Good day bloggers & welcome to the Yash IVF blog site. As we are aware, IVF is a treatment offered to parenthood and the most routinely practiced one worldwide. IVF or In-vitro Fertilization is the procedure of fertilization that is performed in vitro, which means in glass or laboratory conditions. After fertilization, the embryo is transferred in the women’s womb for awaited delivery.
We, at Yash IVF, Deccan, in the practice of 15+yrs of ART, (Assisted Reproduction Technologies,) have counselled and treated the cause of infertility and offered parenthood to 5060+ couples. We have strict protocols in place in order to consider the candidate for IVF.
The right diagnosis here plays a very important role, which saves time as well as money. The Multidisciplinary team is a very important player of a team along with the in-house embryologist. The real concern is, deciding whether or not to pursue in vitro fertilization (IVF) can be a difficult and complex decision for couples struggling with infertility. There are many factors to consider, including the potential success rates of IVF, the financial cost, and the emotional toll it can take on individuals and relationships.
In this blog, we will explore some of the factors that may indicate whether or not you need IVF.
A. First and foremost, it is important to understand what IVF is and how it works. IVF is a medical procedure that involves the fertilization of eggs outside of the body in a laboratory. The eggs are collected from the woman’s ovaries and combined with sperm in a petri dish, and the resulting embryos are then transferred to the woman’s uterus. IVF can be used to treat a variety of fertility issues, including ovulation disorders, tubal factor infertility, male factor infertility, and unexplained infertility.
B. One of the primary factors to consider when deciding whether or not to pursue IVF is the cause of your infertility. If you have a medical condition that is causing your infertility, such as endometriosis, PCOS, or male factor infertility, IVF may be a good option for you. In cases where the Fallopian tubes are blocked or damaged, IVF may be the only option for achieving a pregnancy which saves cost and time to pregnancy.
C. However, if your infertility is due to age-related factors, such as a decline in ovarian reserve or poor egg quality, IVF with self-eggs may not be the most effective treatment option. As women age, the quality and quantity of their eggs decrease, which can make it more difficult to achieve a successful pregnancy with IVF. In these cases, donor eggs may be a better option.
D. Another factor to consider is the length of time you have been trying to conceive. If you have been trying to conceive for less than a year and have no known fertility issues, it may be premature to consider IVF. In these cases, it is recommended that couples try to conceive naturally for up to a year before seeking medical intervention. However, if you have been trying to conceive for a year or more without success, it may be time to consider fertility treatment, including IVF.
You are doing all the things right and yet no pregnancy? Poor thyroid health can be contributing factor along with environmental factors like plastics, which are shown to decrease testosterone in men and early menopause, miscarriage and premature birth in women. Being underweight too is a cause of concern as research suggests, optimal body fat for fertility is 26-28%. Starving and fixing fertility concerns in a such situation does not help.
Poor blood flow to the womb, mineral deficiencies, defects in sperm profile are some of the reasons for infertility. Some factors can be corrected while others need to be in control. No wonder the human fertilization is highly faulty and regulated by multiple factors which complicates the matter further. Egg and sperm are the 2 basic component of fertilization but hormonal balance, receptivity and thickness of endometrium matter too.
In our practice at Yash IVF, Deccan, only 20-25% of the patients who visited us for the diagnosis as well as treatment needed IVF. The clear guidelines for using IUI, ICSI as well as IVF have helped us immensely to ace our success rates. we perform ICSI as routine affair prior to IVF.
The success rates of IVF are another important factor to consider. The success rates of IVF vary depending on a number of factors, including the age of the woman, the cause of infertility, and the number of embryos transferred. In general, younger women have higher success rates with IVF than older women, and couples with a known cause of infertility have higher success rates than those with unexplained infertility. It is important to discuss your individual chances of success with your fertility specialist before deciding whether or not to pursue IVF.
The financial cost of IVF can also be a significant consideration. IVF can be expensive, and many insurance plans do not cover the full cost of treatment. Couples should be prepared to spend several thousand on IVF and may need to consider financing options or seek out grants or other forms of financial assistance. It is important to consider the financial impact of IVF on your family and to have a realistic understanding of the potential costs before pursuing treatment.
Nevertheless, the selection of the right clinic or hospital with the right skillful doctors who can find the probabilities of successful pregnancies through IVF, rather than predictions. The Yash IVF has witnessed the power of science through laid down science-driven, time-tested protocols.
Finally, it is important to consider the emotional toll that IVF can take on individuals and relationships. IVF can be a stressful and emotionally challenging process, involving multiple appointments, procedures, and medications. It is important to have a strong support system in place and to be prepared for the potential emotional ups and downs of IVF.
In summary, deciding whether or not to pursue IVF is a complex decision that depends on a variety of factors, including the cause of infertility, the length of time you have been trying to conceive, the success rates of IVF, the financial cost, and the emotional toll it can take on individuals. The right to parenthood is offered by IVF procedure and the promise of the same is the hope. Do visit us to start the journey of parenthood.

