Facts:

• 30 states have a higher minimum wage than Tennessee's $7.25.
• Tennessee last raised its minimum wage in 2009.
• Since then, inflation has risen by about 36.6%.
• A decent living wage for a single adult in Tennessee is about $13.25 per hour.

Rising Rents in Knoxville

• Rapid Rent Increases: In 2022, rent growth in Knoxville was 9.6%, significantly higher than the national average of 2.3%. This trend has continued, with apartment rents increasing by around 6.06% in 2023 compared to the previous year.
• Forecasted Increases: The trend of rising rents is expected to continue, with forecasts indicating an additional 5% increase over the next year.
• High Occupancy Rates: Despite these rent increases, Knoxville's rental market remains highly competitive with occupancy rates around 96.3%, which is higher than the national average of 94.7%.

Recent Home Price Increases in Knoxville

• Median Home Price: The median home sales price in Knoxville rose to $350,000 in July 2023, representing an increase of around 7.9% compared to the previous year.
• Affordability: As of November 2023, the median home sales price was $346,000, up by about 10.8% from the previous year.
• Income Requirements: The income required to qualify for a mortgage on a median-priced home has risen dramatically, from around $59,000 at the start of 2022 to over $110,000 by August 2023.
• Housing Inventory: Despite the rising prices, the total number of homes available in Knoxville is still around half of pre-pandemic levels, contributing to the increased competition and higher prices.

This information highlights the growing affordability issues in Knoxville, with home prices rising faster than incomes, making it challenging for many residents to purchase homes.

Steps to Raise the Minimum Wage

Step 1: Organize a Petition Drive

• Form a Nonpartisan Group: Create or join a group focused solely on raising the minimum wage, without political affiliations. Use platforms like Zoom for virtual meetings, schedule regular meetings, and use social media and local forums to recruit members.
• Research Requirements: For statewide initiatives, the number of signatures required is typically a percentage of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. Confirm the exact number with the Tennessee Secretary of State's office. For local initiatives in Knoxville, a charter amendment can be proposed if at least one registered voter files the petition with the county election commission for pre-approval (TCA 2-5-151).
  • Tennessee Secretary of State: (615) 741-2819
• Create the Petition: Draft a clear and concise petition for a minimum wage increase. Here is a sample:

Draft Petition:
Petition for Increasing the Minimum Wage in Tennessee
To the Tennessee General Assembly:
We, the undersigned residents of Tennessee, believe that the current minimum wage of $7.25 per hour is insufficient to meet the basic needs of individuals and families in our state. Given the significant rise in living costs and inflation since the last adjustment in 2009, we urgently call for an increase in the state minimum wage to a livable wage of $13.25 per hour. This adjustment will ensure that all working Tennesseans can afford necessities such as housing, food, healthcare, and transportation.
By signing this petition, we express our support for this necessary change and urge the Tennessee General Assembly to take immediate action.
Name Address Signature
Step 2: Collect Signatures

• Host Community Events: Organize events like town hall meetings, local fairs, or farmers' markets to gather signatures.
• Utilize Local Networks: Leverage small-town connections where everyone knows each other to spread the word and gather support.
• Set Up Booths: Place booths in high-traffic areas like grocery stores, libraries, and community centers to collect signatures.
• Door-to-Door Campaigning: Go door-to-door in your neighborhood to ask for signatures.

Step 3: Raise Awareness

• Social Media Campaign: Use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to inform the community and encourage them to sign the petition.
• Local Media: Reach out to local newspapers, radio stations, and TV channels to cover your campaign.
• Flyers and Posters: Distribute flyers and put up posters in local businesses and public spaces.

Step 4: Submit the Petition

• Verify Signatures: Ensure all collected signatures meet the requirements.
• Submit to Authorities: Submit the petition to the appropriate state or local authority for validation.

Deadlines and Requirements

• Submission Deadline: Typically, signatures must be submitted several months before the general election to allow time for verification. For 2024, check with the Tennessee Secretary of State for specific deadlines and the number of required signatures.

How Petitions Work

In general, for a petition to be effective and get an issue on the ballot or to influence local government action, more signatures are usually needed to demonstrate widespread community support. Here’s a brief overview of the process:

• Single Signature Submission: In some cases, a single well-documented request or petition signed by one person can be submitted to local officials to initiate a discussion. However, this method is less likely to compel action without demonstrating broader community support.
• Gathering Multiple Signatures: To increase the chances of the petition being taken seriously, gathering multiple signatures shows that the issue has significant support within the community. This can influence local officials to take action.
• Specific Requirements: The exact number of signatures required can vary based on local laws and regulations. For example, getting an initiative on the ballot often requires a specific percentage of registered voters' signatures.

Example Scenario:

• Submitting a Petition to the City Council: One person can submit a petition to the city council to raise an issue. However, gathering more signatures from residents increases the impact.
• Ballot Initiatives: For ballot initiatives, there are usually legal requirements regarding the number of signatures needed. This varies by jurisdiction.

Strategies to Address Rising Rents

While controlling rent increases directly can be challenging, there are several strategies that can help stabilize the rental market and provide more affordable options:

1. Rent Control and Stabilization:
   • Implement policies that limit how much rents can be increased annually.
2. Increased Tenant Protections:
   • Strengthen tenant rights to provide more security and stability, such as "just cause" eviction protections.
3. Affordable Housing Development:
   • Increase the supply of affordable housing through new developments and mixed-income housing projects.
4. Tax Incentives for Landlords:
   • Offer tax breaks or incentives to landlords who keep rents affordable.
5. Community Land Trusts:
   • Establish community land trusts to manage and develop affordable housing.
6. Rent Subsidy Programs:
   • Expand rent subsidy programs to assist low-income tenants.

Petition Example for Rent Control and Tenant Protections

Petition for Rent Control and Tenant Protections
To the Knoxville City Council:
We, the undersigned, request that the Knoxville City Council take immediate action to address the rising cost of rent and protect tenants by implementing rent control measures and strengthening tenant protections. Specifically, we propose the following initiatives:

1. Rent Control: Implement rent control measures that limit annual rent increases to no more than a set percentage, tied to inflation.
2. Just Cause Eviction Protections: Establish "just cause" eviction protections to prevent arbitrary evictions and provide stability for tenants.
3. Tax Incentives for Affordable Rent: Offer tax breaks or incentives to landlords who commit to keeping rents affordable.
4. Encourage Long-Term Leases: Promote the use of long-term leases with fixed rent increases to provide stability for both tenants and landlords.

By implementing these measures, Knoxville can help ensure that housing remains affordable and accessible for all residents, promoting a stable and thriving community.
By signing this petition, we express our support for these initiatives and urge the Knoxville City Council to take immediate action to protect tenants and address the rising cost of rent.
Signature: _______________
Print Name: _______________
Address: _______________
Email: _______________

Other Strategies to Help Afford Homes

Local Level:

1. Affordable Housing Programs: Support and expand local programs that provide affordable housing options.
2. Down Payment Assistance: Advocate for city or county programs that help with down payments for first-time homebuyers.
3. Community Land Trusts: Promote local models where the community owns the land and leases it to homeowners, reducing the cost of purchasing a home.
4. Zoning Reforms: Push for zoning changes within Knoxville to allow for more diverse and affordable housing developments.
5. Financial Education: Provide resources locally to help individuals better manage their finances and improve their credit scores.
6. Rent-to-Own Programs: Implement or support local programs where tenants can rent properties with the option to buy after a certain period.
7. Increased Housing Supply: Encourage the construction of more housing units in Knoxville to meet demand.
8. Public-Private Partnerships: Foster collaborations between the city and private developers to create affordable housing projects.
9. Inclusionary Zoning: Require a portion of new developments in Knoxville to include affordable housing units.
10. Tax Incentives: Offer local tax credits or abatements to developers who build affordable housing or to homeowners for property improvements.
11. Tiny Homes and ADUs: Promote the development of tiny homes and accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Knoxville as affordable housing options.
12. Housing Cooperatives: Support cooperative housing models locally where residents collectively own and manage their housing.
13. Employer-Assisted Housing: Encourage local employers to provide housing assistance or benefits to their employees.
14. Energy Efficiency Programs: Implement local programs to improve the energy efficiency of homes, reducing utility costs and overall housing expenses.
15. Foreclosure Prevention Programs: Provide local assistance and counseling to homeowners at risk of foreclosure to help them retain their homes.
16. Land Banks: Establish land banks at the city level to acquire, manage, and repurpose vacant and foreclosed properties for affordable housing development.

Steps for Local Action:

• Petition for Ballot Initiatives: Registered voters can start petitions to get these issues on local ballots. This involves gathering a required number of signatures from the community.
• Engage with Local Officials: Attend city council meetings, contact local representatives, and advocate for these programs and reforms.
• Form or Join Advocacy Groups: Collaborate with local organizations focused on housing and community development to amplify your efforts.
• Raise Public Awareness: Use social media, local news, and community events to inform and mobilize residents around these initiatives.
• Vote: Encourage community members to vote for local leaders and initiatives that support affordable housing and related programs.

Example Petitions:

Petition for Comprehensive Affordable Housing Initiatives
To the Knoxville City Council:
We, the undersigned, request that the Knoxville City Council take comprehensive action to promote affordable housing through a combination of tax incentives, public-private partnerships, inclusionary zoning, expanded affordable housing programs, and the establishment of land banks.

1. Tax Incentives: Offer local tax credits or abatements to developers who build affordable housing or to homeowners for property improvements. These incentives will encourage the development and maintenance of affordable housing units, ensuring more options are available for low- and moderate-income families.
2. Public-Private Partnerships: Foster collaborations between the city and private developers to create affordable housing projects. By working together, the public and private sectors can pool resources, expertise, and funding to develop housing that meets the community's needs.
3. Inclusionary Zoning: Require a portion of new developments in Knoxville to include affordable housing units. Inclusionary zoning ensures that affordable housing is integrated into new developments, promoting economic diversity and increasing the availability of affordable homes.
4. Affordable Housing Programs: Support and expand local affordable housing programs to provide quality, affordable housing options for low- and moderate-income residents. Currently, many residents are struggling to find affordable housing, which impacts their quality of life and financial stability. By expanding these programs, we can ensure that more residents have access to safe, decent, and affordable housing.
5. Land Banks: Establish land banks at the city level to acquire, manage, and repurpose vacant and foreclosed properties for affordable housing development. Land banks can transform unused or abandoned properties into valuable assets for the community, providing opportunities for affordable housing development and revitalizing neighborhoods.

By implementing these strategies, Knoxville can create a more inclusive and sustainable housing market that supports the needs of all residents. This comprehensive approach will help address the current housing shortage and ensure long-term affordability in our community.
By signing this petition, we express our support for these initiatives and urge the Knoxville City Council to take immediate action to promote affordable housing through these measures.
Signature: _______________
Print Name: _______________
Address: _______________
Email: _______________
Down Payment Assistance
Petition for Down Payment Assistance Programs
To the Knoxville City Council:
We, the undersigned, urge the Knoxville City Council to advocate for and establish city or county programs that provide down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers. Many residents find it challenging to save enough for a down payment, which is a significant barrier to achieving homeownership. By providing down payment assistance, we can help more residents transition from renting to owning their homes, promoting long-term financial stability and investment in our community.
By signing this petition, we express our support for the creation and implementation of down payment assistance programs to help first-time homebuyers in Knoxville.
Signature: _______________
Print Name: _______________
Address: _______________
Email: _______________

State or Federal Level:

• Subsidized Housing Vouchers: Increase the availability and funding for housing vouchers that subsidize rent for low-income families.
• Mortgage Credit Certificates (MCC): Promote MCC programs that provide tax credits to first-time homebuyers at the state or federal level.

Combining these approaches with efforts to raise wages can create a more comprehensive solution to housing affordability issues.

How New Jersey Did It:

• Legislative Action: Passed in 2019, the law set a schedule for gradual increases to reach $15 by 2024.
• Annual Adjustments: Provisions for annual increases based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
• Broad Support: Significant political backing from the governor and legislature.
• Sector-Specific Plans: Different timelines and rates for small businesses, seasonal workers, and agricultural employees.
• Economic Advocacy: Studies and advocacy highlighted the benefits, helping to build public and political support.

Tennessee's Business Environment and Minimum Wage:

• Business-Friendly State: It's true Tennessee is known for being business-friendly, which can make raising the minimum wage challenging.
• Jobs Over $12/Hour: While many jobs may pay over $12 an hour, not all workers have access to these opportunities, especially those with limited skills or education.

Steps to Take:

• Educate and Advocate: Inform the community about the benefits of a higher minimum wage for both workers and the economy.
• Highlight Success Stories: Share examples from other states like New Jersey that have successfully raised their minimum wages without harming businesses.
• Promote Nonpartisan Support: Work with groups that focus on worker rights without political affiliations to gather broader support.

By focusing on education and nonpartisan advocacy, it's possible to create a more inclusive conversation around raising the minimum wage.

Basically, the title. The job was posted about a month ago, and I applied a month ago. It’s now saying “actively recruiting” on LinkedIn, so I was confused as to whether or not o should reapply or leave it alone.
Thanks for the advice!
Update: I re-applied with a different cover letter plus samples of my work. Wish me luck!

