Day of the Swan, 51st of Spring, 525 M.E. (Deneb): In 2016, as Donald Trump campaigned for the presidency, a woman using the name Katie Johnson filed a lawsuit claiming that in 1994 when she was 13 she had been held as a "sex slave" by Trump and Jeffrey Epstein at one of Epstein’s New York parties and forced to perform sex acts. The case was later withdrawn, not because she lied or because her story fell apart, but because she was terrified. Her attorney, Lisa Bloom, confirmed that Katie had received threats. Her client was supposed to hold a press conference but instead she disappeared and disconnected her phone. 

Sixteen women have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual assault or misconduct. One said he raped her in a dressing room, and another said he forced himself on her when she was a child. Others said he groped them or kissed them without consent. Four women said Trump walked in on them while they were undressing at beauty pageants. 

He's denied every single case and he's called the women liars. He said they were making it up for attention and he successfully ran for president. Twice.

But in recordings released by CNN, Trump told Howard Stern in 2005 that he went backstage during a Miss USA or Miss Universe pageant when the contestants were naked. “I’ll tell you the funniest is that I’ll go backstage before a show and everyone’s getting dressed,” Trump told Stern. 

“No men are anywhere, and I’m allowed to go in, because I’m the owner of the pageant and therefore I’m inspecting it. … ‘Is everyone OK?’ You know, they’re standing there with no clothes. ‘Is everybody OK?’ And you see these incredible-looking women, and so I sort of get away with things like that.”

Former Miss New Hampshire Bridget Sullivan told BuzzFeed News it was “shocking” that Trump would come backstage to wish the contestants good luck when many of them weren’t dressed. "The time that he walked through the dressing rooms was really shocking. We were all naked,” she said.

E. Jean Carroll testified that she met Trump in a department store in 1995 or 1996. She described him pushing her into a dressing room and forcing his fingers inside her. Decades later, she came forward and pressed charges. A jury found him guilty of sexual abuse but he walked free. 

Jessica Leeds sat next to Trump on a plane in the early 1980s. He kissed her, groped her chest, and reached up her skirt. She moved to another seat in coach. “He was like an octopus,” she said.

Kristin Anderson says she was in a Manhattan bar in the 1990s when a man next to her reached up her skirt and touched her through her underwear. She turned and recognized the man as Donald Trump.

Temple Taggart McDowell was Miss Utah USA in 1997 and claims Trump kissed her without consent on two separate occasions.

Rachel Crooks was a 22-year-old receptionist in 2005 when she says she met Trump in an office building. He grabbed her, pulled her in, and kissed her on the mouth.

Summer Zervos was an Apprentice contestant in 2007. She claims she met Trump at a Beverly Hills hotel to discuss a job opportunity. Instead, she says, he grabbed her breasts, kissed her, and tried to lead her into a bedroom.

Trump has denied any of these accusations are true, although his own words seem to confirm the charges. In the infamous Access Hollywood tape, he said, 

"I better use some Tic Tacs just in case I start kissing her. You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful... I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star they let you do it. You can do anything," later adding, "Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything."

These allegations span decades and follow the same pattern - Trump is accused of forcing himself on women, groping them or kissing them without consent, only to deny every allegation, dismiss his accusers as liars, and claim they are politically motivated. But then he publicly brags to Howard Stern and Billy Bush about the very behavior he's denying. And a jury in New York, his home town, found him guilty of sexual abuse in the E. Jean Carroll case.

But this is not just about one man. There will always be another Trump, another Epstein. Another name added to the list of powerful men who used power as a shield while their victims carried the weight alone.

Bill Cosby’s victims spent years screaming into the void before anyone listened. Harvey Weinstein silenced his accusers with money and threats. The Catholic Church buried thousands of child abuse cases. Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell ran an international trafficking ring that catered to the most powerful men in the world. They went down, but their clients walked free.

Larry Nassar was trusted with the bodies of young girls—Olympians, gymnasts, children—while he molested them under the guise of medical treatment. They told their coaches, trainers, and officials. Nobody wanted to hear them. The institution and money were more important. By the time Nassar was finally held accountable, hundreds of girls had already been abused.

Jerry Sandusky was a legend at Penn State. He molested young boys for decades. People knew. A man saw him rape a child in the showers and told his superiors. Nothing happened. The program was worth too much. The coach was too valuable. The child were mere footnotes.

But again and for the record (please don't sue me), Trump claims the allegations aren't true and are politically or monetarily motivated. But who are you going to believe, 25 separate women who have accused Trump of rape, kissing and groping without consent, looking under women's skirts, and walking in on naked teenage pageant contestants, or a man found to have committed sexual abuse by a New York jury and has bragged about that behavior in the media?