#Alan H Wilson

[lilyofval81]

Family ❤️

#my photos #memories #Josephine Burgit #James E Burgit #Patricia Burgit #Alan H Wilson #Jolene M Wilson

[science70]

Alan H. Rider, Wilson Hall (formerly the Central Laboratory Building), Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), Batavia, Illinois, 1971-74.

#architecture #brutalism #science #particle physics #Alan H. Rider #Wilson Hall #Central Laboratory Building #Fermilab #Batavia #Illinois #USA #1970s

[tomorrowusa]

Donald Trump has a gag order placed on him by the judge in his Stormy Daniels hush money trial. So to get around the gag order various Trump lickspittles make pilgrimages to the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse to say stuff to the media which Trump himself is not allowed to say. Past Trump mouthpieces have included pseudo-hillbilly fascist Sen. J.D. Vance and House Speaker "MAGA Mike" Johnson.

Monday's Trump mouthpieces were a quintet of MAGA C-listers: Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA-09), ex-NYC police commissioner Bernie Kerik, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, Trump campaign aide Jason Miller (not related to Stephen Miller), and Kash Patel - a onetime deputy director of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

While Trump has been beseeching his followers to show up outside the courthouse to demonstrate support for their Dear Leader, on Monday it was pro-democracy Trump opponents who were there in greater numbers.

A cadre of MAGA loyalists who had gathered to show their support for Donald Trump during his hush-money trial was shouted down by a bevy of cowbell-clanging anti-Trump protesters on Monday when they tried to speak outside of a lower Manhattan courthouse. [ ... ] The group that flanked the twice-impeached ex-president this time around included South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, former New York police commissioner Bernie Kerik, ex-Trump administration official Kash Patel, Trump senior advisor Jason Miller, and Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA). All but Patel, meanwhile, were customarily decked out in Trump’s standard red tie and navy suit combo.

Yep, four of the five designated Trump lickspittles were dressed in Trump uniforms. Did he dress them himself over at Trump Tower?

Alan Wilson got an earful when he tried to spew the Trump line.

With boos raining down on Wilson, one demonstrator could be heard shouting “go home you carpetbagging fools.” Another protester who camped out behind the pro-Trump speakers with a large “Bootlickers” sign relentlessly blew a whistle while ringing a cowbell. According to independent reporter Jacqueline Sweet, the man was given a citation by law enforcement for “too much cowbell.” Patel, who is expected to take a senior White House role if Trump returns to power, portrayed the ex-president as a victim of an “unconstitutional weaponization of justice.” It was difficult to hear what he had to say as the crowd chanted: “Kash Patel, Go To Hell!” Kerik was also subjected to targeted insults when he spoke, with protesters calling him a “bald-headed bigot” throughout his comments. According to New York Magazine correspondent Oliva Nuzzi, the Trump-hating crowd also took aim at the speakers for dressing just like the former president, prompting them to call the MAGA group “red tie terrorists.” She added that the demonstrators even got a laugh from Miller, who chuckled when one protester wondered if they had bought their suits at “Dictators R Us.”

To use a favorite Trump word, Monday's Trump mouthpieces were real losers.

Rep. Andrew Clyde's rise to fame in Georgia was as a prominent gun store owner. One wonders how many of his guns make it up to NYC to be used illegally.

Bernie Kerik is a convicted felon for tax fraud who was later pardoned by Trump. He served several years behind bars for his crimes.

Alan Wilson has made false election fraud claims even before the Trump presidency and is a serial litigator for far right causes.

Kash Patel once served as an aide to Devin Nunes – the former House member who unsuccessfully sued a cartoon cow.

Jason Miller admitted to hiring prostitutes and having extramarital affairs with two campaign staffers. Republican family values – just like Trump.

Meidas Touch has a video report on Monday's scene outside the courthouse. (never mind the plant commercial in the middle).

If you're anywhere near NYC, visit the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse area on a day that the hush money trial is in session. There's a lunch break starting roughly at 11:30 AM and court is recessed for the day in the afternoon before the building closes at 5:00 PM. Bring your own cow bell and sign.

Court is in session this week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Next Monday court is closed for Memorial Day but should be in session on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. The case may go to the jury sometime late next week.

The Manhattan courthouse is at 100 Centre Street; take the 4, 5, or 6 subway trains to the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station and walk about four blocks north. The crowds and the Trump bootlickers seem to be directly across the street from the courthouse at Collect Pond Park.

EDIT: If Trump toadies had a bad day outside the courtroom, the one and only defense witness for Trump seems to have had an even worse one in court.

#donald trump #trump hush money trial #trump's legal problems #lock him up! #hecklers #andrew clyde #ga-09 #jason miller #kash patel #bernie kerik #alan wilson #bootlickers #trump lickspittles #manhattan criminal courthouse #juan merchan #robert costello #election 2024 #vote blue no matter who

[georgefairbrother]

Porn Yesterday was a 1974 episode of Steptoe and Son, from the final series. Harold (Harry H Corbett) picks up an antique ‘What the Butler Saw’ machine on his rounds and brings it home to Oil Drum Lane. He is delightedly running the images of vintage pornography through the viewfinder, until he recognises his father featuring in a scene that also involved a woman and bath full of milk. Suddenly it’s not quite as much fun, and Harold is worried that any scandal might affect his already faltering chances of getting into the golf club.

"What my poor mother must have gone through. She didn’t know about this, did she?"

“Course she did, that was her sister in the bath.”

“Auntie Rose???”

“They were desperate times. Everything we had was in pawn.”

“So were you!”

Although being played largely for broad comedy with some great one-liners, the writers, Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, could still bring out some intense dramatic performances with rapid changes in mood, a technique later used to great effect by John Sullivan in Only Fools and Horses.

Addressing Harold’s disgust, Albert Steptoe (Wilfrid Brambell) recalls the economic conditions of the time, the poverty and starvation, and how desperate young people were being exploited and misled with the offer of a fiver for being in what they believed would be legitimate films to be shown at the Gaumont. At times, the studio audience seems at a loss as to how to react. When Albert is reduced to tears, there is a brief laugh. The audience also laughs when Albert relates that poor Auntie Rose had died of pneumonia two weeks after being immersed in the milk bath.

There’s a happy ending; a deal is done with the local Vicar to make the machine available for the church jumble sale and split the profits. Albert becomes a celebrity in the parish, signing autographs for which the Vicar cheerfully charges two shillings each for church funds.

Steptoe and Son came about as a result of Galton and Simpson being offered a series of  ten 30 minute slots for the BBC’s anthology, Comedy Playhouse, with total creative freedom. One episode, The Offer (1962), featured father and son rag and bone men, and was innovative in that actors, rather than variety comics, were cast in the principal roles. Harry H Corbett, at that point seen as a serious dramatic actor with enormous promise, surprised and delighted Galton and Simpson with his interpretation of his role, especially crying real, hopeless tears at the end.

Steptoe and Son ran from 1962-65 and then again 1970-74; a total of 57 episodes. During the early run of the series, Harry H Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell were such big stars they co-headlined the 1963 Royal Variety Performance with the Beatles.

One of the interesting things to note about the series is the intensity of the acting through long, dialogue-heavy scenes, and with very few detectable mistakes. Retakes were frowned upon in those days due to the expense, and so as not to ruin spontaneity with the studio audience. It’s interesting to compare with Dad’s Army, for example, which retains obvious dialogue stumbles, continuity mistakes and goofs right the way through.

It’s also interesting to imagine Steptoe and Son without the audience laughter. (We get some idea from the feature films). Albert takes vindictive delight in derailing any attempts by Harold to live a life of his own, while Albert is, at times, cowering in fear in the face of Harold’s potentially violent temper. The comedic aspects aside, it would actually make a dark, confronting and occasionally frightening kitchen sink family drama.

It was reported that, at the 1964 general election, Labour Leader Harold Wilson attempted to have the Thursday evening screening of Steptoe rescheduled, concerned that potential Labour voters would be staying home to watch it, rather than coming out to vote. The BBC did not change their programming, and Labour won with a four seat majority.

#steptoe and son #social history #bbc comedy #galton and simpson #working class history #british culture #wilfrid brambell #harry h corbett #harold wilson #uk politics

[gnpwdrnwhiskey]

Concert ABC's

Thanks for the tag @stillbeatingheart! I'm gonna have to think so hard! 😂

A- Alan Jackson, Aaron Tippin

B- Backstreet Boys (multiple times), Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Big & Rich, Brooks & Dunn (retirement tour, I was sad)

C- Chris Young

D- Dwight Yoakam, Darius Rucker, Dierks Bentley

E- Eric Church (multiple times), Ed Sheeran (multiple times)

G- George Strait (multiple times), Garth Brooks, Gretchen Wilson

H-

I-

J- Jimmy Buffett, Jason Aldean (look it was a million years ago and it was a free show at the fair. I would not be caught dead now.), Jake Owen

K- Kid Rock, Kenny Chesney

L- Little Texas, Lee Brice, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan (ugh)

M- Miranda Lambert, Matchbox 20

N- New Kids on the Block (first concert lol)

O-

P- Pam Tillis, Primer 55

Q-

R- Rascal Flatts, Reba McEntire

S- Sunny Ledfurd (so many times I've lost count), Sugar Ray, SoulFly

T- Trace Adkins, Toby Keith, Taylor Swift (multiple times) , Trisha Yearwood

U-

V- Vince Gill, Vance Joy

W-

X-

Y-

Z-

Uhhhh....I really feel like this list presents a very inaccurate picture of my tastes and/or possible political leanings. And also how long it's been since I've gone to very many concerts lol!

#tag game #concerts

[nem0c]

Vietnam War - Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine, June 1968

Sourced from: http://natsmusic.net/articles_galaxy_magazine_viet_nam_war.htm

Transcript Below

We the undersigned believe the United States must remain in Vietnam to fulfill its responsibilities to the people of that country.

Karen K. Anderson, Poul Anderson, Harry Bates, Lloyd Biggle Jr., J. F. Bone, Leigh Brackett, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mario Brand, R. Bretnor, Frederic Brown, Doris Pitkin Buck, William R. Burkett Jr., Elinor Busby, F. M. Busby, John W. Campbell, Louis Charbonneau, Hal Clement, Compton Crook, Hank Davis, L. Sprague de Camp, Charles V. de Vet, William B. Ellern, Richard H. Eney, T. R. Fehrenbach, R. C. FitzPatrick, Daniel F. Galouye, Raymond Z. Gallun, Robert M. Green Jr., Frances T. Hall, Edmond Hamilton, Robert A. Heinlein, Joe L. Hensley, Paul G. Herkart, Dean C. Ing, Jay Kay Klein, David A. Kyle, R. A. Lafferty, Robert J. Leman, C. C. MacApp, Robert Mason, D. M. Melton, Norman Metcalf, P. Schuyler Miller, Sam Moskowitz, John Myers Myers, Larry Niven, Alan Nourse, Stuart Palmer, Gerald W. Page, Rachel Cosgrove Payes, Lawrence A. Perkins, Jerry E. Pournelle, Joe Poyer, E. Hoffmann Price, George W. Price, Alva Rogers, Fred Saberhagen, George O. Smith, W. E. Sprague, G. Harry Stine (Lee Correy), Dwight V. Swain, Thomas Burnett Swann, Albert Teichner, Theodore L. Thomas, Rena M. Vale, Jack Vance, Harl Vincent, Don Walsh Jr., Robert Moore Williams, Jack Williamson, Rosco E. Wright, Karl Würf.

We oppose the participation of the United States in the war in Vietnam.

