#and intended to use the resulting person as a servant

[therealnotta]

ok i thought about it and actually, the wildest thing in the wizard of oz series (to me) was when the tin man, scarecrow, and A Random Child whose name I can't remember all went to find the tin man's ex. and they stop at tin man's buddy's house, to see if he knows where said ex is these days, and buddy isn't there, so they go inside to wait for him

and the house???? is full of severed body parts?????? just everywhere, they're in a barrel by the door, they're on the table, just chunks of clearly human flesh and a mess of limbs and whatnot, tin man thinks this is fine, scarecrow is really creeped out, scarecrow opens a cabinet and finds a severed human head

tin man runs on over and is like "what the f- oh that's me lol" and it's??? HIS old severed head??? so the scarecrow is just barely recovered from this, tin man is explaining the situation of how he became tin again, etc. etc.

and then the eyes open

and long story short the tin man's soul transferred to his new tin body, but it takes more than having your soul removed to kill you in oz... so his old body is still alive, but without its memories and completely confused and disoriented

the friend comes back and casually mentions how it took a bit for the transferring to finish, and after that the head just didn't remember anything. that means there was a bit there where this head DID have all of the tin man's memories still, and as far as he knew his friend had just left him without a body in a cabinet, unable to move, while the rest of his body just... walked off without him. literally horrific and the tin man is just like "haha! how quirky!" and honestly it's not the worst thing to have happened to him so i can't fault him for that but like. i'd be a little worried if one of my oldest friends told me that they'd totally leave me in a cabinet while my soul slowly left my body and wouldn't even feel bad.

[nottoxicfr]

This is, tentatively, Rize.

She is the combination of Nagoryuki (Guilty Gear) and Rachel Alucard (Blazblue). Relating to the concept of a data-Backyard, she has the role of a program meant to ensure the integrity of the physical world through Intervention. However, overuse of Intervention causes cracks in reality, therefore its use is controlled strictly.

This relates to the thematic idea of her character as “the Observer Who Averts Her Eyes." Nago's long meditation after the events of the Crusades combined with Rachel's nature as an Onlooker, cursed not to intervene in events, resulted in Rize's fitfully slumbering nature. Rather than Observe the events of the world, she wishes to sleep until the world has no need of her and is cursed by nightmares of terrible memories and future possibilities. Her story is about finding meaning in Observing individuals, rather than viewing the world as a single disastrous story.

(I'll talk more about her personality and her design below the cut)

I had a really hard time creating her! Honestly, I really didn't want to anything mess up. I feel happy with this art, but I want to draw her more and really get a grip on who she is. She looks really elegant, but I think there's more to her than that!

I mentioned before that fighting game characters are adjective filled, with Nago and Rachel being no exceptions! Rize is more focused on Rachel's style than I originally intended, but I hope parts of Nago still shine through. His older appearance is why I designed her around the age of 20, rather than sticking with Rachel's younger look. I'm not super comfortable with the type of character that is very old, but still looks young!

She's a gothic, lolita-inspired vampire, but I had more of Nagoryuki's "noble" personality in mind when I drew her. I imagine that she would offer advice to the people she meets, but sometimes the advice might be, "Don't wake me up from a nap." She can be a bit thorny, which draws on Rachel's "rose with thorns" tsundere motif to reshape the kindness both vampires possess.

There are parts of her that seem very childish in my mind, like the idea that she can sleep until the world ends or her grumpy reactions to others, but her deeper personality indicates that she's incredibly guilty about the events she witnessed and simply at a loss in what else she can do. It seems most of her childishness comes from a lack of sleep more than anything else. Her eyes are Nago's Blood-Rage mode, which implies she's also pretty hungry.

Originally, she was going to be named Arisu (Alice), with Bloodedge (Baiken x Ragna) being a Cheshire leading her to the source of the plot's problems. If this was a real game, I think that would still be the case as a relationship. However, with a different name, the allusion isn't nearly as prevalent...

Instead, Rize comes from Riza, from E-riza-besu, an homage to Elizabeth Bathory. It's supposed to be from romanji so it calls to mind the idea that it might be a translation she preferred. That’s not how you convert Eliz-a-beth into romanji, but I thought it was an acceptable break from reality for style. That’s the running idea for ArcSys, generally.

Rachel has servants named Nago- which was ironic- and Gii, who frequently take her wrath. Rize's servants are Tama (Ms. Umbrella in the art) and Chester (Mr Plushy next to her). Chester is a stuffed creature in the form of a Jester, meant to put her in a better mood after a nightmare. Tama, as mentioned in another post, is a joke about how you can take the first syllable of Excalibur, Ex, and say it as Eggs (Tamago). It's a really stupid joke, but it indicates that Tama is actually the sword of myth simply transformed and given sentience via old age. I don't think she takes her short temper out on either of them, but if she does then it's probably Chester. Lots of people punch pillows to feel better, so I don't think Chester minds as long as someone fixes him should he be damaged. She also has another servant, but they aren't created yet.

Gameplay wise, she'd be difficult to balance. Every small movement would inch her closer to a true Blood-Rage, which would significantly drain her health. To get around this, the player would have to use Rachel's Wind Drive to maneuver either Rize or her opponent into her range. To offset the difficulty of that, she has quite a lot of power. It might actually end up making her a grappler-type of character. Rize is the kind of character who changes the color palette of an anime when she shows up. Super strong, y'know?

Anyway, this is probably my favorite of the "ArcSys Singularity designs" that I made. I also tried out Slayer and Rachel as a combination, but it wasn't quite as fun. I feel very excited with Rize! I wanna draw her more.

[bethanythebogwitch]

The Magical Girl TTRPG about fighting despair

Princess: the Hopeful is a tabletop roleplaying game in which players take the role of magical girls acting as the guardians of hope and light in a world of darkness and despair. And before I can really talk about it, I need to give some backstory. Princess: the Hopeful is a fan-made game for Chronicles of Darkness AKA the New World of Darkness. Chronicles of Darkness is a line of TTRPGS in which players take on the roles of monsters hiding amongst humanity. Each game has you play a different kind of monster, so there’s a vampire game, a werewolf game, etc. While each game can be played independently of any other, they are all in the same setting and they all use the same core rules. This is intended to make crossovers easy, but it also means that fans can pretty easily homebrew their own content, up to and including entire games. CoD is a pretty dark setting where the shadows run deep, humans are prey to monsters we don’t understand, and hope is vanishingly rare. So when a group of fans decided to make a magical girl game for the setting, it seemed like a joke. However, the finished project has become one of the most popular fan games and is just as good if not better than many of the official games (cough Beast cough). While the world of Princess: the Hopeful is as grim and bleak as the rest of CoD, you play as the people who refuse to give in to despair and fight to make the world a better place and you are going to dress fantastically to do it. 

In the setting of Princess: the Hopeful, the ultimate force of evil is the All-Consuming Darkness. Born of fear, hate, despair, and every other negative aspect of life, the Darkness is less an entity and more a cosmic force of corruption that will not stop until the world is dragged into an eternal hell. When the Darkness first threatened the world, agents of light rose up to stop it. They wielded powerful magic and formed a civilization called the Kingdom which opposed the Darkness. And they won. The Darkness was beaten back and the Kingdom was at peace. This peace made them complacent and they failed to notice the Darkness building a counterattack until it was too late. The Darkness overwhelmed the Kingdom and destroyed many of queens and their courts. Of the 8 surviving courts, 5 were trapped within the Dreamlands, a dimension formed from the dreams and desires of humanity. This prison was perfect as the desires of its prisoners led them to not even realizing they were trapped. They lived in a fantasy of the world at peace, never realizing their predicament. The 3 remaining courts survived by becoming darkened. The corruption of the Darkness is found in them, but they are not its servants and are therefore known as the Twilight Courts. With the courts either trapped or corrupted, the Darkness had free reign over the world and turned it into the grimdark setting of Chronicles of Darkness. That was until 1969, when the first moon landing set off such a powerful surge of wonder and hope worldwide that it pierced the Dreamlands and alerted the imprisoned courts to the truth. The 5 imprisoned courts, the Radiant Courts, destroyed the prison and turned the Dreamlands into their new base of operations. They now face a world where the Darkness has effectively won. This hasn’t stopped the Radiant Courts and they have now resumed the war with the Darkness. Whether this war is an ultimately futile struggle or if the Radiant Courts do have a chance at actually turning things around is up to the players. 

The player characters of PtH are the Nobility. Nobles, also called Princesses/Princes or the Hopeful, start out as people who remain good and hopeful despite living in a darkened world. The potential to become a Noble will remain as long as that person remains good, but it takes a major event to unlock it. This event must be something life-changing and can happen at any time in someone’s life, though it usually happens during, and as a result of, puberty. The person will go through the Blossoming and awaken the power of a Noble. While the game focuses on magical girl tropes, anyone of any gender and sex can become a Noble. Nobles gain a number of powers, including the ability to perform magic. However, most of their powers require them to go through the classic magical girl transformation sequence. After transforming, a Noble’s body will change to represent their idealized self and they will be wearing clothes and tools called Regalia. The idealized self can be quite different from your normal appearance and the game explicitly states that a transgender noble’s transformed appearance will match their gender identity. The transformed state also acts as a magical disguise. Even if a Noble looks identical pre- and post- transformation, you won’t be able to recognize the two forms as the same person unless the Noble tells you. A noble can only stay transformed temporarily before needing to change back and rest. Nobles get access to magic spells, most of which can only be used while transformed. Casting spells requires spending wisps, which are gained by inspiring happiness and goodness in others. In both forms, Nobles have a 6th sense which detects dark acts and thoughts. If someone is depressed or does something evil, every Noble in range will know about it. Given the state of the world, this 6th sense can become overwhelming and many Nobles will take trips to the Dreamlands to get some relief for a while. Nobles can also grant people some of their powers. These people are known as Sworn and many Nobles will grant powers to people they trust as allies or people they love as protection. Nobles are also often aided by Shikigami, inhabitants of the Drealands who inhabit small animals or toys to enter the real world and who act as mentors and advisors. Shikigami are good at tracking down potential Nobles and helping them Blossom, making them the magical girl mascot trope. 

Fighting the Darkness is not just about battling monsters. While every Noble will eventually have to do battle with soul-sucking horrors from the netherrealms, most of the fight isn’t about violence. Anything that causes negativity is a tool of the darkness and you can’t exactly kick poverty or discrimination in the face. However, just as any negative emotion or cruel act empowers the Darkness, any act of kindness or that sparks joy fights it. Each Noble has a particular specialty called their Calling that determines how they inspire hope and joy the best. The callings are:

Champions: the defenders of the weak. Champions are classic heroes who fight for justice and protect others. They gain wisps by standing up for others. Champions are the most combat-oriented of the Callings and are typically the ones who do the fighting when creatures of Darkness are about. Example Champions include a knight who charges out to face the monsters, an activist pushing to end poverty, the manager of a shelter for the homeless, or the kid who stands up to bullies. 

Graces: the messengers of hope. Graces prefer to guide others to the light through communication and support. Graces are skilled at social interaction and gain magic that lets them power up other people. They gain wisps by giving support and advice. Example Graces include a motivational speaker whose speeches are charmed with magic, a therapist who encourages patients to improve themselves, the person who always gives good advice, and the friend who is always ready to offer a shoulder to lean on. 

Menders: the healers of the wounded. Menders aid people who are suffering, be it physically, mentally, or supernaturally. Menders will give aid to anyone they can and will not engage in violence, except against creatures of Darkness. Their magic focuses on healing and supporting others. They gain wisps by helping people. Example Menders include a first responder for disasters, an emergency room doctor who will stop at nothing to heal patients, a counselor who helps people fight depression, and a hero who helps people reject the corruption of Darkness. 

Seekers: the scholars of the light. Seekers are defined by their curiosity and devotion to uncovering the truth. Lies and ignorance are tools of the Darkness and Seekers are here to uncover the truth. Their magic focuses on stealth and information gathering. They gain wisps by learning new things. Example Seekers include a bookworm who spends all their free time in the library, a spy who gathers intel on the Darkness’ activities, an archeologist who seeks out ancient artifacts of the Nobility, and a scientist who tries to reconcile the supernatural world with the scientific one. 

Troubadours: the muses of joy. Troubadours seek to inspire wonder and joy in other people through their works. Natural artists and storytellers, troubadours gain wisps by inspiring others. Their magic focuses on illusions and supporting others. Example Troubadours include a party animal who always has a story to tell, a children’s book author whose work always includes positive morals, a graffiti artist who leaves messages of hope around town, an inspiring speaker who encourages people to fight the Darkness, and a jokester who can always make people laugh. 

