I recently purchased a 2800sqft home that I am planning to do a fair bit of remodeling prior to moving in - the biggest plans involve painting all of the walls/ceilings, baseboards, and replacing the floors throughout the house. With that in mind, I've done a fair bit of research and have seen that paint sprayers can be quite polarizing as to whether they are worth the extra effort and so I am looking for some input to understand if utilizing a paint sprayer is a good idea for my use-case.
My anticipated order of operations is going to be demolition, repairs as-needed to drywall / surfaces, painting (floors & ceiling), installation of flooring, and finally installation of baseboards. The house will be completely empty and un-occupied, the walls and ceilings will be a single color (white), and I do not care if the old floors get paint on them so the primary prep work is going to include masking windows, outlets, lighting, vents, etc.. I plan on utilizing a Graco X5 with a 20" tip extension and Benjamin Moore paint throughout.
So my questions are as follows:

• Does a paint sprayer make sense for my use-case?
• Is back-rolling necessary for surfaces that have already been painted?
• Should I apply a single coat of paint, two coats of paint, or 1 coat of primer + 1 coat of paint?

Any other input, suggestions, or feedback is greatly appreciated - excited to learn along the way but trying to make the right choice out of the gate. Thank you in advance for your assistance!

Judgement Day 2006 (Smackdown)
Date: May 21st
Location: US Airlines Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 14,000
Commentators: Michael Cole & Tazz
Card:
WWE Tag Team Championships
Paul London & Brian Kendrick (c) vs MnM
Cruiserweight Championship
Kid Kash (c) vs Chavo Guerrero
Finlay vs Undertaker (Finlay attacks Taker with the shelailaigh on an episode of Smackdown and says he wants to take on the toughest bastard in the yard. Taker accepts because he wants revenge for the attack)
United States Championship
JBL (c) vs Chris Benoit (This is JBLs final match for about 2 years)
Matt Hardy vs Mark Henry
King Of The Ring Final
Bobby Lashley vs Booker T
World Heavyweight Championship
Rey Mysterio (c) vs Kurt Angle (Angle cashes in his rematch clause and turns heel on Rey; saying that the big gold belt belongs around the waist of the Olympic Gold Medalist and Rey is competing well outside his weight class. Mysterio wants to continue living his dream)
One Night Stand 2006 (ECW)
Date: June 11th
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Attendance: 2,460
Commentator: Joey Styles
Card:
Mike Awesome vs Psicosis
Tommy Dreamer vs Jerry Lawler
FBI vs Super Crazy & Tajiri
Rhyno vs Randy Orton
Sabu vs Raven (CM Punk debuts towards the end of the match and helps Raven win. He is revealed on the first episode of ECW as Raven's new follower)
Kurt Angle cuts an anti-ECW promo in the ring before being caned by the Sandman and choked out by Tazz. Angle is carried out on a stretcher. This is his last appearance in WWE for 11 years
Edge vs Mick Foley (The match from WrestleMania 22 IRL)
Masoto Tanaka vs Balls Mahoney
WWE Championship
Rob Van Dam vs John Cena (c) (RVD announces beforehand that he'll be cashing in his MITB contract at this PPV. He wins clean this time, no interference from Edge. On the first episode of Hardcore TV, RVD cuts the WWE Championship equivalent of the Shane Douglas "they can all kiss my arse" promo and vacates the belt and is rewarded with the revived ECW Championship. A tournament is declared on Raw for the vacant championship)
Notes:

• The spinner belt is retired after One Night Stand and the Winged Eagle belt is brought back instead
• Hardcore TV airs on WWE.com in this timeline
• All episodes of ECW are at the ECW Arena, though PPVs still move around

Vengeance 2006 (Raw)
Date: June 25th
Location: Charlotte Bobcats Arena, Charlotte, North Carolina
Attendance: 6,800
Card:
Quarter-finals:
Edge vs Kane
John Cena vs Ric Flair
Big Show vs Shelton Benjamin
Triple H vs Shawn Michaels
Intercontinental Championship
Gregory Helms (c) vs Johnny Nitro
Semi-finals
Edge vs John Cena
Shawn Michaels vs Shelton Benjamin
World Tag Team Championships
Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch vs Carlito & Chris Masters (c)
Umaga vs Eugene
Final
Edge vs Shelton Benjamin
Great American Bash 2006 (Smackdown)
Date: July 23rd
Location: Conseco Field House, Indianapolis, Indiana
Attendance: 9,750
Commentators: Michael Cole & JBL
Card:
WWE Tag Team Championships
Paul London & Brian Kendrick (c) vs 3 Count (Jamie Noble & Shannon Moore)
Cruiserweight Championship
Chavo Guerrero (c) vs Jimmy Wang Yang
Triple threat for United States Championship
Finlay vs Bobby Lashley vs Chris Benoit (c)
Matt Hardy vs William Regal
Boogeyman vs Mr Kennedy
#1 contender for World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs King Booker (Batista returns on the Smackdown after Vengeance and says he wants to take back the belt he never lost. Booker interupts and says he won KOTR therefore he's rightful #1 contender and Batista cant just waltz back onto smackdown after doing nothing for 8 months and demand to be #1 contender. Teddy Long makes this match to settle the issue. Match ends in a double DQ)
World Heavyweight Championship
Undertaker vs Rey Mysterio (c) (Taker wins a battle royal on Smackdown to earn this shot. Rey isnt scared of him and says its not the size of the dog in the fight, its the size of the fight in the dog. Taker admires Reys courage but says all the courage in the world wont save him from the deadman.)
Heatwave 2006 (ECW)

• ECW hold a PPV every 3-4 months in the same month as a big 4

Date: August 13th
Location: War Memorial Auditorium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Attendance: 1,800
Commentators: Joey Styles & Mick Foley
Card:
Tournament Final for revived ECW Tag Team Championships
Danny Doring & Roadkill vs Impact Players
Jerry Lynn vs Mike Knox
Psicosis vs Hardcore Holly
4 way elimination match to determine #1 contender for ECW Championship
Tajiri vs Super Crazy vs Kid Kash vs Mike Awesome
Balls Mahoney vs Matt Striker
Tommy Dreamer vs Masoto Tanaka
Raven W/CM Punk vs Sabu (Sabu demands a rematch after ONS. Raven accepts and gets Punk to do his bidding in the build-up)
Sandman vs Marcus Cor Von W/Taz
ECW Championship
Rhino vs Rob Van Dam (c) (Rhino gores RVD on an episode of Hardcore TV and says he was the last OG ECW Champion and as far hes concerned still is as he never lost the belt. RVD says Rhino is right but wants to show him who the current champion is by kicking his arse)
Summerslam 2006 (Raw and Smackdown)
Date: August 20th
Location: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 16,168
Commentators: JR & Jerry Lawler (Raw); Michael Cole & JBL (Smackdown)
Card:
Triple threat for Intercontinental Championship
Johnny Nitro (c) vs Gregory Helms vs Mystery opponent (Returning Jeff Hardy)
Great Khali vs Undertaker
United States Championship
Mark Henry vs Bobby Lashley (c)
Kane vs Umaga
WWE Tag Team Championships
William Regal & Finlay vs Paul London & Brian Kendrick (c)
Women's Championship
Mickie James (c) vs Lita
Mr Kennedy vs Chris Benoit
World Tag Team Championships
Carlito & Chris Masters (c) vs Triple H & Shawn Michaels
Triple Threat match for World Heavyweight Championship
Rey Mysterio (c) vs Batista vs King Booker (After the non-finish at GAB, Teddy Long makes this match. Batista wants the belt back that he never lost, Booker wants to be champ again and Mysterio is willing to take on all comers)
Fatal 4 way for WWE Championship
Randy Orton vs Shelton Benjamin (c) vs Edge vs John Cena (Cena and Edge want to destroy each other; Orton gets added to the match after pinning Benjamin on Raw and says he wants to end Benjamin's reign before it gets started and Benjamin wants to continue proving he's the best athlete in the business)

See the previous posts: https://www.reddit.com/JurassicPark/comments/1419mpy/jurassic_world_the_hegemony_of_biosyn_dominion/ https://www.reddit.com/JurassicPark/comments/142b35e/jurassic_world_the_hegemony_of_biosyn_jwd_rewrite/

Act III - The Gathering of the Clouds

Mia Everett
Visually confirming Rainn's revelation, Victoria is shown in a cage inside Amelia Everett's lab, within Biosyn's Citadel. Mia does her best to comfort the scared and depressed Achillobator and her motivations are explored shortly after. It's revealed that due to her experience within the team who made the Indominus and the Indoraptor, Biosyn tasked her with reviving InGen's IBRIS program by breeding raptors with high obedience potential. However, none of the achillobators cloned by Biosyn proved to be trainable enough for the program's ambitions (even though they attempted to mimic Owen's experience by having keepers being there at the animals' birth), which displeased Dodgson and the other higher-ups, who are now favouring another research team, who focuses on a more intrusive way of controlling dinosaurs. Basically treated as a second-class researcher amidst a rather toxic work environment, Mia became desperate enough to hire poachers to capture Blue, which she intended to breed with their achillobators in order to finally have trainable individuals. As Victoria is not sexually mature, Mia is in front of a considerable setback and fears that Dodgson will pull the plug due to her lack of results, especially in this troubled period for Biosyn.
The tying noose
The next day, the intel collected by the UN agents (people involved in the Black Market, Biosyn's connections with it) are sent to the nearby countries, including Italy, where an arrest warrant is launched against Kayla.
On his side, Isaac Gibbon is contacted by Bigelow who tells him about the debacle of their mission in Malta, saying that Claire and Owen saved the grey guards from disaster. He orders her to stay in Italy for the moment and wait for new orders. Shortly receives, he receives a candidate for a desk job in the DSD: It's Franklin. Gibbon tells Franklin he heard about his bravery during the 2019 incidents and his past connection with InGen (Before the DPG, Franklin worked for it as an IT Technician), before asking questions about Claire as he is aware that she collaborated with him not only on some occasions in the past few years but also in the 2019 Costa Rican incident, where Franklin was the couple's companion while they were running from InGen's agents and the authorities.
Dubrovnik
The inhabitants and tourists of the Croatian seaside city of Dubrovnik are surprised when a Biosyn Quetzalcoatlus descends upon the old town and starts attacking people. As a joke similar to one in TLW with the Japanese businessman and his reference to Godzilla, some extra could yell in Valyrian "I left Westeros because of this!" or "By the Seven, not again!" (Dubrovnik was one of Game of Thrones' filming location).
Ramsay's email
In a manner similar to the Hawaii attack scene in Gareth Edwards' Godzilla, the Dubrovnik scene cuts just as the Quetzal swoops on the bystanders and we are now in the bar of Biosyn's employee village. Wu is watching the news of the Dubrovnik attack on the TV (there is even a declaration from Zoe Murdoch, in which she denies the pterosaur came from Auronzo's Sanctuary and was probably created by a rival company who somehow put their hands upon Biosyn Quetzalcoatlus DNA. In the bar, someone whisper that one of their Quetzals did escaped from the valley thanks to the temporary deactivation of the invisible fence system and that Dodgson has launched an investigation to know who's responsible) when he receives a mysterious email from Ramsay, which includes the name of some woman. Wu search it on the internet and ends up on IMDB where he discovers that the adult "Charlotte" on the videos is actually an actress who lives in London.
Arrest
In Rome, early in the morning, Kayla is arrested in her flat by the police as she is accused of illegal smuggling.
Viscontini
Following all the incidents in the Alps, the clash in the Sabine Hills and the recent Dubrovnik attack, people gets pissed at Biosyn and protests occur in several locations, including Rome. In the Italian Ministry of the Interior, Viscontini has an argument with Pazzi, declaring that they need to take severe actions against Biosyn but the minister retorts that taking large-scale actions against the corporation might trigger a whole deal of undesirable consequences, including deteriorating US-Italian relations due to the close ties between Biosyn and the US government. He won't risk that just because of some rumours, weak proof and small incidents. Viscontini retorts that soon, Biosyn might have an angry mob showing at its gates with the goal of driving it out of Italy.
Following Vuillier's instructions, Claire, Owen, Nyamu and Dougal leave Malta the same day and fly to the Eternal City, where they have to meet Viscontini in the AISI headquarters. There, they have a video call with Vuillier. He and Viscontini wants to send the trio of WDMC agents to Auronzo Valley so they can infiltrate Biosyn's facility, find compromising information and transmit them to the Italian authorities, hoping to finally convince Pazzi and the rest of the government to take action against Biosyn. However, one of the agents points out that they will need an entrance ticket as one doesn't simply walk into Auronzo, since the borders of Biosyn's lands are guarded and monitored while some people disappeared after going too close from the Sanctuary (anti-Biosyn activists, reckless adventurers, Grendel Corporation's spies, others from the AISI's and Austrian government). Viscontini declare they might have that ticket.
We cut to Kayla in her prison cell. The guard announces she has visit and she is brought to a room where Viscontini and Dougal waits for her. The head of the AISI and the WDMC agent then negotiate with her: In exchange for her freedom, she will bring Dougal, Claire and Owen to Biosyn's Sanctuary. However, Viscontini precise he'll have her hunted down if she ever betrays them.
Kayla raises the fact that she can't show up at Auronzo like this and needs a motive. Viscontini and Dougal then talk about the animals seized in Malta's black market.
Theo's Mission
That day, Wu summons Theo, explain the whole issue with the fake Charlotte and ask him to go to London, find the actress and question her about the videos so they can have proofs to show Maisie, who started to really become insufferable because of Dodgson's bad influence (in that part of the story, one of the few scenes where she's likeable is one where she and Drummond bonds over the common passion for dinosaurs). The ex-mercenary soon leaves Auronzo, taking a bus for Venice in the nearest village while Wu explains to Pellegrino and Dodgson that Theo had urgent family matters to deal with in the UK.
Leaving San Francisco
Desiring to supervise the Dolomites Crisis more closely, Vuillier fly to Italy.
Nine containers
As evidence of Biosyn's possible connections to the Maltese black market has been discussed on the news, Dodgson knows it's a matter of time before Vuillier, the Italians or the Austrians send people in Auronzo and expose Biosyn's misdeeds.
We then follow Pellegrino's POV as she oversees the exit of nine large mysterious containers from the Citadel and their departure from the airstrip just outside the valley. One of her subordinates asks what's inside and she answers that she has no idea, with Dodgson only giving her a series of instructions. They watch the containers being flown abroad.
The following day, Pellegrino speak about it to Wu and other employees with anti-Dodgson sentiments like Drummond. She notices that Wu is uncomfortable as they talk about it and realize he must be hiding something. Ramsay, who just arrived from the US in preparation for a big corporate event in the Citadel, almost surprise their discussion. As they're not sure if they can trust him or not, they pretend it's nothing. Wu then phones Theo and asks him about his secret mission's progress.
London
In London, Theo finds the actress from the videos and initially posing as a reporter, filming her in an interview, he then ask her questions about the videos and after some hesitations, she concedes to give him answers and reveals among other things that the shooting occurred a few months ago in some local warehouse, that the director of those videos is none other than Colin Trevorrow (who, desperate for a job after the debacle of the Jurassic World film, accepted to participate to that project, oblivious that Biosyn was behind it since a dummy company took care of the production).
AISI
Vuillier arrives in Rome and meets with his agents, Nyamu and Viscontini in one of the AISI headquarters' conference rooms, where a map of Auronzo Valley and its surroundings has been laid. Kayla is also there and offscreen, our characters talk about the plan.
At the end of the meeting, everyone but Vuillier and Viscontini leave the room. Both have a secret conversation during which the Italian say that the Grey Guard's Mediterranean Company, supported by the Austrians and secretly by him (as he fears that Biosyn has informers within the Italian government), are deployed in one of the villages near Auronzo, and is supposed to act as a Plan B should the Claire-Owen-Dougal trio fail, by taking a secret path through an old mine and a mountain pass before breaking into Biosyn's citadel. The WDMC agents don't know that and when Vuillier ask why, Viscontini answers that it's better that way (should the agents be captured ant tortured, they won't tell Biosyn that there is a second team) and that the secret path isn't safer as one of his spy was killed by some creature after taking it and arriving in sight of the valley. He thinks that a small dozen of grey guards have better chances surviving the pass' guardian(s) than three civilian agents.
To the Dolomites
The next day, in the middle of the morning, Kayla is preparing her plane in some airstrip near Rome and the seized creature from the black market is loaded in the hold (I have no idea which species to choose). Equipped by the Italians, Claire, Owen and Dougal say farewell to Vuillier, Nyamu and Viscontini. The Frenchman tells Claire that it's time to unleash the She-wolf upon Dodgson but Claire correct him by saying "Not the She-wolf. The Dragon." (in this AU, she has a particular connection with the dragon-like Indominus), implying she'll get the mission done whatever it takes. He and the other two men wish them good luck and the trio of WDMC agents climb aboard the plane. They soon take off.
Biosyn's aerial defense
Kayla's plane arrives in sight of the mountains which delimit Biosyn's Sanctuary. Informed of their mission by Vuillier and Viscontini, one of the grey guards is watching the plane through his binoculars as it passes over the village where they are staying.
Kayla is soon contacted by the Citadel's control room as they detected the aircraft on their radars and they ask her why she's coming. The pilot answer that she collected an animal which might interest them (she told the WDMC agents and the Italians that Biosyn doesn't have this particular species in their Sanctuary) and ask to land on their airstrip. While the Biosyn employees discuss, the plane is about to enter Auronzo Valley by the east, as that part of the sanctuary is the furthest from most of the buildings (while the airstrip is in the northernmost parts of Biosyn's lands, beyond the mountains with the frozen dam lake) and thus where Claire, Owen and Dougal has the best chances of landing unnoticed. The trio of agents take their parachutes and prepare to jump, but at the same time, Dodgson, who heard that Kayla was arrested by the authorities just a few days ago, fears that her plane is a Trojan horse and decides to activate the valley's "aerial defense". On the screen of one of the room's monitors, we see a group of dots heading straight towards the plane. It's actually a group of pteranodons, from the same toothed variant as those who appeared in Jurassic Park 3 (there is even at least one black male identical to the scrapped one from Johnston's film), and they just collide with the plane, crashing against the cockpit and getting turned to shred by the rotors' blades, damaging the plane (the scene is partly inspired by a cutscene from the Ninth Mission of Paraworld's campaign). Owen wonder why those pteranodons behave in a suicidal manner. Suddenly, the pteranodons retreat and as their window is shrinking, the agents know they have to jump now (they've reached the middle of the valley and their trajectory deviated northwards, towards the mountain dam). Claire jumps first but as Owen is about to jump in his turn, the plane is attacked by a Quetzalcoatlus and the Raptor Whisperer sees another and a few pteranodons chasing her fiancée, whose parachute opened. Claire shakes the pterosaurs off by disappearing into the valley's dense forest. As they will be grabbed by the attacking pterosaurs as soon as they leave the aircraft, Owen, Dougal and Kayla stay inside it and brace for the crash. The plane crashes down at the surface of the frozen lake by the mountain dam in the northern part of the valley.
Back in Rome, Vuillier, Nyamu and Viscontini are worried as they heard the agents and the pterosaurs' screams (they had an open channel all that time with Kayla's plane). They hope the agents will survive this ordeal and activate the beacons they were given before their departure.
Note: The fate of the animal they took with them is still unclear for me. It really depends on the chosen species. If it's something large and potentially dangerous, Kayla would probably want to drop it in the valley in order to have a lighter plane and not deal with it after crashing. But if it's a creature about the size of a small dog for example, they could free it as they leave the wreckage.
Gigantoraptor
We then cut to Claire hanging in the trees but instead of a Therizinosaurus (which already appeared in TRQ. Moreover, Claire had a small arc with this species in that story), she is threatened by a Gigantoraptor. The scene plays out much like the Theri scene from Trevorrow's version, with Claire hiding in a pond etc.. Once the Gigantoraptor walks away, Claire gets out of the pond and sees the fumes from the plane's crash in the distance, behind the mountain dam.
The dam lake
Before it sinks in the lake, Owen, Dougal and Kayla leave her plane and step on the ice. Under it, they notice a large shadow and know they better move away from the lake. They notice a ladder by the dam but as they head towards it, a Quetzalcoatlus or a Pteranodon lands on their way. They step back, moving towards an opening on the lake's surface. Suddenly, a giant 9-meters long temnospondyl (based upon an unnamed and fragmentary genus from Lesotho) burst out the water, almost killing one of the characters. Ensue a scene where our three protagonists have to evade both the pterosaur and the amphibian. The pterosaur ends up being dragged underwater by the temnospondyl but other pterosaurs arrive and to escape them, our trio climbs on the dam and rushes to its elevator, going down in the valley. Down at the dam's base, they notice it's dilapidated and Kayla tell her two companions that Biosyn sell some of its power to the nearest villages.
Note: The main doubt I have about this scene is having a temnospondyl living in the icy water of a mountain lake. It might be too much of a stretch so if you think it's not realistic at all, it will be scrapped from the scene (and perhaps be replaced by a juvenile Baryonyx or something like this, an animal which could be also the one our characters brought with them in the plane.
Plan B
Since the agents lost their beacons during the pterosaurs' attack and the crash, they couldn't tell Rome that they were still alive. Vuillier and Viscontini fear the worst and send a message to Laurenzo Cesare.
Droppings
Meanwhile, Claire started walking towards the dam, hoping to find her companions on the way if they made it out alive from the crash. When she hears a racket in the woods, she hides and a Biosyn tyrannosaur arrives. But it's not on a hunting mode and instead, it just leaves some droppings on a log near Claire's hiding place. After the predator leaves, she approaches the log and smears her face with the droppings, remembering her "Walk in the Park" with Owen when they searched her nephews during the Fall of Jurassic World (the droppings hide her smell, dissuading the other animals to investigate her).
Argument
An argument bursts out between Owen, Dougal and Kayla while they're walking south. The first wants to find his fiancée, the second says that their mission is more important, and Kayla is mad at both men since she lost her plane (and livelihood) because of the WDMC's mission. And unsure about her intentions, the two men distrust her but she tries to reassure them by saying that Biosyn can fuck off since they are also responsible for destroying her plane.
However, the Sanctuary's denizens remind them that they better be united or else it will be the failure of their quest.
At some distance, in the middle of the fog, they see the recognizable silhouette of a sauropod, that of an Argentinosaurus (the species was seen in the distance and mentioned earlier in the story. Instead of Argentinosaurus, it could also be another large titanosaur). However, this herbivore has the particularity of having a symbiotic relation with some small carnivore species within Biosyn Sanctuary (I'm more thinking about a pterosaur or a flying/semi-arboreal theropod than a strictly ground-dwelling predator. For now, the baboon-sized Variraptor is my candidate), with the Argentinosaurus letting those carnivores eat its parasites and the insects flying around it while the carnivores will let out an alarm call shall a large predator approach. It could be illustrated in a scene where an Acrocanthosaurus (the one from the Drive-in scene) is spotted by the carnivores as it passes by. The Argentinosaurus turns to face the larger predator, adopt a defensive posture, and as the acro hasn't yet moved, the smaller carnivores take off from the sauropod and flies straight to the acro's head. Harassed by those creatures, the Acrocanthosaurus retreats. Thus, if those small carnivores (which we'll call the Argentinosaurus' suite) are brave enough to attack a megatheropod, our three protagonists know they're not safe and that they better move away.
The Sanctuary's true nature
While still heading north, Claire's path crosses that of a bull Shantungosaurus. She move out of his way and stay still. She and the audience recognize the animal as he was already in the JW rewrite and TRQ (in the first story, he gained some scars after a fight with a few Metriacanthosaurus), where he was a secondary "character" (and a threat in a few scenes). Both have a peaceful scene where they make eye contact but that quiet moment is shattered when a gunshot resounds in the forest and the hadrosaur flees, badly wounded. Claire hides and in the distance, she sees a hunter, accompanied by a couple of Biosyn security guards and another employee which she presume is some sort of supervisohunting guide. Watching how the hunter is dressed and how he behave in the wild, she knows he's not a professional hunter but just a rich hobbyist and then realizes the Sanctuary's true nature: It's a hunting reserve. As the Shantungosaurus escaped them, the hunter express his discontentment at the guide, which promise to find him another quarry. They leave and following the blood trail left by the hadrosaur, Claire finds him by a stream. His wounds are too grievous and he's too weak to lash out at Claire, who kneels by his head, trying to comfort him in his last moments, up until his last breath. Watching another of her former park's animals dying fills Claire with not only grief, but also anger. She change her plans and heads back south instead of continuing northward, following the hunting party's track.
Note: It doesn't necessarily have to be a Shantungosaurus in the role of the animal shot by the hunters, but it have to be a recognizable animal from the previous installments for emotional impact and Claire's development (another candidate could be the Therizinosaurus from TRQ)
She later finds another hunting party. One of its members, a Biosyn guard, pulls out an item she recognize: a raptor resonating chamber. The guard use it like a bird call and soon, an Achillobator, arrive, believing it heard one of its kind. The poor animal is shot by the hunters, who scream in satisfaction before taking a picture with their quarry. They then brings it to the Biosyn vehicle waiting nearby but before they leave (after having a short conversation during they mention that another team captured the rex and is bringing it the paddocks), Claire deliberately attract the attention of one of the guards, the same one which used the resonating chamber, and he say to his companions he won't be long. He move away from the road and deeper in the woods, he fall into Claire's ambush. She kill him, loot some of his equipment (including the resonating chamber), hide his body and leave. Worried for his colleague, the other guard with the hunters orders the guide to drive them back to the lodge, and search his friend. But he too is murdered by Claire, who takes a small metallic box on him. Activating the box, she realize it's a sonic weapon she has seen before, in the hands of InGen Security's elite troops during the fall of Isla Nublar (it's like a weaponized version of the box Dodgson and his companions have in Crichton's TLW). She turns it off, take it with her and follows the hunters vehicle's tracks on the road, towards the lodge.
However, Claire ignores she's being watched, and not by human eyes...
Over hill
Cesare and his men leave their accommodation and head for the frontiers of Biosyn's lands. Leaving their vehicles near a ruined fort, the grey guards start their trek while the sun is setting behind the mountains ahead of them.
A bed in the trees
As walking through the valley at night would be too dangerous, Owen, Dougal and Kayla decide to find a resting place and climb in a tree. From it, they have a panorama on a nearby lake and notice they are approximately halfway between the dam and the Citadel. At this moment, we also have peaceful scenes with the valley's denizens at dusk (Pelecanimimus fishing in the lake, herbivores drinking nearby, the same Spinosaurus from the report at the beginning peacefully sitting on the bank like an oversized duck...).
Theo's peace
In the evening, just a few hours before his flight to Venice, Theo also passes by his former home, which he left years ago before joining Ken Wheatley's mercenary company. His ex-wife still lives here and noticing that she started a new life with another man and seems happy, he walks away in peace, leaving behind him the last picture he had of himself and her (earlier in the story, Theo is seen looking at said picture).
The secret path
Back in Italy, the grey guards find the entrance of an old mine and enter it, taking the path that will allow them to pass under the limits of Biosyn's lands.
Mercenaries
Mercenary troops land in Biosyn's airstrip and their leader is brought to the Citadel. He has a discussion with Dodgson behind closed doors.
Foes... or allies?
A few hours after nightfall, Claire finally finds a large old chalet with typical Tyrolean architecture: The Hunting Lodge (it's implied that it was built way before Biosyn bought those lands, when the area was still part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, before WWI). Claire remarks it's surrounded by an invisible fence (identical to the one from Jurassic World Evolution 2's Biosyn DLC) which prevents the animals from getting too close. Aware that the lodge wouldn't be a shelter for her and that its occupants probably outnumber her, she turns away from it, continuing to wander in the woods. But just a few minutes later, she hears sound in the nearby bushes. Aware she might be hunted, she is ready to use the ultrasound box and fight for her life. A pack of Achillobators shows up, menacingly walking towards her. At the same time, it starts to rain.
Claire first thinks of using the box and running away while the predators would be bothered by the sound but she knows it will be useless in the long run as they could track her all across the Sanctuary. She then remembers the reports she read earlier in the story, and especially that of the 2001 incident on Sorna, where Alan Grant and his companions walked out alive and unharmed from a close encounter with raptors.
In dire straits, she makes up a desperate plan and carefully, she pulls out the resonating chamber she stole from the Biosyn guards. She uses it and due to their bad experience in the sanctuary with the resonating chambers' usual users, the raptors get agitated but their pack leader tells them to calm down as Claire doesn't seem to be a Biosyn guard or a hunter. The pack leader walks alone towards Claire and sniffs the dried blood on her hands and clothes, realizing it belongs to other humans. Nothing happens for a moment and then the pack leader lets out a bark. Behind Claire, two raptors move aside. Slowly walking backwards, watching carefully the raptors' moves, Claire exits the circle made by the surrounding predators and continues doing so until she's at a respectable distance. At the beginning, the raptors just watch her but as she's heading towards the Hunting Lodge, she hears them following her. However, she is aware that they would have already pounced on her if they wanted to eat her and knows that they're more intrigued. Meanwhile, the rain intensifies (there could also be a storm).
Claire reaches the invisible fence, crosses it, and searches for its power source. But as she's sabotaging it, the Lodge caretaker (a gnarly-looking old local man) spots her and frightened by her look, runs away towards the building. She is forced to catch him and, after a short struggle, kill him with her knife before he can raise the alarm. After showing some trouble due to killing a probable innocent, she resumes her sabotage and the fence is deactivated. The raptors cross it and see Claire entering the lodge. Near its entrance, she finds a sword hanging on the wall as a decorative element and noticing it's still sharp, she takes it along with its sheath and heads for the rooms. Behind her, the raptors open the door and silently enter in the lodge. In the hallway which leads to the rooms, Claire stays still when the raptors walk past her as they head to the rooms and grin as her audacious plan is working. Claire enters one of the rooms, raises her sword blade over a sleeping hunter and when the time comes, thrust it into his body. Meanwhile, the raptors open other doors and entering the rooms, they rush on the sleepers. Slaughter ensues and only those who locked up their doors have the time to wake up, grab a weapon and fight for their very survival. Some of the lodge's occupants offer some resistance in the lounge but there, Claire activates the sonic weapon she stole and an ear-piercing sharp sound comes from it. While the raptors back off behind her, their common enemies kneel and scream in pain and Claire (who put on some earplug) slashes their throats, deactivate the weapon, and let the raptors tear the hunters alive while she raids some items (stuff like snacks, water, a first-aid kit, a map...) and leave, disappearing in the woods.
A bit later, she finds a small cave whose entrance is high from the ground and rest in it, sleeping until mid-morning.
The mountain's pass
At the end of their night-long ascent, the grey guards arrive in a pass/cave where they found human bones, which they presume to be those of the AISI's spy Viscontini told them about, and the remains of a Biosyn drone. Soon after, they are attacked by the guardian animal(s) the corporation left there to kill any trespasser coming from that direction. (I haven't chosen any species yet). They manage to defeat it (or them) and dawn break out as they arrive at a vista point which overlooks the valley. The grey guards observe it, the eyes of Cesare stop on the Citadel for a moment, and they retreat back inside the mountain to rest a few hours before descending into the valley. They send a message to Vuillier and Viscontini, telling them that they're inside the Sanctuary.
Traces of a slaughter
During their early morning patrol, a security team discovers that a massacre occurred during the night in the Hunting Lodge. They find clues indicating that someone helped the raptors and participated in the killings. The control room check the Lodge CCTV footage and fear spreads like wildfire among the staff when they discover the culprit is a sinister-looking black-clad hooded woman. Seeing that one of the figure's hand is a prosthesis and that the other wear a silver ring with a red gem, they realize it's Claire and Dodgson pretty much start to crap his pants (partly because one of the hunters was a very wealthy and powerful foreign client whose disappearance won't go unnoticed). Since she made it out alive from the plane's crash, Dodgson fears that the other WDMC agents might have too. When asked about the slaughter itself, Dodgson orders his staff to cover it up for the moment, as he don't want to worry the board of directors who are set to arrive later that day for a big event he planned in the evening.
Theo's return
Theo returns to Auronzo and Wu, who just learned about Claire's presence in the valley, tells him that they must get Maisie out of the facility as soon as possible since disaster tends to follow Claire like a shadow.
Taking the gloves off
However, Maisie has meanwhile discovered that the videos were another lie, by recognizing one of the scientists from the video, who also work at the Citadel (and who didn't aged, even though the adult Charlotte's video was supposed to be taken fourteen years ago). Aware that the gentle method is no longer considerable, Dodgson decides to use the hard one and Doctor Lesser locks Maisie in a cell within her lab, to which Wu can't access. Lesser reveal that it wasn't Wu who told Dodgson that she was a clone but the spy he has among Lockwood Manor's employees, and that the only true part in the video was the one about the genetic disease: Charlotte did had it, just like her mother Elizabeth before that (she died in 1993 and it was because of her Lockwood and Hammond fell out), and had the car accident which took her life didn't happened, the disease would have killed her a few years later. As he wanted Maisie to have a long life, Benjamin Lockwood asked the scientists he hired (there is a whole subplot about what they became in TRQ) to cure it and they did find a way. As the scientists' notes were accidently destroyed, the solution is now within Maisie's body, and Dodgson wants it so he can put new drugs on the market.
Before it's too late, Wu and Theo, with Ramsay's help, start organizing Maisie's evasion. The geneticist mentions a secret trail from WWI in the northeastern mountains: It's their escape route. He then heads for his lab, planning something else.
Tracking Claire
Curious about Biosyn's movements around the Hunting Lodge, Owen, Dougal and Kayla investigate it after the departure of the security troops. They discover evidence of Claire's passage and Owen tries to follow her fiancée's tracks. Kayla and/or Dougal make comments about the slaughter of the hunters.
Bigelow's last chance
Isaac Gibbon gives Jessica Bigelow a new mission: Go to Auronzo and ensure the evacuation of Lewis Dodgson and Biosyn's most important research. The agent ask her boss why and he said that he just received news that Biosyn is compromised. He also precise that it's her last chance after the Malta fiasco. Bigelow leave her safe house in central Italy and goes north.
Shady preparations
Continuing south, Owen, Dougal and Kayla see mercenaries positioning some sort of moveable antenna on a ridge which overlooks the road which connects the Citadel to the valley's northern continue, as finding Claire and entering the Citadel is more urgent.
The gathering of the clouds
One of the control room's employees ask Dodgson to come. He shows him footage from the Biosyn lands's southern gate, near the employee village.
Before the gate, a group of Carabinieri stand, showing to the guards and the security cameras a search warrant: The government finally decided to act against Biosyn. But Dodgson refuses to open the gates for the Carabinieri and orders the mercenaries who arrived during the night to intimidate them. The Carabinieri move away from the gate, with their leader warning against the consequences of such an action. At a respectable distance from the gate, Vuillier, Viscontini and Nyamu watched the scene. Soon, other groups of Carabinieri are deployed along the other entrances to Biosyn's lands. The siege of Auronzo has started.
Hearing about the siege's situation, some employees leave their post and head for the metro (which connects the Citadel to the village. Another loop also connects the Citadel to the various facilities across the Sanctuary, including the seven towers and the dam), in order to go to the village and then hoping to be able to leave Biosyn's lands before things starts to get too ugly but Dodgson's has the metro's station locked and commands them to go back to their posts. Seeing their CEO starting to act like Hitler in his bunker, they are afraid.
​
End of Act III.
See you tomorrow for Act IV

