#transformation of relics into objects

[j-august]

If you know what happened at Bourges, it is a strange experience to visit the most important specimen of the Duc de Berry's exquisite taste in treasures that still survives today. This is the reliquary of the Holy Thorn, made to show a Thorn that was no doubt taken from the Crown of Thorns itself, the proudest possession of the French kings, for which St. Louis built the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. After the Crown of Thorns reached France in the thirteenth century, it suffered so many depletions by royal gifts of single Thorns that it is nearly Thornless today. The setting the Duc de Berry had made for his Thorn is such a triumph of goldsmith's work that one all but weeps to think of all the Duke's treasures that were lost. But it is also ironical to see the reliquary impersonally lodged in the British Museum, with the slender Holy Thorn still rising from its cabochon sapphire sheath, and then to remember that those who saw it in former times went down upon their knees and wept, not for lost treasures, but for the Passion of Jesus Christ.

Joseph Alsop, The Rare Art Traditions

[simping-overload]

hi how are you? If requests are still open can I request headcanon for Transformers Prime? (predaking, shockwave and megatron) with a reader who is literally a dragon? The reader has kept a Cybertronian relic for a long time.

Megatron, Shockwave, and Predaking with a Dragon! S/O

a/n: sorry for taking an ungodly amount of time to get to this, hope you like it!

wanna support me? donate to kofi!

tags: GN reader, dragon reader, robot x monster/dragon relationship, reader isn't suggest to be a human at all. reader isn't described to be verbal but assume they have a way to communicate, dragon hoards, fighting, mention of blood and animal death(just hinted), romance!!!!

ヾthis is a multi-fandom blog that is designed for mlm/nbmlm identifying readers! so if you're female or fem, she/her, she/they please do not follow or interact with my mlm related post!! you will be blocked if you do not heed this warning ゛

Megatron —

finds you fascinating, often he can find himself just staring. taking in your beauty and the power the radiates off of you.

of course, he'd like to have you fight for his cause. an advantage for one, and he simply loves seeing you fight.

he'd love to have you train with him. That would depend on your size, though. he knows better than to try to fight. that would be roughly the same size as his ship. (He's a sore loser when he loses btw.)

beware, he might treat you like a pet if he had you at his feet while he pet the rough skin and scales alongside your body. he may accidently go onto a power trip with you

however, feel more than free to put him back in his place. you're much stronger than him at the end of the day

When you show him your hoard, he's intrigued. He views it as a trophy room, like the one he once had from his gladiator days.

If the relic isn't useful to him, he'd let you keep it, but if it is, he will take it from you, regardless of your protest.

Shockwave —

of course, he takes a scientific interest in you. collects your scales you shed, examines your claws, and likes to scale just how strong your fire is and a lot of other things.

His sharp claws are perfect for preening, especially in the stubborn hard to reach places. while he doesn't admit it and claims he only does it to collect them, shockwave finds it very relaxing.

he wouldn't bother trying to fight you, he'd however would like to fly with you. moslty flying out to places that have predacon fossils or lost Cybertronian relics.

he likes to observe how you fly with or against the winds, taking down notes as your body adjusts to flying in high or low altitudes.

When you showed him your hoard, he was indifferent. he saw no point in hoarding objects that wouldn't benefit you.

as he looked around your domain, he picked up and fiddled with some items that he was interested in.

upon finding the relic he asks to take it, if you say no, he'll simply scan the core things he needs from it and leave it there, but if you say yes, he'll have a ball. he might give it back to you once it served it's purpose.

Predaking —

at first, he'd thought of you as a threat. somone who would take his place as a king. it wasn't until he, of course, grew closer and got to know you were he dropped these thoughts.

if your size is similar or doesn't have a very drastic difference, he'd love to spar or play fight with you.

he has no way to consume animals, but he'd love to go hunting with you or watch you hunt, to say the least. finds the way you move with such grace and precision is simply amazing to him.

he likes the difference between his metal and your scales. Feeling your body up against his is an odd sensation but very much welcomed. he's godly at preening your scales and would do anytime anywhere.

flying with you is one of his favorite pastimes with you. he most definitely tries to show off his flight capability as well, doing a wide variety of tricks and flips.

courting dancing/flights are a must. he's unfamiliar with his, but they're so engraved into his(the former kings)muscle memory that he'd remember as he went on with the courting.

when you respond with a dance of your own, he's smitten 10x again. Likes to learn your dance if you'd teach him.

also during courting and even after or before he likes bringing you gifts. Random trinkets he thinks you'd find joy in having.

upon being introduced into your hoard his is amazed. It was one of the most beautiful places he has seen.

unless the relic relates to him, he wouldn't bother doing anything with it, simply leaving it there alone unless shockwave may request it.

[mariacallous]

The problem with judging people for their sins is that the internet makes it exceedingly easy to invent sins. In February, Buzzfeed News reported on a man filmed by a passing TikTokker, who then uploaded the footage with text suggesting he’d lied to her to get out of a date. That was false—he’d never met her—but it didn’t stop people from ridiculing him as the video racked up over a million views.

Similarly, last year, an Australian woman objected to being made the star of a stunt in which a TikTokker asked her to hold a bouquet, strolled off, and then congratulated himself on performing a random act of kindness. Sixty million hits later, his viewers were praising him for brightening the day of a woman they judged to be old, lonely, and sad. But she objected to that characterization and declared the whole affair “dehumanizing.” She hadn’t asked to have her day interrupted, let alone be thrust into a global spotlight.

And then there are those incapable of even grasping the situation. In 2022, a TikTok channel was called out for surreptitiously filming the homeless with drones. Loved ones with dementia are put on TikTok to be infantilized or have their worst moments gawked at. Parents transform their children into viral stars. Sometimes, those children grow up and call them out for warping their youth.

When people tell us it was harrowing and wrong to be unwillingly cast into the spotlight, we nod and agree. But those responsible typically offer only half-hearted apologies or remain unrepentant, while their millions of views discourage reflection. Often, moral scolding is implicit in the video and explicit in the comments: It is wrong to be homeless. It is gross to be ill. It is pathetic to be unhappy.

To be sure, crass and hateful public figures are worthy of ridicule. And we’ve been using the internet to judge strangers for as long as we’ve had the internet. But the common trait shared by much of the most obnoxious content today is that someone chose to elevate a stranger for no reason beyond their own gratification, attracting attention at a scale unimaginable in the days of relics like Hot or Not and People of Wal-Mart.

At best, these are misguided attempts to juice the poster’s social media presence. At worst, they are pointless cruelty. That cruelty can be addictive, but we can and must resist the urge to gawk at strangers against their will. It should, in fact, be considered rude, insulting, and wrong to have uploaded a stranger against their will. We would not go out into the streets and stir up a mob against a random person. Why are we so comfortable with doing it online?

Much of what we post online is innocent and will remain so. The average Facebook user has 338 friends, while the average number of Instagram followers, according to one estimate, is just 150. You likely use these platforms to follow celebrities and brands, and to interact with friends and family. These are, for most users, insular communities. Vacation photos with friends or a family portrait at Christmas are unlikely to attract trolls and creeps, and even if they do, they are clearly posted in good faith.

But some platforms, like TikTok and Twitter, are more exposed to the vagaries and cruelties of the wider world. Anything you post on them can wind up in the feed of people who don't follow you. Therefore, anyone can become the day’s punching bag. Does your relative really understand what could happen if you put your interaction with them on TikTok?

Maybe you know better than to post Grandpa on Twitter without thinking it through. We know whether our friends and family like attention and whether they understand social media ecosystems, and with this knowledge we are capable of making informed decisions as to whether and on what platforms we should post them. We do not have the same knowledge of strangers. That can be a reason to not post them, but it can also be an excuse to post them without thinking.

If it came out that an influencer uploaded an interaction with a stranger to a private Facebook page or Discord server solely so their closest friends and family could pick them apart, it would rightly be considered misanthropic. And yet uploading a stranger so millions can mock and over-analyze them is just the business of content. That business needs to change.

It’s exceedingly unlikely we’ll ever eliminate jackassery from the internet, but a social media mishap involving a friend or family member can be resolved with communication.

It is harder for a complete stranger to succeed in that endeavor, especially when “Look at this weirdo I found, please gape at them” is the text or subtext of so many videos and posts by accounts that thrive on content starring the unwilling. Such content must become anathema. Particular thought must be taken before posting an interaction with a stranger, and the consent of a stranger to be posted at all is necessary to retain an internet that is even remotely civil. If someone does post a stranger without their consent, they should be shunned, not rewarded with the attention they crave.

The vast majority of disputes with unruly neighbors are solved by talking to them. Ideally, the law only gets involved when lines of communication break down. The same can be true of digital disputes.

We have privacy laws. If I were to post your name, address, and phone number, you would have legal recourse. And yet the same is not true for your image. Today, at least, you surrender your right to privacy by stepping into public. But outdated privacy laws are catching up to the abuses of government and tech, and the issues raised by social media virality could be next.

Still, a blanket law against posting strangers without their consent would be draconian and unworkable. There are too many variables, too many circumstances, and simply too many cases. However, whole generations who have been online since birth—sometimes unwillingly—could grow up to be more sensitive to the downsides of posting without permission, prompting a normative shift.

More specific laws are already evolving to handle some scenarios raised by nonconsensual virality, specifically as it applies to children. Irina Raicu of Santa Clara University’s Internet Ethics Program points out that a recent French law entitles child influencers to demand that platforms scrub all trace of them once they turn 16. The YouTube career their parents create for them—or force on them—need not be what defines them as adults. The United States is considering a similar law; a woman who testified to a House committee said the details of her first period were turned into content.

