I just wanted to make a general post regarding this because getting my cat the care she needed as quickly as I did is likely the reason she’s still here this week, and I’d felt so concerned and lost for the entire week that this was happening.
On Thursday/Friday (two weeks ago), my cats (6 years old and otherwise healthy) purr was very loud and her meow was louder. Is thought it was stress from a recent move. She was still eating, drinking, playing.
That Saturday evening, I noticed a lump had seemingly appeared out of nowhere on my cats neck. I removed her collar and called a general vet to make an appointment for the following weekend. I was very concerned, so I watched her food and water intake.
The next day, I noticed her interest in drinking water had decreased. I took her to an emergency vet.
Her labs were all within normal range. The emergency vet hadn’t felt comfortable to do a fine needle aspiration due to the location, so they gave her fluids and referred us to a specialist/surgeon. We saw them on Tuesday, did a guided ultrasound and fine needle aspiration because the surgeon suspected an abscess. They also did a more detailed lab panel, which, again, were all in normal range. It was determined to be a tumor and the sample was sent off to cytology with a surgery/ct scheduled for monday.
By Wednesday, she had stopped drinking entirely, and her vet recommended supplementing with wet food, which I did immediately. It had started to affect the sound of her breathing and her meow and purr were noticeably affected. My friends tried to reassure me that it hadn’t changed much from Monday, but I wasn’t convinced. I tried to push for a sooner surgery because I was concerned about the progression, but the vet wanted to wait for the cytology results. That night, I held her and cried listening to her ragged breathing, realizing the promise I made to be there and care for her for her entire life might be coming up and I might lose her. At that point and time there wasn’t anything more I could do but wait and watch her die.
By Thursday, she had stopped playing. She didn’t follow me around the house anymore and wouldn’t sleep with me. It was affecting her breathing more drastically. I called the specialty office pressing the urgency of the situation, and they advised that they might be able to get her in sooner if I took her to the ER again, or they could tell me if she would be stable till Monday. I left work and took her into the ER again. They urged me to wait until the surgeon could see her on Monday (they were only in the office on Mondays and Tuesdays) that she should be stable until Monday. It was here that they informed me the cytology results had come back as probable lymphoma, and that the surgery would likely entail an excisional biopsy.
On Friday, her surgeon specifically called me from her cell phone at home to inform me that her cancer should not be treated with surgery, but with chemo, and she would need to be referred to an oncologist. I panicked and stressed the fact that it had begun to affect her breathing and asked the surgeon to share that urgency in her referrals. While my surgeon called several locations and spoke to an oncologist, I also personally called several of these locations stressing the urgency of her situation. I was told the soonest they could get her in was in two weeks time, and I did not think she would survive to that appointment. I was instructed to leave a detailed voicemail for the doctors so I did. Shortly after, I received a call back from the surgeon, and one of the locations we both had spoken to. The oncology staff were willing to give up their lunch hour in order to see her and to give her her first round of chemotherapy, but I had to leave immediately. I left work again (my boss was fortunately very understanding) and took her in. Heidi (my cat) was very unenthused about a fourth vet visit this week lol. They were unable to do any imaging because she was distressed and they worried over her being under stress with the tumor where it was, so they just went ahead with the first treatment instead of trying to stage her cancer. It was here the vet informed me that the type of cancer they suspected she had was one that often progressed very quickly and could kill cats within days to a couple weeks. I felt vindicated for pushing as hard as I did all week, and I knew that whatever happened, this was her best chance.
Friday night, her breathing and meow had improved. It seemed that the lump was smaller but I wasn’t sure if I was imagining it.
Saturday, she had some inappetance from the chemo, even with the meds to treat it, still wasn’t drinking water so I took her into the emergency vet again just to make sure she was hydrated and get some subQ fluids to take home in case it continued. She was determined to be well hydrated thanks to the wet food and they gave me an appetite stimulant if needed. As soon as we got home she chowed down on wet food so I didn’t administer the fluids and decided to watch her intake.
On Sunday, she was waiting for me outside the bathroom again and pawing at the door to be let in with me. I almost cried in relief. She also started sleeping with me again.
By Monday, her tumor had noticeably shrunk.
She just had her second chemo treatment today. She’s still been sleepy cuz of the pain meds and gabapentin she’s been on, but it is a very good sign how responsive the tumor was to her first round. X rays taken during this visit determined no masses in her lungs (granted it could have changed from her first treatment but still good news regardless).
She’s not cured obviously and we have a long way to go with her treatments but it’s a very good sign how responsive her cancer has been. She’s my baby and last week was the worst week of my life, and I was incredibly fortunate to get her in as soon as I could, otherwise she wouldn’t have made it. I bought the oncology team donuts today as thanks haha.
If this story can help spare anyone else some of the terror and uncertainty we had to deal with, I’d like it to. Trust your gut. If a lump appears suddenly, it could be something more minor, like an abscess. Pray it’s an abscess. But if it’s not, if it appeared suddenly, especially if symptoms are changing day to day, every single day is of the essence. Depending on what type of cancer it is, it may be treatable. It may not. But getting your pet in as soon as possible can guarantee that if there IS a chance, you can give them it.

(plz upvote to help get the message out there! <3)
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BoxOfficeTheory Presale Tracking
USA Showtimes As of May 10
Presales Data (Google Sheets Link)
BoxOfficeReport Previews
DOMESTIC PRESALES
Back to Black Thursday Comps/Predictions: $0.35M/$0.37M

• abracadabra1998 ($0.35M Thursday comp. Probably looking at EA around $100k from these numbers, it's limited to Dolby only though so it's quite tiny (May 15). Yikes bikes (May 12).)
  
• crazymoviekid ($0.39M Thursday and $1.21M Friday comp. We're back up to $.3M-$.5M Thursday while Friday is pretty consistent, still around $1.15M-$1.4M. Estimated OW: $4.5M-$5.5M (May 16). Knocking this down to $.25M Thursday. Despite relatively strong sales, comps are low around $1.25M for Friday (May 15). Not great. Let's say $.3M (May 14).)
  
• el sid ($0.38M Thursday comp. Average tomorrow will probably be around 400k (May 15).)
  
• filmlover (Looking at the sales even for the early shows on Wednesday it's on the anemic side (and nothing that's likely to boost it over the next days). Feels like we're about to see how low a biopic about a famous musician can go (May 10).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($0.38M Thursday comp.)
  
• Relevation ($0.26M Thursday comp. And for how shitty IF did, Back to Black cratered even harder, and likely would've been the worst selling movie I've ever tracked had I not run numbers a little late. Sub-$300K THU and a $2.5-4M OW (May 15).)
  
• Rorschach (Zero tickets sold on Thursday and only four on Friday. I don't think I'll be missing much (May 13).)
  

IF Thursday Comps/Predictions: $1.72M/$1.80M

• abracadabra1998 ($1.5M Thursday comp. Really good update here, FINALLY! Been waiting for this. This is encouraging for sure. With this growth now maybe shooting for a finish near 1.75 or maybe even approach 2. Eek. Zero sales day only a few days before previews, when you're dealing with a very low baseline. I'm not sure what's happening here (May 15). Most comps did move the right direction. If it keeps trending up perhaps I can see a finish around $1.5M Thursday. One thing to peep at: the MTC1 ratio (59%) is unusually large compared to other family releases. At T-2, other releases' MTC1 % was at: KFP4: 51%, Migration: 34%, Wonka: 59%, Wish: 35%, Trolls: 24%. So much more comparable to Wonka and KFP4; maybe something to think about when looking at keyser's numbers and thinking of the ratio there (May 14). My model has been pretty good for animated/family releases in the past, hence why every comp is so eerily similar. Still, looking at others' numbers and how much lower mine are, I am wondering if summer break might be something to consider here; from what I am aware, here in Minnesota most school districts don't start break until June (May 13). Hoping for some real acceleration this last week but not looking good (May 12). One week out, not impressed in the slightest (May 9). Rising against comps as expected, due to the short release window, but I am still failing to see anything that suggests the numbers given by some other outlets (May 5).)
  
• AniNate (All I can say is if you look at Tinseltown Canton presales the IF projections ($30M+) seem pretty reasonable. I will grant they might've booked more screens than necessary for it (May 16). I'm gonna guess that Nick IP spot for IF this morning ratcheted up interest, Fri-Sun sales at Canton now close to 200. Also of those 200 about 50 were for XD. Not the usual overwhelming presale split but not insignificant for a kids movie also playing on two standard screens (May 13). 45 sold at the five nearest Cinemarks for Thursday previews so far, so yeah there's evidently some kind of regional variation (May 13). I definitely haven't seen as much of a rush here with Garfield as with IF (May 11). I dunno, I have no comps but I feel like local presales is a pretty sizable haul a week in advance for an original non-Disney kids movie (May 9).)
  