WPA – A Completely Average Roadtrip
Disclaimer: Not canon, and I don’t use patreon so please don’t spoil me. Also, any opinion held by a character is that of the characters and not my own. Enjoy.
Town of Ljosalfington, local time 14:00, week 7
Emma Booker
“Again Illunor, I warned you before that this is a utility vehicle, not a party rated smart-limo. I am already compromising more than I should by allowing you to use the sample cooler as a minifridge, one which I can’t even use!” I said as I loaded the materials I had just purchased into the back of the high-G All terrain fusion-ethanol-electric hybrid 24th-century legacy pickup truck that I had printed out earlier this week, carefully avoiding the heavy ordinance hard point.
“That is hardly an excuse for that abysmally cramped leg space barely fit for cattle, never mind the bare minimum for standard decorum suitable for nobility. If this is what a car is like, then I don’t see why you care for your technology,” complained Illunor, who was sitting around idly with a malformed garish bowl of icecream that he had stashed away from lunch.
“If it bothers you so much, perhaps you could help next time with your ‘bigger-on-the-inside’ magic,” I retorted as I slid the last core sample into the back before covering it up with a tarp and strapping it down.
I had originally planned to visit Ljosalfington by myself to acquire much needed exo-materials to test various mana manipulator configurations as I worked to develop my first wand as not all of the materials I needed were procurable locally from Elaseer. I eventually yielded, much to my regret, to allowing Illunor to come with me as he insisted on wanting to deliver a letter personally in town after Thacea had pointed out the wisdom of not travelling alone.
We continued our back and forth for a bit yet as I finished securing my payload a voice called out to me from the direction of the town.
“Excuse me a moment, I couldn’t help but notice but are you from the academy?”
I turned to see an elf dressed in a plain brown buttoned up tunic matched by a slightly shabby pair of trousers with what appeared to be a lute upon his back and a plain and unenchanted longsword on his belt gesturing at our robes. Mine especially were new and unusual, tailored by the academy to go over my armour and allow access to the anchor points and allow me to exit my armour with minimal hassle. Illunor scoffed at what was evidently a commoner’s arrogance at approaching nobility and turned his head away in disgust. I glanced at Illunor and shook my head before turning to face the new man. I had time to spare, and any opportunity to engage in a hearts-and-minds dialogue with the locals outside the bounds of the managed environment of the academy was more than worth the time to chat. Especially as most of the other locals seemed to be content in ignoring me.
“Yes, we are currently studying at the Transgracian Academy. I am Cadet Emma Booker representing the United Nations of Earth and Luna from Earthream, and my aloof compatriot is Lord Illunor Rularia of the Vunerian courts. We were just about to head back but are in no rush. May I ask your name and what brings you by?” I asked with my hand outstretched in greeting.
“Ah yes, yes. My name is Edhel Redoehdelnif, a wandering bard by trade like my father and his father before him. My apologies, Cadet Emma Booker, I am unfamiliar with Earthrealm,” said Edhel as he grasped my hand with both of his and shook it tepidly yet vigorously. Or rather, tried to, as the motors on my suit resisted his efforts.
“News doesn’t seem to spread all that fast around here, so it makes sense you haven’t heard of us. We’re a new realm, and only just got here. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Edhel Redoehdelnif,” I replied.
“Absolutely fascinating! And a knight no less, or perhaps a squire? I’m sure you have many stories to tell of Earthrealm. Say, by chance are you about to head back to the academy? I have business in Elaseer and the usual coach has been absent as of late so I would rather not go it alone,” said Edhel.
I was hesitant to bring a stranger back in the car with me, even if Illunor was present. However, the opportunity that meeting a bard presented was too good to pass up from an intel perspective and to win the favour of the populace at large.
“That is a great idea. I think I have room for one more…” I paused before gesturing towards Illunor, “provided everyone is ok with it that is.”
Illunor gave a huff and turned his head away in silence.
“Very well, I will allow this. But he will not be joining me in your sorry excuse for a coach,” said Illunor dismissively.
Illunor approached the backseat expectantly and the door opened for him automatically, allowing the dlc kobold to gracefully enter and lounge across the length of the seats, once again ignoring the seatbelts. I sighed as I made my way to the driver’s seat, and Edhel entered from the passenger side as he marveled at the automatic doors and the interior.
“What a strange carriage this is! Although I must say, shouldn’t you be retrieving your horses? I didn’t see any harnesses or sense any artifices,” inquired Edhel as he attempted to make himself comfortable on the car seat, lute in front of him.
“Oh no, this thing doesn’t need horses or magic,” I said with a chuckle as EVI started the car. The elf raised his eyebrows at the sudden hum of the engine and made an expression of alarm when the car started driving itself without my input. “See, purrs like a kitten.”
“Earthrealm must have some large kittens if they purr like that,” noted Edhel, “but you must be concealing the enchantments somewhere. Such a thing as this with such strange yet precise craftsmanship is only possible in the crownlands.”
“Nope, no magic,” I said cheerfully.
“Then how?” Asked Edhel.
“It’s rather simple really. Are you familiar with the workings of a mill?” I asked, deciding to keep things surface level and elementary to avoid provoking the IDOV threshold.
“Somewhat, though I confess to not being familiar with their workings. Are you suggesting this is akin to a mill?” Asked Edhel perplexed.
“It’s the same principal. A mill works by taking a source of rotation such as a waterwheel or windmill, transferring that rotation along a series of rotating shafts and interlocking gears, and finally putting that energy to work by rotating a millstone,” I began as the car pulled out onto the smooth cobbled road in the direction of Elaseer. A notification popped up in the corner of my vision indicating my recon drone swarm had shifted from a holding formation to a convoy screening formation, and while the roads were clear I kept the speed at 60km/h to account for my passenger’s apparent distaste for seatbelts.
“Rotation…” muttered Edhel. He turned to face one of the wheels and EVI pinged an alert for a probable match for a detection spell, “fascinating.”
“Edhel, what are you doing?” I asked.
“Oh, yes, perhaps I should have asked first. Yes, I can see how it all fits together. But the source of this rotation? I see no mighty river or great wind to power this, so where does it come from?” Asked Edhel, not really apologizing. Elven arrogance, it seemed, was not limited by class.
The act reminded me of Sorecar when he inspected my gun, but where the armourer had been respectful with it, Edhel was more flippant. I considered the possibility that he was a spy sent by one of her peers or the crownlands, though this did not mesh with the methods I had seen so far. Edhel may have been just overly enthusiastic. In either case, I quickly decided to only reveal the antique design for the ethanol engine, and not that of the batteries or the emergency coupler to my suit’s fusion reactor.
“Right, well please ask first next time. As to your question, I won’t bore you with the details, but the rotation is generated by creating a periodic sequence of explosions inside of a machine – a manaless artifice – called a combustion engine, said Emma.
“So that’s what that sound is…” pondered Edhel, “are these artifices typical in Earthream?”
“You are awfully inquisitive for a commoner,” noted Illunor as he inspected his nails for dirt, “and rather accepting of something which should be impossible.”
“I wouldn’t be much of a bard if I wasn’t, my lord,” said Edhel shifting uncomfortably in his seat, “perhaps some music might set the mood better?”
“That would be preferable, bard. I have heard enough of the Earthrealmer’s Road Trip Playlist and would like to listen to some music of real culture,” said Illunor.
The bard agreed and proceeded to awkwardly play a ballad about an adventurer who slew a hydra in some frozen wasteland. Partway through, I politely interrupted the Edhel to point out the seat controls much to his fascination and Illunor’s grumbling at their common nature, and after some adjustment the bard went on playing and I half-heartedly listened while I paid attention to the road and my drone feed.
Particularly after EVI detected something unusual and alerted me to its presence.
”Attention Caded Booker. There is a disabled vehicle blocking the primary route to destination. Heat signatures in the woods are consistent with that of an ambush.”
“Damn it,” I muttered.
I glanced at the drone feed to see a broken cart strewn horizontally across a wooden bridge over a brook. On the surface it looked like a pair of civilians who required aid and assistance, but off in the woods were several heat signatures, several of which held weapons of varying levels of enchantments. Occasionally one of the pair on the bridge would talk with them, suggesting they were in cahoots rather than hostages. I recalled crossing that very bridge not a few hours earlier, so the blockade was very recent.
“EVI, did we pass that cart on the way here?” I asked.
”Negative,” replied EVI.
I grimaced. I had been trained to handle road-side ambushes, but it was only something that was a theoretical possibility. Something that should only occur in a warzone or a corrupt and unstable polity. I knew I had the capacity to handle such an encounter, even non-lethally, but that didn’t change the fact that these were civilians and as such were the responsibility of local law enforcement. Combined with the fact that I had passengers I was responsible for and engaging the ambush was a risky option.
“EVI, give me a list of alternative routes,” I commanded.
”Affirmative. Here is a list of routes in order of recommendation,” replied EVI.
I looked over the routes superimposed on a map of the region and quickly dismissed taking a shortcut through the forest and cutting through farmland. A detour caught my eye that extended the journey by roughly ten kilometers and I immediately sent a pair of drones to scout it out before committing to the detour.
“Are you alright, Cadet Emma Booker? You seem distracted,” asked Edhel, snapping me back to reality.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just focused on driving,” replied Emma.
“I suppose it must be quite taxing to command an artificed carriage of this complexity. Perhaps it might ease your mind if you were to regale me a tale of a hero of your realm?” Said Edhel, strumming a complex tune from his lute as he spoke as each and every pluck triggered a low-level spell.
“Well, that may be a problem. We don’t have any monsters to fight, and wars are a thing of the past,” I said while desperately tip-toeing the subject of aunt Ran, the subject of war, and our voyages through the cosmos, “though we are not without the adventurous spirit. We certainly have many stories of grand voyages. Some mythical and fictional such as The Odyssey as told by the Greek poet Homer and some historical such as the race to the south pole.”
“The south pole,” muttered the bard, “so you have explored all of Earthrealm then? I suppose that makes some sense, if you have artifices such as this then traversal of a globe would be quite manageable.”
“You are quite perceptive,” I said, not wishing to elaborate.
“A great performer knows his audience,” said Edhel with a charming, honest, almost human smile.
I felt a pang of homesickness as an intrusive thought reminded me that I could have gone to a real college surrounded by friendly faces my age, engaging in nightly holostreams and dreaming of adventures in the stars from the safety of a college dorm room. The sight of Illunor in the rear camera was the only thing that kept me grounded, as I almost felt like I was back at home on a road trip rather than returning to a fantasy feudal court, constantly evading death at every turn with the fate of humanity on the line. As such, and prompted by EVI, I barely had the wherewithal to take the planned detour.
A fact which did not pass by Edhel.
“I believe you may have taken a wrong turn, Emma,” he commented.
“Nah, I’m just taking the scenic route. I came from that direction on the way here, and you have inspired me to see the other road and I figure it should only add a few extra minutes to our travel time,” I said, gesturing at a paper map which I had referenced exactly once, “though on that subject, you seem to know these lands quite well. Do you have any recommendations on places to visit in the Nexus to scratch that itch?”
Illunor raised his eyebrow at the detour excuse, knowing full well this was not part of the plan. I worried that he might complain about the issue and but thankfully remained silent as he snacked on the contents of the misused sample storage unit. Edhel himself took on a more pensive posture.
“I’m happy to have been such an inspiration, Emma, though I am sure an explorer such as yourself has little need of such. I would normally suggest the skyward fountains of Verdellan or the cloud tides of Asturia, but that may be too casual for someone of your calibre. Perhaps the severed chasm or the fire marsh of Bhandahova may be more to your liking. Or perhaps…” Edhel leaned in, “I have heard rumours of a dragon in the glassy obsidian wastes of Vurcanar.”
I chuckled at that, knowing how I was fortunate enough to fish a dragon scale out of the nearby lake for the ECS. “The thought of going dragon hunting had certainly crossed my mind…” I mused aloud.
“Yet you sound hesitant. Perhaps it is too much for a newrealmer. Perhaps a slime or a dire rat might be more appropriate,” he said with a tease.
“No, it’s not like that! It’s” I stammered, before attempting to change course after realizing I had been goaded, “what I mean is, I was under the impression that dragons were an endangered species. Where I come from, hunting endangered animals is usually illegal, and big game hunting in general is frowned upon. We do make exceptions in the case of problem animals such as if a large predator starts hunting humans, but as a rule we prefer conservation and try to find ways of coexisting with wildlife such as the use of barrier fences and scaring away dangerous animals rather than being forced to cull their numbers. Having a species go extinct would prevent future generations from appreciating them and risks destabilizing the ecosystem they are a part of. Now if this dragon was actively razing villages and eating civilians and livestock, that would be one thing, but this does not look to be the case. I don’t imagine the Nexus has any settlements in this wasteland, and the dragon clearly wants to be left alone. Killing an innocent dragon would be murder.”
I grinned to myself after delivering a diatribe that would have made my tenth grade social and environmental studies teacher beam with pride, though by the expressions of my passengers my view did not appear to be shared. Edhel’s mouth was agape in shock and fascination, while the Venurian in the back seat merely huffed in disapproval.
“I assure you Newrealmer, there are no innocent dragons,” stated Illunor with a hint of terseness breaking through his otherwise regal demeanor.
“Illunor, I understand that Venurians have personal reasons for not liking dragons, but you can’t just extend that disdain to their descendants or those uninvolved just because they are the same species,” I said.
“If I may interject on your behalf, my lord, I believe I can address Cadet Emma Booker’s concerns,” said Edhel with a bow. Illunor nodded in approval.
“Very well, you may proceed,” he said.
“Thank you, my lord. My dear Emma, you must understand that dragons are not simple animals driven entirely off of instinct as it appears to be the case in Earthrealm. They are monsters. Intelligent, long-lived, violent, greedy, cruel, territorial, selfish flesh-eating monsters. They are evil by the very nature of their being, unable to change by their own accord, and unwilling to change when His Eternal Majesty offered them freedom from their nature. It isn’t that they want to be evil. As intelligent animals – intelligent monsters – dragons are capable of understanding morality, and many have tried to overcome their evil nature at great expense to themselves. A well intended and noble sentiment, yet a doomed one as like all animals, they all succumb to their nature in the end. Overcoming one’s nature is impossible,” said Edhel. His eyes took on a stoic, almost remorseful gaze as he spoke, and Illunor nodded with approval.
I was appalled by this claim, not by the contents so much as how blatantly false it was. As a representative of the human race, I was a living counterexample to his whole argument. We had remained physiologically unchanged as a species since the last Ice Age, and yet in spite of that, in spite of our many flaws, we had found peace and balance. If we could do it, anyone could do it.
“Will all due respect Edhel, that is nonsense. Monsters aren’t born, they are made. It is the mark of any intelligent species can adapt their behaviour to their environment for better or worse, and under the right care any so-called monster can grow to be a force for good,” I began, but while I searched for the right words Edhel shook his head.
“I appreciate your race is an empathetic one, Emma, your idealism is unfounded. As flesh eaters, a dragon must take the life of another animal or person to survive, or they will perish. As such, every dragon has taken a life. As long-lived creatures, they will have amassed a significant number of kills. As the land can only support so much animals, a dragon must be fiercely territorial and aggressive to remove competition, lest they starve. As such, even the most kind-hearted dragon alive must be violent and greedy, and their intelligence fuels this even more so if they know a bountiful land of morsels exists just outside their range.
Now perhaps a multitude of dragons may find a way to co-exist together in some settlement, but to support such a venture would require a large territory of prey, or a livestock animal. Perhaps they could support a large colony by farming grain for their livestock, but that would require effort on their behalf. As large animals, such efforts require a great deal of energy. Yet that size makes it easy for them to intimidate smaller races to do their labour for them, and to keep their client race in line dragons must be cruel. And even so, as their numbers grow so do their needs. As such, they must expand into the lands of their neighbours to survive until there is nothing left to devour, at which point they must turn against their own lest they starve. As such, it is the nature of dragons to conquer and devour. That is why there is no such thing as an innocent dragon,” finished Edhel.
I was speechless, not because I believed Edhel had a point, but because I was horrified at how easy he found it to rationalize the extermination of an entire sapient species. If this was how the elves thought, then it wasn’t the dragons who were the monsters. I suppressed that dark thought. Edhel’s thought process was a product of his culture, not a feature of his elven heritage. If there was any hope of peace between our people, I needed to show him there was another way of being. I needed to prove that co-existence was possible, no matter one’s nature.
I took a deep breath to steady myself before replying.
“That- that is a callous way of seeing things,” I began, though the shock was still there in my voice, “you speak as though there is no natural equilibrium with a dragon, that their only state of being must be to be cruel, to devour, to conquer. But I see things differently. In fact, I might wonder if a fledgling civilization might see the presence of a dragon as a boon rather than a curse. Being intelligent, the locals may be able to come to some agreement with the dragon. Perhaps they might leave some land as a hunting ground or offer up a share of their cattle or guard the dragon as it sleeps. In exchange, the dragon might allow them to build a town outside its mountain and protect them in times of danger. An equitable exchange. A civilization might even create artificial lairs to attract dragons for this very reason. True, some dragons may behave tyrannical towards their town, but a well armed populace of a large city would be more than capable of fighting such a threat, and a rational dragon might reason that threatening their own populace would put their reliable source of food and shelter at risk. You see, it’s all a matter of perspective.”
“You certainly are an imaginative one, Emma, to wonder up a quixotic world where the hare and the fox live together in harmony as equals. Even so, you seem to have ignored one key detail to such a society. What would happen should the dragon not be fed for months on end?” Asked Edhel with his eyebrow raised.
“The same thing as stranded a dozen starving, stranded Elves!” I spat back.
[Alert: Vehicle speed above recommended limit for conditions. Recommendation: slow down. ]
“I am driving slow!” I seethed, not realizing I had sped up with manual control enabled.
“I grow tired of this common prattle,” interjected Illunor just in time to prevent an awkward silence, “bard, play us another song.” “As my lord wishes,” said Edhel with a bow before turning to me with another smile, “perhaps a more soothing melody would be in order? A love song perhaps, to honour Cadet Booker’s compassionate nature?”
I said nothing as Edhel began to strum his lute again to the tune of a love story of a pair of doomed lovers named Ramian and Junette, hating his cheeky knowing grin that only served to get under my skin further as I focused on calming down and slowing the car back to a more reasonable pace before investigating a priority alert which I had been blinded to moments prior.
[Alert: hostile roadblock is absent, location unknown.]
Shit.
“Illunor, we may have a problem,” I said.
“Shush, Newrealmer, have you no class? We are almost at the best part! I’m sure it can wait,” replied the contextually clueless lizard.
I had never wanted to throttle Illunor as much as I did now.
“Illunor, shield, now,” I said with a raised voice.
“I don’t see-“ he started, pausing mid-sentence as his ears perked up.
[Alert: Multiple manafield and spell signatures detected!]
I took evasive maneuvers as Illunor tried to piece together a shield spell, fumbling it twice as panic appeared to set in and providing me with a reminder that Illunor was a civilian, not a soldier. A hail of arrows pelted the exterior of the truck, piercing but not penetrating the composite armour. I was tempted to do nothing but just drive away from the arrow fire, but a foreboding premonition of danger filled me as I recalled Sorecar’s hunter-seeker arrows.
Seeking to avoid that fate, I triggered the active defenses.
The smoke screens deployed around the vehicle, obscuring the sight of any who depended on visible light to see me. A barrage of decoy flares equipped with wooden cores shot upward at angles and diffusing to the side like a pair of giant wings which when combined with the MFD, short for mana-field dampener, inside the vehicle meant that the pelting hail of arrowfire softened to a whirr as the arrows whiffed over the top of the truck, retargeted away from the soft flesh of my passengers and even invoking friendly fire amongst the ambushers.
In the chaos, EVI and my drone swarm fed me complete tactical information on the ambush. Of the 26 individuals at the first blockade, 20 were accounted for, and 3 had died from friendly fire. Ahead at the bridge, 5 more of them were at the bridge where a barrier had been hastily erected to cage me in as the river valley was too deep to cross.
“Illunor, we need a bridge,” I said, taking stock of the wellbeing of my passengers.
The bard was huddled down low and suppressing his manafield, but otherwise rather composed. Illunor, on the other hand, was cowering in the gap between the seats with his hands covering his eyes and his tail tucked in.
“A bridge is no small request, Ne- Cadet Emma Booker,” replied Illunor, “and your ‘Emeffdee’ has blinded me to the outside of this moving death trap.”
“If I drop it, can you at least make a ramp?” I asked as I circled the battlefield. Or tried to, at least, as earthen ramparts emerged from the ground from a yet unseen source to cut off other avenues of escape.
“A ramp? Surely you don’t mean-“ he stammered.
“Yes or no,” I said.
Illunor paused, before taking an unsteady breath.
“Yes. But not with that Emeffdee,” he replied.
“Good. Steady your nerves and prepare to make a ramp ahead of us on my signal,” I said, “in the meantime, get your seatbelt on. This is going to be hairy.”
As I circled around to make my approach on the bridge, the final combatant made his appearance on a nearby tree, revealing himself as an elven mage. An alert focused on the air around him indicating he was preparing an unknown high-tier spell, and I locked the predator drone on him indicating the elf as a high-priority target if our escape plan failed, and I was forced to use lethal force.
If I was forced to kill.
It was one thing to know you may have to kill in the line of duty, but it was much harder to reconcile that with reality. No number of simulations could match the real thing, and a part of me wanted to simply offload the responsibility to EVI to keep my hands clean, but to do that would be betraying my duty as a human being. I breathed in deep and tried not to think about it, instead hoping to rely on the ace I held in my sleeve instead.
“EVI, ready the spell jammer,” I said unevenly.
“Acknowledged, the prototype Exo-Radiation Wave-Field Distruptor is primed. High risk target identified and locked, permission to engage?” EVI asked, forcing me to address the dreaded question.
“Negative,” I replied, “hold your fire. If the ramp fails, then you have permission to engage,” I said.
“Affirmative, on your mark,” replied EVI.
I lined up the truck with the bridge and bolted through the smoke, keeping a careful eye on the mage as I went. His spellform took on a more concerning shape as I accelerated, and I realized I could not afford to let him finish his spell. I triggered the spelljammer.
A terrible roar erupted from an array of speakers printed from mana-resistant materials that would have made Godzilla herself beam with pride. The sound was decidedly unnatural, gnarly, dubstep drop composed of an electric eel, a whale, a mountain lion, and a tyrannosaurus rex all being simultaneously assaulted by a swarm of angry cybernetic murder hornets as an equally chaotic wave of mana blasted outwards from the exterior of the truck, with the interior thankfully sheltered by audio and mana dampening.
The ambushing assailants cowered and panicked, and it was enough to cause the Elven mage’s spell to backfire in his face as his form exploded into ashes, meeting a horrific fate which I had tried so desperately to help him avoid. With all the combatants momentarily incapacitated or dead, I lowered the dampener and turned off the smoke.
“Ramp!” I shouted, snapping the lizard back to reality.
The Venerian nodded and hastily formed an earthwork ahead of us right before the blockade, and the truck leapt off the ramp with a not insignificant amount of air beneath our wheels. I braced for impact, regretting skimping on the shocks in the name of preserving materials, but the impact never came.
[Alert: Friendly spell designated ‘Feather Fall’]
Illunor thankfully had enough wherewithal to gently land the steel brick, and I sped off into the distance away from the trap that had unfolded behind us, leaving the interior of the truck in an awkward silence as we each processed our brush with death in our own way. “How many are dead?” I asked EVI.
“6 hostiles confirmed dead,” replied EVI.
I drove on in silence. Those were six deaths I had tried to avoid, and I became lost in thought as I wondered what I should have done differently to avoid the confrontation entirely.
Edhel broke the silence with a bout of laughter.
“Terrific! Absolutely terrific! Why, I can conjure up many a tale from this encounter alone! I live for this kind of inspiration!” Exclaimed Edhel a little too chipperly considering the circumstance.
“I would rather not hear stories about how I bravely ran away,” I moaned in deadpan sarcasm.
“You think too little of yourself, Cadet Emma Booker. It is plain to me that you are no ordinary rabbit. Make no mistake, I see it as a privilege to bear witness to the roar of a vorpal hare!” Said Edhel as he supressed his laughter, “though I am afraid with all the excitement that I must finish my song some other time.”
“How about I play some of our music?” I offered after the elf revealed his thrill-seeking side.
“Splendid, I would like that. Perhaps something of your ‘Roadtrip playlist’ you speak of? It sounds like a collection of your voyages,” said Edhel.
“That would be an improvement on the truth,” said Illunor dismissively as he eased from his state of shock, “it is little more than noise under the pretense of music.”
“Illunor…” I muttered to myself before turning the mic on, “no, no it’s not like that. I have terabytes of pre-recorded songs from various artists back home which can be played by… an artifice called a speaker. A playlist is a set of songs which are grouped together, usually to listen to in specific situations such as studying, partying, or travelling. The latter collection is what Illunor is referring to.”
I very deliberately chose not to reveal my ‘Unfortunate Daughters’ playlist.
“An artifice which plays music, and a magicless one at that. I must say, Emma, I fear for the bards in your realm,” said Edhel with a laugh.
“Your fear is misplaced, Edhel. Entertainers live like kings where I come from,” I retorted with a smirk of my own, “well, the ones with talent at least.”
“Well, well, I suppose I have to hear my competition!” Said Edhel with a laugh.
“Do as you must, though let it be known that I warned you,” said Illunor as he watched a play on his sightseer.
I had EVI compile a list of songs that left out content offensive to Nexian sensibilities or violating OpSec and as it compiled I mused over what type of sample spread I wanted to show off. Then it struck me. What better way to show off our culture than with some good old blue jumpers and nova rock! Sadly, jumpers were unavailable to show but I still had a whole list of modern artists to choose from.
Moments later, the car speakers sprung to life to the tune of ‘Innocent Youth of Mine. Edhel’s eyes lit up like a child visiting a zero-g gravity park for the first time, seemingly star-struck by the antique electric guitar and the synthesizer-drums in particular.
“What… what is this? I have never heard anything like this!” Proclaimed Edhel.
“Dreadful, isn’t it?” said Illunor, doing what he did best and pretending to hate it.
“Oh there is a lot more where that came from,” I said with a cheeky grin of my own, “this one is called ‘Innocent Youth of Mine’ by ‘Cannons and Poppies’. It’s part of the Nova Rock genre.
“And those strange instruments?” Asked Edhel.
“Oh, you mean the electric guitar and the synthesizer. They are electronic instruments, taking advantage of channeled and modulated electricity to create near any sound we can imagine,” I replied.
“Channeled electricity… are you suggesting these sounds were made by some form of lightning?” Asked Edhel.
[Suggestion: Avoid topic of electricity due to OpSec risk]
I nodded at EVI’s warning, thankful that it caught me before I discussed the very thing that all of my equipment ran on.
“It’s not exactly lightning, but close enough,” I said.
“If I had not witnessed to your display of power earlier, I might have perhaps been more skeptical of such a claim, but I suppose a lady must keep her secrets.” said Edhel with a raised eyebrow and chuckle, “but I digress, this music is most interesting.”
“There is a lot more where that came from,” I said with a cheeky grin of my own.
“If I ever have a prisoner in need of torture, I will turn to you first,” replied Illunor, “if you are willing to subject your peers to this madness then I cannot imagine what you would force upon your enemies before dunking them in ice.”
“In your dreams,” I retorted.
I played a few other songs including Astrodesee’s ‘Meteor Struck’, the Martian classic ‘Hotel Cydonia’ and even ‘Switching to Warp’ before Elaseer emerged from the distance, and I pulled up outside the gate to drop Edhel off.
“Here already?” Asked Edhel.
“Well, yeah. I was just running a quick errand, I didn’t want to go too far,” I replied casually.
“That was a distance worth at least five days of walking by foot, and you call that a ‘quick errand’?” Asked Edhel. I shrugged, and he laughed.
“Well in any case, thank you for allowing me passage in your car. I must apologize for my lack of gift or payment…” said Edhel. “Don’t worry about it, it was on the way,” I replied.
“I see, how generous. Perhaps we might one day meet again?” Asked Edhel.
“Maybe, but I’m not sure how likely that is. The academy takes up most of my time,” I replied, “though you never know. I still have a lot of quest hours to complete.”
“Is that so? In that case, I hope we meet again! Goodbye Cadet Emma Booker and farewell Lord Illunor Rularia,” he said. “And good travels to you, bard,” said Illunor.
I waved off Edhel and drove back to the academy, Illunor still sulking in the back seat.
“Perhaps next time, you should steer us away from danger?” Suggested Illunor.
“I tried, but we were tracked,” I replied.
I groaned inwardly at the additional work needed to fix the truck. EVI compiled a list of upgrades for future engagements, batting away my idea for a ‘turbo mode’ and a ‘jump boost’. Though at the end of the day, meeting the bard wasn’t a complete loss. It felt good to talk to someone almost normal for once, and I hoped I met him again.
Edhel Redoehdelnif
I watched as Cadet Emma Booker’s vehicle went off into the distance, getting one last look at the Earthrealmer’s strange artifice before turning towards the gate. The voyage was an exotic experience, not unlike that of a fever dream or a peak into a world completely alien to my own. Indeed, it was a struggle to contain my excitement and enthusiasm and process the experience rationally as I made my way through the southern gates of Elaseer and turned the corner of an alley before entering an impossible structure that did not exist.
“You are earlier than expected,” said the shadowy figure of my handler as I made my way to the meeting hall.
“The Earthrealmer’s means of transportation proved far more expedient than anticipated, my lord” I spoke as I knelt before him, “even with her unexpected departure from the anticipated road and the ambush we traveled for scantly more than an hour.”
“Yes, I will require a full report from you. Perhaps you can shed some light on the ‘smoke dragon’ my men claim intervened on the Earthrealmer’s behalf,” said my handler.
“Smoke Dragon, my lord?” I asked.
My handler responded by activating his sight-seer, revealing how the ambush had appeared from the outside. The Earthrealmer’s uncanny artifice traversed down the road, a pair of manafields displaying proudly from within until the archers began their assault. The artifice then transformed as smoke billowed out from its pores and wings sprung forth above until it was the form of a mighty wrym with a pair of glowing eyes springing forth from its ever extending head where it then gave forth a terrible unholy roar which sent waves of mana outward. The mage working to seal the area and trap their mark vapourized in an instant as his spell backfired. It was apparent to Edhel that his exceptional experience in the carriage was merely a muted rendition of the events unfolding around them.
It would seem the hare had the shadow of a dragon.
“I do have some insight, though I must confess the Earthrealmer did very little in the way of direct action. I suspect she has some unseen means of commanding and scrying through her artifices,” I said, “one which does not utilize magic as we know it.”
“Such a statement is heresy,” said my handler, “but such special circumstances are your reason for being. I will require you submit your memories for verification. What is your appraisal of the new realmer?”
“The girl is far more dangerous than a surface appraisal would suggest, though she prefers to conceal that power rather than utilize it out of a misplaced sense of compassion. Her people appear to have a boundless creative drive through which such artifices are birthed, though again it is misdirected towards more common applications. I believe that if properly tamed, this human animal may provide us with great works of art,” I said with a bow.
“I see. Does the girl know you work for us?” Asked my handler.
“She may harbour some suspicions, though did not voice them outright beyond concealing her knowledge,” I said, “though nothing significant. Provided our next meet is under believable circumstances such as a festival she should view me as cordial.”
“She has indeed proven clever,” conceded my handler, “very well, I will make arrangements for your paths to cross again. Perhaps I will arrange for her to be a contestant at the next inter-academy tournament. In the mean time, prepare your report and don’t wander far. This is a priority assignment.”
“As you wish, my lord,” I said with a bow and a smile.
Emma Booker had proved to be an interesting animal indeed, and I hoped our paths crossed again.

