yall im getting at least 200k inheritance

Yandere x reader (she/her pronouns for reader)

Apocalypse Au.

Tittle-“the end of the fucking world.”

Definition~”the complete final destruction of the world, as we know it.”

Author’s note! -(Feel free to skip this!:))-im back! , I have a few things to say , this series is inspired by the last of us , but not completely lol , the zombies in this AU is based off the infected (most of the zombies are runners ) there is no bloaters tho , those things are literally horrifying lmao💀. But there is also no firefly’s , just the government and quarantine zones and hunters , I love the games art work and how they made , the city’s seem so destroyed, so that’s what I’m kinda of going for in this AU ! , enjoy!:)-Phantom out;)!

TRIGGER WARNING!!!-violence , cussing , mentions of blood , kinda of yandere behavior- positively do not read if easily triggered!



“Bad things happen to the people you love and you find your self praying up to heaven above.”

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“If we want to be in the next town by tonight you, need to pick up the pace y/n” Leo says as he stops to wait for you to pick up the pace.

You breathe out , annoyed by him “If we want to be in the next town by tonight you, need to pick up the pace y/n” you mock him and i high pitch tone while you roll your eyes , “y/n! So help me go-“ Leo says before you cut him off .

“Yeah , No listen here military guy , just because your body knows how to keep moving even if it’s tired , doesn’t mean my body does! , I’m tired , hungry, and thirsty we’ve been walking for about two days with barely any breaks ! I’ve been up walking for 48 hours leo! I need sleep” you say as you get irritated at the lack of sleep and basic human needs .

You sigh , and turn your head away from him , You take a look around you something you haven’t done in days , taking in all the destroyed buildings from being neglected and nature covering them with vines and nature also doing the same for the abandoned cars you could tell this used to be a big city , the streets were jammed packed with whatever fleeing people left behind when the outbreak started “Leo.. where are we at?” You say as anxiety fills your body , ever since the world ended , you never went through major cites ever. You know that cites are taken over by infected or hunters , that and since the debris from the buildings or cars are blocking most of the pathways so theirs no escape. You’ve been so tired and thirsty you haven’t even noticed where you been walking to , you feel like your heart has dropped in your stomach. Your not even hungry or tired or thirsty anymore , all you can think about is how can y’all escape if shit turns sideways . Suddenly you notice the broken billboards, and the lights strung around, and the over grown palm trees , suddenly it clicks .

“Leo please don’t tell me we are in Vegas…” you say feeling more scared by the moment , you look around your surroundings very fast , making sure theirs not threats coming towards y’all , “y/n are you okay?” Leo says as he runs up to you grabbing your shoulder and looks at down at you with worry in his eyes . “Goddamn Leo! , how the hell did we ended up in Las Vegas !” You say as you whisper scream to him , fearing whatever is here could hear you if you screamed at him

“Um we walked here?” He says , as he shrugs , you glance at him , then give him a disappointing smile , “oh really! , I thought we flew here on my million dollar jet !” You say sarcastically , as you roll your eyes at him , “look I was so tired from you making me walk for almost two days straight I didn’t even notice, we were in the city till now , what if a big hoard of infected comes out one of these buildings to eat our faces off ! , or better yet what if a hunter robs us then kills us!” You say , as you panic. Leo grabs you hand and strokes it , it immediately brings you out of your panic state , you look at him , “y/n don’t worry , we are going to be okay! “ he says as he smiles at you , “h-how so?” You say , “ 5 days into the out break the military blew up cities to kill as much as infected as they can. Most infected were in major cities , because of the high population ” He turns you towards the buildings and tilts your chin up so all you can see is buildings leaning against each other , “that’s why most of these buildings are leaning against each other . I’m not saying they’ve been fully cleaned out , but theirs probably a few infected inside .” He explains , “it’s faster to go through the city then go to around it , andddd the reason we don’t take a break is , even if theirs a few of infected in their , I don’t want to risk it . I don’t want you to get hurt .” He says as he drags out the ‘and’ part , you get flustered mumble a quick “what ever “ as you walk off , hoping over the car to get back on track to getting out the city , he smiles to him self , then follows behind you .

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(This is a draft , I didn’t know if I should release it or not , but I wanted to post something! , but I should be posting more this summer!)-♦️🖤🐇

You’ve got a friend in me (Literally!)(Otherwise known as “oh no I’ve really done it”)

Bad Grammar Warning: Just the worst

After a long day of travel, a cowboy rests under the infinite sky, and unbeknownst to him, becomes a little less lonesome.

As you anxiously watch for any sign of movement, his lips part and plume of breath strikes the cloudless sky. Even for a bean such as himself, it was a frigid night. Which was why you were getting close to this titan in the first place. Ordinarily, a borrower being caught in the open with a human meant death or worse, but through a series of tremendously unfortunate events, you were presented with a choice. Adapt or die. And so, in a bid for the warmth of his fire, you found yourself nearly at the spurred boats of this massive stranger. Now that you were closer you could make out his face, dirty, stubbly and struck reverent with awe. You turn your eyes to the stars as well, while they were familiar to you, they seemed fresh to this weary traveler. Had you ever spoken your next thought to another borrower, you would have been deemed mad. Perhaps, the heavens made him feel small as well, and in that there was comradery.

Someplace in the background, the stranger’s horse grunts, pulling you back to earth. You are caught in a different type of expanse, the stranger’s fire-filled eyes locked with yours. Both of you become stock still as his mouth flounders several moments, settling on a reaction.

“Howdy?” He murmurs just over the crackle of the fire. You take one shaky backward, then another. Having weighed the options, freezing to death sounded downright pleasant compared to what a human could do to you. The quite shock is broken as the cowboy bursts into a flurry of moment, fumbling with something at his side. “Wait, L-! Ahg blast” He grumbles before producing a gun from his hip. The sheer terror of that single movement drains the last of your body heat straight into the earth, and you bolt. Dust kicks up behind you with a loud thunk, and the stranger calls after you. “ Look, I don’t mean you no harm! Kid!?”. Against your better judgment, you look back. The stranger is sat precisely where you left him, the gun settled into the dirt between the two of you. It surprises you just enough to slow your flee, you turn to face him again.

From this angle, the fire no longer reflected in his eyes, you could perceive concern shrouding the massive blue pools. His mouth twitches into a nervous smile “ That’s it. More than enough fire to share, yeah? Why don’t you sidle back on over, and we’ll get antiquated ?” Again you put your survival instinct aside and consider the stranger’s request. If you run now, you would, without a doubt, die. But if you stayed, there was a slim chance the cowboy held to his word. You needed that fire more than anything right now if you end up roasted over it, so be it.

The stranger’s shoulders slumped in relief as you approached. Once you had settled next to the fire, he slid off the rock he’d been sitting on and removed the dusty wide brim from his head. The attempt to put you on even playing ground was laughable, as he still towered over you, but endearing nonetheless. The adrenaline wearing off left you colder and stiffer than before, all you could do was look up warily and wait for him to snap. “Dalton,” The stranger scratched the back of his head out of habit, “ Dalton Pracht. Good meeting you?” In the following silence, you duck your head shamefully and loosely felt the scar on your throat, one you’re sure Dalton couldn’t see. To your astonishment, he makes a sound of recognition and grins broadly, “ Ain’t no thing little partner! Sides, I can yammer enough for the both of us.” You can’t help but smile at that, finding the courage to meet the human’s eyes once more.

The moment is glazed bittersweet by your violent shaking. Dalton seems to catch on as well, and his unruly brows furrow in concern. He reaches toward you then pauses, thinking better of it, “Say, you ain’t looking too slick. Mind if I?” and lays his hand flat on the ground, inches from your bedraggled form. You eye his callused fingertips cautiously. At this point, what did you have to lose? If he was going to pull something he would have already, indulging in shared body heat for a moment, might be helpful. With sore limbs, you drag yourself up into his ruff palm. Dalton semi curls his fingers about you as he lifts you to face level. You recoil sightly when his other hand hovers up, laying a tentative finger over your forehead. “ Christ, yer cold as the dead, little partner.” He clicks his tongue and fusses over you in an almost scolding manner, “Should’ve come to me sooner, no sense in a purdy little thing like you being six feet under!” Had there been any warmth in your body, it would have gathered in your cheeks. As circumstances were, you had to be satisfied with huffing indignantly and pushing away the finger against your head.

