#Epic Cypher

[dezy995]

My take on Bill Cypher

I did him as a True Voidian from my lost in the shallow end project:]

ENJOY!!!

(Second image is Instagram version)

[reds-skull]

BLOOD||HUNGER

[PREV PART] [AO3]

OOO I'm very excited to share this chapter! We're getting close to the finish line!

Its name is "The Song of Us"

Page 54 of the “Blooede Starvatfōre-dēde”, parable 15:

The Blind man asks his companion, before dawn break, What do you believe, is a beast’s fate, Once death seizes its life, in his inevitable grasp? The beast, his heart knowing of the fallen knight’s pleas, Of men they lost, who were left to be but a worm’s dark feast, Answers, death reaches for monsters all the same as men, For the unjust, for the cruel, For the kind, for the forgiving, All bones become one, until they become none, As death is the only being, to see all as one and the same.

This city is quiet, in the way a drowning is. Something wicked is happening under the surface, hidden from plain sight. If only its victim had air to scream.

The Hunter has intel beyond the SAS’s scope, beyond Laswell’s. Informants, comms. A man pronounced to all as dead. How is it possible, they were written off as a non-threat before?

Soap grits his teeth, tapping the lit end of his cigarette on a wall. Simon started moving a few minutes ago, the poison once again retreating. By the haunted look in his brown eyes, John could tell they both know he’s running out of time.

Price has been arguing with Laswell while helping Simon. Something about the fact the Hunter seemingly didn’t exist a year prior, on paper. Appeared out of nowhere one day with an army behind them, ready to burrow into intelligence networks in a way even Makarov couldn’t.

Makarov’s name came up a lot in that conversation. Enough that Soap had to take a smoke.

Anger thrums through his veins. Begging for blood. The same incessant screaming that drove him to choke the life out of Makarov, the same fire that kept him going through this personal slice of hell.

Maybe he’s an idiot, for wanting to kill the Hunter, for believing it will change anything.

The cigarette’s flame licks his fingers.

Soap crushes it against the wall. He turns around, watching Simon and the Captain. Far enough to not hear them, but they seem to need a bit of privacy anyway. Soap can’t say he’s ever seen Price that emotional, in their short meetings.

He asks himself where Gaz is when the Lieutenant approaches him.

“Price is bloody livid, isn’t he?” Gaz huffs.

Soap hums. His eyes move from the Captain to Simon, his mask still on the ground besides him.

Kyle follows his stare, “did you know Ghost’s identity, when I found you two?”

“No”, the white skull almost glows in the moonlight, “I only found out when… the communicator tried to use it against him.”

He can feel Gaz scan his features, “and you still decided to work with him.”

Soap doesn’t answer. Simon and Price are hugging now, the movement uncoordinated to Ghost. He doesn’t know how he can tell.

He turns to face Gaz, “I swore we will finish this together. I don’t go back on my word.”

“We both know this goes beyond that, Soap.” Gaz gives him a half smile, “the way you look at him… Haven’t seen you like that with anyone else.”

Soap frowns, scoffing, “don’t know what yer-”

“You have feelings for him, don’t you?” Gaz asks, almost gently.

…Feelings?

…..Could he?

“I…”

“Don’t lie to yourself.” Gaz murmurs, “in all the years I’ve known you, you didn’t act like this. Going against everyone you know, jumping in front of him when Price starts threatening him, letting him rest his bloody head on your legs- c’mon Soap, you’re fucking smitten with the man-”

“Kyle.” Soap stops him, head hanging down to hide the embarrassment painting his cheeks red. He scrubs a weary hand over his features, looking up at his friend between his fingers.

Gaz’s eyes soften. Soap sighs, “I- this is not the time for that kind of shite. We need to fuckin’ dust the Hunter, and then-”

And then what?

Soap lowers his hand, stare unconsciously drifting towards Simon. Since when have his eyes started doing that?

It hasn’t been more than a month since he arrived to this godforsaken city. How is it that John can’t imagine being alone again?

Or… how can’t he imagine an ‘after’ without Simon?

“I won’t lie to you.” Kyle starts, his tone gentler, “I still don’t fully trust Ghost. Even if he is… Simon Riley.” the Lieutenant places a hand on his shoulder, “but I can tell what you truly want, even if you think it’s not feasible.”

“That’s because it isn’t-”

“Bullshit.” Gaz turns John around to face him, “look, we are not good men. We’ve been operating outside the law for… for as long as I can remember. What we do, the way we dirty our hands...”

Kyle lets out a shaky exhale, squeezing his shoulder, “what I’m saying is, we can make people disappear. And if you… if you want that, I can help. I’m sure Price will too-”

“Yer out of yer mind-”

“Are you going to go back to Scotland, mate?” Gaz’s voice sharpens on desperation, “are you gonna go back to feeling like you have nothing to live for? Can you really leave this life, leave Ghost, behind?” He almost whispers the end, “be honest.”

How could he go back? No apartment, endless job search, a buzz under his skin that cannot be scrubbed off, disappointment to his family, emptiness, emptiness, emptiness-

“What else can Ah do?!” Soap tenses under Gaz’s hand.

That hand keeps him steady all the same, “whatever you want, John.” Kyle smiles sadly, “me and Price don’t have that freedom, but you two? You don’t have stuffy generals breathing down your neck.”

