re trying to stop him. So, which is it Sabaa? The inconsistencies are jarring. It just drives it home how his actions in this book were character assassination. The final nail in Nightbringer’s metaphorical coffin (because of course in the end he gets no funeral, no established peace, nothing. Unlike Keris…but I’ll get back to that later) is the fact that his evil villain plan is to literally end the world…I’m sorry WHAT?! So, in the span of this book he went from wanting scholars dead, then wanting all humans dead and then wanting the whole world to end which would result in his people dying, too. What in the actual hell is this?? So many possibilities could’ve been taken with this character, even if the author didn’t want to give him a redemption arc, he could have been a much better villain with a good goal. Instead we get this. Please someone try to explain WHY would he do this when he just freed his people? They would suffer just as much from his plan, so it makes no sense at all. His entire character was about protecting the jinn, giving them a safe space once he freed them. Another thing I noticed is that in the previous 3 books Nightbringer was very much humanized, embers and torch focused on him feeling again, his growth once he fell in love with Laia and even in Reaper his actions were tied to her, but in this book it’s completely forgotten. He does monstrous things to other people who aren’t scholars which was never his goal before. He had a millennium to set his anger and hurt on others, but he focused on those he felt were responsible for his life being ruined – the scholars. And yes, he was wrong to try to take revenge on people who didn’t do anything, but the point remains the Nightbringer I knew would have never done anything to jeopardize the jinn’s safety. Even as a villain his story went in a very cruel direction. I never praised Leigh Bardugo’s depiction of her villain Darkling, but maybe I should’ve since she gave him the bare minimum and Nightbringer didn’t even get that. Funny that the author has said on more than one occasion he was her favorite character. I shudder to think what she would’ve done if she disliked him. 

Another character who was treated with cruelty all throughout the story is Helene. Now I’ve got to give credit where it’s due - Helene grew a lot throughout the series: she shed her prejudices, finally acknowledged she had been protecting the wrong people and that martials need to change, she also grew as an incredible leader and a warrior and when the people chose her to be their Empress I was so proud, but then…she made her vow. To never marry, to never have children (which is totally fine since it was even mentioned she didn’t want them earlier), to completely give herself to her duty to the empire. It rubbed me the wrong way immediately because a big part of her arc was love–love for Elias who rejected her, love for her family–who got slaughtered before her eyes, love for Avitas–who also was killed for no real reason other than to make her suffer even more. And what does this show? It shows to Helene that love isn’t her friend because it only brings her pain, she lets people in, loves them with every part of her soul and they end up dying. So, at this point we have a young woman who started the series thinking she wasn’t worthy of love end up thinking love itself wasn’t worth it. How messed up is that? Still as cruel as this arc was it was at least consistent or that’s what I thought. In her very last chapter, it’s heavily alluded she might have something with Musa. And if it was written as just two friends grieving their lost loves it wouldn’t have bothered me at all. But there were clear romantic undertones and then I was left thinking: what? I thought she chose only her duty. And though Avitas was barely a few weeks in the ground at that point I couldn’t even fault Helene for wanting to move on because I just wanted her to be happy again. But at the same time, I cannot ignore the inconsistencies. The cruelty she experienced was too much.

It’s ironic how two of my favorite characters got the short end of the stick.

I don’t really have much to say about Elias since he didn’t really have his own plot, he was just inserted into Laia’s. His ending was by no means earned and I know it’s hard to say that because he had gone through so much in the first 2 books. But ever since Torch he made a conscious choice to become the Soul Catcher. Sure, he only did it to save Laia’s brother, but he made a vow to serve and he completely disregarded his job after the fact. I think if the ghosts that got out in Reaper didn’t hurt anyone, he would have continued to ignore the duty he himself chose. Now in this book he could’ve had an interesting development since he didn’t remember his past life, but this was resolved in the very beginning when Cain somehow gave the memories back. Then in the very end for a quick resolve someone just took over his job and Mauth was okay with it. The person who took over was just brought back for plot convenience and it makes me so mad. He didn’t earn the freedom…

Then we have Laia. The problem I had with her character in general is the fact she disregarded her past with Nightbringer. She can be in love with Elias and acknowledge what she felt for Nightbringer. Alas, she only sees a monster, shows no compassion once she learns of his story and since she spent all the book trying to kill him and not just stop him the very end felt hollow when  she suddenly starts showing compassion to a suffering Nightbringer. Laia from Torch showed compassion and understanding in her own way toward Nightbringer and now it was just gone. She was still conflicted and in this she’s completely closed off. I don’t think her romance with Elias would’ve suffered if her very real past with Nightbringer was acknowledged properly.

