Hello everyone, I'm having an ongoing issue with my 2004 Volkswagen Golf 5 FSI (1.4L direct injection engine) and I'm hoping the community can provide some advice.
The main problem is that the car struggles to start after it has been parked and turned off, especially when parked on an incline. It will crank but have difficulty firing up, often requiring multiple tries. However, once the engine is running, it seems to be okay and doesn't stall or have drivability issues.
Symptoms:

• Difficult starting after the car has been parked and turned off
  
• Issue is worse when parked on an incline (nose up or nose down)
  
• Once started and driving, the engine runs fine
  
• When ignition is on before starting, I hear periodic knocking/dubbing sounds coming from the fuel pump area (dubb, dubb, dubb)
  
• When those knocking sounds are present, the car struggles to start and will often stall soon after if it does start
  

What I've done so far:

• Replaced the battery
  
• Replaced the fuel pump
  
• Replaced the high pressure fuel pump (for the direct injection system)
  
• Cleaned the air sensor
  

Despite these new components, the knocking sounds from the fuel pump area persist, along with the starting/stalling issue after parking.
Potential causes I'm considering:

1. Issue with the fuel pump camshaft followelobe (responsible for actuating the high pressure pump)
   
2. Faulty fuel pressure sensor providing incorrect readings
   
3. Problem with the fuel pump control module
   
4. Restriction/blockage in the fuel supply or filter
   
5. Significant vacuum leak (since the FSI uses engine vacuum)
   

I'm likely at the point where I need to have the FSI fuel system diagnosed more thoroughly by a dealer or specialist shop with proper scan tools and pressure testing equipment.
Has anyone experienced similar fuel pump/starting issues with their Golf 5 FSI? I'd really appreciate any advice or insights into properly diagnosing and resolving this problem. Please let me know if you need any other details!
Thanks in advance for your help!

I'm a bit stumped. PC has been working fine for about 3-4 years and I woke up today with my bios screen just frozen with a stuck loading wheel that said something like "preparing automatic repair". To shorten the story, no matter what I do.. the pc will not boot into windows. It loads bios just fine but when ever I try to boot to windows it freezes the loading wheel after about 1-2 seconds and either stays there indefinitely or cycles and loads bios again.
My mb is ASUS TUF Gaming X570-Plus (Wi-Fi)
So far I have,

• -checked boot order (bios is recognizing boot m.2 ssd just fine)
• -Pwr cycled pc plenty of times
• -reset cmos
• -removed all peripheral usb and plugins
• -updated/flashed bios
• -downloaded win 11 Installation Media on usb and tried to boot from it (same symptoms)
• -removed my HDD and tried booting from both ssd and thumb drive
• -booting in safemode
• -tried UEFI and CSM enabled and disabled
• -removed and tested all ram modules
• -reseated 24pin mb and reseated gpu (looks to be spinning and working)

What's stumping me the most is the fact that it cant even boot from a fresh win11 installer usb. It just freezes like with my normal ssd. Makes me think its the MB, but I updated bios and flashed cmos.. idk :(
pls help.

Hi all! Once again I'm turning to this extremely helpful group for advice. I've posted before about my 8 year old son who recently came back with two CFTR mutations, one df508 and the other c.68T>C, a variant of unknown consequence.
My son also has a sweat test level of 41. We had our first appt at the local CF clinic today and the doc basically told us my son doesn't have CF and diagnosed him with CF related metabolic disorder. His lung function test was normal today, and they are ordering the fecal test and a repeat sweat test. Currently, his only symptom is frequent episodes of what we think are hyponatremia when he exercises in warm weather. He gets a headache, then vomits, and gets very lethargic. We are supplementing him with salt tablets which seems to help but does not prevent all the episodes.
These episodes happen enough (he had one 2 days ago) that we have considered pulling him from sports, etc. They affect his daily life because he essentially can't be an active, normal 8 year old boy and run and play it it's over 75 degrees out.
The doctor does not want to try my son on a modulator drug because he said he doesn't have enough symptoms to warrant the side effects. I tried asking if we could do a trial to see if the heat episodes would stop but the doc did not agree. I'm feeling like we're back at square one, with no help in sight for our kid. Any suggestions? Should we try a different CF doctor or clinic?

Complete remission of depression and anxiety using a ketogenic diet: case series

Front. Nutr., 14 May 2024 Sec. Clinical Nutrition Volume 11 - 2024 https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2024.1396685
Background: There is little data that describe the use of ketogenic metabolic therapy to achieve full remission of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder in clinical practice. We present a retrospective case series of three adults with major depression and generalized anxiety disorder with complex comorbidity, treated with personalized ketogenic metabolic therapy, who achieved complete remission of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder and improvements in flourishing, self-compassion, and metabolic health.
Methods: Three adults, ages 32–36, with major depression, generalized anxiety, other anxiety disorders, and comorbid psychiatric conditions were treated for 12–16 weeks with personalized whole food animal-based ketogenic metabolic therapy (1.5:1 ratio) in a specialized metabolic psychiatry practice. Interventions included twice-weekly visits with an experienced ketogenic registered dietitian; daily photo journaling and capillary blood BHB/glucose/GKI monitoring; virtual groups; family/friends support; nature walks and talks several times per week, and community building. Successful adoption of the ketogenic diet was defined as the achievement and maintenance of capillary BHB ≥ 0.8 mmol/L and GKI < 6. Remission was assessed by GAD-7 and PHQ-9, and quality of life was assessed subjectively and with validated scales for flourishing and self-compassion. Metabolic health was assessed by laboratories/biometric measures.
Results: Two patients achieved remission of major depression (PHQ-9 ≤ 4) and generalized anxiety (GAD-7 ≤ 4) within 7 weeks of therapeutic nutritional ketosis; one required 12 weeks. Anxiety responded and remitted more quickly than major depression. Flourishing and self-compassion increased steadily. Patients lost 10.9 to 14.8% of their initial body weight within 12 weeks and improved metabolically; one achieved optimal metabolic health.
Conclusion: Complete remission of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder occurred within 7–12 weeks of therapeutic nutritional ketosis during treatment with a personalized animal-based ketogenic diet (ratio 1.5:1) in adults with complex comorbid depression and anxiety engaged in a specialized metabolic psychiatry program.

Introduction

Emerging brain-based research in psychiatry and neurology has focused on identifying fundamental metabolic disturbances within neurons and throughout the body involving insulin resistance, inflammation, oxidative stress, and alterations of the gut microbiome (1). All four of these fundamental metabolic disturbances are present in major depression (2), and underlying anxiety disorders (3) and can be directly modulated through the use of ketogenic metabolic therapy (KMT) (4).
As psychiatric disorders have risen over the past several decades, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome has sharply increased, with only 12.2% of U.S. adults meeting the criteria for optimal metabolic health, leaving 87.8% metabolically compromised (5, 6).
Metabolic syndrome affects almost a third of individuals with major depression (7). It is a significant contributor to their morbidity and mortality (8) and is rooted in impaired glucose metabolism and utilization. Insulin resistance has been well described in many tissues, including the brain (9), where it is being investigated as a link between metabolic health and mental health conditions. Preclinical models demonstrate that glucose intolerance is directly associated with anxiety and that insulin resistance triggers depressive behaviors (9). In brain tissue, insulin resistance results in cerebral glucose hypometabolism and a vicious cycle of unmet energy needs (10). In human studies, cerebral glucose hypometabolism is a feature of major depression (11, 12) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) (13).
KMT, also known as the therapeutic ketogenic diet, or KD, is a low carbohydrate, moderate-protein, high-fat diet that supports a fundamental metabolic shift from glucose to ketone bodies as the primary fuel source (14). Classic KMTs are formulated with strict macronutrient ratios, most commonly 4:1 and 3:1 (fat: protein + carbohydrates), and have demonstrated efficacy in intractable epilepsy and genetic disorders. More recently, modified classic KMTs with lower macronutrient ratios of 2.5:1, 2:1, and 1.5:1 have been utilized in research and clinical practice (15, 16). These allow more variety in the diet, meet micronutrient needs except vitamin D (17), and are easier to sustain for extended periods of time.
KMT exploits the body’s natural ability to produce ketone bodies (d-beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), acetoacetate, and acetone) in the liver from fatty acids by keeping carbohydrate consumption very low. Acute and sustained production of ketone bodies produces a fundamental shift in fuel energetics within cells, particularly neurons, which can radically re-route and quickly rely on readily available BHB and acetoacetate for cellular energy (18). Ketone bodies also increase vascular density at the blood–brain barrier, which can strikingly increase the availability of ketone bodies for brain energy metabolism by 40-fold (19). Ketones are a preferred energy source in the CNS (20) and neurons will choose ketones over glucose when available.
Nutritional ketosis (10) using a KMT is a natural, not pathological, state (21) where the body’s energy and protein synthesis needs are met with a high-fat/moderate-protein/low-carbohydrate diet, resulting in sustained elevations of serum ketones and fatty acids and normal glucose without acidemia. In both acute and long-term nutritional ketosis, ketone bodies have a number of biological effects that directly change the brain’s cellular energy status (15), increase mitochondrial density (22), and improve mitochondrial morphology, which has been shown to be altered in mood disorders (23, 24). Mitochondrial abnormalities have also been postulated to be responsible for changes in synaptic function and neuroplasticity, potentially associated with symptoms of depression and anxiety (19).
Recent research shows that a ketogenic diet (KD) reduces neuronal firing rates, modulates ion channels and cell signaling cascades, and stimulates the biochemical synthesis and neurotransmission of GABA by inhibiting glutamate decarboxylase, a major inhibitory neurotransmitter involved in neuronal firing and anxiogenesis (25, 26). BHB activates the transcription of antioxidant-related genes by inhibiting histone deacetylases, triggering long-term adaptive changes in gene expression. In addition, at physiologic concentrations, ketone bodies reduce neuroinflammation through direct action at G-protein coupled receptors (25). KD also favorably alters the gut microbiome (27). Perhaps most importantly, KD directly increases NAD+, which reduces reactive oxygen species and increases mitochondrial ATP production. It is also utilized as a substrate for sirtuins and PARP enzymes associated with DNA repair and longevity. A sustained increase in NAD+ may underlie the pleiomorphic benefits of KMT across multiple neuropsychiatric conditions (28). In terms of the frequent abnormal alarms set off in the amygdala during anxiety, nutritional ketosis may provide an acute and long-term intervention to reduce generalized anxiety, panic attacks, obsessive doubt, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For apathy, anhedonia, amotivation, and abulia seen in major depression, therapeutic nutritional ketosis may provide higher and more sustained intraneuronal energy and repair (29, 30).
There is no published data that describes the implementation and use of personalized KMT for adults in real-world clinical practice who present with major depression comorbid with GAD and complex psychiatric comorbidity.
The aim of this case series is to examine the response to the treatment of major depression and generalized anxiety with whole-food animal-based personalized KMT in adults with complex psychiatric comorbidity and varied metabolic status. We conducted a retrospective review of three cases from our Metabolic Psychiatry Registry that demonstrate a consistent response and remission of major depression and generalized anxiety among patients who are psychiatrically and metabolically complex, despite differences in the initiation and adoption of KMT, and varied metabolic dysfunction. We describe the evaluation process and prescription of KMT, baseline metabolic workup and monitoring, elements that fostered treatment engagement and adherence, and challenges encountered during 12 weeks of KMT. We correlated capillary BHB/GKI with time to the remission of major depression and GAD and the achievement of metabolic health.

