okay so it’s still a work in progress, it currently has 20 chapter and was updated on friday. It’s a percy jackson human AU fic where sally jackson died, and percy had to live with gabe. gabe was abusive and percy was failing out of every school he went to. Poseidon didn’t know about percy and is a part of a large celebrity family called the olympians. Eventually Percy is brought to Poseidons house and sleeps in the guest room. His half-brother is triton. They go to a fancy event and meet everyone blah blah blah. Poseidon like owns an aquarium and Zeus is super rich and whatever and in recent chapters Poseidon (perhaps) dies. we don’t know if he actually does but yah. Also they have a dog named barney/barnacles. I LOST IT AND IM EXTREMELY DESPERATE. It was on Ao3.

I meant “party” in the sense that the campaign itself never started and totally understand we all have busy lives. But about a year ago my friends and I decided to start a new campaign that would begin as a “who done it” prior to a tournament we would all participate in. We start at lvl 7 and just create wealthy badasses is what the guide lines basically were for the whole party. Other two members were both sorcerers and I was a bard who would not use instruments but allocate my bonuses towards stunts thats I perform. Honestly felt like I made my most favorite character ever and been dying to see what playing as them would be like. Sadly we couldn’t be able to find the time to start it yet and I can’t blame em. Life just be going on and whatnot. Each time we talk about it and remember our players we hype up the idea again and how we would play them. At this point I’m just dying to play them. Starting to give up on the idea of it happening but I want this character to exist somehow. If anyone is interested here is my character. Hope anyone enjoys it and sorry for the long read. Dm also has my stats btw, sorry. Feel free to talk about your characters also.
Oslo Winmore
Backstory Long ago- an outlaw named Lazlo Winmore had found power, wealth and fame like no other pirate during “The Age of New Beginnings”. Lazlo’s accomplishments made his bloodline wealthy beyond imagination for many generations to come. With such wealth within a family there had come a point where his lineage had adapted to wealthy behaviors and adopted similar mindsets to those of a higher class... Ultimately becoming what their great great great grandfather had once despised. After finding out the history of his family’s bloodline and source of wealth: Oslo Winmore had a moment of clarity. A vision of freedom that made himself feel comfortable inside his skin for the first time ever. He decided to became an outlaw of the sea with his younger brother in hopes to achieve the same notoriety of his ancestor by stripping themselves of all titles and possessions for a life of adventure. After a few years of unforgettable laughs, achievements and looting of many sorts- a tragic battle left himself and his crew on the verge of death with few survivors. Leaving the disheartened bunch shipless and broke. They were left off the coast of Windwall. His small group had to scrape up whatever they could in order get by for awhile. No weapons, no spirit, no destination in mind, they decided to settle at Windwall and wait until their wounds would eventually heal. Upon discovering the kingdom of Windwall operating in ways that lead to common folk suffering, Oslo decided he couldn’t stand the sight any longer. His group of friends started performing impressive stunts at a close proximity to the capital in hopes of obtaining funds that would later be used to aid those in need. Project XP had then become established as an organization of Oslo’s and provided protection to the lower class residents. Inspiring hope amongst the kingdom peasants, Oslo became a voice of the people. As these events grew larger and large they reached a point of success to where he became recognized by lords and the king himself. After word had spread of his amazing performances, his presence alone attracted many visitors to the area which brought economical prosperity to Windwall like it’s never seen. Many refer to him as “King of the Common” but King of the underground had a better ring to it in his mind. Activities in the shadows were monitored and eventually spearheaded by the young group of individuals to which the king had no choice but to look the other way so that his kingdom could still prosper. His image became a topic of discussion to both sides of wealth and poverty. Whether or not you loved him or hate him, he showed nothing less than compassion to those who deserved it. However, a strange new drug called “Baby Blue” has been invading the lands of Cornwood and eventually made its way to Windwalls shipment or substances. Horrified by the effects led by this drug, Oslo is determined to find out who is manufacturing and distributing this abomination and total buzzkill.
The grout: Home of Project XP Warehouse area where events are held and stunts are practiced. Some activities may be under the table and somewhat shady. Others are awe provoking. Areas include: Pray room, slay room, weight room, safe room, blaze room, trade room, stage room, boom room Entrance fee is lifted to those who are considered an outcast. Some are allowed to crash where there’s space if we recognize they’re about that life.Multiple areas are marked as “Danger Zone” where intense practices are held.
You are passing through at your own risk of harm. PROJECT XP does not take responsibility for any injury and/or death that may occur.
Project XP members
Oslo: Ring leade Daredevil Stunt Maste ((Considers Project XP his magnum opus. Has a lot of internal monologues)) [drow-tiefling Bard]
Knievel Winmore: Performative Arsonist/ Fire dancer ((Brother of Oslo Winmore, occasional loose cannon, wishes they were pirates again instead of performers)) [Drow-Tiefling Rogue]
Clam: Right hand man/ Tiger Tame Swordsman ((Always covered in jewels. Pet Tiger named Oro. Twin blade wielder )) [Human Fighter]
Boe & Beaux : Twin Bouncers/ HandyMen ((Unusual consumption, hard to give orders when names sound similar)) [Dwarven barbarians]
Aderet Lavish: Heale Illusionist/ Restoration Expert/ ((Gender bending abilities. Considers everyone annoying. Sees everyone like younger siblings)) [Wood Elf Cleric]
ROD: Announce Hype Man/ ((Loyal to The Grout. Merchant of illegal substances. Still can’t afford cost of living. Unable to speak quietly)) [Human -Monk Free spirit being]
Craddoc Dudum: Condemned Magical Scientist/ Cleanup crew/ ((Collects corpses due to stunt casualties. Research is unknown)) [Changling Wizard]
Bibbins: Demolitions expert/ Stunt Coordinato Enginee ((Ex mob boss- formerly known as “The Big B”. The guy who knows a guy. Old timer who can finally cut loose)) [Gnome tinkerer]
Patches: Practice Dummy ((Sentient crash dummy. Lives to fall apart. People tend to confide with him most)) [undead]
Masami Yano: Quartermaste Legal Advisor ((Constantly stressed. Former New York City resident. Had switched dimensions by a witches spell)) [Human Attorney]

Spoilers for Curse of Strahd ahead, so read at your own risk!
You know those stories you hear every once in a while? The ones that start out with “there’s no way in hell this will work” and it winds up working anyway? We just had one of those moments in an online Curse of Strahd Campaign that I absolutely had to share. So I hope you enjoy.
Our party for this tale is thusly:
Vincent: Human Blood-Hunter
Nox: Human Warlock
Eylsa: Tiefling Druid
Coyote: Pixie Barbarian
Amor: Tiefling Artificier
Rictavio: DMPC Cleric.
Our story begins in the flooded town of Berez, home to the hag Baba Lysaga. For the past few sessions, our party had been pretty decisive in their decision to “burn the witch” as it were, but opted to go for a diplomatic approach instead, mostly because we had no plan or strategy whatsoever.
After meeting and discussing some terms with the hag, it turned out she wanted the following from the party in exchange for a gemstone she’d taken from a winery. She wanted Vincent’s speed, Nox’s tongue, Eylsa’s courage, Coyote’s last breath, Amor’s Hope, and Rictavio’s heart (Methinks she had a thing for our cleric). In any case, we found those terms unacceptable and combat began with Amor shooting her in the face with a firebolt.
First thing I had Nox do was cast fly on himself and Eylsa so he could go up to the roof so he could Thunderwave it down for his next turn. Meanwhile Coyote got right up in her face to attack and Amor popped a flaming sphere right behind her inside the hut. Meanwhile, Eylsa turned into a Huge Polar Bear and followed Nox up to the roof. After some brief talking, we had a small plan; Nox would Thunderwave the roof on his next turn, then move out of the way so Eylsa could dive-bomb the house.
And then the house’s roots started attacking us…
Nox failed his con-save and dropped 5 feet onto the roof due to loosing concentration. And with a passed acrobatics check, Eylsa managed to land on her polar bear tip-toes to avoid crushing the warlock. Figuring that he was likely going to die on his next turn, Nox went right ahead and cast that Thunderwave on the roof to try and get a hole made so Eylsa would at least have an opening.
It didn’t even make a dent.
And the tree roots were still attacking.
Luckily, Rictavio was able to keep us alive with some clutch Mass Healing Words. Meanwhile, Baba Lysaga had cast Cloudkill on the party, resulting in them all running into the hut for shelter. With the Hag still inside.
It paid off in the end as they managed to get a lot of good hits on her while Nox and Eylsa tried to take out the roof, causing her to misty step onto her skull and fly up into the air for that flying advantage.
With that, it’s Eylsa’s turn. And she proceeds tell us that there were two ideas warring for dominance inside her mind; one that played on the safe side of things and could probably reduce the amount of damage taken, one that was incredibly dumb.
Proving once and for all that we are terrible, terrible influences, we all tell her to go with the dumb idea.
Now, Eylsa had never dropped her Wildshape, meaning that while she was on the roof, she was still a huge polar bear. And now, the hag is eye level with her, some feet away from the edge.
With that information, Eylsa decides to throw herself off the roof and onto the flying Baba Lysaga… While still being a huge polar bear. Her plan was to belly-flop the hag to death.
There was some discussion about the rules of fall damage and how it would carry when there’s something huge literally pile-driving you into the ground beneath you. In the end, DM ruled that Eylsa would take the fall damage while Baba Lysaga would take the same damage, times nine.
So with that, Eylsa successfully jumps, soaring through the air right on top of Baba Lysaga and rolls the necessary 3d6. The final result was an 11 fall damage to the Polar Bear…
…And 99 damage to the hag…
…
Just let that image sink in for a bit, a huge polar bear taking a flying leap off the roof of a burning hut, splattering the hag to smithereens upon impact…
…
Once we were done cheering that the plan had actually worked, and laughing our asses off because the plan had actually worked, the house went catatonic and the party was free to loot the place to our hearts content with the hag-jelly still staining the lawn.
So the next time you get an idea that you think can’t possibly work out, go for it. If nothing else, you might get a few laughs and a dead hag out of the deal!

Hear me out - This panel is a fakeout. Sukuna making the hand sign and the panel explaining how he can make his domain as many times as necessary is a ruse to sucker punch everyone for the real surprise. Yuji is the one saying domain expansion.
Notice how Yuji hit Sukuna with BF and suddenly BAM, he can use Cleave.
Notice how in this chapter Sukuna was hit with another, single Black Flash amidst the flurry of Todo and Yuji hands. When Yuji hits a BF he always upgrades significantly.
That last BF pushed Yuji into learning DE and Yuji ripping into Sukuna’s chest was a prerequisite to make sure Sukuna didn’t escape.
I believe that Yuji is going to pop a halfway domain like Megumi (who note has the only imperfect domain in the whole series so far. Why would that be if not foreshadowing its possibility for Yuji?) and since Yuji’s whole shtick is assimilating powers and souls, what Sukuna is seeing is a projection of Gojo’s soul through Yuji’s domain.
Why else would Sukuna immediately notice it after the indiscriminate “Domain Expansion”?
If Gojo was really there, Sukuna would’ve sensed him far earlier and quicker. You could even say Todo and the rest would’ve acknowledged it.
But the panel exclusively focuses on Sukuna with Yuji still digging into his chest.
We KNOW Yuji’s blows affect the soul. So what do you think happens when he has a full on grip on your center mass with his powers after hitting a BF?
You get ABSOLUTE CINEMA.
I hereby enact a binding vow on this post that 261 is not Gojo himself, but a projection made by Yuji through Yuji’s powers. Yuji has upgraded again. IF I AM WRONG AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YUJI’S POWERS I will post a selfie of myself with a note saying “Roast me I’m a fucking fraud” and let yall absolutely bully me to kingdom.
IF I AM RIGHT, THO! I want to pick the profile picture of this subreddit.
BUY YOUR YUJI STOCKS! ITS ALL OR NOTHING!

