WWE Heat Wave: The Genesis of the Rivalry
The story begins at WWE Heat Wave, a new pay-per-view event designed to kick off the summer season with a bang. Jade Cargill, the dominant and charismatic powerhouse, makes a surprise debut, announcing herself as the reigning WWE Women's Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion—a title she introduced to add prestige and competition to the women's division. Her entrance is met with awe and excitement, but it takes a turn when Chyna, the legendary "Ninth Wonder of the World," interrupts. Chyna, known for breaking barriers in the Attitude Era, challenges Jade, claiming that if anyone should hold such a title, it should be her. The tension is palpable, and the two engage in a fierce brawl, setting the stage for their rivalry.
WWE SummerSlam: First Blood
At SummerSlam, the anticipation is high as Jade defends her newly introduced championship against Chyna. The match is a brutal showcase of strength and resilience, with both women pushing each other to their limits. In a shocking twist, Jade retains her title through underhanded tactics, using the ropes for leverage during the pinfall. Chyna is left fuming, vowing to bring Jade down and take the championship.
WWE Unforgiven: Retribution
Unforgiven sees Chyna getting her rematch. This time, the match is a No Disqualification bout, ensuring there are no excuses or shortcuts. The match is even more intense than their last encounter, featuring chairs, kendo sticks, and even a table spot. Despite Chyna's valiant effort, Jade once again comes out on top, thanks to interference from a newly formed alliance with a rising star, Bianca Belair. Chyna is left battered but more determined than ever.
WWE No Mercy: Alliances Formed
At No Mercy, Chyna seeks revenge and finds an ally in Beth Phoenix, the Glamazon, who has her own issues with Jade and Bianca. The event features a tag team match: Jade and Bianca vs. Chyna and Beth. The match is a showcase of power and teamwork, but it ends in chaos as all four women brawl outside the ring, leading to a double count-out. The unresolved tension sets up another encounter.
WWE Survivor Series: The Clash of Titans
Survivor Series features a traditional elimination match with Team Jade (Jade, Bianca Belair, Charlotte Flair, and Nia Jax) against Team Chyna (Chyna, Beth Phoenix, Sasha Banks, and Becky Lynch). The match is a thrilling back-and-forth, but it ultimately comes down to Jade and Chyna as the last women standing. In a surprising turn, Chyna finally pins Jade clean, marking her first significant victory in their rivalry and setting the stage for a championship rematch.
WWE Royal Rumble: Road to WrestleMania
At the Royal Rumble, Chyna and Jade face off once again for the WWE Women's Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship. This time, it's a Last Woman Standing match. The brutality reaches new heights as both women refuse to stay down. In the climax, Chyna delivers a devastating Pedigree off the top rope through a table, keeping Jade down for the ten-count. Chyna finally claims the championship, but Jade's pursuit is far from over.
WWE Elimination Chamber: Unfinished Business
With WrestleMania on the horizon, the Elimination Chamber match features both women as part of a six-woman bout, with the championship on the line. The match is grueling, with alliances formed and broken. In the end, it's down to Chyna and Jade once more. Jade manages to outlast Chyna, reclaiming the championship and solidifying her as a formidable force heading into WrestleMania.
WWE Fastlane: The Last Stop
Fastlane serves as the final stop before WrestleMania, with Chyna and Jade facing off in a non-title Steel Cage match. The cage is meant to prevent interference and settle the score. The match is another brutal encounter, showcasing the sheer physicality and determination of both competitors. Chyna emerges victorious, climbing over the cage and setting the stage for their final showdown at WrestleMania.
WWE WrestleMania: The Ultimate Showdown
At WrestleMania, the grandest stage of them all, Jade Cargill and Chyna clash in an epic main event for the WWE Women's Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship. The match stipulation is an Iron Woman match, lasting 30 minutes, ensuring a definitive conclusion to their rivalry. The bout is a masterclass in storytelling and athleticism, with both women securing multiple falls. As the clock winds down, Chyna secures a final fall with mere seconds left, reclaiming the championship and earning the respect of Jade and the WWE Universe.
Epilogue: Respect and Legacy
The rivalry between Jade Cargill and Chyna becomes legendary, elevating both women's careers and the prestige of the WWE Women's Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship. In the aftermath, the two warriors, having pushed each other to their limits, share a moment of mutual respect, solidifying their legacies in WWE history.

Complete Changelog: Plasma 6.0.5 complete changelog - KDE Community

Bluedevil

• Kded: Fix launchState setting not working. Commit. Fixes bug #469119

Discover

• Flatpak: don't trip over nullptr remotes when installing a flatpakref. Commit.
• Flatpak: Check specifically installed files when looking up installed ones. Commit. Fixes bug #482518
• Notifier: Assume online if no QNetworkInformation instance available. Commit.
• Kns: drop provider part of the url. Commit. Fixes bug #486330
• Packagekit: return empty license array when unknown. Commit. Fixes bug #486037
• FwupdBackend: Set user agent from client. Commit. Fixes bug #486726
• Flatpak: Do not report regressions on transaction progress. Commit.
• Flatpak: Do not use QIcon to check if an appstream icon exists. Commit.
• UpdatesPage: Fix invisible delegates taking up space and causing a ghost section header. Commit. Fixes bug #478253
• UpdatesPage: Port from custom QSortFilterProxyModel subclass to KItemModels. Commit.

Dr Konqi

• Postman: don't run too often. Commit.
• Backtracegenerator: refactor process resetting. Commit.
• Backtracegenerator: don't crash when the debugger crashes. Commit. Fixes bug #485669
• Coredump/polkit: return early when excavation failed. Commit.
• Coredump/polkit: put tmpDir on the stack. Commit.
• Coredump/polkit: don't allow anything that looks like paths as input. Commit.
• Dumpexcavator: fix dbus timeout handling. Commit.
• Be more strict in rejecting useless traces. Commit.

Plasma Addons

• Alternatecalendar: respect numbering system from libicu. Commit. Fixes bug #485373
• Wallpapers/potd: fix dragging preview image in Qt6.7. Commit.

kglobalacceld

• Postpone processing KSycoca to the next event loop cycle. Commit.

KScreen

• Output: Use dedicated Rectangle for panel orientation indicator. Commit.
• Osd: Make dbus-send wait for a reply. Commit.
• Revert "osd: show main window immediately after the application starts". Commit.
• Osd: show main window immediately after the application starts. Commit. See bug #482642
• Osd: fix actions not being applied in OSD. Commit. Fixes bug #482642

kscreenlocker

• Handle wl_display_create() failing. Commit.
• CI: Add missing dependencies. Commit.

KWin

• Backends/drm: adapt the color factors to the target colorspace. Commit. Fixes bug #483801
• Plugins/screenshot: Snap pixel grid for rectangular screenshots. Commit.
• Plugins/screenshot: Round texture size. Commit.
• Compositor_wayland: properly handle moving the cursor plane failing. Commit. Fixes bug #487037
• Backends/virtual: Fix linux dmabuf feedback. Commit.
• Backends/wayland: Fix present() because beginFrame() has not been called or failed. Commit.
• Backends/wayland: Check whether it's possible to create a swapchain with the given format+modifier. Commit. Fixes bug #485496
• Wayland: Fix security context failing to create a client. Commit.
• Disconnect Workspace::outputsChanged from InputPanelV1Window when it's closed. Commit.
• Plugins/screencast: fix damage region position. Commit.
• Core/renderlayer: don't implicitly truncate width and height of the geometry. Commit. Fixes bug #482987
• Effect: Fix clip region in AnimationEffect. Commit.
• Workspace: fix syncing the stacking order with Xorg. Commit. Fixes bug #478556
• Placementtracker: fix restoring of windows in custom tiles. Commit.
• Placementtracker: fix quick tiled windows not being restored correctly. Commit. Fixes bug #461886
• Fix vertically maximized windows sometimes being moved out of the screen. Commit. Fixes bug #476037
• Placementtracker: fix vertically maximized windows being misplaced. Commit. See bug #476037
• Dpmsinputeventfilter: Don't wake screens up on warp events. Commit. Fixes bug #480026
• Backends/drm: Prevent "recently disconnected" screen wakeup more aggressively. Commit. Fixes bug #480026
• Workspace: don't touch output configs on Xorg. Commit. See bug #477268
• Backends/drm: fix udev event KWIN_DRM_DEVICES check. Commit.
• Plugins/screencast: Avoid resetting m_dmabufParams when resizing the stream. Commit.
• Plugins/zoom: Center cursor on active screen on shortcut. Commit. Fixes bug #435108
• Plugins/screencast: Use steady clock to generate last sent timestamps. Commit.
• Plugins/screencast: Make frame throttling less strict. Commit.
• Plugins/screencast: Reset last sent timestamp when the stream resumes. Commit.
• Plugins/screenshot: Fix monitor screenshots on x11. Commit.
• Outputconfigurationstore: don't overwrite output settings with kscreen configs. Commit. Fixes bug #485353
• Backends/drm: use dumb buffers for the cursor on virtual machines. Commit. Fixes bug #485827
• Ci: Switch to suse_tumbleweed_qt67. Commit.
• Scene/workspacescene: don't check direct scanout candidates for a pixmap. Commit. Fixes bug #485639. Fixes bug #485730. Fixes bug #485712. See bug #477016
• Fall back to breeze_cursors if neither configured nor default can be loaded. Commit.

libksysguard

• SensorFaceController: Create QQmlEngine for configs at class initialization. Commit.
• SensorFaceController: use a separate QQmlEngine in createConfigUi. Commit. Fixes bug #483689
• Fix linecharts and bar charts for small sizes. Commit. Fixes bug #483529

libplasma

• More robust against malformed hints. Commit. Fixes bug #487230
• Workaround setMinimumSize not resizing. Commit. Fixes bug #485456. Fixes bug #480722
• Clock.svg: remove empty groups that cause warnings. Commit.
• Sync config to disk when values change. Commit. Fixes bug #481085. Fixes bug #482469. Fixes bug #482090. Fixes bug #481113. Fixes bug #482773. Fixes bug #483083

Plasma Desktop

• Applets/showActivityManager: Fix and improve layout. Commit. Fixes bug #482098
• Applets/kicker: cap maximum icon size. Commit. Fixes bug #482612
• Kickoff: Use Kirigami.Units.iconSizes.huge as maximum icon size. Commit. Fixes bug #467004
• Panel: don't double count floatingPadding. Commit. Fixes bug #482468
• On multiline launchers are often as wide as tasks. Commit. See bug #485223
• Fix keyboard navigation. Commit. Fixes bug #485588. Fixes bug #477348

Plasma SDK

• Fix montage functionality. Commit.

Plasma Systemmonitor

• FaceLoader: use qmlEngine for configEngine. Commit. See bug #483689
• Applicationstable: Use FirstCellDelegate for the first cell in details table. Commit. Fixes bug #479235

plasma-welcome

• Fix RTL footer buttons and navigation. Commit. Fixes bug #485918

Plasma Workspace

• Systemmonitor: create configEngine for config items. Commit. See bug #483689
• Kcm/fonts: use correct signal handlers for UI controls. Commit. See bug #486699
• Applets/systemtray: Fix wrong icons color in settings window. Commit.
• Remove nasty processEvents() which led to a crash on exit. Commit.
• Initialize member vars to avoid using uninitialized values. Commit.
• Applets/clipboard: Show appropriate placeholder message with no search results. Commit. Fixes bug #486300
• Kcms/icons: filter out GNOME's Adwaita and High Contrast icon themes. Commit. Fixes bug #486409
• Applets/kicker: fix potential crash when modifying preferred applications. Commit.
• Components/calendar: respect numbering system from local language. Commit. See bug #485373

polkit-kde-agent-1

• Fix crash on hyprland. Commit. Fixes bug #485407

Powerdevil

• Kcmodule: Hide profile load/unload fields if battery profiles are absent. Commit.
• [osd] Force Plasma styling. Commit. Fixes bug #480254

print-manager

• Plasmoid: Use KItemModels SFPM. Commit.

System Settings

• Fix subcategory pane opening when exiting search. Commit. Fixes bug #487156

My close friend Abby (30F) and I (33F) have almost 10 years of friendship and a great history of helping one another during trying financial times. We started out at the same crappy low paying entry level job, and it was common for us to borrow anything from $20-$150 from each other here and there if we were a bit short on rent or needing gas or groceries to get to payday. When we moved on from that employer, small things would still occasionally come up, and I could always depend on her to spot me. She has a chronic health issue that requires an expensive medication that isn’t covered by her insurance, and I’ve even helped her out with that when money has been tight. No matter what, I’ve always gotten paid back like clock work according to whatever payment plan we’ve discussed.
A little over a month ago while visiting a friend, she got into a car accident that caused damage to her windshield and her side mirrors, and I thought nothing of it when she asked for a short term loan to fix the repairs. We agreed on small weekly payments based on her direct deposit, and I even mentioned some non-monetary favors she could do for me to reduce the total amount.
When time came for her to pay me something, she avoided me that day. However, I thought nothing of it because she had been working a lot and I guessed she was just tired so I decided to wait another week until her next payday. The next week came and she mentioned that she didn’t forget about me but that it might have to be another week before she could pay me, and the amount would likely be smaller than we initially discussed. I appreciated her honesty and told her to just keep me updated.
Within a few days of this conversation, she called to tell me that she adopted a cat and sent me a haul on Snapchat of all of the supplies she bought for it. Now she didn’t just get your run-of-the-mill litter box and food bowls—everything was TOP OF THE LINE. A fancy self-cleaning box, multiple collars, leashes and harnesses for walking, a stroller, a large variety of toys and scratching devices, and several bags of high cost food and treats. While this shopping spree easily hit the $1,000 mark, I didn’t criticize her spending and assumed that maybe she’d gotten a bonus or something that improved her financial state, and that we would be back on schedule with her payments.
The next week, a few days before a payment “due date”, we planned an outing to a local festival. There was a small entry fee that we had previously discussed her covering for me to count toward her balance but when we got to the venue, she only produced enough cash for her ticket and said she’d forgotten. I was a little annoyed but not necessarily suspicious until we were walking through the festival browsing various vendor booths and she miraculously “found” a wad of cash in her purse. She proceeded to spend at least $200 on drinks, food, and several handmade pieces of jewelry and pottery, and I was DUMBFOUNDED.
Again, I foolishly waited to see if she would give me at least something on our next payment date but I didn’t receive a dime, and she’s still hitting me with that “I got you next week.” At this point, we’re 2 weeks out from when she agreed to have the loan paid back! While it wouldn’t put me in any financial distress to take the loss, it’s the principle of my friend spending at least 2.5x the amount I loaned her on such frivolous things while putting me off.
Any advice on how I should approach this, as our friendship has been conflict free until this point?

