Used to love Maybelline hyperglossy because: 1. It did not smudge 2. Bottle lasted for months 3. Thin brush
My eyelids are very oily so most liquid eyeliners smudge and run ending up on my eyebag area after a few hours. Some fails have been stila, other Maybelline ones so really need something that won't budge.
With mascara I now use tubing mascara only so also need eyeliner that comes off like paint (in strips) rather than smudges if that makes sense.

"About time!" Lu t'Cca thundered at her. "Split find hiding spot!
Najia backpedaled, giving the irate Split prisoner plenty of room to get past without coming into arms' length of her. At least he seemed to get that this was a prison break, and he made no move for her or her firearm, darting well clear of her, and out from the cell block.
Axiom's voice cut the sudden quiet that was otherwise punctuated only by her racing heart. "While you two were chatting, I've found a way to temporarily disable security in the hangar. That's where we'll hitch our ride. Head for the second level; the Ministry seems to have installed more switches. They'll require some adjustment, but I know you love a good puzzle." Najia snorted. She did, in fact, love a good puzzle, but breaking out of a prison was not the time to indulge in that. Usually. Unless one looked at the prison as the puzzle. She shook her head, huffing, and drew her pistol again. There was no marked pathway this time, but she made better time; it was reckless, but she jogged, since the place was seemingly totally unguarded. And, if it wasn't, chances were that Lucca would run into the guards first, and she'd hear the struggle ahead. She passed the lift, glancing towards it, and hurrying past in the other direction she hadn't been yet, coming to a door. Slowing, she closed enough with it that it opened automatically.
Najia let out a huff; Lu t'Cca was on the other side, but so was Axiom. She stepped forward, and looked from Axiom, who nodded to her, to Lucca, who snarled. "Creature reveal Split hiding spot! Creature nothing better to do?" This is a hiding spot? Najia shook her head; the two of them were literally standing in the middle of an intersection, in front of an airlock with two branches off on either side. She huffed, looking at Lu t'Cca. "Hey, Mellerd said -"
"Split not talk about friend-foes!" Lucca ranted. "Kriss went against family! Betrayal followed petty betrayal! Way of Windfall, yes. Way of some Split, maybe, but not how real warriors do revenge!" He made a guttural sound of anguish, shaking his head vehemently. Kris? He was on a first-name basis with her? The fact that Ace had spoken so frankly of xenosexual encounters popped into her head, the constant talk of betrayal, pettiness, personal matters, and suddenly it was obvious; somehow, this was personal. Personal; and none of her damn business. She held her hand up placatingly, holstering her other pistol, trusting to Axiom's physical presence to keep peace between her and Lucca. "Fine. I'll leave you to it," she said. "Split thought so," Lu t'Cca spat, looking back to Axiom. She looked to Axiom as well. "Switches, Wildcard. Get to it."
Najia nodded, and darted down the left-hand branch of the intersection, fuming all the while. It ran into a dead-end, and she uttered "ah fuck," turning and sprinting in the other direction, slaloming between Maestro and Lucca. At the end, she dead-ended there, and exasperated raised her voice, "the hell?!" Back in the middle, she examined the airlock carefully; she could see that it connected to nothing, which is why she discounted it previously. Carefully she moved into the airlock, her hand on her pistol just in case Lucca tried to kill her by cycling it, but he and Axiom seemed to be in the process of discussing old times.
Exasperated, Najia stepped back out of the airlock. "Axiom, where are these buttons you're talking about? How are we supposed to get out of here?" "Er..." Axiom blinked, tri-ocularly, at her, and looked around. He looked at his datapad. "They should be... Through..." He let out a discontent rumble. "Oh my. That is not obvious on a computer systems diagram schematic." "They're on the other side of the frigging airlock," Najia said. "You're probably already aware that humans can't survive in vacuum, let alone maneuver in it, right?" She snorted, her sarcasm at least getting a sheepish shuffle on his long legs out of Axiom. "Can we get out the way we came back in? Even if it means abandoning the Raven?"
"No," Axiom said gravely. "The tampering I did to activate the cell block doors will be caught by someone sooner or later - probably later than sooner, but sooner if we try to leave the cell block." "Split has been implanted with a tracking device," Lucca growled. "It will raise quite the ruckus when Split leave the cell block!" "If we're leaving by... Unconventional mechanisms, that will be no trouble," Axiom noted. "But if we enter the lift, it will lock down and security will be summoned immediately."
"Outstanding," Najia huffed. "Let me double-check something, see if I can think of something." She turned and left the way she had come from. She bypassed the lift; she had no intention of simply bailing on them. But now, she had two options. Neither was good, but one was significantly less good, so she hoped the other option worked. She opened a channel to Boso Ta. "Boso Ta, I hope to hell you've been listening in." "I have, Assistant!" Boso Ta's voice came through loud and clear. "You are in quite the conundrum. I hope you see a manner in which I may be able to extricate you, for I do not." "You and the Professor have been upgrading teleporters with the ability to upgrade themselves. To do so, you've been transporting equipment, right?" "Hai!" Professor Nakagawa's voice cut in. Clearly he was on the line. "This capability is within our grasp. What is your proposal, Takio-San?" "Can you teleport my EV suit to me?"
There was silence for a long few moments which felt like an eternity. "Potentially," Boso Ta broke the silence. "Have it placed in one of our lifts." "I'll get right on that," Marta cut in on the line. Najia smiled to hear her voice. "Any other requirements?" "If this will work, we will need very precise measurements," Professor Nakagawa said. "The teleporter is more your project than mine, Boso Ta. My thought is that it will require at least three triangulating vessels, and a beacon, and a substantial amount of open space." "Will an empty cell block do for that," Najia asked, hustling down the corridor. "It should yes... Yes! That will work." Rei Stringer cut in on the call, and Najia blinked as she saw Rei's comm-code. "I can arrange the fly-by," she said. It had been awhile since Najia had heard from the friend she had left in charge of the Eighteen Billion Terran-tech construction supplies factory, and generally, in charge of Eighteen Billion affairs. "There's a patrol of Katana in the area already, it won't look suspicious if they do a swing-by of Wormwood Scrubs."
Najia set her datapad down on the floor in the middle of the cell block. "I put my datapad down on the floor. Is that beacon enough," she asked. "Hai, Takio-San," the aged professor's voice informed her. "But I would endeavor to be in another room when the teleport takes place. This is... Highly experimental." "Vacating the room," Najia said, sprinting out into the hallway and down it. "Tell me when it's gonna happen."
"In... About twenty seconds," Boso Ta informed her. "You might want to cover your ears, assistant." Najia didn't even bother to complain about being called 'Assistant' again, she simply crouched and closed her eyes, covering her ears and tried to become one with the railing. She counted to thirty, then opened her eyes. "Did anything happen?" "Your EV suit and EMU aren't in the lift anymore," Marta said to her. "Better go check."
Najia did, and she laughed heartily. Her hardshell carapace EV suit and EMU were sitting on the floor of the cell block. "A perfect teleport! I didn't even hear anything." "Fantastic," Boso Ta said. "You had best hurry, Assistant."
One fast donning later, Najia opened the door to where Axiom and Lucca were still standing around, chatting like old gossips. They both started when they saw her, and she held her hand up. "Easy, guys, it's me." She was hauling her EMU with her. "Split wonders where creature was hiding that," Lu t'Cca said, pointing at her. "Ancient secrets," Najia flippantly answered, as she hefted her EMU into the airlock, and sat in it, strapping in. "Right, let's do this." Reaching up, Najia slapped the airlock cycle button. The door behind her hissed shut; air was evacuated. Her suit indicated a total drop of external pressure, and the airlock's A-grav let go, letting her float free, and so she pushed off the floor.
"Excellent!" Axiom crowed at her, over the comm. "Level 2 is right through there. That exhaust fan may impede your movements, but it won't make our mission impossible. See those alcoves? There's where I'd hide if I were you, whenever the fan is blowing at full speed."
Exhaust fan? I'm in vacuum! Najia carefully maneuvered out. She was in vacuum and microgravity; but she was also inside a large, cylindrical space. Below her was something like a massive fuse-box with a big holographic turret outline, and she jetted down to examine it, but could see no obvious way to tamper with it without most likely setting off major alarms, so she looked back up - just as a synthesized alert klaxxon sounded.
I hate this place, Naija thought, as she saw a fan at the top of the cylinder spin up. At a guess she thought, perhaps it was something like an exhaust, which struck as horrifically wasteful in space, but she could only grit her teeth, watching it spin. At the bottom of the cylindrical space, she only felt the slightest of buffeting; it might have been substantially stronger closer to the top. I am very confused, very frustrated, and I just want to get the hell out of here, she thought. She was seriously considering revisiting her first plan, which had been to simply teleport herself, Axiom and Lucca to Ace's ship.
But now, though, she was pissed, and she wanted to poke something spiteful in Mellerd's eye herself. So she jetted to the top of the cylinder, looking around. As she did, Axiom popped up in her comms. "These airlocks are shut, so you'll need to find a way to bypass their locks." She responded with only a quick "roger," looking around. One airlock, contrary to Axiom's words, was hanging open, but the lights next to it were red. She tried it anyway; but for once, Axiom was spot-on. The airlock door might have been open, but its functions were locked out, the panel totally nonresponsive. She returned below, and looked around; there was an open airlock opposite Axiom and Lucca, so she tried it, and it worked for her automatically.
"Well, let's see what's down this way," Najia muttered to herself, slipping out of her EMU and leaving it in the lock. She unholstered the pistol that was now clamped to her hardshell-clad thigh, and started to look around again.
To her surprise, she found only another cell block - it was a dead end! She was about to hiss in frustration, when she heard someone call to her. "You there! You! Hey! You are not supposed to be here!" Najia turned to face the Teladi voice, her pistol half-raised, when she saw that the figure in question was imprisoned. She lowered her aim to the floor, and appraoched the bars. Standing within was a Teladi, who looked rather forelorn. Najia's shoulders slumped. Well, this is awkward, she thought. When the Teladi seemed to realize she wasn't a guard, she started to ask, "Oh please, please, please! You cannot leave me here! I am friends with Urgu... Ugusa... I can help you make profitsss! I promise."
Najia sighed at the pathetic display, but she understood the Teladi's desire for freedom; though, on the balance, she also had no idea what this Teladi had done to become imprisoned. Knowing Kriss Mellerd, it was a total crap-shoot; she might be a real scum-bag, or she might be being shaken down. Axiom cut in on her. "I sympathize with the little lizard, really I do, but we cannot compromise this mission in the name of charity."
Najia huffed out a sigh, and looked around. Frustratedly, she slapped the door panel on the imprisoned Teladi's cell, and to her surprise - and the prisoner's surprise - it opened. The prisoner looked around, confusedly, and Najia was glad that her mirrored helmet hid her gaze. "That's the best I can do," she said, resignedly. "You'll have to effect your own escape from here, if you can. Good luck." Turning, she huffed back into the airlock, slapping the button to cycle it as the Teladi prisoner looked around in tentative confusion, taking a few steps out of her cell.
Najia pulled her EMU's straps back on. "Well, that was a fucking bust," she snarled. "I'm about to start lasering shit," she muttered, floating back into the massive vacuum cylinder, and back up towards the locked airlocks. She found a third floor of airlocks, but they only offered some shelter from the fans starting up. After waiting that, frustratedly she flew back out again, and started looking around. "Axiom, there aren't any switches here!" "My diagrams say there are switches, Wildcard. Look more carefully - and swiftly."
Najia let out a guttural growl of frustration, and switched to her cutting laser. Giving in to a pique of frustration, she hit her Mk.2 thrusters, blowing past level 1 to the sub-level, coming up level with the big fuse-box. "Right, let's see what this does," she said with a snarl, and targeted her suit's cutting laser on the big set of what looked like fuses.
She blazed a neat line down the middle of them, and, gratifyingly, the 'Turrets' hologram switched to a big red repair icon... She looked around for a moment. Nothing happened. Najia smirked. "On the one hand, this place is frustrating, confusing, and I kind of want to blow it up out of spite by now. But on the other hand, the gross criminal negligence on display is really working in my favor. Fuck it. Lasers for everything," she said, snarling and going back up the shaft. There were a bunch of unmarked panels, and, giving in to the frustration she felt earlier - which she had barely restrained herself from allowing herself to hold Lu t'Cca at gunpoint - she started lasering the panels like a schoolgirl hooligan on a vandalism spree.
"Your new laser is low-powered, but if you keep it aimed at the lock, it will break eventually," Axiom said. Najia blinked. New laser? This is my laser and I've had it for a while, and... Oh, piss on this! She laughed, however, as she saw that one of the panels had indeed fractured.
One deeply-cathatic vandalism spree later, every panel had been opened, and had revealed that inside the two panels nearest the top-level airlocks were two further, smaller panels, with similar mechanisms. With the fan starting up again, Najia took shelter in one of the alcoves at the top, just under an airlock, and, deciding to use her time productively, she lasered the opposite airlock's control panel. After holding her laser on the box for awhile, it was a glowing ruin, and Axiom commed her. "Partial access to level two established," he informed her.
Najia nodded. She didn't even bother to sarcastically snark at him, though the phrase no shit, Sherlock ran through her mind. Rather, she charitably assumed he was reporting to her something he was learning electronically, and turned around. This is gonna be bright, she thought, as she trained her laser at close range on the near access box, and closed her eyes. She held in the firing stud, and held it - counting in her head to seven, when Axiom's comm made her let up off the laser. "And just like that, we have free reign over level two! They can't stop you now!"
Najia grinned, and opened her eyes to behold a molten, glowing hole drilled into the electronics she had blasted. "Right. Let's get this show on the highway."
On the level above her, in the half just above, she slipped in, and found herself facing a door to another cell block, just through the airlock. She went in and looked; no prisoners. Walking out, she huffed, and decided to walk the half-circuit around the big cylinder again. To her surprise, she found a console, just attached haphazardly to a railing. Really? Najia examined it, and snorted; it looked shoddy, ad-hoc. She tapped the console's screen, and it simply changed color. Axiom piped up. "Magnificent! That'll give you access to half of the switches! There must be another console nearby that will let you remove the second cover."
"Got it. Moving on," Najia said. Back to the airlock she went, after checking the other half of the crescent hallway she was in; without any luck, she just floated across to the other airlock on her EMU. Predictably, she found that, on the opposite railing in the other half of the level, was another console haphazardly attached to a railing, and she rapped it quite firmly with her knuckles. It flashed. "How's that, Axiom?" "Both covers confirmed open," Axiom informed her. "Let's flip some switches. Get back into your spacesuit."
"Never got out of it. Who has time to undress four times? Anyway, switches, yaaay switches," she snarked, as she cycled the airlock again, strapping her EMU back on. "Whoever designed this place is both a madman and criminally negligent."
Once the airlock cycled through again, Najia saw that the two panels she had manipulated had caused five boxes that she had previously taken as unimportant junction boxes to slide their panels open. She groaned to herself when she saw that there were five more lock-like switches within. "Great, time for more vandalism, yay." She lasered the first of the boxes' interiors, the one that was lit, and held it for a long few moments.
"Something's not right," Axiom said, comming her. She had a sinking feeling. "The switches are also setting the state of their neighbors," he declared. Sure enough, she had blasted the leftmost switch, and the second had lit up. Worryingly, the leftmost switch did not look damaged in the slightest. "You'll have to find a combination which turns them all off," Axiom said, as Najia groaned. "I don't think a game of whack-a-mole will get you there," Axiom continued. "Though... Actually, it might!"
Najia groaned, and briefly considered calling for a five-hundred-some member boarding party attack from two capital ships instead. "What tail-hole thought this was a good idea," she bitched. "Who dreamed this up? Why install it like this? Don't anybody answer that, those questions were rhetorical," she snarked, as she set about the process of shooting the junction boxes like they were a juvenile 'turn them all off' game.
About eighty seconds and the false start of thinking she could shoot an inactive switch to switch it on and switch its neighbors states (it transpired that she could only make an active switch toggle neighbors' states), all five boxes were dark, and Najia snarled, bristling with outrage that this was evidently considered part of a high security system and not a child's game.
"You got it, Wildcard!" Axiom commed her. "Access to Level 3 established. And it turned off the darned fan! Off to the hangar, then." Up one level, Najia cycled herself into the airlock, and groaned. She was getting mightily tired of this, and she rolled her shoulders. "I am going to need a massage and to soak for an hour in the shower," she griped to no-one in particular. She hefted her EMU half-over her left shoulder, unholstering her pistol, just in case. The EMU was very heavy, but her EV suit had a fairly substantial low-profile power assist mechanism. Not enough to turn her into a super-soldier by any means, but enough to let her heft a 150kg load like a bulky and cumbersome backpack. She was tempted to leave it behind... But it was a good thing she didn't. The corridor she found was only a straight shot to - and she groaned - another airlock. As she approached it, Axiom unhelpfully congratulated her. "Excellent," he said. "Yo're approaching the internal hangar now. Our getaway ship is right over there." Cycling through, she passed into the deep well of an internal ship hangar - and groaned.
Najia was looking at a Magpie. That was the big, innovative, unique ship?
"If we want to make it out of here, you'll have to destroy the clamps on the hangar doors," Axiom informed her. Najia groaned, sighed, and rolled her shoulders. "Right. I can do that. All this for a..." She seethed, and looked back at the ship.
No, it wasn't a Magpie, but it sure as hell looked like one. It was clearly a derivative design, but it had not the Magpie's massive cargo pods; rather, it had smaller pods, and a lot more gubbins - antennae, dishes, and the like. Fan-dabbie-dozie she thought balefully to herself as she set about finding and destroying the lockdown clamps. As she did so, she also saw a couple more panels that had a turret hologram over them, and, thinking, why the hell not, fried them, too. Moments later, the lockdown clamps fell, too, and she saw a red light glare through one of the hangar windows.
Axiom piped up, "Holy triangle, that's the station alarm! Lucca and I are going to make a run for the ship!" She blinked, looking up - two EVA-suited figures, with full EMUs, cycled through the airlock she had come through.
What, she thought. Where... I... What... Where...? In a moment of dumbfounded confusion, she stared openly, unmoving, before both of them dipped between the ship's large thrusters, and headed for its belly, while Axiom said, "approaching the dock. Be with you in a moment!" Fearing being left behind, Najia abandoned the question of where they had gotten EV suits, let alone EMUs, in favor of making haste to join them.
As Najia negotiated into the airlock, Axiom and Lucca reported that they had boarded, and Axiom was working on powering up the ship's systems, and Axiom was transferring the ship's ownership - and hence, control - to her. They were trying to talk over one another, making it confusing, but, as she got into the ship and shed her MMU, running for the seat, Axiom noted, "This prototype ship does not appear to have an emergency eject system. I assume it was supposed to be added later." "Great," she snarled. "This is going tits-up and I'm in a little ship with no ejection system." "Split been moving into position," Maestro informed her, in a bit of good news. "Alarm must have mobilized more Ministry forces than Split anticipated."
"Thrice blasted!" Axiom roared from the back. "Mellerd deployed a capital ship to head off the Arcadian Endeavour!" Najia groaned, checking her map. A Pheonix-class vessel named Rolling Rock was engaging the Arcadian Endeavor.
As Najia got the Raven's struts up and pushed it forward, she got a comm from the Rolling Rock itself. She snarled as she saw Kriss Mellerd in her comm pane. "Thank you for leading the old man, and his crew of clowns, right to my doorstep. Crossing them off the Ministry's list will do wonders for my career advancement."
Najia gawped at her, in shock at the sheer gall on display, as Mellerd laughed. "You just stumbled into this whole affair, so I will offer you a one-time chance to get out of this. All you have to do is dock at my ship and hand over the pirates youy are currently harboring. You won't be able to keep the ship, but -"
Najia cut her off, snarling in anger. "You just love the sound of your own voice, bitch. Even if I was inclined to take an 'out,' though, nobody can trust you. For anything." Najia switched the comms to her ships, as she powered the Raven up to full. It seemed to be armed with two cannons; she test-fired them by holding in the trigger. They didn't fire immediately, but when she let go, they let fly. "Woah. These must be those Teladi charger things," she muttered. "Whatever. Ladies? This bitch cannot be trusted to keep her word. End her rightly!"
The Rolling Rock was already exchanging fire with Arcadian Endeavor, while Ace nipped at her heels, firing off shots from that launcher and the frontal cannon. Shiv and Kunai - the name chosen for the Paramerion - lifted from the Jackdaw and Arcadian Endeavour respectively, while Jackdaw and the Snapping Tortoise broke from formation with it to engage.
"L beam turrets... Problematic," Najia muttered to herself. "Let me see what I can do about that," she added, as she set the Raven prototype in motion. She could only hope, at least, that Kriss was at least rethinking her decision, now that the odds had tilted decidedly against her.
She dove into action against Rolling Rock, testing out the Muon Chargers, as the ships with her split and attacked. The destroyer was big, and problematic, but it seemed rather... Awkward to control, in fact. Ponderous, its turrets, even the lasers, seemed slow to respond. She nipped around it, firing a few times, as her four ships slipped past it. A plasma bolt struck her shields, and she yelped, diving to evade. "That's it," she heard Rei - not over the open comms, but in her earbud. "I am not letting you get your ass killed like this. I'm dispatching help," she said, and Najia winced.
Great. So this is how the war with the Ministry starts? And yet, oddly... There was no sign of Ministry reinforcements. Najia fled from the immediate vicinity to recharge her shields, coming in close to the Arcadian Endeavour, and watched as the Eighteen Billion Katana squads roared in. She winced as she saw that Okayama and her defense fleet had also been dispatched - a Destroyer squadron was going to bear down on Rolling Rock... Eventually. And yet, the Ministry was doing nothing.
It hit her suddenly; Kriss was rogue. Was doing this on her own. She snarled and grinned. The Ministry might be mad, when this shook out, but they'd have a hard time proving her involvement. Especially if she could play it as her ships responding to a distress call because a rogue vessel with an unaffiliated transponder had attacked a ship. It was flimsy... But it was enough. "Bear down on her, ladies. Tear that thing apart." Najia crowed, as she pulled the Raven in to touch down on the Arcadian Endeavour's landing pad. She looked back. "Axiom, they're gonna need you in the engine room. Lucca, you're not gonna wanna be on this ship!" The back ramp was dropping as she settled down; neither waited for her to have landed fully, they dropped from the ship and sprinted past, to the lift.
"So, you've decided to go down with the sinking ship? One less loose end for me to tie up later!" Mellerd crowed at her, and Najia smirked; of course she knew she couldn't trust Mellerd. "You're worse than a pirate, Kriss. Nobody can trust you," Najia said. "Prepare to kiss your ass goodbye."
Maestro was rattling on in her ear, but Najia could barely hear him over the combat calls. She hoped he was smart enough not to fire upon the T.E. vessels responding - it would be awkward later, and they were joining the fight on his side, after all. He was saying something about escape, and turrets. Najia snorted. "Actually, we're just going to blow this thing up," Najia declared. "We can't leave someone like Kriss Mellerd at our backs."
Things seemed to be doing well at first; the Rolling Rock was handling clumsily, awkwardly, as if she was critically undermanned. That gave Najia an odd hope that she might actually succeed at boarding her; the responding vessels were quickly tearing down her turrets and shields.
Then, everything went dramatically pear-shaped. Najia yelped as lasers tickled the the Raven's shields down and she got them back up again; again and again this happened, each time the hull started to fracture more and more. She made attack runs, damaged a surface element, and then things got worse. Where were those lasers coming from?
"Missile. Incoming missile." She slapped the countermeasures button, only to see the screen flash ammo empty. "Fuck!" A missile slammed into her, followed by a fly-by from a starfighter. She didn't catch it, but she took a pot-shot at it as it went past. Things were going from bad, to worse, when she heard someone howl, "Jackdaw's taking heavy fire! Jackdaw's... Oh fuck!"
Najia felt a moment of total disassociation. Numbly, her hand drifted over the stick, trying to maneuver the clunky ship like a starfighter, whilst fighting through mental fog.
Marta.
"We've got them!" Rei stringer called out, over her line. "I've got the crew of Jackdaw at the depot, but now we're under attack by a Ministry warship!" Najia gasped, shoving her stick forward, hard. Her ship was flying apart around her, and she snarled. "Someone get these motherfuckers!" "We're coming in," she heard - both the first, and last, person she wanted to hear. "Fenrir, engaging!" "Okayama, engaging." "Kagawa, engaging!" "Ark Royal, moving to engage!"
Najia laughed, incredulously. That was four fleets. Four fleets that most definitely were not supposed to be engaging to support the Arcadian Endeavour. One of them the Teladi wasn't even supposed to know about - Alarms blared. The Raven had taken a nasty hit, and a Ministry Kea was lining up on her six. She tried to pull away - she wasn't going to be fast enough - the ship jerked - the world went white.
Najia crashed forward to the deck, yelping, arms up to guard her head. She looked up; a Marine was standing next to her, offering her hand to Najia. "Better get to the skipper, ma'am," the Marina said. "We're Koshirae." Najia laughed, taking the proffered hand and climbing to her feet, hustling down to the bridge's main deck. Selaia Kevlin was standing in the middle like the Maestro, calmingly barking out orders with command presence. She looked up at Najia, briefly, smirking at her. "Does the owner have the conn?"
Najia shook her head, laughing. "Fight the ship, captain. I've got to coordinate this clusterfuck." Selaia laughed at her and nodded, barking out, "bring us up ninety, show her our broadside. Turret gunners, you are cleared to engage."
She hustled down to the fleet coordination console; the crewwoman at it hopping away for her. "This is Takio," she said, hopping on the controls. "Ladies, clear my skies of red. I don't know what the hell has gotten into the Ministry, attacking our stations like this, but if it's hostile out there, we kill it."
Rolling Rock was not having a good day, and it was getting exponentially worse. Her engines had been disabled, and Najia heard Maestro call out over the pirate channel, "Her engines are disabled. Now is the time to get away! But, where is Wildcard?" Najia winced. How was she going to explain that? Did she even want to? "This is Snapping Tortoise," Raleen, the captain of her pirate Baku called out. "We are picking up the crew of Jackdaw and Raven. Let these big bruisers fight, we'll get back to you."
"No!" Kriss Mellerd called out, yelping. "I don't wanna die!" Rolling Rock was coming apart under the growing tide of fire it was enduring, and more ships were still arriving. Najia snarled. Part of her wanted to bid Kriss a bon voyage to the afterlife, but she looked up to Selaia. "If anyone gets out of that ship, I want them. And we don't tell the Ministry."
"Roger that," Selaia said, and barked out orders to the helm to move closer to Rolling Rock. Najia looked back - a Ministry Razorbill was thoroughly engaged, and another had just blown up, attacking the construction depot.
She gritted her teeth, snorting hard. There was going to be hell to pay for this later. Righteous indigation - no, fury - was going to be the order of the day. Her ships had responded to a distress call from a Windfall trader, by an unidentified vessel. It was attacking relentlessly, wasn't on-record as being anything official. Then Ministry vessels, apparently heeding the aggressor's pleas, had jumped in, attacking Takio Enterprises assets, and the inevitable happen.
That was the tack she was going to have to take, and she clenched her fist. Outside, Rolling Rock came apart in a dazzling blossom of red that polarized the bridge windows for a long several moments. When they cleared, the ship was a debris field. Part of her hoped that Mellerd was dead; part of her hoped she wasn't. There was going to be a butcher's bill for today, and she tried - probably vainly - to make peace with that.
"Get us close enough to the Ministry Wharf to make contact," Najia said, looking to Selaia. "I've some barking to do." Selaia smirked at her. "After this? They should know damn well your bark isn't nearly as bad as your bite. They should be happy to get barked at. You should put on a respectable jacket at least." Najia let out a huff of exasperation, hurrying to do just that.
Najia needed to work to summon the righteous indignation she required for the bluff, but she reminded herself of the fate of Ace's mother to do so; the Ministry were assholes, even if they were also the lawful authority; and they had attacked her. She had clear and convincing evidence that Mellerd was up to no damn good. Not that she waas going to reveal it to anyone.
Hence, she found herself with eyes coldly blazing over the comms to the Ministry Police Kea craft which had departed from the wharf to intercept Koshirae. "Enough is enough," she snarled over the holo, standing in the conference room. "My ships responded to an attack upon a free trader from a destroyer that was not transmitting appropriate Ministry codes - not that the Ministry should be allowed to attack random traders, either."
"Your ships fired upon Ministry vessels," the captain of the Kea shot back, clearly outraged - but also, like the pilot who had followed her through the rift - terrified at being massively outnumbered and outgunned.
"Let me be clear, on the record, so there is no ambiguity," Najia said, leaning forward, placing her fist on the table. The effect was to lean closer to the hologram - and on the little attack ship's screen, her face would loom larger. "My ships responded to a distress call from a ship being attacked by an unknown vessel not transmitting appropriate ID. The Ministry, for whatever reasons, chose to respond to the event by siding with the aggressor and attacking my ships. Takio Enterprises warships responded by destroying the Ministry vessels." Her heart was thumping in her chest, but she narrowed her eyes. "If this is the gratitude of the Ministry of Finance, for all that Takio Enterprises has done here in Eighteen Billion, in Grand Exchange and at large, for the Ministry and the company, up to and including constructing facilities and securing neutral diplomats to mediate the dispute between the Company and the Ministry... Well, you might want to check with your superiors before you write a check they have to make good on. To be absolutely clear, this is a threat; you are the highest-ranking Ministry combat officer in Eighteen Billion. It is your decision whether this conflict continues or ceases, here and now. Ah - ah! Shut your fucking muzzle and listen to me carefully," she snapped, as the pilot opened her muzzle to retort.
"If you say anything but words to the effect of 'this was a horrible misunderstanding and we should deescalate the situation' - if you, personally, choose to escalate the situation, the first step I will take will be ordering all of my shipyards to stop producing vessels for the Ministry. The second step will be that I shall cripple the Ministry's ability to replace vessels by destroying the Ministry Shipyard and Wharf here in Eighteen Billion. I shall then proceed onward to prosecute this destructive and pointless war - a war chosen by you, pilot, here and now - by destroying each and every Ministry of Trade station I can find, until someone with some competent authority asks me to please stop doing that. You can see the weight of tonnage I have here, you know the Ministry does not have the tonnage to stop me. The choice is in your claws, pilot; war, or peace. War, or peace. Escalate, or deescalate. Your call."
The Kea pilot visibly shrank backwards in her command chair, obviously struggling to attempt to retain composure and command respect in the face of an overt and direct threat to bring fire and flame directly to the Ministry of Finance. Finally she steeled herself, straightening up in her chair. "This has obviously been a dreadful misunderstanding, miss Takio. The Ministry is undoubtedly going to demand reparations for our lost warships, but such matters are the purview of the financiers, not myself. If you will cease giving offense, we too shall cease attacks upon your vessels."
"Thank you," Najia said, leaning back. She fought not to visibly slump and sigh in relief, or to show how badly her heart was racing. "As for the reparations, they can take that up with the diplomat I have on payroll. Out." She cut the channel, and collapsed back into the chair behind her.
A moment later, the comm lit up again, and she flicked it on. It was a huge conference call, with the commanders of her fleets, the captain of Koshirae, Marta on the Snapping Tortoise with a small bandage on her forehead; Rei Stringer on the 18B construction depot, Tsukiko Peterson back at the headquarters, Professors Nakagawa and Okoye - whom Najia realized with a pang of guilt she hadn't yet formally re-introduced herself to -, Boso Ta,, and Ace. Najia let out a heavy sigh of relief. "Please for the love of god tell me we didn't lose anybody," she said, first off.
"Nobody from Jackdaw, Marta confirmed. "I took a headcount. We got lucky. "That seems to be a recurring theme," added Captain - probably should be Commodore - Xiaowen Kapoor - one of Najia's older friends, and currently the commander of T.E.S. Fenrir. "It helps that we responded with overwhelming firepower. My fleet is reporting no fatalties; thirteen casualties, mostly caused by haste in the heat of battle."
That proved to be the recurring theme; all of her responders reported sustaining injuries, mostly 'workplace accidents' incurred whilst in the heat of battle, but though some were serious, none were life-threatening.
"Najia Takio," Professor Yoriko Okoye - an aged-but-not-venerable, steel-haired professor-turned diplomat said, with the same tone of voice that she had used when reproaching Najia in class. "You are now, as ever you were, charmed, lucky, and reckless. You choose to act with passion first and foremost. This is a fine mess that I'm going to have to clean up, you understand. Can I expect this sort of thing to deal with in the future?"
Najia took in a breath, glancing around at her fellows. Barring a few, they were all young - Tsukiko was the third-oldest and Najia knew she was closer to thirty-five than forty - barely. Most of them looked grave, but not mutinious. She sighed, and smiled, wryly. "While I don't plan to go to war with the Ministry, there may be future... Rough spots to smooth over, yes. If you'd like to resign and go home -" "Not yet," the aged professor said, sharply. "But for dealing with this, I am going to require a pay rise!"
A chorus of chuckles surrounded her, and Najia sighed, face-palming and smiling. "That's fair, professor. We're going to have a fine time untangling this. Ace, how are the Curs?"
Ace looked into her eyes, then looked away for a moment, then back to her. "Secure in Windfall, awaiting your hopefully-safe return." She trilled, and Najia nodded. "Next stop, then."