STARTER (anything here can be tweaked to suit your character!)
In the sanctuary of your office, bathed in the soft glow of morning light, a mound of correspondence patiently awaits your perusal. The sea of mundane white envelopes is nothing out of the ordinary, but an emerald letter in golden script somewhere in there catches your eye. The return address bears the seal of the Royal Apothecary, an institution unknown to you, situated in the remote town of Jabuticaba—a name you have only ever encountered on maps, and it is addressed to you directly, a professor and researcher who has been working at the University of Mykon for over twenty years. With a measured hand, you unfurl the envelope.
Sir—
I write to convey a matter of grave concern, one that has regrettably eluded your attention since the publication of your dissertation entitled “the potential of elemental alchemy in mineral extraction” back in January. I am sincerely outstanded that a shadow hasn’t been cast upon your career and standing. I am therefore led to believe the academic standards of University of Mykon have gone down in the past thirty years since I last was an overseas student. In an ideal world, I would trust that, following your resignation, the vacant post would swiftly be filled by a learned and forward-thinking scholar, one who actually champions the cause of progressive sciences, thus illuminating the path for the minds of tomorrow. Yet, I am all too aware of the political machinations that often dictate the course of academia, where adherence to antiquated principles of elemental alchemy prevails within the hallowed halls of your establishment.
The oversight in question is no trifling matter. In your report, you assert that our continent lacks the requisite climatic and soil conditions for the growth of hyperaccumulative plants such as mimilus pangiens and mormine baratensis, therefore making it impossible to perform phytomining to extract metals from the soil. You advocate instead for the practice of elemental alchemy to obtain these vital compounds, a notion that I find preposterous. I write to you now surrounded by these very plants you claim are impossible to grow without the rarest of conditions, flourishing in abundance no more than 300 leagues from where you teach. The former blooms resplendent with its crimson tears and cadmium skirt, while the latter, though in nascent stages, has expanded its network of roots significantly. You may wonder at my methods, but I assure you, the truth lies within the realm of possibility.
That during your entire research process you ended up overlooking the vast network of exceptional herbalists active and thriving in all corners of our rich civilization is tragedy. That this omission also went unnoticed amidst the rigors of peer review is comedy.
I assure you, under different circumstances, I would not concern myself with the written ramblings of amateurs, fictionists, or charlatans who roam the corridors of your institution. It is not my duty to lead the willful pighead towards enlightenment, nor do I relish the prospect of engaging in fruitless endeavors. However, fate has intervened in the form of a promising protegee of mine, who, through diligent scholarship, earned a prestigious placement at your university. Imagine my astonishment upon her return, then, bearing your treatise, which to my dismay is now part of the national syllabus.
It is not with much of a heavy heart that I contemplate the necessity of addressing the errors that have crept into your research on phytomining. Were it not for the endearing praise and admiration bestowed upon you by my impressionable yet brilliant protegee, whose judgment I trust despite the fable quality of the tales she shares of your teachings, I would be compelled to raise my quill in defiance and expose these discrepancies to the discerning eyes of the intellectual community. Let this instead be a fair warning to do your due diligence and rectify the shortcomings of your life’s works.
With concern and scruple,
N.H. Al-Tamimi
RULES
* Be +21
* Discord
* Send a sample
* Third or first person, past or present tense
If you wish, instead of an alchemist, your character can be a demonologist, an exorcist, a mage, a witch... And his field of research can be anything else you would prefer, as long as it's in the realm of fantasy and/or science fiction!
This story starts off as an exchange of letters. Other than the occasional anatomical etching, botanical watercolor or daguerreotype (not of each other, of course! That would be frivolous. Unless…), there will be no actions, no dialogue, no inner monologue, only what our characters are willing to write on the pages of their letters to each other.
But who knows! They might eventually muster the courage find a reasonable justification related to timeliness and confidentiality for talking on the phone, and eventually, finally, one just might go looking for the other in person.

