Tinoro is a Toa of Sonics, a member of the Toa Toiri whose duty is to watch over the Ta-Matoran and their Kanoka Disks, ensuring their safety. She is discontent with her current task and believes her destiny is to achieve something much greater and more exciting. She hates the loud, rhythmical mechanical sounds of the Great Forge and often uses her powers to cancel out all the noise.

 

She uses her Morning Star to channel her powers, its sheer mass lets her create soundquakes, and she's skilled enough to power scream and create zones of silence. Her Kanohi Volitak allows her to further mask her sounds, camouflaging her and making her virtually undetectable.

 

Non-Aquatic Volitak by @galva_nize_

Alias: Grey Ghost

 

Name: Sam Blackleech

 

Samuel Blackleech was always a shy person. Following a freak lab accident, he found himself able to rearrange his molecular structure, allowing him to pass though walls and become invisible. As the Grey Ghost, Sam is an expert marksman and spy, undetectable by most security methods. However, he must always wear a molecular stabilizer in the form of a mask over his mouth and chest. If he were to ever take it off, he would dissolve into nothingness Ina matter of minutes.

  

(In case you didn't catch that, Slight of Brick, Sam Blackleech) :D

Like 2nd Army, 3rd Army also had initial successes in containing the Soviet bridgeheads. Even large armored assaults launched on 3-4 July only resulted in minor extensions of the bridgehead, as opposed to the breakout the Stavka had hoped for. However, on the 6th it was decided to fall back to a secondary line of defense, given the threat of encirclement from the uncontained 9th Army to the north. The Soviets detected this withdrawal, and pushed back the defenders just as they were getting set up at their new line, forcing them into Chișinău. However, instead of pursuing the Romanians into the city streets as they had at Bălți, they proceeded to shell the city, destroying 65% of all buildings. Anticipating another encirclement, it was decided that the 17th and 19th Infantry Divisions would take up positions to the rear, holding the main road out of Chișinău, while the city itself would be held by the 18th Infantry Division and the Special Battalion "Vulturii"

 

The Special Battalion "Vulturii" was founded in 1937 by Colonel Emil Lupescu, a Great War veteran who had acted as a foreign observer in the British district of the International Settlement during the Battle of Shanghai. This elite infantry formation utilized a combination of Great War stormtrooper tactics and newer tactics based on Lupescu's observations on urban warfare. 3rd Army's commander told the Royal War Council that Vulturii tactics would turn Chișinău into the "Shanghai on the Bîc," an assertation that Lupescu would take offense to given how disastrous the Battle of Shanghai was for China. The battalion wore the standard infantry uniform, unusual for many special forces units of the time, but was better equipped, including having a higher concentration of submachineguns than any other unit and having a distinctive fighting knife.

 

The Vulturii guide for urban combat was as follows: "Stay away from the main streets themselves, save the occasional undetectable sniper position, Instead, focus troops in the side streets and alleyways that overlook the main streets, and ambush the enemy as they advance. When possible, organize troops into assault teams consisting of a platoon or, at most, a company, supported by a mortar, anti-tank or regimental gun to create self-sufficient pockets of resistance. When setting up positions inside buildings, choose buildings made of brick or concrete over wood, unless you want the building to collapse on you during a bombardment. Alternatively, the rubble of an already bombed out building can also give excellent cover and concealment. Avoid particularly stubborn enemy strongpoints, or neutralize them by cutting off their supplies and communications. Underground utility tunnels and even sewers can be used to discretely move troops about the battlefield and strike where the enemy least expects. Use machine gun fire, grenades, and makeshift roadblocks to separate tanks from their supporting infantry, then eliminate the isolated units at your own pace. Above all else: demoralize the enemy. A brick or piece of broken glass is deadlier in a close quarters fight than a rifle."

 

The 18th Division did their best to take these lessons to heart, distributing spare Vulturii training manuals to many of its junior officers. The 36th Regiment reorganized most of its formations into Vulturii-inspired assault teams. although the 35th Regiment had lost too many of its artillery pieces in the retreat to make widespread use of this tactic. In the first days of the siege, the 15th Rifle Corps, consisting of the 45th and 62nd Rifle Divisions, was lured into the heart of the city. The two divisions were separated, and soon Romanian troops began cutting off and isolating the Soviet force into smaller, more easily defeatable pockets.

 

When asked how his "Shanghai on the Bîc" was turning out, Col. Lupescu replied, "This isn't Shanghai, this is the Raate Road."

Let them eat cake.

 

(Influenced by my dairy and its musings.)

 

As rejected by Global Photojournalism; Protest, Culture, and News . (No reason given).

 

To qualify this article l would like to go on the record that l have been instructed by some amazing teachers, all with academic titles. Furthermore, it must be said, that l have stated publicly, that l could not name, nor count, the number of exceptional teachers that have instructed me, because there where too many. This article is not about teachers, but a lack of exceptional ones. I personally find it distressing, because all children should be given the type of opportunity l had, and therefore a chance to defend themselves. This article is about a process, one that needs to be classified, and identified, with conscious critical thought. Critical thought involving observations. It involves observations that some of those with titles would or could be ignorant of. A situation, driven by those of systemic privileged, or those with ivory towers that render them unable to see.

All biological systems strive for survival, even small single cell organisms, like amoebas. They do it without seemingly thinking. But the difference between the amoebas, and the humans, is meant to be human thought, and human conciseness. Recently a new local high school was built in Shepparton Victoria Australia, and it was ironically named the super school. Already it has helped give the locals here an education, producing a lot of conscious contemplation among residents. It was the amalgamation of three out of three, or all the of the public high schools in the small city of Shepparton. Its construction left no options for some residents, and in the United States of America, criticism of schools like this new school, is commonplace. In the United States, the lack of choice as to where you can send your children in the public school system causes for some public debate. That debate now rages here, and for good reason. The results were highly predictable, with comparable results to that of America. The result has been that the police have been called repeatedly. There have been weapons, fights, and even the aspersion that a student suicide could be attributed to the new super school. Academic performance of the schools results are now unknown, as the education system now uses a sliding ruler, one that is remotely monitored by a now faceless group. It has resulted with any aspersion, that the school is a failure being foiled and deemed as a baseless slur. Some educated locals went into overdrive sighting personal responsibility of the individual and the lack there of, for some students and parents.

The defence of the hegemon, when the school had become a nightmare, for both the teachers and the Victorian Labour party, became a name and shame process directed at some locals, and their children. Some trying to defend the teacher’s union darling the Australian Labour party, which had help instigated the fiasco. A fiasco that was easily avoided if they had studied the American application of such schools. Was it ignorance? Was it Australian ego for the Victorian education board? Was it in the worst-case scenario, a deliberate act to produce a school that applied an American model? A model, that had historically repeatedly produced poor social outcomes. One that had already failed in the United States? If educated people, including some teachers where defending the super school, it raised the question, where were these teachers and educated people sending their children to be educated? Was it to the new super school? If it was, were they following the tried-and-true public-school scenario, of teachers and influential parents, making sure their children where in handpicked classes? Did they do as had been done before, making sure their children had handpicked teachers, and handpicked students for their children to study with, while the average people got the undesirables? Where they conscious of what they had given their children, or where they being deliberately ignorant? Because if it were found that they were guiding the lily for their children, what would be the public reaction?

How far some educated had shifted from sixties social liberal ideals; and it raises a lot of questions! Did they know what was happing? That it is happening? Where they unwittingly involved, blindsided by psychological drift? Psychological drift being a change so slow and gradual, that they were perceptually blindsided by ignorance, and or a lack of self-awareness. Did they not notice the change in their attitudes? Did they not critically look at what they were and are participating in? Or where they unwittingly led by mistaken ignorant logic? And in the worst-case scenario, was the new school planned? And where the resultant outcomes statistically inevitable, but desired?

This is an initial exploration of investigative journalism, on the outcomes of the worst-case scenario, and is based mostly on firsthand experience and observations. My apologies, for what may seem like a not so interesting picture. But the building in the picture resembles some of the prisons in which some of the students will go to serve sentences. It has been satirically joked, and it was not meant to be funny by some of the locals, that once they go to prison, they will be fully prepared. The building, and violence, will not be much different from the school, that they received their high school education in.

Most people are educated or warned of nepotism at high school, and or university. It is a self-serving process for those that teach it, as it helps classify hereditary royalty or Aristocracy as an exhausted, and or morally corrupt institution. But now this teaching, has become a matter of hypocrisy, for those that teach it. It helps define the institutionally educated as those that should control and distribute influence, because it is said, that they earned their positions via merit, and not via a process involving gross nepotism. Nepotism that is now openly practiced by the educated, when it comes to the education of their children, versus the education of the masses. Some openly fight, unquestioned, for causes that proactively push for their children, to be preferentially, and proactively treated like the children of people of aristocratic tittles were accused of. They even give themselves tittles at universities, letters before their names. It helps distinguish and make themselves distinct from ordinary people, or the new commoners. It even extends to those selected to represent them in the student bodies. But unlike the sixties student bodies that rallied against war, in the new higher education system student bodies, they actively participate in a new form of war.

It is now the new millennium, and there is a new form of warfare to avoid. It involves some people of title, but this is not an article on the aristocracy. It is no longer the song “The fortunate son,” sung by Creedence Clearwater Revival. A sixties song about the sons of the rich and influential not going to war. Now it is the fortune “academic,” the person who has a higher education. They and their children are mostly excluded, and do not have to go to war. I had previously reported that the new courthouse here in Shepparton Victoria Australia, was colloquially being called building B by some of the locals. It is B for Birkenau, and the name is partly why l write this. The other reason is that all the positions of power in building B, are held by people with academic titles. Titles involve in skewed eugenics and nepotism. The scenario faced is like “good cop, bad cop” tactics, but is applied by those with academic titles, not the police. It happens on multiple fronts. One such front is that large numbers of educated people openly promote or condone drug use, while others incarcerate as many as they can. Fifteen percent of all Australian prisoners are imprisoned on drug charges, out of approximately thirty thousand currently in jail, and many more are committed to psychiatric facilities because of it. If the objective of the educated was to reduce harm, they have abjectly failed, and the opposite has happened. Was it intentional? Where they trying to build a prison system as speculated by the band “The system of the down” in the “prison song.” And did The System of the down not see, or know, of the outcomes for those classified as ill, as they promoted in their song as an alternative? I once approached the subject on the Victorian Parliamentary Facebook page. In the description, l drew the analogy, that the incarceration, and medical treatment of individuals for drug use, was like Chinese re-education camps, and that they existed in Victoria, and they existed on an industrial scale.

Has this industrial scale of human processing, produced a form of unconscious time dependent opportunistic nepotism? Like amoebas, instead of critically thinking humans, had we all allowed it to happen? Had we all listened unquestioningly to the educated? And had it created a new form of nepotism. A form that helps the educated-on average, have their children precluded from a statistical death march. A process of prolonged involuntary distress, involving the battlefield of the court, the prison system, involuntary medical treatment and or classification. The result is, the children of the educated, on average get the better jobs, have better outcomes, have higher positions of power, and sway larger numbers of people behind their causes. The consideration of building B, and firsthand observations, raised the horrendous proposition of who needs a gas chamber, when you have statistics? The western world has in general shunned America for its seconded amendment, but a closer look at the west, even those countries without a second amendment of sorts, or an official death sentence, produced horrific observations. The realty is state sanctioned, systemic modern-day murder.

