#and Io watches out for them whenever possible

[soulsxng]

Rhezar's Bar and Club

Technically located in the Pythius' domain of Hell, Ephlyt, it has entry points all over across multiple realms, courtesy of Io, when he decided to add on the club area.

These entry points each have magical systems in place that connect them to one of the three entrances into Rhezar's-- two on the club side, and one on the bar side. They subsequently "stamp" a person with the signature of whatever entry point they came through, so the door sends them back out through the place they entered from.

Another thing it does, is cast a sort of glamour on beings entering from "mortal world" entry points. Though it's weak enough for most nonhumans to naturally dispel it, it would for a human to be unable to see any of the more...Hellish influences inside. Whether that be use of magic, features of workers and patrons alike, or catching glimpses out the doors of places not where they entered from, those under the effect of this glamour either will have these things replaced with things their mind sees as more "normal", or would be unable to see them at all.

Of course, this presented a fairly obvious issue. Throw a bunch of humans in with demons, and some other non-human species, and there's a large potential for trouble to arise. Some of the largest being demonic contracts, vampires/incubi/succubi going too far in their feeding and killing someone, and humans being abducted or unknowingly spirited away somewhere.

Because of this, Io has his staff trained specifically to watch out for any humans that may be getting themselves into a bad situation. Demonic contracts are unable to be made anywhere on the premises, and humans are only able to leave out the entry point they originally came from, and only with anybody that entered at the same time as they did.

Going into the actual establishment, though! The bar side is actually relatively small-- can probably fit 75 people comfortably? A lot of the booths are very private, though there are also chairs and tables, as well as the bar counter itself that people can sit at. Things there are quieter, and more lowkey, sort of like a speakeasy, or old style pub type of feel. The music is kept pretty quiet, there's a room off to the side with a couple pool tables and some dart boards. Somehow, visitors there can hardly hear the thrumming beats of music and the rowdiness of the people in the club side next door.

The bar side is generally where Io can be found, in a big booth in the back. It's where he conducts his other business, for the most part-- gathering and handing out work contracts for anything people may need help with, from helping to find a lost relative, to stealing, to murder, or protection services, he'll take just about anything if he thinks one of his people will be interested. Obviously, he gets a predetermined cut of the profit, but most of it goes to whoever actually fulfills the contract.

He also deals in information and connections, as well as being the middle man for clients that want him to procure specific items for them.

Because of this, a lot of people that go to the bar are in similar lines of work, and it's pretty obvious that most of them view Io rather highly. Probably best not to start too much trouble there, because people will get pushy really quick over the "disrespect" to Io, and "to the Old Man, may he be resting well."

The club side, on the other hand, is pretty much the exact opposite. Little of Io's other work is conducted there, unless it's for a meeting place that's a little harder to eavesdrop or watch. It's huge, as well as being loud, boisterous, and colorful; with many of the bar tenders being trained in flair, courtesy of the club's manager, Orin.

There's a little bit of gambling for those who are interested, DJs, sometimes live music and performances, different "game" and competition sorts of things, and plenty of space for dancing!

Staff: Io Orin A lot of side muses can be found working here as well from time to time, most notably Io's younger brother, Eluvias, as well as some of the other former Elyki members like Blackwood, Duva'li, Efina, and Zakarye

A lot of other main muses can be found here fairly often, too!

[icharchivist]

hey!! sorry if this is a tough question to answer (pls ignore it in that case), but if I really really loved relink's world, specially the characters and their stories found in the fate episodes, do you think it's a good idea to check out the mobage? or would it be better to watch the anime instead?

thank you in advance, I hope you've been doing well!

Aaah heyy <33

First of all, welcome in Granblue Fantasy! i'm so glad you enjoyed Relink as much as you did <33333 Granblue is a very special game for me and Relink really was a wonderful adaptation of it all, and i'm so thrilled that new people can get to discover Granblue thanks to it!

As for me, i've never watched the anime and i have been playing the mobage since 2019, still going strong now 💪 so as you can imagine, i would recommand the mobage more personally.

it depends however if you are comfortable with Visual Novels, since the main game is pretty much a Visual Novel with Turn-by-turn RPG mechanisms!

The anime has two seasons and cover the very begining of the main story, before doing its own thing, taking inspiration from the game but not straight up adapting it. I'd say, it's a good experience if you want to discover a bit more about the world. That said you'll only see in it the characters from the Main Plot of Relink (MC, Lyria, Vyrn, Katalina, Rackam, Eugen, Rosetta, Io, i call them the Core Crew personally), and it won't go as in deep into them as the mobage does. I think Zeta makes a small appearance in the anime, possibly Ferry too? but that will be about it.

but if you want to really know the characters, do feel free to play the Mobage.

it's actually a browser game that is optimized for chronium browsers. You can play it here:

(on the homepage you'll be able to switch to English and tadaa. after the prologue they'll ask you to bind your account, i recommand you make a Mobage account to connect to Granblue. The wiki can give you a step by step way to do it)

Most of the stories of the game are easily available as you progress through the main story. you don't need to get really deep into the gameplay (unless you want to) to really access to most of the story.

There are stories that are locked in Fate Episodes, which comes from units you get from Gacha most of the time. Those can give you a pretty good glance into granblue in general.

The Main Story Quest (MSQ) will introduce you to the Core Crew and will give you free units of them all. It's in the MSQ that you'll also meet Ferry, from the extended character list.

Once you progress into the MSQ, you'll unlock the Side Stories. those are basically parallels story of when the crew stops on others islands, not related to their search for Estalucia. It's in this tab that you will meet the rest of the cast.

For example, to meet Lancelot, Vane, Siegfried and Percival, you need to read up to chapter 16 of the Main Story, and the story "Defender's Oath" will unlock This was their first appearances. They have a lot of stories since they have a guaranted story event every year. In doubt if you want to find some reading list, the wiki is your friend, or you can also ask me, i'm happy to help!

For information, the side stories first start out as limited event stories. There is one new one every months on the mobage. Once the event is over, it will disappear from the game, unless you read through it (or skipped it) so it was saved in Lyria's journal for you to come back to whenever you want; Eventually, it will get a rerun (there's usually a rerun once a month or once every two months), and then down the line it will get added to the side stories.

so it means that there are some stories you won't find in the side story tab.

THAT SAID.

If all of this is complicated on its own, or you don't want to play the game but still read on the story, or if you don't want to get invested in the gacha to get the fate episodes: know that about all of the content of the game is available on youtube, and the script of each of them is also available on the wiki.

The game may be a little confusing to know what to read.

The wiki can help, but it's also confusing when you don't know what to look for.

at any rate, know that my inbox is always opened if you have questions, if you want to look for tips, for stories to read, for links, anything you may want. I'm always happy to help.

I think you can always watch the anime and it'll give you a little clearer of an idea of what those characters are, but if you want to KNOW them, the mobage is totally the way.

As a little warning, the writing improved a lot during the decade the game ran, and early content tends to be a little more simplistic or shorter. So if you don't get grabbed in right away, do consider that the further you'll go, the better the stories.

The valentine's day campain will be ongoing soon, so if you want to give vday chocolates to Katalina or Rackam or Rosetta, you can start the game and discover that for yourself ;D

The 10th anniversary event will also be underway in a couple of weeks, which will normally come with free pulls and rewards, which makes it a good season to start the game to get some footing, if you feel like it.

Hope it helps a little, i'm opened for any clarification!

and once again i'm so happy Relink made you this invested into this world <3333

Take care!

[aasthatv]

Soothe Your Soul with Wisdom from Spiritual Gurus at Aastha App

Words of wisdom from spiritual gurus play an important role in enriching our lives. When we feel helpless and lost in life, it is them who show us the right path. However, it is not always possible for us to reach these gurus in person. Aastha TV and Aastha app were created to provide easier access to spirituality to the people across the world.

If you want to stay connected to the religious as well as spiritual world, then you must follow Aastha App. You can watch the live Aastha TV through the Aastha app whenever you want. All that you need to do is to download the app on your smartphone. The app is available in both Google Play Store and iOS App Store.

Why should one watch Aastha?

Aastha is a spiritual channel you can watch on television as well as on your smartphone. The app on your phone will bring you several options for experiencing the spiritual world and how you can manage your expectations to find peace within yourself. The more you listen to the teachings of the spiritual teachers and preachers in the channel or app, the better you will have an understanding of the world. Even if you encounter many obstacles, you will always come out with answers to your questions.

Apart from exposure to spirituality, you will also be able to find out remedies for certain life conditions, that are shared by experts in the app. You can also watch live telecasts of many religious festivals being celebrated in India.

Which spiritual leaders and preachers are associated with Aastha?

Aastha is an umbrella under which you can find some of the most popular preachers and spiritual guides in India. No matter whether you are in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, or Canada, you can anytime and anywhere open the app on your phone and watch the live and recorded pravachan of spiritual leaders. The renowned gurus that you will find in the app include:

1.         Morari Bapu

2.         Satpal ji Maharaj

3.         Swami Ramdev

4.         Chinmayanand Bapu

5.         Ram Swaroop Acharya

6.         Devki Nandan Thakur

7.         Maa Ritambhara

8.         Asang Dev ji Maharaj

9.         Sant Rajinder Singh ji Maharaj

10.       Pandit Pradeep ji Mishra

11.       Shanmukha Sarma

12.       Lalit Prabh ji

13.       Kanji Swami

14.       Sadhvi Devpriya

15.       Acharya Pradyumn ji.

When you open the app, you will find several buttons corresponding to the various viewing options available. For example, if you click on Videos, you will be able to watch all the videos that have been uploaded of gurus and spiritual leaders. You will also be able to listen to bhajans and kathas. On the other hand, the Catch-Up TV button will help you to find all the channels that are listed, such as Aastha, Aastha Bhajan, Vedic, Dharm Sandesh, Aastha Telugu, Aastha Tamil, Aastha Kannada, and Aastha Gujarati. The app will also keep you updated about the upcoming events.

If you want to add certain videos to your watch list that you would want to watch later, you have to create an account in the app. The app is free to users for a month and post that you have to pay 51 USD per year to keep enjoying the services.

Watch Aastha anywhere anytime

Download our top-rated app, made just for you!

Google Play Store

Apple App Store

TV App : Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, LG , Samsung

It’s free, easy and smart.

LET’S HANG OUT!

 

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[runningrhino]

Subway Surfers Beginner's Guide

Introduction to Subway Surfers

Subway Surfers is a popular mobile game that challenges players to collect coins and other items while avoiding obstacles and enemies. The game is free to download and play, but there are in-app purchases available. This beginner's guide will teach you the basics of how to play Subway Surfers, including how to control your character, how to collect coins and other items, and how to avoid obstacles and enemies.

The Objective of the Game

The objective of Subway Surfers is to score as high as possible by collecting coins and avoiding obstacles. The game is endless, so the player's goal is to see how far they can get before they are caught by the Inspector. There are various ways to increase your score, such as picking up power-ups and completing missions.

The Controls

Assuming you are playing on an iOS or Android device, the controls for Subway Surfers are relatively simple and straightforward. On the left side of the screen, you will see a virtual joystick. This is used to control the character's movement from left to right. On the right side of the screen, you will see two buttons. The upper button is used to make your character jump, and the lower button is used to make your character slide. That's really all there is to it! With these simple controls, you can navigate your way through the treacherous subway tracks and escape the grumpy Inspector and his dog. Just be sure to watch out for obstacles and collect as many coins as you can along the way!