I also want to talk about Rehmat (Nightbringer’s wife). We learn that she had a gift of seeing the future and once the war started and she lost their children she saw what Nightbringer would become. So, what does she do? Does she go to her husband and tell him what she saw, tries to change the future, show him that even when she’s gone, he can go on and be who he was always meant to be? Beloved. Hell no she goes to humans and uses blood magic to extract her essence and be put in the progeny of a random tribe. Then waits a millennium to kill her husband. What in the world is this?? The reason why she does this is never addressed. So, as a reader I must make assumptions that she never loved him. That she didn’t even try to change anything. She also could’ve told him of her plan so he could’ve found someone to awaken her sooner so they could once again be together. He was deeply hurt and alone without their people and she left him too. Tell me how you bring in this new force and you don’t even explain her actions? How is this good writing?

Now I want to talk about the death count and if the deaths had any meaning. Got to start by saying that only supporting characters were killed.  First, we have Darin. Killed by Nightbringer because he wanted Laia to kill him for his plan. See, the thing is Laia already wanted to kill him throughout the book, she got the weapon and she came there with the goal of killing him. Nightbringer didn’t need to “encourage” her by killing Darin. So, in my opinion the death was pointless and served no great purpose. It was a way to make the reader hate the villain, sympathize with the heroine and was done for shock value. Livia was another character to suffer a pointless death. She was the only person Helene had. There was no reason to do it same with Avitas. I guess for Avitas I could try to excuse it by saying it’s war and he did die on the battlefield. Keris had always been a great fighter and even Helene couldn’t take her on. But she already lost Livia and now this?? Too much. Too cruel. Livia’s ending could’ve also been written off as a war casualty, but she wasn’t actively participating in the war. Sure, she was the Empress Regent, but to me it’s just too much after her family. Both deaths only caused Helene pain and she didn’t gain anything profound from those losses. Lastly, I truly hated how the author tried to humanize Keris Veturia. And when I say tried, I really mean it because at least for me it didn’t work. The author suddenly had her saying she couldn’t kill Elias when time came even though she already had. She poisoned him and he died because of her. That woman first abandoned him, then tortured him throughout his time at Blackcliff and then in the end cost him his life. And Elias mourned her…She also had a lovely send off in the Waiting place where she found piece with her mother. So then if this villain deserved peace why didn’t the other one? At least Nightbringer had his reasons. We never knew hers.

In conclusion, I don’t understand how the story could’ve gone so wrong. As always everything you read is my personal thoughts and my humble opinion.

Tagging: @nightbringer @bookittothelibrary we suffered so much...I can’t.

[sinister-bob]

Moddey Dhoo

The English topographer and poet George Waldron seems to be the sole definitive written authority of this folklore localized in the castle. Waldron transcribes the original Manx name "Moddey Dhoo" as "Mauthe Doog", and describes the dog thus:

They say, that an apparition called, in their language, the Mauthe Doog, in the shape of a large black spaniel with curled shaggy hair, was used to haunt Peel Castle; and has been frequently seen in every room, but particularly in the guard-chamber, where, as soon as candles were lighted, it came and lay down before the fire in presence of all the soldiers, who at length, by being so much accustomed to the sight of it, lost great part of the terror they were seized with at its first appearance.

There used to be a passage connected to the Peel Castle, traversing the church grounds, leading to the apartment of the Captain of the Guard, and "the Mauthe Doog was always seen to come from that passage at the close of day, and return to it again as soon as the morning dawned". 