Looking for guidance, I feel like i need to say I don't really want to be involved in this. I don't want the attention but Im being told my abilities are strong and I have no choice but to embrace it. I dont want to pay for a reading, not becasue its money, but because I want someone who isnt a scammer and who genuinely wants to help. Also when ivew talked to people I feel that I can immediately tell if they are like me and have abilities but suprisingly most of the people ive talked to have given me no sense of a gift besides one redditor and a few local people.
All of my life I’ve been very atheist without question but recently I’ve been made aware by multiple people and events that I have abilities. After speaking to a few different people i’m realizing that a lot of things in my life that I felt were normal or “my mind tricking me” are actually expressions of whatever abilities I may possess.
sometimes I will feel heavy waves of sadness and even cry without a reason. I have moments where I feel the presence of another person in the room suddenly, it’s very easy for me to read another person‘s mood shift as well.
Ive had plenty of odd experiences that could fall into the category of supernatural but I usually brush it off becasue I never believed in any of this. What has happened this week is crazy, I've seen and felt things that I can no longer deny.
In my life ive had 3 tarot readings and all of which I felt drawn to the cards myself. the most recent 2 were this week and I pulled them for the person who owend the deck and they werte alarmingly accurate. The first tarot reading was done by a firend who felt I have lots of spirits following me and that my aura is purple. The second was another friend who lives in a very spiritually active house and things got weird. As soon as I spoke about having questions her lights started flickering which she said has never happened, I immediately felt that someone was in the kitchen. When I get those feelings I have things just "pop" into my head and this time is was an image of a young girl in a white and blue old style nightgown and she was very scared. The house exploded with activity, I felt drwn to an object on her wall to which I felt very bad energy from as well as a closet that seemed to have darker shadow figures trying to enter like rush hour.
I can say more but this could get long so I will end with last nights activity. I went to a bar and back home with a girl I met. As soon as I entered her house a guitar on a dresser was thrown onto the floor. Ive been told I am very powerful and show signs of the "poltergeist effect" which I havent looked up yet, I have all 4 sets of abilities and that I wont be able to avoid getting involved becasue i'm being called.

Hi all! I've just finished doing some bottom end work on my 82 Honda XL250 and I've just re-assembled the shift mechanism however sometimes it won't fully shift into gear, most of the time spinning the transmission will have it jump fully in gear. Just wondering if this behaviour will rectify itself when it's full of oil and running?

I started getting lumps at 13 ,one the size of a gold ball on my neck it was the first and it grew as time went on and 1 became many I've lost count of how many lymph nodes or lumps I have ,current day I'm 20m and have at least 4 on my head and ones been pushing my ear for years, slowly it's gonna harder and harder of hearing in my left ear ,the canal is smaller than it was but the don't know why .I get horrible sharp pains in my head that make me twitch or jerk my body at times ,when my body jerks my neck I feel the biggest lump almost pinch me inside? I have many on my feet and back making walking hurt at points ,lifting things being so painful got me fired from one of my jobs in the past ,recently I'm hungry but not gaining weight ,I'm 7 stone 7 pounds and feelings dizzy and tired most of the time but even if I ate before going to bed my stomach will hurt with how hungry I am threw the day like 4 times a day I also randomly vomit ,I threw up while brushing my teeth ,eating ,I just started gaging and it won't stop ,what I don't understand if why am I getting a sudden increase in amount of lymph nodes on me ,the pain they cause me and why am I so hungry, my stomach physically hurts only a few hours after I've eaten but I look really bad ,pale ,shake alot ,random hot and cold flushes ,random passing out or my view going black or staticy for up to 20 mins. I've been scared I have brain cancer for years but doctors never took me seriously because when I noticed my left ear was being pushed my dad told my doctor I listen to music too loud ,the lumps just kept growing and no one cared ,I kept going to the doctors, begged to be looked at to where they did and sonogram on my head and told me my skull was in the way and told me "it's cancer but not cancerous " and refused to ever explain to me or my gp what that sentence even means .recently my brain has felt wet ,like it feels like I'm sweating because I can feel the inside of my head drip with sonething, when I feel this I get very light headed and feel a horrible pressure in my head sometimes I think there's something pushing on my brain and its some of the most painful things I've been through, I can't live lien this please tell me what I can say to my doctor to prove I Nedd help I feel like I've been dying slowly for years now and because I'm young everyone assumes I'm faking it when I've been I'm pain so long, I also have a weird skin patterning that a new doctor went what is that rash with wide eyes, I told her it was vitiligo according to my doctor but I no longer have a clue ,it can be peeled off but the colour under that normally very hard and flakey skin is still a different colour to the rest of my skin ,it's on my neck ,face ,back and arms ,when i was a kid I had one brownie orange mark then one year I was terrified of it reaching my face but I got over it when I stop got getting asked if I had a deiase. On top of all this I'm covered in holes, scabs that don't heal right, 1 hole turns into 3 by day 3 I think impetigo (not good at spelling but im pa ty go )

So basically I fear being friends with a trans person thanks to this ex friend being in my life. I cared for them, made sure they're alright 100% of the time and giving them treats to make sure they're feeling a bit better during their harsh dysphoria moments.
But thanks to to him, I can't anymore handle my trust to anyone. He was the last straw and making me fear on being friends with trans people.
I'm not transphobic btw since I'm bi and I don't mind dating anyone before the incident.
I sadly didn't see the red flags in our friendship since middle school until it was too late. When I went to a harsh surgery to get my large intestine removed due to colon cancer tumors still infecting my organs, I didn't receive a single text from them like a hello, hru, or anything. For three months both in hospital and home recovery. I was feeling hella depressed AF and traumatized on my recovery. Fearing that I won't get connected because when you get a colostomy bag, it's a 50/50 chance you may or may not poop regularly. So I was constantly struck in fear about that.
Then came him pestering me and my friend group to go vegan. We all said no constantly. Even I had to tell him I can't due to a very strict diet and I felt guilty eating meat in front of him because I feared he would go on and on saying how meat is bad etc etc. I couldn't gain weight during 2018 - 2022 and was stuck between 75lbs - 82 lbs constantly because at one point he recommended me to drink almond milk and made me loose hella wieght and I had to tell him why and such. He gave me a disappointment Oh sound and we didn't chat that day.
Then came him shaping me and telling me what to do and not to do. I have this small stash of sparklers to pop when I feel depressed and I always say "hey wanna come over to pop fireworks?" Then he posts something in his story on why fireworks are bad because he knows I check his stories in Instagram. I wanted to cry because he knew why I pop fireworks but doesn't want me to because "I cause harm on the environment." Like these are sparklers like small 10 inch sticks. Not a huge one.
Thankfully I broke my friendship with him but afterwards he began to guilt trip me, talk to my ex which I told him not to, and to telling his gf, who doesn't know me at all, that I'm the bad person. This fight led to him telling HR that I harassed them, which I didn't since he sent all the messages including a long lengthy message which I apologized and such and explained why I was mad at him which felt like a 5 page essay. HR took my side and terminated and banned him from working at my workplace and the whole company itself. I could take him to court for causing such mental health issues during that month because I broke down every single day and hardly ate and my depression increased, Then anxiety hit alongside schizophrenia. I don't go to therapy btw but I feel like hitting one again for narcissist victim therapy. Of course I can take him to court but didn't but I'm thinking about it ngl. Sadly I deleted all the messages because those messages he sent was pure evil and don't want to read them anymore.
Then after that, I don't trust trans people. I want to but I fear that someone will hurt me the way my ex friend did. I fear that I will be controlled again due to me being 100% good.
Idk what to do anymore. I feel gross from having that person in my life because of another incident. So basically they are dating atm but he told me that he began to date his partner when they were 17 year old and my ex friend was 21 like 💀
Man idk what to do... My head is spinning all over the place. I just want to be in peace but I have a huge grudge on them ngl. No one ever hurt me like that before and it still hurts and makes me hella upset.

An author's note: Please read this post in it's entirety before you message me, I've added a follow up to answer most of the basic questions I've been asked over the last 3 years since I started posting my AD.

