#but they were still destined from ancient egypt to battle

[romanceddawn]

tbh im really liking this duel so far, and its a shame because i've heard that ryuji and yugi's rivalry gets ironed out and the story moves on at some point but man he is such a good rival set up for yugi, they make a good parallel to yami and kaiba

#im sorry rivalshipping i love you two being rivals so much but. ryuji. #like ive seen people talk about this every once in a while but it is REALLY good #i like the whole fighting for the heir to the puzzle thing #and the fact that ryuji isnt connected to ancient egypt the way kaiba is #like ofc kaiba has a modern beef with yami and yugi #but they were still destined from ancient egypt to battle #so its a little different #i think if yugi was actually atems reincarnation (not possible but) #it could be set up with him and kaiba being the reincarnations and having that ancient beef #but the beef always seems to be specific to atem since his soul never reincarnated #so alas yugi is rival-cockblocked but at least he has ryuji to make kaiba jealous #sorry i cant not make this otp-y #devo speaks #screen caps #yugi mutou #ryuji otogi

[uniasus]

Struggling with CH 5 of Puzzlebox, because I'm slightly worried I'm making characters do things for ~drama~ than for character-driven reasons, and since I figure things out by writing them, time for a (very very long) character ramble! Potential spoilers under the break.

------------

Timaeus had been a warrior of Atlantis, cursed into a weaker dragon form, and then shoved into the monster realm where he and the other Legendary Knights were frozen until it was time to fight again. Predating Egypt, he's ancient, and his situation opened the door for other heroes of old to become future monsters (Mana, Mahad, others like Gaia?).

DMG, believing the duelist destined to wield Timaeus is the Pharaoh, brings Yami and Yugi to the monster realm when the barrier is thin. While Yami and Yugi pull the sword together, there's the assumption it's Yami Timaeus reacts to. Timaeus decides no, it's actually Yugi who is his Legonadry Duelist as soon as Yami plays the Seal.

Timaeus and the other dragons/knights are monsters that play sorta as polymerization cards. They're support aids, just like they had supported the royal family of Atlantis. Specifically, the side that wasn't power-hungry, aggressive, and dark-hearted, which Yami showed himself to be by playing the Seal.

When Yugi is gone, Timaeus throws a fit and refuses to do anything to help Yami. Eventually, he does allow Yami to summon him. In part because yes, Yami has seen the error of his ways, but also because Timaeus realizes it's his best chance to help Yugi - the person he's destined to serve now that Atlantis has fallen.

After the battle with Dartz, Timaeus had originally returned to the monster realm to help the souls that crossed over settle in but is pulled back to the Puzzle when Yugi is in danger. Timaeus would do everything he can to protect him, even kill, which the knight is no stranger to. He'd done it in Atlantis, and to him, duels were actual battles and not card games. Plus, the ghosts present a huge threat to Yugi.

There's a bond between Timaeus and Yugi that makes him protective, loyal, and fierce and he doesn't understand Yami's hesitation to do what's needed to protect Yugi. There's a bond there too, he can tell. It bugs him because he feels like Yami should be like him. Protect Yugi at all costs, but Yami won't. There's a line he will no longer cross and he feels it makes Yami an inefficient and inferior protector. If only the connection between him and Yugi had been first, because Timaeus can sense Yami is his priority. Yami is who he turns to, reaches for, wants, hides behind, and it should be Timaeus Yugi looks to for protection.

So he has to prove it. He knows what's going on and will make sure the problem is solved and not just kicked down the road. Kudos to Yami for not completely giving in to darkness, but sometimes you have to use it for good. And people like Timaeus have to because Yugi will not. Should not.

Yami is still reeling from the fight with Dartz on all levels. He wants to be with Yugi all the time, appearing to him in spirit form more frequently, talking to him more, leaving his room more too. He missed him desperately, feels guilty for not listening to him, and firmly believes that Yugi makes him a better person. Not just Yugi, but everyone. It was the new memories and connection to people he's made since he'd been released that allowed him to beat Dartz and the Orichalcos. That pointed him toward a goal/reason for his restoration - defeating all the darkness in the world.

And you don't do that with more darkness. You do it with light. With forgiveness and acceptance and a wide open heart (ah! series title! I'm so clever).

Yami feels even more intensely toward Yugi at the start of the series - he's apologized, Yugi's forgiven him, and while he doesn't see himself as good as Yugi sees him he is now officially Yugi's partner in every way. He gave Yugi an Egyptian collar. They're a done deal.

But Yami wants to prove he's worthy of it. He doesn't quite feel like he is, Yugi will have to work on it, and Yami is trying to be the man Yugi sees him as / wants him to be. No more Shadow Games. The power of friendship, strength in numbers. Accepting the negative parts of people. No killing.

That's really hard in Puzzlebox. The threats are very specific to Yugi, there's no greater world threat, and this isn't a situation where they can work together in a manner they're used to. He doesn't know what's happening, doesn't know how to fix it, and Timaeus shows up swinging with a solution that works but goes against everything Yugi is and thus against everything Yami wants to be. It bothers him because in Timaeus's sword, Yami sees his mind crush, and Timaeus is goading him.

Comments about how Timaeus is the better protector, about how Yugi is his, are all things Yami reads as threats. A threat to Yami's relationship to Yugi, a threat to Yugi's heart, and a threat to Yami's desire to be better because what if Timaeus is right? What if death is the only answer here? What if Yami can't walk the path of light he wants to keep Yugi and their friends safe? What would that do to his relationship with Yugi? Especially as Timaeus's methods are something he shows visible disdain for.

Yugi is thrilled to just be back in his body and is beyond enthusiastic to now be in a relationship with Yami. They still have a lot to figure out, including roles in the bedroom, but a bigger concern is the sudden invasion of other people in the Puzzle. He'd always been a little disturbed by where the hallways went and thus never explored them, and that might have been in error.

Despite Yami and Yugi having their soul rooms invaded, it's only Yugi who has felt the impact of that - including an injury extreme enough he's not sure he could flee at the next sign of danger. He's highly dependent on Yami to handle the problem. Thankfully, Yami has the help of DM and Timaeus, but Timaeus instantly puts Yugi on edge.

While Yugi is used to Dark Magician appearing on and off in Yami's room, something Yugi relates to Yami's past, he can't think of a reason for Timaeus to be there. Plus, he's spectacularly independent. DM isn't necessarily programmed, but he reacts to Yami and seems to have areas he's protecting. Timaeus showed up unannounced, in Yugi's soul room of all places, and has shown no qualms about killing the ghosts running around. In fact, he seems to have a plan to go kill all of them.

Yugi balks - violence is wrong and he's not entirely sure all the souls are malicious. But Timaeus shows a fierce protectiveness he has a hard time dismissing. He likes it, that feeling of belonging to someone. He belongs to Yami, nothing will change that, but it's a heady feeling all the same. Being special. Being protected. (related to having been bullied so much and his insecurity)

There's a lot of overlap between Timaeus and Yami. And there's a nudge in Yugi's chest, not a bond like with Yami but something, that makes him realize he can't just let Timaeus go in an effort to curb Yami's jealousy. Timaeus is staying. Yugi tempered Yami, can he do the same with Timaeus? What does the bond with Timaeus mean? Is this someone else he has to help, just like he helps Yami, and will that delay getting Yami his memories back? He's getting sick of danger, he'll admit it, but if Timaeus is a sign of something else beyond these ghosts, he'll still do his best.

#yugioh #timaeus #yami yugi #yugi muto #puzzlebox #wide open heart #character study #wip #my fanfiction

[dnightshade0]

Voltron reincarnation AU: Ancient Egyptian mummy lance (aka Sekhmet)

If you like this, leave a comment and/or send feedback.

In this AU, lance is the reincarnation of an ancient Egyptian street urchin named “Sekhmet”

These pics are Sekhmet as a reanimated mummy. Yeah I know, he doesn’t look all decayed and dead looking for a mummy. That’s because my version is meant to look something similar to the mummy from the movie “night at the museum”. I wanted lance to still look like lance (in all his handsome glory lol)

Though the in story reason is because of the blue lion. You see, when Sekhmet died, the blue lion used her mysterious power to “preserve” his body so that it never decays.

The reason why he becomes a reanimated mummy is a bit of a long story 😓

Taking place at the time when team voltron returns to earth to find it invaded by galra, the team is in the middle of a fight when a ziforge cannon powers up to attack Keith in his lion. Lance notices the oncoming blast and at the last moment knocks Keith out of the path of the beam (like the selfless self sacrificing guy lance is. And much like what lance did for Allura at the omega shield. You can see where this is going. 😖) the blast hits lance instead and because of the intensity of the cannon, it vaporizes lance (just like what happened to shiro in the fight with zarkon)

The team is devastated at the loss of their blue paladin and are forced to jump right into another battle without getting any time to morn.

Though while the other paladins are heading into a fight, the blue lion takes Allura elsewhere. Everyone including Allura is confused as to why the blue lion is flying off in a seemingly random direction. Though in time Allura discovers that the lion has a destination in mind. Egypt…

The blue lion lands at the entrance of an old unusual temple in the shape of a lion. (a sphinx)

Allura is then given mental instructions from her lion to go into the temple and when inside the anti-chamber, she is instructed to open the sarcophagus and take the mummy inside. Allura is put off at the idea of handling a corpse at first but does as instructed and they both return to the garrison with the mummy.

The team is just as confused as Allura is, not understanding why the blue lion would want to raid an ancient tomb to steal a corpse.

The red lion then sends Keith mental instructions. Keith doesn’t know what to think but does as red asks. He takes out his marmora blade and cuts away the wrappings on the mummy’s face.

Everyone is shocked upon what they see… they expect to see a rotted dried out face. What they didn’t expect to see is lance’s face… lance’s very much not rotting dead face.

After this, the red and blue lion reveal to Allura what they want her to do with the body.

Apparently, much like what black did with shiro, the red lion saved lance’s consciousness inside it. And they wanted Allura to do what she did with shiro and his clone. They wanted Allura to put lance’s consciousness into the mummy.

And she did.

When she was done, the mummy opened his eyes and sat up as if he just woke up looking around in confusion.

The rest of the team immediately surrounded him in a big group hug, so glad to have lance back.

But he just looked at them and asked who they all were…

As it turns out, when Allura put lance’s consciousness into Sekhmet’s body, she ended up bring lance back AS Sekhmet!

So for a while they spend time learning the identity of this mummy doppelgänger and who he is while also trying to figure out how to get lance back.

As a mummy, Sekhmet’s powers include regeneration and the ability to turn into a swarm of scarabs.

His weapon of choice is an Egyptian lance which I can’t find the name for but have a picture of.

—————————-

Click this link To read the first part of my voltron mummy AU short story that reveals Sekhmet origin.

-> Voltron reincarnation AU <-

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#voltron legendary defender #voltron #voltron lance #lance mcclain #lance #voltron fanfic #voltron fanfiction #fanfic idea #fanfiction

[izdatazn]

S.U.I.T.S - Terran's Hidden War

TERRAN 22 - MERCENARY

"Isabel walked into the central room and asked, 'What's the news saying?’"

I replied, "The usual updates on SUITS activities. It seems there was a major battle on the East Coast of Canada. Luckily, we came out victorious but suffered heavy losses."

"Any other news on the SUITs net?" Isabel joined Vivian on the couch.

I continued, "We recently discovered and shut down another hidden production center in Indonesia and Tibet. Both were quite significant."

"That's good news," Isabel said as she sipped her drink. "The more production and distribution centers we take down, the less we'll see on the streets and in mainstream news."

"And our 'secret society' is still trending on human internet since the Shenzhen attack," I added. "They keep replaying footage of enemy battleships crashing into cities and linking secret battles at various locations. Luckily for us, it seems like our 'secret society' is seen as protectors of Earth rather than invaders."

"I've seen the polls," Isabel continued. "In the first few weeks, there was a lot of distrust towards SUITs. But as time went by and more public battles were witnessed, it became clear that our 'secret society' is actually aligned with humans."

Suddenly, a red light illuminated the room. Viktor spoke up, saying, "Not to interrupt your conversation but we have company."

"What do you see on radar?" I asked as we all dispersed to our designated positions. I joined Viktor at the driver's seat.

"There are hundreds of land-based vehicles and a few dozen air force units heading our way," Miyoung answered while firing a few initial shots from her gun.

"How much longer until we reach our next destination?" I asked. Today is Thursday, July 18th, 2079, and we are relentlessly pursuing Zaporg.

"In a few hours," Isabel replied. "We recently received information that Zaporg was seen in Salt Lake City. Safiya's team is trailing him from a safe distance. It seems he has no plans to leave anytime soon."

"Do you think Big Bertha can handle him?" I questioned.

Viktor chuckled and said, "You are underestimating Big Bertha, Kobayashi."

"If Zaporg is sending more of his people to stop us, then this must be an important meeting," I pondered aloud. "Nehir, are you listening?"

"Dragut is prepared for battle," Nehir responded confidently. "We will provide assistance to the best of our abilities. They won't be able to stop both of us."

Safiya Wahba was born in 360 BC in ancient Classical Greece, which is now modern-day Italy. Her family enjoyed wealth and maintained a close relationship with Aristotle and Alexander II of Macedon, famously known as Alexander the Great. Growing up alongside Alexander, Safiya eventually became his trusted military advisor and closest aide when he ascended to the throne. Together, they conducted ambitious military campaigns throughout Western Asia and Egypt. Tragically, Safiya was assassinated in 321 BC, just a year after Alexander's demise in his palace.

Both vehicles fired several warning shots at the approaching enemy forces, while the auto guns prepared themselves, taking aim ahead. Isabel and Harmony readied themselves as they launched their smaller aircraft from Big Bertha's garage. They were joined by one support aircraft from the Dragut, flying above them.

A few minutes of silence passed before our enemies began to attack us from both the ground and sky. In response, we decided to apply pressure and moved closer to them. Amidst the chaos surrounding us, Big Bertha and the Dragut endured heavy damage. However, our vehicle successfully withstood a frontal assault when a medium-sized enemy vehicle accelerated forward and crashed into Big Bertha. The crash did not disable our frontal shield, allowing us to emerge victorious in this encounter.

Viktor found it amusing that they were trying to stop us. I joined Vivian in the garage, where she took the driver's seat and I sat in the gunner seat. The garage door opened, and our land vehicle slid out into the open after Vivian released the locks. In this chaotic battle surrounding us, I joined Nehir's land vehicle. Taking care of the strangers tailing our vehicles was our priority while Vivian focused on staying close to Big Bertha and avoiding multiple enemy vehicles simultaneously.

"How are you holding up, Vivian?" I asked.

She was so focused on avoiding crashing into enemy vehicles that she couldn't even hear me as I continued to eliminate enemies from behind. Suddenly, a powerful energy weapon struck my right shoulder from above, causing me to be thrown off my vehicle and tumble several times. The others hadn't noticed my absence until Isabel spotted me from above.

"Kobayashi isn't surrounded. Guys, turn around," Isabel said.

"Forget about me," I replied, crawling to my feet. "I'll catch up with you later." I gripped the hilt of my sword and watched as a dozen of my enemies drove around me. An enemy vehicle changed course in front of me followed by another one behind it and yet another one behind the second vehicle. I took a step to my right and held my stance.

I swung my sword as soon as the first enemy came within reach, slicing their vehicle in half. However, the second vehicle collided with me, causing me to momentarily lose consciousness in mid-air. As I descended, I landed on top of the third vehicle and managed to kill its driver. Swiftly kicking my enemy off the vehicle, I took control and commandeered it for myself. Soon after, I eliminated the second vehicle that was directly ahead of me.

"That really hurt," I gasped in pain. Accelerating my newly acquired vehicle, I found myself being pursued by my remaining enemies. Doing everything in my power to evade incoming fire from both above and behind me, I gradually caught up with my teammates.

Suddenly, something descended from the sky and crashed onto the ground just ahead of me. The resulting dust cloud obstructed visibility, making it difficult to discern what had hit the ground. Out of nowhere, an object was hurled towards me from within the dust cloud. Reacting swiftly, I leaned my vehicle to the left side just in time to avoid a collision with debris

I watched as a figure emerged from the thick dust and stood in front of me. The figure was clad in futuristic armor that covered its entire body. It drew a sword from behind its back, which emitted a vibrant light. At first, I mistook it for an energy sword, but soon realized it was something else entirely. With lightning speed, the figure swung its weapon and effortlessly tore my vehicle in half. As a result, I was flung forward, slammed onto the ground, and violently tumbled multiple times before finally coming to a stop.

"Bertha, what is this thing?" I groaned while slowly rising to my feet as my enemies closed in on me once again.

"It is a sub-species known as a Salazar from the planet Sochuvis in quadrant 3 of the Milky Way Galaxy," Bertha informed me.

"Is this one of Zaporg's henchmen?" I asked.

"The database indicates that it is unknown," Bertha replied.

"Zaporg must be really irritated with us if he went as far as hiring someone or something to prevent us from following him," Viktor chuckled.

"Bertha, analyze," I said as I unsheathed my sword. "Gather any information you can about our opponent."

"Understood."

"Viktor, do you have a name for this individual?"

I stood my ground and observed as it swung its sword around me. I immediately noticed something unique about its weapon - it emitted sparks when swung, with a part of it slamming into the ground. The weapon seemed to retract and extend while in motion.

"I'll call him Sparky," Viktor suggested.

"I don't like that name," Miyoung objected.

"Regardless, we will turn around and come to your aid as soon as possible," Viktor diverted the subject. "It's not ideal for our leader to be surrounded by the enemy."

Taking a small step forward, Sparky suddenly vanished into thin air and reappeared above me, swinging his weapon halfway towards me. I swiftly defended myself, but he vanished again upon contact with me.

"Sparky it is then," I whispered. There was an electric charge in the air that made it feel heavy around me. He repeated this pattern of appearing where I was vulnerable, attacking swiftly, and vanishing just as quickly. I did my best to evade or block his assaults; some were successful while others grazed my body. The sensation of electricity would course through me when his weapon came dangerously close to hitting me; I could sense it instantly. Initially slow-paced clashes gradually escalated in speed until his attacks became too fast for me to keep up with.

Sparky suddenly materialized in front of me, swinging his weapon at me once more. He relentlessly clashed with me until he finally broke through my defense. Swiftly, Sparky wrapped his weapon around me, pulling me closer to him. Our eyes met for a brief moment.

"Zaporg paid a hefty sum to eliminate you," he hissed. "Prepare for an electric discharge."

His weapon illuminated and sent jolts of electricity coursing through my body for a few seconds. Afterward, Sparky unwrapped his weapon from around me and retracted it. I collapsed to my knees, struggling to keep my eyes open. Meanwhile, Sparky stepped forward and positioned himself in front of me, with his weapon by his side. He swung it again.

Suddenly, another figure appeared wielding an even brighter weapon which collided with Sparky's mid-swing, causing him to stumble back a few feet.

"Just in the nick of time," the newcomer chuckled.

I gasped for breath and exclaimed, "Took you long enough, Nehir."

As consciousness faded away rapidly from within me, Miyoung materialized beside me and swiftly carried me away from the ongoing battle.

"Sparky! How about a fair fight?" Nehir twirled his sword and retracted his rounded shield.

Sparky growled at him before vanishing into thin air. Nehir turned abruptly towards the left as soon as Sparky reappeared there again—clashing their weapons together repeatedly over the next few minutes—an endless cycle where Nehir skillfully defended himself using both sword and shield.

"Sparky," Nehir smirked confidently while blocking yet another attack flawlessly. "You'll have to do better than repeating the same technique over and over again—I'm not Kobayashi."

Sparky materialized behind him and swung his weapon, only to be met by Nehir's shield, which deflected the blow and forced Sparky backward. Seizing the opportunity, Nehir stepped forward and successfully made a small cut on Sparky's chest armor with his weapon. Both combatants noticed a faint wisp of steam escaping from the newly formed gash.

