#as if 40% isn't still 40 percent

[lmitations]

fun fact about me that's a little embarrassing is for a long time i thought mixed drinks were weaker than whatever alcohol percentage is in there bc of it being diluted

[britneyshakespeare]

barnes and noble has been raising the prices of everything and further pushing for their premium membership option (which they raised the price of by 60 percent this year!) and then when they have big sales events, they're less than what they used to be.

last year at this time you could get one of their leather-bound book annex tomes for $12.50 (without a member discount) because of the 50 percent off all hardcover sales. but they raised the price of those tomes from 25 bucks to 30, and they decreased the sale from 50 percent off all hardcovers to 1/3rd off. so that same book that was $12.50 at last year's end-of-year sale is now 20 bucks. and that's supposed to be savings enough to induce me to walk into one of their stores this week?

i'm sorry but b&n has just gotten so greedy, even though their business has only been doing better and better in previous years. they do not have to be raising prices like they have been, and they can damn well afford to have the same savings events they used to. if you went to one of those hardcover sales a year or two ago, even if you lived in a less populated area like i do, you had never seen a b&n so busy in your life. things were flying off the shelves. they WERE making bank.

and as a company they've only been growing and growing (as much as the publishing industry has been, in recent years). but there are so many other ways to buy books. CHEAPER ways to buy books. MORE SUSTAINABLE ways to buy books. and since books and booksellers are doing really well right now, i don't see why barnes and noble is getting so greedy when they don't have to be. i dont like new shiny books that much. people buy books for the content, ultimately. sometimes we as consumers might make the choice that a new shiny book is worth paying a bit more for, but not that much. barnes and noble has just been demanding more and more of their customers' money for less and less benefit.

[cubicpeebles]

I have been re-attempting Enot, and I've actually managed to get to Chimney Canopy!

It is actually one of the easier places to be, as you have infinite yeeks as either food or lizard bait, though it sucks that you kinda have to use them to do anything (if you don't have a yeek you get exhausted after a single jump, which makes moving around miserable. Luckily, they spawn every time you leave a pipe. Except when they randomly don't. It is very inconsistent).

I have not managed to get to the echo tower spawn yet though. The combination of unfair creature spawns, and guaranteed pre-cycles (which forces you to move to a new shelter every cycle in the rain, in a region full of open spaces and bottomless pits. It is totally super fun.) has made consistently staying at max karma very difficult.

[just-slightly-chayotic]

why would i put hype boy on my summer playlist?? now every single time it plays i go and rewatch jeff's hype boy performance on loop. from multiple angles.

[getvalentined]

An open letter to @staff

I already submitted this to Support under "Feedback," but I'm sharing it here too as I don't expect it to get a response, and I feel like putting in out in public may be more effective than sending it off into the void.

The recent post on the Staff blog about changing tumblr to an algorithmic feed features a large amount of misinformation that I feel staff needs to address, openly and honestly, with information on where this data was sourced at the very least.

Claim 1: Algorithms help small creators.

This is false, as algorithms are designed to push content that gets engagement in order to get it more engagement, thereby assuring that the popular remain popular and the small remain small except in instances of extreme luck.

This can already be seen on the tumblr radar, which is a combination of staff picks (usually the same half-dozen fandoms or niche special interests like Lego photography) which already have a ton of engagement, or posts that are getting enough engagement to hit the radar organically. Tumblr has an algorithm that runs like every other socmed algorithm on the planet, and it will decimate the reach of small creators just like every other platform before it.

Claim 2: Only a small portion of users utilize the chronological feed.

You can find a poll by user @darkwood-sleddog here that at the time of writing this, sits at over 40 THOUSAND responses showing that over 96 percent of them use the chronological feed*. Claiming otherwise isn't just a misstatement, it's a lie. You are lying to your core userbase and expecting them to accept it as fact. It's not just unethical, it's insulting to people who have been supporting your platform for over a decade.

Claim 3: Tumblr is not easy to use.

This is also 100% false and you ABSOLUTELY know it. Tumblr is EXTREMELY easy to use, the issue is that the documentation, the explanations of features, and often even the stability of the service is subpar. All of this would be very easy for staff to fix, if they would invest in the creation of walkthroughs and clear explanations of how various site features work, as well as finally fixing the search function. Your inability to explain how your service works should not result in completely ignoring the needs and wants of your core long-term userbase. The fact that you're more willing to invest in the very systems that have made every other form of social media so horrifically toxic than in trying to make it easier for people to use the service AS IT WORKS NOW and fixing the parts that don't work as well speaks volumes toward what tumblr staff actually cares about.

You will not get a paycheck if your platform becomes defunct, and the thing that makes it special right now is that it is the ONLY large-scale socmed platform on THE ENTIRE INTERNET with a true chronological feed and no aggressive algorithmic content serving. The recent post from staff indicates that you are going to kill that, and are insisting that it's what we want. It is not. I'd hazard to guess that most of the dev team knows it isn't what we want, but I assume the money people don't care. The user base isn't relevant, just how much money they can bring in.

The CEO stated he wanted this to remain as sort of the last bastion of the Old Internet, and yet here we are, watching you declare you intend to burn it to the ground.

You can do so much better than this.

Response to the Update

Under the cut for readability, because everything said above still applies.

I already said this in a reblog on the post itself, but I'm adding it to this one for easy access: people read it that way because that's what you said.

Staff considers the main feed as it exists to be "outdated," to the point that you literally used that word to describe it, and the main goals expressed in this announcement is to figure out what makes "high-quality content" and serve that to users moving forward.

People read it that way because that is what you said.

*The final results of the poll, after 24 hours:

136,635 votes breaks down thusly:

An algorithm based feed where I get "the best of tumblr." @ 1.3% (roughly 1,776 votes)

Chronological feed that only features blogs I follow. @ 95.2% (roughly 130,077 votes)

This doesn't affect me personally. @ 3.5% (roughly 4,782 votes)

[twinksrepository]

Unable to sleep

Rating: 18+ Minors DNI

Pairing: Lucifer X F!Reader

CW: Late night phone chats, bad flirting

Word count: Roughly 1.8K

A/N: Some Lucifer fluff after seeing some head cannons about the pacts and thinking about the time between lessons 40 and 41 of the OG.

Images belong to Solmare.

You let out another sigh as you roll onto your side away from the window so you're facing the wall. Closing your eyes as you try to fall asleep, try being the operative word. All you can hear even through the closed window and walls of your bachelor apartment is the sound of the city at night. 

Car engines running just a few stories down along the still busy roads, voices yelling words you can't make out adding to the cacophony of clashing sounds. The occasional siren of an emergency vehicle as it flies by. 

It's nothing like the stillness of the House of Lamentation. 

To think, when you first arrived in the Devildom you couldn't sleep because of how quiet it was. Well. That and the fact Belphie had been calling out to you from the attic. 

The sound of squealing tires reaches you and you groan, rolling so you're once more on your back with one of your hands scrambling around on your night table searching for your phone. Wincing as the change in brightness blinds you for a moment before frowning. Wrong phone. Another few smacks and you feel the other device, your D.D.D., and glance at the screen to see the time. 

