Maxi cosi car seat expiration date

I've made a few posts here before, and after some refinement, I've narrowed down my car search to a Tiguan Allspace (yes the 3rd row of seats is near useless, but I just want a very spacious boot) and BMW X3. This is in Europe by the way, car to be used for commuting, trips to the countryside, everyday errands. I'm thinking of a 2020 model and not more than say a tad over 100,000 km on the clock, budget around €35K max. I'm now trying to decide between specific engines.
A few things I'd like to get views on:

• Given that diesels have far better fuel economy than petrol, I'm leaning towards getting that as these are somewhat larger cars that I fear will otherwise be rather thirsty, however not closed off to the possibility of getting a petrol.
  
• Brand and looks wise, the BMW I think is ahead. The Tiguan is a somewhat boring looking car, but not offensive to me either. Yes this one is a matter of taste, but just putting it out there.
  
• If going for a baseline engine, then I think I'd go for the BMW 20d engine, the price difference between this and a similarly powered Tiguan isn't that big: https://www.ultimatespecs.com/car-specs/BMW/110769/BMW-G01-X3-xDrive20d.html
  
• However I'm very tempted to go up in engine to the 217/236hp Tiguan (https://www.ultimatespecs.com/car-specs/Volkswagen/111624/Volkswagen-Tiguan-Allspace-20-TSI-220HP-DSG-4Motion.html or https://www.ultimatespecs.com/car-specs/Volkswagen/112481/Volkswagen-Tiguan-Allspace-20-TDI-240HP-DSG-4Motion.html). While the BMW X3 30d or 30i offers similar-ish engine performance and fuel economy, the price for a reasonable one of those starts getting a bit too much ahead of the Tiguan.
  

So what it boils down in my view is a more baseline BMW X3 (which I'd otherwise choose any day over the VW) or a higher spec VW (such as this for example, which also has a nice sunroof: https://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?id=363397932&adLimitation=ONLY_DEALER_ADS&cn=DE&damageUnrepaired=NO_DAMAGE_UNREPAIRED&features=PANORAMIC_GLASS_ROOF&features=SUNROOF&grossPrice=true&isSearchRequest=true&makeModelVariant1.makeId=25200&makeModelVariant1.modelId=66&maxMileage=125000&maxPrice=35000&minFirstRegistrationDate=2020-01-01&minPowerAsArray=147&minPowerAsArray=KW&pageNumber=1&parkAssistents=REAR_VIEW_CAM&scopeId=C&sortOption.sortBy=searchNetGrossPrice&sortOption.sortOrder=ASCENDING&fnai=prev&searchId=f97ce2ce-9f10-d8c5-4b0a-ece9a02d804d&ref=srp).
What do people think?

Summary: A demolition firm struggles to take down a damaged building for their mysterious clients
I Was a Foreman at the Grazer Tower Demolition
By now Grazer Tower has faded as a household name but to some the rumors and madness surrounding it refuse to die. The demolition of the massive three hundred twenty foot octagonal hotel left a gap in the Atlanta skyline but little fondness in anyone's hearts. I have no particular first hand insight into the freak lightning strikes on the 30th floor atrium which killed 13 people but I am willing to tell my side of the story about the demolition effort leading to the botched implosion. I tell this as a full, open, and honest disclosure. The legal maneuvering and ink has dried, all of the dead are buried, and all the bleeding stopped. The scars remain, the pain persists, the things I saw there are burned in my head even after they've been discredited into the conspiracy theory woodwork of the internet. The lightning storm struck on a Sunday afternoon and the next day for all we knew the bodies were still warm when a lawyer representing the owners of Grazer Tower entered our corporate office. I look back on it now with open and clear eyes and realize it was all very strange from the start when my Lead Foreman, Tom, and I were called into the meeting in progress.
The lawyer and now our client, looked like a fairly normal man in his mid thirties aside from his impeccably white suit which was ironed to the point of looking like stone rather than cloth. Beside the white suit his lips were an uncomfortable maroon and glossy. Besides this he spoke in a plain, clear, and disarming manner refraining from legalese and maintaining a firm but not imposing eye contract with whomever he was speaking directly to.
He told us in no uncertain terms he was instructed to contract with our firm to take down his client's building. Tom and I were shocked when we heard this after all, the lightning disaster, while tragic and perhaps undeservedly tarnishing in the short term to the Grazer Hotel's reputation, did not render the structure unusable nor unsafe to its surroundings. The worst damage was that the steel dome of the 30th floor atrium had collapsed into the vaulted restaurant and ballroom of the 29th floor but that's where the structure damage started and ended, in fact aside from the 28th, 29th, and 30th floor, city engineers working overnight already declared the building sound. So while perhaps still time consuming and costly, repairing the building was definitely possible and cost effective but owners, to make an analogy, were basically insisting on totaling a car after a minor parking lot fender bender. They gave us a specific date by which the building needed to be taken down. When our Boss, Jim, rebuffed the lawyer, not only because the date was challenging and soon but also because it was possible we could have it dropped BEFORE the date specified. The lawyer insisted the building go down on the date given – not later and not earlier. Jim swallowed hard and then glanced at Tom and I. Then the lawyer involved the name of the head of the owner's group, a Mr. Rohmer.
Mr. Rohmer, according to the lawyer, was offering our firm one hundred percent of the cost upfront and another twenty perfect of the total cost plus any overruns – stating if the implosion came early or late, it would mean all very little – no, that's no a typo, that's how the lawyer phrased it from his client, Mr. Rohmer. With that detail out of the way, you can see how the car totaling analogy breaks down considering the owners did not stand to profit from it's demolition – in fact quite the opposite.
The lawyer chuckled a bit to break the tension. He explained his clients and Mr. Rohmer in particular were an unorthodox bunch and then even insisted he wear the white suit in any of their dealings. The lawyer produced a tablet PC from his messenger bag and leveled it to Jim. On the tablet was all the banking confirmation codes ready to go for a direct deposit into our firms account alongside a contract. Jim seemed to hiccup or belch in excitement as he hurried around the short side of his desk to sign it since his stubby t-rex arms could not reach across his desk.
The firm was committed, we were committed – I was committed and I started to mentally cramp up over the challenges we all faced. The Grazer Hotel was in the middle of a dense urban grid. It had to be precise drop with virtually no margin for error. Jim poured us a dram of scotch from the bottle hidden under his desk. None of us a second thought about Rohmer's cryptic remark – after all, how often did you get a one hundred twenty perfect no-bid contract walk in off the street, out of the blue?
A combination of exhilaration over the money and anxiety over the work load kept us all from sleeping that night. Jim and Tom ended up going out and having a wild night to celebrate while I went home to mentally prepare not only myself but also my wife and kids. As a family they were staring down a month and a half of late nights and weekends with no dad. My wife was frustrated until I told her about the bonus and then she said she'd fill the lonely time making plans to send the kids to Disney World and then find a place for us to spend alone together. The promise of a much needed vacation after this only super charged the butterflies in my stomach further in anticipation of this challenging season ending.
As the assistant foreman I had office and on-site duties. Most of it was coordinating between the two. This included personnel, setting up site security – including guards and cameras to keep urban explorers and vagrants of out the dangerous site and satisfy OSHA hazardous work place safety requirements. The most challenging duty was site prep which included disposal of furnishings, removal of windows and other flourishes of the structure's facade which could become deadly shrapnel during an implosion. Fortunately, despite all of this, the nagging questions about permits and clean-up contracts were already handled by the lawyer. Rohmer's group also waived any rights to furnishings which means they could be unceremoniously hauled out in any way we chose to and disposed of.
Now I suppose some of these things should have came as red flags to me – or at least some one in the company but we all justified it as the group must have connects and short cuts to permits and it was a relatively new building, only about twenty years old in fact and furnishings – whether old or new probably weren't of any antique or sentimental value. All in all these were blessings since they freed our hands a bit and made a near impossible deadline more possible.
Of course the good news came with some bad news. The city engineers forbade us from working at the 28th, 29th, and 30th floors – unless we brought in a separate crew to stabilize those levels first. This was quite the fly in the ointment for the controlled implosion plan we sketched out. The 30th floor wasn't as much of a problem but the 29th floor ballroom and the weakening of the 28th floor meant we can't inspect for how compromised they were by the steel atrium dome. For all we knew if we blew the 27th floor on down the dome could shift and topple over the top three floors outside of the implosion safe zone, imperiling people and nearby structures.
I raised holy hell about it while Tom stood calm. It could take months to stabilize and clear those floors and far more money than I thought our eccentric client would pay in overruns. Jim waved me off mid sentence and simply told me he'd take care of it. That was good enough for Tom so it had to be good enough for me. I went back to my job – securing site and planning drop.
Although we had a problem with the top floor our saving grace lie in the basements. It had a three story subterranean parking garage, a basement level pool, and a utility sub-basement. We could easily smash the first ten or twelve floors into that deep footprint. Also the utility sub-basement gave us a clean cut off from the grid and a fairly convenient way to protect the surrounding grid without interruption. Still, at least part of our team would take have to take three weeks out of our six and change to handle the utilities.
The first week was hectic, they always were but we hit no major snags. By the end of it were on schedule and all of the parts were coming together. We thought maybe, just maybe, we were well on our way to an early Christmas bonus but nothing could prepare us for what was coming.
If you work on a site long enough and work anywhere on the site security reporting chain you're bound to get a few questionable reports from your night guys. Let's face it, for folks who are wake all night five or six nights a week poking around with flashlights chasing shadows, every building every where is haunted. I've been on the site security chain for thirteen years so it was easy for me to dismiss reports from the night guys about unusual glows on gutted floors and stairwells, elevators which moved on their own with no one calling for them or inside when they opened on a random floor, or the security cameras and cellphones constantly going offline on the 27th floor and the utility sub-basement.
I wasn't convinced anything of concern was going on until I got called on site by the test drilling team. This team was responsible for sampling the support materials to determine where it was best to place the explosives and what explosives would be best to use. They reported the interior supports were designed in an unusual way with a honey comb of unorthodox metals and concrete not reported on the building's records or blueprints. Specifically, they reported the concrete was impregnated by some kind of metal veins which gave off a bright shimmer. I was asked to come identify it but they claimed it disappeared by the time I arrived.
I was irate at the team and their supervisor for having me to come on down on site for something that sounded so wrong to begin with. They showed me a grainy cellphone video and told me they would swear on a stack of Bibles the sparkling compound welled up in the test coring like mercury, turned blood red and bled on the floor before disappearing into the torn up carpet. I chastised them for making this up and threatened to get new sub contractors if they kept wasting my time. I spoke with a separate sample team on the lower levels and they too discovered some unusual metal compositions – ones which were different then the ones found the top floors. One of the engineers speculated that the contrast in metals between the top and bottom floors could be cause the building to hold an electrical charge, like a battery or like a capacitor. Either way, the engineer said it would require more explosives than initially thought to take down the structure.
A couple of weeks later we were painfully behind – glass removal in particular was going slow because those contractors claimed they were constantly losing their toys. They also claimed one night to have cleared the top five floors on the east side of all their glass – only for all the windows to appear fully intact the next morning. I was forced to end their sub contract due to misrepresentation of work accomplished.
The glass wasn't the only thing slowing us down. The wire and plumbing removal was hindered by the wires somehow were fused to the pipes and in some places, the pipes were fused to the load-bearing members – we thought maybe it was due to the lightning strikes but that really didn't make sense since all of the wiring and plumbing otherwise seemed to work fine before we turned off the utilities. The only thing going for us was the helicopter loophole. Instead of accessing the 30th floor through the condemned floors we were able to get work teams on the atrium floor by helicopter. The bodies of the 13 were removed before we started working and before the atrium fully collapsed into the ballroom but the teams working on the roof reported many unusual artifacts including stained glass and Greek letters comprised of unusual amalgams of metal.
All of the strangeness culminated in the disappearance of one of the night time security guards named Phillipe. I say disappear because his girlfriend filed a missing persons report with the police and when they came to investigate Tom was busy with the atrium operations so the job fell to me. I walked the investigator through guard's smart phone filed reports from the previous evenings. Admittedly I was behind on my end approving the reports so I was embarrassed when things in the report took a turn. His reports including the same odd glows the others were reporting in the stairwells and seeing metallic veins throb on the walls.
His last reports stuck in my head: Report: Sub-basement 4 clear, 0312. Report: Sub-basement 5 clear, 0305. Report: Sub-basement 6 clear 0237.
His “all clear” reports documented levels of the building which did not exist and the further he went into the areas which did not exist, the automatic timestamps went backwards in time. It made no sense – unless he was confused as to where he was due to intoxication and there was software glitch with the timestamps. I was forced to give the investigator no firm explanation.
It's easy to write off a high security guard – they're flaky by their nature and have plenty of reasons to ghost a part time gig and even to pull prank on their final reports. I almost wrote it all off until I saw his girlfriend – apparently his fiance, handing out missing persons fliers outside of the site gate one morning. She seemed absolutely heartbroken and I got stabbed in the gut thinking maybe this wasn't a ghosting and prank after all. Seeing is believing and the next week I started to believe. Tom was finishing up on the atrium level. We used some heavy lift choppers to remove the rest of the frame and glass. Now we could get a better look into the section which collapsed into the 29th floor. We started by using a series of video drones to investigate the melted twisted dome through the collapsed roof. We quickly learned that the drones were being interfered with as their feed would cut out or their batteries would die almost immediately upon entering the ballroom.
So, we had to cut some corners, against city regulations, we let Tom and two others rappel in from the roof on secured anchored lines with helicopter over watch support. We needed to do this because we needed make sure that collapsed wreckage would not move and potentially change the implosion direction. Tom got twisted in his gear as he tried to lean into one of the holes in the roof. He slipped and fell in, disappearing from sight. We frantically radioed for Tom as the other two workers abandoned their own attempts to peer in and scrambled to Tom's aid. Tom was pulled out of the section uninjured but he appeared to be in shock, he looked wild eyed and shook as he was put on the helicopter and lowered back to ground level. Within minutes, Jim called us back to the office to discuss the near miss.
Two weeks to go and week behind, a missing guard, and now a near fatal accident. That for Jim, was the last straw. Tom and I had run out the rope Jim gave us to hang ourselves with. Jim slammed his hand on his desk as he catastrophized, red in the face, nearly breathless, he yelled we could very well kiss that twenty percent goodbye with the way things are going. He pressured Tom to go on the record after his dip into the structure that the atrium debris ball in the ballroom posed no threat to the implosion. Tom was elsewhere. He stared off in a thousand yard stare before replying to Jim that it posed no threat. Then Tom headed for the door. Jim screamed at him that he wasn't done chew us out but Tom only said he had to get back to it. I supported Tom and followed him. He and I headed back to the site to secure the night shift changes – another night not at home and having a late dinner.
I asked Tom in the car ride back what he saw in there. Tom was fixed in a trance and barely responded. He said it was wild. When we got back to the site, Tom separated from me through the gate while I strolled across the street to grab us some dinner from a street vendor. As I stood around waiting for two gyros and two cokes I could help but be mesmerized by the gutted tower. It seemed to breath in the spotlights inhaling puffs of the dust and dirt on the site and then exhaling it. A faint glow, barely perceivable against the light pollution, seemed to brighten, dim, and fade from the upper floors with each of the building's breaths. I was transfixed on it and it was the first time the building gave me an eerie feeling.
I got back on the site, food in hand, there was a buzz in their air as the night shift streamed in and the day shift streamed out. I barely had my hardhat seated corrected on my head when the site's emergency alarm blew. The interim foreman tossed me a radio as I was swept with him and our site occupational safety and emergency personnel to the basement.
Our increasingly panicked footfalls blotted out the squawk of the radios but I could hear one name again and again in the equally panicked messages – Tom Tom Tom. Whatever was happening was happening to Tom.
We reached the pool level and a trail of gasps proceeded me into the pool. There was Tom in his vest and hardhat face down in the middle of the pool with crimson oozing out him into the cerulean tiles lining the drained pool. We piled in from the ladders and shallow end to get to him. It was apparent when the first folks reached him that he was dead. They hauled him out on a stretcher and to our shock he looked like he had been dead for much longer than possible and his skin was water logged despite there being no water. He had died of fall trauma possibly despite the pool only being six feet deep. The paramedics also claimed he had water in his lungs. Then I noticed he was wearing his rappelling harness weaved in his vest – but that made no sense – he took it and his vest off when we were getting chewed out by Jim. Why would he put his rappelling gear on again.
I was the assistant foreman no more. Now the buck stopped with me. As they took Tom to the morgue we all knew the show must go on – our client demanded it, Jim demanded it and Tom would have wanted it that way. The same police investigator from the guard's disappearance met with me over Tom's death. They said it was standard procedure with work place deaths. I gave him a copy of the footage on an SD card and left the moment after it left my hand.
I had the recording queued up to the time of the commotion. The video we provided had a poor angle and was focused on the door to monitor access – the comings and goings of people. It was shift change so people were filing in and out Tom was somewhere in the crowd. The pool was one of the areas which required both foot patrols and constant video monitoring. I hit the rewind button on accident and watched his body lie there and lie there and then the timestamp sped past the 1900 hour mark. We were in traffic from meeting with Jim at that time. This was impossible but I kept my finger on the rewind button. Around 1400 the camera shakes a bit and there is slight glow reflecting on the doors so I let it play back to the shake. There is a soft green glow and then could hear a heft thud in the room. I gulped knowing that was Tom falling into the pool around the same time he fell into the hole in the roof. The soft glow turned brighter and brighter like a laser shining into the lens – something that wasn't present on the rewind. There was a flash of an incomprehensible shape or form on the screen. I was physically hurt in my eyes like I had just stared into the sun. I was left dazed with the shaped burned into my eyes with each blink. Then the camera system shorted out and a tiny puff of smoke left the memory module. The cameras blinked off wall to wall, the whole system was dead.
With the cameras fried, regulations required someone high in the company to be on site or we'd have to leave for the night. So I stayed knowing we couldn't afford to lose an hour much less an entire night. I circled the pool between approving payrolls and directing the increased security guard traffic required to monitor more areas. I was thinking about what I would say at Tom's funeral. I was thinking about Tom's family and what they would think about his apparent suicide.
I was forced to patrol the rest of the sub-basements as well since most of the guards were at the site perimeters or higher levels. I would have to follow paths of Phillipe, the disappeared guard, and all of the other guards who had mismatched timestamps on their increasingly strange reports. If not for today's incident and the recording of Tom's death, I would have stood fast to the idea that these reports were the product of night jitters and drugs but now, no.
I gritted my teeth as I exited the pool area to patrol the lower levels. I hated this building I muttered to myself. I couldn't wait to see it all rumble. I thought about which part I'd like to keep from the site to place in Tom's casket – then I realized it probably wasn't going to be an open casket funeral. I was lost in my thoughts and hatred for the building as I roamed through the parking garage into the utilities basement. I lost track of where I was as I weaved down stairwells.
I shown my flashlight on the wall and the floor level sign said “Sub-basement 999”. I stopped cold in my tracks. I was hoping it was a prank but I knew it was no prank. Then I thought maybe I'd have some answers. Maybe I would finally see what all the strangeness was about. But then I freaked out about Phillipe's disappearance and turned to run back up the stairwell. I ran up four levels to what I thought was the lobby and I pushed the door open.
My jaw hit the floor when I saw a black and white galaxy – the stars were black and the space was white with gradations of gray. The whole room was just white outer space and the whole universe swirled fast counter clockwise. I tried to breath and when I did the galaxy shrunk before my eyes until it was the size of a tiny of marble and then even smaller to a speck of dust. I reached out as it floated towards me. I stared at the speck in a cold sweat. As I stared, I was looking deeper and deeper into impossible detail. In the dust I found the milky way galaxy, I found our solar system, I found Earth and then I found North America, and then I found myself back in the pool room dripping in sweat.
Time seemed to skip and space was malleable in that hotel. As we approached the deadline to drop it, some jobs which would take hours took days and some jobs which would take days took minutes. The anomalies seemed to swarm tonight and day and yet we pressed on. Tom was buried and I couldn't go.
We met the deadline and the city came out in numbers to watch us drop the thirty floor structure. They gathered nearly two blocks away clad in ponchos and dust masks bracing for the implosion triggered by half a ton of high explosives.
I was so burned out and demoralized. My mantra became “this is for Tom, this is for Tom” and it was the only thing carrying me to this day. I chalked up all the anomalies and even my own experience on 999th sub-basement level as a reaction to shock, loss, grief, and exhaustion.
We were on the thirty minute countdown and Mr. Rohmer's attorney was designated as the trigger man. He stood there with Jim and I in the command trailer with the detonator remote. The remote triggered a two minute countdown on the charges from a master control station in my command trailer. All the charges had to be hardwired old school style because we were getting too much walkie talkie and radio interference from inside the structure for any other method of trigger to be reliable. I was too tried to make a stink about insisting I do it. I just wanted it to be over but suddenly a freak thunderstorm brewed up over the city. The skies were overcast and we were on the verge of having to abort the implosion until the next day – despite the next day being a day past the deadline. If we didn't abort and went through with the implosion, there was a strong chance the shock waves from the blast would bounce back off the lower cloud base and shatter windows and ears across the city.
I sat in my command chair at the perimeter in dismay, almost in tears as it started to rain. I felt my heart drop into the acid of my stomach as I ordered the suspension of the implosion for the day. The lawyer, surprisingly, did not resist. I watched as the crowds dispersed from the viewing lines and police started to permit traffic back through the streets surrounding the site.
Then a group of unauthorized personnel threw open the door of the trailer. They were a mass of men and women clad in pressed white suits, stoney faces with thin maroon lips, one of them carried a white covered book.
The attorney dropped his eyes and head in deference to elderly man at the head of the congregation. The attorney addressed him as Monsignor. The man introduced himself as Monsignor Rohmer and he placed his hand on his attorney, calling him a cousin of the congregation, stating there will be no postponement and no delay.
Rohmer, a man I judged to be in his late 50's or early 60's was bald and covered it with a white derby hat. He was tall, about six five, and thin, so thin his suit fit him like snake half shedding its skin. His was face long and his cheeks thin and worn like a mountain side. His voice was steady and low like waterfall. Everything he said bloomed with authority and confidence. He ordered the building would be dropped in twenty minutes.
I told him I didn't care if he was the owner, the building could not be blown in this weather and I snatched the detonator out of his attorney's hands. Rohmer, moving faster than I believed humanly possible with some kind of martial arts move swiped the detonator from my hands. Simultaneously, he had two of his followers press Jim against the wall. They put him in a sleeper hold and he slumped down to the floor barely getting a word out. Then Rohmer gestured to his flock to follow towards the building.
They left in a fast deliberate almost choreographed walk like a flock of geese flying in formation. I grabbed the radio to get police help but I realized that was hopeless. I watched as our trailer was shrouded in the same interference we experienced in the building's interior. The CCTV monitors flickered out and the radio squawked static. Then I realized Rohmer had no control over the detonation and no way to contact his followers still with us in the command trailer. So I did what I had to and pulled the master key out of the master detonator in the command trailer and chased after the flock. I needed to know what was happening I needed to see with my own eyes what all of this was all about.
The Congregation had reached the lobby and I saw the trailing end of the clad white congregate into the stairwell. I darted at my best speed to follow them.
I reached the stair well door. I found Rohmer standing on the top step, apparently waiting for me. I was out of breath while he began to speak to me in his booming voice. He explained to me that if the building did not fall in the next twenty minutes, all of Earth would be pulled, sucked, inside out and down through the building into the black and white universe. The entire building, but especially the atrium dome, he continued, was designed and built to create and then temporarily contain an impossible shape, a living form, a 4 dimensional object, a tesseract, when struck by lightning in the presence of thirteen self-sacrificial Congregate members. This shape would slowly expand and cause space and time anomalies before growing so large inside compared to its size would pull us all into place with no life.
The shape was still in the process of forming even as we spoke, he said. It would reach critical mass and dimensional contortion and the only way to stop it was to disfigure and crush it in the hotel's collapse. He led me into the pool level where his entire congregation was sitting cross-legged where Tom fell. A green pulse, like a laser, came down from the ceiling into the group's center, where their white book lay open on blank pages. I had a feeling this glow was being projected down from the ballroom where the dome of the atrium was taking its final fourth dimensional form.
After a loud chant from the white clad followers, the book slammed shut and turned from a brilliant white shimming cover to one black as night. As they passed around book, their white suits turned black and the formed a single file line. Rohmer left my side and pulled the detonator from his suit. He showed it me and tossed it at me. In my panic I reached out with both hands to catch it but I forgot I still had the master key in my sweat slick hand and it fly out and fell at the foot of Rohmer.
I asked what he planned to do with the key without a lock and a jammed detonator. Rohmer bent down and grabbed the key and looked me without a hint of concern. He took the new black book into his hands and opened it facing the wall of the pool. A new green pulse launched from the book and flickered on the tiles. An octagonal outline appeared to frame a hazy image of a tropical beach. One by one Rohmer's congregation walked into the side of the pool, into glow and seemed to arrive safely on the otherside of the beach.
Once all his compatriots were on the beach, he turned a page in the book and reopened it, projecting another octagon portal on the side of the pool. I could see his destination – it was the command trailer. He stepped through portal and yelled to me from the other side that I had two minutes. The portal sealed.
I could hear the warning sirens we installed going off above me. Needless to say, I made it out, just barely. I reached the perimeter fence screaming to anyone who was in ear shot to run away. The building imploded as planned but I was caught in the dust cloud and developed tinnitus severe enough to be comparable with combat veterans.
The shock waves from the explosions were reflected off the cloud base and channeled down the street by other skyscrapers. Virtually every window in a two block radius around the site was shattered and hundreds of people were hurt in the resulting stampede and vehicle collisions caused by fleeing from the flying glass cascade. Parts of downtown looked like a war zone for weeks afterward.
Rohmer and the rest of his group, including the lawyer, had disappeared out of the trailer in another portal leaving a suitcase of gold equaling the twenty percent promised. Our company was fined, sued, and threatened with criminal charges and eventually put of business. There wasn't much left after paying the cities fines and lawyer fees.
Though I was spared any direct sanctions, I forced into an early retirement. I've had time to research Rohmer's group. There are at least six mentions of figures like Rohmer on the deepest parts of the conspiracy web. They seem to show up at a locale experiencing paranormal activity with a white book and then leave with a black book. Their departure usually marks the end of any strangeness. I can't be sure but this congregation seems to be summon demons, which they exorcise, by trapping them in their books. Trapping maybe a poor term to use since, as in the case of the Grazer hotel encounter, they can apparently cleanse the anomalies and then use the book containing them to weaponize a portion of the traits of whatever their unholy creations posses.
I suspect Rohmer and his congregation, now with the ability to teleport, are accelerating their plans, to whatever ends these paranormal means enable them.
Theo Plesha - Sequel to "Flush" by Theo Plesha on The Chilling App