Forrest J. Ackerman, Isaac Asimov, Peter S. Beagle, Jerome Bixby, James Blish, Anthony Boucher, Lyle G. Boyd, Ray Bradbury, Jonathan Brand, Stuart J. Byrne, Terry Carr, Carroll J. Clem, Ed M. Clinton, Theodore R. Cogswell, Arthur Jean Cox, Allan Danzig, Jon DeCles, Miriam Allen deFord, Samuel R. Delany, Lester del Rey, Philip K. Dick, Thomas M. Disch, Sonya Dorman, Larry Eisenberg, Harlan Ellison, Carol Emshwiller, Philip José Farmer, David E. Fisher, Ron Goulart, Joseph Green, Jim Harmon, Harry Harrison, H. H. Hollis, J. Hunter Holly, James D. Houston, Edward Jesby, Leo P. Kelley, Daniel Keyes, Virginia Kidd, Damon Knight, Allen Lang, March Laumer, Ursula K. LeGuin, Fritz Leiber, Irwin Lewis, A. M. Lightner, Robert A. W. Lowndes, Katherine MacLean, Barry Malzberg, Robert E. Margroff, Anne Marple, Ardrey Marshall, Bruce McAllister, Judith Merril, Robert P. Mills, Howard L. Morris, Kris Neville, Alexei Panshin, Emil Petaja, J. R. Pierce, Arthur Porges, Mack Reynolds, Gene Roddenberry, Joanna Russ, James Sallis, William Sambrot, Hans Stefan Santesson, J. W. Schutz, Robin Scott, Larry T. Shaw, John Shepley, T. L. Sherred, Robert Silverberg, Henry Slesar, Jerry Sohl, Norman Spinrad, Margaret St. Clair, Jacob Transue, Thurlow Weed, Kate Wilhelm, Richard Wilson, Donald A. Wollheim.

#sf #vietnam war #galaxy science fiction

[deelaundry]

ao3 stats game

Rules: Give us the links to your wonderful words with the most hits, most kudos, most comments, most bookmarks, most words, and least words. (I added Smallest Fandom)

Most Hits and Bookmarks - This Is an Essay, Harry Potter, gen. An autistic 11-year-old girl named Margaret has her first year at Hogwarts. [Margaret agrees with me that JKR sucks.]

Most Kudos - This was This Is an Essay for years, but has been passed recently by Goes the Neighborhood, House MD, Teen, House/Wilson, set after episode 4-9. One month into their permanent positions, the new fellows catch a case on the weekend and have to track House down.

Most Comments - The Private Personal Blog of Dr. John H. Watson, Sherlock (TV), Teen, Johnlock QPR. WIP in blog-post format, currently 21 chapters, 9,757 words. I need to get back to this, as we have so much more story to cover. :)

Fourth Most Kudos - My Fathers' Son, House MD, General Audiences, House/Wilson, Major Character Death. House and Wilson, as seen through the eyes of their son Jack as he grows up. Written in the summer after S2, this was both my first angst fic and by far my best received fic on LiveJournal in both count and depth of comments (probably the most recced too).

Most Words - My Fathers' Son has the second most words at 25,850; the fic with the most is its sequel Keeper (Agnates in Elysium) at 29,621 words (House MD, Teen, multiple relationships, Major Character Death but not as angsty as My Fathers' Son). House and Wilson’s son Jack passes one of life’s crossroads and makes an unexpected connection. In Keeper, my "MFS" fanfic universe crosses over with another writer's House MD fanfic universe (the "Churchverse" in which House and Wilson's kid, Christian House, goes by Church).

Fewest Words - Exact drabbles of 100 words each:

Two Kinds, House MD, Teen, Chase/Foreman.

Any Afternoon, Stargate Atlantis, G, McKay/Sheppard.

Served Cold, House MD, Teen. AO3 says it's 101 words, but my count is 100.

I'm adding a category: Smallest Fandom - The Awful Daring, Teen, references to a romantic/sexual relationship between a teacher and his high school student, and a priest and a member of his congregation. This fic is for the play Prodigal Son by John Patrick Shanley. In the world premiere of the play Robert Sean Leonard played the teacher (Alan) and Timothée Chalamet played the student (James). (The priest is in an OC.) The Awful Daring is the only fanwork on AO3 for the play. Let me know if you know of any others elsewhere!

#my stuff #this is what we used to call a meme #i am old

[masonhawth0rne]

What I read in 2023!

Isn't it nice to have the whole year's worth of something in one handy list?

January

Medieval England: From Arthur to the Tudor Conquest, Jennifer Paxton ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

The Day of the Triffids, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hannibal, Livy ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster, Sam L Amirante, Danny Brodrick ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

This Is How You Lose the Time War, Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone ⭐️⭐️

Trouble With Lichen, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Reanimator's Heart, Kara Jorgensen 😠

The Miracle of Dunkirk, Walter Lord ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

Alone on the Ice, David Roberts ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

The Midwich Cucoos, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Hanging Tree, Ben Aaronovitch ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Polygamist's Daughter, Anna LeBaron, Leslie WIlson ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

Stowaway to Mars, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️

Confession of a Serial Killer, Katherine Ramsland ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

Sparta's First Attic War, Paul A Rahe ⭐️⭐️ NF

FantasticLand, Mike Bockoven ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Instructions for American Servicemen in Australia 1942, Special Service Division Services of Supply US Army ⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

Columbus Day, Craig Alanson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Blood in the Snow, Tom Henderson ⭐️⭐️NF

The Andromeda Strain, Michael Crichton ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Last Days of Stalin, Joshua Rubenstein ⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

Sons of Cain, Peter Vronsky ⭐️⭐️NF

Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Web, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️

An Unnatural Vice, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

An Unsuitable Heir, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alexander the Great, Norman F Cantor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

A Dark Night in Aurora, William H Reid ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Snow Killings, Marney Rich Keenan ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

The Odyssey, Homer trans. Emily Wilson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Martian, Andy Weir ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

How Great Science Fiction Works, Gary K Wolfe ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

Lies Sleeping, Ben Aaronovitch ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

February

False Value, Ben Aaronovitch ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Amongst Our Weapons, Ben Aaronovitch ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Revelation Space, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Lancashire Witches, William Harrison Ainsworth ⭐️

Queen of Teeth, Hailey Piper ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Hacienda, Isabel Cañas ⭐️⭐️

Age of Myth, Michael J Sullivan ⭐️⭐️

The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester ⭐️⭐️

All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Meddling Kids, Edgar Cantero ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Monsters We Defy, Leslye Penelope ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Red Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Man and the Crow, Rebecca Crunden (ss)⭐️

A Better Fate, DN Bryn (ss) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Artemis One-Zero-Five, CHristopher Henderson DNF

House of Suns, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

All Systems Red, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Artificial Condition, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Rogue Protocol, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Exit Strategy, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

New Earth, Ben Bova ⭐️⭐️

Death Wave, Ben Bova ⭐️

Mouth of Mirrors, Maxwell I Gold (ss) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

March

On the Beach, Nevil Shute ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Star Nomad, Lindsay Buroker ⭐️

Burning Roses, SL Huang ⭐️⭐️

Trick or Treat, Richie Tankersley Cusick ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Unfinished Tales, JRR Tolkien ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pushing Ice, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The End of the World Anthology ⭐️⭐️

The Home of the Blizzard (nf), Sir Douglas Mawson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Night Stalker (nf), Philip Carlo ⭐️⭐️⭐️

In the Court of the Nameless Queen, Natalie Ironside ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Green Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Ultimate Evil (nf), Maury Terry ⭐️

The Hillside Stranglers (nf), Darcy O'Brien ⭐️⭐️

The Element of Fire, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Chasm City, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

April

The Stolen Heir, Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kintu, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kidnapped, Diane Hoh ⭐️⭐️

Overlord, David Wood & Alan Baxter ⭐️⭐️

Child of God, Cormac McCarthy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Walking to Aldebaran, Adrian Tchaikovsky ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Redemption’s Blade, Adrian Tchaikovsky ⭐️⭐️⭐️

At the Mountains of Madness, HP Lovecraft ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Initiation, Diane Hoh ⭐️⭐️

The Book of Queer Saints Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Expert System’s Brother, Adrian Tchaikovsky ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pluto’s Republic, David Roochnik (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Twisted Ones, T Kingfisher ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Evil Roots, Killer Tales of Botanical Gothic Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Shadow Over Innsmouth, HP Lovecraft ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Annihilation, Jeff VanderMeer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Whisperer in Darkness, HP Lovecraft ⭐️⭐️

Alien: Convenant Origins, Alan Dean Foster ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Coveant, Alan Dean Foster ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Wendigo, Algernon Blackwood ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien III, William Gibson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: The Cold Forge, Alex White ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Republic, Plato ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Prototype, Tim Waggoner ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Isolation, Keith RA DeCandido ⭐️⭐️

A Thief in the Night, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Dialogues, Plato ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Into Charybdis, Alex White ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Infiltrator, Weston Ochse ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Percent, Jon Elofson (ss) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Aliens: Bug Hunt Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Growing Things & Other Stories, Paul Tremblay ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Babel-17, Samuel R. Delany ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Lords of Uncreation, Adrian Tchaikovsky ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

May

The Day We Ate Grandad, CM Rosens ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: Out of the Shadows, Tim Lebbon ⭐️⭐️

Jaws, Peter Benchley ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Room on the Sea, Andrē Aciman ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alien: River of Pain, Christopher Golden ⭐️⭐️

Alien: Sea of Sorrows, James A Moore ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Gentleman From Peru, Andrē Aciman ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Century Rain, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hyperion, Dan Simmons ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dust, Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

100 Fathoms Below, Steven L Kent & Nicholas Kaufmann ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Saturn’s Monsters, Thomas K Carpenter ⭐️

Address Unknown, Kressmann Taylor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Murder by Other Means, John Scalzi ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Ethics of Aristotle, Joseph Koterski ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Neil Gaiman at the end of the Universe, Arvind Ethan David ⭐️⭐️

Bag of Bones, Stephen King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bewilderness, Part One: Threshold, Jonathan Maberry ⭐️

Ten Low, Stark Holborn ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Benny Rose, the Cannibal King, Hailey Piper ⭐️⭐️⭐️

My Dark Vanessa, Kate Elizabeth Russell ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester ⭐️

Three Hearts and Three Lions, Poul Anderson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Almost Human(nf), Lee Berger & John Hawks ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Paladin’s Grace, T Kingfisher ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Killing the Bismarck(nf), Iain Ballantyne ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ancient Mesopotamia(nf), Amanda H Podany ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Art of War(nf), Andrew R Wilson ⭐️⭐️

The White People, Arthur Machen ⭐️

June

Witch King, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Broken Sword, Poul Anderson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Early Middle Ages (nf), Philip Daileader ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The History of Ancient Egypt (nf), Bob Brier ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Banewreaker, Jacqueline Carey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Godslayer, Jacqueline Carey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Chernobyl 01:23:40 (nf), Andrew Leatherbarrow ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Stress and Your Body (nf), Robert Sapolsky ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ice Ghosts (nf), Paul Watson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Illiad, Homer, trans. Edward Earl of Derby ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Th Hunt & the Haunting, Victoria Audley ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Our Shadows Have Claws Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Writing Creative Nonfiction (nf), Tilar JJ Mazzeo ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Brain Wave, Poul Anderson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Forever War, Joe Haldeman ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

July

Travel by Bullet, John Scalzi ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Redemption Ark, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Labrys(ss), Victoria Audley ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Grown Gown(ss), Derek Des Anges ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Hellbound Heart, Clive Barker ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Orca, Arthur Herzog III ⭐️

The Gallows Pole, Benjamin Myers ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Rebecca, Daphne Du Maurier ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Chemist, Stephanie Meyer ⭐️

Icehenge, Kim Stanley Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Band Sinister, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Now She Is Witch, Kirsty Logan ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Slow Bullets, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Inside the Mind of BTK(nf), Johnny Dodd & John Douglas ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Woman in White, Wilkie Collins ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Antarctica, Kim Stanley Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