Noble society is centered around the courts. Each court is an alliance of like-minded Nobles led by a queen. Queens are immensely powerful and ancient Nobles who date back to before the imprisonment in the Dreamlands. There are 5 Radiant Courts and 3 Twilight Courts. A Noble’s Calling is innate to them and cannot be chanced, but membership in a court is optional and switching between them is accepted (by the Radiants anyway). Some people opt to remain courtless. Each court has a signature emotion or two that powers their unique magic. The Radiant Courts are:

The Court of Clubs practices a pseudo-Taoist philosophy of finding the balance where you can express your truest self while remaining in balance with the world. Accepting change and avoiding violence are part of this harmony. Don’t assume this means Clubs are helpless against attack. They aren’t allowed to start a fight, but they are allowed to finish it. Harmony with nature is also an important part of their beliefs and many Clubs prefer to live in the natural world and protect nature from the Darkness. Their emotions are harmony and tranquility.

The Court of Diamonds embraces enlightenment ideals and believes in the power of logic and reason to improve the world. They embrace modern science and technology and reject ignorance and misinformation as tools of the Darkness. Key among their teachings is that knowledge is to be shared freely with everyone, nor hoarded away or locked behind paywalls. They also reject the divide between the arts and sciences, seeing both as equally important. Diamonds tend to be excellent planners and strategists. Their emotions are curiosity and wonder.

The Court of Hearts is the one that takes the title of Nobility most seriously. They believe that the key to a better world is building and improving social institutions with them as the strong leaders. While Hearts view themselves as natural leaders, they also believe that authority is not owed, it is earned through the respect of others. They practice noblesse oblige, the philosophy that those in charge have a duty to improve the lives of their subjects and to be a wise and fair leader. The Hearts also take tradition seriously, believing that you must preserve the traditions that work and discard or improve those who do not. Their emotions are trust and duty.

The Court of Spades encourages creativity, going outside norms, and humor. Their skill is in questioning traditions and social institutions to find out what is valuable and what isn’t. Those institutions that cause harm are tools of the Darkness and should be dismantled. Above all, everyone needs some laughter in their life and so the Spades are great pranksters and jokesters. Many other courts stereotype the Spades as ineffective and annoying pranksters, but their skill at thinking outside the box can make them highly effective at finding new and unorthodox solutions to problems. Their emotion is humor. 

The Court of Swords believes in following your heart and doing everything with burning passion. Love is the most important emotion to them, and not just romantic love but all kinds. They follow a morality code that emphasizes that harming someone is always wrong and that you should strive to broaden your horizons and embrace your passions. Many Swords are classic heroes, striving out for the sake of goodness and willing to do anything to protect their loved ones. The Swords also trust their members to be able to act autonomously, though of course if you can work with others, you should at least consider it. Their emotion is love. 

While the Radiant Courts have only been active in the real world since 1969, the Twilight Courts have been active since the fall of the Kingdom. In order to survive the Darkness, they had to become darkened. While each Twilight Court is affected by the Darkness, they are still its enemies and do not serve it. Because they have been active for so much longer, the Twilight Courts have much greater populations than the Radiant Courts. If the Radiant Courts are the classic magical girls, the Twilight Courts are the dark magical girls. 

The Court of Tears survived the coming of the Darkness by fleeing into it. The Queen of Tears moved her city, Alhambra, into the Dark World and converted it into a hollow sphere, with the city on the inside. The city is lit by lamps that keep the Darkness out, but they are fueled by hope. Nobles of Tears are tasked with stealing hope from the real world to keep the lamps burning. Key to their beliefs is that the Darkness has already won and all they can do is keep their loved ones safe in Alhambra. Thus, they will do whatever they can to keep the lamps burning. Their mission is ultimately futile as they are helping the Darkness win and once it does, nothing will keep Alhambra safe. The Queen of Tears constantly weeps over the sacrifices she made and it is implied that if she ever realizes the self-defeating nature of her mission, she will fully fall into despair and become an agent of the Darkness. Their signature emotions are depression and resolve. 

The Court of Storms barely functions as a court anymore as their queen is not capable of leading anymore. To survive the Darkness, the Queen of Storms transformed herself into a living storm that rages within the Dark World, destroying all she touches. Nobles of Storms lash out against the Darkness in rage. They hate the Darkness and the state of the world and that hate leads them to do whatever they can to destroy it no matter who and what gets in the way. They believe that the world is already hopelessly corrupted and the only way out is to turn it to ashes and hope that whatever’s left is worth saving. Storms Nobles believe that when they die, their souls will merge with the storm that is the Queen and make it a bit bigger. Once enough of them die the Queen will grow enough to destroy the Darkness and rip the world apart. If there’s something left to rebuild after, that’s a nice bonus. Their emotions are rage and hate. 

The Court of Mirrors isn’t a court in any sense of the word. The Queen of Mirrors fled when the Darkness came. SInce then, she has appeared to newly-Blossomed Nobles and informed them that they are the True Heir to the Kingdom and destined to be the one who defeats the Darkness and saves the world. Given how many people she does this to, her approach seems to be that if she tries enough times, eventually she’ll find the right person. Nobles of Mirrors become utterly convinced that they are the heroes of the story. They are vain, narcissistic solipsists convinced the world revolves around them. Most other Nobles view the Mirrors as obnoxious brats, but a narcissist with magic powers can prove to be a formidable threat. The Mirrors are incapable of working together and tend to fight each other when they meet. There can only be one True Heir after all. Their emotions are selfishness and solipsism. 

The Darkness is a subtle and insidious force that operates wherever there is violence, hate, or misery. Places of sadness or where atrocities have been committed become tainted areas, where the influence of the Darkness is more pronounced. Tainted areas are more prone to violence, depression, and bigotry. The people who spend time there are also more likely to become Darkened. A Darkened person has the influence of the Darkness influencing their mind and body. It changes their sense of morality to encourage them to engage in immoral acts. Unlike other creatures of the Darkness, Darkened are redeemable. They can resist their malevolent urges and strive to be a good person. Nobles are charged with helping Darkened redeem themselves and can use magic to help purify their corruption. Darkened who are not redeemed turn into one of two types of monsters. The most common result is a Darkspawn. When a Darkened fully gives into the Darkness, they will die and their body (or part of it) will revive as a twisted monster. Darkspawn have no real intelligence, but there are an incredible variety of them and they are very dangerous. When a Darkened uses the Darkness to corrupt their minds rather than warp their bodies, they will become a Mnemosyne. These monsters still look human and remember their past lives. They are also highly intelligent, allowing them to command Darkspawn and scheme to spread the Darkness and corrupt other people. Another dark creature is a Cataphract, who are born from people who die in despair (often through suicide). They retain the memories of their human lives and will attempt to return to them, but are only capable of being twisted parodies of humanity. Probably the most feared creatures of Darkness are the Dethroned, Nobles who lost hope and turned to the Darkness. Dethroned usually spend their time wallowing in their own misery, only occasionally roused into action by other dark creatures. An active Dethroned is an enormous threat and even other dark creatures fear them. Even killing a Dethroned won’t save them as they will simply be reborn. There are only two ways to destroy one: utterly destroying their soul at the cost of your own, and taking their misery onto yourself and working through it, allowing the Dethroned to feel hope again before dying and being reincarnated. 

There are a few versions of the game, which can be downloaded here, along with supplements and fan content. There is a Discord server also linked on that page. You will need the Chronicles of Darkness core rules to play.

[clownsalot]

im very normal about fuuta in general but i dont think im ever going to emotionally recover from his fire motif and what it represents for his character and how he reflects the greater theme of justice so that means i must rant about it

(more under the cut because this got longer than i expected whoopsies)

so anyway fire is pretty obviously supposed to be symbolic of his passion for justice right? that fire is all over the place in bring it on. he's wielding it to take down enemies, his signature weapon is a flaming sword. it's what he uses to lead the campaign against the people he's after, the people he's deemed in the wrong.

it's a fucking flaming sword, it's badass as hell!!!! it's what a hero of justice, a knight, would use!!!! it's cool as shit, it's his symbol of justice.

that's how he sees his justice in trial 1.

he's righteous, he wants so badly to believe he was a hero, he was doing it all for a good cause, for justice. his passion for justice was a tool he used to meet those ends, to be a hero, to wave it valiantly in the face of enemies.

the fire, however, is conspicuously absent once he's noticed the blood on his hands

interestingly, despite backdraft as a song title being much more related to his fire motif than bring it on, fire is actually surprisingly absent from the mv's visuals. fire, as in actual orange burning fire, doesn't show up much at all in backdraft except for when both fuuta and his victim begin turning to ashes, and a short bit near the end right after the last chorus when the spraycan explodes in fuuta's face. you know what the mv does show a lot of though?

smoke. and ash. the byproducts of a fire, the byproducts of fuuta's passion for justice.

bringing it back to firefighting for a moment: as many people have already pointed out, backdraft as a firefighting term refers to when a fire that has consumed all available oxygen suddenly explodes when more oxygen is made available, such as when a window or door breaks. the thing about fire hazards, though, is if the fire and the heat don't do someone in, usually it's the smoke. the smoke inhalation causes breathing difficulties and suffocation, making it even more difficult for a person to escape the fire.

in backdraft, instead of fire itself, what we're shown is these byproducts of a fire. the smoke is damaging to human health, and the ash shows that the fire has burned things up and caused destruction, in this case killing someone. all we're shown is the negative results of a fire, in sharp contrast to its badass, positive portrayal in bring it on.

hell, even fuuta himself starts turning to ashes and the spraycan explodes in his face, showing how even he is experiencing the negative results of a fire that has gotten out of his control, how even he has gotten burned by his passion for justice. or, is it es' desire for justice?

translation of fuuta's t2 vd by onigiriico

Me, too! I was like that, too! I also didn't think it'd turn out that way!

You and I are exactly the same breed! The only difference between us is the clothes we're wearing.

fuuta's justice and es' justice, it's all the same in his head now, he directly tells es that they're the same, that we're the same. it's all the same hunger for justice that ends up causing harm even if that wasn't the intention.

you know that saying that fire is a good servant but a bad master? i think that's pretty applicable to fuuta's situation. his passion for the pursuit of justice was great when it was still a tool, a sword he could wield, after all he did manage to shed light on some people's wrongs and bring them to justice. but once it exploded, when it became a backdraft that even he could no longer control, it did more damage than he intended.

it burned even him, it killed a middle schooler. and he recognizes that in backdraft. he only shows us the ways fire that becomes a hazard can go wrong.

translation of fuuta's t2 vd by onigiriico

What did I do? All I did was say that what's wrong is wrong! I was just going off at a bad person online!

I didn't think they would die! I just thought that wrong things are wrong, and that a crime is a crime! You get that, don't you? See? Aren't we the same?

it's just. fire is such a good metaphor for the message of fuuta's character and his arc. it's an amazing illustration of how dangerous it is when you feed a desire for justice too much, when you forget to put a boundary on how you handle that fire. eventually the fire spreads just like how passion for justice becomes zealotry, until more and more things fall under what you consider to be 'punishable' by your standards and goes out of control to hurt people that probably didn't deserve it. it's a warning to set proper boundaries on our own definition and desire for justice and what's 'right' so the good intentions doesn't spiral into harm. it's a reflection of our attitudes towards milgram as the audience responsible for their justice and forgiveness. it's amazing i love it i love fuuta's fire symbolism i love fuuta's character arc and i love milgram's writing so so so much

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dean Obeidallah for CNN:

“America may soon be subjected to the country’s first DEI president: Kamala Harris,” screamed the headline of an op-ed in The New York Post on Saturday penned by Fox Business senior correspondent Charles Gasparino. The longtime media figure began his article by slamming Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs as “literally destroying businesses.” Gasparino then took aim at the vice president, writing that “the American public may soon be subjected to DEI writ large in the next president of the United States, if Kamala Harris finds her way to the top of the Democratic ticket.” Gasparino’s suggestion that Harris only got to where she is because of diversity programs — not because she earned it — is despicable. It reeks of the white supremacist myth that people of color are inherently inferior to white people and, therefore, we achieve success and positions of influence not on the merits, but only with the help of a diversity program. (I once was called a “quota hire” years ago on social media by a Fox News frequent guest because at the time I was the first Muslim hired to host a national radio show.)

Gasparino’s use of “DEI hire” apparently to demean the achievements of a person of color is far from the first time we’ve seen this. In fact, just last week, GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado took a page from this same vile playbook in a social media post attacking White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. Boebert — who in the past suggested that Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who is Muslim, was a terrorist — was apparently upset with Jean-Pierre’s comments about Biden’s workday being many hours longer than she believed to be true, so she smeared her as a “discredited DEI hire.” Earlier this year, the same DEI-as-insult line was used to attack the Black mayor of Baltimore, Brandon Scott, after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. Scott responded to the smears by stating, “We know what these folks really want to say when they say ‘DEI mayor’.” He added bluntly, “They really want to say the N-word.” The mayor later gloriously trolled the bigots, telling MSNBC that the acronym “DEI” actually stands for “duly-elected incumbent.”

