#HoverCam | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ljandersen · 5 years ago

Text

Damsel in Distress

Pairing: FemShep/Kaidan Alenko, Mass Effect 3

Summary: Celebrating the victory on Rannoch, Shepard has too much to drink. Not everyone aboard has Shepard’s best interests at heart. Someone sees opportunity.

~*~*~

Shepard teetered to her feet and braced a hand on the card table. “Whoever said you couldn’t fight a reaper mono a mono? Answer’s Kaidan, by the way.” She threw back the shot. “Salud!”

The portside lounge was overcrowded, full of booze and celebration. Most of the senior crew were here. Orbiting Rannoch, finishing up peace talks, it was nice having something worth toasting. The geth and quarian were on the same side for the first time. She didn’t want to think about the sacrifice to get there. That was for another time. Tonight, light years from a port, it was shore leave without leaving for shore. Well earned. Needed. Granted, some responsible parties still held the reins upstairs.

“Haha! You’re learning, Lola.” James reached over the card table and clinked Shepard’s glass. “Salud!”

“Is it normal for a military vessel to carry this much alcohol?” Liara hovered over the card table.

Most of the partiers buzzed around the bar across the room. Others lounged over the furniture and crowded by the door toasting and talking over each other. Only a few were willing to go head to head with James at the card table: Garrus, Tali, Kaidan, Dr. Chakwas, and Shepard herself. Dr. Chakwas was a card shark, but a sleeping one at this point. She rested her face in the crook of her elbow breathing in a steady snore.

Tali looked up at Liara. “This is a special – hic hic.” Tali put a hand to her chest. “Special – hic – Special occasion.”

James laughed and pointed at Kaidan. Kaidan sat at Tali's side. “Got your work cut out for you, Major. Your student’s about to fall off her chair.”

“We’re hustling you.” Kaidan folded his arms and tipped back in his chair. “Your call, Vega.”

Behind her, Joker and EDI sat on the couch rewatching footage from Rannoch. Adams regaled Cortez, Donnelly, and Daniel with the genius of the quarian fusion generator he’d seen on the flotilla tour. No one looked as interested as Adams himself, who offered up his own questions in a rhetorical fashion and then answered them.

It made Shepard smile seeing them all cut loose for a while. A little unconventional, maybe rebellious, but they had forty-eight hours of hang time until the quarian and geth finished up talks. The navigator had the bridge covered. Who knew when they’d be in port again? By that time, there could be more losses than wins fueling the tab. Shepard wobbled down onto her chair.

“Read ‘em and weep, Sparks.” James spread his cards on the stable. “Straight.”

Garrus threw his cards on the table. “Every time.”

“Eh, I knew you had nothing, Scars.” James didn’t spare him a glance. He leaned forward, his eyes on Tali. “Well? Gotta show ‘em some time. Don’t let your Jedi master use the hood of your suit for wiping his tears.”

Kaidan rolled his eyes and tipping back further in his chair. “Go ahead, Tali.”

Tali held the cards close to her mask. She looked between them and James’s straight laying on the table.

“Hmm. Can’t tell.” Tali put an elbow on the table, maybe to steady her wavering cards. “Just can’t – hic – tell.”

“You don’t need to tell,” James said. “Time for figuring it out is over. I called. Now it’s time to show. You teaching her nothing over there, Major?”

“She’s beaten you a few times,” Kaidan said.

“Luck. Come on, Sparks. Lay ‘em down.”

Tali snapped one card down at a time and pulled her hands back. James stood and squinted at them.

“That is higher?” Tali tapped a card.

“Dammit! No way. How with the --Then the -- Holy damn.” James plopped down in his chair. “You were twisting the fabric on your suit. The left wrist.”

Tali turned to Kaidan. “Fell for it. Hic.”

“What?” James said. “Alenko’s red herring deal? Dammit. Major, you got to keep some tricks in your own bag. You want to be writing your paycheck to me and Tali. Do not let the student surpass the master: Poker by Vega 101.”

“A class with that philosophy isn't worth the tuition.” Kaidan got to his feet. He put a hand on Tali’s shoulder. “Let me get it.”

“You just – hic – I didn’t knock over – hic – that much last time.”

“All quarians get this hiccupping?” Garrus craned his head and looked at Tali over Kaidan’s arms.

“Quite normal,” Dr. Chakwas said. Shepard jumped. Dr. Chakwas lifted her face from the crook of her elbow and yawned. “Quarians have tender digestive systems when it comes to ethanol. Not uncommon to have a little intestinal rebellion. Where are my chips?”

