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Problems with booster charge and MeatNet
2024.05.29 05:48 Beginning_Wrap_8732 Problems with booster charge and MeatNet
I’ve really enjoyed using my three CPTs with boosters and display to smoke briskets and pork butts, roast chickens and roast the Thanksgiving turkey. It’s an incredibly useful, well-designed and well-built family of products.
Except for two things: lack of charge indication and reliability of MeatNet.
Chris has explained that a special chip would be required in order for the CPT to report its charge state, and it isn’t compatible with high heat environments. I can live with that. So far, I haven’t had an instance of a CPT running out of charge during long cooks going well over 12 hours. But when I asked why the booster doesn’t have charge indication, Chris said it just didn’t make the cut for the first generation of hardware. OK, but this weekend my overnight Memorial Day cook was nearly ruined due to lack of information about booster charge, and maybe a problem with MeatNet.
Here’s what happened:
I smoked a brisket point and flat, separated, with CPTs in each cut. Before the cook, I pressed the button on each CPT’s booster and got a green light, so I knew the probes were fully charged. The meat went in my Kamado Joe ceramic grill, and I put a booster on a cabinet about six feet away. I put the other booster on a table indoors about 40 feet away. I took the display and my iPhone to the bedroom, about 40 feet from the second booster. I set the iPhone to Never Lock and brought up the CPT app so I wouldn’t miss the prediction alarms (learned to do that the hard way.) I set the CPT predictions to 180F to catch the end of the stall, at which time I’d think about wrapping. One of the CPTs set off an alarm at 180F. I decided not to wrap, and reset the predictions on both CPTs to 200F, at which time I‘d wait until they hit 203F and remove the cuts for a long hold.
The alarms never went off. Luckily, I happened to awake in time to see in the app that both cuts had reached and slightly exceeded the target temp. But both CPTs were not connected, and the display was showing they weren’t connected. I rushed to the smoker with a ThermoPen and was relieved to find that the two cuts weren’t far over the target temp of 203. One was at 205F and the other was at 208F. The texture of the cuts was good (wabba wabba) and a ThermoPen showed temps weren’t too far over target over most of the meat. I took the meat off for a long hold.
What happened? It didn’t take long to discover that both boosters had run out of charge. Given the last temps shown by the app, I guess I was lucky to awake shortly after the boosters ran out of charge. I’m puzzled why display and/or iPhone didn’t directly connect to the CPTs in the ceramic cooker when the boosters ran out of charge. The total distance was less than 75 feet. Is it necessary to have a MeatNet relay close to the CPTs? I’ve been doing that, but I thought the range was better. Is the distance significantly reduced when the CPTs are inside a ceramic grill? If this is the case, I think I should put the display, which has a much larger battery, near the ceramic grill so the iPhone can stay connected anywhere in the house.
So, why did the boosters run out of charge? The last time I can be sure I charged the boosters was about month before, after smoking a pork butt. I did one cook after that, a roast chicken last week. At the time, I pressed the buttons on all three boosters. Two lit up green, and one didn’t light up at all. I put the CPT in one of the other boosters and it showed green, so it looked like the CPT was charged but, unlike the other two boosters, its booster had run out of charge. Seemed like that shouldn’t have happened in 2-3 weeks without using the CPT. In fact, I had seen this once before, but I didn’t mark the booster that had run out of charge earlier than expected. So I charged up the one that had run out and left it on my desk with a different CPT to see if it would happen again (I wanted to rule out a problem with the CPT.) When it came time to do the brisket cook on Memorial Day, the booster in question showed green when I pushed the button, which meant the CPT was still charged. Of course, that didn’t tell me what state the booster battery was in, but I had to get on with the cook so I aborted that experiment. I thought I had charged the boosters after the roast chicken cook, but maybe it was only the booster I was testing.
It’s possible I have one booster that can’t hold a charge, but it’s also possible that all three of my boosters have problems holding charge. It’s also possible I have one or more CPTs that draw power from the booster too often. After all, my CPTs and my boosters are early production models. I need to do some careful experiments to figure this in out, and the lack of any charge indication for the CPTs and boosters is going to make that very difficult. One idea I had is to use a USB dongle I have that reports mAh delivered. That might give me some info by showing how much charge a given booster can take.
I’d appreciate any advice for setting up experiments to determine if I have bad boosters and/or CPTs.
Beyond that, I hope Combustion will consider a Gen 2 booster with charge indication (fine if it’s in the app.) I will probably replace my boosters if that happens (though a trade-in deal for early adopters would be nice.)
Recently, someone posted about Combustion offering a charging dock for CPTs. After this weekend, that idea appeals to me, too. The ability of the boosters to keep the CPTs charged would be superfluous (the plain charger would do), but it would still be worthwhile for keeping the boosters charged for use in MeatNet.
The other problem I’ve had is frequent disconnects. It’s worst in my Breville Combi Wave oven, but I’ve chalked that up to the amount of metal between the CPTs and boosters, and maybe noise generated by the Combi Wave electronics. The CPTs do reconnect eventually, but sometimes it can take several minutes. I can get through a roast chicken cook (oven, not microwave), but the disconnects are annoying. Most of the time I don’t get lots of disconnects when using CPTs in the ceramic cooker. They can go hours without disconnecting. But I do get them. The CPTs eventually reconnect, but it‘s annoying. Perhaps this happened as the boosters charges were winding down to zero.
Oh, one more issue: After setting a prediction, sometimes I couldn‘t get back in to change clear the prediction. When I tapped the prediction section, it would display the food safe page. Then, sometime later, I could tap the section and change or clear the prediction.
submitted by Beginning_Wrap_8732 to combustion_inc [link] [comments]
Except for two things: lack of charge indication and reliability of MeatNet.
Chris has explained that a special chip would be required in order for the CPT to report its charge state, and it isn’t compatible with high heat environments. I can live with that. So far, I haven’t had an instance of a CPT running out of charge during long cooks going well over 12 hours. But when I asked why the booster doesn’t have charge indication, Chris said it just didn’t make the cut for the first generation of hardware. OK, but this weekend my overnight Memorial Day cook was nearly ruined due to lack of information about booster charge, and maybe a problem with MeatNet.
Here’s what happened:
I smoked a brisket point and flat, separated, with CPTs in each cut. Before the cook, I pressed the button on each CPT’s booster and got a green light, so I knew the probes were fully charged. The meat went in my Kamado Joe ceramic grill, and I put a booster on a cabinet about six feet away. I put the other booster on a table indoors about 40 feet away. I took the display and my iPhone to the bedroom, about 40 feet from the second booster. I set the iPhone to Never Lock and brought up the CPT app so I wouldn’t miss the prediction alarms (learned to do that the hard way.) I set the CPT predictions to 180F to catch the end of the stall, at which time I’d think about wrapping. One of the CPTs set off an alarm at 180F. I decided not to wrap, and reset the predictions on both CPTs to 200F, at which time I‘d wait until they hit 203F and remove the cuts for a long hold.
The alarms never went off. Luckily, I happened to awake in time to see in the app that both cuts had reached and slightly exceeded the target temp. But both CPTs were not connected, and the display was showing they weren’t connected. I rushed to the smoker with a ThermoPen and was relieved to find that the two cuts weren’t far over the target temp of 203. One was at 205F and the other was at 208F. The texture of the cuts was good (wabba wabba) and a ThermoPen showed temps weren’t too far over target over most of the meat. I took the meat off for a long hold.
What happened? It didn’t take long to discover that both boosters had run out of charge. Given the last temps shown by the app, I guess I was lucky to awake shortly after the boosters ran out of charge. I’m puzzled why display and/or iPhone didn’t directly connect to the CPTs in the ceramic cooker when the boosters ran out of charge. The total distance was less than 75 feet. Is it necessary to have a MeatNet relay close to the CPTs? I’ve been doing that, but I thought the range was better. Is the distance significantly reduced when the CPTs are inside a ceramic grill? If this is the case, I think I should put the display, which has a much larger battery, near the ceramic grill so the iPhone can stay connected anywhere in the house.
So, why did the boosters run out of charge? The last time I can be sure I charged the boosters was about month before, after smoking a pork butt. I did one cook after that, a roast chicken last week. At the time, I pressed the buttons on all three boosters. Two lit up green, and one didn’t light up at all. I put the CPT in one of the other boosters and it showed green, so it looked like the CPT was charged but, unlike the other two boosters, its booster had run out of charge. Seemed like that shouldn’t have happened in 2-3 weeks without using the CPT. In fact, I had seen this once before, but I didn’t mark the booster that had run out of charge earlier than expected. So I charged up the one that had run out and left it on my desk with a different CPT to see if it would happen again (I wanted to rule out a problem with the CPT.) When it came time to do the brisket cook on Memorial Day, the booster in question showed green when I pushed the button, which meant the CPT was still charged. Of course, that didn’t tell me what state the booster battery was in, but I had to get on with the cook so I aborted that experiment. I thought I had charged the boosters after the roast chicken cook, but maybe it was only the booster I was testing.
It’s possible I have one booster that can’t hold a charge, but it’s also possible that all three of my boosters have problems holding charge. It’s also possible I have one or more CPTs that draw power from the booster too often. After all, my CPTs and my boosters are early production models. I need to do some careful experiments to figure this in out, and the lack of any charge indication for the CPTs and boosters is going to make that very difficult. One idea I had is to use a USB dongle I have that reports mAh delivered. That might give me some info by showing how much charge a given booster can take.
I’d appreciate any advice for setting up experiments to determine if I have bad boosters and/or CPTs.
Beyond that, I hope Combustion will consider a Gen 2 booster with charge indication (fine if it’s in the app.) I will probably replace my boosters if that happens (though a trade-in deal for early adopters would be nice.)
Recently, someone posted about Combustion offering a charging dock for CPTs. After this weekend, that idea appeals to me, too. The ability of the boosters to keep the CPTs charged would be superfluous (the plain charger would do), but it would still be worthwhile for keeping the boosters charged for use in MeatNet.
The other problem I’ve had is frequent disconnects. It’s worst in my Breville Combi Wave oven, but I’ve chalked that up to the amount of metal between the CPTs and boosters, and maybe noise generated by the Combi Wave electronics. The CPTs do reconnect eventually, but sometimes it can take several minutes. I can get through a roast chicken cook (oven, not microwave), but the disconnects are annoying. Most of the time I don’t get lots of disconnects when using CPTs in the ceramic cooker. They can go hours without disconnecting. But I do get them. The CPTs eventually reconnect, but it‘s annoying. Perhaps this happened as the boosters charges were winding down to zero.
Oh, one more issue: After setting a prediction, sometimes I couldn‘t get back in to change clear the prediction. When I tapped the prediction section, it would display the food safe page. Then, sometime later, I could tap the section and change or clear the prediction.
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2024.05.29 05:40 Beast_Man_1334 So this was a picture I took at a friend's house.
 | I took this photo at my friend's house. She was smoking the green stuff and I was fascinated by the amount of smoke and took a picture of it. She noticed it first in the pic. I was like stop messing around thinking she was paranoid from smoking. When I looked at it. It shocked me, because we were outside at the time. And I me being naive at the time thought ghost could only appear inside places. submitted by Beast_Man_1334 to Paranormal [link] [comments] |
2024.05.29 04:38 _Triple_ [STORE] 900+ KNIVES/GLOVES/SKINS, 100.000$+ INVENTORY. BFK Lore, Gloves Amphibious, Skeleton Fade, Bowie Emerald, BFK Auto, Gloves MF, Talon Doppler, Gloves POW, Bayo Tiger, Gut Sapphire, Stiletto MF, M9 Ultra, Ursus Doppler, Flip Doppler, M9 Stained, Nomad CW, Paracord CW, AK-47 X-Ray & A Lot More
Everything in my inventory is up for trade. The most valuable items are listed here, the rest you can find in My Inventory
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All Buyouts are listed in cash value.
KNIVES
★ Butterfly Knife Lore (Factory New), B/O: $7194.77
★ Butterfly Knife Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2025.74
⎯★ M9 Bayonet Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $557.87
★ M9 Bayonet Stained (Well-Worn), B/O: $529.41
★ M9 Bayonet Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $465.39
⎯★ Talon Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $1295.27
★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth (Minimal Wear), B/O: $746.28
★ Karambit Bright Water (Field-Tested), B/O: $688.15
⎯★ Flip Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $547.93
★ Flip Knife Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $476.69
★ Flip Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $278.18
★ Flip Knife Black Laminate (Well-Worn), B/O: $258.83
★ Flip Knife Urban Masked (Field-Tested), B/O: $181.64
⎯★ Stiletto Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $686.04
★ Stiletto Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $665.41
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★ Stiletto Knife Crimson Web (Field-Tested), B/O: $418.25
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★ Stiletto Knife Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $194.96
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★ Nomad Knife Scorched (Field-Tested), B/O: $169.78
★ Nomad Knife Forest DDPAT (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $166.88
★ StatTrak™ Nomad Knife Blue Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $335.79
⎯★ Skeleton Knife Stained (Well-Worn), B/O: $442.05
★ Skeleton Knife Urban Masked (Minimal Wear), B/O: $426.24
★ Skeleton Knife Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $314.03
★ StatTrak™ Skeleton Knife Fade (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2361.28
★ StatTrak™ Skeleton Knife Urban Masked (Field-Tested), B/O: $376.53
⎯★ Ursus Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $557.12
★ Ursus Knife, B/O: $471.42
★ Ursus Knife Blue Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $212.37
★ Ursus Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $187.66
★ Ursus Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $178.18
★ Ursus Knife Ultraviolet (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $155.13
★ Ursus Knife Boreal Forest (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $124.26
⎯★ Huntsman Knife Black Laminate (Minimal Wear), B/O: $204.83
★ Huntsman Knife Black Laminate (Field-Tested), B/O: $184.50
★ StatTrak™ Huntsman Knife Lore (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $224.11
⎯★ Bowie Knife Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $2142.02
★ Bowie Knife, B/O: $230.44
★ Bowie Knife Damascus Steel (Factory New), B/O: $209.20
★ Bowie Knife Ultraviolet (Minimal Wear), B/O: $180.51
★ Bowie Knife Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $131.03
⎯★ Falchion Knife Night (Field-Tested), B/O: $132.54
★ Falchion Knife Urban Masked (Well-Worn), B/O: $112.81
★ Falchion Knife Scorched (Field-Tested), B/O: $108.81
★ Falchion Knife Forest DDPAT (Field-Tested), B/O: $107.82
★ Falchion Knife Safari Mesh (Field-Tested), B/O: $107.46
★ StatTrak™ Falchion Knife Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $143.08
⎯★ Paracord Knife Crimson Web (Minimal Wear), B/O: $486.48
★ Paracord Knife Blue Steel (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $163.12
⎯★ Survival Knife Blue Steel (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $138.26
★ Survival Knife Night Stripe (Field-Tested), B/O: $131.03
⎯★ Gut Knife Sapphire (Minimal Wear), B/O: $1127.79
★ Gut Knife Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $286.17
★ Gut Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $246.55
★ Gut Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $240.77
★ Gut Knife, B/O: $210.49
★ Gut Knife Lore (Field-Tested), B/O: $194.22
★ Gut Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $151.51
★ Gut Knife Blue Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $124.94
★ Gut Knife Rust Coat (Well-Worn), B/O: $118.99
★ Gut Knife Boreal Forest (Minimal Wear), B/O: $109.80
★ StatTrak™ Gut Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $237.96
⎯★ Shadow Daggers Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $264.92
★ Shadow Daggers Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $253.03
★ Shadow Daggers Tiger Tooth (Factory New), B/O: $237.22
★ Shadow Daggers Crimson Web (Field-Tested), B/O: $153.40
★ Shadow Daggers Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $144.42
★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $105.20
★ StatTrak™ Shadow Daggers Damascus Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $150.46
⎯★ Navaja Knife Fade (Factory New), B/O: $365.99
★ Navaja Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $228.93
★ Navaja Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $227.43
★ Navaja Knife Slaughter (Factory New), B/O: $209.06
★ Navaja Knife, B/O: $203.16
★ Navaja Knife Case Hardened (Well-Worn), B/O: $132.57
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Factory New), B/O: $121.69
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $109.95
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $100.41
★ StatTrak™ Navaja Knife Fade (Factory New), B/O: $369.01
★ StatTrak™ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $109.95
GLOVES
★ Sport Gloves Amphibious (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2394.67
★ Sport Gloves Omega (Well-Worn), B/O: $572.33
★ Sport Gloves Bronze Morph (Minimal Wear), B/O: $338.88
★ Sport Gloves Big Game (Field-Tested), B/O: $323.66
⎯★ Specialist Gloves Marble Fade (Minimal Wear), B/O: $1652.07
★ Specialist Gloves Tiger Strike (Field-Tested), B/O: $599.14
★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Web (Well-Worn), B/O: $231.57
★ Specialist Gloves Buckshot (Minimal Wear), B/O: $126.21
⎯★ Moto Gloves POW! (Minimal Wear), B/O: $996.99
★ Moto Gloves POW! (Field-Tested), B/O: $383.31
★ Moto Gloves POW! (Well-Worn), B/O: $276.00
★ Moto Gloves Turtle (Field-Tested), B/O: $180.28
⎯★ Hand Wraps CAUTION! (Minimal Wear), B/O: $502.29
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2024.05.29 04:09 Storms_Wrath The Human Artificial Hivemind Part 518: A Falling Tower
First Previous Wiki
Penny gazed at the quartet of Elders. They were all wearing the merchandise she remembered from the last Judgment, which was exceedingly awkward. Mainly because they were wearing shirts with her face on them. But it was also oddly endearing, in a way. Until now, she hadn't seen too many Elders that were on her side.
Elders that weren't just Kashaunta or the familiar faces she already knew, like Spentha or Rho and Sai, actually showing appreciation of her, felt odd. Even if these ones went a little too far in it.
"You're even more beautiful in person, Liberator," one said.
"Uh, thanks. I appreciate that. I'm glad that you all like me. Rho and Sai told me that you all are interested in something I can give you?"
"Yeah. Maybe a short interview? We won't be like that airhead reporter. We'll ask the good questions."
"Yep, we will."
"Right then," Penny said. "Well, I'm glad to meet you."
"Thank you. Now that we're here, we'd like to know how you plan on taking care of the gang leaders."
"Well, presumably by imprisoning them. I don't think they deserve to die, even if others do. I'll leave that decision up to Justicar and his various judges in the criminal system."
Penny didn't like having to lie blatantly. She wanted to kill the slavers quite brutally, but doing that was a bad idea right now. Saying it also was a bad idea, for a similar reason. And Justicar's system was worryingly preferential to Elders, from what she'd looked up after the meeting with Pundacrawla.
"Aren't you worried that the Judges won't give proper justice?"
"I trust Justicar to do everything that is necessary."
Another lie. Justicar would do whatever he could to maintain his image. Hopefully, that wouldn't be at the cost of the Alliance's very existence.
"Got it. By the way, what's it like being human? Walking on only two legs. It seems kind of unstable. Do you fall a lot?"
A genuine curiosity from them was another breath of fresh air. It was the kind of question a quadruped would definitely ask, which put her more at ease about the nature of what they were trying to do. Even more than their evident support of her, with all the merch they were wearing. Penny felt a smile crack at the corners of her lips, unbidden.
"Not really. We can use our arms to steady ourselves pretty well. Obviously it's not as easy to balance on our two legs as it is with your four, but it's still good enough. In fact, the sprinters in the Olympics use all four limbs, since running as fast as possible also requires pumping our arms. As for what it's like to be human, it's hard to describe. For many of us, it will feel colder or warmer than Sprilnav would feel in the same temperatures, due to thinner skin. Our eyesight is more frontal than yours, given our lack of snouts, so our blindspots are a lot bigger. Our feet require shoes for rough ground, and we heal slower than you by around 20%. We can't really clack our jaws to the scale that you can, though we can make them meet."
Penny bared her teeth, showing as she opened and closed her mouth. It was nice to be able to talk about things like this.
"The Olympics?" one of them asked.
"It's a competition about athletics," Penny said. "Running, jumping, throwing, diving, swimming, skiing, snowboarding, and a lot of sports. There's specific divisions, too. Like how there's a 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 400 meter dash, and even an 800 meter dash for those with high levels of psychic energy. Though really, psychic energy and genetic editing have been messing with the events for a while now. And there's a Winter, Summer, and Space Olympics, each with different sorts of events. They move from city to city, though the Space Olympics are pretty much always on either Luna, Ceres, or Mercury. There's a lot more information out there on various events, but it's an old cultural practice revered by the entire species. Even more so since Phoebe's increased the prize pools for everyone."
"How does your species handle space in general? I know that you guys did things way differently before First Contact."
"We did. Mining companies kept tight control on all asteroid mining, while nations controlled planets like Earth and Mars and large planetary bodies like Luna. Supposedly, a few people planned for a cloud city on Venus, but we couldn't risk having such a vulnerable population because they'd have to rely on giant balloons to survive. That would probably be the least secure way to live, given the existence of rogue organizations and all that.
As for spaceships, most of them since we really colonized Luna come equipped with spacesuit bays, zero gravity water and food packs, oxygen tanks, emergency seats, specialized anti-micrometeorite hulls, and radiation shielding. A lot of the older military ships also were equipped with big radiators until World War Three, when it all became masses of drone warfare, with the big ships kept mainly for cargo and lanes where mass drone control was impossible.
Once the Vinarii came and we got shields, we started building big again. After all, it provided a huge number of jobs, and in the post-war economies, especially with VIs in place, a lot of people needed work. But we still go and do asteroid and moon mining, star lifting, and energy gathering. We built an orbital ring around Mercury, the closest planet to Sol, to help with all of that. It doubles as a production hub, too. Now, it's all in more systems and with a lot more friends."
"Speaking of aliens, what theory does your people have on why so many creatures resemble one another? Our jaws are adapted for hard shelled creatures, and we're told that many planets have oddly similar variations of those."
"Crabs."
She guessed what they were getting at.
It is odd, isn't it? Nilnacrawla observed.
Perhaps that is another one of the Source's whims, Penny thought.
Maybe.
A few of the Elders made exclamations of shock.
"You even have a word for them that directly translates!"
Penny chuckled. "Yeah, carcinization is a bit of a meme in the science community. But I've heard the most mainstream theories since the First Contact are that the Source itself is uncreative. It has a certain template of creatures which it largely doesn't alter, though it can take in inputs from beings close to it, perhaps even influencing them."
"Influencing them?"
"Yes. Modern depictions of wendigoes, folkloric creatures from North America, a continent on Earth, are shockingly similar to the Knowers in appearance. The internet depictions of them in particular like to emphasize canine qualities, and often show them with skulls visible directly, and with dark brown or black fur. Recent depictions, as in the past 300 years, differ from their original appearances quite significantly, with the canine characteristics in particular being enhanced.
We have sorted through all known images of these creatures and found roughly 80% similarity with the Knowers and tens of thousands of images that are literally exactly the same as Knowers. The ones we searched all came before World War Three, far before even the First Contact with the Vinarii, much less the Knowers who were entirely underground at the time due to the radiation of their home star. We believe that the Source managed to influence this facet of human culture with the actual existence of a real creature.
Other examples exist, like how the Trikkec look very similar to Komodo Dragons, Vinarii look very similar to insects known as a mantis, and the Acuarfar look exactly like insects known as wasps with the single exception of their furry snouts and green instead of yellow markings. The Sprilnav species itself shares high amounts of similarity with a fictional species known as Elites in early 2000s culture, particularly with your jaws, though you all have red skin instead of grey or brown.
The Junyli, Dreedeen, and the wanderers are the main species without high amounts of appearance in our cultures at some point. This correlates with the idea of the Source being the influencer, as their predecessors all were used to fight it. Many species of the galaxy look like parts of our culture or Earth's creatures. The proximity of these examples makes this far more suspicious than if they were across the galaxy.
But since they existed first, the only answer must be that the Source brought the influence to us first and planted the ideas in our heads. As for the ones which look like Earth creatures, all of them are old enough evolutionary branches that copying from them to Earth makes more sense. Though the references centering around the early 2000s is quite odd, it is also roughly when the internet came into wide existence, so it is also possible the Source gave the ideas a push so they would propagate, for an unknown reason. Like if it seeded the ideas that propagated across the early global network Humanity used."
"Hmm. Fascinating. We've seen evidence of the 'seeding' process among some historical nations near the galactic region of Earth before. So the Source re-uses and alters depictions of life and also life itself?"
"Maybe," Penny said. "Unless the Source is more directly tied to life than we think. There's a conceptual Death, but no conceptual Life. Isn't that odd?"
"Conceptual Life died in the Source war."
How did that really work, though? Penny asked Nilnacrawla.
Imagine a conceptual being. A few of the Progenitors, as well as Narvravarana, went up to try to harvest its power. It refused, and Narvravarana used its unique abilities to try and force the deal.
Why was your civilization like this?
Excess and greed, partly. But we couldn't really do much more expansion. Vertical expansion also had its limits if we wanted to remain relevant for the remaining lifespan of the universe. So Narvravarana, along with a few of the greatest rulers and leaders of Sprilnav society, started looking to other dimensional planes. They figured it was best not to let the problem get too much worse. Or at least, that is what they say. I believe it was to harvest more resources to use against our surrounding enemies.
You didn't have any allies? Penny asked.
At that time, all the powers of the universe were enemies. All the allies eventually merged through millions of years of normalization. We happened to get on the universal stage the earliest, so other civilizations we encountered had little choice but to surrender their independence. Some fought, others didn't, but the outcome was the same.
That seems terrible.
It was, though the other universal civilizations were no better. Some of them just exterminated all alien life they found that couldn't fight back. In that sense, the pre-war Sprilnav civilization was one of the greatest, and that's why I fought for them. Obviously, I'm biased in that regard, though.
Thanks for telling me, father.
No problem, Penny.
She refocused back on the conversation at hand.
"But a thing cannot be alive if it dies. The concept of life doesn't work that way. So maybe the Source just... took in the concept of life? Or absorbed it into whatever psychic energy really is, considering that it's responsible for all of our existence?"
"That's so crazy it might actually be true," one of the Elders said. "You're incredible, Penny."
"Uh, thanks. You're all pretty great too." Her eyes drifted to the images of herself on their clothing. She couldn't really help it.
"I have a question for you."
"Yes?"
"Do you know what I'm fighting for?"
"I assume since you're asking it here, you don't just want a one word answer," an Elder said. "I would say yes, and for the liberation of the Sprilnav from the stain of slavery. Though going deeper into your history, you have also fought for other species, either in wars or just generally moving around. It does look aimless, mostly, since the galaxy's so big. But I'm sure you've got a way through that."
"In some way. Part of why I'm here isn't just about my people. It was at first, I admit that. But as I have lived here, on Justicar, for days and weeks, I've seen you less as alien. It makes it easier for sympathy and easier to break out of simple mindsets. So far, there are many problems, but there are distinct pieces. The first is that many people want to uphold slavery. I'm not sure why, but they do. It isn't profitable, and it isn't moral. Robots are cheaper in every way, and don't need food or water.
That means it's illogical or emotional. So I could try and solve the problem with violence alone, but it won't be addressing the cause, only the symptoms. I need to get to the heart of the matter. And I think it has to do with Elders' memories and the gradual woes they have accumulated going through life. I don't want to tear that away or drug them into believing they're fine. I want to find a way to outlet that productively. The second part I have identified is scale. The galaxy is enormous, and your species is incredibly numerous. I could fight planet by planet for the rest of my life, and liberation would still be difficult.
That also means I'd need a better way of doing things. Maybe an economic or political incentive. Emotional reasons will not work permanently, nor will logic, since we are in this situation. I have found several ways to address this. Sadly, since the gangs are likely monitoring this feed, I can't just outright say my strategy. All I can ask you all to do is to believe. Believe that I have a solution, and that I and those who stand with me are working on it. Believe in me because I believe in you."
None of the Elders questioned or ridiculed her words. Most of it was because they were fans of her. But one of them, an Elder named Rahautiti, had a distinct glint in his eye. Their gazes met only momentarily, but Penny could tell he knew.
And so she appeared in the mindscape, even as they concluded the interview, which would be the first of many. It was a ploy to just talk about human culture and ideals a bit more, to get it out there. Because the hivemind's theory was correct.
In the universe, ideas had power. That power could be weaponized against those who previously stood to gain. The first part of it was the image: Nova as an unbeatable bastion. Lecalicus as the Beast, a monster capable of star-crushing rage. Twilight as... whatever she did. Penny wasn't really familiar with the Progenitor's image too much, and the various names, like the Silent Night or the Smiling Darkness, were just so unbelievably edgy she cringed every time she recalled them.
But Rahautiti understood so she moved her mindscape avatar to see him.
"Hello again, Penny. I am no threat."
"I know. I'm glad that your group is led by someone as capable as you, as well as the other groups you dabble within."
"Who discovered it?"
"Phoebe. You met with Ezeonwha, and the android wanted to ensure you weren't a way for Yasihaut to kill him."
