#air exchangers repair services

[steves-auto-repair-va]

The lifespans of vehicles have lengthened over the years, which means that drivers are keeping them for extended periods of time.

To ensure that your car lasts as long as possible, it requires maintenance. After a period of time or as a vehicle reaches a specific mileage, certain tasks are recommended.

Some mileage-based services include flushes, replacing parts, and tune-up related items.

[rjsautotech]

Automotive brake services in Scarborough are your trusted destination for top-notch brake repair and maintenance solutions. With a team of skilled technicians and state-of-the-art equipment, we ensure your vehicle's brakes perform at their best, guaranteeing safety and optimal driving performance. From brake pad replacements to break fluid flushes and rotor resurfacing, our comprehensive services cater to all makes and models.

[laurfilijames]

Flat To Filled

Pairing: Jax Teller x female reader

Words: 3.9k

Warnings: Rated E, 18+. Swearing. Tig being a bit of a perv. Oral sex (M receiving). Unprotected intercourse. Sex in exchange for a service.

Summary: Your flat tire turns out to be a very happy nuisance, and a scene right out of a porno.

A/N: I got a flat tire a couple of months ago and came up with this idea while waiting for it to be repaired, though sadly not by Jax Teller.

---

"You've got to be fucking kidding," you mumbled under your breath, seeing the low tire pressure light illuminate on your dash.

It didn't seem like that long ago you had finished paying off the loan used to purchase the new set of tires, and as you put your car in park and climbed out of the driver's seat, you prayed it just needed some air and wasn't completely flat.

"Fuck."

The tire was smooshed right against the hot asphalt, and crouching down to run your hand along the circumference of the wheel, your fingers caught on a screw buried into the rubber.

At least you weren't rushing anywhere in particular, you thought, having only been on your way to grab yourself a coffee from the cafe in downtown Charming, laughing in realizing the irony in the situation that you were meant to be saving money anyway. The silver lining was that your flat just so happened to take place about two minutes down the road from Teller-Morrow Automotive Repair, and with the sun shining and feeling pleasantly warm on your skin, you didn't necessarily mind going for a walk.

The gates of the entrance were open as you approached, the yard full of Harley's and various members of the nefarious motorcycle club along with some vehicles actually being repaired by mechanics, your presence quickly being noticed by everyone in the vicinity.

"And how can I help you, sweetheart?" a man with black, curly hair and soul-piercing blue eyes drawled, his pervy tone making you grin and tilt your head in amusement as he stood straight from leaning over his bike and puffed his chest out, his hands securing themselves on his belt to help draw your attention to his crotch.

"I have a flat," you began to explain, hooking your thumb over your shoulder in the direction of where your car sat abandoned on the road. "I was hoping someone could take a look and hopefully patch it."

"Yeah, probably, but there's something else I can definitely help you with."

"Jesus Christ, Tig," another man's voice sounded from inside the garage. "Stop preying on innocent people."

The sight of the man defending you made your heart leap into your throat, and suddenly the mid-afternoon sun wasn't the cause of the sheen of sweat growing on your skin.

Messy, blond hair that rested at his shoulders surrounded his gorgeous face like a halo, and if the blue eyes on the first man were anything to admire, his were like looking into an abyss that would swallow you whole.

He didn't shy away from looking you over up and down, a crooked smile dressing his lips that were surrounded by scruffy, bleached stubble, his smile only spreading more to create lines around his mouth when his friend walked past him and slapped his shoulder.

"See, told ya."

He strutted into the garage while still looking back at you obviously, nearly tripping over his own feet, leaving you and the living incarnation of Helios standing somewhat awkwardly.

He nodded his head behind you, "So, what's wrong?"

"Just a flat. There's a screw in it. I was hoping someone would have time to patch it for me."

"Yeah, let me take a look," he grinned again, squinting slightly from the bright sunlight as he wiped his oily hands on a rag he held.

You took note of his slender fingers and how rough and worked yet soft the skin on his hands looked, curious as to what else they were capable of, and how the way the large rings that adorned them enhanced the appeal to feel them on your body even more.

"Is it just down the road?" he asked, beginning to walk over to the wall where a bunch of keys were hung on hooks.

"Yeah, about two minutes," you confirmed, remaining in place.

He held a set of keys up and tossed them up in the air before catching them, "I'll go give it a lift, then. You can wait here if you want. Despite your first impressions they're all pretty harmless."

His smile had you nearly bursting into flames, and holding out your own keys for him to take, your fingers brushed each other, igniting even more heat within your body.

He winked at you as he walked confidently over to the tow truck parked on the far side of the row of bikes, allowing you the opportunity to eye-fuck him just as he had you minutes ago.

Even with how baggy his jeans sat on his lower half, you could tell he had a perfectly plump ass that would no doubt power some hammering thrusts, and his back and arms were shaped nicely by strong muscles that showed through his t-shirt and mechanic's shirt that had the sleeves torn off, making you bite your lip as you thought how this unfortunate event was proving to be anything but.

It didn't take long for him to return with your car being pulled behind the tow truck, flashing you another smile as he hung his left arm out the window, a cigarette hanging from his inviting lips.

You watched the production as a few other mechanics went over and began helping him, the assistance he received allowing opportunities for glances your way, his silent flirting making you flush and shift on your feet.

Within minutes the tire was off and being carried into the bay of the garage, and as he got closer to you, you were able to see the name embroidered in black thread on the right side of his chest.

Jax.

You mouthed it, the whisper of those three letters feeling like silk on your tongue, and you wondered how saying it out loud and on repeat in the throes of pleasure would make him react; all smiles and that boyish confidence shining brightly as he basked in your praise, or a brutal and claiming side coming to reveal itself after being encouraged by your mantra.

He slammed your tire down on the workbench closest to the door and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand, smearing dirt and grime across it, and gave you a smile and a nod as he parted those luscious lips and started talking.

"So, you from around here?"

"Yup," you confirmed, placing your hands in the back pockets of your shorts to force your chest out a little further.

He hummed as he started to work, "I would've remembered a pretty face like yours."

"Do you say that to all the girls you help?"

Jax shook his head, his eyebrows rising on his forehead to crease it. "Nope."

He looked completely innocent despite it being a blatant lie that he could barely get away with, and you knew that was exactly how a man like him was likely to get everything he wanted.

"Well, I really appreciate you dropping whatever else you were in the middle of to sort me out," you thanked. "Jax…" you added, his name sounding sinful from how lusty your voice suddenly became.

He tucked his bottom lip in his teeth, smiling big even with the restriction, his eyes dancing and alight with mischief as his hands paused what he was doing.

"My pleasure."

His words were spoken with such conviction, as well as what you hoped was a promise or at least a hint at a request, and for whatever reason, the more you were in his presence and talking to him, the more daring and confident you felt yourself becoming.

"Is it?" you asked, watching as he leaned against the workbench, his forearms flexing and showing off the tattoo decorating his right one, his glare serious and almost threatening while his lips continued to feign innocence.

"I think it's going to be."

Time passed too quickly for your liking, your very effortless and charged conversations with Jax tempting you into driving the pocket knife that you kept tucked away in your purse into one of your other tires just so you could spend more time with him; his efficient handy-work resulting in your tire being back on your car and good as new in the fastest forty-two minutes of your life.

“You're all set there, darlin’,” he drawled, squinting at you in the beaming sun with a crooked grin as he wiped his hands on the rag he pulled back out of his jeans.

��Looks like it. Thank you.”

“You have somewhere you need to be?” he asked, leaning against your car comfortably.

“Not necessarily,” you answered, part of you praying he would extend an invitation to something that involved you staying longer and having those lips that were still curled into a smile pressed against yours. They were perfectly shaped and full and impossible to stop admiring, and the fantasy of learning how good they would feel refused to quit playing in your mind, deeming him a talented kisser without even knowing.

"How much do I owe you?" you asked, the assumption that this repair would cost the equivalent of at least twenty of those speciality coffees you were on your way to getting making a pit settle in your stomach.

His bottom lip tucked between his teeth and he chewed on it while still managing to grin mischievously, the brightness of it reaching his eyes.

"I think we can work something out."

You swore you had to be dreaming, finding yourself being led through Samcro's clubhouse and down a hallway where you were continuously stopped to be pressed against the wall and kissed until you were breathless, the sound of your bodies slamming against the wood panels and your shared laughs drowning out the loud music coming from the common area.

It always felt good to be right, you thought, your speculations that Jax knew how to kiss exceptionally well turning out to be more than correct, the way his tongue claimed your mouth and his lips sealed against yours making you quickly abandon all morals and sense of reality.

Your fingers tangled in his hair as he walked backwards with you into a room, the scent of stale smoke mixed with a bit of weed overpowering the hint of cologne that lingered, and once inside, Jax pushed the door shut and shoved you up against it.

He slowly peeled his face away from yours, taking a deep, steadying breath, his eyes trailing from your chest up to your lust-drunk eyes while his arms braced on either side of you to cage you between him and the door.

"We do accept cash, too," he smirked, his smile growing when you laughed and shook your head.

"I'm afraid I don't have any on me…"

"See that's too bad," he said, his tone falsely serious. "Non-paying customers tend to get fucked in a situation like this…"

The emphasis and double-meaning he put on that one sinful word made you ache and visibly squirm, and you did your best to keep your hands to yourself while you waited for him to move first, only to fail miserably.

You gripped at the edges of his gray mechanics shirt at the same time your mouth crashed against his, peeling it off his arms with his help as you walked forward, forcing him backward into the middle of the room where he ran into a chair, causing both of you to laugh between kisses.