Expedition report from RG-5
Area of recon: Shore of Meilume due east of Galdush
Report carried out by Lieutenant Eric Ross
Report states: RG-5 has encountered an elven outpost on its way to the shore. The purpose of these outposts is to act as checkpoints for the Imperial army as well as to maintain surveillance within an area. The outpost encountered by RG-5 had thirty soldiers guarding it. RG-5 attempted peaceful contact, however, the elves engaged and RG-5 retaliated. All enemies have been neutralized and RG-5 has suffered no casualties and the outpost has been searched. Upon reaching the shore, RG-5 made peaceful contact with a local fishing village. They helped in local affairs, such as hunting down several feral welfen and repairing their equipment. In return, the locals gave them information on the coast south of the North Alston river. There are seven villages between the river and the Alston kingdom border and three more north of the river, which make up the fishing community of the southeast coast of the empire. The southeast coast and shore are patrolled by the Imperial third fleet with its center in the port city of Cheemo. Further information is required.
Other news: The airstrip has been finalized and drones have been sent to various locations. New findings include the official location of the river city Kuruk to the north and Imperial fort Mundus to the west. A large cluster of Imperial soldiers has been seen gathering on the opposite side of the North Alston river. Numbers count between one hundred and one hundred and fifty thousand, including auxiliary troops. No signs of any movement south of the river. Will continue to observe. The CIA has been able to establish a network in the Meilume capital and the leading agent, Edward Garcia, has confirmed that the nobility is attempting to flee the area. RG-3 is advised to speed up. As for the city itself, the population is estimated to be roughly six hundred thousand with fortifications and a force of ten thousand soldiers. No elements of any Imperial spy network have been discovered.
28th day of late yellow season, 3000th cycle
Meilume capital, Empire of light
General Laeroth's words reached the nobility of Meilume and they heed its instructions. Lord Bellon Belus rushed his family and the guard commander followed. Servants carried bags and soldiers formed a formation to escort them to Una, where they will meet with the army that will bring them to the other side of the river and then to the city of Imslone. Bellon was always a father and husband first, and lord second. Nearly two hundred thousand soldiers were slaughtered in less than a moon cycle. That was proof enough that he needed to leave the capital and save his family. Abandoning his city in the face of the enemy was an act of cowardice, often severely punished, but he would take any punishment for those he loved. He would not be like his father.
Bellon walked through the halls and double-checked every room. "Hurry up! Leave anything not of use! Leave the valuables, they are only dead weight!"
"Bellon!", a woman called him.
"Nimriel.", he said.
"Must we leave? This has been our home for cycles. And our family's home for far longer. Leaving it is-"
"It is the only way. The only way for us to live. We must, Nimriel. If we do not, the enemy will take us."
"But Bellon-"
"Think of our daughter, Nimriel. Think of Taria. What if those barbarians breach the walls? After they're done with the peasants, do you believe they will spare us? I will not allow such a thing to happen."
And speaking of the devil, Taria appeared from the corner, wearing a battle uniform with a sword sheathed on her left hip and holding a helmet in her right hand. "I am ready father."
Bellon couldn't say he was shocked too much. Since she was little she used to sneak into the courtyard and train with the guard commander. He knew and let her do what she wanted. It made her happy. But this was uncalled for.
"Stop fooling around Taria.", Bellon said, "This is a serious matter."
"Then take me seriously!", Taria responded, "The enemy is coming and I must be ready."
"You are not staying. You are coming with us to Imslone."
"I am not. I will not commit an act of cowardice and leave my post."
"Your post is beside me. I am your father!"
"I am not a little girl anymore! I have trained with Aego for over a hundred cycles! I am ready!"
"This enemy destroyed two armies and bested two generals! We stand no chance! Our only choice is to flee as far as we can and let the armies deal with them. The best we can hope to do is slow them down."
"You dare doubt our guard like that, father! These soldiers are just as strong as those of the Imperial army and our walls have held off the Rosians and ferals! We can-"
"Do you not hear me you stupid girl!", Bellon's voice boomed through the walls and made the servants and guards stop in their tracks, "I do not care for your illusions! The enemy is real! Wars are bloody and repulsive and not a place for you! You are the daughter of a lord! You are the heir to Meilume and a member of the Belus family! You will cease this foolishness at once and act accordingly!"
This was the loudest Bellon ever had to shout. He could feel his throat hurting. Taria could only feel tears falling down her cheeks as she lowered her head in shame. In truth, she just wanted to prove she was as capable as she claimed. That despite being a girl she could live in the world of men. But her dreams would have to wait. Bellon groaned and shook his head as he kept walking down the hall. Nimriel hugged her daughter and tried to reassure her everything will be alright, but her words fell on deaf ears.
As Nimriel left, someone else walked over to Taria from behind. As he placed his hand on her shoulder, Taria turned around and saw a man she thought of as her second father. "Aego.", she said through tears.
"Do not be saddened, my lady.", he said as he wiped her tears, "Your father said what he said because he cares. You are his only daughter, more valuable to him than this entire world. He only wants what is best for you. And right now, the best for you is to go to Imslone."
"B-But the enemy. What will you do?"
"I am coming with you, my lady. I left my first captain in charge. He will make sure these otherworlders bleed for this city."
Taria hugged him, still shedding tears, "Thank you Aego. Thank you."
Aego hugged her back.
---
29th of June, 2070
Since the Rift Groups programs have been initiated, soldiers all around have been eager to join. Some more than others, some less. But none were as stocked as sergeant Emma Davis. The second youngest member of RG-1, she was nicknamed 'Trigger-finger' for a reason. Great results in the shooting range, but not much else. Still, when she heard the 'Prodigy' was joining she couldn't control herself. Ever since they left for Alston, she's been clinging to Logan like a leach.
"Sir, how many people have you killed?", she asked.
"I lost count.", Logan answered.
"Sir, why have you joined the army?"
"It's a family tradition."
"Sir, have you been shot?"
"Yes."
"Sir, may I see it?"
"No."
"Sir, why did you leave the special forces?"
Logan didn't answer that one.
"Sir-"
"Emma shut up already.", Jacob said.
"Yeah, I think you're getting on the captain's nerves.", Michael said.
Staff sergeant Jacob Brown and corporal Michael Hoilman, Emma's friends since high school and pretty much the only reason she's not in jail. They've stuck by her side, being her big brothers for years, and kind of grown attached to her. It was like having a little sister.
"No I'm not.", Emma said.
"Yes you are.", Jacob said.
"You hold your captain in quite a high regard.", said Krolm, the leanoid, "Why?"
"Are you kidding me?", Emma said, "He's Logan Connors. All of Fort Bragg and the rangers know about him."
"Are rangers perhaps elites in your army?", asked Kai, the welfen.
"We're rangers.", said veteran sniper sergeant Nick Harper aka 'Bullseye', "We're a strike fast group made for quick attacks and quick action. We're not like the rest of the army that fights on the front lines. We fight in forests, towns, cities, forts, you name it. We hit fast, hard, and take care of our mission."
"Hell yeah we do!", shouted corporal Lamar Jones, the 'Heavy gunner'.
"Interesting.", said Clara, the lepian, "So that's why you have us with you. It makes sense, you don't really need us on the front lines when you got your large cannons and these armored carriages."
RG-1 wasn't just a normal group. It was the only group with sixty-six soldiers, a captain, and twice as many vehicles. This made them quite a force and that was necessary since they were being deployed to the border of Alston. After prince Bodin agreed to assist REC he chose three people who would aid him. Gregor Bachwich, son of Herwin Bachwich, the baron of the border town of Afa. He will be important in establishing first contact with the Rosians. Lieutenant Pallius Blazewing, son of Lor Blazewing, a great military figure in the Opherin army. The Opherin kingdom prides itself on great military history, having fought more battles than any Rosian kingdom or duchy in history. And finally, a youngster named Matheo Calo. There was nothing special about him besides being prince Bodin's personal squire. He's been with Bodin for years and the two became more than just prince and servant. Furthermore, Bodin promised Matheo he would bring him back to his mother in Olinor. Prince Bodin himself didn't choose to come along. His reasoning was that he wants to present himself in front of all the kings and dukes when they all gathered together. One more person did come with them. Ambassador Eugene Anderson. Together, they will establish peace. Or war.
Right now they were on their way to Afa, only several more minutes. In the LAV where the tribals were, private first-class Ethan Williams sat, writing in his journal. He was the youngest and newest addition to the group. Fresh off the academy, he graduated to be a sniper and was eager to learn from both Logan and Nick. But something kept him from them. Next to him sat Carla, who kept eyeballing him and his weapon. Ethan was nervous, he wasn't used to girls sitting near him, or even looking at him, and Carla seemed interested.
"What is this weapon?", she asked.
"O-Oh Ummm, this?", he stuttered, "This is a modified and modernized Mk22 ASR sniper rifle. I know there are older models but my granddad taught me how to use this one. It can hit a target from about twenty-two hundred yards away. In your measurements, that's four leagues."
Carla's ears went up, "Amazing! I bet I could hunt a lot of meat with it."
"Well, um. It takes a lot of skill to use it. I could show you, sometime."
"Oh?", Carla raised an eyebrow and moved closer smiling, "I think I would like that.". She purred a little which made Ethan stutter and sweat. Across from them, Lin watched with her arms crossed.
"What?", Carla asked, "Envious?"
"Not at all.", Lin said as she grabbed Lamar's arm, "I prefer strong males.". Lamar opened his mouth but couldn't say anything. He and Ethan just stared at each other.
"Before your boners brake your belts and that LAV becomes hotter than a pizza oven at Papa John's, I wanna let you know we're almost there.", said lieutenant James Wilson over the comms from the leading JLTV3, the most veteran among them, chosen to uphold discipline.
"Thank you.", said Logan.
"They seem to be getting along.", said ambassador Anderson.
"Indeed.", said Gregor, "I must say, you humans are more strange than you are frightening. The way you use words with one meaning for another. And your expressions as well. Definitely not the savages Canus described."
"I'm glad we could prove that to you. And it appears we are about to prove it to the rest of your kingdom.". They were nearly at Afa. This town serves as a fortified stronghold against the empire should they attack. Its walls were tall and thick, with bastion towers and a single entry gate. It would be difficult for the elves to take it.
"The town currently has a thousand soldiers protecting it. It's usually three thousand, but two thousand went with me through the rift. Most likely on the orders of the elves, my father would never allow it."
"Only three thousand?", James asked.
"Three thousand official soldiers, but should the need arise we can recruit militia fighters from the residents. The town itself has a population of eighty thousand."
"That's a lot of people.", Eugene said.
"Yes. Luckily, it is able to support them, even if barely. The elves aren't exactly sharing people."
"That will all change soon."
As the convoy approached the gate, a ballista javelin hit the road in front of them. The city defenders had assembled on the wall and aimed their weapons at them. While the vehicles are armored, the JLTVs have weak spots a javelin can pierce.
"Hold it!", shouted a man on the wall, presumably the commander, "Present yourselves immediately."
"I'll take care of this.", Logan said as he exited the JLTV with his hands raised, "I am Captain Logan Connors of the Rift Expeditionary Corps! We are from Galdush and have come to make peaceful relations with the kingdom of Alston!"
"Why should we listen to you!?"
"If not me, then how about someone more familiar!".
At that moment, Gregor stepped out of the JLTV3 and, to put it mildly, made the defenders' hearts skip a beat. "Commander Barion! It is good to see you!"
Barion couldn't even speak for moments. His young baron was alive. Against all odds, he made it back. "Y-Young baron!", he finally spoke, "You... You live! How!? And what are you doing with the enemy?!"
"I assure you, they are not the enemy! I will explain everything, but first, I need to ask you to open this gate and let these soldiers in!"
Barion hesitated for a moment, "B-But young ba-"
"Commander, do not make me order you!"
He immediately understood, "Open this gate immediately! Let them in! Someone inform the baron!"
The gate opened and the convoy made it in. Luckily, there was enough room to fit all of them in. Barion and his men, as well as the people, could only stare in awe at what was before them. Truly, people from another world. The commander stepped down and greeted them as well as Gregor.
"Young baron, you have a lot of explaining to do.", Barion said.
"All will be explained soon.", Gregor said.
"Gregor!", shouted a little girl as she ran towards him.
"Elora.", Gregor said as he hugged her, "My little sister. It is good to see you.". Behind her came his mother and father, who at first walked slowly with tears in their eyes, not believing it was him.
"My son.", Herwin said as he hugged Gregor, "By the heavens. You live."
"Mother. Father. I have returned. Let me introduce you to someone. This is Lord Ambassador Eugene Anderson from the land of America on the other side of the rift. He is here to represent his country and the humans."
Herwin immediately walked to him and bowed, "I am Baron Herwin Bachwich. Thank you for sparing my son's life. It is an honor to have you here, Lord Anderson."
"The honor is mine baron.", Eugene said, "I hope we will be able to discuss peace with you and your kingdom."
This confused Herwin, "Peace?"
"I have much to tell you father.", Gregor said, "The prince lives."
Completely frozen, Herwin took a few moments to process that before replying, "He lives?"
"Enemies!", shouted a soldier from the wall. Commander Barion and Logan rushed up the wall. Logan grabbed his binoculars and observed the enemy from a distance. They came from a treeline, their camp was behind it, otherwise, RG-1 would have spotted them.
"I count five hundred.", Logan said, "Various races. Elves, Rosians, ferals."
"How?", Barion asked.
"These are binoculars. They allow me to see things from a distance. Try it."
Logan handed the binoculars to Barion, who observed them for a few moments before putting them on his eyes and facing the enemy. "Incredible."
Barion handed them back but Logan refused, "Keep it, I have a spare. I get the elves, but why are your people attacking you?"
"Those bastards aren't our people. They are traitors and thieves who think the kingdom is done for. So they run to the empire and beg them for forgiveness.". He spat in disgust.
"And the elves. They don't look like the army."
"They most likely were. They call themselves rogues, those who stray from their so-called 'Path of light'. Both of these traitors sicken me."
"Then let us help you."
"Why would you help us?"
"If we're gonna be at peace with one another, we have to establish a certain level of trust, don't we?"
Barion pondered for a bit before answering, "Very well. I am eager to see the army that defeated the elves."
Nodding Logan walked to the edge of the wall and faced his men. "Jones, take your men and mount the machine guns! Davis, bring the ammo! Williams, Harper, get to higher ground and shoot anyone that looks important or a large threat! Wilson, take Green and set up the mortar! Move it, they'll be here in minutes!"
RG-1 immediately went to work. Jones and his men carried the machine guns from the trucks and mounted them on the walls, Williams and Harper climbed up the tallest tower they could find and got into position. Wilson set up the 60mm mortar in the town square.
"I think we should get to safety.", Eugene said.
"You are right.", Herwin said, "Follow me."
Logan got into position with his Mk4 SCAR chambered in 7.62mm. "Commander, I need a favor."
"What is it, captain?", Barion asked.
"If these guys fire arrows, we don't have shields to defend ourselves. You think your men can take of that?"
"Certainly. Get the shields ready! Protect their soldiers!". In moments, each ranger had a Rosian soldier behind him or her with a shield ready. It was time to fight.
The horde moved closer and closer. First, they walked and then picked up the pace as they put shields above their heads. Naturally, the ferals ran towards the wall like rabid animals. "Hold!", Logan said as he gripped his gun, "Wait for them to get closer!". There was one elf on a horse swinging his sword and giving commands. Not for long.
"It's all you kid.", Harper said as he watched Williams aim his shot.
Letting out a breath, Williams pulled the trigger and splattered the elf's brain all over the field. "Boom boom motherfucker."
"Weapons free! Light them up!", Logan shouted as the rangers opened fire on the ferals. The freaks fell by the dozens as bullets pierced their chest, heads, legs, and arms and turned them into cold, dead corpses. The mortar fired at the enemies behind them, who stopped in their tracks, clearly confused and terrified. The rangers aimed their weapons at them and started cutting them down.
"Get some, blueberries!", Davis shouted, "Come closer! I dare ya!"
The few dozen that survived retreated back to the trees. The rangers cheered, but the Rosians didn't cheer as much as they stared in awe. Now they see why the elves lost, these people are powerful.
Commander Barion walked to Logan, "Thank you for the assistance. But I doubt this is the last we have seen of them."
"I know.", Logan said, "That's why I'll have one of my guys scout those trees with a drone along with Lin and Clara.". Logan walked down to the two of them, "Scot! Get over here!"
"Coming!", Scot answered. Scot Green aka 'Mechanic', was the group's engineer. He was also their drone pilot. "Yes sir?"
"I need you to pilot the Fly into those tree lines and scout for the enemy.". The SPFD Fly was a small recon drone invented by DARPA to save both room and energy. Solar-powered and long-lasting battery, coupled with its long-range and small size made it a very useful tool to have in recon missions. "Lin, Carla, you two are also going. I need good eyes and ears over there."
"Sure thing, sir.", Lin said saluting the best she could.
"You two do know how to use a radio, right?"
"Of course we do.", Clara said, "We're not idiots."
"Good. Go.". Lin and Carla ran to the trees as Scott maneuvered the Fly.
The baron and his family, along with Ambassador Eugene walked over to the soldiers. The baron was first to speak, "That was... most impressive. But I must ask. Why peace? Surely you seem powerful enough to take the kingdoms by force."
"Because my people aren't barbarians, baron.", Anderson said, "If peace can be made, then we will do anything to make it a reality."
"I see. And the prince? What does he say about this?"
"You can ask him yourself.", Anderson said as he nodded to Logan who signaled his men to set up a desk and a large screen. "With this device, we can talk to the prince and even see him."
"Amazing.", said Herwin as he eagerly awaited to see his prince. After some preparations, the screen was ready and it turned on. The lights slightly startled the Rosians before the screen was clear and on it was prince Bodin himself. "My... My prince.", Herwin said as he knelt, "It is a miracle. You truly live."
"Baron Bachwich.", Bodin spoke, "Please, rise. I am not before you just yet. This is strange for me as well. Am I correct to assume the human soldiers have arrived?"
"Yes, my prince. They recently just helped us crush an attack from a bandit horde."
"Do you then see why I have chosen to make peace with these people?"
After a momentary pause, Herwin nodded, "I do, my prince. It is incredible to see that a nation so powerful is willing to make peace with its enemy and not subdue it."
"We are not their enemy, baron. The elves and their empire are. This is why they chose to make peace with us. They understand we are just vassals forced to fight. I suggest you hear Lord Anderson out."
As they were talking, Scot called for Logan, "Sir. I have a visual."
Logan nodded, "Alright. Commander Barion, would you like to see the enemy?"
"Yes.", Barion answered, "Show me."
Scot pulled up the video feed on his screen, "This is their camp. I count roughly three thousand. Lin and Carla confirm."
"Where are those two?", Logan asked.
"In the trees."
"Call them back and give me the radio.", Logan took the radio, "Galdush base. Come in Galdush base. This is Captain Logan Connors of Rift Group 1. Do you copy? Over."
After a few moments, the radio spoke, "Copy Rift Group 1. Sitrep. Over."
"Galdush, we have made contact with border town Afa. Upon entry, we engaged a third party, designated rogue elves, and bandit Rosians. Half a battalion attacked us but we drove them off. We confirm the enemy numbers in three thousand, various races. What's the status of our air forces? Over."
"Three air squadrons of Invictus ACs and a Boeing Stratofortress is currently being fueled and should be ready in half an hour."
"Galdush I request a tactical bombing run. The area will be marked via drone. How copy?"
The radio went silent for a few moments before speaking again, "Affirmative RG-1. Stratofortress will be up in the air as soon as possible. Make sure to mark the area. Galdush out."
"Copy that Galdush. RG-1 out."
"What was that?", Barion asked.
"You're gonna get another demonstration."
"Captain!", Carla shouted as she ran towards him. "I have eliminated an enemy scout.", she said as she extended a severed head toward Logan.
Logan smacked his lips before replying, "I see. Get rid of it."
"Yes sir.", Carla said as she tossed the head into a nearby pile of trash.
'At least she's helping', Logan thought.
---
(Two hours later)
The bandits and rogues were sitting in their tents, trying to plan an attack. The otherworlders were an unexpected problem, but hopefully a problem they could be dealt with.
"Alright, listen.", said an elf, "We'll strike at night. It didn't work last time because there were too many of them, but I reckon there can't be more than a few dozen of them."
"That doesn't matter.", said a Rosian, "I've seen what that few can do."
"You attacked with five hundred to scout their defenses. You were never supposed to win. Besides, we can use the tribals to deal with them. As we are attacking the front, they will go to the sides and strike."
"Are you sure this will work?"
"Yes. Soon, Afa will be ours."
At that moment, an elf rushed into the tent, "Sir, you must come and see this!"
They left the tent and came to the center of the tent. The one who called them pointed upwards into the sky. There they saw something flying. A wyvern? No, it was too big. Its wings didn't flap. What could it be? As it flew over them, something fell from it. Many egg-like things started falling and as they fell to the ground, they engulfed the camp in fire and shook the earth. In moments, the whole camp was on fire and everyone was either dead or dying. The ground was turned into a burning pile of scorched bodies.
If there were any doubts about the power of the otherwolders left, they were long gone now.
---
(Meanwhile)
Road to Una
The Belus family along with commander Aego and two hundred soldiers were on their way to Una. Taria did not wish to ride with her father and so she rode on a horse alongside Aego. Their hopes were that they would reach Una in several days and then cross the river.
"My lady.", Aego spoke, "Are you certain you should be riding alongside me and not in the carriage?"
"I do not wish to speak to my father.", Taria said, "At least not now."
"I assumed we cleared this matter."
"We have but... I still need time."
Aego sighed, "I understand. Still, you should not hate him for-", he stopped and halted the soldiers.
"What?"
"Something is not as it should be. This outpost is quiet.". The soldiers tensed up. They could also feel that something wasn't right. In a split second, Aego was shot by an arrow in the side.
"Ambush!", Taria yelled out. Suddenly, elves, welfen, and leanoids ran from the sides and the outpost. The soldiers prepared but found themselves overwhelmed by the enemies' numbers. Rogue elves fired arrows at them while welfen and leanoids exploited weaknesses and struck. Still, the soldiers fought hard, making sure the traitors and savages suffer. The enemy numbers were dropping, but not quickly enough. Taria used her training and cut down several rogues before crouching down to help Aego.
"Aego!", she yelled, "Aego hold on! You will live! Please!". She cried as he struggled to breathe. He grabbed her arm and pushed her to the side, just in time for her to dodge a spear from a leanoid. She watched as Aego spat blood before dying, his life leaving his body. In pure rage, she screamed and struck the leanoid in the side. Pulling out her sword she blocked a strike from a rogue, stepped closer, and headbutted him before slitting his throat.
Turning to her left she saw the rogues and tribals dragging her family. "Father!", she yelled, but couldn't help as a rogue hit her in the back of the head, knocking her down on the ground. Her blurred vision faded away as the rogue smiled down at her.
"Sweet dreams, little girl.", was what he said before she passed out completely.
End of chapter 9
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Expedition report from RG-5
Area of recon: Shore of Meilume due east of Galdush
Report carried out by Lieutenant Eric Ross
Report states: RG-5 has encountered an elven outpost on its way to the shore. The purpose of these outposts is to act as checkpoints for the Imperial army as well as to maintain surveillance within an area. The outpost encountered by RG-5 had thirty soldiers guarding it. RG-5 attempted peaceful contact, however, the elves engaged and RG-5 retaliated. All enemies have been neutralized and RG-5 has suffered no casualties and the outpost has been searched. Upon reaching the shore, RG-5 made peaceful contact with a local fishing village. They helped in local affairs, such as hunting down several feral welfen and repairing their equipment. In return, the locals gave them information on the coast south of the North Alston river. There are seven villages between the river and the Alston kingdom border and three more north of the river, which make up the fishing community of the southeast coast of the empire. The southeast coast and shore are patrolled by the Imperial third fleet with its center in the port city of Cheemo. Further information is required.
Other news: The airstrip has been finalized and drones have been sent to various locations. New findings include the official location of the river city Kuruk to the north and Imperial fort Mundus to the west. A large cluster of Imperial soldiers has been seen gathering on the opposite side of the North Alston river. Numbers count between one hundred and one hundred and fifty thousand, including auxiliary troops. No signs of any movement south of the river. Will continue to observe. The CIA has been able to establish a network in the Meilume capital and the leading agent, Edward Garcia, has confirmed that the nobility is attempting to flee the area. RG-3 is advised to speed up. As for the city itself, the population is estimated to be roughly six hundred thousand with fortifications and a force of ten thousand soldiers. No elements of any Imperial spy network have been discovered.
28th day of late yellow season, 3000th cycle
Meilume capital, Empire of light
General Laeroth's words reached the nobility of Meilume and they heed its instructions. Lord Bellon Belus rushed his family and the guard commander followed. Servants carried bags and soldiers formed a formation to escort them to Una, where they will meet with the army that will bring them to the other side of the river and then to the city of Imslone. Bellon was always a father and husband first, and lord second. Nearly two hundred thousand soldiers were slaughtered in less than a moon cycle. That was proof enough that he needed to leave the capital and save his family. Abandoning his city in the face of the enemy was an act of cowardice, often severely punished, but he would take any punishment for those he loved. He would not be like his father.
Bellon walked through the halls and double-checked every room. "Hurry up! Leave anything not of use! Leave the valuables, they are only dead weight!"
"Bellon!", a woman called him.
"Nimriel.", he said.
"Must we leave? This has been our home for cycles. And our family's home for far longer. Leaving it is-"
"It is the only way. The only way for us to live. We must, Nimriel. If we do not, the enemy will take us."
"But Bellon-"
"Think of our daughter, Nimriel. Think of Taria. What if those barbarians breach the walls? After they're done with the peasants, do you believe they will spare us? I will not allow such a thing to happen."
And speaking of the devil, Taria appeared from the corner, wearing a battle uniform with a sword sheathed on her left hip and holding a helmet in her right hand. "I am ready father."
Bellon couldn't say he was shocked too much. Since she was little she used to sneak into the courtyard and train with the guard commander. He knew and let her do what she wanted. It made her happy. But this was uncalled for.
"Stop fooling around Taria.", Bellon said, "This is a serious matter."
"Then take me seriously!", Taria responded, "The enemy is coming and I must be ready."
"You are not staying. You are coming with us to Imslone."
"I am not. I will not commit an act of cowardice and leave my post."
"Your post is beside me. I am your father!"
"I am not a little girl anymore! I have trained with Aego for over a hundred cycles! I am ready!"
"This enemy destroyed two armies and bested two generals! We stand no chance! Our only choice is to flee as far as we can and let the armies deal with them. The best we can hope to do is slow them down."
"You dare doubt our guard like that, father! These soldiers are just as strong as those of the Imperial army and our walls have held off the Rosians and ferals! We can-"
"Do you not hear me you stupid girl!", Bellon's voice boomed through the walls and made the servants and guards stop in their tracks, "I do not care for your illusions! The enemy is real! Wars are bloody and repulsive and not a place for you! You are the daughter of a lord! You are the heir to Meilume and a member of the Belus family! You will cease this foolishness at once and act accordingly!"
This was the loudest Bellon ever had to shout. He could feel his throat hurting. Taria could only feel tears falling down her cheeks as she lowered her head in shame. In truth, she just wanted to prove she was as capable as she claimed. That despite being a girl she could live in the world of men. But her dreams would have to wait. Bellon groaned and shook his head as he kept walking down the hall. Nimriel hugged her daughter and tried to reassure her everything will be alright, but her words fell on deaf ears.
As Nimriel left, someone else walked over to Taria from behind. As he placed his hand on her shoulder, Taria turned around and saw a man she thought of as her second father. "Aego.", she said through tears.
"Do not be saddened, my lady.", he said as he wiped her tears, "Your father said what he said because he cares. You are his only daughter, more valuable to him than this entire world. He only wants what is best for you. And right now, the best for you is to go to Imslone."
"B-But the enemy. What will you do?"
"I am coming with you, my lady. I left my first captain in charge. He will make sure these otherworlders bleed for this city."
Taria hugged him, still shedding tears, "Thank you Aego. Thank you."
Aego hugged her back.
---
29th of June, 2070
Since the Rift Groups programs have been initiated, soldiers all around have been eager to join. Some more than others, some less. But none were as stocked as sergeant Emma Davis. The second youngest member of RG-1, she was nicknamed 'Trigger-finger' for a reason. Great results in the shooting range, but not much else. Still, when she heard the 'Prodigy' was joining she couldn't control herself. Ever since they left for Alston, she's been clinging to Logan like a leach.
"Sir, how many people have you killed?", she asked.
"I lost count.", Logan answered.
"Sir, why have you joined the army?"
"It's a family tradition."
"Sir, have you been shot?"
"Yes."
"Sir, may I see it?"
"No."
"Sir, why did you leave the special forces?"
Logan didn't answer that one.
"Sir-"
"Emma shut up already.", Jacob said.
"Yeah, I think you're getting on the captain's nerves.", Michael said.
Staff sergeant Jacob Brown and corporal Michael Hoilman, Emma's friends since high school and pretty much the only reason she's not in jail. They've stuck by her side, being her big brothers for years, and kind of grown attached to her. It was like having a little sister.
"No I'm not.", Emma said.
"Yes you are.", Jacob said.
"You hold your captain in quite a high regard.", said Krolm, the leanoid, "Why?"
"Are you kidding me?", Emma said, "He's Logan Connors. All of Fort Bragg and the rangers know about him."
"Are rangers perhaps elites in your army?", asked Kai, the welfen.
"We're rangers.", said veteran sniper sergeant Nick Harper aka 'Bullseye', "We're a strike fast group made for quick attacks and quick action. We're not like the rest of the army that fights on the front lines. We fight in forests, towns, cities, forts, you name it. We hit fast, hard, and take care of our mission."
"Hell yeah we do!", shouted corporal Lamar Jones, the 'Heavy gunner'.
"Interesting.", said Clara, the lepian, "So that's why you have us with you. It makes sense, you don't really need us on the front lines when you got your large cannons and these armored carriages."
RG-1 wasn't just a normal group. It was the only group with sixty-six soldiers, a captain, and twice as many vehicles. This made them quite a force and that was necessary since they were being deployed to the border of Alston. After prince Bodin agreed to assist REC he chose three people who would aid him. Gregor Bachwich, son of Herwin Bachwich, the baron of the border town of Afa. He will be important in establishing first contact with the Rosians. Lieutenant Pallius Blazewing, son of Lor Blazewing, a great military figure in the Opherin army. The Opherin kingdom prides itself on great military history, having fought more battles than any Rosian kingdom or duchy in history. And finally, a youngster named Matheo Calo. There was nothing special about him besides being prince Bodin's personal squire. He's been with Bodin for years and the two became more than just prince and servant. Furthermore, Bodin promised Matheo he would bring him back to his mother in Olinor. Prince Bodin himself didn't choose to come along. His reasoning was that he wants to present himself in front of all the kings and dukes when they all gathered together. One more person did come with them. Ambassador Eugene Anderson. Together, they will establish peace. Or war.
Right now they were on their way to Afa, only several more minutes. In the LAV where the tribals were, private first-class Ethan Williams sat, writing in his journal. He was the youngest and newest addition to the group. Fresh off the academy, he graduated to be a sniper and was eager to learn from both Logan and Nick. But something kept him from them. Next to him sat Carla, who kept eyeballing him and his weapon. Ethan was nervous, he wasn't used to girls sitting near him, or even looking at him, and Carla seemed interested.
"What is this weapon?", she asked.
"O-Oh Ummm, this?", he stuttered, "This is a modified and modernized Mk22 ASR sniper rifle. I know there are older models but my granddad taught me how to use this one. It can hit a target from about twenty-two hundred yards away. In your measurements, that's four leagues."
Carla's ears went up, "Amazing! I bet I could hunt a lot of meat with it."
"Well, um. It takes a lot of skill to use it. I could show you, sometime."
"Oh?", Carla raised an eyebrow and moved closer smiling, "I think I would like that.". She purred a little which made Ethan stutter and sweat. Across from them, Lin watched with her arms crossed.
"What?", Carla asked, "Envious?"
"Not at all.", Lin said as she grabbed Lamar's arm, "I prefer strong males.". Lamar opened his mouth but couldn't say anything. He and Ethan just stared at each other.
"Before your boners brake your belts and that LAV becomes hotter than a pizza oven at Papa John's, I wanna let you know we're almost there.", said lieutenant James Wilson over the comms from the leading JLTV3, the most veteran among them, chosen to uphold discipline.
"Thank you.", said Logan.
"They seem to be getting along.", said ambassador Anderson.
"Indeed.", said Gregor, "I must say, you humans are more strange than you are frightening. The way you use words with one meaning for another. And your expressions as well. Definitely not the savages Canus described."
"I'm glad we could prove that to you. And it appears we are about to prove it to the rest of your kingdom.". They were nearly at Afa. This town serves as a fortified stronghold against the empire should they attack. Its walls were tall and thick, with bastion towers and a single entry gate. It would be difficult for the elves to take it.
"The town currently has a thousand soldiers protecting it. It's usually three thousand, but two thousand went with me through the rift. Most likely on the orders of the elves, my father would never allow it."
"Only three thousand?", James asked.
"Three thousand official soldiers, but should the need arise we can recruit militia fighters from the residents. The town itself has a population of eighty thousand."
"That's a lot of people.", Eugene said.
"Yes. Luckily, it is able to support them, even if barely. The elves aren't exactly sharing people."
"That will all change soon."
As the convoy approached the gate, a ballista javelin hit the road in front of them. The city defenders had assembled on the wall and aimed their weapons at them. While the vehicles are armored, the JLTVs have weak spots a javelin can pierce.
"Hold it!", shouted a man on the wall, presumably the commander, "Present yourselves immediately."
"I'll take care of this.", Logan said as he exited the JLTV with his hands raised, "I am Captain Logan Connors of the Rift Expeditionary Corps! We are from Galdush and have come to make peaceful relations with the kingdom of Alston!"
"Why should we listen to you!?"
"If not me, then how about someone more familiar!".
At that moment, Gregor stepped out of the JLTV3 and, to put it mildly, made the defenders' hearts skip a beat. "Commander Barion! It is good to see you!"
Barion couldn't even speak for moments. His young baron was alive. Against all odds, he made it back. "Y-Young baron!", he finally spoke, "You... You live! How!? And what are you doing with the enemy?!"
"I assure you, they are not the enemy! I will explain everything, but first, I need to ask you to open this gate and let these soldiers in!"
Barion hesitated for a moment, "B-But young ba-"
"Commander, do not make me order you!"
He immediately understood, "Open this gate immediately! Let them in! Someone inform the baron!"
The gate opened and the convoy made it in. Luckily, there was enough room to fit all of them in. Barion and his men, as well as the people, could only stare in awe at what was before them. Truly, people from another world. The commander stepped down and greeted them as well as Gregor.
"Young baron, you have a lot of explaining to do.", Barion said.
"All will be explained soon.", Gregor said.
"Gregor!", shouted a little girl as she ran towards him.
"Elora.", Gregor said as he hugged her, "My little sister. It is good to see you.". Behind her came his mother and father, who at first walked slowly with tears in their eyes, not believing it was him.
"My son.", Herwin said as he hugged Gregor, "By the heavens. You live."
"Mother. Father. I have returned. Let me introduce you to someone. This is Lord Ambassador Eugene Anderson from the land of America on the other side of the rift. He is here to represent his country and the humans."
Herwin immediately walked to him and bowed, "I am Baron Herwin Bachwich. Thank you for sparing my son's life. It is an honor to have you here, Lord Anderson."
"The honor is mine baron.", Eugene said, "I hope we will be able to discuss peace with you and your kingdom."
This confused Herwin, "Peace?"
"I have much to tell you father.", Gregor said, "The prince lives."
Completely frozen, Herwin took a few moments to process that before replying, "He lives?"
"Enemies!", shouted a soldier from the wall. Commander Barion and Logan rushed up the wall. Logan grabbed his binoculars and observed the enemy from a distance. They came from a treeline, their camp was behind it, otherwise, RG-1 would have spotted them.
"I count five hundred.", Logan said, "Various races. Elves, Rosians, ferals."
"How?", Barion asked.
"These are binoculars. They allow me to see things from a distance. Try it."
Logan handed the binoculars to Barion, who observed them for a few moments before putting them on his eyes and facing the enemy. "Incredible."
Barion handed them back but Logan refused, "Keep it, I have a spare. I get the elves, but why are your people attacking you?"
"Those bastards aren't our people. They are traitors and thieves who think the kingdom is done for. So they run to the empire and beg them for forgiveness.". He spat in disgust.
"And the elves. They don't look like the army."
"They most likely were. They call themselves rogues, those who stray from their so-called 'Path of light'. Both of these traitors sicken me."
"Then let us help you."
"Why would you help us?"
"If we're gonna be at peace with one another, we have to establish a certain level of trust, don't we?"
Barion pondered for a bit before answering, "Very well. I am eager to see the army that defeated the elves."
Nodding Logan walked to the edge of the wall and faced his men. "Jones, take your men and mount the machine guns! Davis, bring the ammo! Williams, Harper, get to higher ground and shoot anyone that looks important or a large threat! Wilson, take Green and set up the mortar! Move it, they'll be here in minutes!"
RG-1 immediately went to work. Jones and his men carried the machine guns from the trucks and mounted them on the walls, Williams and Harper climbed up the tallest tower they could find and got into position. Wilson set up the 60mm mortar in the town square.
"I think we should get to safety.", Eugene said.
"You are right.", Herwin said, "Follow me."
Logan got into position with his Mk4 SCAR chambered in 7.62mm. "Commander, I need a favor."
"What is it, captain?", Barion asked.
"If these guys fire arrows, we don't have shields to defend ourselves. You think your men can take of that?"
"Certainly. Get the shields ready! Protect their soldiers!". In moments, each ranger had a Rosian soldier behind him or her with a shield ready. It was time to fight.
The horde moved closer and closer. First, they walked and then picked up the pace as they put shields above their heads. Naturally, the ferals ran towards the wall like rabid animals. "Hold!", Logan said as he gripped his gun, "Wait for them to get closer!". There was one elf on a horse swinging his sword and giving commands. Not for long.
"It's all you kid.", Harper said as he watched Williams aim his shot.
Letting out a breath, Williams pulled the trigger and splattered the elf's brain all over the field. "Boom boom motherfucker."
"Weapons free! Light them up!", Logan shouted as the rangers opened fire on the ferals. The freaks fell by the dozens as bullets pierced their chest, heads, legs, and arms and turned them into cold, dead corpses. The mortar fired at the enemies behind them, who stopped in their tracks, clearly confused and terrified. The rangers aimed their weapons at them and started cutting them down.
"Get some, blueberries!", Davis shouted, "Come closer! I dare ya!"
The few dozen that survived retreated back to the trees. The rangers cheered, but the Rosians didn't cheer as much as they stared in awe. Now they see why the elves lost, these people are powerful.
Commander Barion walked to Logan, "Thank you for the assistance. But I doubt this is the last we have seen of them."
"I know.", Logan said, "That's why I'll have one of my guys scout those trees with a drone along with Lin and Clara.". Logan walked down to the two of them, "Scot! Get over here!"
"Coming!", Scot answered. Scot Green aka 'Mechanic', was the group's engineer. He was also their drone pilot. "Yes sir?"
"I need you to pilot the Fly into those tree lines and scout for the enemy.". The SPFD Fly was a small recon drone invented by DARPA to save both room and energy. Solar-powered and long-lasting battery, coupled with its long-range and small size made it a very useful tool to have in recon missions. "Lin, Carla, you two are also going. I need good eyes and ears over there."
"Sure thing, sir.", Lin said saluting the best she could.
"You two do know how to use a radio, right?"
"Of course we do.", Clara said, "We're not idiots."
"Good. Go.". Lin and Carla ran to the trees as Scott maneuvered the Fly.
The baron and his family, along with Ambassador Eugene walked over to the soldiers. The baron was first to speak, "That was... most impressive. But I must ask. Why peace? Surely you seem powerful enough to take the kingdoms by force."
"Because my people aren't barbarians, baron.", Anderson said, "If peace can be made, then we will do anything to make it a reality."
"I see. And the prince? What does he say about this?"
"You can ask him yourself.", Anderson said as he nodded to Logan who signaled his men to set up a desk and a large screen. "With this device, we can talk to the prince and even see him."
"Amazing.", said Herwin as he eagerly awaited to see his prince. After some preparations, the screen was ready and it turned on. The lights slightly startled the Rosians before the screen was clear and on it was prince Bodin himself. "My... My prince.", Herwin said as he knelt, "It is a miracle. You truly live."
"Baron Bachwich.", Bodin spoke, "Please, rise. I am not before you just yet. This is strange for me as well. Am I correct to assume the human soldiers have arrived?"
"Yes, my prince. They recently just helped us crush an attack from a bandit horde."
"Do you then see why I have chosen to make peace with these people?"
After a momentary pause, Herwin nodded, "I do, my prince. It is incredible to see that a nation so powerful is willing to make peace with its enemy and not subdue it."
"We are not their enemy, baron. The elves and their empire are. This is why they chose to make peace with us. They understand we are just vassals forced to fight. I suggest you hear Lord Anderson out."
As they were talking, Scot called for Logan, "Sir. I have a visual."
Logan nodded, "Alright. Commander Barion, would you like to see the enemy?"
"Yes.", Barion answered, "Show me."
Scot pulled up the video feed on his screen, "This is their camp. I count roughly three thousand. Lin and Carla confirm."
"Where are those two?", Logan asked.
"In the trees."
"Call them back and give me the radio.", Logan took the radio, "Galdush base. Come in Galdush base. This is Captain Logan Connors of Rift Group 1. Do you copy? Over."
After a few moments, the radio spoke, "Copy Rift Group 1. Sitrep. Over."
"Galdush, we have made contact with border town Afa. Upon entry, we engaged a third party, designated rogue elves, and bandit Rosians. Half a battalion attacked us but we drove them off. We confirm the enemy numbers in three thousand, various races. What's the status of our air forces? Over."
"Three air squadrons of Invictus ACs and a Boeing Stratofortress is currently being fueled and should be ready in half an hour."
"Galdush I request a tactical bombing run. The area will be marked via drone. How copy?"
The radio went silent for a few moments before speaking again, "Affirmative RG-1. Stratofortress will be up in the air as soon as possible. Make sure to mark the area. Galdush out."
"Copy that Galdush. RG-1 out."
"What was that?", Barion asked.
"You're gonna get another demonstration."
"Captain!", Carla shouted as she ran towards him. "I have eliminated an enemy scout.", she said as she extended a severed head toward Logan.
Logan smacked his lips before replying, "I see. Get rid of it."
"Yes sir.", Carla said as she tossed the head into a nearby pile of trash.
'At least she's helping', Logan thought.
---
(Two hours later)
The bandits and rogues were sitting in their tents, trying to plan an attack. The otherworlders were an unexpected problem, but hopefully a problem they could be dealt with.
"Alright, listen.", said an elf, "We'll strike at night. It didn't work last time because there were too many of them, but I reckon there can't be more than a few dozen of them."
"That doesn't matter.", said a Rosian, "I've seen what that few can do."
"You attacked with five hundred to scout their defenses. You were never supposed to win. Besides, we can use the tribals to deal with them. As we are attacking the front, they will go to the sides and strike."
"Are you sure this will work?"
"Yes. Soon, Afa will be ours."
At that moment, an elf rushed into the tent, "Sir, you must come and see this!"
They left the tent and came to the center of the tent. The one who called them pointed upwards into the sky. There they saw something flying. A wyvern? No, it was too big. Its wings didn't flap. What could it be? As it flew over them, something fell from it. Many egg-like things started falling and as they fell to the ground, they engulfed the camp in fire and shook the earth. In moments, the whole camp was on fire and everyone was either dead or dying. The ground was turned into a burning pile of scorched bodies.
If there were any doubts about the power of the otherwolders left, they were long gone now.
---
(Meanwhile)
Road to Una
The Belus family along with commander Aego and two hundred soldiers were on their way to Una. Taria did not wish to ride with her father and so she rode on a horse alongside Aego. Their hopes were that they would reach Una in several days and then cross the river.
"My lady.", Aego spoke, "Are you certain you should be riding alongside me and not in the carriage?"
"I do not wish to speak to my father.", Taria said, "At least not now."
"I assumed we cleared this matter."
"We have but... I still need time."
Aego sighed, "I understand. Still, you should not hate him for-", he stopped and halted the soldiers.
"What?"
"Something is not as it should be. This outpost is quiet.". The soldiers tensed up. They could also feel that something wasn't right. In a split second, Aego was shot by an arrow in the side.
"Ambush!", Taria yelled out. Suddenly, elves, welfen, and leanoids ran from the sides and the outpost. The soldiers prepared but found themselves overwhelmed by the enemies' numbers. Rogue elves fired arrows at them while welfen and leanoids exploited weaknesses and struck. Still, the soldiers fought hard, making sure the traitors and savages suffer. The enemy numbers were dropping, but not quickly enough. Taria used her training and cut down several rogues before crouching down to help Aego.
"Aego!", she yelled, "Aego hold on! You will live! Please!". She cried as he struggled to breathe. He grabbed her arm and pushed her to the side, just in time for her to dodge a spear from a leanoid. She watched as Aego spat blood before dying, his life leaving his body. In pure rage, she screamed and struck the leanoid in the side. Pulling out her sword she blocked a strike from a rogue, stepped closer, and headbutted him before slitting his throat.
Turning to her left she saw the rogues and tribals dragging her family. "Father!", she yelled, but couldn't help as a rogue hit her in the back of the head, knocking her down on the ground. Her blurred vision faded away as the rogue smiled down at her.
"Sweet dreams, little girl.", was what he said before she passed out completely.
End of chapter 9
​
---
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Why We Chose It