"Yeah. We did get approached about that, actually. We're supposed to kill Ezeonwha when you walk into the Judgment hall. Of course, we won't do this, and she won't be able to retaliate against us easily while there."
"Thank you for your honesty, Elder," Penny said. "It seems I'm in your debt."
"Nonsense. 2,839. That is the number of children I have had. 2,626. That is the number of children of mine which were enslaved. The remaining 213 died in unrelated incidents, with nearly half of those involving slavers killing them. I remember all of their names, and all of their faces, Penny. I want all the slavers in this universe dead."
"I cannot achieve that."
"You cannot," Rahautiti agreed. "Not with my help or even that of Kashaunta and Lecalicus. And certainly not right now. I have not lived this long to be incapable of compromise or patchwork solutions. You show great promise. I understand your aversion to killing and the circumstantial reason why you are not doing so now. I will not grow upset if you do not resume killing when the Judgment ends. Nor do I harbor a grudge against you for the speeding space entity you left outside the room to avoid uncomfortable publicity. You are incredibly young.
A sliver of a life. But you are strong, and you are mature. That sliver of your lifespan already outshines all I could do with a trillion more years, Penny. You are right in that this isn't something you can punch your way through. Trauma is part of why slavery still exists, despite it being a wholly unjust reason for the Elders to make such a sport of it. I am sure you know the story of the war, with a great hero in your head and Kashaunta at your side. My line of work is what I started to help you. Every thought about you being the Liberator, every eye that glances on you freeing slaves, helps you to gather conceptual energy. My talent happens to be great enough to sense the Pact of Blades you have, as well. If you want, I can teach you how to hide the mark on your soul and your mind."
"I would like that, yes," Penny said. "And thank you for being so reasonable. I will ask Kashaunta to protect you from what consequences come for refusing the offer on Ezeonwha."
"There are going to be attacks on him, you know. Him and your ship."
Penny felt an odd feeling in her soul. Cardi's power flared around him, and she squinted at the sky. She just barely saw a sliver of a tentacle. Most would have mistaken it for a normal speeding space entity. But here? On Justicar, with Exile obviously not being the cause?
Only one being would cause that. Fate.
Given the subject of their conversation, it was obvious what was going on.
Penny tapped Rahautiti's jaw, adding a thin mark of conceptual power so she could easily find him again. She focused on the conceptual mark she'd left on Ezeonwha. A twinge of conceptual energy came from it. It was accompanied by various impressions, like fear, pain, and acceptance.
"I have to go," Penny said. "I will be back later. Displace."
She appeared next to the 102nd Visitor Welcome Office but not next to Ezeonwha. It was carnage everywhere she looked.
"Champion!" an unknown Elder yelled. "I am Elder Na-"
Her rising fury surged, and it took all she had not to dismember him. The distant thought of the Judgment stayed her hands, though only just.
Penny's fist collided with the Elder's jaw at twice the speed of sound. A piece of his jaws flew free. Bone fragments hit the ground behind him. Hundreds of soldiers fired on her, and she slammed them to the ground with pure will. Penny tore their guns away and sent them each to pummel the Elder in front of her with as much brutality as she could. His powerful armor wasn't as capable of defense against physical attacks as it was against her psychic energy, and so he fell.
"You... cannot save him," the Elder spat. Fields of psychic suppression fell upon her, reducing her power.
"Manipulation through Determination," Penny growled. "De-"
No! Nilnacrawla said. Do not kill him! Not yet!
"What goes up will go down."
Air hardened around the Elder and accelerated rapidly.
The Elder smashed into the shield five miles above with a speed just slow enough that he wouldn't die. He fell from it and then hit it again at a more modest speed. He'd bounce on that until the Guides came to get him.
But Penny had another target. One she had to save instead of attack.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
High Judge Tassidonia awoke to the sound of explosions. He grabbed his swords, his main gun, and the personal shield he reserved for only the most dire occasions. The sky was erupting in war all around him, and buildings were already falling nearby. The spires of skyscrapers rained down upon the entrances to the Underground, crushing thousands of fleeing Sprilnav under their wide impacts.
His implant identified members of the gangs nearby, making their way to his home.
"Retribution Cycle!" Tassidonia cried. A hidden door opened, and he boarded a small hovercraft that sported a high amount of defensive and offensive technology, a gift from Justicar for dealing with all that he had related to the Judgment. Only this time, he wouldn't be on the next one. But already, the destruction was spreading.
Micro-missiles rained upon friend and foe alike. Several detonated against the layered shields. The mounted turrets on the side of his hoverbike shot lasers into the enemies his implant identified.
"Elder Tassidonia!" an Elder cried nearby. "For the crime of defying the will of-"
Tassidonia called his fury to bear. He rammed his mind into the enemy Elder, disorienting her. She reeled, about to attack, when a thick laser smashed into her chest. It pushed her against the wall, and Tassidonia kept the pressure up until her body melted. He listened to her screams impassively, occasionally sending blasts from his gun at the gangs when their members started to stray too close.
The thick red beam did its work within twenty pulses. His swords began to float beside him, keeping pace as he sped away from his home. The entire apartment complex shuddered and began to lean, its foundation being destroyed by some effect below. Tassidonia abandoned it with only minor regret. He'd known this moment would come. Everything he needed was already with him.
He linked into the Guide network, directing squadrons to attack the breaches he'd identified. Orbital strikes fell upon them in quick succession. Thick beams of light pierced through the lower planetary shields from orbital platforms, their guns honing in on Justicar's enemies. Tassidonia's implant was linked to the grid as well. So when he eyed buildings occupied with too many gang members, orbital strikes fell on them a few pulses later.
Fire and plasma rained all around him. Explosions and smoke blossomed all around him. More missiles fell from his hovercraft. A fighter ship appeared beside him, its simple stealth revealing itself to his eyes. Tassidonia waited for the pilot chamber to open, and his craft stowed itself behind him when he got in. It was fully equipped, so soon, Tassidonia was in full control of a weapon of war.
His first order of business was detecting the gangs' most fortified areas. He peppered those bases in shield-weakening mines, followed by bunker-buster missiles. Several anti-air turrets hit him, but his shields prevented them from taking him down. He dropped three high-end Butcher Androids into the fray of the largest battles.
One of the adjacent fighter wings in the separate shield sector dropped a nuke. At that moment, Tassidonia made a decision.
Whatever insanity was going on right now wasn't worth staying here on his own. He turned his ship upward, narrowly avoiding nearly fifty missiles shot from another gang fortress, which was really just the lower floors of a supermarket. Thick slabs of concrete were being set up by androids and slaves from the Underground. All he could do was watch from above and attempt to mark those that might be a problem.
Justicar's Grand Fleet was moving in, though only the carriers and their escorts were doing anything of any scale. The armies were mobilizing, and it seemed that war had finally broken out. Justicar, while isolated due to the Judgment, would have to win a war that threatened to topple his rule entirely.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Ezeonwha woke when the walls around him shuddered.
An earthquake?
Groggily, he activated the lights in the room. Phoebe's android was charging in the wall. Her limbs swayed with the motion. The walls shuddered again, and the lights went out. Thin, tiny cracks spread in the walls, increasing his worry factors massively. His implant notified him that this wasn't a dream. Distant screams reached his ears, and he went to the window.
Hordes of Sprilnav were running on the ground, tripping over each other to escape. He heard the thump of footsteps approaching from outside. The android activated, standing up.
"Move away from the doo-"
An explosion tossed him across the room. A Sprilnav carrying some sort of mouth weapon faded into view for a moment, smoke recalibrating the stealth field. And then he was gone. Phoebe smashed into the Sprilnav, her fists pummeling the assassin faster than Ezeonwha could comprehend.
Phoebe's arms turned into swords, and she stabbed the Sprilnav at least fifty times in a single pulse. She turned to grab him, but before she reached him, a second explosion sent him flying out of the now-shattered window.
The massive skyscraper loomed large, and he saw the ground beneath it ripple. Dull thumps sounded from below, and large, circular caverns opened beneath the 102nd Visitor Welcome Office. The whole building started to list forward, and Ezeonwha frantically activated his emergency personal shield as he started falling faster and faster. A bullet hit the shield. And then a second one. Gunshots echoed out in the distance, and he saw other Sprilnav falling from broken windows in the falling skyscraper. Gunfire erupted on the streets as Guides engaged a growing army of attackers bubbling up from basements of shops and businesses.
He saw spurts of blood exit the Sprilnav nearest him, bullets tearing holes through the woman's body. Piercing screams surrounded him, a terrible chorus that reminded him of the worst wars he'd fought in. But here, his training could do nothing. She was already dead, and he knew that he was the target of this whole attack. His eyes watered, and Ezeonwha felt so powerless. So useless.
A Corrector emerged from the side of the tilting skyscraper, eyes fixed on Ezeonwha. Then he looked down. Somehow, Ezeonwha knew when the orders had been sent. He knew that it was Astipra in the distance, a jetpack on his shoulders burning a thick flame beneath him.
Astipra looked back at the building and flew toward it. Ezeonwha felt the wind rushing past the shield as pressure. Astipra, far above, vaporized falling chunks of the skyscraper with blasts from his arm cannons. He pressed back against the skyscraper, the jetpack going into overdrive. The metal bent inward, and the groaning and twisting structure continued its fall. Blasts of light from Astipra again vaporized the set of falling chunks.
"Penny," he said. It was almost a prayer, really. His desperate mind was scrambling for whatever it could get. "Please, save me!"
He didn't know if she could hear him. Logically, it was impossible. And in a battle such as this, unlikely as well. Rippling explosions erupted across the facade of the falling skyscraper as rockets struck it. More explosions bloomed as lasers from distant police vehicles, Guides, and Astipra destroyed more of the fast-flying missiles and rockets. They pounded on the world around him, a horde of madness threatening to break his brain. He could feel the wind and gravity equalize as he reached terminal velocity.
And all he could see was the world descending into war around him. The 102nd Visitor Welcome Office continued to slump and lean against Astipra's best efforts. More bullets hit Ezeonwha's personal shield, and peppered the Guides moving over to save him. Air ambulances were shot from the sky. Even small fighter crafts were shot down by powerful ground lasers. EMPs thumped, disabling all the higher functions of his implant before he could think to use it.
A much larger explosion bloomed out, and Ezeonwha followed the rocket's trail to an Elder on the ground, standing in the wreckage surrounding a sudden tunnel opening. The Elder stared at him in glee, and he lined up another shot. Two Guides fell upon the Elder, who flew up using a jetpack to cut them in half with his sword. A hard light hologram lifted a large gun, pointing at Ezeonwha as he fell.
His eyes widened. Ezeonwha did everything he could. He angled his legs and arms. He pushed at the air. He even hefted the meager psychic energy he had, struggling with all his soul to escape the death he could feel was coming to him.
Guides swarmed beyond the shield appearing, while gang soldiers died by the hundreds to carpet bombing. Personal shields sprang up to block the explosions, and the Elder had survived. A thick red laser cut one of the fighters in half from the smoke. Above him, the collapsing facade of the skyscraper consumed Astipra entirely, though large gouts of plasma and thick explosions emerged from within. He could survive if it fell upon him, but Ezonwha could not.
Penny materialized far below, closer to the field of battle. A sweeping wave of gang members began disappearing. A bullet smashed into her head and her stomach, detonating in bright explosions. A personal shield flared and disappeared. Missiles and lasers slammed into Penny by the thousands as psychic energy gathered. A constant roll of words fell from her tongue, but without his implant, they were not translated.
Missiles crumbled into dust. Lasers impacted raw space in front of Penny before bending down and back to their origins, destroying automated turrets. Bullets still hit Penny and the Guides by the thousands, firing too quickly and densely for her to entirely block. But the large ordnance from the gangs continued to work against them.
Penny looked around, confusion evident on her face. But amidst the thousands of wounded and dead Sprilnav falling from the broken windows, Ezeonwha was hidden too well.
Shattering glass could be constantly heard, and he could feel the distant screams in his soul. A bullet smashed into his personal shield again, disabling it. A pulse later, he lost feeling in his legs.
He tried to reach out to her mind, but the war in the mindscape was equally intense. Too many Elders and Guides battling it out along with various suppression artifacts made it all impossible. He could sense Penny's influence, but couldn't directly reach her.
He let out a breath, knowing it to be the final one.
I'm sorry, Penny, Ezeonwha thought.
I wish you luck in the Judgment, and I am sorry I caused this to happen to you.
Penny finally appeared in front of him, eyes wide-
Blood erupted. A searing pain in his head told him his implant had just shorted out. And in the mindscape, he saw a mental attack heading for him, its brutal power evident. He closed his eyes.
submitted by Storms_Wrath to HFY [link] [comments]
Penny gazed at the quartet of Elders. They were all wearing the merchandise she remembered from the last Judgment, which was exceedingly awkward. Mainly because they were wearing shirts with her face on them. But it was also oddly endearing, in a way. Until now, she hadn't seen too many Elders that were on her side.
Elders that weren't just Kashaunta or the familiar faces she already knew, like Spentha or Rho and Sai, actually showing appreciation of her, felt odd. Even if these ones went a little too far in it.
"You're even more beautiful in person, Liberator," one said.
"Uh, thanks. I appreciate that. I'm glad that you all like me. Rho and Sai told me that you all are interested in something I can give you?"
"Yeah. Maybe a short interview? We won't be like that airhead reporter. We'll ask the good questions."
"Yep, we will."
"Right then," Penny said. "Well, I'm glad to meet you."
"Thank you. Now that we're here, we'd like to know how you plan on taking care of the gang leaders."
"Well, presumably by imprisoning them. I don't think they deserve to die, even if others do. I'll leave that decision up to Justicar and his various judges in the criminal system."
Penny didn't like having to lie blatantly. She wanted to kill the slavers quite brutally, but doing that was a bad idea right now. Saying it also was a bad idea, for a similar reason. And Justicar's system was worryingly preferential to Elders, from what she'd looked up after the meeting with Pundacrawla.
"Aren't you worried that the Judges won't give proper justice?"
"I trust Justicar to do everything that is necessary."
Another lie. Justicar would do whatever he could to maintain his image. Hopefully, that wouldn't be at the cost of the Alliance's very existence.
"Got it. By the way, what's it like being human? Walking on only two legs. It seems kind of unstable. Do you fall a lot?"
A genuine curiosity from them was another breath of fresh air. It was the kind of question a quadruped would definitely ask, which put her more at ease about the nature of what they were trying to do. Even more than their evident support of her, with all the merch they were wearing. Penny felt a smile crack at the corners of her lips, unbidden.
"Not really. We can use our arms to steady ourselves pretty well. Obviously it's not as easy to balance on our two legs as it is with your four, but it's still good enough. In fact, the sprinters in the Olympics use all four limbs, since running as fast as possible also requires pumping our arms. As for what it's like to be human, it's hard to describe. For many of us, it will feel colder or warmer than Sprilnav would feel in the same temperatures, due to thinner skin. Our eyesight is more frontal than yours, given our lack of snouts, so our blindspots are a lot bigger. Our feet require shoes for rough ground, and we heal slower than you by around 20%. We can't really clack our jaws to the scale that you can, though we can make them meet."
Penny bared her teeth, showing as she opened and closed her mouth. It was nice to be able to talk about things like this.
"The Olympics?" one of them asked.
"It's a competition about athletics," Penny said. "Running, jumping, throwing, diving, swimming, skiing, snowboarding, and a lot of sports. There's specific divisions, too. Like how there's a 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 400 meter dash, and even an 800 meter dash for those with high levels of psychic energy. Though really, psychic energy and genetic editing have been messing with the events for a while now. And there's a Winter, Summer, and Space Olympics, each with different sorts of events. They move from city to city, though the Space Olympics are pretty much always on either Luna, Ceres, or Mercury. There's a lot more information out there on various events, but it's an old cultural practice revered by the entire species. Even more so since Phoebe's increased the prize pools for everyone."
"How does your species handle space in general? I know that you guys did things way differently before First Contact."
"We did. Mining companies kept tight control on all asteroid mining, while nations controlled planets like Earth and Mars and large planetary bodies like Luna. Supposedly, a few people planned for a cloud city on Venus, but we couldn't risk having such a vulnerable population because they'd have to rely on giant balloons to survive. That would probably be the least secure way to live, given the existence of rogue organizations and all that.
As for spaceships, most of them since we really colonized Luna come equipped with spacesuit bays, zero gravity water and food packs, oxygen tanks, emergency seats, specialized anti-micrometeorite hulls, and radiation shielding. A lot of the older military ships also were equipped with big radiators until World War Three, when it all became masses of drone warfare, with the big ships kept mainly for cargo and lanes where mass drone control was impossible.
Once the Vinarii came and we got shields, we started building big again. After all, it provided a huge number of jobs, and in the post-war economies, especially with VIs in place, a lot of people needed work. But we still go and do asteroid and moon mining, star lifting, and energy gathering. We built an orbital ring around Mercury, the closest planet to Sol, to help with all of that. It doubles as a production hub, too. Now, it's all in more systems and with a lot more friends."
"Speaking of aliens, what theory does your people have on why so many creatures resemble one another? Our jaws are adapted for hard shelled creatures, and we're told that many planets have oddly similar variations of those."
"Crabs."
She guessed what they were getting at.
It is odd, isn't it? Nilnacrawla observed.
Perhaps that is another one of the Source's whims, Penny thought.
Maybe.
A few of the Elders made exclamations of shock.
"You even have a word for them that directly translates!"
Penny chuckled. "Yeah, carcinization is a bit of a meme in the science community. But I've heard the most mainstream theories since the First Contact are that the Source itself is uncreative. It has a certain template of creatures which it largely doesn't alter, though it can take in inputs from beings close to it, perhaps even influencing them."
"Influencing them?"
"Yes. Modern depictions of wendigoes, folkloric creatures from North America, a continent on Earth, are shockingly similar to the Knowers in appearance. The internet depictions of them in particular like to emphasize canine qualities, and often show them with skulls visible directly, and with dark brown or black fur. Recent depictions, as in the past 300 years, differ from their original appearances quite significantly, with the canine characteristics in particular being enhanced.
We have sorted through all known images of these creatures and found roughly 80% similarity with the Knowers and tens of thousands of images that are literally exactly the same as Knowers. The ones we searched all came before World War Three, far before even the First Contact with the Vinarii, much less the Knowers who were entirely underground at the time due to the radiation of their home star. We believe that the Source managed to influence this facet of human culture with the actual existence of a real creature.
Other examples exist, like how the Trikkec look very similar to Komodo Dragons, Vinarii look very similar to insects known as a mantis, and the Acuarfar look exactly like insects known as wasps with the single exception of their furry snouts and green instead of yellow markings. The Sprilnav species itself shares high amounts of similarity with a fictional species known as Elites in early 2000s culture, particularly with your jaws, though you all have red skin instead of grey or brown.
The Junyli, Dreedeen, and the wanderers are the main species without high amounts of appearance in our cultures at some point. This correlates with the idea of the Source being the influencer, as their predecessors all were used to fight it. Many species of the galaxy look like parts of our culture or Earth's creatures. The proximity of these examples makes this far more suspicious than if they were across the galaxy.
But since they existed first, the only answer must be that the Source brought the influence to us first and planted the ideas in our heads. As for the ones which look like Earth creatures, all of them are old enough evolutionary branches that copying from them to Earth makes more sense. Though the references centering around the early 2000s is quite odd, it is also roughly when the internet came into wide existence, so it is also possible the Source gave the ideas a push so they would propagate, for an unknown reason. Like if it seeded the ideas that propagated across the early global network Humanity used."
"Hmm. Fascinating. We've seen evidence of the 'seeding' process among some historical nations near the galactic region of Earth before. So the Source re-uses and alters depictions of life and also life itself?"
"Maybe," Penny said. "Unless the Source is more directly tied to life than we think. There's a conceptual Death, but no conceptual Life. Isn't that odd?"
"Conceptual Life died in the Source war."
How did that really work, though? Penny asked Nilnacrawla.
Imagine a conceptual being. A few of the Progenitors, as well as Narvravarana, went up to try to harvest its power. It refused, and Narvravarana used its unique abilities to try and force the deal.
Why was your civilization like this?
Excess and greed, partly. But we couldn't really do much more expansion. Vertical expansion also had its limits if we wanted to remain relevant for the remaining lifespan of the universe. So Narvravarana, along with a few of the greatest rulers and leaders of Sprilnav society, started looking to other dimensional planes. They figured it was best not to let the problem get too much worse. Or at least, that is what they say. I believe it was to harvest more resources to use against our surrounding enemies.
You didn't have any allies? Penny asked.
At that time, all the powers of the universe were enemies. All the allies eventually merged through millions of years of normalization. We happened to get on the universal stage the earliest, so other civilizations we encountered had little choice but to surrender their independence. Some fought, others didn't, but the outcome was the same.
That seems terrible.
It was, though the other universal civilizations were no better. Some of them just exterminated all alien life they found that couldn't fight back. In that sense, the pre-war Sprilnav civilization was one of the greatest, and that's why I fought for them. Obviously, I'm biased in that regard, though.
Thanks for telling me, father.
No problem, Penny.
She refocused back on the conversation at hand.
"But a thing cannot be alive if it dies. The concept of life doesn't work that way. So maybe the Source just... took in the concept of life? Or absorbed it into whatever psychic energy really is, considering that it's responsible for all of our existence?"
"That's so crazy it might actually be true," one of the Elders said. "You're incredible, Penny."
"Uh, thanks. You're all pretty great too." Her eyes drifted to the images of herself on their clothing. She couldn't really help it.
"I have a question for you."
"Yes?"
"Do you know what I'm fighting for?"
"I assume since you're asking it here, you don't just want a one word answer," an Elder said. "I would say yes, and for the liberation of the Sprilnav from the stain of slavery. Though going deeper into your history, you have also fought for other species, either in wars or just generally moving around. It does look aimless, mostly, since the galaxy's so big. But I'm sure you've got a way through that."
"In some way. Part of why I'm here isn't just about my people. It was at first, I admit that. But as I have lived here, on Justicar, for days and weeks, I've seen you less as alien. It makes it easier for sympathy and easier to break out of simple mindsets. So far, there are many problems, but there are distinct pieces. The first is that many people want to uphold slavery. I'm not sure why, but they do. It isn't profitable, and it isn't moral. Robots are cheaper in every way, and don't need food or water.
That means it's illogical or emotional. So I could try and solve the problem with violence alone, but it won't be addressing the cause, only the symptoms. I need to get to the heart of the matter. And I think it has to do with Elders' memories and the gradual woes they have accumulated going through life. I don't want to tear that away or drug them into believing they're fine. I want to find a way to outlet that productively. The second part I have identified is scale. The galaxy is enormous, and your species is incredibly numerous. I could fight planet by planet for the rest of my life, and liberation would still be difficult.
That also means I'd need a better way of doing things. Maybe an economic or political incentive. Emotional reasons will not work permanently, nor will logic, since we are in this situation. I have found several ways to address this. Sadly, since the gangs are likely monitoring this feed, I can't just outright say my strategy. All I can ask you all to do is to believe. Believe that I have a solution, and that I and those who stand with me are working on it. Believe in me because I believe in you."
None of the Elders questioned or ridiculed her words. Most of it was because they were fans of her. But one of them, an Elder named Rahautiti, had a distinct glint in his eye. Their gazes met only momentarily, but Penny could tell he knew.
And so she appeared in the mindscape, even as they concluded the interview, which would be the first of many. It was a ploy to just talk about human culture and ideals a bit more, to get it out there. Because the hivemind's theory was correct.
In the universe, ideas had power. That power could be weaponized against those who previously stood to gain. The first part of it was the image: Nova as an unbeatable bastion. Lecalicus as the Beast, a monster capable of star-crushing rage. Twilight as... whatever she did. Penny wasn't really familiar with the Progenitor's image too much, and the various names, like the Silent Night or the Smiling Darkness, were just so unbelievably edgy she cringed every time she recalled them.
But Rahautiti understood so she moved her mindscape avatar to see him.
"Hello again, Penny. I am no threat."
"I know. I'm glad that your group is led by someone as capable as you, as well as the other groups you dabble within."
"Who discovered it?"
"Phoebe. You met with Ezeonwha, and the android wanted to ensure you weren't a way for Yasihaut to kill him."
"Yeah. We did get approached about that, actually. We're supposed to kill Ezeonwha when you walk into the Judgment hall. Of course, we won't do this, and she won't be able to retaliate against us easily while there."
"Thank you for your honesty, Elder," Penny said. "It seems I'm in your debt."
"Nonsense. 2,839. That is the number of children I have had. 2,626. That is the number of children of mine which were enslaved. The remaining 213 died in unrelated incidents, with nearly half of those involving slavers killing them. I remember all of their names, and all of their faces, Penny. I want all the slavers in this universe dead."
"I cannot achieve that."
"You cannot," Rahautiti agreed. "Not with my help or even that of Kashaunta and Lecalicus. And certainly not right now. I have not lived this long to be incapable of compromise or patchwork solutions. You show great promise. I understand your aversion to killing and the circumstantial reason why you are not doing so now. I will not grow upset if you do not resume killing when the Judgment ends. Nor do I harbor a grudge against you for the speeding space entity you left outside the room to avoid uncomfortable publicity. You are incredibly young.
A sliver of a life. But you are strong, and you are mature. That sliver of your lifespan already outshines all I could do with a trillion more years, Penny. You are right in that this isn't something you can punch your way through. Trauma is part of why slavery still exists, despite it being a wholly unjust reason for the Elders to make such a sport of it. I am sure you know the story of the war, with a great hero in your head and Kashaunta at your side. My line of work is what I started to help you. Every thought about you being the Liberator, every eye that glances on you freeing slaves, helps you to gather conceptual energy. My talent happens to be great enough to sense the Pact of Blades you have, as well. If you want, I can teach you how to hide the mark on your soul and your mind."
"I would like that, yes," Penny said. "And thank you for being so reasonable. I will ask Kashaunta to protect you from what consequences come for refusing the offer on Ezeonwha."
"There are going to be attacks on him, you know. Him and your ship."
Penny felt an odd feeling in her soul. Cardi's power flared around him, and she squinted at the sky. She just barely saw a sliver of a tentacle. Most would have mistaken it for a normal speeding space entity. But here? On Justicar, with Exile obviously not being the cause?
Only one being would cause that. Fate.
Given the subject of their conversation, it was obvious what was going on.
Penny tapped Rahautiti's jaw, adding a thin mark of conceptual power so she could easily find him again. She focused on the conceptual mark she'd left on Ezeonwha. A twinge of conceptual energy came from it. It was accompanied by various impressions, like fear, pain, and acceptance.
"I have to go," Penny said. "I will be back later. Displace."
She appeared next to the 102nd Visitor Welcome Office but not next to Ezeonwha. It was carnage everywhere she looked.
"Champion!" an unknown Elder yelled. "I am Elder Na-"
Her rising fury surged, and it took all she had not to dismember him. The distant thought of the Judgment stayed her hands, though only just.
Penny's fist collided with the Elder's jaw at twice the speed of sound. A piece of his jaws flew free. Bone fragments hit the ground behind him. Hundreds of soldiers fired on her, and she slammed them to the ground with pure will. Penny tore their guns away and sent them each to pummel the Elder in front of her with as much brutality as she could. His powerful armor wasn't as capable of defense against physical attacks as it was against her psychic energy, and so he fell.
"You... cannot save him," the Elder spat. Fields of psychic suppression fell upon her, reducing her power.
"Manipulation through Determination," Penny growled. "De-"
No! Nilnacrawla said. Do not kill him! Not yet!
"What goes up will go down."
Air hardened around the Elder and accelerated rapidly.
The Elder smashed into the shield five miles above with a speed just slow enough that he wouldn't die. He fell from it and then hit it again at a more modest speed. He'd bounce on that until the Guides came to get him.
But Penny had another target. One she had to save instead of attack.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
High Judge Tassidonia awoke to the sound of explosions. He grabbed his swords, his main gun, and the personal shield he reserved for only the most dire occasions. The sky was erupting in war all around him, and buildings were already falling nearby. The spires of skyscrapers rained down upon the entrances to the Underground, crushing thousands of fleeing Sprilnav under their wide impacts.
His implant identified members of the gangs nearby, making their way to his home.
"Retribution Cycle!" Tassidonia cried. A hidden door opened, and he boarded a small hovercraft that sported a high amount of defensive and offensive technology, a gift from Justicar for dealing with all that he had related to the Judgment. Only this time, he wouldn't be on the next one. But already, the destruction was spreading.
Micro-missiles rained upon friend and foe alike. Several detonated against the layered shields. The mounted turrets on the side of his hoverbike shot lasers into the enemies his implant identified.
"Elder Tassidonia!" an Elder cried nearby. "For the crime of defying the will of-"
Tassidonia called his fury to bear. He rammed his mind into the enemy Elder, disorienting her. She reeled, about to attack, when a thick laser smashed into her chest. It pushed her against the wall, and Tassidonia kept the pressure up until her body melted. He listened to her screams impassively, occasionally sending blasts from his gun at the gangs when their members started to stray too close.