From here: https://old.reddit.com/counting/comments/159iv1length_of_username_360003/l515jfj/
Thanks anti for the small final run and assist
In this thread, you count up by the number of characters in your username. For example, I count up by 19 because “ClockButTakeOutTheL” has 19 characters
Next get is anything 380,000 or above

/CFB Trivia Tuesday!

This Week's Contest: http://trivia.redditcfb.com

Spring Standings/Questions

Your Trivia Settings

Rules

Trivia Tuesday is a weekly feature run by bakonydraco, DampFrijoles, Davidellias, and iamnotacola. Each week there will be five questions ranging from questions most everyone can get to questions that might stump just about everyone. Your goal is to quickly answer them to the best of your ability. You get a one point speed bonus for finishing in under 2:30.
There are definitely still ways you could cheat the system, but please do not. This is meant to be a fun weekly feature, and we encourage you to take it at face value and answer the questions without assistance.

Last Week

Meta Week is back! This week’s set of questions will be very loosely linked to college football. Scores this week will not count toward the upcoming season, so no need to worry about getting some wrong.
It's hard to believe, but Trivia Tuesday is now entering its 34th season.
We at the Trivia Tuesday mod team remain thankful to you all for playing every week and keeping this fun and entertaining. It's an absolute pleasure, and we are excited for more.
Let’s have a great season!

Individual

Last Week

As is usually the case with the final, no user got a perfect score of 11 points. However, GoCardinal07 was the one and only user to ace all ten questions. In fact, they were the only user to get ten points.

Playoff

That 10-spot came in handy: GoCardinal07 is the Spring 2024 Trivia Tuesday Individual Champion! This is their second Trivia Tuesday championship, their first coming last year in the Summer season.
GrapeSodaFiend and whitedawg got the silver and bronze this season.
All three have earned the /CFB Top Scorer flair (/CFB Top Scorer) for finishing in the top three.
Some extra notes:

• ruwisc had the fastest average time among playoff participants, clocking in at an average of 32.05 seconds per week.
  
• In addition to winning the individual championship, GoCardinal07 also scored the most points on the season, with 65 points out of a possible 77 (84.4%).
  

Premier Tier

O-H! I-O! Ohio State is the Spring 2024 Premier Tier Champion! This is their fourth Premier Tier championship (Spring 2022, Summer 2023, Fall 2023). They have a bit of a dynasty going as they have won three of the last four Premier Tier championships. In addition, this win now has them standing alone for the second-most championships.
Leading the way for The Ohio State University in the final were BucksGuy, mcdsmaster8824, placid_salad, guttata, and Confusum.
Rounding out the finalists are Michigan State, Michigan, and Auburn.
Ohio State will get an alternate flair for their victory! Because the Buckeyes already one alternate flair Ohio State, this flair will not be permanent; they will only hold it as long as they are Trivia champions. Ohio State fans, please suggest options in the comments.

This Ain't the Same Ol' South Florida Championship Tier

Fight On! USC is the Spring 2024 This Ain't the Same Ol' South Florida Championship Tier Champion! This is the Trojans’ first Trivia Tuesday championship. Heading up the victory were MosesDoughty, Rakarei, MightyP13, and Honestly_.
Fresno State, Cincinnati, and Miami (OH) finished behind USC in that order.
With the victory, USC has earned naming rights to the Championship Tier for next season! Trojan fans, please suggest options in the comments.
Best of luck to all, and be safe!

In 2007, England qualified for their first U17 World Cup, in South Korea, making it to the quarter finals. But how many of this squad would go on to have successful England careers? In fact... how many of them would go on to have successful football careers at all? Let's take a look at what happened, and what could have been.
GOALIES
Jason Steele - Middlesbrough
34 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Became number 1 at Middlesbrough before signing for Blackburn, Sunderland and Brighton, where is he still on the books. Uncapped for England but got 1 cap for Great Britain at the 2012 Olympics.
Alex Smithies - Huddersfield
15 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Made almost 300 appearances for Huddersfield, before moving to QPR, Cardiff and Leicester. He didn't make an appearance in two years at Leicester and retired from football in January this year.
Wes Foderingham - Fulham
12 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Left Fulham to go to Crystal Palace but didn't make an appearance for either, going on non-league loans including Histon and Bromley. Signed for Swindon, Rangers and then Sheffield United, where he still plays.
DEFENDERS
Seth Nana Twumasi - Chelsea
23 youth caps, 0 senior caps
No appearances for Chelsea, he joined Peterborough for 11 appearances before going to Northampton, Yeovil, Newport County, Maidstone, Maidenhead, Dover and most recently Oakham United in the Peterborough & District League Premier Division.
James Reid - Nottingham Forest
2 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Just 1 appearance for Nottingham Forest before spending a career in non-league, at Hinckley, Telford, Nuneaton and others. Last seen at Ilkeston Town in the Northern Premier League.
Tommy Smith - Ipswich Town
4 youth caps for England, 51 senior caps for New Zealand
Switched alegiences in 2010 to New Zealand, going to become the youngest captain of the team. Played for Ipswich for 11 years, before clocking up appearances with Colorado Rapids, Colchester, MK Dons and Australian A-League side Macarthur FC, where he still plays.
Jordan Spence - West Ham United
50 youth caps, 0 senior caps.
Went on loan to 5 clubs in 7 years at West Ham before joining MK Dons permanently, then Ipswich, and Den Haag for 4 appearances. Hasn't played since 2020.
Gavin Hoyte - Arsenal
17 youth caps for England, 3 senior caps for Trinidad & Tobago.
Released from Arsenal with just one appearance to his name, he played for Dagenham & Redbridge, Gillingham, Barnet, Eastleigh, and Maidstone, where he's just left the club. Switched to Trinidad & Tobago international team but only made 3 appearances.
MIDFIELDERS
Henri Lansbury - Arsenal
46 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Had a successful professional career after leaving Arsenal, joining Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Bristol City and Luton. Retired from football in August 2023 and now runs an organic fertiliser business.
Krystian Pearce - Birmingham City
24 youth caps for England, 13 senior caps for Barbados.
After leaving Birmingham City without a professional appearance, he played for Huddersfield, Notts County, Torquay, Mansfield, Solihull Moors, Boreham Wood, Hereford and his current club, Kidderminster Harriers. Called up to the Barbados national team in 2018 but was deemeed ineligible by CONCACAF and Barbados had to forfeit the game 3-0. He made his recognised debut two years later.
Danny Rose - Tottenham Hotspur
55 youth caps, 29 senior caps
One of the most successful members of the team, Rose had a long career with Tottenham Hotspur racking up over 200 appearances. He spent one season at Watford but hasn't played since 2022. As well as 29 senior caps for England, he also picked up 4 caps for Great Britain at the 2012 Olympics.
Nathan Porritt - Middlesbrough
8 youth caps, 0 senior caps
After being released by Middlesborough, Porritt's career went to Olympic Charleroi, Stokesley, Billingham Synthonia, and then the kit man at Hartlepool United.
Dan Gosling - Plymouth Argyle
18 youth caps, 0 senior caps.
After impressing at Plymouth, he played for Everton, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Watford, and most recently Notts County, whom he dpearted in January.
Michael Woods - Chelsea
27 youth caps, 0 senior caps.
Departed Chelsea with no appearances, playing for Yeovil, Doncaster, Harrogate, Hartlepool, Dover, York and his current employers, South Shields in the National League North.
Medy Elito - Colchester United
6 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Left Colchester to join Dagenham & Redbridge before rapidly moving teams, to VVV-Venlo, Newport County, Cambridge, Barnet, Wealdstone, Welling and Ramsgate. He has also released music, performing at Wireless Festival as Don EE where his tune "You Alright Yeah?" has 11m Spotify streams.
FORWARDS
Danny Welbeck - Manchester United
42 youth caps, 42 senior caps
One of the most recognisable names from the squad, Welbeck played for Manchester United, Arsenal, Watford and Brighton, where he has been since 2020. Scored 16 goals for England in 42 senior appearances.
Rhys Murphy - Arsenal
26 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Left Arsenal with 0 apperances and played for Telstar in the Netherlands, Dagenham & Redbridge, Oldham, Forest Green, Gillingham, Chelmsford, Southend and Yeovil, where he currently plays. He has 30 youth caps if you count his caps for Republic of Ireland youth, for whom he switched from, and then back to, but did not get a senior cap for them either.
Victor Moses - Crystal Palace
29 youth caps for England, 38 senior caps for Nigeria
Played for Crystal Palace, Wigan and Chelsea, and then went on a number of loans out, the last of which, Spartak Moscow, was made permanent in 2021. Switched from England to Nigeria in 2012.
Tristan Plummer - Bristol City
26 youth caps, 0 senior caps
Left Bristol City without making an appearance and went on a non-league career, remarkably joining and leaving Weston-super-Mare four times. Also played for Hereford, Aldershot, Frome and Portuguese side Portimonense.
Jonathan Franks - Middlesbrough
27 youth caps, 0 senior caps
After leaving Middlesbrough, he played for Hartlepool, Ross County, Wrexham, Icelandic side ÍBV, Stockton Town and was last seen at Whitby Town.
Ashley Chambers - Leicester City
23 youth caps, 0 senior caps.
Joined York from Leicester where he would pick up 2 England C caps. Also played for Cambridge, Dagenham & Redbridge, Grimsby, Nuneaton, Kidderminster, Brackley, Buxton and Coalville.
Not that proof was needed, but getting youth caps does not a successful career make. Only Welbeck and Rose would go on to be capped for England. So if you're looking at the latest U17 team wondering who might make it big... you could be looking at Hartlepool's next kitman.