[...] There’s no hiding what’s intended with these types of attacks. In fact, Gasparino was not shy on this point, writing Harris was only picked by Biden as his running mate in 2020 because as a Black woman she “checked all the boxes.” Never mind the fact that Harris had been a public servant for more than 16 years at the time: first as an elected district attorney of San Francisco, and later as the elected attorney general for the state of California, where she oversaw the largest state justice department in the country. In that office, she successfully secured billions of dollars in damages from unscrupulous businesses that had preyed on Californians. Nor does it matter to her detractors that Harris was then elected to the US Senate in 2016, where she made a name for herself with her service on the Judiciary and Intelligence committees. Nope, Gasparino apparently attributes her many achievements to her being given preferential treatment because of her race and gender. He predicted that if President Joe Biden ends up remaining on the 2024 ticket and wins, it’s unlikely he would physically be able to serve four years. The result, he says, is that “Harris becomes the nation’s first DEI president by default.” Of course, none of what Gasparino said was written in a vacuum. It’s in keeping with efforts by Republicans to try to discredit both the achievements by people of color as well as efforts to address our nation’s past acts of racism and racial discrimination. That’s been evident for months, as GOP-led legislatures rush to enact laws restricting and even outlawing DEI programs in education, state government, contracting, pension investments and other aspects of civic life.

Dean Obeidallah wrote on CNN’s website calling out the racist attack of labeling Vice President Kamala Harris a “DEI hire” by Fox Business reporter and New York Post contributor Charles Gasparino. The “DEI hire” line said by right-wingers like Gasparino is nothing more than vile racism.

[lunarlegend]

i promise i will shut up (eventually), but i also do want to elaborate on something from earlier:

abuse and neglect are two different things that can happen alone or at the same time, and both often lead to trauma. but they are not the same.

i think Ignis suffered severe emotional neglect due to his childhood (or lack thereof). he has had a job since he was six years old, and would have begun training for it even before that. he was not raised with his biological parents, and did not get the love and attention he deserved while he was growing up.

and i do believe he is traumatized from this.

i believe Ignis' lack of personal hobbies, his inability to function if he's not being "useful", and his stubbornness around accepting help all stem from this trauma. i also believe Ignis' natural tendency to act as a mother figure to Noctis is because Ignis himself didn't have a mother figure in his life. and, i believe Ignis' rash and unfortunate decision to use the Ring was a result of him being conditioned to always put Noctis first and to sacrifice himself.

what happened to Ignis breaks my heart. it was unfair, and should not have been allowed within modern society, tradition or not. i do not condone the actions of his parents, nor do i condone the actions of the monarchy for expecting them to give up their son.

but Ignis was not abused.

there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that Ignis was ever mistreated under Regis' care, by anyone. he also was not forcibly trained into his role in the finalized version of FFXV. all canon sources state that Ignis is like a family member to Noctis, and that Regis intended for Ignis to be Noct's older brother, not merely a servant.

additionally, Ignis himself does not act like an abuse victim (which i fully understand is highly variable, but nothing in his actions or mannerisms suggests he is afraid of anything or that he is overly-protective of himself. he has no known triggers or involuntary reactions to anything, either).

basically, i do not appreciate the implication that Ignis must have suffered purposeful cruelty during his upbringing. it simply did not happen. he is a victim of circumstance, just like Noctis, just like Gladio. he was doomed into his role just by being born into his family. hell, his uncle is also a retainer who works at the Citadel.

no one hand-picked Ignis and decided to torture him into being Noct's caretaker. he's a Scientia. that's what they do. Ignis just went above and beyond, perhaps a little too much, and almost certainly would have developed a better sense of self-preservation had his parents been there.

emotional neglect, not abuse.

[daemon-in-my-head]

I DID IT! FLUFF! NOT A DRILL! OK well obviously me being me there's the trademark sliver of angst but, yk, it's brushed aside quick(er than usual). No, despite the name, it is NOT horny. Though Gortash has some thoughts because of course that fucker does. I have no hand left in their characterisation, they're doing it themselves atp. I'm fucking innocent I swear on Gortash's most personal dreams.

Synopsis: Perhaps childcare wasn't as easy as Enver Gortash always considered it. Seeing how the ruthless tyrant now sat defeated and adorned in all sorts of finery before the little girl. The very girl he so smugly proclaimed tending to would be easily doable hours prior.

2,069 words, non-descriptive mentions of violence, big fluff. Read here or on Ao3.

Child's play

"I want to play," The little girl exclaimed loudly as her hands found their way onto the makeshift desk Gortash had created from the ornamental outdoor furniture. She was bravely demanding the city's tyrant's attention, which had been solely intended for the documents before him, all for herself.

"So? You have plenty of toys. Go and play with them." The Archduke didn't even bother looking up, or rather down, at the girl.

Seeing how his dearest companion had been working himself to the bone lately, caring for his day-to-day work in the temple and keeping his daughter safe and entertained, the Archduke had ever so graciously offered to look after her for a day, all so that his dearest Bhaalspawn may rest, and perhaps, if he was fortunate enough, wouldn't reject any advance to as much as a conversation with his usual saying he'd be too tired or that he'd still have some work he needed to tend to.

After all, Gortash thought, money for a nanny had been no issue and considering all his feats so far, caring for a child for a day should be easily accomplished. A worthwhile tradeoff for the rewards the proud lord promised himself. At least in theory. But the little girl had thrown an extraordinary tantrum when he had attempted to leave her with the nanny and loudly demanded to accompany him today, resulting in the never-resting tyrant setting up a temporary office in his companion's garden, all while the girl entertained herself either watching him or playing around with a plethora of toys her father must've obtained for her. Until just a moment ago, that was.

"They're boring," The girl pouted, clearly displeased about his straightforward dismissal of her. "I want to have a party."

Ever Gortash sighed, "we can't simply host a party just because you're bored of your toys, Neala. And certainly not with a hostess that barely reaches up to her guest's hips."

"But Papa always does when I ask him to?" She seemingly couldn't comprehend just how absurd her request had been.

Intrigued by the utter confusion displayed on the little girl's face, he questioned further, finally setting down the quill and facing the girl, now standing next to him, "how exactly do these parties your father holds for you look like?"

"Well," the girl began, her confusion quickly changing into delight, "Papa and Lief sit down, and we talk, and Papa listens and calls me 'Lady'. Oh, we also have tea! Mama used to help me with that but-" the girls expression darkened as she recalled her mother.

The tyrant knew that she still missed her immensely. It had become a reoccurring topic whenever he and his companion managed to find time to sit down and talk, and while he didn't usually care for sentimentality like this, considering his own circumstance, making Fine's daughter cry, even by accident, would certainly not work in his favour.

"Fine," he forced his lips to curl into a crooked smile, "let's have a party then. Tell the servants what you need. They'll help you prepare."

Not even waiting for him to finish his sentence, the girl had already run off towards the garden's entrance.

Whatever she had described was, after all, not a party but simple child's play, entertainment for the mansion's little princess, provided to her by her beloved parents. Though, the proud lord had to admit, even if it wasn't a proper gathering, the idea in and of itself was quite brilliant, playfully teaching the girl what would be expected of her once she came of age. Especially considering she was the offspring of two rather infamous 'families', being a proper hostess and perhaps handling things such as beverages by herself were skills that would undoubtedly be useful to her in the future. Then again, the more he played with the thought, the less sure of whose idea it must've been he became. Both her parents were undoubtedly ruthless enough to make sure she would be well-equipped to use anything she could to her advantage, but on the other hand, at least her father seemed to treasure her dearly and continuously gave his best efforts to keep her as far away and more importantly as unaware as possible of his usually grim businesses.

Perhaps it was indeed her late mother's idea? It would make sense, he thought. She had been a noble drow, and her kind was primarily known for their handiness when it came to poisonings and other cruelties. A woman like that playfully teaching her child from a young age how to host gatherings and, more importantly, how to add unique ingredients to a tea was something he could terrifyingly easily imagine. Perhaps it would be better to refrain from touching any teacups the girl would handle.

The Gates Archduke making headlines because a child managed to somehow temper with his drink would certainly diminish his reputation. Although, perhaps if he framed it the right way, it may yet serve as a way to garner even more support. But then again, challenging the Bhaalspawn for his daughter's sake would work against his most personal goals. A sigh escaped the man as he was weighing the options in his mind. It seemed as though caring for a child was, in fact, not so as easy as he had imagined previously, seeing the conundrum he now found himself face to face with.

"Here," the girl's voice finally tore his chain of thought apart, forcing Gortash to return to the present once more.

"And whatever might this be?" His Eyebrows furrowed as he observed the bundle of fabric stretched out towards him before he shifted his gaze to look upon the girl again.

"Clothes," Neala was equally confused, seemingly not grasping why he would question something so obvious.

"I can see that, Neala. But why have you brought them here?" The tyrant swallowed his sigh. How much he missed conversing with those who understood his words for what they were.

"People dress up for parties, do they not?" She hurriedly placed the bundle on the makeshift desk, disregarding the parchment beneath. Like father like daughter. As soon as she did, a seemingly exquisite hat, alongside a plethora of other accessories, revealed itself.

"Here," she said yet again, this time holding the aforementioned hat adorned with silky fabric towards the grumbling man.

"If you need help putting it on, you should ask the servants. They're more experienced with these things." He gestured towards the garden's entrance where a maid had been stationed, ready to heed her master's every beck and call.

The girl beamed as she proudly retorted, "it's not for me. I got it specifically for you!"

Gortash couldn't believe what he had heard. This big, tedious, carefully decorated hat before him was one of the things the ladies of high society would adorn themselves with whenever they left their comfortable estates. It was certainly not something he would, or should, ever consider wearing. "You're trying to make a fool of me, are you not, little one?"

The girl, however, perhaps fortunately not picking up on either the slight hint of malice or the true meaning of his words, simply continued to beam at him as she responded, "you need to dress up prettily for parties, and this is the pretties one I have."

"I appreciate your consideration, but I'm afraid I can't wear that." He spoke through gritted teeth. Even in a private garden, an Archduke couldn't stoop so low.

"But you have to. It's no party otherwise." The girl insisted.

"Why, you little-" he tried his best to keep his voice low, low enough so that the girl wouldn't hear his cursing, but his efforts were in vain.

"I'll tell on you to Papa." She smirked as she cut him off. The little devil certainly knew what she was doing, he thought.

But before the tyrant could consider his next excuse, another familiar voice rang through the garden. "Oh? What are you going to tell me?"

A white-haired man emerged from the grand doors marking the garden's entrance behind them, promptly causing the girl to drop the things she had been holding onto and rush towards him, only to be picked up and nestled within his arms in one swell motion, sealing Gortash's fate for good.

"Papa! Your back!" She wrapped her arms around the man, obviously overjoyed about his arrival.

"So? What were you talking about that you couldn't help but share?" He was looking at the somewhat defeated-looking lord before him, but the answer he sought came from the girl in his arms.

"We wanted to hold a party!" Neala was still giddy with excitement as she spoke.

Fine shifted his gaze towards his daughter before questioning her further, seemingly knowing what must've transpired while he was gone with just a glance at the two of them. "And he really agreed to go along with what you proposed?"

The girl's excitement died down a little as she appeared caught in her mischievousness. He could guess that she omitted some 'minor' aspects of her proposal, which had led to whatever situation he had barged in on. But before she could receive the imminent scolding, the person who may yet change her fate interjected himself into the conversation again.

"I did." He cleared his throat and promptly continued, leaving no room for any more questions, "in fact, we were just picking out some fancy clothes, weren't we?" Gortash forced a smile. He disliked it, but he'd rather voluntarily discard his pride than be saved by the very person whom he had promised a day of rest. "Now, shall we return to what we were doing?"

The Bhaalspawn raised his brows in surprise but soon enough let go of the girl and allowed her to return to her party planning. As soon as she was freed, she held out the hat towards the grumbling tyrant again.

"Thank you." A brusque reply before he took the fabric of nightmares and placed it on his painstakingly coiffed hair.

"Here," Neala's usual smile had returned as she approached her father, an exquisitely crafted brooch clasped in her hands.

"Am I invited as well?" The man responded with a similar smile. He seemed genuinely happy about this unforeseen development. Perhaps burying one's pride once every so often wasn't too bad, Gortash thought.

"Yes," the girl exclaimed happily. "You'll be the lord, and Uncle Enver will be the lady. And I'll be the gracious hostess!" The tyrant swallowed. Never mind his previous statement. This, most definitely, was hell on earth. The little girl must be a fiend skilled at hiding her undoubtedly existing horns. And that nickname she had conjured up, oh how much he wished he could just curse out loud.