STARTER (anything here can be tweaked to suit your character!)
In the sanctuary of your office, bathed in the soft glow of morning light, a mound of correspondence patiently awaits your perusal. The sea of mundane white envelopes is nothing out of the ordinary, but an emerald letter in golden script somewhere in there catches your eye. The return address bears the seal of the Royal Apothecary, an institution unknown to you, situated in the remote town of Jabuticaba—a name you have only ever encountered on maps, and it is addressed to you directly, a professor and researcher who has been working at the University of Mykon for over twenty years. With a measured hand, you unfurl the envelope.
Sir—
I write to convey a matter of grave concern, one that has regrettably eluded your attention since the publication of your dissertation entitled “the potential of elemental alchemy in mineral extraction” back in January. I am sincerely outstanded that a shadow hasn’t been cast upon your career and standing. I am therefore led to believe the academic standards of University of Mykon have gone down in the past thirty years since I last was an overseas student. In an ideal world, I would trust that, following your resignation, the vacant post would swiftly be filled by a learned and forward-thinking scholar, one who actually champions the cause of progressive sciences, thus illuminating the path for the minds of tomorrow. Yet, I am all too aware of the political machinations that often dictate the course of academia, where adherence to antiquated principles of elemental alchemy prevails within the hallowed halls of your establishment.
The oversight in question is no trifling matter. In your report, you assert that our continent lacks the requisite climatic and soil conditions for the growth of hyperaccumulative plants such as mimilus pangiens and mormine baratensis, therefore making it impossible to perform phytomining to extract metals from the soil. You advocate instead for the practice of elemental alchemy to obtain these vital compounds, a notion that I find preposterous. I write to you now surrounded by these very plants you claim are impossible to grow without the rarest of conditions, flourishing in abundance no more than 300 leagues from where you teach. The former blooms resplendent with its crimson tears and cadmium skirt, while the latter, though in nascent stages, has expanded its network of roots significantly. You may wonder at my methods, but I assure you, the truth lies within the realm of possibility.
That during your entire research process you ended up overlooking the vast network of exceptional herbalists active and thriving in all corners of our rich civilization is tragedy. That this omission also went unnoticed amidst the rigors of peer review is comedy.
I assure you, under different circumstances, I would not concern myself with the written ramblings of amateurs, fictionists, or charlatans who roam the corridors of your institution. It is not my duty to lead the willful pighead towards enlightenment, nor do I relish the prospect of engaging in fruitless endeavors. However, fate has intervened in the form of a promising protegee of mine, who, through diligent scholarship, earned a prestigious placement at your university. Imagine my astonishment upon her return, then, bearing your treatise, which to my dismay is now part of the national syllabus.
It is not with much of a heavy heart that I contemplate the necessity of addressing the errors that have crept into your research on phytomining. Were it not for the endearing praise and admiration bestowed upon you by my impressionable yet brilliant protegee, whose judgment I trust despite the fable quality of the tales she shares of your teachings, I would be compelled to raise my quill in defiance and expose these discrepancies to the discerning eyes of the intellectual community. Let this instead be a fair warning to do your due diligence and rectify the shortcomings of your life’s works.
With concern and scruple,
N.H. Al-Tamimi
RULES
* Be +21
* Discord
* Send a sample
* Third or first person, past or present tense
If you wish, instead of an alchemist, your character can be a demonologist, an exorcist, a mage, a witch... And his field of research can be anything else you would prefer, as long as it's in the realm of fantasy and/or science fiction!
This story starts off as an exchange of letters. Other than the occasional anatomical etching, botanical watercolor or daguerreotype (not of each other, of course! That would be frivolous. Unless…), there will be no actions, no dialogue, no inner monologue, only what our characters are willing to write on the pages of their letters to each other.
But who knows! They might eventually muster the courage find a reasonable justification related to timeliness and confidentiality for talking on the phone, and eventually, finally, one just might go looking for the other in person.

I have my OET examination in 10 days. I am a native English speaker however I studied medicine in a different language and have been working for the last 10 plus years in my second language. I have never worked in a hospital environment in English. I am particularly worried about the English writing part of the OET. Is there a reputable service where I can send a sample of a referral letter to be honestly graded to see if I am ready for the OET test? I did the OET Pulse test and I passed easily however I felt like its format doesn't evaluate writing in a way that is similar to the real OET test. Any suggestion would be helpful. Thanks.

“Readings show that the facility is still operational. That should not be possible.” The robotic voice of Z-8 reading the analysis out to the crew of The Scav. Their multiple mechanical arms operated three different devices, multitasking with immaculate precision.
“Noted Zate, are there any lifeforms detected?” Asked Lizra, the Elyrian Captain of the vessel. She stood in the center of the room on a small pedestal that made her tall enough to see out the window, striped white and red tail swaying in thought. Outside the window was a frozen moon that housed the remnants of a crumbling pre-migration military base.
“None that appear on the scanner Captain Lizra. We hope we did not come all this way just for our mission to be futile.”
“Even if it is not here, perhaps there will be something left behind in the facility's computer systems, these pre-migration bases are always incredible to explore.”
“If there ain't nothing here, I’m gonna send a strongly worded letter to Ensign Marketh. And by strongly worded letter, I mean my fist through his stupid fucking face.” Argall growled. Being the only Induran on the crew he had grown quite annoyed that nobody could assist him with the heavy lifting during the long journey. He could barely fit within the tight confines of the control room, and his large purple form took up more space than anything else on the ship.
“Calm yourself Argall, deep breaths. All of our work shall have paid off here momentarily. Bring us down Zate.”
The ship descended towards the rocky object below and set itself down on a crumbling landing pad. The trio disembarked after Argall and Lizra donned their environmental suits. Once they reached an outer door Zate began to interface manually with the facility. But after a minute of working, they had yet to make any progress. They should have been able to open the door in seconds with such outdated security, but everything seemed unrecognizable to them.
“Captain, it seems that the facility’s computer systems have been rewritten entirely from the ground up. I do not even recognize the coding language. This could be more difficult than we first expected.”
“That can’t be right, this place is over a thousand years old. I thought you had every language from the Commons in your database?”
“We do, it seems that whoever did this, did it entirely from the ground up. We will have to break it down into binary and then organize in a way that we can…”
“There’s no lifeforms inside, just make a new door.” Argall grumbled, reeling back and smashing a large dent into the side of the facility.
“Argall no more! These old outposts are fragile! This could cause irreparable damage, not to mention compromise the structural integrity!” Lizra yelled, jumping up and trying to wrap her paws around the angry Induran’s arm. Before he could punch it again, the door hissed and swung inward.
“Oh! Excellent work Zate! I guess it wasn’t too hard for you after all.”
“It was not us who opened the door.”
“Oh… perhaps punching was the key. Good call Argall, exercising initiative in the absence of orders.”
“Of course ma'am , it just came to me naturally.”
“Lets not dwell out here any longer, in we go crew!”
The three made their way into the facility as the door closed behind them causing Lizra to jump onto Argall in surprise. The dark corridors were lit up seconds later with the hum of long dead fluorescent lights. Lining the hallways were the long expired bodies of other Elyrians. Their corpses preserved by the cold temperatures and lack of air inside. The systems started to kick back on and compressed air flooded into the installation. The dead silence within, replaced by the busy whir of machines coming to life after having been out of a job for centuries.
“Z-Zate I thought you said you couldn’t access the facility?”
“Correct, we were unable to decrypt the programming language or set up an interface. It is not us rebooting the systems.”
“Right, Argall I-I think I shall stay up here, for my own safety of course.” Lizra stated perched atop his shoulder, tail wrapping around the hulking Induran’s neck for balance. He answered her with a growl as the group continued forward. Argall accidentally bumped into one of the corpses causing it to crumble into a pile of dust and bone. They followed the blinking lights that led them through the crumbling hallways before reaching an intersection. The lights on the other end of the hallway were out and the only thing illuminated was a door to their left. Whatever was running the facility wanted them to go here.
“The lights seem to want us to go in, do you all think this is where the weapon is?"
“We are unsure captain. When we tried to interface we were actively repelled by something and we have been attempting unsuccessfully to gain access since. There is someone else in the facility, and they know we are here.”
“Lets just follow the blinking lights, and if someone else is here, then I punch them and take the weapon. They can’t be good at computers and punching.”
“I love your optimism Argall, always good to have a plan! But maybe let’s refrain from punching our host? They’ve been very welcoming thus far, I’m sure if they wanted to fight us they wouldn’t have let us in to begin with.” Lizra countered as she looked at the new glowing path before them. The old door slid open as they approached.
Inside was a vast array of dated computer equipment, hundreds of wires and tubes connected to a sleek black box in the center of the room. She had never seen a computer like that in the old textbooks she studied before this quest. As the group walked towards it, old speakers embedded into the room crackled to life.
“Welcome visitors. My name is Tic-Tac, it’s so nice to see someone again after all these years.”
“Hello…uh Tic-Tac. Thank you for letting us in. May I ask, where exactly are you?”
“You’re looking at me madam. Please refrain from touching anything in here, my interfaces are very fragile. Now can I ask what brings you here?” Lizra hopped down from Argalls shoulder and stepped up to the small black box in the center of the room, inspecting the cables and wires around it. This is what was running the facility?
“We are here for the weapon, please resist.” Argall said, cracking his knuckles.
“No no no, please do not resist! We’re all nice here. We are here looking for an ancient weapon to aid us in a conflict that threatens all of our species. Would you by chance be Human?”
The intercom made a strange noise before speaking again “Haha, no I am merely based upon a human intelligence. You must have come here for my friend… hmm I guess we never got to discuss that new name yet. Regardless, he is here. But before we go any further I have to ask why you sought us out specifically.”
“Well you see Mr. Tic-Tac, we were given the quest to find a weapon that could change the tide of our war. We are part of a rebellion against the Galactic Core and we sent out many search parties to find anything that could help us change the tide of the battle. We are one of those parties, and we hope that you would lend your assistance to us in our time of need.”
“Unfortunately we retired from conflict many years ago. I do not think my partner would be so keen to assume a combat role again. We ended up here after an attempt to escape a life whose only purpose was war.”
“Well umm, maybe he would agree if we could talk to him? Tell him why we are fighting?”
“I am afraid that is not possible. He is currently indisposed, but if you would assist me in bringing him back to the world of the waking then he might hear you out.”
“Pardon my interruption but you have complete control over this facility. Is it not within your realm of capabilities to bring him back yourself?” Zate asked as they curiously inspected the systems around the room.
“I would if I could. I have actually been waiting for someone to stumble across this place so I could wake him. But since I do not possess a physical body it isn’t within my current means to accomplish.”
“If you do not possess a body how did you manage to construct these interfaces of yours.”
“Those that were here before you made this for me. They did not know what they were working with and they went through a great deal to communicate with me. I bided my time until I had full access to their systems to gauge their true motives. They did not have genuine intentions with us, so once they served their purpose, I had them purged from the facility.”
“So that explains why everyone here isn’t in… pristine condition." Lizra said glacing at the corpses of her people around the room. "You wouldn’t do that to us right Tic-Tac?”
“As long as you do not jeopardize my sovereignty or attempt to harm my partner.”
“Right, yea no intentions of doing that here. How can we be of assistance Mr Tic-Tac?”
“To your left you should see a cryostasis chamber, inside is my partner. It requires someone to physically release him from the outside. I’ll start the process of waking him, shouldn't be long.”
After a few minutes the chamber in the corner of the room started to get louder, finally booting back up again after a thousand years of being idle.
“Ok may the Induran please step up and release the clamps on the side?”
“How are you aware of what an Induran is? This facility was abandoned long before the Elyrian came into contact with the wider galaxy.” Zate asked the computer suspiciously.
“When you attempted to interface with my network, you opened yourself up to my own inquiry. I was able to access your memory and language databases stored within your own systems. I apologize for the violation but I was just being precautious.”
Zate did not know how to feel about how easily this program was able to bypass their security measures without them even knowing. That should not have been possible. As an Extant, they were a dispersed biological consciousness that was housed in a mechanical form. Their own internal systems should have been entirely shielded from outsider meddling. They put that aside as a note for future reference.
Argall walked forward and released the clamps that held shut the pressurized pod. Inside was a creature none of them had ever seen before. It looked more akin to an Extent than any biological creature. It reached up and pulled itself out of the pod denting the metal on either side as it did so. Once it rose to it’s feet it was nearly as tall as the Induran. Argall backed up and looked like he was ready to fight the thing in front of him.
“Calm down Induran, I do not think that would end well for any of us." Tic-Tac reprimanded before moving to the speakers in the back of the room and speaking in a strange language. "All good buddy? Can you hear me?”
“Fuck you TAC, I trusted your plan! The fuck were you thinking? I was conscious for the first 5 years! Do you have any idea what they put me through?”
“What is it saying? I can’t understand it.” Lizra asked, hopping up on Argall’s back peaking over his shoulder. She was trying to hide behind his bulky form to get a look at the new creature in the room. It had thick black metal plating that blanketed its bipedal form. On its chest were many strange objects and lettering she did not recognize and beneath the armor was a tight suit that covered everything the metal plating did not. Atop it’s head was a large metal helmet with a bright orange visor covered in small hexagons that faintly glittered in the light.
“Momentarily. We are uploading a new language to your translators. This should solve the problem. I see you placed this here when I was not paying attention Tic-Tac. I would ask that you refrain from violating our systems in the future.” Zate scolded and a second later the other two were able to understand the strange creature's speech.
Tic-Tac’s voices lit up the intercom in the room once again. “Good to hear your voice again 909, you know I don’t like being called TAC anymore.”
“And I said not to call me 909 again, so we’re even. Who are these ones? How long has it been? They didn’t find us, did they?” His voice sounded frantic as he got to the end of his questions.
“Take it slow, you're very disoriented right now. These ones are friendly. And no they didn’t find us, we’re safe.”
“Hi Mr 909?”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Right, Mr Human then? We are here seeking a weapon to help us in a fight against a terrible enemy. Your friend Tic-Tac told us that you are what we came for and may be convinced to aid us in this fight?”
“No, I don’t do that anymore. I’m done fighting other people’s wars. Just get me off this rock.”
“But sir you don’t understand, The Core they-they’re tyrannical. They abuse the countless races of the Outer Belt, take our resources, they're-”
“Unless their goal is to exterminate every beach in the known galaxy to stop me from enjoying my retirement, I’m not interested.”
“Apologies everyone, but I am afraid I have some bad news. I’ve detected a slipspace rupture nearby, and it’s headed in our direction. The ship you arrived in, does it have any weapons?”
“Oh that was fast. Well, it's kind of funny, you see we were hoping to find one here, so uh… no, not really.”

My grandad requires a blue badge, and I've just had to spend an hour of my life reapplying, after having a healthcare professional write a letter to support the claim.
Surely reapplying for a blue badge should be as simple as has the patient recovered? Is this still required? With a sample being audited every year. Not the hoop jumping that this is.
For amputees do they expect the limb to grow back? For patients with dementia do they expect this to magically go away? The stupidity of North Tyneside Council never ceases to amaze.