All my previous iterations were mostly about what role I could fulfill; and while this mostly still is true, walking amongst the elites the last week has opened my eyes... I'm looking for a complacent trophy to put on full display. Arriving to this city I already had a deep... Passion for power, governance; and just over all domination -- Washington DC fulfills my lust, and thirst for both political power, and monetary gain. Now I want, not need an adequate toy to share this experience with. Before I was playing conservatively; not anymore,
I've allowed my ego to rampant and on auto-pilot; thus far everything is according to design.
I'm as amoral as they come; I will eviscerate my way to the top of the governmental, and corporate ladder(s). I'm a retired hacker that has realized my full potential is being squandered away, so I'll begin to kick in the doors of 3 letter agencies until recruit me; or I die trying.
I've come to the conclusion that you need to make an impression with these sort of things, so I'm going to just let my words flow freely. So here we go:
Basics:
Height: 5'7
Weight: 175, could stand to lose a few lbs to get my abs back.
Eyes: Brown eyes.
Hair: Long curly brown hair (think Slash Rose's illegitimate son.)
Race: White.
Ethnicity: Hispanic (Cuban.)
Languages: Spanish, English, Sign-language.
Profession: Network Engineer in NW DC.
Religion: Agnostic.
A little about me:
I like long walks on the beach, sunsets, oh did I mention that I'm a sadist, and that I'm utterly insane?
I've been called a silver tongued devil; Quick witted, charismatic, with just the right amount of sarcasm.
Hobbies: Not being bored, it's a lot harder than it sounds. I enjoy learning/conversing about The Universe/space, science, and technology. I was quite nomadic in my 20s, having visited two different countries, lived in over 17 states, visited over 38.
Music: I'm more of a rhythm of the beat type of person vs. lyrics, but generally I've found myself to enjoy electronica. Definitely like a lot 80s synth pop, but again, this is just the preference, not really against the rest of the genres.
Shows: Billions, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Board Walk Empire, Billions, Rome, Deadwood, Halt and Catch Fire, The Sopranos, South Park, Mad Men, Dexter,
Movies: Beetlejuice, Brain Scan, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb,
"What are you looking for?"
Well I can encompass a Master, a Dominant, or a Daddy, so it's really what can I provide for you?1
"How is such a thing possible?" Antisocial Personality Disorder (3.4 for those interested.)
"Why was it necessary to mention that?" To give credence as to how I can, and have been all aspects of Dominance.
"Monogamy or polyamory?" Favoritism towards polyamory, but seeing as it's rare to find multiple partners that allow me to explore my more sadistic side without tension, and/or drama, I'd go with monogamy if the individual allowed me to be depraved.
Preference in the following order: Slave, submissive, little (I will explain further below.)
Kinks: Sadism, TPE, CNC, bondage, degradation, humiliation, knife play, rope play, rape/abduction play, choking, impact play, spanking, hair pulling (I think you get the idea by now, there are still far more, here's a more comprehensive list.)
Experience: 15+ years.
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So about that whole preference thing, as I am on the ASPD spectrum I'm capable of fulfilling whatever role(s) are required of me to get what I want. So let me explain further, I'm openly telling you far ahead of time that I lack emotions and empathy, with the hopes that me giving you the illusion of whatever it is you require, will be met with reciprocation of the kinks we can agree upon. This is where the waters get muddied for little's, I can definitely treat you like the princess you want to be, without all the douche-baggery you'll deal with as people tugging at your heart strings. Plenty of people around here pretend to be Daddies and will leave you absolutely heartbroken. Tired of games? Tired of bullshit? Well here's someone willing to give you all the care, attention, and affection you desire without any hassles.
"Why would you want to be a Daddy Dom given your lack of emotions, and empathy?"
I am a social chameleon. I've been perfecting my art for the majority of my life, I like the challenge. I like to learn people and, give them what they want with the idea that I get what I want in the end, it's called a social transaction. I know what respect is, and I believe I need to write a little about this. Once we've discussed clear limits, and terms, they shall not be crossed, it's counter productive for me to lose my play thing(s). I can be fiercely territorial of all my possessions, that includes the individual(s) I'm involved with, what is mine will be protected, whether you're a slave, a submissive, or a little.If you want someone to completely treat you like trash, I'm more than willingly to oblige, if you need a savior and a protector, well I can do that too. I'm able to encompass what is required; a means to an end.
"What are you looking for in a submissive?" I'd like it to extend outside of the bedroom, but if it doesn't, whatever, I'm not going to repeat myself, so hopefully you've read this in it's entirety.
"What are you looking for in a slave?" Mostly aesthetics, and objectification. Of course I'd expect loyalty, servitude, and there's a plethora more, but I don't feel I need to be too descriptive on this part.
Now that I've written a fucking novel about myself, let's get to you....
Age: I prefer them younger (18+) , but have dated women as old as 45; generally if I find you attractive, I won't care.
Height: the shorter the better, but I've dated women taller than myself, not a deal breaker.
Weight: I'd like someone on the smaller side, a few extra pounds will be acceptable, but no one overweight please, just not my thing.
I will list things below in order of preference, not necessarily a disqualifier. (This is only opinion, not a rating system.)
Race: White, but as long as I'm attracted I won't care, I don't discriminate.
Ethnicity: N/A read above.
Language(s): The more the merrier, accents are a huge plus, whether a southern drawl, or other.
Religion: I'm completely open to allowing you to practice whatever you'd like, just don't expect me to participate; I can be respectful of your beliefs, as long as you're respectful of mine, I am a man of science, The Universe is my religion (so to speak.)
Eyes: Blue, green, hazel, brown (If you have Heterochromia iridum you move to the front of the line, I like mutations.)
Hair: The longer the better, no preference as to style, as for color: I prefer true blondes, redheads, dirty blondes, and then brown.
Tattoos: Sure, whatever, as long as it's not overwhelming or flat out tacky, in this day in age it's harder to find someone with none, so as the trend follows above.
Piercings: Depends, some people can pull off septum piercings, but I personally dislike them, so if it compliments your facial features, sure why not. But there is definitely a breaking point where it becomes overwhelming and you just look like Hellraiser.
Education: Strong preference towards educated women, this does not necessarily mean academics, open to all.
Profession: No preference, but I do tend to like women in psychology (I have my reasons.)
Personality: If I have to learn "your" pronouns, or apologize for my "white male privilege" you can fuck right off; I don't care about politics.
Children: Strong preference in favor of not having them, unless we never intend to meet, or you don't expect a level of commitment from me to them, then I don't readily care, non-factor. To explain a tad bit, it isn't that I can't, I just would rather not raise children, I have too many plans in life that children would derail, maybe later.
If you're interested in communicating further, I prefer talking on these platforms and in this order: Discord, WhatsApp, Reddit Chat\, Skype, Kik,* open to other forms of contact.
\Reddit Chat isn't the same thing as their mailing system, just an FYI.*
Go ahead and shoot me a message, I'm waiting.
​
An update:
Well just to filter some things out, since I get this so many times... I will not be putting a big editorial process to this update(I say this now, after already re-reading, and editing a minimum of 5 times; I'm a slave to my own perfectionism,) so if you mostly have questions about me, ASPD, and things of the like, read this before you message me.
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While I absolute love to talk about myself because I'm just such a narcissistic-hedonist, I also do get bored of repeating myself, even if it is a new person. As such read everything in it's entirety before you message me, as I'm going to entertain less, and less messages about me, and not what I'm seeking, I'd rather focus on only replying to potential partners, and absolutely nothing else, that being said if anything I have not covered in this update, or post still burns an answer from you, by all means message me.
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"Were you formally diagnosed?"
I get asked about this A LOT, I'm not going to go into very many details, suffice it to say, yes, but it's been labeled as a misdiagnosis, all you need to know is I score high, and I do the things you'd expect, the pyromania, the violence that is actually associated at early age, the works, I'm not comfortable giving you more beyond that, and I will not be entertaining questions about my personal life, maybe a partner could ask me those questions, but I'm not letting you in my head, that's my game, not the other way around :).
Please do your own research beyond this point, it's borderline laziness how often I keep getting asked about this.
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"Why are you so open about it(ASPD)?"
Isn't it obvious? A lot of you can't fathom why someone with ASPD would just openly come out, and admit to people, well I guess I really should've brushed up on this when I first made my post, or at least go into a far more descriptive detail than I had originally, so here goes:
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If I'm ever to lead a sort of a long term relationship based on trust, and honesty, just how in the HELL do you expect me to explain this to you ever so casually? It's best to show your cards in the beginning, this is my own baggage, or some form there of.
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There's two reasons I'm choosing to do this online, and vehemently under anonymity; 99% of you will be irrelevant to me, 99% of you will never meet me, it's just that simple, ergo why wouldn't I just preface my entire description as such, and as brutally honest as possible? Secondly I do not want a partner whom I need to continue to wear a mask for, I want to be me, the real me, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
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What I find the most is women that fetishize the entire ordeal, that's all fine and dandy, but it does show just a lack of understanding about what APSD is as a whole, and to be perfectly blunt, you're wasting my time, I don't need to feed into your lonely thrill romance you spun in your head from watching true crime dramas. More often than not, this what happens, spare us the role-playing, I'm just not that bored.
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"Empathy"
One clear distinction I'd like to make, so I can stop getting asked about it, we DO have empathy, it's just not how YOU experience empathy. Think of a light switch, by default most of the population's is on, ours is off by default, and furthermore we have the ability to turn it on, and off. Yes, it is that simple, yes we use it for manipulation, now stop asking me about this, it's boring to repeat this.
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"Emotions"
Boredom, rage. This is what I'm capable of in the dark, empathy off. I'm constantly seeking stimuli, if you notice by actually looking through my posts, I've moved a ton of times, and always national parks... New atmosphere, new adventures, new dangers, you know, the shit that gets your heart pumping, adrenaline. This is my favorite drug, this is the high I constantly chase to kill the boredom. Rage is just self explanatory, my defaults are animalistic.
I am fully capable of experiencing all emotions, it's just for the most part, because I don't want do, I don't allow myself to.
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"Manipulation"
For the longest time I told myself who cares if I burn bridges in my wake, I'm building a highway in its place. Mostly still true, and I absolutely use it on a daily basis for survival, I must stress, and emphasize survival, here is why; I'm human, like the rest of you, what do you do on a daily basis, if not find means, and ways to survive, and entertain yourself? I know no other way other than to use people to my advantage, I minimize the damage where I can, and move about my daily existence, guilt, and worry free about doing any wrong, an argument could be made that we all use each other in some weight, or capacity, and that's good enough for me.
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I'm sure by now you're probably wondering what the hell any of that has to do with anything, it's simple if the point flew over your head, again. I'm tired of manipulating people, using them, abusing them, discarding them, I didn't grow a conscious I'm not "growing" as a person, but much more likely, I'm just bored of the routine, or the process, which has become the symphony of my life.
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"Love"
I by no means ever want to experience this love you all chase like Alice clumsily falling down the rabbit hole. I've seen it so much in my life it's downright pathetic, and I actually feel bad for those of you that have such strong emotions, see empaths. You're slaves to these emotions, you let people use and manipulate you, you've been hurt, and had your heart ripped from your chest, and it feels like you no longer have purpose, lacking direction, and meaning in life. I merely know this from generally observing humans for most of my natural born life. I'm more than happy to remain the way I have always been, and never wish to experience emotions in the way you do, I find it to be an advantage, one I can apply to more important things in life, like the pursuit of knowledge.
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I hope the psych nerds will now stop asking me these questions, I've paid my dues.
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"Preferences"
My preferences, are just that, a list of my preferences, at no point in any of my writing did I say I was prejudice between one thing, or that I show favoritism. I merely made a chart listing some of the attributes that I myself, personally find to be significant to me, but that isn't to say, or detract from other things. It's the equivalent of asking me if I prefer Metallica, or Megadeth; well I'm going to say I prefer one over the other, but I enjoy both, and the genre as a whole, the genre being women in this case. I enjoy women for my own personal entertainment, and amusement -- which makes it all the more hilarious to me when I get called a misogynist.
so please spare me all your comments, and messages telling me that it's so "intimidating", if my post intimidates you, what can I really even begin to say about that? It doesn't sound like we'd be compatible, or much less you'd be able to accept me as a person, in any case this is a personal issue.
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"You Need Help!"
I know what the help is, they just remind you repeatedly that your actions have consequences, they do not prescribe a medication for this, just therapy, and I know enough already to check myself, it really is that easy.
P.S:
"To My Adoring Fans"
You call me an edge-lord, cringe, and a wide range of inane insults, that truly don't phase me, since I get a lot of these messages, I thought I'd give you my rebuttal; just so you know I sleep naked so that anyone that doesn't like me, can kiss my ass - feel free to visit anytime!
P.S.S: I now operate, function, and walk amongst the elite of the nation; I see my kind everywhere, this is what Rome must of felt like in it's heyday; Cicero you clever bastard... I bid you all adieu -- and depart with this:
{"Το σύμπαν είναι αλλαγή. η ζωή μας είναι αυτό που την κάνουν οι σκέψεις μας.";}
Sincerely,
<~sodomy>

The gas giant loomed large in the viewport, ballooning as the ship coasted toward it, the colorful blue hues of its swirling bands reflecting the glow of the system’s star.
Darren could make out the bright, scarred surface of an ice moon drifting lazily past, framed against the rivers of flowing hydrogen and helium. Silhouetted against the Jupiter-mass object was their destination – Halfpoint Station.
Having come from Earth, which was still a backwater when compared to many of the Imperium’s more developed worlds, the sheer size and grandeur of the structure took his breath away.
It was hard to gauge its true scale in the vacuum of space where there was no atmospheric haze, and there were no landmarks for reference, the unfiltered light creating harsh shadows. As they drew nearer, however, he was able to pick out some of the massive fuel tankers that swarmed its ports like clouds of gnats.
Those vessels put anything created by Humanity to shame – their purpose being to dip into the upper atmosphere of the gas giant, harvesting its resources to fuel the ships that made their berth here.
Calling it enormous was an understatement. It must have been nine miles tall, the main hull of the station forming a long, relatively thin vertical shaft. Surrounding that shaft were half a dozen rotating rings, each one connected to the central column by spokes, the pinpoints of innumerable windows glinting as they slowly turned.
At its apex was a dome of immense proportions, sitting proudly atop the structure, the crystalline material that made up its transparent hull glittering in the starlight. Inside, he could make out glimpses of regal skyscrapers and patches of parkland – an entire city encapsulated in a habitat that had a breathtaking view of the planet.
Darren pursed his lips as he looked down at the device on his wrist, the tiny display showing the familiar text of an article he must have read at least a dozen times by this point.
Halfpoint Station was situated on the outskirts of the Imperium’s sphere of influence, a region of space known only as the Periphery. This put it soundly outside of Purp jurisdiction, but the place still saw a lot of traffic, as the station was right in the middle of a relatively well-traveled shipping route between the three big powers.
While it had started its life as little more than a place to fuel up and get resupplied, being located outside any of the major spheres of influence had its benefits, and the station had garnered a bit of a reputation for its more permissive policies. Now, it was said to be populated by hired guns, smugglers, gamblers, and anyone else who might appreciate discretion.
The Human frowned as he looked out the window once more and tried to reconcile the gleaming edifice before him with the dark reputation the article in his hands presented.
He didn’t have long to dwell on it before the pilot’s crackly voice came through a hidden intercom in the cabin, informing the passengers that they were commencing docking procedures.
The woman spoke in accented Shil. What that accent was, Darren had no clue, but he knew it wasn’t the same one spoken by his professors – linguistic or mechanical.
He glanced around at his fellow travelers, seeing a few species that he didn’t recognize, along with the more familiar Shil’vati. The aliens were easily identifiable by the purple hue of their skin, their sharp tusks, and their seven-foot height.
Several of them returned his gaze, some curious, some covetous.
Males were rare in the Imperium.
Hell, males were rare, period.
By the standards of most races out in the galaxy, Humanity were the strange ones for having an equal number of men and women. Even six years into the occupation, most were still struggling to adapt to the new paradigm brought on by that reality.
Darren was no exception.
Still, he managed to ignore the stares, turning his attention to the smart display on his wrist, bringing up his itinerary. He was headed to Hab-Ring Five, and the only information that he’d been given beyond that were some coordinates to who-knew-where.
He sighed, wishing – not for the first time – that he might have a fellow first timer to converse with.
Unfortunately, that was a pipe dream.
The lack of other Humans on his ship wasn’t surprising. The Imperium had only recently relaxed enough to begin authorizing travel visas allowing Humans to leave Earth, and his kind were still a rarity on the Galactic stage.
As to why he was out here out in the ass end of space?
He’d been offered a job.
He was an engineer by trade, at least according to his degree, and he specialized in the combination of alien and Human technology. It might seem like an oddly specific skillset, but it was one that was in high demand, as just about every industry on Earth was trying to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the Imperium’s literal space-age technology.
It was complicated work, but he was quite good at it, if he said so himself – and his professors seemed to agree. His gift had catapulted him through university and had apparently landed him a very lucrative offer to take up a position on Halfpoint.
How they’d heard of him, he wasn’t too sure. Nor did he truthfully know exactly what the job entailed. Apparently, he was to be briefed on-location.
Regardless, off-world work was a rare opportunity for any Human, let alone one fresh out of school, and visiting an alien space station was a lot more interesting than backpacking around Europe for a year.
Whatever happened, it was going to be an adventure.
The ship matched velocity with one of the rotating rings, the structure at least half a mile tall in its own right, covered in tiny windows that made it look like a whole city block had been condensed down into the shape of a donut.
Now that he was a little closer, Darren could see that the station was actually far from pristine. Its hull was pocked with haphazard repairs, the newer sections shining brighter than their older counterparts, its armored panels pitted with little craters from space debris and micro-meteorite impacts.
The ship lined up with a docking port, and an umbilical walkway began to extrude from the ring, reaching out towards them. It looked like the jib of a crane, covered over with a flexible material that bore a suspicious resemblance to a grey tarp.
Surely it wasn’t actually a tarp? No, it had to be some kind of alien supertech – too advanced for him to recognize at a glance.
Right?
His thoughts did little to reassure him as the umbilical connected to the shuttle’s airlock with a tangible thud.
Shaking his head, he retrieved his travel bag, then made his way down the aisle to join the queue of passengers who were waiting to disembark. More of them crammed in behind him, and he tried to ignore their uncomfortable proximity.
He hadn’t actually spent a lot of time around aliens during his schooling. One of his professors had been a Shil, but she had been professional to a fault and had always kept a healthy distance from her students.
Of course, she had still managed to be rather intimidating despite that, her head seeming to scrape the ceiling every time she stepped into the classroom. However, Darren was rapidly discovering that being surrounded by women who stood head and shoulders above him was a different experience altogether.
It was nothing to get worked up over, though. He just needed to-
The Shil standing behind him pressed close – uncomfortably close – Darren swearing that there was room enough in the aisle for her to keep her distance. Suddenly, he felt a sharp twinge in his rear.
Had she just...pinched him? No, it had to have been a mistake.
He turned to glance over his shoulder, looking up at the towering Purp. “Sorry, Ma’am, I must have bumped into you.”
Her sly smile faded as she furrowed her brow in confusion. Before she had time to formulate a reply, the intercom above the exit beeped.
“Oh, looks like we’re moving again!” Darren chimed as he began to follow the queue. “Sorry!”
He followed the procession of towering women into the passenger ship’s airlock. Both of the pressurized doors were open, and before him stretched the umbilical. The worryingly thin material that protected them from the deadly vacuum of space was wrapped taut around a metal frame, and the walkway beneath his feet was made up of a simple grate.
After a short walk, they emerged into a cavernous dock area, so large that it was more like standing in some kind of indoor stadium than anything that could be compared to a space station. There were stacks of shipping containers and unidentifiable machinery everywhere he looked.
It was a challenge not to stop and examine the equipment, each new sight piquing his interest, each strange device begging to be investigated. As he followed the other passengers to the far end of the room – his head on a swivel – he almost bumped into one of the containers. To his surprise, it was floating a foot off the ground, suspended on an anti-gravity cushion.
It was funny – no matter how many times he saw it, it never stopped being surreal to see something just…float.
As he stooped to look beneath it, an irritated dockworker leaned out from behind it to yell at whoever was in her way. She stopped when she saw him, raising a skeptical eyebrow. She was a Rakiri, if Darren remembered correctly. She resembled a towering werewolf, a pair of cat-like eyes peering out from beneath her black fur, her facial features strangely leonine. She was clad in dirty, yellow coveralls that hung loosely from her broad shoulders, exposing the ragged tank top that she wore beneath it. Tufts of her dark coat poked out around the faded garment, giving her a surprisingly fluffy appearance.
“You lost, boy?” she asked as she shooed him out of her path. “Stay behind the yellow warning markings unless you want to get that cute butt smushed,” she added with a nod toward the deck. She continued to push her heavy container, moving it effortlessly on its gravity cushion.
More dock workers were assembling to stare at him, perhaps having never seen a Human before. Or perhaps it was because he was male? It was hard to tell. Either way, a small crowd of yellow-clad women saw him off, a couple of them hooting at him and waving. Not sure if this was some kind of alien greeting, he shyly waved back, eliciting laughter from them after a moment of surprise.
One started to make her way over to him before a menacing growl from her superior made her freeze in place sheepishly. Darren took that as his cue to move on – he didn’t want to get anyone else in trouble by being in the way.
He arrived at a security gate, and after being asked to show his visa, he was subjected to a very thorough – and in his opinion unnecessary – pat-down. Once he was cleared, he emerged into the station proper. He stepped out of the way of the women behind him, then set his travel bag down on the metal deck, taking in the alien sights and sounds for a moment.
Far from being a sterile, clinical environment, he found himself in a bustling bazaar worthy of any city back on Earth. It scarcely felt like he was standing inside a station at all, what passed for the ceiling so high above his head that he could barely make out the crisscrossing support beams and maintenance catwalks.
It was styled like a cramped street, too small for cars, almost like the city center of some old European town had been reimagined in an industrial style. Civilian quarters that resembled apartment blocks rose up towards the ceiling, connecting to it in some places, likely leading up to higher levels of the station.
In every nook and cranny – anywhere there was room – the denizens of the hab-ring had set up little stalls where they were hawking their wares to the tourists who had just boarded. Colorful awnings fluttered in the artificial breeze from the air recyclers, and insulated cables that had been patched from the station’s systems trailed along walls and floors, powering streetside food stands and colorful neon signs.
Speaking of the denizens, they came in all shapes and sizes. Darren had never seen so many varieties of alien in one place before. He could make out a few Shil and Rakiri, but most were unknown to him, the varied hues of their skin and clothes creating a bustling sea of color.
He checked the device on his wrist again, pulling up the coordinates that his new employer had forwarded to him. This was indeed Hab-Ring Five, and he’d been given what passed for an address in this strange environment. Hefting his bag once more, he made his way into the throng, having to dodge and weave between the towering aliens. Many of them barely seemed to register his presence, probably due to his comparatively small stature, though some seemed to stop and stare in confusion.
Well, I suppose Humans are pretty new on the galactic scene, he thought to himself.
The scents of strange, alien food assailed him as he navigated the cramped streets, a few of the criers singling him out. They had sharp instincts, he’d give them that. It seemed the locals could smell a tourist at thirty paces.
Maybe it was all the staring he was doing?
Eventually, he arrived at his destination, glancing up from his display to see a dingy bar. It was open to the street, built into an overhang at the base of one of the many buildings, little more than a long counter with a few stools. Above it was a blinking neon sign in a script that he couldn’t read. As he made his way inside and struggled up onto one of the tall stools, the small handful of patrons who were sitting off to his left paused their conversation to examine him.
They were Nighkru, their goat-like horns and the bruise-purple hue of their skin giving them away. Their silver eyes were striking, almost seeming to glow in the dim light of the bar, as reflective as those of a cat. Their clothing was all tight leather and straps, their skin strategically exposed in places to show off their stunning bioluminescent tattoos, the swirling patterns trailing down slender limbs and across toned midriffs.
He kept his gaze aimed forward, knowing that their kind didn’t think much of the Imperium to which he now belonged.
…Then again, that was true for pretty much every race that wasn’t a part of the massive interstellar empire. Say what you would about the Purps, but they knew how to make an impression.
The bartender walked over to him, leaning on the counter as she looked him up and down skeptically. It was another Rakiri like the dockworkers, her feline nose twitching as she took in his scent.
“You lost, or do you want something to drink?” she asked.
“No thank you, I’m waiting for someone,” he replied sheepishly as he lowered his eyes to his device again.
He was right on time, but as he looked around, there was no sign of his contact. He was supposed to meet them here, right?
The Rakiri shrugged her furry shoulders, then left him to his own devices, moving over to the small group of Nighkru.
Perhaps one of them was his contact?
He certainly hoped not. While he didn’t have anything against a person enjoying themselves with a good drink after hours, it wasn’t a good way to make a positive first impression on a prospective employee.
Fortunately for him, the surprise on one of the trio’s grey skinned faces when she happened to blearily peer in his direction dashed that possibility. Just a trio of young women out for a drink.
Unfortunately for him, after a few hastily whispered words to her friends, the group made their way over to him.
“Don’t see many males round these parts,” one of them said, her faux leather getup creaking as she planted her hands on the bar to his left. Another leaned on the counter to his right, the third posting up behind him.
“A Human, too,” the woman to his right added with a sly chuckle. “Now, what’s a Human doing all alone out on the Periphery?”
“I didn’t think the Purps were letting their pets off the leash.” the one behind him snickered.
“I don’t know,” the first said with an exaggerated shrug. “Maybe he snuck out in search of a real woman? I think we’ve all heard how Humans can be.”
That set the three of them laughing.
All the while, Darren wasn’t sure where to look, turning his head left and right as he struggled to pick a Nighkru. He settled on the woman to his left, having to lift his head to meet her gaze, those reflective eyes shining like a pair of silver coins.
“I...uh...was actually supposed to be meeting someone here.” he stammered, a little of his anxiety bleeding through.
The Nighkru gave him a warm smile that wasn’t reflected in her eyes, leaning a little closer. He tried to pull away reflexively but found another Nighkru waiting for him, something rather soft pressing against his back.
“Well, I don’t see anyone else in here but me and my friends,” one of them said as she tutted dramatically. “Maybe they stood you up?”
“Poor form, that,” the one behind him whispered into his ear. He lurched in his seat, surprised by her proximity. “Leaving a pretty young thing like you hanging.”
The first one nodded, as if that was a piece of sagely wisdom. “I know – how about my friends and I give you a personal tour of the station to make up for it?” she asked, reaching out to brush a piece of errant fluff from his collar. “We’ll even carry your luggage for you – we’re nice like that.”
She signaled to one of her compatriots with a curt nod, who then plucked his travel bag off the deck.
“Oh, that’s really not-”
He tried to stand, but he was cut off as two of the women placed their hands on his shoulders, pushing him back down into his seat. Their touch was gentle, but firm, letting him know that he wasn't going anywhere.
Darren looked to the Rakiri bartender for help, feeling more than a little overwhelmed by the turn of events, but she was staying out of it. She was feigning disinterest, cleaning a glass with a rag that didn’t look clean enough for the job.
It was clear that he wouldn’t be getting any help from her.
Was this really going to be his first experience on the station – kidnapped by a gang of alien grifters?
Just as he was getting ready to – likely ineffectually – start swinging like his life depended on it, he heard a voice ring out in a language he didn’t recognize.
The Nighkru turned their heads as one, and he followed their gaze, seeing another of their kind step in from the street. Her skin had the same twilight hue, her silvery hair pulled back into a long ponytail that trailed behind her as she strode towards them. She wore a jet-black body suit that left little to the imagination, so tight that it might have been sewn onto her, the garment open at the front to expose a chiseled midriff and the beginnings of her cleavage. Her eyes were mesmerizing, his gaze drawn to the glowing tattoos that served to accentuate them.
Oddly, unlike the trio surrounding him, she had no horns.
The stranger walked with purpose, her heels clicking on the deck, her hair swishing behind her as she came to a stop to stare down the three other women. They were already backing off, the Nighkru who had taken his bag setting it back down gingerly beside his seat. Did they know this person? They seemed so wary of her.
“Maybe we’ll see you around,” one of them whispered, her hand lingering on his shoulder for a moment before she followed her friends out into the street.
Once they were finally out of sight, Darren breathed a sigh of relief and turned to thank the newcomer. Before he could utter so much as a word, she beat him to the punch.
“You shouldn’t wander around Halfpoint alone,” she said, skipping the preamble. Her voice had a melodic tone, one that was almost musical to Darren’s ears. She planted her hands on her hips, scrutinizing him with a skeptical expression. “You’re just asking for trouble.”
“I’m just...waiting for someone,” he replied. “Thank you, by the way. I’m-”
“Do you have a weapon on you?” she asked, cutting him off. “A handgun under that jacket? Defense spray? A pocket knife?”
“What? No,” he replied, his brow furrowing. “Why would I have a gun?”
Even with a few inches of titanium-alloy plating between everyone aboard and a messy death by explosive decompression, using a firearm on the station seemed risky.
She snorted derisively, almost as though she couldn’t believe his reply.
“For your sake, I hope that whoever you’re waiting for is smarter than you are,” she said with a roll of her silver eyes. “This isn’t Earth, boy. There are no Shil Marines around to babysit you. Next time you want to play tourist, go somewhere closer to home.”
With a flick of her long hair, she turned about, vanishing into the crowd once more to leave him sitting at the bar in confusion.
Darren felt another hand on his shoulder and turned to see an Edixi wearing grease-stained overalls standing behind him. The tool belt that hung loosely about her hips let him know that she was a mechanic before she’d even had time to open her mouth.
Her kind were evolved for an aquatic environment, and although they were fully amphibious, they retained many of their ancient features. Their bodies were smooth and streamlined, with lean, lightly-muscled frames that made them look like Olympic swimmers. Her eyes were a striking ocean-green, and her azure skin was patterned with faded tiger stripes, darkening as it neared her extremities.
“You’re the new engineer, right?” she chirped excitedly.
“Darren Fogle, pleased to meet you,” he confirmed as he extended a hand. She took it, shaking it eagerly, and he noted that her fingers were webbed.
He was a little surprised by how smooth her skin was. Given the sharklike appearance of the Edixi – and her vocation – he’d expected it to be rough and scaly. Maybe cold and slimy, too. By contrast, it was warm and soft, her small scales smooth like a snake’s rather than sharp like those of a fish.
Odd.
“Oh, it is. It very much is. The boss told me to fetch you,” she said before turning back towards the street. “Don’t get lost, you hear? There are some rough types around these parts.”
Yes, she could say that again. He stooped to pick up his bag, then hurried after her, trying not to lose sight of her in the crowd. He also belatedly realized that she hadn’t told him her own name.
Was that an Edixi thing or was she just in a hurry?
The mechanic led him through the streets, which seemed to be arranged in a kind of grid pattern, always flanked by the towering hab-blocks. It was as challenging as ever to navigate when so many of the station’s inhabitants stood a head taller than him. It made him feel like a bug that was trying to avoid being stepped on.
He could only assume he’d get used to it. His guide seemed to have no problem getting around, and she was a few inches shorter than him.
Their destination was some kind of service elevator – a large platform that seemed designed to carry heavy cargo up from the docks, wide enough that a couple of trucks could have parked on it side by side. There were still a few cargo containers stacked off to one side that hadn’t been unloaded yet.
He watched as the woman hit a touch panel beside the double doors, and they began to slide shut, the platform lurching as Darren felt it start to rise. There was no grinding of machinery, no vibrations, only a sensation of getting heavier. It was obviously gravity-manipulation tech. It wasn’t too surprising – the Shil seemed to use it for just about everything, so it wasn’t too strange that the rest of the universe did as well.
Convergent technological development, he could almost imagine his Shil instructor saying as they started to descend. Good tech is good tech.
The hab-ring’s many levels flashed by one by one, until finally, the elevator slid to a smooth stop. Darren followed the happily humming mechanic out into a garage, his eyes lighting up as he took in his new surroundings.
Were those… mecha?
The bay’s walls were lined with bulky harnesses that were obviously designed to hold the machines in place, a few of the berths already occupied by half-disassembled vehicles.
They were!
“Real life mecha,” he mumbled.
As a mechanic, he wasn’t ignorant of the genre. After all, what kind of engineer didn’t hold a soft spot for giant stompy robots? Of course, as an engineer, he also held an inherent disdain for anyone that actually thought said machines were even remotely practical outside of the realm of fiction.
The Square Cube Law was a harsh mistress.
The long and short of it was that if you doubled a machine's height while keeping it the same shape, you ended up with four times the muscle power moving eight times the mass. As a result, instead of having the same relative agility as the original, the double-sized machine actually had only half.
That was why ants could lift so much relative to their weight. If you scaled one up, you’d end up with a much less impressive power to weight ration.
And, the problem only got worse the bigger you went. Giant robots would be slow, cumbersome, and they would inevitably suffer from exploding ankles if they tried to move too fast. They’d also sink in just about any terrain that was even slightly porous.
All in all, mecha were a cool concept with absolutely zero real world applications.
Which was why he was so stunned to see some in real life. Sure, the Shil military liked to use exos, but they were really just power armor by any other name with thrusters attached. Besides, the only reason those things could skip around like they did was because they had anti-grav generators…
His thoughts trailed off as an idea occurred to him. He jogged over to the nearest machine, peering up at the twenty-foot humanoid monstrosity. Its legs had been detached, leaving only a bulky torso covered in half-stripped sensory equipment, lenses and scanners visible where their protective covers had been removed. The cockpit was open, revealing the pilot’s seat, along with the surrounding neural interface cables that hung loose like the entrails of some mechanical beast. Its weapon attachments were empty, but it was nonetheless an awe-inspiring sight.
Sure enough, there were two oversized humps on the back. One was clearly for the thing’s fusion engine – and the other must have held the anti-grav generator.
“Darren?” the mechanic asked, having only just realized that he wasn’t behind her. “Aren’t you coming?”
“Y-yeah,” he said, jogging for a few paces to catch up. “That’s a mecha!”
The blue-hued alien nodded slowly. “Yes?”
“A mecha,” he reiterated.
Which prompted another slow nod. “You’ve never seen a gladiator mech before?”
“No.”
“Didn’t they tell you what job you’d be doing?” the mechanic asked, cocking her head in a rather adorable manner.
“No?” This time it was his turn to cock his head.
Several emotions seemed to fly across the alien’s face. He saw surprise, confusion, and dismay before she finally settled on irritation.
“Typical,” she grunted. “Just… follow me.”
AN: https://youtu.be/a3Xp1WhRQ9Q

