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azrielsiphons · 8 years ago

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Shadows and Darkness: One and the Same (ch.1)

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This fic is meant to be read in connection with my Azriel-centric prequel stories. I would highly suggest reading those first to get the full reading experience of this fic.

It’s finally here, friends! Chapter 1 of the follow up fic to my Azriel-centric prequels which you should definitely read before reading this if you haven’t already. This fic will span across and after the events of ACOWAR.

I really hope you guys enjoy this chapter, it will explain (almost) everything that has happened since the end of the prequels up until now concerning our dearest Lena. Enjoy!

“Come on Cassian,” Lena said with a grin, ducking his swing and winnowing behind him. He whirled in frustration. “You can do better than that.”

Cassian growled, swinging with his left arm while trapping her footing at her right ankle. She saw the move coming though and used his own hulking weight against him to throw them both to the ground, laughing as he cursed — clearly pinned.

“You’ve been going easy on me in group training,” Cassian muttered as she helped him to his feet. “Tell Rhys or Az about this and you’re dead.”

Lena only laughed, already bounding out of the training room. “As if you could kill me!”

Bounding down the hall she ran into Mor, her cousin’s blonde hair shining like the sun itself.

“Hello Mor,” Lena sing-songed, touching Mor’s wrists as she walked by, turning so that she was walking backwards and looking at her cousin. “How’s Andromache?”

“Lovely as ever,” Mor said with a wistful smile. “She’ll be here in a few days. You’ll join us for dinner?”

“But of course!” Lena called down the hall, Mor laughing as she disappeared around another corner. Always going, always moving, never slowing down.

In the kitchen, Rhys whined as she twirled behind him and nicked a piece of fruit he was eating right out of his hand.

“That was mine,” he said with a teasing glare.

“Was it?” Lena popped the fruit into her mouth with a shrug. “I had no idea. See you later!”

“It’s a good thing I love you!”

Lena chuckled, smiling wide as she jogged right for the open balcony overlooking Velaris and threw herself off of it. Two seconds later she snapped her wings wide and flew to the rooftop. To their spot.

She landed right in front of him, his hazel eyes bright and full of love — love for her. His hair was tousled as ever and she couldn’t help but reach up and run her fingers through it.

“All these centuries and you still take my breath away,” he murmured, placing his hands on her waist and capturing her lips in his own. Lena fell into the touch, humming against him. She whined when he pulled away. “Hello my beautiful mate.”

Lena grinned, Azriel’s eyes lighting up. “Hello to you too, mate.”

The floor gave way beneath her then — and as Lena screamed, reaching out for her mate to catch her, the world exploded.

“Time to wake up, princess.”

Lena woke with a gasp.

Her chest was on fire, her limbs felt like they weighed hundreds and hundreds of pounds. There was a ringing in her ears. She was so disoriented, where was she?

What just happened? I was just with… Where am I, where is Rhys, where is —

“Good morning, pet.”

The tears began immediately. That was his voice — the devil’s voice.

She remembered the truth now.

It didn’t matter how many times she went through it. Waking up from that perfect dream just to be face to face with the King of Hybern was the real nightmare. Realizing that she had been trapped in that false reality, forced inside her wildest dreams only to discover none of it was real — that was the punishment. That was the real pain. Never knowing it wasn’t real until she was woken for whatever awful plans the King had in mind for her.

A weapon. That’s all Lena was anymore. All she had been for the past four and a half centuries — everyone she cared about thinking her dead. Her brother, Rhys, made High Lord after their father murdered the Spring Lord for killing their mother. And for all Rhys knew, the Spring Lord had murdered her, too.

Centuries with no one knowing who she really was — the Daughter of the Night Court. A title she used to resent but would give anything to be known as now. Her amazing brother — thinking himself an orphan with no one of his blood left in the world.

And Azriel — her sweet Azriel… her friend, her lover, her mate. Thinking she was dead and never able to tell anyone that they had been together since it had been a secret before she had been taken. His life was tied to her magic by the King so that if she defied his orders or did anything to escape, he would die — instantly.

This was the nightmare that the King had promised her. Asleep for years — decades, sometimes — until he required her. Trapped in a dream world of her idea of a perfect reality.

Only to wake to her actual reality. Her personal hell.

“How long?” She croaked. The magic that the King put her to sleep by preserved her body, but it always hurt like hell whenever she woke up all the same. The longer she was asleep, the worse it felt to wake up.

The King laughed once more, calling over two guards to unhook the magic cancelling chains wrapped around her body. He knew Lena wouldn’t try anything — she couldn’t. Her mate would die if she did.

“Quite a while,” he said vaguely.

The chains clattered away to the floor a moment later, and Lena arched her back and screamed, falling off of the table and to the stone floor beneath her as her magic came back to fruition like a flood.

It burned worse than ever. She could feel her skin peeling, blood pouring from her nose and ears as that horrible, deep well of magic within her filled back to the brim. The moment her skin tore it was stitched back together, only to repeat the process all over again. She shook, blood and saliva and sweat pouring from her trembling body.

It had never been that bad, had never felt so much like fire in her very veins.

Then she remembered. What had happened right before she had gone under this most recent time. She had been Under the Mountain. Hiding in the shadows like he had always taught her. She was supposed to keep an eye on Amarantha, supposed to keep her in check. The redheaded bitch had always been afraid of her — with good reason.

Then she had seen him. Her brother, her sweet, kind, loving brother. His eyes twin to hers and yet beneath that mountain they had been filled with cruelty and hate and sorrow. She had taken a step towards him out of instinct only to pull herself back with a flinch.

He wasn’t her brother anymore. Because she was supposed to be dead.

She had stood back and watched, her eyes never leaving Rhys. She hadn’t seen him in a couple centuries. He looked the exact same and yet more different than ever. The Rhys she knew had been full of life and love. This Rhys was… broken. Not beyond repair like her, but broken all the same.

She had opened her mouth to scream when she had smelt what Amarantha had done to the wine. Only for those damned chains to be wrapped around her face before she could make a sound of warning, the ancient relics gagging her and stifling her magic all at once. The King had laughed in her ear, telling her to watch as her mighty brother’s kingdom fell.

As her kingdom fell.

That was the only time she thought she might have actually broken through those chains, her magic boiling deep within her with rage as she silently watched her brother’s powers be stripped.

The King had put her to sleep that time out of fear for himself — and they both knew it.

“How long?” Lena hissed, spitting on the ground by the King’s feet from where she lay shaking before him.

“50 years, give or take a few months.”

