So for a... rather delayed campaign I've come up with a few factions which I want to involve in a campaign. Its a sandbox game with factions competing in the area that the party might have a chance to work with or fight against. I've a couple of core ones and a range of other ideas but I'm aware at this point I should probably be cutting some. So i thought I'd throw this out there and get some advice as to what people thought was most interesting and what people thought should either be entirely discarded or at least moved to a back burner.
For a quick setting overview i'm going with some of the classic clash of order and freedom type of thing borrowing some ideas from things like Dark Sun and Mesopotamian history as inspiration. Broadly this part of the continent has most of its agricultural land focused around the coasts and some river systems that extend into the interior of the continent, most of this agricultural land is ruled by powerful city states dominated by Draconic King. Beyond this the lands surrounding it are largely arid, plant life only briefly able to flourish in the wet season as wadis fill for a time, the lands and people here often wild. Go far enough north and you hit a region of hills and mountains of a different but equally harsh nature most often.
So 2 factions which are must haves
Meshant
The closest of the great city states to the starting area, ruled by a powerful Blue Dragon named Ukrik'Azahim'Mli and with a satellite town called Oulm'Aki being a possible starting/hub location, a modest town sitting at the edge of a minor tributaries of the larger river upon with Meshant sits. As with many of the great dragon city states slavery is common here, order is often enforced ruthlessly and the society is extremely hierarchical, with a small clique of wealthy nobles (most of whom are dragonborn) at the top and a large number of slaves and poorer subjects at the bottom of the pile. However, it represents a place of socio-economic complexity, that embraces long distance trade. Ukrik'Azahim'Mli is also quite a capable ruler, he's been fairly good at fending off the attempts of rivals to conquer his lands and has earned wealth for his city through wars, his court is a centre of learning regarding the magical and mundane, as well as being a patron of the arts. His legal system may provide broad powers when dealing with those accused of crimes against those of a higher station but the great storm dragon does still value something approaching rule of law. And if you are someone who values things like trade and literacy it is Meshant that will further such things. For an adventurer who seeks wealth and prestige the forces of Meshant are also perhaps the best resourced to offer such things.
Here in Ouim'Aki, the governor Amar-Suen is the governor of a town at the edge of the city's zone of control, the river that connects them navigable in the wetter parts of the year but not always easy and safe to traverse with Ouim'Aki sitting on the north shore of a marshy lake in the wet season as water collects from nearby areas, the river flowing out to the south and joins the flow of a larger river at Meshant. Meanwhile with a new campaigning season likely to begin it is likely the king will bring his power southwards to wage war on his neighbouring monarchs meaning although Meshant is the greatest power in this region not all of its resources will be focuses here.
The Hatussa
The Hatussa describe a loose, fluid group of desert nomads that live in this area, their population is made up of a fair mixture of desert elves along with humans, half elves and a smattering of other races. The people of the cities would call them barbarians, surviving off pastoralism, hunting and gathering as they move across the landscape in small groups rather than farming, having no knowledge of writing and with the concept of law being nothing more than a group of loose shared norms, the enforcement of which is not the monopoly of any king, judge or their men. Those of the city might describe them as untrustworthy, at one time happy to do trade and at another to engage in banditry and raiding. The deserts they live in can often be tough places, low on water in many parts of the year and even at the best of times wild monsters and dangerous beasts are not uncommon. However they are lovers of freedom, decisions are often made by consensus among groups, leaders often chosen only for a specific purpose such as conducting a raid or a negotiation, their lose political structure lacking many of the traditional facets of state structure such as taxation and a monopoly on the use of force.
But I have some other ideas for factions and I'm debating which I might also include.
The Nethaniah
For generations the valley dwarfs have lived as slaves or poor lower class workers in the realms of the Draconic Kings. The Nethaniah are a local group focused on the liberation of of the Valley Dwarfs in particular and perhaps abolition more broadly, hoping to either rebel against the King of Meshant and free perhaps Oulm'Aki or else take as many of their people as possible and find somewhere to free. On their own however they know they lack the strength to have much chance of taking Meshant on. They are known for including warriors highly skilled using simple weapons and in unarmed combat but some are also said to turn to darker powers seeking stranger abilities. They are quite willing to be ruthless in their goals, carrying out assassinations and the like to undermine the power of the Draconic Masters in Oulm'Aki, although they are not blind to the suffering of slaves of other races they still tend to prioritise freeing their own people
The Sleepless Dreamers A group of former supporters of the old king of Meshant, Uzi'Isbi'Imi, who have fled into the deep desert along with the bones of the dead Brass Dragon. Since then they have been trying to find a way to bring her back to life or perhaps unlife. So far they have yet to be successful but in order to continue their work in that desolate place many have successfully turned themselves undead and raised undead servants. The old King was probably a better person than the current Ukrik'Azahim'Mli, if a less capable general, but the means that their followers would go to to return them are... disturbing.
The Cult of Kamosh Another internal rebellion group but this one largely led by humans. Focused around a secret religious movement focused around the dragon slaying god Kamosh they blame a lot of the woes of the world on the Dragons and their servants, their vision of liberation has little room for Dragons, Dragonborn, Kobolds and the worship of the Draconic gods in any area they may manage to liberate. The local cult is eager to rebel in Oulm'Aki and take control of it but at the present will need more resources or more allies to do so.
The Naram League As the name suggests this is a small group of villages and a town who are roughly organised around an alliance to a young copper dragon Naram'Dalu. These settlements are organised in a small ridgeline of hills much to the east where slightly higher rains and something of an aquifer allows them to survive in an area that is arid but a little more liveable than the surrounding desert. Their remoteness and small size has meant Meshant has generally had bigger fish to fry but both sides well know that they may one day turn on them and try to conquer them. Currently they have an awkward relationship with Meshant where they are willing to pay a small, largely symbolic tribute to the great city in order to secure their peace and a trade. Naram'Dalu is much less intentionally brutal than some of the draconic kings but this local lord would still much rather spend his time partying than dedicating himself to working hard to benefit his people.
The Yamna An nomadic tribe come from across the mountains that were driven south by bad weather increasing competition for resources in the far north a few years ago, the Yamna are a group forged around an orc core but they care more for strength than for lineage, any who prove their capability may join the tribe and as such they have a fair few people from other races mixed into their group. In recent years the Yamna spent some time providing mercenaries for Meshant, but two years ago during a difficult campaign against rival cities in the south their relationship shattered, both sides claimed the other more or less betrayed them. Now the broader tribe has been scattered into its component familial groups, many of which have come to this region with their carts looking for pasture for their cattle during the wetter parts of the year. With the drier season approaching though the future of the tribe is yet to be decided, will they be united under a new leader or remain scattered, will they try to return to the steppe beyond the mountains, will they try to carve out a place here by force with raiding and seizing land, will the establish relationships with local powers through trade, alliance and mercenary work to ensure they have means to keep their cattle from starving.
The following are more minor factions, they will probably only come up under certain circumstances, i'm less likely to create hooks to allow players to actually join them with their purpose more to be mainly either possible allies for a faction the PCs might join or factions mainly there to be antagonists.
Clan Jerahmal A dwarven mountain clan north the local region, the closest such of the clans that dot the mountains and jungle hills. They have no love for the dragons and heir servants and feel a certain kinship towards their cousins enslaved and otherwise oppressed by the whip of Meshant, despite some considerable religious differences, but it is likely to take a fair amount of persuading to get them to leave their fortified settlements in the hills and mountain and march upon the plains. Many in the towns and cities view the mountain clans as terrible isolated and superstitious, given their aversion to arcane arts and culture of ritual cleanliness, but their access to iron is both shrouded in mystery much envied and sort after given the lowlanders can only work meteoric iron. I'm debating whether to have some goliath either folded in as part of the clan's structure or as a separate but allied group in the same general region.
An-Nesa The marshy lake near Ouim'Aki in the wet season is a maze of reeds, deep channels of water and banks of mud. In the dry season it still retains a degree of folliage due to soil moisture but much less is navigable by boat, land navigation is still difficult as many areas have only a thin layer of hardened material baked on the surface which can break to reveal much softer mud and silt beneath. Half submerged in this is the ruins of an old settlement called Nesa, its inhabitants, the An-Nesa are a tribe of lizardfolk primarily (and a small number of those such as black dragonborn), they are known to hunt and fish in the area, as well as sometimes carry out a basic form of flood agriculture, but the An-Nesa are well known to often supplement this with raiding and piracy, which they seem to consider much the same as hunting, often targeting shipments that might contain food and fishing boats, not afraid to eat those they have slain to. Meshant would like to see these destroyed, or at least beaten back until they are no longer so great a threat. The marsh has made it somewhat difficult but the forces of Meshant would certainly consider operations to kill and enslave the lizardfolk when the chance arises.
Halfling Merchants River halflings are well known across much of this part of the continent and the bands of water traders and land caravans they use are well known in this region for their work. While some may regard them as not entirely trustworthy they do represent an extremely useful middleman for many groups, willing to buy goods from a party and sell them on to people who might have serious trust issues dealing directly. Their capability at navigation and willingness to take the risks involved in such journeys allows for a certain risk reward benefit for them to.
Araxes Serving as possible ally for the Hatussa these will probably only come up if the players choose to ally with Hatussa and seek allies or perhaps the odd random encounter with them. The Araxes are a loose group of Aarakocra in he region, they are known to travel long distances as the seasons change, largely practicing a hunter gatherer life style while the rains keep the low lands richer in resources they may well remain to exploit them before returning much further north as they steadily dry out in the coming months. In many regards they have a spirit not unlike the Hatussa in their love for freedom and willingness to act in a fluid and flexible manner, as such they may well serve as valuable allies should the Hatussa decide to go for a major attempt at waging a war in the area.
The Kukan Another faction that will probably be mainly just antagonists. They are a tribal group of goblins living in the east of the region not so far from the league of Naram although some smaller groups are well known to come west seeking chances to raid and the like. Their relationship with Meshant is particularly poor, they largely regard the goblins as pests who are barely people and will kill or enslave any they find without hesitation. Their relationship with other factions is perhaps not as immediately antagonistic but few have much love for them given the Kukan have a reputation for treachery and cruelty.