Another law being considered in France would make parents responsible for their children’s privacy rights. Le Monde cites, as an example of fame-seeking behavior that France is hoping to discourage, TikTokkers scaring their children by pretending to call the police on them, and an Instagrammer who smeared chocolate on her 4-year-old and convinced them they were covered in feces. We will eventually wonder how parents were able to get away with this at all.

So those who cannot consent are starting to be protected. But what about those who could consent, but don’t? And what if, as some unwillingly viral subjects have found, reaching out and asking for posts to be removed is met with silence or rejection?

In reality we already practice social media consent; it is not unusual to ask a friend if they’re alright with having a picture posted to Instagram, even though the face they make as they try to cram an unusually large sandwich into their mouth is not a flattering one. And yet we continually fail to extend this courtesy to strangers, either because we think nothing of it or because it is our job to go viral at all costs.

Some of this, as Raicu points out, can be blamed on the platforms we use, which encourage hair triggers. “There are ways in which the design choices behind many websites make it harder for all of us to think about consent,” Raicu wrote in an email. She points to the sheer ease of posting and the fact that norms around social media consent have not solidified. But she notes that platforms could “introduce some friction” in the form of, essentially, reminders that other people are human before you hit Post.

Future platforms could work to curtail shaming, either out of moral compulsion or legal necessity. Much as you can report harassment to social media platforms, posts that have elevated you to infamy against your will should be fair targets.

Lines have been drawn before. YouTube banned dangerous pranks and challenges after people were hurt and complaints mounted. TikTok is trying to tweak its algorithm in response to growing concerns that young users are awash in content encouraging suicide and incel ideology. Content made from those unable or unwilling to consent is a broad category that cannot be wiped out with algorithmic tweaks, but the damage is still happening, and we have the power to collectively declare that some forms of content are unacceptable and must no longer be tolerated.

Perhaps, given the increasing universality of social media usage—83 percent of Gen Z uses TikTok—platform-embedded tools could establish consent. Before posting a video of someone, an influencer could ask their username and send them a simple, stock contract granting them permission to post. Again, this need not apply to every random photo of friends. It could be optional, or it might apply only when an account reaches a certain threshold of followers. But a lack of permission could give a user cause when they cite unwanted virality and negative attention when asking for a post to be removed.

But most of the work will fall to people. It's difficult enough to remember that the man being a bit rude in the grocery store line is a fallible human being with hopes and dreams; it can be almost impossible to remind yourself of that when viewing a contextless clip of someone halfway across the hemisphere. The internet is capable of connecting us to tremendous numbers of people, even as it makes us forget that they are human like us.

An influencer comfortable with filming themselves for thousands of viewers should be comfortable with approaching a stranger and saying, “Would you mind appearing in a video I’m making? I’m going to post it on this platform, and I have this many followers. Take a minute to check me out.” Some already do, and surely there are people who would be happy to receive a free bouquet in exchange for appearing in a TikTokker’s silly stunt. But a no should be taken as a no, just as it should in any other scenario involving consent.

It’s all too easy to skip this step today. People who speak out when they feel harmed by what an influencer did with their image receive only a tiny fraction of the attention that the original posts featuring them got. But when an influencer is repeatedly called out for exploiting strangers—or when their exploitation is obvious, such as when they prey on the homeless—they should be frozen out of the social media ecosystem, not rewarded with attention and profit.

In the future, how will we be able to see such casual cruelty as anything but unethical? Maybe stories of regret are a sign of what’s to come. Brianna Wu, one of the victims of GamerGate, says she has fielded over 100 apologies, often from people who were at their lowest and saw her as an easy outlet for their emotions. But we generally don’t take our frustrations out on people on the street; understanding that people deserve to be protected from unsolicited online fame and malice is the next logical step.

We no longer parade people through villages on a cart or lock them in pillories in the town square to shame them, as was done in centuries past. We did not stop enforcing laws and norms, but we recognized that humiliation and ostracization are harsh, counterproductive tools. Eventually, we will make that realization about the strangers we parade across the internet.

[blueiscoool]

Massive Find of 500 Bronze Age Relics Acquired by Scottish Museum

The National Museums Scotland has snapped up the 2020 find known as the Peebles Hoard.

When metal detectorist Mariusz Stępień’s detector pinged in the Scottish Borders in 2020, he could never have guessed he was about to uncover one of the most extraordinary archaeological finds in Scottish history. Now, three years later, this remarkable collection of Bronze Age artifacts—dubbed the Peebles Hoard—has found its permanent home at National Museums Scotland, where it continues to astonish experts with its secrets.

The Peebles Hoard contains over 500 bronze and organic artifacts dating back to 1000–800 B.C.E. The collection includes several items never before found in western Europe, promising to transform current understanding of Bronze Age Scotland, after lying undisturbed for three millennia.

Among the hoard’s most significant finds are two rattle pendants—the first ever discovered in Scotland. These intricate objects, typically found in Denmark, northern Germany, and northern Poland, consist of interlinked bronze rings and pendant plates that would rattle when attached to horses or wooden vehicles. Their discovery demonstrates Scotland’s participation in a broader North Sea trading network during the Bronze Age.

The treasure trove’s preservation is nothing short of miraculous. A sword still snug in its wooden scabbard, delicate bronze buttons still threaded on their original cords, and intricate decorative straps that look almost ready to use, though their exact purpose remains a mystery.

An extraordinary hoard called for extraordinary excavation measures, requiring the use of an innovative retrieval process. The entire hoard was removed from the ground as a single block and underwent CT scanning at the University of Southampton’s µ-VIS X-ray Imaging Centre. This revealed some of the earliest evidence of lost-wax casting in Scotland, a sophisticated bronze-working technique rarely documented in Bronze Age Britain.

“The Peebles Hoard is exceptional,” said Matthew Knight, senior curator of Prehistory at National Museums Scotland, in a statement. “It’s an utterly unique discovery that rewrites our understanding of both Bronze Age communities in Scotland and our prehistoric international connections.”

The scanning itself proved to be no simple feat, according to Ian Sinclair from Southampton’s µ-VIS X-ray Imaging Centre. “CT scanning the hoard was certainly a big challenge due to the scale,” he admitted, but his team relished bringing their engineering expertise to such a remarkable historical find.

Now, National Museums Scotland faces its next challenge: raising funds to preserve these priceless artifacts for future generations. With delicate organic materials threatening to deteriorate, conservators are racing against time to unlock all the secrets this extraordinary collection has yet to reveal about the ancient world’s international trade, craftsmanship, and style.

By Adnan Qiblawi.

[lets-try-some-writing]

just curious, if you ever put The guiding hand in your fics, what will they be like?

https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Guiding_Hand

Difficult to say. I think the way I would integrate it into the Aligned Continuity lore that I personally use for my fics would be something along these lines:

Before the Thirteen, there were the five. They were not truly Cybertronian, and rather they were pieces of Primus's own spark that he forged into Avatars to help him fight against Unicron. He imbued each with part of his personality, emotion, and desire. This led them to each shift enough to become their own entities in the sense of split spark twins. They are the same, and yet while they live in different frames, they are not united.

These Avatars were not children of Primus, they WERE Primus. Despite greater numbers, the broken focus of the god of Creation led to little to no changes in the battle of Chaos and Order. The eternal struggle continued, but as it did so, Unicron gained the upper hand through Adaptus. The transformation god was able to have his loyalties shifted through Unicron's manipulations which convinced him that Primus would refuse to allow for any change when the battle was won. As a being who was made to change, Adaptus could not allow this and quickly turned on his fellows.

The result was catastrophic.

Adaptus broke Epistemus, which resulted in the gift of intelligence being gifted to all living beings but ended with Primus losing the ability to see and know all at the same time. Only a small shard of him remained, and that shard was eventually forged into the Covenant of Primus, a relic capable of reading the echoes of Epistemus and recording them as it is required. Unfortunately, following Epistemus's scattering, Primus was forced to focus on one thing at a time to see its truth.

Adaptus attacked Mortilus next, and while gravely wounded, he did not die. So to preserve him, Primus created the Allspark from him. That way he would not perish and all life that was or would be would be secured. (There is a reason Unicron despises the Allspark so much, and it is because Mortilus protects Primus's children from true death and reabsorption into Primus himself.)

Solomus was the only one who escaped the unexpected betrayal unscathed. And he and Adaptus battled as Primus fought to hold Unicron at bay while also saving what little he could of Mortilus with Epistemus scatted to the winds. Their conflict was so brutal that their identities began to blur. Wisdom and transformation morphed as they tore each other apart. The biggest molded piece of their frames became Vector Sigma. The rest were reabsorbed by Primus, which is what ultimately allowed him to create children that could grow physically, mentally, and spiritually while also limiting his influence with Vector Sigma now stuck as a physical object.

Back to square one, Primus was desperate. He saved what he could, but this time he knew he had to try again. He needed warriors that were not extensions of himself, beings that could act on their own and not be predictable. He needed creatures who could adapt, who could learn, and who could become capable of gaining the upper hand on the Unmaker.

This is how the Thirteen were born. Instead of turning himself into many mecha, Primus instead cultivated new sparks through small echoes of his. He fed them pieces of Solomus and Adapatus and what little he still had of Epistemus. And from all this, the Thirteen Primes came into being, not knowing any had come before them.