Trying his best to suppress the laughter threatening to break free, Fine made his way over to Gortash, extending an arm as soon as he reached him. "My lady? Shall we head to a more suitable location?"

Biting his lip, still trying his hardest to swallow the laughter, Fine nodded towards the pavilion where the servants had already set the table with a delicate porcelain tea set. The place the child had already dashed off to.

Gortash sighed before taking the hand extended towards him. This father-daughter pair may yet be the death of him, but for now, he'd simply try to delight in the few short moments of undisturbed time together their way would allow them.

And sure enough, after arriving at the furniture set decorated for them, the blissful moments soon disappeared. Their little hostess made sure to torment him for what seemed like hours, chattering away and engaging the adults in conversation about made up circumstance and her little fantasies, all while serving what could only be called discoloured water and endlessly swooning over the beautiful hat the 'lady' had been wearing. Gortash may have had his fair share of dealings with devils, but all of them could still learn a thing or two from the little hellspawn hopping around cheerfully around them.

Still, while Gortash yet refused to admit his defeat for a while longer, it didn't take too long for him to finally surrender to the little demon before him. Perhaps due to the ashen hand holding his own and the quietly mouthed 'thank you' from the man beside him, in the end, and after enough time had passed being held onto like this, even the tyrant's smile seemed to come naturally to him.

[coochiequeens]

All at once now ladies "But this never happens"

By Natasha Biase March 22, 2024

Spain’s Minister of Family, Youth, and Social Affairs in Madrid is raising alarm bells after locating multiple cases in which men convicted of domestic violence changed their legal gender identity. In a letter issued to the Minister of Equality, Ana Dávila-Ponce de León Municio detailed her concerns that the safety of female victims of violence was at risk due to Spain’s “progressive” approach towards gender identity.

In her letter, issued March 18, Minister Dávila-Ponce de León noted that she had become aware of six cases in the autonomous region of Madrid where men charged with violence against women had changed their legal gender identity — a process that was streamlined and made significantly easier following the enactment of Spain’s “Trans Law” in 2023.

In addition to updating their registered sex, three of the men made requests to stay in women’s shelters with the wives and children who had been escaping from them. So far, concerned staff at the shelters have blocked their access but may be violating the nation’s gender discrimination laws as a result.

The letter sent by Minister Dávila-Ponce de León to Minister Redondo Garcia.

But perhaps most disturbingly, an abuser changing his legal sex has a tremendous impact on the resources the victims are able to access. In one of the cases recently highlighted by El Mundo, a female victim of sexual assault was stripped of the special protection provided for victims of physical and sexual abuse because officials told her that her aggressor, who drugged and raped her in front of her young daughter, “was no longer registered as a man, but as a woman.”

In Spain, special gender-based violence charges exist, providing female victims of male violence specific protections and resolutions which can impact divorce or separation proceedings, custody, and other important factors. Victims of gender-based violence can also access special protections intended to ensure they are safe from their male abuser.

Because a female cannot be convicted of gender-based violence, male abusers who change their legal sex can avoid this charge and deny their female victims of those legal protections.

As previously reported by Reduxx, a man in Spain who abused his female partner for opposing his gender transition avoided charges of gender-based violence by legally changing his identification to “female” and adopting a woman’s name. As a result, his victim was unable to obtain a specific protection order for intimate partner violence which would typically result in the male abuser being removed from the home to minimize the financial impact to the woman at a time where they are most vulnerable.

Despite only one year passing since the Trans Law was enacted by Spanish parliament, making it easier for people to “self-identify” their gender on their legal documents, several cases have emerged involving men using the law to receive financial, social, or legal benefits. The phenomenon is now being referred to as “trans fraud.”

Earlier this month, Reduxx reported that dozens of male civil servants in one small Spanish community changed their gender identity reportedly just to get benefits allocated for females. Among them was Roberto Perdigones, a 35-year-old Army corporal, who boasted of changing his legal sex to “female” after deciding he identified as an “intersex bigender” person.

From that moment on, he began to enjoy the benefits: the day he got his new ID card, he showed up at the barracks with earrings, long hair and a beard, now able to disregard mandatory dress code regulations without repercussions.

But the benefits are not limited to aesthetic issues, with Perdigones also now qualifying for a mother’s pension as he is a “woman” with a child.

“By changing my sex, as I have been informed, my pension has gone up. Because women receive more in retirement pensions to compensate for the inequality. In addition, I get 15% more because I have a child,” he boasted.

“I even have a private room in the barracks, all to myself, with a private bathroom. Because, being a woman, I can’t be with the men, and I didn’t consider it appropriate to be with the biological women out of respect for them. I’ve had the room to myself since the sex change.”

Perdigones also intends to seek a promotion and will be utilizing the so-called “affirmative action measures” designed to increase female presence in the Armed Forces command.

As Perdigones is approaching the mandatory age of retirement for temporary soldiers, obtaining a permanent position would be beneficial for him. Perdigones will be applying as a “woman,” since the physical tests are less demanding and because certain positions are seeking more female representation.

[popculturebuffet]

Sam and Max Devil's Playhouse Retrospective: They Stole Max's Brain! (Patroen Review for WeirdKev27)

Hello all you happy Lagomorphs and those asking what the hell's a lagomorph, it's time once again to return to the yawning horrifying void of fun that is Sam and Max: The Devil's Playhouse. I realized after finishing this chapter that.. it's almost over. This isn't the end for me covering sam and max: I intend to find some way to play the road at some point, there's plenty of the show and comics left.. but it's still the end of a project that's spanned two years, and even when not reviewing Sam and Max for the bulk of this year, I still was checking feverishly to see WHEN I could. I'm really going to miss these games, their characters and the not so ambigously gay duo themselves.

Still before we get to the thrilling conclusion we still have three terrifying chapters left, two of which i'll cover next month thanks to scheduling stuff, and this one.

They Stole Max's Brain is a weird one gameplay wise. Story wise Sam going on a noir rampage, teaming up with an ancient egyptian pharoah to defeat a psychic space gorilla and an immortal servant of an elder god , and then Max having to find some way to save reality from said pharoah warping it to his mad designs by breaking the law and stabbing a child in the brain.. is a pretty normal day for the freelance police.

It's setup continues Devil Playhouse's experimentation though as each of it's three acts, with the natural closed in climactic set piece, switches up the formula. The first has you as a vengeful sam who rather than gather items and stuff violently threatens, pummels and cliches his way through things, the second is almost buisness as usual but feels distinctly off as it's not max in max's body, and the final act, while having sam stil be the one who grabs stuff as max is down a body, has Max as our main POV character this time instead of a wise cracking sidekick, eating machine and psychic plot device.

The result is a decent chapter if the weakest so far. It's long and unlike the previous two chapters a LOT of hte puzzles are more obstuse. I mean you try figuring out you need to have max become a stormcloud so an old man can't kneel and gets taken away for treason. Thankfully as always a guide was useful here, and the writing is sharp as eve rwith only the third act dragging a bit. I"ll explain why when we get there but for now we turn the curtain to find out whose the they in THEY STOLE MAX'S BRAIN!

Act 1: Sampage

We continue devil's playhouse's tradition of picking up where we left off. In this case Sam finds Max's body sans brain and snaps. Regular Sam is taking this part of the chapter off... meet Noir Sam.

On paper i'ts just sam in a blind rage without a hat or jacket. In practice.. Noir Sam is TERRIFYING. Not kidding, not joking, this version of Sam creeps me out. It's unsettling seeing easily one of the nicest characters in this franchise, not a high bar but eh, a guy who while certainly having violent tendencies and doing some questoinable things is ulatimely a decentt person in a violent rage where all he can do, and you the player can have him do is yell, threaten or press people. It works on Flint Paper, a noir parody who in the past taught Sam how to be a hardboiled no good, because Flint while ultra violent has Sam's affablility. But Sam in this state is just agressive, his face in a snarl and the targets of his wrath either innocent people who simply slipped up, or low rent hoods. You spend close to an hour trapped with a sam who is on a vengeful rampage, a sampage if you will, rather than the chill if mildly unstable dog we all know and love. He's baring his teeth, he's angry in his delivery and the only real levity is from his supsects and his rambling noir monologues you can optionally do.

It is great character stuff as this chapter shows WHY the two need each other. It's not as simple as "they keep each other from burning the world down". It is however as simple.. as Max makes Sam happy. Sam has to likely constantly pay for bail and keep gasoline far from the office, but it's clear he geninely enjoys bantering with his common law husband: the adventure, the violence, the joys. It's just not as fun without someone to share it with. And as this show sam without any joy in his life.. is just a hyperfocused monster who will gladly point a gun at ANYONE who he's supscious of, beat them up if possible and genuinely scares people. At his lowest he points his gun at Carol who has done nothing wrong to anyone. She's just working a tad slow because old computer. It lifts up the hat to show beneath the joy Sam without max is just a sad broken man who will destroy anything it takes to get max back. And given where this story is going... it makes what's going to happen that much worse.

So noir sam interogates a few perps: first are the mole cultists who between chapters I honestly forgot were literally in the next room this whole time. They were gassed though sam finds out one did see it he was just afraid. He gives sam the rhinoplasty toy as an apology and reveals, shockingly early, who done did it: General Skunkape. He somehow escaped the Penal zone and is back for revenge.

So Sam continues his Sampage beating up three diffrent crooks and this section playing blind can get repittive as it asks you to just. .use every dialouge wheel until you get everything and unlike usual where you get a LOT of good jokes to make that fun here Sam's just beating up people. It's not bad at first as the sheer shock of seeing sam this terrifying coupled with the few jokes here are work but after a while the going back and forth and trying to find just the righ tanswer gets tiring. Thankfully by that point you'l lhave got it so i'ts not horrible , just not really for me.

The three suspects are

Skunkape's Minon: one of his minons who now works as a sign spinner and is trying to turn straight. He saw Skunkape but lies about it, but swears he's off the serving him... he just left it out because old times sake. He gives you some evidence.

Frankie the Rat: Who with a tourist saw the fight and is introduced.. just now. Why Jimmy didn't come back from his vacation for this role is beyond me. I suspect they wrote Jimmy out.. then realized they needed a weasly character and just reused the rat model. Frankie was scammin g a tourist, sending him down a crime ridden alleyway when they both saw a fight betwen Skunkape and a weird man in a suit. Who could it be now?

The Tourist: Finally we have a european tourist who just seems confused and is a hoot to watch> he stole a souvineer he tearfully gives back but is otherwise a nice guy

With these and one of the most horrible acts he's ever done, which given we sent a child to hell last game really says a lot, Sam gets all he needs to get to the museum. Good news he finds max, meaning he drops the noir stuff before my heart gives out.

Bad news... Max is being used by Skunkape to draw all the toys of power to the museum... and he's not alone. As it turns out the suited gentleman is the museum's curator and our big bad from last time Monsieur Paperwhite! While I didn't know he returned this chapter, and it was a plesant suprise, it was still nice to see him. And to make matters worse the two hate sam: Skukape for obvious reasons and Paperwhite for what his ancesotr did: so they come to an agreement: Skunkape gets the galaxy, Paperwhite gets the world and both send Sam running away.

Max now ab rain in a jar with a REALLY neat looking display of his mouth.

It looks really neat adn the broth was recollered green for the remaster. That last part isn't super important but it looks REALLY cool.

Paperwhite is alive.. somehow. HOw isn't really explained and seems like it will be later if at all, and consolidated power building a museum to yog sogoth while he waited.

Act 2: Night at the Museum

So now we need ot sever this alliance on the outside. Problem is Sam is just (counts) one man and has more problems when he meets the museum's janitor SAL. Sal.. is great, having a voice that reminds me a lot of patrick warburton, down to the casula demenaor, being happy to see sam, only wanting Max's corpse removed because it's his job, and generally chill. He's also indeed the sam Sal Girl Stinky shouted at for all of Beyond Time and Space. He's also a giant roach and I loves him. He's the best.

Thankfully the exibit has a free brain handy, the preserved brain of Sammun Mak, the pharoah whose tomb Sameth and Maximus raided, and turns out to be a tyrannical little boys who talks fondly of his slaves suffering, of murdering people and generally really isn't THAT far off from max. His voice is weird coming out of max but the dynamic is similar enough to the usual, if still keeping me off ballance: it's very weird to hear someone else make the punchilnes sam would and to hear max's body calling sam a pesant.

Our hero and guest drop into Paperwhite's office via the courtsey phone and spy him talking to a mysterious master, a "Professor Norrington". I know who it is and the clues are obvious, but i'm still curious WHY he's here and how he and Paperwhite escaped the toybox.

