$5 first class shipping with tracking for 1-2 bottles, $9 priority box for 3 or more. Will ship within a week. PayPal Goods & Services only. Bottles have been stored in wooden boxes in an ottoman away from light, pets, and extreme fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Pet friendly, non-smoking home. Feel free to make me an offer. Thanks for looking! BPAL (5ml, fill level indicated, some bottles have reducer caps) A Companion of the Same Nature (Yule 2011) At shoulder, $15, skin musk, red rose petals, mums, carnations, white linen, and sunlit amber on a bed of soft dry leaves. Blacklight Reactive Wizard Poster (2022) Full, $20, Hemp flowers swirled in billows of incense smoke. Dead Leaves, Tunisian Amber, and Smoked Balsam (Weenies 2020) At shoulder, $18 Frog Moon (Lunacy 2021) Full, $20, A pattering deluge of refreshing, enlivening, bright green notes: green tea, wet green musk, pine moss, fresh patchouli leaf, bamboo leaf, tulsi, pond grasses, and a pinch of wasabi. Gardenia & Clove (Duets 2021) Full, $20 Harvest Moon (Lunacy 2021) Full, $20, a swirl of late-autumn leaves surrounding the last stone fruits of summer. Hope/Auspicio (Lupercalia 2018) Dip at shoulder, drop reducer cap, $15, Black oudh and carnation. Last Tavern at the Town Gate (Yule 2020) Full, $20, Vivid red musk streaked with sleet, hearthsmoke, a glimmer of lemon rind and yellow amber, and oak-aged whiskey. Little Metalmark (Butterflies) Dip at shoulder, reducer cap, $15, nagarmotha and sweet musk. Lizardfolk Park Ranger (RPG) Full, $15, pine needle, oak bark, sweet birch, stream-polished stones, lichen, dark mosses, nootka, hazelnut, rivulets of amber, and blackcurrant bud. Moroccan Pumpkin (Weenies 2021) Just below shoulder, reducer cap, $15, Pumpkin spices wind through a blend of warm musk, carnation, red sandalwood and cassia. Now That They Rise and Walk in the Cold (Weenies 2016) At shoulder, $15, Bruised violets chilled by eucalyptus blossom, ice musk, and black cypress tar. October (Weenies 2020) At shoulder, $15, Dry, cold autumn wind. A rustle of red leaves, a touch of smoke and sap in the air. Orc (RPG) Full, $15, Field grey courgette musk, roughly cured leather, and vetiver. Pumpkin Chypre (Weenies 2019) Dip at shoulder, $18, A gleaming auburn chypre shot through with streaks of pumpkin. Sarah: The Mother Bear (Pretty Deadly) At shoulder, $15, tonka bean, soft brown leather, myrrh, white sage, gurjum balsam, Ceylon cinnamon bark, red sandalwood, sweet tobacco, and a touch of gunsmoke. Shub-Niggurath (GC) Full, $15, A blend of ritual herbs and dark resins, shot through with three gingers and aphrodisiacal spices. The Sleeping Draught (Weenies 2019) Full, $20, A haze of lavender and black oudh, laudanum accord, and opium tar. Tlazolteotl (GC) Full, label peeling slightly, $10, chapapote and black copal with cacao, black honey, maize, and cotton blossoms. ARCANA CRAVES (all 5ml, full) Honey Craves Festivals ($15) Throngs of people gathered together under summer skies. Smoky dragonsblood and nag champa incense, dark honey, live music, green cannabis, spilled beer, bonfires, patchouli, soft earth, and laughter. Strawberries Crave Indulgence ($15) French vanilla, white amber, sugared vanilla beans, caramel, lady finger cookies, opium, strawberry creme, and the faintest whiff of tobacco. Vanilla Craves Snow Fairies ($15) Frozen honey with dry white musk, winter vanilla, opulent amber, snow, vodka, and a sliver of orris root. BLACK BACCARA (5ml bottles with reducer caps or narrow-neck apothecary bottles, all full, tested once) London Fog Latte ($20) Black tea, warm vanilla, and lavender. Mansion Ghosts ($20) Aroma palette is a soft fruit musk. Highlights include white musk, candied apple, pink peppercorn, antique linens, and marigold flowers. Sanguenta ($20) Aroma palette is blood tinged musk, woods, and amber with boozy and fruit traces. Highlights include overgrown ivy, ancient trees, blood accord, extra dry champagne, and strawberry amber. Silent Night ($20) Aroma palette is icy and woodsy. Highlights include balsam fir, cypress, dirt, forest berries, and myrrh resin. Winter Village ($20) Aroma palette is a spicy, fruity gourmand. Highlights include eggnog, black cherry, allspice, charred vanilla, and tobacco absolute.

Following up on Black History Month this past February, we are now in Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This is an event in the US to celebrate those of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage.
So, for the month of May, we will try to feature a different person mixed person each day who has Asian, Pacific Islander, or both heritages. Some may be people without American citizenship, but who are active in the US and some may be Americans who are active overseas. Hope you guys like it!
So, without further ado: Herbert Kali'eha Pilila'au
Herbert Pilila'au was the first Native Hawaiian to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor.
He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his conspicuous gallantry and outstanding courage against the enemy during actions near Pia-ri, Korea on September 17, 1951 during the Korean War. He voluntarily chose to remain behind to cover the withdrawal of his unit from 'Heartbreak Ridge', fighting until he had exhausted his ammunition, and resorting to his knife and fists until mortally wounded.
Pilila'au was multi-generational mixed (MGM), born in Wai'anae, Hawai'i to parents of Native Hawaiian (kanaka maoli) and white ancestry. By all accounts, he was a quiet man and a devout Christian, who wanted to be a bookkeeper. When called up during the Korean War, he considered refusing the draft because of concerns about killing other human beings, but in the end, decided to serve.
This long-ish (19:17) video tells his story The 14:38 mark has interviews with family, which is noteworthy in showing the multiracial society that characterizes much of Hawai'i.
The US Navy named a cargo transport ship, the USNS Pililaau, in honor of his service.

