When was the plastic credit card invented

So I recently was approved for the Freedom Unlimited. Gave me only 2K credit limit. Its my 1st card with chase. But I have other cards with different issuers. Total 52K limit.
I guess I'm wondering why Chase would only give me a 2K limit? Also when should I ask for a increase? 1 month? 6 months?

Was going through self checkout today when a Walmart employee grabbed my hand aggressively as I was putting in my credit card and then she started telling me this lane is for Walmart plus members only. She then proceeded to trying to grab my credit card out of the chip reader. What should I do

My mom added my name onto a JcPenny credit card without my consent and it lowered my credit score 3 points.
I was confused on why my credit score went down and I checked and it said it was because I opened a new account. I was super confused since i knew I didn’t open one and then I remembered my mom telling me she added my name to a JcPenny credit just so “ i can pay for the ring at jcpenny with the credit card. She didn’t even ask me if she could do it and got mad at me when i asked why didn’t she ask me before opening the account that has my name associated to it.
I didn’t think anything about it at first since she opened the account in her name and added me as a secondary I guess (im not entirely sure how that works). But she said she didn’t give my social security and just my name and email so im not even sure how it counted as me open a new account in my name.
I was wondering if theres any way for me to get my name off that credit card and raise my credit score back up. My credit history is a little over 2 years and now it decreased with this new card. Is there any way to raise my credit score back up?
Edit: this was a decrease to my trans union and Equifax credit score. My Experian score actually went up for some reason.

I was trying to find a new apartment and signed up for TransUnion to get a credit check. From what I've researched, it appears to be a scam in which the scammer gets a bonus when they get people to sign up. The "renter" then sent me a link to CheckFreeScore which looked more suspicious and caused me to figure this out. I entered credit card info to pay for TransUnion subscription, last four digits of SSN, and my address/name/etc. I already cancelled the subscription. What else do I need to do to protect myself and limit the damage here? Is there a way the scammer could have gotten my info from TransUnion at this point?
The links also looked weird in hindsight. When I hover over them on the email, they are "rentncheck.com/0015" and "info2rent.com/0016" respectively.

I don’t know what I’m doing lol. So I bought my house in 2019, paid 390k, put only 15k down (3%). My mortgage rate is 4% and I pay about $3100, about $300 of that is mortgage insurance. In 2020 during Covid we needed to go into a forebearance program. That lasted about 10 months and then we resumed our payments and haven’t been late on any.
The housing market in my area has changed alot since I bought. My house is/was one of the cheaper houses in my area when I bought but prices in my area have gone up a lot, I think if I sold right now I could probably get $550k easily.
So I have some what would you do questions. I don’t have the best credit but I’m working on it, probably around a 675 right now , I know but I’ve come a long way. Wife is pretty much in the same boat. The mortgage is me and my mother in law who has great credit, we ended her to get approved for the mortgage. I’ve read about HELOC’s , would be great transfer some credit card debt and make some repairs around the house. I’ve read that sometimes you need 20% equity in order to qualify which we obviously don’t. But could I get the house reappraised and benefit from the current estimated value?
Any other general thoughts ? Would a higher appraised value possibly produce the mortgage insurance payment?
I know forebearance probably hurt us but we didn’t have a choice, Covid threw a wrench into everything. Just not confident I know what I’m doing and always hate to think I’m missing something Thanks for reading

Long sorry short: customer paid via PayPal, accidentally reported the charge, now PayPal sent amount to collections for me to pay
Im a general contractor and typically get paid via check or cash. Some clients want to pay via card so I setup a Business PayPal account. Had it for a few months and a few clients paid that way. Not the greatest because of the fees, but it worked.
On January 25th I did a job for a client. Wanted to pay via card so I sent them an email via PayPal where they could pay the bill, which came to $3500. They paid. Once it hit my account, I transferred the funds to my bank account.
On February 20th, that customer was going through their credit card statement and could not recall who the vendor was (me) or why they were charged. They called their credit card company, Capital One, and reported it as fraudulent. A day or two later the customer then remembered the charge and called me, apologizing profusely, and said they’d do what they could to help fix it. Capital One had already submitted a claim to PayPal for those funds.
PayPal initiated a claim/dispute on my account and do gave them all of my information, as well as the customer to verify that it was a total accident on the customers side. PayPal rep said it sounded like to would get fixed quickly and things like this happen from time to time. A week later a negative balance for the $3500 was put on my account. PayPal issued the funds back to Capital One, and in turned charged me.
I spent several different calls over a March and April to try and resolve this. I had gotten an email saying they are trying to collect a balance and it may go to collections. But when I call in, they say the case is still being reviewed and they shouldn’t send anything to collections and to just wait. I contacted the customer and they said they had contacted their credit card company and were told the matter was resolved.
Well, guess what I got in the mail….yep! A collections notice!!!! For something I didn’t do wrong. After 2 hours on the phone with several different people and departments, they said the issue is still in review and they’re waiting to hear from Capital One, which could take til July!
Has anyone else felt with something like this?! It’s mind boggling how this could happen, especially when my customer admitted to the mistake, and I didn’t actually do anything wrong.

Hello all. To lay the groundwork: My husband’s credit card received 2 fraudulent charges for flights in South America on his credit card in July 2023. We immediately reported this to our credit union (within 24 hours). We then spent 67 days fighting the credit union and VISA. They each kept saying it was the others’ problem. We finally received a resolution and a full refund in the last week of September 2023.
We had to make reports/complaints via VISA, the credit union, the local police, the Office of the Comptroller, the State Attorney General’s Office, BBB, and the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau before we finally received a refund.
Now imagine my surprise when this past Friday (April 2024) that we now see the fraudulent charges back on our credit card statement. We immediately left work and went to the local credit union branch. They were unable to tell us why this could have possibly happened and were unable to provide a resolution. They are now saying that it is a problem with their card processing vendor.
What do we even do at this point? I have never had this happen with any other credit card I’ve used. We’re afraid that we may have to file all of the same reports again. Any advice?

Cordy/Cordy2 was a mobile game from the early 2010s that featured a small TV robot guy exploring and traveling through different levels. however upon looking for this game there's hardly any content uploaded online. I've tried looking for the sound track for years and haven't found anything. no musical artists are credited on the Wikipedia) page either.
I recently found my old 10+ year old ipod touch and to my suprise cordy was downloaded to it. the few videos of cordy that exist online usually have commentary over them or aren't that clear audio wise so it's hard to hear any music. I can't download a screen recorder to my ipod either since my apple account I used for it was signed up with @hotmail.com (Hotmail went out of service years ago) so I can't confirm it's me who logged back into my ipod after so many years and plus modern apps can't be downloaded since the version of my ipod is too outdated.
i can't use a capture card either because my ipod is broken and won't stay on unless plugged into a charger and I don't think any capture card USBs would fit my old ipod either.
the best I could do is upload a video I recorded using my now phone of my ipod screen running cordy here
I do believe cordy is avaliable on the Amazon app store but most reviews say it doesn't work when downloaded and it cost 4 bucks so I haven't tried it yet.
i previously uploaded something similar to this post on mobilegames but the most I found out was that the company who made cordy went out of business.
again I'm not really looking to play the game I just want the sound track and more information about the studio who made it and who the music producers were.
the most recent YouTube video I can find about cordy is from a German company and it's an early WIP for what seems to be another 3D cordy game? I tried messaging them on Facebook since that's the only other social media they had listed but it doesn't seem like they've been active in years so I didn't get any response.
thankyou all for reading.

