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its official: tumblr is selling our data to Midjourney

we'd been hearing rumors about this for a bit but now its open and out there. some details from this article

it goes without saying, but if @staff goes through with this its going to be an utter shitshow and im all but certain the website will not survive it.

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution Shadow’s Showdown 62

The prototype special unit - RK800.

Detroit.

The world had stopped, shrinking to the size of the moment, frozen with terror on Connor’s face and calmness in Laura’s green eyes. The woman was resigned to the fact that in a moment she would cease to exist. She will leave on her own terms. If there is something on the other side, maybe she will meet Joe and Adam there, and maybe she will see her parents. There will be no pain, no sadness, and no Kratos. Nothingness opened its arms to close her in its embrace after a while. It was inviting, offering everything she wanted. The woman leaned slightly toward the precipice and just then heard a familiar voice.

“Laura, please don’t do anything stupid. We’ll get through this together,” the man tried to stop her.

She managed to regain her balance and take a step in the direction from which the voice was coming. She couldn’t explain why she gave up instead of jumping.

“Anything stupid?! Two people close to me and dozens or hundreds I didn’t know died because of me,” she replied.

The wind ruffled her hair, strands of which lined her cheeks. Tears solidified, burning her skin, and the woman trembled with cold and grief. Down below, sirens could be heard howling like a pack of wolves, lights flashing amidst the falling snow. Connor was increasingly afraid that if the police showed up here right away, Laura would surely jump. He had to do something, and fast.

Czytaj dalej

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 60 - The Awakening.

"Let me help," he said, smiling kindly.

Laura handed out drinks and asked if she could serve anything else, to which everyone gave a negative answer so she nodded and headed for the door.

"Damien, when will you take us to the yacht?" one of the girls asked. "Maybe next weekend?" suggested the grey-eyed man.

Damien, she repeated in her mind and left. She didn't hear everyone laughing at her "Can I serve you something?" giving the words a sexual context. Laura returned to the bar where she picked up another order. This time for a pair of lovers occupying the second VIP room. She wanted to serve some more new guests, but Alex's firm insistence forced her to go back to the room. Accentuating dissatisfaction with a loud sigh, Laura headed back to her place. She lay down on her bed and returned to pondering and staring at the ceiling. Only a noise coming from the hallway managed to tear her away from this passionate pastime. With great reluctance, she looked outside and could have sworn she saw Joe lying on a stretcher. Toby pulled her by the hand, saying something to her, but she couldn't focus. The words merged into one long cluster of sounds. She followed him completely unaware of what was happening.

Chapter 60 [AO3]

Chapter 60 [dA]

Chapter 60 [Wattpad]

Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown [Tumblr]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 59 - The Distorted Reality.

 Connor's apartment.    Two days after the attack.

When they finished eating, Connor went to clean up and feed the cat. He always cleaned up right away and was never seen with piles of dirty dishes. The same was true of dirty clothes. He usually vacuumed twice a day, wiping every stain or fingerprint. He was also known for taking off his shoes before entering the house. Crumbs on the bedding made him clench his teeth so hard that his jaw went numb. Connor remained silent because he liked Laura, and after what she had been through it would be rude to keep cleaning up or worse, admonishing her.

"You didn't say a word about how much I screwed up the company's security issue," she said immediately when he returned to the bedroom. "You didn't screw up anything. This attack would have happened anyway, and we did everything we could," he replied, not very pleased that he kept going back to what it was. "I could have done more," she muttered and took a few sips of her already cold tea. "You're very fond of feeling sorry for yourself," he sighed. "I don't know who taught you programming and hacking but he did it perfectly." "Joe taught me," she replied, though it wasn't entirely true. Damien also passed on his knowledge to her, through which everyone including Adam suffered. The song she heard in the company during the attack was a message from him. Of that she was sure.

Connor did not urge Laura to do anything. She decided to tell another one of her stories herself. The man had the impression that it was helping her to some extent so he just listened.