Since freshman year I’ve been in and out of trouble, often getting myself in all kinds of nasty situations. It was around that time my grades started to drop and my parents got more complaints from my teachers. I hung with the wrong crowds and would often get suspended. Over the years things got worse. My problems left school and became minor offenses with the law. Everything from shoplifting to vandalism. I can’t even count the amount of times I’ve been dragged home in a squad car, only to be snatched in and scolded by my dad.
In the middle of senior year not much had changed. My grades were overall still piss poor and I almost got busted for selling prescription pills. At that point I had messed up so much that my parents finally decided that they’ve had enough. They gave me an ultimatum. I had just turned eighteen, so they told me either I got my shit together, or they were going to let me go - one more mishap and I was out of the house.
Honestly, I’ve been wanting to move out and get away from my parents for a while anyways. My “unruly” and rebellious acts in high school was a result of their constant bickering and attempts at controlling every aspect of my life. I’ve become more and more annoyed with them as time passed.
After our talk I became determined to stay out of trouble. I still needed somewhere to stay before leaving, and I didn’t want to get thrown out before I found a way to support myself. I was motivated to turn my life around. But I had to start somewhere, and it was in an industry I knew I’d hate working in.
Fast food.
I found a position at a burger joint. After a few weeks of faithfully punching the clock after school, and fulfilling my duty as a cashier, I really was off to a good start. That was until I decided I needed a car. Although my job was only a few blocks away, I thought I would need some reliable transportation for myself in the future.
Obviously I had no money to purchase a new car, so I planned on buying a used one. One day after school I made a trip to the nearest dealership and searched for a used vehicle with a low price. I wanted to get the car as soon as possible, but I had no credit and I couldn’t pay the full price up front. I searched for other solutions.
An old acquaintance told me about a guy called Bucky-Mac. He told me this guy would loan me the money for the car no matter what my credit was like. From what I've heard, Bucky-Mac was primarily a drug dealer, but he also lent money to desperate people on the side.
Apparently he's been around for years, so I found it odd that I've never heard of this guy before. The fact that this guy was pretty much a loan shark did very little to deter me at the time. My sudden enthusiasm and hope that came with finally wanting to get my life together and taking my future seriously kind of clouded my judgment.
I went to the guy that my old friend had informed me of. Bucky-Mac spent a lot of time in a spot located on the other side of town. It was in a wooded area, at the end of a long dirt road deep into a labyrinth of trees. I rode my bike over there that day, so it took me about ten minutes to travel down the dirt road and reach the small wooden house with boarded up windows.
There were four black trucks parked on the property, with a few men hanging out and standing here and there. One guy smoking a cigarette turned and spotted me coming his way. He stopped in the middle of taking another swig and stared at me as I came closer. The other guys nearby spotted me soon after. I rode closer to the guy with the cigarette and hopped off my bike. All the eyes glued on me made me feel uneasy, so I was slow about speaking. After seconds of awkward silence the cigarette smoking guy says,
“Who are you?”
The curious men that surrounded him looked as if they also wanted to know.
“I-I’m Jake. I’m here to talk to Bucky-Mac,” I said.
He nodded his head in approval before flicking his still lit cigarette away. Then he gestured for me to follow him. I was led into the nearly dilapidated house, as many of the other guys had their gaze locked on me as I entered.
The place was mostly dark inside. But there were a few dimly lit areas, many of which were occupied with boxes and blocks of a suspicious substance heavily wrapped in tape. There was a guy inside hauling many of the blocks into the boxes as he taped them up. The house also reeked of marijuana. The scent was so strong I was surprised it didn’t hit me while I was outside.
We made a turn down a hall which had a closed door at the end. The guy in front of me knocked twice when we reached it. The door swung open in seconds, revealing a middle aged man standing in the doorway. He was smiling. He glanced at me quickly then laid eyes back on the guy in front of me.
“Who is this?” he asked.
The guy in front me shrugged his shoulders.
The middle aged man’s smile grew wider. He had one gold tooth. His hair was slicked back, and it shined in the sunlight beaming in through the window behind him.
“How’s it going?” He said, still smiling.
“I’m fine, man. You?” I replied.
Although I felt a little uneasy, I tried to present myself as confident and just as friendly as this guy appeared to be so far.
“Why don’t you come into my office?” He said, stepping back and giving way for me and the other guy to enter.
We walked in then the middle aged man closed the door behind us. There were two chairs sitting in front of a decorative desk, which had a revolver and a half consumed glass of liquor near it. I took a seat in one of the chairs, as the man came and sat behind his desk. The other guy stood by the door.
“So, what’s up? "
“You are Bucky-Mac, right?” I asked.
He picked up the glass of liquor and gulped down what remained before saying,
“Of course, mate! All day everyday.”
I looked behind me and saw the guy by the door grinning. Then I spun back around only to see Bucky-Mac still smiling.
I sighed.
“I need to borrow some cash,” I said.
From there I explained my situation. I told him that I just turned eighteen and was about to graduate high school in a few months. I informed him of my bumpy years of high school, why I wanted to turn my life around after graduating, and how the money would allow me to buy a car, which would be convenient during the job hunting process.
“Hmm, I see,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, staring at his desk, “You seem to be a man of good intent. You made some mistakes, and now you wanna do better. I can respect that.”
He pulled a bottle of booze from behind his desk and started to refill the glass in front of him.
“You know, most people would find this hard to believe. But sometimes I wish I did the same when I was your age,” Bucky-Mac continued, “If I had thought the same as you earlier on, I’d have a much more stable life right now.”
I heard the guy by the door chuckle, as if he disagreed with Bucky-Mac’s statement.
“Thanks, man,” I said.
He offered me a drink, but I kindly turned it down.
“No worries, pal. You have my support,” Bucky-Mac assured, “So how much we lookin’ at?”
The second I left Bucky-Mac’s spot I headed straight for the dealership and purchased the car I’ve had my eye on. Then on the following day I pulled up to school in it. Some of the kids standing in the crowd in front of the school building noticed me as soon as I pulled into the parking lot. A few of them were my friends, and I often walked to school with them everyday.
They were surprised to see me suddenly pull up to school driving a car, and no longer walking with them. I must say, it felt good to drive around in a vehicle that I could say was mine. Although it was only a cheap used one, it was still my first car.
Among some of the kids in the crowd was a girl. She was standing in an area alone by the front doors. She was really tall, towering over most of the boys that stood in a group not too far away from her. Her eyes were locked on me as I drove by.
Abatha is her name. I’ve known her since first grade. No, we weren’t quite friends. If anything we were the opposite. Abatha has been a total bitch to me ever since the first day we met as small children.
It all started in second grade. Abatha snatched a toy from me. Then she proceeded to push me down and go crying to the teacher, saying I was the one that took the toy from her. The teacher believed her, and I was put in time out. I remember seven year old Abatha teasing me for the rest of the day after that.
This small childish incident led to non-stop feuding between us, year after year, well into our high school years. Most of it was initiated by her.
Often Abatha would taunt and harass me every chance she got. It became worse at the beginning of high school when my years of delinquency began. She had many field days laughing and making fun of me the second she found out I’d gotten into some trouble.
Her harassment was never anything more than verbal. Abatha never physically assaulted me, or displayed a desire to do so. I found this odd, as she very well could've, and inflicted some damage due to her large size. She’s always been a larger girl. Even when we were younger she had always been taller than me. By the time junior year came around she was 6’4.
As I pulled into a parking spot I saw Abatha grin before turning and entering the school building.
Two hundred fifty dollar payments a week. That was the deal. I told Bucky-Mac about my job as a cashier and he was willing to work with me. I expected close to half of my check to be gone every time I got paid for the next few months, but it was for a good cause.
I returned to Bucky-Mac’s spot one afternoon after leaving work, to pay him his share. The first week of paying was a piece of cake. Easy in, easy out. But it was when I went back the following week I realized I may have made a grave mistake.
He wanted double of what was paid the previous week. Five hundred dollars.
When he told me that, my stomach dropped. During our negotiation he specifically said two hundred fifty dollars per week. I was confused as to why he was changing the terms and conditions.
“I forgot to mention a little something called…interest,” Bucky-Mac explained, “Look at it this way. You’re helping me, help you.” Bucky-Mac said.
That friendly smile he once had when I first met him had turned into something else.
I already knew there would be some interest involved, because otherwise he wouldn’t make any profit lending money. But I didn’t expect it to be that much. Fortunately I was able to make the payment, as I could work more hours than most high schoolers who were restricted by child labor laws. But I barely had any money left afterwards.
When I went back the third week he wanted a thousand dollars.
One thousand dollars.
I mean, there was just no way he could expect me to pull that kind of cash on the spot. Especially after I told him about my low paying occupation.
I told him I couldn’t pay him that week. Then that’s when the shit hit the fan, and the guy beneath that friendly façade came to surface. Bucky-Mac’s smile faded completely, then he abruptly gained an expression of pure rage.
“We had a deal,” he said, standing up out of his seat.
That same guy from before was standing by the door, but the second Bucky-Mac stood up out of his seat, he moved in closer to me.
With my heart now racing, I mumble, “You didn’t say anything about interest rates this high -”
“We had a deal!” Bucky-Mac shouted.
“Dude, I get that. But w-we agreed to something totally different!” I said, now starting to get even more nervous.
I glanced behind me once more and saw that the other guy was almost leaning right up on me, still glaring. At this point I wanted to just run out of the room.
As Bucky-Mac walked from behind his desk the guy behind me wrapped his arm around my neck, locking me in a tight choke hold. I struggled to break free but the guy was too strong.
“What the fuck is thi - “ I started.
Before I could finish my sentence, Bucky-Mac came and punched me in the stomach. I grunted in pain then coughed multiple times. Then he kneeled down to look me right in the eye, as the guy behind me still had a hold on me.
“Now I’m gonna tell you this, Jake. I don’t like being ripped off,” Bucky-Mac said.
I felt the guy's arm slightly constrict around my neck tighter.
Bucky-Mac searched my pockets then pulled out all the cash I was carrying, which wasn’t very much.
“You’re short on payment,” he continued, “From now on, I want full payments every single week, starting next week. By then, I expect two thousand dollars sitting on my desk….no excuses. Or we’re gonna have some serious problems, Jake.”
Bucky-Mac delivered a few more punches to my gut before the guy behind me finally released me, letting me fall to the floor as I held my stomach.
“You can leave my office now,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, drawing a cigar from the inside of his suit.
After that incident I hadn’t returned to Bucky-Mac’s spot for two whole weeks. Bucky-Mac called my phone constantly during that time. I ignored. Every time my phone rang and I saw his number my heart would instantly leap. I didn’t know what I was going to do. But I had to think of something quick.
In the meantime, everyone at school was already excited about prom. I wasn’t. I had gotten myself caught up in some debt. Prom was the last thing I cared about.
During the next few weeks that’s all everyone at school discussed. My parents even brought it up to me, expressing how they hoped I planned on going to the last prom of high school. At first I disregarded their suggestion and didn’t plan on going. I had no one to take. I was pretty sure anyone I asked would’ve turned me down anyways. But to my surprise, someone asked me to prom instead.
A girl named Alexis. This was odd because I hadn’t interacted with her much over the years, and I barely knew her. But she told me she had no one to take to prom and she’s been checking me out for some time. So reluctantly, I agreed to go to prom with her. Afterwards, we spent some time hanging out and dating off and on. Some mornings I’d even pick her up and give her rides to school in my car.
One morning Abatha caught Alexis and I getting out of my car and heading to the school building. Abatha was standing alone once again. This time she was scrolling away on her phone. She spotted us out in the parking lot, then waited for us to approach her. Another mischievous grin plastered her face.
“Looks like the troublemaker caught himself another fish,” Abatha said as we passed by.
When I didn’t reply, Abatha stepped out in front of us and blocked our way.
I sighed.
“Abatha, not today”.
I had to look up to her as I spoke.
“I don’t wanna get into it with you right now. Please move,” I continued.
I took Alexis by the hand and tried to move around her but she just blocked me again.
Abatha did this often. I’ve had many girlfriends throughout high school. Every time Abatha saw me with a new girl she’d come and embarrass me in front of my date.
Every time.
I sighed again. Abatha chuckled.
“What’s wrong, Jakey boy?...still feelin’ butterflies?” Abatha taunted.
She glanced at Alexis.
“Let me ask you something,” Abatha continued, stepping closer to Alexis, “Does he often get…jittery, when you’re alone?”
“I don’t think that’s any of your busine - “ Alexis started.
“Does he scream when you see him with his pants down?” Abatha interrupted, “Only asking because he did it before. When I pulled his pants down back in sixth grade…..wait, have you seen him with his pants down yet?”
Agitated, Alexis took me by the hand and made her way around Abatha, pulling me along with her. As we trotted along, I glanced back and saw Abatha frowning. I smirked at her as we walked further away. Abatha rolled her eyes in frustration before turning around and going in the opposite direction.
I was just getting off work on one Saturday night, as my shift had just ended. My manager was counting the till and I just cleaned the last table in the restaurant. While I waited by the door for the manager to lock up for the night, I saw a black truck pull into the parking lot outside. The truck parked right beside my car. My guess was a last minute customer. Evidently my manager thought the same because he told me to tell whoever was in the truck that we were closed. When they came to the door, that is. But no one ever did get out of the truck. About ten minutes had passed by and they were still sitting there letting the engine run.
My manager and I stepped outside after he had set the alarm and finished the till. Then the both of us went our separate ways in the parking lot, after the manager had locked the restaurant doors.
When I got to my car I tried to sneak a peek into the truck that was parked beside me but the windows were tinted very dark.
Go figure.
I heard the manager start the engine on his car and pull out of the parking lot. That’s when a door on the mysterious black truck suddenly shot open. A large man hopped out of the back seat and grabbed me from behind, hauling me into the truck afterwards.
As soon as the large man threw me into the back seat, I was reminded that I had told Bucky-Mac where I worked when we first met. I told him part of my schedule, and gave some specifics on times. I had also informed him of some other things I couldn’t recall at the moment. I know I may have told him a little too much but the guy seemed so friendly at first I thought I could trust him.
The guy that hauled me in pushed me further across the seat, before getting back in himself and closing the door. Someone else in the truck flipped on a light. Then I could clearly see Bucky-Mac sitting right beside me. He didn’t look happy.
“Sup, Jake?” He said.
He stared at me with cold and menacing eyes.
There were two guys in the front. They were looking back at me, holding expressions similar to Bucky-Mac’s.
“You’ve missed some payments, and it better be for good reason. Now, I hope you have cash to cover these couple weeks you’ve decided to skedaddle,” Bucky-Mac said.
He continued to glare at me, waiting for a response.
“I-I’ve been trying to get the money. What do you think I’m at this restaurant for?” I stammered.
He snickered then covered his face with his hand.
“Now, that’s a good one!.....But it’s still unacceptable. You haven’t been paying, and you’ve been ignoring my calls,” he snarled.
He elbowed me in the face, striking me right in my nose. My nose began to gush blood.
One of the guys up front lit a cigarette, then that’s when Bucky-Mac and the large guy sitting on my other side started to viciously beat me. They kicked my ass in that back seat for minutes, then the large guy opened the door again before shoving me outside on the ground.
The black truck backed up and took off, leaving me behind in the moonlit parking lot.
My entire body was aching like hell, and one of my eyes throbbed non-stop. I touched my bottom lip. It was swollen, and felt slightly enlarged. I could barely stand up straight heading to my car, as the pain had caused my body to beg for rest.
As I opened my car door, I heard something from a distance. A strange sound. Like a howl. It was echoing out into the night, and it went on for seconds. I turned in all directions making several attempts at finding the source.
I found nothing.
I even glanced at the sky. There was nothing there but the half moon.
I had dug myself deeper into the debt hole by not visiting Bucky-Mac for those two weeks. He increased my debt even more, and accounted for the times I didn’t show up. As expected, he doubled the amount for each week. This meant I owed him a total of eight thousand dollars as of the night in the parking lot.
After that I made sure I stopped by Bucky-Mac’s spot and paid him as much as I could for the following few weeks after, even though it was nowhere near enough. As a result of the low payments, I received more beatings everytime I went. But I had to keep going and pay him what I could, otherwise he’d do something worse if I didn’t show up at all.
But what was I kidding. I was never going to pay off this debt. At this point I realized that’s exactly how Bucky-Mac wanted things. He wanted a constant flow of cash that never ended. Even if I showed up to his office one day and paid what I owed in full, he’d just double the debt and kick my ass again.
The beatings were getting unbearable. I couldn’t take it anymore. So I felt I had to skip out on him for a couple more weeks as a way to catch a break from getting my ass kicked. Again I ignored his calls when he hit up my cell phone. After that I just anticipated the black truck waiting for me outside of my job.
Bucky-Mac didn’t show up at my job anymore. He came to my school instead. After the bell rang and the school day came to an end, fear showered me when I walked outside and saw the black truck parked across the street.
I planned on giving Alexis a ride home that day, so she was by my side as I tried to ease my way to my car. Unfortunately I was spotted as I crawled into the driver’s seat. The backdoor on the black truck swung open, then that same large guy from before came trotting across the street. When the guy approached my car, he swung my door back open then gently pulled me out of the driver’s seat.
“Jake, where are you going?” Alexis said, “Who is this?”
The guy held his arm on my shoulder as he walked me across the street to the black truck. He faked a smile and pretended to be an acquaintance to avoid drawing the attention of the nearby students around us. We got to the truck then the guy shoved me into the back seat once again.
I met Bucky-Mac with an unsettled gaze the second I was thrown in. I could hear Alexis constantly shouting my name outside.
“I thought I wouldn’t have to tell you again,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, “But it looks like you’re a pretty terrible listener!”
With that, the guy up front started to slowly drive away from the school. I glanced out the window and saw Alexis jogging on the sidewalk to keep up with us. The truck made a stop after a block of cruising. They parked near a curb closeby.
Another beating was initiated, and I can tell you this was the worst one yet. They gave me double the amount of blows to my body. I received so many strikes to the face I was surprised I could see at all when it was over.
Alexis peeped through the window with her hands cupped around her eyes, yelling for them to stop.
“Stop it, you’re gonna hurt him!” she cried.
They kept going, punching and elbowing me for minutes. I could feel blood elevating my throat.
Bucky-Mac drew a knife and held it to my pupil.
“Listen here you little shit. The next time you screw me over, not only are we gonna beat you twice as worse and twice as longer, but I’m gonna take my blade…and pluck one of your eyes,” He threatened.
He brought the blade even closer to my eye. Almost to the point where I could almost feel the tip touching my eyeball.
“You can’t afford to test me again, Jake.”
I was shoved out of the truck once more, only to be meant with Alexis crying on the sidewalk. The panic on her face grew more intense when she saw my nose dripping with blood.
“Jake, what’s going on?” she sobbed.
I didn’t answer.
Someone else was walking towards us on the sidewalk. It was Abatha. She saw Alexis crying, then glanced at me. As soon as she saw my battered face there was an expression of concern.
Abatha wasn’t smiling.
Alexis broke up with me the next day. She got spooked by the incident and decided she didn’t want much to do with me anymore. Our plans to go to prom together were also canceled. The incident had given Alexis the wrong impression - that I was still engaging in pathological behavior. She complained of not being able to be around me anymore, saying,
“So these are the kind of people you deal with?!...If that’s the case, then I’m afraid we’re not gonna work.”
She walked away then barely spoke to me anymore after that. Then of course Abatha just had to be nearby to witness and overhear everything. Abatha was already holding her usual grin when I glanced at her.
“Looks like you messed up again, Jakey boy!” She teased, “Your fish unhooked itself and swam away?”
I glared at her angrily, then brushed past her to enter the school building.
It was pretty disappointing for our plans to be canceled. But hell, my whole ideal ending for my senior year had been canceled as far as I knew. Just when I was starting to grow more enthusiastic about senior prom all hope was taken away. Prom was just a month and a half away and I no longer had a date to take. To make matters worse, Alexis had already found another prom date within days after splitting up with me.
Abatha wouldn’t shut up about that. She rubbed it in face for days.
“Well that was quick. We’ll see how fast you can find another date…if at all,” she said before trailing away, giggling.
I lifted a middle finger at her as she walked.
At this point in time I no longer cared about the car. I wished I could return it and take back everything. I just wanted out of this debt with Bucky-Mac, and for senior year to just end already. I was giving up on all hopes for my plans for the future. As a matter of fact, after being too afraid to face Bucky-Mac once again and skipping out on meeting him for another three weeks, I decided that I’d contact the police and inform them of the situation I’d gotten myself in soon. Then let my parents know what was going on.
I was sure my parents would definitely kick me out after finding out I made a deal with a loan shark. But I didn’t care. Keeping a secret wasn’t worth my life. Or in this case - my eye.
Unfortunately I made the fatal mistake of not acting on those thoughts soon enough, as I ended another night shift at work with the black truck waiting for me out in the parking lot. My heart leaped instantly as I felt my body run cold. I wanted badly to just tell my manager everything and beg him to call the police for me. But instead all he did was activate the security system and lock the doors as usual. Then he pulled out of the parking lot, leaving me to endure what was to come.
The black truck pulled out of its parking spot and made its way over to me. That same large guy hopped out and started to haul me into the truck.
“Get his ass in here!!” I heard Bucky-Mac hiss.
We all heard something. Then the large guy holding me paused.
It was the same howling sound I heard before. Again it echoed out into the night, and got louder the longer it went on.
“What the hell is that?” The large guy said.
“Who gives a shit?!! Get him in!” Bucky-Mac demanded.
The large guy did just that.
This time instead of giving me the usual beating quickie, they pulled off as soon as I was hauled into the truck and drove me back to Bucky-Mac’s spot. The truck halted at a stop upon arriving at the small raggedy house.
This was my first time at the spot during the night, and it looked a bit different. There was no kind of artificial light in this wooded area so it was a lot darker than usual. But the light from the full moon above provided enough to see around the dark pit that surrounded us.
The men shoved me out of the truck and started their beating ritual. The other two men joined in this time, punching and kicking me, barely giving me a chance to breathe. In the middle of all this was the sound of the howling again.
The large guy was the only one to acknowledge it. He paused, but Bucky-Mac and the other two continued to beat me.
After minutes of receiving many more blows, they all stopped. The large guy positioned my body to lean against the back tire of the truck. Then Bucky-Mac drew his pocket knife and kneeled down to face me.
I moaned and groaned from the painful sensations moving throughout my body.
"I tried," Bucky-Mac started, "I've really tried to work with you. But it's obvious you're a fraud."
He had some nerve. The loan shark, calling me a fraud.
"I think you get a kick out of not giving me what I want…what I deserve.”
He opened the blade on the knife and brought the point to my eye.
“Now I’m gonna take something away you desperately want….and don’t deserve,” he continued.
I swore I could feel the tip of the blade slightly drive into my sclera. Before it could go any deeper, we all heard that howl for the third time that night. Except it sounded very close this time. So close no one could ignore it. Not even Bucky-Mac. He lowered the knife then glanced behind him, as that’s where it seemed the howling came from.
There was nothing there but a patch of darkness resting between the trees.
“What the - ?” Bucky-mac whispered.
As we all stared at the patch of darkness, two glowing dots emerged in front of our eyes.
Two yellow glowing dots.
Behind the yellow dots came another howl, along with some deep and beastly growls.
The dots started to come closer, then continued until whatever was hiding in the shadows came out into view, and was exposed beneath the moonlight.
The sight of the creature we were looking at had caught us all off guard. Bucky-Mac dropped the knife then all five of us began backing away.
In front of us was some kind of tall and fury beast. The creature stood upright just like a human, and had to be no less than seven feet tall. Its muscles were so defined they practically rippled through its black and shiny coat of fur. Turns out the yellow dots were the creature’s eyes. Those beady eyes were locked on us, as we backed away even further.
The creature opened its long snout full of pointed teeth, dripping with saliva, and let out a deafening, monstrous sound.
"Bucky, what the hell is going on?!" One of the other guys shouted.
"H-how the fuck should I know?" Bucky-Mac yelled.
I could hear the fear and concern in their voices.
The creature let out several smaller growls, then suddenly began sprinting towards us on all fours. Bucky-Mac and his guys drew pistols and began firing multiple shots at the hairy beast.
I turned to run but instantly tripped and fell on my stomach. The sharp pain in my stomach left me stagnant for seconds.
Bullets struck the creature in several areas on its muscular body. The gunfire seemed to do little to no damage, but it was enough to keep the creature temporarily distant. The beast backed off then started to crawl up the walls of Bucky-Mac’s small drug house. The men continued to fire at the creature until it reached the roof.
“Come on, kill this fuckin’ thing!” Bucky-Mac shouted, firing away with his revolver.
With many bullets still striking its body, the creature took a huge leap off the building. It jumped so high I could see the full moon behind it’s body as it accelerated through the air - towards us. It landed right on top of the guy who drove the truck, crushing his puny human body and taking a huge bite out of his head afterwards. Blood sprayed from the exposed brains in his skull, dousing his partner in the face nearby and preventing him from seeing where he was shooting.
The guy screamed and tried to flee the area. He could barely turn around before the creature took one of its paws and ran its razor sharp claws across his face, slicing one of his eyes in the process and leaving three gruesome gashes behind.
Shocked, Bucky-Mac dropped his gun and watched the creature lift his disfigured partner off the ground and pull one his arms clean off his body. The guy screamed in agony as his stump cascaded with blood and fell to the ground like a waterfall. He wiggled and twitched in pain, making several feeble attempts at breaking free of the creature’s grasp.
Bucky-Mac turned and started to flee. The big guy followed behind him, dashing right past me, and leaving me alone with the beast.
The creature turned and started to stare at me with those yellow eyes, still holding Bucky-Mac’s mangled partner in its hand. The fear and terror left me paralyzed. I couldn’t move.
I started to feel a little light headed, and keeping my eyes open became difficult.
The last thing I remembered before I passed out, was those glowing eyes and those sharp canines dripping with crimson.
When I woke up I couldn’t tell how much time had passed. I stood up and scanned the area, only to see the truck still beside me. The mangled bodies of the driver and passenger of the truck were laid out not too far away. But Bucky-Mac and the large guy were nowhere to be found.
The creature had disappeared too.
I wasted no time. Right away I started to run, trying to make my way out of that neck of the woods. While darting through the trees, I came across two more bodies, one slumped on its side and the other on its back.
I ran to one of the bodies and rolled it over using my foot. I almost screamed when I saw the face. It was Bucky-Mac, and he was unrecognizable. His face had been completely torn away, leaving nothing behind but his exposed and bleeding face muscles. His mouth was slightly open. Opened wide enough for me to see his one gold tooth.
The large guy’s torso had been torn open, his body sprawled out, eyes staring out into nothing but the darkness that surrounded him. Dried blood was caked all over his face and neck.
I heard some growls.
This caused me to start running again. I got a glimpse of a pair of yellow eyes hiding in the middle of some trees as I passed by. I ran faster. Then I heard multiple footsteps behind me.
It was following me.
I made it out of the woods and reached a street light out on the road, where I sat down on the curb and took some time to catch my breath. I didn’t hear the footsteps anymore so I assumed I was safe. I also glanced behind me again and saw nothing pursuing me.
That thing had all the time in the world to maul me to bits. It could’ve easily caught me while I was running…so why didn’t it?
For some reason I still felt a bit light headed. I rested my head on my hand. But while doing so I felt a rough substance on my forehead. I brought my finger to my face to see what I had touched. Something blue and dry.
Lipstick.
Someone kissed me.
My parents wondered where I was and wanted to know why I was getting home so late that night. I lied and said I went to a party after work. They were a bit upset that I didn't call and let them know what was going on. I was fine with that. I was just glad to be alive, and for the first time since forever I was happy to see them.
It was that night I realized I would be just fine staying with my parents for a while longer. I also decided that I had no problem working at the burger joint until I figured out what I really wanted out of life, and college just may be a possibility in the future.
I continued to faithfully show up to work and complete my shifts, and wait patiently for my senior year to come to an end.
Meanwhile, the authorities found Bucky-Mac and his men. Then they raided his drug house. No one could identify the cause of their deaths, or tell whether another animal or human was responsible. The story was all over the news, and it had people in town shook. Everyone kept talking about the gruesome killings until the end of the school year. Who or what might have done it was always up for debate.
To this day, no one knows that I was there to see it all. I always got uneasy overhearing someone at school talk about it.
Two weeks before prom I opened my locker to see a pink envelope lying on top of my books. I picked it up and saw Abatha's name written across the front. While tearing open the envelope I sighed and rolled my eyes, expecting to see something crude and belligerent.
There was a folded letter inside, and upon opening it my eyes went wide. My heart started racing, and I was shocked to my core. At the very top of the page was an imprint of lips with…
Blue lipstick.
Below that was a lengthy letter from Abatha, explaining how she really felt about me. How she's felt for a long time. In the last paragraph was something else that left me perplexed.
She was asking me out, and she wanted to be my girlfriend.
She..she also wanted to take me to prom.