• crazymoviekid ($2.43M Thursday and $8.49M Friday comp. Not a great day. Back down to $1.75M-$2M Thursday but pretty good day for Friday, bumping up to $7M-$7.5M. Estimate OW: $27M-$29M (May 16). Comps mostly are up. Adjusting up to around $2M-$2.25M Thursday. Unless this plays like Elemental, we're aiming around $6.5M-$7M Friday. Estimated OW: $25M-$27M (May 15). Definitely looking around $1.75M Thursday for now (May 14).
  
• DAJK (Selling pretty well so far here (May 4).)
  
• el sid ($2.4M Thursday comp. Friday up so-so 116% since last Monday. I chose Jungle Cruise, Dolittle, Elemental, Minions 2 and Sonic 2 as comps (always counted on Monday of the release week for Friday) and the true Friday number for IF would be 6.6M at the moment. In this case the comparison numbers were very similar, around 6-7M. Overall it was a boring counting today which lasted too long for so few action. And judging from some random samples Garfield also saw no significant jumps (I also didn't expect much, it's still too early IMO). Thursday up 92% since last Monday. I hoped for a bit better jump till today :( but it's also not too bad. So for Friday no big numbers but up 75% since last Monday (and the jump must have happened pretty recently) (May 13). Up 73.5% since Monday (where it had 143 sold tickets). Best sales in California, not doing too bad between the coasts. The number today is ok to me (May 12). Not really signs for a breakout for Friday so far, but very solid. It will not really get 4-6M Thursday e.g. compared to Migration but from most comps the number could be pretty decent (May 7). Looked good for the film, both on Thursday and on Friday (May 6).)
  
• jeffthehat ($1.90M Thursday comp. Slipped a little vs. comps. Sub-20% growth seems bad at this stage and opening size for a family film. But maybe walkups are better than presales suggest. Thinking $1.8m +/- $0.2m tomorrow (May 15).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($1.62M Combined SizeAdjusted+GrowthModel Thursday comp. $1.50M Santikos Thursday comp. Sticking to the 1.5m - 1.75m range. I'm looking for a +40% final day that would finish at 1.8m avg comps and 1.62m growth forecast. I'm not ruling out 2m, but it would need to have a very good day (May 16). Raising my expectations to 1.5 - 1.75m range. I don't really have a good feel for what age this is playing to (May 15). Thinking somewhere in the 1.2m-1.5m Thursday range despite a couple of higher comps (May 14).)
  
• keysersoze123 (Friday pace is promising (May 16). Dont think even if it doubles the gross, 2m is locked. But even if it does, it would barely do that much. Let us see how walkups go tomorrow. Pace is really meh for T-2. $1.75m ish for previews. OW should be similar to what I saw yesterday for now (May 15). I would say it should hit 2m previews or even more if walkups are strong. OW probably in mid to high 20s for now. Its Friday sales are not that much higher than thursday for crazy IM like say Panda 4 (May 14).)
  
• Relevation ($1.18M Thursday comp. IF completely tanked here, brutal comp average with no good comparisons at all. $1.2-1.5M THU and something in the ballpark of an $18-24M OW? (May 15).)
  
• RichWS (15 screen theater near me is giving IF peak Marvel number of showings. I know it's short and the market is quiet, but damn (May 14).)
  
• Rorschach (Good growth for IF, especially after Tuesday's abysmal sales (May 15). Even with no comps to go off, this growth seems pretty weaksauce. I guess we'll see how it goes tomorrow (May 14).)
  
• Shawn Robbins (The pre-sales I'm seeing in multiple markets are little better than I think some expect here. I wouldn't be shocked with a number between 2 and 2.5 for Thursday, as well as big jumps on Friday and Saturday. The flip side of that coin is the reviews... although kids won't care. Could see 40 happening if this plays super strong in family markets and outside coastal cities like I suspect it could, but I'm surprised the studio didn't low ball it a little more to be safe... especially since we had been very publicly keeping our range in the high 20s/low 30s from the bottom end (May 15).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($2.39M Thursday comp. Really not much going on. Don't think walkups will be super strong either (May 13). Not much growth (May 10). Pace is collapsing a bit. Continues its downward trend (May 7). After a strong start, this has cooled off quite a bit (May 4).)
  
• Tinalera (Pretty quiet Vancouver and Calgary area (May 13).)
  
• vafrow ($0.6M Thursday comp. Well, we finally got something. It still lags behind comps, and if I could be bothered to track walk ups, I'm guessing this will do okay. But it's still lagging some very reasonable comps by a large margin here (May 16). It's going up, but slowly. The thing that hit me looking at the numbers is that the most popular format so far is the VIP theatres, which are 19+. With such low sales, you can't read too much into anything, but it kind of speaks to how this isn't grabbing the family crowd (May 14). Some marginal movement, but we're running out of time for this. At this stage, I expect my market is an anomaly, but I still hope and expect it will close the gap in the final few days (May 13). Still nothing (May 12). Still nothing happening. I did check Friday sales, and it was a lot stronger with 51 tickets sold. That's better, but still not tremendous. I also checked the wider radius, where it's pretty much exactly where Haunted Mansion was, which hit $3.1M opening (May 11). Still nothing really happening here (May 10). Since the last update, they released full showtime sets, and it actually lost two showtimes rather than gain. From the sound of it, it might be doing better in other Canadian markets, particularly BC (May 8). Numbers are still really low, making the standard track fairly useless. I did do a larger 100km radius track, encompassing the broader southern Ontaro market (~8M population, MTC4 being about 70-80% of the market). Even against Haunted Mansion, which underindexed here, it's not doing well (May 4).)
  
• YM! (So far in the four Wisconsin theaters I’ve tracked, IF is at about 45% of where Wish was at in the two theaters I’ve tracked 30 minutes before previews. Think it could get to something similar before preview time (May 16).)
  

The Strangers: Chapter 1 Thursday Comps/Predictions: $1.49M/$1.37M

• abracadabra1998 ($1M Thursday comp. Perhaps this will follow the Nun and the Exorcist comps, but I am not fully convinced. I'll just go with the average here and call it a day with my prediction: $1 Million, +/- 0.2. Not much movement here (May 15). Not a good update at all but I am wondering about the summer break deal here as well. For Back to Black it shouldn't affect it much I would think (May 13).)
  
• crazymoviekid ($1.24M Thursday and $4.35M Friday comp. Decent day. Feeling an inch past $1.25M Thursday but much better comps for Friday, aiming now between $4M-$5M. Estimated OW: $14M-$17M (May 16). Comps leveling off. Adjusting up to $1M Thursday and wouldn't trust Friday comp ($10.05M) (May 15). Weird comps. Let's go for $.5M-$.75M Thursday comp.)
  
• el sid ($1.9M Thursday comp. Nice surprise. Up very nice 67.5% since Monday (May 15). From what I saw, it had an ok jump till today but the jump till Wednesday will be way more important. But so far, decent presales (May 14).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($1.54M Combined SizeAdjusted+GrowthModel Thursday comp. $1.82M Santikos Thursday comp. Keeping on track to match IF tonight (May 16). We could have a preview battle on our hands! (May 14).)
  
• Relevation ($1.85M Thursday comp. The Strangers: Chapter One sold surprisingly well here, even somehow knocking IF for best selling movie of the weekend. Comps are hovering in the $1.5-2.2M range and I don't have a clue how walkups play here, but I suppose the $1.85M THU average my comps spit out sounds pretty right, combined with a $15Mish OW (May 15).)
  
• Rorschach ($1.09M/$4.68M/$5.23M Thursday/Friday/Thursday+Friday comp. Decent day for Strangers. Didn't quite continue off yesterday's big bump, but still holding well against the Tarot comp (May 15). More than double from yesterday's count. Curious to see if it keeps up the momentum going forward (May 14). Tarot had more tickets sold for Thursday compared to its Friday showings when I checked the Monday before it came out; hence, why the comps are so all over the place at the moment. The Thurs + Fri comp does appear to be a reasonable middle ground (May 13).)
  
• TwoMisfits (TMobile deal for May - $5 ticket to The Strangers Chapter 1 next Tuesday (May 9).)
  

