#I also know computers have proven to be user is an idiot more than half the time so I assune it's me

[gonzodangerfeels]

"I just sit around collecting numbers and such"

Go wu go

[hauntedbythefanficsofmypast]

When you need a Superfriend

By Nach0Ava

On Archive of Our Own

Tumblr user: @nach0ava

So I have not really watched Supergirl however when I read the first chapter I had to share this with you all! This is the first chapter by Nach0Ava. (Second chapter is on its way as well!) Marinette gets sent away by her parents to America! Please go read Nach0Ava's story!

Summary:

When Tom and Sabine believe Lila's lies, they send Marinette off to live with an old family friend in National City. When living with a government agent and a physiologist, how long is it until she gets figured out?

Chapter 1:

“I don’t understand! Why are you sending me away?”

Marinette looked up at her parents in disbelief. They had just told her that she was going to be sent to live with a family friend. In America! Sure, she could speak fairly good English, but it still didn’t make sense!

“Your recent behaviour has led us to think that the change could be good for you. Kelly and her girlfriend Alex are lovely people, and they might be better equipped to deal with you than we are.”

As her mother spoke, Marinette felt a bitterness rise in her. Of course. Lila. She had made good on her threat, managing to turn even her parents against her. Claiming that she was involved in a gang, she had an older boyfriend, she did drugs, the list went on. And when Tom and Sabine had caught Marinette out past curfew one too many times, they took it as the truth. She couldn’t tell them that she was Ladybug, so all she had was half-hearted excuses. Still, she needed a way to stay in Paris, as she couldn’t be Ladybug somewhere else, and if there was no Ladybug, there was no-one to catch the akuma, and no-one to cast the cure, never mind all her guardian duties…

She was getting off track. She had a goal and she needed to accomplish it. Just like taking down an akuma. Except she couldn’t hit this problem really hard for it to go away.

“Is there any way I could stay in Paris? I’ll switch schools, I’ll go live with grandpa Roland, I’ll do anything!”

Tom and Sabine exchanged a look. They didn’t want to believe it, but they had to make sure.

“Honey, calm down, aren’t you worried about an akuma?”

Marinette started pacing as she rambled, mostly to herself.

“Right, I’ll get upset, then you guys will get mad at me, and then one or both of you will be akumatised and then I’ll have that whole mess to deal with.”

Tom reached out a hand to her shoulder to stop her pacing.

“You aren’t worried about you getting akumatised?”

Marinette shook her head.

“No no, I’ll be fine.”

A slight push from her bag and the looks from her parents made her backtrack.

“I mean, I’m really good at calming down before they get to me, I mean, it’s worked so far right?”

She let out a nervous chuckle while her parents stared at her.

“Marinette… Are you working with Hawkmoth?”

Marinette looked for the start of a smile from her mum, the laughter in her dad’s eyes, anything to say they were joking. When the just kept staring she burst into laughter.

“Haha, you guys… You guys really thought… Haha, that’s hilarious!”

Her parents failed to see the humour and gave her thatlook.

“Remember all those times I’ve been attacked? Reflekta, Horificator, pretty much any akuma that clones or traps people I’ve gotten tangled up in.”

Not technically a lie, she never said she got hitspecifically, but she definitely got attacked.

“Well, maybe you should get out of Paris anyway. It’s clearly not safe here, and maybe it’s best for you to leave. You’ll like it in National City, they even have their own superheros!”

Great. A reminder of what I have to give up because of Lila. She was about to keep protesting, but she felt three quick pushed on her side by Tikki. We need to talk.Her argument died on her tongue and she sighed.

“When am I meant to leave?”

Her parents exchanged relived looks.

“The plane is booked for next Friday. That gives you about a week to pack up. We could mail over a box with all of your sewing things once you get settled, if Kelly and Alex are ok with it of course.”

Marinette fought the eyebrow that was threating to raise. A week? I was hoping for some more time to test and train a new guardian, and a new holder for Tikki. It would be a rush, and there weren’t many people she trusted anymore. Still, there was work to be done, so she had to get started.

“I guess I’ll go start packing then. Can I be un-grounded so I can spend my final week saying goodbye and sorting things out?”

Her parents nodded, glad she was taking this so well.

“Of course honey, just not tonight ok? It’s getting rather late.”

Marinette nodded and ran up to her room, shutting the trapdoor quickly. She went up onto her bed and starting crying into her pillow, feeling the weight of all the kwami comforting her. Eventually she rolled on to her back, drying her tears.

“I’m sorry Tikki, you said you wanted to talk?”

She looked at her expectantly. Marinette already knew what Tikki wanted. She needed to find a new wielder and Guardian, and she shouldn’t have been putting it off, but sometimes it felt good to cry. Tikki came to settle on her lap and patted her leg comfortingly.

“Marinette I know what you’re thinking, and you don’t have to give up being Ladybug or being Guardian. So you better stop that train of thought right now missy.”

Marinette sat up, blinking. How could she… Oh.

“I’m an idiot.”

Tikki giggled while she flew up and booped her nose, while Kaalki sniffed from the corner.

“I can’t believe you forgot about me Guardian. You’ve given me out before!”

Marinette giggled at the kwami’s haughty attitude.

“Sorry Kaalki, I got a bit too emotional to think clearly.”