Welcome to another month! That means it's time for our monthly update on retiring sets. Not many changes this time around, but there were a lot of sets added to the database!
As always, we owe a massive thanks to ZombieYeti from the BrickHound Discord for providing this valuable data. If you're looking for real-time in-stock/deal alerts for Lego.com and other sites, make sure to check out his server.
This information is scraped directly from Lego's website, and all dates are subject to change. ZombieYeti is currently developing a website to host this data and offer real-time updates. In the meantime, here is a list of every set and their corresponding retirement date as per LEGO's system!
FULL LIST ON GOOGLE SHEETS HERE <--
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Due to Reddit's character limits, we can't include everything here, but the full spreadsheet contains every set.

• CHANGELOG FOR APRIL:

Theme	Set #	Set Name	Old Date	New Date	Change
Creator	40646	Daffodils	Dec 31, 2025	Dec 31, 2023	-2 years
Icons	40516	Everyone is Awesome	Dec 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2024	+1 year
Promotional	60369	Mobile Police Dog Training	Dec 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2024	+1 year
Minifigures	71038	LEGO® Minifigures Disney 100	N/A	Aug 31, 2023	NEW
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40624	Alex	N/A	Dec 31, 2023	NEW
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40625	Llama	N/A	Dec 31, 2023	NEW
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40626	Zombie	N/A	Dec 31, 2023	NEW
Indiana Jones	77012	Fighter Plane Chase	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Indiana Jones	77013	Escape from the Lost Tomb	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Indiana Jones	77015	Temple of the Golden Idol	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Jurassic Park	76957	Velociraptor Escape	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Jurassic Park	76958	Dilophosaurus Ambush	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Jurassic Park	76959	Triceratops Research	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Jurassic Park	76960	Brachiosaurus Discovery	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Jurassic Park	76961	Visitor Centre: T. rex & Raptor Attack	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Mario	71423	Dry Bowser Castle Battle	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Star Wars	75346	Pirate Snub Fighter	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Star Wars	75358	Tenoo Jedi Temple	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Star Wars	75361	Spider Tank	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Star Wars	75363	The Mandalorian's N-1 Starfighter Microfighter	N/A	Dec 31, 2024	NEW
Duplo	10998	3-in-1 Magical Castle	N/A	Dec 31, 2025	NEW
Icons	10317	Land Rover Classic Defender 90	N/A	Dec 31, 2025	NEW

• RETIRING IN 2023:

Theme	Set #	Set Name	Retirement Date
Minifigures	66733	Minifigures - Series 24	Apr 30, 2023
Classic	11015	Around the World	Jul 31, 2023
Creator	31123	Off-Road Buggy	Jul 31, 2023
Disney	10780	Mickey and Friends Castle Defenders	Jul 31, 2023
Disney	43203	Aurora, Merida and Tiana's Enchanted Creations	Jul 31, 2023
Dots	41962	Unicorn Creative Family Pack	Jul 31, 2023
Mario	71404	Goomba's Shoe	Jul 31, 2023
Mario	71407	Cat Peach Suit and Frozen Tower	Jul 31, 2023
Mario	71409	Big Spike's Cloudtop Challenge	Jul 31, 2023
Mario	71412	Big Bad Island	Jul 31, 2023
Mindstorms	51515	Robot Inventor	Jul 31, 2023
Minecraft	21187	The Red Barn	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71738	Zane's Titan Mech Battle	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71754	Water Dragon	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71756	Hydro Bounty	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71759	Ninja Dragon Temple	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71762	Kai's Fire Dragon EVO	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71770	Zane's Golden Dragon Jet	Jul 31, 2023
Ninjago	71773	Kai's Golden Dragon Raider	Jul 31, 2023
Technic	42129	4x4 Mercedes-Benz Zetros Trial Truck	Jul 31, 2023
Minifigures	71038	LEGO® Minifigures Disney 100	Aug 31, 2023
Architecture	21054	The White House	Dec 31, 2023
Art	31203	World Map	Dec 31, 2023
Art	31205	Jim Lee Batman Collection	Dec 31, 2023
Art	31206	The Rolling Stones	Dec 31, 2023
Art	31207	Floral Art	Dec 31, 2023
Avatar	75571	Neytiri & Thanator vs. AMP Suit Quaritch	Dec 31, 2023
Avatar	75573	Floating Mountains: Site 26 & RDA Samson	Dec 31, 2023
Brickheadz	40540	Lion Dance Guy	Dec 31, 2023
Brickheadz	40541	Manchester United Go Brick Me	Dec 31, 2023
Brickheadz	40542	FC Barcelona Go Brick Me	Dec 31, 2023
Brickheadz	40554	Jake Sully & his Avatar	Dec 31, 2023
City	30638	Police Bike Training	Dec 31, 2023
City	30639	Dog Park and Scooter	Dec 31, 2023
City	41723	Donut Shop	Dec 31, 2023
City	41726	Holiday Camping Trip	Dec 31, 2023
City	60253	Ice-Cream Truck	Dec 31, 2023
City	60313	Space Ride Amusement Truck	Dec 31, 2023
City	60314	Ice Cream Truck Police Chase	Dec 31, 2023
City	60315	Police Mobile Command Truck	Dec 31, 2023
City	60317	Police Chase at the Bank	Dec 31, 2023
City	60318	Fire Helicopter	Dec 31, 2023
City	60319	Fire Rescue & Police Chase	Dec 31, 2023
City	60320	Fire Station	Dec 31, 2023
City	60321	Fire Brigade	Dec 31, 2023
City	60322	Race Car	Dec 31, 2023
City	60323	Stunt Plane	Dec 31, 2023
City	60324	Mobile Crane	Dec 31, 2023
City	60325	Cement Mixer Truck	Dec 31, 2023
City	60327	Horse Transporter	Dec 31, 2023
City	60330	Hospital	Dec 31, 2023
City	60332	Reckless Scorpion Stunt Bike	Dec 31, 2023
City	60333	Bathtub Stunt Bike	Dec 31, 2023
City	60335	Train Station	Dec 31, 2023
City	60338	Chimpanzee Smash Stunt Loop	Dec 31, 2023
City	60339	Double Loop Stunt Arena	Dec 31, 2023
City	60341	The Knockdown Stunt Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60342	The Shark Attack Stunt Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60343	Rescue Helicopter Transporter	Dec 31, 2023
City	60346	Barn & Farm Animals	Dec 31, 2023
City	60348	Lunar Roving Vehicle	Dec 31, 2023
City	60349	Lunar Space Station	Dec 31, 2023
City	60350	Lunar Research Base	Dec 31, 2023
City	60351	Rocket Launch Centre	Dec 31, 2023
City	60353	Wild Animal Rescue Missions	Dec 31, 2023
City	60354	Mars Spacecraft Exploration Missions	Dec 31, 2023
City	60355	Water Police Detective Missions	Dec 31, 2023
City	60356	Bear Stunt Bike	Dec 31, 2023
City	60357	Stunt Truck & Ring of Fire Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60358	Cyber Stunt Bike	Dec 31, 2023
City	60359	Dunk Stunt Ramp Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60360	Spinning Stunt Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60361	Ultimate Stunt Riders Challenge	Dec 31, 2023
City	60371	Emergency Vehicles HQ	Dec 31, 2023
City	60382	Vet Van Rescue	Dec 31, 2023
City	60385	Construction Digger	Dec 31, 2023
City	60388	Gaming Tournament Truck	Dec 31, 2023
City	60390	Park Tractor	Dec 31, 2023
City	60393	4x4 Fire Truck Rescue	Dec 31, 2023
City	60394	ATV and Otter Habitat	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11014	Bricks and Wheels	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11018	Creative Ocean Fun	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11019	Bricks and Functions	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11021	90 Years of Play	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11022	Space Mission	Dec 31, 2023
Classic	11031	Creative Monkey Fun	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	30641	Panda Bear	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	30642	Birthday Train	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	30644	Vintage Car	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31111	Cyber Drone	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31118	Surfer Beach House	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31127	Street Racer	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31128	Dolphin and Turtle	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31130	Sunken Treasure Mission	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31131	Downtown Noodle Shop	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31132	Viking Ship and the Midgard Serpent	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	31143	Birdhouse	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	40461	Tulips	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	40469	Tuk Tuk	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	40568	Paris Postcard	Dec 31, 2023
Creator	40646	Daffodils	Dec 31, 2023
DC	76181	Batmobile: The Penguin Chase	Dec 31, 2023
DC	76220	Batman versus Harley Quinn	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	10777	Mickey and Minnie's Camping Trip	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	40521	Mini Disney The Haunted Mansion	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	41168	Elsa's Jewellery Box	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43187	Rapunzel's Tower	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43189	Elsa and the Nokk Storybook Adventures	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43194	Anna and Elsa's Frozen Wonderland	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43196	Belle and the Beast's Castle	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43197	The Ice Castle	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43198	Anna's Castle Courtyard	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43199	Elsa's Castle Courtyard	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43202	The Madrigal House	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43204	Anna and Olaf's Castle Fun	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43207	Ariel's Underwater Palace	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43208	Jasmine and Mulan's Adventure	Dec 31, 2023
Disney	43209	Elsa and the Nokk's Ice Stable	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40377	Donald Duck	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40378	Goofy & Pluto	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40476	Daisy Duck	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40477	Scrooge McDuck, Huey, Dewey & Louie	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40550	Chip & Dale	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40553	Woody and Bo Peep	Dec 31, 2023
Disney / BrickHeadz	40622	Disney 100th Celebration BrickHeadz	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41801	My Pets Bracelet	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41802	Unicorns Forever Bracelet	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41803	Extra Dots series 8	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41805	Creative Animal Drawer	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41806	Ultimate Party Kit	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41807	Bracelet Designer Mega Pack	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41808	Hogwarts Accessories Pack	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41809	Hedwig Pencil Holder	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41811	Hogwarts Desktop Kit	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41947	Mickey and Friends Bracelets Mega Pack	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41948	Cute Banana Pen Holder	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41950	Lots of DOTS - Lettering	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41951	Message Board	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41957	Adhesive Patches Mega Pack	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41959	Cute Panda Tray	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41960	Big Box	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41961	Designer Toolkit - Patterns	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41963	Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse Stitch-on Patch	Dec 31, 2023
Dots	41964	Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse Back-to-School Project Box	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10411	Learn About Chinese Culture	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10872	Train Bridge and Tracks	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10882	Train Tracks	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10899	Frozen Ice Castle	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10930	Bulldozer	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10938	Dinosaur Nursery	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10944	Space Shuttle Mission	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10948	Parking Garage and Car Wash	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10949	Farm Animal Care	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10955	Animal Train	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10956	Amusement Park	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10960	Belle's Ballroom	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10962	Buzz Lightyear's Planetary Mission	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10963	Spider-Man & Friends: Funfair Adventure	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10964	Bath Time Fun: Floating Red Panda	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10968	Doctor Visit	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10972	Wild Animals of the Ocean	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10973	Wild Animals of South America	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10974	Wild Animals of Asia	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10976	Santa's Gingerbread House	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10977	My First Puppy & Kitten with Sounds	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10978	Creative Building Time	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	10979	Wild Animals of Europe	Dec 31, 2023
Duplo	30648	Whale	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	30633	Skate Ramp	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	30634	Friendship Flowers	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41443	Olivia's Electric Car	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41677	Forest Waterfall	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41696	Pony-Washing Stable	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41697	Turtle Protection Vehicle	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41699	Pet Adoption Café	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41703	Friendship Tree House	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41704	Main Street Building	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41705	Heartlake City Pizzeria	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41707	Tree-Planting Vehicle	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41708	Roller Disco Arcade	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41711	Emma's Art School	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41712	Recycling Truck	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41713	Olivia's Space Academy	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41714	Andrea's Theatre School	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41715	Ice Cream Truck	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41716	Stephanie's Sailing Adventure	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41717	Mia's Wildlife Rescue	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41718	Pet Day-Care Center	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41719	Mobile Fashion Boutique	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41720	Water Park	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41721	Organic Farm	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41722	Horse Show Trailer	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41729	Organic Grocery Store	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41732	Downtown Flower and Design Stores	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41733	Mobile Bubble Tea Shop	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41735	Mobile Tiny House	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41741	Dog Rescue Van	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41742	Cat Hotel	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41743	Hair Salon	Dec 31, 2023
Friends	41751	Skate Park	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	75968	4 Privet Drive	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	75969	Hogwarts Astronomy Tower	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	75979	Hedwig	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76386	Hogwarts: Polyjuice Potion Mistake	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76398	Hogwarts Hospital Wing	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76399	Hogwarts Magical Trunk	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76400	Hogwarts Carriage and Thestrals	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76401	Hogwarts Courtyard: Sirius's Rescue	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76403	The Ministry of Magic	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76406	Hungarian Horntail Dragon	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76408	12 Grimmauld Place	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76409	Gryffindor House Banner	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76410	Slytherin House Banner	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76411	Ravenclaw House Banner	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter	76412	Hufflepuff House Banner	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter / Brickheadz	40495	Harry, Hermione, Ron & Hagrid	Dec 31, 2023
Harry Potter / Brickheadz	40560	Professors of Hogwarts	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	30643	Easter Chickens	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40426	Christmas Wreath 2-in-1	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40522	Valentine Lovebirds	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40523	Easter Rabbits Display	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40570	Halloween Cat and Mouse	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40571	Wintertime Polar Bears	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	40575	Year of the Rabbit	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	80110	Lunar New Year Display	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	80110	Lunar New Year Display	Dec 31, 2023
Holiday	80111	Lunar New Year Parade	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10255	Assembly Square	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10265	Ford Mustang	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10266	NASA Apollo 11 Lunar Lander	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10270	Bookshop	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10273	Haunted House	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10276	Colosseum	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10278	Police Station	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10289	Bird of Paradise	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10290	Pickup Truck	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10292	The Friends Apartments	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10293	Santa's Visit	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10299	Real Madrid - Santiago Bernabéu Stadium	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10306	Atari 2600	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	10497	Galaxy Explorer	Dec 31, 2023
Icons	76989	Horizon Forbidden West: Tallneck	Dec 31, 2023
Ideas	21325	Medieval Blacksmith	Dec 31, 2023
Ideas	21326	Winnie the Pooh	Dec 31, 2023
Ideas	21329	Fender Stratocaster	Dec 31, 2023
Ideas	21331	Sonic the Hedgehog - Green Hill Zone	Dec 31, 2023
Ideas	21337	Table Football	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76943	Pteranodon Chase	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76945	Atrociraptor Dinosaur: Bike Chase	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76946	Blue & Beta Velociraptor Capture	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76947	Quetzalcoatlus Plane Ambush	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76948	T. rex & Atrociraptor Dinosaur Breakout	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76950	Triceratops Pickup Truck Ambush	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76951	Pyroraptor & Dilophosaurus Transport	Dec 31, 2023
Jurassic Park/World	76956	T. rex Breakout	Dec 31, 2023
Lightyear	76830	Zyclops Chase	Dec 31, 2023
Lightyear	76831	Zurg Battle	Dec 31, 2023
Lightyear	76832	XL-15 Spaceship	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71374	Nintendo Entertainment System	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71406	Yoshi's Gift House	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71413	Character Packs Series 6	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71414	Conkdor's Noggin Bopper	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71415	Ice Mario Suit and Frozen World	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71416	Lava Wave Ride	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71417	Fliprus Snow Adventure	Dec 31, 2023
Mario	71418	Creativity Toolbox	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	10781	Spider-Man's Techno Trike	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	10784	Spider-Man Webquarters Hangout	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	10790	Team Spidey at Green Goblin's Lighthouse	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76187	Venom	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76193	The Guardians' Ship	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76206	Iron Man Figure	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76207	Attack on New Asgard	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76208	The Goat Boat	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76209	Thor's Hammer	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76211	Shuri's Sunbird	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76212	Shuri's Lab	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76213	King Namor's Throne Room	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76214	Black Panther: War on the Water	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76215	Black Panther	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76216	Iron Man Armory	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76225	Miles Morales Figure	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76226	Spider-Man Figure	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76230	Venom Figure	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76241	Hulk Mech Armor	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76242	Thanos Mech Armor	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76243	Rocket Mech Armor	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76245	Ghost Rider Mech & Bike	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76253	Guardians of the Galaxy Headquarters	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76255	The New Guardians' Ship	Dec 31, 2023
Marvel	76256	Ant-Man Construction Figure	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21164	The Coral Reef	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21170	The Pig House	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21172	The Ruined Portal	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21177	The Creeper Ambush	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21180	The Guardian Battle	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21181	The Rabbit Ranch	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21183	The Training Grounds	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21184	The Bakery	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21185	The Nether Bastion	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21186	The Ice Castle	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21188	The Llama Village	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	21190	The Abandoned Village	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft	30647	The Dripstone Cavern/The Stalactite Cave	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40624	Alex	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40625	Llama	Dec 31, 2023
Minecraft / BrickHeadz	40626	Zombie	Dec 31, 2023
Misc	40174	LEGO Chess	Dec 31, 2023
Misc	40382	Birthday Set	Dec 31, 2023
Misc	40584	Birthday Diorama	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	30656	Monkey King Marketplace	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80008	Monkie Kid's Cloud Jet	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80030	Monkie Kid's Staff Creations	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80032	Chang'e Moon Cake Factory	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80033	Evil Macaque's Mech	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80034	Nezha's Fire Ring	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80035	Monkie Kid's Galactic Explorer	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80037	Dragon of the East	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80038	Monkie Kid's Team Van	Dec 31, 2023
Monkie Kid	80039	The Heavenly Realms	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	30649	Ice Dragon Creature	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71757	Lloyd's Ninja Mech	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71760	Jay's Thunder Dragon EVO	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71761	Zane's Power Up Mech EVO	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71763	Lloyd's Race Car EVO	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71765	Ninja Ultra Combo Mech	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71766	Lloyd's Legendary Dragon	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71767	Ninja Dojo Temple	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71768	Jay's Golden Dragon Motorbike	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71769	Cole's Dragon Cruiser	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71771	The Crystal King Temple	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71772	The Crystal King	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71774	Lloyd's Golden Ultra Dragon	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71775	Nya's Samurai X MECH	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71776	Jay and Nya's Race Car EVO	Dec 31, 2023
Ninjago	71781	Lloyd's Mech Battle EVO	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30435	Build Your Own Hogwarts Castle	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30509	Yellow Yoshi's Fruit Tree	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30510	90 Years of Cars	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30560	Pineapple Photo Holder & Mini Board	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30584	Winter Holiday Train	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30590	Farm Garden & Scarecrow	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30646	Moana's Dolphin Cove	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30651	Quidditch Practice	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30652	Doctor Strange's Interdimensional Portal	Dec 31, 2023
Polybag	30657	McLaren Solus GT	Dec 31, 2023
Promotional	40393	LEGOLAND Fire Academy	Dec 31, 2023
Promotional	40534	LEGO House Chef	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76900	Koenigsegg Jesko	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76901	Toyota GR Supra	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76906	1970 Ferrari 512 M	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76907	Lotus Evija	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76910	Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro and Aston Martin Vantage GT3	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76911	007 Aston Martin DB5	Dec 31, 2023
Speed Champions	76912	Fast & Furious 1970 Dodge Charger T	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	30654	X-wing Starfighter Polybag	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75288	AT-AT	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75292	The Razor Crest	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75300	Imperial TIE Fighter	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75301	Luke Skywalker's X-wing Fighter	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75309	Republic Gunship	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75312	Boba Fett's Starship	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75317	The Mandalorian & The Child	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75318	The Child	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75320	Snowtrooper Battle Pack	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75322	Hoth AT-ST	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75323	The Justifier	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75324	Dark Trooper Attack	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75326	Boba Fett's Throne Room	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75327	Luke Skywalker (Red Five) Helmet	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75329	Death Star Trench Run Diorama	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75330	Dagobah Jedi Training Diorama	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75332	AT-ST	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75333	Obi-Wan Kenobi's Jedi Starfighter	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75334	Obi-Wan Kenobi vs. Darth Vader	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75335	BD-1	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75336	Inquisitor Transport Scythe	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75338	Ambush on Ferrix	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75339	Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75342	Republic Fighter Tank	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75343	Dark Trooper Helmet	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars	75344	Boba Fett's Starship Microfighter	Dec 31, 2023
Star Wars / Brickheadz	40539	Ahsoka Tano	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	30655	Forklift with Pallet	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42096	Porsche 911 RSR	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42107	Ducati Panigale V4 R	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42111	Dom's Dodge Charger	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42117	Race Plane	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42118	Monster Jam Grave Digger	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42122	Jeep Wrangler	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42123	McLaren Senna GTR	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42125	Ferrari 488 GTE 'AF Corse #51'	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42127	The Batman - Batmobile	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42128	Heavy-Duty Tow Truck	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42131	Cat D11 Bulldozer	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42132	Chopper	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42133	Telehandler	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42134	Monster Jam Megalodon	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42135	Monster Jam El Toro Loco	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42137	Formula E Porsche 99x Electric	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42138	Ford Mustang Shelby GT500	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42139	All-Terrain Vehicle	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42140	App-Controlled Transformation Vehicle	Dec 31, 2023
Technic	42144	Material Handler	Dec 31, 2023