Thanks so much for all the feedback on my previous draft! Link here: https://www.reddit.com/PubTips/comments/1ck73u3/qcrit_through_the_willow_middle_grade_fantasy_56k/
Consistent feedback was to spend more time in the magical world vs. the real world, which I've tried to do below. I also tried to hint at the "magical world is a place to deal with your feelings" element without making it seem too heavy-handed. Would really appreciate any thoughts or suggestions!
***
Dear [xyz],
I am seeking representation of my upper middle grade fantasy novel, THROUGH THE WILLOW (56,300 words). [Insert personalization.] THROUGH THE WILLOW brings the whimsical, child-governed world of Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch (Julie Abe) to the quest for courage in Coraline (Neil Gaiman) and the exploration of family dynamics, mental health, and life transitions in The Rules for Stealing Stars (Corey Ann Haydu) and Pencilvania (Stephanie Watson).
Clare and Timothy Lane were not the only kids who stumbled into a secret world hidden in their neighborhood park. Dozens of kids from the Lanes’ hometown had built a chaotic, adult-free village of misfits deep in the Bogatell Rainforest, led by laissez-faire teenager Caro and her snarky, hotheaded second-in-command, Raph. Free from parents’ watchful eyes and rules, the kids’ innate talents and abilities grew the longer they stayed in the village. Raph, who was abused by his father before coming to this world, can self-heal, and Caro can shield others from danger. To Clare, who felt like she wasn’t very good at anything, this village was paradise—a chance to explore her talents and interests without her mother’s biting words and the weight of her own self-doubt.
But when the river feeding the Bogatell Rainforest ran dry, Clare’s chance at a new start was in danger. And even worse, Clare learned that Timothy was running low on his asthma medication, which meant that she had to get Timothy home—and decide whether she would go with him.
If Clare can even find her way back home. Because no one from the Clendor Village has ever made it back to the real world. And no one in Clare’s hometown has ever acknowledged that any children are missing.
[Insert bio - first-time fiction writer with a day job that involves non-fiction writing, personal experience with anxiety inspiring me to write this story]
I’d be thrilled if you would consider THROUGH THE WILLOW for representation, and I hope to hear from you soon.
Sincerely,
[xyz]

When Quicktalon finally woke up, his heart leaped to his throat as he noticed that the sun was beginning to set. A gruff voice chuckled to his alarm before he could act on his sudden panic, “Sit down, you crazy ostrich. You’re fine. Achira has been taken care of, the fire lit, and your dinner is near the fire to keep warm.” Quicktalon froze at the new voice, slowly turning towards the owner of this new visitor, but his eyes seemed to have been playing tricks on him. His brother Fleet was nearby and changing his sister’s bandages.
“Fleet?” he asked softly, his eyes still wide at seeing his battle-scarred brother. “H-how are you here?! The search party for the missing Drakes and Dragons left months ago!” he exclaimed, a grin growing as happy tears began to warm his eyes. It had been far too long since he had last seen his brother. “Well, we were on our way back from the most northern searches, and we found a few traces of what could have happened, but we need to send out another search party after we Rest and replenish our supplies. But I have heard the great news!” Fleet said as he hugged his brother, “ I’m so proud of you!” He exclaimed, pulling his brother into a hug, “I can’t believe you’ve grown so much from that little drake who never left our grandmother's side and always got into scrapes from running too fast.” He laughed softly.
Quicktalon chuckled at his brother’s lighthearted jesting, “ Grandmother always made healing fun and exciting, and I wanted to be able to follow in her talon steps and help those who helped us when we were little drakelings.” He said with a smile, “But now, I have a chance to truly save dragonkind from this dangerous threat, hopefully with getting this information out to the world and traveling to Scholar’s Whispering Peak, I can also get more information on what happened to our Grandmother and hopefully what had happened to our parents all those years ago.”
A smile ghosted Fleet's lips. He knew that something had happened to his grandmother; they had the signs and were Grandmother her. But the more his troop searched, and the more evidence was uncovered, the more serious this strange tail became. He hadn’t mentioned it yet to their pack leader. Still, Drakes across the savanna were going missing, some dragons and even the notoriously hidden Arctic dragons.
Dozens of Dragons of all kinds were going missing. The Sea Orcs were the only ones who witnessed this strange occurrence. They were too big for anything to happen to them, but the cause of the disappearing dragons needed to be uncovered and solved before the giant sea dragons began to disappear. But Fleet couldn’t ruin his brother’s excitement and joy over this. So, for now, he kept quiet and continued praising his brother for his magnificent discovery.
“I need to start getting ready. I’ve got a big trip ahead of me. I need to pack plenty of supplies and ensure I have enough to trade for a thick fur cover to protect me from the freezing temperatures at the summit of the Scholars Whispering Peak.” Quicktalon said, “I can’t wait to be able to spend more time with you and Achira as soon as she fully recovers from the effects of the viper.” He explained with a soft chuckle, “ but I will be back soon, hopefully before winter settles over the lands, which, with it being the middle of New Life, I should have time to make it to the coast and get assistance through the ocean and onto the nearest coastline on the other side.”
Fleet looked concerned at the plan his brother had just explained. " Are you sure that is safe? I’ve met traveling Sea Orcs and been told how long and perilous a journey across the sea can be for Drakes and Dragons of our size!” Fleet explained fear etched deep into his face as he couldn’t imagine his little brother in the middle of a raging and violent sea. “ It would be better to travel on land. You’d get there much safer and without the risk of your research getting ruined from the sea's moisture.”
Quicktalon took a moment to consider. Is a trip like that more manageable? Would it be safer to traverse land rather than sea? “Are there any maps I can get? Can you help me figure out a quick and safe journey from our home to the Scholars Whispering Peak? If the sea is too dangerous, I will need to figure out a different way to get to the scholars and hopefully get there before the snow season starts.” He said, “Do you know if the pack to our North sells maps of the continent and trade routes I could follow?” He asked while moving to a chest with chunks of gold and jewels he could trade for a map. He even wrote quick instructions for effectively healing and removing the venom from the bite of an Orid Viper. Fleet watched as his brother gathered enough items for trade; each pack had different trade requirements depending on the situation and status.
“Do you remember what they ask for trade?” Quicktalon asked as he set his collected gems and precious metals into a small side pouch strapped to his front right upper forearm. Fleet thought momentarily and tried to remember when his troop had last passed through the pack to the North. “ I believe they take both jewels and food, so we might want to stop and catch something for them to eat on our way over to the North Pack,” Fleet said as he sharpened his dull talons on a nearby rock, “ a water buffalo perhaps would be a good trade-off.” He said, “with the upcoming heat wave, they might appreciate more food for their youngins.”
“Then it's settled. Let's head to the North Pack and trade for a map for a trade route to Scholars Whispering Peak.” Quicktalon said, ensuring his research was set somewhere safe and out of the way of any potential spills or papyrus-eating worms. “Let’s go. The hottest part of the day is over for now, and the animals should be coming back from mid-day hibernation so we can snag a water buffalo on the way to them,” Quicktalon said while moving to give his sister healing wound a quick check-over. Once everything was in good shape, Quicktalon and Fleet left the medical hut. They began their journey to the North Pack and hopefully snagged a water buffalo on the way toward their destination.
Both brothers carefully left the medical hut and began looking around Earthquake to tell him where they were heading and their plan for QuickTalon to get to the Scholars Whispering peaks before winter hit. It wasn’t too hard to find the elder drake, as he was once again leading the younger drakes in battle practice for the potential war that seemed to be whispering on the horizon. “WATCH YOUR TALONS! FOR MOTHER DRAKE’S SAKE HEATSTROKE, DUCK! USE YOUR FIRE!” Earthquake shouted, drilling the almost grown drakes in new and much faster battle techniques. “Things must be getting worse if Earthquake is so worried about what’s been happening. It worries me.” Fleet murmured to QuickTalon, fear and worry evident on his face as he watched the young drakes practice their battle maneuvers as if they were currently fighting the actual enemy.
The mock battle went on for what felt like an eternity before Earthquake called for the young drakes to take a break and get a drink of water. “ Freshen up! Get a drink and take a moment to breathe! You must keep practicing if we ever need to go to war against this new and unknown enemy!” He commanded while walking over to see what QuickTalon and Fleet wanted to discuss. “ Welcome back, Fleet, and I’m happy to see that your search troop all came back with no casualties.” He said in greeting, “But what can I do for you both? I can see that there is something you both wish to tell me.” He said while peering down his snout at the younger of the group, “We plan to head to the northern pack and trade something of value for a trade route map to the Scholars Whispering Peaks. The initial route is dangerous, and the humid air could ruin my research.” QuickTalon explained, “With the scorching season rolling in, we thought bringing a water buffalo to trade for a map would be helpful.”
Earthquake seemed impressed by the current plan, “ while that is a good idea, the Northern Pack have been plagued recently by attacks from humans, or at least what seems to be left of that species; if you want to help, I’m sure food, water and medical attention will benefit them most.” He explained, “ but you both have my permission to go to the Northern Pack, just come back here, and I’ll help get you an assistant to stand in your place as a healer until your return.” Earthquake said, a smile gently ghosting across his snout, “now go on little ones, the sun is getting ready to set, and the water buffalo will be out to graze and drink at the nearby watering holes.” “Yes, sir, we will be back within three days,” QuickTalon said with a nod as he and his brother were dismissed and permitted to head off toward the Northern Pack.
With the dry dirt and plants crunching under their talons, QuickTalon turned and followed Fleet toward the Northern pack. “If humans are attacking them, what should we do if we see one?” QuickTalon asked after a long pause in the conversation, “Well,” Fleet started as if trying to recall a memory, “ my commander said that if you see a human, to kill on sight. While most humans are not dangerous to us as adults, they still threaten our young and elderly.” He explained, “Although I have yet to see a human, I have heard conflicting reports and statements about humans. Some are nice and have been seen helping others and the environment we live in, and some are on constant paths of destruction, burning, and taking like the worst of us dragons. Filled with greed and the never-ending satisfaction that they will never have enough stuff to put into their horde, they kill everything on their path to get what they want.”
QuickTalon’s eyes widened in both fascination and absolute horror at what he was hearing, and he had never realized that something so small and without fire or claws or just something to defend itself could be so destructive. “ But, is there a way to tell which ones are good and bad? Surely all of them can’t be rotten, can they?” He asked, jumping in fright when a breaking twig cracked nearby. “I’m sure there is, but for now, we’ve been told to just kill on sight.” He said softly, “ I know you want to help save the world, but you must remember, QuickTalon, that not everyone can or wants to be saved. You will need to know when to save yourself, and don’t let those who want to drown pull you under with them.” He said, eyes staring off into the distance, seeming to be looking at or hearing something out in the distance that only he could see. Quicktalon wasn’t sure how to respond to his brother’s worries. He was worried that his brother might know something more about this dangerous situation than he did, but he knew that he needed to keep his head clear and his eyes forward during this difficult time. “Brother, I know you are worried and want to find Grandmother, but spiraling off into the unknowns and the shadows will not help us find her. I believe in you and the others, but you need to take a breath and remind yourself where you are and your focus.” Quicktalon said, listening intensely to his surroundings while following his brother North. “ We will find Grandmother and the other missing Drakes, but for now, we need to rest our worried minds to start with a clean slate in the morning. If we let our brains become muddled, we could miss important details. So for now, let's just rest our heads and worry about finding a water buffalo and getting a map.”
Fleet sighed deeply, “You’re right, brother. Worrying about all the what-ifs has been muddling my mind. I’ve been so stressed over all of the potential possibilities I have lost the main focus of my mission. To bring the lost and the missing home.” He said, shaking his head ever so slightly as if trying to clear his head from the dark thoughts that had muddled his brain for many years. “ But I agree, let us get that water buffalo and trade for the map. Once we return and rest, my troop and I will follow you to the first trading post and head toward the North. Perhaps we might meet again on your journey.” Fleet hummed softly before snapping his gaze towards the direction of something he had heard. “Shh, I hear something!” He whispered while dropping into a low crouch and moving almost silently through the tall brush and grass toward the sound he had heard.
Quicktalon did the same and followed his brothers' movements. The grass hissed and crunched softly under their talons as they approached the top of a small hill. With careful movements, the brothers peered over the hill. The water buffalo migration had begun, and thousands of bison were resting around the large pond. “ The migration.” Quicktalon murmured, “Would it hurt if we managed to grab a few bison for the Northern pack?” He asked, “ I don’t know how many drakes are in the Northern Pack, but with the hot season approaching, maybe it would help to bring them a few bison to preserve before the migration leaves?” He asked if he knew they needed to preserve the circle of life, but he had no idea what the status of this other pack could be since it had been at least forty years since he had last seen the pack at the semi-annual Drake packs meet-up.
“Perhaps, although I don’t want to end up overwhelming the Northern pack with food. But I agree, with the scorching season approaching, packs will need as much food as possible.” Fleet murmured while slowly dropping into a hunter's crouch, “ I will go for the two deep in the water. You grab the one heading out.” He instructed, to which Quicktalon agreed. He adjusted his satchel and ensured his research was safe before waiting for his brother's signal. With a hiss, Fleet shot over the hill, running as fast as he found towards the two water buffalo in the water. Grunts, groans, and high-pitched bellows filled the air as the water buffalo panicked and ran away from the large drakes.
Thunderous hooves and cries filled the air as the buffalo pushed and shoved into each other while fighting to escape the predators. Quicktalon narrowed his eyes, planted all four talons to the ground, and lunged at the water buffalo. The bison bellowed in fear and swung its head, trying to gore Quicktalon with its horns, but with a sharp turn of his body, he narrowly managed to avoid the deadly horn and sink his teeth into the back of the buffalo’s neck. The buffalo’s wails increased before being silenced with a loud crack, its body falling limp in Quicktalon’s jaws and its head rolling loosely. Loud splashing drew the younger drakes' attention; the second water buffalo ganged up on his brother. With a roar of anger, Quicktalon dropped his fresh kill and thundered through the water toward the second buffalo. The second buffalo barely had time to react before Quicktalon threw himself on the bison’s back and began pulling on its horns to steer it away from his brother.
The bison bellowed angrily and bucked as hard as possible, trying to throw the younger drake off. But Quicktalon held on tight, and with an angry snarl, he gripped the horns tightly in his talons, and with a harsh twist and a loud snap, the bison’s neck was broken. The bison collapsed into the water with a splash. Quicktalon was breathing hard as he tried to catch his breath after such a stressful moment. Fleet growled as he finally managed to take down his water buffalo, “ Fleet, are you okay?” Quicktalon asked, moving through the water, the muddled water sloshing around his talons.
“ I—I’m okay, I just… need to catch my breath.” Fleet panted as he caught his breath. I don’t know why that was so difficult. It shouldn’t have been.” He panted while pushing himself up and moving to collect the two limp water bison. “Let’s get these to the North Pack. We are almost there.” He said while letting Quicktalon assist him with lifting the two freshly killed bison onto his back. “Alright, but as soon as you need to take a break, let me know,” Quicktalon said as he walked over to the water buffalo he killed and hoisted it onto his back.
Fleet nodded in agreement, and the two began the final leg of their trek toward the Northern pack. Crickets began to chirp and sing as the sun set, lighting the sky in a brilliant mixture of pinks, reds, and oranges. Quicktalon smiled, stared at the beautiful sky, and grew even more excited when the fireflies lit up and danced around the land. “ You’ve always enjoyed this time of year, haven’t you?” Fleet asked with a smile, “ I do. The beautiful sunsets, the lightning bugs, and the soft songs of crickets. It always brings me joy.” Quicktalon replied with a happy smile in return. “Whenever I am scared, I think of nights like this to help calm me down.” He explained with a soft chuckle, “Grandmother even painted me a painting of one of these nights. I still treasure that painting the most.” He said, reminiscing about when his grandmother gifted him the painting of his favorite sunset.
“We will find her, Quicktalon, I promise,” Fleet said as he gently shouldered his brother with a soft sigh. “ I know, Fleet, but I’m still worried. She vanished without a trace.” He said softly, shifting the weight of water buffalo on his back to accommodate for the extra weight. “ I believe you brother, but, I still cant’t believe that someone or something like this could have happened.” He murmured, “although I do hope that we can figure out what has happened and we can bring our grandmother home.” Quicktalon said as he tried to enjoy his favorite evening.
Fleet nodded, “ well, we are almost to the Northern Pack, hopefully they have something that can help.” He said, nodding his head towards the approaching lights in the distance, “ good, hopefully they can help.” Quicktalon sighed before a set of drakes in heavy armor thundered towards them, anger written on their faces. “HALT!” One of the guards roared. “W-whats going on?” Quicktalons asked, unsure of why the guards were so angry. “ Your grandmother and her pack of drakes destroyed our village!”

