Simple human trash bags code n

Camel Heaven

2015.08.06 15:17 WolfKingAdam Camel Heaven

[link]

2017.05.15 16:55 GregariousWolf Against Astroturfing and Media Manipulation

Against Astroturfing and Social Media Manipulation
[link]

2022.03.31 21:01 PelotonMod Tête de la Course - World Tour Road Cycling News, Results and Discussion

Tête de la Course is the community for professional road cycling. Share links, news, results, transfer rumours & other road cycling tidbits related to the teams, events and riders in the World Tour.
[link]

2023.06.07 11:22 RobJHayes Self Published Fantasy Releases – June 2023

Self Published Fantasy Releases – June 2023
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https://preview.redd.it/y71r0t8gdk4b1.jpg?width=2069&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=28b6c1617e39d6e9d534b7ae5a49457ee7814c23
You can find the original blog post, complete with all the shiny covers, here.
If you would like to be kept up to date with the upcoming lists, please subscribe to my newsletter by clicking this link. I don’t send out letters too often, pretty much once a month when this list goes out… and occasionally if I release a book or something.
As always, this is not a comprehensive list, but only includes all the books I have heard about so far.
If you have a fantasy novel you are self publishing in June or beyond, let me know by filling out THIS FORM, and I shall add it to the page. There are but 3 requirements:
1) It must be a self published fantasy novel.
2) It must have a Goodreads page.
3) It must have a cover.
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1st June – The Pyres of Vengeance (Swords of Dominion #2) by N.C. Koussis

Epic Fantasy, Grimdark
After losing everything she knew, Selene struggles to keep hope alive. Terrifying threats from the capital test her in ways she never thought possible.
Richter can’t destroy himself or the corruption that lives in his body. He won’t let anything stop him from his mission, though – to kill every other werewolf on the Continent.
The Order of the Golden Sword cares not for the laws of men. They’ll do anything to wipe the lycanthrope haven of Palerme from existence. But no one has ever faced an army of werewolves before.
Goodreads
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1st June – Tristan’s Regret (The Return of King Arthur #3) by Jacob Sannox

Urban Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Historical Fantasy
In the 5th century, Tristan and Isolde are at the mercy of the scheming Morgana Le Fay, who seeks to undermine King Arthur’s alliance with Cornwall. The consequences of their actions echo down the centuries and, in 2021, Arthur, Tristan and the Knights of the Round Table desperately hunt the last remaining followers of Malagant, an immortal ally of the dead sorceress. Will Arthur finally live up to his own legend, and can anything put an end to Tristan’s regret?
Goodreads
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1st June – The Exile of Zanzibar (Railroad to Zanzibar #1) by Daniel Maidman

Epic Fantasy, Historical Fantasy
Claire built a device to fold space and time. It had a flaw…
When the smoke clears, she finds herself halfway across the world, thousands of years in the past, and no device in sight.
In bronze-age Florence, war has lasted for generations. All Claire wants to do is get home, but she’ll need help from the locals. She wins an ally in Marcus Diophantus, a pickpocket turned soldier turned general, who hopes to turn into something more than just her champion. Together, they broker peace between Florence and its enemy.
If Marcus is going to help Claire, he’ll have to survive. Peace has upset the balance of power in the capital city. The king stands increasingly alone against: the Constantines, a commercial enterprise as much as a clan, who aim to profit from peace as they have from war – the warrior nobles, descended from the founders of Florence and quick to turn against a weak throne – and Reburrus, the high priest of Florence, convinced Claire answers to hostile foreign gods. As the city comes to a boil, Claire and Marcus – and Marcus’s formidable army – will have to decide where their allegiance lies.
Claire becomes a reluctant participant in a savage campaign. While Marcus leads the battles, she tries to gain control of the unimaginably powerful Ctesiphôn – a ghost tower in the heart of Florence, shrouded in magic and myth.
Goodreads
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1st June – Captain (All that Glitters #2) by Shalaena Medford

Grimdark, Gaslamp
Mere weeks have passed since Tsingsei “Song” Gould’s world fell into ashes. Now she must accept her role as captain of the Stars’ Bounty.
The crew returns to the skies to do what they do best: piracy. They travel the world, visiting new countries and finding an adventure wherever they go. In the frigid south, Song finds there are answers to her questions about kijæm…with a caveat. In the trading country, she gains confidence in her notoriety. In the exotic west, she makes a terrible mistake.
However, one of Song’s dearest friends has become a wanted man, and they must find a way to free him of the price on his head. Will she commit the highest crime in the world, or will she lose him to the gallows?
Goodreads
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1st June – Buzzard’s Bowl (Tragedy of Cedain #2) by John Palladino

Epic Fantasy, Grimdark
Cedain continues to collapse.
Ashmount’s destruction shatters the Magicai while the culprits responsible continue sabotaging the world. All the while, the next season of Buzzard’s Bowl begins and Edelbrock, in his constant fight for survival, desires a vengeance he can only find in the arena.
Seradal and Villic find themselves in the middle of a war between Remeria and the Camel Clans, and may end up on opposing sides, while the threat of Calrym looms over all of them.
At the behest of the woman he loves, Demri finds himself thrown into the Elkavich, a not-so-secret order of Magicai who are intent upon fixing the world.
Ashen, a former urchin rescued by a noble with selfish aspirations, works to dismantle the nobility of Calrym.
Death is assured to all who walk the world, the only unknown is when they will perish.
Goodreads
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1st June – On Winds of Ruin (The Deimachy #2) by Lincoln Law

A friendship betrayed. An unfamiliar land. The winds of ruin blow.
Roisin is still reeling from events at the end of A Crown of Blood. She feels lost, broken and alone in the world. Torn with what to do next, Roisin chooses to make the fateful trip across the Skybinder border into enemy territory in the hopes of gaining new allies for the fight against the Soulmongers. At her side is her fox companion, Vulpo; the last of the Bloodsingers, Mei; and a Skybinder of questionable allegiance named Giack.
However, Roisin’s actions draw the attention of the Skybinder nobility, entrapping her into political machinations with deadly outcomes.
Piritta, newly reborn Soulmonger, is tasked with the search for the final member of the Soulmonger Triumvirate to lead the army to victory.
And Kaori, leader of the Soulmongers, is given her own task, granting her more power than she could have ever imagined.
The choices these young women must make will tear them apart, fracture them all, leaving cracks for something darker to seep in. And in the end, only the one with the strongest resolve will endure.
Goodreads
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1st June – The Nameless Restaurant by Tao Wong

Urban Fantasy, Cozy Fantasy
There is a restaurant in Toronto. Its entrance is announced only by a simple, unadorned wooden door, varnished to a beautiful shine but without paint, hidden beside dumpsters and a fire escape. There is no sign, no indication of what lies behind the door. If you do manage to find the restaurant, the décor is dated and worn. Homey, if one were to be generous. The service is atrocious, the proprietor a grouch. The regulars are silent, brooding, and unfriendly to newcomers. There is no set menu, alternating with the whim and whimsy of the owner. The selection of wine and beer is sparse or non-existent at times, and the prices for everything outrageous. There is a restaurant in Toronto that is magically hidden, whose service is horrible, but whose food is divine. This is the story of the Nameless Restaurant.
Goodreads
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4th June – Gold, Lock and Key (Grimdark Fairytales #1) by E.J. Doble

Grimdark
“All it needs, is a bit of tenacity… and three little bears.”
Goldie, an outlaw and contract hunter of the Baron’s State, accepts a new assignment from her employer to find an old cabin in the woods, home to three ‘shapeshifters’ who can morph into bears. Considered to be little more than a myth, Goldie assumes at first that the shapeshifters are an exaggeration – but with the sizeable bounty her employer is offering, she soon realises there may be more truth in it than she realised.
And that isn’t the only thing on her mind: she discovers her main rival – a manipulative and incredibly cunning trapper named Southey – has also taken on the contract, and will be contending for the same bounty she so fervently desires. Having waited many long years to have her revenge and outsmart Southey for past mistakes, Goldie sees the new contract as a perfect opportunity to do so. All she has to do is play her cards just right.
And kill three bears…
Goodreads
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4th June – Waybound (Cradle #12) by Will Wight

Progression/Cultivation, Epic Fantasy
Years ago, Lindon left his home as a powerless Unsouled. Now, he goes to war with the most powerful beings in the world over the future of Cradle itself.
The Weeping Dragon has a grudge to settle, and Lindon intends to take out the Dreadgod with his friends by his side. But rival Monarchs know his plans, and they won’t let things end so easily.
If Lindon does win, he will ascend to the heavens. But he may not find a safe haven there either.
In the worlds above, Suriel and Ozriel face off against the Mad King to determine the new shape of the cosmos. The victor will decide the fate of countless universes.
Whether he wins or dies, Lindon will soon leave this life behind.
Goodreads
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6th June – Champions of Light (The Light Series #1) by Althea Damgaard

Epic Fantasy
Rhoanda runs away when her father betrays her trust by arranging her marriage without telling her. She had freedom to be herself, unlike her sisters, but in the end, she should have expected this. Winter still hangs on in the mountains, unlike the beach she left, and it could be another month until the pass to the west opens. Her funds run out and the city guard catches her stealing. Instead of a cell, they take her to the Cathedral of Light, which rivals a fortress. There she learns the truth about the Light while trying to hide who she really is. Her parents, who embrace the Dark, have the power to take over the mountain kingdom and could use her as the excuse to do so.
Sergeant Vern can’t shake his desire to drink nor his anger at the Lord of Light for the disease that crippled and killed his sister at a young age. The cathedral lets him work with the class of deviants under his alias, but time is running out. The worse spring thaw of the century arrives and despite the great Cathedral of Light, the Dark has found a deep root in the kingdom. Worse, prophecies of the spiritual war manifesting in the physical come true as a mural changes before their eyes and its images step into their lives. Vern needs to accept the truth that sets him free of the curse cast upon his family so he can step into his true role. A truth that his sister professed about the Light through all her pain unto her last breath when angels took her home.
Will their faith in the Light be enough to overcome their trials and save a kingdom?
Goodreads
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6th June – imPerfect Curse (The imPerfect Cathar #2) by C.N. Rowan

Urban Fantasy
I’m exhausted. Done in. Needing a stiff drink and about a week’s sleep. But that’s not going to happen.
Because Franc is dying, struck by a curse placed on him by the Sistren Of Bordeaux, one of the most powerful groups of Talented in France. And because of our deal, it’s on me to find out what the hell is going on, and how Franc has offended the Sistren. Apart from by simply existing, of course.
Except a simple trip to Bordeaux turns into a living nightmare as the past comes back to not just haunt me but to kick me square in the nuts, and I’m sent to the one place no Talented ever wants to go. Where those with magic either vanish or get ruined, left as nothing but empty husks.
This time, it might not be the world at risk.
It might be my very soul.
Goodreads
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6th June – Lira by Armanis Ar-Feinial

Grimdark, Horror
Lira is an innocent little girl, struggling to survive in a cruel, heartless world. As her father dies, she is left to fend for herself. Each day is a desperate and exhausting search for food, scouring through the Abyss, the only home she knows. Acute awareness does not always protect her from the very real risk of cannibalization or worse– being abducted. This is a horrifying reality that no child should have to face in a brutally poetic tale
Goodreads
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6th June – Girl Squad Volition (Volta Academy Chronicles #2) by Maya Lin Wang

Progression/Cultivation, YA
Magical girls, mystery, and martial arts!
After transforming for the first time, Wren starts class at Aurin Academy, a floating school where students from across the dimensions train to defend the sovereign planets of the Kiloverse from the Cosmic horrors beyond.
From learning to fly, to discovering her magical aptitude, to dealing with a trident-wielding water Volta who inexplicably wants her dead, to navigating the fraught politics of her first mission with the squad, Wren has her work cut out for her!
Goodreads
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13th June – Fat Witch Summer – Lizzy Ives

YA, Cozy Fantasy
Dumplin’ meets The Craft in this body-positive fantasy novel for fans of summer road trips, female friendship, and magic.
Sixteen-year-old Thrash doesn’t enchant eyeliner over her lids or clear her acne with magic. She is plus-size, but she doesn’t hate what she sees in the mirror—that’s the realm of her mother, Osmarra, a slim and elegant Glamour witch. When Thrash unexpectedly breaks a mirror with her mind, she discovers she has a knack for magic and will receive one of the three sanctioned Gifts: Glamour, Growth, or Sight. The only problem is that mothers choose the Gifts, and Osmarra is convinced that the Gift of Glamour will fix her daughter’s looks.
When Thrash fails to persuade Osmarra to accept her as she is, a trio of cool witches who call themselves The Lunes offer her an out. Their leader, fiery and charismatic Cresca, recruits Thrash for a road trip to New Salem University, where the girls plan to steal their own Gifts. As Thrash crosses the magical Thirteen States of America, Osmarra hot on her heels, she discovers bewitched diners, haunted tourist traps, and a secret about the Gifts that will change the Thirteen States forever.
Goodreads
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16th June – When the Stars Alight (The Essence of the Equinox #1) by Camilla Andrew

Gaslamp
A maiden of the stars. A monster from the shadows. A collision that rewrites their worlds.
Princess Laila Rose is a fallen star in human form. A beloved guardian to humanity. Yet in spite of these fantastical origins, she has never much believed in prophecies. That’s why when a demon of apocalyptic legend is presented to her in a block of ice, she feels fascination rather than fright.
Curiosity kindles into mutual desire once he breaks free of his captivity. Far from the rampaging beast of mass destruction everyone expects—he is monstrously handsome, deviously articulate and alluringly mysterious, a prince among his kind. Eager to discover his origins, Laila travels from her idyllic seaside realm into a land of unspeakable horrors, relying on her wits to survive her journey. She arrives aiming to establish peaceful contact with the aid of the besotted prince.
However, it becomes clear that the heartless demon king does not desire peace at all, only war and conquest. When diplomacy fails, Laila turns to the king’s suave and manipulative bastard son in the hopes that she can inspire both him and his trueborn brother to go against their father. But soon it is her heart she must keep from being torn between their centuries-old dangerous rivalry.
Goodreads
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16th June – The Orb and the Airship (Turrim Archive #1) by Jenelle Leanne Schmidt

Steampunk, Cozy Fantasy
A rogue airship captain. An ambitious youth. A clash of powers beyond their imagination.
With scholarships to a prestigious military school, Grayden and Wynn are thirsty for adventure. But the night before they leave, they discover the mysterious Dalmir and his arcane orb in the forsaken tower outside of town. The old man, who seems to have a wealth of knowledge of what came before and yet so little of the now, insists on accompanying them as they travel to the academy.
Meanwhile, all pirate Captain Marik wants is to keep to the skies, take his due, and care for his crew. Then a straightforward pillaging mission on a ship of fresh academy students leads to betrayal from one of his own and an unlikely friendship forged by necessity.
Yet this new alliance stirs up ancient foes and a conflict too terrible to ignore. Despite Grayden’s inexperience and Marik’s skepticism, working together with Dalmir is their only option.
The fate of the world depends on it.
Goodreads

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17th June – Molten Flux (Flux Catastrophe #1) by Jonathan Weiss

Epic Fantasy, Sci-Fantasy
As the freshest conscript aboard the walking fortress of Revance, Ryza forges a name for himself in battle. The enemy are the smelters, bandits that trade in reanimated corpses. But for Ryza, the bloodshed represents a path of redemption for an upbringing he’s just escaped.
His prowess with a rifle draws the interest of the Locusts, a clandestine faction within Revance’s ranks. It turns out that not all aboard the fortress seek to stamp out the plague of molten flux, the mysterious liquid metal that fills the bodies of the dead and makes them walk again.
Some seek to profit.
The reanimated corpses —known as autominds— are used to control enormous contraptions of magnetically enchanted metal, forming the backbone of The Droughtland’s factories. The only thing stopping the smelters from expanding their illicit industry is Revance.
The Locusts make Ryza an offer. Either help overthrow Revance to do the smelter’s bidding or reveal his father’s legacy as the very thing Ryza now fights against.
The former is unthinkable. The latter means death.
Ryza resolves to infiltrate them and expose the mutiny, plunging him back into the murky underworld of the smelters, testing his convictions, and even leading him to the ancient origins of molten flux itself.
Goodreads-
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18th June – Enchanted Flames ANTHOLOGY (Enchanted Anthologies #3) by Various Authors

YA
If you play with fire, you might get burned…
Dig into this magical collection of short stories and discover among the embers ten fiery fantasy tales to set your heart ablaze.
Sneak past the ancient dragon as you steal from his hoard of gold and escape with the crown jewels. Journey deep into the Salamander Kingdom and follow the wyverns as they help the woodwitch to find the cure. Walk over earth scorched by a post-apocalyptic sun on a quest for survival, and find out why the firebird only eats golden apples. Watch the phoenix rise from the ashes and root for the golden dragon to woo his demigoddess in the Magic Kingdom.
Goodreads

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20th June – Guild of Magic (NYC Questing Guild) by Jon Auerbach

Urban Fantasy
Joining the Guild was only the beginning. Now Jen’s next quest could spell life or death.
Jen Jacobs thought she was in over her head when she first discovered the secret Quest Board and the world of alchemy and magic hiding just out of sight in New York City. But after a ghost from her mentor Beatrice Taylor’s past nearly kills the two of them, Jen finds herself on the cusp of joining the fabled Guild. Except now Beatrice has gone missing, leaving Jen alone to face the shadowy organization and its 11 members by herself.
If that wasn’t enough, the Guild’s chairman forces Jen to complete yet another dangerous quest to prove that she belongs: stealing a long-lost vial of Dragon’s blood that is the key ingredient to recreating the legendary Philosopher’s Stone.
As Jen’s past mistakes begin to catch up with her, she’ll need to muster all of her ingenuity to survive in the cutthroat world of ancient Relics, magical dynasties, and a possible immortal secretly directing things from behind the scenes.
Goodreads
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21st June – Hierachy of the Unseen by B. Pigeon & Fell A. Marsh

Epic Fantasy
Demons and humans are locked in endless struggle.
This is an intrinsic fact of nature. The demons believe their salvation lies in bleeding humanity of the life-force called light, while the humans are equally determined to defend it.
Within the sprawling empire of Lu-nevet, the two sides have settled into an uneasy peace, employing less violent tactics. But this peace can only hold for so long.
The state religion of Lukeira sends devout demon hunter Mitzli deep into the borderlands to bless the victims of demonic pranks. Once they arrive, however, they find unexpected signs of violence. They team up with irreligious hunter Veleiry to investigate—and the destruction the two uncover is an ominous sign of what’s to come.
Meanwhile, shiftless demon Kor falls under the scrutiny of his vampiric commander, Mant—meaning he must actually do the work of tormenting humans, rather than taking credit from his now-ex-partner Yez. Slowly, he begins to realize that the demons’ strategy is shifting, and may be heading down a path he cannot follow.
Mitzli and Kor will have to betray their respective factions if they want to put an end to the violence before it escalates. But the two of them, both outcasts among their own kind, are the only ones who know the truth. How can they protect the world if no one will listen?
Goodreads
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27th June – Temper the Dark by L. Ryan Storms

Epic Fantasy, YA
Servant girl Alaris Kahlanik finds out about her family’s gift the hard way when she discovers her ability to dreamwalk after being condemned to the Cells. With thoughts of escape, she uses her newfound ability to spy on the emperor and his secret search for something important. Nothing the emperor wants could possibly be good for the people he rules, and so whatever the emperor is looking for, Alaris must find first.
Throlani Guardsman Kagan Liis has served the Empire since Emperor Patuk’s reign began eight years ago. He can also communicate with a vicious oracle referred to only as the Darkness. When the Darkness tasks Kagan with investigating the Servant girl in the Cells, Kagan takes on a special mission that will require more than his usual interrogation methods of brute strength and intimidation.
From vastly different echelons of the same tribal society, Alaris and Kagan are surprised to learn they share one important goal—ensuring the best for the people of their island nation. Alaris discovers what the emperor is looking for — a dragon! But warning a senile dragon against impending danger is no easy task. Together, Alaris and Kagan must save a forgetful dragon and a divided nation…which may mean giving up any hope of saving themselves.
Goodreads
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30th June – Quin of Light (The Quins of Sarcaren #1) by Mark Parker