After many years of banking with USAA, I moved all of my accounts to a larger, full service bank with real branches and an app that works really well! USAA has gone downhill with service and products. The fact that they are no longer run by executives with military service destroys trust with those of us who served.

Long story short, a trusted friend asked to borrow $2k through apple cash. The whole $2k didn’t go through apple pay at first so it was suggested to send half first to see if it would solve the problem. That didn’t work also. Eventually we decided to do it through Paypal and it worked. HOWEVER, my bank account has the $2k and the $1k attempts as pending on my bank account. I checked the messages and the 2k and 1k still didn’t send, they still have those red undelivered exclamation points next to them. Will the amounts be credited back to me? Or will they post to my bank account even though they were unable to be delivered?

Look look look, I know. I know.
It's another guy constructing a cinematic universe. Trust me with this one, I've planned ahead rather than just going one movie at a time, there is an actual structure to it.
This story is going to be a closed one. Three arcs that each have three phases, so while it is huge (if you want to compare it to where the MCU is right now, we would be at the halfway point, right in the middle of the second arc/saga), it is not infinite. There will be a final event to ends everyone's arcs and stories, no loose threads.
Schedule

• X-Men: Regenesis
• Untitled Deadpool sequel
• The Sub-Mariner
• Captain America
• The Hellfire Club
• The Wolverine: Weapon X
• X-Men: Hellfire and Brimstone
• Black Panther: Enemy of the State
• The Astonishing Ant-Man
• Fantastic Four
• The Sub-Mariner: War of the Worlds
• X-Men: Schism

As you can see, phase one is mostly mutant-based as I want fresh ideas and characters to start the universe off. While this phase doesn't have one movie involving every single player, the last two have all the major factions except for one.

