Hello everyone,
Hope you are all doing well,
Male, 33 yrs, overweight (135kg), height 177cm.
I am overweight, and i have a spinal cord injury since childhood (they call it spinal cord injury its more like a genetic condition that causes severe muscle spasms). Everyday a different part of my body really hurts, sometimes more than one part together, for example legs and neck become very stiff to the point that i can’t move anymore, next day its my whole back really painful and i cant move, some days there is absolutely no problem or pain at all.
I do everything all of you guys do, i don’t let it stop me from anything for example hiking, play fighting, move around all day, i do all these things, but when its too much i sit down.
I started fasting to start losing weight, losing weight really helps with my condition,
This is my history, so now i want to learn how to fight, i want to be in a position that if i am attacked by anyone for any reason (i know it does not happen much), i want to be able to destroy him. On the inside i feel very weak and that anyone can beat me up (that is not the case).
I want to know where to start ? What to start with ? I want to become strong i want to be able to fight. Is it too late now at 33 ? Do i have to loose weight first to learn how to fight ? Are there people with disabilities that are strong and that can fight ? Or is it by default that we will be weaker than everyone because of our disability ? How can i pracitce without destroying my face ?
Thanks a lot guys for all the help 🙏🙏

Hi guys! Its my first time making a post here so I hope I'm not breaking any rules. After a lot of fighting I recently got diagnosed with IIH, but after looking through my symptoms.. I started to think that maybe my IH isn't really idiopathic. After my diagnostic lumbar puncture and medications, my symptoms have only gotten worse. I've been dealing with uncomfortable cracking sensations in my neck, tmj problems, constant headaches, migraine with aura, tinnitus, dizziness and a whole bunch of visual disturbance issues.
My neurologist has been pushing off my concerns and I recently found out about fmsomething called cervical instability which matches a lot of my symptoms as well as causing IH. Has anyone else had worsened symptoms after lumbar punctures and meds? Is there anybody else dealing with this problem? Should I push more about this issue with my doctors?
Im sorry if this sounds like a mess. Im just scared..I'm not even in my 20s yet and I'm sick all the time is very disheartening and depressing. Thank you for taking the time to listen to me.

Trigger Warning - Violent Death
I had my beloved boy, Salem for 12 years. After leaving an abusive environment together we were very much living a hermit-like life, I would not even leave him for a night to travel anywhere. We sleep cuddling every night and he was the light in my life living with PTSD.
On Friday night he really wanted to take a brief walk around the property, which he enjoys doing. At the same time a lady walking her dog unleashed allowed her dog onto my property. He grabbed Salem and immediately snapped his neck - I heard his scream but by the time I reached him he was paralyzed on the ground and dying. I picked my cat up, ran into my house and told him I loved him, I was sorry and that it was going to be Okay as he died horribly in my arms.
I have never felt so much grief and sadness. I can't eat or sleep. His body still lays on the lounge because I couldn't face burying him yesterday. I wander around my house sobbing and wailing, I have lost pets to old age before but nothing compares to the senseless and brutal way I lost Salem, overnight.
Feeling so lost and alone right now.

Hopepaw and Doompaw just play and stuff totally 100% cannon and all that absolutely not based off of Lionpaw and Heatherpaw and the tunnels(because they were kind of love interests(?(and they are not in the tunnels the tunnels don’t make an appearance in this AU)) and they are brother and sister and they know that(?(question mark not because they aren’t siblings maybe it’s just that they might not know that yet(I now realize that I was kind of implying that they might be love interests but their not they are just friends(for now(oh the suspense that you might never really know(they don’t fall in love they just hate each other)))))))

Doompaw circled Hopepaw on the tree she was sitting in. “Hush, apprentice-” “Why can’t I be leader?” Hopepaw sniffed, and nearly fell off of her branch. “Because, young apprentice, you do not have any experience.” 

“Because you never give me a turn! C’mon, last time you promised.” Hopepaw flicked her tail, considering. “Fine. You can be leader. But only for a little bit! You’ve finally shown yourself as worthy of being a warrior, and I have a good name in mind.” She moved to leap gracefully out of the tree, but instead fell and landed on Doompaw.
“You’re squishing me!” Hopepaw laughed maniacally. “I true leader would never let such squishing happen! I hereby demote you-ow!” Doompaw bit her tail and rushed up the tree until he stood high above the other apprentice’s head.
“Ha! Hold your words, underling. I am Doomstar, your leader, and it is time for your warrior ceremony.” Hopepaw’s golden tail lashed. “But I didn’t even take my warrior assessment. That’s not how you’re supposed to play.” Doompaw swatted at a pinecone and it fell, narrowly missing Hopepaw’s head. “I AM DOOMSTAR! DO AS I COMMAND, UNDERLING!”
Doompaw stretched his neck down. “Besides, underling,” he whispered, as if he didn’t want Doomstar to hear him. “I already have the perfect warrior name picked out for you. I was inspired by my clanmates.” He straightened, then leaped down, a lot more graceful than Hopepaw had been.
“UNDERLING!” Hopepaw shushed him “Not so loud! Someone might hear.” Doompaw hissed in annoyance, but lowered his meow. “Underling, step forwards. Closer, yes.” Hopepaw had expected for him to rest his muzzle on her head, like she had seen before, but instead he lifted a paw and brought it heavily down to rest between her ears.
“Underlingpaw, from-” “Hopepaw.” the she-cat giggled. “Right, right. That was the other one with pinecones in her pelt.” Hopepaw hissed playfully, and swiped gently at his ear.
“Quiet, underling. Now, yes. Hopepaw, from this day forth, you shall be known as Hopefrost. You are cranky like a leafbare breeze and your head is very cold.” Hopepaw snickered.
“You said you were inspired by your Clanmates. Know anyone with a cold head?” Doompaw laughed. “No, and if he ever thought I said that to someone, he’d have my head. I just think that Hawkfrost is cool, and that if I ever was a leader, I would name someone after him.”

Hopepaw wrinkled her nose. “Wait, Hawkfrost…” She trailed off, trying to remember something. “Nevermind. Now it’s my turn to be leader!” She was clawing her way up the trunk when Doompaw grabbed onto her tail again and dragged her down. “NO! I, DOOMSTAR, WILL FOREVER BE IN CHARGE, UNDERLINGFROST! COWER IN FEAR BEFORE ME!” Doompaw swatted at Hopepaw’s ears, then scooted back out of her reach. “Then I will fight you for it!” she yowled, flinging herself at the dark apprentice. She hooked a paw under his and knocked him down, then swiped a soft paw at his eyes. “Haha! I have blinded you! I blind cat can’t be leader. I have won!” Doompaw sighed. “Fine. You can be leader. Although, I don’t see why-” Hopepaw cut off Doompaw with the starting words of his ‘warrior ceremony’. “Step forwards, Doompaw. Now, instead of my paw, I will put my nose on your head. Hey, stop laughing! It’s not funny, it’s serious. Anyway, from this moment forward, you will be known as Doomfang. Your loyalty, cunning, and dedication has proven that you will hold onto this clan, and rip apart its enemies.” “I kind of like Doomfang.” Doompaw commented. “Hey, that’s a really cool name! I hope that’s my real warrior name.” Hopepaw sniffed. “I don’t like Hopefrost. It sounds like all the hope in the world has frozen, and that’s not good. But Doomfang, that’s a name that grabs doom by the neck and snaps it.” That wasn’t what I meant. Doompaw thought but didn’t say. To him, it sounded like he was the doom, with sharp fangs that would bite through StarClan. And what’s wrong with frozen hope? Draining our enemies from hope is the best way to win a battle. Or, that’s what the Dark Forest cats say, anyway. I wonder…I wonder if Hopepaw knows about the Dark Forest.Hopepaw and Doompaw just play and stuff totally 100% cannon and all that absolutely not based off of Lionpaw and Heatherpaw and the tunnels(because they were kind of love interests(?(and they are not in the tunnels the tunnels don’t make an appearance in this AU)) and they are brother and sister and they know that(?(question mark not because they aren’t siblings maybe it’s just that they might not know that yet(I now realize that I was kind of implying that they might be love interests but their not they are just friends(for now(oh the suspense that you might never really know(they don’t fall in love they just hate each other))))))) Doompaw circled Hopepaw on the tree she was sitting in. “Hush, apprentice-” “Why can’t I be leader?” Hopepaw sniffed, and nearly fell off of her branch. “Because, young apprentice, you do not have any experience.” 

“Because you never give me a turn! C’mon, last time you promised.” Hopepaw flicked her tail, considering. “Fine. You can be leader. But only for a little bit! You’ve finally shown yourself as worthy of being a warrior, and I have a good name in mind.” She moved to leap gracefully out of the tree, but instead fell and landed on Doompaw.
“You’re squishing me!” Hopepaw laughed maniacally. “I true leader would never let such squishing happen! I hereby demote you-ow!” Doompaw bit her tail and rushed up the tree until he stood high above the other apprentice’s head.
“Ha! Hold your words, underling. I am Doomstar, your leader, and it is time for your warrior ceremony.” Hopepaw’s golden tail lashed. “But I didn’t even take my warrior assessment. That’s not how you’re supposed to play.” Doompaw swatted at a pinecone and it fell, narrowly missing Hopepaw’s head. “I AM DOOMSTAR! DO AS I COMMAND, UNDERLING!”
Doompaw stretched his neck down. “Besides, underling,” he whispered, as if he didn’t want Doomstar to hear him. “I already have the perfect warrior name picked out for you. I was inspired by my clanmates.” He straightened, then leaped down, a lot more graceful than Hopepaw had been.
“UNDERLING!” Hopepaw shushed him “Not so loud! Someone might hear.” Doompaw hissed in annoyance, but lowered his meow. “Underling, step forwards. Closer, yes.” Hopepaw had expected for him to rest his muzzle on her head, like she had seen before, but instead he lifted a paw and brought it heavily down to rest between her ears.
“Underlingpaw, from-” “Hopepaw.” the she-cat giggled. “Right, right. That was the other one with pinecones in her pelt.” Hopepaw hissed playfully, and swiped gently at his ear.
“Quiet, underling. Now, yes. Hopepaw, from this day forth, you shall be known as Hopefrost. You are cranky like a leafbare breeze and your head is very cold.” Hopepaw snickered.
“You said you were inspired by your Clanmates. Know anyone with a cold head?” Doompaw laughed. “No, and if he ever thought I said that to someone, he’d have my head. I just think that Hawkfrost is cool, and that if I ever was a leader, I would name someone after him.”

Hopepaw wrinkled her nose. “Wait, Hawkfrost…” She trailed off, trying to remember something. “Nevermind. Now it’s my turn to be leader!” She was clawing her way up the trunk when Doompaw grabbed onto her tail again and dragged her down. “NO! I, DOOMSTAR, WILL FOREVER BE IN CHARGE, UNDERLINGFROST! COWER IN FEAR BEFORE ME!” Doompaw swatted at Hopepaw’s ears, then scooted back out of her reach. “Then I will fight you for it!” she yowled, flinging herself at the dark apprentice. She hooked a paw under his and knocked him down, then swiped a soft paw at his eyes. “Haha! I have blinded you! I blind cat can’t be leader. I have won!” Doompaw sighed. “Fine. You can be leader. Although, I don’t see why-” Hopepaw cut off Doompaw with the starting words of his ‘warrior ceremony’. “Step forwards, Doompaw. Now, instead of my paw, I will put my nose on your head. Hey, stop laughing! It’s not funny, it’s serious. Anyway, from this moment forward, you will be known as Doomfang. Your loyalty, cunning, and dedication has proven that you will hold onto this clan, and rip apart its enemies.” “I kind of like Doomfang.” Doompaw commented. “Hey, that’s a really cool name! I hope that’s my real warrior name.” Hopepaw sniffed. “I don’t like Hopefrost. It sounds like all the hope in the world has frozen, and that’s not good. But Doomfang, that’s a name that grabs doom by the neck and snaps it.” 