The thick red beam did its work within twenty pulses. His swords began to float beside him, keeping pace as he sped away from his home. The entire apartment complex shuddered and began to lean, its foundation being destroyed by some effect below. Tassidonia abandoned it with only minor regret. He'd known this moment would come. Everything he needed was already with him.
He linked into the Guide network, directing squadrons to attack the breaches he'd identified. Orbital strikes fell upon them in quick succession. Thick beams of light pierced through the lower planetary shields from orbital platforms, their guns honing in on Justicar's enemies. Tassidonia's implant was linked to the grid as well. So when he eyed buildings occupied with too many gang members, orbital strikes fell on them a few pulses later.
Fire and plasma rained all around him. Explosions and smoke blossomed all around him. More missiles fell from his hovercraft. A fighter ship appeared beside him, its simple stealth revealing itself to his eyes. Tassidonia waited for the pilot chamber to open, and his craft stowed itself behind him when he got in. It was fully equipped, so soon, Tassidonia was in full control of a weapon of war.
His first order of business was detecting the gangs' most fortified areas. He peppered those bases in shield-weakening mines, followed by bunker-buster missiles. Several anti-air turrets hit him, but his shields prevented them from taking him down. He dropped three high-end Butcher Androids into the fray of the largest battles.
One of the adjacent fighter wings in the separate shield sector dropped a nuke. At that moment, Tassidonia made a decision.
Whatever insanity was going on right now wasn't worth staying here on his own. He turned his ship upward, narrowly avoiding nearly fifty missiles shot from another gang fortress, which was really just the lower floors of a supermarket. Thick slabs of concrete were being set up by androids and slaves from the Underground. All he could do was watch from above and attempt to mark those that might be a problem.
Justicar's Grand Fleet was moving in, though only the carriers and their escorts were doing anything of any scale. The armies were mobilizing, and it seemed that war had finally broken out. Justicar, while isolated due to the Judgment, would have to win a war that threatened to topple his rule entirely.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Ezeonwha woke when the walls around him shuddered.
An earthquake?
Groggily, he activated the lights in the room. Phoebe's android was charging in the wall. Her limbs swayed with the motion. The walls shuddered again, and the lights went out. Thin, tiny cracks spread in the walls, increasing his worry factors massively. His implant notified him that this wasn't a dream. Distant screams reached his ears, and he went to the window.
Hordes of Sprilnav were running on the ground, tripping over each other to escape. He heard the thump of footsteps approaching from outside. The android activated, standing up.
"Move away from the doo-"
An explosion tossed him across the room. A Sprilnav carrying some sort of mouth weapon faded into view for a moment, smoke recalibrating the stealth field. And then he was gone. Phoebe smashed into the Sprilnav, her fists pummeling the assassin faster than Ezeonwha could comprehend.
Phoebe's arms turned into swords, and she stabbed the Sprilnav at least fifty times in a single pulse. She turned to grab him, but before she reached him, a second explosion sent him flying out of the now-shattered window.
The massive skyscraper loomed large, and he saw the ground beneath it ripple. Dull thumps sounded from below, and large, circular caverns opened beneath the 102nd Visitor Welcome Office. The whole building started to list forward, and Ezeonwha frantically activated his emergency personal shield as he started falling faster and faster. A bullet hit the shield. And then a second one. Gunshots echoed out in the distance, and he saw other Sprilnav falling from broken windows in the falling skyscraper. Gunfire erupted on the streets as Guides engaged a growing army of attackers bubbling up from basements of shops and businesses.
He saw spurts of blood exit the Sprilnav nearest him, bullets tearing holes through the woman's body. Piercing screams surrounded him, a terrible chorus that reminded him of the worst wars he'd fought in. But here, his training could do nothing. She was already dead, and he knew that he was the target of this whole attack. His eyes watered, and Ezeonwha felt so powerless. So useless.
A Corrector emerged from the side of the tilting skyscraper, eyes fixed on Ezeonwha. Then he looked down. Somehow, Ezeonwha knew when the orders had been sent. He knew that it was Astipra in the distance, a jetpack on his shoulders burning a thick flame beneath him.
Astipra looked back at the building and flew toward it. Ezeonwha felt the wind rushing past the shield as pressure. Astipra, far above, vaporized falling chunks of the skyscraper with blasts from his arm cannons. He pressed back against the skyscraper, the jetpack going into overdrive. The metal bent inward, and the groaning and twisting structure continued its fall. Blasts of light from Astipra again vaporized the set of falling chunks.
"Penny," he said. It was almost a prayer, really. His desperate mind was scrambling for whatever it could get. "Please, save me!"
He didn't know if she could hear him. Logically, it was impossible. And in a battle such as this, unlikely as well. Rippling explosions erupted across the facade of the falling skyscraper as rockets struck it. More explosions bloomed as lasers from distant police vehicles, Guides, and Astipra destroyed more of the fast-flying missiles and rockets. They pounded on the world around him, a horde of madness threatening to break his brain. He could feel the wind and gravity equalize as he reached terminal velocity.
And all he could see was the world descending into war around him. The 102nd Visitor Welcome Office continued to slump and lean against Astipra's best efforts. More bullets hit Ezeonwha's personal shield, and peppered the Guides moving over to save him. Air ambulances were shot from the sky. Even small fighter crafts were shot down by powerful ground lasers. EMPs thumped, disabling all the higher functions of his implant before he could think to use it.
A much larger explosion bloomed out, and Ezeonwha followed the rocket's trail to an Elder on the ground, standing in the wreckage surrounding a sudden tunnel opening. The Elder stared at him in glee, and he lined up another shot. Two Guides fell upon the Elder, who flew up using a jetpack to cut them in half with his sword. A hard light hologram lifted a large gun, pointing at Ezeonwha as he fell.
His eyes widened. Ezeonwha did everything he could. He angled his legs and arms. He pushed at the air. He even hefted the meager psychic energy he had, struggling with all his soul to escape the death he could feel was coming to him.
Guides swarmed beyond the shield appearing, while gang soldiers died by the hundreds to carpet bombing. Personal shields sprang up to block the explosions, and the Elder had survived. A thick red laser cut one of the fighters in half from the smoke. Above him, the collapsing facade of the skyscraper consumed Astipra entirely, though large gouts of plasma and thick explosions emerged from within. He could survive if it fell upon him, but Ezonwha could not.
Penny materialized far below, closer to the field of battle. A sweeping wave of gang members began disappearing. A bullet smashed into her head and her stomach, detonating in bright explosions. A personal shield flared and disappeared. Missiles and lasers slammed into Penny by the thousands as psychic energy gathered. A constant roll of words fell from her tongue, but without his implant, they were not translated.
Missiles crumbled into dust. Lasers impacted raw space in front of Penny before bending down and back to their origins, destroying automated turrets. Bullets still hit Penny and the Guides by the thousands, firing too quickly and densely for her to entirely block. But the large ordnance from the gangs continued to work against them.
Penny looked around, confusion evident on her face. But amidst the thousands of wounded and dead Sprilnav falling from the broken windows, Ezeonwha was hidden too well.
Shattering glass could be constantly heard, and he could feel the distant screams in his soul. A bullet smashed into his personal shield again, disabling it. A pulse later, he lost feeling in his legs.
He tried to reach out to her mind, but the war in the mindscape was equally intense. Too many Elders and Guides battling it out along with various suppression artifacts made it all impossible. He could sense Penny's influence, but couldn't directly reach her.
He let out a breath, knowing it to be the final one.
I'm sorry, Penny, Ezeonwha thought.
I wish you luck in the Judgment, and I am sorry I caused this to happen to you.
Penny finally appeared in front of him, eyes wide-
Blood erupted. A searing pain in his head told him his implant had just shorted out. And in the mindscape, he saw a mental attack heading for him, its brutal power evident. He closed his eyes.
2024.05.29 03:59 Pristine_Animal9474 Spider-man has definitely seen Green Goblin's dick
 | From Amazing Spider-man (1963) #40, by Stan Lee, John Romita, Mickey Demeo and Sam Rosen submitted by Pristine_Animal9474 to dccomicscirclejerk [link] [comments] |
2024.05.29 03:38 dizzdafizz Why telling people to stay away from sugar is bad advice and how I stopped my chronic dental decay problems
We've all heard it, whether you were an adult or a kid being forced to dental cleaning and tooth filling by your parents, the dentist or dental assistant would chew you out with an anti-sugar rant and blamed your cavity on not brushing everyday or even brushing once a day instead of two times a day and your glass of orange juice or canned soda from last week. This is something I've heard from the time I was a kid to my early 20's, it was always my fault because I wasn't brushing enough and because I liked sweet beverages but contrary to their advice I was brushing everyday and I didn't drink very much soda considering my parents started to restrict it from me for a period of time but nevertheless the filling appointments kept coming, while I was mostly cavity free during my teen years things got really bad day once I started smoking cigarettes, first I developed a very bad cavity on abscess in one of my wisdom teeth and this led to me getting gaslighted into pulling all my wisdom teeth, a couple years later while attending a jobcorps where I was never allowed to leave the campus without being kicked out the program and my liquid intake was mostly from sugar free fizzy vitamin drinks, juice and coffee I started developing multiple cavities at a time which resulted in me getting multiple fillings but yet still not all the ones I needed despite that I was brushing twice a day most days, the following year being short on money and dropped off my parents dental plan while the money I did have was going elsewhere I withheld getting a couple cavities in my back molars filled for a few months, I tried compensating for this by pouring a tone of salt in a warm glass of water and swishing that water in my mouth before bed, low and behold not only did this not work but in just a few months of doing this one my molars decayed to the point of being halfway gone and the other developing a large cavity at the gum line, so I wound up getting two root canals in these molars early 2020 along with another filling on my incisor while I first started to make changes to my habits. You'd think I have more since then but after what's been roughly 5 years I've haven't developed another cavity since and I'll go through what I truly believe the reasoning for this being despite that I don't brush my teeth anymore than I used two and that I still consume sugar.
submitted by dizzdafizz to Teeth [link] [comments]
- I started actually drinking water, I came up with this idea while at work to start buying gallons of water because they were cheap, they helped make me feel energetic, and they helped my chronic tendonitis, they say sugar is bad for your teeth because the remains that stick to your teeth attract bacteria that produce an acidic byproduct or because it's acid but the problem is this wouldn't be any different from anything else you eat that leaves residue or gets caught in between your teeth, if a piece of steak gets caught between your teeth the microbes are going to go after that, and sugar by itself actually has a neutral PH. What not only helps wash away debris in your mouth but also regulates the PH level in your mouth di drinking regular water because that's one of the actual reasons why I believe tooth decay is so prominent in our species, we consume lots of acidic cooked or carbonated beverages that can damage the enamel of your teeth, just by drinking a significant amount of water you compensate for this by buffering out the acids leftover plus you simulate your saliva production which has antibody/PH modifying effects of it's own. This principal can be used I you choose to smoke cigarettes as well, smoking whatever it may be is another large contributor to societal tooth decay because the combust is very acidic and it sticks to your teeth, if you wash your mouth it after smoking like I started doing especially with warm water you can counteract this effect, but Ideally smoking should be stopped. Today I still drink my sugary monsters but I'll drink water aside them, I don't find drinking only water is necessary but the important thing to do is to not neglect it. If you reading get my drift here, IT'S NOT THE SUGAR THAT'S ROTTING YOUR TEETH, IT'S DEHYDRATION! WHICH MEANS ACIDS IN YOUR MOUTH GO UNCHECKED!
- I started eating a more nutritious diet, in early 2020 after months after finally getting away from being trapped and graduating from the local jobcorps, this lead to me being able to prepare my own food I developed a more enhanced interest in nutrition after I watched the What in the health documentary, this lead to conduct a mostly whole food plant based diet experiment on myself for several months, while the strict plant based part didn't last what did was my consumption of things that actually have minerals including CALCIUM such as vegetables, beans, whole grains and I bought an instant pot so I could easily prepare my own veggies and beans. Today consume more whole wheat and leafy greens as well as sardines, salmon and fermented dairy products and beverages with fortified minerals.
- I started only brushing my teeth once a day and that time particularly being just before I go to bed, whenever before I brushed my teeth in the morning I could tell they became more sensitive and would lose their exterior natural protection from the acids and I would feel it if I had breakfast after, I also fail to see the benefit of brushing after waking up when I already brushed the night before. I usually just brush once a day now and sometimes I forget and skip a day, the reason why I don't skip brushing altogether is because I don't want plaque building up in my mouth and I want to brush away any possible remaining trails of food debris.
2024.05.29 02:11 Sweet-Count2557 Best Restaurants in Villa Rica Ga
 | Best Restaurants in Villa Rica Ga Are you craving a taste of culinary excellence in Villa Rica, GA? Join us as we uncover the best restaurants this vibrant town has to offer.With a diverse selection ranging from family-owned gems to upscale dining experiences, there's something to satisfy every palate.Get ready to indulge in mouthwatering barbeque at Evans Barbeque Company, savor the comfort food at Chat and Choo LLC, and experience the elegance of traditional French cuisine at Gabes Downtown.Stay tuned as we reveal more hidden gems and delectable flavors in our exploration of Villa Rica's finest dining establishments.Key TakeawaysVilla Rica, GA offers a diverse range of dining options, from family-owned barbecue joints to upscale French and Italian eateries.Whether you're looking for comfort food or a fine dining experience, Villa Rica has something to offer with its extensive menus and delicious home-cooked meals.The restaurant scene in Villa Rica is known for its cozy and welcoming atmosphere, making it a great place to enjoy a meal with friends and family.With options for indoor and outdoor dining, as well as catering services and event spaces, Villa Rica's restaurants can accommodate various dining preferences and special occasions.Evans Barbeque CompanyWe love Evans Barbeque Company for their mouth-watering smoked meats and delicious sides. Located in Villa Rica, Ga, Evans Barbeque Company is a family-owned restaurant that has become a local favorite. When it comes to barbeque, they know how to do it right.At Evans Barbeque Company, you can expect reasonable prices and an extensive menu that caters to all tastes. From tender pulled pork to juicy ribs, their smoked meats are cooked to perfection and will leave you craving for more. And let's not forget about their delicious sides like mac and cheese, baked beans, and coleslaw. Each dish is packed with flavor and made with love.The restaurant offers both indoor and outdoor dining options, allowing you to enjoy your meal in a cozy and rustic space. The portions are generous, ensuring that you leave satisfied and with a full belly. The staff is friendly and attentive, providing excellent service that adds to the overall dining experience.Evans Barbeque Company is a place where freedom reigns. You can indulge in your favorite barbeque dishes without breaking the bank. Whether you're a meat lover or a vegetarian, there's something for everyone on their menu.When it comes to restaurants in Villa Rica, Ga, Evans Barbeque Company stands out for its mouth-watering smoked meats, delicious sides, and welcoming atmosphere. So, if you're craving some good old-fashioned barbeque, head on over to Evans Barbeque Company and prepare to be amazed.Chat and Choo LLCChat and Choo LLC is a restaurant that offers classic American comfort food. They provide a comfortable setting for their customers to enjoy their meals. The restaurant has an ever-changing specials menu that ensures there is always something new and exciting to try. From delicious home-cooked meals to a welcoming atmosphere, Chat and Choo LLC is a great choice for those looking for a satisfying dining experience.Classic American Comfort FoodThe Chat and Choo LLC offers a variety of classic American comfort food dishes that are sure to satisfy any craving. From juicy burgers and crispy fried chicken to creamy mac and cheese and hearty meatloaf, their menu is filled with all-time favorites that will transport you back to grandma's kitchen. With a comfortable setting and friendly staff, Chat and Choo LLC provides a welcoming environment where you can enjoy delicious, home-cooked meals. To give you a glimpse of their mouthwatering offerings, here is a table showcasing some of their classic American comfort food dishes:DishDescriptionCheeseburgerA juicy beef patty topped with melted cheeseFried ChickenCrispy and golden fried chicken piecesMac and CheeseCreamy macaroni pasta covered in cheesy goodnessMeatloafTender and flavorful meatloaf with savory gravyWith such irresistible classics, it's no wonder that Chat and Choo LLC has become a go-to spot for those seeking classic American comfort food. And if you're looking for even more variety, stay tuned for their ever-changing specials menu.Ever-Changing Specials MenuAt Chat and Choo LLC, we're constantly updating our specials menu to provide our customers with new and exciting options to enjoy. Our locally-owned restaurant in Villa Rica, GA offers classic American fare in a comfortable setting. Our ever-changing specials menu allows us to showcase our creativity and keep our customers coming back for more.From mouthwatering burgers with unique toppings to delectable seafood dishes and flavorful vegetarian options, our specials menu offers something for everyone. We pride ourselves on using fresh, high-quality ingredients to create delicious, home-cooked meals that will satisfy any craving. Whether you're in the mood for a hearty steak or a lighter, seasonal dish, our specials menu has you covered.Join us at Chat and Choo LLC to experience the culinary delights of our ever-changing specials menu.Now, let's move on to the next restaurant in Villa Rica, GA, Gabes Downtown.Gabes DowntownGabes Downtown is a restaurant in Villa Rica that offers a unique dining experience with its ever-changing specials menu.The restaurant prides itself in serving delicious home-cooked meals that are made with fresh, high-quality ingredients.With their commitment to providing a diverse and exciting menu, Gabes Downtown is a great choice for those looking for a culinary adventure in Villa Rica.Ever-Changing Specials MenuWe love trying the ever-changing specials menu at Gabes Downtown. This upscale restaurant offers a unique dining experience with their constantly evolving menu. Each time we visit, we are greeted with a new selection of tantalizing dishes that showcase the culinary creativity of the chefs. From innovative takes on classic French cuisine to exciting fusion dishes, there is always something new and exciting to try. To give you an idea of what you might find on the ever-changing specials menu at Gabes Downtown, here is a sample of the type of dishes that could be offered:StarterMain CourseLobster BisqueCoq au VinEscargotsBouillabaisseFoie GrasBeef BourguignonTruffle RisottoDuck ConfitSeared ScallopsRatatouilleWhether you're a fan of traditional French cuisine or looking to try something new and exciting, the ever-changing specials menu at Gabes Downtown is sure to satisfy your culinary cravings. So why not step out of your comfort zone and indulge in a culinary adventure?Delicious Home-Cooked MealsWhen it comes to delicious home-cooked meals, we can't resist the mouthwatering offerings at Gabes Downtown. This upscale restaurant in Villa Rica specializes in traditional French cuisine and offers a dining experience that's both elegant and sophisticated.Here are four reasons why Gabes Downtown is a must-visit for those craving a delectable home-cooked meal:Upscale Ambiance: The elegant decor and sophisticated atmosphere at Gabes Downtown create a truly memorable dining experience. From the moment you step inside, you'll be transported to a world of culinary delights.Exceptional Service: The staff at Gabes Downtown is known for their exceptional service. From the moment you're seated, you'll be treated like royalty, ensuring that your dining experience is nothing short of perfection.Decadent Desserts: Gabes Downtown is renowned for its decadent desserts. Indulge in mouthwatering treats like crème brûlée, chocolate mousse, and fruit tarts that are sure to satisfy even the most discerning sweet tooth.Banquet Room and Catering Services: Whether you're planning an intimate gathering or a large event, Gabes Downtown offers a banquet room and catering services to meet your needs. Let their expert staff take care of all the details while you enjoy a delicious meal with your loved ones.With Gabes Downtown satisfying your craving for delicious home-cooked meals, it's only natural to continue exploring the culinary scene in Villa Rica. Next up, let's dive into the highly acclaimed eatery known as The Olive Tree Restaurant.The Olive Tree RestaurantAt The Olive Tree Restaurant, we offer a wide range of Italian and Greek-style dishes that are highly acclaimed by customers. Our eatery is known for its unpretentious venue, simplistic decorations, and homey vibe. As soon as you step through our doors, you'll be greeted with warm hospitality and a cozy atmosphere.Our menu is carefully crafted to showcase the best flavors of Italy and Greece. From classic pasta dishes like spaghetti carbonara and lasagna to traditional Greek favorites such as moussaka and spanakopita, we've something to satisfy every craving. Each dish is expertly prepared using fresh ingredients, ensuring that every bite is bursting with flavor.One of the highlights of dining at The Olive Tree Restaurant is the presentation of our dishes. Our chefs take great pride in creating visually stunning plates that are as pleasing to the eye as they're to the palate. Whether it's a perfectly grilled lamb chop garnished with fresh herbs or a colorful caprese salad drizzled with balsamic glaze, every detail is carefully considered.In addition to our dine-in options, we also offer off-site catering services for special events and gatherings. Whether you're hosting a wedding, corporate function, or family celebration, we can create a personalized menu that will impress your guests.At The Olive Tree Restaurant, we believe in the freedom to enjoy exceptional food in a welcoming environment. Come and experience the flavors of Italy and Greece with us. We promise that once you taste our dishes, you'll understand why we're one of the best restaurants in Villa Rica Ga.Trading Post CafeLet's check out the Trading Post Cafe, a laid-back Southern restaurant located in a shopping mall, with an impressive all-day menu and charming decorations. Here are four reasons why you should consider dining at the Trading Post Cafe:Variety of Southern Delights: The Trading Post Cafe offers a diverse menu filled with classic Southern dishes that are sure to satisfy your cravings. From crispy fried chicken and tender pulled pork to creamy mac and cheese and fluffy buttermilk biscuits, there's something for everyone. Whether you're in the mood for hearty comfort food or lighter options like fresh salads and grilled vegetables, the Trading Post Cafe has you covered.Cozy and Relaxed Atmosphere: Step into the Trading Post Cafe and instantly feel at ease in its laid-back ambiance. The restaurant's rustic decor, complete with vintage signs and cozy seating, creates a welcoming environment where you can unwind and enjoy your meal. Whether you're dining with friends, family, or on your own, the Trading Post Cafe provides a comfortable setting that encourages you to relax and savor the moment.Affordable Dining Experience: At the Trading Post Cafe, you can enjoy a delicious Southern meal without breaking the bank. With budget-friendly rates, you can indulge in generous portions of mouthwatering dishes without worrying about the cost. Whether you're craving a hearty breakfast, a satisfying lunch, or a comforting dinner, the Trading Post Cafe offers great value for your money.Charming Decorations: As you dine at the Trading Post Cafe, take a moment to appreciate the charming decorations that adorn the space. From vintage signs and rustic accents to cozy lighting and warm colors, every detail contributes to the inviting atmosphere of the restaurant. The charming decorations add a touch of Southern hospitality to your dining experience, making it even more memorable.Los Cowboys II Mexican RestaurantWe really enjoyed dining at Los Cowboys II Mexican Restaurant because their vibrant space, colorful decorations, and patio for outdoor dining created a lively and festive atmosphere. As a family-owned Mexican restaurant, Los Cowboys II is committed to providing delicious and authentic Mexican cuisine to its customers. The restaurant's menu offers a wide variety of traditional Mexican dishes, including tacos, enchiladas, fajitas, and more.Here is a comparison table that highlights some key features of Los Cowboys II Mexican Restaurant:FeatureDescriptionCuisineAuthentic Mexican cuisineAtmosphereLively and festive atmosphereOutdoor DiningPatio available for outdoor diningPortionsGenerous portion sizesSignature DrinkDelicious and refreshing signature margaritasLos Cowboys II Mexican Restaurant stands out not only for its vibrant space and colorful decorations but also for its commitment to providing large and satisfying portions to its customers. Whether you're craving tacos, enchiladas, or fajitas, Los Cowboys II offers a diverse menu that is sure to satisfy any Mexican food lover. And don't forget to pair your meal with one of their signature margaritas for a truly authentic experience.Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat Are the Vegan and Vegetarian Options Available at Evans Barbeque Company?Evans Barbeque Company offers a variety of vegan and vegetarian options. They've delicious grilled vegetable skewers, a flavorful black bean burger, and a refreshing Mediterranean salad loaded with veggies.You can also enjoy their crispy fried okra and tasty side dishes like collard greens and macaroni and cheese.With reasonable prices and a cozy atmosphere, Evans Barbeque Company is a great choice for vegans and vegetarians looking for a satisfying meal in Villa Rica, GA.Does Chat and Choo LLC Offer Gluten-Free Options on Their Menu?Yes, Chat and Choo LLC does offer gluten-free options on their menu. They understand the importance of catering to different dietary needs and strive to provide a variety of choices for their customers.From delicious, home-cooked meals to ever-changing specials, they ensure that everyone can enjoy their classic American fare in a comfortable setting.What Are Some Popular Dishes at Gabes Downtown That Are Not Mentioned in the Article?At Gabes Downtown, there are several popular dishes that aren't mentioned in the article.One standout is their mouthwatering shrimp and grits, which combines plump, juicy shrimp with creamy, savory grits.Another crowd favorite is their tender and flavorful smoked pork chops, served with a side of homemade applesauce.And let's not forget about their delectable homemade meatloaf, packed with savory flavors and served with a rich brown gravy.These dishes are just a taste of the delicious options available at Gabes Downtown.Does the Olive Tree Restaurant Offer Delivery Services?Yes, The Olive Tree Restaurant does offer delivery services. They've a convenient delivery option for those who prefer to enjoy their Italian and Greek-style dishes in the comfort of their own homes.The restaurant takes pride in providing well-presented and delicious meals, and this commitment extends to their delivery service. Whether you're craving a classic pasta dish or a flavorful gyro, The Olive Tree Restaurant ensures that you can enjoy their delectable cuisine wherever you are.Are There Any Special Events or Promotions Happening at Trading Post Cafe in the Near Future?Yes, there are special events and promotions happening at Trading Post Cafe in the near future. They frequently offer live music performances and themed nights, such as trivia or karaoke.They also have daily specials and happy hour deals on food and drinks. Keep an eye on their social media pages or give them a call to get the latest updates on their upcoming events and promotions.ConclusionAs our culinary journey through Villa Rica, Georgia comes to an end, we're left with a satisfied and grateful palate.From the mouthwatering barbeque at Evans Barbeque Company to the comforting home-cooked meals at Chat and Choo LLC, and the elegant French cuisine at Gabes Downtown, Villa Rica offers a diverse range of dining experiences.The flavors, ambiance, and exceptional service of these restaurants have left an indelible mark, ensuring that Villa Rica will always hold a special place in our hearts and taste buds. submitted by Sweet-Count2557 to worldkidstravel [link] [comments] |
2024.05.29 02:11 TKWander Ghoulish Goods first Sampler review! *9 scent reviews*
OOOH. I was SO excited for these! I got an 8 pack sampler set (which they have a REALLY cool system where you can pretty much get as many samples as you like, and aren't limited to a 5 pack). They came in while I was away on a trip, so thankfully I got to skip a week waiting period and get to them after they had settled a bit, to try them out. Great TAT from this house (got them in within a week or two) AND you got to pick which Freebie you wanted, which was so awesome!
My review of this scent house so far: 4/5. It would honestly be a 5/5, but for that they have such a short wear period on my skin. Pretty much every 2 hours, I'd have to reapply :/ But, pretty much every single scent was really great and accurate to their scent descriptions, and I'll probably still FS buy a few!
Just make sure to slightly mix these guys up by turning them up and down a couple times (not so fast that you create air bubbles), to make sure the scent is fully mixed. You'll read in my notes, some of my first impressions when I Didn't do that. Don't make my mistake lol
My Rating System:
1/5: In my opinion this scent just smells really bad. I am not interested in the least. It is NOT my cup of tea and I would actively run away if I smelled it on someone else
2/5: Eh, it smells more like a scent for a cleaner or laundry detergent or maybe just a room scent. Not a perfume/cologne for me
3/5: Not my cup of tea, but It's well balanced and I could see someone else wearing it! Just not me lol
4/5: Almost perfect, just missing a scent note or two, or doesn't last very long, or dries down powdery/weirdly
5/5: I love this scent and will definitely be wearing it, if not FS-ing it!
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Cottagecore No. 1:
Official scent description: It is a warm and inviting blend of blueberry cobbler, wood burning stove, and spice cabinet. It starts off sweet with a buttery rich crust and fresh picked blueberry cobbler. A whisp of spices cut through to break up the sugars. There's a background of smoke, musk and burning wood that lingers in the background but really comes to life on the dry down. The sweetness fades to meet merrily in a dance of oud wood, smoke, spice and cobbler. Feels like a cottage in the woods on a warm summer day after picking berries all morning. A fresh cobbler in the wood burning and comfort in your soul. A gender neutral scent that anyone can enjoy.
Top- buttery crust, cinnamon, incense
Middle- blueberry, brown sugar, wood smoke
Bottom- vanilla bean, oud, musk, amber
My review: Straight out the bottle, it is pure blueberry cobbler, but as it dries, it gets weirdly perfume-y? Very quickly, too. You still get the hints of blueberry, but this powdery note kinda overtakes it all.
