#tev study
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No project can be absolutely risk-free and hence the analysis of the degree of technical risk and associated financial viability, through a Techno Economic Viability Study (TEV Study) is necessary to assist lenders to take a view on the acceptability of the degree of risk involved in a project.
Techno Economic Viability study of a project encompasses the evaluation of a project for evaluating the technical and financial information about the project, with relevant data about its technical feasibility and economic viability, into one or a few criteria on the basis of which the project is recommended for selection, modification or rejection.
It assists lenders to take a view on the acceptability of the degree of risk involved in a project.
It takes into account an analysis of technological risk, market risk, regulatory risk, financial risk, etc. A critical evaluation of these parameters is essential for a meaningful TEV study.
Techno Economic Viability Study provides an appraisal of the technological parameters of projects and their impact on the financial viability of projects.
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TEV Report or LIE Report or TEV Study Report or TEV Report for Funding
Techno Economic Viability (TEV) study of a project encompasses the evaluation of a project for evaluating the technical and financial information about the project, with relevant data about its technological feasibility and economic viability, into one or a few criteria on the basis of which the project is recommended for selection, modification or rejection
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Until I Met You - Chapter 11
Chapter 11: A Spark to Brighten the Underdark
Pairings: Halsin x Tav
Word count: 5,556
Rating: Currently M, will be Explicit in later chapters.
Read on AO3
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Summary: After Halsin hears Tav having nightmares, he decides to show her a little hidden gem of the Underdark. Now they both have to decide what to do with the sparks flowing between them while helping one of their friends recover from an encounter in the wilderness. Part 11 of the slow burn fic. Halsin and Tav POVs.
Tags: Slow burn, mutual pining, hurt/comfort, emotional hurt/comfort, fluff, eventual love confessions, eventual smut, angst, implied past rape/non-con and abuse, graphic description of injuries.
A/N: Drank a bunch of wine. Started writing. Bon Appetit.
See also - everyone in camp can't stop accidentally cockblocking Tav and Halsin. A little bit of a lighter chapter to offset the last one.
Tav awoke with a start, the taste of blood still evident on her tongue. She reached over to her arm to rub the phantom bruises there. Her breathing was uneven, and her heart was racing. Lunari was still curled up next to her and snoring. Rather than sit and stare at the canvas walls around her, she decided to leave the suffocating confines of her tent to go and sit by the fire.
Maybe Halsin is already awake.
With all of the nightmares she had been having, his company was a welcome comfort. It was much better than being alone with her thoughts.
Instead of finding Halsin by the fire, she ran straight into him as she just crossed the threshold of her tent.
“Oh! You’re awake. Good morning, my friend.” He stammered as she tried to get her bearings.
“Morning.” Tav shook the shock from her face. What in the hells was he doing standing outside of her tent?
They stood in awkward silence for a moment, Halsin rubbed the back of his head nervously as she ran her fingers through her hair. Her dreams were still fresh in her mind, the sight of Tev running away from her brought tears to her eyes.
“Are you…are you alright?” He finally asked her. “I’m sorry to startle you, I heard some cries coming from your tent. I was…worried.”
“Hm? Oh, yes, I’m quite fine. Just some…dreams.”
“Memories?”
She wiped the stray tears that had escaped down her cheeks. “Unpleasant ones, yes.” Halsin gave a soft grunt in response.
“Another curse of the elves. We’re blessed with such long lives, yet we’re doomed to revisit all kinds of memories in our trances, whether we want to relive it again or not.” Pain was rising in his voice, no doubt he had his fair share of unhappy memories to avoid. She nodded along with him.
“Was it the shadow curse?” He asked.
“Not this time. It’s…family related.”
Tav kept her hands tangled in her hair, not willing to look Halsin in the eye. She had kept most of her past a secret – she wasn’t sure how the others would react to her familial ties to the Mendelre house. They were rather infamous in the city, and outside of it as well. Regardless, she had left that life long ago. She wanted them to know Tav, the real her, rather than Lady Tav’ahria Mendelre.
“Would you like to talk about it?” Halsin’s voice was soft and comforting. For a moment, she considered telling him everything, but what would he think of her? Her noble heritage went against everything he stood for; she couldn’t stand the thought of losing his respect.
“I uh, I don’t think I should. It’s in the past, and I’d rather forget it. Let’s just say you wouldn’t have liked the person I was around my family.” She gave a small shake of her head, trying to stop the tears from escaping her eyes.
He studied her for a moment, his eyes sad but intense. She couldn’t hold his gaze, feeling ashamed. No matter how hard she worked to change it, she couldn’t fully leave her past behind. She would always be the little flower of the Mendelres.
“Then perhaps you’d like to take a walk with me?” Halsin was offering his hand out to her. She stared up at him, his handsome face perfectly highlighted by the fire behind him. As much as she wanted to go with him, she was worried that her knees would give out from the sight of him. Yet right now, his company was the only thing she craved. She reached out to accept his outstretched hand and he pulled her closer.
“Come on, we won’t go too far.” He held his arm out for her to take. A light blush took over her face as she wrapped hers around it.
They walked a short distance away from the camp, far enough that they could no longer see the tents, but close enough to still see the soft glow of the fire. There was a small pond of sorts, surrounded by glowing mushrooms, they were more concentrated here than in other areas of the Underdark.
“These aren’t the mushrooms that explode, right?” Tav teased. Halsin laughed in response, and she could feel it shaking his upper body as she kept her arm looped around his.
“Of course not, I do believe you set them all off the last time you ventured out into the wilderness here. I’d be surprised if there were any left based on the state of your return.” She was starting to really enjoy his sense of humor. It was shining through more and more as they continued spending time together.
“So, what are we doing here?” She eyed him, unable to hide her suspicion. He let her arm drop and moved to stand in front of her. That dazzling smile had returned, a bright beacon that threatened to blind her in this darkness.
“It’s a surprise. Close your eyes.”
***
Halsin waved a hand in front of Tav’s eyes to make sure she had really shut them. Satisfied with her lack of reaction, he bent over to pick up a couple of small rocks. He looked back over at Tav, who was waiting patiently with her eyes closed, or so he thought. One eye had peeked open and was trying to watch him.
“No peeking!” He scolded her with a smile. She jumped when she realized she was caught, a mischievous grin taking over her face. His heart started to beat faster, excited to show her this hidden gem he had found.
Once her eyes were closed again, he moved closer to the water and tossed a rock out into the pond.
“Okay, you can look now.” Halsin held his breath, waiting for her reaction.
Tav slowly opened her eyes and let out a soft gasp. The water in front of them had come alive with small luminescent creatures. Little dots of light swam along the tiny waves made by the rock he threw into the pond. Her eyes were wide with wonder, darting back and forth along the entire surface of the water.
“What do you think? I found this place shortly after you retired for the night.” He asked, his voice hopeful. More than anything he wanted to see her happy, to give her just a brief reprieve from the hardships of their journey. Maybe even more than that, he wanted someone to share this with, someone who could also appreciate such a small marvel in nature.
“It’s…” Tav shook her head as she let out a few gasping laughs. The colorful lights from the water danced across her awe-struck face, knocking the breath out of him.
“It’s incredible, Halsin! I’ve never seen anything like it.” Her laughs were heartier now, the sound filling his chest with the familiar warmth her company often brought.
Oak Father preserve me, that smile…
She continued laughing as she skipped along the edge of the water. Chasing the little creatures that swam up close to them, she looked like a child that had just been given a new toy. After a few more moments, the lights started to fade. She turned back to him, her lower lip stuck out in a slight pout.
“What happened?”
“They fade after a while, but disturbing the water will bring them back. Here.” He offered the other rock in his hand to her. She giggled with glee and tossed the small stone into the water, once again gasping as the tiny creatures lit up the ripples. Her laughs were pure delight cutting through the eerie stillness of the Underdark.
“Are they dangerous?” She had squatted down by the water, her hand resisting the temptation to reach out into it.
“As far as I am aware, no they are not.” He barely had the words out before she had her hand running through the water alongside them. The little dots of light trailed along in the wake created by her wiggling fingers.
The overwhelming affection he felt watching her made him lightheaded. A stirring in his heart that had been dormant for so long returned stronger than ever. For just a moment, there was no grief or guilt, no weight of responsibility. For just one precious moment, there was only the joy of sharing this experience with someone new, someone he was starting to truly care for. Someone who could maybe care for him too, although he didn’t dare to hope.
“I thought perhaps this could raise your spirits a bit. Being your first time in the Underdark, I figured you would be unfamiliar with these creatures.” He shifted in place, kicking the dirt at his feet. “I have precious little in the way of gifts, but I thought I could at least share this with you. After everything you’ve done for me, it’s the least I could do. I wasn’t sure what you–” Tav cut him off with a hug.
“It’s amazing. Thank you.” She squeezed his waist, and he heard her sniffle against his chest. Once again, he let himself relax into her inviting arms.
“You are most welcome.” The lights faded as he stood there hugging her back, returning the area to its usual darkness.
When she pulled away from him, she went right back to the edge of the water, picking up another rock to bring the glow back. Her look of childlike curiosity returning to her face the moment the little creatures began their colorful dance along the waves.
“Would you like to stay here with me for a while?” She turned to ask him, her smile still plastered across her face.
I think I would stay here with you forever.
“Of course. It’s not every day that you get to experience such a wonder.” He responded, no longer referring to the dancing lights in front of them. Halsin’s eyes never left Tav, even after she turned her attention back to the water in front of her.