August

The Henchmen of Zenda, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Morning Star, Peter Atkins ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Subsidence (ss), Steve Rasnic Tem ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Man in the High Tower, Philip K Dick ⭐️⭐️⭐️

What the Dead Know (ss), Nghi Vo ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Maze Runner, James Dashner ⭐️

Unfit to Print, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Chill, Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bryony and Roses, T Kingfisher ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Confessor (ss), Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Grail, Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Babylon (nf), Paul Kriwaczek ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Unquiet, E Saxey DNF

The Ritual of the Labyrinth (ss), Esmée de Heer ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Terminal World, ALastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Essays of Flesh and Bone (ss), Victoria Audley ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Book Eaters, Sunyi Dean ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Future of Work: Compulsory (ss), Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Lady or the Tiger (ss), Frank Stockton ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Too Like the Lightning, Ada Palmer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Falling Free, Lois McMaster Bujold ⭐️⭐️

Dreamsnake, Vonda N McIntyre ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The First Fossil Hunters (nf), Adrienne Mayor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Shards of Honor, Lois McMaster Bujold ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Red Land, Black Land (nf), Barbara Mertz ⭐️⭐️⭐️

On Planetary Palliative Care (ss), Thomas Ha ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Nova, Samuel R Delany ⭐️⭐️⭐️

September

Time to Orbit: Unknown, Derin Edala ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️*

The Invincible, Stanislaw Lem ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Prefect, Alastair Reynolds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Myrtha (ss), Victoria Audley ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Archaeology: An Introduction to the World’s Greatest Sites (nf), Eric H Cline ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Catching Teller Crow, Amberlin Kwaymullina & Ezekiel Kwaymullina ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Old Man’s War, John Scalzi ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Don’t Hang Up, Benjamin Stevenson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Superluminal, Vonda N McIntyre ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

World War Z, Max Brooks ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Flight of the Fantail, Steph Matuku ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cyteen, CJ Cherryh ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Regenesis, CJ Cherryh ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mindfulness for Stress Management (nf), Dr Robert Schacter ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Orange Eats Creeps, Grace Krilanovich ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kushiel’s Dart, Jacqueline Carey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Aye, and Gomorrah (ss), Samuel R. Delany ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Carnage (nf), Mark Dapin ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Blue Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Unknown, Jordan L Hawk ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Chocky, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sword of Empire: Praetorian, Richard Foreman ❌

Revival, Stephen King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Apollo Murders, Chris Hadfield ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

*Time to Orbit: Unknown is hosted online [HERE] and is currently still updating twice a week

October

Unfortunate Elements of My Anatomy, Hailey Piper ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ghost Bird, Lisa Fuller ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Hound of the Baskervilles, Arthur Conan Doyle ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Forest of Stolen Girls, June Hur ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Liar’s Dice, Jeannie Lin ⭐️

Straya, Anthony O'Connor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Toxic, Dan Kaszeta (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Illuminae, Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Penhallow, Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Myth of the Self Made Man, Ruben Reyes Jr (ss) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Call, Christian White & Summer De Roche ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Death of the Necromancer, Martha Wells ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cretins, Thomas Ha (ss) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kill Your Brother, Jack Heath ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Valley of Terror, Zhou Haohui, tr. Bonnie Huie ⭐️⭐️

The Curse of the Burdens, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️

Amazons, Adrienne Mayor (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Kraken Wakes, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dead Mountain, Donnie Eichar (nf) ⭐️⭐️

Family Business, Jonathan Sims ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

In the House of Aryaman A Lonely Signal Burns, Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Blessing of Unicorns, Elizabeth Bear ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

METAtropolis Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Plan for Chaos, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Fatal Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum, Emma Southon (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Outward Urge, John Wyndham ⭐️⭐️

King Solomon’s Mines, H. Rider Haggard DNF

The Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle tr. David Ross (nf) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

November

The Jewel of Seven Stars, Bram Stoker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Terror, Dan Simmons ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hannibal: The Military Genius who Almost Conquered Rome, Eve MacDonald ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ nf

Luna, Ian McDonald ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hoka! Hoka! Hoka!, Poul Anderson & Gordon R Dickson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dracula, Bram Stoker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cicero: The Life & Times of Rome's Greatest Politician, Anthony Everitt ⭐️⭐️⭐️nf

The Worst Journey in the World, Apsley Cherry-Garrard ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️nf

METAtropolis: Cascadia Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Haunting of Willow Creek, Sara Crocoll Smith ⭐️

Journey to the Center of the Earth, Jules Verne ⭐️⭐️

METAtropolis: Green Space Anthology ⭐️⭐️⭐️

December

Carrion Comfort, Dan Simmons ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wanted, A Gentleman, KJ Charles ⭐️⭐️

Interview With the Vampire, Anne Rice ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Henry VIII: King & Court, Alison Weir ⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

Alexander the Great & the Macedonian Empire, Kenneth W Harl⭐️⭐️⭐️ NF

The Isles of the Gods, Amie Kaufman ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Sandman, Neil Gaiman & Dirk Maggs DNF

Phosphorescence, Julia Baird ⭐️⭐️⭐️NF

And so the grand total for 2023 is....

267!

Of course, there's a couple of DNFs in there which inflate this number somewhat, but I am absolutely not going to pick through and count them out. Plus, a DNF only gets included on the list if I've gotten through a significant portion of the book. If it's a page one no-no, it's not even worth mentioning.

I made the decision at the start of this year, to try out more books I'd never heard of before. I really like trawling through the library app, or through audible's free archives and finding stuff that I'd probably never normally have discovered. Also, revisiting books that I read a long time ago and seeing if they resemble my memories of them.

Overall, I think this was a very satisfying year of reading, and I hope that I enjoy 2024's reads just as much!

nf= non fiction ss= short story

Stars awarded at my whim.

#what i read #mine

[gracie-bird]

Mrs. Frederic S. Claghorn (left) and Mrs. George J. Hauptfuhrer Jr. meet at the Chestnut Hill home of Mrs. Joseph S. Rambo (right) to complete plans for Oct. 30 gala being sponsored by women's division of Eastern Pennsylvania Multiple Sclerosis Society at Academy of Music.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Sunday, October 12, 1969).

DANCE HONORS PRINCESS GRACE

Dance honors Princess Brace Princess Grace of Monaco will be guest of honor at a "champagne dance" on Thursday, Oct. 30, at the Academy of Music Ballroom. Mrs. Joseph S. Rambo, of Chestnut Hill, is honorary chairman of the gala being sponsored by the Eastern Pennsylvania Multiple Sclerosis Society to raise funds to support research in finding the cause and control of this disease.

Festivities will begin with cocktails at 5 P. M. followed by dancing to the music of Romig, Lewis and Carney orchestras.

CHAIRMEN LISTED

Mrs. William E. Milhollen, Mrs. William A. Roth and Mrs. A. Ardley Henkels, are cochairmen.

Assisting the chairmen in arrangements for the Oct. 30 dance will be Mrs. Lloyd M. Coates, Mrs. George Morris Dorrance, Mrs. Frank B. Axelrod, Mrs. Frank Garofolo, Mrs. Morris R. Shaffer, Mrs. Alan D. Ameche, Mrs. Kershaw Burbank, Mrs. Murray Firestone, Mrs. F. Howard Goodwin Jr., Miss Ann Jane Callan, Mrs. Margaret K. Con-Ian, Mrs. Sydney Daroff, Mrs. Michael Daroff and Mrs. Edward Dudlik. Also, Mrs. Frederick H. Le vis Jr., Miss Marian Hayes, Mrs. W.Thacher Longstreth, Mrs. George J. Hauptfuhrer Jr., Mrs. Paul R. Kaiser, Mrs.Frederic S. Claghorn, Mrs. Russell Levin, Mrs. William Levinson, Mrs. Donald LeVine. Others are Henry S. McNeil, Mrs. Walter J. Maiden, Miss Patricia Lockhart, Mrs. Charles Nicholson, Mrs. Elizabeth Orr, Mrs. B. Arthur Pinney, Mrs. William Putnam, Miss Mildred Rinker, Mrs. Henriette Wallace, Mrs. Stanley A. Welsh Jr., Mrs. Michael A. Walsh, Mrs. Thomas A. Wood Jr., Mrs. Douglas H. Worrall Jr., Mrs. Vernon D. Wright, Mrs. Charles Wilson, Mrs. Robert G. Wilder.

"OPENING NIGHT" IS THEM OF BALL

"Opening Night" is the theme of the sixth annual West Park Hospital Ball to be held Saturday evening at Radnor Valley Country Club.

The ball is sponsored by the Women's Auxiliary of the Hospital and is cochairmened by Mr. and Mrs. Aaron N. Cohen. Proceeds will benefit the hospital building fund campaign and a new cardiac unit.

LANEiBRiANT for Fine carpet. we design them. From you like investment in dedicated Wall-to-Wall Hardwick's Colors: Green, sq. yd..

#GRACE KELLY #princess grace #opening night #ball #dance #philadelphia #chestnut hill #1969 #maree rambo #maree pamp #mrs joseph s rambo #multiple sclerosis #champagne dance

[byneddiedingo]

Brandon De Wilde, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, and Alan Ladd in Shane (George Stevens, 1953)

Cast: Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon De Wilde, Jack Palance, Ben Johnson, Edgar Buchanan, Emile Meyer, Elisha Cook Jr. Screenplay: A.B. Guthrie Jr., based on a novel by Jack Schafer. Cinematography: Loyal Griggs. Art direction: Hal Pereira, Walter H. Tyler. Film editing: William Hornbeck, Tom McAdoo. Music: Victor Young. 

The sexual tension between Shane (Alan Ladd) and Marian Starrett (Jean Arthur) is key to the texture and motivation of George Stevens's Shane. It's obvious from the moment when she watches him, shirtless and glistening with sweat, help her rather dull (and fully clad) husband, Joe (Van Helflin), uproot a tree stump, and it plays like a low bass note throughout the film, until it becomes the main reason why Shane feels he has to move on at the end. After all, he has just humiliated Joe by knocking him unconscious and taking on the role Joe assumes is his rightful one, thereby reducing him in the eyes of his wife and son, Joey (Brandon De Wilde). It also doesn't escape the notice of the bad guys, one of whom taunts Shane with the fact that Joe has a pretty wife. (The filters used on some of Arthur's closeups are a giveaway: She was 50 when she made Shane, her last film, but she's plausible as a character 10 or 15 years younger.) It's to Stevens's credit that he plays all of this as low-key as he does. It would have been much too easy to move the eternal triangle to the center of the film's structure. Shane is an intelligent film, though to my mind it gets a little heavy-handed with the introduction of the black-hatted Wilson (Jack Palance) as the potential nemesis to the knight errant Shane. As fine as Palance's performance is, I wish his character had been given a more complex backstory than just "hired gun out of Cheyenne." Otherwise, the screenplay by A.B. Guthrie Jr. does a fair job of not making its villains too deep-dyed: The chief tormenter of the sodbusters, the cattleman Rufus Ryker (Emile Meyer), is given a speech justifying himself as having gotten there first and settled the land -- we haven't yet reached the point in historical consciousness where the claims of the Native Americans are taken seriously. And Shane's first opponent, Chris Calloway (Ben Johnson), eventually has a change of heart -- not an entirely convincing one to my mind, considering Calloway's behavior in his first encounter with Shane -- and warns Shane that Joe's appointment with Ryker is a trap. Stevens uses Jackson Hole, Wyoming, almost as effectively as John Ford used Monument Valley, and Loyal Griggs won a well-deserved Oscar for his cinematography, even if Paramount's decision to trim the original images at top and bottom to make the film appear to have been shot in a widescreen process resulted in some oddly cropped compositions. Shane is undeniably a classic, but I think it takes itself a little too seriously: The great Western directors, like Ford and Howard Hawks, knew the value of a little comic relief, but in Shane even Edgar Buchanan plays it straight.