Sure you could have done mental math to adjust for the time difference but that was a daylight task, not an exhausted and unable to sleep task. Maybe one of your favorite brothers could help you fall asleep?

It's almost midnight and you hum for a moment, tapping your lower lip with the tip of your index finger. You can just picture Belphie snuggled up with his pillow and wedged against Beel, both of them passed out in Beel's bed that is covered in empty chip bags. 

They're out. 

Asmo is one hundred percent off to dreamland with a face mask covering his skin, he might like to party but never at the cost of his beautiful face not getting the proper amount of rest to be bouncy and shiny the next day. 

Satan might be up, the Avatar of Wrath does love reading late into the night if he isn't out at a social event with some well to do member of demonic society that takes even Lucifer by surprise.  A figurative poke at the thin mental connection that’s always in the back of your mind because of the pact, poke because if he is asleep you're just as likely to get a raging Satan as a sleepy one. 

Silence on the other end. You aren’t willing to risk a harder poke but you do let out a small giggle as your brain conjures the image of him still dressed and asleep on his bed with a book draped over his face. It happens far more than the blond is willing to admit. 

Levi should be awake, he was raving this afternoon about what a great line up this season was for anime with two manga he was into being adapted. Except you don't even get to reach out mentally to him. He is wide awake with the “DO NOT DISTURB” mental sign up from his end, even without touching the connection you can feel his excitement pouring through it. Blinking you focus on closing your end a little more, maybe that was part of the reason you couldn't sleep. 

Mammon might be up. Your nose twitching as you can see him out at the casino and losing all his money from working several part time jobs through the week. It's a fifty fifty shot on if he'd be happy to take a break and talk to you or if he'd tell you in that tsundere way of his that you just cost him the chance to win the jackpot and how sometimes you were more trouble than you were worth. 

You've got a one hundred percent shot of that not happening if you don't reach out.

Which leaves a final option. 

Lucifer. 

You have no doubt he's still awake, probably just as exhausted as you are but he's still working through the piles of paperwork like the perfectionist that he is. Biting your lip before you reach out with a mental probe at his pact connection. 

It's almost instantaneous as his mind reaches back, an underlying current of concern mixed in with his curiosity. The pact bonds serve an interesting purpose, at least for you anyway, in that while you can't talk to them you can get a sense of emotions shared through the metaphysical link. Snippets of images to try and convey what they're willing to share with you, and you are able to do the same. 

Sending Lucifer what you hope is the mental image of your dark bedroom and the sense of exhaustion and frustration that’s keeping you awake. 

Your phone starts to glow and shake in your hand, a rare candid of him laughing in his RAD uniform flashing on screen as you hit the answer button. “Hi Luc.” 

“Hello My Love.” You can hear the exhaustion lacing his voice as he speaks, and the sound of his gloved hand trailing through his hair. “Why are you still awake?” There isn't any accusations in his question, just concern that makes your chest feel fuzzy. 

“I can't sleep, it's too loud in the human world.” 

“So you decided to bother me instead?” He's teasing you, but you're happy to take the bait. 

“I doubt you were doing anything important, I'm sure this is the highlight of your night, talking to me on a day that isn't your turn.” Smirking at his own rule that the brothers have to take turns calling you on different days. “I wonder if I should tell the others how the rules don't apply to their big brother?” Grinning from ear to ear as the exhaustion starts to melt away while your excitement grows. 

“You could, and then you'd never get anything done because you'd always be on the phone.” His comeback is spot on but it's still fun to tease him about it. “As to the highlight of my night, it is a tie between hearing your lovely voice and going over the spreadsheets for the student council budget.” A soft chuckle that makes your toes curl under the material of your sheets. “How are you ever going to compare to the riveting examination of how much we spent on stationary last month?” 

You snort at how serious his delivery is, and you can just picture that playful grin that's starting to spread across his face. “Stationary? Oh no. I've lost, to be a tired lonely human missing her beloved demon, only for him to choose paperwork over me.” Throwing a hand over your face as if he can see your theatrics. “Oh, woe is me.” 

“Perhaps if you could summon said demon, you wouldn't be so lonely.” He's still teasing, and it's only been a few weeks since you left the Devildom but you still hear that pang in his voice. The same one you hear when you talk to all the brothers, they miss you just as much as you miss them. 

“I know Lucifer, I know.” Sitting up now and using your thumb to twist the ring of light around your finger. “I miss you too, but I am trying. The problem is Solomon seems to be dragging his feet when I ask him for harder lessons or where to look to better understand some of the concepts he's trying to get me to understand.” Frowning now at you think of the witty sorcerer and how flippant he's been about the training he's promised you. “I'm strong enough to negatively affect all three worlds but I can't even boil a cup of water with magic on my own, let alone summon one of the demons I have a pact with.” 

“I'm certain he has his reasons, Lamb.” A long exhale and the sound of creaking leather, he must be rubbing his eyes. “My intention wasn't to upset you, hearing your voice this late at night just serves as a reminder that I enjoy going to my room and finding you curled up after you tried to wait for me.” His tone is soothing as he lets out another long exhale, one that sounds part frustrated and you don't blame him. 

“Trust me Luc, i'd rather be there too right now making you take a break from your work. You've probably got a few more gray hairs now that I've left, working yourself to the bone.” 

“Millenniums of dealing with my brothers but yes it is your absence and my work that is the cause of a few more graying strands.” Chuckling just enough that you find it easy to slump back down into your sheets. “Are you feeling better My Love?”

“A little bit, I'm still not very tired.” Talking to him has helped your mind relax more, focusing on his deep timber instead of the nighttime song of the city. A small yawn escapes you with a bit of wetness forming on your eyelashes. 

“I do need to finish this report.” A gentle reminder and you know he's trying to be kind in telling you he does need to hang up and finish his paperwork. 

“Can you just talk? I don't care about what, just…” Trailing off as you feel your ears burning a little from your embarrassment. “The sound of your voice helps.” 

“So long as you don’t mind me just muttering about costs and unbalanced budgets.” 

“Wait.” Blinking as you realize he was talking about his actual work earlier. “The student council really does have a budget? I thought it was more of a you guys just did whatever Diavolo wanted?” 

“My Love.” This time you know the exasperation in his voice is clearly directed at you. “All the nights you've spent with me, helping me do calculations and you thought the council just did whatever was catching Diavolo's attention at the time?” 

“I mean, am I wrong for thinking that?” 

A moment of silence rings out before you hear another sigh. “No. You're not. Alright Lamb, I'll mutter and talk to myself with the phone on speaker so you can hear me while I work if it might help you sleep.” 

“Thank you Lucifer.” Doing the same to your own phone and placing it near your pillow so you can hear the sound of his voice. After a few minutes of listening to his deep timber you feel your eyelids growing heavy, blinking and interrupting him for a moment. “Before I fall asleep.” Grinning well aware he can't see it but you send just how full your heart feels at him indulging you through the pact connection. “I love you Lucifer.” 