Hi . I was homeless for a brief period barely making ends meet when my mother passed away. I’m just now at a good place with a full time job finally . I was living off credit cards and anything I could to survive my credit score is 488 I missed many payments on 4k of student loans and 5k in credit card debt I also have a auto loan now with a new vehicle. I’m just tired of getting beat up by life I’m trying to go to. Truck school make money by living in the truck if I have to I’m tired Of being on the edge of homelessness I’m 28 what should I do I feel like if I make one mistake I’ll be homeless it’s terrifying. Even now my lights are Turned off in my mother’s house which I’m living in from not paying the electric bill when I was homeless. It’s just a very bad situation I’m in I’m trying so hard to get out of it . Am I the only one who has experienced this is there hope for someone like me

Hello.
Does anyone have experience with restraining orders in their past?
Let me explain... I got divorced 20 years ago. It was amicable and an easy split up. I stayed in SoCal and she moved to SF. Since she didn't have a permanent address at first, she set up a P.O. Box where I would mail checks to finish paying off our credit card. She also changed her phone number because she wanted a SF area code and I didn't bother to ask for the new number.
So, the only contact I had with her was through email and a P.O. Box.
Everything was fine for almost two years, when I got a knock on my door early one morning. It was a sheriff serving me with a court date for a RO hearing in SF.
I was floored because there was absolutely no reason for one.
She took our car in the divorce so I had no way to get to the SF court house. I also knew I would never see her again. For those reasons, I didn't bother showing up. I just didn't think it would matter.
A year later, my phone rings and it's her - my ex wife. She was asking for money because her boyfriend had slashed her tires after she broke up with him and she couldn't afford new tires.
Of course I asked about the RO and she sobbed as she explained to me that her boyfriend was crazy jealous and made her get the RO for no reason. He even made her build a pile of everything related to me - pictures, old t shirts, letters... anything he thought reminded her of me - and burned them on his driveway.
So now, I had to disclose that on my CCW application and am worried that it will make me ineligible.
12 years ago, I had a life scan done to get my permit to do bar security and I thought it might make me ineligible for that , but I got that permit.
Any thoughts?
Also, I filled out my CCW application on 4/16/24. My interview appointment is in January of 2025. Eight months seems like a really long wait.
Do you think the appointment date will change?

