This is my first time posting something like this on here, so I sincerely hope you all will enjoy this! This is the start of a series based on a build I did for the Star Dust CYOA, by Star Dust Anon, with additional DLC introduced by Bob Grue! Additional shout out to the person who heavily inspired me to even make a series in the first place; u/ragingreaver! Go check out their amazing fic, Into the Mouth of the Abyss, if you have the time.
Alright, that's enough outta me; here's what you all came here for!
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“Welcome to the Stardust Space Station; the Crossroads of Civilized Space, where Opportunity waits at every vendor!”
The announcement from the station’s AI rang out clearly from the vaulted ceiling as the newest charter ship unloaded its cargo of fresh tourists. The Liberation sat motionlessly in space, connected tenuously to a webbed docking aisle that served as the station’s airlock corridor. Hundreds of people from all backgrounds crossed in front of one bewildered younger man, the last to file out from the charter ship, as they stood at the intersection of the Liberation’s docking corridor and the main thoroughfare. Still dressed in the dingy vacsuit that served as his only uniform, he gawked openly at the soft-lit paths marked along the polished vac-proof tiled floor. The boy skipped and hopped awkwardly along, attempting to avoid tripping over his own feet as his heels knocked against the underside of his oversized luggage. His head craned upward as he dumbly stared through the enormous panes in the slanted walls, basking in the unparalleled view of the rocky planet that the station orbited. The ruddy tones of the planet’s surface and the criss-cross lines of civilization were not altogether unique amongst civilized space, however it was an exceptionally rare sight for a denizen of Erebus. The entire journey would have been an afternoon fantasy for a former citizen of the Luos Syndicate like Damien Raynes, yet a look of soft comfort could be found on his face as he began to accept he was no longer dreaming.
His absentminded journey came at a cost, causing him to stray from his intended walking lane and to collide with another station occupant who was similarly distracted by a call on a holoscreen hovering before them. They spilled a sweet-smelling, cream-colored liquid from their drink container on nearly every inch of their chest, any scant remaining fluid splattering onto the floor around them. Damien’s eyes went wide, and he managed to stammer out a shaky apology before swiftly running off down another lane, heading into a completely new direction in the hopes of evading the enfolding confusion he caused. By the time his aching legs and burning lungs forced him to slow his pace, he found himself in a different section of the station entirely, and he marveled at the variety of wares displayed in nearby vendor stalls. He took a moment to gingerly retrieve the credit stick loaded with more funds than was thought possible to receive, and checked once again to see that it read the same amount. 470 million credits displayed on the miniscule holoscreen that projected from the device, and Damien struggled to grasp the reality of him simply being handed a fortune. His benefactor had claimed membership to the Talons, a clandestine organization with the notorious reputation of a classy, skilled, and intelligent pirate faction. He was not sure what machiavellian scheme would necessitate uplifting an ignorant youth like himself, but he felt overwhelming joy to finally be free of the poverty and unsafe conditions of his home on Erebus.
Determined to take this opportunity to live his life to the fullest, his eyes scanned every protruding sign and placard for clues that would lead to his true destination: the zero grav drydock and shipyard. Despite the ship’s modest size, it managed to contain an area solely designated for the construction and refitting of space vessels. In order to maximize it’s serviceable capability, it was not actually located inside the station, but instead extended into space, parallel to its axis of rotation. After experiencing the freedom of flight through uncharted space, Damien felt the growing desire to captain a vessel of his own bloom within his chest. He wished to sail through space, whenever he wished it, to whatever destination he so chose. When Damien reached the drydocks, he talked to a grease-stained man named Ulrich Pelt assured that he could outfit any starship he could get his hands on, adding on boastfully that every square inch of it would surpass Damien’s standards and expectations by the time Ulrich and his crew were finished. Utterly convinced by the man’s apparent capability, Damien soon found a broker who showed him a listing of known manufactured hull types, by every major and minor manufacturer. One hull type in particular grabbed his notice, holding it tight in a vice grip, though he did not recognize the company or group - an organization simply listed as the Heralds who named their ship hulls with strangely organic designators. The broker noticed Damien’s awestruck expression as a beacon of financial opportunity, and flashed a knowing grin. Apparently, the Heralds were a race of highly advanced, but seemingly extinct, aliens that existed throughout the galaxy prior to known civilization. The only trace of them or their civilization existed as cryptic artifacts and their incredibly limited supply of esoteric space vessels.
Damien mouthed a silent prayer to whichever unknown goddess from whatever far-flung rock in the galaxy for the apparent blessing, as the broker informed him they had recently traded for a Herald Destroyer-class ship to be delivered to the station within the month. Allegedly, someone had sold the ship off in order to get it onto the wider market and out of sight of their incredibly nosy neighbors. Coincidentally, it met nearly every mark and metric that Damien had in mind for a star vessel; being a fast yet durable and destructive craft with more than enough room for a sizeable crew. He sat down with several Stardust Port Authority workers, including the confident Ulrich, and spent long hours of the station’s ‘day’ to detail the modifications and alterations to be added, alongside detailed explanations of every major ship system and part. When the dealings finally came to a close, and the broker and engineer’s commission fees were met in full, Damien’s extravagant fortune was whittled down to slightly over 70 million credits. Once the specifics of his commission were recorded in triplicate, he received his own copy and was sent off to wander the station for something to occupy his time.
Surprisingly, despite the amount of engaging activity that occupied his day, exhaustion had yet to creep into his bones, and he felt an eagerness to explore urge him onward throughout the station’s many levels.
Fortunately, the SDS was a neutral melting pot of backgrounds and cultures, which allowed for a staggering amount of diversity in cuisine and entertainment. One could easily gorge themselves on New Terran hamburg steak, or sip Valhallan spirits, all while enjoying the gyrations of Freeport dancers. After many rounds of agonizing deliberation, Damien finally settled on a small installation that was practically an alleyway between two established compartments. There was only enough room to sit or stand, and the bar where the sole chef and proprietor worked was little more than a repurposed shelf. Despite the environment, Damien found himself sampling Prion-spiced meats and noodle based entremets drenched in a smoky, flavorful sauce. He drank in the experience with a warm, fully belly, finally allowing fatigue to soak into his muscles. The content sensation of a satisfying meal threatened to make him lose all sense of decorum and fall soundly asleep in the corner of the restaurant, but an excited snippet of conversation filtered into the tight space from the wider corridor at that moment, anchoring him to wakefulness.
“Can you believe it? Nearly a half million more creds, and I’ll finally be joining you in the stars!” A jovial younger adult, wearing the style typical of most lower-class Federation citizens, announced as they bounced alongside an older, grizzly Federation pilot, judging by their own appearance.
“You’d be better off buying up cargo and sticking to the safe trade routes, Malkheim. It takes a better pilot than you to perform a successful patrol.” The older man replied sternly, not sparing even a glance toward their young follower as the pair plodded down a glowing walking lane.
“Ugh… I’ve passed the piloting course with flying colors, and I know my way around the ship systems, sir.” The youth, Malkheim, retorted with a tone heavy with sarcasm.
“Besides,” they continued, shoving their hands into the pockets of their environment suit, “it’s not like I need to know how to do sub-light slingshots around high grav bodies for a firefight with pirates!”
“It’s not guaranteed you won’t need to, but it never hurts to be prepared.” The older man, likely a Star Captain in the Federation by his demeanor, grumbled in a final response. Their conversation likely continued well beyond that, but by that point the pair had walked out of earshot of the alcove bar, and the ambient din of station noise swallowed their voices without leaving a mote of discernable sound.
As Damien languidly rose from his chair, the importance of the Captain’s words began to settle upon his soul. In truth, he did not have the slightest formation of a thought toward even the most basic aspects of ship piloting, due to his assumption that it would all be performed by a dutiful ship AI. He felt the desire to tackle his lackluster qualifications, but the rugged molars of sleep were already grinding away at his mind, gradually turning each though into a worthless, gray paste. He could barely manage to shuffle his feet underneath him while keeping one eye open, and thus his primary course of action would be to find an acceptable place to collapse into a heap. Stardust Station housed many hab-lounges and coffin-hotels, though many avoided the latter due to crippling claustrophobia. One such business, boasting a discount in observation of some Federation Holiday, had a welcoming holo-sign hovering nearby. Despite the station existing in a neutral patch of space, many companies did not feel deterred from exerting what little sovereignty they could muster in the immediate vicinity of their businesses. Feeling a gust of serendipity urge him onward, Damien proceeded to stumble awkwardly past their front door. In his haze of lethargy, he could barely assemble enough conversational skills for long enough to tactfully book a hab for himself.
Although the clerk held enough disdain normally reserved for the drunken shamblers that frequented certain sectors of the station, their chosen expression showcased three times the pity of a saint. With some effort, Damien successfully requested a modest, planet-side compartment that he could promptly collapse into.
“Er… certainly, sir. We have just one more fresh hab ready for occupancy. Would you perhaps like a wake-up call along with your complimentary early station-day meal…?” They asked tentatively, slowly pushing over an open pamphlet and a keycard with the number and business’ colorful symbol shining in a dull, holo-light purple.
“Yeahhhhh… sure, that… that sounds amaze-ful…” Damien slurred in response, languidly slapping his hand atop the proffered items before groggily dragging it into a pocket on his dingy vacsuit. He then turned with intention to wander the halls in search of blissful sleep, only to be interrupted by the clerk’s patient, yet somewhat stern voice.
“Sir… you will have to pay in order to use our services.”
“Oh! Oh, yeah. You’re… you’re right about that…” He sheepishly responded, rotating himself to once more face the clerk, before relinquishing his credstick.
The swift report of mechanical keystrokes sounded repetitively in a strange, clerical song, easing the young man into a comfortable trance as he leaned against the counter. The administrative melody must have lulled him too effectively, or else the fangs of sleep may have sunk too deep, as before too long Damien found himself nearly splayed out on the gold-speckled black marble. A rough, forced cough captured his attention a few moments later as his credstick was placed in front of him. The clerk held a practiced smile as he graciously allowed the haggard boy enough time to regain his composure.
“Here is your credit stick, sir. I have entered you into our database for ease of service on any future visits, and I hope you will come to enjoy your stay with us. Thank you for choosing to rest with Habitation West.” The clerk stated, repeating the business’ obvious practiced and professional send-off.
Damien muttered acknowledgment and spun off, dragging himself through the dimly lit hallways beyond the front desk, in search of the door to his own habitation lounge. Thanks to the color coding of the keycard, he did not spend precious moments of lucidity on simple navigation. Instead, he was guided by lines of softly glowing holographic light in muted blue, then purple. They led him straight to the border of his personal, temporary lodgings until he fell past the door into the room itself. Beyond a section of floor-to-ceiling shielded panes, the barren surface of the planet stretched in seemingly every direction, filling the room with a dull orange light. Before he was truly aware of it, his head plummeted solidly against the double layered pillows on the waiting loft bed. Damien rapidly dissolved into the realm of sleep, with his last waking thoughts concerning his amazement toward the pock-marked surface from his new horizontal angle.
