#unicorn-physician

[theroundbartable]

So, what if like, there were secret sorcerers at the heart of every kingdom? Like some sort of secondary rulership. They've all been told to have some kind of great destiny, because they need to bring magic back everywhere.

And each one has their own Kilgharrah. But like, as a different species. I'm thinking like Mithians magician had like Anhora, keeper of the unicorns as his annoying background noise.

And while the Kings and Queens make Peace treatys, the secondary rulers all meet up during that time and like, exchange their experiences.

Merlin is the youngest, yet the most powerful and experienced one (because he's a bloody dragonlord, lol) and that's how he earns great respect amongst court physicians/advisors/librarians, etc. All of who have the biggest influence on their respectable rulers.

Arthur is especially concerned, when Merlin gets along GREAT with the only court sorcerer in the five kingdoms.

[uispeccoll]

From the John Martin Rare Book Room

De nivis usu medico observationes variae by Thomas Bartholin, and printed in Hafniae [Copenhagen] by Matthias Godiche for Peter Haubold [bookseller], 1661.

Happy December, friends. With winter comes snow and frigid temps, of course. As you walk around, breathing in the crisp air and having your face go numb from the wind and snow, you may think to yourself, "Hmm, I wonder if anyone ever considered using snow as anesthesia?" The answer is a stone–cold "yes."

We're highlighting the work from the prodigious 17th–century Danish physician Thomas Bartholin (1616–1680). Beyond looking like Billy Joel in his heavy metal days (yes, that was a thing), Bartholin rocked a strong scientific mind and was a prolific writer. He corresponded with many of the greatest thinkers of his day, wrote over 20 books (including one on unicorns!), and conducted many experiments.

One area he dabbled in was refrigeration anesthesia (the application of cold to deaden sensation, known today as cryoanesthesia). The application of something cold has long been known to help reduce pain. Medieval physicians, such as Ibn Sina, were the first to write about it.

In De nivis usu medico observationes variae [Various observations on the medical use of snow], Bartholin picks up where those medieval writers left off, thoroughly examining all the medical applications of snow, including as a topical anesthetic.

Chapter XXII makes the first known mention of the use of mixtures of ice and snow for freezing to produce surgical anesthesia, crediting the Italian physician Marco Aurelio Severino for the technique. To avoid killing the tissues and causing gangrene, the ice–snow mixture was to be applied in narrow parallel lines to the area designated to be cut. After a quarter of an hour, feeling would be deadened and the part could be cut without pain.

Along with about 200 pages detailing all the medical properties of snow (who knew there were so many!), there is also a treatise on snow crystals by Bartholin's younger brother, Erasmus. This is the earliest publication on crystallography and preceded Boyle's Essay about the origine & virtues of gems (1672) by eleven years.

It should be noted that we do not suggest trying Bartholin's methods out for yourself this winter.

--Curator Damien Ihrig

[pegraham]

M/M monsterromance now available at jms-books.com or on amazon.

Sir Willem Byrdsall was once the proud captain of the Queen’s Guard. Now he’s retired, struggling with an old injury that never healed right, and feeling every one of his forty-two years. Never married, his closest family is his sister and his ailing niece Alice. When physicians give up hope and predict that the next winter might be the little girl’s last, Will takes up one final quest -- to slay an elusive unicorn for its blood which is said to cure any illness.

His hunt takes an unexpected turn when a naked, terrified young man stumbles into his camp on a dark and stormy night, chased to the point of exhaustion by slavers. Will saves him and is forced to put his quest on hold when he realizes the young man is injured and stranded, lost in a strange land, and in desperate need of protection.

Percy is unlike any other person Will has ever met. His beauty is second to none, his sincerity is refreshing, and his kisses are the sweetest Will has tasted. But Percy isn’t what he seems, and Will’s quest for a cure becomes far more complicated once his heart is involved.

[dangermousie]

People tend to underestimate Jing because he has no ambition and stays detached and they keep forgetting how very very sharp he is (I think in the paradigm of that world, he's a unicorn in terms of lack of ambition despite ability - the default is only those without talent would stay away from power games.)

But also I HOPE SOMEONE DRIVES A SPIKE THROUGH YOUR FUCKING FACE, CANG XUAN!!! I haven't hated him this much since the worms stuff in early s1.