“Will you look at that,” Captain Yontan marveled from the observation deck. They had arrived in the Solar System at long last, the old bastion of knowledge mankind had abandoned many millennia ago.
“Such a basic tech, yet so beautiful, so… poetic,” Lezlybe uttered, gazing at the constant flux of Sunfire Conduit pulled from the sun to one, two, three relays, and finally to the surface of Pluto, where its energy was being harnessed inside a crater. “And you’re certain that’s where the Ultimate Knowledge is stored?”
“Yes,” Yontan nodded. “Every clue leads to Pluto. Can you imagine? The Ultimate Knowledge, lost for millennia, on this planet out of all places.”
“Ready to descend at your command, captain,” announced Ghenna.
Yontan turned to his crew and smiled. It was the first time they had seen him do that in months. “Hover around the south-south-eastern quadrant of the crater. That’s where the entrance is supposed to be.”
“Yes, Sir!”
Lezlybe’s turned to face the captain, her long black hair swirling around with her.
“Wouldn’t that energy burn us on approach?”
“It might be basic tech, but not that basic, Lez,” said Yontan. “It’s safe up to a distance of 100 meters. Don’t underestimate the intelligence of our ancestors because they built this thing in the distant past. They were as smart as us. Smarter even, in certain aspects, I’m sure.”
“Found the entrance, captain,” said Ghenna. It was a pale peach colored door built on the craterside.
“Land near it, wherever it’s stable.”
“Yes, Sir!”
The ship touched down next to the Hollis Crater. Yontan and four others suited up and left the craft. Before heading for the door, the team stopped to gaze at the Sunfire Conduit from their position. It went up, up, up as far as the eye could see.
Jmerr was awestruck.
“I can’t believe we’re able to look at it with basic sun visors. Do you think our ancestors purposefully designed it like that?”
“Of course,” said Yontan, mesmerized by the spiraling blaze swooshing down the crater. “Aesthetics have always been important, especially since it used to be connected to three planets, two dwarf planets, and eight moons. Many renown painters have depicted the Conduits in their art. Although no physical portraits survived, their works have been well documented over hundreds of books.”
Lezlybe approached Jmerr and put her hand over his shoulder.
“I kind of wish we could hear its thunderous sound. I imagine it’d be a satisfying swoosh, kind of like a blowtorch.”
“You’d be deaf before you’d hear a thing,” laughed Yontan. “We’re speaking of extremely powerful jets coming from a star, after all. I can’t wait to see why they’re pulling so much energy on such a small planet. It’s totally excessive in my view.”
“Maybe it’s not,” said Lezlybe. “Especially if the Ultimate Knowledge is behind this door.”
The team approached the door, a small black panel to its side. Yontan placed a round device on top and, seconds later, it retracted into the ground.
“A Grampus?” frowned Jmerr, even though no one could see his face behind the visor. “Why do you use this old AI?”
“Because I don’t know the code,” explained Yontan as they stepped inside a long hall. “So I brought this device with me to crack the password. Don’t forget that this here is also old tech. Newer devices could break something.” He glanced over his shoulder at the wide-open entryway with the ship not too far behind. “But it looks like the Grampus broke it anyway since it doesn’t slide shut.”
At the end of the wide turquoise hall, another door was easily popped open with Yontan’s device. This time, however, the heavy door closed shut when the last person stepped in.
“I hope we’re not trapped in this small room,” gulped Lezlybe.
“Don’t worry, we can ask someone on board to cut it open if needed,” said Yontan. “After all we –”
PSHHHHHHHH
A burst of gas sprayed them from all sides, followed by a shower of heavy liquid. A few moments after it stopped, the door in front of them opened, and a gentle male voice greeted them.
“Welcome to U.K. ONE. The current air pressure is at 101.3 kilopascals, with a temperature of 22.4 degrees Celsius and a humidity level set at 60% RH.”
The voice then proceeded to inform them about the room’s condition among other sets of data.
“I see. We were inside a basic decompression chamber,” muttered Jmerr.
The tallest crewmate, Lessandre, popped his helmet off and took a deep breath.
“Ah, historical fresh air,” he boomed, looking around the oval room. “It brings a tear to my eye.”
“What are you doing?” Yontan shouted. “We don’t know what particles or microorganisms could linger in here.”
“Relax, captain. Tyche analyzed the air and told me it’s fine. Why don’t you all retract your visors and experience this multimillennial-old air? You’ll never have the chance to do that again, you know.”
Yontan checked with his own version of his AI, Tyche, and everything seemed to be fine, so he retracted the visor of his helmet as well, just in time to scratch an itch on his beard. The rest of the crew followed, except for Jmerr.
“Come on, Jmerr. It’s a unique experience, my friend,” beamed Lessandre, tapping on his shoulder.
Jmerr scowled at Lessandre. “I refuse to take unnecessary risks.”
“As you wish,” Lessandre grinned, loudly sniffing the air. “Ahhh. The air in here is exceptionally… how to describe it?”
“Dusty?” Lezlybe chimed in. “I think the auto-clean on the filter stopped working long ago.”
Yontan was ignoring his crew, inspecting the walls of this oval room for clues. But the room was pretty much empty, outside of the air conditioning holes and lights flickering on the ceiling.
“I know there’s another door on the other side of the crater, but that one’s the entrance to the accumulator and workspaces,” he muttered to himself, caressing the wall in the hopes of finding a button or a gap of sorts.
“Is that place also turquoise?” asked Lessandre. “I really hate this color. Reminds me too much of my ex.”
Lezlybe rolled her eyes.
“Then why don’t we go there?” asked Ghenna, who had closed her visor since she didn’t like the smell.
“Because,” began Yontan absent-mindedly while brushing his hands over the wall, “every document points to this place. We’ll check the other site if we don’t find anything here. Now if only I – aha! A button. This might be it.”
Yontan pushed it with his finger. Instead of clicking, like any other button would, his index finger sank completely in. He immediately withdrew it, fearing something might cut his finger off. But the button came back, except it was now white and protruded out of the wall. Yontan hesitantly pressed it.
An oval pedestal emerged from the middle of the floor, gradually rising until it reached chest height. The left side slid open with melodious clicks, and out came a small table with a round black object on it with a sky-blue center. Before they had the time to guess what it was, a hologram rose from it, displaying the head of an old balding man with a lazy eye.
“Greetings, future humans,” said the feeble voice. “And welcome to K.U. ONE. What is your purpose here?”
Yontan glanced at his crew, who gave him a nod and shrugs. He cleared his throat and spoke clearly, “We’ve come here to gain access to the Ultimate Knowledge, which is said to contain the answers to our purpose within the universe.”
“I see. And you are one, two, five. Oh! That is good news, good news indeed. I’ve been waiting for you. Well, not me per se, since I’m long dead, I suppose,” the hologram laughed, “but my digital image. And five? Oh, proof that nothing happens at random.”
Yontan was slightly taken aback.
“Wait. You’re not a simple recording?”
“No, no. I’m enhanced with artificial intelligence. It speaks as I would speak, saying what I asked it to say – with a bit of panache. Now, move to the other side of the pedestal. It will pop open and contain a box.”
The other side popped open, displaying a silver box embossed with gold on the edges. It was beautiful. Lessandre grabbed it and tried to pry it open.
“Tut-tut! You need the key to open the box. I’ll hand it over only of you accept to eat its contents.”
“Eat it?” Yontan uttered in excitement. “Will it alter our brains? Give us the knowledge we yearn for?”
“Not quite. But it is a necessary step.”
“I won’t touch it,” Jmerr stated firmly. “I don’t trust this man. Whatever’s inside, it’s been in there for thousands of years. There’s no way it’s still edible.”
“Oh but it is,” grinned the man. “What do you think the Sunfire Conduit is used for?”
“What?” uttered Lezlybe. “The power of the sun used for… food?”
“Of course, there’s more to it. But a lot of energy is necessary to cool it down to near zero kelvin and keep it that way until it’s very slowly reheated to the ideal temperature for you to savor.
“Now, will you eat its contents or not?”
“Why don’t we bring it back to the ship and study it?” suggested Jmerr.
“The moment you leave the room with the box, its contents will be destroyed, and so will the key to Ultimate Knowledge.”
Yontan exchanged a glance with his crew. Lessandre gave him thumbs up, Ghenna nodded and Lezlybe shrugged. Jmerr was the only one to firmly shake his head.
“Fine, we’ll eat its contents,” said Yontan, upon which Jmerr put his hands up in the air in frustration.
A key appeared from the front of the pedestal. Yonan used it to open the box Lessandre was holding. Five dark-brown spherical objects were neatly placed within fitting molds, resembling the five dots on a die.
“Behold the Five Orbs of Knowledge,” the hologram said solemnly. “I recommend one for each of you.”
Jmerr crossed his arms. “There’s no way I’m touching this.”
“What if someone eats two?” asked Yontan, eyeing Jmerr.
“It would sadden me, even though it might be beneficial to grasp the Ultimate Knowledge.”
Without hesitation, Lessandre popped the middle one in his mouth. Every other crewmate was staring at him. A few bites in, he suddenly froze, eyes wide open. His gaze slowly shifted from Yontan, to Lezlybe, to Ghenna – whose visor was now lowered – and finally stopped on Jmerr.
“Awl eash ‘em bofh,” he rapidly chewed, popping a second one in. “Awl eash ‘em owl ihf you guysh downt.”
Yontan’s hand was shaking as he picked his Orb. Lezlybe and Ghenna also chose one.
“On the count of three,” gulped Yontan, as he noticed the horrified look on Jmerr. “One… two… three!”
The shell of the Orb had a slight crunch, with a rather soft, creamy inner core, gently melting on their tongue. Sweet with a zest of bitterness. Each bite, each movement of their tongue was another moment they savored, dreading the end of this unique flavor. It was an explosion of exoticism, a sensory overload inside their mouth; the richness of the Orb filled their taste buds and souls alike with pure bliss.
Then there was the aroma, dissolving the dusty odor of the room with its arboraceous perfume. It reminded them of Terrestrial woods, now planted across various planets in the Milky Way. Comforting, ancient, nostalgic, and so raw at heart.
Fortunately, this jolly adventure didn’t end after they swallowed it, no, each residue, sticking to the various corners of their mouths, lingered like a fleeting memory soon to disappear forever. Yet it was still there, to grasp with the palm of their hands. But when they tried to, it became vapor, dwindling, yet etched in their brains with such strength it would be impossible to ever forget this moment. Ever.
Their minds were still floating on a cloud of ecstasy when Yontan stared at Lessandre.
“You ate two,” he breathed. “And you,” he turned to Jmerr, “you have no idea what you’ve just missed. It’s… indescribably delectable.” Yontan faced the hologram. “Please, give us one more, for Jmerr. He has to try this… Orb.”
The hologram grinned widely, creasing the old man’s entire face.
“These were the last five. There are no more.”
“WHAT?” everyone shouted at once.
“Th– that’s it? No more?” Yontan’s shoulder slumped. “Why didn’t you tell us earlier? We could’ve taken it back to the ship and try to recreate it.”
“It’s impossible without the recipe.”
“A recipe? Give it to us, I don’t care about Ultimate Knowledge anymore,” Lessandre laughed.
“But you had two,” Lezlybe scowled.
“And I want more,” he chuckled. “I’ve never felt better in my life. Even two were far too few!”
“Yes, hand us the recipe so we can share it with the rest of the crew,” pleaded Yontan.
The hologram seemed more and more pleased with itself.
“Even if I gave you the recipe you couldn’t make it when the main ingredient’s missing.”
“What’s the main ingredient?” Ghenna asked.
“Cacao. And these were chocolate truffles, which I made myself utilizing the very last cacao beans to ever exist. I’m sorry. You’ll never eat chocolate ever again.”
Jmerr seemed disappointed upon hearing it, especially after seeing how everyone reacted to it.
“B – but… why?” Yontan asked. “Why offer us a delicious treat only to punch us in the gut right after?”
The hologram smiled. “Think. What is your purpose here?”
“To acquire Ultimate Knowledge… But I fail to understand…”
“If my clock is correct, 3622 years have passed since the last human – which is myself – set wheels in this room. 3622 years of technological advancement, of accumulated mastery of various sciences and understanding of the universe. Yet you believe Ultimate Knowledge is to be found in the past?”
The crewmembers looked at each other, dumbfounded.
“So… it doesn’t exist?” suggested Lezlybe. “We’ve come this far for nothing…”
“Haven’t you just experienced the ultimate delicacy of humankind? Therein lies everything you need to know.”
“It’s not about the knowledge,” began Yontan, “but about the experience we savor?”
“Exactly!” Clapping hands appeared in front of the hologram’s face. “Instead of looking for something that may not be, learn to cherish the transient nature of existence through every experience you encounter. Who knows what happens once you’re dead? Constant hesitation leads to a life of lost opportunities. One of you has learned this lesson the hard way, I’m afraid. However, the tall man over there has greatly benefited from this lesson. Balance in all things!”
“No data is ever lost,” snorted Jmerr scornfully. “Death is simply the temporary loss of information until it’s retrieved.”
“The no-hiding theorem,” smiled the hologram. “Of course. But you wouldn’t be here if you could completely determine the state of the entire universe. Thus, my rhetoric stays valid. For as long as this is beyond our grasp – likely until humanity’s extinction – you ought to cherish every experience and lose your fear of consequences within reason.”
The room went silent, the subtle taste of chocolate still lingering in their mouths like the fading words of an old love letter.
“What do we do now, captain?” Ghenna asked shyly.
“Take your new-found knowledge and share it with others,” the hologram said before Yontan could open his mouth.
“So… there really is nothing else here?”
“Nothing at all.”
The hologram fluttered for a moment.
“Were these really the last pieces of chocolate?”
“Yes.”
“Then why didn’t you eat them yourself?”
“Because sharing is the quintessential attribute of humanity. And I’m glad to have contributed my part, even though it took several millennia.”
“So why use all that energy from the sun?” asked Lezlybe.
“It’s twofold,” said the hologram. “Partially to keep this chocolate in pristine state, as I said before. You’ll understand the second reason soon enough. Let’s say it’s a parting gift, for that man who hasn’t eaten his Orb.”
“I don’t understand.” Yontan was running his fingers through his hair. “You speak of sharing, yet we won’t be able to share this exquisite experience. There’s no chocolate left.”
“Share the wisdom you’ve acquired. Or perhaps you shall find something unique to share with others as I did. Even the stories of your adv–”
The man disappeared for a few seconds.
“–entures – Ah? We’ve been cut. Soon I shall be free, just like your minds. Swiftly return to your ships, and sail t–”
It flickered again and stopped for nearly ten seconds.
“–he vast empty space to… wherever your heart leads you. Farewell. Fare well indeed.”
The hologram zoomed out to show an old man sitting on a wheelchair, waving both hands. It flickered one last time before completely fading out with a hum.
Suddenly, a familiar voice spoke from everyone’s earpiece.
“Captain, is everything all right?” asked one of the crew left on the ship in a panic.
“Why? Did the entrance crumble down?”
“No, Sir. It’s the Conduit. You need to see this for yourself.”
The crew put on their visors and hurried out of the room, through the hallway, out on the freezing surface of Pluto. They gasped upon staring up.
“The Conduit!” Ghenna uttered.
It was oscillating, slowly shrinking until the last flames swooshed back and forth from the relay to the crater, and then, it retracted entirely.
“It’s… it’s gone…” sighed Yontan.
“The parting gift,” Jmerr sobbed. “He knew. He knew someone might not try out the chocolate truffle, and he purposefully shut down the entire system.”
Lessandre turned to Jmerr. “Consider this your incredible experience. We must be the only humans to ever see this happen in real time.”
“But we can reconnect it, unlike the chocolate, can’t we?” said Lizlybe.
Yontan shook his head. “Do you know of the ancient pyramids in the northern African continent?”
“Yeah…” she hesitated. “Vaguely.”
“Do you know why they’ve never been rebuilt?”
Lezlybe shrugged.
“Because there’s nothing to gain in doing so.” He pointed his finger at the vast expanse above him. “We’ve never rebuilt the ancient pyramids – not due to complexity, but due to loss of time and resources involved without any actual benefit. I’m afraid this is the last time anyone has admired this old tech at work.”
Upon their return on the ship, they told the rest of the crew what inside the U.K. ONE.
“So the Ultimate Knowledge doesn’t exist?” one of the crewmember asked.
Yontan took one last glance at the crater as the ship took off.
“I believe it does,” he beamed, looking at the bemused faces of his crew. “Not here.” He gently tapped his temple. “But here.” His hand rested on his chest. “And there.” His arms were wide open, as if trying to embrace his whole crew at once. “Acquired wisdom is the Ultimate Knowledge. And the ability to share experiences with others is our greatest gift.”

Day one Pixel 8 Pro owner here. Thought I’d share my experience, after over 8 months of ownership.
P8P Bay 256GB has been my daily driver since its release. I use it with 5G on, screen at full resolution, dynamic "smooth display" refresh rate is on, no bluetooth or tethering. Brightness left on auto.
TLDR :
Positives = camera quality, great design, OS (with some caveats), great screen (some caveats too)
Negatives = everything else
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Camera : beautiful imagery has always been the signature of the Pixel line, and this release is no exception. Every shot has this mesmerizing "Pixel touch", and the new ultrawide sensor is finally on par with the main unit. Videos are world class too, not quite on the level of the iPhone but we'll get there eventually.
Beautiful and unique design : It's sitting in a clear case, and in a sea of generic, boring slabs, it really stands out and doesn't go unnoticed. People often ask me what kind of phone it is, most are still not aware that Google is making smartphones and has been doing so for almost a decade now.
Very long software support : Seven years of updates is unrivaled in the Android scene, albeit with the following you’ll understand no one would willingly keep this phone seven years, so it’s not really a positive.
Sleek OS : Android in its purest, cleanest form. Customization galore. However as I'll mention later this pure android is NOT running smoothly, so I don't know if this count as a positive.
Gorgeous OLED panel : A truly beautiful display, high-resolution, good brightness..unfortunately plagued by mutiple lags and frame drops in the UI, I'll get back to that. Now onto the negatives.
First off, we must address the elephant in the room. Battery life. This phone charges PAINFULLY slow and discharges EXTREMELY fast. The opposite of what you want, right ?
The 10 minutes top ups to 50% is a concept Google seemingly never heard of. You want half a charge ? Better sit & wait half an hour. Full charge ? Go watch a movie. Now the discharge, and this is where the real drama clocks in. This phone EATS battery, ON IDLE.
On your average 9 to 5 workday (no camera, no games, just basic apps) you’ll head home with 15% tops. Phone dead by 7pm, then full charge will eat 90 minutes off your schedule, better not be in a hurry.
Now try to make a bit of power usage out of your power user phone : A bit of pictures for work at 10am, a short 4K video at 1pm, a bit of Fallout Shelter on the toilet at 2pm. You’re now looking at a 4pm shutdown.
But let’s go real on the camera, after all this is a camera flagship and it should be your reliable companion on a field day. Starting at 10 am : pictures, videos, a bit of editing, about 40 pictures taken and 3 videos of 10 minutes each. Shutdown at 1PM.
The CPU just eats battery on IDLE doing NOTHING. Throw anything heavy at it and you’ll head home with a dead phone, one that died long before your day was over. Simple as that.
Keep in mind that this is my experience with a 8-months-old device, and it will get worse and worse as the battery cell degrades over time. One can only wonder how many cell replacements this phone will need to get to the end of its famed software support.
Now we need to talk UI and animations because this isn’t good either. Stellar 120hz OLED panel and stock android should be a recipe for smoothness, but not here. Actually, some animations including the cool lock screen clock are barely 60hz. Switching apps isn’t 120hz either, nor is scrolling. A TON of lags and various frame drops, resulting in a framerate like 40-90hz, never stable, with the occasional but very rare peak at 120. This isn't TW3 gameplay on a potato but simply browing menus and scrolling instagram on a 2023, 1159€ flagship phone from Google.
This phone FEELS slow, and yet consume an enormous amount of power to do so. Infuriating.
One day I had to handle a coworker’s A54 to tweak a few things. I was SHOCKED by the smoothness, this was indeed true 120hz, which only happens a few times a day on Pixel 8 Pro. I realized what I was missing on by handling an Exynos mid-ranger. I understand the need for a dynamic framerate, not locked at 120hz all the time to save battery. But only reaching 120hz 5 times a day and still having a mediocre battery life wasn’t what I had in mind.
Finally, the optical, under-display fingerprint scanner. This, my friends, is an antique piece of hardware that belongs to a museum. Remember the Huawei Mate RS from 2018 ? One of the first phones with UDFS. The optical technology was so experimental and unreliable (still is, most OEMs moved on to ultrasonic) that Huawei also included another optical fingerprint sensor on the back of the device, just in case. Well, this ancient tech is what you have on the Pixel 8 Pro, and no optical sensor backup in sight.
Sometimes, it can take up to 2 full seconds of contact to….successfully fail to unlock. After it fails 3 times or so, it will ask you to enter your password, making one-hand unlocks a luck job. Sometimes it will successfully unlock after a couple tries, but a couple tries of 2 seconds each makes unlocking your phone a 4 seconds job which is just painfully slow. The occasional one tap magic is as rare as the occasional 120hz peak in the UI. As for face-unlock, I know it's there but I disabled it because it doesn't work in the dark (no IR sensor) and I simply want to unlock my phone at waist height, without having to raise it to my face.
Pixel 8 Pro remembers me of an exotic sports car that might look incredibly cool from a distance but is actually a pain to live with on a daily basis. And indeed it does look incredibly cool. I remember seeing this phone as a much better pick than the generic Galaxy and the boring iPhone, but I’d rather go boring or generic than having to handle this mess of an hardware Google sold me for 1159€.
TLDR : Positives = Camera quality, great design Negatives = everything else