Kaalki just grabbed a sugar cube with a huff and flew off. Marinette climbed off her bed and grabbed her bright pink suitcase.

“So who wants to help me pack?”

~~<3~~

Chloe, Kagami, Luka and Marinette were all sitting at a table at a café during their lunch break. Luka had graduated already, so he was usually free to hang out. Chloe had come up to Marinette not too long after Lila’s takeover with an apology. Marinette had been wary at first, but Chloe was actually really nice when she wasn’t putting up an act. She had soon proven herself and had been given another chance at being a hero, under the new name Honeybee. Kagami had approached her after Adrien had asked for advice on the Lila situation. She had hated his passive approach, and when she had tried to talk to him about it, he just refused her help, ignoring the fact that he had asked for her help. Kagami had come to offer her help, and they become friends soon after. She had re-claimed the dragon, under the new name Tempête. Luka had heard Lila’s heart song and immediately knew that was someone that he didn’t want to hang around. He had tried warning Juleka and the rest of Kitty Section, but Lila had told them that having an older singer wasn’t a good look. He had been kicked out, and Marinette had been there to comfort him with pastries and musicals. After she had introduced everyone to each other, they had become a tightly knit group. So, as one could imagine, they weren’t taking this well.

“They gave you a week? That’s ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!”

Kagami made a noise of displeasure as well.

“Sending you to America seems a bit extreme, what reason did they give again?”

Marinette scoffed.

“My ‘recent behaviour’ or something like that. Also known as, Lila. Oh, that’s not even the best part.”

Marinette gave out a dry chuckle and everyone looked on in interest.

“Apparently, I’m working with Hawkmoth.”

Luka plucked a string on his guitar, sending out a loud note. Chloe just stared in disbelief, and Kagami made for her foil.

“I’m going to run them through with my sword.”

Kagami gripped it tightly, ready to get up and make good on her threat, but Marinette grabbed it from her, unbothered by the fencer’s unimpressed glare.

“No-one is stabbing anyone. I don’t really have a choice, so I just have to suck it up and deal with it. Besides, it could be good to get away from Lila.”

Chloe was the first to get up to give her a hug, followed by Luka, and then by Kagami, who Marinette wasn’t completely sure that she wasn’t just trying to get her sword back.

“It’ll be ok guys, we can still video chat through Skype or something. I won’t be able to text, because I’ll be on an American phone plan, but we can figure something out!”

Chloe pulled away and took out her phone, tapping away immediately.

“I’m going to get you an amazing phone plan, with unlimited overseas. Same for the rest of you. That way, we can all talk and not worry about the fact that there’ll be an ocean dividing us.”

Marinette slowly took the phone and added it to her slowly growing pile, pointedly ignoring the glare Chloe shot her.

“I’m sure there are other, free, ways to contact each other. I think there’s an online service, what’s the name in English? Chaos or something like that?”

Luka strummed at his guitar in thought before pulling up an app on his phone.

“Is this the one you were thinking of?”

He had opened Discord, in dark mode of course, and had his profile open.

“Yeah, that’s the one! We can talk on there, and it has the bonus of being accessible from computers! So, no reason to go overboard, ok Chloe?”

Chloe humped and opened up the app store, downloading Discord. Kagami noticed what she was doing and mirrored her. They all took a few minutes to make accounts and become friends, before Luka, the one with the most experience, had set up a server for them all. Quickly choosing nicknames, Marinette pocketed her phone with a grin.

“Now that that’s done, anyone want to come help me pick some things to take?”

~~<3~~

It felt like the week passed quickly, lessons passing by in a blur. She didn’t pay much attention, just enough to keep Mrs Bustier satisfied. She didn’t bother alerting anyone in the class (outside of Chloe) that she was leaving, ignoring their taunts and insults. Chloe and Kagami had been big helps in learning how to ignore them, so now they rolled off her like water on a duck. She made sure not to bring anything valuable, most of her stuff was in a suitcase anyway. On her final day, she only had her schoolbooks, the school assigned tablet, and three neatly wrapped gifts. As she was packing up to go meet her friends for a final goodbye, she was stopped by Alya.

“I need you to make a dress for the upcoming school dance.”

Marinette briefly noted that this was a demand, rather than a request, but she just started her usual commission speech with a sigh.

“Depending on the materials used and the time it takes to make, the dress could cost anywhere from €300 to €500. There will also be shipping costs, plus the fact I’m not taking commissions right now, so it will probably be a few weeks before I might be able to get started on it.”

Alya was staring at Marinette like she had grown another head.

“€300, what are you talking about? I’m not paying youfor a dress, and you make mine every year, so what’s the problem? I can’t wait a few weeks, the dance is next weekend!”

Marinette sighed and pushed past the taller girl.

“The problem is that I don’t have time, materials are expensive, and I made you those dresses when we were friends. But we’re not now. So, leave me alone. Goodbye Alya.”

She walked out to meet her friends, leaving Alya behind, too stunned to talk. When she snapped out of it, she grumbled to herself.

“She’ll see reason on Monday. She has no right to refuse after all she’s done to Lila! Maybe if she makes Lila’s dress too, she’ll forgive her! Lila’s nice like that, Marinette will come around after making up for everything she’s done!”

Alya walked away, satisfied, planning her new dress in her mind.