I was dog sitting via a popular dog sitting app. The day before the dog was to be picked up I noticed it had a blood spot in its eye. This happened to my dog before and the vet told me it was totally normal. Plus the dog was acting completely normal and happy, energetic etc. The owners picked the dog up and immediately texted me that they took the dog to the vet and the vet determined it has a fractured larynx, bruising on its neck, and scabs all over its back (all of these things only visible after shaving the dog). And the vet said the likely cause of fractured larynx and neck bruising was due to “strangulation”. I never noticed any injuries AT ALL (as they would have been covered by the dogs fur) and took such good care of the dog. I NEVER laid my hands on this dog, EVER. It was literally never out of my sight unless it was in the backyard going potty. I was later informed the dog died at some point following staying with me. I’m obviously so sad and heartbroken the dog passed away but I’m also so confused how any of this happened, and I feel there was a pre-existing condition/injuries before the dog came into my care. Or, a completely freak accident type of thing happened like it was attacked by a raccoon/cat in my backyard. The petsitting app has told me that my explanation (that I didn’t witness anything myself) is inconsistent with the vet findings. I’m worried sick that the owners might pursue legal action against me or accuse me of something criminal. Can anyone advise me on what a likely scenario is or if I should hire a lawyer? This was was almost 3 months ago and I haven’t heard anything from the owners or app.

My former girlfriend Dakota and I started out as childhood best friends in kindergarten. I did move a few states over for a couple years before moving back, but we religiously mailed each other and called as much as we could. Our parents each joked that we were like sisters, so jokes on them when we got together as girlfriends in 10th grade.
Dakota and I had our ups and downs and we both did a lot of growing as people over the years, but in my humble opinion, we were solid even ten years later, engaged and saving up for marriage, when the car accident happened. Dakota died from sepsis from her injuries, so it was a rollercoaster to deal with the crash, to have her stabilized in hospital and visit her while being told prognosis of PT, and then for her to nose dive again, and finally to lose her. I struggled with grief but my family and friends were huge aspects of my support network. Even Dakota’s parents were a huge help, which I’ll forever be grateful for. After three years of abstaining, I dipped my toes into dating again, with a few dud relationships that eventually fell apart for various reasons, ranging from not meshing to differing points in our lives, before I met my current boyfriend Michael. We have since been together for almost a year and a half at this point.
The ring in question is a simple silver crown shaped band I wear on my right ring finger. When I was in the depth of my grief, it helped a great deal to fidget with it as it helped remind myself to treat myself as a queen, to be gentle and patient with myself, to remember I was loved and love will come again and life will improve, “there is a light at the end of the tunnel”, that sort of thing. I’ve explained to Michael that while Dakota gave it to me, it has also taken on a meaning of self love and self care. He insists that I can at least just wear it on a necklace so that it’s not on my hand where everyone can see constantly, and I’d still be able to fidget with it in a way similar to my normal method and still have it on my person. I’m not a necklace person though, and it felt awkward and uncomfortable around my neck despite giving it two months to adjust. I stopped wearing it as a necklace, going without for a few weeks before I told him I’d like to return to wearing it on my hand, which started a huge fight about how I am prioritizing Dakota over Michael. But other than the ring, he hasn’t been able to tell me any other times that I made him feel second rate, despite me asking genuinely many times during our talks, not even about the ring, before this fight. As in I’ve been checking in about my grief concerning Dakota and how it impacts him, and he doesn’t care about the grave visitations, or when I talk about her or my history with her, but it’s the ring that seems to be the issue. I won’t lie: I feel guilty because he “puts up with” me visiting Dakota’s grave each month or how she features in childhood memories that get brought up, not even by me but by my family.
I need to know if I’m blinded here and missing a reasonable upset to the point I’m being cruel, or if I can talk with him about getting a mediator like a couples therapist to help us both talk our sides better without getting lost in emotional translation. I’ve found having a third party helps when words get mired, either in speaking or hearing, in emotional background noise. I would love us to go to therapy together as it is, but if he’s 110% reasonable and my attachment to the ring is not, then I don’t want to pressure anything.

I don't know about best but my two favorite were Khan and Mihn. They were savage but they were funny. My favorite Khan jokes were, 'What has red neck bur brown hands, Bobby Hill.' and, 'Redneck boy cousin marrying redneck girl cousin, Min you own me $5 in your face.' and Min, 'You know at first, Gribble theory about Oswald might seem crazy but when you connect the dots and follow the money trail."and
Oh and one I forgot, " Better she cry now for 10 minutes than crying for 45 years that Bobby Hill not getting promotion at dirt factory"
I could see people saying Buck Strickland and Cotton Hill( he was a good foil to Peggy) Who could forget, 'Hank, 'Hank's WIFE!" lol
She is dating Astronaut Harrison Schmidt, she wants to date man who conquer moon, not man who conquer man pie

I tied the rope around my neck and knotted it as tight as I could. I felt the pressure in my head increase and I got dizzy. It was way more painful than I expected. I tried to wait as long as I could but eventually I couldn't hold on any longer and I had to undo the knot. I tried a few more times after that but each one was the same until I gave up
My entire face and head still hurt, my hearing doesn't seem right, I'm still dizzy and ive got a massive mark on my neck.

Torino 3 - 1 AC Milan

Torino scorers: Duván Zapata (26'), Ivan Ilić (40'), Ricardo Rodríguez (46')
Milan scorers: Ismaël Bennacer (55' pen.)
Venue: Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy
Referee: Ermanno Feliciani
Torino:

Starting XI	Notes	Subs	Notes
Vanja Milinković-Savić		Mihai Popa
Adrien Tameze		Luca Gemello
Alessandro Buongiorno	80'	Matteo Lovato	80'
Adam Masina		Koffi Djidji
Raoul Bellanova	74'	Saba Sazonov
Karol Linetty		Alessandro Dellavalle
Ivan Ilić	40'	Mërgim Vojvoda	61'
Ricardo Rodríguez	46' 61'	Valentino Lazaro	74'
Samuele Ricci	90+5'	Jonathan Silva
Duván Zapata	26'	Aaron Ciammaglichella
Pietro Pellegri	74'	Antonio Sanabria	74'
		Uroš Kabić
		Zanos Savva
		David Okereke

Manager: Ivan Jurić (Croatia)
AC Milan:

Starting XI	Notes	Subs	Notes
Marco Sportiello		Antonio Mirante
Pierre Kalulu		Mike Maignan
Malick Thiaw		Alessandro Florenzi
Fikayo Tomori	78'	Davide Calabria
Filippo Terracciano		Davide Bartesaghi
Yunus Musah	77'	Mattia Caldara
Ismaël Bennacer	55' 77'	Yacine Adli
Tijjani Reijnders		Tommaso Pobega	77'
Christian Pulisic		Kevin Zeroli
Luka Jović		Rafael Leão	61'
Noah Okafor	61'	Olivier Giroud	77'

Manager: Stefano Pioli (Italy)
MATCH EVENTS
1': We're off!
5': Ilić sends a free kick into the wall, his second attempt on the rebound goes wide
19': Tameze gets a cross and blows the chance by shooting it straight up in the air. Grimace on his face shows he'd like that one back.
25': Okafor bends one at the top corner! Just misses!
26': GOAL TORINO!! Duván Zapata steers in the glancing header from Rodríguez's aerial cross!
33': Pulisic's jumping header loops over.
40': GOAL TORINO!! A long cross from Bellanova, it reaches Ivan Ilić who scores the header!
43': Musah fires a powerful shot from distance, but it's deflected to safety by his own teammate Thiaw, who's now down on the ground
44': Bellanova with a weak weak shot that Sportiello has no problem claiming
HT Torino 2-0 AC Milan Milan looking to end the Pioli era with a whimper
46': We're back!
46': GOAL TORINO!! Oh my god!! Just 18 seconds after the whistle, Ricardo Rodriguez belts one out from 25 yards and puts it in beautifully off the inside of the near corner!
48': Christian Pulisic fires his own distance shot and hits the bar!! But this time the woodwork is no avail, and a whistle goes for a foul anyway, wouldn't have counted.
50': Pulisic with the through pass for Jović but it takes him a little wide and Jović is smothered at the near post.
54': PENALTY FOR MILAN! Pulisic wrestled down by the neck by Masina!
55': GOAL MILAN!! Ismaël Bennacer sends the keeper the wrong way and smacks it into the bottom corner!
59': Zapata with another glancing header! Sportiello should have it but he lets it slip out of his hands, fortunately for him for a corner rather than a goal
60': Jović goes for the spectacular and shins it into the stands.
61': Milan substitution: Rafael Leão on for Noah Okafor
61': Torino substitution: Mërgim Vojvoda on for Ricardo Rodríguez
67': Linetty lifts his shot way over.
74': Torino double sub: Valentino Lazaro and Antonio Sanabria on for Pietro Pellegri and Raoul Bellanova
77': Milan double sub: Olivier Giroud and Tommaso Pobega on for Yunus Musah and Ismaël Bennacer
78': Fikayo Tomori got a card for something
80': Torino substitution: Matteo Lovato on for Alessandro Buongiorno
83': Giroud with the free header! But it goes over.
85': Lazaro's free kick goes way too high.
87': SAVE! Leão buzzsaws his way through the defense and fires but Milinković-Savić punches it to safety.
90+1': Linetty takes it himself instead of picking out Sanabria, puts it wide of the near post.
90+2': SAVE! Tomori heads Pulisic's cross at goal but Milinković-Savić keeps it out, also Tomori whistled for the foul anyway
90+5': Samuele Ricci slides hard into Reijnders
FT Torino 3-1 AC Milan Big win for Jurić, where will he be next season?

[ [FIRST] [NEXT>]

Season 10 “Days of Fury” - Episode 2 “Visiting Omen”