Day one Pixel 8 Pro owner here. Thought I’d share my experience, after almost 8 months of ownership.
P8P Bay 256GB has been my daily driver since its release. I use it with 5G on, screen at full resolution, dynamic "smooth display" refresh rate is on, no bluetooth or tethering. Brightness left on auto.
TLDR : Positives = Camera quality, great design & display, OS (with some caveats) Negatives = everything else
The positives :
Camera : beautiful imagery has always been the signature of the Pixel line, and this release is no exception. Every shot has this mesmerizing "Pixel touch", and the new ultrawide sensor is finally on par with the main unit. Videos are world class too, not quite on the level of the iPhone but we'll get there eventually.
Beautiful and unique design : It's sitting in a clear case, and in a sea of generic, boring slabs, it really stands out and doesn't go unnoticed. People often ask me what kind of phone it is, most are still not aware that Google is making smartphones and has been doing so for almost a decade now.
Very long software support : Seven years of updates is unrivaled in the Android scene, albeit with the following you’ll understand no one would willingly keep this phone seven years, so it’s not really a positive.
World class display : stellar QHD 120hz panel, sharp and bright.
Sleek OS : Android in its purest, cleanest form. Customization galore. However as I'll mention later this pure android is NOT running smoothly, so I don't know if this count as a positive. Now onto the negatives.
First off, we must address the elephant in the room. Battery life. This phone charges PAINFULLY slow and discharges EXTREMELY fast. The opposite of what you want, right ?
The 10 minutes top ups to 50% is a concept Google seemingly never heard of. You want half a charge ? Better sit & wait half an hour. Full charge ? Go watch a movie. Now the discharge, and this is where the real drama clocks in. This phone EATS battery, ON IDLE.
On your average 9 to 5 workday (no camera, no games, just basic apps) you’ll head home with 15% tops. Phone dead by 7pm, then full charge will eat 90 minutes off your schedule, better not be in a hurry.
Now try to make a bit of power usage out of your power user phone : A bit of pictures for work at 10am, a short 4K video at 1pm, a bit of Fallout Shelter on the toilet at 2pm. You’re now looking at a 4pm shutdown.
But let’s go real on the camera, after all this is a camera flagship and it should be your reliable companion on a field day. Starting at 10 am : pictures, videos, a bit of editing, about 40 pictures taken and 3 videos of 10 minutes each. Shutdown at 1PM.
The CPU just eats battery on IDLE doing NOTHING. Throw anything heavy at it and you’ll head home with a dead phone, one that died long before your day was over. Simple as that.
Keep in mind that this is my experience with a 8-months-old device, and it will get worse and worse as the battery cell degrades over time. One can only wonder how many cell replacements this phone will need to get to the end of its famed software support.
Now we need to talk UI and animations because this isn’t good either. Stellar 120hz OLED panel and stock android should be a recipe for smoothness, but not here. Actually, some animations including the cool lock screen clock are barely 60hz. Switching apps isn’t 120hz either, nor is scrolling. A TON of lags and various frame drops, resulting in a framerate like 40-90hz, never stable, with the occasional but very rare peak at 120. This isn't TW3 gameplay on a potato but simply browing menus and scrolling instagram on a 2023, 1159€ flagship phone from Google.
This phone FEELS slow, and yet consume an enormous amount of power to do so. Infuriating.
One day I had to handle a coworker’s A54 to tweak a few things. I was SHOCKED by the smoothness, this was indeed true 120hz, which only happens a few times a day on Pixel 8 Pro. I realized what I was missing on by handling an Exynos mid-ranger. I understand the need for a dynamic framerate, not locked at 120hz all the time to save battery. But only reaching 120hz 5 times a day and still having a mediocre battery life wasn’t what I had in mind.
Finally, the optical, under-display fingerprint scanner. This, my friends, is an antique piece of hardware that belongs to a museum. Remember the Huawei Mate RS from 2018 ? One of the first phones with UDFS. The optical technology was so experimental and unreliable (still is, most OEMs moved on to ultrasonic) that Huawei also included another optical fingerprint sensor on the back of the device, just in case. Well, this ancient tech is what you have on the Pixel 8 Pro, and no optical sensor backup in sight.
Sometimes, it can take up to 2 full seconds of contact to….successfully fail to unlock. After it fails 3 times or so, it will ask you to enter your password, making one-hand unlocks a luck job. Sometimes it will successfully unlock after a couple tries, but a couple tries of 2 seconds each makes unlocking your phone a 4 seconds job which is just painfully slow. The occasional one tap magic is as rare as the occasional 120hz peak in the UI. As for face-unlock, I know it's there but I disabled it because it doesn't work in the dark (no IR sensor) and I simply want to unlock my phone at waist height, without having to raise it to my face.
Pixel 8 Pro remembers me of an exotic sports car that might look incredibly cool from a distance but is actually a pain to live with on a daily basis. And indeed it does look incredibly cool. I remember seeing this phone as a much better pick than the generic Galaxy and the boring iPhone, but I’d rather go boring or generic than having to handle this mess of an hardware Google sold me for 1159€.
TLDR : Positives = Camera quality, great design Negatives = everything else

Hey all, been playing the games on console for years, got the Steam re-releases when they came out, and as of yesterday I have every achievement for MGS3...... except for the FOXHOUND one, attained by achieving the rank of 'Foxhound' at the end of the game.
To clarify, both for posterity and as a general reminder, attaining the Foxhound rank requires:

• Beating the game on Extreme difficulty mode
• Finishing the game in under five hours
• Using 0 continues
• Not killing anyone
• Triggering no alerts
• Use no Life Medicine
• Taking less than 10 life bars worth of damage
• Saving 25 or fewer times
• And using zero special items (EZ Gun, Infinity facepaint, Stealth item, etc)

My current plan is to play through the game on Extreme difficulty at least once, playing normally but taking out the bosses nonlethally to get their special camos, as well as generally timing myself and practicing to see how fast I can get through the game total.
Once that's finished, I'm planning to start a replay with the unlocked camos in order to try and get the Foxhound rank. I'm anticipating a LOT of difficulty with this, so I'd appreciate any tips and advice anyone can give me.
For example:

• Are there any instances of killing that 'don't count'? IE: if I tranq the hover-platform guards during the river section, and they fall and explode, that still counts as 'non-lethal', if I'm correct?
• Is skipping the End possible? Only since I'm anticipating a LOT of time being wasted on trying to fight him non-lethally with only my tranq pistol and stun grenades (reminder: the tranq rifle is a reward for taking him down non-lethally). I'm assuming if I snipe him at the dock it'll count as a kill, but what if I use the time-skip method and he dies of old age? Is that still considered a 'kill'?
• Related to the above, what parts are known for taking a lot of time to get through? I typically play slowly and patiently, and my play-times clock in as very long as a result. To that end, if I have to finish the game in under 5 hours, which areas are known for taking a lot of time? The ladder climb, the boss-fights, escaping the prison... anything I've missed that can really drag the play-time out? If I can get a rough list of these, I should be able to make up lost time in other areas, sprinting through empty zones to compensate and such.

So let me tell yall about this job I was working at before I made the ultimate decision to leave. Bare with me because it’s a long ride…
So for starters, I was working at a daycare not long ago, it wasn't too bad. The job itself was good and the pay wasn't so bad either. I'd work 80-90 hrs bi weekly. So l'd get paid biweekly but my Manager? OOUUUUU she is just, idk how to explain it. Shes just one of those managers who believes she’s above everyone including her employees. My coworkers? Worse. They all literally compete against each other. It’s weird asf if you ask me. I was a teacher aid. At the end of the day, teacheteacher aid. We’re all getting paid the same and working the same hours (besides part timers) nevermind the fact, The amount of incidents that occur in the center is ABSURD.
So if you know Florida, you know Florida is hot AS FUCK ALL YEAR ROUND (majority of the time) a parent comes to pick up their child in the classroom and the child isn't present and they not checked out on the CSR (Child Supervision Report) To better explain, Anytime a child leaves we have to mark the time they left on the paper. So basically, for better understanding… Arrival times and departure times. Including if they were moved to a different classroom also if we take children outside. That is also marked on the CSR. CSR’s also have something called “Name-to-face” which has hourly times where us as the teachers or teacher aids have to mark the minute within the hour so for example: 12PM so for that we would check the time once it’s 12PM and then add the minute which for example would be: 12:43. After we do that we have to check every child off that they are still in the classroom within that time. At the bottom we have to count the amount of children and the amount of teachers and initial at the bottom. It’s basically to help teachers keep track of when children leave or if a child is missing. Well, said child isn't checked out on the CSR. parent goes crazy trying to figure out where kid is because no one else picks child up besides parents. Turns out the kid is outside on the playground sleeping. IN THE HEAT, So parent goes to my boss and goes completely bazurk. Which I don't blame them. Parent mentions how they are worried about the child maybe having had a heat stroke and that’s maybe why they are on the playground sleeping but that’s what the CSR is for.
Another kid, in the toddler Classroom. Probably the cutest child. Little Cuban/Puerto Rican baby if I’m not wrong.I kid you not, that child HAS STACKS ON TOP OF STACKS ON TOP OF STACKS of incident reports from them biting kids. Child bit a another child in their sleep. When parents were told about the behavior they looked at us and literally laughed and said "well my child is being provoked to act that way” PROVOKED BUT THEY WAS SLEEPING? manager wouldn’t kick them out the center but was quit to kick another child out for hitting another child ONCE. Should I also add that this specific child had to be put in a classroom with the same gender be they attack the other gender. Not to mention, some of the teacher (not myself included) be spanking the child who likes to bite. My boss has no idea but I have indeed seen it first hand and may I add that obviously us as the teachers aren’t supposed to be hitting and or spanking but…. NOBODY and I mean nobody wants to deal with said child. Everyone refuses to be in the classroom with that child. May I also mention that the spanking includes pulling their ear, pulling their hair, pushing them on the ground and pinching their body.
One of coworkers, has a medical condition apparently but long story short, coworker falls asleep very easily. You can be talking to them about something important and they are literally ASLEEP. Coworker was in the infant classroom with me and was rocking one of the babies to sleep. Coworker started falling asleep so l asked them politely to hand me the baby. They refused so I said "whatever if they get in trouble that's on them” sure enough they dropped the baby on their head. A 3WEEK OLD BABY. Causing the soft spot to become misplaced. Now said coworker has an open court case for that with the family and they're trying to sue the center for neglect.
My daughter came to work with me one day. While being there she did good but a child slapped her straight in her face and that was enough for me to say "yeah she's never coming back" and she hasn't since. I never told my boss about it because even then, what would be done? Nothing but an incident report would be written. Also, while on the playground. My daughter was trying to reach the water and couldn’t. For those who don’t already know, my daughter is a little person so she often times needs assistance. She was standing there for I KID YOU NOT, 15 mins waiting on said teacher to help her reach the water. Teacher was standing around gossiping with other teachers. That was a red flag for me.
The worse thing about it is, it's said to be a learning center right???? Well sad to tell you but they do no actual curriculum with the kids, kids sit in a classroom majority of the time playing with broken toys or toys that are missing pieces. Fight with one another or sleep. They eat lunch and snack and other stuff but they only go outside twice a day for 30 mins. They (the teachers) have a whole book to read from and figure out curriculum but they don't do it so most the time the kids are over stimulated being locked up inside. They're also supposed to potty train the kids but NOPE, not even that. There are 4-5 year olds in the center who still wear diapers. It's crazy honestly. I’ve never seen more lazy and neglectful workers A DAY IN MY LIFE. Diapers are supposed to be changed every two hours but they don’t check them or change them accordingly. Children have gotten back to back rashes due to the neglect of diaper changes.
Now about my boss, her son, he is the absolute cutest being ever. He's literally a chunky monkey. We all call him Babybear, chunks or chunka monks. Unfortunately, he has a lot of medical conditions so my boss is constantly in and out of the center but when she is in the center she does NOTHING all day besides yell at us or sit at her desk on her phone. Not engaging with parents, not helping out in the kitchen, NOT NOTHING. Just on her phone on TikTok or Instagram or on FaceTime and this is facts because I have indeed seen it while on my lunch break.
There was an incident that occurred while I was on the clock with the preschool kids. I was outside with them on the playground. I was helping a child pour water into the cup and another kid was on the playground on the slide. I hear crying so I turn around to see who it is and I notice bleeding so I run to the child to figure out what happened. Child won't tell me just only saying their mouth hurts so I call someone on the walkie to take the child up front for proper care. They take child and whatever boom, they get the care they need. I make an incident report and that's it. Anytime a child hurts themselves or they injur one another. An incident report had to be made for both parties. May I also add that our form of communication within the center is WALKIE TALKIES. NOWWW, Weeks after the incident my boss brings me into the kitchen and starts yelling at me I mean like screaming. Saying she can't trust me because I have yet to tell her what happened that day on the playground. Saying I'm an outsider to everyone within the center and I have to redeem myself to them. Anything I say to them (coworkers) will be ran back to her. I like “instigate” things with coworkers according to her. She also mentioned how she had multiple complaints about my coworkers saying that all I do my entire shift is sit in which I explained that I suffer from Vertigo. I have it written on medical papers and medication doesn’t help half the time. I sated that me sitting is me giving myself the opportunity to stop a dizzy spell from occurring and or progressing. She really just said a bunch of bullshit and that's really when I realized that I was done working there. I was being overworked for one and two, I really wasn’t appreciated so I left.
Sorry for the rant but moral of the story is…… DO NOT TAKE YOUR KIDS TO ANY KINDERCARE LEARNING CENTER AND OR WORK THERE. THEY ARE HORRIBLE, And I mean ALL of them. Keep your babies safe and yourself included stay blessed 🥹🩷