PART EIGHT HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHT
[Previous Chapter] [The Beginning] [Patreon+2]
Thursday
At the end of the cruise, Lucas and Boyd departed the ship arm in arm, utterly ignorant of everyone around them. Then, once they were on the dock, Boyd’s arm went around Lucas’ shoulders, tucking him in close to his body.
Lucas’ arm responded by sliding in around Boyd’s waist with his head resting against the front of Boyd’s clavicle. In the last half an hour, the clouds finally parted enough to let the moonlight shine through, and everything around them glistened from the mist-like rain that had taken almost the whole trip to wet their clothes properly. Lucas’ suit was a mess, but Boyd didn’t care. In his mind, he was already carving his fiancé the perfect timber ring.
“Did you want to do something else while we’re out?” Lucas asked, staring up at him.
“What I want to do is go home with you, carve you the perfect ring out of some type of ironwood, and celebrate tonight by completely wrecking our bed,” Boyd admitted, going as far as to tilt his head to kiss Lucas’s forehead.
Lucas’ smile grew even as the pointer finger of his free hand tapped his lips. “You missed.”
Boyd chuckled. “God, you’re such an ass.”
Lucas snickered and snuggled into his side. “And yet you’re still gonna marry me.”
“Hell, yeah.” Boyd looked at the ring on his left hand, twisting it so that the overhead lights leading them back to the street glinted off the silver frame. Lucas had bought the tungsten ring for durability, yet as a police detective, he wasn’t exactly able to avoid knocking his hands around either.
Boyd’s top two choices of timbers were both from Central America, and a little voice in the back of his head was insisting he’d seen small, two-inch-square samples of both in the store room that would be perfect for this application. He was already excited and itching to get to work on the project, despite knowing in the morning, he’d be needing to buy more tools to replace the ones that would be ruined on the insanely tough material. It’d be worth it to have Lucas wearing his ring to work.
“You can already picture it, can’t you?” Lucas asked.
When Boyd looked down, he stared into the blend of brown, gold and green that made up Lucas’ hazel eyes. “Yeah,” he admitted again. “And I’m thinking I’ll carve you two rings…”
“Why?!”
Boyd kissed him lightly to ease the sharpness in his tone.
“You are absolutely not setting foot outside our apartment without my ring on your damn finger tomorrow morning, and once it’s there, you’re not gonna want to take it off. But you’ll have to tomorrow night because I’ll need to put a couple more coats of shellac on it to seal it properly. So, you can wear the second one to bed. That way, at no point in time will your finger be bare, and you won’t have to wonder if it’s real or not.”
Lucas twisted enough to lay his hand against Boyd’s cheek. “I know we’re real. You don’t have to go to that much trouble for one night…”
Boyd couldn’t articulate that it was just as much for him as it was for Lucas. Moreso, if anything. The mere thought of Lucas’ ring finger being bare would’ve had him freaking out.
“It’ll be a spare—just in case anything happens to the original. I’m not saying anything will, but it’ll be cut from the same piece of timber.” Boyd curled his fingers around Lucas’ hand, gently pulling it from his cheek. “I never want to lose you.”
Lucas’ smile turned into a boyish grin. “Never.”
They walked down the concrete walkway with the bright red fence segregating them from the two lanes of traffic that led out onto Chelsea Piers. “Time to figure out where he dropped off my car,” Lucas murmured, reaching into his breast pocket for his phone.
The search was easy enough, but the pinhead in the map was behind them.
“What?” They both paused and turned around.
Sure enough, parked in one of the Pier’s own parking spaces was Lucas’ Porsche. Lucas bipped it unlocked as the pair approached. “Are you even allowed to park here?” Boyd asked, looking around for signage. It was such a pristine location; it couldn’t possibly be legally open to the public.
“I don’t know,” Lucas answered honestly as he opened the driver’s side door and slid into the seat, grabbing the parking stub that Robbie had left on the dash for the attendants to see. “But let’s just pay this and get out of here. We haven’t been towed yet.”
He started the car as Boyd buckled in, easing out into the nearly abandoned parking area. People who were making their way along the fenced-off walkway gave them an irritated scowl as they pulled out, but Boyd noticed Lucas was keeping the Porsche’s engine to a quiet idle rather than letting it roar.
They waited forever for the stream of passengers who turned left at the Chelsea Piers intersection to stop walking in front of the car before pulling out, only to repeat the process at the toll station when those who had turned right needed to cross in front of them as well.
“At this rate, we’re going to still be here tomorrow,” Boyd griped in frustration.
“Given that tomorrow is half an hour away, I’d agree.”
“Oh, shut up.”
Ten minutes later, they were pulling up outside the apartment building. During the whole ride, Boyd split his attention between his brand new engagement ring and the man who’d given it to him, and it wasn’t until Lucas backed into the parking space that he realised he hadn’t once thought about what his family would think of this arrangement. And now that he had, he was annoyed at himself for having done so.
“What’s wrong?” Lucas asked, turning in his seat to face him.
Boyd shook his head and forced himself to smile. The last thing he’d do was ruin tonight with his family’s narrow-minded viciousness.
The look in Lucas’ eyes said he didn’t buy it, and to add weight to that, he raised a finger and said, “Don’t move.” Then he unbuckled and climbed out of the car, walking around the front to Boyd’s door without taking his eyes off him once.
Boyd knew because he followed with his own very carefully.
Then the passenger door opened, and Lucas squatted down. “If this was a bigger car, I’d have climbed straight over the centre console to sit in your lap,” he said, his expression unamused despite the picture he painted. “You and I might have only been engaged for a hot minute, but don’t you dare lie to me and say it’s nothing when I know you better than that. You don’t hide anything from me, do you understand?” He stopped, then added after a moment’s consideration. “Well … with the exception of presents. And maybe good surprises that aren’t yours to tell me, like if you were to find out before me my sister’s pregnant or something.” Again he paused, and it was killing Boyd not to laugh at the way he kept changing his mind mid-sentence. “No, if she’s pregnant and you don’t tell me, you’re in trouble there too. But something else. Nothing comes to mind right now, but I’ll figure it out at the time. This…” —he flicked his finger to incorporate the length of Boyd still sitting in his seat. “…is bullshit. I know every single flicker of every muscle in your face, mister, and I know what all of them mean. I can guess what just went through your head, but if I ask you, it’s because I want confirmation, not a sidestep.”
“I didn’t want to ruin the moment.”
Lucas leaned forward, hooking Boyd’s chin to kiss him. “You’ll only do that if you ever lie to me, ’kay?” He pinched Boyd’s chin between his fingers. “I’m a detective. I’ll know. Spotting a lie is what I do for a living, remember?”
“I hadn’t thought about my family all night,” Boyd admitted. “And they snuck in right at the end, even though I didn’t want them to.”
Lucas smiled. “See? There, it’s said. Done and dusted. Your family are allowed to visit your thoughts, so long as they don’t take up residency there.”
Was it really that simple?
Lucas reached over him and unbuckled his seatbelt. “C’mon. I want to see your work from scratch.”
Boyd was immediately out of the car, shutting the door without looking at it. “No,” he countered, sliding his hand into Lucas’. “Bed wrecking first, then I’ll carve. I’m thinking snakewood, but I’m going to let you choose.” As he spoke, he led Lucas across the street and up the stoop to the front door.
“Snakewood?” Lucas laughed, dragging his heels just enough to lock the car with his fob. “Is that a real thing?”
Boyd nodded. “And once I give it its final seal, you won’t be able to break it with a sledgehammer.”
Lucas winced sceptically. “It is wood, right?”
“Ironwood,” Boyd classified with a snicker.
Lucas shook his head, more in disbelief than accusation. “What’s next? Dog—actually, there is a dogwood. Even I know that.”
“With pink and white flowers,” Boyd agreed, waggling his eyebrows.
Lucas shouldered him sideways a step. “Now, who’s being an ass?”
Happiness settled within Boyd, the likes of which he’d never felt before. This was him. This was truly him, and the level of comfort that gave him was second to none. “You are not allowed to get shot on the job,” he suddenly declared because, of course, his head had to go there. “I mean it. I couldn’t handle it. You let someone else take the bullet…”
“Shhh,” Lucas shushed as they climbed the stoop. “Despite the myth, cops don’t often get shot, and there’s bulletproof vests for when we do.”
“Except you don’t wear one all the time,” Boyd argued.
“Because it’d clash with my suits, duuuuh,” Lucas explained playfully, opening the door and slipping inside.
Boyd would make him pay for that sass.
* * *
((All comments welcome. Good or bad, I'd love to hear your thoughts 🥰🤗))
I made a family tree/diagram of the Mystallian family that can be found here
For more of my work including WPs: Angel466 or an index of previous WPS here.
FULL INDEX OF BOB THE HOBO TO DATE CAN BE FOUND HERE!!

