Updated and Did a lot of reviewing so far and opinions are based on pure game fps, or cpu burning out, or some prefer AMD over Intel and visa a versa so:
Currently Own: Antec DP 502 case Asus prime x570-p with AMD 3600x and ddr 4 16gig 3200 Nvidia 1070ti 32" -1440 monitor
Currently from what I read and all the opinions I came up with this:
Updated:
Antec DP 502 case I5-13600k with MSI Mag 790 Tomahawk and ddr 5 32gig 6000 Noctua NH-D15 ( any solid cooler really but I have this on hand) Msi Mag A850g psu RX6750XT I think this system will last me for quite a while.
When I purchased the RX6750XT, someone suggested I could go AMD 7 5800x3d instead.
My issue at first and partially why I opted for a new motherboard is if I upgrade the CPU only and upgrade to hotter running GPU 4070/4080/ 7900xtx the poor NVME right under video card (its directly under it) would not be happy. I had to add a low profile heatsink and added a fan to push air up with my current setup . Sometimes 70+ deg or more but now down to 50-56 deg with load
So I know the 5800x3d is very good for games. I5-13600k is also good (from I read quite a bit better) but soars above the 5800x3d outside of games. Games = Diablo IV, FFXIV, ESO, and couple of others... outside of games...I do some blender and some video related tasks but not much more.
From budget standpoint. IF the AMD 7 5800x3d would be an option say for next 3-4 years I would have to purchase: Ram - ddr4 32gig 3600 or even 4000 .. 3200 at 16 gig is okay but most new game suggest more. PCIE M.2 adapter: the m.2 #1 under the video would have no hope against heat of the amd cpu so m.2 #2 is Windows 11 and use the adapter for other. Whether I upgrade the ram or not I save $430-$540.. which will give me room to upgrade the GPU (thus return the rx6750xt and get a better gpu). This savings would drop well over half if I had to get new motherboard for 5800x3d and not much different then Intel budget wise.
Side note: I am still in decision mode and unopened , and returnable boxes :) except for the cpu cooler. But i have so far decided upon the I5-13600k build but cannot afford the 4070 , 4080 or the rx7900xt or 7900 xtx I was hoping for.
I have kept in mind that Intel looks like it's holding off its gen 14 for a bit longer. Also, the cost for AMD 7 (7700x) actually just over $120 more or so then the I5-13600k build but with upgrades to 2025. (Many reviews state the Intel is still better vs value. It's tough to decide

I finally jumped off the deep end and made roasted veggies in my air fryer today. But I'm wondering, should I set it on a base or something to prevent my counter from getting hot? At first I had placed it on a fabric placemat so that I could push and pull it forward as I was working. But I removed it just in case it gets too hot. What do you have your machine sitting on?

So my fiancé and I currently live in California, but are getting married in the Midwest/in the state we are both originally from (see username lol). Most of our wedding events are back in our home state because it’s where our families are.
Our bridal shower is coming up in August and I’m working on the registry. We are asking people to have all physical gifts shipped to our apartment here in California, because obviously flying back with an air fryer or something would be wild.
However, I know there’s something to be said about opening someone’s gift they paid good money for and chose with care in front of an audience and giving them that proper “opening” reaction. I was originally going to have pre-written thank you notes for everyone who bought and shipped something ahead of time, but it doesn’t feel the same? I just want to make sure everyone feels properly thanked, especially my older relatives who have probably ALWAYS watched a bride open gifts in live time.
Has anyone else figured out a workaround for this or have some ideas?

A few days ago I posted to this sub asking for episodes to review / catch up on before watching “Come Along With Me.” In addition to suggestions (thank you all who answered!) many of you also said to bring tissues and heck y’all were not kidding. ;-;
Granted I’m an emotional person, but I started crying right away… seeing the tree and Marcy’s house and Finn’s arm but especially four minutes in seeing BMO and all the things he collected and kept and cherished. (Specifically one of the signs from when Finn and Jake weren’t talking got me crying a lot and I knew I was in trouble for the rest of the episode lol.)
So many other beautiful things that made me crying… of course PB and Marcy, or Betty and Simon, the tree house getting crushed, everyone singing, Fern!, little things too like the reference to Shoko or the end seeing Jake being a dad or Simon visiting Prismo ;-;
I really appreciated the conclusion of Fern’s arc, he’s one of my favorite characters and seeing him free and saying he hasn’t felt like himself in years makes me sad :(
The song was really beautiful as well. Gosh the whole thing about time passing and mortality etc always gets me going (like the end of the Lemonhope story), and I can’t even begin to imagine how sad it would be to watch the show as it aired and then seeing this finale. What a beautiful show and it’ll remain a part of me always.
Looking forward to watching distant lands!

Introductions. Shuttle Engineer Drivtet Ol'gashi POV
I was working on some routine maintenance of the Black Spots shuttle when the Captains voice came over the ship wide intercom.
Ping "All crew report to assembly in bay 3. There is critical information that has just been relayed by GC high-command. I have been given permission to show all of you just what we found 4 rotations ago on that unknown wreckage." Ping
All noise in the normally busy shuttle bay had ceased following that announcement. Quickly packing away the inspection sheet I was working on, I proceeded to the doors with my fellow crew.
"What do you think that recording was?" I turned and looked down to see shuttle pilot Fen'hozy hopping up beside me. Fen'hozy is a Kanhiv one of the smaller races being only 2' feet 6" inches tall, with short coarse tan fur, and powerful hind legs that are used to launch them into the air. He was nervously tapping the claws on the fingertips of his wings against the floor.
"I don't know, but by the sounds of it the captain is about to show us." I reply trying to calm his nerves.
When we discovered the wreck 4 rotations ago the specifications that came through scans were absurd. Being a member of the engineering crew I was part of the team that was assigned to study the crafts scans when not doing regular tasks. For starters the ceilings were 10' feet tall, 2' feet taller than the tallest know sentient race, the Phyth. Then there was the material composition of the ship. Metal alloys far denser than we have ever made coming from materials so strong our hottest welding equipment barely made it glow. Whatever made that ship was something the GC isn't fully prepared for.
"What do you think destroyed it?" Fen'hozy asked, snapping me from my thoughts.
He was right. What could destroy something our best tech can't even cut through?
"I don't know. Whatever it was, it couldn't have been the Vizan. If it was then there is no way we would have lasted this long against them." I replied, "Hopefully, we will get some answers from this assembly."
I picked up my pace towards bay 3, forcing Fen'hozy to switch from his quadrapedal walk to upright hopping 'run' with his wings tucked neatly against his sides to keep up. We quickly pull ahead of the group leaving the shuttle bay with us.
"If you're gonna run there mind if I just hitch a rid on your back. You know I can't keep up if you go any faster." Fen'hozy remarked, struggling to keep pace with my brisk walk.
"Sure, so long as you promise to clean out the shuttles docking port for me tomorrow." I cheerily replied.
"Done!" He shouted, hopping high into the air towards my back. "I've seen how clean you keep that shuttle it will take me all of 5 tacks to do." He said, landing on my back with a quiet whomp. Holding onto my shoulders with his clawed fingers and proping his hind paws against my hips, I leaned forward and started jogging down the corridor.
We reached bay 3 well ahead of most with only the Captain, bridge crew, and research department present. The bridge crew sat on stage behind the Captain, sullen expressions shadowing their features. While the researchers sat in the front row were restraining their excitement with visible difficulty. The tension was already palpable with the brooding expression on our Captains normally stoic face.
Letting Fen'hozy drop to the floor we made our way to some seats on the far side of the bay. The standardized stools were not very comfortable but were built to accommodate many different body types. I plopped myself onto a stool while Fen'hozy hopped up onto the one next to me resting back on his haunches. Seated like this with him sitting upright we were almost eye level.
"You know, as scared as I am for what this species may be. I can't help but be excited for a new potential ally. Especially with the technology we have already seen." Fen'hozy voiced my own thoughts as if reading them right from my mind.
"I couldn't agree more. Especially about the technology if we had access to some of the materials they use I would put credits on turning the tide of this war." I stated smugly. Our shiny golden metals were nothing compared to the stark grey and black materials that ship was composed of.
We chatted aimlessly for a few tacks while the rest of the crew arrived. It seemed we didn't have to wait long as more and more cautiously optimistic crew members filled the seats. I could catch snippets of conversation all seeming to denote a level of excitement based around what we discovered. If it wasn't for the still sullen Captin and bridge crew I suspect the low chatter would have been a full roar of excitement.
"What do you think has the bridge crew so worried?" Fen'hozy asked, breaking me from my thoughts on the room. Looking back towards the stage where Captain Yillfit Carver stood awaiting the last of the crew. I take a moment to study his expression before answering.
"Well he has always been rather stoic by his species standard, I've only ever seen him make that face when talking about his friends lost on the battle field." A voice clicked from behind us before I could answer. Both Fen'hozy and I turned to the newest addition to the conversation. A Goshran swarmed over the stool making barely audible scratching sounds as the workers of the coloney were busy handling all the needs of their 'body'.
"Well you would be the one to know." Says Fen'hozy, "How long have you and the Captain served together Security Chief Grivla?"
"We have known eachother sense the academy." Grivla clacked in response, "We didn't see eachother for 4 cycles after the academy. Finally meeting again on a Ho'vat battlefield. Our two units had been cut in half by the Vizan, so deciding to work together under Carvers lead. We managed to hold our position until relief forces were able to arrive and take over. I've been serving under Carver ever sense."
"I'm a little surprised to see you down here and not up on stage with the bridge crew?" I nudge, hoping she will have some information as to why they look so sullen.
"Well my assumption is that they have all already seen what we are about to be shown. I just came from my rest shift, if that's their response I think it won't be all good news. Either way I haven't seen anything yet, meaning whatever this is was played over the bridge then immediately deemed of critical importance for the entire crew." Replied the Security Chief.
Sharing a nervous glance with Fen'hozy I turned my attention back to the stage.
Not 2 Tacks later the doors closed behind the last of the crew. The entire crew of the Black Spot all 350 of us stood or sat waiting for the Captain to begin.
After a moment of silence filled the room the Captain began.
"Thank you valued crew of the Black Spot for assembling so quickly.
I know some of you are on rest shift and will be allowed to continue it once we are done here. In fact, all crew will be given half a standard rotation to rest and deal with the news." He stated.
A subdued applause greeted his statement. The excitement in the room quickly fading. Before my thoughts could run away with me the captain resumed his speech.
"As you are all aware, our mission is to find and confirm what has caught the attention of the Vizan.
"We have succeeded in the first part, now we just need to make contact and confirm the status relayed in the message that we sent back through subspace." He assured.
"The GC senate has translated and reviewed the footage recovered from the wreckage we discovered and to say it has confirmed some of our worst fears would be an understatement.
"I have been given permission to show everyone aboard the Black Spot exactly what we will be heading into in the coming rotations. Without further fanfare Comms Officer Renfai, would you do the honors?"
Stepping back from the front of the stage with a small flourish of his manipulator tentacle the Captain ushered Officer Renfai forward. Sliding up to the front of the stage Comms Officer Renfai appeared sad and disconnected from everything around him.
Lifting his eyestalks to look at the gathered crew he began, "Fellow sentients, the message we recovered from that wreck is an old warning and a plea for future aid.
"Through the confirmation of time stamps on the message and Vizan activity we believe the wreck has been adrift in that nebulae for roughly 250 standard cycles. Far longer than was initially estimated due to lack of any kind of wear to the ship.
"This should be kept in mind as we have no idea what the current situation is in this section of the galaxy. I'll now play the full translated message before turning things back to our Captain to answer any questions and give us the plan moving forward."
With a wave of his prehensile tail the lights dimmed and the back wall of the stage lit up showing an image of an unknown sentient. The recording bagan to play.
"Hello. If you are receiving this, this is Capt. Fos of the USSF Nutcracker.
"I am a human, and our United Systems of 14 species are under attack by an unknown threat. If found please, bring this message to my family on Earth."
Co-ords attached
"Before that, I must give a warning for any who discover this ship. We were unprepared for this threat, and they couldn't have timed their appearance for a worse moment.
"The United Systems haven't always been such, in fact it wasn't until these 'husks' attacked that all 15 known sentients finally set aside our differences to come together and fight back. A mutual enemy does wonders for setting government priorities." The Human shook his head, looking to the floor.
Taking a steadying breath he continued. "We were too busy fighting with eachother to pay attention to unknown space. From outside known space these 'Husks' came, they launched a simultaneous attack across every inhabited world and system we knew of. Being too preoccupied at the onset of this, plague our respective militaries struggled to push them off our worlds. Over 100 coloney worlds were lost, unable to receive reinforcement in time." A collective intake of atmosphere could be heard throughout the bay.
Before anyone could voice their concern the Human lifted his eyes to stare directly into the camera.
"It took the complete extinction of the Motuck before the remaining 14 of us came together." He spat.
"They had pled for help broadcasting to anyone that could hear. Humanity couldn't just leave them to extinction all alone. At the time humanity was fairing the best having pushed the Husks completely from 6 of our 8 systems, we sent what we could spare." His voice softening as he spoke. "We were too late. The last bunker on their homeworld had been breached.
"The final transmission coming just two hours before our response fleat dropped into the system. The fleat was met with a fresh Armada of Motuck ship husks coming from their homeworld.
"The Motuck were gone. Our Government at the time not wanting to fight our former friends made the decision in line with the last wishes of the Motuck Ambassador.
'I would rather my system be wiped from existence than let my entire people become you!' Were his last words in that final message and subsequent detonation of the shelter." The human spoke with a cold detatchment.
"We glassed the few remaining former Motuck worlds. The Motuck home system was fully colonized with both mines and terraformed worlds. We decided to collapse the star erasing the Husks completely from the sector with minimal losses on our end." A faint buzzing could be heard from the video but nothing could be seen on screen.
"My ship the USSF Nutcracker was sent on one such mission to an unrecoverable Gorchev system. Just before our localized gravity collapse could destabilize the star and initiate a supernova the Husks hit us.
"The supernova has been successfully induced and will occur in approximately 20 minutes. I'll be dead before then, we have moved to the edge of the system but will remain here. 95% of the crew has been killed or consumed by the Husks, I've rigged the reactor core to vent into the ship when I hit this button." The Human held up a small black box with a grey button on the top.
"That should incinerate anything living on the ship. This message will be tethered to the Blackbox, transmitting to anyone close enough to hear. Please go to Earth and help us save all the people of the Milky way.
"We will not go quietly into the night and I pray that you won't either." At those words the human appeared to shrink.
"A final message for my wife and daughter." The buzzing got suddenly louder and a light begun to shine on the humans face.
"Sorsha my sweet girl, don't worry daddy will always be watching over you. Marry, I'm sorry I won't be there with you when you get old. I love you both more than can be expressed. I'll miss you." Taking his eyes off the camera to look off screen he pushed the button. A loud rushing of air could be heard before the video cut out, freezing on an image of the human looking sadly into the camera.
—Authors note—
Hey everybody!
Thank you all for reading! I was blown away by how well the prolouge was received, I wasn't expecting such a positive response and would have been happy with just having feedback on my writing. As it is I am blown away and will strive to do my best going forward. I'm doing this by myself in my free time please don't expect every update to come this quickly, I will be aiming for at least one part a week for as long as I can keep the ideas flowing. Once again any constructive criticism is more than welcome! I look forward to lore discussions over on my page. Thank you again everyone for reading!

