Author's note: IMPORTANT, PLEASE READ: This chapter contains depictions of graphic violence, torture, and rape/non-con between two male characters. Proceed with caution.

Also: Shen is referred to as "the warrior" and Zed as "the ninja" for clarity's sake.

A wide-brimmed plateau nestled in the valley between two low topped mountains sat bald beneath the great eye of the moon. Warm, wet air from the bordering ocean would draft through the passes like breath between the gaps of the jagged stone teeth of a sleeping giant. The breeze was heavy and humid, but buzzing and alive with the growth of an approaching thunderhead. Broad green leaves flipped to expose their white bellies in preparation, rodents and birds nestled beneath their protective arms, and game animals claimed their space within the thickets. Alone and exposed on the open hilltop sat a man, bathed in the judgmental lunar glow.

His eyes were glazed, half open and distant. His breathing slow, evenly matched with the breath of the valley. With a stiff posture, he stared blankly forward, gazed directed what would be the horizon, if not for the looming presence of the valley's eternal guardians. Back straight, legs crossed, and one hand cradling the other, he had remained motionless for hours. Every so often the dim golden essence produced from his eyes would brighten and shed their light onto his arms and legs, casting an odd shadow beneath him. The effervescence was bright and warm, shining out from beneath his lids like the light of a fireplace from inside a home. But soon, much too soon, it would flicker out and his eyes would dim once more. After these moments he would drop his pose, his spine would lose its rigidity and his hands run over his face stressfully. He may perhaps take a few deep breaths or stretch out his stiffened muscles, but he would always return to his place and resume his meditative task dutifully.

This was his ninth night attempting this practice, attempting to connect with the stars, and Shen felt his resolve being tested. The celestials had never felt more truly like stars than they did at this moment. The distance between them had never been so large. Everytime he came to the point in meditations where he thought he should be able to reach them, it felt only like he was shouting into a void. He could feel their presence, hear their humming song, see their burning light, but when he reached out they only faded. The communion escaping him like trying to grasp water.

In the past when he had connected with them, the moment his thoughts breached into their realm, it was like something had grabbed hold of him and pulled his mind away from his body. He no longer had form and was instead a single spot of life, one speck among hundreds of thousands of others. The distant melodic chimes that the stars usually spoke in suddenly became a chorus. Voices from the dark sang to him, always in tune, their words always synchronized, as if they all came from one mind. He had no eyes to see, but he knew all around him were motes of light suspended in darkness and that he was one among them, though nowhere near their brilliance. He could never be sure if he was speaking their language or them his, only that he understood them while he was there. When at last he returned to his body it felt like the world was inverted - light where dark should be, night when it should always be day, and his limbs were suddenly too solid, too real. He could never remember the words he'd heard, everything he'd learned in that place was transmuted into the same tones he would hear from the night sky, but the message they sent would remain.

Lately, however, he could barely reach that dark place and when he did there was no force to pluck him and place him amongst the stars. When he pulled back from his meditation he could hear the humming starlight above him, he could hear them watching, waiting for him to reach out to them.

Tonight he had nearly reached them several times. He needed to maintain perfect balance in order to connect with the stars, so he could pass through the veil and hear their intent, and he was so close, he knew it. Shen was a patient man, but he'd been struggling for more than a week on something that hadn't usually taken him more than a few days at most and it was taking a toll on his nerves.

The approaching storm was ignored, the hissing of the trees building into a dull roar as they fought against the wind, Shen sat still as a rock. Lightning flashed beyond the mountain tops bleaching the world white for an instant, as darkness reclaimed its place, two pricks of light found themselves remaining. Crimson orbs held a steady gaze on their target, taking in the surroundings, counting the steps between them.

Shen himself was quite unaware of the danger. His breath hitched as his mind finally found purchase within the obsidian temple his masters resided in. The star's light projected outward from him, consuming the clearing with its pale radiance.

The red eyes shielded themselves against the sudden strike of brightness, but once they adjusted regained their fixture on Shen. Curiously, the man peeled himself out of the shadows, the darkness attempting to cling to him, a thin strand of it connecting him to the woods til it snapped loose. Humming absently, Zed stood no more than two steps before his rival, a small frown touching his lips. Zed paced around Shen in a circle, the luminescence casting a huge ghastly shadow on the treetops like a moth's shadow as it bounced against a lantern.