Next came his somehow still freshly white t-shirt, the pure glee that overcame you when you whisked it over his head and laid eyes on his smooth skin and impressively ripped torso making you feel dizzy, and trying to get to the rest of him as quickly as you could, you hurried to unbuckle his belt and send his jeans that were already half-way down his ass to the floor.

You glared at him hungrily as you reached out for his hard cock that strained against his loose boxers that managed to be an even brighter white than his shirt, and stroked it through the cotton appreciatively, watching his head tip slightly back and his eyes close as he succumbed to your touch.

"Fuck," he chuckled, his abs contracting as he did, hooking his thumbs in the waist of his trunks to get rid of them.

"May I?" you asked, the innocence in your request contrasting heavily to how impurely you were looking at him.

"Since you asked nicely," he drawled, holding his hands up away from his body to allow you to do whatever you wanted.

With an excited and satisfied grin, you tugged on his shorts, your mouth instantly watering as his cock sprung free from them and bounced wildly before you, his size and girth and perfectly veiny shaft confirming that the man standing proudly naked before you was utterly perfect.

"Like what you see, darlin'?"

Rather than answering, you wrapped one hand behind his neck and pulled him into you, kissing him madly and desperately while your other hand took hold of his silky flesh and pumped him slowly from tip to base, feeling him flex in your palm.

You basked in this for a couple of minutes until Jax regained control and guided you somewhat forcefully over to lean against the edge of the desk that sat against the wall, his thigh wedging between yours as he gathered your wrists in his one hand and held them up over your head, his other one left to trail up your side, pulling your shirt up along with it.

His mouth attacked your neck while he teased you, the sensation making you roll your hips on his thigh to get some friction on your needy pussy, and when he growled as he got to your breasts that you hadn't bothered to restrict in a bra today, you nearly came undone.

"Fuck, you're hot," he muttered, roughly tearing up your shirt to remove it from you, and he took a moment to appreciate the sight in front of him before diving to your mouth again, his hand squeezing at the fullness of your chest and pinching your nipple between his fingers.

You whined into his mouth and arched your back in order to get closer to his touch, your body begging to be used by him in any way possible, this self-made porno you were suddenly living out making you hornier than you've ever been before.

"Are you gonna fuck me, or what?" you asked, his keen attention making you feel bold and powerful.

He chuckled and shook his head, his blond locks moving with the action.

"Patience, darlin'. You need to remember who's paying who here."

You nodded and smirked, pushing off the edge of the desk to take hold of his cock again while you slowly sank to your knees, looking up at him through your lashes to see a very satisfied and eager look on his face.

Pressing your lips against his smooth tip, you spread the precum that leaked from it across them and stuck your tongue out, that first delectably salty taste of him making you swallow thickly as your mouth watered, your thirst for him skyrocketing. You gripped the base of his shaft as you eased him inside your mouth, taking him slowly inch by inch until you reached your hand and your nose was tickled by his flaxen hairs.

Bobbing on and off of his length and swirling your tongue around his head each time you passed it, you worked him steadily with your hand, the sound of his appreciative curses and groans making you squirm and shift on your knees and moan as well, taking him deep into your throat so he could feel the vibrations on your windpipe.

"Jesus fucking Christ," he hissed. "That's it, baby."

His praise sent a shiver down your spine, making your nipples harden even more in addition to you gagging on him each time he pounded the back of your throat, the way he bucked his hips and lightly held your head in place encouraging you to want to be wrecked by him in whatever way he saw fit.

He laughed in disbelief as he gently held your chin and told you to stop, mad at himself for doing it, but not ready to end this with you yet.

"Fuck, you're good. That pretty little mouth of yours sure has some talent," he purred, using his thumb to wipe the corner of your mouth.

"Then you should've let me finish…"

Jax chuckled again as he helped you up off the floor, a sound that made you melt each time, his eyes shining with a playfulness that matched his cheeky smile.

"Oh, no," he said, his eyebrows creeping up his forehead. "Your debt isn't going to be repaid that easily."

Your breathing became shallow as the way he looked at you turned from kind and light-hearted to intense and almost dark, and he grabbed your face and kissed you roughly, stealing your breath from you as he leaned into you in an overpowering way, his cock poking you and reminding you of its impressive size that you were about to have to try to handle.

He snuck a hand between your heaving bodies, cupping between your legs where an intense heat radiated, and began to rub your pussy through your shorts with a taunting pressure.

"This pussy's gonna feel good, isn't it?" he asked, dragging his hand harder over the material that kept you from him, the whole act and his question driving you mad. "I bet it's nice and tight…"

"Fuck, yes…" you whined, grinding against his hand even more, your head tipping to the side in an offering for him to kiss your neck.

He did, granting you one of your many wishes, sucking and nipping at the tender skin where your pulse hammered frantically.

After another minute or two of torture, you raked your nails up along his back, feeling desperate for him to give you what you so badly needed.

"Please, Jax," you begged. "I'm so wet."

He pulled away from your neck, kissing your swollen lips sloppily as he removed his hand from between your legs.

"Yeah? Lemme see, sweetheart…"

With deft fingers he ripped open the button on your shorts and tugged them down your thighs aggressively, his pupils blown wide when he noticed how your slick had darkened your panties and soaked them through completely, the corner of his lips curling upward menacingly.

He leaned in and kissed you again, a little sweeter this time, a display of his appreciation for how ready you were for him and how much he was enjoying this game with you.

That only lasted for so long though, the more he danced his tongue with yours the more he felt completely out of control, the need to drive his cock into you coming to the forefront of his mind once again just as it had since the minute he met you.

He released your cheeks from his gentle hold and used both of them to grab onto the side of your thong, tearing them off of you barbarically, the sound of ripping cotton making both of you more feral than before.

You sat up on the desk, holding his head to keep him kissing you as he settled between your legs, his cock nudging your inner thigh dangerously close to your center. It was all heavy, panting breaths and the sound of teeth clashing together as you went at each other furiously, your fingers making a tangled mess out of those gorgeous blond tresses, your nails no doubt leaving red scratches all over his pale skin.

With a sharp inhale to catch his breath, Jax broke the messy seal of your lips enough to look down at you naked and spread beneath him, slipping his fingers slowly through your wet folds to gather your slick on his fingertips, admiring you before slamming them inside you deep enough that his rings prevented him from going any further, pumping in and out before hooking them to massage your g-spot.

Your cries filled the room, the build-up to this making everything feel more intense than you could bear, your hips moving to meet the tempo of his hand enthusiastically and instinctively.

"You want that dick?" Jax asked breathlessly, his cock throbbing and ready to explode if he held off any longer, the sensation of your pussy clenching his fingers and coating them with your juices making it worse.

He was always diligent about wrapping up when it came to sleeping with new chicks, but something about you made him want to bury his bare cock deep inside you and drive into you again and again, the thought of seeing your cunt leaking with his load sending him into a fury.

"Yes…fuckkkk!" you screamed, your consent barely past your lips as he pushed into you, stretching you out over his thick girth.

A shuddered breath escaped your lips as you sought to adjust to his size, Jax giving you no mercy as he immediately started hammering into you with ruthless force.

By the time he had rammed himself into the deepest part of you, you were both so close to falling apart, not taking long to get each other right back to the edge where you had been left hanging, the rhythm chosen by him and matched by you one that was sure to put this desk through the wall in no time.

It shook precariously beneath you, and it seemed the threat of breaking the damn thing only spurred Jax on more, his brutal thrusts increasing as he worked even harder to ruin you.

His skin became slippery as he began to work up a sweat, your hands gliding over his shoulders and up the column of his neck as you tried to hold on to him as best you could.

His praise at how good you felt was broken up by a variety of curses, the way he sounded as he got so lost in you making the pressure in your core erupt rapidly, and you strangled his cock through your release, soaking him enough for you to hear the lewd squelching through your mind-numbing euphoria.

"Fuck!" he roared, his last thrusts slowing in pace as you coaxed out his end, his cock pulsing inside your choking walls and filling you up with his hot cum in vicious spurts.

His sweaty hair was stuck to his forehead as he leaned it against yours, chuckling while he fought to catch his breath.

"That was…"

"Yeah…" you panted, hardly able to believe just how incredible it was, your whole body tingling and alive with pleasure.

He smiled against your lips before kissing you sweetly, humming into your mouth while he remained inside you, wanting to relish in the after effects for as long as he could.

You made out until he eventually slipped from you, the loss making you whine and you both to slowly cease your kisses.

“I've never done anything like this before,” you admitted, feeling totally liberated in your behaviour as you watched his sweaty, naked, and absolutely perfect form step away from you, his smile beaming at you once again.

He winked at you, “Me neither," and ran a hand through his hair to try to fix the mess you had made of it.

“For some reason I don't believe that," you chided, tilting your head as you remained in your spot, his cum starting to drip out of you.

“You shouldn't," he purred, strutting back over to you, his eyes fixed between your legs where you could tell by his expression that he enjoyed what he saw.

He held your waist, his head tipping to the side as he looked down at you, his voice low and lusty when he spoke.

"Still have nowhere to be?"

---

Taglist:

@sotwk @dailydragon08 @sunnys-day @thedreadandthefugitivemind @glassgulls @littlenosoul @glitterypirateduck @momia2910 @maggotzombie @rmwarn90 @paintlavillered @stealfromthedevil @kmc1989 @theesirenteller

I went ahead and tagged everyone I have written down for my Charlie/Will Miller taglist so my apologies if you're not interested in being tagged in Jax fics and I will happily add or remove anyone as they wish!