Discussion

Although KD was first shown to produce antidepressant effects and alleviate “behavioral despair” in preclinical studies more than 20 years ago (20), there is little clinical data regarding KD in major depression and anxiety disorders.
A retrospective analysis of 31 individuals with primary diagnoses of major depression (N = 7), bipolar II disorder (N = 13), and schizoaffective disorder (N = 12) who had failed to respond to conventional psychiatric care was treated with KD (75%–80% fat, 15%–20% protein, 5% carbohydrate) for 12 weeks in a psychiatric hospital (31). Of these patients, 22 were voluntarily admitted for the initiation of KD, and the remainder were offered KD during their inpatient hospital course. Change in depression was measured by HAM-D and MADRS in 6 of 7 patients with major depression and 12 of 13 patients with bipolar disorder. Notably, 100% of patients given the HAM-D showed statistically significant improvement in depressive symptoms (mean HAM-D decreased from 25.4 to 7.7; mean MADRS decreased from 29.6 to 10.1). However, serum ketones were not measured; urinary ketone measures were obtained once in 28 patients during the 12-week intervention; 18 patients (64%) showed positive urine ketones (31).
Bipolar depression was included in a recent randomized controlled pilot study assessing the safety and feasibility of KMT as adjunctive therapy, and reported safety and feasibility with excellent adherence and maintenance of ketosis (mean BHB 0.88 ± 0.99 mmol/L for 12 weeks) (32).
One case report utilized KD (65% fat, 25% protein, 10% carbs) with a time-restricted feeding window in a 65-year-old woman with major depression and type II diabetes and reported remission of depression (PHQ-9 17 to 0), normalization of HbA1c, decrease in estimated average glucose from 216 to 96 mg/dL, improvement in HOMA-IR from 9.4 to 2.3, and TG/HDL ratio from 4.7 to 1.2 over 12 weeks. The only measured serum BHB reported in the case was a mean of 1.5 mmol/L by week 12 (30).
A recent meta-analysis of low carbohydrate diets used in controlled trials that evaluated symptoms of depression and anxiety, not disorders, in varied metabolic and inflammatory conditions reported that the symptomatic response of these symptoms was inconclusive (33). The conclusions may not apply to KMTs; the meta-analysis was limited by grouping varied diets with higher carb intake and higher protein intake than usually associated with diets formulated to induce nutritional ketosis; serum or capillary BHB was not reported; and primary and secondary outcomes varied across studies.
In anxiety, preclinical research shows that exogenous ketone supplementation reduces anxiety behaviors (34). There is one case report of a self-administered Atkins Diet for weight loss in a woman with panic disorder (35) but no reports of KMT in panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD. Case reports of KD addressing anxiety describe two cases of decreased anxiety symptoms in a woman with women, one with bipolar I disorder and another with unspecified mood disorder, comorbid emotional dysregulation, body dysmorphic disorder, and eating disorder (36, 37), and one case report that describes the elimination of anxiety symptoms in a man with bipolar disorder (38). Anxiety and obsessive preoccupations improved in weight-restored anorexic women, in one case report describing complete remission of anorexia (39) and in a retrospective case series where animal-based KD was adopted without dietary prescription and monitoring (2); however, ketone measures were not reported. One small pilot trial where KD was followed by ketamine infusions reported a significant lessening of obsessive preoccupations in weight-recovered women with chronic anorexia; here, ketosis was measured by breath acetone (40).
Finally, all three patients had comorbid ADHD, which may be important. Approximately 65–89% of adults with ADHD experience one or more comorbid psychiatric conditions, and ADHD often occurs comorbid with anxiety and depression (41). Preclinical studies in murine models (42) of ADHD with hyperactivity suggest that KD may improve symptoms via alteration of the gut microbiome. Preclinical studies in dogs with epilepsy displaying ADHD-like behaviors treated with a medium-chain triglyceride KD have shown decreased pathological behaviors (43). Further research exploring the effect of KMT in humans with ADHD should be considered to understand the mechanisms of action and assess short- and long-term risks and benefits.
There is little research regarding the selection, implementation, and treatment course for KMT use as adjunctive or sole treatment in individual psychiatric conditions. Given the potential benefits of therapeutic nutritional ketosis and the restoration of metabolic health (44), there is a pressing need to identify the biological underpinnings of KD in psychiatric disorders and delineate factors associated with the successful adoption and adherence of KMT and responses in common psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety. In clinical practice and real-world settings, where patients often present with multiple comorbidities, consideration of KD can seem daunting to clinicians.
Despite that, this case series illustrates complete remission of both major depression and GAD in three adults with complex psychiatric comorbidity and previously unrecognized metabolic dysfunction using whole-food, animal-based personalized KMT. Anxiety responded first and time to remission occurred rapidly within 7–12 weeks, despite varied challenges, including preferences for time-restricted eating, slow adoption, inconsistent monitoring, and emergent fatigue during strenuous exercise, which occurred many weeks into KMT due to low serum carnitine and spontaneous reduction of protein intake rather than keto-adaptation or “keto-flu.” All patients improved metabolically, and one patient achieved optimal metabolic health (6).
These patients were representative of many adults in clinical psychiatric practice who present with persistent, serious symptoms interfering with several life domains. They each had five DSM-V psychiatric disorders: severe unipolar major depression, GAD, at least one other anxiety disorder (OCD, PTSD, and/or panic disorder), and ADHD, and two had binge eating disorder. They had all failed at least two previous adequate trials of medications and psychotherapy and were seeking relief. All had family histories of mood and anxiety disorders and documented metabolic disease in first-degree relatives. Extensive laboratory testing and bioimpedance evaluations were eye-opening because, although they were overweight, they were not aware of the extent to which they were already metabolically ill; we suspect it enhanced their motivation to adopt and maintain KMT.
This case series is limited by describing only three patients, which limits the generalizability of our results as well as the inherent selection bias, as they were interested in KMT after failing standard therapies. In addition, they were selected because their complex psychiatric comorbidity reflects the complexity seen in the majority of our outpatient psychiatric practice. This degree of complexity may limit the generalization of these findings, although it is important to note that outpatient clinical psychiatric practice as a whole has seen an increase in complex psychiatric comorbidity over the past two decades (44).
As a retrospective case series, there may be additional limiting and confounding factors, including the lack of a control group. Some rating scales and digital data are missing, which may impact the completeness of the analysis. Time to consistent nutritional ketosis and delays in obtaining necessary labs requiring intervention may have contributed to a longer time to response and remission; response and remission may occur earlier than reported here, and this deserves further research. Finally, it is not clear to what extent immersive treatment (see Supplementary material 1) and additional interventions during KMT, such as close digital monitoring, frequent clinical contact, group supports, and nature walks, contributed to the rapidity of response/remission of anxiety and depression, or to overall treatment success, independent of the biological effects of KMT, and which of these elements were most critical; more research is needed. Carefully designed prospective studies and randomized controlled trials providing higher levels of evidence are needed to examine the use of KMT and time to response and remission in individuals without comorbidity and determine the extent to which comorbidity may confound or alter these (8).
As metabolic psychiatry moves forward, we need both preclinical and larger, well-controlled clinical studies examining the pleiomorphic effects of ketone bodies in the brain and in the body to understand how we can best leverage whole foods to optimize brain energy, enhance genetic expression, reduce neuroinflammation, optimize metabolic health, and safeguard the promise of our future.

Idk if this is the right place for this (since I only see diagnosis for physical conditions) but I guess it's better to try than do nothing (I had originally posted this in the ADHD subreddit but turns out it's against the rules).
So, for the past 2 years I've been wondering if I maybe have ADHD. I resonate with a lot of experiences that people that do have ADHD describe, but I ofc don't want to self diagnose.
So, for most of my life (probably until I was like 13) I never paid attention to a thing in school. All I could do was go to school and get lost in my thoughts/day dream. In hindsight, Idk if back then it was just bc I thought school was useless, or if it was my inability to pay attention. But anyway, that wasn't really a big deal.
Fast forward to 10th grade when my studies actually mattered, I realized that I kept getting distracted and my efficiency was so low. I could be sitting there for 10 whole hours and only read through 10 pages the entire day (and I'm not even exaggerating). A lot of times, I could THINK about doing something. Even if I really really want to do it, I just CAN'T do it. And before I know it the entire day has passed. It stresses me out that I'm not doing it but I'm still unable to do it and I feel like in the past few months I've insanely become addicted to mindlessly scrolling through the internet ( esp instagram ) Like that's literally the only thing I'm able to do. Literally, my entire school year was me having to do something -> being unable to do it -> the entire day is over and i haven't done anything. (It's been like this for the past 5 years)
The thing is, this is mostly for things I don't want to do - so is it just that I have trouble motivating myself? Like, it's not as extreme for things I don't have negative feelings associated with. I still am not as efficient as a person should be but it isn't as bad. I feel like this is affecting all aspects of my life - just bc I'm focused on a few things that im unable to do, i engage in mindless scrolling etc and because of that I can't even enjoy things that I actually want to do.
Also, I've always been horrible at time management. Ever since I was a child. I can't do anything until the last minute and im probably late to every single thing. I'm literally EXACTLY on time or late. Like, I've been taking the bus to school since 4th grade and I"m in 12th now and despite my parents getting pissed at me for it, I literally can't get to the bus until the last minute (or until i'm like 2 mins late). I don't understand how this hasn't changed in 8 years.
Another thing is that my parents would probably describe me as a very forgetful person. That's basically been my identity in their eyes for all my life. Like forgetful/always day dreaming, etc
Also, I would say that I'm pretty unhappy in my life. Idk if that's a symptom or something or just a result of me being frustrated with being unable to function like a normal human being idk
OHOHOH I almost missed this out - I also resonate with a lot of ADHD SAT test takers. So, the SAT english module requires us to read dense texts and answer questions regarding them and I initially just couldn't CONCENTRATE on those passages yk. I just couldn't register it in my head and stuff. It's been a while since i took the test so it's hard for me to describe my experience but ik at the time I took it I felt like something was wrong. I ended up doing well on it tho ( got a 770) but I was literally the only test taker in 100+ who had to use a paper to jot down points to properly focus on the passages
Anyway, should I get it diagnosed? Am I totally fine and just making shit up? Is this not how ADHD manifests? idk y'all tell me

Hello all! I come bearing tragic news of my Ender 3 S Pro that isn't printing, although, the issue is more complex than one would think. The issue: The printer isn't printing. When loaded with a print, and upon starting it, the printer will warm up the extruder and bed as expected. However, upon completion, the print percentage completed will rapidly increase, and end at 100% within a few seconds, all without the extruder even moving. Symptoms: No printing, but the print is "completed" as per the screen. Additionally, the position of the extruder when at "home" (z=0) has the extruder several inches in the air, without the ability to lower it. The CR-Touch module also didn't have its light, but this has since returned. Efforts: I have attempted to load every firmware update for both the motherboard and display no no avail, even following the instructions as stipulated in the read-me file. I have also lowered the extruder down by hand to the bed while off, and switched it on to see what would happen. No dice. I have removed and reattached the CR-Touch module several times, with no difference in the symptoms. I have also reset the settings a few times, again, with no changes in the symptoms. If you have any ideas or posts here or elsewhere I should look at, please, comment below. Thank you all in advance!

Hello all! I come bearing tragic news of my Ender 3 S Pro that isn't printing, although, the issue is more complex than one would think. The issue: The printer isn't printing. When loaded with a print, and upon starting it, the printer will warm up the extruder and bed as expected. However, upon completion, the print percentage completed will rapidly increase, and end at 100% within a few seconds, all without the extruder even moving. Symptoms: No printing, but the print is "completed" as per the screen. Additionally, the position of the extruder when at "home" (z=0) has the extruder several inches in the air, without the ability to lower it. The CR-Touch module also didn't have its light, but this has since returned. Efforts: I have attempted to load every firmware update for both the motherboard and display no no avail, even following the instructions as stipulated in the read-me file. I have also lowered the extruder down by hand to the bed while off, and switched it on to see what would happen. No dice. I have removed and reattached the CR-Touch module several times, with no difference in the symptoms. I have also reset the settings a few times, again, with no changes in the symptoms. If you have any ideas or posts here or elsewhere I should look at, please, comment below. Thank you all in advance!

