W_L

Kayleigh’s face twisted with anger and desperation, her eyes narrowed, her body coiled with the same greed I’d once seen in George Miller, her father. But this was no longer about George; it was about the path he’d forced us down and how, somewhere along the way, Kayleigh had become a fractured reflection of the trauma she endured. She saw others only for their value to her, much like her father did. I wanted to hate her, to blame her for Tommy losing his leg and for everything that had happened

Sunday drifted in a sleepy haze, calm and content. Tommy and I stayed close, wrapped up in each other, just existing together. His warmth grounded me, while memories from this timeline trickled into my mind. In the low, drowsy light of the morning, he shared pieces of his childhood I'd never heard before—small secrets he’d kept close all these years. Each one revealed his courage and scars, moments that had shaped him but also left him vulnerable. One memory stood out by the weight he place

George Clooney, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt must circumvent their agents from pitching them another Ocean's movie until they can get script and director oversight

Isn't that glass half full or empty? In either description, the substance being measured covers half the maximum potential capacity. The arrow of time is biased with consciousness and perception is whether the substance is filled to reach half or depleted to reach half. Entropy in this case depends on on the system and observations. Pretty cool relationships.

A primitive beefcake having fun with a teenage boy... 😛 ----------- @Talo Segura Time in the scientific context is meant as an observational measurement, so it can be calculated assuming the subject has a beginning and ending. Essentially, it is the study of entropy. What I think you are referring to is the arrow of time as envisioned by British astrophysicist Arthur Eddington for the direction of time, based on his 3 principles, which includes conscious perception:

Well the end of the movie showed 2012 from Evan's perspective in a thriving NYC without a visible Freedom Tower, so I wanted to create an in-universe explanation for it. (In reality, the movie being filmed in 2002-3 would not have had ground-breaking of the Freedom Tower, which happened in 2006). I remembered the dropped investigation of the overbilling scandal and the lack of accounting for the $8 billion in liberty bonds issued after 9/11, so I created a plausible reason for the delay in construction. I like little historical details. Glad you're having fun

Saturday unfolded quietly, almost idyllic, as Tommy and I wandered the streets of New York. The city looked just as I remembered, yet there was a persistent sense of something "off"—a subtle reminder that this timeline was different from my own. Tommy seemed to notice my lingering glances, and with his usual gentle patience, asked what I was seeing. I pointed to the Freedom Tower, which was under construction and looked as formidable as ever. "In my timeline," I began, "they had to halt con

I think some vampire boys will be proud to perform some phelbotomies

Thanks, I'll need to figure out the road forward for this universe. It's far from over, but there's a lot to consider. Glad you enjoyed it ----------- I know the end in Russia is devestating, but it was heading in that direction for a while. This is an epilogue rather than a final chapter, because Eli has already revealed everything in the last chapter on what he, Robert, and the Mecha knights had done and will do. This entry just cements the brutality of this kind of strategy, but you can't deny it's efficient for reaching certain goals.

I thought I'd share some insights into my thought process for this story—both for readers and for myself if I ever wonder why I wrote something so alien to my own experience as a gay man. I'll focus on the genres and subgenres that shape this story to give a clearer frame of reference: Genres: Fantasy: Within the Fantasy genre, there's a subset called Isekai that originated in Japan and has expanded into Korean and Chinese fantasy fiction. The core idea is that a modern person is someh

A week before the final action on January 6th, I made my way alone toward the refugee encampment just outside Moscow. Dressed in rags, with sores on my feet and an emaciated frame, I aimed to blend in as one of the countless refugees. In the distance, I saw a massive blue-hued dome enveloping the city with an unearthly glow—a manifestation not of phantom energy but of another exotic particle. My ability confirmed it was a graviton bubble, identical to what a scout drone had detected months ago d

Here's the thing, I do enjoy the movie and felt like it was such a bitter love story between Evan and Kayleigh. Do I think they belong together? No, it's quite toxic especially with how it began (Childhood sexual exploitation and abuse is not grounds for forming a deeper love story). However, after rewatching it, I wondered what was Tommy's deal with his hatred for Evan. Is it merely just a brother's overreaction to his sister's lover? Is it the abuse he suffered at the hands of his father (which I assume was not just limited to what we saw in the film based on the implications)? Plus the whole, "finding Jesus" thing that gives his life purpose in the movie, it just made me feel like Tommy had an unrequited crush on Evan. While the ending of the movie implies everyone is better off, I'm not quite sure if Tommy being a closeted gay man repressing his sexuality really is a happy ending for him or the world at large. Now as for Evan, he's different. On the surface, he's 100% hetero and there's no doubt that he's had many female lovers over his timelines. However, my question is why? He's more sexually active in the timelines when he was sexually exploited alongside Kayleigh, but in a reality without that, he's been portrayed as being alone or with his friend Lenny without a female companion (He should have had developed relations with someone else). I went with the thought that Evan based on the development track with his flashback ability would be asexual, if he were not exposed to hetero experiences. So, in this kind of setup, what would happen when an unrequited love and a blank slate interact? A love story of course. Of course there's issues, Evan still remembers his time with Kayleigh fondly. He is aligning his thoughts of previous timelines with this current one. Plus, Tommy is disabled in this timeline (mysterious cause, hmm...wonder when will that Chekov gun go off). This story might get dark at times, but it is far nicer and happier than others I've written. I don't often write love stories, but I enjoy them. I hope folks can enjoy some fluff from me after a dark journey into an alternate 16th century world from Of Pride and Power.