[cyberneticfallout]

Chapter One: Filly

Ch 1 - Ch 2 - Ch 3 - Ch 4 - Ch 5 - Ch 6 - Ch 7 - Ch 8 - Ch 9 - Ch 10 - More Coming Soon

Pairing: Cooper Howard/The Ghoul x Fem!Reader Summary: You, a seasoned bounty hunter, team up with a gruff ghoul to capture a high-value target. Tags: Slow burn (and I mean SLOWWW), angst, eventual smut, language, canon-typical violence, more tags will be added Posted on AO3: Smoothie and The Ghoul Word Count: 1.2k

Bounty hunting is no walk in the park, but the rewards make it worthwhile. Your body aches as you trudge through the settlement known as Filly. Pushy vendors eagerly try to sell you their wares, with one particularly persistent one urging you to spend your hard-earned caps on dog meat. Politely declining their offers, you navigate your way through the bustling street towards the more reputable shops and services.

Having visited Filly a few times before, you recognize familiar faces among the locals. You exchange a silent greeting with the local repair girl and spot Ma June preparing to open her shop for the day, making a mental note to stop by later. As you approach a semi-functional Nuka Cola machine, you catch sight of a man seated in a chair. He's dressed like an outlaw from the Wild West, giving off an air of danger. His gaze locks with yours as you pass by.

A ghoul.

You've had mostly positive experiences with ghouls in the wasteland, but this one seems different. There's something about him that sets off alarm bells in your head. Feeling bold, you approach him after grabbing an unbearably warm Nuka Cola.

"Hey," you stand in front of him and take a sip. "I don't personally have a problem with ghouls, but the folk around here aren't too fond of them."

Smirking, he looks up at you, his sunken eyes and lack of nose more pronounced in the sunlight. Most people find ghouls unsettling, but you've grown accustomed to their appearance after years of interacting with them.

"That may be true," he drawls. "but I ain't here to make friends."

You offer him a sip of your drink, he stares at you in confusion. Taking it as a rejection, you finish the rest and toss the bottle aside.

"You look like you're either playing cowboy or you're a bounty hunter," you remark.

"What's your guess?" he snarls.

Leaning towards him, you place your hands on the arms of his chair. "I'm guessing you're here looking for a specific doctor."

"You're pretty bold for getting so close to a ghoul, smoothskin."

"And you're pretty bold for assuming I've never been closer." A small smile creeps onto your face as he looks at you curiously.

"I'm sure our paths will cross again. Until then..." Stepping back, you give him a casual salute and walk away.

The presence of the ghoul gives you the feeling that shit is about to go down so you decide to hang around on the outskirts of Filly. Leaning against a tree just outside the bustling street of vendors, you can hear the sound of raised voices and the unmistakable echoes of gunfire coming from the center of town.

"Called it," you mutter under your breath. There's no need to dive headfirst into the chaos when you can simply wait it out and observe the aftermath. Given the hefty reward on the line for this particular doctor, it's unlikely that he'll be an easy target. If he's anything like the other high-value bounties you've pursued in the past, he'll find a way to slip away, and you'll have to track him down.

Inhaling deeply, you take a moment to assess your surroundings, ensuring that your rifle and pistol are in proper working order. As you inspect your weapons, the air is suddenly filled with distorted screams, "No, no, no!" Looking up, you witness a spectacle that catches you off guard. A suit of Power Armor is soaring uncontrollably through the sky above you. Could it be the Brotherhood of Steel? This bounty just keeps getting crazier.

The Power Armor veers off in the opposite direction, leaving you to wonder what in the wasteland is going on. With the chaotic gunfight seemingly subsiding, you make your way back towards the town center. It appears that the flying garbage can and ghoul have caused quite the commotion, scattering the combatants and bringing an end to the firefight.

As you draw closer to the scene, the absurdity of the situation becomes even more apparent. Bodies, torn apart and scattered haphazardly, litter the ground. The locals, seizing the opportunity, have already begun looting them. You catch sight of the ghoul making his way towards a path that leads out of town. Without a moment's hesitation, you decide to follow him.

Quickening your pace, you navigate through the debris and bodies, doing your best to avoid the looters who pay you no mind. The ghoul moves quickly with a dog by his side, his sunken eyes focused on his route to the wastes.

As you approach the outskirts of town, the ghoul glances back, acknowledging your pursuit. Letting out an annoyed sigh, he comes to a halt and turns to face you.

"I ain't accepting companions," he declares, a note of irritation in his voice.

"That's too bad," you reply with a smirk, coming to a stop in front of him. Your attention is drawn to the dog standing beside him, looking up at you with a wagging tail. A warm feeling washes over you - you've always had a soft spot for dogs.

Kneeling down, you scratch behind the dog's ears and ask, "What's her name?"

"I don't fuckin' know," the ghoul snaps back.

You raise an eyebrow, a mixture of amusement and confusion on your face. "Did you hit your head back there? How do you not know your dog's name?"

The ghoul rolls his eyes slightly, clearly exasperated. "She ain't my dog. She was with the doctor. Along with some vault dweller."

A surge of curiosity courses through you at the mention of the doctor and the vault dweller. This situation just keeps getting more intriguing. You stand up, still keeping an eye on the ghoul.

“A vault dweller?”

He begins to draw his gun and points it at you, “Give me a reason not to shoot your ass. You’re startin’ to annoy me.”

“Calm down, beef jerky.” Taking a step back, you maintain a calm demeanor. “I think we can help each other out.”

The ghoul's grip on his gun tightens, but he hesitates, seemingly intrigued by your proposition. "I don't need help.”

“Oh but yes, you do.” You pull out a small vial filled with amber liquid, capturing his attention. “This dog will do a great job tracking its owner but I’ll do an even better job of making sure you don’t go feral. No offense but you seem pretty old - even for a ghoul.”

The ghoul's grip on his gun loosens, and he seems to consider your words. After a moment, he reluctantly lowers his weapon. "Fine," he grumbles. "But don't think I owe you anything."

You nod with a small smile, "Fair enough."

[chosos-mascara]

when flames dance

𝙨𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙪 𝙜𝙤𝙟𝙤 𝙭 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆 - as prince gojo's bride is chosen, you're left to experience one last night within his chambers.

𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 - angst, prince! gojo, maid! reader, medieval era in my head, smut, gojo cries when he comes, love confession

2.4k words

The facts were always abundantly clear. 

Even if you had wished for any other outcome, or to spend a few more nights beside him, moments were fleeting. They always had been once you'd thought about it - this relationship destines to end in departure. Heated kisses only with no eyes to see, gentle touches of soft skin. The only light to guide your actions had been the orange glow of candlelight, so frail in comparison to the sun.

The secretive romance between your uncanny pairing was something you'd cherished, even in its limited lifespan. Though, the sting of waking up alone had begun to cut much deeper than it had before. You'd pictured if servitude would have been much easier if Satoru wouldn't have requested your companionship, if you hadn't learned what it would be to feel loved nor safe. The fact of retirement had been ingrained, yet with each passing day, you had fought the urge to sabotage your own secret. Perhaps if the king were to see his son's happiness, he would relent - no, you would remind yourself that you had doubted it. 

Satoru Gojo had been destined to marry a high-born woman, one with an equal stature in the world of politics, whom could aid in the growth of the kingdom he would come to inherit. Although certain affairs were permitted behind closed doors, a public relation to anyone other than a princess picked to his right would be abhorrent. He'd indulged here and there, a man or woman wrapped beneath the sheets you'd felt brush over your own skin, never struggling to abide by one simple rule. No courting.

His bride had been picked before he'd set eyes over you. A new asset to aid in the upkeep of the castle, supporting housekeeping while remaining quiet and obedient to orders. Satoru had noticed the other maid's avoidance, and your still nature when within his presence. Perhaps he'd seen himself in your eyes - never fussing over the internalized pain you'd lived through, instead serving others. 

The first time you'd held a conversation had been pleasant. Nothing rich nor remarkable, though a satisfying exchange. 

He'd caught you walking through the halls, passing his chambers only to be stopped by a white head of hair poking through his door, a request of assistance with a new garment. A few buttons had been ripped from their place, and with your housekeeping expertise, you were summoned to service a repair. 

You would not be privy to one of Satoru's secrets; that he had torn them from cloth himself to gain a reason for aid, pulling harshly on the small wooden circles as he'd spoken to you through the door. 

He'd made you laugh with only the second one to one encounter. While tending to him within the garden, a pitcher and glass in hand, he'd been sat idly carving a piece of wood between finger. Either curiosity or kindness had encouraged you to ask what he'd been creating as the pitcher had been set down, his pale complexion turning to face you. You wouldn't see his eyes through the black barriers that had protected them, though with the feeling of his gaze dancing over your figure, you'd straightened your posture. 

He'd displayed a wide smile, a giggle to himself, before pushing the wood in your direction. He'd described it as an animal of some description - a horse to be exact, though it had resembled nothing of the sort. Air had passed through your nose, a gentle choke and light snort, though immediately met with an apology and bow. 

You were surprised when he had laughed along with you, and requested your company for the afternoon.

Few evenings had followed this before you were to find yourself within his presence once more. Midnight, signified only by twelve chimes on the grandfather clock as you'd pattered through the castle halls, candlelight your own guide. Within a mind of your own, you hadn't sensed the company of  another until your own gown had brushed theirs. You'd glanced up in fear as his figure had towered over yours, though once setting eyes across his increasingly familiar features, you'd felt somewhat at ease. With dimness, the prince's glasses were discarded, revealing to you the most precious set of eyes you'd ever laid sight upon. The blue had danced before your handheld flame, his smirk creeping over skin.

"What're you doing up?" Satoru's voice had always been doused in a playful tone, an informality in his greetings to you. He'd never opted to ask you good morning nor night, though this was something you'd came to adore - another reason he'd been so unlike other men. 

