#Field Research Council

[reasonsforhope]

"Since it was first identified in 1983, HIV has infected more than 85 million people and caused some 40 million deaths worldwide.

While medication known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, can significantly reduce the risk of getting HIV, it has to be taken every day to be effective. A vaccine to provide lasting protection has eluded researchers for decades. Now, there may finally be a viable strategy for making one.

An experimental vaccine developed at Duke University triggered an elusive type of broadly neutralizing antibody in a small group of people enrolled in a 2019 clinical trial. The findings were published today [May 17, 2024] in the scientific journal Cell.

“This is one of the most pivotal studies in the HIV vaccine field to date,” says Glenda Gray, an HIV expert and the president and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council, who was not involved in the study.

A few years ago, a team from Scripps Research and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) showed that it was possible to stimulate the precursor cells needed to make these rare antibodies in people. The Duke study goes a step further to generate these antibodies, albeit at low levels.

“This is a scientific feat and gives the field great hope that one can construct an HIV vaccine regimen that directs the immune response along a path that is required for protection,” Gray says.

-via WIRED, May 17, 2024. Article continues below.

Vaccines work by training the immune system to recognize a virus or other pathogen. They introduce something that looks like the virus—a piece of it, for example, or a weakened version of it—and by doing so, spur the body’s B cells into producing protective antibodies against it. Those antibodies stick around so that when a person later encounters the real virus, the immune system remembers and is poised to attack.

While researchers were able to produce Covid-19 vaccines in a matter of months, creating a vaccine against HIV has proven much more challenging. The problem is the unique nature of the virus. HIV mutates rapidly, meaning it can quickly outmaneuver immune defenses. It also integrates into the human genome within a few days of exposure, hiding out from the immune system.

“Parts of the virus look like our own cells, and we don’t like to make antibodies against our own selves,” says Barton Haynes, director of the Duke Human Vaccine Institute and one of the authors on the paper.

The particular antibodies that researchers are interested in are known as broadly neutralizing antibodies, which can recognize and block different versions of the virus. Because of HIV’s shape-shifting nature, there are two main types of HIV and each has several strains. An effective vaccine will need to target many of them.

Some HIV-infected individuals generate broadly neutralizing antibodies, although it often takes years of living with HIV to do so, Haynes says. Even then, people don’t make enough of them to fight off the virus. These special antibodies are made by unusual B cells that are loaded with mutations they’ve acquired over time in reaction to the virus changing inside the body. “These are weird antibodies,” Haynes says. “The body doesn’t make them easily.”

Haynes and his colleagues aimed to speed up that process in healthy, HIV-negative people. Their vaccine uses synthetic molecules that mimic a part of HIV’s outer coat, or envelope, called the membrane proximal external region. This area remains stable even as the virus mutates. Antibodies against this region can block many circulating strains of HIV.

The trial enrolled 20 healthy participants who were HIV-negative. Of those, 15 people received two of four planned doses of the investigational vaccine, and five received three doses. The trial was halted when one participant experienced an allergic reaction that was not life-threatening. The team found that the reaction was likely due to an additive in the vaccine, which they plan to remove in future testing.

Still, they found that two doses of the vaccine were enough to induce low levels of broadly neutralizing antibodies within a few weeks. Notably, B cells seemed to remain in a state of development to allow them to continue acquiring mutations, so they could evolve along with the virus. Researchers tested the antibodies on HIV samples in the lab and found that they were able to neutralize between 15 and 35 percent of them.

Jeffrey Laurence, a scientific consultant at the Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) and a professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, says the findings represent a step forward, but that challenges remain. “It outlines a path for vaccine development, but there’s a lot of work that needs to be done,” he says.

For one, he says, a vaccine would need to generate antibody levels that are significantly higher and able to neutralize with greater efficacy. He also says a one-dose vaccine would be ideal. “If you’re ever going to have a vaccine that’s helpful to the world, you’re going to need one dose,” he says.

Targeting more regions of the virus envelope could produce a more robust response. Haynes says the next step is designing a vaccine with at least three components, all aimed at distinct regions of the virus. The goal is to guide the B cells to become much stronger neutralizers, Haynes says. “We’re going to move forward and build on what we have learned.”

-via WIRED, May 17, 2024

[obsessivevoidkitten]

Between A Rock And A Hard Place

Male Yandere Human-like Golem x Gender Neutral Human Reader (CW: Noncon, huge dick, golem man, magic, fatal violence towards bandits, spit used as lube, general yandere behavior) Word Count: 1.8k (Sorry this took forever, was originally going to be a drabble and then kinda got away from me, hope you all enjoy huge dick golem man.)

The small town that you lived in, Somnheim, had been victim to a swathe of horrible luck. Raided by bandits, packs of beasts killing livestock, and enemy soldiers scavenging what they could. Finally the town had enough and sent for a practitioner of the magic arts to aid them in the defense of their village.

This was you.

They didn’t have much but they offered a home and food for your services. You figured you could help them and have a quiet place to conduct your research away from the prying eyes of the council, who liked to hold newer mages under their thumb. It would also just be something nice you could do for your fellow humans, and these folks clearly needed the help.

You didn’t want to stay in this place forever though, so your solution would have to be one that would last long after you were gone.

Given your expertise in summoning and animating the logical choice was a good, old fashioned, golem. A pentagram, some select incense, clay flesh molded to a slate skeleton and imbued with an amethyst heart carrying an artificial soul, some runes carved in, and a scroll inserted that would have him follow his purpose and give him personality.

Then just add in a spell that turned the humanoid clay man into something more human so as not to frighten the villagers too badly and make him able to experience a near human existence.

The ritual was a complete success. Of course it was. You were you after all, young but talented and more importantly utterly dedicated to your craft.

Somnheim now had a mighty protector. An artificial man over 9 feet tall, with huge bulging muscles, shaggy brown hair, stoic brown eyes that gave nothing away, and glowing green runes on his arms and legs. The spell that made him human-like was more than just visual, it gave him nearly all the functions of a human male, he’d be as durable and strong as the hardest metal, never age, and of course he was certainly infertile.

Not one for creative names, you named him Slate.

Eventually bandits came by and decided they would stock up in Somnheim before going on to bigger and better loot.

They did not live to regret that decision.

Slate simply rolled a massive boulder down the hill they approached from and flattened all but a couple. Those he took care of quickly with magically precise throws of average sized stones.

Over the months any threat he couldn’t flatten with a boulder or smack with a stone he would pop open with his mighty fists.

By the end of his first year as the village’s guardian he was beloved by every single townsperson. Even the tiny children, who would climb on him and put flowers in his shaggy hair as he smiled and watched, had no fear of him.

You had enjoyed your time there, but eventually it was time for a change of scenery. You wanted to do more field research and you had saved enough money up with side projects to be able to fund a trip to the other side of the country near The Great Forest.

The villagers were grateful and sad to see you go, but they were much more interested in Slate than you.

But when you packed your bags to leave behind your wattle and daub dwelling once and for all you found yourself blocked by Slate.

He uttered one word in that deep, almost monotone, voice of his.

“No.”

“What do you mean no? I have to leave.” You tried to squeeze past him but he was not having it.