Went on a 3rd date with this guy. I was wearing a revealing top with my cleavage showing and skin tight jeans. He couldn't take his eyes off my cleavage. I was already kinda horny and him complimenting me again and again turned me on even more. So we are sitting in a restaurant and I started playing footsie with him under the table. He asks if i wanna leave right now and I say yes. Our food hasn't arrived yet so we tell the waiter to pack it up for us. I get in the backseat of his car and he starts driving. I take my pants off and start touching myself. Im dripping wet at this point flicking my clit and I start to moan. He can't keep his eyes on the road so I tell him to park his car somewhere and get in the back seat with me. It takes him a few minutes to find a safe spot. He parks, rushes to the back seat and goes to town on my pussy and man he knows what he is doing. He eats me up so good and makes me cum over and over. I then tell him to sit up he takes his pants off, I gorge on his cock deepthroating him. Just when he is about to cum he stops me and says he wants to eat me more. Ofcourse I tell him to go ahead, he starts eating me out with renewed vigor making those slurping sounds and then as he eats me he starts flicking my clit just the right away. Well now I am a squirter, i squirt quite alot if my clit is flicked just the right away. Rarely happens but happens. So this guy is flicking just the right spot and i tell him if he doesn't stop i am going to squirt and make a mess. This turns him on even more he goes on and on and within a few seconds i push his head away and burst right in that moment. I squirt all over his seat and i am sure i leave a big wet spot on it. It takes me a few seconds to come back to my senses. The guy in the confined space turns me over as best as he can rubs himself and cums over my ass. Once we have both calmed down and have put our clothes back on he turns on the light to find something and notices the huge wet spot on the seat. The seats are cloth and not leather so he freaks out cause apparently its his father's car that his father takes to his office every morning. And he thinks his father will bash him if he finds a stain on his seats. He spends the next 15 minutes trying to dry it up as best as he can while I try hard to control my laughter.

Shaun phoning it in proved intolerable in this part of the finale, so I took a chance on penciling myself in, with the understanding that all narcissism-adjacent behavior is acceptable in this context. All the same, I’ll just post it here and on my Patreon without infecting the 90DF-specific subs. Without further ado…
​
Me: Shaun caught Kris’ narcolepsy during the break, and is currently scouring the countryside for medication unavailable in Colombia. As a lifelong insomniac, I’m qualified to assume lukewarm-question duties between Gabe’s interruptions and Jen’s drama quest. Tim and Veronica, can you go backstage and not come back?
Tim: I just don’t know who is lying! One is a liar, and the other is Colombian!
Me: That’s why you have to go, Tim. Kris, you were lying about beating up your ex with a tire iron and fleeing the scene before another surprise house fire, but then your car flipped and closed your bank account?
Kris: I crushed his phone and ran like hell.
Me: Did that make the internet disappear?
Kris: Only my paypal account. Thankfully, my mom believes this.
Mona: I’m an enabler!
Me: Have you met Debbie? Jeymi, were you lonelier when Kris was in jail for 20 days, or when she was in jail for five months?
Jeymi: None of these times.
Kris: I chose the high road and she had to be disrespectful.
Me: I’m high right now, too, but I think we both need to stay away from traffic. Nicole, I like the necklace you brought back from Egypt. Why did you bring your husband?
Nicole: I’ve gotten a lot better at being a doormat.
Daniele: I have similar experiences.
Me: With being high? Here’s a look back at the time Nicole asked Mahmoud how old he is, and didn’t wait for his answer.
Mahmoud: That’s because I do not know the answer (laughs).
Me: Does your brother Ahmed also find the joke you’re playing on Nicole hilarious?
Ahmed: I do!
Nicole: I think he’s embarrassed, because I’m making excuses for him.
Me: Why do you think hitting on a girl in China is funny, but a street-side wrist-grab is something Shaun won’t bring up?
Mahmoud: Because Nicole’s still sitting right there, and I plan to talk about her hair until it’s covered while talking to whoever I feel like.
Ahmed: He will, and she will be so grateful once she sees he’s been right all this time.
Gabe: I think you’re so scummy.
Me: Even a broken clock is right once a day, so good point, Gabe.
Kris: Seriously, why are you laughing?
Mahmoud: (Chins) I’m nice to everyone.
Me: Is that a Kris imitation? Who is everyone and how do you nice them?
Kris: I would never say I’m nice to everyone.
Me: Maybe he’s imitating the lying?
Daniele: You’re an asshole.
Me: Did you just call me an asshole? (Andy Cohen disbelief face.)
Daniele: You don’t really exist here, I’m talking about Mahmoud. The asshole.
Me: Oh, the asshole. Well if you can’t see me, I can’t see your point, DANIELE! Visible-Monica, you spent two hours getting your hair done only to skip Gabe’s wedding. How bad did your hair look?
Monica: It was okay until I took a shower. Gabe said I’m the common denominator in all his failed relationships. After that I couldn’t decide whether to show up crying, or intentionally dip out.
Me: So you’re saying he was right, or that you’re pursuing a career in the theater arts?
Monica: Both, not-Shaun! Gabe didn’t even tell me what my role was, and I’m trying to do method!
Me: Well, for Gabe that kinda tracks, but you’ve met him before, haven’t you? Couldn’t you solve this riddle with a simple question?
Monica: Then we would have had to talk about his wedding when we were at a bar until 2:30AM.
Me: Tell me again why a meme-relationship doesn’t work for you?
Gabe: In fairness, I didn’t ask any questions about my wedding, either.
Isabel: It’s true. My mom was just making Monica a bridesmaid dress without knowing her size.
Kris: I’m starting to feel like you guys are making fun of me again…
Me: Oh! Because of the lying!
Jen: Well, I need to go backstage and find an excuse for a second season.
Me: It’s okay if you want to stay back there, while we rewatch the part of the Vanderpump Rules finale where everyone boos. Hey Daniele, remember that time you planned a family birthday party and Yohan ran it down a humiliation luge?
VPR: BOOOOO!
Daniele: I think we need couples therapy.
Yohan: Only if we want the relationship to continue. So no.
Debbie: SQUAWK!
Yohan: (Applauds.)
Me: Okay, I thought Yohan was right, but his choice to applaud Debbie tells me he’s wrong. I was fooled by the donkey, too, Yohan.
Purty: Why is this my fault?
Jen: I feel like Yohan has to evolve and trust Daniele, and just fall into the carefully arranged jealousy trap.
Me: With an assist from instagram?
Randi: Oh, I already sent him a message. Messages. I sent him a lot of messages.
Daniele: Well, I’m a different breed.
Me: No, there’s a lot of you. Have you seen this show?
Purty: Maybe she was talking about me.
Me: Are you jealous of Purty the Donkey?
Daniele: No one else is a threat to me because no one else is me.
Me: Let’s bring out Yohan’s ex who had a threatening abortion!
Daniele: She can’t possibly exist, because I have a big circle that revolves around me.
Me: You have two people in your yoga class. That’s not even a square.
Daniele: I was told there would be Shaun.
Me: Here’s Taylen, if you need someone agreeable.
Taylen: I had no idea it was Yohan’s birthday, because Daniele would never share something that might make me cancel. Now Yohan won’t say hi to me, and we were basketball bros.
Daniele: Jealousy fills me with joy.
Me: You’re supposed to conceal that, not smirk it out.
Mahmoud: (Laughs) It is so funny when they suffer.
Yohan: Daniele has pictures of him in the house.
Me: Really? Like, printed? Did you date Taylen in 1992?
Daniele: I have every photo I want Yohan to find in a drawer that doesn’t lock.
Yohan: All I know is when the lease expires, I’m looking for someone else with an NYC zipcode.
Daniele: Maybe I pay for everything?
Visa/Mastercard: Stop it.
Me: Are you talking to me?
Yohan: I pay for half.
Me: Promise? Oh, right, Daniele.
Daniele: According to my computer I pay for the altar chotchkies completely on my own.
Me: Is that the same computer your photos fell from? That kicking sound is Shaun asking to be released from the lamp I locked her in, so here’s a few pointlessly long goodbyes, and a reminder that these people are paid pennies, and that’s not why Mahmoud was laughing.
Scene.
patreon.com/fractalfay

LPI (LP Information)' newest research report, the “Car Child Seat Industry Forecast” looks at past sales and reviews total world Car Child Seat sales in 2022, providing a comprehensive analysis by region and market sector of projected Car Child Seat sales for 2023 through 2029. With Car Child Seat sales broken down by region, market sector and sub-sector, this report provides a detailed analysis in US$ millions of the world Car Child Seat industry.
This Insight Report provides a comprehensive analysis of the global Car Child Seat landscape and highlights key trends related to product segmentation, company formation, revenue, and market share, latest development, and M&A activity. This report also analyzes the strategies of leading global companies with a focus on Car Child Seat portfolios and capabilities, market entry strategies, market positions, and geographic footprints, to better understand these firms' unique position in an accelerating global Car Child Seat market.
This report presents a comprehensive overview, market shares, and growth opportunities of Car Child Seat market by product type, application, key manufacturers and key regions and countries.
https://www.lpinformationdata.com/reports/729712/car-child-seat-2029
The main participants
Graco
Britax
Recaro
Joyson Safety Systems
Maxi-cosi
Chicco
Combi
Jane
BeSafe
Concord
Aprica
Stokke
Kiddy
Ailebebe
Goodbaby
Babyfirst
Segmentation by type
Group 0
Group 0+
Group I
Group II
Group III
Segmentation by application
Online Sales
Offline Sales
Key Questions Addressed in this Report
What is the 10-year outlook for the global Car Child Seat market?
What factors are driving Car Child Seat market growth, globally and by region?
Which technologies are poised for the fastest growth by market and region?
How do Car Child Seat market opportunities vary by end market size?
How does Car Child Seat break out type, application?
What are the influences of COVID-19 and Russia-Ukraine war?
LP INFORMATION (LPI) is a professional market report publisher based in America, providing high quality market research reports with competitive prices to help decision makers make informed decisions and take strategic actions to achieve excellent outcomes.We have an extensive library of reports on hundreds of technologies.Search for a specific term, or click on an industry to browse our reports by subject. Narrow down your results using our filters or sort by what’s important to you, such as publication date, price, or name.
LP INFORMATION
E-mail: [email protected]
Add: 17890 Castleton St. Suite 369 City of Industry, CA 91748 US
Website: https://www.lpinformationdata.com