Link to my other guides: https://www.reddit.com/worldwarzthegame/comments/fs7mbc/new_player_guide_primary_and_secondary_weapons/
Link to previous version of my weapons guide just for reference: https://www.reddit.com/worldwarzthegame/comments/q47kh9/primary_and_secondary_weapons_overview_aftermath/
Disclaimers: I am not able to upgrade all my weapons to max perk level due to lack of time these days, but all weapons except the one noted are at least level 5+. For the same reason, I'm not going to come up with any snappy tag lines, just dry impressions.
The perks mentioned in each weapon is my PERSONAL preference, you don't have to follow exactly what I did if you like a particular stat over others. If you have any interesting perk combos, just reply below.
Unique perk means the first slot perk, these are usually unique to one weapon, or shared by only a few guns. Some of these are very OP and they completely changes the way that weapon work.
Common perks are perks in slot 2 and 3. These are shared by many weapons and mostly just minor stat changes.
FAQ's
Q: What's the best gun in this game?
A: There's no such thing as "best" weapon, there's only the one that's best for your class setup and situation. Some guns are better for fighting small groups and other are better at killing mobs. Class perk often affect the power of the gun and personal style influence your preference.
Q: How do I know if a gun is silent or not with the new skin system.
A: Open the gun customization window and read the description on top. Any silenced gun will says "silent". Don't rely on the graphics because silencer on the barrel is cosmetic and have no real effect on the silence mechanism.
Q: Which stats are the best to get, what do the stats mean?
A: Prioritize power, accuracy, and penetration; handling isn't as important. Power = more dmg per bullet. Higher accuracy means the hits will be closer to your reticle so you miss less. Penetration = number of additional zekes you can hit with each bullet, +1 Penetration = hit 2 zekes, +2 pen = hit 3 zekes. PEN is super important because it's a dmg multiplier.
Most of the time, you should use short bursting vs small groups, or full auto/mad clicking on large groups, so handling (the amount of rise after repeat shots or when you move around) doesn't matters as much. I would only add handling if a gun is firing all over the place with full auto and just can’t stay on target. Running and gunning is a bad idea in most scenario.
Total ammo is not stated in the customization menu, but it’s an important factor in insane/extreme difficulty and hard horde mode due to lower ammo amount in the crate. Some guns run out of ammo very easily and I will point them out specifically.
Q: Which guns are best for swarm fights?
Anything with +2 penetration is best for horde/pyramid/swarm fights. I will make specific mentions if some guns are good for large groups.
Q: Why are you talking about headshots so much?
Except boosted/Elite/Specials*, headshot will one-shot all other zekes. In higher difficult, zekes have a lot of HP, so body shots are not as effective. You really want to put your target down with as few bullets as possible because there are so many zekes to kill.
*Normal bullets only. Boosted/Elite and some weaker specials can still be one shot with the right weapon and setup.
Tier 1:
Scout Rifle: about the same as before.
Basic semi-auto rifle. Best for picking off zeke at mid range. +1 penetration and fixer can hit 4 zekes, so line up the targets and take advantage of the extra penetration. Best when used with ammo fixer because you just have to aim for the body and explosive ammo take care of the rest.
The unique wolfpack perk is same as before, but the Veteran II perk to increase reload speed is really great one to have too.
For the common perks, +10 magazine size is pretty fantastic, custom barrel +1 acc and +10% dmg is also good.
Compact SMG: slight improvement but perks are pretty meh
Worst out of the 3 starter gun. It's accurate only at close/medium range, low stopping power, and definitely not enough ammo. Thank god GS/medics can refill ammo with headshot, and slashers have melee power to compensate. Get close, use short burst and aim for the head because body shot takes forever to kill something.
Unique: snake-bite perk is more viable now because they removed the ammo penalty, but you still use up ammo too fast so I am avoiding it. Point blank +50% dmg is OK since compact suck at hitting far targets anyway. Go with CQB if you are a slasher or medic/GS with a big sword. All 3 perks carry some sort of down-side, so they are pretty meh.
For common, I use custom sight for +2 acc because you can headshot a bit easier (this gun reload fast so -10% reload isn’t a big issue). +10% DMG power perk is definitely needed. If you max the level, ammo pouch perk is really necessary.
Shotgun: Best starter gun got better
Personally I think it's best of the 3 starter guns. Lots of ammo, easy to aim, +1 penetration, and big stopping power. The T1 shotgun can one shot elite squad w/o explosive ammo! The slower pump action allow you to aim between rounds, so it's easy to one-shot target. I can even get third-hand to trigger without reloading. The range is not bad, but get up close and personal for max effect; rely on pistol for sniping enemy farther away. You do need to be point-blank range to one-shot bulls in the back, and at least 3 good shots to bring down an infector.
The fletchette unique is bad. On paper it looks good with +4 acc and +1 Pen. But the reduction in power makes it difficult to one shot zeke at higher difficulty. Because of the slow fire rate, this gun must be able to put down target with one round. I end up using extorsion instead, it’s an OK perk when you run out of bullets and zekes closing in. On edge is too situational for my taste.
Common perk is pretty standard, just pick what you like. I'd get the range bonus.
Pistol: about the same as before
Weak starter pistol, but still useful even for a veteran. It's extremely accurate, so use it to pick up head-shot against idle zekes. There is little reason to use your primary weapon when pistol can easily get you through early map during silence phase. It’s also great at picking off screamers if you are not using a rifle.
It really sucks the previous unique ability is now split into two. You must choose either +2 pen or +50% dmg against special. I still chose the +dmg because it’s good vs idle specials, screamers, and lurkers hiding around corner, you won’t rely on this gun when there’s multiple zeke charging you anyway so Pen doesn't matter that much.
For common, you want custom sights for +2 acc for a total of 11, because this is suppose to be a sniping weapon. Second slot is up to you.
Machine pistol: almost the same except for that insane 3rd unique perk (not i am not going to go into that buggy behavior)
An upgrade version of standard pistol with higher fire-rate. Same low dmg and 0 pen, so aim for the head with the 3-round burst, don’t try to body shot anything, it takes too long. Tons of ammo though.
The special perks are great. You start with perk that turn it into an automatic, and it is great fun to use. But last unique perk can add 20% ammo to your heavy weapon after 10 kills, which is especially useful for high dmg heavy like RPG or MGL. That's some really OP shenanigans if an exterminator can repeatedly fill up his RPG
The common perks exist to support that unique perk, so pick power and extended mag so you can get that 10 kills.
Tier 2
Assault rifle: Solid weapon got a minor buff
My favorite gun for mid-game just because I am an old school CS player. Good amount of ammo, range, and stopping power. Burst fire is extremely accurate even if you are not a gunslinger, and downright deadly if you are. This gun is really trust worthy when things get hairy because I know it can headshot something and put it down for good. The +1 pen and low handling is its main weakness. Full auto sends bullets everywhere, so only hold trigger if zekes are in your face or piled up. Relatively weak against pyramid or fences so you will be emptying magazine after magazine. At least ammo amount is high so you shouldn't run out as long as you are careful.
You really want to go for that last unique perk with +10% healing on self. First perk is OK until you get there, but mostly not useful because you probably already took some dmg when you find this gun. Second perk is pretty OP if you play as vanguard (frequent shield use), but not too useful for other classes.
For common perk, use ergonomics early on for handling and dmg, and +15% reload later on.
Sport Carbine: better than before but took an ammo nerf
I always see people skipping this gun because they don't know how good it is. It's better than the scout at everything: more power, acc, +2 Penetration is insanely good. Fixer with power shot can hit up to 5! It's the first gun I look for when I play fixer, but any other class can use it to good effect. This gun can fire faster and reload fast while dishing out a lot of dmg, especially against a horde or a pyramid. Due to high accuracy, it's even good against small groups because it's easy to rack up headshots. Carrying ammo capacity took a nerf in the new update, it’s down to 180 vs 225 before, so aim well and watch that ammo count.
Unique perk isn’t unique, but at least good. I wouldn’t take custom fit, that -10 mag size really hurt. Fresh mag is ok until you get veteran II for that +25% reload.
For common, I took the +2 acc/-10 reload just because I like to snipe with it. But really all 4 perks at the bottom are great choices and provide good buff. Take what you like.
Classic battle rifle: about the same as before
This gun's specialty is horde killing. If you are not a fixer, this is the second best tier 2 gun for killing large piles, so always pick this up before you fight a horde where the +2 penetration will collapse a pyramid easily. It's accuracy and handling is pretty bad, but not an issue vs pyramid or fences. You should swap it out once the swarm fight is done and you move onto silence phase. Ammo amount is still pretty low, so watch out for that.
Unique perk is just copy/paste from before, you still have tiger claw +25% dmg vs special. Or the HP round II that turns it into a fixer-only gun because fixers gets huge dmg and +2 pen back. The third perk add handling, it's not bad if you just want to use it for horde killing and doesn’t care about special dmg.
Common perk is still power and ammo pouches for more ammo, this gun really need more ammo.
Classic Bullpup: it’s better somehow?
A weaker version of the T-3 Bullpup with only +1 penetration and fire 2 rounds burst. Not sure why but this gun feels more powerful and more accurate than before, so maybe they shadow buffed it? Or maybe I finally figured out how to use it correctly with more practice. It’s a good choice to replace that T1 scout or compact SMG when no other choice is available. You do need to fire this weapon slowly because it’s hard to settle down, give it pause between shots. If you don't, it will fire everywhere and won't stay on target.
You no longer have to sacrifice magazine size for the scorpion tail perk, which is nice because it’s a decent perk. The other unique frankly sucks and I don’t know why Saber did that. Who the hell uses adrenaline on a regular basis? What a joke of a unique perk.
Common perks are nice. Custom round I with longer range and +1 acc is great. Power is OK, but weighted bullet with +20% dmg is even better. You don’t have to worry about ammo as much because it’s got large carry capacity and fire slow anyway.
Light Automatic Weapon: still great weapon with the right class
For a gun that's meant for full automatic fire, it's got surprisingly good burst accuracy with +1 penetration as a bonus. Accuracy/handling during full auto is decent and can stay on target with minor adjustment, so it won't fire all over the place like the AK or the CBR. Just don't expect to pick up long range targets. It seems to spawn more now, so maybe they shadow buffed the spawn rate? The 125 round magazine is amazing and countered-balanced by a 5 second reload animation (melee reload cancel at 75% instead of the normal 50%).
Don't let the long reload fool you, there are multiple ways to reload without actually reloading.

1. GS can constantly refill ammo using front-line supply: It adds rounds for each headshot. I often kill an entire swarm wave and the ammo count still reads 100+.
2. HellraiseExterminator have third-hand perk that reload the gun automatically after 15 kills. It’s really amazing with this weapon because you can just keep shooting. Watch out for ammo usage though, don't want to get too trigger happy and suddenly found out your ammo is 0
3. Fixer's ammo box can instantly reload it. Just remember to stay close to an ammo box, and also explosive ammo cancel out penetration. It's not semi-auto so fixer's power shot do not apply
4. Vanguard with quick hands perk can reload gun when you block a hit or charge. Just do a quick block and holster the shield, and you are back to full magazine.