“I must protect the village… Your presence here makes the village safer… I might need repairs… or reinforcements… And you also tasked me with keeping you safe…”

You fudged the wording. You, breather of life into stone, weaver of clay, and creator of souls, messed up the wording.

He picked you up like a box of luggage and sat you on a chair in your makeshift study before going over to the heaviest bookshelf, picking it up, and placing it in front of the only door so you couldn’t escape.

“I’ll move it when I need to leave… then I will put a rock outside to keep you here…”

And that became your life. A literal prisoner in your own home.

Your magical abilities were useless in this situation, you were not a battlemage that could explode a wall, you couldn’t teleport, you bent earth.

Of course you tried to tunnel your way out by making a hole under your bed, but Slate had walked in and caught you red handed. He had confiscated and locked away all your magical supplies and texts unless you needed them to repair him you were not getting them back.

Slate was tentative enough of your physical needs, bringing you food and water and taking you outside like some sort of pet for sunlight, fresh air, and exercise. You had tried to run away but of course he had inhuman speed. And the villagers refused to help. What if Slate refused to save them if they did that?

It was a fair concern, he was made to protect the village and not villagers, he may even see them as a threat if they assisted you. You were on your own.

Though you were healthy enough physically your mental condition was deteriorating rapidly. How could you not be? Being trapped in the same building, even with trips outside, was awful. The villagers only looked at you with pity if they looked at you at all, and no one would even talk to you anymore.

It got to the point where you barely eat, refused to go outside, and spent all your time laying in bed.

Slate was failing the magical directives that governed his personality and behavior. You were clearly not safe, he was convinced that you would die if this continued, and honestly you likely would… eventually…

But the golem was not incapable of learning. He observed the other humans to find out what he could add to your life to bring you back to your usual self.

One night, when he was sitting in front of the house watching the humans passing by and holding hands, he came to the conclusion that humans had families, they lived together in their dwellings and they loved each other. They coupled together and mated.

Up until this point Slate had only been directed by simple emotion and the unyielding parchment that had imbued him with his goals. But now his task demanded something more of him, it demanded a much more complex emotion. The magic in him allowed this evolution, and now he was much more dangerous because he loved you. But it wasn’t just love he felt for the first time, it was lust.

Slate’s expression became one of someone thinking about the one who they adored infinitely, an expression of a man thinking about the person he wanted to have writhing in pleasure beneath him, even his normally green runes and brown eyes took on an amorous pink glow.

When you heard the boulder blocking the door shift and then heard the bookshelf take its place as what was blocking your way out as Slate came lumbering in with his heavy steps you didn’t even glance up.

Not until he stood in front of you and you noticed his strange pink glow replacing his green one did you stir.

You sat up in bed and when you saw the strange way his normally near emotionless eyes were staring at you, and glowing, you scooted away.

“I know what you need now! I am so sorry for not realizing sooner…” He said in a surprisingly soothing tone, a stark departure from his normally deep monotone.

“What do yo-”

Your words were forgotten as he took off his shirt and pants revealing a sweaty body and a frighteningly large cock.

“You need a partner to be happy, like the other humans, and you need to mate!”

He sounded very eager.

“No! Uh… I don’t need to… mate. I need to lea-” he put a large finger over your lips and shushed you before gripping your pants and peeling them and your underwear away from you carefully.

There was no dissuading him from his chosen course of action, he would make you happy and keep you safe no matter what!

It’s what you needed.

Slate leaned forward and spit all over your hole, thoroughly lubing it with his spit, before pressing his big cock into your hole.

It was so large that you let out a whimper of pain at first, but he was somehow knowledgeable enough about sex to know he needed to let you adjust to the size rather than just ramming himself in.

You gasped and writhed but he held you still with his massive hands running up and down your sides as he slowly pulled you down on his prick.

Slate was in complete heaven, he had never really known much pleasure of any kind, let alone the type that came with burying his cock in someone he was now completely obsessed with.

He had no idea his dick could be used for this at all, but now that he did he would certainly be doing this everyday, maybe even a couple times a day! The perfect blend of heat and softness was amazing.

As he began to thrust slowly, with a blissed out expression as he stared up at nothing with drool coming out of his mouth, you couldn’t help but moan in pleasure as his cock caressed your depths perfectly.

Hearing your breathy moans snapped him back to reality. You were finally happy again~

The treatment was working! That settled it, he would do this every single day no matter what!

Carefully gripping your sides a bit more firmly he moved your entire body back and forth on his cock. You couldn’t help it, your whole body twitched with the force of a massive orgasm. The sensation of your body spasming around his previously virgin dick caused him to slam in deep and cum hard.

He pulled you close, holding your head into his muscular chest as he panted, his dick still firmly impaling your limp body. You hadn’t been eating much and this serious fucking had taken a lot out of you.

Slate cleaned the two of you up, bathing you gently before taking advantage of your compliant state by spoon feeding you some dinner he had brought from a town person.

Mating with you made you so pleasured and too tired to resist him when he took care of you, he almost couldn’t wait until you had enough energy to do it again, his cock strained in his pants with anticipation.

[robertreich]

Corporations Have Been Salivating Over This SCOTUS Decision 

The Supreme Court seems to have no problem regulating women’s bodies. But when it comes to regulating big business, they may be ready to end 40 years of established law. Let me explain.

The Court is hearing a pair of cases that could upend federal regulations designed to protect us. At risk is the Biden Administration’s entire climate agenda, the power of the government to approve and regulate drugs, and even the safety and quality of the food we eat, the water we drink, and the air we breathe.

And big corporations are salivating for a ruling that goes their way.

So what’s putting all of this at risk? It’s a challenge to something known as the “Chevron” Doctrine, a legal precedent established by the Supreme Court’s ruling in the 1984 case Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council. That case held that whenever any regulation in a law is unclear, it should be the federal agencies, not the courts, that interpret and implement it. This makes sense because unlike courts, federal agencies are staffed with scientists, researchers, and engineers — actual experts in the fields they’re regulating.

But now, a pair of Supreme Court cases challenging the doctrine could shift this power to the courts, stripping federal agencies of this key role of interpreting and implementing our nation’s laws.

If non-expert courts become the sole interpreters of the nation’s laws, a single activist judge, carefully selected by plaintiffs, could invalidate all the regulations of a federal agency charged with protecting the public.

No wonder the big banks, fossil fuel companies, and pharmaceutical giants, who hate the power of federal agencies to limit their profits, have been trying for years to end the Chevron Doctrine. And this time, they think they have the votes on the Supreme Court to do it.

If agencies are stripped of their power to regulate, the big losers will be the American public. We need real experts tackling today’s complicated problems, not judges who think they know better.

We also need to see the potential fall of the Chevron Doctrine for what it is: a power grab by corporate interests, allowing them to shop for judges who will strip agencies of their power to protect the public.

[archeo-starwars]

You wouldn't happen to have an extensive layout dissection of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant? Or even a list of all notable and obscure sections of the Jedi Temple? OR or even labelled areas that are public and reserved for only temple residents. Both from canon and legends, please and thank you!!!

The best I managed to find comes from Star Wars Complete Locations - you may check out the whole archived version here. The “zoom in” option is pretty good for reading details. Below the pages (I suppose the best is to open them in new tab for better reading):

As for the list of locations, I recommend wookiepedia's list. Plenty of data, both for Legends and New Canon.

