PC
Reddit Account: FromTheInkpot Discord Tag: jayonline Name and House: Tessario of Lys Age: 28 Cultural Group: Valyrian Appearance: Taller than the average man, with slender and effeminate features. His skin is pale, his hair consists of curled white locks and his eyes are a vivid lilac. He favours black leathers with silver accents, and often adds coloured silks as sashes, belts, or capes. On the middle finger of his left hand he wears a signet ring of black steel and gold, used to seal letters from the Pearl Bank. Trait: Marketer Skill(s): Avaricious (e), Merchantman (e), Broker Talent(s): Linguistics, Arithmetic, Reading People Negative Trait(s): Sociopath (non-mechanical) Starting Title(s): Keyholder of the Pearl Bank, Heir to the blood of Altaerys (secret) Starting Location: Opening Event Alternate Characters: N/A
Bio: Born in the year 4BC, Tessario was the son of a Lyseni courtesan and a nobleman of the Old Blood who had left for the Black Walls of Volantis before he even knew of the child. Growing up in Lys, Tessario was raised by his mother in a small manse where she would teach him lessons learnt from the courts of the free city. Since his mother first spoke to him tales of Valyria and dragon riders, Tessario was enthralled. His bloodline was of the forty families, from one of the few dragonlords on Lys during the 'Night of Tears', when the dragonlords had been poisoned and their dragons slain by their very hosts - the magisters. That the dragon rider had been his ancestor was his family's deepest secret and one that could have seen them killed in generations past. The knowledge that the dragon riders of old were his very ancestors was almost too much for the young boy to keep secret. Especially now, when dragons had waged conquest on Westeros' shores so recently. But while the Targaryen's were said to wed brother to sister to keep their bond with the dragons strong, his family had not had a dragon rider in five generations. Since then his family's bloodline - the house of Altaerys, thought lost in the Doom of Valyria and the Century of Blood since, had become clouded with the Old Blood of Volantis during their occupation of Lys. And before that, diluted among the courts of Lys the Lovely, where none truly knew or at least none spoke of how much dragon blood they had. It was clear most of Lys had some. The features of silver-blond or white hair and the eyes of pale blue or shades of purple were all too common. The city was truly Valyrian. Who knew how many dragonlords' legacies his blood carried now? Tessario, with his pure Valyrian blood and features to match, had the fiery will of his ancestors but an uncommonly pragmatic mind. As he grew, so did his keen mind, picking up his numbers and letters faster than other boys his age. Raised in the turbulence of a city still reeling from the uprising against Volantis, Tessario learnt how violent people could be at a young age. Surrounded by the cruelties of slavery, he grew up numbed to the hardships of others. By nine name-days he would begin visiting the Temple of Trade where he and other boys would talk with the magisters and tradesmen who congregated there. From among these wealthy and noble men of the city, he and a lucky few others, would gain apprenticeships; a position that was highly coveted in the city of Lys, where trade was considered a profession more honorable than arms. Tessario shadowed his sponsor for three years, learning the inner workings of trade negotiations, currency exchange, and contract creation. He met several other apprentices who like him hungered for more, as well as making friends among the less prominent families of Lys all too keen to climb the social ladder. So, when his apprenticeship was over they formed a merchantile group of ambitious youths. Tessario and the others began with insurance cons and profitable arbitrage that filled their pockets and funded bigger schemes. The war in the Stepstones came as a wondrous opportunity for the newly founded group. The members invested heavily, with some overseeing the battles themselves. Luckily the Lysene forces met up with not only those of Tyrosh, but also ships from Dorne and the Stormlands. Tessario wore armour for the first time as he sailed sellswords to the fighting, though did no more than watch in actuality. War made them rich and for the first time in his life Tessario knew what it was to wield true power. The power to make others die for your ends. The pirate threat crumbled easily, but the true prizes were had after the fighting. Contracts for trade opened up and new ports to invest in saw the merchantile group grow faster than ever before. They hired lingering hedge knights and sellswords to protect their assets and even convinced some of the former pirate vessels to become corsairs under them. As the Stepstones begin to flourish, the group started to look further afield for other trade routes. In 18AC, just as Dorne began to invest heavily in Sunstone, Tessario sailed to Driftmark as one of three emissaries of their group tasked with finding new avenues for profit. It was while on this mission that Tessario first met Valarr Velaryon, Lord of the Tides. Seeking a base of operations outside of Lys, Tessario negotiated plans for a bank to be built in Spicetown, profiting from the flow of trade. Tessario broached the concept to the group telling them of the pearls found by fishermen in the pools of the island's coves and a contract for the Pearl Bank was drawn up. Tessario, as one of the two-and-twenty key holders, was now responsible for much. Construction began in late 19AC with a main building that was reinforced with strong stone and deep vaults. Pearl farms under the control of the bank were also created, with construction of the entire project finishing before the end of 24AC. During this time the bank engaged in numerous amounts of trade, amassing a full vault, as well as funding loans to the many growing businesses of Spicetown, merchants of the free cities, and other Houses of Westeros. This includes House Massey of Stonedance, House Celtigar of Claw Isle, and many other minor houses.
Timeline: - 4BC - Tessario is born in a Lysene manse. - 6AC - Begins a trade apprenticeship for three years. - 9AC - Forms a merchantile group in Lys. - 12AC - Funds the war in the Stepstones. - 13AC - War in the Stepstones ends. - 18AC - Visits Driftmark as an emissary, meeting Valarr Velaryon. - 19AC - The Pearl Bank begins construction. - 24AC - Construction is completed. - 25AC - Current day.
Family tree: https://familyecho.com/?p=START&c=izpgpsokcmwmhxa6&f=478495015333730745
AC
Name and House: Somovo Saan Age: 21 Cultural Group: Valyrian Appearance: Piercing blue eyes shine out from dark features. Somovo has a lean build and freckled face from years of sailing the Narrow and Summer Seas. Her skin is dark and her hair falls in long brown curls down past her shoulders, the occasional braid holding beads of copper. She often wears loose shirts and wide breeches that allow her skin to breathe the salty air of the sea, while sticking to practical leather boots for moving about the deck. She has a slender black cat named Sȳndor 'shadow' that lives on deck and prowls the bank offices while on shore. Trait: Reaver Skill(s): Raider, Fence, Tactician Talent(s): Winning at Tiles, Tying knots, Swimming Negative Trait(s): N/A Starting Title(s): Captain of the Spice Runner Starting Location: Opening Event Alternate Characters: N/A
Timeline: - 4AC - Somovo Saan is born in Lys. - 9AC - Somovo's father, Sarthos Saan, takes her on her first voyage to Tyrosh. - 12AC - Her father leaves to fight for the pirates in the Stepstones war. - 13AC - After the pirates defeat in the Steptones, her father is hired by a group of merchants from Lys. Somovo meets Tessario, one of the groups founders. - 18AC - Meets the sellsail Captain Laurei of Myr who becomes an inspiration for her to become a Captain of her own ship. - 19AC - When the Pearl Bank begins construction on Driftmark, Somovo is on deck with her father and they patrol the Narrow Sea together, guarding trading vessels and seeking opportunities for their new employer. - 21AC - Somovo is given command of her own ship and crew, becoming Captain of The Spice Runner, named after Spicetown. - 22AC - Her father's ship is lost at sea during a storm near Volantis. The corsairs previously under Sarthos turn to her for leadership by virtue of her blood. - 24AC - Construction of The Pearl Bank is completed on Driftmark. - 25AC - Current day.
NPCs Morio (30) - Cutthroat Every man of ambition needs a ruthless and silent right hand. Ser Thomas Storm (27) - Warrior Knighted by Ser Edwell Celtigar in the Stepstones and knowing he would gain no further gold or glory, he joined the merchantile group from Lys to train their retainers and act as Captain of the Guard to Tessario. Since then he notably won the joust at the Tourney at Aegon's Rest in 21AC.

Introduction

The main purpose of this guide will be to help unlock the golden dice for those of you who feel less confident about tackling honour mode. This is designed to be a path of least resistance, so we won’t be experiencing everything this game has to offer. It’s also worth noting that instead of focusing on min-maxing for damage; we prioritise safe & consistent damage. We don’t need to be respeccing characters often, if at all, and we won’t be relying on strength elixirs. My girlfriend (u/-babyjanehudson) and I put this together as we’ve beaten honour mode a 5 times now without any failed attempts, we were even in the first 800 people to beat it which is kinda cool! Here’s how we did it. First starting with our builds, then a little general advice and finally just a list of some general Do’s & Don’ts. Apologies for the wall of text.
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Builds:

Bardlock (party face) - Great old one Warlock 2, college of lore bard 10 - Cha16>Dex16>Con14>Wis12

• Key items are the spell sparkler until Markoheshkir, potent robe, quickspell gloves, necklace of elemental augmentation & the warped headband of intellect (great for general party face checks in acts 1+2) at least until you get the birthright at sorcerers sundries in act 3. Once I reach act 3 and have persuaded half of the shadow cursed lands into dying, I personally choose to respec into Sorlock: 2 goolock, 2 fighter, 8 draconic sorcerer. It’s not necessary but I find it gives the edge in combat while in act 3, as there are less dialogue checks available that bard can abuse. Being a sorlock means every morning in camp I can convert ALL level 1+2 spell slots into extra sorcery slots meaning my bonus action is now always being used for eldritch blast thanks to quickened spell meta magic plus we have action surge :) Skill priority for this character is Persuasuion > Intimidation > Deception > Performance > Perception > Investigation. Credit to u/kethrynweryn for this build, it’s easily my fav in the game.

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Life cleric 12 - Wis16>Con16>Dex14>Str
(light cleric does more damage so is technically better for experienced players but a life cleric is there to save your run in case of an emergency, something pretty invaluable to beginners in HM as we can’t assume we are winning every fight in the first 2 turns like we ideally aim to)

• key items are reapers embrace, sentinel shield, hell riders pride, the whispering promise & blood of lathander. Other items of note would be luminous armor & the radiant/illumation rings. Most fights will simply involve casting spirit guardians at its highest level and running through crowds of enemies like you’re mowing a lawn, picking up the war caster feat is brilliant for helping you keep concentration when taking attacks of opportunity but i know as a feat it’s a little divisive, just my personal preference. This setup trivialises all combat encounters in act 2. Just remember to check enemies for radiant retort, they’re few and far between but can fuck things up if you forget.

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Swords Bard Archer (Lockpicker) - 6 Swords Bard, 4 Rogue Thief, 2 Fighter - Dex17>Cha14>Con14>Wis12>Str

• Key items are hag hair (+1dex), titan string, risky ring, hill giant club, helm of arcane acuity & band of the mystic scoundrel. With this setup every time you attack, you can hold person, fear, vicious mockery or invisibility as a bonus action :) Just make sure to use your slashing flourish as much as possible to maximise damage. Don’t forget to get to the high ground whenever possible to increase your damage.

Skill priority for this character is Sleight of hand > Stealth > Perception > Persuasion > Intimidation > Deception > Acrobatics
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Barbarian - Wild heart Bear Barb 8, Battle Master Fighter 4 - Str16>Con16>Dex14>Wis12

• Key items are more flexible here as this build is less dependant on gear. I recommend grabbing the Everburn blade if you can, it really helps during the slog of act 1 (to get it easily, when you first find Shadowheart on the nautiloid immediately swap any one of the spells in her book for Command, then use command drop on Zhalk and steal his sword. I do not recommend trying to fight him for it). Most the time you’ll just wear the usual barb stuff, bracers of defence & a 2H weapon of your choice. If you’re willing to brave Raphael & Ansur this build becomes a powerhouse with the gauntlets of hill giant strength, amulet of health & Baldurans giantslayer. These items are incredible but are also locked behind fights which pose the highest risk to your run, prepare carefully and if you don't feel confident enough then don’t be ashamed to just skip them. Anyway we take wild heart bear because being resistant to everything but psychic damage is really underrated. You can use this character to abuse the poor souls that your swords bard has been using hold person on for easy crits. Make sure to always use reckless attack. Initially it sounds bizarre but stick with me, you want enemies to have advantage against your barb. Attacking recklessly while keeping your AC capped around 17~19 means the computer always prioritises attacking your barb’ over the rest of your party. This is great as we will be taking half damage from every source other than psychic. Not to mention if you’re always using reckless attack, the feat Great Weapon Master no longer has a downside, so it becomes a reliable +10 to damage.

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Final note for builds:
As you’ve probably noticed, yes almost everybody in the party takes a dip in fighter for access to action surge & shield proficiency. I learned this habit from Colby like everything else I know. He’s the Bob Ross of DnD builds and well worth your time.
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General Advice

The most important factor in honour mode is “meta knowledge”, This means things like: knowing how to enter each combat effectively, making sure everyone is in a good position before starting, knowing exactly which enemies/spells you’ll face during that fight and ensuring you always take the enemy by surprise to gain a free turn. Being properly prepared is better than any build. As for difficulty, Act 1 is always going to be your biggest challenge so use plenty of rests and pick your fights carefully. For this guide I also recommend using your bard to persuade the act 2 bosses into committing suicide.

Do’s:

• Always have a these spells prepared: longstrider, aid, enhance ability, bless, misty step, heroes feast, counterspell, shield & guidance.
  
• Buy the ring of bless from Volo the moment you meet him at the grove.
  
• Steal Laezel’s armor at the start if you’re not using her, it’s great medium armor in the first few hours.
  
• Let Volo take your eye for a permanent see invisibility buff.
  
• Barbarian should always use reckless attack
  
• Buy & craft every potion of speed you can get your grubby mitts on. With the slight nerfs to Haste in HM potions of speed are a safer alternative.
  
• Take the Hag hair +1dex for swords bard and most the time just let Ethel have Mayrina, its fiddly to control who Ethel will offer the deal to so just go in being prepared to sacrifice Mayrina.
  
• Talk to crusher outside the goblin camp and persuade him to kiss your feet. He'll run off embaressed, follow him to the bridge away from all the other goblins. Now you can safely and easily kill him to loot his ring which increases movement speed.
  
• Use your party face to poison the goblin camp in act 1, killing over half of them outside before even entering combat and then the party face can simply deny everything.
  
• Look up the wiki page for every boss and check their legendary resistances/actions BEFORE starting the encounter. Ethel, inquisitor w’wargaz, cazador, steel watch titan & Nether brain specifically can do some seriously nasty stuff that’s exclusive to HM & can easily catch you off guard.
  
• Kill Balthazar in his room/lab where you first meet him. To make the fight even easier you can take flesh into the self same trial using the bell so you don’t have to fight him alongside Balthazar. Either way it’s a much easier than the fighting in the shadowfell.
  
• Take alert if someone has a spare feat available, otherwise increasing your main ability score is usually the best bet.
  
• Cast sanctuary on Isobel during the raid on the last light in, a lot easier than chasing after her trying to heal & blade ward her. Alternatively ignore her altogether, go straight to ambush against the drider, grab the lantern and release dolly dolly dolly, allowing you to skip the Isobel & Marcus’s fight altogether.
  
• Keep characters ability scores in even values when possible, odd values do not change anything (with a slight exception to constitution as odd values still give a little extra hp).
  
• Try to keep all characters at 12 Wis or higher to avoid being feared, charmed or hold person’d.
  
• Cast darkness over Halsins portal to prevent enemies attacking it.
  
• Take Gortash's deal to skip his fight & the steel foundry.
  
• Use minor illusion to group enemies together & pull them out of position before initiating combat. You can also use this method to fix broken NPC’s when they’re not standing where they’re meant to. Looking at you Alfira & Lakrissa.
  
• If you’re open to a little cheesing you can leave some ranged/throwing party members on the steps before the Grym boss fight. Now just rain hell down on the boss from safety.
  
• Globe of invulnerability is exactly as broken as it sounds. These scrolls restock daily at sorcerers sundries & trivialise every boss encounter in act 3. Ansur specifically has no way of countering this.
  
• Illithid powers. These wriggly little cuties are some of the strongest buffs/abilities available. I recommend having every possible party member take atleast: favourable beginnings, luck of the far realms, ability drain & cull the weak. If you opt to go half illithid then you get access to some outrageous kit such as: fly, psionic dominance, illithid expertise & blackhole.
  
• Summon any minions before casting Aid, Heroes feast, Longstrider & other morning buffs.
  
• Use your potions, elixirs & scrolls as much as possible. They’re literally everywhere & with good reason. A well timed potion of invisibility or scroll of misty step can save a run.
  
• Most people know this already but don’t forget you can throw healing potions at allies in a pinch.
  
• Before descending the stairs to Cazador’s fight have a party member go invisible. They can run over and free Astarion before rolling initiative. This method can also be used to free Volo, Mayrina, Aylin or set up smokepowder barrels for a one turn kill.
  
• Use darkness to cover any pickpocketing and then flee the area before the NPC notices they've been got.
  
• Only trade with vendors using your highest persuasion character.
  
• Give your frequently visited vendors a few hundred gold to max out their attitude. this way you have the best prices for both buying and selling.
  
• Remember you can skip the final fight altogether using the dialogue option (important distinction) to blow Gale up at the brain stem in act 3.
  

Don’ts:

• Don’t awaken at the Zaithisk unless you’re certain you can make the checks, there is a great guide on respeccing for this exact moment credit to u/kodiak3393.
  
• Don't use friends, guidance or any other spell when bargaining with Ethel for Mayrina & the hag hair. It will trigger Ethel's legendary action and prevent you from getting the hag hair.
  
• Don’t free Orpheus unless you're prepared to also fight the Emperor in the final fight.
  
• Don’t play as durge for the first time. Worth noting the cloak exclusive to durge is easily the best in the game but being durge throws the player some unexpected curveballs that can end a run if you're not prepared.
  
• Don’t keep sharpshooter toggled on permanenlty unless you’ve got risky ring or oil of accuracy.
  
• Don’t try & save the gondians, don’t go to the iron throne, do not pass go, do not collect £200
  
• Don’t underestimate Flind the and other Gnolls who are attacking Rugan in act 1, you ideally want to be level 4 before this fight. Ensure to start the encounter from insidde the cave where Rugan is trapped, it can be accessed from the area near the fake paladins of tyr & Karlach.
  
• Don’t use the cantrip Friends unless you plan on immediately leaving the area or killing the target.
  
• Don’t convince Ketheric to commit suicide at the mindlfayer colony. Instead use the first phase of the fight to get into position & takeout the Mindflayer asasp then get to work on the apostles. Makes phase 2 infinitely easier.
  
• Don’t talk to Wulbren or the Tieflings in the Moonrise prison until you’ve killed the warden and all the guards . These guards are utterly brain dead and somehow will never inform anyone upstairs of your massacre, regardless of how stealthily or raucously you tackle them. So just go hog wild. This’ll secure your potent robe with ease.
  

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[Updated & reformatted version of the guide I wrote and posted a few months ago on bg3builds with my old account u/JoseMongo]

I like going zone to zone in the blackzone to gather. I like to go into the mists when I see an uncommon or above. Also just go in them after I've been scouted.
I haven't played in over a year.
I assume mining boots, fort Sterling cape. For weapon I normally try to bait cleans with double blade stun run be debating on changing to swords. I normally run a cleans on the helmet.
Mount I'm heading the ram is the best right now. I wasn't much of a fan of it before but will probably switch to it. Any advice to a returning player would be greatly appreciated. Seems like most solo activities have been heavily nerfed.
I was trying mists solos, for PVP, money and fame. Good on books but not so much on money unless you are winning lots of fights

From fuel used by moving trucks to piles of cardboard boxes left behind, traditional moving practices contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and resource depletion. But there's good news! The moving industry has taken steps toward sustainability with eco-friendly options for an eco-friendly beginning to your new journey.
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Fuel-Efficient Fleets: Green movers prefer fuel-efficient vehicles such as hybrid or electric trucks to reduce emissions. Recycled Packing Materials: To minimize waste, green movers use recycled cardboard boxes, biodegradable packing peanuts, and reusable bins when packing material is required.
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Beyond hiring an eco-friendly moving service provider, individuals can also take steps to promote eco-friendliness during their move. Here are some innovative packing materials they should keep in mind:
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Can anyone provide me more insights, how they use models to generate hypothesis, as opposed to confirm hypothesis?
From here:
https://r4ds.had.co.nz/introduction.html
"It’s possible to divide data analysis into two camps: hypothesis generation and hypothesis confirmation (sometimes called confirmatory analysis). The focus of this book is unabashedly on hypothesis generation, or data exploration. Here you’ll look deeply at the data and, in combination with your subject knowledge, generate many interesting hypotheses to help explain why the data behaves the way it does. You evaluate the hypotheses informally, using your scepticism to challenge the data in multiple ways.
The complement of hypothesis generation is hypothesis confirmation. Hypothesis confirmation is hard for two reasons:

1. You need a precise mathematical model in order to generate falsifiable predictions. This often requires considerable statistical sophistication.
2. You can only use an observation once to confirm a hypothesis. As soon as you use it more than once you’re back to doing exploratory analysis. This means to do hypothesis confirmation you need to “preregister” (write out in advance) your analysis plan, and not deviate from it even when you have seen the data. We’ll talk a little about some strategies you can use to make this easier in modelling.