Disclaimer: This post is long, so you may want to save it and read it later. Also, I put a lot of time into both researching this and writing it up. So if all you have is negative feedback, kindly keep it to yourself. Finally, there’s a lot more that I’ve been looking into beyond the scope of this write-up. If you’d like to join my exp-LORE-ation efforts, please let me know.
Recap: Part 1 establishes that Colonel is the same kid who was playing with his “baer frends” at the Palace of the Winding Path. Part 2 establishes that Darius Angler was the author of the 4 Untitled Poems.
Edit: Hyperlinks don't seem to be working so I'm manually pasting my references to parts 1 and 2.
https://www.reddit.com/fo76/comments/1327e9a/lore_discovery_responder_colonel_flatwoods_was/
https://www.reddit.com/fo76/comments/135xf3y/lore_discovery_part_2_responder_colonels_postwa
TLDR (mad spoilers up in here): Fishbones led the raid that killed Colonel and all the Responders in Flatwoods, and he could very well be Darius Angler’s brother. Colonel may have been up to something nefarious with the children of Flatwoods (but not in that way). Ra Ra might be Ward’s granddaughter. And it looks like mole rat teeth are used to craft Day Tripper.
​
We Begin at the End: November 2096. 13 Bridge Street, Flatwoods, WV. Responder Colonel died in the raider attack on Flatwoods, along with just about every other Responder that resided there. The raiders attacked because a Chem Addict stole all their food and chems and fled to Flatwoods. You can find her body and holotape just West of the river. But before we get to that, we need to look at what Colonel was up to before he died. Most people probably overlooked this detail because they haven’t explored Flatwoods since they were level 3, and at that point they didn’t have a jetpack or the Marsupial mutation. But Colonel’s front AND back porches are completely railed off. If you make it over the front railing, you’ll find the corpses of Colonel and (likely) the raider that killed him, Colonel’s second “Survivor Story,” and a stroller with an intact doll in it. Colonel was the “caregiver for children” in Flatwoods, so the stroller may have once been for an actual baby.
But on the back porch, Colonel was burning books, files, documents, and the contents of a mysterious duffel back on his grill. Colonel definitely had a secret and he was literally trying to burn the evidence. And that secret was his past with the Diehards and Darius Angler. If you follow the road West out of Flatwoods, you’ll eventually arrive at Hillfolk Hotdogs, which is the site of Untitled Poem #3 and the former home of Colonel when he lived with Angler as a child (you can find one of his “baer frends” on the kid-sized bunk bed). But inside the bus(?) at Hillfolk’s, you’ll also find similar documents and a duffel bag, just like the kind Colonel was burning in Flatwoods when he died. As a matter of fact, there are other similarly suspicious duffel bags and file caches along the Ohio River. And this takes us to Ohio River Adventures.
Fishbones is a Dirty Rat Bastard: In the exact same way that the Diehards returned to Crater, a former territory of theirs (and site of Untitled Poem #2), the Diehards also returned to Ohio River Adventures. Now, O.R.A. gets overlooked because there is no main quest line that keeps you returning to this area (maybe the grind for Raider Rep), but this place is former Diehard territory too. Now, it is critically important to know that both Fishbones (Bones) and Blackeye are O.G. Diehards. Blackeye was almost certainly Colonel’s 1st grade teacher back at the Palace of the Winding Path. But what about Bones? Well, my friends, I bet I’m about to tell you something you didn’t already know:
When Margie McClintock died in 2096 (as inferred what Rose tells us during the main quest), Meg Groberg took over and soon thereafter led the Diehards out of Appalachia before returning years later (that, you already knew). You probably also already knew that before Margie died, Meg and the other Diehards went against protocol and “shot first” when robbing people. Meg was a true raider in all the ways that Margie was not. But what you probably didn’t put together is that Margie died around the time that Flatwoods was attacked. According to the Chem Addict from Flatwoods:
“Chems Addict: Well, this is it I guess. Rock bottom I think they call it. I still miss him. Billy. I knew he was too young for me, but he made me feel good. Though it's the old Billy I really miss. The one who used to do nothing all day with me but listen to the radio and drink. I shoulda got out sooner when Billy and his buddies started torturing little cats and dogs. His friends... were no good. But that didn't stop me anyway. I can't believe my wake up call was watching people's heads... get stuck on spikes. So... what is an old gal like me to do? Steal all the food. Steal all the chems. And get the hell out of there. *laughs* I'd trade my last bite of food just to see the look on their faces. Oh, I know it's going to piss off Billy's friends, but I don't give a damn. I tell myself I should feel sorry for the little town across the river. But if I'm being honest, and that's what this tape is for, I don't really care. I call myself an addict, but it ain't the chems that finally got me. It was always Billy.”
I want to emphasize the “heads on spikes” part, because that’s something Margie would never tolerate. But Meg on the other hand let raiders be raiders. The other thing that I want to point out is “Billy.” I’m not saying for certain that this Billy is the same as Darius Angler’s brother, but I am saying that technically no body was ever recovered from the molten steel, and Angler didn’t see the accident happen because he didn’t work at Grafton Steel anymore. It’s possible that “Billy Angler,” who didn’t quit because “he needs the money,” could have taken out some kind of insurance policy, named his chem addict girlfriend as the beneficiary, faked his own death, and skipped town. Do I know for certain that this happened? Of course not. But what I do know is this: FISHBONES’S REAL NAME IS BILLY!!! The reason he’s obsessed with the letter B is because that’s his first initial. You see, at first I thought the raiders that wrecked Flatwoods were Cutthroats because of their whole feud with the Responders. But then I learned that the Flatwoods attack was caused by a bunch of chems that the Addict stole, and the Diehards were Appalachia’s great chems supplier (thanks to Angler). Furthermore, Fishbones’s current operation is spiking Mirelurk meat with an addictive substance (chems). And since Bones is an OG Diehard, it means he was the piece-of-shit raider that attacked Flatwoods and killed Colonel.
https://fallout.fandom.com/wiki/Fishbones
A Bit About Bruiser: I found a few interesting details about Bruiser at Ohio River Adventures, but nothing too profound. We know that he used to play football, his mascot was a “battle bear,” and that he spent some time in a vault. The likeliest conclusion from this information is that he’s from Grafton, given that’s the only high school in the region with a football field and it’s next to the makeshift vault that formerly housed a few raiders before the BOS took over. If you look up the IRL Grafton High School, you’ll find that it’s on Yates Ave (likely the namesake of Sofie Yates, a Responder turned Raider in Flatwoods) and their mascot is the “Bearcat.” Also, all the varsity jackets in FO76 have the letter B on them, but that’s more Fishbones’s thing. But none of this has anything to do with Colonel or Angler, so let’s move on.
The Charleston Cartel (2079-2082): From the Charleston Capitol Building terminal entries, we know there was a massive chem trade happening in Charleston at this time:
“Name: Matoukas, George
Date of Crime: 10.09.81
Description:
300 Block of Oak. Based on anonymous tip, Responder Atkins found subject peddling vast amounts of illegal chems out of his home. Over 300lbs of illegal chems found in the subject's basement.
Resolution:
Matoukas sentenced to 5 years hard labor under close supervision, with possibility of parole for good behavior. Chems were seized and destroyed.”
Since the Diehards’ operation at the Palace of the Winding Path effectively ended with the great rapture of ‘79, it only makes sense that the Diehards would have to adapt their drug trade elsewhere. If you actually look for raider activity in Charleston (outside of the courthouse), you won’t find a lot, but what you will find is very telling of their operations. You’ll find a dead raider at the chemistry workbench inside Hornwright Industrial Headquarters. You’ll find a few dead raiders in/above the pharmacy on the south side of town. And you’ll find a dead raider lurking outside the doctors’ offices (which is NOT the hospital) to the north. And this takes us to Dr. Joseph.
https://fallout.fandom.com/wiki/Joseph_(Fallout_76))
Dr. Joseph was a psychiatrist in Charleston who practiced both before AND after the Great War. He had the authority to refer patients to Allegheny Asylum and write prescriptions; Prescriptions that would be filled at the pharmacy on the south side of Charleston. To one patient, P. Davis, he prescribed Day Tripper. This insightful detail is why the Diehards were operating in Charleston in the first place. As many seasoned players have observed, Day Tripper is not craftable in this game; You can only find it out in the wild. Consider the following terminal entry from the Palace of the Winding Path:
“Log: 12.29.77 Since the war, incense ingredients have been hard to come by. We started rationing weeks ago, in anticipation of this, and doses are much lower. The sedative effects of the incense are a priority, to keep people from freaking out.
I've begun to improvise with some other ingredients and found some creative ways of stretching the supply, at least until things return to relative normal. Other chem supplies are plentiful.”
So here’s what I think happened. If the Diehards were in dire need of Day Tripper to make their custom chems (see: Making Incense), and the Responders had a healthy supply of Day Tripper locked inside a pharmacy in Charleston, and there was also a doctor who wrote prescriptions for Day Tripper, then all the Diehards needed to do was register a new patient with Dr. Joseph. Enter: Darius Angler.
Darius Angler was batshit crazy (if in doubt, refer to his manifesto). Angler, who now resided at Hillfolk Hotdogs, was also just a short trip up the New River from Charleston. He would periodically visit Dr. Joseph, get his prescription filled like a meth-head scoring Sudafed, and used the trip as a cover to smuggle the refined chems into the city. Essentially, I think he just made a loop around the southwest “island” of the Forest (area surrounded on all sides by 3 rivers, referred to as “Zone D”). The loop around Zone D functioned as a supply chain/assembly line for producing the chems that were being smuggled into Charleston. There’s a lot of suspicious stuff happening around here: Raider activity, duffel bags/files, bridge control, coffin conspiracies, etc. that I had to edit out for length, but I’ll try to summarize it here.
Hillfolk Hotdogs is where Angler and Colonel raised mole rats for reasons I’ll explain later. Follow the Ohio River south and you’ll soon come to a boat that’s not far away from a crashed truck loaded up with industrial chemical barrels (useful for producing industrial quantities of chems). South of that is a tent with a duffel bag. Further south you’ll find a 3-story house with suspicious files and a duffle bag hidden in the attic (just like at Hillfolk’s). South of that are some dry-docked boats with a chem box and a duffel bag. Even further south is Ohio River Adventure (a current Raider base of operation that served a similar purpose back then). Southeast of there, by Lewis & Sons, is a little “boat” with 2 stuffed bears, which I think was left behind by Colonel as he reenacted his river adventures with Angler using his bears. Southeast of there is a floating Nuka-Cola structure with a submerged safe guarded by 2 more bears, one of which has a liquor bottle. I think this is a dead drop and the bears are another work of Colonel’s. Heading East up the River you’ll find a raider-operated “store” at the end of a questionable bridge. Further east is Charleston, where George Matoukas was distributing the chems. And on the return trip down the New River is another dead drop directly beneath the Bridge on the west side. It’s a safe by a couch with a bear and Jangles (I think Jangles is supposed to represent George). Again, I think that this big loop is a supply chain/assembly line for moving chems and the components needed to make chems.
The smuggling operation also deviously involved Colonel and his “Baer Frends.” If you jetpack up to the very top of AVR Medical Center, you’ll find two people who OD’ed on chems, each with a stuffed bear next to them. So I think that either the Diehards were sewing chems inside Colonel’s stuffed bears and using them as drug mules to smuggle chems into Charleston, or that Colonel just climbed to the highest point on the hospital (as he did at the Palace and later in Flatwoods) and left two bears as a memorial. But I’m leaning toward the former because of an unmarked location in the Savage Divide that I found. It’s southeast of Bastion Park right at the bend of the monorail line. It’s essentially a fire pit with a bunch of stuffed bears thrown in it with a few dead party-goers around the area. I think this is the location where the Responders destroyed all of the Chems, bears and all, that they confiscated from George Matoukas. Speaking of George Matoukas….
Curious George and the Rocket: According to the above-mentioned terminal entry, George Matoukas was apparently the only criminal who the Responders sentenced to hard labor rather than exile. If you go to Rollins Labor Camp (formerly Rollins Work Camp), you won’t find a whole lot there other than Blood Eagles. But what you WILL find at the very top of the crane structure are two stuffed bears and a Jangles. Colonel, as a child, had a thing for playing with “baer frends in high places.” I can’t say with any certainty what happened here, but maybe Angler was the one who gave the responders that “anonymous tip” because Matoukas was starting to rub off on Colonel, and Angler didn’t want him growing up to be a Raider. Matoukas gets sentenced to hard labor rather than exile, with a change of parole pending “good behavior,” which means “snitching.” So maybe Angler took Colonel to visit his “friend” at the labor camp (visiting hours are a thing), Angler introduced George to a “rocket,” and Colonel used his toys to recreate the scene. Or not. Who knows? But what I do know is that the shitty poet (Angler) moved on from Hillfolk Hotdogs to go to the Cranberry Bog, and I think the Christmas Flood gave him the perfect reason to leave.
Untitled Poem #3: I’m intentionally skipping Untitled Poem #2, partly because I haven’t found much deeper meaning to it, but mostly because what I think it means is little more than conjecture. #3, on the other hand, I feel like I can make sense of it:
“white cedar leaning against the shadow of our river
peeling like asylum walls
hobbled together around dignity that died long ago
simple things to jumpstart fogged memories
holed as teeth hidden in tin
we leave our things pinned
winning only the stuck wings”
I think the phrase “white cedar leaning against the shadow of our river” is the title of the painting in Dr. Joseph’s office. Or at least that’s how Darius Angler would describe it as if it was some kind of Rorschach test. “Peeling like asylum walls, hobbled together around dignity that died long ago” is a reference to the office wallpaper, and perhaps another one of Dr. Joseph’s clients, Daniel Boone.
“Patient: "Boone, D"
Observations:
Interesting case.
Patient responds only to "Daniel Boone" and indeed seems to believe himself to be the historical figure by the same name. I'd heard that some of the hillfolk can end up a bit off after lack of socialization, but I'd not expected to see such a case.
Advised that he be sent to Allegheny rather than the Penitentiary for further observation.”
There’s only a VERY narrow window of plausibility to suggest that Angler is Daniel Boone, so I won’t. But this entry seems to refer back to Untitled Poem #3, with worlds like “hillfolk” (as in Hillfolk Hotdogs), “Allegheny” (as in asylum), and “the historical figure” (as in dignity that died long ago). I think the line “simple things to jumpstart fogged memories'' refers to the Souvenir Magnet on the fridge at Hillfolk Hotdogs, and I think it came from Lady Janet’s Soft Serve (not Cow Spot Creamery). “Holed as teeth hidden in tin” refers to the mole rats that he was raising with Colonel at Hillfolk’s (the cat bowl on the floor is for the mole rat that walks around the trailer like Fry’s dog from Futurama, just waiting for Colonel to come home). And “we leave our things pinned, winning only the stuck wings,” refers to Angler’s (and Colonel’s) escape from the Diehards. I’m assuming this event took place just after the Christmas flood, once the chem operation in Charleston was destroyed with the rest of the city. But if you remember those dead raiders I mentioned earlier, there are a few more. Outside of Dr. Joseph’s office is a dead raider next to an ammo box. Well, next to him is a makeshift bridge that goes over the highway. And if you keep going in the same direction once you step off the bridge you’ll hit the southwest corner of Wade Airport. Immediately in that corner past the fence is a locked truck-trailer (watch out for the mine) with 2 more dead raiders and a power armor chassis (sometimes). I think the last line of the poem refers to this exact event, leaving his power armor (and compatriots) pinned in the back of the trailer so he can steal yet another Vertibird. Angler flew the automated aircraft to Watoga. Why? I don’t know. But it explains how he got to the Cranberry Bog and why his body can be found just a short distance south of the city.
Untitled Poem #4: Just like #2, I don’t have any deep insight into the specifics so all I can do is speculate. I’ll spare you the details. But what I think it’s about is the very end of his relationship with Colonel. I think the time Angler and Colonel spent together in the unmarked cabin southeast of Sunrise Field was just Angler teaching Colonel to be self-sufficient (hunting, trapping, maintaining weapons and whatnot). I think that when the scorched attacked Harper’s Ferry in 2086 that there was also generally increased scorched activity in the eastern half of Appalachia. The poem describes Angler providing cover fire to, or perhaps just drawing fire away from Colonel as escaped through Big Bend Tunnel, later to be found by the Responders. But again, like with #2, all I can do with this poem is speculate.
The Mysterious Mole Rats: This is a question I’ve had for almost 2 years now, and I think I finally figured it out. Back at the Palace of the Winding Path, there’s a lonely mole rat that lives in the computer room by the garden. There’s also a dead mole rat next to a dead raider pilot by a downed plane that was headed to the Palace from the north. I didn’t know what the Diehards needed mole rats for because I was only looking at the Palace itself. But the answer to this question is found at Lady Janet’s. Everyone thinks that the two bears in gas masks by the chemistry is just a Breaking Bad easter egg. But I think it’s yet another “baer frend” reenactment left behind by Colonel. Do you remember how the cultists at the Palace ran out of ingredients to make the “spiritual incense” and had to improvise? Well, one of the substitute ingredients they used, and the reason they were importing mole rats, and the reason the Diehards took care of the children like they did, is found in the baby carriage at Lady Janet’s.
A basket full of human jaw bones? Yeah…. Teeth. Or more precisely, “baby teeth.” I suppose mole rat teeth would do in a pinch, but as messed up as it sounds human baby teeth were preferred. This is why the Diehards at the Palace were taking care of those first-graders; because six-year-olds shed baby teeth like it’s raining molars! This also answers a question you didn’t even know you had, and it takes us back to Flatwoods. Here’s a note written by Jeremiah Ward who lived in trailer in the town (and the Ransacked Bunker before that):
“I, Jeremiah Ward, resident in the town of Flatwoods, county of... not sure.
Being of sound mind, and not acting under... duress. Mostly.
Hereby declare this letter to be my last will and testament.
Mia gets the house, and everything in it.
It ain't much but that's all I got to give and... she's all I got.
I know she's still alive.
The Responders say the dogs got her, but I know it ain't true.
They been real good to us. Teaching an old geezer like me how to really cook is something. I'll give em that.
But I know they lyin about those dogs. I seen em in the hills. There's some bad folks scoping us out. They took my granddaughter, I just know it.
I'll get you back, Mia. I promise.”
Mia, a baby who slept in the crib in that trailer, was abducted by raiders. And the only raider gang that ever had any interest in kids was the Diehards. And when you remember that the Responders had a foster care program that would later be run by Colonel once he was older, you’ll remember that a shit load of children went “missing” when Billy (Fishbones) attacked Flatwoods. And if teeth (baby, mole rat, or otherwise) was the secret ingredient in Angler’s chem recipe… and Colonel was Angler’s apprentice for a number of years before he joined the Responders… and Colonel was the caretaker of all of the children of Flatwoods… then exactly what was in those documents that Colonel was burning on his back porch?
Full Circle: So after everything, the Diehards lost their crop of children at the Palace of the Winding Path in 2079, but took the children of Flatwoods and left Appalachia. When they came back, they put Fishbones (Billy) in charge of the Ohio River Adventures operation, who is now spiking the mirelurk meat with a potent chem. It’s totally possible that Ra Ra is actually Mia Ward (Jeremiah Ward’s granddaughter). Hell, it’s even possible that Jeremiah Ward is somehow Ward from Foundation. Since Colonel was obviously keeping, and subsequently burning, secrets, I’d say he was also inclined to keep his raider past a secret as well as the truth about his adoptive father. Like he said in his Survivor’s Story, “he was bad.” Perhaps the reason he kept his Diehard history a secret from the Dassa and the other Responders was because he knew that the Responders were the ones punishing and exiling people back in Charleston. But this whole story began the day Darius Angler decided to get revenge on Grafton Steel. And if his brother hadn’t actually died after all, then it would explain why Angler stayed with the Diehards for as long as he did rather than returning to the Free states. Regardless, this entire story began and ended with Billy. “It was always Billy.”