X-Men: Regenesis

This is an origin film for the X-Men set just before whatever present day would be in this timeline. We will be going with the classic six-man First Class which consists of Charles Xavier, Cyclops, Iceman, Jean Grey, Beast and Angel.
We will have William Stryker and Bolivar Trask as minor side characters who, while not prejudiced against mutants just yet, are distrustful of the new mutant gene that is beginning to show itself in humans.
Xavier is our protagonist for the film, we explore his psyche and issues with self-worth and thinking he's a failure because of his brother, who is the main villain in this film: Cain Marko a.k.a. the Juggernaut. He creates the team to stop the Juggernaut as he knows he can't do it alone, hence the formation of the team. Cyclops and Jean Grey don't get together in this film but there is some chemistry there. Cyclops' arc is learning to be a better communicator and leader, as he wants to lead the team but finds himself not being a good leader at times. Jean and Beast have doubts about their power - Beast's being more doubts about his form - and being mutant in general which Xavier helps him with. Iceman's arc is about accepting his difference from everyone else. It's key to point out that he doesn't have doubts about his power but rather the social aspect of it, knowing he isn't like everyone else (this is obviously foreshadowing for the inevitable outing, I don't like making a character's sexuality a big deal I think it should just be who they are but for Bobby it's a bit different). Finally, Angel is unlike the others. While the others are all getting to grips with their roles in a team and their mutant powers, Angel is slightly older than the others (minus Xavier of course) and is comfortable with his power, he just doesn't care much for being part of a team, having to be convinced by the fact that Juggernaut is a challenge for him rather than the team aspect of it. While he doesn't complete this arc in any way, it is clear he makes baby steps towards being more open with his teammates by the end.
No cameos, no references to other characters or anything. Just let it be a self-contained story.

Untitled Deadpool sequel

I have nothing to say about this movie. Let Deadpool do whatever he wants to, hopping from universe to universe, ending up in this continuity at some point. To be clear, this is Deadpool 3, sequel to the first two Deadpool movies that are real and exist in the real world. I would be willing to throw major money at this to get some cameos or even slightly larger roles from characters from the Fox universe as well as the MCU since both universes are basically irrelevant now. I would especially love to get interaction between characters who were unceremoniously recast such as the two Yukios and the two Sabretooths. Maybe Cable and the MCU Thanos share a scene? Do whatever you want guys, have fun.

The Sub-Mariner

This should be a direct horror adaptation of Peter Milligan's The Sub-Mariner: The Depths. That is it. The director may introduce side character such as Lady Dorma, Namora and Namorita if they want to but it's really up to them how they want Namor to be characterised, by his relationships or by the plot itself. If I could, I would get Guillermo Del Toro on this. For the unfamiliar, The Depths is a horror storyline that showcases Namor from the perspective of a fleet of ships on the surface, he is the monster rather than the hero.

Captain America

This too would be an almost direct adaptation of Rick Remender and John Romita Jr's Castaway in Dimension Z. No origin needed, general audiences know Captain America by now, no need to go over it again. Arnim Zola as your act one villain, get some quick period piece stuff in the first act, send him to Dimension Z and then have a three act structure there creating a four act film with Green Skull as your main villain, with Jet Zola and Ian Zola as supporting characters. When Cap eventually gets out of Dimension Z with Ian at his side, he is greeted by Sharon Carter revealing that he has come back to 70 years in the future. Cap is now in present day.

The Hellfire Club

Get Rian Johnson in, he can make a Knives Out style mystery thriller using the Hellfire Club characters. The characters I will be using are Sebastian Shaw, Emma Frost, Donald Pierce, Mastermind, Harry Leland, Selene, Fredrich van Roehm (who is the victim) and Emmanuel Da Costa, as well as Tessa in a cameo
This is set just before present day too.

The Wolverine: Weapon X

Weapon X origin for Wolverine, re-treading properly after the shitshow that was the last Weapon X movie. This should be a pretty faithful adaptation of Weapon X vol. 1 #1-#4 however, not diverting from that story too much, mainly in the involvement of Dr. Abraham Cornelius rather than William Stryker. I would get Matthew Vaughn for this one to give it a bit of period aesthetic while also allowing the movie to have a distinct mix of subtly funny while not shying away from the fucked up nature of it all. I want every movie in the Wolverine story to have a unique directorial vision.

X-Men: Hellfire and Brimstone

This movie brings the elements of the last two films together with the X-Men to mark the phase as a connected universe before the second half of the phase which is a lot more disconnected and less mutant-focused.
This movie is basically the X-Men against the Hellfire Club, who are plotting to take over the government of Nigeria where there the population boom is also resulting in a mutation boom. Xavier's started the school for the gifted in between films, and we introduce Storm as a new recruit to the team. Xavier knows he's up against it and decides to recruit Wolverine too just before the midpoint of the film.
The big twist halfway through is that Angel is a double agent working for the Hellfire Club, revealing that he only joined the X-Men after Shaw asked him to keep tabs on powerful mutants. The final battle ends up killing a few Hellfire Club members (Pierce, Da Costa and Selene) and destroys property, which catches the attention of Stryker and Trask once again. Trask decides to begin developing countermeasures.

Black Panther: Enemy of the State

Another pretty faithful adaptation, Black Panther in a political struggle with the White Wolf (the actual White Wolf character who is T'Challa's brother, not Bucky Barnes). Storm is our main love interest, although Nakia is present as an ex which causes tension in the group somewhat. Achebe and White Wolf succeed in their coup, making Black Panther an actual 'enemy of the state', which is when Captain America and Everett Ross join the fray on behalf of the US government who find Achebe and the White Wolf to be dangerous to the larger political landscape, eventually discovering Wakanda's true nature after contact with T'Challa. When T'Challa's mother Queen Ramonda protests against the White Wolf in public, she is assassinated in cold blood. This begins the third act as it completely instabilises the country as people realise that the new power may not be better in the long-term, the final fight being essentially the Wakandan Civil War.