I opened my eyes slowly, the weight of sleep heavier than I could ever remember. Everything felt distant, like moving through water. As my vision cleared, I saw sunlight filtering through sheer curtains, illuminating the edges of an unfamiliar room. A steady warmth pressed against my chest, grounding me with a faint, elusive scent that felt familiar. A hazy memory flickered for a moment: waking up in Kayleigh’s dorm room, the morning light catching in her hair, her presence so close I almos

Realistically, territorial acquisition of Russian Empire would not be possible with the population or technology available to Eli. The only real way to win a land war with Russia is to not seek land from Russia and deny them the use of their lands as well. Of course, if you want to go down that road, you'll break alot of international law, but there's no international law in this universe. Also, unlike some fascist simps, I won't go down the concept of "strength = power" to achieve an alternate history ending like this, in those isekai stories slavery and genocide are the basis for success. That stuff doesn't work long-term and I don't like glorifying it, there's better ways to win wars for peace without having the cost of domination, it's just extremely ruthless to do so. Eli is focused on "the ends justify the means" as an atheist who has transcended death through superior knowledge rather than superior morality.

A fanfiction for The Butterfly Effect, a 2004 American Film LIMITED RUN STORY- It will not be as long as a novel, most likely around 15K words. Set after the theatrical ending of the film, Evan is living his best life so far in 2012, despite feeling lonely without the experiences of having someone to love in his life. Due to his work, Evan unintentionally meets a familiar person, who will start the flashbacks again. Update 10/31/24: This will be published on a Monday Morning schedule going forward.

I hadn’t intended to catch her eye. In fact, I’d spent years carefully avoiding exactly that. She was as beautiful as I remembered—maybe even more so—but memories of her from past timelines have faded over the last eight years. Her smile was unguarded, a brightness untouched by the darkness that once haunted her. She stood on the opposite side of the street, her hair lifting lightly in the wind. For a split second, as she turned to look at me, I almost forgot the reason for our separation. I wan

Thanks Chris, I am not sure if Eli should be praised, but the strategy is different.

For centuries, traditional warriors who favored superiority through force argued that victory could be achieved by control. This linear concept of warfare was based on the resource demands of armies, from the need for manpower and reinforcements to the logistical challenges of sustaining occupied territories. The increasing complexity of warfare required advances in both mobility and logistics. Strategists like Sun Tzu, Julius Caesar, and countless others evolved this theory, treating it as an u

I need to add in some missing pieces from my short story collection, i.e. Francis Walsingham's time as the Black Knight of Navarre, the "lost decade" of the 1560s (Which FYI was a relatively peaceful period in Elizabeth I reign and European politics, but there was a lot of buildup to later wars and civil wars). One thing about creating a brand new universe from scratch, I kind of have to bridge various character stories and explain things that I glossed over in this story, since it's Eli's first person account. Book 2 is currently something I am plotting. I have thought of a few roads to go down: Far East and chronicle this world's version of Sengoku Jidai (Japanese Warring States Period that led to the Tokugawa Shogunate aka my version of Shogun ) or I stay in Europe and follow Joachim Frederick (The formation of Prussian state, like the elimination of German states through a mixture of diplomacy, war, and intrigue. Basically, the 19th-century Central European History happens in the 16th century in my universe, while Austrian-Spanish Empire is at its peak. German history is a fascinating subject. It's probably narratively just as dark as Book 1 if not darker, because Germany wasn't unified with candy and smiles. Otto von Bismark wasn't called the Iron Chancellor for nothing.)

There are a lot of other Civilizations that I haven't explored fully, nor have we gone deep into what the Western Charter is capable of. The Russian Empire is not going to fall completely, but the kind victory that Eli and his husband seek is not what you may expect, even in this genre that I am playing in, it's out there. The Guardians of Eternity may get a nod at the end.

Thanks Chris

In my timeline, the Siege of Narva was the penultimate battle of the Livonian War, fought between Sweden and Russia in 1581. The Russian Empire prioritized fortifying this position above all others on the Baltic coast to avoid such a defeat. They followed a strategy adopted in the 18th century during the Great Northern War, which most historians in my timeline regard as the turning point for Russia's rise to international power. After establishing a presence in the southern Gulf of Finland in 17

Sadly, not many people like my history notes on the chapters. I do enjoy technical details in historical fiction, but it's not everyone enjoys. If readers want my author's notes, I can add them into my blog after I finish the book, like a free extra.

Aye, Russian historians don't like mentioning the destruction of Moscow in 1571, usually they call it the Moscow fire of 1571; even though, it was caused by the Ottoman allied army. After the attack, Ivan opened diplomatic relations with England under Elizabeth I. As for the antisemitism, it's a tragic history. Most histories are focused on Continental actions, but England wasn't exempt from such issues. Queen Elizabeth I, as much as her biographers, admirers, and movies/books depict a goddess, was not perfect. It's a tragedy that she discriminated against a friend due to his religion. On the flip side, while Queen Victoria is villified a lot for her tenure as the symbol of British Imperialism, she was a much more open-minded person. She was interested in the world and open dialogue without regard to race, religion, or gender roles.

So, what would you like to see in Stories? What function are we missing? For me, I do like the idea of dark mode, since I use color inversion to reduce eye strain when I read. It will make reading much easier. As for other features, I am wondering how's proposed mobile interface for TTS (Text-to-Speech) compatibility? One of the issues with some story sites with updated interfaces is read-back with third-party apps. I've figured a few workarounds by converting stories to MP3s, when I want to continue reading, while I work. Also, will there be a bookmark feature, so readers can keep their places in longer stories?