Zed crouched beside the incapacitated warrior. The man was unmasked, unarmed, and without his armor. He was, in all senses of the word, defenceless. A striking opposite to Zed's own appearance who had arrived in his full armor and weapons set. There was a strong shock of power that rushed through him, a fleeting high that he would have savored every moment of.

The heated hatred in his eyes was dulled, masked by an intelligence that did not belong to him. Eyes once as pure red as forging steel was now polluted with grey, akin to hot volcanic ash. Something dark and hidden, even from himself, had been dug up and forced to the forefront of his mind. If not for the control washed over him, he'd have reeled away and rejected the very notion that he hosted the thoughts.

He didn't stop himself when he found his hand wandering towards Shen's hair. He carded his fingers through the inky mess before grabbing it roughly, yanking some strands out by the would have been so easy just to end him right then and there - a twist of his wrist to unsheath his blade, a split second to thrust it downward into his jugular and pop it like a pierced water bladder, a few seconds more as the crimson life drained away into the parched earth. It would be as easy as swatting a gnat

The temptation was strong, but the malignant force had other plans for Shen's life.

"Wake up," Zed growled. This certainly wouldn't be any fun if Shen slept through it all.

The man's spine shot ramrod straight and a shiver climbed its way to the hand Zed still held fisted in Shen's hair. Shen's reaction was all he needed to see before Zed knew that yes, he really did want this.

He did not blink, the heavenly light still pouring from them sightlessly.

"Zed?" He asked dumbly. The ninja watched Shen's muscles coil, but made no move to distance himself. What did he have to fear really?

Zed didn't dignify him with a response.

"Don't," Shen asserted.

"Don't what?" Zed asked mockingly as he craned Shen's head back, exposing his naked throat. He could see his rival's pulse beating, faster now than it had before.

Overhead, the storm continued its advance. A flash of light in the distance sent the earth trembling a moment later. The sky in the gaps of the mountain passes grew hazy with the falling rain, it wouldn't be much longer before the gray sheet fell over them as well.

Shen took a slow breath in, eyes darting back and forth. Zed was amused to see the cogs turning in the man's mind. What could he possibly be thinking? He'd put himself in his most vulnerable possible position, completely unprotected, and now the man sworn to kill him held him by the throat. What could Shen possibly say or do to protect himself?

"I can't…" his voice strained, "Let me…"

Zed knew exactly what Shen was asking, and he barked out a harsh laugh.

"Why should I?" There was a lopsided grin on his face, he knew. It was honestly hilarious that Shen would think he came looking for a fair fight.

The endangered warrior seemed to realise this. He pulled away clumsily and Zed let him, watching bemusedly as Shen struggled to his feet. He stood limply, his feet placed too far apart, and his head hanging low, like a puppet that was being poorly controlled. Even so, it pleased Zed to see that Shen still made for a rather intimidating figure. Despite having so little control over his own body, Shen's muscular frame was somewhat imposing. The man was built to deliver slow and powerful strikes, each one intended to cleave open his foe. Zed, by comparison, made up in stealth and speed for what he lacked in brute force.

On another day, it would have been thrilling to see how well Shen would fair against him. But today he came seeking different kind of thrill.

The seething whisper of rain encroached, strengthening to a wardrum as it pelted the trees closest to them. A ram's head of wind butted into them, sending Shen's hair and gi flipping around in pandamonium. Thunder screamed and the world strobed.

Adrenaline spiked through the shadowed ninja as he caught sight of his query dodging behind a tree at the edge of the clearing. Zed smirked and rolled his shoulders, stalking after him. As he went, black dust shimmered around him, adopting a form strikingly similar to his own before darting off into the forest.

Shen wouldn't be hard to find, he surmised.

Twisted, gnarled hands pulled at the warrior, scratching and slowing his advance. Roots cropped up, grabbing his feet and making him stumble. Thankfully the storm disguised the majority of his percussion. Though he didn't yet have his eyes, Shen had trekked this plateau often enough to know its secrets and that he would come upon the edge of the cliff soon.

Despite knowing the danger he risked in coming upon the edge unexpectedly, he pressed onward. He needed only put some distance between him and his pursuer, if he could do that he could summon back the rest of his soul from the stars. At the moment he was only able to complete the most basic actions and thoughts, but he did know that along the cliffside near here was a crevasse he could seek refuge in.