Furiosa Thursday Comp: $4.31M

• abracadabra1998 ($5.46M Thursday comp. GxK obviously really propping the average up but for now I could see that settling at around $5 Million, still good pace! (May 12). Really good stuff in this market (May 9). Reallyyyyyy good day 1 here. I want to note that: NO I do NOT think preview numbers will be that high; it's just highlighting the fact that this is likely a movie that will be running hot in my market, as cinephile blockbusters usually do. Next update I will have T-14 comps, which will be a lot lower due to the short release window (May 8).)
  
• AniNate (Encouraging to see the weekend fill out a bit. Been seeing a lot of promotion during the basketball playoffs so general awareness has to be getting there now. (May 15). Skimmed through ThuFri and Valley View (Cleveland vicinity) has sold roughly 60 Furiosa tix so far while Tinseltown (Canton) has sold 40. I'm guessing the upfront audience does lean more toward the urban/cosmopolitan sensibilities (May 9). Presales show there's definitely some hype for this. Regal gonna irritate trackers again, offering no upcharge IMAX for Furiosa (May 8).)
  
• Charlie Jatinder ($3.05M Thursday comp.)
  
• el sid ($5.8M average Thursday comp (without Exorcist 2) (May 12). Furiosa continues its strong performance in "my" theaters. The movie yesterday had already 1.310 sold tickets (for Thursday, May 23). Up 15% in ca. 24 hours which isn't bad at all after the first rush. Already comfortably in front of The Fall Guy's final sales (it had 1.071 counted on Thursday for Thursday) and almost on par with Civil War's final sales (1.357) and also the Apes finally had not more than 1.657 sold tickets in my theaters (May 11). I also can't complain about Furiosa's presales in my theaters, not at all. Already 1,138 sold tickets (in all of "my" 7 theaters) for May 23. 14 days left. Promising start. Civil War on Thursday of the release week for Thursday had 1,357 sold tickets and The Fall Guy finally had 1,071 sold tickets (May 9).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($3.51M Thursday comp.)
  
• keysersoze123 (Definitely chugging along. I am feeling good about 5m+ previews (May 15). It has way stronger sales than Garfield and that is expected. I am thinking of 5m previews for now (May 14). I think this is a solid OD presales. With a short PS window its probably looking at 5m+ previews (May 9).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($4.44M Thursday comp. Keeps climbing at a strong pace (May 11). This continues to grow at an excellent rate (May 10). Really strong day 2. The short presales is for sure a factor (May 9). Not seeing much of a breakout. Still pretty solid start to presales (May 8).)
  
• vafrow ($2.9M Thursday comp. Comps are showing as steady since the last update, but it actually dipped quite a bit this week before rebounding today. Advance ticket buying has been so off in this market recently for some reason. Holding pace with Apes is a good sign (May 16). It had a good day (May 12). Mediocre day 2 (May 10). Not the hottest start. IMAX is the format of choice though, so, ATP will be high (May 9).)
  

Hit Man

• vafrow (Getting a theatrical release up here in Canada, and early signs are that it might get a pretty decent screen count. Not super wide or anything, but a pretty decent amount for a weekend that has a lot of other releases (May 14).)

The Garfield Movie EA+Thursday Comp: $2.24M

• abracadabra1998 ($0.76M EA comp and $1.19M Thursday comp. Still not really accelerating, and the EA is falling against comps (May 12). Good EA numbers, but many of these comps were PLF-only EA, which this is not, so I think the ATP will be quite lower and that should be adjusted for (May 9).)
  
• AniNate (EA sales look decent now, but this does feel rather weak compared to the IF presales. Not 100% certain what's going on here but based on this I buy the trades' opening estimates over the forum vibes (May 15). I definitely haven't seen as much of a rush here with Garfield as with IF (May 11).)
  
• el sid (The very even sales are a good sign (May 7). For Sunday, May 19, I can already report that also in my theaters it looks very good for Garfield. They will for sure add shows soon. It has so far only 1 show/theater and the shows are almost sold out, between 1 and 4 seats are still available. So my guess still is that this movie if it's not totally bad (and first reviews here were quite positive) will become a (big) hit. Seems not much on Thursday but it's a step in the right direction (May 6).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($2.52M EA+Thursday comp.)
  
• keysersoze123 (Its definitely weaker than even Elemental. That said these movies tend to finish strong and so I am not writing it off so early. Just that the long PS window is irrelevant for them. They could rather start presales like a week before release and it would be all the same. Meh. We have to wait until next week to gauge where its going to finish. It has very low ATP as well and actual would be even lower as its going to see tons of kids tickets (May 14). Early shows are regular digital shows at 1PM this sunday. So ATP will be very low. I think 500k ish at best. Preview let us see how things go in the final week. Presales at this point are almost non existent (May 13).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($2.14M Thursday comp.)
  
• vafrow ($0.4M Thursday comp. Comps don't paint a pretty picture though. EA shows are doing okay (May 11). Still no sales for my core sample for previews. But I did the larger sweep, which shows the interest right now is the Sunday early access shows. Looking at sales patterns, it's mainly blocks of 3/4 tickets, so likely families grabbing some. It's worth noting that the May holiday in Canada is the weekend of May 17-20th, not the weekend after with Memorial Day. I can see families prioritizing getting out the holiday weekend when they have more time (May 4).)
  

The Lord of the Rings Extended Edition Re-Releases (June 8-10)

• BoxOfficePro (Fathom Events has also announced that select Regal Cinemas will present the films in 4DX on June 22/23/24 for Fellowship/Towers/Return respectively (May 14).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex (Up to ~1,400 shows now with new locations picking it up and others adding a second showing. LotR1 has sold 831 seats OD, LotR2 sold 715 seats OD, and LotR3 sold 735 seats OD. For comparison, Phantom Menace didn't break 800 tickets until T-3 and we're still over a month out. JW3 comp is currently around 9m (it was at 1,670 tickets sold at this point!) (May 6).)
  

Inside Out 2 Average Thursday Comp: $8.14M

• abracadabra1998 ($3.67M Thursday comp. Holy numbers of shows and seats! Multiplexes are really expecting a lot here. Sales off the bat not amazing here sadly, but we shall see where it goes (May 15).)
  
• AniNate (It is encouraging that Canton is already giving me something to work with with 12 Thursday preview sales. Same number for Fri-Sun. I do see nine sales for first Thursday at Canton now and I think that's a pretty solid start (May 15). I do see a few 1-2 spots for Inside Out on Saturday. Think some M-F workweek adult fans might be putting down money for that (May 14).)
  
• charlie Jatinder ($11.84M Thursday comp at MTC2. $16M Thursday comp for Kung Fu Panda 4 (May 15).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex (Already at 180 shows for previews in my areas and still has a few theaters left to post. For comparison, Godzilla x Kong finished with 197, Kingdom of Apes 190, and Kung Fu Panda 205 (May 14).)
  
• keysersoze123 (At least the show counts show Plexes are expecting a big OW. I dont remember when we last had a animation movie start with so many shows. I wont count Mario as that was a fan driven movie. Definitely not great presales but this is not a fan driven movie. Let us see where things are in the final week (May 15). Too early to judge presales as ticket sales just started early this morning. Families dont book tickets on weekday mornings. Wait until evening today to judge it. From a release perspective its way bigger than all animation movies seen recently including Panda 4. Easily the biggest I have seen in a long time. Only movie which is not comparable is Mario but that was not just a family flick (May 14).)
  
• Porthos (VERY BAD COMPS: $8.83M Thursday comp. I really do not have good comps for this movie. Like, at all. Especially for D1. With that in mind, I did some digging and did manage to get the Elemental D1 numbers out of the old Tracking thread: IO2 = 5.45946x Elemental on D1 [13.10m]. Now will Inside Out 2 be as backloaded as Elemental? Well it's tough to literally sell 5.5x times the amount of tickets on the final couple of days that Elemental did, so perhaps not. But it does show how fracking backloaded purely kids animation is. Anyway, this is 30 days out and it isn't a CBM film (like AtSV) or CBM-adjacent film (like Incredibles 2). The Sonic 2 comp is perhaps a little concerning. On the other hand, nearly a weeks more of pre-sales so not exactly a great comp. 3.5% of presales are 3D and 40.1% are PLF (May 15). On the Saturday of release weekend (ie NOT EA) there is a special event screening for IO2: INSIDE OUT 2: FUNKO FAMILY EVENT! (2024) Sat June 15th. Might boost the OW slightly, depending on how wide this event is and how much more these tickets will presumably cost (May 11).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($8.20M Thursday comp. This is a super super strong day 2. Probably just Orlando overindexing, but yeah starting to lean towards something big brewing. Florida presales are somehow even crazier. Sold 2357 seats and is getting a blockbuster rollout in terms of showing allocations. Kung Fu panda comp day 2: gives me $8.50M (May 15). Well, I can't really tell if this is a breakout or not yet. Looks very good especially in the first few hours. These are probably terrible comps, but might as well try something (May 14).)
  