“Get the fuck out of my house with this ‘ old country’ shit Sylvia, I’m serious. “ I hear my dad say from the kitchen downstairs.
“I give children and idiots three warnings. That’s your first. “ It takes me a second to recognize my aunt’s voice. I’ve only met her a handful of times, and it’s nearly 2am.
“Syl, he’s right, this is crazy. I’m Roma, I’m proud, but your part of the family, and mine are two separate things. “ My mom interjects. Her voice is calm and level.
I woke up about half way through whatever is going on, and I’m fuzzy on the details, but everyone involved is three kinds of pissed.
“So you say, but just because you ignore the other side, doesn’t mean the other side ignores you. “ Aunt Syl replies, I could never quite place her accent, but it makes her statement all the more sinister.
“Might as well make that the family motto.
Syl, there are a couple dozen other kids Nikolas’ age in the family. Half of which are already hip deep in whatever is going on nowadays, you don’t need him. “ Mom isn’t pleading, but I can hear she’s worried.
“Why are we trying to reason with your crazy aunt? Time to go Syl. “ My dad isn’t worried, he’s angry.
“That’s two. “ Aunt Sylvia replies.
I hear a chair squeak then fall to the floor.
“That’s three. “ Sylvia says, her voice is cold, and I swear I could almost hear an echo.
I can hear my dad start to quietly cough, he sounds like he’s trying to talk but can’t. My heart starts to race, I don’t understand what’s going on, but I know it’s bad.
“Syl! Jesus Christ, that’s my husband. “ Mom sounds more offended than scared now. I wish I could say the same.
I stand next to my cracked door, fear beginning to take hold.
I can hear my dad start to take long wheezing breaths, I have no idea if this is a good or bad thing.
“Happy?
Now that any hope of doing this quietly is over, Nikolas and I have a long drive ahead of us. He’s 16, he has a license, yes? “ I hear Sylvia say, sudden footsteps walking up the stairs.
“No, he’s not interested in driving. You can’t take him Syl. “ my mom sounds frantic, Sylvia’s steps are measured and heavy.
“Not interested? You sure we are related? You raise soft children. “ Sylvia ends this with a dismissive laugh.
The few minutes that followed were kind of a blur, with my mom trying to convince me that I was just going to visit family, as if I didn’t just hear everything.
It's a couple hours into a long drive in a small car when my brain finally catches up to the fact that I’m awake, and going 30 miles an hour over the speed limit.
Aunt Syl sits in the driver’s seat, she’s 40 something, olive skinned with pitch-colored hair. Her style, it’s, something.
Her outfit was the middle of a Venn diagram of hippie, punk rock and carpenter. Bracelets, flannel, paisley, and enough piercings I lost count.
“Any chance of putting both hands on the wheel? “ I say, I’m mad, but I don’t even really know why.
She holds up her left arm, and I’m shocked. It’s an ancient looking blued steel prosthetic. She flexes, the clawed, almost mitten-like hand.
“Go through too many steering wheels that way. “ She says with a smirk.
“What’s going on? “ I ask, after an agonizing fifteen minutes of silence.
“You’re a big boy, so if you want the truth, I’ll give it to you. There’s a job that needs to be done, a dangerous job. And I want you to do it.
Now, I want you, not because you’re strong, or smart, or special. We have many strong, smart, special boys.
You, I want, because you’re unknown, and, little one, disposable. “ Sylvia lets this comment hang like rotten fruit.
The next hour goes in silence, at no point do I even entertain the notion this is some kind of joke. Something about this woman’s energy, about the way she carries herself, it scares the shit out of me.
We board a plane, somehow she had all of my travel documents. Even stranger is that we get escorted past the security checkpoints, into first class.
The next words I say to Sylvia are, “You have to put that out! “ as she lights up a short, yellow, hand-rolled cigarette.
She grins, taking a long drag, it smells horrible, the cheapest roughest tobacco odor I’ve encountered.
She relaxes, a cloud of thick, grey smoke forming.
I’m stunned, not a single person says anything. At first I think maybe she’s some kind of, I don’t know, mobster or something.
But that isn’t quite right. No one is looking at her in fear, no one is telling anyone else not to say anything. It’s like no one notices what she’s doing.
“How does she do this? The little boy wonders.
I don’t come offering you a thankless task Nik. I come with an opportunity. “ Sylvia says before crushing the cigarette on the arm of a chair and tossing it into the isle.
I had questions, and between the fear and the confusion I asked every one of them.
The only response she gave me was, “You’ll see when we get there. “.
She was right.
The flight lands, and after an hour or so of driving the world’s oldest pickup through the English countryside, we wind up at an old farm house, in the middle of nowhere outside of Hammersmith.
The sign outside says “ Gritt Auctions” the letters are old, bronze and tarnished, the grounds are littered with car parts, statues, and errata of every type.
Dozens, maybe even a hundred people mill about each stopping for a moment to give a suspicious look at the interloper in their midst.
Sylvia seems amused at my nervousness. I try and give the rough looking folks around me as much space as I can.
“They’re family, mostly, by blood or marriage, with a handful of lost souls and hangers on. “ She explains.
I probably should have guessed, seeing my mom’s family name on the sign, but my brain is basically nothing more than fear, anxiety and jet lag at this point.
“When do I get to know what’s going on? “ I say, waving at a cousin of some form and receive a uniquely English rude gesture in return.
My ear is ringing, and I stumble , the left side of my face burning. I’d say Syl slapped me, but it was more of a polite punch.
“Don’t whine. You’ve been stolen from your mother, treated like a dog, and judging by Robert’s attitude, rejected by your family.
I don’t want to hear whining, you angry, soft boy? “ Sylvia stops and turns toward me. I notice the people around us stop their tasks, interested in our conversation.
“No… “ I begin, not wanting to piss her off.
I don’t even see the next slap, but it puts me on my ass.
“Next one’s with the left hand.
Are you angry Nikolas? “ Sylvia looms over me like a raven.
I feel something before I get to my feet, a hot, quick flash of hatred. A context free rage at the fucked up situation I’m in.
“Answer is still no. Because to be angry, I’d have to know a God-Damned thing about what’s going on.
But my lunatic aunt just picked me up and now I’m standing in the middle of whatever the English equivalent to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre family is.
For all I know, I’m your new King. So no, I’m not angry, I’m annoyed, and maybe a bit worried my gene pool really needs some chlorine. “ I’m shocked at what I’m saying, but I see some smiles, hear a few laughs.
Sylvia’s face seems to soften slightly.
“There’s the Gritt in you. “ She says, starting to walk to an old barn.
I catch up to her as I attempt in vain to dust myself off.
Sylvia opens a small, strangely modern looking door, inside a row of lights automatically flip on.
In contrast to the rotten wood exterior, the inside of the barn looks modern, design wise it’s half way between a hospital and a car repair shop. Equipment of unknown purpose, gurneys and cages of all sizes and types surround me.
Sylvia walks to a door at the back, then pauses.
“Before I open this door, you need to understand something.
There is no fortune telling, or reading of cards here. The cloak of the traveller, the bangles of the gypsy, these are all ways of navigating the world to us. Ways to exist on the fringes of society.
The Gritt family, we trade in the unknown. We find, we collect, and we sell. And ours is no petty collection of trinkets and tools not meant for the hands of man.
Our grift, is livestock. “
The woman opens the door, and what I see, sitting, chained in one corner of the industrial cement walled cell shakes everything I thought I knew about reality.
He's six and a half feet tall, his skin a waxy yellow, and every spare inch is festooned with black stitching, rusted pieces of metal or small splinters of bone.
His face is noseless and asymmetrical, almost as if repaired or modified over and over. One eye is a small, sinister looking orb with a red pupil, the other a massive, almost reptilian thing, wildly twitching about.
He wears no shirt, but a long, grey hide Trenchcoat hangs down to his knees. I start to shake as I see it’s made from layers of stitched human skin.
He sneers at us, long, conical teeth catch the harsh halogen light.
The thing strains against the chains, but they bind him tightly enough to the wall he can barely move.
“You’re not lasting more than 4 seconds kid. Just turn the fuck around. I’ll have you slitting your wrists in the corner by nightfall. “ The thing says, it’s voice is foul, almost a physical force. Grating, rage filled, and with a lunatic edge to it that makes me question exactly how much those chains can take.
“ 3/10, Augustus, who do you think you are scaring with that limp dick of a threat? “ Sylvia says, confidently walking up to the creature.
It snaps it’s jaws with a sound like a rifle shot. No where near Sylvia, but enough to make me jump on the other side of the room.
“If I could stop being threatened and hearing my aunt talk about dicks, I’d be a huge fan. “ I say, something deep within me, pushing past the fear and lack of sleep, “And if anything feels like just telling me what’s going on instead of being vague and creepy, even better. “
The chained thing looks to me, curious. Sylvia smirks.
“Augustus is going to be forced to fight others like him until eventually he gets what’s coming to him for years of evil.
You, are going to stand next to him while he does it. “ Sylvia begins to walk away from the thing, ignoring vile threats of both the violent and carnal variety.
I try to follow her out the door and she blocks me.
“If your still sane and alive in the morning, I was right. Good luck soft boy. “ She says before closing the heavy metal door.
Without her, I feel tiny, that spark of rage is snuffed out and replaced with a cold sense of dread.
“You’re going to have to turn around sometime kid. “ The chained creature says.
I turn, slowly, resolving to make eye contact with the thing. I manage a second or two before looking away, the creature cackles, mocking me.
“Holy shit, they sent me an honest to God pussy. Whole family full of void fucked apes and they send me you?
The best part is, you don’t even get it. I can see what you’re thinking kid, I can see that tiny collection of hormones and goo you vainly call a brain going into overdrive trying to figure this out… “ Augustus starts.
The creature kept going, I don’t have an exact count but it was at least twelve hours.
I can only describe it as a verbal assault. Augustus drew from some dark wells, how it knew half of the things it did scared me as much as it’s clawed hands or, piranha-like teeth.
I lost something that night. The fears that thing drug up, the insecurities it played on, the secrets it knew, it crushed any childlike notions of safety or understanding the world I had.
Don’t take that the wrong way, I don’t mean it toughened me up. It broke any sense of confidence I had, took away any feeling of safety. That God Damned thing in the trenchcoat, changed me.
I’ve lost track of how long it’s been since I’ve slept, but I’m brought a tin plate heaped with eggs, sausage and for some twisted reason, brown beans. And realize it’s been at least a day since I’ve eaten.
I sit around an abused, graffiti carved picnic table with an eclectic combination of family I’ve never met. Syl sips a tea I can smell from ten feet away and looks at me like I’m a used car.
“I’m always right soft boy. Remember that. “ She says.
It takes a half dozen guys built like construction workers, with Sylvia following behind whispering things that wilt vegetation, to wrangle the creature into the back of an old, reinforced horse trailer.
The inside is covered in totems, runes, and other spooky looking errata. The entity becomes sluggish and disoriented as the heavy wooden doors close, and get sealed with a massive brass lock.
My mind begins to wander on the three hour trip through the back country of the UK. The sun sets, and my brain screams for sleep. That scream is silenced by the sense of mounting dread as we get closer to our destination.
We pull up to an abandoned theme restaurant, the parking lot is full, the windows are boarded, and the walls covered in graffiti. The place is huge, more the size of a small stadium than a diner.
The parking lot is full, the sputtering, sparking neon sign flashes “Faron’s Funhouse. “
It’s a few minutes outside of a town I forgot to catch the name of. We can see lights on the horizon, but there’s a feeling of wrong surrounding the building that makes them seem a million miles away.
A half dozen ‘cousins’ of mine move Augustus into a strange, almost coffin-like box made of wood, steel and glass, covered in trinkets and symbols. The thing sneers groggily from within, it’s mismatched eyes rolling in it’s skull.
I don’t hear Sylvia approach, I notice her as she smacks me in the back of the head hard enough to make my ears ring. The old, cruel woman is walking toward the doors of this meeting place.
“Eyes forward, sneer on your face, and walk like you know where you’re going. “ Are her only instructions.
For once, they’re clear and simple. What I see inside easily keeps my attention, and I’m equal parts scared and pissed off, so looking edgy and miserable is my default state.
At one point, this place was exactly what you’d think. I know you’re all expecting it to be a run down, rat infested haunted house now, but it was, stranger than that.
The place was well kept on the inside, but everything was either in use or repurposed to house the couple hundred eclectic customers milling around. In the centre, is a massive Lucite Cube, crystal clear and housing a ball pit, jungle gym and what looks to be a functional canteen, complete with a deep fryer and popcorn machine. It’s a couple hundred meters a side, and shaped like a flawed rectangle.
Smoke hangs in the air, my aunt greets old friends in a handful of different languages, I smile and nod, still trying to understand what the hell this place is.
We see Augustus being wheeled to the Lucite box, Sylvia cuts a laughing Cyrillic conversation short, and her and I make our way to the box that barely restrains the hatred and death inside.
At the other end of the Lucite Cube I see a few people dressed in blue and maroon uniforms ( if I were to guess vintage, from when this place served shitty food instead of violence.), they surround a massive, hulking, lanky thing. It’s obscured by smoke, and poor lighting, but it’s nine foot frame, and unnatural gait are clear.
The box holding Augustus sits about ten feet away from me, inside the massive cage. The front opens, my instinct is to step backward, get as much distance between me and the thing inside as possible, but instead, I’m shoved, before I can catch my balance, a workbook clad foot is in front of me.
I fall and stumble into the cage, I turn around to try and get out as fast as I can, I’m standing inches away from the creature, but I see Sylvia closing the clear, impermeable door.
It hits me then. For the first time since this ordeal started, I realize how grim things are.
Just like everyone else here, I’ve been raised on spooky shit packaged to be marketable. Little monsters, The Adams Family, Harry potter, hell let’s throw Pokemon and the like in there as it’s basically just dog fighting with a cute hat on.
And I thought what was happening to me, was somewhere on the Venn diagram of those things.
But as I see the impassive look on the face of a woman I’ve known since I was a child, ( at a distance or no.) as I’m locked in here with God knows what, I get it. I really get it.
His laughter is like an ice pick, I turn to face him, Augustus brushes himself off, casually looking around the massive arena.
“Just hit ya didn’t it, bud? “ He says, walking over to me, his steps impossibly quick, almost insect-like, “You’re not my trainer, or my wrangler, you certainly aren’t my fucking partner. “, the entity grabs my chin between two clawed fingers, “ You’re a bait dog. Something for me and that new blooded walking pun to fight over. “
My blood runs down his thumb, his grin cracks his face like a rotten melon, the monster pulls down, throwing me to the floor.
A buzzer sounds, and a three minute timer, projected in transparent red appears on the walls of the Lucite arena.
“If I’ve got to hunt you down in this shit-hole, things are going to be a lot worse for you. Stay put, bud. “ The trenchcoat clad thing says, casually walking toward the creature on the opposite side of the arena.
Closer now, I see it clearly. Inside of a pristine uniform, is a twisted attempt at the human form. The torso is lumpen, asymmetrical, but lean. It's arms nearly drag on the floor, yellow, infected looking flesh, weeping pus like a snail’s foot.
It's eyes are black caves, with just the hint of something deep within. It’s face is blank, a torn, haggard looking grey tongue runs over rotting green teeth.
The kid beside it looks around my age, he’s big though, just as confused and afraid as I am. He wears a similar uniform to the creature, but his looks, abused, torn, blood stained. Like it's been handed down from one unlucky owner to the next.
As the buzzer rings, the lanky, disgusting creature moves in a flash, tearing off the kid’s right arm and beginning to chew it.
The blood didn’t set me off, as terrible as it was. It was the three seconds between the act, and the poor kid realizing what happened that pushed me over the edge.
He started to scream, a horrible trapped animal kind of noise. He backs away from the monster beside him, gripping the crushed and torn remains of his forearm.
Augustus laughs, his trenchcoat drags on the floor, leaving a streak of blood as he walks.
“Man after my own heart.
So, I say, we split these sides of beef for two minutes then talk shop for a bit. Fuck these pretentious apes and their show. “ Augustus looks up to the massive thing. It remains impassive, gnawing on the hand.
“Don’t be like that. We both know two halves are better than one whole . Win-win for both of us“ Augustus gets a noise that sounds like an angry sewer pipe, and a dismissive wave of a long snake-like arm in response.
The thing in the trenchcoat shrugs, turning around and stalking toward me.
“You have no luck at all kid, I was going to let you go last.
But the pinworm back there wants to be a dick about things, so looks like things are getting started early. “ Augustus grins, his mouth opening shark like.
I stare down certain death, Augustus radiating fear, seeming to become more demonic with each step toward me.
From behind him, a noise.
I would have just assumed it was some part of the worm-like, filth ridden thing eating. Augustus clears up that misconception.
He turns, shaking, body language that of a wild animal.
“Was that a fucking snicker? A giggle? Are you fucking laughing at me, you literal fucking worm. “ He’s panting, hands twitching like dying insects.
He stands, inches from the other creature, dwarfed by it, teeth grinding, muscles straining.
The worm thing casually tosses the flesh bare hand toward Augustus. As it touches his coat, the arena erupts into a kind of wild, senseless, limitless violence.
It doesn’t feel like watching a fight, it’s more like a car wreck, or natural disaster. Pieces of jungle gym turn into lethal shrapnel as the blurred, filth spewing scrum destroys them.
I see the timer, 2:15. My mind starts to catch up, and I see the other kid, pale, whimpering, and trying in vain to staunch the blood spurting from his arm.
I’m running, low and likely poorly, pulling my belt from my pants, and thanking myself for actually listening when I was forced to take a first aid course for a summer job last year.
The kid is scared, he tries pushing me away, but I’m determined, and not down a couple pints of blood. I pull the belt with two hands, pull it through again and twist, it’s ugly, it’s not perfect, but the flow of blood begins to slow, then stop.
We crawl behind a prize counter, decades old candy and stuffed animals surround us as we cower. A liquid filled roar loud enough to crack the cheap glass cases fills the room.
The kid is looking rough, blood still trickling from the torn stump of his forearm. I see some plastic bags and get an idea.
I lean over to get them, and feel something strange, at first I think I pulled a muscle.
Then there is a deep, burning pain, instinctively I pull away, and turn around.
The kid is on his knees, sanity has left his eyes, a cheap hunting knife in his remaining hand he has a look of panic and determination on his face.
“We have to win. “ he says, lunging at me with the blade.
He’s slow, and I avoid it, but not by as much as I’d like. Blood runs down my back, for a moment I wonder how bad I’m hurt, but it doesn’t really matter right now.
I retreat, but the only thing keeping us from being torn apart by the whirlwind of shrapnel caused by the creatures is the counter, I can’t escape.
It's a stalemate, I’m no athlete, and the kid is built like a rugby player, but he’s missing a hand, and delirious from blood loss. I plead, I try and reason, and I dodge crazed strikes by increasingly narrow margins.
Something large, either thrown or knocked loose destroys the counter behind me. Suddenly all is chaos. I’m thrown into the kid in the uniform, plaster dust surrounds us in a grey cloud.
By the time the air clears the kid is on top of me. I have his wrist in one hand, keeping the split tip of the blade inches from my face.
The angle is too awkward, I can’t get any leverage. It’s not a stalemate, it’s a war of attrition that I’m losing.
I catch a glimpse of the two creatures. The worm thing is striking at Augustus, who stands still, limbs moving in arcing blurs deflecting the blows and tearing off chunks of foul, tainted flesh.
The tip of the knife begins to dig into my cheek. A drop of blood hits my eye.
I grab the makeshift tourniquet with a free hand and roughly yank forward. The kid on top of me screams, bloods begins to pour. Torn flesh and a gore soaked belt hit the ground.
For a moment the weight on me eases up, and I push the knife forward. But the kid, he’s too stupid or far gone to just back off. As I feel is strength start to fade, he presses himself harder.
I expect him to back off as I begin to drive the roughly sharpened back edge of the knife into his neck. But he doubles down, leaning forward, trying to press the knife toward me.
For a moment, every other fucked up thing going on around me doesn’t matter. The world is small, silent, and consists of nothing more than the image of the knife ripping away a fist sized strip from the kids neck.
He backs off when he realizes the extent of the damage. Staring at me shocked, as if just not realizing the consequences of his actions.
He dies slowly, poorly, and within inches of me. I feel no victory, no sense of being a winner, just a dark pit in the back of my mind. The loss of something that comes with taking someone’s life.
I stand, shell shocked, staring at the corpse. My safety the last thing on my mind.
The worm thing is hurt, and attempts to dive into the ball pit, but somehow, defying physics, Augustus grabs it, holding the half ton monster out with one hand.
He arcs the thing, slamming it into the floor behind him, the spray of gore and viscera rivals pyrotechnics, the force leaves a blood filled crater in the floor.
Without missing a beat Augustus starts to walk toward me, making a token effort of flicking pieces of bone and organ from himself.
I’m frozen, I know nothing I can do could stop whatever he has planned.
The creature picks up a jagged piece of lumber, and looks at the clock, “We’ve got 45 seconds of fun left kid. “ he says with a sneer.
But as he passes the counter, and sees the corpse the look of imminent violence turns into amusement.
“How’s it feel to be a child killer, bud? “, Augustus laughs, “Not that I can’t tell from the look on your face.
Fuck me, that knocked some gears loose didn’t it? “
The thing walks forward, looking me over like a collectable.
“I can’t let that go to waste, now can I? “ he slaps me lightly, “It’s going to be a fucking blast watching you break down kid, wonder what drives you nuts first, this kid being in your dreams, or the fact that, at some point I’m going to get bored and start giving you all the pain you feel you deserve? “
Of course, I made it out alive. It’d be kind of hard to have posted this if I didn’t.
But now, I sit in a dingy room in a farm house half way across the world from home. Surrounded by family and monsters, all of which seem out to get me. Being forced to risk my life in some kind of blood sport.
Maybe I’ll be back, maybe I’ll be dead by the next time I get a chance to post anything. If anyone has any help, please, post it in the comments. I’m in a dark place here and no one else seems to be on my side.