“I don’t-” Soap cuts himself off, thoughts whirling faster in his mind. He gets reminded of what his therapist used to say about him, back when he was just discharged.

“You fixate on danger, John. To the point of obsession. You don’t know when to let go, if you believe you can make things right.”

“Even if the cost is more than you should be willing to pay.”

“Just… think about it. Besides…” Gaz looks away, expression darkening, “I have a feeling the 141 might need people like you in the future.”

Soap brows furrow, “dishonorably discharged adrenaline addicts?”

Kyle chuckles, “no”, his hands tighten on Soap’s shirt, “people we can trust. People who are willing to do what’s right, even if they know they shouldn’t. Even if they don’t act the way the higher ups would want them.”

His brown eyes turn to look at John, determination he first saw on bootcamp only growing stronger, “people like you.”

Soap goes through another cigarette with Gaz by the time Price and Simon return to them. Both of their eyes shine with tears.

“Laswell did some digging.” Price grunts, “wasn’t easy, finding intel on the Hunter. They know their way around our networks, clearly.” his stare flickers towards Simon, “this operation-”

“Mass murder” Soap corrects. Calling this an operation would spit on the dozens of innocent people left to rot here.

“Mass murder”, the Captain continues, “is very unusual for the Hunter’s soldiers. Almost… flashy.”

“The communicator admitted it was an attempt to frame me.” Simon rolls up the mask in his hands, slipping it on, “they needed to show the British Army I’m too dangerous to keep.”

“And they knew the SAS would send the 141 because of the informant.” Gaz huffs.

Price nods, “which they did succeed in, but it also exposed them to us.”

“The SAS wouldn’t have investigated it further if ye actually killed Ghost the first time around.” Soap grumbles, wincing a moment later when he remembered who he’s talking to.

The Captain takes it surprisingly seriously. “Correct. This is not the first time they hide behind a smaller, supposedly unconnected criminal.” he hangs his arms on his tacvest, commending voice booming in the empty streets, “the Hunter is now top priority for the 141, our orders are to eliminate them, along with any high ranking officers remaining within their army. This mission is classified to all but us and Laswell - anyone else will be treated as a potential collaborator of the Hunter.”

“What about Soap and Ghost, Captain?” Gaz asks.

Price sighs, “Ghost has escaped after releasing the civilian he captured as leverage. And John MacTavish?” a sly smile pushes his mustache up, ”he has never set foot in this city.”

Kate Laswell isn’t someone Soap knew well, back in his service. Has heard her name being dropped in a couple of debriefs, a few calls here and there regarding missions.

He becomes increasingly grateful she’s on their side, as she brings up more and more intel on the Hunter. Their main source of information is the informant Ghost killed - the man recognized several undercover soldiers moving supplies in and out of the city in the past few weeks. He knew something big was going to happen, but the SAS waved it off as a local gang.

On the day of his death, he managed to send in one last report. The informant knew his time was limited, that his cover was blown, so the message was painfully short.

‘Skull in warehouse, Konservy, game over’

It was not clear if who he referred to when he transmitted the name “Skull”, and at the time the comms officer asked the informant to repeat, thinking it was a mistyped “Ghost”. With what they know now, it’s highly likely he was actually talking about the Hunter, and their red skull insignia. Konservy is a name of a warehouse, two clicks out of the city, as Laswell quickly found out.

‘Game over’ is the agreed upon sign for caught spies.

Price and Gaz have brought out their maps, attempting to lock down the warehouse’s location. Soap and Ghost were gently shooed away after it became obvious they don’t have any more useful intel to provide.

“How’s your neck?” Ghost asks him, the two of them leaning against a crumbling wall.

Soap opens his mouth to answer, when gloved fingers brush over the bruised skin on his throat. “I uh…” he swallows, the hand following the movement, “I feel fine.”

Ghost hums, caressing the wound for a moment longer before pulling away. Soap wants to chase the touch.

He really is in over his head, isn’t he?

“Simon.” Soap looks up at the bright skull mask, “have you thought about… what are ye gonna do after?”

“...no.”

“...Would ye go back? To what you did before?”

Simon stares at him deeply, eyes closing, “I don’t think I can.” he looks back at Soap, “you? What did you do before?”

Soap chuckles bitterly, “ah, I was spendin’ my newly civvi life indulging in only the greatest of pleasures. Like sittin’ in an office for nine hours a day, or knittin’ a scarf on my therapist’s orders.”

Simon’s shoulders shake with a badly hidden laugh, “I’d like to see you knit.”

Soap grins, “oh I was a natural. It definitely didn’t have several holes by the time I was done.” 

“How did you get here, then?” Simon asks, mirth still creasing his eyes.

His smile drops, words dying on his tongue, “I uh…” that weeks-old shame starts creeping back in, “was about to be evicted. Got fired, bastards never liked me anyway. I jus’ took all of my money and… ran as far as I could.”

Simon hums, shoulder leaning in to nudge his. Soap thinks the conversation is over after a few moments of silence, the both of them mauling over the words, when Simon surprises him.

“Think I’d like that… running away.” he murmurs.

“Aye? Where would ye go?”

“Don’t know. Don’t think it matters.” Simon leans in closer, their foreheads almost touching, “as long as the company is good.”

Soap feels a shiver go down his spine, eyes wide as he tries to find the joke that must be in Simon’s.

But he looks so painfully sincere, even when he finally leans away, “too bad there’s none ‘ere. Might ask Laswell if she got any tips on finding partners in crime.”