“Alright, alright” He chuckles, whiskey tanged breath washing over you. Dalton’s eyes flickered around apprehensively before locking with yours again. “Listen, I got an idea, but you ain’t gonna like it.” You tilt your head in the universal sign of confusion, and Dalton sighs, “We might need to get a little more… Cozy.” In the corner of you’re vision, Dalton’s hand trails down his chest and rests near his torso, thumb dug just barley beneath his shirt. Suddenly you understand why he thought you wouldn’t like this plan. He was right.

You immediately start to thrash, but Dalton is quicker and grips you, leaving scarce room to argue. “Now hold up, nobody said anything about eatn! It’ll be like a real good hug!” The warmth of his voice doesn’t convince you in the slightest, and you shake your head furiously. Dalton looks pointedly away from you and flushes, “It ain’t like I’ve got a hankering for small and human! I’m trying to help you out. Otherwise, you’ll be iced, and I just can’t set with that!” His voice is kind but determined, and you get the idea that if you wait much longer, you’ll lose a say in the matter. You have to remind yourself that if he wanted to harm you, he could have at any time, but he hadn’t.

So you catch his gaze again with a reluctant nod. You both let out a breath you hadn’t realized you were holding as the grip around you deforms into a loose cup. It seems like grappling your frigid body had been just as uncomfortable for Dalton as it has been for you.

“I’ll be real easy on yeh, just let me know when you’re ready?” He quips, gingerly ensuing with, “You’re safe with, er- in me, promise.” The side of Dalton’s cupped hand comes to rest against his chin, leaving you in eye line with his chapped lips. In fact, now the only thing within your range of view is him, his face is your entire horizon. You couldn’t even feel the wind anymore over his warm breath rolling over you.

Tentatively you crawl forward, but stop when you see his lips twitch. You glance up and find Dalton pretty much looking down his nose to see what you were up to. Already high on nerves, the sight almost made you laugh. Dalton must have known because his eyes crinkled and a smile threatened to take over his mouth. With some of the tension alleviated, you found the strength to focus on the task at hand. You bring one hand up to touch his lips, catching Dalton’s stubble in the process, causing you to jump and him to chuckle. The sound rumbles through your entire body, and this time a laugh is startled out of you. The remaining tension shattered after that. Somehow, you felt safer pressed against this giant than you had in weeks. If only your piers could hear you now…

You pat Dalton’s lower lip and on queue his jaw shifts. You fall forward a little, having to catch yourself on his tongue as it prods into you. He lets you struggle against the slick of his tongue for a minute, eventually relenting by tipping you into his maw. In the last moments of light, you catch Dalton’s teeth glinting perilously, then the wet muscle fully scoops you into his mouth, and you are left in total darkness. The occurrence of being in a mouth wasn’t as wholly unpleasant as you had imagined. Sure, the air was stale with drink, but you couldn’t deny the warmth seeping into your bones, saliva soaked you may be.

Dalton hums low in his throat while his tongue curls and pushes against your form. At first, you’d wrestled to keep it out of your face, but your strained muscles didn’t abide by that for long. After several minutes of being gently suckled on, Dalton pressed you to his palette and ventured to speak around you. “Down youh goh.”, He mumbles with some difficultly and leans back, swallowing thickly. The strong muscles of his throat catch you up to your waist, another hard swallow has your slimy form easily secured in his gullet. You can’t help but squirm at the tight hold of the surrounding muscles, but when Dalton gives a surprised grunt, you quickly stop in fear of hurting him. As you’re squished down, the human’s heartbeat becomes louder against a backdrop of unidentifiable body noises and the gurgle of his stomach somewhere below.

Finally, you are deposited into the roomier chamber of Dalton’s stomach, the organ welcomes your presence, cradling around you as you moved. Far above Dalton sighs in content, and pats his overfull stomach twice “Wasn’t so bad when you stopped you’re bellyaching, now was it?”. The hand returned, rubbed over his belly until he found you and pressed into you gently. “You’re all good in there right, little partner? Cozy?” You let him know as best you could, leaning against the wall to meet his hand and tapping repeatedly. Dalton barked a laugh that shook your whole world and continued rubbing his stomach, and by extension, you. “If you haven’t got me fuller than any four-course meal. Which reminds me! I reckon you’ll be wantin to head where I’m heading, well we’re, counting the horse. Seeing as-”

Turns out Dalton had not been joking when he’d said he could talk for the two of you. Chances were he hadn’t had a companion to chat with, in about as long as you had. You really did try to stay alert and listen, but the weeks of barely getting by had caught up to you. The gentle churn of Dalton’s stomach and his distant voice rambling on lulled you into a dreamless sleep. For the first time in a long time, you were cared for and safe.

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Noooo don’t read a list of old west slang you’re so sexy aha

In all seriousness I am embarrassed and completely terrified to be posting this here,

But I said there would be silly cowboy vore and BY GOD If I don’t deliver!

Send me a  🥃 + a question for my muse to answer. If they refuse to answer, they have to take a shot // Still Accepting!

Anonymous asked : 🥃 Habit, here's a hypothetical question for you. If your Habitat started to go way downhill, but wasn't a lost cause yet, and you had to resort to more extreme and harmful measures to keep your Habiticians in line, what wouldn't you do?

At once, almost on instinct, Habit feels his breath hitch. Was it possible for air to get caught in somebody’s chest? Well, the question hadn’t even been fully processed before everything decided to lock up, on him. 

‘Why was that?’, he wondered briefly. Uselessly. In fact, he wasn’t even sure WHY he’d bothered to let himself pull the wool over his own eyes; if even for only a second. He KNEW exactly why his hands balled up into fists, exactly why dread was solidifying in his stomach. 

And yet... he had to glance away, towards the balcony. It was just natural, really, whenever anybody mentioned the Habiticians while he happened to be in his office. 

Or. Well. 

‘His’ Habiticians, as they had so eloquently put it. 

The thought made him laugh. He forced himself to hate that fact.

Keeping the smile held tightly on his face, out of a necessity that he hadn’t even realized WAS a necessity, he took a moment to steel himself before walking over to where his line of sight drew him. 

His heels clicked along the floor- an unwelcome change to the encompassing silence from just moments before.

--- “Hmmmmm.... You kno... That”s a “Good” question! Where 2 start with that...” 

Content warning: Brief suicidal ideation, blood, and mentions of murder/corpses under the cut.

Heights had never been a problem for him. He never even really considered them enough for them to BECOME any sort of issue. While he could understand where the fear came from, for some people, so long as he knew the ground he stood on was relatively sturdy, he could be as high as the clouds and not have any cares in the world. 

... Which is why he was confused when he came to a brief pause as he neared the balcony’s edge. Something about the location had begun to set him off, lately.. 

Perhaps it was the finality that such a fall would be responsible for. To say that he’d never considered jumping would be a lie, but- 

He was quick to shake his head- push those thoughts away. Those were for another life. Not this one. 

Habit “easily” (why couldn’t it be easy?) settled himself on the railing, eyes trailing down to the fairground below. 

--- “What WOULDN”T I do, u said..?” 

Maybe he’s stalling, maybe he’s not. You have no proof, as far as he’s concerned. 

--- “Well...” He leans down further, practically resting his head on the cold metal. Although his attention darts around as he observes the day’s activity, he registers next to none of it. 

--- “I suppose I wouldn’t wamnt them 2 think I”m trying two hard. Peeple tend to “Talk”, U see. Nothing like barb-ed wire or anythign sillie like That. The Habi-Tat is notn’t a Prison.” 

Isn’t it? 

--- “Perhapbs the “Curfew” wuld need to be much earlier..? I woould need to be patrolling more oftn than usual, that is 4 certain. Surve-a-lance would be “Upped”, also, of cuorse, but I thimnk I wouldn”t need to be TOO mean...” 