He had hoped for a boring day. Boring days are good at work, and Santos was already expecting to not have many of them for a while.
The first couple of days were boring, as usual- Blackriver is a small town, and the worst that had happened was Nila and Kessa making a few wellness checks after worried calls from neighbors. A couple of people in denial, a few ashamed at their own violent outbursts and a stern warning to Tamm about painting others’ properties without asking first.
This morning, however, began with an all-hands meeting. There were no meeting rooms in the office, so they made do in the general workspace room, they all stood there at the center while Keya looked them over.
“We have received a report from a neighboring city about a convoy of protestors making its way to Blackriver” she describes without tone. At this point nobody bothers interrupting.
“This convoy is comprised of approximately four hundred and seventy eight individuals of multiple species, primarily human and venlil but with operationally relevant representations of the entire spectrum of size and mobility types” her paws are behind her back, her ears focused directly ahead, her eyes centered to keep the entire team on the core of her focus “They have crossed multiple cities already, generally engaging in verbal sparring with any figure of authority, parading signs and banners denouncing all manners of authorities as well as occasionally engaging in physical altercations with officers.”
“They are also known to engage in vandalism. Though primarily aimed at exterminator and police precincts as well as public offices, they have already caused considerable collateral to others they have identified as ‘collaborators’” there’s a single heartbeat of waiting for breath before she continues “They have, however, not shown to be an incredibly organized group or one with a clear goal and objective. The convoy appears to contain only extremely emotionally charged people with no clear overarching goal.”
“We are incapable of dealing with the situation should they turn aggressive, as such we will be simply maintaining watch and relocating the populace should they become a problem.” Then, she picks up her holopad and passes it to Lunek beside her “They can only follow one path with the entire convoy, the central street, therefore I have divided it into four sectors. One of each will be assigned to a sector.”
First her ears turn to the first target “Lunek, sector one at the entrance. As the most approachable member of the precinct your task is to give an initial image of harmlessness. Do not engage first, do not take initiative against them. Ensure the members of the herd in the area are warned of their approach. If they become aggressive, retreat and focus on the escape of the herd.”
She tilts her head a little bit, turning her ears the other way “Marik, sector two. Mostly the commercial area, your task is ostensive protection to lower the chances of them initiating aggression. Whereas protection of the herd is first priority your second priority is ensuring Tenve’s Hardware Store as well as Sunbreeze Meals and Watchful Café remain capable of providing anyone whose residences become damaged.” suddenly, she turns her head entirely to face Marik “Ostensive protection means dissuasion, ensure that they know they are not under threat and as long as those specific areas are not engaged, do not provoke”
Next in her line of fire is Santos “As our human officer you will be in sector three, nearby the precinct. They are liable to become most agitated in this area and your presence may serve to calm them. You are not to engage, if deemed necessary the precinct’s materials are considered expendable, do not attempt to stop them”
“Sector four, the exit of town, will be with me to ensure that they have fully left Blackriver and will not attempt to turn back” then she tilts her ears again “Aren, you will gear up with a CCG and remain out of view range, your task will be quick emergency response should the need arise.” she then points her tail at the last three officers “Vess, your task will be to inform the herd and ensure a clear path for the convoy while Nila and Kessa will gather all of our medical supplies and set a staging area out of the convoy’s range. Organize ambulance assistance from Striped Hill and Everrain”
Then, she turns her ears around to focus each one in turn “As any attempt at aggression will end only in negative consequences, and in order to reduce the apparent levels of threat you will be unarmed. The estimated time of arrival is a third of a claw, ready yourselves and be at your post in time. Dismissed.”
“Not sure if I like or I don’t that we had the cold bastard right now” Aren says, as soon as Keya had left the room “Maybe we should move in closer when the convoy gets to sector four?”
“Probably a good idea to be nearby” Santos adds with a sigh “They might take umbrage with her demeanor, hopefully they won’t be set off too hard.”
And with silent signs of agreement all of the officers of Blackriver depart for preparations. The first ones to leave the precinct are the ones in charge of support, the two girls set off early to find someone willing to permit usage of their lawn as a possible impromptu field hospital and a little while later Aren leaves with a heavy CCG.
Slowly, the clock ticks to the appointed claw… And soon enough, Lunek can see in the distance the incoming omen of people. At first a distant line in the horizon, slowly the dark mark on the road coalesces into distinct shapes, the shapes of hundreds of vehicles slowly rolling down the road.
When the first few get close to the initial buildings of the main street, the entire convoy slows down. Their process of preparation is seemingly laborious, each vehicle houses multiple people at a time, smaller cars full to the brim, flatbeds with more people on their cargo space than can safely be contained, even buses conscripted for the effort. They carry with them signs, flags, a multitude of symbols as they dismount their vehicles and start spreading out to fill the street.
They seem to naturally form two distinct yet highly mixed groups, at its most distinctive is the pack of humans who keep a good distance from each other. But they are not alone in this group as takkan, mazic, yotul, zurulian and even drilvar form this central group. But flowing around them, not avoiding their presence but never infringing in their space is the grey mass of venlil, packed tight together, and mixed in there adding color to the monochromatic flux are krakotl, tilfish, sulean, iftali, sivkit and even a seemingly very confused duerten.
And at the very core of the moving group are their vehicles, which gently start rolling forward again as the group starts moving. Lunek simply waits, silently, by the side of the road, his ears attentively swiveling from one side to the other, expression having given way to function. Before the first of the convoy even arrives close he turns to the side, making a pointing sign with his tail. A woman who had been watching from her yard flicks her right ear and runs back inside.
He continues to wait, scanning around at all times for the presence of… Anything. The street is empty of locals when the first visitors start to alight. The convoy is loud, their symbols carry a loudness of colors and their vehicles make as much noise as they can to draw attention, but those who walk seem content in allowing their tools to speak for them, for now. Lunek tries to make sense of the banners and signs, but the messages are disparate as the group- Some speak of injustices against their people, some speak of anger at invaders, some speak of betrayal.
“Fuck off, fireman!” comes the harsh bark of a human, causing Lunek to flinch. But flinch is all he does, he simply starts walking alongside the moving convoy.
The exterminator’s attention is drawn to the details of the few people he can distinguish amongst the mass. Something tickles at his pattern-recognition but he cannot quite ascertain what for a while, until a lightly limping mazic makes her way to the edge of the mass “Want to finish the job?!” she trumpets, her form towering over his.
“I’m just observing, ma’am.” Though the tremor of his voice is noticeable, he remains stoic. But her proximity makes him notice something about her body, marks in her wrists, neck and feet. Though mazic have powerful wrists and knuckles upon which they support the front half of their weight, her left wrist seems completely incapable of it, giving her a limp particular to a three-point walk. “To make sure there’s no impediment on your path” he notices the leathery skin around her left wrist is deeply blackened.
“Oh, ‘no impediment’ is that it? So everyone that lives here is an impediment?!” her voice booms.
“Ma’am” still, he does not yield nor does he break his pace following the convoy “We have not done anything other than inform our people of your presence…” for a half second all he hears is the sound of his own heart “We can’t do anything else.”
Those words, then, sealed his fate. The first shout to echo in his direction was a yotul howling “Yeah you’re useless!” and soon the avalanche came in multiple voices and languages “Can’t do shit!” “You’re just here to hurt people!” “Useless crap!” “Idiot!” and many more.
With every step and twitch the very average exterminator puts all of his focus on just being there. He lets himself cower a little bit, against the barrage it is difficult not to, but he continues to accompany. A few curious coats step out from their houses to watch, but the front of the convoy seems far too focused on the sole exterminator in view to bother anyone else.
A few steps ahead, an older venlil with a cane has moved the closest to the convoy as any watcher has up to now. Seeing her proximity to the increasingly rowdy crowd causes Lunek to speed up, quickly approaching her “Leva-”
But his words are stalled when she puts a paw on his shoulder, she gently puts her head against his for just a second “You’re doing good pup, keep at it” she mutters to him before breaking contact and turning around to walk back inside. He can spy her grandchildren looking on through the door. Lunek looks back at the still-shouting moving convoy, takes a deep breath, and continues to accompany them forward. A small pawful of them, however, seem to have fallen silent.
Once having reached the limit of his assigned zone, however, Lunek stops. He watches the convoy move forward, past the houses, now noisier than before. The initial hollering at him had turned into disjointed screams at some indistinct foe- Though the herd had been noticed of a foe, it was yet unaware of who, or what, said foe was. So for now it howled at the ineptitude of… Someone. And as the last of the convoy passes beyond the imaginary line of his duty, Lunek lets out a deep sigh and allows himself to sit down on the ground.
He stays there for a moment, without thought, simply letting the tension, confusion and fear permeate his body until a gentle paw touches his arm. He doesn’t need to look to identify it, he lets his lover use her strength to prop him up, raising him to his feet “Keina you shouldn’t-”
“Neighbor’s looking over Tiss” his wife wraps her arms and tail around him “I’m not leaving you alone.” she stays like that for a second, before breaking off “Do you need to go after them?”
“No”
Marik stalks through the sidewalk, moving with energy. His speed outpaces the movement of the convoy, his paws twitch to grasp at something that isn’t there and a deep and intense motion makes his short fur stand on end. He had let the convoy’s head move in front of him, simply standing still as he assessed as many as he could in the mass, and now he had begun to move towards the front again.
As he stalked forward he focused his sight on every member of the convoy that seemed of interest. A human whose clothes seemed suspiciously loose, a venlil whose movements were far too stiff, a gojid who kept his claws behind his back. He stared at each like they were his quarry, analyzing every piece of movement they made for threats, and yet aside from the challenge in the human’s gaze he saw no danger arise.
Tenve had closed his shop, so as the convoy moved forward Marik simply continued to follow along, scanning the crowd for threats. But the next point of interest arrives, and he rushes ahead placing himself in front of the only restaurant of the town. Sunbreeze Meals wasn’t a very common sort of restaurant, Blackriver did not have enough visitors for a normal restaurant to be profitable and was small enough most people had their meals at home, it most often served takeout for those farmers who’d spend so long in the field they would return home without the energy to feed themselves.
Sparing a look inside at the only five tables, Marik couldn’t keep a small thought away from his mind. How most who got their meals from Sunbreeze these days did so because they enjoyed the cooking rather than their need of work, ever since the sunspeck population has been brought under control and the maintenance of the fields had become much smaller. He feels the presence long before he can recognize what led him to feel it and turns to stare at a group of six that approach the entrance: Two humans, a tilfish, two gojids and a takkan had broken off from the convoy and approached the restaurant.
He traces his color band over each in turn, and they all bristle at his stare. One of the humans hesitates before continuing to walk inside, and Marik simply remains by the door with his arms crossed, left ear twisted as far back as he could to listen to the inside.
“What have you got here?”
“W-we mostly ha-have ready ma-made meals to go or- or- Or you can look over the menu”
“There’s no need to stutter, y’know”
“So-sorry-”
“Really, after everything y’all are still with this predator crap?”
The chimes on the door echo for the second time in sequence as Marik makes his way inside. The tilfish had started to lean over the counter while the other five had arrayed themselves behind her. They all turn their attention to him as he enters, including the venlil manning the counter. Marik keeps his gaze directly on the tilfish for a few uncomfortable seconds, before looking at the man behind the counter and making a simple sign with his tail, a short vertical bob with the tip and a slow horizontal swipe. It’s meaning simple: >Safe<.
After a few seconds someone else appears from the kitchen. The tall venlil carries a large stack of plastic boxes in his arms, all of them seemingly designed to attach to themselves so as to be carried with ease. He puts them down with a resounding crash on the counter, and opens up his voice with ice “Farmer’s Pots, good meal when you’re working and can’t go home.” With each word the owner of the restaurant and main cook comes closer and closer to the tilfish, until the last “Ten credits each.”
Nobody moves for a couple of seconds, and then one of the humans steps closer and brings a holopad over to the credit reader. There’s a noise indicating payment, and then the owner raises his head and tilts it to focus his favored eye and both of his ears at the man who paid “Now,” he shifts register in his voice and the language he speaks in “fuck off” he finishes.
With no small amount of surprise the group of six retrieve the stack of packaged meals, carefully walking out and back into the convoy. Marik stays behind for a moment “Didn’t know you spoke human”
“Pup’s enamored with their languages. Of course, first greek words he learns is swearing.”
Outside, Marik stalks further ahead to the next point of interest. He moves faster than the convoy, and has time to move in front of it. For a few meters the street is still clear as he arrives to find a group of people standing in front of the Watchful. Standing there were all of its employees, and even all of its regulars, twenty people total standing there as if they were having the most normal day. If not for their raised ears tracking every noise coming from down the street and their swaying tails swinging about like angry beasts.
One of them simply points his tail at the other side of the street as Marik comes closer, and the hunter doesn’t need a second command to understand the meaning. They have this, he has a less practical but just as important duty. He crosses the street quickly before the convoy starts coming closer, and heads towards the park.
As the regulars of the Watchful had feared, it took little time until a large group had broken off from the convoy. With the town on alert about the convoy they had found themselves bereft of prey and now this group had set out to find some, anyone who might be willing, or not, to listen to their grievances. And what is clearly a place designed for people to congregate looked most appetizing.
Marik shadowed the group as they moved through the park, but they were accompanied by nothing but silence. It wasn’t until they ran into the centerpiece of the park that he took initiative, stepping ahead of the group and simply… Standing there a distance away from the tree of many scions, between it and the group.
“What’s so important over there, fireman?” it was a venlil who asked, but his usage of an english word was not lost on Marik.
“A place you will respect” the exterminator has his arms crossed, the one good portion of his gaze set on the man who asked “This is a grave.”
Though the group that now prowled was large, those who heard were taken aback. One such, however, approaches closer. He was a venlil whose fur shifted between a soft, brownish color and a dirty white “A tradition of the tenets right? One of those family trees?” The man would have been distinctive in any other group due to his missing patches of fur around neck, wrists, even portions around his head. But such signs of long term damage were common in the convoy.
Interest. They had shown true interest, or at least one of them had. “No, but similar… The forgotten tree is a grave for the forgotten.” He felt like these people, at least the ones before him, could probably understand the meaning of this place “It is of no tradition. Someone, a long time ago, wanted to honor someone who was gone but whose name was not meant to be remembered. Someone who had disappeared in the system… So they borrowed on another’s tradition, and added a scion to this tree, with something in their memory. Others have done so similarly, until it became… A grave for the forgotten”
“Didn’t think you’d be worried about this kind of place” it’s a human that speaks up this time
“Our duty is to protect this town, what you think-” but Marik’s words are interrupted by that same venlil who had asked before. His demeanor suddenly shifts, his ears perk up and his entire body shifts forward for a moment. He hesitates, for a second everyone’s focus is on him, and then he runs towards the tree.
Marik follows behind, stopping just by the man’s side as he finds himself at the base of the tree. The man makes a direct line to somewhere, something he had found from the distance, as if it had called him. He finds a thick and heavy branch that had been bent down by the weight of its scions and memories, near its base and speaking of a memory left behind long ago is a braid of fur made of three colors, a dirty white, a soft brown and a dark grey, bound by the braids are two beads.
The man raises up a paw, but does not touch it. As if cradling it, he recites the words engraved in one of the beads “I will cross every star to return home” others have come closer to listen to the man’s hoarse voice “There will always be a home for you” he reads of the second one. The names on the beads have been scratched out. The man falls on his knees “S-she kept her promise and… I couldn’t keep mine…”
Marik steps back as he watches two others come closer to comfort the man. He looks as a few others approach with more caution, looking up at the tree with a bit more reverence than they had before. Then, he turns around and starts heading back towards the main street.
Gazing out as the convoy gains a new flux, some leave it as it passes to move towards the park while others leave the park to rejoin the convoy, Marik simply stays there at the side of the street looking as stern as he could. Though the noise of the convoy remains great, here in this portion it seems to die down a little. A thought crosses his mind as he turns an ear as far back as he can, a thought he can’t help but voice “I wonder how many are looking at their own graves…”
As the convoy progresses, Santos simply stands by the front of the precinct, hands in his pockets. He watches the convoy arrive, heart beating fast, constrained hands the only reason he hasn't started shaking quite yet. He starts tapping his right foot as he watches the first few people cross by without noticing what this place is yet, everyone knows where the precinct is, so aside from the words printed on the sign by the entrance there is no other marker of what this building’s purpose might be.
Of course, it is impossible for nobody to notice. The entire convoy seems to stop as soon as a zurulian riding on the shoulders of a human points a claw at the building and says something. A large group breaks away at the command, all of them holding disparate signs and messages. They turn on the building with enough roars that whatever they are attempting to transmit is lost on him.
Santos is thankful his hearing isn’t nearly as good as his coworkers’, as the cacophony is already overwhelming him. He changes stances slightly, taking his hands out of his pockets and crossing his arms. This prompts a small group to turn their looks at him, the focus easily identifiable with the humans in their midst, focus which made the hair in the back of Santos’ neck stand on end. Living in this place had refined his sense of danger, but he didn’t need that to realize what could happen.
It was a group of five that approached, four humans and a venlil. “Didn’t think they’d be letting humans live out here in the boonies” said one of his kin.
Santos just shrugs “Got hired to work here. Honestly, rural folk get a needlessly bad reputation, most of the time they just don’t care as long as you’re not bothering them”
“Really? In my-”
Santos interrupts the man “Cut it out” there are many ways in which humans make themselves obvious, many of which are their eyes. Santos did understand the fear of them and why it was primal, it was not the fear of the eyes but the fear of attention, it was knowing you were under the scrutiny and judgment of another that set off that emotion. It was rarely the eyes that showed this attention for most species, but for humans it was, and the man’s clear gaze on his badge made the entire situation clear to him “Stop beating around the bush and say it already.”
Someone else is who speaks. The tall woman starts not with words, however, but by spitting on Santos’ uniform “You fucking traitor” her voice is both fierce and cold at the same time. A very emotional coldness.
“There we go” he sighs “Just… Move on. We’re not getting anything out of this conversation”
“Why?” It was the venlil in the group that started this time “These people hate you, they hate you for what you are! Why do you work for them?!”
Santos rubs his eyes and sighs “Because someone has to. Change only happens when you make it happen, simple as that”
“Change?!” another one of the humans howls “Do you think those people can change?! You know the truth, those fuckers have never done anything good!”
“You know, if you had read your history books…” Santos stares at the one who had just had their outburst “You’d remember that we once thought the very same about the police” there’s the sound of glass breaking, but he doesn’t reaction “And a lot of us still do”
The human staring him down shifts their gaze slightly at the broken window of the precinct, then back at Santos “A broken window is easy to fix” he shrugs “As I was saying. Same shit.” he crosses his arms again “There’s a role those people play, a role that needs to be played because it’s important. Different name, different problems, still the same shit. Gotta fix this, I’m doing my part” he then stares at the venlil in the group “You do yours. Simple as that.”
“Role?!” the venlil of the group steps closer “What role could they possibly have?! They only exist to hurt people!”
Santos steps back, and raises his eyes a little bit. Of course, the classics had shown themselves in this instance. With as many humans as there are in the crowd there were now quite a few objects in the air, most clearly aimed at the precinct behind him. Though given the failed arc of some of them it was clearly not just the humans indulging in such a tried and true method.
“I used to be a wildlife preserve ranger” Santos then focuses his gaze on the aggravated venlil “This is a frontier town, if you walk in the brushes with shorts you’ll walk out with your ankles numb. The athai out there are rather harmless, but they keep the sunspecks under control.” He takes another step back “Since coming here I’ve been pest control, had to catch an exotic animal set loose, investigated a murder, helped stop a child from taking her own life, stopped large scale fights, helped a dozen people avoid being arrested for self defense and helped break a fucking siege”
Santos cracks his knuckles “There’s roles. Jobs that need done and there is one fucking organization doing it all. That is a problem.” Then, he sighs and takes a few more steps to the side, offering indifference from this point on “There’s nothing I can say that would make you calm down.” he says one final time “Just make sure not to injure yourselves in the process, alright?” His words seemed to be enough to make the small group cease trying to interact, as the convoy had begun moving again. Though the one human who had called him a traitor gets one final parting shot at the precinct “Where the hell did you get an egg in this planet…” Santos says with a raised eyebrow as the projectile impacts the front door.
Keya stands by a large sign, the same one that welcomes you into Blackriver on one side and sees you out at the other, the official limit of the town. Her arms behind her back, her attention directly towards the front of the convoy as they march. Something gains the whole of her attention, the car in the front. Someone draws her focus, a human with a megaphone on top of the car. The man shouts words of encouragement at the people behind him with the megaphone before turning to his holopad, then he bends over downwards to discuss something with the driver.
She simply remains there, waiting for the convoy to pass. But instead of moving on out of the city, here the convoy stops completely. Keya observes as the further end of the convoy starts to slowly compact upon itself, and her ears pick up something “Alright everyone, start getting ready, next town over is more than a claw away, make sure you’ve left nothing behind” the words were not meant for her, nor for anyone too far. They come from the same man she had seen standing on top of the car, but he had now climbed down and was talking with a group of multiple species.
It is clear they have some degree of leadership, though the convoy does not stop cleanly nor does it begin to organize with alacrity they do respond to the group’s organization. So Keya keeps her focus on them as they point, wave and talk between themselves, others and devices. But at least one of them has noticed her attention, a gangly and light-skinned human with fire-red hair, the man that was atop the car. He starts walking in her direction, before turning around for one final set of commands as he walks backwards “And make sure the guys at the back got all the crap! We’re here to be heard, not to trash the city!” he says before turning back again to head towards her. A venlil with pure white fur erupts from inside the car he was riding, quickly dashing to his side as they notice where he was going.
In a few moments both have come up to her, the human looking down at her with the venlil bristles at his side “Saw anything interesting, fireman?”
“What are you doing here?”
“What? Isn’t it obvious?!” it was the venlil that roared a response “You saw all of it! You know what they’ve done to us! What they’ve done to everyone! And you still work for those brahking monsters! It’s like you’re thankful they made you a cripple!”
The human puts a hand on the venlil’s shoulder, calming her demeanor just a little bit “We’re here because honestly, we’re all too tired of being fucking ignored is what. So what the fuck are you gonna do?!”
“I have put the wrong emphasis” Keya says with her lack of tone. She can see the human shiver just a little bit “My task is to ensure the safety of this town. Your convoy is a danger. We have eight field-capable officers, we cannot ensure the safety of the residents against a group like yours. People will take actions for reasons, you have broadcast your reasons clearly. You have chosen this place for a reason which I cannot ascertain.”
She makes sure her ears are trained towards both the human and the venlil, an action which causes the venlil to cower behind her partner “We do not house government agencies. This is a farming town of little note. The local precinct is a simple precinct, we have no regulatory or command authority. The town population is approximately double that of the number of your convoy. We have no individuals of appreciable social or political reach. There is nothing in Blackriver of interest to people attempting to change government policy, nor have there been actions taken here that I can identify as being cause for retaliatory actions within the context of your message.”
“I must ensure this does not happen again and the only way of doing so is minimizing our attractivity as targets. A logical assumption of your choice of quarry would be a town with the presence of politicians, a large city with constant news coverage, cities housing important government agencies or those containing the Regional Firebases”
“So I ask again. What are you doing here?”
The two remain silent for a few seconds, before the human turns around with a mouth noise “Whatever, I don’t need to explain myself to someone that won’t listen. Come on!” he starts to stalk back towards the car, but stops once he notices his venlil companion wasn’t moving.
The snow-white venlil has their focus on Keya, who offers a simple low forward swipe of her tail, a sign to proceed. Still, the venlil seems frozen in place until the human comes back and grabs hold of their paw with a gentle touch. At which point both finally return to the convoy.
Keya remains at the side of the road, watching as the convoy readies itself again to leave. People get back inside cars, they hop on the back of trucks and load themselves into buses. She continues to watch as the convoy takes its time riding out, making their way out of the town.
Once it is finally gone, multiple footsteps sound behind her. When she turns around she meets her officers, having returned from their assigned positions “They have left. I expect your reports of what happened in each sector by the end of your shifts” she states plainly, before looking at Santos “They did not appear to have a specific reason for targeting Blackriver.” The question remains unspoken.
The human officer just shrugs “Sometimes, you don’t know what you’re doing. We’re just a little town, I doubt they even know what exactly they’re angry about.” He looks at the tail end of the convoy as it leaves “Town was probably just a place they felt safe going to.”
“D-do you think we might get more like that” Lunek says, at the back of the group.
“Who knows…” Santos sighs “But if human history applies anywhere here… This is just a sign of worse things to come”
[ [FIRST] [NEXT>]
And thus the omen passes by. Feelings, emotions of all sorts, without a plan or a reason other than just their own rage and distress.
Did any of these even know what they were doing? And how much worse can it be when they do?