Billboard Hot 100 chart

Position	Title	Artist	▲/▼	Last week	Weeks Charting	Peak
1	Last Night	Morgan Wallen	-	1	18	1
2	Karma	Taylor Swift Featuring Ice Spice	▲+25	27	12	2
3	Flowers	Miley Cyrus	▼-1	2	20	1
4	All My Life	Lil Durk Featuring J. Cole	▲+3	7	3	2
5	Calm Down	Rema & Selena Gomez	▼-1	4	39	4
6	Kill Bill	SZA	▼-3	3	25	1
7	Ella Baila Sola	Eslabon Armado X Peso Pluma	▼-1	6	11	4
8	Fast Car	Luke Combs	▲+2	10	10	8
9	Favorite Song	Toosii	▼-4	5	15	5
10	Creepin'	Metro Boomin, The Weeknd & 21 Savage	▼-1	9	26	3
11	Anti-Hero	Taylor Swift	▲+1	12	32	1
12	Die For You	The Weeknd & Ariana Grande	▼-1	11	44	1
13	Sure Thing	Miguel	-	13	44	13
14	Where She Goes	Bad Bunny	▼-6	8	2	8
15	Something In The Orange	Zach Bryan	▲+2	17	58	10
16	Un x100to	Grupo Frontera X Bad Bunny	▼-2	14	7	5
17	Boy's A Liar, Pt. 2	PinkPantheress & Ice Spice	▼-2	15	17	3
18	Rock And A Hard Place	Bailey Zimmerman	▲+1	19	51	10
19	Search & Rescue	Drake	▼-3	16	8	2
20	La Bebe	Yng Lvcas x Peso Pluma	▼-2	18	11	11
21	You Proof	Morgan Wallen	▲+2	23	55	5
22	Stand By Me	Lil Durk Featuring Morgan Wallen	▲+79	[FRESH]	1	22
23	Cupid	Fifty Fifty	▼-3	20	11	17
24	As It Was	Harry Styles	▼-2	22	61	1
25	Thinkin' Bout Me	Morgan Wallen	-	25	13	9
26	Chemical	Post Malone	▼-5	21	7	13
27	Hits Different	Taylor Swift	▲+74	[FRESH]	1	27
28	Snooze	SZA	-	28	25	28
29	I'm Good (Blue)	David Guetta & Bebe Rexha	▲+1	30	40	4
30	Snow On The Beach	Taylor Swift Featuring Lana Del Rey	▲+71	--	7	4
31	Need A Favor	Jelly Roll	▲+9	40	9	31
32	One Thing At A Time	Morgan Wallen	▼-6	26	26	10
33	Thought You Should Know	Morgan Wallen	▲+1	34	42	7
34	Eyes Closed	Ed Sheeran	▼-3	31	10	19
35	Pelle Coat	Lil Durk	▲+66	[FRESH]	1	35
36	Players	Coi Leray	▼-7	29	22	9
37	Dancin' In The Country	Tyler Hubbard	▼-13	24	15	23
38	Area Codes	Kali	▼-5	33	4	33
39	TQM	Fuerza Regida	▼-4	35	2	35
40	Thank God	Kane Brown With Katelyn Brown	▼-8	32	38	13
41	War Bout It	Lil Durk Featuring 21 Savage	▲+60	[FRESH]	1	41
42	Next Thing You Know	Jordan Davis	▼-3	39	19	37
43	Dance The Night	Dua Lipa	▲+58	[FRESH]	1	43
44	Tennessee Orange	Megan Moroney	▼-3	41	25	30
45	Cruel Summer	Taylor Swift	▲+4	49	4	29
46	Under The Influence	Chris Brown	▼-9	37	38	12
47	Religiously	Bailey Zimmerman	▲+1	48	4	40
48	Princess Diana	Ice Spice & Nicki Minaj	▼-5	43	7	4
49	Love You Anyway	Luke Combs	▼-4	45	16	15
50	Memory Lane	Old Dominion	▲+7	57	9	50
51	Por Las Noches	Peso Pluma	▼-9	42	12	28
52	PRC	Peso Pluma X Natanael Cano	▼-8	44	16	33
53	Bye	Peso Pluma	▲+48	[FRESH]	1	53
54	America Has A Problem	Beyonce Featuring Kendrick Lamar	▼-16	38	3	38
55	Mourning	Post Malone	▼-19	36	2	36
56	TQG	Karol G x Shakira	▼-3	53	14	7
57	See You Again	Tyler, The Creator Featuring Kali Uchis	▼-5	52	7	44
58	Daylight	David Kushner	▼-7	51	7	47
59	Never Imagined	Lil Durk Featuring Future	▲+42	[FRESH]	1	59
60	It Matters To Her	Scotty McCreery	▲+2	62	7	60
61	El Azul	Junior H x Peso Pluma	▼-5	56	8	55
62	Never Again	Lil Durk	▲+39	[FRESH]	1	62
63	AMG	Gabito Ballesteros, Peso Pluma & Natanael Cano	▼-5	58	19	37
64	Human	Cody Johnson	▼-3	61	18	61
65	Slut Me Out	NLE Choppa	▼-10	55	11	28
66	Pound Town 2	Sexyy Red & Tay Keith & Nicki Minaj	▲+35	[FRESH]	1	66
67	Big Dawg	Lil Durk & Chief Wuk	▲+34	[FRESH]	1	67
68	Cross The Globe	Lil Durk Featuring Juice WRLD	▲+33	[FRESH]	1	68
69	Chanel	Becky G & Peso Pluma	▼-9	60	7	55
70	Cowgirls	Morgan Wallen Featuring ERNEST	▼-4	66	13	40
71	Waffle House	Jonas Brothers	▼-7	64	5	57
72	Put Em On Ice	Lil Durk	▲+29	[FRESH]	1	72
73	300 Urus	Lil Durk	▲+28	[FRESH]	1	73
74	Sad Songs	Lil Durk	▲+27	[FRESH]	1	74
75	You, Me, & Whiskey	Justin Moore & Priscilla Block	▲+7	82	4	75
76	Grandson	Lil Durk Featuring Kodak Black	▲+25	[FRESH]	1	76
77	What It Is (Block Boy)	Doechii Featuring Kodak Black	▼-2	75	4	75
78	Ain't That Some	Morgan Wallen	▼-6	72	13	11
79	ICU	Coco Jones	▼-12	67	11	63
80	Shake Sumn	DaBaby	▼-11	69	4	69
81	Your Heart Or Mine	Jon Pardi	▲+8	89	3	81
82	Before Fajr	Lil Durk	▲+19	[FRESH]	1	82
83	B12	Lil Durk	▲+18	[FRESH]	1	83
84	Fragil	Yahritza y Su Esencia x Grupo Frontera	▼-14	70	6	69
85	Fight The Feeling	Rod Wave	▼-17	68	9	16
86	You Got Em	Lil Durk	▲+15	[FRESH]	1	86
87	Baby Don't Hurt Me	David Guetta, Anne-Marie & Coi Leray	▲+9	96	2	87
88	Beso	Rosalia & Rauw Alejandro	▼-11	77	10	52
89	Low Down	Lil Baby	▼-15	74	11	50
90	Say Yes To Heaven	Lana Del Rey	▼-36	54	2	54
91	People	Libianca	▲+1	92	5	89
92	Yandel 150	Yandel & Feid	▼-11	81	16	71
93	El Gordo Trae El Mando	Chino Pacas	▼-22	71	11	58
94	Bury Me In Georgia	Kane Brown	-	94	3	85
95	I Wrote The Book	Morgan Wallen	▼-11	84	18	18
96	Moonlight	Kali Uchis	▼-16	80	8	80
97	Mathematical Disrespect	Lil Mabu	▼-38	59	4	47
98	Everything I Love	Morgan Wallen	▼-7	91	18	14
99	Trance	Metro Boomin, Travis Scott & Young Thug	▼-20	79	17	42
100	Man Made A Bar	Morgan Wallen Featuring Eric Church	▼-12	88	13	15

Billboard Global 200 chart (most popular songs globally)

Position	Title	Artist	▲/▼	Last week	Weeks Charting	Peak
1	Ella Baila Sola	Eslabon Armado X Peso Pluma	▲+1	2	11	1
2	La Bebe	Yng Lvcas x Peso Pluma	▲+2	4	14	2
3	Cupid	Fifty Fifty	-	3	12	2
4	Flowers	Miley Cyrus	▲+1	5	20	1
5	Where She Goes	Bad Bunny	▼-4	1	2	1
6	Karma	Taylor Swift Featuring Ice Spice	▲+90	96	13	6
7	Un x100to	Grupo Frontera X Bad Bunny	▼-1	6	7	1
8	Calm Down	Rema & Selena Gomez	▼-1	7	48	3
9	Idol	YOASOBI	▲+1	10	7	9
10	All My Life	Lil Durk Featuring J. Cole	▲+4	14	3	7

Billboard 200 chart

Position	Title	Artist	Sales	Change	Last week	Weeks Charting
1	Midnights	Taylor Swift	283,488 (192,282 pure)	+409%	3	32
2	One Thing At A Time	Morgan Wallen	127,671 (5,372 pure)	+0%	1	13
3	Almost Healed	Lil Durk	124,125 (2,388 pure)	--	[FRESH]	1
4	SOS	SZA	54,174 (8,731 pure)	-24%	2	25
5	Dangerous: The Double Album	Morgan Wallen	47,801 (977 pure)	+3%	4	125
6	Lover	Taylor Swift	36,835 (6,005 pure)	-4%	6	197
7	Gettin' Old	Luke Combs	32,334 (1,946 pure)	-4%	8	10
8	Un Verano Sin Ti	Bad Bunny	32,069 (355 pure)	-3%	9	56
9	American Heartbreak	Zach Bryan	30,387 (1,586 pure)	-2%	10	54
10	Religiously. The Album.	Bailey Zimmerman	29,968 (1,064 pure)	-4%	11	3

Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: Why is X artist higher than Y artist on the 200 chart, even though X artist sold less?
A: This is because of a discrepancy between Billboard's ranking and the ranking from the website that the sales data is scraped from
Q: Where do you get the sales data from?
A: https://hitsdailydouble.com/sales_plus_streaming
Q: What does "err" mean on the 200 chart?
A: If you are seeing "err", that means that the bot I use to gather chart data couldn't identify sales data for a particular album because of a difference in album naming between Billboard and HitsDailyDouble