--- “Even if the Habiticians TRIED to eskape, th Carlas would handel everything!” 

Right. The machines he’d created to do his dirty work for him, because Heaven knows that if he had to be the one to subdue fleeing Habiticians, he wouldn’t stand much of a chance. 

And not because he worried that he wouldn’t be strong enough! Really, if THAT was the only concern, he needed to only let himself forget just where he was putting his hands, and, well- 

No. He disliked having to use brute force- especially when it wasn’t absolutely necessary. Call him what you’d like. He can guarantee that none of it would be too far off the mark. 

What the Carlas lacked in speed and intelligence, they made up for in numbers. The ones always actively present on the grounds were FAR from the only ones in The Habitat. 

Even though this situation was only hypothetical, Habit felt himself smirk, nonetheless; oddly proud of his own genius and security. Normally any talk of unrest among his “guests” sent him into a panic. He just simply would not have it! 

Not in HIS domain. HIS creation. If something isn’t working, then!!! He’ll FIX it, and move on!! 

But... ah... He had yet to really adequately answer the question at hand... Right..? 

--- “..... I”m...” 

Something felt- unfinished, here. Did he have more to truly SAY on the matter? 

The sounds of Martha were louder than he remembered. He rationalized the reason behind that being his close proximity to her, as anybody would. 

It just didn’t make them any less overwhelming, at the moment. 

--- “I... don’t think violence is.. nece-ssary.. to maintain the “Peace”, I mean. The way that Im running things right now is good. Yes??” 

Habit allows a brief lull to enter the “conversation”- just out of politeness. When no answer comes to his question, he can’t but to feel foolishly disheartened. 

Only a little bit, though. Just a teeny tiny bit. 

--- “I know this is only a “what if”- I get that. But the question is ridic-u-lous, 2 begin with!1!! Absurd!!!11! This groo-some scenariio will NEVER come two be!! So!!!! Why WORRIE about it!!!!” 

And that’s where he INTENDED to quit talking. Honestly, he did. With every second that passed, he could feel the dam begin to break. 

No, the topic itself didn’t bring him ANXIETY, per-say.... 

... but he WASN’T letting his thoughts lead to their obvious conclusion. That was the missing puzzle piece. That was the reason behind his sweaty palms and urge to be sick. 

Habit was good at blocking out all of the unpleasant things about life. Sure, they almost always inevitably resurfaced, anyway, but the goal was never to be rid of them for good. 

Merely to stall. Always to stall. 

But that’s NOT what he’s doing, right now! Because there IS nothing more to discuss!! Nothing! Nada! Zilch! 

--- “...” 

He hadn’t noticed how tight his grip on the railing had gotten- had barely registered the tension in his shoulders as he leaned further. Further... JUST so he could look down, better. That’s all. 

The daily lives of the Habiticians meant little to nothing to him. He was able to seamlessly gloss over Punching Girl as she pretended to, predictably, fight something. Or someone. He completely ignored Broccoli Child- nearly rolling his eyes at a less than pleasant memory regarding the trash he once tried to sell to him. 

Nearly.

He hurried to turn away, to head back inside. He knew that if he lingered for any longer that the incessant WHINING of a certain resident would start back up, again. Perhaps it already had and he’d merely gotten beyond used to it. 

Great. Cool. Love that.

--- “I THINK yuo are under-estimnating the work I”ve put into Thee Habitat. I know verie well how 2 control MY Habiticians, and if push comes two shove, I”m SURE I could-” 

--- “........ I... could........ .................. ah...” 

Something about his wording froze him in his tracks. He would’ve clamped his jaw shut if he had the gall to; would have bitten his tongue just to keep any more comments on the matter to himself. 

The smile from before never once left his face. He disliked how heavy it felt- disliked the fact that he apparently felt the need to keep falling back into the hole he was so DESPERATELY trying to clamber back out of. 

He’d said all he needed to say. He’d done his part! 

Habit lowers his head, back turned to the outside world. A chill seeping into the room reminded him that he’d forgotten to close the door. He normally wouldn’t care about such a minute detail, but- 

One quick glance towards the “operating room” is all he needs to change his mind. It’s bad ENOUGH that he’s allowing himself to become so overly fixated on everything that could go WRONG, and not go RIGHT!! Nobody else needs to accidentally overhear something they shouldn’t. 

Hand shaking (shaking??), he pulls it away from the glass; job done, and steps unsteady as he attempts to backtrack. Literally. 

Habit whirls back around, action abrupt as he gradually loses his initial train of thought. His breaths are a bit labored, like he’d just been running, somehow, and he wants to fix that. He wants, more than anything, to fix this entire situation. 

Pathetic. One simple hypothetical had sent him into such a state?? Disgusting. 

If he couldn’t handle the fire, then he shouldn’t have walked directly into the flames. He had what it took to run The Habitat. He took every precaution necessary. 

‘If your Habitat started to go way downhill, but wasn't a lost cause yet, and you had to resort to more extreme and harmful measures to keep your Habiticians in line, what wouldn't you do?’ 

‘What WOULDN’T he do?’ 

--- “. . . If. . . push comes to SHOVE. . .” 

He changes trajectory. Wandering around aimlessly certainly wouldn’t help anything, and suddenly, he feels very much so like cleaning something is in order. How often did he do that, anyway? 

Not often enough, he decided, eyeing the grotesque red splotches.... just about everywhere he thought to look. On the chair, some on the floor-

HOW did he manage to get blood on the walls??? 

Habit reaches forward to grab the nearby mirror on the tray, having already pulled a cloth from one of his pockets. Yes, a cleaning day was definitely in order. A dirty workplace leads to a dirty outlook on life. 

No wonder he’s so stressed. 

--- “... Well,” he shrugs, “who is 2 say that there will bee any Habiticians TO keep in line?” 

As soon as the words leave his mouth, he doesn’t find any relief in them, whatsoever. So he continues. 

--- “Let me elab-or-ate. CORPSES have teeth. Right?” 

He turns his head, then; absently searching for the spray bottle he swore he had sitting on the counter. 

--- “Who cares if “The Big Event” is SKIPPED, all-2-gether? I would not be above that. No “waitiing” and no “gettiing their hopes up” 4 something that was falsely advertized.” 

--- “So,” ah, there it is, “to answer you”r question:” 

--- “Nothing!11!!! There are absolootely NO lengths that I womn”t go in order 2 enshure that I gather More Teeth!!1!! So WHAT if I need to “take out thee trash” all at once?? So WHAT if I “accidentally” get the dosage wrong? They will bee happily and giggily, and then....” 

--- “......... they will not.”

“Sick” doesn’t even begin to cover how he feels, right about now. Does he sound casual while discussing this? How is he coming off as while he so flippantly talks about murder? 

Cowardly? Psychopathic? ... Terrifying? 

Is he terrifying? He must be. There’s no other explanation, in his mind. 

--- “No skin off MY back!! At leest CORPSES do not cry!!” 

Habit twirls back around to the counter where he’d grabbed the spray bottle, content smile betraying him as he gently sets it back where he found it. 

--- “At leest CORPSES do not struggle!! When they FIN-A-LLY stop moviing, they cann”t tell me: “Yuou womn”t get awaY with THis!!!1!”. They can’t skream and run- they can”t do any-thing At All!1!!!” 

And that’s the beauty of it. Or, at least, it SHOULD be. 

--- “Once they set “Foot” into The Habitat, it isn”t like theyre Going 2 bee LEAVINGG it, anyway!! I”mmn not beeing CRUEL!!! What I do- it’s BRILL-I-ANT!! So WHY should I feel BAD??!?!?!” 

Why, indeed?? Yes, WHY should he feel bad about cracking a few chickens to make a brand new healthy egg? What is the harm in it? 

Nonexistent, as far as HE can tell! 

--- “Thee answer is: I shouldn”t, annd I don’t! I hope thiss conversatioon was en-lit-ening 4 U! :-)” 

So... there. He’s done. It’s over. Rant over. He- He’s said his share. Had his fill. 