Because I learned so much from reading other itinerary/trip reports here, I wanted to share our experience.
Beforehand: AT&T – signed up for international day pass which meant $10/day for first person on the plan and $5/day for the others, for the first 10 days of each month or maybe billing cycle. Worked well and allowed us to split up when needed. Bought Tokyo Metro Pass (about $11/day, well worth it for us for 3 days) and JR pass on line from Klook prior to trip in time for them to mail the JR pass voucher to my home. We also bought a limousine airport bus ticket ahead of time from Klook but see below. Picked up Tokyo Metro Pass by showing QR code to the machine at metro station (instant and easy) and went to Shinjuku JR station to pick up JR passes (show passports, ok to pick up passes days before you want them activated) in person and make seat reservations for the long shinkansen trips and for the Tobu Nikko trip (paid the extra fee to Tobu staff when we arrived in Nikko). It was helpful to have determined exactly which train we wanted seat reservations for (train number, time, and date) beforehand. Ask for Mt. Fuji side if going Tokyo to Osaka/Kyoto. JapanTravel app is great for checking train times. Do give yourself enough time to transfer – the app will give you 10 minutes, say, to transfer from metro to JR trains and given the size of the stations and having to swipe in and out of the stations, and being confused about where to go, you probably need more time. If you have an iPhone, add virtual Suica card to your wallet. Was incredibly easy to use and saved us from having to top up at kiosks or buy tickets. Used it to grab drinks from machines, at 7-11, etc. But, it was a little tricky to set up for some of us – you may have to try Amex or Mastercard if Visa doesn’t work. Once, it didn’t work the first day but worked the second day when we tried again, so definitely do this at least a few days prior to the trip. Get some cash and plan to stop at ATMs (we used 7-11) often because cash is king there. We did not make any reservations so that we could be flexible with our plans. All the food was excellent and we rarely waited long (we would just look for another place if a line was long). Of course, do the visit Japan web website at least 3 days prior to the trip and get your QR codes for customs and immigration. Screenshot these as well. If you can keep yourself to a carry on size bag, it will make finding lockers and taking the shinkansen much easier. Break in those shoes. We walked 11-12 miles every day.
Tokyo for <= 3 days. We stayed in Shinjuku and tried to cluster our activities when we could: Northeast: Kappabashi street to check out the beautiful knives and kitchenware, and buy some lovely chopsticks Asakusa Shrine: beautiful but we did not go in because we were there for the Sanja Matsuri festival; crowded but a lot of fun watching the golden shrines bounced up and down the street, and we still got to sample foods from the food stalls. Thought about returning for evening, but never made it there. Akihabara: this was on my if-we-have-extra-time list; so glad we made it because it was a real highlight. Playing retro arcade games (Super Potato Retro shop), watching the real pros compete in the huge multistory gaming center buildings; walked over the Owl Café but should have made reservations a week before if we had wanted to go. Went to a bonsai market garden center in Ueno which was kind of interesting. Ochanomizu Gakkitengai for guitars and other musical instruments. Didn’t do SkyTree, did go to Ameyoko market which I thought was just ok. East: Fukagawa Fudo-do Temple: Goma Ritual, drumming, prayers, fire; service lasts about 30 minutes. Take a look around the temple’s other rooms also. Multiple times daily. Hat Coffee: we did not go but I’d have loved to see the 3D lattes Southeast: Tsukiji outer market (we had a Klook voucher for limousine bus tickets to take us right to the hotel to drop off our bags, but we got through immigration quickly and waited around until 6 am when the ticket counter was supposed to open, but it didn’t open and the info desk told us it wouldn’t open for another hour, plus first bus wasn’t until 7:30 am– so rather than waiting around the airport for hours, we ended up going straight to the market on the monorail and the metro using our Suica card, getting there at 6:20 am). It might sound early, but we had such a wonderful visit to the market at 6:20 am, dropping our bags in a locker at the metro (some take coins but we found ones that took our Suica (virtual Suica was in our Apple wallet); there are also lockers at Plat Tsukiji). Enjoyed the market and excellent coffee at Yonemoto, then lined up at 8:30 for wonderful meal at Tsukiji Koromo Sushi. Fantastic experience being able to look closely at everything at the market and make our purchases. By the time we left breakfast, though, it was wall to wall people, long lines, too crowded to really check out the stalls, and a much different experience. We were glad we had gone early. We even came back (at 7 am) two days later to enjoy more food stalls and sample the fatty tuna at Maguroya Kurogin (worth it despite the line). West: Shibuya 109: go downstairs to food area and find the whipped cream vending machine next to the escalator. Bring cash! Shibuya Sky: we did not have tickets and they were sold out, but during the day we went to the floor below and walked through the art gallery to have a beautiful view of the scramble crossing. At night, we went one floor below that to a lounge to take in the free view. Everywhere: Don Quijote; bought all the candy. Very fun running around trying to determine what was in each package. Thankful for Google Translate. Walked through beautiful Yoyogi Park to the Meiji-jingu Shrine. Saw some of a wedding ceremony. Beautiful. Then walked through Harajuku which was crowded and lively. Didn’t really see eccentric clothes and fashion, but lots of restaurants and snacks and fun resale shops. Did not get to Shibuya Nonbei Yokocho. Did stop in at Omoide Yokocho in Shinjuku and enjoy an early drink; would recommend getting there early since was already packed. Also lots of smoking in the izakayas, which made it less enjoyable for us. Enjoyed a walk through Golden Gai also. There are many areas of Shinjuku other than these for nightlife and restaurants. If there is a long line, go elsewhere. So much excellent food. If you like electronics, check out the 11 buildings of Yodabashi camera. Also ate at Uobei Shibuya for fast fun conveyer belt sushi. Line moved quickly. Great value too.
Then we took the Tobu Nikko line to Nikko (direct from Shinjuku so saved time and transfers with our bags). Cost a little more since JR pass didn’t cover fully. You could just take JR but there were more connections. Checked into Ryokan Nikko Hoshinoyado. Enjoyed Kanmangafuchi Abyss and the Toshugu shrines (buy tickets at the train station to avoid the lines at the shrine). Highly recommend this ryokan. Great public onsen (not busy, mostly empty, indoor and outdoor options) and phenomenal dinner. Surprised by wonderful breakfast also. After one night, metro and shinkansen to Kyoto (nice view of Mt. Fuji; enjoyed an ekiben on the train that we got at Tokyo station).
In Kyoto, walked Gion/Shimbashi street and had dinner at Pontocho first night. Many maiko sightings from across from the Ichiriki Tea House as dusk fell. Second day got 7 am start to be at Arashiyama bamboo grove early (peaceful) and then over to Golden Pavilion by 9 when it opened. Still very crowded, but fun and beautiful. We took cabs to the bamboo grove (30 minutes instead of 60) and then over to the Golden Pavilion because buses required connections and much longer travel time when we were trying to beat the crowds. After those two cabs, we just took buses around. Went to monkey park which was great and the had obanzai lunch at Gyatei (upstairs on the left, excellent) followed by walk to Gio-Ji temple (moss garden) and then through the Okochi Sanso Villa; then walked around the Arashiyama shopping streets. If you do the bamboo grove very early, be aware that all of the temples on that beautiful historic street nearby are closed that early. Nishiki market then dinner in Pontocho. Third day, started at Kiyomizu-Dera (check out Tainai-meguri, a symbolic womb of a female bodhisattva – we were pressed for time and the next schedule wasn’t for 30 minutes so we couldn’t stay), walked down Ninen-zaka and sannen-Zaka streets and then bus over to lunch at Izusen for shojin-ryori (you could get reservations, but we just got there early and were lucky to get in) and a walk around Daitokuji temple complex. There is a wonderful new zen bonsai garden in the Hoshun-in sub temple. Staff at other sub temples told us that that garden wasn’t open but when we got there it was. Check Instagram for opening times. After another visit to Nishiki market, we walked the Fushimi Inari Shrine into the evening and then back to Pontocho for dinner.
Train to Osaka. Went straight to Okonomiyaki Chitose which was excellent and a bit away from the main food areas; tried to get there for 11 am but went the wrong direction on the shinkansen rushing to the unreserved cars ((at the front of the shinkansens, by the way, usually cars 1-3 or similar). Also be aware of what platform to be at, but also that you are getting on the correct train. We almost took a 10:01 train when we should have waited for the 10:03 train at the same platform. Similarly, you might find that the JapanTransit app asks you to get off on platform 16 and then get on a train at that same moment at platform 16. Do it — it is asking you to go from an express to a local train). Because we didn’t arrive until 11:45, we were in an hour long line to get in. It was excellent though. Spent the rest of the day at Don Quijote and all of the many endless food and shopping streets near Namba and ended at Dotonbori. Conveyer belt sushi close to the river but upstairs so harder to find – surprisingly not crowded when the other places on the river were all mobbed.
Next day train to Nara, a few hours there exploring the Daibutsuden Hall and Todaiji temple and feeding the bowing deer, fantastic lunch at izakaya なら酒蔵なべ At 34-1 Imamikadocho, Nara, and then to Kyoto for the shinkansen to Tokyo for the airport.

We bought a 2021 Isuzu MU-X in February with 28'000 kays on it for an isuzu dealership, it was a dealer car (so used as a courtesy car by the dealership), still has 4 years new car warranty.
The car has electrically adjusted lumbar support for the drivers seat which stopped working 2 weeks after we took delivery of the car, had it looked at 3 times by the Isuzu dealer we bought the car from, 6 weeks ago they finally stated that the issue is that no power is being delivered to the switch, so the issue is with the main wiring harness of the car, and that no wiring diagram exists for this specific circuit.
They have since given us the run around for 6 weeks saying that they "have requested repair instructions from Isuzu Australia and are waiting to hear back" today they have stated that Isuzu ute Australia is producing a wiring diagram to repair it.
What are our options here? this is definitely what I would consider a minor fault, but being that it's taking weeks so far with no date set to have it fixed, could this be a situation where we could demand a refund on the vehicle?

First Prev
Memory transcription subject: Professor Tevest, FTL Researcher
Date [standardized human time]: November 10, 2136
“They said 10:00 am. Do you think they’re still coming?” Virnix asked from the seat next to me.
I leaned my head against the car window. “It’s only 10:07, they’re just running a little late.”
“Maybe something happened to them. Or they forgot.”
“I messaged them. They know we’re here.”
“Then why didn’t they respond? The car drives itself, what could they be doing?”
I didn’t have an answer to that. I went back to silently wishing they would show up. We’d been waiting in car in the corner of the parking lot for over fifteen minutes. I’d honestly thought we’d be the ones late today given how long it took to get Dwlin to go to the bathroom and Kover not being able to find his data pad.
My pad buzzed. ”Sorry we’re late. We just parked and will be waiting for you out front” I read aloud.
Virnix looked to the back seat. “Everybody stick together. Stay within arm’s reach at all times. Got it?”
We got out of the car and began walking to the front. “Hold my paw Dwlin,” Virnix said, stress and worry seeping into her tone. Her eyes kept jumping around as if an arxur was going jump out from behind one of the parked cars. Was I that nervous my first day out? I grabbed her free paw and gave a reassuring squeeze.
Kover glanced over at us. “I’m not holding hands. Don’t ask.”
“Hey!” A voice yipped out between the cars. Virnix’s grip tightened at the noise, then tightened again further when a yotul jumped out between parked cars in front of us.
“Come on! They’re over here!” Sock yelled out, waving someone over. Following Socks, Kyle and another human woman I didn’t recognize appeared.
The woman smiled, stepped forward with a hand outstretched. “Hi, my name’s Catherine. Pleased to meet ya.” Virnix’s claws began to dig into my paw as she stared in terror. She looked to be on the verge of bolting.
“It’s good to meet you too,” I said grimacing over the pain in my paw. “My name’s Tevest.”
The human woman must had taken notice at my tone in my voice because she took a look at my wife and took a step back. “Sorry about that,” she said, her smile dropping. “You guys got a thing about teeth and stuff. I’m guessing the one on your left is Mrs. Tevest?”
Mrs. Tevest? “Yeah. This is my wife Virnix. Why don’t you introduce yourself Virnix.”
“H-hello. I’m Virnix,” my wife voiced with a robotic stutter.
“It’s great to meet you Virnix,” Catherine said turning her attention to Dwlin. “And what’s your name?”
“Dwlin.” The little gojid said proudly.
“Dwlin, that’s a nice name. Is that your uncle over there?”
“Uncle?” Dwlin said confused. Virnix’s paw went limp. I followed the woman’s gaze to where it landed on my son.
“The tall gojid over there.”
I burst out laughing. “That’s my son Kover!”
Human woman’s smile returned. “I guess I walked into that,” she said with a chuckle.
Virnix looked more confused than I’ve ever seen her in her life. “We’re like over twice his age, how can you not tell?” Virnix asked dumbfounded.
“Hey, I’ve never met a gojid before. The extent of my knowledge is that you guys have spikes and were gene-modded to be herbivores.”
Kyle looked up at Kover. “How old are you kid?”
“Fourteen,” he replied simply.
“Damn….”
“If you guys are done talking, can we go shopping now? I need more frozen burritos,” Socks interceded. “I’m Sokvous by the way.”
---
We walked through the sliding doors and into a brightly lit store with rows and rows of aisles. Soft music played overhead. If there was meat in the store I couldn’t see or smell it yet. I heard a crash to the side as Socks yanked carts from a receptacle.
Virnix huddled closer to me. “Tevest, I don’t like that look,” she whispered with as she pointed to the humans in the lines near the front. They had a look I was all too familiar with.
“Relax. That look doesn’t mean I’m hungry and want to eat you. It means What is a gojid doing here? Why did the gojid come to where I am. Should I talk to the gojid? Just look at what they’re doing.” Several humans in the lines were whispering to one another and others were taking pictures. “It’s not hunger, it’s interest.”
Socks handed me a cart. “You get used to it. Mostly. At least you have spikes. Last time I was here people kept trying to touch me.”
“Touch you?”
“Grab the tail. Sneak up behind you and stroke your fur. Real annoying stuff.”
Catherine led the way into the store. “So, what’s on your shopping list?” She inquired.
“Fruits and vegetables at the very least.” Virnix responded. “I liked whatever those orange tubers were called….”
“Sweet potatoes,” Kover said helpfully.
“That’s it, sweet potatoes. They weren’t half-bad after boiling.”
“How’d you season them?”
“Salt?” Virnix said confused.
Catherine looked like she just heard we ate dirt. “You just boiled them and used salt? That’s not dinner, that’s a food crime. Whatcha gotta do is to toss them in brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans and roast those suckers. If your feeling real frisky you put a touch of ginger in them too. What else you looking for?”
“Whatever the red smushy ones were called. I think the package said tomatoes.”
“Another good choice, great in all kinds of things. Soups, casseroles, pasta, sandwiches…”
She kept going on like this. Virnix would mention something she wanted to get and the human would expound on it. Sweet potatoes, tomatoes, oranges, onions, among other fruits and vegetables were added, including a few that weren’t at the home when we arrive.
“You sure this one’s edible?”
“Wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t. You just got to slice it open. Don’t let me forget, we need to get you some spices before you leave. What else do you need?”
“Juice! I want juice!” A few humans turned to the noise my daughter was making.
My wife pointed a claw. “Dwlin, use your indoor voice.”
“But I want juice!”
“Then don’t yell and ask nicely. If you want people to listen, then speak like a sapient.”
My daughter’s demeanor softened a touch. “Can we get some juice now please?”
“Better. Do you know where the juice is Catherine?”
“Down past the refrigerated section by the meat section. I’ll show you.” Dutifully we followed woman. The meat section. Whatever you do Tevest, don’t panic. If you panic then Virnix panics, then its trouble. Just don’t make a scene… We walked down, and down the aisle and it came into view.
Behind glass encased freezers there was flesh within, packed within plastic wraps. I couldn’t tell what kind of creatures these had once been. Did I even want to know? Virnix looked like she wanted to get away from here as soon as possible. Kover loomed over one of the freezers, peering in. Sokvous walked up to a freezer, grabbed several bags and handed one to me. “You guys need to try this, it’s delicious”
I dropped the bag. That’s it, I’ve lost it. The herbivore is buying meat. I’m stuck in a nightmare. The humans corrupting us wasn’t paranoia. Protector protect me, wait, no, oh god, wh-
“You okay Tevest?” Sokvous asked. My legs swayed and I began heading to the floor. Halfway down something grabbed me by the arm. “Geez man, get a grip.”
I sat on the tile and stared at the man who had a hold of me. “M-meat?”
Sokvous let go of my arm. “It’s not meat. Read the damn package.”
I slowly sat up. Not meat? I pointed my visual translator at the bag on the floor.

Plant-based meatballs. 30 count. Now with new and improved flavor!

“What?” I said confused.
Kyle offered me a hand. “It’s plant-based meat. It means that it’s plants that are processed to taste like meat.”
“Why?” I asked, still confused.
He grabbed my paw and me to my feet. “Because sometimes people like the taste of meat, but can’t or don’t want to eat the real stuff. Reasons vary from religious, to health, to environmental. The real stuff’s better, but with the war going on and the cattle exchange it’s hard to get.”
“So why are you buying it Socks?”
“Because it tastes good,” the marsupial replied roughly. I opened my mouth, but was cut off. “And before you ask no, I do not have predator disease. The Venlil, the Zurulians, and all those other Federation stooges can shove that fucking diagnosis up their ass. It’s a goddamn flavored plant. Besides, eating plants didn’t stop the Kolshians from assassinating diplomats. Where was the predator diagnosis on Nikonous you damn quacks!”
Where’d that come from? I picked the bag off the floor and looked at it. “I’m… not quite sure I’m comfortable with eating this.”
“I’d be willing to try it,” Kover said. “I wouldn’t tell anyone. Besides, even if they find out what are they going do? Banish us to Earth?”
Virnix took the bag from my hands and shoved it back into the freezer. “I think we’re good. Let’s get your juice Dwlin.” She looked down only to find an empty space beside her. “Dwlin?”
My stomach dropped. Did we lose her? A moment later I spotted her at the far side of the section by the juice.
Which was on the topmost part of the shelves.
The shelves she was in the process of climbing.
I started dashing over. Nope nope nope nope nope nope.
This was going to be a long day.
First Prev

There's an abandoned nova on the military base I work on in Colorado. The car has been there for at least 6 months and has expired plates. There's also an abandoned vehicle notice on it from the mp's dated 3 months ago.
Is there a site that you use to find owners contact information with just a Vin/lisance plate? I tried a few of the free online ones but didn't get anything.
A quick Google search said it would need to be towed and a notice sent to the owner with the right form from the dmv. Is there anything else that I would need to do to try and claim ownership of it?

First of all, I’m new to this subreddit and happy to finally be here. Secondly, I’m a transmasculine non-binary person. Mods, could we add flair for people outside the gender binary? I almost chose “son with CI mother” but it isn’t quite right.
Anyway, here we go:
I’m an only child. My mom was the victim of covert incest at the hands of her father, who will be referred to as “P” from hereon out. He outright sexually assaulted and physically abused my mother’s mom, referred to as “G.” My mom told me that he’d beat the shit out of her in front of the kids and would also tell my mom incredibly graphic stories about the sex he’d have with her. G would abuse pills to cope with being married to P, so G was rarely able to perform tasks of a mother. My mom is the oldest of four, so she was parentified and took care of the other kids.
The “happy” ending: when P cheated on G with one of G’s best friends, G filed for divorce. P lived the rest of his life in a trailer several states away and estranged from the family… except for when it came to my mom. She was the only one who still spoke to him. He eventually fell, alone in his trailer, hit his head, and bled out. I wanted to jump for joy when this happened.
My mom has told me multiple times that I allegedly stopped breastfeeding earlier than most infants and that it deeply upset her. This seems like a very weird thing to talk to me about. All my life, my mom would get upset if I spent time alone in my room instead of sitting with her after school. I was not allowed to lock my bedroom door even though it had a lock. If I closed it, she would knock and then open the door before the sound waves even finished fully registering with me. She picked out my clothes for me until I was in 7th or 8th grade. If I told her something that was upsetting me, she would immediately provide unsolicited advice and try to solve the problem.
I was not allowed to walk to school until high school (I lived in a very “safe” town and all of my peers walked to middle school; something I desperately wanted to do). She scrutinized my body so much that she detected my scoliosis herself; I hadn’t even noticed or cared. She was on the PTO, was always a volunteer chaperone on school trips, and eventually even began working in my school. She has told me on numerous occasions that she “lives vicariously through me.”
When I dated a tremendously abusive boy for 4 years, the two of them became very close. She was upset when I finally broke up with him.
When I finally moved out at age 22, she was devastated. She actually stood in front of the car to try to stop me from driving. That was a little under 10 years ago. My childhood bedroom remains a relic, perfectly preserved as I left it. The dry erase calendar on her fridge still reads “September” of the year I moved out and still has “______ moves out” on the date I left. I’ve tried to erase it when I visit, but it’s permanently stained onto the surface. When I came out as trans and changed my name, she sobbed. The transness didn’t bother her as much as the fact that I was changing the name she had chosen for me.
I learned a lot in codependents anonymous (CoDA) a few years ago and am so grateful I decided to attend my first meeting. At this point, we are pretty low contact, but I do still have a relationship with her. I’m in a healthy romantic relationship, in therapy, and have a lot of long term, healthy, reciprocal friendships. I finally know what boundaries are and how to enact them. But… yeah. She really fucked me up.
My dad was a boundaried king and an incredible person. He died in 2019 and was very ill for 6 years before his death. I was effectively robbed of an adult relationship with him due to his early onset dementia. Whenever my mom and I visited him at the care center, she would refuse to leave when he asked us to. She would wipe his face and try to feed him while he refused to open his mouth. It infuriated me. When we got to the car to drive away, she would always sit in the driver’s seat and cry/scream/wail as I sat next to her in the passenger’s seat, stoic as a statue.
I miss my dad. I have a lot of anger towards my mom, but I also have sympathy for her and understand why she turned out so messed up. She retired a month ago, and when she cried to me about not knowing what to do while retired, I asked her if she wanted some advice. (Something she never did with me - she would just pummel me with suggestions, greatly stunting my ability to think critically in my own). I suggested she take this time to focus on herself and consider therapy.
We do have a relationship, but it’s pretty low contact. I put up a lot of boundaries over the years and she hasn’t been happy about any of them. She often tries to manipulate me into calling/visiting her and complains that I refuse to pick up the phone when she cold-calls me. Intergenerational trauma is really something.

