#due to sizing/quality issues

[wordbunch]

their love language [LOTR characters]

a/n: not requested, just a little idea that i've had and wanted to share 💛 do let me know how you liked it, what you think, and i always greatly appreciate reblogs and comments 🥰 i wish you a sparkling new year!

ARAGORN ♡ acts of service and words of affirmation

This man would do anything for the person he loves and he is the most comfortable when it comes to expressing his feelings in that way. Any type of physical labor and tasks is no issue for him if he can make it easier for you, and you have grown to notice it all the time and appreciate it. His heart doubles in size when you return your affections in that way too, especially since he isn’t exactly used to having things done for him. When the mood is just right, he has no trouble waxing poetic about you and elaborating his feelings, whether in Westron, Sindarin or any other language - you are worth all of them! When he does that, it’s usually in a hushed tone with a special air of intimacy, and it feels so sacred and special.

BOROMIR ♡ physical touch and quality time 

He is one tactile man and a human furnace, like, constantly, and having an arm around you simultaneously means keeping you safe as well. It’s a way for him to show his love, but also to be his protective self. However it’s not just you he’s trying to reassure through gentle touches, he also feels better and happier knowing you’re there and so close. Due to his position, he has many obligations and not always the desired amount of free time, so he’s keen on spending all on it on you. Boromir feels immensely guilty if he must cancel something last minute, or be late for a meeting with you because he was held up somewhere else, but you can count on the fact that he’ll make it up to you tenfold.

FARAMIR ♡ words of affirmation and quality time

As a person who is well-read and a romantic soul, yet someone who hadn’t particularly received many verbal validations, his absolute go-to are words of affirmation! He will shower you with sincere compliments, praise your achievements, reassure you when you’re down… he will even write poetry for you, or just recite something on the spot, it’s honestly the sweetest. Much like his brother, Faramir can be quite busy, but he tries to make sure that none of his duties interfere with the time that he sets aside to spend with his beloved. 

LEGOLAS ♡ gift giving and words of affirmation

This peculiar young prince doesn’t necessarily have a favorite way of showing you love and he can be all over the place with it - he hadn’t exactly had a bunch of experience with romantic relationships - but something that seems to be a constant is him giving you small tokens of his affections. Not even something fancy all the time, sometimes it will be a pretty flower or a hair pin, but everything pretty reminds him of your beauty and he wants you to know that. If he’s unsure about how to verbally explain all the ways you make him feel, he can always revert to one of many elven songs and poems to describe it!

FRODO ♡ words of affirmation and acts of service

He is a book boy and absolutely the type of person to write long, heartfelt letters! Initially he would hide behind them because it’s easier to write feelings down and slip that under your front door, but just give him time and soon enough he’ll be raving about how in love he is with you and how you’re the best of the best in his eyes - but face to face. Frodo is very selfless as we all know, and he’s able to anticipate your needs and help you with all sorts of things before you even ask for it. Also he really appreciates your gratefulness for it.

SAM ♡ acts of service and quality time

Acts of service is the ultimate love language of this sweet gardener!! He would do absolutely anything for you, strenuous or not, and not even expect anything in return. You’re aware of that and thus you make sure to properly thank him for everything he does in more ways than one. You always joke that he’s going to spoil you. Sam loves just existing with you, not even doing anything particularly significant, but just spending time together no matter what you do. Everything with you feels like home and he never wants to leave your side.

MERRY ♡ gift giving and physical touch

He definitely has a mix of all love languages, but surprising you with small tokens of affection and seeing your eyes sparkle in surprise is just his favorite thing! He notices and memorizes when you like something, and he will use the first opportunity to acquire it for you and make you happy. Besides that, having you physically close to him is a must - Merry is almost constantly fiddling with your fingers, has an arm around your shoulders, or just mindlessly scratching up and down your arm. It’s a simple reminder that you’re there, safe and loved.

PIPPIN ♡ physical touch and words of affirmation

Those are his favorite ways of both receiving and giving love: they’re so straightforward and genuine (and he is least likely to mess up). Everything seems better and brighter when your hand is securely clasped in his, or he receives a forehead kiss, or ruffles your hair and playfully nudges you. Pippin isn’t quite used to compliments and his cheeks will heat up every single time you offer him a genuine compliment or encouragement, and he wants to make you feel the same way - he can talk a lot anyway so, might as well talk about how wonderful you are!

ÉOMER ♡ acts of service and physical touch

Maybe he isn’t the best at romantic proclamations of love, or picking out the perfect anniversary present, but whatever you need him for, he will be there in a heartbeat. Secretly he likes to feel your eyes on him as he does something for you, it makes him feel very proud. Another thing that never fails him is physical affection, because sometimes hands and lips say more than words ever could. And he makes sure that you can feel exactly how passionate and loving he is in every single kiss and caress.

ÉOWYN ♡ quality time and physical touch

She loves her independence and her peace, but letting you in made her realize it’s not too bad having someone occupying her space and thoughts. Éowyn loves to include you in her daily activities and she really grew fond of doing all sorts of mundane things together - you just make them so much more vibrant and interesting. Something that became her weakness as soon as you two met was your gentle touch and affection like no other, especially after long days and during cold nights, and it’s a simple but effective way of showing how much she cares for you.