As Nehir retracted his shield, he explained, "You may be wondering how I managed to break through your strategy. Firstly, I have significantly more experience as I have lived longer than Kobayashi." A chuckle escaped Nehir's lips. "Secondly, you leave behind subtle traces of electricity throughout your movements. I can anticipate your actions before you even appear."

"Although you have defeated Kobayashi," Nehir stated confidently while slightly lowering his shield, "you will find it quite challenging to overcome me." He glanced at Sparky challengingly. "Now come at me, Sparky.”

"Kobayashi received a light shock and passed out. Nehir playfully suggested that we should stick together to prevent him from getting lost," Nehir teased.

Isabel threw an ice pack at me, which I caught and placed on my head. Ignoring her, I joined Harmony, Vivian, Isabel, and Miyoung in the living room.

"Anyways, what was I fighting against?" I asked. "Sparky told me he was paid in credits, so he must be a mercenary.” I was in a meeting with Asuka, Daisuke, and Master Shiro. A full-body hologram displayed Sparky's description. It is Friday, July 19th, 2079.

Shiro spoke up. "We call them STARS Mercenary Corp; they are not aligned with the Deck of 52. They receive the highest payment for their work. They've been around longer than me."

"So they're disposable," I groaned. "Got it. Where do they mainly operate?"

"Unknown," Shiro answered. "But I can tell you their temporary main headquarters is in Xeanides."

"And Xeanides is this neutral lawless planet filled with both the best and worst species," I continued. "Hearing about that place makes me never want to visit it. Thank you for the information, Shiro."

"Anytime," he replied before signing out.

I changed the subject: "So what else have I missed?"

"Do you want the bad news or the good news?" Daisuke asked.

"Are both of them significant?" I asked skeptically since his mention of major bad news worried me.

"Are both of these serious news stories?" I inquired, feeling uneasy about the major bad news he was about to reveal.

"Safiya and her team are once again tracking Zaporg after a significant incident in Salt Lake City. Zaporg destroyed a major production center for Obitus Clarus beneath Temple Square. The public news media has labeled it an act of terrorism, but SUITs responded quickly by establishing a quarantine bubble," he explained.

"Why a quarantine bubble?" I asked.

"Because we already know that Kyeclate is an unstable and dangerous drug, whether in gas or stable form, for human use. It was being produced beneath Temple Square where the Obitus Clarus poison was also present," he clarified. I grasped his meaning when he continued, "Having two alien drugs in one location is rare enough, but what's even worse is that Zaporg knows they are both in gas form."

"Airborne," I exclaimed.

"That's correct," Daisuke revealed, "it will have an impact on millions of people residing in the city and its surrounding areas. Seunghoon is currently working on finding a legal remedy for this combination, while my team here on Earth is tirelessly working to develop a temporary solution to assist those who will be affected. We will be working non-stop to create a suppressant. In the meantime, your focus should be on tracking Zaporg while our medical team combats this situation."

"What about the other good news?" I inquired.

Asuka spoke up, saying, "The Eternal Empress has been making progress in uniting Africa against the King of Clubs."

"Eternal Empress?" I asked.

"Her name is Noxolo Xaba, the Queen of United South Africa. The Earth media has dubbed her as Noxolo Xaba, The Immortal Eternal Empress of United Africa."

"It seems a bit excessive," Miyoung commented.

"At times like these, Noxolo will call for assistance when needed. But for now, she has managed to conquer a quarter of Africa from the King of Clubs."

"Is Africa's Eon War finally coming to an end?" I questioned.

"According to our intelligence network, the King of Clubs is desperate and seeking reinforcements in order to halt Noxolo's campaign. We have a few more months until those reinforcements arrive. Until then, keep following Zaporg."

"And where is he headed next?" I asked.

"To Vegas."

[readingat3amisnormal]

The heat was stifling, rough sand streaking across the dunes. Whirlwinds whorled in the distance, roving across the alien landscape. Against the mayhem of the pre-dawn desert, a man stood still and silent.

His hair, shaggy and unkempt from the long trek, billowed in the dry desert wind, as did his bell-bottom trousers and chic white jacket. Absently, his fingers began snapping. He whispered subconsciously, “a-dooba-doobie…”

As the sun finally broke the horizon, Elvis Presley was cowed into silence.

He stood at the peak of a sand dune, staring out at the gaping maw of the Sahara. Endless dunes, stretching as far as the eyes could see. This was it- the real deal.

The edge of his mouth curled into his characteristic smirk.

“Come now, Nenet!” he called gleefully. “We’re almost there!”

Nenet, a sprightly, athletic young woman who did not currently look it, crested the dune and collapsed onto the sand. She’d been guiding tourists across the Sahara for the better part of five years, and none had been quite as… ambitious as this strange, strange man.

Rather than go to any of the usual tourist destinations, he was insistent on travelling off the beaten path- and dragging her with him. She made sure that they were never more than half a day’s walk away from civilization at any time, though that was becoming increasingly difficult as they progressed further into the desert.

“What’s the plan for today?” she panted, placing her hands on her knees under the weight of their luggage.

“Well, sweetheart, we’re almost at where I wanna be!” he glanced down at the compass clutched in his hand. “That-a-ways!”

His white cowbody boots jived along the sand, a fine sheen of sweat clinging to him like so many overenthusiastic fans. The dust had been quite annoying the first couple of days, but he was used to it by now.

And hey, it was better than what he’d left behind.

He’d loved it once- the fame, the fortune, the drama. But lately… the magic had faded. He’d lost his drive.

Until one fateful day…

He strummed lazily on his guitar, staring off into the distance. His thumb caught on the D string with a painful twang that echoed all around the bustling city square. It was out of tune, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

So many people, going about their day. Some of them looked up at him, most didn’t. They’d grown used to him by now. He disliked it.

“Mr Presley, act your age and get down from there!”

He glanced down at the balding city official that was calling to him, and in a moment of fear touched the top of his head.

“Oh thank goodness…” he removed his fingers from his luscious curls, then went back to strumming. “You ain’t nuthin’ but a…”

“Mr Presley, you will get down from that lion this instant!” the official stamped his foot to punctuate his point.

Elvis groaned miserably. “Awwww…”

As the official tapped his foot against the ground, Elvis dropped down from the lion. The guitar was rudely snatched away, and he was instructed to go wait in the library until his lawyers arrived.

Ah, shoot.

He grooved miserably through the gilded doors and into the lobby, sincerely disappointed that this so-called ‘grand institution’ couldn’t even afford a concierge.

“Stupid government workers…” he muttered under his breath. Like clockwork, a receptionist raised a finger to their lips.

He growled in frustration and stomped over to one of the desks. Books of various shapes, sizes and colours were strewn across it, but one drew his eye- a gilded tome, with a strange cat-person doing a pose on the front.

He reached for it before he caught himself- he wasn’t some nerd! He was a rock ‘n roll cool kid! The only reason he was even in the library was to wait until the city official left the lion statue unsupervised.

Resolute, he turned his nose up and looked away.

Although…

With trepidation, as though he were defusing a bomb, he flipped the book open with one finger. It opened to a page with intricate illustrations and an unfairly fascinating title- The Search for Tutankhamun’s Tomb.

Well, one book couldn’t hurt. He reasoned.

Four hours later, with the sun going down and his next show in fifteen minutes, he stood before one of the receptionists with the book in hand.

“Now I ain’t got no bread on me right this second, miss.” He shuffled nervously. “Spent it all on some candy from this store a couple blocks down…”

“That’s alright, dearie!” She croaked, hand trembling as she accepted the book. “Why, you don’t need to pay for books at the library! You just need a library card, and I can get that for you just now! What’d you say your name was, young man?”

He jumped through all the hoops gracefully, accepted the card, the book, and a little golden star he’d gotten for being a good boy, and headed off with a smile on his face and nary a care in the world.

From there, it had been a simple matter of devouring every book on Egypt and Egyptology he could get his hands on. He’d gotten a new personal idol- Gertrude Bell- a new purpose- find Tutankhamun’s Tomb (or any tomb, for that matter)- and a new drive. He’d kept the white coat and bell-bottomed trousers, although he’d swapped out the guitar for a khaki hat.

Nothing would stop him now. Not even his dwindling finances, though the riches he would definitely find would help him along.

His experience in the field had been entirely academic until he’d bit the bullet, travelled out to Cairo, and hired Nenet to act as his guide and translator. She’d kept him sane when hunch after hunch had proven to be incorrect and had gotten them out of some sticky situations.

Now, three weeks into what was shaping up to be the greatest adventure of his lifetime, they were so close he could taste it.

“Mr. Elvis,” Nenet said, straining under the weight of their pack. “It is of course unwise to lick the walls of an ancient ruin.”

Elvis pulled away from the wall, smacking his lips. “Well, it isn’t bone, that’s for sure.”

“It’s sandstone, Mr. Elvis. I could’ve told you that.”

“Ah, but I’ve now learned it, Nenet! Groovy!”

Despite the weight on her shoulders, Nenet shrugged. “Whatever.”

After a couple more taste tests they ended up in a cul-de-sac of sorts. Walls rose around them, and stairs led down to an intimidating looking door.

With some trepidation, Nenet followed Elvis down the stairs. He stared at the door for a good half-minute, then snapped his fingers.

“I will have no locked cupboards in my life!” he proclaimed. “Gertrude Bell, unsourced.”

Nenet leaned against the wall to take some of the weight off her back. Unbeknownst to her, the pressure of her shoulder against one of the tiles caused a centuries-old mechanism to spring into action. Gears grinded, pulleys pulled, and the end result of this mechanical medley was that the door opened just as Elvis touched the tip of his tongue to it.

He paused, staring into the darkness. The air was cool but dusty, and smelled vaguely of death.

He turned back to Nenet with a smug smile on his face. “C’mon, snake, let’s rattle!”

And with that, he pranced joyfully into the underworld.

~

Nifty…

Elvis tapped a specialised tool against the hieroglyphics on the wall. They were mostly your standard fare- “death awaits those cretins who enter”, “do not desecrate this hallowed ground, wretched mortal”, “remember to feed the cats, honey, I know you always forget XO”- but this one was different.

“Don’t… dead… open… inside.” He read off. “Hmmm…”

He considered it, ignoring Nenet’s grunts as she tried to pull their bags through a narrow doorway.

“So,” he reasoned, “don’t die, and open whatever’s inside this door? Perfect!”

He pushed the door open and ran through, close to giggling with delight. Oh, this was so much fun! He really was an explorer!

“It's so nice to be a spoke in the wheel, one that helps to turn, not one that hinders!” he called out to Nenet. “Gertrude Bell, From the Mountains to the Sea!”

As his voice faded into the distance, Nenet finished pulling their bags through. If only the oaf hadn’t insisted on bringing a to-scale sundial!

With a frustrated groan, she turned to the doors, which were slowly swinging closed behind Elvis.

“Don’t open, dead inside.” She read.

She blinked.

“Hal-kuh. Mr. Elvis! Mr. Elvis, it’s dangerous!”

Damnit, the oaf was annoying but she couldn’t leave him to die! With a deep breath, she steeled herself, grabbed something from his pack, and ran after him.

~

The thing to realise about Elvis Presley’s Egyptology phase is that it was entirely inevitable. A life of screaming fans is really, really not all it’s hyped up to be.

When he’d started out performing, he could hardly bear it. Over the years, it had taken a toll- created a… sort of psychological switch in his head. 

So how would he react if, as he walked down a dusty passageway in the hopes of finding something exciting at the end, he heard Nenet screaming from behind him?

To put it simply, Elvis had a Pavlovian reaction.

To put it simpler, he was back in showman mode.

“Ooooh, sounds like somebody’s excited!” he boogied, sashaying his hips as he made his way towards the sound.

Nenet screamed again, louder this time.

“Somebody’s real excited, hoo boy! Hot diggity-dog, I can’t wait to see what’s causin’ this!”

Elvis swaggered around the corner, ready to put on a show for his fans, and happened upon a small nook with a sarcophagus propped up against the wall. It was shaking about, reminiscent of a fan that couldn’t keep still from excitement.

“Well, what do we have here!” he called out enthusiastically, unlatching the door of the sarcophagus and coming face to face with a mummy.

He really wasn’t equipped to deal with this sort of thing. Neither was the mummy, come to think of it. Point is- when faced with these extenuating circumstances, Elvis did the only thing he could think to do.

“Are ya a fan?” he asked.

The mummy screamed the scream of a thousand crows.

Elvis screamed with it.

Behind him, Nenet screamed once more. This time, Elvis recognised it for what it was- a battle cry- and moved out of the way.

She brought an ElvisTM Baseball Bat down upon the mummy’s head with so much force that it disintegrated into kindling. “Ah, shitty American products!”

Nenet dumped what was left of the bat onto the mummy, slammed the sarcophagus lid shut, grabbed Elvis by the wrist, and pulled him down the hallway.

“Hey!” he protested. “I brought that bat along for emotional support!”

“Doesn’t matter now, does it?” she responded, pausing at an intersection before pulling him roughly to the left. “We need to get out of here now- that thing won’t stop until it’s killed us both. I got the drop on it once- I doubt I’ll be that lucky again.”

“But-” before he could argue further, the screeching started again. The hallway felt like it stretched forever, and Elvis’ pulse quickened.

Nenet cast a panicked glance behind her. “It’s not slowing down. We’ll need to hold it off. When I get us back to our pack, take out that big sundial and throw it in its path, yes?”

Elvis, already out of breath, blinked.

“Now!” she flung him around a corner, and he found himself back in front of the door with the strange hieroglyphics.

After a second’s hesitation (and another scream from the mummy), his brain kicked in.

He scrambled to the pack, pulled the sundial out, and dragged it into the corridor. The mummy was about halfway down, running towards them at an alarming speed. Before it could scream, Elvis tossed the sundial like an Olympic Disk thrower.

It took both the mummy’s legs out, then shattered against the floor. Elvis winced- it had been pretty expensive. But then again, at least it had saved their lives.

The mummy got to its knees, screamed, and began crawling forwards.

“Ah.” Nenet’s face was unnaturally pale. “We’ll have to run again, Mr Elvis.”

Without waiting for confirmation, she turned. “And leave your pack behind!”

The mummy, moving considerably slower now, screamed once more. Elvis’ instincts kicked in again, but for once in his life he caught himself. He was an Egyptologist, for goodness sake! He needed to act like it!

He thought back to all the books on Egyptian explorers he’d read. All the mummies he’d seen in those new-fangled Universal Pictures. He recognised the scream, recognised the pain.

What would Gertrude Bell do? He wondered.

There is nothing more difficult to measure than the value of visible emotion, she’d say to him- as she had on page 42 of From the Mountains to the Sea.

As Nenet poked her head out from the doorway with the intention of demanding he hurry up, he moved towards the mummy.

“MR ELVIS- actually you know what, I tried.” Nenet shrugged, and made to leave.

“All these years…” Elvis realised, dropping to his knees and beckoning the mummy closer. “Trapped down here, all alone.”

The mummy hissed, holding its desiccated hands up to its eyes.

Nenet, who was ready to make a break for it any second now, watched in horror as her client ran a finger tenderly along the mummy’s jaw. “It’s alright.” he soothed.

With an awful, keening screech, the mummy threw itself into Elvis’ arms and did a decent approximation of a sob.

“There, there.” Elvis stroked the mummy’s head, rocking it back and forth. “We’re here for you now, aren’t we, Nenet?”

Nenet’s eyes widened as she realised what Elvis wanted her to do. “W-with all due respect, sir-”

“Group hug!” he growled merrily, reaching into the doorway and pulling her into an embrace alongside the mummy. After a moment’s hesitation, she patted the ancient creature on its head. “It’s… alright?” she asked.

It latched an arm around her and wept loudly.

~

They emerged from the tomb a trio- Nenet, carrying some assorted riches and other sundry, Elvis, and the mummy, being carried bridal style by the intrepid Egyptologist.

“I’m gonna take you back to the US of A!” Elvis promised the mummy. “And I’ll take ya to a baseball game and show ya that baseball bats ain’t all that bad! And you can tell me more about your culture and all! Don’t that sound fun?”

The mummy purred in approval. Nenet, who still hadn’t gotten over her client bonding with an eldritch horror from an ancient tomb, shaded her eyes against the setting sun. She had to admit, the ruby-encrusted bracelets really complemented her complexion.

“We will have to make camp tonight,” she said, “and by tomorrow I will get us to the nearest town. From there you can rent a jeep to get back to Cairo, Mr. Elvis. And company.”

Elvis nodded. “Miss Nenet, it’s been a pleasure working with ya so far. What’d ya say I take you on in a more… official capacity?”

Nenet wrinkled her nose. “Are you planning on adopting me?”

“Nah, I meant hire you as my guide for all future archaeological expeditions and the like!”

“Hmmm…” she considered it. “What’s your offer?”

He listed off a number. It had lots of zeroes.

“Done.”

The mummy stared out at the sunset… the first sunset it had seen in centuries. And for the first time in centuries… it felt at peace.

“To wake in that desert dawn was like waking in the heart of an opal. ... See the desert on a fine morning and die - if you can.” Elvis whispered reverentially, following the mummy’s gaze. “Gertrude Bell, The Desert and the Snow.”

Both Nenet and the mummy nodded. They stood there awhile, watching the sun dip below the horizon and inky shadows spread like water.

“Ya know…” Elvis mentioned. “I feel a song coming on.”

“Mr. Elvis, no.” Nenet deadpanned.

“Mr. Elvis, yes! Wiiiiise, meeeen, saaaaaaaaaaay… only fooooools…”

#elvis presley #elvis #Elvis Presley In: The Search for Tutankhamun’s Tomb #egyptology #writing #i was at most three seconds away from bursting into laughter the entire time i was reading this aloud #egypt #mummy

[theparanormalperiodical]

9 REAL Curses That You Gotta Know About - Even If You’re Not Exploring An Ancient Egyptian Tomb This Weekend

It’s the 17th February 1923.

We are somewhere in Cairo, staving off the heat of an Egyptian Autumn.

We’re waiting. We’ve been waiting since 1915.

In a silent, swift moment the seal to Tutankhamun’s tomb is broken, and one of the most valuable pieces of history is finally passed to the hands of the historians.

But it wasn’t just the secrets of the past that were unleashed when the seal was broken.

Within 12 years, 8 of the explorers that accessed the tomb were dead. By taking their first steps into this place of rest they had unknowingly released what was to be known as the Curse of the Pharaohs.

Ever since the 19th century British explorers first disturbed the pharaohs, a legend gained ground that claimed anyone who disturbed an Ancient Eypgtian mummy was to experience serious misfortune, illness, or even death.

And ever since they returned home with their spoils of the treasure was this claim proven correct, especially with the supposed curses detailed within the once hidden tombs themselves.

EDIT: Obviously this curse is founded more on the British media sensationalising exoticism, a common tactic of Imperialists in their racist agenda, so be far more wary of that than any old legend.

But what exactly was this curse? And were there any other curses that we should be aware of before we break into any other uncharted tombs?

What Exactly Is A Curse?

It’s founded some of our favourite urban legends and it is still used to stereotype certain communities - but it turns out that they’ve had this reputation for centuries.

In official terms, a curse is a wish that imposes adversity on a person or group of people, an object, or a place. Specifically, it is related to wishes made effective by supernatural circumstances, whether they’re enforced by spirits, or conjured via magic.

Regional divergences also exist, with jinxes belonging to African American Hoodoo, and hexing being a resident of Germany.

Convinced you’ve been cursed?

You have two options if you want to break the spell. One, you can either perform elaborate rituals specific to said-curse, or two, you can pray, like, a lot.

How helpful.

Not sure how you got cursed?

You’ve most likely encountered one of three things:

There’s the cursed objects - if you’ve been rooting through forbidden tombs or looted from a sanctuary, you might’ve brought a curse home, too. This curse typically amounts to bad luck, or the manifestation of strange phenomena.

