#//Human intelligence or more? Check. Can communicate that as such? Yes

[lustbcrne]

So like,,,,

Andr.ius passes the Harkness test, does he?

[evilminji]

Actually? You know what would be darkly hilarious?

If, when the GIW can't get ghosts declared both malicious AND non-sapient/sentient? They push for "dumb animals" instead.

Which is accepted. Ghosts are animals. Checks out, says scientists everywhere.

HOW "dumb"?

What? Says the GIW, mid-victory high fives. They did not expect a follow up question. They SHOULD have, as this is the SCIENTIFIC community and that is literally their job, but here we are.

How. "Dumb"? The scientists repeate slower. What methodology did you use? What is your sample size? Are their different sub-species? Is this dimension like ours? Is Ghost the equivalent to Mammal? It says here their are humanoid ones.

What IQ are we talking about here and HOW DID YOU TEST??

A goldfish, parrot, and dolphin are all animals. WILDLY different levels of intelligence. You can't treat them the same. Technically speaking, WE are animals.

The GIW does not like where this conversation is going. Tries to shut it down.

.......well NOW the scientists are both offended AND invested. How DARE you try to push faulty science and hide the Truth from them! They're gonna do their OWN studies! *picks up the phone and dials that one embarrassing spiritualist friend they had in college* Hey! You still think you can summon ghosts? I'll pay you to try it for Science!

And like? As a Ghost? It's degrading as hell. But ALSO these fuckos just Whoopsie'd you into having both protections under the law, since animal abuse IS illegal, AND just put the ENTIRE planets scientific community on their asses.... by accident.

So you take a deeeeeeep breath you don't even need. Remember you're doing this for the little ghost babies and fluffy ghost animals. And show up at a research facility like "yes, hello, I am Ghost. Here for you to poke and prod at. Please ask me to name the object on the flash card or whatever IQ tests do these days."

Should you HAVE to prove your own fucking sentience? No. But? You do it. You're even polite about it. Ask for a copy of the study they plan to publish so you can BEAT some mother fuckers with it. The scientists nod in understanding and use the BIG font for your copy so it'll hurt more.

They've been there.

And just? Shitty people getting what they wanted only to have it blow up in their faces?? I see all these angst "but what if they were declared ANIMALS" prompts and I just?? Are we talking PARROT or goldfish!? One has the average intelligence of about a human 4yr old and the other is a FISH! People get RIGHTFULLY furious when you treat INTELLIGENT animals badly.

And would, in fact, adapt pretty easy to discovering one of said animal has become HUMAN lvl intelligent. It's easy to grasp the idea of human intelligence lvl dolphin or monkeys. Maybe there was some mutated strain, maybe in uetro tampering. Who knows. But if I tried to sell you a human intelligent housefly? Gold fish? Lizard?

You wouldn't believe me. There is some kind of trick at play.

So if GHOSTS are seen as animals? Everyone nods and then later? Someone comes in TV and very excitedly informs you "we found INTELLIGENT LIFE amongst the ghosts!" You'd believe it. Probably be really excited by your conversation starter for the day. Get a taco and move on with your life.

But? Having to willing sit for a barrage of testing? Is going to suuuuuuck so bad. Poor Danny. SATs all over again. For HOURS. At multiple facilities, just to be CERTAIN it's not a one off. All because he not certain he can insure good behavior from other ghosts and This Is IMPORTANT. He ALSO can't be certain it's even SAFE.

Might be a trap.

But if he has to do it again and again and again? Mexico to Bavaria to China to the Maldives? If this is what it takes for the scientific community to bitchslap the GIW into ORBIT before the UN? Hand him that pencil.

He has no where more important to be.

@hdgnj @nerdpoe @mutable-manifestation @ailithnight @the-witchhunter

[tossawary]

Watching a lot of "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" lately has me trying to articulate a personal rule of thumb for depicting competence. Very basically, if you want to convince me that characters and organizations are not incompetent, then they need backups.

So many of the episodes that we've been watching recently hinge too strongly on single points of failure. If this one element of a plan goes down, then everything collapses. Which is fine occasionally? Cascading failures from small mistakes happen. Shit gets weird sometimes. But the repeated absence of, like, more basic operating procedures like double-checks starts to get annoying fast if we the audience are meant to believe these people are very intelligent and good at their jobs.

After the first few times, Starfleet has got to stop beaming down away teams without a couple plans for what to do if the transporters and communications go down again. "But the chances of that happening on this routine mission are so low!" Don't care. Pick a nearby cave to hide from the ion storm in BEFORE you go. Beam down a little shelter pod with emergency supplies. Arrange a rendezvous with a shuttle. Check in every five minutes so that you know the instant you lose contact. Wear safety gear. Something! Anything!

Admittedly, "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" do this sometimes, which is nice to see when it happens, but not consistently enough. These characters should regularly be considering the worst case scenarios! They should be estimating their margins of error! And sure, unavoidable accidents happen sometimes, human error is definitely a thing, and maybe the backup plans will ALSO fall through for drama's sake, but I would be reassured by the indication that these people at least tried to prepare for things going to shit while exploring the mysterious pit.

"The Clone Wars" show has so far (first half-dozen episodes) been a nightmare of logistics and protocol. Okay, so you let Anakin make a flight plan / attack plan and then... no one checked it over first? Who signed off on this? Anakin: "We're taking X shortcut!" Supposedly more senior character who is on the same mission: "What? Anakin, X shortcut is dangerous because of Y!" And it's just like, "So, you guys just didn't do an actual mission briefing first, huh? Even if it was agreed upon that X shortcut was still the best way, it sure would have been nice to warn the poor background characters about the danger of Y before flying out..."

Yes, characters and organizations making plans at all is the first step of depicting any degree of competence. But the NEXT step as a basic rule of thumb should be them anticipating what can and will go wrong, and what to do about it. After the second time something goes wrong in a very predictable, easily avoidable way and the characters act all shocked about it, it's like, "Yeah, no, this is on you now. Please start making some backup plans in advance."

[janmisali]

been a while since I've done this but check out this comment. what are they talking about (transcription under the cut)

/hj is simple. It just means when you see it, youre supposed to go, "ha". Not "ha, ha, ha" like fully laughing, or " " like its not funny, just "ha". Thats all it means. /j means you go "ha, ha, ha" and /s means dont get irritated because they are not serious. You dont have to laugh but you dont have to cry either. No tone indicator is created for you to go back to the text to figure out what the tone indicator means, because most people will never do that, hence the meaning is created by the response and not whats inside the text. Thats natural language for you. Created by people doing illogocal stuff, not logic. Technically it is logical though. Its just not using the logic you would assume it to. You cant just assume that. You have to take everything that can affect the creation of language into account.

The tone indicator is useful when you want some1 to react by something. There are these awkward moments when you in a group (irl) tell a joke and every1 half laughs, but one guy goes fully laughing and its weird. This tone indicator is so that every1 knows to half laugh so that people can know that online as well. Communicating just isnt created like a certain word in a certain place or some word combination always should create a defined response. Tone indicators just try to control that response, which is why they exist. Its not complicated.

And yes its too stupid imo, ive given up on real language a long time ago, created languages are much more interesting to me at least.

Let me just go off the track completely and also super personal and define autism, because why not. Ive tried to do this before but i feel like now ive found the tools to do it better. Autistic people are people who are sensitive to information. Any kind of information, any kind of sensitive. Any kind of sensitive includes being non-sensitive and sensitivity fluctuations. Any kind of information can be sound, visual information like light or subjective information like text and it includes information fluctions. That is why autistic people can be very smart. That is also why they can be very dumb. Or both at the same time.

For example, here you show extreme intelligence for making an 18-minute video about language that doesnt make sense by logic, which it doesnt, which is a pretty important realization, but you also show a little of assuming your logic is the best which it isnt. Your logic is unaware of how the logic that goes into creating that language we all speak. It is the average human that creates language, because natural language is the most accessible to the average human. And so you have to think how does/would the average human react. The average human will laugh when they see /hj. They need no reasoning, thus reasoning is not needed in the language. I could literally say a comment of "hi. /hj" and for the average 100 iq person, that is a good joke or not, and it needs no reason to be or not be. Thats why comedy is so hard because for the average person it needs no reason to be funny, hence it either is or isnt. The best laughs are the laughs that have no reason, because thats when your instincts take over and make you feel good about yourself.

We obviously know autism with lights and sound is pretty much chronic. But i wonder, how chronic are they with logic. Because you can certainly be less sensitive to certain kinds of logic and more sensitive towards other kinds, it just isnt generally included in autism since its pretty common in neurotypical people too. I would go as far and say that autism was created from people doing irrational things with logic, and surviving better because they bamboozeled the people that used logic, thus the genes caught on and were like, "bro, were currently just taking in information, and treating it like its random, and we survive better, how about we cut the middleman and just interpret the information randomly straight away since it seems to work so well". I could be wrong but if its true that there were no autistic people before or there arent autistic animals in any other group of animals, that could be the reason why - our ability to think better caused us to also be able to get confused by randomness, thus people acting randomly can cause people to get confused and thus have the randomly acting people survive better and thus evolution of genes can catch on to the way of acting and make it genetical.

[animentality]

It's weird how the Franc Peartree letter being altered has just caused some people to suddenly come out with the most godawful takes. I don't like that the letters were changed but it still feels like such a small change to have caused such a sudden divide in the gortash part of the fandom

Earlier I saw a post from one of the handful of people who were more supportive of the letter change(I think they may have even been one of the people you blocked) claim that default dark urge x gortash felt weird or wrong to them. They said it was because default dark urge is a dragonborn. And they compared dragonborn x human romances to beastiality. And it was a post replying to an ask that was from someone also arguing that, so there's at least two people who think that.