Hey guys,
While I'm writing this i literally am moaning and screaming in pain. I (M, 28) got my wisdom tooth right under removed last monday, and 2-3 days later i got the most pain i ever felt. Went to the doctor on friday, he said that it is infected and gave me antibiotics. So far it doesnt do shit, but google says it work at earliest after 48 hours, so that makes sense. I have a pretty high pain tolerance. I'm a prof athlete and broke many things, continued playing with pains and injuries, but nothing comes close to this. Painkillers dont do much, only for 2-3 hours it takes the sharpest edges of and then i have to sit out the next 3-4 hours before i can take something again. Its 24/7, its in my right ear, right eye, jawline, neck, rightforehead and right side of the mouth. I cant compare the pain to anything else i had before. In the last 5 nights i have slept a total of 15 hours at most, im literally sleep deprived and on the edge of going insane. Last 2 days lived by my parents cuz i cant take care of myself anymore. Anyone else that had this experience? The doctor said friday that it was an infection, and I assume he knows best. If it was a dry socket he would have told me/seen right? Anyway, i hope the antibiotics start working tommorow or monday, cuz i cant keep it together for much longer.

O
“World Beasts… are innately different to humans and other forms of 'life'. Those created in the Goddess’s image are bound only by fate and time, able to lead their own destiny if they will it so. For us, it’s different. We are born with a function in mind — a purpose. Sometimes it’s clear, sometimes it’s not.
I still have no clue why Har-Meggidos was created.”