ARWEN ♡ words of affirmation and gift giving

She is a romantic soul through and through, and she never gets bored of praising you, whether it be for your kindness, beauty, wit, or anything else. She also loves discussing all sorts of topics with you and that’s one of the things that made her fall for you in the first place. Also, this beautiful elf-maiden likes beautiful, dainty things, and she loves making you happy through little surprises and meaningful gifts, especially subtle matching jewelry!

taglist my beloved (probs not even valid anymore but oh well) @starlady66 @queenmeriadoc @entishramblings @thesolarangel @silversword7000 @friendofthefellowshipsnerdblog @averys-place @valkyriepirate @emmaarenstarr @noldorin-painter @asianbutnotjapanese @adamgetawaydriver @fenharel-enaste @ironmandeficiency @starryeyedrogue @dinofromspac3 @wisheduponastar @lady-of-imladris @frodo-cinnamonroll @unethicallypleistocene @deadlymistletoe @suncran @high-sea-husbands @asianbutnoteastasian @aidansloth @moth-makay

@bubbleyukismile @kitexvi @herstudios @babe-bombadil

[teojira]

TEDDY! I checked ur old blog and saw u have a this one :3, and i saw u write for the KAIJUUUS? bro i love godzilla sosososoosoOSOSOSOSO MUCH, if you're down for it, could you do some headcanons of being Godzilla's favorite human?, ofc platonic, (i dead ass love this gigantic lizard sm i made a wedding pic art as a joke cause someone said marry the damn lizard and i said fine i will, and i wanna clarify twice, it was a joke, i just love large lizards)

[Being Goji's favorite human headcanons] [platonic]

Summary: What being a huge lizard titans human entails!

Warnings: None! Just platonic companionship between you and the Big guy.

Word count: 650+ words

A/N: Omg Tama :(( I'm so happy to see you're here from the call of duty blog!! It's always a joy to see you in my notifs 🫶 ofc I got you, Godzilla headcanons comin right up! I hope these are okay!

- Being Goji's favorite human comes with alot of good, but alot of bad as well.

- It makes you special. There is no documentation in any of Monarchs database of him having any explicit connection to humans, no country, no specific race, and you're seemingly the first person in history. But that also means you're under their control due to your ties to the Kaiju.

- He doesn't visit nearly as much as he wishes he could, despite you both being connected by seemingly fate. He is the king of monsters, bro is busy! He has to keep the balance.

- Monarch learned the hard way that you cannot be housed at a base, it sets Goji off, so they literally have to place you on a private island somewhere for when he does come to see you, he can't destroy anything.

- Contrary to most of the publics opinion, he IS sentient. He knows what he does. Destroying usually comes with the territory when he has to fight a threat, but visiting you isn't so he makes sure not to crush your home, bellowing to let you know he's come to see you.

- He doesn't know why he cares for you, but it feels right, coming to you and curling up on the sand, waiting for you to come closer.

- Goji has ever been touched by one other human without intent of harm, Serizawa. He still remembers how comforting it was, how a small little human seemed to care for him when he was at his lowest.

- He enjoys when you pet him, more often than not being more than okay with the touch. It also helps that you take care of any issues he may have due to him being in the water extremely often, and he gets the occasional barnacle.

- The first time you took one of him, he snarled so loud that it sent you flying onto your back in fear, his large head whipping around to see just what the fuck you were doing.

- You explained to him calmly that you were removing the parasites from his scales. All you got was a huff in return. But he did turn back and rest his head again, so you figure that was him saying it was okay.

- It's hard to spend quality time with the titan due to just how BIG the fucker is, but he allows you to climb up him and make your way to his head, he's eerily still when he feels you on him, he knows his strength and size and one wrong move and you fall, shattering your legs.

- He would definitely bring you back things he's found in the ocean. What do you mean you're not interested in this deep sea squid that's the size of 3 school buses? He got it just for you! (You let Monarch take it to study, but you pretend to Goji that you are taking it for yourself.) (He lets out a pleased rumble at providing for you.)

- He somehow has the uncanny ability to find you no matter where you go, one time Monarch took you to the Japan base for a meeting that they deemed you necessary to attend.

- Imagine everyone's shock and awe when he appeared, roaring in a rage as he slouched down to the ground, not relaxing until you ran out in view, frantically waving your arms.

- He takes all his naps on your private island, curling into a little ball, it's the best rest he has had in years, only thing to make it better is when you join him, bring a blanket or bring a little air mattress and sleep out there with him, it brings him so much joy. If lizards could purr, you're sure he would be.

- Where this Goji, there is Mothra! She wants to see what caught his eye for the first time in centuries, she cares for humans more than he ever has, so she takes a liking to you immediately. So she visits you when she's able to, usually chirping and letting you touch her fuzz.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Price to power to size to portability, the AirFanta 3Pro is one of the best on the market. Here's the latest review (Also preserved in our archive)

Afiliate links if you want this guy to make a buck from your purchase: www.amazon.com/stores/AirFanta/page/0D35BA0F-6AFE-48BB-BB83-E984C65192D4?asc_campaign=c192889518f863d96d278a446b3a951d&asc_source=01H1P39M5ZSG9J6WR6B1HBK9M0&language=en_US&linkCode=sl2&linkId=be7b5afa91953d14a40a0b6fb293d6aa&ref_=as_li_ss_tl&tag=namespacebran492-20

air-fanta.com/?dt_id=2137762

AirFanta is a name that I hear more about every day. While it’s a relatively niche company, it’s quickly becoming well-known – at least within the air quality ‘enthusiast’ community – for performant yet affordable air purifiers and air quality monitors. I’ve been using the AirFanta G2 Air Quality Monitor for quite a few months now, but the two products that have always interested me the most are 3Pro and 4Lite air purifiers.

After having the 3Pro set up inside my office for over two weeks now, I am happy to be able to present my full review of the device. For anyone unaware, this purifier is designed to filter a massive amount of air (we will discuss the CADR and more soon!) at a relatively affordable price. It does this by being essentially a pre-assembled CR (Corsi-Rosenthal) Box – a form of air purifier that was itself created due to the need for affordable and effective air purification devices.