Link for all the chapters available for free here: Engines of Arachnea on Royal Road
Deep in the groaning halls of sinew and bone he awaited his audience with the god. At a wave of his hand the ribs which held up the ceiling contracted, tendons shifting within the pink walls of the chamber as the jagged, calcareous spurs that composed the doorway sank back into the spongy masses of tissue, revealing a passage curving down and out of sight.
Menash stood before the yawning portal and considered eternity. This was no an idle thought: here in the Dawning Chamber, the concept was very real. His father, Yulan, had stood in this exact spot times beyond count. When he was struck down in his prime by the Night Weaver and her Leaper offspring, torn limb from limb as he fought to defend Chthonis from a raiding party, Menash’s uncle, Aqavarr, had carried his broken remains over that grinning threshold to join the hosts of the dead, never to return.
A hot and heavy exhalation rattled up out of the depths, wafting in the acrid scent of the bonding pools and the wet slithering sound of the rebirthing canals. Menash felt a crackle of static in the corners of his mind before the signal sharpened and he heard It whisper distinctly:
“Enter…”
The familiar dread crept its way up the small of his back, and he gave a little shiver. No matter how many times he had communed with the Vitalus, he’d never been able to shake the feeling of his utter insignificance. But he persevered, walking bravely down the slurping passage, past the rows of broad antechambers lining either side of the hallway. Each one held a slumbering shape immersed in a cryogenic bath, towering hulks of muscle encased in ribbed and riveted plates of chitin. No two were alike in size or physiology, but all seemed to emanate the same primeval aura of dread that tickled Menash’s fight-or-flight-instinct, skewing it very much towards the latter response. These were the Hollowores, soulless avatars of the Vitalus, each one a tool capable of eradicating an entire species. As Menash approached, one of the living weapons stirred to life. A pronged, anvil-shaped head emerged from the bath, umbilical feeder tubes detaching from its armored flanks as the rest of its bulk followed, its mauve exoskeleton as sleek and shiny as amethyst. The Hollowore extended legs as thick as grown pine trees and lifted itself above him, its pairs of crushing pincers dripping amniotic fluids as it herded him towards the central room.
Bundles of white gossamer filaments spread all across the floor, encircling steaming pools of pus and acid. He saw arms and legs, sensory organs and entire exoskeletons being knitted before his very eyes, the amino acid chains being stitched on a layer at a time, the weeping pus evidence of microphages fighting off possible infections as the Vitalus did Its work.
These were the next generation of exomorphs, yet to be assigned to their hosts. It was here that Vitalus constantly improved the only thing that could ensure the continued survival of Menash’s subspecies. Exomorphs were bonded to Gallivants at birth, the organisms supplying their hosts with the means to breathe an atmosphere they was never meant to endure, and the strength to fight in a world that was red in tooth and claw. They were as swift as the summer wind and could multiply their host’s muscular power by up to twelve times their natural output.
But for all their God-given might, Gallivants were still mortal. They could and often did perish in the endless struggle for existence that the Vitalus called the Great Game. But even in death they could still commit their essence to posterity, passing down their defining traits through the malleable genetic code of the gilt helix. It was the Vitalus’ greatest boon; through the gilt helix a single individual could become a progenitor of an entire generation, becoming at one stroke the father of whole nations and peoples.
One day he too would prove worthy of the honor that Yulan had earned with his life. But he was not alone in that ambition. Menash was annoyed to find the crimson-clad Vezda and the cowardly Racek waiting for him inside, standing next to a large ball of filaments that hung from a tonsil-like growth hanging from the walls.
This node pulsed, emitting a small storm of bioelectric activity, networks of fungi conveying commands in the form of oscillating voltages to their communities of symbiotic bacteria, the latter containing greigite mineral crystals aligned in the shape of electromagnetic coils. Other networks hidden in the walls modulated and amplified the signals, and the three Gallivants steeled themselves for the onrushing flood of information as the Vitalus tapped into their minds.
He was a candle before the raging heart of the thunderstorm. For an instant Menash touched a fraction of Its intelligence, the divisions of time and space rolling back as they joined the ocean of shared consciousness, becoming one with the living systems of Arachnea. From the tiniest aeroplankton floating above the waves of the golden coastlines, to the herds of ultrapods munching their way through swathes of trees in the savannahs. Menash felt himself pushing up out of the soil, longing and lusting and reaching for the sunlight with a trillion green fingers uncurling, alive with the furious movement of life.
But what was that flicker of orange to the east? That searing heat, that prickling pain spreading like a cancer down his side?
The Vitalus scooped them up and hurled them headlong into hell itself. A roaring wildfire was sweeping into the heart of the eastern rainforests. Menash tasted ash and ruin, felt pieces of himself wither and burn, his branches tongues of fire, wood cracking from the intense blaze, sap boiling instantaneously upon contact and rupturing, splitting him right down the grain. He fled in terror, running, slithering, digging, swimming, flying away in crazed panic from the walls of red death closing in on him. As his skin flaked off in clumps of charcoal he looked back and saw it towering over the treetops, the epicenter of this howling vortex of destruction: the grey behemoth. Its burnished metal hide gleamed like copper, reflecting the fury of the conflagration burning well into the night.
Menash pulled his mind away before it was lost forever in the storm of electric potentials. He saw Racek and Vezda swaying on their feet, breathing hard and fast.
“Heart of the World,” he managed to gasp, “What is your bidding?”
The Hollowore maneuvered itself until it was facing him directly. Tiny beady eyes fixed him in their blank gaze. The node emitted a blue pulse and the creature shuddered as it received the signal. It opened a maw powerful enough to chew boulders into gravel and rumbled:
“This one is the alpha which survived first contact with anomalous variable. It will tell Us what occurred, and from whence this threat emerged.”
“It came from the karst mountain range, where the yellowjacket Amit live,” Menash replied, “It was destroying the largest mound in that area, massacring its inhabitants. It brought the mountain down on them—we’ve never seen anything like it. Zildiz was the first on the scene. She warned us not to approach, and that it was dangerous, but some of us,” here he cast an angry look at Vezda, “Some of us went ahead and tried to scavenge from the bodies of the dying. Then the behemoth ignited the air and burned scores of us to cinders.”
“Irrational. Why did you do this?”
“W-we thought that you had spawned the grey behemoth,” Menash stammered, embarrassed to say the least, “That it was the newest addition to the Great Game, another species of ultrafauna that would help perfect Arachnea.”
“Not so. It was made by an evil far older than the All-In-One,” replied the Vitalus, “It is called a Divine Engine. In cycles past, this evil sought to undo this world and all that inhabit it. In that, it almost succeeded.”
Menash felt his blood run cold at those words.
“Is it the only one of its kind?” Racek piped up. Menash and Vezda both bristled at his interruption; subordinates were only supposed to speak when spoken to.
“There were several deployed here in Our infancy. We had thought them all destroyed in the War of Creation.”
“Your Munificence,” Racek went on, heedless of the venomous looks he was getting from the other two, “Most of us survived because Zildiz persuaded us to dive into the river. She saved all our lives! But as I washed up on the riverbank, I saw the behemoth casting a seedpod into the skies. I did not see where it landed, but it was travelling in a high arc due east. Is this the behemoth’s method of reproducing? If so, then how many offspring can it generate from this one seed?”
The Vitalus met his questions with a minute of silence. Menash had never known It to take so long to respond to a query, and felt another stab of unease in his gut. Unless he was imagining things, the Vitalus seemed genuinely disturbed by the scenario that Racek has raised, enough to convince Menash that the danger was far from hypothetical.
“That is a distant possibility,” It said somewhat cryptically, “Regardless, We cannot allow the Engine’s continued existence.”
“Then it must be destroyed,” Vezda said, her barbed tail eagerly perking up.
“We are not certain that it can be,” the Vitalus said, and Menash heard Racek audibly gulp at the admission.
“But Your Omniscience, you alone are the arbiter of growth and decay,” Vezda said in disbelief, “Surely you can unmake this monster as well?”
“Perhaps. The Divine Engines were built to withstand the extremes of temperature, gravity, atmospheric pressure, acidity and irradiation found on semi-inhabitable exoplanets. Worlds of bareness and desolation, glassed by thermonuclear bombardment or infested with alien microorganisms. In the wars of Our youth, the Betrayers used tungsten-alloy warheads fired from space platforms to crack their bulkheads. Not even Our vessels, the Hollowores, could damage them in any significant way. We will need time to gather the raw materials and fabricate the weapons needed to end this threat.”
“What must we do?” Menash asked.
“If this variable is not dealt with, it could upset the delicate balance We have sacrificed so much to achieve. Already the wildfire it has caused will release close to 400 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and destroy 2.3 million acres of forest before Our countermeasures can stop it. Time is our limiting factor. If the Engine cannot be destroyed now, it must be restrained.”
“It hasn’t moved an inch since we last saw it,” Vezda said brightly, “Maybe it has already died?”
“Yes, and maybe your mother was a horka toad,” Racek said snidely. Vezda scowled and took a step towards him, then stopped as she remembered that she trod on hallowed ground.
“Not so. It has merely gone dormant. Having expended its fuel, it is now running on the bare minimum of its reserves. My children, you must ensure that it does not wake again. Establish a quarantine zone around the Engine and let none approach, on pain of death. The Leaper kindreds will secure the ground while the Gallivants patrol the skies.”
Vezda and Menash exchanged troubled looks. Nobody wanted Leapers establishing a foothold in what was essentially a buffer zone between their subspecies. Once allowed to settle in a habitat, it would not take long for them to adapt and become masters of their new territory. Ousting them would become a battle of attrition, and given the lower birthrates of Gallivants, it was not one they could long afford.
“Respectfully, we do not require assistance from our brother kindred,” Menash ventured, “We are more than capable of safeguarding the area ourselves.”
The node throbbed again, the bioelectric flashes taking on an angry purple hue. With a sound like the grinding of a millstone the Hollowore clashed its claws together impatiently. All three of the mortals took a hasty step back.
“The alpha will obey, or another will be found that can,” the Vitalus growled at them, “All subspecies will observe a general truce during this period. This is a temporary addition to the Great Game. Those that serve Us well shall be rewarded. We shall also enlist the aid of your terrestrial cousins, as well as the Cataphract clans to replenish the soil, and lone Saints who shall rove beyond the quarantine zone.”
Menash’s unease deepened. The Vitalus was bringing together four different kindreds, some of which killed each other on sight, in a move that reeked of desperation. The kindreds had worked together before, of course, on complex projects such as altering rainfall patterns and husbanding struggling species, but never so many at once. This was bound to end in bloodshed.
“Those that break the truce shall be chemically neutered, and their gilt helix purged from the existing gene pool,” the Vitalus continued, “You will maintain this quarantine until We have dealt with the Engine.”
“It is understood!” Menash and Vezda said at once.
“But what about Zildiz?” Racek blurted out, again risking his entire lineage by speaking out of turn, “She might still be alive out there!”
“He’s right,” Menash found himself agreeing despite his dislike for Racek, “She’s our alpha, after all. It would be a shame to lose her helix. Do we have your leave to send out a party to recover her?”
The Vitalus pondered the request for a moment, then crushed his hopes when it said:
“Regrettable, the loss of the female. Valuable stock for the breeding program. But it has not responded to Our signals—it is unlikely to have survived. The female Vezda shall take up its duties as alpha.”
“But Your Benevolence—” both men cried out in unison.
“It is decided. She has risked the Great Game, and must abide by its outcome. To speak more on this would risk Our displeasure,” the god warned.
“We can’t spare the manpower anyway,” Vezda pointed out, trying not to look too pleased at Its decision. She darted a quick look at Menash, long enough for him to see the selfish desire festering in her heart. He turned away from her in disgust, baring his blades by the slightest of margins to let her know what he thought of her, then asked the Vitalus:
“But what of the Engine’s seedpod? Should we search for it?”
“Negative!” the Vitalus boomed, its node reinforcing the word with a spike of activity that sent needles of pain spearing into their heads, “We shall complete this task. It is dangerous and can be entrusted to no other.”
The Hollowore angled its massive head towards the cavernous ceiling, armored flaps on its back sliding aside as it unfurled sets of rigid sixty-meter wings. A wide sphincter on the roof gaped open and Menash saw the evening sky awash with the stars in their milky multitudes. The Hollowore took a deep breath through the spiracles lining its thorax and abdomen, pumping air through a pair of hollow tube-like protuberances under either of its wings. Menash and the others quickly scampered to a safe distance. Seconds later there was a scream of chemical combustion and the Hollowore rose into the evening skies, leaving behind a long trail of superheated gases, the backwash almost knocking Menash off his feet. They watched as the Hollowore gained altitude, making straight for the columns of billowing smoke on the horizon, a sweeping shadow blotting out the light of the heavens.
The Vitalus’ mental presence receded with it. When it did not return, they took it to mean that they were dismissed and likewise took flight and headed for Chthonis. They were hardly out of the Dawning Chamber when Vezda seized the scrawny Racek by his wings and anchored her feet right up against his back.
“Funny little man, are you? Crack jokes at my expense again, and I’ll see to it that you’ll never fly again!” she snarled, yanking hard. Racek yelled as his wings threatened to pop out of their sockets.
“Stop!” Menash said, ramming his shoulder into her and knocking the smaller male out of her grip. Vezda rounded on him, blades out and her tail aquiver with rage.
“As for you! No one should speak to the Vitalus like that!” she shrieked, “Much less gainsay It! Are you trying to get us all killed? It is the source and continuance of life itself—”
“But the Vitalus doesn’t always consider the individual scale of things,” Menash reasoned, controlling his rising anger as he tried to defuse the situation, “Its scope of thought is beyond ours. Therefore it is up to us to look after each other. None of us can win the Great Game alone. We need people like Zildiz for the species to prosper.”
“Your logic is flawed,” Vezda spat, “Empathy is a sham devised by the selfish action of the gene, which seeks only to preserve itself. At least I am honest enough to look after my own interests. Your obsession with that whore is misplaced. Heed my words, Menash. What happened today marks a change in the Great Game. Only the ruthless will reap the rewards of this era. Think on that, and act accordingly.”
The female darted off in another direction, leaving the two behind.
“Thanks,” Racek said, rubbing at his sore shoulders, “My, my. She’s really taking her promotion very seriously, isn’t she?”
“This doesn’t make us friends,” Menash said shortly, “We share a common interest, that’s all.”
The two flew together in silence for a time, the dark canopy unrolling below their feet. Racek had always been a bitter rival for Zildiz’s affections. In the mating seasons he and Menash had flown the damsel-dance against each other countless times, racing and dogfighting at top speed through the dense bamboo thickets in an effort to impress her.
But each time she had always chosen Menash. Naturally. He was the stronger, the braver, the son of the Scourge who had slain hundreds on his lightning raids into Leaper territory. Their pairings had been brief and passionate, yet she had always laughed at the end and gone on her merry way, a rose petal borne on a scented breeze, the dalliance as meaningless to her as other concerns like eating or breathing.
But not to him. Right now, all that mattered was her. And Racek was the only one in the whole wide world who knew exactly how he felt. Did that mean he could be trusted? Menash considered the enormity of what he was about to do, and wavered. Then he saw her face in the darkness of his home, the face she wore when they were all alone together, and he took a deep breath before breaking the silence, saying:
“I’ll be in charge of the quarantine. I can arrange for you to disappear for a few days. I can have one of the younglings mimic your magnetosynaptic signal, make it seem like you’re with the rest of us.”
“You’d do that? For me?” Racek said in astonishment.
“Hah. Not for you,” Menash laughed softly. He looked Racek straight in the eyes and continued: “What’ll it be, then?”
If he so much as hesitates, I’ll have to kill him here and now, Menash told himself.
“Why, yes. Yes, of course!” the little brown male said vigorously.
“Good,” Menash sighed with relief, “She’ll be very grateful to whoever brings her home. I’d do it myself, but as an alpha I can’t risk being seen as disobedient.”
“Then why give me this chance? After all that’s passed between us?”
“I should have thought that was obvious,” Menash replied. Racek digested that for a bit, then out of nowhere said:
“If I find her—when I find her—I’ll tell her exactly who it was that sent me.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“Bah! Just so we’re even, that’s all,” Racek grinned, his mouthparts slanting askew.
“Thanks, I guess. I’d…I’d appreciate that. You do understand what we’re risking here, right?”
“Sure. We’ll be total genetic write-offs if we’re caught. But it’s not like I wanted to see tiny ugly Raceks running around the house anyway. What about you, though? Why are you putting your neck on the chopping block?”
“You know why,” Menash said quietly, his thoughts still lingering on her face.
“Yes,” Racek agreed with a wistful air, “Yes, I suppose I do.”
And the pair spoke no more until they reached Chthonis.
Link for all the chapters available for free here: Engines of Arachnea on Royal Road