While at university l helped challenge the central dogma of biochemistry with prions, or the protein that causes mad cow disease. A bold effort, but l was young and idealistic. Amusingly it should also be noted that the lecturer l told it too, asked my permission to use it. He later taught me about a story of the two scientists Watson and Crick. As far as my memory servs me, he said, they had plied a French scientist’s son with alcohol, the result was his tongue loosened, and he talked about his father’s research. They subsequently wrote down what he divulged on a bar napkin. It was for the base pair arrangement of DNA (deoxyribose nucleic acid). And from it came the logical deduction for the final double helix model of DNA. Latter l would go on to joke, that Watson and Crick had won a noble prize in biochemistry. Not for the structure of DNA, but for the judicious application of a biochemical agent, or a neuron toxin, ethanol. I was being facetious. Despite some successes at university, it was hard for many reasons. Part of the experience of university was trying to theorise Protein specific proteases to combat the AIDS epidemic. Another was for the construction of proteins to treat the disease. As a result, l gained an appreciation of the complexities of medical treatment when it comes to who dies and who survives, and what role academics play in that process. The conclusion gained was that life and reality are quite brutal.

Academics already openly argue behavioural eugenics with psychiatric history, via genetic predisposition of psychiatric illness. Medical professionals in hospitals and criminal systems, universally practice it throughout Australia. A process that has been publicly shunned for occurring during the second world war, is practiced here in Australia, and the practise is commonplace. As a result, victims, and those suffering psychiatric illness are dosed with poison, and lives are ended prematurely. Slowly, chemically, euthanising thousands, with statistical outcomes. The statistics are, that many psychiatric medications cause on average premature death. Additionally, it is statistically observed that those taking most psychiatric medications are highly discouraged from conceiving, and or nurturing, an in-utero baby while taking their medication. Paradoxically psychiatric professionals discourage most people from stopping their medication; thus, a person is neutered with logic gates. On one hand, it is presumed that a person cannot stop taking their medication for their own safety, and or the safety of the public. And on the other hand, due to the birth defects or abnormalities associated with such medication, and for the sake of your baby, they say those classified, should not have children while being administered their medication. This process occurs for not adhering to the party line, not a political party line, but the new scientific line, one that involves a new group with titles. It is not ironic, that the rules of this process, are not in general being taught to the new commoners.…

Some of the new people with titles are the emperor with no cloths, and they cannot be questioned. l presume criminal history will be next here in Australia for the classification of genetic predisposition, after psychiatric predisposition has been fully fledged. A reborn process, for people of titles. One adopting the Chinese model of re-education camps, like those already here in the state of Victoria. An extension of the current medical model, of psychiatric treatment. A model for social conduct and classification involving social reward. A model that involves if you will have children or not. A process that relies on obeying the edicts of the new people of title.

Do these new people of title, wield absolute rule, as Justin Trudeau a high school teacher, and Canadian prime minister applied to his people for a brief time? It is a rhetorical question. He applied his title, like European aristocracy where stereotypically and historically accused of. By self-edict of law, he made his words unquestionable, and the words of new common people’s (those predominantly without academic titles) decent outlawed. Is this the new party line or the academic line, of pseudo pacifist proper gander? Is this what the new Aristocracy, or people of title do? Is this where you rely on the fallacy of lack of personal responsibility? An assumption involving privy knowledge, before socially engineering incidents via carefully worded classifications, and or, build a school that is most certainly bound to fail, and with it, classify whole blood lines educated in it, as inferior? Classifications using peer reviewed definitions. Peer reviewed definitions written ironically and hypocritically by those with new age titles. Articles which cannot be questioned by the new age commoner, but only by their academic peers. Once again it is rhetorical. All the while, they exclude their own children from the process, with their systemic peer derived privilege. It all sounds historically and remarkably familiar. And it happens while relying on the medical industry complex, and criminal industrial complex, for statistically predetermined social outcomes. It enables people to slowly but surely exterminate their undesirables. It is a proposition that has already happened and is currently happening.

The result is that via spurious association of genetic predisposition for behaviour, some families are being genetically classified, and weeded out via the behaviour of individuals in their families. Part of psychiatric dogma is to look for a family history of psychiatric illness then argue it is genetic. And that that genetic trait is no longer beneficial or needed. If one member of a family has had anything that could be classified as an incident, it is then argued that there is an increased chance of a genetically induced psychiatric incident or incidents happening in other family members. The result of such logic is the application of drugs, such as anti-psychotics, which on average drastically reduce the life span of the patient or victim. The medications, can, and are, forcefully administered, by people of new age titles. The additional subsequent logic gating, weight gain, and body odour causes the person to be seen as undesirable, or substandard, and lowers their chance of having children. The result is a death sentence for the patient, and a reduced chance of them having offspring. In the very least it is murder, if the diagnosis is wrong, and causes a slow, but sure reduction in the size of the victim’s family. As the application of this scientific dogma becomes more prevalent, or prolonged, the result is near genocide.

Personal statistical analysis of public psychiatric facilities is that they are full of people of lower education levels. But full of people that do not lack intellect. Why are the educated mostly excluded and deemed as being above it? They can afford both preferential systemic sympathetic medical representation, and systemic sympathetic legal representation, thus, avoiding the classification of being genetically substandard. Furthermore, those responsible for the classification and criminal punitive punishment of both criminal and psychiatric failings, are associated to those in academic institutions. It is a family operation, no different from the stereotype of aristocracy. When one of their own is brought before the court system, either in the medical or criminal court, it is raised that they are above average, and given on average, lower sentences, or even no sentences at all. They are deemed, as being inherently better than the average human, due to the letters or tittle before their name. It is a repeat of the stereotype of the old aristocratic system, of human classification. The current stereotype of those below the educated, is that they are being incarcerated, and medically treated, for both their good, and the safety of the public. So why are the educated spared more on average from this process, despite in cases committing the same crimes? I can identify no reason, other than their self-appointed peerage.

The observation is that behavioural eugenics, has turned to a practice of statistical genocide over an extended period, and it is a practice being mostly applied by the educated, and in favour of themselves. It is a statistical death march for some families. A prolonged process that involves the application of self-serving statistics, and a classification that ends in the lower chance of reproduction for selected individuals, and the increased chance of a family’s genetics being branded as dangerous or substandard. Thus, it negates any responsibility of having enabled the elimination of that family’s or group’s blood line, or in the very least, part of it, because it was, and is said, to be for the greater good. It is for the “uber alles,” but has nothing to do with German nationalism, and as it stands, it is predominantly males in the groups of families. Leaving the females on average in those families as breeders for those deemed as genetically worthy. Genetically worthy for the last 20 years has been those that had drugs, or those that had an education and there for had money. Those that had drugs, and there for a higher chance for reported psychiatric and criminal incidents, could break the nuclear family rule, but they walked a fine line. In breaking the law, they put their families or the males in their families on lists for slow, undetectable state sanctioned extermination. On the other hand, those with cash and an education, could break the nuclear family rule, having more than two children in an already overpopulated world. Both scenarios being state encouraged with government subsidies.

As an Australian, l found, and find, this scenario highly ironic. If the scenario were not real, it would be satire. It is shocking in its irony because the Australian colony was originally populated with predominantly criminals. According to the new eugenics line of thought, all Australian families, other than new arrivals carry as per the eugenics line of thought, a predisposition, of genetically predetermined behaviour, one that is now being openly classified, as a genetic trait. Doubly ironic, is the historical fact, that they even sent unwilling females from England, who were upon arrival, to be bred with no choice in the matter like cattle, and to service those men deemed as worthy. Nothing in the Australian colony, a previous penal colony, seems to have changed too much, just the family names of the families with titles or letters before their names now differ. And instead of hanging you, they now classify you, and your family, as a genetic medical issue, or defect. A medical issue to be slowly euthanised for the benefit, and protection of society, and the greater good.

The only consideration that this worst-case scenario leaves me with, is have the educated hit the philosophical slippery slope, or have they just thrown the new commoners down it? Creating a caste system via an education system. An education system, skewed in the favour of those with new age titles. An education system, giving systemic preferential treatment too those with new age titles, and their children. Is the new commoner’s child starved of an education? A quality education? One which is now harder for my geographical neighbours to find. An education, which helps prevent their public-school child or children, and their family, from a statistically higher chance, of a state sanctioned, and a state sponsored statistical death march. A march, that begins, and ends, in a trip to building B. A trip, with a higher chance of genocide at the end. And as it stands, my neighbours are being told,” let them eat cake!”

 

If you are not French, it’s likely you haven’t ever heard the word “Saintonge”, and have no clue what it means. If you are French, it’s probably the same thing. Unless, that is, you are a fan of Romanesque, in which case you know that Saintonge, that small region of France centered around the town of Saintes (hence the name), not far from the Atlantic Ocean, just North of Bordeaux... features the highest density of Romanesque churches of all the country!

 

I had never visited that area of France, and so in the middle of October 2021, I took that long overdue trip and stayed two weeks in Saintes, driving left and right daily to photograph all the most significant Romanesque churches... and unfortunately leaving out many others, as they are so thick on the ground!

 

The church that we examine today is dedicated to saint Pierre-ès-Liens (Saint Peter-in-Chains) and is located in the village of Thaims.

 

There are several reasons why this church is truly unique and stands out among all those other Saintonge Romanesque churches.

 

The first reason is that it has doors on almost all sides: there is one on each arm of the transept, and if we can admit that the door at the end of the northern arm is a porte des morts leading into the cemetery (as we saw yesterday in Corme–Écluse), the one leading out of the southern transept arm is a lot more curious, especially since it is significantly decorated —as far as decorations go on this very simple church. I would have leaned towards a door opening onto a cloister if this church had, at any point in time, been an abbey or priory church, but there is absolutely zilch historical evidence of that.

 

Neither is there any mention of relics that would have been the subject of a pilgrimage, with the need to organize the flow of pilgrims entering through one door and exiting via another and besides, there is no ambulatory inside the church, whose floor plan remains very simple, even though it is in the shape of a Latin cross, which is rather unusual in Saintonge, as we have seen repeatedly.

 

The second reason is that it features a nicely rounded apse, also unusual in Saintonge where three-sided or five-sided apses are the norm. Note that the apse collapsed in the 20th century and had to be rebuilt, but that was done using the same stones whenever possible, and the job was very nicely done, and is virtually undetectable.

 

The third reason, and the most significant, is that this church is about the only one in the whole region that was built over a Roman villa, and a large and tall one, with big parts of it still showing, as you will see in some of the photos. The church itself is older than most of its Saintonge sisters, having been built, for the most part, during the 1000s.

 

The most interesting view of the church: all of the bell tower, up to the blind arcatures below the octagonal top part, was built during the Antiquity and was part of the villa I mentioned above.