Marinette ran up to her friends, engulfing them in hugs. They all hugged right back, sad to see her go. Marinette suddenly pulled away from the hug, and grabbed three parcels out of her bag. She handed them all out, urging them to open them. Luka opened his first, finding a beanie that perfectly matched his hair, with a teal snake pattern around the rim. Chloe went next, her patience not holding any longer. She got a headband with tiny bees embroidered all along it. Kagami received a red handkerchief, with an elemental dragon on one side, and a storm cloud on the other, a lightning strike going all the way across. They all started to thank her at once, with Marinette just blushing sheepishly.

“I just took note of all your favourite heroes, and added them to a design. It’s not that big of a deal.”

They all hugged again, before the clock chimed behind them, making Marinette jump.

“I have to go! I’ll send you all a message when I land, but you better not stay up for it if it’s late here!”

A chorus of “No promises!” filled her ears as she ran home, taking in the sights one more time. She burst into the bakery to find her mum still working the counter, and her dad busy baking. Not thinking much of it, she went up to her room to grab her belongings. After some quick cuddles from the kwami, she had everything she needed. Most flew into the suitcase, comfy in the hidden area Marinette had made, lined with a soft faux fur. Only Tikki and Kaalki flew into her jacket, ready to transform if need be. They had assured her they wouldn’t show up on the x-ray, so she was fine with having them in there. As she lifted her suitcase and went downstairs, her strength from being Ladybug shining through, she was surprised to see her parents still busy at work.

“Maman, Papa, I thought we were going to the airport now?”

Her parent’s exchanged looks before Tom stopped his baking and walked over.

“Honey, we can’t afford to come with you, we need to keep the bakery open. There’s an Uber outside for you, but you’ll have to go on your own. I’m sorry.”

He pulled her into a hug, one she half-heartedly returned. She walked over to hug her mum as well, and went outside with her suitcase.

This was it.

She was really being sent away.

All because of some dumb liar.

With a comforting press coming from inside her jacket, she got in the Uber, prepared to start her new life.

[writehardwhumpharder]

Drugging Carson for fun - Carson series

(I decided to just start using the titles for works that I put on my notes lol)

Also on Ao3 https://archiveofourown.org/works/27982710

Carson stared at the small vial on the table in front of him, "you're kidding, right?"

Riley's expression didn't change, "it only works on magicians."

"Still I'm not gonna drink some un-tested, maybe poisonous material just for you to 'see what happens'," Carson said, pushing the vial away defiantly. Morris folded his hands over his desk in thought. "Are you really on board with this?" He asked him.

"Look, Carson, it is proven to be completely safe and could be a major help to the case. The longer this goes unsolved, the more people die." Morris said.

"Or, it could be a major waste of time. I've done the whole psychic vision thing and it sucks." Carson said, crossing his arms. He was starting to get the feeling they were taking advantage of his lack of self-preservation instincts. Some small part of him saw the vial of mystery drugs as a sort of challenge, but he's trying not to let that part get the better of him.

"We'll compensate you well if you do this," Riley interjected from where she sat perched on the arm of Morris's couch.

"I've got money. Pass."

Riley and Morris still didn't appear to be giving up. They really thought that this little stunt would somehow help them solve the case, that's just how desperate they'd gotten. "Carson, I know it'll be unpleasant but you'll be absolutely fine and it could be really helpful." Said Riley. She was using that coercive voice that always rubbed Carson the wrong way.

Finally, he sighed and gave up a little bit of his resolve, "Fine, tell me more about it and I'll think about it."

Riley launched into an explanation,"Ok so we've seized samples of this drug at four different locations now where gangs of magic-users," Carson cleared his throat purposefully, "gangs of magicians are known to operate. A few officers have given detailed reports of magicians they've encountered while using the drug. We're not sure yet if it's recreational or if it poses some kind of advantage. We're hoping to figure that out. If magicians can use this substance to strengthen themselves and become more dangerous, we need to know."

"Or it could be some dumb party drug that plays with senses only magicians have," Carson suggested.

"Such as?"

"Magical energy is visible to us if we use our senses properly. It's always there but if you really look you can see each grain of energy. They're colorful, kind of tingles a bit if you touch it. I'm not sure exactly what other people see because I'm different. I see people's souls, their life energy, and the traces of it they leave behind. You can also kind of use it to spot magicians because magic will cling to them, unlike regular people."

"Hmm, if what you say is true..."

"Which it is," Carson interjected.

"...Then it could potentially be used as an advantage. We won't really know though until we have more data." Morris said.

Carson sighed and rubbed at his face, "I still don't like the sound of this. I'm not doing it."

"Umm," Riley said.

"What?"

"It's a little late for that."

Carson's eyes widened in anger, "what the fuck did you do?!"

"I had a feeling it would be hard to convince you so I might have just put a few drops into your coffee when you came in. Just a few drops, it probably won't even have an effect."

"And you let her do that?" He turned to the man sitting across from him.

Morris practically growled at her, "You'll have to excuse my junior detective. She gets a little ahead of herself," he said through clenched teeth.

"No, no, no...I didn't sign up for this," Carson gripped the arms of his chair like he was afraid it might just up and fly away.

"Riley, close the blinds please," he told her. She hopped up from the couch immediately and covered the window of his office, blocking it off from the rest of the station. "Maybe you should make yourself comfortable on the couch." He offered.

Carson eyed the leather couch longingly, "how could I possibly do that if I don't have legs?"