Soap lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, “think they make dating apps for fuckers like ye?”

“Doubt I’ll find anyone as mental as you on Tinder, Johnny.” Simon deadpans.

“That’s because yer looking in the wrong place - Christian Mingle is where the real crazy bastards are.”

Simon can’t hold in his laugh this time, and for the first time Soap hears the way he snorts a little when his giggles become uncontrollable. It’s a horribly endearing sound, one that he wants to hear for every day for the rest of his life.

It makes his heart hurt, heavy, sinking in his chest like a death sentence.

Gaz was right.

He’s in love with Simon Riley.

Gaz went back to get the vehicle he and Price infiled with. It had a laptop, a few maps, and the most wonderful MREs Soap ever had. He never thought he’d miss that shite, but after running on a handful of oranges and a possibly moldy sandwich, they tasted like heaven on earth.

As he and Ghost had their meal (Simon’s eyes sparkled in a way that told Soap he was clearly as delighted with the food as he was), the 141 finalized their plan with Laswell. Soap could see them arguing about something, but he was far too preoccupied with eating to care at the moment.

Ghost, however, did care, “need anything, Price?”

The Captain snaps his head up, taking off his hat and scratching at his hair, “we have an angle to breach, but…”

Gaz joins in, “We don’t have intel on how many guards are posted, their location… mission will be doomed from the start if we just go in guns blazing.”

“Why not do some recon, then?” Soap wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, “we’re all trained for that.”

“Too risky, the warehouse is exposed, and the Hunter won’t leave any obvious gaps in security if they’re worth their salt.” Price grunts.

Ghost gets up, walking over to the maps spread on the truck’s hood, “then we break in.”

Soap smirks at the assurance in his voice, “and that’s why I love the Ghost.”

He instantly catches the knowing expression on Gaz’s face, as well as Simon stiffening beside him. Soap curses himself mentally, feeling his face heat up in shame. He prays for any god that might listen, that Ghost didn’t take it as seriously as the truth is.

Thankfully, Price saves him from blurting out some more recently-discovered-emotions, “no other way but through, eh Simon? What do you have in mind?”

Ghost scans the maps of the warehouse Laswell has sent over, “The Hunter doesn’t know we’re working together, if they’re expecting an attack they would only expect two people - me and Johnny.” his eyes flicker to Soap’s for a brief moment, “if we split up, the 141 could take them by surprise.”

“You said they’re after you and John, Simon. If they catch you, we might not be able to help.” Price says grimly.

Ghost sighs, looking away frustrated. His head turns to face Soap, eyes calculating, “...what if they don’t know it’s us?”

“What?” Price asks.

Ghost continues, eyes still staring deeply into his, “Johnny can easily disguise himself, he’s done so before. All he needs is to cover up his face and hair.”

The Captain nods to Ghost, “and what about you, son? Everyone knows your mask.”

“But no one knows his face.” Soap answers, understanding washing over him, “but Simon-”

“I can’t be Ghost if we want to finish this.” Simon brushes fingers over the bone-white teeth of the skull mask, hand tightening into a fist.

Gaz nods slowly, “and we can’t be the 141.” he sends a meaningful look to the Captain, “this operation has to be kept secret. If the SAS learns we collaborated with the Ghost…”

“Then we won’t be.” Price walks to the back of the truck, pulling out 3 black balaclavas and throwing them to Soap and Gaz.

Price begins explaining their plan, “Laswell has gathered up a few blueprints of the Konservy warehouse. There are several key points that appear to be far too open for us to breach, all except one - the offloading garage. We’ll split into two teams, me and Gaz will take the offices and CCTV rooms, clearing the way for Soap and Ghost to infiltrate the main machinery room.”

“Our plan depends on each team watching the other’s six, we’ll have to keep comms up.” Gaz adds.

“Once the first team takes over the CCTV room, we will be able to locate the Hunter. The faster we do this, the less likely reinforcements will arrive.” Price hands Soap and Ghost a radio.

“Do we know where they keep their vehicles?” Soap asks while fitting the comms over his clothes.

“Yeah, should be around where we first enter. Why?” Gaz raises a brow towards him.

A wicked smile spreads on Soap’s lips, “might be able to set up a little surprise for any newcomers.”

Ghost chuckles darkly, “always ready to craft a trap, aren’t you, Johnny?”

“Never failed me before, Simon.”

“You can take a look at our supplies, take whatever you need.” Price looks over each of them, “any questions?”

Soap flexes his hands, adrenaline thrumming a familiar song through his veins, anger painting his vision red, “what are we waiting for?”

[big-gay-apocalypse]

new emo band just dropped

// New Mutants Epic Collection: Sudden Death

[ask-tsams-au]

"#If jt mzjoh" Hmm? That junble of letters reminds me of a cipher, let's see-- "He is lying"…? Ah, but that can't be right, you've been so nice Solar and everyone seems so happy, so I probably did the cipher wrong……… (right…?)

Of course I'm not lying!

And what cypher are you on about? When was there a cypher?

Friend were all happy here!!

Don't worry more friends will join us soon once they show again! I'll make sure of that

You need to stay in the daycare for a bit, I think you're getting sick, Sun can look after you

[theanomily]

It's Escape Velocity, but in reverse.