#Shane #George Stevens #Brandon De Wilde #Jean Arthur #Van Heflin #Alan Ladd

[yushox]

Welcome to my blog!

Fair warning: Long Read

~•~

Name/s: Eliot

Age & Birthday: 27, 10th of February

Pronouns: He / They

Nationality: Latvia 🇱🇻

Languages: Latvian (native); English (2nd); Russian, German & Spanish (rudimentary)

Religion: Atheist (general interest in Paganism and Satanism)

Political stance: Generally Liberal (leaning > Individual Anarchy)

~•~

~•~

> Favorites:

Colors: Teal, Periwinkle

Food/Drink: Seafood, Sushi, Falafel, Medovik, Cafe Latte, Peppermint Tea

Season: Autumn

Animals: Foxes, Owls, Snakes, Housecats

Numbers: 2, 8, ∞

Interests: Astrology, Astronomy, Biology, Anatomy, Nature

Other: Cotton, Going out at Night

> Dislikes:

Food/Drink: Grapefruit, Aubergines, Store sandwiches (example)

Season: Winter

Animals: Spiders and similar creepy-crawlies

Interests: Sports

Others: Mold, Silk, Natural wool, Touch, Big cities

> Other facts:

Phobias: Arachnophobia, Trypanophobia

Physical health: One-sided deafness (right ear), Nearsighted, Occasional sleep apnea

Mental health: Misophonic, Suspecting of being neurodivergent

Diet: Omnivore

Temperature preference: Above lukewarm

Language preference: English

Good/Neutral/Evil: Neutral, prefers the villains side regardless

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral, Aquittarius

Astrology: Aquarius (Western), Ox (Chinese), Amon-Ra (A. Egyptian), The Rowan tree/Dragon/Brigid (Celtic), Sērsnu Laiks/Meteņi/Pelnu diena (A. Latvian)

Other: "Out of the box" ideas, Night owl

~•~

> Various things I like/liked that are significant enough for me to mention, in no particular order (may or may not have had a huge impact in my life):

Music: Vocaloid, AKB48, TVXQ!, Nightwish, Tatu, Eurielle, Annie (Anne Lilia Berge Strand), Pentatonix, Lindsey Stirling, Dimash Kudaibergen, Indila, Чи-ли, Gorillaz, Поли́на Серге́евна Гага́рина, Нюша, GARNiDELiA, Derivakat, CG5, Sati Akura, ATOLS, Tautumeitas, Alan Walker, Within Temptation, JubyPhonic, Mr. Kitty, Mother Mother, Lovejoy, Kerli, Pogo, Bella Poarch, Billie Eilish, Lollia, YOHIO, CASCADA, Avril Lavigne, Porter Robinson, ALYS, AmaLee, Owl City, DieAntwoord, SharaX, Asbjørn, Hi-Fi (High Fidelity), Демо, Evanescence

Movies: Timemachine (2002), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Avatar (2009), Rise Of The Guardians (2012), Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets (2017), Lucy (2014), Spirited Away (2001), 9 (2009), SPY Kids (2001), Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)

TV series: Good Omens, Doctor Who, Bones, Lucifer

Cartoons/Anime: AKB0048, Full Moon Wo Sagashite 満月フルムーンをさがして, Ancient Magus Bride 魔法使いの嫁, Uta Kataうた∽かた, Tokyo Mew Mew東京ミュウミュウ, Powerpuff Girls Z, W.I.T.C.H., ATLA, Okane Ga Nai お金がないっ, Earth Maiden Arjuna 地球少女アルジュナ, My Hero Academia 僕のヒーローアカデミア

Games: Undertale, Sims 3, Chess

Books: The Chronicles Of Narnia (Clive S. Lewis), I Coriander (Sally Gardner), A Little Princes (Frances H. Burnett), Digitālo neaizmirstulīšu lauks (Ellena R. Landara), Good Omens (Terry Pratchett), Starp mums meitenēm runājot (Zenta Ērgle), Matilda (Roald Dahl), Dizzy (Katie Cassidy)

Writers: Ilze Liliāna Millere, Georgia Byng, Jacqueline Wilson

Comics/Manga: Bizanghast

Internet stuff: Homestuck, Tower Trapped, DSMP, ENA, QSMP, Hermitcraft

Content creators: PewDiePie, Cryaotic, Jacksepticeye, The Click, EmKay, kingani, Kwite, Pixelade, Nux Taku, Kurzgesagt, The Queer Kiwi, Strange Æons, xQc, Shenpai, Doni Bobes, Mariah Pattie Worldbuilding, Billzo, optimistic Duelist, Wilburgur, Charmx, Wilbur Soot, Jschlatt, Eret, Quackity, Technoblade, Ph1LzA, Ranboo, Foolish Gamers, BadBoyHalo, Cellbit

~•~

> List of all of my AU's:

Winx Club - Onyx Triad (discontinued; insufficient information)

Vocaloid - Latroid (discontinued)

Homestuck - Earthenia; Nameless fanspecies #1

Tower Trapped - My OC's fansession

Undertale - Keytale; Valleytale; Blanktale; Grid!Sans; Recall!Sans (Recalltale (unofficial)); Kaleidoscope!Sans + Wane!Sans (nameless AU (unofficially Ricochet!Papyrus's Sans); Mollusctale; Latviantale; Ricochet!Papyrus; Law!Sans; Wicktale; Domestic Villain Gang AU

Good Omens - Bad Faith

Minecraft - Minecraft Academy (1; 2; 3); Deranged DSMP AU + Hermitcraft Tommy; Q!ViennaAU

> Standalone projects:

Homestuck nameless fanspecies #1 - this can work as just a worldbuilding project completely separate from Homestuck canon

Tower trapped OC's - this can work as just a worldbuilding project completely separate from Tower Trapped canon

Minecraft "Minecraft Academy" - this can work as just a worldbuilding project

> OC's:

Tower Trapped - Melle Aqiv Eksui

~•~

> LGBT's:

Sexual identity: Aegosexual

Romantic identity: Panromantic

Gender identity: Demiboy; Genderfluid; AFAB

Other preferences: Polyamory, Quadrants, Platonic love (ludus)

~•~

> You'll find posts made by me under the following hashtag:

#YushoxStuff

#introductory post #pinned post #YushoxStuff

[anumberofhobbies]

Alan Wilson Hirsh H.100 ‘F-WGVC’ c/n 01 The experimental Hirsch H.100 was designed to test a pneumatically operated aerodynamic gust suppression system. As part of the system the elevator dihedral could change and this controlled pitch when combined with lift-changing flaps, whilst the wingtips could rotate to control roll. The sole prototype first flew in June 1954 and the system proved to be successful, but further development wasn’t financed so the project went no further. It was flow to Le Bourget for the National collection on 16th June 1971 and is on display in the fascinating Prototypes Hall (Hall 7) at the Musée de l'air et de l'espace. Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France. 12th July 2022

[brookstonalmanac]

Birthdays 11.18

Beer Birthdays

Charles Buxton (1823)

Florentinus De Boeck (1826)

Eugene Hack (1840)

Henry F. Hagemeister (1855)

Peter Hoey (1979)

Rob Kent

Robin Goldstein

Five Favorite Birthdays

Margaret Atwood; Canadian writer (1939)

Alan Moore; writer (1953)

Graham Parker; rock singer, songwriter (1950)

Alan Shepard; astronaut (1923)

Carl Maria von Weber; composer (1786)

Famous Birthdays

Hank Ballard; singer, songwriter (1927)

Don Cherry; jazz trumpeter (1936)

Imogene Coca; actor, comedian (1908)

Louis Daguerre; photography pioneer (1789)

Dorothy Dix; journalist (1861)

Mike Epps; comedian (1970)

Linda Evans; actor (1942)

Alan Dean Foster; writer (1948)

George H. Gallup; pollster (1901)

W.S. Gilbert; English lyricist (1836)

Asa Gray; botanist (1810)

David Hemmings; English actor (1941)

August Kundt; German physicist (1839)

Wyndham Lewis; English artist (1882)

Delroy Lindo; actor (1952)

Johnny Mercer; songwriter (1909)

Mickey Mouse; cartoon character (1928)

Kevin Nealon; comedian, actor (1953)

Eugene Ormandy; orchestra conductor (1899)

David Ortiz; Boston Red Sox 1B (1975)

Ignace Paderewski; pianist, composer (1860)

Elizabeth Perkins; actor (1960)

Chloe Sevigny; actor (1974)

Duncan Sheik; pop singer, songwriter (1969)

William Shenstone; Scottish writer (1714)

Sojourner Truth; abolitionist (1797)

Brenda Vaccaro; actor (1939)

Kim Wilde; English pop singer (1960)

David Wilkie; Scottish artist (1785)

Owen Wilson; actor (1968)

Peta Wilson; actor (1970)

#Birthdays

[dust-n-roses]

summer first listens ‘23

I’ve started keeping track of the new (to me) albums I listen to, so here’s my list for the summer!

prog

porcupine tree: metanoia, voyage 34, recordings, stars die, staircase infinites, nil recurring, yellow hedgerow dreamscape

focus: focus 8.5/beyond the horizon

starcastle: song of times

frank zappa: over-nite sensation

u.k.: u.k., danger money

rick wakeman: journey to the centre of the earth

the alan parsons project: i robot

van der graaf generator: the least we can do is wave to each other, h to he who am the only one, pawn hearts, godbluff, still life

steven wilson: the future bites

metal

megadeth: the system has failed, united abominations

jazz

herbie hancock: empyrean isles

pop/alt

taylor swift: speak now (tv)

duran duran: self-titled

olivia rodrigo: guts

rock

greta van fleet: starcatcher

the doors: strange days, waiting for the sun

uriah heep: demons & wizards

mammoth wvh: mammoth ii

acoustic

neil young: harvest

#dustnroses.txt

[the-letter-horror-lover]

Another Horse, Fiery Red by Javanne

Anime » Kuroshitsuji Rated: T, English, Drama & Supernatural, [Alan H., Eric S.] [Grell S., William S.], Words: 134k+, Published: May 28, 2021 Updated: Oct 27

3Chapter 49: A Slight Problem With the Plan

"Humphries! Where are you? I want you in the map room at once!"

Eric restrained himself from telling Will to leave Alan the hell alone during his rest shift. "He'll be at home, Will. We're off duty. Leave a message on his desk, or ask Cortland for help." He gathered up his newspapers and changed the subject.

"War's going to be over soon. The German attempt to deal with President Woodrow Wilson failed – they thought they could get easier terms from him. He refused to negotiate with the military dictatorship instead of an elected government. Demanded that the Kaiser abdicate. They rejected that, of course, and decided to keep fighting. But there's a revolution among their sailors, and they are at the end of their soldiers, and everybody's sick, so they will be forced to face reality soon. They'll have to open negotiations with the Allied generals. They'll have to accept terms which they will then blame on their political enemies. Might be an extra-large Death List on the last day."

"Really?" asked Will, distracted from his rant. "Shouldn't they draw their soldiers draw back and wait?"

Eric covered a yawn. "Should. Won't. They've all these artillery shells sitting around. It's easier to fire 'em off than pack 'em up and haul 'em away. Last chance to make a grand gesture, too. It supports political maneuvering at home for both sides. 'Our brave men fought to the last minute' and 'We bombarded the evil enemy into surrender.' Their civilians are sick, weary and ready for a change in government, you see."

"Ah. The generals are worried about their futures in peacetime?"

"Difficult for them, aye. They need to go home as heroes. The end of the war means that the power shifts from the military to the diplomats. Some generals will attempt to go into politics; but the change from command to cooperation is difficult for them. They tend to forget and start barking orders at people who can tell them to go get their own damn coffee. Unless they are setting up or preserving a dictatorship, of course. In many places, the civilian population will be gaining power as the soldiers are discharged. They will want change after years of forced service and hunger. They'll be going into politics too. In Germany there's already a movement to make all citizens equal under the law, abolishing the immunities and privileges of the nobility and aristocracy."