After a little bit the powder dies down and do you get more of the buttery crust blueberry cobbler, but this one may not be my cup of tea, sadly :/
2/5
**after about 10 minutes the blueberry pops back up to a mix of spices and blueberries that I actually like! 3 or 4/5. I do wish it had a bit more blueberry throw AND didn't have that weird powdery burst at the first dry down. A very fruity comforting fall scent, I think. Yeah, I really like it for a fruity fall scent**
**UPDATE*\*
I had to try this one a second time after that initial review. Just to try it after shaking it lightly, just a bit, to mix.
Wet I absolutely love this scent. It's giving start of fall and you're making blueberry pie or cobbler and it's spiced with fall spices and you even scraped out some authentic vanilla beans for the recipe and I actually don't get that weird strong powdery note at all! So, definitely make sure to turn samples from this house a time or two, to make sure everything is mixed, but not so much that there are air bubbles. After about 30 or so minutes it dries down to autumn cooking spices, mainly, with mainly a hint of a fruity scent. Still lovely though!
4.5 /5 it would be 5, but pretty much all the scents from this house go poof very quickly on me. All trace of it leaves my skin by 2.5/3 hours
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MIDNIGHT CIRCUS
This one was my freebie. My brother and I are putting on a type of Dark Karnival -esque camping event this fall and I really wanted to get a scent to wear there lol
Official scent description: a dark yet lively experience of caramel popcorn, fire, lacquer floorboards and whimsy
Top- hickory, honey, incense, cinnamon
Middle- smoke, amyris, caramel, salt, praline, spice
Bottom- cedarwood, moss, oud, olibanum, amber, musk, leather, popcorn, butter, vanilla
My review: This smells exactly like you're walking around a fall carnival with a big bonfire going on in the middle. Essentially it smells like your favorite fall candle scent, but just a bit more complex with the wiffs of campfire smoke and cedarwood in there. Even though it's the end of May, I sniff it on my wrist and think it's gonna be chilly outside. That feeling you get when the seasons are changing.
Strongest notes on me: wood smoke (though I wish I got more hickory to it), spices (cinnamon mainly), carameled buttery popcorn, vanilla and maybe the honey, maybe praline? It all blends very nicely into a great, if slightly generic, fall scent
Notes I don't get at all: leather, moss, oud. Those are the notes that would probably make this perfectly complex, but I just don't get them out of it. It's pure fall gourmand. I'll probably layer this over a scent that has those notes and need sweetening
Enough of a throw that I get a wiff going about my day
last drydown: dries down to autumn spices, essentially. Reminds me of walking in Gatlinburg in the fall, through all the little shops nestled in the mountain amongst the autumn trees. Completely gone within 3 hours though
4/5
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BLACK HONEY
Official Description: Black Honey is a sultry blend of Spiced Honey, black amber, cedarwood, tonka, and tobacco leaf.
My Review:
I like it! I just don't LOVE it :/
The spiced honey notes in this, wet straight on my skin, are my favorite parts, though there is a weird 'Clean' note behind it as an undertone. Maybe it's the black Amber or the tonka. I've been running down a dead note for myself and one of those might be the one. The strong Clean note blends back down into the other notes, after a bit, though. But, going back to it after about 30 minutes, it does still smell very 'clean' smelling. Like, I showered with a dark spiced honey shower soap.
Sadly, I think honey may just be a note so good note for me. So far, it always goes soapy/clean on me :/ I'm hoping it's not just the Honey note in particular, and more just an underlying note or two that generally gets paired with Honey. Otherwise, honey may be a dead note for me :/
Long drydown: it smells like I just stepped into a specialty soap shop. The ones where they sell soaps, beeswax, and honey. And by afternoon my skin just smelled lightly sweet from it. Not my favorite for most days, but maybe on occasion, or to layer in a honey note to my darker more witchy scents
3.5/5 *sigh* I really just want a dark spicy Gourmand honey. Can anyone give me any suggestions for that?? a Honey scent that DOESN'T dry down clean and powdery??
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Haunted Library
Official description: This scent will transport you to an old Victorian library. With ceiling high wooden book shelves, Creaky floorboards, leather bound books covered in a blanket of dust, fragile yellowing pages, and musty tufted chairs. Wafting through it all is the scent of sweet tobacco- the scent of the spirit that haunts these walls.
Top- Teakwood, tonka
Middle- cedar, leather, sweet tobacco, molasses
Bottom- sandalwood, Patchouli, mahogany, dark musk
My Review: a VERY light scent. Wow. Make sure you turn up and down a bit to really make sure the scent is fully blended, cause I could Barely smell it out of the bottle. It's a bit Cleaner than what I think a haunted library would really smell like. But, maybe like a lady ghosts' personal library? Overlooking the sea maybe? It weirdly gives off Cape Cod/Northeast coast/maine vibes to me. Like a Ladies Library in a Newport mansion.
I'm generally more of a sweet fruity over complex herbally scent person, or really cool gourmand scents, but I actually really like this scent! I have no clue in what instance I'd wear it, but I really do like it. I'll probably use it to give a tea or vanilla scent more complexity, or after wearing them, maybe even layering it with Stains of scarlet (down below). I don't get too much of the individual notes, but they all blend Very nicely for a femme leaning unisex scent!
As it dried the dust notes got sharper and the molasses got brought out more. First out the bottle, the wood and pachouli notes are a bit stronger. I still don't really get any leather though. My kingdom for a good strong leather scent! Lol. This is like a dainty haunted library, haunted by one of the Bridgerton ladies lol. Sweet, slightly dusty and papery, with a light hint of nostalgia and faded sweet perfume….Oh my goodness, this is Eloise's scent lol, to a T
4/5 only really because it's not really my vibe and this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours
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White Magic
Official description: White magic is an herbaceous blend of sage, lavender, incense and eucalyptus. The sage, lavender and eucalyptus are balanced equally where the incense is more of a background player here. This blend feels clean and comfortable and wears beautifully. Sage can be an off-putting smell to some put it is added subtly to not shine over the lavender. It rings to me, as a comforting freshness that I can't get enough of. This is a gender neutral scent.
Top- lavender, bergamot, pine needles, eucalyptus
Middle- chamomile, sage, camphor, rosemary, pepper
Bottom- Cedar, Sandalwood, incense, Orris root, amber
My thoughts: First out the bottle my first thought was YES!!!!!! Finally a lavender scent that doesn't smell powdery or like laundry soap! It does smell a wee bit Clean, but I think that's more the nature of any scent with these scent notes, since they're used in cleaning supplies and soaps so often. But, this scent is a Super green floral. No powdery note to my nose at all! (and I pull powder like CRAZY lol, it's been a problem for me since I hate powdery scents). This scent transports me to a spa shop full of fresh drying Eucalyptus, sage, and lavender. By the last drydown, the Eucalyptus is the strongest note
4.5 out of 5, only because this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours ______________________________________________
Memento Mori
Official Description: an intriguing blend of smoked vanilla, dark spice, patchouli and black amber.
Top- smoke, clove, white pepper, blood orange Middle- sandalwood, jasmine, amber, nutmeg, black pepper, cardamom seed Bottom- black amber, vanilla, dark musk, benzoin, amyris, patchouli, cassia bark, ebonywood, dark musk
My review: Not gonna lie, this is almost chrismasy. Like a Dark Yule vibe. The dark spice in there completely reminds me of late fall/early winter spices. It's definitely going to be a fall/winter scent for me. Smokey spiced vanilla and clove. It'll be perfect to mix with an Apple scent to add more Autumn/early winter complexity! It gives walking in late fall/crisp winter when the leaves are almost all gone and you have a cinnamon chai warm in your hands walking out in the cold, vs Midnight Circus which gives off Fall carnival with smoky campfire vibes
By the end of the drydown (1.5 hours, maybe 2), all I get is cinnamon and maybe some other spices, Very light sweetness coming from the vanilla. This'll be a good mixer with some of my more sharp winter woodsy scents from Pineward, for a great late fall/winteyule scent!
4.5 out of 5, only because this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours
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Nightshade Elixir
Official Description: Nightshade Elixir is an intoxicating blend of deadly nightshade, Moonflower Nectar, Elderberry and absinthe. There is a mysterious quality to this blend that keeps it from being too sweet from the berries or too floral from the Moonflower. There is a perfect blend of fruity, floral, spice and mystery. It starts out on the sweeter side to draw you in (from the black currant and agave), before the deadly dark side starts to shine through on the dry down with black tea, saffron, absinthe and Anise. An all together delectable and mysterious blend that will keep you coming back for more
Top- saffron, anise, agave
Middle- Black current, black berry, jasmine
Bottom- amber, tonka, dark musk, black tea, absinthe, dark musk
My review: Okay, this one does go a bit on the powdery/clean perfume vibes. But, I do still like it?? Very strange, considering I hate clean/powdery scents, but this one balances the Clean notes with a juicy fruity flowery vibe that it balances things quite nicely and I can't stop smelling myself. There's a sharp powdery note in there, though, that keeps me from giving it a 4/5. I've narrowed it down to either the Amber or dark musk or tonka. Whatever it is, it's totally a dead note for me. It's popped up in a few other scents over the samples I've gotten, and it's been quite annoying. I May add something a bit juicier to this. But, it almost gives Spring Fairy Queen vibes. fruity and florally, but also a bit perfumey and stringent
3.5/5 I do like it, it's just a bit too powdery perfume-y for me. Under a pear or other fruit scent, I think it would be quite nice!
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Black no 1
Original description: This scent was inspired by Type O Negative's song, "Black No.1", with notes of crisp fall leaves, burning cedar, smoke and incense.
I wanted to capture the essence of burning leaves as well as autumn air, a faint whisp of clove cigarettes, freshly dyed hair and wolf skin boots. The scent opens up with deep Notes of leather, incense and smoke. Then, brightens slightly with spiced fruit in autumn air, intermingled with warm amber. Wrapped up on a base of burning cedar and musk. This is a deep, gender neutral scent, not for the faint of heart
Top- incense, cedar leaf
Middle- green leaves, smoke, pine, spiced fruit
Bottom- cedar, amber, musk, leather
My review: Ooh, you DEFINITELY get the spiced fruit. Where Memento Mori you get a late fall Slightly into Winter vibe, this scent is ALL winter vibes. Like you're drinking mulled berry wine and christmas shopping downtown, so there's a tinge of cold in the air and incense/fall scented candles are lit in the stores. This scent house REALLY likes its cinnamon note. Those spices are the strongest hit in this, first on my skin. Straight spiced mulled fruits
4/5 but only because the scent description notes of 'clove cigarettes, freshly dyed hair, and wolf skin boots' kinda gave me the vibe that it would be more a kickass chick wearing a leather jacket- kind of scent, but it's more a straightforward CHRISTMAS scent lol. Did not expect that vibe from the original scent description. If the leather and smoke and leaves and cedar were more prominent, maybe. I just REALLY want a good leather scent :/
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I hope this review helps out someone looking for new samples to try!
Also, if anyone could recommend a really good leather scent...please hook a girl up? ;)
submitted by TKWander to Indiemakeupandmore [link] [comments]
My review of this scent house so far: 4/5. It would honestly be a 5/5, but for that they have such a short wear period on my skin. Pretty much every 2 hours, I'd have to reapply :/ But, pretty much every single scent was really great and accurate to their scent descriptions, and I'll probably still FS buy a few!
Just make sure to slightly mix these guys up by turning them up and down a couple times (not so fast that you create air bubbles), to make sure the scent is fully mixed. You'll read in my notes, some of my first impressions when I Didn't do that. Don't make my mistake lol
My Rating System:
1/5: In my opinion this scent just smells really bad. I am not interested in the least. It is NOT my cup of tea and I would actively run away if I smelled it on someone else
2/5: Eh, it smells more like a scent for a cleaner or laundry detergent or maybe just a room scent. Not a perfume/cologne for me
3/5: Not my cup of tea, but It's well balanced and I could see someone else wearing it! Just not me lol
4/5: Almost perfect, just missing a scent note or two, or doesn't last very long, or dries down powdery/weirdly
5/5: I love this scent and will definitely be wearing it, if not FS-ing it!
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Cottagecore No. 1:
Official scent description: It is a warm and inviting blend of blueberry cobbler, wood burning stove, and spice cabinet. It starts off sweet with a buttery rich crust and fresh picked blueberry cobbler. A whisp of spices cut through to break up the sugars. There's a background of smoke, musk and burning wood that lingers in the background but really comes to life on the dry down. The sweetness fades to meet merrily in a dance of oud wood, smoke, spice and cobbler. Feels like a cottage in the woods on a warm summer day after picking berries all morning. A fresh cobbler in the wood burning and comfort in your soul. A gender neutral scent that anyone can enjoy.
Top- buttery crust, cinnamon, incense
Middle- blueberry, brown sugar, wood smoke
Bottom- vanilla bean, oud, musk, amber
My review: Straight out the bottle, it is pure blueberry cobbler, but as it dries, it gets weirdly perfume-y? Very quickly, too. You still get the hints of blueberry, but this powdery note kinda overtakes it all.
After a little bit the powder dies down and do you get more of the buttery crust blueberry cobbler, but this one may not be my cup of tea, sadly :/
**after about 10 minutes the blueberry pops back up to a mix of spices and blueberries that I actually like! 3 or 4/5. I do wish it had a bit more blueberry throw AND didn't have that weird powdery burst at the first dry down. A very fruity comforting fall scent, I think. Yeah, I really like it for a fruity fall scent**
**UPDATE*\*
I had to try this one a second time after that initial review. Just to try it after shaking it lightly, just a bit, to mix.
Wet I absolutely love this scent. It's giving start of fall and you're making blueberry pie or cobbler and it's spiced with fall spices and you even scraped out some authentic vanilla beans for the recipe and I actually don't get that weird strong powdery note at all! So, definitely make sure to turn samples from this house a time or two, to make sure everything is mixed, but not so much that there are air bubbles. After about 30 or so minutes it dries down to autumn cooking spices, mainly, with mainly a hint of a fruity scent. Still lovely though!
4.5 /5 it would be 5, but pretty much all the scents from this house go poof very quickly on me. All trace of it leaves my skin by 2.5/3 hours
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MIDNIGHT CIRCUS
This one was my freebie. My brother and I are putting on a type of Dark Karnival -esque camping event this fall and I really wanted to get a scent to wear there lol
Official scent description: a dark yet lively experience of caramel popcorn, fire, lacquer floorboards and whimsy
Top- hickory, honey, incense, cinnamon
Middle- smoke, amyris, caramel, salt, praline, spice
Bottom- cedarwood, moss, oud, olibanum, amber, musk, leather, popcorn, butter, vanilla
My review: This smells exactly like you're walking around a fall carnival with a big bonfire going on in the middle. Essentially it smells like your favorite fall candle scent, but just a bit more complex with the wiffs of campfire smoke and cedarwood in there. Even though it's the end of May, I sniff it on my wrist and think it's gonna be chilly outside. That feeling you get when the seasons are changing.
Strongest notes on me: wood smoke (though I wish I got more hickory to it), spices (cinnamon mainly), carameled buttery popcorn, vanilla and maybe the honey, maybe praline? It all blends very nicely into a great, if slightly generic, fall scent
Notes I don't get at all: leather, moss, oud. Those are the notes that would probably make this perfectly complex, but I just don't get them out of it. It's pure fall gourmand. I'll probably layer this over a scent that has those notes and need sweetening
Enough of a throw that I get a wiff going about my day
last drydown: dries down to autumn spices, essentially. Reminds me of walking in Gatlinburg in the fall, through all the little shops nestled in the mountain amongst the autumn trees. Completely gone within 3 hours though
4/5
______________________________________________
BLACK HONEY
Official Description: Black Honey is a sultry blend of Spiced Honey, black amber, cedarwood, tonka, and tobacco leaf.
My Review:
I like it! I just don't LOVE it :/
The spiced honey notes in this, wet straight on my skin, are my favorite parts, though there is a weird 'Clean' note behind it as an undertone. Maybe it's the black Amber or the tonka. I've been running down a dead note for myself and one of those might be the one. The strong Clean note blends back down into the other notes, after a bit, though. But, going back to it after about 30 minutes, it does still smell very 'clean' smelling. Like, I showered with a dark spiced honey shower soap.
Sadly, I think honey may just be a note so good note for me. So far, it always goes soapy/clean on me :/ I'm hoping it's not just the Honey note in particular, and more just an underlying note or two that generally gets paired with Honey. Otherwise, honey may be a dead note for me :/
Long drydown: it smells like I just stepped into a specialty soap shop. The ones where they sell soaps, beeswax, and honey. And by afternoon my skin just smelled lightly sweet from it. Not my favorite for most days, but maybe on occasion, or to layer in a honey note to my darker more witchy scents
3.5/5 *sigh* I really just want a dark spicy Gourmand honey. Can anyone give me any suggestions for that?? a Honey scent that DOESN'T dry down clean and powdery??
______________________________________________
Haunted Library
Official description: This scent will transport you to an old Victorian library. With ceiling high wooden book shelves, Creaky floorboards, leather bound books covered in a blanket of dust, fragile yellowing pages, and musty tufted chairs. Wafting through it all is the scent of sweet tobacco- the scent of the spirit that haunts these walls.
Top- Teakwood, tonka
Middle- cedar, leather, sweet tobacco, molasses
Bottom- sandalwood, Patchouli, mahogany, dark musk
My Review: a VERY light scent. Wow. Make sure you turn up and down a bit to really make sure the scent is fully blended, cause I could Barely smell it out of the bottle. It's a bit Cleaner than what I think a haunted library would really smell like. But, maybe like a lady ghosts' personal library? Overlooking the sea maybe? It weirdly gives off Cape Cod/Northeast coast/maine vibes to me. Like a Ladies Library in a Newport mansion.
I'm generally more of a sweet fruity over complex herbally scent person, or really cool gourmand scents, but I actually really like this scent! I have no clue in what instance I'd wear it, but I really do like it. I'll probably use it to give a tea or vanilla scent more complexity, or after wearing them, maybe even layering it with Stains of scarlet (down below). I don't get too much of the individual notes, but they all blend Very nicely for a femme leaning unisex scent!
As it dried the dust notes got sharper and the molasses got brought out more. First out the bottle, the wood and pachouli notes are a bit stronger. I still don't really get any leather though. My kingdom for a good strong leather scent! Lol. This is like a dainty haunted library, haunted by one of the Bridgerton ladies lol. Sweet, slightly dusty and papery, with a light hint of nostalgia and faded sweet perfume….Oh my goodness, this is Eloise's scent lol, to a T
4/5 only really because it's not really my vibe and this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours
______________________________________________
White Magic
Official description: White magic is an herbaceous blend of sage, lavender, incense and eucalyptus. The sage, lavender and eucalyptus are balanced equally where the incense is more of a background player here. This blend feels clean and comfortable and wears beautifully. Sage can be an off-putting smell to some put it is added subtly to not shine over the lavender. It rings to me, as a comforting freshness that I can't get enough of. This is a gender neutral scent.
Top- lavender, bergamot, pine needles, eucalyptus
Middle- chamomile, sage, camphor, rosemary, pepper
Bottom- Cedar, Sandalwood, incense, Orris root, amber
My thoughts: First out the bottle my first thought was YES!!!!!! Finally a lavender scent that doesn't smell powdery or like laundry soap! It does smell a wee bit Clean, but I think that's more the nature of any scent with these scent notes, since they're used in cleaning supplies and soaps so often. But, this scent is a Super green floral. No powdery note to my nose at all! (and I pull powder like CRAZY lol, it's been a problem for me since I hate powdery scents). This scent transports me to a spa shop full of fresh drying Eucalyptus, sage, and lavender. By the last drydown, the Eucalyptus is the strongest note
4.5 out of 5, only because this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours ______________________________________________
Memento Mori
Official Description: an intriguing blend of smoked vanilla, dark spice, patchouli and black amber.
Top- smoke, clove, white pepper, blood orange Middle- sandalwood, jasmine, amber, nutmeg, black pepper, cardamom seed Bottom- black amber, vanilla, dark musk, benzoin, amyris, patchouli, cassia bark, ebonywood, dark musk
My review: Not gonna lie, this is almost chrismasy. Like a Dark Yule vibe. The dark spice in there completely reminds me of late fall/early winter spices. It's definitely going to be a fall/winter scent for me. Smokey spiced vanilla and clove. It'll be perfect to mix with an Apple scent to add more Autumn/early winter complexity! It gives walking in late fall/crisp winter when the leaves are almost all gone and you have a cinnamon chai warm in your hands walking out in the cold, vs Midnight Circus which gives off Fall carnival with smoky campfire vibes
By the end of the drydown (1.5 hours, maybe 2), all I get is cinnamon and maybe some other spices, Very light sweetness coming from the vanilla. This'll be a good mixer with some of my more sharp winter woodsy scents from Pineward, for a great late fall/winteyule scent!
4.5 out of 5, only because this scent house goes poof too fast on me. All the scents from this house poof in about 2.5/3 hours
______________________________________________
Nightshade Elixir
Official Description: Nightshade Elixir is an intoxicating blend of deadly nightshade, Moonflower Nectar, Elderberry and absinthe. There is a mysterious quality to this blend that keeps it from being too sweet from the berries or too floral from the Moonflower. There is a perfect blend of fruity, floral, spice and mystery. It starts out on the sweeter side to draw you in (from the black currant and agave), before the deadly dark side starts to shine through on the dry down with black tea, saffron, absinthe and Anise. An all together delectable and mysterious blend that will keep you coming back for more
Top- saffron, anise, agave
Middle- Black current, black berry, jasmine
Bottom- amber, tonka, dark musk, black tea, absinthe, dark musk
My review: Okay, this one does go a bit on the powdery/clean perfume vibes. But, I do still like it?? Very strange, considering I hate clean/powdery scents, but this one balances the Clean notes with a juicy fruity flowery vibe that it balances things quite nicely and I can't stop smelling myself. There's a sharp powdery note in there, though, that keeps me from giving it a 4/5. I've narrowed it down to either the Amber or dark musk or tonka. Whatever it is, it's totally a dead note for me. It's popped up in a few other scents over the samples I've gotten, and it's been quite annoying. I May add something a bit juicier to this. But, it almost gives Spring Fairy Queen vibes. fruity and florally, but also a bit perfumey and stringent
3.5/5 I do like it, it's just a bit too powdery perfume-y for me. Under a pear or other fruit scent, I think it would be quite nice!
______________________________________________
Black no 1
Original description: This scent was inspired by Type O Negative's song, "Black No.1", with notes of crisp fall leaves, burning cedar, smoke and incense.
I wanted to capture the essence of burning leaves as well as autumn air, a faint whisp of clove cigarettes, freshly dyed hair and wolf skin boots. The scent opens up with deep Notes of leather, incense and smoke. Then, brightens slightly with spiced fruit in autumn air, intermingled with warm amber. Wrapped up on a base of burning cedar and musk. This is a deep, gender neutral scent, not for the faint of heart
Top- incense, cedar leaf
Middle- green leaves, smoke, pine, spiced fruit
Bottom- cedar, amber, musk, leather
My review: Ooh, you DEFINITELY get the spiced fruit. Where Memento Mori you get a late fall Slightly into Winter vibe, this scent is ALL winter vibes. Like you're drinking mulled berry wine and christmas shopping downtown, so there's a tinge of cold in the air and incense/fall scented candles are lit in the stores. This scent house REALLY likes its cinnamon note. Those spices are the strongest hit in this, first on my skin. Straight spiced mulled fruits
4/5 but only because the scent description notes of 'clove cigarettes, freshly dyed hair, and wolf skin boots' kinda gave me the vibe that it would be more a kickass chick wearing a leather jacket- kind of scent, but it's more a straightforward CHRISTMAS scent lol. Did not expect that vibe from the original scent description. If the leather and smoke and leaves and cedar were more prominent, maybe. I just REALLY want a good leather scent :/
_____________________________________________
I hope this review helps out someone looking for new samples to try!
Also, if anyone could recommend a really good leather scent...please hook a girl up? ;)
2024.05.29 02:06 Italian_Barrel_Roll Power Shift: Dislodging a Turtled Platform
I see a lot of questions about what to do when the enemy "turtles up" in Power Shift. Realistically, every team should be building defenses like Barricades, Goo, Shields, APS, Turrets. These can be overcome with the proper approach, and with a watchful eye on your teammates you can even get them to assist sometimes! To help you understand the gist of what I'm saying here's my go-to initiate--you'll take the ideas here and mold them to your personal loadout:
Where are my teammates?
But, for right now, it's grenade time. Gravity grenade gets rolled under the front where the APS won't reach to create a "moving" (from the reference point of the defender) hazard zone that can't be dispelled. Fire grenades are good against the sides of the platform where APS is unlikely to hit. Other grenades can be useful if you paid attention to where the APS units were earlier. Throw 'em, do a final assessment if you want to proceed, and start getting on the platform.
Wear the enemy down through these guerrilla attacks and you'll eventually be able to unseat even the most turtled of boats. Suck it Korea!
no offense koreans I love you
submitted by Italian_Barrel_Roll to thefinals [link] [comments]
>60m: This is where most of the work happens. Here you do your recon and make your plan. You'll start figuring things out here but this is a continuous process throughout the entire initiate.
Once you've got that settled it's all a matter of hitting your inputs.
At this distance I check as much of the area around the platform as I can. If I need a better view, I try to move around to see what's going on before closing more distance:Where are my teammates?
- Are they fighting something nearby? I should help them first.
- Are there nearby tokens I can revive? Usually a revived teammate will stick near you for a few seconds so picking someone up is almost always the right move.
- Are they orbiting the platform? I should hurry, stealth isn't necessary
- Are they all dead somewhere dumb? I should slow down, be stealthy and defensive and plan carefully
- Is there goo? I'll want to counter with fire. Might want a fire barrel later
- APS? I'll want to focus on them whenever I get the chance. Might want a red barrel later.
- Shields? Might want a glitch barrel later
- Barricades? Observe the setup. Are there corners I can take advantage of? Dead ends I could trap enemies in? I can knock out their teeth from this distance if I have a clear shot with a red barrel, or I might decide I like the barricades as-is as a death trap for my enemies. Might want a green barrel for that!
- Who are they? Do I hear a sniper cracking off? Better stay in the shadows until I've spotted him. Don't trust what you saw in the intro, people change classes all the time, so always re-assess this
- What is the score? Quick flick of the scoreboard to see how many reds are still alive. Check that with how many reds are on platform. A little basic math and you now have an idea of who's on and who's not. I'm the only idiot I know who will play sniper on the platform, so if you do have snipers on the enemy team they're probably in the off group
- Are there targets or locations where I think targets will be that I want to pick off first because they'll make my drive difficult? Might want to go for them first.
60-50m
I've got a plan in mind, rechecking what I know, and looking around for a barrel. Really any will do, but I'm going to try to get the one that suits the situation the best based on the earlier analysis. Even a goo barrel can split up defenders and cause a situation where they're on the back foot. No plan? Gotta love gas!50-35m (Class dependent)
I've checked nearby hidey-holes, got myself in position to run a good line towards the platform, and hopefully a good barrel in my hand. Time to start charging toward the platform!35m-25m
Power launch the barrel onto the platform by lining up your shot and hitting QM + throw at the same time. Heavy can reliably launch 40m, medium 30m and light 20m. The goal is usually for the barrel to land on the platform. "Usually" goes as follows:- Red: Just fire this normally. Try to take out a bothersome barricade, APS or turret. Enemies like to hide next to the APS and Barricades so this can go hard
- Green: My favorite! If there's goo or a barricade maze on the platform this will cause mass hysteria. First everyone will start to panic as their vision is limited and they're taking damage. They'll scatter outside of their hidey-holes. Then someone will have the bright idea to throw some fire to quell the gas. Unless they used a flamethrower now there's fire stuck to one or mode barricade. Even worse if there was goo, now its all on fire doing damage everywhere and soon the goo defense will be gone. Love green.
- Fire: Similar to green, the fire barrel will wreak havoc if done right. Prime it with an extra punch before you launch it.
- Goo: Not your ideal but can be used in a pinch. Use it to try to separate enemies, deadly if you have a fire follow up
- Glitch: In theory, good to get rid of those pesky dome shields. In practice, you're gonna end up glitching yourself half the time. Very little visual clutter but will at least distract the enemy for a short time.
- Smoke: Use it to obscure line of sight to the next barrel because this one isn't gonna do much
25-0m
Final check, is this a fight you want to take? How many are on the platform? How many are off the platform hidden waiting to pounce on you as you close in? What are your teammates doing, are they close? If it's going to be a hard fight, you'll want to hop off the platform as soon as you get on to keep the enemy off balance without dying yourself. If your team has the enemy engaged you might even consider throwing down some defenses or other nonsense to confuse the enemy when you jump on.But, for right now, it's grenade time. Gravity grenade gets rolled under the front where the APS won't reach to create a "moving" (from the reference point of the defender) hazard zone that can't be dispelled. Fire grenades are good against the sides of the platform where APS is unlikely to hit. Other grenades can be useful if you paid attention to where the APS units were earlier. Throw 'em, do a final assessment if you want to proceed, and start getting on the platform.