If you’re looking for 300 Win Mag ammo that simply does it all, then look no further than the Federal Premium 180 gr Barnes TSX. This hunting cartridge offers superior terminal ballistics, is legal for hunting in all fifty states, and is manufactured to Federal’s highest quality standards.
This round hits hard, has a nice flat trajectory, and is easy to find, what more could you ask for?
The Barnes Triple-Shock X (TSX) bullet line offers all of the features you want in a premium hunting bullet. The all-copper projectile includes a tapered, monolithic design that helps to increase the ballistic coefficient and reduce wind deflection.
The Barnes TSX 180-grain bullet also has a deep pocket at the tip, which promotes rapid expansion after penetration, creating a wound cavity near vital organs. Many hunters report deer dropping in their tracks when hit in the vitals with a Barnes TSX, which saves you hours of tracking a wounded deer through thick brush.
While some other options on our list are slightly more affordable, the Federal Premium 180 gr Barnes TSX is a trusted and effective hunting bullet that puts down big game quickly thanks to its controlled expansion. Which is certainly worth a few extra quarters per round if you ask me!

Honorable Mention

Hornady Precision Hunter 200 gr ELD-X - Hornady is one of those ammo companies that come up with ingenious designs and solves problems for hunters all over the country. The Hornady Precision Hunter ELD-X line for the 300 Win Mag is just that, a solution for every hunter.
The boattail design and Heat Shield tip keep the projectile on track from muzzle to target, while the InterLock ring keeps the jacket and core together, maximizing energy transfer and controlling the bullet’s expansion. This combination is devastating against any deer and can be a great alternative to Federal Premium if you can’t find it.

The Best 300 Win Mag Ammo for Deer For Versatility

Remington Core-Lokt 300 Win Mag 180gr PSP

Specs

• Casing: Brass
• Bullet Type: Pointed Soft Point
• Bullet Weight: 180 Grain
• Muzzle Velocity: 2,960 fps
• Muzzle Energy: 3,501 ft-lbs

Pros

• Affordable
• Perfect for all types of big game hunting
• Excellent expansion

Cons

• Not legal for hunting in California

Why We Chose It

Next up on our list is the versatile Remington Core-Lokt 180 gr PSP. If you’re looking for another hard-hitting hunting round that’s easy to find and won’t disappoint, then you simply can’t go wrong with Big Green. The 180-grain bullet is versatile enough for medium game like whitetail deer while powerful enough to take down larger game animals like elk and black bear.
The signature of the Remington Core-Lokt line is a lead core that’s chemically bonded to the copper alloy jacket. This means that the bonded core and jacket won’t separate on impact. Instead, the bullet will penetrate deeply before expanding. This controlled expansion is one of the many reasons why we love Remington Core-Lokt for deer hunting.
Despite being a soft point bullet, the Remington PSP has a relatively high ballistic coefficient and we found it to be incredible accurate in all our hunting rifles.
With a price point that any deer hunter can stomach, you can easily take the Remington Core-Lokt from target shooting right into the woods and get your freezer stocked with venison for the winter.

Honorable Mention

Federal 300 Win Mag 180 Grain SP - This Federal 180gr SP is designed to maximize penetration and control expansion, leading to more effective shots and keeping you from trailing wounded deer in the woods.
With a muzzle velocity of 2,960 fps, it’s a great round for long-distance shooting and medium to large game animals. The soft point design controls expansion, and the tapered jacket ensures penetration. Overall, this Federal hunting round is an excellent choice for any avid hunter.

The Best 300 Win Mag Ammo for Deer for Availability

Winchester Copper Impact 150 Grain Extreme Point

Specs

• Casing: Brass
• Bullet Type: Polymer-tip Extreme Point
• Bullet Weight: 150 Grain
• Muzzle Velocity: 3,260 fps
• Muzzle Energy: 2,539 ft-lbs

Pros

• Specifically designed for deer hunting
• Lead-free bullet design
• Affordable
• Easy to find

Cons

• Not great for big-game hunting

Why We Chose It

Winchester Copper Impact 150 gr 300 Win Mag ammo is a round no deer wants to find itself on the wrong end of. Developed with the needs of deer hunters in mind, Winchester Copper Impact was designed for insane expansion and high weight retention to impart maximum kinetic energy into a whitetail.
While the Copper Impact doesn’t pack as much bullet weight as some of the other heavier bullets on our list at 150 grains. It still packs more than enough punch to put down any deer you lay your crosshairs on.
The lighter 150 grain bullet offers hunters an incredibly flat trajectory and the polymer tip initiates expansion upon contact with soft tissue. The result is a round that’s incredibly accurate and deadly against thin-skinned game like whitetail, pronghorn, and mule deer.
Although the 150-grain bullet is not the best choice for elk or moose, Winchester Copper Impact 150 gr Extreme Point ammo is an amazing option if you’re looking to exclusively hunt deer-sized game at a price point any hunter will love.

The Best Premium 300 Win Mag Ammo for Deer

Barnes VOR-TX 165gr TTSX

Specs

• Casing: Brass
• Bullet Type: Tipped Triple-Shock X
• Bullet Weight: 165 Grain
• Muzzle Velocity: 3,285 fps
• Muzzle Energy: 3,120 ft-lbs

Pros

• Extremely accurate
• Exceptional terminal ballistics
• Deep penetration

Cons

• Availability

Why We Chose it

If you’re a hunter who takes pride in shooting the best ammo money can buy, then look no further than the Barnes VOR-TX 165 gr TTSX for your next deer hunt.
Similar to the TSX bullet we discussed earlier, the TTSX bullet is loaded with a polymer tip that helps initiate expansion upon impact. Furthermore, the boat tail bullet design helps increases accuracy for longer range shots.
The all-copper bullet design effectively eliminates lead exposure risks and also aids in weight retention for better, more effective shots. Although the 165-grain bullet is comparatively lighter than other hunting bullets on our list, you should have no reservations using it for this year’s deer and elk season thanks to its incredible terminal ballistics.
Barnes is known for producing excellent, high-quality rounds, and they have the price tag to match. However, if you want to shoot the best, then make sure you grab a box of Barnes VOR-TX 165 gr TTSX ammo whenever you see it, because most hunters won’t let it sit on the shelf for long!

Honorable Mention

Nosler Trophy Grade 180 gr Accubond - The Nosler Accubond is unquestionably one of the greatest hunting rounds ever to hit the chamber of a bolt-action rifle. As one of the absolute best hunting rounds in the industry, the Nosler Accubond offers hunters incredible terminal ballistics at insanely long ranges. Unfortunately, the round has become increasingly difficult to find but will drop anything from antelope to hogs and black bears. Grab some if you can find it, but expect to pay a premium for it.

The Best 300 Win Mag Ammo for Deer Hunting on a Budget

Hornady American Whitetail 150 gr Interlock SP

Specs

• Casing: Brass
• Bullet Type: Polymer Tip
• Bullet Weight: 150 grains
• Muzzle Velocity: 3,275 fps
• Muzzle Energy: 3,572 ft-lbs

Pros

• High ballistic coefficient
• Excellent terminal ballistics
• Affordable

Cons

• Not ideal for big game hunting

Why We Chose It

If you’re looking for a round that’s affordable and easy to find, you simply cannot beat Hornady American Whitetail 150 gr Interlock SP. And although this round might not break the bank, it is more than capable of bringing home the venison.
The Interlock Soft Point bullet design is the heart of the American Whitetail line. Designed with an internal belt inside the jacket, the Interlock Soft Point allows for rapid and deadly expansion while avoiding jacket separation. This allows the lead core and the copper jacket of the bullet to remain as one cohesive projectile and transfer almost all of its kinetic energy into the target.
Although not the best choice for large game like elk or bear, the 150-grain bullet is more than sufficient for felling any whitetail or mule deer that dares walk past your tree stand.
At a price that most every hunter can afford, Hornady American Whitetail 150 gr Interlock SP ammo is a staple at deer camps across the nation and will deliver the terminal performance you need to fill your bag limit this fall.

Parting Shots - Picking the Best 300 Winchester Magnum Cartridge

The 300 Win Mag has cemented its legacy as one of the gold standard cartridges by which all other big game calibers are measured by.
It’s proven itself time and time again in the field against deer, hogs, pronghorn, elk, moose, and bear and is more than capable of bringing home the trophy buck you’ve been stalking during the off season.
We’ve listed our top five choices for the best 300 Win Mag above, and we have no doubt in our mind that these rounds will serve you well this deer season.
If you’d like to learn more about the 300 Win Mag, keep scrolling and check out our buyer’s guide below. Otherwise Click HERE to go back to the top 5 list and make your selection!

300 Winchester Magnum Buyer’s Guide

Since the 1960s, the 300 Winchester Magnum has dominated long-range competitive shooting, hunting, and is a popular choice for police and military snipers. The caliber is well-known as a hard-hitting cartridge with blazing muzzle velocity and a flatter trajectory than the 308 Winchester and 6.5 Creedmoor.
Without question, there are a lot of different types of 300 Win Mag ammo available, and for some shooters it can be difficult to understand the difference between match-grade ammo and hunting rounds.
In the sections below, we are going to explain what makes for a great hunting round and what you should be looking for when you buy ammo for deer season.

Bullet Weight

You’ll hear a lot of shooters talk about grain weight. You’ve probably noticed the 300 Winchester Magnum ammo we listed above comes in various weights, from 150gr all the way up to 200gr.
So, how does a bullet’s weight play into which ammo you choose?
Well, there’s a lot to it. But ultimately, it’s important to remember that shot placement is going to make for a more effective hunt than having a bullet that’s just the right grain weight.
However, that doesn’t throw out the discussion entirely. We have some general guidelines for bullet weight and hunting in the industry. Take a look.

Medium-Sized Game Animals

If you’re hunting animals that weigh between 50-300 lbs, you’re hunting what we call medium-sized game . Deer, antelope, hogs, and pronghorns all typically fall into this category.
For these animals, it’s often recommended to use a 150gr-165gr bullet. Not because we’re worried about over-penetration or meat waste but because that grain weight is sufficient enough for those creatures.
A lighter bullet has a higher velocity which is more flat-shooting than some heavier rounds. So, lighter bullets tend to be a little more forgiving of ranging mistakes, making them great for hunting.

Larger Game Animals

Animals like bears, moose, and elk, typically weigh over 300 lbs, and we consider these large game creatures. If you’re after bigger game, then you’ll want to shoot heavy bullets like 180 gr or 200 gr because they transfers more kinetic energy and have adequate expansion to ensure a clean kill.

Bullet Design

Another aspect to consider is the bullet’s design. If you’ve ever been to a sporting good’s store, I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of different bullet name abbreviations that can be confusing if you aren’t familiar with them.
Different metals, shapes, and composites affect trajectory and terminal ballistics. For example, some 300 Win Mag rifle cartridges, like the Sierra Matchking, are great for long-range shooting but are inappropriate for hunting since they don’t expand.
So, which designs are best for deer hunting with the 300 Win Mag? Let’s take a look!

Soft Points

Soft Point bullets, typically referred to as SP on your ammo box, are have a metal jacket and soft lead cores. Similar to Jacketed Hollow Points (JHPs), soft point bullets have exposed lead at the tip. This exposed tip allows the bullet to mushroom when it encounters soft tissue, creating a large wound channel and increases the chances of an ethical kill. Traditional soft points are is one of the oldest hunting bullet designs.

Pointed Soft Points

The next evolution of traditional soft point bullets were the pointed soft point (PSP). PSP bullets have a sharper tip giving you better penetration and higher ballistic coefficient. PSP ammo is a great middle-ground between SPs and Polymer Tipped bullets because it shares many of the aerodynamic advantages of polymer tipped bullets while still having the rapid expansion of soft point bullets. Some common PSP bullets include the Nosler Partition, Winchester Power-Point, and Hornady Interlock.

Polymer Tips

Polymer-tipped bullets are the latest development in hunting ammo and all the rage right now. These hunting bullets are essentially hollow points bullets with a pointed polymer tip. The tips are designed to plunge into the hollow point when they encounter soft tissue. This initiates expansion immediately and creates a massive wound channel.
Polymer tipped bullets are also more aerodynamic than traditional soft points, which typically translates into a longer effective range.
Of course, you’ll see different variations of polymer-tipped ammo from the Winchester Silver Tip, Nosler Accubond and Ballistic Tip, and Barnes TTSX, just to name a few. Each manufacturer has its own special recipe, but ultimately, the design concept is the same.

Designs to Avoid

Believe it or not, there are some ammo designs that are illegal to use for hunting in some areas (you want to hunt, not get in trouble with law enforcement).
One of the more popular designs that aren’t appropriate for hunting any game is the FMJ (full metal jacket). These rounds are a solid lead core surrounded by a copper jacket that won’t expand. FMJs are best for plinking, target shooting, and competitions.
Match-grade ammo is also not appropriate for hunting, even if it uses a hollow point. These bullets are designed for extreme long range shooting, and while very accurate and aerodynamic, they do not expand when they encounter soft tissue.