It’s common to think about modelling as a tool for hypothesis confirmation, and visualisation as a tool for hypothesis generation. But that’s a false dichotomy: models are often used for exploration, and with a little care you can use visualisation for confirmation. The key difference is how often do you look at each observation: if you look only once, it’s confirmation; if you look more than once, it’s exploration."

Professor Woodrow Wilson once said that every man sent out from a university should be a man of his nation as well as a man of his time, and I am confident that the men and women who carry the honor of graduating from this institution will continue to give from their lives, from their talents, a high measure of public service and public support.
"There are few earthly things more beautiful than a university," wrote John Masefield in his tribute to English universities--and his words are equally true today. He did not refer to spires and towers, to campus greens and ivied walls. He admired the splendid beauty of the university, he said, because it was "a place where those who hate ignorance may strive to know, where those who perceive truth may strive to make others see."
I have, therefore, chosen this time and this place to discuss a topic on which ignorance too often abounds and the truth is too rarely perceived--yet it is the most important topic on earth: world peace.
What kind of peace do I mean? What kind of peace do we seek? Not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children--not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women--not merely peace in our time but peace for all time.
I speak of peace because of the new face of war. Total war makes no sense in an age when great powers can maintain large and relatively invulnerable nuclear forces and refuse to surrender without resort to those forces. It makes no sense in an age when a single nuclear weapon contains almost ten times the explosive force delivered by all the allied air forces in the Second World War. It makes no sense in an age when the deadly poisons produced by a nuclear exchange would be carried by wind and water and soil and seed to the far corners of the globe and to generations yet unborn.
Today the expenditure of billions of dollars every year on weapons acquired for the purpose of making sure we never need to use them is essential to keeping the peace. But surely the acquisition of such idle stockpiles--which can only destroy and never create--is not the only, much less the most efficient, means of assuring peace.
I speak of peace, therefore, as the necessary rational end of rational men. I realize that the pursuit of peace is not as dramatic as the pursuit of war--and frequently the words of the pursuer fall on deaf ears. But we have no more urgent task.
Some say that it is useless to speak of world peace or world law or world disarmament--and that it will be useless until the leaders of the Soviet Union adopt a more enlightened attitude. I hope they do. I believe we can help them do it. But I also believe that we must reexamine our own attitude--as individuals and as a Nation--for our attitude is as essential as theirs. And every graduate of this school, every thoughtful citizen who despairs of war and wishes to bring peace, should begin by looking inward--by examining his own attitude toward the possibilities of peace, toward the Soviet Union, toward the course of the cold war and toward freedom and peace here at home.
First: Let us examine our attitude toward peace itself. Too many of us think it is impossible. Too many think it unreal. But that is a dangerous, defeatist belief. It leads to the conclusion that war is inevitable--that mankind is doomed--that we are gripped by forces we cannot control.
We need not accept that view. Our problems are manmade--therefore, they can be solved by man. And man can be as big as he wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings. Man's reason and spirit have often solved the seemingly unsolvable--and we believe they can do it again.
I am not referring to the absolute, infinite concept of peace and good will of which some fantasies and fanatics dream. I do not deny the value of hopes and dreams but we merely invite discouragement and incredulity by making that our only and immediate goal.
Let us focus instead on a more practical, more attainable peace-- based not on a sudden revolution in human nature but on a gradual evolution in human institutions--on a series of concrete actions and effective agreements which are in the interest of all concerned. There is no single, simple key to this peace--no grand or magic formula to be adopted by one or two powers. Genuine peace must be the product of many nations, the sum of many acts. It must be dynamic, not static, changing to meet the challenge of each new generation. For peace is a process--a way of solving problems.
With such a peace, there will still be quarrels and conflicting interests, as there are within families and nations. World peace, like community peace, does not require that each man love his neighbor--it requires only that they live together in mutual tolerance, submitting their disputes to a just and peaceful settlement. And history teaches us that enmities between nations, as between individuals, do not last forever. However fixed our likes and dislikes may seem, the tide of time and events will often bring surprising changes in the relations between nations and neighbors.
So let us persevere. Peace need not be impracticable, and war need not be inevitable. By defining our goal more clearly, by making it seem more manageable and less remote, we can help all peoples to see it, to draw hope from it, and to move irresistibly toward it.
Second: Let us reexamine our attitude toward the Soviet Union. It is discouraging to think that their leaders may actually believe what their propagandists write. It is discouraging to read a recent authoritative Soviet text on Military Strategy and find, on page after page, wholly baseless and incredible claims--such as the allegation that "American imperialist circles are preparing to unleash different types of wars . . . that there is a very real threat of a preventive war being unleashed by American imperialists against the Soviet Union . . . [and that] the political aims of the American imperialists are to enslave economically and politically the European and other capitalist countries . . . [and] to achieve world domination . . . by means of aggressive wars."
Truly, as it was written long ago: "The wicked flee when no man pursueth." Yet it is sad to read these Soviet statements--to realize the extent of the gulf between us. But it is also a warning--a warning to the American people not to fall into the same trap as the Soviets, not to see only a distorted and desperate view of the other side, not to see conflict as inevitable, accommodation as impossible, and communication as nothing more than an exchange of threats.
No government or social system is so evil that its people must be considered as lacking in virtue. As Americans, we find communism profoundly repugnant as a negation of personal freedom and dignity. But we can still hail the Russian people for their many achievements--in science and space, in economic and industrial growth, in culture and in acts of courage.
Among the many traits the peoples of our two countries have in common, none is stronger than our mutual abhorrence of war. Almost unique among the major world powers, we have never been at war with each other. And no nation in the history of battle ever suffered more than the Soviet Union suffered in the course of the Second World War. At least 20 million lost their lives. Countless millions of homes and farms were burned or sacked. A third of the nation's territory, including nearly two thirds of its industrial base, was turned into a wasteland--a loss equivalent to the devastation of this country east of Chicago.
Today, should total war ever break out again--no matter how--our two countries would become the primary targets. It is an ironic but accurate fact that the two strongest powers are the two in the most danger of devastation. All we have built, all we have worked for, would be destroyed in the first 24 hours. And even in the cold war, which brings burdens and dangers to so many nations, including this Nation's closest allies--our two countries bear the heaviest burdens. For we are both devoting massive sums of money to weapons that could be better devoted to combating ignorance, poverty, and disease. We are both caught up in a vicious and dangerous cycle in which suspicion on one side breeds suspicion on the other, and new weapons beget counterweapons.
In short, both the United States and its allies, and the Soviet Union and its allies, have a mutually deep interest in a just and genuine peace and in halting the arms race. Agreements to this end are in the interests of the Soviet Union as well as ours--and even the most hostile nations can be relied upon to accept and keep those treaty obligations, and only those treaty obligations, which are in their own interest.
So, let us not be blind to our differences--but let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal.
Third: Let us reexamine our attitude toward the cold war, remembering that we are not engaged in a debate, seeking to pile up debating points. We are not here distributing blame or pointing the finger of judgment. We must deal with the world as it is, and not as it might have been had the history of the last 18 years been different.
We must, therefore, persevere in the search for peace in the hope that constructive changes within the Communist bloc might bring within reach solutions which now seem beyond us. We must conduct our affairs in such a way that it becomes in the Communists' interest to agree on a genuine peace. Above all, while defending our own vital interests, nuclear powers must avert those confrontations which bring an adversary to a choice of either a humiliating retreat or a nuclear war. To adopt that kind of course in the nuclear age would be evidence only of the bankruptcy of our policy--or of a collective death-wish for the world.
To secure these ends, America's weapons are nonprovocative, carefully controlled, designed to deter, and capable of selective use. Our military forces are committed to peace and disciplined in self- restraint. Our diplomats are instructed to avoid unnecessary irritants and purely rhetorical hostility.
For we can seek a relaxation of tension without relaxing our guard. And, for our part, we do not need to use threats to prove that we are resolute. We do not need to jam foreign broadcasts out of fear our faith will be eroded. We are unwilling to impose our system on any unwilling people--but we are willing and able to engage in peaceful competition with any people on earth.
Meanwhile, we seek to strengthen the United Nations, to help solve its financial problems, to make it a more effective instrument for peace, to develop it into a genuine world security system--a system capable of resolving disputes on the basis of law, of insuring the security of the large and the small, and of creating conditions under which arms can finally be abolished.
At the same time we seek to keep peace inside the non-Communist world, where many nations, all of them our friends, are divided over issues which weaken Western unity, which invite Communist intervention or which threaten to erupt into war. Our efforts in West New Guinea, in the Congo, in the Middle East, and in the Indian subcontinent, have been persistent and patient despite criticism from both sides. We have also tried to set an example for others--by seeking to adjust small but significant differences with our own closest neighbors in Mexico and in Canada.
Speaking of other nations, I wish to make one point clear. We are bound to many nations by alliances. Those alliances exist because our concern and theirs substantially overlap. Our commitment to defend Western Europe and West Berlin, for example, stands undiminished because of the identity of our vital interests. The United States will make no deal with the Soviet Union at the expense of other nations and other peoples, not merely because they are our partners, but also because their interests and ours converge.
Our interests converge, however, not only in defending the frontiers of freedom, but in pursuing the paths of peace. It is our hope-- and the purpose of allied policies--to convince the Soviet Union that she, too, should let each nation choose its own future, so long as that choice does not interfere with the choices of others. The Communist drive to impose their political and economic system on others is the primary cause of world tension today. For there can be no doubt that, if all nations could refrain from interfering in the self-determination of others, the peace would be much more assured.
This will require a new effort to achieve world law--a new context for world discussions. It will require increased understanding between the Soviets and ourselves. And increased understanding will require increased contact and communication. One step in this direction is the proposed arrangement for a direct line between Moscow and Washington, to avoid on each side the dangerous delays, misunderstandings, and misreadings of the other's actions which might occur at a time of crisis.
We have also been talking in Geneva about the other first-step measures of arms control designed to limit the intensity of the arms race and to reduce the risks of accidental war. Our primary long range interest in Geneva, however, is general and complete disarmament-- designed to take place by stages, permitting parallel political developments to build the new institutions of peace which would take the place of arms. The pursuit of disarmament has been an effort of this Government since the 1920's. It has been urgently sought by the past three administrations. And however dim the prospects may be today, we intend to continue this effort--to continue it in order that all countries, including our own, can better grasp what the problems and possibilities of disarmament are.
The one major area of these negotiations where the end is in sight, yet where a fresh start is badly needed, is in a treaty to outlaw nuclear tests. The conclusion of such a treaty, so near and yet so far, would check the spiraling arms race in one of its most dangerous areas. It would place the nuclear powers in a position to deal more effectively with one of the greatest hazards which man faces in 1963, the further spread of nuclear arms. It would increase our security--it would decrease the prospects of war. Surely this goal is sufficiently important to require our steady pursuit, yielding neither to the temptation to give up the whole effort nor the temptation to give up our insistence on vital and responsible safeguards.
I am taking this opportunity, therefore, to announce two important decisions in this regard.
First: Chairman Khrushchev, Prime Minister Macmillan, and I have agreed that high-level discussions will shortly begin in Moscow looking toward early agreement on a comprehensive test ban treaty. Our hopes must be tempered with the caution of history--but with our hopes go the hopes of all mankind.
Second: To make clear our good faith and solemn convictions on the matter, I now declare that the United States does not propose to conduct nuclear tests in the atmosphere so long as other states do not do so. We will not be the first to resume. Such a declaration is no substitute for a formal binding treaty, but I hope it will help us achieve one. Nor would such a treaty be a substitute for disarmament, but I hope it will help us achieve it.
Finally, my fellow Americans, let us examine our attitude toward peace and freedom here at home. The quality and spirit of our own society must justify and support our efforts abroad. We must show it in the dedication of our own lives--as many of you who are graduating today will have a unique opportunity to do, by serving without pay in the Peace Corps abroad or in the proposed National Service Corps here at home.
But wherever we are, we must all, in our daily lives, live up to the age-old faith that peace and freedom walk together. In too many of our cities today, the peace is not secure because the freedom is incomplete.
It is the responsibility of the executive branch at all levels of government--local, State, and National--to provide and protect that freedom for all of our citizens by all means within their authority. It is the responsibility of the legislative branch at all levels, wherever that authority is not now adequate, to make it adequate. And it is the responsibility of all citizens in all sections of this country to respect the rights of all others and to respect the law of the land.
All this is not unrelated to world peace. "When a man's ways please the Lord," the Scriptures tell us, "he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him." And is not peace, in the last analysis, basically a matter of human rights--the right to live out our lives without fear of devastation--the right to breathe air as nature provided it--the right of future generations to a healthy existence?
While we proceed to safeguard our national interests, let us also safeguard human interests. And the elimination of war and arms is clearly in the interest of both. No treaty, however much it may be to the advantage of all, however tightly it may be worded, can provide absolute security against the risks of deception and evasion. But it can--if it is sufficiently effective in its enforcement and if it is sufficiently in the interests of its signers--offer far more security and far fewer risks than an unabated, uncontrolled, unpredictable arms race.
The United States, as the world knows, will never start a war. We do not want a war. We do not now expect a war. This generation of Americans has already had enough--more than enough--of war and hate and oppression. We shall be prepared if others wish it. We shall be alert to try to stop it. But we shall also do our part to build a world of peace where the weak are safe and the strong are just. We are not helpless before that task or hopeless of its success. Confident and unafraid, we labor on--not toward a strategy of annihilation but toward a strategy of peace.

Captain Hierlock eyed Craiven. As young as the prince was, he WAS an impressive leader.
​
Hierlock:”Shame you’re a traitor, kid. You could have been a lot of help to the kingdom. Instead, you caused Morrion to burn.”
​
He charged, hammer high. Craiven, seeing the Captain's charge, quickly swung his lantern to the side. Bracing himself, he narrowly managed to cast a shield spell.
​
Craiven:"The Andricari are the ones responsible, captain! We are only trying to help get as many people out of there as possible."
​
The captain roared.
​
Hierlock:”Nobody would have gone to Morrion if you hadn’t made camp near it in the first place! That is all you rebels do! Hide in cities and towns, hoping the civilians will serve as meat shields!”
​
Hierlock swung his hammer sideways, going for Craiven’s head. Just as Craiven manages to duck, the hammer narrowly missing his head frill by an inch, he keeps trying to reason with the captain.
​
Craiven:"That is not why we came here. We came here to free Morrion, not see it razed to the ground!"
​
The captain charged forward with his shield, the glowing blade protruding from it aimed at Craiven’s torso.
​
Hierlock:”Oh really, free it from who? Morrion was fine until you treacherous fucks came along!”
​
Dodging just an inch to the captain's right, the Prince used this chance to grab a shield from off the ground.
​
Craiven:"From Acidor! He is using you, just as he is using the royalists! Think of it, Captain! If we sought to harm the people of Morrion, why would we have come this way? Why would we have fought alongside your home's leader in Morrion's hour of need?"
​
Hierlock:”Acidor? Using us? He’s just not on the priority list yet.”
​
Curiously, the captain evaded the question of why would the rebels come to the Black Pit, as if he didn’t have an answer. For just a moment, he paused his onslaught to think.
​
Hierlock:”And yet you ask for my trust, when many of the rebels are just traitors. You, your father, and many others, all just bastards breaking their oaths!”
​
He swung again, a devastating overhead attack. Even as Craiven shielded himself with the discarded shield, this crushing blow still sent him crashing to the ground. His heart began thumping erratically, seeing the Captain standing over him. He only had a second to think, grasping onto his hand-crossbow.
​
Craiven:"B-Blinding flash!"
​
As he called out, as a streak of light shot out from the hand crossbow.
​
Hierlock:”Arg! Fuck!”
​
Hierlock rubbed his eyes with his gauntlet, careful not to stab them out with his hammer. Though his vision was blurry, he kept attacking, just with less accuracy, a mighty swing of his hammer followed by a slash using the blade on his shield. Hurriedly clambering to his feet, Craiven uses this opportunity to grab his faithful shield. He was able to bat aside the Captain's bladed shield, but as he raises the Coward's Yelp above his head....an ear-splitting sound of crunching metal signalled the end of his trusted shield's service. As the bifurcated shield landed on the ground, split in half by the hammer's might, Craiven's focus shifted from engaging the Captain at close range to grabbing the nearest polearm in the hopes that he could stall the giant's furious onslaught. Hierlock was ready and winding up for a blow that would hit Craiven so hard his ancestors from five generations ago would flinch in their graves, when doubts stopped him. Once again, his mind wandered back to the question. WHY would the rebels go all the way out here to hurt Morrion? Were they seeking some of the magic artifacts the late (but not missed) Inquisitor Skurtap was rumored to be hiding? Or were the traitor prince’s words true, and were the rebels really seeking to help Morrion. Either way, his thoughts stalled the captain. Steeling himself, Craiven readied the battle-damaged polearm gripped tightly in his hands. He could see that the Captain hesitated. Were he a mere soldier, he could have used this opportunity to exploit Hierlock's weakened state.
​
Craiven:"My word as Prince of this realm may not mean anything to you or your peers, Hierlock, but it is the truth! For the sake of our people, for Duke Zorrual, you must allow us passage."
​
Hierlock looked around. His troops were getting overwhelmed despite their numbers advantage. He growled.
​
Hierlock:”Enough!”
​
His hammer igniting with divine light, he swung it towards Craiven, cracking the ground with a destruction wave (that’s the correct name for that spell, right?). Between his frustration and doubts, he lashed out with his paladin might. Grasping the polearm, Craiven leapt backward. The moment he lands, he fumbles, tripping over a discarded helmet.
​
Craiven:"Oof!"
​
Shaking his head, he then held the discarded soldier's polearm ready. Raising himself into a kneeling position, he braces the polearm steady, grasping the haft with both hands as he lifts it above his head. As the captain was about to follow up on the powerful spell, he nearly charged head first into the raised polearm, almost stabbing his own eye out. Stopping just barely, he instead spun around, swinging his tail at Craiven. Craiven gruntsed as he wass knocked to the side by Hierlock's tail. He winced, before rolling to the side as his hand wrapped around the hilt of a discarded sword. Standing back to his feet, the Prince's eyes met the Captain's. His left shoulder felt like he had a boulder thrown at him. The captain glared at the prince, a mix of rage and doubts on his face.
​
Hierlock:”I gave you rebels a chance to surrender! You CHOSE to fight! As they did in Morrion!”
​
The captain, still full of rage and doubts, charged at Craiven, his head lowered as he went in for a charge not dissimilar to a bull or a rhino. Ducking out of the way, Craiven scarcely realised he had dropped his weapon until seconds after the Captain's charge.
​
Craiven:"And yet we chose to fight FOR Morrion's sake, against those who would see it burned to the ground!"
​
As the captain stormed past, he charged right into a tree. Dazed from the impact, he barely heard Craiven’s words. But even barely, he DID hear them. Still torn between doubts and fury, the Captain charged again, this time going in for a kick to the chest. Rolling again onto his side, Craiven grabbed the haft of his prior weapon. With only a second to aim, he used his good arm to throw the spear directly at the Captain's lower body.
​
Craiven:"RRRAAAGGH!"
​
Hierlock:”RAGH!!”
​
The captain roared as the spear hit him right below the knee. Dropping his hammer, he pulled it out and threw it at Craiven, though as he did his leg gave out, forcing him onto one knee. Hitting the dirt in front of him, Craiven could hear the spear whistle just inches from his head. When he looked up, he could see the injured Captain on one knee. Cautiously, the Prince walked over to Captain Hierlock. He glanced down at him, his hand curling up into a fist, before he breathed a laboured sigh.
​
Craiven:"Call off your men."
​
Hierlock looks around, seeing only one man still standing, a venator in the back.
​
Hierlock:”Grrrrr. I yield.”
​
The lone venator looked shocked at the captain as the captain put his hammer down, glaring at the prince with a mixture of hatred and confusion, as well as a sliver of respect for his combat prowess.
​
Hierlock:”Now what?”
​
Follow up comic soon for the first major decision

Baidu’s robotaxi unit expects to turn profitable next year
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/15/baidus-robotaxi-unit-expects-to-turn-profitable-next-year.html
​
KEY POINTS

• Chinese tech company Baidu said Wednesday its Apollo Go robotaxi arm expects to turn profitable next year.
• Baidu is one of the major players in China’s nascent robotaxi market and received permission from a Beijing city district to begin charging fares in November 2021.
• Apollo Go operated about 839,000 rides in the last three months of 2023, according to Baidu’s latest earnings report. The company is due to release quarterly results Thursday.