The Contessa did her best to resist number one's orders without a full-on massacre being brought to hive by their friendly local platoon of Reapers, something about honour regarding the use of her Voice, realising during her capture that, rather than break it, she helped perpetrate the generational cycle of using powers for acts of pure atrocity, whether that decision stem from manipulation, coercion or greed/hunger for power.

It was because everyone else viewed her with suspicion and kept her beyond arm's reach that she threw the idea of brotherhood once again into the flames and actually turned to number one's side

[soky-tf]

Favorite BTS songs

I've always had trouble choosing a top 10, especially musical ones, because it changes a lot. In the case of BTS, which has a wonderful and diverse discography, it's even harder... but here we go!

10. Wings (Wings / You never walk alone)

I love the vibe of this song. I might be a little sad, but this song starts and I'm going to dance, I'm going to sing, I'm going to feel the vibe and be happy.

09. 134340 (Love yourself: Tear)

I don't even know how to explain why I like this song so much. It's so different from what I'm used to hearing from BTS. I think what I like most about this song is the deep vocals of the rap line.

08. Blood, sweat and tears (Wings / You never walk alone)

A classic, right my love. It was the song that introduced me to BTS, that made me want to know more about them. And the one responsible for me being an army. Look at that choreography!!!

07. Run BTS (Proof)

Simply BTS showing who's boss.

06. Save me (The most beautiful moment in life: Forever Young)

This song is simply addictive. It was the song that made me decide that I really liked BTS, after having already known BS&T and other songs that are in the Top 5…

05. Run (The Most Beautiful Moment In Life pt. 2 / Young Forever)

I'm always in doubt whether to choose Run or I need U. I think both songs are very similar, the MVs too. I love them both, but at the end of the day, Run stays in the back of your mind…

04. House of cards (The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever)

The vocal line has several good songs, like The Truth Untold, Zero O'Clock and even Lost, which I love. But this will forever be the best and most epic of all. Sorry.

03. Tear (Love Yourself: Tear / Answer)

I know people love Cypher, I love UGH too, but Tear is just AWESOME. This song is powerful, it's sad, it's energetic. Hoseok is so AMAZING in this song. No comparison, guys. I want to TATTOO the live version on my skin!

02. Let me know (Dark & Wild)

We need to talk. Many of the older ARMYs tend to point out Dark & ​​Wild as one of BTS's best albums. And knowing that many people came to the fandom through Butter makes me a little sad, to be honest. The rapping in this song is impeccable, Jimin's falsetto at the end is iconic. And they completely forgot about this song. Why??????

Honorable mentions, in no particular order:

Answer: Love Yourself

Fire

I need you

Lights

Not today

The truth untold

Tomorrow

So what

Ugh!

You never walk alone

And now, the most obvious top 1 of all:

01. Spring day (You never walk alone)

Okay, it's a bit cliché! But we usually call Spring Day "Queen" for a reason. Queen of the charts, queen of my playlist. You can't be a BTS fan and not have Spring Day in the Top 10.

Let me know if you agree with my choices and tell me what your Top 10 is.

[caracarahoney]

H.I.V.E. Birthday Bundle 2024:

With the best worst father with too many names, Cypher!

(And the color gold.) Buckle up folks, it's a long one!

Playlist- Not Afraid (You Should Be)

The Lab Era Mad IQs- I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME GUY.exe- Superfruit On The Run E.V.O.L.- Marina and the Diamonds Pork Soda- Glass Animals Lent- Autoheart Paranoia in B Major- The Avett Brothers Family Man Clusterhug- I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME C Sections And Railway Trestles- The Avett Brothers The Loss Paper Scars- Lovedrug Black Light- My Epic Cypher Is Born So Called Life- Three Days Grace Look Away- The Dear Hunter Me Against You- Three Days Grace Rumors- NEFFEX The Siege Absinthe- I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME Yin Yang- USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) NFWMB- Hozier All Alone Leopard- Jack Stauber Paul Newman vs. The Demons- The Avett Brothers Gone Rogue P.O.L.I.T.I.C.S.- MISSIO Wolf In Sheep's Clothing- Set It Off Bleeding White- The Avett Brothers Gone Forest Whitaker- Bad Books, etc.

Art:

I got a rabbit as my animal, which honestly fits- lots of cool symbolism there. Something, something, snares and escaping and prey animal vs predators, etc. I honestly think this man is motivated more by fear than he lets on. Fic: A Temporary Alliance (A negotiation leads to an effective, if begrudging partnership between Cypher, three girls… and a pilot in deep over his head.) Headcanons:

Extremely paranoid ever since he began working in the villain industry, and this only became exacerbated after Xiu Mei’s death. Also misanthropic and believed most people are more bad than good, though he recognized a few exceptions like his family.

Instead of a plain oval of glass, his mask was a modified helmet resembling a motorcyclist’s. Alongside gloves, it allowed him to cover every inch of skin to prevent anyone getting hair or fingerprints for DNA testing.

Had long hair ever since he entered G.L.O.V.E., as he became paranoid that someone would assassinate him while cutting it. As Wu Zhang, he cut it himself and kept it up in a high ponytail (when down, it was a little past his shoulders). After losing Xiu Mei, he didn’t keep up with caring for it as often and let it grow a few inches longer, tucking it into his helmet as Cypher and tying it up otherwise.

Wore his mask anytime he was around others during his Cypher era, including his own henchmen. If he ever needed to sleep– such as on long flights– he would sleep with it on and hold a gun the whole time.

