I've been self-employed pretty much all my life and never had to suffer the hellhole that is a customer service job (from what I've heard). That being said, a new Harbor Freight is opening up in my area and I've been thinking of applying, maybe just for a part time job. I could use the money and I keep hearing that "it's a nice company". I'm a married woman in my 30s. I've taken part in a couple of home reno projects: I know how to tile, drywall, paint, etc. and I'm proud of the quality of my work. I'm not particularly strong and I know nothing about cars or lawn equipment. I know a handful of tools but I definitely cannot make recommendations or have a meaningful conversation about tools in general. I'm willing to learn, of course. I guess I just want to be useful and not spend my days getting yelled at by old dudes because I don't know what a gauge nibbler is.
Based on this, what do you think my chances are of getting a job here? And if you do work entry level at one of the stores, how is it?

Introduction

Pertaining to Taylor Swift, "Female Rage" has deviated from its intended meaning after Swift debuted a new performance of The Tortured Poets Department during the Eras Tour. Now, according to Swift's use of the phrase, female rage is interpreted as public backlash against Swift's dating choices rather than as a response to the broader injustices against women and women's rights. This post examines Taylor Swift's flawed feminism, philanthropy, branding, and the controversial trademark petition for the phrase "Female Rage: The Musical". Swift's background as an entertainer, indeterminate politics, and alignment with capitalism over feminism pervades her legacy, again threatening her public tolerance as not just an individual but as a brand.

Once Upon a Female Rage...

If you were cognizant in the early 2010's, you've heard countless jabs at Taylor Swift in the media. Magazines, radio, or online. Music critics did not take her seriously as a songwriter; parents put a woman on an unrealistic pedestal as the ideal role model for their children; she dated too much and used men as lyrical fodder. No matter the story, it inevitably spread, conjoined with everyone's respective opinions, and you'd be left to wonder, "Why does everyone hate this girl so much?"
Taylor's target demographic has always been young or adolescent girls, more so when Swift herself was one. She made music that spoke to the awkward misfit, cultivating a para-social relationship with fans on MySpace, then later twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, where Taylor posted relatable vlogs showcasing the life of a homegrown American girl. Taylor had a delayed public "growing up" and, compared to her female pop contemporaries, Swift never "gratuitously sexualized her image and seems pathologically averse to controversy" (and, apparently, never even had a sip of alcohol until she turned 21). She was more than happy to spin this narrative to allude to an inherent moral superiority above other women in the industry (Better Than Revenge, heard of it?), engaging in the very slut-shaming that she herself endured (the Madonna and Whore archetypes). The victim complex arose with the need to prove Taylor as a different type of pop girl. Based upon her holy and clean image, Swift had been dubbed "a feminist's nightmare", and that "[To Swift] other girls are obstacles; undeserving enemies who steal Taylor’s soulmates with their bewitching good looks and sexual availability." Feminism and Tennessee-Christian country values don't exactly mix, it seems.
Years later, Swift befriended Lena Dunham and thus experienced white feminism osmosis, where Dunham taught Swift that real feminists defend rapists, makes insensitive jokes about rape and abortion, and prioritize all-white casts. Swift then declared herself a feminist in 2014, saying,

"Becoming friends with Lena – without her preaching to me, but just seeing why she believes what she believes, why she says what she says, why she stands for what she stands for – has made me realize that I’ve been taking a feminist stance without actually saying so."

I suppose the male-centric songwriting subject that permeates Swift's discography contained covert feminism and that we just didn't see that. Perhaps, the "Bad Blood" song and music video were written only in jest and not about poor Katy Perry, for Swift, as a feminist, would "never make it a girl fight" or tear other women down (though all Katy did was date your terrible ex-boyfriend and allegedly steal three backup dancers from your tour). In 2013, Swift said, in response to Tina Fey and Amy Poehler's joke towards her serial dating, "There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women."
There was that time in 2015 Taylor said that Nicki Minaj was "invited to any stage [she is] on" (as if Taylor expects to have access to every stage, award, and platform that Nicki might not otherwise have as a black female artist...yikes!) in response to Nicki's criticism of the white + thin VMA nominations. Later, Nicki responded with confusion, as Swift continued, "It’s unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot..". Of course, this 'beef' was 'squashed' when Nicki performed with Taylor at the VMAs, with Nicki quite literally only having 38 seconds of stage time without Taylor. Maybe all that parading around with a legion of famous white women - similar to the way Taylor might've done with her numerous 1989-era handbags - was in fact a stance against gender inequality, and that this display of "girl power" should be enough to constitute Swift as a feminist icon.
Even while Swift says that Dunham informed her feminist outlook, she dances around the exact contents of those beliefs: "what she believes, what she says, what she stands for" is not exactly insightful towards what beliefs Swift might have inherited. Taylor never broaches women's rights topics such femicide, FGM, forced pregnancy & marriage, sex trafficking, women in slavery, women's financial and political oppression, women's educational rights, women's health, or women's autonomy, so we can assume she only gives a fuck about "girls supporting girls" (whatever that fucking means).
Despite some questionable (and sometimes vindictive) behavior, Taylor as a young woman did not deserve every media lashing that she received. We cannot deny that most headlines and criticisms perpetuated a misogynistic rhetoric which has plagued Swift for a majority of her career. Acknowledging events such as the development of her ED, her sexual assault trial, "Famous" lyric and MV depiction of Taylor, and the explicit Twitter deepfakes, for example, as both disgusting and unfortunate things that happened to a young woman in Hollywood does not negate the fact that Taylor is mostly a performative feminist.

Get Your Fucking Ass Up and Be a Philanthropist, It Seems Like Nobody Wants to Be a Philanthropist These Days

In 2013, Taylor Swift cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the Taylor Swift Education Center at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. The donation amount - $4 million - was the largest individual artist gift ever donated to the Country Music Hall of Fame, which is, of course, mentioned on Swift's website. The two-story facility features three classrooms, an instrument room, and an interactive children's exhibit gallery. Swift also performed at "All for the Hall" charity shows and has donated numerous artifacts from her career (such as notable guitars, tour costumes, etc) to the museum.
This was over 11 years ago, and it is still the only notable philanthropic contribution Taylor Swift has made.
For a woman of her net worth and stature, and a woman who recognizes the difficulties for women in film and music, you would think that Taylor Swift might establish a scholarship program for women to study the arts or something. Perhaps Swift might even consider becoming a member of organizations that support female artists, or one that supports LGBTQ+ causes (since she is now proudly an ally), yet she remains superficial with her graces. Broader philanthropy, such as donating relief aid to Palestinian women or women impacted by violence and discrimination will probably never receive any financial support from Miss Swift because then she'd be using her money towards philanthropies involving anyone but white entertainers.
She even says herself in Miss Americana, "My entire moral code as a kid and now is a need to be thought of as 'good'." Well, she's certainly thought of as good, though her actions say otherwise. She's more than happy to do a vaguely altruistic song and dance for a clip-worthy interview quote and mass appeasement, then fuck off to one of her mansions on a 20 minute private jet flight, rather than actually contribute to anything pertaining to the causes she has endorsed. Yet, far too many people continue to give a woman such as her their money, time, and energy, and she hoards these resources to herself.

I Like Some of the Taylor's Songs, But What the Fuck Does She Know About Feminism?

Swift continued with her self-proclaimed feminist campaign, positioning herself as a political activist and LGBTQ+ ally in the Miss Americana documentary. The primary focus of the documentary consists of the sexual assault trial, Andrea Swift's cancer diagnosis, Taylor's ED and body dysmorphia, media scrutiny, and, largely, finally speaking up about her politics publicly, mostly her opposition to the 2018 Tennessee Republican senate candidate, Marsha Blackburn, and Blackburn's beliefs. Swift says, following a scene discussing her experience during the trial,

"I just couldn't really stop thinking about it. And I just thought to myself, next time there is any opportunity to change anything, you had better know what you stand for and what you want to say."

We must ask ourselves, though: when has Swift ever spoken up to change anything? Okay, pulling her entire catalogue from Spotify because they didn't pay their artists enough and similarly pulling her catalogue from Apple Music are changes that she leveraged due to her revenue potential and power, but they are not pertinent to the average woman's rights. Moreover, these are issues that directly impacted Taylor's income, which was enough reason for her to protest in the first place. Swift has sold the most units for a female artist in first week sales, is the first female artist with 100k monthly Spotify listeners, is the first female artist to win the Album of the Year Grammy 4 times, and is the first female artist to do X, Y, and Z, all while being inoffensive and family-friendly to boot. The actual Taylor Swift seems unwilling to compromise the brand of Taylor Swift by contributing in meaningful ways to feminist causes, especially if it is for women outside of America and Hollywood.
The reason political anthems such as "The Man" and "Only the Young" of the Lover era feel disingenuous and corporate is because, well, it is. Taylor has taken every opportunity to advance her career or public image at the expense of other women. What is truly genuine to Taylor's outlook on other women is vying for male attention, taking down female competition, and vocalizing feminist injustices only if they directly impact her and her money. Some will argue that it's satisfactory for a woman with such a huge platform to even TALK about feminism, but that just isn't enough. It's even less impressive when you candidly look at the scope of her feminist lens: "If I was the man, then I'd be THE MAN", or "I really resent the ‘Be careful, buddy, she’s going to write a song about you’ angle, because it trivialises what I do", and, of course, "We all got crowns". Feminism, but only when it happens to me. It gets worse when you look at Taylor's track record of copying other famous women and removing other female artists as potential threats to her pop prowess.
It's good for PR to align yourself with certain blanket feminist and political beliefs, therefore good for branding, therefore good for ticketing and merchandise sales, therefore good for business. And Taylor Swift is a business.
She's not a feminist. Taylor Swift is a capitalist.

I Can't Pay Those Sweatshop Workers a Livable Wage or Benefits! How Else Would I Make My Billions?

Recently, Taylor's team filed to trademark the phrase "Female Rage: The Musical" after Taylor said during Paris N1 of the Eras Tour,

"So you were the first ones to see The Tortured Poets at the Eras Tour...or as I like to call it, 'Female Rage: The Musical'."

This trademark petition was filed last week on Saturday, and news comes about just as numerous unofficial fan-made merch designs have cropped up with this phrase plastered on Fruit of the Loom basics. I'm of the opinion Swift's team motioned for a trademark so that they can send out cease & desists to all those that make knockoff merch, which disrupts potential sales for Bravado, UMG's choice merchandising company; however, since it was filed earlier, perhaps Swift has bigger plans with the bizarre use of the gendered phrase. One Swiftie referred to the phrase "female rage" as "a funny Eras Tour joke". Could it be a possible fourth version of the Eras Tour Movie? Whatever the reason, the motion to capitalize off of such a concept is disgusting, but not unsurprising, for a woman that profits on her vain feminism.
Swift, through her company, TAS Rights Managements, has also trademarked over 200 phrases, including "1989", where she owns the property rights to this calendar year on keychains, phone cases, sunglasses, stationary, bags, beverage ware, clothing, entertainment services, your subconscious, and, of course, Christmas ornaments.
The vapid consumerism in Swiftie culture is, frankly, disgusting. Bravado's sustainability statement is non-existent, the quality control is abysmal, and the materials they use are horrible. The materials, such as acrylic and polyester, are made from petrochemicals. This means they are non-renewable, shed microplastics, and are quite toxic in production. The manufacturing process to make all of those lazy-rushed Eras Tour logo graphic tees is a huge blow to environmental well-being. Apparently, though, Swifties don't give a fuck. They sell out products in seconds and either have to face the manufactured scarcity or buy from a scalper that resells for 200% of the already ridiculous retail price. This doesn't include the environmental impact of vinyl records, CD, and cassette production, of which Taylor produces many variants that sell unsustainable amounts.
If we're talking about women's rights violations, why is no one acknowledging the women that work in the inhumane sweatshop conditions that have to pump out fugly t-shirts and hats? The millions of plastic microfiber dander they are inhaling, or the toxic dyes that touch their bare skin? Are they being compensated fairly for their skilled labour and are they in safe working environments? Do these women have minimal bargaining power, and do they have authority over their worker's rights? Is Taylor Swift female raging at their injustices? Does Taylor Swift ever feels bad that her wealth was built on the backs of women of color, disadvantaged by the demands of the global economy and garment industry? Do you think she ever says a little white feminist prayer for them before she goes to sleep at night?
What's even crazier is not that Taylor herself doesn't care, it's that Swifties don't care. There CANNOT BE ethical billionaires. You only make a billion dollars if you are exploiting other human beings for capital gain. Based on public perception of the possible "Female Rage: The Musical" trademark, it seems like Swifties are already asking for merch with this phrase. "If Taylor made it, I'd buy it." Oh, cool. So not only do you champion Miss Swift's avarice and billionaire status, but you also are unashamed to admit to your blind consumption of her music and merchandise, no matter where they might originate in production or sincerity. Just as Swift takes and takes and takes, Swifties' consumerism of Taylor Swift cannot be quelled.
The tortured artist's most vulnerable and sincere poetry...available now in 21 different versions!