 

So was part of the transept. Everything that is made up of smaller apparel is Roman, including the large arch to the right.

 

Beholding this ancient structure is amazing and quite emotional.

 

This is a composite photograph made up of two exposures stitched together in PTGui. There was not enough space for me to move back to include the whole building in the frame, even with the wide-angle 19mm tilt-shift lens.

Previously in Chapter 6 The Two Societies

 

♫ Ad Mortem ♫

This piece gave me the title to this chapter and was what I listened to much of the time when writing. It perfectly sets the tone for these scenes and the events that take place in our story.

 

⚜️The voyage had been long, just as Tabitha Kinkade had predicted. And while not terribly eventful overall, there was one mystery that troubled them throughout their journey. Quite often they were watched by an ominous, dark figure. A man in a dark, hooded cloak. He always kept his distance, holding to the shadows. And while he never approached, he loomed over them the entire trip. At one point, Prince Jelani grew tired of the enigma and decided to confront the man. However, Tabitha advised caution, as situations such as these would usually reveal themselves in time. Tabitha had learned long ago in her training, that without provocation most things or people that lingered around her, would eventually proclaim their identity. And if provoked they might flee or be lost, which could result in a costly delay. Besides, he'd done nothing thus far that would warrant a confrontation. And so, they would allow circumstances to run their course.

 

⚜️Once safely landed at the port in Calcutta both Tabitha and Lexington needed a warm bath and some much-needed rest away from the constant bumping ride of the ship's cabins. One of their porters was from Algeria and spoke Tamazight, a native tongue of the Berber people. It was obvious that Lexington was delighted to talk to someone from his native lands, which made Tabitha smile watching her friend speak in a language she had not heard for so long.

 

⚜️When the two travelers finally arrived at their hotel, both Tabitha's and Lexington's multilingual skills came into play when dealing with her pets and the porter's fears. Tabitha had taken just two of her wolves on the journey, Rolf and Kiva, as they were natural mates. Neither offered any hostility toward the porters or anyone else for that matter without Tabitha's command. However, aside from their daily walks on board the ship, they'd spent a great deal of time in their cages and were quite restless. Fortunately, with some gentle persuading, they were able to calm the porters and settle into their rooms.

 

⚜️The next morning was Easter. It was Sunday and their contact from the Cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary had sent a carriage to pick them up for services.

 

"We're to attend the Christian services, my lady?" Lexington inquired as he held his hand to help her into the carriage.

 

Tabitha grinned politely before answering him with a lofty and nonchalant demeanor, as was her custom when jesting with her friend,

 

"But of course, Dear Lexington. It's Easter! You didn't believe we were going to escape services today of all days, did you?"

 

At which point, she patted the seat next to her in the carriage.

 

"Now, come along."

 

Lexington's grumbling, as the rickety carriage made its way along the bustling streets of Calcutta, nearly made her laugh aloud as they rode toward the church. Not having the heart to tease him farther, she looked over at the handsome Berber while placing her gloved hands around his arm.

 

"Dear Lex, I've gone too far this time."

 

At which time she did laugh.

 

"The look on your face.... oh, dear Lexington, I adore you so!"

 

Lexington began to smile a little himself watching Tabitha giggle then asked. "What has brought this on my lady?"

 

Tabitha finally composed herself and assured him that she didn't expect him to attend the Easter services at the church as it was not his faith. While Catholic herself, she nor her parents had ever forced Lexington into their religious beliefs. They believed the workings of the soul were God's work.

 

Lexington breathed a sigh of relief at the news but in the end decided to attend anyway, out of respect for Tabitha and for their host.

 

⚜️Father Thomas Haskell was a lean man in his sixties. His bald head looked slick and shiny in the bright sun and his white hair gleamed. When he shook Tabitha's hand, she felt how rough and callused they were, and his skin was leathery tan. It was obvious Father Haskell spent much of his time in the gardens around the church. He wore the traditional robes of a parish priest and as with most Catholic holy men of that day, he appeared humble and somewhat trite. After introductions were made, he did not hesitate to reveal to the duo that he not only believed in the evil beings that scoured the earth but were unfeigned in his support of the Shadowhunters.

 

"You and your kind my dear are destined to rid the world of these heinous creatures. I am at your disposal of course."

 

As the bells of the church rang and the church doors began to open the priest looked at the church and then smiled when he turned back toward his guest.

 

"It is a delight to have you both visit us this morning and if you'll forgive me Lady Kindake I must attend to my flock. Services are about to begin, and I am expected inside. I've reserved seats for you both, won't you follow me."

 

Tabitha nodded and smiled as did Lexington

 

"Of course, Father Haskell," she responded.

 

And with that, they both followed the priest toward the grand doors that opened to the church's foyer.

 

As they approached, both Tabitha and Lexington noticed a striking man standing near a fountain. His hair was dark as a raven's wing and his equally dark beard was neatly trimmed. He wore a very smart-looking cutaway coat and silk vest that gave away his social status and as the man began to walk in their direction Tabitha could see that he was of average height and appeared to be in his peak years. She also noted how mysterious and mesmerizing his eyes were, and it was at that moment a commotion could be heard at the entrance to the church which caught all their attention.

 

Father Haskell began to walk faster and broke into a run with Tabitha and Lexington close behind him. When they reached the onlookers, the priest was determined, but not overly aggressive as he made his way through the congregation that had gathered there. Once through the crowd, Tabitha was surprised to see that the mysterious man she'd noticed outside was already just inside the large doorway. Lexington reached to touch her arm quietly, his way of letting her know he'd noticed as well. Turning quickly to rejoin the priest, they were greeted with the most morbid sight. At the top of the staircase, hanging from her neck, and high into the massive, vaulted ceiling was a young woman. Her face, though discolored and contorted was still beautiful as her lifeless body swung several feet above the top of the staircase.

 

Wanting desperately to help, Lexington started to climb the staircase but quickly came back to his senses realizing the poor woman's body was well out of reach. Looking over at Father Haskell, Tabitha watched as he moved his hand over his chest making the sign of the cross. His eyes were filled with dread and tears as he gazed up at the woman's corpse. She thought he might be in shock as she walked over to him.

 

"Father! Father Haskell!"

 

Shaking his head, he looked at Tabitha and then back at the woman's corpse.

 

"Dear God, whatever shall we do?!"

 

Tabitha motioned for Lex to join her and as he approached, she responded.

 

"This is your church Father and your congregation. They're depending on you. I'd suggest you postpone services this morning or at least move them to another location as quickly as possible."

 

Father Haskell nodded, still bewildered when he gazed back up at the woman's body hanging there, but when he looked back at them both again, he appeared to be himself.

 

"Quite right Lady Kinkade. We can set up chairs and move services to the garden."

 

Lexington looked back up at the girl's body and then back to Tabitha.

 

"My lady, the local authorities will be here soon. I'd suggest, well, if Father Haskell would allow us to represent the church in this matter, we could begin an investigation."

 

Tabitha looked at the girl again then back at Father Haskell.

 

"Father, do you know this woman?"

 

He nodded as he answered.

 

"Yes, she came to me about a week ago, she told me she was having nightmares, very vivid nightmares that were very real to her."

 

Tabitha and Lex looked at each other then back at the priest.

 

"She said she'd been sleepwalking as well. I.. well, I just can't think. I must get this situation under control!"

 

Tabitha nodded, reaching to hold the priest’s hands. "That's quite alright Father. From what you've told us this young woman may hold clues to the mystery that's brought us to Calcutta and you. Will you allow us to represent the church and aid you?"

 

Father Haskell nodded as he knew the Kinkade name very well and Tabitha's father had been a friend. He also trusted Cardinal Antonio implicitly.

 

"Yes, yes of course. Cardinal Antonio has sent you to us after all. And as I said before, if there's anything you need, anything at all. Please let me know. For now, however, I have much to do and must leave you."

 

⚜️Her name was Malini Gadhavi. She had been a mother and wife and her father and mother owned a bakery in town. She helped her parents with the business as did her children. Her husband, Harshad worked on the docks. They had all been notified of her death. Malini's body was taken to a crypt beneath the church where so many people in the community had been taken for decades. Out of respect, Tabitha and Lex had not examined the body yet. When the family arrived, they both bowed their heads, watching as they were escorted to the undercroft. Neither Tabitha nor Lexington were looking forward to questioning them.

 

⚜️The afternoon wore on and with their interrogations near completion, they'd learned very little. That was until the woman's mother told them about one of Malini's dreams. Sitting with them in Father Haskell's office the poor woman stared blankly at a candle's flame as Tabitha held her trembling hands, listening. She said that on one occasion her daughter had been able to remember one of her dreams completely. Melini had said it was so clear in her mind, and unlike most dreams, it felt as though it had happened. In this nightmare, she had emerged from a cave not far from her home. She also told her mother there was a man there with her in a cloak and a hood over his head. This dark, ominous being followed her to the mouth of the cave. Malini said the man never came close but watched her from the shadows. Her daughter told her that in the dream she roared like an animal and when she peered into the trees, she could feel the forest come alive with the heartbeats and movements of every living creature. And then she told her mother that even at that distance she could not only hear but smell the people in town. It was then her mother began to cry. Tabitha comforted her, giving a nod to Lexington and Father Haskell. The interrogations were now over.

 

⚜️It had been a long day. Nighttime was upon them, and they all needed rest. Standing there in the small tomb, the air was cool, and the smell of old dirt filled their nostrils as they began to examine Malini Gadhavi's body. Her fingernails and toenails showed no signs of dirt, blood, or flesh. Her body, as well as her hair, was clean as though it had just been washed. There were also no injuries, not even a scar, and when they turned her on her side to look at her back there was no tattoo, no brand of any kind. Holding a candle over the young woman's corpse, Lexington glanced over at Tabitha.

 

"This is peculiar my lady. She should have some sort of brand on her even if she wasn't a member with the pack we seek."

 

Tabitha nodded but didn't look up as she continued to scan the woman's body for any evidence and clues.

 

"Agreed Lex, this is odd. Melini's dream was not an uncommon one for a werewolf, other than the presence of the dark man of course. And yet, I do not see a brand anywhere on her. Or any physical evidence she was Lycan for that matter. We must be missing something."

 

Lexington pulled his candle away to poor some of the melted wax onto the dirt floor and as he did, Father Haskell brought his lantern closer to help Tabitha see. Then just as Lex brought the candle back Tabitha gasped and cried out.

 

"Wait! I saw something. When you brought your candle back Lex. It was yellow like, like... It was something on her skin!"

 

Lexington and the priest looked at each other then back at Tabitha as she continued.

 

"The lights... somehow. Father, bring your lantern back to where you had it, and Lex you take the candle away, and then bring it back just as you did before."

 

Both did as instructed but Tabitha only sighed with disappointment asking them both to try again. Shaking her head, she was both exhausted and frustrated when she pounded her fist on the stone slab. After which time she folded her arms to lay her head down for a moment. Lexington watched her and then offered some sound advice.

 

"My lady let us retire for the evening and come back in the morning with rested eyes."