The Guiding Hand were pieces of Primus that live on only in the vague memory of the Thirteen. They are legends, and while Alpha Trion knows the truth, the rest of the Primes believe the Guiding Hand to be some sort of parable that they cannot decipher. They do not know, and they don't need to. It is irrelevant to them.

This is how I would integrate The Guiding Hand.

[faeriefrolic]

Sadly after this, my save file in Riverview kept crashing nonstop- and no amount of reset towns or cleansing could save it. So I had to give in and call gen 2's chapter closed: it's been a long, long ride. I sadly didn't get to do everything in the objectives, but it was a LONG gen with all the traveling involved and double heir was chaotic. There were times I wanted to just scrap the double heir idea and just focus on Holly, since Brooke's collection objectives and photography was a pain to do with everything else I was trying to accomplish. I put too much on my plate, which I won't be doing again, lesson learned. All in all, it was fun, and there were a LOT of cool new moments I never got to do before (like the Sphynx! The Mummy transformation! Martial Arts!) and things that surprised me, but I am really looking forward to what gen 3 has in store! To Ambitions we go!!! Scores and more under the cut!

Gen 2: White

WORLD ADVENTURES

Move to Barnacle Bay or Riverview +5 points-

    a. Here I Go Again [Explorer] 🗺

• Have the Explorer and/or Brave trait +0.5 point

• Travel to Egypt, France, and China +0.5 point

• Marry a local from travel location +0.5 point

• Have child(ren) with local +1 point

• Showcase private collection in home +0.5

• Gain all visa levels +1 point

• Complete all tombs +1 point

• Master the Martial Arts Skill +1 point

• Master the Nectar Making Skill +1 point

• Create a perfect quality nectar and age it until the end of the challenge! +10 points

• Complete the LTW 'Great Explorer' +1 point

• Complete the LTW 'Martial Arts Master' +1 point

• Complete the LTW 'Bottomless Nectar Cellar' +1 point

    b. Photographer & Collector 📷 💎

• Have the Photographer's Eye and/or the Gatherer trait +0.5 point

• Take photos of all living family members +0.5 points

• Master the Photography Skill +1 point

• Complete all photography collections +1 point

• Collect all Plants +1 point

• Collect all Gems +1 point

• Collect all Metals +1 point

• Collect all Space Rocks +1 point

• Collect all Fish +1 point

• Collect all Butterflies +1 point

• Collect all Fireflies +1 point

• Collect all Beetles +1 point

• Collect all Recipes +1 point

• Collect all Relics +1 point

• Collect all Canopic Jars from Egypt on your home lot +1

• Complete the LTW 'The Visionary' +1 point

+Bonus+ ⚰

• Collect all pieces of the Cursed Sarcophagus of Kings and after assembling sleep in it for 16 hours. To turn back be sure to have Blessed Sarcophagus assembled and then sleep in it for 8 hours. +1

• Become a Mummy +1 point +Gain points for+:

• Heir topping career: +4 points. (brooke)

• Heir topping part-time career as a teen: +1 points.

• Heir getting an A in school as a teen. +0.5 points

• Heir completing their LTW: +5 points.

• Heir Mastered a non-required skill +1 points

Brooke: Charisma, Gardening

• Heir completes a Skill Challenge +1 x11

 Holly: Menu Maven, Gem Collector, Metal Collector

Brooke: Celebrity, Personable, Super Friendly, Everybodys Best Friend, Menu Maven, Master Planter, Gem Collector, Metal Collector, Photog, Architectural Eye

• Heir having more than two children: +1 points per child. 

• Have every unique gnome on the legacy lot at once +1 point

• Have a family cemetery on lot +1 point 

• For every Heir buried there +1 point

+Rainbowcy Points🌈+:

• Child matching their generation namesake with body parts when born: +3 points

• Keeping a portrait room with each heir’s portrait hanging in it: +10 points

• Heir getting matching ghost colour upon death: +5 points each.

-Lose points for-:

• Sim choosing a different career to that allocated to generation: -10 points

• Sim not completing their LTW: -2 points (brooke and holly)

• Not achieving a generation objective: -0.5 points

• Receiving a random trait upon age up -0.5 points

• Heir getting a D in school - 0.5 points

• Heir getting fired from their job - 2 points

GEN 2 TOTAL POINTS: 43.5 Here's the museum at the time gen 2 ended!

Holly's Adventure Journal:

Brooke's Adventure Journal:

[minijenn]

Story Summary: What would happen if the Crystal Gems had settled down in a place other than Beach City, a little backwoods town just west of weird…? What if, upon coming to Gravity Falls for the summer, Dipper and Mabel were to befriend Steven and Connie? What kind of magical, mysterious adventures would they have? And, how would they fare against the combined threats of merciless Homeworld Gems and a certain triangular demon?

Find out what happens when Magic and Mystery meet in Universe Falls...

Chapter Summary: After accidentally unleashing a horde of light monsters upon Gravity Falls, its up to Steven, Connie, Dipper, and Mabel to team up to save the day by attacking the light! “Oh, Steven!” Pearl’s voice trilled through the house as she, Garnet, and Amethyst warped in from their latest mission. While Steven had spent much of the morning engrossed in an engaging new RPG, the second the Gems arrived, his controller was tossed aside in favor of greeting them.  “You’re back!” he cheered as he sprinted down from the loft.  “Hello, Steven,” Garnet said. Between her hands, a strange, triangular object hovered, awash in a gentle aura of light. As soon as Steven spotted it, he was captivated. He always was whenever the Gems happened to bring home any mystical relics from their distant, daring quests.  “What’s that?” he asked with an eager, intrigued smile.  “This is an ancient Gem weapon known as a Light Prism,” Pearl eloquently explained. “In the hands of a powerful Gem, it could be used to command an entire army of light!” “Whoa, cool!” Steven exclaimed, stars in his eyes. “Can I see it?” “Oh, no,” Pearl quickly shook her head. “Absolutely not. It’s very dangerous. Well… in the hands of a powerful Gem anyway.” “But in the hands of Steven,” Amethyst shrugged. “Eh, not so much.”

Click the link to read more; all comments are appreciated!

[imadeitworseyourwelcome]

TFP Predacon Smokescreen AU

A loud hiss of air roused him from unconsciousness. His legs, unprepared to carry the weight of his frame, gave out. He stumbled and fell forward, but gentle hands caught and guided him to the ground.

He blinked rapidly, his blurry surroundings slowly came into focus. He was in a small, dimly lit room, a cool mist hung in the air.

A voice spoke softly, "Easy now,"

He looked up to its origin, a tall older mech with a grey beard. They met his eyes with a soft smile, "I am Alpha Trion. What is your designation?"

"I'm Smokescreen... where am I?" The opposite wall of the room was floor to ceiling with shelves of datapads.

"Iacon, hall of records,"

"...Iacon?" That couldn't be right... he knew better than to go near that place. He searched his memory but he couldn't remember how he got here...

"We do not have much time," the old bot said, shaking their head slightly, "I wish I could explain everything..."

Smokescreen could make out distant rumbling of gunfire and explosions.

His eyes widened, "What's going on?"

"The decepticons have launched a massive surge that has wiped out the last line of defense surrounding Iacon."

"Decepticons?" Smokescreen quietly echoed the unfamiliar word, "I don't understand."

"After everything you've been through-" he was cut off by another explosion, closer this time. The room shook, sending datapads raining to the ground.

Whatever was coming was getting close.

"..As you can see, we are short on time," Alpha Trion looked at him with sorrow, "I am sorry to have to ask this of you, to drag you into our war.."

War?

Smokescreen tensed, pulling away from the old bot, "What?"

"You must take this," he presented a golden object, "and deliver it to Optimus Prime,"

"Why would I help you?" Smokescreen flared his plating, "I don't know who you are- I don't know what's going on-" he snapped.

"This is not for my benefit, if the decepticons get ahold of this relic, cybertron will truly be lost." He insisted, "You are a powerful cybertronian, I trust that you can keep it from falling into the wrong hands."

"No. I won't." Smokescreen growled, "I don't want to be part of your war!" he took a step back and started to transform. But his plating had barely started to shift before he cried out, doubling over in pain.

Alpha Trion moved to his side, and placed a hand softly on Smokescreen's trembling shoulder, "What did you do to me?" Smokescreen hissed up at him.

Alpha Trion's expression softened, "You... have a mode lock on,"

Smokescreen stiffened, then pushed him away. His door wings knocked against the something behind him.

A quick glance over his shoulder revealed the source of the cold mist still hanging in the air. An open stasis pod.

"Bring this to Optimus, and he will help you get it removed,"

"As long as I do what you say?" He growled

"I know he would help you either way." Alpha Trion sighed, "You do not deserve this fate," he said gesturing to the stasis pod he had come out of. "Once you deliver this, you are free- you do not have to fight our war."

Smokescreen narrowed his eyes, "Remove it first." He demanded

"I cannot. I do not have the skill nor time to remove it here."

The room shook, gunfire was extremely close now. Alpha Trion pressed the key into Smokescreen's hands with a final pleading look.

"Fine." Smokescreen snarled as he took the key. He gritted his teeth, the mode lock pulled as he tucked the relic into his subspace. "Who am I looking for?"

"Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots." Alpha Trion passed Smokescreen a small piece of red metal with an engraved design, "Take this, it is an autobot badge. Once you get to Earth find the autobots. Tell them you were sent by Alpha Trion and give the omega key to Optimus. I promise, no harm will come to you."

A prime?

