#and ive been MEANING to back them up on my usb again too

[cuz-reasons]

I'm going to fuckin throw up

[mcrizzystardust]

mangle is just so mr potato head coded and i lpve that for them 🤭

THAT HEADCANON IS SO FUCKING CUTE. thats so real of u

im trying to convince my audhd brain to watch matpat but have not yet succeeded 😭 wish me luck 🫡

that reminds me of this story!!!

back before i dropped out of highschool, the hs i went to had this kid who was notorious for wearing the same pokemon merch every single day. everyone called him pokemon kid, he was an icon. no one really knew much about him, he didnt really have many close friends, so he was a mystery to everyone. all my memories from around this time are fuzzy around the edges for reasons we wont get into 😭 , and for some reason one day i was spending lunch hour in the library with him. he had a usb stick with games on it, and somehow hacked the school computers to be able to play undertale- which 😭 icon behaviour, it was so real of him (i never got into undertale- but it was still iconic). we ended up being friends after that :) i still think about him sometimes, hope hes doing alright

THATS SO MEAN WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT TO US :(( thumbs supremacy 🥺

bro i love making clothes!!! it doesnt always have to be sewing, ill send you some tips and tricks :)

eda is actually such a milf (and im not even attracted to women) already, but HARPY EDA? bowing down. worshipping. clawing at the bars of my enclosure.

i havent had my natural hair colour in years 😭 quarantine early 2020 was when i finally convinced my mom to let me fully dye my hair, and ive just kept going since then :P ive had so many colours - in order i think theres been: red, orange, red, a buzzcut around this time so actually it was natural for a bit :P, blue, red (for months and months this time around), then i bleached it for the first time! wont get into details, but it didnt go well. at all. and i was in the hospital (not for the bleached hair 😭) so it was a disaster trying to wash it out and take care of it, so it ended up being like, orange? like ginger 😭. then after i got out of the hospital i dyed it blue, then it was purple, and then after that purple faded out there was a few months of it just being shit- like it wasnt my natural colour, all the previous colours and the purple kinda just shat out and my hair looked gross around that time :P around that time is also when i tried to dye my hair one side pink and the other side blue, but i didnt bleach or anything beforehand so it didnt show up like at all. then i got another buzz cut so it was natural for a month or so, then i bleached it (PROPERLY this time 😭) and was blonde, then i tried to dye it green- istfg the box said GREEN. but it came out like, blue, turquoise? 😭 so. that was around for awhile before i bleached my hair and went blonde again, then it was a hot pink, which i let fade until it was a softer tone, then i dyed it red (this was around halloween 2022, when i was going to go as red-haired gerard way to the halloween party!), and let that fade out as well. then i accidentally cut my hair really really short after a break up 😭 and it looked like shit for a few weeks. i tried to put purple on top, but i didnt bleach beforehand so it didnt really show up and all shat together. but then i bleached my hair, shittily (but on purpose this time), so my hair was short and my roots were blonde but the tips were like pink? ish? and it looked really cool :) it gave me a lot of dysphoria tho, so i dyed it black a few weeks later. i ended up moving out of the place i was staying and moving in with my kokom about a month after that, so i was really busy and like just 😭 not okay for a few months, especially because of some events that had transpired, so my black just faded out and for a long while, like a few months, it was just this weird purple? blue? kinda black, not really? green?? it was weird 😭 then around easter, thats when i bleached my hair again then immediately went silver! i tried to dye it black again, but kokom wouldnt let me because she said black is too boring of a colour LMFKDBSJ. then i did green around late may, then i did red around late june, but i didnt bleach it i just put it on top of the green so it turned out this really hot dark red 🤭 i loved it, i kept it around for a long time. around late september, i finally rebleached my hair and put the rest of the red that i had in my hair, but it was so much lighter that time around. it faded, but i redyed it red around halloween using the little i had left because i was going as lock from nightmare before xmas :) then i forget when, but i dyed it purple/blue awhile ago and thats what ive had since then :P god, that was a mental exercise trying to remember everything 😭

unfortunately, my biomother went thru hair school, so she was always the one to cut my hair and do shit :( i remember the first time i ever went to a proper hair stylist was around earlyish 2019, when my biomom was getting married and didnt wanna have to cut my hair herself. i always dye my hair myself, but every once in a blue moon ill go to a hair salon to get it cut. i prefer doing it myself, even though im very bad at it. gives it character :)

hi key!! i see we have several mutual special interests so i Must Know your favorites!

1. who is your favorite fnaf animatronic (mine’s glamrock chica and the puppet!)

2. do you have a favorite calico critters family (gosh those are so nostalgic for me)

and most importantly

3. who is the best owl house character and why is it hunter

hi bee!!! (omg i just now realized our names rhyme)

okay so, bear with me here. i never got into fnaf as a kid, but after the fnaf movie came out apparently everyone i knew was like "omgggg!!!!" and made me feel like i missed out on a cultural phenomenon. so i bought the first game (and i suck at it 😭), and ive been watching markiplier play through it so i know what to expect and to calm my paranoia etc :). im up to sister location, and shit is getting WILD. i know like, the basics of the lore and what happens but GAWDDAMN. anyways! in what ive seen so far, id have to say either foxy, mangle, or circus baby. yes, yes, shes evil, but a girlboss gotta girlboss /j 😭 (no but fr, i just love her backstory and like her character development and kabfjabdj!!)

i dont actually really know many of the families, but the marshmellow mice and the reindeer twins are so cute!!!!! i have two sets of families, i have the maple cats and the persian cats. my fave calico critters of all time are on instagram, @/emocritters!!! its this person who diys critters to look like various members of my chemical romance from their various eras :)))) theyre SO goddamn cute. @fairylittlebitch said he'd get me one once he has enough money and i am forever worshipping his existence, kissing the ground he stands upon, giving him a big fat (platonic and consensual) smooch.

OMG I LOVE HUNTER. hes so KFNKDBDJFH!!2&(!:$)3&3)4.

okay but also hear me out...... the collector. theyre so.

i just. i need to give him a hug. i need to be his friend. i want to comfort them. im !!/$;$&3@2@/'

[themeed]

damn allowed myself to want things for a day and all i want is a van to live in, knowledge, freedom, weight loss, and a bass guitar.

im. happy with that i think. im proud of me, no jokes. im proud of being able to want things and care about them and vibrate towards them with longing. im... pleased with that. its fulfilling in a way Not Wanting For Anything isnt, because thats... kinda hollow. empty. in a vacant, lonely, yearning and grieving and SAD way. maybe because i Couldnt Want then. i Couldnt Desire or it would be used against me or taken away. that sucks. that sucked.

and now. im free to want again. and comparatively???? i think im very much never going to aim for buddhism or that weird Not Desiring Not Attached Nirvana mindset. like good for u but been there out of trauma and its not fun theres no reason to truly Live. u just float endlessly and experience and it aches so badly!!!! it hurts to want to want and not be able to. and i guess that is different from not wanting at all but... its not different enough for me to justify ever going back to that. or going forward to that. i just got this back and screw enlightenment if it means i have to give up on my passions i dont think life is worth living without it.

and anybody who looks down on that from a spiritual tower has yet to examine their own pride and how empty they feel without it.

anybody who looks down and smiles and wishes me luck on my journey? good for them. im glad theyre living their best life, on their journey as they see fit.

and i feel the need to protect myself because ive been hurt by the pride- the arrogance of others before. a lot of my hurts and traumas stem from my mother being too prideful to recognize that she can be wrong and someone under her power could be correct over her. and it was an uncomfortable truth. so she denied it was one at all and hurt me. i know the reason could be elaborated on. she didnt want to confront her own internal logic. or trauma. or even doublethink. that doesnt excuse her hurting a child for the sake of her sense of pride, of comfort, of self-worth. a child under her power, that she claimed to be parent of. teacher of.

not owing anyone anything is not the same as not hurting anyone. i havent reconciled that yet. oppressors should be held accountable for their mistakes, and give reparations if the harm is physical at LEAST. and i think that applies to politics, yes. privately though? if i beat up a nazi, i dont want to pay for his hospital bills. my personal philosophy struggles between equating people and ideas as a worth measurement, and realizing that that line of thinking is... similar to oppressors. but. its based on something people can change. the question is, do i think "if given the opportunity" is a good enough reason to stop and question a racist that runs their mouth? and do i think pre-emptive violence is okay? if say, a nazi walks into a bar and doesnt say anything but is wearing all the red flags and bells and whistles. i dont think that justifies a beatdown. being asked to leave, sure, but the beatdown doesnt start til the first remark flies.

once the intent is given OR the action is taken, the line is drawn. doesnt matter if they Havent Had The Chance. if theyre starting shit outside of debate spaces like that, and not, say, asking questions, theyre not looking for new perspectives, and it is NOT my job to educate people. its not my job to Show People The Light. a quick fucking google search could tell them why theyre wrong. if they havent put even the most basic energy into questioning their beliefs, thats on them.

it sounds like im trying to absolve myself of blame here. largely because. i think i should go out and help educate people because theyre inherently complacent if theyre, yknow, in a position of power. aka white folk and men and rich folk and cis folk and on and on and on. these people dont live my reality. they dont live the reality of a gay black man in the south, or a genderqueer lesbian in the west, or an indigenous woman whose nation is being targeted, or a muslim woman who cannot wear her headcoverings in the face of danger of death, or an asian immigrant who cant get a job because of COVD age discrimination resurging. we will never live each others realities, but we can become aware of them.

they wont come into awareness without someone asking or telling, and then doing something to change them.

we shouldnt need to go running to people in power for them to be aware of problems in the populace, govt is supposed to help and solve issues like this. like. actively. thats the whole point, make life better for the countrys citizens. and individuals in a position of social power...

are individuals who didnt take on a responsibility to protect and serve or otherwise care for the populace of a nation. i personally think they SHOULD care, but they are not obligated to. i cant make them care about others.

and honestly, on some of them, it would be a waste of time. there are people who want to change or question things and yknow what? they seek out answers. in people or places or online usually. stats and stories.

so like. i dont think someones Potential as a person matters when theres a throwdown about to happen. it really isnt my responsibility to save people from themselves or try to change their sides against their will. if they want to chat about it they can ask questions first.

not throw insults or punches or hatred.

what people have been taught is worth analyzing and trying to correct IN SOCIETY but i cant fix every broken white boy that comes to me. PSAs, fliers, outreach, online videos, debate spaces. those are things i already have access to and can be a part of if i really want to go around changing minds. or yknow. get involved in legislation and be myself around others to change their perceptions of whats socially acceptable or normal. maybe protest, maybe call congressfolk, etc.

but not every comment has to be analyzed or a learning opportunity. im allowed to shut it down, and people can respect that or stop talking to me. this isnt my parents house where i had to justify everything that i said or did when scrutinized, and doubly justify any criticism i had of mother, or any joke i frowned at instead of smiling.

these people dont have that power over me. they arent my mother. they arent my boss, and if they are i can fuck off and get a new job if necessary. they dont have financial control over my living space and food and schooling and physical control of where i can go and with who and for how long. I CONTROL THAT. I do.

Huh. maybe thats why i want a van so bad. i mean... when this lease ends if nobody is gonna end up living with me...

i could just... live in my car and shower at truck stops. get a storage unit for my stuff. save by driving jobs. like 40 to 60 a day. tear out my cars back, insulate it, and install my mattress pad there. water on the floor, cooler next to it, wooden cutting coard, knife, single camping plateware set, and another little shelf for spices. maybe a hot plate i can hook up to the car battery? get a long enough usb and it might be doable. i could go camping and open the trunk to just... vibe.

because yeah, honestly? i dont plan on having a solid apartment for a bit. like a long bit. and i still have like 70000 miles on my car before itll want to go. and by that point, even at like 100 miles a day, thats like 2 years, less if i go cross country in that vehicle. i could save up SO MUCH for a better vehicle, or like. college. live on campus, get some credit, continue working after i figure out want i want to do.

i think thats a solid plan, even if i dont get another apartment and put everything in storage. work as i need to instead of all the time for rent, really only paying for gas, car repairs, car ins, food, and phone data/hotspot internet... that would bring my monthly expenses down to like 500 a month max instead of like 1400. id only need to make some 1000 a month doing contract stuff to save for taxes and stuff. anything extra would be just that: extra for savings and things. holy shit.

depending on how this next month goes for my friends, holy s h i t.

i. i might do this. legitimately.

i. dont think i can yet. i need proof of address to get my license im pretty sure? but hey, thatll be my 21st this year, so. once i have that i wont need a new address for a While. i dont know if ill want one, really.

i could always just ask a friend or family member if i could use theirs for mail that cant go to a PO box.

anyway. yeah. wow.

[humankoalaa]

Black Lightning 3X08

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

krondons eyes are so pretty.

anissas in flannel cause she misses grace. it is law.

lolol gambi told anissa pierce her powers are back then told her she should rest 🤡

and well nissa said exactly what everyone thought.... PLEASE.

everytime they bring up jeff was an olympian a track star at that it kills me 😂 everytime he runs in an episode im like wayment.... sumn don’t add up 😩 IM SORRY.

anissa you bet not go ask jamila 🙄

tobias.... are you flirting with and insulting this woman? 😂

this clown 🤣🤣🤣🤣 he stays with the earth wind and fire jokes.

lynn tawm bout she aint naiive 🤣 GIRL.

lynn.... you’re too smart to be THIS stupid. im tiyerd y’all.

tobias like that little kid at the park you know ain’t shit but you like listen to his bullshit cause he might be woke when really he’s just using you to see just how stupid you are and you’re too stupid to realize it cause well.... math.

“pantene commercial looking ass” 🤣🤣 okay auntie.

jenns wig 😩 i can’t. CANNOT.

jamila ass damn near wet herself when she saw blackbird sis licking her chops and everything 🤣🤣 if she only knew what we know 🙂 you hads dem cakes already sis .... how you don’t know them eyebrows jamila?!! howwww 🥴

jeff and this damn shoulder towel in the kitchen 🤣🤦🏾‍♀️

“what i do now?” 😩😂 jeff is TIYERD y’all.

jenn and all these parties she blames for everything 😂🤦🏾‍♀️

jace need to die.

there go ex trackstar jefferson pierce looking like he just learned to run at breakfast but i digress. and don’t even blame him being up in age. that form y’all 😩 SORRY.

mrs. shepard chilling in the crib growing selling her weed and sis even got a lil gun 😭 a queen i stan.

man ain’t nobody take more L’s and disappointment speeches than Jeff 😩 leave my grandad alone man.

i know dass right pawpaw. LFG!!!!

black lightning got the littist soundtrack ever. black moses is zat funk!

battery ram that! sunny with a chance of meatballs looking mother fu... 😴

yes uncle gambi! so do WE!

nissa looking at the thunder suit like she BETTER look at Grace when she comes back.

“sir... we really doing this?.... lil old lady just wants to stay in her apartment” - EVERYONE and the ASA agent who ain’t tryna get barbecued ❤️

them orders gon get you fried big dawg.