Additional sources worth to check out:

Jedi Temple Locations & Jedi Temple History - both published as official material on star wars.com in regard to prequels and New Canon sources. Pictures and references to various places inside Temple.

Star Wars.com's The Clone Wars episode guide + videoclips from the series, like

A) Jedi Archives Tour (the entrance to one of the most restricted areas of the temple: The Holocron Vault).

B) Layout of Jedi Temple Library (source)

C) Jedi Temple funeral room + environment illustration by Tara Rueping (source)

Old Data Bank for Jedi Temple

HoloNews mentioning "a mob of 20 university students attempted to infiltrate the Jedi Temple" and "managing to get as far as the Second Atrium Lobby"

Star Wars Battlefront (2) game wiki provides some map and location description

and if you have time (and patience) you can watch gameplay from 501st Legion's mission in Jedi Temple for reference, like this one

The wookiepedia's articles should give enough good idea of the rooms, their location and functions, but I'm adding a few source pages:

STAR WARS: FACT FILES #36 provides a lot informations what and where was inside the Temple and some general data about visitors, security, Grand Balcony, Grand Corridor & Towers. Not all is super specific, but worth checking out for sure.

The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia mentions this:

and for Jedi Temple entry:

As for the named locations that are public or reserved for only temple residents, there is definitely a division like that, however I'm not sure if this issue was very well explained. The source gives us some ideas, like for example, Jedi Archives have data accessible only for Jedi with rank of Master or higher (thus most likely separated areas to study). At the same time, Fact Files #25 says that Jedi Archives offers an "excellent resources to researchers, including star-map hologram consoles", but also an access to entire scientific and historical knowledge of the Republic

so non-Jedi were allowed to use Jedi Library/Archives for their own research and work-related needs. We also must remember that the Jedi Order had various scientific branches, including archaeology, exploring unknown regions, and medicine, so logically thinking Jedi worked with other, non-Jedi specialists of many fields.

We also know from various sources, that politicians and important guests were invited for various occasions. We could see in Republic comics series that Bail Organa, Mon Mothma and senator Ask Aak were allowed to listen to Jedi reporting before High Council about his last battle

or attending Jedi Funeral like Duchess Satine and Padme Amidala did for the (fake) Obi-Wan's one or just visiting as a friend/comrade-in-arm

I would need to make more research about this issue as there is plenty tie-in material to Jedi Temple on Coruscant that would take a lot time to study, but at this moment, I think the best is assume how far a non-Jedi may walk into Temple will depend greatly who is that person and what is nature of their business with Jedi.

At the same time, Purge: Seconds to Die has this line "Clone Troopers? This deep in the Temple? Not permitted."

The Jedi was in Archives herself, so it is worth to take into account that clones could have more limited access to Temple than the average guest before war did. At the same time, clone troopers could make a report before Yoda and Mace Windu/High Council, as was presented by Star Wars Tales (Honor Bound):

so it is not like they were outright forbidden to enter the temple either.

Hope it will help!

[bungeepuppet]

ILLUMI'S × TOYBOX

prince illumi finds a new toy to play with~🧸👑🃏

(+fic wip below!)

--

The Kingdom of Padokea wrapped around the northwest coast of the northernmost continent of the Known World. Despite this, the weather of Padokea was temperate, and the late-spring temperatures coaxed out plenty of fresh blooms across the countryside. With such lush landscapes in abundance, Padokea was best known for its quaint villages and the friendly villagers that resided in them.

Hisoka Morow, a young man that was a gladiator by day and a mercenary by night, was resting in his room on the second floor of an inn at the center of one such quaint village. He sat by the window, entertaining himself by shuffling a deck of playing cards as he stared past the cobbled rooftops and beyond the vast forests that surrounded the town.

His eye was trained on the gnarled, black mountain in the distance – the only thing that seemed out of place in this idealistic atmosphere.

Kukuru Mountain was the home of a very curious family. The royals there were not part of any governing force in the Kingdom of Padokea. They had seemingly no interest in any political affairs, and very rarely made appearances at gatherings. Anyone would say that it was unheard of for a royal family to be excluded from invitation lists, or to decline attending balls or galas comprised of nothing but the bluest blood in the world, but the elusive Zoldyck family was an exception.

It wasn’t quite as disrespectful as it sounded. It was not that they were being shunned, exactly, but rather it was that most royals and nobles alike would prefer to keep their connections with that particular family out of the public eye.

The Zoldyck family, after all, was first and foremost, a family of assassins.

Sometime within the last hundred years or so, they were recognized officially as a royal family. No one seemed to know what council decided it, or what the purpose of the decision was, but it didn’t matter. The family was fabled to be so demonically powerful and ruthless, that there wasn’t a soul on Earth who would try to argue the authenticity of the title to them.

The fluttering of cards filled the air as Hisoka smiled and licked the corner of his mouth in anticipation.

His favorite pastime was tracking down powerful fighters, and then killing them. Watching their confidence sap away into immobilizing fear was so delectable, so irresistible, that it was Hisoka’s only driving force in his life. The impending hunt for a good fight whet his appetite, and the castle on Kukuru Mountain promised a variety of meals that would satisfy his cravings, at least for the time being.

Hisoka had done as much research as anyone could about the Zoldyck family, and now all there was left to do was a field study.

(more to come soon!! <33)

[tinycheesecakedetective]

Character Files #1: Blueberry Milk Cookie

Hello again! It's been a while. Today I'd like to waffle on about Blueberry for a bit. If you'll allow me to. In the past I discussed his trajectory, but I wanted to take the opportunity to update a few things and add some fun details. This post is meant to cover Blueberry's past. What will become of his kingdom will be discussed when I get to the aftermath of the Dark Flour War. Now let's begin! ~~~~~

Personality & Early Life Blueberry Milk is a scholar with a taste for thrill and has an insatiable curiosity. He's kind to others, however he has a tendency to be overdramatic and cocky. He always pushes beyond boundaries despite the consequences or risks it may pose. He's an adventurer specifically because he found traditional studying too boring and would much rather get his hands dirty with experiments. But before Blueberry Milk became the illustrious founder of the republic, he was just a student at the Parfaedia Institute of Magic. Many teachers considered him a prodigy due to his prowess and intelligence, however others dreaded teaching him due to his penchant for troublemaking.

He would graduate at the age of 17, and took on a job as a professor before quitting years later. Many would cite a lack of stakes as one of the reasons for his departure, though that was common knowledge to anyone that was close to him. Blueberry Milk would then become an independent researcher, exploring the world and doing field research.

The Kingdom's Beginnings With months of travelling under his belt, it became very clear that he needed somewhere to store all of his findings. Initially he planned to establish it back at Parfaedia, but found it too stifling for him. So he packed all of his things and began moving north. Some old colleagues heard about this and followed suit, joining him up north in what would be called "The Land of the Studious." Alongside his colleagues, they established The Congregation, a meeting hall where they could all discuss the progress made with each of their projects.