I want to thank Meatcanyon and Wendigoon for starting Creepcast. I've played around with writing horror, and here is my first short story. I will post it for free in a few other places to see what people think. Please enjoy!
A Hike to Remember
By R.L. Oclen
Chapter 1
A woman sits with hastily pulled-up fire-red hair in the waiting room of the state patrol station. The procedurally sterile off-white walls and decade-old magazines do little for comfort. With her head hanging low, her shoulders pushing forward, and her boots rapidly tapping on the floor, something has to give.
"Please just let her be okay." The woman growls as a pair of officers come in from the field. The officers' demeanors quickly change when they see the familiar face.
"Tabitha, did Officer Nichols call you?" one of the state patrol officers asked sympathetically.
"Yes, he asked me to come in and pick up a few things," Tabitha said, shooting back a muted look.
" I'll let them know you're here." The officer said, nodding to Tabitha as they passed the security door. Tabitha leaned back against the hard plastic chair, staring blankly into the fluorescent light. She had done this dance in the macabre repeatedly over the past month. The last image of her younger sister, Lisa, still burned in her mind. Tabitha had always been protective over her younger sister after their parents died. A pang of guilt shoots through her chest as she thinks about her and Lisa's argument.
"Tabitha Hymm, Officer Nichols is ready for you."
"Okay," she stood up, shaking off her guilt, and followed the officer back. The familiar surroundings of the state patrol station blurred as Tabitha stared forward. She followed the officer as they came to a rustic wooden office door, which was embossed with "Officer Nichols."
The escorting officer turns the old brass door knob. "Sir, I have Tabitha Hymm here." A grizzled West Virginia Highway State Patrol veteran sits behind the desk and nods. The escorting officer steps aside, pushing the door open as Tabitha pushes past him and slumps in the awaiting chair like so many times before. An uncomfortable relationship had formed between the two, born out of necessity and duty.
"Cup of coffee?"
"No thanks. Let's just cut to the chase. You don't have anything new?"
The worn laugh lines and Officer Nichols's face flattens. His eyebrows contour sympathetically as he shakes his head.
"Tabitha, I don't have anything else new for you. I wanted to give you the clothes returned from the lab." Her face darkened at the same response she had heard many times.
"As we discussed two weeks ago, there is nothing new and no signs of struggle or foul play," Officer Nichols said while placing a box marked evidence on the table and sliding it forward. Tabitha began to weep at the realization of Lisa's clothes in front of her. In a coordinated queue, Officer Nichols brought out a box of tissues. Reluctantly, Tabitha took a few moments to unblur her vision.
"How does someone stop their car in the middle of the Remington West Virginia State Park, lock it, and then walk into the woods?" Officer Nichols clasped his hands together and sighed at her worn question.
"Tabitha, I wish I had an answer for why your sister stopped her car in the woods and simply walked off. We're still going through her cell phone, but no signs exist that anyone forced her. On that Tuesday morning, she pulled over to the side of the road, secured her car, and walked away." Officer Nichols said empathetically.
Tabitha became stoic at the same explanation she had heard many times before. " So what next?"
"You should go back to Ohio, and I'll contact you as soon as I have more information." She winced at Officer Nichols's words. Reality began to pull at her that bills and work wouldn't wait much longer.
"If I leave, she's gone for good."
" You staying won't bring her back." Officer Nichols said sympathetically.
" So is that it? She's just gone?"
" Tabitha, I'll be honest with you. In cases like this… when people do things like this. Recovery is harder in the spring due to the weather and the animals. You know her mental condition better than I do. I can't explain why she did what she did. But until I find a solution, a suicide note, some intention, or body. She's not here. Tabitha, I'm-"
" Don't you fucking say sorry!" Tabitha stood up, screaming at Officer Nichols, throwing the plastic chair backward against the wall. " I should just look for myself."
"No!" Officer Nichols said momentarily, gripping the desk as his face hardened, then relaxed. Tabitha was caught off guard by Officer Nichols, who was normally composed. "Tabitha, I know this is unbearable. I've sat on this side of the desk and had these conversations. Trust me; I need you to be safe if I need your help later."
Tabitha nods, knowing Officer Nichols is right. She reaches down, picks up the evidence box of her sister's belongings, and leaves.
" Tabitha, if you're heading home, don't stop your car; just keep driving." Tabitha stops to look at Officer Nichols, feeling an eeriness to his words.
" Goodbye, Officer Nichols," Tabitha said as she closed the rustic wooden door behind her. She counted the tiles as she exited the West Virginia State Patrol Station. Placing her sister's belongings carefully in the back seat of her Jeep, Tabitha then sat momentarily behind the steering wheel, staring at the emblem. The familiar numbness washed over Tabitha as she pushed the start button. She pulled onto the highway, driving to the motel that had been home for the last month or so. Muted pop music accented the drive back as her mind raced with questions. Once inside the two-and-a-half-star motel room, Tabitha sat her sister's belongings on the corner table, crumbled onto the bed, and cried.
***
Tabitha wiped the steam from the slightly spotted mirror above the bathroom sink. The hot water from the shower felt good and loosened some of the stress from her body. Looking back at her, Tabitha's face was framed by damp curls around her shoulders. Her face marked the stress of the past month. Frowning, she examined the bags under her eyes; sleep had to come tonight. Walking into the living area, She changed into her favorite gym shorts and oversized sleep shirt. The alarm on her phone flashed "7:00 am," so she could drive home five hours after breakfast.
Tabitha hated feeling comfortable in this once strange room, but falling asleep was getting easier now. Her eyes closed slowly as the ceiling fan droned evenly. At first, nothing came in her dreams, but she let her guard down and slipped further into sleep.
As she dreamed of floating overhead like a bird of prey, Tabitha soared over the vast Remington National Park. The high noon sun bore down on the crisp woods, perfectly contrasting sky and forest. The heat of the sun felt good on her feathers. Distant cries rang out through the dream-like forest, catching her attention. Tabitha tilted her wings toward the screams, feeling a sense of familiar curiosity.
She now recognized the sobs and cries for help as she flew closer, her sharp eyes locked on her sister leaning against a large oak tree. She glided overhead without care, examining the situation below. Lisa clung to the tree, her eyes darting back and forth, scanning upwards. Lisa's face reflected desperation, looking for help in any direction. Tabitha lazily circles Lisa several times before perching on a sturdy branch higher in one of the oak trees. She watched Lisa intently with hunger. She bellowed deeply, hearing the unnatural sound she made, catching Lisa's eyes. Lisa's expression changed; she became calm, almost uncaring, as she stared back at Tabitha's form. Hunger grew exponentially in Tabitha as she spread her large wings. Her large eyes gaze down at Lisa before diving straight for her sister.
Tabitha jolts awake to the alarm on her phone flashing "7:23 AM." She breathes in sharply, shaking off the last horrible thoughts from the reoccurring nightmare. The strange details become more vivid each time. The lingering memories of folk stories her mother told sat in the back of her mind. In those stories, the dead would reach out in dreams as a matter of warning. Leaning back on the headboard, she searched for the advice her psychologist gave her. During their last session, Dr. Ryland explained dreams are a form of self-actualization of guilt. He told Tabitha that it was natural to feel responsible when losing a loved one in this manner.
Tabitha grumbled, lightly running her hands through her red hair; she pushed everything to the back of her mind. "Get it together!" She grumbled to herself. She pushed herself off the bed and got ready to leave. It was going to be a long trip home, and the only thing she could do now was leave things in the authorities' hands. Packing up was pretty easy since she only cycled through the outfits she brought. The local laundromat must have made a small fortune off her. Tabitha took one last look at the box of Lisa's belongings before throwing them in her duffle bag. She was thankful she didn't have to spend another night in this room.
***
Tabitha sat behind the wheel, waiting for the 90's model minivan to finish their order so she could grab a breakfast burrito on the way out. Considering the situation, the Deer Stop Family Restaurant did have a good breakfast. Finally, pulling up to the 70-style drive-in board, Tabitha rolled off the order she had been accustomed to. " I'll take a large iced tea with the double breakfast burrito meal and hash browns, please."
" Would you like some happy hot sauce with that?"
" That's fine, and a few ketchup packets as well."
" Your total is $8.79. Please pull around."
She pulled around to her window, flashed her debit card, got the receipt, and waited for her food. Luckily, the young woman serving her wasn't very talkative in the morning. The last thing she wanted was a conversation about the weather or meaningless small talk.
" Here's your large iced tea and breakfast meal. Ketchup and happy hot sauce are inside."
" Thanks," Tabitha said while mustering her best fake smile. The woman only smiled and nodded as the service window automatically closed. She pulled into the parking lot and dug into breakfast. Turning the radio to the weather, Tabitha sat back and enjoyed her meal. The local DJ read through the headlines, making nonpartisan comments about politics and grumbling about improving the economy. Tabitha powered through the updates of the "out-of-state woman" who'd gone missing. It was nice that the local radio station gave Lisa's name, description, and a missing person's number for sightings or leads. Tabitha even interviewed with the local news and radio stations, hoping it would bring Lisa home. But she soon found all it brought was a sorrowful look from the locals as she interacted with them in her day-to-day life.
Finishing the last of her hash browns, Lisa wadded up everything in the paper bag and threw it in the back seat. The 9 AM weather report said it was nothing but clear skies and sun the rest of the week. Tabitha flipped the radio over to the greatest hit station, pulled out of the parking lot, and began her trip home. She memorized the roads, every bend and turn in the early weeks as she frantically looked for Lisa. There's something hypnotic about the trees: the way they flow together. The trees' green tops and the oak trees' wide trunks were a relaxing view. Tabitha enjoyed the lazy s-curves of the road, bending and winding around the hills and the trees. The occasional farmhouse or field dotted the sides of the road as she made her way to the main highway.
The blur of a semi-truck snapped Tabitha's attention as she pulled up to the mouth of the highway. She had four and a half hours ahead of her, which would be a long ride. Tabitha pulled onto the highway and picked up speed, noting sparse traffic. She relaxed into her seat, letting her gaze gloss over the blur of green foliage. Without warning, Tabitha caught a large shadow from the corner of her left eye. When she registered the black feathery form, Tabitha tensed up and slammed on the brakes as it swooped across the vehicle's hood. Quickly, she pulled the car safely off the road. She couldn't determine exactly what it was, but it was bigger than any bird she'd seen. It was a bird, right? Tabitha turned off her Jeep and grabbed the keys and cell phone. Standing before the Jeep, she looked over the grill to see if she made contact with the entity.
Bewildered, she scanned the tree line, spotting something in the distance. Sitting in the clearing of the large oak forest was an enormous black owl. It stared intently at Tabitha with bright, shiny yellow eyes. She pushed the lock button on her keys, causing the jeep to beep securely. She turned, looking across the open field, an enormous black owl perched in the upper branches of an old oak tree. Each step she took away from the road piqued her curiosity. Soon, Tabitha stood in the middle of the open field, staring intently into the eyes of the enormous owl.
The horn of a passing semi-truck blared, pulling Tabitha's attention away from the mysterious large creature. She looked back and saw that she had walked farther away from the Jeep than she had thought. She glanced back to the forest line only to see the enormous owl was deeper into the woods than before. She narrowed her vision to find the two large, bright yellow eyes staring back. Had it moved? The day's stress, care, and worry suddenly poured out of Tabitha. It was replaced by only curiosity and overbearing tranquility. She warmly smiled for the first time in months as her feet pulled her further into the woods.
Chapter 2
The tug of gravity pulls Tabitha to her senses as her body reacts, falling forward. Her arms thrust forward, bracing for impact. Water rushes around her face as she struggles to get her bearings. Quickly, Tabitha pushed herself up in the ankle-high stream she fell in. The haze slowly clears from her mind as she stares at the muddy water. The dull ache throbs up her legs. Tabitha can smell the sweat from her clothes. Her face contorted in panic as she quickly stood up in the water, looking for her cell. Thankfully, the device was still in her pocket, dry and unscathed.
"One o'clock. How can that be?" Tabitha says, slowly looking up from the screen to see the vast, dense West Virginia forest encompassing her view. She shakes her head back and forth with disbelief. A smile gently spreads across her face, with the last bit of tranquility leaving her body. How did I get out here? Her breathing becomes faster as her pulse begins to quicken. I'm in the forest. I'm all alone—just like Lisa!
"NO, NO, NO, NO! THIS FUCKING CAN'T BE HAPPENING TO ME!" Tabitha screams into the void of trees. Her eyes well up with tears as she crumbles to her knees, gripping her phone tightly to her chest. Her sobs ring out through the thick oak trees. Her breath slows a little as she regains her composure. She begins to search her mind for anything. What is the last thing I can remember? The image of the black shadow crossing her vision while driving flashes into her mind.
"Okay, I got out of the Jeep, the…then what?" Tabitha says, trying to refresh her memories. She thinks her memory is not just gone; it's a black void in her mind. Complete blackness fills her mind right after remembering locking the Jeep and then turning to see the…
"Fuck I saw something. What was it!" Tabitha says, frustrated with her mind. She knew there must be a logical reason she was out here. Officer Nichols warned her not to go looking for her sister. She wasn't stupid; she just said that as a last-ditch effort to get him to do anything. Now I'm here.
"Run!" Tabitha heard Lisa's voice in her ear. Before she could turn around, she heard a loud bellowing coming from overhead. Fear shot down her back, reminding her of the nightmares she had over the past month. She shot forward full bore as something crashed to the ground behind her. Glancing back as she ran, a black mass of feathers convulsed between the broken branches of the trees. Its slick black feathers rippled across its surface as its bones crackled and flesh tore. Its body contorted and twisted from the shape of an owl to something bigger.
"Run, Tabby! Don't let it catch you!" Tabitha pushed forward, hearing Lisa's scream beside her face. Her breath burned in her chest, and she moved past the old oak trees bent over the creek bed. Her feet slammed rapidly, splashing along the side of the creek. Another loud bellow comes from behind as the trees bend and break to the force behind her. A small opening in the rocky creek bed catches her sight from the left. She dives into the crevasses, not caring where the fathoms lead. Tabitha tumbles in the pitch black, taking scrapes and sharp jabs from the rocks as she tumbles further into the void.
She finally tumbles to a stop on the sandy, wet floor of the cave. Her body aches from the sudden burst of exhaustion. The cool water running around her body from the creek is soothing despite her bumps and bruises. Pushing herself up, she scoots out of the water. Feeling her way forward, she finds a dry spot to collect herself. Quickly pushing her hand into her pocket, she finds her phone undamaged.
The sound of footsteps pushing against the creek fills the void around Tabitha as the light steps move closer to each other up the underground creekbed. She slowly removes her cell from her pocket and then shines the camera light toward the sound. A pair of scratched and bruised pale bare legs hold up a frail form in front of her in the creek. She wears the darkness as a shroud with nothing else to clothe her. Tabitha froze, not wanting to shine the light further in the pale form before her.
"Tabby, turn your light off. You need to save your battery." Tabitha turned off the light and then rushed forward, embracing Lisa—the how or why didn't matter, only the now. The pale form hugged her tightly. Tabitha felt her cold, bare skin. The darkness couldn't hide the feeling of the marks across her back and torso.
"Lisa, I'm-"
"Hush! I don't have much time. This wasn't your fault! I'm with Mom and Dad now. You have to survive, Tabby! Listen. Wait until the sun shines through the cracks, making a trail out. Follow it down the creek until you come to the opening. You'll see a large hill you hike up for a cell signal. And remember…If you can't see it… It can't hurt you. I love you-"
Tabitha stumbled forward before catching herself. The void in front of her arms was only filled by cool air. She looked up and noticed a faint glimmer of light pushing through the ceiling. She sat down, relaxing against the limestone wall of the cave, waiting for the trail of light to form.
***
After a few hours, the light shining through the cracks of the cave ceiling was bright enough to lead Tabitha to the other side. She stepped onto the creek bed, thankful for the sun hanging lower in the sky. Scanning the sky, Tabitha saw only a few clouds. The foothills of Appalachia backdropped the forest as she scanned for the hill. Her eyes found the trail leading up the steady slope of an impressive hill. The top of the hill was bare. Part of the hill must have sheared off in a landslide, leaving the top void of trees and a jagged cliff face. Tabitha started her hike up the back of the hill. She was careful to stay under the heavy canopy of the old trees, hopefully avoiding the creature's eyes.
She did her best to quiet her mind while hiking up the trail. Come on, almost to the top, then I can call 911, she replayed repeatedly in her mind. Her adrenaline made up for the lack of food since morning. She drank some water from a clean spot in the creek. She was placing her bet on rescue rather than worrying about the water.
Leaning against one of the trees, Tabitha took out her cell and measured the signal.
"Damn it, nothing!" She swore under her breath. She listened nervously and cautiously peered her head out from the tree line. Standing at the tree line, the cell phone still had a low signal. She pushed her anxiety down with a swallow and slowly stepped forward onto the bare rock. Tabitha was now out in the open. She walked with the cell phone pointed upwards, measuring the signal. Within three feet of the cliff face, her signal bar punched up to full. Tabitha began to punch in the numbers just as a pair of large yellow eyes appeared. She felt her legs become weak, and her vision blurred as the creature snared her in its gaze.
Tabitha ducked, missing the giant owl's claws as it swooped for her. She squinted her eyes shut, momentarily breaking the hold of the infernal beast as it crashed to the ground, tumbling down the path of old trees. On her hands and knees, she tucked the dialed phone back into her pocket. She heard the creature's loud bellowing, followed by the snapping of bone and flesh ripping. It was changing its shape to finish her off.
Tabitha tried to get up, but the flash of its eyes did something to her. Her legs were numb, her stomach was in knots, and she could barely put a few thoughts together.
"If you can't see it, it can't hurt you." Tabitha heard clearly in her left ear. She quickly pushed herself into a sitting position and fumbled for the key chain in her right pocket. Pulling the long chain of keys, luck charms, and keepsakes, her father's Swiss army knife dangled at the end. She slowly opened the half-inch blade. Her body wholeheartedly rejected her plan and tried to fight her. Every internal warning system sounded as her body fought against her as she brought the blade against the corner of her left eye.
She didn't know if she could do it until the creature bellowed in her direction. With one quick motion, the half-inch blade sliced across her left eye. The world dimmed and then went black on her left side. Behind her, the beast's thundering gallop was getting closer. Tabitha plunged herself into total darkness with the last bit of her strength. Her hand gripped tightly around the bloody knife as she folded forward onto the ground. She could feel herself weeping blood. She squinted, doing her best to stem the tide of blood loss.
A large feathered paw drove into Tabitha's right side, flipping her onto her back. She lay still as the hulking creature stood over her. It remained motionless, and Tabitha was confused about why it didn't move or bite her. Then she started to giggle, just a little at first. Then, laughing madly into the creature's face as it growled back at her. She could not see it; she couldn't see anything. Her mind couldn't be eaten!
The creature roared into Tabitha's face while plunging one of its sharp claws into her shoulder. Tabitha screamed in pain, slashing the knife downward. The blade hit something soft, and she ripped the blade down, rending whatever she had hit on the abomination. A bright yellow, foul-smelling liquid gushed in a torrent over Tabitha's face. She turned to cough, having swallowed a portion of it. The creature reared back, squealing in pain. Its hind leg came down hard on Tabitha's leg, snapping her tibia. She jerked her leg up, causing the creature to tumble forward and fall over the edge of the cliff side.
Tabitha heard the creature crash below at the base of the hill. A large dead tree speared the creature through its chest. Tabitha could hear the labored whines of the creature as its cries became weak and slowed. A wave of sickness hit her as she rolled over and vomited. The foul smell drenched her. She did her best to focus, reaching into her pocket and pulling out the phone. By memory, she typed in the unlock pin. She held her breath and placed her thumb where the call button should be.
She could hear the call being made then, "911. What is your emergency?"
"Please help me! A bear has attacked me, and I can't see. I think I am on a hill."
"Ok, ma'am, stay with me! Do you know where you are located?"
"No, I'm lost. Please send help."
"It's okay. Stay with me on the phone, and I'll use the cell signal to try to find you."
"I'm on top of one of the hills. I think I am lying on a bare roc-" Tabitha slipped unconscious with the cell still tightly in her hand. Her body began to tremble and convulse.
"Ma'am! Ma'am! Stay with me. I have help on the way."
Chapter 3
A young man in military fatigues frantically compiles images and reconnaissance data from his drone feed. Confirming his hunch, he commands the winged surveillance drone to make a hard left and send a live video feed. His eyes widened as he saw a large owl-shaped shadow crash onto the top of a hill. He watches in awe as the sleek black owl twists and shifts into something much larger, like a grizzly. As the drone turns, he sees a woman at the cliff's edge trying to steady yourself on her hands and knees.
He bolts up from the command module, jotting down the drone's coordinates on one of the printouts. The drab government-issued office motif for the watch station blurs in the corner of his eye as he rushes down the hallway to the watch commander's office.
"Sir, recon has eyes on AMOS! And it's feeding!" the man said, swinging the heavy wooden door open. He took the hastily compiled file and pushed it forward to the commanding officer.
An older, tanned man quickly stands, reaching for the files. His brow furls, seeing his charge is awake. "Keep eyes on it! Go Adams!" The young man nods, turning on his heel and bolting for the drone command module. As his office door slams shut from the subordinate officer, he grabs his headset and frantically dials the closest military outpost to the coordinates.
"Hello, Sergeant Klein; this is Agent Smith of Black Watch outpost 7948! Shadow is active, code Alpha, Mike, Oscar, Sierra. The coordinates and data package have been sent. A civilian is on the ground; deploy strike-and-rescue ASAP.
"We'll be up in five, Agent Smith! The line cuts as Agent Smith closes out the call on his headset and rushes to the door. The normally quiet watch station buzzes alive, with personnel flooding the central command station. The background echoes resource allocation calls, frantic typing, and the hum of cold computers warming up.
"Adams, get our eyes back on Amos!"
"Coming back around in 30 seconds." Thirty sets of eyes stare at the three giant screens, anxiously waiting for the drone feed to clear the bank of trees. The camera clears the tre top to see the giant feathered grizzly rear back slinging its massive head away from its prey. Its large yellow right eye spews bright yellow liquid all over the red-haired woman and the cliff face. The giant feathered grizzly missteps, crushing the woman's leg and causing the creature to tumble over the cliff face.
"Fuck!" Agent Smith yells in horror as he watches AMOS fall four stories, impaling a sharp, 3-meter-tall log lodged in the boulders. The command center freezes wide-eyed at the flailing dying creature on screen. Agent Smith pulls his cell out quickly and dials.
"Klein, Scrub the current request! AMOS is down! Switch to rescue and harvest now!
"What, someone took out AMOS?"
"YES! It's at the bottom of the cliff, bleeding out essence! The woman is covered in it as well. Clean as much of it off her as possible before you take her to the ER.
"Understood!"
Agent Smith, in a rage, slings his phone straight forward, connecting with Private Adams's skull. Adams flinches at the sudden impact of the hard plastic and covers his head. Agent Smith grabs the table in front of him and flips it over, sending the computer equipment crashing to the government-issued tiled floor.
"A two-year cycle gone! All that essence is gone! Now I have to wait another 24 months for AMOS to resurrect!" Agent Smith screams, causing the rest of the staff to recoil away in fear.
"Jones!" Agent Smith says sternly, turning to a petite woman on his left. She stares at him, pleading.
"Yes Sir?'
"Get Officer Nichols on my office line. That fuck up has some explaining. He should have told us AMOS was awake."
"Right away!" Jones quickly sits back down and begins dialing Nichols, thankful she doesn't have to deal with Agent Smith further. The command center quickly shifts gears as Agent Smith returns to his office.
***
Two Weeks later…
"Tabitha… Tabitha… This is Doctor Wilhelm. Wake up." The kind older gentleman said as they gently nudged Tabitha in her hospital bed.
"Where am I?" Tabitha asked, waking from what felt like years of sleep. She sat up, the world still pitch black, but an odd sense of the world around her seemed to hum just behind her eyes.
"You're in the hospital, dear; you scared us. Do you remember anything?" He said as he sat down on the side of her bed.
Tabitha thought for a moment the last parts after she slashed her eyes were a blur. She remembers people yelling and the sound of two or three helicopters over her. " No, it's really all just a blur."
"Well, it's probably for the best. You had some very serious injuries. The first night, we honestly didn't think you would make it. Then…" The doctor trailed off with a concerned expression, not knowing how to explain things further.
Tabitha felt his pulse quicken somehow. She didn't understand it but fully felt or sensed the doctor beside her. She sensed the two other nurses standing at the end of the bed. Her body didn't hurt. She felt great. She felt hungry.
"Doctor, you said had. What happened to my injuries?" She said calmly, trying not to startle the old doctor further.
"Well, Tabitha, it's the closest thing to a miracle I've ever seen. You had violent seizures from the minute you hit the entrance of the ER. We couldn't even set your leg. The medications we gave you had a minimal effect, and you thrashed so much that we had to restrain you. Then, the early morning check-in found you in a deep sleep. All but your eyes were completely healed. So we switched gears to support care and treated your eyes the best we could." He said, watching her reaction.
Tabitha leaned back in her bed, taking in the wild account. "Do you know how I healed so quickly?"
"What happened to you is beyond all scientific reason. A miracle is the only way the staff and I can explain it. I know you have been through a lot, but I want to check your eyes."
"Thank you for all your help, Doctor Wilhelm." She said, sitting up in bed.
"You are most welcome, dear. Now I am going to unwrap your eye-dressing. Hold still, please." he said as he reached up and pulled on the bandage tape. Tabitha felt a quick tug and felt the bandages loosen from around her head. The doctor slowly unwrapped the bandages. The doctor's brow wrinkled as he examined the two large black scabs covering Tabitha's eyes.
"Tell me if this hurts at all, ok?"
"Yes, doctor." She relaxes as the doctor's gloved fingers pass over the scab. He pushes and gently tugs at the side of one, and it starts to lift. He pulls on the scab more, and Tabitha begins to sense the light as it hits her eyelid.
"Oh, I can sense the light, Doctor Wilhelm!" She said, smiling.
"Wonderful! Nurse Allen, please hand me some saline solution. I think a little water will loosen these right up. Hold still; this may feel cold," he said as he reached for the solution. She felt the cool liquid flush over the left eye, then the right. The scabs fell away with a gentle tug from the doctor. She could see the light shine through her eyelids. She grinned widely, happy to have some form of sight left.
"Please open your eyes for me," he said as he sat back on the bed. Tabitha slowly opened her eyes. The flood of light was almost too much, causing her to squint. After a few moments, she adjusted to the fluorescent lights. Three figures began to take shape in front of her. First, the distinguished older features of Doctor Wilhelm came into view quickly, followed by the brunette and blonde younger nurses standing at the end of the bed. Suddenly, her vision snapped into place, crisp and clear.
"I can see perfectly! This is amazing! Thank you, Doctor Wilhem!" she said, turning to look directly into his eyes, but he stared back at her unmovingly.
"Doctor Wilhelm?" she said as her expression became more worried. Doctor Wilhelm just sat staring, intensely focused on her eyes. His expression was overbearingly calm. She glanced at the nurses, rigidly staring back at her with trapped, calm expressions. Doctor Wilhelm began to twitch slightly. It traveled from the base of his spine out to his limbs, finally convulsing.
"Doctor Wilhelm, are you okay?" Tabitha yelled as the doctor began to have a seizure and fell on top of her bed.
"Help Him!" She screamed at the two nurses only to see both of them crumble to the tiled floor. One of them bashed her head off the bed frame. Tabitha recoils back from Doctor Wilhelm in terror as he starts foaming at the mouth. She climbs over the bed rail and hits the tiled concrete floor with a thud. Her adrenaline surges as she bolts for the door, looking for help.
At the entrance of her hospital room, she sees another nurse leaving the adjacent room. "Please, my doctor and staff need help!" As the male nurse turns to see Tabitha, he suddenly goes stiff before collapsing into a violent seizure, spilling his cart over with him.
"What's happening!" Tabitha screams, thinking something is in the air, or everyone has come down with something. A pair of security guards round the corner, hearing the screams and commotion.
"Ma'am, are yo-" The guard freezes mid-stride as he makes eye contact with Tabitha. Both men start to convulse and topple over, thrashing violently on the hard tile.
"No, no, no, no!" Tabitha yells as she darts into the women's bathroom, a few doors up the hall. She runs in, terrified of the situation. She approaches one of the sinks, bracing herself against the cool porcelain. Her stomach turns, and she dry heaves in the sink. She steadies herself while turning on the cold water. Leaning in, she takes a drink. As she looks up, a glint of two yellow eyes catches her. Tabitha stumbles backward on reflex. Then, she sees her reflection in the mirror. Two completely bright yellow eyes stare back at Tabitha. She screams at herself in the mirror, not feeling hungry anymore.
The end.
I will