Morris blinked, "you what?"

"What?" Carson repeated cluelessly.

"Nevermind." He sighed then picked up a notepad off his desk, angrily scribbling something down. "There, just so I don't forget." He said with fake cheer as he slapped it onto his computer screen. Fire Officer Miller.

"Hey!" she protested.

Morris shot her a positively murderous glare which shut her up right away. "Help me with him."

Stepping around his desk, he approached Carson calmly and carefully. He tapped Carson's pant leg. "Feel that?"

"Yeah," Carson answered. "That's your left leg." He informed him. Carson's eyes widened in surprise as Morris proceeded to tap his other leg. "And that?"

"Mhmm."

"That's your right leg." Carson wiggled his toes experimentally as if he didn't entirely believe him.

"Doesn't that couch look comfortable? Wouldn't you rather sit there?" He asked slowly. Carson seemed to think about it for a second letting his glazed-over eyes trail across the leather sofa.

"Okay."

Together they got him on his feet and guided him over to the couch so that he was lying across it. Though she didn't express it, the guilt was obvious on Riley's face at what she had done.

"I really thought a couple drops wouldn't do anything..."

"Well, you thought wrong. You better hope he doesn't sue you when he sobers up later." Morris said seriously.

With Carson safely on the couch, they both breathed a sigh of relief and took a step back. He looked mostly okay except for his pupils which seemed a bit off.

"Now what?" She asked.

"Don't look at me. You did this."

Carson lifted one of his arms to swat at the air, smiling as he caught whatever it was that he saw there. "It's always so colorful. I wish I could look at the magic all the time." He mumbled.

"What kind of magic?" Morris asked.

"Hmmm, it's just traces of this or that. A little bit of me, a little bit of you. Time has a way of shedding human souls, bit by bit, until you die."

"Well that's pleasant," he grumbled, leaning back in his desk chair. This really wasn't how he planned to spend his day. Being the lead detective did come with some responsibilities he needed to tend to. In the back of his mind he reaffirmed his decision not to have kids, these two idiots were enough to deal with already. Following that train of thought he grabbed another sticky note and jotted something down about buying more hair dye for the grey hair this would inevitably give him.

Carson was oddly quiet, kind of in his own little world. So far nothing bad had happened. He just laid there looking stoned out of his mind. Half an hour passed before Carson sat up abruptly, looking around the corners of the room for something.

"What's wrong?" Riley asked.

"Pictures," Carson mumbled. "They just..." he grabbed his head in discomfort, "ugh."

"Does it hurt?" Morris asked, sounding concerned.

"It always hurts." A tiny trail of blood dripped down his nose which Riley stopped with a tissue before it could make a mess. Carson shoved her away, taking the tissue to hold for himself. He's had enough nosebleeds that even in this state he had the sense to dab it clean. Riley tried not to look offended as she rubbed at her forearm where he had pushed her. Despite sitting right in front of him, Carson didn't seem to be fully aware that Riley and Morris were even there, choosing instead to stare off into space, occasionally blinking or shaking his head. Riley wondered if this is what it would look like if he had visions while awake, minus the usual seizing.

"Even if he figures something out with this drug, it won't be of any use if he doesn't remember any of this." Morris commented to himself.

"I never forget," Carson responded, surprising them both when he suddenly acknowledged that they were there. There was a spark of lucidity in his eyes as he looked between them. It didn't last long though…

"How long does this usually last?" Asked Riley.

"It's barely been an hour, don't tell me you're bored already." He clipped, still irritated that she would go behind his back to do something as reckless as this. "Could last all day, we don't know much about it."

"All day?" Carson whimpered as he brought his legs up onto the couch so that he could curl into a little ball.

"It'll probably get worse too." Morris deadpanned. A small sound of fear escaped him as he started to twitch with nerves. They hadn't given much thought to how this drug might affect him differently than other magicians. While it might give them more raw power to fight with, his powers were more mental, more unique. The drug seemed to have more of an effect on his psychic abilities. Honestly, it was terrifying, there was no telling what might happen. Carson tried to keep it together and stay calm but it was a struggle just to sort out what was real. His vision was clouded by magic that swirled around the room, thrumming with life. That part wasn't so bad... It was the flashes, disorganized chaos of faces and memories and facts.

A steady hum rose in his ears like the chattering of a hundred voices. If he concentrated on picking out a singular voice he could catch little phrases. Just mundane thoughts like "I'm gonna be late to lunch", or "Maybe I should have brought a jacket today."

He looked straight ahead at Riley. "Why do his eyes look like that? Fuck, I'm in so much trouble. How was I supposed to know how potent this shit was? Maybe it's stronger because he's such a lightweight."

Carson wanted to refute that last part but it was true. No point in denying it. He turned his head to Morris who was attempting to get some paperwork done. "What am I gonna do with her? If she takes risks like that in the field someone could get seriously hurt. Maybe if someone slipped her some LSD she'd think twice about these things. Ah geez, now he's looking at me. Can he even see me?"

"I can see you," Carson said quietly.

Morris froze, not immediately making the connection that he was answering a question out loud that he had asked in his head. It sounded like just another disassociated comment. "What?"

"Just... I can see you." He clarified.

"Okay," said Riley, looking confused. "What's going on in there?" She asked.