​
Chinese tech company Baidu said Wednesday its Apollo Go robotaxi arm expects to turn profitable next year.
The projection comes as Elon Musk has emphasized his plans to build up Tesla’s robotaxi efforts amid a decline in revenue.
Baidu is one of the major players in China’s nascent robotaxi market and received permission from a Beijing city district to begin charging fares in November 2021.
While most of the cars still have a human staff worker inside for safety, the same Beijing district officially let Baidu and start-up Pony.ai charge fares for robotaxi rides with no staff in the vehicle in September 2023.
Apollo Go operated about 839,000 rides in the last three months of 2023, according to Baidu’s latest earnings report. The company is due to release quarterly results Thursday.
About 45% of the orders in the fourth quarter in Wuhan were fully driverless, up from 40% the prior quarter, the company said.
In addition to growing usage and reducing labor costs per ride, Baidu is making the cars cheaper.
Baidu on Wednesday announced Apollo’s 6th generation robotaxi will cost around 200,000 yuan ($28,169) — or less than half that of the prior generation, the company said.
This year, Baidu plans to deploy 1,000 of those 6th generation robotaxis in the city of Wuhan, where the company already operates a number of vehicles without any human staff inside.
“With decreasing costs and increasing orders, Apollo Go’s unit economics (UE) is nearing break-even, expected to achieve balance in the fourth quarter of 2024 and turn profitable by 2025,” Baidu said in a press release.
Rival robotaxi operator Pony.ai is preparing for a listing outside mainland China, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission website in late April.
Others in the auto industry remain more skeptical about fully driverless cars, which require broad regulatory approval in order to operate.
Xpeng Vice Chairman Brian Gu told reporters last month he didn’t expect robotaxis to be a real business for at least five years.

Hey Pinball Fans, look at this note. Look at this work of art. (If art is about length and long lists for you) Our team went all out this time and it is our pleasure to present this list of fixes for you.
Tables added:
Pacific Rim Pinball
Super League Football (Free download on consoles for 7 days, on PC for 30 days. Get it now and keep it forever)
Universal Classics: TV Pinball:
Xena: Warrior Princess Pinball
Knight Rider Pinball
Battlestar Galactica Pinball
New Features on PlayStation, Xbox and PC:
UI overhaul and upgrades
XP system
Notification system
New optional Pinhall, New optional music
General fixes:

• Fixed an issue where "An error has occurred while publishing your scores" could pop up frequently
• Fixed an issue where a start of a new season would unlock all rewards

Fixes for PlayStation, Xbox and PC:

• Nudge button hints are now displayed properly
• Williams Pinball: Volume 1 Questline - Mission 9 - Double Score powerup timer set from 5 seconds to 20

Fixes for PC:

• Fixed an issue where camera controls were stuck to ‘C’ even after setting a different key
• Fixed an issue where the game crashed when players closed a 2-player-hotseat table in cabinet mode
• Fixed an issue in Cabinet Mode - where players had to Reload Configuration every time

Table Fixes:
A Charlie Brown Christmas™ Pinball

• Fixed an issue when the ball could stuck in the left kickback
• Reduced the time of the ball being held by the saucer during the Mystery Animation, added manual eject option as well
• The “Collect Bonus” award no longer resets the bonus multiplier
• Fixed the typo in the song credits
• Fixed the typo on the display
• Music for the Pigpen Snowman mode no longer replaces the main theme after the mode ends

Crypt of the NecroDancer Pinball

• Fixed an issue, where the boss music can play alongside other tracks
• Fixed an issue, where the ball can leave the miniplayfield
• Fixed a typo on the bottom right of the playfield
• Adjusted the German translations at the ball launch
• Adjusted the ball kickout system in the bonus room
• Fixed an issue, where the Bomb lamp could stay lit after usage
• Fixed an issue where the ball could go ballistic after a weak plunge

Terraforming Mars Pinball

• Added rollover switches above the bumpers
• Fixed an issue where the instructions overlapped on the display

Exploding Kittens®: A Pinball Cat-astrophe

• Fixed an issue where the Jackpot status didn’t reset
• The pop-up score at Super Skillshot will display the correct score

Homeworld®: Journey to Hiigara Pinball

• Fixed an issue where the spin disk could drop the ball between the flippers
• The video display no longer freezes after the Return to Kharak mode
• Increased the speed of the research toy by 30% for a more dynamic gameplay

Brothers in Arms®: Win the War Pinball

• Fixed an issue where the bonus screen could appear when the ball is in play
• Fixed an issue where the ball could get stuck in the bumpers

Borderlands®: Vault Hunter Pinball

• The ball can no longer get stuck behind the green box
• Fixed an issue where the instructions overlapped on the display

Grimm Tales

• Fixed a soft lock occurrence at the end of the Cinderella tale
• Fixed the appearance of the transparent ball curse so it won't be invisible
• Crystal Multiball will no longer end after locking a ball at the Castle Gate
• Fixed the “Book of Tales” end of bonus description
• Fixed an error where the Magic Mirror award prevented further progress at the final battle
• Fixed an issue, when hitting the wolf last during the Wolf & Seven Goats followed by an immediate drain will prevent further completion of the mode
• Scoring a Jackpot during Crystal Multiball will release the balls from the Tower Locks to prevent any exploits
• Fixed an issue where the localized "More hits for your Multiball bumper" text had an overlapping issue

Verne's Mysterious Island

• Fixed an issue where the could stay on the volcano
• Adjusted the power of the kickback and sinkhole kickout

Jurrasic Park Pinball

• Fixed an issue where the ball could get stuck in the perimeter fence
• Fixed an issue where the first left orbit shot phases through the diverter

Peanuts' Snoopy Pinball

• Fixed the position of the right outlane post
• Fixed the speech bubbles remaining in 0-degree orientation when the screen is rotated
• The table no longer awards extra balls in challenges

Star Trek™: The Next Generation

• Adjusted View 8 in portrait mode
• Fixed an issue where the ball could balance on the tip of the flipper
• Reduced the power of the auto-launch during challenges

Star Wars™ Pinball: Han Solo

• Fixed an issue when the table can softlock after draining the regular ball in the “He Certainly Has Courage” mode in challenges
• Fixed an issue when the screen turned black in the TIE Fighter Attack mode

Star Wars™ Pinball: Masters of the Force

• Fixed an issue where the HOLD BONUS X and EXTRABALL flashing lights were offset
• Fixed an issue where the ball locked without having to spell LOCK
• Fixed a view issue when a lock happened

Star Wars™ Pinball: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

• Fixed an R2-D2 magnet issue
• Fixed a malfunction on R2-D2 kickback
• Fixed an issue where the TIE Fighter could appear invisible
• Fixed an issue where the magnet wouldn’t work on one charge at R2-D2 Bumpers
• Adjusted combo timers on the table
• Adjusted mission goals on Scene 1, Part 2

Star Wars™ Pinball: Darth Vader

• Fixed an issue where the ball could bounce out of the table from the middle of the playfield

Star Wars™ Pinball: Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

• Fixed an issue with the Hyperspace multiball
• Fixed camera handling and planet alignment in Hyperspace mode
• Adjusted lighting on the AT-AT, Luke and Darth Vader

Star Wars™ Pinball: The Clone Wars

• Fixed an issue where the Super Skill Shot could be hit by simply holding up the left flipper

Star Wars™ Pinball: Droids

• Fixed an issue where the left kickback returned the ball to the right outlane
• Fixed an issue where the left target lead the ball to the left outlane

Star Wars™ Pinball: Starfighter Assault

• Fixed an issue where the Solo Fighter mission (and achievement) was unwinnable

The Machine: Bride of Pin·bot:

• Fixed an issue where if a ball drained with 1 lock (Partial Optical Link) activated, the optical sequence reset without considering how many balls are locked physically
• Fixed an issue with ball locking during Metamorphosis

E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial Pinball

• Fixed an issue where Levitation Save could fail to place the ball above the flippers.
• Fixed a Flips Challenge exploit: Ball could autoplunge directly into the bumpers.
• Fixed a physics issue with the ball travelling down towards the flippers

Williams™ Pinball: Medieval Madness™

• This crumbling brick effect is now present in all instances where needed

Williams™ Pinball: Black Rose™

• Davy Jones' Locker ramp texture is now moving with the rest of the ramp.

Williams™ Pinball: Champion Pub™

• Fixed an issue where the ball could get stuck on the elbows of the fighter during any match, Fisticuffs Multiball included.

Williams™ Pinball: Safecracker™

• The music and VO will now not be cut off by the end of game menu
• Tokens will now properly save between games
• Fixed an issue where an upwards nudge could stop the time if the player had a locked ball
• Fixed an issue where repeatedly nudging resulted in the clock stopping

Williams™ Pinball: White Water™

• Fixed an issue where Ball 1 lock on the table was showing as ball 3 locked

Williams™ Pinball: Red & Ted's Road Show

• Fixed a typo on the table
• Fixed an issue where the ball would be removed from the small flipper lane if 2 balls were stalled there
• Fixed an issue where the game could end with a ball stuck in Ted’s mouth in the 5 minute challenge

Williams™ Pinball: Hurricane™

• Fixed black textures on Carousel

Williams™ Pinball: No Good Gofers™

• Fixed an issue where the ball could hit a switch more than once
• Fixed autoplunger problems in challenges

Williams™ Pinball: Space Station™

• Plunger camera angle adjusted

Williams™ Pinball: FunHouse™

• Fixed an issue where the upper flipper rubber is interfering with the wall

Williams™ Pinball: Dr. Dude™

• Fixed a faulty effect on the backglass
• Fixed an issue where there weren’t any combos or ball saves in Arcade mode
• Backglass lighting will now be turned on properly

Williams™ Pinball: Twilight Zone

• Fixed an issue where the ball could fall under the right flipper after a drain and get stuck
• Left outlane adjusted
• Adjusted Skill Shot camera

Williams™ Pinball: World Cup Soccer

• Fixed the Williams logo shadow on the flippers
• Fixed an issue where the ball could stay behind the goal during multiball
• Fixed an issue where zhe upkick near the goal did not properly kicked out the ball
• Fixed a display issue in the Table Guide

World War Z Pinball

• Fixed an issue where the ball did not stay on the left ramp properly
• Fixed an issue where the ball could get stuck in the Loot sinkhole
• Fixed an issue where the ball could get stuck in the saucer during Flips Challenge
• Fixed an issue where the game could fail to exit out of the Skillshot phase
• Fixed an issue where the auto-plunge could hit the ball into the left outlane

Wrath of the Elder Gods

• Fixed an issue where the ball could exit at the middle of the ramp
• Fixed an issue where locking a ball while Mystery was lit at the right upper orbit denied a chance at a Skillshot
• Fixed an issue where tilting during Herald of its Word could result in the ball skin being applied for the next ball
• Fixed an issue in 5 minute challenge - The mystery extra ball award value could be multiplied by 4
• Fixed an issue where if Maw and Cult of its Arrival multiballs are started on top of each other the lane lamps could flash incorrectly
• Fixed resetting issues with the Skillshot if Skillshot power-up is used
• Fixed an issue where if Maw and Herald of its Word multiballs conflicting resulted in 2 balls on the playfield without any multiballs running
• Fixed an issue during multiball, where the Herald could keep the ball, juggling it indefinitely
• Fixed an issue where the Herald could be beaten in one shot, instead of several shots
• Fixed an issue where the Madness counter did not reset when winning a mode with ballout
• Fixed a display issue around Bumper Bonus
• Fixed several localization issues in Italian
• Fixed an issue where pictures did not appear properly on the right notepad
• Fixed an issue where the ball could fall off the rails if shot with the right power

(continuation of part 4)
I already considered this piece the second greatest musical evidence for Clerith after the London Symphony Orchestra’s Final Fantasy VII Symphony’s second movement “Words Drowned by Fireworks” and its guide, but now that I know about the Clerith reunion that was baked into the ending, the gap between the two is narrower. Each time I hear Cloud begin to call out for Aerith in part 3 (3:04), I immediately start crying. It sounds so much to me like Cloud’s voice in the dark saying “Aerith…?”, meek and scared. If you’ve read everything so far, you know how long Cloud has been looking for Aerith, lost without her, searching relentlessly for decades in real-life time. Through FFT, DFF, Advent Children, MFF x FFVII… all of it spent looking for his Promised Land. In OG, Cloud was so tormented by Jenova’s manipulation and so consumed by the chase for Sephiroth that he could not realize what or how much he felt for her until she was taken away forever. The piece we’ve just analyzed tells the story of Cloud and Aerith intertwining and separating against their will, and you can truly feel Cloud’s anxiety as he struggles to wrench Aerith out of fate’s cruel grasp. Perhaps it is because of Aerith’s ultimately fatal responsibility, inherited from her mother, that this iteration of her theme is called “The Cetra”.
Though in part 5, Cloud and Aerith reunite… could this reunion symbolize their meeting again in Remake, or something more permanent? I think it’s meant to leave us wondering.
I’m very sensitive to music, and as I’m typing this, I’m crying a bit. I wanted to share my interpretation of “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” with you very badly, because it makes me feel so much and really enhances Clerith’s story. I’m overjoyed to have found out about the reunion at the very end. And it’s all because you guys showed love for my last analysis! You guys are giving me gifts every day.
V. b) i. 3) Combined Analysis
Please listen to and watch the scene of Cloud’s MOTF 6 (4:21-8:46) again, and consider section “V. b) i. 2)”. What is Uematsu telling us? Similarly to how main world theme of FFVII informs us that Jenova is sabotaging Cloud’s identity far before it becomes a plot point in OG, “Aerith’s theme - The Cetra” is telling us what not even Remake Cloud consciously knows at this point: he’s been searching desperately for her, and fears losing her once more.
As if that wasn’t proof enough, the timing of the shots and musical phrases is absolutely damning. Recall that part 3 of “Aerith’s theme - The Cetra” specifically symbolizes Cloud’s anxiety surrounding Aerith’s safety. It is this particular part of the piece that plays for the entirety of Aerith’s allusions to her murderers and her death (7:25-7:54), including the very moment where “Cloud feels his chest constrict tightly” (7:51-7:54). What’s more, part 5 the piece, which specifically Cloud freeing Aerith from the restraints of fate, coincides with the moment Tifa grabs Aerith’s hand and pulls her out from the circle of Whispers closing in on her (8:42-8:45). This moment leads me to believe that the reunion in part 5 of the piece indeed symbolizes Cloud succeeding (perhaps with Tifa’s help) in saving Aerith from her tragic fate and reuniting with her for good.
It’s heart-wrenching and brilliant. Our theory stands strong.
V. b) ii. Credits: Piece Inclusion
I find it very telling that the character themes included in the credits of Remake are Cloud’s “Hollow” (0:00-5:24), an orchestral arrangement of Aerith’s theme (5:24-9:24), and an orchestral arrangement of the main world theme, (9:24-14:27) which of course includes Cloud’s true theme. No other character themes appear during the rest of the credits (14:27-18:09). This is telling: the credits are communicating to us that Remake is about Cloud and Aerith. Our Mission Theory only gets stronger.
V. b) iii. Showing Relationships Through Music: Intermingling Character Themes
This doesn’t have to do with the Mission, but here’s a pretty good anti-Cloti argument while we’re here.
As shown in section “V. a) i.” where we explored the roles of Cloud, Jenova and Sephiroth’s themes within the FFVII world theme, the way character themes interact in a piece can tell you a lot about those characters’ relationships. This is certainly the case in “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” as well (see section “V. b. ii. 2)”).
I’d like to mention that in all of my listening to the Remake OST and rewatching playthroughs of Remake, I’ve never encountered a single piece that united Cloud and Tifa’s themes. Not once. Let alone a piece that depicts them as intimately or emotionally as “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” depicts Cloud and Aerith. Even the most Cloti cutscenes in Remake aren’t supported by pieces mixing or even juxtaposing Cloud and Tifa’s themes. I can’t find any of Cloud’s motifs anywhere during the orchestral arrangement of Tifa’s theme that plays during her resolution scene in chapter 14. I can’t find either of their motifs in the track the plays when Cloud calls Tifa beautiful at Seventh Heaven in chapter 3. A motif from Tifa’s theme does appear in the track that plays during the childhood promise scene in chapter 4, (0:00-0:25), but it never plays at the same time as or even near Cloud’s motifs (1:23-1:47 and 2:03-2:29). They’re distant or otherwise unaffiliated.
The only exception is that an altered version of Cloud’s theme’s section A phrase 1 appears in the background of Tifa’s theme (1:17-1:23). This symbolizes her connection to Cloud and how much of her attention and worry revolve around him— a reference to how she cares so much that it borders on dependency. Of course, it doesn’t go both ways: Tifa isn’t in Cloud’s theme at all. To me, this lack of reciprocity concerning the inclusion of Cloud’s motif in Tifa’s theme signifies that the only time Cloud and Tifa are together is in her head. She does think about him a lot, which we witness in her chapter of Trace of Two Pasts. Tifa loses sleep over him even two years after he left Nibelheim, despite the fact that she barely knew him at all:

“The moment she heard the word “Soldier”, the few memories she had with Cloud Strife came flooding back. He never contacted her after they parted ways two years ago […]. She tossed and turned all night. When she counted them again, her memories with Cloud were so surprisingly few that others might find it hard to believe that they grew up as next-door neighbors” (Trace of Two Pasts, translated by pekotranslates on Tumblr).

FFVII Remake Ultimania also comments on the superficial nature of Cloud and Tifa’s water tower promise, and how regardless of its naïveté, it became fundamental to Tifa:

“Though rooted in a jejune heroine fantasy of being rescued in a pinch by her hero, this promise is clearly etched in Tifa’s memory” (Tifa’s profile in section 01 of “Character & World”, “An Enduring Childhood Promise” in “Topics of Tifa” page 20).

You could argue that “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” is only one song wherein Cloud and Aerith’s themes interweave, but you’d be proven wrong by the Rebirth OST…
V. c) The Rebirth OST
Unfortunately, the full Rebirth OST isn’t out and available where I can listen to it right now. However, based solely on the incomplete OST that’s available to me right now, I can tell you with certainty that the composers were told to incorporate Clerith into the musical storytelling: Cloud and Aerith’s themes intermingle in multiple pieces. I can’t imagine what else I’ll discover once I listen to the full OST. For now, I checked out what was available on YouTube and listened to cutscene audios. This section would be eternal if I included every time Cloud and Aerith’s motifs interact, especially in chapter 14. Trust me, I’d love to talk about every single one, but this thing is long enough already, so let’s just address what pertains to our Mission Theory specifically rather than stopping at every single Clerith reference in the OST.
V. c) i. Ending Cutscene Music
Ending cutscenes are often used to address the next step the characters will be taking as well as their emotional and mental state. They also open up new questions to make the player curious. Indeed, Rebirth’s ending cutscene (18:56-25:00) gives us an impression of how the party members feel by the end of the game: everyone misses Aerith. Barret looks upset and confused at the mention of her (19:35-19:45), the girls are crying and Nanaki is mourning (19:58-20:35). Additionally, we are shown the empty White Materia and Black Materia in Cloud’s possession (20:40-21:24), foreshadowing that they will come to be important in part 3. Cloud and Aerith share a warm goodbye, and exchange promises: Aerith will send smoke signals if something happens to her so a worried Cloud can remain updated on her well-being and she will stop Meteor, and Cloud will stop Sephiroth (23:00-25:00). The fact that this scene is animated in CGI is enough to tell us that the devs consider it narratively important, just like they do Bugenhagen’s observatory and the party’s advance into the Forgotten Capital CGI cutscenes. What did the composers decide to communicate with us about the end of Rebirth and the plot going forward?
Big surprise: Clerith.
During the entire cutscene, only two themes play: Cloud’s and Aerith’s. The cutscene’s music begins only when Cloud notices Aerith among the party members and begins watching her (19:21). She interacts with the rest of the party without their knowledge, different segments of her theme playing one after another. Her theme only stops when Cloud finally looks away from her and to the empty White Materia in his hand (20:45). The music focuses on the mystery and ominousness of these materia, only returning to Aerith once Cloud hears her voice and repeats her message to the party (21:30).
Cloud’s theme appears when he asserts that Barret needn’t worry about him (section A of Cloud’s true theme, 22:41), though soft and tentative, only swelling when Barret and Tifa climb aboard the Tiny Bronco and Cloud finds himself alone with Aerith again (22:57). As he asks Aerith if “[she’ll] be okay getting back” (23:08), the final phrase of section A of his theme plays, but without its concluding note, the tonic. He waits for her to answer him as his theme waits for hers to complete and answer it, that final note dragging long over the seconds (23:09-23:13). She answers with a teasing remark that references their unwillingness to part from each other back in Remake’s Evergreen Park:

“[Cloud has] a chat with Aerith, from whom he’s reluctant to part” (chapter 9 in section 04 “Scenario”, “Main Story Digest”, “4. Saying Goodbye”, page 275)”.