 

Tabitha looked up at him but didn't raise when she answered.

 

"No Lex, not yet. I know I saw something. We must find it!

 

With her head still laying on her arms, she looked at them both.

 

"Now let's do this again. And Lexington when you bring the candle back, do it very slowly please."

 

Lexington nodded unenthusiastically, then began to move the candle away from the woman's body when Tabitha screamed out.

 

"Stop! Don't move! Do you see it?! It's there on her shoulder. You must not move, either of you. It's the lights!"

 

Both men looked at each other, each wondering if the trials of this day had finally gotten the best of the hunter, then listened as she explained.

 

"It's the lights! Look see, the glass of Father Haskell's lamp is red, and so the flame gives off a deep red hue, while the candle's light of course is much brighter. Obvious of course but, if you carefully peer into the candle's blue flame and with the help of the red glow from Father Haskell's lantern you can see it!"

 

Taking a candle in hand she invited Lexington to take her place.

 

"Now as I hold the candle look through the blue of its flame Lex. Can you see it?"

 

Lex nodded and gasped, then excitedly scrambled for his journal. As he did, Tabitha looked at the priest's bewildered face and offered further explanation.

 

"My guess is it's phosphorous under the skin Father. The lights set off some sort of chemical reaction allowing it to be seen. Once Lex has studied the tattoo and made a drawing, we'll hold the lantern and candle so you can observe for yourself."

 

Having to peer through the flame made the study of the tattoo quite difficult, however, Lexington was able to examine it thoroughly.

 

"How very interesting Ms. Tabitha. The ink leaves no protrusions on the skin, and it's entirely undetectable under normal light conditions."

 

Tabitha smiled as she listened and nodded.

 

"Is it our pack Lex?"

 

"Yes, my lady. She was a member of the pack we're tracking.

 

Tabitha nodded once more and raised an eyebrow as she spoke.

 

"I think it's obvious that Malini Gadhavi was not a willing participant. The poor woman. Such torment."

 

Gathering herself she redirected her attention toward Father Haskell.

 

"Father, do you know of any caves in the area?"

 

The priest nodded as he spoke, the radiant red hue of his lantern causing his face to look very macabre under the low ceiling of the underground chamber.

 

"Why yes of course. There are several smaller caves, but Mawsmai Cave is the largest in the area. It's not far but it will easily be a day’s journey there and back."

 

Tabitha and Lexington listened intently,

 

"Could you show us on a map Father?"

 

"Of course. If you'll follow me to my office, I can set you on the right path."

 

Gathering their things, they followed Father Haskell from the dank black corridor where Malini Gadhavi's broken body lay. As they wearily made their way up the stone stairwell Tabitha muttered to herself.

 

"We will avenge you and your children Melini. Whoever did this to you will pay. I promise you."

 

A soft beam of light showed across the young woman’s corpse from the top of the stairs. From deep in the vault their faint voices could be heard and then the door closed, and all was dark, and all as silent, forever.

  

🐺🐺🐺🐺

 

🎭 Sanquinolency: Book I

  

⭐This capture and this chapter of this story could not have been possible without the help of some truly wonderful people who I'm honored to know as friends

.

⭐First of all I'd like to thank my dear friend and mentor Morgan Talbot who not only opened up his beautiful sim to me to I could take this shot but provided the build itself and many of the characters. He also took the time to model for this shot. Morgan's advice and support are always so very special to me. But perhaps calling him my friend is the most remarkable treasure of all. Thank you babes.💓

 

⭐Next, I would like to thank my dear friend Harper Blackwood for her help and for enduring my rough drafts for this chapter. Thanks for being the lab rat this time babes. Not a rat but like...in a lab. She gets it. lol But mostely I'd like to thank Harper for her support, her encouragement, and her precious friendship. You're the best girl.💓

 

⭐Lastly and as the say, certainly not least, I want to thank my very dear friend and mentor Marcus Strong. His unwaivering support and encouragement is precious to me. He's has always there to help in any way he can, whether thats advice, modeling, or just to tell me I'm doing a good job. I can never repay this man for all he's done for me. I'm honored to call him my friend. Thank you babes.💓

 

Ya, there's a story however, I am too tired to relate it. Suffice to say, I was pissed when it happened but, the police didn't quite see it the same way. Somehow, though, her passing made it undetectable, even though the blood type was O negative. FFS, how many folk don't have that type and still bear an ownership to a kitchen knife collection... the ones with those big, long cleavers?

The stealthy Night Raider prowls the Brikverse to hunt down and disable lost convoys and vulnerable orbital stations. Its shrouded engines and angular design make it nearly undetectable to conventional sensor systems, allowing it to unleash a deadly surprise attack with its multiple cannons and armor-piercing missiles. The Rubrum Crucesignatis has a standing bounty on all Night Raiders, but its uncanny aptitude at hit-and-fade tactics have made it difficult to catch.

 

The Empire of Luchardsko is a cool-looking, if lore-light, faction created by Falk for Brikwars. One of my favorites.

Grayling / hipparchia semele. Dunwich Forest, Suffolk. 23/07/20.

 

'THE MASTER OF DISGUISE.'

 

Graylings are often described as masters of disguise. These mainly coastal butterflies can be difficult to detect once they've landed.

 

In flight they can appear larger, but once perched have a habit of lowering their closed forewings behind their hindwings. On doing this they hide two large black eye spots and become less noticeable. Should they sense something moving nearby, they flick their forewings upwards quickly. Any would-be predator gets tricked into thinking it's being watched and usually moves off.

 

I photographed this stationary Grayling close to, from a position where some light was striking it. This helped define it and show it's mottled underwing markings and colour tones. However, when viewed from other angles it became almost undetectable and blended in perfectly with the stony track.

A repetitious blur, not infinite, but unfathomably finite.

 

Not really sure why I have such an obsession with shopping carts, ugly buildings or cracked asphalt. But every line seems like a vein, bloodless and devoid of its original intent. A sprawling mirage of structure, desperately waiting to come apart.

 

Shopping carts, ever present from the time of my youth and what feels like was eons before that. A tumbleweed of chromed steel effortlessly gliding across concrete in a high late summer wind, crashing into a car door, is the only time that fucker will ever head in a straight line. Maybe it’s a symbol of the great American capitalist boom, you know those short years tucked in between an emerging recession and “four more years”, but the regime never changes. And no matter what people need something to eat, something to wear, something to watch, and something to watch in on.

 

I used to see far more shopping carts, when there were far more stores, and malls too. The image I have in mind, a representation given to someplace once real, will be something different shortly, maybe it will be the click of a button and delivery truck, but it’s pretty much the same thing, just not visually.

 

The same can be said for ugly buildings, especially the ones purpose built or franchised, that lay to waste or are repurposed then, once again laid to waste, these buildings have a tremble in their structure, a slow undetectable sway, a surging ache, brought on by every change of the weather, and every season compounds this, all buildings fear the rain, the cold and the snow. Oh these poor high western desert creatures of failing and crumbling foundations.

 

Cracked asphalt and roads, the great animal strategy of to and fro, a primal migration that became the great flow of commerce. Signs of a road can stay for a long, long time, that big heavy rut, but roads need a constant and a consistent maintenance, yet they still crack and long to go wayward.

 

- Keefer Lake, Ontario, Canada -

 

I put a photo of me (taken by Rosa) taking this in the first comment box. Nina (our dog) was a very cooperative model while Tess (our other dog) was playing shy.

 

Flickr needs to refine its map function ... when I place these photos at Keefer Lake it says they are taken in Sudbury, Ontario which is a city 300 km's south of us. Even worse ... Keefer Lake isn't even on the map ... although Keefer Lake road is there ... but misspelled as Keffer Lake road? As long as I am being critical I might as well mention that I don't like the amount of compression that Flickr applies to our uploads ... you can really see the effect of too much compression in clear blue skies when the colour transition becomes mottled - the original of this image has undetectable transitions. Alas, we can't have it all it seems :)

 

For Sony NEX owners, I highly recommend the 10-18mm, f4 e-mount lens which is high quality and lot of fun to use. This shot is at 10mm right into the sun and you can see there is very little flare and what is there is quite pleasing (at least to my eye).

Tinoro is a Toa of Sonics, a member of the Toa Toiri whose duty is to watch over the Ta-Matoran and their Kanoka Disks, ensuring their safety. She is discontent with her current task and believes her destiny is to achieve something much greater and more exciting. She hates the loud, rhythmical mechanical sounds of the Great Forge and often uses her powers to cancel out all the noise.

 

She uses her Morning Star to channel her powers, its sheer mass lets her create soundquakes, and she's skilled enough to power scream and create zones of silence. Her Kanohi Volitak allows her to further mask her sounds, camouflaging her and making her virtually undetectable.

 

Non-Aquatic Volitak by @galva_nize_

En su territorio, rodeados de pinos, los búhos chicos (Asio otus) son prácticamente intedectables. Su camuflaje no sólo pasa por los colores, también por las formas, son capaces de alargar el cuerpo para parecer una rama más del pino.

 

Así, confiados en su mimetismo y siempre sin miradas directas ni movimientos bruscos, puedes colocarte a escasos metros de esta preciosa especie y realizar retratos como este que os muestro hoy. Insisto, este ejemplar está fotografiado en su entorno y en total libertad.

 

____________________

  

In their territory, surrounded by pine trees, the long-eared owls (Asio otus) are practically undetectable. Their camouflage is not only based on their colours, but also on their shapes; they are able to lengthen their body to look like another branch of the pine tree.

 

Thus, confident in their camouflage and always without direct glances or sudden movements, you can place yourself a few metres from this beautiful species and take portraits like the one I am showing you today. I insist, this specimen is photographed in its environment and in total freedom.

For those who know me, you also know my opinion about the use of camo attire. For those who don’t and deem the expenditure of time worth the effort, check out this link: `www.flickr.com/photos/earl_reinink/5385999488/in/album-72...

 

Since God is no longer in control, we now bow to the whims and will of our elected officials who have deemed that social distancing is the new norm. Glad I am married! How does one date the woman of his dreams from 2 metres? Try being intimate from that distance! Good luck having kids… Darn, I am off topic.

 

I have seen many images on social media, people wearing masks, scarves, hankies and diapers over the face, and even one fool with a plastic bag over his head (he certainly won’t die of virus, but will probably die of stupidity or asphyxiation)!

 

I decided to do my part. I dug into my camo closet and came up with this solution to the shortage of face masks. It comes with many benefits. For example, yesterday I managed to slip into first place in line-up at a busy store, no one saw me. Got to the toilet paper first, bought a one-year supply, cleaned out the hand sanitizer selection, stocked up on Vodka (in the event I ran out of sanitizer). Threw a camo tarp over buggy on the way out, managed to get to truck un-noticed.

 

Merits of said attire:

1. Readily available at Bass Pro for just a few loonies.

2. Reversible in case one snots in their mask

3. Washable / re-usable

4. Undetectable - feel free to roam in your favored park or attend Easter service.

5. No need to do hair or make-up (that's for women, Ramen, Chuck and John).

6. Water-proof model provides airborne spray protection.

 

If you feel that you have benefitted from the above advice, please e-transfer some money (sorry, cash not accepted).