“And I you, my precious, sometimes idiotic Little Lamb.” A similar feeling sent back as he goes back to producing white noise for you. Only ending the call when he hears your soft steady snores for several minutes. “We'll see you soon. And this time, it will be your world.” 

Back to masterlist

[toxinoire]

I just thought of a Mean Girls swap au but a little close to their canon personalities

In which Regina is the transfer student, but since she's Regina, she gets everyone's attention in a snap. And since she doesn't have social constructs on her back, she's freely expressing her knowledge in history and literature (I headcanon that she loves these subjects) and is openly playing lacrosse. She's also not closeted. But she's still Regina, and she's still quite bitchy and venomous. But kind.

Gretchen is still a people pleaser, but her anxiety isn't as bad as it was. It's still concerning though. She still lowkey follows social constructs, but she doesn't let those control how she presents herself as insanely as canon.

Karen is still Karen honestly she's perfect no need to change her at all.

Cady is number 1 on the social hierarchy in this case (in this au, she went to Northshore a little earlier). But with the social constructs, she keeps her love for math on the down low, while still maintaining her grades. People are aware that she's from Africa, it's why she scares them. Because she grew up surrounded by wild animals.

Janis is still the art freak she is, and she's praised for her art. She has so many piercings because ✨Janis✨ but in this case, Janis is the one who's deeply closeted. She can't give in to wearing punk because ✨social constructs✨ so she wears simple casual clothes.

Damian isn't closeted, but he isn't showing his openly gay side as much because ✨social constructs✨. He's still a fun, goofy guy, but taken down like 40% percent. He's revered for his theatrics (as he should).

[elljayvee]

Today I'm more than usually annoyed with a pop science article, so I'm going to talk about reading these sorts of articles, why you should always be skeptical of claims in them, and some of the ways you can tell the article's author didn't understand what they were reading and told you the wrong thing.

I clicked on an article in Eating Well about low bone density and dementia, because my mother has both. There's not a lot we can do for her now, but I am a curious person. I know Eating Well isn't great at science interpretation and communication, so I'm anticipating that I'm going to need to read the original study already, going in. (How do I know Eating Well isn't a great source usually? Well, I have read it before, and it has some really clear biases if you read a few articles that aren't science communication, and so you get to know a source over time like that. Regardless of how, I'm already suspicious they're not going to do a great job.)

The article is talking about research that shows low bone density may be predictive of dementia risk. It is written by a journalist and reviewed by a dietician. Now, I don't know what review the dietician did, but she did a bad job, and also, so did the journalist, because THE FIRST red flag that goes up is pretty quick: the math is very, very clearly wrong.

This says there are 3651 participants, and that over 11 years, 688 of them developed dementia. This is 18.8% and the article calls it 19%. That's fair! Not a red flag so far, just rounding. Then it says that of the 1211 people with lowest bone density at the start, 90 people (7.4%) developed dementia, and of the 1211 with highest bone density, only 57 (4.7%) did.

This IS a red flag. It's a GIANT red flag. This red flag can be seen from SPACE by anyone who knows how percentages work.

Here's how: You have 3651 people. 1211 of them are in the low bone density group, 1211 of them are in the high bone density group, leaving 1249 people. You have 688 total dementia cases, but your high and low groups account for only 147 of them, leaving 541 cases for that middle group. That's a LOT of cases. That middle tertile, just eyeballing it, has to have about 40% of its people with dementia -- that makes low bone density look like it predicts LOWER dementia risk relative to the middle group.

I can write out the equations for you two ways:

3651 - 1211 - 1211 = 1249 688 - 90 - 57 = 541 541/1249 = 0.433 0.433(100) = 43.3%

Because I am someone who does a fair amount of stats for a living, though, what I noticed was pretty much this equation:

0.074(1211) + x(1249) + 0.047(1211) = 0.19(3651) and I knew immediately that x had to be MUCH bigger than it should, which indeed the math bears out: x(1249) = 0.19(3651) - 0.074(1211) - 0.047(1211) x(1249) = 694 - 90 - 57 x = 547/1249 = 0.438 0.438(100) = 43.8%

That 694 is because the authors rounded 18.8 to 19 earlier, not because I can't math. So, due to rounding, you get slightly different answers -- but BOTH of them point to something SERIOUSLY WRONG with the reporting. What is actually going on in that middle tertile? Where do these numbers come from? Well, lucky us, they mention the name of an author, a journal, and a date. Always be wary of pop sci articles that don't give you a way to track down the original, but giving you that way to track things down doesn't mean they aren't still doing a crummy job with their reporting, as we see here.

The original paper is Association of Bone Mineral Density and Dementia: The Rotterdam Study, published March 2023 in Neurology. This is a pretty technical article with a fair amount of math and things in parens etc. etc. and tables and lots of measurements. The table captions are often not the greatest, which makes it a bit harder to read and interpret. For example, in Table 1, items are listed as number(number) and this can be any of:

count (percent) -- this one's usually labeled in the table itself

mean (standard deviation)

median (interquartile range) -- these last two are NOT labeled in the table, so we don't know which set of numbers is which.

Great. Thanks guys. Assuming what's called a "normal distribution" mean (SD) and median (IQR) numbers will be similar, but they're not the same and I'm irritated they're conflated but OK. Soldiering on!

The original study looked at several different measures of bone density, and found only ONE of them to show predictive ability for dementia: the density of the femoral neck. This means that for their article, Eating Well should have looked at the results for femoral neck bone density, which we find in Table 2:

You have the actual numbers for 5 years, 10 years, and study end, as well as the hazard risk (HR) for each bone density tertile, with the highest tertile set as the standard. Numbers in the HR column have 1 as a reference point -- lower than 1 is lower risk than the highest tertile, and higher than 1 is higher risk.

The first thing I noticed is that neither 57 nor 90 occur in the femoral neck section at ALL. Those numbers from the Eating Well article are just not there. I also notice that the other numbers don't align even one little bit -- the number of total cases of dementia is different, for example. I do notice that the column with the 10 year followup has numbers in it close to 57 and 90 (49, 67, 86, totaled to 202) and that the overall numbers for the total study are much higher -- 201, 236, 229. Interesting.

At this point, I just straight-up search the paper for "90", and I find it in Table 2....in the total bone density section, which the paper's authors have said is NOT the section that showed possible predictive results. I search for "57", and also find that in total bone density, and also....wow the EW author straight up failed to read. This is actually worse than I thought.

Read across, these are the 5 year followup numbers (first 2 columns - count and HR), 10 year (middle 2 columns), and total followup numbers (last 2 columns).

We see our friends 57 and 90 in the 10 year columns. 90 is, as described in the EW article, in the lowest bone density tertile, but 57 is NOT in the highest bone density tertile. It's in the middle tertile. The actual number for the highest tertile is 68. Additionally, the total cases for 10 years is nowhere near that 688 number -- it's 215. We only get total case numbers close to 688 when we look at the study end numbers: it's 686, in this particular group. If we look at the study end case numbers for highest, middle, and lowest tertiles, we see WHY this particular measure can't be used to predict anything: they are 227 (highest), 227 (middle), and 232 (lowest) -- not significantly different from each other.