I Am Tortured Poet, Hear Me Whinge

Look - even if Taylor's intention is to characterize TTPD as more "tortured" and "angry", the main thread of the album is "I was ghosted by my decade-long situationship with a controversial indie boy and my fucking stupid fans wrote a 'Speak Up Now' open letter prompting me to drop him" anger, which is adequately expressed in the lyrics and performances. The extent of Taylor's "female rage" on TTPD is on tracks such as "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?", which contends with relentless media scrutiny; "But Daddy I Love Him", where Swift firmly states she'll date whoever she likes no matter how "Sarahs and Hannahs" may react; and "The Albatross", a track mythologizing her reputation and the consequences of dating her. Of course, these coincide with deep psychological wounds that formed during Swift's early years in the media, and so, from her feminist perspective, these subjects tackle the misogyny and double standards that she faced.
Yet Taylor Swift still has no grounds to be claiming that TTPD best exemplifies female rage and therefore she, in the context of this album, is female rage incarnate. As the daughter of a stock broker and mutual fund marketing executive, Taylor was born into wealth and allowed privileges like trips and subsequent relocation to Nashville all so that she might get a record deal. Her father even invested at least $120,000 into the then-fledgling label, Big Machine Records, which ensured Taylor's place with Borchetta after leaving her dead-end development deal with Sony. The fact that her parents were able to buy her a fucking brand new guitar for Christmas and pay for music lessons says so much about the financial security and safety of her childhood.
Money is privilege and protection, and despite Swift's experiences with misogyny and loser boyfriends, she does not know what female rage is.
Her rage is derived from her frustrations with her obsessive fans pulling the moral superiority card on Taylor in response to her rebound with Matty Healy. That's literally it. She's just pissed that the monster she created is no longer obediant, it's become a feral, sovereign entity that depletes the world of its natural resources and thinks it is more intelligent than it actually is because it's mommy has started to talk to it with big words. Apparently, 'illicit', 'elegy', 'nonchalant', and 'precocious' are considerably big words for the oafish monster, and I find it strange that this level of literacy is present in a group of fans that allegedly have GPAs of 3.5 or higher, but I digress.
Taylor Swift has never been one paycheck away from destitution. Taylor Swift has never experienced racial discrimination. She may have instances of gender discrimination, but she possesses the ideal white, blonde American beauty standard and therefore reaps the benefits of being a conventionally attractive woman. Taylor Swift has sufficient social capital. Taylor Swift is a billionaire woman prolonging her victimhood though she, as a woman, has mostly had control over her image and music (unlike her contemporaries). Taylor Swift is NOT entitled to be championed for her "female rage", nor should she be. Taylor Swift has never even been the struggling artist, for fuck's sake. I don't give a fuck if she's trying to fill the empty lunch tables of her past. Taylor Swift purporting herself, her unpolished album, and her lukewarm feminism as a musical bleeding with female rage is asinine.

Sigh Try and Come For My Job, Poors

Out there in the world right now is a 23-year-old woman, a recent college grad, who works as a barista. She has to wake up and get ready to go into a minimum wage job because she cannot get a job in her field. She doesn't have healthcare benefits or sick time, so she has to go into work no matter how she's feeling. All day long she is berated by vicious customers and creepy men, and, exhausted from being on her feet, she knows she has to go home to her shitty roommate that never does the dishes and her roommate's shitty dog. To comfort herself, she considers getting a treat, but thinks against it when she remembers that matcha lattes cost $15 and they taste like milky dirt. She knows that she needs to buy groceries this week, and so the woman resolves to go home, but notices that her gas tank is low. She goes to put gas in the car, but the pump stops at $27.86 because that's all that she has in her checking account. The woman, bereft and reeling, sinks into the driver's seat. "Well," she thinks, her head in her hands, "at least I don't have Taylor Swift's job. I just couldn't imagine."
Fame is somewhat of a choice. If at any moment Taylor feels that she is misunderstood, misconstrued, or overwhelmed by public opinion, she can LEAVE the public eye - Lord knows she has the retirement fund and residuals to do so. In "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart", the TTPD song about meeting the demands of your career-zenith mega-tour while in the relationship trenches, Taylor ends the song by rambling,

"You know you're good when you can even do it with a broken heart...you know you're good...and I'm good, cause I'm miserable, and no one even knows!...try and come for my job."

Yeah, obviously we wouldn't know, you recently passed the billionaire threshold and are the most famous and in-demand performer in the world right now. Taylor Swift makes an estimated $10 to $13 million dollars A NIGHT on the Eras Tour. Furthermore, the Eras Tour movie grossed $261.6 million globally, (which, as the producer, Taylor takes home 57% of the ticket sales) not counting the streaming revenue from Amazon Prime Video and the estimated $75 million deal that Disney paid to have it on Disney+. We're not even considering the income from cheap plastic popcorn buckets and drink cups plastered with colored squares in her Era-specific likeness.
It's funny. Taylor Swift often said that being famous wasn't hard, that she "isn't complaining". I'm sure it is difficult to always have to present in a good mood, else you'll end up misrepresented in the media, and I'm sure it's invasive to virtually have no privacy or semblance of anonymity. Still, Taylor Swift shows up each night of tour and performs. For a majority of her career, she has penned her sad songs while on the road. Most of "Red", her breakup album, was written in the thick of the Speak Now World tour. Now, some Swifties say they almost "feel bad" for attending the Eras Tour with Swift's revelations in this song, that they have had a 'dimmed experience' upon hearing Taylor's misery whilst performing. Despite the fact that Taylor said that "this was the happiest she's ever been" at Gilette Stadium in May, the lyrics "boohoo, woe is me, smile for the cameras and make the fans happy!!!" are jarring for Eras attendees.
While Taylor Swift was making double-digit millions a night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and feeling miserable, Ana Clara Benevides Machado passed away due to heat exposure. The concert promoters, Time For Fun, are now the subject of a criminal investigation due to their lack of adequate hydration and safety. Taylor Swift cancelled the Sunday show that was to follow and offered VIP tent tickets to Benevides Marchado's family, which was a kind gesture, but perhaps incongruous to the incident of which they were offered as consolation. Everyone grieves differently, of course, but I'm not sure attending the very show at the very same venue that my daughter or sister passed away in two days prior, where the singer CONTINUED the show despite her death, would be healthy for closure.
There was no female rage at the show as Swift never saw Benevides Machado pass out. There was no female rage towards the disregard for fans as humans while Swift elected to proceed with her Brazil tour dates despite the country being in historic heatwaves (at risk of overheatting herself). If Taylor Swift was so shaken by touring with a broken heart or a fan's passing, she wouldn't have added an additional North American leg of Eras just two months after the Matty breakup. She's brokenhearted but willing to mend the cracks with your money and move onward with her worldwide female rage induced pillaging.
No matter what happens, even if you die at a Taylor Swift concert, Taylor collects a big fat check and flies away. She doesn't know you as anything other than a conversion rate or earning potential despite what her nearly 20-year long parasocial relationship with fans might otherwise indicate. She knows that, while some Swifties are without disposable income, they feel obligated to spend on a "48 Hours Only!" exclusive vinyl variant instead of necessities because they are so entrenched in Taylor Swift's intoxicating celebrity, they'll prioritize materialistic fandom before their needs. This is good enough for her because this means she can expand her real estate portfolio and finance her cat's lavish lifestyles. They're worth an estimated $100 million dollars. Her three cats could pool their net worth and solve world hunger.
While you and I might be denied bereavement leave and barely surviving the current political and economic climate, Taylor Swift has to, instead of gets to, perform for stadiums at full attendance for three nights in a row across the globe. You and I might be replaced by AI at our longtime jobs, but Taylor Swift is threatened with losing more and more money each time you listen to a "Stolen Version" of her songs. If we don't buy every variant of all of her albums, then who is going to pay for the fucking cats?
It is tone deaf to spend as she spends and lives as she lives in this economy, but this is her reality. She was able to donate $100,000 to all of her tour truck drivers, and that's wonderful, but it leads me to wonder about the ethos of the 2020s where one woman can hoard such life-changing amounts of money. Remember in 2014 when she gave a fan $90 ($120 in today's money) to get Chipotle because she had no fucking clue how much it cost? This is a 34-year-old woman who is increasingly out of touch with the reality for working class people and women in general. Normal everyday adults must wake up and go to their thankless jobs, and yet Taylor Swift, despite all her riches, incessantly references the lows of her life and career as a public figure and entertainer to farm sympathy and drive sales. And still, the corporate women have latched onto "I cry a lot, but I am so productive! It's an art!" as their cubicle battle cry.
Do you think that, from up in her private jet, Taylor Swift gazes at the world through her poetic, tortured eyes, and thinks, "All the little people, in their cars, walking, going about their lives...all those girls that don't support girls...do they know that I've made an album about female rage?"

Conclusion/TLDR

Thank you for reading. I would love to hear your critical insights towards this entire ordeal: TTPD, the trademark, the implications of it all.
TLDR: Taylor Swift is a bad feminist and is delusional to think that the TTPD eras set exemplifies female rage at women's injustice.

I've had ExpressVPN for several years now and every year I get charged $99.95 for the annual subscription. Knowing how some companies like to increase their prices, I had set up a Virtual Credit Card that limited the annual charge to $99.95 to be used just at ExpressVPN. Today, I got a message saying they tried to charge me $116.95 and that the transaction was declined because it was over the limit I had set.
I chatted with their customer service and told them I didn't want to keep the service if it was going to be more than $99.95 annually. They told me they'd do a one-time refund of $17 to get my price to the $99.95, but I had to allow my card to be charged the $116.95. Not knowing how long the refund would take and not really wanting to deal with this same issue next year I asked why they couldn't just charge me $99.95 instead of the process of charging $116.95 and refunding me $17. They said they couldn't do that and that they'd process my account cancellation.
Immediately after the cancellation, I went back on their website, where I was able to sign up for an annual payment of $99.95 with the same email I'd been using. WTF ExpressVPN?