And I just had to stop for a moment after reading that because of how utterly confusing and insane that felt. Like, dragonborn are a humanoid race and are fully capable of communicating so it would definitely not be beastiality in any way

Sorry if I got a bit ranty there, especially since you're trying to distance yourself from bg3 discourse stuff for now. I just really felt the need to just at least mention it to someone because I'm just so dumbfounded by it and I guess just like, feel the need to check to see if this is just as much of a wtf kind of take to others as it is to me

you can tell they don't play DND.

people have been trying to fuck dragons and monsters since 1977.

where's that fucking Tumblr post about how if a creature is intelligent enough to consent, then it's not bestiality?

in a fantasy setting, yeah, as long as they're smart and talking and able to say yes or no and consent or not consent, and aren't being compromised by other forces, then no it's not bestiality in the way we understand it.

also there's no real world equivalent.

wanting to fuck a werewolf doesn't mean you're fucking chihuahuas in real life.

those people are just mad cuz they have bad taste and don't like durgetash.

nothing we can do about that, anon.

you're born with bad taste, you die with it too.

I was blessed with superior intellect and advanced taste, and since you clearly were too, I would advise neither of us be involved with that subspecies of Tumblr.

we have far more important things to discuss.

[topsyturvy-turtely]

JOHNLOCK FIC REC/ MUST READ!!!

last year (2022, not that long ago) i read this absolute genius fic by @totallysilvergirl and it is long overdue to recommend this beauty out to my fellow johnlockers!

Drawn to Stars by Silvergirl

Explicit, Words: 109.272, Chapters: 60/60

Additional Tags (selection): Angst with a Happy Ending, Sherlock's Italian adventure, Jealous John, Mutual Pining, mutual misunderstandings, finally they talk about the Fall, First Time, First Kiss, can requited love last?, TFP never happened, Fanart, Multiple Pov, Seriously a REALLY happy Johnlock ending, Idiots in Love, Roberto Zanardi (OMC)

SUMMARY:

“Romantic entanglement, while fulfilling for other people—”

“—would complete you as a human being.”

After the Culverton Smith case Sherlock is clean, working, and looking for a romantic partner—since John has told him that’s what he needs. Shame John didn’t mention he was interested in that role himself, before Sherlock went off to Rome with a gorgeous Italian copper to try to fall in love and become a complete human being.

---

it is an absolute masterpiece. it got everything: angst, fluff, deep talks, intimacy, communication, jealousy, art talk (yes hello i love that okay?), (love) letters, writer john, beautiful description of the surroundings, fanart... do i need to keep on?

it captured me from the first chapter, i cried, i laughed - i felt it all for my two favorite bois. it broke my heart into a million pieces only to pick them all up and put them back together and cover it with a fluffy & healing layer of magic. basically binge-read this. yes it is long, and i've honestly been hesitant to read it because of its length but let me tell you it is 100% worth it and in the end it was over in no time (too soon!)

you already read Drawn to Stars?

-> check out all the lovely sequels!

Winter Light by Silvergirl

Explicit, Words: 7.742 , Chapters: 21/21

SUMMARY:

This is a hermetic universe, which for a few minutes a day has only two inhabitants. They don't even need names.

They wouldn't want to live always in such isolation, but in the winter light, when time cracks open, there are always—only—two of them.

---

winter fluff! i repeat! winter! fluff! my heart is happy remembering this :)

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Teach Your Children Well by Silvergirl

Explicit, Words: 12.662, Chapters: 4/4

Additional Tags (selection): Angst with a Happy Ending, mutual misunderstandings, Old unhappy far-off things will bite you in the butt, Established Relationship, can requited love last?, POV John, A grown-up wedding

SUMMARY:

John decides to send Rosie to the local school a year early. Sherlock assumes he doesn’t want her becoming solitary, hyper-intellectual, hyper-focused—in other words, like Sherlock. It doesn’t help that Rosie’s prospective teacher is a dead ringer for Nicole Kidman, and is making overtures to John by text. But both fathers are wide of the mark: well, there’s always something, right?

---

silly bois being equally dumb but good at parenting/relationships in their very own way. Silver's version of Rosie is a kid you will admire for both: her intelligence and capability of love. (what can i say she is her fathers' daughter!)

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The Nearer Your Destination by Silvergirl

Explicit, Words: 18.949, Chapters:6/6

Additional Tags (selection): Established Relationship, Wedding, Honeymoon, POV Sherlock, can requited love last?, Parentlock, Jealousy, No plot beyond sex holiday and personal growth, and lots of talking

SUMMARY:

After a December wedding, Sherlock takes John to Venice for a February honeymoon. It's absolutely perfect, up until the moment he hears John growl, "What the hell is Zanardi doing here?"

---

a wedding told as a memory, and a honeymoon in italy. who wants more? oh, and they TALK! their conversations always have at least one quote in them you could live by!

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The Ever Circling Years by Silvergirl

Mature, Words: 15.735, Chapters: 29/29

Additional Tags: Rotating POV, Mostly Fluff

SUMMARY:

Snippets from different Decembers in the Drawn to Stars universe. (They'll make sense on their own, though.) Each chapter ends with Miss Davis's prompt for the day.

---

decembers from 2013 all the way to 2045 (not each but a bunch)! there is a lot of fluff, lots of Rosie content, and - as so often - very amazing fanart!

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dear @totallysilvergirl i love this universe with my whole heart. your writing style is beautiful, the plots amazing, the characters complex and lovable. thank you for writing this! you would have at least thrice as many kudos if ao3 let us give more, and girl do you deserve them!

*throws badly cut out paper hearts*

tagging some people so this gets spread around (ik lots of you probably already know this universe but... i can't think of a but)

@justanobsessedpan @helloliriels @fluffbyday-smutbynight @inevitably-johnlocked @hisfavouritejumper @rhasima @forfucksakejohn @ohlooktheresabee @turbulenttrouble @7arantellgrrl @ssmeowl123 @so-youre-unattached-like-me @peanitbear @train-mossman @loki-lock @smulderscobie @timberva @grace-in-the-wilderness @chinike @pansherlock @the-smol-bean-libby-blog @jawnn-watson @whatnext2020 @escapingthereality @missdeliadili @kettykika78 @musingsofmyown @7-percent @speedymoviesbyscience @astudyin221b @francj15 @almosttinycowboy @ladylindaaa @we-r-loonies @mxster-jocale @sherlockcorner @noahspector @our-stars-graveside @jobooksncoffee @baker-street-blog

[omeya]

A word or two about AI and our fandom

Over the last few months I've been noticing an increased presence of AIs in this fandom environment. Not that it's something new, they were already here for some time but, although maybe it's just my perception, I see them more and more often.

Being aware of the multitude of fields covered by this technology I would like to talk about what, as a lover of arts in general (not only graphics), makes me uneasy about this matter. 

I will start by saying that I am not writing this from a place of rejection towards artificial intelligence, I understand the value and the multiple utilities and advantages it can bring. I will even say that I am attracted to its potential and the promises of improvement that it can provide to certain aspects of life.

But not here, in art. In the most human work there is, it will never have a deserved place. 

I remember when, a few years ago, through social networks, we were beginning to see greater support towards artists. Many voices were talking about their visibility, about sharing their creations, commenting, criticizing, interacting with them. It seemed that everyone wanted to support their favorite artists, and who wouldn't? The art world is a hostile place, how could they not support them? It even seemed that the detractors, if there were any, were a bit more hesitant to steal art, leave hate comments etc. 

Now, however, I am deeply saddened to visit these same profiles and find "fanarts", "fanfics",... made by an algorithm where the public is full of flattery towards a work generated with, most likely, stolen art. Where has all that gone? 

The AI in this environment triumphs with its stunning images, full of colors, "details", "intricate shapes", lighting. Oh yes, they look very appealing and complex. Incredibly attractive (at least until you look at them in detail) and suspiciously similar to each other. As if they were taken from the same book. A part of the public no longer seems concerned about those artists who have their work stolen and amalgamated into an attempt at "art" by companies or individuals who are trying to break into this world with their dubious (to put it mildly) techniques. A painful part of them is content with simply seeing their favorite character in a new "work", no matter who or how they made it or its consequences. And I still hear from them that it is necessary to support the artists. But hear me out, it is not the public's fault, at least not entirely, they are not the ones who steal art nor the ones who are driven solely by the desire to have more interactions on social networks, whatever the price. It may be a false illusion but I prefer to think that there is a lack of information and not that we just don't care anymore.  

These days, interacting on networks, sharing what I do or just checking in is difficult. Not only for me, as I personally don't claim any artistic career and it's just one hobby among others, but for my more dedicated peers. I find the daily experience of many artists, being overtaken in numbers, visibility and support by an AI made of stolen art, heartbreaking.

Although I think that the use of these images and texts created by computer is equally ignoble in all art spaces, in particular for "fandoms" where most of us participate in a disinterested way, by and for the same community and with special affection, I feel it especially vile. Leaving aside (for now) the fact of the intentionality and the emotion the artist puts in and its appreciated in their works, I would like to emphasize that these communities are formed by small creators mostly that will feel in a more devastating way, if possible, the impact of this tendency. I would not want to see myself in the position of a small artist trying to carve out a niche in the community by competing against individuals or companies whose only goal is numbers and profit. Interactions, not art or the appreciation of a work. Just the generation of similar good-looking images that are known to do well in networks and collect numbers. And the artists, even if they manage to make a niche for themselves and get recognition for their work, how should they feel when they realize that what they had taken hours, days, weeks or months to create (among many other things), an algorithm can emulate in seconds, as many times as the person wants in the day, with little effort, even earning more recognition than them and, on top of that, based on stolen art? 

I won’t dare to call these crude attempts “art”. Not just because of its relation with effort, which is not entirely crucial, but for the absence of intentionality, conscious expression. To say that everything is art is to deny it, but in reverse, because if everything is art, it means that nothing really is it. 

A distinction must be made. As part of the community I will say that for me there is no comparison for a work made by a person who feels and loves what they do. All of them have something that cannot be emulated by an algorithm. Coherence, intention,... That's what I look for in these spaces and what I expect from them. Real people enjoying what they do, creating for themselves and gifting something for everyone else in this community. I won’t be praising a covetous individual or a company that steals art and writes prompts with the sole objective of clout. It would be an insult to myself and my peers' intentions and work.

I’d like to remind all artists that they have something incomparable and valuable in their hands and that they’re very much appreciated. To the vile individuals and companies stealing art and farming numbers I won’t bother to say anything since they’ve proven to be selective in what they listen to and my words will just fall into deaf ears. And to the "public" to inform themselves, if they want to. I’ll leave some links with guides on how to distinguish art from computer images.