Part 14.3

Heracles VS Lernaean Hydra

Author Note: I was thinking about it and I really wish that GT9 used more draconic symbolism throughout the story when (or if) I revisit Team Crowley VS Rosencreutz I'll have symbolism of Aleister (TheBeast666), Aiwass (Codename: DRAGON) and Coronzon (The Dragon of the Abyss) all have symbology of them being Dragons preying on a God/Hero like CRC and the reversed conflict of Chaos VS Order you see in mythology, I also wanted to achieve something similar with Kakine Teitoku as he can represent the Fallen Angel and the Seraphim but for now I'll try adding draconian symbolism into Gunha VS CRC.
True Expert Christian Rosencreutz, with his golden rosy cross sword, clashed relentlessly against the indomitable force of the Strongest Gemstone, Sogiita Gunha. With each clash of their powers, the air crackled and compressed, and the pavement trembled beneath.
CRC, observed Sogiita with a mixture of intrigue and disdain. "You fight like the legendary Heracles," he remarked, his voice carrying over the din of battle. "But know this, I am the Lernaean Hydra, and no matter how many heads you sever, I shall always rise again!" Rosencreutz roared to slice the #7’s midsection.
Sogiita, his entire body wreathed in unknowable energy, met CRC's blade unyielding. "Bring it on, old man!" he retorted, his voice brimming with confidence. "I'll knock you down as many times as it takes! I won't stop till you come to your senses and remember your roots, like the roses you love so much, Rosencreutz!!"
Their clash intensified, that old man’s higher dimensional sword colliding with the raw power of that boy’s fists and kicks as they pushed each other to their limits with each sword swing, punch, kick and flash.
Sogiita unleashed a barrage of punches, each strike carrying the force of a meteor, while that silver young man countered: he wielded his sword in his right hand and released impacts followed by white light that was enough to previously take down all of The Bridge Builders Cabal.
As the battle raged on, the very fabric of reality seemed to warp and shift around them, bearing witness to the titanic struggle between two unparalleled forces.
The founder of Rosicrucianism who intimidated reality itself to obey his will and that Gemstone with an unstable personal reality that could change on a whim.
The atmosphere crackled with electrifying distortion.
Sogiita's fists tore through the air with the ferocity of meteors, their velocity enhanced by his ability to adapt and accelerate, surpassing even CRC's speed. As each blow was released, the friction with the surrounding air molecules ignited a scorching heat, intensifying the impact.
The rapid movement of molecules generated an escalating thermal energy, causing the air to seethe with increasing temperature. It was akin to a tempest of incandescent projectiles hurtling towards CRC, their speed surpassing the limits of human perception.
It was like a storm of brilliant fiery arrows was fired at Rosencreutz.
These blazing arrows of force were reminiscent of the elusive strikes employed by the Rose & Cross Leader, ignoring distance with deceptive agility.
With each thunderous punch, that bandana boy sought to overpower his adversary through sheer kinetic force, his unwavering resolve palpable in every motion.
But that wasn't enough for this superhuman.
CRC, wielding his cross sword with precision and skill, deflected each and every one Sogiita's flaming arrows with calculated strikes of his own. Each impact unleashed a burst of blinding white light, sending shockwaves rippling through the chaotic city.
"You think brute strength alone will defeat me?" the silver man taunted, his voice cutting through the chaos of battle. "You may be strong, but strength without strategy is nothing but raw power wasted."
Sogiita grinned, his confidence unshaken. "Strategies for cowards who can't handle a real fight," he retorted, his voice ringing with defiance. "I'll K.O. you with my fists and guts alone!!!!"
Rosencreutz's eyes narrowed as he parried another of Sogiita's punches. "Your arrogance will be your downfall," he warned, his tone tinged with certainty. "I may not match your overall speed, but I have something you lack: intellect and precision.”
Christian Rosencreutz then plunged his cross sword into the ground.
"This is what harmed Kamijou Touma," he declared, grinning and unleashing a torrent of lethal invisible attacks from his outstretched palms.
However, the #7 countered with a relentless barrage of flaming arrows from the thermal aftershock of his punches.
Each strike akin to a particle accelerator in its intensity and speed. That Gemstone was the particles being fired on the right and that True Expert was the particles fired on the left.
As the attacks clashed, the battlefield became a spectacle of raw power and precision.
“Roar!” CRC held his open palm to his mouth and blew gently on the tip of the middle finger.
That was all it took for a blaze easily outdoing a flamethrower to rush out. And this was not just any fire. It fed on the power of a ley line and stole vitality from space itself. This overwhelming mass of light and heat was wielded for no other purpose than to take lives. Anyone who tried to survive it using simple composite armor or special fibers would dry up and burn away in less than a second.
But that wouldn't kill another superhuman would it?
Of course not.
“Aaaaarghhhh!!!!” screamed the #7.
Some assaults bypassed the fray entirely, slipping through the chaos like elusive particles in a collider.
A smokescreen.
Those brilliant fireworks from hell weren't meant to take Sogiita’s life. They were meant to disrupt the Gemstone's senses and sight so he couldn't counter all of that old man’s deadly attacks.
Invisible strikes found their mark on that Gemstone, and the searing arrows of the arrows scorched Rosencreutz.
CRC was wounded but he rejected to make any whimpers. Instead with a sudden burst of velocity, the young silver man picked up his cross sword from the ground and launched a flurry of strikes, cutting at the #7’s body with pinpoint accuracy.
His arms, his head, his face, his stomach, his legs, his midsection, his back.
Each blow landed with devastating force, causing Sogiita to stagger back under the onslaught.
If that bandana boy hadn't had his defenses and general stats raised by the #5 he’d be cut to pieces.
The #7 fell on his back.
"There's a fire," Sogiita declared, his voice ringing out amidst the chaos of battle.
With each attempt to break his spirit, Sogiita's resolve only grew stronger, fueling the flames of his determination. "Every time someone tries to make me give up, it's like wind feeding my flames, making them burn even brighter just like my punches," he explained, his words carrying the weight of his unwavering determination.
He refused to stay down.
With a roar of defiance, Sogiita surged forward once more, his movements blurring with speed as he disappeared from view. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared behind Christian Rosencreutz, catching the magician off guard.
"Hey, old man," Sogiita taunted, his voice filled with confidence as he seized Rosencreutz from behind.
Christian Rosencreutz's eyes widened in surprise as he realized he had been outmaneuvered.
As Sogiita Gunha faced off against Christian Rosencreutz in their airborne duel, he felt the flames of determination burning within him, driving him forward with unstoppable force.
Before he could react, the boy lifted him effortlessly and slammed him onto the pavement below with a resounding thud.
"I'm not just a kick-boxer!!" Sogiita sang.
As the impact reverberated through the air, the young silver man let out a pained cry. The force of the collision compressed the surrounding air, heating it up until it crackled with energy. Christian Rosencreutz's head struck the ground with a velocity equivalent to mach 20, igniting his body in flames upon impact.
This move is called a suplex.
Struggling to regain his bearings, Rosencreutz muttered in a daze, "The House of the Holy Spirit...the seven walls..."
"You said it yourself, didn't you?" the gutsy boy retorted, cocky. "My power and my guts can break through your impenetrable walls. And I can spread those same guts to the world around me."
With a grimace, Christian Rosencreutz acknowledged the truth of the boy's words. "Your uncontrolled AIM field grants you the ability to imbue non-organic objects with the properties of your virus," he observed, his voice tinged with begrudging admiration. "Allowing them to bypass even the defenses of the seven-walled tomb.”
"A virus? Don't be so gutless, CRC," the #7 retorted, his voice filled with defiance. "This battleground ruled by wills is a two-way road between you and me."
Christian Rosencreutz raised an eyebrow at the boy's words. "Hey Gemstone, you could've killed me if I weren't a superhuman with an idealized body that accomplished The Great Work and crossed the Ungrund, what then short-stack?" he questioned while fitting an insult against his height.
Even without the seven-walled tomb or sheets of diamonds Rosencreutz was cartoonishly durable.
"Sorry, old man," Sogiita retorted, a hint of irritation lacing his words at the jab about his height. "I may have let my enthusiasm get the better of me, but rest assured, I understand the magnitude of this battle. Just like the Hydra, no matter how many heads you regrow, I'll persevere until I've completed my labors.”
"Mhm, so you do know your mythology," CRC remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice. "The Lernaean Hydra, or simply Hydra, is a serpentine lake monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid, known as an entrance to the Underworld. In the canonical myth, the monster is slain by Heracles as part of his Twelve Labors."
"Yeah, I know," Sogiita replied confidently. "I studied the tales of great gutsy heroes in school.”
"So, short-stack," Christian Rosencreutz began, his voice carrying a hint of scholarly interest. “Have you ever considered the parallels between our battle and ancient Near Eastern religions?”
Sogiita listened intently. "Are you saying you see yourself as a god of war or a hunter?" he inquired.
CRC chuckled softly. "In a sense, indeed. We are both assuming roles in this grand theater, are we not? I, the Hydra, and you, Heracles."
He continued, "Consider the Second Labor of Heracles. Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns, sent Heracles to slay the Hydra, which Hera had raised specifically to defeat him. Heracles approached the swamp near Lake Lerna, where the Hydra dwelled. To protect himself from the poisonous fumes, he covered his mouth and nose with a cloth and shot flaming arrows into the Hydra's lair, causing it to emerge and terrorize the surrounding villages."
CRC paused, drawing a comparison. “In our own clash, the flaming arrows that Heracles hurled at the Hydra find their echo in your lightning-fast fists, generating shockwaves that ignite the air with their speed and force. It's as though each strike of yours is akin to shooting a flaming arrow, much like Heracles did.”
“Huh? Are you suggesting we're caught in a time loop? That some enigmatic group, like the Bridge Builders Cabal, manipulated events to resurrect you, pitting us against each other in a timeless struggle? I've never met them, and I'm certainly no child of Zeus. Are you implying that our battle will be distorted into a Greek legend by a meddling time traveler?!” frantically asked the boy.
“No, no, you simpleton. This world contains synchronicities. In Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian mythology, the war and hunting god Ninurta was celebrated for his deeds. The Angim credited him with slaying eleven monsters during an expedition to the mountains, including a seven-headed serpent, possibly identical to the Mushmahhu, and Bashmu, whose constellation was later associated with the Hydra by the Greeks. In Babylonian contexts, the Hydra's constellation is also linked to Marduk's dragon, the Mushhushshu.”
“Uhhh….” That shounen boy was dumbfounded.
"Hhm, I suppose calling it a time loop isn't technically wrong," Christian Rosencreutz began, his tone measured. "I'll break it down from history class and reconstruct it through the lens of the occult. Historic recurrence, young Gemstone, is the phenomenon of events echoing throughout time. Whether it's the rise and fall of empires or the repetitive cycles within a single society, it's all part of this grand plan that was decided when Adam ate the forbidden fruit."
The #7 with his guard up but curious listened: "So, history just keeps repeating itself? Just a series of coincidences?"
Christian Rosencreutz shook his head sagely. "There is no such thing as coincidences. Take, for instance, the Doctrine of Eternal Recurrence, pondered upon by thinkers like Heinrich Heine and Friedrich Nietzsche. While it's said that 'history repeats itself,' it's not quite that simple. Rather, these recurrences stem from identifiable circumstances and chains of causality."
He continued, his voice carrying the weight of centuries of philosophical debate. "Consider the phenomenon of multiple independent discoveries in science or the reproducible findings in natural and social sciences. These recurrences, whether in the form of rigorous experimentation or comparative research, are vital to our understanding of the world."
Christian Rosencreutz paused, allowing the weight of his words to sink in. "G.W. Trompf, in his seminal work, The Idea of Historical Recurrence in Western Thought, illustrates the recurring patterns of political thought and behavior since ancient times. Through these patterns, history offers us invaluable lessons, often leading to a sense of resonance or déjà vu."
Their words reverberated like a challenge to destiny itself, a testament to their unyielding determination in the face of adversity.
That Gemstone didn't surrender his characteristic fervor. "History echoing through time, huh? It's like the universe itself is stuck on repeat, and we're just caught in the cycle. But you know what? If history's gonna keep looping, then let's break the pattern! Let's smash through those chains of causality and forge our own path. Who cares about déjà vu? We'll create something entirely new, something that'll shake the very foundations of this world and we’ll do it with guts!!!" He defied that silver monster.
But Rosencreutz wasn't finished. He pulled out his Crystal World Map.
The supposedly old man listened intently to that boy's impassioned response, his expression inscrutable behind his clairvoyant card. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke.
“Gemstone, you speak of breaking free from the chains of repetition, of forging a new destiny against the backdrop of eternal return. It is a noble aspiration, indeed. However, consider this: eternal return is not merely a philosophical concept or a whimsical notion of fate. It is the very fabric of existence, woven into the nature of time itself.” He pressed his finger on the Miniature Garden and a 3D holographic projection flew out—
“In ancient times, the Stoics grappled with the idea, seeing in it both a sense of cosmic order and a challenge to individual agency. Augustine and others recoiled from its implications, fearing it as a negation of free will and salvation. And yet, Nietzsche, in his brilliance, dared to confront the concept anew, exploring its depths in the crucible of human consciousness.”
Didn't Aleister Crowley say that he had to shatter every single phase in order to eliminate the concept of fate?
“I will shatter every last phase and put an end to all mysticism. It can be helped and we need not restrain our tears and bite our lip when faced with tragedy. I will bring back the pure world in which everyone can feel anger like normal and question it all like normal!!”
And didn't Coronzon appear to break down all the phases including the Pure World?
Partial destruction would be meaningless. If anything remains and an eternal distortion is born from that, then it will all happen again. I will eliminate the ten spheres, the twenty-two pathways, and the hidden eleventh symbol. Collisions between phases? Sparks and spray? You cannot save anyone if you only treat those symptoms. All of the fundamental clogs must be removed. All so we can pass the baton to whoever comes next.”
“Sparks and Sprays…” Rosencreutz muttered.
“Eh?” The #7 didn't quite hear him.
"Beside time stands fate, cruelty's steadfast herald. In the silent chambers of the soul, whispers the most profound wisdom. Humanity, in its folly, neglected to exalt life's splendor, its radiance, its grandeur. Truly, it is a rare gift to comprehend the forces that shape our existence.” That magician spoke in despair.
“From the moment man ate the fruit of knowledge, he guaranteed your species’ failure... Entrusting his future to the whims of fate, man clutches to a flickering hope. Yet, within the Miniature Garden lies the key to all revelation. Beyond the well-trodden path lies the ultimate terminus. It matters not who you are; Death is the sole certainty awaiting all.” he finished with scorn.
Shokuhou Misaki was currently linked to Sogiita Gunha so she was overhearing the entire conversation.
“Are you okay, Leader?” asked Kamijou back at the hospital.
“Yeah…” she responded.
*“Really?” Mikoto breathed a white sigh. “It wasn’t the shock of seeing their school destroyed. Nor was it the fear of having those rioters attack. …They’re afraid of their own power. And after learning how exactly to use that power to survive, they’re not sure they can just switch it off and return to their normal lives. So their gears have ground to a halt.”
Tokiwadai Middle School was a prestigious esper development school.*
The young ladies registered there were Level 3 at the lowest and Level 5 at the highest.
Almost all of the students had a power that surpassed that of a blade or handgun if used properly, but something had become twisted.
Yes.
“A lot of them weren’t really sure why they were training their powers.”
Shokuhou breathed a white breath, wrapped her own arms around herself, and rubbed her thighs together.
Why are you studying?
How many people could give a proper answer to that question? Because my parents told me to, because my teachers taught me to, because that’s how the world works. Those would be most people’s answers. Even the students with a clear vision of their future would only have something vague like “for the entrance exams” or “for my future”.
Only a small handful would have specific puzzle pieces in mind, such as “I need to learn how to use this equation so I can build a rocket”.
The young ladies of Tokiwadai Middle School were the same.
What if the very gears that humans have…their actions, reactions, inactions were all the result of some transcendental entity hovering above.
Like God or The Devil watching over humanity’s reality sphere and ordering around his system like everyone was a pre-programmed NPC that had specific events occur to them to get them to develop in the way that they did and determined their genetic bloodline that composed their psyche?
Is there truly a free will?
It was said that in order for you to break out of the system of society that the working class was stuck in you had to climb to the top where the corrupt elites resided.
Imagine Breaker negated sparks, Aleister Crowley could see through the veil thanks to Holy Guardian Angel Aiwass, Great Demon Coronzon could always see the cogs.
Christian Rosencreutz could view the entire world through his Miniature Garden.
The rest of humanity was at the mercy of their own destinies.