Effective Range

Lastly, consider the distance between you and your next target. A 300 Winchester Magnum long-range hunting rifle has a lot of power, there’s no question about that. But different factory loads can perform differently in your rifle and affect your point of impact. Things like bullet drop, accuracy (measured in minute of angle or MOA), and muzzle velocity can vary from rifle to rifle.
In general, most 300 Win Mag hunting loads work great on deer within 500 yards. However, we can quantify that a bit more.
The effective range of a hunting cartridge on deer is typically defined by its kinetic energy. The accepted rule is that 1,000 ft-lbs of energy is required to ethically harvest a whitetail deer. This is not a hard and fast rule, but it gives you a general idea of how effective your chosen cartridge is on deer.
Of course, different ammo and hunting rifles act differently (a Ruger American will give you different results than the Ruger Precision). Just like how Hornady Superformance 165 gr CX might perform better in your Rem 700 as opposed to a 180 gr Nosler Partition. The best thing you can do is test your ammo in your chosen hunting rifle to determine its long range performance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the 300 Win Mag have more recoil than the 308 Winchester?

Yes. In general the 300 Win Mag will have around 9-10 ft-lbs of additional recoil than the 308 Winchester.

What’s the difference between the 30-06 and the 300 Win Mag?

The 30-06 Springfield was developed prior to WWI and was the US service rifle cartridge through the Korean War. On the other hand, the 300 Winchester Magnum is a belted-magnum cartridge that was developed in the 1960’s for big game hunting. Both cartridges are excellent choices for big game hunting and fire the same 0.308" diameter bullets making them great options for reloading if you enjoy making your own handloads.

What is the difference between the 300 Win Mag and the 300 Weatherby?

The 300 Weatherby Magnum and 300 Win Mag are two 30-caliber cartridges that are often compared. Although both cartridges fire the same 30-caliber bullets, the 300 Weatherby Mag is slightly longer and slightly more powerful than the 300 Win Mag.
Another major difference between the two is rifle availability, as the 300 Weatherby Mag is a proprietary cartridge and for many years you could only get a Weatherby rifle chambered in the caliber. On the other hand, virtually every rifle manufacturer has a rifle chambered in 300 Win Mag.

What is the difference between the 300 Win Mag and the 300 WSM?

The main difference between the 300 Win Mag and 300 Winchester Short Magnum (WSM) is that the 300 Win Mag fits in a long action rifle while the 300 WSM fits in a short action. Both rounds fire the same 30-caliber magnum bullets and have virtually identical ballistic performance. Check out this article if you want to learn more about the 300 WSM vs 300 Win Mag.

Back to Our Best 300 Win Mag Ammo for Hunting

At this point, it’s time to put your knowledge to good use! Click HERE to go back to our list. Click on the links to place your order, and we’ll have your next favorite 300 Win Mag hunting ammo shipped to you shortly!
Best 300 Win Mag Ammo for Deer: The Belted Freezer Filler originally appeared on Ammo.com

Union Plants and Animals--Up to date as of 3/31/2023
(Homeworlds of Origin and such)
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General Creatures (Found on many worlds)
Aeroplankton: Tiny life forms that are small enough to drift through the air on tiny sails and wings, they are generally autotrophic though some carnivorous and detritivorous species have been observed. They are found across a great multitude of long colonised planets and are believed to be a side effect of interstellar travel as the airborne microbes of a thousand worlds.
Cloud Drifter: A huge winged creature similar in appearance to ancient pterodactyls, they soar the heat currents and eddies in the sky consuming aeroplankton. Their jaws able to expand to expose large feather structures that filter the tiny airborne creatures from the sky. While they are native to Malistorn they can be found across multiple worlds, the result of stowaways and invasive colonization. They are relatively intelligent animals.
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Abyss
Dejaarn: A large predatory creature native to the Slaaveth homeworld of Abyss and living in the deepest depths of the world's ocean. They are massive, easily 20-30 meters in length and have an appearance similar to that of a monstrous eel and have corrosive bile that they will spit if threatened. In the water, diluted, this bile causes extreme irritation and sometimes death, in the open air its effects are magnified and it acts as an extreme oxidiser.
Drek: Small creatures that are only one step above shimmer specks, or plankton, on the food chain. They are small creatures similar to zooplankton on Earth but larger. Though they are generally not considered a food source to the slaaveth themselves, a popular saying on the planet would be “That a mouthful of drek.” Native to the Slaaveth homeworld of Abyss.
Grooum: A large squid like creature native to Abyss. Despite their ferocious appearance, they are in fact filter feeders with long gill-like structures that trail at the end of their eight long arms. They have an intelligence about par to that of Earthly Dolphins and are widely known to be playful, curious creatures. They have colorful fins and three equally spaced eyes, black and pupiless.
Shimmer Specks: The colloquial slang for plankton on the slaaveth home planet of Abyss. They are generally similar to many other forms of plankton, small creatures that harness the power of sunlight to produce their own food and are in turn consumed by higher orders of life.
Skimmer Beasts: Similar in function to Earthly whales in function if not form, they are large and generally placid creatures that spend their days skimming the surface of the ocean for plankton and small creatures similar to krill called Drek in the oceans of Abyss.
Slurrge: Similar in function to a cleaner wrasse these little creatures are native to Abyss and were largely domesticated like human dogs. They are generally used to help clean detritus from underwater living spaces and can survive out of water for limited periods of time as they do possess protolungs. They are commonly treated as valued pets and treated quite well, though to be called a slurrge implies that the one in question is a dirty sludge slurper.
Vleshtrine Hunter: A large deep sea predator native to the Slaaveth homeworld of Abyss. It is large and slightly shark-like in appearance and behavior. While they are universally feared on Abyss, they are uncommon.
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Bright Moon
Jinkk: A very small mammal native to Bright Moon, while looking like a tiny bear-esk creature, it is more similar in behavior and temperament to a mouse.
Vreeinth: A small predator native to Bright Moon that is very similar to a snake. It has no legs and slithers along the ground using its powerful sense of smell to locate prey.
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Dreyvan II
Aeroplankton: Tiny life forms that are small enough to drift through the air on tiny sails and wings, they are generally autotrophic though some carnivorous and detritivorous species have been observed. They are found across a great multitude of long colonised planets and are believed to be a side effect of interstellar travel as the airborne microbes of a thousand worlds.
Dreyvan Vileglider: A type of flying arthropod native to the world of Dreyvan II. They are large and possess wings similar to that of a huge moth except they have the body structure more akin to a scorpion complete with a stinger tail.
Grinskal: A type of predatory lizard that looks like a cross between a crocodile and a wolf, though covered in drab grayish feathers. Native to Dreyvan II.
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Drivil
Jrarg: A near relative of the Xeiro’filk, long believed by the ancient Xeiro’filk to be the spirits of long dead ancestors, they are a protected species across most of the planet. Though there are a few more impoverished nations that used them as an illegal food source from time to time. The practice was akin to cannibalism in most parts of the world and the taboo of it rendered most who participated in the practice shunned and ostracized.
Krekats: Large furred animals similar in function to deer. They are different in the fact they have six legs and hard skull caps instead of horns. Native to the Xeiro’filk homeworld of Drivil.
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Earth
Cat: That old rival of humanity, Cats have made their mark on the stars and have many new and old breeds that may be known across the width of the Union. While many are pets and small, there do exist larger varieties of genetically manipulated cat strains that can be used for more defensive or offensive ends.
Cicadas: An easy to grow and popular food staple for the Swanith, this Earthly insect has been genetically engineered for maximum nutrition and flavor and is commonly served as rations or dipped in sudo chocolate.
Cow: While not too dissimilar from the cow that was widely available on Earth for thousands of years, this variety is a bit hardier and capable of eating a wide variety of vegetation and in some cases even meat proteins. There are carnivorous species of cows that exist on certain worlds.
Dog: Mankind's love for taming ferocious predators began with this creature. Long before Humanity had even civilized, before they had even discovered metal, they captured their ancient predators and bent them to their will. Humanity's love for taming the wild and free is greatly known among the other species of the galaxy. They often colonise planets seething with horrific predators and covered in noxious plants, before taming the predators and making the plants edible. There are dogs for almost every conceivable need, from hunting and tracking to construction and even medical work.
Rat: A small scavenger rodent species native to Earth, they are incredibly prolific and follow everywhere Humans go. Even the most sterile of science bases will have specially bred rats for both comfort and testing. Humans' bond with this small animal borders on the symbiotic, as Human colonies without these small critters tend to devolve into stinking cesspools as the buildup of hyper colonized bacterial growths take over their landfills and waste disposal grounds.
Roaches: Evolved and still just as survivable as their Earthly namesake. These small insects are found across the width and breadth of the Union in many forms. Some are lanky and others burrow, but they all share a distinctly similar body structure.
Weaver(Spider): The common name for the small eight legged arachnid variant from Earth. Wherever Humans can be found, these small arthropods are generally not far behind. They seem to be capable of surviving in a vast array of climates and even aboard sterile space stations and military complexes.
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Endless Windswept
Ha’vaup: About the size of a small dog, these creatures originally evolved on the world of Endless Windswept and they share the same biological silicate bone structure as the Gre’vahn. This makes them very durable and quite strong for their size, this combined with the fact that they are carnivorous hunters similar to Earthly cats makes them both decent pets as well as good for clearing out pest infestations. This usefulness has seen them spread across the Union and they can be found both domesticated and feral in many core system cities. They move with a distinct bounding gait similar to that of an Earthly kangaroo.
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Fresholm
Groint: A relatively large insect native to Fresholm, they are somewhat intelligent and make decent pets forming attachments to their owners over the years they are owned.
Pinchflies: A small insect native to Fresholm, they are known for their painful pinches and are very territorial.
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Goldbard
Aurgh Birds: Native to the planet of Goldbard, these near avians are warm blooded and don't have true feathers, instead having chitinous structures that are similar in function though more hair-like. They are insectivores and generally liked by farmers as they feed on pests and other nuisance insects that may harm crops. They are so named for the noise they make, which has been described as the sound of a large human male in pain.
Frubbeatles: The adult stage of Liverspotters, native to the agricultural planet of Goldbard. They are large, about six centimeters in length with bright orange shells and eight stubby legs they use to grip onto surfaces. They have bright iridescent wings and are able to fly for short distances during mating season.
Liverspotters: The common name for the larval stage of Frubbeatles, they generally live inside of the fruits of Frubble trees. They are commonly regarded as a nuisance pest and are subjected to numerous pesticides and such. Though this seems to be less effective than it should be, the larvae seem to be able to quickly adapt to combat new types of insecticides.
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Gradient
Julips: A small flying creature from the planet Gradient that seems to have easily adapted to the dark and dank places of urban sprawl as well as hitching rides to many other large scale civilised systems. They are small, about the size of a bat and of a similar function. They seem capable of adapting to many different climates and are capable of eating a wide variety of carbon based insect life. They are generally pale brown or grey in coloration and are similar to ancient winged reptiles from Earth's past.
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Hardnock
Feral Merls: A type of lunged fish-like creature native to the Ocean world of Hardnock in the Morris System, these creatures are about the size of a large dog and omnivore. They are quite similar in behavior to Earthly Hogs.
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Ho’the’rell
Frax'nt: A small fuzzy mammal native to Ho'the'rell. It acts as a type of scavenger, picking apart the detritus that litters the frozen wastes and breaking it down. They are similar in behavior to vultures in the fact that they tend to gorge themselves then go into a stupor for great lengths of time.
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Jureillo
Drawsherk: A large predator native to the swamps of Jureillo, it has an appearance similar to that of a bear mixed with a giant lizard. They are quite ferocious when provoked but tend to stay away from inhabited areas.
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Malistorn
Cloud Drifter: A huge winged creature similar in appearance to ancient pterodactyls, they soar the heat currents and eddies in the sky consuming aeroplankton. Their jaws able to expand to expose large feather structures that filter the tiny airborne creatures from the sky. While they are native to Malistorn they can be found across multiple worlds, the result of stowaways and invasive colonization. They are relatively intelligent animals.
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Neirvauhl
Ranx: A domesticated animal native to Neirvauhl, while not providing milk like human cattle, it is instead used to produce highly nutritious fertilizer that is then used to grow fungus crops. It is one of the few herbivores native to the planet and thrives in harsh environments. It was not uncommon for Nerivith knights to ride them into combat as they are capable of carrying massive amounts of weight, they are closer to horses than cows in structure. Their skin is a deep red in coloration and covered in fine black hairs with a mane of thicker hair around their necks and along the backs of their legs.
Shrij: a fuzzy creature not unlike a large blueish rat with a fuzzy wide tail, they are sometimes kept as pets by Nerivith and are quite intelligent on par with dogs. It's not uncommon for Nerivith to teach them simple tricks and the like.
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New Ramph
Himplit: A cattle animal native to the agricultural world of New Ramph and is commonly used in a similar manner to Earthly pigs. It is a short and squat animal with a long snout that it used to root around in the thick mud of its swampy home planet, it possesses thick scute like armour plates and six legs with webbed feet.
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Nowhere
Drumble: A small, almost rabbit-like creature native to Nowhere. It is a small burrowing mammal that is commonly eaten by the native noppins of the planet. They have sharp hearing and small eyes as they are mostly nocturnal creatures and spend the majority of the hot days burrowing underground like a mole.
Lorgranx: A breed of Ranx that has been specifically adapted to the hot and arid climate of Nowhere to the point that it has become a distinct subspecies. They are generally a bit taller and leaner with a large belly that they use as both fat and water storage, kind of like a reverse Camel.
Noppin: An indigenous lizard from Nowhere about 2.5 meters in length on average and weighing 40 kilograms. They are quite docile towards people in the wild and are considered the Wolves of Nowhere. After many generations of training and breeding, several different breeds have arisen, some more lively and quick, others slow but powerful. They have a generally higher level of intelligence for a cold blooded animal and have been known to form strong bonds of loyalty with their owners. While they do give live birth, their young are able to consume meat almost right away.
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Paradise
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Sabith
Grassstrider: A medium sized insect native to Sabith, it is known for its ability to jump great distances and is generally liked due to its slightly spicy taste and crispy texture. Usually eaten candied.
Millibugs: Sometimes call Mealbugs by spacers they are a type of insect native to Sabith, generally well liked by Swanith, their ease of preservation and high nutrient content make them an ideal ration supply for Swanith travelers and colonists alike. They are similar in appearance to a cricket crossed with a millipede, and are tan in coloration.
Pale Finch: A species of near avians from the planet Sabith, they are tangentially related to the Swanith themselves in that they share a common ancestor but are not intelligent like their sapient cousins. They are small and a bit more birdlike in shape but still possess small graspers on their wingtips like the Swanith.
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Scorch
Finge: A type of egg laying reptile native to the planet Scorch, while the reptile has a hard time surviving outside the desert environment of Scorch itself, their eggs are considered incredibly tasty as they are both savory and fatty. Distinctive for the colorful fringes that they have along their backs.
Truze’felids: A type of small creature native to the planet of Scorch. They are small near mammalian carnivores that lay hard shelled eggs and eat other small critters. They can often be found in large numbers in and around skorp hives as they are partially domesticated similar to Earthly cats.
Znots: Small critters similar in size and function to Earthly rats. They possess protofeathers and have six small scaled legs with wide claws that they use to burrow. They can be found in most places that the Skorp inhabit as they are native to the planet Scorch.
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Unionborne (Created by Union scientists or technology)
Cyberhound: A cybernetically or bionically enhanced dog, sometimes used by military or law enforcement, most often in the employ of bounty hunters and void wardens.
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Voidborne (Space faring creatures)
Celestipods: Small critters capable of withstanding incredible stress and damage. They are commonly found on drifting ice floes and embedded in primordial comets. They are small eight legged creatures that can range in size from microscopic to the size of a small dog. They are almost impossible to kill and can metabolize almost any imaginable kind of organic compounds. They seem to have a taste for void mussels, often being found grazing on fields of the strange shelled creatures.
Fleshtroid: A large mass of flesh inhabiting a hollowed out asteroid, they are uncommon and usually only found in systems with yellow stars and inhabitable planets. They are in effect Mutalid probes that were left in place to report to their dark masters. While they are generally hostile when approached, it is not unheard of them to be quite curious as they are in fact intelligent.
Glimmer Drorn: A type of creature that is mostly gaseous with a very thin membrane that gives them a roughly spherical shape, they float around and absorb sunlight and interstellar gas to survive. Butterfly-like behavior.
Metalgea: A curious type of interstellar plant form, these microscopic plants have a hard ferrosilicate shell and a low internal temperature. They seem to be able to survive in the near vacuum of space on large asteroids and comets. They can be found near the icy poles of moons and dwarf planets. They seem to spread by releasing small spores that can drift inanimate for thousands or potentially even hundreds of thousands of years till they reach conditions suitable for life. This process has been drastically sped up by the invention of FTL. Ships can unknowingly pick up these spores and transfer them tens of thousands of times faster to new territory. Though they are incredibly hardy, they cannot withstand temperatures in excess of negative fifty degrees making contamination of living spaces almost entirely impossible.
Ravenoids: Huge fleshy tentacled monstrosities that seem to inhabit many of the large moons in the vicinity of Abyss, they come in a number of unique varieties but all seem to share a common genetic template. The leading theories are that they are remnants of previous mutalid incursions.
Void Mussels: Wherever metalgea can be found, void mussels are sure to be there too. The two void creatures seeming to share a strange sudo-symbiotic bond. The mussels consume the metalgea and in turn excrete nutrients that are in turn consumed again by the metalgea. The void mussels seem to be capable of extracting minerals from the surrounding environment that the metalgea cannot.
Void Wisps: Ethereal and ghostly in appearance, these creatures are made of energy and tend to congregate near sources of ions. This means that the ion drives of large ships can attract these mysterious creatures into the ship's wake where they frolic and play behind them. It is unknown whether or not they are intelligent as they have never been successfully captured or otherwise closely studied. They were first documented by the famous UNSS Lief Erikson and then later covered in more detail by the legendary naturist Druth Felman himself. They have an almost ray-like appearance.
​
Vool
Gweawa: A type of livestock native to the planet Vool. They are large and gray skinned with many characteristics similar to that of amphibians. Though they don't lay eggs and instead give birth to small tadpoles that then metamorph into their final form after a short growing period. They are treated in a manner similar to hogs and eaten in the same way.
Shimmerscales: A type of small fish-like creature native to the homeworld of the razah’vool. They are a favorite food of the razah’vooll and generally eaten raw in a manner similar to sushi on top of slices of Gragno, a vegetable native to the same world.
Webblings: Small amphibious creatures originally native to the planet Vool. They are small and have toad-like dry skin(without the bumps) and have six legs with webbed feet. They have no claws or teeth but are quite fast and hunt insects and other very small critters. They seem to have a fondness for Earthly cockroaches which can be found all across the Union.
​
Vreefall
Brawhm: A type of medium sized herbivore that was hunted in the prehistoric days by ancient Vinarfel. Now it has become domesticated and is generally larger and more docile than its ancient counterparts. It has a meat with a texture similar to that of buffalo but a taste closer to that of Earthly salmon.
Pudgilow: A type of cattle animal revered for its fatty meat, it is raised across many worlds of the Union and originates from the Vinarfel homeworld of Vreefall. Humans tend to like it and compare it to a mix between bacon and beef. The animals themselves are large and pudgy, looking not too dissimilar to small hippos with a small layer of armour on their heads and backs as well as venomous bristles on their shoulders. They are opportunistic omnivores that will happily eat any meat they come across.
​
Xeccessinesoor

I have never experienced so much misogyny as here (gaming related )
Meanwhile 90% of the posts are hate speech and defenses against people who want to see diversity among women.
The reality is that people also want to see a different cast among women. Women with scars, tall, short, muscular women, ... or even sometimes obvious what specialty they have. Women with thick forearms because they are grapplers, thicker legs, wider shoulders… , women who are scarred because they were in several combat units, other body types than smooth skinned without any sign of several years or decades worth of martial arts and god forbid women who may be show their age .
To ridicule the whole thing because you are horny will not change people's minds.
Edit:
Everyone has the right to express their opinion. No one has anything against the pretty women in the cast.
But to see how cool the men are designed and how tasteless and constantly bland the women are is just disappointing.

Background: The relationship between vitamin intake and depression has attracted increasing attention. However, several studies examining such relationship among populations at different age groups have produced inconsistent findings. This study was aimed to investigate the cross-sectional association between vitamin K intake and depressive symptoms in US adults.
Methods: We used the data from a nationally representative sample of 11,687 adults from the 2013 to 2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Vitamin K intake was assessed by the 24-h dietary recall at the first day. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).
Results: The weighted prevalence of depressive symptoms was 10.2% (8.0% in men and 12.0% in women). We observed a significant inverse linear relationship between vitamin K intake and depressive symptoms in models adjusted for age, sex, race/ethnicity, marital status, educational status, family poverty income ratio (PIR), home status, body mass index (BMI), smoking status, physical activity, sleep disorders, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes.
Conclusion: Vitamin K intake was inversely and independently associated with the odds of depressive symptoms in the US adults. Prospective studies are warranted to confirm our findings.
Full: https://www.frontiersin.org
Note: if you liked the article, please click Join (if you haven't already) on the front page to encourage the effort and support free private enterprise. Thank you!