Power-Ups

There are a few different types of power-ups that you can collect while playing Subway Surfers. These can help you to improve your score and get further in the game. The first type of power-up is the coin magnet. This will attract all of the coins near you, making it easier to collect them. You can also find score multipliers and head start power-ups. These will temporarily double your score or give you a head start in the game. You can also purchase hoverboards and character upgrades with real money. These can make the game easier or more fun to play, but they are not necessary to complete the game.

Tips and Tricks

If you're just starting out in Subway Surfers, you might feel overwhelmed by all the different things going on. But don't worry, we've got you covered with this beginner's guide. In this section, we'll give you some tips and tricks to help you get started. First of all, make sure you're familiar with the controls. You can move your character left and right by swiping in those directions. You can also jump and duck by tapping on the screen. These are the basic moves you'll need to know in order to play the game. Once you've mastered the controls, it's time to start thinking about strategy. One important tip is to never run into obstacles head-on. Instead, try to swipe around them or jump over them. This will save you valuable time and help you avoid getting caught by the police. Another useful tip is to collect as many coins as possible. Coins can be used to buy power-ups and other items that will help you survive longer in the game. So whenever you see a group of coins, make sure to grab them! Finally, don't forget to have fun! Subway Surfers is a fast-paced and exciting game, so make sure to enjoy yourself while playing it. With these tips in mind, we're confident that you'll be able to become a pro surfer in no time!

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[key201303]

Pairing: undercover!Hwiyoung x fem!reader ft. Sf9 members as mafia members

Warnings: mentions of death, guns, smut, suggestive content

Word count: 1790 words

Genre: Mafia AU, angst, fluff from time to time, smut/suggestive content

Plot: being the daughter of a dealer wasn't easy, especially when he had so many debts and was now dead. Ever since your dad passed away, you've been paying his debts with your own life and body but fortunately that is about to change when a charming boy appears out of the blue to save you. But, is he going to give you a better life or you're just changing the location of your doom? Is he trying to protect you from others or does he also want to use you like an exchange currency like everyone else did?

A/N: We're psrinting towards the end of this series and ngl I don't want it to end 😭 hope you guys enjoy this fluffish chapter ❤❤

Taglist -> @staysstrays @grungiejaems @io-is-lame @ailoveyuta @jaysbestie @mayfifolle @slut-for-fandoms @forevrglow (ask me to be added!)

Unable to tag -> @i-sa-bella @user127dream

Previous chapter - - - Masterlist - - - Next chapter

“A promise is a promise. You better be bringing the ramen before I change my mind about letting you go out alone.” Hwiyoung said through the phone speaker as you were on your way to the nearest convenience store to fulfill the promise you made a week ago. You didn’t really know at what point of your ridiculous life you changed deals with your own body or money for food deals but you had to admit you liked them more than the first ones, especially if it meant spending some time with Hwiyoung.

Even though his words at the shooting range kept repeating in your mind like a mantra, you couldn’t help feeling slightly attracted to that boy. Maybe it was that he was pretty handsome, don’t try to fool yourself, or maybe it was that he has been the only one paying attention to your feelings and worried about you in the last months, but you had to admit that, slowly, your mind was clouded with thoughts involving him. Whenever he went out of the small apartment, whenever he handed you a piece of pizza on Friday nights while you watched a movie, whenever he fell asleep on your shoulder because he was too tired to stay awake while watching TV, whenever he went to take a shower… Geez, (Y/N) what the hell is wrong with you?? Stop thinking stuff like that, you’re just a friend for him or not even that. Stop being so damn delusional. You thought to yourself, mentally facepalming yourself as you took the ramen bucket he let you know was his favorite. Why can’t I get him out of my mind? How is it possible that I get so immersed in thoughts about him? You kept asking yourself, completely clueless about the reason why you were feeling that way towards the long haired boy. Is it because he’s a policeman and I have a thing for men in uniform???? Nah, what the hell are you thinking about (Y/N)? Though it could be a good reason, he really looks good on that leather jacket of his. You kept talking to yourself as you waited for the girl to tell you the price for the two ramen buckets. “Excuse me ma’am, it’s 1176 ₩.” The girl said once again, finally knocking you out of your little trance. “Oh, yeah, I’m sorry. Here, thank you.” You said, bowing at the girl and giving her the money before you exited the store to head to Hwiyoung’s location.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Hwiyoung said, surprised yet with worry written all over his face as soon as he saw you entering the police station offices. “I brought your ramen, didn’t you say I had to keep my promise?” You said, handing him the bag with the ramen buckets and giving him a confused look. “Have you gone crazy? I didn't mean you had to come here with this. If someone sees you in here they will suspect.” Hwiyoung whispered into your ear as he took the bag from your hands. You remained silent, looking at him with an apologetic look letting him know you didn’t think about what the consequences of you going to the police station could be. “Come here.” He said, grabbing your wrist and dragging you to a random room.

As soon as he opened the door, you found yourself on a beautiful rooftop. He lowkey knew he would have to take you there someday if he wanted to keep an eye on you and, actually, he really liked the idea of eating lunch with you in there, making you both feel like normal people even if it was just for a short span of time. “Next time you decide to come here, remember to at least wear a face mask so others can’t see your face that easily.” He said, letting you get on the rooftop and closing the door right after him. "I would have thought about that if you didn’t call me in a hurry to buy the ramen buckets.” You complained, trying to excuse yourself so he wouldn’t nag at you, just like a kid trying to get rid of their parents’ nagging. “Yeah, and you still just bought two…” Hwiyoung said disappointed as soon as he opened the bag and saw you just bought one bucket for each. “Tsk, how much did you want me to buy??” You said, ready to nag him for eating so much junk food, but backing off when you noticed you were nobody to nag him about eating badly. Not only because you did exactly the same but because you were actually nobody to him even if it hurt you. Little did you know how you have been clouding his mind as well lately.

“Were you hungry?” Hwiyoung said, a weak smile threatening his lips as he watched you desperately eating. “It’s been ages since the last time I ate one of these.” You said with chubby cheeks and a wide smile spreading on your red lips. You couldn’t remember when was the last time your dad bought you a ramen bucket and you shared it with him. You could even bet it was when you were still in school and he had to deal during the night and he could barely get out of bed to pick you up from school. Hwiyoung, on the other hand, has eaten that ever since he started helping his dad at the police station. He was so immersed and busy on the different cases that he barely had time to think about cooking or even eating sometimes. Plus he, unlike you, has shared one of those ramen buckets with a lot of people throughout his life. But he had to admit this one was his favorite. Seeing you enjoy the meal as much as you were, made him feel happy somehow. And without even noticing, the weak smile that threatened his lips a few seconds ago, was now spreading widely on his red lips as well as he looked at you ever so fondly.

“You have some soup on the corner of your lips.” He said giggling, slurping and swallowing the leftover soup from his bucket. You shyly took one of the napkins placed on the small table you were sitting at and tried to remove the stain of soup Hwiyoung has mentioned. “Did I remove it?” You asked clueless, avoiding his eye contact. You would have been too shy and embarrassed if you locked eyes with him. “Not yet.” He said, looking at you with a soft yet teasing gaze. Once again, you scrubbed the napkin on your lips in another attempt to remove the stain. “Now?” You asked once again, slightly looking at him but removing your eyes from his quickly. He motioned another ‘no’ with his head as another smile appeared on his lips. “You’re teasing me right? I don’t have any leftovers on my lips, do I?” You said, ready to fight him if he was just messing around. The only answer you got was a soft giggle from him and right after you saw him getting closer to you. His face was suddenly inches from yours, his hand was slightly brushing yours while the other was getting closer to your lips, his eyes were locked with your parted lips and your cheeks were burning in light red for sure. Suddenly, you could feel his thumb caressing the corner of your lip, removing the stain he promised you had. His touch was gentle, making you melt into it.

Finally his eyes met yours and you could feel your cheeks getting even more red if that was possible. “You did have a leftover.” He said, showing you his spotted finger, giving you a teasing smile right after, before he pulled away from you and cleaned his thumb with another napkin. He left you speechless, just like he did when you were at the shooting range. What were you supposed to say after the boy you feel attracted to acts like that? You had no idea and not even he knew what just happened.

A few hours went by and, surprisingly, you both could go back home together. “Wear this.” Hwiyoung said, handing you a face mask. You shyly took it and wore it just like he told you to do. He was kind of right, you could get in really big trouble if anyone discovered what you two were doing. “How come we can go back home together?” You said, swinging your bag back and forth as you both walked back home. “I don’t have much more to do there so why not go back with you?” He answered, looking down at you as he flashed a small smile at you. Even though you couldn’t see it because of the mask, it felt as warm as it always felt. “You know? I could finally feel like a normal day today. Thank you.” You said, giving him another soft smile. You didn’t even know why you were thanking him. Maybe it was just for today or maybe it was because of all the things he has done for you ever since you started living with him. But you suddenly noticed how grateful you were towards the boy walking right beside you. “Why are you thanking me? I did nothing.” He said giggling, moving his gaze from you to the front, admiring the beautiful scenery. “You saved me from hell. That’s more than enough.” You said, honesty reflected on your gleaming orbs. “I always wished to have someone with whom I could share my life and thoughts. Good and bad ones. So I could feel like I wasn’t all by myself in this shitty world.” You suddenly confessed. You didn’t have a reason to open your heart out of the blue, you just felt like doing so. After all, he was the reason for your smiles lately, he definitely deserved having an explanation about your thoughts. “Well, here I am. What are your other two wishes?” Hwiyoung suddenly said. He sounded really convinced of what he was saying but you couldn’t help the nervous laugh that escaped your lips when he pronounced those words. “Are you throwing such a terrible pick up line at me?” You said laughing, making him slowly laugh as well, probably full of embarrassment. “I guess I’m not that good when it comes to flirting.” He said giggling, locking his eyes with the floor and scratching the back of his neck, too embarrassed to look down at your laughing figure.

If only you knew how I would love it if that pick up line was real… You both thought to yourselves, completely clueless of each other’s thoughts as you both walked towards the little apartment you both now called home.

[thatelegantgirl]

Top OTT Platforms

What is OTT ?

On OTT platforms, OTT stands for Over The Top and you may already know it. Unlike traditional cable TV networks, these OTT platforms offer multimedia content such as programs, movies, TV series and exclusive platform content over the Internet.

You can subscribe to these OTT streaming services for a monthly fee and stream the content available on the platform from any compatible device. The ability to consume content on any capable device is one of the main benefits of OTT streaming services.

Most OTT platforms are built with native apps for Android, iOS and web, and are available on other hardware such as Fire TV Stick and Smart TVs. With the growing demand for OTT services and platforms, we’ve seen many cable TV providers, ISPs, and streaming devices like Roku partner with popular options.

OTT platforms offer a number of important benefits such as: B. A wide catalogue of films and shows, the possibility to consume them on different devices, all with a good internet connection for a small monthly fee. No wonder these OTT streaming services are all the rage right now given the ongoing pandemic situations.

IF You are so eager to know more about TOP 10 OTT PLATFORMS Checkout my blog …

How to set up OTT streaming services?

These OTT streaming services deliver their content to the streaming portal via cloud-based operations that can be scaled to handle traffic spikes and continue to deliver content to consumers with no downtime. These services continue to buy good content and add it to their platforms, so their customer base continues to grow.

This creates a competitive environment between OTT streaming services to look for good content and offer it at a good price to have on their platforms. In addition, content creators also get a fair price for their content, which in turn motivates them to keep creating good content as it is properly rated.