We can also see here that this group of people -- people who had total bone density measurements -- is not 3651, but 3633, which is listed across the bottom row. The overall STUDY had 3651, but not all of them had total bone density recorded.

Now we know that the author of the EW article did all of the following:

read the wrong part of Table 2

mixed up middle and high tertile results

reported 10 year results mixed with total followup results (this resulted in the weird math that alerted me something was very very wrong in the first place).

and the person who was supposed to review the article didn't have even the basic math skills to catch the problem -- which she absolutely should have, as a registered dietician. For giggles, I looked up program requirements for a BS in Dietetics. Programs require things like statistics and precalc -- not math heavy, but the math that alerted me to this problem is VERY basic statistical knowledge, like the kind they teach in 6th grade level statistics, which I know because it was literally in my 6th grader's curriculum this past school year. So a registered dietician DEFINITELY had enough math to catch this problem, and should have, and Eating Well should be ashamed of itself.

SO. What can we learn from this?

Well, science communication is a skill set. Some people have worked very hard to develop that skill set and are excellent at it -- but lots of people do not have it, and even those who do can make mistakes. Many, many pop sci articles are not written by trained science communicators, or people with any education in how to read scientific articles, or people with good reading comprehension, even. It's very common for pop sci articles to have these sorts of errors in them. Therefore:

Always read pop sci articles with a skeptical eye. Ask yourself:

Do these numbers line up? Usually the math in pop sci articles is not very complex -- you can often do some basic arithmetic to make sure it even makes sense, as was the case here.

Does one part of the article seem to contradict another part of the article?

Do I feel confused about what exactly I'm being told? What's not clear about it?

Am I being told about HOW something works or WHY it works or both? Are those two things being conflated somehow?

Is there a link or way to find the original research? If not, my advice is to throw the whole article away. If yes, you can go check it out -- often just looking at the abstract or results section will be enough, and abstracts usually aren't paywalled even if the rest of the article is. You would be surprised how many times the abstract says "we found X" and the pop sci article says "the researchers found Y".

Could I explain this article to someone and have it make sense? If not, why not?

Is the article confusing correlation (these things happen together) with causation (one of these things causes the other)?

Pop sci articles, like other journalistic articles, are extremely subject to bias issues from the publication they're in. A lot of people tend to read pop sci articles as neutral, factual reporting, but they aren't! I mentioned EW's biases earlier -- the one I think is most relevant to how their article is written is a pervasive belief that if you just eat the right things in the right amounts you will be thin and healthy and stave off all kinds of problems. They close their article by mentioning that, although the study's authors are clear that this connection is unlikely to be causative, and that risk factors for low bone density and dementia have substantial overlap, readers should act like it might be causitive with diet and exercise choices that promote bone health. They were so excited to get to their point about fixing your diet that they didn't pay attention to the actual science they were reporting on. (Sidenote: actual scientific journal articles are supposed to be neutral, factual reporting. They also aren't actually that, but there are some measures in place around this to try to prevent the worst effects of bias.)

It's worth brushing up some basic math skills. You don't need to know a lot! Very basic information will help you better understand a lot of articles -- both ones that are accurate and well-written, and ones that are shoddy and should not have been published. I really like Larry Gonick's The Cartoon Guide to Statistics but if your grasp of percentages is shaky, it will be too advanced. A good option might be something like The I Hate Mathematics! Book, which is pretty old but really accessible, but there's probably some newer great ones out there that I just don't know about.

[runabout-river]

It has happened now, a JJK artist on Twitter is in critical condition after being shelled by the Israeli Army in Gaza while sheltering inside a school. Reportedly, she lost an eye.

The screenshot is from a friend who barely manages to keep in contact with Noury with a family member's phone. This of course is Israel's tactic to cut communication from Gaza. The world isn't supposed to see the genocide and at least the amount of reports and eye witness accounts have dropped since because most people simply can't communicate their suffering to the world anymore.

This is the picture Noury drew before Israel decided to finally cleanse the Gaza Strip like it always wanted thanks to an exaggerated death count of a provoked military response, undisclosed shelling by the IOF of their own citizens and lies of 40 beheaded babies.

The caption of this piece of art reads "Please don't take my sunshine away," a response to chapter 236 and Gojo Satoru's apparent death.

Think back to that time. A favorite character of yours dies in a manga and you either draw or look at drawings of him to deal with that. Then a war starts that had been brewing for 75 years because Jewish Extremists and Supremacist with the backing from the war hungry US want you dead.

You know what I thought this entire time? That it's statistically unlikely that the one JJK artist from Gaza that I follow will be a victim in this war. There are 2.2 million people in Gaza but there's only one Noury, so what's the chance that something is going to happen to her?

What an absurd thought that turned out to be. I've been writing and raging on Tumblr about the genocide again and again and I know the severity of it, I know the numbers. I've seen the pictures and videos of dead children with their faces, not their heads, turned over like the pages of a book.

But most of that, the sheer enormity and the scale of it, was still abstract in my mind. Now, outside of the dry and clinical fact of it, the human element made me realize in my heart and mind that this is a genocide.

1 person among 2.2 million getting harmed isn't a statistical probability of 0.00001 percent. It's 100% because everyone is the target. Every Palestinian in Gaza is targeted with deprivation, hunger, thirst, illnesses and bombs. That is ethnic cleansing. That is the threat of genocide.

And the US, the UK and the EU, they're all complicit in this genocide and because I'm from Germany I'm also explicitly saying that Olaf Scholz, Marco Buschmann and Nancy Faeser are also complicit in this new holocaust.

Hopefully Noury will recover and hopefully she and her family and everyone else in Gaza will be able to go back to their homes. Homes btw, that per international law, Israel is supposed to replace or compensate for after destroying them.

Of course you don't need to compensate for anything if no one is there anymore, either because they're dead or they moved to another country involuntaryily.

[eyedoeluhn]

Here's a challenge: say something good about BCF that isn't a backhanded compliment. There has to be some reason people keep reading it

number go up = sufficentvelocity user happy. Frequenting the thread is actually pretty funny because a lot of bcfs local glazers also don’t enjoy the pacing. We’re just all along for the ride.

well I was going to say the author respects the source material of the forge considering lord cut perks he wasn’t familiar with and if you have the time to read some of the filler he knows what happens and occasionally poses an interesting power use before it’s forgotten obsolete or just never used because nothing ever happens, but that isn’t true because those power levels only exist in filler anyways

I was going to say we see a lot of more obscure characters who don’t commonly get included in fanfic and lord isn’t bad at writing characters 40% of the time when they aren’t praising Joe 24/7 or exist outside of their relationship to Joe especially but that just really slows the fic down and there’s too much encrusted Joe glaze to enjoy a lot of povs. They are definitely a breath of fresh air when Joe isn’t included.

And it’s not like I don’t ever compliment BCF I try to be a fair taskmaster…… but it’s BCF.

