TLDR:
Life status: Alive and kicking
Completion status: Completed my first long distance bicycling ride of around 235km over 20 hours of total riding time. 3.5 days including rest and stay. Thanks for all the tips!
If you're in Kochi, do yourself a favor and checkout Kerala Kathakali Center. They've incredible performances every night! Kathakali, kalari, carnatic, fusion and more are presented at the center.
Context:
I asked this subreddit for help in navigating my way through our roads from Trivandrum to Kochi about two weeks ago. Many of your suggestions were helpful as I completed the ride this Monday.
Rundown for anyone who might find it useful in the future:

• Day 1: ~50km from Trivandrum to Varkala. Stayed at HotelExp by Varkala; pretty good place for a short stay. I was there on a Friday; ended up finding an upbeat North Indian crew & spent the night partying :)
• Day 2: ~45km from Varkala to Kollam. Stayed at Munroe Meadows, a homestay. Beautiful place, they've naadan sadhya at nearby restaurant (Jai Jawan) and the owner arranged for a 2.5 hour canoeing ride for me to watch the sunset.
• Day 3: ~90km from Kollam to Allappey. Despite the distance, this had the best stretch along the beach. Chitchatting with people as I took a break by the beach, kids waving at me as I rode by, and I came across two other bicyclists going to Kanyakumari. In comparison to the first two days, the terrain being flat was super helpful. Ended up getting some great homemade lunch by an ammumma on the highway to Allappey. I stayed at Zostel Allappey and found a crew there for a hangout.
• Day 4: ~55km from Allappey to Fort Kochi. Similar ride to day 3, but shorter. Easiest day out & I arrived in Fort Kochi before noon with only a handful of juice/lime soda stops. Stayed at Hostelier for two days after arrival and explored the area with some travellers.

Takeaways:

• The biggest takeaway from my previous thread was to stay away from highway if possible. I was generally able to take main or side roads, but the last ~20km of the ride to Allappey was all on the highway. Can be a tough ride for amateurs without breaks, especially with the sun out.
• I learned not to ride with the traffic, because a car or bus will get too close every once in a while. I rode against the traffic and tried to stay alert during turns. Still had about 2-3 instances where the scooter coming towards me came to a halt.
• Two wheelers on highways love riding on the shoulder road. It's mostly due to four wheelers dominating the lanes, but there were a couple instances where I had to get off the shoulder road.
• Sharing my goal led to some really cool conversations with shop owners. Plus, kids who smile and wave give the much needed motivation on a long ride!

HumansBeingBros:

• My chain came off while on the way to Kollam, but two strangers came across and got it fixed in no time! Otherwise, I had to push the cycle another 1-1.5km for repair.
• On my way to Allappey, I stopped at a cycle repair shop for chain lubricant. They fixed a whole bunch of minor issues and didn't even charge a rupee!

That's it for now! Just wanted to say thank you to Kerala and all the help you provided. Enjoy your travels!

Hello! I’ve recently got my requested days off of work, so I am good to go for my first trip to Costa Rica, and my first ever solo trip. 3 nights in La Fortuna, one night directly next to La Paz waterfall gardens.
1st day, plane lands around noon. Hopefully out of customs and in my rental car by 2-3pm and on my way to La Fortuna. My goal is to reach La Fortuna before dark. Once I arrive, I plan on just settling in for the night. Maybe get some dinner, walk the trail that’s on the property of my hotel.
2nd day: Wake up early, and head to La Fortuna Waterfall. I hope to be there at around 7am, stay for a couple hours, then head to El Salto rope swing for a few hours. After that, I’ll probably go freshen up at my hotel and then get a day pass to one of the hot springs for the rest of the night.
3rd day: I wanted to make this my adventure/excursion day. Not sure exactly yet, but I want to either do an Arenal volcano hike, white water rafting, zip lining, or ATV tour, or hopefully 2 of these in one day. Please, if you have any advice or suggestions for these, let me know! I ranked them in order from most to least important to me, so if you had a great experience doing one of them at La Fortuna, I’d love to hear about it.
4th day: Check out and be on the road by 8-9am to my next hotel near La Paz waterfall gardens. I plan to spend the whole day at the gardens before retiring for the night in my hotel. My original plan was to stay in La Fortuna for all 4 nights, but once I heard about La Paz, I decided I needed to make it apart of my itinerary, given I was trying to center this trip around seeing the natural beauty of CR. Plus, it’ll put me an hour away from the airport instead of 2 1/2. But, if you think I should change it back to 4 nights in La Fortuna, let me know. All my hotels are refundable still so if I need to change them I can.
5th and final day: Wake up, eat breakfast, and head back to the airport. Flights leaves at 1:30pm, so this final day is all about getting home safely and on time
I’m looking forward to everyone’s suggestions and feedback! I am beyond excited as I’ve never traveled to Costa Rica before, let alone by myself. I’ve fallen in love with this country but haven’t even been there yet. Please, even if it’s unrelated to my itinerary, I’d love to hear your input and comments about CR!

Pt 1 If you haven't read it
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Pt 2 If you haven't read it
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Pt 3 If you haven't read it
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Pt 4 If you haven't read it
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To address a point brought up in the comments in Pt 4 about the spread of diseases, since any bacteria or virus would have to evolve to cross the species barrier, the spread of diseases to other species only start to become a concern after prolonged contact, and that's assuming it would even evolve to do that in the first place.
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Hope you enjoy Pt 5 and happy reading!
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After setting up the sound isolators, Will walked over to the portable synthesizer and used it to print these bottles which he then brought into the bathroom, which he had opened the door for. Along with the strange white opaque bottles he also brought that same pair of shorts that he had worn last night, presumably to change into. I think I much preferred it to a human's sleep. Sure it can be boring at times, and because half your brain is off everything feels kind of funky and you lack depth perception, but I just couldn't imagine what it would like to be totally unaware of my surroundings for so long.
Eventually, not too long after he closed the door, I heard these coughing sounds from the bathroom, I suppose when he took off his shawl to give some of it to me he must've inhaled too much dust. That was a really nice thing he did for me. I heard the toiled flushing and shortly thereafter the shower turn on. Wait a minute. Will had only had one meal today! and I haven't eaten at all! But yet, I'm not hungry, now that I think about it this planet seems to have a much faster day-night cycle, at least a half of what I'm used to. Not too long after he finished using the toilet, he began his shower, which didn't last very long, I just hope it's long enough to get that smell off of him.
He exited the bathroom, his damp skin glistening in the warm glow of the lightbulb. It struck me once more, this time much more so as I was closer to him and the lighting was better, just how tightly human skin hugs the body. Even with no depth perception I could still make out a significant number of the muscle groups. He didn't seem to notice my staring, all he did was sit down at the desk and watch a live feed of Kepler on his communicator, who, for the record I still don't trust. I may trust Will, but not Kepler, I will never trust that thing. Eventually, he got up and walked over to his bed, laying down in between the blanket and the mattress, only letting his head poke out, which faced away from me.
A few hours later, as the warm, red light of Ix crept in through the blinds, and the hunger became too much to ignore, I got up, slowly though as my back was rather displeased by the amount of time I had spent lying down. I stretched, and walked around a bit to try and clear out some of that fogginess that tends to linger after hibernation a bit quicker. Big day ahead. Glancing over at Will I noticed he was still asleep, which looked quite funny, eyes closed, drool was leaking from his mouth, occasionally twitching. He looked quite peaceful, cute even. By the time he had woken up, I had already gotten my UV cleanse done, and since he had taken a shower last night, he would need is paint inspected for any cracking, of which I would have to help with since he lacks proper motor function in his right hand. While I waited for him to be done changing in the bathroom, I used the synthesizer to print me a Nutrition Pack, which of course would remedy my hunger. I also tried to print his breakfast for him but apparently only he is allowed to print the hazardous chemicals, which makes sense I suppose. Instead I read over his report he made, was just detailing local flora and small fauna, infrastructure, weather data, architecture, etc, etc. All things considered I was quite proud of how he did.
"Hey so uhh, I wasn't sure if you noticed but, the day-night cycle here, super short." Will said, exiting the bathroom.
"I was just about to tell you that! Oh by the way I tried to print your breakfast but it refused since it included caffeine."
"Well thanks for trying but we typically eat different things for each meal, the categorization really depends on the person, but personally" he walked over to me and leaned over the table, inputting some numbers into the keypad.
"I really like to go for a BLT, some chips with a glass of water for my lunches." He said as the synthesizer spun into action once more.
"What's that?" I asked
"You wanna try it?" Will responded, side-eyeing me.
"Well.. no."
"Can you just tell me what it is?"
"Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, Mayonnaise, Everything bagel seasoning, bread, and some thinly sliced, fried potatoes."
"I think I'm sticking with my Nutrition Packs for now."
Will rolled his eyes, and with time to kill before we had to leave to catch the train we just talked some more.
"So has Captain Reloxyn responded to your report yet?"
"Mmm yeah, she said, let's see.. ah, "Good work, forwarding to Central Command.""
"Best response you can hope for."
"Really? Huh. Was expecting something with a bit more... personality."
"We all do at first, but the Federation is adamant that protocol be followed strictly to the letter in dealing with Pre-FTL societies, don't want to risk them finding out."
"I see, let's just hope I don't try to modify that synthesizer again." Will joked.
"You know, you'd make a great surveyor, you should put in a transfer request."
"Well that's new, usually I'm the one suggesting these kinds of things."
"But no, I think I'm good. I quite like being an engineer."
"Oh will you... looks like you got a little something around your mouth."
"Shit I do." He said straining his neck to glance over into the mirror.
"Eh, no biggie, I'm just gonna wipe it off with a paper towel." He said, inputting a new code for the synthesizer.
"So how's the Nutrition Pack treating you so far?"
"Just as flavorless as ever!" I said with a massive, very Will-like grin on my face.
After double checking all the disguise makeup was all intact, we both got ready to go leave to catch the train to Hl'ix. Once we got into the lobby Will tapped the bell on the check out desk to call for a receptionist, who turned out to be the same woman that checked us in the night prior.
"Leaving so soon! You haven't even gotten a chance to explore!" She said, rounding the corner to face Will.
"Yeah well we have a train to catch in about half an hour so we should probably be heading out soon."
"Well in that case your total is $40!"
Will glanced at me in terror, having entirely forgotten the matter of the bill. I got up bringing all our stuff with me over to the desk so I could manage it. Once I got there I reached into a pouch and pulled out the exact amount requested in local currency. Scouts always keep a very small synthesizer on them to produce currency.
"Here you go." I said handing her the money.
"Well have a great day and good luck on your travels!" Za'ul said as we left the building.
Thankfully the wind had died down, Will released another Weather Sheet for data recording, and gave me the weather run down, though this time much briefer than last time.
"It's nice out." He said
"Great, now which way to the train station?" I asked.
Will turned around scanning his environment.
"There! Look, here's a sign pointing to the train station, see, not that far!"
The sign read 1 kilometer, so it would probably take me about 20 minutes. Zorxians like myself aren't exactly known for our speed.
"Hold on, I'll take your stuff." Will graciously offered.
"Oh thank you!" I responded, handing him my suitcase.
Thanks to Will carrying my things for me, we made it to the station in about 18 minutes.
"Hi, could we have two tickets on the 10:30 to Hl'ix?" Will said to the ticket agent.
"Sure thing, here's your tickets! Enjoy your trip!"
Will walked over to me with the two paper slips in hand.
"Just got a transmission from Captain, a day here is about 16 hours. 8 hours of sun, 8 hours of night." He said, talking quietly as to not arouse suspicion in the waiting area.
"10 minutes until the train gets here." He said once again, though in a much less secretive tone.
We both made our way over to the platform. Will handed me my ticket, which indicated a private cabin was booked so we could discuss things without revealing our identities. The train was nice, with a reddish carpet illuminated by the same temperature lighting as from the hotel. The car we entered had a hallway running along the right side of the car, with about 6 rooms to a train. Each room was separated by a glass door which slid open and closed, and could be locked. I closed and locked the door behind me, and Will placed down the sound dampeners in the four corners of the room. Inside were two long couch like chairs running perpendicular to the window, with a table about 2/3rds the length of the room running down the middle. Above the seating were some racks for luggage, but not wanting to risk forgetting even the smallest of things, we placed our luggage right next to ourselves, as we sat opposite from each other.
"So, we should start going over some of our observations so far for the first full report." I said, pulling my notepad out of one of the pouches on my suitcase.
"Yeah, sure thing." Will responded, doing the same thing as I had just done by taking his notepad out.
"One thing I've noticed is that this planet never developed the use of hydrocarbons. When Earth was at this stage in development, we used them everywhere. Not saying it's a bad thing they don't use them, actually it's a good thing, just something I find strange. Looking at the planet's age one would assume that they'd have access to such recourse."
"Well, we used fossil fuels for a short while, but we ditched them long before we got here, technologically speaking."
"Huh. I wonder if we're an outlier, wouldn't be the first time." Will chuckled.
"How come you stayed with them so long?" I asked
"Weren't you aware of how dangerous they were?" I followed up.
"Oh we were, we know just how bad they could be. Now, this was prior to when we achieved post-scarcity so things were a little... complicated, so I'll try to sum things up. Basically, a very small number of people had amassed massive fortunes off of selling and trading fossil fuels, now at this time corruption was rampant, so they used these fortunes to maintain their dominance without actually needing to do anything. They lied to everyone, they influenced policies, funded denial, and tried to keep the science quiet. Things eventually thought got out of hand and it became impossible to deny, at least, outright denial. So instead they just stalled action, prolonged it, made it less effective, and in some cases, reversed it. Things got really bad. But, humans are resilient creatures, and sure, we caused a mass extinction event in the process, but eventually we picked up the pieces, and slowly but surely, reversed the damage we had done."
I had heard of civilization that had gone down that route before, I had even done a scout mission on one of those worlds before, but all that was left were graveyards.
"That's horrifying..." I responded.
"Yeah... that tends to be the reaction I get when I talk about our history. We did some pretty fucked up shit."
"Why...?"
Will sighed.
"It's just, humans are a diverse species, and you meet, more often than not, just some really wonderful people, but... there's also an astonishingly high number of shitheads. And for most of our history, we had societal structures that rewarded these shitheads."
"Huh."
"I should still include that right... the part about no fossil fuels?" He asked.
"Yeah, but just know it's not that big of a deal." I answered.
"Got it."
My communicator beeped.
"Looks like I'm getting a transmission from the ship."
"What does it say?" Will asked as he craned his neck over to me.
"Well it's a weather model, it looks like those big wind and dust storms happen every couple of days- our days I should say, we just happened to be a little bit unlucky with timing our landing."
"Right, when does it say the next one's coming?" Will sat back down in his seat.
"Not for another 3 us days, or about 5 days here."
"You know, I really wasn't a fan of the whole using the local days for sleeping. I much prefer the 24 hour days I've gotten used to on the ship."
"Yes I too agree, but it would be far too risky to do so."
"Suppose." Will said, turning his head to face the window.
"So could you tell me a bit more about your family?" I asked Will.
"Well, I already told you about Mike, he was just an absolute shithead, you already know that. My sister, Kim, she's wonderful. A few years older than me, my parents adopted her since they weren't sure if it was safe to have another kid after Mike... but here I am! So the doctor got that one wrong! Anyways, she helped me a lot, with school, dealing with Mike's bullshit, friends, she was the first person I told I was gay. I don't know where I'd be without her. My dad, he was an inspector for the Department of Agriculture, so always away stars know where to inspect some farm. My mom was a surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital so always dealing with some kind of medical emergency. That's why Mike was able to make my life so fucking miserable for so long, that and he had all his friends do it for him, plausible deniability and all that shit. When I was 12 my mom got this promotion, which meant my dad could quit and stay home, so Mike stopped but that's when he got his friends to do it for him. Eventually when my mom retired a few years later she found out about the shit he did and got his friends to do it for him and cut him off while he was away at University. It served as a wakeup call for Mike, he's now a maintenance technician, inspecting buildings, roads, train tracks, all that stuff. I'm kind of glad he got his shit together, he did apologize, I know he means well now and I do think he's made a change for the better, but it's just so hard to forgive him. Kim, she works for The Federation too, but as one of their ambassadors at the Lunar Embassy on Shackleton Crater."
Unlike last time I asked him, his eyes didn't well up, but he just kept rubbing his face, making the skin all puffy.
"Oh, careful you don't rub the makeup off." I told him.
"I'm thirsty I... I should get some water."
Will opened up his suitcase to grab the synthesizer, pressing a few buttons and quickly making a bottle of water before quickly putting the synthesizer back. I decided it was wise to do the same, but instead grabbing a Nutrient Drink from the outermost pouch of my suitcase. After chugging down the entire bottle, Will turned to me once more and asked:
"Right Tomō, now you have to tell me more about your family."
"So my parents were both professors at the University of Lenage, my mom was a Professor of Language Development and my dad was a Professor of Anthropology, they would often go on research trips together all over The Federation, and since they went together they would bring me, and eventually my brother, along with them. I suppose that's where I developed my interest in Pre-FTL scouting."
"Damn." Will chuckled.
"You know, I don't really blame my parents, I used to, but they did their best. Mom had a late start to her career, didn't realize she wanted to be a surgeon until she was 28, and my dad quit as soon as he could, plus he kept trying to get transferred to a different department so he wouldn't have to travel. They did everything they could."
"KCHH This is the conductor speaking just wanted to give you all a heads up that we are now on final approach to Hl'ix Central with an ETA of 5 minutes. Please start getting ready to disembark. KCHH"
We both stood up, Will collected his things, and I collected mine. He packed up the sound dampeners and we both did a second inspection of each other's sides to make sure we didn't miss anything. By the time we had finished doing so I unlocked the door to the room, and stood in the line that began to form out the door as the train slowly rolled to a stop.
*ding*
The doors had open and we all began to make our way out the car, we both walked over to the right side of the station marked "EXIT" we made no time to inspect the station hall, as to not arouse suspicion. upon exiting we were greeted by buildings no higher than 15 floors, though much taller buildings could be seen under construction off in the distance. That, and the metro station entrance across the street being marked as "Central Station/Historic Hl'ix" lead me to conclude that they had decided to preserve the older, more centrally located parts of their city, and push the newer developments further away.
"There!" Will said over the sound of the crowded sidewalks and jammed roads
"Hotel!"
"Okay!" I shouted back.
The light to cross the street changed and we made our way across and down the block, arriving at the hotel just a few moments later. Upon entering, the building was far nicer than the one we had stayed at in Urup, and Will darted to the check in desk to get us a room, I followed suit.
"Hi there! My name is Rozca, what can I do for you?" The man behind the desk said to Will as he approached.
"Well we would like a room, preferably one on your top floor."
"Well sir, the top floor only has suites, and suites only have one bed, unless one of you sleeps on the pull-out."
After a few seconds of deliberation Will responded.
"Sure thing we'll take that."
"Alright and for how long will you be staying with us?"
"Just for 3 nights."
"Alright, your total is $3,650."
"Here you go." Will said, pulling the money out of the small pouch I had handed him earlier.
"Your room is 1507, Enjoy your stay!"
After grabbing two keys, one for each of us and handing me my copy, we headed over to the elevator, got in, went up to the 15th floor, walked over to our room and dropped our luggage off. Will gestured for me to come inside.
"So, we need a plan for exploring the city." Will said once he had placed down the sound barriers.
"Now I propose that we take the train over to where all the new development is, and meet back at the metro station over there around dusk to head back here." He said standing back up.
"And we can put these trackers on each other so we know where we are." I said, rummaging through my suitcase to grab the tiny, transparent, tracking beacons that adhere to the skin.
"Found them!" I said holding the labeled baggie.
Carefully taking one out I placed it on his right forearm, which felt strange to the touch as I was able to feel the muscle fibers lying beneath the skin. Then, taking the other one out, Will placed it on my right forearm, which I'm sure must've felt equally strange to his touch, the loose skin sliding around. Afterwards, we took our communicators and paired them to each other's beacons.
We both left the room shortly afterwards making sure to lock the door behind me as I left. Heading out the lobby back into the busy sidewalk we made our way to the metro station, descending into the cool underground tunnel. We both bought our tickets, with the train arriving just moments after we got to the platform. The train itself was quite crowded, and a quick change of gloves made it socially acceptable to grab onto the straps hanging from the ceiling. The ride itself only lasted about 8 minutes, stopping at about 3 places along the way. We got the ticket hole punched on the way out, walked up the stairs and went our separate ways to observe and explore the more modern parts of town.
After about 10 minutes of walking I paused to take in my surroundings, craning my neck upwards to examine the under-construction skyscrapers. Lost in observation however, I failed to notice a vehicle coming my way.
I heard the whirr of the electric motors but it was far too late.
I heard the gravel cracking beneath the spinning tires, but I failed to pay any attention to it.
It was only when I felt the hand grab onto the back of my sweater that I finally, truly, paid attention to what was happening.
And now, I found myself in the back of a van, and a piece of black cloth covering my eyes, with another one stuffed into my mouth.
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Looks like I'm going to leave it off there on a nice cliffhanger, Pt 6 should be coming out Friday since that one's going to be quite the action packed part. Hope you enjoyed!

