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footballxposts · 3 years ago

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Sleeping With The Enemy - Jack Grealish Series❤️‍🔥 (Chapter Two) Curiosity

Warnings: just some more sexual tension for now hehe but y’all better be ready for the next few chapters cause god damn 🥵

Recommended listening: Dangerous Woman by Ariana Grande (Slowed).

Quick A/N: if you can’t understand Scottish slang a will translate for you in the comments

Taglist: @storyofavengers @hotyeehawman

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The rest of my first day working in Aston went much better than I had initially expected. We only had a few minor injuries so I spent most of my time just going through all the players files, mainly looking over their medical history and current rehabilitation plans. That being said, I found it so hard to concentrate as the only thing I could think about throughout the entirety of it was Jack’s words. They were etched on my mind like the winner of a tournaments name being engraved on a trophy. I was extremely thankful Alan had came back into the room when he did, because I really had no idea how to respond to Jack’s comment and to be quite honest, I wasn’t really sure I wanted to.

Now arriving back at Bodymoor Heath training grounds for what was going to be my second day, I tried my best to find a parking space. Spotting one, I positioned my car and took the keys out of the ignition. Just as I was grabbing my things so as that I could make my way into work, I noticed a familiar face walking across the car park and quickly ducked my head so that he wouldn’t see me. But he did. And instead of walking towards the building’s entrance, Jack Grealish was now headed towards my car.

He lightly tapped the window as I pretended to look for something. Giving me space to open the door he quickly stepped away. My heart was nearly beating out of my chest. What did he want? I’ll tell you what I wanted. I wanted to avoid him as much as possible so I wasn’t put in another awkward situation with him, but he really wasn’t making it at all easy. Stepping out and closing the door behind me, he began walking beside me.

“So how’s my girl Ella this fine morning?” he asked, his eyes watching me every step I took.

“Your girl?” I questioned back in a slightly nervy manner, trying to speed up.

“Come on, you know what I mean.” he teased, a smirk now spreading across his face.

“Uh no actually I don’t, because we’re not friends Jack.” I sighed, attempting to pull the door of the premises open but he had got there before me and was now holding it out wide for me.

“Oh really?” he raised his eyebrows in response. “What are we then?”. I hated to admit it, but his accent was honestly so damn attractive too, though I wanted to believe I only thought so because I had watched too much peaky blinders and he reminded me of Tommy Shelby. Standing in front of me and stopping me in my tracks to prevent me from moving any further, I gave him one of those ‘seriously?’ glares.

“Nothing.” I stated. “We’re just work colleagues. That’s it. Just two professionals getting on with their morning, or at least I’m trying to but someone is in the way.” His reaction was comical. Lightly scoffing with a small chuckle, he took a step closer to me, almost closing the distance between us. I was shaking like a leaf internally. He honestly made me so nervous, as if my anxiety didn’t already do a good enough job of that. I gulped as he parted his lips and got the final word in.

“Maybe.” he began. “But I’m hoping to change that sometime soon.” Giving me a smug wink, he moved out of the way and began walking down the corridor the opposite way. I stood there for a few seconds, which felt more like minutes, trying to process what he had just said. He was a very attractive man, and there was no denying it. But was he actually being serious? Only my second day here, and he’s already hitting on me like I’m a piece of fresh meat. Was this what he done with every new girl that started working here? And how many other females in the vicinity was he currently doing this with? Did he just think every girl would fall at his knees and give him what he wanted? And what made him assume I would? Or that I even wanted to? Feeling slightly nauseous at all thoughts and questions now racing through my mind, I shook my head and made my way to my section of the workplace.

A few hours had gone by of assessing more injuries and whatnot, and before I knew it, it was now lunchtime. Making my way to the canteen, a friendly face appeared beside me, this time being one I was more than happy to see. It was midfielder John McGinn, who I had had in the clinic earlier on that morning. He and I maintained a good conversation about various different things, mainly about Ireland and Scotland’s relationship. Now holding the door open for me, he perked up.

“Hello.” he smiled softly.

“Oh John, hi, everything alright?” I beamed back at him.

“Aye yeah no a wis just wondering if you wanted tae come have lunch with me since your friend isn’t in today and you probably don’t want to sit with Alan and stuff?” he asked with a strong Scottish accent and a hopeful look on his face. He was referring to Samantha, the girl I had met yesterday who worked as a nutritionalist. She had told me how happy she was to have a female the same age as her working at the grounds to and offered for me to come sit with her at lunch, to which I accepted but she had took a sick day today meaning I would probably have to sit and have lunch by myself.

“Oh okay, yeah.” I replied, “Thank you, that would be nice.”

The little grin that spread across his face as he opened the canteen door for me was the cutest. “Great, no problem.” he responded as I began to enter the large dining hall. We made our way over to the food court to get something to eat. Joking and laughing, I was caught in my tracks by a very serious looking Jack, who was now staring at us from where he was seated at one of the tables. Ignoring him, I diverted my attention back to the lunch lady who was placing my vegetarian lasagne back on my tray.

“Oh, sorry thank you.” I said, expressing my gratitude and moving on to get a drink at the end of the counter.

“Vegetarian huh?,” John raised his eyebrows at me.

“Umm yeah aha, I kinda have been for the past seven years or so.” I chuckled.

“Kinda? Whit ya mean by kinda?” He questioned.

“Well.” I began. “I eat chicken, but I don’t eat any other meat or poultry.” Giving me the biggest look of judgement he could muster up, he began to crack up. “No way! Are you serious?”

“Yeah, I know I know. It’s a bit of a weird one to be honest but it is what it is.” I muttered shyly.

“Naw naw, each to their own am no saying anything. But isn’t there a name for that itself?” he queried.

“Yeah pollotarian, but everytime I say that everyone tells me it’s not at real thing and I’m a nutcase and stuff. Besides, a pollotarian is supposed to eat all poultry and I don’t.” I answered, as we sat down at a free table.

“Aye well a canny say a dinnae agree with them.” he teased as the two of us broke out laughing. John was so sweet and wasn’t unattractive either, but even when it came to him I wanted to remain strictly professional. Jack’s eyes were still fixated on us with what I could only assume was jealousy and envy growing in them. Having enough, I watched as he forcefully stood up out of his chair and walked away out of sight.

“What’s his deal?” I asked John who now had a forkful of spaghetti in his mouth. “Who? Grealish?” he replied as soon as he had swallowed it. Nodding anxiously, he rolled his eyes and giggled again. “Ah, Jacky-boy, whit can a say? Serious baller, great hair, great legs. But a flirt and a wee heartbreaker anaw.”

“Oh really, how so?..” I lamented.

“Ah, it’s no really for me to say sorry darlin, but am sure one of his previous conquests could fill you in if your paths cross. He’s no a bad guy, just done some silly things if you get me? How come you’re asking anyways?” he interrogated, nudging me with his elbow.

“Oh I was just wondering..” I trailed off.

“Naw, no way. Has he already tried tae make a move on you?”, an amused look now appearing on his face.

“Not exactly, but I think he’s planning to try to.”

“Aye right a see. Well, word to they wise, as much as a love Jack, if you’re looking for something serious, he’s no the way to go about getting it. A wid focus on your work if a were you.”

To indicate that I understood, I nodded slowly. But why did part of me also feel slightly disheartened and disappointed? I kept trying to remind myself that Jack Grealish was the ultimate no go; not only because I had only started working here and I wanted to keep everything strictly professional, but also because I don’t think I could every forgive myself, let alone my country or the world if they knew. He was supposed to be the enemy. Well, not so much the enemy, but the traitor and rival. However, there was just something about him that made me want to do so many things that I know shouldn’t.

After finishing lunch, I said goodbye to John and set about returning to the clinic. As I exited the canteen door, I felt an arm grab me and pull me into an empty office. Struggling to make out who it was initially, the smell of cologne mixed with sweat that was becoming overly-familiar helped me to quickly register.

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enviedear · 4 years ago

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that damn american ᵒⁿᵉ

do you respect yourself?

DESCRIPTION ⌙ in which y/n l/n meets draco malfoy on the first night of the transfer. she decides she doesn’t enjoy him much after he asks her if she respects herself.

PAIRING ⌙ draco x fem!reader

WORD COUNT ⌙ 2k

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

chapter one | chapter two | chapter three | chapter four

aaaa okay first chapter i’m so excited lets just jump right in :) you should note this a modern au without voldemort.

your first thought as you exited the hogwarts express was ‘holy shit, i’m literally a sea away from my mom right now’.

you genuinely couldn’t believe that, one, she agreed this and two, that you were here.

well, of course she agreed. so long as your brother, quinn came as well. that took a lot of convincing since he’s dead set on becoming a professional quadpot player. after the school confirmed that quadpot matches would also be held at hogwarts, he had no choice.

“i really gotta learn how to pack. this backpack is heavier than me, i’m killing my shoulders right now, y’all.” april fusses, thick southern accent dripping off her words.

“jesus christ, i can hear you complaining over my music. i didn’t sign up for conan gray featuring april everson.” sophie snides, turning the volume up.

april gives her an annoyed look and begins walking toward the carriages, you and sophie trailing after the tall girl.

“ah, are you the transfer students?” a scottish voice asks.

you look to your side and spot an older woman.

“yeah, well, some of them. i think the rest are still on the train getting their stuff.” you respond, thinking of your brother and the other remaining fifty something students.

“in that case, the three of you can go ahead and get into a carriage. but when you get to the castle, wait in the lobby please. i’ll be with you shortly.”

the three of you nod and hop onto an awaiting carriage.

“they’ve really got the whole ‘old wizarding school’ vibe down pat.” sophie says, staring at large castle.

“for real. ilvermorny seems so modern compared to this place.” you add.

“well girls, i think we should go in instead of waiting out here. i wanna see more!” april shouts, throwing her hands up at the castle and sprinting inside.

“last one in is a pukwudgie!” sophie laughs, running inside.

you roll your eyes and walk in, “sophie you are a pukwudgie.”

the ginger shrugs, “whatever. i didn’t come up with the phrase. but check out this decor.”

you look around the castle lobby and see the numerous amounts of stone statues and portraits of old wizards. it’s vastly different from ilvermorny. your school decorates its lobby and school with art from the students, quadpot trophies, famous wands, and banners of the graduated students. it’s much more, lived in.

“i like it but it’s kinda remindin’ me of narnia,” april smirks, “wonder if i’ll meet my very own peter pevensie.”

“i’d much rather meet my very own plate of dinner. even though dad said british people can’t cook.” sophie says.

“what if they don’t have pie! as the president of the ilvermorny pie fan club, i will cause a scene if i don’t get pie.” april jokes.

“april they eat beans on toast here. i think you’re going to have to ask your mom to send you pie.” you giggle.

the woman from earlier walks in, your fellow ilvermorny students following behind.

“ah, we’re all here,” she says, walking to the staircase in front of you. “my name is professor mcgonagall, head of gryffindor house. now, you’re all going to be sorted. the first years have just finished. and i must remind you that where ever you are sorted, you will remain. the point of this program is to have you meet new young wizards and learn about hogwarts. i understand that you had more leeway at ilvermorny choosing houses, but the sorting hat never makes a mistake. now, follow me.”

sophie whispers to you, “i heard that the house rivalries here are enemy like.”

at ilvermorny the only real rivalry is between your house, wampus, and april’s, thuderbird. but it’s more of a sibling rivalry, no actual bad blood.

you quite enjoyed the competitiveness of your house, which you shared with your brother. the both of you loved sport, just in two different ways. he was his best out playing quadpot while you enjoyed cheering him on with the wampus cheer team.

entering the dining hall is a wild experience. the hogwarts students are looking at all of you with a mix of impressed and curious faces. when you all reach the end of the hall mcgonagall lifts a hat from a stool and calls out a name, “taylor allen.”

you watch the horned serpent get sorted straight into ravenclaw and clap along with everyone else. the names continue on until april is called.

she smiles up on the stool and awaits the sorting hat’s decision. after a full minute the hat shouts, “SLYTHERIN!”

april looks surprised but her smile doesn’t fade as she sits down at the slytherin table.

next is your brother who seems to be basking in female attention more than the experience of the new school. you can’t blame him though, he seems to gain fans where ever he goes.

the hat barely touches his head before again, shouting, “SLYTHERIN!”

you furrow your eyebrows at this. you didn’t expect the both of them to end up in the same house, and it leaves you worried that you might be left in a house all alone.

after more names are called, most of them going into hufflepuff or gryffindor, you hear your name.

“y/n l/n.” mcgonagall says.

you make your way to the stool, ready to hear what the hat has to say. the moment it touches your head it begins speaking, scaring you only slightly.

‘ah, competitive like your brother and a will to succeed like your friend. you could do good in hufflepuff, you’re loyal to your core. or maybe gryffindor with that daring attitude. you’re just too complicated for that though. i know, better be, “SLYTHERIN!”

there is no way.

you slowly walk to april and quinn, who look equally as suprised.

“now, y/n, i know we’re friends but i don’t think we’re too much alike to be getting sorted into the same house,” she looks at quinn. “you said they based this off your personality, didn’t ya?”

your brother scratches his neck, “well yeah, that’s what i thought.”

“well whatever, at least we get to be together!” you smile.

“yeah but what about sophie? it would be a bummer if she doesn’t-” april is interrupted by mcgonagall calling, “sophie yates.”

you give april a worried look and she returns it.

sophie however looks utterly content with the tattered hat upon her ginger head. she’s got an amused smirk on her face, and throws the both of you a wink.

“SLYTHERIN!” the hat bellows.

sophie rushes toward the table and sits beside quinn who has a bemused look on his face.

“how in the world did we get so lucky?” you laugh, grinning at your friends.

quinn sighs, “how in the world did i get so unlucky. i’ve got three snitches around me at all times now. it was bad enough being in wampus with just y/n.”

april rolls her eyes, “quinn no one is going to snitch on you. unless you pull another stunt like you did in fourth year.”