Unpacking the Light Police. Light Pollution News.
Show Link: https://lightpollutionnews.com/podcast/unpacking-the-light-police/
Subscribe: Apple Podcast Spotify Google Podcast
Social: Instagram LinkedIn
Guests:
John Barentine of Dark Sky Consulting, LLC.
Kaitlyn Evans, Conservationist.
Show:
I was busted by the light police. They had a point, Dana Milbank of the Washington Post.
Dana Milbank purchased a home in, soon to be not, rural Virginia. At night he kept the formerly vacant property lit to the degree that spurned one commentator to call it “spaceship lighting.”
Milbank recaps being visited by the “light police,” a group of concerned citizens who help educate neighbors and instill a sense of pride in the brilliance of their starry night skies.
At first, he was taken aback, but later, not only did he appreciate their efforts, but he also converted his blinding always on, white light flood lights to warm 2700 Kelvin motion sensing lights.
Per Ruskin Hartley, executive director of the International Dark Sky Association, “for 4.5 billion years there was no artificial light at night. It’s really only in the last five human generations that we transformed that. It’s one of the most profound transformations of our environment.”
Many of you may recall an earlier story, way back in our Hormone of Darkness episode, showcasing concerns by local residents prior to a 760 house (now 761) plus town center development moving into the Culpepper County, VA area. Per the Rappahannock News, this development features “a resort style swimming pool, clubhouse, tot lot, and multiple sports fields and sports courts, all connected by a network of biking and walking trails.”
The forgotten medieval habit of ‘two sleeps’ by Zaria Gorvett of the BBC.
Gorvett opened my eyes to something I never knew about, the medieval custom of two sleeps. For those of you unaware, two sleeps are exactly what it sounds like.
Folks would partake in a communal nap, complete with rigid sleeping arrangement conventions, between 9 – 11pm, then awaken for a few hours to do everything from hang out to brew beer! In fact, the idea of multiple sleeps crossed cultures and was found in places as far from Europe as indigenous South America.
How can one’s circadian rhythm make sense of all of this?!
Well, for starters, until the invention of the alarm clock, which humorously was invented by a clocks salesman so he could wake up and sell more clocks, people had no firm way to wake up at a consistent time. The industrial revolution enforced a new circadian standard.
And there’s some science behind this! In the 1992 study, In Short Photoperiods, human sleep is biphasic, researcher Thomas Wehr found that after four weeks of 10 hour days, his subjects began to engage in this two sleep cycle, involving a one to three hour period for which they became awake and engaged in between.
Want to Learn About Light Pollution? There’s a mini-course for that!, Jennifer Sensiba of Clean Technica.
Quoting Sensiba, “As I got older, I traveled a lot more and saw the problem more for what it is. Not only did I see that in many places there is no refuge from it, but I also saw that it was slowly growing worse. Places that had been dark 30 years ago had more and more light creeping upon the horizon.”
If you’re interested in learning more, or more importantly, know someone who might benefit from learning more, Sensiba links up to an International Dark Sky Mini-Course on light pollution, call it Light Pollution 101!
There’s a Play Date at the National Museum of Natural History: Lights Out exhibit!
But unfortunately, by the time you listen to this, and hell, by the time we talk about this, it has passed.
Ann Arbor named best place for sunrises, sunsets in Michigan. Sarah Parlette for Click on Detroit.
Evidently gambling websites have decided to honor April’s International Dark Sky week in a strange new content marketing campaign, which was to rank the best places in each state to see sunrises and sunsets. My favorite one, “Ann Arbor named best place for sunrises, sunsets in Michigan,” comes from Click on Detroit, whereby a quote “study” examined Michigan’s most populated cities.”
According to Click on Detroit, “to celebrate International Astrology Day on Saturday, staff at Great Lake Stakes, a Michigan online gambling news site, looked at light pollution in the five most populated cities around the Mitten state to determine which offers the best views every morning and evening.”
Star bathing is the new outdoor travel trend we should all be trying for Summer 2023, according to Amy Beecham at Stylist.
Evidently, as an attempt to destress and promote mindfulness, romanticism about sleeping under the stars has birthed a 70% increase in searches for the term ‘star bathing’ on Hipcamp. And to be sure, “Hipcamp recommends checking a stargazing calendar which outlines major astrological events – like supermoons, pink moons, and star showers.”
“Industry Must Face an Inconvenient Truth — Most LED Lights at Night are Unhealthy”
Dr. Martin Moore-Ede, a circadian clock expert, recently published an article in LEDs Magazine chastising the lighting industry for not recognizing and reigning in the negative externalities of its products. Per the piece, such effects are, obesity, diabetes, depression, cancer, and more.
He cites three categories of industry responses, making the correlation that long term Denial or outright Ignorance of the Facts, may result in “asbestos-scale liabilities or draconian regulations.”
Per the piece, a recent survey by the Circadian Light Research Center of 2,697 peer reviewed scientific articles confirmed that human circadian clocks are highly sensitive to blue wavelengths, and that exposure to such wavelengths leads to major health disorders.
Moore-Ede calls for the industry to harvest the “commercial opportunity” to greatly limit future liability by creating and managing its own standards for circadian modulated lighting.
Unpacking the Wallpack, by Dan Weissman in LD+A Magazine.
Weissman, who recently purchased a telescope for his family in Cambridge, MA, discovered that the scope could only afford him views of some solar system objects and a few brightly burning stars.
The ire of Weissman’s pen takes the shape of a rectangular fixtures, be it box like or simply a panel these days, that typically hang off the side of an exterior wall or above an exterior door. “Devoid of aesthetic value” this light is often put up under the “pretense of security and safety” by “recommended practices and adopted municipal codes.”
Weissman recognizes labels that often accompany, what he calls, “Glare bombs,” including “contractor-select,” “energy efficient,” or “light pollution friendly.”
Further, per an earlier LD+A article, such lighting driven by its extreme contrasts is exceedingly common in minority communities where light is weaponized as a tool of power. It becomes a “device of alienation, creating a zone of control and separation.”
Weissman recognizes that the true reason such fixtures are selected often comes down to cost. He recognizes that it may take equally as much cost to persuade building and homeowners away from such lighting into the realm of more responsible, lower lumen, shielded lighting.
Weissman calls for producers of these glare bombs to be labeled as polluters, putting them in line with fossil fuel manufacturers and PFAS makers.
Songbirds, dusk and clear skies: Scientists explore migratory flights, by Erin Blakemore.
Bird migration season is ending here in the Mid-Atlantic. I was lucky enough to catch several Baltimore Orioles and Indigo Buntings last week. Researchers looked at 400 songbirds from 9 major species, “including the yellow-rump warbler, American redstart and Bicknell’s thrush.”
The question they hoped to answer was how are these birds so darn precise in identifying the best time to take off for their nightly migration? Scientists found that 90% of the migrating birds in the study took off within 69 minutes of dusk. A “much narrower takeoff window,” that even shocked the research team!
Per the study, taking off at night is all about maximum flight time. In addition to being able to precisely schedule their take offs, a feat that every airline I’ve flown with over the past few years has proven inept at, birds also are apparently good meteorologists! They often depart when the atmospheric pressure rises over a day’s span. Other factors also trigger migration, including sex, age, and celestial cues.
‘Lights Out’ initiative appears to be saving birds from crashing into Philly buildings by Sophia Schmidt.
Preliminary results indicate that bird death counts are down 70% at one Market Street tower, since it began its participation in Lights Out. As we spoke about on a previous show, birds utilize the stars to navigate, but city lights can disorient the birds. Combine the lights with reflective or transparent glass, and that spells fatal trouble for our migrating warblers!
Per Keith Russell, a program manager for urban conservation with Audubon Mid-Atlantic, “We’ve lost almost a third of our birds – and [collisions] contributing to that. If we’re going to want to preserve the bird populations here in North America, we have to look at these types of problems. And this is a preventable one.”
The Knoxville, TN Zoo is offering up what they call “Twilight Tours” per WVLT 8. Each event will feature a guide to showcase nocturnal critters.
I did something similar in Singapore years ago. The zoo had very dim lights in the exhibits – and they kept those lights dim as you walked so that you didn’t lose your night vision. It was a very different and, might I say, peaceful experience than the typically chaotic daytime zoo.
Flashlights posing major threat to nesting sea turtles. Fox35 Orlando
Apparently, a single flashlight can deter female sea turtles from coming onto a beach and nesting. Florida, as I did not know, is home to 90% of the sea turtle nests across the world, so losing sea turtles can affect the global ecosystem.
One visitor to Cocoa Beach stated, “Just leave them alone. Stand back and look. You don’t need a flashlight.”
Another, “It’s not super surprising because more buildings go up, more technology. As it increases, nature and stuff like that decreases,” said Zoe Jovaag, whose grandfather used to take her on walks to see sea turtles.
Capture the Dark 2023 officially is under way!
The International Dark Sky Association opens up its annual photo contest complete with prizes across eight categories and an additional People’s Choice category. Voting begins on July 3rd, entries must be received by June 30th.
City Tests Traffic Light That Only Turns Green for Drivers Who Obey the Speed Limit. Erin Marquis for Jalopnik.
And hey, you better not speed in Brossard, Quebec….otherwise you may be waiting around for a while. Brossard is testing out a new traffic light that will stay red until it senses oncoming traffic. However, it will only change to green if the car is going the speed limit. Per the Jalopnik article, “FRED [the French acronym for “educational traffic calming light] forces fast drivers to stop and gives them a chance to reconsider their life choices.” Such lights are already used in Europe, but this will be the first for the Great White North.
Why the Greatest Threat to Star-Gazing Isn’t Light Pollution, and this comes to us from Dorin Elin Urrutia at Inverse.
Elin Urrutia writes, in her compelling piece, that the greatest threat to star-gazing is actually the weather. Citing notable examples of the Mount Stromlo Observatory in Australia (which burnt down due to bushfires) and the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico (which sustained structural damage following the winds of Hurricane Maria).
While the threat of human-caused climate change has presented new challenges, Elin Urrutia references proactive burns that saved Los Angeles’ Mount Wilson Observatory from flames in 2020.
On a similar note, ABC News (the Australian Broadcasting Company, not to be confused with the American Broadcasting Company), brings us “A World Without Darkness Could Be a Reality within a Few Years.”
Per Carol Redford of Astrotourism Western Australia, “There are some people in the world now who don’t actually experience darkness anymore. They’re in a city like Beijing, Toyoko, or London. In all those big cities, it’s never dark, it’s always light. During the day of course with the sun, but then during the night with all of the artificial light. They’re not experiencing darkness, and definitely not seeing those beautiful stars…”
In the 66 years since the implementation of the UN Convention on the Peaceful Use of Outerspace, around 11,000 satellites orbit the Earth. But it’s about to get wayyy busier. Driven by innovations that have led to dramatic reductions in costs, over the next ten years, Per attorney Steven Freeland, it’s anticipated that somewhere between 100,000 to 500,000 objects will be sent up. Let me pause on that for a second.
On the travel front, we stay in the land down under, “Aussie region determined to keep its darkness is a stargazer’s dream” by Chantelle Francis of News.com.AU.
The town of Swam Reach, population 270, resides in a 3200sq km region of Southern Australia that received its International Dark Sky Reserve status over three years ago. On a scale of darkness between 0 – 22, the River Murray Dark Sky Reserve at Swam Reach, measures in at a whopping 21.9!
Tourism has become a growing business. The reserve hosts numerous telescope pads and offers tours of the night sky. There’s hope that an observatory and/or planetarium may also arrive in due course.
Best smart lights for outdoors in 2023, Brittney Vincent of CBS Essentials.
Oh there’s a lot not to love here, but it does fall in line with last month’s ‘Lumens are Coming’ article.
For those of you who feel the need to light your trees, because for some reason they need light at night I guess…I’ll try and pretend it’s not solely for ostentatious and narcissistic reasons. By the way, does anyone remember when those were negative characteristics?
The article features spotlights that can be programmed to over 16 MILLION colors including…lucky for us, ALL shades of white….which you can also do for a 500 lumen flood light set.
And hey, Ring now has solar path lighting. Don’t worry though, the fixtures themselves put out up to 80 lumens of sideways light.
You know, it’s astounding when you look at some of these pictures. The amount of redundant lighting. It honestly makes no sense to me. You have a porch light, which lights up the path. Path lighting, which lights up the path. And, in the one picture, god awful frontward facing flood lights, which also light up the path. How bright do you need these paths!? I digress. But the lumens are indeed coming.
LDS Church will get to light up its Heber Valley Temple after all, but the faith didn’t get everything it wanted, Blake Apgar of the Salt Lake Tribune.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints fought hard to rid itself of any nighttime lighting responsibility by pressuring Wasatch County, Utah officials to approve new lighting rules that would enable the church to light a proposed new temple the same way it does for every other temple.
The Church received permission to uplight the temple, enabling an exception to be made in Wasatch’s rather stringent nighttime lighting rulebook. However, the temple will be restricted by the level of lumens it can use, and it must have exterior lighting turned off an hour after sunset or an hour after normal business hours.
Smart Street Lights Market is Expected to Hit USD 14,751.1 million at a 23.4% CAGR by 2030, Market Research Future Press Release
The pandemic is officially over, smart street lighting is about to boom. Combine the rush to LED fixtures with the Internet of Things, and expect to see street lights moonlighting as traffic and parking monitors, air quality meters, and more. Not to mention, “it is anticipated that camera-connected smart street lighting will increase road safety by lowering the likelihood of accidents and criminality.”
Texas now has 7 dark sky communities for spectacular star gazing, Sana Ameer, MRT.
Let’s cheer on the city of Bee Cave, everyone! Bee Cave joins a growing list of dark sky places already in the Lone Star State, including 2 Dark Sky Sanctuaries, 5 Dark Sky Parks, and 1 Dark Sky Reserve. Nighttime is alive and well in some parts of Texas!
Our Afraid of the Dark article is a bit scary! Hilton Head’s dark roads and pedestrians are deadly combo. What the town is doing about it, Blake Douglas at The Island Packet.
Per the article, 9 pedestrian and cyclist fatalities occurred since 2018, with five occurring after dark. Prior to that period, there were 28 recorded deaths from 2000 – 2016, with 20 of them taking place after dark.
In 2018, an 11 year old resident was struck and killed while walking her dog across an intersection one night. Lighting advocates began taking shape in what otherwise is a very conservation focused island. Hilton Head, SC has a limited number of street lights, priding itself on “avoiding light pollution and blending nature with construction.”
Lighting advocates appear to be, at the very least, asking for flashing crosswalk lights on the island to indicate when an individual is crossing.
It should be noted that the article shows a chart of 9 after-dark-deaths since 2014, only two of them occurred at crosswalks. In fact, during the same time frame, 6 additional deaths occurred at crosswalks during the daytime.
As a whole, the National Safety Council reports that 74.5% of pedestrian deaths occurred at night, whereby 39.1% took place in lit areas and 35.38% took place in unlit areas.
Bryan Bloch, an auto safety expert, surmises that car companies bear some of the blame – producing cheap or ineffectual headlight fixtures, and drivers themselves, who don’t realize that they need to regularly clean their headlight lenses.
Despite opposition from residents, it appears that Hilton Head will be receiving lights at two new intersections and possibly more depending on engineering studies currently in progress.
Is lighting the key variable here? Is more light going to solve pedestrian deaths?
Our featured research article of the month comes to us from Animal Conservation, “Manipulating spectra of artificial light affects movement patterns of bats along ecological corridors.”
Bats are already known to have a wide range of responses to artificial light at night (also known as ALAN). Fast flying species tend to be more opportunistic in the presence of ALAN while slower ones tend to be more light averse. We know that “long wavelengths and reduced intensity” can minimize their environmental effects on bats. It’s not unheard of for bats to travel upwards of “tens of km per night.” Furthermore, bats are very dependent on the landscape and the structures within those landscapes.
Despite the nuances between species, the consensus is that ALAN, especially high intensity ALAN, negatively affects bats. This study attempted to answer what exactly bats do when they encounter ALAN – how do they react depending on different types of ALAN.
The study used three different light fixtures – one green, one red, and one white. The control was devoid of light fixtures. The researchers attempted to ascertain the behavior of bats as they encountered lights adjacent to woody areas. The researchers looked at three different bat groupings based on their foraging-echo location behavior, that being one of open field foraging, forest edge foraging, and narrow space – or more aptly forest foragers.
Researchers found that open and edge foraging bats increased their activity close to white and green lights, and to a lesser extent red lights. However, narrow space bats were more likely to veer away from all colors of lighting. Edge foragers were also less likely to cross a white light.
The positive effects of white and green light on open and edge foraging bats appear to be attributed to the accumulation of insects around light sources containing more blue light.
The nighttime sky over Oahu will be lit up with green lasers in the coming days. Here’s why. Hawaii News Now
Before we close up today, do you live in Hawaii? I know I wish I did!
If so, do you recall seeing green lasers streak across the night sky? Well, the Army Corps of Engineers was using lidar at night to complete a coastal mapping survey.
Why did they survey at night? Specifically, why did they do this between midnight to 5am? Simply b/c the airspace is so busy, that time was the only chance they had to complete the survey. The remaining survey was completed during daytime hours.