 

Hair grip.

 

Well Real Men don’t do a lot in the way of jewellery, do they? - Cuff links, tie pins (or clips), belt buckles and that’s it. Did you want to see my collection? No, I thought not...

 

So, once again a raid into hostile territory was called for. This time I ventured into the absent daughter’s room (interesting exploring and also a lot safer, and hopefully undetectable).

 

This is for the Macro Mondays theme Jewellery or perhaps Jewelry if you are from across the Big Water, but definitely not Jewellry.

 

I never know where I am going to end up when I am implementing a visual idea that has germinated in my mind (there’s a lot of compost in there, remember). It’s never where I think anyway (my mind and the endpoint :) ).

 

And so it was with this. This ended up altogether darker and a bit scary, which wasn’t exactly where I intended to go with the jewelly bling concept. Never mind. All is fun.

 

Anyway here we have some jewellery. Or is it? Well, I think I can creep in with this under the guise of “ornament worn on the body or clothes”. Let’s hope so anyway.

 

Oh, and it’s less than 1.5 inches wide. Yey!

 

Thank you for taking the time to look. I hope you enjoy the image and... er… sleep well tonight. Happy Macro Monday :)

 

PS Sorry about the title ;)

 

[Tripod mount; black gloss ceramic tile underneath and black card background.

Fiddly lighting from the front right using a LED pen light, trying to get the sparkles to … sparkle.

Delayed shutter; autofocus; VR on.

Developed in Capture One for colour range and intensity; levels to take out greys in the background and tile.

Dark vignette and a bit of tidying up spots in Affinity, and we’re done.]

If you are not French, it’s likely you haven’t ever heard the word “Saintonge”, and have no clue what it means. If you are French, it’s probably the same thing. Unless, that is, you are a fan of Romanesque, in which case you know that Saintonge, that small region of France centered around the town of Saintes (hence the name), not far from the Atlantic Ocean, just North of Bordeaux... features the highest density of Romanesque churches of all the country!

 

I had never visited that area of France, and so in the middle of October 2021, I took that long overdue trip and stayed two weeks in Saintes, driving left and right daily to photograph all the most significant Romanesque churches... and unfortunately leaving out many others, as they are so thick on the ground!

 

The church that we examine today is dedicated to saint Pierre-ès-Liens (Saint Peter-in-Chains) and is located in the village of Thaims.

 

There are several reasons why this church is truly unique and stands out among all those other Saintonge Romanesque churches.

 

The first reason is that it has doors on almost all sides: there is one on each arm of the transept, and if we can admit that the door at the end of the northern arm is a porte des morts leading into the cemetery (as we saw yesterday in Corme–Écluse), the one leading out of the southern transept arm is a lot more curious, especially since it is significantly decorated —as far as decorations go on this very simple church. I would have leaned towards a door opening onto a cloister if this church had, at any point in time, been an abbey or priory church, but there is absolutely zilch historical evidence of that.

 

Neither is there any mention of relics that would have been the subject of a pilgrimage, with the need to organize the flow of pilgrims entering through one door and exiting via another and besides, there is no ambulatory inside the church, whose floor plan remains very simple, even though it is in the shape of a Latin cross, which is rather unusual in Saintonge, as we have seen repeatedly.

 

The second reason is that it features a nicely rounded apse, also unusual in Saintonge where three-sided or five-sided apses are the norm. Note that the apse collapsed in the 20th century and had to be rebuilt, but that was done using the same stones whenever possible, and the job was very nicely done, and is virtually undetectable.

 

The third reason, and the most significant, is that this church is about the only one in the whole region that was built over a Roman villa, and a large and tall one, with big parts of it still showing, as you will see in some of the photos. The church itself is older than most of its Saintonge sisters, having been built, for the most part, during the 1000s.

 

General view from the southwest. Most of what you see here is from the 11th century, including the cornices with modillons. Notice the unexplained door at the south end of the transept.

The 8 month old cub looked very sad to me, but

that's probably because we were told she had

been separated from her mother and brother

days earlier. A male approached the family with

the intent to kill the cubs and mate with the adult

female. She led him away from the cubs and left

them to their end devices. She proceeded to

beat him up and send him on his way. The cub

we were watching had run away and seemed to

be unable to reconnect with mom. Suddenly, she

bolted upright at a sound undetectable to human

hearing and started running along the river! We

followed by boat. Most of the time all we saw was

moving grass. She eventually stopped at the

edge of the jungle in a small clearing between

the trees…

Their footfalls are quiet, undetectable. The muted jungle noise melts out their shuffling along the front porch. The comms headset in the pointman’s helmet chatters away, the voice ordering different units around the house. The living room and kitchen have already been cleared; the ambassador must be in the master bedroom. His children and wife will be killed, and he will be transported to a detention centre in Eastern Eurasia where he will live out the rest of his short, meaningless life.

 

After the Oceanic withdrawal from the offensive front in the DRC, the UFA’s attacks were severely weakened. The main Eurasian offensive was launched with a rapid push into Angola and Botswana. Fighting in the rural regions was brutal, with massive armour battles in Angola continuing deep into late 2036. A massive offensive was launched to seize Gaborone, the capital of Botswana. Initial strikes by Eurasia consisted of kidnapping and torturing high raking officials, including an ambassador between the UFA collation and the NATO alliance, a resident of the hills around Gaborone. A bloody battle was about to ensue in Gaborone and these raids were just the start.

PLEASE, NO invitations, graphics or self promotions, THEY WILL BE DELETED. My photos are FREE to use, just give me credit and it would be nice if you let me know, thanks.

 

Left to right: Owl Butterfly, Blue Morpho and a Giant Swallowtail. My last picture for a while, read my health update.

———————————

Butterfly World is an indoor garden where the flowers are in bloom and the butterflies are the main attraction. There are hundreds of exotic, free flying butterflies.

————————-

Health Update: All my treatments for prostate cancer are over. My PSA levels are now undetectable. My main problem is low testosterone which means no energy to do anything. 3 months ago my level was .89 (normal is 8 to 32) I did weight exercises for 3 months and my level is now up to 5 (still very little energy) but I am headed in the right direction. I can only drive to get pictures and do little walking but I try.

 

This is my fourth cancer and I am beating it as I have for the other three.

unidentified caterpillar or some other larva that is virtually undetectable as it eats the leaf.

Riding my motorbike to a location is always exciting! If that location happens to be 163km away from home, it makes for an amazing road trip. The sun warming me up while I cruise though the highway and the engine roaring underneath the seat.

This place looks like it came out of a fairytale. The castle stands tall, on an island, in the middle of the Tagus river and the only way there is by boat.

The almost imperceptible and warm breeze invited me to explore the surroundings in search for the best spot to set up camp. The river danced so calmly that the movement was almost undetectable. A few dragonflies, unaware or simply not caring about me, kept to their daily tasks as I walked by. In the distance, a few birds tweeted, giving the whole scene a more inventing and magical mood.

The few clouds in the sky started to vanish as the sun lowered towards the horizon. With them, the small groups of people that were visiting the place hopped in their cars and left. In ten minutes I had the whole place to myself.

As time kept passing and golden hour gave its place to blue hour. The moon rose, silent, and along came a few stars that dotted the sky. The castle lights came on as well and, just like that, the scene was complete.

Yrra Cynril is the sole survivor of the planet Xanshi. Her planet's destruction was caused by a Green Lantern (John Stewart), which led her to embark on a violent quest for revenge against the entire Green Lanterns Corps. She fought Green Lantern Kyle Rayner many times. For a long while she was a member of the Star Sapphire Corps, during which due to their focus on love, she became friendly to the Green Lanterns. Recently, their influence on her has waned and she has resumed her old grudges.

 

The eldest child of the planet Xanshi's ruling family, the girl who would one day call herself Fatality was sent off-world to be educated by the Warlords of Okaara. Xanshi was destroyed due to a miscalculation by Green Lantern John Stewart, making Fatality her world's sole survivor. Learning of Xanshi's fate, she leaves Okaara and dedicates herself to becoming the deadliest warrior in all the universe. Remaining ignorant of Stewart's identity, she swears vengeance on all Green Lanterns.

 

When the Green Lantern Corps is rendered powerless, Fatality views the last Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner, as her ultimate prize. Their conflict takes them from Earth to a desolate planetoid, where during combat she discovers Stewart was to blame for Xanshi's destruction. Fatality seemingly perishes in the battle, though no body (save a severed arm) is recovered.

 

Fatality later appears on Earth, having acquired a prosthetic arm and a Qwardian yellow power ring. She again fights Kyle Rayner, who convinces her to remove the yellow ring. The Qwardians had booby trapped the ring, causing it to explosively teleport away after being removed. This destroyed Fatality's (remaining) arm.

 

After being imprisoned on Earth for a while, she was released by the villain Major Force. She works as a bounty hunter in the Vega System in the Green Lantern Corps: Recharge mini-series.

 

She later became a member of the Earth-based Secret Society of Super Villains. She is employed as a guard at a torture facility for superhumans under the directorship of The Crime Doctor. While in battle she loses an ear to Vandal Savage's daughter, Scandal, one of the doctor's escaping victims. Scandal swallows the ear.

 

She was seen among the new Injustice League, with a new Sinestro Corps yellow power ring. Later, she was captured by the Zamarons and experimented upon, and became the Star Sapphire of Sector 1313.

 

Influenced (essentially brainwashed) by the violet light of "love", she is now set on forgiving her nemesis, John Stewart, for whom she claims to have romantic feelings. She finds him on Okaara fighting Larfleeze, also known as Agent Orange, and his Orange Lantern Corps, isolating him with crystals and kissing him. She also encourages him to forgive himself as she's absolved herself of her survivor's guilt. Before departing for Zamaron, she tells him that she has forgiven him as well.

 

Fatality reaches Zamaron just in time to defend the planet against an attack by members of the Sinestro Corps who had come to retrieve their captured female members. Even though she was originally one of them, she had already been converted by the Star Sapphire Corps unlike many of the others.

 

Fatality went on to become the Star Sapphire representation in the new title Green Lantern: New Guardians, serving as a provisional member of a makeshift 'team' consisting of one representative from each of the seven Corps, including Kyle Rayner of the Green Lantern Corps, Arkillo of the Sinestro Corps, Bleez of the Red Lantern Corps, Saint Walker of the Blue Lantern Corps, Larfleeze's Orange Lantern construct Glomulus, and Munk of the Indigo Tribe.

 

Having learned of Larfleeze's role in banishing the Orrery of Archangel Invictus into another dimension, Fatality returns to Zamaron to recharge, where the Zamarons tell her that someone in this universe must have created the opportunity for Invictus to return.

 

When Fatality learns the Reach has invaded the Blue Lantern homeworld, she immediately rushes to aid the Blue Lanterns. She then helps John Stewart complete a quest to help the fragments of Mogo essentially bring themselves back to life after Stewart was forced to destroy Mogo during Krona's temporary takeover of the Corps.