Lena screamed, throwing herself at the King only to be blown backwards with a white light, her body slamming into the wall behind her. She felt the blood dripping from the back of her head as she hit the ground once again.

Every fiber of her being was telling her to let loose that horrible power deep within her, to rip the King apart limb from limb — and she could do it, too.

But doing that meant sentencing Azriel to death. Sentencing her mate to death.

She wouldn’t. She couldn’t.

Lena stood to her feet, cracking her neck as the sheer power radiating through her healed her injuries in a few mere seconds. She let the darkness wash over her, breathing in deeply through her nose. She closed her eyes, letting that rage, that complete and utter hatred for the King wash over her and fuel her.

When she opened her eyes, she thought she saw the briefest flash of fear cross the King’s face.

“Is he alive?” Lena’s voice was blunt, to the point, sharp. Like the weapon she was.

“Your brother is alive, yes.” The King smiled cruelly, watching the darkness playing over her fingertips with both adoration and envy. “Your Shadowsinger and the other bastard I’m not so sure about though.”

Lena was in front of him in an instant, their chests touching as she snarled.

“Relax, my pet,” the King said with a bemused chuckle. “I’m sure they recovered perfectly fine.”

“From what?”

“Well your Shadowsinger had an arrow in his chest the last time I saw him. And the other one’s poor wings were shredded protecting him. Such a shame, they were lovely wings.”

Lena felt like she was ripped from the inside out. She showed nothing.

“Perhaps you and the Commander will match now,” said the King with a cruel smile.

“Why did you wake me?”

“I’m sending you to the Spring Court.”

Lena snarled, whirling on her heel and taking a few steps, her darkness flaring yet again. She had learned to control her magic long ago as a necessity to keep Azriel safe from the King’s clutches, but it was always the hardest to handle when she first woke up.

“Why?” She snapped, not even deigning to look at the King.

Lena had only been on two Spring Court missions on behalf of the King in all her years of imprisonment to him. She loathed stepping foot in that territory — the territory that had belonged to the male who killed her mother, the territory where Rhys had been made High Lord when their father was murdered.

He had been all alone. That burden had fell upon his shoulders through no fault of his own and she hadn’t been there. It was the place of her greatest failure to her family.

“Amarantha is no longer with us,” the King said casually. Lena whipped her head over to him in shock. “Tamlin killed her. Over a human woman no less.”

Lena stared in shock. “What?”

And so the King told her. Of the curse Amarantha placed on Tamlin, of all the High Lords trapped beneath that mountain after Lena had been put to sleep, of the mortal woman that had saved them all and broken the curse out of her love for Tamlin, of that same woman dying and being made High Fae — something Rhys had played a part in, and of her brother stealing the female away from Tamlin.

She stood stock still throughout the entire story, the King grinning as she grew more and more devastated.

Who had Rhys become? Imprisoned beneath that horrible mountain with Amarantha for 49 years had turned him into someone that would steal away an innocent female? That wasn’t the brother she knew.

How could Azriel and Cassian and Mor have let that happen? Or the other creature — Amren — the one that Rhys had freed from the Prison shortly after he became High Lord. How could they have let Rhys wreck that girl’s life?

That wasn’t her brother. The Rhys that the King was describing was more like Aeron than Lena ever imagined possible. Worse, even.

“I don’t understand,” Lena whispered. The King only grinned.

“Oh?”

“He stole the girl, the Cursebreaker, from Tamlin as part of their deal… but then she stayed? She came here for the Cauldron with him. With… the others.” She couldn’t say his name. She hadn’t said it in years. Not since she had seen him in the Middle. “Why didn’t she get away? Their bargain was only for a week every month.”

The King grinned wider. “Oh my pet. Your brother broke into her mind… convinced her to stay, made her one of them to keep her away from Tamlin. He would do anything to hurt him. After all… his father killed your mother. And killed you.”

Lena flinched. All those years and she would never get used to being the dead girl.

But deep down in her soul she knew that the King was lying — or at the very least withholding information. She knew her brother. She knew Rhys. He would blame Tamlin for the sins of his father, but only to an extent.

He wouldn’t steal an innocent girl or break into her mind… he just wouldn’t. And the others wouldn’t have let him get so far. It simply wasn’t fathomable.

“But now the Cursebreaker is back in the Spring Court with Tamlin, who is using his Court to help us bring down that horrible wall. Jurian, Brannagh, and Dagdan are already there awaiting your arrival. They’ll be the only ones who know who you really are so make sure to keep that pretty face of yours hidden.”

“Jurian?” Lena asked in shock. “Jurian the human? He’s been dead for centuries, I don’t understand—” Lena froze, the King chuckling as the realization dawned on her. “You used the Cauldron. Of course.” She rolled her eyes. Not killing that human piece of shit would be yet another test of her will. She flexed her fingers, magic shooting off of her fingertips. “Well what do you want me to do in the Spring Court?”

The King had made Lena do things that would haunt her for the rest of her days, however many that may be. She had tortured, maimed, killed, kidnapped, and manipulated countless people. Innocent people.

And if the King made her hurt this innocent girl more than her brother already had, she would do it. She would hate every second of it, another piece of her would begin to rot inside as a result, but she would do it.

“Monitor,” the King said with a shrug. “Keep Brannagh and Dagdan in line. They’re arrogant, they would be the ones to ruin my plans just to feel like real royalty for a second. They fear you. So scare them.”

Lena hoped the King wouldn’t see the flash of excitement on her face. He did anyways and she cursed herself.

This was who she had become. Who the King had forged her to be: a weapon, a terrible knife in the dark.

When you spent years trapped in a perfect dream world only to wake up to the realization that none of it was real, that you were a dead girl walking with no one to love or to love you in return…