"Lots of things. Lots of voices. Nothing very important. Not about..." Carson trailed off, forgetting why he even took the drug in the first place, "not about the case," he said finally.

"Like what?"

"The reception lady is wondering if she has time to go to her favorite sandwich place on her lunch break. And the guy at the desk is wondering if her tits are real."

"Wow, alright. Let's try to filter some of that out." Morris suggested.

"It seems like the drug really can amplify a person's magic. I mean, you can't read minds all the time right...?" Riley asked.

Carson abruptly stopped shaking his knee and looked at her, "Isn't this dangerous? I mean, who knows what could happen?" He asked. She shrugged, unable to answer either of those questions. They were really in the dark here. Riley felt a pang of sympathy. He seemed so out of it. She really thought that it wouldn't do anything in such a small amount. She watched as the blood suddenly drained from his face. It was scary how fast his skin turned white, even pulling any color he had in his lips. "What if He comes?" He asked suddenly. His tone was sincere, not scared, but concerned. He was actually glad that Morris knew about his secret in that moment.

"He's not going to come here. I'm sure He has more important things to do right? It's silly to worry about it," he said comfortingly. The logic was sound, but Carson was still paralyzed with fear.

"But what if I summon Him accidentally? I might not be able to control it," he said.

Morris was really getting nervous now. Carson was a bomb that could blow at any time. He had a feeling that there was much, much more to his magic than any of them knew. Suddenly jumping back, Carson went a shade paler, resembling more of a corpse now than a human. He shrank into the corner of the sofa. "...Do you see it?" His voice was barely audible. They both whipped their heads in the direction that Carson was looking. At first, it appeared empty, but there was something unsettling about it. Something you feel rather than see. After a few moments, they realized what they were looking at. The shadow in the corner was moving. It swirled and grew, and traveled like smoke. There was darkness there. More than there should be.

"O-Oh my god..." Riley stuttered. She fell back into the chair in front of Morris's desk. Morris perked up in his seat and leaned in toward Carson, time for damage control. His instincts told him that he needed to calm him down and fast. "Carson, look at me, there is nothing there. You are in control of what you do. I know you are scared right now. Just take a deep breath, I think I know something that could help."

Carson's eyes softened slightly, "what is it?" He was eager to put hope into whatever Morris was suggesting.

The older man turned in his chair and opened the lower-most drawer in his cabinet. In it was a half-empty bottle of whiskey and under that, a neatly folded blanket. He pulled out the blanket and closed the drawer. "Here, it's clean." He spread it over Carson. The change was immediate. He let his head fall back into the couch and pulled the blanket up to his face. He was right, it was clean. He could smell the laundry detergent on it, it smelled kind of like the brand Daniel uses. Riley and Morris both discreetly glanced into the corner to find that it had settled down. Morris sighed with relief. "That's better, isn't it?" He asked Carson, who didn't respond at first but ended up giving a tiny nod. Despite being calmer he was still pale and visibly shaking. "Rest for a while. I'm going to try to get a little paperwork done."

To their surprise, Carson agreed easily, closing his eyes. It made him feel like everything was normal and he could just take a nap. It wouldn't take long though before Carson would regret falling asleep…

Since Carson seemed to doze off almost immediately, Riley and Morris assumed they were in the clear. About ten blissful and uneventful minutes later, he stirred.

"Unngghh," he groaned miserably.

"What?" Riley turned to him but he was still asleep. He looked uncomfortable, in pain almost. She leaned forward to have a better look at him.

"Just leave him alone," Morris told her.

"What do you think he's thinking about right now?" Riley asked him curiously.

"Jesus Riley, where is your common sense? Look at him, you want to know what's going on in his head? I can almost guarantee it would scar your naive, little mind for the rest of your life." He was angry. She shrunk under his gaze. Now that Carson was asleep it was as good a time as any to start discussing her punishment. He peeled one of the sticky notes off his computer screen, the one that said Fire Officer Miller. He set it down so Riley could see it.

"You're not really going to fire me, are you?" She asked.

"I could. I have every reason to. The forms are right here actually," he pulled a folder out of one of his desk drawers threateningly. "Please don't... The reports said that magicians usually took a whole vial at once. Three drops are next to nothing," she reasoned. "If I didn't do this he might have taken the whole thing, then what would have happened?"

Damn her, she had a point. Without this little experiment of hers, they would have assumed he should try to normal dosage, and judging by the effect it has had on Carson so far, a whole vial could be catastrophic. Morris paled visibly, "I'd really like to make it through the day without having to evacuate the entire block."

He tapped the edge of the folder on his desk, lost in thought although Riley assumed he was still trying to send her a message. "Please don't fire me, it won't happen again."

"Damn right it won't. I'm thinking... three weeks suspension should be enough time for you to think about your actions. Unpaid. And I want a one-page essay on how you can be a better detective, every day until the suspension is over." Morris said.

Riley frowned, "You want 21 one page essays?"

"Did I say one page? I meant three."

Riley pulled at her hair in frustration, "Fine, fine. I'll do it. But what about the upcoming field test next week? Can I still take that? The next chance to do it would be three months from now..."

"Oh darn, guess you'll have to wait," Morris said with absolutely no sympathy for her. Riley knew better than to keep begging him. He'd just tack on more and more to her suspension if she continued to protest. "Over 60 pages of writing, that's twice as long as my thesis paper," she mumbled to herself quietly.