“Get the fuck out of my house with this ‘ old country’ shit Sylvia, I’m serious. “ I hear my dad say from the kitchen downstairs.
“I give children and idiots three warnings. That’s your first. “ It takes me a second to recognize my aunt’s voice. I’ve only met her a handful of times, and it’s nearly 2am.
“Syl, he’s right, this is crazy. I’m Roma, I’m proud, but your part of the family, and mine are two separate things. “ My mom interjects. Her voice is calm and level.
I woke up about half way through whatever is going on, and I’m fuzzy on the details, but everyone involved is three kinds of pissed.
“So you say, but just because you ignore the other side, doesn’t mean the other side ignores you. “ Aunt Syl replies, I could never quite place her accent, but it makes her statement all the more sinister.
“Might as well make that the family motto.
Syl, there are a couple dozen other kids Nikolas’ age in the family. Half of which are already hip deep in whatever is going on nowadays, you don’t need him. “ Mom isn’t pleading, but I can hear she’s worried.
“Why are we trying to reason with your crazy aunt? Time to go Syl. “ My dad isn’t worried, he’s angry.
“That’s two. “ Aunt Sylvia replies.
I hear a chair squeak then fall to the floor.
“That’s three. “ Sylvia says, her voice is cold, and I swear I could almost hear an echo.
I can hear my dad start to quietly cough, he sounds like he’s trying to talk but can’t. My heart starts to race, I don’t understand what’s going on, but I know it’s bad.
“Syl! Jesus Christ, that’s my husband. “ Mom sounds more offended than scared now. I wish I could say the same.
I stand next to my cracked door, fear beginning to take hold.
I can hear my dad start to take long wheezing breaths, I have no idea if this is a good or bad thing.
“Happy?
Now that any hope of doing this quietly is over, Nikolas and I have a long drive ahead of us. He’s 16, he has a license, yes? “ I hear Sylvia say, sudden footsteps walking up the stairs.
“No, he’s not interested in driving. You can’t take him Syl. “ my mom sounds frantic, Sylvia’s steps are measured and heavy.
“Not interested? You sure we are related? You raise soft children. “ Sylvia ends this with a dismissive laugh.
The few minutes that followed were kind of a blur, with my mom trying to convince me that I was just going to visit family, as if I didn’t just hear everything.
It's a couple hours into a long drive in a small car when my brain finally catches up to the fact that I’m awake, and going 30 miles an hour over the speed limit.
Aunt Syl sits in the driver’s seat, she’s 40 something, olive skinned with pitch-colored hair. Her style, it’s, something.
Her outfit was the middle of a Venn diagram of hippie, punk rock and carpenter. Bracelets, flannel, paisley, and enough piercings I lost count.
“Any chance of putting both hands on the wheel? “ I say, I’m mad, but I don’t even really know why.
She holds up her left arm, and I’m shocked. It’s an ancient looking blued steel prosthetic. She flexes, the clawed, almost mitten-like hand.
“Go through too many steering wheels that way. “ She says with a smirk.
“What’s going on? “ I ask, after an agonizing fifteen minutes of silence.
“You’re a big boy, so if you want the truth, I’ll give it to you. There’s a job that needs to be done, a dangerous job. And I want you to do it.
Now, I want you, not because you’re strong, or smart, or special. We have many strong, smart, special boys.
You, I want, because you’re unknown, and, little one, disposable. “ Sylvia lets this comment hang like rotten fruit.
The next hour goes in silence, at no point do I even entertain the notion this is some kind of joke. Something about this woman’s energy, about the way she carries herself, it scares the shit out of me.
We board a plane, somehow she had all of my travel documents. Even stranger is that we get escorted past the security checkpoints, into first class.
The next words I say to Sylvia are, “You have to put that out! “ as she lights up a short, yellow, hand-rolled cigarette.
She grins, taking a long drag, it smells horrible, the cheapest roughest tobacco odor I’ve encountered.
She relaxes, a cloud of thick, grey smoke forming.
I’m stunned, not a single person says anything. At first I think maybe she’s some kind of, I don’t know, mobster or something.
But that isn’t quite right. No one is looking at her in fear, no one is telling anyone else not to say anything. It’s like no one notices what she’s doing.
“How does she do this? The little boy wonders.
I don’t come offering you a thankless task Nik. I come with an opportunity. “ Sylvia says before crushing the cigarette on the arm of a chair and tossing it into the isle.
I had questions, and between the fear and the confusion I asked every one of them.
The only response she gave me was, “You’ll see when we get there. “.
She was right.
The flight lands, and after an hour or so of driving the world’s oldest pickup through the English countryside, we wind up at an old farm house, in the middle of nowhere outside of Hammersmith.
The sign outside says “ Gritt Auctions” the letters are old, bronze and tarnished, the grounds are littered with car parts, statues, and errata of every type.
Dozens, maybe even a hundred people mill about each stopping for a moment to give a suspicious look at the interloper in their midst.
Sylvia seems amused at my nervousness. I try and give the rough looking folks around me as much space as I can.
“They’re family, mostly, by blood or marriage, with a handful of lost souls and hangers on. “ She explains.
I probably should have guessed, seeing my mom’s family name on the sign, but my brain is basically nothing more than fear, anxiety and jet lag at this point.
“When do I get to know what’s going on? “ I say, waving at a cousin of some form and receive a uniquely English rude gesture in return.
My ear is ringing, and I stumble , the left side of my face burning. I’d say Syl slapped me, but it was more of a polite punch.
“Don’t whine. You’ve been stolen from your mother, treated like a dog, and judging by Robert’s attitude, rejected by your family.
I don’t want to hear whining, you angry, soft boy? “ Sylvia stops and turns toward me. I notice the people around us stop their tasks, interested in our conversation.
“No… “ I begin, not wanting to piss her off.
I don’t even see the next slap, but it puts me on my ass.
“Next one’s with the left hand.
Are you angry Nikolas? “ Sylvia looms over me like a raven.
I feel something before I get to my feet, a hot, quick flash of hatred. A context free rage at the fucked up situation I’m in.
“Answer is still no. Because to be angry, I’d have to know a God-Damned thing about what’s going on.
But my lunatic aunt just picked me up and now I’m standing in the middle of whatever the English equivalent to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre family is.
For all I know, I’m your new King. So no, I’m not angry, I’m annoyed, and maybe a bit worried my gene pool really needs some chlorine. “ I’m shocked at what I’m saying, but I see some smiles, hear a few laughs.
Sylvia’s face seems to soften slightly.
“There’s the Gritt in you. “ She says, starting to walk to an old barn.
I catch up to her as I attempt in vain to dust myself off.
Sylvia opens a small, strangely modern looking door, inside a row of lights automatically flip on.
In contrast to the rotten wood exterior, the inside of the barn looks modern, design wise it’s half way between a hospital and a car repair shop. Equipment of unknown purpose, gurneys and cages of all sizes and types surround me.
Sylvia walks to a door at the back, then pauses.
“Before I open this door, you need to understand something.
There is no fortune telling, or reading of cards here. The cloak of the traveller, the bangles of the gypsy, these are all ways of navigating the world to us. Ways to exist on the fringes of society.
The Gritt family, we trade in the unknown. We find, we collect, and we sell. And ours is no petty collection of trinkets and tools not meant for the hands of man.
Our grift, is livestock. “
The woman opens the door, and what I see, sitting, chained in one corner of the industrial cement walled cell shakes everything I thought I knew about reality.
He's six and a half feet tall, his skin a waxy yellow, and every spare inch is festooned with black stitching, rusted pieces of metal or small splinters of bone.
His face is noseless and asymmetrical, almost as if repaired or modified over and over. One eye is a small, sinister looking orb with a red pupil, the other a massive, almost reptilian thing, wildly twitching about.
He wears no shirt, but a long, grey hide Trenchcoat hangs down to his knees. I start to shake as I see it’s made from layers of stitched human skin.
He sneers at us, long, conical teeth catch the harsh halogen light.
The thing strains against the chains, but they bind him tightly enough to the wall he can barely move.
“You’re not lasting more than 4 seconds kid. Just turn the fuck around. I’ll have you slitting your wrists in the corner by nightfall. “ The thing says, it’s voice is foul, almost a physical force. Grating, rage filled, and with a lunatic edge to it that makes me question exactly how much those chains can take.
“ 3/10, Augustus, who do you think you are scaring with that limp dick of a threat? “ Sylvia says, confidently walking up to the creature.
It snaps it’s jaws with a sound like a rifle shot. No where near Sylvia, but enough to make me jump on the other side of the room.
“If I could stop being threatened and hearing my aunt talk about dicks, I’d be a huge fan. “ I say, something deep within me, pushing past the fear and lack of sleep, “And if anything feels like just telling me what’s going on instead of being vague and creepy, even better. “
The chained thing looks to me, curious. Sylvia smirks.
“Augustus is going to be forced to fight others like him until eventually he gets what’s coming to him for years of evil.
You, are going to stand next to him while he does it. “ Sylvia begins to walk away from the thing, ignoring vile threats of both the violent and carnal variety.
I try to follow her out the door and she blocks me.
“If your still sane and alive in the morning, I was right. Good luck soft boy. “ She says before closing the heavy metal door.
Without her, I feel tiny, that spark of rage is snuffed out and replaced with a cold sense of dread.
“You’re going to have to turn around sometime kid. “ The chained creature says.
I turn, slowly, resolving to make eye contact with the thing. I manage a second or two before looking away, the creature cackles, mocking me.
“Holy shit, they sent me an honest to God pussy. Whole family full of void fucked apes and they send me you?
The best part is, you don’t even get it. I can see what you’re thinking kid, I can see that tiny collection of hormones and goo you vainly call a brain going into overdrive trying to figure this out… “ Augustus starts.
The creature kept going, I don’t have an exact count but it was at least twelve hours.
I can only describe it as a verbal assault. Augustus drew from some dark wells, how it knew half of the things it did scared me as much as it’s clawed hands or, piranha-like teeth.
I lost something that night. The fears that thing drug up, the insecurities it played on, the secrets it knew, it crushed any childlike notions of safety or understanding the world I had.
Don’t take that the wrong way, I don’t mean it toughened me up. It broke any sense of confidence I had, took away any feeling of safety. That God Damned thing in the trenchcoat, changed me.
I’ve lost track of how long it’s been since I’ve slept, but I’m brought a tin plate heaped with eggs, sausage and for some twisted reason, brown beans. And realize it’s been at least a day since I’ve eaten.
I sit around an abused, graffiti carved picnic table with an eclectic combination of family I’ve never met. Syl sips a tea I can smell from ten feet away and looks at me like I’m a used car.
“I’m always right soft boy. Remember that. “ She says.
It takes a half dozen guys built like construction workers, with Sylvia following behind whispering things that wilt vegetation, to wrangle the creature into the back of an old, reinforced horse trailer.
The inside is covered in totems, runes, and other spooky looking errata. The entity becomes sluggish and disoriented as the heavy wooden doors close, and get sealed with a massive brass lock.
My mind begins to wander on the three hour trip through the back country of the UK. The sun sets, and my brain screams for sleep. That scream is silenced by the sense of mounting dread as we get closer to our destination.