• Reginn Magina, World Beast, when asked about World Beasts

With a crash, the oceanic tentacles crushed the ground with ease, destabilizing the heroes. However, this attack was simply countered by the warrior, who simply diced the surrounding hundred paces with a single swing of her blades. The massive chunks of octopus-like flesh fell to the earth with a thud, and the World Beast screamed in agony.
Sacrosanct was still unsure whether to engage or not — whether this was his battle to fight. Such indecisiveness faltered his flames, but noticing that Blodelshein was about to be crushed by one of the chunks, he quickly pushed her out of the way with a dive but got squashed into a bloody pulp himself.
“Sacrosanct!”
While the white-haired girl continued the battle, Sacrosanct soon lifted the mass, covered in his own blood. The hero spat out a dozen teeth from his mouth, though they soon healed back thanks to his flames. Now he was truly fired up.
However, he was not quite ready yet. It would take a few more steps to enter the ‘LIMITLESS’ state.
The dual-wielding warrior ran up Tiamat’s right arm while massively damaging it along the way. The light katana moved like a needle, while the longsword swung like a hammer; the two weapons synergized in a negative tempo, creating a dissonance of destruction.
Meanwhile, Sacrosanct stretched, ran in place, push-ups, sit-ups, jumping-jacks, all in impossibly quick succession. His heart rate began to increase rapidly, and so did the fire surrounding him.
The golden-eyed swordswoman was able to stab the World Beast Directly in its forehead, and while it caused excruciating agony and great damage, it was still not yet enough as roots sprouted from the wound and knocked her all the way to the ground, where a wooden spike much larger than she awaited.
Meanwhile, Sacrosanct began to sing to himself… No, he created rhythms. Songs? Humming? It was strange how he seemed to be listening to something in his head, but it was somehow working as his flames grew multiple times in size.
The girl quickly turned to face the ground using the weight of her swords, and in the split second before contact, her blades cut the spike directly in half, landing in its new crevice. However, the broken spike was then coiled in vines, and was shut in a matter of microseconds by the pressure surrounding it, and the hero was forced to struggle to keep herself uncrushed.
Meanwhile… Sacrosanct was finally ready — with just one more step. Now he took a good look at his enemy, the colossal demonic titan, much stronger than him; of course, he could beat her. He was Sacrosanct. With this newfound confidence, the hero began to concentrate the massive flame surrounding him toward himself, compressing the heat. Soon, a massive flash of light blinded the spectators, including Tiamat, and from the blinding light emerged Sacrosanct. The hero was now surrounded by an electrical storm running throughout his body, as well as blue flames contrasting with the previous red. He was not just any other hero, he was THE hero. He was Sacrosanct.
“Alright, bring it on!”
Tiamat could not fully gauge the hero’s strength and instead chose to finish the girl off by crushing her completely with her fist. However, as she turned her attention away, the World Beast was suddenly kicked in the face, snapping her massive head instantly. He was fast.
The World Beast quickly composed herself and healed her neck. Demonic spiders began to emerge from her wings; perfect for dealing with pests. However, Sacrosanct was no mere fly, and he began to easily set the spiders ablaze with his contagious flame, which then spread to the World Beast’s hair.
“Let’s go!”
While Tiamat was distracted by the flames, Sacrosanct lept from her shoulder directly toward the spike in which the katana-wielding hero was imprisoned. The sheer impact of cannonballing into the wooden structure was enough to blow it open, and the warrior was freed.
“You still haven’t told me your name yet!”
“...?”
The two looked up to see that Tiamat had already fully recovered. There must’ve been some way to kill her, for why else was she reincarnated?
“...Acata, could you tell us how you defeated her preciously?” asked Blodelshein in her native tongue.
The girl turned to find the source of the voice, but none lay in sight.
“I’m speaking to you telepathically. I’m afraid I won’t be much of a help — the demon lord has a powerful soul. Anyways, you said you met her before right? Then you must be the 15th hero, the one who defeated this demon lord. How did you do it?”
“...It was not I who killed Tiamat,” said Acata, “I suppose you could say that the entire world killed her.”
“...So you’re saying you lured her here without a plan to kill her?!”
“The plan is to slice and dice until it is done.”
“...”
It seemed that Blodelshein was surrounded by true warriors.
Now killing her was no longer an option, the best they could do would be to immobilize her until a method was found. However, things would not be so simple as Tiamat began to attack once again, interrupting the hero mid-thought.
A slit positioned directly at the centre of Tiamat’s breast opened like a vertical eye, and from the entrance began to stream a river of energy, the current of which soon turned into a torrent, then a storm. The energy began to form a sphere in the form of fire, like the heavenly ornament in the sky. The heroes could already feel its heat from the ground. As the World Beast began to power this attack, Sacrosanct came up with a brilliant plan — a Sacrosanct original.
“Alright, hero, I’ll neutralize this blast, then you attack her directly in that weird source — that must be her core or something!”
“...Fine.”
In the heat of the battle, language barriers can be fatal. As such, instead of listening to the words themselves, Acata decided to simply react to Sacrosanct’s action. Judging from his tone, it seemed that he had prepared a plan. Though she did not understand what his course of action would be, there was no other choice as the inevitability of decimation loomed over them.
Tiamat soon released the attack, and Sacrosanct released an attack of his own as well. All the flames surrounding him concentrated on his two fingers outstretched toward his target, leaving the rest of his body vulnerable and bare. As it was compressed into an atomic volume, it instantly flipped from a bright white to a blackhole void surrounded by dark lightning.
“Go!”
As the pseudo-sun continued to approach, the grass began to wilt and burn. However, neither Sacrosanct nor Acata moved an inch. Sacrosanct’s black hole was soon consumed by the flame, but Acata knew that his act was not yet over. The dark elf began to immediately calculate in his mind the time required for the sphere to reach the centre of Tiamat’s sun, and soon activated his spell:
“⌈Nuclear Starburst⌋!”
The black hole immediately increased a thousandfold in volume, completely enveloping Tiamat’s attack. It then folded in upon itself, erasing both attacks from existence. While Tiamat was shocked, Acata took no time to hesitate. She tested Sacrosanct’s theory by leaping a thousand paces into the air and plunging both her blades into Tiamat’s chest — the source of the strange energy.
As Blodelshein watched on from behind the rubble, she sincerely hoped that this would be the end. It did seem that the damage was massive, and the World Beast began to disintegrate as it wailed in pain. However, it soon clenched its teeth, and through its bloodied eyes, cast a desperate spell.
From the slit emerged a sphere — a flesh-pink, translucent sphere. Acata could see that her sword was stuck deep into it, and she could almost see inside, a small world. Like a minature garden, a microcosm…
A massive flash of light enveloped the area, and all three heroes were blinded. Through the brightness, however, Blodelshei,n could catch glimpses of stars passing by her, turning into lines, as if travelling through space.
Within the microcosm, three shooting stars — never seen before — entered the world.

ORANGE
You will never be warm once you die, but you will never be cold or hot either. However, is this really a give-and-take? Or do you lose it all, the privilege to feel pain?
…Heaven was not how Blodelshein thought it would be. It was not a place of clouds and warmth, but a winter forest, a running creek melody nearby.
By the serene lullaby of the mountain, she began to fall asleep once more. It was cold, but that did not bother her much, for she was used to it.
Zzz…—
— It was only when she noticed a massive ball of snow, tumbling toward her from a mountain at an incredible speed that she decided to hurriedly stand up. Thankfully, a boulder destroyed the ball with a CRASH, and it split into nonlethal chunks. However, she was unfortunately still smashed into the freezing water.
It seemed that she was still bound to this plane of suffering…
“Ouch…”
From the pile of snow rose a man — a foreign man. Probably a dark forest elf from the shade of his skin. He was equipped in light gear, topless except for hoisters and elementary armour, in a distinctly Avangardian style. What was he doing inside the colossal snowball? Blodelshein’s eyes began to glow a feint purple as she activated her talent to learn more about his mind, and there she learned that he too, was a hero, and so inquired.
However, only a strange response returned. Inferring from their current situation, the position of mountains and the season… They must’ve all been reincarnated far into the future or past from different points in time. While she spoke in an evolved variation of Alsdionn, the man spoke Amstanvan, the same language as Kyriekaos. Thankfully, her talent ⌈First Person Theatre⌋ allowed her to peer into the realm of the Psyche, which stored all infromation regarding one’s thoughts, perception, motor control and dreams. This meant that she could read the minds of others, and make small changes onto the libraries of mind when needed.
During the usage of this skill the time in the physical realm was slowed to a snail’s pace, and all she had to do was to was to find the passage that kept all knowledge on his language, and copy it for her own use.
After only seconds, they were able to have comprehensible conversations.
“...You’re a hero too?” asked the man.
“Y-yeah…”
“That’s great! Here, let me help you a bit.”
The elf lit a fire above his fingertip, and while Blodelshein expected him to simply use the flame to try to warm them, he instead lit himself on fire.
“Wait! Wait! What are you doing?!” said Blodelshein as she began splashing the freezing water in his direction.
“Woah! It’s fine! See?” replied the hero, blocking the attack.
Blodelshein soon realized that the self-immolation must’ve been some kind of strange spell, but she saw that ths light wounds from his fall began to heal themselves.
“No need to worry about my talent.”
“...Anyways, what were you doing in that snowball?”
“Hm… Well, I think I was just resurrected atop a mountain, but I was feeling a bit drowsy so I fell asleep, and now I’m here!”
“Huh…”
It was truly impressive how he slept through the… entire forest.
“I’m Sacrosanct by the way, what’s your name?”
“...Blodelshein.”
“Great! But what now…”
The two returned away from the water, and began to dry themselves with Sacrosanct’s talent. Strangely, the flames did not hurt to touch, and instead felt like the embrace of the summer sun, and it even healed injuries — though only Sacrosanct’s. It was no ordinary fire, perhaps a new state of matter of a new element.
“Incredible…”
“Pretty cool, huh? I call this talent simply ⌈PASSION⌋!”
“Hm.”
“Huh? Don’t you want to learn more about my talent?”
“...I’m fine.”
Blodelshein did not need to hear any more. She had already read his mind, and learned all about his talent. However, she was unable to access any deeper memories, such as his origin and life before resurrection.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
Soon, a loud noise of blades being sharpened began ringing throughout the forest. It was truly a strange sound, as if inviting any opponents to challenge.
“...Well, shall we check it out?”
In the hidden retreats of the forest, lay a massive tree named Golgono, protected by its neighbouring disguises and hostile creatures. It was an area specifically barriered by a chainlink fence, something neither heroes had seen before.
After climbing over the fence, assisted by Sacrosanct, the two continued to approach the grinding sound.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
During their travel, they noticed various changes in the environment — new species of mushrooms and flowers, as well as unseen critters. It was a strange new world, but it was still clear that they were within the nation of the Goddess. However, this new world reminded Blodelshein that Wundergartenn, the nation she had established, must’ve been long gone.
Blodelshein glimpsed a familiar vision — a vision of her past.
During her era, there were no forests or lakes. No grass, no clouds. This was not due to industrialization, but due to a terrible war against Ssalgram, which became Sonosis afterwards. It was a war that shook both nations to their core, and the war was long and excruciating, lasting five generation of heroes — over a hundred years. Blodelshein was the one to finally bring an end to the conflict, yet the scars left were unreversable. It came to be known as the “End of Eden War” as the Goddess was sealed away to preserve humanity.
Blodelshein continued to face forward as it seemed that her journey was not yet over. As long as she lived, the suffering would continue and so be it. To live to live, to die to die. That was one of the natural laws.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
The root of the tree was now visible from their location, and at its base sat a lone figure, sharpening their blade.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
The noise was still resonating loudly in the air, almost acting as soft wind.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
The girl noticed the two, and now Blodelshein could take a good look. She had snow-white hair and golden eyes — beautiful as the stars. It was a sharp beauty, the charm of a tiger and it reflected her fierce past alongside the two scars, one crossing her nose down to her jaw diagonally, and another perpendicular to the first, lower on the face, told of an epic tale. Even the scars seemed to add to the beauty, as alongside the muscular figure and a warrior’s funeral garment of Blodelshein’s time — to be worn at death — combined to illustrate a tantalizing imagery of a fatal beauty.
However, she did not stop sharpening her blade.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
Upon further inspection, the blades seemed to be a work of Murasama, a renowned bladesmith of the Shiryu nation of the far east. The girl must’ve been from a similar time as Blodelshein, perhaps later as she did not recognize the blade, but it seemed better than anything else he had previously crafter — a masterpiece. It was not his conventional, oriental blade, but combine the western elements with the eastern, a double-bladed long sword, but with the light weight and swiftness of a normal katana.
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
“He-lloooo? Anybody in there?” asked Sacrosanct while Blodelshein was budy inspecting the blade.
As she expected that the girl would not understand Sacrosanct’s language, the hero attempted to read her mind. However, everything in her mind seemed to be a mess, a jumbled collection of various memories and information. Blodelshein knew many like her, though they mostly kept to themselves in asylums. This had the possibility of becoming a dangerous situation. At least from the memories, it seemed that the stranger spoke Blodelshein’s language — Wundionn.
“...”
Shkkkkk
Shkkkkk
It was beginning to become frustrating to stand here, listening to this unpleasant noise. However, it was clear that she had something in mind — a plan for something greater. This was a bait, and it seemed that it had caught two more than expected.
The girl swiftly dropped from the base of the tree onto the soft grass, and in that instant, the massive tree suddenly vanished into a bottomless tunnel generated beneath it.
All around them, the ground began to fall and the sky trembled, as a giant figure seemingly emerged from the backdrop of nature. And with a roar, the colossal beast eventually manifested itself, a mountain-sized demonic creature which resembled a woman, but with fangs, wings and tentacles. four eyes on the left and three on the right decorated the World Beast’s face as well as wings on each side covering her face. Large horns resembling dark blades protruded from her forehead, a warning for all warriors daring to challenge her. She had four wings on her back to dominate the skies, and twelve tentacles extending from just below to dominate the seas. She was the deification of Sol-Aegis, a creation of the demon God and the 15th demon lord of Sonosis. She was:
“Tiamat,” said the white-haired warrior in the language Blodelshein spoke, “so we meet again.”
However, no response returned, but the delirious grief-anger manifested as a tantrum. The World Beast almost looked sick — as if it was possessed by disease. Even Sacrosanct could tell that she was not of the right mind. The girl prepared her katana, as well as another blade — this time fully western. Though it was visually unremarkable, it had the oppressive aura of a divine artifact.
Sacrosanct prepared himself against, lighting himself once more with the flames of passion. However, in his confused state, it was difficult to burn brightly.
Blodelshein only hoped that this would be their final demon lord encounter, but probably not. This was the fate of a hero after all.
And so, the battle between nature incarnate, and humanity enraged once more.