 

Following the villainous First Lantern being destroyed and the unemotional Guardians killed off by Sinestro, Fatality begins a relationship with John on Mogo.

 

After the invasion of Durlans, it is revealed that a Durlan impersonated Fatality undetectably throughout the last few months. After permanently gaining the powers of a Daxamite, the durlan destroyed her Star Sapphire ring. John defeats the imposter and searches for the real Fatality.

 

When John locates and reunites with her on the Durlan prison planet, Fatality attacks him. She tells him that the Zamarons had brainwashed her into becoming a Star Sapphire, forcing her to love him when she actually hated him. She is also offended John did not notice the impersonation. After John refuses to fight, Fatality leaves, telling John that he and the Star Sapphires are her enemies.

 

Powers and abilities

Fatality has super human strength, speed, reflexes and reactions, and endurance. She has been trained by the fabled Warlords of Okaara and is an expert in all forms of melee combat and the use of many weapons. She is touted as one of the best warriors in the universe.

 

Fatality has many weapons with which she is an expert. Usually she employs an energy staff. Since losing her arms in a battle with Kyle Rayner, Fatality has acquired bionic arms that provide her with enhanced strength. She has a pair of jet boots that allow her to fly and a starship which she uses to traverse the universe in her attempts to destroy the Green Lantern Corps.

 

When she was a member of the Sinestro Corps, she used a yellow power ring built on Qward. The ring can create objects based on the wielder's thoughts. The power ring is fuelled by fear instead of willpower. Yellow power rings are weak against Blue Lantern rings. When in their presence, Qwardian rings are drained of their energy. Unlike the green power rings, the yellow ring was never restricted from killing sentient beings.

 

Now serving as a member of the Star Sapphire Corps, she wears a violet power ring, powered by the emotion of love and built on the planet Zamaron.

 

The capabilities of Star Sapphires appear to be comparable to those of Green Lanterns. They allow the wearer to fly, generate a protective aura (which in the case of Star Sapphires creates distinct feathered and organic shapes), and create violet light constructs.

 

The most notable creation of the violet rings are crystals that encase prisoners from other lantern corps on the Zamaron planet. Over time, the rings of the prisoners trapped in stasis within the crystals are infected with violet energy. After spending enough time inside, the prisoner will emerge as a Star Sapphire.

 

Other unique abilities of the Star Sapphires' rings include the ability to reveal the wearer's greatest love. They're also able to detect when a loving heart is embattled and in need of aid. By connecting the heart of the ring bearer to a true love in danger, the power of the ring can also act as a tether.

 

Star Sapphires have not been shown to be particularly vulnerable to the powers of other Corps, however as their powers come from one of the farthest two sides of the spectrum their rings have greater control over their personalities.

 

⚡ Happy 🎯 Heroclix 💫 Friday! 👽

_____________________________

A year of the shows and performers of the Bijou Planks Theater.

 

Secret Identity: Yrra Cynril

 

Publisher: DC

 

First appearance: Green Lantern (vol. 3) #83 (February 1997)

 

Created by: Ron Marz (Writer)

Darryl Banks (Artist)

I love a good fog, it blurs the edge between vision and perception - one being done by your eyes and the other being done with your mind (which includes imagination, mind you). And I love how this boundary is undetectable, how you cannot tell where what you can see stops and what you perceive begins. For example, I stood here, watching this hulking machine loom out of the mist like some prehistoric creature and I could hear the sounds emanating from beyond my vision: the shouts of men, the clanks of metal on metal, the rumble of an unseen engine. I wondered if they were as vaguely aware of me as I of them, or if my presence was invisible to both their vision and perception. Maybe I would just be a ghost in the mist, haunting a spot for the fraction of a second it took my shutter to swipe across my film and then the muffled sound of a car door closing and the soft crunch of tires on gravel and I too would disappear further into fog. I don't know, I can only imagine.

 

Pentax 67

Kodak Portra 400

It was brought to our attention by the Four Soori System Fuel Co. that communication was suddenly lost with one of their five largest utility ships, the "Ambassador".

 

Incoming transmission...Not only was transmission with the ship lost, but it's tracking signal is undetectable as well. We sent out two Scaevola scouts to physically identify the vessel in it's last known location....

 

....Visual contact of the "Ambassador" was confirmed, the situation is unprecedented. Upon debriefing the scout pilots it has bee described as "frozen" in space... that was only part of it. The ship was torn in half as if a picture of it still remained in space the instant it was shot.

 

A science vessel accompanied by two fighters was sent out to the location. Although we had visual confirmation of the ship, none of our devices were able to detect it. First step was to send out a remote probe. As it reached the distance of five hundred yards, the probe instantly stopped and any sorts of communication or video imagery was lost.

 

We do not know what we are dealing whit. It could be an anomaly either caused by unknown an phenomenon or instability in the fuel substance carried in the containers, yet somehow the fact that the ship was blown in half did not fit in with these hypotheses....

 

....days later we started receiving data and a faint signal from our probe. The ship was engulfed by something that slows down all matter...

...from what we know, no anti-government faction has access to this sort of technology. Ballistics prove the ship was shot in it's thickest region by a charged beam. This would only be possible if the target is stationery since the weapon needs up to 30 seconds to fully charge...

 

It is clearly a warning, but it's reasons are ambiguous for now.

 

Kind of corny I know, but I had this idea in mind for the past month and I had to build it.

PLEASE, NO invitations, graphics or self promotions, THEY WILL BE DELETED. My photos are FREE to use, just give me credit and it would be nice if you let me know, thanks. This is in a highly populated area, apartments, houses, schools, stores etc…

 

These deer were at the Canada Games Centre when I was going to the gym Friday morning, I go 5 days a week.

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

Health Update: 6 months ago my Testosterone level was .86 (normal is 8-32) after prostate cancer was treated, the nurse told me at a follow-up to do some weight training. In 3 months my testosterone went up to 5, 3 months after that (last week) I am ups to 11 and my PSA is undetectable which is great.

Taken at about 6pm yesterday, just as the fog was dropping below the tops of the buildings in the city. Fog at this time of day is very unusual for Brisbane! When I came out of the Jazz Club just after 10pm, the fog was so thick that the city lights were completely undetectable from this location!

 

This is a six-frame HDR panorama taken from Kangaroo Point.

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Photographed from mid-town Toronto, Ontario, Canada

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Astronomers heartily dislike the term "supermoon". It fosters an exaggerated and completely unrealistic idea that when it is closest to Earth ("perigee") in its monthly elliptical orbit, somehow the Moon appears strikingly and perhaps breathtakingly larger than it does on other occasions. The news media constantly overblow what is really nothing more than a geometric curiosity.

 

In fact, the difference in size between an apogee Full Moon (when the Moon is furthest from Earth) and a perigee full Moon is undetectable to most observers.

 

This collage of two photos of Earth's natural satellite shows the difference in apparent diameter between a perigee and an apogee Full Moon. There certainly is a difference, but it's simply not that much! It's roughly the same as the difference in apparent size between a 17" and a 15" pizza viewed from a distance of about 60 metres; and viewed about five months apart!

___________________________________________

 

Technical information:

 

Nikon D850 camera body on Explore Scientific 152 mm (6") apochromatic refracting telescope, mounted on Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6 SynScan mount.

 

Processed in Photoshop CS6

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As unexpected as it were, I saw yet another "dark morph" Eastern Tiger Swallowtail today! This time I was able to get some views from above. The "tiger stripes" are mostly undetectable from above, so it's the lack of yellow spots on the upper wings (forewing) that set it apart from a Black Swallowtail. The best thing about this particular sighting though, is that the butterfly was visiting native "Whorled Milkweed" which is a less common milkweed species. In fact, the entire hillside was covered with this plant! I rarely come across it in mass quantity, but this was by far the most whorled milkweed I've ever found. Dakota County, MN 08/04/24

Born in the late 19th century to a Prussian noble family who had relocated to Strucker Castle in Bavaria following the Franco-Prussian War, Wolfgang von Strucker became a Heidelberg fencing champion and was disfigured by facial scars.

 

Strucker fought for Germany during World War I, during which he first encountered the jewel "Momentary Princess", which was fated to appear and disappear at regular intervals of time. Wolfgang pursued the jewel in the decades that followed.

 

When Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany in 1933, Baron Strucker joined the Nazi Party, becoming infamous in the following years. In 1936, he and Geist, one of Hitler's top men, allied themselves with the Egyptian mentalist Amahl Farouk (secretly the Shadow King) in an attempt to dispute the lineage of England's royal family and install a new king who would be sympathetic to the Nazis. Their plot was thwarted by the Canadian adventurer Logan and the time-traveling members of Excalibur, Kitty Pryde and Phoenix.

 

In 1937, German Intelligence agent Strucker was sent to the United States to assassinate Senator Fulton, but he was foiled by brigand-for-hire Dominic Fortune.

 

As World War II began, Strucker was appointed wing commander of the Death's Head Squadron by Hitler, and, in 1941, he was sent to Madripoor to help the Hand ninja cult transform young Natasha Romanova into their master assassin, only to be defeated by Logan (yet to acquire the adamantium skeleton which would transform into Wolverine), Captain America, and Ivan Petrovitch.

 

Later in 1941, Strucker invaded Latveria, seeking to use the Sturm-Fånger ("Storm-Catcher") to control cosmic energies; the device was wrecked by time-traveling members of X-Force.

 

After the United States entered the war, the First Attack Squad of Able Company (the Howling Commandos) became a constant thorn in the Nazis' side, and Hitler turned to Strucker, ordering him to publicly humiliate the Howlers' leader Nick Fury.

 

Strucker challenged Fury to a duel on the island of Norsehaven, and Fury violated direct orders to meet Strucker and satisfy his pride.

 

Before their duel with plywood swords, Strucker offered Fury a toast, and secretly drugged Fury's drink. As they fought, Strucker was surprised to find that despite his superior swordsmanship and the effects of the drug, Fury was a tenacious foe, but Fury finally succumbed to the drug's effects. Strucker had the event recorded and sent back to Germany as propaganda material to destroy Fury's reputation.

 

Hitler demanded that Strucker capture the Howlers so they could be executed in Berlin. Strucker assembled the Blitzkrieg Squad, who could match each of the Howlers skill for skill, but the Howlers defeated them at every turn.

 

Strucker also led the Blitzkrieg Squad to England to assassinate Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, but they were foiled by the Invaders.

 

Strucker finally abandoned the Blitzkrieg Squad, which was later led by Colonel Fritz Klaue.

 

While vacationing in Berlin, Strucker witnessed the Asgardian Thor's attack on the Chancellery, after which Strucker followed a bandaged man through a portal in space.

 

Realizing he had traveled decades into the future, Strucker stole some history books about the end of World War II. He encountered the time machine's creator Doctor Doom, who allowed him to return to the past, not believing that Strucker could win the war even with the knowledge he had obtained.

 

Tiring of Strucker's failures, Hitler assigned him to topple the resistance in the French town of Cherbeaux, or else destroy the town. Strucker rounded up the resistance to send them to camps to avoid having to destroy the town, but the Howling Commandos derailed his train, freeing the captives.