Over time, more cookies heard of this place up north and had began seeking it out to perform their own personal projects. The Land of the Studious became known among Parfaedians as a wizard's getaway, a place where students could perform magic more freely than in the Institute. With the surge of visitors, the Gelato Villas were built for incoming travelers and eventually permanent residents, and the Wafer Train Station was built soon after for easier access to and from Parfaedia, and a new school began construction. As the area expanded more and more, the Land of the Studious had changed from a small community of scientists to a bustling city-state. The Congregation evolved, with the original founders becoming council members and gaining more political power over time. Soon even the name itself had changed, now being known as New Yogurt City.

A City in Crisis As the city developed, Parfaedia began to recognize NYC as a legitimate entity outside of "tourist destination." With competition on the rise, the magic city was forced to evolve to stay relevant. More technology was implemented into daily life as a result, with new experimental magic being tested. It was all going well until everything came screeching to a halt.

The incident happened outside of the institute. It started as a few electrical malfunctions inside some of the classrooms before quickly spreading to the rest of the building. Strange rifts opened inside one of the classrooms before letting in a legion of cake monsters. Even with all wizards pushing back, they were unable to stop the rifts. More appeared, wreaking havoc across the magic city. In a final attempt to get outside help, the wizards looked to the legendary beacons and lit them.

Dozens of wizards saw the lights and answered the call, including Blueberry Milk. With additional backup, they all began to go around the city, fighting the cake armies with staffs and wands. The city lit up with magic spells and potions as the streets were enveloped with smoke. For a moment, it looked like victory was near for the wizards, until the smoke parted with a mighty shriek.

Flying over them was their last and greatest opponent: the roll cake hydra. A horrible beast with cream cheese frosting bleeding through it's teeth and seven heads to boot. While the wizards and townsfolk fought long and hard, it kept coming back harder and more angry. The terrible beast forced them to retreat into the nearby forests.

A Glimmer of Hope Tired and exhausted, the cookies tended to their wounds. Many of them had passed out from spending too much mana, and others didn't know how much longer they could go on. Splitting from the group, Blueberry Milk wandered through the woods. He began flippantly going through spell after spell, trying to find one that could stop this before he never could. In his darkest moment, a voice beckoned to him. He tried to find the source, moving further inside before it spoke again.

It asked him if he was truly determined to save Parfaedia, and he responded with a nod. Sensing his desperation, the voice offered him a deal. It would give him the power he needed to stop the hydra in exchange for defending Earthbread as a whole. With dwindling options, he agreed, and his powers were amplified. Using his newfound strength, he left to face the hydra alone.

The fight was intense. Standing in front of the hydra armed with only his staff, he launched the first blow. Taken aback by the sudden attack, the hydra was struck, backing up before lunging it's heads at the cookie.

Move.

Blueberry Milk jumped out of the way, heart racing as he looked down at his hands. He felt sharper, quicker. The hydra tried again, snapping it's neck at him as it attempted to swallow him whole.

Roll.

His body acted on impulse, rolling away from it before sending a shockwave at the monster's body. A direct hit. A grin curled up onto his face as his teammates returned, mouths agape in shock.

Again.

The fight raged on as Blueberry Milk effortlessly weaved through each attack while dealing blow after heavy blow. More onlookers came, cheering him on as the hydra grew tired and sloppy. Another set of attacks came as he pushed the hydra into a corner.

Once more.

Pouring his remaining mana into his staff, he sent one final attack aimed at the hydra's chest. The hydra, desperate to live, fought back with all it's remaining strength, but it would be of no use. The attack speared through it's chest, pushing it back into a wall before it erupted in a beautiful collage of colors and sounds.

His finest work yet. And one that made him faint. His body was quickly ushered into a recovery room. When he woke up, he found himself surrounded by friends and acquaintances. If he didn't shoo them away, they would have killed him with kindness. He also wouldn't have noticed the gleaming blue gem resting on his chest.

The Aftermath Since the attack, Parfaedia immediately began reconstruction efforts, and with the help of the NYC was able to recover almost completely. After intense discussion and meetings, the two cities agreed to join under one entity as the New Yogurt Republic. The new republic recognized the efforts of the brave wizards that defended Parfaedia as heroes, and Blueberry especially began to grow in popularity. He was eventually appointed as the leader of the republic, with a new and improved council by his side, and with their combined efforts helped to usher in a new golden age for both cities.

For now.

Blueberry Milk, now a wielder of the soul jam of hope, began doing research into how exactly it worked. He knew that it helped him during the fight, but something about it felt.. foreign. But Blueberry wasn't one to give up, and he began to seek out others like him for his research. His curiosity knew no bounds, and he was determined to unlock the secrets of the soul jam.

[nostalgebraist]

Steve DeCanio, an ex-Berkeley activist now doing graduate work at M.I.T., is a good example of a legion of young radicals who know they have lost their influence but have no clear idea how to get it back again. “The alliance between hippies and political radicals is bound to break up,” he said in a recent letter. “There’s just too big a jump from the slogan of ‘Flower Power’ to the deadly realm of politics. Something has to give, and drugs are too ready-made as opiates of the people for the bastards (the police) to fail to take advantage of it.” Decanio spent three months in various Bay Area jails as a result of his civil rights activities and now he is lying low for a while, waiting for an opening. “I’m spending an amazing amount of time studying,” he wrote. “It’s mainly because I’m scared; three months on the bottom of humanity’s trash heap got to me worse than it’s healthy to admit. The country is going to hell, the left is going to pot, but not me. I still want to figure out a way to win.”

Re-reading Hunter S. Thompson's 1967 article about Haight-Ashbury, I thought: "huh, this guy sounds like he's going places. I wonder whether he ever did 'figure out a way to win'?"

So I web searched his name, and ... huh!

My current research interests include Artificial Intelligence, philosophy of the social sciences, and the economics of climate change. Several years ago I examined the consequences of computational limits for economics and social theory in Limits of Economic and Social Knowledge (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013).  Over the course of my academic career I have worked in the fields of global environmental protection, the theory of the firm, and economic history.  I have written about both the contributions and misuse of economics for long-run policy issues such as climate change and stratospheric ozone layer protection.  An earlier book, Economic Models of Climate Change: A Critique (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003), discussed the problems with conventional general equilibrium models applied to climate policy. From 1986 to 1987 I served as Senior Staff Economist at the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. I have been a member of the United Nations Environment Programme’s Economic Options Panel, which reviewed the economic aspects of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, and I served as Co-Chair of the Montreal Protocol’s Agricultural Economics Task Force of the Technical and Economics Assessment Panel. I participated in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, and was a recipient of the Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought in 2007. In 1996 I was honored with a Stratospheric Ozone Protection Award, and in 2007 a “Best of the Best” Stratospheric Ozone Protection Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. I served as Director of the UCSB Washington Program from 2004 to 2009.

I don't know whether this successful academic career would count as "winning" by his own 1967 standards. But it was a pleasant surprise to find anything noteworthy about the guy at all, given that he was quoted as a non-public figure in a >50-year-old article.

[fresh-orange-whispers]

HEADCANON AND THOUGHTS

Reposted because I want to add this drawing - yeah I forgot to add it yesterday 😌

After an awesome discussion with one of my friends here, I finally set how my OC and Plo Koon would be.

ONLY MISSING HER NAME! LOL

Although Plo is a Jedi and cannot have attachments strictly according to Jedi teaching, the brotherhood between him and his troopers and the father-daughter relationship with Ahsoka are all evidence of attachment, and he has done nothing detrimental to them or to the overall situation because of these attachments. He only offers positive emotions, unlike those that are destructive and self-consuming.