The Astonishing Ant-Man

The Ant-Man in question here is Hank Pym, but Janet van Dyne is not quite the Wasp yet. Our feature villain is Absorbing Man but we may have a minor antagonistic role from Titania (maybe have Titania played by a wrestler? Charlotte Flair would be the perfect one I think but Britt Baker or Rhea Ripley would do a job too). Finesse and Hazmat would probably make good side characters too, just get Edgar Wright on this and let him have free reign.

Doctor Strange: Sorceror Supreme

This is a tricky one because I like where Doctor Strange is right now in the MCU a lot. This is going to be more of a soft reboot, have the same actors and keep the first two films in memory without the mentions to the larger MCU. So while Strange hasn't fought the Scarlet Witch and doesn't have knowledge of the other multiverses, he is at that same point in his friendship with Wong and in his skills. We will however be recasting Nicodermus as a lower level sorceror salty at Strange for not helping him after his wife died, and have him tap into the dark dimension to try and steal Strange's power, causing Clea to come to Earth and warn Strange before the two along with Wong go and solve things. Mordo shows up too, helping Nicodermus as he believes Strange to be part of the problem about abusing magic.
Strange's arc in this film is learning to trust Clea and realising he should use his power whenever possible to help others rather than holding himself to the rules he sets for himself.
Cameo from Nightmare in a post-credit scene.

Fantastic Four

Introduce them in the modern day, put em together, boom
I know it sounds ridiculous considering the failures of previous films but Matt Shahman is someone I trust I'll let him on for this project. Mole Man is the villain, and Victor von Doom is present for a couple of scenes involving the Baxter foundation selling some sort of technology to the country of Latveria.
Reed and Sue are together from the beginning of the film and while their relationship's turbulence post-incident forms the core of the film, their bond is stronger than ever by the end of it. We should have Alicia Masters too with Ben, but the two's relationship is a lot more turbulent even before they get powers, and while the powers don't end their relationship it puts more strain on it than ever before. Johnny has his laundry list of non-committed relationships and how each of the four characters tackles love and differs from it is the starting point for how we will create the dynamics between them. While Mole Man doesn't directly challenge these dynamics as a character, he should try and poke holes in the team this way, giving a little more credence to the 'mole' part of his character.
Cameos from Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock out of costume as a lawyer defending a victim of some sort of dangerous tech that was stolen from the Baxter building, and a slightly more extended one from Tom Holland's Spider-Man who fights Mole Man at the very start of the film and the pair's fight unwittingly causes the accident that gives the F4 their powers.

The Sub-Mariner: War of the Worlds

Much like Captain America: Civil War, this is a movie that features two warring factions but as the title suggest is still part of the story of one primary character: Namor.
This is primarily a Namor movie, introduce side character if Guillermo didn't want to in the first film: namely Namora, Lady Dorma, Namorita, Llyra and Stingray. They are all on Namor's side during this, we will explore inter-Atlantean conflicts later I want there to be tension between members but no outright fights. The other side of the war is, of course, Black Panther. Our supporting characters are Shuri, Monica Lynne, Nakia, Storm and Okoye. Storm's stoic nature makes her absent from the conflict but she is still there during discussions.
Something about Atlanteans being killed in a Wakandan mining operation or something, it escalates, Atlantis declares war on Atlantis. Namor's side will of course have their own tensions as some disagree with a declaration of war while others push him to go to war. T'Challa resists at first and is purely defensive. In an Atlantean attack on Wakanda, the royal palace is put under siege and Nakia dies, turning the dynamic between the two countries on its head as T'Challa, wracked with guilt, decides to go on the offensive to a mixed response from his own camp.
The tensions between the two sides are prominent but we should find a way to separate them from their councils. Eventually Okoye and Shuri come to blows in the wreckage of Wakanda's capital while T'Challa is away, while Stingray disagrees with Namor's methods and decides to help Wakanda.
Okoye and Shuri get more and more tense and Okoye gets the upper hand and nearly stabs Shuri before she stops and all the trauma the nation has suffered comes back to the both of them. Okoye drops her spear and the two reconcile just in time for T'Challa and Namor to face off alone.
Our final battle is a personal one between the two rather than some big war. Pure fisticuffs. The two go toe to toe and are evenly matched, but the fight is broken up by Storm who finally puts an end to everything by intervening and forcing the two to come to a truce. I'm justifying that Storm can stop both of them as T'Challa obviously has a relationship with her and water conducts electricity so Storm should realistically be able to beat him.

X-Men: Schism

Professor X's philosophy of stopping evil after it becomes a problem and Cyclops' need to stop whoever could possibly be a threat causes tension between the two, and this combined with both characters wanting to lead the team results in a fracturing of the team while dealing with Bolivar Trask, who has finally finished his Sentinels after the end of the second X-Men film.
The Hellfire Club also features of course, being prosecuted by the Sentinels too, resulting in a shaky truce between the X-Men and the Club. Much like Civil War, the 'villain' is defeated by the end of the second act only for another act to appear as after the Sentinels are destroyed, the mutants continue to bicker and eventually come to blows. Emma Frost, having begun to see the righteousness in Xavier's ways, sides with him, as do Beast, Angel and Storm. Cyclops is joined by Jean Grey, Iceman, Wolverine and Kitty Pryde, whereas Colossus decides to leave the X-Men altogether and the rest of the Hellfire Club leave. However before they can leave, Cyclops accidentally burns Angel's wings and Emma and Xavier both try and paralyse Mastermind at the same time causing Mastermind's mind to fracture and him to go brain-dead. This is just too much for the group and they go their separate ways, Jean taking Cyclops and his guys away.
Just in case we're unclear on how the mutants are split:-

• Xavier's team: Professor X, Emma Frost, Beast, Storm
• Scott's team: Cyclops, Jean Grey, Iceman, Wolverine, Kitty Pryde
• MIA: Angel, Colossus

And that's how we end the phase. The X-Men are fractured, Wakanda and Atlantis are at an extremely shaky truce, Captain America just woke up in modern times, Doctor Strange is reaching his prime, and the Fantastic Four and Ant-Man are now established.
The next phase will focus on expanding the mutants further with smaller branched teams and assembling the Avengers.