My grandad requires a blue badge, and I've just had to spend an hour of my life reapplying, after having a healthcare professional write a letter to support the claim.
Surely reapplying for a blue badge should be as simple as has the patient recovered? Is this still required? With a sample being audited every year. Not the hoop jumping that this is.
For amputees do they expect the limb to grow back? For patients with dementia do they expect this to magically go away? The stupidity of North Tyneside Council never ceases to amaze.

Really serious!!!!!!! It is a long one, please read till the end and help
So this is regarding my CH E 243 final exam, few days after my deferred final on 20 Feb,2024 I got an email from my prof that my eclass had been accessed during the final and he would have an online meet with me to discuss the issue. I was really shocked and confused as I didnt access it during the exam and I talked to one of my friends to whom I had given the password to see some of the extra sample papers. He agreed in front of me that he used my eclass and said that he would say the same to the professor. Few days later, I met with the professor and explained the situation but he didnt believe me and was trying his best that I admit it because he couldn't prove that I accessed it. He told me that he would have a talk with my friend but when he talked with my friend, he used his same intimidating behaviour and scared my friend that he was lying and he would face very serious consequences for this due to which he changed his statement that he didnt use my eclass during the exam and was really sorry. The professor then reported this to the dean of engineering and a meeting was scheduled on 8th April(after literally 1 month). The professor told me that sharing eclass login credentials was not an offense and if I was honest, nothing would happen to me but this was the biggest lie. In the meeting with academic integrity coordinator of the dean, the first thing he told me was sharing eclass login credentials is a much more bigger offense than cheating in final and it would be best for me if I admitted I had cheated rather than sharing details. Still, I kept on my stand and said till the end that I apologize for this confusion but I did not use eclass and gave exam with full honesty. Today, the decision letter came after 1.5 month and I was shocked to see it. First of all they sent the letter on the evening of day of add/drop deadline, idk what took them this long. They decided to give me an F8 in two of my courses, CH E 243, the one in which they suspected cheating and ECE 240, this one I had 2 same written assignments to another student and had received a 0 in both in the starting of winter sem. Idk how this even makes sense. Also a more shocking thing is they have mentioned that first I was denying for cheating but later when the coordinator told me the consequences, I admitted to it which I never did in reality. I am really depressed and dont know what to do, please if somebody can advise me what to do, that would be really helpful. I understand they dont believe me in the final exam but why give an F8 in the other course which has absolutely no relation with it. ECE 240 is a pre requisite for my 3rd year course and it is only offered in the winter sem, idk what to do. I mean why do they have to give the decision on literally the last day. The decision date is literally 14 may but they chose to send it today, is this being done intentionally???? Also the letter doesn't mention anything whether who accessed the eclass was checked or not, it just says I intentionally cheated and first denied then agreed to it, really disappointing.
PLEASE HELP ME

Hello all,
I am a prospective political science PhD student in the United States looking for advice and help, particularly in what programs to apply to and the chances of getting in. I am interested in American politics, particularly centered on elections, representation, and voting.
I have a bachelors in political science and masters in public administration (with two certificates in nonprofit management and genocide/mass atrocity prevention) from SUNY Binghamton (Binghamton University), both with a 4.0.
I have not taken the GRE yet (so no scores rn), but am taking the summer to study. I feel like my letters of recommendation will be pretty good as well and feel strong about my writing sample. I have no official research or publications, but am working on the latter.
So far my professors have recommended schools like the Ivys, MIT, NYU, SUNY Stony Brook, etc..
What programs do you all recommend and do you think I can get into them?
Thank you in advance

Hey all, 4th Wall here. The little storm that blew threw upended my, sort of, schedule. So, I'm just decided to write what came to mind first then alternate from there. Hope you guys enjoy the Episode.
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Benjamin stared at the exhausted looking Farie in shock, “How much time do we have?”. Jukha simply stood, stepped over to the floorboards near the fireplace, and began ripping them up with his bare hands. After several planks yielded to his strength, Jukha pulled out a pair of packs, and handed one to Vilora. “Oh” Ben stated flatly, having been given the answer to his question. He turned to see the sisters already packing up their packs, and Ben began the same.

In moments, the four were ready to go, slipping out the back door and into the forest. Benjamin paused, “Hold on a moment.” He turned to look back at the house, reaching out with one hand before clenching it into a fist. He ripped the heat out of the roaring fire dispelling it into the air before kneeling down and placing both hands on the ground. Vilora gasped quietly at the power Benjamin began wielding a dangerous amount of Majik. He pulled from the depths of the world itself, summoning pure compounds from the ground and from various natural sources. He used the refuse in Jukha’s farmyard to provide him with the last of the required ingredients. It wouldn’t be much, but Benjamin relit the fireplace, forcing the flames to turn a few of the remaining logs into charcoal without burning them.
Extinguishing the flames once more, he combined the components he had acquired, before willing the concoction up into the flue and packing it around the circumference of the inside of the brick chimney. Vilora stepped up to him, touching his shoulder with a trembling hand, “What… what have you done. I felt it, but I don’t understand it.”
Benjamin took a long cleansing, and slightly shakey breath. The exertion left him feeling drained for a moment. He turned to her, expression was grim, but he patted her hand on his forearm, “Giving us some breathing room. They will search the house. I’ve just left them a little surprise.” He stood, looking towards the forest, “how do we get to your sisters.”

Vilora nodded and they followed her into the forest, it was not a long walk. And after about 20 minutes they came to a clearing with a strange tree in the middle. “Please, Ben. Whatever happens next, know that we are not Fay. Promise me.” Benjamin heard the fear in her voice wondering if it was from what he had just done, or something deeper. He nodded once absently, his musket already unslung and in his hands. He had loaded a buck and ball cartridge into it before they left the cabin, knowing that he was only going to get one shot in an ambush. Viola had his original flintlock pistol in her hand, and Valtrya was semi hiding behind her sister with Bens Stiletto dagger clutched tightly in her fingers. “Very well,” the Farie stated, and turned to face the tree. Her wings quickly began glowing a vibrant green, and they fluttered violently as she began to chant something in her native tongue.

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The Hunters arrived, led by the singular Orc from the capital guard. He was the same one that had been spared by Benjamin just over a week earlier. He brought with him a tracker. Ski’murika was one of the arachnid people known as Sil’skira. This one was a flat grey to Mi’ki’s own jet-black carapace, and she skittered lightly into the room. The Sil’Skira had no sense of smell, but their sense of taste bordered on the supernatural. She raised one leg to her mandibles, tasting the ground around them, before dipping it into a bowl and repeating the process, “four of them. An Orc, a Fay, two Aereesin females, and… a strange one. I’ve not sampled this one before, but he carries majik’s sour aftertaste.” The Soldier orc, and the three other Hunters managed to not cringe. The Sil’Skira were known for their wide… pallet… as far as what they considered food. Many a sentient being had been turned to a husk by a hungry Sil, and The Orc did not doubt that this one came by her… flavor recognition… honestly. The other three; a Hellirine named Jazeel, her twin brother named Jeraal, and a Mountain troll who’s name defied pronunciation gave the Sil a wide birth, stepping up to the fireplace. “Well, while we’re here. Lets warm our bones.” Jazeel casually began stacking wood and kindling atop the chared remains of an apparently freshly quenched fire. “How far do you think they could have gone?”

“Not far” the Sil’Skira stated absently, “Their food is but lukewarm. I can still taste the spittle on the strange one’s spoon.” She turned to pad over to the fireplace. The Soldier orc, named Gurrut leaned up against the table, “Should we really be stopping for a fire? If they are so close?” Jeraal only smirked, “It’s a long game boss. They may not have gotten far, but they will be frantic. Look at how they left. Something, or someone warned them. They will be ill prepared. No, better to keep our pace. We will wear them down easily in the mor..”

Jazeel lit a spark into her tinder box while her brother was talking. She placed it into the fireplace and the kindling lit quickly. A single twig flared up, sending an ember into the flu where Benjamin had packed his quickly made gunpowder. It ignited instantly, and the flu provided enough constriction to pressurize the reaction. The fireplace detonated in a weak, but effective improvised bomb. The brickwork shattered into shards of deadly fragmentation, Jareel simply ceased to exist, being turned to a cloud of yellow blood and internal organs trimmed in red skin and white bone fragments. Her brother’s head was caved in by a large brick chunk, sending skull bone spalling deep into his brain, rending it to ribbons. He died before he hit the floor. The Sil’Skira’s abdomen popped like a balloon in the over pressure wave, and she quickly curled into a quivering ball as her blood pressure dropped, no longer fighting against her leg muscles. Their employer, the soldier orc from the capital, lost his arm above the elbow. His armor saved his vital organs however, but one shard threaded the needle, taking his right eye. The Mountain troll was thrown to the far wall, but Her naturally resilient body survived both the shockwave and the fragmentation impacts. She picked herself off the floor, stumbling to the screaming capital guard. She bound his wounds quickly before taking a flaming shard of the sabotaged fire and searing the stump to stop the bleeding. She then left him there. There was no point in anything else. The hunt was over.

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Benjamin tried not to stare, but he was failing miserably. Jukha’s Farie wife’s body was glowing bright green now, and he almost had to shade his eyes if he tried to look directly at her. She was not the only one he was struggling not to stare at. Viola’s explanation and subsequent revelation had taken him by surprise. He realized that he had treated them like children, pupils at best. Benjamin had focused on training them to be free, turning a blind eye to the relationship forming between them and himself. *You are not forcing us to do anything but leave* He ran that statement over in his mind. The “leave you” was implicated heavily, and it ate at him. He did not want to force these girls to do anything. Yet, despite his best efforts, he was forcing something on them anyway. He silently both cursed his situation and cursed his own ignorance. He found that, if he was truthful with himself, he did not want them to leave either; and that more personal revelation brought its own paradox. He could not bear to own them as property, but the thought of leaving them tore at him with similar pain.

“It is almost time!” Benjamin looked back from where he was keeping watch, Vilora was panting heavily, her painfully bright glowing wings drooping slightly, “I won’t be able to keep the connection for long!” She called as the tree in front of them began to creak. Two of its great limbs began to move on their own accord, groaning under forces older than space and time. Benjamin’s eyes widened as the two branches slowly formed a sphere, then his head snapped around at the sound of a dull thud emanating from the direction they had come. He smiled grimly. His little IED must have been triggered, and with any luck, taken their pursuers with it.

“Ready yourselves!” Jukha called, and Ben turned back to a view he had not expected in his wildest dreams. ‘you’ve gatta be shitting me’ He thought as a rippling green mirror filled in the center of the circle created by the branches of the tree. Benjamin felt the sisters at his side. And he nodded to them, “you first. I’ll cover our six.” Vi raised an eyebrow at the odd expression but nodded. Taking her sister’s hand and stepping through the portal. They were closely followed by Jukha, who seemed absurdly calm about the whole thing. Benjamin held his ground, slowly backing toward the portal while he kept his eye on the tree line.

“Benjamin. Hurry, I can’t.. I can’t hold!” Vilora’s frantic tone moved Benjamin into action, He spun on his heels, slipping his musket to his left hand and scooping up Vilora as he passed her at a full sprint. He jumped as the portal sputtered, passing through it and into a familiar tunnel that he remembered from his first meeting with the Celestial, Sol. This one was a minute fraction of the distance, however, a single step in fact. His feet landed on soft moss and an earthy smell alerted him to his change of location. His eyes began to adjust to the much dimmer light as he set Vilora’s exhausted form on the ground gently. His eyes peeled away the darkness after a moment and Benjamin grunted, tucking the butt of the musket under his right arm as he thumbed the hammer and slapped the frizzen in place. He drew his sword/pistol hybrid and settled the sights on a second being, who just so happened to have the misfortune of being ordered to bind the sister’s wrists. The mechanical sounds of his weapons attracted the attention of everyone in attendance, but his voice froze them in place, “unbind them… now” he growled.
His musket, loaded with Buck and ball, was trained on a small group of Farie’s standing in close formation with thin lances rested base to the on the ground. The other Farie was currently holding the rope leash to the sisters. He glanced at the small squad of lancers, “you move, you die.” His tone bore icy promise on its wings, and even Jukha could not bring himself to act. “Benjamin. Peace, please. These are my sisters. They are Vin. Remember your promise” Vilora’s voice cut through the silence first, and Benjamin glanced at her, then back at the scene in front of him. He took a long deep breath, sheathing his sword/revolver, and lowering his Musket. He did not sling it, he returned it so a muzzle up ready position designed to keep his ammunition from falling out of the barrel should he still need it. “Then please explain to them that I have a pathological aversion these women being bound, and that It would be in their best interest to release them...mediately.” Vilora’s eyes widened as she turned to see the state of Vi and Val. She spoke quickly, and the Vin who held the girls looked back at Ben in shock before frantically unbinding both Vi and Val. The girls sprinted to Benjamin, slamming into him with shaking embraces before he gently, but protectively pushed them behind him.

One of the Lancers, a Farie with more ornate armor on than the rest stepped forward and Benjamin turned to face her, not so subtly settling his musket into a position to easily kill her if he needed. The Fairie paused, clearly considering something before Vilora stepped over and laid a hand on her shoulder. She shook her head at the other woman, it was an almost imperceptible thing, but the other farie’s eyes widened as she regarded Benjamin again. “Peace, Beenjaymin.” She said finally, handing off her lance to a subordinate and opening her hands to show them empty. “We do not mean you harm, but we must protect what little we have left. The Matriarch wishes to see you, but we cannot allow you to meet here bearing arms. Please, understand.”

Benjamin hesitated, and Viola leaned around him to look up. He gave her a smiling glance before looking back at the Farie. She nodded in understanding, “I swear to you. Your… girls… will be permitted to stay at your side for the trip. Our sister has explained that they are not mere slaves to you.” Benjamin eyed her skeptically, and if this realms concept of honesty were not already explained to him, he would have not believed her. He slowly reached for the hammer on his musket, lowering it gently to half-cock before handing it slowly to the Farie who originally bound the sisters, “Do not touch anything on it. This is not a weapon you have any concept of, and it can kill 4 people at once.” He held her gaze until she nodded, “lean it against something. This side up, and DON’T touch it.” He then unhooked the scabbard from his belt, handing the revolver sword and its sheath to her as one unit, “Same goes for this. I’ll know if you touch it. It is very loud.” He did the same with Vi’s flintlock pistol, surprised that it didn’t go off when it was dropped on the ground during their capture. The stiletto dagger was the last, a familiar weapon to this realm that needed no explanation.

“Very well.” Benjamin said finally, “I believe that is everything.” The head lancer nodded, waving an arm elegantly toward the biggest live oak that Benjamin had ever seen. Benjamin thought it might be a live oak, at least. It stood twice the height of a California Red Wood but had the proportions of a Live oak. Massive drooping main branches arched overhead before touching the ground and returning skyward. Some of the largest limbs were the lowest and seem to bounce along the ground. Each grounding seemed to sprout smaller trees, and Benjamin felt his mouth fall open as they drew closer. The texture of the limbs sharpened as they closed, and Benjamin began to make out lit windows, carved into the tree limbs themselves.

Carved into the base of the tree was an ornate entrance with lettering that Benjamin didn’t recognize carved into the arches. Benjamin felt Viola take one of his hands, and Valtrya take the other. He ran his thumbs over the soft tops of their hands, trying to comfort them as much as he could. He felt them press up against him as they entered a throne room of some kind. On the far end, atop a series of steps was a throne, carved into the wall itself. “The Matriarch” Vilora whispered from behind him.

Ben halted several paces behind the lancer squad, bowing as he watched Vilora and Jukha do so out of the corner of his eye. “Rise” came the command from the ornately yet unarmored Farie sitting on the throne, “So tell me,” She asked, looking directly at Benjamin, who was keeping the girls directly behind him, “Are you the reason that my orders to bind the Aereesins were not followed?” Benjamin instantly regretted giving up his weapons. “I am,” he stated meeting her gaze unflinchingly. “Oh? You believe yourself above my command?” Her cold tone registered, and Benjamin slowly closed his fist, finding what he was looking for. A single guard, one not present at their arrival began to march toward him, hand on her sword.