So here we go.

Choosing between an army doctor and a medical droid researcher/technician is hard and I went with the latter. In the SW universe, most medical tasks are performed by droids. Technicians and researchers seem to contribute much more than real doctors.

So, during a rescue mission, she met Plo Koon and kept in touch with him. The two discussed and shared various issues/opinions related to life, technology, law and humanities. She wasn't force sensitive.

One day, she was invited to Dorin for a seminar. Dorin was a planet that placed great importance on technological development and the rule of law, and her talents were highly valued. Behind all this, it was Plo Koon who recommended her. On Dorin, she saw Plo without his mask for the first time, meditating with the Sages. He took her around the planet and told her all sorts of strange and interesting things there.

During that unforgettable journey, she learnt that Plo was a Jedi - not only a Jedi, but also a member of the Jedi Council, deeply loved and respected. But soon, her worst fear came true: she was won over by his charm and gentle character, so that she fell more and more in love with him. When she asked him how he felt about her, he had to tell her everything about being a Jedi, their mission, what they protected and how their relationship would evolve. He gave her enough patience and time to think about it and let her make the best decision. They chose not to see each other for the time being until she figured out how to handle this matter, and he would accept any decision she made, and no decision would change his feelings for her. During this time, she was not happy for a single day. She eventually came back to him and told him that after much thought, she still wanted to be with him, even if they had to keep their relationship a secret.

Love wasn't supposed to be selfish, she understood that very well since she worked in the medical field, long hours and with dedication, much like the Jedi did. She wouldn't worry about his missions and his absence, nor would he be jealous of her sacrifice to her work, droids and patients. It turned out that it was much easier for two responsible adults to maintain good communication and balance everything in their lives. Plo also started to strengthen his power, knowledge and ability thanks to the positive aspects brought by such precious attachment.

Their secret marriage was later held on Dorin.

Eventually, the CW broke out and Plo Koon left her as a Jedi General for the battlefield. She temporarily gave up her job in the production, repair, and research of medical droids and handed it over to someone she trusted. She resolutely chose to follow the army, first so she could see him, and second so she could provide aid to the wounded on a voluntary basis - her love for life and clones was no less than his. They were supposed to keep their meetings a secret during their free time in the army, but in fact, the 104th Battalion knew of her existence - Wolffe and the others even saw Plo as their father and she, their mother. They just laughed at this idea.

As the war drew to a close, Plo Koon was thinking of retiring and starting a future with her. The day before he left for Cato Neimoidia, he had given himself over to love, to intimacy, to sex - he had given himself over to that with her before, but not to this extent. Days later, Plo crashed and died under fire from his own soldiers during Order 66 massacre. After learning his death and who shot him down, she was heartbroken by the betrayal and left the army.

She later gave birth to the posthumous child of Plo, a force sensitive human-Kel Dor hybrid daughter with the same hair as hers, Kel dorian sensory organs, human facial features, Kel dorian skin color and pattern. As the child grew older, she was ready to tell her of her father's deeds, but the daughter told her: A blue man appeared in my room yesterday and said he was my father. Is this true?

Of course Plo became a force spirit, always guarding her and their daughter. In the end, her daughter became a Jedi and joined the Rebel Alliance.

[mariiatrushartist]

Creator of the flat "Earth" and the Apostle of the Cat God: the most interesting facts from the life of Terry Pratchett

Dreamed of becoming an astronomer

As a child, the boy was very interested in astronomy and stars in general. In adulthood, he not only did not lose interest in this topic, but also built an observatory in his garden.

The first story and a typewriter for earned money

Terry's first work was written when he was 13 years old, and a year later it was published in a school magazine called The Hades Business. On this story, the future writer earned £14 and used them to buy his first typewriter.

The first published novel

In 1971, when Terry was only 23 years old, the world saw his first novel The Carpet People. It is a comic fantasy novel about a tribe of tiny people living on the carpet. When the writer became more famous, he decided to rewrite it by adding an updated text, original black and white illustrations and an exclusive story written when he was 17 years old

From journalism to electricity production

After the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster in March 1979, Pratchett left journalism to become a press officer for four nuclear power plants at the Central Electricity Production Council.

He lost in popularity only J.K. Rowling

In 1996, the Times declared Pratchett a best-selling author in the UK. He sold 70 million books worldwide and was the second most read author in Britain, second only to the J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.

The award he was most proud of

It may surprise you, but most of all Pratchett was proud of the Carnegie Medal, which was awarded to his children's book The Amazing Maurice and His Raised Rodents. He got it in 2002.

Illness

At the peak of popularity, Pratchett was diagnosed with a severe form of Alzheimer's disease, posterior cortical atrophy. He had gradual degeneration of the cortex, the outer layer of the brain, on the back of the head. The disease leads to difficulties in reading, estimating distance, using tools and spelling. However, the disease did not stop Pratchett's success: in addition to continuing to write, he also became a patron of Alzheimer's Research UK and actively supported fundraising efforts and advocated raising awareness of the disease.

Own sword

The writer has always had an eccentric personality and imagination. Now that he became a knight, Terry needed the right sword he made himself from meteoric iron. The writer found a field with iron deposits near his home in Wiltshire, he himself dug up ore – 81 kilograms. Then he smelted iron ore using a homemade clay and hay furnace. A local blacksmith killed Pratchett's handmade iron rods into a silver-trimmed sword.

The last book

Pratchett's Alzheimer's disease has progressed. However, despite brain atrophy, he still continued to produce books. A few months before his death in March 2015, he finished his last novel about Discworld. Many Pratchett fans keep the book unread on their shelves in his honour.

There were 10 unfinished novels on the hard drive of his computer at the time of his death, but we will never know what they are about. According to the writer's last desire, Pratchett's unfinished works were destroyed. The hard drive was not only broken with a steam roller, but also passed through the stone crusher.

[winwin17]

KOTLC future headcanon

When Amy Foster grows up, she goes to college and studies psychology and its related fields to become a therapist. Because of her good standing with Bronte as well as her connection to Sophie, a special contract is made which grants Amy permission to travel to the Lost Cities and provide therapy and counseling services for the Elves.

Amy goes on to have a successful career in the human world, but her primary and most beloved work is her top secret regular travels to the elven cities. Over time, with Sophie and friends now also adults, some changes take place in leadership positions, whether that be new Council members, members of the now openly recognized Black Swan, or other organizations, and steps are slowly being taken to make some level of reconnection between the human and elven worlds.

But Amy Foster is sadly still mortal, and some of the elves realize that one day she will not be there to continue providing the services she's introduced to the elven world and which have started to make a positive impact on the mental and emotional health of their people. So Rex Dizznee takes it upon himself to sneak off to the human world and dig into this world of psychology and mental health studies himself. At first this is a secret act of counterculture rebellion, but eventually it is endorsed by some of the new leadership, and they help provide resources and protection for his mission.

And so it is that the talentless and once socially scorned Rex Dizznee is the first pioneer among elves in bringing the mental health movement to the Lost Cities. Because of his fame, talentless people are now not only accepted (thanks to the influence of people like Sophie and Dex and Keefe) but also applauded and admired. Rex is even appointed as leader of a group commissioned to collect and transfer academic resources from the human world to improve the elves' own study of psychology. (Keefe might be able to help with his photographic memory, and maybe they could store some of the information in caches for safekeeping, as it's groundbreaking material for the Lost Cities.