She took a seat at the edge of the pond, patting the ground next to her for him to come sit. He happily obliged so they could watch the strange creatures together. Their lights bathed Tav in a soft glow, highlighting every line and curve on her face. He studied every detail, committing it to his memory. The freckles that covered her face and shoulders, the sharp line of her jaw, the small tattoo of a broken sword on her throat. Her long hair tumbled loosely around her shoulders, the colorful lights from the water reflected in the soft locks. The pointed tips of her ears stuck out between the strands. They would twitch a bit each time she smiled at the tiny creatures in front of her.
Why do you tempt yourself like this? What did you hope to accomplish in bringing her here?
Of course, he knew the answer. All he wanted was to see her smile, to see her laugh. He wanted any excuse to be alone with her, any excuse to hug her or touch her. Taking every chance to have those little moments of intimacy that he had craved for decades.
“Thank you…for thinking of me.” Tav sighed.
As if I could think of anything else of late.
“But please don’t think that you owe me anything.” She turned to look at him.
“You’re too modest. I would not be here if not for you. That is a debt I doubt I could ever repay.”
Tav seemed lost in thought for a moment, tossing another rock into the water to bring the strange light show back.
“Then consider the debt forgiven. I truly don’t want you to feel like you owe me anything. I want you to stay with m…us…because you want to. I want you to share things like this because you want to. Not because you feel obligated.” He could just make out tears gathering and threatening to spill down her cheeks.
“I can assure you, Tav, that I am here of my own accord. I promise you that despite the hardships, despite the dangers ahead, I am here because it is where I am needed. I…” He trailed off as he found himself lost in her kind eyes.
“When I found this place, I thought only of you. I wanted to share it only with you.” Her endearing blush crept over her face and cheeks at his words. He could feel his own face warming as well, causing him to snap his attention back to the water in front of him.
They sat in silence for a while, the only sound being the occasional rock Tav threw into the water.
“Why do we stay so long in places that make us so unhappy?” She whispered the question, almost as if she didn’t mean to speak it out loud.
“What do you mean?” Halsin had a moment of panic, was she unhappy here?
“Being here, now I’m…happy. I’m happy to be here with you, I’m happy to see these tiny new creatures for the first time. I’m happy to have our traveling party, despite the circumstances of how we met. But I spent a long time being very unhappy when I didn’t have to be.”
Halsin sat and listened quietly, waiting to let her share her thoughts. She took a deep, trembling breath.
“My family…” She trailed off. “My father wasn’t…isn’t…a good person.”
“He was awful to me and my brother. Honestly, I’m not sure which of us he hated more. I was useful to him, and he was more than happy to use me. But gods was he terrible to Tev’aron.” A few tears slid down her cheeks, shining with the different colors from the lights in the water.
“If I spoke out of turn, if I rebelled, Tev was usually the one who paid the price, not me. He knew that was a much more effective punishment. That’s not to say he didn’t take the opportunity to hurt me as well, but somehow it stung less than watching Tev suffer on my behalf.” Her voice was so small, the woman sitting next to him seemed to transform into a frightened young girl for a moment, shivering in the dark.
“Despite always paying for my mistakes, Tev loved me, he looked after me. He always came to my rescue even though it meant suffering for him. And I let him take on that suffering for so many years.
“I could have left, Tev begged me to for years before he escaped. We could have snuck out and made a new life for ourselves much sooner than we did. I could have saved both of us so much pain…” The small breaks in her voice brought tears to his eyes.
“Why did I stay?” She turned to face him. Her eyes were pleading for an answer that he couldn’t give.
Halsin was hardly the best person to ask. How long did he stay at the grove despite his sadness? For years before he met Tav he had yearned to roam and explore, to return to Moonrise to bring back the light, to return to his home in the High Forest. Yet, he also stayed. How long had he denied himself happiness in the name of responsibility?
“Often times I don’t think we know how truly miserable we are until someone comes along to show us. The pull of obligation and responsibility is a strong one. I think we need just a small glimpse of freedom to know what we’re missing, but once we have it…” He reached out to take one of her hands. “It’s impossible to look back.”
She smiled weakly back at him.
“No person can break through such hardship alone. We need others to help lift that veil, and it sounds to me like Tev did that for you. Even if it took longer than you would have liked.”
“I just wish I could have repaid the favor, you know?” She sniffled.
Oh Tav, so willing to forgive everyone’s debts except your own.
“Perhaps you have.” He said, his voice soft. She gave him an inquisitive look in response.
“You may not have been able to do the same for your brother…but look at what you’ve done for everyone here with you now. How many of us here have been shown the freedom and happiness we’ve desired through you? You are a guiding light in the darkness helping to brighten our path. You are far too hard on yourself, my friend. I think Tev would be quite proud to see what you’ve done for the others in your care.”
“I miss him, Halsin.” She wiped a few more tears from her face.
“I know, Tav. I know.” And he did. His entire family had passed, parents and siblings alike. It had been so long that he could hardly recall any details about them. Only fragments remained, his mother’s hair, his father’s strong hands, his sister’s laugh…
His thoughts were interrupted when Tav leaned over to him and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. The gesture made his breath catch and his heart stop. His fingers moved to his face to trace the spot where her lips met his skin.
“I’m so glad I met you, Halsin. You’re…a wonderful friend.” She smiled that oh so sweet smile at him, once again stirring him to his core. The tiny lights reflected in her teary eyes caused them to sparkle. They were sitting so close, all he would have to do is lean forward a bit and feel her soft lips against his…
“You’re…beautiful.” The Elvish whisper escaped his lips before he could stop it.
Her blush returned as she stared back at him, stunned.
“What did you say?” Her smile widened.
Panic spread over him. He didn’t mean for this to happen, he should have been able to control himself. Apparently, he underestimated just how intoxicating her company would be sitting here by the glowing pond.
“I…uh…I mean you are…” He started stammering wildly, unable to form a coherent thought. His eyes wandered to her lips, desperate to feel their touch again.
Tav was about to say something when another voice called out to them from the darkness. Halsin let out a deep breath, happy to have bought himself just a little more time. She slowly took her hand back, leaving him feeling just a touch colder than before.
***
Tav and Halsin’s conversation was cut short as Astarion wandered into the small clearing. She took a quick, shaky breath to compose herself before turning to face him.
“Astarion? How long have you been up?” Tav smiled as he walked over towards them. She stood up to greet him, hoping her blush wasn’t still noticeable.
“There you are! My friend…” He giggled as he yelled out to her.
“Are you…are you drunk?” Tav snorted at Astarion’s stumbling display.
“I have…been…drunking…drinking yes.” He smiled and leaned against her shoulder. “I found a bear. He took a little of my blood, I took all of his.” His slurred words tickled her ears.
“Quite a dangerous meal. Where did you find a bear down here?” Tav giggled along with him as he leaned onto her shoulder for support.
“I mean – I think it was a bear? Big head, four legs, hair that gets stuck in your teeth…” Astarion gestured his hands toward his fangs as he recounted his tale.
“Whatever it was…I thoroughly enjoyed it.” He laughed some more as Tav put an arm around his back to help hold him up. Her breath caught as she felt lines of raised skin through his flowy shirt.
“Astarion?” She asked as she moved her hand across his back, feeling more bumps and lines as she went along.
“Darling, if you want to keep touching me like that, you’ll need to find something to drink too.” He moved his face to be much closer to hers and booped her nose, a goofy smile spread across his face. She gently pushed him back as she laughed at his drunken display.
“No, you lightweight. What’s on your back? Did you get hurt and not tell anyone? It feels like there’s some scarring.” She tried to bring him over to sit down, but with a sudden moment of sobriety he spun out of her grasp.
“What? No, it’s nothing.” He blurted. “Just probably some dirt and rocks from wrestling with that bear.” His eyes darted around him, and she noticed one of his hands shaking. “Maybe learn to keep your hands to yourself, my friend. Then we won’t have silly misunderstandings like these.” He turned to continue stumbling off toward their camp.
“Wh–” Tav started to stammer, looking at Halsin who seemed equally confused.
Watching him walk away brought her dream back to the front of her mind. The way his messy curls bounced around his head, disappearing into the dark environment, brought Tev back to her for just a moment. How she watched him run from her to his freedom…
She forced herself back to the present. Astarion wasn’t leaving, he was just going back to camp. And Tev…Tev wasn’t here anymore.
“Are there…bears in the Underdark?” She turned her attention away from Astarion as he continued to stagger away from them.
“Not typically, no.” Halsin’s expression shifted to concern.
“Then what the hells did he dr–” Tav was stifling a laugh when he cut her off.
“Perhaps I should go check on him…make sure it wasn’t anything too poisonous.” He chuckled alongside her as he ran after the inebriated vampire. She followed a little slower behind them, fighting the ridiculous smile tugging at her lips.
You’re…beautiful.
They were words she had heard countless times in her life, usually a drunken slur into her ears as she entertained yet another potential benefactor for her father. Or used by her father himself. Words of flattery were often thrown her way but seldom made her feel anything.
But from Halsin? It was like she was hearing it for the first time. The way he whispered it to her, it was like he couldn’t control the words forming, they just spilled out. He didn’t say it because he wanted something from her, he said it as if he couldn’t possibly hold it in any longer. Her heart was still racing from the short conversation.
When she kissed his cheek, the sensation was sparks against her lips, setting the kindling in her heart aflame; a fire that filled her chest and warmed her entire body. She licked her lips lightly as she walked with the hope that she could maybe still taste him there. When they first met, she was enamored with his handsome face and broad, muscled shoulders. The first time Tav saw him smile, she had thought for sure she was going to faint. At their party with the tieflings, she had propositioned him hoping for a night of raw passion and pleasure. After all, they’d only known one another less than a day. But of course, if he had wanted to get to know one another better afterwards that would have been a welcome bonus.