We pull up to an abandoned theme restaurant, the parking lot is full, the windows are boarded, and the walls covered in graffiti. The place is huge, more the size of a small stadium than a diner.
The parking lot is full, the sputtering, sparking neon sign flashes “Faron’s Funhouse. “
It’s a few minutes outside of a town I forgot to catch the name of. We can see lights on the horizon, but there’s a feeling of wrong surrounding the building that makes them seem a million miles away.
A half dozen ‘cousins’ of mine move Augustus into a strange, almost coffin-like box made of wood, steel and glass, covered in trinkets and symbols. The thing sneers groggily from within, it’s mismatched eyes rolling in it’s skull.
I don’t hear Sylvia approach, I notice her as she smacks me in the back of the head hard enough to make my ears ring. The old, cruel woman is walking toward the doors of this meeting place.
“Eyes forward, sneer on your face, and walk like you know where you’re going. “ Are her only instructions.
For once, they’re clear and simple. What I see inside easily keeps my attention, and I’m equal parts scared and pissed off, so looking edgy and miserable is my default state.
At one point, this place was exactly what you’d think. I know you’re all expecting it to be a run down, rat infested haunted house now, but it was, stranger than that.
The place was well kept on the inside, but everything was either in use or repurposed to house the couple hundred eclectic customers milling around. In the centre, is a massive Lucite Cube, crystal clear and housing a ball pit, jungle gym and what looks to be a functional canteen, complete with a deep fryer and popcorn machine. It’s a couple hundred meters a side, and shaped like a flawed rectangle.
Smoke hangs in the air, my aunt greets old friends in a handful of different languages, I smile and nod, still trying to understand what the hell this place is.
We see Augustus being wheeled to the Lucite box, Sylvia cuts a laughing Cyrillic conversation short, and her and I make our way to the box that barely restrains the hatred and death inside.
At the other end of the Lucite Cube I see a few people dressed in blue and maroon uniforms ( if I were to guess vintage, from when this place served shitty food instead of violence.), they surround a massive, hulking, lanky thing. It’s obscured by smoke, and poor lighting, but it’s nine foot frame, and unnatural gait are clear.
The box holding Augustus sits about ten feet away from me, inside the massive cage. The front opens, my instinct is to step backward, get as much distance between me and the thing inside as possible, but instead, I’m shoved, before I can catch my balance, a workbook clad foot is in front of me.
I fall and stumble into the cage, I turn around to try and get out as fast as I can, I’m standing inches away from the creature, but I see Sylvia closing the clear, impermeable door.
It hits me then. For the first time since this ordeal started, I realize how grim things are.
Just like everyone else here, I’ve been raised on spooky shit packaged to be marketable. Little monsters, The Adams Family, Harry potter, hell let’s throw Pokemon and the like in there as it’s basically just dog fighting with a cute hat on.
And I thought what was happening to me, was somewhere on the Venn diagram of those things.
But as I see the impassive look on the face of a woman I’ve known since I was a child, ( at a distance or no.) as I’m locked in here with God knows what, I get it. I really get it.
His laughter is like an ice pick, I turn to face him, Augustus brushes himself off, casually looking around the massive arena.
“Just hit ya didn’t it, bud? “ He says, walking over to me, his steps impossibly quick, almost insect-like, “You’re not my trainer, or my wrangler, you certainly aren’t my fucking partner. “, the entity grabs my chin between two clawed fingers, “ You’re a bait dog. Something for me and that new blooded walking pun to fight over. “
My blood runs down his thumb, his grin cracks his face like a rotten melon, the monster pulls down, throwing me to the floor.
A buzzer sounds, and a three minute timer, projected in transparent red appears on the walls of the Lucite arena.
“If I’ve got to hunt you down in this shit-hole, things are going to be a lot worse for you. Stay put, bud. “ The trenchcoat clad thing says, casually walking toward the creature on the opposite side of the arena.
Closer now, I see it clearly. Inside of a pristine uniform, is a twisted attempt at the human form. The torso is lumpen, asymmetrical, but lean. It's arms nearly drag on the floor, yellow, infected looking flesh, weeping pus like a snail’s foot.
It's eyes are black caves, with just the hint of something deep within. It’s face is blank, a torn, haggard looking grey tongue runs over rotting green teeth.
The kid beside it looks around my age, he’s big though, just as confused and afraid as I am. He wears a similar uniform to the creature, but his looks, abused, torn, blood stained. Like it's been handed down from one unlucky owner to the next.
As the buzzer rings, the lanky, disgusting creature moves in a flash, tearing off the kid’s right arm and beginning to chew it.
The blood didn’t set me off, as terrible as it was. It was the three seconds between the act, and the poor kid realizing what happened that pushed me over the edge.
He started to scream, a horrible trapped animal kind of noise. He backs away from the monster beside him, gripping the crushed and torn remains of his forearm.
Augustus laughs, his trenchcoat drags on the floor, leaving a streak of blood as he walks.
“Man after my own heart.
So, I say, we split these sides of beef for two minutes then talk shop for a bit. Fuck these pretentious apes and their show. “ Augustus looks up to the massive thing. It remains impassive, gnawing on the hand.
“Don’t be like that. We both know two halves are better than one whole . Win-win for both of us“ Augustus gets a noise that sounds like an angry sewer pipe, and a dismissive wave of a long snake-like arm in response.
The thing in the trenchcoat shrugs, turning around and stalking toward me.
“You have no luck at all kid, I was going to let you go last.
But the pinworm back there wants to be a dick about things, so looks like things are getting started early. “ Augustus grins, his mouth opening shark like.
I stare down certain death, Augustus radiating fear, seeming to become more demonic with each step toward me.
From behind him, a noise.
I would have just assumed it was some part of the worm-like, filth ridden thing eating. Augustus clears up that misconception.
He turns, shaking, body language that of a wild animal.
“Was that a fucking snicker? A giggle? Are you fucking laughing at me, you literal fucking worm. “ He’s panting, hands twitching like dying insects.
He stands, inches from the other creature, dwarfed by it, teeth grinding, muscles straining.
The worm thing casually tosses the flesh bare hand toward Augustus. As it touches his coat, the arena erupts into a kind of wild, senseless, limitless violence.
It doesn’t feel like watching a fight, it’s more like a car wreck, or natural disaster. Pieces of jungle gym turn into lethal shrapnel as the blurred, filth spewing scrum destroys them.
I see the timer, 2:15. My mind starts to catch up, and I see the other kid, pale, whimpering, and trying in vain to staunch the blood spurting from his arm.
I’m running, low and likely poorly, pulling my belt from my pants, and thanking myself for actually listening when I was forced to take a first aid course for a summer job last year.
The kid is scared, he tries pushing me away, but I’m determined, and not down a couple pints of blood. I pull the belt with two hands, pull it through again and twist, it’s ugly, it’s not perfect, but the flow of blood begins to slow, then stop.
We crawl behind a prize counter, decades old candy and stuffed animals surround us as we cower. A liquid filled roar loud enough to crack the cheap glass cases fills the room.
The kid is looking rough, blood still trickling from the torn stump of his forearm. I see some plastic bags and get an idea.
I lean over to get them, and feel something strange, at first I think I pulled a muscle.
Then there is a deep, burning pain, instinctively I pull away, and turn around.
The kid is on his knees, sanity has left his eyes, a cheap hunting knife in his remaining hand he has a look of panic and determination on his face.
“We have to win. “ he says, lunging at me with the blade.
He’s slow, and I avoid it, but not by as much as I’d like. Blood runs down my back, for a moment I wonder how bad I’m hurt, but it doesn’t really matter right now.
I retreat, but the only thing keeping us from being torn apart by the whirlwind of shrapnel caused by the creatures is the counter, I can’t escape.
It's a stalemate, I’m no athlete, and the kid is built like a rugby player, but he’s missing a hand, and delirious from blood loss. I plead, I try and reason, and I dodge crazed strikes by increasingly narrow margins.
Something large, either thrown or knocked loose destroys the counter behind me. Suddenly all is chaos. I’m thrown into the kid in the uniform, plaster dust surrounds us in a grey cloud.
By the time the air clears the kid is on top of me. I have his wrist in one hand, keeping the split tip of the blade inches from my face.
The angle is too awkward, I can’t get any leverage. It’s not a stalemate, it’s a war of attrition that I’m losing.
I catch a glimpse of the two creatures. The worm thing is striking at Augustus, who stands still, limbs moving in arcing blurs deflecting the blows and tearing off chunks of foul, tainted flesh.
The tip of the knife begins to dig into my cheek. A drop of blood hits my eye.
I grab the makeshift tourniquet with a free hand and roughly yank forward. The kid on top of me screams, bloods begins to pour. Torn flesh and a gore soaked belt hit the ground.
For a moment the weight on me eases up, and I push the knife forward. But the kid, he’s too stupid or far gone to just back off. As I feel is strength start to fade, he presses himself harder.
I expect him to back off as I begin to drive the roughly sharpened back edge of the knife into his neck. But he doubles down, leaning forward, trying to press the knife toward me.
For a moment, every other fucked up thing going on around me doesn’t matter. The world is small, silent, and consists of nothing more than the image of the knife ripping away a fist sized strip from the kids neck.
He backs off when he realizes the extent of the damage. Staring at me shocked, as if just not realizing the consequences of his actions.
He dies slowly, poorly, and within inches of me. I feel no victory, no sense of being a winner, just a dark pit in the back of my mind. The loss of something that comes with taking someone’s life.
I stand, shell shocked, staring at the corpse. My safety the last thing on my mind.
The worm thing is hurt, and attempts to dive into the ball pit, but somehow, defying physics, Augustus grabs it, holding the half ton monster out with one hand.
He arcs the thing, slamming it into the floor behind him, the spray of gore and viscera rivals pyrotechnics, the force leaves a blood filled crater in the floor.
Without missing a beat Augustus starts to walk toward me, making a token effort of flicking pieces of bone and organ from himself.
I’m frozen, I know nothing I can do could stop whatever he has planned.
The creature picks up a jagged piece of lumber, and looks at the clock, “We’ve got 45 seconds of fun left kid. “ he says with a sneer.
But as he passes the counter, and sees the corpse the look of imminent violence turns into amusement.
“How’s it feel to be a child killer, bud? “, Augustus laughs, “Not that I can’t tell from the look on your face.
Fuck me, that knocked some gears loose didn’t it? “
The thing walks forward, looking me over like a collectable.
“I can’t let that go to waste, now can I? “ he slaps me lightly, “It’s going to be a fucking blast watching you break down kid, wonder what drives you nuts first, this kid being in your dreams, or the fact that, at some point I’m going to get bored and start giving you all the pain you feel you deserve? “
Of course, I made it out alive. It’d be kind of hard to have posted this if I didn’t.
But now, I sit in a dingy room in a farm house half way across the world from home. Surrounded by family and monsters, all of which seem out to get me. Being forced to risk my life in some kind of blood sport.
Maybe I’ll be back, maybe I’ll be dead by the next time I get a chance to post anything. If anyone has any help, please, post it in the comments. I’m in a dark place here and no one else seems to be on my side.