"That's all very well, but most of the officials enforcing that law will be aristocrats or in the pay of aristocrats. It's a nice gesture, I suppose."

"It's supported by anti-monarchial, anti-military political parties who are gaining power there. It's scaring the current management. But, as I've said, I'm off duty. I'm going home. See ye tomorrow, Will."

Slingby found four people in his parlor. Alan was in his reading chair, maintaining that grave expression that meant he had seen a gaping hole in somebody's pet theory. Smitty and Dutch were on the sofa. Sam was in Eric's chair with the reading light trained on his hands.

Smitty rubbed his neatly trimmed red beard. "It works. It does not harm Reapers, and it poisons demons. It's a contact poison; it only affects a demon if they touch a Reaper's skin. It provides evidence of assault, which is forbidden by various truces, treaties and Laws."

"Any report on the current condition of the demon?"

Sam, whose eyesight was slightly better than his partner's, was sewing up the tear in Dutch's glove. "We dropped by the Twa Corbies to listen last night. We heard a rumor that the demon is very ill. His compatriots are worried about it. If they can't complete their assignments they get demoted down to a little knot of malice. Takes them years to work back up to a coherent form."

Eric laid his newspapers beside his chair. "Hello, everyone. Sorry, Alan, sounds like you'll to have to educate a replacement demon in the Royal London. Any tea left in that pot? I'll rebrew."

He picked up the Brown Betty and went into the kitchen, fired up the kettle, unplugged the phone just in case Will remembered he'd been looking for Alan, and returned to the parlor with the steaming pot and a mug for himself. He set the pot on the low table to steep and fetched in a kitchen chair for himself.

"D'you read all those every day?" asked Dutch, indicating the newspapers. Sam cut off his thread with his Records scissors and attempted to surrender the chair to Eric, who politely waved him back down into his seat.

"I skim them all for information. Most of them are pretty heavily censored. All of them, for instance, are playing down or denying the pandemic. But I can learn from what the governments do and do not permit. If you read papers issued by both sides, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Ye can also learn what's affecting the populace from the advertisements. So, me lads, are ye well? What did the doctor say?"

"We were testing something Smitty's been playing with," said Sam. "We're fine. It's harmless to Reapers and has mostly worn off. Something about us being exposed to scythe metal ever since beginning at the Academy. Smitty thinks it may be useful after some tweaking."

"So ye're going to run about punching demons?" Eric set about filling mugs. He could tell Alan was upset, but not allowing it to show.

"Only if we want to. It's blood-borne. If they claw us, it gets all over them."

"I'm pretty pleased with it so far," said Smitty. "It's a variation on my own levels of contamination. I'm fine, so this lower level won't hurt anybody else. Just a little something to make the demons stand back a bit. It started as a repellant, requested by Supplies, who use it around delivery sites where demons are active. Supplies considers the personal contamination to be beneficial."

Dutch and Eric looked at each other and then looked at Alan expectantly.

"But Supplies personnel do not Reap. What effect does this toxin have on humans?" said Alan.

"Humans? Don't know. Does it matter? You deal with souls, not bodies. You are always gloved – oh. Ah. But that never happens. Does it?"

Alan covered his face with his hands, sighed, and dropped his hands back in his lap.

"Yes. Once, I was commanded to grant time and healing to a Human. Two of them, actually, a woman and her infant. So yes, it is possible, and even occasionally required. It requires the touch of an ungloved hand.

"One might wonder also if this toxicity will inhibit our ability to lend time and strength to each other, as we did when the Thorns curse was broken. I am not saying this new idea is a bad one, Smitty, only that we need to understand and adjust for all its effects. Will we also have to warn the Angels? They and the Fallen originally came from the same stock. The Entity Sandriel has granted some of us a healing touch. Would we poison him if he did that now?"

Smitty gave Alan a grateful look. "That's why I am so pleased you asked us to meet with you, sir. We welcome the hard questions. Thanks. We engineers get a little detached from the more obscure points of Reaping after a decade or two. In its current formulation, the toxicity wears off in three days. My general theory was that we'd treat the defense Reapers. Obviously we'll be revisiting that, as Sam picked up the toxin just from working with Dutch. For now, I'd say that if you needed to grant time to a human, you'd call for somebody who hasn't been exposed for three days. Four days for safety."

"Not enough. Doctor Collins detected it in both these men on the third day. And what might it do to an office Admin, whose exposure to scythe metal is much less?"

"Dosage can be controlled. We did consider the Admins' lower tolerance, sir. The Admins of Supplies have reported no problems. Anybody in Operations feeling off? Sam, Dutch, please ask around."

"I asked Brad," said Dutch. "Nobody went off their tea and crumpets. They never noticed."

Smitty said, "Back to the drawing board, obviously, and with a lot of new questions, that's good. I'll talk to the next set of Angels who come to pick up blades. They'll route me to their medical folks."

"I might have a more direct connection to Raphael's host," said Alan. "But humans? Smitty, it's important; you're right on the edge of defying the Law. This might make us incapable of performing some of our required duties. If so, I can't protect you from the Higher Ups."

"And it's too late to hide it; too many people know," said Eric. "We have to spread a better story, if it's not too late already. We can try to keep it away from Spears. Fortunately, he's completely involved with the pandemic staffing of India right now."

Alan's anger emerged from hiding. "Another thing, Senior Artificer and Engineer Smithfield. You will not experiment on my Reapers again."

"Volunteers only –" began Smitty. Alan cut him off.

"My office staff did not volunteer to be exposed to a highly volatile toxin which appears to spread farther and faster than expected. You could have taken down the whole Branch. We may have fielded two Reapers who were unfit for duty. You have exposed me to an investigation from Judicial for not reporting you immediately."

"Sir, I did not intend to endanger anyone –"

"Duty and the Law demands I should throw you to the wolves right now. Instead, I shall report an accidental and temporary contamination of a Reaper by a Scythes roommate. We can't conceal it completely. Collins' report has already been filed."

Smitty paled. Alan continued.

"This cover-up won't hold forever. I have enemies. Eventually I will be accused of conspiracy to conceal, so agree on your stories now. For instance, this meeting never happened, I know nothing of your project, and both of you are the victims of a simple mishap. Smitty, they may move you to an isolated single room with heavier shielding. Or, they may simply move Dutch out and decree that any roommate you take must be another Scythes employee. Dutch, Sam, tell Scheduling that you are confined to deskwork until cleared by Medical. Call Doctor Collins to make a daily appointment until he finds you completely clean. I will not allow you to Reap until he sends me that notification. Dutch, use that notification to resist being moved into another single room with no neighbors. And never admit that you knowingly came into work after exposure to whatever this is."

"Understood, sir."

"Smithfield, beware of excess enthusiasm and overconfidence. Find out exactly what this toxin does to Reapers, Humans and Angels. Document your findings thoroughly. Report only your conclusions to me. I do not want to know how or where you obtain your evidence. If I am not available, report to Avram. Eric, you and I and Avram will also request screening from Doctor Collins. We are the ones most exposed to Dutch and Sam. Oh, and Brad too. We'll have to ask him to refrain from discussing this over tea."

"Or only to spread our version?" asked Eric.

"No. He's an innocent witness. I won't make him a conspirator."

Standing in the hall outside the apartment door, Smitty said, "Dutch, I'm sorry. I did a stupid thing. I should have talked to Alan before we did any of this."

"I should have thought of the effects on granting time to Humans. It's rare, and I've never seen it, but I should have made the connection. Smitty, we're going to lose him. I need to talk to some people. We've got to minimize this every way we can. You'd better warn the other Engineers that there's a storm coming."

Inside the apartment, Alan said, "I will write my report tomorrow and calm Will down after he reads it. Sooner or later, he is going to find out that I've prevaricated. Not right away, but eventually. Someone will blab or send an anonymous letter. He will make an example of me. If the war is over and the pandemic is manageable – and he's worked hard to make it so – he won't need me anymore. He'll fire me in his rage, and I will leave."

"Me Light—"

"No, Eric, listen. Smitty will be safe enough. Scythes will defend him, especially since his research has yielded a real benefit to Supplies. If he and Dutch insist that they were unaware of an accidental contamination, Dutch should be safe as well. I need to ask Rosine and Chandless if they'll still be willing to hire someone who's been kicked out of his previous Branch and Academy. If not, they will still hire you."

"What, the Academy would fire you over this?"

"They can't have someone on staff who's been expelled by a Branch for covering up a major offense. They'll jump at the chance to get rid of me. I've been adding little truths to my teaching materials. Half the Ethics Department wants to kill me and steal my Field Guide to Demons. The other half wants to kill me and suppress my Field Guide. So yes, I will be sacked. The Field Guide will be seized, expurgated and published under another professor's name."

Eric paused. "Ye're laughing?"

Alan rose and pulled Eric into a hug. "I'm not losing anything I haven't already given up. If Will throws me out, it saves me from having to plan an escape. Frankly, this works better for us. Before Will can cool down, I will pack my duffel, travel to Chandless' Branch and move into the cottage they've offered us. Both Chandless and Rosine are going to love this. They're getting me at least a year early, and nobody is going to be demanding my return. I'll not start teaching regular classes until the next school year begins, but I'll give them my copy of my Field Guide and make myself available for guest lectures. I'll sleep for a week, plan a small garden for next spring, and ease into my Reaping responsibilities. You can bring your teapot and move in anytime you're ready."

"Do not go without me, Alan. If I wait to join you, it gives them the opportunity to track me. Better we leave no trace."

"That may not be possible, though. Will's not above waiting to banish me until you are safely out of the office. We'll plan for that."

Eric took his partner to bed and held him close when the laughter changed to silent sobs, and when the sobs faded into sleep.

50: Important Messages

Alan rose very early, reconnected the phone, and went into work to write his report. He left it on Spears' desk. He returned to his office, locked the door, and wrote three very important letters. He then called home to wake his partner.

Eric answered muzzily. "Me Light? Wherrr arr ye?"

"Time to get up, big man. Please come straight to my office. Try to get here before Will arrives. I need to run one short errand without anyone noticing. Scold me for skipping breakfast and announce that you're taking me to the Cafeteria. Run off anyone who wants to tag along."

"Important, is it? Grr, where's my shoe…"

"They're serving scotch eggs today," said Alan at his most seductive. "Scones. Doughnuts. Coffee."

"Arrr, ye cruel and heartless wee tempter. Right. Ten minutes."

Alan tucked the envelopes inside his vest and put on his jacket. He unlocked his door. Eric arrived just as Bradshaw did. "G'mornin', Brad. I'm buying Alan his breakfast today. We'll be back soon. Anybody who wants him can wait for a wee bit. Duncan, I'm on escort duty. Alan, come along now, you know the rules. Ye owe me three kisses fer dodgin' yer breakfast, and not just maidenly pecks either."

As they left the building, Eric said, "That'll hold 'em. They won't want to interrupt us smooching at the back of the Cafeteria. Because I'd wallop them and they know it. Where first?"

"The London Lab. I'll port us." —dzzipt—

"Ma'am, I have a letter for Manager Cole, which I am directed to personally lay on his desk. With your permission?"

"He's just come in, sir, one moment." Cole arrived, looked at Eric, looked at Alan, and waved them into his office. "Hold my calls, Miss Pearson."

Once the door was closed, Cole grinned. "What do you need?"

"Donnie, I very much need not to be here. I have to be in the Cafeteria before Director Spears tracks my glasses. Here's a letter explaining everything, and two more letters which need to be sent on to other people. Can you have a discreet underling take them to their destinations? I'll pay for the service."