Flash forward to today and here she was blushing like a little schoolgirl over a kiss on the cheek and fawning over two little words…
You’re…beautiful.
Now, Tav wanted much more than a single night of fun and lust. She wanted to curl up in his lap and fall asleep to the sound of his breaths and heartbeat. She wanted to run her hands through his hair again, gently untangling the little braids he weaved into the strands. She wanted to keep hearing his laugh and feel the way it shook his entire torso. And gods did she want to kiss that gorgeous face. All along his scars, the tips of his nose and ears, slowly making her way to his lips.
Tav took a deep breath, drawing in the cool air to douse the flames starting to rage inside of her. From the way he spoke, Halsin wanted something more, but for the life of her she couldn’t figure out what that was.
You’re…beautiful.
“Taaaavvvvv…” Astarion’s slurred cry brought her head down from the clouds. She looked up just in time to see him throwing up in the bushes behind his tent. Halsin stood next to him, giving him reassuring pats on the back.
“Oh Astarion…” She came over to help Halsin hold him up. “Did you find out what the fuck he was drinking?”
“Well, if we’re going by his description…some unholy cross between a bear, a bulette, a lich and just a touch of beholder.”
Tav snorted. “Well, that’s quite an abomination. Should we be concerned?”
“I don’t think so. We should let him purge as much of it as possible and then monitor him for a while.” Halsin gave him a couple more pats on the back as he threw up some more. Tav gagged at the sight.
“Oh gods…why is it blue?” She turned away to try and calm her own stomach.
“Oh, Tav…don’t tell me you’re squeamish from a bit of vomit. Last time we were in the Underdark you nearly lost a leg.” Halsin laughed at her.
“When it’s blue?! Yeah, it makes me a little squeamish. Blood is blood, vomit is…well it shouldn’t be that color.”
He shook his head fondly at her gagging.
“Okay darlings, I’m ready to wash all of this down with a nice glass of wine.” Astarion spun around and almost faceplanted into the dirt. Luckily Halsin still had ahold of his shirt and caught him.
“Okay my friend, why don’t you come sit with Tav and I by the fire?” Halsin persuaded him to follow them.
Halsin sat their pale friend between them on one of the logs they had rolled over by the fire pit. He leaned onto Tav’s shoulder and groaned. She rested her cheek on his head.
“Astarion, love, are you okay?” More groaning. She pushed some of his hair from his face and tucked it among the strands on the top of his head. The way his white curls stuck out in all directions after his sojourn from camp reminded her so much of Tev. He could never be bothered to run a comb through that mop of hair unless she did it for him. Instinct took over and she started smoothing the wild strands down on his head to tame them. Her fingers made quick work of the tangled curls, coercing them back into place.
“Perhaps we need to find him something safe to eat. I must admit that I’m not overly familiar with vampire physiology. Can they be hungover?” Halsin snickered.
“No worries, I can help with that.” She tilted Astarion’s head back slightly as she wrapped an arm around his shoulders, causing him to giggle. Once again, she felt the raised bumps and lines along his back.
Definitely scars.
“Here buddy, you need to drink some healthy blood.” Tav placed her free wrist up close to his mouth.
“Wait! Are you sure?” Halsin looked startled at her offer.
“Don’t worry, he mostly has his hunger under control. I’ve let him drink my blood a couple of times.”
“Mostly?” Halsin’s eyes were wide with worry.
“It’s fine, Halsin. I trust him. Besides, if I start looking too pallid you can just pull him off me. I doubt he’ll be able to put up much of a fight.” She winked at him as Astarion brought his mouth to her arm.
The familiar sting of his fangs sinking into her soft flesh caused her to draw in a sharp breath. Halsin tensed on the other side of Astarion, panic evident on his face. After a moment, the initial pain faded and Tav relaxed. She hugged him a little tighter and stroked Astarion’s arm as he fed from her other wrist. His head made its way back onto her shoulder.
“Not many people would trust a vampire not to drain every drop of blood from their body.” Halsin kept his wary eyes moving between the two of them.
“Despite his aloof and prickly attitude, I really do think he cares about us. Besides, look at him. He is absolutely clobbered right now, he could hardly kill a fly in this state.” She rested her head back on top of his. Halsin was studying them intently when Astarion dropped her wrist and turned toward him.
“So, mister Archdruid…” His words were a little less slurred than before. A little. “When are you going to lock this little elf lady down, eh?” He tried to tap Halsin on the nose, but missed and poked him in the eye instead.
“Ow.” Halsin laughed as he placed Astarion’s hand back in his lap.
“Ha! Okay Astarion, you shouldn’t talk with your mouth full, it’s awfully rude, love.” Tav shoved her wrist back into his mouth to cut him off, desperate to conceal the redness coming over her face. His teeth sunk back into the small punctures from his first bite without a struggle.
They sat in uncomfortable silence as he continued to suck the warm blood from her veins. After a couple of minutes, she pulled her arm away. Astarion gave a small pout at the move.
“No need to sulk, Astarion. Our friend is going to need her strength today.” Halsin helped him stand up. They helped move him down to Halsin’s bedroll that was still spread out near the fire.
“I don’t sulk, darling, I brood.” He mumbled before falling face first onto the soft fabric. After drinking her blood, his cheeks had started to take on a bit of a rosy hue.
“Of course, my apologies.” Halsin chuckled as he sat back down next to Tav, closer than before now that Astarion was no longer between them.
“Aw man, is Astarion okay?” Karlach had woken up and joined them.
“He’ll be fine.” Halsin assured her. “He just chose a poor target for his evening meal.”
“What did he eat?”
“No idea.” They answered at the same time. Tav filled Karlach in on their encounter with him from the morning. She left out the detail about his scars, there was something about them that he didn’t want to share, and she felt it wasn’t her place to reveal them.
“Poor Fangs.” Karlach went and sat on the ground next to Astarion.
“Let me see your hand.” Halsin was offering his out to Tav.
She placed her bloodied wrist in his hand, the partially congealed bite marks had stopped oozing. Both punctures had a tiny bruise encircling it. His now familiar magic surged around her, closing the wounds and healing the small bruises left there.
Even once all evidence of the bite was gone, he kept a gentle grip on her wrist. His thumb ran over the area where she had been bitten, the feather light touch sent shivers through her body. She bit her lip as she watched him trace small circles into the sensitive skin.
“Ahem!” Karlach cleared her throat while grinning at them. They snapped their heads toward her, startled. “Oh good, just wanted to make sure you remembered I was here.”
Halsin dropped her hand and scooted a couple of inches away from her. Karlach kept her grin spread across her face as she stood up.
“Who’s on breakfast duty today? I’m going to go and kick their tent walls to get them moving. Mama K’s getting hungry.” She skipped off toward Gale’s tent to try and coerce some cooking out of him.
“I uh, I should probably start getting our things around for the day.” Tav stood up and turned back to Halsin, twirling strands of hair around her fingers. He followed her up from their seats.
“Listen, Tav…” He started. “About what I said, I…it’s just…y-you are beautiful, obviously…I didn’t mean to…” He let out a grunt and averted his eyes as a flustered blush fell over his face and neck.
Tav reached up and lightly held his chin between her fingers, bringing his gaze back to meet hers. Her thumb traced the small scar there causing his eyelids to flutter at the touch.
“You’re pretty easy on the eyes yourself.” His lips parted to let out a soft sigh. “Thank you again for sharing that with me.” She let her hand drop.
“Anytime.” He whispered.
“Are you okay with keeping an eye on Astarion while we go explore today?”
“Of course, I think it’s for the best if he stays here to rest for a bit.” Halsin glanced over his shoulder where Astarion was still lying by the fire.
“Thank you, I’ll feel better knowing you’re here with him.” She gave a light squeeze of his arm before turning to gather her things for the day. His light touches on her wrist lingered, making her chest feel warm again.
Tav tried to shift her focus back to the treacherous outing they had planned for the day ahead. More exploring in the Underdark, a search for murderous duergar, and a secret fortress hidden somewhere that would lead them to Moonrise Towers and the shadow curse. Despite the dangers they faced, those two sweet words still rang in the front of Tav’s mind.
You’re…beautiful.
#these two have completely rotted my brain#bg3#bg3 fanfiction#baldur's gate 3#baldur's gate iii#bg3 halsin#halsin x tav#halsin fanfic#halsin silverbough#bg3 fluff#halsin fluff
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One of my favourite science and engineering facts is that an underground river was frozen to enable the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to be built! On its completion, it helped to complete the proverbial jigsaw of the Standard Model with is last piece, the Higgs Boson. But that’s about as far as it has got with no other exciting leaps forward in uniting gravity and quantum physics. Plans are now afoot to build a new collider that will be three times longer than the LHC and it will be capable of smashing particles together with significantly more energy. In the past few decades, particle colliders have become a key tool for unraveling the mysteries of the universe at the fundamental level. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), was a game changer and, with an amazing 27km circumference became the world’s most powerful collider. There are now plans to increase the number of collisions to try and improve its input to understanding the Universe but even with this ‘High Luminosity’ phase, CERN (European Council for Nuclear Research) wants to go even further and build a new collider! If colliders like LHC are to play a part in high energy physics over the coming years then energy thresholds need to pushed beyond current capabilities. The Future Circular Collider (FCC) study has looked into various collider designs, envisaging a research infrastructure housed within a 100km underground tunnel. This ambitious project is promising a physics program that will take high energy research into the next century. There are a number of challenges that face the design and engineering of the new tunnel however; it must steer clear of geologically interesting areas, optimise future collider efficiency, allow for connectivity with the LHC, and adhere to social and environmental impacts of the surface buildings and infrastructure. Choosing ‘where to put it’ seems to be quite the challenge so a range of layout options are being considered, guided by CERN’s intent to avoid the impact on the area. Within the FCC tunnel (which looks like it will be placed beneath ring-shaped underground tunnel located beneath Haute-Savoie and Ain in France and Geneva in Switzerland) will be two colliders that will work together sequentially. The first phase is scheduled for inauguration around mid-2040s and comprises an electron-positron collider (FCC-ee). The hope is that it will give unparalleled precision measurements and unveil physics beyond the standard model. Following hot on its heels will be the proton-proton collider (FCC-hh) which will surpass the energy capability of LHC eightfold! It’s an exciting prospect that FCC will push particle collision to energies of 100 TeV in the hope of uncovering new realms of physics. To achieve the goal however, new technological advances will be required and to that end, over 150 universities from around the world are exploring the options. Source : Feasibility Study into new Super Collider The post CERN Wants to Build an Enormous New Atom Smasher: the Future Circular Collider appeared first on Universe Today.