Based his Cypher look on some of the Power Rangers-esque shows Wing would watch as a child; he would watch them with him sometimes as a form of easy bonding time.

Adored Darkdoom’s exploits and would tell Wing bedtime stories about him; took inspiration for the Kraken from Darkdoom’s vehicles.

Despised Xiu Mei at first after the Overlord incident, but acknowledged they were stuck together. Their escape from China was full of violence, running from enemies, assassination attempts, and the usual actiony antics. This is when they first learned to appreciate each other as they both saved each other a few times. 

As a husband, Mao was less physically affectionate. He showed love through gift giving, usually by making Xiu Mei small robots or trinkets or buying her nice things. He was very aloof as a person in general, so she valued being one of the few people he would willingly be close to. They enjoyed having movie or tv nights at home more than any other kind of date, which they’d usually end with a cuddle on the couch.

As a father, he was distant, but hardworking and comparatively loving. He knew from his teen years that he wasn’t cut out for family life, but did his best once avoiding it was no longer an option. He preferred to do the “maintenance work” of the family (house work, handling paperwork, planning stuff, etc) behind the scenes while his wife handled the face-to-face parenting. After Xiu Mei’s death, he was emotionally negligent and occasionally verbally abusive whenever he and Wing would argue, but never lashed out physically. He feared how angry he could be as he grieved and would separate himself early to avoid outbursts, but the absences only made things worse.

After Xiu Mei’s death and a small depressive period, vengeance became his primary goal and he began training himself in combat. This is where some of his absences in Wing’s life came from and where Wing’s early fitness started, as he tried a few times to work out with his father to bond with him. Considering that Wu was always very upset when doing so, it never worked out. Cypher was roughly at Nero’s level in combat by the end and had some training with most weapons; he’s not a boxer and wouldn’t do well in a fist fight, but if he was armed or given the chance to strategize, he could be very dangerous.

Did not build his criminal empire from the ground up– he instead infiltrated and worked under another villain for a year or two before assassinating him and stealing his holdings, using a few robots he’d made to bolster his defenses until he was powerful enough to use his reputation.

Genuinely believed Nero stole Wing for hostage purposes, as he received a letter that appeared to be written by him threatening Wing after his disappearance. In reality, this letter was crafted and sent by Overlord to encourage Nero and Cypher to go to war.

Needed glasses or contacts; his vision wasn’t horrible and he could function without them, but he was prone to bad migraines without them. As Wu Zhang, he preferred contacts, but switched to glasses as Mao Fanchu. During his time at H.I.V.E., he would become very uncooperative if not provided with glasses and an occasional exam. Also had high blood pressure and other chronic stress issues, but knew how to manage them. 

After the fall, he had to do daily physical therapy. Nero ensured he had equipment to do so (which was stored under his bed), but he struggled with chronic pain for the rest of his life. Also occasionally had chronic pain from Overlord’s blast, but this was less frequent. One of the closest relationships to amicable he had as Cypher did come from this though, as he developed an acquaintanceship with Dr. Scott.

After Overlord, he was a brontophobe (feared lightning in particular) and had a strong distaste for the color red despite using it as one of his cardinal colors. Also feared A.I.s and almost threw up at the sight of H.I.V.E.mind in Rogue.

Resented most supervillains’ “they’re disposable” attitude towards their technicians or low-ranking staff, especially as Cypher. He also preferred to avoid killing enemies’ staff, but did so to fit in and get closer to Number One, seeing it as genuinely necessary in his mission to save the world. 

And finally, Prompts! (AKA my rejected fic ideas for this...) - Darkdoom the pirate finding siren Wu after the latter got in a scuffle with the infamous Captain Nero. - A student finds Cypher's cell and talks to him through the door. - In an AU where he survives, Cypher playing Battleship with Laura. - Wu Zhang and Xiu Mei fleeing from G.L.O.V.E. after the Incident. - Cypher arguing with Nero in his cell about bringing Overlord online too early.

Anyways, hope y'all had fun! Can't wait to see what you've all created!

[fandomanimatic-tournament]

Fandom song animatic tournament: Bracket 2 Side B Round 2

Cabinet Man - Lemon Demon

"You can't win me, I can't be beat I won't hurt you unless you cheat You can't see me behind the screen I'm half human and half machine"

Welcome To The Internet - Bo Burnham

"Could I interest you in everything all of the time? A little bit of everything all of the time Apathy's a tragedy and boredom is a crime Anything and everything all of the time"

Remember that we're voting on how Iconic they are for ANIMATICS, not for the song itself. In order to make things fair, the tone and mood of the song should not affect how iconic it is (for example, a serious song should not be considered more iconic than a joke song just because it's serious)

Propaganda and animatic links of the songs under the cut:

Cabinet Man - Lemon Demon

Propaganda:

Cabinet Man is such a big song in the past few years and along with a lot of other Lemon Demon works is incredible and fitting for a variety of animations. Mfs turn this song about an evil arcade cabinet into their blorbos being epic and I’m all for it!!!!!!

Animatics with the song:

Hermitcraft NPC Grian

South Park Leslie

DSMP

Little Nightmares 2

Your Turn To Die

Welcome To The Internet - Bo Burnham

Propaganda:

its another goshdarn bo burnam song. Its pretty friggin iconic in this space

Animatics with the song:

Apphumans

Deltarune

Warrior Cats Firestar

Gravity Falls Bill Cypher

Please be cautious and read the title, description and warning cards on the animatic videos if you decide to watch them. If you've got specific triggers I'd recommend even more caution when watching animatics of fandoms you don't know, since sometimes canon-typical themes don't get warnings.