With the first day gone, Artemis and Luther gave their analysis and previewed public polls. Mortimer had usurped Wolvthorne (7) as the favourite to win after his victory against the District 1 tributes as well as exercising his chemistry prowess. Surprisingly, Cat had risen up the ranks as well, being the third favourite to win. Luther remarked how if Mortimer wins the games, they would have the seventh consecutive Golden Victor on their hands. Artemis then said the same could be said about Cat if she does something spectacular with her therapy skills. Luther reminded everyone that they were two tributes away from the final round of bets.
The cameras checked on the progress of the tributes. Mortimer stepped away from the boiling water to gather more logs for his raft project while his allies slumbered. Andrei (2) and Wolvthorne (7) were resting back at the cornucopia after failing to find more tributes. What they didn’t know was that John (9) had managed to steal a water bottle and a knife from them while on patrol. Carnelia and Logan (11) both were still in the eastern sector while Horace (10) continued to stay out of sight. Wren (5) and Jassy (12) were struggling to sleep inside a hollowed out log yards away from the lake shore.
Cat and Pearl awoke to see Mortimer napping on a nearly completed raft. Cat correctly guessed he stayed up all night working on it. She asked Pearl why he was making it. Pearl explained his logic behind it and Cat agreed it made sense something valuable would be on the other side. Pearl woke Mortimer from his nap while Cat filled the water bottles and pulled out the sandwiches. Mortimer was annoyed with himself for dozing off, but Pearl assured him nothing had happened since the portraits of the fallen. She urged him to eat breakfast before resuming his raft project. He relented and the two joined Cat.
Cat out of the blue asked if he could sing like his mentor. Mortimer was caught off guard but shook his head. Pearl regaled how Gill would sometimes burst into spontaneous song when visiting The Brine. Cat said that from a therapist’s perspective, it’s good to have someone in the community keep spirits high. Mortimer asked if Phoebe was hers, to which Cat nodded. She said that if she wins, she will provide District 6 another high spirits person. She asked the two what they would do if they won. Pearl announced her intent to open her own restaurant and clean the Grotto Hole neighbourhood. Mortimer agreed that the place needed some “R&R”. The two girls stared at him. He realised he hadn’t answered Cat’s question and rolled his eyes. He admitted he would hopefully marry his girlfriend and get his father some medical treatment. Cat seemed confused by him saying hopefully, but he returned to his raft project before she could ask. Pearl told her, “I appreciate what you’ve been trying to do for him. Considering he’s the most likely of us to go home, he needs to be in a better headspace.” Cat smiled and patted her on the back. She went off to relieve herself with Pearl accompanying her.
The next two hours went without much incident. There was some entertainment in Wolvthorne (7)’s agitation of not finding more tributes, Andrei (2) complaining about the smell, and the D11 tributes munching on leeches. However, interest was peaking when the tracking system caught Wolvthorne and Andrei (2) unknowingly closing in on Cat and the D4 tributes. A moment of triumph came when Mortimer had completed his raft, which measured 6’x10’. Pearl asked how they knew it would float. Cat decided to test it by standing on it while Mortimer pushed it off the shore. He kept it from floating away using the sturdy rope. A big smile spread across Mortimer’s face when seeing it float. He pulled the raft back in and suggested they pack up and begin their journey.
The three began gathering their materials. Cat went to grab the last backpack when all of a sudden, she heard a splash of water. She looked up and spotted Andrei and Wolvthorne bursting through the brush. She dropped the backpack and blocked Andrei’s attack with her sword. She dodged his next attack but wasn’t aware of Wolvthorne circling around to kill her. He was stopped by Pearl, who threw a rock at his head. Wolvthorne looked up and spotted her and Mortimer at the edge of the lake. He raged at the sight of Mortimer and bolted towards them. Pearl jumped onto the raft and urged Mortimer and Cat to retreat. Mortimer realized she was right as he had left his trident on the raft. As for Cat, she turned to see Mortimer and Pearl push off the shore and escape Wolvthorne. Desperate to reach them in time, she spat in Andrei’s face and slashed his face with her sword. She dove into the water and swam towards the raft. Artemis guessed she was a strong swimmer as she managed to catch up to the raft. Pearl quickly pulled her up onto the raft. All the while Wolvthorne threatened Mortimer with a gruesome death, his language having to be censored by the Capital.
The trio slowly moved through the lake, relieved to be far away from danger. The first hour was silent as Cat was upset with nearly being left behind. Pearl sensed the tension and waited for the first person to speak up. Unfortunately, Mortimer was unperturbed and continued to watch the trees and the water’s surface. In the commentator’s booth, Artemis described the drama as juicy and wondered if they would turn on one another. Luther was on the fence as well, remembering how Mortimer left without hesitation. Eventually, Pearl broke the silence and said, “Will someone please start talking as I’m tired of hearing the dead air.” Cat said she’d be willing to talk if her partner apologized. The annoyed and oblivious Mortimer asked what he had to be sorry for. Cat reminded him that he didn’t try to help her fight Andrei and left her to die. He argued that there was no time, but Cat recalled how he stood there “like a passive waste” as she struggled against Andrei and Pearl hurled rocks at Wolvthorne. Mortimer took offence to that comment. The two began hurling insults at each other while Pearl stood watching. She tried interjecting but her voice was lost in the chaos. Strangely enough, Andrei and Wolvthorne could hear the pandemonium while running along the shoreline. Their interest caused them to miss John (9) sneaking past and hightailing it to the cornucopia. The fight ended when Cat accused Mortimer of plotting to kill her and he blurted out, “I only kept you around for Pearl. But when an opportunity presented itself, I took it. I refuse to get screwed over again.” Cat was surprised by the sudden revelation and her face morphed to one of shock and understanding.
Mortimer was frustrated by the whole ordeal and sarcastically said, “Well, now the cat’s out of the bag. You now know after all this, I still have issues. Are you happy?” As he said the last sentence, he thrust his arms in the air and accidentally sent Pearl plummeting into the water. The splash pushed the raft forward. Mortimer quickly anchored the raft to a tree and Cat asked if she was alright. Pearl gave them a thumbs up, reminding her that she could swim. Cat urged her to return to the raft. Suddenly, Mortimer was freaking out. He noticed that the chemistry kit was missing from the backpack. Pearl guessed it fell in the water and sank to the bottom. She volunteered to swim down and grab it. He objected to this idea and offered to go himself. But before he could dive in, he saw nothing but the ripples on the surface. Underwater cameras found Pearl navigating the cloudy water searching for the kit, which was fortunately sealed in a waterproof box. Leeches attached themselves to her arms and legs, but she continued to swim. On the surface, Mortimer began berating himself for what happened. Cat assured him it was an accident and that Pearl could take care of herself. Mortimer felt slight relief, commenting how she did set the breath holding record.