“i’ve told you like ten times! i didn’t mean to give you the damn puking potion.” he groans.

“you shouldn’t have been trying to give it to anyone. you’re lucky i only told mom. if headmistress wilma would have found out you would’ve been straight off the quadpot team.” you point.

your conversation is interrupted by a deep voice. in the front of the room behind a podium, stands an absolutely ancient man. headmaster dumbledore.

“i’m so happy to welcome our first years and our ilvermorny exchange students. i know you’ve all been waiting to eat so i’ll make this short. this is the beginning of a new school year, and i can’t wait to see what it has in store. now,” the man raises his arms, “let us eat.”

dinner was good. but nothing like an ilvermorny dinner. there were no burgers, quesadillas, pie, or salmon. you were going to miss all the diverse food back home, but the slytherin common room sure made up for any complaints.

the room was dark and brooding, but it somewhat reminded you of the wampus common room. instead of the windows showing a jungle, the habitat of the wampus cat, the slytherin common room is underwater.

“dude this is baller.” quinn say to his friend and fellow teammate, sebastian.

sebastian grins, “i can’t wait to take pictures down here. i bet i could make a dope album cover.”

sophie laughs, “yeah so long as you actually finish a song.”

the boy makes a face at her before walking toward the boys’ dorm with quinn.

“having them both here is going to kill me.” you say, eyes narrowed as you watch them walk up the stairs.

“oh who cares! whatever trouble they make is on them. enjoy your year y/n.” sophie says, sitting down on the green couch.

you nod and take a seat on the rug, facing her and april. by now, it’s only the three of you in the common room, everyone else flooding to the dorms.

“speaking of enjoying things, i made us all a new playlist on the train ride.” sophie smiles, pulling out her phone.

“if you put any weird shit on it like you did the last one i’m going to kill ya. there was no reason to add ‘i beat my dick today’ to a playlist with lorde on it. it was disgraceful.” april teases

you laugh and grab the phone out of sophie’s hand. you look at the playlist titled, ‘the time they went to hogwarts’, and notice it has only one song on it.

“there’s only one song soph.” you state, confused.

“exactly,” she says snatching the phone back. “we’re going to add the rest over the course of the year. i want it to tell a story.”

“what’s the first song?” april questions.

“doin’ time by lana. because it’s still summer, we have to represent ilvermorny, and the song hits.” sophie says, drawing out the last word.

“well, go ahead and play it. we might as well break in the new common room with april’s shit dancing.” you joke, sticking your to tongue out at her.

she flips you off as sophie starts the song.

the three of you dance around the common room and sing off key, aside from sophie, who has had plenty of practice in the thunderbird choir.

you’re leaning on a desk, ‘seductively’ swaying your ass against april as sophie records the two of you, when you hear a throat being cleared.

april and you spin around, making eye contact with a tall platinum blond.

“what in merlin’s name are you doing?” the boy sneers.

you chuckle, “dancing. why? do british people not dance?”

“of course we dance. but usually we respect ourselves while doing so,” he looks at sophie who’s still recording. “and what is that? how did you get music to come out of it?”

april’s eye bulge, “you mean the phone. honey, i knew y’all weren’t a fan of muggles but you have to be lying about not knowing what a phone is.”

the boy still looks both confused and irritated.

“and what was that little comment about respecting yourselves? are you trying to suggest something?” you say, eyes cold.

“i’m merely asking if you respect yourself. i’ve never met a decent woman who dances like that.” he snides.

“you’re a dick.” you say, simply.

“and you seem to be a bint.” he huffs,

you furrow your brows, “what the fuck is a bint?”

sophie calls from behind her phone, “i’m guessing whore from context clues.”

the boy smirks and grabs a book from the coffee table, “i’m draco. draco malfoy, and if you’d like to not be called a bint i suggest you refrain from grinding against other people in a public area.”

“well, draco malfoy, you’re a little fuck and i could care less what you call me. suck my dick.” you smile sarcastically.

you hear sophie mutter a faint, ‘worldstar’, which causes april to break out in a fit of laughter.

the boy makes one last disgusted look at the three of you before walking up the stairs.

you turn to your friends, beaming, “looks like we’ve already made a friend.”

#—myfics !#draco malfoy #draco malfoy fanfiction #draco malfoy x reader #draco malfoy x y/n #draco x y/n #harry potter #draco x you #draco malfoy series #draco malfoy x slytherin #draco malfoy x female reader #draco malfoy x american! reader #draco x ilvernmorny! reader #draco x poc! reader #draco x black!reader

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thiswasinevitableid · 5 years ago

Note

What about #1 with induck? :3

I decided to make this part of three of “oh no I called the hero and I like him” and “where’s the hero when I need a hug.” But you can also read it as a stand alone.

1: How to make a plot villainous enough to attract they attention but tame enough they won’t get hurt

Indrid stares at the screens, flipping between images and notes, dismissing them one after another.

The scheme needs to hit just the right balance.

It’s been a month and a half since The Green Knight, alias Duck Newton, snuck into his hideout to comfort him after his body and mind betrayed him by making him sad.

They’ve spoken not a word about it to each other. And Duck has once again reverted to only fighting Indrid with another member of the Pine Guard present. Duck kissed his forehead when he left that night, Indrid would bet his entire fortune on it. But Duck won’t even banter with him during battles.

He’ll barely even look at him.

Does he revile Indrid so greatly that any affection between them must be made up for by a double measure of disinterest and mild disgust?

Indrid has thrown everything he can think of at him; if Duck sees him as a villain, then he will be a villain. He will fight, he will scheme, he will swear revenge. No matter how often he thinks of the way Duck fit against him, a puzzle piece in strange picture of this life. How his fingers itch to call him each night.

Even as he runs through his inner monologue he knows he's oversimplifying the matter.

You see, it’s not strictly true Duck hasn’t spoken to him. There have been no face to face talks or phone calls, that is a fact. But if one were to look at Indrid’s personal phone, one would find a text chain that is mainly images. Birds, trees, sunsets, a cat.

The most he gets for context is:

Thought you might like this

Made me think of you. Don’t know why.

And, on the ones of moths

Look, it’s a cousin.

And an even more recent one of an ice cream cone

Tried that Gelato place you liked. You’re right, it’s fucking baller.

Indrid replied blue moon, excellent choice.

He did not add that the flavor is mellow, sweet, and a bit strange, just like the man himself.

He’d considered orchestrating a run-in at that shop, since Aubrey Little’s Instagram suggests Duck has been going there often with his friends. But Indrid has no doubt Mrs. Nyguen would ban him if he started a fight in her shop.

Instead, he’s narrowed down his plot options to two: an art heist, or breaking into the mayor’s mansion.

He has had his eye on that one Gauguin….

------------------------------

Indrid limbers up in the entryway of the museum. Between his powers and technological abilities, the main security was easy to disable. And there is a route to the post-impressionist gallery that will keep him clear of the more heavily secured rooms.

He pads across the tiles to the entrance of the traveling Monet exhibit.

And sticks his foot into the path of the motion sensor he knows is there, setting off an alarm.

He continues forward, setting off more alarms as he goes. Its when he’s in the modernist exhibit that the wisps of unease floating through his system coalesce into a form.

No security guards have appeared. He planned to disarm them and knock them out, and they should be here by now.

A glimpse at the futures gives him just enough time to turn and see a shape stepping into the arched doorway behind him.

“I was wondering if you’d turn up.” A clipped, cold voice muses as the figure produces a small remote, clicking it once to shut off the alarms. He recognizes the reflective white glasses when the figure grins at him.

“The Flame. I, it can’t be, how did I-”

“Not see me coming? I don’t know, little brother. But at a guess it’s because you’ve lost your touch. Which would be of little concern to me, had your carelessness not just alerted our enemies to our presence here. So I will be need to be certain you cannot cause such issues in the future. Not to mention, one fewer villain in the city means one less person to stop me from taking total control of the underworld.”

Indrid narrowly avoids a blast of white light, diving into the annex to his right. He doesn’t retaliate, activates his wings and shoots straight up through the skylight instead.

He’s not ready to fight the Flame. He’s never been ready. Not when they were children, training together. Not when they were sparring partners. Not when he’d finally had enough, when he saw just how much The Flame enjoyed hurting people.

That’s why he ran from him in the first place.

Landing on the roof, he considers his escape routes. Where is his nearest hideout, where is is his defensive equipment, where-

A small, clear orb hits the toe of his shoe. Even as he throws his arms around his eyes, he knows it won’t be enough. The light is blinding, bleaching his eyes as he crumples to the bricks beneath him. The next phase of the disorienter kicks in, high pitched tones drowning out his ability to hear anything, save for The Flame’s voice.

“You’ve become such a disappointment, little brother. First you abandon the life we trained for, your constitution too weak to handle the realities of our profession.”

“You, you speak as though I haven’t spent the last several years a prominent villain in my own right.”

“You’ve thrown in with some two-bit thieves and blackmailers, perhaps an eco-terrorist or an anarchist superhero when the mood struck. And you’re soft. The Indrid I knew would never hesitate to kill his rival by any means necessary. You’ve spared the Green Knight so many times I lost count.”

“You spied on me.”

“Of course. I, unlike some people, know how to scope the hero/villain layout of a town before making my debut. Good god, brother, you must have used your powers to determine your enemy’s name and true identity by now.”

“What I do with my powers is no business of yours.” He kicks a leg out in the direction of The Flame’s voice. The fear flooding his mind, scanning the futures for escape, means he fails to see the weapon before it connects with his shoulders.

The scream of pain as electricity courses through him goes unheeded. The Flame does it a second time, and Indrid collapses, limp, on the ground.

“Goodbye, little brother. So nice of you to lend my grand entrance into the city’s awareness an extra victim.”

Indrid loses consciousness to the sound of sparks.

---------------------------------------------

“Ned, can you get us closer?” Aubrey yells from her position on the wing of the hovercraft, “I need to be more in a closer range to control something this big!”

“I will do my best, but if the wings begin melting I reserve the right to get us the hell out of here!”

“There any way I can help, Lady Flame?” Duck leans over the passenger side of the craft, looking down at the blazing rooftop for the origin of the fire.

“Grab me if I lose my balance?”

“Will do--oh, fuck! There’s someone down there. Aubrey, can you clear me a patch, right there, so I can jump down?”

“I can” the first half of the fire dies out when Aubrey makes a fist, “but that roof can’t be stable at this point.”

“I’ll take my chances.”

Aubrey circles his arm twice, and a landing pad appears around the figure. He leaps from the craft, hits his mark right by the body’s feet. The smoke is still thick, even with Aubrey’s intervention, so he squints as he gathers the figure into his arms.

“Don’t worry, we’re getting you out of here--ah! Oh come the fuck on!” He yells to no one in particular as the roof gives out beneath him.

Landing on his knees, he’s relieved to find the fire never made it inside , though smoke did. In the flickering orange and spinning red and blue from the nearby emergency vehicles, he shifts the body in his arms, looks down with clear eyes for the first time.

“.....Indrid?”

Nothing.

Indrid’s chest is corpse-cold in spite of the fire when Duck puts his ear against it. There’s a heartbeat there, a faint flutter that’s the most beautiful noise to ever grace his ears.

Duck turns to the portraits on the walls, “what the fuck do I do now?”

-----------------------

The first thought in Indrid’s mind is: pine?

As he noses the soft pillowcase, still half-dreaming of coastal woods and a campfire, his eyes blink open.

The room is dark, unfamiliar. Thick curtains cover the windows, thicker blankets coat the bed in which he’s laying.

Cautiously, he pushes the covers aside and eases his feet onto the ground. His glasses are waiting for him on the bedside table, and his reflection in the closet mirror shows his thin frame covered in black sweatpants and a large shirt that reads “Devils Lake State Park.”

Hell has a sense of humor, it seems. A sense of humor and a very rustic decorating style.

He opens the bedroom door, poking his head out into the dark hallway. Moves slowly, half from the stiffness between his shoulder blades from where The Flame hit him, and half from apprehension of what’s at the other end of the hall.

The answer turns out to be anticlimactic; a living room, with a kitchen off to one side.

Maybe the flames and sulfur are waiting for him outside the front door.

Or maybe he’s not dead, maybe someone rescued him.

No, that second option is ridiculous.

“Mew?”

“AH!” He jumps as a black, scruffy cat bumps into his shin.

“H-hello there, little friend, do you happen to know where I am?”

“Mew.” The cat hops onto the back of a nearby chair, and he pets it hesitantly.

“My, you’re soft. Soft and familiar. Where have I seen you bef-, oh, oh my, it can’t be. He wouldn’t.”

The front door opens and Indrid grabs the cat protectively, spinning to face whatever comes through it.

“Mornin.”

“It, it is your house.” Indrid stares at Duck, the cat wiggling free of his hold and bounding over to greet her owner.

“Uh, yeah.” Duck slips off his canvas sneakers, grocery bags slipping on his arms as he bends to pet the cat, “where else would it be?”

Indrid looks at the room around him more carefully; the poster for the Monongahela forest, photos on a shelf showing Duck with family and friends, the ranger had hung by the front door.

“In retrospect, it was a tad obvious. But in my defense, I assumed I was dead and in hell.”

“Geez, my decoratin ain’t that bad.”

“Nono, I’m sorry, I mean-” he stops when a grin cracks Duck’s face, and is managing a smile in return when his back spasms and he grips the chair to keep from falling.

“Shit, you okay?” Duck sets the bags down and hurries over to him.

“Yes. I, the weapon the Flame used, the side effects can be felt for over a week. It also scrambles the futures in my mind for several days, which tends to make me dizzy.”