He couldn't help but sneer. Hopefully this Prime didn't have the same feelings towards predacons that the others did.

On Earth? The irony wasn't lost on him. That planet was one that many predacons had fled to. The ones that could find a way traverse space at least.

He didn't trust his words, his empty promises. But, by taking this relic he could leave. He didn't need his help or pity.

The gunfire had ceased. Replaced by heavy footsteps approaching, he faced the door and braced for a fight.

But he never got the chance. There was a sharp pain to the back of his head, and everything went black.

.

.

.

.

He came too once again, disoriented. The back of his head ached, that old bot had suckered punched him.

He should't have let his guard down.

He wasn't in the small room anymore. He gasped as he realized he was surrounded by dead and not quite dead bots.

It brought back memories of the predacons' slaughter- memories he'd rather stay forgotten.

Most wore the same symbol the old bot had given him. If their war had gotten this bad, whatever he was carrying may hold weight than he initially thought..

He took two badges off a fallen autobot, they were slightly different than the one he already had- with bars extending out and slightly up. He placed them on his shoulders, covering his predacon badges. Finally he placed the smaller badge the old bot had given him on his chestplate.

Wearing these, the bots he was to deliver the key to wouldn't see him as a threat. He hoped so at least.

First he had to make it there.

He snuck through the maze of corridors, he couldn't help think he was going in circles.

There had to be a way out of here.

He peered out a small window, and felt his spark drop. Outside was the nothingness of space.

Oh, this day just keeps getting better and better. He silently grumbled to himself.

Now not only did he have to find a way off this ship, he had to find a way to travel through space to Earth.

He wouldn't be able to commandeer the ship alone. This ship was massive- even if he could gain control, he had no idea how to fly the thing.

He quickly flattened himself against the wall as a guard stomped past.

He had to be more careful. This place was maze-like and completely foreign to him.

His captors had the upper hand.

Luckily he was light on his feet, being able to silently stalk the halls. He had to keep on alert, but moving about shouldn't be too difficult.

The steps of another bot echoed closer. Smokescreen ducked away, into a side room. Inside, one wall was lined with circular doors. He peaked inside, it almost looked like.. a cockpit?

An escape pod!

He hit the button to open the door, immediately a flashing red light lit up the room. He could hear a muffled alarm through the walls.

He jumped into the pod and frantically tapped on the console.

He must have hit the right button because the door rolled close and sealed.

Smokescreen was forced back into the seat as the escape jets rocketed him away from the ship.

An alert popped up on the small display screen, with a graphic of a bar slowly decended. Foreign symbols flashed beside it.

The pod was getting colder and colder. So cold it felt the like frost had begun growing in his veins.

His panic rised as the temperature fell, he didn't know how to read the warnings.. commandeered the ship was beginning to sound like the better plan..

Then, as though a switch was forcefully being flipped, he fell into darkness again.

[justanotherperson1]

Hi Hi!!

This is my first time asking on Tumblr, and your blog is probably the only one I was super drawn to. I love all of your art and your love for Bayverse Optimus. Bayverse Optimus is my favorite iteration of the character, and I always come up with some head fanfiction about how he would act in Transformers: Prime and the IDW comics.

Is there an in-universe reason for how Bay Op got to the Transformers: Prime world? This whole AU could be a great fanfiction if someone wrote it (not me, though). I also wondered how Bay Optimus would react if Prime Optimus hugged him straight up.

Hi Hi!

First ask… that’s pretty special! Thank you! I love that you enjoy my little corner of the fandom so much!! And you pose a really good question. So, as far as I puzzled it out, the ‘jump’ from the Bay! Universe to the Prime! Universe would have happened with some fuckery with a relic from one of the origional 13 Primes- Vector Prime. The guy was a demention and time hopper and in ‘Solus Prime’ fashion, would have left something behind that contained some of his power. Optimus gets ahold of it, and with his Prime-y power activates it, so another one of ‘him’ gets ripped out of his own universe and brought into TFP. I didn’t really know if I wanted a scientist of sorts to have tried to replicate Vector’s technological artifacts he may have left behind, or it just be Vector’s object itself though. Following the scientist’s route, the machine would have been powered with energy pods that would have to have been tracked down for multiple uses. The energy pod it would have been preloaded with would be used on-contact, and then the story would be kind of framed around Team Prime trying to find more (and prehaps Bay! cutting a deal with Megatron to use his resourses to get home but IDK).

As for the hug? The both neeeeeeed one for sure, but neither would ask. IF tackled with one Bay! Would probably try to unlatch immediately like a cat in a bathtub. A horrible case really. Tfp, if he would do it, would have to approach Bay! as though it was HIS idea, and if it worked it would probably be the epitome of the meme “What’s this? Affection? Pathetic… but do it again.”

[hattiestgal]

Doodle Game!

Perhaps Kiera could get a taste of her own medicine with a cursed object backfiring? Nothing too crazy of course, just a minor inconvenient change?

Sometimes when you retrieve an old magical relic of 100% legitimate origin, you aren't entirely sure what all the effects of said cu- I mean, magical relic really are until you try them yourself.

Typically, the effects are simple transformations, magic Kiera can reverse on her own quite easily, but when it comes to something like say... overwhelming subconscious gluttony, it becomes a little harder to rid yourself of the effects of. Luckily, it seems like her kobolds are happy to indulge her new appetite!

[thecreaturecodex]

Dream Lord, Manus

"Artorias vs Manus" © twitter user Max58Art, accessed at The Art of Video Games here

[Sponsored by Soluman Blevins. Manus is the Bonus Boss of Dark Souls, whose lore is deeply woven into the game but can only be fought in an expansion. In universe, his title is Father of the Abyss, but the Abyss in Dark Souls and the Abyss in D&D/Pathfinder are two very different things. So I struggled for a while of where to put him. As a nascent demon lord? As a Great Old One? I finally decided on Dream Lord, a category of my own invention, which at this point is made up of demigods from video games whose lore and magic systems do not intersect nicely with any form of Pathfinder canon. The Plateau of Leng seems like a reasonable place for the litany of nightmares From Software creates.]

Dream Lord, Manus CR 25 CE Outsider (extraplanar) This creature is vaguely humanoid, but its form has clearly been warped and distorted past the point of caricature. His head is small, with a leering demonic face and a set of antlers. His shoulders are enormous, and multiple sets of rib-like appendages grow from his shoulders and along his upper back, studded with luminous red eyes. His right arm is proportional and carries a staff with a scythe-like blade. His left arm is as thick as his torso, ending in a massive hairy paw with spikes on the underside of the fingers. Shaggy fur, or perhaps simply ribbons of gray-black skin, coat his thighs and a long, lashing tail.

Father of the Chasm, God of Primal Darkness, the Dark Soul CE male Dream Lord of loss, negative energy and obsession Domains Chaos, Darkness, Evil, Madness Subdomains Entropy, Insanity, Loss, Shadow Worshipers denizens of Leng, hoarders, stalkers, vampires Minions mutants, nightshades, shadows, sorrowsworn Unholy Symbol An oversized hand Favored Weapon ogre hook Obedience in complete darkness, spend one hour cutting, whipping or otherwise tearing your skin while meditating on an object or a person you once had in your life but have lost. Gain a +4 profane bonus on saving throws versus positive or negative energy. Once this choice is made, it cannot be reversed Boons 1: darkness 2/day; 2: enervation 2/day; 3: harm 2/day

Manus is a nightmarish beast of darkness, an infection that seeks to cause the horrors of Leng to overrun the Waking World. He was also once a man. The original Manus was a powerful magic user, according to his cult the first mortal to manipulate negative energy. Although his methods were cruel and his goals covetous, he was considered a great hero by his people and was buried with high honors. When his grave was robbed, however, his pendant was stolen from it. The pendant was broken, and whatever magic it contained had long seeped out of it, but Manus’ obsessive desire to reclaim his property caused his soul and memory to go wild, transforming into a creature of pure nightmare. Manus’ mausoleum is now the heart of the Chasm of the Abyss, a demiplane coterminous between Leng and the Material Plane, and it is here where the Father of the Chasm resides.

Manus wants things. His broken pendant most of all. His cultists sweep the planes searching for this relic, and whatever they find instead, they offer as tribute. Manus’ lair contains piles and piles of valuables, the riches of a dozen realities and a thousand kingdoms, and he cares for none of it except his amulet. Of course, it is the nature of his madness that if Manus ever retrieved his broken pendant, he would certainly find a new indignity to focus on and object or person to obsess over. He also collects hostages, although he rarely exchanges them and more often warps them into mutants or madmen through his very presence. Manus’ worshipers are as obsessive as he is, and his faith is attractive to stalkers, hoarders, social climbers and other people with warped and envious desires.

Combat is one of the few things that allows Manus to forget his pain and obsessions, and tends to attack first and ask questions of the corpses of his victims later. Although he is a powerful spellcaster, he usually leads with his physical attacks. He uses his channel negative energy ability to empower the Manus Catalyst, his signature hooked staff. Against multiple opponents, he tries to spread his attacks out, enjoying the suffering he causes before finishing them off with a mighty swat of his grotesquely hypertrophied hand. He usually doesn’t use his signature supernatural attack, in which he fires globes of cold and negative energy at his enemies, until reduced to below half hit points. Manus has not needed to flee a combat for thousands of years, and his arrogance and obsession is likely to lead him to fight to the death.