Waldron reports that one drunken guard of the castle, who in defiance of the dog, went against the usual procedure of locking up the castle gate in pairs and did this all alone. Emboldened by liquor, he snatched up the keys when it wasn't even his turn to do so.  The watchman after locking up was supposed to use the haunted passage to deliver the keys to the captain. Some noises were heard, the adventurer returned to the guard-room, ghastly frightened, unable to share the story of what he had seen, and died three days later.

That was the last sighting of the dog. But the passage was sealed up and never used again after the haunting, and a different pathway constructed.

[loadacademy575]

Beyond A Steel Sky Soundtrack

Way FourArtistBernard KirschenbaumYear1976Typestainless steelDimensions250 cm × 220 cm × 240 cm (100 in × 86 in × 96 in)LocationLynden Sculpture Garden, Milwaukee, WisconsinCoordinates: 43°10′34.6″N87°56′10.4″W / 43.176278°N 87.936222°W

Beyond the Supernatural, a 1980s role-playing game; Stormfront Studios, a U.S. Video game developer originally named Beyond Software 1988–1991; Literature. Beyond, a 2015 non-fiction book by Chris Impey; Beyond (comics) (set-index article), things in comics called Beyond, including: Beyond (Virgin Comics), a 2008 series from Virgin Comics. His last major song was a reach back in time when things weren’t so complicated. Grover Washington Jr.’s sax and a steel pan play you to a beach, blanket for two, a musical safe haven where he.

Way Four is a public art work by artist Bernard Kirschenbaum at the Lynden Sculpture Garden near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The stainless steel sculpture is an open circle that creates an orbit for two triangles; it is installed on the lawn.(1)

The Metropolis scenery is heavily inspired by the architecture of Hugh Ferriss, while the film's music is taken from the 1948 Superman serial composed by Mischa Bakaleinikoff. For the animation work, the storyboards were done digitally, but the character animation itself was hand-drawn on paper before each frame was scanned and digitally. Apple’s new Apple Arcade subscription-based gaming service is basically Apple’s way of helping customers sort through the chaff in the App Store, as the highly curated service features premium.

See also(edit)

References(edit)

^Buck, Diane (1995). Outdoor Sculpture in Milwaukee: A Cultural and Historical Guidebook. Madison: The State Historical Society of Wisconsin. pp. 182–183. ISBN0-87020-276-6.

Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Way_Four&oldid=935129731'

Five years after she debuted with An Ember in the Ashes, Sabaa Tahir is finally bringing her beloved story to a close. A Sky Beyond the Storm finishes the story Tahir began in her 2015 bestseller, but the journey has been much longer for author herself. 'I began writing Ember 13 years ago,' she tells Bustle. 'I have spent more than a decade of my life writing, breathing, laughing, mourning and celebrating with my characters. They are a part of me, as familiar to me as my hands or my face. So when I wrote the final words on the final page of the final book, I felt as though I was saying farewell to my best friends, to a piece of me.'

An Ember in the Ashes launched at a time when multi-doorstopper YA fantasy series — think Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen and Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Thorns and Roses — were at their height. But as an #OwnVoices novel, written by a Pakistani American woman and starring multiple characters of color, Ember was unlike most of its peers. It was the first in a long line of YA fantasy novels from South Asian and Muslim authors, hitting store shelves ahead of Roshani Chokshi's The Star-Touched Queen, Swati Teerdhala's The Tiger at Midnight, and Hafsah Faizal's We Hunt the Flame.

But according to Tahir, there's still much work to be done to diversify YA publishing. 'Over and over, authors from marginalized groups are told, 'We already have a book like this,' or 'We already have an author like you.' But books by marginalized authors shouldn’t be a quota you fill,' she says. 'How many vampire books written by white authors? Dozens. I’ve nothing against that, but authors from marginalized groups deserve the same respect. Just because authors have similar experiences or ethnic backgrounds doesn’t mean their stories will be identical. We contain multitudes and our work is meaningful and distinctive.'

While Tahir doesn't have any immediate plans to return the Ember series after A Sky Beyond the Storm, she'll continue writing and pushing representation in publishing forward. 'All I can say for sure is that I want to do something different with my writing,' she says of her next project. 'Maybe explore some darker terrain.'

But before you start longing for Tahir's next work, read on for an excerpt from the hotly anticipated A Sky Beyond the Storm.