This isn't some complete list, I just provided a quick rundown of some Friday bands and folk seemed to find it useful so here's a few more. It's not exhaustive, probably terribly inaccurate, but might help you decide where to start with some lesser known bands. Feel free to add your own in the comments:
Thursday Halestorm hard hitting rawk
Skindred party vibes, bit of funk bit of metal
Jinjer hard female fronted metal, for fans of Arch Enemy and Spiritbox to an extent
Hundred Reasons old school pre-emo for fans of InMe
Punk Rock Factory pop punk covers of Disney songs, some laugh
Friday Architects are kinda like BMTH. Good, melodic, hard rock with a mixture of growls and singing. Listen to their latest stuff.
Within Temptation are a bit like Evanescence, melodic female vocals, operatic rock.
Pendulum are INSANE live, drum n bass with real instruments. Good if you like The Prodigy.
Neck Deep are great, boppy pop punk like Sum 41 and Blink 182.
As December Falls and Hot Milk are similar pop punk vibes but with female vocals.
Pup is straight up pop punk. Listen to "Kids".
The Blackout are anthemic early screamo, like Funeral For A Friend, the two vocals playing off each other.
VV is Vile Vallo. He was in HIM. Melodic male vocals, sad songs that predate emo.
Taipei Houston sounds a bit like Jack White.
On the heavier side you have Empire State Bastard, a supergroup who have only released one song, and Pupil Slicer have also got you covered for extreme metal. I think Ingested are similar vibes? Not sure.
GWAR will be good for over the top theatrics. If you remember Lordi from the Eurovisions a while back then it's a similar vibe.
Elvana is an Elvis tribute act except they cover Nirvana songs.
Nova Twins are funky bass based nu metal newcomers. Kinda.
Saturday alexisonfire used to be screamo with battling growl vocals vs clean vocals but have become more mellow as time goes on
Bambie Thug is sorta rap, sorta some dance elements, very magick themed imagery, for fans of Dana Dentata who played last year
Blackgold is proper old school nu metal but almost leaning towards pop rap, I get Goldie Looking Chain doing covers of Linkin Park vibes
Bob Vylan folk rap metal, very angry, political, fantastic
Sunday Bad Religion despite being around over 40 years some to be lowkey to a lot of people, proper fast old pop punk listen to 10 In 2020 to get their vibes, for fans of early Offspring
Hatebreed are GOAT hardcore with very positive messages listen to Perseverance, I Will Be Heard and Never Alone for their vibes
Crashface are like hardcore indy I guess, for fans of Idles or SLAVES (now known as Soft Play)
Dinosaur Pile-Up are sorta pseudo grunge, more Silverchair than Nirvana vibes, Back Foot is their big hitter but I vibe with Pouring Gasoline
Graphic Nature are Meshuggah esque doom math metal
Jazmin Bean kinda trap rap from what I've heard
Hawxx are like Halestorm but, imo, more rawk less catchy but more raw
Joey Valance & Brae, do you like Beastie Boys? Then you like JV&B
The Meffs proper oi oi punk but very good and very loud for a 2 piece
Set It Off have that early Panic, Fall Out Boy vibe but without the insufferable whining, just catchy bops

Ah, certainly! Here's a needlessly complicated guide to screwing in a light bulb:

1. Prepare the Illumination Space:
   
   • Begin by ensuring the light switch is in the "off" position.
   • Create an ambiance suitable for bulb installation by playing classical music softly in the background.
   • Light a scented candle to set a serene atmosphere.
2. Assemble the Tools:
   
   • Don a pair of clean, white cotton gloves to maintain a pristine grip on the bulb and enhance the aesthetic experience.
   • Retrieve a Phillips head screwdriver, a step stool, and a pair of safety goggles to protect your eyes from any potential flying debris.
3. Ascend the Step Stool:
   
   • Approach the step stool with utmost caution, employing proper posture and maintaining a firm grip on the railing.
   • Slowly climb the steps, ensuring each foot is securely planted before proceeding to the next step.
   • Take a deep breath, focusing your energy on the task ahead.
4. Assess the Bulb Receptacle:
   
   • Gently examine the light fixture, making note of any accumulated dust or debris.
   • Employ a non-abrasive cloth to carefully clean the receptacle, ensuring a pristine environment for the new bulb.
5. Retrieve the Bulb:
   
   • Navigate to your designated bulb storage area, employing a GPS device if necessary to avoid unnecessary wandering.
   • Select the appropriate light bulb, considering wattage, color temperature, and lumens to optimize your lighting experience.
   • Cradle the bulb in your gloved hand, treating it as a fragile work of art.
6. Align the Bulb:
   
   • Position yourself directly underneath the light fixture, allowing gravity to work in your favor.
   • With the utmost precision, align the bulb's threads with the receptacle's threads.
   • Begin rotating the bulb in a clockwise direction, using the gentlest touch to avoid damaging the threads.
7. Achieve Optimal Tightness:
   
   • Gauge the resistance encountered while turning the bulb and strive for the perfect balance of tightness.
   • Do not overtighten, as this may cause stress on the fixture or bulb.
   • Conversely, do not leave the bulb too loose, as it may result in unreliable electrical connectivity.
8. Descend the Step Stool:
   
   • Slowly and cautiously descend the step stool, maintaining your focus and balance throughout.
   • Ensure each foot is placed firmly on the ground before shifting your weight.
9. Illuminate and Appreciate:
   
   • Switch the light on, reveling in the symphony of illumination that graces your surroundings.
   • Take a moment to appreciate the delicate dance between artistry and functionality that a properly installed light bulb offers.

