Sigmund never did manage to figure out the logistics of their flight, not really. Because the Earth was round, and huge, and hung in the vast black void of space. Not to mention Sigmund had been on airplanes before and he knew—empirically knew—that everything above the clouds was cold and bright and empty.
It certainly wasn’t full of leaves. Or branches. Or . . . was that a herd of deer?
“Where the bloody hell are we?” he asked, hands gripping the edge of the gondola window as he peered out beyond Hrímgrímnir’s feathers.
“Passing between the boughs of the World Tree,” Hel replied.
“Oh. Right.”
The drop below was . . . long. Oddly, Sigmund wasn’t frightened of it. Yeah, falling would suck, but a dragon wasn’t an airplane. It was alive, and thinking, and it would catch them if they fell.
Throughout his life, Dr. Phillip Ahn has overcome countless obstacles to pursue his dreams and encounter unique experiences like becoming #ShangTsung in #MortalKombatII. 🐉🩺
Written from the perspective of in-universe freelance journalist, Friedman Ray, #ArmoredCore: A New Order of "NEXT" is filled with concept art and trivia for both #ArmoredCore4 and #ArmoredCoreForAnswer
More time passes. I spend it staring at the ceiling, wishing I had my cell phone. Or, at the very least, a fucking cigarette.
I have neither, however, so instead I occupy myself with delusions of rescue. These mainly involve Sigmund, dressed in some suitably revealing “armor,” kicking in the door to the cell, crying my name in an anguished way, then coming to rub himself all over me while stroking my horns and telling me how brave I am and how worried he was.
Jordan Shapiro's #FREEPLAY is "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" for a new generation: part philosophy, part psychology, part spirituality, but ALL #VideoGames.
A little different from the typical fare in #TheVideoGameLibrary, but I absolutely love these Hand-Drawn Game Guides from the incredibly talented Philip Summers.
If you get a chance, be sure to check out his page in the library, and his website!
If there’s one thing Loki Laufeyjarson never lacked for, it was children. He’d tell you they’re a side effect of living a long life. This, like many things Loki says, would be a lie.
His eldest child is a daughter.
The story goes that once upon a time, the witch Gullveig came to the gates of Ásgarðr. Three times the gods killed her for it, driving spears into her breast, and three times was her body burned. When finally the deed was done for good, when Gullveig’s magic resurrected her no more, all that was left was her blackened heart, burned upon her pyre. Loki, it is said, took this heart and ate it, and from this he birthed all the evil in the world.
Wayne made the tea. Some concoction of chili and cinnamon and ginger, because she was an incorrigible beverage hipster who kept an alchemist’s lab of equipment next to the cash register.
Sigmund considered the wisdom of consuming anything found inside a Helbleed, but didn’t want to say as much in front of the lady herself. It seemed rude.
“You know of my death at Father’s hands.” Speaking of, Hel was standing, straight and proud, between a shelf of crumbling Tintin and a display of oozing plastic Daleks.
“Uh, yeah . . . kinda? He mentioned some stuff.” Honestly, between Loki and Baldr and Lain and gods only knew who else, the whole Helbleed/Ragnarøkkr thing had been bloody confusing.
Hel “sipped” her tea, which mostly involved delicately pouring it onto her tongue, what with the lack of lips and all. She was pretty good at it, especially given the huge sleeves that covered her hands like the world’s most ill-fitting pair of gloves.
“We met in battle,” she said. “While he wore the crown of Ásgarðr. It was an honorable death.”
“Are you . . . er . . .”
Another shift that may have been a smile. “Yes,” Hel said. “I am now as my subjects are.”
Dead, in other words. “Oh. Right, um . . . my condolences?”
Downright Bizarre Games is a hilarious look at the odd side of the #VideoGame industry - from games outside of the norm to bad art and outlandish dialogue. 📚
We are #Pratchat, a #TerryPratchett#book club #podcast. Each month we* discuss one of Pratchett’s books, short stories or other works with a special guest - and we aim to cover all of them, not just the #Discworld ones!
We’re new to Mastodon, but chatting with our listeners has been a big part of the show since we started back in 2017.
There are three of them, all men, lined up in a row along the Bifröst, and I pull the car to a stop to avoid running them down. It’s been a while and they’re older than I recall, but I still recognize the faces. The two on the outside are Thor’s brats, Magni and Móði. Magni looks like his father, huge and broad, with a glare that’s both vicious and slightly vacant. Móði takes more after his mother, smaller and slighter than his meathead older sibling. Both boys have hair that gleams like burnished copper beneath the sun.
They’re trouble enough on their own, yet nothing compared to the man standing between them.
Forseti, god of law and justice, as bright and blond and self-righteous as his useless asshole of a father, Baldr.
Part of the SF Masterworks Collection. Despite being nearly 60 years old the narrative around the manipulation of the truth feels incredibly prescient. Wondering whether David Whitaker had read it before he came up with #DoctorWho story The Enemy of the World. #Books#Bookstodon#SciFi#PhilipKDick
A story of how giving up your morals may bring you success, but not happiness. Steinbeck’s final novel and one that showcases his ability to preach his view of the world while building a tight tense story around characters who feel incredibly real. Enjoyed it if that is the right word.
The fourth in Pryce’s Louie Knight series. Set at Christmas this is the darkest of the first four novels while still being very funny in places. There’s an awful lot of threads thrown at this one and I’m not sure they all stick quite as well as earlier entries, but it’s still very enjoyable and the noir Aberystwyth, Louie and his assistant Calamity are all terrific creations.
Despite seeing various different TV and film adaptations I’d never read the novel. As good as some of those are the novel outflanks them all. I can see why it’s regarded as one of the great sci-fi novels. Where Wyndham is so good is in creating a very real sense of a global disaster and building that world, but at the same time keeping it personal and making you care about the individuals. 5⭐️
Enjoyable comedy crime caper set around a Sci-Fi convention full of little in-jokes. It’s fairly light and very easy to read. Whizzed through it in a couple of days.
First Perry Mason novel I’ve read after many years of seeing the TV adaptations. Races along perfectly well with enough mystery involved to keep you wanting to turn the page. I’ll happily pick out some more in the future.
Wodehouse is by some distance my favourite author. The world he created is full of pure joy and I never bore of escaping into it. He’s one of the few authors who I can re-read over and over again. The Mating Season exhibits him at his absolute best with so many lines and turns of phrase that have you smiling ear to ear or chuckling. He was the master.
One of those books that always appears on must-read lists that has nonetheless sat unread on my pile of books for many a year. I regret now not getting round to it earlier. I found the storytelling to be incredibly vivid and though I’m not a great one for re-reading things I can imagine myself coming back to it at some point.
Not my first read of it, but my first for a very long time. Has its strengths as it adds more depth to the Holmes character and the mystery works well enough. On the negative side the Watson-Mary ‘romance’ is pretty weak and obviously there are elements that haven’t aged so well. Overall it’s enjoyable enough without being Holmes at its absolute best.
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
Peter Frankopan
Really effective. Manages to add context and a new perspective to the changing power dynamics of world history in a really entertaining way. I took a lot from it.
A find in a charity shop that I picked up largely as I had a vague memory of reading bits of it for my A-Level studies. It remains pretty readable and it’s a nice not too involved overview of the Stuart dynasty.
He who stands on tiptoe
doesn’t stand firm.
He who rushes ahead
doesn’t go far.
He who tries to shine
dims his own light.
He who defines himself
can’t know who he really is.
He who has power over others
can’t empower himself.
He who clings to his work
will create nothing that endures.
If you want to accord with the Tao,
just do your job, then let go.