Looking for clever repartee, a comfortable but charged energy, and good times.
I look like your basic curvy/thick white woman with B cups and thick thighs. I am pretty much a homebody these days; if you like catching up on life, talking about the weirdness that is 2023, and then watching tv to forget about it, we might be a match.
I am DDF, vaccinated and boosted, and always enjoy my fun times very safely. While we're on the "bedroom" subject: taking charge can be hot but degrading me is not. Also, it's cool if you enjoy cocktails or 420, but if you want a drinking or smoking buddy, I am not the friend for you. Married and monogamously partnered men need not apply.
This is R4R40Plus, so if you're seeing this, you're north of 40! Yay. Ideally, you're also under 60. If you're in Los Angeles and available to grab coffee to see if we click, I hope to hear from you! If you need a conversation starter, tell me about what show you're watching or book you're reading.

Looking for clever repartee, a comfortable but charged energy, and good times.
I look like your basic curvy/thick white woman with B cups and thick thighs. I am pretty much a homebody these days; if you like catching up on life, talking about the weirdness that is 2023, and then watching tv to forget about it, we might be a match.
I am DDF, vaccinated and boosted, and always enjoy my fun times very safely. While we're on the "bedroom" subject: taking charge can be hot but degrading me is not. Also, it's cool if you enjoy cocktails or 420, but if you want a drinking or smoking buddy, I am not the friend for you. Married and monogamously partnered men need not apply.
You are ideally ~33~53 years old, in Los Angeles, and available to grab coffee to see if we click. Hope to hear from you! If you need a conversation starter, tell me about what show you're watching or book you're reading.

Lothli woke up bright and early this Saturday, as always. Then, with a yawn, she checked her phone: April 1st.
Was there something important happening today? I don’t quite remember…
Her thoughts were quickly swept away by the mundanity of her morning routine. Pulling on clothes, brushing her teeth, doing her hair…
And so, she was entirely caught off guard when she arrived in the kitchen.
Her twin sister cackled like a madwoman, stirring a gigantic cauldron smelling burnt iron, cotton candy, and writer’s tears.
“Maishul, what exactly have you done?” Lothli sighed, ambling over to the bubbling cauldron.
“This? Oh, just a little April Fool’s prank!” the other twin giggled before pulling out a miniature figurine of a strange humanoid insect. With a snap of her fingers, the statuette grew to full size, glancing around warily.
“Oh goodness! What’s going on here?” the moth woman exclaimed, seeming more confused than frightened. “What kind of insect are you? I’ve never seen anyone with just four limbs like you two!”
Lothli turned to Maishul, a frown on her face. “Is this Minerva? Did you STEAL her? We’re going to get banned, you know.”
The other twin continued cackling, heedless of Lothli’s wrath. “No, no, I got permission! Look!”
Indeed, the paper Maishul pulled out did have the signatures of one, two… how many authors?!
“Maishul, what the heck have you done?” Lothli huffed. “This is— how do we—”
“Excuse me, but I believe I may be lost?” Minerva asked, her wings fluttering nervously. “While I would love to ask the two of you some questions, I need to return to my lab, if you could point me in the right direction?”
“Oh, I apologize, Dr. Minerva. You’re currently experiencing a dream. Please do forget about this,” Lothli sighed before snapping her fingers and reverting the insectoid woman to her figurine form.
“How exactly are we going to explain this to Polaris?” Lothli deadpanned with her gaze on her happy-go-lucky sibling.
“Oh, I have a good ‘ol industrial barrel of Remove-Yo-Memory. I’m sure it’ll turn out fine!” Maishul grinned back. “Look, look! Let me show you what wonderful scenes I’ve cooked up for everyone!”
Scene One: Art’s Very Bad, No Good Day
I was not having a good day. First, I was thrown into yet another random plane of existence. Dimension hopping was something I wanted to experience no more than one time in my life; thank you very much. And yet, here I was. In yet another random plane of existence with absolutely no say.
“Iklem.”
Second all, I found myself surrounded by these strange creatures. Four legs, shimmering black pelt, bizarre snake-like neck, flat head, creepy singular eye, and that weirdly human voice. Definitely not a fan.
“Iklem.”
The three Iklems crept—
Ahem. The plural of Iklem is Iklemli, Art.
And thirdly, that obnoxious voice ringing out in my head. Who was that? Why were they in my head? And why could they read my thoughts?
Fine. The three Iklemli crept closer and closer, predatory intent clear. I backed away slowly before my phone suddenly burst out with the cheery tune of Weird Al singing, “Just eat it (eat it), eat it (eat it)...”
“I’m in the mother of all situations here, Demoness, and you choose a freaking parody song? Can you at least tell me what the hell is happening here?” I snarled into my phone’s mic, watching the approaching monsters closely.
“M’dear, I hate to say it, but I have no clue what’s happening.” The slight strain in the Demoness’s usually sultry voice gave me pause. That Demoness? Confused? I really was in some deep shit, wasn’t I?
“Could you at least tell me what an Iklem is?” I said, imitating those creatures as best I could.
“My love, how do I explain this? As best as I could tell, at least five foreign dimensions have been forced together into one singular mess. And whoever did it had no grace or finesse at all.”
Tell the Demoness that she has no grace or finesse, either! Hmph!
Rolling my eyes, I communicated the feelings of my new head neighbor to the Demoness.
“Well, dear, tell your new friend that they should consider undoing this fiasco,” the Demoness replied with a sigh. “Whatever the case is, those Iklemli you mentioned are from one of those other dimensions. I can’t tell you a thing about them.”
With that good news, I turned back to the advancing beasts. This was going to be a fun one…
“Maishul, you can’t just break the fourth wall and shove your thoughts into the scene,” Lothli huffed, shaking her head.
“Pfffft!” Maishul blew a raspberry before turning back to her abomination of a cauldron.
“Also, you can’t just swap to first-person narration. We’re in third-person narration.”
“Well, Matt writes in first-person. And I respect our fellow author’s intent; thank you very much!”
Lothli raised an eyebrow in response before pointing to the bubbling cauldron of doom. “You call THAT respecting our fellow authors’ intents?”
“They gave permission!” Maishul pouted before turning back to her inglorious creation. “And you won’t complain once you see my next glorious scene!”
Scene Two: Sloth Squared
Pride’s scowl only grew deeper as he dragged his erstwhile companion along. The swampland around them had warped into a blooming forest, with trees looming large overhead. The various fully intact buildings were most concerning, indicating that the pair had passed into a rift.
“Sloth, GET UP!” he hissed, shaking the lazy layabout.
“Huh? Wuzzit? I’m sleepin…” Sloth snored, already back asleep.
“We’ve got a MAJOR problem here. Pretty sure a rift opened around us, so stay on guard!”
Sloth blearily stumbled to his feet before glancing wide-eyed at his surroundings.
“Holy cow, you’re right! I didn’t even notice. But, man, Pride, I’m so tired… I…” Sloth stumbled a bit further before faceplanting directly into a bed of flowers.
“Dammit, Sloth. This is ridiculous, even for your standards.” Pride leaned down to pick Sloth back up, but something strange was afoot. As soon as he leaned down, an overwhelming surge of exhaustion passed through him as well, and he collapsed on top of his companion.
“Dude, you’re sleeping right on top of a good patch. Can you two move?” A voice lazily drifted into Pride’s mind before he rocketed up ramrod straight.
“Hwa— what!? Oh. A rifter.” Pride composed himself as he stared down at the man who awoke him. About five foot six, with short white hair and red eyes.
“Uh, I’m not a rifter or whatever you just called me. I’m Clear, prince of Sloth. And you?” Clear tilted his head.
“Prince… of me? Ehehe, there’s no prince of me…” Sloth murmured in his sleep.
“Typical rifter, spewing nonsense. Come on, you lazy bum. We’re gonna hide before this gets violent.” Pride turned to drag Sloth away but found his legs unwilling to move.
“Hey, man. C’mon now. You haven’t noticed you’re in a dream yet?” Clear said, his hand extended. “Let’s just talk, alright?”
Pride struggled for a few more moments, then back at Clear. “Alright, alright, never seen a rifter do that before. Calm down, yeah? I’ll chat until this rift collapses.”
“So please, introduce yourself properly this time,” Clear responded, freeing Pride with a flick of his hand.
“Right. I’m Pride, that’s Sloth.” Pride pointed at himself, then at his companion. “Can we go?” “No. Please explain what you are doing here and those wings on your back.” Clear yawned. “Also, don’t use our nation’s name as a moniker. It’s probably disrespectful… or something. Eh, we don’t actually care that much.”
“Huh? We’re here because your stupid rift pulled us in,” Pride hissed. “And these wings? We were born with ’em. No story here. Also, pretty sure we were the ones who had those names first.”
“Eh, the kingdom of Pride wouldn’t be very happy to hear about that,” Clear responded. “But whatever, man. Things have been rather chill ever since a random blob named Sparky fell on top of the Demon King and ate him or whatever. So enjoy the nap, I guess. Mind if I join in?”
Pride rolled his eyes before scooting over to allow Clear access to the flowers. Before long, Sloth and Clear were snuggled up together, much to the chagrin of Pride.
“What the hell am I supposed to do now?”
“Aren’t they just the cutest?!” Maishul exclaimed. “We should make that our newest OTP. I bet Haru would approve.”
“Please don’t ship characters across two different SerSuns,” Lothli replied with a shake of her head. “Also what was that about Sparky eating the Demon King—”
“OKAYNEXTSCENE!!”
Scene Three: Machines, Demons, and The World Tree
There was a rather strange rash of oddly dressed folk in Lugavya lately. Or rather, just odd folk in general.
Rumors flew of a human with bird wings who passed over the town, carried through hurried whispers between the residents. A strange man with fierce red eyes insisting on making ‘deals,’ much to the annoyance of passersby trying to get through their day.
Lena and Veska had met to investigate, unable to keep themselves still while such strange events abounded. No sooner had the two exchanged greetings did two strange men approach, flagrantly discarding any sensibilities on their right to free speech.
“Hello!” the younger one called out before getting his head gently bonked by the older.
“W-what was it? Oh! The greeting we use should have been ‘well met,’ right?” the teenage boy puzzled himself, rubbing his head.
“No. Firstly, as foreign visitors, we do not use that greeting. Secondly, we do not greet them. They greet us,” the older whispered, turning his eyes to Lena and Veska. It seemed at least one of them remembered their manners.
“Peace, strangers. We will not begrudge you for your transgressions. Tell me, what business have you with us?” Lena began.
“We are looking for directions. We have lost our way. Please, would you tell us our current location? Latitude and longitude are preferred, but any notable landmarks will do.” The older man bowed slightly, with the younger following shortly after.
Latitude? Longitude? These words were unfamiliar to Lena and Veska.
“This is Lugavya. Home to Alvedos, the World Tree?” Veska explained, an eyebrow raised. Were these folks raised under a rock or something?
The two men conversed among themselves, their frowns deepening.
“Apologies, but I am unaware of Lugavya. Could you perhaps point us in the direction of the United States?” the older asked, tilting his head slightly.
“Oh, and if you know of any demons, could you put in a word for me? I can’t figure out the ritual to get home without one of them…” the younger added.
The United States? Demons? More unfamiliar terms. Lena and Veska knew these newcomers were oddballs, but this was a bit much.
“I’m sorry—really! But we simply don’t have the knowledge to help the two of you. Perhaps you could head to the Foresters? I’ll give you their location.” Lena rattled off directions to the nearby Foresters’ hall.
“Thank you very much.” The older man stalked off after a stiff bow, and the younger man quickly followed.
“Sticks and stones, what is the world coming to?”
“Was that Megan’s SerSun? All that intricately balanced worldbuilding, and you just shoved random crap in.” Lothli barely held back a sigh. “Also, you didn’t even introduce those two characters. How are our readers supposed to know who they are?”
“This is left as an exercise to the reader,” Maishul tittered into the camera before returning to the glorious mess in her cauldron.
“Next scene!”
Scene Four: The One With No Chill
There wasn’t much that could faze a Huntress.
It was often said that their wills were unshakable. Nothing could cause them to stop them from single-mindedly accomplishing their goal. And yet, Olivia stood dead in her tracks, staring at the abomination across the Dam square.
“I AM OLIVIA. DARK HUNTRESS. SMASHER OF SQUEAKERS. AND THE ONE WITH NO CHILL,” the awful creature that vaguely resembled Olivia boomed.
“That young lass a friend of yours?” Barlow remarked, barely holding back a chuckle.
“Nope.” Olivia chucked one of her daggers at the offending sight, but she deflected the blade with a ripple of its musculature.
“You are weak. You have no strength. Witness me, false Olivia.” The muscle monster took up a ridiculous pose, her muscles overtly flexing.
“I will destroy you. And after that, I will destroy your creator. And I’ll salt your entire bloodline, while I’m at it,” Olivia snarled.
“I would like to see you try, false Olivia. Last time, I was overcome by the power of the Deus Ex Machina. But this time, I will not be struck down.” The monster took a step forward, the cobblestones cracking under her feet.
Olivia flinched. A Huntress does not feel fear. A Huntress does not back down. Yet… in the face of this horrible being… Her mind recalled the near-death experience she had with the Beast. Did she really want to face that again?
She shook her head, clearing it. No. She would finish this. Olivia raced at the mocking facsimile of herself, her onyx daggers at the ready. As she drew closer, she summoned every ounce of strength and struck.
As Olivia flew through the air, the world seemed to slow down.
Ah… this feels… familiar…
“‘Admittedly, Huntress, you are quite the entertainer—”
“No!” Lothli slapped the figurines out of Maishul’s hands, sinking them into the dreadful mire of the cauldron below. “You can’t reuse that line for the third time!”
“But you used it, Lothli. That’s hypocritical!” Maishul harrumphed.
“Yes, because it was the first time we used it. You can’t just reuse jokes like that!” Lothli glared. “And don’t think I forgot about that comment Clear made about Sparky. What. Exactly. Did you do?”
“Uhm, uhh…” Maishul stuttered. “W-Well, I maybe kinda spilled some my Story-Breaking-Plot-Devices into the cauldron on accident…”
“Your WHATS?!” Lothli stared at her twin in disbelief.
“Uhh, it wasn’t a big deal or anything. Just, uh... Scarlet, the Demon King, Sparky, Wan, Pre-Geas Dread Lord Ardus, the plague from , the Deus Ex Machina, the Beast, and the entirety of the United States’ arsenal of nuclear weaponry.”
Lothli shook her head with a sigh. “I’m pretty sure you caused mass human extinction at least three times over.”
“Well! No time to worry about it! Next scene!”
Scene Five: Bea and Ophelia Discover The Wonders of Nuclear Physics
Bea and Ophelia stared at the booklet that had just materialized before them. “Maishul’s Simple Guide to Stealing and Utilizing the Entirety of the United States’ Arsenal of Nuclear Weaponry: For Dummies!” The booklet was decorated with garish stickers of rainbows and glitter, along with cartoonish mushroom clouds.
With a glance at Ophelia, Bea picked up the book. Immediately, her mind was flooded with images and knowledge. Where exactly every nuclear silo in the United States was located. The launch codes and how to bypass the two-key rule. The birth and loving families of each and every nuclear warhead…?
“Bea? Dear? Are you alright?” Ophelia shook Bea gently, concerned. Bea wordlessly handed over the booklet and watched the same information flow through her. The two shared a meaningful glance before turning the manual over. A bright red button sat there, glowing ominously amongst the childish stickers and drawings of shocked faces.
“This is absolutely too dangerous to be left just lying around,” Bea murmured, staring at the booklet intently. Maybe it was a prank some lesser fae put together to induce some concerning but ultimately harmless illusions. But deep down, the two knew this was far more sinister than a simple prank. Plus, there was no fae named “Maishul” that either of them knew of.
“I’m going to have to seal this thing away with the strongest magic I have,” Ophelia declared. With a wave of her hand, ethereal chains weaved around the book. Magical seals whirled through the air, all concentrated on the offending manual. The horrors of nuclear annihilation have been contained with a final clap of her hands.
For around five seconds. Immediately after the ritual was complete, as if to spite Ophelia’s work, a glowing sword descended from the heavens, slicing through the glowing chains and seals like butter. The two barely managed to glimpse the name written on the side: “The Deus Ex Machina,” before the blade landed squarely on the big red button with a satisfying click!
“Shit.”
“So what exactly were you saying about ‘not worrying about it’?” Lothli shook her head in dismay. “How are we going to explain this mess to their poor, poor writers? What are we going to say to Bay?”
“It’ll be fine! I’m not breaking any of the rules on shortstories, which means I totally can’t be banned!” Maishul quipped cheerily.
“That is 100% not how it works.” Lothli crossed her arms. “Don’t drag me down with you.”
“I dunno! You’ll bail me out, right?” Maishul shrugged before returning to her appalling project. “Next scene!”
Scene Six: Sanguia Loses a Fight
These were the end times. The world felt… sideways. The government was in shambles. A plague that turned people into fine, yellow dust had apparently appeared, sweeping the continent from east to west. Yet, there was nothing I could do. Right in front of me, I had my own foes to contend with on the roof of Holos Lucidium.
On my right was a shapeless mass, writhing and transforming, throwing vicious barbs my way. It never introduced itself, but I knew its name from within myself: the Beast.
On my left was a much more innocent figure, at least on the surface. He had slicked-back black hair, brown eyes simmering with self-assured pride, and an easy smirk. And to cap it off, he introduced himself promptly and with great gusto; he was Dread Lord Ardus.
I could attempt to flee, but what purpose would that serve? Even if I got away, which my gut told me was highly unlikely, I would be abandoning my guild to die to these two monsters. So no. I stood my ground here.
“Sanguia. Member of Holos Lucidium.” I balanced my stance between my two flanks, watching both. With a smirk from Ardus and a ripple from the Beast, the fight began.
I quickly discarded the idea of even fighting the rippling mass on my right. It had no blood I could control, and impacting it with my blade would make me stuck. But the Dread Lord was no slouch, either.
As I rushed at Ardus, a tingle in my spine screamed at me to duck. I tucked into a combat roll as a great blast of flame roared right where I used to be.
“Fiesty, aren’t you? Well, that’s what makes it fun,” the Dread Lord growled, licking his lips.
I had no time to respond as a raging, shimmering bull attempted to ram its gleaming horns directly through me. I sprung off the ground, landing just behind the writhing bull. There was no time to go on the offensive; it took all I could to stay alive.
“Stop struggling, Interloper,” the Beast snarled. “I have plans I have to attend to. Plans that do not involve you.”
I kept the undulating mass between myself and my second opponent. My only hope was to promote crossfire. The dagger I held in my right hand felt woefully inadequate for this task.
“You heard the fella. I’ll end this, here and now.” Ardus thrust his hand straight up into the air as if grasping something far above him.
“Dread Lord. May I take this as a sign of betrayal?” The Beast rumbled, a dangerous edge to its voice.
“Nah, I never said I was working with you. You’re too… icky for my tastes.” The Dread Lord tapped his chin thoughtfully. “It’s a good thing you’ll be obliterated in an instant. Ta ta!”
I looked up with a heavy heart, knowing how outclassed I was. There was barely time to say goodbye before a massive ball of light enveloped me in its all-consuming shine. The last thing I managed to think was:
That was an utterly unfair fight.
“Well, the protagonist of our SerSun just died. What now?” Lothli looked at the cauldron in dismay.
“Hey, it’s not so bad! Scarlet is still alive, right?” Maishul dug around in the cauldron before pulling out yet another distended scene. “Look! Here she is!”
“What… is that?” Lothli looked at the scene with equal parts awe and disgust.
“Oh! Well, I really liked Fye’s SerSun, so I made my own! Isn’t it great?”
“Maishul, I think you missed the entire point of his SerSun. Where’s the inter-character drama? Where’s the mystery? Where’s the actual HISTORY?” Lothli poked the off-kilter scene with distaste. “This version of the story is just <Murder.>.”
“Well too bad, dear ‘ol sis! Here! We! Go!”
Scene Seven: Murder Without the History
Hi, I’m Benedict Lushon, Ben for short. Somehow, I think I just unlocked the secret to teleportation. I stand in the middle of the mansion’s dining room, feeling my stomach turn violently. One moment, I was chained in front of a cackling Kyle, and the next thing I know, we’re back in this blasted room. I crane my head, checking who else is here.
Teddy, check. His monocle and top hat are still crooked as he looks around the room, just as confused as I.
Cornell, check. Unfortunately, he still seems to be out cold.
Kyle, check. Wait—
I stride up to Kyle and grab onto his lapels. “What exactly have you done?” I say, shaking him back and forth.
Unfortunately, he seems even more confused by the current events than I am, judging by the bulging eyes and frothing at the mouth.
“W-What exactly happened here!? We were just— and then—” my former coworker manages to sputter out before a booming feminine voice rings out from the walls.
“Heya! What’s up, characters! It’s me, ya girl Maishul, back at it again with another fun murdery twist!” The cheery voice that booms out from the walls contrasts with all the horrors we’ve seen thus far. Also, who talks like this? Did we get kidnapped by one of those Instagram influencers? Ugh, I hate those kinds of people.
“Who are you?! What have you done?!” Kyle screams, his voice cracking. “I have waited YEARS to take my revenge on these fools, and you—”
“Oh. You.” The voice seems displeased at the interruption. “Sorry, I didn’t think your Tuffy plotline was interesting, so I retconned it!”
Now, that was the mark of a bad writer. As a future multi-bestselling author, I know that one of the most sinful things a writer can do is randomly retcon the story. I’m confident this random influencer girl will never go anywhere in her writing career.
“YOU! We were known as the Tufforo family, and we—” Kyle rages before being cut off by the voice again.
“Sorry, don’t care.” A piece of duct tape manifests itself directly onto Kyle’s mouth. I would find it funny if it didn’t demonstrate how supernatural this influencer’s power seems.
“Anyways! Here’s the rules. I’m not really good at that being cryptic thing, so it’ll be easy!” the voice announces with glee. “Here’s my super special sparkly OC, do not steal, known as Scarlet, Scourge of the Americas. She’ll try and chase you down! She wins when you’re all dead. You all win when, I don’t know, she dies of old age or something. You can try to kill her; it won’t work!”
‘Super special sparkly OC, do not steal?’ So, what, did I find myself in some hellish parody of Earth? That must be it. This must all be a very terrible dream. I sincerely hope that none of my readers would ever consider making fanfiction like this of my stories.
“By jove, those rules seem downright unfair!” Teddy finally seems to have found his voice. “Please, good madam, could you let us go? We have already suffered at the hands of that accursed man—”
“Lalala, can’t hear you!” the girl’s voice sang out. “Here she comes! Give it up for… Scarlet!”
A hidden panel drops a… rather regular-looking young woman onto the floor. Why, if I were in charge, I would have ensured that my villain would have a spectacular appearance. Someone as fascinating and spellbinding as Jack the Ripper—
Scarlet dashes at Kyle and [REDACTED]
… … Technical Difficulties
“MAISHUL! What the hell was that?! Is that how you talk when I’m not around? And what the hell was that last section?” Lothli furiously slapped the tortured scene back into the accursed project bubbling menacingly below.
“Well, Scarlet’s kinda messy, so I tried to cover it up,” Maishul pouted. “Also, I was just trying to liven up the scene a bit! Kyle’s so BORING. He speaks in RIDDLES and they make my brain HURT.”
“That’s because you don’t have a single brain cell in that head of yours,” Lothli huffed. “Don’t make such sweeping changes to people’s stories!”
“Well… dear sis, could I trouble you for a favor, since I’m so head empty ‘n all?” Maishul smiled her widest, most brilliant smile.
“What.” The other twin glared back, unimpressed.
“Well, if you don’t want the two of us to get banned, can you help me separate these stories back out? Please?” With a fluttering of her eyelashes and a winsome wink, this would undoubtedly win her sister to her side—
“Deal with it yourself. I’m going to hand out apologies.” Lothli had no sympathy for her twin’s plight.
“Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!” Maishul cried. For now, she was burdened with her least favorite task; actual work.
And thus, this tale comes to a close. Nevertheless, its name will ring true throughout the land as the legendary fable known only as “In the Shadow of Machines, Scarlet, and the In Between Geas and the Beginning of the Demon Murder History: Dissonance, also How Did We Get Here?”
Thank you very much for your time. And apologies for my sister.
Lothli, signing off.
Credits: Maishul, Lothli, FTF!Olivia, and the Deus Ex Machina, from u/Lothli’s FTF Serial, Minerva and the plague, from u/PolarisStorm’s Art, Demoness Virtua, Sparky, and Dread Lord Ardus from u/mattswritingaccount’s Iklemli, Lena, and Veska from u/MeganBessel’s Pride and Sloth from u/Helicopterdrifter’s Clear and Alex from u/Carrieka23’s Talix, Sanguia, and Scarlet from u/Lothli’s Olivia, Barlow, and the Beast from u/Not_theScrumPolice’s Wan, Bea, and Ophelia from u/ZachtheLitchKing’s Ben, Theodore, Cornell, and Kyle from u/FyeNite’s The Entirety of the United States Arsenal of Nuclear Weaponry from the United States.
Special thanks to u/OldBayJ, which this fantastic feature would be impossible without.