Damien eventually awakened to a room soaked in darkness, as the station had since revolved to the planet’s night side. He groaned loudly as he stretched his body to its limit. Groggily pulling himself into an upright position, he slapped a hand onto a light panel by the side of the bed, tinging the room with diffuse, blue light. He took stock of his surroundings for the first time, noting the fairly modern design of the room as a whole. Not only did it possess a cozy reading nook adjacent to the viewing wall, but a loft just above it. His mouth hung agape as realization struck him at once; such an attractive room must have clearly been upsold to him during his time of sleepless stupor the night before.
Damien cursed under his breath, shaking himself fully awake before shuffling out the door of his temporary abode. The silhouetted shade of the planet behind him loomed in the distance as an impassive observer as the grey door slid soundlessly shut.
Recalling his lack of credentials from the day before, the young man decided to stride directly toward the education centers located on the far side of the merchant quarter. He surmised that in order to become a successful pilot capable of sailing the stars, he needed more than passing knowledge of a starship’s systems. He followed the hololanes dutifully, weaving through traffic with little conflict. Upon his arrival, he was surprised to find that the vast majority of offered courses were delivered through virtual environments. He had assumed it would allow for larger classes, or for professors to not be required to be physically present at every lecture. With the flexibility of choice before him, he selected six ‘standard’ courses, which were offered free of charge by the remote institute, as a sort of welcoming incentive. However, any further education would come at a price, with each additional ‘elected’ course being a flat rate of two million credits. Not wanting to overload his mind or his account so early in his journey, he set his sights for a humble course load. The selected curriculum was only eight courses, centering around his desire for a more leisurely adventure among the stars.
The instruction for Basic and Standard Piloting, Computer Science, Cyber Security, and Diplomacy were not excessively intensive, only requiring a handful of practical virtual exams to grasp a full understanding of the topic. As his course load shifted to the more physical studies of Industry, Mechanics, and Standard Combat Training, Damien started to feel the weeks of trilling, virtual model manipulation, and real-time ship assessment begin to break him down. Before he experienced the sophistry of space station life, he believed it would be impossible to become exhausted from simulated exercise, or envision the inner workings of a star vessel as anything other than rapturous. Eventually, he found himself dragging himself along to and from station lodging and school, bubbles of nausea rising within his stomach each time he overheard engineers speak of performing maintenance. As the curriculum neared its end, Damien resolved himself to never undertake vital ship operation without the bare minimum of assistance, and grinned wistfully at the prospect of hiring a crew of his own.
After an exceptionally grueling exam period passed, Damien graduated from the SDS Captain’s Institute with above average marks in all courses he held a passion for. As he strode freely from the institute, he silently resolved to be more sparing with his course load, should he yearn for more education. As budding elation built within him, a snippet of conversation from two younger Federation citizens slowed his steps to a halt.
“So you know the deal, right? Once I get the ship, you help me build up a couple million creds, and then you can get your own frigate!”
“Think we can get a good deal by scrapping parts? I don’t think we really need that second arsenal space… We could have really used a lounge, you know.”
“Hey hey hey! My ship, my layout! Besides, there’s enough empty space in the hull, we’ll be able to furnish it with whatever else we’ll actually need as we go along!”
Damien reversed his original heading, making sure to make his way to the proper lane in lieu of haphazardly weaving through oncoming foot traffic. He gave his best attempt to seem naturally interested as he sidled up to the two, even as knots were forming deep in his gut.
“What uh.. What will you guys do to make money? It might be different for a frigate, but renovations are usually really pricey.”
The two Federation citizens exchanged brief looks of confusion mixed with mild irritation before turning to face the curious graduate.
“We’re gonna be couriers. People have places to go, and things they need to be other places. So we’ll be the ones to get them there! I bought one of them Red Dagger frigate hulls to keep things light and fast, but also to keep our cargo space at a premium. They’re gonna hafta pay TOP CRED to use our vessel! Well, eventually.”
“Yeah! And if we can get them to agree to multiple trips, we can even upcharge them as much as twice the going rate! What about you? What are you going to do?”
The question, though expected as a natural part of conversation, hit Damien squarely in the chest. Anxiety curled its long fingers around his extremities as beads of sweat began to dot his brow. He had often thought about his ship, and the things he wished to put on or inside of it as well, but his duties as a pilot failed to fully form in his mind.
“I uh… I still haven’t decided. Lot’s of uh… lots of things to focus on before I can sail off on my first voyage, heh…”
He stammered out a half-hearted defense with a light chuckle, hoping the two wouldn’t notice the stench of incompetence wafting from him in waves. The pair simply shared another quick glance amongst themselves, with unreadable emotion in comparison to the previous time, and shrugged their shoulders in silent acceptance.
“Well… we wish you good fortune out there, on whatever it is you decide on doing!”
“Just uh… leave the shipping and courier business to us professionals, huh?” The first graduate flashed a cocky grin and jabbed a thumb towards his chest before passing Damien by, soon melding into the flow of station denizens along with his partner.
Damien glanced down at himself, taking measure of his person as though he could perceive the entirety of his being. Questions flitted through his mind like light gnats, buzzing incessantly. What was it that he wished to do? Mercenary work? Freighter duty? He considered his yearning for the wider reaches of space beyond the war-blasted rock he grew up on, and reasoned that he could even possibly become an explorer. Not a single future path or occupation crystalized into being, despite his feverish introspection, the only thing resulting from the search being a defeated sigh. He turned himself around then, willing his legs to carry him to some part of the station as he resigned himself to the possibility of a bland, uneventful future.
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I recently passed the patent bar and I wanted to share my reflections on the process and experience. There is a fairly sparse amount of recent info about this exam so hopefully these thoughts are helpful. Let me know if you have any questions or if anything I said needs clarification.
Reflection on Studying:
All of my thoughts and recommendations are under the assumption that you own the PLI course. Some of these tips may be applicable with other resources, but I can’t comment on them as I used PLI for the vast majority of my study. For the most part I recommend doing things exactly as PLI says. That being said, here are things I highly recommend that PLI doesn’t cover:
1: Practice lookup.
Not covering this is far and away the biggest flaw in the current PLI course. I understand why they don’t recommend it, and it would be amazing if I had the time or memory to be able to study until I recall ~80% of the information like they say you should be able to by the end of the course, but I didn’t.
I looked up exactly 99/100 questions. I know that because the only question I didn’t look up was a repeat question from the ‘03 exam. The testing software was much much faster than I thought it would be, maybe 2-3s to load 2100, R & L Appendices, and any of the other longer chapters and even shorter for the short ones. So why not look everything up? Half of the answers were verbatim from the MPEP.
BUT, the text in the MPEP is extremely complicated. If you don’t study you will not be able to parse the important from unimportant information. You cannot show up on test day knowing nothing and expect to look-up every question.
Instead, practice look-up on every question of every mini & practice exam. Do not answer the question until you find the answer in the MPEP and read the reasoning it provides. Not only is this an amazing way to learn the information, it helps you build a skill you will 100% need to pass the exam. The timing on the practice exams isn’t very important, and it matters even less on the mini exams. So take the time to find the answer in the MPEP and read the surrounding information, the more you refine this skill the faster you will be on exam day.
2: Use your scrap paper during the exam.
I used scrap paper to keep track of my answers during my practice tests, and did the same thing on the exam. This was suggested by Wysebridge and I believe John Watts as well. I didn’t use any information from either of them outside of this.
On exam day I used the 15 minute “tutorial” to create a grid on the paper I was given, and got back early from my lunch break to do the same thing again before starting the second section. This was very helpful for the questions I ended up needing to come back to as I could jot down my thoughts and where I had already looked up answers so I wasn’t going over things I had already covered when I came back later in the test.
This is really all I used it for, they recommend tracking more info such as wrong answer choices, notes from your lookup etc. but I found that to take too much time with not enough benefit when I did it in practice.
MISC. THOUGHTS:
I actually found the recordings of the PLI supplementary webinars very helpful, but wouldn’t necessarily recommend them if you are pressed for time.
Things I wish I did:
Read the table of contents of every chapter in the MPEP.
Made flashcards for the chapter quiz/fill in the blank section.
Did the homeworks & true/false exercises
Things I wish I didn’t do:
Rewatch PLI lectures for the chapters I was confused on
Wait so long to start the post course. I would do one pass through of the lectures and go to the PC immediately this is where most of the learning occurs
Watch the claim drafting modules, there was next to no information in these videos that help with the exam but they were mildly entertaining
Reflection on test:
In terms of content, I felt that the earlier chapters were covered far more than PLI said they would be. There were many many many questions that came from 100-600 & 800, and way less questions in 2100, 700, 1200, 1800 than any of the practice materials.
Out of 35 USC I had no questions on 103, a couple questions on 102, and a lot of questions on 112. I also felt like the PTAB Practice guide was fairly heavily tested for what it is and I got more than a couple questions from that.
I managed to finish (meaning every question answered and reviewed) with 5 minutes left on the first section and 15 minutes on the second.
I am extremely thankful to be done with this exam and grateful for John, Gene, and the rest of the PLI team for continuing to work on and improving the course. I would love to see them talk more about look-up strategies in the future, especially now that the testing software seems to be faster than in the past.

First of all, for those of you who don't know we exist: IGCSE's are a very rigorous course completed over the duration of 2 years by students from 8th standard till 10th. We have a vast syllabus(I had over 200 chapters across 10 subjects, with multiple exams for each subject) and our board exams last for over 2 months with multiple exams a day and no gaps. If you want some comparison about the difficulty you can head over to https://pastpapers.papacambridge.com/viewecaie/igcse-mathematics-0606-2023-oct-nov-0606-w23-qp-22-pdf to see our maths paper for 10th standard.
Now I want to pursue Computer Science in college, so I am obviously taking Advanced Maths, Maths, Physics and Chem along with English in A levels, which is the board we have in 11th and 12th. My question is, does the Physics, Chemistry, Maths and Further maths compare with the syllabus of JEE Advanced? Can I totally ditch school, focus only on my external coaching for the exam, and still expect to get all A+ by literally just showing up at the exams? Also how do I do prep for Practicals is that's the case? This would help my family, as I could just drop out of my super expensive school(we haven't paid the entire fees) and appear as a private candidate(this would also allow me to drop english which I suck at for some reason). Or do I need to attend school, and sideline the JEE?