While the 3Pro doesn’t embrace the typical DIY aspect of traditional CR Boxes, it has the advantage of having proven performance (no need to worry about whether your DIY box is effective!) and being ready to go out of the box. However, perhaps my favourite aspect of this device over traditional CR Boxes is how easily obtainable it is. While this probably isn’t an issue for anyone in the U.S. or Europe, I find it hard to source good HEPA filters in New Zealand at an affordable price. The 3Pro ensures I don’t run into this issue.

In today’s review of the AirFanta 3Pro, I want to answer a few key questions. Firstly, how does it perform? Secondly, how does it compare to more ‘traditional’ air purifiers? Finally, and most importantly, is the 3Pro worth the markup compared to making your own CR Box at home? By the end of the article, I will share the answers and my opinions regarding each of these questions. Let’s dive in!

The key selling point of the AirFanta 3Pro is its fantastic CADR – especially at this price. For anyone new to air purifiers, CADR stands for clean air delivery rate, which indicates how much air an air purifier can clean and deliver in a set period. The measurement typically used for CADR is CFM, or cubic feet per minute. A higher CADR in CFM indicates the purifier delivers more clean air.

CADR is calculated by considering both the filter efficiency and the airflow through the filters, making it a much better metric (and the standard for air purifiers) than airflow alone. Most CADR tests use a room of around 30m3 and test how much faster the purifier removes particles from the air than if they were left to settle naturally without any other influences.

So, what is the CADR of the 3Pro? It is quite impressive, 413cfm (702 m3/h) at full speed. To best put this in perspective, I recommend reading the fantastic HouseFresh review to see how it compares to other devices currently on the market (spoiler alert; it performs very favourably). I also believe these official figures, as multiple other sources have confirmed them.

The AirFanta 3Pro uses HEPA H11 filters, which are rated to provide ≥ 95% filtration. It’s worth noting that while this figure may not seem that high and that while many air purifiers use higher-rated filters, the H11 filters used here aren’t necessarily bad. That is because, unlike respirators and masks, air purifiers are not designed to purify the air as best possible on a single pass. Rather, if an air purifier can continually filter the same air after multiple passes through the filter, the particle count and concentration will be significantly reduced.

This is important to note because H11 filters are less dense, allowing for better airflow and generally with less noise. Compared to masks, you can think of the balance between filtration and breathability – generally, the more filtration a mask or respirator provides, the less breathable it is. The same goes for air purifiers. The key difference here is that purifiers are designed to have air pass through them multiple times, unlike a mask or respirator, which only has one chance to filter the air before the wearer breathes it. This is why, despite having ‘only’ an H11 filter, the 3Pro can achieve a fantastic CADR.

Of course, this is a very simple explanation, but it’s important to clarify this because I can predict many questions asking, ‘But why weren’t better filters such as HEPA H13 filters used?’. While I can’t speak for the exact answer (you’d have to ask Adam from AirFanta about that!), it’s likely to strike a balance between single-pass filtration performance, airflow, and noise level. While we’ll dive into it soon, I believe complaints about the H11 filter will quickly disappear once you see the performance that the AirFanta 3Pro has to offer.

It’s also worth noting that carbon filters are available, which will provide filtration through adsorption for VOCs and many odours. While I didn’t get these filters to test, some people will opt for them to help manage VOCs. Since these add another layer to the filter, they will likely slightly drop the CADR, but probably not enough to make any significant impact (and, of course, the extra filtration is a big benefit).

AirFanta also has a full list of third-party certifications and test results, which can be viewed here. Interestingly, both bacterial efficiency and viral efficiency reports from Guangzhou Institute of Microbiology Group Co., Ltd. (a CNAS-accredited laboratory) have been provided, and both reports show a > 99.99% decrease in particle concentration after 60 minutes of use in a 30m3 room. The bacterial test goes further and shows the results after 15 minutes, 30 minutes, and 45 minutes. These results show a ≥ 95.63%, ≥ 99.91% and 99.99% drop in tested particles, respectively.

These results show that, at least in a room around 30m3 in size, the AirFanta 3Pro can reduce bacterial and viral particles by ≥ 99.9% in 30 minutes, with 60 minutes seeing a near complete removal of such particles. While we can’t tell exactly what size the particles were in this testing (at least not without paying for access to the original standards), these results are very promising. Potentially worth noting is that since the 3Pro is rated for 702 m3/h, there would have been around 23 air changes within one hour in the 30m3 test chamber. Therefore, the ≥ 95.63% is after almost six air changes, and ≥ 99.91% after around 12.

Of course, these tests and the stated CADR are at the device’s maximum fan speed, which isn’t ideal in many situations. While it’s important to know a device’s maximum performance when needed, it’s more likely you’ll want to leave the device running at a lower speed either all the time or at least quite regularly. Below are the stated CADRs at different fan speeds:

6 – 413CFM 5 – 374CFM 4 – 321CFM 3 – 247CFM 2 – 141CFM 1 – 57CFM Of course, I was also curious to run some tests myself, but I must make the disclaimer that my tests are far from scientific. That said, I wanted to perform some testing similar to a real-life setting where the AirFanta 3Pro is likely to be used. As such, I decided to set up a test room. I measured this room to be 25.6m3, which is about the size of a standard bedroom (it is a bedroom!). While this room is smaller than what I believe this device is intended for, it’s the most controllable room in my house regarding airflow as it only has one door and one window, which can easily be closed and no other forms of ventilation or air disturbances.

In this room, I burned incense until I reached a PM2.5 concentration of 500ug/m3. However, since I can’t exactly control the PM concentration, it ended up being somewhere between 500 and 600 in my tests. I then put the incense out and did a control test to see how long it took the particles to settle without any assistance at all. This took around 90 minutes, and I used this as my baseline.

