W_L

Thanks, I enjoy defensive battles a lot. It probably has something to do with my hours of playing Tower Defense games on my phone, defensive battle tactics are fun.

Illustrations are fun in stories, I wish more authors try to do this too

Chapter 12 Surprise! An Early Chapter before US Thanksgiving Holiday! You did not expect me to go full battle-oriented chapter I appreciate several GA authors for their understanding of history and military tactics. I enjoy writers who create scenarios for sea battles and squad-based combat scenarios, but I seldom read anyone explore the gritty battles of defense and tactics that I displayed here. Outnumbered 3:1 on the battlefield with inferior firepower, most modern folks would consider this a lost cause, but it all depends on what opportunities you can generate. Troop morale is important, including giving a few teenagers some ale 😮 (If the youngest age of soldiers in medieval European battles was 12, let's not be prudish and deny these brave lads a drink). Also, medieval people were not stupid about their alcohol consumption as some authors and TV shows depict wanton drunken disorder among troops, you want your army to be well-fed with bread and fatty foods. Skillet bread and lard (pork fat) cooked mutton (lamb meat) would be common. Eli has a lot of knowledge in his head and understands the way to an army's loyalty is through the stomach. The battle I cited as inspiration did occur in history, several of GA's Authors with historical backgrounds know the Siege of Vienna in 1529 was a major turning point in the 16th century. It showed the limits of gunpowder technology against a dedicated siege defense, the impressive durability of trench lines and traps (which would play roles up to World War I stalemate on the Western Front), and the forces were outnumbered 10:1 with the Ottoman Empire having won many battles and Europe's Christian forces on the brink of collapse. The victory at Vienna was implausible to outsiders, but the military tacticians learned many valuable lessons about defensive warfare in the age of gunpowder. As for the trenches, if the opponents were armed with Blunderbusses aka primitive shotguns, then you want to limit their range and slow their advance. A direct charge against arrows could be countered with Mantlet, a mobile wooden wall carried by infantry to protect against arrows, but firing arrows and incendiary traps like gunpowder and combustible would cause your enemy's forces to fracture. Of course, the best way to counter people with trenches is to soften them up with artillery before an infantry assault. On the other side, Eli developed the Stokes mortar, the famous British-designed mortar that we know as the first modern mortar during World War I. The fair folk technology level is equivalent to late 19th to early 20th century weaponry. Mortars are by nature cheaper than heavy artillery pieces like Howitzers and field artillery pieces, plus they're lightweight makes them a good support fire control weapon. Tactically, Eli is forming his future army under the principles of an agile fighting force to counter the more bulky mechanized units. This is why squad warfare became paramount in modern wars, rather than large scale collective group breakthrough tactics. Additionally, he is championing the early development of a dedicated medical corp. These kinds of specialized troops would not see the battlefield until the 19th century in history. By introducing them so early, he wants to keep his more experienced troops alive and have an officer corps from the veterans. It's also useful to have medics to assist allied troops and civilians, with whom you are trying to gain favor. The law of power from Robert Green is the 9th law “Win through actions, not through arguments”. One of the things that many writers including me do a lot is play the "Socrates" card of trying to convince people with arguments. The concept is best illustrated by Henry V's famous St. Crispin Day speech can best be compared to this rule. However, if your army was demoralized and unhappy, no pithy speech would be enough to get them to your side. The actual action of getting food and wine would lift the soldiers' spirits, while a sound tactical plan would improve the officers' hopes for victory. My point here is to show a different way of dealing with problems. -------------- Notes: 1. Battlefield-wise, no one knows in history why Robert Kett gave up Mousehold Heath high ground for lower terrain in his final fight with John Dudley's army outside Norwich. 2. The longest effective range of Blunderbusses is 30 feet, based on the 19th-century model before the advent of breach-loaded shotguns. 3. Rockets were used to illuminate nighttime battlefields to allow artillery to properly target at night, along with continuing night ground assaults. 4. "Over the top" is a famous idiom that is synonymous with World War I. Since I wrote a battle in the trenches, it was my tip of the hat to folks in that bloody conflict. As a Bonus for this chapter, I'm going to add some illustrations: Here is John and his teenage friends going "Over the Top" Here's a scene of the Earl's army being bombarded:

Two days at the Robsart’s country estate was more than I could afford with everything that was happening in Norfolk. It would only take a day for Ambrose to reach London. John Dudley would send someone to discreetly verify the caravans of wagons were indeed going to a supposed abandoned abbey, which would cost two days at least. At the earliest, it would be the fifth day for Princess Mary’s agents to receive word that a royal army was being formed near London to quell her rebel army in Wymondham