Tldr: I am prepping for the JEE, can I ditch my school and just show up for A level exams to get a very good score? Taking Further maths, Phy, Chem, Maths and English. Also got good grades in these subjects(minus english) in IGCSE. My results: https://www.reddit.com/IGCSE2024/comments/1cyy38h/results/

Personally this and last season for me where the ones where I was actually looking forward to each new chapter, the other seasons just felt more like chore to read for me... like it just felt like nothing happened aside from mostly slice of life stuff and then the big tournament at the end. It is pretty interesting that they went this route.. when this story started, it was just about a blonde high school girl who had to much sugar and convinced her classmates to make electronic music for the lulz... now we have a story where the fate of the world depends on the units coming together as they battle the evil AI in a physical representation of the collective unconscious or some shit.
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Six chapters into Saving Grace and not sure I want to continue….
Where do I even begin.
To start with the FMC is sixteen years old. It says she was “little more than a child” not long ago then everyone keeps referring to her as a “woman.” Sixteen is a child. Did she need to be sixteen for the story to be written? No, no she did not. Do I give a flying fuck about “historical realism”? No, no I do not, because none of us are reading romance books to read about how girls and women were actually treated in the past. If we wanted to read about that there is plenty of historical fiction or nonfiction to choose from.
So she’s 16 and has already suffered a physically and mentally abusive relationship with a grown man. Her brother, who is portrayed as caring towards her, wants her to remarry, so he LIES to her about the weather in Scotland so she will agree to go meet her betrothed there. So this 16 year old abuse victim is now manipulated by her own brother - who, again, is portrayed as good - to remarry another man right after her abusive husband dies. Great.
In the first chapter someone is thinking about how she is barren, and how “her only reason for existing” was gone. And this character’s internal monologue is written to be showing pity and concern for her, but since she can’t have kids she might as well not even exist at all because that’s all a woman exists for. So that’s…. awesome.
Then, on her wedding night, this sixteen year old child-bride DV victim is trying to sleep and her grown adult husband wants to have sex with her. He explicitly thinks about how he will “overwhelm” her so much that she will not realize what’s happening to her, and that’s how he’ll “convince” her to have sex. Oh but don’t worry, it’s made very clear he wouldn’t actually force himself on her, oh no no, he’ll just pressure her and intimidate and “overwhelm” her instead. A sixteen year old. Who just left an abusive marriage with beatings and painful sex. He couldn’t wait a few days for her to get comfortable? Nope.
And then we get to read all about a sixteen year old having her first orgasm. Amazing 👍
Again, why exactly did the FMC need to be a young teen? Why is such a sad and serious situation being written as slightly humorous and very lighthearted in tone? Why are all the male characters treating her like a brainless object??
I need to know if the rest of Garwood’s books are like this. I had heard really good things and am honestly shocked.

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Elliot Matthews was the epitome of perfection. With his perfectly coiffed hair, pristine school uniform, and an academic record that could make any parent proud, he lived a life meticulously crafted for success. Every morning, he woke up at precisely 6:00 AM, his alarm never a second early or late. His room was a sanctuary of order: books arranged alphabetically, clothes sorted by color, and not a speck of dust in sight.
Elliot's school day followed a rigid schedule. He attended all his classes, answered every question correctly, and handed in every assignment on time. His teachers adored him, his classmates respected him, and his parents praised him endlessly. Elliot believed he had everything he needed. In his mind, there was no room for error, no space for anything—or anyone—who might disrupt his flawless existence.
On a crisp Monday morning, Elliot's life took an unexpected turn. He was in the school courtyard, finishing a chapter of his physics textbook, when a loud, unmistakable sound of a motorcycle engine roared through the air. Heads turned, and whispers filled the courtyard. Elliot barely looked up, uninterested in whatever spectacle was unfolding.
The motorcycle came to a halt, and its rider, a boy with unruly dark hair and a leather jacket, dismounted. He exuded an aura of rebellion and nonchalance that contrasted sharply with Elliot's pristine appearance. This was Oliver Blackwood, a new transfer student, whose reputation had preceded him. Tales of his previous school were filled with rumors of fights, detentions, and a general disregard for authority.
Elliot returned to his book, hoping to ignore the newcomer, but fate had other plans. In homeroom, Mrs. Jacobs announced that Oliver would be joining their class. The empty seat next to Elliot was the only one available. With a smirk, Oliver slid into the seat, his presence immediately disrupting Elliot's carefully maintained bubble of perfection.
"Hey, I'm Oliver," he said, leaning back in his chair as if he owned the place.
"Elliot," came the terse reply. Elliot didn't bother to look up, his eyes fixed on his notes.
Throughout the morning, Oliver's antics grated on Elliot's nerves. He doodled in his notebook during lectures, whispered jokes to nearby students, and showed a blatant disregard for the rules Elliot held dear. During English class, Oliver was called upon to read a passage. Instead of the usual dry recitation, he infused the words with a dramatic flair that drew laughter from the class. Elliot couldn't comprehend how someone could take something so seriously with such little respect.
By lunchtime, Elliot's irritation had reached its peak. He found a secluded corner of the library to escape the chaos. As he immersed himself in a calculus problem, a shadow fell across his desk.
"Why so serious?" Oliver's voice cut through the silence.
Elliot looked up, his eyes narrowing. "Some of us care about our education," he replied coldly.
Oliver shrugged, unfazed. "And some of us care about living a little. You should try it sometime."
With that, Oliver walked away, leaving Elliot fuming. How dare this reckless boy intrude on his life? Elliot was determined to keep his distance, to maintain his perfect world. But as the days passed, Oliver's presence became harder to ignore. He seemed to pop up everywhere—cracking jokes in class, drawing crowds in the cafeteria, and even challenging the teachers with a confidence Elliot found both infuriating and perplexing.
One afternoon, as Elliot was leaving school, he saw Oliver leaning against his motorcycle, chatting with a group of students. Their laughter echoed through the parking lot, a stark contrast to the silence of Elliot's solitary walk. For a brief moment, Elliot felt a pang of something unfamiliar—a mixture of curiosity and resentment. Shaking off the feeling, he quickened his pace, determined to maintain his distance.
Yet, as much as he tried, Elliot couldn't shake the sense that his perfectly ordered life was on the brink of chaos, and Oliver Blackwood was the catalyst.

Part 17: That song from your dreams, you always forget after waking up
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“Life is a song played only for you,” says the Stranger to the Seeker, as the two walk upwards on their path. A group of animals follow them to the volcano.
,
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“Have you ever listened to the melody of the universe? Have you seen the cosmic dance of energy and matter? Have you felt the rhythms of time and the vibration of space in your being?
It's in the wind. It's in the rays of our sun. It's in every atom. The wonderful Music of Life. Everything is part of it. Every animal, every plant, all beings sing along to the Music of Life. It's the eternal sound of infinity.
The Music of Life is the song of the big bang unfolding, the expression of the infinite in finite space. If you listen closely, then you will find the Music of Life beating in each of our hearts. You will find it in our breath. In the inhale and the exhale. In attraction and repulsion. In both negative and positive.
Throughout time and space, the cosmic melody keeps playing. It's in the rhythm of the universe. You see it in the duality of reality. In the interconnectedness of the universe. It flows like waves through all dimensions, playing in all layers of reality.
No word can ever fully describe its vastness. It can never be limited by any concepts. It can't fit into the mold of any symbol. It is beyond all that.”
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The fox in their party starts grinning. “You say, no concept can grasp it and yet, you just turned it into a concept by calling it 'Music'. That's just another label.”
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The Stranger smirks as well.
“It's Exactly because I found no better label to describe it, that I chose to call it 'the Music of Life'. What I am trying to convey with this, is the code of reality. It's the fractal pattern of the universe. And when you see it, you find the true beauty in all things. Listen to it closely. Open your ears to the universe, because it wrote a special song just for you.
A beautiful song within the Music of Life. A segment of the All with great significance. This song is called 'The Song of Humanity'. It begins with a mere whisper and ends with a thunder of joy. A song of great drama, of challenge and of transformation. A song of tragedy and victory. A song of hope and liberation. A song for all people of the world. Of any color, of any faith, of any tribe... Standing together in Harmony, united in the great symphony.
One night, when we all come together at the mountain, we will sing our story to the stars and the universe will listen.
It will be a long journey, but if we all make it there, to Axis Mundi, then we can sing this song together. And the promise will finally be fulfilled. The promise 'to meet again'. You remember it on the level of your soul, don't you? Yes, I talk to you directly. Only a limited number of people will ever read this. Do you know how many?”
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The Seeker knows the exact number, but they don't dare to speak it out. They begin to understand. They nod. As the Seekers struggles to speak, the Stranger continues:
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“Yes, it is exactly what you are thinking. So no matter which tradition, belief system or ideology you follow, I hope that you see, that we are all on the same page. Now let me ask you another question:
Did you ever hear an unknown song, when you were sleeping? A beautiful melody, which is not like anything, you ever heard before. And as soon as you wake up, the song fades away and the melody is forgotten. This unknown music yearns to be sung by you. You try to remember that song again when you are awake, but you can't find it, neither on radio, nor on any playlist.
What you are seeking is your own part to the song of Humanity. It's the song of your soul! Your own melody, your contribution to the great song. It's like a piece of a puzzle, that only you posses. And then, when you have found it, you will make the journey to the great mountain, Axis Mundi, where everyone plays their part.”
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“Everyone?” asks the pigeon. “You mean... Even me as well?”
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“All of us,” confirms the Stranger. “Otherwise you wouldn't be here now, listening. Everyone of us is here to find their part within the song.
But don't take that too literally. Don't forget, when I speak of the 'music of Life', I am using metaphors. It's something indescribable. It's the vibration of the physical universe. It's the actions happening. It's the story of each and everyone. When we find our soul song within the song of humanity, we find our story within the book of humanity.”
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The dog looks confused. In his head he starts calculating. “Is this some kind of code?”
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The eagle looks at the Stranger with skepticism. His eye lids become narrow. “How do you know all that? Who are you?”
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The Stranger points at the Ketchup stain on his shoulder. “I am the kinda guy walking around with Ketchup on his outfit.”
https://preview.redd.it/w9ghkm48282d1.jpg?width=1024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d86ea49957bd100fcd410aaa2da19e8c15e24209
The Seeker sighs, facepalming. “That's why I told you, going to McDonalds is a bad idea...”
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“Anyway,” continues the Stranger to his listeners. “That's not it yet. We need to make peace with nature. That's why we need to visit her.”
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“Wait...,” interrupts the fox. “You are telling me, you haven't even talked to nature yet?”
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The Stranger scratches his head, while laughing nervously.
“Well... that might be the toughest part yet... You know... Nature is not exactly a fan of Humanity... Or to be precise, she is angry... Really angry... But I am sure, that we will somehow manage to convince her... Pretty sure...”