0m
Your ideal climb onto the platform is going to be one where the enemy is confused, can't see, distracted by your allies, and especially one where they don't see you coming. All of the above is to create that kind of environment. So how do you actually get on the platform?- Climb the sides: Ugh, really? The basic bitch of getting on the platform, this leaves you open and exposed. If red saw you coming, this is probably where your story ends.
- From above: Also common, but real gamers don't look up, so you've got a chance. This is ideal for a last minute survey of the platform and its defenses. Take special note of mines--if you can detonate them while the enemy is standing on them you can clear the platform pretty quickly before you even land. Necessary for a C&S insertion.
- From the side: Using a goo barrel to hit the side of the platform creates a surface you can jump onto and simply run to the side of the platform. If you don't step on the platform the alarm won't go off, so a distracted enemy can be easily picked off until they notice you. You can also find windows in nearby buildings to pop out of for similar effect.
- From below??: That gravity grenade that you threw earlier is going to be at the rear of the platform as the platform traverses its path, making an easy ascent to an otherwise difficult to reach platform. Like the side approach, you can sit and shoot until noticed without the alarm going off.
Wear the enemy down through these guerrilla attacks and you'll eventually be able to unseat even the most turtled of boats. Suck it Korea!
no offense koreans I love you
2024.05.29 01:59 kristkos [OC] Kris's Compendium of Trade Goods - Trade goods for your campaigns.
![[OC] Kris's Compendium of Trade Goods - Trade goods for your campaigns.](https://preview.redd.it/xlzd9skn993d1.png?width=320&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=36afc4beecafd0164e77d022e1396b6af7c15a44 "[OC] Kris's Compendium of Trade Goods - Trade goods for your campaigns.") | submitted by kristkos to tabletopcreations [link] [comments] |
2024.05.29 01:15 Greenshardware [WTS] Discount soft goods (Spiritus, Osprey, WTF, Esstac, etc.), 300BLK Barrel, M951, winter gear, Snow camo, cheap optic, and more.
Timestamp: https://imgur.com/a/KQSNsJS
All prices shipped.
Automatic $5 discount for multiple items exceeding $25 total to give you some shipping back.
Paypal FF or Cashapp only.
Dibs rules. I’m present for a while after posting, feel free to make offers, seconds, or ask questions.
For safety, please PM me first after commenting here.
Osprey IV MTP, take the whole set for $50
Ammo Pouch (double SA80/AR) x3 $12 Ea
SA 80 (single mag) x1 $12
Smoke Grenade x1 $12
9mm Pistol x2 $9 ea
Commanders Panel x1 $13
WTF RG Modular Accessory Panel 00 $22
WTF RG 3 Column Expander Wing $16
WTF RG 4 Column Expander Wing $22
DIY Chest Rig. Honestly not sure how I ended up with so many, but they’re pretty sweet.
Esstac MC 7.62 Double Tall w/ 2 black and 2 brown WTFix $37
Esstac MC Pistol Single w/WTFix $17
Esstac RG 7.62 Single Tall $17
TREX MC Chest Rig Adapters $16
Chase Tactical MC Joey Pouch $40
Haley MC Hanger ol’ salty has initials here and there $22
WTF RG M4 Double $20
Direct Action RG Tac Reload (Tripple AR) $40
Spiritus RG MK 4 $60
Spiritus RG Half Flap $15
Condor Green M Inner Outer Belt $17
Spiritus Insert 2x Pistol $10
8492 insert 1xM4 $10
Helikon Coyote Belt Molle Adapter $10
TT Brown Malice Clips x4 $10 set
TT Black Malice Clips x4 $10 set
TT Malice Wavy Style x2 $10 set
Condor Coyote MOD straps x10 $10 set
AustriAlpin COBRA 1.75” $20
AustriAlpin COBRA 2” $ 25
Complete Surefire M951 $175
Sig Romeo MSR complete $50 Free low mount
Faxon 300 BLK 6” 1:4 $120 Tiny nick on shoulder from removing stubborn crush washer, still shims concentric.
Century AKM stock set $30
Tactical Link PDW Grip $13
308 Carbine Buffer with spring $25
Sig Brace NO FOLDING MECHANISM $50
Polish wz. 93 Parka with liner 104/178 fits like a large $40
M05 Winter Sarma TST L3 Wind Anorak Medium Regular $90
M05 Snow Origopro Camo Jacket Medium Regular $90
submitted by Greenshardware to GunAccessoriesForSale [link] [comments]
All prices shipped.
Automatic $5 discount for multiple items exceeding $25 total to give you some shipping back.
Paypal FF or Cashapp only.
Dibs rules. I’m present for a while after posting, feel free to make offers, seconds, or ask questions.
For safety, please PM me first after commenting here.
Osprey IV MTP, take the whole set for $50
Ammo Pouch (double SA80/AR) x3 $12 Ea
SA 80 (single mag) x1 $12
Smoke Grenade x1 $12
9mm Pistol x2 $9 ea
Commanders Panel x1 $13
WTF RG Modular Accessory Panel 00 $22
WTF RG 3 Column Expander Wing $16
WTF RG 4 Column Expander Wing $22
DIY Chest Rig. Honestly not sure how I ended up with so many, but they’re pretty sweet.
Esstac MC 7.62 Double Tall w/ 2 black and 2 brown WTFix $37
Esstac MC Pistol Single w/WTFix $17
Esstac RG 7.62 Single Tall $17
TREX MC Chest Rig Adapters $16
Chase Tactical MC Joey Pouch $40
Haley MC Hanger ol’ salty has initials here and there $22
WTF RG M4 Double $20
Direct Action RG Tac Reload (Tripple AR) $40
Condor Green M Inner Outer Belt $17
8492 insert 1xM4 $10
Helikon Coyote Belt Molle Adapter $10
TT Brown Malice Clips x4 $10 set
TT Black Malice Clips x4 $10 set
TT Malice Wavy Style x2 $10 set
Condor Coyote MOD straps x10 $10 set
AustriAlpin COBRA 1.75” $20
AustriAlpin COBRA 2” $ 25
Complete Surefire M951 $175
Faxon 300 BLK 6” 1:4 $120 Tiny nick on shoulder from removing stubborn crush washer, still shims concentric.
Century AKM stock set $30
Tactical Link PDW Grip $13
308 Carbine Buffer with spring $25
Sig Brace NO FOLDING MECHANISM $50
Polish wz. 93 Parka with liner 104/178 fits like a large $40
M05 Winter Sarma TST L3 Wind Anorak Medium Regular $90
M05 Snow Origopro Camo Jacket Medium Regular $90
2024.05.29 00:47 _Triple_ [STORE] 900+ KNIVES/GLOVES/SKINS, 100.000$+ INVENTORY. BFK Lore, Gloves Amphibious, Skeleton Fade, Bowie Emerald, BFK Auto, Gloves MF, Talon Doppler, Gloves POW, Bayo Tiger, Gut Sapphire, Stiletto MF, M9 Ultra, Ursus Doppler, Flip Doppler, M9 Stained, Nomad CW, Paracord CW, AK-47 X-Ray & A Lot More
Everything in my inventory is up for trade. The most valuable items are listed here, the rest you can find in My Inventory
Feel free to Add Me or even better send a Trade Offer. Open for any suggestions: upgrades, downgrades / knives, gloves, skins / stickers, patterns, floats.
All Buyouts are listed in cash value.
KNIVES
★ Butterfly Knife Lore (Factory New), B/O: $7194.77
★ Butterfly Knife Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2025.74
⎯★ M9 Bayonet Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $557.87
★ M9 Bayonet Stained (Well-Worn), B/O: $529.41
★ M9 Bayonet Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $465.39
⎯★ Talon Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $1295.27
★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth (Minimal Wear), B/O: $746.28
★ Karambit Bright Water (Field-Tested), B/O: $688.15
⎯★ Flip Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $547.93
★ Flip Knife Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $476.69
★ Flip Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $278.18
★ Flip Knife Black Laminate (Well-Worn), B/O: $258.83
★ Flip Knife Urban Masked (Field-Tested), B/O: $181.64
⎯★ Stiletto Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $686.04
★ Stiletto Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $665.41
★ Stiletto Knife, B/O: $601.39
★ Stiletto Knife Crimson Web (Field-Tested), B/O: $418.25
★ Stiletto Knife Night Stripe (Field-Tested), B/O: $227.80
★ Stiletto Knife Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $194.96
★ Stiletto Knife Safari Mesh (Field-Tested), B/O: $192.79
⎯★ Nomad Knife Crimson Web (Field-Tested), B/O: $518.11
★ Nomad Knife Scorched (Field-Tested), B/O: $169.78
★ Nomad Knife Forest DDPAT (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $166.88
★ StatTrak™ Nomad Knife Blue Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $335.79
⎯★ Skeleton Knife Stained (Well-Worn), B/O: $442.05
★ Skeleton Knife Urban Masked (Minimal Wear), B/O: $426.24
★ Skeleton Knife Boreal Forest (Field-Tested), B/O: $314.03
★ StatTrak™ Skeleton Knife Fade (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2361.28
★ StatTrak™ Skeleton Knife Urban Masked (Field-Tested), B/O: $376.53
⎯★ Ursus Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $557.12
★ Ursus Knife, B/O: $471.42
★ Ursus Knife Blue Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $212.37
★ Ursus Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $187.66
★ Ursus Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $178.18
★ Ursus Knife Ultraviolet (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $155.13
★ Ursus Knife Boreal Forest (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $124.26
⎯★ Huntsman Knife Black Laminate (Minimal Wear), B/O: $204.83
★ Huntsman Knife Black Laminate (Field-Tested), B/O: $184.50
★ StatTrak™ Huntsman Knife Lore (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $224.11
⎯★ Bowie Knife Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $2142.02
★ Bowie Knife, B/O: $230.44
★ Bowie Knife Damascus Steel (Factory New), B/O: $209.20
★ Bowie Knife Ultraviolet (Minimal Wear), B/O: $180.51
★ Bowie Knife Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $131.03
⎯★ Falchion Knife Night (Field-Tested), B/O: $132.54
★ Falchion Knife Urban Masked (Well-Worn), B/O: $112.81
★ Falchion Knife Scorched (Field-Tested), B/O: $108.81
★ Falchion Knife Forest DDPAT (Field-Tested), B/O: $107.82
★ Falchion Knife Safari Mesh (Field-Tested), B/O: $107.46
★ StatTrak™ Falchion Knife Ultraviolet (Field-Tested), B/O: $143.08
⎯★ Paracord Knife Crimson Web (Minimal Wear), B/O: $486.48
★ Paracord Knife Blue Steel (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $163.12
⎯★ Survival Knife Blue Steel (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $138.26
★ Survival Knife Night Stripe (Field-Tested), B/O: $131.03
⎯★ Gut Knife Sapphire (Minimal Wear), B/O: $1127.79
★ Gut Knife Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $286.17
★ Gut Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $246.55
★ Gut Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $240.77
★ Gut Knife, B/O: $210.49
★ Gut Knife Lore (Field-Tested), B/O: $194.22
★ Gut Knife Case Hardened (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $151.51
★ Gut Knife Blue Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $124.94
★ Gut Knife Rust Coat (Well-Worn), B/O: $118.99
★ Gut Knife Boreal Forest (Minimal Wear), B/O: $109.80
★ StatTrak™ Gut Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $237.96
⎯★ Shadow Daggers Gamma Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $264.92
★ Shadow Daggers Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $253.03
★ Shadow Daggers Tiger Tooth (Factory New), B/O: $237.22
★ Shadow Daggers Crimson Web (Field-Tested), B/O: $153.40
★ Shadow Daggers Autotronic (Minimal Wear), B/O: $144.42
★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $105.20
★ StatTrak™ Shadow Daggers Damascus Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $150.46
⎯★ Navaja Knife Fade (Factory New), B/O: $365.99
★ Navaja Knife Doppler (Factory New), B/O: $228.93
★ Navaja Knife Marble Fade (Factory New), B/O: $227.43
★ Navaja Knife Slaughter (Factory New), B/O: $209.06
★ Navaja Knife, B/O: $203.16
★ Navaja Knife Case Hardened (Well-Worn), B/O: $132.57
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Factory New), B/O: $121.69
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Minimal Wear), B/O: $109.95
★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $100.41
★ StatTrak™ Navaja Knife Fade (Factory New), B/O: $369.01
★ StatTrak™ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel (Field-Tested), B/O: $109.95
GLOVES
★ Sport Gloves Amphibious (Minimal Wear), B/O: $2394.67
★ Sport Gloves Omega (Well-Worn), B/O: $572.33
★ Sport Gloves Bronze Morph (Minimal Wear), B/O: $338.88
★ Sport Gloves Big Game (Field-Tested), B/O: $323.66
⎯★ Specialist Gloves Marble Fade (Minimal Wear), B/O: $1652.07
★ Specialist Gloves Tiger Strike (Field-Tested), B/O: $599.14
★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Web (Well-Worn), B/O: $231.57
★ Specialist Gloves Buckshot (Minimal Wear), B/O: $126.21
⎯★ Moto Gloves POW! (Minimal Wear), B/O: $996.99
★ Moto Gloves POW! (Field-Tested), B/O: $383.31
★ Moto Gloves POW! (Well-Worn), B/O: $276.00
★ Moto Gloves Turtle (Field-Tested), B/O: $180.28
⎯★ Hand Wraps CAUTION! (Minimal Wear), B/O: $502.29
★ Hand Wraps Giraffe (Minimal Wear), B/O: $180.73
★ Hand Wraps CAUTION! (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $178.32
⎯★ Driver Gloves Queen Jaguar (Minimal Wear), B/O: $181.01
★ Driver Gloves Rezan the Red (Field-Tested), B/O: $101.66
⎯★ Broken Fang Gloves Jade (Field-Tested), B/O: $127.88
★ Broken Fang Gloves Needle Point (Minimal Wear), B/O: $124.55
⎯★ Bloodhound Gloves Guerrilla (Minimal Wear), B/O: $127.94
★ Hydra Gloves Case Hardened (Field-Tested), B/O: $102.55
WEAPONS
AK-47 X-Ray (Well-Worn), B/O: $478.95
AUG Hot Rod (Factory New), B/O: $425.83
StatTrak™ M4A1-S Hyper Beast (Factory New), B/O: $413.95
M4A4 Daybreak (Factory New), B/O: $309.51
StatTrak™ AK-47 Aquamarine Revenge (Factory New), B/O: $305.43
AK-47 Case Hardened (Well-Worn), B/O: $196.38
StatTrak™ M4A4 Temukau (Minimal Wear), B/O: $174.64
P90 Run and Hide (Field-Tested), B/O: $167.03
AWP Asiimov (Field-Tested), B/O: $153.33
Souvenir SSG 08 Death Strike (Minimal Wear), B/O: $140.00
M4A1-S Printstream (Battle-Scarred), B/O: $124.70
StatTrak™ M4A1-S Golden Coil (Field-Tested), B/O: $117.48
AWP Asiimov (Well-Worn), B/O: $115.97
StatTrak™ Desert Eagle Printstream (Minimal Wear), B/O: $112.96
StatTrak™ AK-47 Asiimov (Minimal Wear), B/O: $110.85
Souvenir M4A1-S Master Piece (Well-Worn), B/O: $102.42
AK-47 Bloodsport (Minimal Wear), B/O: $100.53
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2024.05.29 00:30 Saint-Andros Out of Our Elements A NoP FanFic 20
 | First Previous Next submitted by Saint-Andros to NatureofPredators [link] [comments] --- Set in the universe created by u/SpacePaladin15 MASSIVE THANK YOU, LIKE SERIOUSLY HUGE THANKS to u/weithbec (this chapter would not be nearly as good if not for your help) and additional thanks to u/Liberty-Prime76 for further proofing on top of Weith's monumental efforts As always, some appreciation to u/brotanics, u/LeWombat545, and u/JimDandy117 for the art they have done for this little story of mine. It means the world to me to see my characters brought to life. Links to their work at the bottom of the chapter. --- Memory transcription subject: Tevri, Venlil Romanticist Date [standardized human time]: August 17, 2137 In my hands I held the broken halves of what used to be the makeshift chair that Omo had sat me in. The Krakotl lay motionless on the floor, a large violet gash now visible on the back of his head. There was now a small indentation in the wall, just a few feet away from Jack. The gun Omo had held tumbled to the ground during the scuffle. Smoke still trailed from its barrel, and my sensitive ears rang in the moments following its deafening boom. The broken bits of chair slipped from my hands and clattered to the ground as I fell to the floor. Both hands rose to my mouth as my eyes watered and my ears fell flat against the back of my head. What have I done? There was no chance I was going to just stand there and watch as Jack was executed, but the weight of what I just did was made no lighter by knowing I saved him. This kid very well could have been any of my friends from back on Skalga if not for fate having other plans. Could I even pretend I was still an empathetic person after clubbing a child over the head? They were right, weren’t they? I’ve been a monster this whole time. All it took was the perfect moment for me to snap. “Tevri?” The voice snapped me back to my senses as I turned and saw Jack looking back at me. Shit! I scrambled over, kneeling down beside him. At first I reached out with a paw, but as he winced and hissed while shifting around, I pulled it back. “A-are, you alright?” He asked. “Wha—am I alright?” I bleated out. “You’re the one with a hole in you!” His eyes broke from mine and went back down to his abdomen where crimson blood stained his clothes. Despite the circumstances, he offered a weak laugh. “Ah. Yeah. I am, aren’t I?” “W-we need to call for medical assistance!” “Oh, don’t worry about that. I already called the first responders. They should be here soon. You still didn’t answer my question though. Are you alright?” “I…” Was I? Being knocked unconscious, then being drugged and dragged through the woods to a shack and being held hostage by a former exterminator probably doesn’t constitute “being okay.” “I don’t know.” “Well, do you think you’re alright enough to tie up that kid’s hands behind his back? You got him pretty good but I’d rather not take chances.” I looked over to where Omo lay and saw that he was still motionless. “O-okay, but you may need to guide me.” And guide me he did as I took the binds that once held me and wrapped them around the Krakotl’s arms, pinning them behind his back. I followed Jack’s advice, who did all that he could considering his current state. I took advantage of this moment to distract myself from my thoughts by being busy with my paws, but a distraction only lasts so long, and after a few minutes Omo was properly tied up. I’d occasionally glance towards Jack as he offered instructions, watching as his skin grew more and more pale with every passing moment. Even with the distraction of tying up Omo’s hands, the guilt of knowing there was nothing I could do to help tugged at my heart. After finishing up, I gingerly picked up the firearm and knife that had fallen aside and brought them to him, handing both over. Jack pressed a button on the gun’s side and something slid out of the weapon. He tossed this aside before pulling back the sliding top of it and pulling out a bullet that he also tossed into the dirt. Satisfied, he lay the weapon down beside him. “There,” he said with a sigh. “S-so what now?” “We wait I guess,” he said, looking at me. He tried to slide closer, but as he did, he groaned and pressed a hand to his side, closing his eyes. I let out a quiet whine and my ears fell back against my head, my tail wrapping itself around his leg. “I-it’s going to be alright. I promise.” Despite the obvious pain that wracked his body, a smile touched the corners of his mouth. “You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.” “D-don’t talk like that. Y-you’re going to be fine.” “I think we’re well past that point.” As he said this, he lifted his hand from the spreading stain at his waist and reached out for me. I took his hand in my paw and offered a supportive squeeze. The hand I took hold of was coated in his own blood. It stained my paws as I laced my fingers between his, doing my best to not wretch at the sensation. I don’t think I could say I had ever seen so much blood in my life. The fight to maintain composure was a struggle that I was only just coming out on top of. “J-just stay with me. Okay?” He took a deep breath and squeezed back. “I’m trying my best here. Though I’ve not exactly got a good track record of keeping my word, do I?” “What? What are you talking about?” “C’mon Tev, you don’t gotta mince words just cause I’m dyin’ here. I fucked up bad, and you got hurt.” “It’s okay. W-we can worry about that w-when we’re out of here.” Jack sank further down the wall behind him, slouching and hanging his head. “I dunno. Not so sure they’ll be able to put me back together after this.” “You’re going to be okay. You said it yourself. People are coming to help. We just need to wait a little longer. Just keep on talking to me. You can do that, right?” He gave a slow nod. “I’ll try my best, but it’s hard. Everything’s a little… foggy. Don’t know how much blood I’ve lost. Probably too much though.” Panic gripped my heart. No, no, no! This can’t be happening. Stars above. Please… I can’t lose someone else. Not again. “You have to hold on. I need you.” Jack gave a weak chuckle. “Naw. I don’t think you ever needed me. If anything, you’d be better off without me here to scare you half to death. Hell, if it hadn’t been for me neither of us’d be here in the first place.” The translator was still doing its job, but I could hear his voice had grown weaker. Each word was a struggle. “You made a mistake. Just another to add to the pile. What matters is that you’re sorry. We’ll sort this all out once we know you’re safe, but for now, just focus on staying with me.” Jack’s face twisted, his eyebrows furrowing and his face softening. “H-how? How can you still believe in me? You trusted me to protect you and I failed.” I shook my head. “There aren’t enough seconds in the day to count how many times I’ve failed the people I love.” Gently, I bumped my head up against his shoulder and wrapped my claws around his arm. “But it took me meeting you to realize that we’re more than just our failures.” “I… glad I was able to help.” The strength of his hand held in mine waned, and I squeezed it tighter to make up for the loss. “We’re going to make it through this together. We have to.” “We’ll see.” We continued to wait like this, each minute dragging on for a small eternity. I didn’t want to sap his strength, so I elected to remain silent. In this silence, the distraction from my thoughts melted away, leaving me exposed. I shot a glance to where Omo still lay. His body rose and fell as he breathed, so there was that at least, but otherwise he was out cold. Look at what you’ve done. How would your family feel about this? How would your friends feel? A number of his feathers lay strewn about in a pile around him from the force of the impact. I—I did it to protect him. I had to. There was no other choice! There’s always a choice. I couldn’t just let him die! You may be right, but what does it say that your first thought was resorting to violence? Maybe your parents were right. Maybe something is wrong with you. No. I will not allow myself to regret this. There was no other choice in the heat of the moment. I did what I did, but it’s done now. All that matters is that Jack makes it out to get the help he needs. As I stamped out the fire among my thoughts, Jack broke the silence as he softly spoke up.“So. If we do manage to make it out of here, what happens to us?” I hummed in contemplation. “I don’t know. Do… Do you still think this could work?” “I’ll leave that up to you. Lord knows whether I deserve to have someone like you in my life after the shit I’ve pulled.” My ears fell flat against the back of my head. As much as I may have wanted to deny it, he hurt me. He knew the weakness of my flighty instincts and took advantage of them to scare me off in his anger. Sure, he was sorry, but could sorry even heal these wounds? The safety I felt in his presence was wounded by what he had done. Maybe given time, that wound could heal, but would a relationship like ours even have the chance to do so? Time. Yeah. That’s what we need. “I think we need to give it some time.” Jack grunted. “A shame it doesn’t seem like we’ve got much left. Or rather, doesn’t seem like I’ve got much left. If it wasn’t already obvious, I’m not doing too hot.” “Don’t talk like that,” I pleaded. “I’m sorry it had to go this way,” he muttered. “M-maybe if we’d taken us a bit slower this wouldn’t’ve hurt so much. It was stupid of me. I’ve barely known you all of a week and I’ve fallen head over heels only to throw it all away.” I squeezed his arm tight. “Please,” I mewled. “Even if what we’ve found here doesn’t last past this week, I still want you in my life. Can you hold on just a little longer for me?” Tears began to well up in the man’s eyes as a smile crept across his face. “I’ll try my best. How about for now though, I hold on to you?” He took both arms and held them outward. Considering the stress, the terror, the fear, and the pain that had plagued me today, the opportunity of an embrace was too much to pass up. “I think I’d like that.” I came in closer, and Jack pulled his hand from his abdomen to wrap it around me, pulling me closer. I let go of his other arm, and he repeated the motion with his other hand, pulling me up against his body with both arms in a tight hug as I lay sprawled across his chest. My face settled right beneath Jack’s. His deep blue eyes stared directly into mine as we sat there together. He ran a hand across the back of my head, parsing the wool on my crown. His breath tickled my face, causing a bloom of orange to spread across it. Though perhaps fractured and damaged like both of our bodies right now, the sense of safety I felt before when with him began to grow once more within me. “This is nice,” I whispered. “Yeah…” he leaned in closer to my face, red rushing to his cheeks as he did so. “I uh, I’ve been meaning to do this for a little while now. Figure it’d be best to do it while I still can.” “Wha—” Jack leaned in and interrupted me as his lips met my snout, pressing against my mouth and into it. The warmth of his body against me and his breath mixed with mine, stirring up an intoxicating cocktail of conflicting sensations. I had heard of and even seen humans kissing before, but I always found it odd — until now that is. A display such as this, to join your mouth against someone else's, would have once been deemed outright predatory and discouraged by exterminator guidelines. Then again, I never did care too much for such rules. We both held out for as long as we could until I needed to breathe, then after a quick gasp, I dove back in again. The warmth shared between us was greater than the light of the sun, and so I closed my eyes, allowing myself to bask in its radiance. For this moment, I allowed my worries to melt away as I melted in his arms and we gave ourselves to each other. All good things must come to an end though, and with no small amount of hesitance, I pulled myself away. I breathed heavily through my mouth, catching my breath to chase away what I now realized was a sense of lightheadedness — one which was most likely brought on by said lack of breathing. “Wow, that was… wow.” There was no response, only the quick, shallow rise and fall of his chest as I took note of a gentle buzzing that I hadn’t noticed before. Both ears perked upright of their own volition and turned to face the door of the hovel. I could tell that even Jack had heard it as he shifted where he sat and lifted his head to look outside. “Is that…” As I trailed off, Jack offered an answer, his voice more quiet than the last time he spoke. “Yeah. I think that’s them. Shouldn’t be long before they show up.” The man offered another weak squeeze that made me realize just how cold he’d grown. Most of the warmth shared between us was my own, but there was only so much it could do to help. The hope that sprouted in my heart was just as quickly stamped out the moment he spoke. “I-I’m getting real sleepy here sheep. J-just… just stay safe for me, okay?” “What? No! No, no, no! Hey! Stay with me!” I began to try and rock him back and forth to keep him awake, but he didn’t seem to respond. “They—they’re going to be here soon,” I stammered. “Everything will be alright.” As he closed his eyes, he whispered one last time. “No… everything… is.” The tears flowed freely now as I continued in vain to try and keep him awake. “Jack? Stay with me!” I bumped my head against his, shook his shoulders, pinched his arm, and even resorted to pounding against his chest to try and wake him. “Please, I—I can’t lose someone else. Not like this… not like this…” The sound of the humming had only grown louder during my desperate attempts to bring him back. After nothing I could do stirred him, I curled up against his chest and waited, placing my head beneath his to offer it support rather than allow it to loll forward. With my ears pressed against his chest, I could hear the faint thump-thump of his heartbeat. I didn’t know how fast a human’s heart was supposed to beat, but if that of a Venlil’s was in any way comparable, it was far too slow for comfort. His arms no longer wrapped around me, instead lying limp at his side. My tail twined around his leg, and I hugged my chest with both arms, one eye pressed against his chest while the other was stuck on the door leading outside. The hum had grown to a roar, but soon enough, its growth halted. The thumping in my chest raced as though it were trying to make up for Jack’s own fading heart, or catch up to the constant, rhythmic thrumming. Without warning, the door burst open and I squealed as blinding lights illuminated the room. I raised both paws to cover my face, but the damage was already done. Everything became a blurry haze. The room was filled with shouting that shot back and forth between different voices. They were gruff and gravelly as their growled words played themselves back through my translator. Before my vision properly returned, I heard a voice break through the crowd of others. “Ma’am? Ma’am, are you okay?” A hand grabbed my shoulder and gently shook it. I looked up to a figure in a helmet and mask, but I didn’t have the energy to work up a response. Instead, I shifted gently where I lay. “I need to move you if you’ll let me.” Again, I didn’t budge. Hands scooped me up, with only a slight amount of resistance on my part as I wriggled in an attempt to return to where I lay. I wanted to stay with him, but a human’s strength was something I couldn’t dare hope to surpass — why even bother? The blurriness faded just enough to allow me a view of what I was leaving behind. Human-shaped figures in dark clothing surrounded Jack, leaning over him to readjust his body. I caught mention of “blood loss,” and “shock” before being whisked outside where the voices died down and the source of the humming became apparent. Through the darkness of night, lights illuminated the two helicopters hovering in the air. Their blades cut through the air, blowing the bows of the trees below and sending ripples through the grass. Ropes hung from each helicopter, and from one of them, three more of these similarly dressed humans slid down them to join their compatriots. The human that carried me set me down outside on the ground, where I wrapped both arms around my legs and set my head on my knees. I tried to muster up the energy to do something, anything, but it just wasn’t there. I flinched as two hands grasped my shoulders, but when turning around, I relaxed. A reflective blanket had been wrapped around me by the same human that had carried me out. Their mask and helmet had since been removed to reveal their piercing green eyes, dark skin, and short curly hair. I wasn’t exactly used to such a sight — their sight — I would have practically wilted under them a week ago. They walked around, crouching down to an eye level in front of me. “Are you hurt Ma’am?” If their voice was anything to go by, they seemed to be a woman, though it was difficult to say for sure beneath the bulky layers of armor they wore. I blinked once, then snapped back to focus. “Is he going to be okay?” She shrugged. “I’m not sure.” The answer wasn’t exactly a comforting one, but after giving it, she placed a hand on my shoulders and locked eyes with me. “But I can tell you this. Our paramedics will do everything they can to make sure he will be.” Though it was no guarantee, these words did offer some small amount of comfort. Almost a year ago now, some unlikely friends offered comfort in a similar — if not quite so dire — situation. It was only right that I respond now just as I did then. I threw both arms forward, wrapping them around the neck of this woman in as tight a hug as I was able to offer. “Thank you.” “Oh. Uh… sure. Glad I could help.” She wrapped her arms around me in turn, scrunching up the blanket she had just offered me. He’ll make it. He has to. --- Cover Image Tevri in a sweater - By u/Brotanics Tevri - By u/Brotanics A Depiction of Jack's Dream - By u/LeWombat545 Tevri (Discord Nitro Exchange Commision >:D ) - By u/JimDandy117 Lil' Goob Tevri - By u/JimDandy117 --- First Previous Next |
2024.05.28 23:25 Fancy-Buy-9595 Looking for roommates 24-25 academic year
Hi, two of my roommates are graduating and we are looking for one or two people to move in to the empty spots. Located on Midvale ave (500 block). Any gender welcome. Smoking friendly. Political people. We like to have friends over and like to go out but also very driven and have club meetings and such at the apt occasionally. People in the complex throw parties in the courtyard. A really adorable and cuddly cat also lives with us. $900/month rent with typically another $50-$100/month for utilities. There is parking included. You would be in a rlly cute room with green walls and a walk in closet or an adorable room with pink walls and a blue deck. One of the rommates is a design major so the whole apt is very decorated and is very cute and super furnished with a great style
submitted by Fancy-Buy-9595 to ucla [link] [comments]
2024.05.28 23:03 BaronBlackSkull Dead by daylight fan ideas, Call of the darkened skull, Nemesis and Claudette's new abilities
So to anyone who hasn't read my absolute mess of a first post. What I have set out to do is propose a massive update to dead by daylight with the main objective of spicing up the game and the second biggest objective of giving all survivors their own unique power and ability to make them distinct while also balancing the game to not make this stupidly broken. Is important to note that this is less about balance and what I think should actually be added and more so me rambling about some of the funny ideas I have this is why I will not be going into Pacific numbers i'll let each person reading this interpret the exact percentages and numbers they think would be balanced as again this is more so about creating fun ideas and inspiring other people.