You had to become the nightmare to survive.

~~~~~

“Well, well, well, look who we have here,” Jurian drawled.

Feyre whirled as she heard footsteps behind her. She stood in the dining room of the Spring Manor with Jurian. She had come down looking for Lucien only to find Jurian instead and had just been leaving when someone walked in behind her.

The stranger stood in the doorway wearing a ratty brown cloak that hid their face in shadow. She hadn’t heard the stranger enter, and as she sniffed the air she realized they were somehow cloaking their own scent.

She didn’t know that was possible.

“I had heard you were being woken up,” Jurian continued, leaning against the wall and chuckling. The stranger was completely still. “The King told me all about your… condition. Shame about your br—”

The snarl that ripped from the stranger made Feyre jump.

“Easy,” Jurian crooned, though Feyre could tell he was spooked too. “I meant no disrespect. I’ve heard stories though… quite the weapon, you are.”

Jurian let his eyes drift to Feyre, smirking wickedly.

“Have you met our Cursebreaker?” He asked mockingly. Feyre stiffened as the stranger turned to her. “Meet Feyre. She’s Tamlin��s—”

Whatever Jurian had been about to say next caught in his throat as a thread of magic wrapped around his neck. Before Feyre could blink she was being shoved against the wall, the stranger’s forearm at her throat as she growled. The very foundation of the manor shook around them.

Feyre’s instincts kicked in immediately — hiding her powers be damned. She snarled back at the stranger, her hands grabbing their wrists beneath the heavy cloak still hiding their face as she let Beron’s fire bubble to her fingertips.

Feyre could smell burning flesh and yet — the stranger didn’t even move. Jurian continued to choke behind her.

“Let me go,” Feyre hissed, talons pushing out from her knuckles.

The stranger said nothing and Feyre thrashed against their hold — how was this person so strong? Stronger than her? She had the power of all the Courts and they were completely unaffected. She had burned their skin almost all the way off and… they didn’t even flinch.

Suddenly the stranger leaned in and pressed their nose against her throat. Feyre thrashed against them, but to no avail. Wind and darkness whipped around the both of them, but the stranger remained.

“Don’t touch me,” Feyre gasped. She saw over the stranger’s shoulder that Jurian was turning purple. “Tamlin!” She screamed. “Luc—”

The stranger jerked away, flinching as if… as if in pain.

Jurian gasped behind them, inhaling as much air as he possibly could as the stranger released their hold on his throat.

“Who are you?” Feyre asked.

The stranger said nothing. A beat passed and they slowly raised their hand. Feyre raised her arms, darkness radiating out of her. The stranger hesitated, but only reached up and slowly pulled back their hood.

It was a female. Golden brown skin, and hair as black as midnight. Feyre felt a pang of longing shoot through her chest as she thought of Rhys.

The female’s eyes and face were hidden as she looked down and away from Feyre at the ground.

No, not at the ground. At Feyre’s arm.

Her tattooed arm — her status as High Lady.

Feyre pulled the arm behind her back. The stranger was still silent.

“Who are you?” Feyre asked louder.

Jurian slumped to the ground unconscious behind them. The stranger hadn’t moved. If it weren’t for his breathing Feyre would have thought he was dead.

Slowly, hauntingly, the stranger raised her face to meet Feyre’s eyes.

Feyre froze. She couldn’t even gasp, she couldn’t even breathe.

Because she was looking right at Rhys’s eyes. The slightest shade darker — but those were his eyes. A horrible dark raised scar cut across the female’s face beneath her left eye and extended down her cheek and neck. Feyre forced herself not to flinch as she tried to slow down her heart rate.

“The question is,” the female began. Feyre did flinch at the sound of her voice — full of rage, bitterness, sorrow. “Who are you really, Cursebreaker? And why the hell do you still smell like my brother?”

~~~~~

Lena wasn’t sure Feyre was breathing.

“Hey,” she snapped, literally snapping her fingers in Feyre’s face. The Cursebreaker started, pushing her hand away. “Why do you still smell like him? I thought you had been here for a week. Do you not bathe?”

“Bathe?” Feyre spluttered. “I — your brother? But…”

Lena rolled her eyes, sighing dramatically. “For the Cauldron’s sake get it together, Cursebreaker. You weren’t even supposed to see my face, I’m breaking every rule I’ve ever set for myself right now. And I really don’t want to have to break into your mind like I did poor Jurian over there and make you forget everything, so how about you cooperate with me.”

At the mention of messing with her mind, Feyre growled. Lena only chuckled in response.

“Who are you?” Feyre hissed.

“I believe I asked you first.”

“Why do you look like him?”

“Am I not being as obvious as I intended?” Lena asked sharply, taking a step closer. “My brother, Cursebreaker, is your kidnapper. Now from what I understand he’s supposed to be far away from here in the Night Court, but you still smell like him. Now I know that I just got here and hopefully your Tamlin will fill me in further, but I’d rather hear directly from you. So tell me, why do you smell like Rhysand?”

Feyre was trembling, her mouth parted in shock. Silver lined her eyes.

“You’re… you’re her? But you’re—”

“Dead, deceased, gone forever, yes I know. I was beheaded and my wings are nailed to the wall somewhere in this house. Congratulations, you were tricked.”

Feyre flinched at Lena’s voice and deep down inside, Lena felt a wave of shame. But she could hear Tamlin and Lucien approaching the manor and didn’t have the time to feel shame. She would be kind later. She needed to understand, needed to confirm if this female was really who she suspected.

Feyre was silent though, completely and utterly stunned. Lena could see the gears in her mind churning, but she was taking too long.

With a scoff and another roll of her eyes, Lena reached forward and grabbed Feyre’s tattooed arm — the tattoo that was clearly glamoured.

Feyre growled, starting to jerk her arm back and burn Lena yet again, but stopped at the last second. She tensed, but let Lena turn her arm every which way and examine the tattoo.

“That’s… impossible,” Lena whispered.

She couldn’t be seeing it correctly. That tattoo, what it meant… it wasn’t possible. This female, the Cursebreaker, Tamlin’s bride stolen away from him…

She was High Lady. The High Lady of the Night Court — of Lena’s court.

And she was even more than that. Lena understood what she was smelling now.

“You’re his mate?”

Lena had learned how to wear a hundred masks, had hidden her face beneath her mother’s old cloak for centuries — but she couldn’t hide the devastation on her face in that moment as she stood before her brother’s mate.

Feyre swallowed. Tamlin and Lucien were close enough to the manor now that they could both hear them. Almost imperceptibly, she nodded.

Lena stepped back as if she had just been shot, dropping Feyre’s arm. Her breaths were shallow, her heart beating rapidly in her chest.

The King had conveniently left this part out.

With a deep breath, Lena rolled her shoulders and stood tall. It took not even a second for her to replace that mask of the King’s weapon back on her face. Feyre could only stare.

“You didn’t see my face,” Lena said simply, eyes darting to the door Tamlin and Lucien would be walking through any minute. “I didn’t speak to you. Jurian was being facetious so I knocked him out right before they walked in. Do you understand me?” Feyre only continued to stare. “Feyre, do you understand me? They can’t know who I am, I must remain nameless and faceless to them.”

Feyre nodded quickly and Lena loosed a breath. She went to raise her hood and cloak her face in darkness when Feyre spoke.

“What’s your name?” She asked quickly.

Lena froze, a wave of ruin washing over her.