WAIT! thunder said hold my beer came in stomped dat ass. ive missed that lil inhale so much 😭

LMAO timeout! so they just gon disrespect jeff whilst he holding shit down? agent beret said fall back soon as thunder came in 🤣🤣🤣🤣 they got to stop doing jeff dirty on HIS own show 😩🤦🏾‍♀️ that just tickled me to pieces.

awwwww jeff when he sees anissa as thunder 😭 a reunion i stan. their smiles y’all ima cry. ive missed them fighting ALONGSIDE 😩

oh no... no no ... what in the hell i know they got black lightning and thunder... but henderson and friends really bout to rise up against the ASA with shotguns?! like are y’all gonna ask for a timeout to reload while these fools got automatic everything?! a ninja dat goes by painkiller and he got venom and whatever else he got in the usb? you know what... ima leave it alone for the story 🤦🏾‍♀️ i can’t 😂🥴

gambi... you posed to be dead 😩

soon as gambi said “show yourself” i started singing the song from frozen 2. 🎶 SHOW YOURSELF. IM READY TO LEAARRRNNN AAAHHH AAA AAAAHH AAAHHH 🎶 😩

awwww gambi forever winning allllsss the trust.

lynn you can’t be this stupid 😂 tobias is literally not even trying and she’s just like say no more bae i mean friend? ugh just a mess.

im just mad that jenns wig is the way it is 🤦🏾‍♀️ but at least hair makes her feel less like a freak.... if SHE only knew what WE know bout her ex 👀

barron... i mean TC... you wanna come talk to my bank account and all the ATM’s within a 20 mile radius of my crib?

i need TC and gambi to become besties.

ooooooo painkiller and thunder let’s go!

lmao “cute suit” ...THIS painkiller is my favorite version of khalil.

Lmao he sized her up like “shit... this might’ve been a bad idea” she hit his ass so hard that brain chip looked like it shorted out 😩

oh shit i forgot she didn’t use her powers last time they fought... ruh roh. OMG she’s beating his ass 🤣🤣🤣🤣 he sized her up again 😭 shit thunder look like she got stronger 🤤

yeah that chip fried oh shit she beat his ass back to reality and now she knows hes khalil 🤭

no khalil. put the glasses back on and just leave. you don’t wants no smoke 😩 AYYYYYY thunderclap dat ass.

lmao i love how painkiller goes down and agent beret just asks “how” 😩😂 like really dude?! how you don’t know real metas vs makeshift metas only ends well for the real ones?

TC telling gambi move is a whole mood. PLEASE tell me they become pals 😭

it’s starting to look like they bout to get into the outsiders arc. i am spongebob ready! hear me?!

lynn said i need to get the cure and grabbed all the nearest green light 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 mannnnnn why they do my nana like this 😩

ion know who that ASA dude is but he a real one.

she screaming for her bag im 💀💀💀💀 yes cold turkey her ass!

lmao down goes agent beret!

🤣🤣🤣🤣 mrs. sheppard said she gotta check on her plants 💀

another great episode! see y’all next week before the drought 😭

[fatandnerdy30]

The Itsy Bitsy Spider 11

Adrian slammed into his work space with an angry scream. He kicked a few tables, including one Phineas was working at. The blonde man stared at him. "So how was your day?"

"Not good," he growled. "SO we got a new gig...we're working with Hydra." The tinkerer's face went white. "Wait, wait, what!? You said to never get involved with them, and now you're telling me we're involved with them?" Adrian nodded. "Yes. But not by choice. They have Liz and Doris." Phineas was stunned to say the least. "Justin Hammer has them, and he's working for Hydra, so that means now so are we." Toomes growled again, punching the wall. "Hey, hey, what's all the racket out here? I'm trying to take a nap," Herman yelled as he stormed out of the back. Adrian turned with a smile, and Shultz knew he was in trouble."I'm sorry, Herman. I didn't mean to interrupt your bedtime with my damn life!!" Adrian yelled, picking up a piece of scrap and throwing it at Herman, who dodged it. "Whoa! Man, calm down!" "Calm down!? I'll be calm when I've got my goddamned family back!!" The man put his hands up placatingly, and backed away. "Okay, okay. So, what's the job?" Adrian sat down heavily, slamming his elbow on the table, his head falling into his palm. "We have to take something back," he mumbled, massaging his temple. "That's easy," Phineas smiled. "Who do we have to steal from?" "That's the hard part...the Avengers." Phineas made a face. "Oooh yeah. I can see how that would be tough. Um," he began sifting through his pile of stuff when they heard a noise. All three men tensed and turned, only to see Hammer walking through the room. "Gentlemen, ugh," Justin snarked while looking around. "I have to invest in a better hideout for you, seriously. What is this, a junkyard? Yeesh." The man tugged on his suit jacket and brushed off his sleeves, flicking off imaginary dirt. "Hammer, what are you doing here?" Adrian growled, getting up. "Oh, you know, I wanted to come 'hang with my homies', get to know you guys, yadda yadda yadda. Justin Hammer, by the way," he introduced himself to the two men looking at him like he had three heads. "Yeah, I know who you are," Herman said. "Oh, good to know my reputation hasn't diminished since I was in jail. I just got finished making a deal with Oscorp for an assembly factory to make my androids. This place it perfect! It's got balls to the walls adva-" he got cut off by his phone. "One moment, gentleman," he reached into his pocket. "Hello?" The trio looked at one another, then snapped their attention to Hammer, who had started yelling at the phone. "What do you mean I can't get what I ordered?!" Justin screamed as he waved his hands, taking a deep breath a second later. "Alright, alright. Let me see what I can dig up while I'm here. No, I am not going to tell you where I am, because I'm sure you know and am tracking this phone as we speak." He ended the call with a frustrated sigh. "Lemme borrow that," he asked the blonde man and immediately walked past him to the computer, pulling out a USB and plugged it in, then started typing commands. "And....there we go!" He stood and smiled. "And what was that, exactly?" Adrian asked, leaning against the table. "Well, I got a call from Mr. Ward, an agent of Hydra's, who said that my shipment of droids wouldn't be arriving. I fixed that, so they should be at my lab within three hours." The man shrugged. "So, here's the plan gentlemen." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bruce had joined the four person group with the rest of the team and Tony had to roll his eyes. "Oh I see, everyone hears I'm springing for lunch, and then you all come running. Where are the others?" "Yup," Clint said, winking at Morgan and Peter who were giggling. "Wanda and Bucky decided to go do some googly-eyes at each other and Sam is out there somewhere, probably trying to train to get faster than Cap." "Hello Peter," Bruce said to the boy, who shyly waved. "How are you feeling?" "I-I'm okay," he said. "Just have to get used to the enhanced senses." "Oh yeah, about that. Bruce, I'd like to run a few tests with him before he leaves, you know, before and after," Roger's said, smiling at the boy in Tony's pocket. "Only if I'm there to make sure no one gets hurt," Tony said, noticing Happy jogging towards them looking frazzled and red in the face. "What happened to waiting for me?" he gasped angrily. "But that wouldn't keep you on your toes. Come on, lets go." he started walking towards a limo since there were a lot more of them now."Happy, take us to the nearest place with a salad bar," Mr. Stark called as soon as everyone was in the car. His guard looked at him in the rear view mirror with a deadpan face."Do I look like MapQuest to you?" he asked grumpily, buckling his seat belt. "Who even uses that anymore?" the billionaire asked, raising a brow. "Do you want me to drive? I can get us to something rather than complaining." "No! I will drive, thank you very much." Happy sighed and typed something into his phone, then started driving. Peter climbed out from the man's pocket and jumped over the window, pressing his whole body against it and watched the huge world go by. "Hey, lollipop guild, get down before you fall," Mr. Stark said. "I would swear they used jumping spider DNA with the way you get around." "I won't fall. And maybe they did," the boy said, looking back. The man grunted as Morgan climbed over his lap to join Peter, her head above the boy. "Look what you started, kid. I swear, you're an instigator," he smiled at the two kids smiling at him then turned back. Morgan started playing a game of banana, the two poking each other whenever they saw a yellow car, Peter almost falling a few times with the force of Morgan's pokes.. When they grew bored of the game after a half hour, Peter lounged on the window, basking in the sunlight, while Morgan was busy asking Thor questions about Norway. Tony smiled and leaned back, taking Pepper's hand. Peter opened his eyes when his senses told him someone was coming. Doctor Banner had moved to sit nearer to him, smiling and showing his hands. "I promise I have no needles," he joked, making Peter smile. "Hello, Doctor Banner," the boy said, letting his feet hang from where he sat in front of the window. "Hello, Peter." he looked nervous, which was funny to the teen, because he was the much bigger person here. "Listen...I know you don't trust me, which I understand. But, I...well, I hate being a source of fear for you, for anybody, really. I've had too much of that in the past." He sighed and took off his glasses. "What I'm saying is-" "Doctor Banner," Peter interrupted the man, blushing. "I...I am scared of anyone who wears a lab coat. I know you're a good person, but you're still a scientist at heart. I know you get excited about what I'm capable of, and that's what makes me nervous." He looked down at his fingers, twisting them together. "And I know that you are a scientist as well," Bruce said. "I know that you're wondering what you're capable of, too. And I'm willing to help you find out. No needles, no IV's, I promise. Maybe you can even help figure out how to help fix you." The teen looked up at the man. "About that...I was wondering....maybe you can help me with something I've been trying to figure out? I mean, I have the formula in my head, but, I can't reach everything I would need. It would help me get around by myself a little better when no one's around." He couldn't believe he was asking a scientist for help. But, Doctor Banner hadn't hurt him yet, not even when drawing blood. He'd been kind and gentle, and that put Peter at ease a little. If there was someone he could trust, it seemed like it was the man in front of him. "Oh, yeah sure!" Bruce smiled, his eyes lighting up. "If you could write it down, I can help you, no problem." There was a jerk in the motion of the car and everyone looked around. Peter turned and looked out the window, his face going pale, his head buzzing like crazy. "Get away from the window!" He cried just as the glass shattered. Doctor Banner was the closest to him to grab the boy, pulling him away from the window. Morgan had been thrust to the floor, Pepper over her, a blue armor forming on the woman's body as she protected her child. "Bruce," Tony warned the doctor, who nodded. "I'll try!" he shouted as a car next to the limo crashed, the entire vehicle shaking from the impact. "What the hell is that!?" Clint had his head out of the sunroof, a bow in forming in his hands from his ring. He stared up at what looked like a man in a wing suit, with green eyes glowing from his helmet. Another missile was loading and pointed directly at the limo. Clint looked back. "He's got missiles!" he warned, seeing Tony jump into action, the suit crawling over his body, sunglasses dissolving into it as well. "Get Peter and Morgan out of here!" the man's robotic voice said, then he jumped through the sunroof. Bruce stared at the little teen in his hands and Morgan who was gripping onto her mother, sobbing for her not to go. He couldn't leave her here, but he couldn't leave the rest of them to deal with this mess either. "Bruce!" Pepper shouted. "Go!" she thrust the little girl at him, Peter had already crawled up to the man's shoulder so he could take the girl. "We're already calling in reinforcements!" "Stark! All I want is what you stole!" the man floating above the car said, his voice projecting through his helmet. "What is this guy talking about? Clint asked from on top of the car, shooting his arrows one after another. There was another explosion just as the doctor opened the car door, and Bruce felt the heat of the flames hit his body, and there was nothing he could do. The pain hit him hard, so hard, it turned his skin green. He tried to force the Hulk back, but it was too late. He could feel the rage monster coming out, feel his muscles ripping and tearing before he fell into blissful nothingness. With Morgan in the monster's arms, the Hulk suddenly exploded from the limo, roaring his anger at the man floating in the sky. Morgan sobbed as she was swung from the green monster's arm, holding on to the green giant's muscles for safety. She looked back to see her mother staring in horror as her daughter was subject to the Hulk. She felt eyes on her and looked up to see the green thing staring down at her, its eyes soft and gentle, like Doctor Banner's. "Hulk keep safe," he whispered gruffly, his vision moving to Peter who stood on the green man's shoulder, staring at him. The boy's face filled with fear when Hulk started moving his hand toward the boy. "Hulk keep both safe." Peter could only gasp as the monstrous hand engulfed him in darkness. "Hey!" he pounded on one of the fingers, which twitched, but that was it. "Let me out! Please!" Hulk on the other hand was paying the small boy no mind, focused on dodging the bullets that sprayed at him from the robot that had appeared on the scene out of nowhere. They felt like horsefly bites, stinging and annoying him, but it seemed like they were only trying to get him, and everyone else was just a deterrent. Hulk turned his head, baring his teeth with a growl. "No more!" he roared, feeling the girl in his arm jump. That got him angrier. He roared at the robot, keeping the girl in front of him to keep her safe. He ran as fast as he could, until suddenly his legs were bound from behind, tripping the Hulk up, sending the kids flying. He could see Morgan, but Peter was too small. The teen cried out as the feeling of buoyancy, feeling his stomach raise up to his throat. It stopped when he was caught but, it wasn't human hands he was in. Metal fingers were all around him and at first he thought it was Mr. Bucky, but when they opened and a robotic face stared down at him, he screamed. The droid suddenly jerked and the hands let Peter drop. The boy screamed as hit the ground, rolling a bit, and saw Morgan just on the edge of the highway border, the chunk of concrete destroyed by a truck that had crashed into it. Peter was in pain, but he had to get to her before she fell into the oncoming traffic that was rushing to get away from the battle below! The boy got to his feet, grimacing as he took a few steps, his eyes on the little girl. Morgan was moving, sobs coming from her. The girl rolled a fraction of an inch, then suddenly there was no more ground. With a cry, she scrambled to grab purchase, feeling the asphalt scraping up her fingers until she could feel the wetness of the blood. She sobbed, feeling her legs flailing and looked down, letting out an ear piercing scream. She felt something and looked to see Peter standing before her, his hands grabbing her sleeve. "It's alright!" he cried. "I've got you!" the boy panted as he planted his feet, his grip on the girl's sleeve relentless, pain filling his face. "Just keep your eyes on me!" he cried. He groaned as he pushed against the border, feeling his shoulders pop he screamed, but he still kept pulling, and a second later Morgan moved an inch toward him. He felt his heart flutter and forced himself to keep going, keep pulling. Soon her torso was over the road and the girl used her arms to help pull herself up, letting Peter fall back, panting. The two were trembling for very different reasons, but they were safe. "It's okay," Peter reassured the girl who was staring at him with trusting eyes. She was safe, that was all that mattered.Then, their sense of peace was destroyed by a robot appearing behind them, its lifeless red eyes in its gray tin head focused on Peter. "Get down!!" Peter cried, and the girl turned, her eyes widening. "DADDY!!" Morgan screamed, covering Peter with her bloody hands. Suddenly, something flew from above and knocked the robot down. "Are you alright?" Sam asked, firing his gun at the robot, frowning when nothing happened. "I want my daddy!" the girl sobbed, rubbing her face with one hand. Peter put his hand on her thigh, rubbing it gently.. "It's okay. I'm here. Can you move?" he asked the girl, who nodded. "We have to get away from here, so your mommy and daddy can fight without worrying, okay?" He waited for the girl to nod. "Good girl. Now,-" he was cut off by a large piece of asphalt dropping from the sky, landing on top of him, the weight pinning half his body under it. He cried out from the pain, unable to move his legs, feeling the gravelly surface grinding his skin down every time he tried. He felt it shift and looked up to see Morgan trying to lift the rock from him. "Just run!" He screamed, watching another robot flying over head, focused on the little girl.  "GO!" Then, Thor was there, grabbing the girl, but  apparently he didn't see Peter and took off. "Peter!" Morgan cried, her bloody hand still reaching for him. "We have to go back for Peter! He's stuck!" "I can not do that, Morgan. We need to get you away from the battle first, then I will go back for the small one! Now hold on." The girl sobbed into her 'uncle's' shoulder for her friend. ~~ Tony shot the bot, their design looking familiar, while keeping an eye on the flying guy at the same time. "Friday, give me a scan on both targets." "On it boss," the AI replied.Tony ducked a car thrown at him, then heard a familiar roar followed by a thud. He glanced over his shoulder to see the Hulk down, but then snapping the bonds that entangled his legs a second later. "I'm on the scene," Sam's voice came over the communicator. "Oh shit, is that Peter?" The man's voice sounded shocked. "Anyone know if this kid has super strength?" "Just get my kids out of here!" Tony snapped, too upset to miss the slip up, because he couldn't get to them himself. He missed what Sam said, Friday's voice speaking up. "The man in the suit is Adrian Toomes, boss," Friday told him. "He's a small time thief." It seemed as though Toomes were searching the ground, even getting a little closer. "What's he doing here then? How about the droids?" Tony asked, shooting another robot down, chunks of asphalt went flying. Where the hell were they coming from? "I can't get an exact location!" "That's just great," he muttered. "Thor, we could really use your hammer here, buddy!" "I'm a little busy at the moment, Stark! I have your daughter, I'm taking her to safety," Thor told him and Tony felt his heart start beating again."Just Morgan? What about Peter?" "I could not find him and it was getting too dangerous," Thor replied. Tony turned when he heard Pepper's repuslors go off. "Pep, can you find Peter!?" The woman grunted as she blocked a robot's arm, then blasted it. "I can't shake this guy!" She yelled. "I don't want to put him in danger!" Natasha grunted as she shot at the flying man, watching every one of her bullets bounce off a blue shield. "Shit. My bullets can't pierce his armor!" "Let me try," Wanda flew in from nowhere, getting right in the man's face. "Hello." She lifted her hands. "Goodbye." Suddenly before she could make contact with her powers, an energy pulse was shot at her, making the woman cry out as electricity shot through her body. "Wanda!" Bucky screamed. He watched his girlfriend fall to the ground and screamed, lifting his guns. But, as much as he shot, they didn't make a dent in the man. "My turn," Tony said. He lifted his arm and his armor shifted to a plasma gun, the whine of the weapon powering up in the man's ears before it exploded from him. Just as it was about to hit, something lit up on Adrian's suit and spread around him, stopping the blast with a wave of blue. "Nice try, Stark!" Toomes spoke with amusement. "Your weapons can't touch me! I'm invincib-" Rhodey came flying at the man from behind, tackling him between his mechanical wings. "How about a man?" he asked, bringing the man down. They skidded to the ground, sparks flying from their suits until they stopped. Rhodey punched Toomes, the man's head snapping back, one wing sparking and crooked from the fall. "Big mistake," Toomes said. His hand sparked and before anyone could warn him, Rhodey was sent flying from the man and Toomes scrambled to his feet, and git into the air with a struggle. The colonel came crashing down on the roof of a car, shaking his head. "Okay, no one saw that?" he complained. "Quit complaining, he's getting away! And someone find Peter!"" Tony snapped, his repulsors already firing up, but stopped when he found himself staring at a man's face projected by the robots surrounding him. "Hello, Tony."