As soon as Aerith answers Cloud’s question with this romantic callback, her theme answers his too: section C of Aerith’s theme begins with the key’s tonic, resolving Cloud’s incomplete phrase (23:13): she gives him resolution. He chuckles, getting her reference, and the music swells (23:16). The music ebbs and flows thusly, following the rhythms and underlying emotions of their conversation. Finally, the piece ends with phrase 2 of of section A of Cloud’s true theme, following a strong repetition of the first half of Aerith’s theme’s section A. The two make their promises to each other, and “No Promises to Keep” begins, leading us to the credits. This is most definitely a Clerith song, but more on that later.
What this shows us is that Cloud and Aerith’s relationship is fundamental to the plot of Rebirth and will also be fundamental to the plot of part 3: they are isolated one one-on-one in this cutscene, and the music depicts their warm, sweet interaction as well as the strength of Aerith’s character to contrast with Cloud’s somewhat meek personality. The composers are telling us that these two, specifically, together alone, are hugely important to the plot here. This was already true in OG, but no such emphasis was ever placed on their interactions and relationship in its music. Something is different, deeper, more intense now. The Mission Theory explains why. It also suits our theory that the composers are emphasizing the centrality of Clerith in the plot of the Remake trilogy. Cloud’s love for Aerith is the reason for the trilogy’s existence, and it will be the greatest motivator for Cloud in part 3. It’s a grand announcement.
Just like in Remake, I could not find a single instance of Cloud and Tifa’s themes interacting in Rebirth, apart from at the end of the intimate Skywheel date— but every girl receives this treatment in their intimate dates, so each of these instances can be crossed out. Additionally, the Tifa date is not the canon one, but I digress…
V. c) iii. Credits

1. Piece Inclusion

Once more, I find it very telling that of all the pieces included in the credits of Rebirth, the only character themes are Cloud’s and Aerith’s. We start with a song about Aerith’s point of view to mirror *Remake’*s “Hollow”, “No Promises to Keep” (5:18-11:10), followed by the FFVII world theme (11:10-16:12) which of course contains Cloud’s true theme, then we move into a piece whose unofficially translated title is “Parade Battle Ceremony - The Dawn of a New World” as an arrangement of the parade ceremony theme from chapter 4 (16:12-19:03), followed by a theme for the Lifestream springs whose name I don’t have (19:03-21:38), “Junon - Fortified Metropolis” (21:38-24:28), and finally, a gorgeous arrangement of Aerith’s theme (24:28-28:47). No other character is referenced in the credits music: the credits are telling us Rebirth is about Clerith. Our Mission Theory explains why.
V. c) iii. 2) “No Promises to Keep”
At the very end of this song written and performed by Aerith, we’re treated with a sweet little piano conclusion (10:46-11:10): it begins with a variation on Aerith’s theme’s section A (10:46-11:01), and concludes with two ascending arpeggios, each four notes long (11:01-11:10). Each of these ascending arpeggios is a variation of the phrase 1 of Cloud’s true theme’s section A. The differences are minimal. The phrase is usually five notes long rather than four, the first arpeggio ends on the tonic rather than Cloud’s iconic subtonic, and the second arpeggio starts on the subtonic rather than the tonic. The song Aerith wrote concludes with Cloud’s most famous motif. This is also the case in her Gold Saucer performance (3:31-3:41).
V. c) iii. 3) Arrangement of Aerith’s Theme
The final piece in the credits is an arrangement of Aerith’s theme (24:28-28:47) which has noticeably similar elements to the version of her theme that plays during the Jenova Lifeclinger battle in chapter 14 (0:12-3:36), such as the female choirs. Since these female choirs are only heard in the Forgotten City version of Aerith’s theme, and since the credits arrangement of her theme plays at the same time as clips from her chapter 14 pseudo-death roll across the screen, I estimate that this credits arrangement specifically reflects the event of Aerith’s pseudo-death. Recall that composers had access to the credits video as they composed, meaning this piece is specifically written for Aerith’s pseudo-death in Rebirth.
What I find fascinating is that, just like the arrangements of her theme that play during Aerith’s pseudo-death and the Jenova Lifeclinger battle, this credits arrangement contains the sound of Cloud’s pain, rage and protest. Phrase 1 and the first three notes of phrase 2 of Cloud’s true theme section A play on the strings and brass quite loudly and insistently, just as Cloud blocking masamune appears on the credits screen (25:11-25:21). Sephiroth’s dissonant, high and screechy violins appear just as his face comes onto the screen (26:33), and almost as a protective response, phrases 1 and 2 of Cloud’s true theme’s section A return (26:47-27:00). Finally, similarly to what we hear in part 5 of “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra”, a slightly modified section A phrase 1 of Cloud’s true theme play along with section C phrase 3 of Aerith’s theme (oh wow section A and C section Aerith for Cloud’s theme and section Cloud for Aerith’s theme I just realized that’s such a cute coincidence), though unfortunately they do not meet in the middle like last time since they start two octaves apart (28:20-28:25). I’ve recreated it for you once more here so you can really appreciate it. The fact that their motifs don’t truly reunite like in “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” is sad, but the very last thing you see onscreen is Aerith’s goodbye to the Tiny Bronco (27:10-27:42), so it makes sense that this piano conclusion implies that Cloud and Aerith aligned, but not yet reunited for good. That’s exactly what you get from the ending cutscene. It does seem to imply that they will be reunited in part 3, as both the ending cutscene and this piano conclusion read as a “till we see each other again” rather than a “farewell”.

VI. Textual Evidence

Now that the musical evidence is done, let’s compile some textual story evidence that supports our theory!
VI. a) Remake Trilogy (Thus Far) Handholding Explained?
As I’m sure you’ve noticed, handholding is a motif in Cloud and Aerith’s relationship— and an extremely symbolic one at that! When researching for info to validate my theory, I found that this Clerith motif was extremely helpful! Its inclusion in the Remake trilogy, and especially in Rebirth, is hugely significant in my eyes.
VI. a) i. Pre-Remake Trilogy: Aerith’s Initiative
Before examining the significance of Clerith handholding in Remake and Rebirth, we should establish the meaning of this motif in OG and Advent Children.
Cloud and Aerith have reached out to take each other’s hands many times since 1997. Aerith used to literally drag him by the hand a lot, shocking the cold and distant merc, before she left. After her death in OG, Cloud surely longed to be able to feel her hand take his again, cursing himself for not enjoying it while she was alive, and for never being the one to grasp her hand first: he never got to tell her how he feels about her, or to save her. It was always her reaching out for him, saving him.
This is why the scene in OG when Aerith reaches for him from the Lifestream after Cloud defeats Sephiroth in chapter 3 of disk 3 is so touching: Cloud sees her hand and reaches out to take it, so close to finally establishing that mutual connection, but she soon fades, and replaced by Tifa’s hand in the tangible world. He doesn’t get to hold Aerith’s hand again.
That is, not until Advent Children, where near the end of his battle with Bahamut Sin, he sees Aerith reach out to him once again (1:08-1:30). Cloud finally gets to hold her hand for the first time in two years when he lost her. This moment was given extra importance by the devs. In fact, Nojima told us the following:

“The ending scene of the battle with Bahamut, the scene where Aerith reaches out her hand, is an homage to the last scene from a previous production. It was [Nomura]'s idea” (FFVII Reunion Files, “Story Digest”, “Summoned Beast”, page 113).

VI. a) ii. The Remake Trilogy (Thus Far): Cloud’s Initiative
As I’ve said before, if I’m right that Remake is all about Cloud stepping up to be more attentive and active in his relationship with Aerith in order to save her, there should be concrete evidence of this in the Remaketrilogy thus far. If OG Cloud’s memories of and love for Aerith exist somewhere within Remake Cloud’s subconsciousness, then Remake Cloud should be far more active in the Clerith dynamic than OG Cloud was— after all, he’s supposed to know better this time around. Thankfully, the motif of handholding can help us evaluate this. Since we know pre-Remake Cloud was quite passive when it comes to handholding, Cloud initiating handholding in the Remake trilogy would be a strong indication that our theory has validity. Keeping this in mind, let’s see what we can find thus far in the Remake trilogy in relation to handholding, and if Cloud is indeed more active than he was in OG.
VI. a) ii. 1) Hollow Hands
Remake’s theme song “Hollow” makes allusions to the handholding motif: “This time, I will never let you go” is pretty clear. And so is “No Promises to Keep”, wherein Aerith speaks of Cloud “[taking her] hand and never [letting her] go” multiple times. Interestingly, these theme song lyrics seem to suggest that Cloud will be much more active in the Remake trilogy than in OG. “Hollow” even promises that Cloud will come to his senses and take charge of the situation: “this time, [he] will” be the one to offer his hand to Aerith, unlike in OG and Advent Children. This makes a lot of sense with our theory: now that Cloud has lost Aerith once, “this time for sure, [he]’ll” be the one to reach for Aerith’s hand, take initiative and save her the way she saved him.
Even though theme songs are extremely telling of a game’s main themes and intentions, lyrics are still all talk and no proof. What about the game itself? Do Remake and Rebirth deliver on this promise? Let’s see!
VI. a) ii. 2) Resolution Hands
The only significant time Cloud initiates handholding in Remake is during Cloud’s resolution scene in chapter 14 (5:18-5:40), wherein he tries to grab Aerith’s hand but is unable to keep her with him. He fills with determination and tells her in no uncertain terms that he’s coming for her. Just as we predicted, Cloud is the active participant in this iteration of the Clerith handholding motif: he’s even explicitly insisting against Aerith’s wishes that he should “get a say in all this” and that he’s “coming for [her]”. Let’s not forget that Cloud’s resolution is meant to reflect not only Aerith’s kidnapping by Shinra, but also her fated death. Nojima implied this by commenting the following on Aerith’s “Even if you think you have, it’s not real” line:

“Those who know what befalls Aerith later on will find the line really heart-wrenching” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 2: Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima”, page 744).

Given this note by Nojima, it looks like we’re supposed to watch Cloud’s resolution scene with Aerith’s fated death in mind. Considering this, Cloud’s “I’m coming for you” line sure seems like an subconscious promise that he will save Aerith from her tragic fate. This subconscious promise could be the result of post-OG Cloud’s feelings and intentions rising to the surface. Nevertheless, he’s absolutely determined and he’s staying true to the promise he made in “Hollow”. I think it’s fair to say that this instance of the handholding Clerith motif does indeed fit perfectly with our theory. This is only one strong example though, and we need a pattern in order to pat ourselves on the back on this. So, let’s keep looking! There isn’t any handholding initiated by Cloud beyond that point in Remake. At this point in my research, I moved on to Rebirth to go digging for handholding there.
Hoo boy. I was not disappointed.
VI. a) ii. 3) Golden Hands
Let’s begin with the obvious. In their high-affinity gondola date in chapter 12, Cloud bravely interlaces his fingers with Aerith’s: Cloud’s taken charge not only of handholding, but the most intimate kind of handholding. I’m sure you’ve encountered the phrase “こいびとつなぎ” or “koibito tsunagi by now (literally translates to “lovers’ tie” or “lovers’ connection”); this is the term used in Japanese to refer to the type of handholding Cloud initiates with Aerith on the Skywheel. It’s considered the most intimate form of handholding. In Japan, skinship is normally considered quite significant and indicative of the closeness between two people— you could say it’s a big deal. Cloud also offers Aerith his hand when they step off the Shywheel, once more making the first move. Though some might say that the Skywheel dates shouldn’t be counted as canon, I believe Aerith’s date is indeed canon (I have my reasons but this post is long enough). Even if we discount the Skywheel date however, Clerith's use of the koibito tsunagi returns in a non-optional scene we will touch on later.
For what it’s worth, Alfreid offers Rosa his hand in the Loveless play too. I can prove that Aerith is the canon Rosa too, but I’m going to save that for my next analysis! You can take my word for it now, or just wait for that analysis to drop. Take it or leave it!
VI. a) ii. 4) Meta Hands
However, the narrative weight of these Clerith handholding instances doesn’t even come close to my very favorite iteration of the handholding motif in Rebirth. I’m referring to what I consider a severely underrated Clerith moment in chapter 13. First, some context: Sephiroth manipulates Cloud into giving over the Black Materia. Cloud seems to be firmly under Sephiroth’s control. However, the sight of Aerith being swarmed by Black Whispers snaps Cloud back into the driver’s seat: he breaks out of Sephiroth’s grasp to run to her and save her. Aerith gets knocked off into a fatal free-fall by a Black Whisper before Cloud can reach her, but he won’t have it: he lunges forward, hand extended. What results is a beautiful shot of their outstretched hands (56:25-56:27).
Let’s analyze this great shot. Notice how the seconds where Cloud is reaching downwards to grasp Aerith’s hand are treated. This key moment is stretched longer by a slow-mo effect, building up the tension and drawing the audience’s focus to the distance between their hands before Cloud actually catches Aerith’s in his, fulfilling the promise he made in “Hollow”. Their hands take up the whole screen in a deliberate close-up shot. All the ambient noises of the scene go quiet: Aerith’s theme is all we hear as Cloud reaches desperately for her. These are blatant audiovisual cues, signalling to the audience that whatever is happening on screen is especially significant. We should therefore examine this specific instance of the Clerith handholding motif to see what the devs are trying to tell us, and maybe it will fit with our theory!
We should begin by comparing this Clerith hand-reach shot to previous ones. If you compare it to the Advent Children’s hand-reach that occurs during Cloud’s battle against Bahamut Sin, it’s evident that Cloud and Aerith’s roles are reversed: just as our theory states, Cloud gets out from inside his head and reaches for Aerith this time. She saved him and the world in OG, and now it’s his turn to save her. This change becomes especially evident when you juxtapose the two scenes and notice how their hands have switched places, reaching from above and below, from left and right. I think the Rebirth hand-reach was deliberately made to look like the Advent Children one —and even the OG one in disk 3, chapter 3—, just to highlight this role reversal.
This Rebirth hand-reach is my favorite out of all because it shows that Cloud is much more conscious and attentive toward Aerith in Rebirth than he was in OG. At this point in OG (disk 1, chapter 25), Cloud is meant to be beating Aerith up at Sephiroth’s command, to the horror of the rest of the party. In fact, a few minutes before Cloud rushes to save Aerith in Rebirth, he has absolutely no problem violently shoving Tifa to the ground when she gets in Sephiroth’s way (53:27-53:33). This shove and Cloud’s earlier attack on Tifa in Gongaga (Rebirth, chapter 9) proves that Sephiroth is just as capable of making Cloud hurt his party members as he was in OG… though Sephiroth can’t seem to make Cloud hurt Aerith. Why is this? Why is it that Cloud beats Aerith in OG, but doesn’t even lay a finger on her —and snaps out of Sephiroth’s control at the mere sight of her in trouble— in Rebirth?
Our theory provides the answer. In disk 1, chapter 25 of OG, Cloud had not yet realized he loved Aerith. Sephiroth was therefore able to make him hurt her. But things are different in Rebirth. The Cloud we see in the Remake trilogy has gone through the OG timeline and traveled back in time, kicking off Remake as his second try at the OG timeline— and he did this precisely because he loves Aerith. His love for her is clearer and stronger in the Remake trilogy than in OG because Remake Cloud is an amnesiac, post-OG, time-traveler Cloud. He’s been through the OG before, has fallen in love with Aerith and realized it before, so this time around, he can’t even lay a finger on her. This is made evident by how closely the moments where Cloud pushes Tifa and saves Aerith are juxtaposed, separated by mere seconds of gameplay. Merely seeing Aerith in trouble wrenched control from Sephiroth and put it in Cloud’s hands again— Sephiroth probably couldn’t have gotten Cloud to attack Aerith if he tried.
This isn’t the only time we get evidence of this though! As Cloud approaches Aerith’s praying form in the Forgotten City, Sephiroth’s Black Whispers swirl around the buster sword: Sephiroth is trying to kill Aerith with it, while Cloud’s struggle to wrench it away plays out visibly on his face. Interestingly, Cloud is not being controlled by Sephiroth here. We know this because we can quite literally see the Black Whispers trying to move his sword, but also because every time Cloud is being controlled by Sephiroth in Rebirth, he has an empty-eyed, zombie-Cloud look on his face. Either that or he laughs or smiles somewhat maniacally. There is never any resistance on his part. To see an example, simply pay attention to Cloud’s blank face as he attacks Tifa in Gongaga in chapter 9 (19:20-20:30). You’ll see the very same expression on his face if you watch this video of Cloud following Sephiroth’s orders in chapter 13 (53:36-54:15). Additionally, look at how strangely Cloud smiles (41:01) as he grasps the Black Materia. Cloud makes none of these faces as the Black Whispers try to take control of his sword: quite the opposite. Cloud looks like he’s trying his hardest to pull his weapon back down and away from Aerith, a horrified look on his face as he grunts from the effort. Once more, Sephiroth is unable to make Cloud hurt Aerith.
Back to my favorite handholding moment. Think about this devs intention for this shot for a minute. The devs have been teasing us as to whether or not Cloud will succeed in saving Aerith in the Remake trilogy since it was first announced, and this slow-mo shot of Cloud catching Aerith’s hand as she falls to her death is a reflection of this tension. The audience holds their breath during those slow-moed seconds, all that hope and fear hanging in the balance. This instance of the handholding motif is a meta way for the devs to reassure us that Cloud will indeed save Aerith. I firmly believe this.
VI. a) ii. 5) Self-Sacrificing Hands
Alright, alright, enough about my favorite! Let’s move to chapter 14 of Rebirth! There’s evidently a lot going on with Clerith in this chapter. Let’s address the Sector 5 date. The handholding is first initiated by Aerith as she tugs him toward the candy vendor and Cloud reacts with a quiet gasp (4:07-4:17). Soon, it becomes a reciprocal embrace: Cloud holds his hand out for Aerith’s and tightens his fingers around hers, smiling at her before they head to the photographer (7:07-7:17).
Then of course, when Aerith pushes Cloud into a portal in her church, you can see Cloud reach his hand up toward her desperately as he falls (17:38-17:58). What I find particularly emotional about this moment is that Aerith pushing Cloud away from her is kind of the opposite of reaching for his hand: it symbolizes Aerith accepting her fate and giving up on a life where she can be with him. This Aerith seems to be a post-OG Aerith who exists separately from the main world we experience in Rebirth, meaning she knows all too well that her fate is to die. In fact, it looks like she is the very same or a similar Aerith to the one who appeared to Cloud in his resolution scene in Remake. By literally pushing Cloud away, just like she figuratively did in Cloud’s resolution scene, she is sacrificing both herself and the happiness she could share with Cloud. She’s going against her heart’s wishes, just like she did in Cloud’s resolution scene when she would not let Cloud take her hand. Indeed, post-OG Aerith seems to be resigned to her fated death and completely devoid of hope: she only wants to ensure the planet’s survival, because she thinks she knows there is no way she can or should be with Cloud. In contrast, Cloud reaches his hand out toward Aerith as he falls into the portal, and even though he does not know that her push symbolizes her self-sacrifice, his outstretched hand represents his protest. So far, our theory is fitting beautifully.
VI. a) ii. 6) Grieving Hands
Later in chapter 14 of Rebirth, after Aerith’s death/non-death, there is more handholding. As Cloud cradles Aerith’s body close to him at the Forgotten Capital, Aerith places her hand on his cheek. Cloud covers it with his, curling his fingers around it (1:03:33-1:03:53). Before he leaves her lying down on her back to go fight Sephiroth, he squeezes her hand as he tells her “I got this”— or, per the Japanese version, “Wait for me”, meaning he’ll reunite with her once he’s done (1:04:56-1:05:10).
VI. a) ii. 7) Hero-Heroine Hands
Next, the koibito tsunagi returns as Cloud and Aerith interlace fingers back to back in a classic hero-heroine pose, right after their two-versus-one fight against Sephiroth. This time, they both reach for each other simultaneously (7:42-8:18), without even having to look down at their hands or talk to each other, as though perfectly in sync. As you can see, Aerith and Cloud are now on the same page. This is different from post-OG Aerith’s attitude in the Sector 5 church earlier in chapter 14, as well as in Cloud’s resolution scene in Remake— my interpretation of this mutual koibito tsunagi is that both of them are agreeing to hold onto each other now, with neither of them pulling back or being inattentive of the other: their priorities are now the same. It seems now they are aligned, and hopefully this means that Aerith will be working together with Cloud so they can reunite again in part 3. Even if she doesn’t prioritize her life and happiness though, we know for sure Cloud will.
VI. b) Blocking Masamune Explained?
Another piece of evidence that Cloud has been through the events of OG before is the fact that he is able to block masamune. Cloud looks up and sees Sephiroth descending with his blade poised to kill Aerith. Screaming, Cloud instantly rips the buster sword from the Black Whispers’ hold and successfully blocks masamune. Hatred and determination fill his eyes as he rallies his strength and successfully pushes Sephiroth away, saving Aerith’s life (6:00-7:26)— at least, in one reality.
Obviously, something about Cloud is different in Rebirth from in OG, otherwise, the events of Rebirth’s chapter 14 would be the same as the events of OG’s disk 1 chapter 28. In my opinion, what happened here is that upon seeing Sephiroth swoop down with masamune, Cloud remembered Aerith’s death in OG, and the post-OG Cloud’s determination to stop it came surging up from within him. This is frankly the very best proof there is that Cloud is far more ready, stable, determined, and clear-headed about Aerith in the Remake trilogy than in OG. Our theory explains why! In fact, this very moment is what our entire theory banks on: Cloud saves Aerith in one reality, as is shown by the rainbow effect produced by the event, and just like that, the promise made in “Hollow” has been fulfilled! However, now we face the question of how to make sure that Aerith is alive and by Cloud’s side when the multiverse converges again into one protected timeline. I’m sure it will be done; we will see how in part 3.
VI. c) Theme Song Lyrics
What the theme songs’ texts have to say about the trilogy so far is quite important, as they summarize the feelings of the characters they represent: Cloud and Aerith. We can glean a lot from their perspectives that could help support the Mission Theory.
VI. d) i. “Hollow” Lyrics
“Hollow”, Remake’s theme song, was written about Cloud’s feelings and rumination. Nojima confirmed that, when he was given directives for the lyric-writing, “Nomura just gave [Nojima] the keywords: ‘told from Cloud's point of view’ and ‘standing in the rain’. [Nojima] interpreted that as ‘a ballad for a man who lost something/someone important’” (Nojima and Uematsu interview “‘I wanted to put the word ‘empty’ in the theme song of Remake. That was how it started’ - Music-Related Interview Part 6: Kazunari Nojima”, by Famitsu). Our theory is about Cloud’s motivations and mission to save Aerith, so “Hollow” is especially relevant.
Let’s run through the lyrics and analyze, starting with the song’s first verse:

“I would be lost, drifting along
Floating up high, time after time
And there you'd be, shining brightly
Your smiling face to guide my way
Bloody and bruised, brought to my knees
When beaten down, when broken up
You would appear, reach out to me
Heal every wound and make me whole”

Makes sense with our theory in mind, doesn’t it? This is post-OG Cloud remembering Aerith and what she means to him. “Hollow” seems to be told from the perspective of the post-OG Cloud hidden somewhere in Remake Cloud: a suppressed or eroded part of him that remembers Aerith clearly. Or maybe it’s told by Cloud after the events of the MFF x FFVII Remake collaboration and before the start of Remake, asserting his mission to save Aerith.
Next, here are the pre-choruses:

“Was it all, a dream? Will I never know?
Foolish and blind to everything
Had I realized, had I thought it through
Would you be here in my embrace?”

&

“With your every smile, hiding something more
Dark mysteries lurking beneath
But I was consumed with this emptiness
This selfishness, this void to fill”

(continued in

Good morning my witches and wizards.
I'd like to inject some very niche nuance into the discussion surrounding Supergiant's presentation of the Greek Gods in Hades 1 and 2. This will post will be a little long, but I believe context will be helpful when explaining my argument. If you need to get back to kicking [REDACTED]'s ass ASAP, there's a TLDR at the bottom.
I will preface this by saying Hades 2 may be my favorite game of all time, beating out the first by a wide margin (despite me logging over a hundred hours in the original). I've followed Supergiant since the original release of Bastion, played each of their games extensively, and I think I have a passable understanding of the studio's vision. As a result, I view their design choices in good faith.
That being said, I have a few very minor concerns. While they are nowhere near enough to sour the experience for me, I would like to express the thoughts that have been banging around in my head. Spoilers below.
Table of Contents

1. Why do you care?
2. What's your problem?
3. What does your smelly uncle have to do with this?
4. Giving props for the small details.

1 - Why do you care?

For context, I am a Greek man who was the first generation born and raised in the United States. Greek was my first language, I was raised by a Greek community, and I've been heavily involved in our customs since birth. While many people think ancient culture is completely disconnected from modern Greek beliefs, this is inaccurate. No, I don't pray to a shrine of Poseidon when I go fishing. However, many of the stories, beliefs, and morals that were described by the ancient Greek pantheon remained key parts of our culture throughout the transition into modernity.
For example, a common theme in ancient Greek mythology is that of a god secretly traveling on earth, being offered hospitality by unsuspecting mortals, and then rewarding them for their generosity. This is represented in modern culture by the term "philoxenia" which represents our value of being friendly towards strangers. Relationships like these represent the fact that we still value our ancient culture, albeit through modern representation of its ideas. I see many moral, theological, and literary threads that connect the time of the pantheon with the time of modern christianity. As a result, I am passionate about how our ancient culture is represented. In many small ways, it is still a part of me.

2 - Whats your problem?

I started thinking deeply after a recent post on the subreddit (rightfully) condemning racist remarks towards the characterization of Hermes. I think the general consensus of correct - the design of the gods are amazing, and they do a great job representing how many different cultures were involved in worshiping the Pantheon in ancient times. Ancient Greeks traded with others, spread their beliefs far and wide, and often praised the virtues of other cultures (such as Ethiopia) through art and literature. This is represented well by diverse design in-game.
However, despite the fact that the characters in Hades visually represent the variety of people who engaged with the pantheon, I sometimes feel that their traits and voices don't represent Greekness. To put it in other words, the gods are fantastic at giving off the aura of Greek mythology, but less so at giving off the aura of Greek culture.

3 - What does you smelly uncle have to do with this?

My primary complaint is Supergiant's approach when choosing character voices. To preface - THE VOICE ACTING IS AMAZING! There's not a single character whose voice doesn't fit their design and personality. I'm still amazed that Darren Korb managed to nail both Skelly and Zag. However, what interferes with my immersion the most is the choice not to use Greek accents at all.
Hephaestus in the sequel looks exactly like my immigrant uncle in real life. However, every time he speaks, I'm left wondering why he sounds Scottish. Judy Alice Lee did an amazing job voicing Melinoe, but when she speaks Greek (ie. Kataskion Aski) during her incantations, it sounds more like a British classics student practicing her Greek lines. Greek-speakers are a vast minority of the player base, and I get that this is something only someone in my position can notice and complain about. However, it feels like voices were chosen based on what Americans think sounds "regal and godly" as opposed to what characters would sound like in the context of the culture.
I don't think this was done intentionally, and there are definitely limitations when casting voices that don't come in common accents. However, I do think it is a missed opportunity to create a work of art that represents our culture far more deeply than other media has in the past.
Another small example is the use of Roman numerals when marking the doors in Tartatus and Chronos' clock attacks. In the context of the story, these symbols are being used a few centuries too early. Why not use Greek letters as the numerical system, counting down doors through ε, δ, γ, β ,α until the end? It may be confusing on the first run, but people learn quickly - they may even walk away understanding more about the Greek alphabet. I'm sure the creative minds at Supergiant could come up with other ways to represent "time" in a way that fits the cultural context.

4 - Props for the small details

I'd like to give props to some of the amazing tiny details that did make me feel represented in-game.

• Frinos and Toula are incredible names for familiars - if I don't get a dog named Osto next, I'll riot.
• The music, as usual, is magically done. Darren's use of culturally relevant instruments alongside his own flair proves that he is among the most thoughtful and skilled in the entire industry.
• Polyphemus' design is so Greek. The chest hair, the evil eye, his desire to eat and sleep, all of it.
• While pronunciation and accents can be bizzare, including Greek phrases when Melinoe is doing her incantations is an incredible touch. I would love to see more spoken Greek included in future updates.

Thank you for reading my rant. I understand that much of what I would have preferred is out of the scope of the team's vision, but I wanted to get my thoughts out so I can finally put them to rest. I hope my argument about cultural representation can be separated from the more negative and insensitive discourse about racial traits in character design.
Ν'αστε καλά. Θάνατοσ στο Χρόνοσ.
TLDR: The discourse around Supergiant's presentation of Hades characters has been bipolar - either "It's Perfect" or "It's Horrible". I think it is much closer to perfect than not, but as a Greek myself, I find myself begrudgingly accepting some very minor details (such as dubbing and pronunciation) that could have been executed a tad more thoughtfully. That being said, I think Supergiant did their best considering the resources available to them.

I am trying to test some elastic agent funtionality in kubernetes. Right now, I am trying to deploy elastic agent in a Kubernetes pod. Bare in mind, the environment is all self managed on prem. I have security enabled and have generated certs for Fleet. I am running into an error where when deploying the elastic agent manifest, I receive "x509: certificate signed by unknown authority" error. I assumed this would be something handled by the "FLEET_ENROLLMENT_TOKEN", but it isn't working. I dont see an argument in the docs that show and environment variable where I can point to a CA fleet cert. Is there something I am missing here? I have copied and updated the fleet server cert to the Kubernetes node. Is there more I need to do for the pod to be able to see it?
It is just interesting that in Fleet UI, when adding an agent, it specifically details how to do this in Kube (if you have the policy preconfigured with the kubernetes integration).I would think it would detail this here with what env variables need to be listed. Especially if there were a cert specific variable.

 - name: FLEET_INSECURE value: "false" # Fleet Server URL to enroll the Elastic Agent into # FLEET_URL can be found in Kibana, go to Management > Fleet > Settings - name: FLEET_URL value: "https://192.168.1.51:8220" # Elasticsearch API key used to enroll Elastic Agents in Fleet (https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/fleet/current/fleet-enrollment-tokens.html#fleet-enrollment-tokens) # If FLEET_ENROLLMENT_TOKEN is empty then KIBANA_HOST, KIBANA_FLEET_USERNAME, KIBANA_FLEET_PASSWORD are needed - name: FLEET_ENROLLMENT_TOKEN value: "" - name: KIBANA_HOST value: "http://kibana:5601" # The basic authentication username used to connect to Kibana and retrieve a service_token to enable Fleet - name: KIBANA_FLEET_USERNAME value: "elastic" # The basic authentication password used to connect to Kibana and retrieve a service_token to enable Fleet - name: KIBANA_FLEET_PASSWORD value: "" - name: NODE_NAME valueFrom: fieldRef: fieldPath: spec.nodeName - name: POD_NAME valueFrom: fieldRef: fieldPath: metadata.name 

https://preview.redd.it/rggvt1q2ws0d1.png?width=720&format=png&auto=webp&s=b02e07e8e8ad4b69d8ecf48881a5476d8947983b
It doesn't mention anywhere about referencing or mounting a CA certificate
Note:
small lab

• 1 ES container
  
• 1 Fleet Server container
  
• 1 KB container
  
• 1 microk8s node (This is where I am trying to deploy Elastic Agent)
  

I am able to deploy Elastic Agent with "FLEET_INSECURE" set to true, but I want to use the certs that I have.
I added the fleet server crt to the k8s node and ran "update-ca-certificates" and that still didn't solve anything.
Thanks in advance for any assistance!

Here are 3 sampled answers using Maestrix as an example but you can easily apply your product details or URLs. These results have been generated in 3 minutes. You can do it for your own product on maestrix.ai.
A/ Market Category Frame of Reference: Maestrix AI competes in the AI-powered Marketing Automation and Planning Tools market category, which includes products that leverage artificial intelligence to provide marketing strategy, planning, and execution capabilities.
Competitors:

1. New Startups:
   • chatGPT (AI-powered marketing assistant)
   • Adcreative.ai (AI-powered ad creative optimization)
2. Legacy Companies:
   • HubSpot (marketing, sales, and customer service software)
   • Marketo (marketing automation platform)
3. Everyday Tools Repurposed:
   • Prompt Bibles by infopreneurs (customized marketing strategy templates)

Competitive Alternatives:

Alternative	How it Addresses the Market	Downsides	How Maestrix AI is Better
Hiring a Marketing Agency	Provides custom marketing strategies and execution	Expensive, time-consuming, and often lacks AI-driven insights	Maestrix AI provides AI-powered insights and automation at a lower cost and faster pace
Using Traditional Marketing Tools (e.g., HubSpot)	Offers marketing automation capabilities	Lacks AI-powered insights and requires significant setup and training	Maestrix AI provides AI-driven insights and automation with minimal setup and training
Custom-built Marketing Strategy Templates (e.g., Prompt Bibles)	Provides a customized marketing strategy	Limited scalability, requires constant updates, and lacks AI-driven insights	Maestrix AI provides AI-powered insights and automation that adapts to changing market conditions
Doing Nothing (DIY Marketing)	Lowers costs and provides control	Time-consuming, lacks scalability, and often ineffective	Maestrix AI provides AI-powered insights and automation at a lower cost and faster pace

Key Unique Attributes:

Unique Attribute	What Makes it Unique	How it Addresses the Problem
AI-powered Insights	Uses machine learning algorithms to analyze market data and provide actionable insights	Provides data-driven marketing strategies and campaigns
Automated Campaign Generation	Uses natural language processing to generate ad copy, social posts, email campaigns, and landing pages	Saves time and resources while ensuring consistent branding and messaging
Comprehensive Digital Strategy	Offers a holistic approach to marketing, including go-to-market, e-commerce, and competitor analysis	Ensures a cohesive marketing strategy that drives business growth
Expert-driven Positioning and Messaging	Provides expert-level positioning and messaging frameworks	Helps businesses differentiate themselves in the market and resonate with their target audience

Enabled Value and Proof:

Enabled Value	Proof
Data-driven marketing strategies	Case studies demonstrating 25% increase in conversions and 30% decrease in ad spend
Time and resource efficiency	Customer testimonials highlighting 50% reduction in marketing execution time
Scalable and adaptable marketing campaigns	Whitepapers and research papers on the effectiveness of AI-powered marketing automation
Expert-level positioning and messaging	Success stories of businesses that achieved significant growth with Maestrix AI's positioning and messaging frameworks

Customer Segments:

Segment	Motivations	Triggers	Barriers
Startups	Need to quickly establish a strong market presence	Limited marketing resources and expertise	Difficulty in creating effective marketing strategies and campaigns
Solopreneurs	Desire to maximize online presence and sales	Limited time and marketing know-how	Difficulty in creating and executing marketing campaigns
Small Teams	Need to drive business growth through effective marketing	Limited marketing resources and budget constraints	Difficulty in creating and executing marketing campaigns

SWOT Summary Table:

Strengths	Weaknesses	Opportunities	Threats
AI-powered insights and automation	Limited brand recognition	Growing demand for AI-powered marketing tools	Competition from established marketing automation platforms
Comprehensive digital strategy	Dependence on APIs and third-party data sources	Expanding into new markets and industries	Regulatory changes affecting AI-powered marketing tools
Expert-driven positioning and messaging	Limited sales and marketing resources	Partnerships with digital marketing agencies and consultancies	Competition from emerging startups and new market entrants
Scalable and adaptable marketing campaigns	High customer acquisition costs	Expanding into new geographic markets	Economic downturns affecting marketing budgets

B/ User Positioning Statements:

1. I'm trying to develop a marketing strategy using online tutorials, but I get overwhelmed by the amount of information because it's hard to prioritize what's relevant for my business. Now, I can access tailored marketing insights and campaign ideas with Maestrix AI, so that I can create effective marketing strategies that drive results.
2. I'm trying to create engaging ad content using a copywriter, but it takes too much time and money because I need to brief them on my brand and product. Now, I can generate precise ads and social posts with Maestrix AI, so that I can quickly launch targeted campaigns that resonate with my audience.
3. I'm trying to optimize my marketing budget using spreadsheet analysis, but it's hard to make data-driven decisions because I'm not a marketing expert. Now, I can get actionable marketing recommendations with Maestrix AI, so that I can maximize my ROI and grow my business.
4. I'm trying to improve my brand's online presence using a web developer, but it takes too long and costs too much because I need to redesign my website. Now, I can create optimized landing pages and email campaigns with Maestrix AI, so that I can attract and retain more customers.
5. I'm trying to outperform my competitors using industry reports, but it's hard to stay ahead because I lack the resources and expertise. Now, I can analyze my competitors and get tailored marketing strategies with Maestrix AI, so that I can dominate my market and reach my business goals.

Competitor Analysis Table:

Category	B2B Competitors	B2C Competitors
AI Marketing Assistants	ChatGPT, HubSpot	-
Traditional Agencies	Traditional ad agencies, Marketing firms	-
Marketing Tools	Hootsuite, Mailchimp	Canva, Adobe Creative Cloud
AI Content Generation	Content Blossom, Snoring Cat	AI Writer, WordLift
Prompt Bibles	Infopreneurs (e.g. [Prompt Bible by [Influencer])	-

Top ICP / Persona Recommendations Table:

Dimension	Recommendation 1 (B2B)	Recommendation 2 (B2C)	Recommendation 3 (B2B)	Recommendation 4 (B2C)	Recommendation 5 (B2B)
Industry	Tech startups	E-commerce entrepreneurs	Small marketing teams	Solopreneurs	Growing businesses
Company Size	10-50 employees	1-5 employees	5-20 employees	1-5 employees	50-200 employees
Job Function	Marketing Manager	FoundeCEO	Growth Hacker	Entrepreneur	CMO
Primary Goal	Drive customer acquisition	Increase online sales	Boost brand awareness	Establish thought leadership	Optimize marketing budget
Pain Points	Limited marketing resources, difficulty measuring ROI	Difficulty creating engaging content, limited marketing expertise	Struggling to scale marketing efforts, limited budget	Difficulty establishing brand identity, limited resources	Difficulty optimizing marketing budget, lack of marketing expertise

Avoidance Recommendations Table:

Dimension	Avoidance Recommendation
Industry	Highly regulated industries (e.g. finance, healthcare)
Company Size	Large enterprises (>500 employees)
Job Function	IT/Tech professionals without marketing responsibilities
Primary Goal	Reducing costs, process optimization (not marketing-related)
Pain Points	Difficulty with internal communications, team management

Recommendation Rationale Summary:
Our top recommendations target tech startups, e-commerce entrepreneurs, small marketing teams, solopreneurs, and growing businesses in the B2B and B2C spaces. These personas struggle with limited marketing resources, difficulty measuring ROI, and creating engaging content. Maestrix AI addresses these pain points by providing tailored marketing insights, campaign ideas, and content generation. Our recommendations avoid highly regulated industries, large enterprises, and IT/Tech professionals without marketing responsibilities, as these groups may require more specialized solutions or have different priorities.
Challenging Decisions Analysis:
For B2B audiences: 1) convincing marketing teams to adopt AI-assisted marketing strategies, and 2) demonstrating the ROI of Maestrix AI.
For B2C audiences: 1) educating solopreneurs and small business owners about the benefits of AI marketing assistants, and 2) addressing concerns about AI-generated content quality.
Persona/Client Canvas:
Here are three detailed persona profiles:
Persona 1: Marketing Manager Maya

• Demographics: 28-40 years old, marketing professionals in tech startups
• Psychographics: Ambitious, growth-oriented, data-driven
• Role/Job: Marketing Manager
• Problem to solve: Limited marketing resources, difficulty measuring ROI
• Pains of this problem: Feeling overwhelmed, lacking confidence in marketing decisions
• Jobs-To-Be-Done: Drive customer acquisition, increase brand awareness
• Motivation: Prove the value of marketing to the organization
• Trigger: New marketing budget allocation, need to scale marketing efforts
• Barriers: Limited resources, difficulty justifying marketing spend
• Context: Familiar with marketing automation tools, looking for innovative solutions

Persona 2: E-commerce Entrepreneur Emma

• Demographics: 25-45 years old, e-commerce entrepreneurs
• Psychographics: Entrepreneurial, driven, creative
• Role/Job: FoundeCEO
• Problem to solve: Difficulty creating engaging content, limited marketing expertise
• Pains of this problem: Feeling stuck, struggling to compete with larger brands
• Jobs-To-Be-Done: Increase online sales, establish thought leadership
• Motivation: Grow the business, establish a strong brand identity
• Trigger: Launching a new product or service, need to drive sales
• Barriers: Limited budget, difficulty finding the right marketing talent
• Context: Familiar with social media marketing, looking for efficient marketing solutions

Persona 3: Growth Hacker Alex

• Demographics: 25-40 years old, growth hackers in small marketing teams
• Psychographics: Analytical, adaptable, results-oriented
• Role/Job: Growth Hacker
• Problem to solve: Struggling to scale marketing efforts, limited budget
• Pains of this problem: Feeling frustrated, difficulty justifying marketing spend
• Jobs-To-Be-Done: Boost brand awareness, optimize marketing budget
• Motivation: Drive user acquisition, prove the value of growth hacking
• Trigger: New marketing budget allocation, need to scale marketing efforts
• Barriers: Limited resources, difficulty measuring ROI
• Context: Familiar with marketing automation tools, looking for innovative solutions

C/ CAMPAIGN IDEAS
Table 1: Thought-provoking Statements

Statement
Marketing doesn't have to be a guessing game.
Stop throwing spaghetti at the wall.
Your competitors are already using AI marketing.
Traditional agencies are stuck in the past.
You can't out-hustle a machine.
Marketing strategies shouldn't be a shot in the dark.
Don't let your competition outsmart you.
What if you could predict your marketing success?
It's time to take the gamble out of marketing.
Your business deserves data-driven decisions.