I monitored the particle concentrations with five AirGradient monitors that were located in each corner and the centre of the room. I then reran this experiment three more times – once with the purifier at maximum speed, once at half speed, and once at the minimum speed to see how long the concentration took to reach < 5ug/m3. I measured the particle concentration by averaging the data from all five monitors to ensure the whole room had been filtered. Here are my results.

In this graph, you can see the baseline data in blue (labelled Ambient) and the particle concentration drop from the AirFanta 3Pro at maximum speed (speed 6) in red. As you can see, it took around 90 minutes for the particle count to drop to < 5ug/m3 without the purifier running but less than 20 minutes with the device at maximum speed. I was very impressed by these first results, and while I wouldn’t want to run the device at full speed often as it is loud, I appreciate having a good peak performance for times when you need to clean the air in a room quickly.

I reran this test, but this time with the 3Pro at half speed (speed 3) and was impressed by the relatively low performance drop. I was worried my results were incorrect, and I reran this three times, but each result was within one minute of the initial result. It looks like a large chunk of the device’s performance is retained between the higher speeds, even though the noise level decreases significantly. This gave me high hopes for the 3Pro’s performance at minimum speed.

Unfortunately, but perhaps not unexpectedly, the device performed far worse at the lowest speed (speed 1). While the particle concentration did drop more quickly than without the device, it was vastly slower than at the faster speeds. It is worth noting that this is not bad at all, as the device is very quiet at this speed and we can see the performance is clearly there, if needed, just turn the device to a higher speed. However, I had inflated hopes after seeing the great performance at higher speeds. Of course, this does match with the stated speed 1 CADR which is roughly 1/8 of the maximum CADR at speed 6.

If we add the times it took the 3Pro to reduce the PM concentration to below 5ug/m3 at each speed setting, we can see that it took between 17.3 minutes and 80.1 minutes to clean the room, depending on the speed. Interestingly, between the higher speeds (speeds 3-6), there appears to be little performance drop-off but a significant improvement in noise levels. At the slow end, the device takes a long time to filter the room, and if you want to use these near-silent speeds, you will probably want to have the device constantly on.

It’s worth noting that previously, the AirFanta 3Pro came with a voltage dial on the adapter. This could be used to adjust the speed, and many reviews of the device still refer to this voltage dial (essentially, a speed dial). Newer versions come with a speed dial with speeds 1-6, so I have referred to speeds instead of voltages for this section.

Before concluding this section, I was also curious how this device would perform if I lit incense in the room while the air purifier was on. I didn’t have a reason for doing this other than curiosity. Still, considering the stellar performance at the higher fan speeds, I wondered how the purifier would handle a pollutant source emitting particles while the device was running. Below, you can see the results (keeping in mind that this same room reaches over 1000ug/m3 when burning incense without an air purifier).

As you can see, the AirFanta 3Pro significantly reduced the maximum particle concentration in the room and rapidly cleaned the air once the incense finished burning. I would be very confident using a device such as this even during periods of heavy pollution, such as during wildfire season.

Overall, I’m quite impressed with the performance of the AirFanta 3Pro, and although it’s loud at full speed, it’s great to know that it’s more than capable of cleaning a small to medium-sized room quickly when needed. Larger rooms will take longer to filter, but I am confident this device can do it based on this performance.

If you prefer a quieter device, you can still use the AirFanta 3Pro, but you will want to leave it at a lower speed and constantly have it on. Thankfully, at the lower speeds, it’s a relatively quiet device, and I found it easy to work even with the purifier constantly on – as long as it was set to a lower speed, such as 1 or 2.

On the certifications page (located here), AirFanta also discloses and publically makes its results from non-performance-related certifications publicly available. There are a few pertinent and important documents here, so let’s discuss these before moving on. For the 3Pro, we can find the following documents provided:

UL507 certificate of AirFanta 3Pro CE-EMC certificate of AirFanta 3Pro and 4Lite CE-LVD certificate of AirFanta 3Pro and 4Lite FCC certificate of AirFanta 3Pro and 4Lite California Air Resources Board certification of Airfanta 3Pro Let’s review these individually, beginning with the UL507 certificate at the top. This certification might seem minor, but this is a safety standard for low and mid-powered fans such as those in PCs, kitchen hood vents, and, obviously, some air purifiers. The documentation for this certification is extensive (around 200 pages long), but this certification ensures the fans on the 3Pro are safe from a range of potential issues.

The next two certifications, both CE certificates from the European Union, indicate that the device meets EMC (electromagnetic compatibility) and LVD (low voltage directive) requirements. These are essentially further safety tests and indicate that the device is safe and provides high protection from potential EMC and LVD dangers.

The FCC certificate shows that the AirFanta 3Pro complies with FCC requirements, which are pertinent to customers from the United States. Still, these certifications are also helpful for trust-building with global customers. While I’m not U.S.-based, I certainly feel more confident in a product if it’s also FCC-compliant.

Finally, the CARB (California Air Resources Board) certification shows that the AirFanta 3Pro complies with California’s electrical safety and ozone requirements. This is particularly important as ozone can be a big issue with some air purifiers, and it’s reassuring to know that this is not an issue in the case of the AirFanta 3Pro.

If you’ve ever seen a CR Box, you will already know exactly what to expect from the 3Pro because that’s exactly what it is – a CR Box with pre-chosen parts that come as one ready-to-assemble package. While CR boxes aren’t that hard to assemble, the 3Pro streamlines the process and removes the difficulty of selecting and choosing your own parts. While some enthusiasts might opt for another CR Box, many other prospective customers will appreciate this approach.