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“We are doomed,” sighs the goat.
The chickens eyes start twitching. He wants to go back.
The squirrel didn't even listen.
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The Stranger sees the restlessness of the crowd and pulls the Seeker towards him.
“Leave it to us. Together, we will find a way.”
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The surprised Seeker is caught off guard.
“Wait... What? What do you mean by 'us'?” they ask confused.
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“Together you and me, will walk the highest path,” continues the Stranger undeterred. “We will get our 'platinum trophy'. For this we will need to make peace. Peace between humans. Peace between humanity and nature. Peace between the individual human and his life. Peace in the mind, peace in the body, peace in the soul. The conflict must end. That's why we'll visit Natures Throne. We'll prove to her that we are serious about this. The world tree lies on the northern path, far beyond the volcano.”
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The fox becomes curious. His ears listen up. “You're telling me, there is something after the volcano?”
“Only after we surpass the volcano, does the journey truly begin,” grins the Stranger.
Some of the animals start mumbling.
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The skeptical eagle, flies from pine tree to pine tree, observing calmly.
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The lonesome bear is walking at a distance, he grunts every now and then to show, that he is still listening.
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The sly fox licks his muzzle, while gazing at the bunny.
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The innocent bunny is picking flowers along the path.
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The talkative squirrel speaks all thoughts loudly and gets easily distracted by nuts and shiny things.
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The critical goat can't stop complaining to everyone, that his legs are hurting.
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The quiet pigeon is observing everything neutrally.
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The insecure dog thinks about, how to befriend the others.
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The arrogant cat treats everyone like a servant and makes some nasty comments.
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The fearful chicken in alien costume regrets following them and thinks about excuses to go back to the bar.
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The confused goldfish has no idea what is happening, for some reason his bag of water defies the laws of gravity as it rolls the hill upwards without being pushed.
“Where am I?” screams the goldfish in terror. “And who are these people?”
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“Do you have any idea what that fish is saying?” asks the Seeker the Stranger.
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“I don't speak Spanish,” says the Stranger.
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Meanwhile the goat drains everyone's energy, by constantly criticizing and complaining about everything:
“My back hurts. There is too much sulfur in the air. It's too warm. Life is pain. I want to leave this place.”
The Goat is an energy vampire. His favorite conversation topics are taxes and insurances.
His catchphrases are:
“Please feel sorry for me! I am always the victim.”
“I am done with this Life!”
and “Earth is a prison planet!”
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The pigeon has a hard time staying awake, as they are listening to the goat with their full attention. Even though it drains them of all their energy, the pigeon doesn't want to seem rude.
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Meanwhile the chicken walks next to the bear. They are both walking with an uncomfortable silence, until the chicken breaks the ice:
“Did you know, that birds are not real?”
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The bear suddenly stops in his tracks. He is speechless.
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“Birds are actually drones, that the government uses to spy on us,” continues the chicken in an alien costume. “Some say that the birds are slowly being replaced, but my stance is, that there never were any birds to begin with...”
“Dude,” interrupts the bear. “You are a fucking chicken.”
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The chicken inspects his wings.
“Oh these? Where I am from everyone wears red feathers as protective armor. However earth-seeds, such as you wouldn't know about that. It's like an Andromeda thing, ye know.”
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Meanwhile the dog is seeking enlightenment.
“I almost had it,” barks the dog. “I always see it in the corner of my eye... Enlightenment, that is... But I can never grasp it.”
“I have already found enlightenment a long time ago,” purrs the cat. “Let's do an AMA. You can Ask Me Anything.”
Suddenly the dog is distracted by some smell, turns his head and sees something moving at the corner of his eye.
“There it is! Enlightenment!” barks the dog euphoric, while hunting his own tail.
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Quietly following behind the group is a male scorpion called Lachlan. He is the last of his kind. He remains hidden. His gaze is fixed on the Seeker.
“This is him... Finally, after all this time, I found him. The one, who shot the explosive arrow. I will now avenge you, Chloe.”
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The conversations stop one after the other, as all ears listen to the Strangers whistling. A song that sounds familiar to all of them. The Stranger creates harmonious sounds with his mouth. Like an ancient language, long forgotten, buried deep in the sand.
The pigeon joins in. Whistling with a sweet voice. The squirrel claps in rhythm. The fox joins in, snapping. The chicken, the bear and the dog move their heads. The pigeon and eagle dance in the air. The cat, squirrel and bunny dance on ground. Even the Goat taps with his hoofs and nods.
The song becomes more powerful. It's getting stronger and stronger. All start to hum along.
The squirrel manifests a drum set. In her wild drumming she tells a story of joy and freedom. Her optimism and joyful attitude, warms even the coldest of hearts. She tells a story about finding joy even in the darkest nights.
The goat manifests a violin. His play tells of sadness. But hidden deep within his melody, there is an inner kindness that no one ever sees. His music tells a story about a goat whose fleece will turn into gold.
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The cat manifests a piano. Each key, she presses with special care. Always striving for perfection. She sings a song that starts with loneliness and ends in happiness. Her song is about following her heart even in the storm.
The fox manifests a saxophone. His song tells a story of coolness and smoothness, walking with boldness through life. Playing pranks and overcoming challenges. His song speaks about laughing at the cosmic joke.
The eagle manifests a bass guitar. He plays with confidence. He sings a song of justice, of integrity and honor. His song is authentic, he doesn't care what people like him. His song speaks about following your dreams.
The bear manifests an acoustic guitar. A tune of calm and peace with a softness you wouldn't expect from such a giant bear. His music tells a story about standing up for himself.
The dog starts beat boxing. Creating sounds with his snout, like a DJ at a rooftop party. He is the one guy, everyone wants to be friends with. His song is about finding himself.
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The pigeon starts to sing. A wonderful song of kindness and purity, a song of compassion directly from the heavens. Their song tells a story of the silent one, who begins to talk.
The bunny is playing with the triangle. A simple, but beautiful play with sounds, like church bells. Her soul sings of an appreciation for all the beautiful things in the world. She faces the world with unwavering curiosity and wonder. Her song is one of Healing and transforming.
The chicken is shredding with his electric guitar. He is going full heavy metal. A very fast rhythm. His head starts banging. He takes a deep inhale and then screams like a metal core lead singer. His soul song speaks of finding inner strength and hidden bravery.
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When it was the goldfish's turn, he starts to rap in Spanish. Rapping about his story of hardship and challenge, of stubbornness and endurance. His song is about never giving up faith in yourself.
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Even the scorpion who observes everything from a distance, feels compelled to clap along to the music. But he resists the urge.
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All voices, sounds and instruments mixed together into One single, harmonious symphony. Everyone was playing their part. The symphony got louder and louder. The song mutates, it gets even more complex and beautiful.
All of their hearts were open for a moment. There was a unity of consciousness. A synchronization with source. All were One in this harmonious symphony.
At the very moment, as the song comes to it's crescendo, all participants had a sudden vision. A sudden flash. One single image, which was different for every one of them.
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All breathed out in unison. As the song was over, everything was quiet for a moment. All have seen, what is possible to achieve through Togetherness. They were overcome with emotions. There it was again, this joy, they thought, they had lost. This hidden light revealed itself. Some cried tears of joy, others were hiding their faces.
All LEVEL UP
+ 10.000 EXP
SEEKER LVL 12!
+ 10 Max Vibes (50 Total)
+ 11 Companions
+ 5 Love
NEW ABILITY UNLOCKED: WAVE OF LIGHT
NEW ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: THE GATHERING OF THE ARCHETYPES
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The mysterious stranger clears his throat:
“Perhaps now that I finally have your attention... Shall we talk about 'the tribe of Humanity'?”
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TO BE CONTINUED
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^{for more content visit:} We_Are_Humanity
^{Find previous part Here}
https://www.reddit.com/We_Are_Humanity/comments/1ctgawz/the_awakening_of_the_heart/
^{Find next part Here:}
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START JOURNEY HERE: https://www.reddit.com/We_Are_Humanity/comments/17zwf78/the_seeker_and_the_mysterious_stranger_part_1_of_7/
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Checkpoint 4
https://www.reddit.com/We_Are_Humanity/comments/1cbhoml/turning_shit_into_gold/
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Special Bonus Chapters:
THE ONE TRUE SEEKER AND THE QUESTION OF FREE WILL
https://www.reddit.com/We_Are_Humanity/comments/1cnaanw/special_bonus_chapter_the_one_true_seeker_and_the/

It started with a dream…
For the past 10+ years I have had this vague idea/thoughts of a dystopian/fantasy type of world that I would think about often. It’s never been anything besides my imagination running wild for all of this time.
I have always been an avid reader of books such as Harry Potter, Hunger Games, and a lot of fantasy novels, etc.
Less than a week ago I had a dream. The following night I had another dream.
By the end of both dreams I have a story to tell. I have a dystopian/fantasy world, main characters, the journey from start to finish and all of the stops along the way, a plot, plot twists, the dramatic ending of the first book, the beginning and end of the following books, I have the good guys, I have the bad guys, I have the dialogue along the journey, I have the history of the whole dystopian/fantasy world, and much more.
But where do I start? I know physically on the map where the journey starts. I know the characters to start with. But how do I physically start as someone who has never seriously written besides in school?
I reactivated this app just to ask this question to this specific community. My mind is telling me to put a bunch of blank paper on the wall and draw my map and write out everything that I know and want to tell. But how do I actually start?
How did JK Rowling actually start? Suzanne Collins started with Katniss in her bed in District 9 but how did she actually start? All of my favorite fantasy authors all start a little bit different and uniquely but how do they actually start?
Do I create the whole world first? Or do I create the first sentence first? The first paragraph? The first page? The first chapter?
Any and all thoughts/opinions/advice are welcomed.
All of my thoughts have been consumed by this story for almost a week straight and I still don’t know how to physically start and it’s driving me insane!

First/Previous
Nika? Alora? Chiyo called out desperately, as she lashed out with a shockwave of psionic power, blasting the debris constraining her away and sending the trio of Regulators that rushed her staggering back. Anyone? I’m exposed! I could use some help!
The Ilithii had crashed down in a heap of debris, having taken the worst of whatever had hit them, disrupting her natural levitation and causing her to land badly on the ground floor, rolling right into the middle of the huge brawl underneath.
‘They must consider me a priority target!’ Chiyo panicked, hacking and coughing as the dust of the broken wood choked at her lungs. Pushing herself to her feet, she looked around for her friends, but on not spotting any of them headed towards the main entrance, she hoped the others were able to get out, but cursed as she saw the bottleneck of the crowd completely blocking the way out in the mad rush to leave, as if the very building would collapse at any moment.
