Subtle Pride Wallpaper

In an East London lock up, two film makers, Jimmy and Sam, are duct taped to chairs and forced to watch a snuff film by Ashkan, a loan shark to whom they owe a lot of money. If they don’t pay up, they’ll be starring in the next one. Before the film reaches its end, Ashkan and all his men are slaughtered by unknown assailants. Only Jimmy and Sam survive the massacre, leaving them with the sole copy of the snuff film. The film makers decide to build their next movie around the brutal film. While auditioning actors, they stumble upon Melissa, an enigmatic actress who seems perfect for the leading role, not least because she’s the spitting image of the snuff film’s main victim. Neither the film, nor Melissa, are entirely what they seem however. Jimmy and Sam find themselves pulled into a paranormal mystery that leads them through the shadowy streets of the city beneath the city and sees them re-enacting an ancient Mesopotamian myth cycle. As they play out the roles of long forgotten gods and goddesses, they’re drawn into the subtle web of a deadly heresy that stretches from the beginnings of civilization to the end of the world as we know it. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

War. War is all we know. War for peace, war to take, war to protect. War for resources. It is impossible to avoid war because your neighbors won’t. If you are perceived as weak, you will be targeted. Your land and wealth stolen, your people killed, sons enslaved and daughters raped. To survive in this world, more important than oxygen; is strength and a cold heart. The only source of strength are mana veins. He who owns mana veins has the right to live and the right to rule. He who owns mana veins better have the strength to keep it or long life is but a pipe dream. Xasha hated war. War had taken everything from him and gave nothing in return. He hated that all wars were over petty things like pride and pocket change. He always looked to the vast wilderness with longing. He wondered why all the warmongers hadn’t turned their spears there. Where vast lands and untapped wealth were. Once he became a father. Xasha, the naïve, knowledge-loving merchant, decided he did not want his child growing up in the same world he did. He decided to change the world, end all war and unite the abandoned region. How will he do it? By starting a war, a war that will end all wars. Not a war with his neighbors over pride or a few mana veins. No. He will rage against the wilderness and the world beyond.

"You found me as a kid. Now let my adult self grow old with you..." --------------------------------------------- "We'll marry as soon as we meet again." "Pwomise?" The little girl held out her pinky finger. The boy entwined his own pinky finger with hers and kissed her lips shyly. "Promise." -------------------------------------------- Two successful people with their equally giant egos... Will they be able to keep their pride aside and fulfill the promises they had made to each other? Or will their promises be burnt by their blazing pride? 26 year old Evelyn White is what you would call a perfect 10. Beautiful, confident, successful and with a mysterious air surrounding her, she is the one most would kill for. Despite her young age, she is the CEO of a famous multimillionaire company built all by herself. Everyone is intrigued by her but no one has been able to get close enough to unravel her mystery. Until he came along. Meet Adrian Stone. The youngest billionaire. The most eligible bachelor. He is cold and ruthless to the world but has a soft corner for the beautiful Ms. White. He is content with admiring her from afar until fate brings them together as business partners. Now that he's back, he's intent on fulfilling the promise he made to her long time ago and make her do the same. Both of them being equally powerful magnets, watch as their hearts get attached and prides get clashed. Which one would win?

Chaewon Jones and Zayden Taylor were once each other's pillars of support, but upon discovering a destructive loophole in their relationship, they chose to part ways, transforming into bitter enemies. As the moment arrives for them to confront their fears on a perilous battlefield, Chaewon decides to step aside, presenting one condition - Zayden must shed tears for her, enabling her to mend the dark, deep hole of their shared past. Will Zayden, who has unyielding pride, permit the selfish Chaewon to take the lead, or will he subject her to suffering until her final breath?

Betrayed by her husband and abandoned by her pack, Eliza Carter vows to rise from the ashes of her shattered life. Once a cherished Alpha’s daughter, she’s now determined to reclaim her pride and make those who wronged her regret it. But fate has other plans. When Eliza severs her bond with the man who broke her, a magnetic Lycan prince steps forward—her fated mate. Bound by destiny yet scarred by betrayal, can Eliza embrace a future of strength, love, and vengeance?

Lauren Fortalejo mabait, mayaman, college student at kilalang cute na nerd sa university na pinapasukan niya. Matagal nang may gusto kay Ms. Camela. Ms. Camela Martin pinaka maldita sa kanilang magkakaibigan, mataas ang pride at kilala naman bilang isang terror na Professor. Paano kung mag cross ang landas nila at magkaroon ng pag iibigan sa kanilang dalawa. Manaig kaya ang pag ibig o maging lesson na lang sa kanila ang nangyari?

Isabela Ledesma never imagined her life would take such a scandalous turn. Bagong sugat sa puso, matapos iwan ng kanyang first love na si Marco Villamor, napilitan siyang sumama sa isang blind date— at sa gulat niya, nauwi ito sa kasal kay Rafael Santillan, ang ama ng kanyang matalik na kaibigang si Rita. Isang May-December marriage na plano lang sana para maibalik ang kanyang pride at matiyak ang kanyang kinabukasan, ay biglang naging laro ng tukso at pagnanasa. Si Rafael Santillan, isang kaakit-akit at karismatikong bilyonaryo, ay iba sa kanyang inaasahan. Sa likod ng kanyang matipuno at sophisticated na anyo, nakatago ang isang lalaking hindi takot sundan ang kanyang lihim na nagpapalito at nagpapakaba kay Isabela sa bawat sandali. Mula sa awkward na simula hanggang sa mga lihim na sulyap at tensyon sa kasal, bawat eksena ay nagtutulak kay Isabela na balansehin ang kanyang pride, puso, at kaligtasan sa mundo ng mayayamang elitista. Magpapatuloy ba silang manatiling nasa ilalim lang ng kontrata, o haharapin nila ang apoy ng pagnanasa at lihim na damdamin na magbabago sa kanilang buhay magpakailanman?

Alvira, in a bid to find a lost lover, she was driven by life to the edge. She found herself involved with the Mafia and, worse, engaged to a man whose name was enough to shake up Mexico. Her pride, power, and businesses came to naught when he decided he was the one for her. In a cry for rescue, she finally meets the one she had lost. But what happens when he is married? Will Alvira be able to escape her misery with her lover against all storms? Or will her love get diverted to the one who holds her captive?

When Aria, an unassuming omega with a mysterious power she can't control, is named the fated mate of Alpha Caden, chaos ensues. Caden, too proud to accept a weak mate, plans a public humiliation to rid himself of her. But when Aria’s latent abilities begin to surface, the pack is thrown into turmoil. As a ruthless rogue Alpha threatens to overthrow the pack, Caden must choose between protecting his pride or embracing a destiny he cannot deny. In a world where strength is everything, the only thing more powerful than fate is the force of an unexpected love.

He was sold for two hundred million dollars, yet he wasn’t just a man. A god in chains, stripped of his divinity, placed in the hands of a mafia king. What happens when pride meets obsession? When a heart that swore to hate begins to waver? When the one who bought you begins to feel like the one you cannot escape? Is love still forbidden when it feels like destiny? Or is destiny the cruelest punishment of all? A god. A mafia. A bond that should never exist. Will desire destroy them or set them free?