I don’t even know where to start. I (30F) have been with my bf (34M) for a year and a half but have known him for over 5 years. We both work in construction and travel for work. We both are part of management team in big projects. He is in NM and I am in TN. He has 2 kids from his previous marriage and I we made the deal that he was going to use his vacation time to go visit his kids in NC and since I have more flexibility with my schedule I’ll go visit him. He has came to visit me at times her in NC. We joke around, laugh, go on our lil adventures and have a good time while we are together. Rough around 8 months in he asked me to move in with him and to be on the road with him or to at least give him a date for me to move in. I just said March 17, as at the point my lease at my apartment was going to end. Also, within one of our many conversations we talked about that if I were to get pregnant that I would move in with him, ASAP. As time got closer I realized I wasn’t ready to give up my career to be a housewife just yet. As time got closer I told him that I wasn’t ready to move in and to let me finish this project. He was upset but he agreed. However, March 19 I find out I’m pregnant. I told him and of course he was happy, I was too but I was scared (still am). He asked me so when are you going to move in? As we both had previously agreed that if I were to be pregnant I would quit and move in with him. I asked him to give me time to let me arrange everything. Well, as time has gone by he kept asking and asking. I have been scared to leave everything to the unknown, loose my income, my career that I worked soooooooo hard to achieve. As a female in construction it’s not easy. I think about my insurance, my doctor, so far away from family and close friends. And I have pushed it off more and more. He has gotten more and more upset about it that he started picking fights and making me upset more and more often. Well, on my 30th bday I decided to throw a party and suprise my family with my pregnancy and that we would revealed the gender. He was 100% involved in this party, and he helped me put so much. Well during the party right before cutting the cake him and I revealed we were expecting. My family was super happy. Before we were going we revealed the gender, they started singing happy birthday to me, while I’m infront of the cake. The cake was a two tier cake and the baker purposely left on of the sticks to keep in place uniced so it was visible but discreet. In our culture it’s common for someone to push the birthday person into the cake. My niece did say the cake has the little spikes. Well my bf decided to push my head into the cake. When he did I felt the sticks him my face and one almost hit my eye. I instantly got mad at him. I was like WHY WOULD HE DO THAT. I tried walking out to cool down and he proceeded to try to hold me there to talk to him. I told him to let me go and he wouldn’t so I swong at his face and then went to clean up. He got mad and in front of my family said that I can do this by myself, yelled other stuff to ke and drove off. My family tried to calm me down, telling me that it’s not good for the baby. I called him numerous times he rejected every call. After an hour, everyone was asking me to reveal the gender. They were eager to find out. So I grabbed the canons and handed one to my brother and the other my mom. And they ended up revealing the gender (boy). About 30 minutes later he returned to give me my ultrasound pictures I had given him. And told me he would see me in court to see his child but he was DONE with me. The party ended and we talked. He told me he didn’t know that cake had sticks, if he did he wouldn’t have done that. He also said that he didn’t hear when my niece said it outloud because someone else was talking to him in the moment. He is extremely mad that I allowed my family to know and to tell the world we were having a boy. He is mad at my family and at me. He told me that he will not stand in front of my family ever again nor allow them to me our child until he decides because “they stole a moment that should have been his.” He said they should have stopped me because he sould have been there too. I don’t think my family is at fault. I can understand me because I told them to do it, after they asked me to reveal it. I will say I called him at least 30 times before the reveal and he didn’t answer. Btw he knew before hand the gender. In my opinion he shouldn’t have left. He blames everyone except himself. I think we both did things wrong. I also think he is blaming my family for something that is his and my fault. He should have at least answered the phone and I should have thought things over better before doing it.

Hello there planning a 7-10 day trip from Los Angeles to Calgary or Edmonton August (25/28) to September 5th
Plan is to 2 days at each park with intent of sightseeing and hiking enjoying some food
Rough Itinerary: Day 1) Aug 25-28th Fly out: LAX to Calgary (typically red eyes early morning or soonest departure), get rental car and check into room to get rest Day 2: Shuttle bus to Moraine Lake 4am or earliest for sunrise, then do a hike to shoreline, Johnston Canyon to lower falls, explore Banff (possibly gondola ride up) and hot springs resort
Day3: Lake Agnes trail loop to Lake Louise big and little beehive) explore more of Banff or other small trails I find, relax in town possibly day 4 if something else i want to do
Day 4 or 5 (head to Yoho and Icelandic parkway) -sleeping arrangement in either area
Days: 6-7 finish off Jasper and either begin heading back down to Calgary or make my way to Edmonton to fly back home
Since I’m taking possibly the week off August 28-sept 1st and and don’t return to work until September 6th due to Labor Day weekend
i May fly out Friday night 8/25 from LAX or early 8/26 since
Hotel pricing is a bit too expensive for my taste since all this is not being split with a group hostels are an option I just am unsure how others feel about me waking up at 4-5am to get up and early to beat crowds and start hikes in a 6-8 bed room dorm + my loud snoring
I’m trying to find either private room air bnb or private room hostel as I have seen those on YouTube
Just wanted to get anyone’s feedback and insight on cheap locations to stay + places to not miss out there
Willing to drive as I am used to 3-4am on the road with a red bull in my hand and gummy bears in the other just wanting to have a good time exploring!

Some context. I (24F) have been married to my husband (27M) since 2018 and we have a daughter (3F), and one on the way. We have lived in Idaho mostly since we got married. My family, including my mom, older sister, older brother, and step dad, all live in Texas. We spent the summer of COVID living with my family down in Texas to save on expenses, and then moved to Utah. We moved back to Idaho, near my in laws, last August. My sister is getting married in less than 2 weeks and then she and her fiance will be moving to Utah for his grad school.
We try to visit my family when we have the time and money to travel down. We choose to drive since we'd rather handle our toddler on the road than on a cramped plane, and overall, it costs less for us to drive than to fly, since it would cost us over $1000 for all 3 of us to get round trip tickets. We will be driving down for the wedding and plan to arrive late Thursday night, before the wedding on Saturday and rehearsal dinner Friday. I am the maid of honor and am happy to be. We plan to leave Monday morning after the wedding, since it will take us about 2 and a half days to drive back and my husband only has so many days he can take off of work every year, and we like to use them for other things throughout the year as well, and he will be taking 6 days already with our current travel plans.
My mom has always complained to me about how much we visit my husband's family, since it's always been a lot easier to take a weekend trip to see them for holidays and special occasions since they only lived maximum 5 hours away, and now we live in the same city as them, and seems to resent the good relationship I have with my mil in particular. We try to plan Christmas so that we rotate between my in-laws and my family, but since we're coming for the wedding, we won't be able to afford Christmas too, on top of not wanting to travel with a newborn, since I'm due in September, which has greatly upset my mom. She has been complaining about it to me whenever she can for months ever since we booked our non refundable hotel stay and told her about our travel plans.
I just got a video message from her crying and talking about how upset she is about how we decided to only stay for 3 days in Texas, and because she's going to be so busy with the wedding she won't be able to spend any time with us or our daughter, and that she offered to let us stay in their camper, since their other 2 bedrooms are occupied by my sister and my brother, and we booked a hotel to have our own space and a comfortable bed to sleep on since I'm about 5 months pregnant.
I do feel for my mom and understand it's hard for her to be so far away from me and my family and not be able to see us as often as my in-laws, but I also get frustrated when she constantly complains about how short and far apart our visits are, even when we're in the middle of a visit she complains.
So aita for only staying for 3 days for the wedding?

Back again!
A huge thank you to everyone who has given me feedback so far, it's so helpful, if a little frustrating that I can't seem to crack this query. Though I think I've realised one reason why. I decided to go back and read my MS and I noticed that the inciting incident I've put in my query letters, is not the actual inciting incident of the story.
That's been changed along with more tweaks. I'm still stuggling with finding that line between detail and flow (I've heard the best queries read like a blurb?). A lot of the feedback I've recieved is that some things need explaining more, so I've found it hard to tread this line.
Please have a read of version 4 and let me know your thoughts. Also included a slightly updated first 300.
Version 1Version 2Version 3
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Dear Agent,
With breathable air becoming rarer by the day, eighteen-year-old Feenix DeSuza’s only concern is for his secret Terrarium and the homemade oxygen inside. The hidden room is full of rare plant life and big enough for him to snuggle up inside and forget all about the bloodthirsty maniacs roaming the dead air. For years the good people of Hypoxia, Earth’s only other source of oxygen, have been at war with these Outliers. Feenix couldn’t care less.
Until his best friend Peri is attacked by one and left for dead. Feenix seeks revenge. The culprit’s name is Gidget, and Feenix quickly regrets picking a fight with her. Bruised and bleeding, Feenix prepares for the finishing blow, but instead the unthinkable happens. She communicates. She doesn’t want blood. She is not his enemy. Triska Turowska, Feenix’s leader, has been feeding his city propaganda. It seems the war has been a good distraction. Gidget reveals humanity has less than a year’s worth of oxygen. But there’s hope. Rumours of a Terrarium the size of a small city.
Reaching it requires a convoy, which Triska will not allow. So Feenix challenges her to an endurance race through dead air. The winner getting to call the shots. He thinks he’s victorious, but Triska has other ideas. Feenix and Gidget are left with no other option but to strap on an oxtank and head deeper into the dead air than anyone has ever gone. If they can’t find this new Terrarium, Hypoxia and all his friends will die.
At 95,000 words and with cross-over potential, TERRARIUM is a young adult sci-fi adventure shelved between Marie Lu’s Skyhunter and Andy Weir’s Artemis.
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I was two and a half klicks from the nearest body of water when the drowning began.
The Corredor Norte-Sul used to purr, but now, as I hyperventilated my way through a maze of discarded car shells, it festered. High-rise buildings towered either side. Terraced condominium blocks and apartment hotels stood faceless, their concrete façades weathered down to the steel reinforcements. Sao Paolo indifferent as ever, offering nothing but rebar and rust in support.
My diaphragm lurched and I sucked in a lungful. I couldn’t even register the trace amount of oxygen entering my bloodstream. My lungs felt like they were on fire when in fact, they were dry
But it wasn’t time yet. I’d let them wait a bit longer.
See, that’s where me and the Dead Air Academy disagreed. Dead air wasn’t to be feared; it was liberating. Each breath was nothing more than a tool to make me stronger, more resilient.
I toyed with the respirator in front of my lips, resisting for another few seconds, then I placed it between my teeth and breathed hard.
When the dark patch had receded from my vision, I checked my watch. Nineteen minutes and thirty-eight seconds. Damn. I’d hoped to break twenty minutes. I shrugged it off. There was always next time, and I needed to keep moving if I wanted to make it to the Terrarium by sundown.
I clambered on top of the nearest car body, inhaling the combination of century-old rust and day-old sweat. The roads in Sao Paolo were so overwhelmed with abandoned vehicles that it was easier to jump from car to car than try to stumble inefficiently between them. In front, a pathway of dents indicated the previous paths I’d taken—more than a dozen, at least. These journeys were boring as hell, so I’d made up a game to make things a little less bleak.