First off let me say I am so honored that I have this much power in my coworkers life. I had no idea and apparently I am using this power for evil instead of good.
Story time!
Coworker is extremely behind on bills because she let her college age daughter use her credit card and she racked up thousands! In food related charges in under a semester (over 5k). Coworker still gave her the card the next semester because she couldn’t have the daughter walk to the dining hall and have food she didn’t like (but was the food she already paid for) and didn’t want to cook in the kitchen even though she paid for a weekly delivery from the grocery store. But you know I’m not a parent so maybe I don’t understand.
Anyways coworker is looking to save money. I grab coffee daily from the lunch room. Basically it’s hot water that I add my own stuff to. (Coffee and creamer) well here in lies the problem. Coworker keeps forgetting to buy the coffee she needs (I am not sharing my expensive coffee with her. I draw the line). By forget I mean she runs to the store almost daily because her kids need cereal the day they run out of the one they like so instead of eating the other one that’s already in the house. (Again not a parent maybe this is normal. But also if I tried that with my mother I would not have eaten cereal) so instead of amazoning the thing like a normal human being, she needs to go to dunkin to grab a coffee every morning.
NOW to the part about me costing her money. We have free coffee downstairs. And free cream. But again it’s downstairs. That coworker walks by EVERY MORNING. So when she does remember to bring coffee she forgets to grab the cream and messages me saying she’s too tired to walk downstairs and doesn’t know what she’s going to do. The thing is I have cream at my desk. My cream is not the same as downstairs. You see guys, I buy my cream in the flavored single serve variety. In larger quantities because I’m horrible at remembering to buy it so I stock up. So I theoretically have extra. The guilting texts came daily for WEEKS. But never outright asking. I always say hey just grab some downstairs.
She told that because she doesn’t have cream she now just stops at dunkin every morning! So because I won’t share my $50 worth of flavored cream she’s now telling me she goes to dunkin which she can’t afford.
I can see where the daughter gets it from.
Figured you guys needed a laugh.