Remember, while this guide may be needlessly complicated, the actual process of screwing in a light bulb is quite simple and straightforward. Exercise caution and use common sense to ensure your safety during any DIY tasks.

Okay, so it's fantasy booking time. We're on that time of the year again, where our imaginations travel and injuries hit. In the meantime, since we're almost in time for Dominion and AEW's major stories will be on hold for a while I thought of interrogating this reddit for having an idea of your Forbidden Door 2 card.
There's no rule in it: you can book MJF losing to Bolting Oleg if you want. The only thing is, try to explain it and to give it a sense, so it gets funnier than the average "oh, I want Okada vs Omega V because Meltzer is going to give it 8 stars and three quarters".

Pay attention, from here I will assume all the readers know it's spoiler territory, so PLEASE, DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER UNLESS YOU ALREADY WATCHED AEW DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2023 OR YOU DO CARE ABOUT BEING SPOILER-FREE ALL ELITE WRESTLING

Let's begin!
Opening Match: AEW World Championship - Maxwell Jacob Friedman (champion) vs "The King" Minoru Suzuki (challenger)
So, an AEW World Title match as an opener? You see, the thing I love the most about MJF is not the character, nor the wrestling abilities. It's his persona and the modernity he brings that makes me love the man. In his Media Scrum interview, he stated "NJPW is an indy". His persona clearly does not want to do the PPV, and so I want to give him someone who, since Inoki's death, is in 本体 (Hontai, NJPW Main Unit). And what a better way for the Toronto crowd to get in the mood, than give them singing 風になれ (kazeninare) for starters? Suzuki can work for 15-20 minutes once in a while now, however, I want this to be a 5 minutes thing where Max cheats his way to the win.
​
2nd match: CHAOS (BISHAMON, Rocky Romero and Orange Cassidy) vs. BULLET CLUB (David Finlay, Clark Connors, KENTA & Chase Owens)
During the pandemic era, we had OC and Best Friends introduced in CHAOS by Rocky Romero. And with Shibata seamingly leaving LA Dojo and CC beating Young Lions and LA Dojo alumnis all around, there are two interesting matchups for this shakeup: azucar and 100 Proof, but most importantly Finlay and OC. They are both establishing themselves as fighters, but with two different attitudes. Having an exchange there would be incredible. At the end, BISHAMON win with Chase looking at the light.
​
3rd match: Champion vs Champion - Willow Nightingale (NJPW Strong Women's Champion) vs Toni Storm (AEW World's Women Champion)
The King of Sports introduced two female's titles among their collection. Given the fact STARDOM exists, given the fact for now I do not see a merger between the BUSHIROAD promotions, I also do not see Gedo wanting to give up on the idea that this is a NJPW only event. So, to me these titles are for US territory and for Special matches involving megastars during special events. I do not necessarily agree with this, but also the G1 Climax and the IWGP Heavweight titles were "special attractions". When it comes to this match, with Jamie in the box for a while, this is going to be another piece of the Outcasts vs. Homegrowns feud. Toni would win, setting up for another match for the STRONG title somewhere in the future.
​
4th match: Owen Hart Cup Finals - "Super Liger" Chris Jericho vs Hiromu Takahashi
Ok, when I thought of this match I said to myself that Y2J has to be in because he's one of the main pieces of the AEW puzzle, so I really do not see special events without him. So I booked a filler, something to get rid in case something cooler pops into my mind. Then I remembered Forbidden Door 2 is going to take place in Canada, so this became a must. Then I read Tony's idea to have Liger's involvement in the Cup. So this, from being an afterthought, has become a priority. Since AEW started, Jericho portrayed all his persona: he did the list, Lionheart, the Painmaker, the Ocho. How cool would it be to see Hiromu, who is beating all Liger's records, surpassing Super Liger?
​
5th match: IWGP World Heavyweight Championship - SANADA (champion) vs Darby Allin (challenger)
I will start by saying that I'm not that confident that we'll see this match happening. If Yota Tsugi is half as good as the guy I've see in RevPro, we have the reincarnation of Kenta Kobashi (I know, it's very tempting to rage at this, but their physical structure seems identical). So I want to be wrong. But picture this: SANADA's defenses are against a junior (although he's an iconic junior) and a graduating Young Lion. So somehow we have to establish him as a force, or we're having another transitional champion that is going to get racked by Okada for the next Wrestle Kingdom.
Let's take a step back and have a gemba walk on wrestling in 2023. To me, it has been the best year in wrestling in YEARS. We had NJPWxNOAH, All Together, two edition of All Star Juniors, Multiverse United, an awesome Wrestlemania Weekend for the US indies (I heard good things about WWE, but I don't watch it since more than a decade). We had Nakamura going back to Japan and Naito retiring Mutoh. You see where I'm going with this?
With Sting retiring and Muta gone I would love to see this match, with them seconding their guys. At the end, Darby takes the L with some MJF thing happening (now more than ever I'm convinced that Darby is dethroning Maxwell somewhere in the future).
​
6th match: NJPW STRONG Television Championship - Zack Sabre Jr. (champion) vs "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson Wheeler Yuta (challenger)
As an Italian from Naples, all I know is that when it comes to superstition, neapolitans are only second to the Chinese. So read the name you want, I'm not going to name Daniel Bryan in in this match. Let's say THE Forbidden Door dream match becomes a meme and we see Yuta trying to survive 15 minutes with Zack in the ring. Then, if the name in the strikesthrough is the correct one...
​
7th match: IWGP Women's Championship - Mayu Iwatani (champion) vs Dr. Britt Baker, DMD (challenger)
Dream match #7. I'm going to be hermetic with this. In my mind, this is the shocker of the night, with Britt Baker winning and holding "hostage" of the title in America and setting up Giulia vs Britt at WK next year. WOW.
​
8th match: NEVER Six Men Openweight Championship - Blackpool Combat Club (champions) & Shota Umino vs The Elite (El Phantasmo and The Young Bucks) (challengers)
Last year's FD saw great matches with an interesting card. We will never see it, but we expected the emancipation of Hiku Leo in his match with the BULLET CLUB. We received another match, with ELP "replacing" spiritually Kenny Omega. ELP and the Bucks have an almost unexplicable chemistry. ELP is half Marty Scurll, half Kenny Omega, and fits perfectly to the mold of a tag team who is as over the top as ELP is and can do comedy wrestling as well as fast-pacing action or storyline-driven wrestling.
While I was writing it, I changed the champions. Why? Because Kenny said he has one or two friends to call up for support. One is Ibushi, and we'll seeing him at Blood and Guts. The other is none other than ELP.
At first, this was suppose to have the current ones (Okada, Tanahashi and Ishii) in the match and something else planned for Mox. In my head booking, I would have had Tanahashi winning on NJPW STRONG Resurgence but that derailed. Anyways, BCC and Shota retains here, setting up El Phantasmo vs Shooter for G1.
Blackpool retains.
​
9th match: AEW World Tag Team, NJPW STRONG Tag Team & IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships - WINNER TAKES ALL - BULLET CLUB Gold (Juice Robinson & Jay White) vs House of Torture
I am spending a few words here. We're setting up FTR vs. Juice/Jay in AEW. So, say goodbye to Aussie Open vs FTR 2 in NJPW. Hello, Bullet Club Civil War. We've been waiting one since Tama Tonga said "Who the f\ck is the Elite. huh?*" to Kenny and I guess time and place coincide now. It's time to have Jay winning everything, then having a megabrawl among all the members of BC.
​
10th match: Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
Semi main-event. D*ckhead Okada does not care about Forbidden Door nor AEW. He just cares about being the best wrestler of all times and pushing wrestling to the next level. He did it by creating a gimmick-match only title, he did it by saying he wanted to be the Six Men Titles to be like a World Cup, failing again. At the change of the guard, Okada says to Tanahashi that it's time for a change. After the fall between Ishii and Tanahashi at Dominion, Okada says this is make it or break it for CHAOS. If he wins, Tanahashi must join CHAOS. If Okada loses, CHAOS must disband.
​
Main Event: IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship - Kenny Omega (champion) vs Will Ospreay (challenger)
Out of all the matches I do not want to happen, this is at the top of my list. I want Archer to win, my entire plans to change, keeping this dream that started a WK17 as long as I can. It is probably because my dad got diagnosed with cancer and I want stability in my life. I do not want things to end.
However, Kenny never had an "high rate" match in his home turf and it is time time for one. So LFG! Winner? Us.
​
This concludes my silly stream of consciousness, I hope you had fun reading this! What is your dream card for the most speculated PPV of the year?

Three things investors should watch for with this Debt ceiling deal.

1. Fed meeting announcement on June 14th with expected 25 basis points lift on the interest rate.
2. Treasuries affect Tech stocks with higher interest rates causing higher Treasury yields that could negatively impact Tech stocks.
3. SoFi share price during Tuesday's market opening as the debt ceiling tentative agreement includes the student loan forbearance freeze to end. This could lead to more money going into the pockets of SoFi which has its bottom line and stock price significantly impacted by the student loan moratorium. McCarthy's yesterday interview with Fox News said "What the President did, he went unconstitutionally and said he was going to waive certain people, part of their debt for student loan. But then he paused everybody's student loan. So everybody who borrowed the student loan, within 60 days of signing, is going to have to pay that back. The Supreme Court is taking up that case. But if the Supreme Court came back and said that was unconstitutional, the president could still say he's pausing, not waiving it. But now that this is in law, the Supreme Court decision will have to be upheld."

The White House announced last November that the Student loan moratorium will end 60 days after either June 30, 2023, or the date of a Supreme Court decision on student loan forgiveness. This would mean interest would begin accruing at the end of August if the Supreme Court favors the end of the Student loan moratorium.
https://finance.yahoo.com/video/debt-ceiling-deal-investors-watch-223022379.html
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mccarthy-takes-victory-lap-debt-limit-bill-details-remain-scarce-among-house-members

Three things investors should watch for with this Debt ceiling deal.