Advent Home
trigger warnings
rape, suicide, physical abuse, emotional abuse.
https://www.wvgazettemail.com/news/legal_affairs/more-former-students-sue-over-alleged-abuse-at-boarding-school/article_db70c152-c8db-5711-82dc-52e3d26303ab.html
chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/WEST-VIRGINIA.pdf
note: Several organizations share a name with the Advent Home. I am specifically referring to the now defunct group home near Calhoun, Tennessee.
We talk a lot today about trauma in a way I don't remember it being discussed even in the broader cultural consciousness when I was young. Mental health was just viewed differently. Adventists have always had a weird relationship with mental health, but I think rarely more strange and harmful than the ideas of Dr. Senior and the Advent home. Through most of this I will use fake names but as Dr. Senior's name is intrinsically and publicly tied to the school he is my one exception. Also, if any reading this had the misfortune of also attending the school, you will know we were told to call him Dr. B or Dr. Blondel but we are adults and his title was Dr. Senior.
I've wanted to write about this for some time and this will likely be a first draft of a larger discussion. Psychology isn't my field of expertise and I've never felt I found the right platform to talk about such a niche subject but finding the Ex Adventist sub and with more being said about mental health I at least feel qualified to discuss where I feel Adventism was used to twist psychology into something harmful by Dr. Senior.
Before I continue, I wasn't there for the worst of what was to happen nor did I receive the worst of what happened in my time there. I also cannot entirely claim innocence of some of the emotional bullying that was tolerated if not encouraged. I hope I have grown since then and have learned from mistakes I made when I was 13 and do believe I am largely innocent of the physical bullying and certainly the sexual assault.
First, I want to address the lawsuit. As I say, I wasn't there for most of this as by 2014 the Advent Home and Miracle Meadows seem to have become much more closely related, swapping students to hide them from law enforcement and deposition. The school closed around 2014 , the time a lawsuit was filed. More lawsuits have since been filed and the director of the sister school miracle meadows was imprisoned. I will link the lawsuit and articles above. As the events detailed in it represent a massive escalation from what was happening while I was there, but I do think the events described are merely the codification of the policies being unofficially implemented on a smaller scale in my time. In short it lays out regular forced sexual assault by students and staff, duct taping students in rooms for days if they were violent and forcing them to study the bible for days at a time as punishment. Thinking back, I can see how the deference to authority and refusal to treat mental health as anything other than a religious failing could lead to the behavior detailed in these allegations. To be clear I am linking the allegation and articles below though I wasn't part of any of these trials and don't know which charges exactly stuck.
Even though the school is closed and from what I can tell Dr. Senior is retired, I think there is a larger discussion to be had about how the Adventist Church handles mental health and firebrands. So, what was the Advent Home? The Advent Home was a young men's reform school begun by Dr. Blondel Senior in Calhoun, Tennessee. There isn't much left to find on it as it shut down around 2014 and never had a great online presence. I suspect a lawsuit around the same time was to blame, as, if any of its allegations were proven, it would have cost the advent home, Dr Senior, and the conference a lot of money and embarrassment. More on this later.
The Advent Home advertised a range of services from treating ADHD and general misbehavior to serious developmental disorders and outright criminals. Basicall, he wanted it to be everything from a more structured middle school to a juvenile detention center, and predictably, it would fail at both.
I don't know how my mom found out about the Advent Home, but I know her reasons for sending me. A nasty divorce between my parents caused me to lose interest in schoo, so I barely passed 8th grade, and I had started listening to Eminem. That's it. it seems so laughably tame but that's all it took for Dr. Senior to be able to convince my mom that this behavior would escalate and the only recourse was his school which was built on and advertised correction through a strict adherence to Adventist principles. Every student came with fundamentally different problems. Some, like me were struggling scholastically while several had been ordered there by courts for violent offenses and several had what I cannot give another name other than a complete stall in mental development (one student thought and acted like a toddler, mentally and emotionally well below his age).
We were all, however, given the same treatment regimen, Maturation Therapy. This I will argue is the root of the problem. Dr. Senior claimed to have gotten his PHD in psychology from the University of Jamaica. I am not going to cast aspersions on this institution, but if he did have this degree he missed some crucial lessons and did not keep up on developments in the field. Dr. Senior had identified 70 ideals he believed every young man should emulate as he matures. I could not possibly list them, but they ranged from keeping a clean room, respect for staff to whether you used harsh language to how often you prayed. These would have made for fine rules for a religious correctional facility, but this was the entire treatment plan. Each of the 70 points would have you ranked 1-5, and you graduated by achieving a 4.5 average. 230 points overall. An important note here is all of these points were external. There was no mention of healing trauma or discussion of past actions. We were seen as immature children and by forcing mature behavior our other issues would right themselves. Right? In short, Dr. Seniors idea of therapy was entirely about becoming presentable, respect for authority, and respect for God. I want to go through these because in each I see a failing not only of the school but Adventism's handling of mental health in general. Also while I cannot speak to the lawsuit I will be linking it below as I believe sexual assault survivors and I want to say what these points contribute to how this environment may have developed.
His entire idea of personal growth was based on becoming outwardly his idea of a respectable man. He was willing to cross any number of boundaries violating others' religious taboos, disregarding the desires of the parents and showing no interest in the students as individuals. We were broken and needed only to be put in his mold and recast. One student was Rastafarian and his father wrote a letter explaining their faith and why he shouldn't cut his hair. His father had barely left town when the boy was forced to get his hair shorn off. Our 'civilian' clothes were confiscated on arrival and sorted for how appropriate he felt they were. Anything he didn't like we would get back when we left. I never did. As for speech we were strictly regulated on what words we could say. Cuss words, and even adjacent words like darn, would result in a loss of points and thus longer before we would be able to go home. Instead of psychological healing, his priority was always to make us look healed on the outside.
The most egregious example of this was a boy I will call Zach. Zach had a severe developmental disorder that in my opinion Dr. Senior was woefully ill-equipped to treat but that never dulled his confidence. Because of his neurodivergence Zach was habitually unpresentable. Zach would frequently have food dripped down his shirt, throw temper tantrums in public areas and speak loudly about bodily functions that would have been amusing from a four year old but Zach was almost 14 and just beginning puberty if you get my meaning. At every turn, Zach was not met with treatment but ridicule. To the Advent Home staff, he wasn't sick, he was misbehaved and punished severely for it. We all had to run up to 3 laps of 1/3 of a mile as discipline regularly, but Zach's condition often racked him up more laps than could be humanly run. at one point, a new staff member refused to allow Zach to eat at all until he completed a number of laps I doubt would be humanly possible, let alone for a confused neurodivergent. One of the proudest moments of my life is that I stood up for Zach and pointed out, whatever punishment was meted out, food was an illegal method of punishment in the state. My shame, however, is how often I joined in the ridicule and bullying of Zach when the staff made punishments for his misbehavior punishments for all of us. As I say, I hope I have grown.
Dr. Senior saw scruffiness and cultural differences very much the way the Dursleys from Harry Potter did. These were not the markers of young men expressing themselves or of cultural differences but of moral failings to be stamped out or hidden until they faded into normalcy. We didn't need to discover ourselves, we needed to learn the joy of conformity
The real problems would come with his reliance on authoritative structures. Both the staff and students had clear hierarchies within them. New students would be Group Members, GM, while you could be promoted to Assistant Group Leader, AGL, a Group Leader, GL, with a possible Super Group Leader SGL at the top All leaders had the authority to report misbehavior and physically restrain violent students. Here, we start to see the problems. What constituted violent behavior was entirely up to the authority figure, and unless there were witnesses who ranked equally, Dr. Senior would implicitly believe the higher ranked individual. Keep in mind that some of these kids had real criminal records, and as I've established, we were not getting our problems treated.
I want to use one student as an example. I'll give him a fake name (James) as I hope he's reformed and also should not be judged entirely on his actions when he was 16 but these are actions I either witnessed or saw the fall out of so believer their veracity. I was walking by him one day. he had been given a job he didn't want to do. Instead, he was sitting talking to a group he bullied but passed for his friends. He called out to me to do the job for him. I laughed and kept walking. he took offense and deciding I had disrespected him, chased me down, hit me, tackled me into the gravel road, and held me there until I begged to be released. Those words; I beg you to release me. I was cut, bruised, crying and bleeding. James was unharmed, but when I told Dr. Senior, he believed James because he was a group leader and I a lowly Group member.
One of the students who had been sitting on the steps with James, who I will call Sam, would get caught performing oral sex on James only a few months later. James assured Dr. Senior Sam had asked practically begged to do it, and here again, James authority had him taken at this word. They both received punishment, but Sam got the lion's share as he had initiated and must be gay. I firmly believe James pressured Sam into this, and likely not just this once.
Dr. Senior said the word "manipulative" more than anyone i have ever known. often as we lowly students tried to explain actions or avoid discipline for petty offences, he would accuse us of manipulating. In hindsight, this is how he viewed the relationship between those with power and those without. There were those the system had put in power and those below who now would try to manipulate those who had the power. from the bottom of the ladder, he was incapable of seeing sincerity or pain. only manipulation. To be clear, I don't know how much of the reality reached Dr. Senior's ears, but enough had to he had to be actively ignoring warning signs in favor of authority. I talk about this to show how Dr. Senior felt strongly that respect for authority was essential regardless how abusive the authority figure might be. Hold on to that too.
The final point is religion. It should not need said, but Dr. Senior wanted all of us studying the bible and practicing a very conservative faith even for SDA. This is fine(ish), but he also believed that Christ had predictable healing powers and that mental health was only a failing of the individual to have the faith necessary for healing.
We were all encouraged to discontinue any medications we might be taking. For me, with ADHD and Ritalin this was probably fine, but for one student with borderline schizophrenia this led to several violent episodes he was blamed for despite the staff convincing him to get off his meds. A diabetic student was eventually pulled from the program after his 4th hospitalization when he was allowed to opt out of his insulin/ blood sugar checker. Christ, as a placebo alongside medicine, is silly but fine, but as a replacement for lifesaving drugs, it can have dangerous consequences, and Dr. Senior refused to see this. In Dr Senior's mind, I believe, these boys weren't sick, they were failing to let Jesus in to heal them and that's what needed to change.
Furthermore, behavioral incidents were often met with explicitly Christiaan remedies. Issues of bullying and cursing would require not time out but a scripture reading. sometimes alone sometimes publicly, along with a public admission of what we did. This was done at a weekly meeting when Dr. Senior came down from his literal house on the hill to play mediator and in no metaphorical sense moral arbiter of our actions. in essence, he got to play God for 2 hours a week.
The most heinous example of the use of religion however was, Mr. V who I believe saw jail time. This man was a thousand walking red flags. He went to boys' rooms to pray alone, and he insisted on a separate bible study with a group of boys he was particularly close to. Outwardly, however, he was fanatically religious, and this was enough to assuage Dr. Senior of concerns. Mr. V was the guy who when the pastor said kneel for prayer he would stand with his arms to heaven, when the pastor asked for a moment of silent reflection he would exclaim AMEN! every five seconds, He played moral police intervening in behavioral issues after considering a matter settled if a student agreed to a private prayer session (yup, nothing sus here). Dr, Senior employed and sung the praises of Mr. V's work even as this concerning behavior began to escalate to the point that some students, formerly in his inner circle, began to actively distance themselves from him but were unwilling to discuss why.
Dr. Senior could not, however, ignore when Mr. V took a kid off campus without telling anyone to a small mountain cabin to "diet" for three days. Only once the police were involved could Mr. V. 's behavior no longer be ignored and his religious authority be given priority. If you are wondering Mr. V gets a fake name because, while I am telling the truth to the best of my knowledge, we were never told the full story. The student in question was withdrawn before he was willing to talk about it, and Mr. V was not seen again. I don't know what he was charged with or what stuck but I think we can put the pieces together.
Fortunately, other than some more bullying and getting through a nasty flu with nothing more than pepper water as medicine, I graduated. Yeah, shocker, he also didn't like doctors. The shock of seeing how normal people practiced Adventism after a year of this cult like fanaticism has a lot to do with why I'm on this sub and not the SDA sub, but I got off easy. For the criminals and really troubled kids recidivism was high, with several being in a proper prison weeks or months after. Several would turn around and be back at the Advent Home in months because the behavior never stopped, they just learned to act like it did. But the real harm was a boy I'll call Dan. He had depression when he arrived, it was never treated but pushed down. He pushed it down so far he became the best of us. he was very nice and a bit of a mentor to me. he worked hard and became SGL (the highest one remember) with one of the highest scores that an Advent home graduate had had. One year after leaving the school, he committed suicide by diving into an empty pool. Only then, did I realize he wasn't fine. He was never fine. He had mastered acting fine. The furthest I got in Psychology was a single college course and some youtubers (and the small bit of real therapy I've had) but even with this, I can see how Dr. Senior was out of step with the psychological practices even of the early 2000s. He was so much more focused on appearance and behavior than he was ever interested in the root cause, his system often became a new trauma rather than treating an old one. An excessive respect for authority led to abusive behavior being overlooked if not encouraged, and Jesus was treated in a professional setting as a supreme healer despite real medical issues. I saw these issues in the church I left, and my mom and extended family still practice in. This is why I really feel compelled to write this. People like Dr. Senior may seem like an Adventist version of Godwin's law. "Oh, yeah? If we can look at Jesus to heal, it'll end up like the Advent Home!" (Or Miracle Meadows) I know this sentence has never been uttered by anyone but me and maybe Sam, hope you're ok buddy, but the fact is Dr. Senior is the end stage of the ideas put into their most harmful practice, and some like Dan paid with their life.
Finally, through all of this, I remember how Dr. Senior was treated by outsiders. Entire churches prayed for his good work to continue, meetings were held for him to teach others to copy his program, he was featured multiple times in the herald and other Adventist publications. Like Mr. V his religiosity was a shield despite all the red flags, and like Mr. V he was given the respect and admiration that came with his position all the way up until there were consequences. It isn't that no one could see there were problems. He flew his red flags high. Its that the church didn't want to see the problem and didn't care until the outside world took action.
Please, if you take anything from this, look out for your SDA relatives who struggle with mental health. The church sure won't. But on a larger note, I hope this to be part of a larger discussion about bringing awareness to the churches failing on mental health and how they overlook monsters in their ranks who just haven't embarrassed them yet. Dr. Senior never sexually assaulted a kid as far as I'm aware, but he enabled and protected abusers in service of pushing his ideology all while the church sang his praises. Disclaimer: At no point in this do I feel I deliberately lied or exaggerated, but these are 20 year old memories of a traumatized 13 year old who was never given the full story. I tried to leave hearsay out, but I did find out what happened to Dan through the grapevine, though from someone I believe completely. If there are minor inaccuracies, I do apologize, but I believe I have been accurate in the larger points.
Names are changed for obvious reasons, though my change style switched cause I am bad at coming up with names when stressed, my D&D group will confirm, and this is stressful to write about even now.
The Advent Home I attended is shut and a very attractive hotel now. My research showed he partnered closely with miracle meadows, which is also now shut. If by chance Dr. Senior is still practicing somewhere, or has appointed a successor, please persuade family to look closely and critically at his practices before signing anything. He used to complain kids were manipulative but, as with all projectors, he was the master manipulator. He convinced people to consent to incredible things. I believe everyone can change if they want and as far as I know he had the education to do good work. Instead, he chose to ignore that education in service of his biases. Unless he has updated his treatment, please at the very least accompany his work with another well regarded psychologist.