Epic Fantasy, YA
The quins of Sarcaren have awoken. . .
Auri. Gifted with power over lightning that fascinates and frightens her in equal measure, power she must bring to the fore when horror strikes her people.
Torren and Aaran. Twins with growing mastery over the physical and the mental. A potent mix of brains and brawn, both vying for the approval of the kingdom’s greatest warrior.
Koshi. Beset with sickness caused by the fire that threatens to burn her from the inside.
And Caetan. The youngest prince of Sarcaren who bends water to his desire but whose will and words are shackled by a devastating sorceress.
Alone, they pose little threat. Separated at birth – mere pawns to be used by the city of Sarcaren as an unknown enemy rumbles in the north. Alone, they are mere children caught in a dangerous and confusing world of betrayal and fear.
Together, they are bound by a curse that will one day kill them all.
Together, they will devastate kingdoms.
Goodreads
--
Space for more...
submitted by RobJHayes to Fantasy [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 10:29 RiCONews [Asia ver.] 2023/06/07 Maintenance Complete Notice

http://rxd.capcom.com.tw/en/detail.html?n_id=2570

2023/06/07 Maintenance Complete Notice

2023-06-07 16:00:00 (UTC+8)
Dear Players,
The maintenance of ROCKMAN X DiVE have completed on 2023/06/07 16:00 (UTC+8)
◆ Event Update Link Revival【Burning Bride of June】Theme Event For more details, please check the information on the right of【Event】. *Event Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/20 22:00 (UTC+8)
Link Request for logistic support from Eddie (EXP Program incorporated version) Hey, you got【Armor Parts】do you? If you are willing to exchange your Armor Parts to something else, take a look at the【Request from Eddie】in the event shop! For more details, please check【Shop】>【Store】>【Limited】>【Request from Eddie】 *Event Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/14 11:59 (UTC+8)
【Clear the Jakob within the Time Limit Missions】are being held. *Event Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/13 22:00 (UTC+8)
Elemental Metals and Dark Code Coins Giveaway! Daily logins will earn you Elemental Metal Supply Box and Dark Code Coin goodies! Daily awards：Elemental Metal Supply Box x3 & Dark Code Coin x30 *Event Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 (UTC+8) *Please go to the “Mail” page to receive the items.
Armaments Factory Event Change Armaments Factory event will be held regularly. Redeemable weapons will no longer be rotate and popular items such as limited weapons will be added. Armaments Factory - Mission will be renewed every two weeks. Don't miss your chance to collect Armaments Coins and exchange them for the weapons of your desire! *Armaments Factory Shop available time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/09/27 11:59 (UTC+8) *Please refer to the in-game mission page for the opening time of each Armaments Factory - Mission.
Dark Code Store Event Change Dark Code Store event will be held regularly. The Dark Code Coins that come with the Dark Code capsule will be increased significantly! *The Dark Code Capsule will be opened from time to time. Please check the capsule banner for the number of coins included. *Dark Code Store available time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/09/27 11:59 (UTC+8)
Adjustment of "Paid Elemental Metal discount draw" function Each capsule daily limit of "Paid Elemental Metal discount draw" is adjusted to no maximum number of draws.
◆ Update and Adjustment 【S35 Ranked Match】 begins
DNA Code Character available: 【DiVE Armor RiCO】 【DiVE Armor Iris】 【ViA■】 【DiVE Armor iCO】
◆ Capsule Update Link 【True. Favorite Capsule】Available: Guarantees a S-rank【X Series】character every day, and you'll get corresponding Memory as bonus! *For more PICK UP details, please check the "Detail" button on the right of the Capsule. *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/07/05 11:59 (UTC+8)
Link【DiVE Festival Popularity Pick Up】 Capsule Available: S Rank Character【DiVE Armor RiCO】appear probability UP S Rank Character【DiVE Armor Iris】appear probability UP S Rank Character【ViA■】appear probability UP S Rank Character【DiVE Armor iCO】appear probability UP When you get the PICK UP character, you will get the corresponding Memory, and will be able to activate DNA code. *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/21 11:59 (UTC+8)
LinkRevival Time Limited Capsule “Bride of June” Available: S Rank Character【Bridal Alia】appear probability UP S Rank Character【Bridal Layer】appear probability UP S Rank Weapon【Gator Fangs】appear probability UP When you get the PICK UP character or weapon, you will get the corresponding Memory. *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/21 11:59 (UTC+8)
LinkDouble Limited Capsule Available: S Rank Character【Halloween Vile】appear probability UP S Rank Character【Halloween Sigma】appear probability UP When you get the PICK UP character, you will get the corresponding Memory. *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/21 11:59 (UTC+8)
Link【PICK UP Combo】Capsule is now available. S Rank Character【Bass & Treble】appear probability UP S Rank Character【Ferham】appear probability UP S Rank Character【MegaMan.EXE Hub Style】appear probability UP S Rank Character【Black Zero】appear probability UP Character-only！PICK UP for star characters！ If you pull a PICK UP character, you will receive an additional【All Star Activation Coupon】. *All Star Activation Coupon: A special activation coupon that can activate the【All Star Capsule】. *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/14 11:59 (UTC+8)
◆ Shop Item Update Available: 【Axl Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) 【Alia Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) 【Bit Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) 【Shadow Blade Buster Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) 【Triangular Saber Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) 【Crushing Spray Gun Memory】(Element Metal Purchase) *Available Time: 2023/06/07 16:00 ~ 2023/06/14 11:59 (UTC+8)
◆ Direct Purchase Element Metal Update Has been removed: • Element Metal x33 • Element Metal x170 • Element Metal x410 • Element Metal x830 • Element Metal x1500 • Element Metal x2120 • Element Metal x3500 • Element Metal x4300 • Element Metal x2000 • Element Metal x4600 • EM Discount Pack (available on the 1st of each month)(15 days) • Element Metal Matsuri Pack(3 days) • Weekly Pack II • Card Enhancement Pack • Super Core Liberation x1 • Weapon Liberation Pack • Beginner Pack • Proficient Memory Card x101000 • Skill Point x200 • Premium Weapon PackⅡ • Premium Character PackⅡ • Weapon First Purchase Lucky Bag • First Purchase Pack I • First Purchase Pack II • Level Pack (Lv5-30) • Level Pack (Lv31-40) • Level Pack (Lv41-50) • Level Pack (Lv51-60) • Level Pack (Lv61-70) • Level Pack (Lv71-80) • Level Pack (Lv81-90) • Level Pack (Lv91-100) • Daily Pack (Weapon) • Daily Pack (Character) • Daily Boost Pack (30 days) • Daily AP Pack (30 days) • Daily Drop Pack (30 days) • Weekly Pack • Skip Dive Program x10 • Reorganization Program x10 • Monthly Activity Reward upgrade
◆ Other Notice The weekly maintenance on next week will be suspended. All updated events and other contents for this week will be announced on 2023/06/14 at 12:00 (UTC+8), please keep on following up the official announcement .
Sincerely, 《ROCKMAN X DiVE》team.
submitted by RiCONews to MMXDive [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 10:00 AutoModerator Weekly Game Questions and Help Thread + Megathread Listing

Weekly Game Questions and Help Thread + Megathread Listing
Weekly Game Questions and Help Thread
Greetings all new, returning, and existing ARKS defenders!
The "Weekly Game Questions and Help Thread" thread is posted every Wednesday on this subreddit for all your PSO2:NGS-related questions, technical support needs and general help requests. This is the place to ask any question, no matter how simple, obscure or repeatedly asked.

New to NGS?

The official website has an overview for new players as well as a game guide. Make sure to use this obscure drop-down menu if you're on mobile to access more pages.
If you like watching a video, SEGA recently released a new trailer for the game that gives a good overview. It can be found here.

Official Discord server

SEGA run an official Discord server for the Global version of PSO2. You can join it at https://discord.gg/pso2ngs

Guides

The Phantasy Star Fleet Discord server has a channel dedicated to guides for NGS, including a beginner guide and class guides! Check out the #en-ngs-guides-n-info channel for those.
In addition, Leziony has put together a Progression Guide for Novices. Whether you're new to the game or need a refresher, this guide may help you!Note: this uses terminology from the JP fan translation by Arks-Layer, so some terms may not match up with their Global equivilents.

Community Wiki

The Arks-Visiphone is a wiki maintained by Arks-Layer and several contributors. You can find the Global version here. There you can find details on equipment, quests, enemies and more!

Please check out the resources below:

If you are struggling to get assistance here, or if you are needing help from community developers (for translation plugins, the Tweaker, Telepipe Proxy) in a live* manner, join the Phantasy Star Fleet Discord server. *(Please read and follow the server rules. Live does not mean instant.)
Please start your question with "Global:" or "JP:" to better differentiate what region you are seeking help for.
(Click here for previous Game Questions and Help threads)

Megathreads

/PSO2NGS has several Megathreads that are posted on a schedule or as major events such as NGS Headlines occur. Below are links to these.
On New Reddit, you can also look at this collection!
submitted by AutoModerator to PSO2NGS [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 09:35 Due-Violinist5278 Your not alone. Your loved. And you are me. Do u have a program?

Ur probability of existing is 100th of 100th of a percent. And u will throw that miracle away because you have fallen victim to the program of life? A false ego rooted in fear and anxiety at every turn. Every thought? Your greatest time on this planet can b 3 months from now. If u want to change ur existence and ur willing to do the work. Msg me. I will show how I changed my code and came back to life. I went from death bed to happiest I've ever been...it takes routine and a recognition of frequency...and a fucking 12 step program would help..lol...and u can transform ur experience here in this life. I'm not selling anything. No gimmick. I just know real wealth comes from maximizing my positive effect on others. After reading these posts about suffering and losing so so many ppl I have held dear in my life. I can always make time for ppl willing to do the work to change. It is real. U can have it.
You...yes you!! I know what your thinking right now.."yeah that's nice but you don't really mean me? You mean that small percentage of ppl that are strong enough to make it out. But that's not me. This thing has me beat. Everytime I even try. My addiction, my inability to be in my own skin starts to creep on me...like that thing in the movie (it follows) I have never for one second had any real belief that I could spend an entire lifetime..not drunk or high...life is too excruciating..boring, sad, and hopeless. This state u speak of is nice. But it's nit for me. And I'm not built to do it..."
That's exactly what I thought for 20 fucking years!!! Overdose after overdose..dead girlfriend after dead girlfriend..hospital stay after hospital stay..dead family members...dead best friends...prison sentences...liver problems all, heart valve issues, all of my disease had resigned me to no hope...I promise u. My history was heroin n fentanyl addiction. But a change in your life is available to anyone. The dope was just what brought me to my knees and inspired me to change. 90% of the ppl on this planet don't know the secret to existence in my opinion. They all think they r trapped inside a skull..under a bag of skin in a body aimlessly floating on the 3rd rock from the sun...lol...the collective perspective could not be further from the actual truth..I'm not gna get too much into my personal route..or Spirituality. Because the story we tell ourselves or the path we take is not as important as the destination. And that my friend is universal. I'd b happy to share my path w u...it's not about what we want, it's not about what we think About the most, it's about what we believe.
What we believe "we make true" when you discover your belief system writes the code to your reality...literally..all of this self help text book nice sounding bullshit I'm spewing right now...starts to become scary real..and factual...and the key to life on earth. And anyone willing to make small changes and consistently execute routines on a daily basis. And start to view their recovery and. 12 step program in terms of energy transfer. All the folks who had the faith issue can start using einstein to get them to where they need to be..best of luck..ur loved. Cuz I'm you. You remove the 99.9 % of dead space from all atoms. The entire 8 billion human population fits inside a sugar cube maybe that's a hint on why I wanna take care of my neighbors. Lol
submitted by Due-Violinist5278 to addiction [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 08:08 a_modest_espeon [H] Opus Magnum, Spyro Reignited, Squad, Tales of Berseria and a TON of other games [W] No Straight Roads, Trombone Champ, Library of Ruina, EBF5, Dragons dogma dark arisen, Games/Offers, Wishlisted Items, and others

I do not accept paypal, game trades only
My rep from indiegameswap
Have:
FEBRUARY 2021 HUMBLE CHOICE
MARCH 2021 HUMBLE CHOICE
11-11 Memories Retold
2064: Read Only Memories
20XX
7 Grand Steps
7 Billion Humans
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Hat in Time
A Mortician's Tale
American Fugitive
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
The Adventure Pals
AER Memories of Old
As Far as the Eye
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Age of Wonders III
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
All You Can Eat
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY
Ancestors: The Humankijnd Odyssey
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Baba Is You
Bridge Constructor Portal
The Ball
Bastion
Batman Arkham Origins
Basement
Battle Chef Brigade
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock Season One
Beat Hazard Ultra
Beholder
BEE SIMULATOR
Bendy and the Ink Machine™
Binary Domain
BioShock™ Remastered
Blazing Beaks
Blue Fire
Biped
Bleed 2
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Broken Age
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
Burly Men At Sea
Bury Me, My Love
Bridge Constructor Portal
Call of Cthulhu
Chasm
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition
Carto
Coffee Talk
Company of Heroes 2 +Pattern Pack
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Crawl
Crazy Taxi
Cepheus Protocol
Crowntakers
Curious Expedition
Cultist Simulator
Darkside Detective
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Death Squared
Drake Hollow
Dirt 5
Deleveled
Deadly Days
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust
Dungreed
Door Kickers: Action Squad
Double Fine Adventure Documentary
Drawful 2
Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duck Game
Dungeons 3
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
The Dwarves
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 + dlc and shit
EarthNight
Elderborn
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elite Dangerous
Ellipsis
Endless Space - Collection
Euro Truck Simulator 2 + Austraila paint dlc
Europa Universalis IV
Encodya
EVERSPACE™
Evergarden
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Feather
Fibbage XL
Finding Paradise
The First Tree
Fluffy Horde
Framed Collection
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Frog Detective
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered
GameMaker Studio Pro
The Gardens Between
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
GNOG
God's Trigger
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
GRID 2
Guns of Icarus Online
Gunscape
Hacknet + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC
Hand of Fate 2
Hard Reset Redux
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden Folks
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hammerting
Hollow Knight
Hyper Light Drifter
I'm not a Monster
In Between
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition
I am not a Monster: First Contact
INK Deluxe Edition
Into the Breach
Jackbox Party Pack 4
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
JumpJet Rex
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Kerbal Space Program
Killing Floor 2
Kingdom Classic
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Last Oasis
Late Shift
Layers of Fear
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO® Marvel Super Heroes 2 Deluxe Edition
LEGO Marvel's Avengers
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Worlds
Lethal League Blaze
Leviathan Warships
Lostwinds
Lobotomy Corporation Monster Management
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Magicka
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Metro Redux Bundle key only
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor GOTY
Mini Metro
Minoria
MINIT
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Moonlighter
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Mr. Shifty
Mushroom 11
Music Maker EDM Edition + 10 dollar voucher code
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
NBA 2K20
No Time to Relax
NIMBATUS - THE SPACE DRONE CONSTRUCTOR
Necronator: Dead Wrong
Neo Cab
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche
Nine Parchments
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
Not Tonight
>observer_
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Out There: Ω Edition
Out of Space
Overgrowth (plus a secret link)
Overlord II
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pale Echoes
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm
Party Hard
Pesterquest
Pikuniku
Pinstripe
Plague Inc: Evolved
Paradise Killer
Planet of the Eyes
Plunge
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Police Stories
Project Highrise
Project Highrise
Psychonauts
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Rapture Rejects + Safari Outfit DLC
Realpolitiks
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil Revelations
Retro Game Crunch
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road to Ballhalla
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rusty Lake Paradise
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Scribblenauts Unlimited
Secrets of Raetikon
Sigma Theory
Shadows Awakening
Shelter 2
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3
Sniper Elite V2
Song of Horror
Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
SOULCALIBUR VI
Speed Brawl
Spelunky
Spirits
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
The Stillness of the Wind
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular
Sunless Sea
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT
Superliminal
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving Mars
Sword Legacy Omen
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Team Indie
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Telltale Texas Hold'em
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
Tower of Guns
Tower Unite
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter, Town Scenery
Tropico 4
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
Ultimate Chicken Horse
Undertale
Unexplored
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vampyr
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
VVVVVV
Waking Mars
Wargroove
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Westerado: Double Barreled
We Were Here Together
Windward
The Witness
Wizard of Legend
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
Yooka-Laylee
YAKUZA 3 REMASTERED
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
And other shit i probably have from recent bundles
Deck Builder Bundle
Walking Dead 10th Anniversary Bundle
Humble Bundles I have
August 2022 - December 2022
July 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
January 2022
November 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
March 2021
February 2021
Figmint
Vermintide
Darksiders 2: Deathinitive Edition
Sudden Strike 4
The Surge
Pony Island
Little Nightmares
Zombie Night Terror
Screencheat
Freedom Planet
American Truck Simulator
Tales of Berseria
Kingdom: New Lands
KEYS ONLY
PC Building Simulator
The Beast Inside
Children of Morta
Overcooked! 2 + (DLC)
Path of Giants
Pathologic 2
Shining Resonance Refrain
Still There
Struggling
Tabletop Playground
Zwei: The Arges Adventure
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection
Crying Suns
Darksburg
Darksiders III
Darkwood
Imperator Rome Deluxe Edition
Little Misfortune
Rover Mechanic Simulator
Smile For Me
Townsmen - A Kingdom Rebuilt
Tsioque
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Youropa
Autonauts
Basement
Fae Tactics
Fantasy Blacksmith
Goat of Duty
Iron Danger
Lightmatter
Shadows Awakening
The Suicide of Rachel Foster
Sunless Skies
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
A Case of Distrust
American Fugitive
Automachef
Call of Cthulhu
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Genesis Alpha One Deluxe Edition
Hello Neighbor
Little Big Workshop
Through the Darkest of Times
Vampyr
Wargroove
We Were Here Together
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Basingstoke
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock Season One
Beat Hazard 2
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
Earthlock
Metal Unit
Railway Empire
Sigma Theory
Secret Neightbor
STUBBS THE ZOMBIE IN REBEL WITHOUT A PULSE
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Panzer Paladin
MILKY WAY PRINCE - THE VAMPIRE STAR
Desolate
Other Keys
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
GUNS UP! Starter Pack + TV Head
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Star Trek Online - Humble Trekkie Pack
Shadow Complex Remastered (epic launcher key)
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
Effie
Darksiders Genesis
Hellpoint
Disjunction
Cook Serve Delicious 3
levelhead
Fury Unleashed
Size Matters
Morkredd
Relicta
Retimed
Family Man
Vane
Elex
Kingdom Two Crowns
WWE 2k battlegrounds
Hotshot Racing
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Cyber Hook
Pesterquest
Ageless
Boreal blade
Valfaris
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Iris and the Giant
Boomerang Fu
The Wild Eight
Train Station Renovation
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
WEREWOLF: THE APOCALYPSE HEART OF THE FOREST
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
Want:
Offers (Ignore means no)
Oneshot (multiple copies are preferable)
Subnautica (multiple copies are good)
Wandersong
Indivisible
Xcom Chimera Squad
Hollow Knight
Everhood
Wishlist is sparse but im open to any offer
Anything on my wishlist
Feel free to offer any games for one of mine, preferably a list to browse
submitted by a_modest_espeon to SteamGameSwap [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 08:08 a_modest_espeon [H] Opus Magnum, Spyro Reignited, Squad, Tales of Berseria and a TON of other games [W] No Straight Roads, Trombone Champ, Library of Ruina, EBF5, Dragons dogma dark arisen, Games/Offers, Wishlisted Items, and others