He didn't know why Zed had shown today of all days. Why he was pursuing him, nor why he hadn't killed him already if that were his goal, and honestly, Shen couldn't spare the time to think about it. It was an immense struggle controlling his body at the moment, like shouting the commands across a great distance, they were often misheard and the response pitifully sluggish.

It didn't take long before he was slowing down. He was very near the edge, he was certain. The sounds of rain washing over the leaves didn't sound immediately in front of him, it sounded far away… and beneath him. Yes, certainly the edge.

Shen clung to a tree for a moment, scrabbling at his mind trying to remember if the gully was east or west of his position, but the memory was hazy like a water damaged book. He gave up his efforts and decided to go west. He braced himself against every tree he found, having a distinct lack of trust in his footing. Not long after - a minute, perhaps - he heard a rush of water spilling off the cliff. Relief hit him, the waterfall wasn't far off from the crevasse.

As he pulled himself along toward the next tree, he stepped through an icy cloud of air. He knew that sensation - it was like plunging into a frozen lake, consuming and unforgettable. He reigned in the spike of fear, quelled the rampant frustration, and swallowed his dread as well as he could.

This game, this chase was over. It had never really begun, and he'd known it.

"Fine!" He shouted. If Zed wanted a fight, he'd give it to him.

Shen heard the settling of cloth and armor, a slight courtesy Zed gave to announce his arrival.

"Had enough?" he asked smugly.

"Not a game," Shen ground out in return. Yes, he had had enough. This wasn't a battle he could win and he didn't have the patience to stand Zed's gloating.

"No, you're right." The smile was gone now, Shen heard, replaced with the coldness he was more used to from his old friend, but something was off, he just couldn't place it. "Though it was fun while it lasted, I have come here for something and I intend to take it."

"What," he demanded to know. Shen had nothing to take.

"You."

Shen had no idea what that could mean, but he didn't intend on finding out.

He ducked beneath the punch Zed directed at him and replied with shouldering Zed's middle, attempting to shove him over the very near edge. He caught on too quickly and stepped to the side. The momentum would have carried Shen over the edge himself if his opponent hadn't latched onto his arm and pulled him back. The metal claws on Zed's gauntlets carving out deep ravines of flesh in the process.

Paying no mind to the wound, or the the fact that he'd just been saved, Shen rounded on Zed once more. Shen had kept his eyes closed during his flight, knowing that the light would only aid Zed in finding him, but now he opened them again aiming in startling his foe. He was unaware that the light was much dimmer than before, but it did prove to be effective. He heard Zed's shout of surprise and followed the disruption with a kick.

The blow landed, but much too slowly. Zed staggered, but grabbed onto Shen's leg and pulled harshly, throwing him off balance. Unable to command his body appropriately, he lost his footing.

Shen's skull connected with rock with a harsh crack and the light flickered out of his eyes.

Zed stood over him with a dark curiosity, red-grey eyes waiting patiently.

Across the wide expanse of void that separated Shen and his body, the celestials he'd come to speak to chimed and buzzed anxiously. The Eye of Twilight was unresponsive to their questions and hadn't even met them with a formal greeting. It was quite unlike anything they'd seen before. The strangeness had begun before even his arrival; it had taken him an inordinately long time to contact them.

They wondered if maybe that had something to do with the Eye's current predicament. But certainly it couldn't have been, because if he were imbalanced he wouldn't have made it amongst them at all. Though perhaps he'd fallen out of balance again once he'd made it to them. The idea sent them into an uproar.

Completely unheard of! One chimed.

Absurd! Insulting! Another rang.

He is our avatar?! Tolled a third.

Discord reigned for a while until they had settled themselves, worn from the dissent and lack of unity they usually maintained. While they all came to the conclusion that the Eye's lack of responsiveness was something of an affront, they did not agree on what should be done. Some called for his replacement, others for an investigation to see what had gone wrong, though the majority decided that returning the Eye to the mortal plane and waiting to see what came of it was their best bet.

However, returning his consciousness wasn't as simple as a task as they would have hoped. In another circumstance they could have done so with ease, but it seemed that the connection he forged between their world and his own was weak, whether that was because of his haste to latch onto their initial contact or for some unknown reason was left to debate.