“They never told you my name?” Her voice hadn’t sounded so weak in almost five centuries. Feyre shook her head. “It’s... it’s Lena. My name is Lena.”

Feyre continued to stare, but smiled softly. Lena couldn’t find any sentiment within her to return it.

Lena pulled up her hood in one smooth motion, hiding her face once again as Tamlin and Lucien burst into the room.

#acotar fanfiction #acowar fanfiction #acomaf fanfiction #azriel #sad oats #IT'S HERE IT'S HERE IT'S HERE #sorry if this chapter seemed kind of slow but I had to set the new world up #my daughter lena so broken so full of fear and hate #we'll get you back don't worry #and FEYRE!!!! rarely stunned but it's lena so what can ya do #excited to explore that relationship #ugh my precious lena they didn't even tell her your name those punk asses #you'll have words with them don't worry #i really hope yall like what i've set up so far i promise we'll see more good stuff next chapter #and lena and azriel won't be separated for long I PROMISE #I'm not going to make them be apart for like 10 chapters don't worry i'm not a monster #soon soon soon #if tamlin only knew who the king's weapon was lol #anyways these aren't even good tags i should stop #next chapter we'll see more of feyre and lena discussing things #and maybe an illyrian or two #who knows #oh wait i know #so STAY TUNED #Hopefully tomorrow I can post chapter 2 i've got half of it written #so many tags wow bye sorry #my writing #azrielsiphons writes

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movietvtechgeeks · 7 years ago

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Latest story from https://movietvtechgeeks.com/supernatural-big-win-comic-con-2017/

A 'Supernatural' Big Win at Comic Con 2017!