Table 2: 'Pick a Fight' Statements

Statement
Traditional agencies are a waste of your money.
ChatGPT is a toy, not a marketing solution.
Prompt bibles are a lazy marketing hack.
Why settle for mediocre marketing when you can have AI-powered perfection?
Your competitors are using AI marketing. Why aren't you?
Marketing by committee is a recipe for disaster.
Don't let your competitors out-AI you.
Legacy marketing strategies are holding you back.
What's your marketing strategy? "I don't know" isn't an answer.
Stop trying to be a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.

Table 3: Irreverent Questions

Question
Are you tired of throwing money at marketing and hoping for the best?
How much did your last failed marketing campaign cost you?
Do you really think your competitors are stupid?
What's the ROI on your current marketing strategy... -1%?
How many hours have you wasted on marketing meetings?
Are you a startup or a sideshow?
Is your marketing strategy based on hope or data?
Do you really think you can outsmart the market?
How many marketing agencies have failed you?
Are you ready to take the gamble out of marketing?

Table 4: Creative Angles

Angle	Explanation
1. AI-Powered Perfection	Highlighting Maestrix AI's ability to deliver precise marketing campaigns and strategies.
2. From Chaos to Clarity	Emphasizing the clarity and direction Maestrix AI brings to marketing efforts.
3. Marketing in the Dark	Illustrating the uncertainty of traditional marketing strategies and the need for Maestrix AI.
4. The AI Advantage	Showcasing the competitive edge Maestrix AI provides to startups and small teams.
5. Data-Driven Decisions	Focusing on the data-driven approach of Maestrix AI and the confidence it brings.
6. Smarter Marketing	Positioning Maestrix AI as a smarter, more efficient way to approach marketing.
7. Outsmart the Competition	Highlighting Maestrix AI's ability to help businesses stay ahead of the competition.
8. No More Guesswork	Emphasizing the elimination of guesswork in marketing with Maestrix AI.
9. Predictable Success	Showcasing the predictable success and ROI of Maestrix AI marketing campaigns.
10. Marketing on Autopilot	Positioning Maestrix AI as a reliable, hands-off marketing solution.

Table 5: Billboard Concepts
Here are 15 billboard concepts for each creative angle, with remarkable headlines, different rhetorical devices, different tones, and a 5-word signature that describes the value of Maestrix AI using the 4Cs copywriting formula.
Angle 1: AI-Powered Perfection

Headline	Rhetorical Device	Tone	Signature
"Marketing, elevated."	Allusion	Sophisticated	"Precise marketing. Guaranteed."
"Your marketing, perfected."	Anaphora	Confident	"Flawless marketing strategies."
"The future of marketing, today."	Hyperbole	Futuristic	"Revolutionary AI marketing tools."

...
Angle 10: Marketing on Autopilot

Headline	Rhetorical Device	Tone	Signature
"Marketing on cruise control."	Metaphor	Relaxing	"Hands-off marketing freedom."
"Set it and forget it."	Enthymeme	Carefree	"Marketing on autopilot, guaranteed."
"Let AI handle it."	Aporia	Trusting	"Reliable marketing solutions."

Table 6: Highly Creative and Original Concepts

Concept	Explanation
"Marketing Oracle" Campaign	Positioning Maestrix AI as a mystical, all-knowing marketing guide.
"Marketing Myth-Busting" Series	Creating a series of ads that debunk common marketing myths and showcase Maestrix AI as the solution.
"AI vs. Human" Marketing Challenge	Pitting Maestrix AI against human marketers in a series of marketing challenges, highlighting the AI's superiority.
"The Great Marketing Escape"	Creating an immersive, escape-room-style experience that demonstrates the frustrations of traditional marketing and the relief of Maestrix AI.
"Marketing Utopia"	Illustrating a world where marketing strategies are data-driven, efficient, and successful, thanks to Maestrix AI.
"Marketing Time Capsule"	Creating a time capsule filled with outdated marketing materials and strategies, contrasted with the futuristic, AI-powered marketing of Maestrix AI.
"Marketing Symphony"	Using music and sound design to illustrate the harmony and efficiency of Maestrix AI marketing campaigns.
"The Marketing Maze"	Creating a maze that represents the complexities of traditional marketing, with Maestrix AI as the guiding light that leads to success.
"Marketing in the Dark... Ages"	Illustrating the dark ages of marketing, where businesses struggled without Maestrix AI, and the enlightenment that comes with AI-powered marketing.
"The AI Marketing Architect"	Positioning Maestrix AI as a master builder of marketing strategies, creating a solid foundation for business success.

FIRST CHAPTER
PREVIOUS CHAPTER
This product is a fanfic of the Sexy Space Babes/Between Worlds product of u/Bluefishcake and one I highly suggest you read. It was created with permission, but give the OG works some love.
Imgr gallery of Comissioned and Fan Artworks
I'm Back Bitches! Again!
//////////
Junior Systems Engineer First Class Che’keero knelt before a semi-sparking control panel and sighed. She, and a large band of her fellow Engineers with Marine support, had boarded the pirate frigate with the singular goal of ensuring that the pirates didn’t scuttle their floating hulk and doom the slaves aboard to a, if they were lucky, a swift death in space.
The problem, of course, came with the pirate’s maintenance schedules and decisions to forgo certain… safety measures when it came to repair.
Like the panel before her. Usually a perfectly functional control system for the reverse-magnetic bulkhead doors that ensured void seals in power outages, some pirate at some point in their dumb, dumb life decided to fix the panel blowing a fuse… by ripping the fuse out and replacing it with a high density power cable. Which meant the entire thing was one massive shock hazard and actively sparking as the reactors deep in the ship flickered and surged due to damage.
Che’keero swore as an arc of electricity flashed towards her face after a tool that was not supposed to be magnetized, cheap dick WaDepth requisitions, caught a magnetic field, fusing the entire system shut and turning the formerly barely functional control system into nothing but pretty, decorative wiring and cheap solder. She punched the now utterly unfunctional control box and toggled on her radio. “Three-Two to Three-Lead, this door’s fried. You’ll need to bring in the cutters if we want to get to the rest of the ship. Might as well also bring in an inflatable airlock, I’m not liking how some of the metal strain sensors are flashing at me.”
A semi-synthetic voice replied back to Che’keero, “Three-Lead copies. I’ll be over there shortly with the stuff. Double check those sensors, I’m not getting the same readings, so let’s make sure something isn’t blocking errors from reaching me.”
“Copy that Three-Lead, Three-Two ou-” Something tapped against the back of her helmet and Junior Systems Engineer First Class Che’keero mentally swore.
“Now, now, lassie, how about you sit right there and don’t move.” A nasally, unfamiliar voice called out to her while tapping what a camera she set up to watch her back revealed to be a laser pistol to Che’keero’s helmet. “I think that you’re going to be our new best friend and way off this dead end ship.”
Che’keero paused, letting the situation settle in her mind, “Wait, what? Are… are you taking me hostage?”
“Yes!” The pirate replied.
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why are you taking me hostage? This won’t work, none of the shuttles are jump capable and if you try anything, you’ll just end up jumped by marines. They specifically train to deal with pirates taking their engineers hostage. If you want to survive, you should just surrender and take the penal colony when it’s offered.” Che’keero mentioned, shrugging and continuing her inspection of the door.
The pirate seemed baffled at the sheer nonchalance of this response, the pistol slowly falling to merely point at her upper back instead of her head, “You… you really aren’t taking this seriously. I’m a pirate! I’ve killed people! I’ve killed boys, and you’re just sitting there like this doesn’t mean anything!”
“I mean… I wouldn’t say that.” Che’keero replied.
“THEN WHAT DO YOU MEAN!” The pirate screamed, the pistol moving away from Che’keero’s body by a fraction of an inch during an angry gesture.
It was at that point, a ceramic alloyed, carbon steel blade punched clean through the back of the pirate’s suit, slicing through their central nervous system and striking with enough force to shatter the faceplate of said pirate’s helmet on the way out. Muscles twitching, the laser pistol fired off randomly, missing Che’keero and slagging a chunk of bulkhead.
“I’m just buying time,” Che’keero replied cheekily.
“You really need to remember to check your cameras,” The semi-synthetic voice of Ventures Forth Bravely Into Great Unknowns commented as the ex-pirate fell to the ground and blue blood dripped from the long blade sprouting from her right arm and a toolbox hanging from her left hand. “This isn’t the first time you have been flanked, and this one wasn’t during training.”
“Look, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.” Che’keero replied a bit testily.
“I’m sorry…” Ventures Forth prodded.
“I’m sorry, Ma’am.”
“Much better. Right, now what do we see in this- yeah you were right on it being fried.” Ventures Forth gently shoved the Junior Systems Engineer aside and took her place at the control panel. “Do a sweep of the strain systems. I don’t want this section of the ship breaking apart. Feel free to call up our hull patches. We’ve got plenty to share and this might have to be a lifeboat.”
“Aye, ma’am aye,” Che’keero replied with a crisp salute before rushing off to her duty.
Deeper inside the ship, Ventures Forth could hear laser fire, clashing of metal on metal, and cries for help.
The pirate ship was doomed, it was shattered and broken, but it was not destroyed. Not yet. \
And if she had her way, Ventures Forth Bravely Into Great Unknowns would keep it that way.
//////////
Roshal stood still as her steward continued to clean the dark blue and rapidly congealing blood off her armored form. “Comms,” She called out, “Do we have any contact with the shuttle we sent to the station?”
“Negative, ma’am.” The comm officer replied. She wasn’t the same one that was present when Roshal left to fend off the boarders. At the unspoken question, the woman continued “Communication’s Mate Second Class Lev’tal, ma’am. My superior got a concussion when the pirate ship rocked our ship during boarding. Strap snapped, prior damage. I took over.”
Roshal nodded approvingly, “Good initiative. Send a message to the station, see if we can’t rai-”
“Ma’am! Contact!” One of her sensor techs called out, “Belay that, two contacts. First contact, nav point 782 spinward, possible bogey, cruiser weight. Unknown movements. Second contact, nav point 102 coreward, aerospace assets inbound. Small flight. Hard to determine numbers due to damage. No less than two, no more than five.”
“Focus on getting a hard contact on that possible cruiser. Weapons, what is the status of our anti-aerospace.” Roshal demanded, holding her sword arm out for the steward to scrub at a particularly clotted chunk of blood splattered over her wrist.
The weapons officer shook her head, “If we’re lucky, then we’ve got 20% coverage on half our sides. If we’re very lucky, I might be able to bump that number up to 35%. Not going to quote doctrine, but that’s not nearly enough to fend off a flight of Aerospace assets on a strike run, and that’s assuming they don’t hit us on an unprotected flank.”
Roshal nodded once more, “Sound general quarters and get weapons and tactical back online. Tell the damage control parties to not be distracted and focus on critical systems first. Engine room, report. Can you give me maneuvering thrust?”
The nearby ship phone chimed in with a staticy hiss, “Negative, ma’am. The shot we made with the spinal mount tripped breakers up and down the reactor room. This isn’t an engine problem, we need to make sure our reactor doesn’t blow up when we siphon power. Before you ask, emergency power is still flowing and none of their circuits tripped, but that means we’re down to life support, basic systems, and dockyard thrusters. It will take at least 20 to get the reactor in a safe state. If you want 10, send the chaplain down so we have someone praying for good luck. The fact most of our structural engineers are doing an EVA boarding to ensure the pirate ship next to us doesn’t go critical and render the entire exercise moot isn’t helping matters at all.” The engine room replied Roshal bit down a bit of annoyance at the snark, but engineers were always a finicky sort with authority. They were the first to remind uptight officers that while the Captain’s word may be iron law, it was their work that truly moved the ship.
“Confirmed, engine room.” Roshal instead replied. “Chaplains will be arriving shortly. Do what you can and inform me when you’re three minutes out from full power.”
The engine room didn’t even bother replying, just sending over the affirmative light as they got to work. Roshal approved of that. Sometimes, you just had to insult someone in order to get it working right.
“Captain, we have confirmation on contact. He’s an Alliance Karcharidon class Heavy Cruiser on intercept course. Energy readings are spiking… they’re charging their guns, ma’am!”
“Issue a hostile challenge and give me a firing solution with any gun still functional.”
“No response, ma’am. Hostile Karcharidon is increasing speed. Hard contact in 15 minutes.”
Roshal snarled, emotion breaking through her mask. “Of course, the pirates had one more vessel. Helm, fire our maneuvering thrusters, use the pirate hulk as cover. Weapons, get whoever’s left of our Interceptor flight to engage the enemy. Comms, get me in contact with the merchant fleet, tell them to evacuate. We’ll provide cover.”
“Aye ma’am.” The Communications Mate Second Class said with a shiver in her voice. “Sending-”
“Update on Aerospace assets!” Her sensor tech called out.
“Deliver!” Roshal demanded, cutting off the comms officer with a slice of her hand.
“Weapons fire. Definitely less than four contacts. Seems to be two grou- negative, only two contacts remaining- weaponsfire- one contac- IFF received, oh goddesses, IT’S RUNOFF THREE! FRIENDLY AEROSPACE INBOUND!”
//////////
Milk gripped her crash harness hard as Cookie slammed the Interceptor’s fusion torch clean past its safe thrust marker and into the red as g forces crushed her chest. “Last target down.” She reported after Cookie’s final laser burst hit something critical inside the final Aerospace fighter’s frame. “That’s 20 for 20. All enemy bogeys down. All standard munitions are in the black. Static drive is 48%, dump core ejected. All we’ve got left is our ASM and front laser.”
Cookie flashed back an affirmative signal.
“We going for that cruiser?”
Another affirmative.
“Well, I’m braced and ready on the release. Ready.”
“Ready.” Cookie spoke, his voice horse.
It’s funny what people think when their lives are on the line. Because charging towards a fresh enemy Heavy Cruiser, nothing but a single anti-shipping missile worth a damn, no allied support but the faint glimmer in IFF screens of their fellow flight doing the same… all Aoibhinn McDermott could think of was a poem she had read at least a decade ago or more at the Naval Academy.
Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the Valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
//////////
Ventures Forth Bravely Into Great Unknowns could do nothing but furiously swear as the basic sensor system her engineering team had restored on the thoroughly ventilated secondary command bridge of the pirate hulk revealed an enemy Heavy Cruiser bearing down upon their homeship.
“Weapons are trashed. We cored their reactor, anyway.” One of the tangential engineers reported, “Other teams are calling in. Things are worse where they are. We’ve found the slaves, though, luckily it was one of the few airtight bays. Also, have some more captives, but that really doesn’t matter right now.”
“No shit.” Ventures Forth replied, “Can we do anything?”
The engineer looked back to her, visor depolarizing so the Gearschilde can look into the black and yellow eyes of her Shil coworker.
“Pray.” The woman replied simply.
Ventures Forth Bravely Into Great Unknowns did just that.
//////////
Low chanting filled the engine bay as a small group of priests stood around the engine praying to whichever god that would listen to allow them one more shot. One more fight.
Around them, black handed engineers scurried, ripping out blown fuses and replacing them with soldered in high strength wire. A final measure of desperation. Sparks flew as engineers swore and chaplains prayed, power still remaining in circuits needing to be bled out before bypasses could be installed, turning every bit of solder and every ripped out fuse into a deadly gamble.
Already, someone was lying on the ground, no longer twitching.
They didn’t have time to check on their fallen comrade, the work was too important.
A clock ticked down. Four minutes elapsed.
//////////
Lieutenant Commander Cenywyn swore as she watched Runoff 2 die.
Their single Interceptor had mistimed a maneuver and had been caught dead in the middle of an Anti-Aerospace array, shredded in an instant. The only consolation she could take was that, seeing as the first shot went clean through the cockpit, they didn’t even notice they died.
“Runoff 4, stay in formation.” She ordered over the radio, “We’ll lead you in for the run.”
“Yes ma’am.” The hesitant voice of Junior Flight Lieutenant Griogill replied. She swallowed, “We’re- we’re ready when you are.”
“No fear, Lieutenant,” Cenywyn called back to the child she was leading to her death. “We’re pilots in the Imperial Patrol. We do our duty. No fear.”
A clock ticked down. Six minutes elapsed.
//////////
“Talk to me!” The last remaining senior engineer in the reactor bay called out to anyone who was able to reply.
Someone, she didn’t even bother looking to see who, called back “We’ve bypassed 60% of the fuses. Should be able to give ourselves a burst of combat power. No more than 10 minutes of it before the entire system overheats and we either die, or the reactor shuts off.”
“Any chance we can get more than 10 minutes?”
“Not before that Heavy Cruiser delivers us straight to the stars.”
“Fuck it, good enough.” She slammed her fist on the ship phone’s dialing button resting near the console the engineer had just ripped the last safety override out of. “Captain. We’ve got your power. You give us the word, and we’ll give you ten minutes.”
//////////
Roshal breathed in, breathed out, and nodded. 10 minutes of combat power before the entire ship shut down into uselessness. She’d done more with less. She couldn’t remember when, but she had. Luckily, this was a Patrol Carrier instead of a standard ship, so it was more than capable of combat maneuvers with nothing but RCS thrusters. That should give her some time.
Movement, movement was going to be the key.
“Comms, tell the engineering crews on the hulk that they are ordered to figure out anything that could draw the attention of the Heavy Cruiser,” She began, “Systems, break our mooring lines. We’re going to have to split from the hulk. Helm, prepare for maneuvers. RCS only. We are going to have to do this carefully. Engineroom, prepare for power activation, but hold until my command.”
This needs to be perfect, Roshal thought, A single mistimed action ruins it all.
A clock ticked down. Ten minutes elapsed. The Karcharidon had entered maximum weapon’s range.
//////////
He of Slender Tail shivered where he stood. The secondary command bridge was silent as Roshal began giving orders to fight. This was… this was insane.
They were in a ruined ship with nothing but a merchant fleet beginning to flee and a three thirds dead pirate hulk on their side against a fresh Karcharidon class Heavy Cruiser.
They couldn’t win.
This was suicide.
They would die here.
\ So why didn’t He of Slender Tail feel afraid?
He stood at his post, a secondary bridge console where he would relay orders to other departments, freeing up the other Watchkeeper to collate those orders, there was nothing he could do to help win this impossible battle, and yet…
And yet he felt heat blossoming inside his chest with every single order delivered.
“Mooring teamsss, you are to cut your linesss immediately.” He relayed to a crew of Shil scurrying around the ruined bulkheads, “Damage control, prepare for electrical firesss and arcsss.” He commanded, switching between teams instantly.
He didn’t feel fear. He could see his Watchkeeper shiver every time the sensors reported the enemy contact was still closing, but he didn’t feel the same.
What he felt… was indignation.
How dare this pirate scum threaten his vessel, his crew. How dare they ambush this valiant ship after they had fought so hard to win. How dare they.
He let his fangs fold out as he spat the next order, “Anti-Aerossspace teamsss, prepare your batteriesss for grouped fire. Gunnery calculationsss are on their way.”
How dare they stand up to him.
A clock ticked down. 12 minutes elapsed. Weapons fire.
//////////
Roshal swayed slightly as she could feel the ship beneath her feet move. Movement is life in naval warfare, movement is death. “Right RCS fire, bring us clear of the hulk. Bow thrusters, up twenty.”
“Aye, ma’am, aye, right standard and bow up twenty.” The Helmswoman replied.
“Confirmed. Next maneuver, give us rear thrust-”
“Torpedo!” The sensor operator called out in a shrill voice, “Two marks on intercept course! Range, twelve K and closing fast!”
“Decorum!” Roshal snapped at the panicking sensor technician. “Comms, order Runoff flight to divert and intercept those torpedoes. Rear RCS to full, give us momentum.”
Roshal turned away from the bridge as affirmations were shouted, and the ship began to move, “Engineering, prepare to activate combat power on my mark and prepare for hard maneuvers. Mark in five.”
//////////
Griogill swallowed bile and tried not to feel too thankful that the enemy vessel had fired torpedoes at their home ship. Being diverted from an attack run had a much higher chance of survival than striking through an AA bubble.
“Runoff 4 engaging far torpedo. Moving in for intercept. Bre’kas, give me lock.”
Griogill’s backseater muttered something, and a target lock appeared on the far torpedo as Runoff 1, their previous Drill Sergeants, dashed by in a hard burn and blazed away at their own target.
“Right. We can do this. We can do this. No fear.” The rookie muttered as the sight of her friends in Runoff 3 being turned to vapor echoed in her mind. “I can do this.”
The target locked. She fired. The torpedo detonated.
A clock ticked down.
//////////
“Mark in four.”
//////////
The Heavy Cruiser loomed closer as the comparatively tiny Patrol Carrier spat its defiance in the form of two Interceptors dancing between the stars.
As a pair of torpedoes detonated, four more were launched, the anti-shipping weapons built for this specific purpose. Destroying disabled vessels.
And so the last two remaining Interceptors on CAP dove into the fray, risking themselves against an ever approaching AA bubble in order to save their ship.
A clock ticked down.
//////////
“Mark in three.”
//////////
All Cookie could do was stare and push his meager aerospace fighter further on its nuclear thrusters as shimmering dots of torpedoes lanced out from the Heavy Cruiser attacking his new home.
He pushed his hand forward and felt the throttle once more push back against him, the lever pushed all the way past safe thrust and into the further setting on his console.
The Interceptor was fast. It didn’t feel fast enough.
And so he spoke the words he spoke once before, back when he’d had to listen to his backseater’s screams of pain and the rush of wind after shrapnel pierced his fuselage, and the hospital was so, so far away.
Father, I pray that you will not hide your face from me. Whenever I pray, Lord please hear me and answer me speedily in Jesus' name. God, I pray that you will grant me speed through your help.
A clock ticked down.
//////////
“Mark in two.”
//////////
The Heavy Cruiser shifted, engine flaring and it began to close the range. A single disabled ship on emergency RCS thrusters and a pair of Aerospace fighters was nothing it would have to deal with.
It fired a third spread of torpedoes.
A clock ticked down.
//////////
They took the bait. Roshal thought with a vicious grin.
“Mark in one.” She paused, “Execute.”
In an instant, power flowed through the ship, emergency lights flickered off as the burning red boarding lights returned their fiery glow. The entire ship shook as the main thruster came back online, and capacitors began to charge for maneuvers.
“Hard burn, full thrusters, right, on my mark.” Roshal watched as the Heavy Cruiser began to react to her movements, the enemy ship was alive, you needed to roll to broadsides to begin bombardment, come on come on…
Roshal watched as a torpedo flickered out of existence, Runoff 4 gaining another kill.
Come on, dammit, you don’t get put in charge of a Heavy Cruiser without- THERE!
The Heavy Cruiser flinched, turning her bow away from the no longer stricken vessel, preparing for broadside.
The Captain’s grin showed more teeth than smile. “Execute! Full right thrust!”
“Full right thrust! Aye ma’am aye!” Her helmswoman called out as maneuvering thrusters dead cold roared to life and physically threw the vessel to the side, causing everyone not strapped in on the bridge to rock as a barrage of fire flew past their former location, manual targeting systems in play since the automatic systems would still be getting warmed up.
“Full thrust forward, prepare to divert all power to secondary weapons. Weapons, give me a firing solution.” Roshal commanded, hand raised and pointed at the enemy’s display as if she were commanding from a tall ship.
A chant of “Aye ma’am aye” flowed out across the bridge as the weaponsmistress was silent before calling out. “Port side is up to 45% secondary fires and 32% point defense. That’ll be our best bet.”
Roshal nodded. “Make it so. Target their main weapons. Helm, get us that facing.”
“Ma’am. We’re getting a call from Runoff 3. They are entering the AO and are asking for a target.”
Roshal smiled, “Weapons, shift target. Aim for the anti-aerospace systems. Let’s give Runoff 3 the opening they need.”
A clock ticked down.
//////////
“Cookie, we’ve got a targeting path.” Milk called forward. “Putting it up on your HUD.”
“One second… I’ve got it. Moving to comply. Did the Captain give us a plan?” her front seater replied, causing her stomach to do funny things as the Aerospace Fighter maneuvered while under high thrust.
“Something like that. She asked for a munitions report and specifically about our anti-shipping weapon.”
Cookie paused.
“Ah.” He finally said.
“Yeah.” She replied.
“Well, let’s hope they’re able to open us up to a window of opportunity. Or this will be a short charge.”
“Not our place to question why.”
“Just our place to do and die.”
Time to target… three minutes.
Into the valley of Death, rode the six hundred.
A clock ticked down.
//////////
Two vessels, three Aerospace fighters, one chance.
Six minutes of power remained. All actors took their places on the stage.
One hundred kilometers, close enough to check the weld quality of hull seams, the two ships danced across from each other. Maneuvering.
Five minutes of power remained.
The Karcharidon Heavy Cruiser rolled itself trying to keep the vulnerable top deck away from the Patrol Carrier’s presumably still working main gun as Roshal’s vessel jumped to the side. Thrusters roared.
Four minutes of power remained.
Runoff 1 and 4 shot towards their formerly separated comrade, forming up behind them in a wedge. The trio climbed towards the sun as their captain continued to chase and harass the Karcharidon.
Three minutes of power remained.
Roshal spoke. The lances of her vessel fired. Laser blasts carved across the hull of the enemy ship as it rolled.
The rolling ceased. A helmswoman swore as a full broadside caught the Patrol Carrier in the flank. The port hangar pod was ruined, armor shattered and all inside exposed to hard vacuum. Those who could scream died the fastest. The Interceptors had their opening.
Two minutes of power remained.
Silent wings swept through vacuum as three Interceptors began their dive, their formerly speedy arrowhead shape giving way to an inverted t as their wings swept out for stability, the ASF dove and dove and dove.
Five Kilometers away.
The range was too wide. They had one shot. It had to be perfect.
One minute of power remained.
The Into Harm’s Way spat its defiance into the world, limited power drained to give her pilots a seconds more of time.
30 seconds of power remained.
Three Kilometers.
Hard Lock! Milk shouted from the back seat of Runoff 3. Cookie was silent. The range was still too wide.
15 seconds of power remained.
Two Kilometers.
The Karcharidon seemingly began to roll before the Patrol Carrier once more fired, its last remaining weapons spouting their defiance against the world. Deep in engineering, systems began to blow, wires that replaced fuses sparked power and delicate circuit boards shorted out into useless scrap.
The lights went out.
No power remained.
Roshal, in her head, began to count down as lances of light began to sweep across her ship. Damage control did what they could, but the beams began to cut like an overly enthusiastic shipbreaker.
Five.
One Kilometer.
Four.
Cookie’s thumb depressed the firing stud as the Interceptor screamed at him.
Three.
The ASF launched its deadly payload.
Two.
Three Interceptors pulled back hard on their sticks to avoid colliding with the deck.
One.
The thruster of the anti-shipping missile roared as it rocketed the point blank aerospace distance to target.
Impact.
The armor piercing tip of the missile punched into the upper deck plating of the Heavy Cruiser, classified alloys allowing it to pierce into the armored plating just enough to allow the shaped charge to open up a hole as momentum kept the weapon moving.
Within the frame of a single second, the warhead of the missile had entered the ship and, before the alarms even had time to sound, detonated.
A new sun appeared in the void for a split second as a plasma-fusion warhead detonated inside the Karcharidon heavy cruiser’s hull.
//////////
Roshal allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief inside her head as the emergency power lights flickered overhead and the gravity ever so slightly lightened. What was left of their sensor arrays showed the enemy vessel powering down. “Engineering. Good work, your 10 minutes were just what she needed.” She called out, picking up the ship phone.
There was no answer from engineering.
She signed externally before pointing at one of the marines guarding the bridge, “Find a crewmate in a void suit. I have need of runners.” The marine clasped a fist to her chest before leaving to execute her captain’s commands. “Comms, do we have any contact with the engineering teams on the pirate hulk?”
The Comms officer held up a hand, Roshal waited, “No, ma’am. We aren’t getting- wait. We’ve got visual on flashing lights from the hull. Apparently, something shorted, so they’re having to rebuild broadcast arrays. They can receive just fine, though.”
“Good, once we can maneuver, bring us broadside of them. What’s the status of the merchant fleet?”
Navigation spoke up now, “Still heading for the Jump Point. Should we send the recall order?”
“Not yet, we are still unsure if the area is safe. If we have any sensors remaining, begin sca-”
The mentioned sensor technician interrupted Captain Roshal, “Ma’am, new contact, signature unknown. Just jumped in from outside the starlane!”
“Give me details. Course, range, and speed?” She demanded.
“Signal confused, can’t get a lock!” Navigation called out, “Can’t tell if confusion’s from them or us.”
Not another one… Roshal sighed, “All forces prepa-”
“Ma’am, we’re being hailed.” Communications called out.
“On squawk.”
“This is Captain Al’yosha Cal’rada of Her Imperial Majesty’s Ship Spear of the Knyaginya, responding to Merchant vessel distress calls. Imperial Patrol Carrier, are you in need of assistance at this time?”
Roshal recognized the voice. A junior officer from her days in the Navy and a fellow Sevastutavan. The memory of the fresh faced girl when she’d joined her as an Ensign straight of the Naval Academy flashed before her eyes. “Captain Cal’rada. Your timing is impeccable as always.”
“Admiral?” Roshal could hear the shock in her old protege’s voice.
“That’s Captain, now, Al’yosha. I require your aid in ensuring the disabled vessel still glowing from an ASM strike remains disabled along with Search and Rescue teams for our sister Carrier.
“Whatever you want, you’ll have it, Admiral_… Helm! All ahead flank and plot course to intercept. Launch gunships and prepare to deploy Bluejackets. We’ll test our _Orcas’ teeth today!”
The line cut out a moment later than it should have, and Roshal nodded in approval.
“Captain, I still don’t have a read on new contact. What is it?” Sensors asked.
“A Drep’na inspired vision, come to life.” Roshal watched, feeling an odd sort of parental pride as Al’yosha’s experimental warship began closing the distance towards the Karcharidon at breakneck speeds. “A swift sailing vessel and ten carriage guns…” Roshal murmured the line from an old Vaasconian poem from the ancient Age of Sail. She had heard Cal’rada had succeeded in petitioning the Navy to build her dream-ship, burning every favor and passing out favors to any and everyone to see the program through. Now, there she was, standing on the bridge bearing down on a ship twice her size, but if the rumors were true, only half her guns.
“Ma’am, contact is still not resolving, but IFF confirms Imperial Navy designation. An Akula Class Attack Transport. I’ve… I’ve never even heard of this class.”
“Perhaps we shall hear of them more in the future. Fortune favors the active.”
“Contact is disgorging multiple signals, moving at speeds consistent with aerospace assets.”
“That is our signal we may disengage. Comms, inform the merchant fleet that the area is secure and to begin refueling procedures. Helm, get us alongside the pirate hulk, we have people to recover. Marine, get me a runner to the MP’s, we shall need the port hangar prepared for an old tradition the Navy has regarding pirate prisoners…” Roshal commanded. The fight was over, it was time to begin the cleanup.
//////////
So… that took a while. Sorry about that.
Turns out when a combination of writer’s block, decision paralysis and LIFE hits you over the head, it becomes a touch difficult to get your shit together long enough to write something down.
On the plus side, we are out of the “unplanned bits” and right back into the parts I have brainstormed, so I won’t be staring at a screen trying to think how to make things connect as much anymore. On the other hand, that means we are now entering the epilogue of book 1 of Top Lasgun.
Don’t worry, the story isn’t ending, I’ve got “three” books plotted out in my head, so we’ll see how that shakes out, but for the most part, this is where I start wrapping up plot threads, laying down threads for what comes next, and all that other good stuff.
So yeah, next chapter is going to involve everyone wrapping up what happened here, some fun little Military Justice, and potentially a bunch of plot. Also, I’m planning on starting a “rewrite”/edited version of this to go up on AO3, so keep an eye out for that. Early installment weirdness is a bitch and I’m not proud of what the older stuff looked like.
Well, I hope you have a wonderful morning, afternoon or evening whenever you read this and I will see you next chapter.
[NEXT CHAPTER]