Not sure why but this gun have FOUR unique perks. But bull’s horn is still the best because 5 out of 8 classes don’t have to worry about reloading. If you don’t like bull horn, boat tail is also great.
For common, custom barrel for dmg and acc is great, then Power perk. Veteran isn’t really needed because above mentioned shenanigans.
SMG: minor improvement, still meh though, need to test out lvl12 perk
A direct upgrade to the compact SMG. Use this gun exact same way as the compact SMG, short burst and aim for the head. It's more stable than compact so you can rack up multiple HS in a row even on full auto. Range and power is still an issue: it packs no punch past medium range, and ammo would run out way too fast. DEFINITELY need more carried ammo to be more effective. +1 Penetration is also bit hard to notice because it's weak. Use it if no other better alternatives available, or if you are playing medic with good aim. They really need to buff all SMG’s with more ammo.
Unique: CQB perk is basically third hand for slasher and Vanguard, pretty useful if you play these two class regularly. Perfectionist is meh unless you start with this weapon via perk. Semi-auto is suppose to be pretty good, but I haven’t been able to test it out since it's a lvl12 perk and I don't use SMG a lot
Common: anything that increases stat is OK. Ergonomics, veteran, and ammo pouch.
Combat shotgun: holy shit that eagle scout perk!
This gun is more like the T3 version after the update, but remember to slow down your trigger finer because firing too fast cause the accuracy to go down considerably. It’s a major upgrade from the tier 1 pump, just remember to pause and aim carefully vs small groups. No other complaints really.
Unique perk has to be eagle scout, period. It no longer carry the -4 magazine penalty, so now you simply has insane range for a shotgun and +1 more pen. No other unique perk affected a weapon as much as eagle scout, the practical difference is insane because this shotgun now has rifle-like range. If you have a hell raiser shotgun-build, it’s a complete blood bath until you run out of ammo. I won’t even go into the other two because there’s no point.
Common perk: I use custom sight for +2 accuracy because the default 3 acc is just too low. The rest is up to you.
Sniper rifle: major buff due to two round burst
Still the gold standard for semi-auto rifles. Just really high stats all around, it’s got everything you want except automatic fire. The key to use sniper is let it settle between shots. If you fire too fast, the bullets will go everywhere, so you have to pause between firing. Aim carefully and make shots count due to low carry capacity and low fire rate. You don’t want to miss at close range and then get beat up while reloading.
Unique perk: forget the old extreme perk, go for the new two round burst. The problem with old sniper is the slow fire-rate, so the two round burst compensated for that. Now you fire much faster with same accuracy. It’s another perk that fundamentally changes a gun in a good way. Just pay more attention to ammo since you chew thru twice as fast now.
Common perk: I use ergonomics II just because I want more handling for the second round to stay on target, so I’m willing to take that hit on reload speed. The last 3 perks are all very good too so take your pick.
PDW: still the same
Low stopping power, low accuracy, no pen, lots of ammo but not worth shit if you can't hit anything with it. To be honest I haven’t upgraded this thing enough to even hit level 8. But the base version is so bland it’s not worth the effort. I usually just keep pistol for sniping specials or shotgun for close quarter defense.
Fine motor skill unique perk does make it interesting if you are GS who like to switch guns.
I haven’t even upgraded this gun enough to see common perks yet.
Compact Shotgun: still the same
Decent secondary for personal protection, whip it out when zekes get too close and your primary magazine runs out. 4-round capacity is OK for emergencies and you can get it silenced, reloads fast as well. It definitely does not have the same stopping power as its primary weapon cousins, so do not expect to be able to drop zekes in one shot.
I haven’t even upgraded this gun enough to see common perks yet.
Dual-barrel shotgun: I did not upgrade this.
I used to use the unique version so I never haven’t bothered upgrading this; it’s only at level 2. At base level it's just a really powerful but short-ranged shotgun. I will update this later. Some people love this, others don’t, I am in the latter camp.
Revolver: work in progress
Revolver use to be bad and I used the unique version that didn’t require any upgrade, so it’s only at level 3. But I do think new revolver now packs a bit more punch because I am able to one-shot zeke more often now. Plus revolvers are just pretty bad ass looking in general. Wil update later if I upgrade it more.
Tier 3:
Assault Carbine: same old reliable with longer range
Carbine has gone through very few changes since the game release but finally getting buffs. It still works in all situations and for all classes, even though it's not the best at anything. I use it like a more stable AK. Only +1 penetration so it's not that good at pyramid killing, but it's great against smaller groups. Both small burst and full autos are pretty on-target so you can rely on it to always hit whatever you are aiming at. It’s still my top 3 guns for gunslingers because you can easily rack up multiple headshots in a row and replenish lots of ammo due to large magazine.
Unique: boat-tail round increase its accuracy and effective range, given carbine a very long range. It’s very effective at flat and open maps because you can pick up targets from very far away.
Common: Custom barrel, weight bullets, basically anything that adds more power and accuracy to kill faster.
Battle rifle: OMG WHY SABER WHY
Saber must’ve heard me saying how good this gun is so now they decided to nerf it hard. This use to be one of the best at mowing down pyramids due to automatic fire with +2 pen. But with XL update, even though other stats are left alone, both carrying capacity and magazine size took a large hit. The 25 round magazine is small for semi-auto fire mode and way too small for automatic, so you are reloading all the time and DPS goes way down. You have to park next to ammo crate because it runs out too fast. Power and accuracy are still great, but you can forget about the auto fire. I have switch this gun back to semi-mode because it’s still good when fired slower.
Unique: I am using boat tail, because the auto perk is nerfed. I treat it more like an upgrade to the T2 sport rifle, which is probably what Saber originally wanted this gun to be.
Common: Power and veteran I is good. If it really bothers you then extended mag and ammo pouch will increase ammo and capacity.
Bullpup: still a good weapon, not much changed
One of the best pyramid killer in the original release before it got power creeped, but still a great gun all around. Good stopping power due to 3-round burst, +2 penetration kills any horde and pyramid quickly. Extremely accurate at up to medium range. It's hard to find any fault with this thing except the low firing rate. The burst mode is demanding, use the gap between the burst to do proper aiming for best results. It's even better when fixers use it since now it's +4 Penetration. Total ammo is low, so watch that ammo usage.
Unique: I still use selective fire since I run fixer. It’s -1 penetration, but turns it into an automatic with optional zoom burst mode, and it's really ONLY for ammo fixers. This is THE FASTEST gun in the entire game, you chew through 45-round magazine in just a few seconds and drain the whole crate within 2-3 minutes. Only an ammo fixer can afford enough bullets to keep firing in auto mode, and it's ridiculously over-powered because it’s still treated as semi-auto rifle even during full auto mode. Just put down a few ammo box in front of yourself, and entire horde just disappeared due to sheet amount of explosive ammo travelling down range. Even bulls go down quickly due to all the explosive ammo to the face.
Common: weighted bullets since you use ammo box and veteran for faster reload. I use ergonomics II since reload time doesn’t matter too much if I am parked in front of ammo box.
Advanced SMG: No major change
Similar to T2 SMG but fire a bit faster with a bit more power, still not great though. Total ammo is the highest in game, but effective range is limited, so only use it at close/medium distance. It's easiest just to go full auto with this gun if you want to kill anything in a pile, or stick with long burst at close range. Its pretty weak against large swarm, OK with smaller groups.
For unique, go with FMJ for 1 more pen. This is one of only three automatic weapon that can do +2 penetration. With Battle rifle nerfed so badly, you are really down to this and T2 CBR. Power is further weakened but at least you have one more PEN. It’s better than the normal version.
Common: Custom round is must, SMG has such a short effective range. I also use weighted bullets to buff power since capacity is pretty high.
Special SMG: pretty much the same as before
The special SMG is what the advanced SMG should’ve been. Similar to tier 2 SMG but with more dmg, accuracy, and handling. Fire rate is lower than other SMG and you only get 40 rounds per magazine, but it's good enough. Carrying capacity is only 280 rounds so you do have to refill often. It's not really for swarm fights due to limited range and penetration, but works fine for smaller horde encounters at close distance. If you can aim well, the high accuracy and power is really good. Just don't expect to kill a ton of zekes with it.
Unique: First two perks are meh. Semi-auto sounds like a good idea, but it’s a lvl12 perk I haven’t reached yet.
Common: custom mag, range, and veteran are all good options.
ACW: Still GOAT
Still one of the best in game. The ammunition is explosive ammo and not an explosive, so explosive perk or nerf doesn't apply, and it has 0 penetration. High AOE dmg, good accuracy and handling, lots of ammo, good fire rate, you really can't ask for more. Each round can kill 6-7 zekes when things are all piled up due to higher AOE range. Just point and shoot, it requires very little aiming. The explosion range is similar to the cross-bow so be extremely careful when aiming for zeke clsoe to people (or yourself) because you might cause a lot of FF. Like other explosive ammo, it can hit a zeke during its death animation and waste a round. Not recommend for GS and fixer class, let weaker gun class like medic or DM have it. Vanguard/slasher should be careful with ACW because they usually zeke in close quarter, don’t splash dmg yourself, this weapon does not have shark skin perk.
Unique: Reparation perk is still the same as before the update, it’s a pretty good perk. Shrapnel is amazing though because it increase the explosive range of ammo for higher swarm killing power.
Common: Power and veteran is needed because this thing reloads slow.
Assault shotgun: good weapon got even better
This gun is awesome at close to medium range. Huge dmg, +2 pen fast fire rate, and 20 rounds magazine. You can mow down an entire fence easily. The range is pretty poor, so know your maps to know which area allows this gun to be most effective. It's a top tier choice for any class, but particularly good for Gunslingers and any class with third-hand. Carrying ammo is high so that's usually not a problem.
Unique perk: +10 Magazine anyone! Less reload is always good to increase DPS. Gunslinger with 30-round magazine is amazing since you refill 2 rounds per headshot. Even though it's not a game changer, bigger magazine is almost always a good buff
Common: I love custom round because it increase effective range. Also use ergonomics II to increase handling, this is one of the few guns that you can do run and gun with, so I took the reloading debuff for more handling.
Crossbow: from bad to decent, but still be very careful with it
I used to absolutely hate on this thing because too many newbs pick it up and just randomly hurt teammates with FF and cause all sort of havoc. It uses explosive ammo that cannot be silenced, so only use it during large battle when silence isn’t a consideration. Drop it as soon as swarm is over. AIM AWAY from your teammates and DON'T try to save your teammate with this thing, you will just blow them up with FF. It's nearly useless against bulls, but good vs all other specials including rats. I don’t recommend this weapon for newer players, you need to be good at aiming because your #1 priority is actually avoiding FF when using cross-bow.
Unique: You have to use shark skin. This perk used to carry a -1 magazine penalty, but that’s been removed. So now it’s just a really good ability. You can fire on the ground close to yourself instead of trying to hit a moving target with a slow bolt, and not worry about hurting yourself. Piecing bolt sounds good but not a good ability in practice because it reduces so much power.
Common: extended mag, veteran I are both good. You should have “Friend not foe” to reduce FF on teammates.
Multi-barrel shotgun: Saber what the heck is this thing, lol
First time I tried this gun, hated it. Level up a few times, loved it. Then I used it more, and now I hate it again. This guns is essentially a beefed up double-barrel. The amount of power is amazing; this thing collapse a pyramid in 2 rounds. But the range is just horrendous, you really have to be in melee range for it to have any noticeable effect. The pellets pattern is also extremely random with a very large and spread out cone. It’s not unusual for me to completely miss the zeke that’s 5 feet in front of me, but somehow kill the two zekes that’s on the side, which lead to some truly WTF moments. I don’t pick it up much anymore because on most maps zekes are just simply out of this gun’s reach. It’s great for Slasher and vanguard because they are always very close to target anyway.
Unique: Advanced user perk is great if you use vanguard shield to auto reload. Extortion works kinda the same but works for all other classes.
Common: this gun REALLY need custom rounds for more range because the default range is just terrible. Custom barrel is also a good choice for second slot.
Grenade Launcher: about the same as before
Unique weapon with very low spawn rate. It fires loud grenades, so don't use if you want to keep silent. One of the most fun gun to use and its low ammo is the only thing prevent it being abused. Refilling it 2-3 times in insane/extreme and ammo box is empty. Because it uses impact explosive grenade, GS's grenade perk and HR's explosive perk will both apply. It only explodes after hitting hard surface, so you can fire through teammates. The only class that can fully utilize its power is the hell raiser because of the extra explosive dmg perks.
Fun fact, you can spam this gun in “thief” mutator because each melee kill refills one ammo
Unique: If you are not a hellraiser, then the fire grenade perk is for you. The round works just like a molotov and Exterminator's molotov perks apply to it. You can use it choke off a small gap, or set a whole pyramid on fire. Kill and Heal is a great perk once you reach it, because it adds temp health.
Common: very few choice available, use Friend not foe to reduce accidental FF, and ammo pouch for one more round.
Flare gun: Still the only weapon without perk or upgrade
Just like the thumper, it's unique spawn with a very low rate. Flare guns are LOUD, so do not use it when you are trying to remain in stealth. But once silence is lifted, it's fun to use and very powerful when used correctly. When it first land, it attracts all zekes including specials in a small area similar to the C4 hello kitty perk. Use this to redirect dangerous specials away from your team like those 2 bulls + infector that will otherwise wreck your team. A few seconds after landing, it explodes and set zekes around it on fire and push them back. It doesn't attract too many, so it’s only good against smaller groups and specials. Lots of ammo but long reloading time, so only use it for emergencies. Let support class use this because they will keep you safe while the attack class works on the main body of the swarm.

I am new to PC building and I just built a new PC here is my pcpartpicker: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/knLL3y
Motherboard: ASRock B550M-ITX/ac Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D 3.4 GHz 8-Core Processor GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Ventus 2X 12G GeForce RTX 3060 12GB 12 GB Video Card (Connected to monitor via DisplayPort, but haven't tried HDMI yet)
At first, I had issues like my GPU fans not spinning on startup, having a "no signal" screen on my monitor, no POST/BIOS /Beep/Logo screen, but after unplugging and plugging some cables in, I resolved my GPU and signal issue with my screen. However, I still get no POST/BIOS/Beep/Logo screen.
After doing some research it seemed like I might need to update my BIOS, but I'm not 100% sure. Should this motherboard support my 5800X3D (from what I looked up it seemed like it does??)? Also, it might be a firmware issue from what I looked up, but again I am not an expert and not 100% sure. I haven't installed Windows yet in case something is wrong, but if you suggest I should install Windows first then I can do so.
Does anyone have any idea on what is wrong?
PS. I won't be able to test your suggestions as I am away for the weekend, but I will try to get back to you all as soon as I get back. Also, I just posted this on ASRock so I am waiting for responses from there as well.

I am new to PC building and I just built a new PC here is my pcpartpicker: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/knLL3y
Motherboard: ASRock B550M-ITX/ac Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D 3.4 GHz 8-Core Processor GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Ventus 2X 12G GeForce RTX 3060 12GB 12 GB Video Card (Connected to monitor via DisplayPort, but haven't tried HDMI yet)
At first, I had issues like my GPU fans not spinning on startup, having a "no signal" screen on my monitor, no POST/BIOS /Beep/Logo screen, but after unplugging and plugging some cables in, I resolved my GPU and signal issue with my screen. However, I still get no POST/BIOS/Beep/Logo screen.
After doing some research it seemed like I might need to update my BIOS, but I'm not 100% sure. Should this motherboard support my 5800X3D? Also, it might be a firmware issue from what I looked up, but again I am not an expert and not 100% sure. I haven't installed Windows yet in case something is wrong, but if you suggest I should install Windows first then I can do so.
Does anyone have any idea on what is wrong?
PS. I won't be able to test your suggestions as I am away for the weekend, but I will try to get back to you all as soon as I get back.

I'm a big fan of hydrology. The study of water.
I have textbooks on it but honestly, I don't truly understand something unless I process it myself, words on a page won't do justice for me.
A lot of my job especially during the spring, is dealing with water. So through simple observations and trial and error I have become very, very good at what I do, by better understanding water.
In the spring each year, the frozen ground begins to catch wonderful slices of sunshine that is most appreciated during those first days of spring. After the cold and dark winters of this northern Canadaian climate. In catching those sunbeams the frozen ground, the snow and the ice all begin to bring forth water. Now my job is simple, I move the snow and ice from as much surface area as I can and to clear off and build retaining piles of dirt to hold the water, that slowly seeps from the frozen ground.
This is how it's done, this was how I was taught but it was a tedious process of clearing the leaking soil, over and over again. Taking solid dirt with each pass of my dozers blade. Meaning we'd have to bring in more dirt to fill in the loss after awhile. This new dirt had to be dry, which as you may not know? It's hard to find dry dirt without digging in the spring. Dirt that could be useful in any number of other places at the same time and so is valued quite highly.
So now you see why, understanding the water is important.
Everyone understands, of course that water flows down, always down, whenever it is able. The cascading waterfall and the torrents of the mountain streams. Water is a creature of gravity. Even the tides, as the moon rotates around the earth, are altered by the variations of gravity across it's vastness based on the location of moon on it's course.
So it made sense to offer the water a place to flow downward. Now the unfortunate thing about where this frozen ground lays, that melts itself into pools in the course of a spring day. Is that the ground I work on needs to be flat. At least flat enough that vechicles in mud or on ice, will not slide sideways when crossing it. So if I was to work with a flat surface and alter the flow of the water downward I'd need to puzzle out an option besides building a treacherous slope.
I thought first "what if I just poke, a lot of holes in the ground? Won't the water coming from the ice just flow into those?" As I had already put together, that the reason the water didn't just simply sink into the soil, was because it laid on top of a layer of ice which melts from the top down. Unable to penetrate the ice, the water pooled.
So I tested my theory by using the large "ripper" on my dozer, to poke many, many holes in low areas, small dips and potholes. Hoping that all the surrounding water would seep out at those low points.
Which did in fact work.. sort of. You see the soil within those holes can only absorb or drain so much and so quickly. So rather than a dry area, I now had man made pools of water, in each place I had poked a hole.
Not quite ideal, as it left the area covered in growing pools of water, everywhere. Instead of just needing to be cleared off every few hours.
So I altered my plan. Surrendering to the reality that water must pool if it can't be absorbed, drained or evaporated. I had another idea. Create pathways all across the area that would lead to a single pool. And so I created a reverse irrigation system. One that could be passed over by vehicles without any issues as it remained flat but as I had removed the ice that kept the water above ground and replaced it with soil that the water could flow through or small open runs for greater flow rates. It in fact, became dry, flat, ground. Far more quickly than it ever had before. Even though the sun hadn't been bright or all that warm. The pool of water was left to slowly evaporate but itself or be removed by special "vacuum trucks" that can suction up the water by hose, into a large tank and carry it off somewhere less problematic later on.
All because I didn't like that I had to clean up puddles while trying to do the rest of my job.
I tell you all this not to just talk about one of my favorite things.
But because I want to explain how I believe love is like water.
You can't convince love to flow uphill. You can't force it to your will. You can only guide it. Offer it a pathway forward. Love like water, naturally pools, which means it can grow with time. Rapidly or slowly, based on how much goes into it. Though, like water, Love can be set free by losing what holds it there, it can overflow and escape, it can be evaporated, drained or absorbed until nothing remains.
Water can also stagnate when it has no growth.
But all water is part of a much larger cycle. The lowest point, water is a creature of gravity. The lowest point on the surface of earth is within the ocean. Becoming part of the salty tides themselves. But the cycle, then plucks the water from the vastness of the ocean and carries it back onto land, in the form of clouds. There it may fall as snow on high mountain tops? It may fall as rain on the forests and be absorbed into the plants, it may even evaporate further and create humidity, that can be felt on skin, promising its return in a torrent of thunder and lightning.
Love I believe is exactly like water. A vast majority of it, a bit too salty. I would call the ocean the love we have for other humans. Those who we do not know. It is water, yet it is not water that can sustain human life when swallowed.
But love like water is part of the greater cycle. Plucked from that ocean of salty love. It evaporates, transitions into something else.
As love is carried in the cycle it may grow cold and as it falls it might end up sitting in one place for long periods as snow. But when it is warmed, even from the highest mountain top or the glaciers of Antarctica. The water seeks to find its place.
Maybe our love is like the rainfall on the forest? Giving itself to a greater purpose.
Maybe our love stagnates within a tiny pool. Unable to escape until it eventually is evaporated? Escaping to return to the cycle once more.
But maybe, just maybe.. our love finds its way to a quiet pond or lake? Where it will be fed and feed.
Where it will have high years and low years, where it will sustain life and give of itself to all that is around it.
Maybe, just maybe.. our love is like that lake? And we just haven't reached it yet. Just caught in transition, between states.
So as the spring comes and the ice of my love thaws, i hope anew that when next we find one another, it is not within the stagnant pool and not the ocean deep but in the quiet pond where birdsong fills the air and flowers fill the meadows along our shore. Where the deer come to drink in the shade of the pine trees. That is where I'll wait for you.
Even if you never come? It is the most wonderful place I have ever known.

I used to build PC's regularly, but my last system was meant to be sorta 'future-proof'. The parts were good for the time, and it lasted me 9 years, so I feel like that was a success.
I wanted to build during lockdown but GPU prices sucked. My old GPU was $300, and and when I shopped around, I was shocked to see it was selling for more than I paid for it. Now it can be had used for like $70.
I want this PC to last a while. I gradually turned into one of those guys who mostly replays the same old favorites (FO, skyrim, etc)... but now that I can run good AAA titles, I will try some modern games. Maybe see what emulation is possible.
It took some troubleshooting, mostly dumb errors from being VERY rusty in PC building. Details below. Also, obligatory pics with cat tax included: https://imgur.com/a/WAadEsM
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 7600 3.8 GHz 6-Core Processor	$229.00 @ Amazon
CPU Cooler	be quiet! Pure Rock 2 Black CPU Cooler	$44.90 @ Amazon
Motherboard	ASRock B650 PG LIGHTNING ATX AM5 Motherboard	$199.99 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Flare X5 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-5600 CL36 Memory	$219.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Western Digital Blue SN570 500 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$32.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200 RPM Internal Hard Drive	$47.00 @ Amazon
Video Card	Zotac GAMING Twin Edge OC GeForce RTX 3060 Ti LHR 8 GB Video Card	$409.99 @ Newegg
Case	NZXT H510i ATX Mid Tower Case	$106.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA 650 GQ 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$102.08 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$1392.93
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-31 21:41 EDT-0400

. . So in terms of purchasing, I dunno if I was optimal. I basically trust Logical Increments to do the homework. Their builds always work, take advantage of specials where possible, and fine tune carefully for each budget. For example, out of the 16 'tiers', this build used an AMD CPU, but most of their builds use 12th/13th gen Intel (including the tier above and below mine). I guess the R5 7600 hits some sweet spot.
It was supposed to cost $1200. But I fucked up and overbought RAM. I thought my apps used mode than they do. I do some video editing, 3D rendering, lots of photo editing, and generally just run a lot of stuff at the same time, with many chrome tabs. But I can't seem to even get to 25% RAM usage. Probably 32 GB woulda been fine (even overkill). The extra $100 should have gone to a nicer GPU.
$1400 is more than I ever spent in the past, but we're in a time of inflation and when you factor that this might last another 7-10 years, it's OK. GPU prices are finally back in line.
Boring build story: I always do a breadboard. Well, it's a bit more than the bare minimum to boot. but I try to get it boot with just CPU, 1 stick of ram, and in this case GPU. The motherboard has integrated graphics but I'm not using them.
When I flipped the switch on my PSU, I got nothing, no post, and wondered if I missed a step.
Didn't panic. Reseated everything. Then I remembered you could run a wire between two pins of the CPU's main power connector, to see if it's functional. I got irritated when I realized I had no paper clips in the entire house, but biting off the ends of a twist tie works. Watch this guy with the coke nails explain the trick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfYwKPtDiw4&t=242s (4:03)
So the PSU was fine. What I finally figured out is... I needed to actually turn on the computer. I know that sounds retardedly obvious, but when I flipped on that PSU, I truly expected to see SOMEthing, a light or a "good morning" fan spin. This rig doesn't do any of that. Maybe I misremember seeing that in the past.
Anyway after using a screwdriver to bridge the motherboard's power pins, it booted right up. Got windows installed. I was a little worried that the PSU didn't include a secondary 6-pin connector for the socket next to the CPU's main 8-pin connector. But I guess that's for a beefier CPU than mine, the 6-pin connector is fine by itself.
Side rant: I hate how power connectors are WAAAAY too snug and the CPU clamp is WAAAAAY too tight. I know the CPU can't move at all or instant BSOD/shutdown/whatever. But it weighs as much as a tennis ball and sits still on a desk. It doesn't need a clamp that can hold a canoe to a roof rack. And reseating the main power connector is a huge pain in the balls. I had to break off the plastic latch/ckip and wedge a knife blade into the seam to gradually work it back out of the socket. Mountain climbers could use it instead of caribiner clips. In fact, from now on I'm breaking off that pointless plastic clip, I've never seen a main connector or molex that wasn't absurdly tight.
I got errors running an old installer for a game (one that worked fine on the old PC), which I found alarming. Googling suggested installer used a ton of ram. One smart poster said it might be sensitive not just to ram amount, but timings. I installed premiere and edited some video... BSOD. A really weird, annoying kind of BSOD: the crash screen and text appeared on top of premiere as semi-transparent, and the text was white sitting on a white background. So I couldn't read it. I got it again but this time could make out the word "memory". I was concerned I had a defective RAM stick.
I remembered a previous build problem where a PC would only boot when paired with older RAM. I theorized that was because when it detected the old ram, both sticks were forced to run at lower speed. So I went into BIOS to see what the RAM clock speed and timings looked like. It was set to "Auto" so I manually set it to the speed it's rated for, 5200, and that surprisingly worked. Every since changing that single setting, the game that failed to install like 5 times, installed fine. Premiere has never crashed since (several weeks now). So I'm pleased to have figured that out and not wasted money buying different RAM when this batch is fine. . . Parts sorta-review: At first I was at first disappointed at how the video card didn't seem to be that great. First I tried one of my simple 3D renders and it was weirdly slow. But then I found out blender not only has the option of using CPU or GPU, it has options for different API's to talk to your video card. I set it to CUDA (which is specific to Nvidia cards) and it was over 10x faster. Fallout 4 load screens sucked, but that's because load screens are tied to frame rate, which is locked at 60 fps. This mod unlocks framerates during any load screen and now it's done in seconds.
The only part I don't 100% love is the case. It's made to look as simple and minimal as possible. So they hide the power and USB connector on top instead of in front. And they only put 2 USB in front. So it's less convenient to reach and a couple of items I usually plug into the front, now go in back. It also weighs a ton, and has rubber feet, so it won't move easily when you're trying to scoot it around on the desk during the building process. There's a big flat metal strip for hiding/organizing cables but it's just in the way. Also the hard drive cage can be removed, but you gotta get underneath the case and undo two screws. My old build, simple plastic clips held the HDD's and you can just slide them into place and they'd lock. I had to remove the cage to screw them in place.
Other than that, no complaints, running smoothly, only slight concern is GPU idles at 47°C doing nothing but browsing. That seems to be a hair above the high end of normal. I never messed with fan curves or overclocking it, so I'm gonna run DDU and update to the newest driver, see if it helps. The fans apparently don't kick on until 50° but it still seems like something isn't optimal. Maybe bad case airflow.