1. Fed meeting announcement on June 14th with expected 25 basis points lift on the interest rate.
2. Treasuries affect Tech stocks with higher interest rates causing higher Treasury yields that could negatively impact Tech stocks.
3. SoFi share price during Tuesday's market opening as the debt ceiling tentative agreement includes the student loan forbearance freeze to end. This could lead to more money going into the pockets of SoFi which has its bottom line and stock price significantly impacted by the student loan moratorium. McCarthy's yesterday interview with Fox News said "What the President did, he went unconstitutionally and said he was going to waive certain people, part of their debt for student loan. But then he paused everybody's student loan. So everybody who borrowed the student loan, within 60 days of signing, is going to have to pay that back. The Supreme Court is taking up that case. But if the Supreme Court came back and said that was unconstitutional, the president could still say he's pausing, not waiving it. But now that this is in law, the Supreme Court decision will have to be upheld."

The White House announced last November that the Student loan moratorium will end 60 days after either June 30, 2023, or the date of a Supreme Court decision on student loan forgiveness. This would mean interest would begin accruing at the end of August if the Supreme Court favors the end of the Student loan moratorium.
https://finance.yahoo.com/video/debt-ceiling-deal-investors-watch-223022379.html
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mccarthy-takes-victory-lap-debt-limit-bill-details-remain-scarce-among-house-members

Thank you to u/Far_masterpiece_7739 for proofreading and suggesting edits
this is my first story on NoP and hopefully my first good one, excuse the dates, i just put the date i went to the fair i describe in the story and put it in the year the main story takes place, for reference this is meant to be before the bombs dropped.
​
Memory transcription subject:Talik, Venlil exchange program participant
Date[Standardised human time]:13.05.2136
As My exchange partner and I stepped out of his house and into his car I was quite unenthused about where we were going. We were headed to a steam fair, yes an actual real life steam fair, this is something a yotul would enjoy, and I was no mere uplift.
[2 hours later]
It took half a spheking paw to get here, ugh, at least it was a chance to listen to more of that wonderful, though oddly named, human music, of the metal genre, my current favourite song being full circle by Five finger death punch, an odd and very predatory name, but it seems the same is true for a lot of human music. As we pulled into the seemingly random field there was an old man, in what my human had told me was a hi vis jacket, making strange hand gestures at us that my human somehow understood, we drove into another field, this one full of semi orderly rows of many different types of cars, we then got out and walked through the long grass towards a green booth of some kind in front of a small also green bridge, there were two middle aged human women in the booth, after my human paid £10 we were allowed in, at first it was less than impressive to our left was a man in an oddly coloured suit and purple top hat on a large stage, in front of us was a large empty area fenced off with rope, and many older vehicles were off to our left along with some “bouncy castles'' as my human had explained to me before and several stalls selling various items.
We went over to the left, past the stage and several food stands that smelled absolutely incredible, we made our way to a large horizontal wheel that suspended five other horizontal wheels that each had three sets of seats suspended from them, my human decided this would be a good way to “break me into it”, I decided against pointing out the very predatory language, and agreed to go on, my human gave the ride operator £3 and we both got on, my human being the bigger of the two of us had to sit next to the padded wall likely to reduce the effects of inertia, after a short wait for it to fill up, the ride started to play some music and slowly spin each the top one spinning the opposite direction to the others, the ride slowly got faster and after about a minute the operator announced, over the PA of the ride,that it was “time for turbo mode” and to “squish your partner”, and so I did, I allowed myself to slide across and bump into him at speed, I hit him harder than I intended, and apologised, he said nothing and simply pushed against the centrifugal force pushing us into the padded wall and moved us both to the opposite side of the cart, and laughed saying that he barely felt my impact “of course you didn’t, you have the most messed up physiology I have ever seen” I laughed out smiling in spite of myself.
After the ride stopped we moved past a giant vertical wheel, that my human called a Ferris wheel, and a large tower with a slide running around the outside, called a helter skelter my human said, and on to what my human said was one of his favorite rides ever, the swinging boats, from where we stood they looked quite tame, something was wrong, my human was an “Adrenaline junkie” as he and several of his friends had called him, meaning two rectangular boxes with seats in them just hanging there was clearly not all there was to the first steam powered ride I had seen at this steam fair, as we ascended the stairs to get on I saw an old man in amongst many valves, levers and gauges, my human paid the man £3 and one other person was on the ride with us, we were at one end and she was at the other, she smiled at us and laughed at my concerned face after my human gave some obscure hand sign, I should really learn the human hand, face and head language, just then I noticed a sign that read “all riders do so at their own risk” I was now very worried, I didn’t say anything though as I knew that my human would never intentionally endanger me, just then an ear peircing screeching sound started, causing me to Jump in fright, we were then told to hold onto the netting behind us and put our feet on the bench in front of us, then the box we were in started to swing, and I realised what they would do, after about [20 seconds] we were swinging so far that the box, or boat as my human had corrected me several times now, went from horizontal to vertical, with every swing, my human and the other one on the ride were smiling and laughing with each other while i firmly closed my eyes, my human noticed my discomfort and spoke, as softly as he could to be heard over the sound of the rushing air, comforting me and making sure i was ok, and trying to lighten the mood with a small joke here and there, eventually I felt brave enough to open my eyes and see the open sky on the other side of the netting, then we swung back and i was looking down at the human female smiling comfortingly at me, then i felt the air rushing in my face as we swung back and i couldn't help but bleat in surprise, this caused both humans to “awww” simultaneously quickly followed by the human female saying “jinx” and them both laughing, this time i joined in too.
About a minute later we were off of the ride and i felt like the ground was moving under me for a few seconds after i got off, right next to the boats was a small booth with several confectionaries on the rear wall and several very old looking weapons on the counter, there was a human mother helping their child to aim one of them at the confectionaries and then a small pop was heard as a cork flew from the end of the weapon and i saw a small pink cuboid with a green being called a dragon(that looked like if someone recoloured an Arxur and made it more square) on it, labelled “CHEWITS” fall backwards off its shelf, the woman running the stall then collected the tube from the trough at the bottom and passed it to the child who ran off happily, with his mother in tow. My human decided to challenge me at this game, I foolishly accepted and quickly wasted £15 of my human's money to only glance at a very large tin of biscuits, my human on the other hand had hit all bar 1 shot and we now had several boxes of confectionery.
The next ride we went on was called “THE SUPER SKID CARS” according to the sign above the ride entrance. My visual translator had a hard time with that one due to the very odd font. My human said he used to love riding these with his mum when he was a child, and that he was somewhat surprised such an old machine was still in service, (frankly I was surprised any of these machines were still in service at all). My human told me that these were a precursor to “waltzers” and said that based on my reaction to the boats it may be for the best if i watched first, i agreed, as my human was about to get on, he saw one of his friends, she was called Summer and she was a very lovely person, once you got past her shell of self loathing depression and their exchange partner, Janak was her name, after the two of them had hugged, we collectively decided that the humans should go on and we would watch to decide if we wanted to join them the second time, so my human and Summer went on together, the ride worked by a large central wheel spinning with several carts facing inward being pulled around by it, with a break pedal that would slow the cart enough that it would rotate about its hinge to the point that it was facing the direction it was traveling, when you then let go of the break it would fling the cart around at high speed to face the other way and repeat, all the while a human song was being played quite loudly, the one playing while our humans were on was dancing in the moonlight, our humans were singing along, and quite loudly, until the ride sped up causing summer to scream slightly and then laugh with me,Janak and my human , as they were flung so hard that they bounced back and forth several times, this continued for a little while more with Summer squealing in delight at every swing, my human singing and laughing along all the while.
After summer got off we all walked back around to the food stalls, where Janak and I had the leaves of a lovely vegetable called a lettuce, according to Summer, slices of a purple vegetable with white stripes in rings through it, called a red onion, according to summer, this prompted me to ask why it was called a red onion if it was purple and white, both humans looked at me and laughed at that, before my human said “sometimes human names are very on the nose, and other times, not so much, don’t worry about it.”, all while laughing, our meal was then wrapped in a thin-ish flat disk of strayu, I asked how humans had strayu in large enough quantities to sell like this, so soon after meeting us, this caused summer and Janak to laugh and my human to look confused, Janak explained that the humans had many different types of strayu, called bread apparently, and that they developed it independently and much, much earlier on in their cultural evolution than us, he also said that it tasted, different, not necessarily bad, but definitely not the same. The humans had chosen a bratwurst hot dog each from a german food stall, run by the british catering company, whilst mine and Janak’s was from a greek stall, also run by the british catering company.
After eating we went up to the stalls to the right of the entrance, where, my human bought a new wallet, and I bought several human confectionaries, at the end, there were several very primitive cloth tents, with people walking around in clothes that were very clearly not of this century, and they all carried weapons, such as knives, swords and axes. My human got quite excited at this and went over to speak with a group wearing helmets, chainmail and animal skins with jewellery woven into it, they had a table full of axes and swords with shields around it and spears poking out of the ground nearby, one of them holding a Dane axe!, after a lengthy conversation with a few of them we walked away with a card containing contact information, so that my human could join their re-enactment group. The central area was now host to two humans on motorbikes performing stunts and various tricks, while an announcer spoke to the crowd, as we walked down the backside of the central ring and towards the boats again we saw several small and quite slow steam engines making their way in our general direction, after we passed them I saw a dog, a truly fearsome beast tied to the front of a colossal steam engine, with, what i assumed to be the engine’s owner nearby talking to a woman with another dog, after we passed them we decided to have a go at the plate smash stand, Janak, summer and myself did terribly but my human hit every shot bar one, then we kept on moving, Janak and I had decided to go on the “THE SUPER SKID CARS'' with our respective humans. IT WAS A HUGE SPECKING MISTAKE!!!! A few seconds in, I was clinging to my human’s arm crying, he was holding me, softly stroking my head and speaking soothingly to me. About a minute in, i was able to open my eyes and sit there, still clinging to my human, as he continued to hold me, i noticed that he too seemed to be on the verge of tears, although i suspected for a different reason, after a while i got used to the speed, and asked my human to start swinging us, he did and i screamed in delight, it was so much fun, we sung along to a song i don't know the name of and moved so fast, i could feel my stomachs shift and shake around inside my body, after the ride finished i was so high on adrenaline that i felt like i could do anything, the same could not be said for Jamak, he looked utterly petrified and on the verge of throwing up. We returned to the shooting area and this time we only spent £5 each and i missed every shot, but it was fun, my human only got a tube of CHEWITS this time, but we still had fun, we then made our way back to the ferris wheel, we all went on and once we reached the top we stopped and i thought that something was wrong, until i looked down, now i'm braver than most venlil but this height was insane, however i now knew why we had stopped, a man and his son were getting on, however as i leaned back it caused our seating pod to rock back and forth, this made me freeze in terror as i pictured us falling and going splat on the ground below, and then we were moving again, and then we were on the ground, but we were still moving and then we were high in the air again, after this cycle of up and down had repeated another three times we finally got off, my whole body quivering with the after effects of terror, Jamak was clinging onto Summer’s arm and refused to let go as she lugged him around.
We made our way back to the boats and we all decided to go on, all except Jamak of course, at least he had let go of summer by now, this time i kept my eyes open the whole time and several of the other humans on board were screaming in delight, it was hilarious, my human, summer and i were all laughing, and as the boat slowed down, my human let go of the netting and put his feet back down, then the operator told him to put them back up and to keep holding on, so he put his hands up to hold on again and as he went to put his feet back up, the boat sped up again leading to my human hanging vertically and as we came back down, summer an i tried to hold him in place and check to see if he was ok, but he just wouldn't stop laughing, after the ride had stopped and we had gotten off, he finally stopped, and loudly exclaimed “DID YOU SEE THAT, IT WAS FUCKING AWESOME, HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!” this prompted summer to loudly exclaim “suicidal cunt, your going to give me a heart attack one of these days!”, this caused him to chuckle again and say “you’re one to talk aren’t you? And I'm way more likely to have a heart attack than you, genetic disorders, remember?”This went on until we reached the car parking field, where we went our separate ways, i was buzzing the whole way home as we listened to even more music and chatted, once we arrived home my tiredness hit me like a stampeding mazic and i fell face first onto the sofa.
When I woke up my human had bought me a glass of apple juice and was sitting next to me with one of his dogs on his lap, the large German shepherd Labrador cross breed, named Leela. She was huffing happily as my human rubbed her stomach. It had taken quite a while to warm up to the large and loud beast, but now she was a brilliant addition to my little herd and I can't imagine living without her here.
“Thank you, for the day out, it was wonderful, and I’m sorry for the way I acted about it this morning.”
“That’s fine, I had fun, and it seems you did too, that’s all that matters, that we both had fun.”
“You're the best friend a venlil could ask for, you know that right? I love spending time with you Oscar, even if you don’t love me, just know that I love you…. sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Hey, hey” Oscar said, softly, as I started to cry. “Just because I’m aromantic, doesn’t mean I can’t feel love, just not romance, I still love you, just platonically, now come and give me a hug, you silly sheep!” He said happily.
“I'm not a sheep, you stupid ape!” I responded jokingly, feigning indignation.
“I love you oscar”
“I love you too, Talik, now let’s get some dinner, we have to go back to work tomorrow.” and with that he stood up, finished his apple juice and walked into the kitchen.