"If you don't want to do it, you could always quit. I have forms for that too," he told her.

"Aren't you being too mean?" She whined.

Morris groaned internally. Riley tested every last shred of patience he had on a daily basis but in some twisted way, each mistake she made just made him want to help her more. He sighed, "It's my job to train you to be a detective. If you're not ready for that responsibility, then you're not ready, end of story." Carson continued to stir every minute or so but he still looked more comfortable than he did when he was awake.

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He found himself in the middle of a dream. As was typical of dreams, his surroundings didn't quite make sense and he seemed to fall into it at a completely random point with no idea how it all started. He sat up, realizing he was still on the couch in Morris's office only, it wasn't Morris's office. It wasn't even the same couch. This one was a beige tweed fabric, a stark contrast to the neat, leather sofa Morris had. Carson planted his feet on the floor noticing that that was different too. Most of the station had replaced all carpeting with tiles but here the floor was covered with a very dark green carpet that looked like it belonged in a movie theater.

A chill ran down his spine as he exited the small office, stepping into the open station. It was quieter than he'd ever seen it. Every single desk was empty and only half the lights were on. They seemed to be leading him somewhere. Carson walked through the dimly lit section of the station that took him towards the hallway that the break room was in. The whole place looked unsettling but Carson wasn't scared. He had that disassociated feeling that came with dreams, reassuring him that nothing he was seeing was real.

Carson walked slowly, he peered into some of the rooms in the hallway but they were all dark so he moved on from them. An overhead light flickered to life, illuminating a sign that said "Interrogation rooms" Carson had been down this hallway once before but everything was subtly different. For example, he didn't remember there being a door at the very end of the hallway. A distant memory provided him with the image of a potted plant, maybe a drinking fountain there, but not a door. And surely it was no coincidence that that was the only one with a strip of light shining out from underneath. He proceeded to the interrogation room, not once questioning what might be inside. As soon as he opened the door and crossed the threshold the light in the room got brighter, blinding him for a moment. When he blinked his vision clear he had magically jumped from the doorway to the table where he sat, handcuffed to one side, with a strange man sitting at the other.

"Sure took you long enough to get here, Carson," he said. His voice was deep and raspy. The man wore a police uniform but something told him he wasn’t a cop.

"How do you know my name?" Carson asked.

"I've been waiting for you to join me for a very long time."

Fear pulsed through Carson's veins at the sound of his voice. Every word out of the man's mouth felt like a wet tongue gliding over his ear. He wanted to brush it away but his hands were cuffed to the table. Which was also something that couldn’t be a coincidence.

"What side are you on?" Carson asked weakly.

"Yours, of course." The man smiled, flashing a set of yellowed teeth.

Carson shivered and squirmed in his seat. The light above them flickered and he swore he saw the man tense.  He started talking again, more urgently now. "All I want is for our people to be free. Don't you want that, Carson? Don't you want to be able to use your magic in any way you please? Is that not our right?" He bombarded him with questions. The light flickered again. He was running out of time.

"Promise me that when the time comes, you'll be on our side. Promise me!" He stood up, showing his full height. Carson cringed, seeing he was well over 6ft tall. There was something very wrong and twisted about that image. It looked like his spine had been stretched out to an inhuman length and as he leaned over the table, his arms stretched out as well, curling like tentacles. At some point this dream had become a nightmare and Carson wasn’t even sure when. Hands came to wind around his neck, squeezing his windpipe like a snake constricting its prey. Carson kicked and thrashed, trying to free his hands but it was no use. The strength was too much to overcome. He knew that immediately. 'I'm going to die, I'm really going to die like this... His mind repeated as his body struggled. Then suddenly the light went out and the room was filled with darkness. Carson felt a cold rush of air as the pressure finally eased up on his throat. He knew this darkness of course, it was Death. He should have been scared yet he felt so, so relieved by its presence.

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Carson gasped, his eyes snapping open. At first, he had no idea where he was. His vision was swimming and there were hands on him, belonging to more than one person. When his vision cleared he could make out Riley and Morris hovering over him. They breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh god," Morris breathed, "if we didn't get your hands away you would have killed yourself."

Carson coughed harshly, turning away from them slightly. "What... what are you talking about?" He rubbed at his sore neck, making Morris flinch, thinking he might start choking again.

"One second you were asleep, the next you were strangling yourself. I was about to call in more officers to come hold you down because you wouldn't let go." Morris explained.

"Why would I do that?"

"You tell me."

"There was a man, he was… I woke up in your office, except it wasn’t your office and…” Carson said, not making any sense. He started to sit up, slowly piecing things together. Without any warning he threw himself onto the floor, scratching at the carpet, "it was green. I swear it was."

"What was green? The carpet?" Riley asked.

"Yeah, dark green."

"Might have been back when I first started working here about 20 years ago." Morris added. If that detail of the dream was real, what else was? Carson stood up and walked out of the office before either of them could stop him. Carson ignored everyone else as he retraced his steps. He headed straight for the interrogation rooms. Riley practically had to run to catch up with him. She bumped into another officer on her way, barely mumbling an apology as she continued after Carson who she found standing where the hallway forked, leading to other rooms and offices.

"What the hell are you looking for?" She asked.