“Fuck, that sucks. Uh, I got some Tylenol and other medicine and shit while I was out, wasn’t sure what you’d need, and, uh, don’t usually have it in the house on account of bein super tough. You should probably eat before you take anythin though.”

“Yes, good idea. I, uh, I don’t want to impose, I, I can get something on my way home.”

“Uhhhhhhhhhhh.” Duck scratches his arm, ashamed, “no, you can’t. You ain’t in any shape to travel, or to be on your own for longer than a few hours. I brought you here so I could look after you somewhere safe, where whoever hurt you couldn’t find you.”

“That’s very kind, Duck, but all the same I should go back to my hideout.”

“Also you’re under house arrest.”

“Excuse me?!” Indrid leaps up, then immediately sits back down, dizzy.

“Look, when the police saw who I rescued, they kept clamorin for me to turn you over, or to send you to a hospital who would do the same as soon as you opened your eyes. I just...couldn’t do it. So Ned talked ‘em into a deal. You’d stay under house arrest with the Pine Guard, and we’d look after you while also makin sure you couldn’t start nothin.”

“So I’m going to live here. With you.” Indrid tries to sound resigned instead of excited.

“Yep. But, uh, if you need a break or change of scene, or we ain’t gettin along, even though it sees like we been doin a better job of that lately, you can stay with someone else. Aubrey’s place has a real nice garden, and Mama’s is real fortified and cozy-”

“Duck, I want to stay here. I am sure the others are lovely once you get to know them but, well, I trust you. I, you have seen me in vulnerable moments and did not harm me. You didn’t even mock me. I feel safe with you. Also, your cat likes me.” He points to where said cat is now kneading his leg, purring happily.

“That is a point in your favor. Here, I’m gonna go put away groceries and get some pizza bagels heatin up. You just take it easy right here, okay?”

“I can manage that. But, before you do, please answer me one thing?”

“Shoot.”

“Why did you stop fighting me one on one?”

Duck sighs, sitting down so the cat is between them, “I wish I could say it was some strategy or because I wanted to be better at keepin the city safe. Real reason is, I was gettin fonder and fonder of you. I didn’t know what I’d do if we were alone, and not knowin scared the fuck out of me.”

“I see. Was it so alarming to feel affection for me?”

“Wha-no, no, what I meant was that I was afraid I wouldn’t want to hurt you but you’d still want to hurt me, or I’d want to do things with you that you didn’t want but felt like you couldn’t stop me, or, just, any combo of things where conflictin feelins lead to trouble.”

“Oh.”

Duck stares at him for a moment, waiting for him to say more. But nothing comes. Indrid wants to confess, but he can’t figure out what, exactly, the confession would be. The shorter man’s face falls for an instant, before he smiles again.

“Guess we’re roommates now.”

“Roommates. Yes.” Indrid wracks his brain for what he knows about how two people live in a space, something he has not done since he ran all those years ago.

When that fails, he draws on his nights in front of the T.V for clues.

“Do I need to label my food? Or hang a sock on the door?”

“What?” Duck giggles

“Those are roommate things!”

“You’re right, you’re right” Duck holds up his hands in surrender, still giggling, “You don’t gotta label food, and no need to hang a sock if you need privacy; that room you’re in is the spare bedroom. Mine’s just across the hall. We can figure out chores and things as we go; might make you clean the bathrooms to make up for all the punchin.”

“That is more than fair.” Indrid smiles.

“There it is.” Duck murmurs.

Indrid cocks his head.

“That smile. You’re happy one, not your evil one. Make’s you look so fuckin stunnin.”

He disappears into the kitchen before Indrid can decide on being flattered or flustered. Settles on both, rolls onto his back on the couch, pulling a large, plaid blanket down onto himself, fuzzes with the pillows to find a position that doesn’t hurt.

The smell of processed cheese and cheap marinara fills the house as Duck walks in with something hidden behind his back.

“You might need this while you’re nestin up on the couch.”

He produces the mothman pillow from Indrid’s hide-out, which the villain grabs, wrapping his arms around it.

“Kinda had to give away your hideout. Sorry. They’re gonna bring more of your stuff over later, but they let me put together a box of things you might need right away. Grabbed your toothbrush and such too.”

“Thank you.” Indrid’s replies, muffled against the pillow. “Duck, I, I don’t know how, what am I supposed to do now? How am I supposed to repay you?”

“You don’t got to. Yeah, there’s some things you could do that’d make both our lives a whole fuck of a lot easier. But Indrid?” He kneels down so they’re face to face, cups the back of Indrid’s head, and it’s tender and warm and Indrid presses into the gesture, desperate for more.

“Long and short of it is I’m so fuckin glad you’re alive.”

The chapped lips on his cheek can’t be written off as a dream this time. Duck turns his face gently by his chin to kiss the other and Indrid whimpers.

The timer dings.

“That’s lunch ready. I’ll go grab it, we gotta some calories into you, you been out for nearly whole fuckin day.” He stands, pauses, then reaches forward to trail a thumb on Indrid’s left cheek and down to his lips.

“Don’t you go anywhere.”

Indrid kisses the pad of the thumb before nipping it once, “Not a chance. You are stuck with me, Duck Newton.”

Duck grins, “Think I can handle that”

#indrid cold/duck newton #indruck #duck x indrid #superhero au #prompt fill

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welsh-gamer · 5 years ago

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Finished Persona 5

Spoilers below

I haven’t played a game that had such a spectacular flare since I completed the original Bayonetta a couple of years ago.

In fact... Could Persona 5 have even MORE SPECTACLE???

This game, which was part JRPG part visual novel, was beautifully designed, had a distinctive style which emphasises teen spirit, and had a kickin’ OST to boot.

My biggest pros would be that every action in the game - even pressing a button - is done with style and speed. It is not slow. Sometimes battles last utterly forever, but the majority of them are taken up by move animations, and not even a millisecond is wasted on the action pausing while text is displayed cough Pokemon cough

none of the screens have LOADING TIMES either - it’s highly optimised. You only get loading screens when entering new areas and loading cutscenes, which is as it should be!!!

The story was rather depressing, and difficult to go through. At times it felt like it had peaked during the Kamoshida arc, where the characters dealt with a very real threat, one which you might see in the classroom.

I think that story-wise it got weaker and weaker but then the story acknowledged that we had a lack of motivation to do what we were doing, and the characters were heavily punished for it. Joker got a bleak treatment throughout, and it seemed every victory was followed up by a monkey’s paw, until it escalated into the final battle against Mementos - humanity’s hearts had become so tainted that they willed a God into existence which would force them into imprisonment.

I think I understand what the “anti-Morgana” was now - was that the Holy Grail, in its original state?

Gameplay-wise... The combat system doesn’t particularly add to the story, but it’s nice to be able to sit back and think about what you’re doing. I don’t think that the dungeons are greatly inspired though because once you’ve knocked out an enemy the first time, you know how to knock them out every other time, and all the different abilities don’t become useful unless you encounter a powerful enemy with no weaknesses or a boss fight. On the other hand fights can become unfair; I would find it frustrating at times when I wanted to proceed with the story, only to be spotted by an enemy, ambushed, oneshot, and kicked all the way back to the previous saferoom.

I have mixed feelings about the Calender system too; I found it impossible to get all the confidents levelled up, because in order to do this you need to have all 5 of your stats at max. This is particularly awkward with Makoto and Haru, because you need to be maxed out when you’ve only made a little bit of progress with them. I also needed to be maxed out with Sojiro and didn’t get his goodbye present either.

There’s a time after you complete each palace, where all the characters talk about how uncertain they are with the results. This time period can last anything from one day to 20, depending on how quickly you finished. My average was 12, and it peaked at 19 when I finished Futaba’s palace on the first possible day and she slept for 3 weeks.

So here is my score:

Gameplay: 6 - Satisfying, but can get very repetitive and tiring.

Story: 9 - Spectacular, and there is lots of worldbuilding outside of the main storyline, but it’s marred from perfection by the repetitiveness of how characters have exactly the same reaction to most events in the game.

Music: 10 - Every track in the game is baller.

Presentation: 10 - Best use of available resources to emphasize a specific style. Each dungeon is completely unique. Also there’s anime.

Replayability: 4 - There are lots of boons to a second playthrough, but because it’s so story driven and the gameplay isn’t incredible, I don’t see myself becoming interested in Round 2 until Royal releases in the UK.

Timewasting degree: Low - Gameplay is very fast. The fastest I have ever seen - not a millisecond is lost. There is a lot of downtime between palaces however, and it can take a long time to get back into the action because of story events.

Overall total: 8.5 out of 10. A reminder of how spirited a game can be in a time of tripleA shittyness.

#persona 5 #gaming #persona

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howtohero · 5 years ago

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#233 Being a Guest in Someone Else’s Hideout

A lot of times superheroes need to be very secretive. They do dangerous work that (if they’re doing literally anything right) is going to net them some very unscrupulous and ruthless enemies. Superheroes need to keep secrets from their enemies, the public, their loved ones, just about everybody. Generally they’ll keep a good number of secrets from their fellow superheroes. Like we’ve said, a superhero is just one expired coupon away from becoming a supervillain. So when a superhero invites you, another superhero, to their hideout, their fortress of attitude, their superman cave, well that’s a big deal. So let’s behave ourselves why don’t we?

It is important to be polite when invited to another hero’s hideout, in order to ensure future invitations back. Superheroes constantly find themselves stepping in all manner of ooze, muck, and living clay, so always make sure to wipe your feet before entering. Do not confuse the absence of any sort of welcome mat as license to forget this rule. Obviously a superhero is not going to put a welcome mat in front of the entrance to their secret hideout. That’s a great way to alert supervillains that this cliffside or large tree stump or inert robot dinosaur is not all that it seems. Plus, you’d definitely get vampires wandering in all the time. So, you should always carry a shoe-brush in your utility belt, in order to avoid tracking up your friend’s home with toxic waste or melted witches. (For a limited time only if you send us $66.99 we’ll send you a Free shoe brush!) Be sure to compliment your host on their lovely home. Remark upon their collection of supervillain masks and how the well they really nailed that authentic guano smell. Tell them that you just love the greco-roman architecture on display in their “Supervillain’s Oversized Prop (Explosive)” room and the very chic gothic spires you’ve got your (what you hope are) dummy replicas of their enemies heads mounted on.

If you’ve been invited to a fellow hero’s secret private space it’s probably for some purpose, so make sure you don’t do anything that would detract from that. If you’re there because your own hideout has been compromised and your comrade has graciously allowed you to hide out in their hideout, make sure you don’t make any of the same mistakes you made with your own hideout. Turn off any tracking or location-reading apps on your phone and then- wait you know what, chuck your phone into a river, it’s not been doing you any favors and also I hear that you’ve been spamming the superhero group chat which I believe is really a thing with memes about yourself. (Not a cool look bud.) Additionally, I wouldn’t touch anything that you haven’t been given explicit permission to touch. It’s possible that certain items or spots in this hideout have been booby trapped in the event that it is invaded. Touching a computer might send out a distress signal that can be hijacked. Attempting to use the coffee machine could activate a cache of hidden weapons. Pulling a book out of a shelf could reveal a secret set of stairs that leads up the hero’s home. Depending on how paranoid the hero is, anything could be anything. So no touchy.

You also want to be especially careful not to break anything as who knows what kind of disastrous consequences that could have. You might inadvertently destroy a vase that had been acting as a prison for evil spirits. Or you might knock over a bottle that contains an entire solar system inside of it. You might just break something the hero was especially fond of and who knows! That could easily turn them into a supervillain! Honestly, if you have a history of being clumsy and knocking things over, I would just decline the invitation entirely. If this hero so desperately wants to talk to you somewhere private just invite them over to your presumably padded hideout. You just can’t run the risk of knocking over some poison gas canister or a bomb or a picture of the hero’s late parents.

You also need to treat any employees or sidekicks working or residing in the hideout with the utmost respect. Remember, you are a guest. That does not give you the right to be rude. If anything you can’t even manage to get people to come over your hideout for meetings or recipe-swaps, so you have less of a right to be rude than usual. So be on your best behavior. Find out what it is everybody there does and make sure you say something nice about their work. Tell the electrician how much you love the lighting (even if the lighting consists of six strobe lights that are not even in sync with one another and are giving you a massive headache). Tell the tailor how much you love all of the costumes your friend wears (even the late nineties one with all of the pouches). Heap compliment upon compliment upon compliment onto the plumber for the state of the art bathrooms in the hideout. (Even if the “bathroom” just consists of a hole this guy dug into the ground. Digging a poop hole is hard work. Especially if this hideout is in the penthouse of a downtown office building!)

Being invited to hang out in another hero’s hideout is a big deal! It shows that the other hero has a great deal of trust and respect for you (or they have a strong desire to flex on you by showing off their absolutely baller hideout. Rule of thumb, if they have any sort of lazy river or soft-drink dispenser then it’s probably this one.) and you in turn need to treat their space with respect. So don’t lead any supervillains to their front door, don’t make a mess, and don’t accidentally discover their secret identity. If you can manage to follow all of these rules then you’ll be invited back again soon in no time. (Maybe you’ll finally get an invite to one of those legendary superhero slumber parties! Make sure you make numerous references to all the spots in the hideout that you think your sleeping bag would perfectly fit in.)

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zephyrthejester · 6 years ago

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Code Geass Deadblog: Episode 47

Only one episode covered this time, for a specific reason... Long story short, I’ve changed my mind and I’ll give episodes 48 and 49 the full liveblog treatment, in addition to the finale! More info at the bottom.

To no one's surprise, Lelouch's first action as Emperor of Britannia was to destroy Britannia. Tore down the mausoleum housing Emperors and Empresses past, up-heaved and dismantled all manner of noble cliques and stations... And who was to oppose him? Essentially every important political figure had just fallen under his supreme command in one fell swoop. Everything seemed to be going well, and the rest of the world looked upon Lelouch's actions with favorable eyes. The Black Knights, the sole people who knew Lelouch was once Zero, were caught in a rock and a hard place and didn't really know what the hell to do.