For the past decade, there’s been one show that has inspired me to brave the insanity that is San Diego Comic Con again and again. That show is Supernatural. In 2007, it was the prospect of seeing Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki in person that made me throw caution (and possibly good judgment) to the wind and fly all the way across the country with almost no notice just to hopefully sit at the feet of the two actors who brought to life the characters that had entirely captured my heart. My friend Kathy and I slept on the sidewalk to get in early and raced through the hallways to the room where the Supernatural panel was, breathless but triumphant. This was long before SPN had proven itself able to fill the gigantic Hall H, so they were relegated to the much smaller Room 6CDE. Little did Comic Con know, Supernatural was already a fan favorite, with the line of SPN fans wrapped around and around the building and many disappointed fans unable to get into the room. Jared wasn’t able to come that year, but Kathy and I made it in and sat there beaming at Jensen Ackles and Eric Kripke sitting right in front of us. I managed to snag an autograph ticket through all sorts of machinations, and thus had my first actual conversation with Mr. Ackles, after which I found Kathy and immediately burst into tears. Fangirl problems, what can I say? I’ve been back to Comic Con almost every year since, in the audience for the Supernatural panel as others began to notice the show’s passionate fan base and move the panels into ever larger rooms, until finally, we were in Hall H itself. If you’ve never experienced Hall H, it’s something to behold. The first time I walked in, my jaw dropped – the sheer size of it is overwhelming. I felt a swell of pride the first time Supernatural was deemed worthy of Hall H, and that feeling has never gone away. This year was no exception. The lead up to Hall H is an event in itself. Thousands of fans camp out overnight (or possibly multiple nights) to get a good place in line. Back in the day, fans were on their own – we sat on the sidewalk that first year, wrapped in blankets and grateful when someone came by with some coffee and donuts. Then fans camped on the grassy areas on the side of the convention center, a few with sleeping bags. Now everyone knows that for Hall H, if you want to be sure you’ll get in and get a decent seat, you camp out. Comic Con has moved the line, first to the walkways along the marina, and then to the line tents constructed for just that purpose. My more intrepid friends slept relatively comfortably in inflatable beds that looked like giant orange kayaks or lounged in deck chairs. Many fans had pop up tents. On Saturday night, it was like a giant Supernatural slumber party, and fans woke up to Misha Collins bringing them donuts in the morning. A few years ago, I spent Saturday night with Misha and Osric Chau delivering pizza to the Supernatural fans waiting in the Hall H line, Misha merrily pedaling along in a pedicab festooned with multicolored lights and fans’ jaws dropping when they saw who was thoughtful enough to bring them dinner. But that’s how unique this SPNFamily is – the fans care, the cast cares. And Misha, frankly, is awesome. This year, the Supernatural panel was the first of the day in Hall H, and anticipation was running extra high. Many of us had heard that they had something “special” planned, but no one knew exactly what it was. There was a keyboard and drums on the stage, so fans were guessing that we might be treated to a Louden Swain performance – I’d chatted with Richard Speight Jr. and Rob Benedict on Friday night, so I knew they were there to probably host the panel, but maybe the rest of the band was too? There were other theories, but no one knew for sure. Anticipation was running so high, in fact, that they let everyone into Hall H extra early, the gigantic hall filling up as fans flooded in and grabbed seats. I caught up with lots of fellow fans, with hugs and excited exclamations all around, then finally it was time for the panel to start. WB publicist Holly took the stage and again told us we were in for a treat, and then the lights went down, and the show began. And OMG what a show it was! Hall H is surrounded by 3 gigantic screens that travel the length of the entire hall, which means they are MASSIVE. As we all watched in awe, Sam and Dean appeared in Baby, of course, traveling – where else? – to Comic Con. Seeing and hearing Baby roar around Hall H with her boys was absolutely awe inspiring, the Impala’s familiar rumble shaking the entire hall and thrilling us to the core. Then we heard the familiar chords of Supernatural’s unofficial theme song, Carry On Wayward Son, booming into the hall. Suddenly the lights went up and there on the stage was the band who made that song famous, Kansas! OMG, I have no words. The screaming was deafening, and then everyone – the tens of thousands of people packed into Hall H – started singing along. Kansas belted it out like the rockstars they are, and the emotion in the room was probably enough to fuel a small city for a very long time. I’m getting emotional again just thinking about it. Jared, Jensen, and Misha snuck out into Hall H and stood in the back watching along with the rest of us. Jensen later put it best in a tweet: Mind blown. I’ll say. After that unbelievable beginning, Rob and Rich took the stage. It’s an unusual thing to have the Comic Con panel moderators be actors who are actually ON the show, but Supernatural is the very definition of an unusual thing. Anyone who has ever witnessed Richard Speight Jr and Rob Benedict hosting a Supernatural convention knows how ridiculously talented they are and just how quick on their feet. They are not only naturally hilarious, but they KNOW this show inside and out. They know this cast. They’re part of the family. Which all means they are the most fantastic panel moderators anyone could ask for. Showrunners Bob Singer and Andrew Dabb, along with Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, took the stage next. Jared and Jensen shared their customary fist bump that starts and ends most of their panels, and Jared pulled off his often present beanie to show off that glorious mane of hair that Richard had just joked would qualify for its own spinoff. Jared and Jensen had apparently tried on masks to go out into the crowd to watch Kansas, but couldn’t find any that worked. Richard: Can’t hide the hair and the bowlegs. He’s right. Talk about iconic… Misha Collins was conspicuously absent for a few minutes. That gave the others plenty of time to mock lament Castiel’s untimely demise. Bob Singer: We have to go where the story takes us…and I think the guys will agree that frankly, Misha had become a bit of a prima donna… (Jensen making a face) At that point they were joined by Misha Collins, who ambled onto the stage carrying his own tiny chair. Misha: No one told me to come out, but I heard my name, so… Rob: This is awkward… It was a hysterical bit, and Misha made the most of it, looking unexpectedly adorable in his tiny chair. Andrew Dabb joked that they made way too many good things happen in Season 12, so Season 13 will basically be death and sadness (but then again, what season of Supernatural hasn’t been that??) Conversation turned to Lucifer’s son Jack curled up naked in the corner at the end of Season 12, which led Jared to ask if a character died (cough Cas cough), would he come back naked? Andrew: I’m not sure we could afford the blur effects. Misha: Oh, because it would take up so much of the screen? Richard: Well, we all know that Jared has been very… accurate… on his twitter feed… In other words, the panel devolved into a discussion of penis size. As you do. Misha eventually reminded Jared that last year at Comic Con, Jared grabbed his phone and tweeted for Misha. Misha: Yeah, and apparently I tweeted I hate fans. Which is a great thing to post at Comic Con! They did manage to talk about the coming season too. A major theme of the early episodes is apparently that Dean and Sam disagree on how to deal with Jack, with Dean wanting to take him out and Sam being more optimistic. In other words, Supernatural tackles the nature versus nurture argument. Andrew pointed out that Sam can put himself in Jack’s shoes, as someone who was once believed to be ‘destined’ to do something bad. Andrew: And Jack himself will continue to struggle with that in our version of “Hell’s My 2 Dads”. Which really sounds more like fanfiction than canon, gotta say. The brothers also differ in how they view Mary’s future. Dean is pretty sure it’s curtains for Mom, and is ready to accept that even though he’s bereft. Sam is holding onto the hope that she could still be alive, which causes some problems between the brothers in deciding what they do next. Bob Singer: Spoiler alert, Mom is not dead. Jensen: WHA?? Jared (channeling Sam): I told you! There was lots of discussion about what the AU world beyond the rift could offer as far as Season 13, including the possibility of bringing back other characters, like they did Bobby. Rob: So could that open up the possibility for other characters to reappear in the same way? Bob Singer: You have anybody specific in mind? Rob: Am I coming back?? Bob Singer: Well you are God… Singer then joked that Gabriel wouldn’t be back, much to Richard’s dismay. He then went on to say that they love to tease Richard, but that they think his directing on Supernatural has been just fantastic, and they’re so happy with him. There were lots of cheers at that from the audience, because YES. Richard, in turn, complimented Jared and Jensen on keeping the show fresh and high quality with their performances for all these years. We learned that there will be some characters returning, including Missouri Mosely and of course Jody and Donna. Andrew: And some of the people who are dead in our world are very not dead but very different in the Apocalyptic world. The possibilities are endless! Jared gave a shout out to the fandom, saying that it was a lot harder when they began the show because they didn’t have “this badass family” to support them. Jared, Jensen, and Misha also talked about the eventual end of the show (something that I don’t want to think about, btw…) – Jensen had a very powerful dream about the end of the show and Sam’s death, and the three of them were talking about it recently, and all got choked up. Their characters are so much a part of them that they feel real, and the thought of Jensen as Dean losing Sam is now heartbreaking to Misha. Which is pretty amazing. Bob Singer told a story that he feels crystallizes the relationships they have all developed. One day Jared and Jensen came to him at the eleventh hour and said that they felt that Dean and Sam’s lines on that episode should be switched. When they rehearsed it, they were tripping over the dialogue and realized that it worked better with the parts reversed – and it worked. Bob: And I heard it and said yeah, that’s right. But the idea that they feel comfortable enough to want to make this honest change, and we’re comfortable enough with the actors to know this is not about ego, it’s about making the show better. Those relationships are why I’m still here. Jared: As much as we tease the short guy at the end [i.e., Misha], we all enjoy each other as people. We have a legitimate friendship outside of working together. And we have a lot of trust in each other. Richard: The show is about family, but it has become family. And the other members of the family? The fans. (Which is why the book I just published is called Family Don’t End With Blood, and why both all the actors and many of the fans wrote chapters about how this extraordinary show has changed their lives). One of my favorite answers was when a fan asked about