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A new kink in proton spectrum will enhance our knowledge of cosmic ray origin The GRAPES-3 experiment in Ooty, India, operated by the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research has discovered a new feature in the cosmic-ray proton spectrum at around 166 tera-electron-volt (TeV) energy while measuring the spectrum spanning from 50 TeV to a little over one peta-electron-volt (PeV). The observed feature suggests a potential re-evaluation of our understanding of cosmic-ray sources, acceleration mechanisms, and their propagation within our Galaxy.Cosmic rays were discovered more than a century ago. They are considered as the most energetic particles to be existed in the Universe. Our planet is constantly bombarded by them from outer space almost uniformly from all directions at a constant rate. They enter into our Earth’s atmosphere and induce a shower of particles that travel to the ground almost at the speed of light. The shower particles constitute electrons, photons, muons, protons, neutrons etc.Cosmic rays have been observed over a remarkably wide energy range (108 to 1020 eV). The flux of cosmic ray particles decreases steeply with energy according to power-law. A kink in the cosmic-ray proton at about 3 PeV known as the knee which was discovered about seven decade ago, is believed to be the maximum energy for cosmic-ray acceleration within the Galactic sources. Single power-law description of the cosmic ray spectrum up to the knee energy has been held for a long time and explained by various models. This observation by the GRAPES-3 experiment shows a new feature above 100 TeV and below the knee.Utilizing a combination of a dense array of plastic scintillator detectors and a large-area muon detector, the researchers at the GRAPES-3 experiment collected data with a collection area several thousand times larger than space-based detectors, allowing for a more detailed examination of cosmic rays above 100 TeV, where space-based measurements lack precision due to low statistics. About a sub-set of eight million cosmic ray shower events recorded by these detectors was analysed by Fahim Varsi and other team members to measure the cosmic-ray spectrum combined with CPU-intensive computer simulations.The study was led by Pravata K. Mohanty, the Principal Investigator of the GRAPES-3 experiment and a faculty member at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. The findings have been published in Physical Review Letters.
IMAGE....A view of the GRAPES-3 experiment in Ooty, India depicted with a simulated cosmic ray shower. Results of cosmic ray proton spectrum measurement by GRAPES-3 along with space and ground-based experiments are shown. Credit TIFR
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Perfect Girl || Flashback
Date: May 1769
Location: A typical rich people party on Kraysha
Notes: A look into how a young Samira lived under her perfectionist father.
Samira hated being in full form. She hated the attention it brought her. The stares of awe. And worse - desire. But it was a strict rule that she was to be in full form at all public functions. And the only the worse than the attention she was currently getting from being in her full form was her father's disappointment.
"Rolan, my good man! You look not a day over one hundred and ten." An associate of her father's seemingly appeared out of nowhere, and eagerly shook his hand.
Her father, Rolan, shook the other man's hand firmly. "Tev, always a pleasure to see you. How's the mining going?"
Boring corporate talk, as usual. Then the conversation inevitably turned to her.
"- beautiful daughter you have, Rolan." Ugh. "Easily one of the most beautiful I have ever laid eyes upon. It is as if dusk itself has come to life. Absolutely gorgeous." It was never not uncomfortable when older Erkuss men focused so much on her looks, particularly when she wasn't fully matured yet. Her father at least found value in her intellect. Maybe equally with her looks, but at least he acknowledged her intellect.
"Thank you, Tev. As you are aware, it does not get more beautiful than the Djayyar. And I am blessed that Samira has grown to be the most beautiful of them all."
He made it sound so natural, when really it was strict diets and mandated daily physical fitness that kept her this way. On top of the other things he pressured her to be perfect at.
Tev smiled at her. "You are quite lucky to have such an esteemed family take you in, Samira. People of... lower status would not know how to provide the care those of your kind deserve."
Samira forced a smile. "I am lucky indeed, Mister Tev. I could not fathom having any other family."
Both Tev and her father appeared to like that response. Her father softly placed a hand on her shoulder. The smile on her face turned genuine. Despite how wrong some of the things said around her were, they were easily trumped by her father's approval.
"Will you be joining the family business once your schooling is complete?" Tev asked.
Samira was about to answer, but her father interjected.
"Samira is looking to study medicine. A few in my family have done so as well, so I do not object. And Samira is brilliant. She will easily surpass every physician on this planet."
Now Samira was beaming. Her father, despite his extremely high expectations, really did believe in her.
"Really! That is valiant of you, Samira," Tev nodded. "It is also fitting, given the impact your family has on providing the highest quality medications on Kraysha."
Samira wanted to speak, but again her father spoke for her.
"No better way to distribute our products than through one of our own."
That wasn't quite why Samira wanted to be a doctor. She wanted to help people without the incentive of profit. But she knew her family wouldn't understand. None of them helped people without some sort of reward for themselves. That included all of the charities, the publicity stunts, and whatever else made her family look good. A good reputation meant high sales. She wasn't currently in training for business, but it was easy to see that.
When Tev and her father finally finished speaking, she spotted another associate coming up to them. Again, another conversation about how perfect she looked, and her father bragging about it further. And again, and again, and again the entire night.
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The Oh-My-God particle was an ultra-high-energy cosmic ray detected on 15 October 1991 by the Fly's Eye camera in Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, United States.[1][2][3] As of 2023 it is the highest-energy cosmic ray ever observed.[4] Its energy was estimated as (3.2±0.9)×1020 eV (320 million TeV). The particle's energy was unexpected and called into question theories of that era about the origin and propagation of cosmic rays.
. . .
Due to special relativity, the relativistic time dilation experienced by a proton traveling at this speed would be extreme. If the proton originated from a distance of 1.5 billion light years, it would take approximately 1.71 days from the reference frame of the proton to travel that distance.
. . .
Since the first observation, hundreds of similar events (energy 5.7×1019 eV or greater) have been recorded, confirming the phenomenon.[9][10] These ultra-high-energy cosmic ray particles are very rare; the energy of most cosmic ray particles is between 107 eV and 1010 eV.
More recent studies using the Telescope Array Project have suggested a source of the particles within a 20 degree radius "warm spot" in the direction of the constellation Ursa Major.[3][10][11]
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MoEDAL zeroes in on magnetic monopoles
MoEDAL zeroes in on magnetic monopoles
The MoEDAL detector (Image: CERN)
The late physicist Joseph Polchinski once said the existence of magnetic monopoles is “one of the safest bets that one can make about physics not yet seen”. In its quest for these particles, which have a magnetic charge and are predicted by several theories that extend the Standard Model, the MoEDAL collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has not yet proven Polchinski right, but its latest findings mark a significant stride forward. The results, reported in two papers posted on the arXiv preprint server, considerably narrow the search window for these hypothetical particles.
At the LHC, pairs of magnetic monopoles could be produced in interactions between protons or heavy ions. In collisions between protons, they could be formed from a single virtual photon (the Drell–Yan mechanism) or the fusion of two virtual photons (the photon-fusion mechanism). Pairs of magnetic monopoles could also be produced from the vacuum in the enormous magnetic fields created in near-miss heavy-ion collisions, through a process called the Schwinger mechanism.
Since it started taking data in 2012, MoEDAL has achieved several firsts, including conducting the first searches at the LHC for magnetic monopoles produced via the photon-fusion mechanism and through the Schwinger mechanism. In the first of its latest studies, the MoEDAL collaboration sought monopoles and high-electric-charge objects (HECOs) produced via the Drell–Yan and photon-fusion mechanisms. The search was based on proton–proton collision data collected during Run 2 of the LHC, using the full MoEDAL detector for the first time.
The full detector comprises two main systems sensitive to magnetic monopoles, HECOs and other highly ionising hypothetical particles. The first can permanently register the tracks of magnetic monopoles and HECOs, with no background signals from Standard Model particles. These tracks are measured using optical scanning microscopes at INFN Bologna. The second system consists of roughly a tonne of trapping volumes designed to capture magnetic monopoles. These trapping volumes – which make MoEDAL the only collider experiment in the world that can definitively and directly identify the magnetic charge of magnetic monopoles – are scanned at ETH Zurich using a special type of magnetometer called a SQUID to look for any trapped monopoles they may contain.
In their latest scanning of the trapping volumes, the MoEDAL team found no magnetic monopoles or HECOs, but it set bounds on the mass and production rate of these particles for different values of particle spin, an intrinsic form of angular momentum. For magnetic monopoles, the mass bounds were set for magnetic charges from 1 to 10 times the fundamental unit of magnetic charge, the Dirac charge (gD), and the existence of monopoles with masses as high as about 3.9 trillion electronvolts (TeV) was excluded. For HECOs, the mass limits were established for electric charges from 5e to 350e, where e is the electron charge, and the existence of HECOs with masses ranging up to 3.4 TeV was ruled out.