Manus Catalyst (minor artifact) Slot none; Aura strong necromancy; CL 21st; Weight 20 lbs. The Manus Catalyst is Manus’ signature weapon. It is a Large +1 unholy brilliant energy ogre hook that acts as a void scythe for the purposes of channeling negative energy and consuming the bodies of those it kills. The wielder can activate its brilliant energy property or dismiss it on command. A creature that holds the Manus Catalyst gains a +2 to the save DC of all spells and spell-like abilities that it uses of the necromancy school.

Manus CR 25 XP 1,640,000 CE Huge outsider (chaos, evil, extraplanar) Init +10; Senses blindsense 120 ft., darkvision 60 ft., Perception +42, see in darkness Aura lost humanity (240 ft.)

Defense AC 43, touch 23, flat-footed 37(-2 size, +6 Dex, +9 deflection, +20 natural) hp 585 (30d10+420); regeneration 20 (lawful) Fort +24, Ref +23, Will +26 DR 20/lawful and epic; Immune bleed, charm, compulsion, cold, death effects, disease, poison, sleep; Resist electricity 20; SR 36 Defensive Abilities fortification (50%), freedom of movement, negative energy affinity, shield of dreams

Offense Speed 50 ft. Melee Manus Catalyst +45/+40/+35/+30 (2d8+19/19-20 x3 plus 2d6 unholy), slam +46 (4d8+36), gore +41 (2d8+9), tail slap +41 (1d12+9) or slam +46 (4d8+36), gore +46 (2d8+18), tail slap +41 (1d12+9) Space 15 ft.; Reach 15 ft. Special Attacks awesome strike, channel negative energy (10d6, DC 34, 14/day), dark orb barrage, frenzy (30 rounds/day), oversized arm, profane channeling Spell-like Abilities CL 25th, concentration +34 Constant—freedom of movement, tongues At will—arcane sight, call spirit (DC 24), confusion (DC 23), deeper darkness, enervation, inflict critical wounds (DC 25), psychic reading, unhallow 3/day—blasphemy (DC 26), finger of death (DC 28), greater dispel magic, quickened harm (DC 27), hungry darkness, insanity (DC 26) 1/day—curse of night, divide mind, energy drain (DC 30), gate (to Plateau of Leng, Chasm of the Abyss or Material Plane only), summon (1 advanced nightcrawler, 100%, 9th level), wail of the banshee (DC 30)

Statistics Str 46, Dex 23, Con 39, Int 24, Wis 29, Cha 28 Base Atk +30; CMB +52 (+54 bull rush, overrun); CMD 77 (79 vs. bull rush, overrun) Feats Awesome Blow, Blind Fight, Charge Through, Combat Reflexes, Extra Channel, Greater Vital Strike, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Critical (ogre hook), Improved Initiative, Improved Overrun, Improved Vital Strike, Lucid Dreamer (B), Power Attack, Quicken SLA (harm), Stand Still, Vital Strike Skills Appraise +40, Climb +48, Intimidate +39, Knowledge (arcana, planes, religion) +40, Knowledge (dungeoneering, history) +37, Perception +50, Sense Motive +42, Spellcraft +40, Stealth +39, Survival +39; Racial Modifiers +8 Perception,+8 Stealth Languages Aklo, Common, Necril, Shadowtongue, tongues

Ecology Environment underground (Chasm of the Abyss) Organization unique Treasure triple standard

Special Abilities Aura of Lost Humanity (Su) Any humanoid that spends 24 hours within 240 feet of Manus must make a Fortitude save or gain the mutant template. The save DC starts at 10, then increases by +2 every day until it reaches its maximum DC, 34. If a creature is transformed in this fashion, it must make a Will save at the same DC or become chaotic evil in alignment. The save DC is Charisma based. Awesome Strike (Ex) When Manus uses makes a single attack using his Vital Strike chain of feats, he may make a combat maneuver as if using Awesome Blow if it hits with this attack. Channel Energy (Su) Manus can channel negative energy as if he were a 20th level cleric. He does not gain other cleric class abilities, such as spells or domains. Dark Orb Barrage (Su) As a standard action, Manus can fire a barrage of orbs of destructive darkness. Manus makes a single ranged touch attack against all creatures in a 60 foot cone. A creature struck takes 25d6 points of damage, half of which is cold and half is negative energy. A creature struck by a dark orb must succeed a DC 34 Fortitude save or be blinded for 1d4+1 rounds. This save DC is Charisma based. Manus can use this ability at will, but must wait 1d4 rounds between uses. Dream Lord Traits (Ex/Su) Manus is a dream lord, a powerful outsider native to the Dimension of Dreams. Dream lords gain the following abilities:

Immune to charm, compulsion, disease, poison and sleep effects

Immune to one energy type and resistance to another two energy types. Instead of being one of his resistances, Manus is immune to bleed and death effects.

A dream lord’s natural weapons, and any weapon it wields, count as chaotic and magical for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction

Occult (Ex) A dream lord gains Lucid Dreamer as a bonus feat, and can use  occult skill unlocks even if it lacks other psychic magic

Shield of Dreams (Su) A dream lord adds its Charisma modifier as a deflection bonus to its AC and CMD

Summon (Sp) Once per day, a dream lord can summon a CR 19 or lower encounter of thematically appropriate monsters.

Dream lords can grant spells to worshipers as detailed in their divine information. A worshiper can gain boons from performing an obedience to a dream lord, as per the Deific Obedience feat, but the boons granted are simple, appearing as a 2nd, 4th and 6th level spell usable as a spell-like ability twice per day.

Frenzy (Su) Manus can act as if under a haste spell for a number of rounds a day equal to his Hit Dice. Activating or ending this ability is a free action. Oversized Arm (Ex) Manus’ left arm always makes slam attacks as a primary natural weapon, even when Manus is wielding manufactured weapons. He deals twice his Strength modifier to damage with his slam attack. Manus’ slam deals bludgeoning and piercing damage. Profane Channeling (Su) Whenever Manus uses his channel negative energy, he can choose to do so as a swift action, to maximize the damage dealt (or healed), or double the area of the effect. Manus can choose only one of these enhancements at a time.

[theloverstomb]

Such violent acts can inspire a surprising range of emotions. Feelings like grief, disgust and shame are to be expected, but these negative reactions are often mirrored by a sense of intimacy and wonder. Holding a severed head in your hands, even cutting off another person’s head, can be a thrill. Owning somebody else’s head can be a fascinating and deeply moving experience. It can be an expression of respect or an act of abuse, or both at once. People invariably treat severed heads as prized possessions, since they are hardly commonplace objects. Whether as a religious relic, a pseudo-scientific icon, an artist’s muse or a soldier’s memento mori, countless human heads have been transformed into vessels for reverence.

Frances Larson Severed: A History of Heads Lost and Heads Found

[violettavonviolet]

Ironstrange, Tony Stark/Stephen Strange fic recs

Hey guys, I have another fic rec list; the word count goes up as you scroll down, all fics are finished and amazing! Be aware of the warnings that are tagged, and show the others some love!

if you have any other ships you'd like a rec list for sent me a message/ask!

Cockthistle Thundercunt

TenSpencerRiedPlease

Summary:

Christine gives him a once over and smiles a little, “you really don’t believe in the soul mate thing? Come on, I’m sure you have a phrase. Test it on him,” she says, nodding at a tall, attractive Asian guy headed their way. Tony sighs and decides to humor her because it never works- she’s not the first to test his theory. 

“Cockthistle thundercunt,” he says as soon as the poor bastard he’s testing this on gets close enough to hear. Imagine his intense surprise when he gets an offended noise of frustration.

“You made me walk around with cockthistle thundercunt on my body my whole life- you have no idea how embarrassing that is!” he snaps.

Crack 2k

 I Tried to Be Chill (but you're so hot I melted)

dls

Summary:

"I just...haven't considered I'd be open to something like that, you know? But Stephen changed my mind."

"As long as you're happy, Tony, I'm happy."

Or: 5 Times Tony Stark's Friends Thought He was Dating Stephen Strange and the 1 Time They Realized He was Dating the Sorcerer Supreme.

Super sweet 3k

Tony Stark's secret husband

cutebutpsyco

Summary:

It’s not like they wanted to keep the secret because they didn’t. They never spoke about going public with their wedding, and nobody but for tabloids ever asked either Stark or Stephen about their romantic lives so, again, Tony wouldn’t blame either himself or Stephen for keeping it between the two of them.

3k secret relationships

 Invictus

Wix

Summary:

After the fight in Siberia, Tony opens his eyes and starts down a new path with new friends and family alike, even with the shadow of a particular ex-Avenger hovering over him.

Pretty bashy for cap. America

7k

Sense of Being

Breyito

Summary:

Relics are not something out of the ordinary in the lives of sorcerers. Sentient relics are more unique. A relic that can express thoughts and emotions as the Cloak does? Almost unprecedented. There is not much written about the Cloak of Levitation; which doesn't make easier for people to understand them. The concept of an object not being a possession, but somewhat their own person is difficult to grasp for many; respect it, even more so.

The fact that Tony Stark, a man who hates everything related to the Mystic Arts didn't even blink when introduced to the Cloak is not something Stephen had the chance to think about when they met; but it certainly makes him curious now, after things are back to normal.

The contradictions that are part of the Golden Avenger make him even more interesting than he already is; more tempting than he should be. Stephen and the Cloak start spending more time in the Compound, in Tony’s sanctuary, his workshop, and with his creations. The two men start opening up to each other and what was only attraction quickly transforms into something deeper.

No one saw the implications of what letting Dum-E and the Cloak bond would mean.

(Also, Stephen panics. But only minimally.)