Got in a fist fight with a fella and decided to equip my bow and press B to punch and see what happens - Arthur whipped out an arrow and stabbed him in the neck! Really cool kill and feature, never knew it existed until this playthrough, my 3rd one.

I've lived in this small town in Texas for all of my 34 years. It’s the kind of place where everyone knows everyone, and nothing much happens. Or at least, that’s what we all thought. My name is Ryan, and I need to tell you about something terrifying that’s been happening here, something no one else seems to believe.
About six months ago, strange things started happening. The first was a car crash. John, a guy I went to high school with, lost control of his truck and hit a tree. Everyone said it was a tragic accident, but John wasn’t a reckless driver. Then, a week later, another accident. This time, it was Mrs. Henderson, a sweet old lady who lived a few blocks over. She fell down her stairs and broke her neck. Again, an “accident.”
People in town began whispering about a curse, but no one really took it seriously. After all, accidents happen, right? But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something more sinister was at play. Then, I saw it.
It was late one night, and I was driving home from work. I saw a figure standing at the side of the road, just outside the glow of my headlights. I slowed down, thinking it was someone needing help. But as I got closer, the figure vanished. I stopped the car and got out, but there was no one there. I brushed it off as my tired mind playing tricks on me.
Over the next few weeks, I kept seeing glimpses of the figure. Always at the edge of my vision, always gone before I could get a good look. More “accidents” happened. A young couple died in a house fire, a teenager drowned in the local pond, a man electrocuted himself while fixing his roof. Each death was different, but they all felt connected.
One night, I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking about the figure I’d seen and the people who had died. I decided to drive out to the site of John’s crash. As I stood there, staring at the tree he’d hit, I felt a chill run down my spine. I turned around and saw it: the entity. It was a shadowy figure, almost human but not quite. It had no face, just an empty void where its features should be.
I tried to run, but my feet felt like they were stuck in quicksand. The entity moved towards me, and as it did, I saw flashes of the “accidents.” Each one played out in my mind like a movie, and in every scene, the entity was there, causing the events that led to each death. It was orchestrating everything, making it look like accidents to cover its tracks.
I don’t know how I managed to escape that night. I woke up in my bed, drenched in sweat, with no memory of how I got home. But now I know the truth. The entity is real, and it’s killing people. It’s wiping out our town, one by one.
I tried to tell the others, but no one believes me. They think I’m crazy, that the stress of all the deaths has gotten to me. But I know what I saw, and I know it’s only a matter of time before it comes for me.
If you’re reading this, please believe me. Be careful. If you see a figure at the edge of your vision, run. Don’t stop, don’t look back. It’s out there, and it won’t stop until we’re all gone.

Age: 39
Gender: Female
Height: 5’3
Weight: 189 pounds
Medications: semaglutide (.25 mg/week); just started 10 days ago
Smoking status: former smoke haven’t smoked in two years
Other medical issues: None
Over ten years ago I suffered a concussion and have experienced chronic, low-level tension, pain since then. Nothing that noticeable.
Since Wednesday, I have had a severe headache that has gotten progressively worse and is not responding to pain medication. It is centered around this old injury, on one side of my head, and I can feel it behind my eye, throughout my head, and down my neck. It is becoming debilitating.
Do I go to the ER or just wait to see my PCP?
Thank you.

Final Forms of The Heroes and villains.
Sophia Mendoza: Also known as Wildstar, her final form is having her long straight brown hair turn into curled brown hair with rainbow streaks. She has a rainbow rope on her hip and she wears an ombre rainbow tracksuit. She also now possess rainbow powers along with her light powers.
Trent Lennox: also known as Hades EmbeHades, his final form is his long black hair streaked with bright neon blue streaks and he has blue flames around him. His necklace Is a bright blue ember that has a strong chain cage so it can’t be touched(with the exception of Sophia’s light powers) he also wears a bright blue flame tracksuit and now has the addition of hades’ powers to add to the powers in which he already possessed.
Alejandro Cortez: formerly known as Dark Heart Stone, changed his name to Cyclone Slayer, his final form is long brown hair with a pony tail and variants of red streaks(brick red, normal red, neon red and bright red). He wears a brick red hoodie with neon red and red flames on the sleeves and a bright red cyclone on the front of the shirt with matching red sweatpants. He also obtains the powers of fire and storms
Courtney Satella: Also known as Zodiac Princess, her final form is short brown hair with purple streaks and she wears a purple track suit with a flowy purple skirt(kinda similar to what princess courtlyn has) and has zodiac signs flying around her and she obtains the powers of animals.
Heather Kasuga: also known as Toxic Glitter Bomb, her final form is her long black hair now glitter black and She now wears a long sleeve glitter red cropped hoodie and green glitter shorts with red and green glitter surrounding her. Her glitter powers are much stronger than they were before and she also has a glitter rope on her side.
Lia “Lala” Mendoza: Also known as Nebula, her final form is long dark brown curls and galaxy sound waves surrounding her. She wears a galaxy milkyway tracksuit and has a just in case bag for any emergencies.
Julia Andrews: Also known as Galaxy Flame, her final form is similar to cyclone slayer’s, having a pink hoodie and matching sweats with purple flames on it and a milkyway on the hoodie. She now possess space powers and Has lightning bolts as well. And she also has a milkyway surrounding her
Gwendolyn Ingrid: introducing Gothic Blackout! After a year of Absence, our group finds that there is much more threats coming to Westchester, new York, and one of those threats goes by the name of gothic blackout. With the ability to control darkness and dark art magic, she’s a strong for that can’t be stopped. With her long midnight blue and teal curled hair and excessive amounts of piercings and necklaces, she also wears a midnight blue cropped hoodie with a matching mini skirt and black jacket around her waist. She also has dark shadows surrounding her whenever she’s in her villain form.
Justin Kalani: introducing not only the leader of a whole new brand of heroes, but also the leader of mankind like in the Greek stories, it’s Andromeda. Like the Greek tales, he’s known for being extremely attractive where nobody can’t stand his beauty, but other than that our courageous leader also happens to possess the powers of fire and water (despite water being something that killed andromeda in her Greek tale, which is ironic when you think about it). He wears a teal hoodie with water fire sleeves and matching pants with water swirling around him.
Maximillian “MAX” James: introducing….. *laughing noises* Comedic Relief. Don’t let his name fool you though, he possess great dark powers, that’s all.
Lindsay Top: introducing the beautiful sidekick of Andromeda, it’s Godiva Echo! Known for her powerful echoes and angelic wings, she’s a pink loving diva that can’t be stopped. Her whole outfit is pink (think Lindsay’s pjs) and she has light pink streaks in her hair.
Isabelle Connelly: also known as E-scope, her final form is her long orange curls are longer and she has light green bombs surrounding her. She wears a light green hoodie with a matching sarong and tall green boots.
Zoella Smith: also known as “the sister with a huge secret” and Commando, her final form is short bold red hair out of it's pigtails with a red headband and black war paint on her face and a shock collar around her neck. She wears a red cropped hoodie with tan shorts and long red boots.
Adrienne “Aiden” Carson: introducing Luna Shadowglow. With the ability to control shadows and dark magic, Luna is a very threating villain. Luna wears a red hoodie with black sweats and has black magic swirling around him. It surprises everyone when they find that Luna is a guy, not a girl. Luna is the leader of the new band of villains.
Samantha “Sammy” Roberts: introducing Angelic Girl! Dressed in a beautiful flowy white dress with yellow hearts on it and angel wings and a halo, you can already guess what her powers are (if not, Angelic powers, which include flying, light powers and the ability to mirror anything)
Ella Harper: introducing Princess Snow Flurry! Dressed in a pink flowy dress with snowflakes on it, she has snow swirling around her and possess the powers of snow, ice and icicles. She also has the power to sing to animals in case she would ever need to, that includes without her trying sometimes.
Bridgette Summers: formerly known as Carvers Stone, changed her name to Morgana Darkfire. Her final form is a blonde ponytail with baby blue ends and tips, she wears a turquoise wet suit with a skirt that represents morgana’s six legs, and she has water powers to go along with her stone powers.

Hey, I’m 2 months on T. I have an imperceptible dirt ‘stache that is only visible looking close in the mirror or as a shadow. I started with basically no body hair so what I have on my face is just peach fuzz and a few thicker ‘stache hairs. Would it be weird to shave the peach fuzz on my neck and face but leave the dirt ‘stache? Like, what’s too early to shave and is it ok to shave the peach fuzz or will it look weird or feminine?