His being the one who spread the rumors about XY being Chi Chen's daughter? YOU ARE A FUCKING SICK PSYCHO AND SPIKES SPIKES SPIKES THROUGH YOUR FUCKING FACE!!!

He is doing it so she wouldn't be able to go back to Haoling - that way he can invade Haoling in peace since "it's not your real family, right honey?" (and I wonder if he thinks maybe the King of Haoling will repudiate her and that would make her even more "sure conquer my country bro.") He's also trying to make it so she has no other refuge than Xiyan (yeah, she has Jing but (a) he's a step away from ordering a hit on him at the rate he's going and (b) Jing is from a wealthy merchant clan, it's no competition for a kingdom)

Cang Xuan is so spun up in blood = everything, he genuinely doesn't get that she will love the King of Haoling as much whether he's blood or not (and the King loves her the same), and A'Nian as a sister etc etc. A notion of found family is alien to him. It comes back to the fact that he loves Xiao Yao not because of how she treats him/her soul/her "you" (ie the reasons both Jing and XL love her) but because of who she is - his cousin. Jing tells XY repeatedly she is herself, not anyone's daughter. XL undoubtedly shares that view. But for Cang Xuan, the fact that she's there for him so steadily makes him love her more, but he wouldn't be able to love her that "more" or genuinely love her no matter how well she treated him if she was not his childhood cousin (look how he treated Wen Xiaoliu the physician.)

And yes yes yes so much of wanting to be her everything, her only thing, abusive control of cutting away all other routes.

He said this and I saw red:

FUCK!

YOU!

(Best case scenario, you did it to protect her from your own invasion of her country you decided on for no reason other than ambition.)

And then Jing begs him to look after her and CX says nothing and walks off and Jing's face...

PS The fact that it's made clear XY is smart enough to figure it out but she won't because she wouldn't believe CX would harm her.

SOMEONE STAB HIM!

[enquire]

Mercy Suture

Hello folks i'm back at it with the pony au again. This post will star Kanata Inori! I was initially going to do Kizuna first, but I've kinda been struggling with her design. So she'll come later.

Here's Mercy Suture! I'm pretty happy with how she turned out. I will say, I am not 100% on the name, definitely one of the ones I have had a harder time naming so far. But anyways.

Mercy Suture is a hybrid! Though she doesn't remember her late parents all that well, one of them was a hippogriff, while the other was a pony. She spent most of her life being raised by her adoptive father, a pony doctor, and grew up looking up to him a lot.

She was training under him, considering following him into the healthcare profession, when the hospital was suddenly swarmed by injured ponies. Mercy reassigned herself to the emergency room and began helping with urgent first aid.

It was while her careful talons were stitching up one particularly grievous wound for a badly hurt pegasi that it happened-a cutie mark appeared on Mercy's flank. She had already known what she wanted, or at least had been fairly certain, so it was really just one less confirmation. But still, she and her father celebrated heartily. Once things at the hospital calmed down, of course.

These days, Mercy is a well-respected surgeon. She uses her talents at her father's practice, and in various places she has traveled to across Equestria. She often travels very far to help with difficult surgeries. Because of how her life was saved by her father when all of the other available doctors turned away, she has a particular interest in anypony who has a case deemed 'too difficult' or 'too risky' to operate on.

Being a hippogriff hybrid allows her skills to surpass most earth pony physicians, and her talons are more steady than many of the unicorns in her field.

She also has a group of friends as well, whom she cares deeply for. Mercy can often end up lecturing her friends a little if they aren't taking care of themselves properly, and she always has her talons and a first aid kit ready if someone gets hurt. Whether its making sure everyone is hydrated, offering blankets, or bandaging cuts, she's always doing her best to keep everypony safe and well.

[eachuisge-cc]

Ctesias Unicorn Horn

A very quick swatch that I wanted to do pretty much immediately when I saw the horn, then forgot about until half an hour ago. Based on the "Indian ass" recounted by Greek physician Ctesias, who's generally accepted to have written the first description of something recognizable as a western unicorn, most likely actually an oryx of some kind. He described the horn in particular as having a white base, black middle, and red tip (as well as the creature having a white body, dark red head, and blue eyes).