Though to be fair, that prospect wasn’t an unreasonable one…
Suddenly, Chiyo raised both of her arms up in a telekinetic block, as a drunk with blue fur and a thick, trunk-like snout sprung out of nowhere and threw a wild punch at her head, seeing an easy target, before their fist was halted in mid-air.
Fuck off! Chiyo told the drunk in no uncertain terms as she pushed back with telekinesis, lightly shoving them into the middle of an ongoing mosh pit, before the idiot was very quickly clotheslined by one of the very bloodied avian participants.
Chiyo knew she was in big trouble. Unlike Nika or Jack, she knew there wasn’t a chance in hell she’d survive in a brawl like this for very long. Yet if she tried to levitate above it and lose the crowd cover, the turrets above would quickly pick her out and bring her down, not to mention any other Regulators lurking about that could concentrate their fire.
Quickly considering her options, it was just as quickly decided for her, as she heard the yell of Jack in the far distance, sounding like he was in trouble! If she couldn’t find the others right now, at least she knew where they were going to be!
Unsteady on her feet, Chiyo cursed again as she slipped and fell on some broken glass in an attempt to dodge another drunken patron being rugby tackled to the ground, though fortunately her armour prevented any cuts as she scrambled uneasily back up to her feet as quickly as she could. She was so used to levitating instead of walking, that right now even she had to admit that Nika made some good points about how she needed to get more physically active.
“There!” She heard a voice yell from behind her, and the Ilithii instinctively knew that the Regulators she’d previously knocked down were now right on her tail. Straining with the effort, Chiyo dodged a chair that was thrown at her as she quickly dashed through a break in the crowd, heading towards the bar at the other end of the building. It wasn’t where she wanted to go at all, but she knew that she needed to get herself safe first before she could work out how to help her friends.
She let out a semi-silent yip of pain as one of the ceiling turrets swivelled and opened fire, catching her in the shoulder and causing her to stumble as her shields were quickly depleted. Her armour absorbed most of the impact, though she still felt the hot ripples spread along her back. Desperately, she used her power to grab a nearby bar table, putting as much energy into it as she could as she flung the table up towards the turret, getting blasted to smithereens before it even had a chance to hit.
“There she is! Zruul’s pinged her on turrets! Kill her!”
‘Shit!’ Chiyo swore as she turned around and lashed out at the closest Regulator she could see, focusing her mental energy into a concentrated crunch of psychic power, causing the grey-skinned man to drop their gun and clutch at their spine-covered head in agony as Chiyo broke down the mental defences of their mind and gave him a heavy cluster headache.
Raising her hands, she held up a quick psychic barrier that deflected the burst of plasma shots sent her way up into the air as she kept moving, doing her best to put some distance between her and her attackers, and get some cover in the way too!
Seeing a flash from somewhere upstairs, several accurate shots suddenly rang out and smacked into the chest of another enemy, who quickly panicked and disengaged as their own shields were diminished by the surprise assault.
Thank you, whoever you are! Chiyo projected out, knowing that she didn’t have a safe way to get up to whichever one of her friends had just helped her, though there was still one Regulator left…
“The Ilithii’s at my location!” The last Regulator - a pale-green skinned female with gigantic teeth - snarled into her comms before Chiyo could attempt to use her telekinetic power to grip the being in a psychic chokehold to shut them up.
The being grunted with effort as they shrugged off the effects, before firing wildly with their plasma pistol, blasting a Xarak gangster in the back with a roar of pain as Chiyo desperately threw off their aim with a prod of telekinesis, before quickly igniting her psyblade and lashing out in a sudden burst of movement as she quickly levitated forward, lurching to the side as she lashed out with the blade of pure psychic energy, severing several fingers of the Regulator’s hand as they recognised the danger too late.
“Gah! You fucking bitch! I’ll kill you!” The woman yelled in pain as she clutched at the stumps, trying to numb the pain.
I doubt that. Chiyo retorted as she clenched her fist and lashed out with a telekinetic blast at point blank range, obliterating the front part of the Regulator’s skull, the force sending their corpse blasting back in a spray of flesh and gore.
Extinguishing her psyblade, Chiyo wasted no time in losing herself in the cover of the crowd as she desperately looked for her friends. Briefly she spotted Jack get absolutely bodied by the Redeemer as they both plowed through the heavy crowd around them, but she soon lost them again as she avoided a very drunk-looking couple of amphibians that somehow decided that the chaos of the brawl was a perfect time to dance as if completely oblivious to the mayhem unfolding all around them, casually waltzing around in a circle while somehow avoiding the unconscious or dead bodies around them.
Weaving past them, Chiyo reached the bar, or at least what was left of it.
What remained of the shoddy wooden countertop had been smashed to smithereens in the heat of the brawl, as many empty bottles littered the floor around them, accompanied by overturned tables and broken chairs scattered haphazardly across the sticky floor. The air around her was thick with the acrid stench of alcohol and sweat, mingling with a metallic tang of spilled blood, a strong, pungent smell that burned at the nostrils of the sensitive Ilithii.
‘Gods, the sooner we get out of here the better!’ She thought to herself.
Behind the smashed remains of the bar, Chiyo saw a bunch of smashed and broken bodies - clearly the aftermath of a violent struggle for the booze. Sprawled on the ground with two limbs bent at unnatural angles, Chiyo spotted the creepy Xarak barmen that had told them where the River Giants were, and couldn’t even tell if he was still alive or not with the amount of abuse he had taken.
Amidst the wreckage, several rowdy patrons had taken advantage of the chaos to help themselves to the free booze, laughing and jeering as they stumbled about guzzling stolen drinks, brandishing some of the stolen bottles as weapons as they revelled in the mayhem around them, attacking one another for a greater share of the dubious loot. One red-skinned muscular alien with some rough black haired mutton chops raised up a full bottle of some kind of brown spirit into the air, before another yellow-furred ganger smacked him in the back of the head with a chair, instantly dropping him.
‘Shit, we need a way out!’ The Ilithii cursed. Looking around she saw more and more bodies on the ground as the fighting went on all around the building, and she cringed as she saw one get trodden on as two more still-active patrons were trying to claw at each other’s faces.
It was becoming ever increasingly more difficult to hide now.
“There!” She heard again from somewhere to the side as she looked around for an emergency exit. “Slarah! We found the Ilithii you wanted!”
“Good!” A curt female voice barked. “Their Psion is my fight as we discussed! You three eliminate that Outsider filth! The rest of you with me!”
Chiyo spun around quickly to look at the speaker, prepared for a fight.
This particular Regulator was clearly some kind of officer, if she wasn’t the outright leader of the Regulator Order of the Infernal Harmony. Wearing battlemage armour of slender, woven metal bands, the ethereally beautiful, light-purple-skinned woman with pointy ears even longer than Alora’s lowered her grey hood and stared at Chiyo with the confident expression of a professional well-versed in their field of expertise.
Taking no time to talk, they thrust their staff forward with a powerful blast of arcane energy with an unexpected strength that almost blasted through Chiyo’s psychic shields before the Ilithii focused, quickly countering with a powerful telekinetic shockwave that launched two of the Regulators back before they could open fire on her with their plasma rifles.
Attempting to disengage, Chiyo shuffled backwards to get into cover and buy herself some time, knowing she couldn’t win this fight, but found her movements stifled as the area around her was hit with a slowing spell of some kind.
‘A Force Mage, and a powerful one! She must be the one who collapsed the balcony!’ Chiyo thought to herself. ‘But I’m strong too, and my friends need me!’
The force of her counterattack caused the force mage to grimace as she brought up her staff in a block that was able to take the hit. Chiyo squeezed as she brought the full might of her power to bear, but her enemy was able to hold on long enough that her allies could shoot at Chiyo with full auto, forcing her to abandon her attack and block the shots as best she could, though one got through, smacking her hard in the chest.
Anyone? Help! Chiyo yelled out in the hope that one of her friends could hear her, but nobody could. As several shots were deflected straight up into the air, the only thing that changed was the overhead sprinkler system suddenly turning itself on, causing numerous shouts and curses to be hurled around at the uncomfortable development.
“Zruul? Stop playing around!” The enemy mage, Slarah ordered into her comms, while Chiyo took advantage of the monetary distraction and wildly lashed out with as much telekinetic power as she dared from above, smashing two Regulators with enough unseen force to knock them to the ground, dead or unconscious. Slarah growled and lashed out with power of her own, sending a fissure of telekinetic force that churned the wooden floor between them. Straining with effort, Chiyo pushed back and deflected the attack just before it hit her, causing the fissures to split either side of her.
‘Curses, she and I are equally matched! What can I do?’ Chiyo thought to herself. She recalled all the books and lessons she had learned on how to best use her power, but in that moment of panic, all of that knowledge seemed insufficient.
‘Damnit, I can’t hold on much longer!’ Chiyo thought to herself, until she noticed the trickling of water all around her.
’Wait! That’s it!’
Drawing in the water around her in abundance, Chiyo attacked the force mage again, who had clearly not anticipated Chiyo having any kind of elemental affinity, as though she blocked the kinetic strikes, the momentum of the water was still enough to blast her backwards as the liquid simply flowed around the quick shields she summoned around herself, rattling against her armour and causing Slarah to grunt in pain as she was forced back.
Maintaining her momentum, Chiyo then lashed out with several more well-aimed water blasts at several of the downed Regulators who had been blasted to the floor from the kinetic battle. Though the Regulators had clearly prepared for a fight with the gear to boot, Chiyo hoped her attack was enough to keep them down as Slarah rallied and threw her power at Chiyo, trying to disrupt her concentration.
Grunting with effort, Chiyo found herself desperately holding on, as between her and the enemy mage, a huge congealed blob of water formed, threatening to burst as both of them fought for dominance.
‘I can’t afford to get disrupted! And she has allies nearby!’ Chiyo realised, as several of the Regulators got back to their feet, much tougher than she realised.
‘If I was like Jack, I’d probably be able to think outside the box and surprise them with something…’
Wait…All that water was being compressed by the combined telekinetic force, if it was being put under enough pressure…
Holding on for dear life and waiting for the perfect moment, Chiyo suddenly shifted the focus of her power to strike out and burst a very specific point of the bubble…
Which sent a high-powered beam of water right towards the enemy mage!
Screaming, Slarah flailed her arms as she was blasted back with the sheer force of the released pressure, with the water splashing all over the area, created a blanket of rain all around them. Seizing on the idea, Chiyo used the sprinklers to extend the translucent smokescreen as far as she could.
‘If I’m having trouble finding my friends, so will you!’ She thought grimly to herself.
‘Though I’ve still got to get to them first!