For now the main goal is to end this union and there's two tasks to do that. You can do them in either order and the first.. is a bit complex and i'm not sure I woudl've gotten it on my own. One of Skunkapes hired goons

Is blocking the entrance so we need to get him and sal to fight each other. Thankfully we can now finally use the putty after being built up for two episodes, and the use, while obtuse is very clever: you turn sammun mak into a model of new york using plans on paperwhites desk. Then using a mdoel of the future, i..e. yog sogoth kiling everybody, you turn it, and have the gorilla attack the city.. well mostly Sammun Mak pisses the gorilla off enough to shoot. Then it's a smiple matter of using a tourguide headset to get sal to poke a monkey in the eyes.

Paperwhite is pissed at this, and that gives us another opening as rather than the usual three, it only takes two actions to push him over. This one is also thankfully way simiplier and way more fun. Using th eputty on a zeplin painting Sammun Mak becomes a zeplin and begins a trend of the rhinoplasty forms having max's face on them. Sortta like a ditto. It's adorable and looks fantastic. It also means we can blow Sammun Mak up real good to destroy a tapestry papperwhite likes, framing the ape for it and exploding these mega powers.

Unforuntely... Sam made a huge tactical error. He made an uneasy alliance with a power mad child and didn't think to you know.. tie him up or something. I mean all the talk of murder, petty revenge, slave whippings you'd think it'd sink it but no: So Sammun Mak takes the toys for himself and thus ALL OF THE POWER MUHAHAHAHAHAHA and Sam only thinks to run.. after it's already too late, disappearing in a flash of white

Act 3: Worship Like an Egyptian

So the good news: that white flash wasn't the anti monitor destroying the unvierse. Bad news, it was Sammun Mak recreating it in his own image. Max wakes up in a new reality where everything is ancient eygypt themed, everyone worships Sammun Mak and Max never had a body. Everything else.. is the same to the point Sam recalls the chapter so far.. but then gets dizzy. Shoddy worldbuilding there Sammun Mak.

And this is our final twist on the formula: While Sam and Max have always been a team supreme, i'ts Sam usually doing most of the legwork while Max makes funny jokes and plots to burn it , burn it all. Max is never UNIMPORTANT and it's never treated like their anything else but equals, but in terms of gameplay focus we're playing Sam most of the time even with the toys of power addition. Sam is our pov character, our self insert, our guide into this strange world... and in this chapter.. he' sa brainwashed puppet of the state whose drunk all the kool aid and who Max has to hide his true intentions from. He's not an antagonist and he's unknowingly working towards our goal but h'es not the one driving the plot or making the plans like Sam tends to. Max is. Max is forced to figure out how the hell to right this world and I love how he's not happy about it. He does well but it's very clear even he thinks him being in charage of the thinking means he's screwed.

And he would be.. but thankfully he's not the only one who remembers the world that was. Doctor Norrington contacts Max, who writes it off as psychic stuff and has a plan: meet with the rebels against Sammun Mak, get the brain screw, an ancient egyptian brain removal thing we saw in the museum earlier, from them and get close enough to sammun mak they can use it.

Finding the rebels is easy: simply go down to the sewers and boom. They are a random moleman who might be harry.. and to my shock and suprise, the mole teenage girl from the last chapter, now a wise elder. I also like how Max distracts sam by just.. having him pray to sammun mak, so we get all the dialouge. The moles are prosecuted as like max they were immune to the reality change. Likely due to their magic or something. Max isn't explained but I assume it's either his previous natural mind control resitance or more likely given it also worked on Sam who still would have his hat, it's the fact all the maxs of the multiverse are linked up mentally. With that kind of backup his brain just can't be changed. or it's a toys of power thing. Honestly we get no explination but ther'es enough sitting there that you never question which one it has to be. Max's mind is messed up enough for anything to be the reason. it might just be he was thinking of roast ham. We'll neve rknow

What we do know is to actually TALK to Sammun Mak via his advisor Paperwhite, we need three accesories of privlage. Paperwhite is keeping a horrifying orwellion watch on the populus which means those who toady well enough get a shiny badge to show off how cool they are.

It also requires at times futzing with how fickle this kid is: an endearing thing about Sammun Mak is , as a hyperactive child, not helped by max's naturally hyperactive body, it's easy to switch what he thinks is good and bad. As such by using the laser lights of the museum's plantiarum, his current base, you can make him want something and acept it as his faviorite gift, and by having max transform into something and knock over his pyramid of corn dogs, you can get him to hate it. Also sammun mak really likes corn dogs and has the Stinky's endlessly working to provide him with some.

So to get these badges we need to ruin some lives. No matter how much reality changes there are just some constants to being in the freelance police you know? So first we need to sell out grnadpa stinky. This is the thundercloud puzzle I mentioned and while thundercloud max is the best and we need all the plusheies of him stat, this puzzle makes no sense. Thankfully it's target is grandpa stinky who while entertaining is so smug about his new badge and so unplesant selling him out dosen't feel bad. That and this being grandpa stinky nothing can kill him so I don't think sending him to prison is going to harm him. WIth that we get the calling out the hertic badge. Sadly we can't do this to girl stinky whose worse and also plans to date the chil demperoror when eh's old enough. Because apparently selling out the earth wasn't enough Stinky had to find a new way to be awful. Why she choose child grooming I have no idea.

The second requires little life ruining, just turning max into a toaster, having him destroy the corn dogs, then making toasters the greatest thing since the toaster company paid for a laser add back in the 90's. We simply give Max as a gift, he comes back somehow and asks us not to think about it and simple.

Finally we need the inquistion badge.. which I missed the explination on but since i'ts something bad the way to get it is off the rat, whose gambling with his cousins. The solution here is fun and thankfully brings back the future vision: their betting on gladiator fights, aka Sammunmak throwing molemen at Skunkape for his amusement, and since the outcomes predetermined to end in a pile of mole guts, they bet on his finisher instead, a clever way to bet on pro wrestling honestly. You simply have to think through the options, and pick the one none of the rats brings up angrily, and boom, you've ruined a man's life and gotten his shiny thing.

Before we close this act and this chapter I will say.. this act is the weakest of the three: Noir sam got annoying by the end, but is still a fun change of pace and it's shocking how terrifying they made sam, while still having JUST enough jokes. It got too grim at parts, but it's not too long. The middle section is fun, quick and breezy. This one.. drags out a bit and Sam being a toady for sammun mak gets old fast. Like Max you get tired of everyone saying hail sammun mak. This chapter drags way more than the last two, not helped by me being on a tight deadline on top of how dry it felt int he last act. it's one of the weaker chapters of the trilogy as a whole. It would've been better if it were JUST the first two acts and they extended the museum a bit, but they likely wanted it to match the other two chapters in length.

Still the finale is good at least. Sam does get close enough.. but the rebellion and max didn't think through the plan. Which for Max.. is fair. This usually isn't his bit. He gives cryptic hints, makes jokes, makes threats, gouges out eyes. He's not the planning one in this duo. The molepeople not thinking "gee maybe we should restrain sam" is on them. Sam stops the assination.. but refuses to kill the mole woman for it either. It's a fantastic moment and a nice contrast to the beginning: sam can go to low places when either blind with rage or brainwashed properly... but he won't kill an innocent person. Send a child to hell to solve a puzzle sure, but not kill an elderly person with a brain screw. He has some morals.

So he gets thrown in the fightin pit, where you have to ues Max's toys to get the put downs. Then simply put them in the right sequence, myf aviorite being the same one that you pick up from the future: Impliying paperwhite broke up with him. This distracts him enough to land on the mole cage, who grab himn and allow sam to beat him

Unfortuantely Sammun Mak isn't easily pleased and isnt' above floating in to finish this and Sam is still too indocrinated to fight back. The solution.. is incredibly clever and while I read it in the guide, unlike a lot of puzzles in this one it's INCREDIBLY well foreshadowed. In EVERY conversation you can give out the sammun mak's regular cheer in prayer or bow. So we have sam boy.. then give the salute.. still holdling the brain screw. Sammunmak is beat, and reality is restored. I love Sam's blaise reaction to it too "Did we under go one of those reality warping things?" and his disapointment he didn't get to do much. So Sammun Mak is removed, Max is restored.. and i'ts just about cliffhanger o clock as paperwhite comes running back in from Sam..s pecifically a bunch of near naked sam clones clad in rocky horror style briefs who surround our heroes

As I made clear this chapter is wonky, the first act almost running out it's welcome, the second being good fun and the third running longer than needed and feeling tacked on. The finale and the final puzzle are satisfying as hell, but it feels like they planned for an extra chapter that never happened and had to glue it onto this one. The result is messy. It's a disapointment in a game that's easily been my faviorite of the three.

Next Time: evil Dolls! Scantily clad sams! other stuff! See you in december

[pl9090]

Impurities and Mutations

Constructive feedback and criticism is welscome as always. (I'm not happy with this draft but I've spent too much time on this post already at the expense of others).

The idea of a, (for lack of a better term) biological connection between The Other and both renagade Timelords, (eg: The, "Affected Generation" and the Deca) and the subsequent newblood generations. But is there any clues in the expanded lore as to how and why?

Basic looms summary

Looms work by combining, "weaving" together biodata material from both the House's own stock from past Cousins, (80%-90%) and the wider distribution system, (10%-20%) to form either a fully ground adult or a baby. (The percentages are a guess based on the idea that the distributor biodata exchange is intended as a degredation prevention measure as each House was essentially endlessly recycling the same biodata for millions of years which along with Rassilon's later intelligence reduction modification resulted in the: stagant, unvaried, and elderly civil servant mentality civilisation seen in, "The Deadly Assassin"). Just before the start of the Second War in Heaven the new stasis tube like looms were introduced and used to mass produce Timelord soldiers aswell as Timelord citizenry. The Other's Plan

In Lungbarrow chapter 30 The Other threw himself into the loom network's prime distributor, the open progenitive cascades unravelling his biodata. His plan is generally considered to be rebirth millions of years later via a random loom, (the term "huanting the network" has been used) because he was overcome with a deep self loathing depression over: the way Gallifreyian society had changed to become stagant, Rassilon's increasing despotism, and his self perceived partial blame for both.

However this interpretation doesn't make sense for the following two reasons:

The first is that as the co creator of the loom technology with Rassilon, The Other would know that as opposed to loom jumping this would not result in ressurection regardless of how long he, "waited" as his unravelled biodata would be irrevocably lost by being dispersed throughout the entire loom network mutating when it combines with those in each individual House's store which is shared resulting in each generation accumulating more of it. This is backed up by: a.Both the appearance and increased impurities, (ie: Biodata, "errors" and thus personality eccentricities) starting out very minor with barely any effect on the status quo about 1,000,000.B.T.W. to the more widepsread renegade upheaving the status quo, "Affected Generation" about 700,000.B.T.W.. b.The term reconstitution is specifically used instead of ressurection and has a defintion of, "the act of changing something so that it has a different form". In this case his self sacrifice so his biodata could change future loomborn's biodata makeup so that they are more wombborn like, (eg: Varied individualistic personalities) and thus more open to change. c.The fact that as one of the four main mutations of the, "Affected Generation", (replacing Avus/Grandfather Paradox as a Lungbarrow Cousin when he retired himself from history) holds and can access only some of the Other's memories while not knowing who most of the people in them were despite the .V.N.A. guidelines clearly stating he isn't the Other.

(It is interesting to note that both Avus/Grandfather Paradox and The Doctor share key apects of The Other's known personality, (cultural beliefs and a sort of restlessness/bohemianism) specifically public questioning of the protocols/implying that change was the most important tool of any culture. Maybe the Lungbarrow loom has a higher concentration of Other tainted biodata?) .

"'Millennia later, Cavis mused that travel, extreme violence, and "Murder, sex and adventure in exotic frocks' were the zenith of what the Other had envisioned", The Shadows of Avalon.

The second is that The Other's dialogue with himself and others, (see the quotes below) this was not a spur of the moment ressurection plan but a pre thoughout last resort suicidal contingency plan to maybe ensure that future generations of loomborn would eventually have the varied individualistic personalities as the wombborn had as explained above. Did he know it would work? Maybe but it's clear that he was so depressed that he probably didn't care. While his order that Susan leave Gallifrey was to save her from Rassilon's wombborn ethnic clenasing it could also been an attempt to preserve a fully wombborn Gallifreyan for later study and for her to become an inspiration example for the surviving Interventionalists.

"I warned him. I warned Rassilon that if force was used against the dissenters, if their sanctuary in the Pythia's temple was violated, then I would leave his accursed planet to its own devices!".

"But if I go, there will be no way back. Rassilon will be left with absolute control. No checks, no balances. Gods, how I long to be free. Free of schemes, ambitions, and free of my dark, brooding self".

"But there will be much to prepare for my departure and one impossible farewell to make".

Whether or not Rassilon knew what The Other planned to do is ambiquous though his relevant dialogue, (ie: Asking him not to leave) and actions, (ie: Activiating a forcefield and ordering the guards to prevent his departure) suggests he thought The Other was simply going to physically leave Gallifrey never to return which makes sense given he founded the Interventionist movement, (the Azazel/Eblis mini diasporia could have been one of his schemes).