A Guardian Angel wouldn't arrive to save a parent’s child from fate every single time.
"Okay, nice poetry, can we get back to fighting already?" asked the #7 impatiently.
"Seems I got carried away," the old man conceded with a nod. "The synchronicities of this world, akin to the astral configurations in astrology, serve as an example of synchronicity, according to Jung. It describes circumstances that appear meaningfully related yet lack a causal connection, much like the parallel relationship between celestial and terrestrial phenomena. Synchronicity experiences entail subjective encounters where coincidences between events in one's mind and the external world may lack a clear causal link but still harbor an unknown connection.”
"Ah," Sogiita chimed in, recalling his philosophy class discussions. "We talked about synchronicity back then. Jung thought it was a good thing for the mind, but said it could get dicey in psychosis. He cooked up this theory as a kind of mental link between those meaningful coincidences, calling it a noncausal principle. This term came about in the late 1920s, and then he teamed up with physicist Wolfgang Pauli to dive deeper. Their work, The Interpretation of Nature and the Psyche, dropped in 1952. They were big on this idea that these connections, even the ones that don't seem to have a cause, could still teach us a lot about how our minds and the world work."
“Mhm, you know more than you lead on, Gemstone.” pondered CRC.
“Oh this? My teachers say I'm not good at remembering speeches hahaha…” The #7 looked slightly nervous. “You know, analytical psychologists really push for folks to get what these experiences mean to boost their awareness instead of just feeding into superstitions. But funny thing is, when clients spill about their synchronicity experiences, they often feel like no one's really hearing them out, or getting where they're coming from. And hey, having a bunch of these meaningful coincidences flying around can sometimes ring the schizo bell. Delusions aren't healthy.”
Where was this conversation going?
"Delusion! Hah! That's a good one coming from you," CRC fired back.
"The real delusion is thinking humanity isn't worth a darn," Sogiita shot back, pulling out some info from Johansen and Osman. "Some scientists think coincidences are just random flukes, but counselors and psychoanalysts reckon there's more to it, like some deep-down stuff needing to come out. Unconscious material to be expressed."
Rosencreutz interjected, his expression reflecting a mix of confusion and concern. "Aleister Crowley's actions have left a lasting scar on this world and this city," he began, his voice weighted with solemnity. “The vacuum-like dichotomy between magic and science created by the use of that colossal psychotronic weapon, has damaged this world's memory almost irreparably.”
Psychotronic weapon?
The Archetype Controller?
He paused, his gaze piercing as he continued, "Jung's exploration of synchronicity as evidence of the paranormal paved the way for further inquiry, notably by Koestler and the subsequent embrace of these ideas by the New Age movement.”
Sogiita shrugged, "Some folks say synchronicity is impossible to test or prove, so it gets labeled as pseudoscience. Jung even acknowledged that these synchronicity events are basically just coincidences, statistically speaking. But hey, who's to say what's really going on without some solid scientific studies, right?"
"Dubious as his experiments may have been," CRC interrupted, "Jung believed in a connection between synchronicity and the paranormal, drawing parallels to the uncertainty principle and works by parapsychologist Joseph B. Rhine.” CRC posed a thought-provoking question, "How are we to recognize acausal combinations of events, since it is obviously impossible to examine all chance happenings for their causality? The answer lies in the fact that acausal events are most readily expected where a causal connection appears inconceivable upon closer reflection. It's impossible, with our current resources, to explain ESP or meaningful coincidences as mere phenomena of energy. This challenges the very notion of cause and effect, as these events occur simultaneously rather than in a linear cause-and-effect manner. Hence, I have coined the term 'synchronicity' to describe this phenomenon, placing it on equal footing with causality as a principle of explanation."
Getting closer to that Gemstone, CRC emphasized, "Esper abilities cannot be fully understood with science alone. They defy traditional cause-and-effect explanations, instead representing a convergence of factors that create a quantum phenomenon affecting both the micro and macro. Why were there the naturally gifted and the naturally ungifted?”
Why did some students get praised for their abilities while others needed to work harder?
Others among them would have worked every hour of their free time and not progressed anywhere in this city’s leveling curriculum.
Why did this city present such an unfair and unpredictable status quo of potential?
Why did hard work barely matter in a city of empirical evidence to record any possible progress?
Sogiita Gunha wasn't a normal Level 5 but he wasn't always this powerful. He went through the curriculum same as everyone but if the outside conditions for his Gemstone ability to manifest didn't form in the exact way that it did, in such an acausal form then would he even be here to challenge Christian Rosencreutz right now?
Everything just happened to fall right into place.
All those puzzle pieces that would lead to this moment here and now.
Was it all just talent? God picking a fool as his champion?
The #7 leaned back, absorbing CRC's words with a thoughtful expression. "So, what you're saying is, there's this whole other layer to reality that we can't quite wrap our heads around," he summarized, nodding slowly. "I mean, it's like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands—slippery and elusive."
He chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "Historic recurrence, synchronicities, all these things—they're like pieces of a puzzle scattered across this substantial reality. And sometimes, they just... click into place, right? It's like the universe has its own plan, and we're just along for the ride."
That bandana wearing boy's gaze drifted, lost in thought. "You know, CRC, it's funny," he remarked, a wry smile playing on his lips. "Here we are, with all our powers and potential, but at the end of the day, we're still grappling with the same questions as everyone else. Talent, destiny, divine intervention—maybe they're all just different sides of the same coin."
He shrugged, the weight of the philosophical musings settling over the broken city. "Who knows? Maybe God does have a sense of humor, after all.” that boy chuckled.
There was a deep silence between them.
Rosencreutz’ response was swift and resolute, his tone filled with certainty. "All this ‘universe has a plan’ banter is just a distraction from the inevitable," he declared, his eyes narrowing. "We can debate the nature of us being all-powerful yet struggling with mortal issues until the sun burns out, but it won't change the fact that our fate was sealed upon the knowledge Adam learned."
“To think so many trivialities have developed while this old man wasn’t watching. Heh heh. Then I should assume the thread of fate has again begun to weave its strange connections between myself and some unknown human.”
He rose forward, his movements purposeful. "It's time to put an end to this dance of platitudes," CRC continued, his voice cold and unwavering. "We'll settle this the only way that somewhat matters—through objective action in this grand play."
“Silence, preserved doll. Illusionists are meant to remain silent. That is all we magicians are: wielders of substanceless illusions. Opening your mouth serves only to break the illusion.”
With a flicker of resolve in his eyes, he locked gazes with the #7. "I am Hydra, Gemstone," he said, his voice carrying a hint of challenge. "Our battle ends now.” CRC opened both his palms and began shooting at their surroundings, the buildings, the pavement, the apartments, the rubble.
It probably wasn't random as it seemed to create a pattern.
“Huh are you getting senile old man?” asked the young Gemstone.
“What fun. I never imagined someone would bother diligently polishing their skills this far while knowing it is all essentially an illusion. Didn’t you ever feel silly going to the effort?”
Rosencreutz dropped to all fours, his rosy cross sword gripped tightly in his right hand.
He moved—
“Arrgh!” Sogiita yelled amidst the relentless and precise and precise strikes from that golden cross. “Old man?” he asked.
That magician didn't say anything.
That silver man’s movements became more beastly.
Faster.
Stronger.
Fiercer.
Something new was beginning to manifest.
With each strike of his higher dimensional blade that old man’s blows seemed infused with an otherworldly energy.
The wounds inflicted by his weapon burned with a venomous intensity, sending searing pain coursing through Sogiita's body.
That boy grimaced as the poison from that silver man’s strikes surged through his being, each wound feeling like it was ablaze with venomous fire.
"Damn... That burns…like a killer hornet’s sting," he muttered through clenched teeth, his voice strained with effort. Gritting, he fought to maintain his focus, despite the agony threatening to overwhelm him.
Was this another application of The Four Stages? Citrinitas? No, there was nothing yellow here, it was more like a dirty purple.
But it wasn't just the physical damage that posed a threat.
As the Rosy Cross leader leaped on all fours his movements took on an almost erratic quality, he was bouncing from one building to another with an animalistic agility.
With each jump, a shockwave rippled through the air, carrying with it a palpable sense of dread.
Something was spreading.
The air around them seemed to thicken with a toxic miasma. The #7 struggled to breathe, the noxious fumes clouding his senses.
Like a chaotic monster’s venomous poison breath.
The once-clear air now felt thick and suffocating.
Gasping for breath, the bandana boy struggled to maintain his focus amidst the swirling chaos.
His vision blurred, his movements sluggish as he fought against the oppressive atmosphere.
Blinded that heroic boy could only fire a flame arrow without his sight.
His fists striking out with all the strength he could muster. Igniting in that poisonous compressed air.
It seemed to be flammable like a dragon’s breath.
???
At the hospital, Shokuhou's voice carried a mix of surprise and relief. “He caused real damage.” she exclaimed.
Kamijou turned his attention to her, intrigued. “What happened?”
“It's hard to see clearly, but it looks like the #7 managed to blast off CRC's left arm,” she explained. “Though, I'd say it was more of a lucky shot. I can read he acted on pure instinct.”
Kamijou nodded, a hint of melancholy in his tone. “Yeah... the psychic link and all.”
Had the #7 Level 5 given up on the old man?
Back on the battlefield, Sogiita cursed under his breath. “Dammit... Sorry, old man,” he muttered. “I was aiming to hit your whole body to maximize the surface area, maybe break a few bones as a casualty. We can probably get your arm reattached at the hospital. Heaven Canceller has enough guts to even fix me.”
It was clear—he hadn't given up.
It was an accidental strike of his arm.
“As each ghastly head was severed from its serpentine form, dreadfully, two more writhed forth from the abyss.” a cryptic voice amidst the chaos spoke.
Wasn't it said that the Hydra’s lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid.
Lerna was reputed to be an entrance to the Underworld.
The abyss.
The Ungrund.
There is no limit to the depth of the Alcyonian Lake, and I know of nobody who by any contrivance has been able to reach the bottom of it since not even Nero, who had ropes made several stades long and fastened them together, tying lead to them, and omitting nothing that might help his experiment, was able to discover any limit to its depth. This, too, I heard. The water of the lake is, to all appearance, calm and quiet but, although it is such to look at, every swimmer who ventures to cross it is dragged down, sucked into the depths, and swept away.
The keeper of the gate to the Underworld that lay in the waters of Lerna was the Hydra.
The serpentine Lake Monster.
“Rosencreutz……?” The #7 muttered.
That magician chuckled ominously. "No, young Heracles, Hydra." he intoned, his voice echoing with a bizarre resonance. “The Lernaean Hydra's curse is upon you now.” as he said that he cut off a bit of his arm that was cuterarised with his golden blade and it began bleeding.
Anna Sprengel’s blood was said to create unknown miracles when spilled.
Christian Rosencreutz’ blood was so virulent that even its scent was deadly.
As Sogiita Gunha glanced at his severed arm lying on the ground, a creeping sense of horror enveloped him. "All of fate is a curse and that curse," he murmured, his words barely audible over the din of battle, "extends even to my severed limb.”
Christian Rosencreutz’ left arm grew back.
No.
Two new arms grew in its place.
The fate of chaoskampf? The hero battling the dragon?
The arm was fully functioning with no defects.
Although one of the arms appeared somewhat scaly and lanky like a serpent.
It had human anatomy but something was abnormal here.
He almost looked like a spider as he emerged from the poisonous fog as he remained on all fours.
“So short-stack. Are you ready to complete your final labor: Crossing the abyss!!!” He challenged that boy with his cross sword facing him.
"Boss, what's up? You look kinda stuck," Kamijou asked, his tone concerned.
Two students were sitting together in the waiting room at a hospital.
"—abyss, Hydra, curse, synchronicities, Historic recurrence." she replied, her words carrying a weight of unease.
"Huh? What? Can you give me the lowdown?" Kamijou prodded, his urgency evident.
"Can't quite wrap my head around it. But what I can tell you is that after CRC started talking about these esoteric concepts, he leveled up his power ability, managed to seriously hurt the #7 despite me cranking up all his stats for the win condition," the honey-blonde girl explained, frustration creeping into her voice.
"Can you beam all that stuff into my head, like a memory download? You're a psychological esper, right? My right hand won't mess with it, and we've done the telepathy thing before," Kamijou suggested.
"Memory download's not quite it, but I can send you a recording," she clarified.
"Got it," Kamijou muttered as he absorbed the info.
"You got any ideas to help the #7’s situation ability, Kamijou-san? We're kinda desperate here," she asked.
"I wish Index was still here, dammit.” he lamented, “But you know about magic, right?" he queried.
"Yeah, people converting their delusions into reality right?," she admitted.
"Well, magic's not just about delusions; it can be tied up to the whole world. Not sure if it's relevant, but based on Idol Theory, Rosencreutz might be pulling in 'energy’ from the Greek 'phase’ of Heracles for an edge," Kamijou theorized.
"Like a chessboard flip?" Shokuhou Misaki inquired, her brow furrowed with concern.
"No, more like... imagine you're playing checkers with a buddy, and you're totally crushing it because you're a checkers pro. Then suddenly, your buddy switches it up and challenges you to an arm wrestling match, and you lose because, well, arm wrestling isn't your forte," Kamijou Touma explained, trying to paint a vivid picture.
"So, by taking on the role of the Hydra from Greek myth, he's essentially forcing the #7 into the role of Heracles? But didn't Heracles defeat the Hydra?" Shokuhou sought clarification.
"Yeah, but..." Kamijou recalled the tale from the movies he'd seen. "Lichas gave Heracles a shirt soaked in the Hydra's poisonous blood from his arrows, which ends up killing him by tearing his flesh down to the bone," he elaborated.
"It was actually Nessus seeking vengeance and tricking Deianira into giving it to Heracles as a gift, delivered by Lichas without disclosing the tunic's lethal bloodstained secret from the Lernaean Hydra, but you're right," Shokuhou corrected gently. "So, Rosencreutz is harnessing the power of that legend to slowly poison the #7?"
"Not literal. I mean the poison is real but his slashes do significant harm now so it's more like shifting the paradigm in his favor…shifting his position.” The spiky-haired boy wasn't in the mood to explain Phases, “Earlier, he mentioned Sogiita spreading his 'virus' throughout the world. A virus isn't a poison in the traditional sense, but the Rosicrucians originally sought to create a universal cure for all illnesses. Now, CRC is spreading a literal poison, positioning himself as the ultimate predator and his opponents as prey rather than his savior role, the paradigm has been shifted." Kamijou concluded, his voice tinged with gravity.
“So he’s changed the environment to get the win condition? The #7’s durability doesn't matter in the face of the world being forced to go about a certain way because of Rosencreutz stage play?” The girl asked.
“Yeah…if things keep going this way…Sogiita will….goddamnit….” The spiky haired boy swore. “I can't let someone else die after all that's happened but I feel like if I go out there I really will kill him…” he muttered that last bit while clenching his right fist that began shaking uncontrollably.
The girl’s eyes seemed confused.
“What did you say?” The honey blonde middle schooler asked.
“Nothing, just mumbling to myself.” he spat out.
That boy and girl could never come to the right conclusion on their own without the aid of former Magic God Othinus by their side.
“Did you think I had challenged you with no hope of succeeding, you cesspool? The magic born on earth is bound by the directions based on the earth’s magnetic field and by the density and composition of the air which is determined by air pressure which is in turn influenced by gravity. That is inevitable when you are focused on the cardinal directions of north, south, east, and west or on the basic elements of fire, water, wind, and earth. But what you will find upon leaving the atmosphere is an unknown. Coronzon, are you sure there will be no malfunction in the magic giving you control of Avatar Lola? And before, my power was bound by the puny speck named earth which failed to become a black hole or even a sun, but once we enter outer space, just how far do you think that power will be released? I do not mind at all that I will lose the support of Academy City.”
Well the boy was half right.
“Let us test it out, you cuspidor. On one side, we have you using the planet and bound to an avatar. On the other, we have me exposed and freed from the planet. Now, who will be the star of this show?”
Christian Rosencreutz did not shoot at his surroundings for no reason.
The battlefield transformed into Rosencreutz's canvas, resembling the legendary battleground of Lerna where Heracles once clashed with the Hydra.
Yes.
He didn't unleash his powers randomly; every action was deliberate.
In the magical side of Idol Theory, mimicking an object, event, or person allowed one to tap into a fraction of its power.
And that even applied to locations that essentially worked as stage plays.
Idol Theory was so absolute that even the basic cross held a portion of the son of God’s power.
As Above, So Below.
As Below, So Above.
Macro to micro.
Micro to macro.
And the macrocosm and the microcosm are always linked.