Suddenly, something floating in the distance caught his eye. From his perspective, it looked similar to a log. However, when he squinted and leaned closer, he could make out big green eyes. It was a ten foot alligator and it was swimming closer. Mortimer’s terror heightened when he spotted two more coming from behind it. Pearl found the kit and burst out of the water, surfacing a mere three metres away from the raft. When she disrupted the water’s surface tension, this signalled to the alligators of prey in the water and they darted towards her. Cat screamed for her to get out of the water. The confused and terrified Pearl turned to see the sudden danger and screamed. She tossed the kit onto the middle of the raft and swam desperately to Cat’s outstretched hand. Mortimer grabbed his trident and was ready to stab any gators that came near.
The first alligator reached the raft before her and was on course to bite her head clean off, but was quickly stabbed in the neck by Mortimer and pushed away before it could do anything. A split second before Pearl could grab Cat’s hand, the second gator latched its jaws onto her right foot and began to pull her under. Mortimer impulsively dove into the water with trident in hand. He stabbed it in the eye and pushed its jaws open to help Pearl escape. Seconds later, the third and final gator latched onto Pearl’s waist and wrenched her free from Mortimer’s grasp. Mortimer cursed to himself, the bubbles giving the Capital a brief comedic moment in the chaos. He swam up to the surface to catch his breath before diving back down to save his partner. It didn’t take long to find his partner still in the gator’s clutches. His fear for her safety heightened when the gator began rolling and twisting her body around like a ragdoll.
In the commentator’s booth, Luther explained to the audience that the gator was commencing a “death roll”, an effective technique they use to kill and dismember their prey. Mortimer quickened his pace and lined his shot up when suddenly, the gator’s tail slapped him across the face. The sharp tip of the tail cut across his right eye, emitting a small mist of blood into the green water. The unexpected attack blinded Mortimer and caused him to drop his trident. He covered his eye to see better and saw the gator still rolling Pearl. He swam towards them and wrapped his hands around the gator’s neck. He fastened his legs around the neck and jabbed both of his thumbs into its eyes. The rolling stopped but the gator didn’t let go of Pearl’s now limp body. Mortimer grabbed the snout and pulled back as hard as he could, only sending everyone deeper into the lake. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted his trident and abandoned the gator to grab it. The gator tried to swim away, but Mortimer was quicker and stabbed it in the back of the neck, paralysing it and causing it to drown five minutes later.
Unfortunately, a cannon sounded while he was away. Pearl’s body floated to the surface, a mass amount of red spreading around her lifeless body. Mortimer dragged her body towards the raft and received assistance from Cat. Cat checked her vitals as he dragged himself onto the raft, still covering his eye. Cat stared at him with teary eyes and shook her head, signifying Pearl’s death. Mortimer began to cry, mourning the loss of his partner. The tears irritated his injured eye, making the scene all the more devastating. It was reported that back in District 4’s town square, Pearl’s older sister Henrietta was arrested after assaulting a peacekeeper in anger after he mocked her death to his comrade.
Cat cut off a sleeve of her Lycra swim piece and created a makeshift rag. Mortimer rummaged through his chemistry kit, Luther calling it his “hat of tricks”, and grabbed some leftover algae in a vial. Cat insisted he let her do it, but Mortimer argued that he had to do it. Cat grabbed a leech from Mortimer’s leg and dropped it in. Mortimer then poured in the last of his hydrogen peroxide, placing it in a stopper before shaking the tube. He then stared at the tube as the contents became a black goo. When the process was completed, he ignited it, creating a flame with a sulphury smell. Cat realized his hands were shaking at this point and insisted she apply the goo to his eye. Mortimer relented and allowed her to do so. She told him he was lucky his eyeball was unaffected but had to use some of their water to wash the blood out.
During the process, the two ignored the two cannons that rang in the distance. They were revealed to be Wren (5) and Carnelia (11), both having fallen victim to the alligator mutts. The difference was that Jassy (12) refused to budge from her small island while Logan (11) was relieving himself when his partner died. The arena was silent overall as the surviving tributes collected themselves from the attacks. Other notable events being Andrei (2) and Wolvthorne (7) fending off a congregation of five alligators, being considered one of the most dangerous mutt packs ever.
Back in the commentator’s booth, Artemis was geeking out over the recent events. She considered Andrei and Wolvthorne barely Golden Victor material, adding that Mortimer was “definite”. Luther claimed to believe Cat was the same as well, with Artemis claiming she was a hair away. She diverted the topic to Mortimer and his great performance taking on three gators single-handedly. Luther wondered how he was feeling after failing to save Pearl, guessing he was blaming himself. This made Artemis interested in whether Cat could exercise more of her therapy skills.
Mortimer and Cat sat in silence as the raft continued to drift into the northwest sector. Cat took it upon herself to steer as Mortimer was lying down lost in a pool of tears. Cat eventually sat down and asked him if he was alright. At first, he didn’t answer, prompting Cat to tell him, “As your therapist, I suggest you let it all out. It will make you feel better.” The therapist part received a weird look, but Mortimer took a deep breath. More tears came out as he blamed himself for Pearl’s death, pointing out that he was the one who caused her to fall out. Cat assured him that it was an accident, but Mortimer argued that if he didn’t have trust issues with Cat, they wouldn’t have been fighting in the first place. Adding insult to injury, Pearl’s final act was to put his chemistry kit (their survival) over her own life. Cat agreed that his trust issues were a problem. She told him to explain what he thinks is the root cause of his issues. Mortimer was reluctant, but Cat explained that being honest about his childhood and inner demons could make all the difference. She rhetorically asked, “Whether you die here or win this thing, you want to go out a new man or not?” Mortimer admitted she had a point and decided to regale his childhood experience.
As told by Mortimer, he grew up with his father Edward Beckett, Faroe Island Base engineer, and his unemployed mother Ursula. After a workplace accident fractured his back, he was medically discharged and sent back to District 4. With no source of income to support them, Ursula left the family and never came back. Mortimer had no choice but to enter the workforce early in order to support himself and his disabled father. A few kindhearted adults, including Gill Henderson and Pearl’s father Alexander Riverstone, offered to lend their support. However, hurt by his mother’s abandonment and being bullied at school, he turned them away. Eventually, he dropped out of school at age nine and found work in a shipyard. Bullying would still persist outside of the workplace, even having his hard earned fishing equipment stolen by troublemakers like Adrian Carrick. It was around age fifteen when he first got himself entangled in a covert smuggling operation with District 6, trading fish and hooks in exchange for warmweed and soda bottles. On rare occasions, refugees fled the district and were given fake IDs. Mortimer saw what warmweed did to his peers and vowed never to consume it himself. He did notice the health benefits it possessed as a pain reliever and took it upon himself to study warmweed and find out a safe way to feed it to his father. He requested chemistry equipment and textbooks on his smuggling trips. He learned about the science of warmweed and engineering a method to separate the SHC (medical component) from the TBA (psychoactive compound) through trial and error. He would feed the SHC to his father, enabling him to walk for limited periods with assistance from a cane, and using the TBA in a secret grotto as bait to catch fish. Though there was no evidence, the citizens knew who the smugglers were and looked upon them in disdain.