Excuse my English since it's not my mother tongue.

Note that a lot more information is available on the internet and art communities for those who might be interested

Cited here: @gailynovelry @mdzsartreblogs

[kinitokisser]

🩷 Welcome to the Web World! 🩷

sir, we kiss sea creatures here.

Run by the person who made this poll, here you can vote on the "kissability" (or huggability, killability, etc...) of various designs based on the game KinitoPET!

🩷 General Blog Rules 🩷

ALL interactions and submissions should be safe for work! There's quite a few minors in this community and I'm not going to bar them from this blog! Keep it SFW or you WILL be blocked.

Discriminatory & predatory behavior is NOT welcome here! It should go without saying that TERFs/MAPs/proship aren't welcome here, or anywhere in this community honestly. If I ever accidentally post a design from someone breaking this rule, PLEASE let me know! I don't know everyone here, but I'll try my best to do a background check!

All submissions should be from the design's owner! This is to verify that they're alright with the design being posted, and to make sure all the details are right!

📊 Love data? Check out the stats page! 📊

✏️ Interested in submitting a design? See below! ✏️

In order to submit a design, please send in an ask or pm me!

When submitting a character, please fill out the following form:

Name: Your character's name/AU name here! Category: Kinito/Sam/Jade/Sonny/Mark/OC Age: Adult/Minor (Feel free to specify exact age if they have one! This blog considers 0-17 a minor. For created entities such as canon Kinito, please put their mental/intellectual age, not the years since creation.) Are they able to consent?: Yes/No (Are they able to make complex decisions? Select "No" for children/minors and animals without human-level intelligence. Non-consenting characters will have "Kiss 'Lips'" removed by default. Child characters will have "Kill" swapped for "Time Out". You can request swapping for "Time Out" for non-child characters.) Interactions: Kiss "Lips"/Kiss Head/Hug/None/Kill (Remove any you do not want. You won't be asked why, so feel free to remove any that you're uncomfortable with!) Extra Info: Anything you'd like to share? Lore, backstory, motives, hobbies, etc?

📝 Blank Version

Name: Category: Age: Are they able to consent?: Interactions: Kiss "Lips"/Kiss Head/Hug/None/Kill Extra Info:

Please attach an image as well. It doesn't have to be perfect, just give us an idea of what they look like! If the image was not drawn by you, please include the artist's name.

If your character has specific tags you'd like me to include, such as character tags, AU tags, or triggers, please let me know! You can also link an AU/ask blog, post on your blog, or story so people have a place to learn more about them!

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to send an ask or pm me!

[danpuff-ao3]

@consistentsquash, professionally. Squash, casually. Squish-Squash, affectionately. Overall wonderful human.

My first introduction to Squash was a mention of her 22 Slash Fics for 22 Years (though it was 21, at the time) rec list. Then I had to look for more and was suitably impressed! Very thoughtful, detailed rec lists; but best of all, such good taste! Squash's recs were right up my alley! Even now, I don't even blink when Squash recs things, I just blindly open links and Mark For Later. (Or, for non-AO3 links, I save them to my Pocket app.)

Then one day, Squash recced Teardrop In Your Palm on her New HP Slash Fics Published in 2021 rec list!! Which made me feel quite famous, let me tell you. And insanely flattered. "This person who recs such good fics!!! Recced!!!! MY???? FIC??????" (Am I super casually sneaking extra recs into the Introduction section? Well spotted! Yes. Yes I am.)

Of course, Squash is more than just a gourd with good taste in fics. She is a very intelligent, enthusiastic, supportive fan. Big love for fandom, the community, the history, the culture, and more! She is openminded and openhearted. A rockstar cheerleader. She leaves such sweet comments! She has read a lot, and somehow finds the time to do all of this stuff, even with life being hecka weird and rough!

Best of all, Squash is a good friend. I can fearlessly barge into her DMs and blather about my woes, various dramas, and worst of all: really humiliating fangirl shenanigans. If I can shamelessly fangirl in front of anyone, it's Squash! She is a great listener. Very compassionate and supportive and understanding. She is an absolutely fantastic HUMAN above all else, and I just adore her!

And with that in mind...check out just a few of the hecka awesome stuff Squash has done!

Meta

House of the Dragon Fanfic Character Analysis - Daemon from eldritcher's "Ossuarium"

Fanfic Relationship Analysis - Daemyra from eldritcher's "Ossuarium"

Fanfic Relationship Analysis - Rhaelicent from eldritcher's "Ossuarium"

Pretty sure these are some of the coolest things I've ever seen?? Very loving, ecstatic, detailed essays on eldritcher's work!!!! Too cool, even if I am woefully behind on Ossarium!

Recs

5 Meta Recs

Very cool concept for a rec list! I do love a good meta post. Though don't read that Making of Contempt haha oh no. I see a lot of fic recs. I've even seen some art recs. I'm not sure I'd seen meta recs before this, and I'd sure love to see more of them! I inhale good meta when I see it!

10 Albus Dumbledore Slash Recs

I do need some good Dumbledore slash fics in my life, and Squash provides. Such good fics on this list! Especially In Infinite Remorse of Soul, which I'm obsessed with.

10 Intro Slash Fics With 2nd person POV

I love this! Second person POV can be such a difficult one to pull off writing, or to properly get into reading, but when it is done well, it is done very well! And we can all thank Squash for putting together a list of goodies for us!

10 Snarry Recs with Sexposition

What a great list, wow. Snarry, for one thing, our shared OTP! But also...sexposition! Nice. Also: so many great fics. Wow wow wow. 10/10 rec list. (Haha. 10/10 for the 10 Snarry Recs. Look at me go.)

Some Snarry fics are seriously brilliant about using smut for plot exposition - they are indeed!

Comments Are Love / 5 Comment Recs

A very unique and special rec list idea! As a writer, I can assure you, comments ARE love. They are big love. And I love my commenters. It's also a reminder that comments are soul food not only for the creators, but can be so meaningful and impactful to other readers, as well! And an excellent reminder that this is a community. A community built on love.

for an explanation about Mutuals March, or to figure out why i wrote you a thing, please check out this post.

[hologramcowboy]

Do you think Jensen reads your blog? asking because if I was famous I would tots google the gossip blogs about me so i wonder if Jensen ever has. 😶‍🌫️

Absolutely not.

Here's what most actors do online:

Look up industry professionals to learn about them and prep for auditions with them

Look up craft/industry information to soak up

Find new people to connect with that can level up their game (coaches, consultants, agencies etc)

Do character based research

Genre based research

Project based research

Target professionals who match said actor's goals intelligently

Join online communities of professionals to always learn more and perhaps even offer up information/help

Follow industry updates

Focus on building their online brand aimed at industry professionals

Focus on gaining a following to leverage

Check casting websites for breakdowns that match their type (yes, even if they have an agent)

Market themselves (this should be at the top because it is behind every post an actor makes)

Network within the industry to build connections (this should be second on the list.)

Create online content (reels, self tapes, pitches, etc)

Submit self tapes or attend online callbacks

Research production companies and the like to check credibility, credits, reach, etc.

Take online classes (scene study, script analysis, voiceover training, etc)

Attend online workshops

I'll stop here, my point is I highly doubt Jensen has time or interest to Google gossip.

Also, unless an actor is fully trained, I don't recommend doing "market research". You need a good filter to be able to sift the helpful feedback from less relevant things. Any actor can learn a ton and improve a ton by studying what people's impressions (good and bad) are but they need the inner stability to be able to do so without damaging their egos. They need to be able to recognize that they are a product and that their brand places them in certain brackets which, may or may not be what they wanted. (depending on how well trained they are branding wise.)

Most actors who are fully trained learn that feedback is highly important for their careers so they don't get jaded if they see less than stellar reviews or whatever, because they know that feedback is key to unlocking an even higher level of performance. They learn this mostly in acting class which includes very honest feedback regarding their presence, performance, choices, etc. However, at the end of the day, we're all human so if you're more sensitive to criticism and you don't have healthy boundaries in place, please avoid exposing yourself to content that may affect your mood. A solution could be to hire people to research the competition, industry professionals and audience opinions for you and sift through them to your benefit.

Sorry this turned out so long and probably super boring to you, I love talking about anything acting related and I get carried away.

[monstersdownthepath]

Monster Spotlight: Giant Sundew

CR 12

Neutral Huge Plant

Bestiary 6, pg. 258

It’s nice to do a simple monster now and then, isn’t it? Especially after the 3000 paragraph monstrosity I recently posted! And so we have the Giant Sundew, a creature just complex enough to be interesting but simple enough that I can write a succinct article in the haze of manic energy I find myself in.

Like many, many, many examples of Golarion’s carnivorous flora, the Giant Sundew’s primary divergence from its tiny and mundane kin are sturdy roots that have evolved beyond the need to try and scavenge for nutrients in the soil and instead let the thing crawl around like a spider. While most flesh-eating flowers crawl at glacial paces, the Sundew is surprisingly speedy at 20ft/round, downright lightning fast compared to the 5ft or 10ft speeds of lesser plants! There’s also its space and reach being a step above other meat-eaters, too, at 15ft each, giving it an impressive threat radius that a party may just blindly bumble into.

Though it has no Stealth capabilities, almost every Plant monster that’s “mundane plant Except Bigger” relies somewhat on fading into the background of their homes right up until they lash out with their vines and leaves, but this trick can’t be pulled on an attentive party more than once or twice in a campaign. Eventually they will catch on and start making Perception checks specifically to watch for plantlife that’s more mobile than it should be. Those vines moving without wind? Those leaves closer than they were a minute ago? Time to start burning them on the off-chance they’re hungry.

... pft, “off-chance.” of course it’s hungry! everything on golarion wants to eat delicious human flesh!

Sundew aren’t particularly picky, though, which is a refreshing change of pace from the man-eating menagerie. They’ll eat just about anything they can catch, from giant bugs to birds to any wildlife that’s drawn in by the tantalizing aroma of honey that they exude, to any adventurers drawn in by the tantalizing sparkle of loot among its leaves from past victims. Most of them, of course, will just end up joining the bones of the past.