I guess it’s ol reliable, Lord is a technically skilled writer in some respects. His prose is a few tiers above what you usually might expect from an average wormfic and while he definitely is lacking in a lot of places he does output a lot of words even if seventy five percent of them could be cut with no negative impact on the reader. Wait shit that’s backhanded uh

His descriptions of powers can be cool? Even through its hard to enjoy them when they’re worthless. That’s not it either.

I cannot mention the early chapters those were bad

march…is there…? And then no. Don’t mention her “ending”.

We didn’t see the abb worshipping Joe situation on screen thank god? No that’s not a compliment either…

I guess the lung fight had some cool visuals? If you could follow what was even going on and didn’t mind reading it twice over a month this is. Harder than I thought.

He’s pretty good in characterization when he’s not getting caught up in filler or literally anything to do with Joe and Joe is centered by every pov character all the time even our looks at the wider protectorate so it’s like 20% maximum that is instantly sacrificed for a “wow joes so cool” moment at the nearest possible opportunity to the point of total character assassination

he’s very responsive to fans

To the point of spoiling entire arcs and upcoming events that we still wait months to years to complete despite the fact that the problem still existing is already on shaky ground and frankly it just points out how he has a very specific schedule for things and it really doesn’t matter what Joe rolls he just adjusts it so the event still happens in a week (30 chapters minimum) and frankly it makes me wonder why he’s writing a CF story if he hates the randomness that much because he’s acknowledged that bcfs pace is godawful he just. Doesn’t want to write at a faster pace he wrote one event that had a lot going on and swore off of it forever and has also just said some weird things about Aisha and

I can’t even say there’s like a cute pet or shit man. There’s just tybalt. I fucking hate tybalt. Fuck.

I think. Lords prose is good. Pretty good. Smooth as a jungle river and your eyes slide right off.

[anathemafiction]

Inflation prices

Hosted Games is going to raise the price of all of their games on January 19th — it's been years, but it seems inflation has caught up with them. This won't affect newer releases much, like the Rose, but it may have a pretty substantial price increase in some of the older titles. 

The Golden Rose will go up 15% percent — so if you want to buy it, now's the time to do it! Outside of Steam sales, it'll never be this low price again.

However, some old gems will have bigger price changes, and I wanted to take this opportunity to shine some light on a few of my old favorite HG games. If the summaries interest you, give the free demos a try!

(I'll be linking the COG page, where you can find the links to Steam, Google Play, the App Store, and Amazon at the bottom of the screen).

Tin Star (50% price increase) — Step into the shoes of a US marshal in the old, wild west. It's a very big game, full of hard decisions and a great cast of characters (Preston, you cocky bastard, I love you). You can be a terrible person, a saint, or anything in between. 

Zombie Exodus (60% increase) — Try to survive a zombie apocalypse. There are dangerous missions to navigate, complicated power dynamics between survivors, and, of course, friends and lovers to remind you what it is you're fighting for. This is an old game, but it was one of the first IFs I read, and to this day the story and characters hold a special place in my heart. 

Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven (40%) — This one isn't really an old game, but I want to include it since the price increase is still substantial and, if you enjoy the first ZE, you will LOVE this. The author took everything from the first game and made it better. You can see how much he has improved. From customization (it's mind-blowing), to relationships, to writing atmospheres - I was legitimately scared in some parts! Plus, the different prologues are so good and... just try it! I adore this game so much. 

Way Walkers: University (40%) — Play as a student in a prestigious magic school. The magic system is super interesting, as is the world at large. But, by far, the best thing about this game and its sequel are the characters. It has one of my favorite ROs in any IF games, Semryu, and the way your friendship develops into a tentative romance is so well done. There's also mystery and tension, and I cannot wait for Book 3! 

Double/Cross (60%) — Okay, I'll admit: I don't remember a lot about this game. It's been years since I read it, but I do remember, however, really liking it! You work as a bodyguard for the richest man in England, and not everything is as it seems. I like it because it subverts your expectations, and when I got my "happy ending" I... did not feel happy at all. It's really interesting and not very long, so I encourage everyone to give it a try!

So, You're Possessed! (50%) — Oh, how to explain this game? You start as a pizza delivery person, and then you meet a demon and your life is thrown upside down. It's been years since I've played it but it has always remained a special little gem. I don't want to spoil the story too much, so just give it a try!

Evertree Inn (40%) — Again, not exactly old, but I think the price increase warrants it on the list. I also think most of you are familiar with the game and its sequels, but I want to mention it anyway. Solve a mystery in a secluded tavern and watch out for the murderer! You can play as a number of fantasy races — dwarf, elf, etc— and interact with a cast of colorful characters. It's just such a fun game, and it leads to a great adventure in the sequel. 

Fallen Hero: Rebirth (40%) — Okay, okay, I know. You all have the game already plus, it isn't technically "old". Well, may this serve as an announcement that Fallen Hero is about to get 40% more expensive, and if by some chance some of you haven't played it yet, you should absolutely do so now. The sequel is coming, and it's held as one of the best IFs ever published. A reputation that, in my opinion, is more than deserved. 

Happy reading! I hope you find at least one game that'll bring you joy.♡

[animation-is-my-jam]

How do you think College would Go for becky's friend circle (plus the others in her age range)? I know you most explore about them in either High School and in adulthood ( like in your Fic and Fan children ). But I'm curious.

Hey thanks for the ask! This is a good one.

Yeah, you're very observant in how I don't really focus on that part of when I do Wordgirl time-skip stories, for example in my current fic I always allude to specific things in college but I haven't straight up wrote about them in college. To me, that's a nebulous 4 to 6 years of vagueness where anything could happen lmao, either for lazy plot reasons or to make some crazy headcanons/jokes out of it. But you know what, sure, I'll give some ideas about what i would do if I had to headcanon the Woodview kids in college:

Becky: I feel like her being an English major is a given with also some creative writing and linguistics pursuits thrown in there. Becky would probably let herself become way more loose in college because girl has been on the school grind for so long she kinda needs it. I could see her trying to be a more reckless party gal during those years (and she cringes at that as an adult). But she also strikes me as the person who would stay up all night to do every assignment as soon as she gets them because she fears procrastination. (Becky starts to see the appeal of coffee). Whether she's still Wordgirl or not, it depends, but I think she would either retire or take a break as Wordgirl when she starts college. For her sanitys sake. She would stay in dorms and probably have maybe Rose or Scoops as a roommate or heck, maybe someone random like Emma or Emily. But... of course, it's a Jam post, so tobecky has to be brought up (i will be put to death after this dw ^v^) After having a dorm roomie for some time, I can see her and Tobey moving into an apartment together during their later years so they don't have to be apart for too much (they go to different schools). But I also like to imagine a mutual tobecky break-up during college, so that's funny to think about. Bob isn't with her during college, "pets" aren't allowed in the dorms, and the college staff isn't buying that he could be a short 40 year-old hairy student, and he's left behind, unfortunately.