All of this becomes a win-win situation for everyone involved. For example, the consumer will always have something good to consume, the creator will always be rewarded for posting engaging content, and in turn, these platforms will continue to grow. Since the content is distributed over the internet, there is no need to wait as millions of users can watch their favourite show or movie whenever they want. It is more of an a la carte consumption.

PEOPLE IF YOU WANT TO VISIT MY WEBSITE TO READ AND HAVE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT MORE BLOGS CHECKOUT MY WEBSITE AS THE ELEGANTGIRL.COM .

Unlike traditional cable TV, where program times are set in advance, OTT streaming services give you complete freedom to choose what you want to watch and when.

Netflix

As you might have guessed, Netflix is ​​the biggest player in the game. It’s an over-the-top content platform and American production company. It has 3 monthly plans that stand out for the quality of content offered.

Netflix has more than 200 million monthly paying users for this OTT streaming service as of Q4 2020. This streaming service lets you watch thousands of Netflix movies, shows, and originals.

Amazon Prime Video

In second place we have an Amazon-owned streaming platform called Prime Video. Amazon Prime Video has more than 150 million users paying for the streaming service.

Amazon Prime Video is part of the Amazon Prime service, which also gives you music streaming, access to top gaming and reading, and free delivery on many products ordered through Amazon.

IF YOU WANT READ MORE ABOUT SOME OTHER BLOG LIKE TOP 5 CRYPTOCURRENCIES IN INDIA JUST TAP IT AND YOUR BRAIN WILL HAVE MORE AWARENESS .

HD max

In mid-2020, HBO retired its old HBO Go, rebranded it as HBO Now, and launched a new HBO Max service. HBO Max is undoubtedly the better option of the two as it offers a massive library. The service is also available on Roku along with other platforms like the Fire TV Stick..

Disney+

Another popular OTT service on the market is Disney+, which offers content from Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, Nat Geo and more. Considering it’s a relatively young service, Disney+ has had great success in the market. There is a lot of exclusive content available on the platform including The Mandalorian, Marvel Hero Project, Clone Wars, Falcon and Winter Soldier.

[elgaberino-mcoc]

MCOC WISHLIST INITIAL IMPRESSION PENI PARKER

Peni ends her run on the MCOC Wishlist at rank #528. 

Her official Champion Spotlight is here.

Class: Tech

We always predicted this would be a Tech champ, based on the fact she’s the only one who can pilot this mech. We were right.

Overall Build

We theorized maybe she could combine some of the abilities from Spider-Man (Stark Enhanced) and Hulkbuster’s kits. The spirit there would be some Shock, and a lot of durability and/or evasiveness.

The result here isn’t that.

There are similarities, certainly. Sparky has some limited power-control when you desperately need it, and Taunt lets you bait specials, which is similar to power control. Peni, meanwhile, has multiple Power control and gain abilities. Furthermore, Hulkbuster is incredibly durable, and the SP//dr armor’s Sync-Shield certainly gives her some manageable durability.

But the similarities end there. The main concept here seems to be that the robot is protecting the adolescent girl inside. So it absorbs and redirects as much of the damage as possible in order to protect her.

She Damages both Coming & Going

She has a ton of Incinerate damage on offense, and she also deals Power Burn damage when she’s blocking. 

Cool Dual-Immune

First, table stakes: she’s dual Poison- and Incinerate-Immune. This will be very useful in some corner cases.

Seem unusual in a tech champ? Remember, this isn’t Stark tech. The flavor says this immunity comes from the unique Oscorp tech in the SP//dr unit. 

Counterintuitive Durability Types?

Her Sync-Shield is another unique feature. It prevents Peni from taking any damage while it is intact, and only takes 20 seconds to refresh when it’s not. It also has the potential to Auto-Block, so it can save Peni from those times when you accidentally make her take a combo to the face. This is interesting since Auto-Block is an ability typically associated with Cosmic champs.

The weirdest, almost unfair thing? She’s immune to True Strike, True Accuracy, and True Sense Effects. This goes against the tendency to make classes weak to the typical abilities of their superior class: many of the True type abilities in the game are Cosmic. This would be like giving a Science champ debuffs that can’t be Shrugged.

And get this: the Sync-Shield comes on stronger at fight start if the opponent has boosted damage, proportional to the boost. So if her opponent has a 20% damage boost, her Sync-Shield gets a 20% durability boost.

Further, whenever the Sync-Shield is on and her opponent fills a bar of power, she gets Spider-Sense charges. The more of these Spider-Sense charges she has, the higher likelihood to spend them when she would be hit to instead Auto-Block, AND avoid any Stun she would have suffered, AND Resist any block-break, AND Power Burn the opponent. These abilities are not subject to ability accuracy, either.

Fight Controls!

Her S1 and S3 are Power controller attacks. The S1 allows her to gather more Spider-Sense charges, and the S3 allows her to strengthen her Sync-Shield up to a maximum of 200%. She also Power Burns with that Sync-Shield and Power Gains when she’s executing well-timed blocks.

Great Balls of Fire

The real fun happens when Peni has a lot of charges and launches her S2. All kinds of fire comes pouring out of this attack. Obviously against Colossus, Void, Peni herself, and other Incinerate-Immune champs, this will be useless. But for the majority of champs who aren’t Incinerate Immune, this will not only burn them in stacks, it will also make their block a punching bag for SP//dr, because her Incinerates remove Perfect Block and reduce Block Proficiency by 50%.

As if that weren’t enough, her Signature Ability applies Heal Block whenever the opponent fills a Power bar or regains more than 5% health. 

Whether Domination or Desperation

It appears the main way to play this champ is to cycle S1 until there are a lot of Spider-Sense charges, fire (literally) the S2 to begin burning down the opponent, then go whole hog slapping them whether they’re blocking or not. 

There are also several desperation plays to prevent the opponent firing an S3. Her S1 should do it, her S3 should do it, but on top of that, if she has a lot of Spider-Sense charges and her Sync-Shield up, she can just let them hit her and watch the Auto-Block Power Burn the opponent back down below 3 bars.

An Extra Gear

Pair her up with DDHK or Mysterio and she can Parry non-contact attacks when her Sync-Shield is up.

With (either) Howard or Mole Man she gets better against Size: XL opponents.

Pair her with Miles, Porker, or Spider-Gwen to start the fight with +4 Spider-Sense charges.

Future Champs Implications: Kid Punchin’

When asked why we probably can’t ever have Franklin Richards, besides the fact that his power is to be overpowered, Kabam creative director Gabe Frizzera said you can’t have Franklin in a fair fight with other champs because then, in his words, you’re just “punching a kid in the face.”

This pronouncement seemed to rule out future champs who are kids. 

Kids? Who would want to fight (as or against) kids?

It sounds odd till you realize people have no problem punching Miles Morales, who is basically a high school teenager, or Kamala Khan, who is debatably the same age. Peni Parker has the same feel. 

So who, besides Franklin, are some kids whose door of opportunity might have been opened a little by the arrival of Peni? 

The Runaways’ Bruiser (Molly Hayes) is just a kid, and Moon Girl (who is ranked on the MCOC Wishlist paired with Devil Dinosaur) is an adolescent as well. Peter and MJ’s alternate universe (Renew Your Vows arc) daughter Annie Parker, the Spiderling, is just a kid. Nova (Sam Alexander) is just a teenager, and it’s strongly implied that Dan Bi, the little girl half of Crescent & Io, is just that: a little girl. And it probably depends how you look at it, but Wolvie, the X-Babies Wolverine, could be considered a kid as well.

Those are just the ranked ones. Some Summoners would doubtless suggest the Power Pack members, the Eternals’ Sprite, and others that haven’t made the Wishlist yet.

Conclusions

Overall, this kit reads a bit like a defender. That mech is gonna do things to prevent you from hurting Peni. That said, whether she’ll be a good defender is in question. All it would take is some Armor Break or Unblockable and most of the tricky parts go away. She might be harder to fight using any Regeneration champ if she’s awakened, given her propensity to Heal Block and Incinerate Regeneration champs who ever dare to fill a single power bar.

But I predict there’s enough delightfully messy damage and sufficient avenues of fight-control that she’ll also be an enjoyable attacker. It doesn’t seem like it will require a lot of training and practice to properly time her kit on attack. With attributes reminiscent of Doom or Warlock, probably people will enjoy playing this champ.

[dreamdropxoxo]

Hi! If you're still taking prompts i would absolutely love any outsider pov of lamen during kings rising or right after

Hi! Thank you so much for your prompt. This is actually my first prompt ever! So, I hope I won’t disappoint... 

Gosh, I’m putting pressure on myself hahaha *takes deep breath* No seriously, I am so excited to work on your prompt. I hope you are satisfied with my approach. 

Diana, the head chef of the Akielon palace, didn‘t know where he came from, but suddenly there was this blond-haired, blue-eyed, pale, incredibly beautiful, young man in her kitchen. He looked so out of place she was startled for a second. 

However, she was in this kitchen for too long to let that keep her from doing her job. “You, over there, what are you doing here?“

He looked up, even more beautiful than when he had looked around before. “I am one of pets that were sent by the Veretian king.“ His voice was beautiful, melodic, strong and not like the shy whispers from the slaves. He had an accent but he was surprisingly fluent in Akielon. Well, it made sense, since he would stay in Akielos and the Veretian King was said to be exceptionally wise.

Diana could understand what someone would see in a Pet like that. She also knew her king, not personally, obviously, but there were enough stories.

“And what are you doing here in the kitchen?“

“I had nothing to do, nobody showed me the library or even the gardens and as a result I thought I‘d just look around by myself.“

Diana sighed. Yes, obviously no slave but a Pet. Whatever that meant. Apparently, they didn’t have any issues concerning lacking independence. “If you are already here, you can help, if you want. What’s your name anyway?” “I’m called Lauri. What should I do?”

The pet had clever hands, that much was clear and he was very entertaining. Diana liked him. When he excused himself after two hours of decorating little cakes, she was almost sad. 

“Would it be amenable if I came over from time to time?” He sounded hopeful and looked so innocent when he asked, she hadn’t the heart to deny him.

After that he came by every two to three days and spent one to two hours in her company. 

After the third time, she furrowed her brow. “Don’t you have anything else to do Lauri?” He shrugged. “Well, most people are too occupied with the nearing arrival of the Veretian King. I have a lot of free time.”

“Who is your master?” “I don’t have a master, I have a contractor.” Lauri smiled sweetly and Diana sighed. “Who is it?” “Nikandros of Delpha.”

This surprised her. Nikandros of Delpha was one of the most important people in the whole kingdom. She gasped. “And you are here helping me in the kitchen?”

“It is very entertaining. A lot more than to sit on Nikandros’ lap while he talks about border guarding and other insignificant things.” Diana couldn’t believe it. What was wrong with this young man?

“And what is so very entertaining?” “Talking to the servants. I need as much information as I can get.” “And why is that?” Diana chuckled, she really thought Lauri’s mind was twisted in so many knots it was a wonder he could still walk a straight line. The blond man shrugged nonchalant, his blue sapphire earring glinted in the light of the kitchen. “Because I have to know everything that could prove useful.”

Diana could understand it. Lauri was most likely in no safe position, especially after his contract ended. What a frightening life. “If you ever want to work in the kitchen, you can always come to me. I would employ you without a second thought.”