I've also uploaded the unicorn itself to the gallery (ID TheEachUisge) for anyone who wants it. I named him Ziggy. because he ended up kinda resembling early David Bowie.

Download:

SimFileShare

[pandafishao3]

TEASER Medical

In honour of the the new Deadpool movie, please accept this teaser of a Spideypool fic for Kinktober 2024. This is for the kink "Medical", but there's gonna be a part 2 for this called "Sex Machine" so yaaay! And all of this will of course later be posted on my Ao3

The coffee was bitter but tasted delicious anyway. The fact that Peter now had the time to actually enjoy a full cup before plunging himself into today’s appointments told him he’d made the right choice switching from the ER to this specialized clinic. He had always wanted to work solely with omegas anyway; and now he could.

Peter drank the last of his coffee as he walked out to the reception to greet Darcy sitting by her desk clacking away with bright red nails. She was omega herself; the clinic made a point of hiring omegas where they could. They even had an omega physician; Dr Foster, who worked mostly with maternity issues. Peter, however, specialized in heat-related issues.

As was the case with his first appointment, which Darcy pointed out might be tricky because the patient had apparently filled out the medical form he’d been given in the waiting room with the crayons they had lying out for kids who came with their parents. Fascinated, Peter studied the colourful form, turning it sideways to look at the drawings in the margins. The questions were all properly filled out, quite obviously by an adult, but there were also bright red unicorns all over the paper.

“That’s your guy, doc” Darcy said and pointed into the waiting room. At first, Peter did a double take – that did not look like an omega at first glance. First of all, he was absolute huge. Easily standing a head taller than Peter, although it was hard to tell given the man was lying halfway upside down on a chair, and in all honesty Peter was a lot shorter than most alphas. Second of all, he had an unusual number of scars over his neck and face. With his bulking shape, he looked like he’d been in a warzone.

But what really gave him away as omega was his obviously playful nature. The crayons, the way he was balancing his weight on the share, the way he played with the strings of his hoodie, it all screamed omega. Peter couldn’t help but smile; he could tell just by looking at the patient that he would have a difficult time to focus. Most omegas that acted like that in public tended to interrupt Peter mid-sentence to go chase after the sun beams reflecting off passing cars.

Kind of like cats.

“Better get to work then” Peter winked at the receptionist, and took the medical form with him as he went out into the waiting room.

There were three omegas in there, so there was no way to know where exactly the nervous scent was coming from. Possibly all three of them. Peter looked out into the room with as neutrally kind look as possible; some omegas were frightened by alpha doctors.

“Mr Wilson?” he called out. The scarred man turned, looking at him upside down.

“That’d be me” he announced and rolled over to land on the floor from where he managed to get to his feet. “Although Mr Wilson is my dad and he’s a dick so…Wade” the omega said and stuck out his hand. As Peter suspected, he was towering over him. But he casually accepted Wade’s hand and smiled at him as he shook it, ever keeping his cool, calm exterior. The bad language made a young, pregnant lady throw Wade a glare, as if he’d upset her unborn pup. Peter took it in stride; he’d met enough cocky omegas to know that behind all that was nothing but insecurities and a need to curl up into a ball.

Peter was willing to bet his license on that Wade was one of those.

“Wade” he confirmed with a handshake. The skin of the omega’s hand was uneven and full of cavities, as if someone had dug into it with a very small spoon. Wade’s handshake was strong however. “I’m Dr Parker, and I’ll be seeing you today. If you’ll follow me?” Peter continued, and without further ado, he turned and walked into the corridor to the left of the reception.

Wade followed him into his office, which also doubled as an examination room. Most doctors preferred to separate the two, because the scent could get a bit strong if you had omegas slicking themselves in your gynaecologist chair every day, but Peter liked it like this. He wanted his patients to get used to the presence of the chair and the tools, so it wouldn’t feel as if he was leading them into a torture chamber once they were done with their initial talk.

“Here we go” Peter smiled at gestured at a comfy chair opposite of his desk. He held up his white coat a little and sat down himself; Wade on the other hand flopped down onto the chair as if he was completely carefree.

Deep under his scent, Peter detected the acidulous hint of nervousness.