Hey, everyone. Sorry if the title seems a bit confusing.
I've been looking at this sub for a long time and thought its best to ask finally:
As I understand the whole emulation scene right now (especially for x86 and windows games - and forgive me if that understanding seems a bit flawed):
1.) You install termux. 2.) You install an ARM proot-distro in it. 3.) Then you install box86/64, wine, dxvk, turnip etc. in it. 4.) From there, you emulate x86 architecture so that Windows games might run on it. Kinda same for winlator too, I guess. perhaps exagear work like that too, though I'm not sure.
of course ARM-to-ARM translation - like Switch - works far better, not in the least because Switch is a considerably less powerful device to emulate.
This setup takes a fair bit of overhead, varies game-to-game, and controlleKB/Mouse support is finicky/suspicious (all those virus alarms that have people divided on subs).
MOBOX devs and others say that rooting your phone would offer considerable speed-ups, though many people are reluctant to do it for obvious reasons.
Now...
I don't know if you people are following it or not. but google has been working on some stuff called AVF for some time now. Short for Android Virtualization Framework. Which would allow people to run, kinda real VMs the way it works on dekstops. Their solutiuon is pKVM, and back when android 13 was first launched, some ingenious folks over XDA had managed to run fairly speeded up Win11 on it.
On pixel 7 pro, without even rooting!
Qualcomm is damned notorious, however, because it didn't allow similar functionalitty to be exposed to users of their chipsets, although I read that's largely because ARM v8 architecture for phones simply didn't allow EL2 privilege level to work like that (or stuff... point is it didn't work. Only from 8.2+, it will. or so I gather. there's tweet from Mishaal Rahman somwhere about it, I'm sure.) But Google's being a wholly custom tensor job, meant it had the freedom to implement this stuff. though, its a real shame that tensors are real-tortoise-shamers in terms of speed and volcano-emulators in terms of thermals.
Now, 2 years later, things are heating up.
According to this report I read up yesterday on android authority, Google is privately showing some industry players how to boot-up ChromeOS on pixel 8s using the same tech: https://www.androidauthority.com/chrome-os-on-android-hands-on-2-3442510/
December last year, (or thereabouts), Google also published this thing called "Virtual Machines as a Core Android Primitive", using AVF. https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2023/12/virtual-machines-as-core-android-primitive.html
Around same time, Qualcomm made some massive changes to their Gunyah hypervisor https://github.com/quic/gunyah-hypervisor
And published an article on it in january:
https://www.qualcomm.com/developeblog/2024/01/gunyah-hypervisor-software-supporting-protected-vms-android-virtualization-framework
Same with Mediatek and their GenieZone hypervisor update, on Dec '23. https://lkml.org/lkml/2023/12/28/252
We also know that Qualcomm is hyping up theri Snapdragon X Elite line of chips and how its gonna be an ARM-based Mac-Killer in windows arena and all that. Early-glipsers/sneak-peakers had tested gaming on it and it was probably a mixed bag but they ran.
Not to mention those same chips are going to be inside Snapdragon 8 gen 4.
Also, nowadays pixels are def. coming with display outputs these days.
Given all this, here's my question to all you people because I don't really understand the half of it:
Do you think we're going to get native abilities to run VMs through Gynyah hypervisor on qualcomm phones? And GenieZone on mediatek? Without rooting and all? Android guys are calling it core primitive after-all. But who the f**k knows, right? Maybe its all for those fancy notebooks. Just like google did it with chromebooks.
the only way to emulate (not translate) x86 had been Limbo PC emulator (correct me if I'm wrong though) and that one soon runs into problems because of single core and ram limits because of absence of KVM functionality.
So would it offer a considerable speed-boost if we had these VM functions - as compared to the MOBOX/WinLator and its translation layers, say? or Cassia - the holy grail in the future we all keep patiently waiting for?
What about GPU acceleration?
back when they managed to run Win11 on pixel 6/7, esper.io people said the dev has no plans to implement it.
But for others, we do have Turnip drivers, no? (at least for qualcomm.)
Would they help in VMs, in GPU acceleration?
The VMs certainly should solve the controlleKB/mouse headaches as a minimum, I gather. No "Is Input-Bridge a virus?" question-barrages from anxious users.
And finally, would having native VMs help in Emulation on Android, in general I mean. because then you'd have acess to steam and perhaps other emulators that are already there on linux but not necessarily on android. Who knows, even PS3!
But seriously, what do you guys think? (and sorry for the long post, but it had to be gotten out of my system)

"Just picked up my new 86/BRZ! What mods should I do???"
Hold your horses for a moment, my friend. First of all, welcome aboard. I understand how exciting it is to dive into modding and make the car "your own," especially with the GR86/BRZ platform quickly gaining recognition as one of the best modern options for customization. But why rush into modding a car you haven't even spent time with yet? And why turn to Reddit for answers? If we agree that modding is all about personalization and making your ride uniquely yours, does this approach align?
Your question, "What should I mod?" immediately suggests that there may not be anything you feel urgently needs modification. This could be due to lack of experience with the car or the fact that it suits you perfectly straight out of the box. And that's perfectly fine. It shouldn't diminish your enjoyment of the car.
The right approach to car modification is to spend time with your vehicle, pinpointing aspects that don't quite match your preferences, whether they're related to aesthetics or performance. Then, make adjustments to address those specific dislikes and assess if the changes enhance your satisfaction. Modding just for the sake of it doesn't foster genuine individuality. Instead, it creates a superficial sense of uniqueness that can wear off quickly.

Hey guys. I've created a list of the 100 best tools for spatial computing builders that I use. Each tool has been carefully curated, tested and validated.

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

Hey guys. I've created a list of the 100 best tools for spatial computing builders that I use. Each tool has been carefully curated, tested and validated.

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

I'll be visiting india next month, and I decided to purchase a new baby car seat for my nephew. Will I be charged any customs at the Bangalore airport? I plan to remove all packaging of the baby seat, and bring it as a check in luggage. PS: There will not be a baby with me, so I don't think I can say this is for my baby!

Template is below. So my SO and I typically fly 2-3 times per year, we typically always rent a car when we do, 50/50 split whether we stay at an airbnb or hotel, just depends.
I currently only have one credit card which I do the majority of all of my spending on, except for things like rent or that can’t be on a CC. I get 1-3% back on spending and usually get between 40 to 70 bucks a month.
Anyway, we are hopefully planning a wedding and a trip abroad in the next few years , including a big expenses this November on travel for a destination wedding. So many opportunities to earn points. I’d like to start building some points and hopefully save some money on our flight this November, and on flights in general moving forward.
Current cards:
-Bank of America Customized cash rewards platinum plus Mastercard
FICO score:
-745 according to Bank of America
Oldest account age:
-opened April 2018, so 6 years
Income:
-84000 salary plus 20 to 25k in capital gains/distributions
Average Monthly Spending $2500
Dining $137
Groceries $600
Gas $132
Travel $511
Open to business cards: not applicable
Purpose of card: earn points to use toward flights, hotels, (air bnb if points for that exist lol). To continue building credit.
Cards I’ve been looking at: chase preferred, capital one, but open to anything. Many friends had recommended JetBlue but I’m not committed to one airline
Category spending or general card: not sure what would be more beneficial

Hey guys,
I'll be visiting india next month, and I decided to purchase a new baby car seat for my nephew. Will I be charged any customs at the Bangalore airport? I plan to remove all packaging of the baby seat, and bring it as a check in luggage. PS: There will not be a baby with me, so I don't think I can say this is for my baby!

My PS2 has been pretty faultless since new which is virtually 3 years ago. But in the last 24 hours the boot won’t close on one press of either of its buttons, the dashboard button or the key fob button. The only way to close it is keep pressing the button until it’s closed (it moves one inch each time), but even when shut the car doesn’t think it’s locked but if I press again to ‘fully’ close it then releases and fully opens (which happens at normal speed).
Anyone seen this behaviour before, it’s incredible thats it’s happening a couple of days before it’s first MoT…

Hi, looking for some help, education and advice.
I just purchased the car (CPO) for an insane discount plus I got Audi warranty till 2029 just to be on a safe side.
2021 32k miles, prestige with blackout package - $32500

• Virtual cockpit
  • To get satellite view I assume I have to pay some sort of monthly subscription fee, if so how much is it and which one is it
  • I have seen the traffic light countdown on some audis, is it available on e-tron and if so how do I get it
• There is a recall on the battery - what does the process look like now...meaning are the parts / software available and pretty quick turn around from the dealer
• Looking for some storage options - center armrest (wish it had a tray) anybody found one that work
  • Maybe under seat storage
• Hate the creaking on the center armrest towards the back plastic side. If I put my elbow on the leather part fine but backward towards the plastics lots of creaking (any solutions for that). I have been in 2 or 3 now and all of the do it.
• Looking for any mods that are out there - seen the ones for unlocking the hd matrix light (I may do that) anything else that is missing. I read a few like tire pressure monitor but don't know what I don't know.
• I can see the option to raise the car all the way up, is there any way to lower it all the way down?
• Is there a feature that will lower the back of car when the truck is open like most air suspension cars?
• I will have more i'm sure...thanks for the help.

Really like the vehicle and am liking it more as I have it longer. Couple things I'm disappointed in like audio, which is a step down from what I'm used too, some of the quality (plastics) and some omissions. Plastics in particular are a little worrisome but I hope Audi fit and finish will overcome it and it will not become a problem Wish that AA/CP would show up in the dash or HUD but I know that will not happen. Wish seats had massage on the bottom cushion too but this is not per say a long distance curizer. Love the ride, the quiet cabin the features that are there.

Hello,
I have a customer who's R630 is not successfully booting.
We were getting Error UEFI0116.
With Error UEFI0116 we were not able to boot to System Setup through F2. It was giving us only access to the Integrated RAID Controller Configuration Utility which showed;
Virtual Disk 0: VDisk1, RAID10, 2.181TB, Failed.
I was also able to check the Associated Physical Disks and it was only showing bays 2,5,6,7.
I had to make some changes in order to clear that error and be able to boot and access any other menus. I tried troubleshooting with the information the customer provided and seeing if any possible bios changes through a potential firmware update were giving us errors that were not allowing boot to fully complete.
Unfortunately we kept hitting that wall:"Virtual Disk 0: VDisk1, RAID10, 2.181TB, Failed."
I saw a number of logs like this:
//
Disk 0 in Backplane 1 of Integrated RAID Controller 1 is not functioning correctly.
Virtual Disk 0 on Integrated RAID Controller 1 has failed.
Disk 0 in Backplane 1 of Integrated RAID Controller 1 was reset.
//
...
I have continued troubleshooting and moved some disks around to test the bays and my results are weird. For example, some disks work on some slots but not others. ie; Disk 0 will not work in Bay 0, but will work in Bay 6. Then it stops working completely.
Other times the menu "Physical Disk Management" will show
"Physical Disk 00:01:02: HDD..."
Sometimes it will show:
"Physical Disk --:--:02: HDD..."

My issue are...
I don't have a working configuration to compare this to.
I don't have any information on this system from the customer.
His brother set it up long ago and he is now retired and does not know much about the system or how it was configured.
I know the RAID was in RAID10, but that is all.
I don't know if there were any hot spares. I don't know what is the minimum amount of drives we need to rebuild the RAID. (IF we were to get Data Recovery on some possibly failed drives.)
I am drawing at straws trying to fix this.
The customer suggested I re-seat the PERC controller and cabling with the power off. (Probably suggested by his brother). Now no previous virtual disks show.

(TL:DR;) Some questions:
1) Back when there was a Virtual Disk in the PERC Menu; I went to View Associated Physical Disks and it only showed 2,5,6,7. Does this mean this was the ONLY disk Associated? Or was it only showing the Associate disks that were available?
2) How screwed is this system? I read once a RAID reaches Failed State it is difficult to recover. Customer did absolutely no maintenance on this system and left it very neglected. His main goal is to get one data file for his "Dispatching Software".
Worst comes to worst we can't fix this RAID, but would we be able to at least use Data Recovery to try to find this specific file?
Help much appreciated.

Not looking for a mini van. We are outdoorsy and need the 4 wheel drive. I currently have a suburban and it’s a nightmare. Ended up being a lemon, so no GM vehicles. Customer service was crazy. I have 2 kids in car seats and 2 in boosters and a teen. Need some trunk room for stroller. I looked at the grand highlander but the leg room was an issue in the 3rd row and my kids are tall. I’m looking for reliable since I’ve spent 2 years in and out of the shop and my kids need reliable transportation since they have disabilities. I’m not totally against mini vans but we love the ground clearance of the suv and we live close to farms and mountains.