That 15ft of reach is put to good use by the Sundews, having two slam attacks they can make, each one dealing 2d6+10 damage... or more, if the plant elects to use its Power Attack. Yes, a Giant Sundew has just enough Intelligence to have access to feats, including Power Attack, Combat Reflexes, and Lunge, extending its reach ever-so-slightly further when it needs to. The Acid of the Giant Sundew deals 1d6 Acid damage to any creature slammed by the plant, grappled by it, or otherwise touching it, but it affects only organic substances; it has no effect on metal or stone. Interestingly, Sundews can recognize if a creature isn’t being affected by its acid and will refuse to attack such creatures--especially when more vulnerable prey is nearby--not wishing to waste time and energy on a creature that it cannot digest. A party wishing to avoid combat with a Giant Sundew can buff themselves with Communal Energy Resistance, dissuading the creature entirely after the first round! So long as the party doesn’t force it to defend itself, the Sundew will wallop everyone once or twice to see if it can get a taste, and will wander off once it confirms it can’t.

Everyone else, though? Hoo boy. Hooooo boy. The highly Adhesive dew on the Sundew’s arms isn’t just for show; that stuff is top-shelf sticky, glomming onto anything it slams automatically without needing a grapple check and quickly becoming a hold that is literally impossible to break without killing the plant or neutralizing the Adhesive. I’m not emphasizing that for dramatic effect, the ability literally states any creature grappled by a Giant Sundew cannot get free without removing the goo, which requires potent alcohol or Universal Solvent. If the Sundew takes 10 or more points of Cold damage, the Adhesive freezes and cracks away 1 round later as well, but it renews the round after unless the chill is re-applied. Just... try to be careful with AoE Cold damage. Wouldn’t want to freeze your poor Barbarian, right?

Any creature grappled by the Sundew can not only be slammed repeatedly, but suffers 2d6+10 + 1d6 Acid in constriction damage as well, which is typically enough to spell the end of anything caught in its grasp... especially since that grasp is inescapable, letting it take its time beating the victim to death. Any weapon brought to bear against the plant is similarly stuck unless the wielder succeeds a DC 23 Reflex save after every attack, so an especially unlucky party may be bereft of their best weapons after a single round, severely limiting their ability to fight back or free their stuck allies. Maybe shoot it from a distance?

A long distance, preferably around 40 feet away, because once per day, a Sundew brought to half HP or lower immediately releases a cloud of Stupefaction Pollen in a 20ft radius around it. Any creature caught in this cloud must make a DC 23 Fortitude save or take 1d6 Intelligence damage and become staggered for 1d4 rounds. It’s not particularly dangerous on top of what it can already do, but when you’re already being eaten by a giant plant, being staggered for a few rounds just feels insulting.

You can read more about them here.

[lucigoo]

For the word game: Raven 👀

So, the only fic of mine that reallly meantions ravens is: Dragon Rot Heres the snippet:

Bilbo swallowed back his sobs. Even if it did no good, they had friends and allies here under the mountain, trying to do whatever they could, in whatever way they could.

“The Line of Durin, and myself are Valar blessed that you are our friend Roack, thank you,” Bilbo said quietly, pouring as much gratitude as he could into his voice.

“Roack help, Roack and family help good hobbit. Happy Mountain, happy eerie.” Roack cackled at Bilbo, making him smile. “More?”

“Yes, a few more, but they are much closer, my friend. This is for Beorn, he may not make it, but if he can, his honey will be so helpful, I dont know how much he has in storage, but there should be at least enough to help the most at risk, even if it just makes the medicine taste better for the young ones. If you could send someone to ask him?”

“Bear man?” Roack asked to check.

“Yes,” Bilbo said with a small smile. “Bear man, tell him bunny asked for help,” he said with a soft laugh, Roack throwing his head back in laughter too.

“There’s two more Roack, much easier. I need help from Dale, the missive assures Bard that humans are immune. It’s a Dragon Rot that is only affecting dwarves. His children were here when it first started, and I’m sure we would have heard about it if they were no longer well.” Bilbo said, biting his bottom lip. They needed help immediately, hands on help. There weren’t enough able dwarves to go around at the moment. They needed extra care givers for one thing, and that was before you added all the other tasks that kept a community working.

“Dale. Roack Mate go,” Roack said as he cawed something up into the rafters. A beautiful female raven came down, one a similar age to Roack, with even more intelligence shining in her eyes if that was possible. “Solurm” Roack said, with a look that Bilbo had seen often on Thorin’s face when looking at him.

“Thank you Roack, Solurm.” Bilbo breathed out, in awe at the help Roack and his flock were willingly provided.

“Roack take to Elf king. Mountain elf want family, family good when sad,” Roack said, guessing perfectly well what Bilbo wanted for the last missive and why.

“Oh, thank you Roack. Thranduil needs to know, Tauriel needs the support, Yavanna bless her. And if he knows enough to help, well, I won’t sneeze at that opportunity.” Bilbo said as he handed Roack the final missive. Watching in relief as the ravens all flew away. Dale and Mirkwood, he expected answers by the next day at most. Beorn would probably be two or three. The Shire, as Roack said, would be maybe 10/11 days and Rivendell maybe 8 if he was lucky. All he had to do was keep as many dwarves as possible alive until then, he thought glumly as he wandered back into the mountain to do what he could with what he had on hand.

[sebstanaddict]

The Distance

A Bucky Barnes x OC Story

Summary : A space adventure where we follow Bucky Barnes around the universe as he struggles to reclaim the love of his life amidst the backdrop of war between humans and the Kree race.

After surviving an attack by the giant sabertooth tiger, Bucky had an additional shock. Someone who looks exactly like the late love of his life turned out to be his savior. Is the person really Adriana or is it someone else?

Meanwhile, Yon-Rogg accidentally found something that helps him in finding out about Bucky's dark past. In the process he learned something potentially life threatening for him and Adriana.

Pairings : Bucky Barnes x Adriana Weaver (OC)

Chapters: 10 / 20 (might add more as I write)

Chapter List >

Warning : violence, gun and knife use, animal death

Word count : 7,4k

This is a sequel to my first Bucky fic, New Beginning. Check it out here.

-----

Chapter 10 - Reunited

Supreme Intelligence Temple, Hala, Capital of Kree Civilization - April 2025

Zogg-Larn walked quickly up the steps of the Supreme Intelligence Temple. It was quite early in the morning when Supreme Intelligence summoned him through his communicator. He wondered if there was some kind of emergency. He hoped not. He was hoping to get a bit of rest that day after a particularly tiring mission the other day. But everything seemed to point to a different outcome for that day.

He took a deep breath as he arrived in the center of the temple. He stepped on the hexagonal shape on the floor and soon strings of blue light came out of the floor and connected to his temple and fingers.

When he opened his eyes he saw himself, but older and with greying hair. Yes, he admired no one else but himself. It was fitting too. He was the best General in the Kree military. No other Kree was as good as he was.

"Supreme Intelligence." Zogg-Larn bowed in respect.

"Zogg-Larn. I just received a footage from our spy on earth. I want to show it to you and you can tell me whether you see what I see." Supreme Intelligence said coldly, staring at Zogg-Larn with piercing blue eyes. He seemed to be trying hard to contain his anger. Zogg-Larn's heart started to beat faster in his chest. He wondered if he did something wrong that had upset Supreme Intelligence. He didn't say anything but just nodded.

Supreme Intelligence swiped his hand in front of him and suddenly a scene from what seemed to be an event on earth appeared. Zogg-Larn studied the earthlings on the screen, wondering what Supreme Intelligence was trying to show him. Male and female earthlings graced the screen wearing beautiful clothes. In the background was a large picture of earth's heroes, The Avengers. The earthlings seemed to be taking pictures in front of it. Suddenly he noticed someone among the earthlings. Someone who was supposed to be dead. James Buchanan Barnes! How could he still be alive?! He saw with his own eyes that his laser shot had left a hole on his chest, leaving him dead. He was sure he was dead when he left him. 

"So, Zogg-Larn. Can you tell me what you see?" Supreme Intelligence asked.

"Supreme Intelligence. I see James Buchanan Barnes." he replied, his head bowed in shame.

"Yes, I see him too. You told me he was dead Zogg-Larn. If he was dead, then why is he still there?!" Supreme Intelligence gestured his hand towards the screen, his voice raised in anger.

"I'm sorry Supreme Intelligence. I.. I sent you the scan of the man I killed. He looked just like James Buchanan Barnes. So I thought it was him that I killed. But it seems I have mistaken." Zogg-Larn said, cowering in fear.

Supreme Intelligence could be so cruel in giving punishments to anyone who made a mistake. But it was him who usually was the executioner of the punishment, not the one receiving the punishment. So it shocked him that he finally did something wrong. He didn't think he could tarnish his perfect reputation.

"You have mistaken indeed Zogg-Larn. You have disappointed me greatly." Supreme Intelligence said as he swiped his hand and the scene in front of them disappeared.

"I deeply apologize, Supreme Intelligence. I was in error." Zogg-Larn said as he knelt on the floor and bowed his head.

"All these years you have never failed me Zogg-Larn. You always deliver on what I asked of you to do. And you did them without question. Which I appreciate. That's why I'm giving you a second chance. Find James Buchanan Barnes and really kill him this time. Bring his dead body to me. If the person you killed really is James Buchanan Barnes, then I'll accept your apology and you can continue to be my executioner. But if you fail, be prepared to be the hunted for the first time in your life." Supreme Intelligence threatened as he pulled Zogg-Larn's chin up to face him.

"Yes, Supreme Intelligence. I will not disappoint you." Zogg-Larn nodded as he looked up at Supreme Intelligence's scary blue eyes.

"Bring some of your subordinates this time. Don't go alone. Make sure he really is dead." Supreme Intelligence said as he released Zogg-Larn's chin.

"Yes, Supreme Intelligence." Zogg-Larn nodded, his eyes gazed back down to the floor, not daring to look at Supreme Intelligence right on the face.

"One more thing Zogg-Larn. I just received word that Yon-Rogg's beacon on his ship was detected somewhere on Torfa. It seems he's not dead like we previously thought he was. Go there and investigate. If you find him, bring him to me, dead or alive." Supreme intelligence said.