Of course, NOW he’s gone and gotten himself all riled up. Who knows how long it’ll take him to calm back down? Once he allows that little box in the back of his mind to open, this always happens. 

Why do you think he’s so keen on keeping it nice and SHUT? 

Autopilot becomes comforting after the hundredth time you shift into it. Habit continues about his business, cleaning the operating room while humming a jovial tune to himself. 

The fact that he stumbles in his steps every now and then is unimportant. His pounding heart barely matters. 

So long as he’s smiling, it’s IMPOSSIBLE to be upset! 

Maybe if he believes that hard enough, it’ll be true. 

Title: Take What the Water Gave Me

Pairing: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)

Wordcount: 2k

Summary: Yet another take on “instead of Crowley running into the burning bookshop, Aziraphale rushes to Crowley’s flat and finds nothing but a puddle of holy water and the melted remains of a demon”

===

Getting rid of Sergeant Shadwell was more of an annoyance if anything. After miracling his mind clean of the conversation he’d witnessed, Aziraphale gave Shadwell his advance payment and quickly shooed him out of the shop.

He’d wasted enough time as it were trying to appeal to Heaven about stopping Armageddon. Crowley was right after all. Heaven didn’t give a damn. It truly was them against the rest of the world - or rather the forces of Heaven and Hell combined.

Really it was high time he let Crowley know he knew who the Antichrist was and where to find him. Plus, he owed the demon an apology. And since Crowley didn’t seem inclined to talk to him over the phone he’d just have to go over to his flat himself.

There wasn’t much he could do about the summoning circle, so he left it as is. Although he made sure to lock and double bolt the door to his bookshop. Didn’t want someone walking in and accidentally blasting themselves to smithereens after all.

Normally he’d have walked or taken a cab to Crowley’s flat. He quite enjoyed the journey and all. But there was simply no time. Besides, it wasn’t like Heaven was keeping track of how many frivolous miracles he was performing, what with Armageddon underway.

With a quick miracle he found himself at the end of the hallway leading to Crowley’s flat. It was quiet, as was typical. And yet … it was too quiet. None of muffled sounds of Crowley shouting at his plants, nor the usual ruckus made by the little old woman on the floor below. Just, silence.

Ignoring the sense that something was off, Aziraphale set off at a brisk pace towards Crowley’s door situated closer to the other end of the hall. Only to be met with another peculiar sight.

The door was ajar. Aziraphale paused. That was odd. Crowley never left the door open. It was always locked.

Aziraphale swallowed back his growing apprehension. “Crowley?” He gingerly pushed the door, dimly noting that the lock was broken. “Are you in there?”

Before he could even cross the threshold, the foul stench of something burnt wafted over him. A strange mix of plastic, oil, and flesh with a sulfuric tinge to it.

Alarmed, Aziaphale stepped into the empty foyer. “Crowley? What the devil have you been - ” his words instantly fell flat at the sight before him.

The door to the office at the end of the hall was thrown wide open. Just beyond the entrance a glistening dark sludge streaked the floor. It was hard to miss in the near spotless apartment.

“No,” he breathed, drifting closer, hardly daring to believe -

The sludge was clearly demonic. A burnt and blackened circular patch on the floor surrounded the sticky remains. It was drenched in a liquid that held a certain sheen that was only discernible to the ethereal and which could only be one thing.

Holy water.

On the desk was the old-fashioned tartan thermos flask he’d given Crowley over fifty years ago. The top was unscrewed with the cap carefully set next to it.

“No, no, no, no, no,” he backed away from the office, out over the threshold until his back hit the wall of the outer hallway. The world was tilting, out of focus, the cold stone wall the only thing keeping him upright.

He never thought he’d actually - he wouldn’t, he’d promised -

No, he reflected with mounting horror, Crowley never promised anything. The ice cold of the stone wall was seeping through his skin and spreading through his core. Aziraphale had just hoped, that after everything they’ve been through, together, Crowley would never resort to such a horrid fate.

But he’d left Crowley on his own hadn’t he? He’d ignored Crowley’s pleas to flee, holding on the foolish belief that heaven would want to stop the war. He’d abandoned him and Crowley had taken him own life and now Aziraphale was truly alone -

“Oh Crowley, my dear Crowley,” he moaned, “This is all my fault. I should’ve - I should’ve - ” he couldn’t finish. The ice had encapsulated his throat rendering his words useless.

And the worst part was Crowley wasn’t human. He wasn’t going to heaven or hell after his death. He was gone - he was well and truly gone.

He’d never should have withheld the information about the Antichrist from him. He should’ve listened to him, he should’ve left with him, he should’ve -

He could still see the sludge from his vantage point outside. He blinked and the door slammed shut.

He couldn’t stay here. He had to leave.

Aziraphale’s legs seemed to move of their own accord as they carried the angel away from the door and down the hall. The ice had completely taken over leaving him hollow and empty.

Aziraphale had lost Crowley and the world was ending in a few hours. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to care anymore. It was only dimly that he realized he had nowhere to go.

For the first time, in a very, very long time, Aziraphale felt incredibly lost.

❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦

At this point, the storm clouds gathering in the sky were so dark it might as well have been night. The wind was howling, the rain lashing, and a 1926 black Bentley was zipping through central London at over a hundred miles per hour. It’s occupant, the demon Crowley, was rather distressed but trying as hard as he could to play it cool. He was failing.

The Bentley rode up onto the pavement outside Aziraphale’s bookshop and came to a screeching halt. Crowley was out of the car and up the stairs in the blink of an eye. The doors opened automatically as he approached them, “Aziraphale?” he called, snapping his fingers to close the doors to the storm brewing outside.

They were running out of time.

“Aziraphale?” he called again desperately into the relative quiet of the shop, “Where in the heavens did you -” He broke off suddenly, panic seizing his chest. It was so faint he’d almost missed it. But there, just beyond Aziraphale’s many stacks of books, was an unmistakable blue glow emanating from the floorboards.

“Shit.” He rushed forward, careful not to step in the cabalistic circle filled with intricate symbols. The ethereal light filling the circle was more muted than its typical blinding nature. And now that he was paying attention he could vaguely hear the lingerings of a weird musical humming noise.

It was still charged. Crowley sighed in relief. Heaven hadn’t taken him away - not yet at least.

But then where was - ?

The chime of the bell above the door interrupted his thoughts. Crowley whipped around to find Aziraphale standing at the entrance looking very windswept in every sense of the word.

“Angel! There you are!” He moved toward Aziraphale, glancing wearily back at the open portal to Heaven. He’d prefer to put as much distance between him and Aziraphale, and that damn thing as possible. “Look, we really don’t have much time here. You said you found the Antichrist, right? Well? Where is he? We need to get - We need -” he faltered. He was just now registering the extremely odd look on Aziraphale’s face, “What? What’s wrong?”

It was as if something had snapped inside Aziraphale, “You absolute bastard!”

Crowley blinked, “I beg your pardon?”

“What the hell, Crowley?” Aziraphale advanced, the emotions on his face now suddenly abundantly clear - anger and grief and pain, such overwhelming pain, “I thought you were dead! I thought you were fucking dead! Damn you, you insufferable demon!”

Aziraphale had never cursed this openly in nearly six thousand years. Had the situation been different, Crowley would’ve been impressed. But as it were, it was rather unnerving. And only added further to Crowley’s mounting confusion, “Aziraphale, what in God’s name are you talk-” he was cut off by Aziraphale quite literally launching himself at Crowley. His arms wrapped tightly around the demon, his face buried in the crook of his neck.

Needless to say, Crowley was at an utter loss. Sobs racked Aziraphale’s entire being as he clutched desperately at Crowley’s jacket. It was all very un-Aziraphale-like of him and it was freaking Crowley out.

“Angel?” he asked tentatively, his hands hovering over Aziraphale. He didn’t know what to do with them. He didn’t know how to react. His angel was in shambles and he didn’t know how to fix it.

“Gone,” the angel croaked, “You were gone, and I thought - I thought I lost you.”