“Right, Wade. You called us for a check-up regarding your heat, is that correct?” Peter said as he was flipping through the form, glancing up at the patient. The pink shade of Wade’s scarred skin turned a darker shade of pink, and he didn’t look at Peter when he nodded. After giving him a moment to respond (which he didn’t) the alpha continued. “I see here that your last check-up was around 6 years ago, which was about…a year after you had your first heat. Is there a reason you haven’t had a check-up since? These problems you’re having now, are they new?” he asked.  

Wade hesitated before answering. “…yes. They’re new” he insisted, but Peter had a feeling he wasn’t being entirely honest.

Peter nodded slowly. His eyes moved swiftly over the papers. He’d been 13 when he presented, 17 at his first heat, no previous STD’s, no previous pregnancies, no stable partner(s)…Peter halted.

Do you receive regular knottings? Never, nope, no knots

The answer written down on the dotted line made the doctor frown.

[dearsimp]

"Thanks." Nellie tipped the driver and got down from the car. She stood in front of the apartment building, looking for her keys.

She entered the building and went up the stairs to her floor. Her head was banging from the tears she never got to shed and the weight of her new life. As she arrived at her house, she saw a blond man approaching her out of the corner of her eye.

Damn.

Nervous, she toyed with the keys, trying to get inside the apartment before any questions could be asked. She almost made it, but his hand grabbed the door before she could close it.

"Where's the owner of this apartment?" He asked. Nellie recognized him by her snap photos. Xavier. "I've always lived here." Nellie answered on a reflex. That was right. She was the owner. She lived there.

At least she did now.

Xavier didn't seem to like the answer, narrowing his eyes. Nellie made her best attempt to play dumb. "I'm sorry... I don't know who you're looking for."

Liar.

Nellie closed the door as soon as Xavier took his fingers off of it. She locked it almost on instinct, hearing the shuffle outside when he tried using his set of keys to open the lock.

Lock she had changed a week before her demise.

Nellie took a look around the apartment, trying to see if she'd recognize it from her memories. She technically should, but she didn't.

It felt illegal to peek into the rooms, to pick up the scattered plushies, to roam around the house searching for anything her predecessor would've left behind for her.

She eventually found it, a shoe box under the bed filled to the brim with notes and documents. Nellie put it on top of the bed, and tore away the sticky note taped on top.

"Lock the doors and windows, close the blinds, dim the lights."

Nellie did as the note said, sitting next to the lamp as she dug through the box, eventually finding a letter addressed to her. Carefully, she tore the envelope open.

"Little Hunter:

I'm sorry to leave you with so much to deal with and so little time to process. I've kept it as simple as I could to save you time.

First of all, your new life. You're a Deepspace Hunter in Linkon. You're part of UNICORNS (check the box under the fridge), and hunt Wanderers. All of your primary weapons are at the UNICORN HC, but I keep a spare set of guns in the second drawer of the bathroom. Check my notes and reports of missions to familiarize yourself with the weapons and practice on the bounty hunts.

Second of all, the boys. They're all going to remember me, so no matter what they do, don't reveal what happened to me. They're all going to notice, but the ones you should be most on the lookout for are Sylus (box behind the dresser) and Caleb (box under the bathroom drawer), as they're the most prone to action. You'll see Xavier (box under the guest bedroom's bed) almost daily, as he was my partner in many missions, though I made sure to switch you to work with Tara, and I worked as Rafayel's (box under the kitchen sink) bodyguard. Zayne (box under the oven) was my primary care physician, but I put you under the care of a different doctor, as your heart doesn't have Protocore fragments.

Three, your free time. Your number remains the same as mine, so expect calls and messages from them asking to play Kitty Cards or Claw Machine, but it's imperative you assure them you don't know who they're looking for.

Check out the Photobooth and Meow Cafe if you have the chance. You'll have a nice time!

I've made sure to change all the documents to be yours, and left you some money to pay rent and buy groceries while you settle down in this mess. I hope it's not too hard to fill the space I've left, and that you manage to enjoy your life as much as I enjoy mine.

Love, me."

Nellie let out a heavy sigh as she looked around the room, placing the box under the bed and rummaging through the closet. "I hope her clothes fit me..." She muttered, pulling out a big hoodie and a pair of old pants.