[fribbitz]

I made a LOT of progress in the past couple of minutes but ended up stuck again lmao.

spoilers/answers for some of @dispatcher192-c's arg below cut!!!! this site is really fun and there's a lot of effort put into it so please give it a try!! :D

okay! now that I'm super duper stuck I have plenty of time to write out the process to get to where I am. :3

first page! the Baudot translated in **ITA2** gives numbers formatted like biblical verses, except they AREN"T for a bible! They're to pick words from the lyrics provided. taking the first letters of the specified words gives the password: dreamers.

on the /dreamers page, there was a riddle! the answer was particles (I solved this one on the first try but spelt it wrong so I spent an additional two minutes here trying to think of synonyms for particle orz.)

/particle had hidden text and a photo of Blaise de Vigenère,, so yanno,,, vigenere cypher,,,,

the result gives the phrase "the password is hidden," taken literally

on /hidden there was a password box that I did not touch! instead, I hit tab looking for hidden links! where I found this little dot that led me to my next page

/signal-recieved (yes typo included) is the page I am now stuck on!!!

it features a huge image with a Rosicrucian cypher and an abyss with occasional Kermit photos, the next password box is at the bottom.

"Hear Them" made me look at the spectrogram of the track that was autoplaying IMMEDIATELY,,,, after downloading Audacity. where I didn't get much of anything at all. since there's no like hidden text or images in the spectrum, I assumed that this was another cypher (maybe like acere?) bc of the randomness and I would need to transcribe the notes......... which is where I'm stuck..... this is the track:

There are obviously things I'm missing but i get nervous when the arg im playing has very little buzz,,,, this stuff is cool and awesome and epic thank you dispatcher for making it :3.

edit: added the actual mp3 lmao,,,, forgot to do that

[havendance]

It's time again for another Library Trade Roundup! In which I talk about all the books I checked of the library on my last time around.

Wolverine: Black, White, and Blood -- I'm a sucker for a good black&white or black,white&color anthology and this one was printed in oversize form so it was like 1 1/3 or 1.5 times larger than a standard comic book. This was just a very enjoyable read. It had some great artists working on it and the oversized art was a treat to see. The black, white, and blood concept meant that the use of red was really effective throughout (with a special shout out to Declan Shalvey's story in the first issue and the single red lettered 'blood'). I am also not immune to the appeal of watching Wolverine commit bloody slaughter. I'll have to see if I can find some of the other white black and blood anthologies at my library.

Dawn of X vol. 2 -- After reading X-Men: Red, I've started dipping my toe into modern X comics at the beginning of the krakoa era. I'd read House of X/Powers of X and Dawn of X vol. 1 digitally but I picked this one up physically when I saw it. The Dawn of X volumes each collect one issue from each of the X-books so this one was 5 issue #2s which has been giving a different feel to the reading experience so far. I do like not having to worry about figuring out which X books go where. I think Marauders is my favorite series so far of the 2 issues I've read of each. Fallen Angels is yet to really click for me. And across all books, my continued reaction is 'watching X-Men evolution as a kid did not sufficiently prepare me for the presumably decades of X drama being referenced.'

Hawkeye by Matt Fraction and David Aja Omnibus -- All of my Omnibuses are these big honking things, so at 24 collected issues this has got to be the shortest one I've read. Anyway, I see why people like this run so much. The visual storytelling of these comics was very strong. Storywise, I'm not sure if I've got much else to say other than it was good, but it's probably not going to stick with me. I think it's much more likely that the visuals do. The Kate Bishop subplot confirmed for me that Kelly Thompson was a strong fit for her solo series and also that I'm less invested it. It might've been because the Kate Bishop issues were also the ones that tended to get guest artist fills, but I found myself putting down the book more often during them.

Paper Girls -- This was a wild ride. I'm not sure what I was expecting coming into this, but it wasn't what it turned out to be. I'm curious to see where it's going. I really liked Chiang's art in this and the cypher was very fun to sit down and puzzle out.

She-Hulk: Breaking the Fourth Wall -- This was just a fun read. For the most part, the comics this collected weren't trying to take themselves seriously and it made for a very enjoyable read. I also enjoyed all the fourth wall break gags. This is the first thing I've read of She-Hulk so I don't know if this is typical for her, but it made me interested to check out more.

The Autumnlands vol. 1: Tooth and Claw -- I picked this up because it had a pretty cover and it had colors by Jordie Bellaire, but I was a little surprised at how much I enjoyed it! Bellaire's colors were gorgeous as always--I love how she colored the magic, but the plot also has so many elements that I enjoy. We've got the nations of magical animal creatures, and they're trying to solve the problem of why magic is disappearing and they do it by trying to summon the ancient hero of legend--who turns out to be a soldier from a technologically advanced time. It's not the most unique premise, but it's one that I enjoy and it's very well executed. The art's pretty and the solider guy is doing chemistry stuff with bat guano to make/harness explosives to blow up a bridge. What more do you need? This is hitting all of the notes that sucked me into reading David Webber books in high school. This story definitely has the potential to be a spanning epic, but it looks like there are only fourteen issues. Alas, I'll have to see how the story gets wrapped up if I can find the next volume at the library.