Okay so I’m seeing posts about thousands of words being in just the outline of some author’s works!! I’m just wondering: do you guys write your plans for the chapter in those thousands of crazy words, or is it like a bare-bones kinda version you’re going to go through later and beef up a bit?
I’ve tried outlining before but it absolutely slaughtered my motivation and I haven’t picked up that fic since, so… yeah…

This is a bit of a longer post so stay with me here. This is really only a chunk of my overarching belief on how pretty much all things metaphysical work, including reincarnation, gods/angels/ghosts/all spirits, manifestation, witchcraft, and so on. But I'm sharing the part of the theory that specifically relates to Astral Projection for this sub. I have been sitting on this for a couple of years now without telling anyone, but I started writing it for my Book of Shadows (I am a witch), and I wanted to hear your guys' thoughts. I'm not claiming to have come up with these theories AT ALL but I think it's an interesting topic.
Regardless of religious beliefs, or whether God has what we would call “sentience”, there is no undeniability that God must be math itself. Now, I am not referring to deities (which many witches including myself work with, and I will delve into what these deities are and where they come from a different time), but GOD. We constantly refer to God as “omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient.” That’s what math is! Math dictates the laws of the universe; it exists in every atom and is the precursor to knowledge itself. Astrophysics is ultimately math– it is truly the LAWS of the Universe (and likely beyond). 1+1 will always equal 2, a complicated calculus equation will always have the same answer. No matter how a species were to write or perceive math, the math itself will always stay the same. Consider the famous Golden Record, aboard Voyager 1 and 2, a disk plated in gold that is traveling through space as I write this, and as you read this. Along with other information about humans and Earth, it contains a translation guide of our numerical system which can then be interpreted by any intelligent life who comes across the disk. By understanding our numerical system, they can then read the information in the disk, including coordinates to planet Earth. Math is the only language that all sentient beings can understand. And yet, Math will never be truly understandable to any being, at least in this plane of existence. What else could we call such a thing but God? A math equation could hypothetically be written for all conceivable and non-conceivable things, from the curve of your eyelashes to a wormhole. Math is perfect, always chaotic but never without structure. Now, I don’t want to offend any religious people; in theory, your God could still be real, but the physical manifestation of any all-powerful God that COULD exist is Math. Again, I’m not referring to deities that are not believed to be all-powerful (for example, the Greek pantheon: Greek gods are NOT all-powerful, all-knowing, or always good), I believe these deities are something different entirely which I will explain another time.
Let's tie this notion to the idea of the fourth dimension (and higher dimensions). The easiest way I can explain this theory is by comparing our relationship with time to the relationship between a 2-dimensional being and the 3rd dimension. So, we are 3-dimensional beings. We have height, width, and depth, as do all things in this plane of existence. But we can only exist at one point in time. This “point” is only hypothetical, though– we measure time through manmade inventions such as clocks or calendars. But time does not physically exist, even though it dictates all things in our lives. Time causes the birth and eventual death of all life. It moves along a linear line, meaning to us, all things happen in chronological order. The Big Bang happened first, then the creation of planets, solar systems, water, life, and so on. The birth of your grandmother happened before yours. Now think of how a 2-dimensional being would perceive the 3rd dimension, and it will be quite similar. A 2-dimensional being only has height and width, but not depth. It is probably aware of depth, but can never see depth, or feel depth. It, and everything else in that dimension, can only exist at one point of depth, which would move forward in a linear fashion, and no being in that dimension could ever go back to a previous depth, or see the “future depth”. But of course, to us, this is inconceivable to understand, because we live in a dimension where an infinite amount of depths coexist all at once. You may see where this is going. Perhaps someone would like to ask a fourth-dimensional being, “What is it like being a time-traveler? Can you change the past/future?” But how would you respond if someone asked you: “What is it like being a depth-traveler? Can you change previous depths/future depths?” This question doesn’t really make sense because not only do we move depth-wise (on the Z-plane if we are thinking in terms of a x-y graph) when we walk, drive, even breathe, but all of our organs and cells and atoms have a depth, which change without us thinking about it. This is probably very similar to how a fourth-dimensional being would view time. The Big Bang did not happen first, nor last. It is always happening, as are the births of all who came before you, as are the deaths of all who come after you. Just because we view time linearly doesn’t mean it IS linear. Our brains were not built to wrap our heads around this, but all things that could ever possibly have happened, or could ever possibly happen in the future, are currently happening. This ties to a philosophy that has existed for thousands of years and shows up in witchcraft often: the idea of Oneness. That one is all, all is one, that all things are connected, As above, so below… The microcosm is the macrocosm, the macrocosm is the microcosm. This completely throws the conversation of free will, and the butterfly effect, out the window. “Do we truly get to choose our actions, or is everything predetermined, due to God or timelessness, or whatever we want to call it?” We wonder, “if I had chosen XYZ differently… if I had chosen to buy a different drink on February 18th, 2016, would my life be completely different now?” But all these questions have no real weight when time is NOT chronological. You can’t choose or NOT choose anything, because all things, all results, all causes, simultaneously exist. I like to believe that all things exist as one big jumbled math equation. This equation is constantly changing due to every individual and even non-sentient object in the universe. All things affect this equation, and yet it is always dictated by the same mathematical principles. Again, I do not think the human brain can truly comprehend this, but this means “free will” and “predestination” co-exist, if we MUST think in those terms (but I have already said I think those terms are 3-dimensional bologney). You can already guess that this, of course, means the multiverse exists.
Your soul is essentially a concentration of this mathematical life force that exists in all atoms and therefore all things– this is not unique to my theory. You have probably already heard the phrase “You are a small piece of the universe experiencing itself.” Again, this is how you are connected to all things, and how you exist aside from your physical body. This aligns with the commonly accepted concept that when you astral project, you are shifting your consciousness to a different plane of existence. But what if we bring this idea of timelessness and the multiverse theory into the conversation? If all I have said is true, there is an infinite amount of alternate universes. Let's say you had an OBE where you went to Mars. But there’s an alternate universe where you really did go to Mars in the future, and if all possible futures are simultaneously happening, and you are connected to all of these events due to this “big jumbled math equation”... that is how you can experience going to Mars, or going in the past to see your mother as a child, or to see a concert from 5 years ago. You have your “home” universe, and your “home” body, and your “home” time, but our souls are 4-dimensional beings that transcend the 3rd dimension and can become one with God. This would also make sense with the idea of “raising/lowering your vibrations”, since vibrations are waves which are just mathematical equations (think y=sinx or y=cosx). You are mathematically aligning yourself with the part of the “universal math equation” that is also on that vibration, resulting in common experiences such as AP, manifestation, encounters with good and bad spirits, chakra balances/imbalances, and so on, because as with the laws of physics, math demands balance/symmetry (like when you probably heard in algebra: “what you do on one side of the equal sign, you must do on the other side).
Hopefully this is digestible enough. And if anyone is curious, I have never done drugs before lol