Scoops: Easy enough, I can see him attending the same college/university as Becky since they both focus on writing and more liberal arts pursuits. Scoops would be very excited in college due to a lot of things. However, that means also procrastinates and forgets the most out of the group. I can see him absolutely trying to take over the school's news network and campus life updates, but he would have to get through some of the older students. Also, Rose still being his rival if she also attends the same UN. His major is 100 percent journalism, but I can see him being such a photographer fanatic since he wants to capture this era of their lives. He is also probably in some internship program with a news company during college.

Violet: I like to think Violet would get hella art scholarship opportunities, and of course, she's majoring in Art. She's definitely not going to more liberal arts or public universities, so she's going to be away from her friends :( I can see her being the first one to travel abroad for her studies, she's the one who would do all sorts of adventures and write about them to Becky and the others. She will visit when she can, but she'll be busy somewhere in like Italy painting and making more friends than ever before. She's the free spirit of them and definitely has formed some eco-friendly clubs or yoga classes with some students.

Rex: Despite how I headcanon him to be TJ and Johnson's age. I have it that they skip grades to join the friend group in their college years. Rex would absolutely major in mathematics, but I feel like they would stay in university the longest to achieve almost everything that field has to offer so he can have a lot of titles like a doctor or professor. Heck, I can see them teaching some classes while still being a student, lol. I don't know if they would go to the same university as Becky, Scoops, and Rose--probably not. They seemed like they would go out of the city for an Ivy league type school in like a nearby state. He'll be alone a bit since he's still adjusting to making earth their permanent earth, but they'll get the hang of it with some new people to meet. (Would still be a superhero during college).

Tobey: Even though he had a chance to attend college much earlier than the others, he rejected it in order to just live life a bit more in high school before getting swallowed up by studies. Tobey would absolutely get taken by any technical university or institute that could take him. At first, he considered a out of state university, but he didn't want to move far away from his new life he's built up, so he would settle for an institute that Steven and other professors would have gone to. I'm not saying most of that decision would be a (doesn't want to be too away from his friends) decision but...yeah it would. Haha. Okay, so obviously, Tobey's major and field is in robotics (Wow, who would have thought), but other than that, i have this particular headcanon that I know nobody understands, and I haven't shared yet, but I love it okay! So you know how some people discover their own beliefs and philosophies in college that were so different that you might think for them? Well... I have this idea for Tobey, aside from all the robotics... he starts caring a lot about women studies and starts minoring in it...yup! My boy becomes a whole feminist and gets really passionate about it. He's all about women in STEM and actually meets most of his newer friends through it. He goes to college protests and has written essays. Yeah... I can't believe Tobey McCallister turns woke...(but this is what would happen when the most important people in his life have always been strong women. It'll be crazy if he didn't have a strong respect for that).

Rose: I said in the other descriptions how she would be in the same school as Becky and Scoops. Rose's major is, of course, investigative journalism, but that would require her to also be in the social sciences. In addition to that, I can also imagine her being interested in criminal sciences too. She would compete with Scoops in the school news but technically join forces to beat out the upper-class men. Her nosey behaviors don't get better at college/university. If anything, they get worse by how much content of secrets she can learn from the drama of student life on campus.

And yeah, those are my ideas. Again thx for the ask. This was fun to think about, and I'm sorry if it took a while to answer, I keep forgetting when people talk about the Woodview gang. To me, that's like 7 characters (T△T)

Victoria: Finally, my girl is going to thrive. College would be very good for her, and I think it's the part of her life where she does mellow a lot from the terrible tendencies her parents instilled, more than she did in high school. Victoria being exceptional at everything really did have her (and me) struggle at what specific thing she would major in or what kind of school she would attend. I think a popular idea for her is to just attend some fancy university, but she's mostly doing something like the Olympics. I think that's fair, but I like having different interpretations. One of my fav Victoria headcanons is that music is the talent out of all of them that she's actually passionate about, but of course, her parents turned it into something manipulative. So, in college age, she gets accepted into a music institute or college like Berkeley/Juilliard, and there she really has the freedom to do whatever with music. That does mean she'll also be apart from the others, too, but girlie kinda needs a break from them, lol. (Except Rose because I have an agenda to keep). Victoria would also be more lively and reckless in college life, she already was like that in high school, but when it comes to performing she does take it seriously, probably too much from the trauma of needing to impress people :(

Bonus: Eileen goes to the same school as Becky, but nobody knows what she's majoring in. All they know is that she becomes head of a sorority and they have a "mine" philosophy.

[ashleybenlove]

Astrid tries to justify it: "You know, maybe Throk really does like Ruffnut. We're around her all the time, so it's easy for us to take for granted all her wonderful qualities."

I guess that explains why she didn't bother try to intervene earlier when Throk was hanging around their training.

Like, it'll come up in Snuffnut in that scene with Hiccstrid and Tuffnut, but I've been thinking on that scene and like, both of them honor Ruffnut and whatever feelings she may have for Throk.

Like, this isn't treated as a joke, they both take it seriously. (And, plus, Astrid earlier had a BIG reaction when Throk makes a gross remark that uhhh doesn't sound too good. And that was 100 percent in defense of Ruffnut).

Basically, it's kinda nice to see while it is kinda played for laughs, her feelings are still being honored, she's not being treated like a total joke for whatever she's doin' with this 40 year old man.

[hawkeyesgroovyspine]

I don't want to sound like the kooky January 6th people, but I feel like there's something shady going on. Trump kept hinting at the rallies that he's got a little secret up his sleeve that'll help him win the election and we all know he's "besties" with Elon Musk. I'm thinking that maybe they were able to get the republican votes counted first somehow. For a while Kamala's numbers were stagnant and I mean completely stagnant which isn't really possible especially a couple hours into counting the votes.

Then there were the bomb threats in the swing states traced to Russia which caused delays or poll workers to completely up and leave the ballots unattended. There were people still waiting in line who got there well before 8 o clock who were waiting until 8 when the polls closed and were told to go away. I've never heard of lines like that for elections, especially when we have early voting and mail in ballots that are popular with the Left.

Then there's also the issue of people's mail in ballots being delayed and/or people being told that they never applied for it despite proof that they did. Some reported receiving the envelope without the ballot. What's the point of mail in ballots or even voting in general when they call the state red after only going through like 40% of the ballots? There were states that were at like 0 percent when they called the state. One person even saw the electoral points jump up by 2 on trumps side without a state even being called.

Something extremely fishy is going on.

[cartooncartoonpanic]

#003 Pastel Reflection

You decide that your best bet is to talk to the Powerpuff girl, known as Blossom. Even if the last time you spoke to each other didn't go... Great. You remember following your brother Boomer, who had been acting strangely, into their house, and then when you entered the lab saw that the real Boomer was actually trapped and the one you had been with today was Bubbles. Naturally... You all ran, assuming that professor wanted to experiment on you too. You feel a sudden pang of darkness from the thought but you can't remember why. Still... You have to at least try to say something.