I don't understand how complicated tips are now. 1)The server has a percentage of their tips go to the hostess and to the back of house?
2) Is there a percentage (I've heard 3%) taken out of their tips if it is put on a credit card?
3) Are the taxes that are reported and owed at the end of the year based on the check totals and not the actual tip? If someone buys a $600 bottle of wine and the tip doesn't reflect this purchase, does the server have to pay taxes on the $600 anyway?
If any of these things are true, it is unbelievable.
If I was a server paying out $ out of my tips to the hostess and back of house, could I give them a 1099? Probably not, but I'm the one who earned the money.
I owned small bars since 1988 with only 1 or 2 bartenders on at one time. When I, the bar, needed extra barback or doormen, I paid them a fair pay. Not the bartenders giving up their hard earned tips to pay for an extra employee.
It makes me angry the the businesses are not paying the hostess and back of house enough money so that they rely on tips???? Seriously, I hope I have this all wrong.

Hi everyone, we know this is a big ask, but our rescue’s iPad recently bit the dust and now we have no way to power our point of sale system to process credit and debit card donations (our most common donation type).
We’re specifically looking for one of the listed iPads in the second pic (iPad 6th Gen, 5th Gen, iPad Pro 9.7, or iPad Air 2 or 1), which fits the Square reader we have.
Our original iPad that was donated years ago has started to have screen issues. Now the screen is has ghost images and distorted colors. Strangely it's not quite burnt in images but it is seeming to be a hardware issue we couldn't resolve with a factory reset :(
We use the iPad for our square POS to accept credit card donations when people visit and it's been crucial to the work we do! Especially now with kitten season starting, we’ve got more cats to feed and vet bills to pay.

I'm not IT or even IT service, but I work retail as a Store Manager. 100% of the issues I have brought up to me regarding technology, the company website, the rewards account, the credit cards, etc.- any tech issues - are from Boomers/Elder Gen X.
Little short story, i just got off the phone trying to help a lady, probably in her 60s, order something off our company's website. I kept trying to help walk her through the process and she kept telling me that she had done that stuff amd none of it's working. After combatting me like a toddler refusing to let you help them, i finally got her to comply and describe in detail what was on her screen. She said there's a white sreen, and in big letters it says "GOOGLE" with a space underneath that says insert email, password, company website, etc. All the information I had been attempting to help her type in to get to each page to shop and sign in, she had just been typing into the Google search bar, not hitting enter or anything.
Anyways, back to the question, IT people or technology services people, will you all be mostly unneeded when the Boomers die out? Genuinely curious about a legit answer.