Genocide looked to the sky. He thought of his mentor. The one who had saved him. He remembered his childhood. How powerless he was. He remembered the anger. He never wanted to hurt anybody. He thought of all the times he showed compassion. How much they hurt him for it. He saw the world before him, a graveyard. Humans. People that were supposed to be made in the image of some divine creator. They were but maggots feasting upon his remains. They ate away at his very being until nothing human remained. His thoughts were no longer his own. He had no joys in life that mattered. He hated humanity more than he could love anything about himself. He remember his first killing spree. Being gunned down by police. Left for dead. He remembered a hooded figure moving towards him. Getting closer the more he neared his death. He saw its pale face. Its impossibly black eyes. It was a man. This figure in question appeared to be of Japanese nationality with long, straight, loose hair. It emanated extreme malice. It offered him a choice. A purpose. Power. He thought the figure a reaper but it identified itself as Amakusa Masataka. Masataka guided him on how to kill and gave him specific locations to kill people in. In a sense, he became a hitman for quotas of people. He inquired what Masataka was. The presence of evil, his ability to appear and disappear at will, how he could control what people could see him and what people couldn't. While vague, years of killing for this being offered some insight. Amakusa Masataka belonged to a group of people not of this world. His people had been corrupted by a dark force long ago and had aligned themselves with the warlord who had subjugated their version of Japan. Their dark high priest assisted the warlord along with two others. These four rulers in turn served a larger order. The four were tasked with bringing about the end of the current world as an act of retribution for some fallen deity. Masataka's people acted as covert operatives for this empire. They were feared across the land and were collectively referred to as "Shinigami". An agent of the coming apocalypse, a servant of evil possessed by the will of those gods of death, Genocide would walk the earth.
Genocide stepped toward the station. A police cruiser rammed into him. He pulled out a knife and stabbed the hood of the car. The inhuman force of the knife created sparks which burst the engine into flames. The car crashed into a streetlight and exploded. A second cruiser neared the scene. No way a man could have done this. Yet still, out of the fires Genocide strode forth. It set upon the second vehicle, shooting out it's tires while jumping 9 feet into the air. The car tries to reverse but crashes into a wall. Genocide lands on the hood and kicks through the front window. Glass shatters under its boot, blinding the two officers inside. Genocide shoots one of the officers with a shotgun, killing him. The second officer in the passenger seat readies his pistol and takes aim. Only two shots fired, both directed at Genocide's head. It casually cocks its neck to avoid them. Then it grabs the officer's arm, breaking it. Genocide uses its free hand to grab the officer's head and bangs it into the dashboard no less than 5 times. The skull is shattered on the final impact. Genocide jumps off the car and continues on his mission.
Detective Evans speaks through a megaphone," This is your first and final warning. Stand down or we will use any and all means at our disposal to put you down." Genocide dropped its shotgun and raised its hands. A group of five SWAT team members rushed out the station, surrounding Genocide with riot shields. An officer accompanies them, edging behind the figure to apply handcuffs. Suddenly, Genocide springs to life , grabbing the officer behind him. He flips the officer over his head, slamming him into the pavement at his feet. Then Genocide stomps his head causing it to burst. Genocide drops a flash bomb from his coat sleeve, blinding the SWAT team as he draws his knife. He drives it into one SWAT member, the knife puncturing the shield and piercing his chest. Genocide kicks the corpse away withdrawing his knife. He goes to another, this time using the end of his boot toe in a rising kick to disarm their shield. He grabs them by the throat and drives the knife slowly into their eye socket. Another is tackled to the ground and beaten to death despite still being under the shield. Another is picked up and thrown into the fires still burning from the first auto incident. In no time, Genocide stood before an indistinguishable mass of gore, blood streaking across his black leather outfit. He laughed" So this is all you can give me. I'm not entertained." Officers took aim from the station windows, and snipers did so from other rooftops. Genocide laughed maniacally as he was rained down upon from all sides by a hailstorm of bullets. His body convulsed, but he did not fall. Moments more and he was on his knees. Still though, their efforts were futile. Gracia looked out and saw a black mist coalescing around the man in black. His blood. Blood erupted from his body only to transform into this dark mist that reentered his wounds. Genocide screamed. No. It was just an elevated pitch in his laughter. Optimism failed everyone yet again. Gracia saw Genocide holding something in his right hand. She could only make out a beeping red light. Genocide pushed the button triggering the carefully concealed explosives he laid in preparation for this event. C4 explosives went off in all the places he saw fit. The sniping posts he couldn't reach. The assault of lead lightened. Then Genocide drew an RPG from...somewhere. He collected himself and fired at the station's entrance. The explosion shook the station. From inside, the lights began to flicker. Communications were down on all fronts. Had he modified the rocket with some type of EMP? Not good. Amisdst the confusion Genocide entered using smoke bombs to mask his presence. Moving like a shadow, he killed everyone in the lobby silently with his knife. He made his way to the holding cells. Still they chanted. Still they praised. Still they raved for the arrival of genocide. Genocide shot the lock opening the cell. Jim Jimenez walked out and bowed before his master. Genocide smiled. He couldn't have imagined how proficient he had gotten with possession. Well, not quite possession. He had known of the Shinigami's ability to share their thoughts and emotions with humans. Shinigami like his mentor were ancient. They had so many years of memories, such strong a hatred for life that they overwhelmed the personality of the victim. The victim sees themselves as one of them. Shinigami can't force the will of the victim, so they find those who are already similar to them in some way. Genocide found the collective universal distrust of police to be a prime sentiment to capitalize on. He armed the inmates, infecting them with samples of his own dark essence.One particular inmate caught Genocide's eye. He knew the man's work. An arsonist. The one whom he recalls was responsible for blowing up his first car way back in high school. Rather than a standard firearm, Genocide gave the man a random assortment of grenades containing a special surprise. Genocide showed them visions of anarchy, of sending a message to a society that used and disregarded them. While this was also true of how he felt, years of living in darkness had changed him. He needed no purpose. No end goal. No justification. He just wanted to watch the world burn.
Genocide's small army broke off to engage several different wings of the station. Genocide went to the security room. He found Wayne, his informant, playing some FPS on one of the monitors. Wayne took of his headphones and asked," You kill everyone yet?" Genocide responded," No. You should get going before that happens. Your life becomes fair game if I run out of pigs to cook." Wayne clapped his hands, "Aight, GC my man, say less." He packed his things and left. Genocide drew a twin pair of handguns and laid waste to the station. He followed a group that took cover in the men's restroom. Kicking open multiple stalls he was surprised to find...nothing. Where had they gone? He turned around and saw his mentor, Masataka, smiling at him. It looked like him. Long, dark hair, black clothing, and soulless, empty eyes. But it wasn't. It was Genocide's own reflection in the mirror. Genocide smiled. He didn't notice the changes at first. They must have happened gradually. Subconsciously. From the final stall, an officer sprung into action, rushing Genocide, hitting him point blank with a shockgun round. Genocide felt the tingling sensation electrifying his body and grew numb. In spite of the pain, he took a single step. Then, another. He came within striking range of the officer and snatched the shockgun. Two more officers erupted from another stall, battering him with baton strikes. Genocide felt nothing. He clutched the shockgun in his hand like a bat and went to work pulverizing his attackers. An officer kicked in the bathroom door, a woman holding a pistol. She fired multiple times to no effect. Genocide stood covered in blood. He even let her reload. Twice. He wanted to see her despair. Her hopelessness. He walked towards her, shrugging off bullets as they pierced his body. His wounds healed nigh instantly due to the dark essence he had been imbued with. He held her face with both hands, lifting her body off the ground. As she screamed, he used her head to shatter the restroom mirror, running down the full length of it while smashing her into it at several points. He dropped the remains of what he held, washed his hands with soap, dried them, then exited the restroom.
The inmates that rallied for the cause of genocide attacked the station. Fortunately, they were nowhere near Genocide in terms of power and only carried one type of firearm each. They shared his healing ability but could be killed quite easily. Gracia encountered a sniper on the end or a west wing hallway. Other officers waited behind corners unable to get close. Gracia noticed the faulty lighting. In this hallway, the lights flickered in intervals of 3 seconds. Finding a pattern and timing her movements, she rushed the sniper at the exact moment the lights went out. Running the length of the hall, Gracia zigzagged, dodging the sniper inmate's bullets. She jumped on a wall, ran 3 feet on it, then kicked off it, pouncing on the assailant. She fired five shots into him, making sure to hit the brain and the heart. Two severe injuries that were impossible for Shinigami essence to heal simultaneously. Elsewhere, Evans took on another escaped inmate. A vehicular arsonist named Carson. Carson had a bag filled with an assortment of different grenades and was happily giving them out like candy on Halloween. "A flash bang here, a bit of tear gas there. Oh. Wait! Was that an ice grenade? Did the explosion freeze your leg to the floor? Whoops. Maybe a fire grenade will melt that for you. Hold on let me get one fore you," Carson rambled gleefully. Evans looked at the carnage before him. Officers burning. Officers partially frozen in blocks of ice. He took a breath and aimed his wristgun. He steadied his right forearm. Carson readied to throw a random grenade. Evans shot it the moment it left Carson's hand. The grenade exploded directly in front of Carson. Both Evans and Carson looked at each other in shock. Confetti. A party grenade? Carson quickly fumbled for another but was tackled and restrained by several officers. Meanwhile in the South wing, Lary had some colleagues set a trap for another shotgun toting inmate. He had them bait the inmate and flee. Giving chase he turned a corner and ran straight into Lary's fist. The inmate recovered and motioned to shoot Lary. "Let's tango. " Lary gave the code word. Nearby officers activated a device. A signal jammer of sorts. The inmate shoved the barrel of his gun into Lary's gut and pulled the trigger. Nothing. The special signal jammer in question was designed for firearms. It was a last resort as it left officers just as defenseless. Lary was having fun. He boxed the inmate in hand to hand combat. Despite the inmate's enhanced strength, Lary's technique pulled through. Lary ducked under one of the inmate's wide punches and did some type of rising uppercut where he jumped off the ground while spinning. One of the other officers whispered" The rising dragon." Lary smiled giving a thumbs up" Yeah, it was a rising dragon uppercut. Saw it in one O my kid's vidya games. Thought I'd try it out while I'm jacked on adrenaline".
Jim Jimenez looked long and hard at himself in the mirror. He was in the women's restroom. Some brainless woman had broken the men's restroom mirror with her face. For the first time in a long while Jim could think clearly. He was becoming sane. At the least he was no longer a raving lunatic. The life essence of the dark gods had healed the wounds to both his body and his mind. He saw his face, his scraggly dirty beard. He found a razor and shaved. He trimmed his beard somewhat. He liked it. He washed his hair. It fell down his face like silk, no longer greasy. His bloodshot eyes once burning with crazed intensity had cooled. He blinked. Just for a second, he saw the man known as Genocide. The man that attacked him. The one that killed him and gave him new life. The drug dealers. The police. They were all the same in his eyes now. They were all to blame for the world being what it is. Jim wanted to hate them. He wanted to take revenge, but he felt nothing. It didn't matter. He knew he was wronged, could logically justify acting against them, but he just didn't care anymore. About anything. He was finally free. Sensing his presence was no longer needed here, Jim vanished into the night. He needed to find someone who had had the answers he needed. Himself. Who had he been? Who was he now? Who could he become? Where was he going? So many questions to ponder indefinitely. So much time left in the rest of his life.