Hi all, continuing my writing improvement journey today. Any and all feedback would be appreciated on the below opening chapter.
Would you read more, does it read well, is the pacing ok, etc?
[2.5k words]
Anything is super helpful! TIA
(Apologies for any formatting issues).
—
[Chapter 1] – The beginning of the end
Olarte crumpled to his knees, wincing as the sharp edges of the cave's rocky floor cut into his flesh. There was probably an easier way of doing this, he thought. A hot humid breath pressed on his neck, stark in contrast to the coolness of the cave.
“G-Get up.”
A strong hand clamped down on Olarte's shoulder, his muscles tensing under the pressure. He shrugged, trying to shake off the grip.
"I've already told you," Olarte said, flinching as the man shoved him. "I'm not going to do anything. I'll help you find it, Son of Maheraf." The stalactites above dripped water, creating a soothing rhythm like a heartbeat. An aroma of damp earth hung in the air. Tunnels led off in every direction, making it seem as if the cave stretched on for miles. The ground uneven, with jagged rocks and stones jutting out.
Despite its intimidating appearance, the cave brought a strange comfort to Olarte. It felt like sinking into a cushion in front of a roaring hearth, a warm bowl of stew on a cold winter's evening, or a comforting embrace from a loving mother.
“Are you alright?” a voice spoke out of the darkness. The words were soft, brushing along the cave walls with care and thought. Olarte smiled and turned his head to see a number of purple crystals glowing, almost pulsating along the floor. “I'll be fine. Although I'm afraid our time has come, my dear.”
“Who are you speaking to?” The Son of Maheraf spat, his words hit the cave walls like a handful of rocks. “What language are you speaking?”
Olarte hadn't spoken in his native tongue for so long that he hadn’t realised he was speaking it. "I'm saying a prayer to the cave to protect us from harm.” he replied. "To keep us safe. You do want to be protected, don't you?" He’ll fall for anything superstitious, they all do.
The captor glared at him. "O-of course.” The man rolled up his sleeves. Clearly trying to present a tough aura. One hand hovering over his swords handle. “Go on then, get on with it."
Olarte pushed himself up, his knees aching as he brushed a thick layer of dust and blood from his trousers. He stepped forward carefully avoiding the glowing crystals lining the floor, their eerie light turning the shadows a deep purple. He bent down, reached out and ran his fingers over one of the crystals, finding comfort in its cool, smooth surface. “We must open The Crystal, my dear,” he said softly.
“Are you stalling?” the captor said, returning a grip on Olarte's shoulder. “No, no, of course not,” Olarte replied quickly, turning to face the captor. “All part of the blessing.”
The captor snorted. “Don’t take me for a fool, Olarte, I-I’m warning you.”
“Charming one this friend of yours, Olarte.” The voice from the shadows hushed tone echoed softly. “Is it really time to open it?”
Olarte glanced at the captor.
“Don't worry, he can't hear me.” The voice let out a sigh that seemed to caress the cave walls. “I’d have a few things to say to your friend if he could.”
Olarte's face straightened. “It is time. It must be done. The Fifth Moon is in the night sky. As we planned, my dear, we must act before The Sixth Moon.”
“And this man, is he the right one to share the truth with?”
“Yes, my dear. He's the Son of Maheraf, leader of Remmus. Maheraf will listen to his son, and the people of Remmus will listen to Maheraf.”
“How did you get him to come here?”
“Well, my dear. A rumour may have spread around town that a certain smuggler has hidden some treasure in these tunnels.” Olarte grinned. “You know how these high-ranking officials love their wealth.”
“Yes, I could see you as a smuggler, Olarte.” The voice’s chuckle softened the walls. “Very well, I trust you. I shall light the way.” The dripping from stalactite stopped, a blanket of silence draped over the cave. “This is what we've worked for. This is how we'll be remembered, Olarte. This is the beginning of the end.”
“Move.” The captor gave Olarte another shove. “I think we’re done with the offerings.” The silence lifted, the dripping returned, and the crystals drew a path towards one of the tunnels at the far end of the cavern.
Olarte led the way through the twisting, narrowing tunnel, his eyes fixed on the glowing purple crystals illuminating the path. "The tunnels here are treacherous. Follow me closely so you don't lose your way."
His captor scoffed. "A-Are you sure you've remembered the way correctly?" The man looked at the three tunnel entrances ahead. "It could be down any of these tunnels." "It's down this one. I can see The Light," Olarte smiled.
"What light?" The man looked around. "All I see is my lantern."
"No, no. Son of Maheraf. I see The Light." "Wait. You're a Light Seeker? Like those creatures from the tales?" He chuckled. “Sure, and I’m off to dinner with Lady Lucinda this evening, with her solid gold boots.”
Olarte smiled, not because he knew the truth but because he remembered hearing the tale of Lady Lucinda from his brother when he was younger. Simpler times... what I’d give to hear his storytelling once more. "All tales have to start somewhere. All start with some truth." Olarte pulled his coat around him more tightly moving deeper into the tunnels, the walls closing in around the two men. The sound of dripping water was now a distant echo. "It won't be much longer. The treasure you seek is close at hand."
“It had better be worth it.”
Olarte raised his hands, the line of crystals rose from the floor hovering gracefully at eye-level. “Oh, I think you’ll find it’s worth it.”
The Son of Maheraf flinched at the words "Mercy of Remmus," his hand instinctively reaching for the hilt of his sword. If the moon had been visible from inside the cave, his face would have matched its pallor.
"Oh, don't fear Son of Maheraf. Not all Light Seekers are like the tales." "So. Th-This treasure, it's not gold and jewels, is it?"
"No, I'm afraid not."
Olarte descended further into the tunnels, the air grew colder, the scent of damp earth thickened. Olarte led the way through the twisting and narrowing walls. During each tight squeeze, the tunnel echoed with the sounds of grunts and the clatter of loose stones. Eventually, the crystal pathway faded to a small hole at the end of the tunnel.
"You're not s-serious, are you?" The man stuttered, looking at the hole in disbelief.
"After you." Olarte gestured towards the small hole. It was the perfect size for a man to fit through. Just one man. Not a well-fed man.
The captor rolled his eyes and cursed. "Tell me first. The t-treasure. What is it?"
"It's a book." Olarte bent down and picked up a small rock. He wrapped his fingers around the subtle indentations. "A book wealthy in knowledge." He snapped the rock in half. "A book that tells of the past, the present, and the future." He broke it into quarters. "A book that will decide the fate of Remmus." Olarte let the four pieces of rock fall to the ground.
"Th-That all sounds rather...rather important." The man rubbed his sweaty palms on his shirt. "I-I think I'll leave this treasure to you, my friend." He took a few steps back before breaking out into a run.
"Oh, I'm afraid it's not a choice, Son of Maheraf." Olarte raised both hands. As he did, a purple wall of crystal blocked off the Son of Maheraf's escape. "You must read the book. You are The One Reader. You are the one destined for its truths."
The captor pulled out his sword and swiped it at the crystal wall. The steel blade broke in half, falling to the floor. A metallic ringing bounced around the tunnel, causing some of the ceiling to break away. Olarte shielded his head. I'd be surprised if he didn't try that. I'd have done the same. The man fell to his knees and stared at Olarte.
"W-What is this magic?" He held the two parts of his sword it each hand observing the terrific neatness of the split.
"All your answers are inside this Book." Olarte gestured towards the man-sized hole once more. "Now, please, after you."
The Son of Maheraf stumbled towards the hole, mouth gaping. His eyes darting between the crystal wall, the broken blade, and Olarte. Lying flat on his belly, he pulled himself through, grunting as the sharp rocks tore at his clothes.
Olarte followed. Through the other side he emerged from the narrow passage, entering a vast chamber. At its center stood a colossal crystal pulsating with a lavender purple hue, casting a surreal glow illuminating every corner of the room. It rose from the ground, towering over them like the summit of an iceberg or the peak of a mountain, its size rivaling that of a ship tilted on its stern.
The air filled with a sweet fragrance, reminiscent of honey and tulips on the first warm day of spring. Delicate chimes echoed throughout the chamber, dust in the air dancing and shimmering in the crystal's enchanting light, casting a beautiful rainbow sparkle. The walls were encrusted with thousands of white crystals, each one glittering and twinkling in perfect harmony with the gentle chimes.
A ring of water encircled the chamber, emanating a soft, lapping sound resonating off the crystalline walls. It was as if the crystal at the center of the room had summoned the water, as if it were a natural extension of its ethereal presence. The water glimmered with a deep, cerulean blue, reflecting the vibrant purple of the central crystal and casting a surreal radiance across the entire room.
Olarte stood next to the Son of Maheraf at the water’s edge, their reflections distorted by the ripples. The water dancing and shimmering in time with the chimes, each one creating a mesmerising pattern of light and sound. The chiming was muted by the soft lapping of the water, creating a soothing melody that played through the chamber. Olarte gestured towards the water. “Step onto the water, Son of Maheraf.”
“I-I'm not sure about this.” He took a step back, his eyes darting around, hands fidgeting with the bottom of his shirt.
Olarte raised an eyebrow. "What's the matter? Not scared, are we?" he asked, tapping his foot. He glanced at the crystal and then back to the water, a scowl forming on his face as he waited for the Son of Maheraf to make a decision.
The Son of Maheraf bit his lip. "I-I... uh,"
Olarte rolled his eyes. "Just step onto the water," he gestured once more. "It's not going to hurt you.”
The Son of Maheraf took a deep breath, paused and walked onto the water. A glass-like bridge formed beneath his feet. Olarte followed, he could feel the surface rippling, humming out to the center of the room.
Olarte placed his hand on the Son of Maheraf’s shoulder. "Yes, it is quite remarkable, isn’t it?" He then nudged him forward.
The Son of Maheraf, didn’t take his eyes of the surface below. “What in the name of Remmus is this?”
"The bridge is made of a special material that responds to the presence of those who are worthy to enter this chamber. It's as if it can sense your intentions and your character. Light Magic, a wonderous thing that no one truly understands."
"But how does it do that?" he asked.
Olarte shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure. It's one of the mysteries of this place. But I do know that it is a manifestation of the crystal's power. It can create and manipulate matter in ways that we can't fully understand."
“What do you mean create and manipulate?”
“Well, just as the bridge responds to your presence, Light Magic can also create other objects when it senses you need them.”
"R-Really? Like what?"
"Like the lectern and chair, for example." Olarte pointed towards an alcove appearing at the base of the crystal. "They are here for you to use as you read the book. The Light knows what you need and will provide it for you, no matter the situation."
“No matter the situation?”
“Well, as long as you know how to call it.”
“So, what you did back there, blocking off the tunnel, that was you calling The Light.”
“Calling, channeling, speaking. It’s known as many things. But yes.”
“H-How does one ‘call The Light’ then?”
"The Book, Son of Maheraf," Olarte gestured towards the alcove, where an ornate lectern awaited, adorned in intricate patterns of lines and symbols. Atop it rested a closed tome, beckoning with an air of mystique. Beside it, a chair of the same crystalline glass-like material, bearing the similar exquisite engravings sat awaiting its reader.
Olarte watched as the Son of Maheraf approached the lectern, who’s eyes were glued to the closed book sitting atop it. The intricate patterns on the lectern shimmering and shifting, as if alive, in the glow of the purple light from the towering crystal. The chiming grew louder, and the colors of the rainbow sparkles in the air intensified. The hum of the crystal seemed to grow stronger, pulsing through the room like the adrenaline of a beast preparing for the fight of its life.
The Son of Maheraf seemed to hesitate for a moment. He then reached out to take the book, his hand trembling. He perched on the armchair beside the lectern, the glass-like material creaking slightly beneath his weight. With a deep breath, he opened the book, and immediately, all the light in room intensified into a bright white glow.
[Chapter 2] — THE BOOK OF NIWRAD Welcome to the Book of Niwrad. You are reading this because there is a chance. One chance. That we can stop it all from happening. The past, the present and the future. And through this book, I will show you everything you need to know about how our world split into five.