• TwoMisfits (I'm kinda shocked at the opening set from my Cinemarks... 2 screens (1 PLF, 1 not) and 6 showings at my PLF 14 for Thursday (and 11 showings on the same screens once it runs full day - 7 PLF b/c 1 is 3d on the reg screen, 4 not)... 3 screens (.75 3d, 2.25 not) and 9 showings at the non-PLF 12 for Thursday (and 12 showings on 2.25 screens once it runs full day)... So, 2 and 2.25 screens for the weekend presale sets... Disney must be charging a huge % for themselves b/c this is an Elemental opening set at my PLF...a little more generous for Thursday at my non-PLF, but then they too drop to an Elemental opening set after the adult Disney base Thursday rush... (May 14).)
  
• vafrow (No new sales. Whatever glitches in the system on day 1 didn't push sales to day 2. I still think the lack of base ticket options will push families to wait. Cineplex has jacked up the cost of premium formats, plus they're throwing in an increase for opening weekend of major releases. It adds up quickly for families (May 16). With the site glitching yesterday, it might account for the slow start. But, what's interesting is the format breakdown. Nothing is being made available in anything close to a regular showtime. The one non 3D showing in Dolby is a matinee showing. Everything else is carrying a hefty premium. They'll likely release regular showtimes closer to release, but right now, it's priced to get eager fans to pay the premium formats (May 15).)
  
• YM! (In fairness it's only been an hour but yeah sales are softer than I expected. However, it is a month out and will largely skew more towards kids than say TLM/Across so wasn't expecting a blitz like them. Here at Marcus theaters are going all out for IO2 with it having the lion share of PLFs with it getting both screens when there is two PLFs with tentpole like levels of screens (May 14). Was taking a look at Marcus Cinemas to see that they have preloaded Inside Out 2 showtimes which seem to start at 3:00 pm on a Thursday. It seems like Marcus is going all out on it as judging from showtimes it's taking away all of Bad Boys’ PLFs in that theaters that have two+ PLFs are giving all to IO2 (May 11).)
  

Domestic Calendar Dates (last updated May 3):
MAY

• (May 16) Presales Start [Bad Boys Ride or Die]
  
• (May 16) Thursday Previews [Babes + Back to Black + If + The Strangers: Chapter 1 + The Blue Angels IMAX]
  
• (May 17) Presales Start [Ezra]
  
• (May 19) Review Embargo Lifts [Garfield 9 PM EST]
  
• (May 20) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man Homecoming Re-Release]
  
• (May 22) Presales Start [The Watchers]
  
• (May 23) Thursday Previews [Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga + Hit Man + The Garfield Movie + Sight]
  
• (May 26) Presales Start [Bikeriders]
  
• (May 27) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man Far From Home Re-Release]
  
• (May 30) Thursday Previews [Ezra + Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle + Robot Dreams + The Young Woman and the Sea]
  

JUNE

• (June 3) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man No Way Home Re-Release]
  
• (June 5) Presales Start [Despicable Me 4]
  
• (June 6) Thursday Previews [Bad Boys: Ride or Die + The Watchers]
  
• (June 8) 1-Saturday Re-Release (1st day) [The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition]
  
• (June 9) 1-Sunday Re-Release (1st day) [The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition]
  
• (June 10) 1-Monday Re-Release (1st day) [The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King Extended Edition]
  
• (June 13) Thursday Previews [Inside Out 2]
  
• (June 15) 1-Saturday Re-Release (2nd day) [The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition]
  
• (June 16) 1-Sunday Re-Release (2nd day) [The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition]
  
• (June 17) 1-Monday Re-Release (2nd day) [The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King Extended Edition]
  
• (June 20) Thursday Previews [The Bikeriders + Janet Planet]
  
• (June 27) Thursday Previews [Blue Lock The Movie -Episode Nagi- + Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1 + A Quiet Place: Day One]
  

JULY

• (July 2) Opening Day [Wednesday: Despicable Me 4]
  
• (July 4) Opening Day [Thursday: Possum Trot]
  
• (July 4) Thursday Previews [MaXXXine]
  
• (July 11) Thursday Previews [Fly Me to the Moon + Untitled New Line Horror movie]
  
• (July 18) Thursday Previews [Twisters]
  
• (July 25) Thursday Previews [Deadpool and Wolverine + Didi + Fabulous Four]
  

AUGUST

• (August 1) Thursday Previews [Harold and the Purple Crayon]
  
• (August 8) Thursday Previews [Borderlands + Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us + Cuckoo + The Fire Inside + Trap]
  
• (August 15) Thursday Previews [Alien: Romulus + Horizon An American Saga Chapter 2 + Ryan’s World the Movie: Titan Universe Adventure]
  
• (August 22) Thursday Previews [Blink Twice + The Crow + The Forge + Slingshot]
  
• (August 29) Thursday Previews [City of Dreams + Reagan + They Listen]
  

Presale Tracking Posts:
April 23
April 25
April 27
April 30
May 2
May 4
May 7
May 9
May 11
May 14
Note: I have removed most tracking data that has not been updated for 2 weeks. I think there is value in keeping data for a week or two but at a certain point they start to lose their value and should not be treated the same as more recent tracking data.