Hello all,
I am new to cooking steak so I am unsure what happened here but I cooked two ribeyes with similar thickness. One that was frozen (1.5") and thawed for a 24 hours in the fridge then 2 hours on the counter since there was still ice on it. The other was fresh (1") and still in vacuum sealed bag.
I put thyme and garlic in the bag and vacuum sealed both of them in same bag. I did 137F for 2 hours.
Towards the last 20 minutes the bag let out a little air (cheap vacuum set which I will replace) and the steaks ended up falling a bit so I pulled them out. I seasoned with salt and pepper after pulling out and patting dry.
I got a cast iron pan and canola and got it very hot. Cooked both steaks the same way for medium rare then based with garlic and thyme..
Weird thing is the frozen steak (1.5") came out perfectly medium rare but it was a little dry and tough/chewy. The 1" steak turned out really juicy and soft but was medium well.
So my question is where did I go wrong? I imagine the frozen aspect had a lot to do with how the steak turned out and how I thawed it but I'm not sure. I've seen people freeze steaks before and cook it without thawing.
Any tips welcome. The 1" steak was awesome, a proper medium rare would have been really nice.

A question for all you smart hair people: I know the Dyson hair dryer is a holy grail product for many, but I just can't justify spending $430+ on one... :( Would anyone happen to know of any quiet dryers that aren't crazy expensive? (Preferably under $100, if possible.) My Chic Republic Iconic & Ceramic dryer is slowly dying after ~5yrs of use (2-3 times per week), so need to start looking for a new one. Bonus points if it's also lightweight! There are just too many options online, and I know nothing about this kind of stuff, so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, please!
Thank you in advance!
P.S. My hair is straight as an arrow, about medium-ish thickness--possibly leaning slightly on the finer side of medium--and is currently not dyed, in case that makes a difference when looking for things.

What was TOP (BIGBANG) called in his younger years? TEEN TOP.
How does MAMAMOO greet you? Hwasa-p.
Would someone please tell that one guy from EXO to pay attenCHEN?
What did B1A4’s Gongchan say when he couldn't find his shoes? Can I Baro your Sanduels?
What type of bread does EXO eat? A Kaiser roll.
How did BIGBANG perform their songs? Daesung it.
What did Minho do when he was locked out of the dorm? He found Key.
What did INFINITE do on your birthday? They Sunggyu a song.
What do you call Seungcheol at Halloween? S.POOKS.
How can you tell that GOT7 are really smart? They get full Marks.
This pun above must be the weakes Tuan.
What does Yeseob do when he's sad? He Soebs.
What kind of jewelry does f(x) have? Krystals and Ambers.
What is SEVENTEEN’s favourite creature/animal? A Dino.
What is it called when Kyungsoo sings with someone else? A DOet.
What does VIXX order at Olive Garden? Ravi-oli.
What did INFINITE say to the groupie? Ho,ya better get out my way.
What did Leeteuk reply to Sungmin? Yesung.
What does Lee Jinki say to a challenge? I will ONEW.
How do you take a picture of an EXO member from afar? You Xiumin.
What kind of tree produces grease instead of sap? The Namu Tree.
What do you call someone who keeps playfully messing with you? ATEEZ.
What did A.C.E’s Jun say to Donghyun as they were trying to escape a saesang? You better run as fast as Yuchan.
Who is considered UP10TION’s musical genius? Bit-to-ven. (Beethoven)
What does Hwanwoong say to a challenger? Keonhee do better than me?
What is WINNER’s favourite song? Song Minho.
What are Chan & Felix? AuSTRAYlian.
Where does ASTRO go to relax? The Sanha.
How far could Jungkook go when it comes to sports competitions? I think he would go farther than the reJeonals.
Where do Red Velvet like to eat? Wendy's.
Where does EXO spend most of their time? The Ki-CHEN.
What did SHINee buy EXO for their anniversary? A KEY-CHEN.
What is H.O.T’s favourite surf move? Kang-Ten.
What time is curfew for JYP artists? 2AM. Well, in my timezone, it would be 2PM.
Lee Hwanhee auditions for a survival show. The trainees wonder what group he’s from. There are many groups around, but UP10TION’s the Hwanhee’s in.
What did HAN do on stage? Jisung.
What is WJSN’s favourite Grease song? You’re Dawon That I Want.
I hear there's a shy member in VIXX? Just Leo-ve him alone.
What is SHINee’s job at the circus? Lion Taemin’.
How does SNUPER count? Five, Six, Sebin.
Why breathe air when you can breathe oxyJIN?
What happens when NCT does well? They get a Ten out of Ten.
Who visits EXO during Christmas? Suho-Ho-Ho.
What would happen if SEVENTEEN were to drink? They'd get a little bit WOOZI.
What do you do when a JYJ member calls your name? Yoochun around.
What does Key say to the bartender when he gets drunk? Kibum coming.
What is SF9’s favourite NCT DREAM song to cover? Hwiyoung. (We Young)
What did Donghae say to his antis? Please Donghae-t me.
Congratulations, you’ve just won ONEW car. Wow, it's so SHINee.
What is ATEEZ’ favourite song? Song Mingi.
What does U-KISS do when they want something from their boss? They Kiseop to him.
Where does Officer Jungkook put the criminals? The dunJeon.
What was Super Junior doing after their concert? Just Hangeng around.
What does ONEWE say at the end of a concert? Our fans, we’ll CYA soon again.
What is INFINITE’s favourite class? L-Gebra.
What happens when you put Crayolas in the microwave? You get a Crayon Pop.
What is SM’s favourite Star Wars Character? WooKey.
What do members of VIXX eat for breakfast? WeetVIXX.
What is up with Chaerin’s swag? It's so she can't CL the haters.
How does TEEN TOP beg for forgiveness? They Niel down.
Where do TWICE go to relax? The Sana.
What do THE BOYZ do when they perform the Relay Dance? They stand in a Q.
What does (G)I-DLE say instead of ‘etc’? And Seoyeon and so forth.
Why does Woohyun keep making hearts? He just wants to Woo your soul.
People have talked about Jungshook a lot. What about Shookjin and Hoshook?
Is B.A.P still together? No, so there's Zelo of them left.
What would the name of Jimin’s song be if V had originally sung it? Serendipitae.
How does that David Guetta and Justin Bieber song go? When it comes Tzuyu.
What happened when Red Velvet's Wendy went up against Super Junior in a contest? Siwon.
What happened to Leedo when ONEUS and AB6IX took part in a challenge? He Hwanwoong.
What did INFINITE learn in Chemistry? The L-ements.
What is the most common reaction to Gangnam Style? Psy.
What do you call Kai when he goes out for a run? Kim Joggin’.
What caused the BIGBANG? Normal People: Science? Me: Uh.. YG?
What did SEVENTEEN say when they won first place? We Won, Woo!
How do you send Block B mail? Through a P.O box.
What religion does EXO follow? Taoism.
What do you call a VIXX member born in August? A Leo.
If Yoongi were a mythical creature, would he be a Yoonicorn?
What was Superman called as a child? Super Junior.
What did Hoya ask the other members when they announced the winner and he wasn’t paying attention? Howon?
Do you know why Jeongin is my bias? It's because I'm I.N love with him.
Why do 2NE1 hate packaged goods? It’s because they have to break the CL to open it.
What did Woohyun say to Inspirits? I love Gyu.
What is SEVENTEEN’s favourite Jonas Brothers song? Vernon’ Up.
If Minseok comes to a conclusion without evidence, you could say he's aXiumin things.
If SOPE (BTS) were to star in a television show, would we call that a SOPE Opera?
I gotta Luhand it to you, I wasn’t Sehun this coming.
Why couldn't Super Junior find their pants? Because Leeteuk them.
What happened when Mr. Moon left his food outside overnight? It became s-Taeil.
What did Yeo do at an ATEEZ concert? Yeosang a song.
Why is Crayon Pop the messiest K-POP group? It's because they're never doing their Choa’s.
What do Golden Child play when they’re bored? TAG.
Jonghyun is such a good singer? He is never off-KEY.
Why is Daniel the maknae of Dalmation? He’s the Youngwon.
How does that one song go? From the windows to the Hwalls.
What is MBLAQ’s favourite month? Lee June.
You know how Jin gives food to the people with him, especially in VLive? That's what we call Jinerosity.
What did SEVENTEEN call Seo Myungho when he didn't arrive on time? The L8.
There are 12 Mons in a year, and BTS’ favourite is NamJune.
What happens when you do something bad to D.O? He Kyung-sues you. He Kyungfu kicks you.
What does Dara say when she loses? Dara-nit.
I know a lot about MONSTA X, so you could say I.M their biggest fan.
What does Stray Kids’ Lee Yongbok do when his lips are dry? He Lix them.
Have you heard ATEEZ’ new title track ‘Inception’? I hope Yunho what song I’m talking about.
Why did BIGBANG suddenly get down on one knee? They were Taeyang their shoes.
What did Soohyun do when he broke something precious to Kevin? Eli’d.
What is DAY6’s favourite alphabet letter? Jae.
What did Red Velvet say when the We Got Married season ended? Oh, Joy.
How does Ten say Hi? Thai everyone.
What is Jellyfish Entertainment’s favourite ointment? VIXX.
Before Hwa started his performance, Wooyoung asked, “Are you going to sing a Seong,Hwa?
What did a Jewish person say to a Golden Child member when he asked about their religion? I’m a Joochan.
What do you do with Stray Kids’ Chris at night? You Bang Chan. (I’m so sorry. Please don’t hate me.)
What did Luk Factory say when NOIR finally won first place? Daewon.
What is MBLAQ’s favourite animal? A MIRcat.
Why doesn't EXO smell? They use D.Odorant.
What did Lee Donghyuck say when he met Christopher Bang? Haechan.
What is EXO’s favourite breakfast? Eggs and Baekhyun.
What is LOONA’s favourite movie soundtrack? My Heart Will Gowon.
What did MAMAMOO say when they saw their song was doing really well on the charts? Are Wheein first place?
If you’re a fit person, you’ve probably been Jimin’ quite a lot.
Why did Lee do so well on his test? It’s because Lee Know all the answers.
What is BAP’s favourite bird? A Youngjae.
Who is the warmest member in ATEEZ? San.
Some people have to take many pills for their medical conditions, fortunately for me, I only have to take Wonpil.
One day Highlight was planning their comeback. Gikwang says: How about making a comeback in May? Their manager says: No, let’s Do-joon.
For Yoongi stans, he could be a big part of their Yooniverse. He keeps Bangtan Yoonified. He is very Yoonique. Yoongi owning a Kingdom. Yoonited Kingdom. The Daegu Boys, although they are game cheaters, they keep Bangtan YooniTaed.
NU’EST are quite busy people, always running Arond.
Hi, I’m Park Chanyeol, and you’re watching Disney Chanyeol.
I J-Hope you’ve been enjoying these puns so far.
How does EXO wish you Happy Holidays? Merry Krismas Tao you.
Taecyeon walks into a bar. The bartender asks, “A drink, Mr Kim?” Taecyeon replies, “No thanks, I'm Ok.
There was a time when a fan bought a part of the moon and named it, "Kim Namjoon". I would be laughing if someone decided to name it "Rap Moon".
Have you heard that new ONEUS song everyone’s been Ravn’ about?
If you have JYP’s baby, would he lean over it and whisper, “This is a JYP Production.”
“Did you drop that?” “Minah”. (Me? Nah.)
Jihyo, you are the reason that I breath. Jihyo, you are the reason that I still believe. (Listen to the A.R Rahman & Pussycat Dolls song for reference.)
Kun will be the perfect boyfriend. He will love you unKunditionally.
I told my friend about this one boy group. I said, “They’re really Great,Guys.”
If you're a baby fan, you could say you're a Newkidd.
If you’re a smart and bright youngster, you could say you’re a Golden Child.
I really like that one member of WINNER, he’s a very JINUine person.
What is an informal way to address a group of men singing in a K-POP group? Let's just call them THE BOYZ.
Hears a noise: JungLOOK. Gets a teaching job: JungBOOK. Is hungry: JungCOOK. Gets scared: JungSHOOK.
Little girl got into an accident. How Hyorible. She was Sooyoung.
A pack of wolves broke into Woollim Entertainment and ate a two member boy band. They were Tasty.
What does GFRIEND use instead of ‘etc’ or ‘and so forth’? And Sowon.
What does NCT’s Japanese member say to the other members? Can Yuta-ke my heart?
What did the models do when they became K-POP idols? They ulzzang.
When you debut, you are automatically an Idle, but if you work hard enough, you can become an iKON.
When you see something relatable online, you’d tend to say this is SOMI.
(This is more of a story). You spend hours locked up in the studio, your skin is pale white and ice cold. You change your hairstyle like no tomorrow and you… Sometimes dress like a girl. There was a pause between them. She opened her lips again. “I know what you are.” “Say it. Say it.” “ … G-Dragon.”
When it comes to K-POP, I must tell you, I'm very IN2IT. The experience is quite UNIQ. The music releases are INFINITE. I listen to K-Music Weeekly, although I listen to the most music on DAY6/SATURDAY, After School has finished, round about Seven ‘O Clock. If I’m busy, I listen to it once AWEEK. I like listening to the NU'EST songs. Oftentimes, it's the Highlight of my day. Sometimes I think I might eNOI my family a bit.
My love for K-POP is ASTROnomical.
Once you get into K-POP, there’s no EXID.
When it comes to puns, OnlyOneOf these answers can end up on top.
K-POP puns are so hard to come up with, I'm trying to find ONEWE would all find funny.
If coming up with puns was a test, I'm sure I'd A.C.E it, but I'm not going to lie, it's VERIVERY hard. In the end, I really want that 100%.
SONG PUNS:
When will GOT7 disband? Never Ever.
What did WINNER say when they found out YG was cancelling their concert? Really, Really, Really, Really?
What were WINNER doing with books and pencils? They were Color Ring.
When is INFINITE’s curfew? Before The Dawn.
What do VERIVERY play when they’re bored? Tag Tag Tag.
What is ONEUS’ favourite song to sing? A Song Written Easily.
FANDOM NAME PUNS:
Are you a U-KISS fan? Because KissMe.
I just bought a new SHINee album. Now I need to Shawol my K-POP friends.
What did Hongjoong ask Mingi when he saw he had lots of leftover food? Can I have ATINY bit of your food?
How many bias groups do you have? IGOT7.
COMPANY NAME PUNS:
Why is BTS getting so popular now? You could say it’s because they’re a Big Hit.
PICK-UP lines:
Here are some pick-up lines just for added effect, because, honestly, some of these are just great.
Are you BLACKPINK? Because I want to be in my area.
Are you an Inspirit? Because my love for you is INFINITE.
My name is Soonyoung, but you can call Soon.
Bambam is the sound my heart makes when I see you.
I DREAM about U 127 hours of the week.
Is Lee a thief, becuase Leeteuk my heart.
You want a pick-up line, because IGOT7.
I know your name is the The8, but you’re The1 for me.
Are you a PENTAGON fan, because you’re my UNIVERSE.
GENERAL K-POP JOKES:
Pray for Mark Lee. He’s already in his third unit in a row. He did say it would be a long ass ride.
How does BamBam wipe his tears? He dabs them. insert dance move
Why didn’t Starship Entertainment artists go trick or treating in 2016? It’s because of Mad Clowns.
What do you call GOT7’s Jinyoung with a cape? Super Junior.

"Power is like a bionic upgrade. Anyone can get it, but it takes true wisdom to use it for good."
In the 1980s, 'Project Albatross' was discovered by the Imperial State, which are definitely not and have no relation to Nazis (so long as you're playing the game outside of Japan). While they try and enact the plan, the US-like Republic (already at war with the Imperial State) send the renown commando Super Joe behind enemy lines to try and bring a stop to it. He failed, getting captured. As such, a second commando was chosen to both carry on his original plan as well as to perform a one-man rescue mission: Nathan (or Rad) Spencer. But it wasn't just his skills, talents, and weaponry that allowed him to rescue Joe, put a stop to the Imperial State, and kill a reanimated Hitler Master-D. He had a bionic arm, which can grapple things. Beyond this base story, each different canon tells a different interpretation of events.
Every individual canon is listed separately below, with different sources within the same canon being tagged separately. Elements of the Rearmed games appear in the 2009 remake (characters introduced in Rearmed appear in 2009, Rearmed 2's ending lays out the public mistrust in bionics and Joe's betrayal of Spenser which is a key part in the remake), implying they may be in the same canon, but with the lack of direct confirmation on this as well as the radical difference between the games they are listed separately.

Bionic Commando (NES)

Weapons

All weapons can break shield generators, large machines, and vehicles with repeat shots, unless a stronger weapon is used.

• A regular gun
• A machine gun
• The wide gun shoots a spread of three projectiles
  • When used in a top-down level, it shoots a spread of four projectiles
• The three-way shoots blasts either up, forward, and down
• The rocket launcher shoots forward powerful, piercing projectiles
  • These two can both break girder barriers which other weapons can't damage
  • They can also blow open a metal door
• A hyper bazooka which destroys a large helicopter shooting through its cockpit

Arm

In this game, the bionic arm is a wrist-mounted device, rather than the entire arm.

• Used to swing off of surfaces and pull himself up onto them
• Holds onto a flying helicopter while carrying another person
• Grabs items
• Spins it in a circle around him, deflecting a bullet

Other Equipment

• The medicine can be used to fully heal Spenser, and the iron boots allows him to kill enemies in melee
• The communicator allows for video calls with head command
  • Can wiretap into specific locations in enemy bases to pick up messages left by others and to listen in on enemy conversations
  • There are different kinds of communicators which work in different zones
• Uses the flare bomb to light up a dark cave
• The pendant deflects one projectile from hitting Spenser
  • The helmet does this twice, while the bulletproof vest does it for every other shot
• Can pick up power ups which have a ball of energy orbit him for a while

Bionic Commando Rearmed

Feats marked '1' come from the first game, and feats marked '2' come from the sequel.