According to the Gender Dysphoria Bible, biochemical dysphoria is caused by the brain being wired for one kind of gonadal hormones (such as testosterone) and the body producing the other hormones (such as estradiol). Cross-hormone therapy supposedly always results in dysphoria and PCOS causes low mental health in cis women. Secret Gamer Girl says that if a confused cis person was to attempt medical transition they would feel absolutely awful and probably stop immediately.
Sophie writes:

Before transitioning, I was completely numb. I didn't feel happiness or joy, nor sadness or sorrow. I felt dead on the inside, like I was acting out a script someone else had written for me. After deciding to transition, it was as if all my life the whole world had been a sepia movie, and all of a sudden it got colors. I started feeling lots of things for the first time

Trans Girl Next Door writes:

I expected the kind of happiness I get when I go to the beach with my friends, or when I land an awesome job. Don't get me wrong, there were many moments like that during my first year, but I learned that most of the time it's more of a bliss. It's not showy, pumping, or loud like a cliche pride anthem; it's more like a soft subtle sound track that feathers your heart. This is something I had realized early on in my transition, it is absolutely the strangest but most wonderful thing ever. It's almost as if my life in the past 23 years was just in black and white. Now it's absorbing and radiating colors at the same time. Life isn't just "happy" or "sad" anymore, there are so many other emtions inbetweem, and I finally gained access to them. But most importantly, for the first time in forever, I finally feel alive now

I have heard many stories about trans people feeling really, really good on the first day of taking their hormones and that this feeling is a sign that you're doing the right thing. DR Z PHD even made a warning that some people start taking hormones, start feeling a lot better, and then stop taking the hormones because they think they are not trans anymore, only to then feel even worse than before.
I even read somewhere that some trans women found out they are trans simply because they received estrogen for a completely unrelated reason!
Because of all this, I expected to feel something when I get my first hormones. I even thought that the feeling I get would explain to me whether I'm actually transgender or not. It even went so far that I was ready to detransition if the hormones would make me feel bad, assuming that this would prove that I am not trans after all but only a person wanting to be a different gender and that those hormones would only make everything worse.
So then I took my first hormones and I felt...nothing.
I have been on hormones for over 2 years now. And apart from the estrogen having made me more emotional, the hormones haven't changed my emotions in any way whatsoever. They have changed my body a lot though. I now pass as my target gender effortlessly and I even get complimented on my look sometimes. I always knew I wanted my body to be different and the bodily changes caused by the hormones do make me happy. But is that really all there is?
My therapist told me it is. I showed him some of the examples above and he said that the reason PCOS causes low mental health in cis women is because it masculinizes their bodies, thereby making the cis women uncomfortable in their own bodies.
But then what about the supposed feeling of bliss on the first day of taking hormones? One day isn't nearly enough to cause even the slightest bodily changes. Does this mean that this is all just placebo? But even if it was, how would what DR Z PHD warned about even be possible??????????