“Dr. Chakwas.” EDI came to the table. “As you were incognizant, it was suggested your chips be exchanged for digital credits. I have made a direct deposit into the account specified on your Alliance paystub.”

“You can see our paystubs?” Traynor turned from the group at the bar.

“I have access to all Alliance accounts. This information is confidential.”

Joker slouched back on the couch with a sigh. “I’ve tried getting her to tell me how much Kaidan makes. She won’t.” He caught Kaidan’s sharp frown. “What? Just curious. Shepard’s CO of a starship, but you’ve got the lapel chits. Who wouldn’t want to know? Right? James?”

“Whoa. Ha. I’m not getting into that.”

“Liara,” Joker waved at her, “you’re academic. Don’t you – Oh. Wait. You probably already know.”

“I do.” Liara strolled to the bar. “Speak to one of my brokers with five thousand credits ready, and we can talk.”

“What? No favors? You all forgot my birthday this year, by the way. Not even a card.”

Shepard rested her forehead on the table. Legion should be here. She pulled her mind away from that trail. No, it was a good day. If she didn’t focus on the positives … She didn’t want to think about where that would go either. Shepard toyed with the refilled shot by her face.

“Salud!” She raised the glass then dribbled it into her mouth.

~*~*~

Shepard lurched upright in her chair. A card fluttered off the sticky skin of her forehead. She was still in the portside lounge. Dr. Chakwas snored softly with her cheek against the table. James slumped in his chair with closed eyes and an open mouth. Garrus was sleeping facedown in the center of the card table, fully stretched in a chalk outline of poker chips. She looked forward to hearing that story.

Bodies lay across the furniture or on the floor slouched against the wall. Donnelly looked particularly uncomfortable, folded like an accordion in the crevice between the couch and wall.

“Commander Shepard.” EDI glided from her statured pose against the wall.

“We weren’t drugged, were we?” Shepard laughed into the back of her hand. The room sloshed around her with her wave of laughter.

“Ethanol poisoning can be a serious medical condition,” EDI said, “but I do not detect levels near the threshold needed for lethality.”

“Guess that’s good.” Shepard stood. She stumbled forward and caught herself on EDI shoulder. She gazed around them. “Where, uh – they’re all here? No. Wait. Who’s missing? Don’t tell me. It’s Waldo again.”

“We do not have a crew member by the legal registered name of Waldo. Is this colloquial for a more formalized version of another name?”

“You mean, like EDI is?”

“That is a correct example.”

Shepard patted EDI’s shoulder then used her as leverage to search the floor. She found her comm halfway under the table and popped it into her ear.

“If you are still interested in the results of your earlier inquiry, I can update you on crew location throughout the ship. For instance, Major Alenko –”

“Oh, yeah. Right, right.” Shepard wobbled around to face the table. His chair was empty. “Where’d he go?”

“Major Alenko is in engineering.”

“Huh?” Shepard staggered across the room, bumping into chairs, and tripping over empty cups. “Good night, EDI.”

In the elevator, Shepard swayed on her feet staring at the buttons. Her cabin sounded good. Engineering sounded better. She punched it. She had to check on her crew after all. She’d just taken inventory of all her senior staff members minus one. The elevator stopped, and she tumbled out. The buzz of a hovercam made her look up.

“Commander! Excellent timing.” Allers’s stilettos clicked across the floor from her studio. “Viewers were enthralled with footage of you taking down the reaper. I’d love some live Q and A.”

“Oh. Of course, of course.” Shepard tugged on her uniform and tried to stand tall. The floor kept moving, so it was harder than she remembered.

“Excellent.” Allers clapped her hands and rushed to Shepard’s side. “Any questions off limits? Viewers like candor though. Transparency. Raw reactions. Maybe some, uh, personal questions? Just a few?”

“Give the viewers what they want.” Shepard focused on the bot overhead. It kept going in and out of focus. Damn thing. “I look at the lens, right? No changes?”

“No changes.” Allers clicked a button on her microphone and turned to the camera. “Welcome to a live impromptu question and answer session with Commander Shepard aboard the SSV Normandy. We have unrestricted access to discuss the now-infamous reaper takedown on Rannoch: Commander Shepard on foot, staring into the eye of annihilation. We’ll discuss the liberation of Rannoch and the tenuous peace between machine and master. Commander Shepard has also agreed to open up about her childhood, life on Mindoir before the attack, time in foster care, and the devastating massacre on Akuze. Welcome, Commander.”

Shepard gripped Allers’s arm to steady herself. The microphone filled her face. “This is Commander Shepard.”