"It was right there," he pointed at the blank wall at the end of the hallway. His memory had been spot on in that there really were a couple of potted plants and a drinking fountain there. Certainly no door. "What does it mean? It was right there."

"Come on, let's go back," she pulled on his arm to urge him to follow her but to her surprise, Carson fell straight into her.

"Oof," she nearly lost her balance but managed to get one of his arms over her shoulder so she could haul him back to Morris's office. Riley locked the door behind them.

"Well?" Morris asked.

"I think he's lost his mind," she said breathing heavily.

"Maybe not. I called Janice and she emailed me this picture of the station in the late ‘90s."

Riley walked around his desk to get a look at the computer. "That's green alright."

Carson sank back into the couch shakily. Adrenaline had cleared his mind for a moment but as his heart rate went down, the hazy effects of the drug returned. He couldn't get those images out of his head. Who was that? How did he know him? Carson tipped over onto his side and squeezed his eyes shut. He felt like he was on a psychic carousel that never stopped spinning. The input going through his head varied from being debilitating to being more of an itch in his mind that he couldn't scratch. If he tuned into it and really listened, it was still there, all the voices and thoughts and memories of everyone nearby. All he could do now was pray that they would go away after the drug wore off.

[vrheadsets]

VR vs. On Speaking Terms

We are officially done with the Game Developers Conference, aka GDC for another year. Well, the one in San Francisco at any rate. I’d like to say the team are on their way back from it, no doubt laden with more interviews than you can shake a stick (with a camera on the end of it) at.  But we’re heading hastily into another event this week courtesy of the fine ladies and gentlemen at NVIDIA. Here we go again, I guess.

GDC 2018 didn’t bring much in the way of truly big news. But then if the industry was, let’s say. a waveform of news we’re sort of in the trough at the moment. Waiting for things to begin building up again as we move towards the release of the standalone generation. That’s not to say GDC didn’t give us a lot to talk about. We got hands on with the Oculus Go, there was news from the three main engines, Peter and Kevin J got to try out a number of videogames that are on their way and we found out a little bit more about Magic Leap too. The announcement about support from Unreal Engine, made before the event, raised eyebrows. One user on Twitter put it that if it has UE4 support, then maybe it isn’t vapourware after all. The secrets and announcements are beginning to spill out of the company now, so it seems the Magic Leap One is definitely something we’re going to cover earnestly in the weeks and months ahead.

Today’s edition of VR vs. isn’t to do with that however, but more something that’s been in my mind for a while.

Terms, abbreviations and acronyms. We know there is virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR) and augmented reality (AR).  There’s also a half-dozen immersive classifications sprinkled about the place. Other terms come and go in popularity.  One that feels like it’s back on the rise is XR, I’ve certainly seen it used a lot more in the last couple of months than in the period before that. XR is most often expressed as meaning ‘eXtended reality’, out of place capital X (a conscious decision) included. That seems to have had a few definitions/variations here and there- the most common being either as a combination of elements from AR, MR and VR or as an umbrella term meaning all things related to the three – a reference to the spectrum of things. It’s one of the reasons, if you see any stories I write on VRFocus, you’ll often see me refer to things in the industry as relating to “immersive technology”. It just seems the easiest way to do so without getting potentially confused.

For a great article about XR Inputs incidentally, check out this article by James C Kane on the site from about a month ago.

However, some companies like to muddy the waters of what existing terms and definitions are. Microsoft’s idea of what MR is – thanks to its naming of the Windows Mixed Reality headset range – doesn’t exactly help anyone. It’s effectively them going ‘yeah, we know that’s the definition but we define it as this other thing’.  Then you have companies who, for branding, claim their product inhabits various other terms – Something-or-the-other Reality – purely for branding and trademarking purposes. These tend to come along in groups, and it feels like something of a grab on any poor letter of the alphabet that hasn’t been dragged off screaming. There is certainly enough kicking about the place to probably have a glossary of pointless terms.

To be clear to anybody currently considering concocting such a term for a product they are looking to market, you’re both a) not helping immersive technology in anyway by doing so and b) not fooling anyone either. Any idiot can make up something like that…

Fortunately, we have such an idiot on staff.

To prove how utterly pointless such an exercise is, I’ve come up with my own glossary of clearly highly serious and super official acronyms for the entire alphabet. Thus, all letters are now claimed. Sorry folks.

(For those of you interested in a proper glossary of the standard terms you can find such here.)

AR – Actual Reality: Development for this has been proven to be very slow and expensive, as opposed to developing it in/on a computer. However, the realism is second to none and it’s a proven market having existed for several million years. (Though some dispute this, citing other documentation.)

BR – Break Reality: Not to be confused with a reality that does not work. BR is, just ever so slightly lower than the reality that proceeded it.  Usually by a few millimetres. Can be stacked.

CR – Counter Reality: Immersion that takes the present reality and reverses it in some form. With three forms of this officially defined as existing in a 2D plane with CR-X (a flipping of the horizontal), CR-Y (a reversal of the vertical) and CR-Z also known as CR-XY, which involves flipping along the diagonal). Attempts to define other sub-sections stopped at CR-ZY.

DR – Docēre Reality: A reality expressly concerned with the medical profession and that which operates ‘under the skin’ of the real world.

ER – Emergency Reality: Same as above but for being developed in the Americas. Although in ER any app, program or managerial software undergoes regular drama and critical issues. Any programme you grow fond of will invariably have something catastrophic happen to it that may cause it to permanently leave the system save for flashback cameos.