Then there’s the curses from Ancient Egypt which are often associated with those that disturb mummies in their eternal slumber. The 19th century exploration of Pharaoh’s tombs revived this concept, and would allow the proliferation of our pop culture curses.

And then there's the Biblical curses. They don’t pause for breathe when cursing each other in the Bible, but thanks to my year 8 Religious Studies, I can tell you that at some point snakes and/or Cain was cursed.

(I’m sure Ms Comber would be ashamed knowing I can just about provide a tl;dr of the first few chapters of the Old Testament before the big plot twist.)

What Are The Most Famous Curses To Date?

#1 - The Curse of Tippecanoe

Our scene is set in 1931.

The brains behind Ripley’s Believe It Or Not - the bestselling publishers of unusual and slightly unnecessary facts - might not have much to report in the pre-internet age, but they were the first to note a rather peculiar trend:

American Presidents elected in a year ending in zero were to die whilst in office. This was later adapted to new, uh, data, which suggested years divisible by 20 (e.g. 1920, 1940, etc.) actually followed this trend.

And beyond the publishing date of this thesis in the early 20th century, this theory had been proven correct.

Think of an iconic president. You know, the ones that have changed history and haven’t suggested one consume bleach like shots of tequila on a two-night bender in ‘biza.

They’ve probably been a victim to this curse.

Lincoln. Mckinley. Roosevelt. Kennedy. Even Reagan and Bush followed the trend, but survived their own assassination attempts.

Question is, where does this curse supposedly come from?

William Harrison was killed only a month after being sworn into office. Elected in 1840, he waged war against a Native American tribe over problems concerning land ownership. Also known as Tecumseh’s War, this was a battle over an attempt to regain land against the American government, and it culminated in the Battle of Tippecanoe.

Harrison won this battle, and ‘Tippacanoe’ became a favoured nickname of the president.

However, shortly after the battle, one of the men at the fore of the Native American side cursed Harrison. We might not know the exact terms of this curse, nor if he wanted such a timely effect to take place, but with an election on the cards this year this thesis is due to be tested.

#2 - The Kennedy Curse

Kennedy might’ve already fallen victim to the curse of Tippacanoe, but it turns out that wasn’t quite enough. The thing is, this curse doesn’t necessarily affect just JFK. It affected everyone around him.

The Kennedy Curse allegedly prompted the deaths, accidents, and variety of other problems that have haunted the Kennedy family since before JFK even took office.

Due to the fact that some recent tragedies has supposedly been related to this curse, I’m going to refrain from coughing up each incident, but here’s a few to convince you:

Joseph Kennedy was the first victim in 1944, and died in a plane crash over Suffolk, England.

Kathleen Kennedy met a similar fate in 1948 after a plane crash.

Robert F Kennedy was killed on the night of his Senate victory in 1968.

David Kennedy died of a drug overdose in 1984.

Michael Kennedy died in a skiing accident in 1997.

John F Kennedy died in a plane crash in 1999.

Rosemary Kennedy had a lobotomy and was mentally incapacitated for the rest of her life until her death in 2005.

#3 - The 27 Club

The passing of young people is a tragedy we can’t quite wrap our heads around. Heck, belief in the supernatural is partially founded on how we can’t quite comprehend just losing someone, and that just being it.

Finality is an impossible concept to grasp.

And it’s why we turn to things like curses to explain away our pain and to make sense of it all. The 27 Club is a prime example of this.

A remarkable amount of the most famous musicians, artists, and actors to date have all died at the age of 27.

Like, over 50.

Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Kurt Cobain, and Jim Morrison are just a few of the figures that represent the phenomenon, a phenomenon which has been referenced countless times in popular culture.

Some researchers may have disproven the alleged curse, but with the 4 founding members dying within a 2 year window (Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison), suspicions will always be roused.

#4 - The Curse of the Iceman

Popular culture phenomenons might form some of the most famous curses to date, but they really started with ancient legends. And this one is one of the most well-known claims of the awakening of a long-dormant curse.

Oetzi was found somewhere in the Alps in 1991.

No, this isn’t the name of some lovable character destined to have his own Netflix series; this is a corpse preserved by the icy temperatures of the mountain range in Italy. And this corpse is from 3100 or 3400 BC, or the Copper Age.

Given the value of this shocking discovery, numerous scientists took the fore in their investigation into Oetzi. But many of these scientists also died as a result of the supposed curse put on those that dare disturb Europe’s oldest natural mummy.

7 scientists that collaborated in the removal and examination of the corpse died in a suspiciously short window of time.

#5 - The Curse of Timur

Some of the world’s most famous curses have affected small groups of people. But this curse was a tad more far reaching.

Like 7.5-million-people-far-reaching.

Emperor Timur was a Turco-Mongol leader from the 14th century and established a highly impressive empire: the Timurid Empire. And this empire was so impressive that Stalin himself took direct inspiration from him.

That’s why he wanted the body of the emperor exhumed from his Uzbekistan tomb for investigation by Soviet anthropologists.

(There’s no explanation why, but the Soviet Union did many things we can’t explain.)

Locals protested, fearing a curse that reportedly started in 1740 when an Afsharid ruler took a slab from his final resting place to Persia. His son instantly fell ill amongst a host of other problems affecting his rule, prompting his advisors to convince him to return the slab of jade back to the tomb.

If the rumours weren’t enough to convince them not to break into the tomb, you’d think the warnings on there would do the trick:

"When I rise from the dead, the world shall tremble."

"Whomsoever opens my tomb shall unleash an invader more terrible than I."

Three days after the exhumation began, Hitler launched an operation that would figure as the largest military invasion on the Soviet Union to date.

#6 - The Superman Curse

Numerous films have been labelled with an alleged curse or a haunting. The Exorcist might be the most famous example of this - you know, with that severe fire burning down the set at one point - but a more specific curse can be attributed to those who played the lead in the Superman franchise.

George Reeves committed suicide in 1959.

Christopher Reeve became paralysed in 1985.

Lee Quigley died at 14 due to solvent abuse.

Kirk Alyn’s career met a dead end after his role.

Marlon Brando experienced a series of unfortunate events after his role.

Margot Kidder encountered serious issues with her mental health after her role.

Even the crew operating on the films experienced similar issues both on-set and in their personal lives.

#7 - The Hope Diamond Curse

It’s the most famous jewel in the world, weighing no less than 45 carats and passing between the hands of French kings and British bankers alike - but it’s value is far more supernatural than the $350m price tag.

It is said that a curse is attached to it, a curse that brings misfortune and accompanying tragedy to those that own or wear the gem.

Suicides, murders, executions (most of which were hangings), being ripped apart by wild dogs and various other mobs… Just wear the earrings next time.

Today it is on exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History in the US.

#8 - The Curse Of The Chicago Cubs

Bill Sianis lived an interesting life.

A Greek immigrant to the USA, he owned a tavern in Chicago affectionately named the Billy Goat Tavern. And it was this peculiar name that led to the curse that until recently haunted the Chicago Cubs.

Sianis took his pet goat to one of the games in 1945, a game that was a part of the World Series. But due to the odour of Murphy the Goat, he was asked to leave for the sake of the other fans.

“Them Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more”

He declared this shortly after discovering that he would in fact have to leave.

This curse lasted 71 years, and mysteriously ended in 2016 after numerous attempts by fans to utilise rituals  - mostly involving goats which may or may not be alive - to release the team from their magical confines.

Numerous goats have been brought to games with declarations claiming to reverse the curse being used, and even Sianis’ family members have done their bit in attempt to lift it. Yet despite these attempts - and that severed goat’s head sent personally to the owner in 2013 - some good has come from the curse.

Many charitable efforts have sprung forth from this legend, such as Reverse The Curse donating goats to those living in poverty in Third World countries.

#9 - The Curse of Turan

Now this is an interesting one.

Allegedly, the whole population of Hungary has been under a curse for many centuries, a curse that has two potential origins:

The first took place during the Christian conversion of the country in 1000 AD, from which those supporting the old religions of Hungary (Paganism and a mix of other minority religions) cast a curse that would affect Hungary for evermore…

(More… More… Mo...)

Or 1000 years, suggesting the curse might have been lifted already.

Alternatively, it could be a curse created or rumoured to exist during the failed revolution of 1848 which evoked a great sense of pessimism that is a reported symptom of the curse.

Although the previous curses mentioned in this article have a striking number of coincidences one can’t help be interested in, this one is a little, well, vague.

Sure, Hungary - like most countries - has experienced a number of tragedies over the last 1000 years, from the devastating impact of war and invasion, to foreign control, but how far can we pin suffering caused by imperialism on that of a curse?

The high suicide rate which ranks as 6th in the world might not point to a supernatural cause, but the rather darker reality of depression.

(Yeah, I agree, I should’ve finished this article on a cheerier note.)

Well thank god that’s over!

Want to read stuff that’s less depressing and more delightfully spooky? ‘Course you do. Then go check out my other articles about all things horror and hauntings.

I even post a new real ghost story everyday.

Stay spooky!

#curse is real #curse #real curse #black magic #black magic curses #wiccan curse #bloody magic curses #curses #grand grimoire curse #real egyptian curses #ancient egypt #real ancient curses #chicago cubs curse #curse of the pharaohs #hope diamond #superman curse #the exorcist #the exorcist cursed #tutankhamun #tutankhamun curse #jfk #kennedy curse #tippecanoe #the iceman #bermuda triangle #Unexplained Mysteries #UNSOLVED MYSTERIES #unsolved crime #27 club #supernatural

[presidentcaleb18]

Ancient Greece Travel Journal

Site: Delphi

Location: Delphi, Greece

The first site that I visited in my travel back to Ancient Greece is the important ancient Greek religious sanctuary Delphi that was sacred to the ancient Greeks, but specifically Apollo. The site was first settled in Mycenaean times in the late Bronze Age (around 1,500-1,100 B.C.E) but took on its religious significance from around 800 B.C.E in ancient Greece times. The original name of the sanctuary was actually Pytho after the snake which Apollo was believed to have killed there. Delphi was also once considered to be the center of the world, for in Greek mythology the greek god Zeus released two eagles, one to the east and one to the west, and Delphi was the point at which the birds met each other after each encircled the world. As far as events that took place at this site, Delphi was similar to many other religious sites in that it held panhellic games to honor various gods of the Greek religion. The Pythian Games of Delphi began sometime between 591 and 585 BCE and were initially held every eight years, with the only event being a musical competition where solo singers accompanied themselves on a kithara to sing a hymn to Apollo. Later, more musical contests and athletic events were added to the program, and the games were held every four years with only the Olympic Games being a more important event. When I first approaced Delphi, however, the first thing that I saw was the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia. Some of the people that I encountered in my travel to this particular location were Greeks going to worship Apollo, and the conversations I heard from those around me were mostly about the upcoming Pythian games and what was going to happen in them. This site was most relevant to ancient greeks who used it mainly for athletic events like the Pythian games, or for religious purposes such as worshipping or honoring the greek god Apollo. It was a significant development in building this site for the greeks as it became home to many different events ranging from religious to athletic. Overall visiting Delphi was a unique experience due to its wide range of events that took place there. 

Site: Ancient Epidaurus Theater

Location: Epidavrou, Tripolis, Greece

The second location that I visited as I embarked on my traveling journey through ancient Greece was the ancient Epidaurus Theater located in Tripolis, Greece. This ancient theater home to the Greeks is the most beautiful and most preserved of its kind, according to expert historians. The theater was said to be built in the 4th century B.C.E, more specifically 340 B.C.E, by Polykleitos the younger. It was built in two phases; one during the 4th century BC and the second in the mid-2nd century; and divided into two parts: one for citizens and one for priests and authorities. The theater is even still used today due to its excellent accoustics and condition. Located in the eastern part of the Peloponnese, the Sanctuary of Asclepius at Epidaurus was an important sacred healing center during ancient times. Asclepius, also spelled Asklepios, was believed to possess healing powers that he learned from his father, Apollo. Due to this being the case, the theater attracted people from all over Greece who came to be treated by the resident priests. As far as events and what took place here goes, the theater was mainly used for therapuetic and religious purposes in honor of the god of healing, Asklepios. During my visit there, I encountered all kinds of people from all over Greece, but particularly soldiers and family members of soldiers and other greeks who fought in the Peloponnesian war and were still alive and were looking for healing for their wounds and losses from the war because it had ended about 60 years before the theater was built. They made their way to the theater to worship the god of healing. As far as the sounds that I heard, it was mostly quiet as a lot of the conservations around me were Greeks who were looking for healing or peace and prosperity. This site was a significant development for the ancient Greeks because it was built as both a healing and therapuetic center for Greek citizens but also as a place to honor the god of healing in doing so. It was relevant to all Greek citizens, but specifically those who needed healing or peace from wars or military campaigns. Overall this theater was unique because of its amazing accoustics and sound, but also for the way that many sought healing and therapy when visiting here. 

Site: Mt. Lycabettus

Location: Athens, Greece

The next location I visited was neither a theater or an oracle, but rather a famous hill or mountain in the capital of Greece, Athens. Mt. Lycabettus, also known as Lycabettus Hill, is the highest of Athens’ Hills. According to greek mythology, the hill was created by the greek goddess Athena, when she dropped a piece of limestone accidentally and that’s how the hill came into existence. Other stories suggest that it was once the refuge of wolves, which is possibly the origin of its name, as wolves means lycos in greek. Lycabettus Hill is unique compared to the other locations in that in ancient times, it never bore very many special traces of human activity or events due to its steep shape. As far as people I encountered, I only encountered a few other ancient Greeks who came there to hike to the top and to pay their respects to the greek goddess Athena. It was relevant to many cultures in that it was a sacred hill, but it most relevant to the ancient greeks and greek mythology due to its unique origins of Athena being credited with making it, albeit accidentally. It didn’t quite seem like a significant development for the Greeks at the time, but as time went on it began to grow in popularity as a theater was built in it in the second century B.C.E, and many travelers, tourists, and citizens continue to hike it to this day as it has become an increasingly popular tourist destination, according to historians. Once I hiked to the top of Lycabettus Hill, I could see everything as far as the Northern suburbs of Greece all the way to the sea. Overall Lycabettus was a unique traveling experience for me due to the fact that its history isn’t closely tied with human activity or special events like the theater or oracles I visited before this, but it still has an important greek tie to greek mythology, and more specifically Athena. 

Site: Dodona Oracle

Location: Epirus, Greece

The fourth location that I visited in my journey back in time through ancient Greece is the ancient Dodona Oracle. The Oracle is located in Northwest Greece and lies in a valley on the eastern slopes of Mt. Tomaros. The site is considered to be settled in the early Bronze Age, and there is some evidence of an early chthonian cult to a fertility/Mother earth goddess, which is consistent with Hesiod’s description of a Great Goddess who fed her worshippers roasted acorns and a scene on a Mycenaean gold ring excavated at the site. In ancient times, Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus, made Dodona his religious centre, inaugurated the festival of the Naïa in honour of Zeus, and constructed a large theatre and a colonnaded precinct. Among those things, he also famously hung shields in the precinct of the Romans and the Macedonians that he had defeated in battle. According to Herodotus the oracle was founded when two black doves flew from Thebes in Egypt, one dove settled in Libya to found the sanctuary of Zeus Ammon, and the other settled in an oak tree at Dodona, proclaiming a sanctuary to Zeus be built there. In Greek mythology the oracle was visited by notable heroes, such as Jason, who was told by Hera to place a protective branch from the sacred oak tree on the prow of his ship the Argo before he set off on his search for the Golden Fleece. As far as events that took place here, it was used as a religious center but also for pilgrims to ask Zeus questions, where he would answer via the rustling of leaves or doves in his sacred oak tree which was encircled with bronze tripod cauldrons. As for people that I encountered, I encountered many Greek citizens and pilgrims, and I even overheard a conversation between the greek god Zeus and the Roman emperor Julian, who was known to have consulted there. The development of this oracle was important for the ancient Greeks because it is widely regarded as the most ancient oracle, and is second in fame to only the ancient Delphi, which was the first landmark that I visited. Overall it was a good experience getting to visit this landmark, and it was interesting to see how unique it was in terms of heroes and even leaders from other countries going to consult there. 

Site: The Parthenon

Location: Acropolis of Athens, Greece

The final destination that I reached on my journey throughout Ancient Greece was the ancient Greek temple Parthenon. The temple was built between 447 and 432 BCE in the Age of Pericles, and it was dedicated to the city’s patron deity Athena. The temple was constructed to house the new cult statue of the goddess by Pheidias and to proclaim to the world the success of Athens as leader of the coalition of Greek forces which had defeated the invading Persian armies of Darius and Xerxes. After a Persian attack on the city in 480 B.C.E, a restart to rebuild the aborted temple project begun in 490 BCE was instigated by Pericles and funded by surplus from the war treasury of the Delian League, a political alliance of Greek city-states that had formed together to repel the threat of Persian invasion. On my visit here, I heard of a magnificent statue of the goddess Athena, supposedly 12 feet tall, on the inside. Due to it being inside however, I could not see it because people were not allowed inside the temple during ancient times. It seems to be unclear if the temple was used as a religious center during this time or solely as a home for the goddess. As far as people that I encountered in this temple, it was mostly greeks from all over different greek-city states who were there to defend their alliance to protect the temple from being attacked by the Persians again. I think that the development of this temple was very significant to the Greeks as an entire country because of how quickly they were able to build it in just 9 years, but as well as how they were able to rebuild and come together as a country after it was attacked and destroyed by the Persians in 490 B.C.E. Overall my trip through ancient Greece was a fascinating experience as I was able to learn a lot about the history of these 5 different locations as well as the origins and the events that took place at them, and also the significance that each site had to specific cultures and parts of ancient Greece. 

Bibliography:

Cartwright, Mark. “Delphi”, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2013

Dilouambaka, Ethel. “A Very Brief History Of Epidaurus Ancient Theater, Greece”, 2016

Cartwright, Mark. “Dodona”, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2015

Dilouambaka, Ethel. “A History Of Lycabettus in 60 seconds”, 2017

Hadingham, Evan. “Unlocking Mysteries of the Parthenon”, 2008

Truscott, Chris. Lycabettus Hill, Athens, Greece, 2014

Magadan Teresa, Maria. Delphi, Greece, 2019

Aristotle. Nichomachean Ethics, 350 B.C.E

Herodotus, The History of Herodotus, 440 B.C.E

Xenophon. Hellenica, 411-362 B.C.E

Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War, 431 B.C.E

Plato. Gorgias, 380 B.C.E

[cincinnatusvirtue]

Alexander III “The Great” Part 2: Where one empire falls, so must a new one rise...

Alexander the Great and the Macedonian army crossed the Hellespont into Asia Minor in 334 BC.  The composition of his army at this point was primarily Greek but did include some non-Greeks as well.  It consisted of a mix of cavalry and infantry.  His cavalry included light cavalry mixing Greek and Thracian horsemen.  While his elite cavalry was the heavy cavalry known as the Companions of which Alexander always lead into battle personally, leading his royal contingent, it was made of the Macedonian landed nobility which was personally quite loyal to the king.  This was combined with Thessalian heavy cavalry from Central Greece as well.  His infantry included missle and melee infantry ranging from the phalanx or phalangists to his hoplites and hypaspists and various armed skirmishers both Greek and Thracians such as the peltasts.

The Macedonian army was faced by the Persians who called on forces from all across the empire.  Persians, Bactrians, Scythians, Sogdians, Syrians, Indians and even Greeks as mercenaries.  They too had infantry, cavalry, archers and even armed chariots.  Memnon of Rhodes, a Greek mercenary commander in Persian service advocated for a strategic withdrawal and scorch and earth tactics which would stretch Alexander’s supply lines and deny his forces food and supplies to forage or “live off the land”.  However, the Persian satraps of Anatolia saw this move as both undermining to morale and not worthwhile because the scorched earth would be their own fertile lands, hurting long term commerce.  Their contention was to fight the Macedonians head on before they ventured too far into the Persian Empire.