Aaaaaand then Lulu went full tyrant. Squashing out all possible resistance from other nations, and Commanding entire rooms full of soldiers to become his "slaves." His words, not mine! Yeah, I suppose that Lelouch no longer has any reason to make a world for Nunnaly, right? At this point, I guess Lulu decided to kick up his feet, have some fun, and make a world just for himself. Oh, and then he prepared to "spill an ocean of blood" in order to make Euphemia's massacre all but forgotten. Clearing her name, in a very very very twisted, fucked up way.

It was at this point I started sweating nervously. Perhaps the most distressing aspect of this plot was Suzaku, who was totally onboard. It's like... Dude! I know you gave in and decided that ends do justify means, but HOLY SHIT, THESE MEANS ARE HARDCORE, MY DUDE!

Almost to prove that point, Suzaku next proceeded to kick the asses of four former Knights of the Round, who flew in to attack the Imperial Palace, citing their loyalty to the late Charles. Man. This felt like watching the apocalyptic bad ending to a video game. Indeed, the Lancelot Albion, a 9th Generation KnightMare Frame, broke the Knights of the Round like they were toys. Two nameless Knights died in seconds, while Gino was spared (but sent hurtling to the ground below). Suzaku found actual challenge in facing Bismarck, whose Geass power let him... See the future! Wow, a Geass power that actually doesn't do anything to other people? That's a first!

And man, I gotta say, it was supremely cool how Suzaku managed to defeat him. Suzaku gave himself over to Lelouch's command to Live. Suzaku's geass-controlled auto-pilot, therefore, broke the rules. Bismarck couldn't see Suzaku's future because him doing so would make Suzaku die, but... Suzaku couldn't die! In fact, I wonder if Bismarck simply misunderstood how his own Geass works. He said he's only ever used it once before (against Marianne, as a matter of fact). Perhaps it was the case that he didn't so much as see the future, but saw people's intentions. That would definitely make it a bit easier to understand.

Regardless, Suzaku killed him in style and Lelouch took the opportunity to broadcast it to the world... Then followed it up by announcing that Britannia was immediately joining the United Federation of Nations. Therefore, the world would truly be united under one banner. What a baller! The sweet, sweet cherry on top was Lelouch's declaration of where the negotiations would be held... On a certain neutral ground, not controlled by either side... Japan. Specifically, Ashford Academy. BECAUSE OF-FREAKING-COURSE.

Once I saw the massive crowd of people around the Academy, and saw Lelouch's suspicious plan to go there alone with naught but C.C. and a few guards by his side, I recalled Lelouch's promise to spill an ocean of blood. It was at this point I started sweating uncontrollably, flooding my apartment with ankle-deep water. Before a slaughter, though, a little heartbreak: Kallen received Lelouch, and per his will, they took a detour and managed to speak alone. Kallen managed to ask every question she could have wanted to ask. Asked what she is to him. Asked why he told her that she needed to live. Even surprised him with a kiss on the lips... But Lelouch's stone-faced silence was an answer that rang clear. "You mean nothing to me." With finality, they both left with the knowledge they'd never speak to each other like that again.

The negotiations took me by surprise. Kaguya, Tohdoh, and Ohgi spoke to Lelouch with conviction, stating that due to how votes for laws and other such matters were made based on the percentage of population in a nation works, Britannia joining them would mean Lelouch would control the majority of the world's votes-- and therefore, all of it. Lelouch was given a choice between two disadvantageous outcomes to help balance that, but instead, Lelouch posed a whimsical question. What is the most important trait of a ruler? Destruction, he said. The will to destroy everything... even oneself. Uh... Uh-oh.

Naturally, Lelouch promptly declared war on the entire world. Because of course he would. The Lancelot rocketed into the room and held the world's leaders at gunpoint, and Lelouch kindly asked them to begin the democratic voting. What a stand-up guy! Elsewhere, his main forces began moving in on Japan, and Nina, carrying some manner of technology with her, was apprehended by some Geassed citizens. That's PROBABLY for the best. Seriously, has Nina done one good thing this entire show? Stop her before anything starts!

The episode ended with what had to be the most "this show is such ridiculous bullshit, and I love the fuck out of it" moment it has ever had. Schneizel made a move of his own... The flying fortress, the Damocles, three kilometers in size, nuked the Imperial City/Palace with a massively powerful FLEIJA. Not a single trace of the city remained. But you know what the utterly absurd, ridiculous, amazing, and stupid, and stupidly amazing, amazingly stupid cherry on top was? Schneizel paged through to Lelouch and revealed that he had someone with him who he wanted to make the true ruler. Nunnaly. Nunnaly, who promptly declared herself Lelouch and Suzaku's enemy.

I knew exactly who it freaking was the moment Schneizel made the slightest hint that he was talking about someone other than himself. And I immediately launched into a mad cackle, because I knew that the show WOULD be willing to ascend to such levels of cheesy bullshit... Boy. This show really is the best kind of stupid. It really is.

It's so twisted and perfect, it really is. Lelouch had no morals to cling to, did his thing, then went off the point of no return in a grand scheme. Then, the MOMENT he did so, Schneizel pulled the rug out from under him and revealed that-- oh, hey-- Lelouch's moral compass and reason for living is, in fact, still alive. And she just got every reason to freaking loathe him and become his enemy.

What a trip. In fact, the show has become such a trip, I think I’m going to change my plans! Due to the meaty content of the last few episodes, and the inspired turn of events here, I think I want to give the final three episodes the full Liveblog treatment! So I hope you’ll join me for that!

Other Notes:

There was a bit where the show lingered on a three-story staircase in Nina's lab room, and Rivalz arrived at the top with pizza, and then with a camera cut he apparently walked down all those stairs in a flash. Was kinda funny.

Lelouch got himself a snazzy hat. I'm so proud of him.

Tamaki remains MVP. I loved his flip-flopping on Lelouch, between undying buddy to hate. I also loved how he shut up someone who also complained about him; Only Tamaki gets to insult his worst nemesis-buddy!

Schneizel openly stated to Lulu that every single FLEIJA warhead is stocked on the Damocles. Therefore, that is clearly not true.

Gino's fate was left unanswered. Might he swoop in as an unexpected ally later? Suzaku's words did have him questioning his own motives and loyalties, swaying to the side of Lelouch and Britannia... Meanwhile, Anya was spotted chillin' with Schneizel and Cornelia, casually updating her digital diary, so I guess she's her old self still.

#Code Geass #Code Geass Liveblog #Code Geass episode 42 #Liveblogging #Liveblog

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aurimeanswind · 7 years ago

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Pitchforks and Torches—Sunday Chats (8/13/17)

I got a lot of great feedback from last week’s Sunday Chats! Thank you to the over 30 people that participated! The most in any Sunday Chats ever! It was a ton of fun hearing all of your favorite JRPGs of all time and why, and I think I already have next month’s question picked out. I’ll be asking it the first Sunday in September, and I look forward to hearing what all of you pick!

Now, onto this week’s normal Sunday Chats, starting with a bit of a heavy topic, that I feel passionately about... Let’s go.

Nazis Are Bad

So this fucking happened.

Source

As I understand it, using my preferred source of the BBC, a bunch of alt-right folks decided to light torches and protest the removal of the last Confederate statue at the University of Virginia, which is maybe three hours south of me, so that’s a little disarming.

Oh and then I saw this picture:

Source

Can we talk about this? Like, can we take a minute, take a step back, and fucking talk about this?

So yes, the Alt-Right are basically Nazis, and that’s not cool, and their very very scary ideals and growlingly loud voice is unnerving. Them lighting torches (clearly bought at the local Home Depot) and marching through the streets of a college campus, an institute about educating our future, and protesting the removal of a Souther Confederate hero, and seceded nation established entirely on the basis of the fact that they wanted to continue owning people, as in human beings, and you wonder how you went to bed one night in a bad timeline and woke up the next morning in the worst timeline.

I don’t like talking about politics, in general. And I don’t like bringing that into the sometimes jolly Sunday Chats, but this is absurd. This is fictional, or at least it should be. This is how Stephen King’s next post-apocolyptic book starts, with Nazis, marching in the United States of America, a place founded and evolved upon on the idea of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but above that, freedom, and here we are.

I get it. First amendment. Sure. Whatever. But these are terrorists. And I know this isn’t any kind of new rhetoric to be used, new words to be chosen, but it’s true. These folks are protesting the removal of someone who didn’t care about one of this country’s most basic and important tentpoles: freedom. And if you believed in him, I just don’t think you believe in the same United States that the world did and still does.

But I’m not all pessimism. I think these privileged white supremacist assholes are not reflective of all of America. I think there are far more people in this country that remember learning about World War 2, remember knowing that Hitler, to which that salute was to, was a man who enabled the greatest genocide in human history. Who took freedom away from so many for nothing. For nothing by power.

And I know there are more people out there that believe that then believe in this supremacist bullshit.

So don’t be quite about it. Tweet. Tell your friends. Tell them that hey:

Nazis were, and still are bad. They didn’t suddenly become kind of okay. No. They were bad. They are bad. That never changed. And we shouldn’t shudder in fear. Because hey: we grossly outnumber these people that think rights can disappear overnight. I believe that. I know everyone reading this does too. So don’t be quiet about it.

Okay, that’s enough serious talk. It needed to be said, and if you want a bit of an even more angry take on it, from someone in a better place to talk about discrimination than me, my friend Moises Taveras wrote a great write up on the matter. Read it: https://t.co/DzkIVtqMjg

What’s On Tap

Sundered

My adventures with Sundered continues, and boy is a great video game.

It’s gorgeous in its movement. I just got to the first boss, and I think the hand drawn artstyle really shines when you get to see it on such a massive scale at work.

Something that concerns me is the kind of pointless and ever-ambient increase of enemies in play. It feels like they show up more as a distraction to keep you busy from one chokepoint to the next, not that they’re adding substantial value to the dungeon crawling?

I don’t know if that’ll bring the experience down for me, but as I get more abilities, the game gets more and more fun.

Overwatch

STILL GOOD.

I GOT MY MERCY SKIN

TEARS

What I’ve Been Working On

So I’ve been writing a lot, and I think I have a couple of written articles that may be ready to go up. I started taking notes for my Sundered review, and I’m excited to dig into it.

I’ve got some ideas for video content but I’m still to nervous to start shooting. Watching the OKBeast dudes put out video essays every week now really has me feeling inadequate though. I gotta step my game up! We’ll see what I have as a one-man production team.

I finished up a pretty exciting piece on Overwatch that should go up tomorrow or the day after though, so there is something coming out finally that I can't wait for you all to read!

Questions

As always, you can hunt down my tweet with the hashtag #SundayChats in it on Sunday afternoons over at Twitter.com/ALFighter27 and get your question in the Sunday Chats party!

I may have made a joke while playing Overwatch with Nato here about Widowmaker standing on my neck with 10″ heels and might have referred to the sensation as “the hardest you’ve ever been in your entire life”... so... uh...

10 is a good max I think.

And I’m sorry you all know I made that joke now.

Roger, have you ever thought about maybe asking me a genuine, fun, funny question? Like... I dunno. I feel like you know me so well you could ask me like, good questions.

I mean, in a perfect world, hell yes. I think there is plenty of room to do so, and honestly I think Marvel would be pretty into the idea considering they are out there getting trusted AAA developers to work with their properties. I especially think if NetherRealm pitched them on it they’d be interesting. I think DC is the bigger issue.

The fact of the matter is the two big companies should and need to be more careful with their licenses. I think with them getting more into the movie space and superheroes becoming more and more of a household name, they need to make sure they associate them with things to further and built that brand. I think this would help, but I could see a room full of executives for some reasons think it wouldn’t work.

But either way NetherRealm would be the ones to make the game. I’d love to see them just make a Marvel game in the style of Injustice just in general. Imagine what Spider-Man’s move set would be!! Oh man.

Aww I miss you too Xyger!

I’d love to see Doomfist get like, a good Wolfman skin, that’d be super rad, to see him with like big claws or something. Since his attacks are melee focused that’d be cool.

Maybe see McCree get a Van Helsing skin. I mean come on, that one is a total given!

Yeah that second one is a way more plausible idea.

I really liked Fantastic Beasts! I was worried it’d be bad, but it is far more in the spirit of the books, I feel.

I mean, I’ve always liked Nifflers, which you get to see in the movie too! But for real though it’s all about the Dragons. Dragons are the coolest. I always really like the idea of the Chinese Fireball too, an actual snake-like Chinese dragon. Goddamn.

I don’t think I am getting any of those specifically, since I am still playing make up with Nier Automata, and I just bought Hellblade. I want to play Tacoma sometime this week too.

Though I’m not going to lie, Sonic Mania has me interested with that phenomenal opening. I am really excited for more folks to get into Undertale too, but I just am trying to focus on the things I have yet to get to this year. I need to play Splatoon 2 still!

I mean of the originals I don’t know if I can remember a favorite. I remember I always loved Tails, so it was probably Sonic and Tails.

Of the newer or 3D ones, yeah, I like Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. It is a BAD VIDEO GAME, but I ENJOY IT A LOT. And I understand and recognize that. But I hear Sonic Colors is rad!

I’m not a huge Sonic guy. Maybe Sonic Mania will be the one to get me!

My day is going great! I have the day off, and after not feeling super great yesterday, I slept in, then went grocery shopping, cleaned the kitchen, and made some sweets! It was a ton of fun! It’s nice to have money again!

As for next project from IP, I don’t know. A lot of the things I am working on would be more solo projects, but I’m excited for Extra Life and the madness that that will be. Case Study is still coming at some point, and we are coming up on the one year anniversary of the beginning of Alex Talks S3. Maybe I’ve got SOMETHING planned.