Background
Canary Islands is a Spanish archipelago of volcanic nature located in the eastern Atlantic ocean, just west of southern Morocco. The chain of islands extends for approximately 490 kilometers (300 miles).
Canary Islands is both geologically and climatologically almost identical to Hawaii, and as such, international tourism has been the main pillar of its economy since the 1960s.
The Event
At around 10:15 PM of June 22nd, 1976, emergency services in all the main seven islands received a flood of calls, with people reporting having seen a strange and frightening phenomenon taking place in the night sky. Most of these callers described what they were seeing as 'a gigantic explosion of light' or 'a massive ball of fire', and all of them said the phenomenon seemed to be taking place somewhere far in the west. These accounts were quickly confirmed true by local authorities, since the 'explosion of light' in question shone for several minutes before dissipating.
Many witnesses also added having seen one or two much smaller red lights moving strangely before the 'explosion' took place -rising from the horizon or from behind the mountains at very high speed, although others added that the lights flew following 'a zig-zag trajectory'.
No sound was heard or reported regarding the phenomenon, and no consequences seemed to follow except for a frightened population.
A foreign tourist vacationing in the island of Gran Canaria took the only known legit picture available of the phenomenon, from the balcony of his hotel room in Maspalomas. Here you can see a bigger version of the picture with enhanced contrast.
Here's a drawing extracted from an official report made by the Spanish Air Force. The drawing depicts a description of the event made with the information gathered from witnesses reports in the western coast of Gran Canaria. The mountains in the drawing are a depiction of the silhouette of Tenerife, the island immediately west of Gran Canaria. In order to understand the extreme magnitude of the 'explosion of light', please take into account that Tenerife is 70 kilometers (44 miles) away and its tallest peak -Mount Teide, which is in fact Spain's tallest mountain- is 3,718 meters tall (12,198 feet). Here's a real picture of the landscape depicted in the drawing, for a better perspective.
Hong Kong's bulk carrier vessel Osaka Bay was sailing from Capetown (South Africa) to Southampton (United Kingdom). The event took place when she was some 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of the island of La Gomera, and her crew did also witness the phenomenon. Here's a drawing made out of their witness reports.
The crew of the Spanish Navy's corvette Atrevida (F-61) observed the phenomenon as she was sailing just south of the island of Fuerteventura. Her captain's account of the event;
"At 22:27 local time of June 22nd it was seen, for the first time, a bright light of an intense bluish yellow color, taking off and rising in altitude towards our position... Once it reached certain height (15º-18º) it stood still, turning its light projection and showing its light source. It remained like that for approximately two minutes, before bursting into a large circle of bright bluish yellow light that remained in that position for forty minutes even after the original preceding phenomenon had faded away.
Two minutes later the light source split, its lower half being smaller and standing in the middle of the circle of light, turning into a bluish cloud as the split half that had originated this bluish mass faded away. The upper half gained altitude while describing a fast but irregular spiraling trajectory, vanishing afterwards. None of these movements had any effect whatsoever on the initial circle of light, whose features remained the same, partially illuminating land and sea, which leads to believe that it wasn't an object far in the distance, but rather close".
Here's the translation of local newspaper excerpts detailing the event;
"It was spotted between 10:15 and 10:30 PM and, according to one of our journalists who has his residence at Valle de Aridane (La Palma island), at that time he observed something that looked like a rocket emerging from the sea and flying towards El Time peak shining with an intense red light. The same phenomenon was spotted in Tazacorte (in La Palma island too). The ferry Villa de Agaete, sailing from Las Palmas, could observe a great shining at exactly 10:20 PM, shortly before docking in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The shining, which lasted about five minutes, appeared like a rocket that had come out of the sea". - El Día (June 23rd, 1976)
"Last night, at around half past ten, a strange object was spotted from several points of our region, especially in the areas of Gáldar and Telde (Gran Canaria), where most phone calls we received in that regard were from. Our callers explained to us that it was a round object that grew massively in size as it rose, clearly defined before it began to fade.
The aforementioned phenomenon began as a couple of red objects that moved in zig-zag, forming into some sort of spiral whose lower half ended in three clearly differentiated but overlaying stripes with some degree of separation between them. They were of a very bright red color and faded gradually. On top of these stripes there was what looked like two powerful blue focal lights, which began to diminish in intensity too before turning into a thin haze afterwards". - La Provincia (June 23rd, 1976)
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Thanks to these accounts and description of the events, calculations could be made in order to ascertain the phenomenon's origins. At the moment of its beginning (which many witnesses described as a rocket taking off) the sun was already 13.7º under the horizon and its azimuth angle was 307º (northwest). Setting a hypothetical POV in the geographical center of the archipelago (28.50º N, 15.75º W, just north of Gran Canaria, it was calculated that during it's first phase (the 'rocket lights') the phenomenon was located some 762 kilometers (473 miles) straight west, at an approximate altitude of 46 kilometers (28 miles). By the end of its final phase (the 'explosion of light') it had traveled to a point located at around 1,062 kilometers (662 miles) west and had risen to a final altitude of 90 kilometers (56 miles).
These calculations became a very important piece of data, we'll get back to them later.
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The UFO/Aliens narrative (AKA the press cherry-picks the statement of one particularly imaginative witness in order to sell a story of very questionable credibility)
Being the 1970s, almost immediately certain sectors of the press began talking about UFO -and subsequently about aliens, even though there was no further evidence to suggest such thing. The local authorities (the Army especially) focused their efforts into reassuring the population that there was nothing to fear, while at the same time gathering all the information they could gather in order to investigate the phenomenon.
In June of 1994, exactly eighteen years after that night, the Spanish Army declassified the 107-pages long investigation report of what by then it had been baptized as the "OVNI de Canarias 22/06/1976" ("Canary Islands' 06/22/1976 UFO"). Back then very few people in Spain had internet access, and as such the release of these documents went unnoticed for most people. However, many journalists rushed to get a copy of the report, and many of these worked for UFO/paranormal magazines of dubious scientific accuracy. And, aware of the kind of reaction they wanted to generate from the public they target, they focused in just one part of the report; Dr. Padrón's story.
Francisco Julio Padrón León (who passed away in 2013) was a general practitioner that lived and had his office in the rural municipality of Gáldar, which is located precisely in the northwestern part of the island of Gran Canaria (and precisely, where a lot of people reported witnessing the phenomenon. Unlike most witnessed, however, Padrón told Spanish authorities a much more extravagant version of the events.
That night he had been called in person to check on a local patient at her home, and the doctor had called a taxi in order to reach the patient's residence; Padrón lived in the town of Guía, and the patient lived at a small parish some 10 kilometers away (6 miles) named Las Rosas. Padrón, his companion and the taxi driver claimed having observed the phenomenon when the car was covering the last two kilometers of the route (at that point, a very narrow and barely paved rural road). Or more specifically, Padrón and the taxi driver claimed having bumped into it; because, according to the statement, at that moment the car's headlights illuminated a sphere that was floating right in front of them. The Padrón and the taxi driver described it as measuring some 30 meters (98 feet), slightly bright and slightly translucent. They (the doctor, especially) described seeing two humanoid entities inside the sphere, surrounded by what looked to be inner aluminum structural parts of the sphere. These figures were, per their statements, between 2.5 and 3 meters tall (8'2" to 9'10"), one taller than the other, and they were dressed in red skin-tight suits. Padrón claimed that these beings stood facing each other, apparently interacting among them but didn't seem to notice his or the taxi driver's presence. It then began to grow in size until (his words) "becoming as big as a 20-story building" and began ascending. At this point of his statement he said he went to check on her patient, after which he told all people present at the patients' home, inviting everyone to go outside and check by themselves what he claimed he had seen. By the time everyone joined Dr. Padrón to watch, the sphere was already very big, standing high in the sky and then it flew away at extreme speed ("faster than any aircraft I've seen in my life", Padrón said in the report) leaving a trail of blue smoke behind before vanishing in the distance, towards Tenerife island.
In his individual report, the taxi driver made just a very skimp corroboration of Padrón's statement, omitting most details of his version of the phenomenon. It was just a few sentences long. The taxi driver was a man in his sixties (and wore glasses) of very little formal education -in fact, his preliminary handwritten statement had to be redacted to correct numerous grammar and spelling mistakes.
As for the companion (a relative of the patient, who was traveling in the backseat), this man only describes seeing "intense bright light everywhere" and noticing "both the doctor and the taxi driver's agitation". He claimed the amount of light, plus the fact that by sitting in the backseat the taxi driver and the doctor's bodies blocked his view, hadn't allowed him to see what Padrón claimed having witnessed.
The declassified document contained many more witness reports gathered from the same area, but none of them matched Dr. Padrón's story about a sphere with two humanoids figures in it; every other description -most of them provided by locals- mentions the same enormous disc of light in the west night sky. A car mechanic and his wife described it as "a car's headlight thrice as large as the full moon". A school teacher mentioned having seen it from his house's window through a pair of binoculars when it began to fade, noticing its "fog-like appearance, and the night stars could be seen through", and mentioning what looked like a couple of bluish beams inside. A farmer explained in his statement that it looked like "a fire spot", he too mentioned seeing "two blue lines" in it. Not even the sick woman Padrón had come to provide medical attention to nor her relatives confirmed the Dr.'s description of the phenomenon, matching instead everyone else's.
That didn't stop the journalists working for UFO/paranormal-themed magazines or even some journalists working for reputable newspapers from disregarding all these credible witnesses and instead focusing on the most outlandish one; Dr. Padrón. In summer of 1994, several of these Spanish magazines like Enigmas, Año Cero or Más Allá rushed to publish a drawing depicting Padrón's description of the 'humanoid figures dressed in red' in their articles, not only making absolutely no mention of any of the other witnesses but also claimed that the propulsion system of the alleged 'alien spacecraft' had scorched a nearby onion field -the area is full of that type of crops- and that posterior chemical analysis of the scorched terrain had yielded wildly unusual results. We'll come back to this point later.
Sketch depicting Padrón's (unique, literally) description of the event. Yes, someone from the Army - more specifically from the Air Force- was tasked with sitting down next to this guy and spending a good deal of time drawing whatever ludicrous thing Padrón felt like coming up with.
Something worth mentioning; these publications made heavy emphasis on Padrón's education -he was a GP, after all. As in, as extraordinary as his claims were, these were being made by a man of a high level of education, intelligent and therefore (in the eyes of many) automatically worth of credibility. In fact, the patient's relative traveling in the taxi's backseat -a farmhand that had never received formal schooling and was illiterate- said in his witness report that one of the reasons why he did not question Padrón's statement was precisely the abysmal difference in education between him and the doctor, and kind of assumed that if an educated man like Padrón said that such thing had indeed happened, then it must have been true.
A local newspaper interviewed Dr. Padrón shortly after the documents were declassified. And by then, eighteen years after that night, Padrón added some more details to his already bizarre account, providing these journalists with something that wouldn't have been out of place in an episode of The X-Files (which back in 1994 had begun to be broadcasted in Spain, with significant success). Back in 1976 Padrón had already added in his statement that he did not feel fear but 'a strange sense of wellbeing and excitement' in his encounter with the alleged spacecraft; now he was also saying that these beings -which never communicated with him in any way, per his account- had not only the ability to erase anyone's memories off their brains, but they also can "make you see whatever they want you to do for months or years, replacing an 'energy' [his word] in your brain". If these statements weren't absurd enough, Dr. Padrón warned the journalists about not taking him seriously, because in the last three years he "had observed that anyone who had been skeptical of my statements and hurt my credibility in public has passed away within six or seven months, all of them to cancer, eight people in total so far".
Although the documents that included the description of his ludicrous story hadn't been declassified until 1994, ever since 1976 many journalists had managed to get in touch with Padrón and hear his story -the doctor himself wasn't exactly quiet about it either -and some of these are allegedly the cancer victims Padrón would've been referring to. There's no way to check the veracity of that, since the only source of that statement was Padrón himself.
Between 1976 and 1994 the doctor's story circulated in a somewhat obscure manner, being referred to in some UFO articles here and there -and adding their own artistic depictions of his outlandish story. Padrón was already telling any 'paranormal' journalist willing to listen about the scorched onion field. Turned out, back in June of 1976 a farmer in the municipality of Guía did indeed notice an area in one of his onion crops that seemed to have been burned, but that man had specified that that hadn't happened until the morning of June 24th, a good day and half after Padrón's alleged 'alien encounter'. What is more, although the cause of these burns couldn't be ascertained, they were indistinguishable from fire damage. To this day it's thought that these burnt onion plants were nothing but the result of vandalism or a prank. Some UFO skepticism authors have raised the possibility of the doctor himself being responsible.
Picture of one of the many onion fields in Guía and Gáldar. To this day, Dr. Padrón's 'scorched onion field' remains a running joke among the older residents in these municipalities.
At the time Padrón even managed, out of sheer insistence, to get that soil tested. Surprisingly to no one, all chemical, physical and radiological analyses performed yielded no unusual results. The sampling and testing was conducted by Hungarian-Spanish physician Alejandro Carlos de Gyorko-Gyorkos, who at the time was curious about paranormal phenomena and had interviewed Padrón many times in 1976. According to a journalist for Naukas (A Spanish online science and technology magazine that specializes in skepticism and debunking of pseudoscience), in 1992 Gyorko-Gyorkos described Padrón as a man that "interprets everything he comes up with as real". By 1994 Padrón was also claiming that the Spanish Air Force had threatened him with legal action to silence him, and that Gyorko-Gyorkos was a man whose "ethics he'd rather not talk about". Padrón had never mentioned these alleged legal threats at any point before June of that year, precisely once the documents were declassified, a coincidence that hadn't gone unnoticed.
Some skepticism authors have elucubrated about the possible inspiration for Padrón's 'tall men in dressed in red spacesuits'. Not exactly very original.
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Explanation (1994 and 2001)
The 1976 document concludes that the origen of the 22/06/976 UFO -although in reality the Spanish Air force used then the acronym FANI (Fenómeno Aéreo No Identificado', 'Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon') when referring to it- was unknown. In 1994 these paranormal journalists presented such conclusion as an automatic evidence of aliens, or at least UFOs in the sense popular culture depicts then. In reality, as anyone can notice upon checking the report, 'unknown' means precisely that; unknown. At no point in the report the authors bring up rebuttals for any possible logical or rational explanation, but rather they conclude that back in 1976 there was just not enough evidence to provide an accurate explanation of its origin.
The same report contains the transcription of precisely Dr. Gyorko-Gyorkos's opinion about Dr. Padrón's reasoning (safe to assume, by then had already made up his mind about the man) in a military court. In the transcription, and in what looks like a generous maneuver to dismiss Padrón's claims without going as far to humiliate him, Gyorko-Gyorkos explains a military judge that that night Dr. Padrón, possibly overworked and sleep-deprived, misremembered what had seen and his fatigued psyche had create a mixed recollection with what he had seen and what had crossed his mind. As for the taxi driver, this man was probably highly impressionable -apparently the Dr. had behaved in a very excited manner during the phenomenon- and thus in a way Padrón had 'passed' his delusional belief onto him. The military court ruled that "Padrón's credibility could not, for the time being, be corroborated".
Of course, at this point of this writeup a question still lingers; what was whatever thing close to a million and half people saw in the night sky back on June 22nd, 1976? First, let's go over the world's state of affairs at the time, because this is one of these 'mysteries' in which history had been hinting at the answer almost from the beginning;
In 1976 the world was still amidst of a low-key conflict between two superpowers with lots of political tensions; the United States (plus NATO) versus the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (plus other members of the Warsaw Pact). AKA, Cold War. As part of the Western Bloc, at the time Spain had been a long-time ally of NATO. However, the country wouldn't become a NATO member itself until 1982 -which was so controversial within Spain that a referendum would be held in 1986 questioning Spanish people's desire to remain in the military alliance.
As such, while Spain was a Western ally, back in 1976 it was not really 'in the game' yet, especially when taking into account that, unlike in other countries, NATO membership wasn't that welcome. Please notice the year the Spanish army declassified the documents; 1994. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 (and with it , the fall of the Iron Curtain) helped lower the stakes this international poker game, and as such the world would learn about all sorts of crazy things that had been going on at both sides of the conflict in absolute secrecy.
Earlier in this writeup there is a data-based description of the phenomenon's behavior, but most importantly, it's ballistic trajectory. Adding to that, countless witnesses had described seeing either one or a couple of lights 'taking off like a rocket'. Let's remember; it had been ascertained that it originated at about 700 kilometers west and had moved further west in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean while reaching an altitude of 90 kilometers -which is about the lower thermosphere. This had already raised the first suspicions among the members of the Spanish intelligence services, suspicions that gained weight in 1994 -and that likely led to the declassification of the report- when much clearer and straightforward communication between the United States' government and Spain's allowed for a more open investigation of the sort of testing the Americans were engaging in. In 2001 an article of research journalism, coauthored by science journalists Ricardo Campo and Vicente-Juan Ballester Olmos finally identified what was behind the 1976 aerial phenomenon.
Campo and Ballester had already noticed its ballistic trajectory calculated in 1976. In 1999, suspecting already who (country) was the 'culprit', they accessed Jonathan McDowell's database of ballistic missile launches. Previous to that Campo and Ballester had failed to find any useful information in NASA's archives, as none of the launches in their registry matched the evidence, and prior to that -right after the 1994 declassification, in fact- they had traveled to Moscow looking for the possible explanation there. Russian military authorities had adamantly denied their involvement in the phenomena, which directed the investigators towards other leads (while at the same time not disregarding the possibility of Russia being behind it after all.
Finally, Campo and Ballester bumped into these two rows of the database. First column indicates the launch identification number. Second and third, the date (in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Fourth is GMT time (which, adjusting for a compilation error, coincides with Canary Islands' GMT+1 local time when the phenomenon took place). The fifth column tells the type of missile, the sixth on identifies the launch platform and finally the seventh one indicates who was responsible for the launch.
Simply put, the information in these rows means; on June 22nd, 1976, two Poseidon C3 thermonuclear missiles were launched from US Navy's submarine USS Von Steuben), at 20:16 and 20:17 GTM.
The database does not include location (that information remains classified) but during their research Campo and Ballester learned from McDowell himself that the US Navy's eastern test range covers from Cape Canaveral (Florida, US) all the way Ascension Island. The location of the 1976's phenomenon falls well within such range.
From here, Campos and Ballester offered an explanation of its optics. The Poseidon C3 missile carries several 40-kiloton nuclear warheads (normally ten) -for comparison, Little Boy was a single 15-kiloton bomb. Once the two 400-kiloton missiles detonated in the thermosphere, the quick expansion of extremely hot atmospheric gases reflected the sunlight back to Earth, even though by then in Canary Islands the sun was already well below the horizon and the sky was pitch black; at 90 kilometers of altitude, these expanding gases were still in direct path of the sunlight. This reflection is what made the phenomenon appear so bright and big in spite of the 700+ kilometers of distance between witnesses and its source.
Campo and Ballester's article provided also an explanation for other similar events -albeit not that espectacular as the one pertaining this writeup- that had taken place in the islands between 1973 and 1979. All except one were found to be the result of other American thermonuclear tests, with the exception of this one seen south of the archipelago in 1979 -and finally acknowledged by Russia in 2017, although they did not explain what exactly it was.
Conclusion
TL;DR: It was a couple of thermonuclear missiles launched in secrecy by the US Navy in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The 'aliens' witness was, to put it mildy, an individual with an extreme tendency to make ludicrous statements and a marked need to be the centre of attention.
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Campo and Ballester's work is available online for free, and anyone who speak Spanish can check the story of their investigation for themselves.
This is not to say that the whole 'aliens' narrative died down. To this day, the story of the 1976 phenomenon continues to be shared sometimes in media as 'proof' of UFO/aliens, even though it's literally neither -coincidentally, failing to mention the vast amount of evidence pointing at a thermonuclear test. In June of 2016 several newspapers published articles remembering the phenomenon in its 40th anniversary, and pretty much all of them reminded the reader right from the headline that the 'mystery' had long been solved.
Links and Sources
"Two red giants riding a missile" - Excellent article in the aforementioned online magazine Naukas written by Ricardo Campo himself on the phenomenon (Spanish)
The Spanish Army's declassified document on the event. It can be downloaded for free as a 107-pages long PDF
2016 Article (Spanish)