@sparrowrider @letsbeinspiredby @carttorchdeatth @6inchicon @ixlovexirondad

[theblueskyphoenix]

Grid Ghost Chapter 2: Down and Out

Obake was doing his best to keep himself from falling over. He only had another block or so to go before he reached his destination. He could taste copper in his mouth.

Never a good sign.

His steps were staggering, his vision flickering but he kept pushing till he was finally through a set of doors. Soon as he passed through, he let himself fall to the floor, his eyes sliding shut.

Before he blacked out entirely, he could hear people coming towards him. Their voices had a slight panic to them yet they were mostly calm.

The last thing he could hear clearly was someone shouting:

“Get him on a stretcher and have an OR on standby!”

I’ll leave the rest to you, now.

Please, don’t kill me.

oooooo

Dr. Shaylin Sky was used to crazy.

When you sign up to be a doctor, it was a given that anything could possibly go wrong and anything could possibly happen during a shift at a hospital and you just had to learn to roll with it and not question things.

Though sometimes she wished nights could be quieter. Especially when she was about to head home.

It had been a long day of appointments and assisting surgeons in surgery and trying to get the hospital back in proper working order after everything went to heck with concerns of the city being destroyed by a star that seemed to come out of nowhere.

And now… she had an unconscious man she was rushing to an OR after exams had revealed he was suffering massive amounts of internal bleeding in the abdominal region.

Along with something else that was definitely not normal but I don’t got time for that. Treat and stabilize now, ask questions later.

As soon as the man was in the OR she quickly scrubbed in before joining in on the procedure.

“Shouldn’t you be heading home?” The surgeon asked as he started to make incisions into the affected areas. “And is a blood transfusion on the way?”

“I would be, Leon, but I had a man pass out on the floor in front of me and you know I don’t like dropping a patient and running, even if I’m supposed to be gone by now and yes, I got the boys looking through our O- stash as we speak.

"Devoted as ever and good, because he’s losing a lot and fast.” Leon narrowed his eyes. “What the heck did he do to himself? Throw himself off a building?”

“Doubt it, considering the only broken bones I saw in the scans were a couple of ribs. If he had been thrown off a building there would be a lot more broken. Though with the bruises he’s got on him he certainly had something rough happen be it a landing or a fight. Just not sure what.”

“Questions we can ask him once he’s stable and awake. Clamps, please.”

Shaylin handed Leon on the tool in question.

“Oh, trust me, I got a LOT of questions for this guy once he’s conscious and lucid.”

“That’s an omen.” Leon looked to Shaylin with some concern. “See something of interest in your exam?”

“Nothing harmful… I think but it was… definitely of interest.”

“Wanna enlighten me?”

“Drain blood and fix injuries first, then I’ll tell you.”

“Very well.” Leon eyed the man’s face before getting back to work. “Though, gotta say, it’s a miracle he made it here on his own. You said he stumbled on in?”

“Yeah. Again, not sure what the story is but I’m sure we’ll find out soon.”

And I get the feeling it’s going to be a weird one.

oooooo

For Obake, it had only been a few minutes between when he had blacked out to when he was waking up again. He knew it had certainly been longer than a few minutes he just wasn’t sure how much longer.

As he opened his eyes, he could hear the faint sounds of a heart monitor beeping and the dripping of an IV bag.

Those are sounds that bring back memories…

“Just a little longer, Bob. You’re almost done.”

“Just a few more drops then we can go home and watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles together like you promised, Daddy! You can do it!”

For a moment, he was back in that treatment bed again, his daughter holding his hand while his wife monitored his vitals. He could see a young Trina smiling at him, hopefulness in her light blue eyes as she helped keep him comfortable.

It all quickly faded as a voice broke the illusion, revealing he was in an ICU room with a woman he didn’t recognize.

The woman appeared to be of latina descent with tan skin and light brown hair that was pulled into a loose ponytail. She had a look of concern in her deep blue eyes. Judging from the lab coat and ID tag she had hanging around her neck, she was most likely a doctor.

He squinted his eyes to read the name on the ID tag.

“Dr. Shaylin Sky”

“With me?” she asked.

“More or less.” He said, practically whispered. He cringed, bringing a hand to his abdomen. “What happened…?”

“You collapsed in our ER bay. You were rushed in for emergency surgery after some quick tests. You had a couple of broken ribs and massive internal bleeding in the abdominal region due to damage done to various organs. All of it was treated and you’re stable now and are on strict bed rest till further notice.”

“I see… perfect.” Obake sighed, looking up at the ceiling. “Anything else I need to know about in regards to injuries?”

“No… More so I need to know about something.”

Obake looked to Shaylin, raising an eyebrow.

“What do you mean?”

Shaylin crossed her arms.

“You got an interesting looking implant on the left side of your skull… and a pretty nicely sized tumor to boot. I doubt those are things you don’t know about. Care to explain?”

Obake glanced to the side.

“… I have to ask a question before I can answer anything in regards to those two things. Are you associated with Sycorax or Liv Amara?”

Shaylin gave a disgusted look.

“The day I associate with that woman or her company is the day I resign from being a doctor. No offense to her and her work but I don’t like her attitude. She’s just…. condescending and sometimes has no regards for morality… It's… a long story. Either way, no, I am not associated with her, nor is this particular hospital. They’re not rich enough for her. Who wants to know?”

Obake let out another sigh.

“Bob Aken wants to know, that’s who.”

Shaylin’s eyes widened at this, though kept her composure.

“Go on.”

Obake closed his eyes.

“I’ve had this tumor in my head since I was 15 years old that manifested due to a rather unfortunate accident with an experiment. It was managed with chemo treatments for the longest time till around last year when someone came in, claiming they could help me. This someone being Liv Amara.” Obake opened his eyes, his implant letting off a glow for a second. “This implant was supposed to cure me… when it all it did was make things worse.” His eyes narrowed. “She took everything from me that day I entered her operating room doors… all with a simple series of shocks.”

“Your family is none of your concern anymore, Obake. Your concern is making your mark on San Fransokyo. To be remembered as a legend.”

Obake was panting, grabbing at the table as electricity pulsed through his mind.

“Ngh! No! Kim… Trina… I… Gck! I need to…”

“Shhhh…” Liv brought a hand to his cheek again, stroking it with her thumb. “They’re not here anymore… It’s just you, Obake. You’re alone. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Think of all you can do. No limits whatsoever. You can be the genius you longed to be. You can make great accomplishments. You can make Grace regret ever abandoning you in your time of need. You can make her wish she had never given up on you.”

“I… I….” Obake’s pupils dilated. “I could be… remembered by all…”

“That’s right.” Liv smiled. “You just have to do exactly as I tell you. There’s no Bob Aken anymore. There is only Obake. A ghost. But soon to be remembered and revered by all.”

“Remembered… and revered by all.”

Obake grabbed at the blankets of his bed, lowering his head.

“I haven’t been in my right mind for awhile now… and I want it to stop. And I only know one person I could trust with my head.” Obake looked at Shaylin. “Do you know Dr. Kim Aken?”

Shaylin nodded.

“I do. She’s a dear friend of mine… who has been dearly missing her husband who disappeared around last year.” Shaylin’s look turned gentle. “And it seems he’s finally been found.”

Obake nodded.

“Can you get me to her? And do you have my things? There’s some important equipment in that backpack I came in with along with the USB I had around my neck.”

“Yes and yes. I have your possessions in my office for safekeeping and I can contact Kim’s hospital right away and have you transferred.”

“Thank you… Where is she at, by the way?”

“Saga Regional Hospital.”

Home…

“Good… I want to get away from this city for a bit.” Obake leaned back into his pillow. “Too much crime and too much noise.”

Shaylin chuckled.

“Kim said the same thing.” She gave a small smile. “You know, she never stopped looking for you. Even came here for a bit with her daughter in hopes they’d find you. They’re going to be so happy when they see you.”

“Maybe… though I’m expecting irritation considering my current state.”

And telling them what I’ve been doing for the past year. That’s going to be fun.

“Possibly. Kim’s more level headed than I am. If you were my husband you would’ve gotten a slight pow pow.”

“And a sandal?”

“That’s la chancla to you, mister.”

“Nuance.”

Shaylin rolled her eyes, getting up from her chair.

“I’ll go make some calls then. Can I get you anything?”

Obake gave a small smirk.

“I have a blueberry scone in a tupperware in that backpack of mine. I’d like to eat it now, please.”

Shaylin smirked, shaking her head.

“You’re not gonna be able to enjoy it as you are so, patience on that one.”

“Oh, come now, I know how to eat slow.”

“Eat it when you don’t have a tumor the size of a ping pong ball suppressing your right from wrong junction.”

Shaylin left without another word.

Obake gave a flat look, plopping his head into his pillow.

It’s called the temporo-parietal junction, plebeian.

… And it’s not the size of a ping pong ball!

[osmw1]

Dimension Wave   Chapter 6—Revenge and Results

“It’s about time to get revenge.”

I was too caught up in making a killing off of Empty Cans and forgot about my true goal—The Big One. Even if that’s not my true goal, I’m not about to make picking up cans a career. It’s been a week since and my Energy and Skills have been upgraded accordingly. I might have a chance now. I check my status just in case.

Name/ Kizuna†Exceed Race/ Spirit Energy/ 6,340 Mana/ 150 Serin/ 148,540

Skills/ Energy Production VI, Mana Production IV, Fishing Mastery III, Gutting Mastery II, Transmutation I

Energy Production VI Generates 2,000 Energy per hour Costs 2,600 Mana to upgrade.

Mana Production IV Generates 50 Mana per hour Consumes 1,400 Energy per hour Costs 3,200 Mana to upgrade

Fishing Mastery III All actions with a fishing rod receives a 30% buff. Consumes 400 Energy per hour. Costs 400 Mana to upgrade.

Gutting Mastery II All actions with a gutting weapon receives a 20% buff. Consumes 200 Energy per hour. Costs 200 Mana to upgrade.

Transmutation I Converts items to Energy.

Right now, I consume as much Energy as I produce, so I’m only barely scraping by with Transmutation I. Mastery skills are usually unlocked by gaining a certain item count. For Fishing Mastery, it’s based on how many fish you’ve caught. I unlocked Gutting Mastery by obtaining 1,000 items through gutting. Rank I was fairly easy to unlock, but II is a huge leap up. With Fishing Mastery, it jumped from catching 100, to 500, then to 1,000 fish. Gutting Mastery increases similarly.

I heard from Alto that combat Masteries are unlocked by getting a certain number of kills with the appropriate weapon. I’m not sure whether it’s a little-known fact or that no one fully understands it yet, but it’s rumored that using a gutting weapon that’s effective on your opponent will make them drop special items. Though the low damage of gutting weapons is somewhat of a controversial topic. Well, in any case, it seems like people have figured it out. Even for such a controversy, you still gotta use it to get the drops you need.

Right now, I have equipped a set of cerulean, indigo clothes called the “Caterpillar”. There’s a superstition among us fishers that one can catch a lot more by wearing dark colors when fishing at night. It seems like fishers in real life have a similar belief. I’m not sure whether it’s true or not, but since I had been fishing a lot at night for Empty Cans, I’m praying to the gods that my dark clothes will make a difference.

Anyway, time to get fishing today. By the way, it’s early morning right now. It was at noon when The Big One got away that time. It might just mean that I have a chance at noon again. And later today, the three of us… sisters are planning to get together.

I’m definitely catching The Big One. My one week of effort will not go to waste.

I fervently fished for 10 hours. I’ve been catching nothing but herring since six this morning. There wasn’t even so much a sign of The Big One. It might have just really been a coincidence that The Big One bit that time. Even if it takes me days or weeks, I will catch you. Mark my words.

—Herring obtained.

“Another herring? Odd how there are so many of them today.”

Upgrading Fishing Mastery is supposed to increase the catch rate of all fish, but for some reason, I’ve caught nothing but herrings today. I stick it in the creel jam-packed with all the other herring.

“… the God of Herring must be here with me.”

Well, I don’t think any god would show up in a video game. Or no, actually. Maybe there indeed are gods in this game’s world. Who knows?

“… hmm?”

A great shadow appears on the surface of the water. I tightly grasp my fishing rod with ever-growing anticipation. Don’t get impatient. Don’t you dare rush this. Be absolute. I’m no longer the same person I was a week ago. No way I’m letting you get away this time.

“C’mere, c’mere, c’mere…”

I may be wrought with anxiety, but I focus on the tip of my rod and not the shadow in the water. It’s just as I’ve practiced up ‘til now.

“That’s a bite!”

It’s the same snatch I felt on that day before I fell into the sea. I plant myself to the ground and brace myself. Then I felt a strong tug directly from the rod.

That sensation is a little fuzzier than usual. It gets stronger on every tug with the blips like hit detection or something. But I’m not about to lose at this test of might.

“Have at my Fishing Mastery III!”

Carefully and rapidly does this shift in offense and defense change. It’s the strongest opponent I’ve faced thus far. It truly is The Big One.

The battle drew out for another 30 minutes. The Big One was getting tired. Taking the chance, I press on with my attack. My fishing rod creaks and my focus is starting to wane, but since I’m in a game, I think I’ll be alright.

“This is the ultimate showdown!”

The blips continue to pulse through the rod.

And then, The Big One flies out of the water—

“Ahahahaha! What the heck is that?! It’s huge! A huge herring!”