Hey everyone,
I finished my [[Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius]] spell slinger deck. The general idea is to fill up the graveyard, sling tons of recurring spells like [[Glamerdye]] or [[Oona's Grace]] and either finish the opponents

• with mass of 1/1 Birdies from [[Ominous Roost]] or [[Fable of Wolf and Owl]],
• bounce the opponents boards by copying [[Hullbreaker Horror]] via [[Spitting Image]] .

The Deck can be found here: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/rSmd0spwFkGXTk-pTOYD-Q
For more details, please check out the primer (which is my first one :-) If left unchecked, the deck was aims to close out games from turn 8/9 easily. Vice versa, as soon as people recognize the strength of the commander, he becomes a kill on sight. (Played 2 rounds on spelltable + goldfished some more few times)
For that reason, I am looking for ways how to include some protection and interaction to protect the game plan properly. But my biggest issue is that I am not sure which cards to cut without loosing consitency. :-/
Some cards that I though I can cut, but still dont want to:

• [[Savvy Trader]] - 1 of 2 sources of graveyard retrieval for my enchantments. But still, with 4cmc this sits in my hand very long + I don't want to discard it to Jump-Start.
• [[Bring to Light]] - This one shines to tutor [[Oona's Grace]], which is one of the best cards in my deck. (I use one of the many any-mana-sources to tutor for 3cmc cards)
• [[Founding the Third Path]] - This card feels like it can do so much for my game plan: Play a free spell for storm count / Hullbreaker. Mill some cards and then finally retrieve a instant/sorcery. But sometimes it's just on my hand, doing nothing.
• [[Metallurgic Summonings]] or [[Fable of Wolf and Owl]]- These spell payoff are awseome - [[Savage Conception]] suddenly fills my board in no time! But 5 and 6 cmc always feels a little too expensive. On the other hand, I only have 4 spell pay-offs that generate token already.
• [[Slogurk, the Overslime]] - Lands in Hand are the key to my deck. But this one often ends up in my graveyard and/or only generates a proper value when it sits on the battlefield from the very beginning. I always prefer to have [[Life from the Loam]] in my Hand/Graveyard. But only 1 land retrieval feels to be too few.

Maybe someone can recommend either

• Interaction/Protection that goes well with the graveyard deckplan
• or substitutes for the above mentioned cards

In general, I do not want to just add the default Commander Staples and also, the budget should not explode. Cards up to roughly 10USD per card are fine - but no Fierce Guardianship, Force of Will etc.
Also I would like to support the deck plan wherever possible. I don't want to add a counterspell just because it's good. It should have a purpose in the deck. I.e. I thought about [[Foil]] as I am totaly fine with discarding lands and non-lands alike.
Any feedback and recommendations are very much welcomed!

A few months ago, I decided to build a tool to help with keyword research, and I needed an effective method to find the right keywords. I thought about using Google autocomplete as a source for generating keywords and this turned out to be the perfect solution.
I worked on building an API so I could get these Google autocomplete suggestions programatically and make my keyword research process even more efficient. After working hard to build it, it now reliably finds 10-15 keyword suggestions in under a second - for any keyword! Recently I have made this API public as its own product, and I would love for you to try it out. Here’s how it works:
You sign up for free and get a unique API key. Then, you make a request to the API with a keyword, language, and location. The API will return all the Google autocomplete suggestions for that keyword in JSON, making it easy to view, parse, and manipulate the results.
If you want to give it a try, you can find it at keywordquill dot com - I would appreciate any feedback or advice you may have and if you want to try it on a larger scale, use the code "REDDIT" to get a 75% discount on credits. Thanks in advance!