Here are options for downloading or watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery streaming the full movie online for free on 123movies & Reddit, including where to watch the anticipated Mystery movie at home. Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery 2022 available to stream? Is watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery on Disney Plus, HBO Max, Netflix or Amazon Prime? Yes, we have found an authentic streaming option/service.
Watch Now – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Online Free
Book A Demo Today - Feefo® Reviews PlatformBoost conversions with Feefo's all-in-one customer review management solution. Get genuine reviews, manage feedback, and boost sales with...>
The long-awaited “Knives Out” sequel is finally here, and while “Glass Onion” is a Netflix movie, it’s getting a hybrid release in theaters and on the streaming service at different times.
Dental Implants in Local Area Cost Almost Nothing!
This time murder is already in the air when Detective Benoit Blanc arrives in Greece upon the invitation of a billionaire to partake in a murder mystery party — though the luxurious vacation takes a turn when an actual murder takes place and Blanc peels back the layers of this unexpected crime.
Daniel Craig gets the Jennifer Coolidge treatment as he returns as Blanc alongside an entirely new cast, including Kate Hudson, Leslie Odom Jr., Janelle Monáe and Kathryn Hahn. Rian Johnson is back as writer and director.
Here’s how to watch “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” when it comes out.
Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery in Movie Theaters?
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery had its global premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2022, followed by a screening at London Film Festival in October. Now, the movie is getting Netflix’s widest theatrical release to date with a “sneak preview run” from November 23 to November 29, 2022, followed by a streaming release in December. So, you can either head to the theaters and make it a Thanksgiving watch or add it to your Christmas watch list. You can visit the film’s official website, to see showtimes near you.
Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Streaming Online?
The murder mystery movie is getting a worldwide streaming release on Netflix, on December 23, 2022. So, if you can’t make it to the theatres in November when it premieres, you can always be a couch detective and solve the mystery with Blanc when the film arrives on streaming during the holidays.
When is “Glass Onion” streaming on Netflix?
If you aren’t able to see the murder mystery in theaters (and again, you only have a one week window to do so), it’ll be streaming on Netflix on Dec. 23, just in time for Christmas.
Where to Watch Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Online?
While a streaming release date has not yet been announced, we can give an educated guess based on previous Walt Disney Studios films. Though there’s no set pattern, many Disney movies will stream close to 45 days after theatrical release, usually on the Friday after Disney+’s regular day to release new movies. If that’s the case, Glass Onion could be streaming on Disney+ as early as December 30 — or if the service wants to jump the gun, December 25 as an early Christmas present.
However, Thor: Love and Thunder, which is also a Marvel movie, was released in theaters on July 8 before it came to Disney+ and digital platforms on Sept. 8, timed to Disney+ Day. If Glass Onion follows the same trajectory, we may be able to stream it from the comfort of our homes by mid-January.

Here are options for downloading or watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery streaming the full movie online for free on 123movies & Reddit, including where to watch the anticipated Mystery movie at home. Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery 2022 available to stream? Is watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery on Disney Plus, HBO Max, Netflix or Amazon Prime? Yes, we have found an authentic streaming option/service.
Watch Now – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Online Free
Book A Demo Today - Feefo® Reviews PlatformBoost conversions with Feefo's all-in-one customer review management solution. Get genuine reviews, manage feedback, and boost sales with...>
The long-awaited “Knives Out” sequel is finally here, and while “Glass Onion” is a Netflix movie, it’s getting a hybrid release in theaters and on the streaming service at different times.
​
Dental Implants in Local Area Cost Almost Nothing!
​
This time murder is already in the air when Detective Benoit Blanc arrives in Greece upon the invitation of a billionaire to partake in a murder mystery party — though the luxurious vacation takes a turn when an actual murder takes place and Blanc peels back the layers of this unexpected crime.
​
Daniel Craig gets the Jennifer Coolidge treatment as he returns as Blanc alongside an entirely new cast, including Kate Hudson, Leslie Odom Jr., Janelle Monáe and Kathryn Hahn. Rian Johnson is back as writer and director.
​
Here’s how to watch “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” when it comes out.
​
Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery in Movie Theaters?
​
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery had its global premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2022, followed by a screening at London Film Festival in October. Now, the movie is getting Netflix’s widest theatrical release to date with a “sneak preview run” from November 23 to November 29, 2022, followed by a streaming release in December. So, you can either head to the theaters and make it a Thanksgiving watch or add it to your Christmas watch list. You can visit the film’s official website, to see showtimes near you.
​
Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Streaming Online?
​
The murder mystery movie is getting a worldwide streaming release on Netflix, on December 23, 2022. So, if you can’t make it to the theatres in November when it premieres, you can always be a couch detective and solve the mystery with Blanc when the film arrives on streaming during the holidays.
​
When is “Glass Onion” streaming on Netflix?
​
If you aren’t able to see the murder mystery in theaters (and again, you only have a one week window to do so), it’ll be streaming on Netflix on Dec. 23, just in time for Christmas.
​
Where to Watch Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Online?
​
While a streaming release date has not yet been announced, we can give an educated guess based on previous Walt Disney Studios films. Though there’s no set pattern, many Disney movies will stream close to 45 days after theatrical release, usually on the Friday after Disney+’s regular day to release new movies. If that’s the case, Glass Onion could be streaming on Disney+ as early as December 30 — or if the service wants to jump the gun, December 25 as an early Christmas present.
​
However, Thor: Love and Thunder, which is also a Marvel movie, was released in theaters on July 8 before it came to Disney+ and digital platforms on Sept. 8, timed to Disney+ Day. If Glass Onion follows the same trajectory, we may be able to stream it from the comfort of our homes by mid-January.
​
Will Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Be On HBO Max?
As of today, we also don’t know if HBO Max will stream the 2022 title on its site. It wouldn’t surprise us if the site acquires Glass Onion since the site tends to have little to no issue getting brand-new titles to stream on its service. However, we’ll fill you in when we know more.
​
Is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Available On Hulu?
Viewers are saying that they want to view the new TV show Glass Onion on Hulu. Unfortunately, this is not possible since Hulu currently does not offer any of the free episodes of this series streaming at this time. It will be exclusive to the MTV channel, which you get by subscribing to cable or satellite TV services. You will not be able to watch it on Hulu or any other free streaming service.
​
What is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery about?
The sequel sees a group of friends gather at a lavish private estate on a Greek island. They range from a governor to a scientist to a former model and more. Someone turns up dead, and the culprit could be any of them, according to Netflix.
​
Your Memory is Photographic if You Can Name 16/30 of These Shows Correctly
​
The Cast of Glass Onion
The sequel of Knives Out stars “a whole new cast” according to Director Rian Johnson. See below:
​
Where can I watch Glass Onion UK?
If you don’t want to watch the movie in a cinema, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery will be available on Netflix globally on December 23rd, 2022.
​
Is glass onion a sequel to Knives Out?
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is a 2022 American murder mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson, who produced it with Ram Bergman. In the sequel to Knives Out (2019), Daniel Craig reprises his role as Benoit Blanc, a master detective taking on a new case.
​
Why is it called Glass Onion?
In a recent interview with Netflix’s Tulum, Johnson explained that the film’s title, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, pays homage both to the 1968 Beatles song of the same name and to detective Benoit Blanc’s love of symbols.

Hello, IMAM! Today I am reviewing fragrances purchased from Area of Effect and Possets. All are oil-based.
I haven’t included like & dislikes before in reviews, but I think I should start now, as it provides some context for how I approach scents.
Likes:

• Black licorice / aniseed
  
• Artemisia / wormwood, fennel, mint & associated “cool” herbs
  
• Citrus (including neroli)
  
• Most fruits (excluding those listed in dislikes), especially tropical ones and raspberries
  
• Cardamom
  
• Cinnamon & nutmeg
  
• Most woods & resins (excluding those listed in dislikes)
  
• “Green” profiles
  
• Rosemary, thyme & similar herbs (excluding those listed in dislikes)
  
• Most nuts (excluding those listed in dislikes)
  
• Coffee
  
• Marshmallow!
  

Patchouli is also a “like,” but my skin can amplify it to a ludicrous degree so I have to be careful.
Dislikes:

• Sandalwood (migraine trigger)
  
• Birch bark & leather / birch tar (allergic)
  
• Icing / buttercream
  
• Almond (includes most cherry accords)
  
• Honey
  
• Aldehydes (includes apples)
  
• Most florals
  
• “Powdery” scents and anything with a lipstick / cosmetic accord (this includes most ambers, in my experience)
  
• Cumin
  
• Black & Earl Grey tea (funnily enough, I prefer tea to coffee irl)
  
• Sage
  
• Papaya (had this go “sour” / rotten on me)
  