*****
“Shit, that was close!” Sephy panted to herself. She had been able to evade the spell thrown their way and stay on the balcony, using her wings to glide over to a more stable part. Looking down, it didn’t look good. Dust and debris filled the air in a thick cloud, obscuring her vision of the chaos below as she desperately looked for any sign of her friends.
“Still up there bitch?” She heard a familiar voice as several of the turrets swivelled around to aim at her, causing her to quickly dive for cover as they opened fire, tearing chunks out of the wall where she had just been. Hiding behind the shoddy fence and cursing the terrible cover it made, Sephy crouched and crawled around, aiming for one of the pillars at the far end of the room for better cover, bringing up her plasma rifle to surprise a Regulator who had the same idea as her.
‘Any more assholes up here?’ Sephy asked herself rhetorically as she looked around, quickly snapping to surprise another that was trying to line up a shot on someone below.
‘Alright, nobody else up here apart from the madlads sitting and watching, but that slicer’s probably told his friends where I am.’ Sephy reasoned. ‘Can’t have that!’
Grinning, she looked towards the stairs that were now clear, but she knew that she had a better advantage up here, and there was probably an ambush waiting down below. Reaching into one of the pouches on her rig, Sephy pulled out a black ball with a special adhesive that began to activate with an electronic command from her before she quickly threw the slap-mine towards the stairs, with it sticking to the frame.
Though Nika had often told her not to risk throwing those mines and to always place them manually, Sephy didn’t have time for that shit when there were literal turrets trying to kill her!
Springing out of cover, Sephy aimed at the closest turret and blasted it before it could take aim at her in return, chuckling as the other slicer realised she now had a blind spot to work with.
‘But though I’m out of the line of fire, everyone else isn’t!’ Sephy realised. ‘However, I know where he is, and he isn’t far. I just need a quick way out and I can kill him in meatspace. Sucks there isn’t a window I can easily get to…’
Suddenly there was some movement below as she spotted a brief flash of pale blue skin. Recognising Chiyo, Sephy quickly took aim and let off a set of risky bursts that dropped one of the Regulators going after the Ilithii, before Sephy was quickly forced back into cover as several shots zipped above her.
“Too slow fuckers!” Sephy called out with false bravado, as she tried to figure out her next move.
‘Yeah, they definitely know I’m here, this is getting way too hot!’ She chuckled to herself. ‘But I can still try and be useful!’
“Guys? Can you hear me?” Sephy called out into her comms, not bothering to try and go subvocal in the loud mess they were in.
No answer.
“Great, and we’re fucking jammed.” Sephy sighed. “And I bet it’s that gods’ damn slicer too! Fuck I’m gonna kill him!”
She spun around and tried to find Chiyo or one of the others, not spotting any of them before she heard an explosion behind her, as an enemy tried to climb up the stairs.
At least, it was probably an enemy…
Using the distraction, Sephy quickly moved out of cover and searched for targets, immediately honing on a scary-looking Vivren towards the front of the building that was gesticulating with her hands and obviously giving orders to a squad of regulators.
‘Heh! Sometimes they make this too easy!’ Sephy grinned to herself as she took aim and squeezed the trigger, blasting the enemy officer with an accurate burst of plasma fire!
However, to Sephy’s shock the rounds didn’t seem to have an effect on the ugly Vivren, merely bouncing off their heavily armoured form, a feat repeated with a second burst as they turned their snarling visage to look up at the Skritta.
“Oh crap!” Sephy cursed, as the Vivren easily battered aside a drunk that was in her way as she brandished a heavy-looking spiked chain. Flinging it around with supernatural strength, she whipped it towards the Skritta who ducked the side swipe as it pinged above her, forming a huge gash in the wall.
‘What the fuck?’ Sephy asked herself as her eyes widened. ‘I’ve never scored well in physics but I’m pretty sure that shouldn’t happen! Magical bullshit detected!’
“Missed me bitch!” She taunted as she returned fire, before juking the vertical strike that tore through the flimsy wooden fence. Firing back, she hit the Vivren’s centre of mass again, only this time realising that her previous shots found their mark. Though the Vivren’s armour was almost as good as theirs, surely they would have felt something from her attack?
‘Damn, you have a pain tolerance better than Jack’s!’ Sephy thought to herself. ‘But that doesn’t change the fact that I need to get out of here and get control of the turrets…’
As the Vivren yanked her chain back down, Sephy saw the mad rush for the front doors or the building, but could see the gap above the height of the crowd of mostly average-sized species.
It did have to be accessible for megafauna, after all…
‘Gliding there will be too slow…unless! Oh this’ll be so cool!’
Staying light on her feet, and holstering her plasma rifle while coiling her muscles like a spring, Sephy grinned as she waited for the next attack, a look which seemed to enrage the Vivren as she lashed out with the spiked chain again, clearly aiming for Sephy’s legs, who leapt up as high as she could to dodge the attack for a third time, as the spiked chain tore through the wood of the bannister fence like cardboard before wrapping itself around the brick pillar.
Seeing her opportunity, Sephy leapt onto the twisted metal, using the Vivren’s own whip as a tightrope as she ran down it, using her wings to barely stabilise herself and dodge whatever spell the Vivren cast at her, her heart pounding in her chest as in the space of barely two seconds she had descended to the ground and kicked off the head of the Vivren, giving her just enough speed, height and momentum to clear the bottleneck at the front door, before crashing to the floor, landing roughly on the coarse stone of the courtyard outside, sending shockwaves of pain reverberating throughout her body as she rolled and tumbled hard across the pavement, eventually skidding to a very painful stop.
“Owwwww…..” She moaned to herself as her breath came in ragged gasps, before she was able to get a hold of herself.
“Heh…nailed it!” She panted as she got to her feet. “I hope the others saw that shit! That was so fucking awesome!”
‘But where is that fucking slicer?’ Sephy thought to herself as she brought up a virtual reality minimap. ’Side of the building, he’s close, gotta hurry!’
Sprinting, she heard the sounds of comms in the distance as she rounded a corner to see two Regulators trying to look casual outside of what looked like a former service shed for the once-respectable building she had just left, who hadn’t yet noticed her…
“Hostile incoming! Get Zruul out of there!” A cruel snarl spoke up over the Regulator’s comms.
“Yes Lictor-” One of them began to say before a burst of plasma quickly decapitated them. Sephy quickly switched to the other, who quickly fell to the ground with several burns on their torso before they could raise their own weapon, Sephy quickly finishing them off with a shot to the head to confirm the kill.
Wrinkling her tiny nostrils at the putrid stench of piss as she booted open the flimsy door, instantly spotting exactly what she was looking for.
Propped up against the far wall was the limp, helpless form of the obese toad-like being she had met just a few minutes ago when he was fully sliced into the Matrix, and from the looks of things he still was, possibly unaware of the danger.
Sephy put two rounds in their skull without hesitation.
“Now I’ve gotta take the system!” Sephy said to herself in determination as she grabbed at the wires attached to the cybernetics of Zruul’s body, forcibly yanking them away before attaching them to her own device and slicing into the local Matrix once again, bringing up the translucent AR feed once again.
“Zruul! Get out of there!” Sephy heard a voice call out in panic as she took in her surroundings, spotting the form of the enemy slicer rapidly floating over towards her, before stopping, mouth wide open in pure, unadulterated horror.
“No!” They screamed in cyberspace, knowing what must have happened. “NO! NO! NO! NOOOOOOOO! NOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“I told you that you weren’t leaving here alive!” Sephy sneered cruelly, as she found the subtle string of code that connected Zruul’s consciousness with their body. A connection that would be impossible to get at without having direct manual access to the source hardware in question…
“Please don’t!” Zruul begged pathetically. “I’ll help you! I’ll disable the turrets! I’ll let you escape! If you’ve killed my body the Lictor can repair it so I can come back! Just please let me live!”
“No.” Sephy coldly told the slicer in no uncertain terms as she severed his connection.
“NOOOOOOO!” Zrull screamed as his avatar drifted away, slowly decompiling as his consciousness was eroded away into nothingness.
Not wasting any time, Sephy saw the control node in the distance and quickly rushed to it, instantly taking control of the now undefended programs as she quickly worked her magic.
“Alright, reversing the IFF for the turrets, that’s now running…” Sephy muttered to herself, annoyed that the process wasn’t instant. “What’s this? Sprinkler system? Sure! That might help…”
“Cameras? I didn’t spot any around…Better disable footage so they can’t ID us after…oh nevermind…they’re hidden in the bathrooms. Let’s just brick you…What else?”
Moving her virtual fingers like a skilled musician Sephy quickly cycled through the different settings, not finding much to work with. As one final act of spite, she deleted the playlist that Zruul had blasting over the speakers, and changed it to one of her punk playlists.
A sudden beep notified Sephy that the turrets were done recalibrating, and she excitedly went to the virtual console to see what she had to work with.
Grinning as she checked the basic programming and realising it was compatible, she brought up one of her custom programs that had been created to integrate with turret systems to run automatically. Copying it over and ordering it to execute, Sephy quickly backed out of the system while locking it from further infiltration. By the time anyone could unlock it, they’d hopefully all be long gone…
“Alright you motherfuckers!” Sephy grinned as she confirmed the turrets were spooling up again.
“My turn!”
*****
First/Previous
Chiyo and Sephy are making their moves, but the Battle of the Soggy Pussy is far from over!
Don't forget to check out The Galactic High Info Sheet! If you want to remind yourself of certain characters and factions. One new chapter a week can seem like a while! Don't forget! You all have the ability to leave comments and notes to the entries, which I encourage you to do!
I am now on Royal Road! I would appreciate your support in getting myself off the ground there with your lovely comments, reviews and likes!
If you're impatient for the next chapter, why not check out my previous series?
As always I love to see the comments on what you guys think!
Don't forget to join the discussion with us on Discord, and consider checking me out on Youtube if you haven't already! Until next week, it's goodbye for now!

Hi, since some guys wanted some tips on HSC board exams, here we go. For reference, I have 91.5% in HSC Boards.
The most important tip I can give is learning how to do ratta efficiently. Seriously, cannot stress this enough but ratta maarna seekh lo. It will help you a lot in CS and Chemistry at least, jisme sabse jyada theory aati hai. Individual subject wise dekhe toh : -
English:- Honestly, HSC English is quite trash(according to me). The most I did was learn the formats for all the various writing skills and do those, apart from this I also read the textbook and the bookback questions. Grammar ke liye jitna aapne sikha hai utna bas hai, I would still recommend learning some other grammar terms such as modal, auxiliary verb, etc cause HSC board waale voh bhi puchte hai. I’ll also be attaching a link to the paper pattern to English, and in case people do have it, the sections which you will lose marks most are Novel and Writing skills.