Part 1
Day 3
I woke up with Chloe cuddled up next to me in bed. Her head was resting on my chest and she was lightly snoring. I gently shifted and opened the curtains. I was preparing to be blinded by the pure white snow but I wasn’t. I didn’t see much at first as it is a window well but after I looked up it really started to seem strange. Sure it was snowing hard and there was a thick blanket of snow on the ground, but it was odd that it was still so dark outside. It almost seemed like someone had turned the brightness down if that makes sense. I checked the time on the clock just in case it was earlier in the morning than I thought but… it wasn’t the clock read 8:32 am.
“Hey… hey Chloe,” I mumbled gently, nudging her head.
“Mhmm,” She yawned, her eyes hardly open.
“Look outside, is it just me or is that strange?” I asked her pointing to the window.
“Give me a sec,” She said, reaching for her glasses on the nightstand.
She put them on and then looked out the window. She stared out the window for a minute and by the way she tilted her head I knew she was confused.
“That… that’s weird,” She said finally.
“What time is it?” She asked, turning toward me.
“8:32,” I answered.
“That’s weird then, it's almost like the sun isn’t out,” She observed getting up and fully opening the curtains to get a better look.
I got a little uncomfortable Chloe had taken meteorology for two years of high school and taken it as a minor in college. She wasn’t an expert but it still made me confused.
“Must be just a very thick cloud cover,” She said, eyeing it suspiciously.
I could tell she was a little nervous so I got up and put an arm around her.
“It’ll be okay the storm will pass in like a day or two anyways,” I said mustering my most encouraging voice.
She smiled at me and leaned into me: “I know, I just can’t help but worry sometimes you know.”
“Yeah I do,” I said.
It was right then when we were staring out that window that what my dad said yesterday began creeping back up into my mind. They’ll escape from the lab… they’ll kill you… the creatures will kill you!
“Who’s the creatures? What lab?” I thought to myself.
“What babe?” Chloe asked, looking up at me.
“Oh, sorry I didn’t mean to say that out loud, just something Dad had told me in his ramblings when he called me at the store last night,” I explained.
She nodded, “Well I wouldn’t take anything from him, he’s just a nut job,” she said, “I’m glad you're more like your mom than him.”
She gave me a cute little smile after that and I just smiled back.
I made my way upstairs and saw Gretchen and her boys were already having breakfast. Cinnamon toast crunch for the boys and Gretchen had made herself some pancakes and bacon.
“Any more?” I asked her motioning towards her plate.
“Yep, in the kitchen,” She said, pointing towards it.
“Thanks, sis!” I smiled.
She nodded and I got me and Chloe's plates put together. I then set my plate at the table and hers at the seat next to me, and then began eating. After a couple of minutes, Chloe walked in. Her eyes fell on the plate sitting next to mine.
“Thanks, babe,” She smiled, taking a seat in the chair and beginning to eat as well.
“Mommy, can we go play with the puppies outside?” Alan asked, giving her a big smile.
“Yes, just go put your coats on,” She said, giving Alan and Aaron a sweet little smile.
“Ok mommy,” They both said excitedly running off to their room.
“Alby why don’t you join your brothers,” She suggested giving him a look.
Alby who had his head in a book as always sighed and walked off to the room after his two brothers.
“Hey Chloe, does that blizzard look concerning to you?” Gretchen asked her the moment the boy's bedroom door closed.
Chloe looked outside again. The snow wasn’t falling that heavy at the moment.
“Yeah seems fine I’d have them come inside if it picks up anymore though,” Chloe explained after swallowing a large chunk of her pancake.
“No I mean look how dark it is,” Gretchen motioned outside.
“Oh, yeah me and Joey were talking about that earlier, just seems like a very thick cloud cover, but I’d keep an eye on them,” Chloe explained.
“I’ll keep two eyes,” Gretchen said as the three boys came out of the room wearing their big blue coats and boots.
They all hurried outside with the three dogs following quickly behind them. May and Moore jumped around with them in the snow while Herman looked like he was patrolling the backyard which wasn’t unordinary, but it was however odd to see how fixed his eyes were on the forest.
“Think he sees something?” Gretchen asked, sounding concerned.
“Probably a deer,” I suggested.
Grethen nodded and her concerns seemed to dissipate quickly.
I came back upstairs now changed into a flannel and jeans, and looked over to see the boys still outside playing. Chloe still sat at the table now with her laptop in front of her, and Gretchen was staying near the window to keep an eye on the boys.
“Any internet?” I asked while walking up to Chloe.
She let out a defeated sigh, “Nothin…” She was cut off by a distant pop sound, followed quickly by another, and then a third, then a fourth, it was silent again. I stood still and I knew that sound.
“Those were gunshots,” I said quickly, “I’m going to go check it out, and see what’s going on.”
“What? Babe stay here, it is not safe outside,” Chloe reasoned.
“Yes, which is why I need to go. Say that person was firing at a bear and now they're hurt and have no way to call help or something. I should go just in case.” I explained.
“And I’ll bring the rifle,” I added in an attempt to calm Chloe's nerves.
Gretchen moved from her spot at the window and was now calling the boys and dogs inside. I made my way downstairs and grabbed the rifle, my winter gear, and a pair of old satellite phones.
I then hurried back upstairs where Chloe now stood by the door worried.
“Chloe before I go I want to see if these will work,” I said, handing her one of the phones.
Her face lit up at it, it seemed the prospect of me being able to communicate with her calmed her nerves.
I pressed the little button and then talked into the phone, I heard although scratchy my voice then came from her phone.
“Ok, now test yours,” I told her.
She said hi to hers, then I heard her voice come faintly out of my phone.
“Alright, it works,” I said, happy that I wouldn’t have to face whatever was happening alone.
“Be safe,” She said, giving me a big hug.
Then Gretchen ran over and joined in followed then by Alan and Aaron.
“Be safe uncle,” Alan said, giving me a big smile.
“I will,” I said to all of them. “Is mom still sleeping?” I asked Gretchen quickly.
She nodded then I kissed Chloe goodbye and walked off into the blizzard. The snow of course had started to pick up significantly making my field of view almost nothing. I looked around at the other houses and saw nothing. No lights, no movement, no signs of life. It was then that I really realized how many people had left town. We were the only ones left on the street. I slowly made my way in the direction I’d heard the gunshots.
Bzzzzz… “Hey you ok,” Chloe asked through the phone.
“Wow, checking on me already, someone's needy,” I joked.
She let out a slight giggle, “Be safe,” She said.
“I will,” I said then Bzzzz… and she was gone again.
I continued onward when another faint sound broke through the sounds of the wind. It was some sort of screech or scream. I couldn’t entirely tell because it was so faint. I unslung the rifle from my shoulder and held it out ahead of me. Both the scream screech and gunshots came from the direction of the store. I felt my heart thumping through my chest as I got closer to the gas station. I gripped the rifle tighter as I took one step at a time, and I slowly made my way forward. I felt sweat begin to build on my temples despite the cold. My entire body began to shake, and I stopped for a moment to catch my breath. Calm down, calm down. I thought. I took slow deep breaths then started walking again.
I looked around to see where I was, but the snow was falling so hard that I could hardly see ahead of me. I squinted and thought I saw distant lights. I kept the rifle ahead and cautiously hurried towards them, as I got closer I realized that the sun had caught a slight gap through the storm and glinted the light perfectly off the back of a car. I sighed and kicked the snow in frustration.
Bzzzz… “Hey babe, do you know what happened?” Chloe's worried voice cut through my moment of frustration.
“I don’t know… I still haven’t made it over there, I got a little turned around.” I told her.
She paused for a second like she was thinking of something, “BABE! Your satellite should have a built-in GPS.”
I looked at the large phone and saw a small digital screen showing our neighborhood, which had two red dots on it. One was in our house and the other was two houses down in someone's driveway.
I chuckled, “Babe I only moved like two houses down, I must’ve been walking in circles.”
She burst out laughing, “Thank goodness I called you, make sure not to hang up because then the GPS shuts off,” She instructed.
“Understood, thanks, babe!” I said.
I walked slowly for another 15 minutes or so before just about a block from the store the signal was lost. I swore and angrily kicked the ground again. It’s ok. I thought you were only a block away.
I moved to the sidewalk so I could use the signs and mailboxes as markers that I was still walking straight. Then finally the store was in view. Carl’s car was the only car in the parking lot and I noticed a large scratch on the side, and one of the windows was shattered. I also noticed shelves had been moved against the windows and doors. I walked over and loudly knocked on the glass door. I saw eyes peeking through the glass and I pulled my scarf down to show my face. Carl moved the small shelf in front of the door and let me in.
I walked inside and he gave me a look towards the rifle.
“I heard gunshots,” I said.
“Oh…” I saw a dark scared look in his eyes.
“What happened?” I asked, looking into the man's eyes.
“Well, I saw something outside near the car. I thought it was a deer or something so I gave it no mind until I heard a metal scraping sound and then the car window shattered. I pulled my gun out from under the counter and made my way toward the door and cracked it open. I yelled a few times but it didn’t run so I poked my head out to get a better look. It wasn’t a deer. I didn’t get a good look. I just know it didn’t look friendly so I shot at it four times and it ran off into the blizzard. I know I hit it at least three times but it didn’t bleed. I… I’m scared.” He told it with a fear on his face that looked out of place.
“To be honest I’m surprised you even made it here without getting attacked.” He admitted.
“Did it screech at some point?” I asked, nervous about what the answer would be.
“Yeah, actually it did, a couple of minutes after I shot at it I heard something screech and I thought I could faintly see it through the falling snow.” He explained.
I nodded, “I need to get back home,” I said a new sense of urgency within me.
“I’m not letting you go back outside with that bulletproof monster thing on the loose,” Carl ordered, getting in between me and the door.
“I’m not staying while a bulletproof monster thing is loose in the neighborhood and can go attack my family at its whim,” I growled loud and sternly even though I didn’t entirely believe his story.
I pulled out the satellite phone and tried to call Chloe again. Nothing. I looked outside and saw that the blizzard had picked up considerably.
I let out a sigh: “I don’t think that blizzard will let me go home.”
Carl let out a sigh of relief and showed me to the small break room and let me take a seat at the table.
“Everything going well over at your house?” He asked.
“Good, enjoying the break of things,” I said, giving him a smile.
“I wish it was a break,” Carl signed, “I’ve been hearing strange things in the blizzard for days.”
“What sorts of things?” I asked.
“Screams, screeches, howls, and all sorts of unholy things. Sounds to me like the devil himself is out there.” He growled.
“Strange, very strange. How’s your family?” I asked, trying to change the subject to something less crazy.
“Fine, they haven’t really noticed that anything is wrong, I mostly hear the noises when I’m outside.” He explained. “What about your family?”
“Good, we didn’t even know anything was wrong until I heard the gunshots today.”
“Probably, because you're so far from the center.”
“What?”
“Well whatever animal is in town that attacked my car, seems to be dwelling mostly in the center of town.”
“How do you know that?” I asked not really believing him but still curious.
“From everyone who has come into the store in the past 3 days. I haven’t been the first to see whatever it is.” He explained in such a way that I almost wanted to believe him.
“Have any other vehicles or things been damaged?” I inquired trying to pry more at the information this man clearly held.
“Bob said something about his shed being broken in too but not much else. I’d ask Bob for more information but he was so drunk he could hardly tell me that.”
“I wouldn’t trust a thing Bob says especially when he’s drunk like that,” I told him.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t have if I wasn’t getting strange news from more trustworthy people.”
“Fair…”
Ka-Thunk! The loud noise of the store's door opening interrupted our chat.
“Carl, are you in here? You ok?” A man's familiar voice yelled into the store.
Carl walked out of the room and out to where the man was.
“Yes I’m ok…” Carl began before the man interrupted him.
“I heard gunshots, what happened?” He asked.
“Here come sit down and I’ll tell you,” Carl instructed as he walked the man into the room.
I recognized the man the moment he walked in, his name was Fred Garrison. Fred was tall and bulky with a large brown beard and always wore a baseball cap. The cap he wore today was red and white and clearly worn with age.
“Howdy Joey,” He greeted in his thick Southern accent.
“Hi Fred, how are you doing?” I asked.
“Good, good, just want to know why Carl was shooting his gun like a demon from hell was after him.” He said motioning to Carl.
Carl then told Fred the same story he told me. Fred listened the entire time but looked and sounded even more disbelieving than I had.
“Carl, you realize I was joking when I said something about a demon from hell, I’m supposed to believe that some monster thing was lurking outside your store and scratched your car.” He yelled in frustration.
“I wasn’t saying it was a monster, I’m just saying that deer die after they get shot four times,” Carl said giving Fred a frustrated look.
“Ugh, Joey do you believe this bull crap?” He yelled, turning to face me.
I thought about what exactly to say, and maybe I stopped to think if I actually believed Carl then finally I spoke; “Fred I’ve known Carl for most of my life and the man has never once lied to me, do I think what scratched his car was a monster? No, but I also trust this man, and I think there may have been a very strange-acting deer in front of the store, and maybe Carl thought he had better aim than he did.”
Fred huffed then finally seemed to relent; “Well if there ain’t anything wrong imma leave.” Fred said standing up and walking out of the room.
Carl hurried after him; “Fred, I don't want you to leave. The weather is really bad right now.”
Carl motioned to the snow which was falling so fast and in such vast quantities that it made seeing anything outside of the store impossible. Fred grumbled again and after a small argument he finally relented and we all went to sit back down at the table.
After half an hour or so the snow finally slowed down and started falling like slow small flakes.
“Alright, it’s as safe as it’s going to be if you want to leave,” Carl said, poking his head into the room.
“Thank you!” I said, smiling at him.
He nodded and I pulled out the phone.
Bzzzz… “Chloe, are you there?” I asked, trying not to let my worry show.
“Joey, thank goodness you're ok! What happened?” She asked, sounding a little nasally like she’d been crying.
“I’ll tell you when I get back but yes I’m ok,” I explained quickly, and then before Carl could object I left the store with my rifle slung over my back.
I started walking back to the house. It was slow work and now there was an additional four or five inches of snow which only made the task harder.
“You ok?” Chloe asked after a couple of minutes.
I brought the phone to my head and responded: “Yeah I’m ok just a lot more snow on the ground now.” I said.
“Are you almost home?” She asked.
“Yeah just down the street,” I said.
“Ok,” She said.
Bzzz… and she hung up. I kept walking forward, my eyes locked on the house when she walked out holding the other rifle and ran over to hug me when she saw me.
Day 7
I woke up almost the same way as the days before except Chloe wasn’t there with me. In a panic, I sat up quickly and called her name: “Chloe!”
“I’m right here dummy,” She said from the window.
I looked over and saw her standing in front of it.
“I thought I saw something weird but I can’t get a good look because it’s a window well.” She said, giving me a look of defeat.
I got up and looked through the window well. You couldn’t see much because of the snow and the way the window well was, but it looked like something was walking around in the front yard. Me and Chloe changed quickly then made our way upstairs and to the window looking out front. It was hard to tell through the foggy window and falling snow but we were able to see large sewer lid-sized spiders crawling about. I jumped back in shock and Chloe let out a small squeal.
“What kind of satan spawn are those things?” Chloe sputtered out, a terrified look on her face.
I looked closer, not responding, and this is when I realized although their resemblance was similar to spiders they were not spiders. There seemed to be two distinct types of them: one type resembled large slug-like things with 8 long spider-like legs. It also possessed a long but narrow head; its head almost looked like an arrow point. The other type was much nastier looking. They possessed eight legs covered in serrated spines. Their bodies resemble closely to wasp bodies with a large raised abdomen that brandished a massive stinger. I saw they were surrounding a large dog. It wasn’t ours it looked like our neighbors, the Garrisons, a black lab named Blue. The dog started barking out in an attempt to scare them away, but it was a dozen or so spider things against one dog.
Finally, after a while, the dog reached down to try and bite one of them but it jumped up and stung the dog in the face. The dog began to yelp and shook the thing off, but I could tell immediately that the stinger had hit its mark. The dog looked weaker and another stinger stung it, then another, then another, they all began stinging it until it collapsed. The dog still tried to fit but there was no use. It seemed to be paralyzed. It was one last whimper before one of the slugs walked up to the dog's mouth and started crawling inside shedding its long legs in the process. The dog let out this horrible retching choking bark sound. Chloe let out a small sob as the slug fully went down the dog's throat and then disappeared. The dog gave one final whimper before it went silent. Then the stinger spiders around it began webbing up the body. I was impressed by how quickly they were able to do so in under a minute the body was covered in a thick webbing. After which the spiders dragged it away and disappeared into the blizzard.
I looked over and saw how horrified Chloe was, her normally pretty face was twisted into an expression of fear and disgust.
“What in h-e double hockey sticks?” She finally said.
“What happened, why are the dogs barking?” Gretchen yawned as she stepped out of her bedroom.
Her face turned more concerned when she saw me and Chloe's disgusted face. Then before I could explain what had happened a few of them made their way back over and started inspecting the house then one of us made a sound or something and it jumped at the window. I pulled the blinds down and quietly whispered for Gretchen and Chloe to get the kids and my mom downstairs. In the meantime, I rushed downstairs also and grabbed the rifle. I sat upstairs for a second looking through the windows to try and see the things but it seemed wherever I was they weren’t, and in a mix of defeat and fear I went downstairs and joined my family. I set the rifle down on the couch and hugged Chloe close to me.
We all huddled on the floor listening. We heard scratching sounds on the doors and then windows. I held my breath but nothing shattered. Then the sounds moved from the walls to the roof. They scurried around up there in a seemingly never-ending attempt to find access to our house. Then suddenly Herman let out one solitary defensive bark. It was deep and intimidating but I knew it was likely the end if I didn’t stop him. I started to stand up but Chloe grabbed my hand, she looked terrified, but I knew I had to stop Herman so I squeezed her hand and then let go.
I quietly made my way upstairs and saw Herman standing guard by the back door. I pulled my revolver from my belt and slowly made my way over to him. The slight creaks in the old wood floor sounded like sirens signaling my location. After a minute I wrapped a hand around his collar and started scanning the room for May and Moore. I saw their booth huddled on the coach whimpering quietly. I called them over and hesitantly they came then I led the three dogs downstairs and just as I took the last step down. SCREECH!!
It came from upstairs and it sounded angry and in pain. I hurried back upstairs with Chloe hot on my heels despite what I’d told her. I peeked into the living room from the stairs and saw a slug running around the room engulfed in flames. It was leaving a trail of small sparks and ashes behind it and for a moment I wasn’t sure what to do. I figured I’d miss if I shot at it so I ran over to try and grab it. Meanwhile, I saw Chloe dart for the back door.
CRASH! One of the windows shattered and several of the stingers jumped into the house, and before I could stop it one of them jumped onto my back. I screamed and reached back trying to grab it but I felt a sharp pain in my hand. Herman emerged from the basement and almost immediately jumped onto me and with a loud crunch it was dead. I started to feel a little dizzy but tried to help. There were still six spiders in the house, and Chloe stood by the back door trying to get a shot at one of them with the rifle. The stingers continued to run around the floor and I felt another jab its stinger into my ankle. I looked over at the disgusting thing, picked it up by its legs and threw it into another stinger. BANG! The stinger I’d thrown and the one it’d landed on both exploded in a mess of yellow-greenish slop. There were still four stingers and at this point the flaming slug had curled up in a ball on the floor. I had an idea and I sprinted for the fireplace grabbing the fire pick. As I suspected, two of the stingers followed and I skewered them both with the fire pick. The last two scurried in the corner almost like they were planning when BANG! One of them exploded into another mess of slop and the last one made a rush for Herman, but in a surprisingly quick movement for the big dog he pinned the stinger's legs onto the ground with his paw and proceeded to eat the stinger.
We all stood there for a second breathing heavily when my eyes met the small fire around the dead slug. I dropped the fire pick, grabbed a blanket from the couch, and used it to quickly snuff the fire.
“Is everything ok up there?” Gretchen asked, very concerned.
“Y...” I tried to say but I started to feel loopy.
I started to shake and stumble and I remembered the two stings they’d gotten on me, then suddenly I remembered nothing.
My eyes opened slowly and at first I didn’t see much but my vision quickly cleared and I saw Gretchen looking over me.
“Wh… what happened?” I stammered out.
I was in such a daze that I could hardly remember it.
“Those spider, bug, whatever stung you a few times. I was worried it had really hurt you.” Gretchen said, giving me a hug.
I sat up and felt the pain in my back and in my foot.
“Where’s everyone else?” I asked.
“Mom and Chloe are both cleaning upstairs, and the boys are just down the hall.” She explained.
I stood up and wobbled a little, but walked over to the stairs.
“Joey!” Gretchen called after me, “You're probably sick, you need to lie down.” She tried to order me.
“No I’m going to go help clean so mom doesn’t have to,” I told her.
Gretchen let out a frustrated huff then I walked up the stairs. I turned down the hall and saw the mess that was in the living room. The parts and slop that were many of the bugs were still everywhere. I looked over to the shattered window and saw the glass had been cleaned up, and the window had been covered by a large piece of plywood. My mom walked out of the kitchen with a broom and dustpan.
“Sweetie you’re ok,” She yelled with excitement hurrying over and giving me a hug.
I hugged her back and we stood there for a second.
“Do you feel ok?” She asked, looking up at me.
“I’m fine mom, where’s Chloe?” I asked.
“She’s checking to make sure nothing outside was damaged,” My mom said.
I immediately felt a mix of frustration and worry fill me and I hurried for the back door yelling, “You let her go outside alone!”
I immediately followed her fresh boot prints through the snow and around the side of the house. I saw her standing there looking at a group of scratches from the spiders, the rifle slung by her side. I let out a slight noise and in one quick motion, she turned toward me with the rifle aimed right at my face. As soon as she saw it was me she ran over and tried to hug me but I was already hurrying her inside. I didn't want to be out there any longer than we needed to be.
Day 10
I sat by the window watching the outside as I had before when I saw something large and dark dart down the street followed by two smaller ones. The largest looked to be about the size of a horse while the other two were about the size of a deer. They looked so off though, especially the big one. It almost looked like it had six legs, but it was so hard to tell through the snow.
I gasped at the monstrous look of the creatures: that’s probably what Carl saw I thought. Then in a slight panic, I grabbed the blinds and pulled them down. I quietly hushed the boys and had everyone go downstairs. I sat at the foot of the stairs, rifle in hand, but nothing happened.
Day 11
Pop! Pop! Those two gunshots were what woke me up early that morning. I sat up in a panic and almost immediately put the situation together. Those gunshots were from the store, from Carl's revolver, and they were likely his last two because he’d fired four the last time I heard it and his model of revolver could fit 6 rounds.
I got up and immediately started throwing my winter gear on. Chloe also sat up with a worried look on her face.
“You can’t be going out there,” She said, sounding much more worried now.
“Babe, I need to make sure he’s ok. I’m not leaving him to die.” I said defiantly.
“Well, I’m not letting you go out there to die… unless I go with you. You’re a terrible shot!” She yelled, getting very upset.
“Ok, then get your gear on,” She nodded and we both got ready quickly.
After I was fully dressed I walked over to the gun safe we had in the hall and began to peruse. Along with the revolver and two rifles, we also owned a long-barreled 12 gauge shotgun, a semi-automatic rifle, and another hunting rifle with a heat view mode on the scope. I grabbed the 12 gauge and walked back into the room handing Chloe the sniper rifle. I heard light footsteps and looked down the hallway to see Gretchen descending the stairs. She walked over and met me by the doorway.
“Are you leaving?” She asked, looking like she already knew the answer.
“Yes, Chloe is coming as back-up,” I explained looking over at Chloe who was now loading the sniper rifle.
“Bring mom and the kids down here while we're gone, and keep one of the rifles on you,” I ordered and she nodded running upstairs.
After a few more quick and tense minutes we were standing by the door with all our winter gear, the two guns, and headlamps. I waited next to Chloe as she showed Gretchen how to use the satellite phone.
“I love you, be safe,” Gretchen said, giving me a big hug.
I hugged her back trying not to cry, “Will be back in 30 minutes max,” was all I could say.
“You keep him safe,” Gretchen ordered as she hugged Chloe.
“He’d die without me,” Chloe joked.
Then we both walked out the front door and into the snowy night. It was so dark out darker than I’d ever seen it before, and now the snow was deep almost up to our waists. Luckily we had snow shoes that made us sink only halfway up our shins. I walked ahead with the shotgun out and ready, and Chloe stood behind me navigating our way through the dark snowy night.
The cold wind chilled us to the bone as we continued. I could tell Chloe was scared, I was too but I didn’t say anything. We slowly continued our way through the blizzard, not giving up despite its relentless attacks. Each footstep was another loud crunch that seemed to me as loud and obvious as nails on a chalkboard, but nothing seemed to hear it or if they did they just didn’t care. I just kept praying and hoping that Carl was ok and that it was just like last time, but something in my gut knew the man was probably long dead.
Off in the distance over the howling wind, I thought I heard something. Maybe a scream or a yell I wasn’t sure but it sounded human. Then again but this time it was fainter and I could tell it came from the same direction as the store. I hurried forward even faster with Chloe grabbing the back of my coat to keep up.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour we arrived in front of the store. It looked like it had gone through hell and back. I saw the car that had been parked out front was now tipped over and extremely beat up, but even more so was the store. Every single window was shattered and the shelves that had been blocking them were completely ripped apart. As we walked up to our feet began making crunching sounds as each step was on shards of broken glass. Then we were at the door and I took a deep breath thinking of everyone I’d ever loved. I turned around and gave Chloe a big tight hug then I raised the gun and kicked the door open. Silence. Nothing happened and I walked with little hindrance into the destroyed store. Food and junk and wood and glass. It was everywhere, and then there was blood. A large trail of blood led into one of the backrooms. Chloe noticed too and she let out a small gasp. I motioned for her to stay then I slowly walked into the room. Blood covered the entire floor; the table that had once been there was now a shattered mess of splinters. It looked like a tornado had come through and thrown everything around, but I saw the doorway from this breakroom to the other. I thought I heard a faint sound there. In one swift motion, I kicked open the door with the gun raised and saw what was inside.
This section of the building was a small area where truckers or travelers who had nowhere to stop could stay. Essentially it was a small hostel, and it was divided into two rooms. The first room, the one I’d entered was a large room double the size of a classroom. It had four rows of bunk beds with 5 bunk beds on each row. It was a bit excessive, yes but it got Carl much-needed revenue. The other room directly to the right of me was the shower room, a long tiled room with 8 shower stalls and a wall of lockers.
The bunk room was absolutely torn apart. Feathers littered the ground along with shreds of fabric. Multiple of the beds had been completely toppled over and one that seemed to have been thrown lie in a shattered mess on the other side of the room. Another few bore large scratch marks far larger than what the stingers or slugs could’ve produced. It again like the first two sections of the store looked like a tornado had gone through and torn everything to bits. After my assessment of the room, I looked down to see the blood trail leading into the shower room. This room was just as bad as the others with almost all the stall doors knocked off their hinges and the lockers completely pulled out of the wall. This is when I heard a horrible sound. The sound of flesh being torn and ripped and consumed. It was horrible to hear and even more so because it was happening in one of the stalls closest to me. I turned and my light illuminated a large thing the size of a large deer ripping into the body of Carl.
It looked horrible; it had four long spindly dog-like legs with four large paw feet that ended in large talons. Its body was weird and slimy with a large back abdomen that looked like it was swelling. Right as the body connected with the neck two more oversized arms sat. Its entire body seemed to be covered in a bony exoskeleton with small gaps around the joints, stomach, and face. They were much longer than the legs and brandished large talons the size of steak knives at the end. It hardly had a neck and its head was small with a horrible-looking mouth that brandished massive carnassials and canines. Its head overall was fairly small and round. Its lower jaw split into two down the middle looking like large mandibles, but the most disturbing part of the face was the eyes. There were 4 and they were brown and very mammalian looking but worst of all I recognized those eyes. Just days ago those eyes looked into mine as the slug went down its throat. Somehow Blue the black lab had turned into this thing.
The moment I walked in the creature turned around and its eyes met mine. It let out a screech that chilled me to the bone and then lunged for me BANG! I was momentarily stunned and I couldn’t hear the ringing in my ears. Then everything came back into vision and the creature was hunched back clearly also stunned. I took advantage of this and started running, but then my foot slipped in the blood and I crashed to the floor. Searing pain ran into me and it felt like a sledgehammer had been slammed into my face. I started to stand when the pain from the rest of my body kicked in, but I remembered the creature, got up, and kept running. I ran into the bunk room slamming straight into Chloe.
“Wha…” She started to ask when the creature came screeching into the room.
Not having time to run I pulled her behind a bunk. I saw the horror in her eyes and I just shushed her. The creature slowly walked around looking for us. I noticed that it walked on its four legs with its big arms folded into its chest like a praying mantis. It took a step in our direction and Chloe raised the rifle and aimed. Bang! This gun, especially compared to the shotgun, was almost nothing in noise, but I saw the bullet hit the creature right in the chest. It let out a loud screech but one more of anger rather than pain. It then started sprinting right for us. I thought about shooting again but figured that wouldn’t do anything so I turned my headlamp on and threw it to the other side of the room. It slammed into the wall and then shattered on the linoleum floor, and the creature immediately turned and started running for it. I grabbed Chloe’s hand and hurried toward the doorway with her just as I heard the creature screech in frustration.
Me and Chloe sprinted through the snow. She was leading the way with her headlamp while I followed behind with my shotgun out ready to shoot if I had to, and in my head, I was screaming to myself for grabbing a shotgun instead of the semi-automatic. I had one more shot before I had to reload so I was determined to make it count. In the snow behind us, I heard the creature's angered screeches as it ran toward us. I stopped and turned around aiming the shotgun.
I could tell without even looking at her that Chloe was terrified. To be fair I was too. Then with one more screech, it appeared on the edge of the light growling and hissing at us. I noticed it was dripping a thick liquid onto the ground that appeared to be blood. Good, it does bleed which means it can die. I thought, and that greatly increased my confidence. Then it made its charge. It was smarter than I gave it credit for because it ran in a zig-zag and the one round Chloe fired completely missed. Then it lunged towards me and one of its large mantis arms slashed deep into my leg right below the knee. I let out a scream and fell to the ground. Then before I could react its teeth were beginning to rip at my back. Bang! Chloe’s first shot got the thing's attention and it moved its mouth from my body. Bang! The second shot right through one of its praying mantis arms, and Bang! The third shot hit it dead in the forehead but its exoskeleton took all the damage. The creature jumped over me and ran towards Chloe who was only about 6 feet away. I watched my whole world begin to fall apart when it jumped on top of her. I saw her struggling to keep its jaws away from her face, and suddenly nothing else seemed to matter but her. I didn’t care if I would die as long as she was safe.
I stood up despite the searing pain in my leg and made a snowball in my left hand.
“HEY JACKWAD!” I screamed at the thing and then threw a snowball for good measure.
Its attention turned back towards me and it sprinted back and jumped onto me knocking me to the ground before I could land a shot. It pinned my right hand holding the shotgun to the ground while I tried to fight its lashing head off with my left. I felt its claws digging into my arms and legs and its arms were unfolding as a likely attempt to kill me, but I never saw what it was about to do because that’s when I executed my plan. I noticed that its bleeding leg was the one holding the gun down so I put all my strength into moving that arm and managed to get it out from under. Then CRUNCH! Its mouth bit down on my left hand and wrist. It opened its mouth and was about to close it to sever my hand, but in a quick motion I wedged the shotgun into its mouth, and BANG!!!!!