Part 1
I took a deep breath before blowing into the little straw attached to the breathalyzer test.
"Keep it going, another few seconds," the newly reinstated sheriff's deputy Randy said from the passenger seat next to me.
Finally the device made a noise and the numbers 0.07 appeared on the screen.
"Okay, I'm good to drive. I'll need to keep ingesting roughly one beer every hour from this point on."
Randy nodded.
"Okay, now you go," I said, replacing the disposable straw in the breathalyzer test.
He blew into the straw and after a few seconds it came up on the display.
"O.16. That’s not gonna do it with your tolerance, bud. I'm gonna need you to drink something, Randy. You gotta be sharp for this."
He pulled out a bottle of whiskey and unscrewed the cap, taking a long swig of it before belching. When I was satisfied he was intoxicated enough to avoid seeing any more invisible monsters, I told him to buckle up.
Normally I don’t condone drinking and driving, even if it is technically within the legal limits, but these were special circumstances. Randy had infected me with some sort of… Well, I don’t really know how to describe it. Ghost virus? Hallucinating monster plague?
I was seeing things in mirrors and reflective surfaces now, just like he had been. It was as if they now served as peepholes into another dimension. Therefore, we had covered up the rear view and side mirrors with duct tape. I had also gotten rid of my aviators, which was a shame, because they completed my whole outfit. I was even growing a mustache to complete the small town Sheriff everyman appearance, but the hair growth on my upper lip was patchy and gross-looking still.
Before growing it, I hadn’t realized facial dandruff was a real thing. Well, it turns out it definitely is.
Sorry, I’m getting tangential again. That happens to me when I drink.
To sum it all up, Randy was the old sheriff in Hollow’s End, but he’d run into some kind of trouble recently. This trouble had caused him to see horrible things which appeared in reflective surfaces - windows and mirrors all over town which had been smashed by him in what I at first assumed was a drunken rage. Now I realized he was drinking to drown out the demons. The liquor made them less noticeable, and less frequent.
“This case has to be connected with everything that’s happening,” I said as we started driving - our destination still unknown. “That man who disappeared. In such a small town, these things have to be connected.”
“Not necessarily,” Randy replied. “This town is weird as hell, dude. Fucked up shit happens here literally all the time. You just haven’t lived here long enough to see any of it.”
I ignored this and pressed onward, trying to get something useful out of the man.
“Okay, you’re not much help. Is there someone in town who is in the know? Someone who can give us the low-down?”
“Well… The only person I can think of like that would be the butcher. He’s sort of like the unofficial mayor of Hollow’s End," Randy explained. "But he’s not exactly the talkative type.”
“Great. That’s something, at least. Point me towards the butcher shop. Let’s go have a chat with this guy," I said to Randy, only to realize he had promptly fallen asleep after his last statement.
I drove towards the commercial district, eyes peeled for a Butcher Shop sign.
Eventually I found it.
*
We pulled up in front of the place and I could tell right away that something was off. And by that I mean there was a terrible smell that I associated with spoiled meat. Something inside the shop was long past its expiration date, and the rank odor was making its way out to the street.
There was a closed sign hanging from the door, despite the hours indicating it should be open. Alarm bells started ringing in my mind even louder than before and I told Randy to watch the front of the shop while I went around to the back.
He was now wide awake again, acting as if he hadn't just been asleep seconds prior.
After knocking on the back door, I tried the handle. To my surprise, it opened.
I went inside and was hit with a knockout punch of decay right to my nose. My eyes started watering at the smell of meat gone sour, the sound of buzzing flies growing louder as I stepped inside the kitchen.
There was blood everywhere - and not just in the usual places where you would expect it to be in a butcher’s shop. It was splattered on the ceiling and all over the floor. There was one particularly large bloodstain in the far corner of the room that was in the shape of a human body, and judging by the deep crimson color of it whoever had been laying there had lost a sufficient amount of bodily fluids to render them dead half a dozen times over.
I heard footsteps from the other side of a translucent plastic curtain which separated the kitchen from the front of the shop. Pulling out my service revolver, I took a cautious step forward and pulled back the hammer, ready for anything.
My heart was pounding fast as I spoke in my best 'don't fuck with me' cop-voice.
“This is the sheriff. Whoever’s behind the curtain, come out with your hands up. Do it now!”
There was an identical sound on the other side of the divider, indicating another gun was being readied for action.
“No way, man,” said a gruff voice on the other side. “You’re not taking me alive.”
My heart skipped a beat as I realized I was potentially about to die. There was going to be a shootout. And a lot more blood was about to be decorating the walls of this butcher shop.
Then I realized the voice sounded familiar.
“RANDY!?”
He came through the curtain and I almost shot him anyway.
“Oh, sorry. I thought it was a bad guy impersonating you,” Randy said.
“So you decided to impersonate a bad guy? How does that make any sense?”
“They wouldn’t kill one of their own, man. Think about it.”
I let out a deep breath and counted to ten in my mind, trying to think of other ways to stop myself from murdering him.
Would anyone notice if Randy went missing? No, don't think like that. Only bad things will come of it.
I tried to focus on the case.
“That’s a lot of blood,” I said, pointing at the man-shaped brownish-red puddle in the corner. “Looks like some bad shit went down here. Maybe this butcher guy is good for the murder of our missing man.”
“Nah,” Randy said, waving it off. “That puddle has been there for weeks. We play poker here every Friday. It’s, well, it would be too hard to explain what happened. But just trust me that the blood-letting was consensual, even if it did get a bit out of hand.”
“I don’t even want to know.”
“Well, you asked.”
“So all of this blood looks NORMAL to you?”
“For this place, yeah."
"And the smell?"
He nodded.
"But I did notice one weird thing.”
“What’s that?” I asked, completely exasperated by this point.
“No mirrors anywhere. There’s usually a couple of them out front in the customer area that are gone now. And he hasn’t cleaned his knives. That's not like him. He loves these knives like they're his own non-existent children. It’s like he didn’t want them to be shiny. He wanted them to stay bloody.”
Mirrors. Glass. Steel can be polished to be so reflective you can see your face in it. Or other things.
“He’s infected too.”
“Yup. This shit’s spreading. Who knows how far it could get if we don’t stop it.”
He held up one finger, produced a flask from his pocket, and drank a large swallow of whiskey.
“Alright, where to next?” he asked after burping loudly. “This was a bust.”
*
We were walking out the front door of the place when we saw a car pull up to the curb. A young man got out, looking like he was in his late twenties.
The car had a company name on the side and I realized it looked familiar. It was actually the next lead I was planning to follow up on.
J&M Delivery Co.
Booze, burgers, pizza and MORE!
Delivering to all citizens of Hollow’s End
(Unless you're a Subterranean)
(No forest deliveries after 4PM)
I read the sign twice and was about to ask the man why they didn’t deliver to the Subterraneans, and who the Subterraneans were, and who the hell would order pizza from a forest, but decided it would be better to stay focused.
“What are you guys doing here?” the man asked, heading towards the shop.
“Hey, Jay. We were looking for the butcher, but he’s gone,” Randy replied quickly. “Where’s Muriel? Maybe she knows something.”
“She’s been gone since last night. There was some sort of crisis and she ran out of the house without saying goodbye. I figured the butcher might have an idea where she went.”
“We were just in there. He’s gone but the doors are unlocked. Must’ve left in a hurry,” I said. “Does she have a cell phone? Maybe we can track her with the GPS.”
“Nah, she’s not really into technology. She has one of those brick Nokia phones that she’s managed to keep alive for twenty years or so, but she leaves it at home most of the time, and the rest of the time she’s at the casino where there’s no signal.”
“Okay, maybe that’s where she is.”
“I checked already. None of the employees have seen her since the weekend.”
It occurred to me suddenly that there was another missing person who I was investigating, and this man was a potential witness.
“I need to ask you about something else,” I said, pulling out a picture of the missing man. “Do you know this person?”
He squinted at it for half a second.
“Sure, that’s John Grayson. He’s a delivery driver with our company.”
“Are you aware that he’s been missing now for nearly two days?”
He hesitated, then looked at Randy.
“Is he cool?” he asked cautiously.
“Yeah, he’s already got the curse. He’s good.”
I looked back and forth between the two of them.
“What the fuck!? So this is like, just a known thing around here? If I stay in town too long I’m gonna become cursed by this place?”
“No, no. No. Well, kinda. It’s hard to explain. And even more hard to explain because of all the weird shit going down,” Randy said. “Now the important thing is this town has its hooks in you. And because of that, you’ll have a very difficult time leaving this place. You’re a part of it and it's a part of you. That's the way it works. One way or another, if you stay in Hollow’s End for too long, you’re gonna get bit by something.”
“I didn’t think it was possible for me to be any more confused.”
“Do you have the monkey paw?” Randy asked Jay, making me even more confused.
“No. But, I’m starting to think it might be the cause of all of this trouble.”
Feeling like I was about to lose my mind, or had already done so, I put my foot down and yelled in my loudest, most authoritative voice.
“ENOUGH!”
The two of them looked at me stupidly.
“Monkey paws? The butcher? Disappearing people all over town? Just… Tell me this is a prank. You guys are messing with me because I’m new in town. Right? Is there a YouTube video being filmed? Am I being punked? Is this a reboot!?”
The two men stared at me a moment longer then went back to talking as if I weren’t standing there.
“It’s definitely got something to do with that paw. The butcher should have just gotten rid of the damn thing when he found it in that shipment of discarded monkey carcasses. Everyone knows monkey paw wishes are tainted. Who the fuck would be dumb enough to actually use one of them?” Jay was saying.
“Well, I mean, how can you possibly know just by looking at the monkey paw that it’s evil? There have to be at least a few GOOD monkey paws out there that grant wishes, right?”
Jay and I suddenly shared a psychic thought connection, and I saw he had the same idea I did, at the exact same moment.
“You made a wish on the fucking monkey paw, didn’t you?” we both blurted out in unison.
Randy looked down at the ground. It took a few seconds for him to confess. When he finally did it was in the most obnoxious, affected, half-apologetic tone of voice I'd ever heard.
“I always wanted to be able to teleport like Nightcrawler from X-Men. I didn’t realize it was gonna open up a series of gateways to alternate dimensions, potentially causing the destruction of reality. That part was completely unexpected.”
It took me a few moments to figure out what he meant. But then it all came together.
“It was your fault! You made me see the monsters in the mirrors! It was all because of you and your STUPID monkey paw WISH!”
“Yeah,” he admitted. “But on the plus side, check this out!”
He jumped into the nearby front window of the butcher shop and, instead of shattering, it rippled outwards from its center like a pool of water disrupted by a stone being thrown into it. He disappeared into the glass and was gone.
The two of us stood there for several minutes in stunned silence, unsure if he was going to come back. I went into the shop to see if he was in there but it was empty.
Just as we were about to walk away awkwardly, he leapt back through the liquid glass carrying a bag of fast food in his hand. The paper bag was stained with grease and said, “KFC” on it.
“See!? We don’t even have one of these in town! I just teleported to Pittsburgh and back!”
The window glass continued to make ripples and didn't settle down into its usual smoothness, I noticed. Not only that, but there was now something moving in the glass. A huge dark creature with long limbs, crawling on six legs. It was sniffing the ground like a dog hunting a rabbit. Then it turned sharply to look at us through the glass. There was no question in my mind that it saw us.
"Randy, did you ever consider that using the powers granted by the cursed magic monkey paw might be a VERY BAD idea?"
He looked at me stupidly.
A strange sound began to come from the glass window of the storefront as a set of huge legs came through from the other side, followed by another, and another. It was an indescribable sound, but if I had to compare it to anything it would be like if fingernails on a chalkboard and microphone feedback had an ear-splitting baby together.
Sitting atop the legs with too many joints was a horrifying creature with a long snout lined with sharp teeth. Odd openings split its rough alligator skin in places, looking like gills, but not quite. Its eyes were black and dull as it surveyed the downtown street of Hollow's End.
After it was through the glass it sniffed the air, and I hoped that maybe this creature didn't breathe oxygen and it would keel over, dead, from the toxic air of our world.
But of course the stupid thing was fine. I guess whatever world it came from had a similar atmosphere to ours.
A second later it spotted us and began to race toward us with murder in its eyes.
"RUN!" I yelled, and turned around to see Jay and Randy already in their respective vehicles and ready to drive away without me.
"Hop in," Randy yelled shifting over into the passenger seat. "Come on man, get away from that thing. Whatever it is, it looks PISSED!"
YT
TCC

So, to explain why this is only being posted now, a full 2 months after kiddo's birth: IDK y'all, having a baby and caring for a newborn is hard and I've been physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.
8 weeks ago I had my 38 week appointment and my doc told me we would be switching to every week appts thereafter. He said I could start doing all the tricks to induce labor and we left happy. I started eating dates and drinking red raspberry leaf tea and continued my daily 1-1.5mile walks and my 40min of yoga daily. On a Saturday, I felt fantastic. At one point in the afternoon I suggested to my SO that we go to the hardware store and buy a few things to build a shelf. It was the best I had felt in more than a month! (Except that I had a very very minor ache in my back right before we left, and a, uh, exciting bathroom trip.)
We got 10 minutes down the road and my backache was getting worse. I had read someone's description of back labor recently and it matched. I had a feeling, so I asked my SO to turn around and drive back home. I was sure it was contractions before we got home. I started timing them, and 1 hour later we were at 4/1/1. So we went to the hospital around 3pm ish. They did a cervical check (which was indeed painful, but not as bad as the contractions, which were getting steadily worse) and said I was at 4cm. They checked an hour later and although the contractions were getting stronger and closer together, they said I was still at 4cm, and the doctor in charge wouldn't let me be admitted until 6cm.
They told me to go home, take some ibuprofen and come back in a few hours or when my water broke. I remember telling the doctor I wouldn't get home before the water broke.
So, we left, forgetting something until they called us a couple minutes later. We turned around and went back. My SO went inside to get the painkillers while I waited in the car. That's when my water broke...on the front seat of the minivan we brought home from the dealer about 28 hours prior. 😱
Cue my SO helping me back to the hospital where we were immediately admitted and a cervical check found me at 6cm.
Holy shit you guys I do not understand how anyone can possibly give birth without medication. I was waiting for death. I knew my time had come. I couldn't help the sounds I was making and I know they were terrible. Any other women in that hospital were probably terrified into getting an epidural just from my sounds. I am needle phobic and initially wasn't sure I wanted an epidural or not but boy let me tell you, I knew I wanted one before we got to the hospital.
It was absolutely excruciating before the epidural. I lost time. I know it was a couple hours before they got the anesthesiologist in to give it to me but it's just a haze, I have no idea how long it was.
Once the epidural was in, everything was so much better. I got to the pushing phase around midnight and got to work. The nurses and doctors were amazing, and we spent a lot of the time joking around.
I can't express how much I appreciate that the head doctor was willing to give me time to work on it, because I pushed for a long time, and I think any other hospital would have pushed me into a procedure. Instead, he said that I was making progress and our vitals were good, so as long as I could keep going and we were making progress, he wouldn't intervene without my permission.
I pushed for around 5 and a half hours. It was difficult and tiring, won't lie. At one point I remember the doctor asking me if I could keep going, and I blurted "I'm not going to lose to a baby!"
I did not lose to the baby. He was born with a partially collapsed lung which they assured us isn't uncommon and usually resolves itself. It did resolve on its own, although we got retained at the hospital for 4 days to be safe. LO is doing great and napping in my lap right now!
For me, the outcome was a 2nd degree tear and two minor abrasions they didn't bother stitching. I also had a hemorrhoid. I was very sore for a while and still do have some feeling of bruise-like soreness, but the hemorrhoid has gone away and the stitches are all gone and, mostly, other than some incontinence on sneezes sometimes (I will be going to a pelvic floor PT soon!) I feel mostly normal.
I was back to taking walks again within the week, albeit short ones, and started some gentle yoga again around two weeks. I started some mild weightlifting this week.
The doctors all told me that if I hadn't been doing a fitness routine like I was, I probably wouldn't have had the stamina to finish the delivery unassisted. It would have been fine if I needed assistance of course--no shame on that!!--but they assured me the recovery was a lot smoother than it may have been if I needed an intervention.
So...just sharing this because I saw SO many negative birth experiences and I was almost expecting something horrible. It was kind of a shock when nothing bad happened. I thought I'd share for people like me, who are afraid. It doesn't always go badly, and the recovery may not be as terrible as you expect.
That said, while labor and recovery was nowhere near as bad as I expected, nothing could have prepared me for taking care of a newborn.
All I want for Christmas is sleep. 😪💤😴🥱
Thank you so much to this community and everyone who contributes to it. I found it such a comfort to have access to such a supportive and amazing community while I went through the journey of pregnancy alongside you, especially since my SO was out of the country until 1 week before delivery. You guys are all amazing and I wish every one of you the best.