[eoieopda]

i got tagged by @theharrowing to list three songs/books/movies, and then simultaneously also to list eight tv shows, so… here’s all of that! 🤪

songs

cypher pt. iv by bts

who we are by hozier

anyone by seventeen

books

the sandman by neil gaiman (graphic novel series)

the divine comedy by dante alighieri (epic poem)

pride & prejudice by jane austen (actually a book)

movies

scream

the vvitch

the princess bride

tv shows

fleabag

broad city

schitt’s creek

going seventeen

arrested development

avatar: the last air bender

chernobyl (hbo miniseries)

seinfeld (y’all can blame my white dad for this)

high-pressure tagging: @jihopesjoint @sailoryooons @homerunhansol @daechwitatamic @husbandhoshi @lovelyhan @yoongiphoria + anyone else that wants to do either/both of these!

[thedamnlesbian]

Do you see my vision.

KINDA OLD ART BUT !!!!!!!! THEM !!!!

Epic: The Musical X Valorant my beloved,,,,,

Sage as Athena and Phoenix(or Cypher but Phoenix for this one) as Odysseus !!

[big-gay-apocalypse]

I wish Bobby was here! He always knew how ta dress! He--

// New Mutants Epic Collection: Sudden Death

[loulougoingsolo]

Don't ask why I wrote this (thoughts on the latest Ear biscuit)

It's been a good while since I've written down my thoughts on an Ear biscuit episode. I can tell you, there are probably dozens of unfinished drafts saved on my tumblr. I'm determined to post this one - if that doesn't happen, hi, me, from the future, trying to cypher why this text never got posted.

This was the rpisode after Good Mythical Evening, and, as we learn from Link, Rhett is still sick, but I think it's safe to say he's not premused quite as dead as he was during the Streamys anymore. Because of all of my neuroses, I've been genuinely worried for a few days, but I guess it's okay to breathe again.

So, Link was doing the podcast with Jenna, and I have to say, this was an excellent episode. The past few times when Jenna had been on the podcast with both Rhett and Link, the dynamic has been a little off, more confrontational with Rhett and Jenna teaming up "against" Link (which of course is not really the case, but because I tend to see things more like Link than Rhett, I'm often rooting for him). This episode, Link and Jenna have a great discussion as complete equals, and it is really enjoyable.

First, Link and Jenna go through GME and the Streamys, and sounds like they are both proud of Link's performances on both occations. It seems Rhett was pretty sick on the night of GME already. I hope GME 4 happens next year, not just because I've loved every show thus far, but so they get a chance to do one with both guys not sick, and with the technical stuff going as planned.

My heart kinda melted, when Link said he was missing "his dude" at the Streamys, and turns out he had talked about what to say on stage with Rhett. The way he presented Mr Beast's award was epic, but apparently, had they won Show of the Year, something even better would have happened. Next year, maybe.

So, the majority of this episode is dedicated to a solo camping trip Link made (with Jasper) during their summer break. He compares notes with Jenna on why they both enjoy solo travels, and talk about things you gotta do to stay safe while staying in the wilderness alone.

The reason I ended up writing my thoughts about this episode, in particular, is that listening to Link and Jenna talk about how freeing solitude is. I got envious.

The reason I've been so absent from Tumblr and everything else is that with my parents getting older, a lot of my time these days involves me doing things for them. My dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last year, and he no longer has his driver's licence. My mom has had some pretty major health scares in the past year, and it's near a miracle she is currently alive and actually physically functional. As if these things weren't enough, my sister was diagnosed with cancer, went through surgery, chemo and radiation therapy in the past year, too. She is doing better, now, but with my parents and my sister all struggling, I've suddenly ended up being very necessary. And that means, the most time I've had for myself in the past few months has been two days at most, but usually, not a day goes by without someone needing my help. And, I could really use a solo trip right about now.

Link talked about how being alone gave him a sense of being fully in control, and that made him happy. And for Jenna, solitude meant freedom. I can relate to both of these feelings. I've never really been able to be truly myself when other people are around, and it can be really suffocating. For me, it took a world wide pandemic to figure out that I actually like being me, but the problems, the anxiety and stress, emerge when I'm expected to interact with other people. As much control as I have over my own existence, I can't control other people. I've tried, doesn't work.

I csn't wait to see the video version of this episode on Wednesday. Link showed Jrnna a video he had made while watching the sunset with Jasper. I'm not religious, nor particularly spiritual, but if I ever feel connrcted with the universe, it's when I'm in the wild, surrounded by the beauty of nature. One August night this summer, I sat in the dark, staring at the sky, searching for shooting stars. I was alone at that time, apart from a million mosquitoes eating my ankles, and at the same time, I felt free, yet not lonely. And then I heard something crack in the dark, and, because I was in my garden, I calmly stood up and walked inside.

So, yeah, after sll of this nonsensical rambling, what did I actually want to say? Enjoy the little moments in life, alone or with someone you love. If you can, go on a solo trip - and if that is not an option, go outside, look at the stars and breathe. And even if this text probably isn't the best ad for this Ear biscuits episode, listen to it.

[stab-the-son-of-a]

Family Business

No. 3 A HAIR’S BREADTH FROM DEATH

Gun to Temple | “Say goodbye.” | Impaled

TWs: Child abuse, child whumpee, emotional abuse, child endangerment

He holds himself so still his muscles ache with the effort- yet his face is placidly calm, his posture deceptively loose, and he absolutely doesn't look away from the man pressing the gun to his temple.