​
https://preview.redd.it/46ueccmxq74b1.jpg?width=706&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=413aa38640d659083d082c2effe4289809f54dd8

Since we're nearing the one year anniversary of JWD release, I thought it was a good opportunity to share with you the ideas I had for a rewrite of the film. I grouped them in a detailed pitch which I will present this week in a series of five posts. Today's post is about the story's prologue and first act. Tomorrow's will about the second act and so on... This detailed pitch is divided scene by scene and is accompanied by a few notes. It's basically similar to something that someone would present in a pre-production meeting.
However, before you start reading that series of post, I'll suggest that first you check the foreword on this page (https://archiveofourown.org/works/47647999/chapters/120097705) and secondly that you carefully read the paragraph below, as it's about the connection between that JWD rewrite and my previous rewrites (don't worry, you don't have to read the entirety of my stories before this series of posts, just the information below).

Important notes on my AU:

1) For those who didn't read my previous stories
- The stories told in this AU have a darker tone and are more adult than those of the films. Thus don't be surprised by some character actions or events. If they were films, they would be unsuitable for children under 12 in Europe (and the limit would be probably higher in North America). Thus, I would say that the Read at your own risk rule applies here for the younger users of this subreddit. I'm not trying to be edgy or whatever. I'm just an adult writing from an adult perspective. Nothing more and nothing less.
- By the late 2010's and early 2020's, there is still a considerable population of de-extinct dinosaurs and pterosaurs in the Five Deaths. An UN-backed paramilitary organization, the Grey Guard, protects the archipelago and had troops on Nublar up until the fall of Jurassic World.
- The Jurassic World park had feathered dinosaurs and Owen's Achillobator quartet were among those.
- The Fall of Jurassic World happened in 2017 and the Lockwood estate incident in 2019. The Indominus' rampage and the Sibo's eruption happened at the same time while the Costa Rican incident which preceded that of the Lockwood estate happened in the mainland and not on Nublar. Those two incidents are told in Jurassic World: The Red Queen, my FK rewrite (and which we'll abbreviate as TRQ).
- Roberta and the mosasaur died after the Fall of Jurassic World. Thus, they are not in TRQ and The Hegemony of Biosyn. In those stories, Roberta's role is mainly filled by Acrocanthosaurus.
- Claire and Owen aren't exactly identical to their versions from the official film canon. In terms of look, Owen is closer to Jason Momoa than Chris Pratt and Claire, while still being a fair-skinned redhead, is a bit taller and more intimidating-looking than BDH.
- In this AU, Claire is a far more morally ambiguous character than Trevorrow's version. She's more outspoken, and has a the end justifies the means mindset. For a time, she had serious PTSD from the Fall of Jurassic World, during which she was mauled by the Indominus (which clawed her face and bit off one of her arms). She also didn't create the DPG in this AU (someone else did).
​
2) Spoilers of the end of The Red Queen necessary to better understand the context and plot of The Hegemony of Biosyn.
- The Dinosaur outbreak which resulted from the Lockwood estate incident is less severe than in Trevorrow's version. Dozens of dinosaurs still escaped into the Californian wilderness but by the beginning of The Hegemony of Biosyn, they hadn't the time to establish considerable wild populations (except perhaps for the smaller species) while the dinosaur alert is mostly restricted to western North America. Broad strokes, there is no "Dinosaurs are everywhere on Earth. We're in deep shit! You're wondering how? Shut up, it's magic!" at the start of this Dominion rewrite but more sporadic incidents here and there and only beginnings of biological invasions in some areas. Moreover, TRQ's epilogue insists more on the propagation of de-extinction technology.
- At the end of TRQ, Claire and Owen are hired as field agents by the World De-extinction Monitoring Centre (WDMC), a UN agency.
- Maisie isn't adopted by Claire and Owen. In TRQ, she even has limited interactions with them (she gets involved in the incident only when the Indoraptor enters her room) and Owen isn't her saviour in that story. After the incident, she stayed at the manor with the Lockwood estate employees and just before his death, Lockwood entrusted her to Wu.
- In the late 2010's, InGen's biggest rivals were Biosyn and Grendel. At the end of TRQ, a collapsing InGen is bought by Biosyn and Wu hired by the latter's R&D department.
- Wu and Claire became sworn enemies when she became park director of Jurassic World (this relation worsened during the park's fall following some revelations) and while she left him alone at the end of TRQ, she told him she'll show no mercy if he has a share of responsibility in another disaster.
3) Notable differences between The Hegemony of Biosyn and Colin Trevorrow's Dominion.
- Grant, Malcolm and Sattler are absent. I preferred to leave those characters in peace rather than mistreat them (and even after I finished THOB's detailed summary, I don't see how I could have integrated them in a pertinent way, and there is already many... many characters).
- Most of the fan-service towards the first Jurassic Park was flushed down in the toilets.
- Barry Sembène is absent too. Not only the reasons of his inclusion in Dominion's story didn't conviced them (how what seemed to be just an animal wrangler ends up being now a secret services agent?) but in this alternative universe, him and Owen had started to fall out during the fall of Jurassic World and at the beginning of The Red Queen, we learn that he went back to France. I originally intented to make him one of the main characters of a spin-off set in France (and after the events depicted in The Hegemony of Biosyn) and we would have saw him again only then (wishing to leave dinosaurs behind him, he took a zookeeper position in some zoo in Ile de France, where he works with birds of prey. But a crisis in another part of the country force another of the protagonists (a gendarme) to recruit him due to his experience in InGen's IBRIS program). Thus, the role he's having in Trevorrow's Dominion is given to other characters in The Hegemony of Biosyn.
- Some characters have a different fate.
- A longer story, sometimes similar to that of a political thriller.
- Additional characters and subplots. A hypothetical casting for the original characters is available on the Archive of Our Own page linked above.
​
Without further ado, let's dive in the story.
​

Prologue

The prologue is set in mid-2022, in a village of the Austrian Alps, near the Italian border. On the village's outskirts, a man is awakened in the middle of the night by the panicked bleating of his goats. After checking them, he is attacked and killed by a mysterious small predator while one of the goats, a black billy, runs away. Nothing is seen of the predator during that sequence but the two-toed tracks it leaves in the ground.

ACT I: The chessboard and the pawns

Drive-in
After the prologue in Austria, we move to North America and more precisely an Oregon wood where an Acrocanthosaurus (a species introduced in TRQ) is being chased by a Fish and Wildlife Service helicopter. It's basically the drive-in scene from Trevorrow's version except that Roberta is replaced by the Acrocanthosaurus.
News Montage
Soon, the drive-in incident is in the news and we have a news montage with the world situation three years after the Lockwood estate incident. We learn that:
- De-extinction technology is mastered by various organizations across the globe.
- Incidents involving loose de-extinct animals occur from time to time. The controversial Grey Guard, an UN-backed paramilitary organization based in the Five Deaths, has been solicited by various nations to help their authorities deal with those incidents. The USA are however among the nations who refuse to let them intervene on their soil and instead, the US government use the CIA's Dangerous Species Division (which recruited several former InGen employees like Doctor Kajal Dua).
- Mantah Corp fell during those three years while Grendel was considerably weakened after some deadly incidents in Cameroon and southern India (one of their consequence is the outbreak of a dinosaur-related encephalitis in Cameroon, quite similar to one which occurred in Costa Rica in the late 2010s), leaving Biosyn as the number one in the field of genetic engineering.
- All of its biggest rivals now out of the equation, Biosyn has a hegemony and is thriving more than ever despite heavy criticism by some people who bring out the corporation's past controversies (like a certain rabies vaccine test in Chile). In a conference scene, Zoe Murdoch, Biosyn's vice president presents their newest creations, which includes variants from species already introduced in the series (She compares InGen's tyrannosaur, original trilogy's Raptor, Triceratops, Compsognathus and Quetzalcoatlus to Biosyn's. The raptor is feathered, the rex and trike are more in line with modern scientific depictions, the Compy is feathered and docile enough to be sold as a pet, while the quetzal is more pleasant looking than InGen's flying abominations which massacred people during the Fall of Jurassic World). The report also precise that Biosyn created tailored and more docile dinosaurs and use the example of the pack of featherless raptors they made foloaned to motion picture company Europacorp for one of their action films, showing footage of featherless and boxy-headed raptors jumping from roof to roof during a film shooting, where they were handled as easily as trained big cats or even dogs (This use is possible partly because de-extinct creatures have less rights than modern animals).
- Biosyn is also contracted by several governments, including the US, to capture the loose dinosaurs. To their sanctuary and research facility in the Dolomites valley of Auronzo, they sent some of the escapees from Lockwood's estate and their offspring, the animals which escaped Grendel's facilities in Cameroon and India (A group of Nasutoceratops and a 2010's style Spinosaurus are seen during that part of the report), and others... The close ties between Biosyn and the US government are also mentioned (in addition to providing help to the FWS agents, Biosyn has also several important contracts with the government and some people within the Agriculture department and the Food and Drug Administration are former Biosyn employees).
- However, there are some rumours that the Cameroon and Indian incidents were actually triggered by Biosyn and incriminating proofs were brought before the US congress but the investigation commission, led by Senator Christine West, rejected them.
San Francisco
Shortly after this testimony, Guillaume Vuillier, the World De-extinction Monitoring Centre's general director, is seen in the agency's headquarters in San Francisco. Since the US government doesn't seem to be willing to act against Biosyn, he's afraid that the WDMC and its allies have to deal with Biosyn's case alone. After some incidents in the Alps along the border between Italy and Austria involving creatures they presume to be raptors due to the nature of the tracks found, the UN and the Italian and Austrian governments have imposed an inspection on Biosyn's Sanctuary in Auronzo Valley. Vuillier and others suspect that the attacks' perpetrators indeed came from the Sanctuary.
The Inspection
Vuillier travels to Venice, where he meets with Dougal Benett, one of his European field agents, and the rest of the inspection group, which includes Mario Viscontini, head of the AISI (Italy's internal intelligence agency), and Giovanni Pazzi, Minister of the Interior. The inspection group then heads to its rendez-vous point with Biosyn, meets Murdoch and Ramsay (both usually work at Biosyn's HQ in Cupertino, California), and then embark on a Biosyn helicopter which takes them to the Dolomites and the Citadel, Biosyn's research facility (Though it's not as pretty as the building from Trevorrow's vision and a little bit more austere-looking, it's still impressive) which overlooks the Sanctuary.
The group inspect the facility, with head of security Lucrezia Pellegrino explaining how the dinosaurs can't leave the valley (through control chips and invisible fence systems), and even get to meet Dodgson, who made sure to hide anything controversial and have everything look in order. Thus, the inspection group doesn't find anything suspicious and returns to Venice. But the WDMC employees and Viscontini weren't fooled by Biosyn's "Everyone is beautiful. Everyone is nice" presentation, Vuillier points out the Sanctuary's flaws (too small to let a huge number of animals roam it freely, climate is not ideal enough for dinosaurs...) and are aware that controversial, if not illegal research must be conducted in the Citadel's secret wings (as it's way more isolated and hard to access than Cupertino's HQ).
Dodgson is aware of their distrust and both he and Vuillier start moving their pawns on the chessboard.
The DSD
In the CIA's DSD headquarters in San Francisco, the division's leader Isaac Gibbon (and perhaps senator West. I'm not yet sure if I include her in this scene or not. She could be visiting the division about funding matters or something like this) attends a presentation made by one of his agents, Jessica Bigelow. The presentation's topic is Claire Dearing and after summarizing her life (with a few saucy anecdotes and pictures from Claire's youth and early years at JW), Bigelow shows how the fallen park director fascinate some people, especially online, and how she managed to put a part of the public opinion on her side in the recent years after being treated like a pariah in the couple of years that followed the fall of Isla Nublar (Being positively depicted in the DPG documentary Franklin Webb made back in 2019; occasionally making vlogs; appearing on Stephen Colbert's show without her mask and answering his questions with honesty and self-derision...). The CIA agents say that she's the WDMC's most surprising and promising element alongside her fiancé Owen Grady. Both are nicknamed Vuillier's Wolves by them as they, especially Claire, are tend to be ruthless with those who oppose them, especially in unofficial and borderline illegal missions Vuillier give them, consisting in spying and/or sabotaging nefarious de-extinction related organizations. Bigelow also mention that it's highly probable she's also The Ghost of Nublar, a mysterious figure who challenged the Indominus during the Invasion of Burroughs, when Isla Nublar fell.
The ranch
One night, somewhere in the western US (could be Nevada like in Trevorrow's version), a trio of people is seen breaking out in a ranch-like facility. Once they're in its heart, the group split up, with one of its members heading towards another building. The two others, revealed to be Zia Rodriguez and Franklin Webb from the Dinosaur Protection Group (which is led by Zia, as the organisation's founder resigned at the end of TRQ) enters a warehouse which contains rows of cages with baby ceratopsians. While Zia and Franklin film the evidences of the animals' mistreatment, we return to their mysterious companion, whose face is concealed by a balaclava. However, an attentive viewer can recognize her green eyes and her prosthetic hand: It's Claire, who's on an unofficial mission for the WDMC. After avoiding or neutralizing some guards, she breaks out in the facility's offices. There, she discovers documents which might contain indicate a connexion between the illegal dinosaur exploitation and Biosyn (who could be selling embryos, eggs or juveniles to those exploiters before denouncing or sabotaging them years later, being paid by the government for capturing the dinosaurs and finally sending them to their Sanctuary). After this infiltration segment, ensues an action scene where our protagonists have to escape the facility aboard a vehicle stolen by Claire. During this scene, she seriously injures or even kill one guard, something she doesn't care much about at the moment but which will have some consequences.
The following morning, Claire phones Peggy Zubiri (Guillaume Vuillier's assistant, who sometimes act as a "Mission control" person for Claire and her colleagues) to tell her that she has the evidences they were looking for. The former director of Jurassic World then has a discussion with the two DPG members in which Zia laments that despite all her organization's actions, it seems that things aren't evolving in the good direction for de-extinct animals and that the morale within the DPG is at its lowest. They then departs for San Francisco, where Claire has to give Peggy the documents she found before returning to her and Owen's cabin.
The wranglers and the thieves
We then cut to Owen, who's in the middle of a WDMC-US FWS joint operation somewhere in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where they have to capture some dinosaurs (candidates could be Dryosauruses or juvenile Gallimimuses and Hadrosaurs, as wrangling adults on horseback is quite unrealistic to be honest). However, as they are leading the captured dinosaur(s) back to their base camp, our group has an encounter with Rainn Delacourt and his men. It plays out like in the extended version of Trevorrow's film, with Owen and his companions being forced to give the animal(s) to Rainn. However, just as Rainn's team are taking the dinosaur(s) away, Owen tells one of the FWS agents that this situation is only temporary, as Rainn will soon get a surprise...
Maisie
In Orick, Maisie Lockwood exits the estate to go biking in the area. A scene where she encounters some dinosaurs like in the film might be included here. O'Hara (the old lady who participate to her kidnapping in Trevorrow's film) is seen watching her. She returns to the manor just before the evening. The place is not as vibrant as before (it's almost a ghost manor. As it's the autumn, the place would even look ominous), with only a handful of employees remaining, including Theo Lomas, the man who saved her from the Indoraptor three years ago and who now works as the estate's guard. Officially, Henry Wu became Maisie's foster father when Benjamin died but the geneticist, who was assimilated by Biosyn when it bought InGen at the end of TRQ, now lives in the Dolomites facility and his visits to Orick are rare. Thus, Theo became Maisie's true foster father in addition to being the closest thing to a friend for her. He expresses his worries about her long excursions outside but as she's started to become a rebellious teenager, things are tense.
Vuillier's interview
We cut to an interview of Guillaume Vuillier on the French television set just a few days after the Dolomites Inspection. At first, the journalist ask questions about the inspection of Biosyn's complex and the incidents in the Alps before addressing the rumour which says that the masked individual who recently attacked illegal dinosaur breeders might be a WDMC agent, Claire Dearing to be precise (as the colleagues of the deceased guard(s) claimed the attacker was a woman with a prosthetic arm). The journalist brings out another case where Claire made veiled threats to a suspect while on an official mission (with said suspect declaring she almost acted like a Gestapo member or something like this), and as Claire is Vuillier's subordinate, the journalist ask if he intent to sanction her. Annoyed, Vuillier retorts that she acted on legitimate defence and that those people had the choice to cooperate but didn't. Having noticed strange in the journalist's attitude, he suspect that the French government (Due to certain events in TRQ I won't name to not spoil you, the latter has Vuillier and the couple in their radar) paid them and tried to discredit him through that topic. The interview makes some buzz, enough to attract the attention of Odegaard, Vuillier's boss and the leader of the UN environment programme (the character is mentioned but never seen).
Sightings map
We get several little family scenes with Claire, Owen and Sigurd, their four-year old son. One of those scenes shows Owen briefly looking at a map he pinned in their office, depicting California and the neighbouring states. On it, he put Blue's sightings. The last of those was in Yosemite area, where the Raptor Whisperer searched the Achillobator earlier in the autumn but to no avail.
In the meantime, we learn that Rainn was arrested after the authorities followed the tracking chip Owen put in the animal the poacher stole. With the animal seized by the FWS and him heavily compromised on a judicial standpoint, Rainn is raging.
Nyamu
Just after his return to San Francisco, Vuillier receives a video call from Lester Nyamu, a friend and colleague from the UN environment programme's HQ in Nairobi. After that interview in the French media, Nyamu tells Vuillier that Odegaard fears the bad publicity Claire might give to the WDMC and wants to send him to the US at the end of the winter and have him follow Claire in her missions, acting as an inspector. His inspection will decide if they can keep Claire as a field agent or not.
While on an official field mission, Claire is contacted by Vuillier, who tells her about the current controversy. He announces he is forced to send her back home and have her do teleworking and not participate to any field mission, official or not, until further notice.
Resonating Chamber
Stuck at home, Claire takes interest in raptors' behaviour and reads not only her fiancé's IBRIS stuff but also whatever the WDMC has on the topic, including reports from the scientists stationed in the Five Deaths and the testimonies and notes of Alan Grant and Billy Brennan. After watching a video where a group of WDMC scientists and grey guards stops a raptor attack on Sorna by using a resonating chamber identical to the one Brennan made back in 2001, she remembers Owen commissioned a similar one for Achillobators and finds it. She then start learning to use it.
The Palaeontologist
As Auronzo Valley has received its first snow falls, we are introduced to Biosyn Sanctuary's resident palaeontologist, the Scotsman Rod Drummond. Dodgson asked him to act as a tour guide for two teenage girls, the daughters of an investor with which he is negotiating, but they are not interested in the slightest about what's he is saying and are on their phones even though there's dinosaurs outside (a group of Stygimoloch is seen foraging in the snow). Short-tempered (the character is a bit like the lovechild of Gordon Ramsay and Westworld's Lee Sizemore), Drummond grab one of the phones and smash it against the nearest wall. The girls protest but Drummond gives a long rant in which he almost reveal the Sanctuary's true purpose, something he's really uncomfortable with. When they return, Dodgson ask the girls if they're okay (he has a soft spot for children) and yells at Rod but the palaeontologist ignores him and storms off to his office. Some minutes later, he receives the visit from the girls' father, Nathan Quinn. The investor apologies for his daughters' behaviours and tell Rod that he accepted Dodgson's offer in exchange of a seat in the board of directors.
Bailed out
Rainn is bailed out by a mysterious ally and once free, he plans his vengeance upon Owen. He receives a phone call from an unknown woman and first presumes it's her who bailed him out but it isn't the case. She tells him that she has a mission for him, consisting in capturing a particular dinosaur, a blue Achillobator. Having been told about the relationship Owen had with this animal, Rainn accept the mission, claiming he'll succeed where other poachers failed.
Achillobators
There is a time jump to the middle of the winter, just after the New Year. Claire and Owen recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of their meeting and the Raptor Whisperer is in their office, once again studying Blue's moves on the map, trying to discern a pattern or a trajectory. He ends up realizing that she's heading right towards the area where they live. As if to confirm his guess, there is a shot which shows an Achillobator in the snowy woods.
A few days later, Sigurd, Claire's and Owen's son, is playing in the snow when a young Achillobator with blue feathers steps out of the nearby woods. It's about to pounce on the child when its mother, none other than Blue, calls it back, recognizing the boy from the Orick incident (she nearly devoured him during it but changed her mind at the last second when she recognized Owen's smell on him). Owen rushes to grab his son and Blue stands before her young. Claire steps out of the cabin and while walking towards her fiancé and their child, she uses the resonating chamber. At first, it seems to calm Blue but the raptor then decides to retreat into the woods with her young. The family go back inside the cabin and the couple have a talk about what just happened and debate about what they should do with the two Achillobators as they can't be left in the wild, both for their own safety and that of the local animals and people. One of them think about telling the Fish and Wildlife Service but the other retorts that the FWS is likely to send Blue and her young in their complex in Pennsylvania, where the captured de-extinct animals are usually given to Biosyn and flown to Europe, and that they're not sure if Auronzo Valley's sanctuary is truly safe for them. An alternative is suggested, consisting in capturing them without telling anyone but a few trusted people and then bringing them to the local Wildlife Park Owen worked for between JW's fall and the 2019 incidents. This would only be a temporary solution (if Blue kills locals, they're afraid that the park will be targeted) while Claire would negotiate with Vuillier and one of her friends, Lord Francis Clayton, a British aristocrat who owns one of England's largest zoos and wanted to buy Blue during the 2019 auction InGen held at Lockwood estate (a legal one, unlike the one organized by Mills at the same moment). The couple indeed thinks that the two raptors will be safer in the United Kingdom than in the US, where Biosyn's influence is much stronger. During that scene, Owen also gives a name to Blue's young: Victoria, after Victoria Beckham (in TRQ, it's revealed that he originally wanted to name the raptor squad after the Spice Girls). (Thus, bye bye Beta)
The couple starts planning and organizing the capture operation, even asking the help of Zia as they need a veterinarian, but the news of two hunters mysteriously disappearing in the area reminds them of the situation's urgency. And hearing about this, Rainn Delacourt soon arrives in the area.
Wu's call
Wu calls Maisie, telling her he has something important to show her and he invites her and Theo to the Dolomites. As it's about her mother Charlotte, Maisie accepts.
Tragedy in the Sierra Nevada
Zia, Franklin and one or two other DPG members, along with a couple of people from the before mentioned wildlife park and one of the FWS agent from the wrangling scene, arrive at Owen's cabin, ready to offer their help in Blue's and Victoria's capture. The couple and their allies set off.
But Rainn and his men finds the raptors first and lure Victoria into a trap. Blue tries to free her and kills all those standing in her way but Rainn mortally wounds her and leaves with Victoria before Owen can stop him. During the skirmish, one of the DPG members and the FWS agent are also wounded and Claire and Franklin are forced to drive them to the nearest clinic while Owen, Zia and the others search for Blue. When they find her, they realize she's in agony and Zia tells Owen that this time, she can't save the Achillobator. With great difficulty, Owen takes the decision of putting an end to Blue's suffering. She is buried in a secret location deep in the woods and just before he, Zia and their colleagues departs, Franklin tells Claire that this failed mission was the final straw and that he'll leave the DPG and consider a job offer he recently received, arguing that when amateurs try to make things right, innocents gets hurt and that they should let those kind of issues to competent authorities.
Claire then informs Vuillier about the incident.
Leaving Orick
O'Hara, the Biosyn employee dispatched at Orick, picks up Maisie and Theo at the manor and they leave the estate.
​
End of Act I.
See you tomorrow for Act II.