Chapter LXXXVII
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Somewhere, West Virginia, USA.
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"Well, there goes the neighborhood." Agent Smith stated as him, Agent Doe, and everyone else in town, watched the migration of people stream into the small town as the sun hit the horizon.
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They looked like a bunch of extras to Lord of the Rings. People with pointed ears and flowing robes. People short and stout and with thick beards with bands of gold and silver woven into them. Shorter people that spoke in high-pitched nasally voices and large glasses. There were even people dressed in what looked like giant turtle suits.
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Of course that's what the townsfolk would think. To the two Agents it was a very real possibility that these people came from another world like the lizard people, greenskins, and the halflings.
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"So much for my report being up-to-date." Agent Smith sighed as he went inside and burned the report he had spent so much time typing out. As he cleaned up the ashes the hotel phone rang.
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Johnathan looked between the phone and Agent Smith with a look of curiosity as the Agent seemed greatly hesitant to answer. Agent Smith looked at Johnathan as the phone continued to ring. He walked over and disconnected the line to the phone and it went silent. For a second.
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"Damn." Smith cursed as the disconnected phone rang once more despite there being no connection.
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He picked up the phone and placed it to his ear. He bit back another curse as the voice of the Director came through.
"Agent Smith."
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"Director."
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"How is the investigation coming along?" She asked.
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"Well, until about a few minutes ago it was going pretty smoothly and quietly."
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"Oh? And what, pray tell, changed?"
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"I'd tell you but if you're calling then that means you already know."
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"Of course I already know. I'm just disappointed it came from our sources in the State Government and not my two field agents."
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"What is the State going to do?"
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"They're going to send the 111th Engineer Brigade, and the 77th Brigade Troop Command."
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"All of them?!"
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"What did you expect? The population of some small town in the middle of nowhere just became the largest in the State in a single day. They're even sending the 35th."
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Smith tapped his foot in thought.
"Can we stop them? Or at the very least make it so they don't send damn near the entire National Guard of West Virginia?"
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"No can do Agent. Even if we had caught this before the Governor's office did, we still would've sent troops in. This became top priority the second a large number of people came over."
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"Well what about leaks? We can't keep the lid on this with so many showing up."
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"We'll be sending our own task force. Officially they are there as "Federal Oversight". In actuality they are there to aid you in your investigation as well as limit leaks from the National Guard."
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"So there isn't anything we can do to stop them from showing up en masse?"
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"Unfortunately no. Aerial recon is being deployed to "substantiate" the claim. But seventy-thousand people showing up out of nowhere isn't something to take lightly. When they see that there are indeed an entire city's worth of people, then they will send the rest. But that will be a few days, a week at most. Once they verify, they'll be getting crash courses in crisis response and begin mobilization."
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"What about the rest of the Federal Government?"
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"As far as the State is aware WE are the Federal response. And we are going to keep it that way."
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Smith didn't like this, not one bit. It was hard enough doing their job quietly in even a small town like this. Now they had to worry about not only a population the size of medieval Venice, but now the National Guard.
"What if we-"
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"No, Agent Smith."
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"We could do it you know?"
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"Not in the time we have nor the volume. You should know that disappearing an entire town is hard enough, doing it to a city's worth of people is harder to not only pull off but harder to sell to the public."
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Smith huffed in frustration.
"So what's the new mission?"
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"The same as it was before. Only this time, you'll be getting a team to back you up. Set up and monitor everything that happens. Keep the NG from getting too close to the less explainable creatures and people. ESPECIALLY keep them away from Entity APL-1."
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"You mean-"
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"I will not use that ludicrous name! It is a dangerous entity! Not a pet!"
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Smith chuckled a bit.
"Since we're talking, would you like my report up till today?"
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The Director sighed.
"Very well. Only because this is a secure way of communicating."
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So Smith gave the Director his report. Jeb and the kobolds. Morty and the greenskins. The halflings. All of it. There was a pause as the Director processed the information. No doubt already sending various people about to adjust to the new information.
"Is that all you have to report Agent Smith?"
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"Yes Ma'am."
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"Good, continue as planned until our team arrives then procced from there."
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"Yes Ma'am."
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"And don't call me Ma'am. Makes me sound old."
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"You are old."
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Smith heard the Director guffaw.
"And you aren't?! Quit being insubordinate and get back to work Agent Smith."
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"Yes Ma-"
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CLICK
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"Rude old bitty." Smith quipped playfully as he set the dead phone back on its base.
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Johnathan just stared at Smith.
"How-"
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"Trade secret Agent Doe. You'll find out when you're older. In the mean time. Its business as usual until reinforcements arrive. So go pull up a chair and observe." Smith stated as he dragged one of the worn hotel chairs out and sat on it while he watched the sheer number of people walking about along the main street of the town.
-----
Time must be different here than back home, because that was NOT "20 minutes", thought the Duchess as she entered the town the deputy had pointed out to her. She and her people were drained. Mentally, physically, and emotionally.
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This worlds sun was past its peak when they came to this world. Now it was just nearing the horizon to the west as they reached the town. The chill air didn't help, especially the turtle people from the isles. The moderately sized enclave that live- HAD lived in Daele grumbled and groaned the whole walk. Both the temperature difference and the long journey didn't agree with them.
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Everyone had dressed for a spring that, just a few hours ago, they were sure they weren't going to see. Now it felt like they had missed it entirely! But the sight was still something to behold.
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Sure it wasn't a grand city like Daele... was. But it was still shelter, and it was still a wonder to see. Buildings made of faded red brick or what looked like solid stone and glass. A road made from a faded black stone. Lights that didn't look like they needed fire. Not to mention the multitude of metal carriages about! She couldn't see any horses in sight and she wondered how they were pulled.
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A sentiment shared by many, but especially of Dylan. He was looking around the new town with wide eyes. Scribbling on his notepad furiously as his eyes darted back and forth over everything new they saw. He wasn't the only one shocked and awed. Though some looked less than impressed by the simple, even rough, conditions of the town.
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They weren't sure where to go, but seeing a slightly taller white colored building decided to head there. Perhaps that was where they could inquire with whoever the ruler was, the Duchess thought.
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As they neared City Hall, the Duchess glanced about and observed the people of the town. Everyone she saw was human, many were old and tired looking. But even the younger people she saw had a tired and worn look on their face. These looks barely changed as they watched and stared at the migration.
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There were no offers of support or aid from the townsfolk. Judging from the condition of the town, they probably didn't have much for themselves let alone her people, she thought sadly. Her honor guard stayed close to her as they made their way through the street.
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As she reached the steps of City Hall a commotion was heard and a portly man, a gangly nervous looking man, and several other, equally rounded, men shuffled out and greeted her. Or what might pass for a greeting around here.
"Who are you and what is going on here?!"
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The nervous looking man stuttered a response.
"T-t-t-the Sh-sh-sheriff l-l-l-l-"
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"Cease your infernal stuttering Greg and get to the point!" The Mayor snapped.
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"The point is Gerald is that these people arrived looking for shelter." The Sheriff stated as he climbed the stairs, his two deputies flanking him.
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The Mayor cast a suspicious eye on the sea of people that filled out one of the few roads Somewhere had. They were starting to coalesce around City Hall as they tried to get close enough to hear what was happening. Though many were still amassed at the edge of town where the town ended and the landscape changed to that of fields and hills.
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"Oh are they now? Pray tell how we are supposed to shelter them Sheriff? How are we supposed to feed them? Hmm? Did you think of that before inviting these people to our town?"
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"You're right Mayor. Our town is under enough stress without adding more people we can't take care of." The Sheriff answered plainly.
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"There we have it! You all will just have to-"
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"That's why I called the Governor and he's sending the National Guard to aid both the town and these poor people."
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"YOU WHAT!?" The Mayor rounded on the Sheriff so fast his jowls still shook from the motion.
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The Sheriff stepped up to the Mayor.
"We needed help before these people showed up. Now we DESPERATLY need help!"
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"So you call the Governor!?! Are you mad!?"
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"No! I care about this town and I'm not going to see it die because you're too scared of the past!"
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"There's a damn good reason we are and you know it!" The Mayor hissed.
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As the Mayor and the Sheriff bickered, the Duchess, flanked by two of the Delta Guard, walked up the steps and bowed to the two men. The heavily armed and armored men made the councilmen and deputies nervous, causing the latter to put their hands on their holsters.
"I am sorry if our presence puts too much strain on your town. If need be we will leave at first light."
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"Good! You can-"
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"STAY! We are good and honest folk and we won't turn away those in need!"
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"If it helps alleviate your burden. We do have some wealth that we still retain. We can donate some as thanks for your hospitality."
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The Mayor, and councilmen, perked up at that.
"Wealth you say?"
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The Duchess touched a hand to a ornate necklace she had. Silver and aquamarine. She unclasped it and held it out.
"I could not ask my people to do what I would not. So accept this as my thanks."
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The Mayor's eyes went wide and he licked his lips as he reached a fat hand out to snatch up the exquisite jewelry. But he was stopped by the Sheriff who stood between the necklace and his meaty hands. The Delta Guard tensed at the movement put did no more once it was apparent it wasn't a threatening motion.
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"That isn't necessary. If you wish to show thanks then please. Enjoy what the town has to offer. Food, a few hotels and apartments you and yours can stay in and any other services and amenities you find. Please. If you wish to offer thanks, then offer it to the people of the town itself."
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The Duchess smiled and withdrew the necklace before bowing.
"Thank you for your hospitality. Me and my people will do our utmost to repay it and do our best to be civil guests in your town!"
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"Of course! If need be there are other places that might be able to shelter your people. We have some space at the station. The railyard probably wouldn't say no to housing some of your people. As I said, we have room and board in several parts of town that wouldn't say no to any new business!"
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The Sheriff and the Mayor bickered quietly while the Duchess turned to address her people.
"Good people of Daele! We have come far from our home by the sea and have faced many hardships in these past weeks! But now the people here have been generous enough to offer us shelter! Offer us Sanctuary! They only ask that we reward that kindness at the many shops and vendors around the town! So go and find a place to rest and fill your bellies and get warm!"
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With that, the great flood of people murmured curiously and excitedly as they formed various groups and began to explore the town as the message was carried through the mass of bodies. As the Duchess watched, many group heads came to her.
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The scions of the dwarven banking clans and the remnants of the nobility, elvish and human, walked up to join her. As did the heads of the various merchant houses, smithy and artisan guilds. Even Alban pulled Dylan away from running off to fulfill his duty as the leader, and half, of the Artificers Guild. The Great Sage of the tortle enclave grunted as she walked over with the rest of the leaders before sitting down on the cool grass nearby with a relieved sigh.
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"What're we ta do now yer Ladyship?" One of the dwarves asked as he ran a bejeweled hand over his golden beard that was woven with emerald imbedded silver bands.
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"We do as I stated. We find places to rest and recover from our journey. Tomorrow we will meet again with the leaders of the town and work out the rest."
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One of the elves sniffed his hawkish nose as he gazed at the town.
"Are we really to stay in such a place so... pedestrian?"
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"We aren't really in a position to argue my Lord. If it is not to your liking then you are free to keep walking in hopes of finding someplace more suited to your tastes."
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The elf sniffed indignantly but remained where he was. One of the merchants spoke next.
"What should we do then? We have no place to work our trades."
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The other merchants and various guild leaders nodded in affirmation.
"For tonight, just find food and shelter. I'm sure that these people will have need of, and greatly appreciate, your work. As I have stated already. Food and shelter first. Everything else will be settled tomorrow."
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The leaders all grumbled and murmured but did little else as they split off to find their own places of rest. The Great Sage groaning and grumbling as she forced herself to stand and return to her people. Though the dwarves and Dylan walked over to the Sheriff and Mayor.
"Excuse me lad? What were tha' 'bout a railyard?"
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The Sheriff broke the mutual glaring between him and the Mayor and turned to the stout man.
"The railyard. Its on the north of town. Follow the main road here and take a left at the library. Can't miss it."
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"Well thank ye lad. But uhm? What is a railyard?"
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"Well, its a place where trains are stored and maintained, its also where freight from our town is, or was, shipped out of and to the rest of the country."
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The dwarves hummed in understanding.
"One last question lad. What is a train?"
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“There were rules, Mafia codes you had to go by. But the code is ridiculous. It's a code among sociopaths.” David Chase (creator: The Sopranos)
Chapter Three: Tiffany and The Ax

1. ANTIBES, FRANCE. Jude sat at a small table outside La Forge Restaurant on Jacques Audiberti Place. The petite square was bustling with late morning activity. He sipped an espresso and paged through his USA Today. A group of teenagers passed loudly through the square on their way to the beach from a hostel. Tiffany and her girlfriend were with the group. He had been watching her for about a week now but the right opportunity hadn't presented itself.

He told himself he wasn't delaying the operation because he was on an unlimited expense account and his target was spending the summer on the Cote d'Azur. He supposed milking a client that way would be unethical. The thought amused him. It really was because he hadn't found the perfect chance to kill her. Mostly. Mostly that was it.
He noted that the Tour de France was passing through the area and decided to find a place to watch the event. And then there was the Musee Picasso on Place Mariejol. He didn't want to miss that.
He could kill Tiffany tomorrow. Or the next day.
Finally it was the weather that forced his hand. A fierce summer storm was predicted for that week. Such an event would make Tiffany's movements unpredictable. She might stay in and weather it, as he would then have to do as well or she might catch the train to a fairer climate. He had no doubt he could find her again, but uncertainties made him uncomfortable. The night before the storm rolled in, he got his perfect opportunity.
It was late, past midnight. Jude had been watching Tiffany as she snuck away with a young man, an Australian, Jude guessed. They had been drinking on the beach, the Plage Gravette, having snuck on after it closed. The location couldn't have been more perfect if Karsen picked it himself. It was surrounded by walls on three sides and faced the ocean. It wasn't lit other than the light kicking off the surrounding apartment buildings. And with the cloud cover from the oncoming storm, it was all but impossible for anyone in the overlooking apartment buildings to see any activity on the beach that night.
Tiffany's male companion passed out after sex. Tiffany lay there, quite drunk herself. Finally she got up and staggered towards the road. Jude watched from the shadows as she came right towards him. She passed one bum, fast asleep by the wall and entered into the tunnel leading from the beach. She never saw Karsen.
She cried out for a split second. But Jude covered her mouth with gloved hands and snapped her neck. He carried her body off the beach, out the gate to the Quai Henri Rambaud and onto a waiting boat.
While Jude piloted the motorboat out into the ocean, into the face of the storm, his partner prepared the body. When they reached far enough out, they dumped the pretty, blonde teenager over the side. And started a media firestorm.
​
Tiffany Teague was an ordinary American girl. She was from the state of New York. Wynantskill, specifically. A hamlet outside of Albany. She was a junior in college, attending Cedar Crest College in Allentown, PA, an all women's school. She liked Justin Timberlake and Fallout Boy and thought that Paul Walker was the perfect man.
Edward and Maggie Teague weren't rich, or even well off after several failed business ventures, but they doted on their kids and helped Tiffany save for a summer of backpacking in Europe. They were proud of the fact that while most of Tiffany's friends were sitting around getting drunk and pregnant, Tiffany would be learning about the world. They probably wouldn't have been pleased with how she spent her last hours alive.
When she vanished, they began a tireless campaign. Like all parents faced with an unsolvable mystery of this type, they played nightmare scenarios over and over in their heads. Was it worse that she was dead? Or was it worse that she was alive, perhaps living in some horrible situation? Which to hope for? How to pray?
The case caught the attention of Nancy Grace and Greta Van Susteren. The resulting media pressure caused France, the United States and Australia (the home of the poor drunken boy last known to be with her) to redouble their efforts on Tiffany's behalf.
But there was no trace to be found. No clue as to her disappearance. The Australian boy, somewhat of a loathsome cad, found himself now reviled as a murderer. For the life of him, he could barely remember their last hours together. He didn't even remember having slept with her on the beach. A fact attested to by the drunk who watched it, but his testimony was highly questionable.
No one would ever have tied it to a case in Federal Court from almost two years before. The prosecution of a small time thug named Paulie Azeglio. In 2002 Paulie was convicted under U.S.C. § 2315 Sale or receipt of stolen goods, securities or monies. He was sentenced to three years, but died in prison in 2003. His death was retribution in an ongoing organized crime power struggle involving his infamous father, Frank “The Ax” Azeglio. Edward Teague was a juror in the trial that convicted Paulie.
​
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK. Two and half months before Tiffany's death, Jude was in the living room of his home in Sherman Oaks. He had his laptop hooked up to his 70 inch big screen television and he was sitting on the couch watching porn when his cell phone rang with an unknown number. Normally he wouldn't have answered it, but the area code was from New York. And he got a prickly feeling at the back of his neck. So he managed to get his hands clean in time to answer the call before it kicked over to voice mail.
The speaker was abrupt. A limousine would be arriving at his home in forty-five minutes. It would take him to the airport. He would fly to New York, JFK International and be picked up from there for a meeting. After the meeting he would be taken to a hotel before being flown back to L.A. the following afternoon. The option to refuse this was not offered. And Jude, recognizing the voice, knowing the caller by reputation, never once thought of turning it down. He got up, showered and packed an over-night bag. The limo was right on time.
When he arrived in New York, it was almost 4 AM. Another limo was waiting for him and the ride from the airport took forty-five minutes. Jude slept for most of it as it was past one in the morning, California time. He woke from the sound of the limo coming to a stop. The driver opened the door and Jude stepped out, stretching as he did so.
He was in a warehouse complex. Dull orange lights hung from the corners of buildings in halos of mist. The ocean was nearby, though he couldn't see it. He could smell the salt in the air and hear the not-so-distant sound of compressed surf crunching against a wharf. This was an old complex. Rust rotted through the walls of the buildings. Some were missing whole panels.
The limo drove away, leaving him alone. For a moment, there was a tightness in his chest. Anxiety. He didn’t have a gun. He wasn’t armed but that was unavoidable. He pushed it away. Calculated the odds. It was unlikely they brought him this far just to kill him. Unlikely, but not impossible. He pushed the thought away again. You never knew for sure when dealing with the Mafia. Before anxiety consumed him, a door opened. Twenty feet away, a large man wearing a suit stepped out of the darkness and motioned him to come forward. Karsen did not feel better.
The man searched Karsen, patting him down. Karsen didn't object. When the man was satisfied, he waved Jude through the doorway. Neither of them spoke.
Karsen moved cautiously into the old warehouse. It was a huge empty place. Dim light filtered in from broken windows high above. Deep shadows hung like curtains through cavernous space. Karsen lit a cigarette and walked, kept walking towards the center of the warehouse. Finally, seeing no objective and hearing the door crash closed behind him, he stopped. In a dim pool of light drizzling in from a broken window high above.
Footsteps echoed out of the shadows. Coming towards him. Gradually a man emerged from the gloom. He stopped a few feet from Jude. The man was in his late fifties or early sixties. Obviously Italian. His hair was steel grey and his manner was one that assumed authority.
Jude stared at Frank “The Ax” Azeglio. He took a drag on his cigarette and exhaled softly. Frank spoke.
“Mr. Karsen.”
“Yeah.”
“Put out your cigarette. My sinuses...”
“Oh. Sorry.” Jude dropped the smoke and crushed it with his shoe.
“Thank you. And thank you for coming.”
“Sure.”
“I have a job for you, Mr. Karsen.” With gloved hands, Frank the Ax passed a manila envelope to Karsen.
“Family member?” asked Jude.
“No.”
“One of the bosses?”
“Is this a quiz show? Open the fucking envelope.” Azeglio pulled out a bottle of nasal spray and took a squirt up each nostril.
Karsen skimmed the information and looked at the photo. A photo of Tiffany Teague. He glanced back up at Azeglio, curiosity on his face.
“This is a teenage girl.”
Frank stared at him. Silent. Jude shot him a small, knowing smile.
“Sure. I'll do it. Any special requests?”
“Make it quick and painless. Make the body disappear.”
Jude nodded and slid the papers back into the envelope. Something was weird about this. There was a reason Frank called him in the middle of the night, flew him across the country. There was a reason they were meeting in this warehouse instead of some back room of a restaurant. Something about this contract was different.
“A mil,” said Jude. “Plus expenses.”
The Ax didn't hesitate or negotiate. “I'll have it wired to your account. Bill me the expenses through our usual contact.”
“You got a deal.” Karsen handed the envelope back to Frank.
“Don't you need this information?”
“I have what I need memorized. I don’t want to carry that file past the TSA.” Karsen turned and walked towards the door. He hadn't gone more than a couple feet before Frank spoke again.
“Mr. Karsen.”
Jude stopped and turned to the mob boss.
“I want you to know why.”
Jude shifted uncomfortably. He was itching to go and he felt the nascent urge to urinate. But it was more than that. Somehow he felt that the longer he stayed, the more...culpable he was. It was an irrational, random thought, but it nagged him. It put an urgency on him.
“That's not necessary. I prefer not to know. To know as little as possible.”
“But I want you to know.”
Jude stood there quietly. He desperately wanted a smoke. Frank “The Ax” began to speak.
“My son Paul. Francis Paul Azeglio Jr, you know I wanted a better life for him. Wanted him to go to college, maybe join the military. I didn't want this life for him. This life that you and I lead. I wanted better for my children. Wasn't that the point of fighting my way out of the gutters and back alleys of Brooklyn? And I did it. I gave my children everything. Paul was raised in luxury. He got an excellent education at a private school. He had all the opportunities of privilege at his fingertips. Opportunities I bled and made others bleed to win for him.
“All I wanted was for him to be a doctor or a stockbroker or even a musician. To have a family and give me grandchildren. I wanted my son to escape this life that I was forced into by simple economics and...certain skills I had that others lacked. You understand me, Mr. Karsen?”
“I don't have children,” Jude regretted it the moment it came out his mouth. Frank's expression clouded and his brow furrowed.
“But I get your point,” Karsen added quickly.
“Every father worth a damn wants to protect his children. Of course, to my son, it seemed like I thought he wasn't up to it, like I thought he wasn't tough enough for the job....” Frank trailed off, staring up at the shattered windows with their rusted frames. “Which, of course, was the absolute truth.”
They were silent. Jude's need to piss was growing stronger. But there was no way to leave this conversation. Not until Frank the Ax was done. Was this a confession wondered Jude? Karsen suspected Frank was probably a Catholic. How did he suddenly become this man's priest?
Frank finally broke the silence. “Did your father respect you?”
Ahh jeez, thought Jude, “I broke his jaw when I was sixteen. After that it didn't matter.”
“Bullshit. It always matters. I never even knew my father and I still wonder what he would've thought of me, to this very day. But you took respect from your dad the day you cracked his face.”
“I don't know. I didn't see him much after that.”
“Right...right,” Frank sighed. “Paul wanted my respect. He wanted to impress me, not just as a son or even as a man, he wanted my respect as a gangster. He coulda done anything and I woulda been proud of him. But he wanted to be good, be great at what I was great at. You understand?”
“I think so.”
“This kid...this right side of the tracks, white kid who never had to fight in his life, decided he was smart enough to do a major job, like it was some movie or one of these cable TV shows. He stole a container full of flatscreen TVs and tried to fence. He wanted to bring down a big score, just like the stories he'd heard his old man tell the boys, when he shoulda been in bed at night...”
“He got caught.”
“Of course he got caught. Grand Theft Auto was a video game to him. To me, it was a way of life.” Frank muttered something under his breath that Jude didn't make out.
“What?”
“Nothing. Because Paul went across state lines it was a Federal Crime. Ahh, that shouldn't have mattered. I got the best lawyers, greased the skids with the Judge and the prosecutor. They offered a decent deal, but not enough. I didn't want my boy to do a day inside. So it went to trial. Still shouldn't have been a problem. I hired one of those fancy jury consultant companies and wired the jury...but one slipped by. One man named Edward Teague. Real Dudley do-right. From my man inside, he tells me this Edward Teague bullied this jury, harassed this jury, and wore them out by dragging it on for days so they finally gave in and convicted. They didn't want to convict. But this guy...this guy...he was the foreman and he all but forced them...”
Something didn't ring true about this story, but Jude wasn't about to question a man nicked-named 'The Ax'.
“Tough break.”
“So my sweetheart baby boy, my only son...went to the Federal Pen. God, the way he acted, like it was a badge of honor, like I should be proud of him. I told him-”
Frank stopped, his voice catching as the memory overcame him. He composed himself and wiped a tear, passing it off as rubbing the bridge of his nose.
“I told him. Keep your head down. Do your time quietly and he'd be taken care of. Mob guys can be very safe inside. But he... he still had something to prove...”
Another tear slid silently down the mafia don's cheeks. Jude wanted desperately to leave. But he felt he had to say something at this point.
“He's dead.”
“I got the guys that did him. I got them already.” Frank wiped the tears from his face and his manner changed. As he spoke, a slow rage filled his voice. “Now. Now I want Edward Teague. Juror number nine. I want him to suffer like I do. To live without his precious child, his daughter that he dotes on, that he loves. I want to rip her out of his arms.” His voice seethed with hatred.
“I want him to hurt...you understand me? I want him to have this hole in his heart. This ache, this, this horrible, empty, loss torn into his soul.”
Frank stepped closer to Jude, until he was so near Jude could smell the faint medicinal scent of nasal spray on the man's breath. He was so uncomfortable that he wanted to burst out laughing, but knew that would mean his instant death. Not figuratively. Frank, in this moment, would kill him for disrespect. It was the thought of his own face being bludgeoned that drove the amusement away.
Brutality filled Azeglio's voice, “I want to take his daughter from him and I want him to live the rest of his life never knowing what happened to her.”
The cold hatred that burned out of the man was awful in its intensity. His eyes cut into Jude's with the horror of emptiness. Without another word, Frank turned and walked back into the darkness.