“MoEDAL’s search reach for both monopoles and HECOs allows the collaboration to survey a huge swathe of the theoretical ‘discovery space’ for these hypothetical particles,” says MoEDAL spokesperson James Pinfold.
In its second latest study, the MoEDAL team concentrated on the search for monopoles produced via the Schwinger mechanism in heavy-ion collision data taken during Run 1 of the LHC. In a unique endeavour, it scanned a decommissioned section of the CMS experiment beam pipe, instead of the MoEDAL detector’s trapping volumes, in search of trapped monopoles. Once again, the team found no monopoles, but it set the strongest-to-date mass limits on Schwinger monopoles with a charge between 2gD and 45gD, ruling out the existence of monopoles with masses of up to 80 GeV.
“The vital importance of the… https://home.web.cern.ch/news/news/physics/moedal-zeroes-magnetic-monopoles (Source of the original content)
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March 27, 2024 @0356H
Exactly the date of the release of the MTLE result. We're expecting it to be later this afternoon or evening.
A day or 2 before the exam
I wasnt able to make an update duringg these days because we already went to the place where we stayed annnd I crammed alot of notes + closed door exams. It was mind wrecking. Last minute I was studying.
Day 1
After finishing the first subjec, I already felt that it's over. I cried when I saw Kath sa hallway. But I had no choice but to continue. Luckily, CM was a bit easy. Pang palubag loob kung baga.
Day 2
I find ISBB and Hema quite alright. Histopath, wow, save the best for last talaga. As someone who didn't study HTMLB, in short, alay, grabe ang daming histopath na tanong, about 90% ay histopath then the rest ay totoo ngang very out of medtech na.
BE aftermath
I honestly felt scared, and fear dominated over faith. My heart wanted to scream. My eyes felt like waterfall. I was able to sleep naman after since we drank jacoke right after day 2.
Waiting Game
Eto yung probably mas mahirap pa kaysa sa BE. A lot of pipol were rationalizing, twitter, messenger, facebook, reddit, discord. Gosh, it's everywhere!! But yknow what? I cant stop looking at those things. The more I read and look, the more I realize the chance of me passing is very slim. Heck, i cant even remember the questions and even if I did, I cant recall my answer!
As a distraction, I just cleaned our house, bathed my dog, and tried to get involved in family business but at the end of the day, the thought of BE result kept lingering. I just prayed on it. Pray and pray and pray.
Release of Result
Grabeee yung pag release ng result, I was asleep. It was around 1:30 am of March 27, 2024. Jawie was the first one to congratulate me. And I quickly jumped into my laptop to see my name. And viola, page 60, number 2916. There, my name is on the list of passers! Wala sa topnotchers, haha chariz.
Tbh, I didnt know what to feel cause some of my friends, my dear ones, weren't on the list. I cant even post my name sa messenger nor sa facebook because I dont wanna make them feel behind, although ang dami na nakapag post sa batchmates ko. Still, I dont wanna be the one to cause them to feel that way. Hanggang ngayon di ko alam kung ano mararamdaman ko. Heaven knows how thankful I am, I really am. St. Joseph of Cupertino, St. Jude of Thaddeus interceeded for me. I cant thank them enough for allowing me to pass the BE.
Pero yung thought na hindi nakapasa iba kong kaibigan, really saddened me. Jinkx, Tevs, Tofu, and Ally, may you guys keep on going. Keep on striving. You may be saddened by today's result, but that should not be the reason for you to stop pursuing. I believe in you guys. Kayang kaya niyo! I will always be right here for you. And when the time is right, the Lord will it happen.
At this moment, mas nangingibabaw ang lungkot kaysa saya. But nonetheless, I owe it all to God, who never ceases to fail me. Who gave me all the strength from the start until the very end of the waiting game.
I'll rest muna. Unang tulog as RMT
Doreen Nizza C. Ferrer, RMT because of God's grace 🙏
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M1 - Crab Nebula
See full resolution image at: https://www.astrobin.com/rejqjs/
The Crab Nebula (catalogue designations M1, NGC 1952, Taurus A) is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus. The common name comes from a drawing that somewhat resembled a crab with arms produced by William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse, in 1842 or 1843 using a 36-inch (91 cm) telescope. The nebula was discovered by English astronomer John Bevis in 1731. It corresponds with a bright supernova recorded by Chinese astronomers in 1054 as a guest star. The nebula was the first astronomical object identified that corresponds with a historically-observed supernova explosion.
The nebula was independently rediscovered in 1758 by Charles Messier as he was observing a bright comet. Messier catalogued it as the first entry in his catalogue of comet-like objects; in 1757, Alexis Clairaut reexamined the calculations of Edmund Halley and predicted the return of Halley's Comet in late 1758. The exact time of the comet's return required the consideration of perturbations to its orbit caused by planets in the Solar System such as Jupiter, which Clairaut and his two colleagues Jérôme Lalande and Nicole-Reine Lepaute carried out more precisely than Halley, finding that the comet should appear in the constellation of Taurus. It was in searching in vain for the comet that Charles Messier found the Crab Nebula, which he at first thought to be Halley's comet. After some observation, noticing that the object that he was observing was not moving across the sky, Messier concluded that the object was not a comet. Messier then realized the usefulness of compiling a catalogue of celestial objects of a cloudy nature, but fixed in the sky, to avoid incorrectly cataloguing them as comets. This realization led him to compile the "Messier catalogue"
At an apparent magnitude of 8.4, comparable to that of Saturn's moon Titan, it is not visible to the naked eye but can be made out using binoculars under favorable conditions. The nebula lies in the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy, at a distance of about 2.0 kiloparsecs (6,500 ly) from Earth. It has a diameter of 3.4 parsecs (11 ly), corresponding to an apparent diameter of some 7 arcminutes, and is expanding at a rate of about 1,500 kilometres per second (930 mi/s), or 0.5% of the speed of light.
At the center of the nebula lies the Crab Pulsar, a neutron star 28–30 kilometres (17–19 mi) across with a spin rate of 30.2 times per second, which emits pulses of radiation from gamma rays to radio waves. At X-ray and gamma ray energies above 30 keV, the Crab Nebula is generally the brightest persistent gamma-ray source in the sky, with measured flux extending to above 10 TeV. The nebula's radiation allows detailed study of celestial bodies that occult it. In the 1950s and 1960s, the Sun's corona was mapped from observations of the Crab Nebula's radio waves passing through it, and in 2003, the thickness of the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan was measured as it blocked out X-rays from the nebula.
This RGB image is a total of a little under 6 hours of integration over 2 nights (2/18/24 and 2/25/24) consisting of:
- 190 x 60s light frames
- 61 x 120s light frames
- 10 x 180s light frames
Processed in PixInsight using the new GradientCorrection tool (which really helped with the moon-induced gradients on the data taken 2/18).
Celestron C9.25 Edge at F/10
ZWO ASI2600MC Pro Camera
Optolong L-Pro filter
ZWO AM5 mount
Astromania 50mm f/4 Guide Scope
ZWO ASI120MM Mini Guide Camera
ZWO ASIAIR plus controller
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Chemoproteomics identifies proteoform-selective caspase-2 inhibitors
Caspases are a highly conserved family of cysteine-aspartyl proteases known for their essential roles in regulating apoptosis, inflammation, cell differentiation, and proliferation. Complementary to genetic approaches, small-molecule probes have emerged as useful tools for modulating caspase activity. However, due to the high sequence and structure homology of all twelve human caspases, achieving selectivity remains a central challenge for caspase-directed small-molecule inhibitor development efforts. Here, using mass spectrometry-based chemoproteomics, we first identify a highly reactive non-catalytic cysteine that is unique to caspase-2. By combining both gel-based activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) and a tobacco etch virus (TEV) protease activation assay, we then identify covalent lead compounds that react preferentially with this cysteine and afford a complete blockade of caspase-2 activity. Inhibitory activity is restricted to the zymogen or precursor form of monomeric caspase-2. Focused analogue synthesis combined with chemoproteomic target engagement analysis in cellular lysates and in cells yielded both pan-caspase reactive molecules and caspase-2 selective lead compounds together with a structurally matched inactive control. Application of this focused set of tool compounds to stratify caspase contributions to initiation of intrinsic apoptosis, supports compensatory caspase-9 activity in the context of caspase-2 inactivation. More broadly, our study highlights future opportunities for the development of proteoform-selective caspase inhibitors that target non-conserved and non-catalytic cysteine residues. http://dlvr.it/Sy27YS
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#science#physic#news#technology#space#Astronomy#NASA#Night#Sky#Stars#Space#Science#Universe#Cosmos#Cosmic#Solar System#Milky Way#Bioluminescence#Galaxy#Nebula#Constellations#Constellation#Rainbow#Bright
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Until I Met You - Chapter 14
Chapter 14: A Wilting Flower
Pairings: Halsin x Tav
Word count: 4,425
Rating: Currently M, will be Explicit in later chapters.
Read on AO3
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Summary: Another chapter focusing on Tav'ahria's backstory as her reluctant engagement to Noravi Sylvyre is being announced.
**Mind the new tags!** There is a brief mention of suicidal thoughts toward the beginning. Part 14 of the slow burn fic. Tav POV.
Tags: Slow burn, mutual pining, hurt/comfort, emotional hurt/comfort, fluff, eventual love confessions, eventual smut, angst, implied past rape/non-con and abuse, graphic description of injuries, brief suicidal thoughts.