Sometimes when you look into the mirror, the mirror looks back.
William Bailey's forehead shattered the mirror like a sledgehammer. The last thing he remembered before he blacked out was the feeling that he was falling through the mirror. Sub-cranial hematoma, a concussion, maybe even a cracked skull--that had to be the reason for the strange feeling. The mirror was mounted on the wall just to the right of the bar, four feet tall by about three feet wide. As consciousness slipped away, common sense and his strong belief in the rational world told him that he couldn't fall through the mirror. He must have bounced his head off the wall and be falling toward the floor.
It seemed like just a second or two before William's eyes popped open. He lay on his back, on the hard wood floor of Fausto's, with Johnny Davis towering over him. Big Johnny probably wanted to finish him off, maybe kill him, and finally end their twenty-year-old feud. Either Big Johnny Davis and the ceiling lights above him were spinning, or William's head was spinning, but either way something wasn't right.
He raised his head and looked to his left, toward the bar. Except the bar wasn't there. Instead, he was staring at the bathrooms. That didn't make sense. It must be his brain that had gotten spun around. William turned his head and peered over his size-ten wingtips at the busted mirror. The wooden frame and most of the glass still clung to the wall, the rest sat broken on the ground. The bar had to be on his left. He looked again, and still saw the bathrooms. A brain bruise, maybe some fluid pressure building up might be the cause of it.
"Get up!" Big Johnny Davis said.
William looked up at him. Johnny stood behind him, just beyond his shoulders. Perfect place for him to stomp my head into the plank floor. Except Johnny Davis was holding out his hand.
"Come on, we've got to get out of here."
Davis looked scared. It was the first time William Bailey could ever remember Johnny Davis looking scared. William had always been scared of Big Johnny, but Big Johnny wasn't scared of anything or anyone.
Police sirens wailed in the distance.
Johnny glanced over his shoulder. William craned his neck to look where Johnny was looking, saw he was staring at the front door like a man terrified something bad was going to come through it. Big Johnny looked down at him again and pumped his hand. "Come on, get up. They'll be here any second."
"Who?" William asked. "Who'll be--" But before he finished, Big Johnny Davis reached down, grabbed him by both arms, and jerked him to his feet.
As he was dragged toward the door by the only man in town who truly hated him, William glanced up and saw the rusted metal sign nailed above the door. He had to have a concussion, probably severe; that had to be it, because the letters on the sign were backward. It said TUO.
As Johnny Davis pulled him out the door, William heard tires skid on the pavement.
"Where's your car?" Johnny asked.
William twisted away from the big man's grip, then turned to his left. "In the alley." He started to run, still not sure exactly what he was running from.
Behind him, Big John shouted, "The alley's over here."
William kept running but turned his head back toward Johnny. "I know where the alley--"
Something hit him across the midsection and toppled him to the ground. He got his hands up just in time to break his fall and managed to keep his head from slamming into the sidewalk. When he looked up he saw a shopping cart tumbled onto its side.
Once again, William found himself lying flat on his back, this time amid the spilled contents of the cart. It had been filled with junk: paper bags full of dirty clothes, canned food, bags of potato chips, a diamond shaped, orange road sign, and other trash that looked like it had been collected from back alley garbage bins.
The homeless man who'd been pushing the cart was scrawny, and wafer thin. His skin was the color of old shoe leather, and he wore a long gray beard, tangled and matted with food and bits of filth. He was sprawled on the ground next to his cart, half sitting up, staring at William with his bright blue eyes.
Car doors slammed, men shouted.
"You better get going," the homeless man said, as he cocked his head. "The police after you?"
Police!
Before William could assure the old man that the police weren't after him--he was a respected businessman and family man--someone behind him grabbed him under both arms and pulled him to his feet. William turned and found himself staring into the face of Johnny Davis. "The alley's that way," Johnny said, pointing to the other side of Fausto's. With one hand gripping William's jacket, Johnny dashed across the front of the bar toward the alley. The alley--right there, plain as day--on the other side of Fausto's, right where it shouldn't be, where it couldn't be. William had been here a thousand times. As you stepped out of the bar, the alley was on the left, Brockton's Ace Hardware on the right. Now everything was mixed up and in the wrong place.
Johnny Davis turned down the alley, dragging William behind him. After just a few steps, a spotlight flashed in front of them.
"Stop!" a voice commanded. "Get on the ground."
William couldn't see because Johnny was in his way. "Who's that yelling?" he asked.
Big Johnny stopped and William plowed into his back.
"Get on the ground," the voice boomed again.
William poked his head out from behind Johnny Davis's back. The blinding white light was in his face. He couldn't see a thing.
POP! POP! POP!
Gunshots.
Big Johnny sagged, then crashed to his knees. Instinctively, William bent forward and grabbed hold of Johnny. "What's the matter?"
More pops.
Johnny's big hand reached out and shoved William back toward the street. "Back door," he wheezed, then plunged forward onto his face.
William stood alone. Behind the white spotlight he saw blue police lights flashing. He was totally exposed.
POP! POP!
He saw flashes--little yellow spurts of flame--as something tugged at his jacket.
William had said "back door." What back door? Fausto's had a back door, but it didn't lead anywhere except to the open space behind the building used for trash and deliveries. Twenty feet of asphalt between the bar and the back of the building on the next block. William had parked his car at the end of the alley, but the police cars--or whatever they were--had the alley blocked off. The building behind Fausto's also had an alley that ran alongside it, but the owner had closed it off to keep the bums out. He'd put up a gate, padlocked it, and topped it with razor wire. It was a dead end.
Two more pops. Dead end or not it was better than standing here and getting shot. William turned and ran. He burst through the front door of Fausto's, dashed through the bar, past the shattered mirror, hit the back door at a dead run, and was outside behind the bar within seconds.
He could see the tail end of his car sticking out from the corner of the building, but with the cops blocking the alley, his car was useless to him. William glanced across the open space to the alley that ran next to the other building. The gate, the padlock, the razor wire--all still in place. To his right an overflowing garbage dumpster sat beside the back of Fausto's, jammed against the fire ladder.
The fire ladder.
An iron ladder bolted to the cinderblock wall.
William looked up. The top of the ladder was lost in shadow, but he knew it went up two stories to the roof. Last summer, when the toilet had stopped up, he'd come out back to take a leak and had stood behind the dumpster, peeing against the wall like a kid, one hand draped over the bottom rung of the ladder.
He slipped behind the dumpster. The smell made him gag. The bottom of the ladder was four feet from the ground. William reached up as high as he could, grabbed hold of the third rung, then hauled himself up.
Through the partially open back door came the sounds of heavy feet pounding on the hard wood floor of the bar.
Halfway up the ladder, he was exhausted--and scared. Shaking, he white-knuckled the ladder. Being more than ten feet off the ground terrified him. He needed a break, just a second or two to catch his breath. There was enough moonlight so he could see into one of the second story windows. Inside, junk was piled everywhere. Old barstools, a busted jukebox, furniture stacked almost to the ceiling. Years ago, old man Fausto lived on the second floor, but Jake, who'd bought the place from the old man and had decided to keep the name, used it for storage.
Below him, William heard the back door thrown open so hard it banged against the wall. He scrambled up until he reached the top of the ladder, then hoisted himself over the edge of the roof. Down on the ground a voice shouted, "There he is, up there."
Another gunshot. What the hell was going on?
The unmistakable sound of feet--fast feet, in shape feet, boot shod feet--scurrying up the ladder. Standing on the tar and pebble roof, William glanced around for something he could use as a weapon, shocked he was even thinking of such a thing. A five gallon plastic bucket was all there was. It stood upright, filled with rainwater. He picked it up and peered over the edge. A uniformed policeman was three quarters of the way up the ladder. Two more cops were right behind him.
William looked at the heavy bucket in his hands, thought about just dumping the water onto them but knew it wouldn't stop them. There was only one way to stop them, and that was to knock them off the ladder. He thought about warning them, maybe trying to scare them away. But they were cops. You couldn't scare them away.
So why had they shot Johnny Davis, and why were they shooting at him?
The first officer looked up and saw William staring down at him with the bucket in his hands. Their eyes locked for just a second and the cop stopped. In those eyes that stared back at him, William saw an almost maniacal determination that sent a shiver down his spine. The officer held his grip on the ladder with his right hand while his left dropped to the pistol resting in his gleaming leather holster. In one smooth motion he drew his gun and raised it toward William.
William Bailey tossed the bucket down the ladder. A shot rang out an instant before the heavy bucket thudded into the cop's head. Like a gruesome traffic accident happening before his eyes, William couldn't help but watch as the policeman fell, taking his two partners down with him. The last thing William saw before he turned away was a jumbled heap of black uniforms resting on the concrete below the ladder.
* * *
Hiding in the shadow of a telephone booth, thinking. Home. He had to get home. Had to get back to Marge and the kids. Maybe somehow he could explain what had happened. Vincent, his attorney, he would know what to do--maybe--but he was a civil lawyer not a criminal attorney. He wrote contracts and did personal injury on the side; he didn't get people out of jail who'd killed a cop by dropping a bucket of water on his head and knocking him and his buddies off the side of a building.
As the cab he'd been waiting for pulled up, William stepped out from the dark and climbed into the back seat.
The driver turned around. "Where to?"
William pulled the door shut. "Uptown. 1721 Audubon Court."
"Fare's gonna be about fifteen dollars. After dark, I gotta have the money up front."
"What?"
"Company policy." The cabbie shrugged. "A lot of drivers been getting stiffed."
William opened his wallet, pulled out a twenty and handed it across the seat. The driver took it and almost slipped it into his cash box, then took a second look at the bill. His face tightened. "What the hell is this?"
"Huh?"
With the bill stretched between his hands, the cabbie stared at it for a second then looked up at William. "You're either the dumbest counterfeiter who ever lived or you've been had."
"What you are talking about?"
The driver faced the bill toward William but didn't hand it back to him. "It's printed backwards."
William looked at the twenty-dollar bill in the man's hand. It looked like--it was--an almost brand new bill, nothing wrong with it as far as he could tell.
"Get out of my cab," the driver said.
William didn't know what the man was talking about but knew he didn't want to get out. This cab was his only way home. He reached for the twenty. "If you don't like that one I've got another--"
The driver pulled his hands away. "I ain't giving this back. I got to turn it in to the police." He dropped one hand behind his seat back, then came up clutching a pistol, an old German Luger by the looks of it, the muzzle aimed straight at William's face. "In fact, I bet they give me a reward if I bring you in with it."
William jerked the door handle and rolled out into the street. He sprang to his feet and ran, the driver's yells just background noise. Has everyone gone crazy or is it just me?
Home. He had to get home.
* * *
Rain. Driving, relentless rain. William was just two blocks from Fausto's. In two hours, that's as far as he'd gotten--one block an hour. Police cars prowled the neighborhood, shinning spotlights into every nook and cranny, lighting up every shadow. Everyone in Fausto's knew his name. He'd been going there three or four nights a week after work for years. The cabbie had his address. William had given it to him when he told the hack driver where to drop him.
Ten o'clock at night, with nowhere to go and no way to get there, William sat behind the closed Goodwill store, under an overhang that barely kept the rain off of him.
Huddled in the dark, head sunk between his knees, he hadn't heard anyone approach.
"You don't look so good."
Startled, William looked up, prepared to run again. It was the homeless man he'd knocked over outside the bar. The one with the shopping cart and the leathery skin. William relaxed a little. "Excuse me?"
The man pushed his cart closer. "You're not supposed to be here."
William looked around. "Why not?"
The old man grinned, half his teeth gone.
William found it nearly impossible to tell his age. The guy could be forty and maybe had lived a hard life, or perhaps he was a well-preserved seventy, pickled by a lifetime of booze. William waved him off, expecting a plea for money. "I can't help you."
The old man stopped just a few feet away. "Everything's out of place isn't it?" He had a strange lilting voice. Almost like an accent.
And he was right. Everything was out of place--from Johnny Davis to the cab driver--everything was wrong.
Strapped to the back of the old man's shopping cart was a plastic sign about the size of a loaf of bread. William recognized the sign, the words, the colors, the logo of a local supermarket chain, all were familiar to him, but the letters were backward, unreadable.
Rainwater ran down William's face. He pointed to the sign. "Why's it written like that?"
The old man looked at the sign then back at William. "Like what?" he said, then shuffled away behind his basket.
* * *
The rain came down even harder. William slouched in a darkened doorway across the street from Fausto's. Nothing made sense. Everything was messed up, backward, out of whack. Almost like this wasn't his home, like he was a stranger seeing it for the first time.
But that was crazy. He'd grown up here, gone to Brother Martin High School, dated Jenny Underhill who went to Cabrini, lost her to Johnny Davis, then got her back only to lose her again the first year of college to some kid who drove a Mustang. Two years later William married Marge at Saint Luke's. They had two kids.
This town was his home. He recognized it. He knew the people here, Big Johnny and Zeke, the bartender at Fausto's. But things were different, little things. John Davis for one. In trying to help him, the big man had gotten himself killed. That wasn't John Davis--at least not the one William Bailey had known since seventh grade. Everything looked the same but wasn't. Nothing was quite right.
But they knew him--or someone like him.
A strange sensation crept over him that made the hair on the back of his neck rise. Maybe he didn't belong here. Maybe everything wasn't as it appeared. Maybe this wasn't his home. But if that were true, then whose home was it? Another thought, even scarier seeped through his brain. If he was here, who was there--at his home?
Crazy.
William dropped his head into his hands. Just considering such nonsense was a waste of time. Yet, here he was scanning the street, thinking of going back inside Fausto's, back to that mirror.
Not much time to think about it. The bar closed at three AM and it was already two-thirty. When he'd left--run for his life with Big Johnny--most of the mirror was still in the frame hanging on the wall.
Something about that damned mirror.
But Fausto's was dangerous, so a couple of hours ago William had found another mirror. In the men's room of a twenty-four hour gas station. The Chevron on North Rampart.
He had approached it cautiously, afraid he was going mad. As he peered over the sink into the mirror, he saw what he always saw, his own reflection. Holding up his left hand, he looked at the image in the mirror, at the watch strapped to his wrist. He noticed that the man in the mirror wore his watch on his right hand. Just the opposite.
William stood in the gas station bathroom for twenty minutes before he worked up his nerve. Finally, he took a deep breath, leaned back, then slammed his forehead into the dirt-streaked mirror. The glass shattered and cut his head. Blood dribbled off the tip of his nose into the sink. His reflection stared out at him from the other side of the mirror, blood running down his face, too.
I have gone crazy!
So the gas station hadn't worked out. Ducking police cruisers, William had wandered the streets, his head reeling. What was he doing?
On the sidewalk, he found a sopping wet magazine that the wind had blown up against the side of a newspaper machine. The cover caught his eye. He picked it up. It was printed backwards, the letters reversed, words running right to left. The spine was on the right. As he flipped through the pages, he couldn't read a thing. Then William had an idea.
In the bathroom of an all night restaurant he held the wet magazine up to the mirror. Perfect. The reflected image was normal, spine on the left, words running left to right, all the letters printed correctly. He could read it clearly. But what did it mean?
Then he drove his head into that mirror. The glass cracked. Someone walked in, a skinny waiter wearing an apron. He stood gawking as William leaned over the sink with tears of pain filling his eyes.
The waiter looked at the broken mirror, then jabbed a finger at William's bloody forehead. "What the hell are you doing?"
"An accident," he mumbled, pressing his fingers against the fresh cut.
The waiter turned. "I'm calling the cops."
William Bailey ran.
Now he was huddled in the rain staring at Fausto's across the street. Because he had nowhere else to go.
He stood and walked toward Fausto's. When he was halfway across the street, a police car glided around the corner, headlights reflecting off the wet pavement. The cops in no hurry, just cruising. William forced himself to keep walking, not to run. One foot in front of the other. In the downpour, odds were that the cops wouldn't even recognize him.
But they did recognize him.
The police car slid to a stop as its high beams clicked on and its blue strobe lights started popping. Both front doors flew open.
Like a sinner seeking the sanctuary of a church, William ran straight for Fausto's door. As he burst inside, Zeke looked up from behind the bar. "William! What the hell are you doing here?"
He ignored the bartender, running right past him, eyes focused on the broken mirror and its busted frame hanging on the wall.
Zeke again, "The cops been looking all over for you. Say you killed two officers and--"
Behind him the front door banged against the wall. "Police!" a voice behind him commanded. "Stop."
But William didn't stop. He kept running--running straight for the mirror. Reflected in its fragmented pieces he saw two uniformed police officers behind him, heard their boots pounding on the wooden floor. Just ten feet separated him from the mirror. At full speed he took two strides then dove. He stretched his arms out overhead and tucked his chin into his chest as his feet left the floor.
He felt one hand hit wall and the other strike broken glass. Then his head hit. More glass cracked, more skin split.
Darkness.
* * *
William's eyes popped open. He was staring at the ceiling. Rough voices, even rougher hands. They rolled him over onto his stomach and jerked his arms behind his back. He felt cold steel on his wrists and heard the metallic ratcheting as the handcuffs tightened and bit into his skin.
He tilted his head up and rested his chin against the floor. Blood poured down the side of his face; he watched it pool on the floor then seep between the wooden planks. By rolling his eyes up he could just see the empty spot on the wall where the mirror had hung. Lying on the floor, three feet from his head, was the broken frame and the rest of the glass.
The two cops grabbed his arms and yanked him to his feet, sending waves of pain through his shoulders and wrists. As they spun him toward the door, one of the officers said, "You're under arrest."
"Why?" William asked.
The officer pressed his face into William's. "Murdering your family for starters."
"My...my family." William felt his stomach cinch and his bowels turn to ice. A thought he'd had earlier in the night echoed inside his head. If he was here, who was there--at his home.
As the cops dragged him across the floor, William glanced up and saw the rusted metal sign nailed above the door.
OUT.
He was home.