My sister got married in Lake Tahoe over the weekend which brought me to California/Nevada for the very first time. While I was there with my family, my other sister suggested we fly to LA so we can go to Disneyland while we were close. She has a very young daughter, and I didn't think I'd have another reason to go to Disneyland, so of course we went!
My fiancee and I watch the podcast religiously, we both worked from home ever since COVID, so we have not missed a single episode since 2020, and I've been a fan of H3 since their very early video days.
While on the plane from Reno to LAX, we, being dorks, were like "omg I wonder which building they shoot the podcast from" "omg imagine if we met them". We figured since we were in LA/Anaheim, there was a chance we'd meet someone famous, even if unlikely, but we were mainly just thinking about members of the podcast since we spend so much time watching them.
When we were in Disney we still were saying things like "if we were to meet one of them, who would you want to meet?". To which my fiancee said, Ethan and Hila. I was (I thought) being more realistic and guessed maybe we'd meet someone from the crew. Since Ethan and Hila have kids and can't get a babysitter, I didn't think there was any chance they'd leave the house ever.
Later on in the day, my sister says she has to go back to the hotel because her daughter had been up for so long and was exhausted, so my sister, brother in law, niece, mom, and dad left the park while my fiance and I stayed behind. My fiancee makes a quick plan "let's go on pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones, and the bobsled ride, then decide from there". Okay plan.
Right when we get off the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, walking through the exit, I see someone who looks familiar, my fiancee and I do a triple take and then I just screen "YOOO ETHAN!!!" He says "hey, what's up man" while holding Bruce, and then Hila walks over and waves to us, which I then just scream "HILA!!!" We didn't want to bother them for pics as they were with their family and had their kids with them, but we were just absolutely starstruck. I'm not a person that even cares about celebrities at all, so anyone from the H3 podcast are honestly the only people I'd be excited to see.
We were absolutely giddy and just felt like we were dreaming.
https://imgur.com/a/4hS02On
Now this is where things went from a dream to a nightmare.
One our way back home, we ran into my sister and brother in law, taking their child to the ER because she had a high fever and they feared she was dehydrated. They wanted to take care of her before we had to be at the airport. She ended up being okay thankfully!
We decided to pull an all nighter, as we didn't get back to our hotel until 11pm, and we had to wake up at 2am to catch our flight back home. While we were up we kept taking about "what are the chances we actually met them". We were in California for just a couple days, I've never been to California before, we were getting off the right ride at the perfect time, ect. Just constantly saying things to be like "what are the odds."
At 2am, we all meet in the lobby, my partner and I have been awake since 6am the previous day, and are ready to get some sleep in the car and then the plane. While driving 70mph on the highway my brother in law sees a car parked on the side, then sees a man wind up his arm, thinks "that's weird" and then a second later a 5lb rock crashes through our rental cars windshield and hits my BIL right in the arm, severely bruising it almost instantly. We are just screaming "WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED" and he pulls onto the side of the road and calls 911. EMTs come and check us, everyone is fine for the most part except for being covered in glass and my brother in law's arm hurting. They escort us to somewhere safer, as they thought being on the shoulder of the highway was too dangerous, to which they bring us to Watts, one of the most dangerous areas in all of the LA area. Police eventually come (and are useless, ACAB) take some information from us, and send us on our way. We drive the busted car to the rental place, and get to the airport in time to catch our flight thankfully. We are all shaken up, and now I'm paranoid the plane is going to go down on our way home cuz "what else could go wrong."
https://imgur.com/a/BzTSHve https://imgur.com/a/pMYpDy5
Thankfully we arrived home safely!! But unfortunately, that's not the end of the story. Right as we are pulling into our apartment complex, I get a text from my oldest sister, saying my other sister who just got married got their rental car broken into in San Francisco, and everything in the car was taken, including her ID and wedding rings. Thankfully the asshole who broke in tossed the non valuable stuff in the road, and someone brought it into the police station, so they were able to recover their ID before catching their flight for their honeymoon. She also has insurance on their rings, but what else could possibly go wrong?
Welp I wish that was the last thing, but my fiancee and I just finished packing again in preparation to evacuate our apartment because there is a giant fire less than a mile away from our apartment that is growing rapidly and 0 percent contained.
So dear Ethan and Hila, it was great meeting you guys, but please put down the Voodoo doll of me that you've been fucking with.
TLDR; I went to California for the very first time. Repeatedly joked about meeting someone from the H3 podcast. Ran into Ethan and Hila. Got starstruck. Felt like a dream. Then someone actually tried to murder my family and I, while my other sister got her wedding rings stolen 3 days after her wedding, and I arrived home to have to immediately pack my stuff up again due to a 50 acre wildfire 1 mile away from my apartment.
Fuck California, I'm gonna stick to NJ where the worst (best) thing we have is Jimmie Lee.

Looking to get my CDL license and could not find much info on this company.
They offer free training and no contract. What are your opinions on this route to go to?
​
"For a Limited Time Only we are Offering a $2,500 Sign On Bonus for all of our Students who finish the CDL School and get hired on with the Company! This is a limited time offer, so be sure you're ready to start class as soon as possible to be eligible for the bonus! Ask me for more Details!
We offer a completely free 4-week school here in Fort Worth. You will never be asked to pay back any school tuition. Our 4-week training program is Mon-Fri 7:00AM to 5:00PM. You do not need previous knowledge of the trucking industry or have a current CDL permit before starting with us. During the time you are in school you will get your CDL Permit, train on our automatic Volvo trucks and test for your Class A CDL. Not only is the school free, but we will also pay you during the time that you are in the school. Students are paid a total of $600 during their time in school. Week 1 & Week 2 - Unpaid. Week 3 - $250. Week 4 - $350. We do not contract any of our drivers with the school; so you will never have to pay back any money for the training. However, we only accept applicants who are wanting to work for Raider Express as full-time drivers.
Once you have completed the 4-week training in our CDL School you will complete the onboarding process and officially join the company. You will then start Phase 2 of Training. This will consist of completing 28 days of Over The Road training with one of our experienced Raider Express Trainers. During that 28 day period you will be paid .20/mile for all miles driven on the truck. We will guarantee you a pay of at least $800/week during this time! If you make more than that, that's great! But we will be sure you're getting paid a minimum of $800 during your Over the Road Training.
After the 28 day training period is complete, you will come back to complete a Safety Check. This is a 1-3 day process that will take place here at our facility in Fort Worth, Texas to ensure you are a safe company driver!
Once you complete Safety Check you will then go out as a Solo Driver for Raider Express. You will be making .45/mile base pay. Most of our 1st Year Drivers average $70,000!
We also guarantee that you'll make a minimum of $800/week during your first 4 weeks of solo driving with the company. You'll probably make more than this, but just in case you don't, we want to ensure you're bringing home a decent paycheck as you learn the ropes of driving on your own.
Raider Express is made up of Over the Road Drivers. Our Drivers travel throughout the Midwest Region of the United States. Most of our Drivers are out for 10-14 days at a time and then back home for 2-3 days on average. Majority of the product we haul is refrigerated freight. We haul a mix of Pork, Beef, Produce, Beer, and more. We offer a multitude of bonuses and a competitive tier pay structure. Our Driver Managers work very hard to help ensure you find the perfect balance for family life as well as life Over the Road.
We do partner with a hotel near the training facility for students that are coming from outside of the DFW area. The company will pay for the hotel while you are in the training. Once you have completed the training and begin driving for Raider Express you will pay back the hotel stay at $50.00/week deducted automatically from your check until all hotel debit is paid off. Raider offers full medical benefits for drivers who have been with us for 60 day solo and paid vacation and 401K after one year solo."

Prologue
As the end of autumn approached, the chill of morning and evening began to cut through like a hunting knife. Through the tanker's windshield, the driver could see a woman wearing a knitted scarf and a blanket on her shoulders. She had sat down in the middle of the road and was howling long and heart-wrenching like a lament. Passers-by looked at her with horror, surprise, or contempt. When a lady in a fur coat approached her to inquire, the unfortunate woman began to roll on the ground, thrashing about like a rolling log heading down the valley, and screaming with even greater force and deeper sorrow, so loud that it could be heard all the way to the shire, after which she stopped in a sob, crying quietly like the water of a lowland spring. She was Uncle Jim's eldest daughter.
Part I
Mr. and Mrs. Axelton were two retirees with charitable souls. They had the sign of charity burning on the soles of their dusty, second-hand shoes, laced up with shoelaces they got from the thrift store. They brought a bag of beans for the dog, bananas for the children, bread, bologna, and mustard for the homeless - lost souls from the outskirts of the city. They entered the basement of an abandoned building through labyrinthine paths surrounded by plywood and wrought iron fences. The building was marked with a red dot.
Around an improvised brick stove, illegally connected to the neighbourhood’s electricity network, sat Uncle Jim, Melissa, the children, and Baxter, opening cans of food received from a philanthropic organization. Baxter was a small mongrel with blue-blooded hunting dog lineage, who always hovered around Jim and helped him beg. Mrs. Axelton felt more compassion for the dog than for the family without a penny.
Jim spent his days in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral with Googie Gums, Mr. Blondey, Fane Fairfax, and Tane Cuthbert. They lived as best they could. On the drier days, they humbly lined up behind the priests, praying for them to give them something from the charity box. In the evenings, they opened a cheap two-litter bottle of beer, played backgammon, talked about the fate of the country, football, and the apocalypse.
One spring afternoon, a benevolent gentleman took Jim aside, treated him royally, and offered him an impossible-to-refuse deal. He handed him two thousand five hundred lei in cash, for which all he had to do was sign some blank documents. At that time, it was a good sum of money. Jim thought that luck had fallen upon him like a huge wheel of cheese, so he immediately accepted, without hesitation. With the money, he bought new clothes for Melissa, notebooks for the children, food, and drink in abundance.
At the beginning of the summer, a conflict erupted with Mr. Axelton over such an absurd issue that it would make customers of the "Tancredi Kingsley Jr." brewery doubt the honesty of the storyteller. Mrs. Axelton, a sensitive and volunteer person, was involved in a campaign to save stray dogs who, without the dedication of people like her, would have ended up in miserable shelters on the outskirts of the city. Those who were up for adoption were taken off the streets, washed, vaccinated, and sent to their new owners.
Jane, a neighbour from the ghetto, had told Jim one evening while gossiping on the roadside that significant profits could be made from selling animals. Therefore, seeing the strange pensioner walking through the neighbourhood week after week taking care of stray dogs, the idea arose in his mind that these actions could only have mercantile and hidden purposes, from which he was unfairly excluded from sharing the profits.
Despite Axelton's explanation, treating him to a sausage roll and a coffee from the vending machine, Jim remained unchanged in his opinions, considering his neighbour guilty of greed. When he saw him coming out of the building or on his way to the grocery store, he shouted at him from the other side of the street to demand an explanation and followed him grumpily like an unhappy landlord who had not been paid rent for a long time. He had become a real nuisance on the head of our unfortunate citizen, who now found himself forced to make unimaginable detours from the exit of the building to the bus station just to avoid the annoying neighbour with whom he did not want to continue the confrontation.
Part II
Fortunately, an unexpected twist of fate spared Mr. Axelton from a steep climb up the confrontation ladder when Jim was unexpectedly summoned to the station by a local police officer. It turns out he had signed a mortgage without any collateral which he had no chance of repaying in this lifetime. He was charged with fraud and sent to the White Gate prison for five years. No one visited him. When he was released, after two and a half years of serving, he limped and had only a few teeth left in his mouth. It was as if he had aged ten years.
Meanwhile, Melissa had coupled up with Fane and had a child with him. They moved together to the Hopeless Heights, a neighbourhood built specifically for needy people, and Jim's children were sent to an orphanage. Baxter was taken in by a kind-hearted nobleman who loved animals and owned a seafood restaurant, entrusting him to a mute maid who walked him around the blocks three times a day. Sometimes, on summer days, dressed in a bathrobe and a pair of flip-flops, Sir. Hatchet Jenkins would come out with two other small dogs as big as cats who walked swaying like wind-up toys. He walked the streets like a traveling circus performer, but if anyone dared to mock him, he became so furious that he turned into a steam boiler, blowing heat through his nostrils and obscenities at his enemy, threatening to punch them, showing them the cane he would strike his heels with.
Uncle Jim first moved in front of St. Nicholas Church, where Father Murphy O'Malley served. He was a small man, always carrying a leather briefcase like a spy movie security agent, had a carefully groomed moustache, a gold watch and ring, and patent leather shoes. Everyone said he had the gift. He came to church in a luxury car. When he opened the door, he was greeted by a multitude of beggars, some of whom had come from neighbouring quarters, trying to kiss his hand and ask for coins. Jim didn't last long there, the competition was too high.
Lately, he had been experiencing more frequent headaches. He walked with a cane down the narrow street, swaying in the wind like a turnip pulled from the ground. I didn't think he would last much longer, but Uncle Jim had a survival instinct that most mortals lack. He stopped first at Mr. Axelton's, with whom he had made amends in the meantime, and asked for a pair of boots for the snowy weather and a packet of aspirin for his headache. He found an old fur hat with ears that had been thrown away and drank a cup of mulled wine, given as charity for the souls of the dead. Then, he found shelter in a cave under the ruins of an abandoned manor.
In the morning, he emerged from the ground like a contemporary Lazarus and sat next to the all-night convenience store near the Agriculture Department. On his way out, the kindest customers would always leave him something: a roll, a coin with the king's face on it, half a salami stick, a pair of socks, a cube of melted cheese, or a bottle of curdled milk. He had a yellow plastic bag in which he loaded all of his products. In the evening, when he returned to his lair, it was always full of wonders.
Epilogue
When spring arrived, Jim began to bloom like snowdrops. His teeth grew anew, made of copper, his hair turned green like grass, his eyes started to distinguish details with the precision of an eagle, his skin became as smooth as that of young boys, his arms became steel, his forehead raised, his thoughts became clear, and his vision became as clear as that of great wise men. It was rumoured that he was making so much money that he could move to a hotel. The last time I saw him was on a foggy April morning. He got into a taxi and disappeared into the smoke of history.

Brown's Island
Richmond, VA
​
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Up on the Roof
David Makalaster *Southbound Pachyderm tease
Highball With the Devil
Cricket and the Genie (Movement I, The Delirium)
Cricket and the Genie (Movement II, Oratorio Di Cricket)
Pink Floyd's Animals
Buzzards of Green Hill *Tommy the Cat Monologue
Precipitation
Whamola
David Makalaster II
Cosmic Highway (missing from setlist fm) *Wynona Tease
Encore:
D's Diner
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A first trip to Brown's island in Richmond, VA turned out to be the right choice as I was stuck deciding whether to make the trek to Rva or Bmore later in the month. I leaned towards Browns after liking the outdoor on the river festival venue vs a fancy and more expensive Bmore show. I wanted to experience the Frogs in their natural habitat, outdoors down by the river. Walked in to the tour newcomers Adrian Belews Remain in Light group thumping the shit out of Thela and knew I had made it inside at just the right time. The Talking Heads tribute band that is comprised of former members Turkuaz played the shit out of Remain in Light from front to back.
With this being the first show with Adrian Belew in attendance I was calling for an aggressive Thela opener with Adrian or at least a sit in during the Frogs. Flashbacks to Bonnaroo 2004, the Lone Rhino set....I was sure this would happen, very sure, how could it not? Those hopes were dashed as Adrian drove by the crowd on his way out after their set. Guess they gotta hit the road too but hopefully there will be some sit ins iminent while they begin their run of this tour. Claypool was full of banter and did give a shout out to Adrian at one point and did mention how we had all just witnessed the greatest thing ever and that is Adrian Belew and now we have to listen to his bullshit.
Admittingly Claypool was hung over after partying in Nashville the night before, name dropping Jack White and Billy Strings. He dedicated Highball to his hang over. Shiner wasn't invited to the party and stayed in his hotel room by himself. Despite his tiredness throughout the day Claypool ended up being one of the more energetic forces onstage throughout the whole night, very animated, lostsa dancing, pig mask and discoball helmet.
The band was locked in this night and played a flawless rendition of Animals. A train literally drove by for a few minutes during the beginning of the set but they did NOT bust out Locomotive Breath. The rest of the set was vintage Claypool, nothing played past Purple Onion (besides the Delerium suite) and setlist was light on the Mackeral. An old school set with Roof opener, Cosmic closer with a D's Encore. A perfect festival type show just non stop hits. Highlights were getting closure with both Makalasters and Evil Les coming out strong throughout the night. The set after Animals was really stellar, super nasty funk and of course the Whamola just took things to the next level. I think even the band thought they were done near the end but Les just kept coming back out until 5 minutes from curfew.
No bust outs but they jammed the shit out of each of those songs with extendeddddd periods of improv. There were even a few unique jams and grooves that came out of the improv that venutred into Bastard Jazz. There were several HEAVY Primus teases throughout the night, full on Tommy the Cat monolouge at one point, southbound and Wynona were also played. No Drums section with Mike D, a few times in was just Paulo was playing by himself keeping the grooves coming steady.
Mike D, nuff said. He killed his solos and sounded great all night. It was my first time experiencing the massive kick drum of Paulo Baldi in person and it was glorious, he was the real MVP holding down the funk and powering those drums non stop. Claypool's solos were by the dozen, he was going off whenever he got the chance and having a great time onstage. His new bass sounds great.
It was a great weather on a beautiful night at the waterfront. They might be sold out of the Frog pins there were not any at this show. Walking back to my car I passed by a rentention pond filled with croaking frogs.