Chapter 59 [AO3]

Chapter 59 [dA]

Chapter 59 [Wattpad]

Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown [Tumblr]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 58 - The Death and Rebirth.

Location - Unknown. Time - Unknown.

She sank into the darkness as if into a bottomless void. There were whales floating around. She had always wanted to see a whale. A ribbon of blood disturbed the blackness rippling toward the surface. She was falling. Oily shadows coated her, invading her nose, ears and mouth. She could feel them swarming her brain. The unbearable ticking of clocks which suddenly began to ring. A whirling ballerina shattering into shards of golden glass. A meadow of broken orchids. Falling petals of magnolia flowers on a withered tree. The pain. Loneliness. Death.

"Artery forceps! Faster, damn it!" "Pulse is weakening!" "Defibrillation!" "No heart rate." "Again!" "Still nothing."

Silence and darkness. The smell of cinnamon and ginger. No, it’s cigar smoke and the smell of cognac. The stench of sweat, burnt skin and acid. The screams. The crying. Despair.

Chapter 58 [AO3]

Chapter 58 [dA]

Chapter 58 [Wattpad]

Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown [Tumblr]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 57 - The Zero Hour - Part 3.

***

I feel like I'm losing hope In my body and my soul And the sky, it looks so ominous And as time comes to a halt Silence starts to overflow My cries are inconspicuous

***

Sarif Industries Subsection six of the laboratories. 10 minutes to 2 a.m.

Jensen shot several mercenaries while struggling with a sore leg. He thought he saw a woman who looked more like a robot than a human, but she disappeared before he could get a better look. Megan was nowhere to be found, which didn't make him feel any better at all, and Pritchard still didn't answer. The only thing he was sure of was the non-accidental target of the attack. The destruction was done only in the laboratories so whoever was behind it must have cared about research or prototypes.

"Pritchard, can you hear me? Laura! Connor! Anyone!" he tried connecting once again but to no avail. "Damn it," he growled under his breath.

Adam checked the cylinder and searched his belt pocket. The state of spare ammo did not fill him with optimism, so he started looking around for a second weapon on the way. He found only a pistol, which he slipped into a holster on his right hip and a couple of magazines. That had to be enough. Hearing gunshots, he intended to turn back and find out if it was mercenaries killing Sarif Industries employees or if someone had come to help. Everything went silent before he took a few steps so he abandoned that idea. His leg was hurting more and more, and he had one last Vicodin pill left. He searched through first aid kits on the way, but the pills he found there wouldn't help him at all.

"Megan!" he yelled because he had nothing else left. "Megan, where are you?!" "Are you looking for someone boy?" he heard a female voice behind him.

He turned around but saw no one.

"You're lost, aren't you?" again the same voice, again he saw no one.

The Chief of Security wabbled as if he were drunk and leaned his shoulder against the wall. Vicodin raged through his mind with ghastly visions, eating away at his consciousness piece by piece.

Chapter 57 [AO3]

Chapter 57 [dA]

Chapter 57 [Wattpad]

Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown [Tumblr]

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution Shadow’s Showdown: Chapter 3

Chapter 3 The Personal Search

Sarif Industries headquarters. Adam Jensen’s office.

Exhausted and out of breath, she runs through the lobby as an arrow fired from a bow and… Was it destiny or maybe bad luck? She was trying to find an answer to this question while sitting on the cold floor with raindrops still dripping from her hair onto her face.

“Good morning, Miss Werner. You want so urgently visit my office?“ she heard that hated voice, and the answer suddenly became obvious - Bad luck! And that was the nastiest, worst possible kind of bad luck… "I’m flattered, madam.” he added, reaching out to help her with getting up from the floor. She wanted to tell him, where he should put it, but in the end, returned the gesture. This courtesy is highly suspicious, but she had no choice. The whole elaborate plan turned into deep shit. The strangest thing about it all was his tone. It did not at all resemble that one of yesterday. Adam was just nice.