She somehow felt almost motherly emotions towards the young Veretian. She would have never thought that there was a Verietian who evoked something else in her than distrust. “Thank you, Diana. I will keep it in mind.”

Lauri smiled brightly and she found herself compelled to warn him. “Lauri, I don’t know if you already met King Damianos?” He shook his head, his eyes wide and shocked. “No, I didn’t. Nikandros never takes a pet with him when he meets the King.” “Good. Try to avoid meeting him.” 
 “Why?” He looked so confused it was beyond cute. She would have liked to stroke his golden hair and hide him away from the world.

“Because the King has distinctive tastes and you’re just what he likes. I think neither Nikandros nor the King of Vere would be very pleased if you were to be taken by King Damianos. He is a good man, don’t misunderstand me, we can be happy to have such a big hearted and kind King but you are… you are very beautiful, Lauri. And King Damianos has an eye for beauty.” She cringed internally. She loved her King very much but he was only a distant figure while Lauri stood right here in her kitchen and looked at her through the bluest eyes she had ever seen. His eyes had the same color as the summer sky above Ios. The sapphire earring the exact same shade as his iris. 

“King Damianos… but isn’t he in a relationship with the King of Vere?” Diana sighed. “He is. But the King of Vere is in Arles for most of the year while King Damianos is in Ios. The hearts of men are fickle things, sweetie.”

Lauri seemed to find that very amusing. He smiled and decorated the next cake. Diana only hoped he understood what she meant. He was still so very young. How could he comprehend that his beauty tempted even the most pure heart?

Lauri came the next day again. He looked tired but very happy. A smile spread on his full, pink lips. 

“What good thing happened? You look very happy.” Diana was just directing her kitchen aids when Lauri started with his favorite work of dipping the mini muffins in some icing. 

“I had a very fulfilling night.” He grinned and placed the muffins on a plate. Diana didn’t think much of it, it was his job and if he enjoyed it then it was even better. Nikandros of Delpha seemed to be a very considerate master, or contractor, whatever.

When the door flew open she would have expected everyone to stand there but the King himself. She almost dropped her trowel.


“Exalted.” She bowed low. Lauri beside her bowed too, but not nearly low enough. “Raise.” The King’s voice was deep, commanding and smooth. It was a nice voice. 

Diana immediately did as she was told. She dared to look up and saw that the King had his eyes focused on Lauri. He seemingly couldn’t tear his eyes away. Diana had known it would come to this should King Damianos ever see Lauri. The young Veretian had his eyes carefully lowered to the floor but a smile spread over his lips. Diana could only watch in horror how the King came over and tipped Lauri’s head back with his knuckles under his chin. 

“Now, sweetheart, what are you doing here?” The King’s tone of voice was indulging, almost amused and very very taken by what he saw. Diana bit the inside of her cheek. When Lauri smiled, she knew that every chance of King Damianos turning around and leaving the Veretian Pet in the kitchen were gone.

“I am decorating cake. Diana let me help.” Lauri didn’t even add an Exalted. Didn’t they teach the Veretian Pets how to address royalty? “Didn’t you play around here enough?” Diana furrowed her brow. Did the King already know Lauri? What was going on here?

“I don’t know, did I? My lover didn’t have enough time for me up until now, he was too occupied to prepare for the arrival of the King of Vere.” Lauri sounded almost mocking and by now, Diana had no doubt that she had missed something very important. She twisted her hands in her chiton. This couldn’t end well. Either the King would kill Lauri for his insolence or he would want to take him to his bed. 

When King Damianos laughed loud and with his head thrown back, she knew it would be option two. The twinkle in Lauri’s eyes told her that he wasn’t disinclined. Poor Nikandros. She had thought Lauri was happy with him, the glint in his eyes when he arrived and his comment on a fulfilling night had lead her to that impression but maybe he wanted the King even more than the Kyros?

“Your lover doesn’t sound too bright. He should know how to set his priorities.” Lauri quirked his lips up at the words of the King. “You are a wise man, King Damianos.” Damianos still laughed. “Maybe I can tempt you to let me prove to you that not every man is so foolish as your lover?” 
Diana gasped in shock, Lauri had no possibility to deny such an direct offer from the King himself. Immediately the King looked over and Lauri’s gaze landed on her too.

“What is wrong, Chef Diana?” She couldn’t even be flattered that the King himself knew her name. She bit her tongue and then forced the words over her lips. Her mother had taught her to tell the truth whenever asked and she wouldn’t start lying because her King wouldn’t like to hear the truth.

“Exalted, I am very sorry-“ She didn’t know how to continue. But when Damianos waved his hand her way she just blabbered everything out, “Lauri is the pet of the Kyros of Delpha.”

Damianos raised both eyebrows and his gaze fell on Lauri. “Is that what you told them?” “I had to get a background story somewhere.” Lauri threw his hands up and now Diana almost fainted. How insolent could the Pets in Vere behave?

“Nik would faint on the spot if he knew you spread the rumor that you are his pet.” The King laughed so hard, tears came to his eyes. He looked really handsome, his dimples made even Diana’s knees weak. Lauri’s gaze never strayed from the King’s face. The look full of adoration. He smirked wickedly, “that’s just a nice side effect.”

“Now, shouldn’t you tell her the truth? After all the things I heard, she absolutely deserves at least that much from you.” The king crossed his arms before his chest. Very nice arms, if you asked Diana, she could understand why Lauri would be drawn to him. Lauri turned to her and signaled to follow him. She did, out of curiosity and shock.

They halted in one of the storage rooms and just then did she realize that King Damianos had followed them too.

“Diana, please take a seat. What I am going to tell you, will come as a shock, but rest assured that I wouldn’t miss our easy companionship for anything in the world.” 

Lauri motioned towards one of the boxes where salt was stored. Diana frowned but did as he told her. “Diana, I am Laurent of Vere, the King of Vere. I arrived here a month before my fixed arrival date and Damianos here had so much to do with the preparations of welcoming my court that I had a lot of free time.” Diana felt how her jaw fell slack. She stared at Lauri, no, His Royal Highness King Laurent from Vere. 

“What?” Her voice sounded weak. She had the feeling her heart would stop in her chest.

“Take one deep breath, in and out.” Lauri knelt before her and breathed with her. She just shook her head still in denial of the obvious truth. Who else but the King of Vere himself would look so beautiful? Who else but the King of Vere fitted King Damianos’ tastes in every single imaginable way? Who else but the King of Vere would be insolent enough to talk like that to the King of Akielos? 

The King of Vere had decorated the mini muffins he himself seemed to prefer. She had baked them in order to train for his arrival and he had DECORATED them. He had dipped them in the icing himself. He had placed little sugar flowers on top of them with the precision of a master and now he kneeled before her and looked at her with a smile on his youthful, gorgeous face.

“Oh by the gods, Your Royal Highness, I am so sorry. I didn’t know…” She felt how her face turned bright red just for all the blood to leave her cheeks. “I warned you to not attract King Damianos’ attention. I am so unbelievably sorry.” Laurent smiled. “Please, Diana, whenever I wear the earring, I hope I can stay Lauri for you. You have nothing to be sorry for. Your friendship means a lot to me. I would like to visit your kitchen again.”

Diana stared at him, incredulous. “You can’t! The kitchen is far below your station.” She was horrified. 

Laurent stood up and turned towards Damianos. “Do something.”“Laurent, sweetheart, you dropped quite the surprise on the poor Chef.”

Laurent furrowed his brow. “Diana, please, I thought we were friends. You promised me to show me how to bake the muffins myself.”

Diana shook her head. “You can’t be serious, Your Royal Highness.” “But I am.” Laurent sighed. “I haven’t had as much fun in a long time.” Damianos smiled at her. “You know, Chef, resistance is futile. Maybe you have to see it as a way for him to get close to his Akielon subjects after the wedding.”

Laurent smiled triumphantly, Damianos grinned boyishly and Diana... she just nodded, dumbfounded. 

These were the men who had singlehandedly conquered two kingdoms from their foes and were now in the process of uniting them after years of hostility. And now they stood in her kitchen and behaved like little kids. Well, as long as they were happy, the kingdom would be happy.

[mfingenius]

can you do damen mistaking laurent for a pet and Auguste is not impressed(tm) even though they're friends?

Damen knows about pets, of course he does; he’s been visiting Vere since he was twelve, for diplomatic visits and because he’s friends with Crown Prince Auguste, so, theoretically, he knows all about pets. He’s never properly seen them, because the first time Theomedes had visited Vere after the peace treaty and seen pets, Damen is told he’d been scandalized, and, since then, whenever the Akielons visit, Veretian pets dress like their masters rather than like pets.

So it’s not his fault, you see? Not entirely, at least.

It’s not his fault he didn’t know Auguste had a brother.

It’s not his fault that Laurent is the most breath-taking person Damen has seen in his life, and he’s dressed exactly like Auguste, and obviously Vere’s Crown Prince has the most gorgeous pet of all. It makes sense.

“Prince Damianos,” Laurent, as he has introduced himself, says, as he bows lightly. Much more shallow than other pets have, but Damen assumes being Auguste’s pet comes with certain privileges. “Pleased to meet you.”

“I’m pleased to meet you, too,” Damen says deeply, looking Laurent up and down, a flush rising on his face before he looks away; that’s probably not appropriate, and he isn’t normally like this, it’s just - Damen has never seen anyone as attractive as Laurent, and he gets the most gorgeous of Akielon slaves, blonde and fair and exactly to his tastes.

And maybe, maybe if he had spent more time with Laurent and someone had called him ‘your highness’ or ‘your majesty’ maybe Damen would’ve caught on and avoided the incident, as he likes to call it, but, as it is, Auguste arrives in that moment and grabs Laurent’s arm, which is only further proof that Laurent is a pet. Courtiers don’t touch each other; Nikandros had warned him, before coming, that in Vere one only touched their pets or their family, and Auguste didn’t have any family that wasn’t his parents, Damen thought.

“Laurent, I need to talk to you,” Auguste says, and that’s another thing. No one addresses each other as informally here. Damen hasn’t heard Auguste address someone without a direct title. “Damen, we’ll be right back.”

Damen makes some sort of noise of agreement - or so he thinks, he’s not really sure - and then promptly gets distracted by watching the pet walk away.

*

“I didn’t know pets were allowed here,” Damen says to Auguste, surprised. Laurent, the blonde pet from before, is sitting beside Auguste, deeply immersed in a conversation with Nik about Delpha - and Damen didn’t know, either, that pets were so well-informed, but then again, it must be only Auguste’s pet - while they’re waiting for King Aleron and Queen Hennike. Though Damen is still not king, his father wants to retire to an Island soon, so this is his first visit to Vere alone.

“Pets?” Auguste asks, frowning. “They’re not.”

“But-” Damen doesn’t get the chance to finish his sentence, because King Aleron and Queen Hennike enter. 

“Rise,” Councillor Herode says, and they all do.

*

Auguste’s pet is very well-read. Damen hasn’t had much chance of getting to know him better - it seems he’s a busy person, and Damen briefly wonders if Auguste gets him to flirt with people to get information, before telling himself Auguste wouldn’t do that - but in the few chances he’s had, he’s either always carrying a book or talking about one.

More than well-read, he’s informed about everything about Akielos, and Vere, and Patras, and if Damen didn’t know any better, he’d guess Laurent was a prince instead of a pet.

He sees Laurent negotiating with Nikandros about cloth tariffs, and briefly wonders if Auguste knows what his pet is up to; he must, right? No one seems to stop him, after all, not even the King and Queen. 