Freshly back and awake after a twelve day stint for my first time there. I knew that I wanted to go in general, and while I didn't have a firm itinerary planned out, there was one main goal that I had in terms of sites within the country. The main video game that I play is Beatmania IIDX, and it has internal trophies which are represented as badges. Your profile allows you to assign up to five of them as visible when you start a new round, and there are badges to earn for playing at least one round in every prefecture in Japan, as well as every subregion. Getting the Kanto badge meant that I needed to play at least one round in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, and Chiba. After five days, I had that complete, and now I have a permanent record of this trip within the game itself. There was also a time-limited event to earn points in IIDX in order to exchange them for goods, such as a hat, or a towel, or a new account card and a poster, and I managed to get that taken care of in somewhat dramatic fashion. I did some other things too.
Primary general points
· Getting Suica set on the phone and using it was generally painless. There were only two times where I needed to summon the help of a resident JR employee to clear up an issue with the gate not reading the card for some reason.
· Most vocal interaction which I had was the opposite of painless, because I continuously kept trying to speak Japanese and failing, and most people would realize that I was completely failing at it and responded with English (some with full on sentences, others with just a few words). There were a few rare times that I was able to express my intent in Japanese, receive a response, understand the response, and reply as necessary, but that was rare. Once English was invoked, I would stay with it, because that's what they were expecting. I've been self-studying the language for more than twenty years in varying degrees of intensity, and while my reading comprehesion seemed sufficient enough for this trip, and while I didn't expect my speaking to be as good because I don't have any opportunity to practice speaking, I came away bitterly disappointed in my vocal and speaking comprehension in terms of my interaction with people there. Even within the trip I could at least overhear common chitchat better, but any time I needed to converse with someone for some reason, I usually needed to have things repeated several times and broken down before I finally realized what was being said.
· You are going to be asked about separately buying a bag with every non-food purchase. Accept or immediately present one that you are carrying to indicate how your purchase shall be bagged.
· I never once had my passport requested for presentation.
· Only once did a person volutnarily reach out to address me, and it was just to ask me where I was from in English. Otherwise, everyone left me alone the entire time.
· Weather through the period was ideal. Mid to upper 70F/25C range and only a few days where it was rainy, and even then it wasn't a downpour. A while ago I personally resolved to only wear suits in public and I purchased a new pair of Mephisto shoes after hearing reports of the extensive walking causing problems for traveller's feet and shoes. My attire help up well; there were only a few times that I needed to avoid sunlight to not get too hot, and I have no issues to report from the shoes.
· I only got X'd out of a restaurant one time, and I think it's only because I wandered into it before it was ready for service. Otherwise, I never once waited in line for food, I never once went to restaurant more than once, and all food was acceptably priced for the portion and excellent for the quality.
For these per-day recounts, I wrote them contemporaneously at the end of each day, so you'll need to forgive me for some writing being in present tense and other writing being in past tense.
Day 1 - Travel, Sugamo, Ikebukuro
Non stop flight from Chicago OHare to Haneda. 12 hours. Good thing I usually don't watch movies, because that just means that all I needed to do was binge a few to make the trip go by.
Pre-trip research led me to choose APA Sugamo as my home base for the visit, and I think that it was a very fortuitious choice. I'll have more to say about it later.
Some awkward encounters happened right away upon checking in here. I was at the nearby Family Mart to buy some things and I didn’t catch that he was making sure I wanted a bag until he repeated it five times. Yes, I’ll take it. Before getting there I was coming down to ground level after checking into my room, and when that person saw that I would have been the only other person going down to the ground, they ducked right back out. I was warned on both of these kinds of things happening, so I guess it’s good to have that immediately out of the way. It would turn out that people deliberately avoiding me was rare throughout the trip.
Despite not sleeping on the trip, I had freshly arrived and had no sense of being tired, so once I had my stuff down, I went off to Ikebukuro right away. No picture or video truly conveys how crowded these areas can get. It can only be experienced in person to be understood.
I soon found Round One Ikebukruo and went right in. So dense and loud. It’s entirely alien to me to see no less than ten IIDX machines in operation and all of them in use. I dumped the money into random tickets, as I foresaw doing, but now I have to wonder if that was the right thing to do, or if it’s tied to that location. I guess I’ll find out.
The forecast is for rain so I need to be in a hurry to figure out where I’m going to go. There might be only one day left for me to get my time limited toys.
Day 2 - Kawasaki, Kanagawa - Utsunomiya, Tochigi - Oomiya, Saitama
My body decided that it only needed four hours of sleep this morning. Without doing more research, I somehow decided to assume that more of the Round One locations were close to 24 hours of operation much like Ikebukuro. Answer: no. I hopped on the train early and went to Shibuya first, but it was very quiet, so I decided to get some of the travels out of the way today and headed south to Kawasaki. I still needed to dawdle for a while until Silk Hat opened at 900AM, and when I finally was able to get inside, I was only able to verify that their store had several allotments of the campaign goods and all allotments were out. Played one round on a monitor that was surprisingly blurry, and I don’t know why that would be the case with a lightning model, but it was, so that was enough.
After doing all of that, I resolved to try to go to Chiba and Ibaraki afterwards. I figured that with Kanagawa and Tokyo likely all out, going to the outskirts would make more sense. However, there was an injury on one of the rails that threw everything off normal, and the train I found myself riding was bound for Utsunomiya instead. Seeing as how I was going to go there eventually, I rolled with it.
It doesn’t take too long to move away from Tokyo metropolitan area before you encounter more forest like areas and rice paddy fields. Halfway through the trip I noticed that two older women suddenly hopped off while the train was waiting to go to the next stop, and I followed them when I realized they found the express line. Utsunomiya has a substantial size to its area and buildings but it was very quiet on the streets there in midday. Walked a mile to Sega GIGO, found that they didn’t even have the goods tracker up. All out. Interesting buliding for it having several neon signs, all vintage and authentic at that. Getting to there from the south meant cutting through Saitama, so I knew I had enough time to make one last attempt there. Research shown two stores being near Oomiya station, so that’s where I ended up. Taito Station was immediately visible upon exit, and they have two IIDX machines specifically with 20 gram springs, which is closer to my home setup and that much lighter than standard 50 gram springs. The final hour drew near and I made one last visit to that city’s Round One. Unlike nearly every other place I went to so far, it only had one IIDX machine. However, and maybe because of that, their goods listing didn’t show everything as out. One painful language exchange later, I was able to discern that what I wanted was available. When you spend more than 3000 yen in a single credit, the game wants to verify if you really want to proceed. It does it again at 6000 and 9000. Yes, I really do. But, having made that money dump I was able to get my hands on the e-amuse card and poster with fifteen minutes left before the deadline. Mission complete. By this point in the day it was exceedingly difficult to even look at the screen so I was ready to come home, but not before getting some goods at the Oomiya Book Off and redeeming what I could for points at Round One Ikebukuro. By the end of the day the only thing that I could tolerate doing was to buy some chicken and nigiri from the nearby train station. Good enough. At that point in the day my body felt like it wants to rock back and forth after all the train riding done today. But, it ended up being worthwhile after all.
One nostalgic feeling I had the most strongly in the day was at the Utsunomiya location where the smell of it triggered past buried memories of yesteryear. I think I want to attribute it to the stronger second hand cigarette smell but I’m not sure - all the same I felt its presence strongly there. Also, I don’t see Oomiya (or really Saitama itself) mentioned as a fun place to go, but it might serve as an acceptable alternative to Ikebukuro, only not as massive in scale of human quantity. Depending on how the trip goes in total I may end up back there for IIDX playing, at least if I don’t find any other place that has 20G springs.
Day 3 - Akihabara
With the travels out of the way, it was time to keep things more regionalized and stick to one area, and there is shopping that needs to be done, so it was off to Akihabara and to see how much of other posted tales hold true. The answer is that it is a lot of it. Kotobukiya can stand to open sooner than noon. Super Potato is indeed priced for a market which wants to snap up anything cheap - I at least found Xi for under 500 and felt that it would have been a bit silly to buy only that, but it didn’t make spending 2000 on one single issue of Arcadia any better. I had no idea that Hey Arcade was right next to both of them; while it was assuredly nice to be there and see the row of Cave shooters among everything else, something got messed up with my registration of my new eamuse card with everything else, so that quickly added to my stress. Having to carry around a few hundred dollars worth of crap with every step didn’t help matters. At least I was able to help a person recover their lost phone by applying a bit of logic to the situation and deducing it to belong to the only person there who looked French, as it was on the Lock Screen. They were relieved, yes. Then, rain came, and it was more than I was anticipating, and I left the umbrella at the room, particularly since I knew I’d be shopping this day. It also turns out to have not mattered much, because I went to visit Bic Camera so that I could get myself a hair trimmer while here, and that turned into me finding a bunch of Kit Kats available, so that meant a second bag. The wind kicked out the rain and my umbrella. In trying to get as many gifts secured as possible, I found some gachapon, but it needed 100Y coins, and I didn’t need paper money in the trip yet. After fighting with maps, I found an ATM to get cash, and got the gachapon. I came home late with feeling rather crushed about the day in that I couldn’t take pictures very well with having to juggle weather and bagging considerations. There were some nice parts of the experience to be sure but between that and more gawking at Super Potato pricing ($135 for PS3 Caladrius? $6000 for Pulstar?) and seeing similar markups on other goods, I don’t think it’s unfair to say that there is a reputation that this area carries and the pricing is there to go with it.
Day 4 - Laundry Day. Shibuya, Harajuku, Shinjuku
I was so drained at the end of Day 3 that I fell asleep on the bed immediately after ending the night call, which meant that I woke up at 0200AM to a room that was fully lit. This meant that I needed to look up how to resolve my eamuse problem or else I wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep. I did both. Awake at 0800AM meant that I had time to do laundry while I figured out what to do with the rest of the day. This meant that I was able to get more of Sugamo in pictures, and it was nice to be able to walk among the actual residences, and do other things like come across a school as it was actually in session. With them being close by and all in succession, I figured to get Shibuya, Harajuku, and Shinjuku visited. It turns out to have been a good day for it, as the temperature was perfectly cool and no rain came, and the sun came out only for a little bit. Shibuya somehow doesn’t seem quite as large in scope in person but the crowds were definitely there, and it is much more hilly than I anticipated as well. After wandering around and not seeing any arcade for a bit, I came across a series of coffee and cookie shops and remained strong to not indulge. It was there while looking at a Disney store (which gets tourists to take pictures of it for some reason) that the song Alone Again came on through the nearby public speakers. What timing. It drove me to finally get a treat for myself, and the frozen latte (black sesame and houji) and croissant (dark chocolate filing) were certainly good, it ended up costing more than the dinner I’d have later this day. I found a seclusion with a garbage can to eat the food and not carry the trash around, then an arcade soon after, and it was time to determine if I could fix the problem. Just like an easy click, it was. New to trash. Old to new. Done. Why did it have to be this way. Harajuku came next, and the environment there was distinct. This one in particular felt like it was an extended carnival atmosphere with the single tight knit market street and emphasis on fashion. A conversation with a freelance artist in the subway actually went well enough that I didn’t feel dumb. The same sensation carried to Shinjuku as well, only it was more spread out. Kabuki street was interesting to see in person, and I didn’t get any unseemly vibes from the place. Maybe it’s different later at night. A return home at a reasonable time allowed me to go down Sugamo’s market street a bit; most of it was closed, but it was interesting to come across the few remaining stores that were open by 0800PM, and more so the one that wasn’t. Coming back to the hotel I found a 24 hour ramen shop with nobody inside. The chef didn’t want to speak and only pointed to the ordering kiosk when I addressed her. The food came through a slot in the obscured window. At least her thank you as I left was a bit more warm, and the food was certainly delicious. To match with the matcha dessert that I bought from Sugamo station, I swung by a 7Eleven to get a drink, and found a milk tea for cheaper than a vending machine. The overhead music in the store was an instrumental version of Alone Again.
Day 5. Ibaraki - Mount Tsukuba, Miraidaira. Kashiwa, Chiba. Akihabara 2.