“Thank you.” That’s all that Laura managed to say. If you asked someone from the outside, he would certainly say that she lost her head for Adam in that one brief moment, and yet yesterday she wanted to cut his throat with a dull knife.

“So please, come with me.” he said calmly, gesturing towards the stairs. Stairs, not the escalator. Laura saw in it some kind of attachment to the old days, which she worshipped too, but it was probably only just her imagination.

They remain silent all the way to the third floor. Laura, being afraid that she can make things worse, decided not to change anything. While standing in front of the entrance, to the office, she watched as the head of security enters the access code, on the electronic lock, and in the blink of an eye, she also knew the combination. Adam, like a true gentleman, opened the door and invited her inside. Two monitors, several cabinets, a comfortable sofa, and this wonderful view of the lobby. That was all that she managed to sniff out when he interrupted her with a question.

Czytaj dalej

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution Shadow's Showdown: Chapter 2

The Archn3rd0

Head of cyber-security - Frank Pritchard’s office.

Francis Wendell Pritchard, Frank, Nucl3arsnake, Archn3rd0, or just the boss. Pain in the ass, but there’s one thing that must be admitted - he understands computers like no one else. He’s rude to anyone, and his attitude lets, people know that they are not worthy even to look at him. At least that’s what Laura observed during her relatively short stay at Sarif Industries headquarters. The exception to this rule are other computer geeks, whom he treats less harshly but they still are dumber than himself.

“Finally! Miss Werner herself!” He squawked unpleasantly with the voice of an old parrot, still staring at the computer screen.

“Hi Frank, I don’t like you either.” Laura paid back with the greeting. That was a part of their daily ritual. “But I have a little gift for you.” She added, handing him over the blue file.

While Pritchard was enthusiastically flicking through the papers, Laura had some time to memorize his office. Computers, more computers and…even more computers. It is the simplest description of his kingdom. Pritchard had a decent server room here, which probably contained quite a lot of useful information. All that she needed to do was to learn the system well, then bypass its firewalls and at the same time fortify herself with one, redirect connections, let a worm into the system, break a few passwords… - she calculated in her mind. It is doable, a piece of cake. The server lights flickered rhythmically and froze. Frank cursed silently as he leaped up from his chair.

Czytaj dalej

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution Shadow’s Showdown: Chapter 4

The Fly Girl

The Jackdaw.

Laura probably wouldn’t have known this lovely place if Faridah hadn’t brought her here. The tavern was decorated in a pirate style with wooden tables, chairs, and benches. Fishing nets were hanging from the ceiling, the pirate flag was also noticed by Laura. Even waiters took care of the right atmosphere. Faridah led her friend to one of the tables at the back, near the wall, where the menu cards were already prepared and waiting for customers. Laura put her backpack on the floor, took off the wet hoodie, and hung it on the backrest of the chair. She fixed the sleeves of a long-sleeved dark grey top and then sat down.

“I recommend you Tortuga Soup. It is delicious and warms you up well.” she suggested seeing Laura shivered from the cold several times.

"This is what I need, thank you.” It’s strange, but she had the impression that she would find a common ground with Faridah and despite the rules which she set earlier, Laura wanted to have a friend in her. It was a simple desire to avoid sitting alone in an empty apartment.

They didn’t wait too long for orders. The soup was indeed delicious and warded off bad moods.

“What did you want to talk about?” Laura asked carefully. While waiting for an answer, she continued to eat her portion of soup.

"About Adam.” As Faridah spoke the name, Laura felt her throat tightens. It took her some time to swallow that knot with Jensen’s name written on it. Why him? Out of a million different topics, she had to choose the one that boosts her anger.

“What about him?” she asked evasively, hoping that she could redirect the conversation to something more pleasant. “Wait a minute, maybe she thinks that he and I… For all the plagues of the world: IMPOSSIBLE!” she thought with an explicit disgust.

"I know you’ve been here for a short time and I really don’t care where you worked before. It’s not my concern. Just don’t start your career by making enemies.” Faridah said this quite harshly, almost like a warning, but it was hard to find any ill will in it. She just cared for Laura in a manner of an older sister.