In present time, Mortimer began to tear up some more, knowing what the next part was. Cat comforted him and assured him he could take a break. Mortimer insisted he finish. He talked about his girlfriend Meridia Vilewater, who against her family’s wishes, fell for him and successfully befriended him. He admitted that he found her presence annoying at first, but realized her feelings and intent were genuine. He began to fall for her as well, further cementing his hoodlum image. He even talked about the Kraken tattoo she did for him. Mortimer lamented how he took her for granted a lot and didn’t reciprocate as much as she did. He asked himself why she would continue to see him. Cat pondered over this for a few seconds. She told him that Meridia recognized his dedication to his father and knew deep down that he was a compassionate person. “What’s not to love?” Cat said. “You are handsome, strong, and talented. Come to think of it, the parallels between you and your mentor are hard to ignore.” Mortimer said that Gill was right on how he was basically him if he suffered worse. Cat guessed that’s why he took a personal interest in him.
Cat told him that even though he was dealt a heavy hand in life, he shouldn’t completely give up on humanity. She expressed how she was always close to giving up, having to see addicts tarnishing their bodies willingly and turning their nose up to treatment. However, it was the one in ten successful cases that continually recapture her hope. Cat continued how he already was taking a good first step in trusting Meridia and takes that as a sign of him having the potential to let himself be happy. Mortimer pondered over this and agreed. He made a solemn vow that if he wins, he would make things right with everyone, adding how Pearl would want that. Cat offered her hand in helping him make it to the end, declaring their victory to be for Pearl. Mortimer thanked her for listening and promised that if she wins, she will make an excellent therapist.
Suddenly, a cannon sounded in the distance. It was revealed to be Logan (11) after Horace (10) took advantage of his hysterics and beat him to death with a log. The heart to heart talk captivated the Capital, touched by Mortimer’s rare moment of vulnerability and in awe of Cat’s therapy skills. Both of their odds greatly increased, sharing first and second place. Artemis conceded and said Cat was Golden Victor material now, but hoped she does something explosive in the finale.
The next several hours were uneventful and tributes were still on edge. They had a perfect reason to as there were still alligator mutts patrolling the deeper bodies of water. The water had become so cloudy that one couldn’t see an inch below the surface. On top of that, the sulphur smell had gotten worse, causing some tributes to dry heave and cover their mouths. Jassy (12) took longer than expected to do this, her dry heaves giving Maximus Square a laugh. John (9) was bitten on the thigh by a gator when he got too close to the lake. He killed it with his knife and dragged himself into a hollow log to patch himself up. Andrei and Wolvthorne were camping close to John’s hiding spot. They were gorging on the food and water sponsors gifted them after killing the gators while complaining to each other about the smell. They left one water bottle unattended, giving a window of opportunity for Peggy (8) who hid in a tree over the course of the games. She was caught by Wolvthorne, but managed to escape with the water bottle. During the chase, Wolvthorne tripped and spotted John inside the log. He dragged him out of the log and proceeded to hack him to death with his axe in a fury. John’s cannon sounded at the fifth strike. The Capital fangroup The Mutts cheered for Peggy’s victory, but they received jeers from the Buccaneers (D4 fangroup) and the Lumberjacks (D7 fangroup).
It was near sundown when Mortimer and Cat entered unfamiliar territory. After three deaths in under an hour, the smell was much worse. Cat nearly fell off the raft while struggling to hold her breakfast in. They landed at a small shoreline and came face to face to a heavy brush. Cat picked up a small log and hurled it into the brush. When nothing bounced back, she guessed there was a secret area behind it. She commended Mortimer for being right and asked what they should do. He stated that as much as he wanted to explore, it was getting dark and they should camp. Cat agreed and the two started a fire. She became exasperated by the sulphur smell and asked how they could ignore it. Mortimer borrowed her sword and ripped one of their backpacks to shreds. He tied some pieces together and fashioned them into masks. The two now had something to barely stave off the powerful sewer smell.
Their relief turned to dismay when they discovered their last water bottle had one gulp left. What made the situation worse was that with no more hydrogen peroxide, they lost their means of purifying more water. Mortimer insisted she drink it. Cat accepted it and drank it. She raised the water bottle in the air and asked the sky to “fill her up”. Surprisingly, two sponsor gifts floated down to them seconds after saying this. One held a first aid kit while the other had two water bottles and two sandwiches. Cat doctored Mortimer’s right eye with a special cream from the kit. After she was done, the two ate their sandwiches.
Cat asked to see his tattoo. Mortimer shyly rolled his lycra suit off. The Kraken and the treasure chest became visible. Cat crawled closer and traced her fingers on the tentacles, marvelling at the design. Mortimer revealed Meridia liked to paint and desired to be District 4’s first female tattoo artist, using him as her guinea pig. He didn’t forget to attribute the treasure chest and polishing to Minerva. The viewers in Maximus Square were sensing the sexual tension, oohing and aahing as Cat continued to trace the tentacles. Artemis was fanning herself in the commentator’s booth, hoping the two would kiss. Luther slapped her shoulder, reminding her he had a girlfriend. Cat’s fingers arrived at the treasure chest on Mortimer’s actual chest and the two locked eyes. The two leaned closer until their faces were two inches apart. The sudden awareness of their actions dawned on them and they awkwardly distanced themselves by five feet. Mortimer said he was loyal to Meridia and didn’t want to betray that trust even in the arena. Cat apologised, excusing it to her imagining what might have been if she asked her coworker Pedal out. Mortimer promised her that she could do it if she wins. She thanked him, him joking how it felt good to be the therapist this one time. The rest of the night was without incident. A hovercraft entered the arena to display the portraits of the fallen. The fallen included Pearl (4), Wren (5), John (9), and Carnelia and Logan (11). This left Andrei (2), Mortimer (4), Cat (6), Wolvthorne (7), Peggy (8), Horace (10), and Jassy (12) remaining.