What makes things worse, however, is that Laurent is flirting with him, Damen is almost entirely sure. He doesn’t want anything with Laurent! Or, more accurately, he very much does want something with Laurent, but doesn’t want to risk Auguste getting angry at him over it. 

So he mostly ignores Laurent’s advances.

*

“Nikandros,” Damen says one day. “What do you know about Laurent?”

“Laurent?” Nikandros wrinkles his nose. “Prince Auguste’s-”

“Yes,” Damen nods. He doesn’t want a reminder that Laurent is Auguste’s pet, thank you very much. Though he knows pet’s contracts can be bought out, he doesn’t think buying Laurent’s contract will be a good way to start their renewed peace treaty - the reason he’s here - and anyway, he doesn’t think he wants Laurent as just a pet. He seems terribly over-prepared for that.

“Well, he’s a pain in the ass,” Nikandros says. Then, grudgingly. “But he’s very clever.”

“He is, isn’t he?” Damen could offer him much more than being a pet. Damen could make him a royal advisor, or an ambassador; though that would mean Damen would rarely get to see him, so maybe not an ambassador. Damen’s trusted advisor seems better.

“Oh no,” Nikandros says, interrupting Damen’s train of thought. “No.”

“What?”

“I know that face,” Nikandros says, glaring. “Do not try anything with him. He’s Prince Auguste’s-”

“I know.” Damen sighs. 

“He won’t like that.” Nikandros presses.

“I know,” Damen says, rolling his eyes. Of course Auguste won’t like Damen trying anything with his pet, Nikandros doesn’t need to tell him that. He sighs again. “I know. I was just - curious.”

“Well, stop it,” Nikandros says. “We cannot mess this up.”

Damen sighs for a third time and nods.

*

The incident happens on an otherwise perfectly pleasant day; he gets to spend time with Laurent, telling him about Ios and the sea and Laurent says he’d love to visit, long eyelashes fluttering, and Damen knows he’s flirting, and it kills him not to respond.

Still, he doesn’t; he grits his teeth and bears through it even if Laurent is the most perfect person Damen has - and will ever, he’s beginning to think - ever met. 

They part ways just before an important meeting, because Auguste comes get Damen; he wants to talk about the peace treaty and how it could very easily fall through if something were to happen.

He gives Damen a meaningful look while he says it, and Damen is sure it’s about Laurent, so he purses his lips and nods; Auguste smiles and claps him on the back, cheery as always, and Damen feels his heart sink.

Auguste has noticed, then.

They go to the meeting - about making appropriate changes in the peace treaty, which is important because when it was first written up both countries were reluctant, which means it has a lot of loopholes - and it’s the first meeting Laurent isn’t in.

It makes sense, since it’s the most important meeting yet.

All is going well, until, a couple of minutes late, Laurent arrives; the only free seat is next to Damen, and he takes it without apologizing for his tardiness, which is pretty arrogant for a pet, even Auguste’s.

“Are you alright, Prince Damianos?” Laurent asks with a frown; Damen hasn’t been able to convince him to call him Damen, yet. He must notice the evident tension in Damen’s shoulders.

“Yes,” Damen says shortly. Auguste is talking to Nikandros and Makedon about the border in Delpha and the male Vaskian tribes, which seem to have been giving more trouble than usual lately, so he’s distracted. “But we cannot keep being - friends.”

Laurent looks surprised, and then a little hurt, before his face turns cool, indifferent. “And may I ask why?”

Damen, Akielon to the core and more sincere than even his father is, says, “Because I am beginning to have feelings for you and you’re Auguste’s, and I cannot risk peace in my country for now.”

“Auguste’s?” Laurent looks confused again.

“Auguste’s pet.”

The entire meeting seems to screech to a halt as everyone turns to look at him; color begins rising steadily in Laurent’s face, light at first and then deepening quickly until his cheeks are crimson.

“Excuse me?”

The guards have turned very white, and so has Nikandros. His eyes are very wide.

The members of the council all look horrified except for Guion, who seems somewhere between amused and mildly interested.

Was Damen not allowed to say that out loud?

“Damen.” Nikandros looks like he wants to murder him. 

King Aleron is looking at him calculatingly, and Queen Hennike has the back of her hand pressed against her mouth; Damen thinks she might be trying not to laugh, but she might also be trying not to yell.

“You said-” Damen begins, and Nikandros interrupts him.

“Damen.”

Laurent is turning even redder, if it’s possible, and his guard, a man named Lazar - only one guard, when the rest of the royals carry at least six with them - looks like he cannot believe what he’s hearing.

“Not to try anything, because Laurent was Auguste’s-”

“Damen.” Nikandros is turning very red, too.

Auguste clears his throat. “Brother.”

Damen turns to look at him disbelievingly, and Auguste cocks an eyebrow at him; where Laurent is flushing crimson, Auguste is not. He looks at him cooly.

“Laurent is my brother,” Auguste says.

It takes two seconds for it to sink in.

The silence is deafening. 

“What?” Damen asks.

“Laurent is my brother,” Auguste repeats. “Prince Laurent is my younger brother.”

Oh gods. Damen feels his cheeks begin to burn.

“You thought I was a pet?” Laurent asks, and Damen can’t look at him, he just can’t.

“Nikandros said-” Damen begins, and everyone turns to Nik, who turns even redder.

“You never let me finish!” he defends hotly. “You only ever let me get to Prince Auguste’s!”

Damen wants to die.

“But-” he begins, voice higher than usual. He turns to Auguste desperately. “You threatened me!”

“Because everyone knows you like to bed blondes!” Auguste says, shaking his head. “I didn’t want you to-”

“You threatened him?” Laurent asks. “Auguste, I’m not a child!”

“You’re my brother, I didn’t want you to get hurt-”

“But-” Damen splutters, still in shock. “You were flirting with me!”

Laurent turns even redder as everyone rounds on him, seemingly greatly interested.

His flush has to be painful by this point.

“I - how is that relevant - I never - that doesn’t mean I’m a pet!” Laurent says. His ears are by now turning red, too.

“You were flirting with him?” Auguste asks, disbelievingly. “You’ve never shown interest in anyone-”

“Oh, Auguste, leave your brother alone.” Queen Hennike seems to think this is her moment to intervene. She looks terribly amuse with the whole situation. “It was bound to happen some day, and Damianos’s build is not easily found here, Laurent might just have a type-”

“Oh gods, stop-” Laurent buries his face in his hands, flush glowing between his fingers.

“Yes, please, everyone stop.” King Aleron says.

Everyone looks at him, and waits anxiously. Auguste is still muttering about how he’s offended Laurent didn’t tell him he was interested in anyone, Laurent is flushing brightly and kicking him under the table, Nikandros looks like he’s considering treason, and Damen? Well, Damen wants to flee.

Right after he finds out if this means he can ask Laurent out.

“Prince Damianos, if Laurent does not wish it we will not take this as a National offense,” Aleron says. Everyone looks at Laurent, who shakes his head quickly, mortified. “Very well. Laurent, you’re excused-”

“I have to leave?” Laurent asks. “He mistook me for a pet!”

“I’m very, deeply sorry, Prince Laurent, I am so, so-” Damen begins, but he’s interrupted.

“Prince Damianos, you’re also excused. Everyone here is excused. We will meet again tomorrow, because this is just - a mess.”

Everyone begins walking out of the room, speaking quickly, and Damen has no doubts that this will be across the castle - and possibly across the border - before he makes it back to Ios.

Kastor is never going to let him live it down.

“Prince Laurent,” Damen says urgently, before he walks out. Nikandros looks like he wants to throttle him, but Damen is good at ignoring that expression. “I want to apologize - I really am very sorry, I never meant to offend you-”

“Of course not,” Prince Laurent says, conflicted. “No, you just said I’m a pet. Auguste’s pet.”

Damen turns very red. “I am so, so, so sorry-”

“That’s enough apologies, Prince Damianos,” Prince Laurent says. “I - well, I’ll see you around, I suppose.”

“Yeah,” Damen says faintly. “I’ll see you around.”

He leaves the room with Auguste - who throws Damen a look - and Damen stays behind with Nikandros.

“Damen, I could kill you right now,” Nik says.

Damen really couldn’t blame him if he did.

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

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[pen-and-a-microphone]

Six The Musical Dance Masterpost!

This will be updated (in the reblogs) whenever I find new resources

An important update that will also be in the reblogs! The actors are not allowed to teach AYWD or IDNYL. No matter which workshops you book, the official line is that these are not allowed to be taught. 

In some cases, people teach different choreo to those songs, and that’s allowed. Due to this, I can’t be finding a way to notate that choreography and then post it. I’m pretty sure that’d get me in trouble, so I’m not gonna push it. I will keep providing tips for learning them, but I won’t go against the official instructions that the actors have been given.

Note I forgot to add but that applies to everything - squats. Do them frequently. There's a lot of squatting in the show, and boy you need good thigh muscles.

Ex-wives

The first and second verses are basically made entirely of posing. If you know the beats (which are very obvious and accented), the moves are easy. Each queen does something different on these beats, so you might want to pick one, or make up something of your own. These poses are the same in many live performances.

For the chorus(es), the moves are generally simple hip movements/steps. Easily followed from any bootleg copy you may have access to. The dance breaks/instrumentals are harder, and I have not yet found a proper tutorial for them.

Chorus and dance break performance, which could be followed. However it does end part way through, so I’d recommend just using this for the chorus/break section  - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFpqZjy54Ns

Visible choreography for the backing parts of the introductions verse (where the queens introduce themselves in a line/two lines) Deliberately pans out so that the chorus choreography is not visible, and the final chorus is from Six, not Ex-wives (this is a common thing in live performances of this) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJbaU4j0JCo

The final chorus mirrors the first, but so far I have not found a tutorial or live performance of this.

General advice - Learn the post-chorus dance break from the best source you have, since it’s the hardest part (if possible, and when I find one, I will put a tutorial for this section). The rest is very simple to follow from any performance, but make sure you’re watching the correct steps. Ex-wives is often performed live as a mashup with Six, so the choreo is different - there are quite a few live performances that I haven’t included links to, and this is for a reason.

No Way 

The intro is made solely of one movement repeated on a (helpfully emphasised) beat. Easy to see and follow from your bootleg.

There is not currently a tutorial or live that shows all of No Way (to my knowledge). It does have some full choreo (rather than just hip movements or basic steps) during the verses, that might be hard to follow from a bootleg

No Way dance class (NOTE: these moves are not in the correct order as far as I know, however this is a useful intro for how to do the steps. I used this to learn the movements, then used videos of live performances to put them together in the right order) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lzMd3oDAY0&t=4s

No Way second chorus and dance break, full tutorial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehdKQoZN_cU&t=2908s

General advice - The dance break is really fast, and really difficult, but it’s not impossible if you take time to learn it - you can always put your YouTube at 0.75x speed (or even 0.5x, which I did while learning). Again, don’t follow the wrong choreo and get confused. Vicki’s tutorial is helpful for showing points you can “hit” if the full thing is too fast or difficult. It’s very Beyonce and pretty sassy, so have confidence. Lots of hip movement, and salsa moves.

Don’t Lose Ur Head

Intro is simple to follow from any bootleg.

Lots of acting in this one. Boleyn interacts with the backing singers in a very different way to Aragon. Luckily, this means less complicated choreography in the verses, because a lot of the movement is either “shock”, “running to another point on the stage” or “leaning in to hear the tea”. Basically choose your own facial expressions and movements, and later poses.