A consensus was reached that they would strengthen their own end of the connection so as to ease the Eye's reforging. The last time they'd done something similar to this was when they'd made contact with the very first Eye of Twilight. It sat wrong with a great number of celestials that they would have to do this again for an Eye that couldn't handle his given task.

Unknownst to them, as Shen's physical body fell unconscious, the remnants of the soul he'd left there reopened the link and drew the two parts back to a whole inside his vessel. Eased by the efforts of the celestials Shen snapped from one reality to the other nearly too quickly for his mind to withstand.

The light flickered back, the brightness returned to its normalcy, Zed noticed in the second before Shen rolled over and retched. Shen's limbs quivered beneath his weight as the man struggled for breath.

With a "hmph," Zed reached down and grabbed Shen by the back of his collar and hauled him the short trek to the raging muddy mess that spilled over the lip of the plateau in a waterfall. Without hesitation, Zed forced Shen's head beneath the water, waiting a long moment before pulling him out again. When he heard a sputtering intake he repeated the process, holding him under longer this time til Shen thrashed and clawed at Zed's hand.

Zed yanked him out and tossed him aside, leaving him leaning against a boulder on the river's bank. Shen coughed up a mouthful of water and mud and clawed his way to his feet, using the boulder for support. Glaring up at the red eyed man at last, Shen could see that his impression earlier was right - there was something very wrong with Zed.

His foe held himself strangely. It wasn't the form he'd been taught by their master or the self-taught stance he'd seen him use in battle before, but was something more feral in nature. His shoulders scrunched high and he leaned forward as if ready to chase or pounce, but it was his eyes that truly revealed his odd nature. Instead of the hot ruby Shen had grown accustomed to there was instead a sooty blackness covering them, like a cooling coal.

"What happened to you?" Shen asked, but he didn't expect an answer.

Zed hummed. "Enlightenment," he decided.

"Why are you here. Why now." You have never come looking for an unfair fight before, Shen supplied mentally.

Instead of answering, Zed began pulling off his mask. A misty gust of wind pulled back the crimson cloak hood beneath leaving him exposed to the raging elements. His black hair whipped around him like a hydra, unimpeded by the rain trying to cling to it.

"I am here to take what is owed me." And to inflict as much pain as possible while doing so, he thought with a smirk.

"I owe you nothing." Since the day that Zed led his attack against the temple, Shen absolved himself of any debts or promises Zed may have held over him - all but one, at least.

"You owe me everything!" Zed roared, throwing his mask aside sending it skittering off into the darkness. He stalked forward, the grey mist swirling in his eyes like a pollution.

Shen stepped away from the rock, his legs now ready to hold him independently. He adopted a defensive stance and felt his ki rush to his command at last.

"Your gratitude, your loyalty, your life. Are mine."

The warrior didn't respond. As far as he could see, Zed had grown mad. It seemed the shadows had instilled him with an illness that would not be cured through reasoning. Thankfully, Shen now had full control over his body, though he was far from peak condition. This would not be an easy battle, he only hoped that Zed's madness would be enough weakness for him to exploit.

Zed lunged forward, striking upward with his blades as thunder crashed around them. Summoning a shield, Shen deflected the hit. His energy was not strong enough to absorb all of the force, but was capable of redirecting it at the cost of a slight cut along his forearm.

Calling forth a sizeable amount of ki, Shen formed a nearly solid katana and parried Zed's next slash. Using his unarmed hand, he struck out to catch Zed's wrist, careful to avoid the barbs on his gauntlets. Though Zed was not a small man by any means, managing his weight and momentum Shen flipped him over his shoulder.

Before he even hit the ground, the ninja switched himself out with a shade and hurled a shuriken from both he and his shadow. Shen was caught off guard by the sudden swap, he avoided Zed's flying blade, but was clipped across the thigh by the apparition's. The wound was deep, but not fatal.

Zed charged forward again, sending two shades before him, one on each side. To prevent being surrounded, Shen dashed through the tree he was standing in front of. He hoisted himself on top of a reachable branch and waited as Zed's shadows ran past and with acute timing swung himself back down crashing into Zed feet first.

The impact sent them both sprawling, mud, twigs, and blood smearing across them and tangling in their hair and clothes. Shen's head spun horribly - a combination of his failed meeting with the celestials, the head injury, the rush of adrenaline, his near drowning, and a moderate amount of blood loss. He blinked his eyes slowly as the trees and streaks of rain twitched in half-circles over and over as the world rang with a high pitched whine. It was all he could do to not retch again.