Crowley’s mind was racing. Lost him? Why would Aziraphale ever come to that conclusion?

Then it occurred to him. He’d left the melted remains of Ligur on the floor. He hadn’t thought twice about it. He’d been too concerned about getting to Aziraphale. But Aziraphale had come to find him first. And he’d come to his flat. He’d seen the remains and he’d had thought - oh dear Lord.

“Oh, angel.” His arms enveloped Aziraphale, burying a hand in his feather-soft hair. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” He leaned his head against Aziraphale’s.

He couldn’t even begin to fathom the true extent of Aziraphale’s anguish.

But then, for the briefest moment, his imagination took hold - Aziraphale perishing in an inferno of hellfire and being far too late to stop it.

His grip on Aziraphale tightened. Somewhere in another dimension indiscernible to the human-eye a pair of well-groomed black wings wrapped protectively around the angel with the ruffled white wings in the demon’s arms.

They stayed like that for what felt like eternity, but in reality was only a few minutes.

Eventually, Aziraphale emerged with a final sniffle, revealing his tear streaked face. The sight of it broke Crowley’s heart.

“Ah,” Aziraphale’s fingers ghosted over the tear-stains he’d left on Crowley’s jacket, “I’m dreadfully sorry. I didn’t mean to - I know how much you care about - ”

“Don’t worry about it.” Crowley reassured him, looking over Aziraphale’s face with careful scrutiny. He wanted to say something more, but he didn’t know what. He couldn’t just ask, ‘Are you alright?’. That was a stupid question - of course he wasn’t.

As if reading Crowley’s thoughts, Aziraphale gave him a tight-lipped smile, his eyes still watering slightly, “Oh I’ll be alright.” He brought his hand up to scrub away at the tear stains on his cheeks and laughed weakly, “I must look a terrible frightful sight.”

Crowley caught Aziraphale’s wrist in his hand. Aziraphale looked up at him inquisitively. Without thinking, he brought up his other hand to cup the angel’s cheek. He gently wiped away a stray tear with his thumb. “You’re an angel. I don’t think you can look anything but beautiful.”

The angel’s eyes widened, “Well I - really Crowley - I - uh,” he sputtered, then the ghost of a smirk fluttered over his lips, “Are you implying that all the other angels are beautiful as well?”

Crowley’s nose scrunched up in disgust, “Definitely not. All the others are complete wankers. You’re the one exception.”

Aziraphale laughed, a bright smile adorning his features, and ducked his head against Crowley’s chest.

Crowley rested his chin atop Aziraphale’s head and sighed in content. He lazily let his gaze drift toward windows lining the shop. The rain from the storm outside was pouring so heavily that it completely obscured the window-pane.

The storm.

Armageddon.

Shit.

He’d been so caught up in Aziraphale’s breakdown that he’d completely forgotten that the world was about to end.

“Angel, I hate to break this up, truly,” he gently pushed Aziraphale back so that he could properly look at him, “But Armageddon’s still on the way and we still need to find the Antichrist.”

Aziraphale nodded, stepping slightly out of Crowley’s embrace much to the demon’s displeasure, “Right, right,” his eyes suddenly lit up, “I know where he is! The Antichrist! He’s in Tadfield! There’s still time! We could make it!” He gripped Crowley’s shoulders, shaking him slightly in excitement. The grin on his face was so blindingly bright and hopeful.

Crowley couldn’t help but smile back.

❦ ❦ ❦ ❦ ❦

The storm was operating at full force now. The apocalypse was just on the brink of unfolding. Thunder rumbled, somewhere fish were falling from the sky, and an angel and a demon were speeding towards the end of the world.

hello! I'm the same anonymous that asked you about new compelted fics XD I'm sorry if that was to broad, I'm more into long fics above 30k or so so if you have any new favs ( if it was happy ending it will be much better I don't wanna be bowling my eyes out later) pretty please ^_^

I haven’t read most of these but I’m pretty sure most have happy endings^^ also not all are very new but I’m adding them if we haven’t rec’ced them because they wouldn’t have been in our word count tag before this. I’m also gonna add some that have been added to our tags in the last few months tho, just because I’m not sure what you have and haven’t read

tenacious d in the dick of destiny by jhopeg - In the midst of struggling with debts and empty plastic packets of instant ramyeon, Taehyung and Jeongguk joined forces to put the phrase “sex sells” to good use.

Invisible People by mindheist - The most important things are the hardest of all to see.

(I know this isn’t quite 30k but it’s 22k and reading mindheist is a must)

i’ll return to you (a promised handful of orange blossoms) by meanho - “Do you think he’s cosplaying an anime, or manhwa?” Jimin asked, voice in a trance. Taehyung understood his confusion because it wasn’t every day you see a person dressed as fine as the king of Joseon himself stumbling through a crowd and knocking over some Sailor Mercury’s wand. “Hmm, maybe he’s going for someone from Yona of The Dawn?” Jimin scoffed, “Yeah right, more like my 9th grade text book.”(or, the taekook Rooftop Prince AU!!) (Sequel)

of smokey bars and burning hearts by madeliefie - The boy -man- is beautiful. The way the light shines on his face tugs at Jeongguk’s heartstrings and for the first time in his life, he’s caught off guard. Jeongguk knows he isn’t going to heaven and he figures that this boy is the closest thing to an angel he’ll get. Taehyung wants the world to know who he is and Jeongguk is dangerous enough to make that happen.

Reborn in Water by TrappingLightningBugs - Freshly graduated from high school, Jungkook loses his class ring in the nearby lake, and despite the fact that his parents would be super pissed, it’s not that big of a deal. That is, until a stranger decides to appear in his bath one night, wearing his ring.

GAME OVER: Side Quest by mintsoda - “Taehyung’s eyes grow bigger than two moons, his mind goes blank, and he feels like he’s still falling from the impact of the other man throwing him down to the ground when he looks into the other’s eyes, when he takes in the scowl on his lips, the cute nose and the jet-black hair that falls into his face airily, covering his furrowed, strong eyebrows.All the sounds around him are muffled as he continues to just stare, and even when Jimin appears next to them and clutches at the stranger’s arm Taehyung cannot seem to rip his eyes away from him. And that’s when he knows that he is completely and utterly done for.”

Overtones by coley_merrin - As a vampire, Taehyung’s life is full of walls and restrictions. Jungkook is a temptation and a risk, someone who could take away Taehyung’s eternity, even as he could steal Jungkook’s future.

An Interstellar Anomaly by PaprikaFetus - They are two heirs that belong to opposite sides of the universe.

In Every Parallel Universe (I’ll Keep on Loving You) by rimacchi -   “Taehyung.” Jeongguk stops him, his hand tight on his wrist and his head roaring, aching and spinning all at the same time with his thoughts jumbling up but the elder’s lips curl — that toothy boxy grin he has seen through the years. “You disappeared. You literally disappeared. You were gone for seconds and then you just — materialized!” “I have no magic tricks, Jeonggukie.” He replies and smiles because that’s what Taehyung does. He smiles like nothing’s wrong, he laughs and makes everything brighter and beautiful and worth it. But now Jeongguk’s confused and part of him thinks it’s because of those cups of coffee last night and another thinks it’s because he’s going insane; insane because for five seconds, he saw Taehyung vanish into thin air. Or Jeongguk’s happy as a college freshman and is in love with the physical embodiment of sunshine but some shitty supernatural phenomenon makes his boyfriend appear and disappear like magic and the world must have messed up.

Bubblegum Bitch by snowmoney - Jungkook is but a simple delivery boy; the last thing he needs is a high maintenance fake boyfriend.

loving easy by aeterisks - After two years of being a cheerleader, Taehyung has come to know all the people who usually attend the basketball games. So obviously, he wouldn’t fail to notice him. (Or, Taehyung is a cheerleader, Jeongguk is a not-so-really punk and Taehyung never thought he could fall in love so effortlessly.)

you give me the whole damn zoo by themelonlord - “Taehyung, I don’t think this is a good idea,” Jimin complains as he follows closely behind Taehyung, “I mean, what do you know about this kid? He looks like some punk.” Taehyung rolls his eyes and laughs, “You know better than to judge a book by its cover.” He spots Jeongguk standing by some lockers, probably one of them is his, but he doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere. “See? He looks lost,” Taehyung points out, “It’s our job, as seniors, to offer a helping hand to new students.” - aka. taehyung learns what it means to have friends, that not everyone is as mean as those bullies that pull on his ears and make fun of his tail.