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Mike marveled at the beauty of the inner city. He was familiar with Kael architecture and had even seen some up close at the university, but it was far grander here than on Earth, and it was far grander in person than in the videos and pictures he'd seen. The buildings were a hybrid of Gothic and expressionist architecture built with classical aesthetics.
Mosaics, statues, and murals were everywhere, but despite the grand buildings and beautiful decorations, Mike couldn’t keep his eyes off the ground. Even the streets are beautiful.
The ground he and Dreki walked was like a freshly cooled lava flow paved by slates of colored glass that softly glowed in the dimming light of the evening sun.
As they walked, Mike was woken from his trance by the scent of meat cooking.
Dreki smiled and said, “Smells good. You hungry?”
Mike nodded.
Dreki grinned and led Mike around the corner to a food cart. Mike salivated as the flames licked and sputtered at fat dripping from hunks of what looked like octopus turning on spits. The aroma of meat and spices was intoxicating. Dreki ordered them octopus skewers. As he handed Mike his skewer, Dreki said, “You’re never going to be able to eat earth octopus again.”
Mike chuckled. “I’ve never had it in the first place; I grew up in the mountains thousands of miles from the ocean.”
Dreki looked incredulous. “Did you not have rivers?”
Mike shrugged his shoulders, “Not with octopi.”
Dreki raised his free hand in exasperation. “Whatever. Either way, you’ll be disappointed by the rubbery trash humans call an octopus after eating this.”
Mike took a bite of the meat and groaned in pleasure. It tasted like a beefier version of bacon. Mike wolfed down his skewer in the blink of an eye and exclaimed, “That was fucking good!”
Dreki gave him a “Mhhhmh” with his still mouth full.
Dreki finished his food and led Mike off the main road onto a footpath flanked by wispy trees with dark blue leaves.
Eventually, the pair entered the back garden of a building that looked like a melted cathedral. Dreki led him through an open gate into a well-lit waiting room and held out his arm. “Hand me your bag; I’ll take it to your room. I’ll come get you after.”
Mike slipped his bag from his shoulders and handed it to Dreki. As the herculean Kael was leaving, he turned and said, “Try not to scream when they brand you; it’s an ill omen.”
Mike drummed his fingers on the armrests of the chair in the sea foam green waiting room, which was decorated with pictures of duels and exotic plants in white and blue ceramic pots. He was pretty sure that more than one of the photographs was of Dreki’s father.
Mike was anxious. Getting branded would suck, and getting an AR implant would involve someone sticking a drill through his skull. And without his gargantuan minder, Mike felt almost naked. He knew that he would probably be fine, but this was the home of the enemy. Without any weapons, he stood little chance against any Kael worth their salt in a fight.
Mike chided himself for the thought. Why does everything have to revolve around violence? Is there no world where you can just get along with them?
Mike frowned. No. I hate them. Despite his barely contained rage, Mike felt nauseous as blood-soaked memories bombarded his mind.
He doubted that he could kill again, even if it meant dying.
Dreki’s not so bad; maybe out here, more of them are like him than Ocidea.
Mike’s melancholy was interrupted when the tall door at the far end of the room opened. A short, for a Kaelman, nurse wearing pea green scrubs walked out, locked eyes with him, and shouted, “Mike Anderson!”
Mike followed the short Kael nurse into a cream-colored operating room. In the center an instrument table hovered next to an operating table. Besides the operating table stood a middle-aged Kael with tusks intricately inlaid with silver in triangular patterns. His white lab coat had Chief Surgeon Athocill emblazoned over the right breast pocket.
The Chief Surgeon stared off into space, engrossed in AR. The nurse who brought him in pointed to the operating table. Mike sat down.
A slender Kaelwoman in scrubs and a lab coat identifying her as the assistant surgeon walked in and started arranging the tools.
She glanced at Mike and said, “Take off your shirt.”
Mike pulled the black T-shirt he was wearing over his head and set it on the table next to him.
Without looking away from his work, the Chief Surgeon tossed Mike a leather strap and said, “Brand him.”
The short nurse pulled a heat stamp from its case and rolled the numbers to their correct positions. Mike put the leather strap in his mouth and grabbed onto the table.
Dreki’s warning rang through his head*.*
The Nurse carefully placed the print plate just below Mike’s collarbone and pushed it down. The heat stamp's coils flashed white. Mike bit down on the leather strap as hard as he could, and his knuckles popped as he gripped the edges of the operating table as hard as he could. Tendrils of smoke billowed off Mike’s chest as his flesh was seared, and the acrid smell of burnt hair and torched flesh wafted through the room.
Mike stifled a groan as the nurse peeled the superheated steel off his chest. The Nurse set the smoking stamp back in its case to cool and picked up a small jar of viscous blue fluid and a brush. The nurse opened the jar, dipped the brush in the blue goop, and painted it over Mike’s still-smoking burn. Mike jolted at the freezing touch of the brush. His ribs and abdomen rose and fell rapidly as he took short, shallow breaths as the freezing cold shocked his nervous system.
The nurse put the brush away and closed the jar. “Done”
Mike let the leather strap drop from his mouth and put on a straight face as he externally disguised the pain. Showing weakness was not an option, even if every fiber of his being commanded him to scream.
The assistant took hold of Mike’s arm and spoke. “Make a fist and squeeze.”
Mike did as she asked. It was a good distraction from the pain. His knuckles turned white, and the veins in his forearm bulged after a few seconds of pressure.
“You’ll feel a tiny pinch.”
The assistant jabbed the needle into the crook of his arm.
Mike’s head immediately felt heavy, and his whole body tingled. He tried to stay upright, to no avail. His vision grayed out as his head plopped onto the table with a thud.
The surgeon looked to his assistant and asked, “Is he out?”
“Yes.” She answered.
“Let us begin.”
The assistant used a small metal tool to pull Mike's right eyelid open. The chief surgeon plunged a gold needle into the depths of Mike’s right eye.
The surgeon carefully pulled the needle from the human’s eye and set the syringe back down on the floating instrument table.
“Targeting chip in place. Next stage.”
The nurse began rummaging around a drawer in the back of the room, and the chief surgeon plucked a gleaming silver drill from the instrument table.
The drill in the surgeon's hand whirred as he plunged it into Mike’s skull. After just a few seconds, the drill bored through Mike's skull. The surgeon pulled the drill out of the human's head and angled the bit down into a small metal dish that was in the extended arms of the assistant. The chief surgeon hit a button on the drill with his thumb.
A bloody, dime-sized piece of Mike’s skull dropped to the bottom of the metal dish with a clang.
He set the drill back down on the instrument table and held out his hand. “Drone.”
The nurse put an insect-like metal contraption that resembled a whip scorpion in the surgeon’s hand. The chief surgeon's eyes glazed as he entered his AR and took control of the drone. It popped out of his hand and burrowed itself into the hole in Mike's skull.
Inside his AR, he brought the drone to the occipital lobe of Mike’s brain.
“Deploying lattice.”
The arachnid-like drone injected small metal spikes with spools of minuscule wire attached—anchor points—into Mike’s brain. After just a minute's work, the surgeon had crafted a web of wires across Mike's brain. He brought the drone back to the center of Mike’s brain and planted one final anchor spike. A reel inside one of the claw-like appendages at the front of the drone spun, cinching the lattice of wires down to the last anchor point. The surgeon brought the drone around again, ensuring that the web of copper was completely taught against the human’s brain. He brought the drone back out and smiled ever so slightly as the blood and cerebrospinal fluid-soaked drone hopped back into his gloved hand.
Chief Surgeon Athocill smiled and jovially said, “Patch him up.” He was pleased with his performance today. This was the first human to get an advanced AR package, and the procedure went flawlessly. The assistant grabbed a quarter-sized piece of flesh-colored putty and carefully placed the small piece of skull onto it. She placed the putty over the hole in Mike’s head, and it took to life, bonding the fragment of bone back into place and sealing the surface wound.
The surgeon removed his gloves and began typing on a holoprojection. “All systems are operational. I’m linking him to the military network now.”
The assistant pulled the instrument table to her side and plucked a syringe filled with neon green fluid. She said, “I’m waking him up now,” as she plunged the needle into Mike’s arm.
Mike’s eyes flew open, and he grit his teeth against the pain. Tears seeped from his stinging and blood-filling right eye. Every heartbeat brought a jolt of crippling pain to his head. And worst of all was the searing pain from the brand on his chest and the aching cold that barely disguised it. Mike sat up with a grunt. Pain shot through his chest when he brought his hand to his head and felt the hardened disc of putty on his temple.
The surgeon addressed Mike with a soothing tone. “On the count of three, I’m going to activate your AR. It will feel like your head is on fire for a few seconds, but it will only last a few seconds. One… Two… Three!”
Mike nearly collapsed with the pain, but he managed to limit his response to a grunt. Light flashed before his eyes, and Kaelic text appeared in the center of his vision. The doctor asked, “What do you see.”
Mike answered, “AR active. And below that, it says setup wizard.” Despite his best efforts, pain was evident in his voice.
“Ok, Mike, I want you to think, ‘open setup wizard.’”
Mike blinked a few times. “Nothing happened.”
The surgeon said, “Think it in Kaelic.”
Mike’s brow furrowed in concentration. He was fluent in Kaelic, but not to the point where he could think in the language at will.
“Ok, I got it. It says setting menu at the top, and there are a ton of things here. Do you want me to read them off?”
“No. Can you scroll down?”
“Yes.”
“Good. You should be able to get the hang of this pretty quickly; it's very intuitive. You’ll see that there are a few HUD profiles that you can pick from. I’d recommend you start from profile two and then customize it as you see fit.”
Mike nodded as he selected profile two.
“OK, now think clear.”
Mike did as the surgeon asked. His vision was now cleared.
The surgeon smiled. “Feel free to fiddle with the settings, just think clear if it gets cluttered, and reset if you make a dog’s breakfast of it. You’ll have a headache for the next few days, and you may start having more vivid dreams, but other than that, you’ll barely notice the change. Just take it easy for the next few days, and don’t itch at your brand or your eye.”