Hi everyone,
this is my first time ever posting so bear with me and my jumbled thoughts. I just found out that the guy i was seeing for a year and a half is actually married. I just need a place to vent where no one knows me.
a bit of backstory, I met this guy at a boxing gym. he started training me, the first week of training i noticed he would flirt with me heavily (which i didn't mind because we were both in our 20s and single, or at least thats what i thought at the beginning). two weeks in and he asked me out, and thats how we began talking. nothing was out of the ordinary, he would respond to texts all the time, we would see each other daily, hed often cancel his clients to hang out. we would see each other during his off days too, he invited me over to his place but i declined as it was very early on (my first mistake, could have saved me alot of heartache. i feel like i could have easily clocked it if i went over idk)
it started to get weird 6 months in. he would always cancel any weekend hang outs, his excuse at the time was that he was in the middle of moving house and renovating (which was true) he would send me videos of the construction and videos of everything. so i chucked it off to him being very busy. this is when we got into our first fight, we were looking at photos in my phone and when i asked to see his he changed the subject. i let it go for a bit but it rubbed me the wrong way, and i asked again. he started to say that i would not like how he talks to certain clients he has. since they have been with him for years and they are very comfortable with each other. i told him that i feel like theres something he is hiding, and he got defensive and said "if you dont trust me thats not my problem". after back and forth i just kind of left it at that and went home. we didnt speak for a few days, he didnt bother messaging at all. (this was another issue, every time he messed up he would just not text me over the weekend, since we see each other all week. so he would leave it to fester up, and i mean zero communication.)
he started to get weird about me having his address, since we mostly met at my place, or a restaurant, or the boxing gym. (his reason was that his parents have a kay and they can come in any time they like, were both from a religion that doesn't really allow dating like this lol) but again, not a good excuse in my book because i was putting in the effort and risking alot.
fast forward, sometime happens and im hospitalized ( i dont want to get into this because its not something im comfortable with). i have surgery done and im back home, were texting through out this whole thing, talking on the phone every single day, hes being very responsive and supportive. (or so i thought) 2 months into my recovery, and i need another surgery (mind you before this i gave him an out 3 times, he swore up and down that he would never leave his "girl" in a hard time). the day of my surgery, i wake up and update him that im out and it went well and nothing. silence. 5 hours go by and again nothing, he reads my messages at 2 AM. he doesnt respond.
i get discharged from the hospital the next day, again nothing from him. im freaking out now, im stuck at home i cant leave and im worried about him. he doesnt text back or answer. i make a fake number and i pretend to be a client, he calls back and hangs up the second he hears my voice. thats when it hits me, hes trying to ghost. super shitty timing, he had so many opportunities to go but he chose now? and without even a conversation.
4 months go by, i go back to the gym. and he sees me, comes up to me and starts tearing up. saying that he didn't know what to do. to sum up the story he came up with: his family set him up with someone back in his home country, he went over there to tell them he wasn't interested because he had a girlfriend in (our city). makes zero sense why he didnt say shit to me. he would drive to my neighborhood and park near me house a few times after he came back to get a chance to "see me". oh and he changed his phone number and was being cagey about it. (he had said he wanted to give me his new number but then panicked and changed his mind, i didnt press about it because at that point i knew something was very off and i wanted to move on already)
today, i was going through my old FB, and his profile came up (weird because he said he doesnt really use it?) anyway, i get curious as one does and i fall into a worm hole. he has pictures of his "ex" still up, and i find her profile and she updated her picture to a recent one of him and her. she has his last name, and the status is married. this whole time we were together, he was still with his wife that he broke up with ( mind you he NEVER said she was his wife. he called her an ex girlfriend. he said he had been single for 2 years. doesnt talk to many people and keeps to himself. in his own words, he doesnt have friends and spends his days with his dogs doing nothing basically. now i know all this is a bunch of lies but god why waste my time)
im in my early twenties, this is basically my first "real" relationship that i would count. it just sucks that its actually not real at all and was just a game to him.
thank you for listening