I had never visited the small town of Shirljohannes before, somewhere on the border of Germany and Switzerland, despite my fairly extensive travels for work around Europe. These continental small towns, they are so charming and picturesque, the literal scenes of The Sound of Music and shite like that. However they do end up being a bit “samey”- and I wasn’t expecting my overnight stay at Shirljohannes to be much different. It was an unplanned stop, I had found myself somewhat tired and drowsy after an exceptionally good meal, and decided to check in a local inn and get some much-needed sleep.
The pretty inn with blooming spring flowers at the window sills and such like certainly didn’t belie the horror of the next day. It was only the obvious confusion of the otherwise polite young clerk upon laying eyes on me that gave me the inkling that I had made a terrible choice to break my journey in Shirljohannes.
I couldn’t help noticing the large bright posters hanging in the lobby. Depicting small crowds of people clearly of non-European descent, such as Arabs, Middle-Eastern, Far East, and South / South Eastern Asians, they all bore the words “Lotteri Dag 2023”. Some kind of artsy “United Colours of Benetton” ad, I naively assumed.
The clerk, himself clearly of Middle-Eastern origin, greeted me with a startled look which he could not hide. He asked for my name and then exclaimed “Mr. Abbas? You are Mr. Abbas? And you’re staying here?”
I was irritated. “Yes indeed, I am staying for one night. This seemed a good a place as any for a stop, I was too tired to drive on”.
“Can I see your ID please? Do you have European ID sir?” To my ears, he sounded very suspicious.
I am of course used to a certain amount of low-level, poorly-concealed racism traveling in Europe, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed that this clerk, whose parents if not himself would probably have shared a similar heritage to mine, would act like this. I offered my passport. “No, but I have the correct visas” I responded sharply.
The clerk said nothing more, and checked me in. My mood soured, I went to my room, and soon fell asleep.
The next morning, two officers approached me at the breakfast table, where I was enjoying some amazing pastries, already checked out and my suitcase at my side.
“We entered you in the Lottery sir” they said in heavy accents. “We ran background checks on you- you are waiting for your Canadian citizenship and thus eligible to enter. Canada entered an official agreement with our government just last week. You can look up the articles.”
I stared at them, completely confused. “What are you talking about?
They returned my stare with bland official courtesy. “The Lottery sir. You will be entering the Passport Lottery held periodically at Shirljohannes, to celebrate the citizenship of our hardworking foreign worker population. You were found to meet the official requirements for entry. We entered your name. You will present yourself at the town square in precisely 43 minutes, when the name will be drawn.”
The other continued “And sir, please do not even think of leaving Shirljohannes or calling anyone outside the town. It will be much better for you to complete the Lottery. The odds are, you will be on your way within the hour.”
They left.
With a shaking hand, I pulled out my phone and began googling. Within seconds, I realised I do not have access to the world wide internet, but only some weird local Shirljohannes intranet. I hastily clicked on the bizarre English translation.
The Lottery was the (almost) last step on the long, convoluted journey for Foreigners in Shirljohannes applying to become Citizens. After years of filling and sending in forms, paying fees, waiting, waiting, interviews, more forms, changes to family composition, more waiting, Foreigners who were eligible for citizenship and the cherished passport of a European country would have to enter the Lottery.
The Foreign community would choose one person, who would be sent by ambulance to the local hospital, where they would be administered a painless, lethal dose by professionals. The final step, necessary to prove their loyalty and dedication to their new country.
I clicked through the convoluted intranet text, sun streaming on the beautiful breakfast setting. A cuckoo jumped out of an ornate old cuckoo clock and declared time. The young clerk from last night came up to me as I was reading.
“Mr. Abbas, it is time to go. The community- it’s better to go- they don’t like it if there are delays.”
I looked up at him, terror gripping me. “I don’t understand… how is this happening, how is this legal?”
The clerk shrugged. “It is legal. The municipal councils voted it in a few years ago- and the elders of the community support it. There were so many hate crimes, so much violence against foreigners. It is better now. I heard North America will be adopting similar laws soon. Of course it is very silent now- but if you looked, you would have found the information- and of course, the dependents of the sacrifice will be supported- very humane- but come, let’s go. We cannot keep them waiting.”
Propelled by fear, I got up, and followed him outside. The sun poured through the clear Alpine air into my eyes. In the glare, I could see knots of people, in twos and threes walking down the scenic mountain streets, all towards the city square. The clerk and I joined the flow.
Walking by us was a small group of women, dressed in ornate decorative ethnic clothing I would associate with India. The sunlight struck off the brilliant spangles in their clothes. I then noticed many people were dressed ethnically, while others wore plain western style clothing. Several women wore the hijab. There was little subdued chatter. I heard a woman in a sparkling robe say in a dialect I recalled from my childhood, “I prayed and prayed all night it would be me- I can’t bear my children- “ before the other women said “shhh Tasneem, do not talk of it. Do not go welcoming sorrow.”
As we drew closer to the town square, the crowds grew larger, and quieter. There was a moment of pure silence. Then everything began happening very fast.
A middle-aged man who looked to be some authority figure went up on a platform before a small splashy fountain which held the statue of naked white Venus and some other Greek deity. I just noticed the device set up on the platform.
The man operated the device. My heart was beating so fast as it spit out a paper that I thought it would burst out of my chest. The man held up the paper and he read out a name. “Tasneem-”
I didn’t catch the last part of the name in the rippling sigh which broke through the crowd. I saw the women fall away from the one whom I had earlier heard talking about praying. In the same movement, paramedics moved up to her, and started guiding her towards a waiting ambulance, at the edge of the town square.
The silence continued, although small murmurs could be heard. Tasneem did not struggle - her demeanour seemed one of submission .
The knots of people broke away from the crowd. A certain festive mood was undeniable. My young companion was no longer at my side, and I caught sight of him running over to young folk closer to his age, releasing a whoop of joy and relief.
I looked around. The two officers approached me and smiled grimly. “Very well Mr. Abbas, the Lottery is over. Congratulations on your upcoming citizenship. You may depart now without any further delays.”
I nodded. It was clear they expected me to leave right then. I could not disobey. I quickly walked to my car, and got in.
Within twenty minutes, I was well on my way to my destination, Shirljohannes behind me. May I never set foot in that terrible town again.

ive been scouring the sub for a good couple days by now and have gotten a few good titles that i've grown to love out of it, but i wanted to also try getting recs directly myself!! (i'm new to the sub too atm, so bear with me lol)
as the title implies, i'm here for the funnies and the sillies and the doki dokis aka i love interactions where the main couple actually feels like they get along and are willing to tease/poke fun at each other beyond the usual "oh the ml is so handsome and amazing how can i ever compare" and "how do i win the fls affections when will she ever like me back" lovey dovey stuff yknow (i mean i do have series that have that and that i've enjoyed but i digress)
no smut please! i'm a-ok with slowburn but fast burn is juicer! anything else is fair game lol. i'm also fine with some spoilers in the recs given such as who the love interests are
examples of what i'm looking for include:

• The Reason Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion (bro Raeliana and Noah are fucking hilarious, they each have ample opportunities to tease one another and i never feels as though one of them keeps the upper hand; that said i may be biased since it was my first manhwa lol. personal fave!)
• I'm the Villainess So I'm Taming the Final Boss (Aileen is so entertaining to read and i enjoy how she takes the lead in most things, but the times where Claude manages to tease her back and catch her off-guard is just as fun to read about; that said i've only read the manga bc i hear the full novel story sure is Something)
• For Better or For Worse (BIG BIG ONE!!!! Dillion and Cedric are such a riot i love love love it!! also the fact that they actually communicate 99% of the time about their problems is a huge bonus)
• I'll Politely Decline the Male Leads / I'm no Heroine! (honestly the main four have such a good dynamic that i'd even be perfectly fine with no romance at all!!!! but for the sake of recs Aerinda and Luke have such a fun and playful dynamic that, again, i'd be perfectly fine with them staying best friends if there was no romance :D)
• Villainess Level 99 (o7 to Patrick my man's got his hands full dealing with Eumellia and her antics LMAO but fr they have such a feel good and funny dynamic that even without the romance they're just good friends for each other yknow)
• Isn't Being a Wicked Woman Much Better? / The Perks of Being a Villainess (Isidor's both the clown and the entire circus, i'm sorry but like the majority of the time i read about him he's just really funny LMAO and there's Deborah who just thinks he's sus until they get to know each other. but once that happens they're really fun and cool together!!! they take the time to become friends even if Isidor falls both fast and hard which i will not complain about. another personal fave!)
• I Raised an Obsessive Servant / My Ray of Hope (YURINA AND RAY WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA i'm a sucker for childhood friends trope ueee,,,,, and their friendship at the beginning!!!! they're so close to each other and they're so comfortable around each other it makes me so soft!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they just wanna protect each other and stay around each other!!)
• The Duke's Bored Daughter is my Master (Caesar is a RIOT holy shit this mess of a man in love,,,, again, bonus points for childhood friends trope but also for Helena being unafraid to clap! back! when she wants to, seriously she's so fucking cool and their interactions are always a treat to read. plus the both of them feel like real, awkward people falling in love! or well, having a crush in Helena's case, poor Caesar's just a mess like i said, poor him)
• I Stole the Number One Ranker's Soul (not OI) (i'm usually not into the modern day system stories but this one really caught my attention. Mo-ah's such a fun and amazing fl and Ji-han's such a fun goof despite how brooding he acts and looks on first impression. and the two of them are just so feel good together!!! they have all the fun and comfy vibes that i want. shaping up to be another personal fave since i discovered this very recently)

honorable mentions:

• Snow White with the Red Hair
• Can a Marquis and Grand Duke be Friends?
• A Transmigrator's Privilege
• I'm Your Guardian Angel! (not OI)
• I'll be the Warrior's Mother
• The Daughter of the Albert House Wishes for Ruin
• Trophy Husband
• Caught by the Villain

thank you in advance to anyone who wants to share recs!!!!!

Link in French – Guerre en Ukraine : ce que l’on sait de l’installation d’armes nucléaires russes en Biélorussie
​
Is the long-heralded nuclear rearmament of Belarus, Russia's main ally, underway? That's what Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed on Thursday, in a video posted on Telegram. According to him, Russia has begun supplying nuclear warheads to its neighbor. Vladimir Putin had already hinted at this in March. Here's what we know.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting of the Eurasian Supreme Economic Council at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 25, 2023
Transfer of nuclear weapons underway
"The transfer of nuclear warheads has begun", declared Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday. The Belarusian president was responding to a question from a Russian journalist. The video of the interview was broadcast by the Belarusian presidency's unofficial Telegram channel, Pul Pervogo. According to Alexander Lukashenko, Vladimir Putin had told him the day before that he had signed the decree allowing the transfer. The President didn't seem to know whether the weapons were already in the country. "Maybe, I'll go back and see," added the Belarusian leader. The Kremlin has made no comment for the time being.
READ ALSO – The "sea serpent" of a merger between Russia and Belarus
A first since the fall of the USSR
Since 1991 and the collapse of the USSR, Russia has never installed nuclear weapons outside its borders. Moscow had been agitating the threat of such a deployment for several months. On March 25, the Russian president made the announcement during the traditional "Moscow, Kremlin, Putin" television interview. Vladimir Putin spoke of the construction of a nuclear weapons storage facility in Belarus by July. According to him, these weapons will be "tactical", i.e. they will contain less powerful warheads than so-called "strategic" nuclear weapons. As the country is located on the doorstep of the European Union, this announcement worried the West about a possible escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. Since the start of the war on February 24, 2022, Vladimir Putin has been talking about the possibility of using nuclear weapons.
Belarus, Russia's main ally
Minsk is not directly involved on the ground in Ukraine. However, Belarus has allowed the Russian army to launch its assault in February 2022 from its territory. In early April, Russia claimed to have begun training the Belarusian military in the use of "tactical" nuclear weapons. According to Vladimir Putin, ten aircraft have already been equipped to use such weapons. At the time, the President said that a special warehouse would be completed by July 1. "This not only endangers the lives of Belarusians, but also creates a new threat for Ukraine, for all of Europe," wrote Belarusian opponent Svetlana Tikhanovskaya on Twitter. "When it comes to tactical nuclear weapons, most are as powerful as the one that killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima," she added.
READ ALSO – War in Ukraine: Kiev believes Belarus is Moscow's "nuclear hostage
A means of putting pressure on Ukraine
For several weeks now, Ukraine has been announcing a large-scale counter-offensive. And recently, an intrusion into the Belgorod region of southern Russia forced Moscow to evacuate civilians as a matter of urgency. The installation of nuclear weapons in Belarus may serve as a means for Vladimir Putin to negotiate with Kiev. "Tiphaine de Champchesnel, a specialist in nuclear arms control at the Institut de Recherche Stratégique de l'École Militaire, was interviewed by Le Monde. The newspaper added: "Russia can also hope that this pressure will be reinforced by the interventions of other states, who would ask Ukraine not to go any further to avoid nuclear escalation."
A procedure denounced by the West
"A step towards an extremely dangerous escalation". With these words, the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, condemned the transfer of nuclear weapons from Russia to neighboring Belarus. The move was received "extremely negatively" by US President Joe Biden, according to the White House.