8k pretty funny

Embers

surveycorpsjean

Summary:

They’re horribly different in all the best ways.

8k

Living in the Shadows of Denial

orphan_account

Summary:

From this prompt I found on Tumblr:

Soulmates can share abilities. So, like, if your soulmate is a good cook, you can use their talents when you need to make a really tasty dish. It usually only occurs once you know who the soulmate is.

However, I want there to be an Avenger AU where Strange is hit and unresponsive and Tony is pissed and uses magic (from Strange) to wreak havoc on their foe- like raining fire type chaos. When the smoke clears, everyone is looking at Tony and he has an 'oh sh*t' moment as he realizes that he was a soulmate and his soulmate is one Stephen Strange.

9k super sweet soul mates

the seduction of a gentleman - a tale of obliviousness and blue balls

graveltotempo

Summary:

Tony has been the most eligible bachelor omega of America for years now:

getting into Stephen Strange's pants should not be very hard for him.

What Tony did not expect, however, was that Doctor and Sorcerer Supreme Stephen Vincent Strange is... a gentleman.

oh boy.

9k explicit a/b/o

Tony and the Neurosurgeon

ArcticVulpix

Summary:

JARVIS would only accept the best for sir. So a doctor who can keep up with Tony's banter and with a high enough intelligence to understand him was pretty high up on the list.

10 k

i babysat god and he stabbed me with a fork

surveycorpsjean

Summary:

If these two idiots don’t sort out their shit real soon, Loki is going to stab everyone in this room and then himself.

11k humor

Stranger Danger

graveltotempo

Summary:

DUM-E has noticed that lately, DAD-E has been spending a lot of time with another man, and he really does not like the looks they share with each other.

The rest of the bot + humans + AI + synthezoid family does not seem to mind this stranger, but DUM-E does mind. He minds verymuch.

Thank god he is the oldest and the best equipped to deal with the danger (he truly is the BEST BOT). This STEV-E with a PH better watch out!

11k super funny

Of They and Them

surveycorpsjean

Summary:

When faced with the brink of death, Stephen is forced to pull one last spell out of his sleeve. It's deemed to fail anyways. Except it doesn't. 

A full fusion can only be done by the two most compatible souls in the universe. 

Well, aren't they lucky.

13k finished

the one where tony and stephen should really stop eye-fucking each other, hello, thanos is coming?!

graveltotempo

Summary:

The Universe is about to end. Thanos is the formidable foe Tony has been worrying about since the Battle of New York and he's finally coming. That's what Tony is worrying about.

Or should he be worrying about.

But then again who thought throwing him in space with his ex boyfriend was in any way a good idea?

34k iconic

Scars on Your Heart

SailorChibi

Summary:

Determined to stop Thanos by killing him before he collects all the Stones, Tony travels back in time and seeks out the one person who can help him: Dr. Stephen Strange. With less than a week to go before Thanos's ships crashland on Earth, Tony and Strange form an alliance - and, just maybe, start falling in love.

44k

Mystic

TenSpencerRiedPlease

Summary:

Soul mate's names appear on their mate's skin. But the names aren't just the ones on their birth certificate- soul marks detailed every name your soul mate would ever receive throughout their lifetime.

Tony’s soul mate is fucking stupid. This idiot used the name ‘Stephen Strange’ and ‘Dr. Strange’- both of which made sense- but then the final tattoo that liked to appear sometimes was fucking ‘Sorcerer Supreme’. He decided from the moment he saw that embarrassing name he was one hundred percent never, ever going to give two shits about his dumbass soul mate.

Stephen had rolled his eyes so hard when ‘Iron Man’ flitted across his arm for the first time. Well, the first time he could read it. But the other names were interesting too- namely Tony Stark.

53k soulmates

skate fast eat ass

orphan_account

Summary:

nattytaffy: I have good news and bad news

falconfratboy: What

nattytaffy: Good news- bucky and clint aren’t dead

falconfratboy: Bad news?

nattytaffy: They’re under custody at the police station for beating up a hotdog stand guy

falconfratboy: i’m so proud

or: the self indulgent high school au gc fic where all the kids are trying their best

(drawings, questions concerns suggestions etc at my instagram @cryptic_potato).

57k main pairing is steve/bucky, underage , also a series with more focus on them later

Citizen Erased

Imagined

Summary:

What do you do when no one in the world ever manages to remember you?

Anyone who sees Tony Stark promptly forgets he ever existed after mere seconds. When everyone he has ever cared about has lost their memories of him, he goes to Stephen Strange, possibly the only one who can help him lift the curse. But a terrifying danger is coming, and saving the world isn’t an easy job to do when no one can remember who you are.

178k

Spread your wings; guardians of infinity: second chance

Graveltotempo

In 2018, on Earth-199999, Thanos gathered all the Infinity Stones and snapped his fingers. Half of the Universe was promptly dusted, and a third was further killed as a direct consequence of the dusting. Weeks later, Thanos used the Infinity Stones once more and destroyed them - thus destroying the Universe itself.

Stephen Strange saw this, but there was no way to save them or the Universe, no time.

And then the Infinity Stones themselves gave him time. Gave him a second chance to save another Universe, their sister Earth: Earth-200207.

A quest that takes place across space and time, within souls and minds, with power and reality. A bet that could save trillions of people or could condemn them to a future worse than he one of Earth-199999. A game of chess against the butterfly effect, with one single starting player:

7 works 410 k finished

[lets-try-some-writing]

Slight spoiler for beast wars, not really plot relevance but lore that makes me think and give me this idea.

So we all can agree that raf understanding beee is complete nonsense and just suspension of disbelif we need to accept. But what if it wasn't?

So, in the movie there is a small trive that live in close proximity to the maximals, they live in harmony for generations. What if that closeness to a new species affects humans causing them to adapt to better live with them?

Earth in transformers prime is just unicron that had been sleep for a long time in ita center. There is dark energon running close to earth surface (a god damn volcano erupted with it, I'm no expert but that can't happen unless is sources is close to the arth surface) so is not impossible to belive that an ancient human civilization could have found dark energon close to them. Sure they might not know what it is and it is stablish that its toxic for humans. but just been close to it for generations without direct contact might affect human physiology in ways no one might notice. We are an adaptive species. Each generation gets more strong to survive in the environment they ancestors live (people that are not use to the low level of oxygen in mountains and other hight places tend to pass out when reaching that point, is a real thing and there a people that have live in such places without any trouble for generations) what if they could even contact with unicron long ago, like just grab a pieces of dark energon and go "this is your God speaking, why did you interrupt my slumber".

They developed and entire society praising this "god" and its "magic cristals". They eventually died our but jot before being affected by their closeness to unicron

Like being able to understand our aliens cousins. Survive the same letal substance (even if barely) and even survive a regular energon intake even when is supposed to be bad for humans. I don't remember if it was ever stablish what could happen if a human was injected energon, but I still can't belive raf was save that easily, not without it having a reason.

That gave the idea that humans might have inherited some cybertronians traits, particularly those who have live close to energon mines and/or the different relics/predators bones scattered across the planet.

Like this are my ideas of traits the kids have that could be explain has them being close related to people that live in closeness to cybertronian influence.

Raf: smart enough to understand cybertronians technology in a matter of weeks. Can understand bee, and can withstand energon toxicity with ease compare to others.

Miko: it was never explain how she could use the apex amor despite it being made for cybertronians. So an affinity to such technology. I also like to belive that her recklessness can be because subconsciously she might think she is strong enough to survives such dangerous situations. Like her mind is telling her "you are strong, no matter what your body looks like".

Jack: he could use the key to Becton sigma, there is no way a human could have use it unless they were some what in tune with cybertronians technology. He is also drawn to mechanics (it was never a big thing but I remember him trying to build a motorcycle engine, that can't be easy with some deep knowledge)

That being explained. How could the bots find out about this? Simple actually "ancestry research" the kids might have to do a project about their ancestor and can end up telling stories that they hear for their familys and might even have some objects that they show to the bots and they connect the doslts abd found out how close humans actually are to cybertronians.

Like, Miko might have a nekless that is a small Predacon bone.

Raf family can have some small statues made by some strange glowing rock (some purple, some blue and maybe even a red one)

Jack might have a book that is just legends pass down fron his ancestor that are just cybertronian tales that unicron told old humans when he was still awake long ago.

I have more ideas but this thing is long enough what would you think wat are your ideas?

This is a phenomenal idea and I am incredibly pleased you saw fit to share with me. I will gladly take what you have presented and make it more long form.

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙

Remnants of a Bygone Age

When Unicron was cast away long ago by Primus's chosen champions, he could neither move nor sense what was happening around him. Consciousness came in bursts and never for long, and due to the damage sustained during his battle at the beginning of times, his memory from his various waking moments faded like smoke as soon as he returned to slumber. As such he did not recall his interactions with the ancient beginnings of humanity that spawned on his surface.

His essence was largely kept near to his core, but with time and various attempts to move every now and then, his energon flowed toward the surface. At first did nothing as the non-sentient fauna on his frame refused to touch his corrupted blood. The flora that came into contact with his energon often died or simply adapted to not accept any of it into their systems. Unicron's energon remained untouched save for by the most foolish, all of which perished or at least learned to avoid it if they lasted.

But of course, not all creatures on his frame were so cautious. The beginnings of humanity were curious beings, a trait that never faded from them even millennia later. They found safe haven in areas where Unicron's essence ran thick as no predators would dare take harbor in such areas. They lived in those locations for centuries, sometimes moving on and coming back, but never abandoning those relative areas of peace. They even forcefully began to have their crops grow in such a way that they had no choice but to adapt. And it was through these small things that humans gained their first adaptations to allow them to interact with their maker.