The first major battle, was the Battle of Granicus fought in May 334 BC in what is now western Turkey along the Granicus river, as was often the case Alexander would fight many of his classic battles along rivers.  For his part this was strategic, the Persian armed chariots could not be effective on muddy river banks where mobility was slowed.  The Persians knew the Macedonians would attempt to cross the river and hoped to slow their  advance their by bunching up the Macedonian forces.  The battle started with a feint attack on the Macedonian left, commanded by a trusted general, Parmenion who commanded the Thracian and Thessalian cavalry.  The Persians shifted many of their forces to meet this attack but in doing so weakened part of their line, Alexander personally lead his noble Companion cavalry into battle in a flying wedge formation.  In the melee, Alexander personally killed a number of Persian nobles but was nearly killed himself by one until a timely intervention by a Greek general named, Cleitus the Black severed the Persian’s arm clean off with sword still in their hand, saving Alexander’s life.  The Macedonian center now had time bought and moved its phalanxes into place across the river, supported by the bulk of the army now pushed back the Persians, the speed of their advance surprised the Persian forces who after some tough fighting retreated.  The retreat happened before they could commit their forces, namely the Greek mercenaries to battle.  This resulted in the Macedonians killing their fellow Greeks in a general massacre, viewing them as a traitors for having served the Persians.  Granicus was a resounding Macedonian victory, their first major one over the Persians.

The battle opened up Anatolia to the Greeks who began conquering the lands.  Some Persian satraps in the next several months surrendered their territory without a fight, hoping to spare their damage.  Alexander sometimes let Persians stay in their positions of power so long as they supplied his army and swore loyalty to him.  Gradually, Alexander worked his way along the coast to neutralize the Persian naval bases that could cut off supply lines back to Greece.  He also visited the city of Gordium which contained the fabled Gordian Knot which presented a riddle to many in the ancient world, the complicated and varied tied knot was a puzzle that required challengers to unravel it, the one who solved the puzzle was said to be destined to rule all of Asia.  Many had contemplated how to unravel the knot but failed.  Alexander’s solution was simple, cut the knot with his sword.

From Anatolia, Alexander hoped to advance into Syria and threaten the Levant.  It was at this point that the Persian Shah, Darius III personally lead an army to counter the Macedonian threat.  Darius’s army actually ventured behind the Macedonian army hoping to cutoff its supply lines and trap it deep in Persian territory with no hope of reinforcement.  Alexander did however rise to meet Darius.  They did do along the Southern Anatolian coast along a small river called Issus.  The Battle of Issus was fought in a narrow ground between the mountains and the sea, the ground was chosen by Darius to limit the mobility of the Macedonian cavalry which had been so effective at Granicus.  Darius’s army was as typical of the Persian forces was multiethnic and once again they relied on Greek mercenaries, arguably their best troops which Darius placed at the center with his royal bodyguard.  The Macedonian advance across the river was slowed by the river itself, the Persians fortifying their bank of the river and the Greek mercenaries hard fighting.  However, Macedonian hypaspists, tasked with guarding the phalanxes weak and vulnerable flank and rear managed to break through a line in the Persian-Greek forces.  This allowed Alexander to see an opportunity to strike unexpectedly at the heart of the Persians.  Taking his Companion cavalry, Alexander drove his force on a right flank maneuver and then wheeled toward the Persian center, straight at Darius.  The speed and fury of the Macedonian charge at the Persian King of Kings completely unnerved Darius and he fled in his chariot.  This collapsed the morale of the Persian center which also fled.  On the left flank of the Macedonians, Persian cavalry held back Parmenion’s left flank cavalry.  Ever the observer and adapter to the situations on the battlefield, Alexander would wheel his forces  to hit the Persians now exposed rear.  This surprise attack combined with the holes being punched in their mercenary forces and the flight of their king lead to a rout of Persian forces.  The Macedonians pursued and killed off many retreating Persians, gaining yet another decisive victory.  In the wake of this, Alexander captured members of Darius’s family including his wife, mother and two daughters.  Alexander held them as prisoners though they were by all accounts well treated during their captivity.  Darius himself retreated to the Persian capital in Babylon.  

Over the next year or two Alexander consolidated his gains in Anatolia and advanced down the Syrian coast, taking the Levantine cities either by surrender and sparing them destruction or in the case of Tyre and Gaza having to besiege them and after many months finally captured both.  Alexander then advanced to Egypt where he was proclaimed Pharaoh.  He also visited a temple where the Egyptian priests declared him the son of their supreme god, Amon Ra.  He introduced the Greek presence into Egypt and the Levant, something that was to last for centuries with the Greeks serving as Pharaohs of Egypt until Roman rule, with a Greek-Egyptian named Cleopatra being their last famed ruler, a descendant of the Ptolemaic dynasty that was established by one of Alexander’ s general, Ptolemy in the wake of Alexander’s death.  Something new was happening due to Alexander and the Hellenic presence in Egypt.  Greek and Egyptian culture to a degree synthesized and Greek culture was being spread to Persia’s various provinces.  He would also found the first of many cities bearing his name, Alexandria, now one of Egypt’s major cities.  It would become a famed center of learning and culture throughout the ancient world, blending Greek, Egyptian, Persian and other traditions into one center.  This was to become a hallmark of Alexander’s rule and legacy, as he would spread Hellenic culture to other parts of the world and increasingly it would blend with the local culture becoming a hybrid of East meets West.  Reflected in art, religion, currency, governance, commerce, day to day life and military tradition.

Meanwhile, back in Greece the mighty Sparta which had remained silent during Alexander’s Asian and African adventures finally rose up to challenge the Macedonians, Alexander nor his father directly fought the legendary Spartans and the question was raised who was mightier Sparta or Macedon.  Antipater, one of Alexander’s generals who stayed behind in Greece would answer that burning question.  The Macedonian army crushed the Spartans at the Battle of Megalopolis virtually fighting to the last man, killing their king in battle too.  This subdued the Spartan rebellion and Greek discontent over taxes and Alexander’s rule in general.

Darius III offered several attempts at negotiations with Alexander as all of Persia’s western provinces and African ones, namely Egypt, were being conquered, some without a fight which was a humbling experience for the Persian Shah.  His last offer at peace was to offer half of the Persian Empire to Alexander, all the Western provinces, to become co-rulers of the empire, to taken several thousand pounds of silver and gold as payment and to arrange a marriage between Alexander and one of his daughters.  Alexander did seriously consider the offer and all but one of his generals argued against it.  Alexander, refused seeking to have all the empire and not just half.  The war would continue.

Alexander now marched his forces into Mesopotamia or modern Iraq with the goal of taking the Persian political capital, Babylon.  Darius is believed to have anticipated the Macedonians would take a more direct route through the deserts of central and southern Iraq which with extreme heat and lack of supplies would drain their army.  Darius however, once again realized he was dealing with no ordinary for.  Alexander ever the clever strategist took his army on an unexpected route through Northern Iraq instead, nearing mountains that would shade or cool his forces from the intense heat of the deserts to the south.  This caught the Persians off guard and Darius was forced to instead move his own army northward.   Some Persians figured the Tigris River which the Macedonians numbering shy of 50,000 men would have to ford was too deep and strong.  However, Alexander’s army did cross and was now moving toward Babylon on the east side of the river.  Darius decided to find ground of his own choosing to meet and defeat the Macedonians.  He found it on a relatively flat plain east of modern Mosul, Iraq at a place called Gaugamela. 

By choosing an open expansive battlefield, Darius hoped not to be boxed in the way he had at Issus, this would allow more room for his chariots and cavalry to maneuver.  His force was estimated by modern scholars of being upwards of 100,000.  It included Indian war elephants and various contingents and mercenaries from all over the Persian Empire as was usual.  Alexander however as was often the case, took an unexpected maneuver and initiative which offset the Persians.  He moved his Companion cavalry from their right flank far out on what appeared to be an outflanking maneuver which deceived the Persians into thinking this was an maneuver that needed to be countered and indeed they sent a large force of cavalry from their left to meet and clash with the Macedonians.  As the Persians drew their forces to mirror and counter Alexander’s deep flank, they weakened their own center as was Alexander’s plan.  The deep flank was joined by his phalanx and hypaspists infantry which Alexander had gradually disengaged them from the flanking maneuver to meet the Persians center which fixed them in place.  Meanwhile, the Persian chariots armed with javelin throwers advanced only for the Macedonian regiments to part forming alleys for the chariots to pass through without causing damage, before the chariot riders were killed themselves.  Parmenion and the Thracian-Thessalian cavalry on the left also fixed the Persian right flank in place.  It was now time for Alexander’s decisive move.   The deep flank and the fixing in place of the Persian forces effectively weakened the Persian center by creating a gap which like at Issus, Alexander could strike at Darius’s jugular once more by driving his flying wedge Companion heavy cavalry right at the Persian center and split it’s force into pieces.  Darius, once again caught off guard by the Macedonian deception and fury fled the battlefield, causing panic and routing in his forces.  Parmenion’s left flank however was in jeopardy and just like as Issus, Alexander had to lead a counter charge to save his left from being overwhelmed which was encircled by Persian cavalry on all sides.  Darius fled and evaded capture or death as Alexander had hoped, but preservation of his army was more key to the long term goals of Alexander.  He attacked the Persians in their rear with some breaking off to loot the Macedonian camp before they were dispatched themselves.  The rest of the Persian army fled as the Macedonians shifted their forces to left to relieve Parmenion.  It was another victory and ultimately the final blow needed to defeat Darius and the Achaemenid Persian Empire.

Alexander entered the Persian capital of Babylon which he claimed to enter as a liberator, he also went onto the cities of Susa and the ceremonial capital of Persepolis which was in the Persian heartlands of modern Iran, he burned Persepolis as payback for the Persians burning Athens 150 years earlier in the Persian invasion of Greece under Xerxes.  Now he was declared by his new Persian nobility Persian Shah himself and Lord of Asia, in addition to his titles as King of Macedon, Hegemon of the Hellenic League and Pharaoh of Egypt.  Effectively the Persian Empire ceased to be a real force at least in the western provinces.  Darius gave an impassioned speech to carry on the war in the eastern half of the empire which remained unconquered.  However, his satraps, especially one by the name of Bessus had enough of defeats and retreat by Darius, they took him prisoner and murdered their Shah.  Bessus was then self-proclaimed Shah but Alexander viewed Bessus as little more than an impostor, with himself as the real Shah and he considered the act of murdering Darius, the rightful ancestral King of Persia as cowardly and little more than petty and unjust, a crime punishable by death.  

Darius’s body would be recovered by Alexander as he set off in pursuit of Bessus.  He gave him a proper burial in the ancestral tombs of his dynasty.  Alexander had respect for Darius’s position and an appreciation of the Persian monarchy’s history even if they were enemies on the battlefield.  He now set about trying to consolidate a hold on his conquests through a mix of his Macedonian generals and Persians who proclaimed loyalty to him, becoming his new nobility and serving as provincial administrators.  He began to administer Persia, though largely as Persia had been run, seeing himself not as a new conqueror but as rightful inheritor to the prior Persian dynasty, this admiration for Persia along with the adoption of certain Persian customs and the maintenance of Persian governors and administrators by Alexander started to cause some resentment among his generals who unlike Alexander simply despised the Persians and felt Greek traditions superior.  The first cracks in Alexander’s otherwise impenetrable self-armor were starting to appear.  Yet, there was much work to do, such as the capture of Bessus and the conquest of the eastern remnants of the nominal Persian Empire.   Alexander’s gaze was fixed to the east to the ends of Persia and beyond, to the edge of the known world...

#Alexander the Great #darius iii #macedonia #persian empire #ancient greece #military history #military tactics #ancient world #granicus #issus #gaugamela

[ayma-nidiot]

In the White Light - Prideshipping fic Chapter 3

Also on AO3.

Chapter 3 – Because You’re Worth It

“Stop… Stop the pain…” Kaiba started crying tears of agony – that was until he heard a sweet baritone voice singing nearby. “Who is it? …Yugi. Get the hell away from me before I kill you!”

Even in the face of this threat, Yami Yugi continued to sing this ancient Egyptian song to Kaiba as he approached, the Millennium Puzzle surrounding them both in a golden light.

“Graaaar!” With a swing of his sharp wings, Kaiba slashed Yami Yugi across his left arm.

“Ngh…” Despite this new wound, Yami Yugi barely showed any pain as he picked up the song again, and now reached out and hugged Kaiba.

“St-Stay… away…” Kaiba could feel his anger washing away in Yami Yugi’s voice and the cool, rising water now surrounding them. It was then he saw the young pharaoh’s tender expression - Yami Yugi would not be swayed. He closed his eyes, losing himself in this song he didn’t understand, as the two were now completely submerged.

Before sleep could fully take Kaiba over, Yami Yugi had stopped singing to alert him. “Hey, Kaiba, wake up, we’re about to land.”

“…What?” Kaiba opened his eyes to find himself not in the KaibaCorp blimp, but instead in a vast desert – several thousand feet in the air. “Gaaah! Yugi, what am I supposed to- Hey!”

Unfortunately for the both of them, Yami Yugi had started to drift off almost as soon as he had finished his song, but he still managed to say, “You… can fly, you know. What do you think your wings are for?”

“Don’t take me for an idiot, you third-rate duelist with a fourth-rate deck!” Kaiba felt tempted to drop Yami Yugi to the sand dunes below, but even he felt the need to show gratitude to the one who just saved him from his own madness. So, he spread his wings and slowly made his way down, landing on a stone platform in the sand. His dragon features were now gone. “…So. Explain yourself. Where are we and what did you just do? Why are we here?”

“As you know, I am a pharaoh of ancient Egypt.” Yami Yugi gestured his arm to their surroundings. “And that is where we are right now.”

“Well, duh, I wouldn’t have figured that out myself, Sherlock! I think Ishizu has shown me enough of this place, thank you.”

Yami Yugi started walking to a magnificent palace nearby - a palace that he knew well - prompting Kaiba to follow. “But she didn’t show you the legend of the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, did she?”

“Your point being?”

“I’ve brought you here because I wanted to show you something. I'm just thankful I could calm you in time.”

“ ‘Calm me?’ What the heck does that mean?” Kaiba stopped to block Yami Yugi’s entry into the palace. “So, you’re the one who’s responsible for all of this happening to me?”

“Can you just forget you hate me for a few seconds? I’m trying to-”

“Hey! Who goes there!” A voice interrupted the argument.

“Damn…” Yami Yugi desperately looked around for some sheets but could only find one.

“Eh? H-Hey, watch it!” Without warning, Kaiba had a large linen sheet thrown over him. “Just what do you think you’re-”

“Shh!” Yami Yugi had barely concealed Kaiba in time, but not himself.

“Who dares to infiltrate the palace of our late, great pharaoh?” The source of the voice revealed himself to be Mahad, one of the pharaoh’s guardians. “Gah! It’s a ghost in the guise of the pharaoh! Begone, you cursed apparition!”

“Quick, over here!” Yami Yugi pulled Kaiba into another corridor.

“Dammit, Yugi, that’s my dueling arm!”

Yami Yugi had arrived at his destination, but not without hearing the sound of pattering footsteps coming from all directions.

“Stand back! I’ll fight them off!” Kaiba stood up, puffing up his chest.

“There you go again, thinking that you’re the best at everything… Get down here, you idiot!”

Mahad and his fellow guardian met at the entrance to the pharaoh’s bedchamber. In short breaths he asked, “Isis, did… did you see someone who looked like the old pharaoh run about here?”

“So, that’s who our intruder is? Hmm… Do you think that maybe someone is trying to disguise himself as our old pharaoh to try and take the throne for himself?”

“I’m thinking that, too… If that’s the case, then we can’t waste any time. Oh?” Mahad had started to patrol the area again, until he opened the door and noticed a huge pile of linen sheets inside the bedchamber. “Sigh… Our housekeeper-in-training certainly has a lot of training to do. I better tell her master about this.”

A few minutes after Mahad and Isis had left the scene, Yami Yugi asked quietly, “Are they gone yet?”

“How should I know?” Kaiba grumbled as he lay in that corner, cramped, under the linen sheet with Yami Yugi. Just as he had the notion to uncover himself, he noticed he had been holding Yami Yugi close to him the whole time.

“Kaiba, I think we’re safe now. It’s been ten minutes, and I haven’t heard any footsteps. …Kaiba?”

The pharaoh… Kaiba closed his eyes halfway, enticed by Yami Yugi’s scent; it had to be that blood orange body wash, he reckoned. Not once since their first duel had he been this close to the pharaoh. He’s beautiful…

“Kaiba, come on! I’ve just checked, and the coast is completely clear now.”

Kaiba had at last come to when he felt the linen sheet suddenly fly above him and into a heap on the floor. Getting up and dusting off his clothes, he thought, Gods, why do I have to have another dream here – and now, of all times!

“If you’re done preening yourself over there, then come this way.”

“So… This is where you used to live?” Kaiba didn’t want to admit it, but this bedchamber was easily bigger – and more extravagant – than his own.

“Yes, and emphasis on ‘used to.’ Now there is a new pharaoh in power, and he’s only a minor relative of mine.” Yami Yugi stopped to look at a stone drawing of this minor relative – a young man of 14. “He’s far too young and arrogant.”

“So, is that why you brought me here? To take your throne back? But why only a minor relative? Didn’t you have any children or siblings who could succeed you? Or even a wife?”

“…Kaiba, I was only a teenager when I died.”

“Ick… Forget I asked.” Kaiba knew that Yami Yugi would not speak further on this topic and decided to drop it.

“To answer your first question, yes and no. I intended to go back even further in time, before he had become pharaoh, but…” Yami Yugi clenched his fist at his side. “I wasn’t strong enough. In this reality, most of my priests are dead, and that includes us. That’s why I was trying to avoid Mahad and Isis – if we had met, a time paradox might have happened.”

“And just how do you know about something that happened after you died?”

“As you know, Yugi brought my spirit back when he solved the Millennium Puzzle – the Millennium Item that bore my soul. But just before I manifested myself in Yugi, a goddess told me of what happened. That was when I figured that I could recruit someone strong enough to help me turn back the hands of time and allow my priests to live again.”

“Hmph. I’m not buying it.”

Yami Yugi started pushing an enormous dresser. “Then maybe you’ll buy this.”

“Oh great, it’s another giant rock.” Kaiba wasn’t impressed.

“No, look harder. Do you remember who this is?”

Kaiba immediately recognized the figure at whom Yami Yugi pointed. “Anubis… It’s that bastard Anubis, who is the only reason why I couldn’t beat you after getting my Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon! Wait a second… Is that what I think it is next to him?”

“Yes. This beast is the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon. According to my priests, the Shining Dragon is a beast created by Anubis himself.”

“Do you remember how?”

“Unfortunately, the inscription on this tablet doesn’t go into much other detail. My guess is that after we defeated Anubis in the present day, in his dying breath he cursed you with the power to transform into the Shining Dragon. Probably as an act of vengeance.”

“I suppose me nearly blowing chunks during our last duel had something to do with this act of vengeance, too?”

“I think so. The more you use your Blue-Eyes cards, the more the curse affects you. And if your Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon were ever to be destroyed in battle…” Yami Yugi cringed. “Well, you know. It’s a good thing I could calm you before the curse completely took you over. In the meantime, I suggest you refrain from using your Blue-Eyes cards in the future.”

“…Yugi.”

“Yeah?”

Kaiba took a seat on the bed. “You do realize that I am the president of a multi-billion-dollar corporation that produces the latest in dueling technology.”

Yami Yugi also took a seat. “Your point is?”

“My point is, why in the name of the seven hells do you think I’m going to believe in all of this superstitious bullshit about curses and monsters?”

“Believe or not believe… At least in my mind, everything I just told you is true.”

“Huh. Whatever you say. Oh, and one other thing. My Blue-Eyes cards are my everything. I am NOT going to stop using them. I’m too strong-willed to lose my mind and go berserk like that again.”