Part 1

The official story is that I hit my head. According to the lawyer I wasn't lucid enough to be a reliable witness, and honestly, I'm starting to believe that might be the truth. It's certainly easier to accept that everything was all just some nightmare.
But if my mind wasn't playing tricks on me, and those fuck-heads didn’t have anything to do with my friend’s disappearance, then there truly is no explanation for what happened.
My therapist and parents both agree. The best way to preserve my sanity is to chalk it all up to my imagination. But I see understanding in their eyes when I recount the events. They want to believe me, I know it. That alone is enough to fuel my doubt.
—
School had begun that September with mourning. I only knew the guy who passed away by face and name. It had happened a month after his graduation, and two months before his first year at Cornell.
During the intercom-ordered moment of silence, I looked out through the classroom. Some were bored, some cried. Many shifted in their seats and were glancing around, like myself, counting every second till the awkwardness would end.
It ended sooner than we thought when a kid with sports goggles a size too big bouncing on his face slammed the door open, obliviously clarifying his attendance.
I'm embarrassed to say that this kid, Aiden, was the only friend I had made in high school until this point. I have a hard time introducing myself to others, but being friends with a prepubescent outcast wasn't making that any easier.
After middle school, my family moved to the small village we live in now. It was a brainless choice because my Mom had found better work, my Dad wanted to be closer to his aging parents, and I desperately wanted out of my old school.
Aiden was the first kid to introduce himself when I transferred last year. I realized he was the token 'weird kid' way too late to make it into any social circles. I know it sounds like I'm a shit friend, but that's the way our relationship turned out. Sure, we told our parents and teachers we were friends, but in reality, it was more a tolerance than friendship.
After all, we didn't have anyone else.
For once, I was thankful for Aiden's lack of awareness. It gave me something to focus on instead of the depressing silence strangling the room.
After realizing his mistake, he whispered an apology, sat down, and pulled out an insect encyclopedia from his book bag. What a nerd.
I distracted myself by reading the book from over his shoulder, and before I knew it, lights were turned back on and class began in earnest.
—
I was able to learn what had happened by eavesdropping on hallway gossip between my classes.
Eight kids, six seniors and two juniors, had found a cave in a region of forest known as Skeleton Park. With that discovery, they decided to add spelunking to their pre-graduation bucket list.
Skeleton Park is the setting of countless local ghost stories, which made it a hot spot for rebellious teen antics. Kids would do everything there: party, drink, smoke, fuck, and everything in between. They even crawled around in caves apparently.
When I first moved, I was a skeptic with no intent of exploring the woods. But one creepy phenomenon always unnerved me. For some reason, animals completely avoided the area.
I initially dismissed this as fiction, like all the other folk tales, until I started walking my dog, Paddy, along the town's bike trail.
The trail runs parallel to the remains of a stone wall outlining Skeleton Park. The first couple of times I walked along it, I didn't notice anything peculiar. But after my Dad first told me about the rumors, I became aware that the area was unnaturally silent. No birds chirped in the trees, no flies buzzing, and no rustling from rodents or any other animals.
Even more surreal, on several occasions I saw deer stop at the wall and walk along it instead of passing through the area. It was like there was an invisible border they refused to cross.
With this context, I'm sure you can understand the reaction of the locals when eight kids entered, and only seven escaped two days later, traumatized and bruised.
Honestly, I was surprised to not have heard about the event over the summer, closer to when it happened. Even more strange though, was how unwilling Aiden was to talk about the incident.
He was the kind of kid who had a strong opinion about everything. On top of that, he was constantly bringing up horror movies, or Creepypastas he had found online. But when I asked his opinion on this summer's events during recess, he only shrugged. Despite the nonchalant response, the look on his face told me that it bothered him. So I didn’t press, and let the subject go.
At the time I'd guessed that he might've had some connection to the kid that went missing. In a way, he did.
—
After an exhausting day of attempts from teachers to console their students with speeches, candy, and exceptional lenience, I was ready to go home.
I expected to find Aidan at the usual spot by the bike racks, where we met each day to walk home. Instead, there was an audience next to the bikes, forming a ring around two disheveled figures.
The flying fists and shouting could only mean one thing, so I kept my distance. Then I heard Aidan yell center, “Fucker!’ and saw a glimpse of his face spitting from a bloody mouth onto the other fighter.
Even though his back was to me, I could tell Aidan’s opponent was easily 5 inches, and 60 pounds heavier than my friend.
Teachers didn’t arrive to break up the fight before the two were on the ground, Aidan mounted with arms up, desperately trying to block blows.
A whistle was blown, and people began running away as my math teacher desperately tried to pry the football player off of Aidan.
He fought back the grown man and was finally pulled away when two more adults rushed to help. The boy was screaming at Aiden with carnal rage.
"You're a fucking liar! How dare you, I'm going to fucking kill you if I ever see you again!"
Aidan was still screaming too, but backed away willingly.
"I'm telling the truth dumbass! You were trespassing! You should be lucky we didn't press charges!"
Aiden looked bad but waved the teachers off whenever they asked if he was OK. Blood poured from his forehead, mouth, and nose. He had at least one black eye.
The other guy, I learned from the crowd, was one of the two juniors who had gone to the cave. He didn't have as many cuts or bruises but was supporting his weight on one leg and his friend's shoulder. Multiple teachers forced him into a chair while they waited for a nurse to arrive.
While the crowd control was distracted, Aiden sneaked over to me and whispered that we needed to get out of there. A couple of minutes later, the two of us were walking home like nothing had ever happened.
It took me a while before I dared to ask Aiden for the full story. He didn't even let me finish my question, which let me know he was more or less his usual self.
"My family inherited the property everyone calls Skeleton Park. It's not haunted, it's not toxic, it's not the home of a satanic sex cult; it's just a piece of forest that's been in my family for a couple of generations."
He spat a dribble of red onto the sidewalk, and I realized I'd never seen Aiden get violent before. We had our share of bullying this past year, but he would always shrug it off and laugh. He wouldn't even try to fight back. We would just get pushed around a bit, and he'd make a quip afterward about the guys' weight or smell.
"Every summer, my dad and I drive around the perimeter putting up trespassing signs, and every year they get ripped down. We get police calls once a month during the summer that somebody came limping out of there with a broken arm or leg, and they have the balls to demand we do something about it. It's not our fault nobody follows the law around here. It's the fucking woods, and it's our private property. What the hell are we even supposed to do?"
To be honest, I hadn't even considered Skeleton Park could've been private property. Though I believed everything Aiden said, I had never seen any signs along the border wall. Embarrassed from being one of those trespassers, I looked away and stayed silent as Aiden continued.
"The area is just too big. There are too many places to enter, and there's no way to block it all off. Though it's not like that'll stop anybody. I feel bad that somebody died, but I'm also a little bit thankful. Maybe now, people will think twice before messing around out there."
We walked in silence until reaching the junction where we would have to part ways. I was tired and wanted to head home, but I also was worried that Aiden would be jumped by some of the seniors if he was alone. It had happened before, and his earlier brawl could've been seen as a declaration of war.
Instead of voicing these concerns, however, I asked if he wanted to play video games at his house. He was surprised by the request but agreed.
I was on edge with every passing car, and every blind turn, but thankfully we weren’t attacked. After a couple more minutes of walking, we made it to Aiden’s house. His Dad was outside watering the garden. He turned, noticing our approach in the corner of his eye, but his planned greeting died in his mouth when he saw the dried blood coating Aiden’s face.
"Holy Shit! what did you do this time?" he exclaimed, running over to inspect his son’s injuries. "Oh, hey Brian," he added, smiling briefly at me before returning to his analysis.
Mr. Eriks was cool for a dad. Aiden never had a bad thing to say about him, and the way he handled everything that happened in the following months would only increase my admiration for him. He'd raised Aiden by himself, and I would've considered him a second friend if he wasn't 40 years older than me.
After determining the damage wasn't all that bad: a cut on Aidan's forehead and lip producing most of the blood, the three of us went inside.
Aiden went upstairs to take a shower, and his dad privately thanked me for walking him home. It didn’t take long for me to cave, and ask Mr. Eriks about the park.
"Yeah, we do own it," he answered while preparing snacks for Aiden and me. " My wife, Aiden's mom, inherited it before she passed away, and then it was signed over to me. To be honest, I don't know too much about it, and she didn't either. We just used it to go camping there sometimes, back before Aiden was born. Now we go together because it reminds us of her."
"Did you ever run into people up there, when you're camping?"
"Yeah, though not in the fall and winter when we usually go. I have the police's local number on speed dial for when it happens. Usually, it's just teens though. Kids tend to run away as soon as they see an adult with a flashlight. Paranormal or not, they know they're not supposed to be there- You staying with us for dinner Brian?"
At this point, I was too curious about the truth of Skeleton Park to leave, so I nodded and said I just needed to check with my parents.
After a phone call with my mom, some pizza rolls, and a couple of rounds of Fortnite, the afternoon stress had mostly faded away.
Me and Aidan were sitting in his room, scrolling Netflix for a slasher film to watch, when I finally asked what I'd been dying to know the entire afternoon.
"So, why was that guy saying you're a liar?"
Aiden chuckled at the question.
"He refused to believe my family owned the property his friend died on."
"Why did you even say anything? You know that just makes them want to beat you up more, right?"
"I'm tired of everybody using our land like a public park, I'm tired of picking up condoms left by people I go to school with, and I'm tired of keeping quiet about it. I tried explaining it to people in middle school. Our first project in fifth grade was a presentation about something important to us, I did mine about the park. Nobody believed me, and it got me socially exiled for the next four years. "
I ignored the urge to explain that there was probably more to his social exile than a get-to-know-you presentation from four years ago.
"That's fair I guess," I said instead. "You're dad says you go camping there."
"Yeah, on three-day weekends, and sometimes longer on breaks. Mostly in the fall and winter when there are less trespassers."
"You don't find it creepy camping there? Even without the trespassers?"
"You mean because of the silence?" Aiden smiled and looked over at me. "Yeah, the rumor about the animals is true as far as I can tell. Sure. It's kind of weird, but in winter it's kind of beautiful too. After a blizzard, there's nothing to disturb the snow, and it's kinda like the whole forest has gone to sleep. With the snow and no animals, it can get so quiet that you hear your own heart beating."
He looked off past me with a feeling of nostalgia, but all I felt was chills.
"I can take you if you want," Aiden added. "I'll have to ask my dad, but I think it would be fun to have another person camp with us."
"I'll think about it," was my way of declining without saying no.
Aiden just shrugged. "Suit yourself. Offer still stands if you ever change your mind."
Much to my annoyance, we weren’t even able to finish the movie. My Mom called, saying she was outside to pick me up an hour into our viewing of The Blair Witch Project.
I went to bed wondering how anyone could feel safe camping in a place like that. After contemplating taking Aidan up on his offer, I concluded there could be nothing that would make me spend the night there. Ironically, it would be less than a week before I changed my mind.
—
Three days later, I was walking Paddy along our usual route when she stopped and looked up at something beyond the stone wall, into Skeleton Park. She stood like a statue, eyes wide and fixated on some invisible thing.
I tried tugging the leash, pulling out a treat, begging, and making all kinds of sounds, but she just stood there. Paddy was a six-year-old golden retriever who easily weighed as much as I did, so I couldn't do much more than wait for her to move.
Suddenly, she began barking wildly at the air.
I tried approaching, but she growled at me, a sound I had never heard from her before, and I was forced to back away.
Before I could even process what was happening. She leaped over the wall and ran at full speed into the woods. It all happened so quickly that I had no time to tighten my grip on the leash.
She sprinted straight into the woods, and I chased after her, but I didn't make it far without tripping on a root hidden among the leaves. My knee was split open by something as I fell, and it took all my strength, fighting past the shock, to get back up. After recovering, I looked in all directions, but couldn't see Paddy anymore. I could only hear the tossing of leaves and branches in the distance.
Then there was nothing. Not a single sound. I'm not sure why I didn't question the sudden silence back then. It wasn't the gradual fade into silence you would expect from something running away. It was as if somebody had just hit a mute button on everything but the wind through the trees.
I don't know, maybe I'm misremembering the details.
Patty's disappearance doesn't matter anyway. We never found her, and dogs don’t live for twenty years, so at this point, we never will.
After taking a moment to recover from the shock, I limped home crying and told my parents what had happened. My Dad called the police because it was the only thing we could think of, but all they did was apologize and recommend we put up posters.
They couldn't do anything even if they wanted to. After all, she ran onto private property.
After that, the last thing I could think to do was call Aiden. His dad promised they could search the park that night, and he also offered to take me for an extended search the following weekend in case they didn’t find anything.
Of course, they didn't find her, just half of a leash wrapped around a branch. At least, that's what my parents told me the Eriks had found, they never actually let me see it.
A day before the trip, the Forecast started predicting snow: Saturday night into Sunday, eight inches, wet.
I probably should've given up then. Instead, I told Aiden this would probably be my only chance to find Paddy, insisting she wouldn't survive in the snow. After making sure with his dad, we continued with the plan and headed out after school Friday night.
—
While it hurts keeping this story in, reliving the memories is almost as painful. So I'm going to take a break writing for now and continue in a day or two. If anyone has a scientific explanation for why animals were avoiding that area, or for my dog's behavior, please let me know.
Thanks for reading, B
Part 1

A few months ago, I decided to build a tool to help with keyword research, and I needed an effective method to find the right keywords. I thought about using Google autocomplete as a source for generating keywords and this turned out to be the perfect solution.
I worked on building an API so I could get these Google autocomplete suggestions programatically and make my keyword research process even more efficient. After working hard to build it, it now reliably finds 10-15 keyword suggestions in under a second - for any keyword! Recently I have made this API public as its own product, and I would love for you to try it out. Here’s how it works:
You sign up for free and get a unique API key. Then, you make a request to the API with a keyword, language, and location. The API will return all the Google autocomplete suggestions for that keyword in JSON, making it easy to view, parse, and manipulate the results.
If you want to give it a try, you can find it at keywordquill dot com. I would appreciate any feedback or advice you may have and if you want to try it on a larger scale, use the code "REDDIT" to get a 75% discount on credits. Thanks in advance!

I was just returning back from another interview. It has been the third one this month.
I failed to make the cut yet again.
Life hasn’t been easy for an ex-soldier with the economic downturn currently underway.
The COVID pandemic had also wiped out all my savings.
So I was open to securing any job that would help me pay my bills.
I hadn’t eaten all day and just passed by a McDonalds. It was crowded and I thought to myself, ‘Let me just order a takeout’.
I could see a few vehicles waiting in front of me.
There was a guy in his motorcycle honking incessantly demanding the customer in front to keep it moving.
He was a tall man with long hair and clearly looked edgy and irritable. Both his arms were heavily tattooed. He stepped down from his bike and started to walk towards the car in front of him.
I couldn’t make out what he way saying but I could see the conversation was getting heated.
I got down from my car and walked towards the biker guy.
As I got closer, the biker banged on the hood of the car and was pointing his finger at the man threateningly.
The guy in the car was looking a little alarmed. He had a young boy seated next to him.
The woman working at the driveway counter appealed to the biker to maintain his cool. He would hear none of it.
She then proceeded to call the police and this made the biker more irate. He snatched the receiver from her and hit her face with it. She fell backwards and started bleeding from the nose.
The biker then proceeded to turn his gaze towards the man in the car. He opened the door and dragged the guy outside.
He drew his hand back to throw a punch at him.
I caught his arm from behind and kicked him hard in the shins. He yelped in pain and let go of the other man.
He then turned back angrily to take a look at me. He was wearing a black jacket with the name Kenny embossed in front.
I said, “Listen Kenny. I have had a really bad day. So you either stop this madness or I am going to break your bones.”
He snarled and threw a punch at me with all his might. I swerved to the right and ducked just in time, causing him to miss completely.
Next, he whipped out a switch blade from his pocket and lunged towards me with it. I side stepped him and counterattacked with a punch to his plexus. He went down on one knee.
I caught hold of his knife arm and ordered him to drop it.
“Drop the knife kenny!! This is your last warning”, I repeated.
He started to fidget with his other arm around his shoe. I realized he had another weapon hidden in his sock.
So before he could attempt anything else, I twisted his forearm and landed a crushing blow to his elbow. It snapped into two and he lay on the floor yelping in pain.
By this point, other people came forward to intervene and help with the situation.
As Kenny was being led away by the police, he kept staring at me with madness in his eyes.
“I am coming back for you. This is going to be the biggest regret of your life”, he yelled.
I didn’t care and started going back to my car.
Then the man who was threatened by Kenny came forward and shook my hand.
“Hi. I am Rupert. That is my son Henry”, he said.
I waved my hand at the boy and he waved back.
“I would like to thank you for what you did for me back there”, he said.
“You not only helped me maintain my dignity but also helped me save face in front of my son”, he continued.
“This means a lot to me as a dad” he said.
I nodded in acknowledgement not sure what I was to add to the conversation.
He then reluctantly asked,” Is there anything I can do to repay the favour? Please feel free to ask . Anything. I would be most grateful.”
I thought for a moment. I could see the man was wealthy.
“If it’s not too much of an ask, I would appreciate a job if available. If you feel that is difficult, no problem. Forget I asked. No worries.” I said.
He smiled back at me warmly. He reached into his pocket and handed me a card.
“Please come to my office tomorrow. We can talk” he signed off.
From that moment on, I became the personal bodyguard and chaperone of his 8 year old son Henry. We immediately hit it off and became pals. I looked after all his son’s travelling arrangements.
We would also go to McDonalds every week for his favourite Burger and fries. I later learnt that his father was a very wealthy man who made most of his money during the dot com bubble.
I also became friends with the female employee at the driveway counter who had earlier been attacked by that biker punk Kenny.
Her name was Stella and it didn’t take very long for the two of us to start dating.
With a fulfilling job and a loving girlfriend by my side, my life was finally back on track. I couldn’t be happier.
And then one day - it all came crashing.
Henry and I as usual visited the McDonalds joint and I was surprised to see Stella missing at the counter.
I asked the staff about her and they said she hadn’t turned up today.
I thought that was weird. She had stayed over at my place and I saw her leave for work in the morning.
I tried calling her number but it was unreachable.
I dropped Henry at home and headed towards Stella’s apartment.
She had given me a spare key and I opened the door with it. Everything was in its place.
I tried her number again. It remained not reachable.
I decided to go back to my apartment to check if she might be there.
When I reached the door, I could see the lock had been smashed. The door was left slightly open.
I took out my side arm and slowly entered the apartment.
I could see a life size figure of Ronald McDonald the clown sitting on my sofa.
The famous mascot was sitting cross legged with one arm resting on the backrest. Just like how he likes to sit on benches outside McDonald outlets all across the world.
I was a little taken aback, but quickly switched on the lights to take a closer look.
As I moved closer, my knees buckled under my own weight.
It was Stella. She was the one who was dressed as the clown.
There were injury marks around her neck. She had been strangled to death.
I managed to call the cops while still reeling from the shock.
I also noticed her right hand which was resting on her thigh, was close fisted. When I pried it open, there was a crumpled piece of paper inside.
It read -
“She was really begging me for mercy.
Where was soldier boy when she needed him huh?
Boo Hoo….I’m Lovin It!!
I’m Lovin it!!
Signed Yours Kenny”
I could feel a surge of anger envelop me. And yet I lay there helpless.
Had it not been for the surveillance cameras at the entrance of my home, I would have been in jail by now.
The police could clearly see Kenny carrying Stella’s body and breaking into my apartment.
They put out a nationwide notice for Kenny and he’s been on the run ever since.
Even after 2 months following Stella’s death, the police were not any closer to catching the culprit.
But I did apprise Henry’s dad of the situation. His life was also at risk after considering what happened to my girlfriend.
But our collective worry was for Henry. We didn’t want to see him suffer for no fault of his.
So I started training Henry to take his own safety seriously. I devised multiple safeguards to keep him protected while being outdoors. Always ensured that I was personally there to drop and pick him up from school.
My boss appreciated all that I was doing for his son. He knew I had taken Stella’s death hard.
He was a generous and compassionate man and I liked working for him.
Although he did notice I wasn’t my usual cheery self anymore.
One day when I was waiting at the office, he tossed the keys of his new car at me.
“This should perk you up. Take her for a spin” he said.
“And also go pick Henry up from school”, he finished as he left for a meeting.
I got down to the parking lot, and there she was … waiting. The new Bugatti Chiron.
I opened the door and took the driver’s seat. The fresh smell of the leather upholstery was already lifting my spirits.
‘Boss was right! I am perking up’, I thought to myself.
I drove around the block and stopped by McDonalds to pick up the usual order for me and Henry.
I felt a tinge of sadness when I could no longer see Stella at the counter.
Anyways, I picked the order and started my way towards school.
As I went past the restaurant, I saw an old jeep parked by the side of the road. I didn’t think much of it at that moment.
When I reached Henry’s school, I parked the car a few feet away from the entrance. A couple of minutes later, I noticed the same jeep I saw at McDonalds go past me and park 20 mts in front.
I would have never given it a second glance had I not spotted it at the restaurant.
The jeep had 3 passengers. They looked like bikers with tattoos, beard and long hair.
And then there was Kenny standing behind a tree to avoid detection. But I spotted him.
He was gesturing towards them to get ready. I could see his Harley parked just a few feet away.
They were planning some kind of ambush.
The school bell rang and the children were already out on the streets.
I could see Henry at a distance in the courtyard. He was slowly making his way towards the gate.
I immediately called him on the phone and told him to go to the Principals office and stay there. I made it clear under no circumstances was he to venture out until I gave him the all clear. He understood.
He was safe as long as he was within the school’s premises.
The next thing to do was move to another location. The children were already pouring onto the streets, and the last thing I wanted was to see a child getting hurt.
I started the car and went past the jeep before taking the next turn. I kept driving.
Few moments later, the jeep caught up with me and the driver violently swerved towards the left causing me to go off course. My car came to halt.
The guys quickly alighted from the jeep and they were all armed to the teeth.
Kenny came in his motorcycle and stopped his bike a few feet ahead of me. He took out his shotgun and had it aimed straight at my chest.
The firing started before I even had the time to react.
I instinctively ducked for cover with my eyes closed.
But in my heart, I knew my time was up!!
As the seconds went by, even with all those bullets being sent my way - my body felt strangely light.
‘Am I in heaven already?’ I thought to myself.
I slowly opened my eyes and tilted my head upwards to take a peak.
And I realized I was sitting in an armoured bullet proof car.
The entire biker gang were mad with rage, doing everything possible to penetrate that thick armour plate.
Kenny was barking orders at his gang to continue the onslaught. He then pointed his finger at me and yelled, “I am coming for you.”
I looked down at the seat next to mine and saw the takeout I had ordered.
Just to piss him off even further, I took out my Big Mac and slowly took a big bite.
I sat there in gastronomic bliss savouring my burger, while being under a continuous hail of bullets.
The firing suddenly stopped. Kenny the psycho was livid as hell - to see me have a good time.
I looked him in the eye while I took a sip of my favourite milkshake.
And then, continued to chomp on my burger.
He looked a little crestfallen at how his plan was misfiring and then frantically gestured his troops to keep at it. The firing started again.
But it didn’t last long. They eventually all ran out of ammo and his buddies began to flee the scene, as we could hear sirens at a distance.
The attack had taken a toll on the car. But it managed to withstand all that damage. All that firing.
A life saver!
I looked at Kenny again. Only one thought was running through my head now.
‘My Turn’.
I switched on the ignition and rammed the car straight into Kenny. He hit the bonnet hard while the car continued to race forward.
He was clinging on to dear life with his outstretched hands desperately clutching at the sides of the car.
Next in the demolition line, was his prized Harley Davidson.
I hit it full steam and watched it smash to smithereens - with parts scattering all across the road.
Then, I hit the brakes and Kenny was sent flying 10 feet forward.
After impact, he slowly staggered to his feet - all bloody and bruised.
His face was swollen like an apple.
He was pleading towards me with folded hands to show him mercy.
‘This is for Stella. And She’s lovin it’, I said out loud.
I hit the accelerator again.