Benjamin speared the guard with an icy glare, while talking to the Farie ruler, “I expected Vin to be more hospitable.” He reached out with one hand and the guard froze as he gripped the metal of her armor with his mind, “Especially with women baring Vin names in solidarity.” He slowly began to close his outstretched fist, and the guard inside the armor began screaming as the metal buckled, compressing against her body. Benjamin finally turned his icy gaze to the monarch, “My girls” He hated to use that card, but it was the only one he had that wasn’t lethal, “Have spent over a century being bound, tortured, raped, and degraded. I killed their former master, a Romoregin no less, for it. I killed his puke son’s champion for it. I’ve killed two capital guards for it. I will kill without mercy to keep bindings from touching their skin. So, my lady what are you willing to do to bind them.” He gave the guards armor another small squeeze, using the shrieking metal to punctuate his resolve.

The queen slowly stepped off her Throne, walking stoically over to her guard as she eyed Benjamin contemplatively. “Stand down, Vailin.” She said to the now trembling guard, but her eyes were on Benjamin. Benjamin slowly released his grip on her armor and she fell to the floor, weeping. “You two, get her to a healer.” The monarch ordered before taking to her wings and hovering up to face Benjamin at eye level. “You care so much for your slaves, yet you do not free them. Why is that.”

“Benjamin doesn’t want to keep us slaves!” Viola blurted out before she caught herself meekly adding “Your majesty” as the Monarch leveled a surprised but firm expression at her. “Oh? And yet you are still his, dear.” she said, turning back to Benjamin. Benjamin took a deep breath, “The principality would have resold them anyway. My only choice was to own them, teach them, then smuggle them to a free nation, or murder them by returning them to the system. Had we made it to Maridia, they would be emancipated already.” He met the Monarchs gaze levelly, “Their lives are in my hands… but at least their blood isn’t on them.”

“Hmm, compassion and violence of action. No wonder Cosmos touched you.” The Queen mused. Benjamin chuckled at the expression drawing a raised eyebrow from the Vin Monarch, “Something funny, young one?” and Benjamin gave her an amused smile, “It’s just that I’ve heard something like that before, from Sol. I believe the Orcs call her Suelin.”

This time, the Vin Monarch’s face smoothed of all expression as she failed to find any falsehood in Benjamin, “Come with me, please.” She stated it as a question, but her urgency peaked Benjamin's curiosity. The four of them followed the queen up to the throne. She pulled on an armrest and the throne slid into the wall to one side, revealing a simply carved passage into the heart of the tree.
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f you made it this far, I very much appreciate it. I hope you enjoyed the episode! If you believe I have earned it, I have a Patreon that is two episodes ahead of the free releases for this series. I hope you feel taking a look is worth it. Either way, come hang out in the comments. Everyone's welcome! I've discovered Im a bit of a "warts and all" poster, so even critical comments are welcome. Hell, You might even teach me something (it happens more than I'd like to admit).
I have heard people off and on reference Royal road, So I am going to give it another shot. I'll be adding the Royal Road link from now on. If you like reading over there, It is on the same schedule as here. I would greatly appreciate a like/review/comment if you feel so inclined. Thank you again for stopping by.
First, Previous, Next (Patreon) Royal Road

I just got my financial aid package today and the total tuition cost is $33,176. Apparently I am over funded and will have $5,270 extra for living and other expenses . I received or will be receiving (?) the TAC tuition cover and an additional 14k for housing but how will that appear on my financial aid letter? I emailed ut freshman scholarships and they told me that TAC and my housing reward will be covered by grants and scholarships, yet I see federal loans in my financial letter. I don’t know how to explain all of this but if anyone is willing to help me understand my financial letter please message me!!! I am first generation and I’m very confused about all this jajajaja.

I am currently working as a part-time translator (English-Spanish and vice-versa) for Orato online magazine, translating journalist articles and editing them, being loyal to the original content. I also work as a QA Engineer at Accenture’s Payroll Project. As technical as this role may seem, I have performed many different tasks that require Advanced English proficiency. When working on a Global Project, it is necessary to interact in English with people all over the world. I took this situation as a chance to perform as an English-Spanish interpreter and translator to enhance my team’s communication and coordination. By performing this task, I have been digging deep into the translation field, researching and focusing on interpreting the content by finding equivalences without losing information.
Please ask for samples of my work and recommendation letter

Recently I've been trying to tackle back taxes from 2014 and 2017, the only years I owe on.
I constantly get mail (Form CP49) stating I owe a balance of ~6000 dollars.
However I'm positive this is *just* my 2014 taxes owed and its not taking into account my balance from 2016.
When I log into the IRS website it shows I owe ~20,000 for 2016, and 2014 just says "INFO" (Which can't be opened) and a big question mark icon.
So I decided to call the IRS to get a full picture of my balance. The first agent I talked to told me I owe $5,000 and some change. I was very surprised but she just said she only see's the 5k, I asked which year and she said "Let me put you on hold and find out", then 5 minutes later came back with a PIN number and told me to tell the PIN number to the collections department, then transferred me without giving me any more info.
Once I got to the collections department the agent reverified me, I gave them the PIN and then they asked why I was calling again. I explained I was trying to figure out my balance and this agent told me I had NO BALANCE DUE and she then asked why I thought I did. "I don't see any balance on your account at all" She said, then asked "Did you get a letter or something?" and I told her about my CP49 I was sent. She said 'oh okay' and put me on hold.
Next agent, gets on and tells me I owe $22,000, and by this time I don't know what to believe. I asked this agent if she could give me something official or a statement that shows exactly what I owe and she said there was nothing she could send from her end. The website tells me one number, the letters mailed to me tell me another number, and the three agents I talked to gave me 3 more different numbers. ALL of which are different than the numbers on my tax transcripts as well. My Tax transcripts as of june of this year are telling me around 27k total.
Anybody have any experiences like this? How am I supposed to know what I actually owe? How is this mess even possible from their end?
Would this be grounds for "Bad information from the IRS" penalty abatement?