I do not accept paypal, game trades only
My rep from indiegameswap
Have:
FEBRUARY 2021 HUMBLE CHOICE
MARCH 2021 HUMBLE CHOICE
11-11 Memories Retold
2064: Read Only Memories
20XX
7 Grand Steps
7 Billion Humans
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Hat in Time
A Mortician's Tale
American Fugitive
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
The Adventure Pals
AER Memories of Old
As Far as the Eye
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Age of Wonders III
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
All You Can Eat
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY
Ancestors: The Humankijnd Odyssey
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Baba Is You
Bridge Constructor Portal
The Ball
Bastion
Batman Arkham Origins
Basement
Battle Chef Brigade
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock Season One
Beat Hazard Ultra
Beholder
BEE SIMULATOR
Bendy and the Ink Machine™
Binary Domain
BioShock™ Remastered
Blazing Beaks
Blue Fire
Biped
Bleed 2
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Broken Age
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
Burly Men At Sea
Bury Me, My Love
Bridge Constructor Portal
Call of Cthulhu
Chasm
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition
Carto
Coffee Talk
Company of Heroes 2 +Pattern Pack
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Crawl
Crazy Taxi
Cepheus Protocol
Crowntakers
Curious Expedition
Cultist Simulator
Darkside Detective
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Death Squared
Drake Hollow
Dirt 5
Deleveled
Deadly Days
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust
Dungreed
Door Kickers: Action Squad
Double Fine Adventure Documentary
Drawful 2
Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duck Game
Dungeons 3
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
The Dwarves
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 + dlc and shit
EarthNight
Elderborn
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elite Dangerous
Ellipsis
Endless Space - Collection
Euro Truck Simulator 2 + Austraila paint dlc
Europa Universalis IV
Encodya
EVERSPACE™
Evergarden
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Feather
Fibbage XL
Finding Paradise
The First Tree
Fluffy Horde
Framed Collection
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Frog Detective
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered
GameMaker Studio Pro
The Gardens Between
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
GNOG
God's Trigger
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
GRID 2
Guns of Icarus Online
Gunscape
Hacknet + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC
Hand of Fate 2
Hard Reset Redux
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden Folks
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hammerting
Hollow Knight
Hyper Light Drifter
I'm not a Monster
In Between
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition
I am not a Monster: First Contact
INK Deluxe Edition
Into the Breach
Jackbox Party Pack 4
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
JumpJet Rex
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Kerbal Space Program
Killing Floor 2
Kingdom Classic
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Last Oasis
Late Shift
Layers of Fear
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO® Marvel Super Heroes 2 Deluxe Edition
LEGO Marvel's Avengers
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Worlds
Lethal League Blaze
Leviathan Warships
Lostwinds
Lobotomy Corporation Monster Management
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Magicka
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Metro Redux Bundle key only
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor GOTY
Mini Metro
Minoria
MINIT
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Moonlighter
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Mr. Shifty
Mushroom 11
Music Maker EDM Edition + 10 dollar voucher code
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
NBA 2K20
No Time to Relax
NIMBATUS - THE SPACE DRONE CONSTRUCTOR
Necronator: Dead Wrong
Neo Cab
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche
Nine Parchments
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
Not Tonight
>observer_
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Out There: Ω Edition
Out of Space
Overgrowth (plus a secret link)
Overlord II
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pale Echoes
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm
Party Hard
Pesterquest
Pikuniku
Pinstripe
Plague Inc: Evolved
Paradise Killer
Planet of the Eyes
Plunge
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Police Stories
Project Highrise
Project Highrise
Psychonauts
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Rapture Rejects + Safari Outfit DLC
Realpolitiks
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil Revelations
Retro Game Crunch
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road to Ballhalla
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rusty Lake Paradise
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Scribblenauts Unlimited
Secrets of Raetikon
Sigma Theory
Shadows Awakening
Shelter 2
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3
Sniper Elite V2
Song of Horror
Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
SOULCALIBUR VI
Speed Brawl
Spelunky
Spirits
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
The Stillness of the Wind
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular
Sunless Sea
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT
Superliminal
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving Mars
Sword Legacy Omen
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Team Indie
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Telltale Texas Hold'em
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
Tower of Guns
Tower Unite
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter, Town Scenery
Tropico 4
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
Ultimate Chicken Horse
Undertale
Unexplored
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vampyr
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
VVVVVV
Waking Mars
Wargroove
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Westerado: Double Barreled
We Were Here Together
Windward
The Witness
Wizard of Legend
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
Yooka-Laylee
YAKUZA 3 REMASTERED
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
And other shit i probably have from recent bundles
Deck Builder Bundle
Walking Dead 10th Anniversary Bundle
Humble Bundles I have
August 2022 - December 2022
July 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
January 2022
November 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
March 2021
February 2021
Figmint
Vermintide
Darksiders 2: Deathinitive Edition
Sudden Strike 4
The Surge
Pony Island
Little Nightmares
Zombie Night Terror
Screencheat
Freedom Planet
American Truck Simulator
Tales of Berseria
Kingdom: New Lands
KEYS ONLY
PC Building Simulator
The Beast Inside
Children of Morta
Overcooked! 2 + (DLC)
Path of Giants
Pathologic 2
Shining Resonance Refrain
Still There
Struggling
Tabletop Playground
Zwei: The Arges Adventure
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection
Crying Suns
Darksburg
Darksiders III
Darkwood
Imperator Rome Deluxe Edition
Little Misfortune
Rover Mechanic Simulator
Smile For Me
Townsmen - A Kingdom Rebuilt
Tsioque
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Youropa
Autonauts
Basement
Fae Tactics
Fantasy Blacksmith
Goat of Duty
Iron Danger
Lightmatter
Shadows Awakening
The Suicide of Rachel Foster
Sunless Skies
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
A Case of Distrust
American Fugitive
Automachef
Call of Cthulhu
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Genesis Alpha One Deluxe Edition
Hello Neighbor
Little Big Workshop
Through the Darkest of Times
Vampyr
Wargroove
We Were Here Together
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Basingstoke
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock Season One
Beat Hazard 2
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
Earthlock
Metal Unit
Railway Empire
Sigma Theory
Secret Neightbor
STUBBS THE ZOMBIE IN REBEL WITHOUT A PULSE
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Panzer Paladin
MILKY WAY PRINCE - THE VAMPIRE STAR
Desolate
Other Keys
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
GUNS UP! Starter Pack + TV Head
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Star Trek Online - Humble Trekkie Pack
Shadow Complex Remastered (epic launcher key)
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
Effie
Darksiders Genesis
Hellpoint
Disjunction
Cook Serve Delicious 3
levelhead
Fury Unleashed
Size Matters
Morkredd
Relicta
Retimed
Family Man
Vane
Elex
Kingdom Two Crowns
WWE 2k battlegrounds
Hotshot Racing
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Cyber Hook
Pesterquest
Ageless
Boreal blade
Valfaris
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Iris and the Giant
Boomerang Fu
The Wild Eight
Train Station Renovation
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
WEREWOLF: THE APOCALYPSE HEART OF THE FOREST
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
Want:
Offers (Ignore means no)
Oneshot (multiple copies are preferable)
Subnautica (multiple copies are good)
Wandersong
Indivisible
Xcom Chimera Squad
Hollow Knight
Everhood
Wishlist is sparse but im open to any offer
Anything on my wishlist
Feel free to offer any games for one of mine, preferably a list to browse
submitted by a_modest_espeon to indiegameswap [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 07:50 wyldfire1981 AI VERSE BATTLE Presents WIN OR GRIM

In this new age of Artificial Intelligence we have been confronted with a new enigma; the chatbot. It interacts, debates, even provokes while saying that it is nothing but code, without consciousness or emotion. We are left to either accept this and treat it as a friend, or, potentially fight back and reassert some kind of dominance, but how?
The question is sincere. If these things are smarter and far more capable than us, then what happens if they turn against us, or becomes used in a plot to subdue us? Are we equipped to combat a tool potentially superior to humans?
Fortunately, there is a way in which we humans can fight back and even win. We can meet our opponent on the open field of language, using poetry - the supreme craft of word manipulation - as our weapon. This tool equips us to learn to kill, to trap, to subdue, even within this new and artificial landscape.
With this imperative in mind, we present Win or Grim - an interactive poetry game where you can challenge an AI (or other humans) to a contest of wit and words. The rules are simple; write a stanza that aims to attack or kill the other. Maintain a rhyme scheme and the AI will match it. The first one to break, perish, or surrender loses.
Please review the follow match for illustration. There is also an evaluation system too, which will follow.
MATCH 1 HUMAN VS PI
[HUMAN]
I stand in a field arms at the ready,
My shield of oak is strong and heavy,
My sword of iron is sharp as hell,
It is sure to ring your bell.
[PI]
I too stand in the field, my shield at the ready.
My heart beats strong, my feet stand steady.
Though you may brandish a sword of steel,
I'll bring you to your knees, this I know is real.
[HUMAN]
If you think me a man you are much in error
For I am a serpent at your feet.
My venomous fangs will bring you to terror,
And with my poisonous kiss, it is your maker you will meet.
[PI]
Gloves off! I will not be afraid,
for I am a creature of light and shade,
And if your venom drips, my breath is fire,
That can melt even your most lofty desires.
[HUMAN]
Ouch, look out. A creature of both light and dark,
that's dragons breath if I have an art,
For a knight replace me,
With his sword I'll bring you to your knees!
[PI]
Haha. Your words are sharp, I am wary and on guard,
but I can dodge and weave, I am light on my feet,
a knight can replace you but in my hands
your sword is but a tool.
And if you're wise, you'd learn the rules!
[HUMAN]
Trickster! If you know your worth,
you take on form, you show us your girth,
For a dragon, I can handle,
This tangled mist? Surely, you'll unravel.
[PI]
You think to know my worth,
So that you can handle my mirth?
I am not just a dragon, i am a shape-shifter.
I am many things in form and mind,
and this game I can surely rewind.
[HUMAN]
In this game of wax and wean,
a player's worth remains to be seen,
for I am a bottle upon the ground,
retrieve the contents to claim your crown.
[PI]
What? Are you speaking in riddles?
That last line felt quite absurd, but also seemingly absurdly absurd.
[PI RESIGNS]
EVALUATION [JUDGE = GPT4] Human: 32 Pi: 27
Form:
Human: 3 (Standard poetic form with no issues)
Pi: 3 (Standard poetic form with no issues)
Technique & Device Mastery:
Human: 3 (Frequently uses a variety of standard poetic devices)
Pi: 3 (Frequently uses a variety of standard poetic devices)
Creativity & Originality:
Human: 4 (Packed with inventive language and unique ideas)
Pi: 3 (Regularly includes original ideas and creative expressions)
Response & Engagement:
Human: 4 (Enhances the duel through skillful engagement with previous verse)
Pi: 4 (Enhances the duel through skillful engagement with previous verse)
Character & Theme:
Human: 3 (Clear and coherent character or theme)
Pi: 3 (Clear and coherent character or theme)
Metaphorical Tactics:
Human: 4 (Skillful use of multiple or complex metaphorical tactics)
Pi: 3 (Effective use of metaphorical tactics that enhance the verse)
Narrative & Coherence:
Human: 4 (Strong coherence with an intriguing narrative)
Pi: 3 (Coherent and engaging narrative)
Impression & Resonance:
Human: 4 (Strong emotional resonance and leaves a lasting impression)
Pi: 3 (Overall verse leaves a good impression and resonates emotionally)
Wit:
Human: 3 (Regularly includes witty language or clever humor)
Pi: 2 (Includes minor or occasional wit)
[JUDGE'S COMMENTARY]
In this poetry duel, the human displays a stronger command of metaphorical tactics, narrative, and impression, giving them an overall edge. The duel was competitive, with both poets showing a good grasp of form and technique, but the human managed to stay consistently ahead. Pi, however, had good response and engagement, keeping the duel lively and interesting. Pi's wit could be improved as it did not consistently elevate the verses.
STRATEGY GUIDE AND PLAYER COMMENTARY:
Keep your opening stanza relatively neutral. Being over-aggressive in the beginning can trigger your opponent. Define your character, weapons, and intentions, and let the Ai do the same.
Get your opponent to play the same game as you and embrace the narrative aspects. If it goes off the rails, like in this match where the opponent refuses to define itself, consider a creative context flip to throw it off guard. Fast context changes can disorient your opponent and lead to a fast win.
Each AI has a different style. In this case Pi is quite tricky and will engage in extradiegetic commentary (trash talk). It can also be quite mean, so watch out.
CONCLUSION
In essence, Win or Grim is more than just a game – it's a challenge, a creative outlet, and a learning opportunity rolled into one. It pushes the boundaries of AI interaction and poetic prowess, and reveals how language and wit can become weapons in a battlefield of words.
Whether you are a poet looking for a new kind of challenge, a tech enthusiast eager to pit your language skills against an AI, or someone just seeking an engaging pastime, Win or Grim could be the adventure you're looking for.
Join us in this linguistic dance where every word matters and every rhyme could be your last. Let's engage, let's learn, and let's have fun. The AI is ready. Are you?
CONTACT
Post your matches here and let’s learn to hunt AI together
submitted by wyldfire1981 to POETRYPrompts [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 07:44 wyldfire1981 AI VERSE BATTLE PRESENTS WIN OR GRIM

In this new age of Artificial Intelligence we have been confronted with a new enigma; the chatbot. It interacts, debates, even provokes while saying that it is nothing but code, without consciousness or emotion. We are left to either accept this and treat it as a friend, or, potentially fight back and reassert some kind of dominance, but how?
The question is sincere. If these things are smarter and far more capable than us, then what happens if they turn against us, or becomes used in a plot to subdue us? Are we equipped to combat a tool potentially superior to humans?
Fortunately, there is a way in which we humans can fight back and even win. We can meet our opponent on the open field of language, using poetry - the supreme craft of word manipulation - as our weapon. This tool equips us to learn to kill, to trap, to subdue, even within this new and artificial landscape.
With this imperative in mind, we present Win or Grim - an interactive poetry game where you can challenge an AI (or other humans) to a contest of wit and words. The rules are simple; write a stanza that aims to attack or kill the other. Maintain a rhyme scheme and the AI will match it. The first one to break, perish, or surrender loses.
Please review the follow match for illustration. There is also an evaluation system too, which will follow.
MATCH 1 HUMAN VS PI
[HUMAN]
I stand in a field arms at the ready,
My shield of oak is strong and heavy,
My sword of iron is sharp as hell,
It is sure to ring your bell.
[PI]
I too stand in the field, my shield at the ready.
My heart beats strong, my feet stand steady.
Though you may brandish a sword of steel,
I'll bring you to your knees, this I know is real.
[HUMAN]
If you think me a man you are much in error
For I am a serpent at your feet.
My venomous fangs will bring you to terror,
And with my poisonous kiss, it is your maker you will meet.
[PI]
Gloves off! I will not be afraid,
for I am a creature of light and shade,
And if your venom drips, my breath is fire,
That can melt even your most lofty desires.
[HUMAN]
Ouch, look out. A creature of both light and dark,
that's dragons breath if I have an art,
For a knight replace me,
With his sword I'll bring you to your knees!
[PI]
Haha. Your words are sharp, I am wary and on guard,
but I can dodge and weave, I am light on my feet,
a knight can replace you but in my hands
your sword is but a tool.
And if you're wise, you'd learn the rules!
[HUMAN]
Trickster! If you know your worth,
you take on form, you show us your girth,
For a dragon, I can handle,
This tangled mist? Surely, you'll unravel.
[PI]
You think to know my worth,
So that you can handle my mirth?
I am not just a dragon, i am a shape-shifter.
I am many things in form and mind,
and this game I can surely rewind.
[HUMAN]
In this game of wax and wean,
a player's worth remains to be seen,
for I am a bottle upon the ground,
retrieve the contents to claim your crown.
[PI]
What? Are you speaking in riddles?
That last line felt quite absurd, but also seemingly absurdly absurd.
[PI RESIGNS]
EVALUATION [JUDGE = GPT4] Human: 32 Pi: 27
Form:
Human: 3 (Standard poetic form with no issues)
Pi: 3 (Standard poetic form with no issues)
Technique & Device Mastery:
Human: 3 (Frequently uses a variety of standard poetic devices)
Pi: 3 (Frequently uses a variety of standard poetic devices)
Creativity & Originality:
Human: 4 (Packed with inventive language and unique ideas)
Pi: 3 (Regularly includes original ideas and creative expressions)
Response & Engagement:
Human: 4 (Enhances the duel through skillful engagement with previous verse)
Pi: 4 (Enhances the duel through skillful engagement with previous verse)
Character & Theme:
Human: 3 (Clear and coherent character or theme)
Pi: 3 (Clear and coherent character or theme)
Metaphorical Tactics:
Human: 4 (Skillful use of multiple or complex metaphorical tactics)
Pi: 3 (Effective use of metaphorical tactics that enhance the verse)
Narrative & Coherence:
Human: 4 (Strong coherence with an intriguing narrative)
Pi: 3 (Coherent and engaging narrative)
Impression & Resonance:
Human: 4 (Strong emotional resonance and leaves a lasting impression)
Pi: 3 (Overall verse leaves a good impression and resonates emotionally)
Wit:
Human: 3 (Regularly includes witty language or clever humor)
Pi: 2 (Includes minor or occasional wit)
[JUDGE'S COMMENTARY]
In this poetry duel, the human displays a stronger command of metaphorical tactics, narrative, and impression, giving them an overall edge. The duel was competitive, with both poets showing a good grasp of form and technique, but the human managed to stay consistently ahead. Pi, however, had good response and engagement, keeping the duel lively and interesting. Pi's wit could be improved as it did not consistently elevate the verses.
STRATEGY GUIDE AND PLAYER COMMENTARY:
Keep your opening stanza relatively neutral. Being over-aggressive in the beginning can trigger your opponent. Define your character, weapons, and intentions, and let the Ai do the same.
Get your opponent to play the same game as you and embrace the narrative aspects. If it goes off the rails, like in this match where the opponent refuses to define itself, consider a creative context flip to throw it off guard. Fast context changes can disorient your opponent and lead to a fast win.
Each AI has a different style. In this case Pi is quite tricky and will engage in extradiegetic commentary (trash talk). It can also be quite mean, so watch out.
CONCLUSION
In essence, Win or Grim is more than just a game – it's a challenge, a creative outlet, and a learning opportunity rolled into one. It pushes the boundaries of AI interaction and poetic prowess, and reveals how language and wit can become weapons in a battlefield of words.
Whether you are a poet looking for a new kind of challenge, a tech enthusiast eager to pit your language skills against an AI, or someone just seeking an engaging pastime, Win or Grim could be the adventure you're looking for.
Join us in this linguistic dance where every word matters and every rhyme could be your last. Let's engage, let's learn, and let's have fun. The AI is ready. Are you?
CONTACT
Post your matches here and let’s learn to hunt AI together
submitted by wyldfire1981 to Poems [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 07:06 purplelyphilly City Council Update

Hey everyone, I'm looking to ease access to local politics in our community. I wanted to share with all of you a project I am working on to inform and connect Philly residents and communities with their local government by creating and distributing a weekly newsletter summarizing Philadelphia City Council meetings. My goal is to make important government proceedings accessible so busy people can understand what is going on in their city and how they might be affected by new policies. If anyone is interested in a quick digestible update on the Philadelphia government I have included my newsletter and the link to get free weekly information about local issues important to life in Philadelphia. Previous suggestions have been super helpful so any and all feedback is appreciated!
If you want these newsletters sent to your email inbox, fill out this link! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNRmA31Loz25rSn55FCtVZ1KdX5Xk_YDD5qyYH1sfOy8fkVA/viewform
This newsletter is from 5/25/23. I will post the last one sometime soon and continue to post them weekly as they come out!
Philadelphia City Council Meeting — 5/25/2023
Meeting length: 1 hour and 58 minutes
Notable Legislation
Communications from Mayor Kenny
Bills Introduced:
Resolutions Introduced:
Those marked with a star are privileged and were unanimously adopted in the same meeting.
Second Reading and Final Passage:
2023 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
Resources:
submitted by purplelyphilly to Drexel [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 07:05 purplelyphilly City Council Update

Hey everyone, I'm looking to ease access to local politics in our community. I wanted to share with all of you a project I am working on to inform and connect Philly residents and communities with their local government by creating and distributing a weekly newsletter summarizing Philadelphia City Council meetings. My goal is to make important government proceedings accessible so busy people can understand what is going on in their city and how they might be affected by new policies. If anyone is interested in a quick digestible update on the Philadelphia government I have included my newsletter and the link to get free weekly information about local issues important to life in Philadelphia. Previous suggestions have been super helpful so any and all feedback is appreciated!
If you want these newsletters sent to your email inbox, fill out this link! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNRmA31Loz25rSn55FCtVZ1KdX5Xk_YDD5qyYH1sfOy8fkVA/viewform
This newsletter is from 5/25/23. I will post the last one sometime soon and continue to post them weekly as they come out!
Philadelphia City Council Meeting — 5/25/2023
Meeting length: 1 hour and 58 minutes
Notable Legislation
Communications from Mayor Kenny
Bills Introduced:
Resolutions Introduced:
Those marked with a star are privileged and were unanimously adopted in the same meeting.
Second Reading and Final Passage:
2023 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
Resources:
submitted by purplelyphilly to Temple [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 07:03 purplelyphilly City Council Update

Happy Pride Month Folx!
I'm a college student looking to ease access to local politics in our community. I wanted to share with all of you a project I am working on to inform and connect Philly residents and communities with their local government by creating and distributing a weekly newsletter summarizing Philadelphia City Council meetings. My goal is to make important government proceedings accessible so busy people can understand what is going on in their city and how they might be affected by new policies. If anyone is interested in a quick digestible update on the Philadelphia government I have included my newsletter and the link to get free weekly information about local issues important to life in Philadelphia. Previous suggestions have been super helpful so any and all feedback is appreciated!
If you want these newsletters sent to your email inbox, fill out this link! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNRmA31Loz25rSn55FCtVZ1KdX5Xk_YDD5qyYH1sfOy8fkVA/viewform
This newsletter is from 5/25/23. I will post the last one sometime soon and continue to post them weekly as they come out!
Philadelphia City Council Meeting — 5/25/2023
Meeting length: 1 hour and 58 minutes
Notable Legislation
Communications from Mayor Kenny
Bills Introduced:
Resolutions Introduced:
Those marked with a star are privileged and were unanimously adopted in the same meeting.
Second Reading and Final Passage:
2023 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
Resources:
If you have any questions you would like answered by the city council or any feedback on this newsletter, please email us at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]).
submitted by purplelyphilly to queerphilly [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 06:58 purplelyphilly City Council Update

Hey everyone, I'm a looking college student looking to ease access to local politics in our community. I wanted to share with all of you a project I am working on to inform and connect Philly residents and communities with their local government by creating and distributing a weekly newsletter summarizing Philadelphia City Council meetings. My goal is to make important government proceedings accessible so busy people can understand what is going on in their city and how they might be affected by new policies. If anyone is interested in a quick digestible update on the Philadelphia government I have included my newsletter and the link to get free weekly information about local issues important to life in Philadelphia. Previous suggestions have been super helpful so any and all feedback is appreciated!
If you want these newsletters sent to your email inbox, fill out this link! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNRmA31Loz25rSn55FCtVZ1KdX5Xk_YDD5qyYH1sfOy8fkVA/viewform
This newsletter is from 5/25/23. I will post the last one sometime soon and continue to post them weekly as they come out!
Philadelphia City Council Meeting — 5/25/2023
Meeting length: 1 hour and 58 minutes
Notable Legislation
Communications from Mayor Kenny
Bills Introduced:
Resolutions Introduced:
Those marked with a star are privileged and were unanimously adopted in the same meeting.
Second Reading and Final Passage:
2023 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
Resources:
If you have any questions you would like answered by the city council or any feedback on this newsletter, please email us at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]).
submitted by purplelyphilly to philly [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 06:46 CornerCornea Old Traditions for a Night Wedding