Alright so If you're on the hunt for a natural alternative to Ozempic for weight management, Ozemra offers an interesting option. From my perspective, it's got a strong focus on boosting metabolism and controlling appetite (especially with its glucomannan and chromium), which are key for shedding pounds.
But while it sounds promising, its effectiveness can vary depending on individual factors like your diet, lifestyle, and how your body specifically reacts to its ingredients.
Overall, I’d rate it at 3.5 /5, with PhenQ beating it at 4/5, as better Ozempic alternative.
This post discusses all such potential Ozempic alternatives.
One issue is glucomannan is only at 200 mg in Ozemra, with more potent glucomannan based weight loss supplements use it in much higher quantities. Glucomannan like Berberine, is a potent appetite suppressant, Here I've listed out more glucomannan supps. worth checking out.
I have also compared Ozemra comprehensive with PhenQ and Serolean in my review.
However, none of these supplements – PhenQ, Ozemra, Serolean contain Berberine, which is recently most talked about ingredient as natural Ozempic alternative.
While PhenQ mimics berberine with the use of a strong Nopal cactus fiber, Ozemra does it with glucomannan.
If you’re sepcifically looking for best berberine for weight loss, I’d recommend a supplement by Dr. Sam Robbins - Blood Sugar Optimizer. I recommend reading this article on Berberine supplements.
Comparing Ozemra with Serolean and PhenQ, here's the lowdown: if you're someone who struggles mainly with emotional eating, binge-eating and stress-related cravings, Serolean might be more up your alley and suit you more.
It targets weight loss not just by suppressing hunger but also by improving your mood and reducing stress, increasing “serotonin levels” which can be a game-changer if these are your main stumbling blocks.
On the other hand, PhenQ could be a good fit if you're looking for an all-in-one weight loss supplement that targets weight loss from multiple angles. It not only helps with fat burning and appetite suppression like Nature’s Ozempic but also includes ingredients that help prevent fat production and improve mood and energy levels. This makes PhenQ a comprehensive solution, which might appeal to you if you want multiple benefits in one go.
In essence, Ozemra is a solid choice if you're primarily looking for a metabolic boost and appetite control without too many extras.
However, if your weight loss journey involves tackling mood fluctuations or if you need a more aggressive approach against fat accumulation, then PhenQ or Serolean might serve you better.