1-1 Gunfire Battle
1-2 Gunfire Battle With Car
1-3 Gunfire Battle With Traffic
1-4 Motorcycle Passing At 55mph
1-5 Motorcycle Passing At 100mph
1-6 Chopping With An Axe
1-7 Chopping With Fallen Tree
1-8 Newspaper Leafing Through
1-9 Newspaper Ripping
1-10 Children Giggling
1-11 Drinking Through A Straw With A Gulp
1-12 Saltwater Fishing Casting Reeling And Catching Fish
1-13 Slot Machine Pull And Pay-Off
1-14 Lion Roars
1-15 Lion Growls Close Perspective
1-16 Bacon Frying
1-17 Swiss Yodel Call
1-18 Helicopter Start Up And Take Off Int Perspective
1-19 Helicopter Flying By Vers. 2
1-20 Helicopter Coming In And Landing Vers. 2
1-21 Grating Carrots
1-22 Heavy Breathing
1-23 Pay Phone Sequence
1-24 Tearing Paper Short
1-25 Tearing Paper Long
1-26 Baby Crying
1-27 Crickets At Night
1-28 Jet Taking Off
1-29 Jet Passing Overhead And Landing
1-30 Cracking Eggs
1-31 Beating Eggs In A Bowl
1-32 Horse Whinny And Neigh
1-33 Horse Gallops By
1-34 Horse Walks Up And Snorts In Stable
1-35 Man Coughing
1-36 Water Splash
1-37 Loud Large Group Applauding
1-38 Witches Evil Laugh
1-39 Pigs Grunting In A Sly
1-40 Church Clock Strikes 1 O'Clock
1-41 Church Clock Strikes 12 O'Clock
1-42 Car Won't Start
1-43 Car With Dead Battery
1-44 Car Start And Rev Engine
1-45 Car Start Rev Engine And Drive Away
1-46 Car Approach And Fast Stop
1-47 Car Approach Skid And Medium Crash
1-48 Eating Crisp Potato Chips
1-49 Shoveling Dirt On Concrete
1-50 Car Wash Interior Perspective
1-51 Referee Type Whistle
1-52 Thunder Clap Vers. 3
1-53 Wind Howling Lightly
1-54 Thunder Wind And Rain
1-55 Thunder And Heavy Down Pour
1-56 Man Screaming
1-57 Small Crowd Booing
1-58 Small Crowd Sighing Relieved
1-59 Small Crowd Gasp Astonished
1-60 Small Crowd 'Yeah' Happy
1-61 Grandfather Clock Strikes 12 0'Clock
1-62 High Performance Car Start And Idle
1-63 High Performance Car 160mph Pass R To L
1-64 Champagne Cork Popping
1-65 Millitary Jet Fast Flyby
1-66 Stirring In A Cup
1-67 Truck Horn 1 Blast
1-68 Truck Horn 2 Blasts
1-69 Truck Passing With Horn
1-70 Boxing With Punching Bag
1-71 Woman Shrieking
1-72 Vacuuming
1-73 Hydraulic Lift In Operation
1-74 Chicken Coup Atmosphere
1-75 Diving And Swimming Past
1-76 Small Group Applause
1-77 Propeller Airplane Start And Idle
1-78 Machine Gun Burst
1-79 Machine Gun Burst With Returned Fire
1-80 Wooden Bat Hitting Ball
1-81 Aluminum Bat Hitting Ball
1-82 Weight Lifting
1-83 Rocket Launching With Countdown
1-84 Taking A Shower
1-85 Electric Shaver
1-86 Brushing Teeth
1-87 Flushing Toilet
1-88 Police Car Passing With Siren
1-89 Police Car Approach And Stop With Siren
1-90 Police Car Departs With Siren
1-91 Police Radio In Operation
1-92 Kiss
1-93 Cannon Blast
1-94 Patchinco Continuous Play
1-95 Paper Bag Put On Head And Removed
1-96 Tuning Radio AM
1-97 Tuning Radio FM
1-98 Electronic Radio Alarm Sounding
1-99 Crystal Glass Ping
1-100 Rock Concert Applause With Shouts
2-1 Explosion Bang With Falling Debris
2-2 Explosion Medium Bang
2-3 Explosion Small Bang With Falling Debris
2-4 Fire Alarm
2-5 Crack Of A Whip
2-6 Elephant Trunk Noise
2-7 Angry Elephants
2-8 High Performance Car Start Drive And Stop
2-9 High Performance Car Start Up And Burn Out
2-10 High Performance Car Burn Out Vers 2
2-11 Sneeze
2-12 Crowd At A Horse Track
2-13 Water Dripping
2-14 Water Dripping With Reverberation
2-15 Filling Sink With Water
2-16 Emptying Sink
2-17 Handsaw Sawing Wood
2-18 Jigsaw In Operation
2-19 Circular Saw In Operation
2-20 Chains Rattling
2-21 4 Boings
2-22 Scissors Cutting Hair
2-23 Hair Dryer In Operation
2-24 Carnival Atmosphere
2-25 Gavel Hammering In Court
2-26 Rotary Dialing Telephone
2-27 Telephone 1 Ring / Pick Up
2-28 Hanging Up
2-29 Ship Horn 2 Blasts
2-30 Evil Male Laugh
2-31 Evil Male Laugh With Echo
2-32 Male Laugh Hysterical
2-33 Tray Of Glasses Rattling
2-34 Carbonated Water Fizzing
2-35 Airplane Jet Take Off (Jumbo Jet)
2-36 Airplane Jet Landing Vers 2
2-37 Airplane Jet Landing With Tire Squeal
2-38 Burp
2-39 Small Group Applauding With Cheers
2-40 Applause Polite Medium Group
2-41 Cow Moo
2-42 Pool (Billards) Break
2-43 Pool (Billiards) Combination Shot
2-44 Town Clock In Distance Striking 1 0'Clock
2-45 Town Clock In Distance Striking 12 0'Clock
2-46 Party Horn
2-47 Party Noise Maker
2-48 Cave With Water Dripping
2-49 Ice Cubes In A Glass
2-50 Ice Cubes In A Bucket
2-51 Jogging Past Right To Left
2-52 Jogging Past Left To Right
2-53 Car Honk
2-54 Car Long Honks
2-55 Car Several Honks
2-56 Traffic Jam Honks
2-57 Car Passing With Horn
2-58 Angry Crowd
2-59 Panic Stricken Crowd
2-60 3 Gun Shots 45 Automatic
2-61 Shotgun 1 Shot
2-62 M14 Rifle Several Shots
2-63 Elevator Door Opening
2-64 Elevator Door Closing
2-65 Elevator Lift Rider's Perspective
2-66 Bees Buzzing Around Hive
2-67 Alarm Clock Bell Sounding
2-68 Electric Fan In Operation
2-69 35mm Camera Shutter Sound
2-70 35mm Camera Auto Motor Drive
2-71 35mm Camera Automatic Sequence
2-72 Camera Flash Charge And Pop
2-73 Hammering Nails Into Wood
2-74 Door Bell Several Rings
2-75 Knocking On Door And Door Opens
2-76 Heartbeat
2-77 'Surprise' At Party
2-78 Car Fast Approach And Stop
2-79 Car Approach Skid And Crash
2-80 Car Approach Long Skid And Big Crash
2-81 Car Skid And Tire Squeal
2-82 Writing On Blackboard
2-83 Fingernails On Blackboard
2-84 Velcro Ripping
2-85 Propeller Airplane Taking Off Ext Perspective
2-86 Air Pump
2-87 Movie Camera Old Clockwork Type
2-88 Donkey Hee Haws
2-89 Newsroom General Atmosphere
2-90 Coins Dropped On Table
2-91 Coins Being Counted
2-92 Coins Jingling
2-93 Duck Quack
2-94 Scrubbing Floor With A Brush
2-95 Rain Continuous Downpour
2-96 Thunder Clap Vers 2
2-97 Thunder And Rain Storm
2-98 Wind Blowing Through Trees
2-99 Rocket
2-100 Wolf Howling Human Simulation
3-1 Bowling Alley General Atmosphere
3-2 Bowling Gutter Ball
3-3 Bowling Strike
3-4 Soda Can Opening
3-5 Soda Pouring In Glass
3-6 Telephone 3 Rings And Pick Up
3-7 Telephone Slammed Down
3-8 Rooster Crowing
3-9 Woman Screaming
3-10 Sipping Coffee
3-11 Cork Pulled With Reverberation
3-12 Crowd 'Oh' Disappointed
3-13 Crowd 'Ahh' Satisfied
3-14 Crowd Urgh Disgusted
3-15 Steam Train Passing By
3-16 Bugle Call Outdoors - Charge
3-17 Bugle Call - Post Time
3-18 Bugle Call - Fanfare
3-19 Bugle Call - Parade Dismiss
3-20 Bugle Call - Fall In
3-21 Bugle Call - Lights Out
3-22 Bugle Call - Military Taps
3-23 Bugle Call - Retreat
3-24 Bugle Call - Revue
3-25 Bugle Call - Reveille
3-26 Belch
3-27 Baby Laugh
3-28 Domestic Car Alarm
3-29 Domestic Car Door Opening
3-30 Domestic Car Door Clossing
3-31 Domestic Car Crash With Yell
3-32 Domestic Car Approach And Skid
3-33 Horse Trots Up And Snorts Outside
3-34 Horse Whinny And Neigh Outside
3-35 Horse Canters By Outside
3-36 Hellcopter Start Up And Take Off Vers 1
3-37 Helicopter Flying By Vers 1
3-38 Helicopter Coming In And Landing Vers 1
3-39 Applause Concert Crowd With Cheers
3-40 Drinking Fountain Turned On And Off
3-41 Drinking Fountain Taking A Drink
3-42 Roller Coaster In Operation
3-43 Fight Bell 2 Strikes
3-44 Cuckoo Clock Strikes 1
3-45 Cuckoo Clock Strikes 12
3-46 Record Needle Scratch
3-47 Ambulance Passing With Siren
3-48 HiFi Store With Radios And TV's
3-49 Sizzle Light
3-50 Sizzle Heavy
3-51 High Performance Car Start, Idle, Rev, And Stop
3-52 High Performance Car Burn Out
3-53 High Performance Car High Speed Pass 150mph
3-54 Coffee Grinder
3-55 Coffee Perculator
3-56 Ball Bouncing
3-57 Ball Bouncing Away
3-58 Thunder Clap
3-59 Thunder Continuous Claps And Rumbles
3-60 Wind Howling Heavily
3-61 Thunder And Rain In The City
3-62 After Storm Atmosphere
3-63 Bicycle Bell
3-64 Shuffling Cards
3-65 Dealing Cards
3-66 Fireworks General Atmosphere
3-67 A Glass Clinking In A Toast
3-68 Many Glasses Clinking In A Toast
3-69 Game Show Buzzer
3-70 Sweeping The Floor
3-71 Broom Dropped
3-72 Submarine Sonar
3-73 Mantal Clock Clicking
3-74 Many Clocks Ticking
3-75 Cats Meow 3 Types
3-76 Cash Register Ring Up
3-77 Social Gathering Party Crowd
3-78 Tray Of Dishes Dropped
3-79 Zipper Zipped Up
3-80 Zipper Zipped Down
3-81 Dog Many Barks
3-82 Dog Growling And Barking
3-83 Dog Chasing Man And Barking
3-84 Ratchet Tightening Nut
3-85 Wind Chimes
3-86 Door Opening
3-87 Door Closed
3-88 Door Slammed
3-89 Many Party Horns
3-90 Balloon Being Inflated
3-91 Balloon Let Go Flying
3-92 Balloon Popped
3-93 Balloon Popped With Reverberation
3-94 Video Archade Atmosphere
3-95 Opening An Envelope
3-96 Crumpling A Letter And Throwing Away
3-97 Airplane Jet Taking Off
3-98 Airplane Jet Flyby Overhead Right To Left
3-99 Airplane Jet Interior With Cabin Announcements
3-100 Airplane Jet Landing Vers 1