"Very well, Supreme Intelligence." Zogg-Larn responded and he bowed in respect.

"You are now dismissed." Supreme Intelligence finally said. He was then gone in a blink of an eye.

Zogg-Larn closed his eyes and when he opened it again the streaming blue lights retracted from his fingers and temples and was quickly gone into the hexagonal shape on the floor. He turned around and went out of the temple. He needed to gather his team in preparation for this new mission. He swore he wouldn't fail again. He would kill James Buchanan Barnes and his perfect record would be restored. If he could also find Yon-Rogg and bring him to Supreme Intelligence, then it would be the icing on the cake.

-----

Torfa, Outskirts of Magellanic Cloud - May 2025

"Adriana?" Bucky said, his eyes widened in surprise as he saw the familiar face of the love of his life - the one who had colored his dreams with beauty and happiness as well as sadness and anguish - the one his heart longed for, always and forever.

Was she a mirage? Was she a figment of his imagination? He blinked several times fully expecting her to be gone, but when he opened his eyes, there she still was, the love of his life.

"Who's Adriana?" The person answered, confusion apparent on her face.

See, it couldn't be her. He thought. Adriana was long gone. He saw her exploded in the sky with his own eyes. This person.. she must be just a look-a-like, a doppelganger, like Sebastian was to Bucky. Bucky thought, shaking his head.

"Never mind, I thought you were someone else." He replied.

The person walked closer to him and extended her hand. Bucky put the revolver in his hand back into the holster on his back and took her hand with his vibranium hand. The moment their hands touched, her eyes widened in shock and she glanced at his vibranium hand. Then she looked up to gaze at his eyes, her eyebrows furrowed as she searched his eyes. He found her eyes to be so similar to Adriana's. He felt like the person was Adriana. But how could she be?

"Are you okay?" She finally broke the silence and pulled him up.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He said as he slowly stood up.

Once he was standing up she dropped his hand from her hold, then she looked up at him. Looking down at her he couldn't help but notice that this girl was even the same height as Adriana. The universe really worked in mysterious ways. She was like an identical twin of Adriana's. He still couldn't wrap his mind around it.

Her eyes continued to stare at him, studying him. For a split second Bucky could see recognition in her eyes, but suddenly her eyes darted around them in anxiety. Bucky's heart dropped to his stomach as he looked up and saw the situation they were in. About ten hyena like creatures had appeared and surrounded them. They walked slowly towards them, growling and baring their teeth.

Adriana and Bucky turned around, facing the hyenas, their backs facing each other's. Bucky slowly pulled his revolver out from the holster on his back and pointed it towards the hyenas.

"The smell of death must have attracted them." Adriana whispered as they walked slowly in circles.

Bucky continued to stare at the hyenas, wondering if they could outrun them or whether they needed to slaughter them all.

"Should I shoot?" Bucky asked with a low voice.

"Shoot?" Adriana asked.

"Yeah, with this gun. This can wound or even kill them." Bucky explained, beckoning towards the revolver in his hand.

"No.. no.. wait." Adriana replied.

The hyenas stopped moving and bared their teeth at them, seemingly also waiting for them to make the first move. All of a sudden one of the hyenas launched itself at Adriana. Bucky quickly shot it before it got the chance to reach her and it fell down to the ground. The other hyenas launched themselves at Bucky. He shot them as much as he could but they continued attacking him. While Bucky was dealing with them Adriana took the opportunity to pull out her spear from the dead Pentatigra. She then used it to hit and attack the hyenas who were coming at her fast. She continued to twirl her spear, hitting and puncturing the hyenas while Bucky continued to shoot them and used his vibranium arm to deliver punches at them. Soon all ten of the hyenas were lying on the ground, lifeless.

"That was close." Bucky said, panting hard as he tried to catch his breath.

"That was just the beginning. A pack of them usually consists more than 10, maybe up to 30. The others must be close. We have to go now." Adriana said and she quickly ran towards the edge of the forest with Bucky running next to her.

As they ran they heard the unmistakable sound of more growls behind them. Bucky looked back for a second and his eyes widened as he saw more and more hyenas came running after them. They quickened their running pace and finally reached the sandy area near the ocean. They continued to run, passing the ocean and headed to more barren land, back to where Bucky left his pod, but the hyenas were fast. Some of them had managed to come close to them. Bucky had to run while shooting at them. As the hyenas ran even closer to them Bucky ran and jumped up high. When he landed, he hit his vibranium arm to the ground. He then directed his vibranium arm towards the hyenas, shooting amplified kinetic energy from his palm. All the hyenas flew back then fell to the ground, motionless.

"You couldn't have done that earlier?" Adriana asked, standing next to him as they looked at the unconscious hyenas. Bucky laughed out loud.

"What? What is it?" Adriana asked, looking up at him, confused at his sudden laughter.

"Nothing. I just.. remember saying the same thing to a friend of mine during a battle." Bucky replied, referring to the time he said the same thing to Sam way back when the Avengers had a bit of an internal fight because of him.

"Oh okay. Come on, we better go. They might wake up at any moment." Adriana said, beckoning her head away from the hyenas towards where Bucky had left his pod.

"Right." Bucky nodded and they walked side by side, their feet trudging along on the bluish sand underneath them.

"Where are we going?" Bucky asked after they stayed silent for a while.

"I'm taking you to my house. We should be safe there." Adriana said.

"Oh okay. Is it far? Because I think we're also going to the place where I left my pod." he said.

"Your pod?" Adriana asked.

"Yes, it's like a small ship. I used it to get here." he responded.

"Oh, right. So, where are you from?" she asked.

"I'm from earth." he replied.

Adriana stopped in her tracks, her eyes widened as she turned and stared at him.

"What?" Bucky asked, stopping as well.

"Do you.. do you know me?" she asked.

"What? I.. I don't understand what you mean." he asked. Why would she ask something like that? He wondered. Unless..

"I'm sorry. Earlier you called me by someone else's name. And you're from earth. So, I thought just maybe.. maybe you might have known me. Because.. I have no memory of my past." she explained. Bucky's heart seemed to stop in his chest as he listened to her. Could she really be Adriana?

He was just about to respond when they could hear yet again the growls of the hyenas behind them. They apparently had regained consciousness and were angry and even more ferocious having been attacked by Bucky.

"Come on!" Adriana grabbed his hand and they ran quickly as the hyenas started to appear behind them.

They finally reached the place where Bucky left his pod, where there were rows and rows of stone structures, but his pod was gone.

"It's gone!" Bucky stopped running as he looked at the place where his pod was supposed to be.

"No time to look for it now. Come on, we have to get to safety." Adriana dragged him towards one of the stone structures as several of the hyenas caught up with them.

Bucky pulled out his revolver and started shooting at the hyenas as they ran to one of the stone structures. Adriana stopped in front the stone structure and touched it on multiple spots while Bucky still faced the hyenas, shooting at them relentlessly.

"Come on.. come on.." Adriana said to herself as she waited for the entrance to Lyra to be opened.

The hyenas were getting really close to them now. Bucky continued to shoot at them but he unfortunately ran out of bullets.

"D**n it!" he cursed.

One of the hyenas got really close to them and launched itself at him just as the entrance to Lyra was opened. Adriana pushed Bucky into the entrance just as Bucky threw a knife at the hyena. His knife successfully struck the hyena's stomach, making it stop and dropped onto the ground just as the entrance to Lyra was closed and left him and Adriana in the dark.

-----

Earlier in Torfa - May 2025

Yon-Rogg's boots left foot prints on the bluish sand as he made his way from out of the cave back towards the forest. He was supposed to start patrolling the east side of the planet an hour ago, but he was busy tinkering with the anti-gravity device he found on the abandoned ship he found months ago. Whoever the ship used to belong to seemed to be a Kree. Or at least, someone who had connections to the Kree. Because the anti-gravity device he found on the ship was made by the Kree. He had used the same kind of device more often than he could count when he was still Commander of the Starforce. The device was broken but he had some experience in fixing it. He had spent several days tinkering with it and that day he finally finished. He brought it with him on his shift hoping to be able to test it to pick up large boulders or something.

He stopped in his tracks when he looked up to find a small ship stranded on the sand. He wore the anti-gravity device on his wrist then pulled out his sword from its sheath on his waist. He slowly approached the ship, putting his sword up in front of him, ready for anything that might come out from it. As he came closer to it he realized the ship was empty. He looked around, still holding his sword up, but he couldn't see anyone or anything around him. He finally put his sword back in its sheath and had a brilliant idea. He turned on the anti-gravity device on his wrist and directed it towards the ship. A blue beam shot out from the device and surrounded the ship. He then pushed some buttons on the device and moved his hand up slowly. The ship slowly hovered in the air following the movements of his hand.

"Yes!" he exclaimed in delight.

He looked around again and decided to bring the ship back to his cave which had functioned like a garage lately. Whoever the ship belonged to, he or she was not around. Besides, as a security officer of Torfa, he needed to check for any anomalies happening around the planet, including this stranded ship. He needed to study it and figure out who it belonged to. Whoever it belonged to might pose a threat to the people of Torfa.

Several minutes later Yon-Rogg successfully took the ship and put it next to the first abandoned ship he found. The ship was really small. It only fit one person. It was so small compared to the other ship.

He took off the anti-gravity device on his wrist, set it aside, then picked up another device. This time he picked up something he miraculously built himself from scraps he could find in Lyra. The device was like a small rectangular computer with a touch screen. It was about ten by eight inches in size. It was small and thin yet consisted of advanced technology that could help him in doing just about anything.

He pointed it towards the ship and a blue beam came out of it. The device then started scanning the ship. Soon a scanned image of the ship was shown on his device's screen. A blueprint of the ship and some information of it was shown underneath it. Yon-Rogg's eyes widened as he read the information of the ship. The ship was manufactured on earth!

His heart beat so fast in his chest as he tried to open the ship's door. After studying the ship more and trying several combinations on his device's screen, he finally pushed the right combination and the ship's door slowly opened, revealing nothing inside.