"Sorry, sir." With your head bowed, you had attempted to steady a sporadic heart.  "I didn't ask for an apology, did I?" His voice would always cause your chest to tighten and stomach to flutter, even if you'd been only his maid. "Walk with me." There was a gentleness to him that you hadn't recognized, but with the lateness of the day, there had been a good chance he'd been tired. When he'd placed his hand to the small of your back, you couldn't help but wonder if there had instead been a deeper meaning. 

As you'd wondered the corridors at his side, he'd allowed his slender fingers to entwine with the grip of the candle holder's metal handle. You'd been much too focused on your racing heart to notice that he'd navigated you back to his quarters, opening the old wood and inviting you inside. He'd closed it behind your reluctant footsteps, placing the wax that had lost most of it's height to sit atop a wooden dresser, turning to face you. 

The amber light had danced around the room as you'd peered less cluelessly into his eyes, his intent clear within your mind. Though, when he'd placed one large hand over cheek to pull you into a kiss, you hadn't quite expected things to progress as they had. 

During the day, you hadn't interacted with him more than usual, though at night, you were expected to knock over his door. Four raps with quick succession would signify your presence, and Satoru would allow you to his room. To begin with, you hadn't spoken all to much, though with weeks merging to months, it had been more often that you would simply share conversation in the other's presence. Lust had bloomed love, though with the differing status, you'd felt your time drawing to close. 

"My parents had me meet someone today." He'd spoken with a reluctance that had your stomach churning, tension evident through the tightness of his body. There had been a stiffness in the air following those words, a feeling you weren't able to let go. 

"Yes?" Although you'd encouraged explanation, he'd allowed moments to pass before providing one.   "A princess; my betrothed." Voice hushed and weak, there had been a bitter emphasis on the latter word, a poison passed from his tongue to yours. You'd swallowed deeply, breath in throat. He wouldn't dare to gauge your reaction, instead remaining slouched in his chair with eyes over the open fire, fist clammy and clenched over the ornately carved arms.

"Oh." 

There had been many things you'd wished to exclaim, a form of comfort to be manifested, though thinking about losing time beside him with another to take your place had pained you all too much. 

"I don't want this." Satoru had spoken through only lightly parted lips.  "What will happen to us?" Part of you hadn't wanted to hear his answer, to instead play out your fantasy even if it would mark you mad. But, the glimmer of hope that had flickered among the flames had been snubbed out once he'd finally turned to face you, an emotionless gaze as he'd swallowed his feelings. 

"We always knew it would end." With those words you'd felt your stomach drop, a sensation much like being pierced with a dagger, the blade twisting within your gut. Although he'd been correct, there was always the burden of his duties, you had still found the truth difficult to accept. 

"Can we-" You paused as a wry sob escaped lip, a tear rolling over cold cheek. "Can I have you for one last night?" There was a stillness as you'd closed your eyes in embarrassment, though a gentle creek in Satoru's chair had signified his movement, a hand encasing your features to wipe the droplet from your skin.  "That sounds tragic." 

If his fingers hadn't interlaced with your own to be placed over his heart, lips ghosting your trembling ones, you would've taken his words as rejection. 

The salty taste of tears had been apparent the first moment his lips had pressed to yours. You'd inhaled sharply, a sob against him as he'd tilted your head back, a quick dart of his tongue against yours. He'd kissed you as he had that first night, with a sense of longing and loneliness, a reminder of solace found between two lost souls. 

Satoru had felt his grip tighten when he'd reminded himself this would be the last time, a squeeze over your skin as if to memorize each dip and curve. He ran his hands over your body, savoring the way you'd felt beneath his touch, even if each movement had pained him. You'd allowed him to guide you toward the four poster bed you'd found yourself tangled within most nights, back hitting familiar sheets beneath. 

As your arms reached around his shoulders, his fingers found their way to your undergarments. With night, you hadn't the usual layers, a uniform replaced with only a nightgown and shorts. Satoru had tugged them down, slipping the garment over thigh t leave your lower half bare. The skirt of your dress had ridden up to pool at your stomach with his lips still attached to your own. 

Your hands had trembled when you'd repeated the gesture, an unsettled feeling as you'd unbuttoned his trouser, bringing his hips closer to your own. Though his hardness had grazed your slick, he'd drawn himself back. 

"Allow us more time." The soft request had caused you to pause, peering to him with both swollen lips and teary eyes. His grasp had advanced to your nightgown, lifting the thin fabric above your head to free the flesh beneath. If this had been one of the first encounters, your hands would have moved to shield your pride, yet with time and trust, you'd no longer felt the need to hide yourself. 

"Beautiful." Satoru whispered praises over your skin, tender kisses over the warmth as he'd maneuvered over you, tongue flicking and teeth nipping over thicker parts of chest and stomach before reaching thigh. Palms had slipped over your figure, though halting their path when reaching inner thigh, pressing to part your legs, and then hold them open. 

Blue eyes had watched your expression change with a sigh on lip, mouth placed eagerly over the sensitive fold to swirl over bud. You sank back into the headboard, a plush and supportive fabric, appreciating the way Satoru had kneaded your thighs as he'd spelled his name over your clit, his breaths tickling surrounding skin. 

"Satoru..." You'd uttered in pleasure when reaching to tangle fingers through his hair, his appreciation voiced to you by the push of two fingers to your entrance, slowly easing their way to curl within you. A much louder whine had left your lips at the succession, hips bucking toward his face, though with each pulsing twist within your core, you'd felt tears return. 

"Wait-" You sat up, Satoru's lips parting from your folds, a string of spit snapping when he'd brought his face level to yours, concern across his brow. 

"I love you." Voice breaking, you reached to touch his cheek, beckoning him back toward your lips. He'd slid across your mouth as you'd made steady movements against him, saliva mixing with your own. When pulling back for air, you'd felt lost within his eyes, the cerulean swirling before you.

"I love you too." Satoru had whispered against your cheek, a kiss placed over skin. He held you close, large hand encasing one side of your face as his lips had moved against your neck. 

"Must you marry another?" The candle at his bedside table had finally flickered for the last time, a frantic dance growing weaker until finally extinguishing. Grey smoke had swirled at its wake, the only light within the room now emitted from the fireplace. 

"Do you have another idea?" The narrow face had pulled from it's place in your neck, searching your expression for an answer. His heart raced, throat tight.  "We could run." The suggestion had been spoken from a desperate idiot, grasping at her last chances at saving herself. He'd let out a laugh bathed in sorrow, dread pooling through his abdomen. "A prince fleeing his kingdom?" With his low voice, the warmth of his skin over yours, you'd almost been at peace. 

"Perhaps we should kill my father."Although spoken as a joke, there had been some seriousness within his insanity. "No, don't answer that - it would be treason." 

You'd laid back against pillow as he'd placed a kiss over your forehead, finally easing himself into you. Your breath and his had mingled as he'd edged himself to be fully sheathed, acting as both a sigh of relief and a sob of heartache as Satoru's expression feigned bliss. 

He'd never held you so tightly, chest to chest and moving with such leisure, lips refusing to part from your own disregarding breaths or faint groans. You'd questioned when you'd began to aquatint yourself with a prince's body between each working day, when the familiarity and endearment had felt so natural. 

The sensations between thigh had been one you'd become accustomed to, yet on this night, each rock of hips and push to fullness of length had felt more intense than the last. The slow kiss you'd felt enthralled within had your heart racing, fingers caressing the softness of Satrou's cheek and silk-like hair. 

"I'll always cherish you." Broken words had made way between kisses, Satoru's undoing much closer than he'd anticipated. There had been only a few more clashes of skin as he'd pinned his lips to yours in a stillness, stomach stuttering. As the waves crashed around him, he'd been encumbered by emotion, tears spilling from cheek as helpless moans had raked his body. You hadn't heard him come like this before - nor felt his body tremble as it had against you. 

An idle hand ran circles over your skin, an uncertainty of what was to come. If Satoru had known anything, it had been his willingness to try, and he'd questioned what rules he would bend to remain beside you. 

Reblogs and comments help me reach more people!! please consider reblogging and letting me know what you think <3

a/n: i hope u enjoyed ! i tried something new with the cover, kinda took a while to find something i liked! i found that i'm running out of manga photos to use lol, and with a more angsty tone i felt this one needed to be a little different!

i was thinking about changing up my theme but i'm still unsure, but if i did i would want a dark fantasy kinda vibe. i am trying to learn how to gradient text but we are not there yet...

[the-offside-rule]

Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) - Tyre Change

Requested: yup

Prompt: Teammate Max (a request I'm getting a lot)

Warnings: slight teammate bickering

"Oh what the fuck?" Y/n asked as she stepped out of her car, staring at the front wheel, the steam practically pouring off it from the sheer heat of it. "What the fuck am I meant to do?" She whispered to herself. She was in Monaco so she couldn't call her dad or brother to come help like usual.

On a moonlit night in Monaco, up in the mountains borderline middle of nowhere, Y/n found herself stranded with a flat tire. Frustration etched across her face, she heard footsteps approaching. To her surprise, Max had emerged from the shadows. His car had stopped right next to hers, with the window rolled down to talk to her. "Hi." She replied with a fake smile. As Max approached, he couldn't resist a playful remark. "Looks like your car can't handle the pressure. Nice to see not much changes during the off season." Y/n rolled her eyes, retorting. "Don't act like you've never had a flat, Max. And I handle pressure just fine, thank you." Max smirked. "We'll see about that. So have you called a breakdown service?" He asked. Y/n shook her head. "Why?" Max asked. "It'd cost me an arm and a leg out here! I was actually hoping a fan would just pop up and offer their services for free and it seems like my biggest fan is here." Max chuckled as Y/n smiled at him. "Let me show you how it's done." Max said, grabbing the tyre change tools from the boot of his car. "

"I- I can't change the tyre." She said. "That's okay. I didn't know how to until I was like 18? My dad nearly-" Y/n stopped him right there. "No, I know how to, I just don't have a spare wheel." Max looked at her, almost shocked. "Why?" Y/n shrugged her shoulders. "Well I have a tyre repair kit instead." Max stood up again from inspecting the tyre and practically towered over his teammate. "Why?" Max asked again. "Because when we were given the cars, I ticked the tyre repair kit instead." Y/n explained. "Why didn't you tick both?" Y/n's eyes widened. "You could tick both?" Max laughed and nodded. "Yes?" His teammate groaned and kicked a pebble on the ground. "Oh for fucks sake."