Intro

If you're diving into the overwhelming world of weight loss supplements, you might have stumbled upon Ozemra. This product is buzzing in forums and among fitness enthusiasts as a natural alternative to some of the heavier prescription options out there, like Ozempic.
In this post, I’ll break down everything about Ozemra—from what it is, how it claims to work, to the critical take on whether it's as good as it sounds or just another bottle on the crowded shelf.
As someone always on the lookout for effective and safe ways to manage weight, I was intrigued but skeptical. I'll walk you through my unfiltered thoughts on Ozemra and its fat-burning stages, plus a deep dive into its ingredients.
What is Ozemra?
Ozemra pitches itself as a revolutionary, non-prescription aid for weight loss, prominently highlighting its natural composition. If you are like me, wary of side effects and long ingredient lists that sound like a chemistry exam, Ozemra’s approach might initially catch your eye. It boasts a formula packed with components like glucomannan, green tea extract, and other natural ingredients known for their health benefits.
However, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Each ingredient in Ozemra is supposed to support weight loss through different mechanisms. For example, glucomannan is a dietary fiber that helps you feel full longer, potentially cutting down your calorie intake. Green tea extract is celebrated for its metabolism-boosting and antioxidant properties.
While these ingredients are impressive on paper, the real question is about their concentration and synergy in the product. Just having them listed isn't enough; they need to be in effective doses to truly work, which many supplements often skimp on to cut costs.
How Ozemra Works: The 4-Stage Fat Burning System
If you're curious about how exactly Ozemra claims to tackle weight loss, they’ve laid out a 4-stage system, each targeting a different aspect of weight management. Here’s a rundown from a user perspective:

1. Stage 1: Appetite Suppression - The journey starts with controlling your hunger. This is where the glucomannan comes into play. It absorbs water and expands in your stomach, theoretically helping you eat less. From my experience, while it does help a bit, don’t expect miracles. You’ll still need to control your eating habits actively.
2. Stage 2: Metabolism Ignition - Next up, Ozemra claims to fire up your metabolism, helping you burn more calories at rest. Ingredients like green tea extract are supposed to boost this process. However, if you are someone who already struggles with caffeine sensitivity, the added natural stimulants might feel overwhelming rather than energizing.
3. Stage 3: Lipolysis Trigger - This phase focuses on breaking down fat. Here, substances like L-carnitine come into the mix, which in theory helps transport fats into cells to be burned for energy. People may notice a slight uptick in how they feel during workouts, possibly due to this, but it won't be the drastic fat loss promised.
4. Stage 4: Optimized Energy Utilization - Finally, Ozemra aims to ensure the energy from the fat being burned is efficiently used. It’s supposed to help you feel more energetic and less sluggish, even on a calorie deficit. While there's a mild boost, it's comparable to any decent B-vitamin complex.

Each stage of this system sounds great on paper, but in practice, the effects are more subtle than you might hope. If you’re looking for a dramatic change, Ozemra’s gradual improvements might feel underwhelming.
Plus, consistency is key; these pills alone won’t work wonders without proper diet and exercise.

What Should You Try? PhenQ vs Ozemra

Choosing between PhenQ and Ozemra depends largely on your specific weight loss goals, health condition, and preference for certain types of ingredients. Here’s a guide to help you decide:
PhenQ is best for you if:

• You are looking for a comprehensive weight loss solution. PhenQ’s variety of ingredients supports multiple aspects of weight loss, from fat burning to mood enhancement.
• You struggle with fatigue while dieting. The inclusion of B-vitamins and L-Carnitine helps convert fat to energy, combating the usual tiredness associated with calorie deficits.
• You need help with sugar and carbohydrate cravings. With ingredients like Chromium Picolinate and INNOSLIM, PhenQ is designed to reduce these cravings significantly.
• You are looking for an effective natural Ozempic alternative: Although NOT a direct replacement to Ozempic, PhenQ has some weight loss benefits with it.

Potential alternatives: If PhenQ seems too intense or if you have sensitivities to caffeine, consider looking at supplements that focus more on mood support and less on stimulants, such as those containing more adaptogens or fiber.
Ozemra is best for you if:

• You prefer a straightforward approach to weight management. Ozemra focuses on metabolism and appetite control without too many additional effects.
• You are sensitive to stronger stimulant effects. Even though Ozemra contains stimulants, it might be less intense than PhenQ due to the different formulations and concentrations.
• You are primarily concerned with metabolic enhancement. Ozemra's ingredients like caffeine and L-Carnitine are great for boosting metabolic rate.

Potential alternatives: If you find Ozemra too mild or are looking for something that also supports gut health or has anti-inflammatory properties, consider supplements that include probiotics or omega-3 fatty acids.
Both PhenQ and Ozemra offer unique benefits, so consider your personal health profile and weight loss goals carefully before choosing.

How I evaluate Ozemra?