"Want him to wait for replies?"

"Yes, please, if at all possible. The replies should go to my office at the Academy. There's a key in your letter. Post it back to me when you're done."

"Very well. Sounds like fun. Go on, get to where you need to be. I'll handle this."

Eric had his full English breakfast. Alan had a smaller plate. He wasn't at all hungry, which was just nerves. Eric made him eat most of it. They returned to their desks forty-five minutes late for the beginning of their shifts.

Fortunately Spears was, at the moment, in a telephone meeting with a number of foreign Directors, arranging the distribution of Reapers to countries worst hit by the pandemic. Waved off by Wójcik, Alan escaped to his office to gather his teaching and counselling materials. Bradshaw went over his schedule for the day. A disturbance outside was followed by a quick knock on the doorframe. It was ffoulkes, in considerable distress.

Kendall had died in India. Mountjoy, his partner of several decades, was missing. ffoulkes asked Alan to release him. "I owe it to my Mentor to find him and bring him back. I can't let him be declared a deserter. He's just lost his glasses. He probably hasn't gone far from the scene. He might have pursued the demon who attacked them. The quicker I can get there, the nearer he will be."

"Have you talked to Duncan or Mallory?"

"Yes. They can manage. They sent me to you for the final permission. Please, sir—"

"Granted. Where was he posted?"

"Punjab, sir. Amritsar."

"Pack your duffel and bring it to the War Room. I'll set up the portals. I have friends all along the way; we'll get you there as soon as possible. On arrival, set up a mail drop at the local Branch and inform me so I can forward your paycheck. I'll make some calls to folks in the area who might help. Take whatever's in petty cash; you'll be paying baksheesh. When you find him, bring him to Collins at the Academy and ask who's specializing in grief and burnout."

"Thank you, sir!"

By the time ffoulkes was back, Alan had a nine-portal relay set up and had spoken to the Director of Amritsar. Since the search was funded and staffed by London, Amritsar professed itself happy to assist a Reaper who was rushing to aid his elder and teacher. A Junior Reaper would be waiting to help ffoulkes with the local geography and customs.

A Thorns convalescent named Parkash volunteered to accompany ffoulkes to handle arrangements that might otherwise delay the search. ("They'd rob him blind, sir, and they don't like Brits at all. Bad history. I'll keep him safe and unswindled. Just let me get my duffel.") Admin and Security did a quick whip-round to add to the travel fund. Bradshaw wrote down a number of handy phone numbers and the portal settings on a bit of paper and tucked it into a drawstring purse along with the money.

The purse went into the duffel, ffoulkes and Parkash rushed through the portal, and the War Room quickly returned to standby status. When Will came out to demand what all the flurry was, Alan merely stated that he had begun a standard search for a Reaper reported missing in action.

Will looked around the War Room at a group of Reapers and Admins attempting to project an innocence none had actually possessed since earliest childhood. "Will I regret this, Humphries?"

"No, sir."

"If I ask about this, will I be forced to do something regrettable? Such as proscribe a seceder?"

"Perhaps, sir, it is better not to ask," said Senior Auditor DePoy at her coldest.

Will turned to see his ranking Admins – DePoy, Brock and Solway – aligned against him. He glared. "Humphries, my office."

"Sorry, sir. I must leave to teach. I will report back when my duties permit."

"Humphries!" But Humphries was gone. Wójcik quickly called Will's attention to his next meeting. Everyone else escaped. Duncan checked Alan's schedule and decided there was no need to send a bodyguard after him.

Alan taught two classes, met with his teaching assistants, dodged a delegation of professors who wanted an argument as long as they outnumbered him, and visited Collins.

"You have no contamination, but your blood pressure is high. You need rest. Eric and Senior Jacobs came by, they're clean. Slight traces on Bradshaw. Terry ditto. Ten Hagen is more affected. I've sent them off to the decontamination showers again, it does help. I told them to have Maintenance wipe down their desks, chairs and typewriter keys with whatever cleaning fluid Scythes uses. Bradshaw told me about ffoulkes; here's a list of alienists who can help Mountjoy; hope he's found soon."

Alan checked his watch and locked himself inside a study carrel at the PostGraduate Library. Will could have tracked his glasses, of course, but Alan was safe here. Two months previously, Will had barged in shouting for him. The Chief Librarian, all eighty-nine pounds of her, stopped him cold and marched him out, banning him from the premises. Alan had presented her with a pot of thyme (activity, courage, strength) and a handsome gift box of violetta di Parma scented soaps as a token of his gratitude and appreciation.

Alan slept in the carrel for an hour. It left him rumpled and aching, but ready for student counselling. He went to his office in Greyhame Hall. Several students were already lined up in the hallway. The delay of this year's graduation had given the students additional time to research the Divisions and apprenticeships available to them. Alan distributed referrals and letters of introduction to Seniors willing to grant tours and interviews. Bright kids, all of them. It benefitted the Realm to have them properly placed. Not everyone agreed, of course; many traditionalists on the faculty felt that anyone who wanted to work in the support services had to wash out of Collections first. Inefficient, really. Wasteful of time and talent, and lives.

After sending the last student off for a site visit and interview with Supplies, he sorted through his mail. Ah; three letters among the usual memos, flyers and notifications for faculty meetings. Bless Cole and all his works. He should return to the Branch to deal with whatever emergency had arrived in the last five hours. But if Will caught him, he'd have to endure a rant about his report of two Reapers' accidental contamination. Alan was not prepared to endure that rant.

Spears was not doing well in Grell's absence. Spears was, indeed, furious. He had been forced to deploy the Gupta/Vanderveldt/Sutcliff triad to India. Grell had welcomed being deployed, too, another irritation. The team of Slingby and Humphreys could have been sent instead, with Gupta in charge. But Alan was safe in London, due to orders Spears could not ignore. Spears' frustrated tirades now contained a note of personal enmity.

Eric was assigned field duty. Maybe Alan could suggest he drag Will along on his Reaps. Will needed a good fight or two. Eric could cheer him on and help if things got out of hand… because this latest nonaggression pact between the Celestial and Infernal Realms was not being observed by combatants in the Human Realm. The Angels couldn't be bothered, the Demons couldn't be stopped, and the Reapers could use a witness with Will's rank and connections. Reporting it upwards might distract Will from yelling at his subordinates.

Grell should return in two months. Oh, sweet buttered hell; what would Will be like after another two months without Grell? Because if Will started berating people who wouldn't tolerate it, who wouldn't wait him out and calm him down, there was going to be a bloody revolt. Caroline Cortland, for one, would probably toast marshmallows over his flaming corpse while the Admins danced around the fire.

Could he hold out until Grell returned? Would Will learn about the cover-up first? He gathered his courage. These letters would tell him if he was going to be homeless.

He would stay here and read these very important letters, which should never enter the Branch anyway. He would then go straight to his shift at the Royal London Hospital. Fortunately, Security agreed he did not need a partner when Reaping there; Dutch hadn't been cleared for duty and effie might not be back for days. Eric would meet him at shift's end. They could find a pub, eat, and hide these letters in the little box they rented in the Pawnbroker's safe. No office, no more Will until morning. As Avram would say; enough was too much already. Doctor's orders. Rest.

Mallory would assign him an escort tomorrow, to replace ffoulkes. Whoever it was would be competent or they wouldn't be working for Mallory. They'd lost a lot of people to foreign assignments, though. He might find himself further restricted for lack of personnel. That might work in his favor, actually.

No more delay. He opened the first, most important letter.

From: Geoffrey Chandless

Director of _ Branch

To: Alan Humphries

Senior Assistant Director, London Branch; Instructor (Ethics, Technique, Combat), London Academy

Esteemed Sir,

In reply to your query;

Our offer stands. You are more than welcome here at any time. Our Branch does not give the proverbial fig about the decisions of your archconservative and blinkered Management. We invite you and your partner, at your earliest convenience, to enjoy a site visit to our Branch…

Blinkered. Alan thought briefly of Will's glasses, the broad temples focusing his eyes straight ahead and blocking any information from outside that narrow path.

Your accommodation stands ready, adjusted to Climate Zone Cfb on the Köppen- Geiger scale. You need not even return to London if you find our offer acceptable. That is your decision alone, not ours and most certainly not London's. Professors Rosine and Talbot eagerly await the opportunity to welcome you both as well…

Oh, thank the Highest. Excellent. If Will banished him, he and Eric would not be homeless or subject to random assignment to opposite ends of the earth.

Alan opened the second letter.

From: Donald Cole

Site Manager, London Laboratory

To: Alan Humphries

Senior Assistant Director, London Branch; Instructor (Ethics, Technique, Combat), London Academy

Sir,

No problem at all. I can set things up in the Experimental area, where test runs are not tracked by the Monitors. If you plan on a short trial visit to this destination, may I suggest that you visit their Spectacles office for locally tracked glasses? I'm sure you can appreciate the advantages of a spare pair…or a spare scythe…

Oh. Just so. Clever Donnie.

And now the third letter.

From: Cecilia Rosine

Headmistress of _ Academy

To: Alan Humphries, Instructor (Ethics, Technique, Combat), London Academy; Senior Assistant Director, London Branch

Honored Academician;

We eagerly await your earliest arrival. Ours is a new and small institution, which has not copied the narrow and semi-abusive traditions of some older Academies. We intend that it shall become the most modern and inclusive of universities, producing not only exemplary Reapers, but exemplary Support personnel. We believe in making the best use of every student, according to their interests as well as our needs.

Your Field Guide to Demons in its most recent edition will be added to our curriculum immediately upon receipt. We have been using an old mimeographed version, kept from long ago at the London Academy. Be assured that we will not attempt to prune your syllabus, lectures or publications of uncomfortable or unfashionable truths.

Senior Slingby's many talents will also be most welcome as soon as he is available…

Hot coffee, dark roast, cream and no sugar. Come and get it, Sensei.

51: The Times Are Changing

November 10, 1918

Slingby spent the morning on Alan's phone. He'd borrowed Alan's office, as his own desk was in the Personnel bullpen; a noisy, busy place with far too many distractions. Alan had taken Bradshaw off to Bookkeeping and Supplies, leaving Eric to lock himself into as much privacy as the Branch could offer when all the meeting rooms were taken.

Moreau affirmed the signing of the armistice agreement in Compiégne, France.

"Early yesterday morning. Effective tomorrow, the eleventh day of the eleventh month at eleven AM local. They just can't forgo the drama, can they?

"It's exactly as you predicted at the beginning of all this. Both sides are at a standstill. The Germans can't win, but the Allies know that invading Germany to force a surrender would be far too costly. Therefore, an armistice to end the useless killing. The final peace treaty will be delayed because the winners have to agree upon its terms. Each country has its own agenda but all concur that they don't want Germany ever to be able to do this again. It's going to be nasty and counterproductive.

"Say hello to Gruber for me. Oh, and the winners are going to be celebrating. Mobs dancing in the streets and spreading the 'flu. Expect increasing death rates in the cities in the next couple of weeks."

Kaiser Wilhelm II and his Crown Prince, said Gruber, were out.

"Their abdications were announced yesterday without their consent. The Kiel Mutiny is now a German revolution. The Social Democratic Party has taken control.

"Wilhelm wanted to give up his Empire but remain King of Prussia, of course. Legally impossible even if the returning army would back him up. They won't. The country is going on without him.

"He's boarding a train for the Netherlands today. He's realized he can be arrested for war crimes if he stays where the Allies can get at him. He'll formally abdicate once he fully accepts that he can't go back. Meanwhile, Germany's declared itself a Republic and now has a civilian President. The citizens are tired of all the petty dukes, archdukes, princes and kinglets who led them off to war. Field Marshal von Hindenburg has stepped down and is letting Ludendorff take the blame. General Ludendorff is already insisting that the defeat is all someone else's fault. He'll invent a plot and pick a scapegoat. For more on Wilhelm, check with Peeters. He's in Amsterdam now. His number is…"

Peeters affirmed that Wilhelm had been granted asylum by Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands.