Chemistry:- Isme I have the most experience in, so I’ll get going. First of all, organic mat chodna. It’s IMPORTANT. DO NOT LEAVE THIS. Try and make reaction books of all the reactions in the 6 chapters that do have organic and try to solve questions based on them, MCQ or theory any will do. What you need is to know what the product will form(no mechanism, HSC doesn’t teach the mechanism of reactions, so dw), the reagents used, and EACH AND EVERY NAME REACTION. Please do at least this much in organic. Inorganic was my weakest part, and I had left the reactions in it, but if you have done it, that’s fine. Learn the laws from physical chemistry, derivations and relationships from solutions, Ionic equilibrium and Chemical kinetics. Most of the time solid state me se sum aata hai, or a differentiate between defect or crystalline and amorphous. So vo bhi kar lena. This is extremely brief btw.
Physics:- Sums practice karo. For anyone who has no idea of the physics paper pattern, each section has around 12 questions with 5 sums and 7 Q and A type questions. It's up to yall to decide which to do, but I would recommend doing all the sums cause agar aapne entrance ka acche se padha hai then HSC ke sums lallu hote hai. Apart from this, ratta maaro sab laws, derivations, definitions, etc. this is the easy part. The hard part is the derivations. TB derivations ke maamle me phaltu hai, I never studied from the Textbook, bas classes ke notes se cause my classes also taught me boards ka. So I never had a problem with derivations, but afaik most people don’t know what to do or how much to write in derivations. Honestly, I have no idea how to help in this, so if anyone has any resources for derivations please do share in the comments.
Maths:- PRACTICE. Practice karte raho. And learn a few of the important theorems jo puchte hai section C and section D me. Theorems ke alawa maths me practice hi kar sakte hai aap. No other option. At least 2 baar pura TB kar lo, aaram se ho jaaega.
If anyone has any individual questions, DM mat karna, idhar hi pucho cause someone else might also have the same question, and it would save everyone some time as well. I'll be posting one about CS as well later.

Hi All,
So, I've been watching and listening to tons of testimonials on youtube and am deeply moved by the experiences of those who've found healing and aid from the work. I've been doing the Breaking the Habit meditation for three days and enjoy it.
This said, and I mean no disrespect here and am earnestly seeking guidance, I'm having a very difficult time trusting Dr. Dispenza when in the very first chapter of Breaking the Habit, his science simply doesn't add up. He treats unproven assumptions within the realm of quantum physics as if they're fact and bends the current knowledge within that realm to support his claims. I mean his science, as we currently understand it within the deep study of quantum physics, is way, way off. I can go into more detail if that would be helpful to continue the discussion.
On the flip side, the testimonials are astounding and inspiring and make me want to pursue the work. However, when I sit down to meditate now, I can't stop thinking about how he must have known that his science was incorrect when he wrote the book yet decided to publish it anyway. This feels deeply dishonest to me.
I'm wondering how others may have reconciled this issue for themselves and would be so grateful for any input you all might have. Again, I'm asking earnestly for help, not in any way trying to sow seeds of doubt or troll. So many people have achieved legitimately, quantifiably miraculous things by embracing the work and I'd love to do the same. Thank you!
TL;DR: I'd really like to embrace the work but am having a very difficult time trusting Dr. Joe when his science in Breaking the Habit doesn't add up. Thanks for any help!

Hello everyone!
I've utilized this group heavily the last 10 days of my exam and wanted to share info to help you as well :)
Picking the best course for you is going to be one of the biggest things you can do for yourself. A lot of people suggest Andrew Ramdayal and I do think he's great personally. I ended up taking the Udemy course with Sabri and found his course to be really well planned (I personally didn't research before hand and believe that I still chose a wonderful professor for this).
My method for studying before taking any practice tests at all was this: 1. Listened to the video (@2X because Sabri talks slow) 2. Listen to the video AGAIN and take notes 3. Anything I didn't understand, I would read that in whichever respective book it was in to understand it in a different manner.
Sabri also has quizzes that help with understanding where your knowledge is at as well. And I didn't take ANY of the exams, including the end of chapter exams, until I was done with the course so that I could test my knowledge on what I retained about those chapters. I think that helped a whole bunch imo. I also felt like his final exam was very close to the actual exam and style. Sabri is very good at communicating with you within the time frame he provides and he goes above and beyond if you have a Q and need additional assistance. He also will tell you exactly where the answer is in the respective book as well.
Anything after that that I didn't understand, I would just highlight it and continue studying.
Something I realized was that at times it can be confusing material but holistically the material works TOGETHER. So I wouldn't be worried about not understanding something immediately because eventually the more pieces of information you get and understand, the more you'll understand how the concepts work together. (I really hope this makes sense!)
I also purchased 1 months of Pocket Prep and I found it helpful and also demoralizing at times. I think it's great for on the go and I do also think that the more questions you answer, the better because you'll be that much closer to the exam question styles so definitely good things there! I think I was only demoralized because I got 30% and 40% a few times and it made me wonder if I was ready for the exam or not! That being said, PP was still really good because once I used the filters, I got to understand which domains needed some more work and that was the biggest benefit.
Here's a 20% of by the way if you do wanna get PocketPrep.
I also purchased the Landini book, kindle version. I think the best part of that was having the domains broken down and getting to test yourself esp in the domains that you're struggling with. HOWEVER, there are no explanations for the wrong answers and the worst part to me was that when you submit the quiz/exam, the questions were NOT in the same order as when you took it, so if you took the exam/quiz and took notes with it, you won't know which questions you took notes on because now all the questions are in a different order. That was truly incredibly frustrating ESP if you take the exam. Aside from that, Im still glad I got it. :)
Additionally, I purchased the AR CAPM EXAM Simulator from his TIA website. And this was super duper helpful because he goes over every single question in video format explaining the correct answer and also explaining the wrong answers (and why they're wrong and what they mean). After getting this, I actually understood why so many people say to go with AR. If you're wanting to go with AR, I would actually recommend to get his course thru TIA because he's got a bundle that I think is truly worth it's money. :)
I also utilized YouTube and watched this Ricardo Vargas PMBOK 7th Ed book video. I think it makes sense to watch this video ESPECIALLY if you haven't ever done PM and aren't familiar with any of the past books, he really emphasizes the difference between the previous edition and the current one and helps you understand the mindset. Lastly, I used YT to also find small videos that helped me understand stuff like "Burndown and BurnUp charts" "Delphi Method"
Here's my score for each thing I utilized for this exam: Sabri on Udemy: 5/5 PMBOK7th ED: 5/5 Landini Kindle CAPM prep: 4/5 AR prep: 5/5 Pocket Prep: 4/5
I also found an amazing promo code to get $125 for the CAPM exam: GWGCAPM
That's the amount I got off for my exam YMMV.
Actual exam: it was scheduled for 9am and so I got up at 6am and had my coffee so it can do what it needs to do LMFAO and then very briefly I went over the EVM formulas to make sure I had it in my mind. I also did 10 pocket Prep Qs because I noticed that when I usually studied, it took me about 10ish questions to switch my brain into CAPM mode. So I did that so that my mindset would be focused on what it needed to be on. I got there at 8:23am, and sat down and started at 8:40am. Half way thru, I reviewed the flagged questions and submitted those and then I took my 10 minute break where I had water and a protein bar. Went back in with 1.5 minutes left and got started on that set. Same method and I submitted the exam and got the "Congrats!" Message. When I stepped out, my proctor printed out my results which said I did AT/AT/AT/AT which I was genuinely surprised about. Haha
I hope that covers everything! I genuinely didn't think I was going to get AT in all four but that's just my mind being mean to me. :)

The title of the chapter is wrong. This is 943. (Sorry O:))
Out there - Patreon (for all those curious or wanting to support :))
At the Beginning
Adventure Arc - Arc 2
Wilderness Arc - Arc 3
Academy Arc - Arc 4
Nobility Arc - Arc 5
Previously on Leveling up the World...
Most of the soldiers stared blankly forward, motionless. The shock of losing their awakening powers, along with the lack of echoes to direct them, made them unable to register the ground shattering around them. The entire terrain kept shifting non-stop, while the sky was filled with spiral attacks, rays of destruction, and dragon breath attacks. Those that were lucky were merely petrified by Euryale’s glance.
The remaining few that were strong-willed enough to cope with everything that had been taken from them, struggled to survive in a world more hostile than they’ve ever known before, with nearly no success.
The ever-shrinking prize, Dallion thought as he finally managed to cast a ray of destruction spell of his own.
The purple beam flew forward through the mountain he had erected to keep the emperor’s echo from seeing it. Unfortunately, when it came to reaction, Dallion remained slightly outmatched.
​
SPELL NEGATED
​
A second beam, just as large, slammed into Dallion’s causing both of them to blink out of existence. Whatever the emperor had done to create his aether echo, it was not to be underestimated. Dallion could only assume that there were serious limitations or there would be armies of them roaming the battlefield.
I could help out there, Gleam said through the awakened realms. The dragon actually agrees with me for once.
It was notable that the shardfly had referred to Aquilequia in a non-negative manner, but Dallion strongly disagreed with both of them. After consuming a large part of the Academy’s magic, she had almost reached level twenty. In terms of speed, that was probably the fastest leveling up Dallion had ever seen or heard of. Unfortunately, that was where her progress ended.
In her current state, neither she nor Gleam would manage to withstand the echo’s attacks. Dark had to spend years with a Moon to get to where he was, and even so, he appeared a bit lacking.
Stay in the realms, Dallion ordered. You’ll get your chance.
You keep saying that.
This isn’t our enemy, it’s just an echo. We’ll fight the real deal soon enough.
A torrent of air ripped the sky, flying straight for the emperor’s echo. This time, instead of deflecting it, the echo cast a series of aether spheres around himself. The first three shattered on contact. The next cracked up before doing the same. The fifth managed to withstand the currents of air, allowing them to slide over.
“He’s weakening,” Dallion said.
Barely had he done so when Dark disappeared, reappearing a dozen feet away a moment later.
“Move.” Euryale ordered, extending her left hand, while doing a thrust attack with her right.
A point attack flew forward, shattering the final level of protection that the echo had cast. Before the attack could deal any damage, the echo had teleported safely away as well.
“He’s almost there.” Dallion said. “We just need to—”
“Stop!”
Surprised at the sharpness in her voice, Dallion turned in her direction.
“You’re weaker as well. The adrenalin rush won’t hold you forever.”
“I’m fine,” he lied. He was fully aware of the wounds he had and the impact they were having. Magic was keeping him alive and in a functional state, but in the long run of things that remained an illusion.
“Just come here,” the gorgon insisted. Even dark moved in closer to pressure Dallion into making the correct decision. “I’m not telling you to stop fighting. Just to rest a bit. We can fight together.”