He put his device down and inspected the inside of the ship. He decided to try turning the monitor in front of the ship and see what else he could find about the ship. He got into the ship, sitting down on the only seat in it, and started to push some buttons. The monitor in front of him suddenly flickered to life, showing several menus on the screen. He studied the writing on the screen. Thankfully he knew a little about earth's alphabets so he could understand what was written on the screen.

He suddenly had an idea. He had been curious whether or not Zogg-Larn had succeeded in killing James Buchanan Barnes. Using the abandoned ship's communication device he had tried to connect to the Kree's and earth's database but was only successful in connecting to the Kree's database. He successfully hacked into Kree's military server to find Zogg-Larn's mission report, but he couldn't find anything there about James Buchanan Barnes. It seemed the mission was highly classified or even so secret that it was not officially recorded.

Yon-Rogg jumped out from the ship and grabbed his device. He then went back inside the ship. He pushed some buttons on his device's screen then pointed it to the ship's monitor. A blue beam shot out from his device and covered the entirety of the screen, signifying that he had successfully connected his device to the ship's computer. After some time setting his device, he successfully connected his device to earth's biggest information database, which was what they called the internet.

He swiped on his device's screen and opened a search engine. Then he started typing James Buchanan Barnes' name on the search form on the screen. He waited while the universal translator on his device finished translating the search results. After several seconds, a list of information about him appeared on the screen. He scrolled down and tapped on the top most article. It was about a movie premiere held about a month ago. Apparently a movie was made about the Kree invasion on earth and The Avengers' involvement in helping the people of earth won against the Kree. He shook his head in disbelief as he continued reading the article. He felt so ashamed as a Kree to know that their enemy was making a movie about their defeat. Something that could humiliate them forever.

Ignoring the feeling of unease in his heart, he continued reading the article and his eyes widened as he read the name of The Avengers that attended the premiere. James Buchanan Barnes was on the list! So he was still alive, he thought. It was strange to him because usually Supreme Intelligence would have ordered General Zogg-Larn, the Kree military's best General and executioner to hunt him down and kill him. Wasn't it the last thing Supreme Intelligence mentioned to him? That he was going to send someone else to hunt James Buchanan Barnes down and kill him? He wondered if there was a problem in the Kree military that prevented Zogg-Larn to kill James.

He tapped back to the search engine's results and continued to scroll down. Maybe there were more information that he could find about James. He scrolled and scrolled the screen but couldn't find anything of interest. He already knew he was called the Winter Soldier and was a super soldier who had a metal arm. He also knew he worked with the Avengers. He then opened some titles which seemed to explain more about his background before he became the Avengers. One title piqued his interest. It was an article about the Winter Soldier's dark past as Hydra's assassin.

He read the article and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw a name he was familiar with listed as one of Winter Soldier's victims. John Weaver. Was this John related to Adriana? He thought curiously. He then closed the article and typed John Weaver and Adriana Weaver on the search form. Several articles came out but one he was interested in was a military record of John Weaver. He opened it and skimmed through it until he found the list of John Weaver's family names. Adriana was one of the names listed! James Buchanan Barnes had killed Adriana's father?! The man was apparently worse than he thought. He wondered if Adriana knew. But, if she knew why would she stay with him and even accepted to be married to him? She must have not known about it. He concluded.

He was still pondering the damaging information, something he could definitely use in the future should the need arise, when he suddenly heard static and someone's voice came out from the speaker near the monitor.

"Bucky.. Bucky! Are you okay? Status report, please." a heavy male sound could be heard.

Bucky? Could he mean James Buchanan Barnes? Yon-Rogg's heart dropped to his stomach. So, he was really still alive! And this ship belong to him!

"Bucky.. a Kree ship just appeared near us. I don't know what it's doing here, but we better go. If you don't respond immediately we're going to have to come down and find you. Please respond, Buck." the voice pleaded.

"Sam, the Kree noticed us. There are two more of them. We have to go now!" another male voice could be heard.

"But we can't leave Bucky behind!" a female voice could be heard.

"We'll come back for him but we have to go and at least lose the Kree's trail now." the second male voice said.

"Buck! Just reply us as soon as you can. We're going to try to lose this Kree's trail then we'll come back for you. Hang in there okay, buddy." the first male voice said.

Suddenly he could hear an explosion coming out of the speaker. Their voices were then gone in an instant, leaving only static.

So James Buchanan Barnes was the owner of the ship, and he didn't come alone. But the most pressing thing was that a Kree ship was here! He needed to find out more.

He tapped some buttons on his device, searching for the Kree's communication frequency. Soon he could hear another voice coming out of the monitor's speaker. A voice he dreaded to hear. It was the voice of Zogg-Larn.

"Good job Am-Rel. They shouldn't be able to go too far with that damage on their ship. Follow me, James Buchanan Barnes might be on board that ship. Ka-Loss, follow the signal coming from the beacon on Yon-Rogg's ship and investigate." Zogg-Larn said.

Yon-Rogg's heart beat faster in his chest. Supreme Intelligence finally found them! He thought his ship was destroyed completely, but apparently the beacon must have survived somehow. He was so stupid not to check it months ago.

"Roger that, General." a male Kree voice could be heard.

"Yes, General." another male Kree voice could be heard.

Then the speaker went silent.

Yon-Rogg turned his device off and quickly got out of his cave. He needed to get Una and himself to safety. They needed to get away from Torfa before Zogg-Larn or James Buchanan Barnes found them.

-----

Entrance to Lyra, Torfa - May 2025

Somehow Bucky found himself lying down on the ground with Adriana on top of him. He couldn't see anything because it was very dark. His breath hitched as he felt her quick breaths right on top of his nose. Time seemed to stop as they felt each other's presence in the dark.

Slowly Bucky could make out her eyes, staring down at him. He saw recognition again in her eyes. His heart pounded so fast as they continued to gaze at each other. He could feel nothing and see nothing but her. He could feel her chest on top of his, moving up and down as she breathed. He could feel her hands holding the sides of his arms tightly. He could feel her thighs touching his own. She felt so familiar. He swore he could even smell Adriana's unique scent coming from her even though it wasn't layered with the usual apple scent Adriana always had. Could she really be Adriana? He wondered as his heart continued to gallop fast in his chest.

The chamber they were in suddenly glowed blue and Adriana slowly removed herself from on top of him. She extended her hand and pulled him up. She then released his hand and started pushing on what looked like glowing runes on the chamber's wall. The chamber moved downwards all of a sudden, making Bucky lost his footing a bit. Adriana reached out and held his hand, helping to steady him.

"Thanks." he said, blushing a little.

"You're welcome." she smiled and let his hand go.

They stayed silent all the way down. Bucky was much too shocked about everything that he was really speechless. He stared straight ahead as the chamber continued to move downwards. Suddenly he felt something covering his body. Adriana had taken her robe off and put it on him.

"You might want to hide a little. The natives don't exactly look like you and me." Adriana said.

Bucky nodded. She continued to pull the hood of the robe up so it covered his head, then tightened the tie around his neck so the robe covered his upper body completely. Bucky's heart continued to beat fast in his chest as he stared down at her. He could feel it - a spark of life in his soul that had been extinguished for far too long started to light up again. All because of her. Who was she? Could she really be Adriana? He pondered.

The chamber suddenly stopped moving and the door slid open. Adriana pulled his hand and guided him out of the chamber into a vast city underground. Bucky's eyes widened in shock as he gazed at the city in front of him. Up on top of the city was a bright light like a mini sun, showering the city with its light. Underneath it stood rows and rows of buildings in various shapes, all of them were imbued with glowing blue substance, much like vibranium! Bucky thought in surprise.

"Are these vibranium?" Bucky asked.

"Yes. This planet has vibranium. It is what powers that mini sun up there. It's basically everywhere here." Adriana explained.

"Reminds me of Wakanda." Bucky said as Adriana pulled him to continue walking.

"Wakanda?" she asked.

"Yes, a nation on earth that has a source of vibranium." he responded.

"Wakanda.. the name feels familiar." she said.

"It should be. If you are who I think you are." he said slowly.

"And who do you think I am?" she asked, stopping in her tracks and looked at him, her eyebrows furrowed.

"I think.. I think you're Adriana. Adriana Weaver, my fiancee." he explained and her eyes grew wide.

"Bucky?" she asked, stepping closer to him.

"You know my name?" his eyes widened as fireworks exploded in his chest. This was really her!

"I.. yeah. Come on. Let's go to my house. We can talk some more there." she said as she pulled his hand and they continued walking towards the border of the city.

Bucky couldn't focus much on the realization that Adriana was still alive. He was distracted by the natives of the planet walking around them. He looked around in awe as they walked past them. He noticed three alien races so far, one with horns on their head, one with green skin, and one inside something like an astronaut suit. As far as he could see, he didn't see a single native that looked human. He wondered how Adriana could end up in this place. It seemed she was also quite popular as almost everyone greeted her as they passed.

After several minutes they finally reached a cluster of round shaped buildings built near each other, like a complex of houses. Adriana guided him into one of the round shaped buildings. After she pushed a combination of buttons on the door, the door opened revealing the interior of the building. His jaw dropped as they entered the building. He didn't expect to see a place that looked so much like the interior of a house on earth, yet there it was.

"Welcome to my house." Adriana said, smiling at him as she helped take the robe off from his body.

"Wow. I didn't expect the inside to look so much like a place on earth." Bucky said as he walked around the house, admiring everything.

"Yeah. The exterior is somewhat misleading, right?" she chuckled as she put her robe on a hanger by the door next to her spear which she had put there as soon as they came in.

"Exactly." he responded, smiling at her. She smiled back and blushed, making his heart skipped a beat.

"Right, I think we need something to drink after what happened earlier." she finally said as she went to the kitchen and started to pull some things out from the cupboards.

Bucky followed her to the kitchen and stood by the dining table, staring at her. Watching her in the kitchen reminded him so much of all the times they spent together in the kitchen back at her apartment. He often just sat on the kitchen counter watching her cook, admiring her beauty from afar. He sometimes daydream about what he was going to do to her later that day or night. The sight of her in front of him like this made him feel butterflies in his stomach, a feeling he had not felt for a very long time. His heart suddenly stung a little as he remembered all those nights crying over her. His eyes pricked and tears started to well up in his eyes.