“Uh, indeed.” Allers pulled the microphone back. “Let’s start at the beginning. Mindoir. Your parents. You had extended family there. Tell us about them. What was life like?”

“Mindoir?” Shepard scrunched her face. “Well, uh – I guess. Got some photos.” She fumbled with her Omni-Tool.

“Excellent.” Allers’s eyes glowed. She looked over Shepard’s shoulder at the screen and waved the camera bot closer. “Perhaps a family picture? Your parents and –”

“Commander,” a male voice snapped. “Alliance Command is on the comm for you.”

Allers’s mouth tightened. She forced the corners up with a perky warble in her voice. “Ah. Humanity’s other Spectre. Major Alenko. Perhaps you can—”

“An emergency, Commander. You’re needed right away.”

A hand grabbed Shepard’s wrist. He spun her around to face him. Her Omni-Tool screen dropped.

“I almost found it,” Shepard huffed. “There’s an emergency?”

Kaidan gave her a pointed look. “Alliance Command. Immediately.”

“Just one question.” Allers elbowed between them and faced Shepard. “When Mindoir was—”

“I should go. Emergency.” Shepard decided.

Allers frowned. “Can we just see that photo?”

“This way, Commander.” Kaidan yanked her away. They rounded the corner into the main engine room and shut the door.

“Kinda loud in here.” Shepard clutched his arm. “Why’s the floor like this? Moving. Is that the emergency?”

“I got you out of the emergency.”

“Alliance Command though …”

“Bluffing.”

“Oh.”

Shepard’s legs gave way. She slipped, and Kaidan caught her under the arms.

“I can tell when you’re bluffing, you know.” She tapped his chest with a finger.

“I know. Why do you think I offered to teach Tali instead of playing?”

“You smell good.”

“Thanks.”

He helped her to the floor. “Guess I should’ve put you in the elevator, not dragged you back here. Allers’s probably circling the door now. You want me to get you to your cabin?”

“What? No, this is good. I kind of like the way my skin feels in here. Eezo.”

Kaidan slid down next to her but left open space between them. He wasn’t going to be able to hear her from there though. Shepard scooted over.

“Whatcha doing down here?” she asked.

“Aah. Not in my ear.”

“So loud down here though.”

“I can hear you. Doesn’t need to be in my ear.” He laughed but scooted over a space. “Why am I down here? Because all your engineers are blowing bubbles against the carpet upstairs. Came down to check on things.”

“Why aren’t you blowing bubbles? And why won’t you sit by me?”

“At least one experienced officer should be sober. Consider me the designated driver.”

“And?”

“And, I saw where things were going with the drinks, so I only dabbled.”

“Not that. The other question.”

“Any closer, you’d be sitting on me, Shepard.”

“Not true.” Shepard shuffled up against him. Their arms stuck together. “Ha. See.”

“Drunk Shepard doesn’t have a personal bubble, hm?”

“Nope. I’d rather sit close.” She tipped her head against his shoulder and pulled up her Omni-Tool screen. “That’s my dad.” She raised her wrist to his face.

He pulled her hand down and turned off the screen.

“I was trying to show you something,” Shepard protested.

“You’re drunk. You want to show me that, show it to me when you’re sober.”

Shepard relaxed her muscles and slouched against him. She tapped the picture up again on her Omni-Tool and studied it in her lap. “I miss him. Sometimes when I wake up in a sky car – it’s going fast, up and down, jerky turns – sometimes, before my eyes clear, I think he’s there. In the pilot’s seat. He’ll tell me he was dodging a flock of gavas, but I’ll know that’s a lie. We’re close to home, and he wanted to wake me up.”

Kaidan unstuck their arms and slid his arm around her shoulders. He didn’t say anything, just squeezed her arm.

“You were right about the thresher maw.” She rested her cheek against his chest. “On Tuchanka. The ground rumbles, and I remember. Killed so many of them now. I think, if only I knew then what I know now, how to do it, if I could go back …” Her finger circled a spot on his chest by her face.

“Shepard.” He caught her hand. He curled it back to her lap. “Don’t let what Allers said get under your skin.”

Shepard drew in a deep breath of his aftershave. His chest was warm under her cheek. It felt like old times in some ways, except for this damn uniform in her way. She wanted the smooth skin of his chest against her face, wanted him to quiver when she pressed her lips to it. She wanted to hook him by the back of the neck and drag him to her lips.

She lifted her eyes. “Kaidan, I never told you, but –”

“No, Shepard. Unless it’s a knock-knock joke, I don’t want to hear it. Whatever it is. Not like this.”