A/N: Screw it...have another chapter tonight. I was gonna save it but I'm excited to see how everyone likes it. I'd love to hear how you feel about the Tav backstory chapters! Thanks for all of the love and appreciation for my work so far <3
Tav snuck off from camp while everyone else still slept. Her meditation was restless, lasting only a couple of hours. Rather than stare at her tent’s yellow canvas walls, she found herself walking back to the little glowing pond that Halsin had shown her. Her mind kept wandering to Tev as they drew nearer to the path to Moonrise. What would he do in her position? How would he face the ghosts of their family? Would he have been truthful with the others from the start, even if it meant being cast aside?
Knowing Tev, he would have won them all over anyway.
She took a seat at the edge of the water and tossed a rock in. The lights danced in front of her, bringing a fleeting smile to her face. A voice slipped into the back of her head, that voice she tried to keep buried away.
What if he’s still alive?
The guilt had been gnawing at her for days and was likely the fuel for her recent string of dreams. Had their roles been reversed, Tev would have crossed the continent five times over to find a way to save her. He had proven that to her years ago. She pulled her legs close and rested her chin on her knees. The bittersweet memory from tonight’s trance replayed in her mind over and over.
The dread that had been gathering in Tav’ahria for weeks weighed heavy on her shoulders that night. Her mother fussed about her, making last-minute adjustments to the new dress she made for the party this evening. The pale pink gown was as soft as a spring breeze against her skin despite the many layers that comprised it. Each layer caught the light differently giving it an ethereal, opalescent look. The deep plunge in the neckline went halfway down to her navel, revealing more cleavage than normal. Golden clasps at the neck secured it onto her body with an engraved belt that matched them to accentuate her waist. The long train sparkled and flowed with an effortless elegance behind her when she walked, almost as if it was made of the wind itself. This had to be one of the finest gowns her mother had made to date. Tav’ahria despised how well it suited her.
“There we are. Stunning as ever, my dear.” Her mother re-pinned a runaway braid into her intricate updo before smoothing a few rebellious hairs into place. One large braid had been coiled up onto her head to resemble a flower of sorts. The rest of the hair surrounding it had been woven into small lines of braids to be laced into the larger part of the hairdo. Thin vines covered in little white flowers had been woven into the braids as well. Tav’ahria studied her reflection but said nothing in response.
Stunning as ever.
The words were a beautiful lie. Nothing about her was stunning anymore. Her skin had lost its plump, bright hue and bags hung off her dull eyes. It had taken hours for her mother to add enough makeup and face paint to her to make her look alive again. Not to mention the additional layers needed to hide the bruise on her cheek. She would shed a tear for herself if there were any left in her body. Instead, she stared into her own eyes in her reflection, wondering where the life in them had gone.
The woman staring back at her in the mirror was but a walking husk of Tav’ahria Mendelre.
Just a little wilted flower.
Today was the day her parents would announce her engagement to Noravi Sylvyre. Nearly two months had passed since the night they met, the night that Tev had finally broken free. She had heard nothing more about him, which meant he was safe from their family’s clutches. It was her lone solace among the dark thoughts that haunted her mind. Even now, her eyes flashed to the small scissors and blades her mother used in her tailoring.
Just a couple of well-placed slits across the wrists…you can be free of them forever…
A shiver ran through her body pulling her back from the brink. With every passing day, the temptation grew. Did she want to die? No. Was it better than being here? Possibly.
The Sylvyre family had purchased a residence in Baldur’s Gate so they would be able to come and go with ease between here and Neverwinter for their family’s business. They came by often and her family visited them as well. Noravi loved to be seen escorting her around in the city as their “relationship” was gaining attention.
I suppose it’ll be my family business soon as well.
“Let’s get moving, dear. It’ll be time to leave soon.” Her mother helped her stand and walked with her down the marbled stairs into their grand hall where her father was waiting. Her delicate shoes clicked across the floor, announcing her whereabouts to any and all who resided there.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“Omylia, you’ve outdone yourself, my darling.” Her father crooned toward her mother as she walked across the absurdly large room. He looked over Tav’ahria’s gown, taking in the newest look of his little flower. The small orchid brooch he had gifted to her so many weeks ago sat at the top of her dress. Her shoes had higher heels to them than she was used to, but she adjusted quickly.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
The rhythmic clicking of her shoes on the floor echoed off the walls of the vacant room. Although the room wasn’t truly empty, everything in their home seemed hollow since Tev left. Every step she took, every sound she made, seemed to bounce around the halls of their estate and taunt her. They reminded her that she was alone.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
At least the sounds gave her something to concentrate on, something to ground her. They helped snap her out of her own mind when the dark fantasies threatened to take over.
“You look perfect, Tav’ahria.” He held his arm out for her to take.
“Thank you, father.” She responded with a practiced smile.
He escorted her the remaining length of the room. She was seldom left alone nowadays since her father had branded her a flight risk.
Flight risk…and just where am I meant to fly off to, father? Little wilted flowers stay close to the ground.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
The carriage waited for them just outside the door. Her mother helped gather the long train of her gown, folding the soft fabric into a neat pile at her feet. The ride across the Upper City was barely ten minutes, but it was almost too long to be left alone with her thoughts. No distractions, just darkness.
Their driver brought them through the iron gates of the now familiar estate. The long cobblestone path curved around the spectacular gardens that made up the front of the property. Shrubs trimmed to perfection lined either side, not a leaf out of place. Nice and tidy, styled so no one could see the mess of bare branches just beneath the thin surface of the greenery.
Just like you, little wilted flower.
Her father left the carriage first, offering a hand to her as her mother gathered the rest of her gown to spread behind her. The carved stone steps ahead of her filled her with another bout of dread.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
Tav’ahria and her family glided up the stairs with the expected sophistication of elven nobility. After all, what good was their Eladrin blood if they couldn’t dazzle those around them with their graceful presence?
“Invitation.” The guard just outside the entrance held out a lazy hand.
She pushed aside the layers of her dress to remove the small golden plate strapped to her thigh. The thorned orchid stamped into the shining metal had been painted to draw attention to the purple leaves and bright red beads of blood dripping from them. Beneath the flower, her name was etched onto the identification plate.
Tav’ahria Aenwyn Viessa Mendelre.
She held the shiny trinket out to the guard who immediately straightened his posture.
“Ah, apologies Lady Mendelre. I should have recognized you. Please, enjoy the party.” He gestured behind him to allow her passage as she tucked the gold plate into the strap on her leg.
Before she could take another step, Noravi appeared by her side, offering his hand out for her.
“Hello, sweetness.” His grimy smile threatened to break her pleasant mask.
“Hello, my dear.” She forced the endearing words out of her mouth as Noravi leaned forward to give her a quick kiss. The touch caused her stomach to churn. Her hands itched at her side to push him away, but instead she simply took the hand offered to her.
Little wilted flowers don’t fight back.
“Come along little flower, I have so many guests who are dying to make your acquaintance.” She let him usher her past the doors, the pleasant smile etched onto her face to keep up appearances. Pretty. Quiet. Docile. Just the way he liked her.
Tav’ahria took her graceful steps through the corridors with practiced ease despite the new shoes already threatening to scrape a hole in her heel. She kept her arm loosely draped around Noravi’s elbow, showing just enough contact to be convincing, but keeping a loose enough grip so she didn’t make herself sick from the touch. A familiar accessory stood out by his wrist.
A gold cufflink with an engraved black hand.
She still couldn’t place where she knew the symbol from, the past couple of months she had been wallowing in grief and self-pity. Not exactly the right mindset for research.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
The grand hall that greeted them just beyond the entrance was even more ludicrous than the one in her own home. Marble floors and pillars helped Lord Sylvyre boast his expensive taste to all who came to visit. Plush black rugs lined the entryway, padding the floor and keeping too much dirt from staining the light tile beneath them. Tables spread throughout the room were filled with beautiful displays of food. Fruits, cheeses, bread, pastries, anything one could imagine was available for their tasting pleasure. Servers made their way through the room carrying trays of drinks – wine, liquor, juices – all preferences were covered. Additional tables were placed around the room to allow guests to stand and converse with their food and drink, covered with lavish black and gold cloths.
But Noravi wouldn’t want to spend his evening out here. No, he would want to find his friends and sit drinking in one of the more private rooms. At least until he was ready to show Tav’ahria off for more attention. When they entered the sitting room, a new member of the staff came up to greet her. A tall, young man with blue eyes and short black hair. He gave Tav’ahria a low bow.
“My lady.” He stood back up and smiled at her. “Is there anything I can get for you?”
“No, thank you.” She returned the smile with ease. “My apologies, I don’t think we’ve met before.”
“No, my lady, I just started yesterday.”
“And your name?” She always liked to know the names of people in her family’s employ, that grace now extended to those employed by the Sylvyres as well.
“Ugh, Tav’ahria, sweetness…must we waste time standing and talking here?” Noravi groaned as he started to pull her away.
“I’ll join you soon, Noravi. Please, go ahead without me.” She smiled, her sweet smile reserved only for Noravi, the one that kept him civil and unaware. The smile that she would taint with poison on her lips if given the opportunity.
“Very well, don’t be too long little flower. I have more introductions of you to make before the announcement.” He had already diverted his attention elsewhere.
“Of course, dear.”
He bent over and planted a kiss on her cheek before striding off. The gesture sent a familiar wave of disgust throughout her body.
“Terribly sorry about my fiancé. He’s not usually this…” She trailed off as she realized a member of their staff would know exactly how Noravi acted.
“Nothing to apologize for, Lady Mendelre. My name is Kadir.” He gave another small bow.