When you open the 3Pro’s box, you will be met with six ‘layers’ that must be assembled. This is a very clean approach, as it means that the packaging for the device is relatively compact (albeit still quite heavy), and it even means that the device can be transported and reassembled easily. While it would be a stretch to call this device portable (that’s what the AirFanta 4Lite and SmartAir QT3 are for!), this means it is far more compact than other air purifiers with similar CADRs. While it is still quite large, you could easily take it on the road and use it at hotels, or perhaps even fly with it if you are taking large suitcases.

Back to actually assembling the product! Once you open the box, you will see six panels layered on top of one another. These are the cube’s six sides, with four being HEPA filters, one being a solid plastic base for the device, and the final being the top, where the four fans are located. Assembling the device is easy, and you will want to place the base on the ground before slotting the four filters into it. The only potential difficulty with assembling this purifier is holding the four sides in place as you slot the top on, but even this is quite straightforward with the included velcro intended for exactly this purpose.

A manual is included, but the device is so easy to put together and take apart that I can’t imagine anyone ever using it past the first assembly. Even then, it’s not really needed, as assembling the device is quite self-explanatory. The only note I think might be important to the user is that the mesh surface on the filters should be facing outwards (not the filtering surface, which should face inwards).

All of this is to say that assembling the device is very straightforward, and no one should be scared away or turned off this device because it has a small DIY element. It’s also a bit easier to assemble than other CR boxes as the slots have already been cut out of the base plate, and everything can be put together without the need for glue, tape, or other materials. Perhaps more helpful, the filters have already been chosen, and there is no need to shop around for the best price-performance filter.

Once assembled, the device takes the shape of quite a compact CR Box. On top of that, I must add that I think this device also looks a lot better than any traditional CR Box – at least any that I’ve ever made! While it still has an industrial look, it’s a device that could quite easily fit into a classroom, office, or room without attracting too much attention. While I value aesthetics much less than performance, I appreciate having a device that looks good, too – especially if it can blend in.

Once assembled, the device feels quite solid, and despite there being no adhesive or tape used in the assembly of the purifier, I feel confident lifting it and moving it without dislodging the pieces. With that said, I tend to lift the device from the bottom and hold the top down to ensure none of the pieces slide out from their intended positions.

On top of the purifier are four large fans connected to a controller that will allow you to adjust the speed of the device. These fans look almost identical to large PC fans, and they’re held in place by a wire bracket that also serves as an extra layer of protection to stop any children or animals from getting fingers or paws into the fans. That said, if you have the device around children, you may want to place it up higher so they can’t easily reach the fans.

That’s really all there is to the design of this device. It’s very simple, but it’s also affordable and performant. While some might miss the smart features and connectivity of more pricey air purifiers, the two types of devices cater to very different customers. Overall, I’m a fan of this straightforward approach, which reminds me of the SmartAir Sqair.

The AirFanta 3Pro uses four 140mm fans to push air through the filters. Characteristically, smaller fans tend to have higher-pitched sounds than larger fans and the AirFanta 3Pro sits somewhere in the middle as it uses medium-sized fans. If you have a desktop PC with a case fan (not the other fans, such as the higher-pitched CPU fan), you’ll likely already know what these fans sound like, as most desktop cases use 120mm or 140mm fans. This isn’t an unpleasant sound, but it is quite audible.

To see how loud the AirFanta 3Pro is, I conducted noise tests at 30cm and 2 metres with a sound level metre that measures in dBA (A-weighted decibel). dBA differs from traditional dB because it is adjusted for the human ear’s sensitivity to different frequencies. Low and very high frequencies are de-emphasized, mimicking how humans perceive loudness. In other words, it’s a better representation of the actual noise level than dB for a device such as an air purifier. However, I do want to note this as many other websites use dB, which will explain why my results are significantly different.

For further context, here are a few examples of the volumes of some noises in dBA. Obviously, these can vary, and especially with dBA, they will vary between different devices. However, they are rough examples:

10 dBA – Breathing or leaves rustling: Extremely quiet. 30 dBA – Whispering: Comparable to a quiet library. 40 dBA – Refrigerator hum: A typical low background noise. 50 dBA – Moderate rainfall: Light, soothing noise. 60 dBA – Normal conversation: The sound of talking at a close distance. 70 dBA – Vacuum cleaner: Considered moderate noise, can be annoying over time. 80 dBA – Heavy traffic or a loud alarm clock: Noise becomes uncomfortable after prolonged exposure. As you can see, at the lowest speeds, the 3Pro doesn’t add much to the noise of most rooms, but at the highest speeds, it can sound almost as loud as a vacuum cleaner (provided you are close to it). This is a lot of variation, but I like how this device gives the user full control over speed and noise, allowing them to pick a good balance.

I think most people will have this device running on speed 2 or 3, and both sounds are very manageable at a distance. If you do want a short burst of cleaning, the device will be significantly louder, and that’s why I only recommend using the higher speeds when needed.

When it comes to power consumption, the device can go from very low power to relatively high power. Here is a list of the wattage and voltage at each fan speed:

6 – 33.2 watt – 12v 5 – 27.4 watt – 11v 4 – 18.9 watt – 9.3v 3 – 11.1 watt – 7.3v 2 – 4.7 watt – 4.8v 1 – 2.2 watt – 3.0v I won’t dive into power costs here because those vary greatly depending on where you reside, but I hope these specifications can give some insights. What’s most impressive to me is how much range this device has, whether we are discussing volume or power draw. There is such a large range that you can choose exactly what setting works best for you and leave the device to it.