Excerpt from A Sky Beyond the Storm, exclusive to Bustle

I: The Nightbringer

I awoke in the glow of a young world, when man knew of hunting but not tilling, of stone but not steel. It smelled of rain and earth and life. It smelled of hope.

Arise, beloved.

The voice that spoke was laden with millennia beyond my ken. The voice of a father, a mother. A creator and a destroyer. The voice of Mauth, who is Death himself.

Arise, child of flame. Arise, for thy home awaits thee.

Would that I had not learned to cherish it, my home. Would that I had unearthed no magic, loved no wife, sparked no children, gentled no ghosts. Would that Mauth had never named me.

“Meherya.”

My name drags me out of the past to a rain-swept hilltop in the Mariner countryside. My old home is the Waiting Place — known to humans as the Forest of Dusk. I will make my new home upon the bones of my foes.

“Meherya.” Umber’s sun-bright eyes are the vermillion of ancient anger. “We await your orders.” She grips a glaive in her left hand, its blade white with heat.

“Have the ghuls reported in yet?”

Umber’s lip curls. “They scoured Delphinium. Antium. Even the Waiting Place,” she says. “They could not find the girl. Neither she nor the Blood Shrike has been seen for weeks.”

“Have the ghuls seek out Darin of Serra in Marinn,” I say. “He forges weapons in the port city of Adisa. Eventually, they will reunite.”

Umber inclines her head and we regard the village below us, a hodgepodge of stone homes that can withstand fire, adorned with wooden shingles that cannot. Though it is mostly identical to other hamlets we’ve destroyed, it has one distinction. It is the last settlement in our campaign. Our parting volley in Marinn before I send the Martials south to join the rest of Keris Veturia’s army.

“The humans are ready to attack, Meherya.” Umber’s glow reddens, her disgust of our Martial allies palpable.

“Give the order,” I tell her. Behind me, one by one, my kin transform from shadow to flame, lighting the cold sky.

Beneath A Steel Sky Soundtrack

A warning bell tolls in the village. The watchman has seen us, and bellows in panic. The front gates — hastily erected after attacks on neighboring communities — swing closed as lamps flare and shouts tinge the night air with terror.

“Seal the exits,” I tell Umber. “Leave the children to carry the tale. Maro.” I turn to a wisp of a jinn, his narrow shoulders belying the power within. “Are you strong enough for what you must do?”

Maro nods. He and the others pour past me, five rivers of fire, like those that spew from young mountains in the south. The jinn blast through the gates, leaving them smoking.

A half legion of Martials follow, and when the village is well aflame and my kin withdraw, the soldiers begin their butchery. The screams of the living fade quickly. Those of the dead echo for longer.

After the village is naught but ashes, Umber finds me. Like the other jinn, she now glows with only the barest flicker.

“The winds are fair,” I tell her. “You will reach home swiftly.”

“We wish to remain with you, Meherya,” she says. “We are strong.”

For a millennium, I believed that vengeance and wrath were my lot. Never would I witness the beauty of my kind moving through the world. Never would I feel the warmth of their flame.

But time and tenacity allowed me to reconstitute the Star — the weapon the Augurs used to imprison my people. The same weapon I used to set them free. Now the strongest of my kin gather near. And though it has been months since I destroyed the trees imprisoning them, my skin still trills at their presence.

“Go,” I order them gently. “For I will need you in the coming days.”

Beyond A Steel Sky Soundtrack Cast

After they leave, I walk the cobbled streets of the village, sniffing for signs of life. Umber lost her children, her parents, and her lover in our long-ago war with the humans. Her rage has made her thorough.

Beyond A Steel Sky Soundtrack Trailer

A gust of wind carries me to the south wall of the village. The air tells of the violence wrought here. But there is another scent too.

A hiss escapes me. The smell is human, but layered with a fey sheen. The girl’s face rises in my mind. Laia of Serra. Her essence feels like this.

But why would she lurk in a Mariner village?

I consider donning my human skin, but decide against it. It is an arduous task, not undertaken without good reason. Instead I draw my cloak close against the rain and trace the scent to a hut tucked beside a tottering wall.