Ohh man this is such a good question. I have a ton of answers, I’ve been thinking about this since I saw this tweet.

One of them is for sure the treasury building in Libertalia from Uncharted 4.

Another would probably be the Museum from the opening of Sly 2, just because I love it.

And the third and final is of course, OF COURSE, Hyrule Castle. Probably from either Twilight Princess or, more likely, Breath of the Wild.

Yes.

Yes they have.

Which ya know, is definitely a compliment. She is a very pretty woman! Both the fictional character and also the porn star!

I mean, it’s weird for me because I liked 2008 more than I liked 2007 for video games, because of Fallout 3 and Super Paper Mario specifically. Gears of War 2 also came out that year, which was the game that got me to buy and Xbox 360!

So that being said, yeah 2017 is fucking straight fire, and there is no denying 97 was one of the most baller years for games. So there is something too this theory. Maybe Kingdom Hearts 4 will come out in 2027 and solidify this fact.

That’s right. I said Kingdom Hearts 4. I’m already getting greedy and thinking ahead to the future.

I would join absolutely none of them, but I am a Dany fanboy. Fuck the haters. Dany is the best queen. I do also love Jon Snow, and would probably pretend to fight for him too.

OMG OMG OMG!

THIS IS AMAZING

HOLY SHIT FRANK!

I love this more than I can even begin to describe to you. Holy fuck.

Man I never thought of a Persona tattoo, but now I kind of want one. I’d have to think of a better one though.

Cheers dude, this is amazing.

No checklist this week! I’m sorry all! I have been bad and haven’t been reading/watching as much as I should!

That’s all I’ve got. My roommates are grilling up stairs and it’s time to get together and watch some Game of Thrones I think, so get excited!

Thanks for reading. Take what I said to heart please? Nazis are bad. Don’t stand for discrimination, the theft of our freedom, actual and metaphorical, and don’t be a fucking racist prick.

Love you all.

Keep it real.

#video games #gaming #nazis are bad #overwatch #questions #persona

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jflashandclash · 7 years ago

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Attrition of Peace

Eleven: Ajax

You were Looking for Answers? That’s Hilarious!

Normally, when Pax found himself covered in blood, he’d have to take the opportunity to mess with someone. Maybe dramatically lie in a place where his brother would find him, or run into a room shouting, “Zombies! They’re everywhere!” and pretend to zombify… though this might not be the most ideal location to be a zombie. Too many trigger-happy kids with access to Roman weapons and chainsaws.

Right now though, he was too tired. He just wanted to slink back into the Fifth Cohort’s barracks unnoticed, and either curl up in Kally’s or his brother’s lap. Hades, he’d even go for Calex’s lap, under the condition that he’d make Calex feel absurdly uncomfortable before Calex would punch him in the back of the head.

When he saw some legionnaires playing poker on the Fifth Cohort’s porch, Pax couldn’t remember any of their names. He was too deliriously exhausted. If they talked to him, he decided he’d just give them a thumbs up and moonwalk into the barracks.

When they stood up, looking alarmed at his approach, he realized that moonwalking might break whatever character he was playing. Had he morphed into someone else? That would mean he wasn’t covered in blood. But his hair, height, and skinny jeans all felt like him.

“Oh—uh—Hazel’s not in yet. She’s still out with Frank,” one of them said.

“We can tell her to meet you by the temple if you want. That’ll give us more time to prepare for evening inspection,” the other said.

“Augh, evening barracks inspection,” the first groaned.

Pax jammed his hands into his pockets and shrugged, breezing right past them. “I’ll wait for her in here,” he grumbled.

Neither tried to stop him. They seemed too scared.

Pax stumbled into the barracks. As Pax had hoped, most of the Romans weren’t inside. They were likely out at the bathhouses during their tiny bit of free time after dinner.

Each little chamber had three sets of bunk beds and a section for their armor. When he finally found the empty room that his friends were assigned, he almost collapsed into Kally lap.

She sat on the floor beside the door, her knees pulled up so she could lean a notebook against them. Her honey hair was damp from a recent bath. The ends hanged against her sweatpants; Hazel probably loaned them to her.

Merry paced back and forth across the room, humming softly and tapping a cell phone in the crook of her shoulder and ear.

Euna was curled up in one of the barrack beds, Backbiter resting beside her pillow, like a replacement, homicidal teddy bear.

Axel and Calex were missing, likely at the Roman bathes, discussing Axel’s hopeful successes and that little surprise gift Pax had left in Axel’s pocket.

The thought of curling up in Kally’s lap was too much, like chowing down on a stack of Reese’s Sticks. Pax sank to the ground and rested his face against her leg.

Kally almost screamed, making Merry tap a finger to her lips to call for silence.

“Nico!” she yelped. “What are you—Pax?!?”

At her outburst, Merry shook her head to an unheard beat and stepped out of the room.

Nico? Pax glanced down at his hand to see a silver skull ring. That made enough sense. The Sexy Goth Prince could go anywhere he wanted in Camp Jupiter and New Rome without question. From what Pax had gathered, despite Nico being a hero and a close friend of Reyna’s, people still found the I play with dead things creepy.

“You’re wising up, Cyclops,” he murmured into her leg, not even caring how she’d identified him.

Her voice started angry, but he couldn’t blame her. Last time he’d turned into her half-brother’s boyfriend, he’d accidentally kissed her and less accidentally tricked her into swearing on the River Styx. And that was why Pax owed Kally cookies and cuddles for the rest of forever. That and because she was really hot and really cool—an impressive contradiction in the Book of Pax.

Her tone quickly softened and she could feel her hand slip against his face. “What happened?”

Pax could tell her what happened. That his little reunion with the traitor to Camp Othrys hadn’t gone as planned.[1] Though Pax hadn’t really planned it. He was more a “jump and check the bungee cord afterwards” kind of guy.

Instead of giving that riveting exposition, Pax winked his yellow eye at her—or what would have been his yellow eye if he looked like himself and not like a Halloween decoration. “Did you know I can morph into four or six different people a day with the same apple?”

She didn’t find this nearly as impressive as he did. “They sent people looking for you.” Her green eyes flicked past the entrance, like she was nervous about the Romans seeing them. To be fair, it might be kinda weird to have the Ambassador for Pluto napping in the middle of the barracks on a daughter of Apollo.

“You were worried about me,” he cheered, wishing he had enough energy to give that the smile it deserved. He also wished he had a full mariachi band on call for times like this.

“I got lost in New Rome,” he said. This was true. He had gotten lost in New Rome, which sounded like a bad reality TV show: Lost in New Rome: A Centurion’s Heartache.

After he and Atë parted, he was stuck looking for the jerk-traitor in an area he’d rarely had to spy in when he was the spymaster of Camp Othrys. A shame, since the University was so pretty and had more Greek elements than they were willing to admit.

When Kally continued to stare at him, he sighed. He’d have to tell her some of what happened.

��And I released all of the weasels from their weasel enclosure. Did you know Romans stuff weasels into bags with disobedient legionaries and toss them into the River? And they call us barbarians. What if the weasels got hurt?”

She relaxed. “I thought…” Kally raised her hand, like she wanted to touch her lips, but stopped herself halfway up. She smiled. “You and Axel... I’m surprised he hasn’t brought up faun rights since we got here.”

“Oh, I’m sure he slipped it in with some sexy banter to Reyna.” Pax rolled onto his back and reached a hand up to touch her chin, mimicking the way he assumed Axel would romance women. “Your eyes remind me of the green of jungle ferns, sparkling with mist just after a soft rain. Also, you should make a career center to decrease faun unemployment.”

Kally tried to scowl through her blush. “I’m pretty sure Reyna doesn’t have green eyes.”

“She doesn’t. I’m asking you, Kally, what you think you can do for faun rights.”

She shoved his hand away from her chin. That was that look she got when she remembered that she’d told Pax they couldn’t date because she couldn’t trust him. A very specific facial expression.

And, here he was, misdirecting the conversation, like someone she couldn’t trust... But, it was for the good of the team, right? What’s a couple of deals with the enemy for the good of the team? And he couldn’t tell her what happened with the traitor… that could implicate her, and she did not need to get in trouble for assuring weasel justice, among other things…

“Don’t talk to me like that when you look like Nico,” she snapped. “It’s weird.”

Normally, Pax might have reminded her that he couldn’t control how long he looked like a person. But Atë told him to try.

He remembered his half-sister lounging on a stack of gold in the corner after they’d found the pseudonym of the traitor to Mount Othrys. He’d wanted to ask her one last question before he tracked down the jerk: why Eris kept giving him the apples, despite the fact that he was working against her.

“Maybe you’re more god than human. Maybe you don’t need the apples. But what do I know? I’m just the Goddess of Mischief and Ruin. Remember not to trust anyone, Ajax!” She’d twiddled her fingers at him and poofed.

To turn into someone, he usually thought of their features and what they were like while biting one of his golden apples. What was the essence of Ajax Pax? He thought about cute and helpless things—like baby seals—and about Reese’s Sticks and weasels—

“I miss Hunnie and Baller,” Pax whined. He hadn’t been away from them for this long since… since Alabaster and Hecate gifted them to Axel and Pax.

“Pax!” Kally cried loud enough to make Euna roll in her bunk. “Your hands!”

There was the blood. The crusty, dried glittery-red was all over his hands, his forearms, and in smear marks across his jeans, where he’d tried to rub it off. But none on his T-shirt. The University of New Rome shirt was freshly… borrowed and clean.

“Would you look at that,” he said, wishing he wasn’t laying in her lap anymore.

“What did you do?! Where’d all that blood come from?!” she asked. “Ajax, you can’t just pretend this is nothing.”

“But you’re always willing to pretend this is nothing,” he whined. It was true. She’d always been willing to overlook things before. “Can’t you grow a backbone tomorrow or something?”

Before he could see Kally’s reaction, a pillow nailed him hard enough to knock the creepiness out of Zeus.

“You’re loud,” Euna stated in the same scary way a coroner might state, “Humans die of hypovolemic shock after losing 40% of their circulating blood.”

“Euna, you should become a baseball pitcher. Or throw grenades for the army. Either way, you’d be fulfilling someone’s dream,” Pax said, shoving the pillow away and sitting up.

Kally caught his hand, singing softly over the wounds. He hadn’t even realized there were still cuts all over them. With his accelerated healing, he assumed they’d be closed. With each of Kally’s notes about sunshine, a cooling sensation tingled his fingertips. And he started to realize how much they hurt.

“Ayyyye!” he whined.

“Pax has been someone else all day,” Euna grumbled. She’d sat up in her bunk, rubbing the sleepiness out of her eyes. “He left with Frank as Hazel this morning.”

Kally’s eyes widened. Her lips parted in shock and she dropped his hands. “As Hazel… You are what made Frank so flustered this morning?” Her eyes darted to the ground.

A horrific pang of regret sank Pax’s stomach, a fairly new emotion for him, but Kally was really good at inspiring it. Nothing could beat a consciousness into a person like disappointment.

His normal instinct for redirecting and evading crumbled at the look on her face. At least she wasn’t asking about the blood anymore. “Wait—I was—I had to steal a stick—a mysteriously important stick—from—”[2]

Merry waltzed back into the room, humming and nodding her head. “Paxy, I know you’re not saying or doing anything suspicious when we’re a day from getting home. And I know you’re not breaking Kally-Dear’s heart.”

The dangerous glint in Merry’s brown eyes reminded Pax that her father was the God of Madness. And parties. But he was pretty sure Merry wanted him to remember the madness part at that moment.

“Home?” he echoed and perked up. “We’re good to go back and terrorize Chiron?”

Merry nodded, hoping onto the bed beside Euna. Euna gave Merry a lazy glare.

“Rey-Rey gave us some money for airplane tickets,” Merry said. “I got us five to New York for tomorrow morning. Just in time to help my mom consult a lawyer. Though we’ll have to get a cab to camp from the airport. I can’t get a hold of Chiron or Dad to arrange a proper, fancy chauffeur.”

“Six tickets,” Kally said. She glanced up at Merry, rubbing the back of her hand across her eyes. With how pale she was, she couldn’t hide how blotchy her skin got when jerks made her tear up. Pax wished he could sic a weasel on himself. He’d never been held accountable for what he did on spy missions but… he guessed making out and fondling another guy might upset the average not-girlfriend.

“No, five. Reyna is holding Axel as a zesty hostage until they get word we made it back to Camp Half-Blood without any tricks or sneaks. Then he’ll be packaged up and shipped out after.”

Pax’s panic over Kally came to a seizing halt. “Wait—we’re leaving my brother? Without getting a dowry? I did not agree to that! What if they kill him!? And communications have been down with Camp Half-Blood!”

Axel was way too awesome to be held hostage. Especially not by people who had more reasons to kill him than politicians had secret agendas. Especially not when he was prone to blurting stupid things around girls he liked, like, “I used to kill your friends,” and “I sing cheesy love ballads when I shower.”

Merry gave Pax a half-grin. “On the long list of things Reyna wants to do to Mr. Stoic and Mysterious, I think killing him is low in priority.”

“He’ll be fine,” Euna agreed, “We should be focused on how we’re going to stop and punish Eris, Phobetor, and the others.”

Kally, Pax, and Merry exchanged a quick, confused glance. Yea, Pax had pulled pranks on gods and titans, Kronos in particular, but punishing?

“Punishing gods is kind of a godly thing,” Merry explained. “Like when Zeus stripped Apollo and Poseidon of their godly powers and hotness. Or when he hung Hera over the nothingness of Khaos, so she could dance to the music of evisceration. Not really stuff us demigods can do.”

Euna’s gaze narrowed. Her fingertips danced across Backbiter’s hilt. Pax was glad the blade didn’t start laughing maniacally or attempt a soliloquy about homicidal sword thoughts.