I'm a beginner in FPGA programming and I'm trying to implement a noise filter in Verilog on Vivado. I'm doing calculations on the input signal where division is needed, so I'm using the Divider Generator IP to implement the division outside of a module. When I run behavioral simulation, I get an unknown output x from the Divider Generator, even though the input data is valid. I'm guessing that I'm implementing the division wrong with the IP, but does anyone have any idea what I might be doing wrong? I hardly did any coding about the Division Generator and most I did was connecting the input an output ports.
Here is my code (here is also the full version of the code):
block diagram of the main module and the Divider Generator

 reg [15:0] y, y_init, u; reg [15:0] x_curr, x_curr0, x_curr1, x_curr2, x_next, x_next2, x_next3; reg [15:0] e_pre_var, e_next_var, e_next_var1, e_next_var2; reg [15:0] K_pre, K_next, one_K_next_sq, K_next_sq; // kalman gain always@(posedge clk) begin // distribute calculations over multiple clock cycles to meet timing // all variables that are not declared as reg are parameters if (counter == 9) begin y_init = y_measured; end if (counter == 10) begin x_next2 = k_omega*y_init; x_next3 = oT*x_next2; measured = x_next3; end if (counter == 11) begin x_next = x_next1 - x_next3; // predict the next state x_n e_pre_var = e_pre_var0; end // counter1024 counts up to 1024 clock cycles, so the following makes calculations every 1024 //cycles // this reduces the calculation rate from 125 MHz if (counter_eq_1024) begin y = y_measured; u = -oT*k_omega*y; end if (counter1024 == 1) begin K_next_num = (phi_sq*e_pre_var + d_var); K_next_denom = (phi_sq*e_pre_var + d_var + s_var); // K_next = K_next_num / K_next_denom; M_AXIS_OUT_tvalid_kal = 1'b1; // send the numerator and denominator values to the Divider Generator K_next = K_next_in; end if (counter1024 == 2) begin x_curr0 = 1-K_next; x_curr1 = x_curr0*x_next; x_curr2 = K_next*y; end if (counter1024 == 3) begin x_curr = x_curr1 + x_curr2; // estimate the current state x_next = phi*x_curr + u; // predict the next state end if (counter1024 == 4) begin one_K_next_sq = (1-K_next)*(1-K_next); K_next_sq = K_next*K_next; end if(counter1024 == 5) begin e_next_var1 = one_K_next_sq*K_next_num; e_next_var2 = K_next_sq*s_var; e_next_var = e_next_var1 + e_next_var2; end if (counter1024 == 6) begin // make the next values the old values for next cycle K_pre = K_next; e_pre_var = e_next_var; // Assign the calculated value to the output signal M_AXIS_OUT_tdata = x_next; // Store sampled data in memory x_data = x_next; M_AXIS_OUT_tvalid_kal = 1'b0; // stop data flow to Divider Generator end end 

This is a long story with a lot of lore so im sorry in advance lol
I'm a ssv and there is this partner I work with who I had to coach about using restroom cleaner on the espresso machines, ever since I coached him he has treated me like garbage and ONLY ME. Hes never has this kind of attitude with any of the other ssvs to the point where I felt like I was being gaslit when I would talk to my then SM or other ssvs about his behavior. He will slam foaming pitchers on the counter, ignore me when I ask him to do a task, be short with me and customers on my shift. I mean he will walk in for a shift and see me then get in a pissy mood. When I went to my old SM about it (she stepped down) she wrote him up. But even after that, he still acts like that with me.
I had a day a while ago where I had to send him home for his aggressive behavior, (ex, slamming the pitchers on the counter, grabbing the dcr out of my hand, making petty comments, being rude to other baristas.) I wanted another ssv to witness me explaining to him why I was sending him home so another ssv came in for the conversation. In this conversation he yelled at me, cussed me out and got really close to my face and clapped really loudly. Needless to say, the other ssv was in shock and after he left they explained to me that they have never seen him act like that and wouldn't act like that around anyone else.
so fast forward to today, I have learned to just try and stay positive in any situation and brush off all the comments he makes to me but idk why today was just so...bad? different? I walk in to clock on and I see him and just ask how his day is and he is immediately short with me. I brush it off and then continue my work. I did my counts for the day and asked him to be on bar, he ignored me and walked away and started cleaning random things. I was a bit annoyed but I didnt want to make a big deal out of it so I let him finish what he was doing and then I asked him to come to bar again. He rolled his eyes at me and hit things on the counter and just said "okay". I just brushed it off again because, again, I didnt want to start anything. At this point im on POS and I overhear a customer ask him a question and I see him turn around and ignore the customer, the customer is visibly upset and walks over to me and I help the customer. After I helped the customer I walked up to him and asked if he was okay because he was short with the customer and also short with me. he goes "im fine." and then he hits something on the counter again. I tried to ask again and if he needs to take a moment to himself and he ignores me, so I walk away and start thinking about how I probably have to send him home because hes being aggressive by hitting the counter, not listening to me and ignoring the customer. And this triggered something in me, reminding me of the last time I had to send him home and how he treated me, I had a full blown panic attack. I took my 10 and called my temp SM and she was understanding at first and called him. But after she talked to him, she said that he sounded very calm on the phone and doesnt seem like he did anything wrong, that I was being dramatic, and that sending him home was "off the table"....yeah I was in shock. I told her I did not feel safe around him because he was showing aggressive behavior and that I needed to protect my own mental health and that I was going to find myself coverage and leave. At this point I was having a menty b in the back office and what I felt like was having no support from my temp SM and was very frustrated.
I just need to know if I was crazy in doing this or if its justified ty

Is it just me, or were we raised at the height of the "Do What You Love" movement? I seem to remember countless TV shows that espoused this, as well as movies like Captain Ron and Office Space. My dad seemed to tell me this every evening at the dinner table (he was a boomer extrovert trapped in an office job), as did just about everything from pop culture.
I struggled a bit to find this passion and eventually settled on education. I loved my first few years of being a teacher and think of them as some of the best days of my life. As you can imagine, I eventually got tired of it. After a few years of trying to rekindle my excitement for it, I realized that it was time to move on. I was also trying to deal with the financial limitations of this career path, and my wife and I were working around the clock to make ends meet. Eventually, I went into school administration. While I don't know if I can complain, because I do have some clear benefits with my job, I do sometimes wonder if I would have saved myself some grief by settling on a better paying career path that was more natural to my abilities and personality. I certainly can't tell young folks to just follow the passion without worrying about money--while "money can't buy happiness," financial stress doesn't make you happy either.
I sometimes count myself as a casualty of the "do what you love" thinking. Are there others who grew up during this time who followed this path, only to find that it doesn't always work out so well in the end?

Are wa tenshi no koe!

"Trash Day — Clock Tower — Birds Flying Over the Walls"

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Comment of the Day!!

Meccano approved of the Haibane caste system

In terms of the places where the Haibane can work - that reminds me of checks English term corporations. Ok I’ll probably have to link that… That also tells me that a lot of this is simply tradition. But it is still actively adhered to - the question is for legitimate reasons or not, and if not are they aware of that or not.

I was browsing the comments and came across this wild take from Wednesday that I simply could not ignore~

I guess Reki is the only Haibane to have grown up from a Little Feather?

Clearly because Hikari has been tearing off the little feathers' halos (their souls!) in the night and feeding it to the townspeople in the morning. Reki only survived because half-smoked-old-cigarette-smelling bagels wouldn't sell.

QotD

• At what point of today's episode would you have told Kana to fuck off?
• So for better or worse, today's episode is a very in depth analysis on Kana, so what are your thoughts on her so far?
• Whilst we're on the topic, who is the Haibane girl you're most inclined towards? Who's your favourite so far?
• What's the weirdest alarm clock you've ever regularly used? Phone alarms or physical both count.
• Master's worry about Kana "flying away" got me melancholic. Have you ever had an underlying or protege who grew from you and flew the nest so to speak?
• Have you sang yourself a little song when doing your day to day work today? What's stuck in your head?

Abyssbringer's "What is the thematic purpose of this scene corner!!"

Vaadwaur believes that God has become anime's commodity. Even angels fell to capitalism!

The prompt symbolizes modernity's attempts to take the divine and use them for its own purpose. A very grimdark reminder that nothing can be sacred these days.

Yesterday's Prompt!

Today's Prompt!

Tomorrow's Prompt

If you strain your ears, you can probably hear it.

As promised, to the 1 or 2 people interested, here's my recap of the second race of my spring 2024 marathon double, which only happened because I unexpectedly got a bib in London.
I attempted a TLDR Haiku at the end, in case you're in a hurry.
London Recap
Training
After London I enjoyed the rest of the days of vacation. We walked a lot and I felt better than expected. It was a relief to rest mentally. I didn’t think about the next race much at all. I was satisfied enough with my progression back to 2:49 that I wasn’t going to feel bad if the next one became a glorified Sunday long run. Just finishing would still check off another state in my 50 state quest.
At the midpoint between the two races I had what felt like the first real test to see how it might go. WU / 3x60s on, 4 mi @ MP, 3x60s on / CD. I was keenly focused on the 4 miles @ MP, knowing I would read heavily into it. My only notes in my run log that day tell the entire story, “This little workout convinced me to throw caution to the wind and go for the A+ day. " That's when I started thinking much differently about the second race.
The only other run I put much stock into was an easy to moderately paced 13 miler, eight days out from the race. I felt incredible, like I could have run all day and continued upping the pace. With that I had some confidence, and I truly felt like I was playing with house money. I wasn’t going to have any shame if I whiffed by 20-40 minutes on my goal.
Race Day
4:30am hit hard, especially for a central time zoner. A quick jog to my bus in the daylight (the secret great thing about late May marathons) and settled in at the start line area. With an easy gear check I got to stay nice and warm while I got warmed up and topped off the hydration.
Temps in the mid-40s with a minor headwind. Pretty much weather you would take ten times out of ten. The goal is to simply run to 2:47 pace and see what happens.
Race - First Half
Pacing over the early miles is simple. Lock in around 6:22 and then adjust to the small ups and downs through mile 7. I was on pace with my goal within a few seconds through the first ten miles, including the climb on 8-9-10. I stole a few seconds here and there to be a little bit under 2:47 pace. Still a positive splitter at heart.
After the big climb on mile 10 I felt like the race was beginning. I had put so much stock in being conservative and smart over the climbs. On the other side of it I felt relieved and tried to ignore the fact that I had no real checkpoints for the rest of the race. Just run straight til it ends basically. Miles 11 and 12 ratchet downhill and I just hoped to be able to get to about 6:09-6:13 without feeling like I was torching my quads.
The quads were good, but my hipflexors were screaming a bit. This is where the formula all came together though. Since I had little confidence that I could run quicker than I had three weeks ago, I really had to focus on the mile I was in and getting the pacing as close to right as possible. The only other thing to worry about was getting all six gels down again.
Race - Second Half
I didn’t see a halfway split, but I knew it was in the 84 minute window, which had been the goal for the A+ scenario (84:14). Given the course, negative splits were almost required, so I knew I was on.
Somewhere near mile 16 I started thinking harder about ending the PR drought. Today can be the day, you can end it right here. I believed it, I gave myself chills with my mental pep talk, before realizing I had a long way to go and tried to keep focused.
Over the next 5-7 miles I kept just focusing on pace, reminding myself I actually felt really good relative to expectations, and dismissing the negative thoughts. With each mile I gained confidence that I might just get away with this double marathon.
At 23 I started thinking of it as a lap of the lake by my house, and I came in 5 seconds ahead of target. I made a couple passes in a row of some guys who had been working in front of me for a while. I felt so strong at 23, but it was also still really hard. I told myself to keep the next two miles under 6:25 and we’d sort the last one out from there.
Are my quads/hips/calves really not going to come for me and end this dream??
6:24 on 24. I passed a guy and we traded some encouragement.
6:21 on 25 and my goal was to get to 25.2 and then dial it up. I wasn’t really sure what pace I was on I just knew that I couldn’t be too far off of 2:47-48 given my mile splits. I always find it hard to believe the end is near in the 25-25.7 zone where you usually still can’t see the end. I should have had the guts to up the pace at 25.2, but probably waited until 25.7.
When I did go though, I was on the offensive at the end of a marathon for maybe the second time ever. I was finally doing what I always romanticize doing in training. I was hammering home and my stride looked alright for a change. I was very motivated to best my time from London at least.
With half a mile to go I got some nice encouragement from spectators and swore out loud at a bus that turned in front of me and altered my path. I felt like I was flying (relative to the usual marathon finish). With 90 seconds to PR I didn’t actually think I’d make it. Marathon brain just can’t do math though.
I turned the corner into the chute and could see the finish but not the clock. When I did see it it had just hit 2:47. I ran my fastest that I had all day and was counting out the seconds I had to close. I knew I made it with 5-10 or so to go, said "lets go!" to no one in particular and missed my wife and baby two feet from my head along the guardrail. Thankfully I got a photo of this precise moment from the race photographer.
Finally finally, a new PR in the only distance I care about.
Post Race Thoughts

• It was a small PR, but also a massive PR. It had been 4 years and 4 four months since I ran a PR. In that time I raced 13 marathons, fired Pfitzinger, Daniels, and myself as coach and did everything short of giving up.
• I had a lot of doubt that I’d ever get back here. It all felt so far away, and I was getting used to consolation prizes. It had just been a really long time where I knew I was training at the highest level I ever had, and somehow never paying it off on race day.
• I still feel like there was more in the tank if I had pushed down earlier. I don't think I would have bonked if I had had the guts to push to low 6:10s at 24.5 or even 25. That’s the exciting part to take with me for next time.
• It was great to be with my fam within 30 seconds of crossing the line. That long cold walk at the end of London would've really stolen the buzz that I got to have here. I guess it worked out.
• 33 straight positive splits was a hell of a run. Beginnings always hide themselves in ends.
• I omitted the race name because I hate being front and center in the google search results for a given race.
• Shoutout to anyone who read all this, especially if you also got through the London recap. Double shoutout to anyone who gave me some suggestions on my approach to this race. I enjoyed the lightheartedness and keeping my mind at ease in the process.

TL;DR Haiku:
low expectations,
negative split and PR,
two forty seven