In the beginning they would constantly grow ill being so near to dark energon deposits hidden underground. But with generations passing, the illness came to be a rite of passage. The humans in areas with dark energon adapted to withstand its presence, so much so that the illness only hit them once as a child and then passed, growing less and less deadly with every generation. Through constant consumption of their crops tainted with the Unmaker's blood, their bodies grew stronger. Their minds sharpened and they gained unique senses that no other creatures on Earth had. The humans who were used to living around Unicron's energon deposits were made of sterner stuff than they counterparts and through the passing of time, comprised a great number of mythical figures in history later down the line.

Eventually in response to the march of progress, the humans who lived in such areas eventually grew tolerant enough that they no longer feared dark energon instinctually and instead found it safe. So many generations of associating it with protection from the horrors in the dark had them revere it. Thus once they had the means, small communities sprung up devoted to retrieving the dark crystals. This of course led to many more generations of premature death and horrid mutation among children as dark energon was dug up and experimented with. But humanity has always been adaptive, and so given time, they changed to handle it.

They could not find a use for the substance, but those who lived in areas filled with Unicron's essence for generations found themselves unable to leave. It was their safe haven, their home. Other human settlements sprang up around the globe, growing in size and marching onward, but the chaos touched never wandered. They remained, ever bound to the blood of their god. It is unclear exactly when it started, but at some point the emotions of safety they associated with dark energon warped into a worship of The Dark One. So many millennia of adaptation and so many centuries made the chaos touched able to hear whispers, to hold dark energon without fear and to carve it, care for it, and revere it without worry of death.

They were extraordinary in all things, to the point of being super human. They had adapted and from those many generations of death and lost young, they were stronger for it. The chaos touched humans were stronger, faster, more cunning, and possessed odd abilities that made no sense to humans without such adaptations. The Cybertronian origin of their Dark One infused them in such a way that the chaos touched were simply so different genetically at the end of the day that they could hardly be called human. They saw in ways their kin could never, heard things that other humans could not, and felt the spark of their god beneath their feet. They were beings that could not break the threshold to become something technorganic and almost Cybertronian, and thus they remained forever at the pinnacle, unable to evolve any further.

Sometimes Unicron would whisper to them, mistaking them for his own creations and telling them tales of the stars. Other times he would imbue them with his power, killing some but empowering others. He gifted them knowledge of the language of his brother's creations, he gave them visions of the stars, and in his daze he had them believing themselves to be but one step away from ascension.

However being akin to demi-gods amongst other humans was what ultimately led to their downfall. The chaos touched refused to leave their holy grounds for long, and so were destroyed when armies from their non-adapted kin came for them during a time of weakness. Their civilization came to an end, and those who were not adapted to the Unmaker simply never were able to rest easily in places where his blood ran thick. But of course, that was not the end of the chaos touched. The few survivors had children, they changed, and while their adaptations weakened in response to the mixing of blood, they were not all lost.

In the modern era, the blood of the chaos touch was thin and very frail, hardly present as most dark energon had long been hidden away. However a few bloodlines remained, surprisingly being quite prevalent in Jasper Nevada where the chaos touched unknowingly gathered on instinct due to the dark energon there. Humans are adaptive creatures, and so while most of their Herculean strength and Athenian wisdom was long gone, the different bloodlines specialized in what they could. Not a soul knew that these gifts were out of the ordinary simply because they had no application... not until Cybertronians arrived on Earth.

The children unknowingly were born into three of these old bloodlines, and therefore possessed power that had no use in an era without Cybertronian influence. But with Cybertronians on Earth, those gifts began to make an appearance, the most obvious of which being Rafael's unique ability. The team were immediately suspicious of Rafael's knack for understanding Bumblebee. The child claimed it to be binary speech, but Jack looked into it and the team did their own research and what Rafael claimed was simple was most certainly not. Bumblebee was speaking in Cybertronian Morse code, Autobot code specifically. There should have been no way for Rafael to know what he was saying, especially since the similarities between Earth and Cybertronians tongues were close to non-existent. It was a mess of impossibilities, but the Matrix did not say anything and Rafael never acted maliciously, and so while concerning, the team let it be.

When Rafael was struck with dark energon and poisoned, their concerns were brought back to light once more when he didn't keel over the moment the substance touched him. Even being injected with small doses could leave a Cybertronian dead on their pedes for deca-cycles if they weren't prepared for it. A human child managing to last more than a nanoklik was a miracle, one Ratchet did not try to abuse as he worked to heal the child before it was too late. Only after the incident did the team overlook Rafael's scans critically in search of some sort of indicator regarding what saved him. Organics were not the hardiest of creatures, it shouldn't have been possible... and yet it was. Looking at Rafael's DNA scans showed that he had minor mutations to his immune system and cognitive functions, but that was all. It didn't look like much, at least not immediately.

The team filed it away as more pressing issues came forward, but again they found themselves bewildered when Jack showed his quality in his ability to wield the key to Vector Sigma. By that point the team were looking for strange occurrences in the children and thus merely noted his acceptance of the key before moving on. Optimus was of course startled but did nothing to halt the boy as he moved to return the Unmaker to his slumber. Jack was not supposed to bond to the key, it shouldn't have been possible. At most he would be able to hold the relic for one of the team, but being bound to it? Again, it was an event that had the team scrambling to look at Jack's scans once all the chaos was over and Optimus was returned to them.

Once more they were left bewildered as looking at Jack's scans showed only minor mutations to his DNA that seemed to alter his base genetic code to make him more susceptible to Cybertronian technology. His alterations looked a great deal like the preliminary augmentations technorganic underwent before receiving implants. But again, it shouldn't have been possible for Jack to have those. Earth was a backwater world only just starting its pitiful attempt to reach the stars. Such technology and genetic augmentation was millennia ahead of them. Ratchet wanted to flip a table more than ever when they were forced to file Jack's case away too in response to Decepticon activity.

The concept of ignoring the strange mutations in their wards DNA went flying out the window when Miko managed to somehow get the Apex Armor to respond to her. The relic was designed for Cybertronian wielders, not organic children. Again, much like every other instance involving the children and Cybertronian tech, it shouldn't have been possible. The Apex Armor scanned the mind of its wielder in order to account for size and to be sure that the wielder was Cybertronian at all. How did she manage to trick a relic? Pure force of will? Considering it was MIKO messing around with the armor most of the team were half willing to ignore it and move on. The girl was an enigma on the best of days. But combined with Jack and Rafael being just as strangely in tune with Cybertronian tech, the team finally sat the children down and asked questions.

Ratchet: Rafael, how in the Allspark are you able to understand Bumblebee?

Rafael: Huh? I can hear what he is trying to say is all. Translating is not very difficult.

Arcee: Raf, you realize Bumblebee isn't speaking in your Morse code right?

Rafael: What? But it sounds like-

Optimus: Bumblebee speaks in Autobot binary code. His faux vocalizer turns Cybertronian digital glyphs into spoken sounds that only war veterans would be familiar with.

Rafael: So the fact that I understand him-?

Ratchet: We've looked at your DNA scans, you have strange mutations that don't make sense. You and the other two.

Jack: What? Me and Miko too?

Bulkhead: Yeah, its really weird. Your scans look like something straight out of a technorganic augmentation document.

Bumblebee: *Miko shouldn't be able to use the Apex armor at all*

Rafael: Really?!

Optimus: Bumblebee is correct. Jack, Miko, you two should not have been able to interact with our relics in any capacity. And Rafael should have been killed the moment he came into contact with dark energon.

Ratchet: The fact that Rafael understands us, survived dark energon, and combine that with your ability to use our relics brings us to one question.

Ratchet: What did your ancestors interact with in order to change your very DNA to be closer to ours?

The children were rightfully concerned but after receiving the knowledge of their odd genetic background, they did some digging together. Within the next week, they arrived at base with a few family heirlooms and some documents that had half the team doing a double take.

In her hands Miko held a small Predacon fang. That alone was not too startling considering such things could be found on Earth, but was concerning was her total lack of concern for it. Cybertronian components had a natural distasteful signature that kept most from touching the corpses of their fallen, even after the energon was long gone. And yet Miko played with the fang as if it meant nothing and pulled up her family history, showing that her ancestors likely came from the region of Earth that supposedly housed and Autobot base during the golden age of Cybertron. Everything lined up and the team could only assume that her ancestors adapted to become naturally unconcerned with Cybertronians and even size them up in some method of survival instinct akin to the honey badger.

Rafael for his part had a small crystal idol that he said was a family heirloom from back several centuries. Somehow his family never lost it and even prized it above their own lives at times. The idol simply never managed to be taken as others seemed disgusted by it and his ancestors were almost obsessed with the stone. It was old, but looking closer showed that it was a long dormant shard of dark energon whittled down with increadible skill into the shape of what looked to be the general outline of Unicron's frame. Compared to Miko, Rafael's heirloom almost had the team raising their weapons on instinct. He held his idol so carefully as if to keep it from even touching the very air and his eyes glazed over as he presented it. Looking at his family records showed that his ancestors most likely lingered near old dark energon deposits, and that had the team looking at the boy in poor veiled concern.