Perfect live performance. Easy to follow for the verses, especially the second (which I haven’t found in this clarity anywhere else, lots of performances cut away) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY77XqKoNr4

DLUH choruses 1 and 2, tutorial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uEhNp-nVDU

Dramatic wedding moment? Again just acting with some blocking

The third verse has hardly any choreo, which can be seen in the west end live performance. The build up to the final chorus (ie the back and forths of “what was I/she meant to do”) is just improv jamming, so make it up as you go along.

The final chorus looks very “improvised having fun”, but there is still choreography. It is much looser than the other choruses, which means you can have more fun with it than the very precise movements of the earlier choruses.

General advice - The first few bars of the choruses uses a really difficult step, one which looks easy. Spend ages on this, until it’s second nature, or you’ll struggle to do the choreography for the rest of the chorus. This song is very acting heavy, and aside from the first and second choruses, the choreo isn’t super precise. The neck movements are sharp, and there is a risk of giving yourself whiplash if you jump right in - remember to stretch your neck too, it has muscles and you can pull them (I’ve been there, trust me).

Heart of Stone

Time for a break! Heart of Stone does not, as far as I know, have any choreography. Probably good to give the queens a break from all that high intensity.

Haus of Holbein

There aren’t any live videos or tutorials (yet/as far as I know)

Fairly basic steps in the verses, which could be followed from a bootleg. Lots of box stepping and posing.

Choruses are just improv, they do whatever they want, provided they’re acting like they’re in a rave. I have no idea if these were ever properly choreographed, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the script just said “go insane”. There are some parts where they pause, but this can be followed from your bootleg.

The intro and outro are just walking diagonally, staggered one by one.

General advice - Have fun. Have all the fun. Go completely mad with your improv. The more dramatic you go, the better it fits with the song. Unlike DLUH, the chaos is not the choreographed kind.

Get Down

First verse is lots of tiny movements, which are easy to learn from live videos. Clicks, head movements, etc - precise, but simple.

A useful section for learning the first verse/chorus - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik6zKj08A28

Performance with full choreo - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UlRCPLu9FM

Another performance with full choreo - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io-cQWqAfX4

The end of this class has part of the chorus of Get Down, which is helpful for both learning the moves, and learning the general style of dance - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlWQBREK5Fw&t=10s

General advice - Full sass. Take your Beyonce sass levels from No Way and times them by 10. This is, in my opinion, the hardest dance in the show, so I struggle to give good advice about it. It’s hard, but there are plenty of videos showing the full thing - I’ve managed to learn it by slowing these videos down (0.75x speed on YouTube). There’s lots of isolation of specific body parts. However, cover all your mistakes with more sass - my personal trick is just acting like I’m doing it perfectly, because the sheer self confidence of this number is enough to carry you through.

All You Wanna Do

Full disclosure: I do not yet know this one. However, I have a dance class on Saturday with Aimie Atkinson, which should help me learn it. The following is therefore much more vague, and will be updated once I know more.

From what I’ve seen, the steps in this are quite repetitive. I think the choruses use the same choreo, or at least very similar. Very high energy, but much like the rest of the show, movements are on the beats (accented, clear beats, thank you ladies in waiting).

I Don’t Need Your Love

Again, I do not know this one well, but I will be updating when I do.

The majority of this of is like Heart of Stone - there’s no choreography, and the queens get a rest.

There’s a section of improv between the sitting down and the choreographed section, which is just the queens jamming.

The actual steps don’t start until “Remember that I was a writer”, and they’re very simple, not too precise, and could be followed from a bootleg.

Obviously in the actual show there is a break before the “remix” section, without dancing. The “remix” section has choreography, but again it is pretty simple.

The final chorus is the only one with full dancing, but there aren’t any versions I could find on YouTube, or any tutorials. However, I could follow it from my bootleg, and I think I’ll be able to learn it from just that.

Six

This quite nicely mirrors the previous numbers. For example, there isn’t any backing dancing for Seymour or Parr’s sections. Aragon’s section uses moves you will have already learnt in No Way. Cleves uses new moves but keeps her sass and the same sort of dance style. Boleyn and Howard do have new moves, which I think is a reflection on character development - the choreo is more fun and happy, similar to the starts of their numbers, but obviously not the endings.

Live performance that shows all the correct choreography - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqc3zJ1nva0

The chorus is super easy, and most of you probably already know it. These women have been doing what basically amounts to a high intensity workout for a solid 75 minutes, so the choreo was never going to be super hard/taxing.

Six main chorus, tutorial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gjf1jrSFwsw&t=2s

The “we’re six” dance break is a little harder, but should be easy to follow from your bootleg.

[sachinnair]

7 Effective Tips to Choose the Mobile App Development Company

7 Effective Tips to Choose the Mobile App Development Company

On the off chance that you have a mid-to-huge scope business, the versatile application can be an exceptionally essential piece of your business development procedure. Hence, you need to pick a versatile application advancement organization that has a creative methodology alongside modern reasoning. In any case, under the watchful eye of you judge the qualities and shortcomings of any organization, you need to start by surveying your authoritative requirements and check whether the picked organization can satisfy those. Here are 7 demonstrated tips for tracking down your preferred versatile application organization:

1. Know What Your App Requirements Are

It may seem like an easy decision yet having an exhaustive comprehension of your application improvement prerequisites can positively help you in sifting the portable application advancement organizations. This cycle should begin with the nearby examination of the particular business requests and goals, which you need to change over into significant application elements and functionalities. We have seen that a great deal of our customers battle while figuring out what they need from their business application. To help them progress, we give a survey that helps drive them toward their objective:

What kinds of items/administrations would you say you are attempting to sell?

Where do you need your application to be: on Android, iOS, Windows-based Mobile Application Development Platforms?

Who will assemble your client base?

What sort of versatile application do you need local, mixture or electronic applications?

Whenever you are persuaded concerning what you need from the application, you are prepared to move to the subsequent stage.

2. Ask About their App Delivery Time-to-Market

Quicker 'an ideal opportunity to-showcase' is the new interest in the present time of computerized disturbance. On the off chance that your picked portable application improvement organization is delayed at carrying out applications to the market, there is an expanding plausibility that you will fall behind your opposition. The faster your business application hits the market, higher would be your ROI. Thusly, focus on picking portable application improvement organizations that convey excellent applications rapidly, while remembering the changing patterns in the application advancement market.

3. Investigate their Portfolios

When you open the site of any versatile application advancement organization, start by really looking at their portfolios. Portfolios give a decent outline of the business spaces and task subjects the organization has been associated with, and the sort of specialized aptitude they hold. You can likewise reach out to the organization to comprehend whether they have chipped away at the sort of application you need previously or can possibly convey it.

4. Really look at How Affordable They Are

With regards to picking the right versatile application advancement organization, you will consistently discover the improvement cost and application quality to be in struggle. A ton of associations pick new businesses to keep the improvement cost low and get a completed item which has little market significance. Then again, it isn't right to accept that best portable application improvement organizations offering quality application arrangements will be in every case expensive. What you need to remember here is that solitary solid market players can stand to give quality applications at productive expenses. On the off chance that you decide to go for since quite a while ago settled organizations with great market perceivability, you will see that their charges are similarly lesser than the new businesses and others.

5. Perceive How Transparent Their Process Is

The item improvement cycle and straightforwardness strategy followed by the portable application advancement organization likewise assume a vital part in the choice interaction. Low code techniques for versatile application advancement have acquired tremendous fame for quicker application conveyance, yet not many driving portable application improvement organizations in US follow it these days. Also, search for organizations that give straightforward correspondence and criticism circles in the improvement cycle for holding better common arrangement, and expeditiously react to mistakes and emphasis demands.

6. Genuinely take a look at Their Experience and Reputation Online

Market notoriety and experience say a lot about the validity of a versatile application improvement organization. Aside from actually looking at the portfolios, watch out for the quantity of positive surveys posted about a specific organization, long stretches of involvement with the application improvement area, and the various types of versatile application advancement benefits that they give. Simply recollect that you can accomplish great Return on Investment (ROI) from your application just when the organization picked by you can convey arrangements with inventive, out-of-the-crate ideation. Additionally, if an organization projects inside and out information on numerous cell phone prerequisites and all famous Mobile Application Development Platforms including Android and iOS, have confidence that they are equipped for conveying what you need from them.

7. Imprint Their Customer Approach

In the event that you wind up picking application improvement organizations offering helpless client care, you are probably going to confront problematic issues directly from the advancement stage. A ton of associations succumb to portable application advancement organizations that are simply attempting to sell their application and will vanish from the scene once the arrangement is finished. Just organizations with great market notoriety and an unwavering customer base comprehend their client worth and are consistently prepared to help you at each progression so pick the best Mobile App Development Company in Malaysia

[tenaflyviper]

Black Filmmakers in Horror

Given the negative stereotypes and overall treatment of black people in horror films, the genre carries the unfortunate misconception of being seen as unwelcoming to black audiences and filmmakers. It's time to put this notion to rest. The horror community is open to everyone that loves a good fright, and more and more black filmmakers have begun dabbling in scares. During this current time, I want to promote these filmmakers and their work, and welcome others to share their own works as well.

I couldn’t have compiled such a great list without the help of “Blacula” at BlackHorrorMovies.com. His site is absolutely invaluable for those with any interest in black horror cinema, and I highly recommend paying a visit! I will be including Blacula’s “Racial Representation” rating for each film, when available (ratings are out of five stars).

Whenever possible, I have provided links to watch these films online, but only from sites/channels with the right to stream them, so as to avoid any of these creators losing revenue. Tubi TV requires signing up (on PC, anyway), but it is still 100% free (and it’s also available as an app on Android, IOS, Xbox Live, and Playstation).