Max, not one to pass up a challenge, offered his assistance with a smirk. "Well, since we have the same car, I'll give you my spare tyre and I'll go get a new one in the factory. How's that sound?" Max asked. Y/n, reluctant yet intrigued, accepted his help. "Right, let's get to work."

As they worked under the dim glow of a streetlamp, banter flowed effortlessly between them. Max's playful jabs and Y/n's sharp retorts created a dance of words in the night air. "Grab the spare tyre." Max said as he used the jack to lift the car up. Y/n nodded and ran over to his car, trying to lift it but finding it difficult due to it basically being in a casing. "Oh don't tell me you can deal eith G-Force but can't lift a tyre!" Max joked as he heard Y/n struggling. Y/n scoffed, attempting to lift the spare. "I'd like to see you do this!" Challenge accepted, Max agreed to swap places with her. "Alright." Max stood up and walked over to the boot, lifting it. It seemed so easy when he did it. He smirked and began rolling the tyre over to her car.

Between lug nuts and tyre irons, they discovered shared interests and common ground. The tension of rivals shifted to the camaraderie of allies. As the tyre spun off, Max teased. "Maybe you should consider keeping a pit crew in your boot." Max joked. Laughter echoed across the quiet road as they exchanged stories, the rivalry softening into a genuine connection.

Underneath the star-studded sky, Max and Y/n shared a moment of understanding. She reminded him him much of himself when he was younger; stubborn and determined. The tire replaced, Max couldn't resist a teasing grin. With the tire securely in place, Y/n turned to her teammate. "I never thought I'd say this, but thanks, Max. I guess you're not as unbearable as you seem." Y/n smiled. "Guess I'm not your worst teammate after all." He remarked. Y/n, rolled her eyes. "Don't let it get to your head, Verstappen." She mumbled. Max winked, playfully nudging her. "See, I knew you'd warm up to me eventually. Now, if you ever need a pit stop, you know where to find me."

Their exchange shifted from rivalry to camaraderie, laughter mingling with the night air. Max's hands-on lesson transformed into a Canon event, turning enemies into reluctant allies. "Well, I'll make it up to you somehow. I promise." Y/n said. "Eh, a coffee will do but I'm not very picky about being paid back. I think it's payback enough that you're always behind me in race weekends." Max joked, making Y/n laugh gently. "Touché." The pair walked back back their respective cars, before they drove off into the night, the shared adventure left an unexpected bond between them – a connection forged on a roadside under the stars.

[rahuratna]

The transformation of Nanami Kento, part 6

In which things get more serious as the team track down the curse user!

Yuuji had set an alarm to wake him early that morning. Stirring slightly, he reached out an arm, fingers groping blindly, and turned off the blaring sound from his phone. Something felt a little different from normal. There was a warm, soft weight against his cheek, fluffy hair tickling his nose. He cracked one eye open.

Nanami-pom was asleep on his pillow, curled against his head. Yuuji lay still for a minute, taking in the soft breathing emanating from the tiny snout, the paws pushed against his chin and the warm puppy-scent wafting from Nanami-pom’s fur.

Something must have alerted Nanami-pom to his wakefulness, because the small mouth opened in a yawn and the hazel eyes blinked once, twice. Stretching his short limbs, the transformed sorcerer rose, swaying slightly, and pressed his cold nose against Yuuji’s in what seemed to be a greeting.

He padded off to the side, mouth turning down in a grumpy expression as he hopped off the bed. Yuuji heard him giving off small grumbling sounds and snorts as he ambled around the room, waking himself up. The student grinned and sat up, stretching his own limbs. Nanami had never been a morning person, but he’d never seen it firsthand before.

Megumi was already up and dressed. He glanced over at Nanami-pom, mouth twitching as he took in his sullen face and dishevelled fur. He warmed some milk for the sorcerer in the microwave and helped him into his suit, making sure to strap the harness and small blade into a position on his back where he could reach it easily. After some brushing and a small piece of egg on toast, courtesy of room service, Nanami-pom looked more alert and well-groomed.

They met Nobara, Ino and Gojo in the foyer, before taking the car waiting outside to their destination. The ride was more subdued this time around, with each member of their team focusing their thoughts on the tricky task that lay ahead.

The car stopped near a nondescript side entrance, a simple gate set in a high wall with peeling blue paint. Although rusted, the gate showed signs of recent disturbance. This was probably the same route taken by the curse user to gain entry. Gojo pushed the door open and they trailed in after him, Nanami-pom riding on Yuuji’s shoulder once more. The amusement park wasn’t quite as decrepit as Yuuji had imagined. As much as most of the rides, buildings, open-air arenas and booths were worn down, they weren’t falling apart.

Gojo gestured for them to split and they nodded in understanding. Ino, Yuuji and Nobara forming one group and Megumi joining the tall, striding form of Gojo as they headed to the west and east entrances of the park respectively. Nanami-pom kept his nose in the air, sniffing carefully as they checked each building. Yuuji supposed that his sense of smell was heightened in this form.

Suddenly, Nanami-pom stiffened, his paw bent and raised in the air at an angle, snout directed towards what looked like a haunted house exhibit. Ino, Nobara and Yuuji exchanged glances before heading that way cautiously, on the lookout for any signs of movement.

____________________________________________

He’d just wanted them to stop complaining. Was that too much to ask? The daycare had been a special dream of his, a haven for children! So why, why, wouldn’t they do as they were told? All he asked for was a smile. A smile.

Happy, smiling faces.

Happy, smiling faces.

He’d repeated it over and over, at all of their staff meetings. All they’d done was whisper and mutter and complain and moan about how difficult their lives were. What about all the things he’d done? What about the new murals he’d painted on the walls? What about the repairs he’d made to the bathrooms? What about all the fundraising he’d done so that they could have a new play area.

Happy, smiling faces.

That was all he’d asked for. And then that Himiko had come to his office, begging with her wet, disgusting, snotty face, asking for her salary for the last month because she needed to pay rent and feed her kids. He wasn’t a monster. He knew he’d have to pay sooner or later. But why, why, couldn’t they see the bigger picture? Why couldn’t they see all the sacrifices he’d made on a daily basis, just to keep this place open and running?

Himiko hadn’t been smiling. He’d got to his feet, placing hands on her shoulders to shake her, make her remember her duty to smile, but then something had happened. Himiko had started to change right in front of his eyes. She’d shrunk down, her black hair turning snow-white, her eyes turning small, dark and bright, two of the cutest cat ears he had ever seen popping up on her skull.

She was no longer human, but she was perfect. He’d never realised how much he’d wanted something like this, a way to make everyone smile. For them to be the best for the kids that they could be. Himiko had tried to run. He giggled when he remembered how her small legs had pinwheeled in the air when he’d snatched her up.

Oh no. Naughty! He couldn’t have her warning the others. They’d come looking for each other, and one by one, they transformed so beautifully under his fingers. How precious! The kids loved them. And as long as he kept them all inside the daycare, nobody would ever know! Any pesky relatives came looking? Well, they’d just join his cohort of cute little helpers. Everything had been a dream, after that. He’d finally got the set-up he’d always wanted.

And all the happy, smiling faces.

But then, they’d arrived. The tall, blonde man with a face that looked as if it had been carved from marble. Remembering him gave him the shudders. That face looked like it had never smiled a day. And that boy. The one who seemed happy-go-lucky but had something huge and terrible inside him. They’d found out about him, somehow. He hadn’t been able to stop to think about it, because then they’d given chase.

When they’d cornered him, he’d aimed for the boy first, because he’d seemed like the biggest threat. But the tall man had jumped between him and the boy, taking the transformation beam square in the chest.

Breathing had become a tad difficult then. Seeing such a stern countenance, such a muscular, imposing form, reduced to this? Oh, the delight! Seeing his long limbs shrink to little stubs? Seeing the sharp-edged face grow round and the slicked-back blonde hair lose its shape and sprout everywhere on his body? Seeing the slow movements of the small, golden form as he'd picked himself up and looked down, seeing the confusion and shock in those soft brown eyes as he beheld his transformed shape?

Oh, it was beautiful. It gave him a rush of power, but not before he’d registered the threat from the boy.

He’d bounded forward, aiming a hard kick right for the small golden creature that was still disoriented and stumbling. His foot had connected with the soft belly, watching the confusion turn rapidly into pain as the Pompompurin he’d created tumbled head over heels and smacked into a crumbling brick wall with a yelp. The boy had cried out in horror, rushing forward to help his transformed companion.

Which was precisely what he’d wanted. It had enabled him to make his quick –

But wait … what was this? Voices? And footsteps, approaching?

Damn them all to hell! Who were these people? How were they tracking him? Wouldn’t they just leave him alone?

Oh, they’d done it now. He’d managed to get past them the first time and they wouldn’t get him now. He’d still see his dream come to fruition, no matter who tried to stop him!