"The Dutch have maintained a strict neutrality throughout the war. The German army didn't commit atrocities there like they did in Belgium, so the locals aren't waiting to shoot him at the station.

"The Queen's not particularly fond of either Britain or Germany, both of whom tried and failed to bully her during the war. Did you know? Wilhelm once told her, 'My guards are seven feet tall and yours are only shoulder-high to them.' She replied, 'When we open our dikes, the water is ten feet deep.' Remarkable woman.

"But she'll protect him, especially after what happened to the Romanovs. For all his many faults, Wilhelm is family. He's a distant cousin of the House of Orange-Nassau. These noble houses are all related to one degree or another. He's forbidden to interfere in politics, of course. That might cause the Allied powers to accuse the Netherlands of violating their own neutrality. As long as he behaves, she'll refuse all demands to extradite him.

"Oh, Sayeed wanted to talk to you, but got swept into pandemic Reaping. Call his number and see who answers. Are you going to start up the London Gather again?"

Ben-Zvi in Palestine picked up the phone.

"Senior Slingby? Pleased to make your acquaintance, sir. Sayeed speaks very highly of you. He said you might want a political update when the war came to an official close.

"Damascus fell last month. The Ottoman Empire will be carved up by Britain and France. Both are supposed to prepare their new possessions for self-rule. Both intend to remain in permanent command of the Suez Canal and Iranian oil. Perfide Albion has promised Palestine to the Jews, to the Arabs, and to themselves. This is going to keep us Reaping for decades. I suppose it's always nice to know you're needed.

"Sayeed says Russia is going to be in need of borrowed Reapers for years. He suggests you talk to Professor Sergei Drozdov at the Novgorod Academy."

Professor Drozdov, sounding exhausted:

"At the moment, civil war. The Germans wanted to end the fighting on their Russian front, so in 1917 they rounded up some political radicals living in exile and sent them back home to join the February Revolution. It worked. Russia dropped out of the world war and imploded. The Red Terror and the White Terror are killing thousands, mostly civilians.

"Flu's just starting to spread, but we have cholera epidemics in several cities. Looking forward, I predict continuing political purges, terrorism, disease, famine, civil war, and wars of aggression against areas which have declared independence. By the Academy class sizes, there's no end in sight.

"Please warn your Director Spears that we may need to call upon him for Reapers after the influenza has passed. Not only for Reaping, but for mentors for the newly graduated. We may not have enough Seniors left to train our students properly. The Infernal Realm is very active here, treaties be damned. So to speak. Give my regards to Avram, please. Tell him the book he sent me is excellent."

To this, Eric added all that Grell had told him shortly before her deployment. They had shared a table and several drinks at the Scythe and Skull. She was annoyed at Will, who was not happy about having to allow her the foreign assignment she very much wanted, and was diverting herself by talking about changes in the Human Realm. She believed that it would be difficult to push the women back into the traditional roles centered on housekeeping, church, sickrooms and kids.

"We don't see it so much in our Realm, because gender doesn't limit our roles nearly as much. Because we don't breed like bunnies, we don't have enough Reapers to waste half of them by dismissing them as a lesser species. Ronnie, dear, can you get me another? Thank you, sweetie.

"In the human realm, male and female roles were strictly separated into spheres which did not intersect except at the table and the bedroom. The women were the property of the men. Anything they inherited, earned or owned passed into their husband's hands at marriage. The women were viewed by custom and law as helpless, unschooled dependents – and deliberately raised to be that way – who required masculine protection and direction in even the smallest decisions.

"Then the war began.

"Within a year the women were taking the jobs that men had left behind. One simply couldn't expect a woman to drive a car or ambulance while wearing skirts long enough to catch in the pedals. Hemlines rose. The Army nurses were given ugly boxy uniforms to make them unattractive to the patients and doctors, but those uniforms still had to be designed to allow the women to perform their duties. Then the manufactories had to permit women to wear overalls because skirts were dangerous on the assembly lines.

"The Army decided to create a Land Army to farm food crops on vacant acreage, completely forgetting that they had sent all the young farmers off to war. After a few outraged jeremiads, they had to grit their teeth and hire women. In trousers. Archconservatives, spraying spit and outrage, preached that the world would surely end. It didn't, darling, it never does; it only changes.

"Now pay attention, Eric dear, I know you're nodding off while I ramble. Do you need coffee? Because this is important. All of this signals a major social change in Britain. Other countries, too. You should include this in your next weekly report to Madame – you may not draw conclusions from it, but she will. It's going to affect politics in the coming years. The ladies want the vote. They've earned it. They feel they can hardly do worse than the men have done.

"The social contract has been broken. If the women have to be kept helpless, infantile and protected, then the men must provide that protection; that's always been the deal. But these men were not present to protect their families during very bad times. The women had to do all the 'unwomanly' things that only men were supposed to do, and discovered that they could do them well. They could earn money to support their children and dependent relatives. They could survive being bombed out of their homes. They could do business. They could earn respect and a voice in their own futures.

"The money a woman earns has been hers by law since 1870. Only tradition teaches that the women's property belongs to their men. That tradition is on its way out. The social contract is being rewritten. The genie is out of the bottle.

"The men who could not protect their women also could not confiscate their pay to spend on drink or gambling or whores or get-rich-quick investment schemes. Thousands of women are working for pay that stays in their own pockets. They like it. And that is fortunate, for nearly seven hundred thousand British men will never return to their sweethearts and wives. Those women will have to support themselves or they and their children will starve.

"The maid in the great manor who slaved nineteen hours a day and was forbidden to marry has gone to the city or the factories. She will get better pay for fewer hours, build a life and wed as she pleases. There has been a steady migration of employable women away from the rural areas. There is also going to be a servant problem in all households unwilling to compete in this new reality.

"The men returning from war have seen Paris. They may not want to go back to farming someone else's land or mining someone else's coal. And think of all the butlers and footmen who are returning as noncommissioned or even commissioned officers – will they be willing to go back to being servants? If so, what if the grand houses they left are now hospitals or schools or being sold for taxes after the master and his heirs all died in the war? The roads built for moving war matériels will also allow people who have never left their villages to widen their horizons and marry outside their tiny communities. There will be fewer village idiots; there may be fewer villages.

"The soldiers are expecting to come home to the same world they left. Instead, they will find destruction, disease and rationing. They will also find self-sufficient wives and sisters and girlfriends who will reject their governance and go out dancing if they damn well want to. In its way, it is another revolution."

Eric gathered his notes, laid them out in order, rearranged them and rearranged them again. He gazed out Alan's window at the ice-slicked wall of the building next door. This report he would type at his own desk, in full view of all, just another of his weekly reports to Madame Administrator. He'd deliberately shared a few of the old ones around, to demonstrate that they were utterly boring synopses that interns could be trusted to handle.

He knew that there was a rumor going around about Alan wanting a new start somewhere else. Best not to feed it by appearing secretive.

With Grell on foreign duty, the rumor would not reach Spears quickly. Anton Wójcik was strictly business. The other likely source, Knox, had recently received a thundering scold from Spears when Alan had not been around to defuse him. It had put a cool distance between the two for the last few days.

The war would be officially over before noon tomorrow. Very important to the humans of course, but barely noticeable to the Reapers. It would be lost in the overwhelming pandemic. The deaths from illness outnumbered the war dead already.

If the war was over, did his agreement with Madame Administrator still hold? If thousands were dying in a place that was not a battlefield, could Alan be sent to serve? If thousands were dying along an expanding front that was not a battlefield, even if the death rate was comparable or greater, would she withdraw her protection from a man who had already given her all the insights she needed?

Would it matter? This, Alan could handle. He had handled it in the flu epidemic of 1899, quite well actually. As long as they came together at the end of the day, they would both be fine.

Eric would have trusted Madame, before she used him to stop an enemy. Used him in a way that was harmful to Alan and himself. Used them both. Risking their lives and sanity without warning. Necessary, she said; vital, not to her but to the Realm. Perhaps that would count in Alan's favor, the next time he did something the Realm didn't like. Which would be soon, inevitably.

Will was—hah. Will was almost as crazy as Eric would be if Alan was away on a foreign assignment. Will was Reaping with Eric now, patrolling around the big hospitals. Their primary duty was to Reap the humans who did not reach the hospital before expiring or were turned away for lack of room. These places attracted the predatory demons, but were heavily enough defended to keep most of them outside in the streets. Will was targeting these prowlers while Eric Reaped. Will tended to rush his attacks, not pausing to check for demons in hiding. Eric had bailed him out of two fights with apparently single demons who had actually been roaming with larger groups. It did seem to make him a wee bit more restrained in the office. But only a bit.

Eric reminded himself twice daily that he and Alan owed their lives to Will, who had sold himself to save them. But as things were going, he and Alan needed to get out before Will killed them both.

Therefore, until such time as Alan was ready to leave, or was forced to leave, these reports would continue. He would follow the peace process, which looked like an undeclared war among the Allies. Eric thought it would lead into another major war in twenty years – it would take that long to raise and train a new generation of soldiers while the governments formed and settled and switched alliances back and forth.

That should keep Alan safe for as much as a year while negotiations continued. In a week he and Alan would use their day off to visit the Branch and its nearby Academy which had offered them jobs. There they would leave the manuscript for Alan's book, copies of all of his lecture materials, and most of their spare cash.

The Pawnbroker had given them a letter of introduction to a colleague there who was expanding into safe deposit boxes. "He thought about banking, as well, but says it's too dangerous to get into the Human side of that business. No investing there either, unless you have the time to pay close attention. You have to be ready to pull out fast when the market starts looking a bit overripe. He's expecting a peacetime bubble which will end badly. Ten fat years, ten lean years. He reminds me of you, Slingby, predicting trouble in the future. I suggest you listen carefully to anything you can get him to say. Never invest more than you can afford to lose."

Eric thought about that for a moment. The next twenty years were going to be…interesting. From a safe distance. Ten fat years to get over the war. Ten lean years to make the next war inevitable. Twenty years altogether, to let people forget what the last one was like. Different experiences in different countries to make different theories of national advancement.

Suddenly he was very tired. But then Alan came back from his meetings, and the room was somehow brighter.

52: Mountjoy and Kendall

Alan returned as Eric gathered up his notes.

"Eric, I have good news. The Print Shop is printing a new edition of my Field Guide to Demons, for the general population of Reapers. They sent me to Auditing for an explanation of copyright and royalties."

"Aye, it's a valuable resource. It's good to make it available to everyone. Which also means if the Academy publishes its own edition they'll get nailed for plagiarism, right?"

"Yes. Even if they credit a censored version to the professor who bowdlerizes it. Like, 'based on notes by that semi-literate field hand, Reaper Umbees. Edited and corrected by that noble pedant, Respected Academician With Tenure and Without an Original Thought or Practical Experience Since Noah Gave Up Sea Travel, Professor Strabismus Stultus Fogy-Mossbrain'. Oh, stop laughing. They are perfectly capable of doing just that if their Legal Department doesn't catch them at it."

Eric moderated his cackles to a chuckle. "Aye, they would. Hope they try. It would make DePoy's whole year. Mine too. They'll be expecting you to make a written complaint they can pigeonhole. I can just see their faces when their Legal Team—all one of him—informs them they're named in a lawsuit from the London Branch Auditors."

"Revision was my main worry, actually, more than having it suppressed. I really don't want it rewritten by a conservative hack who has never left the Academy since his final exam. Mythology presented as facts. Imagine insisting that a bat demon has ichor instead of blood, when any cave or mineshaft Reaper knows better. Both Supplies and Auditing were giggling about that. If the Academy wants to use the book they'll have to buy the uncut version from London. It's a huge relief."