Black Devil Doll from Hell (1984) – Written, produced, and directed by Chester Novell Turner ★ ★ ½

Witchdoctor of the Living Dead (1985) - Written and directed by Charles Abi Enonchong

Tales from the Quadead Zone (1987) – Written, produced, and directed by Chester Novell Turner ★ ★ ½

Def By Temptation (1990) – Written, produced, and directed by James Bond III ★ ★ ★ ★

Ax ‘Em (1993) – Written, produced, and directed by Michael Mfume ★ ★ ½

Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight (1995) – Directed by Ernest R. Dickerson ★ ★ ★ ★

Tales from the Hood (1995) – Written and directed by Rusty Cundieff ★ ★ ★ ★

Spirit Lost (1996) – Directed by Neema Barnette, written by Shirley Pierce, and produced by The Black Entertainment Network (BET) ★ ★ ★ ½

Bugged! (1997) – Written, produced, and directed by Ronald K. Armstrong ★ ★ ★ ★

Three Sickxty (1998) – Written, produced, and directed by Natural Drye ★ ★ ★

End of the Wicked (1999) - Written, directed, and produced by Teco Benson

Cursed Part 3 (2000) – Written, produced, and directed by Rae Dawn Chong ★ ★ ½

Now Eat (2000) – Written and directed by Kerry Alan Williams ★

Scary Movie (2000) Written and produced by Marlon and Shawn Wayans, and directed by Keenan Ivory Wayans

The Black Witch Project (2001) - Written, directed, and produced by Velli ★ ★

Bones (2001) – Directed by Ernest R. Dickerson ★ ★ ½

Creepin’ (2001) – Written, produced, and directed by Tim Greene ★ ★ ½

Tara (aka Hood Rat) (2001) – Produced and directed by Leslie Small ★ ½

Scary Movie 2 (2001) - Written and produced by Marlon and Shawn Wayans, and produced and directed by Keenan Ivory Wayans

Crazy as Hell (2002) – Produced and directed by Eriq La Salle ★ ★ ★ ★

Chop Shop (2003) – Written and directed by Simuel Denell Rankins ★ ★ ½

Cutthroat Alley (2003) - Written, directed, and produced by Timothy Wayne Folsome ★ ★

Holla If I Kill You (2003) – Written and produced by Jeff Carroll ★ ★ ★

Scary Movie 3 (2003) - Written by Marlon and Shawn Wayans

Street Tales of Terror (2004) – Written and directed by J.D. Hawkins ★ ½

The Evil One (2005) – Written and directed by Parris Reaves ★ ★ ★

Damon (2006) – Written, produced, and directed by Eric Richardson-Hagans ★ ★ ½

Gold Digger Killer (2006) – Written and produced by Jeff Carroll ★ ★

Holla (2006) – Written and directed by H.M. Coakley ★ ★ ★ ½

Holla If You Hear Me (2006) – Written, produced, and directed by Mark Harris ★ ★

Office Outbreak (2006) – Written, produced, and directed by Shawn Woodard ★ ★ ★

Scary Movie 4 (2006) - Written by Marlon and Shawn Wayans

Voodoo Curse: The Giddeh (2006) - Written and directed by Glenn Plummer; produced by Glenn Plummer, Kristin Bernard, and Kira Madallo Sesay ★ ★

April Fools (2007) – Written, produced, and directed by Nancy Norman ★ ★ ½

Bleeding Rose (2007) – Written, produced, and directed by Kareem Bland ★ ★

Dead Tone (2007) - Written and directed by Brian Hooks and Deon Taylor

Insane in the Brain (2007) – Written, produced, and directed by Chad Hendricks

Somebody Help Me (2007) – Written, produced, and directed by Chris Stokes ★ ★ ★ ½

Soulful (2007) – Written and directed by Sarah Poindexter ★ ½

Hospitality (2008) – Written and directed by Tony Ducret ★ ★ ★

Nite Tales: The Movie (2008) - Written, directed, and produced by Deon Taylor ★ ★

The Figurine (2009) – Directed by Kunle Afolayan

The Inheritance (2011) – Written and directed by Robert O'Hara ★ ★ ★ ½

Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes (2012) – Produced and directed by Cory Grant ★ ★ ★

Guardian of Eden (aka The Good Wifey) (2012) - Written by Huriyyah Muhammad and Ali Lillard, directed by T. A. Williams, and produced by Huriyyah Muhammad, Kande Tshibanda, Tangi Miller, and Godwin Bernard ★ ★

A Haunted House (2013) – Written and produced by Marlon Wayans ★ ½

Holla II (2013) – Written and directed by H. M. Coakley ★ ★

Ghetto Goblin (aka Blood Tikoleshe) (2013) - Written and directed by Jordan Harland

Scary Movie 5 (2013) – Written by Marlon and Shawn Wayans, and directed by Malcolm D. Lee

A Haunted House 2 (2014) - Written and produced by Marlon Wayans ★

The Night Seekers (2014) – Written, produced, and directed by Menetie T. Ejeye ★ ★

Not Another Zombie Movie (2014) – Written by Jay Davis, and directed by Jack Johnson and Don Williams

Da Sweet Blood of Jesus (2015) – Written, produced, and directed by Spike Lee (A remake of Ganja & Hess)

Ojuju (2015) – Written, produced, and directed by C.J. “Fiery” Obasi ★ ★ ★ ½

Prom Ride (2015) – Written, produced, and directed by Kazeem Molake ★ ★ ★

But Deliver Us From Evil (2017) - Written, directed, and produced by Joshua Coates ★ ★ ★ ½

Fixation (2017) - Written by Bobby Peoples and Kenya Hendricks; directed by Renee S. Warren Peoples ★ ★ ★

Get Out (2017) – Written, produced, and directed by Jordan Peele (Academy Award winner for Best Original Screenplay) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Paranormal Evil (2017) – Written and produced by ShaRhonda ‘Roni’ Brown, and directed by Akil Pugh

Fatima's Revenge (2018) - Produced, written, and directed by Gerald Barclay

The First Purge (2018) - Directed by Gerard McMurray ★ ★ ★ ★

Moma’s Spirit (2018) – Written, produced, and directed by Robert L. Parker III

Out of Gas (2018) – Written, produced, and directed by Michael Lemelle, and co-directed by April Marcell

Tales From the Hood 2 (2018) – Written, produced, and directed by Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott ★ ★ ★ ½

Traffik (2018) – Written, produced, and directed by Deon Taylor ★ ★ ½

Fixation 2: Uprising (2019) - written by Bobby Peoples; directed by Bobby Peoples and Renee S. Warren Peoples

Frequent Visitors (2019) - Written by Andrea Tyler and directed by Moe McCoy

The Intruder (2019) - Directed by Deon Taylor ★ ★ ★ ★

Living in Bondage: Breaking Free (2019) – Directed by Ramsey Nouah

Saving You, Saving Me (2019) – Written, directed, and produced by Tina Jetter

Sweetheart (2019) – Written and directed by J. D. Dillard

Thriller (2019) – Written and directed by Dallas Jackson ★ ★ ★

The Tokoloshe (2019) - Written and directed by Jerome Pikwane ★ ★ ★ ★

Us (2019) – Written, directed, and produced by Jordan Peele ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Antebellum (2020) - Co-written and co-directed by Gerard Bush ★ ★

Bad Hair (2020) - Produced, written, and directed by Justin Simien ★ ★ ★

Black Box (2020) - Written and directed by Emmanuel Osei-Kuffour ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Body Cam (2020) - Directed by Malik Vitthal ★ ★ ★

Candyman (2020) – Written and produced by Jordan Peele; directed by Nia DaCosta

Don’t Look Back (2020) - Produced, written, and directed by Jeffrey Reddick ★ ★ ★

His House (2020) - Written and directed by Remi Weekes ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Tales from the Hood 3 (2020) - Written and directed by Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott ★ ★ ★

I hope anyone reading enjoyed this list as much as I enjoyed putting it together. And, again--I highly recommend paying a visit to BlackHorrorMovies.com, as there are also numerous essays to read, and lengthy lists detailing black actors and actresses that have worked in the horror genre.

Lastly, I highly recommend checking out the Shudder documentary,

Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror (2019), directed by Xavier Burgin

or the book it was based on,

Horror Noire: Blacks in American Horror Films from the 1890s to Present, by Robin R. Means Coleman.

[ready4tech]

Top 10 Game-Changing Mobile Technologies 2021

Introduction

Smartphones are exceptional technology, but the advancement is essential. Understanding the latest smartphone technologies helps you take maximum advantage. Now game-changing technologies in smartphones are emerging to bring more convenience to the table.  If we were to reflect on our history and evolution of humankind, we would see mind-boggling tremendous improvements in our form of communication and throughout time. At first, humans communicated through hand signs, which later developed into drawings. Next, the words came into play. As humans evolved, so did their language. However, long-distance communication was a large hindrance. Slowly, humans came up with the idea of a runner who would go from city to city to deliver a message. Perhaps, the most renowned runner of ancient times is the fabled Greek soldier Pheidippides, who ran from Marathon to Athens to deliver the news of Athenians’ victory over the Persians in the battle of Marathon. Today, the marathon race in the Olympics is based on this fable.

However, the major drawback was the fact that a runner or messenger could not recall all the important messages he was supposed to deliver. Therefore, it resulted in the use of letters, even though it took days to deliver the important messages. Improving the speed of communication was crucial for all, and they managed to do it using telegrams. Telegrams were expensive but faster than letters. They were often cryptic and shorter than letters.

Possibly, the most significant landmark in the development of communication is the landline. With the advent of landlines, we could talk instantly with our loved ones and deliver important messages too. There was no need for lengthy letters or cryptic telegrams. Yet, the ever-curious human mind wanted an even better form of communication. As a result, the world saw the revolutionary rise of cellular phones in the early 1970s, which blew everyone away. The commercial use of mobile phones began in 1983, and as of 2014, there were over seven billion mobile phone subscribers in the world. It was once considered an impossible feat, and now it has seen widespread use.

In the early 1990s, the emergence of the smartphone did gobsmack everyone. Inventions after inventions in the world of technology improved the quality of smartphones. It was initially an uphill task to ensure the widespread use of cell phones. But, Apple Inc.’s founder, the renowned late Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011), was the premier driving force who managed to skyrocket the popularity of smartphones and ensure their extensive use. With the expansive marketing campaign spearheading one of the largest global campaigns, Steve Jobs guaranteed that smartphones are a force to be reckoned with.

LATEST SMARTPHONE TECHNOLOGY

From the 1990s to the 2020s, the world of technology has seen a colossal amount of money invested in research and development for newer inventions that could make life easier for everyone. Here, we have a catalogue of the top ten game-changing technologies that revolutionised the smartphone industry.

1. SIM Card and e-SIM:

What latest smartphone technology is used in mobile phones? Whenever anyone hears this question, the first response that comes to mind is a SIM Card. SIM stands for Subscriber Identity / Identification Module. It runs a Card Operating System (COS) on an integrated chip, which securely contains the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), Integrated Circuit Card Identifier (ICCID), Personal Identification Number (PIN), Personal Unblocking Key (PUK), etc. The SIM card allows us to make phone calls, send text messages, surf the internet with a data plan, etc. The initial concept of using a silicon Integrated Circuit (IC) chip on a plastic card can be traced back to the late 1960s – just before the first mobile phones were invented. Currently, there are four SIM card sizes in the market – the full-size SIM card (1991), Mini-SIM (1996), Micro-SIM (2003), and Nano-SIM (2012).

While the SIM Cards mentioned above are hardware-based, there were talks to discuss the development of a software-based chip since 2012. The embedded Subscriber Identity / Identification Module (eSIM ), also known as embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card (eUICC), is currently used in all the cars sold in the European Union (EU). The SIM would likely be easier to operate and reprogram. Additionally, its widespread use could reduce global plastic wastage. American tech giants Apple first implemented this technology in their Apple Watch Series 3 in 2017. Later, they also included it in the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR. Google revealed the same smartphone technologies in their Pixel 3 in 2017. Microsoft Surface Pro LTE also has the same technology in their device. They also launched support for eSIM on their Windows 10 OS in 2018. Most recently, Motorola Razr (2020 variant) was launched by Motorola with only eSIM support…

2. Dual Lenses Camera:

The trend for the latest smartphone Technologies for photography has seen a steady rise in the past decade. Although South Korean giants Samsung valiantly introduced the rear Dual Lenses Camera in 2007, they did not receive enough prominence until 2016 when their compatriot LG launched their LG G5 smartphone. Nowadays, most smartphones come with dual, triple, or quad-camera setups, where the cameras have depth or monochrome sensors or telephoto or wide-angle lenses. Generally, the dual-lens setup provides features and functionalities that were previously only available on superior high-end DSLR cameras. The smartphone utilises both cameras at the same time to capture magnificent shots.