Then there was Jack who had no relic of his own but instead showed a written down version of a song that had been orally passed down his family line since long before proper records existed. Looking over the lyrics and the strange glyphs that Jack claimed his family had always been taught how to draw as a simple children's game had the team gawking. Once more, his family history showed his ancestors to have been near a dark energon deposit for much of their history and seeing the song... every single one of the team felt their spark flutter in slight fear. Just how long had humanity been exposed to the Unmaker? For how long had they been influenced?

Hail to the Lord of Dark,

For he protects us and gives us visions of starlight,

We were born of his will,

And from his will we are made pure,

Strength of giants,

Wisdom of ancients,

Stories of great beings made of living metal,

Hail to He Who Is Shadows,

Let him guide our sight,

May he heal us,

Grace us Oh Creator with thy gifts,

We herald thee,

Wake from thy rest,

Humanity was playing a game they weren't even aware they were involved in. Somehow they had adapted, they had survived, and now they had gifts they never should have had.

[anotherkindofmindpod]

So on reading a bit more of McCartney Legacy, the breakup section seems to align more with the typical Jean Jacket interpretation to me... is that your impression?

My take of the Breakup Section of McCartney Legacy is that it DOES align with the Traditional narrative, but not necessarily the Jean Jacket narrative.

What's the difference? I think the Traditional Narrative is more like Paul's and John's Public version, the "Official" version, the Common Ground version: John privately quit in September '69 and meant it; Paul didn't want to break up, but begrudgingly accepted it. Cue: divorce proceedings and the inevitable ugliness. The Jean Jacket Narrative is more like Yoko's PR (or JohnandYoko's PR): The Beatles were essentially a chrysalis that required Yoko to break the spell and release John from what had become a cage. After he dumped Paul (a relic of his childhood), he was able to fulfill his true mission. Ultimately, John's Higher Artistic Purpose, Yoko's transformative partnership and their shared drive for World Peace were too strong and too big for the Beatles. Paul, OTOH, was childishly stuck in Little Boy land, wanting to make mindless pop music with his schoolmates (tsk tsk tsk). Unlike John, Paul never grew out of his desire for childish friendships and refused to progress. Pathetic and sad, Paul limped along (with his successful marriage, beloved family, numerous fantastic albums and tours, etc), while John finally blossomed and flourished without him. It might seem like a depressingly low bar, but I can't emphasize enough how remarkable and progressive it is to read a book on Paul in the 70s without that Jean Jacket narrative! I don't mind reading the Official Narrative! Because personally I didn't expect (or particularly need) the McCartney Legacy to re-write the Breakup for me. Having done years and years of work on the break-up myself, that's just not what I was looking for. What I DO appreciate is that their coverage, while including all the most vital facts and events, was sparse, fairly unemotional, and did not ever demonize the other Beatles. (They did however agree that Klein was objectively shit, which I GREATLY appreciate). It's almost impossible to read a Beatles book that doesn't insert snide commentary about John or Paul's behavior, so this was immensely refreshing. -Phoebe Incidentally, we feel like the Real Version of the breakup is much closer to: JOHN: Paul, you turned on me the second the Beatles were done. You jumped ship without a backwards glance, cut me off completely and then turned your lawyers on me! WTF!?! PAUL: Bullshit! I loved you and wanted to work things out. I would've stayed forever, but YOU said you wanted a divorce! You TOLD me to fuck off out of your life! WTF?!?! I feel like they're having this argument for 2-3 straight years, if not for the rest of their lives. (*grumble, sigh, cry, rip out hair*) Sometimes I wonder to what extent they were truly able to see things from the other's POV. IMO, they were both so pathologically afraid they loved/needed the other more, it clouded their ability to see how much they were hurting each other. However, IMO, they do have a whiff of understanding, because when they try to make up in the 70s it's like: JOHN: No, I do love you and want you in my life always PAUL: Awesome, I don't give a shit about money, let's never discuss it again please But (as we all know), they don't heal completely and when they are hurt and/or scared, they retreat to these original positions: JOHN: Fine then, fuck off out of my life PAUL: Great. Speak to my lawyer In other words, I don't think the Official Narrative is incorrect, exactly. Just incomplete (i.e. strongly believe John wanted Paul to come back in early '70 and ask for another chance, etc), and doesn't address the emotional drivers of their behavior (which to us is the "Real" Story).

[garroth-core]

the tragedy of immortality and godhood and the persistence of love despite it, because of it, is one of the most fascinating parts of mcd and mystreet

think of irene, who murders her daughter and gives her body-turned-relic to the father, unknowingly using his daughter's corpse as a weapon, who loses all emotions after a long life. think of shad, who raises an army of the dead and tortures his subordinates, who tries to kill an innocent three-year-old for the crimes of her mother who doesn't even remember those crimes and is an entirely different person. think of the shadow knights' transformation being completed when they kill the person they love the most. think of hyria, thousands of years old and sworn to protect the sacred forest, estranged from her daughter for over thirty years when she chooses duty over family, who herself admits that "the longer you live, the more you forget how to love". you'd think gods and immortals would be the epitome of life; after all, they are alive forever. but we see they're more dead than anything. they are stripped of their humanity, their love, their empathy, leaving nothing but empty husks of souls. they feel nothing. they are nothing.

and yet. and yet and yet and yet — love perseveres. that is the biggest tragedy of it all. love is not an unstoppable force. it did not stop the horrors that befell the lives of the immortals and those around them. love is an immovable object. it stayed through the atrocities, the rage, the massacres, the murder, the estrangement. irene wished, more than anything, to feel again. she tells hyria she will slumber until the world needs her again. because before the divine warriors, before shad, and before her daughter, irene was a woman who loved humanity. shad's rampage is because of his grief, and what is grief if not love's ghost? light shining from a dead star? his love for his daughter motivates him to take alina in vengeance for her gruesome death, to go after aphmau. hyria still loves her daughter. laurence clings to memories of aphmau in the midst of his painful and traumatic transformation in the nether. sasha who has done "twisted things" admits that there are people she cares for in the shadow knight army, going so far as to side with aphmau. even laurence says she was kind to him.

and vylad. vylad, who is the catalyst for everything. vylad who brings irene back into the world because he needs her, because his brother needs her. because, though he has lost all emotion, he still remembers the one brother who was kind to him in his lonely childhood. that is literally what starts mcd!!! the key to the entire thing!!! a man's love for his brother!!!

and then we have perhaps the most tragic figure of them all: lady aphmau.

now, it's wild to me that mystreet went from silly happy fun times to aphmau is the fucking messiah (again) but i won't lie i'm so heavily invested in what happened to mcd!aphmau

after fuck-knows-what-happened, lady aphmau ascends to godhood and becomes mystreet's lady irene. it's implied something went horribly wrong in the events of mcd and lady aphmau, now a goddess and cut off from her friends and family (alina states she "still lived in an unreachable realm"), has to live on immortal and alone. but even though the world eventually forgets her, forgets her friends, forgets her sons and her daughters, she remembers. her love perseveres, even in a world empty of all she once loved.

so she makes a new world. a new world where her friends are happy and alive, where even her enemies — zane, gene, zenix, sasha — eventually befriend her own original group and lead somewhat happy lives themselves. lady aphmau lives vicariously through mys!aphmau, she states so herself. she pretends it is her who gets to have a happy, simple life. but at the end, mys!aphmau's life is not hers to live, not hers to interfere with. as she says, her aaron already died long ago.

once again, love is the key to the entire thing. she chooses to sacrifice herself for aaron. she passes over resurrection for aphmau. she has nothing to gain from this. she chooses aaron because she loves him. she chooses aphmau because she knows what it is like to love and be loved, to once have something to go home to. but her friends are waiting not on earth. so she dies, her daughter at her side.

i think what gets to me the most are the endings we see for shad, irene, and lady aphmau. we don't see the endings for the others because jesson didn't finish the series <33 but what we do see are these: simple endings. peaceful endings. quiet endings. it fucking does something to me when grand larger-than-life characters yearn for easy, uncomplicated lives.

think of what lady aphmau reincarnated all of them for, what she broke divine rules for, what she defended against the celestial cannon. snowball fights and putting on silly plays and opening maid cafes are what this all-powerful goddess wants. domesticity and wedding dress shopping and a house on the street where all her neighbors are her friends. this is what heaven is to her, not the chapel above the clouds devoted to her. what does she care about that? she's found heaven in a golden afternoon with her dearest hearts. think of shad and irene. after all the grand battles, the world-ending apocalypses, all the bloodbaths, and at the end shad goes home to irene, their daughter at his side, nothing more. they end their lives in an, to the bigger world, unremarkable suburban house save for the memories that live there, the memories themselves are indistinguishable from any memories any other person would have. simple memories of a simple childhood of a simple girl.

a simple girl who, after a battle against a demon centuries old, after finding out she's a literal goddess, is by her friend's side. the first friend she ever made. her not-alone-buddy. her life has been thrown upside down. her best friends and the love of her life have sustained irreparable damage, losing their memories, their magic, their knowledge. it is her godhood that is the cause. they sacrificed themselves so that she may bring them victory. once again, the tragedy that befell her predecessors repeats itself. godhood takes, and takes, and takes. she must feel so many emotions — guilt and grief and rage and helplessness. she must blame herself. but then she thinks of what the goddess said to her, of how people have chosen to be in her life. she looks at the friend who chooses to sit by her side as they both recover from their injuries. so she smiles upon seeing him, says it's been a long time, and reaffirms that no, she is not alone. none of them are. she does say it in some grand declaration, some striking action. her love is simple, peaceful, quiet. despite everything, because of everything, her love persists. it perseveres. it is an immovable object.