Ok, love is not the right word, I just wanted to stick with the spirit of the Sellers inspired title. Here's the timeline, sordid details following:
5/8-5/24/23 - Job offered, finger printed, E-qip done, soft credit pull, no interim 7/?/23 - Interview scheduled with investigator, this was probably mid month, my in-laws were in town 8/14/23 - follow up interview w/ the same investigator, by video 10/20/23 - received LOI for things previously discussed with investigator - immediately retained safetyblitz44 4/24/2024 - finally turned in all documentation required by LOI
I waited 3 weeks to contact the FSO from the hiring company. I received a call back from the program manager pretty fast - they profusely apologized that I should have been notified 11 months ago that they were on a hiring freeze and could no longer offer me the position.
I let them know that this was OK and understandable - BUT, that I had still been in contact with DCSA, had an interview, LOI, etc. and that regardless my case should reflect that. They asked me to send my resume and told me they'd call back.
Not even 2 hours later, they call and let me know that YES I have been adjudicated favorably BUT that's when the company dropped my case. I will remain in this status for about 6 months total, during which time I need to find a job to activate me. This is not the end of the world, the PM referred me to a sub and I'm interviewing next week and I am reaching out to my network - someone is going to pick up a software engineer ready to be cleared, that's probably a non issue. I'm very lucky to find myself in this position at all.
Long version...
I was unemployed from late 2021 to early 2023 when I finally bit the bullet and went back to cleared work. I'm a software engineer and I've been cleared before, I didn't think it would be a huge deal, but I was wrong.
I have filled out the SF-86 a lot, I'm in my 40s and it started in the army in 1999. I have had cleared roles without much issue but I never really had red flags either.
This time I had some IRS issues and I checked "yes" to the having used drugs box. It was weed and I had stopped during the pandemic - it was a social thing and the pandemic sucked all of those aspects right out of it. Sharing seemed to make sense til then and I was never one to sit around getting high alone so it naturally tapered off more than a conscious effort to quit. But, I have no intention of doing it again, so giddyup.
When I met with the investigator for an interview it became clear why I hadn't gotten an interim this time but not why it never came up before. They asked me about "an arrest in March 1997" and all I could say was "HOLY SHIT, THAT'S ON THERE?!"
Now, having re-read the SF-86 a ton, I still can't quite figure out where I would have listed this other than at the end because all of the arrest questions from rev 2016 are "past 7 years" but, some way, somehow I will list this in the future because this was 26 years prior when i was 15.
When I was 15 I was at a bus stop by the school in my city when a friend drove by and stopped - a bunch of us got in. I was sitting shotgun and saw the vehicle we had just entered had no ignition and realized it was stolen and we were all going to get arrested, which we did. No charges, none of us stole a car, including the driver - she was riding in a second hand hot car - we were just in the thing. It was teenage stupidity all the way down. I never thought of it again other than as a hilarious anecdote because we were arrested and released to our parents and that was the end of it til that interview! LOL!
The investigator told me in no uncertain terms that this was why i needed an interview. They said they would have never had to do it otherwise. But, I'm still not sure where I would have listed it or what would have made me think of it. They showed me the FBI report that just said it was an arrest assumed felony. There's an EVER question about being charged with a felony but I was not charged. That was no issue after I explained it and I assume the FBI finally followed up with the rest of their report.
Otherwise we just talked about the stint with MJ use, long over, my IRS issues, and I brought up a bench warrant that I had in another state but explained there was really nowhere on the form to list it and that it was for an unpaid ticket from the year 2000 (misdemeanor) with no statute of limitations. I had only found out about it right before the pandemic, it became a low priority real fast. Same with the IRS stuff. I had stopped filing for a bunch of years just because I couldn't afford the 1099 I had been on one year. When you don't file once it's easy to keep not filing! But, in 2021, before the layoffs, I had hired an accountant to help me get it all straightened out. I just needed to file the missed year but I wasn't sure if that was the right move or not. I owed but I was broke and dealing with layoffs plus the IRS hadn't said anything - it's only human to hope they never do! LOL. I never did find any real sources to corroborate a time limit on failing to file, though, so I didn't really want to push that envelope.
When I got the LOI it was only for the 2 tax years I hadn't filed and the bench warrant. Just the words "bench warrant" told me I should get a lawyer and I did. Getting those tax returns processed and getting the warrant lifted took 7 months. Each time a deadline came up from DCSA I submitted everything I had - screenshots, correspondence w/ the attorney working on my bench warrant and the state the case was in - and each time they extended me further.
I ended up needing 2 lawyers - I initially hired the user mentioned above and they found someone who was bar'd in the state I needed. The bench warrant was for an unpaid parking ticket (that I could swear on a stack of bibles was paid at the time, but I can't prove that, so). It took several months to get proof. Same with the IRS stuff. I sent a large payment on the 2nd of January and it took til April to fully reflect on my account. It was excruciating. If you owe taxes and it's a one off, do yourself a favor and call the people who can waive the penalties. I was able to make reasonable payment arrangements online and THEN get 1/3 of my bill cut.
Mainly the lawyer made sure my "final" packet - the one I turned in for the first due date with all of my statements - was clear and correct and would reflect the steps I was taking. Wording on the LOI response is crucial to success along with proof - they will help make sure you are addressing the issues as requested by the LOI without overthinking it. I'm not a terrible writer but that isn't exactly the point. Once I hit that juncture I really wanted to be as sure as I could be that I was doing the right things. They can also help you put your case in perspective - they have experience with weirder or worse than yours. Plus, if you found them on reddit you can respond to them in gifs and memes and know they'll get it. All told for 7 months of counsel, an entire additional lawyer, and including all fees from that process, this cost $2500 and my retainer remainder was refunded as soon as we closed. No hearings or court time necessary, everything was remote and asynchronous.
One of the best parts of this outcome is how great it feels to know I'm truly "squeaky clean" again. It doesn't take too long, depending, I guess. If you look at my account you'll see one of the last weed plants I grew in 2015. Cultivation is one of those "in the past 7 years" questions and I was in year 8 which I may always get a silly kick out of. I did let the investigator know as it was relevant to some other info - but, I'm a horticulturalist at heart, which is also fully reflected in my hobbies. I have no desire or need to grow weed again but it's a thing I have done and have experience with which is nothing to be ashamed of.
Be honest - with yourself AND investigators. Don't be too squeaky of a wheel when it's taking a long time - sometimes that's a really happy accident. Get another job while you wait or keep your current one. File those late taxes now, not later. Old warrants for misdemeanors are cheaper than you think. Sometimes stuff really does come up that you had no reason to list but it isn't necessarily the end of the world.
Oh, and I've been naked on the internet and no one cared.

Hi I'm F20 I am a writer specializing in editing. I have edited for fanfictions, emails and essays. I also have experience writing for all of the above as well, I am hoping to be able to get at least 100$ for bills. I also do other work like resume building/editing and I make ads and posters as well. I am willing to do other work as well message me to ask.
My rates for writing-
.10$ per word
For Editing-
100-500 words-5$
600-1000 words-10$
+1000-15$
Resume/Ad rates-
editing(existing resume)-5$
Building(new resume)-10$
Ad creation- 5$

Hey all,
Our firm has tried Indeed, Ziprecruiter, etc but it seems to be a lot of spam resumes so we thought we'd try something a little bit less formal and local!
My partners and I have an accounting firm (taxes) and investment firm. We are a young firm but have been around for over a decade. We specialize in income tax planning, helping clients retire peacefully, and managing investments.
At this point we have grown so fast that we are looking for additional help - we are open to part time and/or full time. Given that we have multiple partners I placed the job title as executive assistant as you would be assisting more than one of us (depending on the season and which department is the busiest).
Job duties include:
-Managing our schedule
-Scheduling clients
-Monitoring email inboxes and taking inbound client calls (assisting them)
-Preparing paperwork (applications, beneficiary changes, investment options, gathering client data)
-Data input in tax software/financial planning software.
-Managing office efficiency (If you notice we can do something bettefaster -- implement it).
-Updating social media and client communications
-Learning new software updates and implementing them
-Scheduling lunch meetings and work events
-Misc tasks that need to be done (going to the post office, mailing out documents, etc.)
The above is just a base sample of what we would need done as an executive assistant; however, if you have an interest in the finance/accounting/world travel field -- there is definitely room to get licensed and learn another skill within our firm... We welcome and appreciate that; so no ceilings would be placed on advancement. This may be learning about stocks & bonds, how to save money on taxes, in's and out's of real estate, life insurance, long term care insurance, Medicare, etc. This would be a very good opportunity for a college student looking to break into the industry - but just to clarify this is a PAID position; not an internship (however it would qualify for college credits - must check with university first).
The ideal candidate is a self-starter and can function independently. We work in a high stress field but our clients are amazing people and we are definitely laid back. If you're open to travel we will pay for you to attend conferences with us (flights, hotels, meals, etc) to help us drive the business forward. We are looking for more of a teammate that is invested in the growth of the firm rather than an employee who just punches the clock. Our goal is to grow together; and see you grow in your knowledge and expertise as well. We take pride in what we do so we would expect the same of you.
Starting pay depends on experience. You would be starting as a 1099 contractor in the beginning to see if this is a good fit for everyone involved. Must have your own transportation and be able to pass a background test and fingerprinting (cannot have felonies/crimes/misdemeanors involving financial matters. We will be implementing a profit share so we can all enjoy success and growth together.
No need for a formal resume as I feel that doesn't tell us much about who you are. A brief summary about yourself, your goals in life, why you'd be interested in working with us, and any questions you may have would be a great start! Please include your name and phone number for a call back.
Our email is: [financialhiringv1@gmail.com](mailto:financialhiringv1@gmail.com)
Thank you Vegas - Talk soon.

Hi Everyone! Looking for a sanity check on a project regarding pricing.
I was just working as a freelance shoote editor for a few years, and transitioned into a different full-time job with the intent of working on projects on the side. A friend who is relatively successful in the realm of corporate recruiting has a side business where she teaches job seekers how to find work (she gets like $800 to rewrite resumes JFC) and speaks publicly here and there. In trying to generate more passive income, she wants to create an online course and has hired some writers to work with her on the scripts. She's asked me for a quote to handle the shoot/ editing and told me her budget is about $8k.
The whole thing is projected about 90 minutes in length. Since the project will be mostly narrated video/ slides, she will only appear on camera for about 15-20% of that 90 minutes. if it's 12-18 minutes of finished footage, that sounds like a single day with just me (maybe an assistant?) two cameras, three lights, and an audio kit. Seems relatively straightforward to me.
The edit is the tricky part. Sounds like I'll have about a month to complete a 90-minute project. In a vacuum, that sounds *insane* but the nature of narrated clips of someone on a computer *might* mean the creator is picking the best take, and that removes a lot of work. I might be, at the end of the day, doing some finishing work, and cutting 15-minutes of talking head footage, which sounds pretty easy since it's already scripted.
The course is broken into four modules that are 20-25 minutes in length. I'm thinking it makes sense to treat it like it's 4 edits that are 20 minutes long, and saying it's $1k for each. Does that make sense?
Thanks!