"Please, sit down." Adriana said, startling him from his painful reverie.

"Thank you." he said as he sat on one of the seats near the dining table.

"Are you.. okay?" she asked in concern, noticing his distraught look.

"I'm.. I'm fine." he sniffled.

"I just have something in my eyes." he continued saying as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

"Okay. Just relax while I prepare a cup of hot kokoa for us." she said, smiling at him.

"Okay. Thank you." he nodded and smiled back.

Bucky's eyes continued to stare at her as she went back to prepare the hot kokoa. It was amazing that even though he was miles away from earth, something like chocolate could still be found. He was also still confused about everything and couldn't wait to hear her story.

Slowly his eyes left her as he studied the house more. His eyebrows furrowed as he noticed a picture of two people stuck on what seemed to be a refrigerator. His jaw dropped as he realized whose picture it was. The picture was of Adriana standing next to a man with yellow eyes. The man with the yellow eyes! He stood up and walked towards the refrigerator to get a closer look.

His finger brushed over the picture as he studied it. The man in the picture next to Adriana really was the man he fought back during the Kree invasion. He was the man.. no.. the Kree that took Adriana from him! The Kree apparently had kept her hostage all this time. But why did she look so happy in the picture? The Kree had his hand around her waist and she had her hand around his waist. They looked at the camera with wide smiles, the backdrop of a beautiful sunset behind them.

"That's Yon-Rogg. I think you know him." Adriana said, standing next to him.

"I do know him. He took you away from me." he said, venom in his voice.

"He did, didn't he?" she nodded.

"Wait, so you remember?" he asked, his eyebrows raised.

"No, I don't. Yon-Rogg told me what happened." she explained.

"And what did he tell you?" he asked. His mind couldn't comprehend on what the Kree could've told Adriana that she seemed to be comfortable with the information that the Kree had taken her away from him.

"Come sit down, Bucky." she said, beckoning for him to go back and sit at the dining table.

Bucky followed her and sat across from her. Two steaming cups of hot kokoa were on the table along with a plate of cookies - chocolate chip cookies. He remembered Adriana used to love baking them. The memory triggered another pang in his heart. He took a deep breath as he looked at her, waiting for her to break the silence.

Adriana picked up the cup of hot kokoa from the table and blew the top of it lightly. She then took a small sip and put it down back onto the table.

"Can you start by telling me about myself? And then answer my questions? I will then answer yours." she said slowly.

"Alright." he nodded.

"Where should I start?" he continued asking.

"Just start with the basics. Like, my name, family, where you met me. Things like that. Because I don't remember anything." she replied.

Bucky's heart broke as the realization dawned in him. Adriana had amnesia! That explained why she seemed so happy with the Kree. She didn't know who she was! He took another deep breath and started talking.

"Your name is Adriana Weaver. You were born on April 3rd 1996 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Your mother's name is Maria Weaver and your father's name is John Weaver. You have a little brother, John Weaver Jr. You live in New York City while your family lives in Oklahoma." he said.

Bucky wished he could read minds because Adriana didn't react at the information he gave her. She just stared at him in silence.

"Alright. What do I do in New York?" she finally asked.

"You're an assistant fashion designer at Gucci." he answered.

"Gucci?" she asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Yes, an expensive fashion brand." he explained.

"Oh okay. How did we meet?" she asked.

"We met at this cafe called Dear Butter, right across from your office." he smiled as he remembered that he broke a coffee cup the first time he saw her.

"Dear Butter.. do they sell like.. something like pastry?" she asked.

"Yes! They sell waffles and croffles. Do you remember it?" he asked.

"Hmm.. a little." she said as she scrunched her eyes shut, her fingers rubbed her temple.

"Are you okay?" he asked, reaching over to touch her hand. Her eyes fluttered open as he touched her hand.

"Yeah, it's just, whenever I try to remember something, my head hurt." she said as she retracted her hand away from him.

Bucky's heart dropped to his stomach as he realized that she had rejected his touch. He wondered what went on in her mind.

"Please continue." she finally said.

"Okay. Well, when the Kree took you away during the Kree invasion, we were engaged and were preparing to get married." he said slowly, waiting for her reaction but she stayed silent with no discernable emotion on her face.

"You knew that?" he asked after a bit of a pause.

"I did know that, yeah." she nodded.

"Well, can I ask you something now?" he asked.

"Of course." she replied.

"Tell me what happened to you. Starting from the first memory you can remember." Bucky said.

"Well, I remember I was sitting in a small ship. A missile was heading towards the ship I was in. Yon-Rogg stood up from the pilot seat and came over to me and hugged me. Next thing I knew I woke up in a holding cell at the Kree's mother ship. Yon-Rogg was there and told me that my name is Una-Ver, and that I was part of an elite team in the Kree military, Starforce. We just lost on a mission on earth and that I was held in a holding cell because Supreme Intelligence thought I was a mole that contributed to the mission's failure." she explained.

"What?!" he asked, getting really confused.

"Let me continue the story, you'll get it soon." she said and he nodded.

"Anyway, Yon-Rogg helped me escape from the holding cell and he took us here, to Torfa. He was instructed by the Supreme Intelligence to kill me because I was a mole that helped give intel to the people on earth so that they were prepared for our attack. But he didn't have the heart to do it. He decided to spare my life. He betrayed Supreme Intelligence and decided to stay with me here. We faked an accident and our death so that Supreme Intelligence wouldn't look for us anymore. We then met the natives here, who are mostly Argens but there are also some Sentimaults and Nowlanians. They offered us a place to stay to hide ourselves from Supreme Intelligence." she explained.

Bucky shook his head in disbelief. The Kree.. Yon-Rogg.. was feeding her lies. That was why she seemed happy with him. His eyes darted down onto her hand and he noticed something he didn't notice before. Adriana wore 2 rings on her ring finger, the engagement ring he gave her and a black ring with glowing blue and golden vines on top of it. Was she in a relationship with Yon-Rogg? His stomach felt sick as he contemplated that possibility.

"Are you.. are you in a relationship with Yon-Rogg?" he asked slowly.

Adriana didn't answer right away, her eyes looked at him in concern. She slowly pulled out something from her neck - a small tear shaped vial with a blue liquid in it. He wondered what it was, why she took it out and why she wore it.

"Yes, Bucky. Yon-Rogg.. he.. I.." she turned the vial on her neck around and around then took a deep breath. She let it go then finally said

"Yon-Rogg is my husband, Bucky.."

Bucky's heart broke into a thousand pieces as he heard her. Husband?! Yon-Rogg was her husband?! Oh how cruel the universe was to him! Not only he was made to think that she was dead all this time, now that they were reunited, she belonged to someone else!

Bucky stood up abruptly and walked as far away from her as possible. He stood facing the back of the house. His head in turmoil and his heart bled profusely. How could this happen?! How?! He started to feel tears welling up in his eyes again.

His mind went back to the previous year. How hard it was for him to deal with the grief of losing the love of his life. He was just finally able to move on but she suddenly appeared! He didn't expect to find her again so he was so ecstatic to have found her! But just when his broken heart was mended again, it shattered yet again into a million pieces in a matter of minutes. He didn't know if he could handle more heart break and pain at this point.

"Bucky.. I'm.. I'm sorry." Adriana said, staring at him from where she was sitting.

Bucky sighed and took a deep breath. He should pull himself together. The most important thing was that Adriana was alive. Sooner or later she would gain her memory back, he was sure of it. He just needed to help her remember. If she remembered him again, he was certain she would choose him over the Kree. She would come back to him and they would get married as planned and lived happily ever after. Don't give up just yet, Buck. He thought to himself.

He then wiped the tears from his eyes and walked back towards Adriana. He stopped in front of her and knelt on the floor. He picked her hands and held them tight in his.

"Adriana.. doll.. Yon-Rogg has been feeding you with lies. None of what he told you are real. They're all lies! You're not a Kree, you're not part of the Starforce, and you're definitely not a mole. You're human, part of the human race. You're also a super soldier, like me. That's why you have super strength, super speed and you can heal fast. I'm a super soldier too, we're a super soldier couple." he smiled but Adriana didn't return it. She just stared at him, conflict in her eyes.

"Adriana, you're a human and a super soldier but most of all, to me, you.. are.. the love of my life." Bucky said slowly as he gazed at her with love and adoration, his heart beating fast in his chest, hoping she would believe him.

Adriana continued to stare at him, her eyes started to well up with tears. He leaned close to her, his eyes glanced at her perfectly kissable lips. Just when he was about to capture her lips in his, she stood up and let his hand go, leaving him kneeling on the floor, looking down in defeat.

"I'm sorry Bucky. I.. I want so much to believe you. But.. I.. I really don't know who to believe!" she said as she paced around the kitchen, tears falling freely from her eyes.

"I mean.. how do I know it's not you who has been telling me lies?" she asked, wiping the tears falling on her cheek.

"Yon-Rogg told me that you might have used me! You seduced me and made me fall in love with you so that I would give you intel for your people. He said I betrayed the Kree to help you and your race." she explained.

Bucky couldn't believe it! Yon-Rogg had been feeding her with a very believable lie! But surely Adriana would know the difference between the truth and a lie. He couldn't give up now. After a moment he finally stood up and walked closer to her. He stopped right in front of her.

"Adriana.. doll.. don't use your mind, use your heart. It can show you the truth." he said as he touched the center of her chest gently. Adriana gazed at him, a great conflict in her eyes.

"Una! Una! I'm home!" Bucky and Adriana froze as they heard Yon-Rogg's voice calling her from the front door.

Chapter 11 >

[stephaniereddit]

PART 2. About the surname, magic, origin and other things

1. Who is Vendela in essence?

Vendy is a member of the race of Supernaturals, ancient cosmic beings. In addition to her, they include her brother Seraphim, her father Dizarey, her mother Concordia, her uncle Jormungand, etc.

Vendela's Family Tree (Before Rebirth)

At first glance, they might be mistaken for gods, but there are several key differences:

1. All Supernaturals are mortal. Even the Seraphim, like the phoenix, doomed to be reborn forever, must first die. Killing them is usually extremely difficult, but nevertheless, it is possible.