So Amy is the first human and recognized professional therapist in the Lost Cities, and Rex is the first elven psychologist, commissioned researcher to the Forbidden Cities, and the first talentless elf to become famous for something good.

[mistfallengw2]

Just an asura ask game

1. Do they fit well into asuran society or are they more at home with other races? How do they feel about fellow asura? Is it because of their personality or something else? Is there any deal maker or breaker?

2. Where were they born? Did they like the place? Did they grow up there or did they move away at some point? Do they wish things went differently?

3. What's their family like? Are they still around? Do they like them and get along? Are there any expectations coming from them?

4. How is their social life? Are they generally well liked or despised? Are they involved in any drama? Do they make more enemies or friends? Do they have any meaningful friendship or bond?

5. What's their approach to romance? Do/did they have any partner? Are they more interested in relationships with a predetermined end date or are they looking for a stable long-term relationship? Is the option of having/adopting progeny on the table?

6. Do/did they have any non-sapient companions, like a pet or a golem? If not, would they want one?

7. Do they prefer to work alone or with others? Do others like working with them? Are they competitive or do they prefer that others take the spotlight? How would they fare in the opposite situation?

8. Do/did they have a krewe? If yes, describe them, their roles and tasks. If not, why?

9. What are their hobbies and pastimes? Do they have any natural talent or particularly strong interest that's not tied to their job? If nothing in particular, what do they do with their free time?

10. Is there anything they're terrible at and shouldn't be trusted with? Just how bad are they at it? Why? Has it resulted in any serious damage?

11. What was their education like? Did they go to Splorg's Metamystics Labs or somewhere else for their early education? Did anyone mentor them or take them for an apprenticeship/internship? Did they get admitted into one of the Colleges? If not, what path did they take and why?

12. If given the chance, would they take the position of professor in one of the Colleges? Or would they prefer to become someone's mentor? What would they teach? Would they be a good teacher?

13. What's their field of research of choice? Are they're pursuing it or is something else taking priority? If they don't have one or more, why not?

14. Do they consider themselves intelligent by asuran standards? Can they call themselves a genius? Is it an opinion shared by others or do they just have a big ego?

15. What's their job? Are they good at it? Are they happy with it or do they wish for a different one? Did they change careers at any point?

16. What's their greatest achievement? Was it an invention, a discovery or something else? Did they get any recognition for it? Was it part of their goals or is there something else they're aiming for?

17. Have they ever earned a title or honorific? Do they like it? Are they aiming for a specific/different one?

18. Can they use magic? If yes, do they use it for anything practical in their job? If not, does it bother them?

19. What do they usually wear? Is there any particular quirk to their outfit of choice? Does it show their status or is it merely practical?

20. Has any experiment (or experience) blown up in their face? Did they learn anything from it? Would they try again?

21. Have they ever been experimented on or personally taken part in an experiment? Was it willingly or not? What do they think about it?

22. Have they ever done something awful/unethical, be it in their personal or professional life? Do they regret it or at least recognize it as such? Does it still affect them in any way?

23. Given the history between their races, what do they think of skritt? Are they still a threat or is there a chance of cooperation?

24. Do they have any particular opinion on the Peacemakers and the Arcane Council (and Eye)? Do they have any direct experience with them?

25. Are they (or anyone they know) part of the Inquest? How do they feel about the infamous megakrewe?

26. How much does the Eternal Alchemy matter to them? Is it something they want to understand or do they not care at all?

27. Have they been impacted by that whole Pact thing? What do they think of the First Pact Commander, Aurene and the whole Elder Dragon mess?

28. How do they feel about Cantha and their technology? Is it interesting or an affront to asuran genius?

29. Do they have any interest in returning to the Depths of Tyria? Do they think asura should go back to their lost cities in the Depths to rediscover lost knowledge, or should they be fine with life on the surface?

30. Free space for 3 pieces of trivia about your asura!

[thehollowwriter]

I'm sick rn and writing is taking a while so here take this

Twst SCP AU (Some headcanons and ideas):

Classes, Clearance Levels, and Positions:

Classes

Class A: The staff, the dorm leaders, (except Kalim)

Class B: Ignihyde students

Class C: Kalim, Ace, Deuce, Ruggie, Jack, Epel, Trey, Cater, Sebek, Silver, Rook, Jade, Floyd

Clearance Levels:

Level 1: Mob students

Level 2: Mob students

Level 3: Ace, Deuce, Ruggie, Jack, Epel, Sebek, Silver, Rook, Kalim, Jade, Floyd

Level 4: Leona, dorm leaders apart from Kalim Riddle and Azul

Level 5: Staff, Riddle, Azul

Positions:

Researchers: Riddle, Trey, Cater

Ordinary jobs (e.g clerk, janitor) and Tech teams: Mob students

Field agents: Ace, Ruggie, Floyd, Jade, Rook, Sebek, Silver, sometimes Lilia

Mobile task force members: Deuce, Jack, Jamil, Epel, Ortho, Lilia

Disclosure officer (assigns clearance levels): Riddle

Mobile task force commander: Leona

General hcs:

•The NRC boys work for the SCP foundation

•The school staff are part of the 05 Council, though Trein and Crewel are the main ones who get stuff done

•The overblot boys are both scps and staff (if happens!) Most of them are Euclid, but Malleus is Keter

•Grim and Yuu are scps (Class: Euclid)

•The foundation exists in twst even there is magic, as their are thing that defy their current scientific knowledge and are a threat

•The foundation works with S.T.Y.X

•Riddle is extremely strict but it's very valid here because people can die

•Kalim is... not good at most of his job, and he would've been fired if it weren't for the fact that certain scps are more responsive to him and like him (hence why he's Class C instead of A)

•Leona may be unmotivated, but he disciplines his mtfs and the Class D thoroughly if needed. His UM is used for neutralising scps or D Class if needed

•The octotrio are often involved in sea/ deep sea related scps or research

•Everyone can still use magic and their UMs, but magic is restricted in certain areas or scenarios

•The dorms aren't quite as divided as they are in canon, since everybody is mixed together depending on their field

To understand the terminology, give these a quick listen (and the rest of the podcast if you're interested):

[wildissylupus]

Talon and Manipulation

Alright, the people have spoken so here you are. An analysis on the manipulation found in Talon. Specifically the inner council.

(Note; Ramattra will not be included in this because he is getting his own separate analysis, not only that but he is working with Talon, he is not a member of Talon)

Baptiste

Now you might think I'll start with the obvious choices like Reaper, Sigma and Widow, but no, I want to start with Baptiste. Specifically the manipulation used to bring in regular people into Talon.

In the Liberation mission if you play Baptiste when the Ramattra's speach comes on Baptiste will say "I recognize propaganda when I see it", meaning Talon most likely doesn't personally pick out their soldiers, they use propaganda. Which means that there is likely more people like Baptiste who joined Talon to make the world a better place and are now lying to themselves to keep that vision going.

This is only the beginning of the analysis and we already see that the foundation of Talon is built on manipulation, on the altered vison of what Talon is.