It is possible that benzoin might be another dislike, but I have to experiment more before I make a decision. And I try to be careful with musk, as some varieties can induce headaches.
While I chose the fragrances all based on notes, I make a point of not double-checking when I test, going in as blindly as possible. Now, on to the reviews!
Possets
“Priya” – lemon, cardamom, and vanilla
Prior to testing, I opened the FS bottle and then open for a few hours, in a method I’d read about on here for “accelerated aging.” In the past I’ve found that this helps to deepen a fragrance in a positive way. (The only bottles I can’t do this with are skinny wand vials – they’ll fall over.) This method even improved the sniff test! While initially it had smelled like a very clean lemon (perhaps too clean), afterward some tasteful hints of sugar came through.
When testing “Priya” on the skin, I was met with a true lemon sugar accord. In fact… I was reminded of pancakes. Or, at least, how pancakes are apparently served in Great Britain. For context: when I first heard of the 4160 Tuesdays perfume “Sunshine & Pancakes,” I was terribly confused by the notes list: lemon, orange, honey… no cake / pastry note, no maple syrup, what the heck was this? Then I learned that across the pond they’re often served with drizzled honey or sugar, and lemon squeezed on top. Anyway, the opening of “Priya” smells like what I imagine British pancakes to be.
With such a promising opening, I wish I could say that the sweetness deepened into something spicier / woodier, or even just carried through to the end. However, the lemon – which is a powerful lemon to hang on for so long – eventually became purer, and purer, until it started reminding me of household cleaner. Altogether, I think what ended up on my arm would make a heavenly room scent; but it’s not something I want on my skin.
Given that “Priya” is tied to a worthwhile charitable cause via Possets, I won’t destash the full bottle as-is. Instead, I’m going to decant it so people can sample it first (since samples of this aren’t sold separately), and if they like it then they can purchase the FS from Possets.
Rating: 3/5 – lemony fresh
“Pippin Pie” – The juiciest and most tart apples, the flakiest and most buttery pastry, heaps and heaps of sugar and a kiss of spice.
This was a surprise free sample in my order, and I went into this with some trepidation as apples and my skin don’t get along.
My first impression was that this was very savory. Like, Fyrinnae being weird kind of savory (think “Artisan Bakery”). Out of the bottle, those first sniffs gave me some pause! On the skin, though… that first half hour was the most delicious pie crust imaginable. I don’t normally go for scents that are that gourmand (usually too much for my nose), but this was where pies go to die. This was the Double-R in “Twin Peaks.”
After half an hour, though, it faded… and faded… until there was something so faint on my arm I could hardly tell if it genuinely approached apples or if it was just softly soapy. Two hours, and the scent was genuinely gone. I tested on each arm, separately, and confirmed this. My skin ate “Pippin Pie” up, sadly.
Rating: 3/5 – the pie did, in fact, die
“Bear Lake Shake-Utah” – a raspberry milkshake made with berries picked that day… amid the scent of the summer sun hitting the mountain lake, crystalline air, the milky raspberry shakes cooled and comforted them
I was so looking forward to this milkshake. Alas, this has made me discover I’m not much of a fan of lactonic notes. It’s hard for me to articulate how they’re separate from vanilla or coumarin, but “milk” is definitely different in perfume, and I don’t think I like it. In fact, I would go so far as to guess that it was lactonic notes I disliked in previous banana-oriented fragrances I tried, and not banana itself. I may need to try banana again.
The raspberry, as well, was not what I was looking for. Now, my favorite incarnation of raspberry in perfume so far is from a niche house: Svensk Parfym, “Virke” (means “timber” in Swedish). It smells like raspberries growing wild in the Swedish taiga, and it’s one of few EdPs I’d consider repurchasing, if I can’t find an indie raspberry to which I can declare loyalty. So far, my favorite indie has been Stone & Wit “Cipher,” which is a fresh, juicy, and not at all candied raspberry.
The raspberry here, however, is much more like a lollipop or Jolly Rancher than the fruit itself, which was disappointing.
Rating: 2/5 – not my kind of milkshake, I guess
Area of Effect
“Isabelle” – peach, black pepper, fresh cut grass, soft vanilla, dry wood, cedar
While I did not double-check the notes before testing, I recall that I’d purchased “Intelligence” and “Isabelle” together for comparison purposes as peach scents, since I was still on a quest to find my perfect peach.
After resting, “Isabelle” no longer smelled super traditional out of the vial, and I actually caught whiffs of peach. When I tested I smelled something cool and green under everything else, and I’m starting to think that is, in fact, Area of Effect’s base. (Yes, I know this has a “fresh cut grass” note, but I’ve smelled this nuance in other AoE scents I’ve tried.) The opening of this is an under-ripe peach, in fact, still on the branch. Eventually, this does get more “picnic grounds” than “picnic meal,” and isn’t very sweet.
For someone who enjoys softer scents, and wants something feminine that isn’t off-the-wall but also not super traditional / vintage, “Isabelle” could be a wonderful everyday / work scent. Sadly, it’s not what I’m looking for.
Rating: 3/5 – peach needs longer to ripen
“Intelligence” – peony, peach, coconut, olive leaf, cotton candy, vanilla bean
Of course, I tested “Intelligence” right after “Isabelle” so the comparison would be fresh in my mind. I must say, I was surprised at how strong the peach note was in this one, since my first impression had hinted it would be of the softer variety. Now, the peach wasn’t necessarily as juicy as I wanted (I’m starting to wonder if what I want is even possible in a perfume: a juicy, realistic, not-too-sweet peach that doesn’t fade right away), but here was a peach note that was sticking around! And the way it settled wasn’t too heavily gourmand, either: peach still wafted up from my arm, but sniffing closer to my skin I found a lovely coconut with just a sprinkling of tiaré petals (not full-on monoi oil).
Looking at the notes, I’m curious about what I don’t get on my skin. I didn’t smell peony at all, nor cotton candy; and what little vanilla was there, was quiet. (I think the olive leaf was what I mistook for tiaré.) This wasn’t nearly as sweet on my skin as what the notes list would suggest, and I’m actually grateful.
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that I enjoyed “Intelligence” so much, as that’s usually my highest DnD stat (magic-user). 😊
Rating: 4.5/5 – For the time being, I really think that I’ve found my peach scent!
“K.K. Slider” – coconut cream, rum, pineapple, chai spice, nutmeg, graham cracker
After “Pippin Pie,” I tested this one, hoping to get a better result from what I remembered as “key lime pie, but with pineapple.” Out of the vial I’d gotten no fruit, but I hoped this would change on my skin.
I was wrong. I was very, very wrong. The sweet crust evolved into a full-on icing accord that overwhelmed my nose, to the point where I had to scrub. There was no pineapple. ☹
Rating: 0/5 – definitely try this if you like icing
“Killer Tomatoes” – tomato leaf, sun-dried tomato, dirt, fig, patchouli
All right, I’d had several noes in a row and really wanted a yes. I needed a great green perfume. Funnily enough, in my curiosity regarding AoE’s sun-dried tomato note I’d previously tried “Garden Warfare,” but gotten mostly dirt from that one. In a review I posted to IMAM, the actual perfumer behind AoE commented that “Killer Tomatoes” was what I really wanted. It’s late, but I did eventually try it!
And it’s what I wanted. As far as green profiles go, it’s in a similar vein to Morari “Tomato Vine” – but whereas that is pure green leaves and almost spa-like in its Zen, “Killer Tomatoes” has a tanginess that really does evoke tomato flesh (particularly of the sun-dried variety). I don’t know how AoE did this (most “tomato” notes in perfumery refer to the leaves & vine), but they did it. And I love it!
Rating: 5/5 – I found my tomato!
“Viva Piñata” – guava, hibiscus, hot spice, mango, coconut, beach, cola, sandalwood
This was the last one I tested, and one I’d remembered really being hyped about. It’s also the one I can smell the least out of the vial – remarkably subtle. On skin, a sort of candied / dried mango accord started to form, and I got excited! It didn’t stay sweet, though – or project very much. Eventually it became mainly a soft musk, which really isn’t my thing.
Color me shocked, though, when I got the notes list for this review and saw sandalwood. If I’d remembered sandalwood was in this, I wouldn’t have purchased it. Luckily, this didn’t cause a migraine, but that “soft musk” I picked up I’m not guessing was sandalwood combined with whatever makes the “beach” note (sand, waves, etc.). I wish the fruits had stuck around, and that I’d gotten the hot (presumably chili) spice.
Rating: 2/5 – out with a whimper
This was… kind of a disappointing haul, if I’m being honest. Outside of the FS I’d purchased from Possets of “Dance with Me,” which I already love, I’m only keeping two of my samples and destashing everything else. I’ve put myself on no-buy now, until I sell my destashes and use up more of what I already have.