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A lot happened before my father passed my sisters both demanded accounts and signed on the way they owned our father and her to the lot of large amount of money before he retired one sister had full control to put one account and because her husband had knowledge of how to control people with these accounts and how to sign them to where you own them and could walk away with all that one dollar unless my dad wanted to press charges felony and he did not he lived with that for several years the thing was my brother-in-law demanded I didn't no help and no cash from my father who bought me a vehicle and he also demanded who bought from him so he could have his own cash that started a bad thing but on the other note my other sister and brother planned a long time ago to steal all on the end and one sister her whole name go in life was to still everything in the end to work as a librarian in order to mingle with authorities with a plan of cutting me out because mother made her hate me when we were children she told her she was a real oldest daughter I was adopted by my father in the state of Missouri because I had no father my mother was abusive to me and she got her words she cut me out she got threw me out of the family they had me abused I had a death threat at one time when my memories came back I have an appointment to talk to a trusted her recovery attorney next week but it's well down to now it's a dirty stuff but they're still a very large amount of money missing that was too preachers one being a bad lawyer who was elected to prosecutor because of his name the state of Missouri couldn't help me with that because he was elected. There's no protection for heirs even though there's laws in Missouri. And when did in-laws with hating their heart and greed they come errors assets were never reported I never got anything from my dad as far as I had property stored there I finally got my camper but it cost me a lot my brother forced me to sign titles and soon tops and my sister would use them on something I told her it would be fraud because they couldn't Court can tell immediately that the paper was added to after the signature landlords can't get away with that anymore unless the person can't take them to court then they do cuz it happened to me before my thoughts are I was abused my life was certain all this Northwest Missouri it's very corrupt a bank account was moved when I was dying in another state and the prosecutor won't even let me look because it's been a few years back I need prosecutor the bank was concerned like there was a criminal and that prosecutor said get a lawyer well that's all I was told by a person well when they have more money and they've used pictures to launder money they use the prosecutor to get their way to not probate a larger state and they turn their back on me that goes to me like I am a disease because I know what they did my life was in dangerous I still don't feel safe I'm in this town I'm working on getting away from here so I can take care of the rest of this but my children didn't deserve to be cut out my father did not do this they did what they wanted for very large amount of money who got a very large attack right before he died and then I don't know who got the money I'm not money doesn't drive me but the fact that they did what they did has me irritated because my children did not deserve this my brother was supposed to probate and help me get all this done so my sister's got their way so far but my mother was in the background she was the first ex-wife and he was single but my one sister control freak controlled dad never move after his last divorce and he couldn't trust her she stole tooth imagine that grave sold them a year later without telling him to make banked on that but she did that because my other sister would find onto his largest inheritance account and controlling him with it he didn't press start his own either one but he did turn him in before he died after he got that last check he was bullied that's why they wanted my memory is gone I hired somebody to come into my life I found Love with a narcissist who was there for hire St Joe Missouri is very corrupt Andrew county was where the prosecutor fake probate attorney was they're still a fake casing at the judge refused to move it off but my brother is no longer represented who paid it to get it stopped to get those two titles back my father bought way more local than that my brother and said he was doing his own probate he bullied me to sign in 15 titles two were property I can't find out where those went except for I know they were laundered through his church his Titan picture who greedy preacher but also was involved and getting money off the top that's I'm in the assets it's all a mess it's a very big mess I'm talking to Tony next week another one thing is only have one chance that they got more money than they're counting you know I they laundered money they did it's on public 300 vehicles cars and trucks at dad bought for probate my brother promised to do with me that sisters pays him to do with that program that month is already had the prosecuting attorney as a lawyer he's not even a probate lawyer and now he's not a prosecutor attorney who knows he did wrong he's also a preacher but he's one of those tithing pictures like the other one putting printers lying their own pockets with other people's money they don't give it to the floor they're legal things in my eyes but I'm opinionated

I'm so overwhelmed with everything.
Fortunately my parents (now both deceased) set up a living trust for their assets and my sibling and I are the beneficiaries.
My mom was very organized with everything.. I have all of her passwords. I guess my main concern is accessing her funds.
Do we contact all the bank accounts to close them our and split the money? Do I close the credit cards first ? What should I do first ??