Widowmaker

Ok, let's get into the meat of it.

Widow, the manipulation Widow faced is probably the most commonly talked about, but only in context of her brainwashing and being forced to kill Gerard. No one really talks about what happened after. After she killed Gerard she was left without anyone to turn to and no where to go, she was terrified of how the kill made her feel. So she went to the only place she thought she would be safe, a place where she could chase the high she got from the kill, she ran back to Talon. Widows motivation for joining Talon isn't just to get a adrenalin rush, but it's also out of survival, and I think that's why she's so hostile towards Baptiste.

Baptiste got out, he survived, and now he's being helped by Overwatch. He's living proof that what happened to her, what she's doing, was unnecessary, that there was a possibility that if she stayed with Overwatch she could have gotten help. So she's hostile, she's angry at the world and at herself, but she can't leave now because she's in too deep, she's done too much. Widow's loyalty to Talon is literally programmed into her, though she did seemingly make the choice to fully join Talon, she can't make the choice to leave.

At least not yet.

Sigma

Sigma is probably the most simple, he's broken, he was broken before Talon captured him, and the only people who seem to care are Overwatch associates and Sombra. Sigma is incredibly unstable and Talon uses that to their advantage. Sigma goes through constant experimentation, though we don't know what this experimentation is, considering it's Moira conducting them we can assume it's bad.

Sigma is honestly the most tragic out of most of the Talon members, unlike everyone else we know who was in Talon, he's the only one who genuinely didn't have a choice. He was taken by Talon to which he was then used for his research and powers. We can assume that Sigma hasn't gone on any field missions, or at the very least ones that included the obvious harming of other people.

The only reason Sigma hasn't left Talon left is because he is genuinely being sheltered from the harm that Talon is doing, to the point where when they do do questionable things he either thinks it's normal, or he's oblivious to it.

Reaper

Gabriel Reyes is probably the epidemy of the affect Doomfists manipulation, he's honestly the reason I wanted to make this analysis. At the point when Reyes first interacts with Doomfist its after Ana's death and during the point in time where he and Jack couldn't be in a room without fighting. If you have also seen my Cassidy analysis you would also know that I think he and Cassidy drifted apart by this point as well. When Gabriel first interacted with Doomfist he was without a support network, and as we've established, Talon uses that to take advantage of people.

After the explosion and after Moira "saved" Reyes (I'll get to that in a minute), it stated that Gabe did mercenary work by himself for a year before he officially joined Talon. A year where he had to deal with constant pain, the trauma of the explosion and the lack of a support network. Reyes becoming Reaper was destined to happen the moment he shot Antonio. Like Cassidy himself said, that was the moment Overwatch truly started to fall.

And the longer Reaper is with Talon, the less and less of Gabriel Reyes we see. Reaper is in constant pain because of Moira's experimentation, and we see that she refuses to help. This brings me to my next point, Reyes would have survived the explosion, with or without Moira's help. Presumably Gabe and Jack where the same distance away from the explosion, now we don't really know what happened to Jack but we know he survived. Yes, Reyes went through more experimentation but we see that it didn't have as bad of negative effects until after his "death". The constant pain and the struggling to keep his form is a result of experimentation after the explosion.

Why do this? Because Gabriel Reyes has proven to be an asset. So spin the narrative, make it so it seems that Reyes couldn't survive without Talon. This is something that Reyes himself sees through, but he's too broken to leave. He needs something to fight for and Talon gives him that so he doesn't leave.

The Inner Council

Doomfist and Moira are probably the biggest manipulators in the Inner Council, followed by Sanjay. Both Moira and Doomfist use subjective facts to get into their targets heads, making them question what exactly it is that they're doing, if what they're doing is working. They like to make people reliant on them, to have control over them, and it works most of the time. Most of the time Moira uses it to get under peoples skin, to make them squirm, she is manipulative but that isn't her main tactic. Dommfist on the other hand, most of his voicelines with people is him trying to manipulate them in some way.

Sanjay is an interesting case because to me it seems that he genuinly believes what he's saying and unlike the other two he seems to be swayed by others, able to recognize when someone else has a better methodology. Meanwhile Max seems to only really use manipulation and bargaining as a way to save his own ass.

And I've detailed this before but Reyes in the later years of Blackwatch was also manipulative but it seemed almost unintentional.

Where the manipulation fails

Doomfist and Moira both tend to target those who are loosing/lost their support network. People who are prone to emotion and tend to not think things through because of it. What this doesn't account for is the people who can handle that. Let's talk about Sombra.

Sombra is a member of Talon but unlike every other member she isn't loyal to it. She's only in it for the resources. It honestly seems that she doesn't like or get along with most of Talon. She's been pointed out both in universe and out to be the most likely person to betray Talon, the problem with that is Doomfist seems to underestimate her, not seeing her very likely betrayal as a threat. Reaper being the one to bring up his concerns. Sombra is a person with no support network yet she is unaffected by Talon's manipulation. This is because the way you get to her isn't stripping her of a support network, it's giving her one, and that's something Talon can't do. The two people she's loyal to are Sigma and Baptiste, they are the people she tries to help.

Sombra is a victim of the Crisis like Baptiste is but unlike him it seems that she knew exactly what she was getting into. So when Baptiste finally stopped turning a blind eye and lying to himself, Sombra got back in contact with him and helped him escaped. It also seems that Cassidy trusts her enough to still trust Baptiste after fining out that they're in contact. Not only that but Sombra either already is, or is going to become Jack's informant on Talon information.

Talon's manipulation failed on Sombra so bad that she is now playing them like a fiddle.

[sil-and-seals-blog-something]

DPxDC Prompt #1

What if the Infinite Realms were one of Perpetua’s backup plans for killing the Judges of the Source? One that she didn’t necessarily complete before she was betrayed by her children. One where she had to keep secret her whispers to the new king and creatures of that realm. Obsessions to tempt them into extreme action, power to make them destructive, and intelligence to plan. A risk similar to the ones her children posed, but one that has not yet come to pass, after all, the king Pariah Dark has so easily listened to her whispers of conquest and destruction of all from her prison in the Source Wall.

That was until he was sealed away. Then, she had to pivot a little to a more difficult group. The Observants. A council that she had to sway in many ways. They weren’t as… compliant and complacent with destruction as she wanted, but she could use their greed for power to set the field for Pariah’s release one day.

Then another from her realms- one who somehow escapes her awareness- released the tyrant out of greed, and she is pleased. That was, until, one like the freer of her tyrant defeats and seals Pariah Dark once more. But, her interest is… piqued. She’s aware of the little ghost-human (and doesn’t that remind her of her dear Apex Predators) now, and while his obsessions aren’t directly compatible with her goals… she does have a pretty little idea of how to twist him to serve her purposes. He has enough power to at least stir things up. Perhaps one of the risks she took is finally paying off.

(This is set before Dark Nights: Death Metal. Also, funnily enough, DC has a hero named Pariah who was corrupted by a thing called the Great Darkness. Interesting character)

P.S. : I do not know much about Perpetua. I did minimal research on her. I posted this anyways cause I wanted to see what people would do with this and I wanted an excuse to learn about Perpetua. I am not confident in this prompt at all, but I’ve had it sitting for too many hours (over a day now)

@stealingyourbones

[racefortheironthrone]

Please tell me more about neighbourhood PMCs in renaissance Italy

It would be my pleasure! (My research into this owes a lot to the excellent Power and Imagination: City-States in Renaissance Italy by Lauro Martines.)