Hazel meets hazel. His own eyes stare back at him, wizened by a few decades. Maybe three. Who ever really cared about that sort of thing? 

"C'mon pops," he jokes. Two short words are not enough to betray the tightness in his throat or to allow his voice the chance to crack, but for a moment, he's sure his old man heard. His father has always read him well, but he's changing the pages every year, learning a cypher for his thoughts and his behavior to keep Dad out of his head.

After a long moment of uncomfortable eye contact, his father speaks. "Taunting your captor will serve only to irritate them."

That's the point, he doesn't say, but he allows his lips to smirk, allows that bit of information to pass through his filter. "Epic."

His father's brow furrows, a flash of confusion, before the barrel cracks against his temple harder.

He sees sparks and tastes the iron and heat that comprises them. His head spins on his shoulders, balance slipping and forcing him to adjust. The wire holding his wrists together cuts deeper into his skin. There's a wetness that tells him that he's making progress in at least slicing open his flesh. How lovely.

"Answer the question, son, before I shatter your jaw next."

"I wouldn't be of much use now would I?" he quips. He keeps his father's attention on his words, on his overly animated expression, on the smirk he paints across his lips, all to distract from what his hands are doing behind his back. It's difficult, his father's gaze trying to rip the intention from the slightest of tells, but he's learning, rapidly, and he's working just as quickly.

His fingers have gone numb hours ago, so he works carefully, but he slips them between the exposed cable and the bit of rubber coating, fibers catching and breaking his nails as he works. 

"You'd be a damn sight less irritating, that's for certain." 

Each metal strand, wound together, slowly frays. He's not sure if the blood from his nailbeds and fingertips helps or hurts his cause, lubrication of sorts, maybe.

"Don't push your captors to think of you as more trouble than you're worth."

"'And I'm not worth much'," he paraphrases his father's next words.

Dad almost smiles. It's just a hint of amusement, of warmth, in his gaze, but it's there.

But then Dad's eyes widen slightly. It's not much, but it may as well be a dramatic gasp, complete with heart clutching theatrics, for all the action is so out of character. 

Smirking, he bats his lashes up at his father, the trick knife resting against where his kidney should be. His own blood trickles convincingly down his wrist, and the open sores on his fingertips stain Dad's pristine white shirt.

"Oops," he says, voice and head light with giddiness. "I'll pay for the dry cleaning, pops. My treat."

Once his hands were freed, it was child’s play to reach into Dad’s jacket pocket for the knife he kept there. Always on his right side. ‘Don’t be predictable’ had been one of his very first lessons, and yet, here they are.

Carefully, Dad schools his shock into something less visible, and for a split moment there's doubt- did he do right? Did he still fail?

But then the gun falls away from his temple and Dad is smiling, even more apparent now. He pats him on the head, not remembering the other cracks he's taken to the skull this week, and then wraps his arm around his shoulders to lead him out of the testing range.

His chest feels ready to burst and it's not the broken ribs. It takes everything in him not to grin at his father.

"Why not between the ribs?" Dad asks. It's not a criticism. It's a genuine question. The same sort he asks of his business partners when trying to understand their thought processes. 

He feels for the first time like an equal to his father.

"Name of the game is switching roles. Making you as useless as a gasping fish wouldn't've helped my position."

Dad chuckles. "No, I suppose not. Good work, son. I’m proud."

The warmth in his chest overwhelms the burning pain in his hands.

[thebonesofhoudini]

Kanye West doesn't care about Black People

Kanye West famously uttered on a telethon set up to collect funds for Hurricane Katrina victims "George Bush doesn't care about Black People" in response to scant rescue and recovery efforts right next to Mike Myers (who agreed with his statements). He would later retract those statements and apologize to George W. Bush.

Well the same can be said about Kanye West now.

Kanye West doesn't care about Black People.

Since that epic moment in September of 2005 (I watched it as it happened, I was 21 and a senior in college at the time), Kanye West has become a bigger star and a bigger disappointment.

Fast forward past Kanye West adorning Confederate flag gear for his Yeezus album merchandise in 2013, wearing a MAGA hat and saying Trump is his brother then taking a picture with him in 2018, saying slavery was a choice and getting checked by Van Lathan, denigrating Harriet Tubman and other disrespectful crap, to 2022. Where Kanye West says that George Floyd died due to the fentanyl in his system and not from race soldier Derek Chauvin's knee on his neck on the Drink Champs podcast with Noreaga and DJ EFN (which considering everything going on with Kanye is insanely irresponsible platforming).

The cypher is complete, Kanye West has become a complete fucking sellout that's hellbent on throwing Black People under the bus for White Validation. Whether that white validation comes from rich and wealthy White European fashion designers that he holds up plates for while Kim Kardashian films it for social media, from white racist republican figureheads like Tucker Carlson for which he did an interview with where he talked about his "white lives matter" t-shirts (ofcourse the number one proponent of the racist replacement theory in the mainstream, which has already led to radicalizing another white racist who took the lives of over a dozen Black folk in a supermarket in Buffalo, would love to hear a Black Man talk about how "white lives matter"), or white Trump supporters who he virtue signals to with his anti-semetic musings and Candace Owens supplied talking points.