First off, I would like to preface this by saying that this is the first time in my life that I would be making some sort of written review for a movie or a series so pardon me if I'm going to be all over the place.
I wasn't really planning on doing any sort of review or posted feedback before I watched the movie so I didn't really take notes and stuff so kindly correct me if I misinterpreted some of the details or missed some of the scenes. I decided to write this because of how disappointed I was in the movie as a manga reader.
Let's start first with the animations and the cinematics. I got nothing bad to say about this because it was great and it was reminiscent of the great animation quality of the first three seasons and I didn't find some of the animation complaints I had during the fourth season. The music/OST on certain scenes was great as well and the scene where the surroundings just turned silent due to Hinata sensing the "danger" emitting out of Kenma was awesome.
The first problem I had with the movie was the sub. It felt like some of lines were better translated and delivered in the manga than it was in the movie so seeing those scenes in the movie was a bit underwhelming compared to when it happened in the manga. I also hated that they didn't even bother to animate some of the best scenes in the match and what made the match so good. This is the part where i wish was taking notes so i remember the precise lines or scenes lmao. Although here are some lines that I remember off the top of my head and some of the scenes that they didn't even bother to animate which in my opinion are either very important or are just my favorites (lol)

1. "My disciples are there too" In the movie they made it singular and implied that Hinata was grandpa ukai's only disciple when in fact in the manga they indicated both kageyama and hinata. Granted he taught hinata so much more.
2. Grandpa ukai and nekomata-sensei backstory and flashback where??? Unless I totally missed that scene cause I was looking to much at my phone lmao.
3. "We're gonna eat you alive!!!" (Again correct me if I missed this)
4. Dedicate shift where?
5. Again idk if i'm just looking away but I didn't see the scene wherein the nohebi guy said that tsukki reminded him of kuroo or when kenma fooled hinata by the faint. Or tsukkis inner dialogue on kenma not liking him very much. Or when azumane said "It's about time I get one too".
6. What happened to inuoka? With his rivalry with hinata? Or his flashbacks with kai?
7. SKYBALL. Next nekoma setter where?
8. Akane "falling in love" with the speed of the quick? Alice and Akane interactions? Too little screen time.

Again I didn't take notes and these are the scenes that I remember at the top of my head so kindly correct me if I'm wrong.
Now let's move on to the game itself. This was the part where I was really disappointed because the game felt so rushed and so crammed to the point that there were times when I would just be shocked that they scored so much in so little time. I cited some samples in the previous part but I really have to emphasize the fact that it was so rushed to the point that it didn't really feel like a game.
I hated the first set so much. SO MUCH! Rather than a volleyball set, it felt like your watching highlights without any context whatsoever. So many dialogues skipped or just brushed over especially on that ending. They didn't animate or illustrate the moment when karasuno, who has never won a set against nekoma on any on their practice matches, had the rug pulled under them. They didn't show the initial conversation between tendo and goshiki in how tendo said that nekoma intentionally made it so that they caught up to karasuno just when karasuno was already thinking that they are going to win. It was the same the rest of the match. IT DIDN'T EVEN FEEL LIKE A MATCH. So much monologue, dialogues, flashbacks that was crucial to each and every member of the team was skipped. This didn't even feel like a match between 2 teams but a match between hinata and kenma. They forgot what made the nekoma match so great to begin with and just made the movie a 1 vs 1 rivalry. The rivalry between other players was just glossed over and they forgot the whole team rivalry. (I rushed this paragraph so I'm all over the place lmao, i was planning to expound for each set but i forgot a lot of the movie)
I also didn't like the last scene of the movie as much as others did. I preferred how they showed it in the manga where it showed the whole court and interchanging it between the practice scene and the real game as it slowly builds towards the the end. Instead they just to do it in kenmas perspective and all he did was look around the court as a flashback. Although this is more of a preference rather than acritique.
Anyway, to sum it up my biggest gripe with this movie was how they forced the kenma vs hinata rivalry and how they simply forgot all the rivalry and character development of the other members of the both teams. They didn't animate important scenes that showed the importance of each and every character in each teams (e. g. inuoka, kai, AZUMANE, YAKU (sadly can't enumerate all of them)) like damn. Even kuroo and tsukki got so little screen time. I really wished they just made it into a series but hey I understand. This was the better business decision for them.
I apologize if this felt more like a rant rather than a review lmao. Kindly ignore any and all grammatical errors cause I didn't bother proofreading.
PS. the latter half of the review was rushed and crammed just like the movie.