“But I…” she tried to squeeze out a reply while looking at Faridah with her eyes wide open.

Czytaj dalej

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution Shadow's Showdown: Chapter 1

The Grumpy Cerberus.

Detroit, Laura’s apartment.

It was late afternoon when Laura’s smartphone started to ring. She didn’t want to answer the call, but Pritchard didn’t like to wait either. Besides, she needed a job, so playing too much with her boss wasn’t a good way to keep it. Luckily Laura managed to know Frank enough during those few weeks of working under his command so that she was aware of how far can she push the line.

“Laura it’s urgent! See you at my office, you’ve got 10 minutes!” Frank yelled from a loudspeaker as he always does.

Laura was forced to leave reading her favourite book about hacking tricks for later. She lazily put it back on the table and finished cold coffee. „Archn3rd0 can wait a few minutes. There’s always a lot of fuss about nothing.” She thought while slipping into a green turtleneck, and a blue high-waist skirt. „Farewell, comfy clothes.” That’s what seemed to express her face. Finding shoes was a great challenge. Laura’s apartment may be luxurious, and not cheap at all, but at least she can keep it messy because nobody visits her. Laura Werner talking to you live from… Mordor. That’s a good way to describe this mess.

“Stalker, you idiot!” She growled with fury at her black cat. Because of him, she would almost lose her teeth.

Czytaj dalej

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 56 - The Zero Hour - Part 2.

The woman was unable to utter a single word. She sat in front of the monitor, covering her mouth with her hand. The frame showed the scientist's body perforated like a sieve. The walls were smeared with blood. Moments later, music flowed from speakers throughout the company. Boom boom boom boom Gonna shoot you right down Take you in my arms I'm in love with you Love that is true Boom boom boom boom

The message was obvious but only Laura knew it. She felt herself suffocating as if someone had pumped all the air out of the room. In a split second she realized what she had done - she had murdered innocent people. The woman knew Damien was unpredictable, but not to that extent. She herself opened the gate for him, which was a piece of code, the one considered safe, but about which Connor had doubts. She had lied to him. Unknowingly, but she lied.

Chaptar 56 [dA]

Chaptar 56 [AO3]

Chaptar 56 [Wattpad]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 55 - The Zero Hour.

Sarif Industries. David Sarif's office. The 0 hour.

The screen in Sarif's office, which had previously displayed a broadcast of a baseball game, now showed a map of the laboratories highlighted in red. An alarm vibrating in their ears sounded, and a robotic, female voice repeated in a loop: Environmental malfunction, laboratory sub-section six. All lab chiefs, please report in.  

Knowledge is a deadly friend  

If no one sets the rules

The fate of all mankind I see

Is in the hands of fools

Chapter 55 [dA]

Chapter 55 [Wattpad]

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Year is ending and I wished to close it with someone special. Someone who is mine and can change with me. I struggled, and still do, with bad thoughts. Joe helps me to fight my way through this. It’s sad that I have to rely on someone who doesn’t exist. But when you have no one who cares to understand you or at least listen to you it’s better than nothing.

As always this Nifling is pure, with no AI used.

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Be yourself. People don’t have to like you, and you don’t have to care.

Unknown (via quotemadness)

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 54 - The day before the storm.

 A dancer who can't dance, what a tragic irony. After the accident, along with her leg, the girl also lost her self-confidence. She didn't trust the prosthesis one bit, and treated it like an enemy kept close according to the saying “Keep your friends close; keep your enemies closer.” Maybe this is the moment to take that step and move forward? The girl smiled, gently grasped Joe’s hand and stood up. Again the air was filled with the oriental-spicy scent of his perfume water. As usual, ginger was dominant in it. She knew this was not going to be the usual slow dance with cuddling that dominates at discos. Navras decided to be a gentleman or simply wanted to test her. She didn't consider the third option, that he was trying to rebuild her confidence. Slowly and patiently like a parent teaching a child to walk. He wrapped his arms around her waist gently without the pushy groping. She, in turn, placed her hand on his left shoulder and let her right hand close in a confident yet not a firm grasp of his robotic, dark purple hand. He guided her with such skill that her mind was immediately filled with questions about where he learned to dance like this. Laura figured that since he opens the evenings at Lemon-Lime that's where he got his skills from. She wanted to hug him so badly, but he kept her at a distance while dancing.