Genocide ran down the station's halls raining hailstorms of bullets upon its occupants. He had a handgun in each hand as well as a wristgun on each wrist. This effectively gave him 4 separate firearms that he could use simultaneously. Lary regrouped with Gracia, Evans, and a handful of others. They radioed all surviving officers near Genocide to flee to the roof. This plan had been set in motion days before the assault and had been kept hidden from most of the force. The plan involved scheduling flights for several helicopters to arrive at some point after Genocide arrived. There would be no way for him to prepare for them and pre-scheduling their arrival ensured they arrived regardless of if they were called or not. Lary and the others set about preparing the second jamming device. Genocide stood among a hallway of bodies. He saw one man clinging to life trying to crawl away. He decided on trying that other thing he saw his master do. He grabbed the dying man and pinned him to the wall. Slowly he drove a knife into his chest. As the man's life slipped away, something else entered his body. Genocide channeled a small amount of his essence into the vessel. He had steadily done this with other casualties around the station whose bodies were somewhat salvageable. He dropped the body he was holding and looked upon the others. He closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, his eyed were black, both sclera and iris. The scene before him changed. Genocide had a vision. He saw a dead gray wasteland littered with bodies. These people however weren't cops and wore traditional Japanese attire. In his hand wasn't a gun or knife but a short sickle akin to a farming tool. He heard a dark voice call out to him. Slowly, the corpses around him began to rise, now mere puppets bound eternally to their master's whim. The bodies sold to the reaper who had claimed their lives. Genocide's vision ended. His eyes had returned normal. Around him, dead cops began to rise. His dark essence had entered their bodies and reanimated them. He sent his dead army to attack the officers fleeing to the roof of the station. These zombies swarmed the stairwell giving chase to the few survivors. There were five of them. They had two flights of stairs to climb and a horde of their former colleagues close behind them. One officer tripped and was set upon by the horde. The zombies didn't bite them but held them firmly in place. The other four officers stared down wondering what to do. They could hear Genocide chuckling. They could hear humming. They could feel the temperature rising. Their colleague and the two zombies holding him were hit by an enormous green fireball. Genocide had fired a Magnum Opus and had charged the bullet to level 3. The Magnum Opus was simply a magnum that shot fireballs, with bullets that could be charged by holding down the trigger. It had three levels of charges. Level 1 was a small reddish ball of plasma. Level 2 was slightly larger and yellow. Level 3 was the maximum charge and resulted in a large slow moving green blast of energy. The officer was ignited and Genocide watched gleefully as the force of the blast sent him flying through a wall. The four officers continued up firing occasionally to slow down the zombies. Soon they made it to a door leading to the roof. Before one officer could reach it, he was sniped by Genocide, a bullet to the head killing him instantly. The remaining three made it out. They regrouped with the others already there, 12 in total, including Lary, Evans, and Gracia. This would be their final stand. They just had to hold out until Genocide made it up there. They just had to keep Genocide occupied until the helicopters arrived. Genocide slowly ascended the stairs behind his horde. On the roof, the remaining survivors faced off against waves of the undead. Evans recognized the attackers. These zombies were being controlled by nanomachines. He heard the stories of several weapons encountered by soldiers on the battlefield. These creatures were called Metaldeads as they were reanimated via machines. They had been officially banned by most of the worlds' governments for being unethical. However, this did not stop the technology from being spread still between shady organizations, terrorists, etc. Evans wondered how Genocide got this form of nanotechnology. Evans long speculated that the dark essence used by most of the killers they encountered was a a form of nanotech however it was different from anything else he had seen or heard about. The dark essence seemed to be an amalgamation of other types of nanotech. Evans had to save his inquiries for later. He reloaded his wristgun and took aim at the approaching group of Metaldeads. Gracia steadied her handgun and shot two Metaldeads in the head. From the single door countless arms seemed to spill forth from the darkness. The other officers took turns firing in intervals. this allowed them to create a steady stream of fire where no more that three guns needed to be reloaded at once. The horde seemed to thin out over time as if they were making progress. In actuality, the Metaldeads were just making room for Genocide to enter. Genocide exploded in a sprint from the door. Everyone fired upon the killer. Genocide had now chosen a wrist mounted mini flamethrower to use as his weapon. He stormed past the oncoming bullets taking some damage, but refused to slow down. He unleashed a stream of fire that caught five of the officers in one fell swoop. Gracia fired five rounds into Genocide's face. He stumbled back. Lary took the chance to fire several mine gun bullets at Genocide's feet. The mines quickly detected his movement and exploded. In seconds, Genocide was on his back.
Staring at the night sky Genocide saw the moon. He reached for it. He called for the darkness to give him more power. His wounds began healing. In the sky he could hear the whirl of propellers. There were six helicopters in total. The first two had evacuated the survivors while the others stayed to engage Genocide. Genocide got up and unstrapped the sniper rifle from his back. He stood before the searchlights as a black silhouette, cornered but unwilling to back down. Lary stared down at him smiling. "Okay!" He shouted, "Let's Tango!" Upon this declaration the second jamming device was activated. Now, isolated on the roof, Genocide's guns couldn't be fired and the helicopters were out of range of the device. Now Genocide stood like a sitting duck. A helicopter fired a rocket. Genocide side stepped and grabbed it. He turned his body redirecting the rocket to hit another helicopter. As it exploded Genocide drew his knife and threw it at another helicopter. Behind the knife was such force that it shattered the helicopter window's glass, embedding itself in the pilot. This helicopter too went down where it exploded. "Holy clucknuggets!Did you see that!?" Lary said dumbfounded. Evans looked out the helicopter door he was in jaw open in shock. "There's no way." He collected himself quickly and radioed the remaining two helicopters to keep moving and to use their machineguns as much as possible. The helicopters reigned down upon Genocide tearing apart his body. Shreds of leather and darkened blood sprayed across the pavement of the roof. Gracia watched as Genocide's body was destroyed repeatedly as it tried to heal. Surely he had to stop at some point. After 10 minutes the helicopters had exhausted their cache of ammunition and soldiers opted to fire their own rifles and occasionally throw grenades. After about six minutes, they too had run out of bullets. Genocide stood unfazed. He had long since healed himself and now appeared intangible with gunfire seeming to pass through his body. His coat once ripped , now appeared whole though on closer inspection seemed to writhe. Gracia looked in horror as she remembered the tales her adopted father had told her. Tales he had in turn heard from his predecessors. Every so often officers had reported encounters with ghost like beings cloaked in a cloud of living dark mist. The beings were rumored to be responsible for the deaths of multiple people ranging from scientists, veterans, mafia, politicians, etc. They were seen near such crime scenes and even more shockingly appeared around several sites where suicides were committed. These beings were reportedly impervious to bullets and filled anyone who got near with an impending sense of dread. If Genocide was connected to them or somehow turning into one , there was little chance they would be able to defeat him. Gracia's fears were confirmed when she saw that Genocide's leather coat had been destroyed and he had replaced it with the dark mist coalescing from his own spilled blood. The dark mist, swirling, grew larger and several tendrils sprouted out from it. Gracia could briefly make out a figure standing next to Genocide. A hooded figure cloaked in the same black substance. The figure stared up at her with soulless, blackened eyes which seemed to beckon her to jump from the aircraft she was standing in. Compelling her to give in to the death that plagued the earth. Genocide kneeled to his master. The Shinigami, Masataka stared down at his disciple. "You have done a great service to us. Even now the sealed god stirs in its slumber. Its...Awakening will soon be upon us. It calls out for war. It begs for famine. It longs to continue its conquest. We are the death it so desires. The death that is necessary for this civilization to grow. Use the power that I have bestowed upon you. Finish the mission as you see fit." The Shinigami vanished and Genocide stood.Genocide stared at his hands. He remembered the first killing spree. He was on a bus. It stopped. A woman got on the bus and walked to the back smiling as she passed him. Something about her eyes unnerved him. They were so bright but something dark reflected inside them. He ignored the thought and put in his headphones. In minutes he had dozed off. He jumped awake. He looked around and froze in panic. All around him, everyone had been hacked to pieces. He saw the driver, actively being stabbed by a masked assailant. The mask, painted white with black eyeholes, stared back at him. It raised a finger over where its lips would be. Even under the expressionless visage, he could feel that same smile. He ran home that morning. He went to his room to find it destroyed. His posters, his computer, his tv, everything, had been ruined. He turned around and saw a man at the end of the hallway holding a sledge hammer. "The hell you been, boy?", his stepdad sneered. The man dropped his hammer and walked closer, veins pulsing with rage. He tried to explain how his car had caught fire forcing him to walk 4 miles to the nearest bus stop, but the man's fist was faster than his words. "Boy!Answer me when I talk to you!!" the man says as he backhands the taste out of the would be Genocide's mouth. He took that beating for several minutes before being left to stare at his ransacked room. He hated how his stepdad went out of his way to destroy the things he loved. Soon, another set of footsteps could be heard. It was his mother standing behind his locked door. She didn't knock, or say anything. She just stood there, doing nothing as always. He never knew if she came to talk to him or apologize. All he knew was that she could never bring herself to speak to or even acknowledge him. Maybe out of guilt or perhaps shame. A year or two later after he had had enough he ran away from home. Living out on the streets alone, without friends, or family, he would embark on countless killing sprees. These killings weren't of his own volition however. He was coerced by some corrupt officers from The Unit. They made him kill on their behalf. Sometimes they were protesters, sometimes they were drug dealers, other times, petty criminals they couldn't be bothered to process. It was routine for him to be used to kill entire houses of drug riddled addicts. During one such venture he entered a drug den, killing the dealer as instructed. He took out several junkies before turning to leave. A woman who survived her injuries clung to his heel begging him to stop. Looking down he aimed the handgun he was carrying at her head of long disheveled brown hair and fired. Feeling nothing, he kicked her body aside like trash when it hit him. Her face. This woman had been his mother. What was she doing in a place like this? He felt a shock of emotion. He wondered if she had always been like this, or had she changed after he left. He never made amends, but decided to stop killing from then on. The unit did not like that. Once it became apparent that he was no longer of use to them they started a manhunt to apprehend him with lethal force. They found him. They killed him. But he survived.
He remembered the girl on the bus. He remembered her eyes. Those of a sadistic killer. Still there was something else inside them. Something faint but deeper. So. Much. Sadness. Just like him. He felt the hatred begin to spread. His purpose, he decided, was to make all humans rot in the hell they created for him.
These people, he thought to himself, these living diseases, all needed to die. Their struggles, their problems, they spread like cancer to others. The only cure for humanity's sin, its collective wrongdoings, was genocide.
Around him, dark tendrils continued to form and expand, spinning in a vortex. Genocide pulled out two pistols. He squeezed the triggers to no effect. "As I see fit, huh? Hehe." He squeezed both guns in his hands, breaking them into pieces. He concentrated. In his hands, two more guns materialized now completely black due to being forged from the dark essence. Forged by his will. Immune to the jamming device that shut down conventional firearms. He raised his arms at each remaining helicopter and opened fire. Countless tendrils whipped out and slashed at his targets joining the dark essence bullets. It was chaos. Dark tendrils and bullets tore through every direction as Genocide spun and swirled around in 360 degrees firing randomly with purpose. A tendril pierced Gracia's right arm, another, her abdomen. She was however, fortunate, as the other passengers of her helicopter were dismembered. She barely had time to jump from the vehicle before it crashed. She fell 2 yards onto solid concrete. She felt immense pain as her right shoulder shattered on impact. She looked up to see Genocide's blade like appendages ripping through the other escape helicopters. She rolled onto her back and tried to steady herself. Within seconds her body began to repair itself. The nanocells inside her had saved her life but were now depleted. She would need another supplement lest she receive another fatal injury. The standard nanocells she and the others had were much less potent than those of the killers they faced. In truth, they had only minimal strength boosts being able to lift 5-8 more pounds than before and healing being limited to one or two fatal injuries so long as death didn't occur instantly. Gracia blacked out. She awoke the next morning in a hospital. There the doctors refilled her nanocells. She learned that the station had been left in ruins. Genocide had detonated some type of minature nuke following his rampage. He always blew up the stations as if to send a message. Gracia looked out the window thinking about why she became a cop. Twice her family had been murdered by them. Her biological family had been killed in an on record drug raid committed by a group of corrupt officers called The Unit. She had been adopted by another officer that arrived at the scene who found her as a child hiding in a closed. Sadly, he too was killed for trying to expose the activities of The Unit. Gracia joined the force to avenge both losses and bring justice to the killers that disguised themselves as normal people. Law enforcement was neither good, nor bad. It depended upon the people that made it up. In the dying corrupt world Gracia lived in, she vowed to be a beacon of light. Evans laid in a bed adjacent to Lary. "That damn Genocide's somethin else in' he?Like the stories you told us were understatements. That man could legit not die at this point in the story. Like he has friggin plot armor or somthin.'' Evans cut him off" I get it. We all got our asses handed to us. But did you see that ..thing that appeared next to him. Right before he created that black vortex that wiped us out. That must have something to do with his power. Maybe there's a still a way to stop him."Lary chimed in," That fella looked like he was on the way to a black metal concert wit all the black facepaint he was wearin' Creeped me out to be honest." As the survivors mulled over their predicament, the cycle of evil continued to spread elsewhere.
Budley flips through the pages of a magazine. He checks his watch. He looks around the gas station and doesn't see any customers. Seizing the opportunity, he puts in his headphones and begins playing an imaginary guitar as he jams to a progressive deathcore album. Oblivious to the screams coming from outside, the store clerk moves on to thumping two candy bars on the counter to simulate drums. Budley sees that his shift has ended and begins locking up the store. He sweeps the aisles and jumps as a shadow appears behind him. He turns and sees a well groomed bearded man dressed in a black hoodie, black shirt, and black and gray camo pants. The man holds out his hand and smiles. Budley rings up the pack of nicotine substitute gum. "Tryin to kick the habit huh?" Budley asks. The man replies, "Somethin like that. Gotta get my priorities back in check. Focus on the things that really matter. That damn KonCreep's a hell of a band aren't they?" He nods to the playlist on Budley's phone. "Yeah, they're killer. just got into them a month back." Budley answers. "You know, I'm something of a musician myself. Maybe you'll hear of me on the news someday." Jim Jimenez says as he sees himself out. He walks to the back of the building and passes an ominous form of graffiti. A woman lays unmoving and above her, written on concrete in red is a message that simply says "Genocide Reigns".