​
The fire crackled merrily as Glimmer lay stretched out before it. The dancing flames made her skin twinkle, which was how she had gotten her name from Grandpa, and the dazzle sent diamonds onto the ceiling. I had stopped in the doorway to the living room to watch her as she sparkled, and she grinned impishly when she noticed me.
"Is that milk water for me, handsome?" She asked, and it occurred to me then how young she seemed. She was like a girl in her early twenties in both appearance and mannerisms. I wondered not for the first time if she would be that way when I was grandpa's age?
She patted the fireplace as she sat up, inviting me to sit with her, and I brought the hot cocoa to her as I leaned back against the rough stone fireplace. Grandpa was sitting in his favorite chair, watching the two of us with a knowing smile. I appreciated him for that more than he would ever know. It would've been easy for him to be hurt, but he always seemed to take the closeness of Glimmer and I as just one of life's little blessings.
The widow had been very happy to have her cat back, and she thanked us all for finding him so quickly.
"He's a silly old thing, but he's all I've got left, and I'm quite fond of him. I'm glad he didn't wander off in the snow and get himself frozen to death."
She had excused herself pretty quickly, telling grandpa it looked like he was entertaining. She gave me a wink that I'm not sure I understood, and as she drove carefully down the driveway, grandpa waved at her from the porch. The three of us settled in and got ready for Glimmer to begin her story, the fire the only light in the room.
Glimmer took a sip of her hot cocoa and made an appreciative noise as the warmth fell over her.
"That's good. We don't have anything quite that good in the woods."
"Are you telling me that your civilization has existed since before settlers came from England, but you haven't figured out hot cocoa yet?" I asked with a little laugh.
Glimmer gave me a withering look but spoiled it by winking at me, "We have sweets, of course. Just nothing quite this frivolous exists in our world. We have more immediate concerns, like survival."
"And cats, apparently," I added.
Glimmer nodded, taking another sip of her cocoa, "Yes, and cats."
"Wait," grandpa said, "when I made you the wooden cat, you didn't seem so surprised."
"Well, I had seen wild cats before," Glimmer said a little tartly, "They run everywhere in the forest. But this cat was different. He was so strange that I didn't immediately realize he was akin to the felines I knew."
She closed her eyes, and as the smoke wafted into her face, I could tell she was time-traveling back to her girlhood days. Grandpa got that same look when he thought about the past, and I suppose it was universal. Glimmer was content to let the steam caress her for a few moments, beginning her story without much warning.
This was the time after Fisher's leaving. He had come to see me before he left and told me that he was going to fight in a war. I knew of wars, though I had never fought in one. He said he would be gone for a long time but that he hoped he would see me again. I didn't really understand, but I was upset at the thought of losing him. We had become close, and I didn't want to say goodbye. He told me this was something he had to do, but I didn't want to hear it. I told him to just go, that I didn't care if he came back or not, and turned away from him so he wouldn't see the tears I was trying to hold back.
When he said nothing, I turned back to find that I wasn't the only one failing to hold in my sorrow.
I was used to seeing Fisher sad, but he had seemed different after his encounter with The Bone Collector. He told me this was a thing he had to do and that getting away from the mountains for a while would be good for him. He wanted to see the world and grow into someone who could protect others. I refused to listen to his excuses, though. I was young and spirited, and if he was going to leave, I told him to just go ahead and go.
So we parted ways.
I never knew if his sadness was as deep as mine, but it was several days before I was fit for much beyond moody turns.
Life went on, though, despite his absence, and many weeks later, I found myself in the woods again.
Now, you may find it odd that I had never seen a cat before, but my people usually stay in the deep woods. I am considered an oddity because I will go so close to human places. In those days, I would not even go that far. Fisher had always come to visit me near the borders of my world and his, and without him to visit, I hadn't been anywhere near the humans in ages. On this particular day, I was supposed to be gathering herbs for medicine, so my mother could cure some of our people who had become ill. I had collected quite a few herbs, but when I found that I was close to the border again, I got a bit reminiscent of the times I had spent with Fisher.
So I decided to go and have a look at some of the other people that lived in the area.
I didn't know any of them, but Fisher had talked about some of them. His parents, his grandmother that had passed on, some of his neighbors, and of the friends he often went out with who I knew had been killed by the Strange Lights. I wasn't afraid of being seen by any of them. I could move as gracefully through the woods as any deer, and I had hidden from humans before. So I took my sack and bow and decided to see what I could see.
I was hopeful at the start, but it was not the grand adventure I thought it would. I saw human signs, old fires, and the waste they sometimes leave behind, but I encountered no people. I followed a trail to Fisher's old house, but I couldn't bring myself to get close. I missed him terribly, and the thought of seeing something that would remind me of him made me sad. I had turned around, preparing to head home again, when the strangest little creature stood in my path.
His fur was the color of a campfire, interspersed with dark browns and dots of gray. His ears had a distinctly chewed look, and his paws were large and very furry. He held a magnificent tail behind him, and he had come up on me without a sound. I was startled at first, drawing my bow and challenging him, but he meowed good-naturedly and cocked his head as if to ask what I was doing?
We stood there for several seconds, but when it became apparent that he meant me no harm, I put my weapon away and bent down to touch him. He was very soft, not bristly, like some of the other cats in the woods. He was a little muddy, but it was clear that someone was taking great care of him. He was well-fed, fatter than any cat I had ever seen, and he showed none of the hesitancy around me that many of the forest creatures did. I sat and let him butt his head against my hand. My other hand glided along his silky fur, and when he came to sit in my lap, I giggled as he rumbled against my stomach.
When I heard the sound of people returning to Fisher's old house, I realized I had been sitting there for a while.
I had become enchanted with this little beastie, and as he walked back into the woods, I followed him eagerly.
We spent the night in the forest, hunting mice and playing with the leaves and sticks that caught his attention. As the night went on, I became quite enamored with the little animal, and the more time we spent together, the better I felt about Fisher leaving. We were cuddling in the bows of a tree when the first fingers of sunlight began to peek over the horizon. I realized I had been out all night with him, and when I picked him up and headed for home, I had every intention of taking him with me.
As we walked back through the woods, I was confident that no one in my enclave would've seen anything like this before. Some of them had cats, but nothing as grand as this one. One of my cousins had a beautiful spotted cat, and my older sister had a white one with red eyes, but their hair was short and coarse and nowhere near as luxurious as this fellow. I smiled to myself as I thought of the jealousy on their faces when they saw him. Once mother had touched his silky fur, there would be no way she could turn it away. He would sleep next to my head at night, and I would drift off listening to the deep rumble of his purr.
I was so involved with my daydream that I almost missed when he wiggled out of my arms.
He had been riding along calmly until that point, purring against my side as the two of us walked. He looked back the way we could come and made that strange meow sound again. I was perplexed. Did he have a mate he needed to get back to? He started to walk away, but I picked him up again and tried to continue walking home. He wiggled out of my hands again, though, and glanced back at me with remorse as he shook his little head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, "Don't you want to come home with me?"
In response, he started to walk off again.
I took a step towards him but stopped myself before I could grab him up again. I turned around instead and headed for home, a little angry as I crunched through the underbrush. If he didn't want to come back with me, then so be it. I wouldn't force him, and the farther I got, the madder I became. Who cared if he didn't want to come back with me? I didn't need him. I had been fine before him, and I would be fine again.
Let him wander off into the woods if that's what he wanted to do.
Let him run afoul of a big mean coyote or a hungry owl or…or one of the bigger wild cats….or a snake…or….or
I wiped my eyes as they started to leak.
The anger leaked out with them, and soon I was making my way back the way I had come.
In my mind, I could already see him at the mercy of one of the coyote packs in the area or carried away by a hawk. He was a big fella but wouldn't stand a chance against a pack of dogs. I wouldn't find him in time, I thought, or I would find him too late, or I would find nothing but a smear of blood and some of that gorgeous fur stuck in the pool. I swiped at my eyes as the tears kept coming, already sure he was lost.
The sky was pinkening, true dawn still hours away, and when I heard him meow, I turned to find him cocking his head at me again.
I laughed, scooping him into my arms and hugging him, and he wiggled and meowed in confusion.
When I put him down again, he started walking the way we had come, and this time I followed him.
I could see the light beginning to intrude on the dark world, but I didn't mind. Some members of my race cannot stand the light, but I have learned to love it. It stings my eyes and makes my skin burn a little, but I try to spend some time each day in the sun, knowing that my friends are part of that lighted world. That thin line on the horizon would have been enough to send both my parents scuttling back to the depths of the enclave, but I followed my new friend evenly as he made his way. I expected I would find a little burrow of beasties like him, perhaps even some little ones with a mate who would be worried, but as we got closer to the edges of humanity, I realized where he was heading.
When we came to the edge of his home, the lights already on in the big house, he looked back at me much the same way I had looked at him on the border to my world.
"What? Don't you want to come home with me?" that look said, but I shook my head at him.
"No, this is where we must part ways, little friend."
He came back, butting up against my leg and giving me another rub of his silky fur, and then he trotted off for home, bounding up the back porch steps as he sat patiently at the door.
I had turned to leave, the dawn very close now, when a high and excited voice found its way to my ear.
"Clarence! You came back!"
I peeked through the trees and saw a little girl pulling him into her arms. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine, and as she rubbed her face against the cats, I realized this had been where he was returning to. She was his family, she was the one he had been trying to get back to, and I felt a little guilty for trying to keep him. He had a home already, and my ownership of him had been an act of theft.
"I told mommy you would come back. I'm sorry I put you outside yesterday while I was trying to nap. I won't do it again. Come on, let's get you some breakfast. Then we can brush you and get you," but their plans were cut off by the closing door, and as the day began, I slipped back into the woods and made my way home as well.
The fire crackled as she finished, and I saw a tear roll down her cheek as she remembered that day.
"I think, in a way, that was how I said goodbye to you as well, Fisher."
Grandpa smiled, "To me?"
Glimmer nodded, "You were never mine to keep, either. I felt hurt when you left, though I didn't admit it. You were gone, and I thought I could simply exist without you. Watching that cat go, realizing that it might get hurt and feeling hurt that it wouldn't stay, made me remember how you had left as well. I needed to come to terms with that, which helped a lot."
We all sat silently for a while, Glimmer putting her head on my shoulder as the fire crackled merrily behind us.
When Grandpa chuckled suddenly, I looked up and saw Glimmer cock a sardonic eye at him, "I had to get a cat out of the widow's house once. She didn't know it was a cat, of course. She thought it was a haint that had taken up residence in her attic. So there I am, prepared to do battle with a dark spirit, and when I step into the attic, I find myself face to face with a highly upset bobcat."
Glimmer's hand slipped into mine as the two of us listened and laughed as Grandpa unfurled his tale of a spirited wild animal and a surprised Grandpa. We sat by the fire as the snow came down, and the fire warmed our bones. I could feel Glimmer's warm, comfortable weight as she leaned against me, and as Grandpa unveiled his tale, I smiled, enjoying these small blessings as they came.

​
The fire crackled merrily as Glimmer lay stretched out before it. The dancing flames made her skin twinkle, which was how she had gotten her name from Grandpa, and the dazzle sent diamonds onto the ceiling. I had stopped in the doorway to the living room to watch her as she sparkled, and she grinned impishly when she noticed me.
"Is that milk water for me, handsome?" She asked, and it occurred to me then how young she seemed. She was like a girl in her early twenties in both appearance and mannerisms. I wondered not for the first time if she would be that way when I was grandpa's age?
She patted the fireplace as she sat up, inviting me to sit with her, and I brought the hot cocoa to her as I leaned back against the rough stone fireplace. Grandpa was sitting in his favorite chair, watching the two of us with a knowing smile. I appreciated him for that more than he would ever know. It would've been easy for him to be hurt, but he always seemed to take the closeness of Glimmer and I as just one of life's little blessings.
The widow had been very happy to have her cat back, and she thanked us all for finding him so quickly.
"He's a silly old thing, but he's all I've got left, and I'm quite fond of him. I'm glad he didn't wander off in the snow and get himself frozen to death."
She had excused herself pretty quickly, telling grandpa it looked like he was entertaining. She gave me a wink that I'm not sure I understood, and as she drove carefully down the driveway, grandpa waved at her from the porch. The three of us settled in and got ready for Glimmer to begin her story, the fire the only light in the room.
Glimmer took a sip of her hot cocoa and made an appreciative noise as the warmth fell over her.
"That's good. We don't have anything quite that good in the woods."
"Are you telling me that your civilization has existed since before settlers came from England, but you haven't figured out hot cocoa yet?" I asked with a little laugh.
Glimmer gave me a withering look but spoiled it by winking at me, "We have sweets, of course. Just nothing quite this frivolous exists in our world. We have more immediate concerns, like survival."
"And cats, apparently," I added.
Glimmer nodded, taking another sip of her cocoa, "Yes, and cats."
"Wait," grandpa said, "when I made you the wooden cat, you didn't seem so surprised."
"Well, I had seen wild cats before," Glimmer said a little tartly, "They run everywhere in the forest. But this cat was different. He was so strange that I didn't immediately realize he was akin to the felines I knew."
She closed her eyes, and as the smoke wafted into her face, I could tell she was time-traveling back to her girlhood days. Grandpa got that same look when he thought about the past, and I suppose it was universal. Glimmer was content to let the steam caress her for a few moments, beginning her story without much warning.
This was the time after Fisher's leaving. He had come to see me before he left and told me that he was going to fight in a war. I knew of wars, though I had never fought in one. He said he would be gone for a long time but that he hoped he would see me again. I didn't really understand, but I was upset at the thought of losing him. We had become close, and I didn't want to say goodbye. He told me this was something he had to do, but I didn't want to hear it. I told him to just go, that I didn't care if he came back or not, and turned away from him so he wouldn't see the tears I was trying to hold back.
When he said nothing, I turned back to find that I wasn't the only one failing to hold in my sorrow.
I was used to seeing Fisher sad, but he had seemed different after his encounter with The Bone Collector. He told me this was a thing he had to do and that getting away from the mountains for a while would be good for him. He wanted to see the world and grow into someone who could protect others. I refused to listen to his excuses, though. I was young and spirited, and if he was going to leave, I told him to just go ahead and go.
So we parted ways.
I never knew if his sadness was as deep as mine, but it was several days before I was fit for much beyond moody turns.
Life went on, though, despite his absence, and many weeks later, I found myself in the woods again.
Now, you may find it odd that I had never seen a cat before, but my people usually stay in the deep woods. I am considered an oddity because I will go so close to human places. In those days, I would not even go that far. Fisher had always come to visit me near the borders of my world and his, and without him to visit, I hadn't been anywhere near the humans in ages. On this particular day, I was supposed to be gathering herbs for medicine, so my mother could cure some of our people who had become ill. I had collected quite a few herbs, but when I found that I was close to the border again, I got a bit reminiscent of the times I had spent with Fisher.
So I decided to go and have a look at some of the other people that lived in the area.
I didn't know any of them, but Fisher had talked about some of them. His parents, his grandmother that had passed on, some of his neighbors, and of the friends he often went out with who I knew had been killed by the Strange Lights. I wasn't afraid of being seen by any of them. I could move as gracefully through the woods as any deer, and I had hidden from humans before. So I took my sack and bow and decided to see what I could see.
I was hopeful at the start, but it was not the grand adventure I thought it would. I saw human signs, old fires, and the waste they sometimes leave behind, but I encountered no people. I followed a trail to Fisher's old house, but I couldn't bring myself to get close. I missed him terribly, and the thought of seeing something that would remind me of him made me sad. I had turned around, preparing to head home again, when the strangest little creature stood in my path.
His fur was the color of a campfire, interspersed with dark browns and dots of gray. His ears had a distinctly chewed look, and his paws were large and very furry. He held a magnificent tail behind him, and he had come up on me without a sound. I was startled at first, drawing my bow and challenging him, but he meowed good-naturedly and cocked his head as if to ask what I was doing?
We stood there for several seconds, but when it became apparent that he meant me no harm, I put my weapon away and bent down to touch him. He was very soft, not bristly, like some of the other cats in the woods. He was a little muddy, but it was clear that someone was taking great care of him. He was well-fed, fatter than any cat I had ever seen, and he showed none of the hesitancy around me that many of the forest creatures did. I sat and let him butt his head against my hand. My other hand glided along his silky fur, and when he came to sit in my lap, I giggled as he rumbled against my stomach.
When I heard the sound of people returning to Fisher's old house, I realized I had been sitting there for a while.
I had become enchanted with this little beastie, and as he walked back into the woods, I followed him eagerly.
We spent the night in the forest, hunting mice and playing with the leaves and sticks that caught his attention. As the night went on, I became quite enamored with the little animal, and the more time we spent together, the better I felt about Fisher leaving. We were cuddling in the bows of a tree when the first fingers of sunlight began to peek over the horizon. I realized I had been out all night with him, and when I picked him up and headed for home, I had every intention of taking him with me.
As we walked back through the woods, I was confident that no one in my enclave would've seen anything like this before. Some of them had cats, but nothing as grand as this one. One of my cousins had a beautiful spotted cat, and my older sister had a white one with red eyes, but their hair was short and coarse and nowhere near as luxurious as this fellow. I smiled to myself as I thought of the jealousy on their faces when they saw him. Once mother had touched his silky fur, there would be no way she could turn it away. He would sleep next to my head at night, and I would drift off listening to the deep rumble of his purr.
I was so involved with my daydream that I almost missed when he wiggled out of my arms.
He had been riding along calmly until that point, purring against my side as the two of us walked. He looked back the way we could come and made that strange meow sound again. I was perplexed. Did he have a mate he needed to get back to? He started to walk away, but I picked him up again and tried to continue walking home. He wiggled out of my hands again, though, and glanced back at me with remorse as he shook his little head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, "Don't you want to come home with me?"
In response, he started to walk off again.
I took a step towards him but stopped myself before I could grab him up again. I turned around instead and headed for home, a little angry as I crunched through the underbrush. If he didn't want to come back with me, then so be it. I wouldn't force him, and the farther I got, the madder I became. Who cared if he didn't want to come back with me? I didn't need him. I had been fine before him, and I would be fine again.
Let him wander off into the woods if that's what he wanted to do.
Let him run afoul of a big mean coyote or a hungry owl or…or one of the bigger wild cats….or a snake…or….or
I wiped my eyes as they started to leak.
The anger leaked out with them, and soon I was making my way back the way I had come.
In my mind, I could already see him at the mercy of one of the coyote packs in the area or carried away by a hawk. He was a big fella but wouldn't stand a chance against a pack of dogs. I wouldn't find him in time, I thought, or I would find him too late, or I would find nothing but a smear of blood and some of that gorgeous fur stuck in the pool. I swiped at my eyes as the tears kept coming, already sure he was lost.
The sky was pinkening, true dawn still hours away, and when I heard him meow, I turned to find him cocking his head at me again.
I laughed, scooping him into my arms and hugging him, and he wiggled and meowed in confusion.
When I put him down again, he started walking the way we had come, and this time I followed him.
I could see the light beginning to intrude on the dark world, but I didn't mind. Some members of my race cannot stand the light, but I have learned to love it. It stings my eyes and makes my skin burn a little, but I try to spend some time each day in the sun, knowing that my friends are part of that lighted world. That thin line on the horizon would have been enough to send both my parents scuttling back to the depths of the enclave, but I followed my new friend evenly as he made his way. I expected I would find a little burrow of beasties like him, perhaps even some little ones with a mate who would be worried, but as we got closer to the edges of humanity, I realized where he was heading.
When we came to the edge of his home, the lights already on in the big house, he looked back at me much the same way I had looked at him on the border to my world.
"What? Don't you want to come home with me?" that look said, but I shook my head at him.
"No, this is where we must part ways, little friend."
He came back, butting up against my leg and giving me another rub of his silky fur, and then he trotted off for home, bounding up the back porch steps as he sat patiently at the door.
I had turned to leave, the dawn very close now, when a high and excited voice found its way to my ear.
"Clarence! You came back!"
I peeked through the trees and saw a little girl pulling him into her arms. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine, and as she rubbed her face against the cats, I realized this had been where he was returning to. She was his family, she was the one he had been trying to get back to, and I felt a little guilty for trying to keep him. He had a home already, and my ownership of him had been an act of theft.
"I told mommy you would come back. I'm sorry I put you outside yesterday while I was trying to nap. I won't do it again. Come on, let's get you some breakfast. Then we can brush you and get you," but their plans were cut off by the closing door, and as the day began, I slipped back into the woods and made my way home as well.
The fire crackled as she finished, and I saw a tear roll down her cheek as she remembered that day.
"I think, in a way, that was how I said goodbye to you as well, Fisher."
Grandpa smiled, "To me?"
Glimmer nodded, "You were never mine to keep, either. I felt hurt when you left, though I didn't admit it. You were gone, and I thought I could simply exist without you. Watching that cat go, realizing that it might get hurt and feeling hurt that it wouldn't stay, made me remember how you had left as well. I needed to come to terms with that, which helped a lot."
We all sat silently for a while, Glimmer putting her head on my shoulder as the fire crackled merrily behind us.
When Grandpa chuckled suddenly, I looked up and saw Glimmer cock a sardonic eye at him, "I had to get a cat out of the widow's house once. She didn't know it was a cat, of course. She thought it was a haint that had taken up residence in her attic. So there I am, prepared to do battle with a dark spirit, and when I step into the attic, I find myself face to face with a highly upset bobcat."
Glimmer's hand slipped into mine as the two of us listened and laughed as Grandpa unfurled his tale of a spirited wild animal and a surprised Grandpa. We sat by the fire as the snow came down, and the fire warmed our bones. I could feel Glimmer's warm, comfortable weight as she leaned against me, and as Grandpa unveiled his tale, I smiled, enjoying these small blessings as they came.