With a dissatisfied look on my face, I met up with my two sisters. Strapped to my back is a giant fish. Correction: it’s The Big One—a giant herring. The Big One was just a herring all along! People point and stare at it on my back. It’s rough.

I was just about to put it into my inventory when Kanata and Tsugumi showed up. And right now, Tsugumi is taking screenshot after screenshot of me… I guess not so much screenshots, but photographs. All screenshots are saved in the USB flash drive we were given for our character creation. But similarly, I’ve taken a few pictures of the fish I caught. And of course, that includes The Big One. For some reason though, people have been striking weird poses when they see me and the fish…

“Don’t laugh at your brother, Tsugumi… pfft!” “Speak for yourself!”

But seriously. Who’da thunk that The Big One would be a herring? And why herring? They don’t seem that tasty either… In any case, the three of us managed to meet up together. It’s the first time I’ve seen them in game… and it really boggles my mind.

“Why am I the littlest one?” “I’ve always wanted another little sister!”

Kanate is a Human. It’s no surprise she’s pretty since we’re in a game, but her character is actually beautiful. She’s got two very visible protrusions too. Her chest is big in real life, but these are bigger. But it’s not that simple either. There’s jiggle physics. They have a bit of a sag to them.

“Me too!”

Tsugumi is a Lycanthrope. It’s called Lycanthrope, but instead fox ears flop from her heard and accent her character. Her face, though, looks somewhat like her older sister’s. Her breasts are neither large nor small. To be precise, they’re exactly the size of a dating sim heroine. She’s quite a bit taller than me though… about as tall as a middle schooler?

“That’s your reason for making me a loli?  Oh, but of course.”

And that leaves me, a Spirit. My body is quite transparent, my chest flat, and all in all petite. I look vaguely similar to those two. Mm. We definitely seem like sisters. I can’t help but to sigh.

“… I’d be lying if I claimed I don’t have more I’d like to say, but whatever.” “That’s a satisfied sigh at how cute of a little girl you are, right?!” “So? How has the past week been for you two?” “Totally flew by!”

I ignored her quip and changed topics. Honestly, we wouldn’t be finished until sundown.

“It was super interesting!” “Perhaps it’d be right to say that I’ve just settled in.”

They both begin talking about their past week. Tsugumi, as expected, played the game like a total shut-in. She’s the highest level amongst us. I don’t have levels so I’m not exactly sure but seeing how she’s been hard at work every day, she’s got to be stronger than me, someone who hasn’t even left the beginning area. At least she got together with her pals to beat the first boss to unlock the second city.

Kanate plays a bit a bit more reservedly. Unlike Tsugumi who excels at FPS’s and action games, our eldest sister is more of an RPG-type person. Kanate isn’t someone who would be easily defeated though. If my sisters are fighting each other, the younger one would likely fall first. Of course, against a prodigy like her, it wouldn’t be quick or easy. That’s not to say Kanate isn’t playing seriously. Though she hasn’t been at the frontline as much as Tsugumi has, she spent three days finding her perfect weapon, testing each type out. You can even call her a model gamer.

“How about you, Big Bro Kizuna?” “Ah, yeah, it’s been interesting, fishing.” “Huh? Kizuna, you’ve been doing nothing but fishing?” “Y-Yeah? So what? And I’ll have you know I haven’t even been out of this town yet!”

I was met with ice cold stares. Thank goodness that didn’t awaken any masochistic side in me.

“Uhmmm, Big Bro? Do you wanna go check out the next town over? There’s a river there. And what kind of weapon are you using?” “A gutting knife.” “Is it a little on the weak side? Don’t gutting knives get you extra item drops when you kill monsters with them?” “Yep, that’s right.”

I don’t think they truly understand what they’re for. It’s probably just some kind of joke weapon for them.

“There are some items you can’t get without one of those gutting weapons. Pass them along to me if you get any, okie dokie?” “Is that so?” “I think there are quite a few of those items too. They trade for quite a lot between players. But since it deals rather low damage, it’s not very popular. Plus, it’s not often you get special drops either.”

How interesting. Maybe I can gut monsters too. I’ll try fighting monsters tomorrow. I should probably be looking for a new weapon too. I didn’t feel like I really needed one, so I hadn’t been looking for it, even when I was implementing the Empty Can Strategy. And plus, I have to get the appropriate weapon for each monster type. It’s not likely that I can use my Novice Gutting Knife.

“Do you want me to getcha some good equips, Big Bro?” “There’s the matter of pride when an older brother gets gifted things by their little sisters…” “Whatcha talkin’ about?! I always lend you items when we game together.”

She’s right. Sometimes, this game is too realistic, and it gets me confused.

“Well, it’s not like I’m hurting for money. If you let me know what to get, I’ll pay for it myself.” “Even though you’ve only been fishing?” “Did you see those Iron Ingots that were for sale until not long ago?” “Huh? Yeah. I used some yesterday.” “Actually, I was the one who got the materials for them.” “Really? What were they? Some guy named Altorese said it was a trade secret or somethin’, so I have no clue about it.” “As soon as people found ores, we told everyone about our secret. And that’s why I’m not hurting for money.” “So? What’s ya secret?”

I flashed a smug grin at the floppy fox-eared Tsugumi.

“Those ingots were made from Empty Cans, y’know?”

Seeing the shocked look on their faces is enough satisfaction to last me another week.

contents: /prologue/ /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /next/

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[incorrectdeceptionquotes]

A Bundle of Secrets Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Everything happened in a blur. One minute, it seemed like everything was going to be fine and that this nightmare would finally be over but now it seemed like it was just beginning again. After Jonathan had to literally drag Cameron away from Kay so the medics could look after her and take her to the hospital. Despite his pleas to be with her in the ambulance, Mike thought it best to get him cleaned up and change his bloodied clothing so the medics wouldn’t have any distractions.

Cameron always said he liked to make his own destiny but now... fate seemed to be screwing with him and he had no control over it. They all sat in the waiting room, waiting for news but the most unnerving thing was that Cameron was being completely quiet. That is until he felt Farrah tug on his sleeve. He gave his baby niece a small smile which made her giggle then she buried her face in Johnny’s shoulder, “She wasn’t too much trouble, was she Dina?”

Dina shook her head, “Far from it. She was a downright angel.”

“I found this in Shawn and Fiona’s things.” Jonathan pulled out a book of fairytales from Farrah’s diaper bag, “I thought maybe we could use it. I hear stories are good for kids.”

Just then Farrah lifted her head and looked over to Cameron. She tried crawling out of Jonathan’s grasp but Cameron picked her up before she could slip out of his brother’s hold, “Where do you think you’re going young lady?” She giggled as Cameron sat her down on his lap and took the storybook from Johnny. He needed the distraction. He opened up the storybook and began to read to her. Everyone looked at each as Cameron desperately tried to distract himself from fearing the worst... although reading the story of Sleeping Beauty might not have been the best idea. Cameron sighed, “I just wish I knew if Kay was going to be okay.”

“She will be.” Gunter spoke up, “She’s tough. She’s not about to let some crazy woman’s bullet stop her.”

Cameron gave a small smile, “At the very least, we got them. Farrah may have to grow up without her parents but... at she’ll have answers.” He said kissing his niece’s curly-haired head.

“Cam?” Jonathan spoke up, “I need to tell you something.”

“What is it?”

Jonathan sighed, “I... sort of knew about Fiona.” He confessed.

Cam’s eyes widened as did everyone else’s, “W-what?”

“Jonathan, what are you talking about?” Dina asked.

“Cam, do you remember when Dad started calling both of us by your name?”

Cameron thought for a moment, “Y-yeah. We were... five I think.”

“Well, the night he started doing that... was the night when Fiona and her mother came over.”

Cameron blinked, “I-I don’t remember that...”

“Because you stayed in our room when Dad told us to.”

“You met Fiona?” Jordan asked.

“Just for a moment, when Dad and Fiona’s mother went into his office, Fiona had been left in the hall so I went over to her.” Jonathan gave a sad smile, “She was so cute, and Farrah looks just like her. She had our eyes Cam, that’s how I knew.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Cameron asked.

Jonathan sighed, “I asked Dad about it a few days later and... he made it very clear that I should just forget about what happened-”

“And you did.”

Jonathan held his head down in shame, “I didn’t want to but...”

Cameron placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder, “No, I get it. When Dad got angry, it wasn’t pretty.” The entire group sat in shock. They couldn’t believe that Johnny would allow himself to forget something like that but seeing how Cameron was reacting, they seemed to understand why he would. Cameron said, “I met her too.”

Jonathan blinked, mirroring his brother’s earlier reaction, “What?”

“What are talking about Cameron?” Gunter asked.

“I didn’t know it at the time.” He took a deep breath, “It was just after Johnny was taken to jail and I just took a walk around the city. I don’t know how long I must have been just walking around but I happened upon Marigold’s Cafe – that’s where Fiona worked – and I don’t know why, I just went in.” Everyone listened intently as Farrah clapped her hands before hitting Cam’s hands, in her own little world as he continued, “You guys know that I wasn’t in a good place, not as bad as Johnny but you know.” Dina, Gunter, and Jordan nodded, “She... she was actually pregnant with Farrah at the time.” Dina felt her eyes glaze over, “And I didn’t tell her I was upset or even what had happened but... she was just able to tell. For a moment, she helped me feel better.” He gave a light chuckle, “Looking back, it’s kind of uncanny just how much we seemed to get along...” He turned to Jonathan, “She did have our eyes... but her pleasant demeanor... I don’t know where she got that from.” He tried to joke which lifted everyone’s spirits a little.

Just then, Mike and Deakins walked in. Jonathan was the first to stand, “Well?”

Mike smiled, “Because of what she did to Kay... the mystery woman has no legs left to stand. We got her. For real this time.”

Jonathan couldn’t help grin ear-to-ear but then a question occurred to him, “And her name?”

“Cornelia Berossi.” Deakins smirked, “And that is her real name.”

“CB... no wonder she thought that we were kindred spirits or something.” Cameron said, shaking his head, “And Bennett and Vanessa Blanc?”

“They’re going to need a really good lawyer.” Mike said.

“Mr Black.” Both Cameron and Jonathan looked at Deakins, “I mean Jonathan.”

“Yes sir?” He nodded.

“I’m struggling with how to handle keeping you-”

“Out of prison?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes. Personally, I know you should be out but my bosses require-”

“Proof, I’m guessing.”

“Yes.”

Jonathan pulled out the USB from his jacket pocket and held it up, “Will the proof on this suffice?”

Deakins raised an eyebrow, “Where did you get that?”

Jonathan thought for a moment, “May I make a suggestion... your bosses don’t question how I obtained the USB and I don’t sue the government for wrongfully placing me in federal prison for over a year. I’m sure the press would love to eat that up.”

“Mr Black...” She smirked, “You are clearly the smarter twin.”

Jonathan smirked as Cameron spoke up, “Oh, sure, it’s not like I’m not here or have feelings or anything.” He joked as Farrah started giggling.

“Your niece seems to agree with me”

Cameron picked up Farrah and held close to his face, “Your laughter has bad timing little girl.” Farrah grabbed his nose and laughed again, “Again with the nose.”

Jonathan cracked a smile, “Do you think it will work?” He asked Deakins.

She nodded, “If there’s one thing I know the government hates more than injustice, it’s being publicly embarrassed and exposed.” She smirked.

“I like the way you think Sir.” Jonathan nodded.

Deakins held out her hand for a handshake, “And let me be the first to pre-congratulate you on getting out. Legally this time.” Jonathan shook the older woman’s hand, smiling. He was almost home. She took the USB from him, “I’ll make sure my superiors understand their choice here. You’re going home Jonathan.”

Just then the doctor walked in, removing his blue surgical gloves, “Agent Kay Daniels?” Cameron was the first to stand up, putting the book aside and everyone else followed suit.

“Is she going to be alright?” Cameron asked.

“She lost a lot of blood but thankfully the bullet didn’t hit anything too important.”Cameron almost felt relief but the doctor continued, “She did however flat line during surgery.”

“Flat line?” Jordan asked.

“Unfortunately. We managed to bring her back within a minutes but she still hasn’t woken up.”

“H-how long do you think it’ll take for her to wake up?” Cameron asked.

The doctor sighed, “I honestly can’t say. What’s best right now is to have someone constantly watching over her just in case something happens.”

“I’ll do it.” Cameron said.

Dina looked concerned, “Cameron, you should probably get some rest.”

“She’s right.” Gunter nodded, “You’ve been through a lot-”

“Yeah?” Cameron started, “Well, so has Kay.” He shook his head, “I’m going to be there when she wakes up”

“Mr Black, we don’t know how long that could take.” The doctor tried to reason.

“We’ll take shifts.” Jonathan said, “Whenever Cameron needs a break, one of us can step in for a few hours.” The rest of them reluctantly agreed as it was the only idea Cameron would settle with.

“Can we see her?” Dina asked.

“Only for a few minutes.” The doctor said leading them to Kay’s hospital room.

When they got there, they didn’t know how to react. Kay was lying in the hospital bed with her left arm in a sling, her bruises and cuts had been cleaned up and if it wasn’t for the monitors and IVs hooked up to her, she would’ve looked like she was asleep.

Deakins was having trouble believing that one of her best agents ended up like this. She secretly prayed that Kay would be able to return soon. Mike held his breath when he saw her. Everything happened so fast, he didn’t see just how bad Kay had gotten hurt.

Everyone else had the same expression of disbelief on their faces, Kay was always such an active badass and they just hoped she would wake up soon. Cameron felt his heart break when Farrah pointed at Kay and started kicking her legs in excitement, wanting to go to her, it made everyone’s heart break, “Johnny?”

“Yeah?” Jonathan replied.

“Could you watch Farrah for a little while?”

“Yeah, of course.” He took the baby from him, “Come on Pudding Sack” Farrah wrapped her little arms around Johnny’s neck and rested her cheek against his, “Yeah, I think she’s okay with this arrangement.”

Cameron managed a small smile, “You guys go get some rest.”

Gunter placed supportive hand on Cam’s shoulder before pulling him in for a bear. When he let go, “We’ll be back in a few hours.”

Cameron gulped, “Take your time.”

They all walked out but the doctor stayed to say one more thing, “Should anything unusual happen, the nurses are right outside to help.”

“Thank you Doctor.” The doctor left the room as Cam walked over to Kay and carefully took her right hand in his as he sat in the chair next to the bed. The beeping sounds of Kay’s heartbeat was the only thing that was keeping him from worrying too much at this point, “Hey Kay... I don’t know if you can hear me but...” He let out a chuckle, “That was really stupid Kay.” Repeating words she had once said to him, “Why would you put yourself in harm’s way for me? If you were awake, you’d probably say something like, ‘I’m an FBI agent Cam. It’s my job to protect civilians’ ... wouldn’t you?” Kay didn’t respond. She didn’t say anything, “Just... please wake up soon. I’m sorry but I don’t want to spend my life without you. I can’t imagine doing that anymore.” He pulled the chair closer to the bed so he could lean back while still holding her hand, “I promise I’ll be here when you wake up.”

The End...

No I’m kidding; I would never do that to you guys! The story is starting to get a little lighter again... or is it? Stay tuned to find out!

Shoutout to @iarinhacosta for helping me figure out how to keep Johnny out of prison.