Awake at 0500AM on my own and knowing the current forecast meant that my envisioned plan for the day was quickly realized. Reaching the Tsukuba Express starting point from Akihabara needs you to get very far down into the ground before getting out into sunlight. I was on the ride early enough to see schoolchildren going about their commute, some of them being no older than ten and going about it unaccompanied. The people of Tsukuba seemed to be particularly helpful and cheerful that day, even despite my Suica issues at the gate. I didn’t ask his name at the counter but the man at the service desk was eager to speak with me about my career and what I was doing there. One asked where I was from on the way up to the summit and another caught my cable car ticket on the way down. There had to have been a few of them who saw my doing this climb in my business attire and thinking me to be a complete idiot if not outright mocking them for doing it that way while they employed the use of dual walking sticks and the like. I know I read some reports of the home stretch being difficult, but it did get pretty close to being an actual rock climb instead of a trail hike for that part of it. A quick stop to Miraidaira on the way back to get the Ibaraki play. The way the town center greets you upon leaving the rail gate struck me as incredible, as well as for how quiet it was. It was like walking onto a movie set. I did find the sweet shop after the play, and that was another painful interaction yet again. Oh well. Two quick stops down Tsukuba Express and one across from Tobu Urban Park line was enough to have a toe in Chiba, and I didn’t even need to leave the physical building of the train station to get to the basement level to find a machine for a play. Thank you, Kashiwa, you were great. Gunma is all that’s left. The descent from Tsukuba did take some earnest exertion, and after doing that the two stops, that put me back in Akihabara about when I anticipated; what I failed to anticipate is how much that place seems to drain on me. I think I just need to eat at an actual dinner time. Once I got back to Sugamo and had food it was a bit better, but while in Akihabara and being around that environment, and not finding things on a shopping list, I found myself just standing still and watching life pass me by. I hemmed and hawed a while for a maid girl’s hour of service for chitchat, but eventually I talked myself out of it because I just didn’t want potential trouble, just like her name. Komaru. I thought about doing this once just to say that I did, but I ultimately decided against it. You cannot go to this place with the expectation that you will find anything unless it is advertised and new. If you are looking for anything used, don’t count on it being there. You also cannot go there without having a strong resolve to not engage with the touts, because it becomes disheartening to see them do their job and blankly stare at the world when they're forced to stand out there and do nothing. Back to Sugamo to find a place that advertised Wagyu but the price they wanted was more than I wanted to spend. The ramen and seaweed & rice servings were fine, but they advertised endless drink and I didn’t receive that. All for $20? No, son. I did better than that elsewhere, I’ll know better now. Long day.
Day 6 - Tokyo Flea Market, Nakano Broadway, Ueno.
The weather couldn’t have been better for this weekend. I’ve read reports that the flea market held near the horse race track will be arbitrarily cancelled regardless of what is reported on the website, but my gut instinct told me that it would occur today, and it did. Turns out that a flea market is a flea market which is a flea market, no matter where it happens. Same allotment of clothes and stuff that few people really want to buy, although I was able to find myself some neckties at least. I probably overpaid based on what I saw later in the route, but that’s fine. They look nice. I settled on some shot glasses for a gift as well, but I’m surprised that I can’t ind something ornate that isn’t part of a sake set. Seated in the shade with a chocolate churro while rap music played in the background - it’s like I never left home. A woman came to sit across from me for the sake of sitting down; she was from Holland and today’s her last day in the country. Her husband came with food eventually. She had three weeks here and went to several places (allegedly, she didn’t list them out) and I asked her about Nakano Broadway. She didn’t make it there. It’s a good thing that I did - this is probably the kind of environment and market that people expect of Akihabara now, and maybe that’s how Aki was years ago, but it’s different from this. What’s more interesting is that Mandarake has a larger presence here than in Akihabara (so it seems to me), and their stores had floor after floor of any and every kind of pop culture product that’s been made in the past sixty years at least. Buttress that with extensive watch and jewelry stores and a slender arcade in the basement, and it’s a very well centralized microcosm of the country’s economy on the whole. I actually made a point to have dinner earlier than usual this time and found a place to serve some deep fried pork cuts served with rice and soup on the side. It was enough, and very well made. The day had not ended and my bag was heavy with several books purchased there, so I reported back to base briefly and decided to try visiting somewhere else, and settled on Ueno. Just as I arrived, a festival was underway where local teams of people made an elaborate show of carrying a home made shrine to a temple. Streets were officially blocked by police to allow the procession. In following the line I came up against makeshift food and amusement stands with the traditional toy gun shooting and goldfish catching. It appears that this is an official “start of summer” festival and I was able to watch it all happen in front of me. That was the good part of the day.
Day 7 - Tachikawa / Kunitachi. Shinjuku 2.
One of the games that I've never played is Beatmania III The Final. I've played some BM3 7th Mix years ago, but not The Final. I found a location that has one - World Game Circus in Tachikawa. In looking around that area before the trip, I saw that there was a nearby shinkansen museum, and not much else, so I figured that going to both places would make that walk worthwhile. Turns out that it wasn’t a museum in the proper sense of a dedicated building. Rather, it was a bullet train engine car on the side of a building that was unrelated, and that was it. A cute interaction happened here - when I approached the car, I heard some children running around inside, so I approached cautiously without knowing if I was encroaching upon someone else's alloted time or something. Once the children saw me, they gave a hearty irrashaimase as I entered, and the boy stamped a paper and presented it to me. Perfect. Despite it not being a typical musem, the card did have some interesting content, and it's good to see some kind of commemoration for their achievements and progression in that industry regardless. They have a lot to be proud about there. Off to WGC. Maps wasn’t lying about the walk taking twenty minutes. It's a good thing that I looked it up on streetview beforehand, because I otherwise would have walked right past it without knowing it was there. Then there it was, and there I confronted a past that I couldn’t visit again. Sure, I got to play BM3 The Final at last, but my timing was off, my hands were off, there wasn’t much I could do. Along with that I can say that I’ve played on a Beatmania II cabinet, and that was better than 5th Style at least. But that was it, that was all I could stand to do. It was right there and I couldn’t bear to put up with it more than a few rounds at best. Dream big, because only disappointment follows if your smaller dreams ever are fulfilled. I don’t know why finding IKEA back in Shinjuku was so difficult, but it took a while. I bought a bag, and then I bought a bag because the other bag was at the end of the register, which makes sense. I did feed myself before getting back to the Taito station to play some songs, but it still wasn’t good enough. All thumbs. Ended the day with laundry since the timing worked. Speaking of making dreams big, it’s time to cross another one off the list tomorrow. I can’t wait.
Day 8 - Takasaki, Gunma. Oomiya, Saitama 2.
It’s a good thing that I only needed to get to Ikebukuro to transfer over to the next stop, because that’s where that particular run ended for some reason. I wonder what was up. Speaking of things getting messed up on trains, I managed to find my way on a train that needed a separate ticket, which I didn't have. The conductor found me right away and had me disembark at Uraja for me to wait for the proper transfer. The weather forecast said there’d be rain, and the travel forecast said it would take two hours to get there, and neither lied. I feel like I had more people staring at me in Gunma than other places. I will say that I found the Takasaki station area to be rather charming, with the stores that it had inside and the emphasis on the music culture there. It’s one thing to offer a piano to the public to play, but it’s another to have a public willing to use it. This location had both. Having what was essentially a Bic Camera built into the facility was a nice touch too. The Leisure Land arcade was sandwiched between other floors that had its own offering of gaming stuff, so that was an unexpected bit of a fun thing to look through. The area was clean and sparsely populated, and it wasn’t picked clean of all matter of things that would normally get snapped up, so that was interesting. Finally, I made it over to the machine. They had separate fans for each location. I got the songs and then the medals came, and that’s that. Kantou Seiou. I would have stayed a bit longer but I wanted to have the medals show up right away, and my internet wasn’t cooperating, so that’s all I could do. I think there was an Internet cafe that I could have used in the facility, but I didn’t want to deal with an awkward conversation. I did get some Lawson on the way out, as well as some trinkets from the local Gunma-chan store as well as some mini croissants and some macademia cookie things. More vocal awkwardness. Omiya was one of the stops on the way back, and I found a place to serve omrice, so that’s another one off the list. No shoes allowed inside. The value wasn’t there but the service was good enough, as was the flavor. The machines with the 20G springs are indeed legit. Back home in time for some McDonalds, and that’s another food-checklist item marked off. Takoyaki mayo dipping sauce - somehow it’s both salty and sweet. While returning to the hotel, I did happen to encounter an argument amongst two teenaged locals where the guy ended up half-heartedly kicking the girl and getting her to cry. I wonder what their argument was about. I didn’t play hero, but someone else did so enough to prevent an escalation and called the police over.
Day 9 - Sugamo, Tokyo Sky Tree, Akihabara 3, Kanda
Up early enough to decide that I should at least visit the Sky Tree while I'm there just to say that I did, and that I should visit the Sugamo street market upon its open since it was right there in front of me. I'm glad to have done so. With everything open, this felt more like what one would think to expect from a flea market environment that's operated and supported by the local populace. Small stores were open both sides of the street that go on for many blocks, and some tents and tables were set up to sell second hand goods as well. I was able to find someone selling a US Morgan dollar and he wanted only 2000Y for it, so that was an easy buy. If I would have known better to anticipate this area, I wouldn't have felt compelled to buy kitchy tourist crap that is expected as gifts elsewhere. If you are looking for a place to idly shop around that doesn't get extremely crowded and has an authentic local feel to it, consider making a point to come here. Off to Sky Tree. Getting the combo ticket for the second deck was worth it just for the lack of crowds on the upper area. If you're going to come here, consider getting a phone selfie stick or something of the kind so that you can take pictures against the windows without the structure scaffolding obstructing your view. On the subject of shopping again, this might be another area to consider visiting just for the sake of the specialty stores to be found here, such as those for chopsticks or hairpins. To close out the day, my wife reminded me to look for something from the Square Enix cafe, so that meant swinging by Akihabara yet again. Since it is within a walkway, it was a bit of a pain to find this place even with using maps, but I eventually found it and got what she wanted to find. Played some IIDX at Game Panic, which was surprisingly small and the one machine that was avaialble to play had some 2P turntable issues, so that didn't last all that long. Dinner was at a nearby place that specalized in tofu, so that was a good ramen serving with that infused. For the evening, I wandered south to Kanda to get night pictures, and found it to feel pretty similar to Ueno.
Day 10 - Ginza, Tokyo, Kanda & Akihabara 4
Launrdry in the morning. I also wanted to say that I went to Ginza in my time here, and I didn't research anywhere to go to keep it a surprise. It was a bit warmer and sunnier than usual that day, and I stuck to the main road for most of the walk, so I can't say that I found too many points of the interest along the path that I walked starting from Yurakucho station and heading out that way. High class store for high class people, and that's too rich for my peasant blood. Similarly for Tokyo proper itself, I suppose I'd have to needed to wander far away from the Yamanote vicinity to find points of interest there, as I didn't encounter anything that was remarkably distinctive here in comparison to other areas that I have previously seen. Continuing north across Nihonbashi brought me to Kanda and eventually to Akihabara yet again, as if it was a magnet that pulled me inside every time. For the sake of trying a different place I chose to play some IIDX at the Leisure Land arcade there, and I'm glad to have done that, as those machines were probably in the best coniditon that I encountered within that area. Dinner was at Tenkaippin, which I didn't realize until after I placed the order was cash only. The clerk didn't request it beforehand but I voluntarily left my passport there to show that I would return, and promptly went to the same ATM that I had found days prior in order to get the cash to pay for the bill.
Day 11 - Haneda T3, Nishi Nippori, Nippori, Uguisuidani, Otsuka, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukruo, home.
The end. I resolved to take the subway over to Haneda today to get the one luggage over there and stored, and it’s a good thing that I did - there’s no easy solution for getting over there without encountering a crowd. If anything I wonder if Yamanote is actually better. Regardless, I got that much done. With the day left to go, I ventured to Nishi Nippori and I needed to summon the map several times to make sure I found the location, as it was as obscure as it could get. Just a sign on the ground for the third floor, a stairway that led to the back, an elevator that had no decoration, a single room that housed everything. Arcade PCB kits on shelves, joystick panels in exposed boxes, nicotine odor from years past - it was like I was transported to 1995 upon entry, beyond the fact that the games weren’t as old. Most of them, they did have a lot going for SF3 3rd yet. I was able to take care of some game business in a hurry since I was the only one there. It was a very pleasant respite for play in comparison to most of the other sessions. The region itself felt much the same as this arcade - old and well worn, as in well lived. Venturing south to Nippori led me to stumble upon a shrine and cemetery just by following some stairs. Usuigudani was cleaner but mostly had hotels as points of interest. Back home to buy some mochi while mochi was for sale in midday. Then to Otsuka, thinking that I would wander to Ikebukuro, but I ended up wandering back to Sugamo instead. Whoops. Meal at Sugamo, then back out to return to Shibuya and Shinjuku at night to catch evening shots, when I hadn’t done so before at these places. Good thing I did that to get Golden Gai area shots at night. With the night winding down, I decided to have one last IIDX play at Round 1 in Ikebukuro to symbolically end where I started.
Ending arcade comments
· Although the upkeep is generally better and more consistent than the US, some machines will have hardware issues here too. I was surprised by the blurriness with some of the LM IIDX machines.
· Densha De Go on the propert large cabinet is nice but quickly becomes very expensive.
· Bombergirl is OK enough and having the dedicated detonator button that pops up for hitting the base is a cute touch.
· Chase Chase Jokers feels rather clunky and I'm not sure what the game is trying to do. Interesting side screen concept at least.
· Nostalgia is delightful and would probably find a small fanbase worldwide if it had more exposure.
· Favorite IIDX locations are Taito Station in Oomiya for the light keys and Leisure Land Akihabara for the high quality of the LMs there. Honorable mention goes to the Game Versus loctation in Nishi Nihonbashi, but that might not be worth it for a dedicated trip unless you go there first thing in the morning.
Ending overall comments
This was a life altering trip for me, as would be expected. While I'm glad to have made the journey, as to be expected, I will only want to return after making an extensive redoubled effort into speaking and hearing comprehension, because I know that I came across like a blubbering idiot so many times, and it's truly aggravating because I generally know what I want to say and most of the words that are used to say it, but it just doesn't come out of my mouth properly when it needs to be done.
I welcome any questions you may have, as that will help for me to recall the memories and have me write them down.