So you sit down at a table with Blossom. She's in a pink and white dress with some black ribbons and some platform Mary-Janes. Strangely, despite you looking nearly identical as kids that's not really the case anymore. She's about 6 inches shorter than you and has surprisingly few scars for a crime fighter. Your hair is the same length and shade but hers is brushed and styled while yours is loose. You wonder if in another world you could be just as put together and relaxed as she is right now. It's unfair who life chooses to favor. You speak first.

"So... Blossom..." She's a little tense at first but when you don't attack her, she lets her guard down

"Oh hi! Let's see.... You are... Brick, right? Sorry it's... It's been some time"

She had almost forgotten you. The normal reaction from 5 years of separation but at the same time it hurts. Those girls were the light to your shadow, the undefeatable insufferable rivals, the agonizing thoughts that would never leave your head. All you ever wanted was to be treated like them. And yet to her, here you were, basically a footnote in her memories. But you didn't say all of that. What would she even say if you did?

"Yeah... Though it's been kind of a blur. So... What are you... In for?"

"You mean how I got here? I don't know... I have a suspicion but I don't want to share it until I'm sure"

"Well, I guess that makes two of us..."

There was an awkward silence between them. What would you say to your former rival when so much has changed. She barely recognizes you, no doubt.

"So... How's Mojo been lately?"

"I dunno, haven't seen him?"

"Isn't he your father technically?"

"Yeah but... Jail." You shrug. She gets it and also feels a little guilty. You have the feeling that's not the entire truth but you can't fully remember why you actually haven't seen him in so long. Instead you try to break the awkward silence.

(Your first vote challenge is coming up. This outcome will only come true if a certain percentage of the votes choose it. In this case, it's a medium challenge, so I'll say you need at least 40% for this outcome. If a challenge answer is the highest percent but still doesn't meet it's target, then the next highest answer will be used instead. Or in the case of challenges with only two poll options, you will fail. But this one is just a bonus for an interesting scene)

[queen-of-the-avengers]

Captain Marvel: Part Seven

Pairing: Carol Danvers x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~2.3k

Warnings: canon violence and angst

Author’s Note: For the sake of the rewrite, Howard and Maria Stark dies on December 16, 1997 instead of 1991. Tony is 23 when they die.

x

The internet is a widely popular thing where people can use a computer to look up information readily available at their fingertips. The only places where computer use is free or at very little charge are local libraries. You take Vers to the closest one and over to the nearest computer. You're not used to using one of these, but it looks like something Howard Stark used in his labs.

Plus, you're an expert at using a typewriter.

"How are you doing that?" she gasps when your fingers swiftly fly over the keyboard.

"As I said, I've been here before." The only thing that pops up when you search the name "Pancho's" is a bar that's down south. You tap the screen with a smile on your face. "This is where we need to go."

"How are we gonna get there?"

"By using a map, darling. Come on."

You log off the computer and buy a map from the front desk. It's a localized map of California, so you can use this to track down the bar. As you two are looking at the map, a motorcycle rumbling noise comes closer until it's right next to you. He sees you two and revs his engine with a smirk.

"Nice scuba suit," he comments about Vers' outfit. Both you and her look at the man before going back to the map. "Lighten up, sweethearts. Got a smile for me?" When he gets no response from you, he shuts his motorcycle off with a scoff. "Freaks."

"What do you say we go for a ride?" you grin when he leaves his motorcycle alone.

"You know how to ride one of those?"

"Baby, it's all I rode in the 40s. My boyfriend taught me. First, we need to change. He's right, we do look like freaks." You notice a store across the street with mannequins on display outside of it. "Shall we?"

It's fairly easy to steal clothes off unsupervised mannequins from a store with no security measures. It's even easier to steal a motorcycle from a man who leaves the keys in the ignition. Vers gets on behind you and wraps her arms around your waist right before you take off down the road.

Yes, you could get to Pancho's faster by flying, but it's nice to enjoy the scenic route when there isn't someone chasing you or trying to kill you. It's nice to see how much Earth has changed since you left. Granted, you haven't been on the West Coast in centuries, so it's nice to see how the oceans look compared to back then.

The drive from Northern California to Los Angeles is a long one, but you manage to make to Pancho's with the sun still out. This place is definitely old school but you figured that's why you love it so much. There isn't anyone inside the bar but since Skrulls be anywhere anytime, you have to be careful.

There are pictures on the wall that Vers is attracted to, pictures with the same aircraft logo you saw on the purple device you stole from the Skrull.

"What can I get ya?" the bartender asks.

"Where was this photograph taken?"

"At an airport?"

"Where's Pegasus?" she asks.

"That's classified. Not unlike the file I started on you two." Agent Fury stands at the entrance of the bar. The bartender senses tension, so he does the smart thing and walks to the back. "I see you traded in the laser tag outfit for this. Grunge is a good look on you two."

"Did you have a rough day Agent Fury?"

"It's cool. You know, space invasion, big car chase, and got to watch an alien autopsy. Typical nine to five."

"So, you saw one?" you ask.

"I was never one to believe in aliens, but I can't unsee that."

"This is gonna get a little awkward but I gotta ask," Vers trails off.

"You think I'm one of those green things?"

"Can't be too careful," you shrug and sit with him and Vers at a table.

"You are looking at one hundred percent red-blooded Earthman."

"I'm afraid we're gonna need proof."

"Are we talking cheek swabs or urine samples?"

"No. The DNA would match," you comment. "Skrulls can only sim recent memories of their host bodies."

"Oh, oh! You wanna get personal," he grins and nods for you to start.

"Where were you born?" you ask.

"Huntsville, Alabama, but technically I don't remember that part."

"Name of your first pet."

"Mr. Snuffers."

"Mr. Snuffers?" Vers chuckles.

"That's what I said. Did I pass?"

"Not yet. First job?"

"Soldier straight out of high school. I got the ranks of full-bred Colonel."

"Then?"

"Spy."

"Where?"

"It was the Cold War and we were everywhere. Belfast, Bucharest, Belgrade, and Budapest. I like the B's. I can make them rhyme."

"Now?"

"I've been riding a desk for the past six years trying to figure out where our future enemies are coming from. It never occurred to me that they'd be coming from above," he says and points to the ceiling to represent space.

"Name a detail so bizarre a Skrull could never fabricate it," you ask and lean in closer.

"If toast is cut diagonally, I can't eat it," he says. "You didn't need that did you?"

"No, I didn't, but we enjoyed it," you giggle.

"Okay, your turn. Prove you two aren't Skrulls," Fury asks. 

Without a second though, Vers blasts an energy blast towards the jukebox on the opposite side of the room. You move your right hand in a circular motion and a pool of water forms above it. Once big enough, you evaporate it so it's no longer there.

"How is that supposed to prove to me that you two aren't Skrulls?"

"That was a photon blast."

"I just manipulated water out of thin air."

"And...?"

"A Skrull can't do that. So, a full-bred Colonel turned spy turned SHIELD agent must have pretty high-security clearance. Where's Pegasus?" Vers asks.

Fury doesn't respond to you, so you lean in close with a threatening smile on your face.