______________________________________________

The moment he’d smelt the man, Nanami-pom knew. That sickening, cloying scent of wax crayons, cheap cologne and sweat. It was unmistakable. In his current body, he knew that his strength was nowhere near what it had been in his human form. And so, Nanami-pom had read the mission report carefully, listened in on the briefings with full attention and had given this issue his usual meticulous analysis.

What his body lacked in strength, it had now gained in speed and accuracy. His small, light frame, if boosted with cursed energy, would be able to move much faster than anything he had ever achieved in human form. His blade was also much lighter, but the keen edge to it would serve him well. His senses were also enhanced well beyond any human’s and he planned to use this to his advantage.

When the small team stopped outside the haunted manor, Ino raised a fist and waved a signal to Yuuji and Nobara. They split and surrounded the place, keeping a careful eye on the entrances. Yuuji and Ino approached from the back and side entrance, Nobara keeping a careful lookout, her hammer clenched hard in her hand. It was at this point that Nanami-pom slipped from Yuuji’s shoulder, his light footfalls carrying him undetected into the shadows of the house.

[askagamedev]

Mmorpg ingame economies have inflation, that’s pretty much a given. How do developers make it so that it’s not so rampant?

In-game economies are entirely different beasts than real-world economies for one major reason - total currency is not zero-sum. In the real world, it is (mostly) zero-sum - individuals cannot create money out of nothing, so any amount of currency I spend is transferred to someone else and the total amount of currency in the system is preserved. No individual can buy real gold bars infinitely, they'll run out of money to buy the bars eventually and the price of the gold bars will increase as the cheaper sellers are bought out and remaining sellers raise prices. At the ultimate end, there is only so much gold on the planet, which means that even an individual with effectively-infinite money has an upper limit on the total amount of gold she can buy.

In most games, a player character can typically sell as many wombat testicles to the NPC vendor as she might have, creating new currency out of thin air for each testicle sold. There is no limit to the number of wombat testicles she can sell and there is no limit to the amount of currency the NPC can generate for her. Similarly, any currency spent on NPC vendor goods or services (e.g. training costs, equipment repair costs, resurrection costs, consumable costs, etc.) is completely removed from the system. This is called a "faucet to sink" design. The NPCs that generate currency are the "faucet" from which the money comes, and the NPCs that remove currency in exchange for goods and services are the "sink" in which the currency is removed from the system. When the faucet and the sink are generating/removing roughly the equivalent amount of currency from/to the system, the system is in balance. When the faucet outproduces the sink, more players have an ever-increasing amount of currency which is inflation - too much currency chasing too few goods. When the faucet underproduces the sink, we have deflation (which is much rarer) - too little currency chasing too many goods.

In order to reduce in-game inflation, the solution should be fairly obvious - the designers introduce new "sink" options to remove additional currency from the system. This usually takes the form of new consumables, gear options, or benefits from NPC vendors that cost a lot of currency to utilize. Since players will want these new benefits, they'll start spending more currency instead of hoarding and inflation will fall.

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[solarpunkfool]

You wake up. The sunlight filters through the tree branches leafing outside your window, and you hear the birds calling (the birds are back, populations returning in the thousands, then millions as air pollution lessens and climate patterns rebalance). You head to your kitchen and make yourself a morning drink, coffee or tea, pouring the spent grounds into your countertop compost bin - municipal pick-up is tomorrow, you remind yourself. You put the paper wrapper from the tea/coffee into the recycling bin. There are no trash bins anymore, no plastic to throw away. 

You get ready for your day, putting on your clothing, soft cotton/linen/wool that won’t last much longer than you when you’re done with it. You message your work friends on your slightly clunkier, but infinitely repairable smart phone - you’ll meet them at the local light rail stop. You summon a link (a free, sometimes remote controlled, publicly available cab service - serviced by the municipality, and fully electric). You make sure to give yourself a little extra time than you did when you had a gas car, since the links travel more slowly and carefully, but that’s ok, because the streets are safe for tricycles, bikes, dog-walkers, nighttime deer, errant soccer balls, and neighborhood cats. You spend the time before it arrives watering your backyard garden, and you chat with your neighbor who has just finished picking blackberries from the vines along your fence. She tells you she’ll make cobbler and bring you some later. You’re grateful, since you never have time to bake when you’d rather be spending time with your family. Your phone alerts you when your link arrives, and you head out. There’s another neighbor in the link already, and you’re both headed to the light rail stop. You chat about the weather, how the trees that were planted en masse all those years ago have kept the summers so much cooler and the winters so much milder. He jokes about not having to mow the grass in his yard nearly as much as he used to, after the ordinances for planting slower-growing native plants. He shows you a picture of how well his garden is doing, and you mention your neighbor and the blackberries. His eyes widen, and he mentions that he’s never been able to get berries to grow. You take his information and promise to invite him over for cobbler sometime next week. 

You arrive at the light rail stop and walk under the fully green bridge (for animals to cross safely, and to keep the station cool) to meet your friends. You exchange notes about how your efforts are doing, what you think should be improved as you board the nearly silent electric train. You look out the window as you travel deeper into the city and watch as the green of trees along roads and sidewalks never lessens, the dullness of concrete doesn’t increase. With the links available and so few private cars on the streets, the size of the roads has decreased, making more room for trees, playgrounds, gardens, and wildflower patches. You see what used to be a concrete and brick center berm taken over by the boxy outlines of beehives, surrounded on both sides (what used to be narrow sidewalks) with fruit tree orchards. 

You arrive at your destination and disembark, walking with your colleagues to your building. It’s still a highrise, mostly concrete and glass, but the rooftop terraces are fully green spaces and the glass panels are permeable solar panels, drinking in the sun’s energy like the plants that stretch across its roof. You spend your day leading your team in delivering top quality services, eat lunch at the free market kitchen down the street, and then head home. Your work day is 5 hours long, with an hour for lunch. 

When you get home, your partner and child are there already, playing in the street on your kiddo’s new bike. The street is quiet and safe. You breathe deeply, smelling absolutely no car exhaust. 

You meet your neighbors at the community house (every neighborhood has one), where there’s always a free dinner if you want one. You don’t like to cook, so you don’t offer to take a shift, but you help clean up. Your partner mentions taking your kiddo to the doctor for a possible ear infection, but it turns out they just had a bug bite in their ear. You laugh about it. The doctor’s appointment cost nothing, just as your dinner does. You can cook at home, but why would you? You could eat alone, and sometimes you do, but today you want to laugh and talk with your neighbors and let your kiddo play with theirs. You and your partner help the clean up team after dinner, washing your own dishes and a few others’ so it all gets done. The dishes aren’t perfect, chipped and older, but who cares when the food is free. 

You and your family walk home and meet your old dog on the porch. He snorts and snuffles your child’s hair and leans in for pets. 

You go in and put your kiddo to bed. You spend the rest of the evening watching tv or reading with your partner. You talk about your day. You see the news that more sustainable grazing practices mean that the rainforest has advanced by nearly 2,000 feet this year, dark soil and thick tree roots spreading outward, crowns capturing more and more carbon from the air. You hear that the tigers and snow leopards, elephants and rhinos, are all increasing in population. 

It starts to rain. You are thankful you don’t have to water the garden tonight. You and your partner head to bed, and you think - this is my life. I am leaving a planet to my child that they will WANT to inhabit. Sure, there wasn’t steak on my plate tonight, but my belly is full and my air is clean and my home is safe. You dream sweetly, thinking of dandelions sprouting up through cracks in concrete, deer and foxes walking through breaks in fences, children swimming in clean water.

[chaotic-would-you-rathers]

Would you rather...

A: Be forced to read, watch, play and otherwise consume all media that has been reccomended to you (that you have not already consumed in entirity) in your entire life in an empty blank void in which you cannot die or go insane and have access to all the aforementioned media, as well as utilities such as food, furniture, etc. Once you complete consumption of the media, you will return to your current time and place. In exchange, you may inflict this upon another person of your choice who will then, in turn, be able to do the same, etc. B: Be forced to drive from the moon to your place of residence (or any location on earth you desire) in a car of your choice, during this process, time will be frozen outside of the road for the duration of your journey, which magically appears in front of and dissapears behind you and somehow contains the car, air, heat, etc within it, and has 'earth gravity' you also will not age until reaching your destination, if you die or crash you must start again, whenever you feel tired, hungry etc, a generic service station will appear alongside the road with all the expected supplies & provisions but no people. If the car is damaged it will repair itself automatically such that it would entirely be repaired after disentegration in 1 hour. (Note that driving from the moon to earth would take an estimated 142 days at 70mph/112.654kmh), upon completing this journey, you may keep your magically self repairing car. C: Be forcred to work at Amazon for minimum wage for ten years

[sen-no-kotowari]

PGR A Changyu Character Profile

Good day! Here's part two of the character profile postings! Changyu's was being worked on in my drafts in terms of formatting right before the tmblr update that made the plug-in I use keep on crashing tmblr. Without further ado, you can learn more about him in the cut down below. Or on his dedicated Interlude Story here (*'ω'*)

Voice Line Data

Motion Voice Lines

Lobby Voice 1

Changyu: Repair fee, snack funds, plus consolation money... Well, we get along with each other so I'll charge you half my usual price. Shouldn't be a problem for you with that much, no?

Lobby Voice 2

Changyu: Wanna play a game? I'll toss this copper coin in the air, aand...here we go! So, wanna try and guess if it's heads or tails?

Lobby Voice 3

Changyu: Commander! C-commander? (Inhale) Com-man-der~ ...Tch, I just can't get used to it, argh. You know what, lemme just directly call you by your name.

Raise Affection Level

Changyu: Is there anything you want? It's not my style you see, receiving gifts regularly and such...

Repetitive Taps

Changyu: Guh! If you keep on patting my head, I'm not gonna grow any taller than this!