Hi fellow OSRS'ers,
Last week I lost my 2 accs which I've been working on during my free time since years now: Bluehawk007 & Greenhawk007 (look them up to get an idea about the time spent on them, be quick as I expect the hackers to change the RSN's soon, 800m gone as well)
The absurd thing is that all this happened due to upgrading to a Jagex account...
It started the moment I upgraded both accs. But as the game (especially when opening your bank) asked to upgrade to a Jagex acc, I said 'why not, some extra security won't do any harm'. So I did... Immediately I had to authenticate through codes that were sent by mail. Weird, but I reckoned it was very secure like this. After some days I was locked out of my both accs, being asked to authenticate (which I didn't specifically install on the jagex acc). Tried to recover the Jagex acc but to no avail...
When trying to retrieve the accs I saw that there was a 'forwarding rule' on my mail (no clue when or who installed it, might have been from ages ago). Forwarding it to a xxxx@163.com mail, everything with 'Jagex' and 'Zendesk' in the mail would be forwarded to that email. After noticing this I secured my mail, but this was too late.
Jagex' answer ( props to the Mods answering quickly and respectfully): "From the information that's available to me, it appears that hijackers have been able to log in by entering the Jagex account email and password, and authenticating their login via the e-mail. They have then rendered the account inaccessible by changing the e-mail of the Jagex account, and set up a new Jagex account with the same e-mail (and their own auth) to try and disguise this."
So nothing they can do? Or should I say: "allowed to do"? Isn't it crazy they know what happened though can't do anything? Why do they allow accounts going to hackers, botters & RWT'ers? Devastating to know that they just let it go like that because of the 'policy'...
They know the following, proving I'm the person that played on the accounts since the begining: IP Addresses, credit card details that paid for the memberships (years and years...), the email address being on the account since the begining, in game info that only the player that was on the account previously would know...
I know that having a compromised email address is a killer (don't know how it happened though, might be from years ago). But as they can say exactly what happened, why don't they use their own info to get the accounts back to their 'rightful' owner? They just let it slide and have hackers/RWT'ers go their way... At least they should ban the accounts if they think it got sold or whatever...
Your 50c would be greatly appreciated.
​

I had a non-refundable airline ticket where the flight was canceled, so it was replaced with a credit. The credit had to be used by the end of last year. When I called the airline last December to see if I could book a flight with the credit, or get it extended, the agent offered to refund it instead. I accepted that offer. After a few weeks without seeing the refund on the purchasing card, I phoned the airline again. I was told that it was indeed being refunded, but that an error had occurred and would be fixed. On following up again later, the airline reneged on the refund and instead offered another credit, which I accepted. However, when trying to book a flight with that credit they now say they’ll give me nothing. They’ve since admitted that I was misinformed with the refund offer, but will extend neither a refund or credit at this point. I’ve exhausted my attempts with customer service.
The question is: Are they legally required to stand by the phone agent’s refund offer, or subsequent agents’ credit extension, as that is what prevented me from using the credit in time?
If so, how can I pursue them in, I presume, small claims court, given that I’m in Canada and they’re a U.S. company?

I picked up a lot of cc debt right after college because I rushed to move and get a car and start my life when I definitely was not in a financial place to do so. Have felt like I was drowning since May with about 10,000 in car loans and 8,000 in cc debt. My score dropped to 650 in July 2023.
With the help of tips I read in this subreddit, I officially owe only $100 in cc debt which I will pay by the end of the month and now have only 8,000 left on my car note and finally feel like I can start saving for my future! My latest experian report showed 757 and at 23 I’m so proud and have learned a lot of lesson about credit cards and how to use them responsibly

Posting this not as self-indulgence, but as an anecdote for others who are on a similar path to my own. I've been in debt most of my adult life, this time 5 years ago I had the following
2019-2024 Debt List:

• £20,000 personal loan @ 5.7%
• £7,000 personal loan @ 7.9%
• £7,000 consumer debt (Credit Card @ 30%)
• £3,000 consumer debt (Paypal)
• Overdraft fluctuating but c£1k monthly

At the start of this, I had bought a flat with my partner and had to borrow to afford much of what we needed, I was earning £35,000pa in a low ceiling career in retail banking. I took a salary cut of £5,000 and retrained as a software engineer, worked hard and progressed to mid-level, then into senior which got me c£50,000pa pre-tax and £5,000 bonus.
I changed into Project Management within technology around a year ago, increased the salary to £83,000 with a bonus of £10,000 and as of this month, have managed to pay off the remainder of my debt.
I also fully understand I could've paid off this debt far sooner than five years, however I wanted to maintain a certain level of living in my 20s, and also paid for my wedding (c£18k contribution) without having to borrow for it and put my life on hold to quickly pay down debt. That was a conscious decision - don't always feel like you have to throw every disposable penny at your debt.
Now I'm through the other side I'm quite looking forward to generating some wealth by passively investing in ETFs through a Stocks & Shares ISA - once I have an emergency fund in place of course.
Key Factors of Success:

• Sacrifice: I love video games, but that wasn't going to pay off my debts. I worked extremely hard in the first year or so whilst teaching myself to code, most things that are worth having, aren't easy. Find solace in the grind and provided you remain consistent, you'll see the results.
• Budget: This is the most important thing financially that I maintained. Each month had a set budget and I stopped spending for others - I became comfortable with not joining in rounds (and having a pint or two less). I stopped agreeing to go on things that didn't fully interest me just to be included.
• Buy for the Long Term: It's completely fine to spend £100 on a fantastic coffee machine (shout out Lavazza) if it actually stops you buying Cafe Nero every morning. It's fine to spend £200 on adjustable dumbbells if you no longer require that £50pcm gym membership.
• Try to ignore the flagship: Once of the worst vices I had (being a techie) was constantly wanting the newest piece of tech - M1 Macbook, new iPad Pro, Windows laptop for gaming, OLED monitor. These were absolute financial quicksand for me. I'm finally at a place where I can impose self-discipline, but for consumer debt I really, really, want to let you know that you don't need the newest thing. And that newest thing will probably be -30% in 6 months time when the newest, new thing is released.
• Everybody can save something: I'm not writing this post on my now near £100k salary (of course you can pay off £20k debt on a £100k salary). I found ways when I earned £30k, then £35k, then £45k, then £50k to cut back on my spending. Vaping was one of my other vices which when I managed to stop, saved me just shy of £100/m on each of the above salary brackets. To clarify, this was a gradual chipping away at the tree, rather than a 'now I earn relatively well, I can make a balloon payment'. Go through your monthly expenses and you will most likely find one or two ways to cut back if your situation is dire.
• Never miss a payment: Regardless of your situation, always pay your debts and required payments first. The saving grace of me borrowing so much is my credit score is now very strong which stands me in good stead for when I upgrade on my flat in a year or two.

If anything here has resonated with you, I'm happy to talk through my process. The decade of financial struggle and maturing has lead me to a place where I know lending, repayment and saving quite well and would be happy to assist, if required.

I just started a new job. It is my very first job and I was so happy because that meant that I could finally be able to afford to start working on a project that I've wanted to work on since the 6th grade. But now I regret starting this job because it turned my home life into hell on earth. Everyone in my household just became so mean and has caused my depression to become so much worse. My dad let me borrow his credit card to get lunch and do any shopping I needed. I already agreed with my dad that $200 each paycheck would go towards paying back the credit card from any purchases I made using the credit card within the past two months. But after my mom found out she got super mad, spent a majority of the day yelling at me and said that everything I make has to go towards paying back the credit card, not just the $200. I talked to her today and asked if this continues, how am I going to be able to afford college and other fees like that and she just responded with "I don't know. You'll have to figure it out". Like, how am I supposed to just "figure it out" when I'm not making any money and all the money I am making, I don't even get to save and keep. I can't even get lunch at work anymore because I don't have enough money for that so I basically have to go hungry. I just don't know what to do anymore. Everyday is just hell for me and there is no escape. I'm stuck. I'm trapped. Like a rat in a cage. There is no escape. I can't trust anyone in my family anymore.

Hi y’all, I need some advice.
I (25 m) and 23(f) have two kids (2y and 8m) still living with our parents (just my MIL). We have been getting into a lot of arguments about us still living with our parents. I completely understand her but keep telling her financially we are not ready to rent or buy a house. I make around 65k working remote. First job in what I majored in (IT) and that we should save and pay high interest debt and incoming credit card with API 0% ending soon. The only major debt is her student loan of 10k with a whooping 13.5% interest rate (thanks Salle Mae) which totally could have been prevented had she not dropped one class when finishing her degree as a part time student (full ride).
Currently, I work M-F from 8pm-4:30pm and break up my lunch time up by helping her with the kids (SAHM). 98% of the time I wash Laundry, 92% fold/hang clothes. 85% cook meals, 95% wash dishes. Yet she still managed to complain that I am not doing enough around the house.
I constantly feel overwhelmed, as after work we go to the park with the kids knowing that nothing was done around the house. She wants me to do side hustle (remote) to hurry up and buy the house yet how can I have the time if I am doing pretty much all the chores? I pretty much don’t have any hobbies anymore.
She proceeds to tell me she is stressed and needs a maid/nanny to come twice a week. And that the reason she not helping is because she says I am not providing enough (not having our own place to do laundry, cook).
She called me a machista when I told her she could have folded laundry while she was enjoying her Netflix Show on her bed. (Youngest kid was sleeping while the oldest was with me meal prepping)
Am i in the wrong here? Not sure how to talk to her if it always ends in butting heads.