3. WeChat:

While software may be a stunning inclusion in the list of technologies, it cannot be neglected. Tencent Holdings Limited is more widely known for its game “Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG).” However, even before PUBG became a household name, the Chinese multinational Tencent Holdings Limited launched WeChat in 2011. It is a multi-purpose social media, messaging, and mobile payment application available on iOS, macOS, Android, and Windows OS. Moreover, it also has an interesting technological function that allows two users to connect if they shake their phones simultaneously regardless of their location. In short, it is Facebook, PayPal, Linked In, and WhatsApp combined.

4. Automated Phone Calls and Answering Help by Google Assistant:

American tech giants Google have never been the ones to lag behind. Their gigantic research and development enable them to come up with newer and improved smartphone technologies. Google Assistant has been invaluable for many users. Such is its importance that many android smartphones manufacturer include a dedicated Google Assistant button in their devices. The newly launched call screening feature provides you with the opportunity to screen incoming phone calls. The moment you screen it, the Google Assistant will answer the phone call to collect further information from the caller. You will be able to see what is being said by both sides. It also saves transcripts from the entire conversation.

5. Detachable Display Technology by Samsung

South Korean revolutionary innovators have patented a future smartphone technology that can change the entire landscape of how smartphones work. The unique technology demonstrates that a part of the smartphone’s display can be separated from the original body, and the user can wear it on their wrist like a wristwatch. This wristwatch would have two physical buttons and can communicate with the main device through Bluetooth. Moreover, the main device can recharge the removable part when they are connected again. All tech bloggers, reviews, and personalities in the industry are boggled with their abilities. If it can serve its purpose, this technology will wipe out all other smart-watches from the business.

6. In-Display Fingerprint Scanner

Another latest smartphone technology is the in-display fingerprint scanner. Funny how we have moved past using PINs to unlock our devices to using the face unlock feature to enhance our smartphones’ security measures. Now, the in-display fingerprint scanner form of a biometric security system is quite amusing. The everlasting innovation game brings us a security system that uses an optical fingerprint sensor embedded under the screen to collect fingerprint data. The American publicly owned Synaptics provides its Clear ID Optical In-Display Fingerprint Sensors to most smartphones. Its impeccable accuracy has significantly increased its demand. This tech can also be used to verify major financial transactions in the future.

7. Control House Temperature with Smartphones

The widespread use of Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and Apple Siri to control the smart devices in our home is increasingly rising. Meanwhile, many people have wished to control their devices through smartphones. Now, that prayer has been answered. It can be done using Wi-Fi in your home. For instance, an intelligent thermostat called Nest is designed by the same guy who crafted the iPods. It allows you to control the temperature of your house remotely from anywhere in the world. So, you will not incur greater electricity bills. In addition, during cold chilly winter, you can set temperatures to be higher so that you can return to a warm and cosy home. Also, you can lower the temperatures in the scorching summer to return to a fantastic home.

8. Better Home Security with Security Cameras and Smartphones

In recent times, the number of break-ins has been accelerating. People are increasingly concerned with the safety of their loved ones and their homes. To fight these concerning issues, the newer models of motion-activated security cameras come with the ability to control through Wi-Fi. Whenever the camera is activated, you are immediately alerted about the activity. You can also see the live feed of the house. So, it will be easy for you to check if it is your delivery guy, a neighbour, a friend, or an intruder. In case of unwanted people like robbers, you can quickly inform concerned authorities to take action. This facility will ensure that your home is safe from unwanted intruders.

9. Smartphone to Smart Key Technology

It is one of many smartphone technologies that can convert your smartphone into a smart key. Although smart keys have been around for three decades, their uses are increasing only recently. Google recently announced that Android smartphones would be able to lock and unlock certain vehicles. This earth-shattering feature will be available when the Android 12 rolls out. The android users who own vehicles that use near-field communication (NFC) or ultra-wideband (UWB) will be able to control their cars.

Additionally, they will also be able to start their vehicle if they want. German automobile manufacturer BMW will be releasing keys compatible with android. Therefore, the Samsung Galaxy series and Google’s Pixels will receive their digital smart keys later this year. It is a great feature for people who tend to forget their keys here and there.

10. Automatic Smart Pet Feeder Technology

Once considered a future, smartphone technology is now a reality. These latest Smartphone technologies are a blessing for all pet lovers. The automated smart pet feeders allow you to stringently maintain the schedule and manage the feeding times of your pets. You can even control the portion to be served and manage the food supply. Users can control these smart devices through their smartphones. So, even if you are away from home on a short vacation or you are at work, your beloved pet will never miss a meal.

Foremost innovators and researchers are constantly competing to invent the next big thing. With such dedication and hard work, we will likely receive newer technological updates sooner rather than later. Let us wait and see what the future holds.

[chiefnooniensingh]

upon a day, came Sorrow into me (a joe x nicky one-shot)

rating: T warnings: major character death summary: Joe and Nicky face the worst thing yet. Companion piece to neither the angels nor the demons. A/n: The roles reversed this time.The title is from the sonnet by Dante. I'm terribly sorry. I need to go write some fluff soon. also on: ao3

Nicky was woefully unprepared, which quite frankly surprised him more than he would admit. For years, centuries, Nicky had known that death was coming, even for them. It would just take longer. He’d watched Andy grow old and die, a bittersweet memory that he took out and held close to his heart whenever he missed his boss, his mentor, his friend, too much. He’d been forced to sit there, and watch Booker slowly sink into a dreamless sleep from which he would never return, finally at peace with the world and himself.

Nicky knew death was part of life, their life. “Time is coming for all of us,” he always said sagely. “When it is our time, it is our time.”

Nicky was about to find out that this wisdom was harder to put into practice than he had ever feared.

“Nicky…” Joe’s strained voice pulled him out of his sleep, and he felt the arms around him tremble. “Nicolò, wake up.”

Nicky sat upright at once, gun already in his hand, looking around. Their room was empty, except for the two of them, and there was no danger in sight. Then he looked down at his Joe, the love of his life, and his eyes widened. He was lying in a pool of blood. Panicked, Nicky looked at himself, his shirt partially drenched. “Oh no,” Nicky said, sitting up on his knees and fluttering his hands over Joe’s body, trying to find the source of the blood – so much blood. “Joe, what happened, how is this possible?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know,” Joe groaned. “I thought it’d healed, I swear – ” Joe pulled up his shirt and Nicky went absolutely white. There was a huge gash in Joe’s stomach, something that should have closed, and Joe should’ve felt that earlier, what the fuck.

“No, no, no,” Nicky said, panicking completely. “Nile! Kati! Help!”

Nile and Kati wasted no time bursting through the door, weapons raised, ready to fight. Nicky looked at them in desperation. “Help me,” he moaned, his hands already soaked in Joe’s blood.

Nile turned extremely pale, then dropped her gun to the floor with a clatter and ran to the bathroom for supplies, but Kati kept staring. This was the first time they’d seen one of them die, as they’d joined shortly after Booker died.

Dios, he was going to be the last one left. The pain of that realization hit him like a freight train. (He was actually hit by a freight train once. This was, somehow, worse.) “No, no, no, no, Joe, don’t do this to me!” he said, panic in his voice, as he looked back down at his love, his heart, his entire world.

“Nicolò, it is you who always says…” Joe said, with a weak cough and a loving smile.

Nicky shook his head frantically. “I know what I always say, but you cannot leave me!”

Joe lifted his hand to touch Nicky’s face and Nicky leaned into the touch, closing his eyes. Joe’s fingers were already frighteningly cold. Nicky knew Nile was bringing the supplies for no reason; Joe had lost too much blood. “Amore mio,” Joe whispered, “you have been there by my side my entire immortal life. You saved me. You protected me when I was weak, was there when I was strong.”

“Then let me protect you now, let me save you,” Nicky said, his voice breaking as tears ran freely down his face. He leaned down to press his forehead to Joe’s. “Please, habibi, do not leave me alone in this world. Please…”

“Nicolò di Genova, you know that is not how this works. I’m sorry that I am leaving you now, after so many years together. I wish we could’ve gone together. But I will wait for you. Wherever it is I am going, I will be waiting for you when it is your time.”

“I can’t do this without you…” Nicky sobbed, shaking his head as if to deny the entire possibility of his Yusuf leaving him.

Joe laughed, pulled back his face a little to look into Nicky’s eyes. “Of course you can, my love, my heart. You are stronger than anyone I have ever met. You will be fine.”

“No,” Nicky said, shaking his head before kissing Joe hard, afraid that it would be too late, that he would never get to kiss his Joe again. “I’m not strong, mi hai fatto forte, you did that.”

Joe smiled again. “I love you, Nicolò. You are my life, my love, my heart. That will never change. Tu ed io fino alla fine, Nicolò. That is something even death cannot change.”

Nicky shook his head, nearly in shock now as he held Joe in his arms while the life slowly drained out of him. Nile and Kati were quietly sobbing next to the bed, already grieving while giving Nicky the chance for his last goodbye. “I love you, Yusuf. What am I supposed to do without you?”

Joe’s eyes flickered to Nile and Kati, and he stretched out his hand for them to take. Nile kissed the back of his hand in farewell. Nicky could barely stomach the heartbreak that little moment caused him. “You take care of these two. You keep fighting, you keep doing good. You are kind-hearted, Nico. Do not lose that because of me, I beg of you…” On the last word, Joe dissolved into a coughing fit and Nicky felt more blood spill onto the bed. “It is my time, Nico. I will be at peace. And I will wait for you. Promisso.”

Nicky leaned his forehead against Joe’s again. “‘Neither the angels in Heaven above, nor the demons under the sea, can ever dissever my soul from the beautiful Yusuf al-Kaysani’,” he whispered.

“Poe,” Yusuf said, smiling softly and stroking Nicky’s cheeks. “And I’m the one who’s an incurable romantic?”

“You bring out the best in me, my Yusuf,” he said, putting on a brave smile, and then ducked his head down to press his lips to Joe’s again, for what he instinctively knew would be the last time. Joe responded, however weakly, but Nicky felt the hand fall away from his face, the last of Joe’s strength leaving him. “Joe?” There was no response.

“No,” Nile squeaked.

Nicky stared at his lover’s face, his fingers roaming over the still features in Joe’s face. His eyes were closed, looking for all the world as if he were asleep. Nicky felt a stab of pain pass through his heart, and he doubled over, letting out a howl that tore through his very soul. He felt as if his heart was being torn out of his chest, the pain overtaking his entire body, and he screamed his pain into the world. When he’d exhausted all of his strength, he fell forward, his face pressed in Joe’s chest, sobbing quietly. Softly, as if to still reach Joe, wherever he was, Nicky began to rhythmically, but unsteadily, sing, “Ti amo. Non ho nessun pensiero che non sia tuo; non ho nel sangue nessun desiderio che non sia per te. Lo sai. Non vedo nella mia vita altro compagno, non vedo altra gioia. Rimani. Riposati. Non temere di nulla. Dormi stanotte sul mio cuore…”

“Nicky, I’m so sorry,” Nile said, her voice choked with tears, as she reached to touch Nicky’s shoulder. “What can we do, what do you need?”

“Joe,” Nicky said pathetically, his fingers winding in Joe’s blood-soaked shirt. “What do I do now?”

Nile held tightly to his shoulder, Kati holding just as tight to Nile’s hand. A family of three now. Nicky’s heart broke some more. “We’re going to get through this together.”

“He was always with me…what do I do without him?” Nicky’s voice cracked on every syllable. “I’m alone…” Nicky looked at Joe’s face, in which he could still see the man he loved, even as his soul had already left.

Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn al-Kaysani was gone from this world.

Nicolò di Genova was alone.