[askdragonbladetalon]

rises from the abyss to send this in: JAEGER

[This got long! EzLux, TaLuz, TalEz, EzTaLux.]Against the white sheets, Ezreal’s skin looks more golden than ever but he’s still too pale. He’s paler than the last time Lux saw him and it’s not only his condition that accounts for the pallor. He’s been spending too much time indoors, working on the neural link with Talon and practicing simulations instead of exploring.She listens to the beeping of the machines and watches the steady rise-fall of his chest. The charts before her tell her more than Talon could so she tunes out his awkward words and focuses on the information she is not supposed to have.When Talon’s voice trails off, she looks up. He’s paler too, shadows circling darkly under his eyes, and his hair is in a limp ponytail pulled back at the base of his neck. The cast on his arm is glaringly white against his light brown skin. The thin hospital gown looks comical on him and he carries the IV stand with him as if it’s an impromptu weapon instead of the only thing keeping him from screaming in pain.“Go back to bed,” she says, sliding the charts back into the pocket at the foot of the bed. “It’ll be months before he wakes.”There are people who would think her cold for not feigning optimism, who would demand she deliver her news with a smile and a cheery attitude. There are expectations of Crownguards, now more than ever with the Kaiju overturning so much of the world.Talon simply nods and folds his arms over the side of Ezreal’s bed, resting his forehead against the mattress.“Too tired to walk back right now,” he says, voice muffled. “I’ll wait here until I can move.”“The nurses threatened to handcuff you to your bed if you kept leaving,” Lux reminds him as she sits down in the other chair. “Like I can’t pick locks,” Talon huffs. She regards the top of his head silently and Ezreal, unsmiling and still, lies between them.

“When Talon’s healed, I’ll be his new co-pilot,” Lux tells Viktor. Viktor doesn’t look up from his display, metal fingers plugged directly into the computer’s interface. “There are tests for compatibility. Ezreal was his top match - and you aren’t his second match.”“I know,” Lux says, hands flat on his desk. “And I’ll pass them. But I want you to start getting the Jaeger ready for us now.” She codeswitches effortlessly, speaking his language instead. “Talon is a known unit and proven pilot. Arcane Shadow is half his creation, half Ezreal’s. You will need to adjust the half that is Ezreal’s for his new pilot and if you know in advance who that will be, you will have a headstart on the changes to the Jaeger which will allow it to be operational sooner. Can you afford the delay?”“And if you two aren’t drift-compatible?” Viktor’s lit-up eyes glow in her direction, mask expressionless.“We will be,” Lux says, words clipped.“And I’m supposed to take that on faith?” He sneers the word ‘faith’ as if it’s the most obscene of concepts, a violation so vile that he can hardly bear to speak of it, and Lux smiles. He’s walked right into her trap.“No. You’re supposed to trust my calculations. Talon has been drifting with Ezreal for months now. Ezreal was in Talon’s mind, screaming and hurt, during the long trip back to shore when Arcane Shadow went down. Your initial data is flawed – whomever Talon was compatible with before he had Ezreal in his mind is no longer whom he is compatible with. Anyone drifting with Talon now will have to drift with Ezreal’s ghost as well.” She leans forwards just a little, blond hair swinging over her shoulders and framing her face with gold. “Don’t look at Talon’s top matches. Cross-compare his top matches with Ezreal’s and look at the matches they have in common. Look who is at the top of that list.”The display flashes, dividing into two columns of bronze, and names scroll quickly past. When a name lit up in red shows in both columns, Viktor looks back up at her. He doesn’t argue any further, just gives a brisk nod; his own pride has never mattered as much as being right.“What changes do you have in mind for Arcane Shadow?” Viktor asks and Lux makes herself smile again as she pulls out a sheet of paper from her backpack.“Here. And her name is now Shadow Spark.” Arcane was gone and Shadow was moved into first place because Talon had been here before Lux had. She planned the name out as meticulously as everything else.

When they drift, Talon’s mind slides against hers like metal against a sharpening stone. It’s not the easy fluidity that comes when siblings drift, the drift she is used to from her practice drifts with Garen. It’s a hard pressure, two sets of memories in Talon’s minds threading into their shared consciousness.{through Ezreal’s eyes, she is beautiful, she is blinding, she is the sun and she is summer and she is a perfect peerless cloudless sky. he sees her and he loves her and he doesn’t see her at all because  goddesses have no flaws and he----looks at her with suspicion, this Demacian girl with the bright smile and even brighter eyes, this woman who wields her smile like a scythe, who cuts people down with words and sparks magic from nails bitten down to the quick, Talon knows better than to believe beauty is goodness and----she sees a genius boy who grew up all alone, she sees an adventurer who takes himself to the spaces that other humans vacated so long ago, she sees someone who is so much more vulnerable than he will ever understand, someone who----looks at her and sees the siren skinned, sees the danger that Demacia made her into, a man with blood eyes and bloodied hands, someone who will not be swayed by her smile and who will always see the worst of her, the----killer, assassin, someone who loves blades better than people, the epitome of Noxus, some boy who slaughtered his way out of the gutters, his co-pilot, his drift-compatible partner, a man with memories of torture and trauma----looks at this golden boy, this summer child who thinks he can think his way out of everything, who thinks he’s so much better than everyone else, steel through the heart ends everyone, looks at his smile and wonders if he has ever been able to smile so freely--}“When Ezreal sees inside your head,” Talon says above the sound of the scientist announcing ‘neural handshake completed’, “He’s going to be so disappointed to know what you thought of him at first.”“Were you disappointed by his thoughts about you?” Lux asks and doesn’t touch the first part of Talon’s sentence. “Only that he wasn’t scared,” Talon says, quirking a half-smile at her as he stretches out his left arm. Her left arm stretches as well, automatic and unthinking, and Lux exhales. They’re halfway there.

Shadow Spark performs well. Ezreal’s heavy gauntlet is gone, leaving the left arm lighter than the right; Lux uses it to shoot lasers, arms it with a plasma cannon and gives it an unfolding staff that she can use if it runs out of power for the cannons.Lux performs well but she knows everyone is comparing Shadow Spark to Arcane Shadow; she knows everyone is whispering about how she swooped down on Arcane Shadow and had her gutted, had her changed, while Talon was still in hospital so she could present him with a fait accompli.As if Talon hadn’t been part of it. As if he hadn’t plotted with her. It’s a little harder to play the ingenue now, but she needs to keep Talon’s reputation spotless. Nobody will dare raise a hand to a Crownguard, especially with Garen drifting with Prince Jarvan, but Talon has never collected allies like Lux has. The Jaeger pilots are still human and if they should circle on Talon, if they should take him to task for being so disloyal as to drift with Lux while Ezreal still lies sleeping in the hospital…Someone will die, and the Jaeger corps cannot have a pilot who has murdered another pilot. Talon will be expelled from the program.She doesn’t bother explaining this to Talon; he saw her plan in her mind the first time they drifted and he knows she’s not done yet.

Ezreal wakes. Talon sees him first, then Lux.When she enters, he’s still lying down, still pale, but his eyes are open and have lost none of their intensity. “Tal told me the plan,” he says before she can even greet him. “I’m in. What do you need me to do?”She smiles without meaning to and feels her eyes sting with tears.“Get better,” she says, voice a little shaky. “Get better as fast as you can. The only part of my plan that I couldn’t control was you.”The only thing she couldn’t guarantee was that Ezreal would wake.

Viktor’s fingers still over the blueprints he’s examining when he sees Lux enter. “Something wrong with Shadow Spark?” He asks, mechanical voice rasping lower than usual.“Yes. I need you to outfit her like you did Kinkou Balance.” “So Ezreal’s awoken at last,” Viktor says with something akin to smugness in his tone. He pulls out a drawer and tosses her a small USB; Lux catches it reflexively, cupped hands flying up. “I knew you would ask for that. The three of you can look at that and see what changes you need made.”“…Thank you.” Lux snaps him a sharp salute, just for the fun of it, then turns and leaves. The steady clack of her heels against the tiled floor soon turns into a rapider rhythm as she runs down the tunnels. Viktor knew what she wanted and he’s giving her permission. She’d anticipated more of an argument, protests that she’d be better off looking for a different partner so they could have two Jaegers instead of one, but she’s not going to complain about something coming easily for once. For once!Shen, Akali and Kennen might be the first three-person team to pilot a Jaeger but Golden Blade will leave them in the dust.This, too, is part of her plan.

[anapedias]

How To Fix Juul Not Hitting 25

Hold the cotton swab there for several seconds before removing it from the battery. It feels like i’m hitting nothing without air.

How To Fix A Juul Not Hitting — Juul Pod Hacks

Remove the pod, flip it the wrong way up and faucet gently on a chunk of tissue.

How to fix juul not hitting. If you follow these steps you should be able to avoid any unnecessary leakage. If your juul® device still isn’t hitting, a more thorough cleaning may be in order. If it’s still not working, there is a chance that your pod has air bubbles.

If i may add, when you pull your pod out and it has air bubbles by the wick, flick it good until they rise. If, for whatever reason, your juul got immersed in water, proceed to dry it out pronto! Continue gently pulling in this way until juice is cleared from the vapor tube and the low bubbling sound turns back into that familiar crackling.

So i have been looking around and everyone is calling it the swamp or something of that manner well i decided since i bought some pods i would try to fix it, so on the swamp ( let's just call it the oxy sensor) there is like a pad. But anyway that's not the point your reading this to fix your beloved juul. Pin on capsule stuffs plugged it into the charger and it suddenly refuses to fire.

Remove the pod and gently squeeze the area where the black cap and clear plastic meet. So i just got a new pack of pods. Try charging your device with the magnetic usb dock charger provided in the kit to 100%.

Hold the juul® battery upside down and use a cotton swab to push the pins in. Fix a juul® that isn’t hitting. Hit the juul, but pull air through the juul very slowly.

If you still haven’t gotten around to buying a spare juul® battery, a juul® that isn’t hitting is a serious problem. When your juul won't charge, the right solution is a mere matter of experimentation. Keep going until the cotton swabs come out dry.

I tried hitting my first full pod and nothing is coming out. You have to check for this error and fix it. For some juul issues, a fix is as simple as a quick cleaning.

Well, we’ve got some good news for you. If playback doesnt begin shortly try restarting your device. If that doesnt work call the number on the box and they will send you a refund.

Juuls can also be used in vaping. You should see the white led indicator turn on and hear your juul rip. So all day ive been kinda screwed because my njoy ace.

Posted by 3 years ago. Hitting the juul in this way will reduce chances of spit back. Over time, water can cause rust in the metal parts of the battery too.

Juul starter kits conveniently come with a usb charging cable, which you simply have to plug into a socket or your laptop to give your juul power again. If this is the case, take your juul apart, take the cartridge and slowly but gently tap them on something solid to clear out the blockage and bring your juul back to working condition. If the culprit is the juul pods not working, they suggest removing your cartridges and gently tapping them on a solid surface to bring the air pockets to a single section within the pods.

My other pods in the pack work besides this one. Is it the pod clogged? The juul® device may be small, but it’s built like a tiny tank.

When you juul hits, it allows you to enjoy the produced vapor. Just plug it in to charge. Hitting the juul in this way will reduce chances of spit back.

A juul is a type of vape equipment that, when used to consume nicotine, is referred to as juuling. Not really sure how to make the airflow better but, if you take two fingers and cover the two clear plastic parts on the pod and rip it it. Why is my juul not hitting?

Juul states on their website that most of the time, a juul not hitting is because your device needs to be charged. Once the led stops blinking, it turns solid green which means that the device is fully charged. To fix a juul that has run out of charge, you can probably guess the solution:

As a result, any blockage within the pod as the cause of your juul not working will be shifted around enough to allow eliquid to flow through it. Don’t throw away your juul just because it’s not hitting, it could be fixed in a matter of minutes.a word of advice, don’t push out the module too far!!! Other fixes that can not be pin pointed to a specific problem, but can still help your juul rip • blow into your juul while a pod is in from the charging port.

A clean cartridge or food ensures that juul pod works as it should. Simply put, a wet battery will not function. If you have a standard black juul you can blow in the charging port (cracklings is standard) then hitting it like normal will get you a better hit.

Reddit juulers say hitting their device against the palm of their hand, or flicking it. Continue gently pulling in this way until juice is cleared from the vapor tube and the low bubbling sound turns back into that familiar crackling. How to fix alto pod not hitting.

There is not a complete connection to make detections that should command a light. With enough determination, you are bound to find something workable. With enough determination, you are bound to find something workable.

Water can seep in through the tiny air space in batteries, mix with the chemicals there, and then leak out. After this pull from the correct end and repeat if your juul still doesn’t hit. Don’t throw away your juul just.

Why and how to repair it. Hitting the juul in this way will reduce chances of spit back. Hit the juul, but pull air through the juul very slowly.

[bi-writes]

clarity — stupid (iv)

clarity masterlist masterlist here

previously: doesn’t spider-man have better things to do? continuing: maybe you’re just looking at it all wrong

third person, peter parker x soulmate!reader warnings: maybe language, fluff word count: 2,626 4:23 pm | something is missing

Your hunt for your soulmate was slowing becoming a humiliating and embarrassing job. Every place you marked off your list was another failure to add, and you would be lying if you said the encounters weren’t awkward and completely misunderstood. You felt stupider each time you left your soulmate candidates behind you.

The bell rang as you opened the door. Your heels echoed along the sidewalk as you sulked away from the coffee shop, swallowing hard in disappointment. When you felt movement beside you, you knew he was there already, waiting for you to say something. 

“So…anything?” Spider-Man pressed. You sniffled as you adjusted your glasses, shaking your head. You wiped at your eyes to rid yourself of any sadness.

“He just looked at me like I was stupid and showed me his dumb brand,” you complained, shaking your head again. Spider-Man sighed beside you, shrugging his shoulders. “He was cute, too, I was really hoping he was gonna be it.”

“Well, to be honest, (y/n), you’re supposed to feel something when you see them,” he explained. You made a sour face and stuck your tongue out at him. The whites of his mask narrowed at you. 

“Oh, yeah? What makes you such an expert?” You taunted. He chuckled a little beside you, and you rolled your eyes when you realized your mistake. Of course Spider-Man had a soulmate. He was perfect. “I should’ve known.”

“W-What?”

“That you had a soulmate,” you finished. Spider-Man walked with you as you turned onto your apartment block. You had finished the list for Wednesday by now, and you needed to pick up the Thursday list. You only had a couple more days to go through, but you knew in your heart by this point that it was unlikely he was in any of the places you listed. You were sure you had met him on Tuesday. Nothing made sense now.

“I didn’t mean to…rub it in,” Spider-Man tried to apologize. You smiled sadly to yourself. You were sorry, too. It wasn’t Spider-Man’s fault that you had the worst  luck in the entire world. It wasn’t his fault that the only person he couldn’t help was you; maybe the universe had lessened the whole in your heart in an attempt at pitying you. Maybe she pitied you because she knew you would be alone forever.

“No, it’s okay,” you assured him. “I figured you had one.”

“Why do you say that?” “You’re a hero. And you got…really nice things going on,” you gestured to his physique, making him laugh again. “So, I’m not surprised.”

You made it to the column of stairs that made up what was the fire escape, and you shut your eyes. Spider-Man reached out and pulled you into his chest, where you buried your forehead as he raised the two of you up to your floor. You finally opened them, hurrying inside to escape the autumn cold.

Spider-Man shut the window behind you, and something inside him stung as he watched you slump into your desk chair. He slid his backpack off, resting on the floor. You two had come to an agreement that he would sit on the floor now after you caught him the other day swinging out of a dumpster. 

“What’s it like?” You asked suddenly. You kept your eyes on your board as you pinned the finished Wednesday list to it. You ripped the Thursday one off, examining the list. Spider-Man’s ears perked up at the question.

“What?”

“What’s it like? To have a soulmate?”

Spider-Man looked down at his hands, smiling underneath his mask. You set the list down as you began to fiddle with the tech on your desk.

“I-I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk about that,” he concluded. You pried open one of the damaged hard drives on your desk with the flat edge of a screwdriver, shaking your head.