favorite props. Someone in the audience yelled out “Baby!” Jensen (indignant): Baby is not a prop. Baby is a part of me. Awwww. Misha (smirking): My favorite prop is Dean. Jensen (deadpans): And that’s why he’s no longer with us. A fan asked what their biggest fears were, and Misha joked that it was sitting on stage in front of a large group of people while his friends made fun of him (i.e. exactly what was happening). Bob Singer promptly got up and took Misha by the hand and put him over in his chair, and took the tiny one himself, which was all kinds of sweet and prompted Jensen to give Misha a big hug. Richard: Misha, you are so fired for accepting that kind gesture… Jensen shared what he wrote about in his chapter in Family Don’t End With Blood – that 13 years ago, being in front of all these people would have terrified him. Jensen: It’s daunting, to get up in front of all these people and not trip over your words – or just not trip! There was a shout out to the Wayward Sisters spinoff, and then Richard asked if anyone had any parting words. Jared: Yes. Thank y’all. We wouldn’t exist like this if you didn’t exist like that, so this is 50/50 here. Thank you all for giving us a chance to play these characters and tell this story. If that’s not a classy way to end a panel, I don’t know what is. I had the chance to ask a few questions of Jared, Jensen, Misha, Andrew, and Bob later that afternoon in the press room. Both the cast and anyone who had been at the panel were still sort of blown away by the fact that Kansas had played for us, so spirits were high all around. I had done press rooms years ago, but it had been a few years, so I was busy worrying about my brand spanking new tripod being able to hold up my phone without tipping over when suddenly Jensen Ackles appeared at our table. That caused some minor panic and equipment fumbling on my part before I regained my composure, but that’s not exactly a rare occurrence for me and Mr. Ackles. However, I got a nice wink of acknowledgment so maybe he didn’t notice the fumbling. I’m going with that. Jensen started out still talking about Kansas. How adorable is Jensen fanboying over the band? Jensen: They were like, we’ve wanted to do this for years! And I was like, you mean they didn’t somehow con you into this?? You didn’t lose a bet? And then the lead singer said would you like to come up and join us onstage, and I think I had to change my pants. Jensen had a lot to say about the new season. He’s clearly excited about the Scooby Doo episode, joking that at some point Dean may try to put the moves on Daphne. Most of that episode takes place in “Scoobyland, self serving” and I can’t wait! It was interesting to hear Jensen say that he thinks that Dean always perhaps recognized that there was a bit of good in Crowley, so that even though his eventual sacrificeself-serving, it was also on behalf of the Winchesters in the end. God, I’m gonna miss Crowley! It sounds like Dean starts the season feeling overwhelmed, with too much to process, so Dean just wants to fall back on doing what he knows best and blowing something away. Sam jumps in to stop him, and Jensen acknowledged that there’s a bit of a struggle there. My question will surprise absolutely no one – I wanted to know how different it felt with the brothers not exactly being on the same page, since last season they mostly were. Jensen: It does feel different, but it’s certainly not going back to like seasons where they were completely at odds. Me: That’s good! Jensen: It’s more let’s figure out how to handle this situation. Sam wants to deal with it one way; Dean wants to deal with it another. They’re not gonna argue about it; they’re gonna eventually get to the same place, it’s just how they get there is a little different. Have to say, I loved what Jensen had to say about the brothers – and I loved what Jared had to say up next too. Jensen ended his chat with our table by saying that this crazy wild ride on Supernatural is not even a dream come true, because he could have never dreamed this. Me neither, Jensen! I had a few minutes to try to reposition my camera a bit closer so it would pick up less of the room noise and more of just the person talking, and then Jared took a seat at our table. Someone jumped right in and asked a rather deep question about whether or not Sam realizes how much Dean had to be a parent to Sam as well as his brother. Jared: Sam does know. Sam and Dean love each other as much as two human beings can love each other, truly. Me: (silently from directly across the table) OMG my heart! Jared: That also means they’re going to hate each other and piss each other off sometimes. But it’s forgiven, between Sam and Dean. And Sam has been what Dean needed too…. They are there for each other, and Sam realizes it, and Dean realizes it. I don’t think either Sam or Dean doubt that the other loves them. Seriously, my heart. This show, damn it. Jared said there’s a bit of a role reversal this season in that Sam is overwhelmed by the situation with Jack – Sam sees a lot of himself in Jack, someone who was destined to be “bad.” He even wonders sometimes if Dean feels that way about him. (Nawwww, Sammy…) I asked Jared if it felt good to be playing Sam as the optimist this season. Jared: Yes, it does, but I think we both know he’s probably hiding some things in his optimism as well. He’s not really dealing with some things. Me: A little bit of a defense? Jared: I think so. And if there weren’t things to deal with, he’d be a weirdo, because he’s dealt with a lot in 13 years. Me: That’s true! Someone at the table asked about the eventual end of the show (which I didn’t want to think about right then, thankyouverymuch!). Jared got a little choked up imagining the very last time there will be a Supernatural panel at Comic Con, and I got a little choked up right along with him. He also talked about the day Jensen came to set after having that powerful dream about the show ending. I’ve also talked to Jensen about that dream, which had a big impact on him and was full of evocative images about something that clearly will be a very emotional time in his life. Jared: I remember the day he came to set and he kind of seemed shook up, and I thought maybe it’s something with the kids. I left him alone for a second and then finally when we had time to talk about it I was like dude, you all right? And he told me the dream, and he was like shaking it off, it really affected him. It’s gonna be really difficult; I love these guys. I love these characters, and I love this family. Luckily in this Supernatural universe that we’ve created together, it won’t be over. Misha was next at our table and immediately made us all laugh. Someone asked what they’d given him to prep for these interviews. Misha: Jack shit! We usually get this paper, single spaced… (Interrupts himself to say hi to me, since he wasn’t expecting to see me in the press room, which kinda made my day) Misha: … that delineates the DNRs – the do not reveals, not the do not resuscitates – Everyone: cracks up Misha: And then there are bullet points of what we should talk about for the coming season… And for this year for Castiel it’s just ‘well, no one stays dead forever on Supernatural’ and I’m like thanks a lot for throwing me to the wolves! So I’ll just tell you everything that happens in the first eight episodes to spite them. Never change, Misha. He said that the most relevant aspect of Cas’ death is actually how the boys process his death. Sam and Dean go through a grieving process and have to deal with the loss of their friend. When Cas does come back, he’s in a realm that we’ve talked about before on Supernatural but have never seen. The Empty maybe?? Misha: And he’s in there alone with only one other being, played by… a great actor… Me: I totally thought you were about to tell us the name! Misha: (grinning slyly) Sorry. He clearly wasn’t, but that smile is so adorable it didn’t really matter. Misha also talked about how unusual it is to play the same character over the course of a decade in a vastly changing set of circumstances and the gradual evolution of their characters over time too. It’s surprising to him how organic the process is because they know these characters so well that it just happens. In typical Misha fashion, he asked the last question of himself, which was about the very last GISHWHES. He’s very proud of it and encouraged everyone to sign up – which I’m happy to say I already did. This will be my third time, and every time has been amazingly fun and frenzied and utterly ridiculous. Hope you’re all joining me! Executive producer and showrunner Bob Singer joined us next, talked about how this season is about a family dealing with being torn apart. Ouch. He reiterated that Dean just wants to “shoot it in the face” while Sam wants to see if Jack can be of help to them, specifically in maybe opening up the rift again so they can rescue Mary, which causes some head butting between the guys. This season will be smaller in scope, more personal and more emotional, Bob said, which makes me all kinds of excited. He also teased that we’ll see some familiar characters return, but in the AU so they’ll be not exactly the same – which is also very exciting. Singer also talked about the Wayward Sisters spinoff, which still makes me all squeeful whenever it’s confirmed as reality – I think a part of me still doesn’t believe it! The spinoff set up will begin in episode 3 with the introduction of new character Patience, be picked up in 9 and then continue in 10, which will be the pilot episode. Bob has gleaned a better understanding of how we roll over the seasons. Singer: We’re spreading it out a bit because as much as everyone wants to see Jody Mills, when you tune into Supernatural you want to see Sam and Dean, so we hope by spreading it out a bit, we’ll keep everyone happy. He paused and then smiled. Bob: Which hasn’t happened on 12 seasons of Supernatural, so I don’t know why I said that… I had to laugh, not gonna lie. Andrew Dabb was last to visit our table. He talked a lot about the AU, a world which has never had Winchesters, and the potential for some interesting situations as the universes mix, which I have to admit, has me intrigued. He also talked about characters returning, but cautioned against overdoing it. Andrew: You don’t want to be like here’s character X and here’s character Y, but now they’ve got an eye patch, so they’re totally different… More laughter. These guys are all funny, which has got to be part of the reason this show has survived for 13 years! Dabb went on to say that even though Supernatural has a lot of history, they don’t want to just rely on nostalgia, like a character comes back just to be like hey and wave and walk away. Dabb: If we’re bringing someone back, they’re coming back for a reason. Apparently, a character named Michael will be back, but it may not be the Michael we know and love. Which makes me long for Matt Cohen… Everyone at the table was excited to hear that the show has not forgotten about the witch twins, who I think intrigued all of us. They deserve their own story, Dabb said. Yes! Someone asked if there will be any meta episodes this season, and Andrew said they don’t like to do them too often, and they want to be sure to do them in a way that’s respectful to the fans. That was a pretty nice way to end a press room. I ended the day with frozen pina coladas at the Harbor House restaurant overlooking the marina with my friend Laurena, our aching feet up on chairs while we reminisced about the past five crazy days. I always say I’m not going to do Comic Con again – it’s too exhausting, too hectic, whatever – but by the time I’m going through my photos and writing up my adventures, I’m already planning for next year. As long as Supernatural is there, count me in!