Texts Used

.8.D.A. Lungbarrow.

.8.D.A. Shadows of Avalon.

Gallifrey, Notes on the Planet's Background.

.F.P. The Book of the War.

[townsenddecades]

1325 – Day 2 – Townsend Farm 3

A few days after Malcolm’s safe return, Malika is standing near the hearth, preparing their evening meal, when there is a knock at the door. The sound reverberates so powerfully in the quiet cottage that she flinches. Who could be visiting them at this hour? Few of their neighbours make the trek through the snows.

She looks at the door for a moment before wiping her hand and walking over to open it. She is greeted by the sight of a man in the garb of the earl’s men-at-arms, although she doesn’t know his face or name.

“Is this Benjamin Townsend’s home?”, he asks, after she has greeted him.

She nods, a little hesitantly. “Yes.”

“And you’re his wife?”

“Yes”, she repeats. “My name is Malika. Has something happened? Can I help you?”

“I think this will take a while to explain. May I come in?”

He is looking at her so earnestly that she can’t help agreeing, although her heart is pounding. She steps aside to let him into the cottage and offers him warmed ale before they both sit down. He looks around in their small, but well-cared-for home and takes a sip before speaking again.

“My name is Arne Faulk. I’m here on behest of Lord Petersmarch and Sir Robert Chevalier. They have been told that you have recently had a child, and that His Lordship’s brother has been…frequenting your farm, for an unclear reason.”

Deep in her heart, Malika had suspected that this would have something to do with Cecily. They have paid their taxes on time, and it is not yet time for another land tax. Besides which, the earl rarely sends out his personal men-at-arms to collect it. Still, she feels the blood first rapidly leave and then shoot back into her face under the man’s gaze. It is clear what he is implying. She is used to her neighbour’s furtive gossip, but the castle barracks being informed is something else entirely.

“Madam?”, he prompts.

“Yes”, she grinds out. “He’s…been here.”

“For your company?” His tone doesn’t leave his meaning to the imagination.

“Yes”, she says quietly, her ears burning. “For my company. It was him who sought me out.”

Arne Faulk sighs. “You’re not the first, good woman, and I’m not here to issue judgement. The Watcher will do that as She sees fit. Believe me, if I had a choice, I wouldn’t be here. But the earl wants to know whether the child is a result of his brother’s…visits.”

“Why?”, she can’t help herself but ask. Fear and hope are warring inside her. “Why would a great man like that care about his brother’s dalliances?”

The man snorts. “I’m not sure whether the earl cares, but Sir Robert does. He never liked Master Clement. Which I shouldn’t be telling you, but this business is awkward enough as it is. So, the child?”

The whole thing still seems strange to Malika. She is sure Robert knows about the entire situation; even if Benjamin hasn’t told him, he doesn’t live too far away. He has servants that visit the small market in Tovar. Some way or another, the news will have reached his ears. What she doesn’t understand is why he would talk to the earl without talking to them.

But Arne Faulk is still looking at her expectantly, so she sighs. “I can show her to you”, she says, and fetches Cecily out of her crib. She is awake and looks up at the strange man with wide, brown eyes. His face shows exactly the reaction she expected, so she smiles wryly.

“As you can see, it would be easy for him to deny any claims.”

Arne Faulk nods, still studying little Cecily. “I will have to report back to the earl, of course, but…”

“I understand.” She smiles weakly. “Do you know what the earl intended to do, if there were any obvious signs as to her father?”, she asks, heart still beating harder than usual. But to her disappointment, he shakes his head.

“I’m sorry, madam. I fear that is beyond my station.”

Prev: 1325, Day 2, Part 2/3 <--> Next: 1325, Day 3, Part 1/2

[rinwellisathing]

Okay so I know I did a big OC spam yesterday but I have to admit, I've been getting really excited about some plot twists in the magical girl inspired BG3 sequel campaign I'm running in 5E.

So the story follows a group of young women(the PCs) who accept a call to adventure in the form of an open invitation to Lady Alyce Ravengard's seventeenth birthday in Baldur's Gate. At the ball in her honor, she plans to announce an important quest. The players meet her and are tasked with helping her to assist a strange Feywild entity known only as Will'O'Wisp to escape its prison in an old rotting tree.

To do this, they must hunt down the corrupted souls of adventurers who have previously made deals, and allegedly gone back on them, with the creature. Their liasons whom Alyce works with are a strange feywild cat being named Calloway and the printing press Jelliwig from the Stop the Presses! Quest. The players are collecting the soul essences they defeat and are meant to hand them over to Jelliwig to be made into books of the soul's life and then destroying the books to free the soul.

The players have rolled very well and love to poke around in the settings I describe, so very early on, they realized Calloway, Jelliwig, and Will'O'Wisp aren't exactly trust worthy.

Through various shenanigans, the players have managed also to build an unusual group of allies after freeing Gortash from Bane completely by accident, encountering Bhaal's new murder tribunal now run by a feytouched Bhaalspawn, and helping the goddess Umberlee free an ancient chosen of hers from the clutches of Will'O'Wisp.

The big secret I'm so excited about, however, I haven't revealed yet and can only even say here because none of my players in that game follow me on tumblr:

Will'O'Wisp is not what it seems, they're totally right about that! It is actually a clever trick by the demon Pale Night to amass power and spread chaos by sowing the seeds of despair( hey, I admitted many times this is heavily Madoka inspired) in clueless mortals she tricks.

Alyce's mother is dying of a terminal genetic illness and Alyce took the pact to protect her. Alyce also fanatically hates devils because of what Mizora and Zariel did to two of her parents plus her grandfather's harrowing tales from Elturel. Pale Night sees her as an easy way to maintain a puppet on the material plane as well as stick her hands into the blood war just a little to have some fun.

More importantly, if Alyce manages to keep up her pact and her mother becomes well again, Pale Night intends to harvest Alyce's mother's soul and replace her in her own body, thus gaining a position of political power as well as all of her potent storm magic to play with. If Alyce can't keep up her pact and falls to despair, that works as well. Pale Night is nothing if not flexible and mercurial. She will in that case use the deaths of both Wyll Ravengard's wife and oldest child to try and persuade him to bargain with her, blaming Alyce's death on the work of devils. She then feels she could convince Wyll to carry out her bidding within the city at least until she gets bored.

One player is a warlock pacted to Baba Yaga and I love that because I've woven Auntie Ethel back into the story as a result since Baba tends to be a patron of hags and this has allowed the players to find a lot of clues about some of Will'O'Wisp's servants due to Ethel's connections to the fey, for instance they noticed Calloway never goes with them to the bar Ethel has been covertly running, Ethel will explain to them if asked that this is because Calloway is not a cat thing at all, but instead an Annis Hag who not only pissed off Baba Yaga by breaking a pact with her to instead work with Pale Night, but also owes Ethel money.

Meanwhile, Glasya, Archduchess of Malbolge, has her faithful warlock, Enver Gortash's former personal assistant Valda Everett, reestablish herself as his employee now that he's returned. Glasya has instructed her to steer him in the direction of helping the players 1. Because she doesn't like the idea of some ancient demon lord running amok and getting the upper hand on the material plane, and 2. Because she believes she can take Gortash's soul right out from under Bane's nose and add him to her collection of playthings along with Sentry(redeemed Durge) and Teela (Enver's daughter with said Durge who is currently working for Alyce because she has a crush on her).

Glasya and Pale Night are two of my favorite rarely used beings in D&D as a whole since my 3.5 days and The Blood War is some of my favorite lore so running this campaign and having my players love it so much has been amazing ><

[autiponi]

The soft light woke Blackjack from a rather heavy sleep. She was reluctant to get up from the moment she opened her eyes, knowing that today was the day she would meet Mike again and find out about this strange 'job' he had given her.

However, she overcame her problem with getting up. Gently dragging herself to her feet, she moved towards the bathroom with a lazy step.

-Ugly but pretty.... as usual. She smiled slightly at her reflection in the mirror and began to comb her perpetually dishevelled hair. Self-confidence was her strong point, it was what had allowed her to work at the University while remaining an outstanding scientist with a long tenure. She worked at the same university where her mother and father had studied. That's why It was important to her that every student who came under her wing was as outstanding, as they had been in their own lifetime. Her typical bathroom routine was suddenly interrupted by the sound of the stove.

It was probably Alebo; it wouldn't be the first time. -I asked him not to make me breakfast ... Typical Albedo. He was unsuited to being a domestic servant, but he always wanted to help and did many things for Blackjack. She tried to get this out of his software, but the results of such actions were meagre and in fact, the opposite of the intended effect. Ignoring Albedo's urge to cook, she brushed herself and her teeth. Then she dressed quickly.

-How does Kitchen Revolutions a.k.a Albedo not listen? She said mockingly to the robot as she walked downstairs. -Do you like eggs, Amelia? I just found out on the internet how to make fried eggs! Ignoring the question, Albedo answered the question with a question. The movements of his mechanical limbs were surprisingly precise for his previous attempts at cooking, which usually ended in clean-up rather than actual food. -...that I also taught you how to use such things.... It smells surprisingly good for you, so I'll eat it.

She sat down at the table and began to sip her coffee. By Chef Albedo's standards, it was at least drinkable. -I won't be home for long today... I'll give you some tasks to do. So you won't be bored without me. She started talking to Albedo, who, having already finished cooking, served her the classic daily Blackjack breakfast. -I guess this is about your new job, do you have any details about it? -No... all I know is that I have to be on the phone, I don't even know when this grandpa is going to call. -And who is the person who hired you? Is it someone important? Maybe a businessman, a scientist! Albedo has started to take an interest. -It's hard to tell, all I know is that his name is Mike, I already told you that... but he's also very strange. And he knows something about me, and most importantly, about my father... Her gaze was slightly off him, in contemplation. -I don't know why, but his face looks oddly familiar. .... I don't think I've seen him before, yet... I don't know. She started to eat slowly as Albedo came even closer to her, curious. -You can tell me its characteristics and I'll look it up online if you like. -No, no, that's OK. I'll talk to him today and find out. You can help me tomorrow. I've got an idea for a new technology, who knows if it might be useful for the lectures. -I understand, I hope today goes without complications!

-Yea... As she was eating, she suddenly heard someone calling upstairs, and she rushed to answer it, almost killing herself trying to get upstairs.

-Hello?

She anticipated who was on the phone.

~This is Mike, I already have an assignment for you... will you be ready tonight?

-Yes, I think so, so what have you prepared for me?

~I'll tell you when you get there, I'll meet you in dimension C-419, but where exactly you already have in the message what I sent you .... by tonight. Before she had time to ask him anything, Mike had already hung up. She quickly read the message he had sent her. -Dimension C-419... Japan, trading street by the temple of the patron saint of Kim....

-This is the temple of the clan that trades across the multiverse? asked Albedo. He was eavesdropping on Blackjack's conversation. -Yes... as far as I know the same ones, I wonder what he wants from them, I haven't heard much about them, practically nothing.

-There are all sorts of rumours about them, including that many of their activities are unethical or even criminal! -Who knows, I have to go anyway, I don't want to miss the first day of work.... Come on, it's not until the evening, so we've got time to maybe look for more information about them, although I don't know if anything will come of it, to be honest. Blackjack and Albedo sat for a long time in search of more information about the dimension of the C-419 and the Clan. -The Internet does not help much.... mainly mentions what the main race is in this dimension and culture....

-What are they like?

-Something like... spars like we find in Greece, bark covers their entire body... but their insides are mostly precious metals.... they have panache, they get a lot of their culture from the East.

-So they have these beautiful dressing gowns!

-Albedo, that's kimono.

-Whatever you call it, the important thing is that it's pretty.

-That's not how I programmed you.

-Back to the details, is there anything more about this clan than rumours?

-No...absolutely nothing, they mostly talk about their trading activities and Kim....he is the deceased leader and master of the clan, and his place has been taken by Daiki, the most loyal pupil and also a role model for others....from the description alone, he sounds like a jerk.

-That's always extra information!

-Yes... it's always good to know a person's name I'll soon forget.... An ironic smile found its way onto Blackjack's face, Albedo didn't quite understand the sarcasm but she was used to it by now. -Well... we may not have found out much, but there's always something you can ask your employer!

-I'll ask if necessary... don't worry.

...

-It's time to test the portal tool! -So...!

Blackjack looked at the screwdriver-shaped device for a few pleasant minutes.

-Mrs Amelia... afraid to go through?

-NO! I just... Yesterday I lost all faith that it would work... and now I can do it without any problem... it's a strange feeling.

-You can do it, I believe in you with the whole screen!