Appalachian Grandpa- Cat tales

The fire crackled merrily as Glimmer lay stretched out before it. The dancing flames made her skin twinkle, which was how she had gotten her name from Grandpa, and the dazzle sent diamonds onto the ceiling. I had stopped in the doorway to the living room to watch her as she sparkled, and she grinned impishly when she noticed me.
"Is that milk water for me, handsome?" She asked, and it occurred to me then how young she seemed. She was like a girl in her early twenties in both appearance and mannerisms. I wondered not for the first time if she would be that way when I was grandpa's age?
She patted the fireplace as she sat up, inviting me to sit with her, and I brought the hot cocoa to her as I leaned back against the rough stone fireplace. Grandpa was sitting in his favorite chair, watching the two of us with a knowing smile. I appreciated him for that more than he would ever know. It would've been easy for him to be hurt, but he always seemed to take the closeness of Glimmer and I as just one of life's little blessings.
The widow had been very happy to have her cat back, and she thanked us all for finding him so quickly.
"He's a silly old thing, but he's all I've got left, and I'm quite fond of him. I'm glad he didn't wander off in the snow and get himself frozen to death."
She had excused herself pretty quickly, telling grandpa it looked like he was entertaining. She gave me a wink that I'm not sure I understood, and as she drove carefully down the driveway, grandpa waved at her from the porch. The three of us settled in and got ready for Glimmer to begin her story, the fire the only light in the room.
Glimmer took a sip of her hot cocoa and made an appreciative noise as the warmth fell over her.
"That's good. We don't have anything quite that good in the woods."
"Are you telling me that your civilization has existed since before settlers came from England, but you haven't figured out hot cocoa yet?" I asked with a little laugh.
Glimmer gave me a withering look but spoiled it by winking at me, "We have sweets, of course. Just nothing quite this frivolous exists in our world. We have more immediate concerns, like survival."
"And cats, apparently," I added.
Glimmer nodded, taking another sip of her cocoa, "Yes, and cats."
"Wait," grandpa said, "when I made you the wooden cat, you didn't seem so surprised."
"Well, I had seen wild cats before," Glimmer said a little tartly, "They run everywhere in the forest. But this cat was different. He was so strange that I didn't immediately realize he was akin to the felines I knew."
She closed her eyes, and as the smoke wafted into her face, I could tell she was time-traveling back to her girlhood days. Grandpa got that same look when he thought about the past, and I suppose it was universal. Glimmer was content to let the steam caress her for a few moments, beginning her story without much warning.
This was the time after Fisher's leaving. He had come to see me before he left and told me that he was going to fight in a war. I knew of wars, though I had never fought in one. He said he would be gone for a long time but that he hoped he would see me again. I didn't really understand, but I was upset at the thought of losing him. We had become close, and I didn't want to say goodbye. He told me this was something he had to do, but I didn't want to hear it. I told him to just go, that I didn't care if he came back or not, and turned away from him so he wouldn't see the tears I was trying to hold back.
When he said nothing, I turned back to find that I wasn't the only one failing to hold in my sorrow.
I was used to seeing Fisher sad, but he had seemed different after his encounter with The Bone Collector. He told me this was a thing he had to do and that getting away from the mountains for a while would be good for him. He wanted to see the world and grow into someone who could protect others. I refused to listen to his excuses, though. I was young and spirited, and if he was going to leave, I told him to just go ahead and go.
So we parted ways.
I never knew if his sadness was as deep as mine, but it was several days before I was fit for much beyond moody turns.
Life went on, though, despite his absence, and many weeks later, I found myself in the woods again.
Now, you may find it odd that I had never seen a cat before, but my people usually stay in the deep woods. I am considered an oddity because I will go so close to human places. In those days, I would not even go that far. Fisher had always come to visit me near the borders of my world and his, and without him to visit, I hadn't been anywhere near the humans in ages. On this particular day, I was supposed to be gathering herbs for medicine, so my mother could cure some of our people who had become ill. I had collected quite a few herbs, but when I found that I was close to the border again, I got a bit reminiscent of the times I had spent with Fisher.
So I decided to go and have a look at some of the other people that lived in the area.
I didn't know any of them, but Fisher had talked about some of them. His parents, his grandmother that had passed on, some of his neighbors, and of the friends he often went out with who I knew had been killed by the Strange Lights. I wasn't afraid of being seen by any of them. I could move as gracefully through the woods as any deer, and I had hidden from humans before. So I took my sack and bow and decided to see what I could see.
I was hopeful at the start, but it was not the grand adventure I thought it would. I saw human signs, old fires, and the waste they sometimes leave behind, but I encountered no people. I followed a trail to Fisher's old house, but I couldn't bring myself to get close. I missed him terribly, and the thought of seeing something that would remind me of him made me sad. I had turned around, preparing to head home again, when the strangest little creature stood in my path.
His fur was the color of a campfire, interspersed with dark browns and dots of gray. His ears had a distinctly chewed look, and his paws were large and very furry. He held a magnificent tail behind him, and he had come up on me without a sound. I was startled at first, drawing my bow and challenging him, but he meowed good-naturedly and cocked his head as if to ask what I was doing?
We stood there for several seconds, but when it became apparent that he meant me no harm, I put my weapon away and bent down to touch him. He was very soft, not bristly, like some of the other cats in the woods. He was a little muddy, but it was clear that someone was taking great care of him. He was well-fed, fatter than any cat I had ever seen, and he showed none of the hesitancy around me that many of the forest creatures did. I sat and let him butt his head against my hand. My other hand glided along his silky fur, and when he came to sit in my lap, I giggled as he rumbled against my stomach.
When I heard the sound of people returning to Fisher's old house, I realized I had been sitting there for a while.
I had become enchanted with this little beastie, and as he walked back into the woods, I followed him eagerly.
We spent the night in the forest, hunting mice and playing with the leaves and sticks that caught his attention. As the night went on, I became quite enamored with the little animal, and the more time we spent together, the better I felt about Fisher leaving. We were cuddling in the bows of a tree when the first fingers of sunlight began to peek over the horizon. I realized I had been out all night with him, and when I picked him up and headed for home, I had every intention of taking him with me.
As we walked back through the woods, I was confident that no one in my enclave would've seen anything like this before. Some of them had cats, but nothing as grand as this one. One of my cousins had a beautiful spotted cat, and my older sister had a white one with red eyes, but their hair was short and coarse and nowhere near as luxurious as this fellow. I smiled to myself as I thought of the jealousy on their faces when they saw him. Once mother had touched his silky fur, there would be no way she could turn it away. He would sleep next to my head at night, and I would drift off listening to the deep rumble of his purr.
I was so involved with my daydream that I almost missed when he wiggled out of my arms.
He had been riding along calmly until that point, purring against my side as the two of us walked. He looked back the way we could come and made that strange meow sound again. I was perplexed. Did he have a mate he needed to get back to? He started to walk away, but I picked him up again and tried to continue walking home. He wiggled out of my hands again, though, and glanced back at me with remorse as he shook his little head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, "Don't you want to come home with me?"
In response, he started to walk off again.
I took a step towards him but stopped myself before I could grab him up again. I turned around instead and headed for home, a little angry as I crunched through the underbrush. If he didn't want to come back with me, then so be it. I wouldn't force him, and the farther I got, the madder I became. Who cared if he didn't want to come back with me? I didn't need him. I had been fine before him, and I would be fine again.
Let him wander off into the woods if that's what he wanted to do.
Let him run afoul of a big mean coyote or a hungry owl or…or one of the bigger wild cats….or a snake…or….or
I wiped my eyes as they started to leak.
The anger leaked out with them, and soon I was making my way back the way I had come.
In my mind, I could already see him at the mercy of one of the coyote packs in the area or carried away by a hawk. He was a big fella but wouldn't stand a chance against a pack of dogs. I wouldn't find him in time, I thought, or I would find him too late, or I would find nothing but a smear of blood and some of that gorgeous fur stuck in the pool. I swiped at my eyes as the tears kept coming, already sure he was lost.
The sky was pinkening, true dawn still hours away, and when I heard him meow, I turned to find him cocking his head at me again.
I laughed, scooping him into my arms and hugging him, and he wiggled and meowed in confusion.
When I put him down again, he started walking the way we had come, and this time I followed him.
I could see the light beginning to intrude on the dark world, but I didn't mind. Some members of my race cannot stand the light, but I have learned to love it. It stings my eyes and makes my skin burn a little, but I try to spend some time each day in the sun, knowing that my friends are part of that lighted world. That thin line on the horizon would have been enough to send both my parents scuttling back to the depths of the enclave, but I followed my new friend evenly as he made his way. I expected I would find a little burrow of beasties like him, perhaps even some little ones with a mate who would be worried, but as we got closer to the edges of humanity, I realized where he was heading.
When we came to the edge of his home, the lights already on in the big house, he looked back at me much the same way I had looked at him on the border to my world.
"What? Don't you want to come home with me?" that look said, but I shook my head at him.
"No, this is where we must part ways, little friend."
He came back, butting up against my leg and giving me another rub of his silky fur, and then he trotted off for home, bounding up the back porch steps as he sat patiently at the door.
I had turned to leave, the dawn very close now, when a high and excited voice found its way to my ear.
"Clarence! You came back!"
I peeked through the trees and saw a little girl pulling him into her arms. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine, and as she rubbed her face against the cats, I realized this had been where he was returning to. She was his family, she was the one he had been trying to get back to, and I felt a little guilty for trying to keep him. He had a home already, and my ownership of him had been an act of theft.
"I told mommy you would come back. I'm sorry I put you outside yesterday while I was trying to nap. I won't do it again. Come on, let's get you some breakfast. Then we can brush you and get you," but their plans were cut off by the closing door, and as the day began, I slipped back into the woods and made my way home as well.
The fire crackled as she finished, and I saw a tear roll down her cheek as she remembered that day.
"I think, in a way, that was how I said goodbye to you as well, Fisher."
Grandpa smiled, "To me?"
Glimmer nodded, "You were never mine to keep, either. I felt hurt when you left, though I didn't admit it. You were gone, and I thought I could simply exist without you. Watching that cat go, realizing that it might get hurt and feeling hurt that it wouldn't stay, made me remember how you had left as well. I needed to come to terms with that, which helped a lot."
We all sat silently for a while, Glimmer putting her head on my shoulder as the fire crackled merrily behind us.
When Grandpa chuckled suddenly, I looked up and saw Glimmer cock a sardonic eye at him, "I had to get a cat out of the widow's house once. She didn't know it was a cat, of course. She thought it was a haint that had taken up residence in her attic. So there I am, prepared to do battle with a dark spirit, and when I step into the attic, I find myself face to face with a highly upset bobcat."
Glimmer's hand slipped into mine as the two of us listened and laughed as Grandpa unfurled his tale of a spirited wild animal and a surprised Grandpa. We sat by the fire as the snow came down, and the fire warmed our bones. I could feel Glimmer's warm, comfortable weight as she leaned against me, and as Grandpa unveiled his tale, I smiled, enjoying these small blessings as they came.

​
The fire crackled merrily as Glimmer lay stretched out before it. The dancing flames made her skin twinkle, which was how she had gotten her name from Grandpa, and the dazzle sent diamonds onto the ceiling. I had stopped in the doorway to the living room to watch her as she sparkled, and she grinned impishly when she noticed me.
"Is that milk water for me, handsome?" She asked, and it occurred to me then how young she seemed. She was like a girl in her early twenties in both appearance and mannerisms. I wondered not for the first time if she would be that way when I was grandpa's age?
She patted the fireplace as she sat up, inviting me to sit with her, and I brought the hot cocoa to her as I leaned back against the rough stone fireplace. Grandpa was sitting in his favorite chair, watching the two of us with a knowing smile. I appreciated him for that more than he would ever know. It would've been easy for him to be hurt, but he always seemed to take the closeness of Glimmer and I as just one of life's little blessings.
The widow had been very happy to have her cat back, and she thanked us all for finding him so quickly.
"He's a silly old thing, but he's all I've got left, and I'm quite fond of him. I'm glad he didn't wander off in the snow and get himself frozen to death."
She had excused herself pretty quickly, telling grandpa it looked like he was entertaining. She gave me a wink that I'm not sure I understood, and as she drove carefully down the driveway, grandpa waved at her from the porch. The three of us settled in and got ready for Glimmer to begin her story, the fire the only light in the room.
Glimmer took a sip of her hot cocoa and made an appreciative noise as the warmth fell over her.
"That's good. We don't have anything quite that good in the woods."
"Are you telling me that your civilization has existed since before settlers came from England, but you haven't figured out hot cocoa yet?" I asked with a little laugh.
Glimmer gave me a withering look but spoiled it by winking at me, "We have sweets, of course. Just nothing quite this frivolous exists in our world. We have more immediate concerns, like survival."
"And cats, apparently," I added.
Glimmer nodded, taking another sip of her cocoa, "Yes, and cats."
"Wait," grandpa said, "when I made you the wooden cat, you didn't seem so surprised."
"Well, I had seen wild cats before," Glimmer said a little tartly, "They run everywhere in the forest. But this cat was different. He was so strange that I didn't immediately realize he was akin to the felines I knew."
She closed her eyes, and as the smoke wafted into her face, I could tell she was time-traveling back to her girlhood days. Grandpa got that same look when he thought about the past, and I suppose it was universal. Glimmer was content to let the steam caress her for a few moments, beginning her story without much warning.
This was the time after Fisher's leaving. He had come to see me before he left and told me that he was going to fight in a war. I knew of wars, though I had never fought in one. He said he would be gone for a long time but that he hoped he would see me again. I didn't really understand, but I was upset at the thought of losing him. We had become close, and I didn't want to say goodbye. He told me this was something he had to do, but I didn't want to hear it. I told him to just go, that I didn't care if he came back or not, and turned away from him so he wouldn't see the tears I was trying to hold back.
When he said nothing, I turned back to find that I wasn't the only one failing to hold in my sorrow.
I was used to seeing Fisher sad, but he had seemed different after his encounter with The Bone Collector. He told me this was a thing he had to do and that getting away from the mountains for a while would be good for him. He wanted to see the world and grow into someone who could protect others. I refused to listen to his excuses, though. I was young and spirited, and if he was going to leave, I told him to just go ahead and go.
So we parted ways.
I never knew if his sadness was as deep as mine, but it was several days before I was fit for much beyond moody turns.
Life went on, though, despite his absence, and many weeks later, I found myself in the woods again.
Now, you may find it odd that I had never seen a cat before, but my people usually stay in the deep woods. I am considered an oddity because I will go so close to human places. In those days, I would not even go that far. Fisher had always come to visit me near the borders of my world and his, and without him to visit, I hadn't been anywhere near the humans in ages. On this particular day, I was supposed to be gathering herbs for medicine, so my mother could cure some of our people who had become ill. I had collected quite a few herbs, but when I found that I was close to the border again, I got a bit reminiscent of the times I had spent with Fisher.
So I decided to go and have a look at some of the other people that lived in the area.
I didn't know any of them, but Fisher had talked about some of them. His parents, his grandmother that had passed on, some of his neighbors, and of the friends he often went out with who I knew had been killed by the Strange Lights. I wasn't afraid of being seen by any of them. I could move as gracefully through the woods as any deer, and I had hidden from humans before. So I took my sack and bow and decided to see what I could see.
I was hopeful at the start, but it was not the grand adventure I thought it would. I saw human signs, old fires, and the waste they sometimes leave behind, but I encountered no people. I followed a trail to Fisher's old house, but I couldn't bring myself to get close. I missed him terribly, and the thought of seeing something that would remind me of him made me sad. I had turned around, preparing to head home again, when the strangest little creature stood in my path.
His fur was the color of a campfire, interspersed with dark browns and dots of gray. His ears had a distinctly chewed look, and his paws were large and very furry. He held a magnificent tail behind him, and he had come up on me without a sound. I was startled at first, drawing my bow and challenging him, but he meowed good-naturedly and cocked his head as if to ask what I was doing?
We stood there for several seconds, but when it became apparent that he meant me no harm, I put my weapon away and bent down to touch him. He was very soft, not bristly, like some of the other cats in the woods. He was a little muddy, but it was clear that someone was taking great care of him. He was well-fed, fatter than any cat I had ever seen, and he showed none of the hesitancy around me that many of the forest creatures did. I sat and let him butt his head against my hand. My other hand glided along his silky fur, and when he came to sit in my lap, I giggled as he rumbled against my stomach.
When I heard the sound of people returning to Fisher's old house, I realized I had been sitting there for a while.
I had become enchanted with this little beastie, and as he walked back into the woods, I followed him eagerly.
We spent the night in the forest, hunting mice and playing with the leaves and sticks that caught his attention. As the night went on, I became quite enamored with the little animal, and the more time we spent together, the better I felt about Fisher leaving. We were cuddling in the bows of a tree when the first fingers of sunlight began to peek over the horizon. I realized I had been out all night with him, and when I picked him up and headed for home, I had every intention of taking him with me.
As we walked back through the woods, I was confident that no one in my enclave would've seen anything like this before. Some of them had cats, but nothing as grand as this one. One of my cousins had a beautiful spotted cat, and my older sister had a white one with red eyes, but their hair was short and coarse and nowhere near as luxurious as this fellow. I smiled to myself as I thought of the jealousy on their faces when they saw him. Once mother had touched his silky fur, there would be no way she could turn it away. He would sleep next to my head at night, and I would drift off listening to the deep rumble of his purr.
I was so involved with my daydream that I almost missed when he wiggled out of my arms.
He had been riding along calmly until that point, purring against my side as the two of us walked. He looked back the way we could come and made that strange meow sound again. I was perplexed. Did he have a mate he needed to get back to? He started to walk away, but I picked him up again and tried to continue walking home. He wiggled out of my hands again, though, and glanced back at me with remorse as he shook his little head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, "Don't you want to come home with me?"
In response, he started to walk off again.
I took a step towards him but stopped myself before I could grab him up again. I turned around instead and headed for home, a little angry as I crunched through the underbrush. If he didn't want to come back with me, then so be it. I wouldn't force him, and the farther I got, the madder I became. Who cared if he didn't want to come back with me? I didn't need him. I had been fine before him, and I would be fine again.
Let him wander off into the woods if that's what he wanted to do.
Let him run afoul of a big mean coyote or a hungry owl or…or one of the bigger wild cats….or a snake…or….or
I wiped my eyes as they started to leak.
The anger leaked out with them, and soon I was making my way back the way I had come.
In my mind, I could already see him at the mercy of one of the coyote packs in the area or carried away by a hawk. He was a big fella but wouldn't stand a chance against a pack of dogs. I wouldn't find him in time, I thought, or I would find him too late, or I would find nothing but a smear of blood and some of that gorgeous fur stuck in the pool. I swiped at my eyes as the tears kept coming, already sure he was lost.
The sky was pinkening, true dawn still hours away, and when I heard him meow, I turned to find him cocking his head at me again.
I laughed, scooping him into my arms and hugging him, and he wiggled and meowed in confusion.
When I put him down again, he started walking the way we had come, and this time I followed him.
I could see the light beginning to intrude on the dark world, but I didn't mind. Some members of my race cannot stand the light, but I have learned to love it. It stings my eyes and makes my skin burn a little, but I try to spend some time each day in the sun, knowing that my friends are part of that lighted world. That thin line on the horizon would have been enough to send both my parents scuttling back to the depths of the enclave, but I followed my new friend evenly as he made his way. I expected I would find a little burrow of beasties like him, perhaps even some little ones with a mate who would be worried, but as we got closer to the edges of humanity, I realized where he was heading.
When we came to the edge of his home, the lights already on in the big house, he looked back at me much the same way I had looked at him on the border to my world.
"What? Don't you want to come home with me?" that look said, but I shook my head at him.
"No, this is where we must part ways, little friend."
He came back, butting up against my leg and giving me another rub of his silky fur, and then he trotted off for home, bounding up the back porch steps as he sat patiently at the door.
I had turned to leave, the dawn very close now, when a high and excited voice found its way to my ear.
"Clarence! You came back!"
I peeked through the trees and saw a little girl pulling him into her arms. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine, and as she rubbed her face against the cats, I realized this had been where he was returning to. She was his family, she was the one he had been trying to get back to, and I felt a little guilty for trying to keep him. He had a home already, and my ownership of him had been an act of theft.
"I told mommy you would come back. I'm sorry I put you outside yesterday while I was trying to nap. I won't do it again. Come on, let's get you some breakfast. Then we can brush you and get you," but their plans were cut off by the closing door, and as the day began, I slipped back into the woods and made my way home as well.
The fire crackled as she finished, and I saw a tear roll down her cheek as she remembered that day.
"I think, in a way, that was how I said goodbye to you as well, Fisher."
Grandpa smiled, "To me?"
Glimmer nodded, "You were never mine to keep, either. I felt hurt when you left, though I didn't admit it. You were gone, and I thought I could simply exist without you. Watching that cat go, realizing that it might get hurt and feeling hurt that it wouldn't stay, made me remember how you had left as well. I needed to come to terms with that, which helped a lot."
We all sat silently for a while, Glimmer putting her head on my shoulder as the fire crackled merrily behind us.
When Grandpa chuckled suddenly, I looked up and saw Glimmer cock a sardonic eye at him, "I had to get a cat out of the widow's house once. She didn't know it was a cat, of course. She thought it was a haint that had taken up residence in her attic. So there I am, prepared to do battle with a dark spirit, and when I step into the attic, I find myself face to face with a highly upset bobcat."
Glimmer's hand slipped into mine as the two of us listened and laughed as Grandpa unfurled his tale of a spirited wild animal and a surprised Grandpa. We sat by the fire as the snow came down, and the fire warmed our bones. I could feel Glimmer's warm, comfortable weight as she leaned against me, and as Grandpa unveiled his tale, I smiled, enjoying these small blessings as they came.