I'm posting some old stories that I wrote maybe 6 or 7 years ago before I knew HFY existed so you may have read them before on WP or some other sub but they are mine. Also, obligatory "english is not my first language"
Calvin sat in silence, his gaze focused on the green dot flashing slowly on his console. The Council had kept their word. His comm interface had connected to a temporary relay satellite near Saturn. A special request that was granted to lift Earth's isolation sentence for a brief moment to relay a final message to the cosmos. Everything was ready, the message prerecorded the day before and final adjustements to the gift had been made a few weeks ago. Calvin pondered everything that had happened, every events leading to this moment, to humanity's last chance to stand on the centerstage.
It didn't start this way. When humanity first made contact with an extraterrestrial race, we were welcomed with opened arms. Our very first message was "we come in a spirit of friendship" Humanity's quick evolution and technological progress had already caught the attention of the Galactic System Alliance. Some of its members were concerned over the general violent tendencies demonstrated throughout human history but true to its benevolent mission, the Alliance had given humanity the benefit of the doubt. We were allowed outposts, territories, trading routes and even the newly created 328th seat on the Galactic Council of Representatives. Humanity was given a real fair chance to shine. And boy did we waste it.
The Galactic Alliance was over 5 million years old, some of its members could be traced back all the way to the founding days of the Alliance. It had brought about a previously unheard of, almost uninterrupted era of peace throughout the galaxy. Its rulings were generally both fair and just. A beacon of hope and justice into the dark cosmos. Humanity gave it its first civil war, less than 50 years after joining. 5 million years of peace, ripped apart in the space of a moment.
Humanity started off well enough. Outposts and trading were profitable and while human vessels were not as technologically advanced as other races, our ability to anticipate enemy movements and quickly adapt to volatile situations made us a prime candidate for galactic peacekeeping missions. Humans rapidly made a name for themselves as a deterrent to pirates and smugglers. The Galactic Council did not hesitate to authorize human settlements in sectors prone to hostile actions, knowing that humanity's presence would pacify a sector quickly. Humanity's image rose to a more favorable one and initial concerns and hesitations towards us slowly crumbled away. Unfortunately with the rise of humanity's standing, came a rise of its hubris. After all, humans will always remain humans; fickle, volatile, greedy.
Humanity became more and more demanding in its dealings with the Alliance. We constantly wanted more, became arrogant, took what we felt we deserved. The Council turned a blind eye when humanity moved in on turbulent territories and claim them for itself but before long, we had our eyes set on more prominent systems. With every outburst and hostile action, we only isolated ourselves further. Humanity's positive image quickly turned negative, and when backed into a corner, humanity turned vengeful. We convinced ourselves we were the victims and that in the end, it was us or them. Some members of the Alliance came to view our side of things, others were forced into servitude. A simple spark was all it took for a full fledge civil war to break out.
Within the span of only 3 years, the Alliance was on fire, divided, broken. Humanity's unmatched potential for warfare made it a formidable enemy but in the end our arrogance got the better of us and we lost. The consequences for our actions were harsh but justified. Given humanity's irrecoverable nature, we had been sentenced to erasing. All humans would be relocated to Earth, sterilized and left to die alone, the Sol system kept under a permanent military blockade. All mentions of humanity were to be removed from Galactic history and we would be forgotten, erased from existence. It was the second time only, in the entire Alliance's history that this punishment was handed out.
As a final gesture of good will, the Council had authorized a final message from humanity's last living representative to the members of the Alliance, to be distributed, but then erased. Looking up from his console, Calvin toggled the small switch that would send out the transmission to the satellite's internal memory, then end his life. He permitted himself a final smile, the Council would be seriously pissed... at first.
In the dark emptiness of space, the small satellite's memory indicator turned red, signaling reception of a message but unfortunately it was too far away to witness the small light flash from the thermo nuclear explosion that officially ended humanity's presence in the galaxy.
Captain Xandar was pacing back and forth across the small bridge of his scout vessel. While he was honored to be part of an official Council mission, he couldn't help but feel that he was potentially being sacrificed as cannon fodder. The Council may have granted the human's wish of a last message but it still feared a trap. Human's deceptive and violent nature would leave a dark shadow on the galaxy, slow to vanish. Humanity's first word to the Alliance, "Friend" had become a synonym of "deceit, treachery and naivety". The 20 large warships hiding just outside the limit of the Sol system did nothing to calm Xandar's nerves. While they were there to offer protection in case of a human trap, should things go south they would probably not hesitate to destroy Xandar's vessel if needed.
Captain, we are in range of the relay satellite. Systems confirm there is indeed a message on the internal memory. Initial scans show the data file is rather large but still looks clean.
Xandar sighed, the poor human schmuck probably went on a long tirade against the Alliance. A fitting end for such a violent race.
Very well lieutenant, download and scan the message. If everything looks good we'll transmit it to the Council and they can decide if it's worth sharing to the rest of the Alliance or not.
As soon as the young lieutenant opened the message file, all lights on the bridge went out, the quiet hum of the engines vanished and artificial gravity disengaged. Xandar was doing his best to maintain his composure while slowly drifting 2 feet in the air but as suddenly as it had vanished, artificial gravity came back and the emergency lighting activated, bathing the bridge in a reddish hue. On the main screen was a sole human, weak and frail in appearance.
Apologies to the commander of the Alliance vessel, I assure you that I meant no disrespect and no harm to your vessel and your crew. As authorized by the Galactic Council of Representatives, I hereby bring you a final farewell from humanity, as well as a final gift to remember us by.
Xandar was panicking, all restraint and stoic facade usually associated with his rank had vanished from his face, his eyes were white with fear.
Shit! The damn human played us like fool! Lieutenant, I want an immediate status report on the ship's systems. First officer, contact the fleet, there is no telling what we just exposed ourselves to.
Comms are down sir, unable to raise the fleet. We have limited access to the main computer and all blast doors have been sealed shut throughout the ship. She’s dead in the waters Sir.
Damn it! I want every exabyte of that datafile analyzed for any trace of a virus or even biological agents. We should have known better than to trust the humans to honor their word.
Xandar looked back to the monitor, the human had remained silent, probably anticipating the commotion that his message would cause. Xandar waited for the recording to resume.
Now, I assume the initial moment of shock is behind us so let’s continue. As I said, I bring you a final gift from humanity to all races and citizens of the Alliance. Fear not, though this final deception on our part may appear as vengeful, I assure you it is not the case. I knew the Council would never allow for this message to be shared throughout the Alliance, let alone our gift so I had to take some creative measures. Your analysis team is probably telling you about now that the 2 data files enclosed with this message are organic and they are correct though fear not, it is not a biological agent or a viral threat. Both files contain the DNA blueprints of Dogs. While we initially had dozen of sub-species, the complexity of this entire action limited me to only upload one specific breed. More precisely I give you the Retriever Labrador. I have enclosed blueprints for a brown-coated male and a golden-coated female. Though they are called man's best friend, I assure you they are nothing like us, to the contrary they are loyal, playful and innocent. They represent everything humanity has failed to be. They are our gift to you in the hope that you will one day forgive us for everything we have done. May they be a protector when evil threatens you. May they be love when hate isolates you. May they be a beacon of hope when darkness surrounds you. Treat them well. We did not deserve them, but hopefully you will prove yourself worthy of them.
The ship's systems came back online the very moment the recording ended. Lights rekindled across the bridge and the engines sprung back to life, filling the vessel with their low humming. Xandar looked over to the bridge crew, most of them still in shock and unsure of what exactly had happened. It was the young comms lieutenant that broke the silence first.
Sir, all systems are back online. Comms are back up and the fleet is hailing us, they want to know what the hell is going on. They are asking if we have been compromised.
Tell the fleet to remain on stand-by, we will need to assess the situation. First officer, give me a full systems check.
Sir, I'm detecting a massive power fluctuation from levels 3 through 7. Powers appears to have been rerouted to the auxiliary deck.
Tell engineering to stabilize the power levels and seal off the auxiliary deck
Controls are unresponsive Sir, power is being channeled to the backup biological replicators
What? Kill all power to the auxiliary deck, NOW!
We can't, the auxiliary deck is hooked up directly within the main generator and has its own dedicated safety bypass. It's meant to work even in the events of a catastrophic engine failure to insure the survival of the crew.
Shit! The human didn't do this by accident. He purposely automated his virus through the backup replicators knowing full well we wouldn't be able to turn them off. First officer, I need you to vent the atmosphere from the auxiliary deck's replicator room.
Controls are unresponsive Sir
Then blow the damn room out to space, do whatever is needed to stop this!
There is nothing we can do sir, we're completely locked out of the auxiliary deck. Security teams are waiting outside the replicator room but the system won't allow me to open the door.
Xandar was unsure how to proceed at this point. They had been compromised but calling in the fleet would mean immediate destruction. He pondered for a while but then made the decision to contact the fleet regardless of the consequences. He had a duty to insure the safety of the Alliance. He turned to the young lieutenant and gave the order to raise the fleet. His gaze was however quickly met with the panicked expression of the young comm's lieutenant.
Sir! The recording! It's transmitting itself to the fleet via our open commlink!
WHAT?
The fleet is no longer responding. I think... I think they're going through what we went through when we first opened the recording.
Xandar was in shock. The realisation of what was about to happen was slowly setting in.
If you're right son, that means the recording will activate their organic replicators as well and then transmit itself to the rest of the Alliance fleet. We've doomed the Alliance.
Sir! Replicators report completion of their programmed tasks.
Auxiliary deck controls are back online! Scanners indicate 2 life forms. Replicator room doors just opened on their own!
Xandar turned slowly towards his first officer.
Sir, there is a final message on the replicator console's screen.
---Protocol Goodboy1 successful
---Protocol Goodgirl2 successful
---May they show you the true meaning of the word "Friendship"
Bonus
It only seemed fitting that humanity's last action would be to blow trough bureaucratic redtapes and regulations to impose dogs on the galaxy (with the best of intentions of course). Calvin did promise no harm would come the vessel and its crew and that's been true... for the most part. There is definitly no physical harm and while psychological and/or traumatic consequences are a possibility (albeith a rather small one), you know... dogs will take care of that. It all works out in the end.
Well, except for the poor Glaxien crew members who turns out are deadly allergic to dog hair, and the Phlosaks whose skin reacts to dog urine as if it was acid (poor bastard got peed on his face when he lifted a puppy), and the Klaangorians who's very fragile and very vital lower mandible looked like the ideal chew toy for one young puppy. A very uselessly exposed lower mandible if you ask me. Not to mention the many planetary ecosystems that will be seriously messed up by the introduction of a new uncontrolled species.
In fact some would argue that those pesky government regulations were there for a reason, that with time, the Alliance could and would have experimented with the DNA blueprint in a controlled environment and then, given positive results, would have moved on to a gradual and supervised introduction of dogs in the galaxy.
But you know, that's just not the human way to do things. Better to rip the bandage in one go and hope for the best. Surely the Alliance can't fault humanity for what Calvin did, it was for the best, THEIR best and while in retrospect we are kinda sorry about the whole "accidental death by dogs" thing and ruined ecosystems, these are freak occurences, trivial, statistically benign. Like the great Cave Johnson once said, if I put these numbers into my calculator it makes a happy face.
You're welcome universe, we accept your most sincere gratitude and your apologies are much appreciated. You don't have to feel the need to mention it, we're totaly fine. In fact, please stop yelling at us.