So, this is really long but I think it's worth the read as there has been nothing else like this in the Gtag community before. I have been working on this almost every day since Valentines Day Update 2022. I have changed it, restarted it, and updated it for every new Gtag update. I will make Updates to the in the future as it seems like we are getting more updates and more maps in the future.
Updates are not always literal, for example, the Human Tag Update only shows that humans exist or once existed in the Gorilla Tag world. The Monkes are not literally wearing masks that resemble humans. This logic applies to every update unless it's just cosmetics or a new map. Also, it's really weird at the first few Chapters so just stick with it or skip ahead. Ask any question in the comments about why I put the things I put and if you want evidence.
Most recent Updates to this are in Chapters 8, 14, 15, and 16
BI = Before Infection AI = After Infection
Prologue: Gods
4,500,000,000 BI - 212,001 BI
When Earth is formed, two gods form with it to rule over the planet. Mother Nature, the god of life and nature, and the Illuminati, the god of chaos and ice. Mother Nature usually takes the form of a 3,000-foot-tall tree called the Tree of Life, while the Illuminati takes the form of an ice pyramid with an ice eye in the center. Mother Nature creates life to populate Earth while the Illuminati constantly tries to kill it.
Chapter 1: The Rise and Fall of Humanity
212,000 - 200,001 BI
Humans, the most powerful species on Earth has cut down the Tree of Life and taken Mother Nature out of control. This leaves the Illuminati to slowly creep into the modern society. Some Humans form a cult around it, and they are the most powerful people on Earth. That means, the Illuminati can tell them to do something, and they can affect the most powerful nations on the planet.
Eventually, the Illuminati tricks the humans into fighting each other. The biggest nations on the world begin to go to war with some of the biggest possible nukes. They destroy the surface of the Earth causing it to go into a nuclear ice age. The Illuminati, an ice god, now has full control over Earth. Anytime life appears, it almost instantly dies. However, some humans were able to survive and eventually, the ice age comes to an end, and no god is in control of Earth.
Chapter 2: Monke
200,000 BI - 1,001 BI
After hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, Humans have evolved into a new species called Monkes. Monkes are gorilla-like apes that can survive the harshest of conditions. Their diet consists of grass and bugs. Some bugs and patches of grass have survived over the past few million years.
Mother Nature has started to take back control of the world as she creates the Tree of Life and a whole forest around it in a crater from a nuke. Many Monkes travel to this crater and end up being trapped as the forest is on a lower level then the rest of the crater.
Chapter 3: Rise of the Monkes
1,000 BI - 601 BI
All other Monkes go extinct meaning that the only remaining Monkes are in this crater. One day the Monkes decide to finally make the jump as they all jump down into the forest. Most of them die, but the few that survive are left without legs. About 100 Monkes are alive and they quickly learn to use their arms like legs.
Unfortunately, just like there Human ancestors, the first thing they do is cut down the Tree of Life and use its wood. This leaves Mother Nature powerless again. The wood from the Tree of Life will last them for thousands of years. They build bridges, tree houses, ramps, and a gazebo in the forest. All the children of the surviving Monkes also don't have legs making it now a fundamental part of their species.
They hollow out the inside of the Tree of Life's stump and start to build tunnels out of it. These tunnels reach out to all over the crater. One tunnel leads to a small set of canyons covered in sand. Another tunnel leads to a massive flat, rocky, landscape in the other side of the crater. The final tunnel goes straight down into the ground until it hits a large cave filled with crystals.
They build mines underneath the cave and harvest the large crystals. These crystals are radioactive because of the ancient nukes. The Monkes harvest the crystals and start to use them in technology. They create lamps, litghtposts, lights, signs, and even their greatest accomplishment a computer.
Chapter 4: The City
600 BI - 30 BI
The large, flat, rocky landscape they discovered has a lot of useful recourses in it. Over the next few hundred years they build an entire city with large skyscrapers and new technology that is widespread. There are thousands of Monkes now living in The City. The forest and canyons have become vacation places for most Monkes, and the homes of the most rich or important Monkes.
The Monkes decide to have a leader, so a rich family decides to step up and become the royals of the Monkes. There king is named Yorick, and their queen is named Lucy. They both live in a basement-like area rights next to the main entrance into The City. Queen Lucy also turns the canyons into an industrial area and improves quality of life for the main populous.
King Yorick and Queen Lucy have a son named Blue. By the time Prince Blue was 13 he already starting his dream job of being a scientist.
Chapter 5: The Hunt War
29 BI - 21 BI
A tunnel is dug in city after, and they dig all the way until the edge of the crater. The walls of the crater look like large mountains from down below and they are extremely cold. They accidentally cause an avalanche, and the base of the walls are filled with snow and ice. From this avalanche comes the god of chaos and ice, the Illuminati. The Illuminati causes many snowstorms and causes a sort of Ice Age.
Queen Lucy tries to keep everyone calm and civil. However, the Illuminati is able to influence the Monkes minds and causes chaos and destruction to happen all throughout Monke society. After years of pure chaos, the Monkes are able to split into two factions, The Monkes, and the Smiles. They also are helped by newly discovered species that came with the Ice Age. These species are Penguins, Polar Bears, Snow Owls, and many other species that live in the cold. These species were the only survivors of the ancient human war that nearly killed Earth. Over the past few hundred thousand years, they have all migrated across the world, and have worked together even if they were from different poles of the Earth.
The royal scientist, Prince Blue has created many new technologies before. During the war, he creates a Hunt Watch. A Hunt Watch is a watch that targets the nearest enemy to you. Once you touch that enemy with the watch on, they turn into an Ice Monke and can easily be shattered to bits. Over time, this technology allowed them to win the war and bring somewhat order back.
Chapter 6: The Ice Monkes
20 BI - 1 BI
Many Ice Monkes were not killed in the war, usually they were turned into Ice Monkes but were able to get away before being shattered. The Ice Monkes are still just regular Monkes except they are made of ice, can't go near heat, and are fragile. Even though the war was over, the Ice Monkes were still treated horribly. In this already hard time period, the Ice Monkes had absolutely nothing. Many veterans of the war still had their Hunt Watches, causing many more Ice Monkes to be formed.
Meanwhile the Illuminati builds snow castles for itself in the forest. This means that the mountain base was safe to enter now. To lighten the spirit of this dark time they built a large waterslide in this new area. Many murders and crimes still happen throughout The City, but one day it gets out of hand. King Yorick is assonated, his head was chopped off in the middle of The City. The now lonely Queen Lucy keeps his skull in her home.
Chapter 7: The Infection
0 AI - 3 AI
Ever since the bombs dropped hundreds of thousands of years ago, a volcano has slowly been forming in the crater. Now, the volcano has fully formed and is erupting. All the snow and ice are melted, the Illuminati is gone, the caves are flooded, and the mines are caved in. The base of the walls still has snow but lots of it melts and reshapes its surface.
In the lava was an extremophile virus that can survive the lavas heat. It is radioactive and spreads very quickly. This virus is called the Infection, and many Monkes get it. The infected Monkes get resistant to lava, they get stronger, they get faster, there skin is replaced with lava, and they have an uncontrollable instinct to hunt down normal Monkes and infect them.
The infected spread everywhere but The City is able to be kept safe and nobody can enter or leave The City. After a few years the volcano stops erupting, but the Infection stays around.
Chapter 8: Calming Down
4 AI - 6 AI
Prince Blue finds a cure for the Infection, some Monkes are given jobs to specifically leave The City and cure a ton of infected Monkes. They start doing this and it actually works. The cure is called Kai Juice. Anytime someone enters The City, they are given Kai Juice just in case. It is no longer dangerous to leave The City as if you get infected you can immediately drink some Kai Juice and go back to normal.
The caves and mines are drained and dug up. The old caves and mines completely caved in and revealed even more caves underneath. They start mining again and find loads of dinosaur bones along with a 40-foot-long crystal. Prince Blue has a son named Pink, but unfortunately during such great times, Queen Lucy dies of old age. Blue becomes King Blue and Pink becomes Prince Pink. There is a massive funeral for Queen Lucy that spans from The City all the way to the forest. They burn her body and put her ashes in a vase beneath a grave.
Chapter 9: Exploration
7 AI - 17 AI
A large tunnel is found on the forest walls, they follow it, and it leads out of the crater. Just on the other side of the crater is a beach covered in ancient, broken, human buildings. King Blue sees this and is the first to figure out that there was a complex civilization before them.
A few years later, they have made boats to sail out into the ocean and have built shops to supply the ships on shore. The ocean and beach are also home to many new animals. Meanwhile, King Blue discovered that if an infected Monke stays infected for multiply years, they harden and become rock. When they harden, they can't infect anything, but they can't be cured either. They also get even stronger, even faster, and their rock skin is almost impenetrable.
Chapter 10: The Tree of Life
18 AI - 47 AI
King Blue has been studying everything he can since he became king, and he has noticed that it is possible to revive the Tree of Life. For hundreds of years the Tree of Life's stump has been sitting in the forest, so King Blue is going to be the first one to do anything about it.
Over the next decade they nurture the stump and help it constantly until the Tree of Life has fully grown back. The only problem is that the Tree of Life is almost a mile tall, and they can't climb up that. King Blue and his engineering team spend the next few years building a rocket. When they are finished, they put it in the middle of The City and launch it. On the rocket is a team of explorers and engineers to work on top of the Tree of Life.
When on top of it they build large platforms along with massive rocks wheels and other things powered by winds. When they come back down, months later, they tell everyone what they built. The rocket becomes the main form of transportation in between The City and the Tree of Life’s top. The public uses that rocket to get up there because now people live on top of the Tree of Life in a place called Cloudtown.
Chapter 11: Calm Before the Storm
48 AI - 54 AI
King Blue and his team start to develop a new rocket after realizing how well they built the first rocket. The second rocket they build is not in The City and much larger. They build this rocket for years before eventually, it is done. It launched, flew out of the atmosphere, and took a 3-day journey through space until they landed on the Moon.
The Illuminati has created a being named Humbug. Humbug appears as a 30-foot-tall snowman. Humbug also has the abilities to change size, change the size of other things, transform, and transform other things. He takes the form of an old Monke named Santa Claus. In the form of Santa, he would give out presents to everyone and create ridiculously large birthday cakes for everyone. Everyone loved him and had no idea of his true form. He would use his powers every now and then to shrink people down and kidnap them. Over time he would slowly transform them into children's toys that he would give out to the people. However, the Santa form broke down over time. His red clothes and white beard becoming gray. But the public still loved and cherished him.
Chapter 12: Humbug
55 AI - 62 AI
Humbug reveals his true form and takes over The City. He shrinks down King Blue and Prince Pink. He then mutilates and transforms them into monsters called the Monkeyes. He traps them in a miniature maze and throws Monkes in there to be killed by their previous leaders. Everything is covered in snow once again by the Illuminati, but he still is not fully in control. Humbug takes over everything the Monkes have made before climbing his way up the Tree of Life. Humbug makes it up there and destroys Cloudtown in an attempt to take control over the Tree of Life. This does not work.
Over a few years, the Monkes have been able to create something called a Tesla Coil. The Tesla Coil is a machine that can take away Humbugs powers and use it against him. Humbug's powers are stripped away, and the Monkes take back control. Humbug is shrunken down and trapped in a miniature maze. The Monkes also start to use his powers to make themselves super big. However, with King Blue and Prince Pink turned into monsters, and Humbug overthrown, the Monkes have no leader.
Chapter 13: The Giants War
63 AI - 75 AI
The Monkes have been living peacefully for a few years, but eventualy, the different sizes start to look down on each other. This leads into the Giants War, where the different Monke sizes fight for 9 years. Eventually, the Monke population dwindle so much, that the war ended. The Monkes that did not change their size did not interact with the Monkes that changed their size. Now, tiny Monke skulls and giant Monke skulls are littered everywhere, and the only surviving Monkes are the ones that never changed their size.
Chapter 14: Peace
76 AI - 90 AI
The Tree of Life grows massively and repairs the damage done by Humbug years ago. Countless new branches and huge leaves sprout from its trunk. This allows the Monkes to make their way back up to the treetop with a newly repaired rocket. Cloudtown is rebuild, slowly, but rebuilt nonetheless. This is called, New Cloudtown.
A year after the Giants War ends, the skulls and bodies are cleared out. The City was practically empty as most buildings were either destroyed, damaged, or tilted over in the war. Many Monkes just went to New Cloudtown to survive as going anywhere else other than The City would mean being attacked by Infected Monkes. Also, during this time, the mutated monsters that were once King Blue and Prince Pink were killed by another Monke for sport. Their souls go on to become ghosts that wander the city. King Blue's soul becomes a ghost called the Ghost Wanderer, and Prince Pink's soul becomes a ghost called the Ghost Lurker.
The population has grown more, and the Monkes have created sports to celebrate the era of peace. These sports are Hockey, Watersoccer, and Paintbrawl. This happens during the fall where Lucy's spirit flies out from her grave and starts playing with some random civilian Monkes. She then reunites with the souls of her son and grandson in the forms of the Ghost Wanderer and the Ghost Lurker.
Chapter 15: Advancements
91 AI - 100 AI
A new type of plant is found in New Cloudtown. This plant sprouts large leaves with handle-like stems. These plants are called Glider Vines. The leaves of Glider Vines are used as gliders to fly around New Cloudtown.
The Monkes are unable to explore anymore. The ocean is too vast, they never got back from explorers they sent into the ocean, and the crater walls are too high to climb. So, they spend a few years creating an artificial environment that they can change on a will. They do this by using a Tesla Coil that harness Humbug's powers. In the first testing of it, they try to bring back the vast cave systems they found hundreds of years ago. It was an attempt to make infinite recourses. It turns out as a failure, everything is extremely broken and blocky. After much testing, they have it so it could be a tundra, a swamp, an ancient temple, and basically anything else. This underground, artificial environment is called Rotation.
They decide to excavate a larger area for Rotation. They then finish their original plan of recreating that same ancient cave system. This time it works, and it looks just like how it did hundreds of years ago. However, during the excavating of the larger area, the long dead Queen Lucy's vase finds itself in Rotation. Minor Monkes enter this cave and start mining, but when they discover Lucy's vase, they open it. From her long dead ashes rises the confused, lost, and insane spirit of Lucy. She has been trapped underground in the dark for almost a century now and has gone insane. The minors call her the Burnt Lucy, a dark reflection of their long dead Queen.
Chapter 16: The Return of Humbug
101 AI - ??? AI
The usage of the Tesla Coil attracts Humbug. He is able to escape the miniature maze the Monkes trapped him in, and slowly make his way to Rotation. When he arrives, he is able to get some of his powers back from the Tesla Coil, but he is noticed by the Monkes.
One of the first things Humbug does is kidnap three Monkes and turns them into small monsters called Monkeyes. He places them in the tiny maze that he was once trapped in.