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#Comic Con #Featured #Jared Padalecki #Jensen Ackles #Misha Collins #Supernatural

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fadingfartconnoisseur · 7 years ago

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The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights

“Have you heard of Scott’s Cheap Flights? Should I use them?”

When friends and family far removed from the travel hacking/cheap flights space ask me about a website, I know its mainstream. While there are many good deal websites out there (The Flight Deal, Secret Flying, and Holiday Pirates are three of my favorites), Scott’s Cheap Flights seems to have broken through where others have not. Over 1 million people get his daily flight deals email. I’m a big fan of the website and their ability to often break airfare deals (I used one of their alerts to fly to South Africa). It turns out Scott is a fan of my website too so we sat down for an interview where I got him to spill the secret behind his website:

Nomadic Matt: Tell everyone about yourself. How did you get into this? Scott: When I graduated college in 2009, I knew two things: (1) I wanted to travel the world and (2) I was never going to be wealthy. So if I wasn’t going to let #2 prevent #1, I knew I would have to figure out some creative ways to travel without spending my life savings. I began reading up on flight pricing economics, spending hours on various flight search engines, and learning various airfare patterns. Before long, I found an online community of fellow travel hackers and cheap-flight aficionados who enjoy not just travel but also the thrill of getting a great deal on flights.

Where did the idea of this website come from? Scott’s Cheap Flights has a weird origin story. In 2013, I got the best deal of my life: nonstop from NYC to Milan for $130 round-trip. Milan hadn’t even been on my radar as a place to visit, but for $130 round-trip, there’s no way I wouldn’t go. And it turned out to be amazing! I went skiing in the Alps, caught an AC Milan match, hiked Cinque Terre, hung out on Lake Como. It was divine.

When I got back, word spread among friends and coworkers about the deal I got, and dozens of them began asking me to let them know next time I found a fare like that so they could get in on it, too. So rather than try to remember to tell George and Esther and Aviva when a great deal popped up, I decided to start a simple little email list instead so I could alert everyone at once. Scott’s Cheap Flights was born.

For the first 18 months, though, it was just a little, fun hobby I did for my friends. It wasn’t until August 2015 that it had generated enough organic growth that it made sense to think about turning it into a business.

You’ve sort of blown up in the last year or so. What do you think have been the two biggest factors into your success? First off, thanks! We just hit one million subscribers — still hard for me to believe. The credit goes to two primary factors:

First, there’s an incredible team who runs Scott’s Cheap Flights. It’s not just me; we’re up to 25 folks on the team now. We have a team of flight searchers finding great deals around the world, and also a team of amazing customer support folks. On an average day we get well over 700 emails in our inbox, and most people get a response within a few hours, if not a few minutes. I think this is a major reason why more than 50% of people who sign up for Scott’s Cheap Flights found out about it via word of mouth.

Second, the startup itself had very serendipitous timing. Right around when Scott’s Cheap Flights became a business, international flight prices began to plummet, fueled by low oil prices and a bevy of new low-cost airlines like Norwegian and WOW jumping into the transatlantic market. Whereas in 2010 it was rare to see flights from the US to Europe under $900 round-trip, in 2015 (and through to today), it’s relatively common to see those same flights around $400 round-trip, if not less. We can’t force airlines to offer cheap flights, but we’ve been there to ride the wave these past few years and help subscribers pay half of what they used to to travel abroad.

Were there any media hits or high-profile features that really changed your trajectory? I remember hearing about you a few years ago, but now it seems everyone I know, even outside of travel, has heard of your newsletter. There was one in particular: a Business Insider article and I were taking in the summer of 2015. It helped take Scott’s Cheap Flights from a hobby to a full-fledged business by bringing in thousands of new subscribers. We’ve had hundreds of media hits in the two years since then, but as we’ve grown, each individual one has necessarily had a diminishing impact. Perhaps a Nomadic Matt interview will give a big new boost though!

How does your website work? How do you find these deals? Do you have team of people searching for deals? Is it an algorithm? One thing that surprises a lot of people is that we don’t have a bunch of computers running secret algorithms to find cheap flights. All of our fares are searched by hand. The secret sauce is hard work. Airfare changes by the hour, if not by the minute, and the best deals don’t tend to last very long, so finding out about them early is the key to booking them before they’re gone. Most people don’t want to spend all their free time searching for cheap flights; we love doing it and being subscribers’ early detection radar.

Another way to think of it is like this: Almost everybody is capable of cooking dinner at home, but that doesn’t prevent the existence of the restaurant industry. People don’t always want to put in the time and effort required to find cheap flights, so we’re happy to do it for them.