She put them on and snuggled next to the plushies, making mental notes to start her new life tomorrow.

And not die trying.

"... I like to think that the MC, at least mine, can plan like this and not tell anyone, or don't let the boys find out. I originally didn't plan to include Caleb, but his trailer just got out and I just couldn't leave him out of this."

"... Nellie is an OC who I love a lot, but I don't believe she'd be the MC of the game, why? I just don't think she is. The MC of the game is definitely different from Nellie, and I like to think of her as a mentor figure to Nellie, like Peter Parker and Miles Morales."

"...I really don't know how much OOC I'm going with the boys, but it's a story that's meant to explore what would happen if the MC wasn't around and whoever was there to fill her place didn't want to be there either. Yes, I like angst. Yes, I like chaos."

"...Dear_Simp."

[elwin-at-your-service]

hi there :D

i've figured out your childhood.

(this was from my kotlc adults hc's post. got kind of offtrack and most of this is based off no canon at all)

HOW ACCURATE WAS I? :D

ELWINN

a-hem. elwin's parents fought a lot and didn't pay much attention to him :(

he had a cousin named amarelle sencen

she was a couple years older than him and they were so close :D

elwin spent most of his time at amarelle's house

when he was 15 and amarelle was 18, amarelle's parents had another child

elwin was happy, he had another cousin :D

the child was named cassius (>:D)

amarelle moved out after she completed elite levels (she was an empath~)

elwin's parents literally forgot he existed most of the time so he moved in with amarelle

cassius was 2 at this point and ANOTHER child was born (elwin had another cousin!)

the name..? ahah no.

elwin saw his aunt and uncle a lot, and cassius looked up to him.

elwin babysitted cassius and the mystery child a heap, until he went to elite levels

it was around then he began to take an interest in physician and doctory stuff (look at me using scientific words /jj)

amarelle supported him every step of the way

she gave him a stegosaurus stuffed animal

he named it stinky >:D

elwin was so grateful for that he began to grow a stuffed animal collection

but stinky was always his most favourite

elwin went and got qualifications after elite levels and stuff

but he still lived with amarelle

she owned a place called splendour plains

amarelle was working as a jeweller, she often made jewellry for elwin to wear

(also when keefe was temporarily living in splendour plains, amarelle still owned it but elwin knew that the two of them had never met so he claimed it was his own house. amarelle was on a trip with a close friend while keefe was there.)

amarelle didn't have the best relationship with cassius

but she showed up to the opening ceremonies thing for Foxfire when he became a Level one :D

elwin came as well

he cheered cassius on the whole time

elwin gave cassius a special stuffed animal after that (it may or may not still be in cassius possession~)

elwin began to get really busy and he didn't have much time to hang out with cassius and the mystery child

he managed to make it to the mystery child's first opening ceremony tho

he gave HER a stuffed animal as well >:3

it was a unicorn

she named it sparkles

bc she thought the name 'queen pink of all things pink' sounded kinda weird

mystery child loved pink :)

uhh this elwin part's gotten kind of long now-

elwin became foxfire's physician

mystery child always got fake-injured (or exaggerated her injuries) to come to the healing centre to see elwin

cassius would sometimes drop by during breaks with grady

elwin had recently gotten a blue elephant stuffed animal in a hawaiian shirt and he wanted to find the perfect person to give it to

it took years to find that person-

also aro/ace elwin :)

he doesn't wanna get involved with any romantic-y stuff

not for himself anyways

he gives the best romantic advice to cassius tho

and his other patients

especially one who got a really bad injury one time named kenric

he was pining over the mystery child

:)

Thanks so much for your thoughtfulness in creating all of this and sharing it with me!

My own take on my backstory does differ a little. You got a few points right though - I’m estranged from my parents, lived with an older cousin when I first left home, and I’m aro/ace! But I think you have mistaken my youthful looks for actual youthfulness - I am at least two centuries older than Cassius (and, to the best of my knowledge, not related…).