“Just one thing I wanted to –”

“Come on.” Kaidan lifted her to her feet. “Let’s go. I’ll check for Allers.”

Shepard tripped along behind him holding the sleeve of his shirt. “I kept thinking as we played cards. You know, I should stop. Last one, last one. I think I had too much.”

Kaidan peered around the corner toward the elevator then guided Shepard ahead of him. The elevator doors opened. He pushed the button for her cabin and stepped back.

“Kaidan, come with me.” Shepard put a hand out.

Kaidan folded his arms. “Night, Shepard.”

The doors slid shut. Shepard slouched back against the wall. He smelled so good.

~*~*~

From “About Mars”:

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21369139/chapters/52243954

FFN: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13428855/1/About-Mars-Mass-Effect

#Shenko #fanfic #Kaidan Alenko #femshep #fShenko #after mars #Mass Effect

39 notes · View notes

sw5w · 11 months ago

Text

And on the Payroll of the Trade Federation, I Might Add

STAR WARS EPISODE I: The Phantom Menace 01:28:20

2 notes · View notes

tdalbright-blog · 6 years ago

Video

youtube

Hearing what @TheHoverCam has to say about their new products being showcased at #InfoComm19 InfoComm 2019 is closer than you think. To prepare, we talk to Bayley Pierson from HoverCam about the new products to expect at their booth at 3064.

#HoverCam #InfoComm 2019

0 notes

elelith · 6 years ago

Text

In which Rigel knows exactly how to get back at Riddle

In honour of Violet’s supremely rapid and deliciously lengthy Futile Facade update. He’s a rough crack snippet of a scene I’m pretty sure will never happen.

In the end, it was the smirk Rigel gave the Hovercam that made everything click into place and Draco didn’t fault himself for gasping.

It had all been planned. Somehow, Rigel Black, Harriet Potter and the bushy haired muggleborn had somehow rigged the True Triwizard Tournament against all odds.

When Rigel had been chosen as one of the nine semi finalists, Draco had been worried. He did not know why the party was putting so much pressure on the Black heir to compete but he did know when his friend felt coerced and the frustrated rage had been hard to manage until Rigel had glanced at him and eerily tamped all his emotions down.

Draco had not been the only concerned Slytherin when Harriet Potter was chosen as the last minute ninth competitor, wondering if Rigel would be able to compete against his pseudo-sister.

Instead… the two had holed themselves up with one of the muggleborn competitors for long private ‘training sessions’.

They were not the only ones to have created alliances to pass the first tasks but while the other ties quickly crumbled as the tournament progressed, the three only seemed to grow better at working together. There was a… trust that was evident in their repartee.

Draco didn’t think he was biased in thinking Rigel the strongest competitor but he could not debate the brilliance of Potter or the AIM muggleborn.

They breezed through the academic challenges, outstripping the others by a comfortable margin.

Then Rigel surprised them all when he chose the muggleborn rather than Harriet for the paired duels.

The AIM competitor was obviously completely inexperienced and Draco was pretty sure this was the task that was meant to eliminate the muggleborns. Indeed, the other two were quickly defeated and disqualified.

Only, despite the awfulness of the AIM competitor, Rigel managed to single handedly beat the two seventeen year olds while protecting his partner. Draco watched in awe as his best friend simultaneously held up an impenetrable shield while ducking and weaving, firing spells at an impressive speed while trapping the other two duellists in an alchemical array he had somehow managed to draw in the middle of it all.

He was not surprised when the three progressed to the true tournament and was secretly intrigued by the idea of Rigel and Harriet facing each other in a duel or such.

He should have somehow known the three would continue to work together, beating everything thrown in their way.

Draco had thought it an odd coincidence after the first task, that they held such close scores. Even more confusing when somehow, the second task had all three blood representatives reaching the exact same score.

He had told himself, surely, the third task would fall decidedly in Rigel’s favour.

Draco watched with the other startled spectators as the three competitors tackled a Nundu together and won.

That is when he saw Rigel’s smirk and knew.

The three had planned this. This moment exactly. He already knew what was going to happen as the competitors surrounded the solid gold cup and the stadium fell in spellbound silence.

Harriett Potter gave an elaborate bow to the bushy haired blood representative who blushed.

He chanced a look at the head of the SOW party and saw the man had a rictus of a smile in place as they all listened to the definitely set up conversation happening between the three champions about the power of unity and working together and other sappy morals.

Draco was close to bringing his hands to his face and just giving up on this whole debacle as he watched all three raise their arms towards the cup in unison.