The AirFanta 3Pro costs $149 or $159 (USD) depending on whether you opt for the CE-certified or CARB-certified version (the CARB variant is the lower priced of the two). It’s surprising to see a different price on these two units, but I assume it’s due to extra costs, either with the CE certification or getting the device into Europe. Either way, if you’re in the U.S. (or any non-EU country), the CARB variant will work, and that’s the model I received.

In the box, you will get six panels to assemble the 3Pro. This includes four HEPA H11 filters, which, as per AirFanta, should be good to last 6-12 months, depending on air quality conditions. In most cases, I would assume these filters will last closer to 12 months, but those who experience severe wildfire seasons or whose homes are exposed to consistent year-round pollution may need to replace the filters more regularly.

When you need your first filter replacement, you can opt for the default H11 filters or H11 filters with activated carbon. Interestingly, it doesn’t seem you can choose the filters you get with the device initially. If you want activated carbon filters from the get-go, you must purchase the device alongside an extra pack of filters. The activated carbon filters will set you back $74.99 compared to the basic filters, which cost $54.

The filters aren’t cheap, but it’s important to remember that each filter replacement pack you order has four individual filters, which is a substantial amount of filter materials. It’s also important to note that, unfortunately, you will need to purchase official AirFanta filters as they are smaller than most square HEPA filters, and other filters will not fit on this device. I don’t think this is a big deal, as I appreciate the smaller form factor of this device over larger devices, and even four HEPA filters from other brands will not be cheap.

If we estimate that most users use each set of filters for around nine months, your yearly filter costs for non-activated carbon filters will be $67.5. On the other hand, if you opt for the extra VOC adsorption of the carbon filters, you are looking at an ongoing cost of just under $100 per year. This is in a similar price range to other equally performant air purifiers, and this device’s initial cost is also much lower.

While power cost also needs to be factored into the ongoing cost equation, that cost will vary significantly depending on your air purifier usage (hours, speed, etc) and location. However, regardless of usage patterns, you should plan to spend between $67 and $100 on replacement filters for this device every year.

Overall, I’ve been very happy with the AirFanta 3Pro. While it’s not a perfect air purifier – if one even exists – this is a fantastic device that balances many difficult factors. Ultimately, it comes in as an affordable air purifier that doesn’t skimp on performance. In fact, it has a higher CADR than many more (and much more) expensive air purifiers. Furthermore, it offers a wide range of speeds that allow the user to choose the ideal balance between speed and sound for the setting.

I’ve always been a fan of the CR box concept, but I think the AirFanta 3Pro takes this a step further and, due to this, will appeal to many more people. While I’ve never had an issue constructing CR boxes, I often have difficulty sourcing the parts (especially good filters), and I appreciate how the 3Pro can provide the same or better performance at a slightly higher price while also simplifying the shopping process for me.

Surprisingly, for a device of this size, it’s also quite portable, and you will be hard-pressed to find anything that provides a higher CADR than this device while also being ‘packable’. While I still wouldn’t go so far as to say it can fit in a backpack, it can definitely fit in a car or suitcase and is ideal for longer trips where you might be staying in hotels with unknown air quality. If, on the other hand, you want to use it around the house, it’s also a great device.

The biggest disadvantages I see with the AirFanta 3Pro are the sound and the design. There’s no denying that while the device is powerful, it’s also loud at its higher speeds. While this isn’t unusual for an air purifier, it is worth noting that you probably won’t want to run this device at its higher speeds unless necessary. I usually find myself using speed 2 or 3, which is the sweet spot for most users. On the upside, the lower speeds are almost silent, and although they significantly diminish performance, they are good for users who are okay with constantly running the device.

The design may also bug some users. While I don’t mind (and actually like) the device’s industrial design, I know some people don’t use CR boxes due to the design. If you don’t like the look of CR boxes, the chances are you also won’t like the design of this device. With that said, this design allows this device to have such a good price-to-performance ratio, and I think many potential customers will appreciate this more.

Overall, the AirFanta 3Pro is a cost-effective air purifier that should be on your radar – especially if price is a concern. If you’ve tried the 3Pro, I would love to hear your thoughts, so please feel free to use the comments section below! Furthermore, if you have any remaining questions, please don’t hesitate to as,k and I will do my best to reply. Thank you for reading.

Pros: High CADR (413 cfm) for effective air purification Affordable compared to similar high-performance devices Pre-assembled CR box design simplifies setup Portable and compact for travel use Certified for safety (UL507, CE-EMC, FCC, CARB) Cons: Loud at higher speeds Design may not appeal to all users (industrial look) Limited to proprietary filters, increasing costs No activated carbon filters included in basic kit

[trtyutr]

Hey buddy! So... lets focus on a man I'd get pregnant instead. I'll be short to let your fantastic imagination fly. hehe.

A 6'2" HIMBO with rounded muscles, HUGE but not shredded, more like an off-season bulk, and he waddles heavily due to how thick he is. He has a bit of a gut, rounded juicy pecs, big bubble butt and his favorite place in the world is the gym (that's where I met him), an his favorite outfit: tiny purple posers. And the changes? You know me well... he'll blow up, expanding in all directions (only keep his height).

He was dense to your flirting. It wasn't until you eventually broke down and confessed your feelings that he finally realized. He smiled dumbly at you. "Why didn't you say something sooner!?" He led you to the gym showers, where he slipped off those purple posers you loved so much. You fucked him hard with that big dick of yours. The big, lovable idiot didn't even try to stifle his moans. The whole gym knew that you two were fucking.