Strength

• Smashes a large amount of stone blocks by slamming on them from a height²
• Can grab enemies and use them as human shields before throwing them aside¹
• Throws a large barrel¹
  • Throws a barrel hard enough to cause an explosion against the D-1 bot¹
• Yanks apart stacked segments of a stone column¹
• Yanks the bolts that connect a siege machine to its armor, making it fly back from the recoil¹

Durability

• Falls down a large shaft in a cavern¹
  • In general, falling from great heights does not hurt him¹
• Seemingly jumps out of a helicopter without a parachute¹
• Is on a giant missile as it hits the ground, which failed to explode but still wrecked the surrounding area, and is unharmed²
• His arm "deflects most conventional enemy firepower"¹
  • Stated to be able to block bullets²

Speed

• Stated to be capable of blocking incoming gunfire with his arm²
• Whips a bullet out of the air with his grappling hook¹
  • Spencer says his arm can "deflect most conventional enemy firepower"¹
• Repeatedly catches rockets out of the air in a boss fight¹
  • Does it again¹
• Ducks under bullets in flight¹

Arm

General

• Can pull himself up to higher levels and swing from the ceiling¹
• Can pull large objects towards himself¹
• Can whip the grappling hook around as an attack¹
• Access codes for doors can be uploaded to his arm¹

Upgrades
In Rearmed 2, Spencer can obtain a number of upgrades to grant his bionic arm extra abilities, though he can only have one active at a time.

• Can make a powerful uppercut²
• A grenade launcher²
• Can be electrified to disable or stun foes²
• Hacking capabilities, allowing him to instantly cause a door to open²
  • Capable of compromising enemy units individually, or en masse if used on a relay station²
  • Without this upgrade, can hack enemy systems¹
• Can release drones which orbit around him, diving into and exploding on nearby threats²
  • Can intercept missiles²
• In Rearmed 2 he requires an upgrade to have his arm whip around him in a circle, with it being able to pass through walls while doing so²

Weapons

Types

• Revolver¹
• Machine Gun¹
• Shotgun²
  • Can be fired to swing Spencer back and forth on his grappling hook¹
  • Can be fired rapidly¹
• Plasma Rifle¹
  • Can charge up a more powerful shot¹
  • Capable of neutralizing energy shields, seen here¹
• Vector Cannon, which shoots a reflective beam¹
  • Shoots a second beam once upgraded¹
• Bazooka¹
  • The rocket can be manually controlled¹
• The WASP Bazooka launches multiple missiles simultaneously²
  • Has a 99% hit probability after locking on²
• Goliath Launcher fires a metal ball, which it attracts back to the weapon through magnetism to fire again²
• Napalm launcher²
• Yoro Viper shoots electric attacks which runs along surfaces and can overload generators²
• Grenades¹

Strength - Regular

• Breaks through a force field projector¹
• Breaks through a small turret¹
• Destroys a large, flying turret¹
• Blows up the treads of a large siege machine¹
• Destroys a barrel dispenser¹
• Blows up a tank droid¹

Strength - Explosive

• Blows through rock to reveal a hidden passage¹
• Blows up a military vehicle¹
• Blows through a wall¹
• Destroys notable amounts of stone²
• Destroys a thick barrier²
• Blows up a huge aerial war machine with repeated rocket shots¹

Other Equipment

• Uses Biovision to scan for valuable information and weak points¹
• Uses a parachute¹
• Has iron boots, hurting enemies when he swings into them¹
• Has a bulletproof vest¹
• Has flares¹
  • They automatically light up in dark areas¹

Other

• Fights and defeats someone who has similar bionic augmentations as Spencer¹
  • Groder survived, but was severely injured and had to be placed in some kind of life support suit¹
• Acts without issue on a giant missile as it flies through the air²

Bionic Commando (2009)

Comic feats are tagged with 'C'.

Strength

Striking

• Cracks before shattering reinforced glass
• Punches a robot in two
• Punches a terrorist across a room
• Pulls an enemy in before hitting them away
• Pulls himself in to an enemy to drop kick them a distance
  • Does this to a large flying drone, striking it back in the air
• Punches crates into the air before striking them away
• Hits a forklift into the air before striking it away
• Strikes a car into the air before backhanding it away
• Can slam the ground after falling, creating a shockwave which hurts people around him
  • Takes out four people surrounding his landing site^C
  • Breaks through a concrete shell
  • Repeatedly strikes an enormous robot like this to force them back into the hole in the ground they had dug

Pushing / Pulling

• Takes out a helmeted terrorist by slamming their head into a missile with his regular arm
• Tears off the head of a robot
• Pulls off two of a robot's wings, one with his bionic arm and another with his regular one
• Tears out a portion of a monorail car from the building it's embedded in
• Presumably pulls off the door of a mid-flight hoverjet

Lifting / Throwing

• Lifts enemies into the air and slams them down
• Throws a large rock, breaking a fragile cave wall
• Lifts and throws a boulder
• Lifts and throws cars through the air

Other

• Pulls around a car
• Stabs through a robot with its own wing
• Cuts off a robot's arm and head with its own wing

Durability

• Blocks hits from a speedster bionic
• Dropped out of a jet^C
• Takes several kicks in the face before dropping from a helicopter, falling an incredible distance to the ground, landing unconscious making it unlikely his boots could have taken the impact. He later awakens without notable injury
• Gets launched into a city through a missile
• Launched away from nearby missiles but grabs onto a nearby hoverjet to fool his attackers that he fell and died

Speed

• Hits away Joe's pistol pointing at his head before he can fire
• Blocks hits from a speedster bionic
• Avoids rotary gunfire and a missile^C

Arm

• His hand swaps between being shaped like a regular hand and being a grappling claw at will
• Can extend, having a long reach and letting Spencer swing on objects
  • Chains grabs to swing over gaps
  • Can rapidly reel him in, throwing him over a ledge
• The arm can grab onto flat surfaces, like the outside of buildings, and not just poles
  • Can reel in to pull those objects to him, like enemies
• After building up adrenaline, can spin his arm cable around him like a whip, hitting enemies away
  • Seen here
• Grabs onto an object to clothesline a speedster with its cable
• Can hack into machinery, deactivating nearby air mines and reading messages
  • Hacks a plane after pulling a panel off the top, causing it to move as he wishes
  • Possibly used to neutralize a turret, though it could have just been pulling a sensitive part
• Projects a holographic screen for video calls^C
• Is his wife
  • Was able to briefly talk to her while unconscious after learning this

Weapons

• His base weapon is a small, automatic gun
• A shotgun
• A machine gun
• A sniper rifle
• A rocket launcher
• A grenade launcher
• Throwable grenades

Other

• His boots break his falls, allowing him to drop lethal distances without injury
  • Drops multiple storeys without harm
• Will sink in water due to the weight of his arm
• Bionics, like his arm, are particularly sensitive to radiation

Marvel Vs. Capcom

Feats marked '3' are from Marvel vs. Capcom 3, and 'I' from Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite.

Strength

• Cracks the ground coming in on his intro³
• Can hit and juggle enemies high in the air³
• Bounces an opponent off the ground before slamming them down with his grappling arm, cracking the ground both times³
• As a super move, tears up the ground while charging forwards with a punch^I
• Pulls in and punches away an Ultron Sigma drone^I
• Pulls in an Xgardian before throwing them away^I

Durability

• Has his arm grabbed by Ultron Sigma, who swings him up and then back to the ground^I
• Blasted down by Ultron Sigma^I

Arm

• Can continue to use his arm to pull himself towards walls or opponents, and to pull opponents towards him³
• Grabs a coupling from a distance^I
• Has the electricity of Avenger's Tower channelled through his arm to electrocute Ultron Sigma, though this takes him down for a while after^I

Other

• Throws grenades^I
  • As a super move, knocks an opponent down, shoves a grenade in their mouth, and has them blown high into the air as it explodes^I

Bionic Commando (Worlds of Power)

The Worlds of Power series was an collection of children's books based on popular NES games, with Bionic Commando closely following the plot and levels of the original. The protagonist of Bionic Commando is named Jack Markson, but as this was before there was an official name given to the character I'm including the book's feats in this thread.
Chapter numbers are included in the feats.

Strength

• Can punch with the force of ten men
• Punches the first two people in a group of eight, knocking them all down
• Using iron boots, karate kicks a ten foot tall iron door, smashing it down
• Tears open a heavily barred door
• Tears off a giant octopus' tentacle
• Before getting his bionic arm, beats up some ninjas, kicking away one's sword, stunning them with a neck chop, then flipping another

Durability

• Survives falling twenty storeys into a swimming pool, but needs medical attention, as well as the amputation of his arm between the fall and the injury from a shuriken. He is unconscious for days after this fall
• Once got shot by four bullets intended for elephants, but it's unknown what state he was in after
• Withstood some kind of torture from Nazz agents, though what kind is never stated

Speed / Agility

• While under fire from Badd snipers, springs twenty feet across a room "just beating two bullets" to a safe spot
• Activates his arm as semi-automatic gunfire is shot at him, the arm reaching a building's second storey and pulling him out of the way of the bullets by inches
• Dodges a sniper bullet
• Evades an electronic ray
• Avoids a ninja's sword swing, flipping them in the air

Bionic Arm

• In the novel his arm is made of plastic, appears real at a glance, and releases a grappling hook by touching the palm
  • Reaches the second storey of a building and pulls him out of the way of bullets before they can hit him
  • Latches onto the side of an elevator shaft
• Has two grappling hooks, the second one activated with a second press, which attaches to an opposite wall as the first one was. These two pull him out of the grasp of an octopus which was keeping hold with one grappling hook
  • Alternates between these two to swing across a gap
• Can shoot a laser of almost a thousand degrees celsius, allowing him to evaporate a container of water by his hospital bed in an instant
  • Instantly melts ice which is causing him to uncontrollably slide
  • On setting its strength to max, sets fire to a giant venus fly trap eating him
  • Heats the guns of twenty Badd commandoes to the point where they're too hot to handle in a second
  • Lights a candle
• Can scramble electronic fields, allowing him to evade enemy monitoring devices while seemingly still allowing him to send his own messages
  • Scrambles the electronics of a robot that was otherwise immune to his attacks, freezing it
• The fingers are extremely sensitive, allowing the arm to be used to open safes and disarm bombs
  • Runs over a brick wall on seeing a narrow crack between the floor and the wall, feeling out its trigger lock
  • Feels the clicks of a safe, allowing him to crack it
• Creates a unique electromagnetic field that compels whoever it's pointed at to tell the truth
  • When used on a Badd soldier, their face glazes over and speak in a robotic tone while answering his questions

Weapons

• He starts off the book with only a pistol strapped in a holster on his chest
  • Shoots through a metal cord supporting a chandelier, sending it crashing down on some ninjas
  • Has a stun mode, shooting chemical darts which instantly knock out people they hit
• Uses the wide gun to blow up robotic killer-copters
• Fires the rocket gun rapidly to blow up killer-copters
• The three-way gun shoots forwards, left, and right
  • Used to cave in and collapse a fragile tunnel
  • Destroys a killer-copter
• Disables four tanks with a machine gun
  • Seemingly uses high-power explosive rounds

Skill

Combat

• Along with Super Joe, senses that they're being watched by snipers and gets to the floor before they fire into their apartment
• Trained in martial arts with the federation
• Received training from ninja masters in swordfighting, and manages to take down some Badd ninjas

History

• At the beginning of the book, he's spent 10 years going on missions around the world with Super Joe, who he met in Federation spy school. Together, they've been on missions to Thailand and France
• In a mission in Argentina, he and Super Joe managed to locate and arrest all the leaders of the Nazz terrorist organization, though they weren't able to secure plans for a secret weapon called Albatros
• Saved Joe from some Nazz thugs, and apparently has saved him from many situations before

Other

• Has been trained to fly a helicopter

Helicopter

• Used a helicopter he could have hover and signal to pick him up from his location
• Can alternate between hovering and rapidly flying up at the push of a button of his transmitter, and quickly flies so far up that they'd need surface-to-air missiles to hit him
• Has an autopilot to fly to areas he chooses, as well as a medkit
• Alerts him to nearby hostiles
• Has an ejection seat which can automatically go off

Other

• Uses a flare bomb to reveal killer-copters flying towards him without lights at night
• A helmet he uses deflects a bullet
• The bulletproof vest has sniper bullets bounce off it
• Would never fire a gun against an enemy first

"How could I lose? I have a bionic arm."

Introduction:

https://ibb.co/Y88HkpK
In my opinion, Marvel Phase 4 was not this giant disaster as some people (mainly racists, homophobes, grifters and sexists) made it out to be.
However, the fact that Secret Wars is happening this early, and The X-Men won't be introduced until after Phase 6, made me decide to make my very own MCU canon, and plus, if I was in charge, I'd heavily change some of the movies and Disney+ shows and save Secret Wars for five years later in my timeline (2031), when The X-Men and many other characters from the comics are already introduced like,
Wolverine, The X-Men, Cyclops, Emma Frost, Magneto, Doctor Doom, Venom, Miles Morales, Black Cat, Inhumans, Nova, Silver Surfer, Galactus, Blue Marvel, Ghost Rider, Sentry, Tigra, Brother Voodoo, X-Force, Spider Woman (Jessica Drew), Beta Ray Bill, Hyperion, The New Mutants, X-Factor, Captain Britain, Psylocke, Iron Lad, Alpha Flight, etc.
My MCU canon functions extremely similarly to Star-Wars Legends, but if the canon version wasn't utter garbage, compared to it, in my opinion, anyway.
Also, in my continuity, Phase 4 would last four (hehe) years like the previous phases did, and if we got 18 movies and shows combined, in two years, it will be a long four years of content. (Hypothetically, anyway)
I'm completely rebooting Ghost Rider, Blade, The Fantastic Four, Hellstrom, Inhumans and especially The X-Men. However, the previous versions still exist and appear in films involving the multiverse.
The FOX Universe is a separate universe, and I'd completely reboot The X-Men. However, Deadpool and his supporting cast, like Vennessa, Colossus, Domino, Cable, Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Yukio, Weasel, etc, would transport to The MCU through the multiverse.
As for SONY and their horrible Spider-Man Universe. In my ideal universe, SONY and Disney deal extends to other Spider-Man characters like Venom, Kraven, Morbius, The Black Cat, Silver Sable, Silk, Miles Morales, Ben Reilly, and Gwen Stacy (Spider-Gwen), it's not just Peter Parker himself that the deal extends to.
I'd do my own MCU versions of Eddie Brock, Morbius, Kraven, Black Cat, Silver Sable, Silk, Man Wolf, Prowler, Miles Morales, Gwen Stacy, Scarlet Spider, etc.
While SONY can make live action films about all the alternate versions of Spidey, such as, Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Ham, Spider-Punk, Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 4, and The Amazing Spider-Man 3, after the events of No Way Home. This can build up to a live action adaptation of Spider-Verse.
(Don't worry, the animated version would still happen in my ideal universe)
That would be done, in my timeline, instead of making villain films that don't even mention Spider-Man.
Also, regarding Marvel Television, before Disney+. Most of these shows are canon in My MCU Continuity, and this includes,
-Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.
-Daredevil
-Jessica Jones
-The Punisher
-Luke Cage
-Iron Fist
-The Defenders
-Runaways
-Cloak and Dagger
-Agent Carter
However, Inhumans and Hellstrom are so horrible, in my eyes, that they are considered non canon and will be rebooted.
With all that out of the way, let's completely rewrite Phase 4 and make Phase 5-6 completely from scratch.

THE LINEUP

Movies

-Black Widow
-Shang Chi: Legends of the Ten Rings
-The Eternals
-Spider Man: No Way Home
-Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness
-Thor: Love and Thunder
-Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
-Ant Man: Quantumania
-Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3
-Captain Marvel: The Rogue Assault
-Blade: The Daywalker
-Deadpool: Maximum Effort
-Captain America: New World Order
-Thunderbolts
-Spider-Man Returns
-War Machine: Armor Wars
-Fantastic Four
-Avengers: Secret Invasion

Disney+ Shows:

-WandaVision
-The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
-LOKI (Season 1)
-What If (Season 1)
-Hawkeye
-Moon Knight (Season 1)
-Ms Marvel
-She Hulk
-Nick Fury: Secret Invasion
-LOKI (Season 2)
-Marvel Zombies
-Ironheart
-Echo
-What If (Season 2)
-Spider-Man: Freshman Year
-Daredevil: The Man Without Fear
-Ghost Rider: Spirits Of Vengeance
-Vision Quest
-Nova

Special Presentations:

Werewolf By Night
Wonder Man
Agatha Harkness: Coven Of Chaos
The Valkyries: Tales Of Asgard
America Chavez
Without further ado, let's begin my Post-Endgame Universe with...

WandaVision:

The Plot: I liked the show, it was slow, but the last 2-3 episodes really saved it for me. However, Wanda turning evil after this is way too soon to me, and it's done in the most poorly written way possible in Multiverse of Madness. Also, references to sitcoms are reduced.
Episode 1: Filmed before a Live Studio Audience: We start at a S.W.O.R.D facility, where we see S.W.O.R.D scientists breaking down Vision's corpse from Infinity War, and taking his vital components and implementing them into a new pale white vibranium body. Meanwhile, we see Wanda Maximoff from a window, watching in horror, as Vision's body is being broken down instead of a proper funeral or burial.
(Roll the Marvel Studios logo)
Wanda, stealthily takes out the guards by putting them to sleep, hypnotically, then she busts into the main lab, angrily, with furious red eyes and she attacks the scientists using her telekinesis. But the scientists explain themselves and calm Wanda down and explain that they are trying to revive Vision, but they are stuck on how to get Vision's memories back, but it's revealed that Wanda has the memories.
Wanda uses some of her hex abilities to insert Vision's memories into his brain module. Vision activates and appears to remember and recognize Wanda, but something's off about him, he has his emotions removed from him, but Wanda doesn't mind or even notice at first.
Wanda and the newly revived Vision, head to the neighborhood of Westview, which is where the original Vision wanted to settle down with Wanda before The Infinity War happened. Wanda creates a bubble around the area with magic that she didn't even know she had and Wanda turns the color around her and Vision into black and white.
Episode 2: Don't Touch That Dial: Wanda and Vision are enjoying their time in this black and white, sitcom-like, world and their haunted looking house. This is where we can make references to several sitcoms, and Quicksilver even gets revived and Wanda eventually has kids, Billy and Tommy, but they grow up fast into their teens like in the actual show.
Sparky is created as a pet for Billy and Tommy, like in the actual show. Meanwhile, The Hex’s amount of energy and magic catches the attention of S.W.O.R.D, Jimmy Woo, General Hayward, Darcy and Monica Rambeau.
We keep the scene where Monica was snapped and when she came back, her mother, Maria, died five years ago. S.W.O.R.D is curious as to what Wanda did with the Vision body they created, since they checked the security footage and they see that Wanda just walked out with it and why there is a bubble of magical energy and many people in the middle of a known ghost town, so they send a transmission to Wanda.
Meanwhile, Wanda tries to leave the hex to make sure she actually revived her brother and creates children out of pure magic. Quicksilver goes along with her sister but when he tries to leave The Hex, he glitches out and almost dies, but Wanda telikenicly pushes Pietro back into The Hex. Panicked, Wanda returns to The Hex and realizes that her own magic alone cannot create life, let alone bring back the dead. But she finds a book underground and it’s a copy of The Darkhold, The book of the damned.
(Note: Calling this Darkhold "a copy", keeps Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. canon since Robbie Reyes took the original Darkhold to Hell to prevent it from being in the wrong hands, and this also writes off The Darkhold that Morgan Le Fay has in Runaways as a copy)
She tries to find some spell that will work to allow Quicksilver and her children to survive outside The Hex, but she also has to deal with Vision, he might have his memories back, but he lacks his emotions and his colors, since his body is just pale white, regardless on what world he’s in, Hex or otherwise. He often acts cold and takes things literally, So Wanda has to fix that as well.
However, Wanda is slowly being corrupted by The Darkhold, and she even is more aggressive and overall, has a more violent and sadistic demeanor. She hears the S.W.O.R.D transmission and she tells Vision, Quicksilver and the kids to stay inside The Hex, as she exits the area.
Wanda confronts the SWORD agents, who are right outside The Hex’s location. The SWORD agents ask Wanda about The Hex and the Vision body that was taken and Monica tries to reason with Wanda, and Wanda just screams “Leave me and my family alone'' and a huge action scene happens.
Wanda starts by blowing up the Armored SWORD vehicles with her hex bolts, when they attempt to open fire on her. The agents try to shoot Wanda with their energy weapons, but she blocks it with her energy shields.
Wanda brutally kills many of the S.W.O.R.D. agents by snapping their necks, burning them alive with her hex blasts, telekinetically ripping them apart or choking them to death. It's the most brutal that my version of The MCU has gotten up to this point.
Monica, Jimmy Woo, Darcy and General Hayward retreat to make sure they don't get killed by Wanda. After all the S.W.O.R.D agents are dead, Wanda walks menacingly back into The Hex with her eyes bloodshot red.
Episode 3: Now in Color: The S.W.O.R.D team formulates a plan to disable The Hex and apprehend or kill Wanda, if necessary. Much to Monica's protest and dismay. Meanwhile, back in The Hex, which is now colored, Wanda is still trying to find that spell that will allow her brother and two children to survive outside The Hex. But then, Wanda is approached by a mysterious person named Agnes.
Agnes teaches and manipulates Wanda about The Darkhold and Wanda is succumbing more and more to The Darkhold's influence. Meanwhile, S.W.O.R.D. Forces are surrounding The Hex and they are about to launch an assault on Wanda, they plan to take her in, but they'll kill her if they see it as necessary.
They send Monica to see where Wanda is located from the inside, and as Monica enters The Hex, her body begins mutating as she hauls through the extra-dimensional energy field, but she ultimately makes it through. Wanda manages to perform the right spell to allow Quicksilver and her two kids to survive outside The Hex, but Agnes just grins in a sinister manner.
Monica spies on Agnes and Wanda and Monica sees The Darkhold and she realizes what's happening to her. Monica tries to warn Wanda of what The Darkhold is doing to her mind and overall sanity.
Unfortunately, Wanda sees no harm, especially because she was successful in bringing her brother back and having two kids. Wanda, cheered on by Agnes, telekinetically throws Monica out of The Hex, and back into the real world. The SWORD agents retrieve Monica, who is barely conscious, we see her body and eyes are glowing yellow.
Episode 4: Breaking The Fourth Wall: Vision, after seeing Monica being violently thrown out of The Hex, begins to question Wanda's ethics and what are Agnes's true intentions, since she did cheer Wanda on to do this but she claims that she wants to help.
Vision talks to Wanda about this and the two begin getting aggressive and arguing with each other like in Episode 5 of the show that we actually got.
Meanwhile, General Hayward is fed up with Wanda's violent demeanor and devises a plan to execute her and Monica immediately protests this plan, since she knows that Wanda is being manipulated by Agnes and The Darkhold, but the S.W.O.R.D scientists and personnel don't believe her.
Darcy also stands with Monica. The S.W.O.R.D soldiers immediately point their guns at Monica, after noticing her eyes glowing yellow. They fire at her, but the bullets just phase through her torso, like they are shooting at air. Monica runs away and she instinctively energy blasts a chunk through a brick wall in the S.W.O.R.D facility to escape along with Darcy.
Monica and Darcy are hiding in a house in The Hex, Monica is extremely shocked to learn that she has superhuman abilities.She tests her energy blasts, which can blast through concrete and solid steel. Her energy form, which allows her to be superhumanly fast and phase through physical objects and Darcy does some energy tests and it's also revealed that Rambeau can transform herself into any form of energy within the electromagnetic spectrum.
Among the many energy forms she has assumed and is able to control are visible light, cosmic rays, gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet radiation, electricity, infrared radiation, microwaves, radio waves, and neutrinos. By assuming an energy-form, she gains all of that energy's properties. She can bend the light around her to camouflage and seem invisible.
However, she does have limitations with her abilities, Rambeau is only able to retain her energy form for an hour at a time, before having to recharge herself and she can only transform herself into one wavelength of energy at a time.
They later bump into Vision, who is investigating The Hex's properties and trying to find any dirt on Agnes. Vision also states that he's not amused with how suspicious Agnes seems. Vision agrees to help Monica and Darcy to bring Wanda back to her normal self. Meanwhile, back at the S.W.O.R.D. facility, General Hayward reveals that the S.W.O.R.D scientists still have Vision's schematics and they build another Vision, which they intend to use on Wanda and to detain Monica Rambeau.
Episode 5: This is Halloween: Vision briefly returns to Wanda, but he will check on Monica and Darcy, to spend some time with his wife. Which subtly shows that some of his emotion is returning. It's basically the Halloween episode we got, from here on out. Just without the Vision and Agnes interaction, since we already saw her prior, in this rewrite.
Agnes still kills Sparky behind Wanda's back. Quicksilver is very protective of Wanda like in the comics, Pietro got encouragement from Agnes. Vision is still investigating what is going on with Wanda's behavior and what are Agnes's intentions. The Comic Accurate costumes still show up as Halloween costumes and as a reference to comic fans.
Episode 6: Previously On: General Hayward, Jimmy Woo, White Vision and the S.W.O.R.D. forces begin to make their way toward The Hex. Vision, who is scouting the area, sees the S.W.O.R.D forces making their way to Wanda's location, so he warns Monica and Darcy.
Meanwhile, Wanda discovers Agnes's basement and this is where Agnes reveals herself to Wanda, Billy and Tommy, as Agatha Harkness and a witch. She enthralled Maximoff, projecting visions into her mind that revealed herself to have manipulated the recent events, which included, lying to Vision to further distance him from Maximoff, killing Sparky, and manipulating Pietro to watch over Maximoff.
Agatha also states that she came to Westview because she sensed the immense power involved in all the magic and was impressed.
She wanted to know what had allowed Wanda to have such immense power and how she could cast so many high level spells all at once and even have them self perpetuating without Wanda's direct involvement, Agatha is an experienced witch and knows how difficult that is. She wants that kind of power herself.
Wanda attempts to read Harkness' mind, but this proved ineffective as Harkness had placed a protection spell around the room with runic symbols and in turn bound Maximoff in magical bonds. She then demonstrated her magical powers to Maximoff including transmutation and mind control and explained to Maximoff that she is capable of performing such magic but on a grander scale.
Harkness then demanded to know how Maximoff created the Hex in the first place, but Maximoff was unable to recall how she pulled it off.
Harkness plucked a hair from Maximoff's head and used it to open a gateway into Maximoff's memories and to ensure Maximoff would follow her. Harkness revealed she was still holding Tommy and Billy somewhere in her dungeon, and having no other choice Maximoff followed Harkness through the door.
Agatha then goes into Wanda's memories, which puts Wanda in a lot of pain, on top of being mind raped. We see that Wanda was in reality, was really born to Erik Lehnsherr and Magda England, which shocks Wanda, since she remembers being raised in Sokovia. We also see Pietro and a second sister, who is in a green blanket. (This will set up Magneto and Polaris, appearing in later movies)
We then see Magda screaming and dying in a house fire due to an angry mob forming, and they are chasing Erik out along with the three kids. Erik put up Wanda and Pietro for adoption in Sokovia.
We then see her childhood in Sokovia, the Stark Industries missile blowing up her parents, but Wanda used her probability powers to save herself and her brother, which is the first display of her powers, and Vision comforting Wanda and watching sitcoms shortly after Quicksilver's death, back in Age of Ultron.
Having seen all she needed to put the pieces together, Harkness applauded Wanda Maximoff's display of Magic, before teleporting Wanda and herself outside, where she held Tommy and Billy Maximoff with magical nooses around their throats, Harkness then revealed to Maximoff that she was a being long thought to be a myth, a being capable of creating something from nothing with the great power of Chaos Magic, and Maximoff was in fact the Scarlet Witch.
Her mother, Magda, also had magical potential, but her child would always be 100-times more powerful. Maximoff attacks Harkness to release her hold on her children, before ordering them both inside of the Vision Residence to shield themselves. Attempting a second attack, Maximoff soon discovered that Harkness was able to not only absorb her chaos magic, but take a portion of her life force as well.
Harkness attempted to strike a bargain with Maximoff, She would be able to maintain the Westview Anomaly and her reclusiveness, but she would have to give up the chaos powers. However, Wanda declines, flies up towards Agatha and the two begin to fight. Vision, Monica and Darcy show up to help. Darcy gives Monica a suit, and she even nicknames Monica, Photon. General Hayward, White Vision and the S.W.O.R.D. military forces show up on the ground and begin to open fire on Wanda and Agatha.
Wanda, who has had enough of General Hayward, brutally burns him and most of the agents alive using her hex energy wave, with a smile on her face. Vision tells Monica and Darcy that he'll deal with the White Vision, who had his target on Wanda, and the two living synthezoids fly towards each other and start shooting beams at each other. Monica, despite her disdain for Hayward, calls Wanda out for her actions.
But Monica knows the pain of suddenly losing a loved one, she tells Wanda that she can connect and empathize with her, despite Wanda being sadistic, brutally killing many S.W.O.R.D soldiers, scientists and General Hayward, and Monica was attacked by her on two separate occasions, although those were merely fits of rage from a grieving Avenger who couldn't let go of a life she almost never had, and she was manipulated by Agatha and under the control of The Darkhold, which fuels her anger and aggression, so Wanda is not exactly irredeemable ether.
Wanda, using Monica's words and her own willpower, manages to break free of The Darkhold's influence, despite Agatha taunting Wanda about her failures and blurred morality, as they are in a standoff, levitating in the red sky. Wanda epically transforms into The powerful Scarlet Witch to fight Agatha and to end this madness.
Episode 7: The Series Finale: Wanda fights Agatha, just like in the show that we got. Vision and White Vision have the same fight as they did in the actual show and Vision gives his memories to White Vision. I'd keep the "I am Vision" line, and like in the show we got, White Vision flies away, which is setting up his own series.
After Wanda defeats Agatha and destroys The Darkhold, she breaks down in tears after realizing what she's done, as she sees the burned skeleton of General Hayward and the many S.W.O.R.D soldiers that she has slaughtered during her Darkhold rampage. However, Monica comforts Wanda and congratulates her on overcoming her dark side and doing the right thing in the end, but the S.W.O.R.D. forces are about to arrive to take her in and Wanda flies away with Quicksilver, Billy and Tommy.
Wanda is not completely off the hook for her actions. Though she is hiding in a haunted house, raising her two sons and reconnecting with Quicksilver, trying to redeem herself.
Post Credit Scenes: Doctor Strange and Wong, senses The Scarlet Witch's presence, which sets up the Multiverse of Madness, with Wanda's redemption, instead of ruining her character further.
Magneto, in shadow, with only his helmet visible, sees footage of Wanda on the news, and he immediately knows that one of his children is alive and well. This sets up The X-Men, and Wanda meeting her biological father in the future.
S.W.O.R.D, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Quake, Coulson, Jimmy Woo and Monica, now known as Photon, discuss Wanda's actions and Fury decides to let Wanda off the hook, for now, since she did stop Agatha, felt extremely remorseful about her actions and she did destroy The Darkhold, which especially after the events of Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D, they know it is a dangerous artifact.
But they will execute Wanda, if she shows any aggression. So, Wanda is now a controversial figure among the superhuman community, going forward.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier:

The Plot: Most of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier would stay the same, except for Sharon Carter, who is a spy for S.H.I.E.L.D. against The Power Broker, who I'd later reveal in the Echo series, to be The Kingpin.
It's revealed that Sharon is working with Fisk, for S.H.I.E.L.D. to get information for an eventual sting operation. She doesn't enjoy selling superhuman enhancements and dangerous weapons, but she sees it as necessary. Sharon Carter still shoots and kills Karli, and Sam Wilson is not fine with this.
Sharon would reveal to Sam what she's doing and her intentions, this will cause some extreme tension between Sam Wilson and S.H.I.E.L.D. in the future.
This isn't the last time that S.H.I.E.L.D. would do some shady things in My MCU Continuity. This also makes Sharon Carter way less evil, and more in character for her. She'd seem like the type of person that does what she thinks is the right thing, even if you do some very questionable things in the process, kinda like a more extreme Steve Rogers.
Other Changes: Battlestar doesn't die, but he is, however, in a coma. I think it's extremely hypocritical that Marvel wants to push a black man as Captain America, when in the same series this happens in, they use the racist "The Black Guy Dies First" trope.
They could have easily just said that Battlestar was badly injured or in a comatose state and that could have pushed John Walker to cross the line and take the life of that Flag Smasher, which causes him to be stripped of being Captain America.
Also, I think Battlestar could be a good member for The Thunderbolts and be another positive role model for black boys. There was some wasted potential with this character.
Steve Rogers' status of being dead or alive is way more clear in my rewrite. I'd have Bucky say that Steve is retired and the serum prevents the user from dying of old age. That could be a backdoor for Steve Rogers to return in the future.

LOKI:

The Plot: LOKI would stay exactly the same, but Sylvie has Lady Loki as her codename, instead of it being ambiguous. Enchantress would be later saved for my version of Love and Thunder.

What If…?:

The Plot: Most of What If would stay the exact same in My MCU. However, Natasha from Earth-29929, or the Earth that Infinity Ultron completely annihilated and took over. After Infinity Ultron is killed, instead of being sent to an Earth that Loki took over, The Watcher sends Natasha to The MCU, where The Prime Earth Natasha is already deceased.
I think Natasha had some wasted character potential, so a variant taking her place would be a compromise. It wouldn't necessarily ruin her sacrifice in Avengers Endgame, since the variant is a separate character. They also did this with Loki and Gamora, so this would make the most sense.
This would set up a Black Widow sequel, where the variant Natasha would have to loosen up and adjust, since the Earth that she's displaced in, is not a complete apocalyptic hellhole.

Hawkeye:

The Plot: Hawkeye would stay mostly the same. My rewrite is very similar to TheMan5991's small rewrite. The link is placed here.
https://www.reddit.com/nandovmovies/comments/s7xuza/hawkeye_rewrite_spoilers/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
The only real change I'd make is during the final battle with The Kingpin and Kate Bishop in Episode 6. My main problem with Kingpin in the Hawkeye series is that he is both too weak and too strong at the same time.
Fisk is too strong because he is able to completely rip a door off its hinges and later gets full speed rammed by a car which, rather than killing him, cartoonishly knocks him through a window where he gets up with barely a scratch. In the Daredevil Netflix series, Kingpin was very strong, but he was still just a normal human being.
His main power came from the fact that he controlled everyone and everything around him. On the other hand, he is too weak in that he is able to be beaten by a college student with like a week of superhero experience. Yes, I know that Kate trained growing up, but up until the show started, she had never fought someone in a life-or-death situation. Especially not someone as dangerous as Wilson Fisk.
The fact that Kate Bishop beat him is supposed to be impressive (Clint says as much later on), but the action sequence felt less like a compliment to Kate’s abilities and more like an insult to Fisk’s threat level.
I want to fix these issues. So, here is my version of the events of Kate Bishop's fight with The Kingpin.
Eleanor gets in the car, tells the driver they need to find Kate, then realizes the driver has had his head crushed and he died. Fisk appears and calmly opens the door. Fisk still wears his Hawaiian suit. Kingpin tries one last time to convince Eleanor to continue her services for him. She refuses, knowing that continuing to work for Fisk would endanger her daughter.
(One of my favorite things about Netflix Kingpin was his simmering anger. He felt like he was moments away from decapitating a guy with a car door. I never felt that from his reappearance. I want that to come across in this conversation between Eleanor and Fisk)
While Eleanor is denying his offer, we see him slowly getting angrier until he finally breaks and grabs her by the throat, dragging her out of the car. He is holding her up by her neck when Kate arrives. As Eleanor struggles, Kate aims her bow at Fisk and yells "Get away from my mother", but he doesn’t even glance in her direction. She shoots him in the chest with an arrow, but as we learned in the Netflix series, all his suits are armored, so it doesn’t penetrate through. He looks over at her and Eleanor chokes out to Kate telling her to "run" before Kingpin snaps her neck, killing her.
Kate, in her rage, fires an explosive arrow directly at Kingpin, and Fisk immediately gets caught in the explosion, and gets sent flying through the building wall. Bishop entered the building through the wall, and tried to stop Fisk from leaving. Bishop shot a trap arrow at the gap in the building, causing electric wires to form over the hole, preventing Fisk's escape.
Kingpin became aggravated and began tossing Bishop around the room and pulverized her with his punches, leaving her bloodied, several broken ribs and defeated. Fisk pulled her quiver off of her back, pulling her arrows out, snapping them in half, and tossing them on the ground.
Kate, refusing to give up, and wanting revenge for what Fisk did to her mother, gets up, lunges towards Kingpin and tries to kick him. However, Fisk easily punched her in midair, sending her crashing into a window, cracking it. As Bishop sat on the ground, cornered by Fisk, she used his cufflink that she had picked up to flick and activate the head of one of her magnet arrows on the floor. The magnet arrows activate the nearby explosive arrows, causing an explosion that blows up the store, and Kate smashes and jumps out of the window that is behind her and she survives the blast.
(Now, obviously, Eleanor does not die in the actual series, but I told you there was an exception and I think this works better for two reasons. First, it gives Fisk the threatening presence that everyone has been talking about throughout the series with their comments about “the big guy”. This level of terror makes Clint’s comment about Kate surviving an encounter with him meaningful. Second, Eleanor dies in the comics as well and is later brought back as a vampire. With the Blade franchise coming up for the MCU, this leaves open the possibility of a return if they wanted to bring her character back. It also gives more character development for Kate, to overcome her grief of a loved one, similar to Spider-Man, or The Flash)
Still wounded and burned following the explosion, Fisk painfully made his way through the streets of New York City, until his path was blocked by a car. As the car pulled up in front of him, Kingpin had then realized that the driver was Maya Lopez, as he breathed a sigh of relief, only for Lopez to grab her gun and point it directly at his head.
Fisk soon realized that Lopez had indeed learnt that Fisk had been responsible for her father's death at the hands of Ronin. Fisk then told Lopez that they were family, and that families did not always see eye to eye. Lopez responded by shooting him, causing Fisk to fall down, knocked out.
Kate eventually makes it back to Clint and the rest of the episode plays pretty much as is. It is, perhaps, a little more somber as Kate’s mother was murdered instead of simply going to jail, but that just gives her even more reason to go with Clint back to his farm. His family welcomes her in and their love for each other spreads to her and helps her recover.
Post Credit Scene: Laura Barton received her SHIELD watch from Clint, with her name and Agent 19 being engraved on it. However, Laura gets a call from Bobbi Morse, with a hologram of her picture.
Yes, the only addition I'd make is to have Clint and his wife have a mystery third woman, who Clint has been extremely close friends with in the past, and he still is intimate with both her and Laura. I'd reveal that woman to be Bobbi Morse, Mockingbird. The same character from Agents Of SHIELD.
This sets up Mockingbird returning as Hawkeye's new love interest in his hero-life, while his home life with Laura, and both women are friends and are more than alright with that.
They are literally sharing Hawkeye. Then again, Hawkeye was always a ladiesman or womanizer in the comics. Clint is still happily married to only two people. Bobbi is even an aunt to Clint and Laura's children, similar to how Black Widow was in that role, before she passed away in Endgame.
Not to mention, Agents Of SHIELD Season 2 mentioned that Hawkeye and Bobbi went on a few missions together, so it's implied that the two agents have some romantic history. Don't worry AoS fans, Lance and Bobbi are still really close friends and an iconic duo, just not lovers anymore.
Also, Lance Hunter will show up in a future SHIELD movie or Disney+ series. Along with Bobbi and Clint, I can also see a lot of jealousy ensuing.

I love thick and curvy women. 😉. I find intelligence extremely sexy! Bring your inner nerd on over. I want to find someone to converse with first and foremost and see where it goes. Someone that can be my equal in all aspects. I want someone who is self-confident, won't lose her self-identity in a relationship, and knows what she wants or is willing to explore to find out.
I want someone that knows sexy is more than just a look; it is how you present yourself, an attitude, an entire package. I want someone that can be sophisticated or playful. Loves being outside, doing home projects, or a quiet night snuggling on the couch. I want someone equally comfortable going to Chick-Fil-A or Whataburger as they would at any of Houston's higher-end dining establishments.
I know so many men are after sex, but if all the above starts to click, then the sex will come naturally and will be fun, hot, and maybe a little wild! Then we can explore all our desires, kinks, etc. It's not something to be expected or pressured but rather something both partners want to eagerly consent to in time.
The worst thing that can happen by answering this post is you make a new friend.
You:
· Just come and be you.
· Be bold and take a chance.
· Be authentic.
· Let me know what is on your mind and your agenda.
· Age, race, etc., are not crucial if you are authentic.
Me: I’m nothing more than your average guy.
· 46
· Divorced
· Single dad with primary custody
· Weekends free
· Employed
· Masters degree
· Needs to lose weight
· Has a car and house
· Kind
· Caring
· Low key

I love thick and curvy women. 😉. I find intelligence extremely sexy! Bring your inner nerd on over. I want to find someone to converse with first and foremost and see where it goes. Someone that can be my equal in all aspects. I want someone who is self-confident, won't lose her self-identity in a relationship, and knows what she wants or is willing to explore to find out.
I want someone that knows sexy is more than just a look; it is how you present yourself, an attitude, an entire package. I want someone that can be sophisticated or playful. Loves being outside, doing home projects, or a quiet night snuggling on the couch. I want someone equally comfortable going to Chick-Fil-A or Whataburger as they would at any of Houston's higher-end dining establishments.
I know so many men are after sex, but if all the above starts to click, then the sex will come naturally and will be fun, hot, and maybe a little wild! Then we can explore all our desires, kinks, etc. It's not something to be expected or pressured but rather something both partners want to eagerly consent to in time.
The worst thing that can happen by answering this post is you make a new friend.
You:
· Just come and be you.
· Be bold and take a chance.
· Be authentic.
· Let me know what is on your mind and your agenda.
· Age, race, etc., are not crucial if you are authentic.
Me: I’m nothing more than your average guy.
· 46
· Divorced
· Single dad with primary custody
· Weekends free
· Employed
· Masters degree
· Needs to lose weight
· Has a car and house
· Kind
· Caring
· Low key