The first thing to note that, unlike the condottieri, these were not private military companies. Rather, the neighborhood military companies (in the sense of a military unit, rather than a profit-making entity) were self-defense organizations formed as part of a centuries-long political struggle for control over the urban commune between the signorile (the urban chivalry)/nobilita (the urban nobility) and the populo (the guilded middle class, who claimed to speak on behalf of "the people").

This conflict followed much the same logic that had given rise to the medieval commune in the first place. Legally, the communes had started as mutual defense pacts between the signorile and the cives (the free citizens of the city) against the rural feudal nobility, which had given these groups the military and political muscle to push out the marquises and viscounts and barons and claim exclusive authority over the tax system, the judicial system, and the military.

So it made sense that, once they had vanquished their enemies and established the commune as the sovereign, both sides would use the same tactic in their struggle over which of them would rule the commune that ruled the city. The signorile and nobilita formed themselves into consorteria or "tower societies," by which ancient families allied with one another (complete with dynastic marriage alliances!) to build and garrison the towers with the knights, squires, men-at-arms, and bravi of their households. These phallic castle substitutes were incredibly formidable within the context of urban warfare, as relatively small numbers of men with crossbows could rain down hell on besiegers from the upper windows and bridges between towers, even as the poor bastards on the ground tried to force the heavy doors down below.

To combat noble domination of communal government, achieve direct representation on the political councils, establish equity of taxation and regulate interest rates, and enforce legal equality between nobility and citizenry, the populo formed themselves into guilds to build alliances between merchants and artisans in the same industries. However, these amateur soldiers struggled to fight on even footing with fully-trained and well-equipped professional soldiers, and the guild militias were frequently defeated.

To solve their military dilemma, the populo engaged in political coalition-building with the oldest units of the urban commune: the neighborhoods. When the cities of medieval Italy were originally founded, they had been rather decentralized transplantations of the rural villages, where before people had any conception of a city-wide collective their primary allegiance was to their neighborhood. As can still be seen in the Palio di Siena to this day, these contrade built a strong identity based on local street gangs, the parish church, their traditional heraldry, and their traditional rivalries with the stronzi in the next contrade over. And whether they were maggiori, minori, or unguilded laborers, everyone in the city was a member of their contrade.

As Martines describes, the populo both recruited from (and borrowed the traditions of) the contrade to form their armed neighborhood companies into a force that would have the manpower, the discipline, and the morale to take on the consorteria:

"Every company had its distinctive banner and every house in the city was administratively under the sign of a company. A dragon, a whip, a serpent, a bull, a bounding horse, a lion, a ladder: these, in different colors and on contrasting fields, were some of the leitmotifs of the twenty different banners. They were emblazoned on individual shields and helmets. Rigorous regulations required guildsmen to keep their arms near at hand, above all in troubled times. The call to arms for the twenty companies was the ringing of a special bell, posted near the main public square. A standard-bearer, flanked by four lieutenants, was in command of each company."

To knit these companies organized by neighborhood into a single cohesive force, the lawyers' guilds within the populo created a state within a state, complete with written constitutions, guild charters, legal codes, legislative and executive councils. Under these constitutions, the populo's councils would elect a capitano del popolo, a professional soldier from outside the city who would serve as a politically-neutral commander, with a direct chain of command over the gonfaloniere and lieutenants of the neighborhood companies, to lead the populo against their noble would-be overlords.

And in commune after commune, the neighborhood companies made war against the consorteria, taking the towers one by one and turning them into fortresses of the populo. The victorious guilds turned their newly-won military might into political hegemony over the commune, stripping the nobilita of their power and privilege and forcing them either into submission or exile. Then they directed their veteran neighborhood companies outward to seize control of the rural hinterland from the feudal aristocracy, until the city had become city-state.

(Ironically, in the process, the populo gave birth to the condottieri, as the nobility who had lost their landed wealth and political power took their one remaining asset - their military training and equipment - and became professional mercenaries. But that's a story for another time...)

[bigfan-fanfic]

Shield of Stars (Biotic!Reader x Kaidan Alenko x Steve Rogers)

@jayfeather965 male reader x Kaidan x Steve when Steve awakens in 2181 Mass Effect universe

Historically, putting soldiers in the same platoon really was the closest way to getting people to bond.

Could it have been anything other than inevitable when you and Kaiden fell for the Captain?

Your group, the Brooklyn Squad, wasn't actually meant to see combat.

It was more of an honor guard for Steve, an honorary ambassador and a living relic - technically the first biotic made by humans.

Though Steve's body carries no element zero and he cannot manipulate mass effect fields, it was Erskine's formula and subsequent research that was able to prepare certain people for bio-amp implantation and help make safe biotics out of those exposed to eezo.

The Brooklyn Squad consists of Steve, you, Kaidan, a turian who has come to respect and appreciate Steve's ethics, an asari, and a few other human biotics. It doesn't technically have any jurisdiction or ability to enforce galactic law...

But after an incident in which the Squad discovered and liberated a bunch of sapients kidnapped and enslaved by batarians, it has become the personal overt task force of the Council.

Officially the turian is the commanding officer for the Brooklyn Squad, though the chain of command is unlike what Steve is used to, since he was in the military over two hundred years ago.

But Steve really does appreciate having not only a goal and missions, but people he can truly trust, like when he was part of the Howling Commandos.

It's different for him - seeing you and Kaidan kiss. He makes an awkward joke about fraternization to cover for his unease, which he looks into.

Steve's never only been into women. But for a long time he sort of had to be above all that, first when he was in the US Military during the war, and now when he's an icon and completely out of his own time.

It wasn't conducive to exploring romance or even his own feelings. But seeing you and Kaidan openly loving one another without any thought of retaliation or anger - it shocks him. And it gives him hope.

He talks a little to the other members of the Squad about it, about how love is now, in this world where people are citizens of planets and systems and humans are not alone - about plural marriage and polyamory and sexuality and gender expression

How turian culture differs from asari from human from salarian and so on. Steve learns and expands as the whole Squad helps him to accept himself, and everything else.

And that's when Steve asks you two out. Still unsure, but wanting to try - Steve asks you and Kaidan on a date, accepting the potential of you both saying no.

But you say yes.

Yes to a trip around the Citadel trying increasingly-unfamiliar foods and laughing at how all of you feel the same kind of wrong-footed.

Yes to a visit to a library for translated volumes of quarian legends and asari myths, and exploring writers from worlds beyond your own.

Yes to a night in to watch Fleet and Flotilla, and to start exploring not only classics that are still way past Steve's time, but things bridging the gap between his missing years and now.

Yes to finding an apartment on the Citadel for an extended shore leave where all of you can stay.

Yes to a trip back to Earth to meet Kaidan's parents, where he introduces you as the loves of his life.

Yes to the rings - beautifully crafted triple bands of gold uniting the three of you as one.

Yes to spending the rest of your lives together amongst the stars, fighting off Reapers and never, ever giving up on each other.

Because if time itself couldn't prevent your love story, nothing can.