Soulmates by GiiGii - Soulmates are supposed to be rare and enviable. At the height of his career, Jungkook can’t believe he’s found his; a beautiful Omega. He also can’t believe that his soulmate has rejected him. Taehyung has struggled with being an Omega since he presented. He doesn’t want to be forced into another dominating relationship but the appearance of Jungkook is upsetting his wishes.

Kintsugi by mysweetkittae - Kintsugi (n) – The Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold. Jungkook never expected to meet him, the boy that shone as bright as a million suns yet carried a darkness so heavy in his heart that it left his soul shattered, scrambling to pick up the splintered pieces and put himself back together again before he fell apart once more. He never expected to meet him, but he did, and he wouldn’t change it for a thing.

Burnouts, Booze, and Babes by jvante - Taehyung and Jeongguk are just two small town best friends getting drunk too often and making big plans they’ll probably never achieve. Taehyung takes it upon himself to teach Jeongguk all of the proper ways to have sex, and Jeongguk swears he’s just hanging around because Taehyung’s good in bed. Who would have thought these small town losers, who used to smoke behind the school, would become jewelers at the biggest department store in Seoul.

Be Your Forever, Be Your Fling by seikou - “As long as you want me, I’ll stay. I’ll be in love with you; for eternity, forever. I don’t think that will ever change,” Jeongguk says, a smile to his voice.“You’re my first love. My only love.”

Of Knights and Prince and Wayward Adventures by NeraB - After his castle is stormed, Prince Taehyung is forced to flee to secure reinforcements and save all those he holds dear, but he can’t do it alone, and the King entrusts his only son, the future of his Kingdom, to Sir Jeon Jungkook, one of his bravest knights, and the son of his closest advisor. Together, they must learn to rely on one another as they embark on their mission and navigate their feelings, trying to survive long enough to save their home - and their future together.

Mutual Fiend by kkumkkatcher - “I didn’t recognize you with your clothes on.” An AU where Jungkook needs to kill Taehyung, but Taehyung also needs to kill Jungkook, and things get (more than) a bit complicated.

Prisoner of the Mind by pinkeow - When your mind traps you inside its cold and dark cell, how will you escape?

I love you everyday (don’t get away) by rooxynroll - “It’s not that, hyung.” He tries out, unsure if the word will displease or appease Taehyung. “I’m going first because we’re climbing down the stairs. I’m protecting you, preventing you from falling down.” The pout of Taehyung’s lips stretch into a sweet smile that reaches his tired eyes. “So… You walk down the stairs in front of me to protect me if I stumble and fall?” Jeongguk nods, doe eyes shining slightly amused by Taehyung’s question. “Hmm. Then, would you carry me down the stairs, Jeonggukie? I’m so tired I might actually hurt myself even though you’re right in front of me. I might sprain an ankle.”or: the one where tae is a model and guk protects his ass (amongst other things).

got a question or request? check our tags page first to see if what you’re looking for is already there, or use the search bar on our blog! if you don’t have any luck with that, feel free to send us an ask when the inbox is open^^

Upon the LMVH announcement of Hedi Slimane replacing (sob😢) MY *beloved* http://roseinaconcreteworld.tumblr.com/search/Celine Phobe Philo at Céline earlier this week, one's got to wonder: what is it with the never ending, dizzying chess moves amongst our treasured, highly esteemed industry? With the Womenswear shows just around the corner (starting Deb.8 to be exact), these stepups (and downs) are admittedly, rather disheartening. The constant House-hopping is undoubtedly keeping designers and aficionados alike on their toes. While Philo's departure was considered a longtime coming, is her rock'n'roll-inclined, rebellious substitute a good fit for the minimalist-focused Philowers? But that's a thesis for a different article.. In light of these major shakeups, breakups and makeups, I thought I'd breakdown the recent designers walkouts and fill-ins, a [precarious] little cheat sheet of some sort. Departures and replacements timeline •04/16 After his tenure at Dior Homme, Hedi Slimane exits YSL as creative director (2012). 37-year old Italian-Belgian Versus Versace alum Anthony Vaccarello takes on a few days later. •10/15 Raf Simons departs Christian Dior and is confirmed 8/16 as Calvin Klein's CD following Francisco Costa (who left in April '16). Simons' offerings are critically acclaimed and well received by the loyal CK fashionistas/fashionistos at his first show for the design label on 2/17. •7/16 Maria Grazia Chiuri leaves her co-designer position (and Pierpaolo Piccioli high & dry) at Valentino. She heads to Dior a few days later and becomes the French fashion label's first ever female Artistic Chief. Her first showcase on 9/17 is met with mixed reviews. •1/17: Clare wright Keller split with hobo heaven brand Chloe. She was there for 6 years. Previously at Pringle of Scotland, Keller then stands in the luxurious house's first Female Artistic Director following Riccardo Tisci's ebb which I'll touch on momentarily..👇🏾 •2/17: Tisci leaves Givenchy after 12 years handling the luxe label's Womenswear, Couture AND menswear collections. The London's Central Saint Martins graduate, whose Nike collabs become sportswear staples shortly after, is rumored to take the reins over at *Versace*. This statement hasn't been affirmed nor denied. Stay tuned, I guess 🤷🏾‍♀️ •3/17 After 4 years seconding Nicolas Ghesquière at Louis Vuitton, Natasha Ramsey Levi lands at Chloe, becoming Clare wright Keller's successor. Still keeping up? I barely can. At any rate, let's resume.. •4/17: Jenna Lyons (pictured above 👆🏾) steps down from J.Crew after 26 years as AD and president. This came out of left field. I honestly thought it was a tasteless April's fool prank 🎣🎏.Sadly it was not. Somsack Sikhounmuong takes over the American RTW brand's Head Women's design. •12/17 Jonathan Saunders resigns from DVF as Chief Creative Officer after shutting down his 10-year eponymous line back in 12/15 (exactly 2 years later. Humm🤔) He was hired in 5/16. •1/18: news report that Kim jones departs LV as Men's Artistic Director •1/21: Hedi Slimane is nominated to join Céline, effective February 1st. The designer will take on the title of Artistic, Creative & Image Director and expending the design house's Menswear, Couture and fragrance. The French-Tunisian creator is set to reveal his first collection for the brand in September during Paris Fashion Week. I couldn't go without dribbling a few gossip bits on you 'dolls 🤗✨ •I heard through the grapevine that Sicilian designer Fausto Puglisi is highly considered for a position at Roberto Cavalli. This would make total sense considering their similar ingenious imPRINT. If proven to be true then this definitely gets the RIACW stamp 🕹of approval! •We shouldn't worry too long about Phoebe as it is being whispered that she is on her way to take the reins over at Burberry, replacing Christopher Bailey [who quit the U.K. house this past October]. •Rumor has it that Lanvin alumni Alber Elbaz has been taking meetings at Chanel's HQ. This makes me ecstatic as he would be perfect as Karl's heir in perpetuating his legacy. YASSSS! But it's just hearsay. You haven't heard it from me.. And let's not omit the recent (read: numerous) designer migrations to the Cities of Angels AND Lights: •The Fall' 2017 collections saw Rebecca Minkoff and Rachel Zoe staging shows in LA in disfavor of NY •1/17 Proenza Schouler's Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough announce their Paris Couture invasion, ditching NYFW's runway altogether. The dynamic designing duo combined the brand's Main RTW and Pre-fall collections proposals during the event's Spring/Summer presentations. Yeah. My head is spinning while writing these lines 😗💨 •6/17: The exodus wave 🌊 continues as Tommy Hilfiger, high off his #TommyNow affair, vanishes from the US of A🇺🇸 and flies across the pond to see what the U.K. 🇬🇧- London precisely- is all about. •7/17 Paris born and raised Joseph Altuzarra announced his return to his hometown, forlorning his adopted city. Invited by La Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la mode, he releases his Spring '18 Ready-to-Wear in September of that same year. 1/18: A. Wang deserting the Womenswear calendar. The prominent fashion designer decided he was going to chuck up the deuces ✌🏾to NYC right after his upcoming Fall'18 collection unveil in the Big Apple on Feb 10. Moreover, his Spring 2019 collection will show later on this year in June instead of September. So what exactly causes these frequent demotions, step-outs, switch-ups and relocations? Collection overload and exhaustion. 6 offerings a year can be hard on anybody, even the most zealous style superhero. On the other hand, us fashion spectators and consumers get collections shoved down our throats with no time to digest. A brand's regular calendar withdrawal could be motivated by a desire to streamline its business and refocus its efforts on design. Again, another topic for another post. An understandable reason for American labels to flee the States is global expansion. Our darling domestic brands head overseas in hopes to build and capitalize upon their international presence. Speaking of finance, these are evidently {underlined} commerce-driven decisions as well. Yes, it is good to delve into new waters, new talents that bring in fresh ideas and perspectives. But these perpetual turnarounds and trade-ins are not the beeznass, literally. Evidently, or visibly some STEADY, long-lasting and long term adjustments will have to take place in the industry. Be it producing smaller collections or targeting specific consumer demands. Until then I predict several other swaps. These ADs better pray that they won't be next on the chopping block. Oh, and Olivier if you're reading this, please remain at Balmain and keep slaying my existence. Stay there🤚🏾Do not move a single dreamy lash set of yours. I couldn't take this heartbreak 💔 What say you? Is your head spinning from all these style shifts? Or do you think that fashion change is good and is a normal part of evolution? Sounds off in the comments below! xoxo, Deb sources: fashionnista.com, fashionnetwork.com, businessoffashion.com, Harper's Bazaar, Fashion United