FR – Réalité Français: Currently being promoted throughout Europe in the light of the ongoing Brexit negotiations, FR takes reality and just converts everything into French. C’est tout.

GR – Gigantes Reality: Applications using GR present virtual objects as real but at exactly 328% their usual size. Early reviews cite wonderous viewpoints not previously explored, although simple tasks such as opening doors in GR have proven difficult.

HR: Often a derisory term, in theory HR is an immersive technology based around organisational activity. In practice it appears to be a reality full of people and programmes that claim to know what they’re doing but very rarely seem to get things right.  Often interfering with the work of functions that would invariably be fine without its presence.

IR – Iridescent Reality: IR experiences produce a reality where everything you see varies in colour according to the exact angle you are viewing it. Still experimental, it is not recommended in conjunction with fast movement.

JR: A now defunct reality that was, regretfully, terminated in the eighties. Though who pulled the trigger on it remains unclear.

KR – Kaleidoscopical Reality: No, this is nothing to do with a children’s toy. In KR, immersive experiences fundamentally alter their shape with every movement. Unfortunately, this means that in theory that one KR experience could become be any other KR experience. The technology is currently on hold, until legal guidance on how this affects copyrights is sought.

LR: Truncated abbreviation of Long Range Ruling Reality or ‘LRRR’, a future-based reality tech, set to conquer the world but with an expected development time of just under 1000 years according to predictions from the Omicron Persei 8 Foundation. Will probably destroy you.

MR – Mirror Reality: Owing to the present level of technology (at the time of writing) an imperfect reflection of what is expected in reality – not to be confused with CR .MR applications and experiences tend to be ultimately disappointing and often involve shiny tops and sashes as well as the addition of a black goatee beard to everything.

NR – Non-Reality: Sometimes called ‘Counter-Immersive Reality’ – again, not to be confused with CR. NR is a response to safety concerns and implications of VR and AR, and whether or not experiences can become so immersive as to appear as actual reality. All virtual objects within NR simulations are officially branded as ‘not being real’ with audible warnings declaring the objects to be not real and visible warning stickers. The stickers naturally all have warning stickers and full disclaimers themselves. As do those stickers – and so on.

OR – aka ‘Substitutive Reality’: A proposed reality presented as an alternate choice to that originally represented.

PR – Public Reality: A reality comprised of what is recommended as being best for you, as determined by marketing committee.

QR – Quick Reality: Another now rarely used iteration of immersive technology, which presents reality a series of squares filed, in turn, with other squares of black and white. Representations can be translated through a camera with correct software on it, however locating one is difficult owing to all such virtual cameras also being patterned squares within the QR space.

RR – Radiolucent Reality: Immersive experiences which are not affected by radiation in any way, meaning your enjoyment is not spoiled in the event of any kind of radioactive spill or nuclear fallout. As proved by the colossal amount of radiation you are subjected to by the experimental plutonium powered RR headset.

SR – Subjective Reality: A personally tailored reality that automatically is shaped to the will of the headset wearer, responding to their emotional state and biological responses.

TR – Taciturn Reality: An in-depth immersive experience that ultimately tells you nothing at all.

UR: A reality with no defined set of rules. Whatever you choose this reality to be it won’t judge you.

VR – Versatile Reality: Immersive technology that creates a representation over the real world which is malleable. Of course, the reality underneath that is still solid, so finding a use for this has so far been troublesome, despite its name.

WR – aka ‘Guinness Reality’: A somewhat quirky implementation of immersive reality, WR operates as in true reality except values within it are dictated solely by the ‘best’ defined value from the real world. So whilst free-movement is supported people can only be stationary or move as fast as the fastest person alive with no middle ground. In the same way as a car can either be at 0 miles per hour (mph) or around 270 mph, the approximate speed of the fastest car in the world. Constantly being updated experiences become better/worse, depending upon your point of view, as values change in reality.

XR – XTREME Reality: Immersive technology that turns everything into a representation of the 1990’s. Signs seem to entirely consist of incorrectly spelt words, often remaining in motion on a background made up of a series of random neon coloured shapes stuck on a rectangle of another colour. Most characters in current XR videogames seem to sport bucket hats, denim dungarees and trainers with flashing lights in them. Hard Rock Cafe XR is particularly popular, which is to say that it is “radical”.

YR: Endlessly argued over, YR is a reality constantly in a developmental state as people debate whether it should even exist in the first place. Forums have threads entirely devoted to trying to get the platform out of the loop it finds itself in. Hence the slogan “YR? Indeed.”

ZR – Zero Reality: ZR experiences express all objects as other objects, never what it in fact is. So, a banana could be anything, at least in theory, except for a banana. There is a standard rulebook for ZR, indicating what item is supplanted by what.  However, it is believed that Microsoft are making up their own non-standard version. Also known as ‘Illusion Reality’ owing to the fact that ‘nothing is as it seems’.

There we go – utterly ridiculous. Fun to write, certainly, but ultimately they mean nothing; and that’s exactly what these new terms created for branding all generally mean. Nothing. Let’s stick with what we’ve got and if the time comes where things evolve enough to warrent a redefinition we can do that.

Until that time though…

from VRFocus https://ift.tt/2pHNyc2