I am currently awaiting my 341 hearing and subsequent discharge of debt hopefully in a chapter 7….
I told my lawyer I will keep the 13k car debt and 21k suv debt as I really need vehicles because I’m rural and the used market is terrible.
Anyway, upon taking my car to the dealership they inform me that I need a new engine, and the warranty company won’t cover anything until I pay 2000 to tear down the engine and prove it wasn’t lack of maintenance, which I don’t know because I just bought the car in December and it could’ve been neglected.
So I paid to get my car back instead of tearing down and now I’m looking at discharging the 13k car since it’s a gamble I don’t wanna take.
My question is should I truly be debt free and discharge the 21k SUV? I kinda want to but my wife doesnt….. and also I will be entering the used market desperate which is bad because there’s no guarantee I’ll find anything good unless I finance something….
Do I finance a 10k car for the wife after bankruptcy and go find myself a beater for commuting? Idk what to do

Allow me to set the scene on an alleged evening:
It’s that first HOT day of the year, the one where you know summer is right around the corner. After a long day, you head out for your evening drive.
The car: 99 NB, mostly stock
Fire the car up. No check engine lights #nice
The odometer: 99,987
Tonight’s the night!
Queue up ol’ faithful, the “Miata” playlist; shuffled, “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac starts you off
“Now here you go again 🎶”
The sun is setting as you get on the freeway, headed east, to enjoy the colors in the sky. The evening traffic is lazy, a few cars, plodding their way from A to B.
Odometer: 99,992
the opening chords to “Free Bird” play
“God works in mysterious ways”, you think, “but this makes too much sense”
Odometer: 99,994
“Cause I’m as free as a bird now, and this bird you cannot change” #relatable
Odometer: 99,997
You start to creep up in speed, following the ever increasing pace of the song: 65, 70, 75, 80. You begin to overtake cars, using all three lanes safely, but confidently (with a turn signal for every move)
Odometer: 99,998
The guitar solo urges you ever faster: 85, 90, 94, 95
Odometer: 99,999
The drums are rolling and you are too: 96, 97, 98
In a symphony almost as great as the one blaring through the speakers, you crack 100mph as the odometer ticks over
100,000
You slow as the song comes to an end, the grin on your face nearly as wide as the car you’re in.
“Welcome to the next chapter, old girl” you say, patting the dash.
The next song starts, Bob Seger’s gentle guitar strums welcoming in “Night Moves”
Odometer: 100,001
Times in that car, those are “night moves” I will always remember.

The way I would best describe academic writing is with an analogy to bricklaying - it is hard labour; It is not particularly creative; it is not particularly fun; and there are no real short cuts. You just have to turn up each day and lay one brick on top of the other until your wall (research paper, thesis chapter etc.) is built. And then, of course, quite often, your wall is crap, because you don’t have a lot of experience building walls. So you have to tear your wall down and start rebuilding with various bricks in different places than they were before.
And you keep going through this process until you’ve learnt how to build an acceptable wall, with an acceptable structure, of an acceptable size, which you can submit for assessment. Once your work is deemed satisfactory, you are qualified as a master bricklayer. Congratulations!
The difference is, of course, bricklayers perform work which is of tangible value to society, while academic writing is lucky to be read by 3-4 people and generally has zero impact upon the world, except when it comes to your yearly academic review and fulfilment of KPI’s.
Keep grinding people!

Previous chapter
Fu Kong pulled a large kettle from her sleeve and began to throw in some aromatic herbs before she continued. “We'll need to do much before we can build your foundation. From there, you'll need to quickly advance through the first few stages, if you hope to withstand just the pressure of their presence.”
“What do you mean?” He finished washing himself and wrapped some of the loose spurs around his body. “How could I hope to stand against that divine power, especially when those who are thousands of times stronger than me didn't fare any better?”
Her laugh filled the cave. It wasn’t exaggerated. Just. Present.
“Define power?” She chuckled while hiding a toothy smile behind her sleeve. “Sweet child, they are like mere insects to me. Although I could handle them after learning where they crawled off to, I will not.”
Fu Kong finished off the last of her cup and set it down, with it a weight settled on the cave and her tone became much more serious.
“It's true that they disrespected me by acting freely within my territory, but this is not my justice to seek. Your village wasn’t even something in their sights. Those… children fought without concern for their surroundings, and you suffered because of it.” Her glare bore through him to emphasize her words. “I will teach you to reach a truly divine power so that you may bring them to justice with your own hands.”
A lump formed in Mareus’ throat. What was she talking about? Justice? How can somebody like him, someone so ordinary who can't even cultivate, be expected to take on not one but two god-like beings that can reshape the landscape as an afterthought?
The sudden shift in the conversation, left him thinking for a moment. On one hand, it was like she was spouting out dreams. On the other, it felt like she was offering the chance of several lifetimes. Either way, something felt off. Like she was raising a tool for matters that she couldn't get her hands dirty with.
Mareus didn't know anything about the customs of the outside world. He only knew about the stories that his elders would pass down of heroes from far away lands. Normally wouldn't a benefactor offer you the chance to right a wrong and gain some compensation from the offending party? This was more like she wanted him to completely destroy them and take everything that they have. At least, she made it seem that way.
Regardless of what he thought. If she was telling truth, this was the only chance he had at justice for his people. If she really could provide him the power, then he could always figure out what that justice looked like later on.
Steeling his nerves, Mareus stared into her eyes, heat rising up from his stomach. “What do I have to do?”
A brief flash of emotion akin to excitement flashed across her face for a brief moment before she said something inaudible to herself and turned back to him.
“First, you'll eat.” Fu Kong commanded.
She handed him a small bowl of a pale brown mush. It didn't have any sort of strong scent, but he could feel comfortable heat through the wooden dish. The bowl was exactly the same as every other meal she had brought him, but never touched. Only this time, the meal didn’t bring out a ravenous hunger from him.
Mareus took an experimental sip. He felt its warmth go down his throat and settled in his stomach, it radiated out and left a long overdue sensation of fullness. The food was just as bland as he was expecting.
It was so good.
He was about to dig his fingers into the mush and devour it right there when she knocked his bony knuckles with a spoon.
“Eat slowly, you haven’t eaten anything for two weeks.”
Mareus conceded that she was right. He once saw a villager, who was lost in the forest for a week without food, desperately stuff themself. If he did the same. His stomach wouldn’t have been able to handle the shock, and most likely would have made him sicker in the end.
“It’s a special congee I’ve prepared. The first few bowls I brought were normal, but as time went on I was forced to take special precautions into account.” She took a seat next to the desk and patted his stool.
Mareus briefly acknowledged the new chair and took his seat. It felt like his body was recovering with every bite. Each spoonful healing his aching heart rather than the bruises on his body. He suspected that was what the special bandages were for.
“Thank you for the food… Madam.” He quickly added. “I haven’t had anything this delicious in years.”
“You don’t need to flatter me, it’s just warm rice and simple herbs in water. It was the same as if I was preparing tea.”
Fu Kong placed her elbow on the desk and watched him eat. She didn’t seem like she was in a hurry for him to finish. So he took his time to blow on the spoon and savor the taste with every bite.
She broke the silence, “You don’t need to call me madam. I’m not from an influential family or something similar. Although,” Her eyes wandered to the ceiling. “I suppose there have been a few legends and cults created based on some of the things I did when I was younger.”
Mareus choked on his food. “I’m sorry if I’ve offended you.”
Her eyes returned to him. Those black eyes, drawing him in like they were beckoning him somewhere comfortable and quiet, somewhere final.
“You didn’t offend me. Maybe if the importance of ‘the proper way of things’ was taught to me before I stepped into the world. But once I did I ended up finding it bothersome. It interests me, how mortals limit themselves in their interactions and put on performances to cater favor with one another. How, regardless of power or position, they’re constantly jockeying amongst themselves for the smallest gains.”
Her gaze drifted to the opposite end of the cave and instead of stopping at the stone wall, it felt like she saw to the end of Idao. Possibly even further if Mareus believed all of the stories about immortals. He wanted to know what the world looked like through her eyes. If he would be able to see that world.
She continued as if her attention never left him. “You have my permission to call me whatever you’d like.”
He thought for a moment before asking, “You’re going to teach me how to get justice for my home?”
She nodded.
“And you’re my savior.”
“You could say that.”
Placing his bowl down, Mareus resisted against his bandages and gave the best martial salute he could. “May I call you ‘Mistress’ then?”
Although it could still only be called a half smile, this was the biggest smile she had openly shown him so far.
“I suppose that will be the most accurate for our coming relationship. You’ll need to finish your food though before it gets cold.”
Mareus was in the middle of scraping the bottom of the bowl for the last of the congee. He glanced at the empty bowl and then to her and back at his bowl again. But, when he looked at her again a pot the size of his head was sitting on the desk.
Fu Kong removed the lid to reveal the steaming porridge filled to the brim.
“Take your time, it’ll stay warm as long as it’s in this pot and we won’t be moving on until you’ve finished every last bite.”
He felt like she was getting back at him for all of the food he wasted over the last two weeks.
Over in the next few days, he assumed. Mareus’ life was a constant cycle of sleeping and eating. He would finish off a bowl and take a nap and when he woke up, he would do it all over again. More than a few times, he suspected her of refilling the plot since it looked big enough for a handful of meals at most.
Maybe it was because he had finally talked to the stranger or maybe she had done something to the pile furs he slept on. But he couldn't remember the last time he felt so rested. Now that his injuries were recovering, the bandages felt like they were getting looser and he could move around more freely.
Even when he washed himself, they didn't secrete any more of that foul black sludge.
It was about his twentieth meal when he was finally getting sick of the congee. Bathing in the victory, Mareus rubbed his distended stomach after finishing off the pot. Even though he felt full, possibly even over full, he didn’t feel the same way he did when he would normally over eat. Instead, he felt healthier and more full of energy than he remembered ever feeling.
What kinds of herbs did she use?