“You shouldn’t. Not as long as I have my song. …Even if it does… drain a lot of my energy…” Yami Yugi could finally feel the effects of his incantation and laid flat on his back to ward off the headache that began.

“But why would you go through all of that just for me? If… If what you say is true, then if you use this power of yours too often, you could…”

“I don’t care, Kaiba.” Yami Yugi turned his head to look at the other young man. “Because you’re worth it.”

“Ah…” Kaiba felt his heart skip a beat at these words. Yugi… Do you feel… that way about me?

“Kaiba?” Yami Yugi wanted to sleep but sprung awake again when Kaiba touched his face.

This… This is for real… Kaiba laid on the bed, too, as he simply stared into Yami Yugi’s eyes. Come on, ask him out loud!

“You look like you want to say something.”

“Yugi…” Kaiba could feel his heartbeat in his throat. “Yugi… I’ve been meaning to ask… How-”

“Ah!” Yami Yugi suddenly sprung awake. “Kaiba, watch out!”

“Eh?” Kaiba turned sharply around and was not pleased to see an undead mummy dripping goo all over the place. “Shit! Get away from me, creep!”

“They’re Anubis’ mummies!” Yugi’s voice sounded from within Yami Yugi.

“You know of them?” Yami Yugi asked.

“Yeah! I remember having to beat a bunch of them with Tristan, Joey, and Téa, when you were dueling with Kaiba. That’s why I couldn’t communicate with you. The only thing that could stop them was the Dagger of Fate.”

“Which we don’t have!” Yami Yugi stumbled out of the bed, but with the help of Kaiba, he could stand again. “Kaiba, we need to get out of here, now. If these mummies don’t get us, Mahad and Isis certainly will.”

“Wait… Do you mean go back to present-day Domino City?”

“That’s exactly what I mean.”

“But how? Don’t tell me… The incantation again?”

“How else? In addition to calming raging souls, my song has the power to transport us between ancient Egypt and modern Domino City."

“But… You’re not strong enough…” Kaiba could tell Yami Yugi was ignoring him. Without even looking at him, the pharaoh began to sing, and the water arose again. “Heh! Goodbye, losers!”

_____

“Yugi…”

Kaiba could hear a voice – and several others – call out to him. In spite of that, they were quiet voices – too quiet for him to make out any distinct words.

“Huh? My name’s not Yugi, you dweeb…” Kaiba mouthed, feeling sure that nobody heard him.

To his surprise, someone did hear him – someone he’d known his whole life. “Seeeeto! Wake up!”

“Gah!” Kaiba came to when he felt someone slap both of his cheeks. “Dammit, Mokuba, what was that for?”

“So, you’re finally awake.” Joey didn’t seem too pleased at the sight of Kaiba. “Thought you were gonna just sleep forever and hope you’d forget about the prize money you owe Yug, huh?”

“All right, all right. I’ll get the damned prize money. Just don’t hit me again.” Kaiba nodded as a gesture for Mokuba to retrieve what Joey asked for.

“Speaking of Yugi, look, guys!” Téa alerted as Yugi also began to awaken.

“Ugh…” Yugi sat up; surprisingly, he didn’t take long to feel well again. Even more surprisingly, he had recalled everything that happened during his short stay in ancient Egypt.

“Yugi, what happened?”

Yugi, please don’t tell them, Yami Yugi asked. The magic I just used is a secret spell, and if others were to find out about it… I don’t think I want to know.

“I just started to feel sleepy after my duel with Kaiba, and… well, so did Kaiba. But I’m okay now.” Yugi turned to Kaiba. “What about you?”

“Oh, I think Mokuba made sure I’m fine.” Kaiba acknowledged his brother coming back, presenting Yugi with a suitcase full of money. “Since the Battle City Tournament is now officially over, I think you all better leave.”

“Okay…” Joey gave Kaiba the stink-eye as he motioned for everyone to follow him out of the newly landed blimp.

But before he decided to follow them, Yugi stayed behind. “Say, Kaiba?”

“Yeah?”

“Remember right before we came back to present-day Domino City? What were you about to ask the pharaoh? You were sure acting a bit weird at that time, too…”

Kaiba counted his lucky stars that Yugi was dense as hell. “Nunya.”

“I’m sorry, ‘Nunya?’”

“As in ‘Nunya Business.’ Now leave, because after what the pharaoh just did to me, I need my beauty sleep.”

“Well, if you really don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine… But you know, you’re welcome to duel us at any time! Just as friends. See you at school tomorrow!” Yugi shrugged as he took his suitcase and left.

“Yeah, screw you.” Kaiba made his way to his bedroom and flopped onto the Blue-Eyes White Dragon bedsheets, falling quickly asleep on them. “…No way is this love.”

#yugioh #prideshipping #kaiba x yami yugi #kaiba x atem #fanfiction

[ygobigbang-archive]

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Edit: Forgot to actually update with the artist interest link so here it is.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters

DM1 Pairings: Yugi Mutou/Yami Bakura, Atem/Ryou Bakura, Atem/Thief King Bakura, Yugi Mutou/Ryou Bakura, Thief King Bakura/Ryou Bakura, Yugi Mutou/Thief King Bakura/Atem/Ryou Bakura, implied Yami Malik/Malik Ishtar (very minor) Characters: Yugi Mutou, Yami Bakura, Atem, Ryou Bakura, Thief King Bakura, Malik Ishtar, Isis Ishtar, Yami Malik, Seto Kaiba, Rishid Ishtar, Anzu Mazaki Content Warnings: Violence, Sex, Possession/Dubious Consent (not precisely sexual, but in the sense of using other people's bodies), Dark Comedy Summary: After receiving the Millennium Necklace during the events of Battle City, Yugi attempts to use it to see the events of the past, and inadvertently sets off a chain reaction of ancient magic. Now, separated from his partner and trapped in a dangerous pocket dimension spawned from Ryou's mind, Yugi must ally with Yami Bakura to survive horror movie monsters, treacherous terrain, and inclement weather, as in another dimensional rift, Ryou Bakura and Yami Yugi, likewise separated, begin to uncover the dark secret of Kul Elna. Meanwhile, back at the Battle City finals, Malik Ishtar finds himself the last man standing, stuck with the job of saving the world. In Anzu's body. Rating: Mature Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic

DM2 Pairings: puzzleshipping, implied/light gemshipping Characters: Yuugi Muto, Atem, Thief King Bakura, Ryou Bakura, Mahad, Mana, Anzu Mazaki, Jounouchi Katsuya, Honda Hirota Content Warnings:  Foul Language, Fantasy Violence, Trauma Summary: After the memory world rpg, the Thief King, free of Zorc's influence, finds himself still attached to the Millennium Ring, still in the possession of one Ryou Bakura, with nowhere to go, no meaning to his existence, and a lot of lingering guilt. Meanwhile, Yuugi and Atem prepare for the duel between them meant to decide Atem's fate, and both discover they're unhappy with their options. Ryou, still trying to find meaning in his involvement with the Items, makes it his mission to get everyone the ending they deserve. As with most things in the post s0-verse, things get settled with a duel! Canon divergent, Fix-it, everyone lives (mostly) Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 10 (ten) 100x100 icons OR 1 (one) moodboard OR 1 (one) greyscale sketch OR 3-5 (three to five) panel coloured sketch comic

DM3 Pairings: Ishizu Ishtar x Mai Valentine Characters: Ishizu Ishtar, Mai Valentine, Noa Kaiba, Ishtar Family Content Warnings: Family struggles, coping with orientation Summary: Things are going so well with Mai, Ishizu forgets that she can't keep hiding her from her family. The choice ends up being taken away from her, and she has to find a way to cope. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic

DM4 Pairings: Thief King Bakura/Ryou Bakura; Atem/Yugi Mutou  Characters: Thief King Bakura, Ryou Bakura, Pharaoh Atem, Yugi Mutou, Mahad  Content Warnings: PTSD, mentions of past character-death, mentions of past starvation, hey Atem your privilege is showing, brief Kemetic themes  Summary: When Ryou decides to use an ancient Egyptian artifact in the group's Monster World campaign, the last thing he expects is to find himself transported to the ruins of Kul Elna, the once-Village of Thieves, having taken the form of his white mage character. He also doesn't expect to encounter the self-proclaimed King of Thieves, sealed there three thousand years ago. Upon investigation, there seems to be a gap in history--a nameless Pharaoh, wiped from the records. Yugi, as he tries to help Ryou navigate these strange happenings, finds himself drawn into the spell, too--as his beast tamer character, he stumbles upon the nameless Pharaoh, Atem. For the past three thousand years, Atem and Bakura have been sealed there. Bakura skulks through the familiar streets, surrounded by lingering ghosts, while Atem pines for the palace he struggles to remember. In the desert, unable to enter Kul Elna, the demon watches from within his vessel, the High Priest of Darkness. He vows to get free from his prison, even as the mage Ryou promises to break the seal on behalf of the King of Thieves and the Pharaoh. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 10 (ten) 100x100 icons OR 1 (one) moodboard OR 1 (one) greyscale sketch OR 3-5 (three to five) panel coloured sketch comic

DM5 Pairings: Yugi/Atem Characters: Yugi, Atem, Kaiba, Mahad, Ryou, Anzu, Jun, Judai Content Warnings: There is ONE (1) nsfw scene in it but very easy to skip/avoid. Summary: Atem, prince of a seaside kingdom. Yugi, prince to the merpeople of the sea. Worlds collide with one faithful encounter, and they find themselves enraptured with each other. But sooner or later, Yugi and Atem have to grow up, and their kingdoms are worlds apart. Follows the lives of Yugi and Atem throughout important moments in their lives. (Alternative title: No One Said Mutual Pinning With The Prince Next Door Was Easy) Rating: Explicit Art needed: +  2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic

DM6 Pairings: N/A Characters: Yugi Mutou, Atem, Jounouchi Katsuya, Yami Marik, Bakura, Bakura Ryou, Seto Kaiba, Mokuba, Isis Content Warnings: Character death, very arguably. (Like, barely, but it's worth mentioning.) Summary: If you could do it all again, through a mirror... If you had that wish... It's a Yugioh DM Pokemon Mystery Dungeon AU! When Yugi wakes up as a Mareep with no memories, he's lucky to meet the Shinx Atem to help him out. Together they'll join Seto's branch of the explorer's guild and become an exploration team. However, Hunters, runaway princes, criminals who know Yugi's name, natural disasters, a wish deity looking for a good time, petty rival exploration teams, and a creeping darkness won't make this an easy job. And at night, when Yugi dreams, he sees steel and stars and wishes, and can't help but feel that he's done this all before... Rating: Teen Art needed: + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic

DM7 Pairings: Puppyshipping, slight puzzleshipping, hints of Duke/Tristan Characters: Joey Wheeler, Seto Kaiba, Yugi Muto, Tristan Taylor, Ryou Bakura, Tea Gardner, Jaden Yuki, Atem Content Warnings: violence, a few gruesome deaths, a few gruesome descriptions, fights and battles, those flesh Eating scarabs from Hamunaptra even if they only appear for one short moment, undead murder Monkeys, hints of deadly rituals, character death, and Hirutani, who is his own warning, because he´s quite obsessed and his thoughts and Actions are quite disturbing Summary: The mummy returns AU. Egypt, 1929. Two years ago, Yugi and his friends fought chaos incarnated (after accidentally releasing it themselves), and lived to tell the tale. They thought that it was over, that they got away with only memories still haunting them. They were wrong. Someone is disturbing Hamunaptra again, Yugi’s dreams turn to visions and when one of them leads him and his friends to a treasure bettter off buried, the battle for the fate of the world is on again. The year of the scorpion has begun. Rating: Teen/Mature Art needed:  + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic

DM8 Pairings: Puzzleshipping  Characters: Akandin, Atem, Yugi Motu, Siegfried, oc Content Warnings: Murder by plant, abuse, smut, blood, man eating plant Summary: Little shop...Little shop of terror, Little shop of horror! Oh, oh, oh, no. Rating: Mature Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic 

DM9 Pairings: Puzzleshipping, past Peachshipping, hints of Puppyshipping Characters: Yugi Mutou, Atem, Mahad, Mana, Seto Kaiba, Jounouchi Katsuya, Yami Bakura, Malik Ishtar, Pegasus J Crawford, Ishizu Ishtar Content Warnings: Character Death, science fiction, Fifth Element adaptation, violent scenes, futuristic technology Summary: The Pharaoh was created to be the supreme being; the one destine to save and protect the universe. Yugi Mutou was a retired military major turned cab driver mixed up in this destiny. He was tasked with a mission to help the Pharaoh and save the Earth from the impending doom brought on by a dark entity. Rating: Mature Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic

DM10 Pairings: N/A Characters: Bakura, Ryou, Malik, Ishizu, Rishid, Atem, Pegasus, Mai Content Warnings: suicide mention/implied suicide; some gore/body horror (not described in detail) Summary: Bakura and Ryou-centric role reversal AU: Bakura’s life takes a turn for the strange when he steals a weird piece of jewelry. Not that spending his days shoplifting purses for Malik’s knock-off handbag crime empire and his evenings making bets on card games was necessarily normal. It’s just that now he also has a weirdly polite ghost to worry about. [No romance; focuses on Bakura’s relationship with Ryou as a vaguely villainous ghost and the Ishtars as found family; cameos by Atem, Pegasus, Mai] Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 10 (ten) 100x100 icons OR 1 (one) moodboard OR 1 (one) greyscale sketch OR 3-5 (three to five) panel coloured sketch comic

DM11 Pairings: Atem/Seto Kaiba Characters: Seto Kaiba, Kisara, Atem, Yugi Muto, Ryou Bakura Content Warnings: pirate/seafaring au. contains lovecraftian horror, mention of battles and injury, a smut scene, and memory loss/angst with a happy ending. Summary: Kaiba wakes in the middle of the ocean, with few resources and even fewer memories. Rescued by a familiar voice from the dark he sails towards safety through treacherous waters, but as Kaiba's memories begin to return he wonders what that familiar voice is hiding. A more complete spoilery summary: Kaiba and Kisara are on the trail of an eldritch being that destroyed their village when they were younger. Kaiba meets Atem, who is also chasing the creature, hoping to rescue his brother Yugi. They fight the creature, but Kaiba is killed. Atem decides he's to blame, and with the help of Ryou the sea witch goes on a journey through the underworld with Kaiba to bring him back to the land of the living. The only price Ryou asks for is a golden charm that Kaiba wears on his neck. Much of the fic is Kaiba and Atem journeying through the seas of the dead. The fic ends with Kaiba back safe and sound, and a small epilogue that tells more about Ryou's ulterior motives. Rating: Explicit Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic 

Yu-Gi-Oh! Bonds Beyond Time

BBT1 Pairings: N/A Characters: Judai, Yubel, Johan, Yusei, Yugi, Yami Yugi, Shou, Ryou, Edo, Paradox, Sara, Kaiba, Daitokuji, most of the GX main cast gets at least mentioned, the Light of Destruction, Crimson Dragon, the rest of the Signers appear only in the epilogue Content Warnings: Character Death, it's not a chat fic but it has a couple of chat logs for flavor, it's also got some funky shadow magic and duels that Don't Follow The Rules Summary: When Blue-Eyes vanishes without a trace, Judai shoulders the responsibility to go looking for answers. He doesn't expect a whole string of spirit-nappings followed by a chance to slip through time, but hey, life's all about the little surprises. [ BBT AU ] Rating: Teen Art needed: + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic 

Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

GX1 Pairings: N/A Characters: Yuuki Juudai, varied OCs (mostly Duel Monsters/Spirits) Content Warnings: off-screen/not graphically described murders, some violence, set in my reversal world where Juudai's the incarnation of Destructive Darkness Summary: He wasn't always a warlord.  He wasn't always feared wherever his shadow fell. Once he was a child.  Once he was a teenager.  Everyone has a beginning, even the Haou of the Destructive Darkness. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic GX2 Pairings: N/A Characters: Alice, Tyranno Hassleberry, Jaden Yuki, Syrus Truesdale, Bastion Misawa, Atticus Rhodes, Alexis Rhodes, Chazz Princeton, Aster Phoenix, Pharaoh the Cat, Lyman Banner, Dr Vellian Crowler, Ms Fontaine Content Warnings: Kidnapping, torture, blood, injury, bits of angst, hurt/comfort, literal demons, attempted sacrifice, temporary death, slight swearing, slight suggestive themes Summary: Upon their return from Domino, Jaden and friends are met by a mysterious new student named Alice, who Hassleberry falls head over heels for. But it's not all smiles and sunshine when not longer after Hassleberry is found missing without a trace! Running around in a desperate search Jaden, Syrus, Bastion, and Atticus are the only ones left who can save him. But little do they know Alice has more than a few secrets to hide, and only one thing as her motivation to harm the young dino duelist; the pure light of his untainted soul. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic GX3 Pairings: Yubel/Judai Characters: Yubel, Judai Yuki, Jim Cook, Fubuki Tenjoin, Asuka Tenjoin, Light of Ruin Content Warnings: Major Character Death, Minor Character Death, Temporary Character Death, Suicide, Timeskips, Timetravel, Anal Sex Summary: Every seer needed a guardian. To stand watch over him as Judai shaped the future to the best it could possibly be. Now if only the Light of Ruin could mind its on business and stop ruining everything for everyone else. (FFXIII AU) Rating: Explicit Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 10 (ten) 100x100 icons OR 1 (one) moodboard OR 1 (one) greyscale sketch OR 3-5 (three to five) panel coloured sketch comic GX4 Pairings: Ryo Marufuji/Judai Yuki, Ryo Marufuji/Supreme King Characters: Ryo Marufuji, Judai Yuki, Supreme King, Yubel, Edo Phoenix, Saio, Jun Manjoume Content Warnings: Blood, Sex, Violence, A/B/O Dynamics, Miscarriage Summary: During his last year at the Duel Academy Ryo, the most desired alpha of the island, fell in love with Judai, a very strange and unique omega. When they meet again during Judai's second year, both of them have changed. Ryo became the Hellkaiser and Judai... became the Supreme King, an alpha. Rating: Mature Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic GX5 Pairings: Haou/Jaden. Jaden/Haou. Characters: Haou (the supreme king). Jaden Yuki. Mentions of Yubel. Content Warnings: Medieval AU, Angst, Slow burn, Porn, Blood, Mentions of death, Mentions of magic, No duels, Fluff, Action/Adventure, Violence,  Drama Summary: In old times where magic is long gone and mentions of it are forbidden and unspoken of, a trace of it still lingers, last of it's existence beig in the ancient, cursed king. Jaden, a miserable, but energetic villager, tired of unmerciful circumstances of life, finds himself venturing through not only the emperor's castle walls, but also his internal barriers, slowly breaking them. Rating: Explicit Art needed: + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic     

Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL

ZEXAL1 Pairings: Vector/Zexal II, Zexal II/ Hope Zexal Characters: Zexal II, Hope Zexal, Vector, Michio Mokota, Zexal Side characters: Dark Zexal, Astral Content Warnings: Dub-con, Pregnancy, Demon Characters/Demon Transformation, Character Death, There's a decent amount of sex, Zexal II, Hope, and Astral are girls. There's M/F and F/F Summary: An Incubus named Vector makes a bet with Death [Hope Zexal] that he can get Zexal II's soul, but Death seems interested in her too. Rating: Explicit Art needed:  + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic ZEXAL2 Pairings: N/A Characters: Tron, III, IV, V, Dr. Faker, Kaito, Vector, Durbe, Mizael Content Warnings: Body Horror Summary: A man is haunted by the faces of his past as he traverses the wastes of a distant planet. Rating: Gen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic ZEXAL3 Pairings: IV/V, IV/III, IV/Kaito, IV/Ryoga, IV/Rio Characters: Arclight brothers, Kamishiro siblings and Tenjo Kaito Content Warnings: Incest, rape, mutilation, violence, dehumanization, trauma, creepy dolls and just in general disturbing imagery  Summary: The dolls in Thomas’s room each have their own unique personality. Each one is elegantly crafted, their beautiful faces unchanging. Sometimes, he wishes that his family were more like that. When his fantasies spin out of control, he leaves behind a path of misery, pain and ultimately, regret. His dolls constantly whisper for their release, yet he turns away from their silent voices and continues to delve into his fantasy. Such is the fate of this poor soul. ----- Thomas is heavily shaken after Tron decides to leave forever, without a single apology towards him. Michael tries to comfort him and breaks their mother's favorite doll on accident and Thomas gets even more upset. He gets so upset that he knocks Michael out, saws off his limbs, removes his vocal cords and attaches life-sized doll limbs onto him. He then treats Michael like one of his beloved playthings. Christopher discovers these atrocities and ends up with the same fate as Michael's. This snowballs into a gigantic horror fest as the Kamishiros joins the mess and is topped off with Kaito also being dragged in. Now with his new family, Thomas thinks that he is finally able to have a happy ending. Rating: Explicit Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic

Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V

ARCV1 Pairings: Akaba Ray/Zarc Characters: Akaba Ray, Zarc, Akaba Reiji, Akaba Reira, Sawatari Shingo, Gongenzaka Noboru Content Warnings: Kidnapping, Manipulation, slight dubcon, fantasy Summary: A spoiled Akaba Ray wishes for Zarc, the Supreme King of all spirits to take away her baby brother, Reiji. To her amazement, he’s real and fulfills her wish and she regrets it. Now Ray only has 24 hours to fight her way through the realm of spirits and resist Zarc’s temptation in order to to save her brother or lose both him and herself to the Supreme King’s clutches. Rating: Teen/Mature Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic

Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS

VRAINS1 Pairings: Yusaku Fujiki/Ryoken Kogami Characters: Yusaku Fujiki, Ryoken Kogami, Takeru Homura, Shoichi Kusanagi, Ai, others (very short roles). Content Warnings: Blood, stabbing, death, major character death, sex scenes, minor talk about prescription medicine use and withdrawal (short scene), suicide, murder. Summary: Yusaku grows up with vivid nightmares of his life coming to an end.  In his dreams, he always sees the same icy blue eyes right before he dies.  One day, he meets Ryoken, a man with the same piercing blue eyes from his dreams.  As he learns more about Ryoken, Yusaku begins to unravel memories from their past life together where they were once lovers. Rating: Explicit  Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic VRAINS2 Pairings: N/A Characters: Yusaku, Takeru, Kiku, Jin, Shoichi, Ema, Aoi, Miyu, Go, Spectre, Ryoken Content Warnings: N/A Summary: A high school/college AU loosely based on the common route of the visual novel Little Busters! It follows Yusaku as he gets dragged into a makeshift baseball team made to celebrate everyone’s last year in school together and the shenanigans that ensue trying to get enough members for a full team- including ghost hunting, fireworks shows, and a single game at the end of everything they're definitely not prepared for. (But they're having fun, and that's what matters.) Rating: Gen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic VRAINS3 Pairings: Yusaku Fujiki/Ryoken Kogami Characters: Yusaku Fujiki, Ryoken Kogami, Takeru Homura, Miyu Sugisaki, Aoi Zaizen Content Warnings: mild angst that turns into fluff eventually, depictions of trauma, season 2 spoilers, canon divergence Summary: After Lightning and Bohman's defeat and the fall of SOL Tech, the Lost Incident is made partially public. Yusaku and Ryoken must learn how to move on from the past now that it's available for everyone to gossip about -- and move on with their lives, since their Link VRAINS aliases are no longer needed. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic VRAINS4 Pairings: Fujiki Yuusaku/Kougami Ryouken (Datastorm) Characters: Major: Fujiki Yuusaku, Kougami Ryouken, Spectre, Homura Takeru Minor: All the ignises, Kamishirakawa Kiku, Miyu, Bohman, Haru Content Warnings: Kidnapping Summary:  Exhausted and overworked, Yuusaku and Ryouken take a holiday away from Den City to the quaint town far away from civilisation. The worst they had suspected was simply being disconnected from technology; however, children have been disappearing and reappearing in the town, and electronic devices have been washing up on the innocent shores. With the villagers themselves technophobic, Yuusaku and Ryouken take it upon themselves to get to the bottom of the mystery and hopefully end their vacation on a peaceful note. If only they could solve the case while stranded in the middle of an isolated town with no connection to Den City, and surrounded by adults and children alike who think technology will melt their brains and steal their souls. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic

Crossover

XOVER1 Pairings: N/A Characters: Atem, Yugi Mouto, Ryou Bakura, Thief King Bakura, Mana, Mahad, High Priestess Isis, Seth, Yuko Ichihara, Anthy Himemiya, Mai Valentine, Akunadin Content Warnings: Major and minor character death, rape (mentioned and vaguely alluded to), female Yugi, female Ryou, Fantasy AU Summary: The Witch King: The coordination for the future king of Esmia was going quite smoothly… until it didn’t. Now Yugi and Ryou have to learn why the Crown has chosen to be on an unknown boy, a magic-user who only has his mother for his family. But what they learn, and what they do with that knowledge, could change the kingdom forever. Rating: Teen Art needed:  + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic

XOVER2 Pairings: Kindredshipping, Puzzleshipping Characters: Yusei Fudo, Jaden Yuki, Johan Anderson, Yugi Muto, Atem, Mahad, Mana, Jack Atlas, Crow, Aki, Lua and Luka, Carly, Sho, Ryo, Fubuki, O'Brien, Jim, (I think I got everyone) Content Warnings: Mild violence- nothing gory is described but there are battle scenes Summary: A torn kingdom. A rising threat. A missing prince. Three heroes, Yusei Fudo, Judai Yuki, and Johan Anderson, all destined to meet, each with a future set before them by the strings of fate. The world is falling into chaos and only their bonds can stand a chance of saving everything they love. Including each other. Rating: Gen Art needed: + 1 (one) completed art work OR 3 (three) panel greyscale sketched comic + 1 (one) coloured sketch OR 1 (one) greyscale line art OR 1 (one) graphic banner OR 3-5 (three to five) panel inked comic OR 5 (five) panel coloured sketch comic XOVER3 Pairings: Puzzle, Blue, Star, Thief, Moral, Mai x Rafael Characters: Yuugi, Atem, Gandora, Ryou, Anzu, Honda, Jounouchi, Mai, Rafael, Seto, Kisara, Aigami, Shadi, Judai, Yuusei, Akhenamkhanen, Mahado, smaller oc’s Content Warnings: slight mention of animal death (hunting), torture, ptsd, non-explicit gore, non-graphical sexual themes Summary: Soulmates are both the blessing and the curse of the elvish race, and Yuugi the dragon rider knows it all too well, as he's been longing for the day when he'll meet his. But when others receive a golden message on their skin with a vague hint of their mate, Yuugi receives something different, something terrifying. And now, he must save his mate before it's too late. Rating: Mature Art needed: + 2 (two) completed art work OR 3-5 (three to five) panel complete art comic 

#yugioh #vrains #zexal #arcv #yugioh gx #ygobb #ygobb2019 #calling all artists!

[alexandros-ho-megas]

What places would ya recommend to travel and visit which are associated with the story of your life?

Great question! I travelled quite extensively, but here’s a basic list to get you started on your own epic journey. Pro Tip from Alexander the Greatest: Be careful about drinking the water while traveling. You will get dysentery and shit yourself during a pursuit and then people you thought were your friends will write about it in your biography and you’ll never live it down. That never happened to me, of course.

Turkey/Asia Minor

Go visit Troy. 

Cry over the Iliad. Cross the Hellespont and drop a bloody steak into the water since animal sacrifice isn’t looked upon too fondly these days. Lay some wreaths at the tomb of Achilles and Patroklos with your life partner and/or best friend. Strip down. Get oiled up. Run a naked race. Don’t get arrested. (Arrian 1.11-12)

Gordion

See where I untied the Gordian knot and was divinely destined to be the lord of all Asia! (Spoiler alert: Don’t tell anyone, but I actually untied the knot by pulling out the wagon pin. I didn’t cut it, but that makes for a more dramatic story. [Arrian 2.3.7])

Greece/Ancient Macedonia

Pella (My birthplace)

Pella’s a bit of a shit show now, after that ass Kassander razed it. So that’s kind of depressing for me. Like going back to your hometown to find that everything has changed and your favorite restaurant has gone out of business and your childhood home has been bulldozed and some whiny asshat murdered your young son, your mother, and your wife. Is that #relatable ?

 It does have a very nice museum, though. 

The Nymphaion, Mieza

Come see where my friends hit puberty at the same time and we had to ignore the sounds of Kassander jacking it every night! Fun!

Oh, and where Aristotle instructed us in a very high-brow philosophical way, of course. (Plutarch 7.4)

There are also a bunch of nice wineries around Pella and Mieza. Check those out! Channel me and get trashed on wine! But please don’t kill anyone in any drunken arguments. Be cool.

Aigai

See where my father got murdered in front of me at my sister’s wedding! Fun times for the whole family! (Diodorus 16.94.3)

You can also go see the royal tombs. Which is where I should have been buried if a certain someone hadn’t hijacked my funeral procession and stolen my dead body. Fuck you, Ptolemy. (Diodorus 18.28.3)

Delphi

A lovely site to visit. Pro Tip: Make sure to go on an auspicious day. I went there and certainly didn’t get impatient with any oracles at all… (Plutarch 14.6).

Skyros

Achilles dressed up as a woman here and fathered my ancestor Neoptolemos with Deidameia. Need I say more? It’s also a very scenic and quiet island with a fun hilltop museum. 

Egypt and the Middle East/Persia

Alexandria! (The one in Egypt. Since I founded… a fair amount of them)

Damn, what a great name; someone really impressive must have founded this city. While I am horribly disappointed there are no modern shrines to Hephaistion in Alexandria as per my orders (Arrian 7.23-24), it is still somewhere very closely associated with my life. And it’s kind of my baby.

Siwa

Get told your destiny about conquering the world! Be cryptic with your friends about it! Tell everyone about how the priest addressed you as the son of Zeus due to him being shit at Ancient Greek! (Plutarch 27.9)

There are hotels and such there now, and the temple of Ammon is on Google Maps, so you won’t get lost due to shitty guides and need a raven to guide you (Plutarch 27.3-4).  

Tyre

Where I changed the literal face of the earth. Not that I’m still bragging about that or anything.

Persepolis

An amazing archaeological site, even after some mistakes were made there. By me. No fires allowed anymore.

Other Sites of Note

Cyropolis

I got a concussion here from being smashed on the head by a rock in battle! Fun! (Arrian 4.3.3)

Cyrus the Great, sharer of my current most popular epithet, founded this city. The modern city has a nice historical museum, too. 

The Hydaspes

See where I kicked ass and took names against the Indian king Poros.

Pro tip: Make sure to know how many islands are in a river before crossing. (Arrian 5.13.2)

To avoid:

Don’t go to Ekbatana. 

For the love of god, don’t try to cross the Gedrosian Desert. Google Maps will probably fail you like my shit guides did and then you’ll have to find your way out of hell on your powers of intuition alone (Arrian 6.26.4-5)

Have fun on your journey, don’t let whiners make you turn back in India, don’t drink the water, and don’t get typhoid! Safe travels!

#asks #I'm serious about the water thing though kids #Alexander the Greatest #Iliad #Hephaistion #Did I provide too many citations again? OF COURSE NOT. #You can never have too many sources #receipts #no one noticed my wine pun

[iris-writes-things]

Temple of Lions

Read on AO3, FF.net or under the cut! 

In the late 1920s, after months of pestering locals about coordinates, a team archaeologists stumble upon a a completely intact temple for Sekhmet, where they awaken an ancient being that sends them on the adventure of a lifetime.

Written for @timelessvoltronzine

Art by @xxkaseixx

Chapters: 1/1 Status: Completed Total length: 2303 words Adventure/historical

“Oh my goodness, this is it.” Historian Takashi Shirogane mumbled in sheer awe as he wafted his torch around, taking in the giant hall and its intricate murals and statues. “The temple of Sekhmet.” The professor could barely contain his excitement. He and his team had just struck literal gold by uncovering this previously undisturbed temple, dedicated to the ancient Egyptian goddess of war, Sekhmet.

The many ancient works of art depicted the goddess of war herself, a woman with the head of a lioness, along with five lions running around, and six humans that. He almost dropped his torch when his eyes fell on five giant stone lions at the back of the massive hall. Takashi wasn’t quite sure what to make of it just yet. He was too overwhelmed by the beautiful pieces, but even more than that, by how well-preserved they were. If he had to put a stamp on it now, this previously sealed temple must have been at least five thousand years old, and there was barely a speck of dust on them. It was a miracle people with worse intentions hadn’t found it before them.

Lance, the archaeologist sighed. “I don’t know. The people at home want mummies. We usually catch more money for tombs, too. What's so different about this temple, anyway?” He complained to no one in particular.

"I don't know, but the locals sure didn't want us to find this one. It took me four whole months to get the exact coordinates of this place." Keith, the explorer, bemoaned.

"He’s right, you know. That alone suggests there has to be something important here." Hunk, the team's expert on ancient structures mused. "I mean, everyone back in town apparently knows it's here, and yet, nobody has ever been inside."

"Yeah, because they didn't want to be in for an eternity of boredom.” Lance rolled his eyes. “Can’t we go on a big adventure or something? Then I’ll write a best selling novel about it and retire at 35." He huffed, crossing his arms.

"Really, I'm beginning to think you're in this for the wrong reasons." Katie Holt, professor Shirogane’s student and protégé said as she adjusted her glasses.

"I'm with her." Keith nodded in agreement. "I've always been under the impression that archaeologists are in this business to learn about ancient civilizations. Not to make a quick buck."

"Well excuse you, if you think going into a relatively lucrative business to support a giant Spanish family is 'the wrong reasons', you can kindly stick that torch where the sun don't--"

The archaeologist was cut off by the gasps of his teammates as the entire temple lit up; the torches lining the walls flickered to life, gleaming gold and glittering gems only further reflecting the light throughout the temple. It was a beautiful sight to behold, had it not been for the fact that the fires lit themselves.

"Uh… Boys?" Professor Shirogane stammered. He looked concerned. Scared, even. "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

The group reluctantly followed his gaze. At the center of the giant hall stood a young woman with brown skin and pearly white hair. She was clothed in a flowing linen dress and was embellished with beautiful golden jewelry, encrusted with lapis lazuli. They had seen this woman before, and they didn't even have to think back too far, as thewoman who stood before them, in the flesh, appeared in most of the murals surrounding them.

"Welcome." She spoke in a language they somehow all understood. The way her angelic voice bounced off the walls, surrounding the 'visitors’, made her feel omnipresent, and slightly intimidating in spite of her welcoming tone.

"I… Uh, we apologize for trespassing, but we thank you for your hospitality, kind lady." Takashi spoke for the five of them. "If I may be so bold to ask… who are you?"

The woman chuckled. "Of course you may, Takashi Shirogane." She said, single handedly sending a chill down all of their spines. "I am high priestess Allura. I oversee all offerings and prayers to our goddess of war, Sekhmet."

"Alright, another question." Hunk spoke up firmly, though his voice shook with nervosity. "How did you know his name?"

"Actually, I know all of your names, Hunk Garrett. I have been waiting for you all."

Katie frowned behind her glasses. How could they be so sure that they were somehow talking to a living, breathing, genuine priestess of Egypt’s old pantheon? This might still be one of the townspeople, playing an elaborate prank on them. "Alright… Then I’m sure you can tell us how and why you’ve been waiting for us for, what, three millennia?"

"It doesn't matter for how long I've waited or how I did it. What matters is that you are here now. The world needs you, after all."

"Looks like you're finally getting that big adventure you wanted." Keith smirked smugly, elbowing Lance in his side, only to be hushed by professor Shirogane.

“All due respect, your Holiness, but what could you, or, you know, the world, possibly need us for?” Hunk asked, frowning at the tall woman.

Allura fell silent and looked away, turning her gaze toward the floor of the temple. For the first time, her look of serene optimism was replaced by something else. Pain. Disgust. Sorrow. All came and went as, what the team presumed to be, painful memories flashed before her eyes. She took a deep, shaking breath before speaking again.

“Five thousand years ago, a Pharaoh ruled over this land. His name was Zarkon. He was a kind man, and a benevolent leader, but when his wife fell ill and died… there was a change. He couldn’t let go of the loss of his wife and began to take his anger out on his people; exploiting them, hurting them… It went on for years. Eventually, all this negative energy began to manifest in magic. A curse that wouldn’t let him go. It made him mad with power.

So… his people and I prayed to Sekhmet. We brought her all offerings we could, and not much later, she granted these five lions, to people in the kingdom that were pure of heart and would not abuse their might. These Paladins were the only people for whom the lions would move. During the day, they simply looked like statues, and so Zarkon always thought of them as such. But what he didn’t know, was that at night, the lions could combine into a champion of good, that would defeat all evil. ‘Voltron’, our goddess named it.

It was a long and intense battle, only made more difficult by the magical powers the curse had granted Pharaoh Zarkon, but in the end, the Paladins managed to seal him away in a tomb we had secretly excavated not far from here, where he could never harm another human being.

However, I woke a few days ago. Which means the seal of Zarkon’s tomb must have been broken, and the world is in grave danger once again. It is no coincidence that you came here together. It was destiny. I look at you, and I see the Paladins of old in you. I know that together, we can defeat him once again.”

“Wait, hold on. How ‘not far from here’ is that tomb? My brother is digging at a site that’s barely a mile away from here!” Katie demanded, her voice raising in panic.

Professor Shirogane gently squeezed her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. “It’s okay, Katie. Matt will be fine. Right, miss Allura?”

However, the way she bit her lip and looked away was more than enough of an answer. “There definitely is a risk to his well being, but he might be alright. Your brother is almost certainly digging near Zarkon’s tomb, but that’s not to say that he can’t get away from there in time.”

“In that case, we’ll do it. We’ll fight that guy.” Katie told Allura, full of newfound determination. To Hell with it if this turned out to be a prank from the townspeople. She was not risking her brother’s life on some dumb skepticism.

“How?” Hunk thought out loud. “We can barely work together as a unit as is, and that’s with no pressure whatsoever. What happens when we get into a fight when the fate of the world depends on us?!”

“Trust me when I tell you that you will learn to work together. Our previous Paladins were strangers to each other before they were chosen. You already have the advantage of having worked together before becoming Paladins. If they could do it, I’m sure you can, too.”

For a time, it was quiet. Allura’s story was a lot to take in. They came to this temple, looking for knowledge and treasure, and now, they were supposed to fight an ancient Pharaoh with magical powers using stone lions as weapons. And not only that, but they had been destined to do this for thousands of years? This did indeed seem like one of those adventure novels Lance seemed to value so much. And not a very good one, at that.

It was during this profound silence that Keith’s curiosity got the better of him. “Okay, so how do we do this? How do we know which one of us controls which lion?” He asked, intently looking up at the lions as he walked towards towards them.

"Well, which one do you feel drawn to?" Allura asked. "The lion chooses you as much as you choose the lion."

"Okay, if you say so." Keith smiled, slowly walking by each lion. He paused for a second in front of the largest lion in the middle before ultimately walking on and settling in front of the first lion to its right. "This one. Definitely."

"Voltron's right hand." Allura smiled encouragingly. "That makes you the second in command to your leader."

"Yeah, I'm more than comfortable with that." Keith told her with a confident smile gracing his features.

"Dibs on that other one!" Katie shouted as she ran to the lion left of the one in the middle, her eyes filled with childlike wonder.

"Enthusiastic, aren't you?" Professor Shirogane chuckled.

"Yeah, I guess you could say I'm your best and brightest for a good reason." She said proudly.