Aye, the other aspect of the show that works out is that the characters were very likable in their reactions to one another. Sasaki was flirting better than most real gay and bi guys, while Miyano's insecurities about his sexuality were done well and allowed both boys to be platonic at first before romantic. Give the movie a try if you are okay with English Sub, if not wait for the voice actors to do the English Dub. Another key point to this BL anime was VCs were chosen well (Sasaki VC, Kellen Goff, voiced characters from Attack on Titan, Porco Gallard)

@Mikiesboy Found footage horror is fine, but I agree it can be a bit unsettling. People honestly don't really get scared of movie like Paranormal Activity unless you are in the right head space. @ComicalityJohn Carpenter's Halloween franchise is considered the first modern horror slasher movie with a lot of themes that play as a morality tale on teenage sexuality, female vulnerability, and Michael Myers psychopathy with stalking/predatory POV. Fans of horror and psychological horror especially enjoy perspective scares in films. --------------- As a fan of gay/queer horror as well, which as a subgenre explores different things like social isolation, individual awareness, and subtle or overt desires. For instance, Kevin Williamson, who is gay screenwriter, was the writer of Scream. While most people did not notice it at the outset, but later have with further viewing and Film School Youtubers 😛 , Stu Macher was written with homosexual subtext. There were lines in the movie that were cut out along with edits to reduce his interest in both Billy Loomis and Randy Meeks (90s still kept characters in the closet). However, subtle hints like his hesitation to kill Randy on the couch made more sense in that context. He's still psychotic, but he is a romantic psychopath 😛 Clive Barker in contrast was not subtle with his horror and gay references, but he dealt with the erotic and developing subcultures within our community far more as a former male escort than most gay writers or filmmakers of modern times. I have a special place in my heart for Clive Barker's brutal honesty and sexuality. His style is surreal and real at the same time at the depths of human desires.

😊 Chris thx

Lady Jane Grey was sent off with the fifty men that Ambrose brought with him to the holdings of John Dudley. I had hoped that John Dudley would at least offer her the mercy of having Guildford accompany her, but John Dudley was pragmatic with his son’s affections. Denying her access to her love was a psychological power play against both Jane and Guildford, whose forewarning had allowed Jane to escape his father’s clutches, a year earlier. Sadly, they had already been drawn into their fates.