 

Hitler demanded that Strucker destroy the town, and Strucker set the explosives, but then came face-to-face with Fury, who had rigged an explosive powerful enough to kill Strucker.

 

Caught in a stalemate, Strucker agreed to let the people of Cherbeaux evacuate so that he and Fury could battle again.

 

When the evacuation was complete, Strucker and Fury fought while Cherbeaux was destroyed around them, and Fury lost Strucker in the upheaval. For allowing the evacuation of Cherbeaux, Hitler had Strucker marked for death by the Gestapo.

 

Strucker escaped Germany because of the Red Skull, Hitler's right-hand man, who foresaw Hitler's fall, and wanted an alternative power base.

 

The Red Skull sent Strucker to Japan to form this organization, but Strucker intended to run it for himself. In Japan, Strucker joined forces with the Hand and an underground subversive movement which later became Hydra where he received help from Arnim Zola into establishing it.

 

Strucker was instrumental in Hydra's earliest raids on war plants to supply their troops, and finally confronted the Supreme Hydra, claiming that as the organization's true mastermind, he should be Hydra's leader.

 

The Supreme Hydra refused and shot him, but Strucker had worn a bulletproof vest, and slew the Supreme Hydra, claiming his title. Strucker also slew the jonin (leader) of the Hand in single combat, severing ties with the Hand to prevent Hydra agents from being seduced by promises of the dark power of the demonic Beast of the Hand.

 

Strucker moved Hydra's operations to a private island in the Pacific, named Hydra Island. After he used an undetectable "phantom" submarine to assault allied and Japanese ships, Hydra Island was investigated by the allies' Captain Savage and his Leatherneck Raiders, and the Japanese Samurai Squad.

 

Captain Savage and the others managed to overcome Hydra's forces, and Strucker was forced to detonate the island. With Hydra's plans temporarily waylaid, Strucker was forced to return to Germany.

 

To regain Hitler's favor, Strucker subjected Fury to a hallucinogenic drug in Africa, offering the formula to Hitler if it proved successful in the field. Fury was overcome by the hallucinations, but the Howlers rescued him, enabling his recovery.

 

Ever more uncomfortable with the progress of the war, Strucker continued to operate Hydra from the shadows while pretending to be a loyal Nazi, secretly funneling Hitler's resources into his own operation. He also obtained the Dragon of Death, a powerful Japanese submarine, and made it Hydra's new mobile headquarters.

 

Using his knowledge of the future, Strucker attempted to complete Uranverein, a nuclear weapons project, before the United States, sending Hydra agents to obtain the materials.

 

Learning of this plot, the Invaders ultimately scuttled the Dragon, again delaying Strucker's plans, and during the clash Strucker lost the books he had brought from the future.

 

It is also likely that because of this scheme that Strucker inadvertently caused a bootstrap paradox that lead to the establishment of the United States' Manhattan Project which builds the atomic bombs and the eventual nuclear proliferation in the first place.

 

In 1944, Strucker encountered the Gnobians, a benevolent race of empathic extraterrestrials who had crashed near Gruenstadt.

 

Realizing what their technology could do for Hydra, Strucker befriended the naïve creatures and killed the population of Gruenstadt to cover his tracks. The Howlers arrived, too late to prevent the tragedy, but fatally wounded Strucker.

 

The Gnobians healed Strucker with their powers, but they went insane from absorbing some of his hate-filled psyche in the process. Strucker fled their crashed ship, taking discs of their information to his scientists.

 

As Germany fell in 1945, Strucker had the Nazis' two greatest superhumans Master Man and Warrior Woman placed into suspended animation in opposite sides of Berlin to await later revival. Strucker also gave the Red Skull the gas used to preserve them, and it also preserved the Skull when he was buried alive in his bunker during a battle with Captain America.

 

Avoiding prosecution for war crimes, Baron Strucker had his scientists provide him with age-retarding serum so he could personally oversee Hydra's progress for decades to come.

 

He and the Baroness Adelicia Von Krupp once captured the CIA's Agent Ten, who proved to be Strucker's old enemy Logan, but Logan was rescued by CIA agents Richard and Mary Parker.

 

Needing more finances for Hydra, Strucker abducted Gabrielle Haller, who had a map leading to a fortune in lost Nazi gold hidden within her mind, but Haller was defended by her friends, the mutants Charles Xavier and Erik Magnus, and Magnus took the gold for his own purposes.

 

Strucker married more than once in the years that followed resulting in a son named Werner, who resisted his father's influence, and twins Andrea and Andreas, who were genetically altered by Hydra scientists and so, developed super powers later in life.

 

Strucker rebuilt Hydra Island, but concealed his role in the organization by using a front called "THEM", in which he was Grand Imperator. In this role, he assigned Arnold Brown to be his Imperial Hydra, supposedly the true master of Hydra. Brown's rule of Hydra ended when he was overcome by S.H.I.E.L.D., an espionage organization led by Nick Fury and designed to thwart Hydra, and the unmasked Brown was mistakenly shot by his own men as Hydra crumbled about him.

 

THEM also found and revived the long-lost Red Skull, but Strucker finally abandoned THEM when the scientific research arm of Hydra and another branch splintered away to become A.I.M. and the Secret Empire, respectively.

 

Strucker continued to conceal his identity, acting as Don Antonio Caballero, Emir Ali Bey, and S.H.I.E.L.D. agent John Bronson. He finally revealed himself as Hydra's true leader when he prepared to unleash the Death Spore bomb from Hydra Island.

 

Invading the island, Nick Fury used masks to trick Strucker's men into shooting their leader. In a panic, Strucker ran into a chamber where nuclear processes were taking place, and was immediately incinerated.

 

Soon afterwards, Fury set the Death Spore bomb to explode within Hydra Island's protective dome designed to keep the island safe from the spores, eradicating all Hydra personnel within.

 

Hydra suffered without Strucker's leadership, and the Red Skull championed an effort to bring the Baron back, providing a distraction to occupy Fury's newly-rebuilt S.H.I.E.L.D. while Hydra scientists found Strucker's body and sacrificed their lives to revive him with the Death Spore bonded to his form.

 

Baron Strucker is a highly intelligent man in peak human physical condition. He is an exceptional hand-to-hand combatant, swordsman, and marksman. He is also a consummate military strategist and spy, and a master of disguise and excellent actor.

 

He carries a sword and traditional firearms, but also wears the Satan Claw on his right hand: this metal gauntlet amplifies his strength and emits powerful electrical shocks.

 

Strucker also uses serums developed by Hydra, enabling him to maintain his physical vigor at its height and retard his aging process, so that physically he remains the same, despite his advanced age.

 

Exposure to his Death Spore has bonded Strucker's DNA with the Death Spore, enabling him to be revived after seemingly being killed by gunshot wounds and radiation poisoning.

 

Strucker can now release the Death Spore virus from his body at will, killing his victims nearly instantly. If Strucker is killed, the Death Spore viruses will allegedly be set free from his body and risk infecting the entire Earth.

 

⚡ Happy 🎯 Heroclix 💫 Friday! 👽

_____________________________

A year of the shows and performers of the Bijou Planks Theater.

 

Secret Identity: Wolfgang von Strucker

 

Publisher: Marvel

 

First appearance: Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos 5 (Jan 1964)

 

Created by: Stan Lee (writer)

Jack Kirby (artist)

 

The background picture is from the amazing Jim Steranko art in Strange Tales. We couldn't let it pass without seeing it in full size and detail.

 

www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/48269254846/

Canon EF 70-300mm IS II USM

Tinoro is a Toa of Sonics, a member of the Toa Toiri whose duty is to watch over the Ta-Matoran and their Kanoka Disks, ensuring their safety. She is discontent with her current task and believes her destiny is to achieve something much greater and more exciting. She hates the loud, rhythmical mechanical sounds of the Great Forge and often uses her powers to cancel out all the noise.

 

She uses her Morning Star to channel her powers, its sheer mass lets her create soundquakes, and she's skilled enough to power scream and create zones of silence. Her Kanohi Volitak allows her to further mask her sounds, camouflaging her and making her virtually undetectable.

 

Non-Aquatic Volitak by @galva_nize_

Day 206 (v 11.0) - hard as it may be to believe, i'm in there somewhere

Day 240 (v 16.0) - almost undetectable

Oberwald, Valais. Near the southern portal of the Furka Base Tunnel, Switzerland's most cost-overrunning tunnel.

 

T-shirt, overheated railroad car, ... and undetectable railcars!

the Americans can't be easily recognised as such, anymore ... are partly virtually undetectable as such because of the natural translucence and the chameleon effect of ...

there is an impaired vision ...

but on the other side the American as such doesn't exist ...

at least not completely in total ...

free trade ...

handshake ... observance ...

embarrassing ... friends ...

 

I became witness of a conversation … ;-)

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

 

P2170082_83_pa3

That moment just before you make a face like a fish to touch up your lippy.

Just adore this handbag so much its so retro I love it to bits, not bad for a charity shop item.

I feel a rant coming on about trans models you know the kind? the ones who look no different to real women. They are used by companies to tick the trans box without it having a negative effect on the product because know one can tell said model is trans.

I would love to see a trans model that isn't 100% passable used to promote product so as the world can see that people like me and you do exist. We especially us older girls have big purchasing power and we tend to buy from the higher end outlets due to our style choices. wouldn't it be nice to see a trans woman (like us,not the undetectable like) used in say an M&S or phase eight advert.

I just don't see any trans woman in the public eye I can identify with.

Sadly we will just be relegated to the tranny/crossdresser pigeon hole and those young pre pubescent trans girls will be seen as the true face of being transgender when in fact they are a million miles from us and their gender at birth.

Rant over have fun thinking about that one :-)

Poisson pierre

Le Poisson-pierre ou Synancée (Synanceia verrucosa) est une espèce de poissons de la famille des Scorpaenidae, réputé pour être le plus venimeux au monde. Sa piqûre peut être mortelle pour l'homme.

Le poisson-pierre adulte mesure entre trente et quarante centimètres. Son corps globuleux est plus ou moins informe, flasque, boursouflé et couvert d'excroissances cutanées verruqueuses. Il est d'une couleur blanche à violette (mais le plus souvent brunâtre, jaunâtre ou rosâtre) qui est difficilement définissable parce qu'il présente un mimétisme homotypique, faculté de se confondre avec son environnement. Irrégulière, sa peau dépourvue d'écailles sécrète en effet un mucus capable de retenir les débris coralliens et les algues emportés par le courant : ce camouflage le rend généralement presque parfaitement indétectable au milieu des roches couvertes d'algues. Ses nageoires pectorales, en position très basse, sont très développées et arrondies, d'un diamètre presque égal à celui du corps, et renforcées par de grands rayons robustes et pointus. Sa tête énorme se termine par une bouche bien camouflée et s'ouvrant vers le haut. Les yeux sont en position dorsale, séparés par un creux.

 

Le poisson-pierre est doté au sommet de son corps de 13 courtes épines dorsales reliées à des glandes à venin, qu'il peut dresser très rapidement pour piquer un éventuel agresseur et injecter ses toxines extrêmement puissantes.