“No, please…I would love to hear it,” you pleaded. Spider-Man laid onto his back, folding his hands over his stomach. He stared up at the ceiling, flickering his gaze from you to the ceiling and back again. You waited patiently as you popped the top off of the hard drive. Your longing desire to find your soulmate made you wild for affection, even if it wasn’t your own, and even if it was someone else’s story.

“Well…she’s so pretty,” he said softly. Your smile grew a little, your heart swelling. “She has this amazing smile. A-And the first time I saw her…I don’t know what came over me.”

“What do you mean?” You tried, using the flat screwdriver to carefully unscrew the hardware from the hard drive’s inside. Spider-Man watched carefully.

“When I got these powers, they fixed my eyesight. I-I always had to wear glasses before,” he informed you. You nodded, thinking to yourself. Tell me about it. “And then I saw her. And it was like I went blind all over again. A-And when I could finally see again…it was like all I could see was her.”

You stopped what you were doing, looking over at him. Spider-Man was already staring at you, and you gave him a sweet grin. 

“What’s she like?” You asked. Spider-Man laughed, his limbs tingling as he thought about his girl. You turned back to your hard drive, discarding of the plastic covering and laying out the parts in front of you.

“She’s…she’s great. She’s super smart, smarter than me,” he gushed. You giggled out of skepticism. “No, really! S-She’s so smart, always wanting the next best computer o-or getting that new book. She really likes staying up to date.”

Your eyes scanned over the magazines on your shelf. You pushed your glasses up your nose, your eyes scanning over the technology magazines and books and even entertainment magazines littered around. From the new iPhone and its unique specs to the Kardashian sisters, there was a piece for it all. 

“I hope you’ll introduce her to me sometime,” you sighed. “I feel like we’d get along real well.”

“Y-You don’t even know,” Spider-Man whispered. You lifted the spark ignitor, a small metal needle. You had it hooked up to a switch. You were going to test the drive’s electrical currents to see where it sparked. You wanted to find the problem. 

“Have you kissed her yet?” You teased, and Spider-Man sat up, leaning back on the palms of his hand. He crossed his legs, shaking his head.

“No, we haven’t.”

“Why not?” “S-She doesn’t even know it’s me.”

“Well, that makes two of us,” you joked, sending him a wink. He chuckled nervously, and you let out a little squeal as the metal in front of you sparked loudly. Spider-Man stood up quickly, but you assured him you were okay. Suddenly, he had an idea. 

“You wanna help me with something?” He asked. You adjusted your glasses, shrugging your shoulders.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Well, my suit has got a lotta code and programming in it, and I’ve been meaning to go to my friend so he could help me adjust some stuff,” Spider-Man explained. “But, you look like you could use a distraction, so will you help me?”

“Sure,” you replied, giving him a small smile. You pushed your things to the side, shutting off the ignitor as you watched Spider-Man dig through his backpack. He pulled out a pair of sweats and a T-shirt, and you tilted your head to the side in confusion. “What are you doing?”

“Well, I gotta take the suit off,” he said. Your eyes widened, and you nodded.

“O-Oh, yeah…” You trailed off. You paused for a second, your eyes scanning over his arms, the spectacle the red and blue really made him, the curves of his legs. You didn’t notice he was speaking to you, but he smirked to himself when he could hear your heartbeat quickening.

“Hey, earth to (y/n)?”

You jumped a little, turning around as your cheeks went red. You forgot he needed a little privacy. When your head was turned the other way, he loosened the suit around his body. You bit your lip as you dared to peek, and you were so glad you did. Olive and tan smooth skin appeared underneath the red and blue, exquisite around those toned muscles. You could only see his back for the most part, but your mouth was agape either way.

He slid out of the suit, and your eyes rolled back in your head a little at the sight. He looked incredible, of course, and you had to suppress a whine as he pulled a pair of sweats over his legs. You turned away as he tugged his shirt over his still-masked head.

“Okay, here,” Spider-Man called out. When you turned, his suit fell into your lap. You turned it over, examining the inside as your hands felt for the end of any wires. 

“Still got the mask on?” You giggled. He sat back down on the floor, shrugging his shoulders.

“As much as I consider you my friend, it’s just better if you don’t know who I am,” he explained. You nodded your head.

“You don’t have to explain anything to me,” you said softly. You met his gaze, smiling soft. “When you’re ready, you’ll tell me.”

“A-And why are you so sure that I will?”

“I’m not,” you replied. You found a micro-USB end on one of the hidden wires, and you quickly connected it to your laptop. You powered it up, waiting for your computer to recognize the suit’s presence. “But I also don’t think that this is the last time that we’ll see each other. So…I’m just gonna hope.”

There was silence between the two of you now. It wasn’t a tense silence, it was rather comfortable. You watched as the terminal and activity monitor of the suit suddenly opened over your desktop, and you bit your lip.

“Jesus, this thing is amazing,” you whispered as you scrolled through the terminal. Spider-Man stood beside you as your eyes went over the subsystems and coding. “So what is it I need to help you with?”

“There should be something in there…called the…”

“Called the what?”

“Baby monitor protocol,” Spider-Man said through gritted teeth. You laughed a little, but quickly shut your mouth when the eyes of his mask narrowed at you. You giggled under your breath when you turned away from him, finding the subsystem and placing your hands over the keyboard.

“And what do I do with it?”

“Can you make it so that it only records when I ask it to?” “Yeah.”

You let your coding do the work, quickly adjusting it as he leaned over your shoulder. He tilted his head to look at you better, tongue between your teeth, hair spilling in waves behind your shoulders, lips pursed in concentration. You looked beautiful in the retina display light.

“Done,” you said after a few minutes. You ejected the micro-USB from the suit, turning quickly. You hadn’t realized that Spider-Man was so close to you. Your breath was against where you guessed his mouth was, and you could feel the warmth radiating off of him. You thrusted the suit into his hands, sucking in your breath at the contact. Without his suit, he was without gloves. Your bare fingers were brushing against his, and something delicate went through you that you couldn’t explain.

You turned away as quick as it happened. You knew it was wrong. Spider-Man had a soulmate, and you couldn’t get swept up in silly romances when you had your own to worry about. Your suddenly retraction from him made his insides curl with disappointment, with desire. He craved your touch more than ever now, but he refused to give into you. 

You made him feel stupidly out of control, furiously mad with romantic thoughts. Spider-Man couldn’t help but resist the aching in his fingers as they moved towards you. But the battle he was having within himself was beginning to end, and he was losing. He was losing because love made him feel like he knew everything about nothing, and nothing about everything. 

“H-Hey, I got a really important thing to do tonight,” Spider-Man said nervously. You nodded, turning your back to him as he changed back into his suit. When he touched your shoulder, you turned back to see him looking as lovely as ever in the suit. “Can you help me tonight?”

“What do you mean?” You wondered.

“I’m usually, you know, after a guy in the chair,” he chuckled. His voice was sporadic and nervous, shaky and embarrassed. You thought it was adorable.

“Oh, yeah? And how can I help with that?”

“I think I’d much rather prefer a girl in the chair.”

You smiled up at him, biting your lip as you looked at your laptop.

“Okay, Spider-Man. What’s the plan?”

You listened patiently as Spider-Man explained to you his ordeal. You watched him talk, heard the soothing melody of his voice. He was typing on your computer now, helping you connect to the coms in his ear. Your mind wandered away for a few seconds. 

You wondered what your soulmate was doing at the hour. You wondered if he was looking for you as thoroughly as you were looking for him. You were convinced he was; love was stupidly difficult to fight. You were convinced that he was looking for his perfect girl, for the woman he would call his for the rest of his life. You were convinced because you knew admitting you had no soulmate at all was the worst thing you could think of.

The universe would not have given you such a drive if it meant you were waiting for no one. The universe would not have made you what you are if it meant you were looking for a ghost. 

Your eyes wandered over to your board, and you recited the areas from Tuesday to Thursday in your head again, trying to find where you went wrong. The whole situation was making you feel so inferior, so stupid, but you figured that’s just what love did to people like you. Your eyes scanned over the lists, your eyes adjusted to Tuesday again. 

You were almost positive that Tuesday was the day that you had felt that ignition inside of you. You were almost sure that Tuesday was it. Your gut instinct was clawing at that day, urging your fingers to brush over all the crossed out locations. 

peppermint mocha across the street

met spider-boy

milk and cookies at the corner store

spare key from receptionist in lobby

mail from lobby

thai noodles from that place on 54th

mashable magazine from that stand on melrose

What were you missing? What were you not seeing? What was slipping right over your head?

Before you could contemplate your questions, Spider-Man was giving you a salute as he started for your window.

“Ready?” He asked you nervously. You rested your head in your hands, nodding.

“Yeah, superhero. You can count on me.”

Before you could say another word, he bent his head down and kissed your forehead through the mask. You sighed at the feeling, your lashes fluttering shut at the gentleness. When you opened your eyes, he was gone.

You adjusted your glasses, brushed a hand over your flushed cheeks, and let your fingers hover over your cell phone for Spider-Man’s cue.

part 5

[gamecenter199x]

Nintendo SNES Classic Edition

Due to the runaway success of the Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo became a household name around the world. But as the 1990s drew near, there were several competitors looking to usurp Nintendo's reign as the #1 video game maker. Sega Enterprises released their Genesis (Mega Drive outside the US) console, giving them an edge in the market due to the fact that it was twice as powerful as the NES. Whereas the NES ran on an 8-bit CPU, the Genesis used a 16-bit CPU, and that meant the machine was capable of creating bigger and better games, games that were close to being arcade perfect at the time. The Sega Genesis had modest sales in its first years but the claims that Sega did feats in their games that Nintendidn't do was enough to make Nintendo notice they had some semblance of competition. NEC also released their console, the Turbografx-16 (aka PC Engine), but it wasn't a true 16-bit machine; it had a 16-bit graphics processor but an 8-bit CPU. Nevertheless, it did sell well in Japan for Nintendo to worry about their share of the market. Although their 8-bit system was still performing well, Nintendo was preparing to enter the 1990s with a 16-bit super system of their own.

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System was soon released and was met great acclaim. It helped Nintendo win the 16-bit console war, although the Genesis was close to winning had it not been for internal problems happening within Sega. It also helped that Nintendo consistently released a lot of cool games throughout the Super Nintendo's run.

With that said, Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Edition earlier this year. Like with last year's NES Classic, the SNES Classic is a tiny replica of the Super NES with 21 games built into the unit and is packaged with two SNES controllers (with longer cords, thank goodness), a micro USB cable and a HDMI cable. Again, like with the NES Classic, there are enhancements to the games, such as choosing between 4:3, pixel perfect, and analog video modes, twelve backgrounds that can be selected to frame your picture, and restore points for each game are back, with a new Rewind feature, which lets you rewind up to 45 seconds of your game in case you messed up.

Also new to the SNES Classic Edition is Star Fox 2, a previously unreleased game that prior to the announcement of the SNES Classic was only leaked to the Internet as a prototype ROM. It's a neat incentive to pick up the SNES Classic, but is it worth getting if you already own a Super NES and all 20 of the other games?

The SNES Classic Edition is a “greatest hits” package, with lots of winners. Overall, it's a better list of games than the NES Classic Edition, but in my opinion it isn't perfect. Personally, I would replace Kirby's Dream Course with Chrono Trigger, or Turtles in Time.

Just like my NES Classic Edition feature, I'll review every game listed in this collection, including Star Fox 2. I'll assign a number grade for each title, with 5 being the highest score and 1 being the lowest score, along with a small summary.

_________________________________________

Score Key

5 ------ Play it loud! 4 ------ Good 3 ------ Decent 2 ------ Bad 1 ------ Don't play it

__________________________________________

SUPER MARIO WORLD (Nintendo, 1991) Help Mario save the Princess, this time in 16-bits! 4

F-ZERO (Nintendo, 1991) The fast and the futuristic compete in high speed races for 16-bit glory. 3

SUPER GHOULS 'N  GHOSTS (Capcom, 1991) Can you defeat Satan and rescue the princess? How about twice in a row? 3

SUPER CASTLEVANIA IV (Konami, 1991)

Whip your way through Transylvania and defeat Dracula until he comes back some other game. 4

CONTRA III: THE ALIEN WARS (Konami, 1992)

16-bit Contra! The Konami Code won't help you out this time. 3

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: A LINK TO THE PAST (Nintendo, 1992)

One of the best SNES games, period. Help Link seek out the Triforce and defeat Ganon. 5

SUPER MARIO KART (Nintendo, 1992)

Two-player racing action! It still holds up, and there's no blue shells too! 4

STAR FOX (Nintendo, 1993)

A once-revolutionary game, it hasn't aged well. It's not a bad game by any means, though. 3

STREET FIGHTER II TURBO: HYPER FIGHTING (Capcom, 1993)

A once-revolutionary game, it has aged well. The turbo speeds still makes it worth replaying. 4

SECRET OF MANA (Square Enix, 1993)

No three-player action in this edition but it's still a fun action RPG regardless. 4

MEGA MAN X (Capcom, 1994)

Super fighting robot 2.0 Mega Man X shoots, dashes and wall jumps his way to defeat Sigma. 4

SUPER METROID (Nintendo, 1994) Samus Aran revisits planet Zebes to retrieve the last Metroid from space pirates. 4

SUPER PUNCH-OUT!! (Nintendo, 1994)

Punch your way through various opponents as they try to cheat you out of your title shot. 4

FINAL FANTASY III (Square Enix, 1994)

An evil empire, a rag-tag team of rebels, and a cute race of warrior critters...sounds awfully familiar. Actually the sixth game but y’all already know. 5

DONKEY KONG COUNTRY (Nintendo, 1994)

The game that helped Nintendo win the 16-bit war. Help Donkey Kong and Diddy find bananas. 4

KIRBY'S DREAM COURSE (Nintendo, 1995)

Easily the weakest game in the collection. It's kinda like miniature golf, but with Kirby as the ball. 2

EARTHBOUND (Nintendo, 1995)

UFOs, zombies, and dinosaurs, oh my! Despite the simple presentation, it’s one of the strangest (and most human) role-playing games ever. 5

SUPER MARIO WORLD 2: YOSHI'S ISLAND (Nintendo, 1995)

One of the best platforming games around and the official prequel to the Super Mario canon. 5

SUPER MARIO RPG:  LEGEND OF THE SEVEN STARS (Nintendo/Square Enix, 1996)

A collaboration between the makers of Mario and Final Fantasy, the result actually worked well. 4

KIRBY SUPER STAR (Nintendo, 1996)

Nine games in one! Granted, you can beat these all in under a day but they're all fun rides. 4

STAR FOX 2 (Nintendo, 2017)

Previously unreleased, it improves over the original in some ways. Still, I can see why it got shelved. 3

Is the SNES Classic Edition worth picking up? Yes. Just don't buy it above retail price. With Nintendo actually boosting the amount of stock that's being shipped to stores, you can easily find one at retail price. As of this writing, online scalpers aren't selling these things as high as they hoped to sell them for. But even as the stores do sell out, just wait it out until more come in stock. The SNES Classic Edition is a fun toy to have, but it's not worth paying some jerk an extra $50 over.

-ray n. (@themistern)  2017-12-21

Sources: 1. https://www.nintendo.com/super-nes-classic 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Nintendo_Entertainment_System

3. http://www.perfectly-nintendo.com/snes-classic-edition-snes-mini-announced-september-includes-21-games/

4. http://www.perfectly-nintendo.com/super-famicom-mini-announced-japan-october-5th-different-set-games/

All games and images © Nintendo Co. Ltd and their respective third-party partners.

[illyriantremors]

Beneath the Stars Chapter 11

Chapter: I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X

AO3 Linkage

Summary: Feyre and Elain have a heart to heart about Thanksgiving plans that leaves Feyre with a big decision to make. But a big surprise at school courtesy of the one and only Morrigan distracts her from it fairly quickly.