“Khaos can eviscerate a god?” she asked.

Merry shrugged. “The gods seem to think so. But Khaos is under Tartarus. Which is under Hades. It’s a lighthearted road trip with lots of musical numbers. Most gods won’t willingly do a ride along there.”

“Could we bring part of Khaos to them?” Euna asked. “I bet they wouldn’t mess with the camp if we had it.”

Merry frowned. “Euna…” Her tone was abnormally worried compared to Merry’s normal buoyant voice. “Unless you had Pandora’s Box or something that can capture the ess—”

Pax raised his hand. “Can we stop theorizing about how to kill my mom? I know she’s negligent and kinda evil, and occasionally kills my friends as collateral damage, but don’t all parents do that?”

That definitely fit his Dad’s profile. And when Jack decided to play the part of Axel and his surrogate father, and Flynn as their surrogate mother, they were fairly similar. Just with more fun trips to the circus and genuine hugs. So really, Eris could have been worse in the parenting department… right?

One day, Pax would have a brood of mini Paxes that he would take to the circus, give genuine hugs, not neglect, and not kill their friends on accident. Those might have been high expectations for a Pax, but he at least needed to set the bar.

At the thought, he glanced back over at Kally. Her eyes were still red-rimmed, but she made eye contact. Normally, he’d love that look of pity. He would have curled into her lap, reminded her they would have beautiful children with his tan complexion and her green eyes, and told her he wouldn’t fondle any more guys without her permission, even if it compromised a mission.

But right now, he wanted to puff up his chest, look strong like Axel,[3] and laugh like, “I’m fine! What’s a dead brother and a dead father when you can cause chaos in New Rome?”

“This is all suspiciously easy,” he said to change the subject to something lighter.

“Easy?” Euna asked. He hadn’t noticed, but her knuckles were white around Backbiter’s hilt and Merry’s hand was delicately placed over hers. For a sickening moment, he could envision a counter in Euna’s head: Two Paxes down! Four to go!

He really hoped she didn’t have a vendetta against his family. She’d have to get on a wait list.

“Not like, the last month,” he quickly said. “Just… Mom and the others put us in a Trojan Mario and dropped us off by the Little Tiber with a bunch of gods and people that hate Axel and me. She said she wanted us out of the way right now, so she could do obligatory evil things to Hemera and obligatory evil things with Camp Half-Blood. Yea, we lost a few weeks of time and yea, we were stalled a bit by Reyna and Axel wanting in each other’s military skirts but…”

It hurt him to admit this, but Pax inhaled deeply. “If I were an evil villain, that wouldn’t be enough chaos for me. And Mom and I… may have some similar personality traits.”

An uncomfortable moment passed where Pax almost hoped someone would say, “Na Pax. You’re cool.”

No one did. They all looked worried and he got the feeling he was right.

One thing was for sure: there was no way he could leave Axel alone in New Rome. Something else bad was going to happen, and he wasn’t willing to lose his brother as more collateral damage. What Atë said floated through his mind. “Remember not to trust anyone.” He wasn’t planning on it. Especially not the Romans. Especially not after he’d hunted down their spy.

[1] So, there is actually a chapter missing from this book that should go RIGHT before this chapter. Later, I’m going to make it a chapter-gone-short story, but I can’t put it in now, because it’ll give away the identity of the traitor in Tales from Mount Othrys, book 5. So I didn’t forget that Pax has to have his… confrontation with this person. But you won’t get who this person is until the end of the series. And there is a reason why the Romans aren’t freaking out about a body or an assault. You’ll get all of that in the short story. Assuming I don’t get hit by a bus before then. We’ll see.

[2] I’m 90% sure this is how all my excuses and explanations sound to friends and family -.-

[3] Also known as, “Strong , like ox.”

Ah! Sorry guys, I thought the next chapter was Frank’s chapter, so we had a little more build up during this one. But don’t worry! The book is going to earn its title in the next two chapters XD

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed!

#Traitors of Olympus #Percy Jackson and the Olympians #PJO #Heroes of Olympus #HOO #Camp Jupiter #photography #fanfiction #writing #Pax #Kally #Calex #Euna #Merry #Eeeee! Next Chapter triggers the fall! :D

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theconservativebrief · 6 years ago

Link

In a world where fashion increasingly doubles as a form of political statement or protest and the first lady’s jacket choice is a partisan tinderbox, it’s no surprise that a possible new example of fashion-based progressive idealism is making headlines.

What is surprising is the source: Queen Elizabeth’s jewelry. A viral twitter thread is suggesting her majesty may have been using her trademark brooches to send subtle messages repudiating the Trump administration and its policies during the president’s much-discussed visit to London last week.

The queen wore three brooches during Trump’s visit, and each of them — at least according to the online fandom with an appetite for Intense Brooch Politics — was an act of subtle nose-thumbing.

The inciting Twitter thread was published by Twitter user SamuraiKnitter, who is apparently the internet’s preeminent brooch decoder. A writer based in Pennsylvania, SamuraiKnitter described herself to Vox as a longtime history and fashion nerd who’s gifted with “an ability to put together jumbled facts into a coherent picture.” Her theories have caused the hashtags #BroochDecoderRing and #BroochWarfare to spread, and inspired Vice to label the affair “Broochgate.”

#BroochDecoderRing The following data relies heavily on the work of the blogger at “Her Majesty’s Jewel Box”. If you swing by there (I will be linking), BE ADVISED THE BLOGGER WANTS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS POLITICAL STUFF THAT IS NOT WHY SHE IS THERE so take it easy.

— Bitch. STILL my superhero name. (@SamuraiKnitter) July 15, 2018

But what does it all mean? Is there a meaning behind the queen’s jewels? Was she really sipping subtle tea over Trump while having actual tea with him?

In a word: possibly. Let’s take a closer look.

Her majesty’s brooches are a ubiquitous fashion statement — they’ve been a prominent part of her wardrobe her whole life, and her fondness for them is so well-known that they’ve become a common gift presented to her by foreign dignitaries and other guests and friends. And on the internet, there’s a small but thriving band of jewel watchers and bloggers, broadcasting the #TiaraAlert and documenting royal jewels from around the globe, with an eye toward Queen Elizabeth’s in particular. One of these blogs, Order of Splendor, drew so much interest for its posts about the queen’s brooches that its author created a spinoff, the Queen’s Jewel Vault, just to chronicle the royal bling.

As that blogger has explained, “There are brooches representing countries, organizations, and regiments as well as brooches given as gifts and brooches inherited with great historical and sentimental significance.”

And these jewels are frequently interpreted to carry significant meanings beyond “here’s a shiny thing on my lapel.” For instance, there’s the huge True Lover’s Knot brooch, which the queen wore at two royal weddings — the 1960 wedding of her sister Princess Margaret, and the 2011 wedding of her grandson Prince William.

Additionally, there are multiple brooches that have been given as gifts to Queen Elizabeth or her predecessors by various countries, and which she has subsequently worn — you guessed it — while attending state functions hosted by those countries. Thus, it has become generally accepted among jewel watchers that the queen frequently uses her jewels to indicate loyalty and friendship between the UK and other nations.

Hence the great attention being paid to the brooches she wore during Trump’s visit.

Queen Elizabeth wore three brooches during Trump’s visit. She donned the first one on the day of his arrival, at the height of the publicity surrounding his appearance as well as the height of the controversy.

The brooch in question is colloquially known as the “American state visit brooch.” That’s not an official name — it was made up by the author of the Queen’s Jewel Vault blog (which SamuraiKnitter cites many times throughout her Twitter thread). The media seems to have run with it anyway, perhaps because up until now, very few people outside these royal fashion fans were keeping a close eye on what jewels the queen wore.

The so-called “American state visit brooch” is an antique gift, made in the US in the 1950s in and given to the queen by the Obamas during an official state visit to the UK in 2011.

The so-called “American state visit brooch,” which the Obamas gave the queen. Queen’s Jewel Vault

Small and relatively unassuming, the flower made of gold, diamonds, and agate attracted little attention at first. But when sharp-eyed observers realized the queen was wearing a gift from Trump’s most prominent political enemy, tongues started wagging.

The US has given QE jewelry before over the years and I bet her dresser could put hands on any and all of it given five minutes. But she chose the most SENTIMENTAL piece in the collection, the one that was given OUT OF FRIENDSHIP WITH THE OBAMAS AS PEOPLE.

— Bitch. STILL my superhero name. (@SamuraiKnitter) July 15, 2018

Next up: day two of Trump’s visit, during which he sat down with England’s prime minister at a state banquet that was notably not hosted at Buckingham Palace and was unattended by Queen Elizabeth, in contrast to her treatment of the Obamas. Throughout the day, Elizabeth wore a gift presented to her by the governor general of Canada in 2017.

Queen Elizabeth wore the Sapphire Jubilee Snowflake Brooch on July 14 while meeting the king and queen of Belgium. Getty Images; Queen’s Jewel Vault

It’s the Sapphire Jubilee Snowflake Brooch, and it was given to commemorate her 65 years on the throne. But to SamuraiKnitter, Queen Elizabeth’s choice to wear it during Trump’s visit was an in-your-face demonstration of loyalty to a country Trump has had serious issues with of late:

It’s called the Sapphire Jubillee Brooch, and it was given to the Queen of England as a gift for ruling for eleventy billion (okay, 65). From Canada. You know, who Trump’s been screaming about and insulting. The commonwealth country and one of the UK’s greatest allies. Them.

— Bitch. STILL my superhero name. (@SamuraiKnitter) July 15, 2018

If all that sounds pretty baller, it arguably gets better.

For the last occasion — the awkward moment when the ruler of the British Commonwealth stood around waiting for nearly 15 minutes to meet Trump — the queen wore an un-ostentatious diamond teardrop brooch.

Getty Images

The brooch was a gift passed down to her by her mother, who wore it during the 1952 state funeral for her husband, King George VI (Queen Elizabeth’s father). It appears prominently in the famous “Three Queens” photo from the occasion.

Jewel watchers nearly died, because it is the brooch worn in the famous “Three Queens in Mourning” photo, worn by the Queen Mum: pic.twitter.com/3xS2C56Xcj

— Bitch. STILL my superhero name. (@SamuraiKnitter) July 15, 2018

Of course, it’s impossible to know for certain that the queen intended to send the message that dining with Trump was the social equivalent of attending her father’s funeral — or, just to toss out another metaphorical possibility, that Trump’s presidency represents the symbolic death of the American experiment.

But either way, Trump detractors seem to be delighted by the idea of Queen Elizabeth supporting the #resistance with bosom gemstones.

“The irony to all this,” SamuraiKnitter told Vox, “is I don’t actually pay that much attention to brooches. I like the tiaras.”

And even though jewel watchers can only speculate over the queen’s intended brooch symbolism during Trump’s visit, the popularity of the discussion has made it overwhelmingly clear that there is a growing audience for those seeking confirmation of their political opinions in even the most unexpected places.

We look forward to discovering what sort of coded shade her majesty might be tossing the next time she breaks out the Burmese Ruby.

Original Source -> “Brooch warfare,” explained: what Queen Elizabeth’s jewels might be saying about Trump

via The Conservative Brief

#IFTTT #The Conservative Brief

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netunleashed-blog · 6 years ago

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Fortnite Season 5 Update Is Live; Patch Notes Include New Vehicle, Map Areas, Rifts