You started dating after that, but it was obvious pretty quickly that you massively knocked him up. Turned out that the med he took to help him build muscle was actually a fertility booster. By the end of the third month, he was massive. His baby bump looked like an overdue singleton. His muscles really started swelling then, gained 75 muscles, though a bit of fat clung on top of it. His butt resembled two beach balls. Hanging low between his legs, his balls were like grapefruits, and his dick was 18 inches long. What caused him the most issue was his pecs. They were the size of watermelons, constantly sore, and he couldn't look down past them. The two of you were at the gym, he was wearing a new red thong he got after he outgrew his old posers, or posers in general. His dick needed more fabric to not be indecent. He was doing some weighted squats when his pecs erupted, spraying milk all over the gym floor. The two of you cleaned up the mess, and beat a speedy retreat to the showers. Neither of you expected him to be lactating so early, but as you two stood in the showers, he begged you for relief, for you to drain him dry. You readily agreed. His milk was thin and sweet then. It took you awhile to drain him dry, and when you were done, his cock was hard and leaking all over you. He begged you to drain him, and then he begged you to fuck him all over again. He braced against the wall and you obliged him. His ass was so big it was difficult. The tip of your dick only barely brushed his hole, but he moaned all the same. When you came, he was still hard and needy. "Please, I can't reach it." He begged once more. You went down on your knees and drained him once again. His cum was thick and salty. By month six, he was a beast. His body was larger than any powerlifter. His ass was two bouncing yoga balls every time he took a slow waddling step. His thighs were thicker than old oak trees. You two did discover why he'd gotten so big and so early. His belly carried 55 kids. It was larger than he was tall. His testicles were bloated wrecking balls carrying five kids each. His dick was heavier than a normal man. The peak of his pecs stood just at his eyes. Each carried 5 kids as well. He no longer knocks things over at home, mostly because his belly already knocked over anything it could. You also grew. All that milk and cum had something in it. You were 550 pounds of muscle then. You did get fat, but oddly enough, almost all of it sits in your belly and ass. Your belly is large enough that people always ask you about your due date. Your dick was solid two feet long and your balls were cantaloupes. While you both were given bigger bodies, you did not get the flexibility he did. The doctor says it has something to do with an inherent quality of his collagen and all the pregnancy hormones in his body, so he's "spry." He could still touch his hands together when he reached behind his back. Your muscles prevented you from reach anything behind you. You went to a new gym then, one where there was a "looser" dress code and no one complained when there were moans. It helped as nothing could fit him anymore, and often he needed to be fucked, drained, or sucked off. He's nearly due now, and he is a behemoth walking the land. His body shakes the ground everywhere he waddles. His ass is larger than a man is tall. His belly is bigger than a car. He can't see over his bloated, leaking chest. His balls drag behind him, feeding a leaking dick over 6 feet long. At least he can walk the land. You haven't been able to move in weeks. Your muscles keep growing, so swollen you have so little articulation. You are further pinned down by your big belly resting on your fat ass. Your massive dick is always hard, and your balls bloated and heavy. He no longer has to beg. He rides you whenever he wants, and he knows that your mouth is always ready to drain his pecs or balls.

[catenary-chad]

Why Greaseball is a Really Great train villain: a looong post (4.8k words) on all the historical train context behind replica Greaseball 

tl;dr he’s British anti-diesel sentiment applied to American views of diesel trains and it’s glorious because he represents so many longstanding issues with freight railroads and diesel hegemony there. UP is a genuinely horrible company that makes an awesome cartoon bully.

For all my issues with the other main engines, I think (replica) Greaseball is FANTASTIC. He just works on so many fundamental levels and gets so much better/worse with historical context.  If we make him an EMD E9 locomotive (a common headcanon) things get even more interesting, and there’s even a convenient irl engine to base him on! 

Note: if you’re into real US trains this info probably won’t be as new to you as my Nez Cassé post, since E and F units are so well preserved and documented in English.      A lot of the topics I go on are pretty widely discussed in US railfan circles and not terribly obscure.  Also this is just about replica, Elvis-style Greaseball vs Wembleyball… her being more modern and European changes a lot and I would take a very different approach.

Also CW for non-graphic discussion of abuse in the very last section. I have a separate warning before it comes up so you can leave before then.  

DIESEL TRACTION IN THE US

First of all, to clear up a common misconception: 99% of all diesel locomotives are diesel-electric.  The diesel engine is used to generate electricity to power electric motors to turn the wheels.  This is why dual-mode engines that can switch between drawing third rail/overhead wire electricity and making their own with a diesel engine are so common.  Besides the power source, they work similarly, so it’s not hard to incorporate.  This is NOT how hybrid cars work, though diesel-electric setups have been used on very heavy trucks for purposes like mining.  Diesel-mechanical is more in line with how automobiles work but is basically unheard of outside of very small switchers in the US (mostly in museums now) and 50s-era shunters and that one weird Fell diesel in the UK. The technical reasons of why isn’t really important here, but has to do with the difficult of making an appropriate gearbox for road locomotives and appealing qualities of electric motors for train use (high starting torque). 

Internal combustion-based locomotives are actually much more recent than pure electric ones.  Electric engines achieved practical use around the 1890s and were well-established in urban and mountainous areas by the 20s-30s…. which is when diesel boxcab switchers first started production in substantial numbers and lightweight diesel trainsets like the Zephyrs, M10000, and Flying Hamburger started to pop up.  The earliest diesels were either slow (switchers) or fast but very weak (lightweight trainsets and railbusses). There were major tech limits to maximum horsepower in diesel locomotives until the second half of the 20th century, which is why several of them were often needed to replace one steam or electric engine, and why you had some weird turbine designs in the 50s-70s as an alternative. 