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OK as I can see this 5 free bet you have received is from exchange promotion so allow me to transfer you to our exchange team and they will assist you with this. You at 17:55, May 14: no no Read You at 17:55, May 14: dpnt transfer me again Read You at 17:55, May 14: your having a laugh at my expense here Read You at 17:55, May 14: this will be the 3rd transfer Read You at 17:56, May 14: 30mins has pass total… so far.. for something that’s supposed to keep me loyal Read You at 17:56, May 14: this a joke..? Read Debapriya at 17:56, May 14:
No not at all this is related to exchange and they will guide you with this as I am not dealing with exchange related queries sorry. You at 17:56, May 14: this is not an exchange promo Read You at 17:56, May 14: its a sport book promo Read You at 17:57, May 14: It says it on the screenshot Read You at 17:57, May 14: Preview attachment Read You at 17:58, May 14: I will just cancel my Betfair account if this gets transferred and I will be making a very seriously worded complaint to the licensing ombudsman Read Debapriya at 17:59, May 14:
Yes but its related to exchange I cannot check this for you so please allow me to transfer to them and they will sort this issue for you. Info at 17:59, May 14: You are being transfered to another agent Info at 17:59, May 14: This is Alexandra and I will be looking after your query today. I will aim to reply within 2 minutes. You at 18:00, May 14: Let me know when’s you’ve got this sorted out Read You at 18:00, May 14: this an absolute joke of a service Read Alexandra at 18:02, May 14:
Hi there Craig, I hope you are doing well today . My apologies as it seems you have been incorrectly connected, Please do bear with me whilst I pass you through accordingly. Info at 18:02, May 14: You are being transfered to another agent You at 18:02, May 14: Is it home time am I getting transferred again…? Read Info at 18:02, May 14: This is Yasmine and I will be looking after your query today. I will aim to reply within 2 minutes. Yasmine at 18:03, May 14:
Hey Craig, hope you are doing well today!
Thank you for the above, Please give me around 5 minutes to read the above and look at what issue you are having. You at 18:04, May 14: My phone runs on electric…. And it’s been 30 mins with my screen left unlocked for this jokes… any paying my electric bill for this “chat”? Read You at 18:04, May 14: carbon foot print very big…? Read You at 18:06, May 14: Is it home time at wherever you’re messaging me from… am I getting transferred again..? Read You at 18:08, May 14: Time spent can never be refunded… Read You at 18:09, May 14: how do I make a complaint about this please..? Read You at 18:10, May 14: I’m happy to just share this conversation with social platforms… there is plenty of dirt on Betfair… I was hoping it was wrong Read You at 18:11, May 14: 40 minutes… + 40 minutes… + Read Yasmine at 18:12, May 14:
I am sorry for taking long as I was looking into it for you however I can see that you are asking as to why you are not able to use the bonus.
I can see that the offer you have in the screenshot is not on your account as the bonuses came from 2 different offers:
The £3 bonus came from the link below:
https://promos.betfair.com/promotion?promoCode=CASTARALL150424P
And the other £2 bonus came from the link below:
https://promos.betfair.com/promotion?promoCode=CASBFSELMID You at 18:12, May 14: Agent is waiting to clock off for the day Read You at 18:13, May 14: Right this isn’t helpful at all… Read You at 18:13, May 14: and what you’re saying in incorrect Read You at 18:14, May 14: It came from the promotions page on the casino tab of the sportsbook apple iPhone app.. Read You at 18:15, May 14: It was to spend £20 on gods storm wind.. Read You at 18:16, May 14: for a £5 bonus free bets on the sportsbook Read You at 18:17, May 14: i have screenshots of the terms and conditions specific for the offer…. And obviously I have the general promotion terms.. Read You at 18:17, May 14: this I feel with what you are saying must be some sort of false advertising Read Yasmine at 18:17, May 14:
I am sorry however from our side it shows that the bonus came from those offers.
In that case I will need a link please of the offer to look further into it for you. You at 18:18, May 14: really? ok… Thank you for the above, Please give me around 5 minutes to read the above and look at what issue you are having Read You at 18:20, May 14: https://promos.betfair.com/promotion?promoCode=GAMXSB20G50905 Read You at 18:21, May 14: Hello…? I’ve have taken the time to point you to the promotional offer offered by the company you work for… and yet I’m still being made to wait…? Read You at 18:22, May 14: Is this a scam..? Read You at 18:22, May 14: I’m feeling like it’s a scam… Read You at 18:22, May 14: are you really working for Betfair..? Or am I being hacked? Read Yasmine at 18:23, May 14:
Thank you for that. Can you please send me a screenshot of the betslip that you are trying to use the bonus on?
Make sure that you are trying to use it on a bet builder.
And yes I am sure that I work at Betfair, That is why I am trying my best to help you. You at 18:25, May 14: you’re not helping you’re making continue to do a job that I’m not paid for.. i will not be jumping through any more hoops for you. I’m copying and screenshotting this absolute joke that you call “helping” Delivered Conversation closed by you at 18:25, May 14: Survey Bot at 18:25, May 14: Your conversation is now closed. Survey Bot at 18:25, May 14: We would love to get your feedback with one quick question 😊 Survey Bot at 18:25, May 14: Based on your experience today, how likely would you be to recommend Betfair to a friend? (Where 10 is most likely and 0 is not at all likely.) You at 18:26, May 14: 0 😒 Read Survey Bot at 18:26, May 14: We’re sorry to hear that, please let us know how we can improve? You at 18:26, May 14: You could get some helpful people…? Read Survey Bot at 18:26, May 14: Thank you for your time. You at 18:26, May 14: Complaints department please? Sent Betfair at 18:27, May 14:
You will now be transferred to a customer service agent who can help. Betfair at 18:27, May 14:
Please be aware it may take a moment or two for our agents to get