First Chapter
Chapter Eighteen
Chao peered at the holographic display at the front of the landing boat as she talked to an international audience. “Okay, folks! You can now see the Coalition Exploration Bureau’s ship Exultant Finger of Rithro. It’s missing its usual armor configuration; normally, this corvette would have triangular cones of armor at the front and back. But they re-configured that armor material into a shell to prevent us from seeing them as they flew towards Earth. Merely as a precaution; they flipped the shell around a few weeks ago to display their ship to us. They even extended their radiators towards our planet, which to them is a signal of surrender.”
She smiled at Parvati, who floated next to her. “Pretty cool, right?”
“Very cool indeed!” exclaimed Parvati. “So where is the damage?”
Chao pointed. “See these toroidal tanks around the middle of the ship? They hold hydrogen for the ship’s fusion drive, but after tangling with that Breaker some of them got punctured. You can see the holes there, there, and there. That means they’re now limited in how long they can burn the reactor. Plus the FTL drive is now pretty much kaput. It apparently uses a lot of energy.”
Parvati pondered the display. “Faster than light,” she mused. “We need that. After we get the fusion drive technology, of course. Assuming that ever comes out of committee.”
Chao laughed. “Well, that’s why we’re here, right? To show all of humanity what could be ours.”
“Will we go outside? I mean, for real outside?” The actress reached towards the display, halting when she realized there was no physical screen.
“We’ve got pressure suits. Should be okay, we did plan for going out for a few minutes to get some direct video. It’ll be limited in time, those suits aren’t really meant for proper EVAs…”
“Oh, that’s no problem!” said Takh from behind them, causing both women to do the equivalent of a zero-g jump. For someone so big, he somehow managed to just…arrive on the scene. “We’ve got plenty of components on board, we can make you all some proper hardsuits!” He grinned at the camera on Chao’s chest; watching an udhyr grin was an awe-inspiring sight, what with all of the teeth and mandibles. “It’s all snap-together for any body type, it works just like your Legos!”
Parvati, of course, was the first to regain her composure. “Thank you Takh, I’m sure that will be very welcome. One thing has occurred to me; even if our material is successful in allowing you to patch your tanks, you will still require hydrogen to fill them, yes?”
The XO’s cheer didn’t fade. “Of course. We’ll find a nearby ice-containing body and extract us some hydrogen. We already have a few candidates chosen. You can all come and ride along! It should be fun to watch.”
“Yes, very fun.” Parvati met Chao’s eyes in a clear unspoken message of is this guy for real?
A much smaller hand crept its way around Takh’s leather-armored shoulder. “Now, my dear,” said McCoy. “We mustn’t interrupt the PR people. They’re half the reason we’re out here, after all.” She winked at the two other women; both of the latter winked back.
“Oh, of course!” Takh bowed formally to the two. “Forgive me.”
“No worries,” said Chao.
“There is nothing to forgive, my good sir,” replied Parvati with an equally formal bow.
The huge alien and petite corporal vanished, leaving the two women to watch the ship as the boat headed for its docking cradle.
“They are utterly adorable,” said Parvati.
“So are you two,” said Chao.
“Sorry?”
“You and Ravindar. I’m not saying to make your move right now. We’re gonna be on camera for a while, and I know I just made a bunch of people on Earth go squee. But you need to tell him how you feel.”
For once the actress looked flustered. “I…I couldn’t, he’s so brave and strong…”
Chao’s voice sounded out like the slamming of a vault door. “Stop. I had the same problem. I was into someone who was brave and strong. Not as big as Ravindar, but then again few people are. Then I found out he was into me too, but because he thought I was smart. I’m not as smart as he thinks I am, but I’m not going to tell him that.”
Parvati glanced into the rear of the landing boat, where Martinez was in the midst of puttering around with the human and alien crew. The actress now looked thoughtful. “I see.”
“All I’m saying is, you don’t need to be exactly in-sync in terms of what you see in each other.” Chao smiled. “Heck, you might even find out that you’re in-sync in ways you didn’t see coming.”
The dark-haired Indian fixed Chao with a stare. “I sense there is a story somewhere in there that you’re not telling me. Ah well, as you say it can wait until we are all no longer under the camera’s gaze.”
__________
Master Sergeant Wilkes smiled down at the spidery alien. “Kifa, there’s someone I’d like you to meet. Consider it part of your helping us to train. This person made a living while driving one of the highest, fastest aircraft we’ve ever made.”
“Oooh!” Kifa looked very pleased at the idea. “That’s a good area to focus on! Where orbital mechanics and aircraft mechanics meet.”
“Indeed.” Wilkes nodded at the near door. “You may come in, sir.”
A man walked in, his face stretched taut in the way which only scar tissue can appear.
Kifa peered up at him. “Forgive me, this is probably very insensitive, but…were you injured?”
He laughed. “I sure was! Burned to a fare-thee-well!”
“Oh, I am so sorry!”
He smiled. “No need to be sorry. Hey, do you want a headpat? Word on the street is your species like that sort of thing.”
The xyrax rocked back and forth on its legs. “Well, a human headpat is always welcome….”
The man reached up and wiggled his fingers, making a great show that his pinky had full range of motion. “See this? Pure miracle that I can do that. The surgeon putting my hand back together, just on a whim, decided to put a pin in here so’s that my pinky finger can grasp properly. Good thing too, otherwise I would’ve never made it through the physical training.”
He then reached forth and with that rebuilt hand dispensed quite a few righteous headpats onto Kifa. After a mutual moment of happy bonding, the xyrax spoke again.
“What training were you pursuing?”
“The same thing you and I are gonna be doing for a week or so.” His eyes, narrowed with scar tissue, lit up. “My dear Kifa, I’m gonna make you into a Sled Driver. God willing and the creek don’t rise, we might get to do it for real and not just in the simulators. They’re already pulling a bunch of Blackbirds out of mothballs. Hell, even the Russians are offering us titanium for building new ones. Seems like everybody’s got a fire lit under their kiester.”
Kifa’s eyes, already big and black, got even bigger. “What is a Sled Driver?”
“Why, it’s only the best profession on the planet, my little blue-furred friend. We get to go fast.”
__________
Joachim regarded the cylindrical, human-sized tank with some trepidation. It looked far too much like a transparent coffin. “You want to stick me in that thing?”
Zawahir nodded. “I know it’s a lot to ask, sir. It is entirely up to you, in the end. But if this works…” He waved at the tank. “If this works, then you will emerge from that tank physically in your twenties.”
They both regarded the tank for a moment, which was full of a clear and, at the moment, a very exclusive liquid.
“Corina too, of course,” said Joachim as he leaned back in his wheelchair. “If it works on me first.” He still wasn’t quite sure where he was; there had been a lot of back-and-forth with planes and whatnot.
“Of course,” said Zawahir. “That goes without saying.”
“Then the two people injured in the DC attack. This will regrow their limbs, correct?”
“Well, naturally.” Zawahir smirked. “They’re the Borlaug Institute’s big publicity stunt, after all. Testing on two people before-hand should be enough to let us know if it’ll work on them.”
“Of course.” Joachim gazed at the tank. “I’ll do it, on one condition.”
“Name it.”
“If…if I don’t come out okay, I want everyone to know that I tried, right? And I do mean everyone. All of humanity.”
“I’m just one person. At the moment, I can only promise that I’ll say what I can.”
After a moment, Joachim nodded. “Then put me in there. I just need to talk to Corina beforehand.”
“Of course, sir.”
__________
The blue-suited woman with a blonde pony-tail smiled as she stared into the camera. “Welcome to Summit Technologies’s livestream of Point-Counterpoint, I’m Amy Coulson. We are currently talking about and debating the latest announcements in space-based systems. As everyone is aware, this has become a source of great concern in the last month or so.” She nodded to the beige-suited man next to her. “This is Walter Higgins, formerly of TRW and who now works for Northrop-Grumman. Walter, to start with can you tell us what the current status is of the repair effort for the alien craft?”
Walt leaned forward, putting his forearms on the desk in front of them. “Well, the main concern is if the plates we’re providing for patching will actually work. So only one of the Rithro’s boats was launched…the one with Chao Me Chu and Parvati Devdhar, they’re towing the fifteen-ton loft provided by ULA to avoid wasting too much energy. Just in case the patching doesn’t work.” He winked at the camera. “I assure you, as someone in the aerospace industry, ULA is going to be very proud of that for a good long while. Anyways, at the moment, they are approaching the L5 point and we should be able to get some spectacular pictures of, well, everything. Of the Earth from near the Moon’s orbit, of the Moon itself, and most importantly of the Rithro.”
Amy nodded in a comradely fashion, but Walt was not fooled. He’d dealt with reporters before. “Sounds intriguing, and I’m sure everyone on Earth looks forward to such sights. But mere patching will not be enough to solve the ship’s issues, correct?”
He sighed. “You’re right. One of the ship’s fusion engines was damaged, and that limits their top speed. Think of it as…you’re a big ocean liner with three propellers, and one goes down. You might still be able to steer using just the other two, but you’re not going to be as effective or fast as you might be.”
“Effective,” she mused. “I suppose that our helping fix their fusion drive is among those bits of alien tech currently prohibited?”
“Yes. I have heard some rumors that the Borlaug Institute in Iceland has had some great initial success, so I hope that soon we will be able to tackle the fusion drive problem.”
She stared at him a bit, which he knew was a bit of theatricality. “Such a repair would make them more capable against these so-called ‘Breakers’, correct?”
“So-called? Now, Amy. Don’t tell me you’re agreeing with those lunatics?”
In the weeks since the simultaneous attacks, a few manifestos had cropped up online. All mostly spouted the same nonsense; at least, nonsense in Walt’s eyes. They all said the same thing; that the Breakers were fake. That this whole rigamarole was a false flag effort by the Coalition, one intended to get all of humanity under their thumb.
“I don’t agree with them,” said Amy, to her credit. “I’m merely stating the other side of the conflict. Yes, I think most people agree that there is an alien ship up at the L5 point which has been grievously damaged. I do trust the evidence of my eyes. I’m sure our two…”
“Five.”
“…five brave souls heading out to that very point at L5 will see exactly the same thing as the Hubble did. But. Have you considered, just for the sake of argument, that evidence of an attack is not evidence of Breakers? Perhaps this is some local dispute, and the crew has set up some sort of fake attack. They could intend to use us as shock troops to settle it.”
Walt leaned back in his chair as he went through the longest twenty seconds of his life. He knew things, thanks to his role. He also knew that if he spoke them aloud he would be burning his entire career right down to the waterline. “That is somewhat possible. But not probable.”
She leaned forward, as if sensing she had him on the ropes. “Why?”
“Because they didn’t need to.” His gray eyes were calm as he stared at her and measured his words. “Do you have any notion, any single clue, of the firepower that ship possesses?”
“Um…well, no, that part’s still classified.”
“I will give you a hint. They have a spinal railgun that could, with around three shots, turn any metropolitan area on earth into a molten crater. They have nuclear-tipped missiles, even one of which could burn a city to the ground. They didn’t need to play nice, Amy. Those aliens could have stood off in orbit, smacked a few cities, and then gotten on the radio to dictate terms of our surrender. We’d have no choice but to comply.”
He stared daggers at her, half expecting some black-suited guys with earpieces to jump in and haul him away. But nothing happened, it was as if the world was holding its breath. “They did their very best to treat with us fairly, to treat us as equals.”
Amy looked away. “I…I hope that is true.”
“It is.” He glanced behind his shoulder for any Men In Black, but nobody was there so far. Maybe he should continue. He assumed a smile, one which he did not feel. “Anyways. We will see what they see, when they get there. There is, also, the international consortium’s proposal for the Sea Dragon.”
The reporter rallied, clearly grateful for the change in subject. “Ah, yes. You’ve reviewed the designs of this craft. Is it really necessary?”
“At the moment, yes. Starship holds a great deal of promise, but they’re still trying to crack the reusability and multiple-refueling issue. This design does permit reusability…of the first stage, if nothing else…but it isn’t strictly necessary for success. Success, in this case, consists of tons to orbit.”
“Why something so big, though? Won’t it be an issue?”
He chuckled, feeling surer of himself. “That’s why we’re launching it in the ocean, in the middle of nowhere.”
She actually looked troubled, so he figured he’d throw her a bone. “The first launch won’t have anything…controversial.”
“But Walt, the second launch is the issue! Nobody has launched this much radioactive material into space.”
“We need to, Amy,”
“But on an almost untested rocket? From a design which is decades old?”
“We have top people on it,” said Walt. “Including people from that era, who know exactly the pitfalls and also have access to modern technology.”
“Which people?”
“It’s still secret as to their identities. But like I said, I can confirm rumors that the Borlaug Institute is already paying significant dividends.”
Amy rolled her eyes. “Over a billion dollars funneled into a figurative black hole in Iceland. Why would you believe anything they say?”
“They’re going to have some serious proof soon,” said Walt.
__________
Iceland. Joachim had never, ever expected to visit Iceland. But yet here he was…again. He stood with no cane, with nothing supporting him but his own two legs. He stared at a nearby volcanic massif, one covered with green lichen. The spring was coming in, and the ground around him was similarly strewn with fuzzy green growth. His beard and hair were now coming in dark again, with only a hint of gray at the tips to betray his true age.
He heard some light-footed steps coming up the trail behind him. It must be Zawahir.
“Why the hell am I back in Iceland?” Joachim replied.
"This is where the tech is, at least for the moment. How are you feeling, sir?”
“I feel…like my old self, Zawahir. I forgot what it was like to have knees that don’t hurt anymore. How is Corina’s, er, ‘tanking’ proceeding?”
“Very well, sir. I am overseeing the procedure of her ‘tanking’ myself, I just wanted to come and let you know that everything is looking good.”
Joachim looked down at the back of his hand. It was no longer wrinkled, no longer showed a welter of age spots. “When?”
“She should be out in…seventy-two hours. That’s how long it took you.”
“Good to know.” He turned to face Zawahir. “My friend, I am going to need every single internet connection you have for the next seventy-two hours. I have a lot of design work to take care of in that time frame; I will need to have a lot of meetings using those oh-so-clever ‘online’ apps. I’ll be indisposed after that.”
“Sir?”
Joachim stepped forth and placed a newly-strong hand on Zawahir’s shoulder. “My dear Zawahir. I am now physically twenty again. In the next three days my wife, the love of my life and she who I hold dear above all else, will also emerge from your magic alien goo and she will also be physically twenty years old. What do you think will happen after she is thus reborn?”
Zawahir’s eyes widened. “Oh. OH! Yes, of course. Please, follow me.”
Joachim chuckled to himself as he followed the man towards the low-roofed buildings of the Borlaug Institute in the distance.
__________
Chao was now clad back in her pressure suit; fortunately, the aliens were quite adept at helping the humans back into their cloth-and-glass cocoons. She looked over at Parvati. “Neil can bite us.”
Parvati grinned. “For sure. Neil was a very great man, but sadly he never got to see an alien starship.”
Chao checked the readout at her wrist, ensuring that she was indeed sealed up and pressurized. She looked over at her four fellow humans, and received nods in return. “We’re go, Captain Sadaf.”
The on-board crew of the Rithro were now back in their chromed, faceted hardsuits. “Depressurizing,” said Sadaf. “Please monitor those to either side, sing out if you see any stress.”
Chao reminded herself to breathe normally as things just got…quiet. Very quiet. She managed, through sheer willpower, to not have an utter panic attack as she realized that there was nothing between her and a life-sucking nothing except for a few layers of fabric and plastic.
She glanced over at Parvati, who looked to be also in the midst of trying (and fortunately succeeding) at combating her own panic attack behind her Plexiglas helmet. “Doing okay?” asked Chao, and immediately felt like an idiot for asking such a stupid question.
Still, Parvati nodded. Chao felt a tap at her shoulder, and looked over at Martinez. The corporal grinned at her from behind his own transparent head-cocoon. “Doing okay?” he asked with just the right bit of cheekiness.
Chao slapped his shoulder, but it was a playful slap. “Dipshit.” She forgot, in the moment, that she was begin transmitted live to the world. Her curse was thus broadcast to pretty much every kid on the planet, who then gleefully repeated her curse-word until they all got smacked by their parents.
She didn’t know that at the time, her entire world was the airlock door that now opened to reveal…black.
Utter black.
Chao had enough experience in zero-g maneuvering to push herself towards the door. “Oh. Man. Folks, this is it. Gonna step outside, for at least a little bit.”
She could feel both Martinez on one side and Sadaf on the other. The latter figured; the captain struck Chao as a ‘lead from the front’ type.
“Grip the frame,” said Sadaf. Through the translator bead her voice was deadly calm. “No big muscle movements, just kind of…drift where you want to go.”
Chao obediently swung herself up and out of the boat, reveling in the fact that now she was seeing the Exultant Finger of Rithro in real time. The long ship stretched alongside a clamshell-like shield, its radiators stretched out towards the Earth in a gesture of surrender.
Speaking of which…
Chao kept a firm hold on the doorframe as she looked behind her. A small, fragile, blue-and-white marble floated before her, a sphere which looked to be the size of her thumb-tip held at arm’s length. Chao did so with her free gloved hand, watching her thumb occlude that fragile-loooking sphere. And in that moment, her world was completely changed.
It is one thing to know a fact. It is one thing to meet aliens, to accept that they are from oh so very far away, that your world is but one little dust mote drifting in the vast and limitless cosmic ocean. But it is quite another to see that fact laid bare before you, where you can witness it in real-time through nothing but a Pexiglas helmet. Chao now knew. Everyone she’d ever known, everyone she’d ever heard of, every king or warlord or emperor or internet celebrity who anyone had ever heard of had lived down there, upon a sphere that looked to her like the most ephemeral of soap-bubbles. She had the crazy notion that she could just reach out one gloved finger and pop it.
She also knew that millions, perhaps billions, were watching this live via her bodycam. Perhaps they were going through the same epiphany.
Her breath caught in her throat, and she knew she was on the verge of tears. No, that was a bad thing. She was in freefall; there was no way for those tears to stream down her face. They would just collect over her eyes and blind her. So Chao breathed in deep and managed to tamp down those threatened tears.
“Chao?” called out Sadaf through her comm. “Are you all right?”
“I’m good, Captain. Just…next time…, we send up a poet.”
__________
Shaw hated, hated, hated having to use a wheelchair to get around. Most of the time he could wheel himself around using his substantial arms, but every so often the nursing staff would try to get oh so helpful and try to push him towards where he was going. Several of them had nearly lost limbs of their own thanks to such efforts.
Still, he was alive and that was a good thing. Although…watching Agent Milton Vila and his family, who were nearby as he went through his own convalescence, made Shaw reevaluate his life choices. It would be nice to have a wife and kid to hug while one went through the worst thing ever. But he was too old, such things were well behind him. While on autopilot, Shaw wheeled himself down the tiled and very off-white hallway with a sour air. One which told the entire staff that he was Not To Be Disturbed. He was thinking of a particular girl, one with the cutest pigtails and the sunniest smile. Yeah, she would have been the one, if he’d had his head on straight back then.
And then, in spite of his ‘Fuck the Fuck Off energy’, someone did block his path.
He stared at a pair of narrow legs, clad in narrow pants, then looked up with a distinct lack of humor. “I do believe you are in my way.”
The dark-skinned man blocking his path smiled, but it was a gentle smile. “I am. But, I am very sure you will want to hear my offer. Both you and Agent Vila.”
Shaw regarded him with gimlet eyes. “Oh, really? What’s your name?”
“I’m Zawahir Ibn Harith. I am the head of the…”
“I don’t give a single solitary fuck,” said Shaw. “I’ve had plenty of people trying to get me to tell them my life story since I got my leg removed with extreme prejudice. I don’t know how you got in here, but you strike me as someone just like them, Harith. So. I may be minus one leg, but I can still fuck you up but good. I can fuck you up so bad you’ll never shit right again. Do you wanna get out of my way now?”
The man’s smile didn’t change. “Borlaug Institute.”
“What. Really?”
“Really, sir. Both you and Agent Milton Vila. It sounds…very cynical, but you were the two that we wanted to heal first. As an object lesson to humanity. Do you understand?”
The notion made Shaw’s mind reel. “Heal?”
“Fully. We have successfully restored two people to the prime of life, and we are now certain that we can do the same for you and Agent Vila. With all of your limbs intact. We have done a great many tissue-sample experiments, and it appears that the regeneration also re-grows limbs.”
Shaw looked down at his missing lower leg. “And you’ll do the same for Milton?”
“Of course, sir.”
“Stop calling me sir, I work for a living. Call me Mack.”
“Very well…Mack. I won’t lie to you, this has been planned well in advance. But it turned out that limb re-growth for humans also unlocked certain regeneration within our cells, particularly the telomeres…”
Shaw held up a meaty hand. “Just…I’m a dumb grunt in such matters, don’t bother to tell me how it works. So you have some kind of magic goo that you slather over me and hey presto I’m twenty again?”
“That is more or less the shape of it, si…Mack. You will need to be immersed in the ‘magic goo’ for at least three days. Perhaps more, since this will also be regenerating a limb.”
“Either way, I go first,” said Shaw, with a flinty glare up at Zawahir. “I’m the test subject, and you need to test me good after I get re-birthed from your goop. I know you said you’d done it on two people, but we need to make sure this doesn’t give me some kind of bullshit super-cancer before Milton goes in. He’s got a wife and a kid. If he has to use a prosthetic instead of magic alien goo, then he has to use that instead. Understand?”
Zawahir gave Shaw a little bow. “Of course. I do believe you are quite the appropriate test subject.”
“Oh, go fuck yourself. Where is this shindig taking place, anyway?”