Zed ran his tongue over his split lip as he sat up. He'd be damned if Shen didn't know how to use his weight to his advantage.

The ninja leaned back on his hand as looked over to Shen whose head was lolling this way and that. Seemed the fool did more damage to himself than anything else.

After brushing away some debris, stalked his way over to his adversary, staring down at the damaged man once again. It didn't look like he'd be getting up from this one, however. His eyes were dull and distant. No amount of water would rouse him from this, he thought with a slight frown.

Shen gazed upward at the half-dozen scorched rubies spinning around him and vaguely took notice of his predicament. He swallowed down bile and clenched his fists, surprised to feel his energy-forged weapon still in his hand. But what to do with it…

Taking two quick breaths and screwing his eyes closed, Shen launched himself at Zed's legs, knocking him over again with a startled grunt. Wasting no time or energy, Shen cleaved downward with his sword. At the last moment he opened his eyes and saw his brother's fear as death closed on him.

And he faltered.

The power he poured into the strike was swept away like dust in the wind, giving Zed just enough time to roll out of the way. Their positions reversed in an instant and Zed smash-smash-smashed Shen's wrist onto the rocky ground until his grip was forced open and the katana faded away, just as his will power had.

Shen swung his free hand in the general direction of Zed's head, but it was caught easily. He was flipped over and his hands bound together with the sash that Zed had cut loose from his waist. Shen struggled bodily, but gave up when a hand was pressed down on his shoulder blades, forcing his face into the mud. He laid still, breathing heavily and savoring the cool rainwater washing out his wounds.

The fallen warrior had no idea what Zed wanted with him, but he hoped that if it were death he had planned that it came quickly.

Wet hair and hot breath spilled over his neck as he heard the words: "You're mine." Shen flexed at his bonds, but said nothing. Nothing he said would fix this, whatever this was.

Shen was unprepared when he felt teeth drag down his neck toward his shoulder and bite. Hard. He yelped at the shock and feeling of broken skin.

What in the seven hells was Zed doing? Humiliating him? That was low, even for an outcast.

A moment later Zed pulled away with a low hum. He felt his shirt being tugged at and cloth ripping. A quick series of cuts later and the garment was in shreds and thrown aside leaving him exposed to Zed's scrutiny and the pelting rain. Shen knew there were plenty of scars there, some of them created by Zed's hand, others he had scored in various battles over the years.

Metal claws traced over a set of marks Shen remembered receiving some time ago during a journey to slay a cursed mountain lion that would only pray on members of a defenceless village. The wrath of a witch or something. The details seemed to elude him as the healed wounds were torn open again. He sealed his eyes closed once more to block out the pain. He wouldn't give Zed the satisfaction of hearing him.

His fingers found another scar and dug into that one as well. Shen tried recounting the memory to give his mind release; the sound of a child screaming came to him first, then the smell of smoke. This was a memory he usually avoided, but he latched onto it now, the vividness acting as a kindness rather than the nightmare it usually was. The scar itself was a burn mark about the size of his fist, one he'd garnered when slaying an entire family of pyromancers. The town they lived in pled for mercy, they were completely ignorant to the Eye's purpose and he spent no time trying to ease their minds. The family he came for was planning to set fire to the Placidium. 20 of them in all, he felled. Only one member survived. A little girl who lacked her family's arcane affinity. The sound of her screams and the smell of burning flesh oftentimes echoed in his dreams.

Now that scar was criss-crossed with new wounds, bound to heal over again with this memory overlapping the old.

Zed did this twice more before deciding his work was done. By the end Shen was feeling faint. The wound on his leg still oozing, and the fresh cuts on his back loosing more blood than was easily recoverable. Perhaps he would be left now so that he might have peace before either death came for him or the heavens showed mercy. He would accept either gracefully.

But his reprieve would not come just yet.

Shen's mind bounced around madly as he felt the bottom half of his gi tugged and torn away as roughly as the top. He renewed his struggle through the process, distressed at the loss of his modesty, but it earned him nothing.