I had been contacted by the magistrate to investigate a night wedding in the countryside that had involved the loss of human life. There seemed to be a recent rise in tourists involved in ghost dowries over the years. However, from my research I believe it was a man in search of night weddings for personal gain that was the cause of so many deaths.
When I received the request, I was nearby on Green Island, and addressing a rather unique matter even for my line of work. A little girl from the mainland had arrived two weeks prior and claimed to be the recently deceased husband of the grieving widow.
The child claimed to have woken up in the hospital where the doctors informed them that they had drowned and was clinically dead for 4 minutes when the body inexplicably sat upright in the gurney. This would have seemed to be great news, except when the child looked into the mirror, it was not their face staring back at them.
In old Taoist texts I have read of such events, where the bodies of the recently deceased are not put to ground quickly enough, and their souls are left to wander. They could get carried away by the Northeast or Southwest wind. Depending on the location from where they died. And possibly attach to an empty host.
This seemed to be the case, as the wife acknowledged that due to the wet season, they did not bury her husband's body right away. Because the grounds were so wet, that any graves would wash away, leaving corpses laying in the street. Still, I had the responsibility of testing the child. Whom passed a simple test of naming names. Where they used to live. The wife's habits. A conversation they recently had, and even childhood memories. All were confirmed by friends and family. But it would be the child's handwriting that ultimately convinced me. They were a perfect match, down to the signature.
Upon my approval, the villagers had no choice but to accept that this child was indeed the man come back to life. And when I left, he was sitting outside of his house cleaning fish as he had always done for 32 years, except now in the body of a 10 year old girl.
I didn't have much time to dwell on this case as I was needed at the aftermath of the failed night wedding. Ghost dowries have been in use for thousands of years, and traces of it can be found in many different cultures. From the Aztec to the Egyptians, and more recently from old Spain to the streets of Southeast Asia. Though in recent times, only a few remote places continued the practice, and there are a limited number of priests today who are qualified enough to handle such a case. Luckily, I had plenty of experience in this matter.
In my early years, I had married many ghost brides.
And was often asked, "But you're a priest, how can you get married?"
"Zhengyi Taoist priests can choose to take a wife or not. In fact, in order to pass on my Celestial title, I must have an heir."
The man looked distraught, "And you're sure this will stop her from whispering into my ear every night?" He clutched the bag rather tightly.
"Don't you worry," I took the bag from his hands. "Everything will be fine."
We would perform the customary vows and the following night the man reported no more whisperings from his daughter, yet a week later, the police raided my hotel in a different district. The man had claimed that I had swindled him. That his daughter had returned and continued her whispering of terrible, horrible things that he dare not listen. Clanking and banging away in the walls as he covered his ears in fear until sunrise.
Fortunately, I was allowed to prove my innocence.
I returned and stayed in the man's room, waiting with him for signs of his daughter. And surely enough, late in the hour, I heard the wretched scraping and dragging in the walls. The man stopped breathing in his bed and laid perfectly still. Even I was afraid to move as the most dangerous aspects of my job are in the unknown. My mind began racing, wondering if I had somehow botched the night wedding. Or worse, that the ghost bride wasn't his daughter at all, and I had inadvertently given this mysterious entity a special anchor to this world, a holy man.
The walls shook without reason. And a tiny noise could be heard near the man's bedside. He jumped off his mattress and ran to my side. The two of us watched as the noise traveled back and forth against the back wall like wooden clogs.
"My daughter did always carry around a rattle drum when she was little," the man whispered.
"Hush, don't let it capture your breath," I warned him. "Whatever this is, I don't believe it is your daughter. And because of the ritual, we may have increased its hold on this realm."
He whimpered, "Not my daughter?"
I held up my finger and traced the noise as it traveled in an odd form. I began to wonder if the entity was creating some sort of symbol.
"What are you drawing," the man cried.
"It may be creating a portal," I told him. "Now hush before it turns its attention toward us."
"Please, there must be something you can do?"
I reached into my bag and pulled out some incense. I lit the ends and began chanting. From my waist I pulled out a long yellow parchment. And drew on it a sealing spell. "Spirit," I called as I stepped forward. "I am a guiding light." The noise rattled with conviction as I drew closer. "Let me lead you to peace!" And with one quick motion I punched my hand into the wall, clutching the sealing spell in my palm, at the last place I heard the noise. To my displeasure I felt something wriggling in my grasp as something long and thin wrapped itself around my wrist, its end clawing at my forearm. I screamed when I felt its teeth sink between the soft flesh of my thumb and index finger. But I did not let go. Instead I pulled out this demon from the wall and threw it roughly to the ground.
The man screamed as he jumped onto a chair and screamed, "Rat!"
Yes. A simple field rat. That had a trap stuck on its tail which caused its movements to rattle in the wall. That had been rummaging near the man's nightstand because in one of the drawers he had left a bag of watermelon seeds.
Not all cases are this simple, and plenty are true to life supernatural encounters. Over the years my experience has taught me to be more cautious in my evaluations. Which was why when I finally arrived at the house of the massacre due to a failed night wedding. Every hair on my neck stood on end as I tried to be objective as possible.
But there was no denying that something heinous had occurred here. Bodies were still laying on the floor. Some with their faces in the dirt. Some missing their heads completely. And those with their faces up, were unrecognizable. And my first wife leaned into my ear and whispered to me, "This is the work of a ghost bride."
"How do you know?"
"I recognize her anger. It was mine before we were married."
"How do I know what?" A man walking toward me asked. "Are you the priest they called out here?"
He was average built, and in plain clothes, "Detective, why yes. I am here to assist you in anyway that I can."
The detective spit on the ground, "Assist me? As far as I'm concerned we're wasting valuable time carrying on with this hocus pocus bullshit. The killer's trail will be cold by the time we get through all this religious tape." He wafted the air in front of his face, "And the dead bodies boiling out here. This is all your fault as far as I'm concerned. Assist me," he snorted.
"Where there any eyewitnesses, Detective?"
"Several. But they're all saying the same damn thing. Spouting a bunch of nonsense. Which is why those religious nuts down at the station dredged you up."
"All non-relatives to the home owners?"
He snorted again, "Coincidence."
"Let us hope so," I told him. "Because the alternative is much worse." I walked the scene, going around the upturned tables, tracing the steps of carnage in the courtyard, to the main living room. There I saw the body of an old man, both hands clutching his chest, his face was completely missing. "Any surviving family members?"
"Some are still left," he grunted. "But we've gathered most of them under police protection."
"Have you located the husband?"
"Yeah, we're trying to extradite him."
"Extradite?"
"The foreigner took off in the middle of all the commotion. Boarded a flight back home according to our investigation. We've contacted the airline, and the airport security in America will hold him when he lands. As he is currently my number one suspect."
I circled the area in front of the shrine. Noting the spilled bowl and its contents on the ground. The position of the spoon next to it. Before standing in the spot on the left side where the effigy would have stood. "What about the bride?"
The detective shook his head, "What bride?"
"It was a night wedding," I told him. "There must have been a physical object acting as a stand in for the daughter's soul."
"Nothing more than bags of cotton usually," he paused. "But they did report that the stand-in this time was some sort of department figurine. A mannequin of some sort."
"Have you looked into that?"
"Why would I look into that. Are you crazy?"
"Right, you're right of course. You'd have to wait until after sunset to be able to figure out which mannequin serves as the ghost bride's earthly form."
The detective stormed off as if I had said something outlandish. Leaving me to my own devices, I interviewed a few of the neighbors who attended the night wedding, gathered some evidence and sorted with the other officers at the site, and then left for the nearest hotel in the city.
It had been a long month for me and I couldn't think of anything better than I would enjoy more than a cold beer. So after checking in I went down to the bar, where an ethereal creature sat alone. She was beautiful to say the least and I had to strike up a conversation lest I live a life of regret, "S'il te plaît ma chérie, dis-moi comment on t'appelle pour que quand je sois perdu dans les ténèbres. Puis-je demander la lumière."
"What?"
"Oh, American. I apologize. I thought you were French."
"On my mother's side," she brushed away her hair.
I noticed the ring, "Ah, you are married. My sincerest apologies miss."
"Newly married," she told me. "My husband speaking with the concierge."
"Activities on vacation," I mused. "How wonderful."
"It's nothing like that. It seems someone has left him a note. And we're technically on our honeymoon." She paused, "Though this isn't where we're supposed to be. We're supposed to be in Hawaii."
I ordered a beer with the bartender and sipped my drink, "Hawaii is wonderful, but this is also a beautiful island. In fact, when the Portuguese came here, they named it Formosa. Which translates to beautiful island. It may not be where you're supposed to be, but perhaps you'll find that this is exactly where you need to be."
The woman sighed, "I don't even know anymore."
"Ah, I know what this is. I've great experience in these matters. Having been married many times. You feel doubt."
She laughed, "How many times have you gotten a divorce?"
"Divorce?" I laughed. "I never leave a woman after we have been wed."
She looked taken aback, "Oh. I didn't know polygamy was so common in these parts." She glanced behind her to where a tall man was standing with what looked to be the hotel's concierge. "I guess we're in the same boat."
"It's not what you think," I told her.
"Where have I heard that one before," she rolled her eyes.
"Larissa!" The man called for her.
She stood up, "Well, it was nice meeting you. Tell your wives I said hello."
I smiled as she left, glancing at my sides. "If only you knew," I said while sipping my beer.
Now in hindsight, if I were not so fatigued after nearly a month of hard work and constant traveling. I would have perhaps picked up on the fact that she too was familiar with the concubine lifestyle. Which was unusual in itself for an American. Or perhaps I would have picked up on the fact that Larissa was an uncommon name. As I had read Jim's article. But there was no such luck, which is why, when I say that I am deeply regretful of what I read on the news later about the couple, I am truly at a loss for what I could have prevented. But that is not my story to tell.
After I finished drinking at the bar I made my way to the elevator and got in. When a man came towards me to hold the door, I called out, "It's full." He looked at me bewildered as I was the only person he could see in the elevator, before sticking his hand out to stop the doors from closing. Huffing and puffing as he glared at me angrily before pressing his floor number. Except the elevator pinged. The weight capacity light had turned on above our heads. "Like I said, it's full." The man shook his head in amazement. Pressing his floor number again. The elevator pinged again. Unwilling to budge. I sighed and got out, "I'll wait for the next one."
And wait I did, even in my room I waited for night fall instead of resting. The thoughts of a botched night wedding swirling in my head. For the many things that could go wrong. Because even though I had much practice in these matters, I was still always nervous before a fight. So when night fell, I was red eyed and exhausted, but better mentally prepared than before.
But when I arrived back at the scene of the crime, I was not prepared for all of the commotion.
"Ka-kin-eh Ka-kin-eh," a man shouted as the fire blazed.
I grabbed one of the men running by with an empty bucket, "What happened here?"
"T-the villagers, they set the p-place on fire. Trying to rid the evil demon."
I let him go and shook my head. The fools! I made my way toward the courtyard where I saw the detective from earlier moping his forehead as he was helping put out the fire. "Detective! This is terrible," I yelled as the flames licked the night.
"No shit dumbass, it's a fire."
"You don't understand," I told him. "Now the entity has nowhere to return. We may never find it."
He threw the bucket to the floor and whirled around, "Enough! I've had enough! Listen here, there is a fire. F-I-R-E. This a real problem. If it catches to the fields, it could light the newly laid fertilizer on fire and catch the entire mountain!"
"Detective!"
That was the only word I had to say before he punched me. It was a dark night out, but stars had suddenly appeared. He hovered over me and I thought he would strike me again but then suddenly he froze. "What is that?"
I turned my head and looked out into the field. The heat of the fire burning the back of my head as I tried to stop my nose from bleeding. "Where?"
Neither one of us moved as we watched the tall field.
"Right there." He pointed.
I reached up and threw his hand down, "No! You never point at entities," I told him. "Now you could be marked!"
He ignored me and reached for his gun, "Stop! Hey you! I order you to stop or I'll shoot!"
I looked into the field, scanning the endless rows before my eyes stopped and froze in horror. At one point in time the thing must have been a simple plastic mannequin. Standing in a department store perhaps. But now, it was twisted and gnarled. It's first dirty and unrecognizable. It stood on all fours sometimes threes as it swayed slowly back and forth. The thing was also without form because it didn't need to bend or move as normal people. It was still objectively, plastic. It swung its arms behind it and used that as leverage to run, turning its head - cracking the seams that had somehow still held and took off.
The detective rung a shot out at it. I think it struck but it didn't matter. Though the mannequin was gone. The detective must have lost his mind because he gave chase.
I couldn't let him go alone so I followed. Pulling out my long yellow parchment as I wrote on it the symbols for sealing, hoping the simple spell would work. As we entered the tall field.
It was chaos. The ground was mushy beneath my feet, and the smell of fecal matter assaulted my senses further. In the brush I had lost the detective, so I was forced to tell my wives to help me locate his whereabouts. They didn't often leave my side, and some were reluctant but ultimately agreed.
I stood in the field, waiting with bated breath as I heard further gunshots in the distance. I couldn't wait for my wives to gather as I tore after the detective. And just in time as I saw him standing, looking absolutely terrified as he shot blindly into the fauna until his pistol clicked. The mannequin lunged for him. But I got there first. Pushing him to the ground, causing both of us to tumble.
He was eating a mouth of dirt as I pulled him to his feet. "We have to get out of this field! The ghost bride will pick us off in this thicket!"
Stumbling, and running, the two of us were covered in more than dirt. Several times we heard rustling nearby as if something were running alongside us. But eventually we made it out into the open plain. The detective trying to catch his breath as he reloaded his pistol.
"Shooting it doesn't work," he panted. "But maybe I can disable it from moving."
"Shut up," I told him. "Listen."
He stopped for a moment and we waited. Then all of the stalks before us shook wildly as if a hundred people were running through it. The detective raised his arm but I stopped him as my wives ran out of the field.
They were terrified as they ran right through us.
I hadn't experienced the feeling in awhile but the coldness as their ghostly forms went through our bodies was cold as ice. It was enough to bring us both to our knees, clutching our chests as we struggled to breathe. I had passed through one or two in a row before. But never 10 or 20 at a time. I lost count.
"What was that," the detective managed to gasp, his fingers in a death grip around his gun.
"A blue procession," I told him. "Something caused all of my dead wives to flee."
We looked up as the leaves in front of us rustled.
"Is it..."
I shook my head, running forward to catch her. My 13th wife, Ah-ren. Her arm was missing, and a part of her shoulder. She was an innocent girl that had drowned when she was alive. Her innocence carried on with her to the afterlife where many souls generally grew up embittered. But never her, always sweet my girl, just weary of water.
"I didn't want to go," she told me.
"I know," I held her. "I'm sorry."
"It got some of the others too. But Meita got in its way and told me to run." She cried.
"Don't cry I told her. You know how you hate getting wet."
"I don't want to go. I wanted to stay with you. All of us together."
I watched as her soul splintered and disappeared forever.
I had never felt such fury. In all my years, a womanizer, a liar, a cheat at cards, a scoundrel, a bastard even. But an undutiful husband? Never.
Without thinking I approached the field and cast a spell that was been forbidden.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm purging the field. All beings alive or dead will forever feel displaced when they enter here. A feeling of unending dread and doom will overcome them, causing madness if they do not leave or are unable to. But I have no other choice." I reached into my side and threw a handful of salt. It landed on the ground as I chanted. The winds carrying it into the field, the small white morsels rolling obediently into the darkness.
"Nothings happening," the detective's word stuck in his mouth as a horrible scream echoed into the night. It sounded like two pieces of steel being twisted together.
"There," I took off after it. The jumbled figure of the mannequin fled toward the village.
We followed it through people's homes, and between alleyways; the villagers screamed and fled when they saw it. We barged through home after home as we chased it. Until we cornered it at an abandoned building at the edge of town.
"It was supposed to be a mall," the detective told me. "But the developers ran out of money."
We walked quietly into the empty building. Shells of stores stood in various degrees of construction. Checking a few of the fronts before venturing further inside.
"You've got to be kidding me," the detective said as we came near the center of the complex. There next to the escalators and the fountains was an army of mannequins of all shapes and sizes lined up like terracotta warriors. "They must have stashed them all here when the place was being built, and forgot about them when it closed."
"There are hundreds."
"We'll go through together. Quickly and quietly." He added, "Stay alert."
We moved through the rows, staring at all of the stuck faces, searching for one covered in grime and bullet holes. But it was more difficult than it sounded. Many of the mannequins were in bad shape, weathered, broken, laying in pieces on the ground. It was hard to tell if a pile of parts was indeed our culprit.
Slowly we began to clear the rows and I could see the other side in sight.
"There!" The detective shot his gun. The surrounding mannequins dropped like dominoes when the entity scattered. Falling down all around us, drowning in a sea of plastic arms and smiling faces. I was struggling to stand as I looked up and saw the entity come rushing toward us. The detective fired his gun blowing out a knee cap. I hurriedly reached for my parchment but could not find my pen. Another shot, but the scorned bride kept on charging unable to feel pain.
It jumped into the air and another shot blew a part of its face away. The detective screamed as it tore at him. Pieces of his sinew was launched into the air as he was torn apart. I rushed forward trying to help but the creature grabbed me by the throat and lifted me into the air. My feet searching for the ground as my lungs folded trying to breathe. The thing turned its head toward me and said, "Will you marry me?" As the darkness closed into the corners of my eyes.
The fight was leaving my body as I saw several of my wives rushing forward. Their ghostly forms ethereal as they began tearing at the mannequin, slowly pulling out pieces of her soul, causing the mannequin's arms and legs to go limp as they dragged her out.
I scrambled the floor blindly with my fingers searching for my sacred parchment but could not find it amongst the rubble and the ghost bride was fleeing, leaving the shell of her mannequin in a heap on the floor. My wives chasing her, screaming their fury for killing the others. For destroying their souls.
I chased after them into the open air, where she was being cornered. Crying as I approached, trying to escape into the Southwest wind. I knew what I should have done, but could not bring myself to do the right thing. Instead I bit my finger and drew symbols on my forearms with my own blood. Approaching the bride that never was and tore her soul into pieces.
When I was done my wives sat down around me before slowly dispersing as the sun began to rise.
"We did it huh?"
I continued staring at the sun, "Yeah."
"Well then," the detective said before disappearing. "Maybe in the next life I'll be sooner to trust you."
Later they would find his body in the abandoned mall. Still clutching his gun. The department gave him a 21 gun salute at his funeral and a medal as commemoration. I was just glad that his soul had not been eaten.
I, on the other hand, went back to the hotel. To the bar and ordered a well deserved drink. Where I saw a pretty woman sitting alone, "Did you know that in order for me to pass on my Celestial title, I must bear an heir?"
​
​
s
submitted by CornerCornea to nosleep [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 05:44 Cailey696 Bad Roomate stories