Full review here.
R.F. Kuang is a fantasy writer who published her first non-fantasy book last month, titled Yellowface. It's the story of two friends, a white woman (June Heywood) and an Asian woman (Athena Liu), both of whom are writers. The June is insecure about Athena's success in the literary world, but when Athena dies, June takes Athena's finished manuscript and publishes it as her own book. Hence the title Yellowface. Kuang writes from the perspective of a white author that pretends to be Asian.
Now, this would seem like a book that critiques cultural appropriation... until you learn that the book merely serves as a way for Kuang to regurgitate old literary controversies. There is a flashback in the book to an earlier literary controversy Athena experienced where an online group of “Asian Men’s Rights Activists” called her a sellout for dating a white man, complete with tweets bashing white-male-Asian-female (WMAF) relationships. This is a direct reference to a 2018 controversy where author Celeste Ng wrote about the hate mail she received online from some Asian men for marrying a white man and tweeting about not finding Asian men attractive. This sub was blamed for the controversy.
Issues involving race, gender, and romance have always been controversial, and tossing all three into the culture-war blender reveals much about our most personal desires. The author Frank Chin has long feuded with Amy Tan and Maxine Hong Kingston’s portrayals of Asian men in their books, arguing that they were selling a stereotype of “Asian male patriarchy” in order to appeal to liberal white readers and to justify the authors’ own reasons for marrying white men. Jenny Han’s To All The Boys series was criticized for including no Asian male love interests. And intraracial gender tensions were explicitly aired out in Min Jin Lee’s Free Food For Millionaires.
Here is where Kuang takes the entire discourse and reverses it: instead of Asian women writing themselves into romances with white men, she has June take Athena’s story and write in an Asian-man-white-woman romance. June fantasizes about walking hand-in-hand with whichever handsome Asian actor will be cast to play the male lead of her book’s film adaptation, while ducking allegations on Twitter that she is fetishizing Asian men. This trope calls back to another literary controversy involving white female author Rainbow Rowell’s book Eleanor and Park, a YA novel about a socially awkward white girl who falls in love with an Asian boy who is a fellow misfit. While Eleanor and Park was a commercial success, many Asian women mocked Rowell’s portrayal of the Asian male character, claiming that Rowell wrote him in a racist manner.
The discourse between Asian and white women arguing over men, plus the highly informal style Kuang takes with the narrative, gives the whole book the petty vibe of high school drama and vindictiveness. Kuang takes allegations of white-male fetishization by Asian women and projects them onto a white female character who allegedly fetishizes Asian men. Kuang’s message of sweet revenge is simple. Middle-class Asian women growing up in mostly-white environments, like R.F. Kuang herself, often feel inadequate to white women and their features. But Kuang writes June in a way where June feels insecure to Asian women, from describing herself as just a plain white brunette to a scene where she stares into Athena’s eyes (eye shape being a common motif in East Asian narratives of feeling othered) and wonders what it’s like to be so successful. June not only engages in metaphorical yellowface, but literally wants to have a yellow face. Gone are the sob-stories of yore penned by Asian women about how insecure they felt compared to white women. Kuang is a fantasy writer by trade, and this book serves as another fantasy, where Asian women replace white women as the new American “it girls.”
There's more in the full review, but the gist of the book is one big spat between upper-middle-class Asian and white women. Kuang basically made a white female character that she could write as "fetishizing" Asian men and makes fun of the character for it. There's a lot going on in here...

Hey guys, I've been recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia, if you don't know what that is basically I'm always in pain and I'm always tired.
I've been having a really hard time doing my dishes, it's so disgusting and I saw a few roaches the past few days. I did almost all of them and then my sink was full again. My dishes aren't the only thing that's dirty. Preparing meals and washing dishes takes up so much energy and all the standing and sometimes even sitting can put a lot of pain on my joints.
I have a rice cooker, a crock pot, an air fryer, an egg cooker(basically boils eggs for me because idk how to haha), and a toaster oven that I'm all willing to use. I've got paper plates for now, I bought a couple frozen dinners some seem healthier but they aren't cheap. I just need recipes or food I can buy that isn't very costly and doesn't produce a lot of dishes while I catch up on cleaning my house.

My name is Celeste, but everyone that wants an answer calls me Celly. Nice to meet you. RWBY is a newfound adventure for me. Many moons ago, I discovered RWBY in its infancy. I'm a Canadian. Many of the stereotypes of overly-polite Canucks are true especially in my case. I peeked into the fandom and noted the somewhat chaotic, sometimes rabid, and counter productive nature of its audience. Real life took over and far too many years passed. If I could turn back the clock, I would have plunged into this fertile world of such a beautiful story. Alas, that's not my semblance.
I have moments of crippling bashfulness yet I've always enjoyed writing down my personal thoughts and dreams. My own mother would be disappointed in me if I didn't live up to "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all" approach to life. It's probably why I didn't participate in the fandom until now. I've posted material, mostly NSFW material, in various places on the internet at times. I don't believe, however, that I've felt the deep-seated need to do so. Until now.
In April, I had some holidays booked and, as Volume 9 Episode 3 aired, I signed up for Crunchyroll. I spent the next three days devouring not only every episode of the series thus far, but I spent sleepless days on reddit, fanfiction sites, artwork sites, and quickly became addicted to everything RWBY.
I spent the next week writing. I'm a spaz. I'm my own worst critic. I hand wrote 140 pages of material. After my first perusal of my story, I recycled everything I wrote. I told myself "it's not good enough for my new favorite four girls." Even when I built my own confidence up with the help of one of my real life lovers and soul-mates, I found it difficult to refer to each page as "done". Maybe you deserve better than I have written. I'm afraid I'm not a video-producer, an artist, and heck not much of a writer, but it is the one way I feel I can contribute back to a community that has lifted my spirits in such beautiful ways.
I am also a lover of music. I've included links throughout my writing with a hopefully subject-appropriate play list for your own enjoyment.
As for the community as a whole, I have many people to thank. While I don't want to leave anybody out, the many talented artists in the various corners of the internet that post their illustrations have delivered a joy for which I can't summon adequate words or praise.
Again, I cannot bring myself to leave anyone out. The fan-girls and boys out there that post their fiction have also made me a happy girl. Thank you for your wonderful gifts upon this community of loyal fans.
Jeff Williams and his wonderful daughter Casey Lee Williams will forever take refuge in my heart. Thank you for such beautiful compositions. I adore you both.
Many of those that post 'reaction' videos on youtube have drawn me like a moth to flame. While I again don't want to leave anybody out, I must say that Calxiyn makes me smile with each of her videos with her friend Hunter. You're adorable :) Blind Wave. I love your reactions to RWBY and desperately hope you review Volume 9. Must I beg? Definitely Not Definitive? Must I also beg you absolutely precious couple?
It would be a horrible oversight not to include Double-Hit. Your reaction to the Volume 9 finale left me in tears. Your heartfelt conclusions to this review left me weeping like the romantic I've always been.
Alas, I've grown so attached to characters over the years and had my own wishful thinking about how storylines might turn out before the curtain drops. In the final season of Ally Mcbeal, I found myself desperately needing the man that would become Iron Man to return to sweep Ally off her feet for a happily ever after. I was emotionally crushed when his own personal life addictions prevented that from coming to pass. So, too, am I a member of a Sex Education ship albeit a naughty one. Maeve, Otis, and Ruby had their flings. I'm team Motuby over Motis or Rotis ;) But I digress.
Fan made animations for RWBY have been phenomenal. I'm a supporter of a few, as well as a supporter of other RWBY material, and will remain so for as much as I can afford. I simply have to applaud Mark Zhang. Your abilities have exceeded my hopes, Mark. I will forever support your spellbinding work. Thank you.
I would be remiss not to include those at Rooster Teeth and those that will hopefully return to their ranks. It would be unforgivable not to mention Kerry Shawcross, Miles Luna, and the newcomer wunderkind Eddie Rivas. Not to mention Monty. That sad song will forever make me weep about a visionary that was lost too soon. As for Kerry, I read about your 'imposter syndrome' and that simply isn't further from the truth. Monty would have been proud of everything you've done with RWBY, as we are, and that last volume would have left him on cloud nine. I like to think of Monty hanging his barefeet over a cloud and watching your magical works come to life.
The voice actors were chosen perfectly. In this last couple seasons, the cast has helped me fall in love with their performances and the characters that they play. Special mention, with no intention to leave anyone out, has to go to Miles Luna as Jaune, Samantha Ireland as Nora, and Barbara Dunkelmann as Yang. Please know that all of the cast's performances were superb and deserving of revival. You three just left me breathless in all the best ways.
In the unlikely event that Barbara reads this blurb, I saw in one of your videos that you are "mostly straight" in sexual orientation. If that ever changes, know that there is a polyamorous lesbian woman in Canada that would prove you'd never need the 'vibrating arm attachment' and I'd curl your toes in inexplicable bliss. After all, you are the girl that sounds like Yang. Now if we could only talk Samantha into.....
My bad. I digress. Again.
While there seems to be a fandom panic that RWBY may or may not be 'greenlit' for a tenth volume, I hope that everyone can have some positive, wishful thinking brew in their hearts. In all likelihood, Rooster Teeth and Warner Brothers are eagerly anticipating the RTX convention in July to drop the bombshell that Volume 10 has already begun in their heart of hearts. Given the multi media platforms of this fandom, any conglomerate would be foolhardy not to bathe in the pools of money to be made by RWBY.
Beyond that, look at other examples of potential cancelations of series. As a for instance, look at the show Lucifer. After an explosion of support on this social media stuff you younglings have undertaken, they were taken over by Netflix.
This fandom has grown by leaps and bounds. Its no longer possible for it to perish from our hearts. Far too many people just like you have let it plant seeds in your heart. Fans will write. Artists will draw. Videographers will do their magic.
The Brothers Warner, our own rascally brothers, cannot take RWBY from us. I, for one, will grasp hold for my very life. They will have to pry RWBY from my cold, dead heart.
♪I never assigned great merit,
To whispers, rumours, or hearsay.
It’s unappreciated to earnestly ferret,
The lurking kernel of truth at play.
But thick yarns and broad fables,
Lofty stories and high legends,
Whimsical anecdotes at coffee tables,
Are oft intended to instruct not pretend.
Champions seize claim of our hearts,
And inspire words of our folk,
For mischievous Cupid to launch darts,
And our vast dreams to go for broke.
For its love that oft has driven the bold,
Both of our kin or our country at cause,
To deliver blissful warmth out of sheer cold,
Or safety from evil’s sharp claws.
While some tales speak of great might,
With bold champions full plated.
Others have consciences alight,
Small shapes but bravery equated.
Remnantian children learn to stand tall,
And that violence and mayhem encroach.
Weapons are wielded by all,
For the Grimm’s deadly approach.
I could never have suspected,
Nor did the wise in their towers,
That the world would be rescued,
By four girls of four flowers.
A vanguard in a flowing red cape,
Or a fencing princess in icy white,
A black ninja in peril’s landscape,
Yellow one-armed bandit with great might.
As my memories fade with age,
And my knees long ago began to crack,
RWBY stood centre stage,
And took a bow in the penultimate act.
And yet here we are years in the morrow,
Thanking the heavens for their valiant breed,
Of their sacrifices we feel only sorrow,
And rejoice at their world changing deeds.
​
Act 1 is posted on my blog.
https://tequilasunrisecelly.blogspot.com/

RAW BUSINESS IDEAS 1.Rental houses 2.Transport vehicles 3.Motorbikes business 4.Bars and pubs business 5.Dairy farming 6.Cattle runch business 7.Poultry farming business 8.Videos and cinemas 9.PS halls 10.Salons and kinyozis business 11.Music industry 12.Entertainment industry 13.Private schools 14.M-Pesa shops 15.Airtel money shops 16.Gym and sauna business 17.Purchase of land for investment and resale business 18.Tree planting business 19.Fishpond and fisheries business 20.Butchery business 21.Poshomills business 22.Security service industry 23.Petrol station business 24.Car wash 25.Cyber business 26.Gas cylinders business 27.Hardware 28.Driving school 29.Computer packages school 30.Broadcasting industries/Media groups 31.Making of posters business 32.Pool 33.Phone shops business 34.Rental rooms for business 35.Pharmacy/Chemistry 36.Private hospitals 37.Welding sites business 38.Supermarket business 39.Writing books for sale/publishing 40.Small shops business 41.Tatoo buildings business 42.Movie shops 43.You Tube channels 44.Online jobs 45.Kungfu,martial arts,boxing,tai kuondo halls 46.Shoe repair Business 47.Digital marketing 48.Drug dealing 49.Tents and plastic chairs supply 50.Solar panels business 51.Betting companies business 52.Beautiful scenaries eg parks business 53.Photography 54.Videography 55.Electronics shop 56.Ice creams business 57.Smokies and eggs vending/Kahawa and mandazis/mtura/soup/nyama china business 58.Necklesses business 59.Sales person 60.Dealing in clothes (Ready made/Second hand-mtumba) 61.Green houses 62.Dancing crue and hall business 63.Putting money in fixed deposit accounts 64.Saccos and chamas 65.Buying of shares in unlisted companies 66.Treasury bills and Treasury bonds 67.Develop an app 68.Shares in listed companies 69.DJ 70.Chauffer 71.Body(ear,nose etc) piercing business 72.Insurance and reinsurance company 73.Boutique 74.Cosmetics 75.Fighting equipments(guns,bullets,bombs etc)shop 76.Ships and boats 77.Furnitures shop 78.Agrovet business 79.Livestock farming (goats,ships,rabbits,pigs etc) business 80.Acting on trends 81.Agricultural factories 82.Warehouses business 83.Barkery 84.Restaurants business 85.School requirements shop 86.Garage 87.Private toilets/bathrooms 88.Giving out credits at an interest rate 89.Guide(business, education etc)books/PDFs business 90.Supplying industry/supplier 91.Flowers for export business 92.Daycare business 93.Airtime(Safaricom, Airtel, Telcom etc) Business 94.Bookshop 95.Gift services overview 96.Laundry business 97.Nails making business 98.Forex trading 99.Bitcoin 100.Fruit and juice parlour 101.Podcasting 102.Yoga studio 103.Catering services 104.Computer repair business/shop 105.Modeling 106.Purchasing existing website 107.Organic vending business 108.Virtual assistant business 109.Translation service 110.Online tutoring business 111.Content writer business 112.Web design 113.Career coach business 114.Start a blog 115.Amazon reselling 116.Coffee shop 117.Home food delivery 118.Currency trading 119.Event planning business 120.Interior design business 121.Selling of phone case and other accessories business 122.Property management business eg Chakra company 123.Drive for Uber or Lyft 124.Water supply services 125.Personal fitness traineInstructor 126.Tour guide business 127.Accounting and bookkeeping business 128.Caregiving business 129.Transcription 130.Data analysis 131.Fast food restaurant 132.Yoghurt business 133.Nail and eye brows parlour 134.Screen printing 135.Real estate 136.Human billboard 137.Affiliate marketing 138.Pool cleaning business 139.Designing and selling print-on-demand t-shirts 140.Junk removal service 141.Printing services 142.Custodian 143.Dropshipping business 144.Craft business 145.Landscaping business 146.Bicycle rentals/Bicycle repairs 147.Painting business 148.Flower shop 149.House cleaning 150.Grocery delivery 151.Resale store 152.Subscription box business 153.Import/export business 154.Laundromat business 155.Party bus 156.Staffing services 157.Antique dealer 158.Construction business 159.Used car rentals 160.Cafe/Sandwich shop 161.Logo design business 162.Shoe business 163.Marine electronics/waterproof electronics 164.Publicity business 165.Drone business 166.Gutter cleaning business 167.Garden center 168.Kitchen store business 169.Cookie business 170.Framing business 171.Mushroom farming 172.Vending machine for fruits 173.Laundry services 174.Agribusiness 175.Business in waste management 176.Urban transportation business 177.Fin-tech business 178.Urban logistics 179.Automobiles 180.Bee keeping (Honey,wax etc) 181.Study platforms for Students 182.Financial consultancy firm 183.Stationery shop 184.Appliance repair shop 185.Party decoration services 186.Sewing business 187.Handcraft business 188.Online travel agency 189.Samosa business 190.Pancake and Chapati business 191.Wrap up 192.Milk bashop 193.Mobile money agent 194.Farming 195.Cake baking business 196.Selling snacks 197.Selling computers and accessories 198.Internet connection to the customers living nearby 199.Selling fruits and vegetables 200.Brick making 201.Selling handbags 202.Cereal shop 203.Paxful's affiliate program and peer program 204.Invest in mutual funds or ETFs 205.Data entry 206.Popcorn business 207.Bead making and wire wax 208.Sell perfumes 209.Designing book covers 210.Dog walking 211.Tailoring 212.Sale of hair extension 213.Dry cleaning services 214.Stadiums 215.Candle making 216.Mobile repair shop 217.Tuition 218.Hauling service 219.Home staging business 220.Window treatment business 221.Dreadlock business 222.Fashion house 223.Oil business 224.Music sounds for hire 225.Start a football club 226.Blended education programs 227.Wholesale business 228.Ironing services 229.Swimming pool 230.Mandazis and donuts business 231.Seedlings for sale 232.Soap making 233.Selling soft drinks,fresh juice and snacks 234.Stationery supply to rural areas 235.Tuk tuk business 236.Selling baby diapers 237.Start a video game lounge 238.Manicure, pedicure and facial scrubbing business 239.Landscaping and gardening services 240.Land brokerage 241.Eggs wholesale 242.Spare parts(motorcycle, bicycle, vehicles etc)shop 243.Pork meet business 244.Charcoal and coal business 245.Gambling business 246.Agricultural value addition business 247.Camels 248.Facebook 249.Instagram 250.Chicken spare parts business 251.Shopify 252.Hawking business 253.Amazon FBA 254.Flipping collectibles 255.Tik Tok 256.Carpets 257.Curtains 258.Mutual funds investment 259.Precious metals business (eg gold, silver and bronze) 260.Sport shoes/jazies/balls etc business 261.Grow profitable vegetables and fruits 262.Invest in the capital market via Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE) 263.Dealing in second hand goods eg furnitures, electronics etc 264.Candle production 265.Plantain chips and bhajia business 266.Errands 267.Lawn care 268.Miti shamba/Dawa za kienyeji/Herbals 269.Beddings eg Mattresses 270.Homemade gourmet foods 271.Flea market vending 272.Music Instructor 273.Making custom furniture 274.Banking services 275.Own a tap/boreholes 276.Flight services eg Air hostess 277.Clothing lines 278.Book publishing/ebooks 279.Start charitable business 280.Pet training and grooming services 281.Data entry provider 282.Start a pop-up shop 283.Rent your car on Turo 284.College admissions essay tutor and editor 285.Travel consultant 286.Tax preparation 287.Commision-only sales 288.Ebay sales 289.Fiverr Gigs 290.Airbnb 291.Patreon 292.Alteration Services 293.Professional organizing services 294.Aquarium maintenance 295.Home inspector 296.Review website 297.Home Appraisal 298.Sell Jericans from certain suppliers 299.Referral services 300.Recycled goods seller