Gorilla Trekking from Kampala
How to trek mountain Gorillas from Uganda’s Capital Kampala – Kampala City excursion.
Kampala walking tours – Gorilla Trekking in Uganda.
It’s almost impossible to start planning for a gorilla trekking safari through Uganda without putting Kampala as part of the gorilla trekking adventure.
Combining a one-day Kampala city tour with Gorilla trekking gives you a blend of mixed cultures with an excellent wildlife encounter thus offering you the best African gorilla trekking safari of a lifetime.
Kampala is the pulsating heart of Uganda’s economic, social, cultural, and intellectual life. It is also the country’s largest urban center, with a population of 3.1 million (Microtrends 2020). And is the capital city of Uganda. Like Rome, Uganda’s capital was initially built across seven hills, but today, it sits on about two dozen hills.
Kampala derives its name from the local Luganda language saying ‘Akosozi k’empala,‘ meaning ‘Hill of Antelope.’ This a reference to the domestic impala (impala) antelope, which grazed the lawns of Mengo during Buganda’s King Mutesa’s reign in the 1880s.
Historically, Kampala Hill and the surrounding hills had lain at the Buganda Kingdom’s political center for several decades before the arrival of the first Europeans. Capt Fredrick Lugard arrived in 1890 and set up camp on Kampala Hill, so he is generally considered the founder.
You can choose to Visit Kampala either before or after your gorilla trekking adventure.
Some of the Iconic places and areas you can’t miss while planning for your Gorilla trekking from Kampala include the following.
Kampala City Center
Kampala’s most obvious reference point is the modern mufti-storied city center on Nakasero Hill. It is surrounded by more discreet but no less identifiable landmarks on neighboring summits.
Old Kampala Hill
Old Kampala Hill towers just a few hundred meters southwest of the city center, enclosed within the oval Old Kampala Road. Fine colonial buildings of Asian design mushroom the hill, generally somewhat rundown or strikingly renovated.
Old Kampala is historically known as Capt Lugard’s 1899 encampment site. It’s most notable today as the focal point for Kampala’s Islamic community and the sight of an imposing Uganda National Mosque.
Lubiri
Due south of Old Kampala, Kabaka’s Twekobe Palace stands on the broad, low hill of Lubiri. The ill-fated Kabaka Edward Mutesa was driven from this palace in 1966 by Idi Amin on Obote’s orders. The army subsequently occupied the site until 1993, gaining a reputation for terror. Amin and Obote’s agents took hundreds through its gates, never to be seen again.
Namirembe and Rubaga hills
Lubiri is neighboring Namirembe (Mengo) and Rubaga hills in the southwest, elevated by Anglican and Catholic cathedrals. The imposing dome identifies St Paul’s on Namirembe Hill and Rubaga Cathedral by two bell towers.
Mengo and Rubaga are Kampala’s oldest suburbs affluent in history and historic architecture, including the Royal Palace.
Bulange Building
Less than 500m past the turn-off to Namirembe, the Bulange Building — the traditional seat of the Buganda Parliament — stands on the south side of Albert Cook Road, directly opposite the junction with Sentema Road. It is one of the most impressive colonial-era buildings in Uganda.
Makerere Hill
Northeast of Namirembe is Makerere Hill, commonly known for housing the country’s oldest University. A white bell tower of Makerere University used to be visible on the green ridge of Makerere Hill until accidental fires gutted it in September 2020
Gorilla trekking In Uganda
Gorilla Trekking Information – Mountain Gorillas In Uganda
Most of these mountain gorillas do reside in South Western Uganda in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. This Park consists of almost half of the number of Mountain Gorillas that are believed to be remaining in the whole world.
It’s also believed that the remaining Chimps in the entire world Co-exist in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. For any interested person willing to visit Ugandan gorillas, you must pay for a gorilla trekking permit that goes for USD 700.00 per trek per person.
Mgahinga National Park; this park is found in the Virunga ranges shared between Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda. This Park is also another place that is known for being a home of Ugandan gorillas.
Gorilla trekking experience:
For a person to have a wonderful, memorable, and unforgettable adventure you will have to endure all the efforts needed to reach Bwindi and trek through this wonderful natural forest. There are thirteen habituated gorilla groups for tourists to trek. And all these groups are found in different sectors such as Buhoma, Nkuringo, and others are habituated in the Ruhija and Rushaga regions of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
A proposed itinerary for Gorilla trekking from Kampala.
These four days gorilla trekking safari is going to allow you to watch two of the many Gorilla groups in this impenetrable forest. Therefore, allowing you two good hours of interaction with these primates and maybe a community walk to see the Batwa people and see how they live their daily lives.
Tour Highlights
Day 1: Kampala City Tour.
Day 2: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Game Park.
Day 3: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable.
Day 4: Transfer to Kampala
Detailed Itinerary
Day one
Kampala city tour
Early morning after breakfast, you will be picked up from your hotel of residence, for a tour of Kampala. We will visit the key sites that make Kampala a unique tourist destination and these will include the King’s Palace, the kingdom parliament, Namirembe and Rubaga Cathedral, the old Kampala Mosque, and nakasero Hill. Owino market, the Kabakas lake, and end with the Visit to ndere center for an evening of cultural performances.
We will return to the Lodge for a relaxing dinner and overnight stay and preparations for the start of the gorilla trekking safari.
Day two
Transfer from Kampala to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Be early to hit the road in the morning since a long journey to the southwestern part of Uganda where the park is located. During your journey, you will have a brief stop in Mbarara town where you will have your lunch meal plus maybe mini shopping if you, please, and thereafter head on. While on the road you will then be in sight of Uganda’s other amazing beauties inclusive of which is the beautiful scenery of the city. On reaching the park you will check in at the accommodation. dinner and overnight.
Day three
Mountain Gorilla Tracking and Community Walk
The day that you’re going to be the insight of the gorgeous primates the gorillas. Wake up early to buy yourself time to have breakfast and pick your packed lunch plus drinking water since you ought to have long hours in the forest searching for these apes. You will be expected to be at the park headquarters on time for your briefing and their head to the forest to engage in your first track which may take you 2 to 6 hours depending on the animal’s movement. A Full hour is allowed you to visualize the animals as they move around and react differently to your visit, while here you will be able to know why these apes are called cousins to man since the semblance to human character is positive. Thereafter the trek head back to the park headquarters and then finally the lodging. Freshen up and take on a community walk to see the Batwa people and their ways of life you can enjoy their cultural dances and songs as they demonstrate it all for you. Then dinner and overnight at the accommodation slept at the previous night.
Day 4: Transfer to Kampala
Wake up early enough to have your fantastic breakfast meal, then head for the stunning boat ride on Lake Bunyonyi that will allow you a view of some of the islands on this lake as you observe the well-terraced hills surrounding the lake and many more scenic views. Then you will pack up and be on your way to Kampala with lunch en-route plus other stopovers that you would love to make as we come to the very beginning of the end of our double trekking safari. On reaching Kampala you will either be dropped at the airport for your flight or to a hotel in case your stay is still on.
End of Tour

Hi all,
I went to Fortress Festival in Scarborough this weekend just gone and had a blast. There's some discussion going on here but I wanted to do a write up specifically for those who couldn't make it. I've included links to respective bandcamp pages and all of the band pictures/videos are mine!
First of all...
The Venue
After driving almost five hours to get there and checking into the BNB, walking up to this was quite an experience. Right on the sea front, Scarborough Spa is made up of multiple rooms. The entire festival took place on one stage in this room. There was a bar at the end and another in a quiet room downstairs (which also doubled up as a great place to charge your phone). Carling, Madri, Caffreys, Aspalls, and a couple others on draft. Cheapest pints were £5 and there was a lovely Fortress reusable cup you could get for £3. Made the mistake of doing this straight away on Friday and having to carry it around for the rest of the day. There was also a lovely Fortress ale for this event but it ran out pretty sharpish. Also worth noting that staff were incredibly friendly, from the local security + bar staff to the festival organisers themselves.
The only food on offer were things like sandwiches and pots of salad and pasta behind the bar. I'd heard they wanted food trucks but couldn't get them in due to a wedding going on on the Saturday. Apart from a couple of hours during the wedding, there was a great big balcony with a fantastic view of the sea and plenty of places to perch.
Entering the venue was super easy, hand in the paper ticket and receive your wristband. I'd heard of a few people forgetting their ticket but apparently confirmation of purchase was enough to claim your wristband which was nice. IN the entrance foyer there was the Fortress Festival merch stand as well as a few others. One who's name I didn't get were selling tons of pins and patches, then there were records and tapes from Onism Productions and Dark Earth Records. If you know any of the other companies there let me know! The band merch was just inside the main room and there was some great stuff on offer. I left with a Nemorous t-shirt and a Panopticon tour t-shirt as well as a copy of Kentucky, which was kindly signed by Austin Lunn after I bumped into him in the crowd. That really made my weekend.
The Music
Friday
The important bit. Friday kicked off at 2pm with English BM band Andracca and what an opener it was. Crowd was disappointingly light for them and I felt a little bad but it was the very first set of the entire festival. They still earned some new fans, myself included. Great energy and intensity.
Next came another English BM band - Andartar. Heavier than Andracca but similarly great intensity. I knew I'd stumbled upon a brilliant festival already at this point. Another pic. Lighting was great throughout the whole fest.
Slight change of pace next with Devastator, a black thrash band from Derby. First pit of the weekend starts, even if it only consisted of around 6 people. They got a great reception and put on a good show and their set was 30 minutes, same as the two before.
Then we get to our first jaw drop of the festival. The Sun's Journey Through The Night. One man band from England recently nominated for Metalhammer's Song of the Week. Incredible performance and highly recommend them. Nice theatrics with the horned skull mask and just fantastic energy from everyone involved. I also got a drumstick from them, cheers!
Wode come next. 40 minute set this time. Manchester black/death metal. Loved his vocals.
Then we have Finnish pagans Havukruunu. Setting the 'atmospheric' tone for the rest of the evening with a nice intro. Place was looking full now, though it was amazing how spacey the room felt. Should also note the crowd was really chilled and friendly. Great set, loved the bassist's bullet crown.
Time for the headliners. I say headliners because they both played for the same amount of time and both felt like they had the right to finish the first day off. So - an hour's set from the magnificent Can Bardd from Switzerland. Beautiful atmospheric folky black metal, many people said they were their favourite band of the weekend. Great set and, as you can see, the place was really alive. Popped out for a smoke and thought 'what a place'.
To finish off, Saor from Scotland. First time hearing electric bagpipes which was a fun experience. Just like every other one that day it was a brilliant set, the crowd were really into it and I especially enjoyed the flute(?). Frontman Andy engaged spoke with the crowd a few times. Devastated to find out from someone that he was a Rangers fan but seemed a nice guy. Nice view leaving the spa. Day 1 over, time for this fucking incredible kebab. So good.
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Saturday
Made the 30 minute drive to Whitby before the festival kicked off, mostly to see Dracula's gaff. Impressive place but cost £15 to get in - FYI, you can just walk in through the exit in the gift shop...
Made it back to Scarborough Spa - which was once again looking ravishing - just in time for the post-black metal openers from Birmingham, Lunar Mercia, at 12:30. Really nice sound and lovely vocalist who I'd spoken to the day before.
Next we have Nemorous. Basically Wodensthrone v2 as it's made up of mostly ex-members. Started amazingly, finished amazingly, but suffered a very unfortunate snapped guitar string in the middle that seemed to take an AGE to restring. The crowd was totally sympathetic but you could feel the frustration from the entire band, I can't imagine how disappointed they were. Think they only managed around four songs but they did a great job and I went and bought a t-shirt afterwards. Visceral vocals and first keyboardist of the festival.
My personal highlight of the weekend came at the end of Nemorous' set. Just before they started I checked in at the Panopticon stand and got myself a copy of Kentucky. £80 on Discogs currently but they were selling them for £35. That alone made me very happy, but, whilst watching Nemorous, I noticed a familiar face. There was Austin Lunn from Panopticon, the reason I bought the ticket to this festival, going ham at the barrier (the guy with the hair, obviously). Once the set finished he very kindly signed my copy of Kentucky after I frantically searched for a marker pen and got a photo with him. He stuck around to chat for a few minutes and was one of the nicest musicians I've ever met. So enthusiastic and asking loads of questions. My weekend was made and absolutely nothing could've ruined it at that point.
I missed Wyrdstaef and Glemsel, though I hear both were great, so I could take my merch back to my lodgings before I got stuck into the rest of the day.
After a short break and a few beers I got back in time for Ard. Described as 'Monastic Northumbrian doom', Ard is the project of Mark Deeks from Winterfylleth. As a one man project he was naturally assisted by the rest of Winterfylleth! This was a real change of pace from the black metal we'd been listening to since early Friday afternoon and he did thank everybody for sticking around for him 'even though there were no blast beats'. Really enjoyable set.
Next, Ante-Inferno, from Scarborough itself, with the drummer being the organiser of the festival, Gary. Really been enjoying their most recent album 'Antediluvian Dreamscapes' and they were a class act. In case you haven't caught on, everyone at this festival was fucking great. Really loved the vocals here.
Here we have one of my biggest highlights of the weekend and a band I've not stopped listening to since I left Scarborough. Afsky, from Denmark. They rendered me absolutely speechless. Sure, the wood and the torches and the industrial fan were a nice touch, but they played with an intensity I hadn't seen to this point. The sound was amazing and the screams were just top drawer. As you can see in this video, it was way busier on the Saturday. Room was packed but, like Friday, far from cramped. I've listened to them every day since Saturday and I finished one of their albums on the drive home.
It was getting real misty at this point. Eldritch powers or smoke machine, who can say?
Penultimate act of the day, English black metal darlings Winterfylleth. Mark Deeks from Ard back behind the keyboard this time. I'm a fan of Winterfylleth and it was my first time seeing them but I wasn't really blown away. They were good, I think I just expected them to be better. Or maybe it was the anticipation of Panopticon around the corner... either way, there was a better pit this time as well as a few corpse-painted balloons floating around. Very kvlt.
Finally, my time had come. I bought my ticket for Fortress the moment I heard Panopticon were there. One of my favourite black metal bands, with Kentucky being one of my favourite albums of all time. At this point, around 21:30, I hadn't had a pint for about 2 hours to avoid needing a piss and losing my spot at the front. I got right to the barrier, which was insanely easy, and waited it out. Soundcheck took a little while and the whole fest was probably running a solid 15/20 mins behind. Think Austin Lunn spent more time trying to balance his 'Commonwealth of Kentucky' flag on his amp than actually doing the soundcheck, not that I was complaining.
And then we were off. They were fucking amazing in every way. I was emotional. So much Kentucky material, including the wonderful little folky bits. Austin wasn't satisfied with the sound at the start and kept asking for more guitar, not that it interrupted his flow at all. Though, the string instrument they were using (fiddle? violin? idk) could've definitely been a bit louder. Austin's vocals were fantastic but I was utterly blown away by their keyboardist, who's name I don't know. Guitar work was fantasticand at times it sounded just like the studio album.
Austin did an impromptu meet and greet afterwards, just jumped down from the stage and started to chatting to people. Really phenomenal set. Sadly it was the end of the road for me, as I couldn't stay for Sunday's lineup due to work, but I had had an incredible time and finishing with Panopticon was a moment I'll never forget.
I heard Sunday was also good, though I think it would be fair to say the lineup was slightly weaker. Heard great things about Abduction and Cenotaphe, though I've heard a few things about Bolzer having a nightmare with soundchecking (as in it took fucking ages and he had a go at the sound engineer - and someone may have heckled him?) but I can't say much more as I wasn't there. A friend did say they were really good once that got out of the way.
Final thoughts
Favourite sets: Panopticon, Afsky, The Suns Journey Through The Night. In that order.
Best pint: Caffreys. What a drink. Don't see much of that down south.
Best moment: meeting Austin Lunn and getting him to sign my Kentucky record. And that kebab.
Fortress is one of the best festivals I've ever been to. Not because it was flashy or had the best lineup or anything like that (though Panopticon puts it up there for me), but just because it was so well organised and chilled. Everyone was super friendly, there was zero hassle, the venue was incredible, and all the bands delivered. They've already confirmed they're going again for 2024 and they're moving to the bigger room at Scarborough Spa which holds 1800 and looks awesome. It's going from 3 days to 2 days (Saturday and Sunday). Here's their Facebook page and there's a forum with plenty more pictures and discussion and links to other black metal gigs in the UK, worth joining.
There's nothing new here for people that did go, but I'm hoping it'll be an enjoyable read/watch/listen for some who didn't and it may entice you to buy a ticket for next year. I've got no affiliation with the festival, just a new regular! Thanks for suggesting I do a write up, ScarlyLamorna. Thanks to anyone who reads my wall of text. I'm not a writer or anything of the sort, this is just some personal musings with some action shots. Also, if anyone went Sunday and wants to add a write up, please do!
Feel free to ask any questions/request any more pics or videos.