-Not that you have another option in the software... but thank you. She took a deep breath, put the world of C-419 on the small screen and... activated the portal for the first time.

The circle of beautiful colours intimidated her, but after another powerful breath she stepped through the portal, felt a gentle warmth, even soothing, and at the same time great speed, she saw space, many worlds in the form of images passing through, until finally her feet felt firm ground and she saw a beautifully lit street and Mike waiting for her on a bench. -So... what are your first impressions?

-M- My legs are like cotton wool... I'm a bit sick, I've seen a hundred things at once and I think I'm going to throw up...

-Oh, maybe better-

-Can I do it again?

-...

Looking at Mike's face, she quickly realised that it was unlikely that his silence meant 'yes', so she quickly recovered from the shock and even stood at attention. -I mean... let's go now, we've got work to do, right?

...

-Quite a big place for a regular market....

She said to Mike Blackjack as they walked through the next streets full of shops and tree-like creatures.

and tree-like creatures that made people look much smaller, though not always.

-No wonder, this is one of the attractions of this dimension, everyone should be here at least once.... beautiful handmade jewellery... and the food... Right, would you like something to eat before I go over the details of my order?

Mike looked at one of the stalls with a gentle smile.

-Why not... I haven't eaten since breakfast.

She sat down next to Mike.

-Two ramen noodles and a large glass of cold whisky, please.

The tall, well-built creature took Mike's order and payment.

-You didn't even ask me what I wanted.

Said a nervous Blackjack. She hadn't even managed to look at the menu.

-Well, I know your mum liked ramen, so I thought you'd like it.

-Did she work for you as well, or where did you hear that from? Blackjack looked at Mike with interest.

-I know most about your father.... But I also knew her personally, she was always very close to her husband... poor Elisabeth.... You remind me of her with your eyes, you know?

He looked at Blackjack, her eyes were jet black, almost dead on the inside, but still beautiful in their own way. -...Grandpa used to say that too, although he always said I was like my father, thanks to him I actually know what they were like....

-You're talking in the past tense... I don't want to pry, but...

-Fire, he died in a fire. There's no point in hiding it... you already know too much.

-Oh... I'm sorry, I don't mean to open up old wounds so boldly... Mike looked away, clearly perplexed. He had not expected such an answer. -...instead of apologising, tell me more about my father, why you met .... and, above all, how? You talk as if you've known him for a long time, even though you're not from C-418. He was a bit confused, but in order to make up for his mistake, he slowly began the story in a calm tone. -As you probably know... your father, he created inter-dimensional travel, as the first dimension he found was G-878.... this is my world, he is the one who really found me, at first he seemed crazy, all happy to see me without even knowing me, he started to tell me what he had just done, he took me by the arm to his world, because he had met me first in other worlds I automatically became his friend... only with time came another project that changed his life and mine forever.... I'll tell you about it after the mission... okay? We're running out of time. -I hold you to your word.

There was an awkward silence until the order came.

-So... what are the details of the order? Blackjack She started talking while slowly eating her portion, she had never tried this food before but liked it immediately.

-Well... you're going to have to break in, preferably unnoticed until the end, and take the documents that are in Daikie's office .... about me, documents to be exact.

-What did you do that I have to break in there now? -What? She asked in surprise.

-I have quite a few people working for me in this dimension, even in his place. So I used to take the opportunity to steal some of his supplies of weapons, food and other things for trade or just to use... I needed it to keep the business going, but after a while he found out and now I have a more than... unpleasant relationship here, to say the least, and because of that I now have a person on my back who is hunting me down... -...What a caution and discretion on your part.

-I also have to earn money here, it's a job.... All I can do now is save my skin.

-I understand. Is there anything I should know before I go into the lion's mouth?

-Yes... there is something else, listen carefully now.

He cautiously approached Blackjack. -This person... this... something I mentioned to you... avoid her like hell, don't let her see you.

-Who is she?

-Daiki's disciple, she's practically a killing machine, literally a machine.

-I think I can handle the apprentice of an idiot with an oversized ego.

-It's not enough that you know how to fight... she's bloody dangerous... trust me. Mike returned to his normal seat and Blacjack began to think about the person mentioned.

-By the way, it's you, from this dimension. I found out last night.

-Someone who is me, murderous and ruthless.... I have my moments of luck...

She put her plate down after finishing her meal, Mike finishing a moment later.

-I've arranged a place for you in a nice hotel, you'll start your task at night between two and three o'clock, you've got clothes in your room to blend in, is everything clear?

-Yea, thanks, it's always something.

-Good luck... and remember, the other Am-

-Blackjack, learn at last.

-Blackjack, it's important you don't see them.

She made her way to the hotel. Once in the room, she sat down on the bed and checked her phone.

-Some unread messages from Jeremy... I can't believe he's only just pulled through. He should have been asleep by now.

~Hi Bj! I know you've been busy lately, but please come see me at the hospital if you can. It's really important to me! ~I want to tell you something and show you. I hope to see you in person soon! ~You're probably sleeping after working on a project. I won't disturb you again. Goodbye for now!

Blackjack smiled at the screen, certain that Jeremy was awake and expecting her response. After completing the task, she made the decision to meet him the following day. She rapidly composed the plan and slept for a couple of hours. The bed was incredibly comfortable for a single night.

...

Night had fallen, the silence sounding eerie to Blackjack's ears. She changed into a kimono, decorated with various beautiful ornaments, probably belonging to the clan. She approached the temple walls, they were quite low, so she decided to walk through them to get inside.

She walked along the wall to the nearest windows while looking back at the guards who were only downstairs and staring dully at the walls probably pretending to check if anyone was there. The windows were not glazed or protected in any way, so she could pass through one unnoticed.

It was empty and quiet, almost too quiet. As she moved further into the shadows, she began to look for rooms.

She found them in a long corridor, all the doors had the names of people who probably lived or worked there. There were about a hundred of these doors, if not more. The last door had the signature ''Master Daiki''.

-It was useful to know your name. It would be terrible to check all these doors.

She said to herself and opened the door slightly, it didn't even have a handle.

There was a large desk in the room with a light on it. She decided to search it quickly while no one noticed her. The pile of papers frightened her, but she was determined to find Mike's name so she could get away from the scene as quickly as possible.

-Mike... Mike... Mike - there it is!

She found a folder with a photograph of her employer, he wasn't wearing a hat so she could see the slight baldness on the top of his head. Another felt strange looking at his photo. He was not wearing a headband in the photo, so he must have lost an eye recently, she looked closely at the photo and lost track of time.

But her thoughts were stopped by a feeling she did not want to feel now, a feeling of being watched, so she brought her thoughts back to earth.

She looked around her... she was not wrong.

In the darkness of the room she saw eyes that glowed with a strong red that was almost painful to the eyes.

-Fucking hell.

She said in her mind, looking with her eyes for the quickest escape route, there were no windows or other doors, she was grounded.

-Master wasn't expecting any visitors today... at least he didn't say anything to me about it.

-Listen...it's not what you think! I'm-

The figure moved towards Blackjack faster than she had ever expected. The impact of the blow sent her crashing into a wall, which turned out to be weak enough to allow her to fall under her own weight into another room, large and dark.

And from the shattered wall, staring at her coldly, was the figure of whatever had attacked her.

-W-who the hell are you?

She tried to get up from the hard blow, feeling a metallic taste in her mouth as she did so.

-I am A-1, from c-419, a disciple of Master Daiki, the only one of her lineage, and you... you are an intruder who must be killed. Blackjack looked at her, and from the resemblance of her face, it had to be the person Mike was talking about.

-You want to kill yourself from another dimension... what a twist of fate.

-I don't know what you're talking about.

A-1 grabbed Blackjack by her robes and looked her straight in the eyes, after a moment she threw her to the ground again.

-You are really me, Blackjack...interesting nickname. Blackjack stood unsteadily and extended her hand. She held a red scythe, which she had learned from her grandfather. Perhaps it was a family skill, but she still couldn't fully control it.

-I won't hesitate to kill you if necessary... Terrible fake!

A-1 looked annoyed and stood ready to fight.

There was silence and focus for a few moments as Blackjack C-418 approached her other self.

Knowing what she intended, she approached her opponent and attacked with her scythe, but felt a strong resistance.

Your fighting basics are lacking... and it's pathetic

A-1 kept hitting and countering, causing Blackjack's scythe to crack further. Blackjack decided to exploit the situation, broke a piece of the weapon, and advanced towards A-1. As she was about to counter, Blackjack stabbed A-1 in the stomach using the broken piece.

-...

Without a word, her opponent jumped away and gently dropped to her knees, Blackjack seeing her moment of weakness and wanting to make a quick getaway. She was already close to the breach and then...

The hit. A loud grinding sound echoed through the room. A-1 took immediate action and stabbed her sword into Blackjack's body. She had become an expert at using deceit to her advantage.

-...The will of the Master is done, no matter what or who...

She collapsed to the ground and felt blood streaming softly. A-1 stood proudly above her. She closed her eyes slowly, feeling faint. Just before losing consciousness, the only thing she could hear were the sounds of swords clashing. She wondered if someone else was there to save her, but with her strength ebbing away, it didn't matter anymore.

...

Hello! It's Poni again! Thank you for reading the opening chapter, Aou!

A lot can happen now… However, you'll find that out as soon as I finish the next chapter! I think it goes without saying. In the meantime from him, I recommend you take a look at "More about Aou" Which is available on my website!

That's it from me, see you later!

[anthonybialy]

Override or Die

Anything that irks politicians should be cherished, especially if it surprises them.  Sneak up on ruining their plans with a jump cut.  Government fans despise Congress doing its job because it limits their desire to order society into compliance would really hate passing an agenda that’s completely counter to what the executive wants, so do just that.

A usually unused feature could shut down exactly who needs to go out of business.  Pursuing a veto-proof majority feels as desperate as hoping for cars that drive themselves.  But we may be just a couple algorithms away.  The teetering incumbent is way more predictable.

Even dedicated educators may think it’s too late for Joe Biden to learn the Constitution.  The problem is what appears to possibly be his inability to absorb teaching.  He may have avoided lessons because they’d constrain his ability to shape America in his image.  Biden’s minders decide they don’t want particular bills to become laws.  It’s crucial to ink the correct rubber stamp.

Kamala Harris wants so desperately to tell you she’s already president.  Keeping the secret has been her greatest accomplishment.  It’s not like anyone is unaware.  But she deserves as much patronizing praise as can be mustered.  If letting a simpleton who can’t manage simple tasks advance to the presidential finals sounds alarming, I agree.

It’s sadly easy to list the handful of times they woke up the ostensible incumbent long enough for him to mutter “Nah”.  A president who makes making Woodrow Wilson’s last months look spritely is nearly as elderly and just as appalling when it comes to his urge to take your stuff.

We could all use a little surprise, and not in this universe’s typical style of inflicting an unplanned plague.  A bill becoming a law without a particular signature wouldn’t merely be fun.  Mischievous subversives could get things done without the approval of whatever awful nitwit thinks a head shake offers is the final word.

It’s time to halt letting one person set the nation’s agenda.  We shouldn’t let a couple hundred, either, but spreading around blame would be a welcome step.

Putting the president in his place should be the dream of every patriot.  A disturbing quantity of aspiring serfs feel fealty to their goon will guarantee a good harvest.  Your personal beloved dreamboat savior is not exempt.

The existence of a document that balances domination by law is like telling a liberal costs are lowered by private companies competing with each other.  But truth doesn’t change with who holds it, especially with said liberals.

Congress is supposed to be the strongest branch because of that whole representatives thing.  Linking the rest of us with the regrettable choices filling the offices is not intended as an insult.  The problem with electing congresspeople is how closely we’re embodied by the dreadful nitwits who get to man the Capitol.  Emblematically despicable humans you wouldn’t trust to water a plastic plant decide how your money gets torched.

Focusing on individual races combining together treats Congress like Voltron.  Return the balance of power like a defender of the universe.  Privately-funded lions are more efficient at defeating space fiends.

A branch shift would check the balance.  Focusing on Congress would not quite return authority to the people but at least make those responsible easier to scold.  The legislature is supposed to serve as the embodiment of citizenry, which should mortify us all.

It’s not that everything Congress passes that a president dislikes is incredible.  They’re still public servants, which means they’re not serving the public.  Laws to remove present laws are my dream, and I hope it happens while we’re awake.

The imperial presidency era has resulted in one miserable empire not just by exceeding the office’s parameters but because of the horrid dopes driving.  Quasi-limitless dominion defines not just a government but a nation.  Worst of all, far too many consented.

Sophisticated modern leaders think they shouldn’t have to go through the indignity of all that waiting for a bill to pass jazz.  Heeding the rulebook is for a quaint time when Washington’s supreme purpose wasn’t forcing fast food eateries to tell you how many calories are in your fries.