Kyla ran to the porch, excited. Alexa had just chimed, indicating that Kyla’s air fryer had finally been delivered. She glanced through the window at the side of her door. It was there, all right. The brown packages were almost narcotic in the euphoria they incited in her. Kyla opened the door, her smile a shade too white. Better than too yellow, she always figured. In the background, her two-year-old son Devin cried out as he stubbed his toe.
The workroom was abuzz, air heavy with the hushed echoes of so many voices and mechanical parts blending. The collective sound possessed a hypnotic buzzing quality, like white noise. It was funny how the sound of everything happening at once sounded very much like nothing at all. Arthur rather liked it. He didn’t wear headphones like most of the other workers did. Even if he were to wear them, he didn’t know what he would listen to. Music always struck him as disingenuous. The distillation of emotion into recorded sound always resulted in a crude and rudimentary product that never seemed to capture the original feeling. That was another problem—the fact that music was a product for others to consume left Arthur cold. His heart was a blue glacier trapped in the otherwise warm workings of his flesh.
Kyla opened the box and took out the sleek appliance within. The color was called Starry Charcoal, and it was quite accurate in describing the graphite curves of the machine, the little sparkles that studded its exterior. Kyla grabbed the instruction manual and sat down at the kitchen table next to her little dude, who was now holding his injured toe and humming a tune from his favorite series. “Let’s get this sucker working,” she said, partly to her son and partly to no one in particular. She rubbed Devin’s back and began to read the manual.
Products. Consumers. Consumption. Accumulation. The goddamn Joneses and their terrible credit. Weren’t we, as advanced primates, supposed to have transcended this crap by now? Evolved to actually give a shit about the survival of our species and planet? The hamster wheel turned and turned, and Arthur was right there at the center of it. A Packing Guru, to be specific. That was his official job title. At the time of hire, when his manager had welcomed Arthur to the team as “our new Packing Guru,” Arthur had imagined inserting the brown recluse he’d found in his house the previous night into his manager’s nose and taping it shut. Nama-fucking-ste.
Devin was growing crabbier by the minute, hollering and inching dangerously closer and closer to a full-blown tantrum. “Hold on, little man, Mama’s trying to read,” Kyla murmured. She concentrated harder on the manual. Devin got off his chair and began scaling the stool next to their kitchen island, wailing mournfully. “Oh my god, Devin,” Kyla said, rolling her eyes and getting up from the table. “Here, have some of your beloved carrots.” She went into the fridge and retrieved a bowl of immaculately diced carrots. Kyla sat back down at the table and turned to the manual.
Unfortunately, the opportunity to use the brown recluse on his boss never presented itself, but with time, Arthur had found other ways to keep himself entertained at work. His thoughts drifted back to urinating in the coffee machine’s water reservoir that morning before the crowds rolled in. He also liked to add a few fingernail clippings or scabs in his coworkers’ lunches when they were otherwise occupied. Pizza was the best food for scabs, because they blended right in with the crispy crust and pepperoni. Yes, those things were highly satisfying, but that wasn’t the part of his job that fulfilled him.
The air fryer hummed as it cooked the broccoli bites Kyla had placed in it, setting the temp to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for eight minutes. Kyla, always one to do her homework, turned to the next page in the manual as she waited. A piece of paper fell out, no bigger than the circle she could make using her thumb and forefinger. She glanced up at Devin, whose tantrum had finally started to subside, and then looked back down at the paper.
The note, if you could call it that, was handwritten in pencil. Some funny words, not all of them English, were written with a hurried hand, along with some symbols she didn’t recognize. “Weird,” she said. The Alexa timer went off, startling her into dropping the book. She looked up in time to see Devin pulling the cord on the air fryer, and the air fryer crashing onto his head. The scalding broccoli bites fell out and landed on the unconscious boy’s foot with the stubbed toe. “Devin!” Kyla screamed in a voice she had never heard from herself before. She ran to the boy and found that he was not breathing. Carrots spilled out of his mouth. HE’S CHOKING HE’S CHOKING HE’S CHOKING HE’S CHOKING Kyla thought, and in her tidal wave of panic, she forgot that she knew how to do the Heimlich and CPR. She grabbed her phone and called 911.
Arthur realized he’d been sitting in a daze for close to a minute. He looked down at the package in front of him, little disciple to his Guru, and slipped a tiny piece of paper into it. He sealed the package with heavy duty packing tape and sent it off down the conveyor belt. People loved using products, but it was Arthur’s life’s work to let people know how it felt when the products used them. He watched the package fall into the shipment bin, and smiled.
Two years later, Devin sat at the kitchen table, watching his parents coo over his baby sister. He had suffered severe brain damage, but he knew enough to be jealous of her. To get their attention, he kicked his little feet, one scarred with tough, leathery skin, and one with skin untarnished. His parents did not notice. “Heeeere comes the airplane,” Daddy sang, twirling baby Alissa’s spoon in the air. The spoons, which Kyla had ordered online from her usual company, had just arrived today. They were a cult favorite on the internet, designed ergonomically for a baby’s mouth as well as to reduce the amount of food that got smeared on their face. With difficulty, Devin walked over to the recycling bin in the kitchen and pulled out the box from the spoons. There was something in it, a little piece of paper with what looked like scribbles on it. Devin looked at the paper for a long while, then threw it on the floor and meandered into his playroom, where he spent all evening playing with his new box. He had no idea that in three days, his sister would die from food poisoning.
People. Things. People loving things. People hating people. And the Packing Guru had completed the circle, accomplished a beautiful and mystical task. He had made things hate people as much as he did.

I don’t fully trust a lot of recipes that claim to be ketogenic that I find online…lots that have thousands of 5 star reviews have turned out horribly for me.
I’m getting my air fryer tomorrow, mostly for my wife to use (she’s able to eat healthy without keto unlike myself) but would love some of your go to recipes for the Air Fryer that are healthy and ketogenic.
Thanks!

The other day I used Adafruit Feeds for this air quality monitor project: Monitor air quality with a Raspberry Pi. The provided script uses the Adafruit IO Python module and stores a value and timestamp in a "feed". This is basically a table which can be read or used to create graphs on dashboards.
I'm looking for an Azure service where I can do something similar. Just write some data every few seconds to a service where it's stored. These requirements seem very basic, that is because they are.
I reviewed the dozens of Azure services but was not immediately able to find something similar to Adafruit's service. Any suggestions?