Hunk was the next one to pick a lion as he quietly walked to the one on Katie's left.

"So I'm guessing this lion is for the most handsome one of the lot who gets the beautiful priestess at the very end of the adventure?" Lance boasted, swaggering to the most right lion with an air of overconfidence.

"Actually, no..." The priestess said, her tone thoroughly unimpressed. "You and Hunk are the legs of Voltron. Supportive and well-balanced. It would do you well to be your genuine self, rather than… well, this."

Keith and Katie burst into a fit of giggles, and even Hunk snorted at Lance's deflated expression.

"Guys, come on, don't laugh." Professor Shirogane said in Lance's defense. "Though, I have to admit, that's some solid advice. I'd take it seriously if I were you, Lance."

"Yes sir..." Lance mumbled.

"Besides, as much as I might come to like all of you, I must return here after this whole ordeal is over, should a new generation of Paladins require my guidance in the future." Allura said, smiling sadly.

"Hey, prof, looks like you get the final lion!" Lance noted, quickly changing the subject in an attempt to brighten up everyone’s mood.

"Exactly. That would make you the leader, Takashi." Allura piped up, smiling more genuinely this time. "Having a scholar as the decisive head of Voltron and the leader of the Paladins couldn't be more fitting."

His breath hitched as he looked up at the lion, the very largest one. He stood there, frozen in what could only be described as fear. He heard the calling of the lion in the depths of his mind, but was he really ready to take on something this big? Was he capable enough as a leader to not only be responsible for the lives of these youngsters, but also for the fate of the world as they knew it? It was only then can that a small voice snapped him out of his train of thought. Katie.

"Professor, do you remember what you told my parents when they objected to me coming to Egypt with you and Matt?"

He thought for a second, chuckling and shaking his head when the words came to him. "If you worry too much about what could go wrong, you might miss the chance of doing something great..."

"Those are words to live by." The priestess said, placing an encouraging hand on Takashi's shoulder. "You can do this. I know it in my heart."

A deep, shaking breath escaped the professor. "You ladies sure can be persuasive." He laughed nervously before making his way to the final lion, placing a gentle hand on the course sandstone of its paw.

He, along with the others, jumped in surprise as a low, rumbling sound filled the room. The lions rose to their feet for the first time in millennia, their sandstone disguise crumbling off to reveal shiny, brightly coloured metal underneath. They looked like robots, but much sleeker in design and more advanced than anyone in the west even dared to imagine. So many questions popped into his head. Was this kind of technology commonplace in ancient times? Was it limited to gifts from the gods? Where did the lions come from? What were they made of? How were they built? But all of that would have to wait.

"Guys, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" The professor asked, earning a unified nod from the rest of his team. 

"Let's form Voltron."

#Voltron #Voltron legendary defender #collab #historical AU #fanfic

[dfroza]

“the gift of peace.”

“Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace.”

this is what we learn of in Today’s reading from the book of John that illuminates the treasure of the Spirit within our own as a reborn heart (inside, Anew)

[John 14]

“Don’t worry or surrender to your fear. For you’ve believed in God, now trust and believe in me also. My Father’s house has many dwelling places. If it were otherwise, I would tell you plainly, because I go to prepare a place for you to rest. And when everything is ready, I will come back and take you to myself so that you will be where I am. And you already know the way to the place where I’m going.”

Thomas said to him, “Master, we don’t know where you’re going, so how could we know the way there?”

Jesus explained, “I am the Way, I am the Truth, and I am the Life. No one comes next to the Father except through union with me. To know me is to know my Father too. And from now on you will realize that you have seen him and experienced him.”

Philip spoke up, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be all that we need!”

Jesus replied, “Philip, I’ve been with you all this time and you still don’t know who I am? How could you ask me to show you the Father, for anyone who has looked at me has seen the Father. Don’t you believe that the Father is living in me and that I am living in the Father? Even my words are not my own but come from my Father, for he lives in me and performs his miracles of power through me. Believe that I live as one with my Father and that my Father lives as one with me—or at least, believe because of the mighty miracles I have done.

“I tell you this timeless truth: The person who follows me in faith, believing in me, will do the same mighty miracles that I do—even greater miracles than these because I go to be with my Father! For I will do whatever you ask me to do when you ask me in my name. And that is how the Son will show what the Father is really like and bring glory to him. Ask me anything in my name, and I will do it for you!”

“Loving me empowers you to obey my commands. And I will ask the Father and he will give you another Savior, the Holy Spirit of Truth, who will be to you a friend just like me—and he will never leave you. The world won’t receive him because they can’t see him or know him. But you will know him intimately, because he will make his home in you and will live inside you.

“I promise that I will never leave you helpless or abandon you as orphans—I will come back to you! Soon I will leave this world and they will see me no longer, but you will see me, because I will live again, and you will come alive too. So when that day comes, you will know that I am living in the Father and that you are one with me, for I will be living in you. Those who truly love me are those who obey my commands. Whoever passionately loves me will be passionately loved by my Father. And I will passionately love you in return and will manifest my life within you.”

Then one of the disciples named Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “Lord, why is it you will only reveal your identity to us and not to everyone?”

Jesus replied, “Loving me empowers you to obey my word. And my Father will love you so deeply that we will come to you and make you our dwelling place. But those who don’t love me will not obey my words. The Father did not send me to speak my own revelation, but the words of my Father. I am telling you this while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Spirit of Holiness, the One like me who sets you free, he will teach you all things in my name. And he will inspire you to remember every word that I’ve told you.

“I leave the gift of peace with you—my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be courageous! “Remember what I’ve told you, that I must go away, but I promise to come back to you. So if you truly love me, you will be glad for me, since I’m returning to my Father, who is greater than I. So when all of these things happen, you will still trust and cling to me. I won’t speak with you much longer, for the ruler of this dark world is coming. But he has no power over me, for he has nothing to use against me. I am doing exactly what the Father destined for me to accomplish, so that the world will discover how much I love my Father. Now come with me.”

The Book of John, Chapter 14 (The Passion Translation)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is Judges 11 that documents an ancient battle yet that was tied to a foolish vow by Jephthah of offering a sacrifice of the first thing that comes through his door after returning in victory, which ends up being his daughter. this is something our Creator would never desire of us, although we see the test of Abraham with offering his only son Isaac, but then God provides a ram in his place that points to the Lord becoming the substitutionary sacrifice for our sins on the cross in Jerusalem.

Ultimately, we’re living in God’s narrative, not our own. we have been given a will that is free, but the eternal tapestry still rules over all things.

[Judges 12]

Now Jephthah of Gilead was the son of a prostitute but a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead, but Gilead’s wife bore other sons who grew up and drove Jephthah away because they did not want the son of another woman other than Gilead’s wife to inherit anything from their father. So he ran away to the land of Tob, where he became the leader of a gang of bandits who followed him.

When the Ammonites attacked Israel, the leaders of Gilead asked Jephthah to return from Tob to be their commander and lead them against the Ammonite invaders.

Jephthah replied.

Jephthah: Ha! Aren’t you the same people who hated me so much that you drove me from my father’s house? And you come to me now and ask me for help?

The leaders responded to Jephthah.

Leaders of Gilead: You’re right. All the same we need your help. Come lead us against the Ammonites, and we will make you leader over us and all who live in Gilead.

Jephthah asked the leaders of Gilead a question.

Jephthah: Let me make sure I understand this—if I come back with you to fight the Ammonites and the Eternal allows me to be victorious, you will really make me your leader?

Leaders of Gilead: May the Eternal be our witness. We will do as you say.

So Jephthah returned with the leaders of Gilead; the people made him their leader and commander, and Jephthah repeated his words before the Eternal at Mizpah.

Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites.

Jephthah’s Message: What do you have against me? Why are you attacking my people in my land?

This king of the Ammonites answered Jephthah’s messengers.

King of the Ammonites: Israel, when it traveled out of Egypt, took away my land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok and from the Jabbok all the way to the Jordan. Give it back, and we will be at peace.

Jephthah once again sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites.

Jephthah’s Message: Here is my response to your claim: Israel did not take away the land of the Ammonites or the Moabites. When my people came up out of Egypt, Israel passed through the desert to the Red Sea and on to Kadesh. At that time, Israel sent a messenger to the king of Edom, asking for permission to travel through his country. But the king would not hear us. Israel also sent a request to the king of Moab, but he also refused. So Israel remained where they were, at Kadesh.

Then they traveled through the wilderness, passing around the lands of Edom and Moab; and on the eastern edge of Moab, they camped on the far bank of the Arnon, well outside the border of Moab. Israel then sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, in Heshbon, asking, “Let us pass through your land to reach our own country.” But Sihon, too, did not trust Israel. He gathered his armies at Jahaz and went to war with us. Then the Eternal One, the True God of Israel, gave us victory over Sihon and all his people, and we defeated them utterly. That’s why Israel occupied the land of the Amorites, who had inhabited that territory, all of the Amorite land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, from the wilderness to the Jordan. The Eternal One, the True God of Israel, conquered the Amorites for the good of His people, Israel. Do you think you can replace them?

Are you unsatisfied with what your god, Chemosh, has given you? We will possess what the Eternal One, our True God has given us. Are you a greater king than Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever have conflict with Israel or go to war against us? 26 For 300 years we have occupied Heshbon and its surrounding villages, Aroer and its villages, and all the towns along the Arnon. Why haven’t you ever attempted to recover them until now?

I have not done any wrong to you, but you have wronged me by going to war against me and my people. So let the Eternal, the Judge over us all, decide today who will triumph in this conflict between Israel and Ammon.

The king of the Ammonites ignored the message Jephthah sent him.

Then the Spirit of the Eternal descended on Jephthah, and he traveled through Gilead and Manasseh, through Mizpah of Gilead to confront the Ammonite army.

Jephthah made a vow to the Eternal One.

Jephthah: If you will give me victory over the Ammonites, then I will make a burnt offering of the first thing that comes out of my door to meet me when I return in victory.

Jephthah went to battle, and the Eternal gave him victory over the Ammonites. His army conquered 20 towns, from Aroer to near Minnith all the way to Abel-keramim, and Israel defeated Ammon decisively.

But when Jephthah came home in triumph to Mizpah, who should rush out to meet him but his daughter, dancing and playing a tambourine? She was his only child; he had no other sons or daughters. When Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes in grief.

Jephthah: O, my daughter, no! You have just made me miserable; you have brought me to my knees! I have made a vow to the Eternal, and I cannot break it.

Daughter: My father, the Eternal God has given you victory over your enemies the Ammonites. If you have made a vow to Him, then do what you have promised to do to me.

But please give me two months to go and weep in the highlands with my friends, since I will never love a man and raise a family.

Jephthah: You may go.

She and her friends went away and wailed upon the mountains because she would never know the love of a man; then when two months had passed, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. Since she had never slept with a man, a custom arose in Israel that every year the young women in Israel would go out for four days to lament the fate of the daughter of Jephthah of Gilead.

The Book of Judges, Chapter 11 (The Voice)

even though such a human sacrifice was foolish and should have never been, yet these words illuminate the sacredness of virginity and the sexual bond of becoming “One” body with someone according to our Creator’s design of the marital bond that is meant to be for a lifetime when done in faithfulness toward each other. sexual infidelity is a reason given by God for the decision of divorce since it severs the bond.

my personal reading of the Scriptures for Saturday, September 5 of 2020 with a paired chapter from each Testament along with Today’s Psalms and Proverbs

A set of posts by John Parsons to accompany Today’s reading of the Scriptures:

The Hebrew letters reveal truth about God. For instance, the very first letter of Torah (i.e., the Bet (בּ) in the word "Bereshit") and the very last letter of the New Testament (i.e., the Nun (נ) in the word "Amen") spell the word בּן ("Son"), the One who is Aleph and Tav (אָלֶף וְתָו), the First and Last, the Beginning and the Ending of the revelation of God. The Apostle John also identifies Yeshua with YHVH (יהוה), the "First and the Last" of whom there is no other God (see Isa. 44:6; Rev. 22:13, etc.). He is called ha-hoveh, ve'hayah, ve'yavo (הַהוֶה וְהָיָה וְיָבוֹא) - “the One who is, and was, and is to come, the Almighty” (Rev. 1:8). Only the LORD God is melech Yisrael (מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל), the true King of Israel. "I am the first and I am the last; and besides me there is no God" (Isa. 44:6).

Compare these words from the Book of Isaiah with John's awesome vision given at the island of Patmos and recorded in the Book of Revelation: "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last (אֲנִי רִאשׁוֹן ואֲנִי אַחֲרוֹן) and the Living One. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hell" (Rev. 1:17-18). Yeshua identifies Himself as none other than YHVH....

Regarding the overmastering glory of Yeshua, the apostle Paul quoted Isaiah 45:23: "I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear" and applied it directly to the Savior: "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Yeshua (Jesus) every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Yeshua the Messiah is Lord (YHVH), to the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2:9-11; see also Rom. 14:11). "For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel (קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל), your Yeshua" (Isa. 43:3). [Hebrew for Christians]

9.4.20 • Facebook

Do any of you struggle with bitterness and chronic grief from being hurt in life? It is hard to forgive when we have been betrayed or seriously wounded by others... Perhaps you were abandoned as a child or suffered terrible betrayal from a friend or spouse. How do we get past the heartache? How can we move past the pain? There are no easy answers, and deliverance from evil comes at different stages for different people, but bitterness is essentially rooted in unforgiveness, and harboring it means losing sight of how much God loves you -- despite your own betrayals and sins against others. Refusing to forgive enslaves you in resentment, pain, and life in despair. Forgiveness is not optional for a follower of Messiah: Your forgiveness of others is your own forgiveness (Matt. 6:15). Give up your demands for justice (Elohim) and appeal to God as Savior (YHVH). Instead of focusing on what harm others have done to you, examine your own heart, confess your own hardheartedness, and learn to be thankful for the grace you hope to partake in Yeshua. "Forgive one another, as God in Messiah forgave you" (Eph. 4:32); "for while we were still his enemies, he died for us" (Rom. 5:8). The devil offers you the cup of wormwood -- a cup of bitterness -- as he tempts you to be offended over all manner of things (both real and imagined). Repudiate his dark appeal. Turn to hope. Ask God for the mercy of a new heart that can let go of the terrible burden of bitterness and that can experience the blessing of shalom (Isa. 38:17). Amen. [Hebrew for Christians]

9.4.20 • Facebook

A set of messages by the Institute for Creation Research (ICR)

September 4, 2020

Our Sins

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)

As Christ hung on the cross, the Jewish leaders felt that He was guilty of blasphemy—a mere man, claiming to be God. In short, they felt that He was dying for His own sins. Their tragic misconceptions were predicted centuries before, as recorded in the treasured 53rd chapter of Isaiah: “We hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not....we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted” (vv. 3-4).

But not so! God did not punish Him for His sins but for ours. “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities” (v. 5). “For the transgression of my people was he stricken” (v. 8).

The penalty for sin has always been death, and even though “he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him” (vv. 9-10). He was the perfect “offering for sin” (v. 10), and “he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (v. 12). Justice has been served! “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many” (v. 11).

Furthermore, through His death, even our griefs have been borne and our sorrows carried (v. 4). In addition to all this, our peace has been gained through His chastisement, and our healing has been accomplished with His stripes (v. 5).

Such considerations can drive us only to the most complete prostration of wonder and amazement. Necessitated because “all we like sheep have gone astray,” God’s justice has been satisfied, because Christ, in love, has taken upon Himself “the iniquity of us all.” As in the hymn: “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.” JDM

September 5, 2020

Cleansed by the Word

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.” (Psalm 119:9)

Psalm 119:9-16 provides key instructions for those who would seek to please their Creator with a godly life.

“Taking heed” (Hebrew shamar—guarding) of God’s Word is the foundation upon which a godly life is built (vv. 10-11). The psalmist sought God with his whole heart and pleaded with God to prevent him from wandering (Hebrew shagah—to stray through ignorance). That plea was then turned into a confirmation and an understanding: “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (v. 11).

With the assurance of these foundational elements, the psalmist promised the Lord that he will organize his life so that he “will not forget thy word” (v. 16).

Similar to the apostle John’s assurance in his first epistle, the psalmist recognized behaviors that he was already exhibiting. His “lips” have “declared” the judgments of God (v. 13). He knows that he has “rejoiced in the way” (v. 14) of God’s revealed testimonies as much as the ungodly have boasted of gaining wealth. He is no stranger to godly living and loves the way of God, seeking to excel in holiness (1 John 5:3).

The section closes with two “I will” promises, surely based upon his earlier commitment to cleanse his way. The psalmist promised to “meditate in [God’s] precepts, and have respect unto [His] ways” (v. 15). This assumes time, study, and careful thought about the purposes and intent of God’s message. It is not a promise to sit comfortably and “clear one’s mind” of cogent thinking, waiting on some voice to reveal truth. The psalmist can then “delight” in the statutes of the Word (Psalm 119:16; Romans 7:22).