Chapter 11

I waited until there were only two weeks left until Thanksgiving to make the phone call. I hadn’t told dad about my plans yet lest I get his hopes up only to have them come crashing down.

“Hello?”

“Elain? Hey.”

“Feyre - hi!” Elain sounded genuinely pleased to hear my voice and I was glad. It was one reason I’d called her over Nesta. Elain was almost always guaranteed to be happy. “Oh, it’s so nice that you called. I’ve missed you.”

Somehow, I didn’t think that was true, but I wanted to try and be a family again. So in the spirit of trying to get along better with my sisters and not be so cynical about them, I mustered up all of Mor’s inspired cheeriness and replied, “I missed you too. Um - I wanted to see if I could talk to you about something.”

“Go for it.”

“What would you think about coming over for Thanksgiving?”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. I wasn’t sure if she was just thinking or if her heart had stopped beating because she already had other plans.

So I kept right on talking.

“I just figured with dad being, you know, out of it from time to time and us not seeing you now that you’re back in school - Nesta too - that it would be nice to have dinner together. We’ve never not had Thanksgiving together. Why stop a good thing, ha.”

I had hoped to come across with a certain balance between good humor and good reasoning that we should spend the holiday together, but I guess it didn’t work.

“I think that’s very admirable of you,” Elain said, “to want us all together. You’ve always looked out for dad and that’s… well, that’s helpful. But you need to understand something, Feyre. Nesta and I, we’re rather upset with dad right now.”

“Nesta and you, or just Nesta?”

“Both of us! I can speak for myself, you know.” For the first time, Elain raised her voice at me, not enough to burn, but enough to scold. “We’re having dinner this year with mom. And she wants you to come.”

“You’re joking.”

“No, I’m not and I really wish you would take this more seriously. She feels awful for what happened.”

“As evidenced by the fact that she hasn’t called or texted once. Not once, Elain.”

“I know you don’t want to hear it, but Nesta’s right. That phone of yours works two ways. Did you ever consider that maybe mom is scared and waiting for you to come to her?”

My fingers tightened on the phone at my ear. I wanted to throw it across the room. But Rhys had encouraged me to try and I did want to make this work. No matter how much they infuriated me sometimes, I missed my family, feeling like I had a home to come back to at the end of the day.

And she did have a point. I’d never really considered mom’s position in all of this, but my pride still broke anew over me.

“She’s the parent, Elain,” I said letting some of the vulnerability I felt come through. I knew with Elain, at least, she wouldn’t scoff at it. “Parents look after their children. It shouldn’t be the other way around.”

“You realize what you just said, don’t you? What about dad? Are you going to be his parent too?” She wasn’t being mean or even critical. There was just some kind of quiet curiosity on the other end trying to understand a person she didn’t quite see eye to eye with. “Look, just promise me you’ll think about it, okay? I know you don’t think much of us-”

“That’s not true. Why do you think I’m calling?”

Elain sighed. “I know, I know. You’re right, I’m sorry. I just need you to understand that dad has hurt us too, just as much as mom has, and right now it’s easier for us to be away. Please tell me you’ll consider coming with us to dinner with mom? Or that you’ll at least give her a call?”

“Only if you promise to do the same about dad. He misses you too.”

“I think we all do, Feyre. I think we all miss each other.”

“Then why aren’t we together?”

“I don’t know,” and we both sounded so glum. “I just don’t know.”

We hung up and I tried not to let the sense of dread clawing at my heart to break in and weigh me down again. I knew this moment was coming and that it would be hard, but Rhys had told me to choose the good over the bad. He and Mor both had.

It had been months since I’d last spoken to mom and I was still intensely bitter about her leaving. The thought of talking again still left a raw ache in my chest that I had no idea how to stitch back up.

I made it to school chewing on the idea of calling mom as I opened my locker. My backpack made a funny noise as I set it down inside. Was it possible mom hadn’t meant what she’d said the night she left? Did I really make her sick?

Underneath my backpack, a crinkled piece of parchment paper was smashed in half with an odd lump in the middle. A USB stick fell out when I picked it up.

For inspiration, it read it neat elegant script.

I turned the flash drive over in my fingers wondering what Rhys had put on here. I had plans to paint at the gallery later this evening after work. Maybe the timing was fate.

Goodness knew I needed the extra help. Mrs. Weaver pulled me aside in the middle of AP Studio Art to chat about how my senior project was going. When I mentioned that Amren hadn’t drawn anything more than dragons, Mrs. Weaver informed me that Amren had already turned three pieces in and that I should consider doing the same.

“I’m glad you’re keeping up on class assignments,” she said, “but your focus really should be on the self-portraiture. Would it help if I spent some extra time with you to go over it?”

I thought of how my hands were tied practically every day after school already and politely declined claiming I had some ideas lined up that I’d like to try first.

“You didn’t tell me you’d turned in a few pieces already,” I hissed at Amren when Mrs. Weaver let me go.

“You didn’t ask.” I took some time to properly look at what Amren was working on. This whole time I’d only see a strange blur of colors. Now she added lines and shapes began to take form, an abstract version of scales or claws maybe. It was dark and oddly satisfying.

“Looks good, Am.”

A little hum rang in her throat before the overhead speakers blared. Mrs. Weaver gave an exasperated cry at the sound.

“Gooooooood afternooooon, seniors!”

We all looked up puzzled by the random intermission. School announcements were always done in the morning.

“You’ve been waiting. You’ve been voting. And the time is finally here to announce… the 2016 Winter Formal Court!”

“There’s a Winter Formal court?”

“Shit, Feyre. Do you not pay attention to anything?”

“Apparently not.”

I wasn’t even aware we’d voted for a Winter Formal court. I had been busy and my mind was definitely pre-occupied most days, but surely I wasn’t that daft to miss something like this? I was on the actual committee for the dance after all.

The jubilant voice on the speaker read off the list of guys who’d made it and surprise of all surprises, Rhysand was top of the list. As was Cassian, which for a quarterback who spoke Russian and had all the girls swooning made sense.

Morrigan’s was the first name read off for the girls. Amren and I exchanged a knowing look. Mor would be positively delighted, of course. There were three other names ticked off and I was nearly done packing up my supplies when...

“And last but certainly not least, Feyre Archeron! Well done, lords and ladies. We’ll see you at Starfall!”

“Feyre!”

Mrs. Weaver had jumped up from her seat with her hands clapping erratically.

No. No, no, no, no, no, no. I had to have heard wrong. There was no way I was -

“Ha-ha!” Amren was beside herself, her cheeks flaring red from laughing so hard. “You’re on Winter Formal court!”

“I am not,” I hissed. Mother above, I couldn’t possibly.

Amren stood up and swept my hair back marvelously over my shoulder, a regal gesture. “Yes, my dear. I do believe you are.”

I flew from the classroom, ran as fast my legs could carry me. I made it to the admin building at the same time Rhys did.

“Well if it isn’t the newest member of the-”

“Bite me!” I shouted at him and his violet eyes lit up in delight.

“With pleasure, darling, though I had hoped to do it somewhere with a little more privacy.”

“You’re a right royal pain in the ass. Now do something useful and get the door.”

He opened it with that sweeping gesture he sometimes made when he was being dramatic and I ran inside. Somehow, Morrigan had already made it to the meeting room. This time, she had her feet propped up on the table as she leaned back in the chair, hands tucked smugly behind her head. I’d have to remind myself to tell Cassian about that later.

“You,” was all I said. Morrigan laughed her perfect blond head silly.

“Look on the bright side, Feyre. Now you have to come dress shopping with me!”

xx

[cyberblogin]

Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100. Since its debut, this line of cameras has proven a very popular option among enthusiasts looking for a great travel camera, vloggers, and even pros who want a compact backup option just in case. The RX100 VII should suit all those needs very well, provided you’re okay with coughing up the $1,200 asking price.

Not that $1,200 is too expensive for what you’re getting, since Sony has packed tremendous value in the Mark VII, including an extremely versatile 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) zoom range, 20fps continuous burst mode shooting, a flip-up touch screen, built-in images stabilization and the same powerful autofocus technologies you’ll find on its flagship full-frame interchangeable lens pro cameras.

Pocket power

The Sony RX100 VII satisfies a specific need, but it’s one that a lot of people probably have: Striking a balance between image quality, range and portability. One the convenience end of the spectrum, the ultimate device is probably your smartphone, since you have that with you always. On the IQ and range side, you’re looking at a top-end DSLR with a high-quality, low aperture zoom lens that can weigh more than a large dog. The RX100 VII manages to be so impressive because it can delivery near the portability of a smartphone, with some of the photography chops of a setup that typically requires its own suitcase.

Inside the RX100 VII you’ll find a 1-inch sensor, which is very big relative to smartphone imaging sensors. This is important because it means there’s no contest between which will capture a better image, with lower noise, greater depth-of-field and better color rendering. For all the software magic that companies like Apple and Google can bring to the photography table, nothing yet can totally compensate for simply having a larger sensor.

The RX100 VII’s compactness isn’t just impressive because of the large sensor it packs inside, however; you also get an EVF, an integrated flash, an external microphone jack and an articulating LCD display. To get all of this into a package this small is astounding – the EVF in particular is a great feature for anyone who wants to be a bit more direct and particular with their shot composition, while the flip-up LCD means you can also have a great selfie screen and monitor for use when vlogging.

Last but not least in terms of its portability benefits, you can charge the RX100 VII via USB directly so that you can leave any additional charging hardware at home. The camera has a micro USB port for both data and power, and while it would’ve been nice to see this upgraded to USB-C on this camera to keep up with the latest in terms of computer and smartphone charging, it’s still better than requiring an external charger.

Zoom zoom

Sony decided on a very long zoom range for the RX100 VII, which sports a 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) f/2.8-4.5 powered retracting zoom lens. That’s the same range and aperture as the RX100 VI, which opts for more range over the brighter 24-70mm f/1.8-2.8 lens found on the V and earlier.

While you’ll lose some ability to separate your subject from the background vs. a brighter lens, you get a lot more reach for shooting action or wildlife. The added range definitely makes it a better all-around travel camera, too, and makes it possible to get some shots you otherwise just wouldn’t be able to get at all with a shorter lens.

The long end of the zoom range also offers stunningly sharp images, especially in bright, daylight conditions. In the examples below, you can see some of the 200mm samples shot on the RX100 VII next to the 24mm wide versions of the same scenes to get a sense of just how close you can get with this lens, and the quality of the images possible even at those extreme zoom lengths.

At the wide end, you have plenty of real estate to capture great sweeping architectural or landscape shots, and the sharpness is also fantastic in great light. There’s some distortion, but it’s mostly corrected by Sony’s software on JPG output. That 24mm wide angle is also the right width for arm-length selfies, though you’re probably going to want at least a short selfie stick for vlogging applications to give yourself a little more in the way of framing options.

Sticky AF

Leaving aside the fact that this is one of the better sensors available on the market for a camera this size, there’s another very compelling reason to pick up this camera, and one that likely gives it the edge over competitors from other companies. I’m talking about Sony’s autofocus system, and the RX100 VII gets the latest and greatest that Sony has developed, which is found only in much more expensive cameras from the company like the A9 and the new A7R IV.

You get face and eye tracking, for both human and animal subjects, and these are both best-in-class when compared with other camera makers’ systems. The animal one in particular is a Sony speciality, and worked amazingly well on my real dog – and on Sony’s Aibo robot dog, captured at the Sony Ginza experience center in Tokyo.

The face and eye detection settings are available in both still shooting and movies, and you can set eye preference (left or right), too. The newest AF feature, however, is object tracking, which allows you to point your AF point at a specific object and have the camera automatically track that object as you zoom or move, or as the object moves within frame. You can choose from a range of options regarding how large of a focal area to track, and this works in tandem with human face detection so that the camera will automatically focus on the subject’s face when it’s visible, and on them more generally when it’s not, which is amazing for sports or action photography.

In practice, this works extremely well. Sony’s claims about how well this sticks, and how good it is at picking a subject back up after it moves behind an object, for instance, are spot on. This is really the best AF system available on a camera in the pocketable category, at any price point, and it’s truly amazing to experience. In the shots below, you can see how it allowed me to capture a very clear picture of a soaring hawk at the 200mm tele zoom, how it tracked a bike in motion and got a clear image of the rider’s face, and how it froze a motor bike in motion during a burst series (all the shots were in focus, by the way).

Low light

Another area where Sony’s RX100 VII and its 1-inch sensor are going to have a leg up on your smartphone is in sub-optimal lighting conditions. Bigger sensors mean bigger pixels and less noise, with better blacks and shadows. Sony is also using a backside illuminated stacked sensor, and there’s built-in optical image stabilization which means you can take sharper photos at lower shutter speeds, letting in more light for clearer images.

In practice, what you get are pretty good low light photos, especially outdoors with ambient light present, or in decently well-lit indoor settings. In poorer lighting conditions or when you’re trying to freeze action in low light, you’re going to get fairly noisy results, especially when compared to an APS-C or full-frame camera. Sony’s tech can do a lot to make the most of less than ideal photographic conditions, but at some point, it runs up against the limits of what’s possible.

Sony also doesn’t get quite as aggressive with computational photographic techniques for digitally compensating for lower available light, as do the Pixel phones and the latest iPhone 11. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though – the images from the RX100 VII present more accurate night and indoor photos, by comparison, and you can still get much better indoor images with the RX100 VII than you can with any smartphone.

As you can see in the gallery above, the camera does extremely well as long as there’s one well-lit subject or element in frame. It’s less effective when the image overall is uniformly dim, but if you’re looking for great photos in those conditions, you should probably consider upgrading to a larger camera with a larger sensor anyways.

Movie maker

The RX100 VII’s greatest strength might just be how good it is at shooting video for a device this size. Video out of the camera with very minimal adjustment from the default shooting settings produces highly usable results, for both home video enthusiasts and for YouTubers or vloggers looking to produce great looking content without lugging an entire film production studio along with them on their travels.

Once again, the versatile zoom range really shines here, and the you can even shoot at the tele end of the zoom handheld and get totally usable footage provided you’re a bit careful about movement, as you can see in the third clip in the sequence below, which was shot at the 200mm range. Low-light footage looks great, as is evident from the second clip in sequence, and at the wide end you can capture sweeping landscape vistas or flip up the screen and turn the camera around for selfie-style video.

The added microphone port makes it an even more powerful filmmaking tool, and if you pick up their optional VCT-SGR1 shooting grip, combined with a small shotgun mic or something like the Rode Wireless Go, you’ve got everything you need to create very compelling travel diaries in an incredibly lightweight package that will be able to produce quality and get zoom and wide shots that are impossible on a smartphone.

Bottom line

The RX100 VII is a delight of a camera and an easy recommendation to make. There’s nothing that compares in this size category in terms of the range of features, autofocus capabilities, video prowess and performance as a general all-rounder. This is the do-everything travel camera that you could really only dream of five years ago, and it’s become more ideal for this use with every generation that Sony introduces.

Whether you’re looking to step up your photographic possibilities from your smartphone, or you want to supplement your professional or advanced enthusiast equipment with a pocket camera that’s available as a b-camera for video or to grab a few choice stills, the RX100 VII is hard to top. It’s only downside is that $1,200 asking price, which is definitely above average for a compact camera – but on a value basis, $1,200 isn’t at all expensive for everything this camera has to offer.

Full sample gallery

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The Sony RX100 VII is the best compact camera you can buy Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100.

[nayanasri]

Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100. Since its debut, this line of cameras has proven a very popular option among enthusiasts looking for a great travel camera, vloggers, and even pros who want a compact backup option just in case. The RX100 VII should suit all those needs very well, provided you’re okay with coughing up the $ 1,200 asking price.