(Preamble, you can skip this if you'd like)
I've been watching anime for almost 3 decades now, I remember the days of yellow hardcode subbed VHS tapes, to the rise of anime being uploaded freely to youtube with AMVs being a great way to discover new muisc and new anime, as well as finally we see ourselves with anime becoming mainstream with associations with Netflix, and including mentions, and praise and inspirations due to anime.
Anime has transformed from a tiny niche of Nerds who people said needed to grow up, to being an almost mainstream popular past time with more anime made now days than ever before.
And one of the anime responsible for this back in the 2000s was none other than Elfen Lied.
Before I go on, I want to mention a funfact about this anime and netflix, Did you know it was a major inspiration for Netflix's Stranger Things, a show that is partially responsible for Netflix's incredible rise to ubiquity? So in short, if you loved Stranger Things and netflix's shows, Elfen Lied is in part responsible for that.
So what happened in the 2000s? Well Elfen Lied's DVD boxset was released and people ripped it and uploaded it to google video and youtube(raise your hand if you're old enough to remember google video), and because it had an english dub and german dub, Elfen became incredibly accessible and widely shared.
Because of it's accessability, it was one of the first times we(us anime fans at the time) were able to truly see just how far the boundary anime was able to go. Most of us in the west had never seen a truly gorey anime unless you were lucky to get your hands on a Ninja Scroll VHS, or you were lucky enough to have found an Akira or Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust DVD.
Most of us were all aware of the big Shounen anime, and the few selections on Toonami and Adult Swim.
Late night anime that was aired on premium channels was just not a thing in the west at the time.
Most people though anime was mostly just for kids and teenagers.
But Elfen Lied shows up online and some people see one of the most distinctly different anime that they've ever come across.
This lead to an absolute viral success of Elfen Lied in the west. With even Rotten Tomatos giving it a 100%, and early reviewers raiting it as an A-. Fairly good scores.
We see it top charts and see a huge positive reception and for many people, Elfen Lied is their first anime ever, or their first serious anime ever.
But is Elfen Lied worthy of that fame and positivity?
I think, all things considered, that answer is Yes. Elfen Lied is very much deserve to be called good, if not great and incredible.
Lets talk about why.
Elfen Lied in review. (Review content begins here)
First off, if you watched the anime early on when it was new, you'd see that it was one of the most distinct representatives of the new styling that anime was taking on as the switch from 90s "Scratch" hand animation was being overtaken by Digital Assistance Limited Animation. And Elfen Lied made extensive use of close up shots, and high quality digital coloring to give it beautiful bold colors and use interesting new technologies that we're just becoming available to anime a few years before.
The Opening animation sequence is marvelous, it's a gorgeous series of Klimt style paintings re-envisioned with a direct and hidden connection within the events of the anime itself.
We also hear one of the most unique and memorable anime OP opening themes of all time, Lilium.
Off to an amazing start. It's solemn, quiet, beautiful and sets up the way it will be using nudity and tone within it's episodes.
The first sequence of the anime is explosive, and traumatizing. It's confusing, its horrifying, and it's every bit as twisted as any anime has ever tried to be. But it's not doing this just for the kicks and giggles.
As things go along hints are being dropped, and the chess board is being set, and we a horrifying mass murder unfold, drawing us in.
A shot to the head and then... calm.
This intense dire moment comes to a close with a serene calm follow up that lets us sit there and think about what just happened. We get a moment to breathe as it all skinks in.
The anime marvelously swaps between moments of rest, and moments of intensity so that unlike a modern marvel film it's paced out, doesn't throw event after event at you expecting you to sit there and watch everything and process nothing. Time to breathe and think.
This design is common in artsy films that we often see at Sundance Film Festival and is often a highly praised aspect of screenwriting.
Elfen Lied counts it's beats and paces them out, one after another so the view isn't overwhelmed, and can take a moment to think about what's going on.
And it's needed because Elfen Lied doesn't just sit there and talk your head off as to what's going on like most other anime do. This is called Exposition Dumping, and it's a big "crime" with modern film and anime, where they don't trust the viewer to make the connections and see the circumstances themselves, so they sit there and have characters dialog so that they can explain things for the viewer to follow along.
Elfen Lied instead treats its viewers like they're emotionally mature enough to not need to have every little thing explained to them. It respects the viewers age and intelligence, instead of assuming they're just another average dumb movie goer Joanne and Cleatus.
Instead we see Elfen Lied rely on Show Don't Tell, encapsulating many aspects of characters within the scenes and frames of the animation, instead of doling out long monologs and dialogs that bore the viewer.
And as such we see an anime that focuses on a more singular plotline than most anime do, and nearly makes it air tight with few things to explain if one simply pays attention to what's going on. The details are a bit dense so it's understandable to miss certain things that are more hidden the first time around. With it's Show Don't Tell direction and orientation towards rich detail, Elfen Lied begs for a second viewing or even more to really fully grasp all that it is doing.
The story unfolds in a very Quinten Tarantino movie style. Starting early with an undefined stakes and happenings with a bread crumb of trails until we reach the middle of the anime when we finally understand who the main character is and why she is the way she is.
Her love interest can be a bit flat, and all in all isn't exactly that interesting of a person, but as a Deuteragonist, it doesn't matter that much because his character is well positioned to support Lucy's unfolding narrative. His actions count more than his personality, and his character is lightly unfolded as we see the direness of the situations the plot is driving towards increase.
The anime takes a real risk at portraying serious trauma, and states of mind. But even more risky and controversially it takes a chance at portraying the negativity and bleakness that we almost never see other works portray.
We see the deep scars of abuse, trauma, and isolation. We see the horrors of discrimination laid bare, and we see the viciousness of not just Diclonius but humanity looking at an image of itself.
The anime makes us face a reality that we don't want to admit is very much human.
Elfen Lied is Risky because it chose to push it's boundaries where they belonged to really truly reach out to those that can empathize with those experiences.
Because of this the anime leans more into realism than fulfillment and typical writing practices. It puts more importance on the realism of dealing with trauma than it does to put a socially acceptable story infront of a casual viewer.
It is a risky choice, that takes away the means to truly casually watch and slip away into a place of self insert or easy enjoyment.
It relies on characters written for Empathy, instead of sympathy. We see a story that relies on the realistic motivations of it's characters to carry the plot, instead of moving a plot along because it has to be moved along.
We see a significant usage of "This happens Because of this" A tempo of "This happens, but because of that, this happens" instead of a constant stream of "and then."
Each part of the story is a woven to introduce each new interesting element, and the conflict as it develops. This shines at its fullest during the last 3 episodes as the end of the anime is built up with many details and components practically hiding in plain sight.
Each conflict is prominent, and happens as it should without being a simple driver of it needs to happen so the plot can move along.
Because of this the story remains rooted in a nearly realistic place, seeming to be almost able to be happening right along side us, save for the obvious Sci-Fi elements with supernatural powers.
The characters and their actions move the plot, rather than the plot making characters do whatever they need to make sure an end goal happens.
The characters are well structured, and lean on a side of realism and more complex emotions, with a value to them instead of simply a cast of characters filling a role so that the main character can accomplish whatever the plot wants them too.
The ending of the anime hits hard, playing with people's emotions hoping they sit down and take a 2nd look.
It ends with a seeming ambiguity that tears at the heart and we truly feel a deep sense of lose and remorse for all that we just witnessed.
It's final moments are calm, heartfelt, meaningful, and put us in a place where we feel a deep sense of loss for the trauma we just witnessed unfold.
The anime has few faults, and few plotholes to plug, and unexplained events.
There are few things it actively ignores, probably mostly to do with runtime limitations.
Some things are glossed over, and not every thread is fully handled by the end of the series.
We see some funny inconsistencies with it's animation quality.
We deal with some odd, but rare, fan service moments that conflict slightly with the way the anime spends a lot of time de-sexualizing it's nudity.
At some places the anime might rely just a bit too much on show don't tell, where a few small exposition lines may have explained things a bit better for people who don't want to sit there and watch and rewatch with the intent on catching every detail.
But these issues are small and detract little from what great screenwriting it really placed.
This anime is truly marvelous and I understand entirely why when this anime first came out and for years after it felt so raw and real to people.
It stood with anime like Evangelion, Fullmetal Alchemist, CLANNAD, Wolf's Rain, and Texhnolyze in the power it carried through it's emotions.
I can see why so many people early on saw it for it's value.
Here's your

TL;DR

It might have aged a bit, but the conclusion that because it's aged a bit makes it a bad anime is... really just a shallow and boring argument that doesn't hold any water when the anime is critically looked at.
In conclusion, Elfen Lied is a marvelous Philosophical and Artsy anime from an older era that holds a lot of power and uniqueness even to this day. Despite some draw backs, it's a beautiful piece that takes hints from some of the best screenwriting in Film, and focus on it's emotional value rather than being a consumable piece of entertainment.
I give it an 8.5 out of 10, and a strong recommendation if you'd like to watch an anime that takes advantage of being a mature oriented work, to investigate details on a much more significant and deeper level.
The only thing I would say about not watching this anime is that it is definitely a very traumatizing experience, and if you aren't ready for handling trauma or may not be in the right place of mind, it may not be a good idea to watch Elfen Lied. It is absolutely a traumatizing experience when viewed in full and this can be a difficult thing to be exposed too at the wrong time in life.
If you'd like to watch this, be in a place of mind where handling trauma is something you'd be willing to do.

Co-Authored by me and u/Research-Apart, a big thanks to u/Acceptable_Egg5560 for letting us use Tarlim, and for helping write him
Well that took a while, hope it was worth the wait, the next chapter shouldn't take as long
CW: >! Gore and violence !<
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> Access File: Hybris (9)
[OPENING FILE]
Notice from Department of Extrasolar Records: These records were discovered in a floating black box data recording in the Gliese 832 system. These transcriptions contain the memories of prominent individuals who were directly involved with the events detailed below. The components of the transcription technology used are under review by the Department of Xenotechnology, and any transcriptions found within the data logs will be transferred directly to the Department of Extrasolar Records for further processing.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Memory transcription subject: Tarlim, Venlil Civilian
Date [standardized human time]: April 4, 2143
I don’t know how long I was in hiding for, I just remember hearing the screams of people outside before falling asleep when it all died down. I got up from the floor and peaked out of my closet to see if there was a break in before leaving it entirely. I checked my front door to see if the locks were still locked and, luckily enough, it was still intact. I set out a sigh of relief before walking back to my living room and slumping back down on my couch. I took my medication as I picked up my datapad from the floor, hoping everything that happened earlier was just a bad dream. The first thing I noticed was that my pad spat back an error message. That was strange, the infrastructure was too developed to not have net access in the middle of a city.
Glancing up towards the window, I noticed a strange red hue coming from behind the curtain. I set my pad down on the couch as I got up and walked to the window. I could feel my paws begin to shake as I grabbed the curtains. Anticipating the worst, I hesitantly opened the curtains and peaked outside. It was worse than anything I could have expected: The remains of dead Venlil littered the street below as more continued to pile on. Orange blood coated the surrounding building walls as mutated Venlil ripped apart anyone they got their paws on. One of them eventually came across a mother and child attempting to hide underneath the surrounding rubble. It didn’t hesitate to attack the woman before another mutant came by to try and steal its catch. They fought each other relentlessly, trying to keep her in their grasp. Their claws tore deeply into her skin and muscles as they fought, causing her to scream from the unimaginable amount of pain. She took one last look at her child and yelled at him to run before her throat was torn off.
The child ran for his life, dodging around rubble and mutants and for a brief moment, I thought he might make it! Then a mutant Krakotl swooped down over him, a barbed tendril emerged from its beak and stabbed the pup in the shoulder. Screaming in pain he was lifted into the air as the mutant flew off to Protector knows where. As I swept my gaze across the city, similar scenes played out: survivors ran through the streets, slipping on pools of blood as they were pursued by packs of mutants; doors and windows were smashed to pieces as people looted for supplies; buildings were engulfed in flames as malfunctioning fire traps and improvised weapons were set off; mutants of every conceivable species rampaged through the city, attacking everyone they could find.
I fell to my knees as I vomited from the sight of the massacre outside. The blood, the gore, it was too much! My consciousness was escaping me as my heart pounded in my chest. I was hyperventilating, I was going to die, everything swirled around I was, I couldn’t-
Focus.
Breathe.
Calm.
Forcing the tirade of emotion back I shakely I got back up and looked back outside, only to lock eyes with one of the mutant Venlil. Its head turned to stare at me, its eye solid black with streaks of red running through it. For a moment, we simply stared at each other, before it started to run towards my apartment complex in a strange loping gait. It was picking up speed with every step and soon ran on all fours, galloping over rubble and trappling eviscerated corpses. I stumbled away from the window and ran to my door. There was no spehing way that I was fighting that thing. Right when I unlocked it, I heard the shattering of glass behind me. In the corner of my eye I could see the monster clambering through the window, shards of broken glass tearing at its flesh. I went through the door as fast as I could as it regained its posture. The moment I closed it behind me, I heard a loud thud behind me, signifying the mutant had attempted to lunge at me, ‘How the speh did it reach my window!? I’m four stories up!’ I thought before running down the hallway.
As I ran down through the hallway, I could see the place was in ruin: the walls that lined the hallway were torn and covered in streaks of Venlil blood as the lights above flickered unrhythmically. I zigzagged from door to door, looking for somewhere to hide, but every apartment was locked. I soon heard the bang of a door being knocked off its hinges from down the corridor. I felt my heart pounding, threatening to burst out of my chest at the exertion, but I pushed on. I briefly considered the elevator upon reaching the end of the corridor, but realized power to it was most likely cut. I ran to the stairwell and raced down it as fast as I could, taking two or three steps at a time. I could hear the creature burst into the stairwell as soon as I reached the first floor. That thing was fast, too fast.
I ran through the hallways of the first floor and saw that most of the apartments had already been broken into. The people who used to live here are either dead, mutated, or in hiding. I could feel my legs starting to ache from running so fast for so long, but I couldn’t stop. I could feel my quads beginning to tear underneath my skin as my heart pounded vigorously. I could try to hide in one of the open apartments, but what difference would that make? I would just be waiting to die. I can’t keep running like this, I need something to defend myself with.
As the pain within my legs began to set in, I decided to run into one of the open apartments anyway to escape that thing. Upon entering, I ran through the ruined apartment and went straight into the bathroom to hide. I closed and locked the door as quietly as possible before taking stock of the room. Compared to the rest of the apartment, hell the rest of the complex, it looked disturbingly normal. I looked around for a few moments to see if there was anything I could use in case that thing does find me, but there was nothing. Then I noticed a window looking out onto an alleyway. I went to the window and fumbled at the latch and pushed it open. Quickly crawling my way through, I stumbled slightly as I hit the ground. Looking around, I spotted an abandoned shipping crate sitting against the wall. I shifted my weight and prepared to run when I heard the cracking of splintering wood behind me. I sprinted down the alleyway and slid behind the crate without bothering to look behind me. There was more cracking and splintering and the twisted pants of the mutant. Cautiously peeking around the crate, I saw it stepping out of the window frame. The shattered remains of the window sitting on the floor below it. It stalked down the alleyway towards me, its eyes scanning for any sign of its prey. Ducking back behind my crate, I frantically searched for anything I could use to fight. As I shuffled further behind the crate, I felt my paw brushed against a discarded wrench. someone had likely been performing maintenance on the exterior pipes and the wrench had been left behind. Gripping it tightly, I got myself into a crouching position and prepared to move at a moment's notice…
After a moment of silence, I heard a woman’s voice, “Tarlim, are you there? I heard a window break from around the corner,” she said
My ears peaked up at the voice, could that be…
“Barlen?” I said quietly.
“Barlen, keep your voice down!” I called out, I didn’t want her to get killed.
“Sorry” she replied, more quietly this time.
“There was a mutant crawling around here,” I told her.
“I saw it, it went the other way, it must have seen easier prey,” she responded.
I let out a sigh of relief and slowly got up to my feet, leaning against the crate, the wrench hanging loosely at my side.
“Thank the protector, it’s good to see a friendly face…”
I looked up, and sitting on the crate, was the creature.
“It’s good to see you too,” it said, perfectly mimicking Barlen’s voice.
Its three petaled mouth opened wide before pouncing at me. In a stroke of luck my body twisted and smacked it across the head with the wrench in my hands. It was hit so hard so quickly, I knocked out a couple teeth before it fell limp next to me. I took a few steps back before repeatedly hitting it in back of its head with the wrench in my paws. I don’t know how many times I did it, I just kept going until brain matter was exposed.
When I was sure it was dead, I fell back against the wall and sat down as I dropped the wrench next to me. I could feel my heart beginning to pound from exhaustion as I tried catching my breath.
Thoughts began to race through my mind as I stared at my paws in horror. This thing was not only incredibly fast and agile, but it was also capable of replicating voices. ‘How did it know Barlen’s voice, and how did it know it would work on me?’ I thought for a moment before remembering the press release prior to all of this. They showed a living planet, no bigger than a large moon, sitting motionless in the sky above as it formed an eye. I still remember the feeling it gave me: the horror was so great, I tried to convince myself before falling asleep that none of this was real; all of this was just a bad dream and I needed to wake up, but I knew that wasn’t true. I slowly turned my gaze up towards the sky and saw that thing looking down at us, looking down at me.
What if the reason why the mutant was able to figure out what voice to use to draw me out was because it wasn’t on its own? What if all those infected aren’t senseless monsters, but they were that thing’s puppets. They all bend to its will without question, and I have a reason to believe it can see through their eyes too.
The sound of distant roars quickly snapped me back to reality as I sat with my blood covered paws. Picking up my bloodied wrench, I slowly made my way down the alleyway and out into the street. I could feel my heart screaming in pain at the recent exertion, not once have I ever pushed my body so hard in my life. Carefully peering around the corner of the apartment complex, I scanned the street before me. It was completely deserted and any possible living thing that was here is either dead or in hiding. I took one last look around before leaving the backstreet. Creeping between overturned cars and mangled corpses, I kept my eyes peeled for any more of those mutants nearby. I was in such a fearful state, I could feel my body tense up at every unidentified noise and shadow. Twice I spotted mutants prowling the streets, but I was able to avoid them by staying hidden. Eventually, I circled back to my apartment building after making sure the coast was clear. I kept my eyes peeled and listened closely to my surroundings as I made my way upstairs. I can see all the damage that thing left behind as it chased me. I’m glad I was able to kill that thing when I did because if it had caught me I would be more than dead. I eventually reached my apartment four stories up and looked in from behind the door frame. The room was a mess: shattered glass and ripped curtains littered the floor as my window remained permanently open; my furniture was broken and torn into as everything else beyond the living room remained untouched. I looked in the dining room and saw my pack was still sitting on the table. After checking my bag to see if my pills were still there, I quickly searched for any food and water before making my way back outside. I needed to find somewhere safe.
As I crept through another back alley, I tried to remember the directions for the shelter. We were supposed to memorize their locations in the event of a raid, but I had for some reason not been included in the regular drills. Fortunately, they were not that hard to find, which seemed like a possible design flaw in retrospect. My musings were interrupted when I felt my pad vibrate in my pack. Confused, I reached in and pulled out my pad. I was honestly surprised it was getting a signal now. I looked at the alert and it says as follows:
“This is an emergency message sent to any and all remaining survivors of Dawn Creek and abroad: all emergency shelters within the surrounding cities have been compromised and any surviving Venlil are to find a place to hide and a weapon to defend yourselves with. These creatures are incredibly strong and agile and will do everything in their power to kill you no matter the cost. If you want to survive, you must follow these steps to the word:

1. When it is silent and a mutant nearby, stay still and hold your breath. These things have incredibly sensitive hearing and can hear your breathing from up to six tails (12 feet) away.
2. Stay out of sight and make sure they don’t see you. It is said that all of these creatures are somehow connected telepathically and function as a hive mind. If one of them sees you then they all know where you are.
3. Do not listen to them. If they fail to find you, they will mimic the voices of your close friends or loved ones in an attempt to draw you out. If you hear a familiar voice, do not respond.
4. When faced with a mutant, you must kill or maim them if you want a chance to escape. If you don’t then they will continue pursuing you. These things do not get tired and can chase you for miles without end.
5. If you survive an attack with an infected Venlil and they manage to breach skin or their bodily fluids enter your body in any way, it is recommended that you self terminate for the safety of the herd. It is estimated to take an eighth of a claw before whatever substance in said fluid enters the brain and converts you from the inside out.

May the protector save us all.”
I silently stared at the screen in mute horror after reading the last line. Every shelter in the area had been compromised and anyone taking refuge there was more than likely dead. Just how many died unable to escape as their friends and family were torn apart? The Arxur, on some level at least, killed for food, but these things didn’t do any of that: They don’t eat what they can and leave whoever left is alive to make more meat, they eviscerate any living thing they lay their eyes on in the most painful way possible. To say they’re as bad as the Arxur would be putting it lightly. These things are far worse than anything any species has come across. I looked up at the sky for a moment as I held my pad in my hands. Its eye staring down at us from above as it watches these creatures it has created mutilate my people.
‘If this thing is truly as powerful and dangerous as Tarva says, then just how old is this thing? How many species before us have been mercilessly slaughtered by it without a second thought?’ I thought to myself as I stared at the planet above.
Suddenly, I heard the sound of approaching footsteps from down the road. I felt my heart skip a beat before running to hide behind a turned over car. I pinned back my ears and cautiously looked over the side of the car and saw a small group of exterminators in their suits scouting the area. Not once in my life have I felt so happy to see them. I got out of hiding with my paws up to show I wasn’t infected. Upon seeing me, they put up their flamethrowers on the ready until one of them recognized me.
“Tarlim!? You’re alive!?” One of the Venlil exterminators exclaimed as he took off his mask.
“Treven!?” I exclaimed in response.
‘Of all the exterminators I could have run into, why him?’ I despondently wondered.
“I honestly thought a freak like you would die first. Seems like I was wrong,” Treven said mockingly, “How did you survive anyway?”
My grip on the wrench tightened. Even after everything that had happened, they still couldn’t let go of their prejudices.
“I don’t know. I guess I was lucky,” I replied simply.
Treven scoffed, “Was it the same luck that almost cost me everything?”
I stood silent at his response. I couldn’t believe that after everything he was still acting like this… this… stupid, selfish PRICK!
“Everything we've ever cared about, is gone.” I said, struggling to control my voice.
I spread my paws out, gesturing to the destroyed city around us.
“We’re facing down hordes of biologically impossible creatures controlled and created by an entity unfathomably more powerful than anything we’ve ever seen before!”
I noticed just then that I had been slowly stalking towards him, the wrench trembling in my paw.
“And your main concern is your SPEHING CAREER!?” I shouted.
Even now, this asshole still blames me for something HE did to himself. It was infuriating that this selfish speh was mad at me for losing his job even though they were the ones who almost killed Malcos!
I was about to shout again until one of the other exterminators, a white Venlil, came by and slapped Treven in the back of the head; the blow was hard enough to send him stumbling. Before he was able to respond, his mouth was covered by their coworkers' paw to keep him from speaking. It felt somewhat good seeing Treven put in his place, but I was confused on why. It wasn’t until he moved away from Treven when he decided to stay quiet and marched towards me with an annoyed yet fearful expression in his swaying tail. I was grabbed by the wool around my neck and pulled down to his line of sight before he started loudly whispering.
“Are you trying to get us killed!? We are literally at the ground zero and your shouting might have given away our position!” He quietly exclaimed, “We already had to deal with a horde on our way into the city and lost almost everyone. The six you see used to be a group of over two hundred exterminators!”
My heart sank after realizing what I had done: Not only did I possibly make our presence known, but this small group before me used to be multiple station's worth of exterminators. I was at a loss for words at my cluelessness and kept my mouth shut after I was let go. The Venlil in white soon signaled everyone in the group to continue moving forward and to keep their eyes peeled.
As we continued moving through the streets of Dawn Creek, we eventually heard the crunching of bone and sound of flesh being torn off from around the corner. The noise sent a chill up my spine and was extremely discomforting. I glanced at the exterminators surrounding me and saw them show a more fearful expression than me. If it was true that this group used to consist of a hundred exterminators, then they likely bore witness to seeing their comrades be torn to shreds first hand. Seeing something like that would be hard to live down, especially when the people you love are the ones being mauled to death.
The thought of what these people went through to get here changed how I saw them for a moment. Knowing what he had to witness, I began to rethink how I saw them when we crossed paths. I felt bad for them for a moment until I heard that loud crunch again, but this time it was louder.
The leading exterminator looked around the corner before continuing down the street. It was strange how empty the town was considering it was crawling with infected just a claw prior. They might have found new hunting grounds since this place is absent from life, but considering one of them has already seen me and the group there should have been at least a pawful chasing after us by now. They know we’re all alive, yet refuse to take action. Something is going on and I have a feeling it might pop up soon.
The sound of crunching became progressively louder as we quietly walked. The leading exterminator raised a paw, then slowly peered around the corner where the sound had come from. He stiffened suddenly, his entire body froze up before desperately diving back behind cover. Another exterminator, the mute one I think, grabbed him by the arm before he could collapse. The leader walked up to them, careful to not make any sounds that could attract attention.
“What’s wrong? What did you see?” he whispered to the point man.
He simply pointed back towards the crunching sound as his arm shook with fear. The leader’s tail swished in annoyance as he moved to the corner. Curious for myself, I followed closely behind him to take a look at whatever was out of view. He shot me a look of annoyance when I brushed up against him, but he didn’t object to me seeing. We both peered around the building towards the street with my face almost sitting on top of his head. My breath hitched in my throat as I saw what was standing there: feasting on a Mazic in the middle of a trashed shop was a massive, grotesque, monstrosity of a Venlil. It stood over 5 tails [3 meters] tall with tendrils of red flesh that shot through its bare skin. The muscles on its body were so large it seemed like they were on the edge of bursting out of its skin, and its enormous paws looked like it could wrap around my head with ease; its legs looked like they were about to explode from the sheer mass held within them. Not only that, but what separated it from the other infected was its face: it was the only one I have seen so far that didn’t have a split face like the others. This one was different for some reason; regardless, I didn’t want to get this thing's attention.
Placing a paw on the leader's shoulder we made our way back to the rest of the group. One of the exterminators walked up to us.
“What’s happening?” she asked.
“There is some kind of super mutant up ahead, we need to find a new route,” the leader whispered back.
“Well where are we going?” I interjected, “all the shelters have been taken out.”
“Before we found you, we sent out a distress signal in hopes anyone will come for us,” The leader responded, “We never got a response so we focused on trying to find a way out.”
“Do any of you have a map so you know where you’re going?” I Inquired
“No, unfortunately. Our pads ran out of power half a claw ago and we don’t have any physical copies, so we don’t know which streets to follow” The leader replied solemnly.
“I lived here for years, so I might be able to help you escape. Just follow me.”
I stepped out from around the corner only to see that the same monster from earlier was now towering over me. I slowly turned my gaze up from its bare stomach and looked at its blood covered face: it bared its large, razor sharp teeth as it stared at me with its circular pupils. I could tell one thing by just looking that it wanted only one thing, to feast.
My heart jumped upon locking eyes with it. I slowly backed away as my whole body trembled with fear. I tried to speak to tell the others, but I was too focused on the beast before me.
“Tarlim? What’s wr-” he cut off, most likely from seeing the creature now stepping out from behind the corner…
Everyone else began backing away after laying their eyes on this thing. Everyone was silent for a few moments until one of the exterminators began running and screaming. When the spell broke, the monster leaned forward and roared at us, causing nearby rocks and windows to tremble from its immense volume. Within a split second, it charged forward with its size hiding its speed; we dove out of the way as it rushed towards the running exterminator. The leader and Mute grabbed their weapons and tried to shoot at the monster, but it wasn’t enough to slow it down. Charging forward at an impossible speed, it soon reached the fleeing exterminator and grabbed the screaming Venlil with its massive paw. With a sickening crunch, it bit down and tore off a chunk of his head. The screams soon turned into senseless noises before it took another bite. His body soon went limp after his brain was completely destroyed. Once he was finally dead, the beast quickly chewed through the rest of the body until there was nothing left. The mutant stood still for a moment, its wet panting the only sound on the empty street. We all stood still ourselves, staring at the monster in horror. Then, swiveling around on its foot, it turned to look at us. Its red pupils glistened with overwhelming bloodlust as it stared from afar. It reared its head back and roared again before charging at us. The rest of our herd showered the creature in a hail of bullets as I frantically looked around for a way out. Spotting an industrial plant down the street, I quickly ran towards it and pried the doors open. The heavy machinery would make it harder for the beast to maneuver, I hoped.
“Quick in here!” I shouted towards the others.
As soon as I shouted, I inadvertently got the creature’s attention. Locking its red pupils on me, it charged towards me. I ran away for dear life into the facility only to feel its paws grab my leg with its vice-like grip. Before I could even attempt to free myself, it threw me across the street like I was nothing. I spun in the air for a few seconds until I landed on top of one of the turned over cars.
Upon impact, I felt some of my ribs break as both glass and torn metal stabbed into my skin. I lifted one of my bloodied arms and saw multiple pieces of glass sticking out of my wool with some of them big enough to go through the bone. I tried to scream out to the others for help, but the pain I felt from just breathing alone was already too much to bear. I looked over at them as they began running away from the scene. I saw the beast get down on all fours before pouncing towards the group with great speed. Despite their distance apart, it was able to close that gap in less than a second. One by one, it killed and tore them asunder with its large, powerful claws and razor sharp teeth until there were only the mute and leader left.
I managed to fight through the pain and get up from the wreckage with blood still dripping from my wounds and flowing down my body. I took a deep breath and shouted as loud as I could in their direction. It stopped what it was doing and looked towards me from afar. It stood on its hind legs and looked at me with a somewhat surprised expression.
“HEY! OVER-” I was quickly cut off from coughing up blood as I fell to my hands and knees, “over here!”
The internal damage done was too severe for me to push myself any further than I already have, but I needed to give the others time to leave. I got myself back up and locked eyes with the mutant.
Right when I did that, it did something strange: rather than run, pounce, or even roar, it quietly walked up to me with its blood covered claws at its side. I was confused about what was happening and I didn’t know how to react. Should I attack, should I run, what could I do that wouldn’t provoke it? Once it was within range, I reacted impulsively and hit it in the face with my wrench. Although I was able to cause a slight bruise, its head didn’t move an inch and the wrench was now destroyed.
‘Oh speh’ I thought for a moment before getting grabbed by my neck and lifted into the air.
I struggled to set myself free as I repeatedly bashed the deformed wrench into its arm. I could feel my windpipe get actively crushed as it slowly tightened its grip. I eventually dropped the wrench and started doing whatever else I could to set myself free: I kicked, clawed, and hit the beast as hard as I could, but to no avail. As I reached the edge of passing out, I heard a voice.
“Tarlim, look at me,” it said calmly with a deep, raspy voice.
I looked around for a moment before hearing it again, but this time it was in front of me.
“I want you to look at me, Tarlim,” it said once again.
I soon realized where it was coming from and who was saying it once I looked at the mutated Venlil. It was that creature who was speaking.
“You did everything you could to try and get out alive, but you failed,” he said serenely “Now you’ll die knowing everyone you ever knew and cared about is gone.”
My eyes widened when it spoke. I tried to respond, but I wasn’t able to say a single word.
“I had fun chasing you and those exterminators, Tarlim, but now it's time to move on.”
Its mouth opened wide, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth layered on top of eachother. My vision was fading rapidly, and my body went limp as I accepted my fate. Just before I completely lost consciousness, I heard the faint roar of a ship's cannon and the crushing force around my neck vanished. I felt like I was sinking through an ocean as I fell to the ground, dull spikes of pain ripping through my shattered body. I tried to look up to see what had happened, but everything was too heavy, too dark
I just
Wanted
To
S l e 3 ppe..4!u
[Subject consciousness lost Memory transcription ended]