http://www.internetunleashed.co.uk/?p=4179 Fortnite Season 5 Update Is Live; Patch Notes Include New Vehicle, Map Areas, Rifts - http://www.internetunleashed.co.uk/?p=4179 Season 5 of Fortnite has finally arrived, with developer Epic Games updating the game to introduce new content and tweaks. The patch is currently being pushed out on all platforms across the world, and Epic has released the full Fortnite Season 5 patch notes for what's included. For the battle royale mode, the highlights include the All Terrain Kart, a new vehicle that can carry an entire squad.In addition to that, the map has also been updated with new locations such as Lazy Links and Paradise Palms, and a new desert biome. There's also been some adjustments to the way the Storm circles work, as well as how the game performs as a whole."Viking ships, desert outposts, and ancient statues have appeared across the island," reads the official description. "Hop in an All Terrain Kart (ATK) with your squad and uncover all-new mysteries and locations that await."In the battle royale mode, rifts have also appeared. "Test your courage and step through a Rift," reads the description. "You're in for a wild ride." Take a look at the full Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 5 patch notes below.Battle RoyaleWeapons and ItemsShotguns will now indicate how many pellets hit, visible within the reticle.Adjusted shotgun spread patterns to be consistent with no random variation.Heavy Shotgun now fires 10 pellets rather than 5. Maximum damage for the Heavy Shotgun remains unchanged.After firing a shotgun, another shotgun cannot be fired for a very short time.Reduced Hunting Rifle aim assist when targeting to match that of other Sniper Rifles with projectile bullets.Changed the damage drop-off profile for the Suppressed SMG to be the same as other SMGs. Fall off starts at 24 meters from 28 meters.Damage reduced to 80% at 35 meters from 85% at 47.5 meters.Damage reduced to 65% at 50+ meters from 75% at 70+ meters.GameplayAll Terrain Kart (ATK) The new All Terrain Kart (ATK) has room for your entire squad.Get a speed boost after drifting.The roof acts as a bounce pad.Work together as rear passengers to leap over obstacles with the All Terrain Kart (ATK). Lean back and release at the same time for a higher jump. Lean back by holding S on keyboards or holding back on the thumbstick for controllers.Map Updated New Biome: DesertNew Location: Paradise PalmsNew Location: Lazy LinksA few unnamed POIs have also appeared across the island.The center of Storm circles 7, 8, and 9 can now shift in random directions (instead of simply shrinking). As the storm closes in, it will move & shrink to the new location.Starting in Season 5, progressive challenges will no longer be restricted to a single season. You can now complete progressive challenges at your own pace.Progressive challenges are now completed by acquiring a fixed amount of XP and is no longer dependant on your season level.Gyro/motion controls have been added to the Nintendo Switch. Adjust these options in the Settings menu.Weekly challenges are now split into two sections, free and Battle Pass. The first 3 challenges will be available for free while the last 4 are only available if you own the Battle Pass. The threshold to unlock the weekly challenge reward will remain at 4.Down But Not Out players now have smaller collision. Previously their collision was at the standing height which blocked DBNO players from crawling under doors and blocked building collision in some cases. Players that were crouching when knocked Down But Not Out will be returned to a crouching state upon revival.Emoting will now interrupt sprinting.You now earn XP for reviving teammates in 50v50 and Teams of 20 LTMs up to three times per match (30XP, 10XP, 10XP).Weapon reticle will now fade slightly when reloading, out of ammo, or changing weapons.The player camera can now see out of the water when walking in lakes.Bug FixesLaunch Pads and Cozy Campfires now destroy overlapping small objects when placed.Reduced trigger volume for floor Damage Trap to better match visuals and prevent triggering when standing on ledges above.Supply Llamas now fall to the ground if the object they were standing on is destroyed.Autorun will no longer cancel if you let go of the stick and it slightly flicks backward while using a gamepad.Fixed issue where Autorun could be active while using a Shopping Cart.The first Storm circle will now consistently do 1 damage.Players will no longer get stuck in a doorway if they were standing in it when the door closed.Fixed an issue that prevented some weapon animations from playing.Autorun can no longer be activated while walking backward.Textures will now consistently appear correctly while in Edit Mode.Fixed a crash that could occur when logging out.PerformanceImproved performance of Shopping Carts on both the game client and server.AudioAdded unique ambient audio to the new desert biome. More unique ambient audio for the map will be coming in future updates!Lowered the volume of the Battle Pass Challenge success sound.UI audio has been redesigned, all button and interface sounds updated.Bug FixesDual Pistol fire sound will no longer get cut off if you switch weapons immediately after firing.The True Love emotes audio will no longer overlap with itself if multiple players use it near each other.The funky electronic track to the Dance Moves emote on Mobile/Switch platforms has been re-enabled.UIWe now allow users to enable the same sound visualizer on all platforms that were created for mobile - however, while the visualizer is enabled, audible sound effects will be muted. Mobile platforms are unaffected by this change and will retain sound effects and the visualizer. You can find this new option under the Accessibility tab in the settings.Streamer mode no longer just says "Player###", instead it now uses the player's cosmetic character as their display name "Character[###]". So instead of "Eliminated Player100" you may see, "Eliminated Rust Lord[100]." Anyone eliminating someone in streamer mode will now see Streamer[###].Added extra audio and visual fanfare to the Victory Royale end of match sequence.The "Dialogue Audio," "Global Chat," and "Auto Equip Better Weapons" options have been removed as they have no function in Battle Royale.Zooming in and out on the map is now twice as fast with the controller.The "Play Again" button will now allow players to preview pickaxe visual and sound effects in the Item Shop, Battle Pass, and Locker.New faster animation for displaying XP sources have been added to the end of match stats screen.Bug FixesMap markers will now re-appear if removed and added back to the exact same location.End of match stats now appears correctly on all platforms in their correct numeric format.Key bindings for weapon and structure sections in the HUD are now displayed properly.A typo was removed from the item description for the Victory Lap harvesting tool.Controller input will no longer fail when at the Main Menu.Fixed an inconsistency in the UI that was displayed when placing a trap in some cases."Distance Traveled" is now reported correctly in the Match Stats screen.Art and AnimationBug FixesRevive animations are no longer skipped if the player was reloading when downed.Effects now appear properly when jumping with the Pot of Gold Harvesting Tool.Prevented sprays from affecting props used in emotes (e.g., the basketball from Baller).Replay System"Camera type" is now localized in the view settings header.Bug FixesGamepads will no longer continuously rumble when a replay is paused.The Main Menu will no longer become unresponsive if the Friends List is opened while a replay is paused.Nameplates no longer block input on camera settings.Nameplates no longer disappear if the camera is directly above a player.The bottom portion of the nameplate will no longer become cut off.Nameplates on PS4 will now show team number & weapon.Weapon animations will now play in replays after scrubbing the timeline.Timeline markers no longer disappear on saved replays on PS4 and Xbox One.Shopping Cart visual and audio effects will no longer break in replays.The "Revive" and "Drive" prompt will no longer persist in replays if a player was eliminated while being revived or near a Shopping Cart.MobileAutofire has been added as an option on mobile platforms. Enabling this causes the player's weapon to automatically fire when the reticle is over an enemy that is within range.Players will be given the option to select their preferred fire mode after launching. All players can change their preferred fire mode by navigating to Options, Custom HUD Layout, then choosing the 'Select Fire Mode' option and confirming their selection. Tap-to-fire.A dedicated fire button.Autofire.Bug FixesThe Thermal Scoped AR now has the proper visual effects on all devices.Vehicle passengers can now detonate Remote Explosives.Entering build mode while holding the "fire" button will no longer adversely affect your ability to build in the future.Health and Shield numbers will no longer be displayed as your own while spectating.For those interested in seeing what's changed in Save The World, here's the patch notes for that mode:Save The WorldGeneralBlockbuster is over and the Road Trip event begins! Blockbuster tickets have been converted to one Blockbuster Llama for every increment of 500, rounding up to one additional Llama for any leftover tickets under 500.Updated Persistent Weekly Store to offer RE-PERKs, Uncommon PERK-UPs and Rare PERK-UPs.Starting July 17, Save the World will be on sale on Xbox, PS4, and PC for a limited time. Super Deluxe and Limited Founders packs will return for the duration of the sale. Friends codes from Founders packs have been removed and exchanged for Legendary Troll Stash Llama Tokens.All existing founders will receive tokens based on their founders level in 5.0 as a thank you for being with us.Missions and SystemsChallenge the Horde is back! Challenge the Horde comes to the desert! This map focuses on a tighter experience, with less running from base to base between waves, and more time to focus on your build and item-crafting.Challenge the Horde introduces new Storm behavior. Beat back waves of enemies as the storm closes in. Players take damage while in the Storm.Storm resets every wave.Challenge the Horde missions now become unlocked based upon your Storm Shield Defense progression or your Horde Quest progression in the Campaign. This means that players who are currently playing in Twine Peaks can expect the entire Challenge the Horde map to be unlocked. However, individual challenges within a Horde mission must still be unlocked in order.Reduced the total number of Challenge the Horde missions available on the map from 16 to 9.Set the total number of challenges to 5 for every Horde mission. Previously, the number of challenges varied from as low as 3, to as high as 8.Reduced the number of waves per Horde challenge from 10 to 8.Reduced the maximum time of a wave from 6 minutes to 4 minutes.Enemy loot drops and item caches have been disabled for Challenge the Horde.Challenge the Horde resourcing has been tweaked: Challenge the Horde missions now grant a starter, first tier, uncommon Assault Rifle and Sword to help players hit the ground running in early Horde missions.The initial ammunition grant has been increased to match the increased difficulty of the first Horde mission.Building materials, ammunition, and crafting materials granted to players per skill tree upgrade have been reduced throughout the Horde Skill Tree.Challenge the Horde Mission Alerts are available: Award Road Trip Tickets used to purchase Road Trip Event Llamas.Award Horde Skill Points used to purchase nodes in the Horde Skill Tree.Quota: 10 per day.Horde Progression quests appear under the Event: Road Trip quest journal category and award the following: Road Trip Tickets.V-bucksPERK currencies.A choice of Epic and Legendary Wild West Heroes.Horde Exclusive Banners.Repeatable quests for completing Horde content award a choice of Hero XP, Schematic XP, or Survivor XP.Perk Recombobulator materials are now distributed in Challenge the Horde. Play Horde missions to earn RE-PERK! or PERK-UP! in larger quantities than found in Campaign missions.Active Mutant Storm Mission Alerts have been turned on.Elemental Mission Alerts are available as well.Road Trip Event Llama is now available. Costs 500 Road Trip Tickets per Llama. Guarantees at least one Epic or better limited time Flintlock weapon or Western Hero!Increased the following Mission Alert rewards: FIRE-UP, AMP-UP, FROST-UP: Increased by 100%.RE-PERK: Increased by 50%.PERK-UP: Increased by 30-33%.Enabled RE-PERK and PERK-UP to drop in Storm Mission rewards.HeroesAbility Rebalance! We've adjusted the overall balance of how powerful we expect abilities to be in relation to guns, traps, and other damage/utility sources. Additionally, we've increased the strength of healing Perks. As a result, we've made the following adjustments:Soldier Survivalist Base heal increased from 3 to 5.Warcry Increased damage multiplier from 30% to 45%.Reduced ranged attack speed multiplier from 40% to 30%.Increased melee attack speed multiplier from 16% to 20%.Combatant's Might Increased Warcry energy cost reduction from 15 to 20.Fight or Flight Fight or Flight now adds a 10% movement speed buff.Shockwave Increased base damage from 75 to 91.Decreased cooldown from 30 to 25 seconds.Power Impact Increased radius multiplier from 38% to 50%.Shock & Awe Increased slow from 30% to 50%.Lefty and Righty Reduced cooldown from 150 to 100 seconds.Bang & Pow Increased base damage from 16 to 20.Corrosive Clips Increased base damage from 83 to 120.Goin' Commando Cooldown reduced from 150 to 100 seconds.Ain't Done Yet Increased duration extension from 2 to 5 seconds.Easy Operation Increased energy cost reduction from 15 to 20 stamina.Ninja Smoke Bomb Reduced base cooldown from 60 to 45 seconds.Medicinal Fumes Increased base heal from 3 to 19.Up In Smoke Increased movement speed bonus from 30% to 50%.Tail of the Dragon Increased damage per tick from 10 to 12.Throwing Stars Increased base projectile speed by 70%.Increased base damage from 35 to 52.Poison Stars Now ticks every 1s to match other affliction sources, and adjusted damage accordingly.Hearty Blade Base heal increased from 12 to 30.Hearty Strikes Base heal increased from 10 to 24.Outlander Phase Shift: Phase Shift is an ability meant for quick movement. The following adjustments are intended to help it become more competitive with the other movement abilities that also deal damage. Increased travel distance from 1.5625 tiles to 1.75 tiles.Decreased cost from 20 to 10 stamina.Decreased cooldown from 15 to 8 seconds.Increased charges from 2 to 3.Now adds 30% movespeed for 3 seconds.Phase Forward Increased distance traveled from 1.75 tiles to 2.5 tiles.Phased and Confused Increase quantity of additional charges from 1 to 2.Phased Out Adjusted cooldown reduction from 5 to 3 to correspond to new base cooldown.Phase Shield Adjusted duration from 4 to 2 to correspond to the new base cooldown.Phase Runner Now increases the bonus movespeed from Phase Shift to 50%.T.E.D.D.Y. Increased base damage from 10 to 16 per shot.Reduced cost from 50 to 30 stamina.Bear Stare Increased base damage from 22 to 26.Overbearing Increased bonus range from 2 tile to 4 tiles.Shock Tower: Shock Tower should be a great tool for taking out groups of weak Husks, but it doesn't quite get the job done. To address this we've given Shock Tower more damage and a much shorter cooldown. The duration is a bit shorter but you'll be able to cast it more frequently. We’ve also reduced the stun duration slightly in order to make room for the other improvements. Reduced cooldown from 60 to 20 seconds.Reduced cost from 50 to 30 stamina.Increased base damage from 9 to 12.Lowered stun duration from 1 to .75 seconds.Lowered duration from 6 to 3 seconds.Electroshock Increased impact bonus from 133% to 160%.Capacitor Adjusted duration increase from 2 to 1 second to correlate to new duration.Supercapacitor Adjusted duration increase from 2 to 1 second to correlate to new duration.Shocking Embrace Adjusted duration increase from 3 to 2 seconds to correlate to new duration.Static Cling Increased Damage Over Time damage percentage to 110% from 50%.Decreased Damage Over Time duration from 6 to 3 seconds.Anti-Material Charge: We found that Anti-Material Charge's resource gathering damage was being overvalued. As a result, we have increased the base while lowering its cost and cooldown to make it both an effective gathering tool and a relevant combat ability. Increased width by 100%.Increased base damage from 39 to 90.Lowered cooldown from 30 to 12 seconds.Lowered cost from 35 to 30 stamina.Strike Cost Adjusted cost reduction from 15 to 10 to correspond to the new base cost.Fist of the South Moon Adjusted the cooldown reduction from 13 to 5 to correspond to the new base cooldown.Structural Strike Adjusted the cooldown reduction from 7 to 3 seconds and the cost reduction from 7 to 5 to correspond to the new base cooldown and cost.Kinetic Punch (Non-Support Variant) Increased the knockback strength to knockback large enemies.Charge Fist Moved from a 3-star perk to a 2-star perk.Adjusted the percent damage increase from a max 200% to a max 150% to correspond to the new base damage. Resulting max base damage increased from 117 to 225 with default base damage taken into account.Iron Knuckles Removed vulnerability application.Adjusted the percent damage increase from 500% to 150% to correspond to the new base damage. Tooltip has been updated to fix misleading wording. The previous tooltip implied that the damage was increased BY 500% rather than TO 500%.The new tooltip continues to use "increased by," however, this value is now correct in that it increases the base damage by 150% (250% of base damage).When combined with the default base damage increase the resulting base damage is increased from 195 to 225.This Perk has had an effective increase of damage based on its prior version.Constructor Bull Rush Increased base damage from 60 to 156.Reduced cooldown from 30 to 15.Reduced cost from 30 to 20.Increased shield collision width by 43%.China Shop Increased base environmental damage from 282 to 688.Bull Crush Increased hardware damage from 45% to 55%.Long Rush New Functionality added: At the end of Bull Rush, movement speed is increased by 30% for 10 seconds.Riot Shield New Functionality added: While charging, the constructor will take 60% less damage. Previous Riot Shield functionality has been removed.Plasma Pulse Base damage increased from 14 to 18.Decreased lifespan from 10 seconds to 6 seconds.Plasma Pulse Blast Base damage increased from 125 to 145.IFF Coding Increased shield regen from 15% to 20% of shield.Base M.D. Increased health regen from 2% to 4% of maximum health.Decoy Hitbox reduced to match decoy model.Decreased cooldown from 45 to 30.Grease The Wheel Decreased cooldown reduction from 15 to 10.Kinetic Overload Base damage increased from 50 to 140.Removed cooldown.Nice and Slow Increased Slow from 30% to 40%.Hearty Blows Base heal increased from 12 to 49.Wild West Heroes have been added to the Road Trip Event Llama! Soldier - New Subclass 'First Shot' featuring New Character Rio. Description: Reloads to get a large initial hit of damage then follows up with high fire rate burst.New Perks Locked and Reloaded: After reloading, rate of fire is increased by 25% for 5 seconds.Padlocked and Reloaded: Increases the rate of fire from Locked and Reloaded to 50%.First Assault: The first bullet fired after reloading an assault rifle critically hits enemies. Removed on weapon switch.New Tactical Perk: Practiced In Combat (Tactical Variant).Ninja - New Subclass 'Explosive Assassin' featuring Ken. Description: Sword focused Ninja that stacks up Assassination to discharge an energy blast and utilizes Smoke Bomb to keep stacks up.New Perks: Assassination Juice: Smoke Bomb now generates a stack of Assassination every second when the Ninja is inside the affected area.Endless Smoke: Increases the radius of Smoke Bomb by 45%.Assassination Discharge: When Assassination reaches 5 stacks it will trigger an explosion, dealing energy damage in a 0.5 tile radius. After the explosion, all Assassination stacks are removed.New Tactical Perk: Assassination (Tactical Variant).Constructor - New Subclass 'Vintage-Tech' featuring Penny. Description: Constructor that uses plasma pulse to create plasma bomb zones.New Perks: Supercharged Plasma: Increases the damage radius of Plasma Pulse's mini balls by 60%.Malfunction: Plasma Pulse now spawns 8 plasma balls that deal 550% more damage. The plasma balls will be spawned all at once and explode after 10 seconds if not triggered.Outlander - New Subclass 'Wild Fragment' featuring Deadeye. Description: Mobile Outlander that gathers large amounts of Fragments to continuously place empowered T.E.D.D.Y.s.New Perks: Look What I Found: Start missions with 3 Charge Fragments.Load Bearing: T.E.D.D.Y.'s damage is increased by 50% if placed with a Fragment.Double Down: 50% chance to find an additional Charge Fragment when collecting a Fragment.Bug FixesFixed an issue with Shock Tower that caused it to fire 1 shot less than intended.Fixed an issue which was causing Shock Tower to not scale Impact properly.Phase Shift tooltip now shows max charges.Weapons and ItemsWalloper Hammer added to the Event Store: A hammer that delivers a hefty punch with slow, wide swings.Leap Attack: Heavy attack that jumps to the targeted foe and damages and knocks down nearby enemies.Added the Flintlock weapons set, available in Road Trip Llamas: Ol' Betsy: Accurate, high powered sniper rifle with a single round per magazine and a hefty kick.Duelist: Slow-firing revolver with a powerful kick that deals heavy headshot damage and knocks back targets.Dragoon: Heavy, short range shotgun that damages and knocks back enemies in a cone.Fishing Hook: Slow, heavy scythe with a wide swing and Whirlwind Attack.Sir Hootie: Slow, heavy club with large knockback potential and Home Run attack.Adrenaline Rush Heal increased from 180 to 215.Air Strike Cooldown reduced from 300 to 215.Hover Turret Reduced Hover Turret base rate of fire from 6/s to 4/s, and the upgraded rate of fire from 10/s to 6/s.Hover Turret shots now deal energy damage and no longer deal impact damage.Increased the base damage of Hover Turret explosion from 114 to 162.Proximity Mine Damage increased from 225 to 230.Reduced recharge time from 240 to 200s.Bug FixesWeapons now correctly holster when player is downed.Fixed an issue that caused the Clinger to hang in the air on destroyed Anomaly Shards.Fixed an issue where the Shadowshard Krypton Sword had the wrong stats.Fixed explosion radius for all tiers of proximity mine, these are now set correctly to 1 tile, 1.25 tiles, and 1.5 tiles.GameplayIncreased the effectiveness of Energy Damage against Elemental Husks from 67% to 75%.Increased base run speed from 365 to 410. Sprint speed is unchanged.Players can now move while downed.Adjusted visuals of the downed state to improve clarity.Trololo and Revenge of the Trolls quests now only require whacking 1 troll to complete.The following repeatable quests are available and award PERK currencies: Danger in the MistSet the World on FireForces of NatureA Watery GraveKiller Storms repeatable quest is available and awards Gold.UILoot Llamas are now no longer automatically opened when going to the loot tab. Either pressing the Llama count button or bottom bar input will allow you to open Llamas in the inventory. Llamas purchased on the loot screen will still automatically open.Bug FixesT.E.D.D.Y has had his voice module upgraded and will now correctly pronounce Fortnite when analyzing player reports.Players will now see a message if they are banned while in-match.The Rejoin window now auto-closes when a player is banned.Recent Players who you only interact with in the main menus now show in the Report Player list.Daily details panel now updates when the quest is abandoned.Fixed controller input for the Defender Post trap.Fixed issues with switching building types quickly that could cause players to place the wrong building type, especially under bad latency conditions.Builder Pro control scheme will no longer place the wrong building due to players under pressing and holding a building type that's different than what they had selected before. These fixes actually affect how switching weapons and building types work under high latency across the board, so they should improve that feel for any control scheme (including mouse and keyboard).Builder Pro controller scheme now correctly selects tracks when pressing the Trap Picker while not looking at any building, and it will also place the tracks properly when pressing X / Square.Fixed Upgrade popup menu input temporarily breaking if used after controller is disconnected.Fixed gamepad joystick icon appearing when only a single tab item exists in the Resources menu.Art and AnimationStorm visual effects on the player no longer appear when downed.Removed purple trails from revive visual effects.Goin' Commando's equip camera animation has been improved.The barrel of Goin' Commando's minigun now glows when firing.New equip visual effects have been added to Goin' Commando.Removed firework visual effects from the grenade launcher.Hats and Backpacks were added to Heroes that are in the Stars and Stripes set.Bug FixesEnemies highlighted by the Neon Sniper Rifle are now limited to those enemies within range of the bullet. Please note at extreme distances impact effects may not be visible while scoped in.Adjusted HDR Intensity of the Neon Weapons down 20% to keep bloom problems from occurring in certain levels.Fixed an issue that caused Lobber's Head Flames to blink on and off in medium quality settings.AudioAudio mix update: Weapon volumes have been increased and ambient volume slightly decreased.UI audio has been redesigned, all buttons and interface sounds updated.Plasma Pulse perk sounds updatedSmoke Bomb sounds updatedGoin' Commando's sounds have been updated including unique sounds for Boomstick! Including: Wind UpWind DownFiringFiring StopEquipBug FixesFixed an issue with T.E.D.D.Y's laser beam sound volume and attenuation.Fixed an issue where See-bot launch audio volume was too loud. Source link