Not that $ 1,200 is too expensive for what you’re getting, since Sony has packed tremendous value in the Mark VII, including an extremely versatile 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) zoom range, 20fps continuous burst mode shooting, a flip-up touch screen, built-in images stabilization and the same powerful autofocus technologies you’ll find on its flagship full-frame interchangeable lens pro cameras.

Pocket power

The Sony RX100 VII satisfies a specific need, but it’s one that a lot of people probably have: Striking a balance between image quality, range and portability. One the convenience end of the spectrum, the ultimate device is probably your smartphone, since you have that with you always. On the IQ and range side, you’re looking at a top-end DSLR with a high-quality, low aperture zoom lens that can weigh more than a large dog. The RX100 VII manages to be so impressive because it can delivery near the portability of a smartphone, with some of the photography chops of a setup that typically requires its own suitcase.

Inside the RX100 VII you’ll find a 1-inch sensor, which is very big relative to smartphone imaging sensors. This is important because it means there’s no contest between which will capture a better image, with lower noise, greater depth-of-field and better color rendering. For all the software magic that companies like Apple and Google can bring to the photography table, nothing yet can totally compensate for simply having a larger sensor.

The RX100 VII’s compactness isn’t just impressive because of the large sensor it packs inside, however; you also get an EVF, an integrated flash, an external microphone jack and an articulating LCD display. To get all of this into a package this small is astounding – the EVF in particular is a great feature for anyone who wants to be a bit more direct and particular with their shot composition, while the flip-up LCD means you can also have a great selfie screen and monitor for use when vlogging.

Last but not least in terms of its portability benefits, you can charge the RX100 VII via USB directly so that you can leave any additional charging hardware at home. The camera has a micro USB port for both data and power, and while it would’ve been nice to see this upgraded to USB-C on this camera to keep up with the latest in terms of computer and smartphone charging, it’s still better than requiring an external charger.

Zoom zoom

Sony decided on a very long zoom range for the RX100 VII, which sports a 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) f/2.8-4.5 powered retracting zoom lens. That’s the same range and aperture as the RX100 VI, which opts for more range over the brighter 24-70mm f/1.8-2.8 lens found on the V and earlier.

While you’ll lose some ability to separate your subject from the background vs. a brighter lens, you get a lot more reach for shooting action or wildlife. The added range definitely makes it a better all-around travel camera, too, and makes it possible to get some shots you otherwise just wouldn’t be able to get at all with a shorter lens.

The long end of the zoom range also offers stunningly sharp images, especially in bright, daylight conditions. In the examples below, you can see some of the 200mm samples shot on the RX100 VII next to the 24mm wide versions of the same scenes to get a sense of just how close you can get with this lens, and the quality of the images possible even at those extreme zoom lengths.

At the wide end, you have plenty of real estate to capture great sweeping architectural or landscape shots, and the sharpness is also fantastic in great light. There’s some distortion, but it’s mostly corrected by Sony’s software on JPG output. That 24mm wide angle is also the right width for arm-length selfies, though you’re probably going to want at least a short selfie stick for vlogging applications to give yourself a little more in the way of framing options.

Sticky AF

Leaving aside the fact that this is one of the better sensors available on the market for a camera this size, there’s another very compelling reason to pick up this camera, and one that likely gives it the edge over competitors from other companies. I’m talking about Sony’s autofocus system, and the RX100 VII gets the latest and greatest that Sony has developed, which is found only in much more expensive cameras from the company like the A9 and the new A7R IV.

You get face and eye tracking, for both human and animal subjects, and these are both best-in-class when compared with other camera makers’ systems. The animal one in particular is a Sony speciality, and worked amazingly well on my real dog – and on Sony’s Aibo robot dog, captured at the Sony Ginza experience center in Tokyo.

The face and eye detection settings are available in both still shooting and movies, and you can set eye preference (left or right), too. The newest AF feature, however, is object tracking, which allows you to point your AF point at a specific object and have the camera automatically track that object as you zoom or move, or as the object moves within frame. You can choose from a range of options regarding how large of a focal area to track, and this works in tandem with human face detection so that the camera will automatically focus on the subject’s face when it’s visible, and on them more generally when it’s not, which is amazing for sports or action photography.

In practice, this works extremely well. Sony’s claims about how well this sticks, and how good it is at picking a subject back up after it moves behind an object, for instance, are spot on. This is really the best AF system available on a camera in the pocketable category, at any price point, and it’s truly amazing to experience. In the shots below, you can see how it allowed me to capture a very clear picture of a soaring hawk at the 200mm tele zoom, how it tracked a bike in motion and got a clear image of the rider’s face, and how it froze a motor bike in motion during a burst series (all the shots were in focus, by the way).

Low light

Another area where Sony’s RX100 VII and its 1-inch sensor are going to have a leg up on your smartphone is in sub-optimal lighting conditions. Bigger sensors mean bigger pixels and less noise, with better blacks and shadows. Sony is also using a backside illuminated stacked sensor, and there’s built-in optical image stabilization which means you can take sharper photos at lower shutter speeds, letting in more light for clearer images.

In practice, what you get are pretty good low light photos, especially outdoors with ambient light present, or in decently well-lit indoor settings. In poorer lighting conditions or when you’re trying to freeze action in low light, you’re going to get fairly noisy results, especially when compared to an APS-C or full-frame camera. Sony’s tech can do a lot to make the most of less than ideal photographic conditions, but at some point, it runs up against the limits of what’s possible.

Sony also doesn’t get quite as aggressive with computational photographic techniques for digitally compensating for lower available light, as do the Pixel phones and the latest iPhone 11. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though – the images from the RX100 VII present more accurate night and indoor photos, by comparison, and you can still get much better indoor images with the RX100 VII than you can with any smartphone.

As you can see in the gallery above, the camera does extremely well as long as there’s one well-lit subject or element in frame. It’s less effective when the image overall is uniformly dim, but if you’re looking for great photos in those conditions, you should probably consider upgrading to a larger camera with a larger sensor anyways.

Movie maker

The RX100 VII’s greatest strength might just be how good it is at shooting video for a device this size. Video out of the camera with very minimal adjustment from the default shooting settings produces highly usable results, for both home video enthusiasts and for YouTubers or vloggers looking to produce great looking content without lugging an entire film production studio along with them on their travels.

Once again, the versatile zoom range really shines here, and the you can even shoot at the tele end of the zoom handheld and get totally usable footage provided you’re a bit careful about movement, as you can see in the third clip in the sequence below, which was shot at the 200mm range. Low-light footage looks great, as is evident from the second clip in sequence, and at the wide end you can capture sweeping landscape vistas or flip up the screen and turn the camera around for selfie-style video.

The added microphone port makes it an even more powerful filmmaking tool, and if you pick up their optional VCT-SGR1 shooting grip, combined with a small shotgun mic or something like the Rode Wireless Go, you’ve got everything you need to create very compelling travel diaries in an incredibly lightweight package that will be able to produce quality and get zoom and wide shots that are impossible on a smartphone.

Bottom line

The RX100 VII is a delight of a camera and an easy recommendation to make. There’s nothing that compares in this size category in terms of the range of features, autofocus capabilities, video prowess and performance as a general all-rounder. This is the do-everything travel camera that you could really only dream of five years ago, and it’s become more ideal for this use with every generation that Sony introduces.

Whether you’re looking to step up your photographic possibilities from your smartphone, or you want to supplement your professional or advanced enthusiast equipment with a pocket camera that’s available as a b-camera for video or to grab a few choice stills, the RX100 VII is hard to top. It’s only downside is that $ 1,200 asking price, which is definitely above average for a compact camera – but on a value basis, $ 1,200 isn’t at all expensive for everything this camera has to offer.

Full sample gallery

Gadgets – TechCrunch

The Sony RX100 VII is the best compact camera you can buy Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100.

[dizzedcom]

Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100. Since its debut, this line of cameras has proven a very popular option among enthusiasts looking for a great travel camera, vloggers, and even pros who want a compact backup option just in case. The RX100 VII should suit all those needs very well, provided you’re okay with coughing up the $1,200 asking price.

Not that $1,200 is too expensive for what you’re getting, since Sony has packed tremendous value in the Mark VII, including an extremely versatile 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) zoom range, 20fps continuous burst mode shooting, a flip-up touch screen, built-in images stabilization and the same powerful autofocus technologies you’ll find on its flagship full-frame interchangeable lens pro cameras.

Pocket power

The Sony RX100 VII satisfies a specific need, but it’s one that a lot of people probably have: Striking a balance between image quality, range and portability. One the convenience end of the spectrum, the ultimate device is probably your smartphone, since you have that with you always. On the IQ and range side, you’re looking at a top-end DSLR with a high-quality, low aperture zoom lens that can weigh more than a large dog. The RX100 VII manages to be so impressive because it can delivery near the portability of a smartphone, with some of the photography chops of a setup that typically requires its own suitcase.

Inside the RX100 VII you’ll find a 1-inch sensor, which is very big relative to smartphone imaging sensors. This is important because it means there’s no contest between which will capture a better image, with lower noise, greater depth-of-field and better color rendering. For all the software magic that companies like Apple and Google can bring to the photography table, nothing yet can totally compensate for simply having a larger sensor.

The RX100 VII’s compactness isn’t just impressive because of the large sensor it packs inside, however; you also get an EVF, an integrated flash, an external microphone jack and an articulating LCD display. To get all of this into a package this small is astounding – the EVF in particular is a great feature for anyone who wants to be a bit more direct and particular with their shot composition, while the flip-up LCD means you can also have a great selfie screen and monitor for use when vlogging.

Last but not least in terms of its portability benefits, you can charge the RX100 VII via USB directly so that you can leave any additional charging hardware at home. The camera has a micro USB port for both data and power, and while it would’ve been nice to see this upgraded to USB-C on this camera to keep up with the latest in terms of computer and smartphone charging, it’s still better than requiring an external charger.

Zoom zoom

Sony decided on a very long zoom range for the RX100 VII, which sports a 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) f/2.8-4.5 powered retracting zoom lens. That’s the same range and aperture as the RX100 VI, which opts for more range over the brighter 24-70mm f/1.8-2.8 lens found on the V and earlier.

While you’ll lose some ability to separate your subject from the background vs. a brighter lens, you get a lot more reach for shooting action or wildlife. The added range definitely makes it a better all-around travel camera, too, and makes it possible to get some shots you otherwise just wouldn’t be able to get at all with a shorter lens.

The long end of the zoom range also offers stunningly sharp images, especially in bright, daylight conditions. In the examples below, you can see some of the 200mm samples shot on the RX100 VII next to the 24mm wide versions of the same scenes to get a sense of just how close you can get with this lens, and the quality of the images possible even at those extreme zoom lengths.

At the wide end, you have plenty of real estate to capture great sweeping architectural or landscape shots, and the sharpness is also fantastic in great light. There’s some distortion, but it’s mostly corrected by Sony’s software on JPG output. That 24mm wide angle is also the right width for arm-length selfies, though you’re probably going to want at least a short selfie stick for vlogging applications to give yourself a little more in the way of framing options.

Sticky AF

Leaving aside the fact that this is one of the better sensors available on the market for a camera this size, there’s another very compelling reason to pick up this camera, and one that likely gives it the edge over competitors from other companies. I’m talking about Sony’s autofocus system, and the RX100 VII gets the latest and greatest that Sony has developed, which is found only in much more expensive cameras from the company like the A9 and the new A7R IV.

You get face and eye tracking, for both human and animal subjects, and these are both best-in-class when compared with other camera makers’ systems. The animal one in particular is a Sony speciality, and worked amazingly well on my real dog – and on Sony’s Aibo robot dog, captured at the Sony Ginza experience center in Tokyo.

The face and eye detection settings are available in both still shooting and movies, and you can set eye preference (left or right), too. The newest AF feature, however, is object tracking, which allows you to point your AF point at a specific object and have the camera automatically track that object as you zoom or move, or as the object moves within frame. You can choose from a range of options regarding how large of a focal area to track, and this works in tandem with human face detection so that the camera will automatically focus on the subject’s face when it’s visible, and on them more generally when it’s not, which is amazing for sports or action photography.

In practice, this works extremely well. Sony’s claims about how well this sticks, and how good it is at picking a subject back up after it moves behind an object, for instance, are spot on. This is really the best AF system available on a camera in the pocketable category, at any price point, and it’s truly amazing to experience. In the shots below, you can see how it allowed me to capture a very clear picture of a soaring hawk at the 200mm tele zoom, how it tracked a bike in motion and got a clear image of the rider’s face, and how it froze a motor bike in motion during a burst series (all the shots were in focus, by the way).

Low light

Another area where Sony’s RX100 VII and its 1-inch sensor are going to have a leg up on your smartphone is in sub-optimal lighting conditions. Bigger sensors mean bigger pixels and less noise, with better blacks and shadows. Sony is also using a backside illuminated stacked sensor, and there’s built-in optical image stabilization which means you can take sharper photos at lower shutter speeds, letting in more light for clearer images.

In practice, what you get are pretty good low light photos, especially outdoors with ambient light present, or in decently well-lit indoor settings. In poorer lighting conditions or when you’re trying to freeze action in low light, you’re going to get fairly noisy results, especially when compared to an APS-C or full-frame camera. Sony’s tech can do a lot to make the most of less than ideal photographic conditions, but at some point, it runs up against the limits of what’s possible.

Sony also doesn’t get quite as aggressive with computational photographic techniques for digitally compensating for lower available light, as do the Pixel phones and the latest iPhone 11. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though – the images from the RX100 VII present more accurate night and indoor photos, by comparison, and you can still get much better indoor images with the RX100 VII than you can with any smartphone.

As you can see in the gallery above, the camera does extremely well as long as there’s one well-lit subject or element in frame. It’s less effective when the image overall is uniformly dim, but if you’re looking for great photos in those conditions, you should probably consider upgrading to a larger camera with a larger sensor anyways.

Movie maker

The RX100 VII’s greatest strength might just be how good it is at shooting video for a device this size. Video out of the camera with very minimal adjustment from the default shooting settings produces highly usable results, for both home video enthusiasts and for YouTubers or vloggers looking to produce great looking content without lugging an entire film production studio along with them on their travels.

Once again, the versatile zoom range really shines here, and the you can even shoot at the tele end of the zoom handheld and get totally usable footage provided you’re a bit careful about movement, as you can see in the third clip in the sequence below, which was shot at the 200mm range. Low-light footage looks great, as is evident from the second clip in sequence, and at the wide end you can capture sweeping landscape vistas or flip up the screen and turn the camera around for selfie-style video.

The added microphone port makes it an even more powerful filmmaking tool, and if you pick up their optional VCT-SGR1 shooting grip, combined with a small shotgun mic or something like the Rode Wireless Go, you’ve got everything you need to create very compelling travel diaries in an incredibly lightweight package that will be able to produce quality and get zoom and wide shots that are impossible on a smartphone.

Bottom line

The RX100 VII is a delight of a camera and an easy recommendation to make. There’s nothing that compares in this size category in terms of the range of features, autofocus capabilities, video prowess and performance as a general all-rounder. This is the do-everything travel camera that you could really only dream of five years ago, and it’s become more ideal for this use with every generation that Sony introduces.

Whether you’re looking to step up your photographic possibilities from your smartphone, or you want to supplement your professional or advanced enthusiast equipment with a pocket camera that’s available as a b-camera for video or to grab a few choice stills, the RX100 VII is hard to top. It’s only downside is that $1,200 asking price, which is definitely above average for a compact camera – but on a value basis, $1,200 isn’t at all expensive for everything this camera has to offer.

Full sample gallery

The Sony RX100 VII is the best compact camera you can buy Sony’s latest advanced compact camera is the highly pocketable RX100 VII, the seventh iteration of the RX100.