😮‍💨 I need to get it out. And i apologize in advance for this lengthy post. Found out that my gma's caregivers haven't payed their mortgage in over a year. The wife (my aunt) who was supposedly left in charge of the finances, hasn't paid the mortgage, electricity, water, etc. For the last 12 - 18 months. My aunt left about a month ago and they dont know where she is. They had the sheriff come with a letter stating that the house is going up for auction on the 26th of June.
My dad, husband and I are to take time off of work and drive to Oklahoma, pack them up and bring them and their 4 animals here to NC. There is SOOOOOooo much trauma, unhealed emotional abuse all throughout this side of my family. I am silently freaking out, cause this place has finally started to feel like home, after packing up all i owned and moving across the country, a little less than 10 months ago. I have done so much work with my dad, and we have gotten to a good place of understanding and healing. I am scared I am going to start all over again. I know fights will be inevitable, between dad, uncle and gma. They are all very stubborn and prideful. And because my dad has forked out a lot of $$$ to help them, I know that's all gonna come up.
I am trying to be optimistic about the situation. I believe that in the long run this can be beneficial to all of us, but it is going to be a bumpy road. My gma won't have to live in an abusive home and I get to see her everyday!
But the quick change, and all the unknown factors are creating a cloud of distress. 🌩

This sub has been an incredible source of information and inspiration, so I gave myself an hour to write down and share some insights from the recent three-week road trip I’ve had with my partner.
General remarks:
- Our main goal was to enjoy nature, so we were okay with spending absolutely no time on the golden circle or in Reykjavik. Due to the weather, we ended up doing both anyway; but these would be the parts of the trip I would skip first. Coming from continental Europe, we had almost no jetlag and could safely start directly with our journey. With more jet lag, some more time to adapt is definitely a good idea.
- We rented a 2WD campervan from Star Car Rental and spent all but the final night on campsites. Our experience with Star Car was very good. The price was competitive and included unlimited mileage, additional driver and all necessary utensils (chairs, table, cooking stuff). We got picked up from the airport and were ready to go within 15’. When giving back the car, we got driven to our hotel without any inspection (we did have zero excess insurance).
- Mid-May to beginning of June was a very nice time to travel. The days are long (I’ve seen no darkness), almost all camping places are open, but the crowds at the highlights are small – except for the big boys in the south.
- We started our days quite early and therefore typically arrived during the afternoon at the campsites. The kitchen area, showers and laundry spaces were often free to use. Be prepared to go to campsites that have only 2 stoves and 1 shower. During prime time, expect some waiting times.
- We picked up around 100 € worth of cash – two campsites were cash-only, everything else was absolutely card-first / cash-free.
Useful ressources:
- Vedur and Safetravel: This sub is absolutely right. Learn how to read and anticipate the weather before you get there. We were there during two yellow warnings and these things are really no joke. It helps to have plenty of time to spontaneously adapt the schedule. And we’ve seen it all: blizzard in the West, hail up North, storm in the East and sun in the South.
- Google reviews & park4night: These were pretty accurate for the campsites. 4+ stars are no-brainers, 3+ depend on your needs (kitchen, shower, electricity) and less than 3 should be avoided. Also, remember to rate them yourself during/after your trip to increase the statistical significance ;)
- Google Maps/MyMaps: MyMaps was useful during our planning to fill with random highlights (waterfalls, hotpots, hikes, campsites) and to set up a rough itinerary. Google Maps is accurate on paved roads. On gravel roads, expect some significant delays. Maps calculates with 80 km/h, while you will probably never exceed 50 km/h. In the Westfjords, we guess-timated our times with 2 minutes per kilometer on the gravel roads. The Happy Campers Campsite Map as well as the Hot Pot Iceland Map were nice to have in the back-pocket to check with some time to spare whether something is close by.
- Polarsteps: This was a cute little App, which we used to keep family and friends informed. You can add pictures and some text to your highlights. This way, you don’t send the same picture into various chats and there is a location- and time-dependent context.
Cost: This is the per-person cost breakdown for our 21-day trip (20-day camper rental, 1 hotel stay, total 3’500€).
- Rental (zero excess insurance, additional driver): 1’135 €
- Flight (from continental Europe): 700 €
- Activities (Pools, Spas, Horse-riding, Kayak): 300 €
- Camping (pretty consistent 2’000 +- 500 ISK p.P.): 275 €
- Groceries (Bonus, Kronan, Netto): 255 €
- Coffee, Beers, Food in Restaurants: 260 €
- Petrol (420 € in total for roughly 3’600 km): 210 €
- Souvenirs: 180 €
- Ferries (into Westfjords and to Westman Islands): 95 €
- Hotel: 75 €
Highlights:
- Sundlaug and Spas: When camping in small towns, very often there will be a swimming pool close by. They are not expensive (around 1000 ISK pP) and a great way to relax after a long day. Also, it feels nice to take longer, hot showers without knowing people are waiting in line. We decided to go for some smaller premium spas and were very happy with all of them: Krauma was one of our first stops, the Forest Lagoon was incredible during evening hours and GeoSea was also fantastic. Re: nudity. It takes a bit to get used to, but its very refreshing to see this very open approach to nudity in the pools. No one cares, no one watches – just do your thing. It’s cool to see groups of friends at all age groups be so open about it. Certainly very different compared to continental Europe.
- As we had to skip the Eastfjords a bit due to storm, we had some time left at the end. We spent the last 3 nights on the Westman Islands. It was great to leave the car for a longer while and do everything by foot. There are plenty of things to do and the swimming pool is fantastic.
- Mulagljufur: Use Google Maps to find the exact location, as of now, there is no sign along the road. The canyon is very beautiful and we ended up hiking for almost three hours. Couldn’t get enough of the views.
- Glymur: The infamous log wasn’t placed when we were there, but the short hike to the cave and towards the canyon was absolutely worth it.
- Camping highlights: Melanes campsite at Raudasandur beach (Westfjords): incredible scenery, wild drive to get there; Thingeyri campsite (Westfjords): directly at the fjord, fantastic infrastructure (probably the best kitchen we’ve had) and IMHO a great alternative to the Tungudalur campsite in Isafjordur; 66.12 N campsite (near Husavik): insane ocean view, good infrastructure, one of the best sites along the diamond circle; Glamping&Camping (Westmann Islands): beautiful setting, good infrastructure.
Itinerary (Highlights: *, ** or ***)
Day 1: Arrival at KEF during the afternoon in pouring rain, set up campervan, first grocery stops at Bonus and Kronan, Dinner at Issi’s Fish&Chips*, Camp at Hjalli Kjos
Day 2: Glymur hike** (up to river, no log), Krauma Spa**, scenic drive into Snaefellsnes, Camp at Freezer Hostel
Day 3: Check out Snaefellsnes highlights, get to Stykkisholmur in the afternoon, Ferry Baldur to Brjanslaekur, Hellulaug hotpot*, drive to Melanes campsite*** on Raudasandur beach
Day 4: full day at Raudasandur, great hikes, another night at Melanes campsite.
Day 5: Long drive through westfjords. Highlights included the self-service fish station in Talknafjordur (amazing fisk bollur**), Dynjandi waterfall and Sandfell hike. Camping at Thingeyri*, relax in local swimming pool
Day 6: drive to Isafjordur, check out city (kind of underwhelming, but it was a national holiday; the brewery is nice), do some small hikes in the area. Camp at Tungudalur.
Day 7: very long drive out of westfjords towards Varmahlid. Hot dog stop in Holmavik and arrive at Lambeyri campsite (cash only)
Day 8: woke up with dead battery, but got jump start by campsite owner. Horseriding tour at Lytingsstadir* was very nice, drive to Akureyri, visit Forest Lagoon**. It was Saturday night when we visited, upon leaving we had police checking every driver for alcohol – so better hold off the pool-side bar ;) wanted to camp at Vaglaskogur but campsite wasn’t open. Went up until the CJA campsite in Laugar with a late-night stop at Godafoss (around 10pm, were the only people there)
Day 9: check out Myvatn area: Dimmuborgir hike, Hverir, Leirhnjukur hike**. Then continue to Dettifoss and camp at Asbyrgi. Late night hike to Asbyrgi ‘island’*.
Day 10: Hike in Asbyrgi canyon, continue to Husavik, visit GeoSea**, camp at 66.12N***
Day 11: long drive with very strong winds. We had to go back to Akureyri (optician to fix broken glasses), so went through Myvatn again with a quick stop at Grjotagja. Beautiful drive, weather was too bad for Studlagil canyon, so we continued all the way to Borgarfjordur eystri. Crazy winds during the night and we were happy that our car didn’t get blown away.
Day 12: unfortunately, no hikes in this beautiful area. Waited for storm to pass until lunchtime, visited harbor with puffins**, drive to Egilsstadir (hot dog stop), continue to Seydisfjordur (kind of underwhelming town, the drive is gorgeous though) and, due to weather forecast, continue all the way to Djupivogur campsite.
Day 13: Incredible drive from Djupivogur to Höfn, stops at Hvalnes and Jökulsarlon. Hike at Mulagljufur***, camp at Svenifell.
Day 14: early-morning hike in Skaftafell**, continue to Kirjubaersklausur for campsite. Had to skip Fjardrargljufur due to weather, visited local swimming pool.
Day 15: yellow warning again. Continued to Vik for Skool Beans Coffee*, quick stop at Reynisfjara beach (red alert was on, so we didn’t go further than the sign), continue to Skogarfoss and hike part of Fimmvorduhals*, camp in Selfoss – swimming pool was closed unfortunately.
Day 16: Weather forecast was very bad, so we spent the day in Reykjavik. Walked around town, grabbed some coffees and visiting the local Sundhöll*. Camp at Mosskogar** (cash-only)
Day 17: Golden circle: hike at Thingvellir, look at Geysir, skipped Delfoss. Camp in Selfoss again.
Day 18: quick stop at Seljalandsfoss, ferry to Westman islands. Set up camp at Glamping&Camping** for the next 3 nights. Visited Brothers Brewery*.
Day 19: Kayak tour with Kayak-and-Puffins-company***. Visited local swimming pool* (trampoline slide was very nice) and watched a local handball game.
Day 20: Hike along volcanoes and coast**, visit brewery again, go to puffin bay**
Day 21: Ferry back to mainland. Drive back towards KEF. Drop-off campervan and spent night in Konvin Hotel. Early morning shuttle to airport (we arrived about 2h early for our 7 am flight and had plenty of time).
Of course, I’m very happy to answer any questions you might have!
Hope this is helpful to some of you :)

It wasn’t until recently that I became a travel minimalist. Matter of fact, when I was in my teens, I was basically packing everything except the kitchen sink (never could resist cramping in 3-4 towels).
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Then my mindset started making a U-turn when I got a cheap 20 lb backpack. Filled with black tea and chocolate bars, it was my faithful travel companion whenever a music festival would roll around.
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In 2022, I decided to set out on my first-ever trip – a whole six months across Europe. All on my own, trusty bag notwithstanding. I stuffed it with everything I thought I’d need for 6 months on the road. When I arrived in Italy, I realized I overdid it and brought more than I needed. I just started to leave the stuff I didn’t need in the hotel room.
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That period of traveling with everything I needed to live comfortably in just 1 bag was a total game-changer. May sound cliche, but traveling lightly really did change my outlook on life and materialism.
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So without further ado, here are my tips for minimalist travel.
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1. Try to aim for hand luggage

Taking hand luggage forces you to be organized and bring only the essentials with you due to the limited space. The bigger the bag, the more likely you are to fill it, even if it’s not needed. It’s sort of bag psychology!
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Not only is it cheaper to use hand luggage as you don’t have to pay for the bag to go into the hold - it’s quicker too. You can literally exit the airport and without having to wait ages for your bag. My friend has a similar philosophy for travels and work. She used to go to the office with a huge handbag filled with all kinds of crap. Now all she takes with her is a full-grain leather CITY Laptop Bag. Minimalistic, convenient, practical. The bigger the bag, the more stuff you fill it with, so do yourself a favor and go small.
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1. Give packing cubes a go

Sometimes people pack as if they’re going to another planet. Shops do exist where you’re going unless it’s somewhere remote. On the rare chance you need to buy something you didn’t pack, you’re likely to have that option.
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1. You’re not flying to Jupiter

I’d heard a lot about compressible packing cubes. I eventually borrowed one from my brother and finally got all the hype!
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You can fold up clothes in a bag, zip it up, then use the second zip to compress it even further. Definitely keeps the clothes organized and saves loads of space.
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1. Plan in advance

If you pack last minute like your train is due to leave in 5 min, you’re more likely to not only pack more but pack inefficiently. Everything you pack should be thought out and serve a purpose. I take a week in advance to draw up a list of the things I need.
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1. Check the weather beforehand

Sound obvious, but checking the weather for both day and night is crucial to know what type of clothing you need, and is something I’ve neglected to do in the past. Do your research about altitudes as well if you’re planning a trip to the mountains. I have frozen my butt off in the Alps because I underestimated how cold it could get.

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

I’ve been hesitant to post this, but Im a crossroads so here we are. New to reddit, but have found these communities supportive in my lurking thus far. Will likely post this in a few different subs to get the different viewpoints. This will likely be lengthy so I apologize. Going to keep this somewhat vague to avoid ID. Wife and I are more mid to late 30s and both work in the same male-dominated industry. Have two littles, a toddler and one in elementary school. Due to working in this industry, she understandably has a lot of male friends, this has never really been a major issue in the past as I also know most of them. She works a side job that requires travel of 1-2 weeks a few times a year. A few years ago we were having issues and almost split up, this occurred right after and during one of her work trips and my Spidey senses went up about a guy that she works this side job with. I never had any concrete proof but was suspicious, apparently, the guy’s wife was suspicious as well because she called my wife one day to accuse her (I happened to be in the room when she received the call). I also found selfies of this guy in her photo roll. She denied everything. I heavily suspected an EA or possible PA (not sure if logistics of PA would actually be totally feasible at that time) Fast forward, our relationship is generally good, we don’t really fight, but there also is not a lot of passion either. Were kind of stuck in the roommate phase of busy lives and raising kids. Right before one of her work trips last year, she picks a fight over finances. I had run up a little bit of money on a card but nothing ridiculous and it would be paid off shortly. (this is a big deal to her, I’m generally the spender while she’s the saver). I acknowledge the issue and work to resolve it, she is nonetheless upset, but I felt that she made a mountain out of a mole hill. And honestly felt like she was picking a fight before this trip, while on the trip I got some shady behavior from her 0ne night that made me suspicious of her activities, when I brought it up back home she adamantly denied anything and made me the bad guy for accusing. Now for the meat and potatoes. We both end up having to travel for work unexpectedly for about 10 days, (me for my main job, and her for this side job) I left a few days before her, and our trips overlapped. They ended up being in the same area, we were staying about 40 minutes apart but were not able to actually stay at the same place due to work duties. I hadn’t seen her in about 5 or 6 days by the time she got there, things had been going generally well between us. Texting and calling while I was gone and she was home with the kids. The second night she was there I drove over and visited with her for about an hour at night, then did the same a few days later. Then around day 5 or 6 she became noticeably distant, texting and communicating changed drastically. She attributed it to bad wifi and cell signal. My spidey senses immediately went on alert. She was more concerned with getting a work out in after her shift than she was with spending any time with me. I finished my trip a few days before her and headed home, we had a family vacation planned for that week. I got home, spent 1 day with the kids (they were staying with her parents) then got on the road for our trip. I drove 3 days to our destination while she was still on her work trip. She then came home, and the next day flew with the kids to meet me and start our trip. While on our trip everything was generally pleasant. She however was behaving somewhat differently and heavily guarding her phone. (ie refused to plug it into car play to charge etc). She also got an early and unusually heavy period (claimed it was probably early from working out). My Spidey senses were on high alert, she flew home with the kids while I drove the car the 3 days home. We fought one day because I was trying to Facetime her at night and she declined my call, the next day she claimed to be asleep, but on whatsapp it will differentiate between a missed call and a declined call. Once I was home, things were just… off. My Gut was screaming at me. Finally, it got the best of me and I put a VAR in her car. This took a lot on my part because I truly believe in trusting your spouse. Well, low and behold I uncovered a definite EA with someone she met on her work trip who lives in another state. I kept at it for a few days waiting for a smoking gun. In this time I heard hours of their conversations in which she basically talked about how much she can’t stand me and complained heavily about our sex life (or lack there of). Then, a conversation I over heard she is complaing about me trying to initiate sex all the time, and states, “can I just get my period already” They guy then states, “well today is the 1 month anniversary, and you called me about a week later and said you’re not a daddy” They both laughed and she commented on how her period was super early “probably because I fucked with it” to which he replied, “Oh with the altoid?” And she said “yea”. So this was obviously the smoking gun. The two days after I heard this we had several family events planned so I didn’t want to ruin that for the kids, I came up with an exit strategy and was going to give her one chance to come clean or I was going to leave. Well, On night one I got drunk (trying to escape) and apparently started yelling about all this to her. I’m not typically a big drinker or ever get drunk, Im ashamed of this and obviously this hurt my plans, I somewhat remembered the drunk conversation but not all of it. She brought it up the next night and we discussed it, she denied everything. Claimed that he became a good friend to talk to and that nothing ever happened physical. That she just liked talking and venting to him. I’m not sure why, probably as part of the pick me dance I decided to believe her. I’m assuming that after my drunken conversation she called the guy and they got their stories straight. I Made her block him on whatsapp and from calling. I’m confident they’ve been NC. I called the guy and his story pretty much lined up with hers, said that the particular conversation was all just inside jokes, when I asked why the hell he would know when she got her period he said that she shared she was having some medical issue she was concerned with… I feel like I would have know about any medical issue…. As im typing this I realize what a beta simp I’ve become. The first 6 weeks or so after d day were good and the sex got better, I realize now that this was love bombing on her part. I tried to convince her to go to MC but she just swept it under the rug. After about 8 weeks or so we were back to status quo. Its now been some months and a recent tift between us has triggered this all back for me. I think I’m ready to leave, I don’t want to leave, I want it to get better. But I can’t live with someone who is capable of this. Additionally, during this time frame she has had a falling out with a different group of friends, this group of friends has accused her in social circles of previously having an affair (see the first time I was suspicious) and of drunkenly groping a guy on a girls trip. I’m pretty sure I know what the responses here are going to be, but I think I just needed to write this down to validate it. We have two family trips planned in the next 6 weeks. I’m going to tough it out through then so as to not ruin the kids summer break. After that I’m going to start IC. I think I’m ready to walk away, I want to stay in the worst way for my kids sake. And I truly do love her. I feel that she does love me, but clearly is not in love with me. Even if she didn’t have the PA as she claims, I don’ t think I should be with someone that would say the things about me that she did. Again, I know the answer here, I guess I just needed to write it down. It just so hard now, months later because things are generally pretty good, I just can’t get out of my own head. I love my wife and I don't want my kids to come from a broken home. Thanks for listening.