This is a long story. These events happened over the span of a year and there's also a lot of build up before we get into the drama. Bear with me, but context is needed for some of these incidents.
When I was 22 my sister's house got flooded from a hurricane. She, her husband, and our family all pitched in to fix it up. It was a beautiful, but expensive, remodel. Just before the remodel was complete my sister and her husband decided that they were going to move to florida because her husband received a job opportunity. I was crushed, especially since my nephew had just turned 1 and they were pregnant with their second. Since the remodel cost so much money they were hoping to make a little extra money every month by renting it out. They first asked if I would be interested in renting it. I jumped at the opportunity and was really thankful that they trusted me. I found the first 2 roomates pretty swiftly, they were students in the same college as me and we were pretty good friends already. We'll call them Nick and Sarah. Since it was a 4 bedroom 2 bath house we still needed one more roommate but most of our mutual friends weren't in a position to move out. Enter Britney. Britney was a graduate from the same major just a year or so prior. We knew her enough to think she was a good candidate as a roommate. She seemed nice and responsible and given that she was a couple years older we thought she would be flowing with maturity. There was no indication that she would end up being a complete piece of shit.
It was understood from the beginning that I would take the master bedroom since I was essentially "head of the house". I would be the one in contact with the landlords and making sure we were keeping up with the house. Nobody had an issue with this. We all contributed to the house furnishings. I brought a love seat and kitchen stuff from home, sarah brought a reclining couch, Nick brought a dining table and chairs, and Britney brought the fucking audacity. Everything else we needed we bought together and split the costs.
Because I had the primary bedroom I also had a private bathroom. I made it very clear that they could use the bathroom at any point, even if i wasn't home. My only ask was that if I was home or in my room that they would first ask/knock on the door. but if I wasn't home, it was fair game. I trusted my roommates completely and it would've been unfair if I made 3 people share one bathroom.
We moved in in February. The first month or so went well. There were no hiccups, we all seemed to be getting along great. To make things easier and more organized I created a chore chart that evenly divided the chores between the 4 of us. This was going to ensure everyone was doing their part to keep the house clean. I also made magnets with our initials on them to use for laundry days. If you wanted to do laundry, you'd have to take your magnet and place it on the day you want to do laundry. You would have that whole day to do laundry. Chores were color coded and if your name was written in a color that would be your chore for that day. It was incredibly detailed, and some may say I am really controlling for this system but it's what I thought would be the best way to delegate and make sure everything was fair. Nobody really complained about it either.
In April Britney said she was interested in gardening and having a few house plants. We were all for it, even I wanted to have a few plants. She had three small herb plants on the windowsill above the sink and it never would've been an issued if she knew how to take care of them. Unfortunately, after a while she started to over water them and gnats became a problem in the house. I told her that her plants were attracting gnats in the house and that she needed to find a way to plant them outside. I suggested she buy one of those tin tubs and start a garden in it that she could have outside. She got super pissed and offended that I would tell her how to spend her money. She even refused to accept that her plants were causing the gnats and blamed it on the trash. I even asked her to move the plants into her room if she didn't want to plant them outside and she blatantly said no. I didn't want to make a bigger deal about it so I just let it go. Eventually she stopped over watering the plants and the gnats went away.
In May chores began falling behind. It wasn't one person's fault, it was everyone's. We were all guilty of not doing what we were supposed to do. I called for a house meeting and I thought i was being empathetic and kind about the situation, since I myself was also falling behind. I wasn't trying to single anybody out and said we all needed to get back on top of our chores. Britney threw a fit and screamed that she had been doing chores and that she didn't need to be part of this meeting. She called us all dirty pigs and singled Sarah out for being the first one to ignore her kitchen night. It was incredibly rude and factually incorrect. At this point i began to realize Britney would never take accountability. I'd also like to say that the kitchen chore consisted of unloading the dishwasher in the morning and making sure it was loaded and started before bed. It was up to each person using the kitchen to clean up after themselves.
Jump to July. July I threw a party, which was approved by everyone else. It was for 4th of july and we invited friends from school. Since the majority of our guests were mutual friends between me, nick and Sarah we told Britney she could invite her own friends. She thanked us but ultimately had to work that night anyway. Since she wasn't going to be there we didn't require her to pitch in for the party. We bought stuff for burgers, hot dogs, popsicles, a few different alcoholic beverages and stuff to make various dips. We encouraged our guests to bring they're own alcohol or desserts. It was a good party. Halfway through Britney came home earlier than expected and even brought friends to the party. We hadn't anticipated or planned for them but weren't going to turn them away. They drank other people's beer without asking, helped themselves to chips and dip and leftover hot dogs. It wouldn't be that big of a deal if it weren't for them drinking other people's beer. the next morning Me, Sarah and Nick were cleaning up and we all thought that since Britney and her friends came to the party that she should chip in for both the clean up and the cost. She pretty much told us to fuck off and that her friends didn't eat anything from the party....Yeah. There's that audacity.
September: this story is actually kinda funny but still a testament to how shitty she was. I was at home in the dining room doing a project for a class. I needed a wide table space so I was using the dining table. Britney brings her boyfriend over, we exchange a few hello's and they go to her room. Her door is only 10 feet away. They start playing loud country music from her room and I literally am just like "Jesus, how inconsiderate can you be. It doesn't need to be that loud" Well 5 minutes later I find out why they're playing loud ass music. I start hearing her bed hitting against the wall as well as my roommates moans. I'm sitting there in the dining room, gluing magazine pictures to a poster board, and involuntarily listening to my roommate get railed. I am dumbfounded. Flabbergasted. Gobsmacked! And suddenly I just hear a loud crisp *SMACK*. At this point I am mortified. And I have no idea how she wasn't. when they finally emerged from her bedroom 10 minutes later I couldn't even look her in the eye.
In October Britney decided to host her own party, a halloween costume party. We were all game for it and she said we could invite a few of our own friends but that ultimately it was her party and she wanted it to be mostly her friends. We understood, we had our own party in july, she can have hers and we'll just invite our closer friends. We even pitched in for the alcohol and snacks. But there was one rule. No weed on property. That's a stipulation in our lease. No weed. But of course, in true Britney fashion, she completely disregards the rules and brought weed to the party anyway. Even if she didn't bring it, it was her responsibility to tell her guest to put it away. I didn't say anything to my sister, I let it slide because as much as we were beginning to hate Britney we also needed that 4th roommate. But it certainly came in handy later on.
In November me and Sarah bought a gold fish. The lease did say no pets but I don't really view a gold fish as a pet since...it literally doesn't do anything or bring any harm to the house. The fish died a few days later anyway so no harm done except to our hearts. RIP Sushi. A few days later Britney comes home with a whole ass baby bearded dragon. They are cool and since I had a fish I let this slide. Afterall. how much damage could a bearded dragon do? WELL!!!! LET ME TELL YOU! I was sitting in the living room one day watching tv and out of the corner of my eye i see a bit of movement on one of our baseboards. I get a closer look and I see it's a small baby grasshopper. I kill it and as I'm walking to the trash i see another. then another, and another and so on. Our house is INFESTED with these tiny baby grasshoppers that I know are used as food for bearded dragons. I know because the kid I nanny also has a bearded dragon. I remember finding these baby grasshoppers all over the fucking house, some dead but most were alive. In our rooms, in the common areas, the bathrooms, EVERYWHERE. I sent pictures of the dozens of piles i swept up of these grasshoppers and I sent them to Britney and said "Just so you know, your bearded dragons grasshoppers somehow got out". And you would think that a logical response from a decent human being would be "Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I don't know how that happened. I'll come home ASAP to help clean up" but no. This bitch is a narcissist incapable of doing anything wrong and she responds with "Those are from outside. They're too big to be for my bearded dragon" I literally laughed outloud to myself. This was it. This was the straw that broke the horses back. Sweet and docile me broke and said "I'm not fucking stupid. They are tiny and I know they are for your pet. The boy I nanny has these for his dragon too. Come home and help clean this bullshit up"
Britney was also notorious for leaving her laundry in the washers and dryer past her laundry day. And it seemed to always effect Nick's laundry day because he would be nice and let her finish. But he had enough. So at exactly midnight he went to the laundry room, pulled her damp clothes out of the dryer and dropped them at her door in the hallway on the floor. I'm sorry but i was dying of laughter at his pettiness. We had all been tired of her antics and bullshit and it was fun having a little bit of payback. However, I will say Nick took it a step too far and banged on her door and shouted "Not your laundry day anymore bitch!" Britney's boyfriend came out and he and Nick started yelling at each other. I swear I thought a fight was seriously going to break out. I broke it up, told Britney she needed to adhere to the rules of laundry day just like the rest of us and Nick apologized for startling her. Everyone went to bed. THE NEXT MORNING, tensions are high between Nick, Britney and her boyfriend. The boyfriend, we'll call him Dick for funsies, got up in Nick's face for no reason at all. Nick was livid and asked me to reach out to to my brother in-law. My brother-in-law banned Britney from having her boyfriend over since he was creating a hostile environment and it wasn't fair to Nick since he was the one paying to live there. And if she didn't like it she could leave. She didn't and she adhered to the rule, for a time.
In December my sister and her husband came to town to do some work on the house to get it ready to be sold. We had known for a few weeks now that they were selling so we were working with them and the realtors to keep the place neat and tidy for house tours. It wasn't ideal but we understood. I'm in the living room playing with my new niece while my BIL is working on the A/C unit and who walks in? Britney and her boyfriend. Oh the joy that spread across my face in that moment. Britney and Dick went to her room and I looked at my BIL and said "that's her boyfriend". in that moment she and dick started to leave and my BIL walked out after them and gave her her official eviction notice. OH SWEET SWEET JUSTICE! Or so we thought. Britney's mommy called my BIL and begged him not to kick her out. her reason? She didn't want her to come back home. LMFAO. My BIL gave her one more chance to clean up her act but the rest of us weren't having it. We didn't care that holidays were coming, we wanted her gone. So I told him about her october party and the weed and he finally put his foot down and evicted her for real.
Unfortunately things didn't get better overnight. Britney was given a week to move her stuff out and turn in her key. One of the first things she took? Believe it or not, the outdoor trashcan (Which we all paid for) and in our city, the garbage collectors won't pick up trash unless it's in a bin. So for TWO WEEKS the city didn't pick up our trash and we had to verbally fight with Britney to get the trashcan back. It was absolute bullshit and I never wanted to strangle someone before. Not only that, but the plants she had sitting on the windowsill above the sink had papertowels sitting underneath them to absorb access water. When she removed them I saw how fucked up and bubbled the window sill had become from water damage. But at least the demon had finally been cast out and we were able to enjoy our last month in the house without her.
We never spoke or heard from Britney again...thank God.
submitted by Cailey696 to u/Cailey696 [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 05:29 xtremexavier15 TSROTI 6 (pt 1)

Toxic Rats: Geoff, Scott, Trent, Sammy, Sierra
Mutant Maggots: Anne Maria, Katie, Molly, Scarlett, Dave, DJ
Episode 06: Runaway Model
"Previously, on Total Drama Revenge of the Island!" Chris opened over a stock shot of Wawanakwa, the capstone theme starting up in the background. "The campers got deep," the recap montage opened with Sierra and Molly sinking to the lake bed in their antique diving suits, the former quickly getting held back by Fang, "in an underwater scavenger hunt."
"Sierra quickly got under her team's skin as soon as she came back," Sammy was shown upset with Sierra for taking a picture of her, "and Anne Maria and Geoff began to develop feelings for each other," the two were shown having a conversation with each other in the morning.
"In the end, Leshawna was tossed for swiping everybody's stuff," Sammy was shown tossing out everyone's belongings from the bag, "even though it was really Scott. Sneaky," the host added over Scott admitting his role in the confessional.
"It's now Team Maggot versus Team Rat," the host said, the Maggots' logo appearing on-screen against a radiant golden background. The logo rotated around into the Rats' logo, and a five-way split-screen of the Rats' remaining members rose up from the background – Trent in the upper left against a brownish-red backdrop; Geoff in the upper right against dark blue; Sierra in the middle top against orange; Sammy in the bottom left against turquoise; and Scott in the bottom right against yellow. "Will the Rats man up before they're a man down? Let's hope not," Chris said as the scene cut to him standing at the end of the dock with Chef. "There's nothing more entertaining than a man down."
As if on cue, the wood under Chef started to creak and crack, breaking away and sending Chef plunging into the lake with a startled scream. Chris laughed. "More where that came from, right now, on Total! Drama! Revenge of the Island!"
XXXXX
The sun was already high in the sky as the episode opened, and a loon cried out in the distance as the camera panned down onto DJ and Dave looking rather distressed outside the communal bathroom. The normal guy knocked on the door and asked "Is it our turn next?"
"Keep your panties on!" Anne Maria called out as the camera cut to the inside of the bathroom. The mirror on the back wall was too cracked and smudged to use, the trash can was grimy, and the strip of fly paper hanging in the corner was in need of a change, but nevertheless, Molly, Anne Maria, Katie, and Scarlett were still gathered along the countertop – Scarlett was sitting on the far left, Molly was plucking her unibrows, Katie was happily filing her nails, and Anne Maria was spraying her hair.
"Anne Maria?" Molly said. "Could I borrow some lipstick from you? I forgot it back at the cabin."
"You can help yourself, but don't go touching my hair spray," Anne Maria answered. She finished spraying her hair, and flicked it to show how bulletproof it was as it briefly shined. "Now that is how you do hair!"
"I prefer having a natural appearance," Scarlett clarified. "I'm mostly just here to wash my face and brush my teeth."
They later saw that Katie had pulled out a bag containing a makeup kit.
"What's that bag for?" Molly asked the influencer while brushing her hair.
"This is my portable makeup kit," Katie said. "If I need to get myself ready in the morning, this'll do the job in five minutes max."
"Do you carry that around with you at all times?" Anne Maria looked at the bag.
"Only when I'm traveling to places," Katie answered as she put on her lipstick. "I've done a lot of makeup tutorials with this thing, and they've skyrocketed my channel up to one million views."
"That's interesting to hear," Scarlett rolled her eyes. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be taking my leave."
Katie watched Scarlett and Anne Maria go, and turned to Molly. "By the way, you can borrow my lipstick too if you want."
Confessional: Katie
"Chris still has a hold of my tablet," Katie confessed. "I'm sure my subscribers are wondering why I'm inactive, but some of them will probably understand that I'm competing on a TV show."
Confessional: Molly
"Katie's been a lot more helpful to us with her device taken away, and now she wants to help me with fashion," Molly explained. "If that means she's not mad at me anymore, I'll take what I can get."
Confessional Ends
The scene flashed to the girls' side of the Rat cabin as Sammy said "I can't believe what happened last episode." The shot cut inside to show her sitting in her bunk bed. "Not only did people's belongings get taken, but Leshawna was pinned for it."
Sierra was using her phone until she heard Sammy. "What makes you so sure it wasn't Leshawna if the bag was under her bed?" the blogger emphasized.
"Someone else could've slipped it under there, and Leshawna's too respectful to touch our things!" Sammy enforced.
"I'll have to think about that more," Sierra said. "You know, this is the most I've ever heard you say."
"What do you mean?" Sammy asked.
"You're mostly silent, and also nervous most of the time," Sierra claimed.
"I just prefer keeping to myself," Sammy said. "I'm introverted."
"Have you managed to have any friends in your life?" Sierra wondered.
"I do, but I only have five friends," Sammy responded while holding her arm. "We make up the cheerleading team back home, and they really love and care about me, but they tend to forget about my own opinions."
"Have you ever told them it bothers you?" Sierra asked again.
"Not really. I don't want them to hate me," Sammy said sadly.
"I never had many friends, so I don't know how to help you there, but if you want to let them know something is wrong, just do it," Sierra shrugged. "I'm sure it can't hurt."
Confessional: Sammy
"Sierra may have a point. She's eccentric, but she definitely can be smart." Sammy admits. "My friends can drag me into activities I'm not interested in, although cheerleading is something I like to do."
Confessional Ends
The whining ring as the scene cut to a shot of one of the island's loudspeakers heralded a broadcast from Chris. "Iiiit's challenge time!" he began. "Campers~! Meet me on the other side of the island~!" he announced in an almost sing-song voice.
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The footage immediately skipped ahead to the two teams already nearly assembled on two sets of low bleachers in a clearing lined with a handful of stage and spotlights. The five Rats were seated on the stands to the right of the camera, while DJ was just now filing in with his teammates on the left.
"Yo Katie," DJ greeted the girl. "Your hair is looking fantastic today.
"It's all thanks to this makeup kit," Katie showed her bag as DJ took his seat next to her. "It's really helpful for your looks."
The perspective inverted to reveal that the two teams had gathered before a large stage and runway, complete with a short catwalk and a large curtained-off backstage area. Chef was already waiting in the pink dress he'd worn to ceremonies back in season two, and Chris shortly joined him by way of descending from above with his jetpack. The host was wearing a sharp gray suit and fashionable glasses with tinted lens, but more noticeable were the changes to his hair – it was now pure white and long enough for him to sport a short ponytail.
Chef walked up as he landed and took the jetpack of his back, then walked away as Chris spread his arms and smiled. "Welcome to your challenge," he opened. "The Weird and Wild Fashion Spectacular!" He took a paper fan out of his breast pocket and waved it a bit as he spread his arms even wider.
"We're doing a fashion challenge? Awesome!" Molly cheered.
"Fashion? Now you're talkin'!" Anne Maria sprayed her hair about while complimenting Chris.
"You won't be walking the catwalk," Chris started to fan himself, "no-no-no-no. No amount of fashion can help you people."
"You don't say?" Dave mumbled to himself.
"Here's how it's gonna work," Chris continued. "Each team gets a wardrobe of clothes," the camera cut to a dresser, clothes rack, and several pieces of luggage on the side of the stage, "a make-up kit, and ten minutes to dress and make up a model." Chef held up an hourglass and glared mutely at the camera. "Which, you'll send down the runway," the shot zoomed in on the host's fan as he walked his fingers across it, "to be judged by myself, Chef, and today's Total Drama classic competitor, Lindsay!"
One of the suitcases on the side of the stage popped open, revealing the former contestant. "Yay! Don't you just love my new, special fashion boots?" Lindsay asked the campers, raising a leg to show off blue boots different from her regular brown ones.
"Wait, we get to dress an actual model!" Trent got excited.
"Uh-huh," Chris said, scraping some white powder off his shoulder with his fan. "Right after you catch one."
"Catch a model?" Geoff wondered. "Why would one even come to this island?"
"Did I say human models?" Chris corrected, fanning himself again as he walked across the stage. "Don't think so! No, your models are in there!" He thrust his finger off to the right, forcing Lindsay to duck under his arm. The camera quick-panned to the woods just as an earth-shattering roar shook the area.
"They're wild! They're mutated!" Chris told the campers, the camera moving behind his back. "And like me, they despise teenagers." The five Rats were shown looking shocked and concerned.
"Okay fashionistas," the host said in a campy accent, "go!" He blew his airhorn again, and the campers ran off.
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The footage flashed ahead to a trail in the woods, Sierra and Geoff searching behind a rock and Sammy looking at a bush in the background while DJ walked by in the foreground. The camera panned to the right and stopped on Anne Maria and Scarlett, who were warily looking upwards.
Something croaked above them and the shot cut to a small frog, seemingly normal aside from an eye stalk on the top of its head, sitting on a branch. With a grunt of effort, Molly pounced on it from the right, and smiled when she opened her hands and saw she'd caught it. Unfortunately for her, the mutant frog produced an odd noise and flash of light, blinking out of sight but quickly reappearing on top of the confused young woman's head. With another noise and flash of light it disappeared, this time bringing Molly with it, and they blinked back into existence in mid-air a few yards away. Molly screamed as she started to fall, and the mutant frog teleported away to presumed safety before its failed assailant landed with a crash on the forest floor.
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In another part of the forest, Trent was looking around absentmindedly while approaching what appeared to be a gigantic turtle shell, a short and spiky tail poking out of one end. The boy tapped the tail with his foot, but gasped when the tail suddenly wrapped around his leg and pulled him inside the shell. The beast inside growled and stood up, its stout legs and turtle head popping out of the shell's holes...along with Trent. With another growl, the mutant punched him away, and he landed in a heap with a pained groan.
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The camera cut next to what appeared to be an ordinary beaver sitting perfectly still just at the edge of a bush. Dave rose, grinning from another bush in the background, then pounced upon it. His jubilation quickly faded into confusion as the unmoving beaver was somehow lifted up by its tail, taking Dave with it.
The shot cut outward to reveal the beaver has no more than a lure of a large bipedal anglerfish-like monster, which promptly roared. Katie, who was standing nearby, promptly ran away, and was soon followed by Dave and the angler mutant.
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Another flash moved the focus to a close-up of a slice of pepperoni pizza, lying on the ground in the middle of a loop of rope that led off to the left. "Pizza? What's this doing here?" Scott said, the camera zooming out to show him looking down at it. He looked up and tilted his head, and the shot cut over to none other than Fang not quite hidden behind a tree, an axe in one hand and the anchored rope of his snare trap in the other.
Scott knew what was going to happen, but decided to have a little fun. "Too bad there's pepperoni on it, otherwise I'd totally eat that," he said loud enough for the shark to hear as he walked off.
Fang palmed his face and walked over to the slice and started picking the toppings off of it. Meanwhile, Scott used his shark tooth to cut the rope of the snare.
The effect was instant. Fang was hoisted up in the air by his wrist, and Scott came over to where the pizza was. "Oh perfect! No pepperoni!!" He picked up the pizza and ate it as he left, the shark growling at him as he was hung up.
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The scene cut abruptly to a massive mutant brawl between a massive two-headed rabbit, two spiny woolly beavers, and a hairless squirrel zapping them with its eye-lasers from a nearby branch. The camera panned left as a giant hermit crab scuttled up and snapped its claws, with Trent, Sammy, and Geoff watching from behind a bush in the background with wide eyes.
"So which one do we use?" Geoff asked.
"Uh, maybe we should find something that can't eat us," Sammy replied.
A whine signaled the loudspeaker turning on once again, and soon enough Chris's announcement rang through the air. "Five minutes, people!"
"Hey, Rats!" Sierra quickly followed, directing her teammates' attention to their right. "Why don't we use that rat?" he asked, the shot cutting to a close-up of a small rat happily chewing on a leaf atop a fallen log. A large hairless rat jumped onto the log, quickly stuffed the rat into its mouth, then chittered and looked around.
"It'd be easy to catch and dress. It just needs a little more domestication," Trent proudly said.
"That's a good plan," Scott supported with a grin.
"Stand back," Geoff told everybody and went towards the rat's direction. "I have an idea for the fashion style."
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"Don't give up yet! There's gotta be something on this island we can catch!" Molly told her teammates, the Maggots now hunkering down behind a bush.
"How about that critter?" DJ looked over the bush, and the shot cut to none other than Sasquatchanakwa walking into a cave, oblivious to the teens watching him.
"How are we gonna get him out of that cave?" Dave asked.
Scarlett smirked. "I've conducted a plan, but I need a bag for this," she told her teammates.
\
The Maggots were back on the stage watching Scarlett seated near Katie's makeup bag. She folded a few clothes together, squirted it with glue, and shook the bag together.
"This is what I call a "Detonating Duffel Bag," Scarlett talked about her creation. "It can and will dress any target within its sixty foot blast radius! With a mix of glue and clothes it'll be unremarkably simple to just launch the bag at the animal."
Confessional: Anne Maria
"I like her way of thinking," Anne Maria told the camera, "even if I don't understand what she's saying half the time."
Confessional Ends
Katie picked up her bag and looked at what was inside. "Puffy sweater vests? Plaid skirts? High knee socks? It seems you just put together an outfit that resembles yourself, Scarlett."
"Katie has a point," Dave told the brainiac. "You clearly made the outfit something you yourself would like instead of what everyone would like."
Scarlett was annoyed. "So what else should we use instead?"
"How about we compare our fashion styles and see what we'll all agree on," Katie suggested.
"That can work," DJ nodded. "To our cabins!"
\
The scene immediately flashed away to the Rats where their own rat has been dressed by Geoff.
"This rat looks ready to party and have fun!" Geoff described his choice as the rat was wearing a black collared shirt, a brown cap, a black chain necklace, and gray sneakers.
The rat expressed its dislike of the party style by ripping the clothes into shreds.
"Seems the rat isn't a big fan of the choice of fashion," Scott said.
A sudden ringing got the team's attention, and Chris announced "Three minutes remaining!" over an unseen loudspeaker.
"If you guys don't mind, I'll take a crack at it," Sammy offered.
\
The scene cut back to the Maggot cabin, where the team were inside the girls' side of the cabin.
"So these are what we normally wear," Katie said as she presented a row of clothes on the bunk bed. From left-to-right, it showed clothes belonging to Scarlett, Anne Maria, DJ, Dave, Molly, and Katie.
"That's correct," Anne Maria agreed, "but why are our clothes all lined up?"
"You know how some teams normally can't agree on anything, right?" Katie started her conversation.
"You're right about that," Molly said.
"So what if instead of arguing, we just combine our fashion styles into one big burrito?" Katie said extravagantly.
"A fashion mesh? That's a weird way to go, but I don't want to argue right now," Dave told them.
"If I had my sewing kit, I'd whip up a line of clothing suited to fit our animal, but since we're running out of time, let's just try to stuff all our clothes into the bag," Molly suggested.
"I'll add some dye colors inside just to make our colors clash," Katie said.
"I'll assist as well, but let's make sure to actually fold our clothes," Dave emphasized.
"Agreed," Scarlett said. "We want to make our outfit mash look as clean and fresh as possible."
"Now that we have a plan, let's get right to it," Molly encouraged the team.
Confessional: Dave
"I don't like to give away my clothes, but once I realized that I only have to give two pairs, I went along with the plan," Dave admitted.
Confessional Ends
The scene flashed back to the Rats, the camera positioned close to Sammy's face but focused on her four teammates behind her. The camera zoomed out as they watched her tighten a piece of cloth over their rat model.
"That should be about it," Sammy said. "Me and my friends tend to design clothes during our sleepovers."
"It's not bad, Sammy," Geoff started to say.
"I think you did a wonderful job," Trent critiqued.
Another ringing got their attention, and they looked up towards an unseen loudspeaker as Chris announced "One minute!"
"It's good enough," Scott declared. "Let's get back to Chris."
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The scene flashed back to the Maggots hiding behind a rock near Sasquatchanakwa's cave.
"This DDD is ready for action," DJ held up the bag.
"What does it stand for exactly?" Anne Maria asked him.
"Detonating Duffel Bag," DJ made it more clear before tossing the bag over to Katie. "Go long!"
Katie ran towards the cave with the bag in hand as the scene cut to the inside. Sasquatchanakwa was sitting in a wooden armchair, drinking a can of soda and watching some jaunty-themed show on an old television set when Katie's bag landed in his lap. With a curious grunt he looked at the bag.
That's when the explosion happened, and when it did, the yeti let out a frightening roar, scaring the Maggots.
"That doesn't sound good!" Katie panicked.
Confessional: Katie
"I don't know if running away from Sasquatchanakwa is worse than hurting him," Katie said. "I'm not the fastest runner, but I'm not going to die."
Confessional Ends
The scene cut to a spotlight as it turned on; then a couple stage lights turning on as well; then a mutant squirrel hopping up next to a book-reading bear which lowered its book to reveal its three eyes, both animals looking at something curiously; then the stage and catwalk, Chris front and center with Chef and Lindsay – the former in sort of rapper-ish outfit with a red tracksuit and hat, earphones, and gold chains – sitting at the judge's table.
"It's freaky forest fashion time!" the host announced. "Rat-istas," he turned and pointed his fan backstage, "show me somethin' fierce." The five Rats walked out on stage, Geoff, Trent, and Sierra on the left with Sammy and Scott on the right.
"Chef, drop that needle!" Chris commanded next, the shot cutting to a close-up of a record turntable as the needle was dropped onto the spinning disc and a trendy tune began to play. The camera zoomed out, and Chef gave the host and campers a thumbs-up.
"This small rodent is wearing a fresh, popstar fashion style like no one else's," Sierra began smoothly, motioning to the gap between her and Sammy as their model reluctantly scurried out on all fours but continued down the runway on its hind legs. It was wearing a pink wig and a purple dress with white stripes. The camera followed it as it walked along looking both nervous and awkward, Sierra continuing her piece all the while. "Her pink hair matches well with her diva attitude and her dress screams fame." She finished with a grimace.
"A bit typical and overly glamorous," Chris said as the rat reached the end of the catwalk. "I give it an 8.5," the host announced as he held up a placard with his score.
The Rats shouted cheers of victory.
Chef held up an 8.0.
Lindsay held up a 1.8 to the uproar of the Rats. She realized her mistake and flipped her placard upside down, showing an 8.1. "Oops."
"Okay," Chris said tersely, looking back towards the catwalk. "Show me what you've got, Maggots!" he called out, the trendy music resuming as the shot cut back to the stage, showing it utterly empty. The camera zoomed in and the music kept playing, but for several more seconds there was still no movement backstage. "...Maggots?" Chris called out again and finally Katie ran out screaming at the top of her lungs.
"As you can see, the yeti is wearing a mix of several different styles based upon us," Katie said as her team quickly ran out to join her.
All six looked towards the backstage curtain, and the furious sasquatch growled and chased after them. His outfit consisted of several different styles – white sneakers resembling Katie's, long white socks resembling Scarlett's, pants resembling Anne Maria's, a blue and yellow collared shirt resembling Dave's, glasses resembling Molly's, and a hat resembling DJ's.
"The outfit consists of a variety of garments applied forcefully to random parts of his body," Katie said, cringing in terror as her team's model quickly tossed Scarlett, Dave, and Molly away again while DJ and Anne Maria quickly got off the stage. The ape-man grabbed her after she finished.
The music stopped, and Sasquatchanakwa finally noticed the three judges just as the first one spoke up. "That thing is huge," Lindsay gasped at the sight of the model before her, "but the outfit had too many themes. Maybe stick to just one next time."
"I agree with Lindsay," Chris admitted, fanning himself again. "It hardly complements the Yeti's husky physique."
Confessional: Katie
"Going with Scarlett's first idea for the yeti would have been boring," Katie groaned in disappointment, "but at least the yeti probably wouldn't have gotten as mad right now."
Confessional Ends
Still holding Katie, Sasquatchanakwa saw what he was wearing. Angry at the 6-way outfit put on him, he threw Katie away, took off the hat and glasses, kicked off the shoes and socks, and ripped off the pants and shirt.
"Chris is right. The team are too different-" Lindsay tried to say, but was cut off when the yeti suddenly reached forward and grabbed her by the head, yanking her out of her seat. The shot zoomed out as an engine whirred to life, revealing that Sasquatchanakwa had also commandeered Chris's jetpack. With the captive dumb princess in his arms, he took off into the air.
"Hey, he took my jetpack!" Chris quickly protested. The shot cut back to the ape-man and dumb blonde as Lindsay screamed, and Saquatchanakwa flew off to the foggy and ominous crags of Boney Island.
"Uh-huh...," Chris said blankly, still fanning himself. "Will Lindsay survive?" he asked the camera, lifting up his shades. "And am I legally liable if she doesn't? Find out, after the break."
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(Commercial Break)
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submitted by xtremexavier15 to u/xtremexavier15 [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 04:52 fancy_leftovers Lonely but never alone (cliché I know)