If this is your own headcannon, I do not dissuade it in the least! I still enjoyed reading every point of your creativity and feel honoured that you clearly spent such time considering my humble self 🥰

[maomaojinshi]

Jihei made a deal with the devil and had to reap the consequences. I had thought all the monkeys were mindless brutes. I guess there’s always an exception. Seems there’s more to this story than what Jihei confessed. The mom’s peddling the drugs too The tale Jihei (voiced by Setsuji Satoh, so brilliant in Dororo – another of the unicorns in this category) spins is certainly riveting. The well literally ran dry, leaving him unable to support his wife and daughter. The former left and the latter went out to work so Jihei could gamble and idle, until one day he got lucky and used his winnings to buy another well. This one turned out to be dry, too, but not empty. After pouring an offering of sake down the well to plead for the Gods to turn the taps back on, Jihei hears a voice (Nakao Ryuusei) thanking him for the drink. And a little bag of bones comes flying out of the well, along with instructions to take it to a physician.

If Jihei did indeed dose the sake so that his daughter would sleep through the slaughter at Sadou, that lends credence to the notion of her innocence. For the moment Wakamiya chooses to head to the well in question to try and draw out the monkey who seduced Jihei. And it works, more or less. The monkey says he’s been around since all Yatagarasu could do is caw. And that Yamauchi is doomed due to “inconvenient truths” the Yatgarasu have been ignoring (so, global warming?). Wakamiya loses his cool for once and jumps into the well to try and catch the silverback, but fails in the attempt and clearly as far as this well is concerned, the jig is up.

[xviruserrorx]

Merlin Tags

#bbc merlin

Seasons:

#merlin s1 : 1x01 - 1x02 - 1x03 - 1x04 - 1x05 - 1x06 - 1x07 - 1x08 - 1x09 - 1x10 - 1x11 - 1x12 - 1x13

#merlin s2 : 2x01 - 2x02 - 2x03 - 2x04 - 2x05 - 2x06 - 2x07 - 2x08 - 2x09 - 2x10 - 2x11 - 2x12 - 2x13

#merlin s3 : 3x01 - 3x02 - 3x03 - 3x04 - 3x05 - 3x06 - 3x07 - 3x08 - 3x09 - 3x10 - 3x11 - 3x12 - 3x13

#merlin s4 : 4x01 - 4x02 - 4x03 - 4x04 - 4x05 - 4x06 - 4x07 - 4x08 - 4x09 - 4x10 - 4x11 - 4x12 - 4x13

#merlin s5 : 5x01 - 5x02 - 5x03 - 5x04 - 5x05 - 5x06 - 5x07 - 5x08 - 5x09 - 5x10 - 5x11 - 5x12 - 5x13

Characters:

Main: arthur pendragon | morgana pendragon | guinevere pendragon | merlin emrys | sir gwaine | sir elyan | sir lancelot | sir percival | sir leon | sir mordred | gaius the court physician | uther pendragon | agravain de bois

Side: mithian of nemeth | ygraine de bois | bbcm sefa | bbcm freya | bbcm morgause | bbcm nimueh | bbcm iseldir | king cenred | geoffrey of monmouth | alator of the catha |

One Off: bbcm daegal | bbcm kara | eoghan the map makers apprentice | bbcm gilli | edwin muirden | tyr seward | will of ealdor | elena of gawant | princess vivian | anhora keeper of the unicorns | tristan de bois | bbcm alvarr | bbcm enmyria | julius borden | bbcm aglain | lady catrina | aredian the witchfinder | knight valiant | king alined | the cailleach | bbcm tauren

Extra: knight!merlin | shade!lancelot | enchanted!arthur | enchanted!gwen |

Ships: (that I know of)

Arthur: #arlance | #arlyan | # armor | #arwen

Elyan:

Gwaine: #gwaincelot | #gwainevere

Gwen:

Leon:

Lancelot:

Merlin: #merthur | #mergwen | #mergana | #merwaine | #merlance | #merleon | #merwill | #merthian |

Mordred:

Morgana: #morgwen |

Percival: #perwaine | #perlyan |

| #geon | #morgal | #morra

Poly ships:

#merwaincelot | #mergwenthur | #mergwainthur | #merlyanthur |

Group Tags:

pendragon house

pendragon siblings

smith siblings

knights of camelot

people of the old religion

awotc

[askpokeeosin]

[Bar/Hotel Musings] What inspired you to create your OCs?