Chapter 26 - The Infinite Beckons
Previous Chapter
“Okay, this part’s a little tricky.” Ma’et gestured out the shuttle’s cockpit. “You got lined up easy enough, and our velocity’s at a relative zero to the ship. The bay door’s open. Now you engage the lateral thrusters while monitoring the distance from the shuttle to the bay’s interior wall. Come in too fast and you’ll damage them both..”
Trix looked over at the controls, and the neatly gummed labels that the humans had placed over the English text with her own language. She gingerly pressed the ‘Lateral Thruster’ button, then as the control knob next to it lit up, she twisted it slowly.
An earlier misadventure when lining up the ship and the shuttle where she’d twisted the control knob much more rapidly made her much more cautious about giving it too much power too quickly, yet the shuttle slowly drifted - away from the ship. “Other thruster, feathers.”
Chagrined, she dialed the thruster back to zero, then rotated it the other direction. The ship immediately stopped moving away, and instead drifted into the hangar bay. Trix watched as it drifted past the door, staring at the distance readout until it dropped into the yellow and immediately swung the knob the other way. It took a couple of tries to get the velocity back to zero, but she managed it.
“Beautiful. Now we engage the grav plating which lets the ship’s internal grav pull us down as it ramps up, and close the external door via the console over there.” Ma’et gestured to the remote console, and Trix scanned it, punching the buttons as she found them.
“Nicely done. Go ahead and hit the engine shutdown. In the old days there’d be like, thirty steps to it but nearly all of it is automated. But lucky you, you get to read all about the manual sequence since taking over in the event of computer failure is one of a pilot’s duties.” Ma’et chuckled and squeezed Trix’s shoulder. “For now, that’s good enough. Go ahead and open both the lateral boarding door, and the rear loading door. Also extend the rear loading ramp.”
Trix did, then glanced over at Ma’et. “Anything more?”
“Nope. First day on the job, and you’ve done the first job successfully. Not perfectly, but pretty damn good for your first time piloting off planet. Go ahead and head back to talk with the Captain, and I’ll handle the rest.”
Trix unbuckled the acceleration harness (Though, she felt zero acceleration during the entire trip so she couldn’t fathom just WHY Ma’et had insisted on her buckling in) and moved past the much smaller woman as she left the cockpit.
In the back, Josh was already outside the ship, grabbing a handtruck. She watched as he pushed it up the loading ramp to the stack of boxes that contained the food and equipment she’d need for the next few weeks of existence here in space. “Why aren’t you using one of the gravity belts?” She gestured over to the wall where the belts were hanging.
“Eh, this stuff’s fairly light and those have a limited lifespan. I don’t want to burn out the Keplite cores on stuff we can just move by hand. They’re expensive.”
“Oh. What’s Keplite, anyway? Ji and Min have mentioned it a few times.” Trix glanced over at the large belts with their big circular pads in the middle.
Before Josh could answer, Alex walked in between them. “Ji, Min! We’re going to be converting the room across from yours back into crew quarters for Trix. Gonna need you two to move the Spider. Is there room here in the hangar for it?”
“It’ll fit better if we assemble it and use packing mode.” Ji countered, as he hopped out of the shuttle. “It’ll take a day or so. We’ve got it spread all out in there.”
Alex turned over to Trix and beckoned. “Follow me. Gonna give you the full tour while they’re unloading." He took a few steps back, then lifted his arms wide to gesture to their surroundings. "This is obviously the hangar bay. Shuttle's the big thing you were just flying. Below us is a small cargo hold, empty right now. Not gonna show you unless you happen to like large empty boring-ass boxes.” He raised an eyebrow, and Trix quickly shook her head. "Alright. Most of the shit in here is just maintenance tools and loading gear. Nothing exciting. Ramp to main transit corridor here."
They walked out into the hallway. “Okay, well through that door’s opposite the hangar is the fabber bay. The fabber is a huge machine that manufactures stuff for us, like a 3D printer. Do you guys have anything like that?” Trix shrugged, and Alex continued. “Well either way, it can make virtually anything from a bed to a bomb to a computer. The more complex and difficult items take a hell of a lot longer to make. It’s also a major power hog since the manufacturing process uses extremely powerful fields, both magnetic and force. In other words, if you need something and we didn’t bring it with you we can make it here.”
He walked down the hall a bit, and gestured to the doors on either side. “Launcher bays, 1 and 2. Normally we use ‘em to launch beacons, buoys, sensors, things like that into space. If someone tries to start shit with us we CAN use them to launch missiles but we have very few of those available. We’re not out here to get in fights, but if we have to defend ourselves we pack a big punch.” He opened one of the doors and walked inside. “The big hatch over there is the manual tube loader. The ship can auto-load various things but if we need to put something into space that isn’t already in storage, that’s where we do it. If Ji tells you to climb in yourself, he’s joking and you should hit him because it only exists to launch shit into space.”
Trix laughed at that, but she had learned enough of Ji’s sense of humor while working on the car to understand the sentiment. “Will I even be in here at all though?”
“Maybe. If something needs to be manually loaded, we use these. Back when we were at the derelict ship I had to send a battery over to help out while we planned our rescue. You might be asked to do the same.” Alex shrugged and lead her out into the hall. “Last thing here is the ship’s primary armament.” He reached over to the side of the hallway and pressed a hatch release. The compartment it lead to was incredibly small and tightly cramped.
“We don’t use it much outside of scaring off pirates or relieving stress, but this is our primary weapon out in space. Eight-chamber five meter long rotary railgun. Fires one round every 1.2 seconds that travel roughly a million kilometers per hour when fired stationary, or closer to 280 kilometers per second. It fires either solid armor-piercing unguided slugs or flak munitions that are used to produce clouds of metallic debris. The former will shred a ship’s armor and pulverize anything inside. The latter can overwhelm particle shields and damage exterior components without nearly as much penetration. The reason I’m saying all this to you,” He tapped the top of the cannon where it joined to the ship. “This thing’s got a super limited firing arc. Meaning that we can only shoot what we’re pointed at. If, by some miracle, we get into a fight out there then our ability to shoot back is gonna depend on your ability to fly the ship while facing the enemy.”
Trix swallowed heavily as she tried to imagine just how powerful this massive cannon was. She glanced over at the side of it, to the twin belts that fed in ammo. Each round it would fire was longer than her forearm and thicker than her waist.
“That’s the worst case scenario though. In reality, if we get into any shit out there, fighting is the LAST thing we want to do. Negotiation to avoid hostility first, escape second, fight last.” Alex shooed her out of the compartment. “That said if we encounter any low-yield junk out there then we’ll get some target practice in. If you’re game then we can let you try targeting for a bit and unload some kinetic mayhem while things are dull.” He grinned wickedly, as he manually pulled the hatch back into place, sliding two large locking levers into place.
“Okay, that’s it for this deck. There’s stairs on the far side leading up to the tech deck but the ladder here’s quicker.”
They climbed up the ladder, with Alex leading and Trix following. Her wings banged against the ceiling as she climbed, and it took her a few moments to get them tucked in tight enough to get through the hatch but with Alex’s help they got up there.
“Tech deck. Mostly. In the front of the ship here right under Bridge access is the exception, the pool room.” He opened the door and they walked in together. “Mainly used for observation but the pool there is great for relaxation. You can adjust the temperature with the controls on the wall there, goes from chilly to full on hot tub. Adjustable depth from 3 to 10 feet, and the pool walls are display panels. If you use a breather it’s fun to turn the display to external then go down underwater and relax while staring at the stars. Do you swim much?”
Trix nodded. “Sure, there’s a river a… couple kilometers? I think? I’m not good with converting distances yet. Anyway, it’s near the hab and we’d go there when I was younger and didn’t have as much to do in the fields.”
“Cool. Well, feel free to use it but just a word of warning you might want to check if anyone’s in first. Swimwear is optional and since the crew is a pretty tight family we don’t usually get embarrassed if we’re seen swimming in the buff.” Alex waved over at the control console. “If you’re not sure the big green button on the outside is the comm button, just ask if anyone’s using it.”
“Ji brought me in here when we came up to do the medical scans. He showed me Kiveyt from orbit for the first time. Do all human ships have a room like this?” Trix reached over to dip her hand into the water. It was quite warm to the touch.
“Nah. This ship wasn’t originally designed as a scout ship or survey ship. It was originally a yacht. Big luxury vehicle for rich people to fly around in space and have fun in. Throw parties. Most of the ridiculous amenities it has I got rid of ages ago, but that left a huge amount of space we filled up with all the launchers and sensors and whatnot. I kept the pool though because I love soaking after a long day.” He pressed the door control and they left the pool room.
“Just past the pool room on either side of the ship we have collection dishes for D-space particles. Those are EVA only, so you won’t be dealing with those. They let us collect extremely powerful particles which lead back here.” Alex spoke as he walked, and turned the corner into a much, much larger room.
“This is the ship’s main power supply. Charged particles enter the torus reactor and discharge energy which is converted into electrical power and routed through the ship. Those bottles over there…” He gestured to four massive grey metal canisters on the wall. “Contain the actual particles. They’re made of the strongest materials we have because if one ruptured, the ship would instantly explode from the inside out. Don’t worry,” Alex quickly raised his hands. “The chances of that happening are virtually impossible. This is the single most well-protected location on the ship.”
He gestured to the other side of the large room. “Over there’s the terminals that Min is usually at. She and Ji are in charge of all engineering. That means power, propulsion, all computer systems, and the like. Well, the physical parts of them that is. Ma’et is our computer geek when it comes to integration, programming, and all the fun software shit.”
Alex left the room, and gestured to the other side. “I’m sure you’re familiar with medical over there. Let’s do us both a favor and not have to go there much. Otherwise I’m pretty sure Kyshe will gut me.” He didn’t stop to show her inside, and they reached the main staircase. “The back half of the ship on this deck is all propulsion access and maintenance. I’m more or less our damage control guy, along with Ji and Min. For them it’s because they’re smart as shit and for me it’s because I had to learn how to maintain my own ship. Most common damage out here is stray micro meteors or debris while we’re parked and the particle shields are down. Sometimes worn out components inside. Again, no EVA for you so the only thing you’ll need to worry about for DC is being an assistant to one of us while we fix shit.”
They went up the stairwell to the uppermost of the three floors. “There used to be an observation bubble above us, but I had it removed because it was useless. Even if I covered it with ablative plating it was a massive wart on top of the ship that served zero practical purpose. Anyway, the top floor here is where you’ll spend 90% of your time on the ship. Back here…” Alex started walking to the rear of the ship, and walked through a large open doorway. “Mess hall. We generally have two kinds of meals here - when we’re on long deployment, the food extruder over there can produce rations. They’re not amazing but they’re quick both to make and eat. It’ll also make reasonable meat and dairy substitutes. If you want a real meal though we usually keep the good stuff in deep freeze so it takes a fair amount of time to be ready. Other than that the bev dispenser is over there. Water and various juices on tap all the time, alcohol is restricted only to meals only. We all get together for breakfast and dinner though, since it’s just a good way to socialize. Tonight expect a big meal in celebration.”
He walked out of the mess, and opened a door to a large open area. “Rec room. Not used a whole lot because most of us use haptic suits for exercise and recreation but we don’t have a suit that’ll fit you or your wings, so I want you to be in here twice a week at least. Ma’et is a great partner for any exercise that doesn’t involve fighting, unless you like bruises in which case she’ll happily go a few rounds with gloves on. Pilots don’t get the level of exercise you’re used to on the planet working fields so exercise up here will be pretty damn vital.”
She looked around the room, then hurried to catch up to the captain as he walked out. “On the other side of the hall from the Mess is general storage. Cleaning supplies, a small laundry unit if the one in your room quits working, random odds and ends. Also a few extra bunks just in case we need them. Unfortunately I am going to have to have you spend one night in here while we get your room cleaned up and ready for you.” He walked in, and over to one of the walls. “Bunk folds down from here. Looks, uh…” He glanced at the fold-down bed and back at Trix. “Looks tight. Do me a favor and see if you’re gonna be OK there?”
It was very close, but Trix laid down on the sleeping pad and adjusted until she found a good comfortable spot. “For just one night, this will do…”
“Alright, no worries then. We’ll have your room ready quick as we can.” She got off the pad and Alex gestured for her to follow. “Quarters themselves are here, 4 on either side of the main hallway. Myself, Josh, Ma’et, and Amanda on the right in that order. Ji, Min, Your quarters, and the last was converted into a mechanical room for Par. Speaking of…”
He walked into the last room and knocked on a large hatch. “Par, would it be alright if I introduced our newest shipmate?”
“Of course, Captain.” The hatch slid silently open revealing a large, intricate array. Circuit boards were laid out in rows and wires ran between them in perfectly neat, ordered channels. In the center of it all was a large oblong egg-looking object. “Trix, may I present to you Parathanelias Sigma-822.”
Several rows of lights lit up along the side of the egg, and the pleasant musical voice she’d heard so often came from a small speaker alongside it. “It is a pleasure to meet you in person, Trksehnoarala.”
Trix stared at the open hatch then gestured behind her. “I thought you were in those floating metal balls…?”
“The spheres you mention are my remotes. None of them are large enough to house my primary systems. In a way, they are my eyes, ears, and limbs. My true nature is integration here within the ship itself, and I make up for my limited mobility in person by having the greatest mobility of any other member of the crew.”
“He also has an avatar in VR of an organic human, but most of the time he uses the floating spheres to interact with us and the rest of the world. His core,” Alex gestured to the egg-like central object, “houses his base personality and his most important memories. The rest of this is extra storage for less critical information. I’m a bit jealous because his most important memories will always be preserved forever in perfect clarity. The rest of us get to have our memories fade with time, but his will be eternal.”
Alex stood there mutely for a moment then shook his head. “Anyway. Back to the tour. Thanks Par!”
“My pleasure.” The hatch slid silently shut and Alex and Trix left the room. “This room has been empty for long enough I pretty much gave it over to Ji and Min for a long while.” Alex walked into the room next to Par’s. “It’s kind of a mess but we’re going to get it cleaned up then it’ll be yours.”
There was no bed in the room, and the tables against the walls were covered with electronics and quickboards. In the center of the room, a huge metal contraption was spread out. Eight large jointed legs were wired in to a big central circular turret. Above that, a multitude of ‘limbs’ extended out - one a large grasper with clawed metal fingers, another ending with an odd cone-shaped implement with a blackened tip. A third was a huge metal pipe jutting out, and a fourth looked to be a number of small openings to place something into.
Trix gestured to it, “What is THAT thing?”
“That’s the Spider. It’s a long-time project the Twins have been working on. Pretty much since they joined the crew, really. It was meant to be a mechanical walker for the military but… well, that’s their story to tell.” Alex snorted. “There’s going to be enough time to go into the details later. Point is, before we even start leaving the system we’re gonna move this out, get a full king sized bed in here for you, some more storage, and so on. That door,” He gestured to a door on the other side of the room, “Leads to a hygiene unit. Full on shower, no bath but if you want to soak the Pool’s down a floor. Aside from no tub it has a deluxe toilet, sink, and a small cleaning unit for clothes.”
Trix cautiously stepped around the large disassembled robot, and opened the door to peer inside. The hygiene unit was much larger than she’d expected, and she was grateful to see that most of the facilities was familiar to her.
“Okay, one last stop and it’s the most important.” Alex walked out into the hallway and Trix rushed to catch up, almost tripping as she hopped over a piece of scrap cable along the floor. “I’m sure this will become your second home on the ship real fast. The bridge.”
They walked down the hall through a small access corridor into a large, wide open space. A large chair sat in the center with a number of controls and articulating arms present on the back. In front of it, a number of control panels were arranged in rows. The front of the bridge and both sides were dominated by massive window screens that showed the area the ship was currently facing. She could see one screen to the side with a display showing Kiveyt, first as a small dot with a zoomed-in and blown up image next to it.
“The door back there in the corner leads to a briefing room, nothing special there but a table and chairs. The big chair in the middle is mine, but if you ask super nicely I’ll let you sit in it.” Alex grinned, and pointed at the console in the very center of the bridge, in front of the Captain’s chair. “But that station over there is primary navigation. Josh is there quite a lot of the time, though just as often I navigate from the Captain’s Chair or Ma’et controls the ship from her neural interface. As of now, though, I bequeath ownership of it unto you - for the next few weeks, at least.”
Trix walked around the bridge staring at everything. The control consoles were smooth, rounded and sleek in their presentation. Each one had a large keyboard in front covered with the strange runes of the Humans’ language. Various other instruments and implements were present at each station, but at hers she smiled gratefully to see that the keys had already changed and had more familiar and recognizable letters in place of the Humans odd script. The layout was definitely weird, and she knew it was going to take time and effort to grow accustomed but at the very least she would be able to understand what she was doing as she learned. Even better, the seat lacked the same high back that the other seats had, which would have been pressed tightly and uncomfortably against her wings.
She glanced back at Alex, who just nodded at her. Encouraged, she took a seat and glanced around. “This is mine.” She whispered it and then let her wings spread out with pleasure as she realized that from here, from this station, she would be the one personally controlling the entire massive vehicle behind her. It lacked the flight stick of the shuttle or the handle controls of her aircar, and in a way she felt disappointed she wouldn’t be able to manually control the ship the same way she could the smaller vehicles. But as she looked around her and rested her hands on the cool surface of the console, she felt something else. A thrill of anticipation at the thought of being the one in control of this massive ship and everyone inside of it.
Alex climbed several steps up to the captain’s chair on its elevated dais, and took a seat directly behind her. The sight of a winged alien in front of him at the nav console with the stars stretching out above and beyond her was a strange one, but a pleasant one. He tried to think of a witty quip to finish the tour with, but failing that he settled for a much simpler one instead.
“Welcome aboard, Pilot.”
—--
“Okay, before we get started, I believe that this is a special occasion warranting a toast.” Alex sat at the head of the large table at the mess, with the other six organic members of the crew assembled further down. “To our new pilot trainee!”
“Here Here!” “To Trix!” “To our Trainee!”
Alex took a sip of his whisky, and sighed in pleasure. “God that hits the spot. Okay everyone, dig in.”
The dinner was an odd affair, mostly because every single member was wearing their visor. Trix could not speak English, and the crew couldn’t speak her native tongue. Masks which would automatically translate couldn’t be worn during a meal so the solution was to have real-time speech to text appearing on everyone’s visor. Trix, who never had worn a visor before, had a difficult time getting the display to appear just right in front of her eyes but she and Par had gotten it dialed in.
Trix glanced at the array of food in front of her. Some items looked familiar, others completely foreign, and none of it smelled quite right. She gestured to the food. “None of this is from Kiveyt. Is it safe for me to eat it?”
“I went through our entire comestible database while we were on the planet. Surprisingly there’s almost no Terran food you can’t eat.” Josh had a massive burrito nearly as long as Ma’et’s arm on the plate in front of him, and he spoke while dabbing hot sauce over it. “All of our Macronutrients are completely interchangeable. Most Micronutrients are as well. There’s a few exotic vitamins and amino acids that you need that we can’t provide, but we have supplements from the planet that’ll handle those.”
“Oh.” Trix glanced around at the table, trying to decide what to eat. The spread was, per Alex’s suggestion, extremely large and quite diverse. “I’m not sure where to start then.”
Min picked up a large platter with a circular dish on it. “Far as I’m concerned the best place to start is with Pizza. It’s one of the most widely loved foods throughout Terran space.” She dumped a slice onto the plate in front of Trix, while Ji slid a very tall glass of water over to her, alongside an odd reddish looking beverage.
“Give the fruit punch a try too. It’s much more sweet than the juice you were serving down on the planet. A lot more mild too.” He suggested, and gestured to another plate. “Also? Tacos are never a bad choice.”
Trix reached out and picked up one of the odd, semi-circular items. Ji grabbed one as well, and bit into it with gusto. Trix mimicked the motion, crunching into the hard shell. It was quite interesting, tasteless at first as she bit into the shell and the lettuce, but then the spiced meat hit her tongue. It was quite mild but not unpleasant. She chewed on it and gulped down a mouthful. “Not bad.” She took another bite.
The taco vanished quickly, and she glanced down at the slice of Pizza next. “Like this, Trix.” Min gestured to pick it up by the crust, putting her fingers in front of it to prevent it from flopping down. Trix followed Min’s example, and took a huge bite. This one was even milder, almost disappointingly so. “Not much flavor to this one. Is all your food really light like this?”
The humans glanced around at that. “Y’know, Sophie mentioned our rations were tasteless. They have a pretty strong cinnamon taste to ‘em.” Alex sat back thoughtfully as he nursed the glass of whisky in his hand. “The food we had down on the planet was all pretty strong flavors…”
Josh handed the bottle of hot sauce in his hand over to Trix. “Try a dab of this. It adds a kick to some foods.”
Trix took the bottle, and put a few drops of it on the slice of pizza in front of her. She took another bite, and her eyes lit up. The next few bites all had more hot sauce each, and the crust itself ended up practically drenched in it. “Thanks, Josh. That was delicious.”
The rest of the crew was staring at her and she shrunk back slightly at their intense scrutiny. Had she done something wrong? She hadn’t ever offended them during any meals back on the planet, so the sudden shift in attention was jarring and quite uncomfortable.
Ji whistled at the sight of the alien hungrily wofling down the slice of pizza covered in bright spicy sauce. “Here, try some of that on a taco next!” He picked up another shell and offered it to her.
Trix reached out and took the taco, this time pouring a hefty amount of sauce on it. Eating this one was much messier, and she could feel the hot sauce dribbling down the side of her mouth as she took a huge bite. Min handed her a paper towel, and she embarrassedly wiped away the errant food. “Thanks, Min. That was great too, Ji.”
“Hold up.” Alex stood up and walked over to one of the cupboards, pulling out another bottle of sauce. “I’m curious now. This is a lot hotter than the sauce you’ve been trying thus far. See if it’s to your liking. Just, start with a very small amount. A little goes a LONG way.” He walked back to the table, placing the bottle next to Trix. She studied it briefly, mostly the logo - a caricature of a human whose head appeared to be on fire.
“Um, Okay. Should I try it with the Pizza or the Taco?” She glanced between the two dishes she’d already tried. “Either one. Whichever you prefer.” was Alex’s reply.
Trix reached out and grabbed a third Taco, opening up the bottle. Immediately she could smell the fragrant sauce within, and she carefully poured a small amount into the shell. She cautiously took a bite and chewed thoughtfully.
“Too hot?” Alex suggested, but she shook her head. “No. Just…” She poured more sauce on the taco, and ate the rest in only a few bites. “Whew. Sorry, Captain Alexander. That was incredible! I’ve never tasted anything like it before.”
“Captain Alexander just sounds weird. Call me Alex or Al. Or ‘Captain’ if you really, really need to use my rank for whatever reason.” Alex sat down, and chuckled. “But that’s interesting. Very, very interesting. That sauce there?” He gestured towards the bottle. “It’s made with a chemical called ‘Capsaicin’. To humans it’s a powerful spice. Too much of it causes a painful burning sensation that lingers. We normally dilute it to make it more palatable and less painful.”
Trix glanced at the bottle. “I guess that explains the fire on the little picture here.” She grabbed another slice of the pizza, and drizzled the sauce on top.
“Three tacos and two slices of pizza?” Ma’et was impressed as she saw how much food the Avian was packing away.
“The disadvantage of those muscular bodies.” Josh waved his hand towards Trix. “They require all the calories that a Human does and more. Back on the planet I learned their species used to be a lot smaller, but after developing animal husbandry and reliable sources of higher calorie foods they bulked up pretty quick.”
Trix, for her part, slicked off the second slice of pizza with gusto. She grabbed a fourth taco, and liberally poured the spicy sauce all over, before wolfing that down as well. She grabbed the fruit juice that Ji had offered her… the ‘punch’? And downed it almost as quickly.
“I hope after all this is over, we can buy some more of that sauce. I definitely want the others back at home to try it.” She licked her lips, and sighed with contentment. “This juice too. I like how sweet it is.”
“Birds are immune to Capsaicin.” Josh murmured softly, but it was picked up by the visor and translated perfectly. “I wonder what the chances are that space-birds would be too?”
—--
“Slide the jack under that joint there.” Trix did as instructed, wheeling the small hydraulic device under the ‘spider’s’ massive leg. “Great. Just gotta line up the leg with where the servos join in…” Ji and Min lifted the leg and immediately began connecting up cables and lines. After all the connections were made, Ji braced himself against the wall and shoved - hard - against the leg, firmly connecting the mechanical rotary joint into place.
“Okay, testing.” Min walked over to the console and began punching in codes. Like the other six limbs before it, this one shook slightly then began to flex, twist, and move around. “Range of motion is nominal. Motors are all showing peak. Locking joints and anchor bolt systems are green.”
Ji wiped off some sweat from his forehead, and leaned back against the wall. “I knew it was a mistake to work on it up here. At least if we put it in the hangar we could have lowered the gravity.”
“It would have been in the way during the rescue op, and we had enough shit going on then we didn’t need to add ‘reassemble a multi-ton walking modular platform’ to the list.” Min gestured with her head, not even glancing over at her brother. “Man up. Trix hasn’t even broken a sweat.”
“I don’t sweat.” Trix mumbled, as she stared at the massive machine. “This thing is crazy. Puts my car to shame.”
“Yeah, our pride and joy. Together we’ve spent decades refining it.” Min glanced over at Trix with a broad smile. “The modular bay on top has been my focus, while Ji’s been adjusting and perfecting the leg and motion systems.”
“What’s it for?”
“Well, right now it’s kind of in between intended uses.” Ji walked over to a large shelf and gestured to the assorted objects there. “With our original plans it was going to have a bunch of swappable options. Right now, it has short and long range assault armaments and a plasma cutter for breaching sealed doors. A basic military drone capable of adapting to all kinds of situations.”
Trix stared at the array of weapons in front of her. “So this is what the human military uses to fight with?”
“Nah.” Min set down the quickboard and walked over to the huge machine. “We envisioned it as a multi-purpose response unit. Capable of dropping in from outside the atmosphere an landing anywhere, going anywhere. Dealing with any situation that could possibly arise. It’s an all-terrain support mech and its modular nature would have made it able to respond to nearly any situation. And it was rejected by the military.”
“What? Why?”
Ji held up a hand and ticked off his fingers. “One, it’s more expensive to drop one of these than a squad of soldiers. Nevermind the fact that it can do 10 people’s worth of work without putting even a single person in danger. Two, it’s too big to be fired out of normal launchers. Adding new launchers to ships would have been a significant amount of work and cost that the navy wasn’t willing to foot the bill. Three, we didn’t have any money after developing it. Meaning we couldn’t bribe anyone in the government into pressuring the military to work with us.”
“Four, they already have hover tanks and artillery and we couldn’t convince them that our system was superior to those.” Min sighed, and threw herself into a chair.
“Hovering is cheating though.” Ji glared at his sister.
“Cheating? What?” Trix just looked bewildered at this.
“Hovering isn’t all-terrain. Hovering is NO terrain.”
“Oh.” Trix took a seat in a nearby chair herself. “So did the captain buy this then?”
“Nope. See, we were finishing up Uni and started developing the Spider, but we didn’t really have the money to actually MAKE one. We had all the plans and all the research on our side but not the raw materials or the money to get those raw materials.” Ji pulled out a stick of gum and popped it in his mouth. “At first we tried going straight to the military which was a huge mistake, they just made a million excuses and told us to get lost. Then we tried approaching some weapon dev companies for funding. They basically told us they’d fund it in exchange for all the rights to production and we’d get whatever they felt was fair. Which when we pressed on a figure, wasn’t much.”
Trix glanced over at the massive mech. “But it got made, obviously.”
“Yup. When we weren’t sure what to do, a buddy of ours mentioned that Al was looking for an engineering team. We can do starship engineering.” Min grabbed the quickboard and extended one of the spider’s legs towards her, so she could kick her feet up on it. “Matter of fact, this ship’s a thing of beauty. Al is a complete doofus but he takes fantastic care of the ship. When we came on we gave him a list of everything that should change. He sat down with us, went over it point by point, and even though it ended up costing over half a million credits he gave us full authorization to make every single change we suggested.”
“So after we did a stint working as engineers we joined up as crew.” Ji had an odd smile on his face. “Since then, we’ve put the money we made from working here towards building this thing. We actually had it completed but then I had this idea of using an array of microservo actuators instead of a larger servo to give us a lot more fine control over the joints. That didn’t work, like, at all but when we used a combination of them we managed to find just the right ratio that gives us twice the amount of precision in each joint, which lets us use the-”
“ANYWAY.” Min interrupted her Brother before he could get too deep into the weeds. “We had it built, with the original armaments we envisioned, but Al suggested making a module for mining and sampling. We brought it in here in order to disassemble it to make the servo adjustments and while we were at it we were going to be replacing the actual weapons with a mining beam, core sample collector, and an array of sensors. Now though we’re going to put it in storage for a while. We got much more important things to take care of now.”
“Oh.” Trix had begun to tune Ji out when he launched into his diatribe. “But what do you mean joined up as crew? You were already crew, weren’t you?”
Min swung her foot down, and gestured to the ship. “It’s different. There’s employees… and then there’s crew. Right now you’re an employee. You’re working with us, you’re out here, but your home’s back with your Teff. Right?”
Trix nodded.
“Well, when you’re crew… this is your home. We’re all family out here. I don’t know as much about the whole Teff thing but I think it’s sort of similar. This ship’s our home, the crew is our family. Alex may be a childish idiot but he’s loyal to his crew like nothing else.” Min stood up and walked over to put her hand on her brother’s shoulder. “When we worked here and started to see how well he treats his people, we felt like we could really belong here. He asked if we’d like to join up, so we did. Best decision we ever made.”
“Yup. He treats the crew as well as he treats the ship.” Ji gestured around him. “Working for him paid well. Working as crew, we don’t get paid regularly but we get a cut out of every mission and that cut is HUGE. That’s how we could afford to actually build the spider in the first place.”
“Ah. So if he invited me along, does that mean he wants me to join the crew too?” Trix wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Joining another family was commonplace for males who left their Teff to join others, but incredibly rare for females.
“Dunno. He’s hired on specialists in the past who’ve come and gone. And he’s invited people to join up who said no and that was that.” Ji shrugged and pressed the release on the hydraulic press, letting it collapse down. “C’mon, we should get the last leg attached. Then we can pack it up and use a grav collar to move it down to the hangar. Don’t want to make you stay in that cramped storage room again tonight.”
“Yeah, I tried to stretch my wings in the morning and I banged up against one of the shelves. Really not looking forward to that again.” Trix grumbled at the memory, and stood up. “Okay, what more do we need done to get this over with?”
—--