The ghuls trailing my ankles yip in excitement. They feed off pain, and the village is rife with it. I nudge them away and enter the hut alone.

The inside is lit by a tribal lamp and a merry fire, over which a pan of charred skillet bread smokes. Pink winter roses sit atop the dresser and a cup of well water sweats on the table.

Whoever was here left only moments ago.

Or rather, she wants it to look that way.

I steel myself, for a jinn’s love is no fickle thing. Laia of Serra has hooks in my heart yet. The pile of blankets at the foot of the bed disintegrates to ashes at my touch. Hidden beneath and shaking with terror is a child who is very obviously not Laia of Serra.

And yet he feels like her.

Not in his mien, for where Laia of Serra has sorrow coiled about her heart, this boy is gripped by fear. Where Laia’s soul is hardened by suffering, this boy is soft, his joy untrammeled until now. He’s a Mariner child, no more than twelve.

But it is what’s deep within that harkens to Laia. An unknowable dark­ness in his mind. His black eyes meet mine, and he holds up his hands.

Beyond A Steel Sky Soundtrack Download

“B-begone!” Perhaps he meant for it to be a shout. But his voice rasps, nails digging into wood. When I go to snap his neck, he holds his hands out again, and an unseen force nudges me back a few inches.

His power is wild and unsettlingly familiar. I wonder if it is jinn magic, but while jinn-human pairings occurred, no children can come of them.

“Begone, foul creature!” Emboldened by my retreat, the boy throws something at me. It has all the sting of rose petals. Salt.

My curiosity fades. Whatever lives within the child feels fey, so I reach for the scythe slung across my back. Before he understands what is happening, I draw the weapon across his throat and turn away, my mind already moving on.

The boy speaks, stopping me dead. His voice booms with the finality of a jinn spewing prophecy. But the words are garbled, a story told through water and rock.

“The seed that slumbered wakes, the fruit of its flowering consecrated within the body of man. And thus is thy doom begotten, Beloved, and with it the breaking — the — breaking —”

A jinn would have completed the prophecy, but the boy is only human, his body a frail vessel. Blood pours from the wound in his neck and he collapses, dead.

“What in the skies are you?” I speak to the darkness within the child, but it has fled, and taken the answer to my question with it.

[serpenttailedangel]

Red Queen vs Reaper at the Gates

I know Aveyard and Tahir are friends and that their books don’t have a tremendous amount in common but I think of their stories as comparable nonetheless and I just... even if I enjoy both, I’m blown away by the difference in their cliffhangers.

(spoilers, btw)

Like, I could not have rolled my eyes harder at the end of King’s Cage. Maven was beaten in a major battle and retreated to lick his wounds, a major part of his kingdom succeeded and allied with two other nations against him with a third blackmailed into helping them, and his only ally is one that his kingdom has long been at war with that wasn’t seen until midway though that book. Mare is back with her loved ones and being trained by others with her ability, and basically everything about the greater conflict in the story is in the hero’s favor at the end of the second to last book. The only tension that the book leaves readers with is that in the last maybe five pages, Mare and Cal suddenly have a fight and break up over something that, while obviously a point of disagreement between them from the start, has recieved minimal focus since the very first book. It felt sooooo much like a last second saving throw to try and have some kind of cliffhanger. And it was so obvious that they would kiss and make up because they can’t stay away from one another. Zero tension.

And then there’s Reaper at the Gates. You could use this shit as required reading in a class if you wanted an example of a “darkest hour” cliffhanger. Holy hell is it great. The empire’s capitol fell to barbarians and Keris is now empress. Helene is broken. Laia lost family after being reunited after so long. Elias has lost every possible shred of free will. The jinn are free despite and somewhat because of Laia’s efforts to stop them from being released. There’s just enough shreds of hope for it to feel like the heroes might yet pull through, because Elias still exists under Mauth’s possession and Laia and Helene are working together now, but I haven no freaking clue how they’re going to make this work and I love it. I love the feeling that the author can give me a happy ending mixed with the dread of how heavily the odds are stacked against these characters.

Like, wow. What a brilliant lesson in how to do and not to do cliffhangers.