Today I will just be giving extra abilities to the characters listed above. As I stated before their survivors will each be getting their own unique upsides and downsides to make them more distinct and interesting instead of having every survivor be almost exactly the same. And because the survivors are getting buffed massively so too should the killers.
The first idea I would like to throw out is something I honestly kind of want to see in dead by daylight, And that is a fifth perk slot for every survivor and killer however instead of being able to choose any park you can only choose for this 5th slot one of the Teachable perks that character has.
One thing before I continue, It may be a bit confusing but for the sake of balance I wish to propose a concept. This concept is that certain perks will be less Effective on certain killers or survivors because of their own natural abilities, When this happens and you are playing as this character hovering over this quirk this will be highlighted in red text showing you exactly how much the perk will be nerved for this specific character. For example Claudette is going To be able to heal faster than the average survivor So for balance perks that significantly increase healing speed will not be ineffective but will give less of a boost as to not make Builds that will give her an insanely fast healing speed.
But anyways on to the new abilities
Claudette
Healing proficiency Due to our knowledge of botany and healing she can perform all healing actions faster than the average survivor
Caring instinct Your intentions to Heal others Are profound and you will seek out the injured so you could aid them, Claudette can see the auras of injured survivors who are in her vicinity.
Special ability Botany Special plants will appear around the trial, When a plant is harvested after a Random amount of time a new plant will spawn in a new location. These plants and flowers Spawn most frequently in areas of short to tall grass. Mushrooms will also spawn in more indoor maps or in maps with lots of indoor locations however these mushrooms are far less easy to track down as they can spawn anywhere. Because of Claudette's Botany knowledge She knows what she's looking for, These plants will be very bright to her and she's the only one who can see them, When she walks up to these plants she can enter an animation to begin harvesting them this animation isn't too terribly long but also still significant. When these plants are collected if Claudette has a medkit that is missing charges these plants will refill a significant amount of the medkick's charges. If the medkit is full or Claudette does not have a med kit, Then the charges will either Accumulate in Claudette's inventory until a medkit does begin to deplete in which case it will automatically be refilled, Or if Claudette has enough of these charges She can perform the self healing action Without any perks or med kits that normally would be the only way for a survivor to do so. These charges can also be used to speed up the Process of healing deep wounds On both you and others survivors. Before you ask yes maps can be used to find these plants through walls so you're not running around like a headless chicken and yes this does mean You could have an infinite medkit as long as you are willing to sacrifice the time it takes to find and collect the plants.
Hyper focus When Claudette is performing a task Such as healing, repairing, Sabotaging and cleansing She loses focus of her surroundings and everything else. The killers terror radios will be significantly smaller for only Claudette while she's performing these actions And any ore reading perks or perks that tell you when the killer is Near will no longer work while you are performing these actions. Also while performing these actions the range of which you can look around is significantly decreased giving you significant blind spots the killer can exploit
Nemesis Now alongside with the bins containing the antidote to The T virus A new structure will appear beside it that survivors can interact with Which will be called supply stations Oh but these supplies are not for the Survivors. Drones will fly to these locations and leave behind black suitcases Nemesis can approach these suitcases pick them up and acquire a new weapon. Survivors by walking over to the screen can begin to hack it. Much like the singularities EMP crates a bar will slowly fill up when the survivors hack it the bar will decrease the more the bar is filled the longer survivors will have to take to fully decrease the bar the bar is always filling unless being hacked. Once the bar is filled The drones will fly in depositing the weapon the survivors are unable to do anything now and the killer is able to receive this weapon whenever he wishes. It goes without saying that the auras of all these stations are now revealed To the killer at all times, Both killer and survivor can see you what Type of weapon is going to be deposited at each station, By symbols. The three types of weapons are the bazooka the flamethrower and the mini gun. Once the drone delivers the suitcase To a resource station the bar at that resource station will pause until the suitcases removed by the killer and that station will Now have a yellow aura that the killer can see. Once the suitcase is picked up whatever weapon it is will be stored in his inventory he can use it whenever he wants but he can only have one weapon in his inventory at any given time. Also depending on how powerful they are each weapon can have its own rarity meaning some weapons are more common than others.
the minigun This weapon works exactly like the Tricksters show stopper In pretty much all regards. Accept the bullets are so powerful they can travel through thin walls except the damage that these bullets Do are significantly decreased. Also the killer can discard this weapon at any time, However this still fully consumes the weapon and he will have to go fetch another 1 this applies to every Type of weapon he can carry.
The flamethrower Also like showstopper in both its wind up and movement speed penalties The flame thrower begins to distinguish itself by first of all you can stop and start the flame for at will, By holding left click you will shoot flames and when you stop the flames will cease, There is both a fuel bar and a pretty generous timer when either of these two meet their end the weapon will stop functioning and the killer will drop them. The initial hit of the flame thrower is almost unavoidable but does not do damage instead it sets survivors on fire Which works similarly to the deep wounds except while survivors are on fire they cannot interact or perform any actions except dropping pallets vaulting and mending themselves they cannot Even be healed by other survivors while on fire. But that is only if they are licked by the fire if they stay in the fire for too long They will be injured while still suffering from the fire deep water fact, The timer it takes for them to take damage immediately resets even if they escaped the flames for a moment. The flank floor is unable to down a survivor however it's an incredibly good way to injure multiple survivors quickly, The flames also produce a large amount of smoke that can be very disoriented, And after one or two moments of the flame thrower directly blowing on a palette or Breakable wall Those objects will be burnt and will break.
The bazooka When the bazooka is activated nemesis will stand still while he is aiming it and will only be able to move again once he's fired or discarded the weapon. It works almost exactly like it does in the game resident evil resistance if you want an idea. There will be 3 Radiuses The missile itself the rather small explosion and the rather large shockwave. If a survivor is directly hit by a missile they will go from healthy to downed immediately, If a Survivor is hit by the explosion they will instead take one damage and be flunged around. If they are hit by the shockwave they will only be flung around which gives the killer a lot of time to catch up to them. Nemesis can fire the Bazooka at his own feet But if he is caught in the radius of his own explosion he will be stunned for a very significant amount of time making this an extremely detrimental action that the survivors can exploit. The bazooka will also damage generators caught in its explosive range which will function like the killer kicked them and reduce a small amount of the generator's progress the explosion will also destroy pallets breakable walls.
Nemesis Receives two more buffs one While he had his tentacle out if he presses the control button Or the same button he would use to activate one of his weapons, It would change the orientation of his hand instead of him launching it as he normally would he has to be beside a wall if he is and he activates the tentacle he will slam his hand into the wall and the tentacle will emerge on the other side, However the hit box of the tentacle will change instead of a long rectangle it will be a small circle around the wall making it very easy to avoid, Unless you're extremely good with mind games this isn't going to be useful in chase however you could use it to catch survivors working on generators behind a wall by surprise So He can try to pull off the fun jump scares he does in his game
The last of his abilities is a passive perk, Nemesis can break breakable walls extremely Quickly compared to other survivors, When he does this if survivors are too close on the other side of the wall they will be slowed and regardless if the survivors are on the other side the nemesis will get a temporary speed buff, This is a nod to how much the nemesis loves smashing through walls, This update will also come with a Kool-Aid Man legendary skin for the nemesis.
This can also come with an array of new Add-ons for the killer, I do like the idea of a killer having a guaranteed base amount of add-ons like two Iridescent Etcetera Etcetera however I think it would be fine if all killers receive any extra add-ons that the developers think would just be cool, So these add-ons would not be replacing any of the old ones.
Purple add on leather handles
This add on significantly decreases the amount of time it takes for the nemesis to discard a Weapon, And when he does so he has a five second window to make a lunge attack and if he does so this lunge attack will be significantly increased in the distance that have travels It's like a mini Coup de Grâce
Green add on armor piercing rounds
When this add-on is used the mini gun will do significantly less damage and have decreased fire rate but will do significantly more damage to survivors when the bullets pierce through walls. This also adds an additional effect if A few bullets hit a generator that generator will act as though it has been kicked and begin regressing.
Yellow add-on 9 millimeter bullets Slightly increases the damage of bullets, If A few bullets hit a generator that generator will act as though it has been kicked
Iridescent add on laced ammunition
If survivors are hit by bullets and or the explosion of the bazooka they will receive the T virus infection
Purple add on E M P attachment All weapons will damage generators when used on them, And the amount of progress reduced by the bazooka to a generator is significantly increased
Green add-on Premium fuel When the flame thrower Duration has been reached, Or the flamethrower is discarded all survivors on fire will scream and have their auras revealed for one second
Iridescent add on Muscle stimulant syringe If a survivor stunts the nemesis while he is wielding a weapon causing him to drop it, The nemesis instead of his normal stun animation will roar fearsomely and the survivor who stunned the nemesis will receive the exposed status effect for 30 seconds
Yellow add-on Large fuel tank Slightly increases the duration of the mini gun, Slightly increases the timer and ammo capacity of the flamethrower
Green add-on extended magazine
Moderately increases the duration of the mini gun, Moderately increases the timer and ammo capacity of the flamethrower
Purple addon Bloody scalpel Perhaps this creature is more capable of feeling pain than initially realized, And perhaps that creature is now more eager to inflict that pain to others. When not in Chase and moving towards a yellow supply station slightly increase your movement speed and significantly increase the speed of picking up black suitcases
Green item experimental syringe When survivors cure themselves of the tea virus they receive the exhausted shadows effect for a short duration
Iridescent add-on security camera The speed at which survivors are able to decrease the bar when hacking a supply station is significantly increased, However when they do so the killer will receive a notification and for the duration a survivor is hacking their aura will be revealed
Ps I'm so sorry for the horrific grammar
submitted by BaronBlackSkull to u/BaronBlackSkull [link] [comments]
Today I will just be giving extra abilities to the characters listed above. As I stated before their survivors will each be getting their own unique upsides and downsides to make them more distinct and interesting instead of having every survivor be almost exactly the same. And because the survivors are getting buffed massively so too should the killers.
The first idea I would like to throw out is something I honestly kind of want to see in dead by daylight, And that is a fifth perk slot for every survivor and killer however instead of being able to choose any park you can only choose for this 5th slot one of the Teachable perks that character has.
One thing before I continue, It may be a bit confusing but for the sake of balance I wish to propose a concept. This concept is that certain perks will be less Effective on certain killers or survivors because of their own natural abilities, When this happens and you are playing as this character hovering over this quirk this will be highlighted in red text showing you exactly how much the perk will be nerved for this specific character. For example Claudette is going To be able to heal faster than the average survivor So for balance perks that significantly increase healing speed will not be ineffective but will give less of a boost as to not make Builds that will give her an insanely fast healing speed.
But anyways on to the new abilities
Claudette
Healing proficiency Due to our knowledge of botany and healing she can perform all healing actions faster than the average survivor
Caring instinct Your intentions to Heal others Are profound and you will seek out the injured so you could aid them, Claudette can see the auras of injured survivors who are in her vicinity.
Special ability Botany Special plants will appear around the trial, When a plant is harvested after a Random amount of time a new plant will spawn in a new location. These plants and flowers Spawn most frequently in areas of short to tall grass. Mushrooms will also spawn in more indoor maps or in maps with lots of indoor locations however these mushrooms are far less easy to track down as they can spawn anywhere. Because of Claudette's Botany knowledge She knows what she's looking for, These plants will be very bright to her and she's the only one who can see them, When she walks up to these plants she can enter an animation to begin harvesting them this animation isn't too terribly long but also still significant. When these plants are collected if Claudette has a medkit that is missing charges these plants will refill a significant amount of the medkick's charges. If the medkit is full or Claudette does not have a med kit, Then the charges will either Accumulate in Claudette's inventory until a medkit does begin to deplete in which case it will automatically be refilled, Or if Claudette has enough of these charges She can perform the self healing action Without any perks or med kits that normally would be the only way for a survivor to do so. These charges can also be used to speed up the Process of healing deep wounds On both you and others survivors. Before you ask yes maps can be used to find these plants through walls so you're not running around like a headless chicken and yes this does mean You could have an infinite medkit as long as you are willing to sacrifice the time it takes to find and collect the plants.
Hyper focus When Claudette is performing a task Such as healing, repairing, Sabotaging and cleansing She loses focus of her surroundings and everything else. The killers terror radios will be significantly smaller for only Claudette while she's performing these actions And any ore reading perks or perks that tell you when the killer is Near will no longer work while you are performing these actions. Also while performing these actions the range of which you can look around is significantly decreased giving you significant blind spots the killer can exploit
Nemesis Now alongside with the bins containing the antidote to The T virus A new structure will appear beside it that survivors can interact with Which will be called supply stations Oh but these supplies are not for the Survivors. Drones will fly to these locations and leave behind black suitcases Nemesis can approach these suitcases pick them up and acquire a new weapon. Survivors by walking over to the screen can begin to hack it. Much like the singularities EMP crates a bar will slowly fill up when the survivors hack it the bar will decrease the more the bar is filled the longer survivors will have to take to fully decrease the bar the bar is always filling unless being hacked. Once the bar is filled The drones will fly in depositing the weapon the survivors are unable to do anything now and the killer is able to receive this weapon whenever he wishes. It goes without saying that the auras of all these stations are now revealed To the killer at all times, Both killer and survivor can see you what Type of weapon is going to be deposited at each station, By symbols. The three types of weapons are the bazooka the flamethrower and the mini gun. Once the drone delivers the suitcase To a resource station the bar at that resource station will pause until the suitcases removed by the killer and that station will Now have a yellow aura that the killer can see. Once the suitcase is picked up whatever weapon it is will be stored in his inventory he can use it whenever he wants but he can only have one weapon in his inventory at any given time. Also depending on how powerful they are each weapon can have its own rarity meaning some weapons are more common than others.
the minigun This weapon works exactly like the Tricksters show stopper In pretty much all regards. Accept the bullets are so powerful they can travel through thin walls except the damage that these bullets Do are significantly decreased. Also the killer can discard this weapon at any time, However this still fully consumes the weapon and he will have to go fetch another 1 this applies to every Type of weapon he can carry.
The flamethrower Also like showstopper in both its wind up and movement speed penalties The flame thrower begins to distinguish itself by first of all you can stop and start the flame for at will, By holding left click you will shoot flames and when you stop the flames will cease, There is both a fuel bar and a pretty generous timer when either of these two meet their end the weapon will stop functioning and the killer will drop them. The initial hit of the flame thrower is almost unavoidable but does not do damage instead it sets survivors on fire Which works similarly to the deep wounds except while survivors are on fire they cannot interact or perform any actions except dropping pallets vaulting and mending themselves they cannot Even be healed by other survivors while on fire. But that is only if they are licked by the fire if they stay in the fire for too long They will be injured while still suffering from the fire deep water fact, The timer it takes for them to take damage immediately resets even if they escaped the flames for a moment. The flank floor is unable to down a survivor however it's an incredibly good way to injure multiple survivors quickly, The flames also produce a large amount of smoke that can be very disoriented, And after one or two moments of the flame thrower directly blowing on a palette or Breakable wall Those objects will be burnt and will break.
The bazooka When the bazooka is activated nemesis will stand still while he is aiming it and will only be able to move again once he's fired or discarded the weapon. It works almost exactly like it does in the game resident evil resistance if you want an idea. There will be 3 Radiuses The missile itself the rather small explosion and the rather large shockwave. If a survivor is directly hit by a missile they will go from healthy to downed immediately, If a Survivor is hit by the explosion they will instead take one damage and be flunged around. If they are hit by the shockwave they will only be flung around which gives the killer a lot of time to catch up to them. Nemesis can fire the Bazooka at his own feet But if he is caught in the radius of his own explosion he will be stunned for a very significant amount of time making this an extremely detrimental action that the survivors can exploit. The bazooka will also damage generators caught in its explosive range which will function like the killer kicked them and reduce a small amount of the generator's progress the explosion will also destroy pallets breakable walls.
Nemesis Receives two more buffs one While he had his tentacle out if he presses the control button Or the same button he would use to activate one of his weapons, It would change the orientation of his hand instead of him launching it as he normally would he has to be beside a wall if he is and he activates the tentacle he will slam his hand into the wall and the tentacle will emerge on the other side, However the hit box of the tentacle will change instead of a long rectangle it will be a small circle around the wall making it very easy to avoid, Unless you're extremely good with mind games this isn't going to be useful in chase however you could use it to catch survivors working on generators behind a wall by surprise So He can try to pull off the fun jump scares he does in his game
The last of his abilities is a passive perk, Nemesis can break breakable walls extremely Quickly compared to other survivors, When he does this if survivors are too close on the other side of the wall they will be slowed and regardless if the survivors are on the other side the nemesis will get a temporary speed buff, This is a nod to how much the nemesis loves smashing through walls, This update will also come with a Kool-Aid Man legendary skin for the nemesis.
This can also come with an array of new Add-ons for the killer, I do like the idea of a killer having a guaranteed base amount of add-ons like two Iridescent Etcetera Etcetera however I think it would be fine if all killers receive any extra add-ons that the developers think would just be cool, So these add-ons would not be replacing any of the old ones.
Purple add on leather handles
This add on significantly decreases the amount of time it takes for the nemesis to discard a Weapon, And when he does so he has a five second window to make a lunge attack and if he does so this lunge attack will be significantly increased in the distance that have travels It's like a mini Coup de Grâce
Green add on armor piercing rounds
When this add-on is used the mini gun will do significantly less damage and have decreased fire rate but will do significantly more damage to survivors when the bullets pierce through walls. This also adds an additional effect if A few bullets hit a generator that generator will act as though it has been kicked and begin regressing.
Yellow add-on 9 millimeter bullets Slightly increases the damage of bullets, If A few bullets hit a generator that generator will act as though it has been kicked
Iridescent add on laced ammunition
If survivors are hit by bullets and or the explosion of the bazooka they will receive the T virus infection
Purple add on E M P attachment All weapons will damage generators when used on them, And the amount of progress reduced by the bazooka to a generator is significantly increased
Green add-on Premium fuel When the flame thrower Duration has been reached, Or the flamethrower is discarded all survivors on fire will scream and have their auras revealed for one second
Iridescent add on Muscle stimulant syringe If a survivor stunts the nemesis while he is wielding a weapon causing him to drop it, The nemesis instead of his normal stun animation will roar fearsomely and the survivor who stunned the nemesis will receive the exposed status effect for 30 seconds
Yellow add-on Large fuel tank Slightly increases the duration of the mini gun, Slightly increases the timer and ammo capacity of the flamethrower
Green add-on extended magazine
Moderately increases the duration of the mini gun, Moderately increases the timer and ammo capacity of the flamethrower
Purple addon Bloody scalpel Perhaps this creature is more capable of feeling pain than initially realized, And perhaps that creature is now more eager to inflict that pain to others. When not in Chase and moving towards a yellow supply station slightly increase your movement speed and significantly increase the speed of picking up black suitcases
Green item experimental syringe When survivors cure themselves of the tea virus they receive the exhausted shadows effect for a short duration
Iridescent add-on security camera The speed at which survivors are able to decrease the bar when hacking a supply station is significantly increased, However when they do so the killer will receive a notification and for the duration a survivor is hacking their aura will be revealed
Ps I'm so sorry for the horrific grammar
2024.05.28 22:55 supermoon85 My lunch: green bean smoked salmon dill potato salad.
 | I cooked a package of baby Dutch gold potatoes and some fresh green beans. (There are more green beans than potato they’re just on the bottom. I have also done this with asparagus and it was equally delicious just blanch the asparagus.) I added half a package of peppered smoked salmon. I’m not sure on measurements. The dressing is just a generous dab of crème fraiche, about one teaspoon of Dijon, around a tablespoon of lemon juice, and tons of chopped dill and parsley. Oh I also threw in a handful of finely chopped red onion for good measure. submitted by supermoon85 to mediterraneandiet [link] [comments] |
2024.05.28 22:15 Wizzard_of_Hazz Seeking help for an Apple IIc monitor
 | Hello, it’s me again. I’ve crawled out of the dungeon to try and take a crack at the monitor, and I think I might have bitten off more than I can chew. I did a tear down of the monitor after an initial test where I wasn’t getting anything on screen. I can confirm my cable and input source are ok, it’s definitely the monitor. After a few seconds of having the thing on during a smoke test, I didn’t get smoke but rather a nasty odor. I tried to pinpoint where the smell was coming from when it went from smelly to a hot smelly smell. (Think years stuck in a mildew filled basement and also burning electronics) I quickly shut it off and looked around for maybe any leaky capacitors, hoping this would be nothing more than a recap job. To my dismay, all the capacitors visibly look perfect and not a cracked solder joint in sight. I’m getting a high voltage sound coming from the transformer when I turn it on, however, when I poked around a bit further the power supply board was the most stinky. Now to be honest, I’m a little lost. I don’t have the necessary equipment to diagnose what’s wrong with it. Not even a multimeter. Right now I’m purely going off of my sense of smell. But from looking through documentation and what I have, it smells like component L771 which is a line filter coil is what’s wrong. But I honestly know little about analog monitors let alone this disaster of an anti repair machine. (Seriously, you ever crack one of these open? It’s a living hell.) So I now come back to reddit in hopes of someone smarter than me coming across this thread to help me along with repairing this monitor. Is there common issues with this monitor? Am I even on the right track? Should I cut my losses and make a green monochrome Mac plus mod? Tempting, but I’d really like to repair this monitor if I can. Any ideas? submitted by Wizzard_of_Hazz to VintageApple [link] [comments] |
2024.05.28 22:03 dvmdv8 Behind the Boathouse
August’s dying daylight did nothing to diminish the heat laying over Chicago like a sodden comforter. Heat lightning, silent flashes high up in the purple clouds, strobed over us as we walked down to the lake.
People up at the cottage were drinking sweaty gin and tonics and coupling furtively in the laundry room. The end of the world puts people in a festive mood, it seems.
Violet took my hand, leading me into the thick copse of trees behind the boathouse.
“Ready to see it?”
I swallowed hard. “I…I think so.”
“This way. He’s over here.” We headed deeper into the trees.
The smell grew as we walked; sap, rotting leaves, then something thicker. Sweeter. The smell of corruption.
The trees opened up into a clearing about 20-feet across. He was hanging in the middle, suspended from the highest tree.
“Fucking idiot tried to hang himself when he found out,” Violet said, nodding in his direction as she lit a cigarette. “It didn’t take.”
His head was still attached, but his neck was stretched out from the weight. The rope dug into his purple flesh as he hung, rotting and thrashing. Every time he kicked, parts would spin off and splatter against the trees.
“Fuck. Is that Keegan?”
“Mmmmm-hmmm,” she muttered around the cigarette, squinting to avoid the smoke. “Used to be, anyway.”
“Shit! I liked him, man. He was, like, stellar at cribbage.”
“Looks like Hangman is his gig, now.”
I watched him twist and kick. An errant toe flew by my head.
“So, what now?” I asked. “Should we…cut him down?”
She gave me her patented I-can’t-fucking-believe-you-just-said-that-to-Violet look.
“What – have him come after us and eat everyone at the cottage? No, thanks.”
“Besides,” she said, moving closer, “I was thinking you and I could do a little skinny-dipping…” She trailed a fingernail down my sternum.
She opened her mouth to kiss me just as a speeding comet of zombie flesh zipped by, landing squarely on her tongue with a wet plop.
She didn’t scream, or vomit, or curse. She just spat it out, a small grey-green lump, wiping her mouth with her sleeve.
“OK, well…OK,” Violet said. “That tasted gross.” Her face slumped.
“Oh, Vi…I…,” I stammered. “You’re probably gonna…”
“I know. 2 to 4 hours.”
She lit another cigarette and sat down with a thud. A tear slid down her cheek.
“I’ll need your help, Kev.” She said.
“No, Violet – I…what do you want me to do? I can’t kill you.”
She shook her head. “No, not kill me. Just keep me from hurting anyone, when I…” she trailed off.
“The lake.”
“The lake?”
“I’ll get in a canoe. You push me onto the lake. I can’t hurt anyone there.”
“Oh, Violet…I can’t.”
She looked at me fiercely. “You have to! If you love me…”
So, I did. I helped her into the boat, pushed it into the lake.
I sat and watched as the sun sank. Loons called and I heard the noises she made.
submitted by dvmdv8 to shortscarystories [link] [comments]
People up at the cottage were drinking sweaty gin and tonics and coupling furtively in the laundry room. The end of the world puts people in a festive mood, it seems.
Violet took my hand, leading me into the thick copse of trees behind the boathouse.
“Ready to see it?”
I swallowed hard. “I…I think so.”
“This way. He’s over here.” We headed deeper into the trees.
The smell grew as we walked; sap, rotting leaves, then something thicker. Sweeter. The smell of corruption.
The trees opened up into a clearing about 20-feet across. He was hanging in the middle, suspended from the highest tree.
“Fucking idiot tried to hang himself when he found out,” Violet said, nodding in his direction as she lit a cigarette. “It didn’t take.”
His head was still attached, but his neck was stretched out from the weight. The rope dug into his purple flesh as he hung, rotting and thrashing. Every time he kicked, parts would spin off and splatter against the trees.
“Fuck. Is that Keegan?”
“Mmmmm-hmmm,” she muttered around the cigarette, squinting to avoid the smoke. “Used to be, anyway.”
“Shit! I liked him, man. He was, like, stellar at cribbage.”
“Looks like Hangman is his gig, now.”
I watched him twist and kick. An errant toe flew by my head.
“So, what now?” I asked. “Should we…cut him down?”
She gave me her patented I-can’t-fucking-believe-you-just-said-that-to-Violet look.
“What – have him come after us and eat everyone at the cottage? No, thanks.”
“Besides,” she said, moving closer, “I was thinking you and I could do a little skinny-dipping…” She trailed a fingernail down my sternum.