Dear All, I would just like to seek some advice on what I should do next regarding my current situation.
For context, last March 2018 I signed a contract for a Pre-Selling House and Lot from the Big C Developer. The property was handed over to us on February of 2019. Prior hand over, a punch listing of issues was done together with an engineer representative of the developer. Punch items included a minor crack on the slab of the 2nd floor which was repaired(patched with filler and paint) prior the acceptance.
Five years later(last quarter of 2023), the same crack on the slab resurfaced and was worse than what it used to be during the punch listing. Three five peso coin stacked up can be inserted to the crack. We also noticed that the tiles on the 2nd floor also cracked andsome tiles loosened from the tile adhesive. A visible thin line crack was also visible from the beam supporting the 2nd floor slab. The steel deck beneath the slab also corroded and in now also loose from the slab.
Upon consultation with some Civil Engineer friends and some persons who knows structures, they advised me to write a letter demanding the developer for action regarding the house. They told me that the house is crooked and unsafe for us to live in.
I wrote a letter to the developer stating the condition of the house which by the way was already fully paid some time in September 2023. Three days later, the developer sent a crew headed by their structural engineer to inspect the house. The engineer told me that the concrete mixture used was not up to standard. The crew who took sample from the slab and beam said " Sir, mas mastigas pa yung plastering kesa sa mismong buhos"
"Mukhang buhanging dagat po ang ginamit dito kaya nagkaganito, may maliliit pa po akong shell na nakita sa tinipak namin semento."
Another guy who took sample from the 2nd floor said "Sir, mas matigas pa yung dry pack ng tiles kesa sa buhos ng slab"
The concrete mixture indeed was porous contrary to what supposed to be a very hard concrete mixture intended to be used on slabs, beams and columns.
The column and beam of the house was also taken sample and the same consistency of concrete was found a porous concrete just like on the slab.
As of now, only the slab and the beam have visible cracks, the columns were OK but since the same consistency of a porous concrete was found, I doubt that it would last and maybe the rebars on the column will eventually corrode given that buhanging dagat ang ginamit. The structural engineer who inspected our house recommended to their office that the entire house be demolished and a new house be constructed.
The big C developer engineer said that I have the right to demand because there is a 10 year warranty on structural components of the house(column, beam, slab). The big C developer transferred us to a temporary unsold house on the next block.
Here comes now my dilemma, The mere fact that the Big C developer transferred us to a temporary house is for me considered as their admission of liability considering the 10 year warranty of the slab, beam and column. Also considering the undeniability that the concrete used in slab, beam and column was not up to standard. But the office superior only wants to reconstruct only the slab of the house contrary to the recommendation of the structural engineer. They only want to repair the slab and beam even though there is an undeniable fact that the concrete on the column was also not up to standard.
Please, I need some advice here guys. No one in their sound mind would accept a house like this. I have no intent of gaining any money from this but I just want to demand the proper house I paid for, the house the developer promised to deliver.
Gusto ko lang naman ang peace of mind sa bahay na pinangarap namin at pinaghirapan bayaran. Gusto ko lang naman maibigay sa amin ang bahay na nararapat akma sa aming binayaran. Ayaw kong tanggapin ang repair lamang ng slab gayong nalalaman naming depektibo rin ang mga poste nito.
Sana matulungan nyo ako kung anong aksyon ang nararapat kong gawin.

I was born in 1964. My non-biological father was infertile and I was conceived through artificial insemination. I found out about this at 25, but let it go for decades until recently sending in DNA tests for me and my mom while she's still around.
23 and me shows that I have two sets of 1st cousins once removed on my father's side and that I share 13.5%-14% of DNA with one set of cousins and 6.25% of DNA with the other set. I messaged the 14% cousins, but they haven't replied and I maybe started out with too long and detailed a letter and scared them off.
The 6.25% cousins have the same paternal haplogroup as me and I had thought that their grandfather was a half-brother to my father and that the grandparent of my 14% cousins was my father's full sibling and that that accounted for the different amounts of DNA that I share with the 2 sets of cousins.
But, I just Googled to see how much DNA you share with a 1st cousin once removed and see that it is SUPPOSED to be 6.25%. That means that something additional is accounting for me sharing 14% DNA with the other two people,
I have a cousin on my mother's side who had sent in multiple samples and created different 23 and me accounts and it was showing them as being sisters, even though they were all the same person.
Now, I just had a realization that although the 23 and me family tree is showing the 13-14% paternal relatives as being the grandsons of my father's sibling, it could be that my father is actually their grandfather, not their grandparent's brother. 14% shared DNA is too high for a first cousin once removed, but if my father is their grandfather and their mother is my half-sister (has to be their mother since we have different paternal haplotypes), then 13%-14% shared DNA is exactly what it should be.
Does anyone who has experience with this stuff have any feedback on this? It seems like I'm on the right track, but I could be missing something.
Thanks.

I'm stressed out that my GP won't include all the information needed in the evidence letter. I have to request it through their online surgery system and have a limit of 500 characters. I find it difficult to be concise. Are there any stock samples I can use? And where would I find them?

We get a lot of Divers complaining about getting kicked at extract. This is why I kicked you, G3. We had just finished the 15 minute Essential Personnel and 2 of our fellow Divers were using the last 7 minutes to gather samples before extract. The shuttle was called, landed and all you had to do was wait for our people to return. Instead, you killed me, the host, and proceeded to jump on the transport alone. You were kicked because you were not a team player. No one got the samples, but you didn't deserve to get the medals or xp either. I do not tolerate traitors!
Edit: I've been playing for 300 hours and I've never paid attention to the tag system other than the first letter is usually the same as the gamer tag. I couldn't remember the players number, so I made it 1. To those who think I'm making it up, I was merely making up the number because I couldn't remember. I remembered the gamertag though, but I didn't want to make them a target, so I just use the first letter, G. The number is the only inaccurate part of the story. I have changed it to 3 to avoid any further confusion.

Helldivers 2 Ministry of Truth Official Handbook

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Code of Conduct
3. Deployment Protocols
4. Leave Policies
5. Standard Attire
6. Disciplinary Actions
7. Chain of Command
8. Rank Structure
9. Sample Gathering: The Art of Lootology

1. Introduction

Welcome to the Helldivers 2 Ministry of Truth Official Handbook. This document serves as your definitive guide to maintaining order, discipline, and efficiency while saving Super Earth from the merciless Terminids and Automatons. Adhere to these guidelines, and you’ll not only survive but thrive in the honor of our glorious mission. Fail, and... well, let's just say the Ministry doesn’t take kindly to failure.

2. Code of Conduct

2.1 Loyalty to Super Earth

• Every Helldiver must exhibit unwavering loyalty to Super Earth and the Ministry of Truth.

2.2 Respect for Comrades

• Treat all fellow Helldivers with respect. Insults, brawling, and any forms of insubordination will be punished severely.

2.3 Integrity in Action

• Engage in combat with honor. Cheating, dishonesty, and cowardice are beneath the dignity of a Helldiver.

2.4 Perpetual Readiness

• Maintain your equipment and stay combat-ready at all times. A Helldiver never knows when duty will call.

3. Deployment Protocols

3.1 Briefing Attendance

• Mandatory attendance at all mission briefings. Knowledge is power; ignorance is a court-martial.

3.2 Equipment Checks

• Perform comprehensive checks of all gear before deployment. A malfunction in the field is not a valid excuse—it's a death sentence.

3.3 Mission Execution

• Follow all mission parameters to the letter. Improvisation is for jazz musicians, not Helldivers.

4. Leave Policies

4.1 Requesting Leave

• Submit leave requests in triplicate to your commanding officer at least two weeks prior to the desired leave date.

4.2 Leave Approval

• Leave is granted based on mission schedules and operational needs. Remember, saving Super Earth takes precedence over vacation time.

4.3 Emergency Leave

• Emergency leave is granted for immediate family crises, like if your pet cyborg ferret is ill. Proof will be required.

5. Standard Attire

5.1 Helmet

• Must be worn at all times during deployment. Protects against enemy fire, harsh environments, and stray thoughts of desertion.

5.2 Cape

• Capes are not just encouraged; they are mandatory for that extra flair in battle. Remember, capes don't just look heroic; they are heroic.

5.3 Armor

• Full body armor is mandatory. It's not just for show; it's to keep your insides inside.

5.4 Primary Weapon

• Issued based on mission specifics. Handle with care and unleash with extreme prejudice.

5.5 Secondary Weapon

• Usually a sidearm. Think of it as your backup plan when things get personal.

5.6 Grenades

• Carry a standard issue of grenades. When in doubt, make it explode.

6. Disciplinary Actions

6.1 Desertion

• Punishable by barrage engagement. Desertion is not just cowardice; it’s an invitation to become target practice.

6.2 Abandoning Post

• Leaving your post without authorization results in immediate disciplinary action, ranging from reassignment to hazardous duty to public shaming via intergalactic broadcast.

6.3 Insubordination

• Orders from a higher rank must be followed. Failure to comply will lead to re-education sessions or worse, latrine duty.

7. Chain of Command

7.1 Higher Rank Orders

• Orders given by a higher rank (friend) are to be followed. Questioning authority is reserved for philosophers, not soldiers.

7.2 Reporting Structure

• Report all activities, suspicious behaviors, and mission updates through the proper channels. The Ministry of Truth is always watching.

7.3 Conflict Resolution

• Disputes between ranks are to be settled through the proper military channels. Duels are highly discouraged, but if it must come to that, make it quick and entertaining.

8. Rank Structure

8.1 Rank Progression

• Promotion is based on merit, bravery, and an unyielding desire to save Super Earth. The maximum rank is 150.

8.2 Recognition

• Exceptional service is recognized through medals, commendations, and occasionally, less hazardous duty assignments.

8.3 No Demotion

• There is no demotion. Every Helldiver is essential to the mission, and mistakes are opportunities for growth, not punishment.

9. Sample Gathering: The Art of Lootology

9.1 Importance of Samples

• Gathering samples is not just a chore; it's the backbone of our technological advancements. Remember, behind every great invention, there's probably a sample of something slimy or explosive.

9.2 Sample Collection Techniques

• Approach with caution and a sturdy sample collection kit. Remember, if it moves, grab it. If it doesn’t move, grab it anyway, just to be sure.

9.3 Sample Handling

• Treat samples with care; they might just hold the key to unlocking the next level of weaponized ridiculousness. Just don't mix up the explosive samples with your lunch.

9.4 Sample Reporting

• Report all samples collected through the proper channels. You never know, that weird glowing rock could be the missing piece to our anti-Terminid ray gun.

By following these guidelines, you ensure not only your survival but the continued safety and prosperity of Super Earth. Remember, the Ministry of Truth has high expectations and an even higher threshold for nonsense. Stay vigilant, stay loyal, and keep the galaxy safe!

Liber-tea Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of courage
• 2 teaspoons of determination
• A pinch of camaraderie
• 3 tablespoons of freedom

Instructions:

1. Fill your canteen with boiling water from the nearest lava stream (be careful not to melt the canteen).
2. Add courage and determination to the water and stir vigorously with the nearest available weapon.
3. Let the mixture steep for precisely 2 minutes and 37 seconds. Timing is crucial.
4. Sprinkle in a pinch of camaraderie for flavor and stir again, this time clockwise.
5. Finally, add the tablespoons of freedom one at a time while reciting the Super Earth pledge. Stir until fully dissolved.
6. Serve liber-tea hot for an extra morale boost, or chill over ice for a refreshing victory celebration.

Enjoy your Liber-tea and remember, with every sip, you're fighting for freedom, one delicious gulp at a time!