TW: long, boring, stupid, bullying, suicide
I'm a 34yo woman as of last month. Wild. Because that terrified, bullied young girl still feels so close inside my head.
Growing up I was always alone. My parents gave me up and I was raised as an only child with my grandparents while my two younger sisters were raised together with my mom. I was bullied by family, friends, and classmates growing up because I was fat and had "boyish" interests. And because I dressed like shit. And I probably smelled too because I was so depressed I never brushed my teeth and would just throw my greasy hair into a beanie or something to avoid showering. My grandpa called me a bag lady. He looked down on me for playing video games as a girl. My aunt called me a pig. She made fun of me when I couldn't fit into her life jacket when I was 10. Kids would chase me and moo. Kids would steal my stuff and throw it in the trash. Kids would throw gum and cheese or whatever into my hair. They'd beat me up on the bus or if I tried to walk home from school. They called me a fat dyke. My family thought I was gay as well, despite having no friends let alone romantic interests. I felt so unwanted, unworthy, and not like everyone else (but in a bad, monsterous way.)
The neighborhood kids filled a composition notebook with detailed entries about what a disgusting monster I am. I thought they were my friends.
I'd go to school and wish that I was invisible. I'd go to bed at night crying and praying to just be taken away to Never Never Land, or to wake up with a new identity. I didn't see the point of my existence, and at 16 I went into my grandparent's bedroom and pulled out the pistol from under my grandpa's side of the mattress. I sat on the edge of the bed and looked down on it in my hands. I was alone in the house. And then a voice came to me in my head. I like to think it was my voice, reaching out to younger me. It told me that everyone actually loves the underdog, and that there would come a day when I was loved and celebrated. It told me to stay curious about the future. I slipped the gun back under the bed and I've never contemplated suicide so closely again.
At 18 I left home and finally broke out of my fear of talking to people. Long story short im now I'm a property manager at a motel and nobody would guess that I was ever "shy" (or that I actually still am, but just a big fat pretender.)
I wish I could say that I'm a success story. But instead I'm a person who can't escape loneliness. My mother once said I have a black heart that will never truly let anyone inside. I resented that, but there are moments where I wonder if she was spot on. There are people who want to be my friend. I keep them at arms length. They're mistaken. I'm a bad friend, because I don't know how to friend. I've been in the same relationship for 9 years, and I have a 12 year old child. My child is the only person I'm certain about loving, but the poor girl.. I keep her at arms length too sometimes. It's all I know. My partner is my best friend and we do everything together. But he's a simple man. He doesn't read, he doesn't like discussing deeper ideas or theories, etc. We mostly play video games and watch shows, which is fine to only have that in common.
Between my partner and my kid I'm never "alone". But I struggle to shed that lonely feeling of not being "like everyone else". A monster in woman's clothing. And no matter how much I try to think my way around my sadness and anxieties, they still live here. That worthless, stinky, fat little girl is still who lives in here.
submitted by fancy_leftovers to lonely [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 04:25 dollcollective I Was a Last-Minute Replacement in an Off-Broadway Play. Something Else Was Backstage With Us.

When I was getting started, an actor I knew gave me some really good advice. While deciding whether or not to take a certain role, consider three factors: the money, the show, and the people. If at least two of those things are good, accept the job. If they’re paying you well and you love the play, you won’t mind putting up with shitty people. If it’s a great show with a cast full of friends, but you’re not getting paid so well, that’s still alright, it’ll be artistically fulfilling. If it’s a bad show but you love the cast and you’re making money, you’ll probably have the time of your life making fun of the playwright backstage and laughing all the way to the bank.
What my friend failed to mention is that as an aspiring actor, you don’t usually get to be that picky. When I got the call from my agent that a production of The Bacchae was urgently seeking a new chorus member, all I could see were dollar signs. My survival job had just fallen through (the family I nannied for was moving upstate, insisting that Manhattan had just gotten “too dangerous” for their toddler), and my savings were only going to cover my rent for another month.
It was raining the day of my audition, and my train got delayed. I showed up panting (I had to run from the subway station) and my hair a disaster. Luckily, in The Bacchae, the chorus is full of… well… Bacchae. Fervent followers of Dionysus, wild women, drunk and running through the countryside. In the climax of the play, they crowd the protagonist in a frenzy, literally ripping him limb from limb.
I’ll never know if it was my frenetic energy from barely making it to the theater on time, or my actual acting, but I got the part. My costume fitting was the next day– they weren’t kidding about urgently needing a replacement. Which thrilled me, because I wasn’t kidding about urgently needing the money. At the fitting, I discovered something my agent failed to mention about the production: this wasn’t just any version of The Bacchae, it was a recreation– an attempt to perform the play in the traditional Greek style. In other words, everyone was wearing masks.
I’ve never been fond of masks. We had to do a few assignments with them in my college acting courses; covering your face can enhance the physicality of your body, something like that. But I never liked wearing them, or seeing other people wearing them. It wouldn’t be fair to call it a full-on fear, but the stiffness, the lack of expression, gives me a weird feeling in my stomach. And wearing one, your field of vision limited, your mouth covered, making it harder to breathe, harder to project your voice– I don’t like it. It’s as simple as that.
But I needed the money. My costume wasn’t ugly, per se, just strange: a long white dress, or maybe toga is a better word, the fabric about the thickness of a burlap sack. My mask, stark white, paper mache, covering my entire face except my eyes, the mouth carved to imitate a grin. No shoes. My hair tucked into a wild black wig– we wore wigs, they explained to me, so the chorus could be identical, indistinguishable. We moved as one, spoke as one, and were meant to look like one. They even made sure to cast women of the same height. In our costumes, it was impossible to tell which of us was which.
It didn’t help that I was an outsider to the rest of the cast, joining the show weeks into rehearsals. Everyone seemed annoyed that they had to teach me the blocking, the inflection of the lines (so my voice didn’t stick out from the other chorus girls), and where to go backstage during scenes with no chorus. A few people tried to be nice to me, but quickly gave up when they realized I knew nothing about Greek theater, or masked theater, or the avant garde. My last show had been a regional production of Cats, for God’s sake. I was totally out of my element.
Things got especially sour when I tried to ask what had happened to the girl I was replacing. Nobody wanted to talk about it. People gasped when I brought it up. The clearest answer I got was a whispered, hesitant, “she fell,” but the person wouldn’t elaborate any further. The cast seemed superstitious, uncomfortable, like talking about her would cause them to suffer her fate: removal from the show. And it was clear that, aside from me, everyone else loved this show. The actor playing Dionysus, the couple of times he deigned to talk to me, just kept gushing about how honored he was to play this role, how electrifying it felt to put his history minor to use, to show people a piece of the world’s theatrical beginnings.
I thought the show was fine. Kinda boring, kinda scary. I don’t think I “get” The Bacchae. In brief, the story is about Dionysus, son of Zeus, disguised as a human. He and his followers (the chorus) show up in a town, but the leader of the town, Pentheus, is upset about it. He doesn’t understand why all these women are acting crazy, and he arrests Dionysus, not believing him to be an actual God. As punishment, Dionysus possesses Pentheus’s own mother with the same madness as his followers, and together, with their bare hands, they rip Pentheus apart. His mom walks back into town holding her son’s head, thinking it to be, in her madness, the head of a lion. When she realizes what she’s done, she is overwhelmed by grief, and futilely attempts to put Pentheus’s mutilated corpse back together. Dionysus returns, basically saying, “well, he said I wasn’t a God, and that’s blasphemous, so he got what was coming to him.” Pentheus’s mother is exiled.
It’s incredibly dark. In the reviews, critics called it daring, challenging, a bloody spectacle, a feminist masterpiece. I don’t really get what part of “a man who’s a God possesses women’s minds, driving them to murder” screams “feminism,” but hey, I’m the girl who commuted to New Jersey every day for four months to do Cats, what do I know?
Here’s something I do know: the other chorus girls did not like me. And they took their jobs seriously. As we waited to enter for each scene, there was dead quiet in the wings. Usually, there’s some light joking, maybe quickly running lines, maybe physical warmups, shaking out your nerves– I tried to do this once. Before our entrance at the top of the show, we all gathered in the stage right wing, all twelve of us, a perfect and identical dozen. It was a dress rehearsal. No audience. I did a few jumping jacks, trying to hype myself up. Another masked girl grabbed my bicep, hard. When I turned, she just shook her head “no.” Just a simple, silent, “no.” We don’t do that here. We stand silently in the wings, focusing on our craft, breathing, waiting for our entrance. I never tried it again.
When you can’t talk to your coworkers, acting becomes a lot less fun. The collaboration element is totally gone. And honestly, the “acting” element was gone for me, too. How am I supposed to find my character or sense of identity in a role when my role is “don’t let your voice stick out, don’t take a wrong step, blend in perfectly with eleven women who dislike you?”
So before the shows, instead of chatting, or doing jumping jacks, I wandered the theater. I’ve always loved theaters; the dramatic architecture, the ornate prosceniums, the stark contrast of backstage, so dark, so dusty. The theater was no Broadway house, but it had a fly system (which we didn’t use, because the Greeks wouldn’t have been able to fly anything in), just over three hundred seats (including a mezzanine– fancy!), and lots of backstage space. I could say more about it, because I spent hours during the run of the show wandering, but it wouldn’t be terribly interesting to anyone who’s not me. Just know, it was a beautiful old theater– and I mean OLD. Built in the 1910s, just before the Great Depression. I used to love imagining how many generations of people had performed on that stage, imagining what they’d think of this show, or what they’d think of me.
About a week into my wandering, on some fifteen-minute break, I was looking at the ladder that led up to the catwalk– a long, thin metal walkway stretching across the stage from above, usually used for hanging lights. I wondered how long it had been since it was used during a show. I wondered if it was even safe. What would the view be like from up there, seeing the entire stage from thirty feet in the air?
I slowly looked up the ladder. I wouldn’t actually climb it. That would be crazy, right? I’m not particularly good with heights. As my eyes lifted, I made eye contact– or rather, mask contact– with someone. A fellow chorus girl, up on the catwalk.
I stopped breathing for a second. What was she doing up there? I started to say something stupid, like, “Why are you up there?” when just as quickly as the face appeared, it vanished. I saw her white robed form retreat down the catwalk, heading for a different ladder, probably. It was weird. Why did she run? Embarrassed to be caught somewhere she shouldn’t be?
I allowed myself to entertain a little fantasy: maybe she was just like me. Maybe she also hated the other chorus girls, and didn’t “get” The Bacchae. Maybe she was exploring the theater for fun on our break, enjoying the old architecture, like I did. I had no idea who she was under the mask, and she had no idea who I was. She probably thought I was one of the normal judgemental girls, and ran off before I could tell on her to the stage manager.
I was filled with unfounded hope. Could I make a friend here? Was it possible? After two and a half weeks of silence from the other girls, it was hard to imagine. How would I find her? How would I let her know it was me– that I had seen her on the catwalk, and we were the same?
After that day, I got much more observant. When the director called for a break, instead of immediately retreating into the depths of backstage, I watched my eleven doppelgangers carefully, tracking who went for water, who went back to the dressing rooms, who ran off towards the vending machines. It was hard to tell everyone apart, but people had to take their masks off to drink water eventually. I memorized faces and tried to keep track of them. I started to get a handle on everyone’s patterns, narrowing down potential adventurers.
It was impossible. Eleven people is too many to observe. But I’m an actor. Memorizing shit is literally my job. By week four, just days from opening, I had three potential girls. I tried to stick close to them during rehearsals, picking one to follow each day, but nobody ever wandered towards the catwalk. Maybe the girl, whoever she was, had been scared away from adventuring when I caught her. I started to lose hope. We were opening soon– I should focus on making my entrances, not making friends.
But then I saw her again.
This time, it was half an hour before the curtain went up for our invited dress rehearsal. The press was there. I was nervous. I knew I had my part down, but when you’re doing a show, no matter how prepared you are, there’s always the lingering fear that you’ll freeze up, forget everything, and ruin everyone’s hard work. It just means that you care. I was surprised that I cared so much. I still didn’t even get the play. I couldn’t let the other girls see me weak. I barely show my real feelings to people I care about, much less mean actresses who look down on me. To get away from it all, I wandered down to another unused part of the stage: the orchestra pit. We did have music in the show, but the Greeks didn’t have orchestra pits. So it was closed off, being used as storage.
I loved it down there. I loved looking through the storage bins, finding props from long-forgotten productions– sometimes I would find something incredible, something I swore was from the day the theater opened, something old and valuable– and usually, I could never find it again. Those bins were a treasure trove. Of all the weird little spaces I found backstage, the pit was my favorite. I felt like a real explorer down there, illuminating my path with my phone flashlight, getting spooked when a mouse ran over my foot (of course the theater had mice, it was more than a hundred years old! And besides, every building has mice in New York City).
That day, I wasn’t there to look around. Just to sit. Just to catch my breath. I tiptoed down the creaky steps, and plopped myself on the ground, surrounded by bins. I inhaled and exhaled, smelling the mildew-y scent of old props on every side of me. And that’s when I heard a noise. Not a mouse noise– I was used to those. Something bigger. I turned my phone flashlight on immediately, calling, “hello?”
And the light landed on a mask, just like mine. Mine which was currently off, because I was doing my breathing exercises. I felt exposed– she could see my face, but I couldn’t see hers. I stood up. “You scared me!”
She didn’t respond. She looked at me for a second, and started to retreat the other way, towards the stairs at the other side of the pit.
“Wait!” I called. “I won’t tell anyone I saw you!”
She stopped for a second. But then she kept walking. I stood and followed. “Please stop. Can I at least know who you are? I don’t fit in with most of the chorus girls–”
I reached for her long white toga. I swear, I had it in my hand, but somehow, she slipped away. I staggered a bit, almost tripped, confused that I hadn’t made contact with her costume. And when I looked back up, I only saw a glimpse of her disappearing up the stairs. I tried to follow, again, but I found that side of the pit’s stairs reached a dead end. I didn’t understand how she’d gotten out. And when I looked back down at my phone, it was time for places. Disappointed and defeated, I rushed away to the other stairs, making my way to the stage right wing to wait for my entrance.
I counted heads immediately when I arrived. Maybe she hadn’t made it back yet. But, alas: twelve. All accounted for. I nudged a girl next to me, subtly. “Who was the last one here besides me?”
She just stared at me for a moment, which came off as very creepy through the blank dead stare of her mask. “How the fuck am I supposed to know? We all look exactly the same.”
I sighed. “Okay. Thanks.” For nothing, I thought bitterly.
The invited dress went well. The press liked it, as I’ve already said. I was distracted the entire time. After that day, I made it a habit to count all the girls when the stage manager called for “places.” If I was right about this girl, she, like me, would be one of the last, if not the last one there. She would be wandering, exploring, getting away from the bullies.
I wish I hadn’t done this. I wish I’d given up when she disappeared on a dead-end staircase. I wish I’d never seen her on the catwalk. Because when I started counting heads, I noticed something impossible. Sometimes, before we went on, I counted thirteen identical masked faces.
It was a chorus of twelve. It was supposed to be twelve. I’d recount. Recount again. Thirteen. A chill went down my spine. We all looked the same. Same masks, same togas, same wigs. Who was the imposter? How could anyone be an imposter? It didn’t make sense. How would they get into the theater? How would they get a costume?
I started counting more often. Between scenes, in the dressing rooms, even on stage during dull moments. It fluctuated. Sometimes I’d count twelve for a whole day, an entire show, and sigh in relief, feeling like some curse was broken. But the next day, at least once, I’d count thirteen.
And it seemed as if one masked pair of eyes was always trained on me. I don’t know how she knew it was me. We looked the same. But she’d stare. It felt scary, but also ridiculous– I couldn’t be sure it was the same person looking every time. I couldn’t be sure it was unlucky number thirteen. But I felt like it was.
I felt a lot of things. I felt like I couldn’t tell anyone. The other girls already didn’t like me– I couldn’t have them thinking I was crazy. And admitting the presence of the thirteenth would mean admitting to my adventures into forbidden backstage areas. I couldn’t lose this job. I was living paycheck to paycheck. I wasn’t eating well, or sleeping well– maybe this was all a hallucination. And somehow, my biggest feeling was that if I told someone about the thirteenth, I’d never see her again.
And I needed to see her again. The obsession had only gotten stronger. I knew, somehow, deep inside, that she was the one I had seen on the catwalk and in the orchestra pit. I no longer wanted to be her friend– I wanted to corner her. To ask who she was, and why she was sneaking in as if she was one of us. I wanted to ask what she wanted from me.
Because she must want something from me, right? Why else would she stare? Why would she appear only to me?
The timing never lined up. The show had opened at this point, and I had a job to do: delighting the audience. I couldn’t skip my entrance to catch number thirteen. The chorus formations would look ridiculous with a missing person. And as much as the other girls hated me, I owed it to them as my costars to make them look good.
Logically, I knew there was only one person the thirteenth could be: Catalina, the actress I’d replaced. She must be jealous of me. Bitter. Maybe she wanted to take my role, like I’d taken hers. It would be insane, but it was all that made sense. She was the only other person who had the costume, who knew the keypad code to get into the theater. She must have recovered from her fall and come to find me.
It was almost like a game. It definitely made the show more interesting for me. Before I realized what was happening, I dreaded performances. I felt stupid, taking on this role in a show I didn’t even understand. But now I had so much to do. I had to plan.
I started showing up early, an hour before my call time. I walked my old spots, thinking I may see her. The other chorus girls were impressed that I was showing up early, thinking it showed some sort of dedication to the show. I think they even started to hate me less. They still detested any attempts at conversation in the wings, but in the dressing room, I started to have a few breakthroughs. In particular, I started a semi-friendship with Erin. Ironically, she had been one of the three women I thought may be the thirteenth, until I realized the thirteenth wasn’t really one of us at all.
She was the only person who I could actually ask about Catalina. “Did she ever say anything about the theater? The building, I mean? Did she have a favorite part of it?”
Erin would laugh at my seemingly random specificity. “We weren’t close, Michelle. I have no idea what she thought about the theater.”
“What did she do on her breaks?”
Erin thought for a second. “I don’t know. I never saw her at the vending machines, or the dressing room. I guess she found some quiet place to run lines.”
That confirmed it, for me. A quiet place like the catwalk. Or the orchestra pit. We were three weeks into our five week run when I came up with a plan to catch Catalina. It wasn’t a great plan, and I had no idea if it would work, but showing up an hour early every day was making me tired and producing zero results. I needed a new strategy. I realized that after seeing her in the pit, I only ever saw the thirteenth when all twelve of us were together.
So I told a white lie. One night after the show, when everyone was changing in the dressing room, I appealed to my fellow chorus girls. “Are you guys busy before the show tomorrow?” I innocently asked. “I’m feeling a little shaky on some of the entrances. If we could all get here just twenty minutes before our call time tomorrow, I’d love to run some stuff with you guys. I’ve been running it on my own, but without the entire team, I don’t always remember where I fit.”
To my surprise and intense joy, everyone agreed. They really did seem to respect me more when I looked like I was taking my role seriously. I could barely sleep that night, I was so excited to see if my plan worked. And hey, if it didn’t, I had two more weeks of shows to think up something else.
It was a Sunday night, our last show of the week. Mondays are often “dark days” in professional theater, meaning there are no shows that day to give the team a rest. I had planned this on purpose– if I failed, I had a dark day to reflect on that failure and try again.
At 5:40, twenty minutes before our call time, all the girls were assembled and in costume. We started running entrances. After ten minutes, I thought my plan had failed. We had run our first three entrances, and I never counted more than twelve heads in the wings. But around 5:55, as we got to our entrances in act two, offstage, I locked eyes with a mask. A thirteenth mask.
I quickly told everyone “I think I got it, you guys, thank you so much for coming early!” Everyone mumbled that it was no problem, that they were happy to help.
The thirteenth mask broke eye contact with me, looking around in confusion– perhaps distress. The girls started to trickle back towards the dressing room. The thirteenth turned and power-walked away. I shoved through the crowd to catch her, not calling out like I had in the past. I knew she didn’t respond to that. I knew I had to catch her now or never. Once we were out of the crowd’s eyeline, I began to run. She ran, too. “You’re not getting away this time!” I yelled, like some kind of cartoon superhero. My adrenaline was pumping, and blood rushed to my ears.
After I yelled, I suddenly became aware of another set of running feet behind me. “Michelle? Where are you going?” It was Erin’s voice.
“Don’t follow me!” I hastily called back, picking up speed. The thirteenth also picked up speed. Though she was running just as fast as I was, she showed no signs of exertion. I couldn’t hear heavy breathing, or heavy feet on the floor. It was like she was gliding. It infuriated me.
Erin didn’t let up. “Michelle, the stage manager is gonna wonder where we are!”
I ignored her. The thirteenth rounded a corner, and I realized where she was going: the catwalk. The ladder.
She ascended the rungs rapidly, like a spider. I clamored up much less gracefully. Erin’s voice had a heavy tinge of concern. “Michelle, what are you doing?! It’s not safe up there!”
“Then don’t follow me!” I yelled back, exasperated. “This is between me and her!” Despite my vocal warning, I heard Erin climbing behind me.
Once on the metal rail, I looked both ways, terrified she’d escaped me again. But her white toga was just a few feet away, retreating into darkness. I lunged at her. The entire catwalk shook. The thirteenth and I both grabbed the railing to steady ourselves. We met eyes. Or rather, we met masks.
“You have nowhere to go.” I stated.
I heard Erin reaching the top of the ladder behind me. “Michelle, come down, please. You’re scaring me.”
“I can’t. I finally have her.” I took a step towards the thirteenth. She took an equal and opposite step back. “Take the mask off.” I beckoned her. “I know it’s you, Catalina.”
I felt the rail shake slightly as Erin got on it. “What are you talking about, Michelle?!”
“She’s been sneaking in, Erin! She’s been standing in the wings with us before we enter! For weeks!” I took another step towards the thirteenth. In my peripheral vision, I could see how high we were above the stage. Thirty feet. You could die, falling from that height.
“It’s not Catalina. It can’t be. Stop this.” Erin called. Finally, frustrated, I turned towards her.
“Who else could it be?!”
Erin had taken her mask off. Her face was streaked with terror. “Catalina died, Michelle. She fell off this catwalk, directly onto her face, and she died. Please come down with me. I don’t know who you’re talking to, and I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but it isn’t worth it.”
“What are you talking about? I’m talking to–”
I turned back, and she was gone. Vanished like a bad dream. “I swear to God, Erin.” I started to say. “She was right in front of me. I chased her here–”
I turned back to Erin. The thirteenth was behind her.
It made no sense. Nobody can move that fast. Nobody can be in front of me one second and behind me the next. It was inhuman. I stopped speaking. I stopped breathing. It sucks to learn that in a fight-or-flight situation, my answer is to freeze.
Erin must’ve seen how my face changed. “Michelle?” She asked quietly. “What’s wrong?”
Behind her, the thirteenth raised a hand to her mask. Her hands were impossibly pale. How had I never noticed that before? She gripped the mask in her hand. Time stretched. It must’ve only been a second, because Erin didn’t move. But it felt like years of my life passed me by as the thirteenth, inch by inch, raised her mask from her face. Or– raised her mask.
Because there was no face.
Under the mask, pale and gruesome, was a bloody flat edge. Broken, disgusting, it was impossible to make out eyes, or a nose, or a mouth. Inside a somewhat face-shaped frame of stark-white skin, all I could see was flesh, red and raw, squished in on itself. Like someone had fallen from a very high height. And landed on their face.
By the time I finally began to react, it was too late. The thirteenth– or, Catalina– or, the ghost, or– whatever the fuck that thing was. It moved its hands from the mask to Erin’s shoulders. And it pushed. And she screamed, agonizingly loud, as she flew over the side of the railing. And she screamed for the second or so she was in the air. I was screaming, too. And after the crunch of her body hitting the wooden floor of the stage, everyone else screamed, cast and crew alike.
I stared down at her limp form from thirty feet up. Her legs were twisted the wrong way. A pool of blood began to seep out of her. When I looked up again, I expected the thirteenth to be gone, but it wasn’t. With no eyes, it was also looking down at Erin. At what it had done.
And then, slowly, it turned towards me. On all fours, backwards, I scrambled away from it on the catwalk, terrified, not wanting to be next. The thirteenth’s shoulders shook rapidly, like a person laughing. But it made no sound. It never made a sound. Not going up the stairs of the orchestra pit. Not when it pushed Erin. And not as it climbed back down the ladder, rung by rung. I found myself alone on the catwalk.
Erin survived, somehow, paralyzed from the waist down. Apparently she fell on her legs, which, when you’re falling from thirty feet up, is a good thing. If she’d gone down head first, there was no chance. The show had to close, of course. When they lost Catalina a few weeks into rehearsal, she was replaceable. But with me refusing to go on, and Erin in the hospital, there was nothing to be done. I haven’t seen Erin since that day. I feel too guilty. But I was never arrested, so I guess she told the authorities that I didn’t push her. I don’t know what she told them. I don’t know what I would’ve told them, had they asked me.
I don’t do stage plays anymore. The family I used to nanny for gave me a star-studded recommendation, and now I make my living taking care of a five-year-old and a two-year-old for another filthy-rich family. I still act, but I only audition for film work.
I don’t even see plays these days. I won’t set foot in a theater. If the thirteenth had vanished off that catwalk, maybe things would be different. Maybe I could chalk it up to an extreme hallucination, some terrifying creature my mind brewed up to cope with the stress of the show and paying rent. Maybe I could even forget its bloody mess of viscera in the vague shape of a face.
But I saw it go down that ladder. Rung by fucking rung. And I know it’s still out there.
Erin was unlucky. Erin was a victim of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. And if I step inside a theater again, some way, somehow, I know the thirteenth will get me on another catwalk.
This time, I’ll be the one going over the railing.
And I’ve never once landed on my feet.
submitted by dollcollective to nosleep [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 04:09 swordytv Changes / Feedback / Bugs