That seems super time-consuming. How do you decide what and where to search? Do you just randomly plugging in places and dates, or is there more of a method to the madness? There’s a bit of proprietary knowledge that goes into the process, but 95% of it is just the sheer legwork, day after day, searching various routes and seeing what pops up. There’s more of a skill aspect to the process than I would’ve guessed four years ago, whether that’s remembering certain esoteric routes that periodically go on sale, or knowing that a fare war out of one city likely indicates fare drops in other similar cities. For the most part, though, it’s just a small team of incredibly talented and dedicated flight searchers scouring through fares all day every day, disregarding 99% of them and skimming off the juiciest 1% to send to subscribers.

What are some of the biggest trends in flights you are seeing right now? In the last year or two we’ve seen far cheaper flights than in the past to India (before: $1,000+, now: ~$600), Italy and the Netherlands (before: $900, now: ~$350), and Hawaii (before: $800, now $350 from the West Coast, $550 from further east).

Unfortunately (though perhaps not surprisingly), we’re seeing a continued drought of cheap flights to popular destinations like Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand.

In addition, we’re seeing a continued unbundling of airfare: more low-cost carriers and “budget economy” fares offered by full-service carriers that don’t include checked bags, seat selection, or meals.

Do you use your own deals or are you more of a points/miles-in-business-class kind of guy? Sure do! I’m personally not a business-class type of guy. I’m still young enough to be fine in coach for as long and far as a plane can fly. Ask me again in 20 years — but in general I’m uncomfortable being doted on in the premium section of the plane. I’m a simple guy. I don’t need much.

Will we see more business-class deals? Don’t wanna overpromise and underdeliver. Stay tuned!

Do you plan to go global and feature more non-US deals? Yes! We have a team of flight searchers finding cheap fares departing not just from the US but also Canada, the UK and mainland Europe, Australia and New Zealand, the Caribbean, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East (Sub-Saharan Africa coming soon!).

You get all these flight deals, but tell me some of your favorite travel experiences. What’s one of your favorite recent travel memories? Last year my wife and I took a trip to Belarus to visit her family. One of the days we took a trip to a “park” that consisted of a big open field filled with old discarded and retired Cold War–era Soviet weapons. Think machine guns, missiles, and tanks.

Mostly people would walk around and pose for selfies in front of these massive weapons, but at one point I saw a small group of tourists from Asia hand a park operator some cash and then start to climb on top of a WWII-era tank. I thought they were just going to take photos, but a few seconds later the tank started lurching forward before hitting a cool 25 miles per hour, zipping around the park. These tourists were having the time of their effing lives, and it gave me so much joy just to watch them.

Your deal website is great of course, but what about just everyday flights people need to see Grandma. What advice do you have based on your experience learning how airline pricing works? The single best trick to getting cheap airfare is flexibility. Being flexible not just with your dates but also your locations. For example, that NYC-Milan nonstop round-trip deal for $130 I mentioned at the top. I wasn’t living in NYC; I was living in DC. But for that fare it was well worth the short $20 bus ride up. I spent the weekend with friends in NYC and saved myself $650 off what fares would’ve been from DC to Milan.

The way most people approach getting a flight is this: (1) pick where they want to go; (2) pick their dates; and (3) see what prices are available. By prioritizing the fare lowest, they often end up with expensive tickets.

Instead, if getting a cheap flight is your priority, flip the order: (1) see what prices are available to various places are around the world; (2) decide which of the cheap destinations appeal to you; and (3) select the dates you like that have the cheap fares available.

What’s the craziest deal you ever got? In addition to that $130 nonstop NYC-Milan deal, my wife and I recently scored $169 round-trip flights to Japan — flippin’ love mistake fares. And team members have gotten similarly good deals to Hawaii, New Zealand, etc.

Finally, what’s one non-airfare-related travel piece of advice you’d give someone? Read more magazine articles and listen to more smart, informative podcasts. I’m a firm believer in the liberal arts approach of knowing a bit about everything (as opposed to everything about just one subject), not only as a way to be a well-rounded person but also as a social lubricant. If you can hold a conversation about anything from architecture to the stock market to Asian budget airlines, you’re far more likely to meet interesting people and develop deeper relationships.

Scott founded Scott’s Cheap Flights in a Denver coffeeshop. Scott is the flight searcher-in-chief, spending 8-12 hours a day on Google Flights as well as oversee daily operations. If you’re looking for flight deals, it’s one of the best.

The post The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

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touristguidebuzz · 7 years ago

Text

The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights

“Have you heard of Scott’s Cheap Flights? Should I use them?”

Unfortunately (though perhaps not surprisingly), we’re seeing a continued drought of cheap flights to popular destinations like Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand.

Will we see more business-class deals? Don’t wanna overpromise and underdeliver. Stay tuned!

The post The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

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theladyjstyle · 7 years ago

Photo

“Have you heard of Scott’s Cheap Flights? Should I use them?”

When friends and family far removed from the travel hacking/cheap flights space ask me about a website, I know its mainstream. While there are many good deal websites out there (The Flight Deal, Secret Flying, and Holiday Pirates are three of my favorites), Scott’s Cheap Flights seems to have broken through where others have not. Over 1 million people get this daily flight deals email. I’m a big fan of the website and their ability to often break airfare deals (I used one of their alerts to fly to South Africa). It turns out Scott is fan of my website too so we sat down for an interview where I get him to spill the secret behind his website:

Unfortunately (though perhaps not surprisingly), we’re seeing a continued drought of cheap flights to popular destinations like Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand.

Will we see more business-class deals? Don’t wanna overpromise and underdeliver. Stay tuned!

The post The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights http://ift.tt/2kmwvIQ

#Travel Blog – Nomadic Matt's Travel Site digital nomad

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tamboradventure · 7 years ago

Text

The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights

“Have you heard of Scott’s Cheap Flights? Should I use them?”

When friends and family far removed from the travel hacking/cheap flights space ask me about a website, I know its mainstream. While there are many good deal websites out there (The Flight Deal, Secret Flying, and Holiday Pirates are three of my favorites), Scott’s Cheap Flights seems to have broken through where others have not. Over 1 million people get this daily flight deals email. I’m a big fan of the website and their ability to often break airfare deals (I used one of their alerts to fly to South Africa). It turns out Scott is fan of my website too so we sat down for an interview where I get him to spill the secret behind his website:

Unfortunately (though perhaps not surprisingly), we’re seeing a continued drought of cheap flights to popular destinations like Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand.

Will we see more business-class deals? Don’t wanna overpromise and underdeliver. Stay tuned!

The post The Secret Sauce Behind Scott’s Cheap Flights appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

from Travel Blog – Nomadic Matt's Travel Site http://ift.tt/2kmwvIQ via IFTTT

#IFTTT #Travel Blog – Nomadic Matt's Travel Site

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