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junker-town · 7 years ago

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NBA scores 2017: We’re happy the Celtics win streak happened, and 13 more things from Wednesday night

Also, Durant returned to Oklahoma City for a second time and got blown out. What!?

The Boston Celtics rebounded an 0-2 start to win the next 16 games and it’s the best story so far in this young season.

After losing Gordon Hayward on opening night, it seemed like any excitement we all collectively had about Boston was sucked away. But everyone underestimated the talents of part-time coach, part-time wizard Brad Stevens, who was able to coach a team the relied heavily on a rookie and sophomore in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Everyone underestimated the important of Al Horford in holding down the defense and Kyrie Irving’s talent in crunch time.

There are a hundred problems the Celtics could run into this year: Irving’s clutch time magic wearing off; Brown or Tatum fading towards the second half; Marcus Smart’s continued poor shooting becoming a serious problem; LeBron James in the playoffs. Without Hayward, this isn’t the complete Celtics team. Plus, they’re built for the long term — winning now is just a bonus, in a sense.

Boston took a “bonus” and turned it into the fourth-longest win streak in franchise history. And no one would have faulted the Celtics for taking a stepback after losing Hayward! Instead, they’re even better than before, even if it’s not sustainable forever.

It was a beautiful run, but all streaks must come to the end by the hands of Dion Waiters. That’s the rule. Waiters scored eight points in the final two minutes of a close game, including two huge shots from behind the arc that staved off a Boston comeback. That gave the Heat a 104-98 win.

Here’s the kind of shots that were going down for Waiters, proof that all streaks must end eventually:

R.I.P. to the Celtics 16-game winning streak that stole our hearts.

Thunder vs. Warriors: bad basketball but great drama

There is good basketball played nightly around the league, but there is also an increasingly demand for soap opera-esque drama. Enter Golden State vs. Oklahoma City, our favorite matchup starring two sworn enemies who once described themselves as brothers.

The Thunder were devastatingly good in a 108-91 win, which caught us all by surprise. All three of Oklahoma City’s stars played well, especially Westbrook, who dropped 34 points. The Warriors trailed by double digits the entire second half, and so this game was not enticing from a basketball perspective.

From a drama standpoint, though? Hell yes.

Durant was booed throughout his introductions and smiled anyway, much different from his first time back here.

Les huées + le smile de KD... LET’S GO !! http://pic.twitter.com/3h4Jaq0gyY

— TrashTalk (@TrashTalk_fr) November 23, 2017

Later on, Durant and Westbrook got into a screaming fight, just like the first time Durant returned.

BEEN WAITING TWO YEARS FOR THIS. For the love of god everyone GET OFF THE COURT and let them play 1-on-1 for rest of second half http://pic.twitter.com/yco2Corm3i

— Rob Perez (@World_Wide_Wob) November 23, 2017

Those moments fueled our insatiable desire for viral moments, so thank you to Durant and Westbrook for participating. Both players tried to downplay what it meant after the game, but this is an instance where you listen to what a player does, not what he says. Those two made their feelings perfectly clear.

Congratulations to the Pistons and the Pacers

There were 28 teams who played on Wednesday. The two outliers were Detroit and Indiana, who both had days off on Thanksgiving Eve. I hope both teams kept a close eye on this fantastic night of NBA basketball and followed all of our SB Nation coverage. I’m sure they did!

Harrison Barnes redeemed himself

FOR THE WIN!!! http://pic.twitter.com/vebETpCiHQ

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) November 23, 2017

It was only Monday that Barnes missed a potential game-winner, an isolation stepback against the Boston Celtics. After that game, he was hard on himself and expressed disappointment in missing that shot. With matters like this, players don’t typically get chances to immediately redeem themselves, but Barnes did and took advantage of it.

After the Boston game, Harrison Barnes: “As a closer, I’ve got to be better.” He held up his end of the bargain in this one.

— Bryan Gutierrez (@BallinWithBryan) November 23, 2017

Who needs Giannis when you have Khris Middleton?

Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Wednesday’s game with knee soreness — please be OK! — so Khris Middleton filled in as the Bucks leading scorer. Oh man was he good: 40 points on 14-of-26 shooting, nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals.

This isn’t even Middleton’s first 40-point game this season, since he scored 43 against Charlotte to begin November. The 26-year-old is averaging nearly 20 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game this year, and he hasn’t even hit his three-pointer well! When Middleton’s 32 percent from deep starts to rise — he’s a career 40 percent shooter — watch out.

Middleton stole the show, but ...

The Bucks almost lost this game to the Phoenix Suns, though without Giannis, they have an excuse. Eric Bledsoe scored 30 points in his return to Phoenix just a week after being traded, although he needed 26 field goal attempts to get there. Meanwhile, the game went to overtime because of this absolutely absurd Devin Booker shot.

DEVIN BOOKER http://pic.twitter.com/Ax6z4yWCvu

— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) November 23, 2017

Mbah a Moute means ‘be happy’

I don’t actually know if that’s true, but I do know Luc Richard Mbah a Moute is an extremely positive man. How positive? Plus-57 positive.

Luc Mbah a Moute was +57 for the Rockets tonight, the best plus-minus by any player in a game over the last 20 seasons (including playoffs). http://pic.twitter.com/JmqUyAil6C

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 23, 2017

That’s an incredible number, especially since Houston only won by 30 points. (Their lead was cut by nearly 20 points late in garbage time, however.) Mbah a Moute and another summer acquisition, P.J. Tucker, allow for so much versatility, and the return of Chris Paul is also off to a start so good that he’s making passes like this.

I'm sorry... What did Chris Paul just do? http://pic.twitter.com/h0ukF1YWEx

— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) November 23, 2017

Let’s just acknowledge that Houston’s incredible.

Marc Gasol held onto his buzzer beater too long

GOT ANOTHER! Welcome to the ‘Field Goal% SAVINGS CLUB’, Marc Gasol! http://pic.twitter.com/FJtzRDGXrq

— Rob Perez (@World_Wide_Wob) November 23, 2017

OK, let’s be fair to Gasol: there’s probably no way he makes that without stepping into it, and that’s what really caused him to release it late. There have been much more egregious examples of this, after all.

For those egregious examples, though, there’s a simple fix: stop counting shots from beyond half court as field goal attempts (unless they go in). In this example, just give the players what they won’t and we won’t have to worry about this silliness any more.

I can’t pretend I don’t enjoy it, though.