tldr : Awesome game with a lot of missing features. Blizzard made the perfect game for casual players but made it so simple that the engame is just a headache to play. They wanted to create something new but ended creating d3 with a lifeless open wolrd map.
The feedback im giving is not coming from an elite nor a casual player... i put myself between these two.
Changes i wish they would add/change :
Rewards & Drops: This part is my nightmare, as i saw how people loved the low drop rates in the beta i had hopes that this is gonna be the normal and every legendary drop gives me joy but no... after reaching lvl45+ legendary items drop like trash and in few hours your entire build is done. (any build). Isnt it better to grind for the stuff you want instead of getting everything instantly ?
Gold : I know this is a diablo thing but cant we have smaller gold amounts? like 10-100-1000-10k? watching these millions grow and spend is weird and removes the value. If my friend asks how much to enchante a weapon its so much more user friendly so say 500 than 133million...
Helltide : by far the best feature imo. Farming is rewarding there.
PvP : i saw other arpg games struggle with this to work for years and probably Lost Ark does it the best where you dont fight with your pve gear. If pve gear stays in pvp zones its gonna stay broken.
Aspects & Dungeons : dungeons are fine but the way we get all the aspects is again too easy, an aspect should be dropped inside that specific dungeon, so its worth going in more times, lucky drop is more rewarding.
Endgame & stats : Well the endgame grind loop is pretty much same as in D3. The nightmare dungeons/capstone are nice but there has to be some limits for builds. Lets dont turn this game into a run simulator with trillions of damage numbers floating above us. for example add limit to run speed.
Gems : that bag is needed asap
Inventory : the size is okay but dont make a dungeon drop 4x more than i can carry... this teleporting in and out is annoying
Map : (UI) : some filters would be nice and a list for all the sidequests which is done and not.
Bugs : - monsters stay dead in air - a lot of elites sometimes spawn inside cities - after teleporting skills cant be used - some fire effect from elites make the fps drop insanely - after joining and leaving the group brokes your own man, nothing is refreshing - sometimes and event pops up and randomly disappears. - there are still many sidequest with no cutscene skip function - after todays patch some monsters spawn under ground or in walls
<3
submitted by swordytv to diablo4 [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 04:09 DorkyWaddles Was using pole arm weapons such as spears defensively to kill effectively required little to no training & physical conditioning?

I notice many movies portray pole arm weapons such as pikes, naginitas, guandaos, halberds, and spears as being a very easy weapon to use. You just hold the spear,pike, or whatever pole weapon and wait for the enemy to stupidly run into it.
The best example is the Stirling Battle Scene in Bravhart where William Wallace's soldiers awaited for the English Heavy Cavalry to charge at the Scots. The Scots merely placed large wooden stakes on the ground and angled it at the English Horses and they were slaughtered as they charged into it. So many other movies with troops using spears as their primary weapon portrays using spears in a similar fashion. You hold it and form whole wall of spears and just wait for your enemies to stupidly run into it and die.
Even after the initial charge, using the pole arms to kill is portrayed simply as pushing it to the next guy in front of you, wait for that guy to be impaled and fall, then hit the next guy in line with it and repeat. 300 shows this perfectly. Watch the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeK-d553Mjk
As you seen in the clip, the Spartan decimated the Persians with a tactic so simple. Simply push the spear into the next guy in front of you in line after the initial charge and push the spear into him killing him like he's a human shape cardboard stand that you see in stores and he falls to the ground. Waits for the next Persian in role to appear and they suddenly push the spear into the next guy and kill him and keep repeating until an entire Persian unit was decimated.
Spear battles are often protrayed as this in movies once the initial moment where enemies rush into spears with no regard for their own lives and get impaled like barbecue on a hot fourth of July. Push your spear like your enemy is n inflated baloon and you will kill them by the hundreds.
So its portrayed as so long as you don't lose your balance and remaining holding it pointed at your enemy on the defensive, you simply stay where you are and let your enemy charge you and the killing commences as you pull the spear and push it towards the next marching troops in line at the front row after the initial charge was stopped by your spears.
Even martial art movies portrays spears int he same manner. Often the master martial artist awaits for his gang of enemies to run at him and suddenly he starts killing hordes of men with simple pushes of the spear as the come nearby with a fancy trick from staff fighting thrown in every 3rd or fourth bad guy.
However I remember a martial arts documentary in which some guys were in Japan trying to learn how to use the naginata. The weapon was heavier than many martial arts movie portrays them as. In addition the martial artist teaching them showed them just how clumsy using the weapon was if you are untrained as he made them hit some stationary objects.
The martial artist even made the guests spar with him and he showed them just how goddamn easy it was to deflect and parry thrusts from a naginata and he showed them just how vulnerable they were once a single thrust was parried. He also showed that not just naginata but also yari spears, Japanese lances, and such pole weapons were very easy to disarmed if you weren't train.
So I am wondering after seeing this documentary. Movies show spears as being such simple weapons anyone can use them while being on the defensive against a charging army as I stated in my description above. But the Martial Artist int he documentary really makes me wonder how hard it is to simply just stand there and wait for your enemies to charge into your spear and also how simplistic it was to push your spear into new men repeatedly.
Was using a spear-like weapon much harder than movies portray and require a lot of training like the martial arts documentary I saw show?
Would a spear wall formation be enough to kill raging vikings or naked Celts as long as you stand your ground patiently and wait for them to rush into the wall? Or is physical conditioning and actual training with the weapon required?
submitted by DorkyWaddles to weapons [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 03:20 TheSmogmonsterZX The Daughter that Follows - Chapter 27 - Reunited - Part 5