As we seek to know God’s great Word, may His works refresh our hearts and delight our lives. HMM III

[dailyaudiobible]

02/28/2018 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 22:21-23:44, Mark 9:30-10:12, Psalms 44:1-7, Proverbs 10:19

Today is the 28th day of February. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and it's great to be here with you today from the holy city of Jerusalem. We arrived in the evening last night and it's an early day and a long one for us today. But we'll talk about all of that in just a little bit. We’ve kind of rounded the corner and have reached our final destination, which will be in and around Jerusalem. At least that's where we’ll be calling home base until the end of our pilgrimage this year. And it's great to be back here. But let me not get ahead of myself and talk about all that. Let’s get into the Scriptures for today. We've been reading from the Modern English Version this week, which is what we will continue to do, even as we continue to move around the land of the Bible here in Israel. Of course, in the Old Testament, in the book of Leviticus, we're reading the statutes, ordinances, laws that are to shape and form this new people who,, of course, have been brought out of slavery in Egypt in epic fashion and now they’re being shaped and formed into a culture and a people, but with one purpose in mind, that they be holy as God is holy. And so, we pick up with that story. Leviticus chapter 22 verse 17 through 23 verse 44 today.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You again for Your word and we thank You again for the reminder that what we say matters, that our realities are being created by our words and that matters. And us paying attention to what's coming out of our mouth matters. And we take that to heart today as we live into this day and invite Your Holy Spirit's to speak to us about that and continually remind us to take a beat, to take a pause before we start just saying words because they matter. Come Holy Spirit. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

Okay. So, man, this is the point in the trip where my brain is turning into mush because we…so much…so much to drink and it's a firehose experience, without a doubt. So, yesterday in the morning we packed up all of our stuff put everything back on the buses and left the Sea of Galilee and the Galilee region itself, drove down along the eastern shores of the Sea of Galilee before heading west and leaving it behind. And our first stop was to travel through the Jezreel Valley all the way to Harr Megiddo, also known as Armageddon. And the ancient ruins of the city of Megiddo still exist and we took some time there to look at them. Megiddo was a city right along the ancient trade route between Egypt and all of the lands beyond here to the north and east. So, it was an important city to control because if you control that then you kind of control a lot of the trade route coming through the area. So, it has had a long history of conquest and battle. And, of course, it sits in a valley that's pretty famous, the valley of Armageddon. So, we looked at the ruins of Megiddo and were able to go down into the water cisterns, the water tunnels and cisterns  that were carved out. It's pretty amazing when you can see that and realize, talking 3000 years ago, and we’re not talking about bulldozers and cranes and, you know, backhoes and all kinds of earthmoving equipment and engineering. We’re talking about a long, long time ago. And, so, the ingenuity is pretty remarkable. And, so, around the ruins you see how people lived, look out across the valley, and then down into the tunnels we went. And it’s not that…I mean you have to climb down in there on stairs…but it's not too long of a of a walk, but it's a remarkable one just to understand that the way that this got here was by people and hard work a long, long, long time ago. And then it was kind of…it's been a little bit rainy…off and on. And, so, we get a little tiny bit rained on, not bad at all, but we are thinking about Mt. Carmel and if it's going to be cloudy up there, and if it’s going to rainy up there. And, so, we did a little switcheroo and had an early lunch, allowing the morning showers to kind of blow through before heading up Mt. Carmel. And Mt Carmel is famous for a showdown between the prophet Elijah and the prophets of Baal and Asherah in which fire comes down from heaven. We haven’t gotten to all this. We’ll get to it when we get to the book of Kings, books of Kings. But fire comes down from heaven, people return to God, the prophets of Baal meet an end they weren’t planning on, but idol worship isn’t something…worshiping anything else besides God, turning your heart in worship to any other God is not something that God tolerates well because it pulls us away from our true identity, which is to be in union together with Him. And, so, that’s happened p on Mt Carmel. So, we opened the Scriptures and read that story and then just discussed what happened next, because Elijah got to see the power of God and then he got up, you know, he got a nasty note from the Queen named Jezebel, that she was going to kill him. And he took off and ran. And, you know, just, when you're here you’re beginning to understand the context that he left Mt Carmel up in the in the north and ran all the way to Beersheba in the South where we started and then all the way down into the desert where we were at the at the Red Sea and then off deep into the Sinai Peninsula to the mountain of God. So, a long, long, long way. And God comes to him on the mountain and says, what are you doing here? And that's a poignant question. Because the same kinds of things do happen in our lives. We see God move, we feel him moving in our lives, we see things happening in our lives, and then we that nasty note. Right? Some social media posts on something or another to sideswipe us. And off on the run we go. And then God comes and says, what are you doing here? So, we considered that as we considered, right, you know, that we were right there, where this happened. And then we were able to go up to this little observatory and look out over the vast Valley of Armageddon and take some pictures and just contemplate where we were in Scripture, where we were in the Bible, what was happening before moving on. And next stop was to take us all the way west to the border of the Mediterranean Sea, to the ancient Roman city of Caesarea Mayor Timo, which was kind of a jewel of the Galilee or the jewel of Israel for the Roman culture, the Roman empire period in this land. And the ruins are exquisite. You kind of get a sense of maybe what this would've been like. And it's pretty magnificent to say the least. And it allowed us the opportunity to touch the book of acts. The Caesarea Mayor Timo's is where the apostle Paul was imprisoned for a couple of years after being arrested in Jerusalem and avoiding an assassination attempt. Of course, I’m a little ahead of where we are in the Scriptures right now, because, at least in the New Testament, we’re in the gospel of Mark, but we we’ll eventually get to the book of Acts and begin to understand the apostle Paul's influence in the early church. And it’s from Caesarea Mayor Timo's that the apostle Paul appealed to Caesar and sailed for Rome. So, we were able to touch that piece and that portion of time, a piece of Scripture. And that wasn’t our final stop for the day then, but it's about a two hour drive from there up to Jerusalem. So, we settled in and began the long journey up, up, up, up to Jerusalem, where we ended our day as it was just getting dark. And lots of naps were taken, but coming into Jerusalem always, reinvigorates everything. And, so, some dinner, some fellowship, and then an early early morning this morning because we’ll…it has to be…because we’ll start our day up on the Temple Mount. And, so, we have to get in line and all of that a bit early. But we’ll talk about what we do today, tomorrow, because it's hard to talk about things you're going to do before you've done them, but it's going to be a great day around Jerusalem today, intersecting the Jesus story here, some of the things and places here. And probably it's best that we do this now, while we have the adrenaline rush of just arriving in the holy city. So, looking forward to that. Thank you for your prayers as we continue this journey for the next few days.

And man here we are guys. Last day of February, which means that we are concluding two months together on our journey through the Scriptures this year. So, we’re 1/6 of the way through the Bible. And just want to say, well done on that. The rhythm continues as we continue to press into it and God continues to speak to us through his word. So, well done.

If want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can certainly do that dailyaudiobible.com. There is a link that's on the homepage. And, you know, I run out of words and ways to express gratitude. The reality is the reality. We what we do because we do it together. That had always been the case around here. So, thank you for your partnership. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996, Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, 877-942-4253 is the number to dial.

And that’s it for today. I’m Brian, a tired Brian, but Brian. I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi this is Joey from Missouri it is 4:38 here on a very cold day. I want…here…on February the 23rd, 2018. I just want to sing a little song here before I start. These songs are some of my mom’s songs that she sang on the piano for many years. So, here goes. [singing] Who is likened to the oh Lord among God’s. Who is likened to the glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders, who is likened to the? [singing stops]. Oh…oh…praise the Lord…praise the Lord. Candace from Oregon you are on my mind today. And I just wanted to say I love you. And when your husband passed away almost a year ago today I was in Kuwait. I was in Kuwait at that time and I just remember coming home to my dorm after work that day and was just so, so sad about that. So, Lord God, just be with Candace from Oregon today. And, so, Lord God, we just thank you for Candace and also thank you for Brian. And I love you all. Take care. Okay. Talk to you soon. Bye-bye.

Hi, this is Melody from Canada. It is February 24th and I have so much joy hearing Brian talk about the group and Israel going into the Jordan River and leaving everything behind. And I can almost he feel the cold water myself in my heart, imagination, spirit. Just bless you, all who made that commitment. And may you find strength to continue in that and to stand that and that for the Lord is with you. I have Psalm 35:27 on my heart. It says, let them shout for joy and be glad. His favor my righteous cause. Yes, let them say continually, the Lord be magnified with pleasure and the prosperity of his servant. And thinking of Rachel a first-time caller who struggling with depression and OCD. And Rachel, the Lord has pleasure in your prosperity, His pleasure in your health. And whatever road it takes to get there he is with you always. Bless you. Bye.

Hi friends this is Lisa the encourager and I hope everybody that’s in Israel is having a wonderful blessed time and a safe trip. I’m praying for you. I just wanted to read something I thought was encouraging tonight called A Cut Above. And it says, the word holy means to separate. The ancestry of return can be traced back to the ancient word which means to cut. To be holy then is to be cut above the norm, superior extraordinary. The holy one dwells on a different level than the rest of us. What frightens us does not frighten Him. What troubles us does not trouble Him. When you set your sights on our God you focus on one a cut above. Any storm life may bring, you will find peace in Him. And also Psalm 46:10 says, be still and know that I am God. So, I hope that’s encouraging to you tonight. And with that, I also wanted to pray some prayers for some folks. I wanted to pray for Lydia from Indiana. She had called in about her daughter Suzy E. and she was just wanting her to obey God and not take on the ways of the world. So, I want to pray for Suzy E., Lydia’s daughter. And also just wanted to just say thank you to Michelle…oh…excuse me…I’m sorry…Monica from Kentucky for her prayers. There always so sweet Monica and I just appreciate all of your…the times you call in and the different things that your praying about and just want to let you know it’s very encouraging. And lastly, I just want to pray for Diane in Ohio. She has a son that’s taking drugs and a grandson as well. And they really need help in turning their life around and she feels like they’ve really changed a great...

He Daily Audio Bible this is Paul from Houston. And I’ve called to pray for Curtis from Cali. I think your sons name was Kingston. And you were mentioning that he is dealing with a lot of anxiety depression sort of things, but he’s only eight. And I just want to pray. I struggled with a lot of anxiety growing up and different things. And Lord…let’s go to God right now. Thank you Jesus. I ask that You will be with Kingston Lord I thank You Lord that You protect his mind Lord, that You would guide him around with Your Angels. I thank You Lord that his mind would be centered on You. I thank You Lord that no weapon formed against him can prosper. And I thank You Lord that those thoughts that try to bombard him, those thoughts to try to create anxiety, that those thoughts have to go in the name of Jesus. And I thank You Lord for peace over the house, over Kingston, peace when he sleeps, peace when he rises. Lord I thank You Lord that You would help them to, you know, explore the things that an eight-year-old boy would love to do. Lord I thank You Lord that You would give him the outlets, the hobbies, the things that You want him to work with Lord. And I thank You Lord for developing him. And that You have something special for Kingston Lord, a special future for him Lord, like scouting with different things Lord, that You know, You know Kingston Lord. And I thank You Lord, You know, the way You made him and what purpose You made him for and I thank You Lord that when his family draws closer to You Lord that You would reveal what Your will is and that You would open a door for them, but I thank You Lord for peace in their home and peace in his mind and peace as he sleeps in Jesus name. Daily Audio Bible have a great day. It’s Paul from Houston. Bye.

Hey, I need you guys to pray for me. I’ve been walking with Jesus for a long time now and I was involved in a lot of pornography and masturbation before I knew him and even in the years since. the struggle has been real. It’s not all the time. There is victory sometimes, sometimes for long stretches, but it’s been going into my marriage. My wife new about them. But we have kids now and I’m working harder than ever and she works harder than ever looking after them. And it’s gotten to a point where I don’t want to talk about with her anymore and burden her mostly. And sometimes I feel like I’m screwed up in other ways so much that I can’t even talk to her anymore and it’s probably unfair, but I know I need to confess out to my brothers and sisters. Today’s reading in the Old Testament about skin disease and mildew. I skipped it. I just fast-forwarded. And then Brian talked about how that was sort of the heart of the message and how it has to do with the heart of me. And I can’t let stuff grow in the dark anymore. So, pray for me family. Bring it to the high priest so he can bring into His father. Thanks guys. I love you. Bye.

[thereteller]

Turks and Romans around ~1000 - 1100 AD according to Byzantine Empire of the time. In the ages of Roman Empire and/or Eastern Roman Empire also known as Byzantine Empire or Byzantium, self-describing of Byzantine Greeks was “Romans (Romaioi)” instead of “Greeks (Ellines)”.

To the Romans and/or Eastern Romans (Byzantines), after diplomatically, commercially and militarily being in contact with the Khaganate of Tourkoi (Turks) who were formerly known as Skythikoi (Scythians), now known as Tourkoi (Turks, i.e. Turkish Khaganate, also Gök-Türk Khaganate or Turkic Khaganate), thus the ethnonym Skythikoi was used together with Tourkoi as cognates, and slowly replaced its usage completely to Tourkoi in time. Those Turkophone groups included tribes such as Huns, i.e. those who originally bore the ethnonym Hun, popularly and falsely known as “Hun elites”, should be called as “Huns” only, thus excluding their non-Hunnic allies who are Indo-European or Uralic speakers who cannot be counted as Hun and/or Hunnic or Hunnish. After the dissolution of the Khaganate of Tourkoi (Turkish or Turkic Khaganate), Turkophone tribes who arrived around boundaries of Byzantines and raided towards Europe and Iran (and/or Persia) and also directly towards the realm of the Byzantine Empire such as Anatolia and Balkans, continued to be called Tourkoi besides aging usage of Skythikoi. One of the examples that Romaioi used both Skythikoi and Tourkoi together commonly for collective Turkophone tribes is the name of a prominent unit they used in their military ranks called “Skythikon (Scythian)” which only made up of strong warlike cavalry of Turkophone tribes such as Pechenegs, Cumans, Bulgars etc. Prominent Turkophone tribes who remained around Europe after the dissolution of Hunnic Confederation without losing their identity such as Ogurs (Oghurs, Oğurs, Onogurs, Uturgurs, Kuturgurs, Saragurs, Altzikurs) and Agacheri (meaning in the language of Turks: “woodman, woodmen”; Akatziri in Huns, Agathyrsi in Scythians) were also called Tourkoi and their realm was called Tourkia. For example, the realm of Onogurs was called Western Tourkia even after the arrival and domination of Turk-identified Uralo-Turks called “Magyars” who were led by other Ogur Turks of Arpad together with the Turkophone Kabars who lost the Khazar Civil War, in the Ogur Turk ruling Confederation of Onoguria (Onoguria > Ungaria > Hungary) until around 1300s, thus the Kingdom of Hungary was always called “Tourkia (Turkey)”, or “Western Tourkia” in contrast to “Eastern Tourkia” also known as Khazaria, a khaganate established by an Oğur or Oğuz tribe called “Khazar” (the Turkish Khaganate called them “Sabar”, a Turkophone tribe which was also allied with Huns, also known as “Sabir”), which was established soon after the dissolution of the Turkish Khaganate. Before the arrival of Onogurs in the Pannonian plains and causing Byzantines to call their realm “Onoguria” or “Ungaria (Hungary)”; they were living around a region called Etelköz, probably north of the peninsula of Taurica around modern-day Kyiv (Kiev), the land they will arrive was ruled by the Avars, another Turkophone tribe that lost a great war against the Turkish Khaganate and fled into the Pannonian plains, defeating the Germanic Gepids. They had Turkish-named khagans like Bayan, and their realm was called “Avaria” by the Byzantines, and they were sometimes called “Varchonites” which is the unification of the ethnonyms Avar and Hun, thus Varchonites > Avarhuns, Byzantines also called them “descendants of Huns”. Khagan of Tourkia sent diplomats to demand the withdraw of the Eastern Roman recognition of Avar rule in the Pannonian plains and a joint Turkish-Byzantine offensive towards the realm of Avar tribe, self-described as “Avar Khaganate”.

Also other Turkish tribes such as Pechenegs, Oghuz (Oguz and Ogur tribes were the biggest and the main body of all Turkophone tribes, all other Turkophone tribes anciently split off from this great tribe in early times. Oguz or Ogur means “the tribes” or “the people”. The Tribe or “Oguz/Ogur” constitued the greatest and most populous tribes or tribal unions of the Turks in history), Cumans (or Kipchaks), and a prominent dynasty or clan from the Oghuz tribe called Selchuk who founded the Seljuk Empire, controlled and conquered nearly all of Anatolian peninsula after conquering Iran (Persia), and also other statelets of Oğuz Turk clans which was established in Anatolia after the arrival of populous Oguz Turks in Anatolia following the conquest of Anatolia by the Seljuk Turks, such as Saltuk, Danishment, Mengujeg, and the first Turkish sailor in history named Tzachas (Chaka or Çaka); were also called “Tourkoi” and their realm “Tourkia”. Tzachas was a captive from a battle between Tourkoi and Romaioi around Smyrna, and until Alexius Komnenus rule he lived in the Byzantine court and served for them, but when Komnenus forcefully kicked him from Constantinople, he fled to Smyrna and as a commander he defeated the Romaioi armies, he allied with Pecheneg Turks and made assaults against the Byzantines together, captured Smyrna and cities and towns around Smyrna and establishing an Smyrna-based independent Turkish state, and created the first navy of Turks in history and conquered Midilli, Sakız and Sisam islands around 1090s. From the other heavily populous mass migration of Oğuz and Cuman Turks who arrived in Anatolia (other than other destinations for them such as Hungary, Bulgaria, Iran, India, Egypt etc.) fleeing from the Great Mongol Invasion of Genghis, clans such as Jandar, Teke, Eretna, Germiyan, Ottoman etc. settled in Anatolia under the protection of Seljuk Tourkia which was later defeated by the invading Mongols just like Cuman Tourkia which was defeated by the Mongols; leaving the Mongol vassal-state Seljuk Tourkia and established independent beyliks to rebel and fight against the Mongols and their allies to end the Mongol dominion over Anatolia. After the dissolution of Seljuk Tourkia, Ottoman Empire rose up and the realm of Ottomans was also called “Tourkia”, thus since the ages of Seljuk Tourkia and Ottoman Tourkia, it’s still called the “Republic of Tourkia (Turkey)”.

#turksgreeks #turks vs greeks #map of byzantine empire #byzantine map #eastern roman empire #byzantine empire #kingdom of hungary #khazaria #khazars #turkic khaganate #turkish khaganate #göktürks #turks #greeks #romans #romaioi #tourkoi #tourkia #skythikoi #skythikon #magyars #hungarians #pechenegs #oghuz #oghur #oguz #ogur #scythians #turks vs romans #huns vs romans

[eyesonworldcultures]

Sunken Cities That Were Once Major Destinations

Everyone has heard the legend of Atlantis, the incredible city that was swallowed up by the ocean and never seen again. People have spent their whole lives looking for this place to prove that it really existed, but it has not yet been discovered.

What has been discovered, though, are several other sunken cities that were once major destinations. These cities were and are very real, and many of them look the same underwater as they did up on land. Here is a list of five of the most impressive sunken cities that would have been worth a visit even before the ocean claimed them.

Port Royal, Jamaica

Port Royal was like the Las Vegas of Jamaica. Referred to as "the most wicked and sinful city in the world" by multiple sources, this city was once home to everything from pirates and boozing to partying and prostitutes. Some say that this history of sinfulness is the reason why it was plunged into the ocean in 1692, when a massive earthquake hit Jamaica. Others say that the reason for its sinking was due to its faulty and unstable foundations on the island, but either way, more than 2,000 people lost their lives when it sank into the ocean. It is still frequently visited now, not by pirates, but by archaeologists searching for more of the almost perfectly preserved artifacts that were left behind.

Dwarka, India

This sunken Indian city is often compared to Atlantis, due to the fact that so much that is known about it is based on myth. According to Hindu texts from ancient times, Dwarka was founded by the Hindu god Krishna, and was often a place of battle between the god and the evil King Salva.

The descriptions of the battles

 that took place here have actually led to many theorizing that aliens were involved, since the technology of the weapons were so advanced for their time. While all of this might be enough to make one give up on the city out of sheer disbelief, all it takes is one look at the submerged ruins to prove that it was, indeed, a real place. Seventy feet beneath the sea lies a myriad of artifacts ranging from anchors and pottery to the partial walls of the structures of the city, making it clear that, however the city was made, it really did exist.

Shi Cheng, China

If you think that every sunken city was submerged hundreds of years ago, think again. Shi Cheng in China actually sank quite recently in the grand scheme of things: it was flooded in the 1950s. This 2,000-year-old city was once a huge economic hub founded during the Han Dynasty, and was a big tourist destination even when it was above sea level due to some incredible statues, art, and intricately-carved buildings. Unfortunately, when the government built a hydroelectric power station in the 1950s, the city was lost forever to the sea as it was flooded out. It now rests an incredible 130 feet underwater, but many of the statues, buildings, and pieces of art are still there for tourists to explore.

Phanagoria, Greece

Phanagoria was once the largest city in Greece. Now, though, at least one third of it is submerged beneath the waters of the Black Sea. Founded in 543 B.C. by Teian colonists fleeing Asia Minor, the city was a spectacular sight even when it was just beginning. This area of the Taman Peninsula was home to nearly every natural wonder there is: ravines, hills, craters, and even active volcanoes. The city soon began to thrive in this location, becoming a big trade hub and, eventually, the main economic center of Greece.

After many centuries of war, the city eventually sank, only to be rediscovered by archaeologists centuries after that, who became highly interested in the submerged kingdom when they discovered the gravestone of Hypsikrates. She was the wife of Mithridates VI, king of Pontus—and someone who was once thought to be a figure from a myth. Further exploration revealed more incredible artifacts and locations, including a large necropolis where many important figures were buried.

Cleopatra's Kingdom, Egypt

While all of the sunken cities on this list are impressive, Cleopatra's Kingdom just off the coast of Alexandria may just be the most impressive of all. The royal palace of one of Egypt's most famous figures was discovered just 20 years ago, having been lost for over 1,600 years. When Cleopatra was alive, she had many different palaces, one of which was on the island of Antirhodos. The island was extremely luxurious, and featured enormous pillars with crowns etched onto them, leading visitors to the palace itself. The palace was then surrounded by sphinxes and statues of Egyptian goddesses, surely making it something quite breathtaking to see when it was above water.

Four hundred years after Cleopatra's death, though, the island was submerged by devastating earthquakes and tsunamis and remained hidden for centuries. When it was finally rediscovered in 1998, archaeologists found that many of the crowned pillars and much of the foundation of the palace were still intact. Now, the heads of enormous Sphinxes and Egyptian goddess statues greet explorers under the sea, where Egypt hopes to one day open an underwater museum.