Chapter 11 I cried for Eli in this chapter towards the end, I don't think anyone was expecting me to take this story on such a dramatic ending. However, I had laid out a lot of hints throughout the story about the truth between Jack and Robert Dudley. They're not the same person, but they possess the same consciousness. Anyway, the ending is something I should discuss before I go into details about the many threads I just unleashed on you my readers. Amy Robsart was married to Robert Dudley in history for a decade, but died under mysterious circumstances. There have always been rumors that Elizabeth I had her murdered so she could have her boyfriend/partner all to herself without wedlock issue. That rumor was one of the reasons that Elizabeth couldn't easily marry Robert Dudley. Seeing as Robert remained her lover and devoted follower until he died, if she did have his wife killed, then I don't think he actually really loved her. I took the concept to a greater extreme and thought about the idea of a "sham marriage" and what would a medieval boot/conversion camp for teenage nobles be like. As for the big introduction, John Knox. I hope Presbyterians don't have a problem I borrowed their founder in my story, but historically he was called in 1550 by John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, to deliver a sermon to King Edward VI in London. I took the idea and ran with a chance encounter with Eli along the way. Yes, he was a misogynist and probably contributed to some of the worst aspects within American and British Protestant faiths that descend from his line of thought, but he did have positive attributes such as the desire to fight noble, clergy, and royal privilege against commoners. He believed in fairness for all "men", but it was positive step in some of the ideas that would be very progressive for that era. Now if you take such a man and reveal to him that there is no heaven/hell, no reward/punishment system for faith, plus tell him his sermons and actions would directly hurt innocent people like Eli, then I think you might get someone very interesting. Without misogyny and toxic masculine influence, along with more secular and worldly perspective beyond abiding by faith alone, a religious faith born out of this man could be interesting. As to why reform versus Anglican, it's quite simple: the Church of England in this era was quite corrupt between Catholic and Protestant elements being in bed with the nobility. There are too many connections and too many links to disentangle. It would be easier to create a wholly new faith with a new set of principles that could be easier to accept. As for the plot in Norfolk between Princess Mary and Robert Kett, I thought it would be interesting to give these farmers and artisans 19th century Blunderbusses, because they were one of the last major guns developed before the advent of breach-load shotgun and carbine guns. Eli Whitney's interchangeable parts concept in gun manufacturing would have come into practice, making them significantly more powerful than normal 16th century flintlocks. However, a cardinal weakness of using shotguns is their short range, so in urban battle, they're superb as Mary probably assumed based on the history of Kett rebellions takeover of Norwich. They would be ideal as an urban suppression force. Eli was correct at the assessment, in the open field with cannons in formation, a shotgun would not be as useful in fight over distances. In the 19th century, Napoleon Bonaparte took the concept of mass artillery to its greatest victory at Austerlitz, defeating the combined armies of Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia. Advanced weapons without advanced tactics are meaningless. This week's law of power is 27th law of power “Play on people’s need to believe to create a cultlike following.”, several examples can be seen with the cultlike following of John Knox's sermons, Robert Kett's rebellion being manipulated by Princess Mary, and the Robsart family compound of captive young noble men. Belief in ideals and values create groups like these throughout history. You can face them off through conflict like Eli did if you have superior forces and are prepared to deal with the reputation hit. You could also try to confront the cult leader with evidence that their world view is false, but it would likely be difficult if not impossible to persuade someone who doesn't share your experiences. --------------- Note: 1. Kett's rebellion originally started in July 1549 saw the capture of Norwich, a major city in Norfolk england. Their rebellion were armed with some firearms, but mainly simple farm equipment used as weapons. In my story, with the assistance of the Catholic faction, they have 19th century guns and will pose a more significant threat. 2. John Knox is well known as Protestant leader in both England and Scotland. He was instrumental in repudiating the rule of Mary of Guise as Scotland Queen and shielding Protestants under Mary Stuart. 3. Eli/Eric and Robert/Jack are probably a soap opera super couple, they have a lot to work through between missed connections and side-relationships. However, I don't think any of you guys can deny, they love each other. It's the sort of "always and forever" kind of love that everyone wants. Eli has to make it up to him, but I don't think Robert cared as long as they're together. However, don't count your happily ever afters yet. Elizabeth and Robert Dudley had a tumultuous few years in the 1550s, which I am planning on exploring I am not evil, it's just history This is their song if anyone cares: 4. As to the ending, I did tip my hat off to who Eli is writing this book for. I gave you guys a lot of hints, Eli's an Omega so you know children will come eventually. Now whose going to be the baby-daddy: Robert, Francis, or some other guys Of course, Jack would want a new species to start from Eli and Eli isn't against poly....

They'll get what's due to them 👼

"Your Sins Will Be Wiped Out" is one of the tie-in short stories I wrote to expand the perspective of the universe and story beyond just Eli's 1st personal narrative. I wanted to establish a different perspective and showcase the situation of the people in this fictional universe. We've been following Eli throughout the story, but Robert Dudley has not been heard or sounded in a long time. While historically, such things were common, narratively, it is not compelling to leave a major romantic character in a plot black hole. Amy Robsart has very few historical notes about her and she died with no children, so I may be character assassinating her by making her a sadist and rapist in my story, but it's creative liberty. As to why she does in this short story, medieval torture is infamous, especially during this era when you have religious wars and rival Catholic/Protestant believers trying to outdo one another in "forced" conversions. I took the ideas and just applied it as a medieval version of a gay conversion camp, memorization of Biblical verses, followed by some forms of torture or positive reinforcement with Amy as the lead. She's a bit unstable and egotistical. I created an original character, Timothy Percy, a fictitious gay scion of the powerful Percy family of northern England. In reality, they still currently hold their noble titles in Northumberland. I took various snippets of medieval personalities and mindsets to craft this tragic character, whose greatest crime wasn't that he was just gay, but he was a bottom. There are some concepts about superior and inferior positions in gay sex, which has translated into modern times as well. Fucking a guy may be frowned upon, but could be considered an act of virility and excusable if your position was superior to the person you penetrated. Additionally, I implied the concept of family lines and superior vs. inferior lines, which can be treated as rights to titles and lands. Robert Dudley, who has been longing to be back with Eli, has a very interesting backstory here. My faithful readers know Robert's dreams and knowledge to pleasure Robsart was not random imagination. I think what Robert did implicitly was Scheherazade-style (Scheherazade was the main female character in the Arabian story One Thousand and One Nights, who told the non-stop story to the king to prevent her execution) sexual games to protect himself. Pleasure isn't love or connection, there are many ways to reach the orgasm without ever connecting with the other person, but such distinctions are modern concepts. For Amy Robsart, Robert was an enticing toy that could help create pain for itself for her pleasure. It's a tragic situation for him, because he demonstrated the ability to rationalize and create self-harm to survive a sadist, the sadist spares him to continue this vicious cycle of self-harm regiment. When Eli does come half a year later, Robert will have a shattered mental state. Notes: 1. Two lines from Shakespeare: "Fault in our stars"- Julius Caesar's line to Brutus about human folly to perceive dangers "Sleep of Death"- Hamlet's soliloquy regarding his resolve to accept death if it should come. I used this line, because the next words are "what dreams may come", which connect with the dreams mentioned in this story. 2. Several biblical verses were used in this story, dealing with sin, chastity, familiar anti-gay lines, and repentance. The title is from the Book Acts, which I quoted at the end. Interesting point, Timothy was tied to the cross first and then nailed his palm, rather than nailed to keep his body in place. The laws of physics would still apply, you can't hold up the body weight of a human body with nails on the palm. This was done under Christian beliefs that Jesus was nailed through the palm, not the wrist, but Robsart family knew they needed to use a rope to keep the body on the cross as the Crucifixion they believed in would not work, an example of false ritual and another dark aspect of Christianity.