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Stone fish

The Stonefish or Synancea (Synanceia verrucosa) is a species of fish from the Scorpaenidae family, known to be the most poisonous in the world. Its bite can be fatal for humans.

Adult stonefish measure between thirty and forty centimeters. Its globular body is more or less shapeless, flabby, bloated and covered with warty skin growths. It is of a white to purple color (but most often brownish, yellowish or pinkish) which is difficult to define because it presents a homotypic mimicry, faculty of being confused with its environment. Irregular, its skin devoid of scales secretes a mucus capable of retaining coral debris and algae carried away by the current: this camouflage generally makes it almost perfectly undetectable in the middle of rocks covered with algae. Its pectoral fins, in a very low position, are very developed and rounded, of a diameter almost equal to that of the body, and reinforced by large robust and pointed rays. Its huge head ends with a well camouflaged mouth opening upwards. The eyes are in the dorsal position, separated by a hollow.

 

The stonefish has 13 short dorsal spines at the top of its body connected to poison glands, which it can erect very quickly to sting a possible attacker and inject its extremely powerful toxins.

Source: Wikipedia

Tinoro is a Toa of Sonics, a member of the Toa Toiri whose duty is to watch over the Ta-Matoran and their Kanoka Disks, ensuring their safety. She is discontent with her current task and believes her destiny is to achieve something much greater and more exciting. She hates the loud, rhythmical mechanical sounds of the Great Forge and often uses her powers to cancel out all the noise.

 

She uses her Morning Star to channel her powers, its sheer mass lets her create soundquakes, and she's skilled enough to power scream and create zones of silence. Her Kanohi Volitak allows her to further mask her sounds, camouflaging her and making her virtually undetectable.

 

Non-Aquatic Volitak by @galva_nize_

Sometimes even my imagination struggles to see sense in an image. I sometimes have a problem making sense of a situation too.

 

I recently needed a comfort break whilst on Ganavan beach. Across the car park I spotted the outline of a concrete public facility that might have been a World War 2 defence, judging by its grey, block styling. Anyhow there was an opening in the centre of the beach facing side and clearly room for Male and Female facilities leading off to either side. Approaching it, I saw no obvious sign for which end was Male and which Female. Ahhhh, this is modern, progressive Scotland, I thought. Non-gender assigned toilets, of course! There was a door to left, and one across the entrance, to the right. Again, no symbols on the doors. It should be obvious, but nothing is obvious anymore, even what a woman is! Pushing the door on the right slightly ajar (it seemed the natural side to go for as I dress on the right) I could see no urinals, just a couple of cubicles. So, back across the entrance, I pushed the door on the left slightly open. Same again, two cubicles. I was really flummoxed, but getting rather needy. Instinct told me to plump for left and I went in. I picked the cubicle on the right, mainly because the left one appeared to be occupled, and, careful not to get my ankles entangled in the yards of toilet tissue trailed through the puddles on the floor. I pushed the door inwards. But there appeared almost no room to advance in, and close the door behind me, so I did what most men would do by unzipping and unloading in the door way. Satisfied, I swivelled out, zipped up and went to the wash basin to do my hands. But it was one of the devices that is supposed to detect your hands, spit a gob of frothy soap on them and then pee on them with luke warm water, before breathing on them with gasps of warm air. My hands seem to be undetectable by these things and I was manically waving about and jigging to get some action when a beautiful young womb carrier with long red hair emerged from the cubicle beside me. It was her eyes I noticed first, big round green eyes, apparently wide with surprise at meeting me there. For just a moment, I wondered what might be wrong, or was I just lucky? There was a look of mild outrage, surprise and disapproval for me that was unsettling. "Errr", I started, "Am I in the wrong place?" Her face softened into a wry smile, possibly out of recognition that this was another dirty old man trying it on.......but I ask, what is one to do? She was nodding as she smiled. Gender neutral toilets are a stupid idea foisted on the majority by a tiny minority. What happened to democracy? Apparently the signs denoting male and female were invisibly mounted on the rooftop above the entrance!

When the time came to apply frame combat to the marine environments, the simple solution was to take Dry/Wet Combat Submersibles and build upon them. Militaries added armor, life support, weapons, information/electronic warfare, and utility capabilities to these small vessels to make them the efficient, marine combat choice of the future. Pictured above is an example, with manipulator arms, a reinforced pressure vessel and armor, and a marine scramjet and RCS system. Weapons include an 8 barreled 30mm chaingun battery, and a 2 use 9 missile swarm launcher, in a combined interface at the front of the vessel. This provides a formidable, virtually undetectable arsenal in the hands of a single pilot/diver, that can cripple surface ships at will.

Tinoro is a Toa of Sonics, a member of the Toa Toiri whose duty is to watch over the Ta-Matoran and their Kanoka Disks, ensuring their safety. She is discontent with her current task and believes her destiny is to achieve something much greater and more exciting. She hates the loud, rhythmical mechanical sounds of the Great Forge and often uses her powers to cancel out all the noise.

 

She uses her Morning Star to channel her powers, its sheer mass lets her create soundquakes, and she's skilled enough to power scream and create zones of silence. Her Kanohi Volitak allows her to further mask her sounds, camouflaging her and making her virtually undetectable.

 

Non-Aquatic Volitak by @galva_nize_

L to R

 

Mantis is the official fig with a standard head. Her eyes are supposed to be all black, and I felt that this face looked more accurate.

 

Drax has mastered the art of moving so slowly that he is undetectable to the eye

 

Gamora is Gamora

 

Star Lord has a pirates of the Caribbean head because I don’t have any of the new Jurassic world sets. I think this head looks fine for him.

 

Teen Groot is my first painted fig. The brown paint is not the exact same color as the head, but I think it’s close enough. I had the idea to use a Friends torso and legs because the minifig parts were too bulky. In the movie, Groot is tall and really thin, and I think the Friends body captures that look very well

 

Rocket is Rocket

 

What do y’all think? Should I make more painted figs? Comment below!

-Totally Awesome

They say it's nearly undetectable in deep forests at night. You might not notice its presence until your skull has caved in.

 

Brickshelf gallery link - www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=574694

If you are not French, it’s likely you haven’t ever heard the word “Saintonge”, and have no clue what it means. If you are French, it’s probably the same thing. Unless, that is, you are a fan of Romanesque, in which case you know that Saintonge, that small region of France centered around the town of Saintes (hence the name), not far from the Atlantic Ocean, just North of Bordeaux... features the highest density of Romanesque churches of all the country!

 

I had never visited that area of France, and so in the middle of October 2021, I took that long overdue trip and stayed two weeks in Saintes, driving left and right daily to photograph all the most significant Romanesque churches... and unfortunately leaving out many others, as they are so thick on the ground!

 

The church that we examine today is dedicated to saint Pierre-ès-Liens (Saint Peter-in-Chains) and is located in the village of Thaims.

 

There are several reasons why this church is truly unique and stands out among all those other Saintonge Romanesque churches.

 

The first reason is that it has doors on almost all sides: there is one on each arm of the transept, and if we can admit that the door at the end of the northern arm is a porte des morts leading into the cemetery (as we saw yesterday in Corme–Écluse), the one leading out of the southern transept arm is a lot more curious, especially since it is significantly decorated —as far as decorations go on this very simple church. I would have leaned towards a door opening onto a cloister if this church had, at any point in time, been an abbey or priory church, but there is absolutely zilch historical evidence of that.

 

Neither is there any mention of relics that would have been the subject of a pilgrimage, with the need to organize the flow of pilgrims entering through one door and exiting via another and besides, there is no ambulatory inside the church, whose floor plan remains very simple, even though it is in the shape of a Latin cross, which is rather unusual in Saintonge, as we have seen repeatedly.

 

The second reason is that it features a nicely rounded apse, also unusual in Saintonge where three-sided or five-sided apses are the norm. Note that the apse collapsed in the 20th century and had to be rebuilt, but that was done using the same stones whenever possible, and the job was very nicely done, and is virtually undetectable.

 

The third reason, and the most significant, is that this church is about the only one in the whole region that was built over a Roman villa, and a large and tall one, with big parts of it still showing, as you will see in some of the photos. The church itself is older than most of its Saintonge sisters, having been built, for the most part, during the 1000s.

 

The sole occurrence of a sculpted capital inside the church, that can actually be dated from the time of the erection or the oldest parts, i.e., in my opinion, before 1050. It is a very simple and very archaic motif, and I wouldn’t be surprised if someone more knowledgeable than me dated it from several centuries before, i.e., Merovingian! A truly magnificent piece it is.

A life threatening, system crumbling cybernetic plague, VIROT is a virus designed on the bacteriophage of eons past. This computer devourer is able to infect a hero’s core and either reprogram them for evil or shut them down for good.

 

Type A, the infection type, is small, nearly undetectable, with an emphasis on its rapid replication. Type B phages are a larger mutation that carry microscopic incision equipment used to inject nanites. These nano machines either act as miniature explosives, irreversibly damaging the hero’s Quaza Core, or act to change the materials within core, turning it into ANTI-QUAZA and sending the hero into a downward spiral of evil.

 

Hero Factory. We build H̷e̷r̷o̷e̷s̷ ……. Villains

 

Built for Hero February 2023

 

A master of camouflage, the Mossy Leaf-tailed Gecko (Uroplatus sikorae) is almost completely undetectable when it is at rest on a small tree in the forest understory. Frilled flaps of skin along its body break up its outline, making it appear nearly seamless with the tree on which it rests. Andasibe, Madagascar.

From Wikipedia:

 

The red-legged cormorant (Poikilocarbo gaimardi), also known as the red-legged shag, red-footed cormorant, red-footed shag, Gaimard's cormorant and grey cormorant, is a species of cormorant resident to the coastline of South America. It is the only member of the genus Poikilocarbo. It is non-colonial unlike most seabirds. The red-legged cormorant has not been observed wing-spreading, which is unusual among cormorant species.

 

The red-legged cormorant is native to the coast of South America. On the Pacific coast it ranges from Macabi Island, Peru to Chiloe Island, Chile. There are small isolated populations on the Atlantic coast scattered across Santa Cruz, Argentina. It rarely occurs further south than the Strait of Magellan.

 

Red-legged cormorants nest sparsely on steep rock faces, including coastal cliffs, rocky islets, and sea caverns. They become virtually undetectable against these rocky outcrops by their speckled grey plumage, with the exception of their colourful bills and feet. They forage within inshore bodies of water and in shallow offshore waters.

On the left a head tube designed by the Royal Army Medical College to protect against phosgene gas. The gas was almost undetectable, apart from an odour of damp hay, but was ten times more lethal than chlorine gas. On the right is a standard issue gas mask of 1917-18. The small metal box contained charcoal particles that filtered out practically all lethal gas types Similar gas masks were issued during the Second World War. I used one of the canvas packs of one these as my college bag from 1975-79, which I bought secondhand on Doncaster market.

A gently modified fur, though you'd never guess. The modification allows undetectable secretion of... perhaps I ought to create a little video to demonstrate

 

©️ April 2018