After the main story of 2018, if you try to enter Freya's house, there'll be a bit of dialogue on how she's planning her revenge mission. Atreus suggests that she might also be bringing Baldur back to live like she did Mimir's head, but Mimir makes a specific point that he is reanimated, not resurrected. Meaning that the "real" Mimir is still very firmly dead
This is also referenced near the end of Ragnarok: Mimir's assistance is needed to raise up armies of Helheim and conversate with Hraesvelgr, since by lore only dead people have the "authority" to conversate with other dead in Helheim
However, earlier in 2018 on your first visit to Helheim, Mimir makes remarks about how he didn't really want to see Helheim again so soon after dying. In addition to that, in Valhalla DLC, Mimir has his own set of experiences and perspectives on the life he lived and people he served.
My point being: if his head is only reanimated, it shouldn't have the memories of "real" Mimir that went to Helheim after death (and Mimir makes no mention of visiting Helheim ever during his service to Odin, so that's out of equation). But then he does have memories of visiting Helheim upon death and Valhalla seems to treat him as someone who died, but got resurrected (case in point: Kratos himself). Granted, the way Valhalla works is shrouded in mystery and its definitions of "dead" can stretch pretty far (like how Tyr managed to enter Valhalla without a fuss), but I think my point still stands
So the question is: did Mimir think he was reanimated, but was actually resurrected? Do reanimations in Norse Realms have broader spectrums than one would assume? Or, the more realistic answer, it was a possible oversight by the writers?

hello!
i was wondering if anyone could share with me a list of their stats and extracurriculars for when they applied to med school, and which uni they got in for med?
i'd really appreciate it! (from an upcoming pre med freshman)

So upfront I'm not gonna get into the whole "not a samurai" debate because I find it to be a little facetious. I'm aware there is no official record of Yasuke being granted the title of samurai, but he was a personal bodyguard to the most powerful man in Japan, and was present for some of the most important moments in Japans history. I can also understand that from a marketing standpoint samurai sounds a lot cooler than retainer, so I'm just not gonna split hairs about it.
But from a narrative standpoint I think Yasuke checks several boxes for prime protag material:
Firstly, he is the perfect vehicle for a fish out of water story. The politics of Sengoku Japan can become a little muddled and confusing, it makes sense that the writers would want someone who they can explain the complex allegiances and key players to in a natural sounding way. And who better than a guy who had probably never even heard of Japan until he got off the boat.
Secondly, he's mysterious as shit. We know almost nothing about Yasuke other than the few writings we have about the 6ft black man that was always hanging out with Nobunaga. That's perfect for a historical fiction piece, you basically have a blank canvas to fill whatever you want in. From a thematic standpoint that should be right up ACs alley.
So yeah, I don't really understand all of the negative attention Yasuke has been getting. I didn't have an issue with Nioh using William Adams as the protagonist as I see this as basically equivalent.

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]

I (26F) have been having employment issues for over a year despite having a masters degree in public administration/certificate in health administration and top grades (long story short I had two job that I was not qualified for and they hired me anyways, only for them to fire me afterwards a few months later leading to a gap).
I got to the point that I was applying to ANY job just to get the skills/references. And then I sent a general application to a religious elementary school I used to go to.
I had an initial call with them and it all went well, I am going for a trial day next Thursday to see if I am the right fit . There were no administrative positions but there were open spots for assistant teachers in the Early Childhood Department for Pre-K.
Now this didn't bother me because:

1. I am close friends with someone who works in the department
2. My capstone was about children's education during distance learning and future economic prospects
3. I have extensive volunteer experience working in my local temples children's program and very good references
4. Salary (which can be $19 according to the school's Glassdoor) is not my biggest concern at the moment, my concern is getting work/references.

5)Schedule is flexible aside from departmental meetings
6) Doesn't require me to get any teaching degrees, only certifications in the state (NY) that I'm currently in.
However I am worried about the future as well because I hope to eventually move to Washington DC in a couple years, which will mean I have to leave the job eventually and find a new one. And I'm worried by taking this position as a Pre-K assistant teacher I'm nuking any chances of ever working directly within the policy world or for local communities.
My questions really are then:

1. Should I take the job if offered? Most likely I won't be starting until the 2024-2025 semester which starts in September. Which gives me three months not looking for a job in anticipation of working there. I live with my parents so rent and food is not an issue for now but it'll be a hard stop on spending. If so....
2. Should I take the job if offered but let them know if I get a position in my field by the summer more relevant I have to decline it?
3. If I take the job, how can I leverage it for work I want to do, especially since its an assistant teacher job for Pre-K? Just searching around I could get involved in my local religious community more when it comes to work but they also require office experience. What about writing samples? How could I realistically leverage this position for other teaching jobs with better pay in the future?Another option could be local community centers?

My main issue regarding it all is that I mainly have internship experience currently on my resume for the more administrative jobs which may tank other prospects in the future for me.

Hi, so I'm not "new" to freelance writing. I've been doing gigs on the side since 2012 (I used to find them on Craigslist - cringe). I basically did the low-paying SEO blog churn out stuff, but I was okay with that at the time because I was busy on other stuff.
Now that the competition is so rough for freelance writers (and Upwork is garbage now), I want to make my own website packaging my academic (Master's in History, a fellowship) and nonprofit work experience (5 years in a nonprofit) along with my 12 years' of freelance writing experience to position myself as a "research-based content writer who communicates your good work to your key audiences." So basically, freelance writer for nonprofits, education, and any other mission- and value-driven organization. My portfolio would be program impact reports, newsletters, press releases, blogs and web pages. All stuff I've done plenty of and have samples of.
Does that sound like a valuable proposition? Do you buy that I'm good at this? I am bad at self promotion.
Thanks to anyone who has the time to help!

I (26F) have been having employment issues for over a year despite having a masters degree in public administration/certificate in health administration and top grades (long story short I had two job that I was not qualified for and they hired me anyways, only for them to fire me afterwards a few months later leading to a gap).
I got to the point that I was applying to ANY job just to get the skills/references. And then I sent a general application to a religious elementary school I used to go to.
I had an initial call with them and it all went well, I am going for a trial day next Thursday to see if I am the right fit There were no administrative positions but there were open spots for assistant teachers in the Early Childhood Department for Pre-K.
Now this didn't bother me because:

1. I am close friends with someone who works in the department
2. My capstone was about children's education during distance learning and future economic prospects
3. I have extensive volunteer experience working in my local temples children's program and very good references
4. Salary (which can be $19 according to the school's Glassdoor) is not my biggest concern at the moment, my concern is getting work/references.

5)Schedule is flexible aside from departmental meetings
6) Doesn't require me to get any teaching degrees, only certifications in the state (NY) that I'm currently in.
However I am worried about the future as well because I hope to eventually move to Washington DC in a couple years, which will mean I have to leave the job eventually and find a new one. And I'm worried by taking this position as a Pre-K assistant teacher I'm nuking any chances of ever working directly within the policy world or for local communities.
My questions really are then:

1. Should I take the job if offered? Most likely I won't be starting until the 2024-2025 semester which starts in September. Which gives me three months not looking for a job in anticipation of working there. I live with my parents so rent and food is not an issue for now but it'll be a hard stop on spending. If so....
2. Should I take the job if offered but let them know if I get a position in my field by the summer more relevant I have to decline it?
3. If I take the job, how can I leverage it for work I want to do, especially since its an assistant teacher job for Pre-K? Just searching around I could get involved in my local religious community more when it comes to work but they also require office experience. What about writing samples? How could I realistically leverage this position for other teaching jobs with better pay in the future?Another option could be local community centers?

My main issue regarding it all is that I mainly have internship experience currently on my resume for the more administrative jobs which may tank other prospects in the future for me.

I (26F) have been having employment issues for over a year despite having a masters degree in public administration/certificate in health administration and top grades (long story short I had two job that I was not qualified for and they hired me anyways, only for them to fire me afterwards a few months later leading to a gap).
I got to the point that I was applying to ANY job just to get the skills/references. And then I sent a general application to a religious elementary school I used to go to.
I had an initial call with them and it all went well, I am going for a trial day next Thursday to see if I am the right fitThere were no administrative positions but there were open spots for assistant teachers in the Early Childhood Department for Pre-K.
Now this didn't bother me because:

1. I am close friends with someone who works in the department
2. My capstone was about children's education during distance learning and future economic prospects
3. I have extensive volunteer experience working in my local temples children's program and very good references
4. Salary (which can be $19 according to the school's Glassdoor) is not my biggest concern at the moment, my concern is getting work/references.

5)Schedule is flexible aside from departmental meetings
6) Doesn't require me to get any teaching degrees, only certifications in the state (NY) that I'm currently in.
However I am worried about the future as well because I hope to eventually move to Washington DC in a couple years, which will mean I have to leave the job eventually and find a new one. And I'm worried by taking this position as a Pre-K assistant teacher I'm nuking any chances of ever working directly within the policy world or for local communities.
My questions really are then:

1. Should I take the job if offered? Most likely I won't be starting until the 2024-2025 semester which starts in September. Which gives me three months not looking for a job in anticipation of working there. I live with my parents so rent and food is not an issue for now but it'll be a hard stop on spending. If so....
2. Should I take the job if offered but let them know if I get a position in my field by the summer more relevant I have to decline it?
3. If I take the job, how can I leverage it for work I want to do, especially since its an assistant teacher job for Pre-K? Just searching around I could get involved in my local religious community more when it comes to work but they also require office experience. What about writing samples? How could I realistically leverage this position for other teaching jobs with better pay in the future?Another option could be local community centers?

My main issue regarding it all is that I mainly have internship experience currently on my resume for the more administrative jobs which may tank other prospects in the future for me.