A shiver wracked his body as Zed pulled his gauntleted hands down his sides, though he tried to convince himself it was because of the coldness of the storm and not the contact he was forced to endure. He just wanted this to end already. His frustration mounted as the hands roved over his naked frame until he snapped.

"Just get it over with!" He didn't know what more Zed had planned, but if it lasted much longer he would surely bleed out before the end of it anyway.

"Your ignorance astounds me," he patronized.

Shen growled.

"Tell me, have you ever been with a man?" Zed asked casually, leaning back to remove his gauntlets.

Shen was baffled. Been with a man? What did that-

When the realization hit him, his body tensed, his mind screamed for him to do something- anything.

"That's a no. A woman, then?" Clunk, clunk as they hit the ground.

"Don't."

Zed hummed, "This will be a new experience for you then."

"Zed, don't do this." Please, please don't do this.

"Your weakness led to this." Don't make me laugh.

Shen yanked at his ties until his wrists bled and then pulled harder. Only when he was certain he would break his bones should he continue did he let up.

During his struggle Zed had loosed his trousers and began to stroke himself. It gave him a rush to see the frenzy he could send his rival into with his words alone. The amount of control he had and he hadn't even acted upon him.

The fact that Zed would be stealing his purity was almost as thrilling. It didn't really surprise him that Shen was about as pure as they could come. Zed had no intentions on taking this slowly for his sake, however. The way he saw it, Shen's body was his to do with as he pleased. And please himself he would.

From his vantage point he could see Shen's eye wheeling wildly, part delirious and part trapped animal. It was beautiful.

Zed watched him closely as he ran his free hand across Shen's ass and parted the cleft of his cheeks with two fingers. The delirium cleared, his eyes suddenly sharp as he craned his neck to get a look at his tormentor.

"Stop!"

He only hummed absently.

Despite the coldness of the rain they've been in, Shen's body was astonishingly warm and to Zed's chilled skin it felt like an invitation. He was done waiting.

Zed stood up, still keeping one leg on either side of his bound prize, and reached down to grab Shen's wrists. He levered the man's arms upward, the muscle and ligament pulling taut as they approached his shoulders. Shen tried to resist the strain, but was forced to comply or else have his joints pop loose. The warrior pulled his knees beneath him to try to lessen the tension, pressing his face further into the mud in the process.

The ninja summoned a shade to replace him in holding Shen's arms in that precarious position. It would prevent him from squirming too much.

He dropped back down to his knees, knocking Shen's legs aside to make room for his own. Zed palmed a cheek, appreciative of the muscle and how it quivered beneath him. He felt Shen push his shoulders to the limit as Zed aligned himself.

The lack of preparation and Shen's resistance made his task difficult, but the scream he was rewarded with when he passed the first ring of tissue and Shen dislocated one of his shoulders in tandem only encouraged him further. He felt warm blood coat him as he pressed in. He rested a moment when he reached the hilt, savoring the way Shen's body squirmed as it tried to reject his entry.

Shen's world danced with black and white dots the moment he was punctured. The pain was worse than anything he'd ever experienced. He was sure he was being split in half, or at least he hoped he were. At least that way he'd be put out of this agony.

The corners of his vision began to blur and the world lost some of its color. He could feel movement behind him, inside him, but he was more focused on the tingling he felt in his fingertips as they lost circulation. The racket of the thundering storm seemed strangely more important than it had a few minutes ago and he wondered if he might be struck by lightning.

He lost sense of time as he listened to the angry hissing of the leaves and moaning of the trees, but eventually he felt the motion behind him work into a frenzy before halting completely. He may have heard some words spoken, but couldn't bring himself to listen or care. His arm ached again as it dropped.

Two not-quite-right reddish eyes appeared in his vision, staring back at him with an unidentifiable look. He let himself be pushed onto his side and blinked slowly when callused hands grabbed his chin. Scarred lips moved soundlessly.

Finally a thought occurred to him: My own brother, it said.

My own brother, it chanted.

Black boots passed his vision for a moment before returning and standing in place a few feet away.

My own brother.

A pit of endless blackness opened in the ground, completely flat and depthless, like a drawing. The boots approached him and he felt himself being lifted and thrown over a shoulder as if he were weightless.

My own brother.

The boots stepped forward and they fell, the black veil of death consuming them. It was so cold.

My own brother.

My own brother.

My own… brother?

Author's note: Reviews, follows, and favorites are greatly appreciated.