She opened her mouth to kiss me just as a speeding comet of zombie flesh zipped by, landing squarely on her tongue with a wet plop.
She didn’t scream, or vomit, or curse. She just spat it out, a small grey-green lump, wiping her mouth with her sleeve.
“OK, well…OK,” Violet said. “That tasted gross.” Her face slumped.
“Oh, Vi…I…,” I stammered. “You’re probably gonna…”
“I know. 2 to 4 hours.”
She lit another cigarette and sat down with a thud. A tear slid down her cheek.
“I’ll need your help, Kev.” She said.
“No, Violet – I…what do you want me to do? I can’t kill you.”
She shook her head. “No, not kill me. Just keep me from hurting anyone, when I…” she trailed off.
“The lake.”
“The lake?”
“I’ll get in a canoe. You push me onto the lake. I can’t hurt anyone there.”
“Oh, Violet…I can’t.”
She looked at me fiercely. “You have to! If you love me…”
So, I did. I helped her into the boat, pushed it into the lake.
I sat and watched as the sun sank. Loons called and I heard the noises she made.
2024.05.28 21:23 ResearcherOk2592 Weakish Review, Ski to Sea 2024
Weakish Review- Ski to Sea Version
Sumer is icumen and so are the cotton wood trees. As Ski to Sea-ers descend upon our little town to remind us all of why we choose to live here (outdoor recreation in the rain), newcomers lament that this poorly planned event didn’t plan in advance that the disruptions in traffic could make it take longer to get his girlfriend’s car from across town. Meanwhile, the cotton woods are answering the call when the Bellingham City Council declared a tree emergency and are trying to impregnate everything and everyone. The only thing left to officially declare summer is an Alaskan rave so big that the skies light up and stimulate the boomhorses to fill the silence at midnight with their eerie flute like scary mating calls. Warning, the boomhorses are on ecstasy, grab your spongebob member’s only jacket and head to the bank to grab some cash, shit’s about to get real.
First, a rules meeting was had after a particular poster with multiple alts got called out for trolling. They said they were leaving the forum forever, then immediately signed in with new alts. People love to call me out for being an evil landlord, yet I let this troll live in my mind, rent free! I invite you to play a round of troll roulette. All you have to do is find one of their alts and point out, with evidence, that they are factually incorrect. If they tell you to touch grass and then block you, you win the game. Bonus points if you can get them to follow you around and downvote everything you post.
Next, a safety meeting was where kayakers were only informed about course information, rescue procedures, and how to help others. Nobody told the main character that he needed to feed himself. They didn’t tell him how to dress appropriately and even made him wipe is own ass in the outhouse. At the end of the day, they didn’t even reserve a parking space just for him and insisted that the rules apply to him just like everyone else. Ski to Sea is clearly under-planned and unsafe because we just got started and two main characters have already been slightly inconvenienced.
XC Ski- Following the lead of a woman who moved to our town who made it her mission to change our housing laws, a Texas man is trying to glide into our local housing politics too. People struggled to find footing as they were offended that a person who they agree with could be compared with someone they disagree with. Someone more clever than I, could certainly create a fun villain origin story with this. You gotta admit, black mold tenant’s revolt superhero has black spiderman/venom vibe. There has got to be something similar we could do with the monopoly man and the Air B&B guy. A battle between these two would be my favorite main character fight. Wouldn’t a Batman style comic be hilarious? Housing ordinance gets passed, BIFF. Lawsuit filed BAM. I miss good political satire cartoons.
DH SKI- Speaking of slippery slopes, the City council declared an emergency for trees. According to Merriam Webster, “a course of action that seems to lead inevitably from one action or result to another with unintended consequences.” People are struggling with seeing a problem with this one because we love trees, especially big ones. But, what happens when politicians that you don’t agree with start to declare non-emergencies as emergencies to push through their agendas? Where will all of our main characters live if nobody can build them housing if trees are there first? The cotton woods may have been the real main character all along.
Run- There has been talk for years about changing the course because running downhill can cause injury due to eccentric muscle contractions that induce high mechanical strain on the musculotendinous system. No review is complete without updating about our favorite eccentric character. Mark took a break from volunteering for the Spark Museum to bring joy to the community by dancing in the Ski to Sea Parade. Nearby band members were overwhelmed with happiness as his ecstatic exuberance filled the community with joy and love. Unfortunately, some main characters missed out on the joy because cones blocked their path for a brief moment, trapping them in their cars with great confusion. “Who would put cones in a road. Roads are for cars, not for bringing joy to the community and welcoming in a joyous summer. Parades should be held on sidewalks in the county, in the middle of the night so as not to impede traffic.” Proclaimed a main character who just moved here who was still miffed that he was accused of being the traffic that he was stuck in.
Road Bike- Perhaps the real purpose of Ski to Sea is to normalize traffic disruptions. The County’s war against cars is less subtle, they prefer to block large sections of primary transportation corridors. Those sneaky buggers in the city are slowly taking away lanes and giving them to bikes. First they came for route choice with a pamphlet with recommended routes with clever bridges and short cuts, and we didn’t speak out because it was just a recommendation. Then they came for color uniformity as they progressed to green paint and recommended routes, and we didn’t speak out because green is the color of trees and we like trees. Before most people noticed, they put the roads on diets and nobody stood up for the roads as they were shamed. Nobody stood on the overpasses and caused traffic accidents with their signs calling for road size positivity because roads aren’t real just like birds aren’t real. Now, they are replacing roads with bike lanes and lots of them! People don’t like the location of these bike lanes. People don’t want to slow down. What about the cars? And, we didn’t speak out because we aren’t cars and we love our bikes. Then, they came for our favorite route through town and there were no cars left to beep their horns for us and we were forced to zip through town on our e-bikes and waterproof outfits.
Canoe- Two people, who consider themselves locals since they have lived here for two weeks, decided to train for the canoe leg in the dessert on the sand dunes. The person in the front looked over his shoulder at their friend and said, “Wear’s your paddle?” the person in the back replied, “Sure does.” Ba Dum Tss. Speaking of paddling, It’s been a long time since we have collectively agreed that hitting children, friends, and neighbors is a preferred means of solving problems, but there is still a lot of striking going on. WWU workers were on strike, People were striking against the war in the middle east, the mods made a mega thread to strike down too much conversation about it.
Cyclocross- The CX bikers pedaled and slogged their way through the peanut butter mud as the main character waited with his kayak wishing someone would make him a peanut butter sandwich. A gaggle of Karens were triggered because peanut allergies are real and felt like the mud wasn’t being inclusive. Others felt left out that the mud was not described as being the consistency of gluten, which left them out of being triggered. When they all called the police because their feelings were hurt, nobody could agree on the number of police cars that they saw racing by.
Kayak- This takes us back to our poor, hungry, main character who was left to barely survive with an insufficient quantity and quality of food trucks. He stood there for hours wondering why nobody was taking care of him and why did the county executive and attorney pay off that sexual harassment claim without engaging with the council. As he neared the end of the paddle with the finish bell in sight he saw the Consulat de Monte Cristo shut down the beer garden while calling out Bonjour to the crowds. Our poor paddler grabbed his Spongebob jacket and thought to himself, “Why didn’t he say, bonne journée?”
It’s officially almost summer-ish. Go buy batteries to change your smoke alarms. Ask yourself what you can do to make the community a better place. Share your ideas. What can you do to make Belligham better? How can you support your community? My new favorite is the food pantry behind Coconut Kennys. You can leave nice things there and people who need them take them. I’ve left food, hand warmers, packages of new socks, nice jackets etc. My other favorite is gift cards to local easy access food restaurants like Dairy Queen and Subway. You can just hand these to people you see around town.
submitted by ResearcherOk2592 to Bellingham [link] [comments]
Sumer is icumen and so are the cotton wood trees. As Ski to Sea-ers descend upon our little town to remind us all of why we choose to live here (outdoor recreation in the rain), newcomers lament that this poorly planned event didn’t plan in advance that the disruptions in traffic could make it take longer to get his girlfriend’s car from across town. Meanwhile, the cotton woods are answering the call when the Bellingham City Council declared a tree emergency and are trying to impregnate everything and everyone. The only thing left to officially declare summer is an Alaskan rave so big that the skies light up and stimulate the boomhorses to fill the silence at midnight with their eerie flute like scary mating calls. Warning, the boomhorses are on ecstasy, grab your spongebob member’s only jacket and head to the bank to grab some cash, shit’s about to get real.
First, a rules meeting was had after a particular poster with multiple alts got called out for trolling. They said they were leaving the forum forever, then immediately signed in with new alts. People love to call me out for being an evil landlord, yet I let this troll live in my mind, rent free! I invite you to play a round of troll roulette. All you have to do is find one of their alts and point out, with evidence, that they are factually incorrect. If they tell you to touch grass and then block you, you win the game. Bonus points if you can get them to follow you around and downvote everything you post.
Next, a safety meeting was where kayakers were only informed about course information, rescue procedures, and how to help others. Nobody told the main character that he needed to feed himself. They didn’t tell him how to dress appropriately and even made him wipe is own ass in the outhouse. At the end of the day, they didn’t even reserve a parking space just for him and insisted that the rules apply to him just like everyone else. Ski to Sea is clearly under-planned and unsafe because we just got started and two main characters have already been slightly inconvenienced.
XC Ski- Following the lead of a woman who moved to our town who made it her mission to change our housing laws, a Texas man is trying to glide into our local housing politics too. People struggled to find footing as they were offended that a person who they agree with could be compared with someone they disagree with. Someone more clever than I, could certainly create a fun villain origin story with this. You gotta admit, black mold tenant’s revolt superhero has black spiderman/venom vibe. There has got to be something similar we could do with the monopoly man and the Air B&B guy. A battle between these two would be my favorite main character fight. Wouldn’t a Batman style comic be hilarious? Housing ordinance gets passed, BIFF. Lawsuit filed BAM. I miss good political satire cartoons.
DH SKI- Speaking of slippery slopes, the City council declared an emergency for trees. According to Merriam Webster, “a course of action that seems to lead inevitably from one action or result to another with unintended consequences.” People are struggling with seeing a problem with this one because we love trees, especially big ones. But, what happens when politicians that you don’t agree with start to declare non-emergencies as emergencies to push through their agendas? Where will all of our main characters live if nobody can build them housing if trees are there first? The cotton woods may have been the real main character all along.
Run- There has been talk for years about changing the course because running downhill can cause injury due to eccentric muscle contractions that induce high mechanical strain on the musculotendinous system. No review is complete without updating about our favorite eccentric character. Mark took a break from volunteering for the Spark Museum to bring joy to the community by dancing in the Ski to Sea Parade. Nearby band members were overwhelmed with happiness as his ecstatic exuberance filled the community with joy and love. Unfortunately, some main characters missed out on the joy because cones blocked their path for a brief moment, trapping them in their cars with great confusion. “Who would put cones in a road. Roads are for cars, not for bringing joy to the community and welcoming in a joyous summer. Parades should be held on sidewalks in the county, in the middle of the night so as not to impede traffic.” Proclaimed a main character who just moved here who was still miffed that he was accused of being the traffic that he was stuck in.
Road Bike- Perhaps the real purpose of Ski to Sea is to normalize traffic disruptions. The County’s war against cars is less subtle, they prefer to block large sections of primary transportation corridors. Those sneaky buggers in the city are slowly taking away lanes and giving them to bikes. First they came for route choice with a pamphlet with recommended routes with clever bridges and short cuts, and we didn’t speak out because it was just a recommendation. Then they came for color uniformity as they progressed to green paint and recommended routes, and we didn’t speak out because green is the color of trees and we like trees. Before most people noticed, they put the roads on diets and nobody stood up for the roads as they were shamed. Nobody stood on the overpasses and caused traffic accidents with their signs calling for road size positivity because roads aren’t real just like birds aren’t real. Now, they are replacing roads with bike lanes and lots of them! People don’t like the location of these bike lanes. People don’t want to slow down. What about the cars? And, we didn’t speak out because we aren’t cars and we love our bikes. Then, they came for our favorite route through town and there were no cars left to beep their horns for us and we were forced to zip through town on our e-bikes and waterproof outfits.
Canoe- Two people, who consider themselves locals since they have lived here for two weeks, decided to train for the canoe leg in the dessert on the sand dunes. The person in the front looked over his shoulder at their friend and said, “Wear’s your paddle?” the person in the back replied, “Sure does.” Ba Dum Tss. Speaking of paddling, It’s been a long time since we have collectively agreed that hitting children, friends, and neighbors is a preferred means of solving problems, but there is still a lot of striking going on. WWU workers were on strike, People were striking against the war in the middle east, the mods made a mega thread to strike down too much conversation about it.
Cyclocross- The CX bikers pedaled and slogged their way through the peanut butter mud as the main character waited with his kayak wishing someone would make him a peanut butter sandwich. A gaggle of Karens were triggered because peanut allergies are real and felt like the mud wasn’t being inclusive. Others felt left out that the mud was not described as being the consistency of gluten, which left them out of being triggered. When they all called the police because their feelings were hurt, nobody could agree on the number of police cars that they saw racing by.
Kayak- This takes us back to our poor, hungry, main character who was left to barely survive with an insufficient quantity and quality of food trucks. He stood there for hours wondering why nobody was taking care of him and why did the county executive and attorney pay off that sexual harassment claim without engaging with the council. As he neared the end of the paddle with the finish bell in sight he saw the Consulat de Monte Cristo shut down the beer garden while calling out Bonjour to the crowds. Our poor paddler grabbed his Spongebob jacket and thought to himself, “Why didn’t he say, bonne journée?”
It’s officially almost summer-ish. Go buy batteries to change your smoke alarms. Ask yourself what you can do to make the community a better place. Share your ideas. What can you do to make Belligham better? How can you support your community? My new favorite is the food pantry behind Coconut Kennys. You can leave nice things there and people who need them take them. I’ve left food, hand warmers, packages of new socks, nice jackets etc. My other favorite is gift cards to local easy access food restaurants like Dairy Queen and Subway. You can just hand these to people you see around town.
2024.05.28 21:12 Summer_Dust [Open to Trades] Several lots available!
![[Open to Trades] Several lots available!](https://b.thumbs.redditmedia.com/Q85HuZ3LTur9TjRgjqarO_zqjQTctBC5tw4VdBX98ek.jpg "[Open to Trades] Several lots available!") | Hi friends ! submitted by Summer_Dust to Yarnswap [link] [comments] Cross Posted, Smoke-free home, dog-friendly I have a few lots available of yarns I don't fancy the color of and some single skeins that I put in a lot together that would be great for making hats, plush and the like :) Open to trading but really only interested in natural fibers in sweater quantities at the moment! So several skeins of the same yarn, doesn't have to be same color. Big fan of Merino, Silk, Cashmere, Bamboo, Alpaca, Yak and blends of these 💚 Will combine shipping if you're interested in multiple lots! Using Pirate Ship from 04468. $25 + shipping, Hot pink cascade lot $40 + shipping, Black and green wool lot $10 + shipping, Pink lot $20 + shipping, Cool tone lot $10 + shipping, Orange/yellow lot Let me know if you have any questions! |
2024.05.28 20:49 ExcuseMeWTF50 Game Over: Part 9
Just under a day would follow since Max and 8-Bit's tenacious battle and in that time, SuperCity had become the very antithesis of what it had represented. A city intended to be a symbol of hope and prosperity for all to follow had become diluted into a desolate wasteland, isolated from the rest of the world. Gone were the brightly lit, welcoming streets that were commonplace and so was the hope of the people...
The city had been abandoned by nearly all of it's residents, most had saw the writing on the wall, leaving it to be occupied by heartless machines, controlled by a clairvoyant plague fed to their minds. For the very few that remained, any attempts at resistance would quickly be stomped out for this was a city of evil. With both Max and Surge out of the picture, it appeared things were going to stay that way for a long, long time...
A muscle car would soon pass into the city. It's blue and grey paint job appeared garish in contrast to its dull surroundings and the driver knew it. He didn't pay much mind to all the omens that passed him by. The abandoned bridge he had rode on, the lack of a city skyline, the fact that he was yet to see a single soul around, and chief among them was what he considered his best friend...
He had heard of at least some of the news; corrupted robots taking over what appeared to be an impenetrable city thanks to those who kept it safe. As usual, he tried his best to stay optimistic about the situation, hoping that everything had been blown way out of proportion. There was no way all this could possibly happen, or at least that's what he kept telling himself...
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon...!" muttered the driver as he stepped out of his vehicle, splashing a shoe onto a rain-filled pothole, revealing none other than Brock. He took a few steps forward and once he had given himself the time to observe his surroundings, Brock was completely beside himself when his darting eyes caught just a glimpse of the devastation far off in the distance. It was something he had never seen before. Something straight out of a videogame, yet something beyond the work of fiction. Brock took a step back, nearly tripping over the pothole but for now at least... he maintained his composure.
Brock found himself standing in a city he once knew, something he could now consider uncharted territory. By now, the pouring rain had washed away all sense of direction for him. He looked into the distance once again, frantically rubbing his eyes, not willing to accept what his eyes were relaying back to him. Skyscrapers with massive gaping holes under a tainted moonlight. Not a single other light to illuminate the harrowing darkness was to be found aside from a massive purple beam that pierced the sky itself. It was something Brock couldn't make any sense of.
Uncertainty and unease now perfumed the air Brock had stood so perfectly still in for quite some time, completely stunned, and woeful, while more cold droplets continued to fall. Brock whipped out his phone and put it up to his ear, pacing in place, awaiting a response that never came. After some time had passed, Brock gave in, slinging the phone down with a sharp sigh, and then... pure silence. The rain had ended and it felt like time had stood still. That was when, suddenly, a red dot had crept up to his chest. By the time he had noticed and looked up, Brock was staring deep into the barrel of a distant revolver.
Brock's heart skipped a beat and for a mere moment, his entire body was frozen. That was until a rush of adrenaline had possessed him. Brock immediately sprang, dropping his phone in the process and inadvertently dodging a bullet sent toward him. Brock then clumsily slid over the hood of his car, seeking safety behind the vehicle as a plethora of bullets were fired all around while he curled away from shattering glass.
"Ey, ey, ey, w-we can talk this out!--We could can talk it out! Just--Just chill!" Brock continued to cower while two robots began to converge on his position. His pleas as a voice of reason had fallen on deaf ears. He pressed a button placed on his watch, one that displayed a blinking lightning bolt, eventually displaying no signal, only proving to dishearten Brock more. Dread was looming. Fear was at an all-time high. Time was running out fast and hope was scarce at best. Brock tried his very best to catch his breath, preparing for the very worst to come.
Brock's attackers maintained their fire right up until a single, thunderous boom roared, putting a swift end to the commotion. Nonetheless, Brock remained tense, far too afraid to take as little as a peak behind himself or speak for that matter. In the distance, he heard a voice break the unsettling silence. "Ooh, gotta say that one hurt to watch. Thanks for the target practice, guys."
Brock kept his head downward in his lap as he shivered non-stop. He could hear clanking spurs that would grow louder right up until it felt like something was looming over him.
"Heh. Someone's late to the party..." That voice, it was familiar to Brock. All of a sudden, most of that tension had plummeted and a feeling of comfort slowly filled his body. Brock rested his shoulders, opened his eyes, and began to slowly raise his head.
"...I understand, my invitation got lost in the mail too... Here. Think this belongs to you." Said Brock's protector as his newly cracked smartphone fell onto his lap. He picked his head up completely to see one dashing sheriff with a strikingly confident smirk on his face.
Brock: "...C-Colt?"
The smirk written on Colt's face only brightened. "The one and only. Unless there's someone 'round here's been slinging guns as sexily as I do of course."
Brock: "Well--"
Colt: "Yeah, I thought so. You look like someone who could use a hand, Brock."
Colt offered his hand to Brock, who was more than willing to accept. He stood up to see both of his attackers absolutely floored, each with a gaping bullet hole in their head, their exit wounds still sizzling. Soon after, beeping could be heard from behind. One of their heads would begin twitching, flashing between purple and green, signaling that this wasn't over. An annoyed groan broke from Colt's mouth. "Okay, looks like the show's not over... you back for seconds?"
The bot got back to it's feet as if it were possessed by yet another outside force. Colt readied a revolver, "...I can help with that." then fired at it once more effortlessly and turned back to Brock, anticipating a thud that never sounded off. In addition to the frantic twitching, the head sparked and a black liquid with a greenish hue began leaking from it while Colt fired another ineffective bullet. The head only spins around from the impact, leaving Colt to furrow his brows. "What the...?" The sparking only intensified until the head had popped like a balloon and out burst green, squirming, slimy parasitic ringlets soaked in that same liquid.
"Just when I thought I'd seen it all. Brock, you might wanna--*WOOAHH--" said Colt as those tendrils wrapped around his wrists and tossed him aside directly into Brock's windshield, cracking it and leaving one of his revolvers behind that landed beside Brock. It was now just him and the corrupted, mutated robot. Even with the opportunity to defend himself, Brock's entire body tensed up, his eyes racing between the metal monster and the revolver.
Brock took some steps back, tripping over himself, and was then held up by the neck. The parasite continued to squeeze as his life began slipping away. All Brock wanted to do was plead with his words but even at that, what he could muster were merely restrained gasps for air.
"Hey, wormy...!" Shouted Colt as a handful of stones hit Brock's attacker from behind, who dropped him, asserting all of it's attention back to Colt, writhing with pain yet still able to continue. "...Gonna take just a little more to keep me down." The steel monster's tendrils formed an axe head and swung it down toward Colt, who split his legs, narrowly managing to evade the attack.
Colt gulped and rolled off the hood of Brock's muscle car, reloading his single revolver with haste as the bot recovered. "Aaaaand gotcha." Colt slams at the hammer, releasing a flurry of bullets that would hit their target all over. Once again, the metal monster was hardly bothered by Colt's attack. The confident look on Colt's face quickly turned to one of mild panic. He looked down at his belt, only to be interrupted with his signature weapon of choice easily batted out his hand.
Colt flushed with a small amount of fear. "Any chance for a timeout--?" Colt ducks another attack and boots the bot in the chest, creating some distance between each other as Colt heads back for his revolver. Right when Colt retrieves the weapon, his ankle becomes entangled by his foe, causing him to once again drop the weapon, dragging him backward. By now both Colt and Brock were eye-to-eye with each other. Brock was still grounded, mesmerized, his knees weak with fear, seemingly unable to function.
"Brock, what're you doing...?" Asked Colt as he struggled, inching closer toward what appears to be certain doom. "I know I'm too pretty for this world but now's really not the time for admiration!"
"I-I--I can't just--What about you?"
"I can handle myself. Believe me..." Said Colt as he loosened his boot. "...So either zip it and get to running or uhh... okay, I guess we could all use some help every once in a while..."
Ever so timid, Brock looked down to Colt's other revolver and paused.
"Don't tell me you don't know how to use that..." Colt could already tell Brock's next words by the incompetence etched on his face. "--You're kidding." Colt manages to slip out of the parasite's grasp, losing a boot in the process. Brock held Colt's revolver, trembling, still unsure of himself. Colt picked up his boot and threw it at the tendrils, briefly stunning the creature and giving Colt the time to remove one of many abnormally large, silver bullets from his belt. "Y'know what, I'll take it from here."
Brock silently nodded and tosses Colt his revolver who then takes aim right at the core of the mutation. "Still hungry? Maybe try some of this!" The silver bullet blasts right through the parasite which lets out a high-pitched shriek as more of that viscous black fluid flows. The body of the bot fell to the ground, the creature still squirming around, still alive. Colt frantically stomps at it until it stops moving, getting some of that liquid on himself and finally putting an end to the conflict.
After calming himself, an exasperated Colt kept his eyes locked on what he had defeated, put off at the sight. "...Sheesh. I was almost a shiskabob, and my clothes...!" Colt kneeled, rubbing his finger on the black ink and putting it up to his nose. "gags No way that's oil. Guess Pam was right..." Colt said to himself before turning to Brock. "...Think I should lick it?"
Brock was still visibly struggling to catch his breath and Colt seemed to take no mind to that. "I'm just messing around, Brock, thought you'd know that by now. But anyway, on to more pressing matters... how's the hair?--Any out of place?--any more of whatever this stuff is on the face?--I gotta know."
Brock had finally caught his breath. "I think... I think you're good... What even was that?"
Colt shrugged. "Beats me. All that matters is whatever that thing was is done for and we're still standing. Ain't that right?"
"...Right."
"Right, right... never do that again by the way."
"...Do what--?"
Colt blew out the simmering smoke coming from his revolver. "Don't want to alarm ya but Christmas ain't gonna be here for another five months. What exactly were you waiting for--? Maybe I'm giving you just a bit too much credit here but you've given me so many kickings in Shotgun Shootout that I thought maybe all that time staring at a screen would translate well into the real world... still want another rematch by the way."
Brock solemnly smiled. "You just don't know when to give up, do you? You really wanna get your ass handed to ya for... jeez, I lost count too."
Colt: "--Shush, sh--sh, sh, sh... sh! ...Okay? Those were all flukes and you know it. Besides, I hate shotguns. Got one too many reasons to hate 'em back home and now there's this. Where's the skill in using them anyway? No wonder why you struggled to use one of these..." Colt eyed his revolver and yawned. "...Anyway, long time, no see, huh? How's the day been treating ya? Bet it's been goin' great so far."
Brock: "I'm uh... you know, doing fine. As fine as I can be after... that."
Colt: "Heh, y'know a "Thank you, Colt, you sexy gunslinger, you." would be nice for a change..."
Brock sighed. "...Thanks, Colt."
Colt tilted his head and smiled obnoxiously. "Come on. You can say the rest. I mean, you still kinda owe me one for fending off those punks from Retropolis and that's the least you can do..." An awkward silence had been cast over the two. "...Okay fine, just a "thank you" will do."
"So, um..." Brock scratched his head. "You got any clue what's going on here?"
Colt: "Psh, no time to explain. From what I've heard so far it's a loooooong story anyway. So, ya done with the questions 'cause I got a whole lotta of my own so if you'll excuse me... I'm here to save the day and look good doing it. Now why are you here?"
Brock would keep quiet, a little uneasy about himself as usual. Feeling a little slighted, Colt crossed his arms, looking back at Brock's ruined ride. "Eh, it's only a scratch but hey, if ya really want me to, I can just help you right on out the city."
Brock: "No, no--I... I ain't leaving, not yet."
Colt raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's certainly a choice--a stupid one but still definitely a choice. Here to help with the load, huh? That's not to say I need it of course."
Brock looked off into the distance."I guess that's one way to put it..."
Colt scoffed. "Don't mean to judge but judging by how you handled your little situation back there... I take it you didn't bring anything for self-defense or uh, any defending for that matter..."
Brock scratched his head nervously. "Yeah..."
"Heh. Nice going, Brock. So... what, you can't afford a good ol' fashioned six shooter? Didn't realize your arcade was going out of business, what happened to you lighting up the dancefloor as a DJ?" Colt asked with a load of sarcasm in his tongue.
Brock: "I'm hoping you know not every problem can be solved with a gun, Colt."
Colt rolled his eyes. "What're you, my mother? Of course, I know that..."
Brock: "Oh. Great. Nice to know we're on the same pa--"
Colt: "Which is why I use two. Now I want you to consider this: would you rather get put six feet under by some no-name junk buckets or dish out some butt-kickings yourself with one of these bad boys?" [Spins revolver] "Answer's pretty obvious, ain't it?"
Brock once again wouldn't answer Colt.
Colt: "...Right? Look, I'm not saying to bust out a whole friggin' rocket launcher or something but, come on now."
"Okay, okay... maybe you got a point..." Brock chuckled his nervousness off, plunging both of his hands into his pockets. "But, umm, I guess I also have something to let off my chest. I'm here for a reason and it's probably not one you're thinking of..."
Colt: "Yeah, no kidding. Must be one helluva of a reason to bring you to this place too... ah screw it, I'll bite. What really is it that brings you here? There are easier ways to kill yourself, y'know."
Brock chuckled nervously then rolled his eyes with a level of snark that matched Colt. "Just looking for a friend--maybe friend(s) would be the better word."
"Good thing you got me." Intrigued, Colt tilted his head forward with an enthralled eyebrow raise. "This friend got a name?"
Brock: "Oh yeah... It's... it's..."
Colt: "Come on, spit it out."
Brock: "...it's 8-Bit."
Colt: "...Oh. I'm sure he's doing just mighty fine right about now. After all, he's totally a bounty hunter sent from space. He might've told you that maybe one or a billion times."
Brock: "Err, that's Rico and yeah, you're right. You telling me you don't remember 8-Bit? You kinda spilled some soda on him that time you got just a little too heated on Project Laser..."
Colt: "Really?--Oh. Yeah. Think you're starting to ring a bell..." A smile cracked from Colt's mouth. "I'll admit it was a little funny watching 'em squirm around like there were bees in his circuits..."