Of course Rigel Black would manage to orchestrate this. The boy had a very well hidden streak of vindictiveness when truly angered and Riddle had unwittingly done exactly that.

#murkybluematter #my fanfic #fanfic of a fanfic #rigel black #hermione granger #archie black #harriet potter #violet's amazing chapter 6 #futile facade #rigel black chronicles

141 notes · View notes

cyclecrown7-blog · 6 years ago

Text

Interactive Whiteboard - Overview

portable interactive whiteboard system The white interactive board is quite special tool in today's education system as it assists student to study with a practical strategy and not only the classic theoretical strategy. A whiteboard is just one of the most technologically advanced student response systems now on the market. While teachers ought to make use of all of the available features, they don't need to be used all at one time. New Step by Step Roadmap for Interactive Whiteboard Teaching aids assists in integrating classroom teaching with real-life scenarios and experiences. Digital classroom enable learning in an extremely simple manner. Teachers find the resources very beneficial to teach unique subjects. Recently, online tutoring has gotten more popular, as it's more convenient for both tutor and student. A wide variety of totally free teacher resources should be found. An individual must seek out all probable kinds of resources available to teachers. The Number One Question You Must Ask for Interactive Whiteboard The use of interactive whiteboard has come to be a vital part of the practice of teaching in schools and colleges all around the world. As a consequence, smart website growth businesses have entered the franchise market as a means to build their company and receive their services out to a broader audience. The newest developments in the realm of communication and data technology have given birth to the newest fashion in the area of teaching that's called the interactive whiteboard. The War Against Interactive Whiteboard The interactive whiteboard also aids in planning a specific class by offering samples. The other advantage that teachers reap from the usage of interactive whiteboards is they are in a position to conserve information covered in class right into the computer. You are able to also research online. The New Fuss About Interactive Whiteboard The usage of email and text messages can likewise be put to use as a teaching tool and a learning tool at the exact time. The board may also be connected to an on-line drawing environments and shared annotations in the type of vector based graphical sites that are also interactive. A few of the resources are offered for free and you merely have to login to the appropriate site and get your resource from that point. Whiteboard pens don't have any ink and are in essence just like the stylus device that accompanies many hand held computers and phones, but they also have been programmed to understand what colour they are. Thus projector is a mix of keyboard and mouse. Eidophor projectors weren't able to produce colors. Whiteboards need minimal maintenance and are simple to clean. Multimedia applications may also be employed with interactive boards. Today there are many whiteboard suppliers who supply all the essential materials. There is a variety of of interactive whiteboards out there in the marketplace. On the current market is a fundamental assortment of 6 interactive whiteboards to select from. The striking quality of the interactive whiteboard is it lets the teachers, lecturers and students to interact with one another. Using technology in the classroom may also help the students prepare for jobs which do not exist at the moment. Most interactive displays are costlier than their projector-based counterparts. At precisely the same time, it isn't possible for every single school to supply computers for all students seated inside every classroom. Teachers are now mindful of the a variety of IWBs offered in the industry. Both teachers and students are becoming greater opportunities to create the classrooms increasingly more interactive and interesting. Interactive Whiteboard Ideas Whiteboards aren't used just because they're trendier than chalkboards. Interactive whiteboards has an additional part called the soft board. Unfortunately, most Interactive Whiteboards have just one HDMi connection should they have any at all. Speakers can likewise be connected so that there's audio as well as video. The multimedia involvement is most likely one of the greatest features your whiteboard can give you. Try to remember, you don't require an interactive whiteboard to use the HoverCam, since you can do so much by it. Top Choices of Interactive Whiteboard There are a lot of benefits which have been uncovered by means of the whiteboard. If you have been able to find whiteboard marker on a surface that was never supposed to be drawn on, it is probable that you're frantically on the lookout for ways that you may remove it without damaging the object in question. Further, locating a whiteboard that will accommodate the area dimensions of the existent chalkboard wall space is not a problem. Sooner or later, being aware of what type of meeting room technology you require for your organization is only an issue of surveying your requirements. All the contents kind the white board may be retrieved by way of a computer. The great thing is that should you look carefully, you will get an inexpensive whiteboard to fit your requirements. Lessons were long and sometimes there was not any option but just sit through the whole class. Visual is vital in learning. Newer methods incorporate the usage of flashcards amongst others. The teachers stated that before they begin teaching multiplication utilizing the interactive whiteboard resource it is extremely important to inform them what exactly multiplication means. Learning math on the internet is relatively easy. Learning math can occasionally be awfully difficult.

1 note · View note