That’s 60ish miles a day for 4 days counting sight seeing. Best part of the trip was the unknown! Worst part was when my rear wheel rack broke with a way to heavy bag to carry. Although I think it was meant to be cuz it happened just as I was entering Dana point, before that was a loooong stretch of nothing. There were four bike shops in like a mile of this little town. First two had nothing that would fit, it’s a bigger than normal bike. Im now standing in this strange town, trying to navigate this super heavy bag leaning on my seat as I hug it with one hand and steering the bike with the other barely able to walk cuz the bag keeps trying to fall off.. I decided to call the third shop to ask about their racks. Knowing I might have to scrap the trip and rent a SUV or pickup truck and drive my bike home. Third shop said they only had e-bike racks. Iv been wanting one of those but could never find one that fits. Well the guy explained their rack probably wouldn’t fit cuz they custom orders their bike frames at a different size than most. And of course they need to them have a rack custom made to fit. And the guy insisted it would not fit. Well I had a feeling, or maybe I heard something in his voice..I decided I was going to pass by and take a look. Well it just so happened that the size they order is a perfect fit for my bike! But, he looks and didn’t have any more in the back. It took some convincing and an extra 20 buck fee but I got him to remove a rack from one of his for sale bikes and I was finally on my way!! I was so happy, I got a much stronger rack and avoided something like a thousand bucks to rent a car with a one way drop off. Now well on my way and riding with much more confidence, the old rack would flex and rub my tire when I hit bumps..I was on a beach trail passing through San Clemente, quite a ways from the road, the path was blocked and close from a land slide. So I decided to walk this little dirt path near the Amtrak which quickly turned into solid rocks and water ruts and started getting smaller and close to the tracks. As I’m pushing through, dodging the occasional train and fighting the weight of my rig as it’s bumping and jumping all over the place from the uneven rocky slope bordering the tracks, I can’t help but realize how fortunate I was they all this happened the way it did and my rack broke exactly when it did. Otherwise I t most certainly would have broken on the rocks. And I would have been in a much worse situation! In conclusion after riding the I-5 fwy for about 7 miles cuz the military base wouldn’t let me pass their sacred lands…I made it to Oceanside!!! Final thoughts, I was surprised at how many people were screaming at me and talking smack and saying things like no bikes here! And get off the road! and even getting way to close to me. I’m not the guy that rides in the lane, if there’s no bike lane I’m either on the sidewalk or clearly in the parking lane trying not to “get doored”. I never imagined the costal roads were so bicycle intolerant. Iv always thought the coast areas were all about touring and bike riding. I had bought a mirror for the first time ever and I’m happy I did. It seemed that when people would see me looking at them in my mirror they would be more cordial and give me space. I guess bullies don’t like to be seen and only act from the shadows. That being said it was an amazing trip! I’m so proud of my body for not giving up and so fortunate to have just right amount of luck at just the right time! Next I’ll be riding to my favorite place in the world and where I hope to retire and die, Solvang Ca.
I don’t use social media and am to awkward to really have friends..I thought someone other than my mom should know my tale.
Ride on!!!!

The customer service and financial service are quite bad. I’ve had a couple of ongoing minor issues with the car and they keep telling me “someone will be calling you shortly” and they never do.
Same with financial services. Just spent an hour trying to input my account info on their website while talking to someone on the phone. Page was dead and then tried to go back in and session was timed out. Wouldn’t let me back. Service person tried to help and finally said we should do this by hard copy.
Just venting. Shouldn’t be this hard with small things.

I'm 29 year old male living at home with my parents. I'm obese, have no friends and I feel like a loser. I quit my job in September of last year because it was a work from home call center tech support job that I hated. I've graduated with a degree in information technology in 2022, 60k in debt. I've still not had any luck finding a job and I feel like I will never be able to get a decent job seeing as all the IT jobs are being taking by AI and nobody wants to hire someone with no experience.
forgot to mention, I always feel anxious thinking about having to get another job and be in-person. I suck at people skills and I'm an introvert at heart. I feel useless most of the time because I don't do anything and I have no money to do anything. I've been putting in less and less applications because I feel there's no point. Working for $15/hr which most jobs are posted for around here sounds like there's no way to get out of my debt and save up to afford a home, car, anything really. I'd just be a debt slave at a miserable job that will eventually be phased out by automation.
The economy looks bleak. People are more crazy now then ever. The world feels like it's on fire everywhere you look. I just feel like there's no hope and I question why I'm even writing this as nobody cares anyways.
I am also obese, 300 pounds and barely any of my clothes fit. I haven't gotten a hair cut in almost a year because I don't want to go to my barber who will ask me about my life, and how I have nothing to say and nothing to show and just embarrassed how I look. I lost a lot of weight in 2019 went from 330 to 170 but then gained it all back after Covid.
So basically, I'm just a loser who has no future. I'm on Medicaid for insurance, totally embarrassed to be on this and makes me feel even more like a failure.
Just want to write this somewhere. I can't think of anything positive to say except for I have internet and a roof over my head and food to keep me comfort. My parents try to say everything will be okay but they grew up in a time that they could afford to live decently with a basic customer service job. That same job would make me homeless right now. Thanks for listening.