Colt began snickering as his eyes drifted away from Brock, who wasn't exactly approving of Colt's tone. "...But, sorry."
Brock: "All good. Need to keep jogging that memory of yours? He's about this tall, on the stumpier side of things... wears these blue Converses, pretty adorable too, definitely no vest-- trust me, I couldn't get him to wear one if I tried. His tracker's led me to the city, the thing is--"
Brock stopped himself after he noticed that Colt had grown awfully silent. He just stood there, looking like he was possibly hiding something. Brock himself had grown curious.
Brock: "...It's kinda jammed. Did... did I say something--?"
Colt: "Yeah, actually. Good thing Rico didn't tag along with ya... okay--look, I'll just break the news to ya right away. I don't think you're gonna be finding your little buddy anytime soon. At least in the way you remember him..."
Brock: "For real? Wha--Why?"
Colt: "Huh. I guess there is time to explain. You're barking up the wrong tree here but, apparently, so don't shoot the messenger, the little guy's the one behind all of..." Colt paused, looking back over to the robots he put out of commission. "...this."
Brock batted his eyes in disbelief. "I know you like to mess around and stuff but I don't think now's the time to be joking."
Colt: "Wish I was. Really do. Didn't realize you and a certain starfish had much more in common because clearly, you've been living under a rock. Haven't you heard of the news?"
Brock: "Yeah--kinda--but I ain't hearing that noise. He wouldn't do this. He wouldn't do any of this."
Colt: "Well you better get those ears checked. Felt like his vibe was always off whenever I was around him. You sure he wasn't planning to go all goblin mode or something when you first found him?"
Brock: "N-No?! Sure he's been a little more quiet than usual for the past week or so but--"
Colt: "What're you even gonna do when you see him, huh? sideyes revolver smugly I know what I will... when the time's right I'll definitely be giving that thing what it deserves."
Brock: "Thing? That's my friend--!"
Colt: "Was. He was your friend..."
Brock kept his silence, giving himself much-needed time to gather his thoughts. "...If, and that's a big if, what you say is true... I'm gonna get him back. Something's gotta be controlling him."
Colt burst out laughing. "--Hahahahahaha--you're, breaths in you're... continues laughing ...you're serious?" Colt continued with his amused laughter as Brock only appeared more and more annoyed.
Brock crossed his arms as the laughter went on. "You done?" Colt's laughter died down a bit. "Hold on... just--just gimme a moment... laughs ...man, sorry, I had to get that outta my system. Hit me with that again, you wanna do what now?"
Brock: "I'm bringing him home. Don't matter how, I just want my friend back."
Colt: "Whew, you're lucky I pity you. So how exactly do you plan on doing that? Still losing that oh-so-good circulation to your brain?--Have you had a little too much to drink? I know that's rich coming from a guy who proposed to a mannequin but if both Surge and what's-her-face couldn't take 'em out, what chance do you have?
Brock froze up. "...What?"
"Just go home kid, this is one game you'll never win."
Brock: "I--"
Colt: "You heard me, Brock. Go home, kid."
Brock: "...You're just four ye--"
"Yeah, yeah." Ragged Colt, who turned and began strutting away, retrieving his other revolver, sticking out two fingers and waving them as a goodbye. "We'll do that rematch sometime later. Now if you'll excuse me, I got a city to save on my--"
"Wait...!" Colt had stopped in his tracks, still turned away from Brock.
"...What about Max and Surge?"
Colt turned his head slightly toward Brock. "So that's her name... you tellin' me you don't know?"
"Know what...?!"
Colt's face turned from confidently smug to somewhat remorseful. "...They're gone."
Sorrow had touched Brock's heart. Once again, he took a step back, completely stunned, unable to cobble together any words.
Colt folded his arms. "Something wrong?--Need a pinch or two? Maybe some water over the face?"
"...S...S-So they're--?"
Colt: "Yeah. Probably. If you wanna go down that rabbit hole then be my guest. Just know you'll never climb out of it. They haven't been seen in over a day now. I dunno what else to tell ya but what do you expect out of a glorified tin can and an impulsive rookie during the apocalypse?"
A cold shiver ran down Brock's spine as Colt continued. "...If I was in their place things would be peachy right about now, believe me. Now we've all been left high and dry and guess who's fault that is. Hope ya know 8-Bit's not gonna stop until this is far, far worse..."
Wrenched by guilt and despair, Brock couldn't help but turn away from Colt. He couldn't bear looking him in the eye.
"...Which is why we're gonna stop him, right?"
Brock looked up to see Colt with a hopeful, earnest smile on his face. His breathing had steadied and Brock nodded his head a handful of times. "...Right. Right. I just wanna talk with him."
"Sorry. Not in the job description. You said something about a tracker, yes?"
"...Yeah."
"Perfect. You won't have to worry about it. I'm sure we can get it fixed."
"We?"
"Yeah. We. You'll see what I'm talking about later. In fact, I got a whole lotta stuff to show you, especially with what 8-Bit's done..."
"I'll... I'll see it when I believe it, Colt." Said Brock, not much confidence coming from his mouth.
Colt scoffed hard. "Oh, you will when you're staring right into the stuff of your nightmares. Can't say I didn't say "I told ya so" when that happens. But hey--if it makes you feel any better I'm almost as confused as you are. Some fun-sized arcade machine? He's responsible for the mess I gotta clean up...?" Colt scoffed again. "Give me a break..."
All of a sudden, that silence had returned yet again. Colt sat on some nearby pavement, his hands clasped together, his face etched with a subtle amount of remorse while Brock was left to observe.
The rest of Colt's bitterness subsided. "...Sorry I sort of blew a gasket back there. I... exhales things have been so rough lately. This... all of this, it happened so fast... I couldn't help as much as I could've. I Don't want you or anyone else that hasn't already to get hurt. I know you wanna help your friend and I get that, but I seriously can't hammer this home enough. Trust me. I've been in this game long enough to know there's next to no hope of getting the little guy the help he needs. That's to say he even can be lended help, aside from a few bullet holes to the screen, of course..."
Brock: "It's... it's cool. Apology accepted. Maybe you're right, I am a little outta my depth but I gotta do what I can. If 8-Bit really is outta control here, I gotta do something about it. Gotta right some wrongs."
Colt: "That's the spirit but... yeah--you know what?" Colt got back up. "...As much as I'd love to blast more and more of these things to pieces 'til the sun comes back up, we should probably just pick up the slack before more of them come out to play--for your sake I mean, not mine."
With a mystery ignited, Brock nodded while Colt brushed passed him. Brock fails to follow, his mind still occupied by 8-Bit, by Max and Surge, by all the unanswered questions surrounding them, prompting Colt to turn back and raise an eyebrow.
Colt: "So, you comin' with, or are you just gonna enjoy the view? Or maybe, just maybe, the second thoughts are finally kicking in, hmm? To be honest, I wouldn't blame ya." Colt extended his hand into the air, signaling that the rain had returned. "Aw, my hair!--Have you made up your mind? I don't--okay well I sorta do have all day but think of my hair!"
"...Oh--uh--y-yeah, I'm comin' with, it's just..." Brock looked back over to his muscle car and sighed heavily. "...Oh man...! I guess it is still usable. Are we not taking my ride?"
Colt: "Yeah, no. You're pretty much begging for trouble riding around in that thing going forward. Best to keep things slow and steady for now so come on, let's get this show on the road already. We've got things to do."
Brock sighed lightly. "Okay..."
Colt: "Don't think you'll have to worry about a parking ticket--so hey, there's that. Now remember, this face? He's your guardian angel if you couldn't tell, and this place? Probably gonna eat ya alive if you're not careful so make sure you stick to me like glue... d-don't actually do that, I'm as uncomfortable as is already ."
Brock: "I think I got it..."
Colt: "Alright then, 'bout time we got going..."
submitted by ExcuseMeWTF50 to brawlstarswriters [link] [comments]
The city had been abandoned by nearly all of it's residents, most had saw the writing on the wall, leaving it to be occupied by heartless machines, controlled by a clairvoyant plague fed to their minds. For the very few that remained, any attempts at resistance would quickly be stomped out for this was a city of evil. With both Max and Surge out of the picture, it appeared things were going to stay that way for a long, long time...
A muscle car would soon pass into the city. It's blue and grey paint job appeared garish in contrast to its dull surroundings and the driver knew it. He didn't pay much mind to all the omens that passed him by. The abandoned bridge he had rode on, the lack of a city skyline, the fact that he was yet to see a single soul around, and chief among them was what he considered his best friend...
He had heard of at least some of the news; corrupted robots taking over what appeared to be an impenetrable city thanks to those who kept it safe. As usual, he tried his best to stay optimistic about the situation, hoping that everything had been blown way out of proportion. There was no way all this could possibly happen, or at least that's what he kept telling himself...
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon...!" muttered the driver as he stepped out of his vehicle, splashing a shoe onto a rain-filled pothole, revealing none other than Brock. He took a few steps forward and once he had given himself the time to observe his surroundings, Brock was completely beside himself when his darting eyes caught just a glimpse of the devastation far off in the distance. It was something he had never seen before. Something straight out of a videogame, yet something beyond the work of fiction. Brock took a step back, nearly tripping over the pothole but for now at least... he maintained his composure.
Brock found himself standing in a city he once knew, something he could now consider uncharted territory. By now, the pouring rain had washed away all sense of direction for him. He looked into the distance once again, frantically rubbing his eyes, not willing to accept what his eyes were relaying back to him. Skyscrapers with massive gaping holes under a tainted moonlight. Not a single other light to illuminate the harrowing darkness was to be found aside from a massive purple beam that pierced the sky itself. It was something Brock couldn't make any sense of.
Uncertainty and unease now perfumed the air Brock had stood so perfectly still in for quite some time, completely stunned, and woeful, while more cold droplets continued to fall. Brock whipped out his phone and put it up to his ear, pacing in place, awaiting a response that never came. After some time had passed, Brock gave in, slinging the phone down with a sharp sigh, and then... pure silence. The rain had ended and it felt like time had stood still. That was when, suddenly, a red dot had crept up to his chest. By the time he had noticed and looked up, Brock was staring deep into the barrel of a distant revolver.
Brock's heart skipped a beat and for a mere moment, his entire body was frozen. That was until a rush of adrenaline had possessed him. Brock immediately sprang, dropping his phone in the process and inadvertently dodging a bullet sent toward him. Brock then clumsily slid over the hood of his car, seeking safety behind the vehicle as a plethora of bullets were fired all around while he curled away from shattering glass.
"Ey, ey, ey, w-we can talk this out!--We could can talk it out! Just--Just chill!" Brock continued to cower while two robots began to converge on his position. His pleas as a voice of reason had fallen on deaf ears. He pressed a button placed on his watch, one that displayed a blinking lightning bolt, eventually displaying no signal, only proving to dishearten Brock more. Dread was looming. Fear was at an all-time high. Time was running out fast and hope was scarce at best. Brock tried his very best to catch his breath, preparing for the very worst to come.
Brock's attackers maintained their fire right up until a single, thunderous boom roared, putting a swift end to the commotion. Nonetheless, Brock remained tense, far too afraid to take as little as a peak behind himself or speak for that matter. In the distance, he heard a voice break the unsettling silence. "Ooh, gotta say that one hurt to watch. Thanks for the target practice, guys."
Brock kept his head downward in his lap as he shivered non-stop. He could hear clanking spurs that would grow louder right up until it felt like something was looming over him.
"Heh. Someone's late to the party..." That voice, it was familiar to Brock. All of a sudden, most of that tension had plummeted and a feeling of comfort slowly filled his body. Brock rested his shoulders, opened his eyes, and began to slowly raise his head.
"...I understand, my invitation got lost in the mail too... Here. Think this belongs to you." Said Brock's protector as his newly cracked smartphone fell onto his lap. He picked his head up completely to see one dashing sheriff with a strikingly confident smirk on his face.
Brock: "...C-Colt?"
The smirk written on Colt's face only brightened. "The one and only. Unless there's someone 'round here's been slinging guns as sexily as I do of course."
Brock: "Well--"
Colt: "Yeah, I thought so. You look like someone who could use a hand, Brock."
Colt offered his hand to Brock, who was more than willing to accept. He stood up to see both of his attackers absolutely floored, each with a gaping bullet hole in their head, their exit wounds still sizzling. Soon after, beeping could be heard from behind. One of their heads would begin twitching, flashing between purple and green, signaling that this wasn't over. An annoyed groan broke from Colt's mouth. "Okay, looks like the show's not over... you back for seconds?"
The bot got back to it's feet as if it were possessed by yet another outside force. Colt readied a revolver, "...I can help with that." then fired at it once more effortlessly and turned back to Brock, anticipating a thud that never sounded off. In addition to the frantic twitching, the head sparked and a black liquid with a greenish hue began leaking from it while Colt fired another ineffective bullet. The head only spins around from the impact, leaving Colt to furrow his brows. "What the...?" The sparking only intensified until the head had popped like a balloon and out burst green, squirming, slimy parasitic ringlets soaked in that same liquid.
"Just when I thought I'd seen it all. Brock, you might wanna--*WOOAHH--" said Colt as those tendrils wrapped around his wrists and tossed him aside directly into Brock's windshield, cracking it and leaving one of his revolvers behind that landed beside Brock. It was now just him and the corrupted, mutated robot. Even with the opportunity to defend himself, Brock's entire body tensed up, his eyes racing between the metal monster and the revolver.
Brock took some steps back, tripping over himself, and was then held up by the neck. The parasite continued to squeeze as his life began slipping away. All Brock wanted to do was plead with his words but even at that, what he could muster were merely restrained gasps for air.
"Hey, wormy...!" Shouted Colt as a handful of stones hit Brock's attacker from behind, who dropped him, asserting all of it's attention back to Colt, writhing with pain yet still able to continue. "...Gonna take just a little more to keep me down." The steel monster's tendrils formed an axe head and swung it down toward Colt, who split his legs, narrowly managing to evade the attack.
Colt gulped and rolled off the hood of Brock's muscle car, reloading his single revolver with haste as the bot recovered. "Aaaaand gotcha." Colt slams at the hammer, releasing a flurry of bullets that would hit their target all over. Once again, the metal monster was hardly bothered by Colt's attack. The confident look on Colt's face quickly turned to one of mild panic. He looked down at his belt, only to be interrupted with his signature weapon of choice easily batted out his hand.
Colt flushed with a small amount of fear. "Any chance for a timeout--?" Colt ducks another attack and boots the bot in the chest, creating some distance between each other as Colt heads back for his revolver. Right when Colt retrieves the weapon, his ankle becomes entangled by his foe, causing him to once again drop the weapon, dragging him backward. By now both Colt and Brock were eye-to-eye with each other. Brock was still grounded, mesmerized, his knees weak with fear, seemingly unable to function.
"Brock, what're you doing...?" Asked Colt as he struggled, inching closer toward what appears to be certain doom. "I know I'm too pretty for this world but now's really not the time for admiration!"
"I-I--I can't just--What about you?"
"I can handle myself. Believe me..." Said Colt as he loosened his boot. "...So either zip it and get to running or uhh... okay, I guess we could all use some help every once in a while..."
Ever so timid, Brock looked down to Colt's other revolver and paused.
"Don't tell me you don't know how to use that..." Colt could already tell Brock's next words by the incompetence etched on his face. "--You're kidding." Colt manages to slip out of the parasite's grasp, losing a boot in the process. Brock held Colt's revolver, trembling, still unsure of himself. Colt picked up his boot and threw it at the tendrils, briefly stunning the creature and giving Colt the time to remove one of many abnormally large, silver bullets from his belt. "Y'know what, I'll take it from here."
Brock silently nodded and tosses Colt his revolver who then takes aim right at the core of the mutation. "Still hungry? Maybe try some of this!" The silver bullet blasts right through the parasite which lets out a high-pitched shriek as more of that viscous black fluid flows. The body of the bot fell to the ground, the creature still squirming around, still alive. Colt frantically stomps at it until it stops moving, getting some of that liquid on himself and finally putting an end to the conflict.
After calming himself, an exasperated Colt kept his eyes locked on what he had defeated, put off at the sight. "...Sheesh. I was almost a shiskabob, and my clothes...!" Colt kneeled, rubbing his finger on the black ink and putting it up to his nose. "gags No way that's oil. Guess Pam was right..." Colt said to himself before turning to Brock. "...Think I should lick it?"
Brock was still visibly struggling to catch his breath and Colt seemed to take no mind to that. "I'm just messing around, Brock, thought you'd know that by now. But anyway, on to more pressing matters... how's the hair?--Any out of place?--any more of whatever this stuff is on the face?--I gotta know."
Brock had finally caught his breath. "I think... I think you're good... What even was that?"
Colt shrugged. "Beats me. All that matters is whatever that thing was is done for and we're still standing. Ain't that right?"
"...Right."
"Right, right... never do that again by the way."
"...Do what--?"
Colt blew out the simmering smoke coming from his revolver. "Don't want to alarm ya but Christmas ain't gonna be here for another five months. What exactly were you waiting for--? Maybe I'm giving you just a bit too much credit here but you've given me so many kickings in Shotgun Shootout that I thought maybe all that time staring at a screen would translate well into the real world... still want another rematch by the way."
Brock solemnly smiled. "You just don't know when to give up, do you? You really wanna get your ass handed to ya for... jeez, I lost count too."
Colt: "--Shush, sh--sh, sh, sh... sh! ...Okay? Those were all flukes and you know it. Besides, I hate shotguns. Got one too many reasons to hate 'em back home and now there's this. Where's the skill in using them anyway? No wonder why you struggled to use one of these..." Colt eyed his revolver and yawned. "...Anyway, long time, no see, huh? How's the day been treating ya? Bet it's been goin' great so far."
Brock: "I'm uh... you know, doing fine. As fine as I can be after... that."
Colt: "Heh, y'know a "Thank you, Colt, you sexy gunslinger, you." would be nice for a change..."
Brock sighed. "...Thanks, Colt."
Colt tilted his head and smiled obnoxiously. "Come on. You can say the rest. I mean, you still kinda owe me one for fending off those punks from Retropolis and that's the least you can do..." An awkward silence had been cast over the two. "...Okay fine, just a "thank you" will do."
"So, um..." Brock scratched his head. "You got any clue what's going on here?"
Colt: "Psh, no time to explain. From what I've heard so far it's a loooooong story anyway. So, ya done with the questions 'cause I got a whole lotta of my own so if you'll excuse me... I'm here to save the day and look good doing it. Now why are you here?"
Brock would keep quiet, a little uneasy about himself as usual. Feeling a little slighted, Colt crossed his arms, looking back at Brock's ruined ride. "Eh, it's only a scratch but hey, if ya really want me to, I can just help you right on out the city."
Brock: "No, no--I... I ain't leaving, not yet."
Colt raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's certainly a choice--a stupid one but still definitely a choice. Here to help with the load, huh? That's not to say I need it of course."
Brock looked off into the distance."I guess that's one way to put it..."
Colt scoffed. "Don't mean to judge but judging by how you handled your little situation back there... I take it you didn't bring anything for self-defense or uh, any defending for that matter..."
Brock scratched his head nervously. "Yeah..."
"Heh. Nice going, Brock. So... what, you can't afford a good ol' fashioned six shooter? Didn't realize your arcade was going out of business, what happened to you lighting up the dancefloor as a DJ?" Colt asked with a load of sarcasm in his tongue.
Brock: "I'm hoping you know not every problem can be solved with a gun, Colt."
Colt rolled his eyes. "What're you, my mother? Of course, I know that..."
Brock: "Oh. Great. Nice to know we're on the same pa--"
Colt: "Which is why I use two. Now I want you to consider this: would you rather get put six feet under by some no-name junk buckets or dish out some butt-kickings yourself with one of these bad boys?" [Spins revolver] "Answer's pretty obvious, ain't it?"
Brock once again wouldn't answer Colt.
Colt: "...Right? Look, I'm not saying to bust out a whole friggin' rocket launcher or something but, come on now."
"Okay, okay... maybe you got a point..." Brock chuckled his nervousness off, plunging both of his hands into his pockets. "But, umm, I guess I also have something to let off my chest. I'm here for a reason and it's probably not one you're thinking of..."
Colt: "Yeah, no kidding. Must be one helluva of a reason to bring you to this place too... ah screw it, I'll bite. What really is it that brings you here? There are easier ways to kill yourself, y'know."
Brock chuckled nervously then rolled his eyes with a level of snark that matched Colt. "Just looking for a friend--maybe friend(s) would be the better word."
"Good thing you got me." Intrigued, Colt tilted his head forward with an enthralled eyebrow raise. "This friend got a name?"
Brock: "Oh yeah... It's... it's..."
Colt: "Come on, spit it out."
Brock: "...it's 8-Bit."
Colt: "...Oh. I'm sure he's doing just mighty fine right about now. After all, he's totally a bounty hunter sent from space. He might've told you that maybe one or a billion times."
Brock: "Err, that's Rico and yeah, you're right. You telling me you don't remember 8-Bit? You kinda spilled some soda on him that time you got just a little too heated on Project Laser..."
Colt: "Really?--Oh. Yeah. Think you're starting to ring a bell..." A smile cracked from Colt's mouth. "I'll admit it was a little funny watching 'em squirm around like there were bees in his circuits..."
Colt began snickering as his eyes drifted away from Brock, who wasn't exactly approving of Colt's tone. "...But, sorry."
Brock: "All good. Need to keep jogging that memory of yours? He's about this tall, on the stumpier side of things... wears these blue Converses, pretty adorable too, definitely no vest-- trust me, I couldn't get him to wear one if I tried. His tracker's led me to the city, the thing is--"
Brock stopped himself after he noticed that Colt had grown awfully silent. He just stood there, looking like he was possibly hiding something. Brock himself had grown curious.
Brock: "...It's kinda jammed. Did... did I say something--?"
Colt: "Yeah, actually. Good thing Rico didn't tag along with ya... okay--look, I'll just break the news to ya right away. I don't think you're gonna be finding your little buddy anytime soon. At least in the way you remember him..."
Brock: "For real? Wha--Why?"
Colt: "Huh. I guess there is time to explain. You're barking up the wrong tree here but, apparently, so don't shoot the messenger, the little guy's the one behind all of..." Colt paused, looking back over to the robots he put out of commission. "...this."
Brock batted his eyes in disbelief. "I know you like to mess around and stuff but I don't think now's the time to be joking."
Colt: "Wish I was. Really do. Didn't realize you and a certain starfish had much more in common because clearly, you've been living under a rock. Haven't you heard of the news?"
Brock: "Yeah--kinda--but I ain't hearing that noise. He wouldn't do this. He wouldn't do any of this."
Colt: "Well you better get those ears checked. Felt like his vibe was always off whenever I was around him. You sure he wasn't planning to go all goblin mode or something when you first found him?"
Brock: "N-No?! Sure he's been a little more quiet than usual for the past week or so but--"
Colt: "What're you even gonna do when you see him, huh? sideyes revolver smugly I know what I will... when the time's right I'll definitely be giving that thing what it deserves."
Brock: "Thing? That's my friend--!"
Colt: "Was. He was your friend..."
Brock kept his silence, giving himself much-needed time to gather his thoughts. "...If, and that's a big if, what you say is true... I'm gonna get him back. Something's gotta be controlling him."
Colt burst out laughing. "--Hahahahahaha--you're, breaths in you're... continues laughing ...you're serious?" Colt continued with his amused laughter as Brock only appeared more and more annoyed.
Brock crossed his arms as the laughter went on. "You done?" Colt's laughter died down a bit. "Hold on... just--just gimme a moment... laughs ...man, sorry, I had to get that outta my system. Hit me with that again, you wanna do what now?"
Brock: "I'm bringing him home. Don't matter how, I just want my friend back."
Colt: "Whew, you're lucky I pity you. So how exactly do you plan on doing that? Still losing that oh-so-good circulation to your brain?--Have you had a little too much to drink? I know that's rich coming from a guy who proposed to a mannequin but if both Surge and what's-her-face couldn't take 'em out, what chance do you have?
Brock froze up. "...What?"
"Just go home kid, this is one game you'll never win."
Brock: "I--"
Colt: "You heard me, Brock. Go home, kid."
Brock: "...You're just four ye--"
"Yeah, yeah." Ragged Colt, who turned and began strutting away, retrieving his other revolver, sticking out two fingers and waving them as a goodbye. "We'll do that rematch sometime later. Now if you'll excuse me, I got a city to save on my--"
"Wait...!" Colt had stopped in his tracks, still turned away from Brock.
"...What about Max and Surge?"
Colt turned his head slightly toward Brock. "So that's her name... you tellin' me you don't know?"
"Know what...?!"
Colt's face turned from confidently smug to somewhat remorseful. "...They're gone."
Sorrow had touched Brock's heart. Once again, he took a step back, completely stunned, unable to cobble together any words.
Colt folded his arms. "Something wrong?--Need a pinch or two? Maybe some water over the face?"
"...S...S-So they're--?"
Colt: "Yeah. Probably. If you wanna go down that rabbit hole then be my guest. Just know you'll never climb out of it. They haven't been seen in over a day now. I dunno what else to tell ya but what do you expect out of a glorified tin can and an impulsive rookie during the apocalypse?"
A cold shiver ran down Brock's spine as Colt continued. "...If I was in their place things would be peachy right about now, believe me. Now we've all been left high and dry and guess who's fault that is. Hope ya know 8-Bit's not gonna stop until this is far, far worse..."
Wrenched by guilt and despair, Brock couldn't help but turn away from Colt. He couldn't bear looking him in the eye.
"...Which is why we're gonna stop him, right?"
Brock looked up to see Colt with a hopeful, earnest smile on his face. His breathing had steadied and Brock nodded his head a handful of times. "...Right. Right. I just wanna talk with him."
"Sorry. Not in the job description. You said something about a tracker, yes?"
"...Yeah."
"Perfect. You won't have to worry about it. I'm sure we can get it fixed."
"We?"
"Yeah. We. You'll see what I'm talking about later. In fact, I got a whole lotta stuff to show you, especially with what 8-Bit's done..."
"I'll... I'll see it when I believe it, Colt." Said Brock, not much confidence coming from his mouth.
Colt scoffed hard. "Oh, you will when you're staring right into the stuff of your nightmares. Can't say I didn't say "I told ya so" when that happens. But hey--if it makes you feel any better I'm almost as confused as you are. Some fun-sized arcade machine? He's responsible for the mess I gotta clean up...?" Colt scoffed again. "Give me a break..."
All of a sudden, that silence had returned yet again. Colt sat on some nearby pavement, his hands clasped together, his face etched with a subtle amount of remorse while Brock was left to observe.
The rest of Colt's bitterness subsided. "...Sorry I sort of blew a gasket back there. I... exhales things have been so rough lately. This... all of this, it happened so fast... I couldn't help as much as I could've. I Don't want you or anyone else that hasn't already to get hurt. I know you wanna help your friend and I get that, but I seriously can't hammer this home enough. Trust me. I've been in this game long enough to know there's next to no hope of getting the little guy the help he needs. That's to say he even can be lended help, aside from a few bullet holes to the screen, of course..."
Brock: "It's... it's cool. Apology accepted. Maybe you're right, I am a little outta my depth but I gotta do what I can. If 8-Bit really is outta control here, I gotta do something about it. Gotta right some wrongs."
Colt: "That's the spirit but... yeah--you know what?" Colt got back up. "...As much as I'd love to blast more and more of these things to pieces 'til the sun comes back up, we should probably just pick up the slack before more of them come out to play--for your sake I mean, not mine."
With a mystery ignited, Brock nodded while Colt brushed passed him. Brock fails to follow, his mind still occupied by 8-Bit, by Max and Surge, by all the unanswered questions surrounding them, prompting Colt to turn back and raise an eyebrow.
Colt: "So, you comin' with, or are you just gonna enjoy the view? Or maybe, just maybe, the second thoughts are finally kicking in, hmm? To be honest, I wouldn't blame ya." Colt extended his hand into the air, signaling that the rain had returned. "Aw, my hair!--Have you made up your mind? I don't--okay well I sorta do have all day but think of my hair!"
"...Oh--uh--y-yeah, I'm comin' with, it's just..." Brock looked back over to his muscle car and sighed heavily. "...Oh man...! I guess it is still usable. Are we not taking my ride?"
Colt: "Yeah, no. You're pretty much begging for trouble riding around in that thing going forward. Best to keep things slow and steady for now so come on, let's get this show on the road already. We've got things to do."
Brock sighed lightly. "Okay..."
Colt: "Don't think you'll have to worry about a parking ticket--so hey, there's that. Now remember, this face? He's your guardian angel if you couldn't tell, and this place? Probably gonna eat ya alive if you're not careful so make sure you stick to me like glue... d-don't actually do that, I'm as uncomfortable as is already ."
Brock: "I think I got it..."
Colt: "Alright then, 'bout time we got going..."