“Very nice to meet you, Kadir. Now that I think of it, would you mind fetching a bottle of rum? I know Noravi and his friends will want it once they’ve polished off the wine in here, so we should have about an hour.” She smiled at the young man, but a strange feeling came over her the longer she looked at him. There was something…familiar about him that she couldn’t quite place.
Kadir had the typical rounded ears of a human, a quick and pleasant smile, and the slightest crook in his nose. Beautiful black strands of hair shone in the candlelight, a striking contrast to the eyes as blue as the sky on a clear summer day. He stood tall enough that he needed to look down to meet her gaze, a rare trait in the human men she knew.
“Are you…sure we haven’t met before?” She studied his face closely, but for the life of her could not place him.
“Unfortunately not, my lady, but it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance now. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll go find that bottle of rum before the wine runs dry.” Kadir turned to leave the room and Tav’ahria could have sworn part of his elbow passed right through her.
She shook off the thought. Her mind had been distracted and tired of late, no need to put stock into such tricks of the light.
The next hour or so was uneventful. Noravi took the time to introduce her to more sleazy, stuck-up nobles from other cities whose names she wouldn’t bother to remember after tonight. Guests all around her stopped to admire her dress, for once outshining the jeweled orchid pinned to her chest. Everyone would reach out to take her arm or feel her gown. Many wanted to touch and inspect the intricate braids piled on top of her head. She spent the majority of the night being handled by strangers and acquaintances alike until she felt the need to crawl out of her own skin. But that wasn’t an option. Noravi kept her close at his side, parading her around to be seen with him in front of his guests. She forced the smile to remain on her face and the tears to remain in her eyes.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
Finally, the time for the announcement drew near. Noravi took Tav’ahria’s arm to lead to the front of their grand hall where a stage of sorts had been prepared.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“It’s time to make this engagement official, little flower.” Noravi’s quiet sneer pierced her eardrums like a needle. She tried to drown out his voice by concentrating on the sound of her heeled shoes clicking across the floor. Her heart began to race as the taste of bile made its way up her throat.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“This time next year I’ll be introducing you as my wife.”
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“Or perhaps announcing our anticipation of a child.”
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“We’ll be the couple of the century, sweetness. Do try to look happy about it.” He gave an exaggerated eye roll.
When had she started crying?
“Don’t be silly, these are tears of joy.” The half-assed lie caused Noravi’s grip to tighten on her arm before he realized that bruise would be too hard to cover. At least if he wanted her to keep dressing like this.
You’ll pay for that later. Little wilted flowers shouldn’t use sarcasm on their fiancé.
Click…
They had arrived at the edge of the stage. No more steps to be taken, no more tapping of her heels against the hard marble floor. Nowhere left to hide.
“My lord, my lady.” Kadir approached them with a low bow before Noravi took the stage. “If we could have Lady Mendelre stand off to this side instead, it would be most appreciated.”
Noravi waved him off as he adjusted his suit buttons and cufflinks. He couldn’t be bothered with where she stood, so long as she made her appearance on stage.
“Lady Tav’ahria, if you would come with me.” Kadir held out an arm to her as she eyed him suspiciously. “Please?” His polite smile stayed stretched across his face until she accepted.
“I really don’t think I should go too far.” She spared a nervous glance over her shoulder as they walked further and further from the stage. Noravi hadn’t noticed her absence yet, but he would soon enough.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“There’s nothing to worry about my lady, everything is going exactly as planned.” He had a mischievous shine to his eyes.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
“You don’t understand. If I go too far, my father and fiancé won’t be happy. You’ll likely lose more than your job if you allow that.” Her head once again turned to keep a wary eye on them.
Little wilted flowers don’t run.
The faintest whisper blew past her ears from a familiar voice. One she hadn’t heard in weeks.
“Sav-estel ne-emir peth.”
Tav’ahria’s breath caught in her throat and her heart stopped for a moment. Have faith in my words…
“Did you say something?” She turned to ask Kadir. He kept his eyes facing forward as he continued leading her to the edge of the crowd. Once they stopped, she followed his eyes as they darted to a table decorated with a lavish flower arrangement.
Behind the table, she could just barely perceive a bow hidden there.
Her confusion must have been plain on her face. Who was this Kadir, and why was he trying to get a bow in her hands?
Lord Sylvyre’s booming voice startled her and forced her attention back to the stage.
“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us on this very special evening.” A polite chorus of cheers and clinking glasses erupted in the hall.
Shit.
Terror took over, she went to run back towards the stage, desperate to make sure she wasn’t caught sneaking away. Kadir’s hand caught her by the arm.
“Please, I have to get back over there.” Panic was rising in her voice.
“Is that what you want, Tav’ahria?”
“It’s not about what I want.” Her hand instinctively reached up to caress the hidden bruise on her cheek.
Lord Sylvyre was still addressing the crowd. Noravi had started moving his way to his father’s side. His words were loud and echoed off the walls, but they were garbled gibberish in her ears. Her heart pounded against the confines of her chest, rattling her bones and causing her breath to catch.
“You will have but one chance. Sav-estel ne-emir peth.”
“What did you just say?” Tav’ahria knew it wasn’t her imagination this time.
She turned back and looked at the young man again, really looked at him. Tears gathered in her eyes as the illusion that made up Kadir ever so slightly started to fade. His blue eyes turned a familiar shade of pink. A huge smile spread across her face at the sight for the first time in two months.
“Best kick off those shoes, Ria. We’re going to have to run.” He winked as he began to uncurl a small scroll in his hands.
Tev.
“Lord Mendelre and I are proud to announce the union of our families.” She saw her father shaking his hand.
Tav’ahria slowly slipped out of the uncomfortable shoes, the cold floor a welcome relief to her sore feet.
“Grab the bow and get ready to run on my signal. This won’t last long, and I only have one.” Tev whispered behind her.
“Please, congratulate my son, Noravi Sylvyre,”
She glided over to the table and slipped her hand behind it to grab the bow and small quiver of arrows hiding there. Tev began a quiet incantation.
“…and Lord Mendelre’s daughter, Tav’ahria Mendelre,”
She slung the quiver over her shoulder, trying to remain discreet, and plotted a course for the front of the estate.
“Now.” Tev hissed as he finished the spell.
“…on their engagement.” Lord Sylvyre gestured to the side of the stage where she was supposed to be waiting.
Tav’ahria broke into a sprint for the exit. She didn’t dare allow herself even a glance behind her as her bare feet slapped against the smooth tile. Adrenaline flowed through every nerve, every blood vessel, every muscle in her body. The front of her gown was bunched up in one hand, the last thing she needed was to trip and fall on her face again. Plenty of shocked gasps and murmurs made their way over the crowd, but no one moved to intercept her. In fact, no one seemed to see her at all.
She looked down at her hands as she ran and noticed a slight shimmer to them.
Invisibility spell.
It took all of her self-control not to let out a relieved cackle.
Tev you brilliant, beautiful bastard.
They were almost at the doors as the invisibility effect started to fade. She could see the normal hue of her skin returning. As the spell withered, the hope within her bloomed. Freedom was within sight. She just had to keep running.
“TAV’AHRIA!” Her father’s familiar roar carried over the crowd. She didn’t look back, she just kept running.
Guards were making their way to intercept them. The illusion hiding Tev’s appearance had all but disappeared, his white curls were visible again and she could now see the longsword he had strapped to his back.
“Don’t look back, Ria.” Tev muttered as they came up on the first couple of guards.
“I won’t.” Tav’ahria growled as she drew her bow and shot the first guard in the leg, causing him to drop to one knee. Tev took out the next one by cracking the hilt of his sword over his head. They weren’t trying to kill everyone in sight, they just needed to escape. She just had to keep running.
More guards coming from behind them. They continued their dash into the gardens. One of their pursuers was able to get the train of Tav’ahria’s dress caught on his sword. But Tev was prepared this time. He sliced the fabric being held taut between the sword and her legs to cut her free without even breaking his stride. The delicate fabric broke away with a quiet ripping sound. She kept running.
The tile of the grand hall had given way to the cool stone in the courtyard. The rough landscaping scraped her feet, but she kept running.
Tev stayed close at her side, helping to push the guards away and watch her back for any attacks. Her father and Noravi had joined the chase as well, she heard his curses calling out behind her. Someone grabbed her arm – she didn’t know who. She took an arrow from the quiver and plunged the tip it into their wrist. Blood sprayed up her arm and all over her gown as they released their grasp, but she kept running.
Once again, the sensation beneath her feet changed, now shifting to the soft grass in the gardens. She stepped on a hidden rock. It sent a painful shock through her foot, but she kept running.
Her father screamed her name with a rage she had yet to hear in her life, but she kept running.
The iron gates were in view now, they were closed but they could easily climb over the walls on either side of them. She kept running.
Tev sheathed his sword as he ran up ahead of her and launched himself off the ground to grab the top of the wall. He scrambled to climb up to the top so he could lean back to help her over. She kept running.
Tav’ahria was almost to the wall. She looped her arm through the bow as she jumped to grab Tev’s hand. Her arm was still slick from the blood of whoever she stabbed earlier, and she slipped from his grasp.
“Shit…Ria! Jump again!” Tev yelled from above her.
Their father was getting closer, his angry cursing louder with every step.
Fuck it.
She turned around and faced him as she grabbed her bow, his usual calm and calculating demeanor now warped into a crazed and angry mess.
“Ria!” Tev yelled again, more frantic this time.
“Don’t you dare take one more step, Tav’ahria!” Her father’s voice was shrill and desperate.