Log-In

Changyu: (Yawn) Hrmm? It's rough waking up this early... Can't you give me a bit more time?

Online for a Long Time

Changyu: Let me help you with your work. Oh, count me out on the paperwork-related stuff tho'! Spare me from having to read all those letters.

AFK

Changyu: (Yaaaaawwnn)~ ...Guess nobody's here huh? 'kay, I'm gonna leave now??

Shake

Changyu: Hah! I'm not flustered by that!

Offline for a Long Time

Changyu: You promised, right? That I'll be flicking your forehead if you ever leave without a word. (Huff)... C'mon now! I'm not gonna flick that hard!

Introduction and Formation

Structure Acquired

Changyu: Yo, I'm here to help out. Don't you worry, I'll be chargin' that old man Hassan for the payment for my services.

Level Up

Changyu: My ability's gotten better now. Well, that's only natural!

Advancement

Changyu: If it's 'bout rising in the ranks, I know all about it~ And? In what place am I currently ranked[1] then? Oh, I got it wrong?

Model Improvement

Changyu: Heheh, I'm all fired up now!

Skill Upgrade

Changyu: Oh okay~ So this part here's the problem for this move.

Equipment

Changyu: Well I'll be, this looks really good! Hraaah! Yaaah!

Add in Team

Changyu: C'mon, let's break through those guys' line of defense!

Assign as Captain

Changyu: Watch after me throughout the battle now so I won't overdo things.

Mission Accomplished

Changyu: Piece of cake!

Daily Small Talks

Voice Line 1

Changyu: Repair fee, snack funds, plus consolation money... Well, we get along with each other so I'll charge you half my usual price. Shouldn't be a problem for you with that much, no?

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Do I really have to stand here all day? Tsk, man talk 'bout boring.

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Don't you guys here over at Eden have anything interesting or something~? All this fighting's bound to make you go crazy, y'know?

Voice Line 4

Changyu: You free right now? Lemme hear some interesting stuff from your mission last time. In exchange, I'll let you in something 'bout the train cars even Sofia doesn't know of. How 'bout it?

Voice Line 5

Changyu: There's no point in practicing martial arts if you're only gonna focus on practicin' techniques that use your fists. Basically, this practice method's useless. Guess there's nothing I can do about it huh~ How 'bout I completely teach you everything I know from the ground up? This is a rare chance for you, y'know.

Voice Line 6

Changyu: Commander! C-commander? (Inhale) Com-man-der~ ...Tch, I just can't get used to it, argh. Y'know what, lemme just directly call you by your name.

Voice Line 7

Changyu: Wanna play a game? I'll toss this copper coin in the air, aand...here we go! So, wanna try and guess if it's heads or tails?

Voice Line 8

Changyu: Don't underestimate me, my height's got nothing to do with this!

Voice Line 9

Changyu: Whenever I'm with you, I can comfortably do my job. How 'bout consider working with me over at the Trade Alliance? ...Ahahahahaha, just kidding.

Voice Line 10

Changyu: Y'know, that old fogey Lee—...I mean, Lee always wins whenever we're playing trump 'cause of card countin'[2]. There's this "trick" I'm using in my case though. Wanna know 'bout it? It's a secret.

Voice Line 11

Changyu: The basics of being an opera actor[3]'s necessary for this performance. If you're curious, I can teach you 'bout it.

Voice Line 12

Changyu: Man, you sure are popular, y'know that~ Introduce me next time when there's a chance. Huh? Relax, I'm not gonna do anything.

Raise Affection Level

Voice Line 1

Changyu: What are you doing!?

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Why not give this kind of kiddy stuff to other people?

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Come on now! Stop treating me like some kid!

Voice Line 4

Changyu: So, you want me to act as your proxy and sell this?

Voice Line 5

Changyu: Woah hold on, what are you planning to do? I'm getting goosebumps from that.

Voice Line 6

Changyu: 'nother gift for me? You're not planning anything behind all this, right? ...Wha-, I never said I don't want it. If you're gonna give it for free, 'course I'll accept it.

Voice Line 7

Changyu: I can easily strike a conversation with others, but it doesn't mean that I'll easily accept them.

Voice Line 8

Changyu: I just tried saying it casually, but to think you really remembered it, huh... He~h, thanks.

Voice Line 9

Changyu: Whenever I stay here, sometimes I remember 'bout the times I was working at the theatre. ...Oh, it's nothing. I just thought it's not bad, y'know, spending time together with you just like this.

Voice Line 10

Changyu: Is there anything you want? It's not my style you see, receiving gifts regularly and such...

Voice Line 11

Changyu: There's only a handful of people I approve of, few enough I could count them with one hand! You're part of that handful of people.

Voice Line 12

Changyu: Commander, wanna try and attempt this with me next time?

AFK

Voice Line 1

Changyu: Huh? You're still here? Don't go tattlin' that I'm slacking to Jamila.

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Wakey, wakey, rise and shine! If you don't, I'll whack your butt 'til you decide to wake up.

Voice Line 3

Changyu: (Yaaaaawwnn)~ ...Guess nobody's here huh? 'kay, I'm gonna leave now??

Voice Line 4

Changyu: Commander? ...Geez, you really fell asleep huh? Then, I'll go help myself and doodle a turtle on your face.

Online for a Long Time

Voice Line 1

Changyu: I don't know how other people could endure just standing still all the time in this place without doing anything.

Voice Line 2

Changyu: You sure are desperately working your butt off. Does Eden pay you double for the overtime?

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Stop being such a workaholic, let's go out and play!

Voice Line 4

Changyu: Let me help you with your work. Oh, count me out on the paperwork-related stuff tho'! Spare me from having to read all those letters.

Log-In

Voice Line 1

Changyu: Yo', morning.

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Okay, sheesh, I get it!

Voice Line 3

Changyu: 'kay then, let's go over what we're supposed to do for the day, shall we?

Voice Line 4

Changyu: (Yawn) Hrmm? It's rough waking up this early... Can't you give me a bit more time?

Voice Line 5

Changyu: Have you eaten already? ...Ah, this is how everyone usually greets other people back where I used to live in.

Voice Line 6

Changyu: You're pretty lively today, huh Commander. Wanna spar with me for a bit?

Offline for a Long Time

Changyu: You promised, right? That I'll be flicking your forehead if you ever leave without a word. (Huff)... C'mon now! I'm not gonna flick that hard!

Shake

Voice Line 1

Changyu: This much tremor's totally fine with me. All the shaking on the train's more intense than this.

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Maan, that scared me... Having to stand properly after that, not gonna happening soon! Although you can actually see that I can't walk straight, it's clearly intentional. That's right, it's all skills, y'know!

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Hah! I'm not flustered by that!

Repetitive Taps

Voice Line 1

Changyu: Heh, an ambush? My reflexes are incredibly fast.

Voice Line 2

Changyu: Guh! If you keep on patting my head, I'm not gonna grow any taller than this!

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Ack, why you...! Hold up! You're gonna pay for messin' with me!

Activity Task Full

Changyu: We're done already? So the time from now on is my free time, right?

Battle Dialogues

Battle Start/Character Switch

Changyu: Since I got paid for this, leave the rest to me!

Voice Line 1

Changyu: Move from your waist, focus your Chi, and release it to your fist!

Voice Line 2

Changyu: My inner ability's about to burst forth!

Voice Line 3

Changyu: Effectively know when to strike the opponents, and keep your strength in check with your heart!

Ultimate Skill

Changyu: Within the shapeless form lies a formless style!

Light Damage

Changyu: Guh! I'm fine!

Heavy Damage

Changyu: Hey, don't just stand there, do something!

Incapacitated

Changyu: Dammit... Come on, move... move...this damn...body...

Friend Support

Changyu: Work outside of what's stipulated in the contract is service, free of charge.

QTE

Changyu: Cùn Jìn![4]

Battle End

Changyu: Make an effort even if you were bested, and carry through until you achieve inner peace.

Structure Documentation

Document Detail 1

ADL-17, Changyu. He used to work at a theatre in Kowloon and boarded the Nona Ouroboros to escape the "war" during the Golden Age Era. However, he was "restrained" and lost his memories as a result. After a certain incident, he fled from the Nona Ouroboros and became an escort for the Adiliek Trade Alliance.

Document Detail 2

In addition to Changyu's body being collectively equipped with both a young man's tenacity and keen and nimble reflexes, he could make use of his abilities in kung-fu to its fullest—his eye color would instantly change whenever he reaches the maximum output.

Document Detail 3

After he regained back the memories he had lost, Changyu frequently remembers the view of having meals together during his time working at the theatre. Even though he studied how to recreate the flavors through how he remembers them, he shared the food he cooked among the residents of the commoner train car because Structures don't need to consume food. Unfortunately, however, he gradually stopped cooking, seeing that the food culture of Kowloon isn't much accepted in the Azil. He may not talk about it frequently, but Changyu feels a bit regretful about it even now.

Document Detail 4

The copper coin Changyu owns is a "war trophy" from a certain military operation. Since it was originally a limited edition commemorative coin issued inside the Nona Ouroboros, the wealthy owned it in order to display both their identity and stature. It seems like Changyu frequently uses some kind of "trick" to acquire them. Although it isn't needed anymore, Changyu still brings it with him out of habit.

Document Detail 5

"We shouldn't abandon each other, no matter what. Whatever happens, I'll absolutely keep our promise." Changyu, who was born in Kowloon, has experienced farewell and betrayal countless times. Because of that, he doesn't easily give his trust to others. Although he promised to have a strong working partnership with the Commander, it was the first for Changyu to lighten his wariness and vowed to cooperate with them.