So for Poke himself, I have an explanation here. In short, though, he's basically me. The other OCs, such as Wind Glow and Dr. Gale, are loosely based off of people that I'm friends with or even just interact with at school. The ultrasound unicorn is also loosely based off of an attending physician that I look up to, for example. So basically, a good chunk of the characters have a basis in real life. Well, as much of real life as fictional technicolor ponies can be based lol

[counter-facts--i-just-made-up]

The modern countertop was invented in 1685 by Constantine Untertop, who coincidentally was a direct descendant of Flavius Valerius Constantinus, though this is not relevant to counters. Untertop believed that the contemporary practice of cutting meats and vegetables inside ovens or on the extremely hot surfaces of pans or griddles was needlessly dangerous, and sought to create a new technology that would allow chopping, dicing, AND spice storage without the need for an open flame, constant scratching and scoring of cookware, or extremely painful and often debilitating third-degree burns.

His first experiments, which involved "plates" made of extremely dry thatch and sealed with various different mixtures of highly flammable oils and tars, did not meet his standards, and cost the lives of dozens of assistants. However, during one of these experiments, Untertop allegedly witnessed a table falling from the smoldering remains of the floor above, and was struck by a moment of revelation.

In 1678 he wrote to his friend, Ulrich von Backsplash:

My dear Ulrich, I have found a solution! I saw in my head a vision, of a table made of stone, of granite perhaps, or marble, or perhaps some crude, flimsy, and inexpensive approximation thereof. This table could be placed adjacent to the flame, not atop it, that the cuisinier might alter the shape and consistency of his food without risk of life or limb! Below it would lie cabinets, or perhaps even mechanical contrivances for the cleaning of dishware, and items might even be placed upon it, small racks and stands (perhaps sold cheaply by a Swedish merchant) for the holding of kitsch and kitchen utensils. This idea burns within me even now, more powerfully than the thickest of smoke has burned my lungs in all my days of experimentation, and as soon as Herr Artz [Editor's Note: "Herr Artz" likely refers to Untertop's physician and personal necromancer, Dirk Artz] permits me to begin my work again, I will produce for you the first Untertop Tablepiece, and revolutionize the world of cooking!

Six years later, Untertop completed his first prototype, a table made entirely of polished granite. It was also his last prototype, as when he attempted to move it, he knocked it over and crushed himself. However, von Backsplash took over the business and the idea quickly caught on, and soon "Untertop's Tablepieces" were a staple of every middle-income suburban 17th-century household.

Von Backsplash called the business Untertop Co. in honor of his late, very flat friend; a printer's error at one point reversed this to CoUntertop, inspiring von Backsplash to adopt the name "Countertop" as well as the now famous slogan "The Surface You Can Count On".

Interestingly, a similar typo decades later would lead to the modern conception of a "corn dog" - although Rachel Neuberger's sausage company (the first to produce unicorn dogs) never officially called any of their products "Corn Dogs", the idea of making sausages from unicorn meat took root in Ms. Neuberger's mind after a misprint of the R.N. Dogs Company's official letterhead read "Co RN Dogs" instead of the expected "RN Dogs Co".

Untertop is buried in England's Brookwood Cemetary, though after the effects of his prototype he had to be rolled up to fit in the coffin. His tombstone bears two poignant quotations. The first is from his friend von Backsplash, who wrote "The depths of his talent could be seen from the Surface". The second is from his ex-wife Maryanne Wilson, who carved "This fucking idiot burned our house down twice because he couldn't understand what a table was for" at a later date.

Corn dogs are named for their traditional meat, the unicorn. As unicorns are now extinct, they can only be referred to properly as ‘Corn Dogs and not “Unicorn Dogs” as they were prior to 2009.

[chellelawplc]

Can a Physician Contract be Terminated Early? | Physician Contracts Termination

Can a doctor’s deal get cut short? Absolutely! A whopping 99% of doctor deals can end sooner than planned. So, let’s dive into the nitty-gritty. Every deal has a ‘duration.’ Usually, it’s for one, two, or three years – anything more is a unicorn. Plus, I’ve noticed a trend where doctor deals keep rolling without an end date unless someone waves the white flag. But if there’s a set timeframe,…

[tenderloviingcare]

when: 31 october, a bit past 7:30 with: @s3cretkept, nate where: all hallow's evil

Being a pediatrician was incredibly rewarding, and Leonardo loved his job, couldn't imagine himself doing anything else; but even the most typical of work days drained him. In tandem with the days growing shorter—and the threat of his seasonal illness looming around the corner (appropriately abbreviated as SAD)—it almost had him forgoing the Halloween event altogether, preferring to just go home and go to bed at the normal time. But the hope of seeing a few particular faces had him changing into his costume in his tiny office before leaving the hospital for the day.