Previous chapter
“I hate it.”
Mareus slapped his mouth and bit down on his lips in a futile attempt to capture his half-asleep words. His body tensed while listening for any signs of the stranger, bracing himself for some monster of a person to come rushing from the dark to finish him off.
Though, it didn’t matter in the end if they were paying attention to him or not. They clearly already knew where he was and, for some reason, chose to leave him alone after pulling him from the rubble and treating his injuries.
He clutched at his stomach, his hunger pangs goading him to push aside the anxiety and crawl his way towards the bowl still waiting patiently for him. There were no signs of it being changed or infested by any of the creatures hiding away, in fact, a gentle warmth still radiated from it. A pleasant aroma floated through the still air as if it had a will of its own, enticing him like some carnivorous flower lying in wait.
Mareus ignored his pain and fatigue as he absentmindedly made his way closer to the beckoning meal. What was he so worried about? If the stranger hadn’t done anything yet, then they probably weren’t going to from the start. It wasn’t like he was in any state to resist them anyway.
That’s right. He justified. It’s just sitting there, waiting for me.
The bowl was only a breath away now. Mareus stretched against his bandages enough for the wrappings around his fingers to brush the rim before the markings let out a faint light and constricted his body. He was almost there and wouldn’t give up, one more time he resisted their binding and was able to hook his finger on the inside of the rim.
Putting all the strength he had into the one finger he fought against the rough, uneven ground to reel in his catch. A faint glow lit up the black stone and his heart stopped before his restraints forced his arm back. Spilling his only food in a mocking halo as the bowl rolled on its side.
That was it, his only food mixed in with the wet dirt of the cave floor. He almost dove at it before realizing the intense hunger and drive he had was now fading away. His hunger was still there to some degree, but now it was more like an emptiness scratching at the back of his stomach. The overwhelming desire to eat was almost entirely gone.
A faint breeze brought his attention back to the bowl and he watched as markings like the ones on his bandages let out one last dim breath of light. When they went dark his hunger returned to the back of his mind.
After crawling back into his hole, the cave was filled with the sounds of hundreds of insects rushing over and feasting on the spilled meal. The echoes of chitin tapping on stone and trudging through the mush assaulting his ears. Covering his ears only replaced their frenzy with the sound of his blood flowing through his ears.
Mareus alternated between listening to the rhythmic thumps lulling him to sleep and the chittering that convinced him, more than once, that the insects had crawled in his ears. The minutes drawing into hours, maybe even days, as reason began slipping away.
A gentle clack of wood being placed on stone silenced the world.
He carefully rolled over and saw another bowl, the insects were gone, the mess was cleaned. It was like everything that happened was a dream, only this time he didn’t have this unnatural drive compelling him to reach the bowl.
Whatever the markings were meant to do, this one didn’t seem to have them. He watched as the cave life made their way back to his food. They didn’t attack it right away this time, instead they circled their prey waiting for the right time. Mareus closed his eyes and focused on listening for their movements when he heard a damp thud that must have been one of them falling in the food.
That sound must have been the signal the rest were waiting for because they converged on the meal and devoured with a gluttony he didn’t know they were capable of. Despite the gut churning sounds, he focused on every bit as he counted his heart beat.
Two thousand four hundred and twenty…seven.
The cave had finally settled down again as the insects returned to their hiding places. Mareus kept counting though, he had to stay focused so he could figure out how to tell when the stranger was coming. He had no idea how often they came by but he needed to learn anything he could if he wanted to make it back home.
Twenty-eight thousand seven hundred and ninety-five.
Muffled steps approached the bowl and wordlessly replaced it with another, the gentle clank dancing around the cave walls. Words wanted to leave his mouth, to ask the stranger questions, to make demands. But, what would he say, what could he say?
Mareus’ chest tightened as he tried to find the words, his mind struggling with the growing distraction of the empty feeling in his stomach. They were gone as silently as they arrived.
He started counting again. Using the hunger pangs to fight his body’s cries for sleep he waited out another four or five changes of the bowl. He couldn’t remember exactly anymore as his guard lightened and the exhaustion wrapped around him like a warm blanket. Against his best effort sleep finally took him.
The elders were watching over the younger generations going about their routines. The whole village was in the middle of doing their morning exercises with the sunrise, the bigger clans and families had their yards filled with people flowing from stance to stance, while the smaller families gathered in front of the Elder’s Hall or practiced in their gardens.
Before he knew it, Mareus was running errands and was racing pass villagers tending to fields of medicinal herbs and vegetables while guards kept their eyes on the edge of the forest for any signs of wild beasts.
Then one day a doctor from some big sect visited them and told him that he had the cure to his diverted meridians. The village elders held a big celebration in front of their hall and they had a special ceremony where Granny Hua accepted him as a disciple. When he looked out to the crowd, the sun shone on hundreds of smiling faces.
Tears ran down his face as he smiled and waved at everyone. The salty taste made the world shimmer like a painting being washed away.
Please don’t go. He thought.
The infection of reality found its way into his heart and the dream continued to shimmer before warping and twisting the scene from before.
Mountains of rubble replaced the beautiful homes that stood for generations. One after another the people fell while letting out muted screams. Smoke began to fill the air like some ghostly fog and ash painted the now faceless bodies strewn everywhere. Bodiless cries fought with one another to be helped.
Mareus fell to his knees at the center of the destruction while pleading. “Please, don’t do this. Don’t take them from me again.”
The one eyed man towered over him, tall enough for his hair to brush the clouds. The evil in his clenched grin poured out like a thick miasma that choked him as he watched Sister Mai rushing over.
He tried to scream at her to stay away but his voice was now completely cut off. Mareus now stood over himself watching the helpless child he truly was, he followed his own pleading gaze and turned to watch a young woman he recognized but couldn’t place at the moment.
She picked up a piece of a wooden beam and charged at him, her tears turning to blood as she let out a voiceless scream.
Mareus quickly searched the sky for his enemy, Where are they? Why is it so quiet?
When he looked back down his arm was through the back of the woman and he finally recognized the angry face staring daggers at him as the light left her eyes.
He watched as the giant man turned back to him and let Mai’s lifeless body fall to the ground. The crimson drenching the monster’s hand leaking and painting his own with the blood of the woman he called his big sister.
The one eyed man shot into the air and the force of the impact shook him awake.
It was easier to fight his exhaustion this time as he waited for the stranger to replace the bowl. When they replaced it this time, they lingered as if they wanted to say something. This time the anger and pain he felt didn’t let him hesitate.
“Wh-“ His dry unused voice turned into a breath. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Why…”
The effort of forcing that whisper was already difficult, he wanted to say so much more. He couldn’t tell if they were still waiting in the dark, or if they were even willing to listen. His voice was clawing to get out, he was tired of waiting.
His skin buzzed as he waited and moistened his throat. The question was out there now, at least the most important part. ‘Why?’ There was so much more racing through his mind that he could add while the presence remained silent.
Why me? What made you save me? Why didn’t you leave me with them? Why do I have to be alone?
An unseen pressure grew in the dark as his question went unanswered. It was like the chill he would get coming back late at night and he felt like something was watching him from the forest, waiting to pounce. It kept growing sharper until a sudden cool warmth touched the nape of his neck and gingerly ran down the length of his back.
A cold, yet familiar feeling voice finally broke the silence. “It would be a waste. Letting such a potential vanish from this world.”
The stranger brushed the matted hair from his neck. Their simple and straightforward gesture giving off the feeling of a beast playing with its catch knowing it could kill it at anytime.
“I feel for your loss, truly. My heart aches for the ill fate that placed those ‘experts’ in your home. I couldn’t allow your path to end because of a game between mere children.” Their voice danced between compassionate and venomous.
The gentle pressure of them rubbing his back relaxed him and Mareus became even more aware of how tired and sore his body was. Although, as they continued it felt like everything faded away. Not so much as if he was being relieved of everything, it was more like everything was being taken away and swallowed by a void that wouldn’t make him take it back.
Mareus sat up slowly and with a hoarse voice he asked. “What makes me so special?” He inhaled, “Why didn’t you stop them?!” His scream tore into his lungs and filled his throat with the taste of iron.
Water filled his eyes as he faced the disembodied presence.
The stranger gently embraced him, their cool robes enveloping him. “Poor child.”
“You could have saved all of th-em.” His trembling voice couldn’t hide the pain any longer. Still, Mareus stared through blurry eyes and did his best to look them in the face.
A thin hand brushed away his tears. “My sweet boy, I’m sorry I couldn’t be there sooner. Their battle had already moved south, and what they left behind…” They trailed off.
While wrapped in their arms he listened to the grief in their voice. Unsure of what to think anymore. Why did they wait so long? Why did they leave me here in the dark? Were they hurt too? Mareus found himself wondering if he was being selfish.
“Before I could chase after them, I sensed the faint trace of your life clinging on to any shred of hope. After digging you out and applying some emergency medicine I lost track of their energies. Instead of searching for them I made the decision to at least make sure you survived.”
Mareus realized that there was something ethereal in the way they talked. Their tone wasn’t distant, but at the same time it felt like they were a world away from him. The image of a mother apologizing for something she wasn’t responsible for popped in his mind.
His body began to feel lighter than it had been since he woke up in the cave. “Thank you.” He relented.
He gingerly wiped away his tears as if testing if his body would suddenly start listening to him. When he opened them again, the dark world that surrounded him expanded and he could now see all the way to the other wall of the cave.
Am I really not in the afterlife? He thought.
The formless shadow of his savior was replaced with a celestial fairy that stepped out from one of Elder Guo’s stories and descended into this pit to comfort him. She wore a snow white hanfu with a wide sash that hugged tightly against her. The sleeves and hem were far longer than normal like if the seamstress forgot to remove the excess material.
Her otherworldly appearance stood out against the darkness with her iridescent skin illuminating the cave. Her shadow like hair, even darker than the surroundings blackness. She looked like a master craftsman had picked the most exquisite material to craft a lifelike doll that would shatter if you looked at it the wrong way. Only to the fill that doll with the essence of deepest parts of the night sky.
Mareus completely forgot his fatigue as he collapsed into a bow and laid his head to the floor. In an attempt to imitate the older members of his village when speaking to the elders, he said. “I apologize for being so disrespectful. I humbly want to thank the generous immortal for saving this life.”
His body trembled from the effort of supporting his weight, but he continued to wait as sweat formed on the back of his neck and ran down his face. Unsure of what this heaven-like being would do to him if he had disrespected her further.
Next chapter

I’m working on an early draft of my epic-ish fantasy novel. I’ve got two POV characters and am current alternating POVs with each chapter, but I’m finding that the chapters are turning out longer than I’d like (~5000 words, and I imagine they may get longer later on). I know it’s generally a good idea to let the chapter extend to where it wants to go, but I’m conscious of the fact that there are parts of my chapters where I could put in a chapter break if the story had a single POV, but can’t because that would mean switching to another POV. I tend to plot chapter by chapter, rather than adding chapter breaks after I’ve written the whole story.
Does anyone have any advice on how to navigate this kind of thing? I’d like to keep the two POVs, as it’s important for the plot of my stories, but I don’t want to end up with a load of 10,000-word chapters that I can’t switch around or edit because that would mess up the flow of the POVs

My(33M) husband and I(29F) have 3 children together. Our 2 eldest children have additional needs. I need to get out. 10 freaking years of this shit has finally torn me down to a shell of a person people are now starting to question why I am so down, I used to be so good at hiding it. I need to leave, I cannot have my girls thinking it’s okay to be with someone who treats them like this. I would never be with him still if I didn’t fall pregnant so young to him. His father is the same and his mum just excuses it because she puts up with it. I’m done. I’m almost at the point where leaving him just seems too hard and it would just be easier if I took my own life but I could never do that to my kids. My youngest daughter has ASD3 and ADHD and she depends on me so much so I literally can never leave her. If you have left and have a child with them…. HOW? It seems all to impossible, I can’t string a thought together to figure out the logistics. I can’t go stay with family because my daughter needs to be in her home and no one has room. Why can’t he just leave. He carry’s on how much he loves and can’t live without me but I honestly feel like I am being tortured, he is getting progressively worse every single day. Whenever I think I’m getting somewhere with him and he’s going to change (I’m stupid I know) he changes the next week and then tells me I’m making him want to k**l himself because he can “never be good enough”. Sorry I am rambling I am just so so lost I could honestly write chapter books on the stuff he has done. He has ruined every aspect of my life except my beautiful children..