My car's transmission is on the fritz, so it's in the shop and I'm working from home for at least today. Thank goodness I can even work from home, or things would be a lot more complicated. Anyways, that's just a bit of a vent. I've also decided that I might do little lore-esque prechapter bits for some extra flavor. Hope you guys enjoy them! I find them to be fun little thought experiments on how people might perceive the world I've created from within vs from my own perspective. Enjoy some crafting and some romance!
First Previous Next
We know that the spots that are caused by looking at a source of light are, in fact, damage of some sort to the eye. This is confirmed by the spots rapidly disappearing should someone be healed whilst experiencing them. But why? Is there a divinity within light, beyond what our mortal eyes can withstand? Is there some sort of invisible emanation that comes alongside the light that damages us in some way? The discovery of light damaging the eye has opened more questions for me than it has closed.
-Musings on the Relations of Light and Fire, by Jarwic Leftun
\***
Xander carefully opened the door, finding Gabrelle already asleep, and sat down on a chair. Maybe he could get that adaptive camouflage to work right on bright colors. Surely he had some colorful things in his inventory.
He did in fact have a few colorful things in his inventory, and he whiled the rest of the night away making small adjustments to the runic array that was embroidered into the cloth. He was satisfied before dawn, the cloth now performing as well with light colors as it had with darker colors. Now he just needed to make a cloak out of it. He briefly considered coating his armor with the array, but discarded it. There might be times where he’d want to be seen. Besides, a hooded cloak would better break up the outline of his figure, the ripples of fabric, especially if he were to crouch or lay prone, obscuring his outline even more. In little time at all, he had a long, deep hooded cloak of the color shifting, runed cloth in his hands. He stashed it in his inventory for now, as he had no particular need to sneak up on something right now. The rest of the time before dawn he spent silently sitting in the chair he’d chosen, trying to keep his thoughts to a minimum, just daydreaming. Night dreaming? He couldn’t sleep anymore, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t try to let his mind wander.
As the dawn came and the sun began to shine through the window of the room, Gabrelle slowly awoke, once more finding Xander sitting in a chair rather than in bed.
“Mmf,” She grunted as she stretched. “Morning, Xander. You got back late.”
“Morning, yourself,” Xander said, turning his head to look at Gabrelle. “Yeah... Yeah, I guess I did.”
“What were you doing, anyway?” She asked, curious. “You didn’t mention that you’d be out late, just that you were going to go to see Valteria at her shop.”
“I uh... went on a date.”
“I knew it! ‘Comparing notes’ was a date!” Gabrelle exclaimed triumphantly.
“It was not!” Xander complained. “But we went to a tavern in the evening and it sort of... turned into a date on the way there.”
“Awhh, that’s so cute,” Gabrelle said. “Did it go well? Is she nice? Did you kiss?”
“I think it went well. We talked a lot about different projects and ideas we had. I also got to meet another [Godsmarked] - he owns the tavern we went to. I think she’s nice. Maybe a little shy. I think she’s gotten used to being treated differently by people. I don’t think she really believed that I wanted to go on a date with her, at first. ...And yes. We kissed.”
“Ooooh, look at you! You’re growing up so fast!” Gabrelle teased.
“Oh hush. I’m older than you!” Xander huffed, then returned to seriousness. “But ah, if I’m going to be dating someone... we need to have a conversation, Gabrelle.”
“We need to stop sleeping together?” Gabrelle quickly deduced before Xander could say it himself.
“Yeah... It doesn’t feel right, even though it’s just platonic between us. I don’t think I would appreciate being in Valteria’s situation and knowing that the person I was seeing was sleeping with someone else at night.”
“Well, I figured this would happen eventually,” Gabrelle said. “Either you or I were bound to find someone eventually. Don’t worry, I’m not upset. Don’t get me wrong, the snuggles were nice, but like I told you a while ago, I don’t have nearly as much trouble sleeping when I’m with the team.”
“Thanks for not being upset, Gabrelle.”
“You know this means you have to start paying for your own room, though, right?”
“Ah, shit, you’re right. I forgot.”
Xander left the room to allow Gabrelle some privacy to get dressed and meandered back down the stairs to see if any other members of the team were already up. Looking around, he spied Graffus eating breakfast at at table and moved to sit with the dwarf.
“Mornin’” Graffus greeted Xander through a mouthful of bread.
“Morning,” Xander greeted back.
“Glad to see you made it back, we were wondering if you’d be out all night,” Graffus told him, after swallowing his bread.
“I was out a bit late, I suppose. I let the time get away from me.” Xander said, not really wanted to be teased again about going out on a date. “So what are you planning to do today?”
“Bah, Frazay has roped me into helping her do research for the drakeling. So reading is what’s in store for me.” Graffus tore himself off another piece of bread from his plate and slathered it with jam. “You going to be going back to that [Tinker] you’ve been spending time with lately?”
“Yeah, that’s the plan. I’m supposed to learn more about converting mana types today, and also help her fix the suit of armor that I wrecked.”
“Welp,” Graffus said, now on his last piece of bread, “I hope ya learn something new. Never had much to do with [Tinker]s – not saying I dislike them, just that I haven’t had much experience with them – so it don’t make much sense to me. Using a hammer is about the only overlap in our professions.”
“I think your hammer is significantly larger than the one most [Tinker]s would use,” Xander chuckled. Thinking about what he should be doing before he headed to Valteria’s, he asked Graffus, “Hey, I might need to buy some monster parts or elemental cores, something like that, for practice. You know where I would go to find stuff like that?”
Graffus shrugged. “Dunno. My guess would be an alchemy and reagents shop. That’s generally what we’ve sold monster parts to that didn’t go to a smith or leatherworker.”
“Thanks, Graffus.”
The two of them chatted for a while longer, catching up on what each other had been doing. Graffus excused himself to finish getting ready for the day, saying he needed to tend to his beard, leaving Xander downstairs. Deciding to be productive and proactive, Xander stood as well and headed out of the inn to find an alchemy shop.
It wasn’t long before he found one, a familiar scene of an eclectic collection of powders, liquids, crystals, and strange organic things floating in jars inside the building. The proprietor was a dwarf, seated at a workbench. They were grinding something into a powder as Xander entered. He received a distracted greeting before the dwarf returned to his work.
Xander wandered about the shop for a few minutes, looking at the various materials throughout the shop. He identified what he thought might be an elemental core, a jagged piece of crystal looking material that seemed to have an inner flame. As for the monster parts in jars, Xander had no idea what was what. He finally felt he’d waited long enough and moved closer to the worktable that the dwarf was still sitting at, working away at the mortar and pestle.
“Excuse me,” Xander said, grabbing the shopkeep’s attention.
“Mm?” The dwarf said questioningly. “Can I help you find something?”
“I was wondering if you had any elemental cores. Something small, I just need one to practice with.”
“Aye, I’ve a few of them around the shop. You want something to practice with? So a relatively weak core, then – not all the small ones are weak. Do you need any particular type?” The dwarf stood up and stretched, moving to one of the shelves.
“Uhm no, just whatever is cost effective, I suppose.”
The alchemist rifled through the various bits and bobs on one of the shelves nearby before producing a small chip of what looked to be a semi-translucent stone. It was tinged slightly yellow with streaks of white. “This here is a chip off a lightning attuned core. Pretty weak, but it does still produce mana.”
Xander could see the dwarf’s arm hair standing up as if from static electicity as he held up the stone. “How much?” He asked.
“Twenty gold.”
Xander shrugged. Twenty gold wasn’t an issue for him anymore, and he didn’t feel like haggling. He always hated haggling. “Sure.” He fished out the coin and handed it over to the dwarf.
The dwarf handed over the stone to Xander and the pop of a static electric shock could be heard as a tiny arc passed between the two of them. The dwarf grunted and shook his hand. “Thanks for the business,” he told Xander. “Anything else you find yourself in need of?”
“Not at the moment, but thanks for asking.” Xander waved goodbye to the dwarf and pocketed the tiny elemental core. He continued down the street in the direction of Valteria’s shop, thinking about how he was going to undo the welding job he’d done on Valteria’s armor. He’d need her to guide his repair efforts.
Xander returned to the inn momentarily to grab one of his golems. He settled on Atlas for now, as it was the most basic of the humanoid forms he’d created. No extra arms or weird feet on him, no sir.
Arriving at the building that contained Valteria’s home and shop, Xander knocked before opening the door. “Morning,” he called out.
“Xander! Hello!” Valteria called out. She was at the same work bench she’d been at yesterday. Jarrett didn’t seem to be in the shop at the moment, as Xander wasn’t able to spot the man.
Commanding Atlas to follow him in and closing the door behind him, Xander started walking towards Valteria. “How’s it going?” He asked.
“Good, it’s going good,” Valteria responded as Xander brought a stool over to her workbench. “How about yourself?”
“Not bad. The upside of not sleeping is that I never struggle in the mornings now. I used to hate waking up.” Xander laughed. “I even ran an errand before I came here! Picked up this.” Xander fished around in his pocket until he found the small chip of elemental core and held it up for Valteria to see.
“Core?” She asked distractedly, staring at Atlas. She tore her eyes away and looked closely at the small crystalline stone. “Lightning attuned?”
“That’s what the [Alchemist] at the shop said,” Xander affirmed. “Said it was a very weak one, but that it did still produce mana.”
“Mmm, a good practice piece, then.”
“I thought it would be, too. Not that I know what to do with it, yet.”
“Well, how about this: I teach you to set the stone and make some conduit, and then you can help me fix my armor. All the glue has turned to dust by now, thank the gods.”
“Sounds fair enough. So, how do mana conduits work?”
“Well, the concept is simple enough. It’s a tube which conducts mana,” Valteria began to explain.
“Mmhm.” Xander nodded along.
“What you need is a setting – usually of silver, as it has good mana conductivity – which will be the first step of conduction, taking the mana from the stone. Simply wrapping the core in silver wire can work well enough, drawing in the mana that the core puts out through its surface, but for a more effecient setting, small holes are usually drilled into the core to set the wire into as well, giving more surface area to draw from.”
“So we care about the mana conductivity of the material, then? That makes sense, I just hadn’t thought about it. I actually did a little experiment with my rune work to test which fillings were the most conductive.”
“Oh really?” Valteria said, interested. “What were your results?”
“Well, gold and silver were high up there in conductivity, and probably make the most sense for someone who has to physically manipulate material without use of a skill – both for a core setting and for inlaying a rune – but I did find that sapphires and rubies were even more efficient at transferring mana than gold and silver.”
“Mmm... interesting. I’ve heard of gemstones being used in very high-grade settings, as well as various other exotic materials. I read an account of one [Mechanist] who used tubes of mercury to conduct mana, though the relative effectiveness compared to silver wasn’t mentioned.” Valteria cleared her throat. “Uhm, now, where was I? Right, basic settings. Once you have your core – or monster organ, if you’re going that route – you connect it to the conduit. Usually, this is also silver wiring. I like to braid several smaller wires together, personally. I find it to be sturdier and hold up to flexing better. From there, it needs to be tied into a device. Which is a topic for tomorrow.” Looking around the shop, Valteria seemed to identify something on one of the shelves nearby. “I have a core that you could watch me set, and then you could try setting your own, if you’d like.”
“That sounds good to me,” Xander said. “I always love to see a master as work,” he added, opting for a little flattery.
“Follow me, then.” Valteria said, standing up from her stool and waving for Xander to follow.
Xander followed Valteria as she walked over to the shelf she’d been looking at earlier and took a palm sized, bright green stone from it. “Nature attuned core,” She explained, holding it for Xander to see. “I’m told it was taken from some kind of moving tree.” Valteria then moved to another worktable, on which were several of what looked to be drill bits to Xander. There was also an apparatus that look like it was designed to hold the bits, which was confirmed for him when Valteria slotted one of the small drill heads into the device. “This thing,” Valteria said, waving the drill a little bit, “is a life saver. I used to have to drill holes with a hand cranked one. Worth every single coin I paid for it to get an enchanted one.” She turned a dial on one side of the handheld device, which Xander was coming to think of as a magic dremel tool, and it began to come to life, the drill bit beginning to spin with a quiet whirring sound.
“Neat.” Xander commented. He watched patiently as Valteria drilled a series of shallow holes in the stone, the distinct screeching of metal on stone echoing through the shop floor. “So where’s Jarrett today?” He asked.
“Oh, he has the day off today. He asked for it about a week ago, not sure what for, though,” Valteria said distractedly. Soon she was finished with the holes she was drilling into the core, and moved to another workbench. “Now we create a setting for the core. This is a fairly simple way of doing it, mind you, but it is effective.”
Xander watched as she took sections of pre-braided silver wire and fitted the ends into the holes she had drilled. Once each hole was filled with a section of wire, Valteria began to pull wire from a spool, wrapping the stone until it was completely covered with silver wire and binding the braided sections to the stone in the process. “There,” she said, setting the stone down on the workbench. “A perfectly serviceable setting."
“So, if I understand correctly, you coat the core in a mana conductive material – the more surface area, the better, hence the holes – to create a setting?”
“Mmhmm,” Valteria said, nodding.
“Seems fairly straighforward. And then you connect the silver wiring that’s wrapped around it to more wiring, and attach that to your device? Why the distance? Why not just connect the setting directly to the device?”
“You absolutely can, if space isn’t an issue. Technically, the connection between the mana battery and the device, even if it’s just a single point with no distance, is still referred to as a conduit, though, so it’s considered a three part creation.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Do you want to try making your own, now? I don’t mind lending you a little wire.”
“Sure, but I should be good on material, I can produce it with my skills. Doesn’t last without a source of mana, but I guess the core itself might provide enough. Think this little chip is a bit small to put holes in, though.”
Xander looked at the small piece of crystal in his hand. If he just need as much contact as possible with a mana conductive material, his best bet would be to embed it into a sapphire or ruby. He decided on ruby, for no particular reason. Still holding the chip of core in his hand, he concentrated on his [Creation] ability. Valteria watched, amazed, as a ruby began to take form and grow around the piece of core until it was completely coated in a thin layer of gemstone.
“So, you can just... make things?” Valteria asked, sounding jealous.
“Well, it costs mana, and anything I make that isn’t provided a source of mana that leaves my person disintegrates in a day, but, yes. I can just make things with my skills. But,” he added, cutting off Valteria’s complaint of unfairness, “I have never received a skill that actually lets me improve a material. Sure, I have runes, which generally makes up the difference, but I don’t have any skills that improve the things I make. So, if you made a mana battery, and I made a mana battery the same way with identical materials, yours is going to be better, I assume, because you have skills that passively improve the things that you make, am I right?”
“Okayyy,” Valteria huffed. “I guess that does make it a little less unfair. But ugh! It would be so nice not having to source materials.” She looked at the ruby with a piece of core set inside it that Xander had made. “Well, I guess that about does it for making a setting... I thought it might have taken you longer to make one. I guess we can move on to fixing my armor even sooner! It’ll be nice to have it up and moving again.”
“Sure, sure, we can do that. Where is it, anyway?” Xander asked, looking around the shop again like he somehow would have missed the eight foot tall suit of armor.
“It’s in a shed behind the house,” Valteria explained. “I have it on a hoist so I can work on it.”
“Ah, that would explain why I haven’t seen it around.”
Exiting the shop, stopping for Valteria to put a small ‘closed’ sign on the door, the two of them made their way around the building, where Xander saw the small shed that presumably held Valteria’s armor. It looked like it could just barely hold the armor and one person – two, if they were comfortable with each other – inside it.
“So this is where the magic happens?” Xander asked.
“If by ‘magic’ you mean maintenance and upgrades, then yes,” Valteria agreed. She opened the door of the shed, which comprised most of the front of the tiny little building, revealing her suit of armor, which was currently hanging from several chains attached to pulleys on the ceiling. Plates of armor were laying strewn about the suite, leaving the joints and inner workings more exposed.
Xander whistled, looking at the inner workings of the suit. He could see gears, cogs, and joints, and throughout the entirety of the armor were running filaments of silver wire, which he assumed were mana conduits running to and from elemental cores and the various mana powered aspects of the suit. “This thing really is impressive. Almost as impressive as the woman who made it,” he said.
Valteria giggled, “Stop it! You’re supposed to be fixing this mess, not flirting with me!”
“Awh, can’t I do both?” Xander asked, trying to sound as saccharine as possible.
“Mmm, I suppose that if you are sufficiently skilled at multitasking, I might allow it,” Valteria said in a mockingly thoughtful tone.
“Well, I just so happen to be an expert, so flirt away I shall,” Xander replied. “Now, how about the beauty in front of me shows me exactly where the other beauty in front of me needs some repairs?”
Valteria sighed at Xander’s antics, but he could see the slight flush in her face. “Well, you welded the wrist joints, elbows, and knees. They aren’t welded all the way round, it’s more like you smoothed over a portion of it like it was wet clay. So if you could just... put it back? Shape it back to how it was, that’s should be all that’s needed.”
“Pretty straightforward,” Xander said, standing behind Valteria as she pointed out each joint. He could see the misshapen parts where he’d slapped a weld onto the metal. He leaned over her and put his hands on the elbow joint that they were closest to and began to shape the metal back to its original form.
“You’re... very close,” Valteria murmured to him as he formed the metal.
“Would you like me not to be?” He asked, carefully.
Valteria was silent for a moment before answering, “No...” quietly.
Xander carefully shifted to be a little closer, but still not quite touching, as he moved on to the wrist joint of the same arm. The process itself was simple, but he was enjoying taking his time. As he finished the wrist, he turned to look at Valteria. He found himself looking right into her eyes, as she was staring back at him. Unable to resist the temptation he leaned in a little closer, gauging Valteria’s reaction. When she, too, leaned towards him, he closed the small gap between them, drawing her into another kiss. Valteria pressed herself against him, the shed hiding them from any prying eyes on the street, and let out a small noise as Xander squeezed her tight. She was breathing a little bit harder than before the kiss as they separated again.
Valteria let out a breath. “You’re… a really good kisser.”
“Yeah?” Xander said, pleased with himself. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
“And you’re a tease, looming over me like that in this tiny little shed,” Valteria continued. “Now you’ve got me all flustered, how am I supposed to work now?” She mock complained.
Xander was glad to see that Valteria was comfortable enough with him to joke like that. “Forgive me,” he said formally, making a deep bow, “How ever can I make it up to the lady?”
“Oh stop it, I will tolerate no bowing and scraping, even in jest,” Valteria said, slapping him lightly on the shoulder, as he was still holding the bow. “You can make it up to me by fixing the rest of these joints! And by taking me out to dinner?” She added, hopefully.
“I think that can be arranged,” Xander said. “Is there anywhere you have in mind? I will admit, I haven’t become very familiar with the local restaurant scene, what with my… dietary restrictions.”
“It doesn’t… make you feel bad to go out to a restaurant, does it?” Valteria asked softly, watching his face for a reaction.
“Nah, don’t worry,” Xander said, waving off the question with one hand. “It doesn’t bother me too much. Sure, I miss the taste of a good cut of steak, but I was never that into food. Eating was more of a thing I did because I had to, so I’m not completely devastated by the loss. And I can still get some vicarious enjoyment out of watching someone else enjoy their food. Really the worst part is awkwardly having to refuse ordering anything,” he said with a laugh.
“Alright, if you say so,” Valteria said, letting out a slight breath of relief. “I was just worried that it might be upsetting to you, is all. I know I would miss eating.” She paused for a moment, something clearly on her mind. “What do you miss? If you don’t mind my asking. I just… well, I’m curious what it’s like for you.”
“Mmm, in a lot of ways, life is still the same, and in other ways, I’m technically doing better than I was before. I’m incredibly resistant to damage now, even without my armor. I do miss sleeping, though. I try to give my mind a rest and just sort of daydream and let my thoughts wander or do some meditation during the nights, but it’s just not the same. Also means I’m the one that pulls guard duty through the night,” he grumbled. “Let’s see, what else, what else. Ah, right. I can’t smell anything. Or taste. I haven’t worked out how to recreate those senses, yet. Though no sense of smell can be handy sometimes, I suppose. I don’t know if you’ve done much merc work – you mentioned being surprised that I’m not just moonlighting – but uh… the smells that you encounter on a battlefield are… unpleasant. To say the least. It was weird not having a sense of touch either, but I’ve resolved that. It’s a little bit different than my previous, natural sense of touch, but I’ve become accustomed to it to the point that I don’t much think about the difference anymore. I think I’ve even got the density of receptors down in certain areas compared to others, so I'm more sensitive in some areas than others now, just like I used to be. I’m still immune to being tickled though, so don’t even think about it – that’s a fight you’ll lose.” Growing a bit more somber, Xander continued on. “I think… the biggest thing I miss is just the feeling that I fit in more. Now I always worry about being different, there’s that nagging fear that anyone I get to know well is going to reject me once they find out what I am. Like I’m secretly lying to everyone around me with this façade I have going on.”
Valteria nodded sadly. “I get that. I’ve been… rejected before, too. At least it happens or not right from the beginning for me. I get to know if they look down on me for being different immediately instead of fearing they might later down the road.”
“Yeah,” Xander said. “People can really suck sometimes. But at least I can just, like, not tell people what I am if I so chose. You, my teammates, and the guild, since it’s on my status sheet, are really the only people who know. I keep it pretty private. You can’t do that, so I think you probably have to deal with a lot worse than I do. Not that I’d want you to hide what or who you are,” he added. “I happen to be quite enamored with who you are,” he said, teasing a smile from Valteria’s sad face.
“Sorry to bring up such a dour topic,” Valteria apologized. “I didn’t think much on it before I asked.”
“No worries,” Xander told her. “Honestly, I think it’s good to be able to talk about it with someone. It’s healthy to be able to get you feelings out there. And it helps that I feel like you understand where I’m coming from with it, though from a slightly different perspective.”
“You’re surprisingly thoughtful sometimes,” Valteria said, only half teasing.
“Only sometimes?” Xander asked with a faux expression of hurt on his face. “By the way, you didn’t react much to my comment about moonlighting as a merc. Do you ever go on contracts?”
Valteria shrugged. “I certainly wouldn’t describe myself as a professional mercenary. Moonlighter is an apt descriptor, for me, I think. I have gone on a couple, here and there, mostly on kill contracts that would net me a core or organ that would be useful for my work.”
“Mm, that makes sense. I suppose it could be handy having access to the ability to take contracts that would give you access to specialty materials,” Xander said.
“It’s also good for business,” Valteria explained. “Mercs tend to like to buy from someone who has at least been out on a contract or two before.”
“Ah, that makes sense. What kind of things do you sell to mercenaries, anyways? I saw Jarrett with a crossbow yesterday, but I imagine you make other things, too.”
“Oh all kinds of little things. Portable, flameless heaters for cooking. Water purification sieves. Mm, let’s see… I’ve made a few custom order devices, too. One customer wanted to be able to shoot a jet of flame from their gauntlet, that was a fun one.”
“Ooh, that does sound fun… reminds me of my flamethrower.”
“Your flamethrower?”
“Yeah, it’s basically a big tank with a hose attached to it. At the end of the hose is a pump that causes the flammable liquid – I use dragon’s tar – to shoot out. Add a flame that the tar passes over and bam! You’ve got a giant stream of flame that will coat anything it hits with sticky, flammable tar,” Xander said, excitedly describing the device.
“That’s… impressive. And kind of horrifying,” Valteria responded.
“Mm… I guess you’re right. I mostly use it on giant spiders. Blugh,” Xander shuddered. “But yeah, I suppose it’s not the nicest of ways to go. Very effective for area denial, though. Ah, actually I have an idea for crossbow bolt head that would ignite when it shatters! We should make that sometime and see if it sells.”
“Hmm, I think that would draw some buyers. A flaming bolt head you didn’t have to light first could be desirable to certain buyers.”
“Put that on the list and we’ll get around to it sometime.”
“We have a list?” Valteria said confusedly.
“We should!” Xander said with a laugh. “Now let’s get the rest of these joints done.”
The repair of the other arm and the leg joints that Xander had locked into position during the tournament was a short affair. Looking over the bare metal frame of the armor still hanging from the ceiling, Xander clapped his hands together, mimicking dusting them off. “Good as new!” He exclaimed. Looking over to Valteria he asked concernedly, “It is good as new, right?”
Valteria had been staring at the armor as well, lost in thought about how she was going to improve it next. “Hmm? Oh, yes. It’s right as rain again, ready for use. Thank you, by the way. For fixing it,” She said awkwardly.
“Well I’m the one who broke it, so it’s only fair that I fix it. So what do you want to work on next?” Xander asked. “I could do some rune work for you. Orrr… we could kiss some more?”
Valteria flushed at the question, but didn’t immediately say no.
A few minutes later, she found herself on her tip toes and lightly pressed against the interior wall of the shed, her lips pressed against Xanders.
Once the two of them were done acting like teenagers parked in a secluded parking lot, they made their way back into the shop. Stepping inside and closing the door behind them, Valteria let out a breath. “I think… you are going to have to do a lot of rune work to make up for how much you just kissed me, Xander.”
“What, you didn’t like it?” He said with a raised eyebrow.
“I didn’t say that,” Valteria said with a smirk.