Document Detail 6

"The war has taken everything from me, that's why I'll do everything I can to protect you. I won't let anybody take what I hold dear ever again..." If one asks about Changyu's frantic reasons, it's because he doesn't want to turn against the trust and promise he had made. And one thing he thought of while answering was to sit around the dining table with the Commander and let them have a taste of Changyu's homemade food as if they were part of his family.

Rumors and Secrets

Secret 1 Even though his merit focuses on practicality, Changyu has a moral sense strong enough that he won't be led astray just by his self-interest alone—his definition of merits not just entails material things, he has also thought that kindness and relationships with other people are also valuable merits.

Secret 2 Calls people who are older than him "uncle" or "auntie"—rather than disrespecting them, Changyu calls them that out of respect towards people older than him. If they feel offended by what he called them, Changyu would immediately change what he'd call them.

Secret 3 Takes good care of things and is a frugal person. Because of his disposition, Changyu hates wealthy people who simply throw away things and refuses to make a deal with them. Jamila however, is different and even thinks of her as an exemplary merchant—it's because she'd make use of the merchandise to its full potential.

Secret 4 Structures cannot grow taller—Changyu seems to be very bothered by that fact.

Secret 5 While he is fundamentally a lazy person, Changyu will certainly finish the work he accepted.

Secret 6 He specializes in Kowloon's cuisine and likes to cook for other people. Though the food Changyu makes is delicious, most of how it's plated become visually off-putting because he hates spending too much time in the kitchen just for prepping and plating.

Secret 7 Has 48 places he calls his "secret hiding spot"—they're located at the gaps between each train car. All of the things he had collected are hidden in those said secret hiding spots in case something happens to Changyu.

Secret 8 He won't easily make a promise to others. Changyu would either refuse or would somehow dodge the topic if it's a promise he wouldn't want to make from the very beginning.

Secret 9 Changyu's dream was to become a hero just like the ones in theatre plays—the reason appears to be that he wanted to be strong enough to protect everyone he cares about.

Secret 10 He is well-versed in traditional games like Mahjong and such. In Mahjong, Changyu could differentiate each tile simply by touching it and has the skill to rearrange them in the way he likes.

Secret 11 He's familiar with many magic tricks used in performances aside from card tricks. He applies them on missions to outwit his opponents.

Secret 12 Changyu's tail not only allows him to grab things with it and regain his balance, but it can also serve as a weapon. He pretends to trip over, wraps his tail around his opponent's feet, and as he feigns an apology, Changyu shifts towards the counteroffensive. It appears nobody has yet to avoid it at first glance.

「甲乙丙丁」is a word used to indicate an pecking order based on the ten signs of the Chinese Zodiac. However, it could also be used to indicate a grade or rank.

Card counting is a calculation method in Statistics used to increase the odds of knowing which card is currently on play.

「四功五法」is a collective term used in traditional Chinese theatres which encompasses the basic skills and techniques a classically-trained opera actor should have.

Cùn Jìn is a type of striking attack using your fist in both Kung Fu and Karate.

[m0chitown]

Caved in and made a Welcome Home OC! >:D

JOHNNY PIE and VANILLA BEAN

"Your friendly neighborhood gentleman and his friend, Bean the Vanilla Ice Cream Dog. Johnny educates others in proper housework and home economics such as cooking, baking, sewing, budgeting, repairing cars, etc! He frequented his front porch where he'd often be seen smoking his pipe and reading the daily newspapers if not novels. He's pretty posh yet down-to-Earth and responsible. A principled man who's compassionate and driven by the new things each day brings him!"

Old scripts illustrated Johnny as a posh gentleman who represents a stay-at-home father despite not having any known children in the show but rather a pet dog made of sweet vanilla ice cream and chocolate bits. He once lived in a land called The Platter Isles where vegetables, fruits, sweets, and edibles alike lived harmoniously with one another. Unfortunately, though, the Isles had been attacked by newcomers, the "Venom keepers", all coming to violently take the Isles as their own by disorder. During the airing times, it was hinted at before, though official in the scripts, that Johnny Pie had served in defending the Platter Isles from the Venom Keepers for quite a while but had eventually been discharged from the military by his General for reasons unknown to Johnny eventually left his home for a much safer environment. While not confirmed, it was heavily implied that his once absent father was Johnny Pie's General, and after finding out that he was involved in the military, he kicked him out to keep his son out of danger. And that is where the Apple Pie citizen found himself now, at peace and at home.

During his time of service in the military, he was paired with a Vanilla Ice Cream dog, one who was adventurous and intellectual. A dog who was curious to find out about the world around him and who also seemed to be highly educated as some episodes depict him to be either reading or writing in the background. He was sent to assist Johnny in spying and exchanging information to and fro with his fellow soldiers. During their times of rest, Johnny and Bean would spend their time playing with a ball or napping together at a base. They didn't seem to leave each other's side and quickly become best friends within the military. But when Johnny was discharged with an order to evacuate the isles, he had to give Bean up to his colleagues as of means of professional business. However, in an episode called "Home Sweet Home," it was confirmed that Bean had snuck into Johnny's bowl boat which was how he now ended up establishing their new home alongside his bestest friend.

Some scripts state that Johnny would also be seen walking around the entire neighborhood with Bean, being more than delighted to greet each and every single one of his neighbors though is closest to Poppy. Often exchanging baked or cooked goods for each other's, as "food's always the keeper when it comes to connecting with others!" he exclaims, "Why, Poppy's cookies always takes the egg!"

Johnny Pie and Bean were often depicted as jointed paper puppets/dolls with the ability to show switch emotions or movements by their moving their limbs, flipping their silhouette that is attached to a stick to form a new emotion or adding additional pieces though, in later episodes, their characters are seen being rotated between paper puppets and hand-held model puppets of themselves.

[acquaint--fate]

Scorpion

MacDonald "Mac" Gargan was born to a very poor, unloving family. He managed to get by by hiding from the bigger things and taking advantage of the smaller ones. When his sister was born, he decided that this had to change.

Instead of barely scraping in his life together, he would scrape up other people's and exchange the information for money. He saved this money to make sure that he and his sister would be safe. When his father found out that he was keep money to himself, he was furious and gave Mac an ultimatum: give up all the money and all that was to come, or get out.

Mac chose to leave. He was only 10 then, and he despised what he was made to do, but he did it anyway. He would continue his work to keep himself steady until he was about 25, when he became an official private investigator.

He investigated everything and everyone. He did not care who asked or what this information was used for, as long as he was paid for his services. He committed several crimes, but using his extensive knowledge of how to avoid detection, he always got away with it. He'd been able to make a name for himself with this knowledge and skills, being known as skillful and trustworthy to those who many not be as much.

This put him on the radar of one Mr. Tombstone, who hired him to investigate a very special target: Spider-Man. Mac, not one to turn down a job, took it up almost immediately. He'd been curious about the web-slinger himself, but had always been busy with other jobs and could never do his own work. But now, things were quite different.

But they weren't really. For, you see, there wasn't exactly much to know about Spider-Man. He seemed to have no family, no home, no real identity. Once he was gone past the roofs of the city there was no tracking him, no potential persons that could be his real identity. Reluctantly, Mac had to return his very little findings back to his employer.

They met in an abandoned warehouse storing various items to be sold at a later date. His employer was, of course, not very happy with the information presented to him.

Tombstone attacked him, and Mac attempted to run. He was caught off guard and thrown into some crates, which knocked over two things: a barrel of unlabeled chemicals and a crate of deadly scorpions.

The waste dissolved Mac and the scorpions into essentially a pile of sludge. Over time, the goo began to reform and harden into a sort of chrysalis. A week after the chrysalis had formed, it began to hatch, and from deep within emerged a new Mac Gargan.

He had grown significantly, now standing at 7'5(226 cm). His skin was covered in a rather thin and bumpy exoskeleton, appearing as though slightly tinted green. There was a second, functional pair of eyes under his initial two, and his ears were flattened more against his head, extended and coming to a sharp point. His legs were segmented, and his digits had melded into three on each limb. He had also grown a thick scorpion tail, and large fangs.

When he had finally realized that he was still alive, he had begun to panic, stuck inside the dim fluid of the chrysalis. He managed to claw himself out of the thick yet fragile walls, happily taking in the air of the world. He very quickly realized the new form that he had taken, and was less than pleased to discover he was not quite human.

He made his way out of the empty warehouse and into the streets of the city to try to find anyone who could help. He soon found out that he could no longer speak, only clicks being able to vocalize from his throat. The general people of New York did not take very kindly to this new disturbance of their life, which only seemed to scare him more. He was able to attack some civilians in defense, learning that the venom stored in his tail was quite paralytic, before he was able to scurry back off into the alleys.

He took refuge in a building under repair, trying to figure out his situation. A disturbance behind him caught his immediate attention, causing him to spin around in defense, positioned on all fours with his tail curled up and his teeth snarled. What met him was a certain wall crawler, offering only sympathy and understanding to the man.

Though the Spider couldn't understand Mac, Mac could understand him, and accepted his offer for potential help and rehabilitation. Though it was a struggle, Spider-Man was able to safely escort Mac to the docs.

The previous residents of this little safe haven were a little thrown off by the scorpion man, mostly due to his height. Mac decided that crawling was the better option for him, not only because it would lower his height significantly but also because it was more comfortable in the long run.

The science team quickly realized that whatever had happened to Mac was a bit irreversible, as it had entirely changed his DNA. Though there was nothing that could be done, Mac was safer staying with them. Adapting was difficult, but eventually Mac was able to settle into the team. Writing was hard for Mac, who now only had three fingers on each hand, but with a few communication cards and charades, understanding him became easy enough. Things like body language and pitch/general tone of clicks also played a part in communication.

It was not a very easy adjustment, but with work, it was possible.