We hired what I thought were reputable painters to paint the exterior of our home. While the contract spelled out the type of paint and prep work, there was no mention of how many coats and paint used (I realize I should have clarified this).
We have fiber cement siding (Hardie board) which is 16 years old and in good shape. It's a darker color (navy) and we are painting it a lighter color (off white).
The painters first step was power washing the entire home. Then, they primed the siding (1 coat, using a sprayer). Then, they painted the siding (1 coat, also using a sprayer). I was surprised they only did 1 coat of the paint, and when I inquired about it, was told 1 coat is fine for my house. Everything I Google says 2 coats are really needed, but I'm also seeing some things about spraying paint making it okay to do only 1 coat. The paint was Benjamin Moore Regal Select Exterior. Should I insist on the second coat (presumably I'd have to pay them more to do it)?

Judgment Day 2007
Date: 20/5/07
Location: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Two-out-of-Three Falls Match for the United States Championship:
MVP (c) vs Chris Benoit (2-0)
Women’s Championship:
Melina (c) vs Mickie James
Intercontinental Championship:
Bobby Lashley (c) vs Carlito
(Carlito hosts the Carlito Cabana and his guest is Bobby Lashley. Carlito says the way Bobby Lashley has disrespected Mr. McMahon is not cool but what will be cool is him winning the Intercontinental Championship. Lashley says Carlito just like Umaga can kiss Vince’s ass as much as he wants, it’s not going to result in him losing to a little punk like him.)
WWE World Tag Team Championship:
The Hardy Boyz (c) vs Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch
(After the match, Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas attack The Hardy’s and it’s revealed they’ve reunited!)
Extreme Rules Match for the ECW Championship:
CM Punk (c) vs Elijah Burke
(Elijah Burke attacks CM Punk on ECW and says he’s not finished with him just because he pinned Marcus Cor Von at Backlash. Burke says he’s going to clean up ECW for Vince McMahon by getting the ECW Championship off him because Vince is right, Punk is a misfit who’ll never succeed in the WWE and is only the ECW champion through pure luck. Punk says not only is ECW the land of extreme but it’s also the land of misfits and it makes him and the ECW Championship the perfect marriage. Punk promises to not lose his title to a shameless ass kisser like Elijah Burke.)
World Heavyweight Championship:
Edge (c) vs Mark Henry vs Batista
(After winning the World Heavyweight Championship, Edge says once again he’s proved he’s not only the best wrestler in the company but he’s also the smartest as he watched The Undertaker take the ultimate beating before cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase. Batista interrupts and tells Edge that he might think he’s smart but the reality is, he’s nothing but a coward who stole the World Heavyweight Championship and it won’t be long till he takes back what’s his. Mark Henry says not only is he back and took out The Undertaker, he’s going to destroy Batista again like he has before and will have no issue taking out Edge too because he has the one thing he really wants an opportunity at, the World Heavyweight Championship. Edge says both men have nothing to do with him and can stay away from his World Heavyweight Championship. However, Teddy Long disagrees and tells Edge that Batista and Mark Henry both have a case so Edge will defend his title against both men at Judgment Day. Edge is furious, already feels like Teddy Long has an agenda against him and demands to be traded back to Raw but Long denies Edge his request. During the match, Batista and Henry are so focused on beating the hell out of each other that it costs them as Edge hits a Spear out of nowhere on Batista and pins him to retain his championship.)
60 Minute Iron Man Match for the WWE Championship:
John Cena (c) vs Shawn Michaels (6-5)
(Shawn Michaels says he had John Cena beat at Backlash and if he wasn’t lucky, he’d be the WWE Champion. Michaels then challenges Cena to defend the WWE Championship against him one more time at Judgment Day. Cena accepts the challenge because he’s a fighting champion. Michaels says he doesn’t want this to be an ordinary match and tells Cena he wants it to a match he won his first WWE Championship at WrestleMania 12, an Iron Man Match! Cena says that’s fine because Shawn Michaels is about to find out he isn’t the only iron man in the WWE. Cena also proposes for it to be for a full hour which Michaels accepts. This is essentially the match they had on Raw in London in real life but with a different outcome. John Cena wins 6-5 to retain the WWE Championship in all time classic. After the match as Shawn Michaels gets up and receives a standing ovation from the fans, Randy Orton from out of nowhere hits him with an RKO, beats the hell out of The Showstopper in front of his wife to the point he bleeds and punts him in the skull. This writes Michaels off TV.)
Notes:
(The WWE Draft takes place on the May 28th 2007 episode of Raw. The same picks as in real life occur apart from the fact Bobby Lashley doesn’t need to be drafted to Raw because he’s already a Raw superstar 😅.)
One Night Stand 2007
Date: 3/6/07
Location: Jackson Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, Florida
Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match for the WWE World Tag Team Championship:
The Hardy Boyz (c) vs The World’s Greatest Tag Team
Women’s Championship:
Mickie James (c) vs Candice Michelle
Intercontinental Championship:
Bobby Lashley (c) vs Carlito vs Umaga w/Armando Estrada
(Umaga wins the championship after pinning Carlito thanks to Shane McMahon attacking Bobby Lashley who was on verge of retaining his title.)
Street Fight:
Kane vs Mark Henry
(Kane goes after Mark Henry and promises there will be vengeance after what he did to his brother The Undertaker. Henry says Kane doesn’t intimidate him just like The Undertaker doesn’t and he’s just another man on his path of destruction.)
Stretcher Match:
Rob Van Dam vs Randy Orton
(This is Van Dam’s last match in the company for a while as he leaves for TNA.)
Extreme Rules Match for the ECW Championship:
CM Punk (c) vs Chris Benoit
(Vince McMahon says he’s confident for sure that CM Punk’s days as ECW champion are rightfully numbered because he’ll be defending his title against the new draft pick… Chris Benoit! Benoit says Punk’s a talented wrestler but he’s no Chris Benoit, the greatest technical wrestler on the planet. Punk says he has a huge level of respect for what Benoit’s accomplished in his wrestling career but he sees this as a massive opportunity to prove doubters like Vince McMahon wrong and he’ll ensure he does in what’s no doubt his biggest challenge since winning the ECW Championship. CM Punk wins clean to retain.)
Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship:
Edge (c) vs Batista
(Batista says that weasel Edge being the World Champion makes him sick and promises he’ll destroy him and take back the title. Edge says Batista doesn’t deserve another chance at the World Championship but Theodore Long disagrees and says Batista’s two one on one rematches for the title never had a definitive finish so he announces Edge will face Batista at One Night Stand and the match will be… a Steel Cage Match! Edge tries to convince Long to change the stipulation but Long isn’t having it and tells him he’s giving the fans what they want. Edge sneaks a chain into the match, smashes Batista over the head with it and escapes the cage to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.)
Falls Count Anywhere Match for the WWE Championship:
John Cena (c) vs Booker T w/Sharmell
(After being drafted to Raw, Booker T immediately sets his sights on becoming the WWE Champion. Booker T says Raw is a far fairer run place with Jonathan Coachman in charge compared to SmackDown with Teddy Long. Booker T basically kissing the ass of Coachman is why he grants him the opportunity and Coachman also announces it’ll be a Falls Count Anywhere Match. Cena says he’ll punch Booker T’s teeth down his throat while still proving he’s the top dog in the company while Booker T promises to win the 1 title that’s eluded him in his legendary career.)
Note:
(Sadly, the Chris Benoit tragedy happens between the 22nd-24th of June 2007.)
My opinion on Chris Benoit:
(So, now we’re finally here in the timeline 😬. First of all I just want to say to those who may ask “why have you pushed a murderer?” In the timeline, I’m booking as if I’m in all these years. As a booker, how would I know in 2004 for example what’s going to unfold in 2007? That’s why Benoit is pushed. I’m not going to utterly bury him while he’s alive in the timeline. Now what I’m going to do here is bury him now the tragic events have unfolded. Chris Benoit in my opinion is one of the greatest technical wrestlers of all time, I will never dispute that. I was a huge fan of his and when he won the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 20, it was an unbelievable moment and the fact he celebrated with Eddie Guerrero topped it all off. However, what he did was unforgivable and anyone who has any conspiracy theories like he was framed, I’m sorry it’s just not true and the police investigated it properly. The facts are, Chris Benoit did murder his wife Nancy and his son Daniel. I don’t care about CTE or the fact he apparently had a year to live with an enlarged heart. As Paul Heyman said an interview once, f*ck him. The facts are that Chris Benoit murdered his wife, murdered his son and then proceeded to kill himself. The WWE will absolutely never put him in the Hall of Fame and that’s the correct decision because Benoit lost that respect when he did what he did. I personally hope he rots and this is the last he’ll ever be mentioned in this timeline. I want to lastly say to finish this off, my heart goes out to those affected by this tragedy back in 2007 and Rest in Peace to Nancy and Daniel Benoit ❤️.)
Vengeance: Night of Champions 2007
Date: 24/6/07
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
United States Championship:
MVP (c) vs Ric Flair
Cruiserweight Championship:
Chavo Guerrero (c) vs Jamie Noble
WWE World Tag Team Championship:
The World’s Greatest Tag Team (c) vs The Hardy Boyz
Women’s Championship:
Candice Michelle (c) vs Mickie James
Intercontinental Championship:
Umaga (c) vs Santino Marella
Extreme Rules Match for the ECW Championship:
CM Punk (c) vs Johnny Nitro
(Johnny Nitro surprisingly replaces The Invisible Man and challenges CM Punk for the ECW Championship when he wasn’t prepared for him. Nitro cheats to win the championship off of Punk, much to the satisfaction of Mr. McMahon.)
WWE Tag Team Championship:
Deuce ‘n Domino (c) w/Cherry vs Jimmy Wang Yang & Shannon Moore
Last Chance Match for the World Heavyweight Championship - If Edge is counted out of disqualified, he’ll lose the World Heavyweight Championship:
Edge (c) vs Batista
(After One Night Stand, Batista asks Teddy Long for one more opportunity after Edge’s cowardly acts at One Night Stand. Edge tells Teddy to give Batista the match on one condition, if Batista loses he can never challenge for the title as long as he’s champion. Teddy Long grants Edge his request but also tells him if he gets counted out or disqualified, he’ll lose the World Heavyweight Championship to Batista. During the match, there’s a referee bump and Batista is getting ready to finish this until The Great Khali appears and lays out The Animal! Edge capitalises when the referee regains consciousness and pins Batista to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.)
Six-Pack Challenge Match for the WWE Championship:
John Cena (c) vs Carlito vs Mr.Kennedy vs Randy Orton vs Booker T w/Sharmell vs Bobby Lashley
(All 5 men make a case to be the #1 Contender for the WWE Championship. John Cena says he’ll welcome all comers to prove he’s the man. Jonathan Coachman tells Cena to be careful what he wishes for because at Night of Champions, he’ll be defending the WWE Title against all of them! John Cena retains the WWE Championship after pinning Carlito. After the match, Bobby Lashley stares down Cena as Night of Champions draws to a close.)
Notes:
(Edge tears his pectoral muscle, is put on the shelf for a while and is forced to surrender the World Heavyweight Championship.)
(Mark Henry wins a Battle Royal on the July 20th, 2007 episode of SmackDown to win the World Heavyweight Championship!)
The Great American Bash 2007
Date: 22/7/07
Location: HP Pavilion San Jose, California
WWE Tag Team Championship:
Deuce ‘n Domino (c) vs Matt Hardy & MVP
(Matt Hardy hates MVP and wants his United States Championship but they get paired as partners and are told to co-exist by Mr. McMahon who also rewards them with a Tag Team Championship match at The Great American Bash. Hardy and MVP win the titles.)
Cruiserweight Championship:
Chavo Guerrero (c) vs Super Crazy
Intercontinental Championship:
Umaga (c) vs Jeff Hardy
Batista vs The Great Khali w/Ranjin Singh
Women’s Championship:
Candice Michelle (c) vs Melina
Extreme Rules Match for the ECW Championship:
John Morrison (c) vs CM Punk
(CM Punk invokes his rematch clause for the ECW Championship. Vince McMahon tries to deny Punk the opportunity to win the title back but CM Punk tells him if he even dares to deny him his rematch then he’ll sue him because it’s a contractual obligation meaning McMahon has no choice but to let Punk compete for the ECW Championship. The newly named John Morrison who’s leaving Johnny Nitro behind tells Vince to not worry, he’ll take care of business for him which Vince gives him the vote of confidence. Punk says this time he’s ready for Morrison unlike at Night of Champions and will become a 2 time ECW Champion. Morrison says even prepared, he’s just too good for Punk. John Morrison cheats to retain the title after hitting Punk with brass knuckles when the referee isn’t looking.)
World Heavyweight Championship:
Mark Henry (c) vs Kane
(Teddy Long announces that Mark Henry will defend his title against Kane at The Great American Bash because Kane had earned an opportunity to fight for the World Championship when Edge was champion. Kane says that he’s got unfinished business with Henry and revenge will be sweeter when he wins the World Heavyweight Championship. Henry says Kane will once again feel his wrath just like his brother The Undertaker and Batista have.)
WWE Championship:
John Cena (c) vs Bobby Lashley
(Bobby Lashley wins a Fatal 4-Way match against Booker T, Randy Orton and Mr.Kennedy in order to face John Cena at The Great American Bash. Lashley tells Cena that he respects his dedication and desire but when push comes to shove, he has no hesitation breaking him in half if it means he wins the WWE Championship. Cena says Lashley is an incredible athlete who’s unbelievably gifted but he’s going to show the whole world that Lashley’s time isn’t now the way a lot of people think it is. John Cena retains after delivering an FU from the top rope and both men shake hands after the match. When Cena’s alone in the ring, Randy Orton from out of nowhere delivers an RKO to Cena and holds up the WWE Championship as the show draws to a close.)
Note:
(Bobby Lashley gets injured not long after this event and leaves the company in early 2008.)
SummerSlam 2007
Date: 26/8/07
Location: Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Ladder Match for the ECW Championship:
John Morrison (c) vs CM Punk
(CM Punk demands one more match for the ECW Championship against John Morrison which Morrison insists to Vince McMahon to allow his request. Morrison gives Vince an idea for what type of match it should be. Vince likes the idea and announces that CM Punk will face John Morrison at SummerSlam in… A Ladder Match! John Morrison says he’s the prince of parkour and CM Punk's ambition of being the ECW Champion again will be crushed by him for good. Punk promises to become and 2 time ECW champion while also ensuring Morrison has no teeth after the match. CM Punk wins to become a 2 time ECW Champion.)
WWE World Tag Team Championship:
World’s Greatest Tag Team (c) vs Paul London & Brian Kendrick
Cruiserweight Championship:
Chavo Guerrero (c) vs Rey Mysterio
(Teddy Long tells Chavo Guerrero he’ll defend his Cruiserweight Championship at SummerSlam against… Rey Mysterio! Chavo says he’s been waiting for Rey’s return and at the event he cost him the World Heavyweight Championship the year before, he’s going to make sure he puts Rey back on the shelf again but this time for good. Rey Mysterio wins the title and retires the Cruiserweight Championship on the SmackDown after SummerSlam.)
Intercontinental Championship:
Umaga (c) vs Jeff Hardy
Women’s Championship:
Candice Michelle (c) vs Melina vs Mickie James vs Beth Phoenix
Triple H vs Booker T w/Sharmell
(Vignettes start to show that Triple H is returning to the WWE after another Quad injury. Booker T being aware of this challenges Triple H to a match at SummerSlam. Booker T’s motives are simple, Triple H once made his life a living hell and he wants to get revenge he never truly got. Booker T promises to put Triple H back on the shelf and embarrass him on his return. Triple H wins in a 10 minute match and Booker T leaves the company after this match.)
World Heavyweight Championship:
Mark Henry (c) vs Batista
(A one on one match that’s a long time in the making. Batista wins a #1 Contender’s Match against Kane and says this is a match he’s wanted for a while because he’s never fully gotten revenge on Mark Henry for putting him out of action which forced him to surrender the World Heavyweight Championship. Henry says he’s also been waiting for full revenge after Batista also cost him a year of his career when he came back and assaulted him. Both men brawl whenever they see each other in the build up. During the match when Henry’s on top… GONG! The lights come back on but Taker doesn’t appear. Henry then receives a Spinebuster from Batista and The Animal pins him to win the World Heavyweight Championship!)
WWE Championship:
John Cena (c) vs Randy Orton
(First time ever in a one on one capacity. Randy Orton says while Cena has been on top for the last few years, he’s always avoided facing him one on one and tells him the reason he does is because he knows The Legend Killer is better than him! Cena tells Orton to stop talking out of his ass and if he wants to fight him, he’s ready for the challenge and just like the others, Randy Orton will be on his list of guys he beat. Randy Orton cheats when the referee isn’t looking by hitting Cena with a low blow. Orton then delivers an RKO and pins John Cena to win the WWE Championship!)
Notes:
(Batista beats Mark Henry in a Street Fight on SmackDown to retain the World Heavyweight Championship in Henry’s rematch clause. The Undertaker’s Gong once again provides a distraction to Henry and there’s also a message on the titantron that reads “The dead will rise, September 16th 2007… RIP Mark Henry!”)
And that’s part 45! I hope you guys enjoyed this part. I’d like to add that I hope you don’t mind my passionate opinion on the man who shall not be named from now on. Anyways, enough of me dwelling about that! I’ll be back very soon to cover the rest of 2007 where we’ll see a few stars return, The Age of Orton begin on Raw and John Cena go down with an injury. Stay safe and stay tuned!