2. Supernaturals are not capable of creating life. They can create conditions for its origin, but they cannot create a living being or revive something that has long been dead.

3. Basically, Supernaturals are just beings from another brane (check out the "braneworld" theory to better understand the concept).

Vendy is a Supernatural by blood, but her powers and abilities are heavily distorted. It's worth starting with the fact that she died at the moment of birth. But her soul survived and went to look for a suitable world for rebirth. This is what the world of dragons became - an experiment by Jormungandr, which at the same time became a prison for its progenitor. There, Vendy, in spirit form, finds Sarah, an Asgardian banished by Odin and left alone on a planet full of predatory lizards with the beginnings of intelligence. But the Asgardian didn't just survive - by the time Vendela arrived, she had already begun to build her empire. The spirit decided to temporarily wait out the unfavorable conditions in the body of the future empress and went quiet for a long time.

2. Origin of the surname.

Vendela bears the surname Horrendous Haddock, like her father, Espen Horrendous Haddock. Yes, she is a descendant of Hiccup, but a very distant one, since there are more than 10 generations between them. All this time, Vendy, in spirit form, passed from one descendant of Hiccup along the Nuffink line to another, until one day she felt that the time had come to awaken (Hiccup received Vendy's spirit from Sarah when she left the planet to begin her revenge on Odin).

Unfortunately, Vendy was too big for her second mother, Gray, and she died shortly after birth. Espen raised his daughter with his longtime friend, Susan. At the time, her young son had recently died, so the widow and widower teamed up to raise Ven and Susan's eldest son, Rind.

3. Magic

Vendela, as far as her species goes, was a huge failure. Having to be reborn as a human and then evolve back into a Supernatural, she is small, weak, and unstable. She got the following abilities:

1. Telepathy is the most developed. By the age of 17, she had learned to read other creature's thoughts and broadcast her own, as well as create extensive channels of telepathic communication for dozens of participants. Due to telepathy, she has a well-developed intuition, but also a high pain threshold, and her skin is very sensitive, especially on her ears and right behind them, where the nerve nodes are located.

2. Healing. In the world of dragons, she is the only one who has this skill, so during the hottest periods of the war, hundreds of soldiers passed through her healing hands. Plus, thanks to "Healing", Vendy herself can more easily endure illnesses and injuries, and no scars remain on her body. By the way, she can heal with any part of her body.

3. "Oracle". Vendela is able to see dozens of possible futures. However, with the re-acquisition of a physical body, the ability began to do more harm than good. The visions always appear suddenly, the girl falls motionless, her pulse and breathing slow down to critical values - being sick, she can literally die in this state. She is completely defenseless. And the predictions are most often false. Fortunately, the calmer the environment, the less often moments of predictions arise.

4. Transformation: This is a fairly simple skill compared to the first three. Simply changing physical form from a near-human creature to a dragon and back. In the process, Vendy literally disintegrates herself and then rebuilds the necessary form from the surrounding molecules.

Dragon form. Donnie (193 cm) easily reaches her shoulder with his head. She is quite small compared to other dragons.

5. Matter Manipulation, in simple words - alchemy. Vendy has mastered this skill at the level of an average alchemist. It uses all 3 subtypes of alchemy: Elemental (prefers water and earth), Transformative (Classical alchemy) and even touches on Mixed (or Ritual) in a distorted form. Within Ritual Alchemy, she does not use spells, as any spell she casts will cause her to become unstable and put her life at risk.

[thatnateguy]

"Honey, I've been planning the heist of the century."

"Again?"

"Well, yes, but this one will be more fun than last time."

"Promise?"

"Of course. I'm assuming you're in?"

"well, you need someone to keep those ideas of yours in check."

"You flatter me dear."

"Thank you, I try. Who else did you have in mind?"

(the following is a crew list for a fictional heist set in a far-off galaxy. While I'd love to draw them, I suck at art. Hopefully my text paints good enough pictures that you get a feel for the group and who they are)

The Mover - the master planner, slick talker, guy in charge of main negotiations for the team. The "Frank Ocean"-esque character. Humanoid, typically dressed in a suit of some kind, taller, but with a distinctly non-human head. Frequently tries to wear sunglasses in an attempt to make himself look "more cool," despite said sunglasses being completely incompatible with his head.

The Infil - Con artist, intelligence gatherer, and identity maintainer. THE woman with connections, especially in the intergalactic criminal network. Maried to The Mover. As a result, she's able to take his plans and carefully refine them to sleek perfection. Also humanoid, but only dresses as sleek as her husband when the need requires. She also makes a really nice cup of hot cocoa.

The Pilot - While on the surface he may just look like the getaway driver for the team, his roles extend much deeper than just that. If you need a ship, rover, craft, parade float, not only will he drive it, but he'll modify it to seemingly-impossible extremes. Before turning to a life of crime, he was a racer on the RIP Racing Circuit, before an incident with an illegal mod he made forced him into an early retirement. Still collects royalties from his cameo in an old Gala-coolant commercial.

The De-Con - Parts scavenger, explosives and weapons expert, and avid tinkerer. Need an electro-pulse atom de-shaker that can perfectly liquify the security door of any interstellar vault? He's already got six (leftovers from a previous heist). Helped introduce The Pilot into the network after seeing his mod in action, and the two frequently collaborate on larger projects. Listens to music whenever he works.

The Broker - The daughter of the Empress of the Western Celestial Body. Unfortunately for the Empire, she prefers to get into trouble and she has the funds to help the crew cause lots of it. Fortunately for the Empire, The Infil has managed to find connections and alabis that keep The Broker (and her funds) from ever being involved with the crew. Has been taking pickpocket lessons in her spare time.

The Squeeze - Born the smallest in its generation. His species is also known for their flexibility and able to contort and adjust their bodies. As such, is a masterful cat burglar. Kinda looks like a Tangela (the Pokemon), but without any legs. Since it has no mouth, it communicates in gestures and sign language via its various appendages. During meetings, it'll typically perch on someone's shoulder or head so that it can actually catch what's going on.

The Bio-Modifier - Cyborg with a split personality due to computer bug and a cheap cybernetics engineer. While the two halves of her may disagree on certain elements of their life, they both work together at bio-modification. The mechanical half handles modifications on the digital sphere (endo-scans, digi-spheres, etc.) and the synthetic half handles physical appearances (disguises, aliases, and such). Both avid chess fans, and mostly evenly matched in skill.

The Sys-Hacker - after his creation and programming outside the boundaries of the Inner-planitary Robotics Code (as well as the death of his creator for breaking said Code), the robotic form that is the Sys-Hacker lives a life under the radar. His programming not only allows him to hack into systems and terminals, but also "hypnotize" other AIs into doing his bidding, whether that's deleting footage or allowing security bipasses. Fortunately, his creator also gave him enough of a conscience to "wake up" those AIs... after he got what he needed, of course.

The Rookie - Human. Age 19. Pick-pocket back on earth, and currently studying psychology online. Still isn't 100% sure how he managed to get involved with the crew, but his human adaptability has given him the tools he needed to truly succeed. Teaches his pickpocketing skills to The Broker when she has the time and he doesn't have homework.

[vitos-ordination-song]

I’ve put my finger on something Le Guin gets wrong: throughout her work, there’s a clear conception that philosophical worldview shapes culture. This is right to some degree but I think she really overstates the case.

For instance, she was skeptical of monotheism in general because she believed that it was tied to various negative cultural traits (supremacy, patriarchy, etc.). Let’s use the main Abrahamic religions as an example. Their history/sacred texts indicate that, despite certain exceptions, the religions are generally patriarchal and warlike (don’t come for me on this, I know I’m making generalizations). On the other hand, Buddhist and Taoist sacred texts don’t promote war, and they’re more favorable to gender equality as well.

So… does this mean there’s actually a huge difference between religious populations in these terms? Yes and no I suppose. Plenty of Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities are peaceful and don’t treat women poorly. There’s differences based on religion, but as far as overall behavior, I honestly don’t think that the religious-philosophical outlook of a community is necessarily the deciding factor, but rather geopolitics and socioeconomics. Maybe none of this is coming across clearly, but let’s consider the proliferation of far-right Islam—it didn’t arise because people were just naturally changing their worldviews, but instead occurred as geopolitical/socioeconomic conditions severely worsened. Far-right Christianity in America is more or less driven by think tanks. I’m not denying that certain beliefs—say the belief in heaven—don’t have major impacts on the behavior of cultural groups. I’m just trying to point out some flaws in this way of thinking. It’s got to be a mix of both.

Returning to Le Guin, she obviously believed that Taoism provided guiding principles to living a good life and creating a good society. I’ve read the major Taoist texts and agree! It’s very beautiful writing. Sure, all religions have some beautiful writing, but I can see why Taoism (and Buddhism) are so appealing to open-minded, intelligent, decent people. However, in Le Guin’s imagining, a Taoist-inspired society is a paradise, essentially. The Telling portrays a mono-culture of people whose lives center on a thinly-veiled Taoist philosophy. There’s barely any murder, everyone gets along, is super healthy, super kind, and continues a tradition of oral storytelling. How wonderful! Yes, in theory, that’s how a society based on Taoism should turn out. But uh, there’s one problem: history. Unfortunately Taoism in China just didn’t play out like that. Lots of murder involved, to the point where some of the slaughters can be called genocide. I just got through a section of Chinese history where a Taoist minister got the emperor to murder upwards of 50,000 Buddhists. Similarly a lot of Westerners think of Buddhists as peaceful, but Buddhists around the world today are excitedly calling for/carrying out the extermination of Muslims.

It’s not like Le Guin didn’t understand hypocrisy, The Dispossessed is all about it, but her didacticism wrt philosophy starts to wear thin after a while. At the end of the day, there’s human nature, and there’s geopolitical/socioeconomic realities, and there’s random chance. Le Guin always wrote monotheistic societies as expansionist, violent, and patriarchal, while polytheists/animists are the good guys. Just a bit simplistic if you ask me. I mean, go check in on the Hindus to cure yourself of the idea that polytheism is somehow linked to a reduction in hierarchy.