first
[prev]
[next]
Memory transcript subject: Chris, Human Hunter in training Date: [standardized human time] October 28th, 2136
I found the class for my first hour. I entered the classroom and saw the Kolshian teacher from earlier. My first class was an ecology class or something.
“Ah Chris your seat is right over there” the Kolshian pointed his tentacle to one of the chairs next to a Green Krakotl.
“Alright class this paw we shall be learning about your home planets background of animals and overall life” Oh so just like a review of the history of a planet.
“Who’s going first?” The Kolshian teacher scanned the crowd of students. None of them raised there hands so I just went ahead.
“Ah Chris here’s a pad so you can show images on the big screen, go ahead when you are ready” I readied myself to speak and looked at the class. A couple of people were snickering.
“Alright so I guess at the beginning of Earth when there was only microscopic specs in the water which soon became bigger creatures. Soon enough the Cambrien period started which was caused by the global warming of the planet causing mass amounts of Oxygen to be pumped into the sky” I stopped to take a breath and take a sip of cherry Pepsi.
“Because of this many animal groups were shown for the first time like the backbone species which would soon evolve into everything on land” I showed a picture of a jawless fish with spine.
“Another animal that appeared were the Trilobites which would stay for a long time and wouldn’t go extinct for a very long time. Soon however the Cambrian period would come to an end with Cambrian mass extinction where the planet cooled down and killed a decent amount of the water life” alright what was next? Oh yeah that’s right!
“Next was the Ordovician period where some of the modern marine lifeforms appeared like squids kinda like that Kolshian” I pointed at one of the purple squid froglike creatures in the room.
“This is also the time where plants and invertebrates made it onto land, another creature that appeared during this time was the apex predator the sea scorpion” I showed a picture of the creatures of that time along with the sea scorpion.
“Soon enough in the next period the fish evolved like crazy which introduced the first sharks and on land there were giant fungus and the first land creatures millipedes” I showed picture of the creatures.
“Soon enough the fungus got replaced with trees and the first vertebrates came onto land and vertebrates took flight and new apex predators in the sea like the dunk a giant fish with an armored head and self sharpening jaw bones as teeth” I showed the class the picture of the dunk they were amazed by the size and deadliness of the creature.
“Soon there were so many trees there was a lot of oxygen which made bugs absolutely massive such as the meganura. A giant dragonfly the size of a football and arthroplura a giant millipede. And during this time the amphibians went crazy and made a very important evolutionary step in eggs. This would then lead to the evolution of the reptiles and mammals” jeez there is still a decent amount to go over.
“Then began the Permian period which saw the beginning of the two major groups the synapsids and the sauropsids which included the first aquatic reptiles. The trilobites were still there until the Permian mass extinction which wiped out 96% of all life on Earth” the class silenced at that. I mean Jesus that much life lost yet we’re still here is something.
“Soon began after that the age of the dinosaurs. During this time more species came to be like the first crocodiles and turtles” I showed the class a picture of a giant ancient crocodile which amazed some of them.
“Then began the Jurassic period where the first big dinosaurs started to arrive like the predatory hunter the allosaurus that used to hunt the stegosaurus a giant armored herbivore that whipped their tails at enemies” a couple of the Harchens were focused on the allosaurus and it’s similarities to them.
“Also during this time was when birds started to evolve away from the dinosaurs and fly”
“After this came the Cretaceous period with creatures like the horned herbivorous triceratops and the mighty carnivorous Trex” on the screen showed a giant Trex with a dead triceratops in its jaws by the neck. The class stared with much interest.
“There was also the largest carnivorous dinosaur the spinosaurus which could swim really fast and the giant pterosaurs took over the sky’s with some having a 40 foot wingspan like the size of a car or a bus!” I could tell most of the class by now was interested in the presentation.
“During this time grass, flowers and bees appeared by evolving from wasps and another thing that appeared were snakes limbless reptiles who slither around and the crocodiles became humongous” I showed them a picture of the absolutely massive crocodiles
“Yet during this time the mammals were still small because of the giant dinosaurs” here comes the kicker.
“However all good things most come to an end when suddenly a giant meteor from outer space hit the planet having such a massive impact on the planet which made dirt go way up into the sky blocking out the suns light which made plants die” the students were surprised and some were in fright because of this.
“There were giant flaming debris coming down from the sky and volcanoes were erupting. This lead to the dust staying in the sky for a long time which caused 75% of all life to go extinct and most of the bug dinosaurs went extinct because of it” I took another drink of cherry Pepsi.
“Soon after this came the Paleocene epoch and all the animal groups were going crazy and soon came the early primates. Many groups were also going for the title of the apex predator such as the titanoboa the giant snake the size of a bus or the terror birds from the avian dinosaurs which would dominate their landscape for the next 60 million years and if one were in this room you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between them and a Krakotl” I pointed at the one green Krakotl in the crowd while flipping through the photos.
“Soon came the time when the first cats and dogs arrived and the whales went back into the ocean evolving into marine mammels. Another creature is the ancestor to the great apes such as gorillas and humans”
“Next came the Eocene epoch where the terror birds were still dominant in their part of the world. There were also elephants and bone crushing dogs which could crush my leg with a single bite” some of the classmates laughed at that part obviously wanting to do the same to me.
“And then after that came the Pliocene epoch in which North and South America formed a Land bridge in which their two groups of animals met for the first time which wound up making the terror birds extinct in the end. Some animals of this time included the woolly mammoths that looked like that Mazic over there” I pointed at the woolly elephant like predator.
“However mammoths didn’t eat meat instead they ate plants. Another animal was giant ground sloth which used its size to reach trees and eat the leaves off of them. There was also gigantopithecus the largest ape to ever live on Earth. Speaking of apes the first human species the Homo-erectus appeared” I took another sip of my cherry Pepsi. Almost done with this.
“Now for the Ice Age. At the start of this age the planet got really cold in which the first Homosapiens appeared and found the other human species the Neanderthals. When the two met they breaded together and the only one left was the Homosapiens. It should also be mentioned that we domesticated dogs and that after this age many of the species died such as the mammoths who we hunted into extinction” the Mazics were a bit taken back by that. Probably not understanding how something so small could wipe out a species that large.
“Soon enough we got here to where we are today. Any questions?” I looked around the class. I saw a Tillfish raise one of their claws.
“Yes?”
“So humans hunted the mammoths into extinction. How did they hunt and have their been any other creatures you hunted into extinction?” I thought for a moment how did ancient humans hunt again?
“So last time I checked we followed our prey continuously until they got tired and collapsed so we could just go ahead and kill them” the class was a bit confused on that one.
“But now I think we just use guns to shoot the prey from a distance” after this I answered a couple more questions until the Kolshian teacher came up to me.
“Alright wonderful presentation Chris how about you have a seat” I nodded and went back to my desk.
The rest of the class went by quickly and smoothly. Next class was some math one. Surprised these guys even have math.
Damn I am hungry.

Full dislcaimer below. TL;DR: We're not Bethesda staff, this is an automated post.

Filthy Casual Links

• Discord
• Seasonal Even-Pace App
• Where Is Minerva

From Bethesda.net

Read on to catch a preview of the latest and greatest items and offers that are currently available in the Atomic Shop, including this week's free items.

Free Items

Image
Tired of people raiding your CAMP? Give yourself a brake and grab this Gutted Car Gate, available for all Fallout 1st Members until June 6.
Channel your inner metal with the Chain License Plate Photomode Frame. Get it free until June 6.

Item	Available Until
Gutted Car Gate (Fallout 1st)	June 6
Chain License Plate Photomode Frame	June 6

Visit the Atomic Shop on these days to claim a different reward, like consumables, in-game currencies, and more. Each of the items below is available until 12:00 p.m. ET the following day.

Item	Available on
Free Scout's Banner	May 30
Caps x250	May 31
Repair Kit	June 1
Scout's Banner	June 2
Legendary Scrip x50	June 3
Lunchbox	June 4
Repair Kit	June 5

Limited Time Offers

Image
With the Drive-in Dolly Bundle, you can create the ultimate diner experience! Available for a limited time.

Item	Atom price
Drive-in Dolly Bundle	1400
Mistress of Mystery Bundle	1800
Drive-In Dolly Outfit	700
Neon Sign - Nuka Quantum	300
Hot Rod Power Armor Bench Model	700
Sugar Bombs Pip-Boy Paint	600
Tire Toilet Outhouse	300
Unstoppables! Bed	300
The Unstoppables Stash	500

The Drive-in Dolly Bundle includes: * Drive-In Dolly Outfit * Neon Sign - Nuka Quantum * Hot Rod Power Armor Station * Wave Pose * So Hungry Emote * Sugar Bombs Pip-Boy Paint * Tire Toilet Outhouse * Corvega Diner Seat * Hot rod on blocks
The Mistress of Mystery Bundle includes: * Mistress of Mystery PA Paint Set * Mistress of Mystery Sidekick Costume and Underarmor * Mistress of Mystery Sidekick Mask * Mistress of Mystery Player Icon * Unstoppables! Bed * The Unstoppables Stash

Last Week

Image
Some of last week's items are still available for a limited time.

Item	Atom Price
Bowling Team Bundle	1200
Bad Idea Bundle	1200
Doll Set Bundle	600
Bowling Ball Loot Bag	500
Big Fill & Bigger Fill Ceiling Light	350
Antique Gas Pump Brewing Workbench	500
Flame-ingo Paint (Flamer)	500
Daredevil Bodysuit w/ Helmet	800
Annebelle Porcelain Doll	250

The Bowling Team Bundle includes: * Bowling Ball Rack Display Case with 5 Balls * Black Alley Cats Bowling Ball * Vault 76 Blue Bowling Ball * Gold Hornwright Bowling Ball * Red Atom Bomb Bowling Ball * Resin Vault Boy Bowling Ball * Alley Cats Bowling team outfit * Big Fill Lights * Bowling Ball Loot Bag
The Bad Idea Bundle includes: * Antique Gas Pump Brewing Workbench * Flame-ingo Weapon Skin * Nuclear Glare Pose * Daredevil Bodysuit w/ Helmet
The Doll Set Bundle includes: * Annabelle Porcelain Doll * Porcelain Doll * Heirloom Blue Porcelain Doll

Greatest Hits

Image
Some of our favorite items have returned to the shop for a limited time. Each item listed below is available until 12:00 p.m. ET on June 6.

Item	Atom Price
Clean Bathroom Bundle	1800 1440 (20% off!)
Red Rocket Garage Bundle	1200 960 (20% off!)
West Virginia Outfit Bundle	1000 800 (20% off!)
Plague Rider Power Armor Skin	1400 1120 (20% off!)
Poodle Skirt and Blouse	700 560 (20% off!)
Brotherhood of Steel Armory	700 560 (20% off!)
Sports Nostalgia Wallpaper	500 400 (20% off!)
Sitting Pose	150 120 (20% off!)
Free States Salute	200 160 (20% off!)

Headed for the Vault

Image
Some existing items are heading out of the Atomic Shop and into the Vault this week. Be sure to pick up anything that catches your eye, because these items will only be available until 12:00 p.m. ET on June 6.

Item	Atom Price
New Home Mega-Bundle	2500 1750 (30% off!)
Destroyed Camp Bundle	1800 1260 (30% off!)
Shadow Prime PA Bundle	2000 1400 (30% off!)
Get Off My Lawn Bundle	1500 1050 (30% off!)
Blueridge Caravan Persona Bundle	1800 1260 (30% off!)
Camden Park Mega-Bundle	1800 1260 (30% off!)
Fire Chief Responder Outfit Bundle	1200 840 (30% off!)
Cultist Dungeon Bundle	1200 840 (30% off!)
Skiing Bundle	750 525 (30% off!)

Weekly Offers

Image
Check out the daily deals this week in the Atomic Shop! Each of the items below is available until 12:00 p.m. ET the following day.

Item	Atom Price	Available From	Available Until
Amateur Inventor's Laser Gun (Fallout 1st)	500 250 (50% off!)	May 30	June 6
Farm Life Bundle (Fallout 1st)	1500 1125 (25% off!)	May 30	June 6
Home Sweet Home Frame	200 100 (50% off!)	May 30	May 31
Inspector Sleeping Bag	500 250 (50% off!)	May 31	June 1
Frostbite Paint (Flamer)	400 200 (50% off!)	June 1	June 2
Responders Backpack	500 250 (50% off!) (50% off!)	June 2	June 3
Double Headed Chally Costume	800 400 (50% off!)	June 3	June 4
Vault-Tec Prototype Water Purifier	300 150 (50% off!)	June 4	June 5
Playtime Power Armor Paint Set	1000 500 (50% off!)	June 5	June 6

Previous Posts

Title	Post Date
Atomic Shop Weekly Update: May 23 – May 30	2023-05-23 16:10:05
Atomic Shop Weekly Update: May 16 – May 23	2023-05-16 16:50:05
Atomic Shop Weekly Update: May 9 – May 16	2023-05-09 19:00:04
Atomic Shop Weekly Update: May 2 – May 9	2023-05-03 15:10:04
Meet Ellys Tan, Quest Designer at Bethesda Game Studios	2023-04-28 16:00:04

From FC Mods

Need help with something? Pop by our Discord (link below)! Note: We have a bouncer bot. You may be asked to verify your account to prevent spam.
Disclaimer: This is an automated post pulling Bethesda's news page. FC Mods are NOT Bethesda staff, responses to this post likely won't reach Bethesda staff. For official feedback, go to the official Bethesda Discord, or Bethesda support page.

Context: You were raised by a werewolf with no clue about your origins or ties to your humanity. Fortunately, he was a fantastic father and helped you grow into the person you are today with minimal casualties. You're a little protective of your old man, especially after he had a workplace accident. You can't imagine him ever crossing anyone... until tonight.
Setting: Home
Tags:[MM4A][Adoptee Werewolf Speaker][Mobster Werewolf Speaker][Adopted Human Paranormal (?) Listener][Mystery][Bad Deal][Threats][Protecting Dad][Lil' Slugger Inspired][Supernatural][Action][Bit of Slice of Life][Hunted Down][Predator]vs[Prey][CW: Threats/Violence]
Usage: You may tweak or record this script. Gender flipping is OK! Please credit me if you use this script in any of your projects. If you would like to use this script for a paywalled recording, please note:
Monetization: All forms of monetization are OK with me! Youtube, Patreon, etc. I would appreciate being able to listen to the recording, if possible. Let me know if you have any questions. Thank you!
***
Check out the rest of my scripts by using the Script Directory
***
[D] = Dad
[P] = Pyrrho (pronounced ‘peer-oh’) but feel free to sound it out like ‘pyro’ if desired.
***
[Scene opens at home]
[SFX: A door opening and shutting]
[You arrive home from baseball practice and your Dad smiles from his armchair, tail wagging]
[D] “Hey! There’s my Lil’ Slugger! How’d practice go?”
[Pause!]
[He laughs as you talk excitedly and clamor into the kitchen for much-needed snacks]
[D] “Easy, easy! Dinner’s almost ready! Don’t go filling up on chips and soda, pretty please?”
[SDX: A delayed soda hiss that sounds appropriately shameful]
[Pause…]
[He shoots you a look but quickly lets it go with a shake of his head and a smile]
[D] “Pftt, I can’t stay mad at you. I’m glad practice went well. It was pretty quiet here, thankfully. Finally got a chance to vacuum the house.”
[Pause!]
[D] “I know, I know, I said I’d let you do it this time, but you’re always busy! Between work, practice, and taking care of my old tail, you hardly ever get to relax…”
[His smile fades, and looks to the cane leaning against his chair with a sigh]
[Pause?]
[D] “...Oh, your old man is OK, Slugger. It’s just… going from working werewolf to house hermit thanks to one work accident… Ain’t great for the pride. Used to be able to run with the best of them, work eighteen-hour days, then come home and catch our show with you! Now I can barely manage to do the last one…”
[...]
[You cross the room and hug him]
[D] “Oh? Oof! Aha… Alright, hug time. Got it. Mmh… Watch that strength, kiddo! Sheesh, your Coach must be a good one. I swear you could bench press a bus at times!”
[Pause~]
[He gives you a playful side-eye]
[D] “...You’re not on steroids, right?”
[Pause!]
[D] “OK, I’m only asking because it’s a universal law that cool dudes don’t do that stuff, right? And we’re cool dudes, right?”
[Pause!!]
[He laughs]
[D] “Haha, alright, alright! I’ll stop teasing! I just want to make sure you’re OK… You’ve been through a lot, and I’m proud of you for working so hard.”
[Pause <3]
[D] “I love you, too, kiddo. With all of my heart… Oof, oh no, not Dad tears! Quick, go pull the casserole out of the oven before I start blubbering!”
[You give him a solemn salute and hurry into the kitchen]
[SFX: The oven being opened / general movement]
[You go to get the casserole out, as requested when the doorbell rings]
[SFX: A doorbell]
[Pause?]
[D] “No, no, I got it! Who on Earth would be knocking on my door at nearly 7 PM on a damned Tuesday night?”
[SFX: Him opening the door]
[You glance over and see a younger werewolf standing in the doorway, more nicely dressed than you’ve seen anyone be]
[Pause]
[Your father pales, hobbling a few steps back from the younger werewolf]
[D] “P-Pyrrho… I, ah-”.
[P] “Save your breath, Hoss. I ain’t here to hear it…”
[Your Dad lowers his voice, under the impression you can’t hear him]
[D] “...please don’t do this in front of my kid… Please, I… I know I still owe a lot, b-but…”
[...]
[‘Pyrrho’ steps inside and your father is forced to take a few more steps back]
[P] “I was given my orders. It’s pay-up or pay with your life, Hoss. If your kid is here, then… I was told to leave no witnesses.”
[For the first time in your life, you hear your father growl under his breath]
[D] “...You can do whatever you want to me, but if you even think for a second-!”
[SFX: [D] being struck and falling to the ground with a yelp]
[You hear your father cry out and that is about the moment you forget every shred of humanity that is in you]
[SFX: A LOT of glass shattering]
[P] “What the fuck-?! What is wrong with your fucking human, Hoss?!”
[D, legitimately terrified] “Pyrrho, RUN-!”
[You don’t give him the chance. You grab your bat and saunter over to the attacker]
[...]
[P, unimpressed] “Really, sweetheart? You brought a bat to a gunfight?”
[...]
[Your father staggers to his fight and gets you in the best suplex he can]
[D] “I-I’m sorry, Slugger! Pyrrho, fucking RUN WHILE I HAVE THEM IN THIS SUPLEX!”
[...]
[SFX: A heavy step forward]
[P] “...Didn’t realize your kid was a weightlifter, Hoss… Managing to walk with a four-hundred-pound werewolf on their back is impressive. It still doesn’t change the fact that, well…”
[SFX: A gun being drawn]
[P, coldly] “I have a gun.”
[D] “Pyrrho, for the love of God-!”
[...]
[SFX: Another dragging step forward]
[P, uncertain] “...D-Don’t you make me shoot!”
[Pause!]
[You sprint forward, carrying the entire four-hundred pounds of your struggling father, and slam the bat into Pyrrho’s wrist]
[SFX: A bat making contact and the gun scattering away]
[P] “GAH! MY FUCKING WRIST!”
[D] “RUN, PYRRHO! FOR YOUR OWN GODAMNED SAFETY, RUN!”
[...]
[You stare into the intruder’s eyes. You can see your own reflected back and it seems like you both see the death there before Pyrrho stumbles back with a pained whimper]
[P] “...T-This ain’t over-!”
[D] “RUN!!!”
[With a yelp of pain, the intruder flees]
[Pause!!]
[SFX: Another heavy footstep]
[D] “Slugger, no! Shh… shh, it’s OK… It’s OK… Breathe… Papa’s OK, see? You don’t have to be angry anymore…”
[...]
[SFX: A car skidding away]
[D] “...Nice, quiet howl with me. Just like when you were little… OK?”
[...]
[You howl quietly with him for a moment until the red fades. Until there’s no longer an expiration date burned into your eyes]
[...Pause?]
[Your father sighs shakily, finally letting you go]
[D] “...I… I’m sorry I didn’t tell you… I owe bad people a lot of money… I thought I could figure it out, I thought I could work it off, but… b-but my accident at work… I’m so sorry…”
[...]
[You hug him again and assure him it’s OK]
[D] “...Thank you for the hug, Slugger… You’re such a good kid… Please don’t forget that, OK? Don’t forget that you’re good, no matter how angry you get, no matter how powerful you are… You’re good. OK?”
[Pause]
[You nod]
[D] “Good… I, ah… Let me get this mess cleaned up and we can talk this through. OK?”
[Again, you nod… but you can see it again, reflected in a nearby picture of the two of you. You can see the death in your eyes… and you know the night is young]
[Pause]
[D, exhaling] “...We’ll be OK, kiddo. One way or another, your old man will figure this out, and you can focus on being the world’s best baseball player in the making. OK?”
[For the last time, you nod. Your baseball bat is spattered in blood]
[To be continued]
Note: The original title for this series was going to be “Death In Their Eyes” but then I remembered YouTube is a dick