 As much as she wanted to, she couldn't lie and deliberately make errors in steps. Besides, after all, he knew she was a ballerina. He knew more about her than she knew about him. Joe didn't mention much about his life, and she didn't ask. Sometimes she felt surrounded by secrets, lots of doors to which lock she didn't have a key. Or wandered in a maze with no way out. All she knew was he had lost someone close to him.

 Suddenly she felt him embrace her more tightly around the waist, pulling her close. His cheek touched her temple. She wanted to look at his face, but he wouldn't let her.

Chapter 54 [dA]

Chapter 54 [Wattpad]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 53 - The Friend or Foe?

At that hour the club was almost empty and dimly lit. Most of the staff was still off so when they walked the corridors she didn't meet any of the butlers. Connor led her to a room she knew well and immediately lit a fire in the fireplace. He hung their wet jackets on the backs of the armchairs, which he moved aside. He spread a thick, soft blanket on the carpet in front of the fireplace.

"Make yourself at home, I'll be right back," he said and left before she had time to respond.

The room that had previously frightened her now became extremely welcoming, and when the man returned with two mugs of hot chocolate and a plate of cinnamon cookies she really felt at home. Connor set the tray on the ground and sat down next to her.

"How do you do it?" she asked looking at the blazing fire.

"What’s on your thought?" he looked puzzled, reaching for a cookie.

"You spread some kind of magical aura. Everything suddenly becomes simple, it's nice and warm."

"That's just the way I am," he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know if you like it, but I've fried some carp, and there will be cabbage with mushrooms and bread to go with it. I know that Christmas is over," he said embarrassed, rubbing his neck.

"I love carp, probably the most of all fish."

Laura didn't feel like pondering now whether it was a coincidence or perhaps some secret conspiracy. She wanted to spend this time carefree, away from problems. The hacker woman even allowed herself two pieces of fish, which was delicious. After finishing their meal, they returned to their room with mugs of hot tea with a slice of lemon.

"The last Christmas I remember well was the one in Berlin with Joe," she said quietly.

Chapter 53 [dA]

Chapter 53 [Wattpad]

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Shadow’s Showdown Chapter 52 - The Hesitation.

"I don't want you to leave. I don't think you want that yourself," he muttered as he carefully turned her to face him.

The girl merely shook her head negatively. His violet irises seemed brighter than usual. Joe was as close as in her dreams. Clearly she was no longer unattractive to him.

"You act this way to keep me, nothing more," she replied reproachfully.

"Never," he said the word with a firmness that could not be challenged by any argument. "I would never use false feelings and gestures for something like this."

His forehead touched hers, slowly and gently. Navras did not take another step, giving her time to decide. She could have run away at any time, but she didn't. He brushed the tip of his nose against her nose as if beckoning with palpable provocation. Then Evie decided to take the initiative. She touched his lips with hers, but immediately withdrew them for fear of doing something wrong again.

"You're a terrible coward," he muttered in his bass-baritone voice.

He finished what she had started. He found her lips and pressed into them with a long kiss. They lingered like that, the scene not remotely resembling those passionate and hot scenes straight out of the movies. Joe was still afraid of what would happen next, but who doesn't take risks doesn't have any. He did not forcefully prolong the kiss, he knew how to sense the moment when it should end.

"Do...We now...I mean..." Evie tried to put together a meaningful sentence, but couldn't.

"Yes, now it's 'We'," he added.

Chapter 52 [dA]

Chapter 52 [Wattpad]