Thanks and Credits in the Comments Section due to LONG chapter.
Chapter 31: A Whale of a Tale and it’s All True
“IT’S FUCKING J-POD!”
Kalai watched in shock and awe as the two humans collectively lost their minds, hopping up and down and letting loose a series of high pitched vocalizing as she, Papa, and Mama Sakalbi stared in confusion at the two ecstatic aliens.
Andy turned and ran back to where Kalai and her parents were still staring in amazement and held his hand out, face alight and happier than she’d ever seen him before. “Binoculars! Quick! I want to see who’s out there!” Mama Sakalbi tentatively held them out, and he took them with a nod of thanks before rushing back to the bow. Kalai started as he jumped up on the bow and balanced against the roller horns to spot the black and white whales that were swimming fast towards the net.
“Eyes on Mama Shachi! Look, over there, see her?” Kalai approached cautiously as Andy pointed in the direction of a cluster of porpoising black shapes that were coming nearer.
“Eyes on! I got Grammie Slick out there too; the WHOLE POD’S HERE!” Jackie cut loose an undulating cry and waved her hands as little geysers of water and air shot out from the water on the other side of the net.
Kalai nearly jumped when a miniature version of the Orcas from the clone tank at Headquarters breached the water, leaping almost twice her height into the air before splashing back down in a massive wave.
“Look at that! Butterball’s getting some good air these days!” Andy crowed as he hopped back down from the bow and passed the binoculars to Jackie.
“Butterball?” Mama Sakalbi asked as she and Papa joined them. Kalai stared as the Orcas formed a line and charged at the middle of the ‘S’ bend in the net before diving down in front of it, sending a wave that pushed the corks back. She saw the spouts and the dorsal fins rise again for another charge at the net.
“He’s the baby, only about four years old. Grammie Slick’s taking the family hunting, see how they’re flattening the net out? We’re about to have a great fucking day!” Andy took Jackie’s shotgun and took it back to the cabin as Kalai and her parents crowded the rail.
“What are they doing?” Mama Sakalbi’s question was directed at Jackie and the woman turned to answer with a gigantic smile.
“Herding! See the ones circling around the net?” Jackie pointed to the two dorsal fins that were almost invisible in the fog that was starting to burn off in the morning sun that had started to clear the eastern mountains. “They’ll be starting to round up small schools of salmon once they’re done turning our net into a reef. Right now, they’re running along the line and probably seeing what they have to work with.”
Mama Sakalbi did a double take, “You must be joking, that level of intelligence would almost be-”
“Human?” Jackie interrupted with a smile, “Yeah, that’s our original teachers out there. We learned to fish from them.”
“I was going to say ‘sentient’, but I take your point. What I want to know is, what are they doing?” Mama Sakalbi gestured out at them, with a bewildered look on her face.
“They’re using the net as a sea wall. Thing is, the net’s hard to see in the water, but the fish can feel it. They’ll put their heads into the net, but that doesn’t catch them. They’ll try to swim around it so that’s why we put an ‘S’ bend. That’s where most of the fish get tangled.” Andy returned and picked up the explanation. “See in the center of the line? That fin with the black and white little checkmark behind it? That’s Grammie Slick, the Matriarch. She’s around sixty now, and grew up out here LONG before you all came down. They don’t always do this, but I guess with you all keeping the fishing fleets docked, she saw the net and wanted a big meal for the family. They’re going to keep pushing the net until it’s in the shape of a crescent and herd a bunch of small schools into a big baitball with pickets to keep the fish pinned in the middle. You watch, there’ll be salmon jumping all over in the middle as they school up.”
“That’s when you’ll see them charge up the center and take big old mouthfuls of salmon. It’ll be a smorgasbord for ‘em!” Jackie pulled up Andy’s omnipad and started recording.
“Wait, but you hate seals for competing with you for food, why are you this excited about Orcas who take so much more?” Papa asked as he also took out his omnipad and started recording as the pod of Orcas finished repositioning their net just as Andy described.
“Because they’re using the nets as a reef to trap the fish! See? Look! There they go! The wolves are out scaring every salmon in the area here!” Kalai dug her own omnipad out at Andy’s words and watched as the dorsal fins sank below the waves, with only a faint and fading wake to tell where they’d gone.
“Now watch ‘em set pickets! They’re going to start patrolling the outside of the net. When they get enough salmon in the middle, they’re going to charge. When they do, watch the entire middle section of our corks go under from the salmon trying to get away. They get whole heaping mouthfuls of food and we get a full net!”
Kalai watched the Orcas swimming in circles around the net like Helix Sharks, and felt a pang of fear seeing the big predators that seemed so gentle and inquisitive in the tank. “But what if they get caught in the net?”
Jackie suppressed a laugh before sweeping an arm out at the net. “I’ve never seen that happen before, and I haven’t even heard of it happening before… at least not here in the Salish Sea. All our Orcas grew up around these nets, so they’ll either avoid them or use them like they are right now.”
“I think it’s because they can see them and the fish can’t. Either way, we’re in for a show!” Andy patted Kalai on the back before pushing Kalai and Mama Sakalbi forward.
For a long while, the surface was calm, save for the circling Orcas as they all watched. Then, by degrees, there was movement on the surface of the water as fish the length of Kalai’s arm started to jump and kick in the baitball. Kalai watched, fascinated, as Orcas seemed to appear and disappear along the edges but never approached the middle of the net.
All the fins disappeared from the surface and an eerie stillness settled over the water. Suddenly, the water in the middle of the crescent erupted, with hundreds of fish shooting out of the water and a sudden surge that hit and pushed the corks outward before they sank completely out of sight. Jackie and Andy started vocalizing those strange undulating cries again, raising their fists in the air before shouting something in their language. From as best as Kalai could guess, it was encouragement as the Orcas started breaching and jumping. In those moments, Kalai could catch glimpses of their mouths full of salmon.
Kalai watched as the terrified fish swarmed towards the net, and watched as many seemed to jump over it and swim away as the Orcas gorged themselves on the enormous school of salmon they had trapped. It was an awe inspiring sight to see, and Kalai lost herself in the moment watching the amazing display of symbiotic hunting and fishing between them and the Orcas.
The engine of the boat turning over broke the spell they were all under as Andy moved the boat at a dead slow pace back towards the net. “Alright, let’s haul it in and reset for ‘em! Jackie! Get on the bow with the billhook!” Jackie whooped in agreement and gently pushed passed Kalai to grab a long pole with a small metal hook at the end.
“We’re gonna have to work fast. They’re hungry, and we all want salmon today,” Andy called over the sound of the engine as they approached the giant buoy that marked the end of the net. “Doc! Open that hatch back there and watch your step! Mrs. Vaida, stand clear in the cabin; I want no accidents today, and three on deck’s going to be a crowd with how many fish we’re going to be taking in. Kalai, I want you back in the-”
Kalai shook her head as she put her omnipad away. “I can do it! Let me help!” she was riding the high feeling of watching the Orcas, and seeing Andy and Jackie preparing to go to work while she was to be just a passenger galled her.
Kalai saw Andy give Jackie a look that she couldn’t quite interpret. “Alright, but you’ll work with me picking fish. Jackie, you’re on the Drum; trade places with me!”
Kalai saw Jackie huff and give Andy a piercing look as she handed off the billhook. “Watch out for jellies, they tend to explode,” the native woman muttered to Kalai as she took over at the net drum’s controls. Kalai was about to volunteer to grab the line with the hook, given her longer reach, but Andy had already leaned almost all the way over the side. Kalai had a momentary scare as Andy seemed to dip forward, seemingly in danger of falling overboard, until he seemed to almost levitate himself using his lower legs back into the boat and pulled the line over the roller horns. She stood there for a moment, unsure of what to do when Andy braced a foot against the side and began to pull on the line and feed it back towards Jackie.
“Way, haul away, we’ll hang and haul together! Way, haul away, haul away Joe!”
Though she didn’t understand the words, Kalai knew a sailing song when she heard one and didn’t wait for any instruction. She moved forward opposite Andy and lent a hand, pulling the heavy line in to the cadence of his chant. After two verses, Kalai heard the whine of hydraulics and the slack in the line behind them went taught.
“Stand back! Here we go!” Andy called to her and the line began pulling the net back aboard. Kalai looked back to see that Jackie had wrapped the line around the center pole of the drum, with the wheel turning to pull the line and net in out of the water. A small set of guide poles that moved when Jackie twitched the controls kept the line evenly distributed on the drum as the first corks and the dripping wet net began to appear out of the water.
“Put your hoods up!” Andy yelled at her over the noise of the machines, and demonstrated the motion. “It’ll keep the water, seaweed and Jellies out of your face and eyes, and take this!” Andy tossed her what appeared to be a handkerchief and he mimed the act of tying it around her face like a mask.
“What about you? You’re sleeveless!” Kalai’s voice was slightly muffled from the cloth as she tied it around her face before pulling up both hoods.
Andy didn’t respond, except to grin at her as he leaned out to watch the net coming up out of the water before it got pulled aboard.
From behind her, Kalai heard Jackie start singing another human sailing song. It was a bit fast paced, and Andy joined in for the chorus. On the third time she heard it, she joined in too.
“Blow ye winds in the mornin’, Blow ye winds, high ho! Haul away your running gear, And blow ye winds, high ho!”
“Coming up!” Andy shouted as there were several loud thunks before six large salmon appeared in the giant fluorescent green tangle of the net. The drum stopped, bringing the fish to a halt as Andy pulled on the corkline and scurried his hands back and forth, gathering the net up as he did until he reached the first fish. Kalai watched in awe as he seemed to magically pull the fish from the tangle and shake it out onto the deck. The second one seemed to be resting on top of the tangle and he flipped it over the corkline and shook the fish out onto the deck.
“Just watch these first few. When you get a feel for how I’m doing this, jump in. Until then, slide these beauties back towards the stern. Jackie’ll pitch ‘em into the hold.”
Kalai nodded and watched Andy’s movements intently. It looked like sorcery, with how fast he moved his hands and zeroed in on a fish. As soon as he was done, he’d whistle to Jackie, who kept singing the cadence out to pull more of the net in, only to stop when more fish were pulled up and over the horns.
The song changed twice before Kalai felt confident enough to jump in. She almost got tangled in the net herself trying to pull out her first fish, but Andy gave the net a quick tug and she was free again. Maddeningly, the fish had simply fallen out of the net without any help from her, and she fumed just long enough for Andy to point to one that was closer to her.
“Hoist up the thing, batten down the whatsit! What’s that thing spinning, somebody should stop it! Turn hard to Port! That’s not Port, NOW I GOT IT! Trust me, I’m in control!”
On the second refrain, Kalai managed to dig her first fish out and drop it to the deck. She let out a whoop, and Andy paused for a moment to give her a quick applause.
“That’s one, girl! There’s a thousand left if we’re lucky!” Jackie called out as Andy sang a verse and tackled another fish in the net.
“Keep an eye on the lead line; make sure it doesn’t go over the corks!” Andy called as Kalai ran down her second fish and was about to throw the excess net over the other side. She stopped, and Andy helped her get the fish without tangling the net.
It took until the end of the song for Kalai to find her rhythm, and soon she and Andy were running down fish in the net in a crisp and quick manner. Kalai felt like she could go faster, but Andy had cautioned her to keep pace with the songs, as there was still a lot of net to go. When Kalai spared a glance at the length of net still in the water, she saw that Andy wasn’t kidding. It looked like they hadn’t even really started to reel it all in. Ok, it’s hard work, but so is sailing, and he’s my size so I should be able to keep up with him. If he can do it, I can do it!
“Haul away you rollin’ kings! Heave away, Haul away! Haul away you’ll hear me sing, We’re bound for South Australia!”
Andy was impressed. Kalai had jumped in without complaint, and she was very coachable. He could feel himself start to flag as they were starting to come to the last third of the net, but Kalai’s persistence, even though she was sweatier and more haggard than he was, kept him going.
The pile of salmon was almost as deep as their calves, and the deck was getting slick with fish slime. For that matter, so was Andy. In a momentary lull in the fish coming over the horns, Andy caught a glimpse of himself shimmering with all the scales that had flown off the fish as they scraped against the net to hit the deck, flopping. He took a big gulp of air and Kalai groaned as she straightened up, cracking her back as she twisted and bent to relieve her aching muscles.
Andy groaned a bit and looked back towards the stern. It was getting hard to see over the amount of net they’d pulled back in, but he could see Doc and Mrs. Vaida doing their best to help throw and shove the piles of salmon into the hold. Everybody’s getting their hands dirty today. Andy smiled and heaved a happy sigh. This, this is what I want. Being out on the water and doing good, hard work.
“SHIT, JELLYFISH!” Kalai shouted as she twisted away to hide her face behind her rain slicker hood. Andy blinked just in time as a wet squelching sound sent a spray of disintegrating jellyfish exploding all over the bow as the net bunched up and got squeezed together.
Andy felt it splatter all over his arms, neck, and face, before he felt it start to slide down his shirt to his chest. Almost immediately, he started to feel the burn. His arms, neck, and chest he could stand, but the blossoming pain on his lips, eyelids, cheeks, and most horribly the inside of his nose overwhelmed all his conditioned pain tolerance.
“FUCK!” Andy screamed. “FUCKING FUCKER! RIGHT IN MY FUCKING FACE! GOD FUCKING DAMNIT! FUCK!” Andy only barely avoided bringing his hands to his face. It was a hard fought thing to deny his instinct to try and scrape it off, but he felt his boots loose purchase and his feet slide out from under him. He hit the pile of fish that surrounded him hard. He was aware of Kalai yelling for her father and Mrs. Vaida, while Jackie’s braying laugh carried over everything else.
Andy felt Kalai trying to grab him, but her gloves were too slick to get a grip and all she did was spread the stingers more evenly over his arms. Andy kept his eyes squeezed shut as he heard Jackie start to direct the confused and panicking aliens.
“Hold your breath, cuz, vinegar incoming!”
Andy felt the bitter stinging splash as Jackie poured a steady stream of vinegar out from what he assumed was the giant jug he kept for these occasions underneath the little kitchenette in the cabin. Though nothing about the intensity of the burn changed, in the back of his mind, Andy knew that it was killing the stinging cells.
“Alright, Kally, take that bucket and fill it with seawater from over the side, then dump it on him.”
Andy sputtered a bit and spit as he scrabbled onto his knees. He steadied himself with one hand on the rail beside him and the other which found the corkline. He kept his eyes shut and growled as the burning spread from his hairline down to his navel. A sudden bracing splash of cold water nearly bowled him back over. Without warning, Andy hadn't had time to get a breath and he sputtered and yowled as the water soaked down under his rain gear.
Andy shook his head like a dog, whipping his braid back and forth before daring to open his eyes. “Son of a BITCH!” Andy growled as he got a look at Kalai holding an empty bucket, while Jackie was shoo’ing Mrs. Vaida and Dr. He’osforos away to give him some room.
“Jesus, quit your bawlin,’ you big baby, you’re acting like you’ve never been stung before!” Jackie called back to him as Andy ripped the gloves off his hands and plunged them over the side to clean off the stingers.
“It’s in my fucking nose you horse’s ass!” Andy shouted back as he splashed his face. A few strings of purple stingers fell into the water and Andy reared back aboard. “Ugh, get another bucket of seawater! I can still feel this shit!”
“Andrei, as a medical professional, I advise you to cease work and-”
Andy looked over as Dr. He’osforos spoke but waved him off mid sentence. “I appreciate it Doc, but I’ve had it far worse than this. There’s a brown and yellow bottle in one of the drawers under the bench that says ‘Motrin’. Get me the bottle or enough to tranq a cow, and I’ll go back to work just fine.”
Kalai let loose a piercing scream and Andy looked over just in time to see her rocketed herself backwards, dropping the bucket over the side. The Doctor caught his daughter before she fell into the hold, but he too had a look of fear plastered on his face. Andy and Jackie moved to the side to see what had scared her so badly, and the two of them couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Grammie Slick and two of her daughters were there, sticking their heads out of the water with their mouths open, while Butterball was playing with the bucket.
Jackie laughed and stuck her hand out, rubbing the Orca matriarch on the snout. “Raggedy Andy’s fine, Grammie Slick! He’s just milking it for sympathy from these gullible hwun’eetums!”
“What in the Balance of Nature is going on here?” Mrs. Vaida’s shocked voice caused Andy and Jackie to look at her as she stared dumbfounded at the Orcas that were gathering alongside the boat.
“Oh they’re just saying ‘hi.’” Andy shrugged with a smile, despite the burning.
“More like ‘What the hell, cousins, you still got fish to pick. Quit loafin’ around and get another set in!’”
“Jackie, Motrin… NOW!” Andy growled at her. Jackie blew a raspberry at him before diving into the cabin.
“They’re pretty friendly, if you’d like to be introduced,” Andy held out a hand and motioned for Kalai and her father to step forward. Andy dipped his hand in again to make sure it was clear of any stinging cells, before he gently guided the hesitant Kalai to stick her ungloved hand out toward Grammie Slick.
One of the daughters blew a spout before sliding back under water, but Grammie gave a few clicks before briefly touching Kalai’s outstretched hand. “Kalai, this is Grammie Slick, Matriarch of J-Pod. Grammie, this is Kalai… a purple hwun’eetum.” Andy laughed a bit at the look of incredulity on Kalai’s face and the concern on her father’s.
There was a series of shutter clicks from behind Andy, and he turned to see Sakalbi snapping pictures as fast as she could. Kalai was clearly torn between fear and wonder as she held perfectly still and silent for Grammie, who was letting her touch her before she slid back under the water herself. Andy laughed as several clicks and whistles from the pod reverberated through the hull of the boat and he leaned back in.
“Alright, break’s over,” Andy called as he caught the flying bottle of pills Jackie threw at him. He popped two and swallowed them dry before washing the gloves off and putting them on. The extra rinse would have to wait, and he’d have to tough it out until they got back to shore. His boots squelched as he picked his way through the fish on the deck to get back to his station and nodded for Jackie to restart the drum.
It was another twenty minutes before the last of the net was pulled aboard and they were able to clear away all the fish into the hold. Andy stuck his head in and smiled. In a single set, they’d filled three quarters of it, and they had more than enough fish for the gathering and to feed another ten to fifteen families besides. The spouts and the clicks of J-Pod hanging around the boat, however, told Andy that they wanted their reef back and were still hungry.
Andy ordered them to prep the net for another set and helmed his boat again, only to bomb out in a straight line and let J-Pod take care of the fishing from that point on. Once they’d finished, Andy moved the boat out of the Orcas’ way and stood outside the cabin with Jackie while the three aliens crowded the bow, watching and recording the whales going to work a second time.
“Ok, I think we might get a moment to talk,” Andy muttered to Jackie in Salishian. “New orders from the Council. There’s going to be a raid.”
Jackie sucked in a breath and looked at him, all levity gone. “Cambrians, Militia, or the Dummy Bunnies?”
“Militia and the Interior.”
Jackie whistled softly in surprise as her eyebrows shot up. “Really poking the bear, cuz… When and where?”
“Uncle Willy wants us to hit the Militia Supply Depot out by Tanner on Saturday,” Andy growled quietly as he watched Kalai pointing to Grammie Slick’s dorsal as she swam out on the picket around the net.
“You mean the one close to the Snoqualmish?”
“Yeah. Full raid, we’re to hit it and take any supplies, especially military, that we can and destroy what we can’t. The messier we can make it the better. We’ll meet up with the Resistance on the old Bessemer Logging road by Hancock Creek and they get half for taking the credit. Me and Chuck’ve been assigned to ‘lead’ you.” Andy nodded and tried to flick some of the fish scales off himself, but got nowhere.
Jackie sat down on the rail with a groan before looking back up at him with a smirk. “You mean babysit on overwatch while we do the real work.”
Andy pursed his numb lips together and considered the ramifications of folding his arms on the jellyfish burns that had started to go quiet thanks to the Motrin. “Grandma and the Council want me to ‘get my hands dirty.’” He gritted his teeth in frustration.
“What? I’m sorry, that sentence made zero sense.” Jackie shook her head like she’d just been slapped.
Andy couldn’t keep the frustration and anger out of his tone when he spoke. “Apparently there are doubts about my loyalty to the tribe and whether or not I’ve lost my way.”
Jackie huffed in amusement. “Everyone knows the Council’s fucking stupid, but this is a new level of dumb. You got us land back, you got them to allow you to break the rules to feed our people, they’re fixing the fuck ups on our waterways because of you and they think you’ve gone to the dark side?” Jackie started laughing at the nonsense of the politics.
“Last time we talked, you thought I was playing with fire and-” Andy started to throw back at her before she snorted loudly.
“Results talk, cuz. Three of our Hatcheries returned, and my whole family drawing good money in Imperial Credits? Fuck, even if you had sold out, we need more Clan Heads doing the same thing.” She smiled as she nodded towards their guests on the bow.
“They still don’t trust that I know what I’m doing,” Andy growled as he folded his arms unconsciously and immediately regretted it.
Jackie snorted. “Of course they don’t. You didn’t talk to them or get their permission first. Hell, I’m surprised your grandma didn’t chuck you out on your ear for even suggesting that you should work for the dummy bunnies.” Jackie stretched and hopped up and around Andy to grab a water bottle. “But it’s working out. There’s land being returned, money in our hands, and food about to be on our table. You’re doin’ what a Chief is supposed to do.”
Andy scoffed and started to object. “I’m no Chief-”
Jackie gave his shoulder a slap and grinned evilly as a starburst of pain and burning cut through the painkillers, shutting Andy up mid-protest. “You keep saying you aren’t, but that don’t make it true.” She resumed her seat as Andy fought the yowl of pain back so as not to give her the satisfaction. “I mean, case in point, what are you going to do with all these fish Grammie’s catching for us right now?”
Andy blinked a few times as he regained his composure and thought seriously about his answer. “We’ll pull fifteen for the gathering they got invited to… Then all the fish you can pack into the truck goes to the Exiles. The rest? I’ll call Chuck and get some folks from the Council to claim the rest and distribute it to the families that need it.”
Jackie deepened her voice and adopted a cowboy drawl. “He never eats until he sees the pots are full of meat in the lodges of the widows and orphans-”
“That’s Comanche Law, not Salish, and that’s from a John Wayne movie, you ass.” Andy huffed and Jackie giggled wickedly, flipped him off.
“Still haven’t refuted my point, cuz.” Jackie’s singsong voice caused Andy to glare spitefully at her, until she raised her hands defensively. “Alright, you’re not a Chief. So, Not Chief Tsu’titsi’uqw; you need to get your hands dirty and lead a raid. I’ll scrape up what we need and scout the target. You just meet up with us Saturday night at the Snoqualmish Casino and I’ll put a gun in your hands. Don’t worry, we’ll only get dirty enough to make the Council happy.”
“I’ll be a bit late; I’m escorting them to the Hwatcom Family Gathering on Friday.” Andy took a step back as Jackie stood up and twisted a bit to stretch out.
“No surprise there, grandpa’s an old school traditional Indian. They’re dummies, but they’re trying to do right by us, finally. Again, thanks to you, Chie-” Andy slapped the back of her head hard and growled at her, but she just started laughing, making him even madder.
“Alright, enough. Let’s get on the bow and not look like we’re sketchy Indians plotting to attack an Imperial fort.” Andy snarled, shoving her past him while she just kept laughing.
Andy stomped forward, aware of the wet sounds his boots made as he walked. Kalai turned and smiled at him as he moved to stand beside her and her father. “So how are they doing out there?”
“They just started their attack. This is fascinating! Their coordination, their ingenuity, and adaptation to human activity is astounding! I wish I had brought observation drones!” Sakalbi was glued to the binoculars and holding her omnipad up while she muttered observations into the speaker. Andy was content to watch as the pod put on a repeat performance and the net sagged again until they all came up and started swimming lazily around the net and the boat. All of them except Butterball and one of his older brothers. The two seemed to be getting into a jumping contest.
“He’s feeling a bit hyper. Must be nice to be full,” Jackie commented as the two whales took turns jumping out of the water and twisting in the air. Andy smiled and nodded and felt a hand go to his shoulder. He looked down and saw it was Kalai making eyes at him. Andy hid the grimace at the burn and gave her a wink.
“That one’s getting closer, should we be concerned?” Andy looked over at Dr. He’osforos and Kalai quickly moved her hand as they watched Butterball getting closer and closer with each jump.
Jackie hopped up and straddled the railing as Andy and Kalai shared a concerned look. Jackie hooked a hand around one of the roller horns and peered down into the water. “I don’t think so, I mean he knows we’re-”
The sudden appearance of a flying adolescent Orca only a scant few feet away from the boat right next to the lot of them cut Jackie off. Most of them only had enough time to watch the little playful bastard hang in the air for a moment before he twisted to almost shoulder punch the water as he came back down. Andy had just enough presence of mind to pull Kalai and her father down, and braced himself as the plume of water rose from where Butterball landed.
“Oh shi-” Andy heard Jackie say before water cascaded down on them and drenched them all, sending the boat rocking violently.
It took a moment for Andy to recover and he helped the two Shil back to their feet. “Quick check, is everyone alright?”
“HEY! WHAT THE HELL, BUTTERBALL! GRAMMIE! YOU HAVE A TALK WITH YOUR GRANDSON! HE’S GONNA GET SOMEONE KILLED ONE OF THESE DAYS!” Jackie screamed at the water, shaking her fist.
A camera shutter sounded and a dripping wet Mrs. Vaida stood, wide eyed in fear, staring out over the water.
Andy started laughing at the sight of his boss soaked to the bone, her hair and her fur a dripping mess. “That picture right there? You can title it: ‘Angry Native Woman Yells at Whale.’”
Kalai looked like she was on Krek’s doorstep. Akil’eas knelt next to her as he finished his examination and was looking over the readings on his omnipad. His daughter sat in front of the cabin on the little step, legs splayed out in front of her while she leaned against the railing on the side of the boat. Her father stood next to her as he finished a quick check of her vitals and her viral load.
“Unsurprisingly, you’re a bit elevated, but given your numbers over the last week, that’s saying that you’ve come back up to your normal levels.” Akil’eas had been worried. When they’d hauled in the net the second time, Kalai had stayed on the bow with the boy, Andy, while Akil’eas’d stood over the human woman’s shoulder and studied the controls.
Akil’ieas had also pitched in and helped fill the hold, but when he and Sakalbi could no longer stuff them in, they’d given up and stood out of the way. His old friend and colleague had spent the rest of the time recording, either the large predators that continued to circle and play around the boat, or the seemingly inefficient fishing practice of Andy and his people. No wonder he was so big, and his brother had been that strong. It beggared belief that their people worked at that backbreaking pace for so long, but there Andy stood, proud and tall at the end of it, while he and Sakalbi struggled to stay standing.
Akil’eas had to focus on keeping his hands from shaking and retrieved another water bottle for his exhausted daughter. Andy had them moving at a slow pace back towards a different harbor from the one they’d left that morning. They’d stopped briefly at the pier they’d started from to allow Jackie to disembark. The two humans packed all the fish that couldn’t fit in the hold up to Jackie’s truck and filled the bed of it without any help. She drove off with close to a hundred fish.
Now with the deck cleared, Andy told them they were on their way to the harbor most of his Band used. The trip had been slower going than the morning had been, but only because they were riding much lower in the water than they had been.
“King Triton’s farewell,” Kalai muttered looking up. Akil’eas followed his daughter’s gaze up to see a flock of white and gray seabirds calling out loudly as they kept pace with the boat as it headed towards the docks.
“It means work’s almost over. It’s a great sound, isn’t it?” Andy called out from the cabin where he sat at the helm.
Kalai shifted herself with great effort to look around the door to the cabin. “It sounds amazing.”
The smile Andy gave Kalai caused Akil’eas to have a pang of fatherly protectiveness, and only fatigue kept the scowl off his face. “Just wait, we’ll clean a few once we’ve off-loaded to the families. Fresh salmon tonight for everyone, and I’m cooking! Doc, we’d love to have you, too.”
“I’d love to but-”
Kalai grabbed his arm and stopped him. “Trust me, Papa, you don’t want to miss it.”
Akil’eas chewed his tongue for a moment, looking from Andy to Kalai. Sakalbi caught his eye and nodded emphatically. “Alright, if you’ll allow me to help. You must be exhausted.”
Andy beamed at Akil’eas, “You won’t hear me turn down free help.”
“Vaascon fellas don’t have no frills, Haul away, haul away! They’re plain and skinny as a lodthfish gill, And we’re bound away for Vaasconia!”
Kalai sat back and started singing between sips of water. Akil’eas sat down next to her and joined in the chorus for a Vaascon sailing song. It was strange to think that these humans also sang to their sea gods to placate them and coordinate the work. What else could you expect from a sailorman? Some things call to the soul across time and evidently even the gulf space and peoples.
“So heave him up my Turry Turry girls, Haul away, haul away! Heave him up and let the sails unfurl! And we’re bound away for Vaasconia!”
Andy’s voice joining in on the chorus startled Akil’eas and Kalai and they both turned to look back at him.
He gave them another wide grin, “I started learning some of the sail songs after Kalai told me about sailing on Shil.”
“Akil’eas, a word?” Sakalbi motioned with her head towards the bow and offered him a hand up. He followed her to the bow, leaving the two children singing together.
The harbor mouth was coming up fast, and between the noise of the engine and the net drum keeping them out of sight, there was some privacy. “I’ve heard some rumors about your feelings toward humans…” Sakalbi leaned against the railing, giving him the look that every teacher and professor had when questioning a belligerent student. When Akil’eas didn’t answer her, save to throw her back his own look, she continued. “Kalai is quite taken with Andy. It’s been quite a refreshing thing to see her come out of her shell.”
“It’s a vacation romance, nothing more.” Akil’eas felt his stomach clench and couldn’t stop himself from looking back.
“I don’t think so, Akil’eas. This is the first time I’ve seen her so on thorns and thistles around anyone, much less a male. She’s been very keen around him.” The smile she gave him was a bit galling, but he had to admit, he didn’t really know Kalai as well as Sakalbi and her spouses.
“He is… I’m sure he is a very nice young man, but as a fit consort for a soon to be Duchess? No, and I’ve yet to meet a human that is.” The thought of a human becoming the next Duke He’osforos was absurd. Sure there had been the occasional non-Shil Kho-liebhaberin or even the one Duke Aurar’ian He’osforos who was a Triki, but a human? “They’re far too individualistic and self centered to rise to the responsibilities of the Peerage.”
“That’s not exactly as large a sample size as you think it is, Leas. If you had Andy in your class, or on your crew, disregarding the fact that he’s human, what would your read on him be?”
Akil’eas locked his jaw and pursed his lips, defiantly. “I don’t know.”
“Come on, Leas, you’re better than me at reading people, and I’m damn good at it.” He hated how Sakalbi’s eyes flashed and her right ear would twitch when she thought she had the upper hand in an argument. He huffed a sigh and decided to play her little game, just to humor her enough so that she’d drop the subject.
“Dependable, fastidious and competent, judging by the state of his equipment and his boat. Self sacrificing, diligent, hard working, given what I’ve observed today. He’s got a temper, but it takes a bit to get there, and he’s carrying some pretty heavy emotional scars.” He’d not seen very much of Andy, but the old Sailing Master and Professor in him started to come out and assess the boy just as he would any of his students or junior sailors.
“That’s my read, too. Doesn’t sound so individualistic and self-centered to me. Blighted Nature, Leas, from what I’ve learned about him and his people, he broke with several of their traditions and customs to help us. He’s stuck his neck out far further for us than we would have for him and his people, for no other reason than to try and save his homeland. Were he an Erbian on Myr or even back home in Vaasconia, there’d be Groom-War over his hand.”
Akil’eas was a bit piqued about her statement, “What about your daughter? Kalai made no secret about little Sitry mooning after him, and her disapproval of their courtship.”
“She thinks she’s in love, and it very well might be that she is, but Kalai’s disapproval should tell you what it tells me, given your own rather astute assessment of the man.”
“HEY DOC! TAKE THE WHEEL, I GOTTA DRUM US IN!” Andy’s voice cut their conversation short as Akil’eas turned to look back around the drum. Andy waved him back as he slowed their approach to come in. “Take us to Dock 5, straight back and to port.”
“Straight back and to larboard, aye!” Akil’eas rattled off as he traded places with Andy at the helm.
Kalai heaved herself up to stand as Andy grabbed a large leather circle and ran forward to jump up on the bow. As Akil’eas piloted the boat into the harbor and made the turn, he saw a large crowd of humans gathered on the pier and the shore. As soon as they were in sight, he watched as Andy, standing tall, began to drum a beat and vocalize, projecting his voice over the water to those on shore. Akil’eas sputtered a bit in surprise as he guided the boat slowly towards the open mooring.
“That’s their call. His family’s song lets the people on shore know who he is and that he’s friendly.” Kalai looked back at Akil’eas before moving inside the cabin to stand next to her father. “All the families know it, but only he is allowed to sing it. It’s their version of a family crest and coat of arms. Elder Hwatcom taught us about those. There’ll be a reply in a second granting us permission to come ashore.”
There was indeed a response of drumming and singing from the assembly of humans as many started to crowd forward carrying what appeared to be coolers. Andy reappeared and took the controls back and reversed to kill their forward momentum as Sakalbi threw out their mooring lines to the waiting humans. Andy killed the engine and moved quickly out of the cabin to speak in a language that Akil’eas did not recognize. There seemed to be a bit of confusion from those gathered on the dock, but Andy opened the hatch to show the hold full of fish.
“Don’t thank me, thank them. Sockeye and Kings to all comers, courtesy of the Vaidas and the Vaida Warren!” Andy shouted happily in Vatikre as he pulled two giant fish out by their gills and handed them off to the applauding humans.
Sakalbi managed to shoot Akil’eas a smug look before she plunged her hands into the mass of fish and began helping Andy hand them out to the people.
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https://www.reddit.com/Sexyspacebabes/comments/yz0u3h/the_cryptid_chronicle_chapter_1/
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https://www.reddit.com/Sexyspacebabes/comments/13tppad/cryptid_chronicle_chapter_30/
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Possible Late Post Due to Vacation. I will try to post on time, but it may be as late as 6/12/23