With his wide-brimmed hat perched atop his head upon exiting his car, the physician made a round across the festival, speaking politely and spending some time with acquaintances; though the astute would have noticed his head basically on a swivel, chocolate eyes roaming the crowds, looking for someone in particular, even if he didn't want to admit it to himself.

—It was a bit difficult to not own up to it and admit it to himself when he had to dampen his reaction and not act so eager upon finally spotting them. Leo did his best to approach with a normal-feeling pace, though he wondered just how odd he might have looked. At the back of his brain, the same shrieking voice as always was nagging him about assuming Nate even wanted to talk to him or see him; it was too late to play it off, though, as he marched up to the object of his...interest.

"Hi. Nate. Hi." Cocoa shone under dark bangs and a green brim, which was promptly pushed up slightly. "F-fancy seeing you here." Feeling far more energized than when he'd left work for the day, Leo's gaze roamed over the other's costume, umber sparkling more obviously as he recognized the getup. "P-probably not S-S-Sorcerer Mickey..." His brow furrowed in disbelief, "You're not Sch-Schmendrick, are you?" He blinked, lips pulling back into a rare toothy smile. "I love The Last Unicorn."

[connectparanormal]

Unicorn Origins

The interesting synthesis of natural observation, history, and imagination that spans ages and many civilizations is the foundation of unicorn stories. One of the most lasting mythological creatures in human history is the unicorn, usually portrayed as a horse-like creature with a single, spiraling horn on its forehead.

The first records of unicorn-like beings date back to the prehistoric era. Around 5,000 years ago, seals and tablets found in Mesopotamia showed animals with a single horn; nevertheless, it's possible that these images were artistically exaggerated depictions of aurochs or other actual species.

The Greeks and Romans wrote some of the earliest and most comprehensive stories of unicorns. About 400 BCE, the Greek physician and historian Ctesias wrote in his work Indica about an animal with one horn. It was larger than a horse and had a single horn on its forehead, according to his description of the wild Indian ass. The Indian rhinoceros may have influenced this story, which was likely based on tales from travelers.

Unicorns were also recorded by the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder in his Natural History (77–79 CE). Despite the fact that many of his accounts were second-hand and relied on traveler stories rather than firsthand observation, he depicted them as vicious creatures with a single black horn.

The unicorn gained popularity as a graceful and pure emblem in religious and moral parables throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. A description of the unicorn was found in the 2nd-century Greek bestiary Physiologus, a work that had a significant impact on medieval European philosophy. During this time, tapestries, manuscripts, and other artwork frequently included unicorns.

The Bible further cemented the unicorn concept in Western culture. The King James Version rendered the Hebrew term "re'em," which appears multiple times in the Bible, as "unicorn," despite its likely meaning of a wild cow.

Many academics speculate that the unicorn myth may have originated from misinterpreted sightings of actual animals by distant cultures. One such animal was the narwhal, a whale with a long, spiral tusk. Medieval Europe frequently marketed narwhal tusks as unicorn horns due to their perceived magical qualities. In a similar vein, the belief may have originated from the single horn of the Indian rhinoceros.

The tale of the unicorn endures in contemporary culture, frequently signifying uniqueness, beauty, and magical abilities. Books, movies, and even promotional images for various goods feature it. Even though we now know that unicorns don't exist, the tale nonetheless holds a special place in people's hearts around the globe.

The tale of the unicorn is an intricate fabric, stitched together from natural history, ancient writings, and cultural iconography. The unicorn has been a potent symbol of mystery and surprise throughout history, appearing in everything from medieval European folklore to the ancient Greek and Mesopotamian civilizations to contemporary popular culture.

Larger essay: Unicorn Origins in Classic Texts