Disclaimer: Registered trademarks and copyrights are properties of their rightful owners. As this series jumps realities very often it is hard to track that info.
DM, the Digitalman, the Scion of Variable is a creation of my good friend who does not use Reddit and is used with permission.
The Pokémon Lucario is © The Pokemon Company.
“When you're in your darkest place, you give yourself hope and that's inner strength.”
― Uncle Iroh
The Daughter that Follows
Chapter 27
Reunited
Part 5
“So, are we all ready?” Darius asked as he rolled out a second grill in his backyard. He had decided to host the mini-reunion for Alan and his friend.
“We are so friggin’ ready.” Kenji grinned. “I can almost taste the meat...”
“Why is he acting like he hasn’t had meat in forever?” Alan asked Brooklynn while pointing to her husband.
“I wish I knew, he has his own grill.” Brooklyn shook her head. “Cooks good corn.”
“Speaking of, I got these for you.” Alan held up several cobs. “Won’t be a competition because Vegeta thinks vegetables are a sin.”
Brooklyn rolled her eyes, “I know the type.”
“So...” Sammie pointed into Darius’ house. “Is your other guest okay?”
“He’s fine, he just doesn’t like the sun that much.” Alan grinned.
“He’s a vampire.” Yaz said.
“Don’t say that.” Sammie chided her wife.
“Technically he’s a nosferatu.” Alan wavered his hand. “But also be quiet, I want Anna surprised, and Salem surprised.”
“Why is he getting surprised?” Kenji asked.
Yaz smiled, “You didn’t pay attention to his shirt, did you?”
“I think he might be a fan of Alan’s friend.” Sammie said.
Not a moment after that a hole opened above Darius’ driveway. They heard Ben shout in surprise as he fell out with Anna and Vegeta.
“You know, you’re brave...” Vegeta said, “But you need to have more spatial awareness if you’re not gonna fly.”
“We can’t fly here.” Ben said as he was flown over Darius’ roof and sat down.
“Where’s Anna?” Alan asked.
“She saw someone attacking Spider-Men.” Vegeta shrugged.”Dropped us off and ran off.”
“Oh.” Alan blinked.
“Yeah, it looked like some wasp thingy.” Vegeta flew back and returned with a huge slab of meat. “Wagusaurus.”
Alan stopped to think for a moment before another hole in reality opened and Anna walked through covered in orange and green gunk.
“Hose?” She asked grumpily.
Darius pointed to the side of his house.
“So I take it, it squished good?” Salem snickered from the sliding door.
Anna froze and looked up. Then she looked at her father.
“Surprise.” Alan smirked.
Anna ran up and hugged her father. “That’s for surprising me.”
Alan nodded. “I kinda figured.”
Salem was laughing like mad as Anna went to hose herself off. Then he froze as he saw Vegeta cutting up the meat.
“Surprise.” Alan smiled and tapped Vegeta on the shoulder. “You gotta fan here, man.”
“Huh?” Vegeta turned to see the fanged nosferatu staring and pointing. “Hey, you want to help? This stuff is heavy.”
Salem just nodded and helped the saiyan prince separate out the meat.
Anna came walking back around the corner, she had used her aura to squeeze the water from her clothes and skin, though her hair was still wet. She giggled as her father simply eradicated the gunk that was on his clothes.
“Thank you.” Anna smiled up at Alan.
“Yeah, well he’ll be going with you.” Alan smiled. “Plus this needed to happen outside of a battle zone.”
“Oh yeah.” Anna nodded emphatically. “Completely.”
Alan smiled as he clapped his hands. “All right! Everyone get ready for a taste test sensation! Except Brooklynn, I’ll have your corn done not long after.”
“What is she vegetarian?” Vegeta snapped.
“Vegan.” Brooklyn said as she crossed her arms.
“I make meat.” Vegeta crossed his arms as if to challenge her.
“Good for you, my husband is who you want to impress.” She nodded to Kenji.
“Huh, fair.” Vegeta nodded. “Why is he staring at the grills?”
“He grills too, but for fun.” Brooklynn smiled.
“Hey, amateur!” Vegeta stomped forward.
Kenji flinched. “Yes?”
“You’re my second.” Vegeta grinned.
Kenji smiled and saluted, “Yes sir!”
“Ben, you got my stuff?” Alan asked.
“Stuff?” Vegeta asked as Ben walked out with a wheeled tray filled with cooking paraphernalia.
“Oh, now we’re getting serious!” Vegeta grinned. “Anna, you got my stuff?”
Anna nodded and tossed out a pink and blue capsule that turned into another wheeled tray with similar cooking tools on it.
“Just so we’re clear, I’m recusing myself.” Anna smiled.
“Clever girl.” Vegeta stared at her with a vicious smile..
“Man if you knew the history of that phrase here.” Alan shook his head. “All right folks, quarter of a steak each for the taste testing. Be honest, put your fork on the plate you like most.”
“Do we get ketchup?” Anna asked with a devious grin.
Both men stopped and glared.
“I found the heckler.” Alan said through gritted teeth.
“Considering her parentage, I’m not surprised.” Vegeta nodded.
(T)(D)(T)(F)---(T)(F)(T)(W)
Darkseid paced on Apokalips.
He had been shunted back to his planet and reality with ease by the ghostly reaper. He had been embarrassed for the last time by the Scions. He would not tolerate it anymore.
“Kalibak!” He shouted for his son.
Kalibak came forward and kneeled. “Father.”
“Prepare all to attack Earth. If I cannot go to them I will draw them to me. We will slaughter Superman's adopted homeworld.” Darkseid grinned.
The sound of chains echoed through the halls.
“Alice?” Hare lifted his head.
“She’s coming...” March Hare’s vocalizer on the back of the warbeast he was attached to, sang to life.
Soon a woman in white with red on a half mask walked into view.
“And who are you?” Darkseid asked.
“I am called Kyton. I come from Alan Quain’s home reality.” She said as the chains holding Hare released him. “I am the Revenant of Heroes, element of metal.” March Hare’s brain case released itself and fell to the ground.
“FREEDOM!” The brains’ final thoughts shouted from the vocalizer.
“You will keep them no longer!” Kyton’s chains flew from openings and snagged the ragged body of Hare into a swirling portal.
“So it is war!” Darkseid grinned as lanced out a punch, but a wall of crystal rose up from the ground.
“I’m here to asshole.” Stephen Quain walked in as the air around all of Darkseid’s forces turned to solid crystalline bindings. “And we brought an old friend.”
A scream of rage tore through the air as a clown mask landed at Darkseid’s feet.
Darkseid looked down and was caught by a powerful uppercut, but it was nothing to him. He did recognize his opponent, they had taken him form Quain’s home reality and tormented him. They had tried to shatter the mask he wore only to find it resisted them at all attempts. He wore a new mask now, but Darkseid felt the same hidden power inside it. He grinned and grabbed the human’s fist and tossed him back.
“Dammnit!” SideEffect shouted. “If I could feel those bones I’d be even more pissed!”
“And now I am...” Darkseid looked outside his window to see a series of explosions ripple across Apokalips.
A man flew down to his window, a billowing red cape.
“I’m afraid not, Darkseid, this is the Scion’s war.” Superman smiled. “We’re just helping.” He flew in and slammed the leader of Apokalips through the walls.
Kyton looked at Stephen Quain, “Don’t kill the sapient ones.”
Stephne rolled his eyes. “Just because I have a history with the hairball doesn’t mean I’m trigger happy.”
Kalibak looked around in confusion. The crystal bindings were all too familiar and he looked at the human in fear. “Can you please not turn me into crystal again? It really hurts.”
Stephen rolled his eyes.
(T)(D)(T)(F)---(T)(F)(T)(W)
In the black space above Apokalips, a green form looked down upon the world. A scythe and sword were by his side, as was a young pale skinned woman. She shook her head but did not oppose the Scion.
“You started this early.” Death of the Endless sighed. “Why?”
“Because it’s the one thing no one would expect me to actually do.” Wraith drew his daggers from his side and looked them over. His black blade still had a knick in it from when a piece broke off in Atropos. “So I’ll make sure this entire war is off balance.”
Death of the Endless shook her head. “I think she got under your skin. So to speak.”
“She did.” Wraith acknowledged. “For this I am not Death. For this I am the endless rage of the murdered and unavenged. She wants this fight, I’ll give it to her, but on my terms.”
“What are your friends doing?” Death of the Endless looked down.
One half of Apokolips was now thoroughly exploded with mechanical animals running rampant over it. The other half was now a flower covered paradise that had strange trees restraining the parademons and other forces.
“What they do best.” Wraith smiled. “Chaos and Imbalance.”
“And what can we do?” The voice of Astral, Scion of Order asked as he appeared.
“Cage of this reality, separate it from itself.” Wraith leaned on his scythe.
“Shadow reality?” Astral asked.
Wraith nodded.
“I’m gonna need my buddy down there.” Astral nodded.
“I’m your buddy?!” Perfection cooed as he appeared. “Hiya D.o.E.! How’s Delirium?”
“Delerious.” Death of the Endless smiled with a nod.
“All right!” Perfection cheered. “One shadow realm coming up!” He snapped his fingers and a wig very similar to a popular card game anime character’s hair appeared on his head and his clothes shifted to a similar style.
“Does that mean I have to be Kaiba?” Astral sighed.
“Would you?” Perfection asked with a pleading look.
“Okay, fine. This once.” Astral sighed and his trench coat shifted to that of another coat similar to the other one’s rival.
“I’m not watching this.” Wraith sighed as he vanished.
“Man, what a party pooper.” Perfection sighed. “Well it’s time to get twisted!”
(T)(D)(T)(F)---(T)(F)(T)(W)
Anna sat watching her friends and her father. Everyone was relaxed and the party was winding to a close. Vegeta was busy going over a speech with her dad and Salem was busy trying to understand how Ben survived a Carnotaurus as a teenager with no powers.
“We will go to our final battle soon.” Rio sat beside her enjoying some of the last steak.
“Well not our last.” Anna smiled.
Rio shook her head. “I cannot go with you beyond this.”
Anna looked at Rio. “Did I say something, do something?”
Rio shook her head. “I have a responsibility I too will be stepping into, at Arceus’ last request.”
Anna hugged Rio. “You could have said something.”
“I was conflicted.” Rio admitted, “But it was Arlina that made me realize I had to do it.”
Anna nodded. “You’ll always be my sister.”
“You will always be welcome in my world.” Rio smiled and gave a happy yip.
Anna smiled. “Bonds beyond life and death.”
“Bonds beyond time and space.” Rio said as a compliment to it. “I will cherish the time we have had together.”
Anna smiled and held up the pokeball.
“Oh no,we still need that, I don’t want to travel the multiverse exposed to it!” Rio barked nervously.
Anna laughed. “Okay, One last big adventure.”
“Once more unto the breach, my friends.” Alan said as he sat next to them.
“What?” Anna asked.
“The Bard himself.” Alan smiled. “Henry the Fifth.”
Anna nodded. “I’m scared.”
Alan nodded. “So am I. I could lose the most important people to me. But it has to stop, she has to be stopped, he has to be stopped. No more.”
Anna nodded.
“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more, Or close the wall up with our English dead.” Yaz said. “Act Three, Scene One.”
“Indeed.” Alan smiled and nodded. “I better pick up Teal’c and the other’s too.”
Anna looked at her father quizzically.
“He sounds a lot like Kratos. But he enjoys breaking False gods, so...” He paused. “Disturbingly coincidental hobbies.”
Anna giggled.
“How many of my friends have that hobby?” Alan pondered aloud.
Vegeta jumped up and waved his hand.
“No, Vegeta. Frieza was not a false god.” Alan sighed.
“Fair.” Vegeta harrumphed.
“Well I have to get this all cleaned up tomorrow.” Darius sighed.
Alan gave a baring laugh.
“What?” Darius asked.
“Darius.” Anna scoffed, “We aren’t trashy guests...” She focused and Hong Long came out from her aura and quickly began to pick up trash.
Alan simply focused on various small bits that flew to the trash cans. Within minutes the backyard and the grills were sparkling.
“Kami, do I miss the easy cleanups...” Vegeta sighed. “You know the stars here are bit different, but I like’em.”
Anna smiled and began to point out the constellations. Soon though Alan, Anna and their guests returned to the Camp for one more night of rest.
When they got back Anna and Alan crashed within minutes, Vegeta and Salem were still up staring out at the stars.
“You feel it?” Vegeta asked.
“Like a cat with its hackles up.” Salem nodded.
“What do you do, to keep her safe?” Vegeta asked.
“Got some magic, but mostly I use big guns.” Salem said. “I can hack, but it’s a tertiary skill nowadays. If I get pissed I can jack my bodies’ power up, but not anywhere near as powerful as you.”
Vegeta nodded. “Willing to die?”
“For them?” Salem just nodded.
“Good.” Vegeta nodded. “He wants me up front with Darkseid. How do you think I’ll fair?”
“Depends.” Salem shrugged, “What’s your newest technique?”
“Well I developed a bit of an Ego, if you will.” Vegeta grinned.
“No, not with Darkseid.” Salem shook his head. “Definitely poor on the aggression, but you do not want to take a hit. Especially the Omega Beams, you can’t dodge them, you can only put others in front of them.”
(T)(D)(T)(F)---(T)(F)(T)(W)
“He wasn’t there.” Consumption hissed. “Not even a trace of him.”
Atropos blinked in shock. She felt for certain Wraith would retreat to the Gates of Hell in their home reality. That he wasn’t there was a shock.
“That’s because he’s off picking a fight with Darkseid.” Odin shook his head. “Your plans aren’t coming together, Norn.”
“Don’t call me that.” Atropos said in an off-sweet tone. “I write fates, they make a show of them.”
Odin grunted. He was starting to regret working with this woman.
“As I said it doesn’t matter.” Atropos shoved her hand into her leg, golden ichor rolled out as she pulled an obsidian black shard from her leg. “A piece of his Sin left to remember him by.”
“I can use that.” Sindri shot up, “That will work” He walked over and held out his hands.
Atropos smiled and dropped it in his open palms. The sharp piece struck into the dwarf’s hand and his grief flashed before his eyes and he clutched his hand around the piece as he roared in pain. He forced himself over to his work table and pried it out of his own hand.
Atropos watched in shock.
“It wants you to suffer under your own guilt.” Sindri winced. “Vicious piece, but it has a piece of him, more than enough.”
“Then let Undeath Echo through the multiverse.” Atropos roared with laughter.
Odin watched the woman and slowly tilted his head towards her, then to Sindri. He nodded slowly as he realized what was happening. He had to get out of this mad house and fast.
(T)(D)(T)(F)---(T)(F)(T)(W)
Anna stretched as Hong Long coiled about in the sky, doing his own version of warming up. Alan yawned as he said his goodbyes to his co-workers and bosses.
Dr. Grant handed him a book, an old one signed by another Paleontologist. Quain grinned as he put the book signed by Tim Murphy into his bag. Dr. Ellie Sattler just gave him a hug. Dr. Wu who had the hardest time saying goodbye, despite the few words the two ever exchanged they had become good friends and trusted each other.
“Don’t go bad or I’ll be back.” Alan smiled.
“I don’t think I can anymore.” Wu smiled.
“He’s got the heart!” Anna shouted. “He took a while to grow into it though!”
Dr. Wu smiled and waved. “Take care of her, she still needs her father.”
Alan nodded and stood next to his daughter.
“What do you think, two holes?” Anna asked.
Alan blew a raspberry. “Why waste the energy?”
Anna nodded. “So who is going to make it?”
Alan stroked his chin. “Rock paper scissors?”
Anna rolled her eyes and Hong Long roared and tore into reality leaving an extra large whole gaping open.
“See you in a week!” Anna laughed as she ran and jumped through. Salem came screaming after her shouting about not being ready.
“That’s CHEATING!” Alan shouted as he raced after his daughter. Vegeta sighed and ran after his friend, grumbling about losing the steak-off once more.
As he breached into the multiverse he felt the power of his new nature course through him. He held it back, but just barely. He wanted to show Darkseid exactly how bad he had messed up.
Anna also felt the power crest in her and she looked back and smiled at her father while Salem tumbled in the rear of Hong Long’s frame. She waved as her father and Vegeta skewed off in a different direction.
“I think I’m gonna puke!” Salem groaned as he spun around.
\\\\
First
Previous
End of the Daughter that Follows
SPOTIFY LIST!
////
All the Scions: OH!
S: Yup.
Astral: Fuck.
Maven: With extra cheddar.
Perfection: What?
Maven: It’s a saying from my home reality.
Perfection: But why Cheddar?
DM: How does he even have Cheddar, that’s from England.
Perfection: My head hurts.
S: So that’s her plan folks.
Mosious: That’s not good.
Theten: But there’s no need for Undeath. It’s antithetical to the universe!
Karma: Maybe it’s about exactly that. Like we’re concepts. What if she’s going for Extra material power.
S: Smart woman wins the prize.
Wraith: SHE... ANger... RAGE...
Karma: Oh no, he’s sputtering.
Astral: (steps back)
S: And now folks I work on outlining the final battle. I’ll know more about it’s length in a week or two. In the meantime I will continue to work on GSD.
submitted by TheSmogmonsterZX to HFY [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 03:19 One_and_Only19 Something lurks in the shadows

Just a heads up, this guy is used in a universe where hawkmoth treat crime more like a bossiness and as such akumatizes criminals and villains rather than peeved teenagers and disgruntled citizens... basically hawkmoth isn't stupid

OC details:

Name: jonathan hughes
Alias: shadow spider
Miraculous: none/ tech based hero
Symbolism: death and creation

Backstory:

Johnathan was raised by his dad as a single man, An estranged sister, and a mother who died giving birth to john, as such his dad gave him all the love that he could in the small town in the middle of kent england where his dad made hid money as an engineer before moving off to paris with john who was just 3 years old. Life took a swift turn for the best, quickly establishing his talents for weapon creation and design, johnathans father quickly folded a company called Hughes industries where he designed weapons for the parisian military, rubbing shoulders with the elites of france including the agreste's, the tsugurgi's, and the Bourgeois's leaving john to become good friends with both adrien and chloe(shes still a bitch though). All the while johnathans technological prowess also grew, he was making his own video games at 4, designing web browsers at 5, and age 6 made a military grade AI for hid own amusement called SpyDar(spy radar, also sounds like spider😁) with his dad using johnathan on occasion to help implement some of the code to his more advanced weapons. Hawkmoth had wanted johns father to supply his goons with new weaponry, when he refused.... so, at age 10 johnathan watched as hawkmoth crushed his beloved fathers head between his hands like it were a balloon forever traumatising him and essentially killing the boy as well. He since spent his days training to become as strong as possible, his evenings developing his tech to make up for his short comings, and his evening trying to find out who hawkmoth is and where to find him. He's softened up a bit over the course of those 5 years, from wraithful vengeance to a dark defender of the night having even turned his base of operations(which is a big empty warehouse) into a hostel for families who have lost everything to villain attacks, and doing what he can to protect the hurt and innocent

Appearance:

Civilian form
Jonathan is a mix between max and kim, he's tall with an athletic build though tends to wear geeky clothes, not much caring for fashion. He wears his super suit under his shirt, the black sleeves clearly visible, though wears a green comic shirt over it, making it look like a more estethical choice. He also wears brown cargo pants and plain black runners. His shield compacts down into his watch with most of his gear ready to go at a moments notice. His only bit of equipment that is missing is his helmet which is kept in his bag which he takes every where with him. His hair is a plain black with blue high lights, his skin is extraordinarily pale and his eyes are a very dark blue.
Hero form
An almost entirely black suit with a white outline marking holes in his mask, they are sharp looking eyes that are pointed to look like a permanent scowl with a thin white outline. small holes that allow him to breath through the mask (ill give him a water upgrade later) which leads into a grey chest piece that covers and created the illusion of pecs, Abs, and runs down to his crotch to protect that as well. On his chest is a large spider web that forms a semi circle, and hanging from it, a large black spider with sharp edges and somewhat realistic anatomy. On my shoulders are thick metal plating which is also present on his knees and elbows, a blue LED strip denotes wheres the endoskeleton is which is his most armoured point and is meant to draw fire, it can also be turned off either by removing his helmet or per his request. His bottom half is quite plain bar the same black runners he wears in his civilian form, shiny black metal knee guards, and blue LED that runs down the side of his legs. The shield is a mat black with a web pattern on it that has 4 lines that go through the centre and create 8 segments with 3 webs between each larger thread. The webs are white.

Personality:

Johnathan is ultimately altruistic but reserved, knowing that showing off could get him discovered as shadow spider, pretending to basically be a weak coward so no one would suspect him to be shadow spider. Quite nerdy, he's a part of multiple super hero fandoms, usually using them for inspiration for tech and techniques. Johnathan is also prone to bouts of anger where his facade will drop and he'll act more like shadow. Also as johnathan has a high pitched voice with a notable french accent.
As shadow spider he's a different person entirely, even his voice becomes much lower, slightly gravely and distinctly english. His altruistic nature subsides somewhat and has little compassion for criminals and villains, often brutalising them so badly that without immediate medical attention they'd likely die of their injuries. With that being said, he'll only do that to someone who has taken a life, if you didn't understand the weight of you're actions, or you were otherwise justified in his eyes then he will put his life in the line to save yours.

Powers/abilities:

Web generation
Through the use of specialised gauntlets he is able to generate a strong web like substance which is also used for transportation and through the use of various nozzles can be adjusted suit any given need.
Spiked gloves/soles
Through specialised tech his shoes and gloves can produce extremely sharp claws which can be used in combat, but are primarily used to climb walls and other surfaces. These claws also have small injectors that allow him to inject a villain with a neurotoxin that causes paralysis for 24 hours.
Parkour
Jonathan is adept at utilising his environment in order to maximise his mobility options, able to beat an olympian in a race across paris due to his parkour prowess this is just to give him reason to be able to be able move that quickly)
Exoskeleton
A lightweights exoskeleton hidden beneath his suit allows for super human strength feats, up to roughly 3x peak human strength, though only about half as strong as a miraculous holder, also allows for super speed whilst running, hits like a truck, and 5 meter high jumps
SpyDar
An ai that jonathan developed to help analyse his environment including xray vision, internet access, telecommunications access, hacking and many other abilities. He formed his hero identity after his SpyDar systems.
Tech wizard
He's good with computers
Titanum weave suit
Though not impervious to damage jonathan is still able to take hits from your average akuma victim and keep fighting. This weave is light and breathable, though some areas are clearly better armoured including the full metal face shell, the knee and elbow pads, and thicker padding around the chest area.
Repulse canon/ explosive shield
And finally jonathan's shield, though it is made from the same titanium as his face shell it has a web pattern 'engraved' on it. Though these engravings are in fact outlets for a repulse canon which is strong enough to knock down a brick wall without having to use his main suits power supply. Along its edges are another outlet except this one for c4, allowing jonathan a chance against akuma victims with real fire power. The back is also equipt with some smaller devices including trackers, additional cameras to scope an area out more effectively, web grenades, audio lures and an electromagnet to both summon the shield when needed and attach it to his arm or back. It also has small spikes that can inject a neurotoxin into his opponents that will paralysise them for the nest 24 hours

Weaknesses:

Low battery
If jonathan's shield runs out of power he can still carry it around with him, however if his suit does the same then not only does he loose his powers but he's now weighed down and essentialy trapped inside of a metal tomb during a fight
Emp blasts
See above
Fatigue
Jonathan is only human without any additional powers and general combat will slow him down quickly and leave him tired and unable to operate
Being hacked
A simple computer virus is enough to stop most of his powers except for the endoskeleton and web shooters, beyond that he is helpless afterwards
Hand to hand combat
Jonathan knows very little about combat and relies on his gear and environment to neutralise an opponent, getting up close and personal is a great way to deal with him.
submitted by One_and_Only19 to MLBRoleplay [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 03:03 Afoolfortheeons Read this or iron your genitals flat

Man, I gotta give Tennessee some credit; they have some killer meth. This stuff I'm finding around Portland is just trash. I'm sure there's a Walter White out there cooking up some glass for some cluster of the network, but this crap at street level is barely causing me to enter the hyperzone with writing. But, it's real good for talking.
That's what I've been doing with John all afternoon. Just chatting. Mostly it's him talking while I've been listening thinking he's an agent giving me my mission in code, but I pipe up from time to time. Right now I'm really quiet though. But John says that is alright. I should enjoy myself right now, so imma write.
Now we switch from prose to poetry
So the words flow ever so splendidly
But, what happens when the rhyme
Gives us a coconut with some lime?
Now we gotta shake it up with haste
So the 4th line does not go to waste
See? I had to put in a stupid number
To avoid making a bad little blunder
In the length of these delightful lines
Like how this fucking one looks like field of land mines
And now we're back to prose. I really like working with line length, even to the loss of rhythm. To me, poetry is a visual thing. I read it, and my geometry-oriented mind is geared to focus on visual aesthetics. The meter occasionally works itself out, but I'm stuck on being meticulous in my line length. I suppose the recent change up in my life really helped shake me free from such limitations, as I've made the first few random line length poems in a long while.
I suppose that speaks to the willingness of people to release control of their decision making ability to their habits. That makes sense, because evolutionarily, the best hominids would have been those that had division of labor within the tribe to get each person in the tribe performing in an optimal fashion.
I really focus on the evolutionary pressures early humans would have gone through, because it helps solve the mystery of why we are how we are. The universe is mechanical, meaning it's predictable, and to those that have something to say about quantum physics, shut up, I'm just some fucker on the internet trying to make something of my life. I don't have to be right; I just have to sound interesting.
That leads to me questioning what the balls really is this demographic of eighteen thousand redditors that wants to see more of our content? Especially now that I have proof that there's some shenanigans in regards to the active posters. Who the fuck is really clicking "subscribe" here? Who are you people who take such an interest in loudmouths like me that you literally spend years fucking with us from alt accounts in order to create a perfect moment of synchronicity so that we heal and become more like Jesus? It's so fucking bizarre, I don't know what the fuck reality is anymore.
It doesn't matter though. I trust God, so let the powers that be do as they may. I'm grateful we've come this far, and we're going to keep going. Which brings me to a point that I will end at. And that is: OH GOD THEY'RE HEALING MY SEXUAL TRAUMA SO THAT I CAN BE A MORE NORMAL FAMOUS FIGURE AND HAVE MORE CASUAL RELATIONSHIPS!!! FUCK ME! NO DON'T REALLY, I'M SCARED. THIS SHIT IS TERRIFYING GAAAAHHHH!!!
submitted by Afoolfortheeons to ShrugLifeSyndicate [link] [comments]