My last character was a fire/earth kineticist that was a blast! However, he is no longer amongst the living. I was wondering if I could get some help with my next character, as I’m in the midst of finals and my brain is kind of fried. I was looking at a few different classes and was curious how I could build a battle field controller. My party has the dps and buffedebuffer roles covered. I was an AoE damage and healing. So now I’m kind of wondering how a battle field controller build would look. The classes I’ve been thinking of are Life Oracle (controlling the battle field by controlling the damage going out), psychic (no clue how I’d go about it but they seem interesting), summoning witch, or a bomber alchemist. Curious to hear thoughts on builds with those classes, or any other builds out there that can control the battle field in unique/fun ways (and yes, I know fun is subjective but I’d love to hear what you think is fun).
TLDR: looking to hear some of y’all’s favorite battlefield controller builds.
Edit: I see now that this post is all over the place. Give me some builds that can fit in with a single target dps and buffedebuffer (bard).

Note: Questions about monetization? Check here: An Introduction To The Book That Is Me :
Note: Questions about what else I've done? Check here: Masterlist for edgiscript :
Part 6: [F4M] Mafia Dog - Part 6 of 7 [Confronting Your Yandere] [Sneaking Into The Mission] [Supporting Mom] :
Note: Just realized yesterday that the tags on every chapter should be [FF4M] instead of [F4M] which some are. Sorry about that.
Note to those of you who have been reading and enjoying this series: Thank you. I hope the finale meets your expectations. I said before that this was a post-horror-yandere story. If anyone feels like writing a backstory with Francine and Puppy before he was Puppy, go right ahead. I don't do horror.
Note for future stuff: At present (5/19/24) I'm adding nearly my entire library to Reddit 1 piece at a time with some exceptions. Most notably, Crazy Cat is doing a masterful job with Mayna in "Amazon's Surprise" and she's only posted parts 1-3 so far. I will only release parts 4-7 as she does them. 3 VAs have currently done the 1st part of "The Captive Yandere" and at least 2 are considering whether or not to do more, so I'm holding of on releasing parts 2-6. And Xarty was incredibly endearing as Kaylix in "The Weakest Orc - A Love Story" part 1. I'm holding off releasing parts 2-7 until she does them or decides she won't do any more. But if there are VAs interested in performing those series, contact me and I'll send you the full scripts so you can decide if you want to do them before they're released publicly.
Now for Part 7. (Bet you didn't know this movie would come with trailers.) :)

Part 7

Carissa: (Sorrowfully.) Friends, family, loved ones, we have come today to mourn a beloved friend and colleague. We are going to miss his smile, his warmth, his courage, and his genuine love for each and every one of us, but most of all we’re going to miss the sound of his voice…
(With humor.) …because now that Puppy has married Jane, every one of us here knows that he’s never going to get a word in again.
(Sound of mild laughter of people at the party.)
Jane, you’ve been my courage, my fire, and my wisdom for so long now, I’ve forgotten what it was like without you here. Your spark has kept me going through many trying times. I’ve been able to count on your unwavering patience and your perseverance since the moment you joined our group. You have been by my side through thick and thin and you will be missed.
Puppy, in the nearly two years since we rescued you, you have been my heart and my conscience. I’m proud, very proud that you consider me as your mother, because I most definitely think of you as my son. You have also been by my side through thick and thin and you will also be missed.
Jane and Puppy, my left hand and my right, as you leave us to begin your own journey, at least temporarily, may God watch over you both, and may everyone you meet bring you as much joy as you have brought to all of us. Kent, Mike, Ronnie, and everyone present, please lift your glasses with me as we toast, to Puppy and Jane.
(Pause while they drink, then sounds of minor applause.)
Jane: (Hugs Carissa.) Thank you, mom. We’ll miss you guys.
(Brief pause, then playfully.) Puppy, you can hug Mom in a second. Let me get mine in.
Carissa: You see, Puppy. It’s started. There’s still time. Save yourself. Run.
Jane: (Laughs, then with mock irritation.) Carissa!
Carissa: Nope. I’m still Puppy’s Mom and I’ve got to do what’s best for him.
(Both laugh.)
Carissa: Seriously, you guys, be well. I know you want to show Puppy so many things that he missed growing up the way he did, but… well, just… be safe. Ok?
Jane: Oh, Mom, we’ll be fine. Stop worrying. Puppy’s going to love it.
Carissa: I know. I know. But… (Sighs.) I love both of you so much. Go have fun. See the world. Hurry. Run now before I hug you both and refuse to let go. We’ll be here when you get back.
Jane: We love you too, Mom. Thank you. You’ve been…
Carissa: (Interrupting.) No. Seriously. Go now. Go! Go, go, go, go, go!
Jane: (Laughs.) All right. We’re going. Come on, Puppy. You heard her.
(Runs off. Car door opens and closes. Car sounds as they drive away.)
Well, Puppy. How does it feel?
(Pause.)
To be married? You’re not just Puppy now. You’re MY Puppy.
(Pause.)
(Laughs/Giggles.) Yes, you’ve been my Puppy for a while, but now it’s official. Or legal, anyway.
(Pause.)
Nope. I don’t care. You’re mine. The wedding and the reception are over. I don’t have to share you with another soul for the rest of our lives. (Giggles.)
(Pause.)
Ok, we’ll see them again. I’m not taking you away for good. But you’ll still always be mine no matter what anybody else says about it. (Giggles.)
(Pause.)
Yes, it’s definitely nicer that we can be open about it. We’re so used to living in the shadows, you and me. Being out in public like a regular couple… that’s nice.
(Pause)
(Giggle.) Yes, there are definitely some things we’re not going to do out in the open. Speaking of which, there’s our stop.
(Pause)
Yep. That little house by the ocean. I rented it out just for us.
(Pause. Car comes to a stop and car door opens and closes.)
Nope. I already put all of our luggage in there before the wedding. Now, all that’s left to do is for you to carry me across the threshold. Unless, of course, you want me to carry you. We’re not exactly the most traditional couple after all and…
(Jane is interrupted by Puppy picking her up.)
(Squeals as she’s picked up and laughs. Kiss.) Oh, Puppy. Does this all feel as magical and as much like a fairy tale to you as it does to me? I can’t believe I get to call myself your wife. I love you, Puppy.
(Pause. Front door opens and closes.)
Oh no. You don’t get to set me down yet. Not until we’ve reached the bedroom. (Giggles.) I’ve got a surprise for you.
(Pause.)
(Laughs.) No, that’s not it. That’s no surprise, silly. You already knew I was going to give you that. (Giggles.) No, I’ve got something else for you.
(Pause while they reach the bedroom.)
Here we are. Now, lay me down and then lay down beside me.
(Pause.)
I love you so much, Puppy.
(Pause.)
I know you love me too. And I’m not just saying that because it’s the proper response. I want you to really, truly know that I know you love me. I meant everything I said in my wedding vows. My heart and my soul belong to you now. Ever since I’ve known you after we rescued you from that personal prison of Francine’s, you’ve been nothing but kind, considerate of others, laughing and loving everyone when you could have been broken and bitter. I love you for that, Puppy.
(Pause.)
(Giggles.) Ok, you’re kinda cute too. (Giggles.)
(Pause.)
(Note: From here on, there are no instructions on how to say the rest of this. Please let your own emotions decide how it should be done. Tender and sweet? Tearful? Joyful? You decide.)
Thank you, Puppy. I will always love to hear you say that. But I wanted you to know just how much I love you. I know you said that when you were trapped by Francine, and while she was… well, you know. She would constantly tell you how much she loved you and needed you, even while she was hurting you. She didn’t know love, Puppy. She only knew her own obsession and her lust. She took what she wanted from you without any consideration for you. When she said that she loved you, all she did was hurt you.
I know it’s why you don’t even want me to call you by your given name. It brings back memories of her and even the broken life you had before she took you. I gave you the name Puppy, and when I say “I love you,” I actually do love you. You’ve told me that you only want me to call you Puppy because that marks you as mine, and that’s what you want.
Here. Before I go on, open that drawer. Yes, that one right beside the bed. Open it.
(Drawer opens.)
Take the key that’s in there. That’s the key to your chains. I found that after we rescued you when we did a sweep of Francine’s old headquarters. I saved it… for you. It’s yours now. Nobody owns you. Nobody controls you. You’re free. You can keep it as a symbol that you control your own destiny now, or you can throw it into the ocean tomorrow morning. But you decide. Nobody else.
I know that the pain she caused you happened because all she wanted to do was take from you with no thought of your well-being. She didn’t care how much it hurt you as long as it satisfied her needs. So, Puppy, when I say “I love you,” I want you to know that I’m not taking from you. I’m giving to you. I’m giving you me, Puppy. I’m yours. I’m your wife. I’m your love. I’m your friend. I’m whatever you need me to be. Whatever you need from me, I’m here to provide it for you. I really, really love you. Ok?
(Kiss.)
You’re the most wonderful thing that’s ever happened to me. And I vow to you that I will never let you forget that for as long as we both shall live.
(Kisses.)
(Fade out.)

I was talking about how i wanted to go somewhere for my first spring break as a freshman with some friends and she shut it down. She said I should stay home, but when im at home im not really happy unless no one is around and im in my room.
I was talking about how i have never swam in at a beach and wanted to see and do new things in this new chapter of my life and she basically said that was stupid and asked why would i wanted to do that.
When i was showing her new hairstyles she made faces and said they were all ugly. So i said it’s my head not hers and she stopped responding.
I wanted to order a book (one by yukio mishima) and she said why and that it was dumb. I explained that the book was about stigma blah blah and she said i only wanted it because i was hiding something (as if it was a smut/sex book). You don’t even need to pay for those I could go on Wattpad like right now but wtv.
When i told her i wanted to learn more languages (i am only studying one outside of English) she said why and made faces.
I told her about what i wanted my future jobs to be and she said i could do another one instead. She does this every time i mention it.
When I talked about studying abroad she said no and that was stupid though i know the language.
She puts me down but brags about my achievements to everyone else. I stay in my room and don’t call unless i have to bc she just makes me so angry and I can’t do anything about it. And years of this has lead to me being easily annoyed/angry/feeling attacked and I have no patience. When I said up for myself she just stops talking. I don’t like being around her because she pretends like nothing happened afterwards.
I just want to live my life without her incessant yapping. What do I do?