Tav’ahria notched an arrow and took her aim. As she released her held breath, the breath that had crowded her lungs for years, the arrow soared from her bowstring to pierce her father’s left knee. He cried out in pain as his body tumbled forward through the grass. She took a few steps back from the wall and made another running jump. This time, Tev leaned down and grabbed both of her hands. Between him pulling her up the wall and her feet pushing against the rough stone, she found herself sitting on top with him.
Tev swung himself over the other edge, ready to help catch her at the bottom. Before she jumped, she took one last look at her father writhing in pain on the ground. A feeling of sick satisfaction coursing through her veins. With a quick rip, she tore the orchid brooch from her dress and threw it into the grass in front of her. She carefully lowered herself down the other side into Tev’s waiting arms.
Involuntary tears flowed freely from her eyes as he grabbed her hand and started pulling her through the streets of the Upper City. The wind rushing past her face as she ran dried them almost as quickly as they came. Her legs ached and her bare feet were already scraped raw. But seeing Tev again, knowing that he risked everything to come back and save her…it numbed the pain and propelled her forward. She followed him around corners and ducked through alleys. They spun around fellow citizens who didn’t move out of their way in time. She listened to the soft slapping of her feet against the stone beneath her, a welcome contrast to the clicking of those heels. They didn’t slow down, they didn’t look back.
They just kept running.
#bg3#bg3 fanfiction#baldur's gate 3#baldur's gate iii#bg3 halsin#halsin silverbough#halsin x tav#halsin fanfic#bg3 fluff#halsin fluff
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In the search for dark matter particles, there are two main approaches. The first is to look for particles that happen to decay naturally as they pass by. This typically involves neutrino observatories such as IceCube where a dark matter particle particle colliding with a nuclei might trigger a faint burst of light. So far this has turned up nothing. The second approach is to slam particles together in a particle accelerator. This approach has also failed to find dark matter particles, but there have been enough interesting hints that CERN is having a go. Their latest run is looking for what are known as dark photons. Dark photons are part of some generalizations to the standard model of particle physics. The idea is that if dark matter exists, it must be some entirely new form of matter from the quarks and leptons that make up the protons, neutrons, and electrons of regular matter. And if dark matter can interact with itself, then it should have a force carrier boson, just as photons allow charges to interact and the strong force has gluons to hold nuclei together. The hypothetical carriers for the dark matter force are called dark photons. In the standard model, the electromagnetic and weak forces are connected, so photons are connected to radioactive decay. In the generalized model dark photons have a similar connection, so they should affect the decay of certain particles such as muons. Dark photons should also have an effect on the magnetic moment of the muon, and earlier this year a study suggested exactly such an effect. A hypothetical dark photon interaction. Credit: APS/Alan Stonebraker This latest run of the Large Hadron Collider is the third run of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment. It began in July 2022, it is looking for an effect known as displaced muons. This is where muons are seen coming from the general region of a high-energy particle collision, but not from the point of collision itself. This would be due to the fact that the initial collision generated dark photons undetectable by CMS, which then decayed into detectable muons. The initial data of this run found no such events, meaning there was no evidence for dark photons thus far. Further observations may find something, but if they don’t the results will place further constraints on the existence of dark photons. This continues to be the pattern with dark matter. Indirect evidence for it is good, but direct evidence continues to be lacking. For now, all we can do is to keep trying studies such as this one in the hopes that we’ll find more clues to solve this mystery. Reference: Tumasyan, Armen, et al. “Search for long-lived particles decaying to a pair of muons in proton-proton collisions at sqrt[s] = 13 TeV.” Journal of High Energy Physics 2023.5 (2023): 1-58. The post CERN Has Joined the Search for Dark Photons appeared first on Universe Today.
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Large Hadron Collider experiment zeroes in on magnetic monopoles
The late physicist Joseph Polchinski once said the existence of magnetic monopoles is "one of the safest bets that one can make about physics not yet seen." In its quest for these particles, which have a magnetic charge and are predicted by several theories that extend the Standard Model, the MoEDAL collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has not yet proven Polchinski right, but its latest findings mark a significant stride forward.
The results, reported in two papers posted on the arXiv preprint server, considerably narrow the search window for these hypothetical particles.
At the LHC, pairs of magnetic monopoles could be produced in interactions between protons or heavy ions. In collisions between protons, they could be formed from a single virtual photon (the Drell–Yan mechanism) or the fusion of two virtual photons (the photon-fusion mechanism). Pairs of magnetic monopoles could also be produced from the vacuum in the enormous magnetic fields created in near-miss heavy-ion collisions, through a process called the Schwinger mechanism.
Since it started taking data in 2012, MoEDAL has achieved several firsts, including conducting the first searches at the LHC for magnetic monopoles produced via the photon-fusion mechanism and through the Schwinger mechanism.
In the first of its latest studies, the MoEDAL collaboration sought monopoles and high-electric-charge objects (HECOs) produced via the Drell–Yan and photon-fusion mechanisms. The search was based on proton–proton collision data collected during Run 2 of the LHC, using the full MoEDAL detector for the first time.
The full detector comprises two main systems sensitive to magnetic monopoles, HECOs and other highly ionizing hypothetical particles. The first can permanently register the tracks of magnetic monopoles and HECOs, with no background signals from Standard Model particles. These tracks are measured using optical scanning microscopes at INFN Bologna.
The second system consists of roughly a ton of trapping volumes designed to capture magnetic monopoles. These trapping volumes—which make MoEDAL the only collider experiment in the world that can definitively and directly identify the magnetic charge of magnetic monopoles—are scanned at ETH Zurich using a special type of magnetometer called a SQUID to look for any trapped monopoles they may contain.
In their latest scanning of the trapping volumes, the MoEDAL team found no magnetic monopoles or HECOs, but it set bounds on the mass and production rate of these particles for different values of particle spin, an intrinsic form of angular momentum.
For magnetic monopoles, the mass bounds were set for magnetic charges from 1 to 10 times the fundamental unit of magnetic charge, the Dirac charge (gD), and the existence of monopoles with masses as high as about 3.9 trillion electronvolts (TeV) was excluded.
For HECOs, the mass limits were established for electric charges from 5e to 350e, where e is the electron charge, and the existence of HECOs with masses ranging up to 3.4 TeV was ruled out.
"MoEDAL's search reach for both monopoles and HECOs allows the collaboration to survey a huge swathe of the theoretical 'discovery space' for these hypothetical particles," says MoEDAL spokesperson James Pinfold.
In its second latest study, the MoEDAL team concentrated on the search for monopoles produced via the Schwinger mechanism in heavy-ion collision data taken during Run 1 of the LHC. In a unique endeavor, it scanned a decommissioned section of the CMS experiment beam pipe, instead of the MoEDAL detector's trapping volumes, in search of trapped monopoles.
Once again, the team found no monopoles, but it set the strongest-to-date mass limits on Schwinger monopoles with a charge between 2gD and 45gD, ruling out the existence of monopoles with masses of up to 80 GeV.
"The vital importance of the Schwinger mechanism is that the production of composite monopoles is not suppressed compared to that of elementary ones, as is the case with the Drell–Yan and photon-fusion processes," explains Pinfold. "Thus, if monopoles are composite particles, this and our previous Schwinger-monopole search may have been the first-ever chances to observe them."
The MoEDAL detector will soon be joined by the MoEDAL Apparatus for Penetrating Particles, MAPP for short, which will allow the experiment to cast an even broader net in the search for new particles.
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Partial Discharge Testing: Need, Testing, and Addressing Defects
Did you know that more than 85% of disruptive failures in MV (medium voltage) and HV (high-voltage) equipment are related to partial discharge (PD)? This is why partial discharge testing is crucial for early detection and to keep your electrical infrastructure in good condition.
Studies have proven that PD activity can deteriorate assets, resulting in insulation being unable to withstand electrical stress. Over time, it can lead to flash-over and equipment failure. Testing is conducted to analyze the health of electrical insulation.
One of the effects of flash-over is the high-frequency current pulse traveling through the insulation’s capacitance (C1 and C3). The short, microsecond duration makes it a low-energy pulse, but it negatively impacts insulation and eventually results in catastrophic failure. Partial discharge breakdown also produces heat, light, sound, smell, HF electric current, and electromagnetic waves.
Understanding partial discharge
PD occurs when an aspect of an insulation system fails to withstand an electrical field it comes in contact. It is typically the result of poor workmanship or design, aging, contamination, or defective materials. Of all the available methods, partial discharge testing is the widely recognized practice for analyzing the health of electrical assets.
How is it done?
Online non-destructive and non-invasive techniques for surveying and monitoring are proven to deliver sufficient details for condition assessment without interrupting system operations. Modern techniques make it easier to test a wide range of assets from 3KV to 700KV and greater.
Partial discharge testing can identify all types of PD:
Surface PD – The most common phenomenon that occurs across the surface of the insulation. It is affected by humidity and salt air.
Internal PD – This occurs in voids, cavities, or defects within solid insulation.
Corona PD – Occurs in gaseous dielectrics with inhomogeneous fields, usually from the conductor, directly into the air, and in outdoor electrical assets.
Professionals can test air-insulated assets, GIS switchgear and busses, extruded cables, and paper-insulated cables online without causing an outage. They use various techniques, such as ultrasonic technology, HFCT/RFCT online cable testing, and transient earth voltage (TEV) methods. Some companies can perform partial discharge testing using UHF for non-contact detection with electromagnetic PD signals in cable systems, open terminal switchyards, and distribution networks.
About the Company:
Elegrow Technology is eminent for providing international standard design and technical assistance in the field of electrical, mechanical & power systems with utmost professional transparency.
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