I never wanted these unnatural attractions, but I have suffered for them. I suffered alone for them because I wanted to be bedded by another boy of my age, I was an abomination. His name was Henry Percy, he was my cousin. I thought he would protect me; I believed in his empty promises of devotion and love like Isolde believed in Tristan. When we were caught in the act, Henry, who penetrated me, was exempt from punishment as his line was superior to my own, but I could not be forgiven by my fathe

Jeff Goldblum approves, so does his co-star the fly 😛

This should count, I just finished watching the anime movie Sasaki and Miyano: Graduation For those that watched the anime last year or read the manga, Sasaki and Miyano are the purest and cutest gay leading couple. In the movie, Sasaki came out to his sister, but neither boy fell into the trope of gay panic or fear at the initial negative reception (Which is tamed if compared to western standards). If the anime producers can have such a positive portrayal of an important thing in a young LGBT guys life, I've got hope for future BL animes, or heck, maybe Miyano and Sasaki can start a new genre of positive gay anime/manga outside of the trauma/angst/hate trope in BL. PS: Miyano is an uke (bottom), despite his protestations. Sasaki is confirmed in the movie as a switch/vers, plus he's the world's most patient boyfriend. No sex was involved, but you can tell based on their discussions and body language.

Neat: I just did this one, definitely has a few stories to tell. Will they or Won't they hold each other's hands already

Nope, sadly, they're paid for by PAC and other groups. Anyone with money can start them and fund ads like this on YouTube. That stuff is completely legal and protected speech. I am not against people expressing opinions even if I dislike and have disdain for the opinions, but it is wrong to be forced by some group to listen to their attacks on your community and life. Free speech through ads can be made as such, but nowhere is there a freedom to force others to listen. That's the problem with the ad campaign.

Thanks Pi Guy I've had the ads customization on, usually it's just video games commercials, which is cool. I am not opposed to trying out new smartphone games or downloading something on my Switch. I know what you mean, what I have had to do now is refresh my browser and relaunch the video to the same spot I was stopped at when that happens. Not all commercials or ads were bad, but I just don't like being bombed by anti-LGBT ads. ------------ I like the idea of selective marketing based on interests, if we don't share the same interests or beliefs, it's fine we can be amicably separate. However, the commercial claims that gay rights and LGBT advocates are forcing our ideas on others, while a commercial is being forced on a member of the LGBT community is several levels of messed up. From a marketing standpoint, the targeting seemed off to me and I was wondering if anyone else experienced the same thing. PS: I noticed the ads have stopped as of today.

Berry Pomeroy Castle had surrendered to me a few weeks after the events at Caliban’s farm. Lady Jane Grey wept upon seeing me, begging for me to shelter her. After a year of separation, I noticed that she had grown into a beautiful young woman. I could see what Guildford liked about her; she was the innocent damsel type that could rouse certain men to her side. However, I was not one of those men. John Dudley had now taken over as the de facto leader of the Privy Council. I conceded one point fo