05/02/2017 DAB Transcript

Judges 15:1-16:31 ~ John 2:1-25 ~ Psalm 103:1-22 ~ Proverbs 14:17-19

Today is the 2nd day of May.  Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible.  I'm Brian.  It is great to be here with you today.  I have been saying April, like April 2nd all day and I’ve realized I'm just trying to move into this month.  I have to get all my stuff out of the last month and I need to carry it forward and leave the stuff behind me that I won't be needing this month.  And we should all do that.  We’re moving into this new month, so we’ll read from the May 2nd portion of scripture which is us continuing in the story of Samson in the book of Judges, so we’re reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible this week, Judges chapter 15, verse 1 through 16, verse 31.  

Prayer

Father, thank you for your word.  Thank you for the beautiful psalms that we can continually go to that just speak all the issues of the heart.  Even in today's psalm all we can do is mimic those words – our souls praise you.  All that is within us praises your holy name. Our soul praises you.  And we do not forget all of the benefits of this relationship.  You forgive our sins.  You heal our diseases.  You redeem our lives from the pit.  You crown us with faithful love and compassion.  You satisfy us with goodness.  Our youth is renewed like the eagle.  You have not given us what we deserve.  As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is your faithful love toward those who fear you.  As far is the east is from the west, that is how far you have removed our sins from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so you have compassion on us because you know what we are made of.  So we thank you, Father.  We worship you because these are things we could never do for ourselves.  Yet you have gifted them to us because you love us.  And we love you, so we invite you anew, fresh, again.  Come Holy Spirit.  Come within.  Well up within us and lead and guide our steps today, we ask.  In Jesus’ name, amen.  

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Community Prayer Requests and Praise Reports

Hi.  This is Pam. I can actually go by Humbled, Broken, and Contrite.  This is my first time calling and I just want to say thank you to all of you.  You guys are just an amazing group of people that reach out to each other and I'm very appreciative to be part of it.  I have a prayer request for my son Randy.  He has 7 children.  He's a godly man.  He is going to have open heart surgery again.  They are going to put a pacemaker in and he needs your prayers.  God is able and he is so good to us and so I'm just asking that you please pray for him for his financial need as well as his health.  And I thank you for it.  What I want to do is actually say to everyone we have to remember that we are in war here and as a family of believers there are so many of you reaching out and it breaks my heart so I pray for you every day.  And I thank you that you’re reaching out, but we have to remember that we truly are in war.  In James it says submit yourselves then to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.  That submit is a military term used and it is to fall back into line and if you think about war, we are marching in battle with each other and when one falls down in the muck and the mud or they are shot and they are wounded, we pick up each other and we move forward because our commander and chief, God has a plan and we’re moving toward that plan and we believe...  

Hi, hello everyone.  I'm a 1-year listener, first-time caller.  I’ve been putting this off for a long time simply because I thought it would be awkward or I will be very shy, but I feel very led to do this today.  First of all, thank you Brian for this great ministry at all.  It really, really provides a routine for me.  I’ve always wanted to study the undiluted word of God, not other people's messages, interpretations, but God's word, you know?  I'm an auditory learner.  I found that out late in life and then I just realized that this is really working for me, so God bless you.  God bless your wife.  This is a great ministry and you’re literally changing lives.  I don’t fall off to sleep anymore on the word of God.  I'm really calling to thank the lady who declared a fast for marriages.  My marriage has been in trouble for the last few years and I’ve learned a lot listening to the Daily Audio Bible.  I’ve realized that I'm not alone, that many are going through infidelity like I have and during this fast, a lady called and she said that the word God gave her was to be obedient, to forgive, and be a godly woman and this is my prayer request for today as I continue to pray this over myself and over the marriages of people on this platform.  I ask that you pray for me to continue to be obedient, forgive my husband for the many wrongs that I feel he has done me, and to be a godly woman and just to listen to God daily and do what he tells me to do and I believe my marriage will be healed. Thank you and this is Bee from Athens, Greece.    

Hello from beautiful Cincinnati, OH.  This is Daniel Johnson, Jr.  It's been a long time since I’ve called and I really wish I was calling about something happy today.  I just learned that my stepsister who lived in Columbus, OH has died of an overdose. I only recently learned that she had a problem.  Her brother has been dealing with cancer this year and there has been a lot of stuff going on with my family.  Please pray for  my family and for my stepmother and her kids.  We’re finding out they just lost their child and I don’t even know how to process this right now.  I'm going through some things at church about grief and recovery in general and I never thought that I would be needing to process this so soon.  Thank you so much guys, brothers and sisters.  God bless.  From beautiful Cincinnati, OH, we can still make it a great day.    

Hey family.  It's Jordan from Michigan.  Been a couple weeks but I am calling in today which I'm excited about.  I'm back on my 60-day challenge.  Believe I'm on day 46, so today I'm grateful for Jesus giving me the ability to forgive.  It is something I always thought I had, but recently I’ve been seeing little bits of unforgiveness in my life.  So whenever somebody wrongs me I pray for that person and I pray that they will be blessed and that I will be able to forgive and forget the wrong that they have done to me.  It helps me so much at my job, in my interactions with my friends and just in my life in general.  I want to pray St. Francis’ prayer for peace.  Lord, make me a channel of your peace, that where there is hatred I may bring love, where there is wrong I may bring a spirit of forgiveness, where there is discord I may bring harmony, where there is error I may bring truth, where there is doubt I may bring faith, where there is despair I may bring hope, where there are shadows I may bring light, where there is sadness I may bring joy. Lord, grant that I may seek first to forgive than to be forgiven, to understand than to be understood, to love than to be loved for it is by forgetting the self that one finds, it is by forgiving that one is forgiven, it is by dying that one finds eternal life. Amen.  