Ignoring procedures for progress is favored by the enlightened caste that thinks government is the source of prosperity.  If you meditate hard enough, you may become omniscient to the point where you too can invent self-permission.

Americans are way too accustomed to getting bossed around like we live in a tinpot banana republic without chinos.  Unsurprising unfortunate results are just the practical result of a philosophical violation.  Ends don’t justify lousy means.  We reside in the best of both worlds aside from getting violated by illegal incursions.  Political scientists hold a sophisticated modern view of the office which involves you shutting up and complying.

Dreams of a Congress that’s only active when it’s thwarting a grabby president are especially necessary when the alternative is liberal harassment in front of an American flag.  The legislature provides a couple hundred Individual races that aren’t based upon an obnoxious swindler.  The alternative candidate who’s going to drag down a perfect chance to flip off a putzing regime.  Donald Trump will impugn those whose chances he ruins for insufficient loyalty.

The best option involves rethinking politics in case that wasn’t obvious.  Restraining the reach of a most imperfect entity for those with ideas on how to fix everything prevents Year Zero-style resets.  Whatever approach is being tried right now isn’t working in the same sense Ivy League universities are unenthusiastic about Judaism.

Liberals loathe results as much as they adore having an appalling person to gesture at instead of making cases.  By contrast, it’s easy to argue against what they believe: just point.  The only way Democrats have stopped crime is by letting criminals steal everything.  Printing enough money makes it worthless.  And gun crime thrives when the devices are banned from those who obey laws.

That’s too much jurisdiction for one person.  The parodic overextension is particularly so for the kind of persons chosen for the task.  America is effectively controlled by an individual just like everyone would expect in a democratic republic.

Electing congresspeople who are sick of the imbalance would lead to a single pompous nitwit pouting while flailing, which truly embodies the presidency.  It’s true even when there’s one you like and merely especially so in the midst of a two-decade Oval Office clown parade.

[culttvblog]

24 Hours: Assassination in South Africa's Parliament of Hendrik Verwoerd

I'm not intending to start another series of posts on documentaries, but I've watched several excellent ones recently so this may well end up becoming another documentary series.

24 hours was a BBC news commentary programme which ran from 1965 to 1972. It was an extended programme focussing on investigative journalism and extended documentary segments rather than a short news programme. It was always broadcast in the later evening, although apparently its time kept changing as it was juggled with other shows. I have to say I love this idea because I just don't think you could do this with a show nowadays, and it must have required people to pay attention and actually look at the Radio Times in the sixties. I have not seen any other episode of it and as far as I can see there are none online; I would expect it's unlikely to have survived in any numbers, but this one is available on YouTube.

Long time readers of this blog will be aware that I have a long term interest in apartheid. As a young theology student in the absolutely dying days of apartheid we had to write an essay on a particular conjunction between culture and religion and I chose apartheid. Most of the current history tends completely to miss the fact that apartheid wasn't just underpinned by Nazi pseudo-scientific theories of eugenics but that there was also a distinct Calvinist theology which underpinned it. It was heavily associated with the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk in South Africa, which for this got expelled from the parent Dutch Reformed Church in Holland.

However my interest in this documentary is slightly different because I'm going to have to say that this documentary (notionally about the assassination of Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd, which took place on 6th September 1966, although it's also about his life and position naturally) is an absolute masterpiece.

Don't get the wrong idea when I say that the keynote here is that it is even handed. I'm not talking about 'two-sidesing' evil, what I'm talking about is a remarkable documentary which consists entirely of flat statements of fact and letting the subjects speak for themselves, and as a result it is absolutely devastating. For this reason at the beginning it feels as if it is happily supporting apartheid, but this is a slow burning genius documentary which lets the subject implode itself. There is nothing dramatic about it, but it achieves the remarkable feat of taking some of the most odious people at the time on this planet, putting them on the telly to express themselves, and letting them put this own foot in their own mouth before shooting themselves in the foot.

It also achieves the remarkable feat of expressing the full ridiculousness of the theory of apartheid. By 1966 the political resistance was well up and running but the full impossibility of claiming you want to separate races completely while also keeping Black servants in white areas hadn't yet quite hit them. It's really difficult to express how impossible and ridiculous this actually is: for example the way a person could find himself legally in different racial groups on different sides of the street, the woman who famously was legally three different races in a year and was described in the papers as 'confused', or the way bus journeys would be interrupted so that the segregated seats would be rearranged and you would all get back on and sit somewhere different. The specific example it uses is in the Black bantustan of Transkei: The capital is a white area so the Africans live in a Black area outside the white capital of their Black homeland but inside the capital is a Black parliament. This statement of the ridiculousness of apartheid is quite a journalistic achievement.

Then in the middle of the show it platforms Mrs Helen Suzman, the sole MP of the 'Progressive' Party who starts off by saying that the party recognises South Africa as a multiracial country and accepts all that that would mean. Perhaps I sould say that for years Mrs Suzman was the only anti-apartheid representative in the South African parliament, took abuse of all sorts, and in fact won the Nobel Peace Prize twice. So she was clearly highly praised for her work for humanity at the time however that makes this segment all the more devastating. Given her credentials it comes across as all the more shocking when she says that apartheid is wrong but goes on to stress the Progressive Party's position of a limited franchise: no way would they advocate votes for everyone but voting would be limited on the basis of education and/or income. It's like being hit by a sledgehammer when you realise the Progressive Party in the country didn't want only whites to vote but would still limit it to the educated and the rich. This is exactly the sort of limited franchise that was the last to fall in the UK for universal suffrage and it's shocking to hear this opinion from someone lauded for her work for peace.

Both Mrs Suzman and the apartheid politicians are very clear that they expect the rest of the world to be reasonable towards South Africa's apartheid regime and not do anything horrid to them. The sheer unreasonableness of these people comes across loud and clear. The show also contains extended interviews with Black anti-apartheid activists, both in South Africa and in exile.

By letting the different interviewees just speak with limited commentary the show is honestly the best indictment of apartheid you could ever wish. However this technique also allows it to achieve the remarkable feat of delineating the complex situation and number of views in the country: always a difficult feat and something which tends to become dreary if it's just narrated.

I am a bit sad that I can't find any other episodes of this show because watching this is a wonderful experience of intelligent evening news documentary in the sixties, and an indictment of our present TV stations' inability to report objectively.

My only possible criticism is that it's probably got the wrong title: even though Verwoerd's assassination was what was in the news and what prompted the documentary it's not mainly about Verwoerd or his stabbing, but about the situation in which he had left South Africa.

Meanwhile in the UK we have this thing of beauty taking us closer to an actually elected government:

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[casmong]

Hast thou considered my servant Job?

“And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.” - Job 2:3

When YAHWEH said “have you considered” [Hb. הֲשַׂ֣מְתָּ (hă·śam·tā) לִבְּךָ֮ (lib·bə·ḵā) אֶל־ (’el-) ] He literally meant “to put the inner man towards” or “to set the heart toward” or to seriously internalize and contemplate the circumstances and message of Job.

The book of Job was written most likely around the 6th century BC, and no-one knows for certain who wrote it, as the writer is anonymous. The writing style analysis and word selection indicates that it is one of the oldest books of bible written; and seems to have been written by an Israelite, but from a foreigner point of view. The story is set outside Israel, in southern Edom or northern Arabia, and makes allusion to places as far apart as Mesopotamia and Egypt. The book of Job firmly belongs with Ecclesiastes and the Book of Proverbs in the genre of wisdom literature, sharing a perspective that they themselves call the "way of wisdom".

The wisdom literature books were intended to be read together and in the sequence Proverbs -> Ecclesiastes -> Job. Proverbs say there is order, and if you do this do that righteous thing and all will be well and if you don't do this and don’t do that righteous thing and there will be rebuke and evil consequences[Proverbs 11:20-21; 17:26]. Ecclesiastes on the other hand says there is chaos[Ecclesiastes 9:11] and that all is vain and a pointless frustration, and that death awaits both good and bad[Ecclesiastes 2:16]; that even when the right thing is done there is no guarantee of good; and if there is any good death still voids all things[Ecclesiastes 6:12; 2:19].

Job presents a case study that explores the teachings and principles advised by Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, and uses the circumstances of a real person to explore a difficult topic of how much is the effect of and result of doing what is right, and what type of life can a righteous person possibly expect, and why do bad things sometimes happen to good and righteous people. The book catalogs the discussion that was initially between the elderly man Job and his three friends and peers: Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, and later YAH joins the conversation at the request of Job who had pleaded for an audience with the Almighty [Job 31:35]. Later the young man Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram added some comments that turned out to be the righteous perspective.

The conclusion in the end is that the universe is vast and complex[Job 38], and there are both massive and important[Job 41], as well as tiny and almost insignificant things in it; and that Yah is in control of all of it, and there are subtleties and factors that are beyond our comprehension things that we would not be able to understand even if we were told[Job 5:9]; but we must trust in God nonetheless as He will make it all work out in the end[Job 42:11], considering and being encouraged by the apostle’s words: “Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” [James 5:11] Job explores these topics and gives insights and perspectives into difficult concepts and teaches important and key principles. These include:

Job thought he was righteous and therefore was beyond rebuke, so God must be unrighteous (less righteous)[Job 40:8], and clearly mistaken when He rebuked him[Job 27:2], to which one of his friends Eliphaz raises an important point: 'Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker?'[Job 4:17]

Evidently, justification in God's sight and salvation from sin and death requires more than being personally 'upright and just'[Job 1:1], or righteous or doing the right things, as scripture often points out "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us" [Titus 3:5] Also important is the understanding that God can do whatever He wants, whenever He wants, and to whoever He wants; as He is Sovereign over all and as the heavenly host confirmed "thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." [Revelation 4:11]

Job eventually understood and acknowledged his ignorance, that even if we are not doing anything wrong we can and potentially still receive rebuke and chastening from God, confessing: 'therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.' 'Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.' [Job 42:2,6]

Jesus encourages us that rebuke and chastening is not necessarily a bad thing, because he declared to the lukewarm and failing Laodecian ecclesia that "as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent."[Revelation 3:19] Jesus also teaches that even when we are doing what is right we can still benefit from rebuke and chastening when he said: “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit." [John 15:2]

The wisdom book of Job also teaches the key principle that just having good intentions is not enough, as knowledge of what is the righteous thing to do is essential[Hosea 4:6]. Job's friends started off with good intentions, and being wholesome and empathetic towards Job, as they expressed sadness and mourning, fasted and prayed silently a whole week with Job in his afflictions[Job 2:12-13]. However, their lack of knowledge caused them to go off track, so that they became a problem, and earning them the title of Job's miserable friends[Job 16:2], and rendering them as mere tempters and false accusers, for which Job had to pray for their forgiveness [Job 42:10]

Understandably, we often equate blessing and ease with doing the right things, and we expect rebuke and chastening only if we do the wrong things. Job and his friends actually had this same belief, often described as the doctrine of 'exact retribution', but approached the topic from different perspectives: from Job's argument we see that he was insisting that because he did no wrong he should not be punished and therefore God was unjust in punishing him. Jobs' friends took the other side of the same view, and insisted that if he is being punished then he must be doing something wrong and needs to repent of some secret sin, since bad things only happen to bad people. The reality is that most people would perhaps adopt the same stance as Job friends of associating difficulty with some sort of wrongdoing or a personal failure, if we were faced with similar circumstances.

What is also explored is that Job's friends also saw that he was a righteous man, and saw the evidence of a life that was good and godly, but deep down were either already suspicious that he must be a secret sinner, or considered in their heart that his faithfulness was only because God was blessing him, which was the issue that the adversary or adversaries (viz satan) was initially accusing against Job [Job 1:11].

We tend to view the world and other people from our perspective and our own point of view, and consequently we often project our own weakness and insecurities onto others; and expect that they would do what we would do under the same circumstances. Job's faithful life of uprightness would expose their own shortcomings and failures, but instead of lifting themselves and behavior higher they chose to tear him down to their level, which is a type of mindset and behavior we see too often and a thing that unfortunately persists across the ages, and is something that we must consider and be on our guard against.

The young man Elihu was the voice of sound reasoning and gave the view of God with regards to the dispute, and was originally only an interested observer until he could no longer contain. He rebuked Job for being ‘righteous in his own eyes’ and ‘because he justified himself rather than God’ [Job 32:1-2], and also Job’s friends for condemning Job without a cause, for even though they searched and ‘had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.’[Job 32:3] Elihu surmised that “great men are not always wise: neither do the aged understand judgment.”[Job 32:9]

The object lesson from Job teaches that even when we do the right thing, we can still receive chastening for various reasons, such as to help us to reach our full potential, or otherwise to warn and save others or to teach others about an important principle. It is a pattern in scripture that many of the saints of old, and also the Redeemer himself, had to endure hardship so that others could be saved.

“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.” Job 19:25-27