Chapter 10 There's a lot of divergence now happening in my story from actual history. For one thing, the Prayer book rebellions of 1549 never happened in Devonshire, so Eli has taken all the rebels in and trained them to be part of his army. Additionally, due to the quick death of Edward Seymore, the famous Kett rebellion in Norfolk never happened, which is the battle that helped elevate Earl of Warwick, John Dudley, to fame with victory to Duke of Northumberland. However coincidentally, Robert Dudley's first wife Amy Robsart's land holdings was in Norfolk county, so he should have been part of John Dudley's supression campaign in history, but there's no history of what happened here. As for Edward Seymore, the 11-year-old son of Edward Seymore, I am only half embellishing his antics. Elizabeth I was frustrated by this kid for getting in the middle of sex scandal after a sex scandal. He was married 3 times in our history, which even for Elizabethan England was a lot. Of course, he does serve her administration well and was appointed as an ambassador. Think of him in this universe as a pansexual Casanova, trying desperately to prove his worth. Sometimes comedic, sometimes fascinating. As for Bristol Castle, I used John Leland as my source again as he was one of the few people who had documented what the original decaying castle looked like. It was a perfect symbol of a declining dynastic monarchy, so renovating it and modernizing it outlying defense for Bristol would be the perfect counterpoint. It is also where a new type of administrative government is created, so the Bristol System seems astute. For this week lesson, 11th law of power “Learn to keep people dependent on you”, the concept is simple, make sure you are needed and indispensable for what people desire. One reason why Eli setup his government administration and tax system under mutual companies and cooperatives with 33% government ownership stakes is to keep the people of Wales, Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Devonshire dependent on his government to keep the balance. Without the favorable taxation practices and profit sharing system of these organizations, they would have to return back to the medieval administrative structure where you have hereditary servant/slave, crushing taxes on local industry, and lack of transparency in terms of pricing. In principle, this is a form of taxation akin to a flat tax rate, but it is far more realistic. Instead of taxing the average consumer on spending, the taxation on all productive businesses, farms, and organizations on profit by share of profit incentives everyone to work for a common profit. The concept of Mutual companies and cooperatives were considered the middle ground as a solution to the excess of Capitalism and unproductive Socialism. However, this system in the modern world has fallen into disuse and is despised by Conservatives and Liberals alike due to its smaller profits and less representative equitable outcome as can be seen in Mutual insurance and cooperative farming companies in the US Western states. ------------ Notes: We're diverging on many points of history with what happened in the last chapters, so I'll start noting some things to keep in mind. 1. Devonshire has traditionally been impoverished throughout this period in history due to various local issues and its rough land. Being part of this trade network with the other western regions will change their fate. 2. I did not forget about Cornwall, which sits at the edge of southwestern England. I just have different plan for it in my story and who Eli will encounter there. 3. Pillboxes and bunkers are features in modern defensive fortifications. Large static defenses like castles and fortresses became obsolete with the invention of long range artillery and aircraft, so smaller defensive structures were better. 4. Keep an eye out for Robert and Eli's next encounter....just saying

I should renew my VPN I have no problem with people's right to free speech, feel free to speak your piece as loudly as you want to your preferred audience. However, I do have an issue with its interference with my freedom of assembly. Social media sites like YouTube are the new town square, where everyone can gather. Content and ad targeting in theory should not be forced on individuals, especially people who your actively trying to criminalize and rally actions against with rhetoric.

Alright, I am pissed off. This is like the 12th anti-LGBT ad I have gotten in the last 24 hours. What is wrong with the YouTube algorithm? I enjoy gay/bi YouTubers offering their fresh takes on anime/manga, along with horror, romance, sci-fi, and drama movies/shows. With the impressive amount of BL manga translated recaps and gay film shorts I watch, it should be obvious that I am not the audience for these ads. If anything, they make me want to invest in a rival ad campaign. I don't want this to be political, but I just don't understand what makes me more appealing to appeal to with scare tactics ads. It's counterproductive and offensive. Has anyone else seen similar ads on YouTube? Is this some bad marketing push?

Well not everyone can be a Weekender Personally, I wouldn't mind some buttered scones and figs jam with a spot of tea

Hmm, I may not be as intelligent as the author, but I did get my 4-year college degree at 20 with High School AP credits + Summer Coursework + Extra Credit Volunteer Projects. Too bad, I finished it all in 2008 (Bad timing). -#15 As for #17 author: You're so humble and down to earth, I really hope you find someone special who can take you on a world trip and treat you like your the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I am old for thinking of this song:

Yes, Chris, you should watch the musical Sweeney Todd that inspired this chapter The songs were memorable too: Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd His skin was pale and his eye was odd He shaved the faces of gentlemen Who never thereafter were heard of again He trod a path that few have trod Did Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet Street Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd He served a dark and a vengeful god What happened then, well, that's the play And he wouldn't want us to give it away Not Sweeney Not Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet Street