Blood Sugar Regulation: 3/5 If you are looking for a natural supplement to help manage your blood sugar levels, Ozemra has some notable ingredients. The combination of chromium picolinate and chromium nicotinate glycinate in Ozemra is impressive, as chromium is known to enhance insulin sensitivity, which can stabilize blood sugar levels. However, I would say it doesn’t fully mimic the comprehensive glucose management effects of Ozempic. It provides a moderate benefit, suitable for mild cases or as a supplementary measure alongside a balanced diet.
Appetite Modulation: 3.5/5 When it comes to suppressing appetite, Ozemra is pretty promising. Ingredients like glucomannan and the dietary fiber from ingredients like cayenne pepper can help fill you up and decrease overall appetite. This mimics one of Ozempic's benefits, making it a decent natural alternative if you're looking to curb those hunger pangs effectively.
Metabolic Enhancement: 3/5 Ozemra includes ingredients like L-Carnitine and a significant amount of caffeine from the Phenterex Caffeine Anhydrous Complex, which can stimulate your metabolism. These ingredients are effective for boosting metabolic rate to some extent, but the effect may not be as significant as Ozempic’s indirect influence on metabolism through glucose management. Therefore, if enhancing metabolism is your main goal, Ozemra provides moderate support.
Energy Optimization: 4/5 If boosting your energy levels is crucial for your weight loss journey, Ozemra could be a beneficial supplement. The high levels of Vitamin B12 and the stimulating effects of caffeine anhydrous contribute significantly to energy optimization, helping increase physical activity and vitality. This aspect of Ozemra is quite effective, making it a good natural alternative to support energy levels, though with a more temporary effect compared to the sustained energy regulation one might see with Ozempic.
Weight Management Support: 3.5/5 When you're looking for a supplement that supports sustainable weight loss, Ozemra seems quite capable. The presence of L-Carnitine helps with fat metabolism, essentially aiding the body in burning fat for energy, and cayenne pepper can enhance fat oxidation. These ingredients, combined with the appetite-suppressing effects, make Ozemra a solid choice for those aiming to manage their weight naturally. However, it may not be as powerful as Ozempic, which has a more direct effect on weight loss through its influence on insulin.

I had this problem. https://access.redhat.com/solutions/7002873 .
As a solution i need to delete console=ttyS0,115200 from boot line. ('E" key in GRUB menu)

$ sudo cat /boot/loadeentries/ostree-1-rhcos.conf title Red Hat Enterprise Linux CoreOS 49.84.202303281500-0 (Ootpa) (ostree:1) version 1 options random.trust_cpu=on console=tty0 console=ttyS0,115200n8 ignition.platform.id=metal $ignition_firstboot ostree=/ostree/boot.0/rhcos/27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/0 ip=enp0s31f6:dhcp root=UUID=5cadb7d9-8ec0-4e9e-9dbe-56201de3bbbf rw rootflags=prjquota linux /ostree/rhcos-27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/vmlinuz-4.18.0-305.85.1.el8_4.x86_64 initrd /ostree/rhcos-27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/initramfs-4.18.0-305.85.1.el8_4.x86_64.img 

It works but only until i restart pc (which i do often because im upgrading the machine). How to make it permanent? There is no /etc/default/grub, /boot is mounted as READ_ONLY
and /boot/grub2/grub.cfg has this

set pager=1 # petitboot doesn't support -e and doesn't support an empty path part if [ -d (md/md-boot)/grub2 ]; then # fcct currently creates /boot RAID with superblock 1.0, which allows # component partitions to be read directly as filesystems. This is # necessary because transposefs doesn't yet rerun grub2-install on BIOS, # so GRUB still expects /boot to be a partition on the first disk. # # There are two consequences: # 1. On BIOS and UEFI, the search command might pick an individual RAID # component, but we want it to use the full RAID in case there are bad # sectors etc. The undocumented --hint option is supposed to support # this sort of override, but it doesn't seem to work, so we set $boot # directly. # 2. On BIOS, the "normal" module has already been loaded from an # individual RAID component, and $prefix still points there. We want # future module loads to come from the RAID, so we reset $prefix. # (On UEFI, the stub grub.cfg has already set $prefix properly.) set boot=md/md-boot set prefix=($boot)/grub2 else search --label boot --set boot --no-floppy fi set root=$boot if [ -f ${config_directory}/grubenv ]; then load_env -f ${config_directory}/grubenv elif [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then load_env fi if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then menuentry_id_option="--id" else menuentry_id_option="" fi function load_video { if [ x$feature_all_video_module = xy ]; then insmod all_video else insmod efi_gop insmod efi_uga insmod ieee1275_fb insmod vbe insmod vga insmod video_bochs insmod video_cirrus fi } serial --speed=115200 terminal_input serial console terminal_output serial console if [ x$feature_timeout_style = xy ] ; then set timeout_style=menu set timeout=1 # Fallback normal timeout code in case the timeout_style feature is # unavailable. else set timeout=1 fi # Determine if this is a first boot and set the ${ignition_firstboot} variable # which is used in the kernel command line. set ignition_firstboot="" if [ -f "/ignition.firstboot" ]; then # Default networking parameters to be used with ignition. set ignition_network_kcmdline='' # Source in the `ignition.firstboot` file which could override the # above $ignition_network_kcmdline with static networking config. # This override feature is also by coreos-installer to persist static # networking config provided during install to the first boot of the machine. source "/ignition.firstboot" set ignition_firstboot="ignition.firstboot ${ignition_network_kcmdline}" fi blscfg 

As you see the only related line is

serial --speed=115200 terminal_input serial console terminal_output serial console 

CoreOS. I had this problem. https://access.redhat.com/solutions/7002873 .
As a solution i need to delete console=ttyS0,115200 from boot line. ('E" key in GRUB menu)

$ sudo cat /boot/loadeentries/ostree-1-rhcos.conf title Red Hat Enterprise Linux CoreOS 49.84.202303281500-0 (Ootpa) (ostree:1) version 1 options random.trust_cpu=on console=tty0 console=ttyS0,115200n8 ignition.platform.id=metal $ignition_firstboot ostree=/ostree/boot.0/rhcos/27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/0 ip=enp0s31f6:dhcp root=UUID=5cadb7d9-8ec0-4e9e-9dbe-56201de3bbbf rw rootflags=prjquota linux /ostree/rhcos-27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/vmlinuz-4.18.0-305.85.1.el8_4.x86_64 initrd /ostree/rhcos-27414688e040dd3bb2b0f6b5331acd3df4627ed3cbcf31812705478c76d0c874/initramfs-4.18.0-305.85.1.el8_4.x86_64.img 

It works but only until i restart pc (which i do often because im upgrading the machine). How to make it permanent? There is no /etc/default/grub and /boot/grub2/grub.cfg has this

set pager=1 # petitboot doesn't support -e and doesn't support an empty path part if [ -d (md/md-boot)/grub2 ]; then # fcct currently creates /boot RAID with superblock 1.0, which allows # component partitions to be read directly as filesystems. This is # necessary because transposefs doesn't yet rerun grub2-install on BIOS, # so GRUB still expects /boot to be a partition on the first disk. # # There are two consequences: # 1. On BIOS and UEFI, the search command might pick an individual RAID # component, but we want it to use the full RAID in case there are bad # sectors etc. The undocumented --hint option is supposed to support # this sort of override, but it doesn't seem to work, so we set $boot # directly. # 2. On BIOS, the "normal" module has already been loaded from an # individual RAID component, and $prefix still points there. We want # future module loads to come from the RAID, so we reset $prefix. # (On UEFI, the stub grub.cfg has already set $prefix properly.) set boot=md/md-boot set prefix=($boot)/grub2 else search --label boot --set boot --no-floppy fi set root=$boot if [ -f ${config_directory}/grubenv ]; then load_env -f ${config_directory}/grubenv elif [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then load_env fi if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then menuentry_id_option="--id" else menuentry_id_option="" fi function load_video { if [ x$feature_all_video_module = xy ]; then insmod all_video else insmod efi_gop insmod efi_uga insmod ieee1275_fb insmod vbe insmod vga insmod video_bochs insmod video_cirrus fi } serial --speed=115200 terminal_input serial console terminal_output serial console if [ x$feature_timeout_style = xy ] ; then set timeout_style=menu set timeout=1 # Fallback normal timeout code in case the timeout_style feature is # unavailable. else set timeout=1 fi # Determine if this is a first boot and set the ${ignition_firstboot} variable # which is used in the kernel command line. set ignition_firstboot="" if [ -f "/ignition.firstboot" ]; then # Default networking parameters to be used with ignition. set ignition_network_kcmdline='' # Source in the `ignition.firstboot` file which could override the # above $ignition_network_kcmdline with static networking config. # This override feature is also by coreos-installer to persist static # networking config provided during install to the first boot of the machine. source "/ignition.firstboot" set ignition_firstboot="ignition.firstboot ${ignition_network_kcmdline}" fi blscfg 

As you see the only related line is

serial --speed=115200 terminal_input serial console terminal_output serial console 

A/C randomly stopped working the other day after having worked since I bought the car about a month ago. Been doing some troubleshooting with a Foxwell scanner and also a set of r134a gauges:

• AC button on IHKA doesn’t engage the compressor, but using the scanner I can activate the compressor clutch through the IHKA module.
• Trying to test the AC activation with the scanner through the DME module does not work/engage the compressor
• Tonight i hooked it up to a gauge manifold. Temp was 72F according to the car. Static pressure was equal on both sides at approximately 105 psi.. When I activated the compressor, the low side went down to approximately 30 psi, but the high side went to 175psi. Activations is only for a few seconds so it doesn’t really allow it to stabilize. That being said… This seems to track within range of what is “typical” for the temp according to a r134a chart. The high side bled off to the low side, dropping down under 150 a couple seconds after the compressor shut off (not sure if this is normal). I am wondering if there is a bit of an internal leak on the compressor?
• IHKA unit has acted up a few times over the past weeks with various things like fan becoming unresponsive to input and or going to max (that’s a final stage issue/symptom i have heard?), but other things like: temperature or air distribution not being responsive and one time it even switched itself from degrees F to degrees C.
• IKHA seems to throw a few codes: it will have 4 with the flaps and the AUC sensor, i clear them and they don’t immediately come back, but there is a persistent code for the LHA temps sensor (latent heat accumulator) which my US Car doesn’t have near as I can tell.
• Took IKHA apart tonight and cleaned it, some dust, no corrosion, but no difference in response.
• Aux fan works
• heating functions work fine
• Pressure switch reads 1.3-ish volts during testing.

Leaning towards this being the IKHA unit faulty but curious if anyone else has a suggestion for troubleshooting before I take it in.

Looking for a confirmation of my plan before I start ordering parts. If you’ve added keyless entry to a gen 3 LX, please chime in.
Parts:
Idatalink Maestro ADS-ALCA
Idatalink ADS-USB to flash it
Universal Keyless Entry system
CANBUS Wiring:
CANBUS 1 HIGH -> Red
CANBUS 1 LOW -> Blue
CANBUS 2 HIGH -> Orange
CANBUS 2 LOW -> Green
Yellow, Yellow/Black, and both Blacks all go to ground
Keyless Wiring:
Lock -> FLCAN Green/Black
Unlock ->FLCAN Blue/Black
Power: looking for a source for the power for both modules. Id be good with a fuse tap, if someone knows which fuse is always on. If the ignition 12v is always hot, I can tap that.
Ignition -> Pink in ignition cluster.

I am tapering down off of latuda. I am currently at 20mg. Ever sense I got down to 20mg it's been almost a week. I found myself going from a very happy optimistic mood to a blah one. Not depressed. But not happy. I find myself remembering some past trauma more. I was put on latuda in pregnancy. I got pregnant miscarried, and got pregnant again a month later. I am a peer support counselor and am about to be a support group facilitator for a pregnant/post partum mothers support group. In the training module today I found myself being triggered a lot remembering my traumatic pregnancies, and post partum. After the module on miscarriage and infant loss I became very sad. I felt a real deep sense of sadness, and loss. It's coming up on the 2 year anniversary of my miscarriage/mental breakdown. Anyways my question is, should I be concerned that symptoms of depression are creeping back? Or am I just processing emotions again after being on a high dose of antipsychotics for so long? I was up to 80mg for a long time. And had very blunted emotions. Has anyone here experienced this getting off an antipsychotic? I also realized that my OCD feaobsession of somehow harming my baby is stemming from unprocessed grief of my miscarriage. Because I am so afraid to lose her. Any personal experience of getting off antipsychotics would be helpful. Also any of miscarriage/pregnancy/postpartum.