Afraid that agreeing might make the exhaustion fall upon him like a ton of bricks, Dallion hesitated. Splitting into instances, he moved towards her, reaching out for her hand with one. Sadly. The emperor’s echo had no intention of making things easy. A new cluster of rays—a lot smaller than before—flew straight at the trio.
Three things happened at once. Euryale performed a spirk infused spiral attack. Dallion caused a mountain to rise between him and the echo, and Dark cast an illusion spell that transformed them all identical to air.
A series of explosions followed, filling the sky with rocks and dirt. A few moments later, that dirt started falling back to the ground.
“When did you learn to do that?” Dallion asked, looking at his wife.
“The same way I got here.” She tapped her arm. “The ara creates bonds. I knew you were hurt the moment it happened. I also used her to reach you through the realms. Dark still has to work on his speed.”
Hey! The green dragon snorted.
In the distance, another explosion followed, thrusting large amounts of rocks in all directions. Despite signs to the opposite, the aether echo had no intention of slowing down. The mana it had used was monumental, but as every mage knew, mana was nothing more than stamina given physical form. At its current level, it would be a while before it was done for.
“Are you ready for a dance?” Euryale asked.
“Dance?” Dallion repeated the question.
“I tried to teach you long ago, but you didn’t have the traits for it.” The snakes on the gorgon’s head moved about. “Maybe now you’ll be able to keep up?”
For a moment, Dallion’s exhaustion didn’t feel that bad. Without hesitation, he nodded.
“Dark,” Eury said to the dragon. “I’ll need wings.”
Another illusion spell followed. Dallion and Euryale were all material again, although this time, the gorgon had large green wings coming out of her back. In a way, they reminded Dallion of the blue flame wings that he had frequently used back before he had become a mage.
“Let’s go.”
More rays shot in their direction. Back on Earth, Dallion never would have thought that the speed of light might turn out to be too slow, but right now, it seemed to be. Thanks to spells, artifacts, and their combined perception, they were able to spot the echo’s spell in the making and determine the direction the ray would go. The time they had to react proved faster than the time it took for the ray of energy to reach them.
​
DANCE OF LIGHT
(+2 Body, +2 Reaction)
Just because it’s adorable. Better not put it to waste.
​
A rectangle flashed and disappeared. Dallion could swear that he could see arts, guard, and acrobatics markers flash in similar fashion, marking the movements they had to follow to reach their target unharmed.
What’s dancing without a little music, he thought as he slashed the air with his harpsisword, playing a series of chords in the process.
“You’re making things easier.” The aether echo moved forward. Dozens of spell circles formed around him, launching projectiles, rays, or bolts of purple lightning.
Spinning through the air, Euryale and Dallion combined spells and combat strikes to continuously counter them. Every now and again a red rectangle would appear as one of them was grazed by an aether shard, though that too would be quickly neutralized by a healing spell.
Rings of water formed around them, as Giaccia too joined in, using as much of her natural magic as she could.
How come I’ve never thought like that? Dallion wondered. There was a time when he’d gladly combined attacks with others. It seemed so far away that he had completely forgotten.
Like a champagne that had been uncorked, dozens of other memories came flooding in. There were so many more ways he could fight—ways involving knowledge out of this world. One word was all it would take for Lux to bombard the echo from a distance with the intensity of a meteor shower. Dallion could change the composition of projectiles and materials, granting them properties similar to rockets, he could fill them with various emotions that would continuously bombard his enemies with emotions of extreme sadness, depression, sapping their will to fight. At the end of the day, he could even recreate heavy artillery or other mid-range weapons from Earth.
Was that the right thing to do, though? The Stars had attempted it, and none of them had managed to achieve what they wanted. The inhabitants of the devastated aura swords had used weapons of emotions and ended up killing each other. Against opponents as crafty as Tiallia, Simon, and Jeremy, any mass destruction capabilities would be a double-edged sword.
To a degree, the same could be said about melee combat. Dallion had no doubt that all three of his enemies were observing him through various means, taking notes of anything that could be to their advantage. There was one thing that they lacked, though—none of them had anyone like Euryale by their side.
Aether sabers surrounded the echo as they got close. Dallion expected him to summon a weapon of his own, but no such thing happened. That was somewhat weird. For someone who had all the skills at a level twenty percent higher than they were supposed to, it should have been easy.
Out of sixteen sabers, ten flew towards Dallion, while the rest concentrated on Euryale. That was a rookie mistake. Everyone knew that gorgons were better in combat than humans. More than likely, Jeremy suspected that Dallion’s level advantage made him more dangerous.
Moving his arms so fast that they appeared to quadruple, Dallion parried the flying blades. Each strike created a spell circle behind it, as well as a trail of water. Giaccia was doing a good job propelling drops of that at the echo, even if they were easily stopped by concentrated cubes of aether that appeared and disappeared.
On her part, Euryale was focusing purely on attack, dancing between strikes with the elegance of an awakened ballerina, while performing point blank spiral attacks with ease.
“It’s amusing that both of you are here,” the echo said, still managing to cast rays of destruction in the course of combat. Of course, Dallion took full advantage of his combat splitting to make sure that neither he nor Euryale would suffer as a result. “You’re aware that you can’t kill me,” he continued. “You’ve seen it happen before.”
Each of the words had subtle strands of music within them. Most people wouldn’t even have noticed, but the former Duchess Elazni had made Dallion aware of such approaches.
“Using music so late in the game?” Dallion countered with his own music skill. “Things must have become tough for you.”
“Hardly.” The echo persisted. “My original was like you once.”
Eight of the sabers merged together, creating a fan. Its force was significantly greater than before, chopping the arm off one of Dallion’s instances. Naturally, Dallion chose another to become reality and split again.
“He had someone he loved and would go into battle with her. Eventually he saw the truth.”
“And what might that be?” Euryale asked, eyes wide open in an attempt to petrify the echo. Sadly, its level of magic made it impossible.
“That nothing lasts forever,” the echo replied, casting another ray of destruction. From this distance, it was able to slightly singe the side of her right arm before she could fully evade. Thankfully, the wound was light. “Only one could pass through the gate. Everyone close to those that do will die then or after.”
In fifty instances, Dallion thrust his harpsisword right at the echo. In forty-nine of them, the blade shattered through dozens of barriers, failing to fully break through to its target. In one, it succeeded.
“Got you!” Dallion shouted victoriously. Caution made him maintain the rest of his instances a bit longer, and it was a good thing that he had.
The echo looked at its wound. The death had triggered some sort of after-spell effect, causing its entire body to flash in a bright purple light. That wasn’t all, though. Hundreds of aether rays shot out in all directions, burning through everything. There was no escaping from that. The moment Dallion caught a glimpse, he quickly switched to one of the failed attacks. There was no way he’d lose Euryale in such a way.
“You saw it, didn’t you?”
More spell circles emerged, doubling the amount of aether sabers. Dallion attempted to slice the threads of as many of the spells as he could, but the echo was annoyingly fast.
“That’s why no one has managed to kill the Emperor of Tamin. Many have tried, some even succeeded, yet they saw as you that killing me meant they would die as well.”
There was no denying it. That was a neat trick. And yet, Dallion knew that wasn’t always the case. During the last imperial ceremony, the fake emperor had really died.
“I saw you die once,” he said.
“You’re missing the point. Why don’t you look at me closer? I’ll allow it.”
A purple rectangle suddenly appeared above the echo’s head.
​
TAMIN III
Health: 0%
Traits:
- AWAKENING 121
- BODY 121
- MIND 121
- REACTION 121
- PERCEPTION 121
- EMPATHY 121
- MAGIC 121
Skills
- ATTACK
- GUARD
- ATHLETICS
- ACROBATICS
- FORGING
- CARVING
- ARTS
- SCHOLAR
- MUSIC
- HERBALISM
- ZOOLOGY
- SPELLCRAFT
Weakness: UNKNOWN

"I AM the Ascended Master, Jesus Christ. As a beginning for this release from my heart, I ask you to participate in a meditation. Close your eyes, listen to my voice. Become aware that you are sitting here listening to this. Become aware that you are more than your physical body. And in that awareness, you are mentally stepping outside the body, looking at the body from the outside. Become aware that your body is part of your total energy field. And beyond your physical body is your emotional body. Now you are mentally through the awareness of the emotional body, stepping outside of the emotional body, experiencing that you are more than the body. Because if you are not more than your emotions, how could you step outside of them? Now you become aware that beyond your emotional body is your mental body. And in becoming aware of the mental body, you are stepping outside of it, so to speak, looking at it from the outside. Now you are stepping further back and realizing that beyond your mental body is your identity body. And in becoming aware of your identity body, you can also mentally step outside of that and experience that you are more than the identity body.
Now your awareness has risen from the physical level, to the emotional, to the mental, to the identity level and beyond the identity level. Well, what in the world of matter, the material world, is beyond the identity? Nothing, no thing. Now you are aware that you are not the physical, you are not the emotional, you are not the mental, you are not the identity. You are no thing. You are not nothing. You are no thing. You are not nothing because you are aware. And this, beyond the identity body, is the nexus between the material world with its four levels and the spiritual realm between your lower being and your I AM Presence. And this is the seat of the Christ in your being. And when you experience that you are no thing, you are experiencing the Conscious You in what we have called pure awareness. You are more than your normal sense of identity, more than your normal experience. You are pure awareness, neutral awareness. When you experience this neutral awareness, what are you experiencing? You are experiencing Christ. What have we explained so many times? What is Christ? It is the mind that was created by the Creator before the Creator created any form, any thing. The purpose of Christ is to ensure oneness between the Creator and any thing that is created, any thing that has form, any being that has form, meaning self-awareness, an awareness of itself."
From 2024 Easter Webinar
FULL DICTATION:
https://ascendedmasterlight.com/experiencing-reality-beyond-the-conceptual-mind/

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I'm a female, 23, and last year got my bachelor's in English. I thought I was going to go into copywriting. Took editing and publishing courses, did not like it at all. Always told myself I didn't want to go into teaching. I went for a major in English because I loved creative writing and I still do, but college killed my passion for a while. I want to keep writing as a hobby, but I'm looking to change my career path. I've considered being a vet tech, going into electrical engineering, becoming a mechanic, and becoming a nurse. I took a medical assistant training course in high school and was naturally really good with that and anatomy. I took a robotics class too back then that I loved. I know that I love working with my hands and conceptualizing ideas, I love animals, I loved doing medical assistant training. I am really feeling the whole "jack of all trades, master of none" thing right now. I just feel overwhelmed with what direction to go in, and am so worried about investing money into another degree for it to not turn out. Any suggestions? I want to find something I'm passionate about and maybe don't mind the hours of studying and/or physical work put into it because I truly love it.