"Take us to Pegasus or we'll find someone who will," you say seriously.

Fury sees an opportunity to get to know you and Vers, so he agrees to take you and Vers to the super-secret location.

"So, the Skrulls are an alien race that infiltrates and overtakes alien planets? You two are Kree? A race of noble warriors?" Fury asks as he drives through the desert.

"Heroes. Noble warrior heroes," Vers corrects.

"Well, she's Kree," you speak up from the backseat.

"What are you?"

"Xenian. My planet is on the other side of the universe. I'm also a shapeshifting Avatar that can control the elements. No, I'm not a Skrull."

"Okay, um, what do the Skrulls want with Dr. Lawson?"

"They believe she developed a light-speed engine at Pegasus."

"Light speed engine? I've got to admit, that's not the craziest thing I've heard today."

"Well, it's still early," you chuckle.

"What about you two? What do you want?"

"To stop the Skrulls before they become unstoppable."

"And...?" You and Vers are silent at his question. "Look, war is a universal language. I know a couple of rogue soldiers when I see one. You two have a personal stake in this."

"More so than others," you mutter.

Fury pulls up to the perimeter gate where there is a box meant for communicating to the main tower.

"This is a government property, turn your vehicle around," an officer says through the intercom.

"Nicholas Joseph Fury, Agent of SHIELD," Fury says and takes out his badge to show it to the camera.

"Place your thumb on the pad." When Fury did, the pad begins scanning his fingerprint. "One moment."

"Nicholas Joseph Fury. You have three names?" Vers asks.

"Everybody calls me Fury. Not Nicholas, not Joseph, not Nick. Just Fury."

"What does your mom call you?"

"Fury."

"What do you call her?"

"Fury."

"What about your kids?"

"If I have them, they'll call me Fury."

"You're cleared for access," the officer says.

"Thank you."

The gate opens and Fury drives down the long driveway into a tunnel that leads him into a parking lot of sorts where he is the only car there. You're about to head inside with Vers when Fury stops both of you.

"Hold up. You two look like somebody's disaffected niece." He grabs two gray SHIELD baseball caps and tosses them to you two. "Put these on."

"What is this?"

"It's the SHIELD logo."

"Does announcing your identity on clothing help with the covert part of your job?"

"Said the space soldier who was wearing a rubber suit. Lose the flannel." Vers takes off the flannel that is wrapped around her waist, and you two follow the Agent to the end of the car park that overlooks an airplane hangar full of planes. A security guard from Pegasus and two armed airmen approaches you three carefully.

"How can I help you?"

"We're agents of SHIELD," Fury announces and hands over his credentials. "We're looking for a woman named Dr. Wendy Lawson. Do you know her?"

"Follow me."

The officers lead you into the building and into a small room that looks like a waiting room. When he closes the door with only you three inside, you knew he has no intention of bringing you to Dr. Lawson even if she was here.

"Are you two familiar with the phrase 'Welcome Wagon'?"

"No."

"Well, this ain't it."

He places his thumb on the fingerprint scanner attached to the doorknob, but it won't give him access to unlock the door. Fury grabs a small device from his pocket, and Vers perks up at the sight of it.

"Is that a communicator?"

"Yeah. State-of-the-art two-way pager."

"Who are you paging?" you wonder.

"My mom. Don't worry, I didn't mention you two." 

Vers tries using her fingerprint on the scanner even though she knows it's not going to work. There is a map of the facility on the wall that she checks out, so you decide to try your turn at the scanner. Instead of using your own DNA, you shift into the guard that took you in here knowing his fingerprint is going to work. Just like you thought, the light turns green, and the lock disengages.

"I got it."

Vers and Fury jump back from shock at your deep voice.

"What in the hell...?" Fury mutters.

You transform back into yourself and open the door with a smile.

"Easy peasy lemon squeezy. My powers aren't totally useless here."

"Impressive," Vers grins.

With the map in hand, you head to the nearest elevator so you can check out the archives. If any place is going to have information on Pegasus and Dr. Lawson, it's the archives. Immediately after stepping off the elevator, an orange cat appears and rubs all over Fury's leg.

"Hey, there. How are you?" Fury fawns over the small animal. He leans down to pet her, and Vers watches with a strange sense of déjà vu. "Oh, my goodness. Look at you. Just look at you. Aren't you the cutest little thing? Aren't you cute? What's your name, huh? What's your name?" Fury looks at her collar. "Goose? Cool name for a cool cat."

"Fury," you say with a smile. "Are you done?"

"Yeah." The door to the archives is protected by another fingerprint scanner, and Fury turns to you. "Are you gonna do what you did last time?"

Vers shoots an energy blast at the scanner. That's one way of unlocking a door. The archives room is completely dark but the further you walk in, the lights turn on since they are motion censored. There are hundreds of shelves with hundreds of boxes of all different types of information, but the only thing you're interested in is Wendy Lawson. They are in alphabetical order, so you head over to the 'L' section for Lawson.

"I found it," Vers says and removes the box about her. "Here's Lawson's plan for the light-speed engine." At the bottom right of the plans is a stamp concurring that the project was terminated. "I wonder why they terminated the project."

You grab a small notebook and go through the pages, but you don't recognize the language.

"What the hell is this?"

"Those are Kreeglyphs. She was Kree?"

"She's dead," Fury announces.

"What?"

"She crashed the ASIS aircraft during an unauthorized test flight and took a pilot down with her. That's why security here's so unfriendly. They're covering up a billion-dollar mistake. Oh, and your light-speed engine is toast." 

He shows you the papers in his hands that confirm his story. There is a black-and-white photo of the crash site. It was taken from a satellite between a beach and a mountain, and there are tracks leading up to the circle caused by the explosion. The next photo is of the beach from eye level; the sand was pushed up into large ridges by the explosion.

"When did this happen?" Vers whispers.

"Six years ago. 1989."

"Who was the pilot?" you ask.

"Most of this thing is redacted, but there is a testimonial here from someone named Maria Rambeau. She's the last person to see them both alive." Fury's pager buzzes to life, but he catches the look on Vers' face before he could answer it. "Are you okay?"

"Mm-hmm," she nods stiffly.

"I'll be back in a minute."

Fury leaves, and Vers searches the box for more information on what happened. There is a photograph of Dr. Lawson, Maria, and another pilot near an airplane, but the one person who you and Vers stare at is Vewrs who was getting ready to board the plane. She was involved in the accident at some point, but you have no idea what happened to her and how she got involved with the Kree. You look back at the notebook and flip some more pages, and you stop on one that has a familiar-looking drawing.

"Vers, what does this say?" you ask and show her the notebook.

"It's the energy core that she used to build her engine with. She calls it the Tesseract." Your whole body shakes with shock, and your knees buckle underneath you. "Whoa, are you okay?"

"The Tesseract is what runs through my veins. It's why I can manipulate the elements."

"I wonder if it connects you and me. Maybe we share the same power. The Tesseract must run through both of our bodies, but we have different powers because you have another serum inside you.

"I'll be right back."

x

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