edited to add a link to a comment from another redditor below that tells about a great podcast on this story. I'm so sorry about the length of this writeup, but every time I tried to cut it shorter, another thing was just too much wtf to leave out. Btw, u/FeelingResolution382, thanks for sharing this link! I know the write up is very long, so I hope people will like that option.
I haven't listened to the pod yet, but have heard really good things about it before so adding this episode to my to-do list.
In December of 1983, the mummified body of 13-year-old Theresa Feury was discovered hidden in a crawlspace within an apartment in Paterson, New Jersey. Just as barbaric as Sylvia Likens’ horrific murder and even more bizarre, a horrific tale of torture and long-term abduction was uncovered in the investigation.
In the summer and fall of 1981, 35-year-old Marie Moore lived in New Jersey with her 12-year-old daughter, Tammy Moore; a 12-year-old daughter of a friend, Harriet Bayne; and 50-year-old Mary Gardullo, who had been a longtime friend of Marie Moore’s. Through that summer, multiple neighborhood children began hanging out at Marie Moore’s home daily, and she took them on beach trips, amusement parks, and was generally beloved by the group of unrelated children, who even called her “Ma.” These included 14-year-old Ricky Flores, who was dating Tammy Moore; 13-year-old Luis Mantalvo; and the victim Theresa Feury, who was 12 years old in the summer of 1981.
In September of 1981, Marie Moore told the children that her ex-husband was actually the famous singer Billy Joel. Marie told them that he was Tammy’s father, and that Billy Joel had recently contacted Marie to express displeasure at the way the household was being run. The children were confused, of course. During this announcement, Marie received a telephone call, which she answered in front of the children. Claiming the caller was Billy Joel, Marie stated that Billy Joel would now be stepping in to “straighten out” the situation. According to Marie, Billy had decided that 14-year-old Ricky Flores would be given control of the house, as a way to test his suitability to marry Tammy Moore one day. Marie said that Billy Joel would be passing along instructions and chores to the children, and any disobedience would cause Billy Joel to “set bombs off in the house.” In addition, Marie said that Billy Joel was associated with the mafia, and if the children told their families or any other outsider what was happening, men from the mafia would hurt the families. She then instructed them that they would be required to meet at the Moore house every day after school.
Despite the initial confusion, Marie Moore’s adult roommate confirmed to the children that Billy Joel was real and was involved with Marie. It is unclear exactly what had happened, but Mary believed she had actually met Billy Joel while in California with Marie Moore in the past. Of course, that was not Billy Joel, but whoever he was scared Mary Gardullo to the point that when she learned of the initial re-contact in 1981, she was visibly shaken. The children believed everything. The fact that they thought Marie was receiving calls also helped to convince them, but Marie had learned how to manipulate the phone lines in this way while she worked at a phone company in the past.
The patterns of abuse and torture began almost immediately. Every day when the children arrived at Marie Moore’s home, she would “receive” a call from “Billy Joel.” While on the call, she would have the children repeat instructions given by Billy Joel, and when they inevitably recited something incorrectly, Marie told Ricky Flores that Billy Joel wanted him to beat the children with a wiffle ball bat. After this beating, the children completed the daily chores and another prearranged phone call would occur. Marie would direct Ricky to check the children’s chores, and when he reported they did a good job, she would say that Billy Joel disagreed on the phone and then Ricky would say that yes, the children did do something incorrectly or inadequately. This was followed by further directed beating with the bat.
Unlike Sylvia Likens, the abuse and torture was not directed at a single child. In fact, eventually everyone was physically injured and tortured. Even 50-year-old Mary Gardullo was soon a target, with Marie claiming that Billy Joel said she was nosy and needed to be punished. This occurred when Mary attempted to interfere when Harriet was being beaten. Later, Marie Moore would claim that Billy Joel wanted her punished as well, and so Ricky dutifully beat her as instructed.
During this time, the only children who lived full-time in the home were 12-year-olds Tammy Moore and Harriet Bayne. Harriet was initially more abused than the other children due to the constant presence, but all the children were punished upon their daily schedules.
Eventually, Marie Moore became concerned that Luis Mantalvo’s parents would begin to get suspicious. He was coming to the Moore home daily, but would return to obey his parents’ curfews. In October 1981, Marie Moore claimed that Billy Joel wanted Luis to go home and never return. However, Ricky was instructed to give him a final beating as a reminder to never mention the crimes to outsiders. After leaving with a bloody nose, Luis never returned and kept his silence. At that time he was 13 years old.
Ricky Flores had caring parents and they began to worry about what their son was doing. Th ey discovered that he had not been attending school at all, and the school told them that Ricky’s ‘mother’ had called to excuse his absences, claiming that Ricky had injured his back. This was Marie Moore, impersonating Ricky’s real mother. In response, Ricky’s parents grounded him strictly and began taking him back and forth to school each day. Ricky’s mother later said that she would see Marie Moore following them.
After a couple weeks of Ricky being under his parents’ care, Marie Moore approached Ricky when he was alone and claimed that Billy Joel demanded that Ricky move in with Marie to help her with an addiction to drugs. Ricky believed this and ran away, moving into Marie’s home full time. Despite multiple attempts to visit and get her son back, Ricky’s mother ultimately failed to save him. She did report the situation to the police, who investigated with CPS. Unfortunately, every time they showed up to Marie’s home, she hid in a crawlspace and eventually the authorities closed any investigation.
During this time, the overall bizarre story becomes worse. Marie Moore claimed that Billy Joel had men kidnap her and give her an injection that would allow him to possess her body. This ended the faked phone calls. The victims would later report that Marie would change her voice while she was speaking as Billy Joel, and also some behaviors. The children and Mary Gardullo all fully believed this situation. In the meantime, the beatings became more vicious. Claiming that the bat was not hurting the children enough, Marie Moore said that Ricky Flores needed to use heavy medical textbooks. It was in this time period that she also began demanding Ricky punish her as well. While Marie Moore and Ricky Flores did not initially have a sexual relationship, eventually Ricky was instructed that he was not to be with Tammy Moore any longer, and they apparently began sleeping together.
In late November 1981, a couple months after the nightmare started, Harriet Bayne escaped the home after several failed attempts. She was found on the streets barefoot and without a jacket, so police interviewed her and took her to the hospital, where proof of extreme physical abuse required a week-long hospitalization. Eventually, Harriet told social workers and authorities about the home she had escaped, including the address and names of Marie Moore and Ricky Flores. The authorities went to interview Marie Moore, who claimed that Harriet was a profoundly troubled child and claimed that she was self-harming. For some reason, the authorities believed that Marie Moore’s calm demeanor was more proof of her innocence than the physical scars on Harriet’s body proved guilt. They decided to make a suggestion that Harriet not go back to the home, and then committed her for psychiatric evaluation in a 90-day program.
During that time, she reported more details to social workers, who simply advised Harriet should not return to the Moore house, and also sent Harriet to a 90-day program for diagnosis of potential mental disorders. The social workers had interviewed Marie Moore, and they were impressed with Moore’s calm demeanor while claiming Harriet had severe behavioral and self-harm issues.
After Harriet was removed from the home, Marie Moore told Ricky Flores that the girl had been run over by Billy Joel for her disobedience. Believing this, Ricky apparently thought it proved the reach of Billy Joel’s power and influence, and thus he became even more loyal to Marie Moore.
Two main victims remained in the home after Harriet’s escape, 12-year-old Theresa Feury, and 50-year-old Mary Gardullo. At some time in late 1981, the household moved to a new residence that was owned by a friend of Marie, Ferdinando Ragusa. Marie Moore claimed that Ragusa was Tammy’s grandfather.
The torture became more severe against Theresa and Mary. Sexual humiliation and torture were introduced. A common punishment would include “thumb cuffing,” where Mary and Theresa would be bound by tying their thumb to their big toe while laying on their stomach, and then left them laying nude for hours. Beatings continued with heavy books, a bat, kicks and punches, and even cigarette burns.
On Memorial Day, 1982, Mary Gardullo escaped by telling Marie that she wanted to work some extra time to provide more money to the household. Instead, she contacted her siblings, who came and got her, and then took her to the police. Detective Tom Kerwin from the Toms River Police Department interviewed Mary for several hours. He described her as being in very poor shape, “very distraught and emotionally destroyed" and that she was in "very, very poor physical condition." He convinced her to seek medical attention. She did tell the authorities of the torture she had endured under Ricky Flores, but named Marie Moore as someone who knew what was happening, and she did not mention Billy Joel at all. She also gave the address and alerted the police that Theresa Feury was still in the home and enduring torture.
The authorities eventually notified the Paterson Police Department, who were the jurisdiction of the apartment’s address. A social worker was assigned, who interviewed both Theresa Feury and Tammy Moore while they were in school. They both denied the allegations of abuse but did admit they had seen Ricky Flores at the Moore home. When the social worker interviewed Marie Moore, Marie denied the accusations and said that Theresa was her godchild and that she would never harm her. At first, she denied any involvement at all with Ricky, but did admit that he had been in the home sometimes after the social worker told Marie the girls had already told them about Ricky’s presence.
Police also attempted to visit the residence. On June 7, 1982, the social worker went to the home with police, and Theresa tried to escape when she saw them. They caught her and tried to question her again, but she again denied all the allegations of physical or sexual abuse. Eventually they convinced her to disrobe and show her body, which displayed multiple bruises and injuries. Expressing surprise, both Theresa and Moore claimed that they didn’t know how the injuries had occurred, but they must have happened that day at school.
The authorities interviewed Harriet again, who repeated her story. They interviewed Theresa and Harriet together. Eventually, Theresa did admit that there was abuse in the home, but put all blame on Ricky Flores and claimed that Marie Moore was entirely innocent of all allegations.
On June 10th, 1982, Marie Moore was again interviewed and again denied all claims of abuse. However, she was reminded of the statements Mary Gardullo had already made, and eventually admitted that she knew of some abuse, but that she was also a victim, not a perpetrator. After learning about Luis Montalvo, the police attempted to interview him as well. Unfortunately, they did not know that Marie Moore had already approached Luis and reminded him of the way Billy Joel would retaliate if Luis said anything at all about the household.
In this final period, Theresa was the final remaining victim. At first, she maintained the daily instruction to present to the home after school, but still technically lived with her parents. On June 9, 1982, she was examined by a doctor, who remarked on the obvious signs of abuse and torture she had been suffering.
It is unclear how it happened, or what Theresa’s parents or guardians knew, but she became an official permanent resident of the Moore home on September 22, 1982. Court reports say that Theresa’s grandmother called Marie Moore and told Marie that social services were contacting them and that they wanted to speak with Theresa. Somehow, Marie convinced the girl and her guardian(s) that she needed to live with Marie.
The torture continued and worsened. By September 1982, the household consisted of Marie Moore, Ricky Flores, Tammy Moore, and Theresa. During the days, Theresa was cuffed to a hook on the kitchen wall. At nights, she would be cuffed to the bathtub. In addition to sexual abuse from Ricky Flores, Marie Moore would also take Theresa to Ferdinando Ragusa and force her to perform oral sex on the elderly man.
They began to starve Theresa and also would not allow her to use the toilet. At first they would provide a pot, but later made her wear disposable diapers, which were the only thing she was allowed to wear.
Theresa died in January of 1983, at 13 years old. The day of her death, she had slipped into unconsciousness during the abuse. Feeling that she was faking when she began to have seizures, Marie told Ricky to thumb cuff her again and leave her. The next day, they tried to get her to stand up and move to the customary cuffing spot, but Theresa would not move. After dropping her so that she hit her head, they then “pushed” on her stomach, which made a sound like “going to the bathroom,” and they believed this noise meant she was dead. They sent Tammy to school and wrapped Theresa’s body in garbage bags and duct tape, eventually shoving her into the crawlspace of the wall. Later they would tell Tammy Moore that they had sent Theresa’s body to Billy Joel in Boston. It is unclear when Theresa died, but in mid 1983, the household moved again, and the body was transported to the new apartment, where it was hidden again in a crawlspace until the December 1983 discovery by police.
Theresa’s grandmother spoke with Marie Moore periodically during this time. The last known conversation was in September 1983, when Marie Moore asked Theresa’s grandmother if she had heard from Theresa.
In July of 1983, Ricky Flores was working at a job when he saw his brother, Philip. He tried to run, but his brother chased him after confirming it was indeed Ricky. Unable to catch him, Philip went and got his mother, who said she knew Ricky would be calling. She asked Philip to place a copy of a police report she had made against Ricky in the mailbox at Marie Moore’s home. The next time she saw Ricky was July 12, 1983, in the police station after the cops arrested him for the prior charges of abuse and assault. They found him hiding under the kitchen sink of the Moore home, and they arrested him and also took Marie Moore in for questioning.
Marie now claimed to the cops that she kept Ricky in her home only because Ricky would have his “mafia boss” named Don DeMarco threaten to harm her and her daughter. The detectives did not believe this.
Eventually Marie Moore admitted that there had been violence in the household, but claimed Ricky Flores was a sweet, innocent boy, and that Mary Gardullo had instigated the violence by interfering too much. She was questioned about Theresa, who Marie claimed no knowledge about, other than repeating how much she cared for the girl and hoped she was safe. For some reason, the detectives charged her with having a sexual relationship with a minor but did not pursue more serious charges and she was free.
Meanwhile, Ricky Flores went back to live with his family and ceased contact with Marie Moore. At first, she attempted to get him to come back, and then began to plan ways to ensure he would not talk about what had really happened. She somehow met others she was able to convince to move in with her, a couple named Jorge and Lydia, both 20 years old, and their two young children, ages two and one. Again, Marie began telling Jorge and Lydia about Billy Joel and started doing the telephone stunts again. This time she did not resort to abuse, but she did eventually tell them that she had received the injection that allowed Billy Joel to manifest in her body. Jorge did not believe this, but Lydia did, and Lydia’s sister eventually joined the group and also believed.
The new group began to help her make plans on keeping Ricky Flores quiet, but Jorge’s disbelief did not allow the situation to explode as before. Still, they did remain and later told police about overhearing the coaching that Marie would give to Tammy. She wanted Tammy to claim that she had witnessed Ricky Flores beat Theresa to death and also that he raped Tammy. Tammy did give a statement to the police with these claims, and the police searched the property owned by Ferdinando Ragusa. Moore and Tammy kept trying to point to a depression in the backyard, claiming it could be where Theresa’s body was buried. They did find evidence of lime and a strong foul smell, but did not find any body. They made plans to come again and search the yard on December 22, 1983.
However, when no one showed up, Ferdinando Ragusa called the police department and inquired about when they would be coming. Detectives told him that they didn’t think they would follow through and would probably be closing the investigation, which was a lie. In a few minutes, Marie Moore called the detectives to ask about whether they were closing the investigation into Ricky’s supposed murder of Theresa, and they said that they would, hoping to see if anything would happen. Marie Moore then showed up at the police department with a piece of bloodied insulation, and the detectives then went to search the property again.
During the search, Moore and Ragusa finally exposed the crawlspace where Theresa’s body was discovered.
Autopsy showed that Theresa’s fatal wound was the blow to her head, but that death was not instant. Instead, the blood and other physical evidence indicated she would have been comatose but alive for up to 8 hours after she had been wrapped and taped, slowly suffocating as her brain swelled. Though there was not enough soft tissue to prove beyond a doubt that the tape and plastic caused fatal suffocation, the medical testimony made it clear that it was very possible, especially with the signs of life beyond the initial blow to her head.
Many interviews were conducted with different attempts by Marie Moore to evade blame. She claimed Billy Joel was never real, but then claimed that he was a real personality that Ricky Flores would ‘bring out’ of her. According to her, “Billy” had no part in Theresa’s death, and had not appeared after Ricky Flores was out of her life. She repeatedly insisted that Ricky Flores murdered Theresa alone and without influence.
The detectives charged Marie Moore with the murder of Theresa Flores on December 28, 1983. A decision was made to charge Ricky Flores as a juvenile, with maximum prison sentence of only three years. In return for this, Ricky Flores agreed to testify fully against Marie Moore. In addition, the other surviving victims would testify about the events that happened under the control and influence of Marie Moore. This included Harriet Bayne, Luis Mantalvo, Tammy Moore, and Mary Gardullo.
Mary Moore was charged with murder and other violent offenses against all the victims. On November 19, 1984, the jury returned a sentence of death after deliberation.
In 1988, her death sentence was challenged and overturned and it seems like they were instructed to retry her on the charge of homicide. They left intact the charges against her for kidnapping, attempted murder, terroristic threatening, and aggravated assault, for which she had been sentenced to 87-1/2 years without possibility of parole.
https://scholar.google.com/scholar\_case?case=1844707577344773566&q=state+v.+marie+moore+new+jersey&hl=en&as\_sdt=6,50
https://apnews.com/article/db1329f67ec58a98a31557a8d08fd775

Is this an actual song? Really hope they didn’t make this sick beat exclusively for the commercial 😅
https://www.ispot.tv/ad/1ozS/benjamin-moore-spring-sale-find-the-premium-color