Hi, I just wanted to call.  I'm not going to tell you guys who I am because it's not really important who I am because God knows who I am and I feel a burden on my heart to tell everyone to really search for places within us that we need to seek not only forgiveness but to forgive others.  I say that because after I became a Christian sometimes I would think about how God had forgiven me and how wonderful it was.  And it was almost like the enemy would come and say, “Yeah, but do you remember when you did this?”  And I struggled with that for so long and I realized that there was someone I had not forgiven and that was me.  I had not forgiven myself for the things I had done.  I feel that I am a better person spiritually after being able to forgive myself for what I’ve done.  And I’ve also had to go and try to forgive church hurts, ways that I’ve been hurt by people in the church.  I know people, they mean well sometimes, but there were some times that I have been hurt by people in the church and that is what I'm working on to forgive now, those hurts.  And I'm just thinking I can’t be alone in feeling like I have hurts I still need to deal with, so I just want to tell you guys forgive those that you need to forgive, but don’t forget to forgive yourself for things that we’ve done and people within the church.  Thank you. Bye-bye.  

Carson Friday August 27th, 2260 3:27 AM Standard Martian Time      Somewhere along the martian ridges that overlooked the city of Colona, a lone scout car made it’s way through the forested roads. The night was illuminated by thousands of orbital rounds hurling towards the already burning metropolis below. The roads that cut through the mountains were empty save for the piles of wrecked steel with markings of the United Nations - the remains of a defeated army. The lone scout car passed these piles of junk that were hastily moved into the ditches along the sides of the roads in order to clear the road for passing confederate assault guns that were taking their positions in the hills above the city. The scout car came to a clearing where one such battery of guns was deployed. The scout car rolled off the road and onto the the grassy hill that sloped downwards and towards a patch woods. Beyond this patch of woods were the outlying suburbs of the besieged city where the vanguard of confederate troops captured the day before. The scout car came to a stop at a position that put the entire metropolis in view.      Field Marshal Carson got out from the scout car and walked to the clearing where one of the batteries were. They were silenced, waiting for more ammunition. He did not worry, though, because he knew there were thousands of batteries, just like this one, placed on the hills above Colona picking up the slack. He continued moving, until he reached a lush tree. From there he peered outward, overlooking the city, observing the fire that many of the batteries were putting down. He took off his chest rig, sidearm belt, and the top layer of his mop suit so he could feel the cool breeze blowing in from the north. It felt rather refreshing against his face although the smell was ghastly. Missile propellant, gunpowder, even the faint smell of burning flesh. He felt the rising tide of nausea within his stomach. You never really get the smell of burning flesh out of your nose, he thought.      Carson then looked up at the assault frigates hovering above the hills, moving into position to direct their fire into the UNE forces trapped in the metropolis below. At the sight of an orbital round striking a skyscraper Carson began to plead aloud for the madness to end. “Withdraw, goddammit, withdraw” He said aloud. In his thoughts he pleaded that the UNE would leave, we roughed em up enough. He pleaded that they would count their losses and go home. He pleaded that he wouldn’t have to glass the city. It was their planet now and that would be the end of it, the confederates would have their independence.      At that moment, a second scout car pulled up next his. Out came General Burns, the head of Carson’s infantry; Carson’s right hand man. Burns saluted Carson and then took out a cigar, lit it, and then leaned against the tree taking in the sight. For a second, the salty smell of fresh tobacco filled the air around the two men. It provided a reprieve from the smell of the harsh reality of war, almost like a daydream that provides a distraction from reality, but then another gust of wind came from the north and once again the smells of death and destruction filled the air. Burns broke the silence between him and Carson. “We sure whipped em today, eh, Bob”.     “The damn fools had to stay, put up resistance” Carson said with a sense of sharp anger. “I mean I suppose they have the right to put up a fight, after all it was their territory. But now we have the high ground and control the planet, so please just withdraw. Don’t let your ignorance be the end of you”. The skyscraper that suffered a direct hit from an orbital round just moments before began to sag, a sure sign that it’s support columns were failing.      After a few moments of silence, Burns continued to gaze towards the inferno below and seemed to have gone through an epiphone. He began to speak after another orbital round just grazed the damaged skyscraper. “I suppose the first hint comes when you are in orbit” he paused and then continued after a blast erupted from the streets below. “You are looking at the continent you just glassed and the defense platform that’s split in half with humans being sucked out into space. Then you go planetside, get shot at, feel the anticipation of being killed, and seeing what a 105 artillery round does to a living breathing person like you and me. That’s when you realize what they meant. All those stories that men who have been in the shit have been telling you for years, the same message in all of ‘em, that war is the epitome of hell. Right then you get the message. You really gotta see it to believe it. It’s like that saying in the bible, fuckin come and see”. Shortly after Burns finished, the damaged skyscraper finally gave out and collapsed. A whirlwind of dust and smoke arose in it’s place.      At that very moment, Carson began to think of Buford. Carson remembered the days of his service with Buford, the days where they were both stationed on the borderlands on Ganymede where they felt they were really making a difference for the betterment of the people there. On Ganymede it was their duty to protect the innocent settlers from the outlaws and the crime syndicates. In those days, it was clear cut, a defined good and evil. These days, it was much more complex.      “Buford’s probably down there, James, following his orders as a good soldier should.” Carson said.      “Yeah, we probably know a lot of men down there, Bob. It’s easy to remember that we were once friends with those men but not anymore. If those men believe that their duty is to defend the tyranny that the institutions of Earth have placed over us, let them and then it is our duty to defeat them.” Burns turned and looked into the sad eyes of Carson. “Do your duty, Robert. Your home, your family, Mars...we count on you to see your convictions through”.      Meanwhile, on the streets of Colona enduring the bombardment, Gen. George Buford looked at the heavy face of the courier with complete despair. At a loss of words. The message: situation desperate at off world site, no help to send. on your own.      An emphasis on own, Buford thought. He looked at the period as if it were a death sentence. Buford was standing before the culmination of a military embarrassment. The confederate army swept like a mythological wind from the martian north through the continent of Tharsis at a pace no armed force has moved at in 300 years. Every UNE counter offensive would be swallowed up and crushed within days. At D’youville on the Martian plains, General Jackson’s 3rd Corps was guarding the 1st Martian Army’s eastern flank when elements of General Carson’s 5th corps, specifically Gen. Burn’s 6th Infantry Division, caught Jackson with his pants down. With just a division, Burns enveloped the entire 3rd corps and within hours the line was collapsing, fleeing in a mad panic towards Colona. The UNE had been whipped.      Alas, here is Buford standing on a bombed out street in Colona, with literally just a brigade of combat ready soldiers. A wash of walking wounded and contractors that were left behind were now all that stood in the way of the advancing confederates and the helpless evacuation at Ashbury beach. Buford looked up toward the heavens where a UNE assault carrier was in the process of disintegrating. Burning ships colored the sky red as they fell into the sea. Dante in the Inferno. Buford loaded a round into his magnum and looked out toward the beach where the young martian sea met a steel wall of discarded equipment.      He made his way through the droves of walking wounded that wandered Ashbury beach in a daze. The beach was a drunken orgy of desperation. Men played among the material waste like children on a playground, some stood in a daze laughing at the madness around them, many just sat in the open hoping the confederate strafing runs would grant them deliverance. On the boardwalk overlooking the beach, a mixed group of soldiers, contractors, and civilians were simply singing. It was a requiem that echoed through the ruined streets of Colona….The beauty of thy peace.  It was a scene of pure lunacy.      Carson was on the brink of tears but he knew if Burns saw him break down his effectiveness as a commander would have been compromised. He closed his eyes and silently pleaded with God that he didn’t have to glass the city. He pleaded that he wouldn’t be the one that would kill his friends. But then he composed himself. He took another look at the burning city below him. It was at that moment where he accepted the inevitable truth. The Armies of The United Nations of Earth were a stubborn bunch. Carson knew that they would not withdraw and after a barrage of orbital shells, Carson issued the orders to begin moving into the city.      Both men looked out across the vast burning metropolis, counted troop movements and listened to the whirl of 105′s screaming to their targets overhead. Carson thought it could have been good time to recite some Roman general who marched upon his own capital city but decided against it, figuring that Burns would have none of it. The two men, instead, stood stoically and silently, both acknowledging that there was business to be attended to.