A 16th-century letter from the conquistador Hernan Cortes was listed for sale by Swann Galleries before academic sleuths discovered it had been stolen from Mexico’s national archive.

The letter is signed “El Marques,” a hereditary ruling title granted to Cortes by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1529. The letter is from 1521—the same year as the fall of Tenochtitlan—suggesting Cortes assigned himself the title years before it was made official.

The amateur detectives started their investigation after realizing Cortes letters were showing up after decades had passed without any appearing on the market. The most conclusive evidence is a microfilm image of the document from 1993, taken in Mexico’s national archives.

What if one of Mexico’s leading researchers leads a heist to get their cultural heritage back?

Numerous pages from a single ancient document have been stolen and scattered throughout the world. When compiled and read aloud in front of an ancient Aztec temple, the document releases ancient magic lying dormant in Aztec descendants.

Magical occurrences follow the researcher, always random and out of their control.

After successfully retrieving the first page, an ancient society appears that warns the researcher against continuing their quest. The organization exists to ensure the magic doesn’t ever return. Throughout the story, the researcher has to uncover where the documents are, get them back, and discover why the mysterious group doesn’t want them compiled and read aloud.

It turns out that the society is descended from Hernan Cortes himself.

The main character grew up in Mexico City and was made fun of because of their indigenous appearance. Bringing back the ancient magic will elevate their status, along with the rest of those deemed too dark-skin or native-looking.

As the documents are brought back, the hero is accepted into Mexico City’s mainstream society, and their prior research about the impact of the Catholic Church on the region given attention—what they always wanted.

The decision comes down to abandoning their goal of compiling the document and accepting a large grant to study the generational impact of the Catholic missionaries or go overseas, gather the last page, and read it aloud.

The book ends with an escape from the society and the ignition of the Aztec powers, setting up other books.

Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador, fired five court justices and the country’s attorney general. The justices had said Bukele overstepped his authority, and the attorney general was investigating possible corruption.

Bukele’s next move? A tweet celebrating his actions.

The international community has condemned the power grab, but Bukele still maintains a 90% approval rating for his tough stance on gangs—similar to the Philipines Rodrigo Duterte.

What if a story told the rise and fall of a Latin American dictator? Like “The Godfather,” the idealistic young man (or woman) becomes elected to their country’s highest position, vowing to both themselves and the world that they will make lasting changes.

He comes from a wealthy family. His father, a successful businessman, sent him overseas for his education. His brother became a gang member and was killed because of gang violence.

His campaign focuses on the gang problem within the country. Before his inauguration, he is visiting his aging father and has to save him when gang members collect money he refuses to pay off. After he’s put in power, he deals with the gang problem humanely until gang violence erupts near his motorcade and a young boy, who reminds him of his brother, is accidentally murdered. Then, the gloves come off.

The other leadership members laugh when they hear about his aggressive plans for a raid, saying he won’t pull it off. (Similar to when Michael told the rest of the gang members that he would kill the cop and rival gang leader in the restaurant.)

Over time, we see him sink deeper into tyranny until, while accepting an international award for reducing the crime rate in his country, his hitmen kill every gang leader in the country.

His father finally realizes what his son has become, but by then, it’s too late.

A sequel could be about a group dedicated to overthrowing the dictator—similar to The Feast of the Goat, the story of the overthrow of Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1961.

China’s National Pig Genetic Program announces they’re working on creating pigs that produce more meat while consuming less feed.

First off—it’s astounding a National Pig Genetic Program even exists.

An official from the National Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources Committee told reporters that China’s pigs are 30% less productive than their overseas counterparts. Because of this, China imports live pigs from both Denmark and the United States to feed its large population.

Also, can you believe there’s a committee dedicated to this?

The hope is that China can save on feed grains and land usage.

Turning this into a story: there’s some major B-horror fodder here. I’m thinking something similar to Zombeavers.

A group of friends goes to a cabin retreat. They meet a pig farmer on their way in, who offers them a discount on fresh meat.

They cook and eat the meat that night. During a hike the next day, a member of the group disappears. He’s discovered later that night dismembered within sight of the pig farm.

Two group members leave for town to find help—the rest visit the farmer and ask if he’s seen anything. The farmer says no, but he tells them about a local predator (bear or cat) that’s been terrorizing the area.

The group goes back to the cabin. The next day, when their friends haven’t returned, they go into town. Nobody saw the two who went for help. The group retraces the route to the murder scene and discovers two massive pigs devouring their friends.

They run back to the cabin. A group of pigs surrounds the cabin, trying to get inside. As night falls, the pigs go back to the farm. The group’s surviving members try getting in their car and escaping, but they find the car doesn’t start.

They prepare their cabin’s defenses for the pigs’ return the next day. The pigs don’t come back, but the group’s too scared to leave.

Realizing they don’t stay out at night, the group goes to the farmer’s house when the sun goes down to warn him about his pigs. While they’re there, they see a car part in the trash. The farmer tells them feed is expensive before slamming the door in their face.

The pigs attack the following day. The boyfriend of one of the girls, who couldn’t come initially, shows up as a surprise. The pigs hide, then devour him. While they’re feeding, the group gets into the car and drives away.