"Can ye make them let ye use it for yer own classes?"

Alan sobered. "I can't make them provide it with the other class materials. But they can't make me stop handing it out to my students free of charge; not unless they want to risk a public discussion that might cost them dearly. It won't be an issue until the Academy resumes its full-time schedules in 1920. By then, someone else may be teaching those classes. In which case, not my problem."

"And the Print Shop will pay ye?"

"They already have. Avram sold most of the extras from the first edition. It paid off my debt to them for the first printing. They say they'll send me some of the new ones to give away. I asked them to pay a bonus to the Admin who did the artwork, too, and they agreed. They have a pre-order from Cambridge already."

"What's the Branch's share of this arrangement?"

"The profits will be divided between Supplies and Collections, which pleases Will no end. He was downright pleasant this morning. I'll get a small royalty for each book sold. Dorrie says it's a sweet deal for London. She'll renegotiate once we've built up a demand from other Academies. Someday I want to write another Guide on the deep-water fiends that do battle with Maritime."

"Congratulations, me Light. Ye'll have money coming in."

"Oh, not really. If I get anything, it'll probably be just enough to buy you a drink. I'll drop the change into Op's petty cash drawer. We cleaned it out to finance ffoulkes' search for Evan Mountjoy, poor man. I like Evan, and I liked Nicholas Kendall. We've claimed Nick's body for burial in our own cemetery. That might be a problem. Amritsar's being a little evasive on the subject. Still no word from Singh or ffoulkes."

"Och, Mountjoy will be found. He may even get past his shock and return on his own. It happens. Don't fret, me Light. He'll be noticeable as a foreigner, so he'll leave a trail that Parkash and the Indian Junior can follow. Gorman has the scythes tracker. Effie's smart enough to let the experts take the lead while he guards their backs."

"A trail that the locals should have already followed," said Alan. "Too busy, I guess. They can't leave their Lists, which must be overwhelming."

"Aye, nae doot. Stay by, they'll be back soon."

The problem was immediately noticed in Scythes, of course, whose tracking mechanisms were the best in the Realm.

"Senior Johns, have you a moment? This is very worrying. There has been a sudden handover of equipment; a scythe, an Angel blade and a mobile tracking device. All are registered to Junior Gorman. He's in India on special assignment, hunting a lost Londoner. The equipment has not changed location, but the possessor is not Gorman. May we ask supplies if they can track his uniform? It's probably too far away, but we can try boosting their signal. And his glasses, if the Monitors can spare someone to search. But the glasses won't tell us whose face they're on."

"But it will tell us if the glasses are in the same location as our equipment. Thank you, Saunders. The Reapers working with Gorman are Ephraim ffoulkes and Parkash Singh. Ping their scythes. I think you'll find they are together. Monitor them all and record their movements."

Johns called Senior Richards of Supplies. "Marge, we have a problem. May we borrow your best tracker? There's an anomalous Reaper working far out of your normal tracking range…India, northwest end… we can boost your signal...really? Congratulations on getting that done. One of ours, Junior Scythes Agent Gorman, is working with Londoners named ffoulkes and Parkash to find a missing man. Our equipment is reporting that the person holding it is not the person to whom it was issued… Well, of course we do. Think of the alternatives if our blades fall into demonic or human hands…Thanks. Please tell me what you find."

Spectacles was a little less helpful. "Quite out of our range. We've been working on extending it, but really, only to the limits of the country. We transmit our codes to the cities the Londoners are posted to, but it's up to them to track them. India? Yes. ffoulkes? Too recent, hasn't been requested yet. Well, if he's only visiting…And we weren't notified about Gorman either, so really not our…yes, sir, at once, but it could take a week for the locals to get around to adding it to their system, and we have no control over that. Now if you have anyone else in the area who wears London glasses with the tracking feature, of course they could pick up… oh, about a mile, perhaps, unless you're talking about an upper manager..."

Johns carefully disconnected the call before he began swearing. After a short philippic and a long breath, he dialed again. "Saunders. Is Gorman's tracker still with the rest of his equipment? Good, and is the rest of his equipment continuing in close formation with that of Parkash and ffoulkes? Right. Get me an engineer. One of the more practical ones. Smithfield by preference, and tell him I want his expertise over here right now. Code Four."

The phone rang. It was Senior Richards.

"Joe, we have tracked Mr. ffoulkes and Mr. Prakash. Whoever is with them is not wearing young Gorman's uniform. We can't track this third person, so the uniform is counterfeit and covered by a detailed glamour with a don't-look-too-closely component. Gorman's uniform, I regret to say, has been destroyed. If he is still alive, he might have been stripped and dumped into the Human Realm. I could begin a search, but I don't want to disrupt other searches already in progress. May we consult with Collections?"

"Yes, at once, and I think in person. D'you think Gorman's been replaced by a demon?"

"I suppose they might have found a way to suppress the smell of brimstone. More likely to be a Reaper in demonic employ, though. In which case, there's probably a gang of demons planning to rush the Portal when the rescue party comes home. Supplies sees a lot of that. Let me call Spears. Exposure to Madame has taught him to be marginally more courteous to females than to other males. You call Humphries and ask him to put their Security on alert. Then a meeting in Spears' office."

Fortunately Duncan and Mallory were both in the area. Alan called them into Spears' office, where Richards and Johns told them what they suspected.

"Definitely a rogue Reaper," said Duncan. "Even upset about his Mentor, concentrating on the hunt, effie'd never miss a demon substitution. But Gorman is a perfect stranger and was likely replaced fairly early in the search. The tracker gadget is obviously easy to use. The rogue is actively helping with the hunt, so I think we can assume he wants to stay with the team and return here with them. Not to go much farther than the War Room, though. He probably doesn't know London Ops and definitely doesn't know Scythes. His act won't last long among people who know Gorman."

"Perhaps he applied to work here and got as far as a site visit before being rejected," offered Alan. "He might be familiar with the Operations layout, especially Personnel. Could he be hoping to be met by a Scythes superior who's not very familiar with Gorman? One who might lead him back into their area? Could he have a contact there?"

"Possibly. We do know that a demonic contract has been issued for Smithfield," said Johns. "Not the same department of the Division, but he mightn't know that. After all, he's obviously unaware that we'd know the minute the scythes and tracker changed ownership, especially all together as a unit."

"I think we're looking at a portal invasion," Mallory said. "We should prepare for one, at any rate; get the noncombatants safely out of the way, activate the defense systems. Pull in every able defender we can, be ready to look unthreatening as soon as ffoulkes asks to return. Should be within the next hour or so if Scythes' tracking is involved. The impostor will let our folks come through with anyone injured. He'll lag behind, pretending to cover their retreat, but actually delaying the closing of the portal. The demons will rush around him and carry him through."

"We want to nail the imposter immediately," said Johns, "disarming him, cancelling his access to his own scythes. He must not port away or run back through the portal."

Duncan smiled. "Then we send the demons into our traps. Maybe warn the Angels so they don't come blundering in and make it worse."

"Or get one or two here under glamours," suggested Richards. "If they lay a finger on our rogue, he'll have to answer any question with perfect truth. Supplies has done that before, and you'd be using our confinement rooms anyway to hold this little traitor. We need to find out what he did with Junior Gorman."

Alan added, "We'll need to get Mountjoy medical attention right away, too, if they've found him – drag him out of the War Room into the First Aid Room as soon as he arrives."

A quick knock on the door heralded Eric. "Alan, Smitty's here. He's talking to Dutch and Sam about some defense options he developed for Supplies. They'll guard him from attack. I've warned Medical to stand by for injuries – I feel a brawl coming. Will, I think we should fort up."

"I agree. We are overdue for an unannounced drill. At the least we shall have the practice. At best, we shall be ready to repel an invasion. While I agree that Senior Smithfield is a possible target, I believe it is far more likely that the demons want the War Room itself. They want its interlocking portals and the experts who operate them. They will attempt to clear and occupy the entire building. We must confine them to this floor. Mister Brock, you and your combatants will notify the chief officers of the other floors of this building that we are running a full alert and drill, responding to reports of a possible attack. Tell Maintenance to be ready to seal the entire structure from roof to basement if they detect demonic presence. I shall notify Madame Administrator. Senior DePoy, Senior Solway, sound the alarm and begin your processes."

As the last of Solway's Admin noncombatants left for the fortified areas behind Operations, Senior Auditor Dora Depoy pulled a switch in her office. There was a groan and rumble that reverberated throughout the ninth floor. With a solid boom, the huge filing cabinets that stretched from floor to ceiling pivoted sideways and locked into a three-foot-thick impenetrable wall. Admin and Ops were now completely separated. The rolling staircases that allowed access to the top drawers had been laid down on the floor to provide obstacles; desks had been shoved in among them. All were angled to send invaders towards the back of the building. At the farthest end of the room a portal sprang into life. On its far side an alarm sounded.

An Admin ran to lock the doors that sealed the Reapers' offices and bullpens away from Operations. The Reapers on the other side had already sent their trainees through the escape portals and sealed them. They assumed defensive positions.

Dorrie summoned her scythe, the standard Smithfield Supplies Mark III which had been issued to all the Operations Admins who had passed a certain level of combat training. Brock, Solway and Holman joined her. Bradshaw locked all office doors on the right wall; Wójcik locked Spears'. They joined the Reapers waiting outside the War Room wall.

None of this could be seen from within the War Room while its doors were closed.

Senior Johns came to stand by Alan. "I'm going to concentrate on our pretender. We want him alive and talking. D'you have a closet I can stuff him into until the fight's over?"

"Oh, yes. Brad? Show Senior Johns the broom closet. In fact, please stand by to lock it before rejoining the fray. Sir, we cannot prevent the man from porting away, though, if he can summon a dropped scythe."

"He's not going to be summoning anything. Mister Bradshaw, show me this closet and the First Aid room, please."

Half an hour later, a long-distance call came from Lahore. "Alan, can you set the portals? This end's having some problems with the waypoints. Expect five persons. We're bringing Kendall as well as Mountjoy. He's alive. Warn the nurse, both are injured."

"Five minutes, be ready. Medical is waiting. Good job, effie."

The portal hummed and glowed. There were chimes as the waypoints aligned. One was a little reluctant to activate; Alan slapped the console and hissed, "There's an Engineer in the next room. Work, or you're scrap." The waypoint came online at once with a slightly embarrassed ding.

Eric, over by the wall, grinned. "Ye need to get Will to approve enclosing the console to protect the operators. Miller's never going to forgive ye for shooing him out."

"You're right, I should have thought of that long ago. Tomorrow, maybe. Ready, everyone?"

"Ready," said quite a few enthusiastic voices from inside and outside the room. The usual number of Security officers stood along the walls. Two nurses and four orderlies stood by with stretchers. Senior Johns had tucked himself into the corner by the portal's edge. Eric was present as the titular head of Personnel, waiting to check up on his employees. Nothing that would make Parkash and ffoulkes start in surprise and possibly tip off the imposter that things were not as they should be. Outside the doors, Senior Richards had stationed Smitty with a few of her Supplies defenders, all wearing heavy backpacks with wands.

Alan opened the portal.

#black butler fanfiction

[angela-yuriko-smith]

Raising funds with 11 Acclaimed Authors to Stop Violence Against Women

"Funds raised will go towards developing and/or expanding our campaigns, programmes, and projects to end violence against women."

The Pixel Project presents the “Read For Pixels” 2022 (Fall Edition) campaign featuring livestream readings+Q&A YouTube sessions with 11 award-winning bestselling authors in support of the cause to end violence against women. Participating authors include Alan Baxter, Alastair Reynolds, Carol Goodman, Daniel H. Wilson, Jenn Lyons, Kathryn Purdie, Namina Forna, Nghi Vo, Rin Chupeco, Romina Garber,…

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