Early diesel locomotives in the US actually had a lot in common with their early implementation in the UK.  They’re often perceived differently because Thomas the Tank Engine had so many characters based on unsuccessful early British diesel models, while most of the failed earlier US diesels are obscure compared to the successful and widespread ones (that often have the strongest museum presence). There were some notably good early switcher models (some still being used today) that were among the first to replace steam engines because it was one of the tasks that they had the biggest advantage over them in, and limited size wasn’t an issue.  Road diesel implementation was messy and due to the early state of the technology, some railroads like the Pennsylvania Railroad had a strategy more akin to early British Rail in that they planned to just slowly phase out steam as they electrified.  Higher wages and stronger unions were also a factor in both countries dieselizing, due to the vastly lower labor needed for diesel locomotives vs steam and generally safer, more pleasant working conditions on them.  There was also a need to shed a reputation for being outdated to draw in customers again with both.  There was also a desperate early demand for diesel power that led to a lot of questionable builders and designs being picked up early on and later dumped for being nonstandard.  

The main difference is that dieselization’s serious pursuit in the US started around the Great Depression and really picked up in the late 30s, almost two decades before the Modernization Plan of 1955.  So it was a far more mature and well-established technology by the 50s and Greaseball is very much based on this dominant position vs the messy early experiments of the Thomas diesels.  

Greaseball’s helmet heavily resembles the fronts of the E and F unit carbody locomotives made by EMD from the 30s-50s.  I’ll go into those specific models later, but the manufacturer alone is really interesting and has a lot of great symbolism that works with Greaseball. 

Earlier diesel manufacturers included steam builders like Alco and Baldwin, outside companies getting into the diesel locomotive market like Fairbanks-Morse, and EMD, which started as an independent company but quickly became part of General Motors.  One of the major advantages EMD would acquire is mass-production in assembly lines, the way cars were made, as opposed to building one engine at a time like steam shops did.  So Greaseball has some quiet ties to the auto industry (and boy did GM hurt trains in other avenues).  They also used common parts between models, making them relatively easy to repair and rebuild.  You had all kind of mods and changes done to their engines over the decades, which is a fun tie-in to the bodybuilder AND greaser aspect of Greaseball.  I’ll go into how I think he’d specifically be modified/rebuilt later though.  

Another major factor of EMD is… they often weren’t the best in a lot of ways and very much an example of “survival of the good enough”.  Until very recently they all used relatively dirty and inefficient two-stroke engines and other manufacturers often had stronger or technically superior competing models… but it was the ease of working on them and relative reliability vs their competitors that contributed to their success and helped make EMD the dominant manufacturer.  

Bonus fun fact: EMD (and later General Electric) had a lot of success in the export model market due to their early reliability, especially vs British diesel engines.  One of the funnier instances being several colonial African railways holding onto steam into the 70s because they were forced to buy crappy British diesel engines otherwise, and promptly dieselizing as soon as they could buy American ones.  EMD made huge inroads into the British freight market with the Class 59 and 66 (the latter also used in continental Europe).  These came too late to have had any affect on the development of the show early on, but it’s an interesting instance of American encroachment that could be thematically relevant.  The sheer ubiquity of EMD diesels worldwide makes Greaseball weirdly relevant in a lot of countries if you basis swap him a little.  I haven’t figured out quite how I’d approach Girlball but I’d definitely make her one of these export models since it fits.  

Anyways, back to the general history timeline because it’s important for the other reason EMD was so successful.  By the late 30s, diesel switchers were widespread and road models were starting to come out in limited numbers.  Widespread dieselization would have happened nearly a decade earlier if not for World War II.  When the US entered the war, copper, oil, and diesel engines became critical to the war effort.  Coal was not and steam engines don’t use much copper, so the existing steam manufacturers were forced into building them.  EMD’s FT series had proven itself prewar and the company was among the few to be able to develop their locomotive lines during the war.  This gave the company a huge advantage post-war and their E and F units dominated the road locomotive market afterwards (switchers remained more competitive since they had more development before and during the war). 

 If you’re European and know little about American trains, you may wonder when things started getting electrified after that.  They didn’t.  Outside of one stretch of the Northeast Corridor, a recent project by Caltrain, and some isolated freight lines… the US didn’t electrify anything after WWII, and if anything de-electrified much that had existed.  The oil crises of the 70s almost led to something, but the subsequent drop in prices in the 80s made that dry up too.  Leading to the modern day status of having only 1% electrified rail mileage.  The rest is all diesel domain.  They were never a stopgap here.  Due to railroads remaining private businesses post-WWII and facing almost unwinnable economic and political conditions vs roads and air travel, the cost of electrification was out of the question and the much smaller up front cost of diesel engines made them take permanent hold over most of the country post-steam.  To this day, railroads avoid paying up front for things vs just paying more in yearly maintenance for diesel locomotives, and the price of fuel has never gotten high enough to incentivize electrification.  There’s also a whole carrot vs stick situation with state governments raising emissions standards without providing assistance to electrify that leads to a crappy state of limbo that just gives automobiles even more of an unfair advantage, but that’s another tangent that’s not relevant enough to go into.  

This is all a long way to say that Greaseball as the conservative, oppressive establishment is spot-on to the status of diesel traction in the US.  It really can’t be overstated how dominant and inescapable it is.  It’s kind of hilarious hearing people from the UK or Europe talk about how gross and stinky and backwards they are and how much more disliked they are there.  This is why the Greaseball vs Electra feud is so appealing to me- the US is one of the few places where they would be considered remotely competitive and where that matchup is politically relevant.  There’s this compelling thread of Greaseball being a “pragmatic compromise” that’s held on so long it’s become status quo, but would be viewed as a regressive relic elsewhere in the world, akin to how the US’s economic politics are seen in much of the rest of the world.  Greaseball is the majority who very much has capitalism and inertia on his side, Electra is the more qualified but long-sidelined minority who wishes things were even a little more like Europe economically and politically.  They’re so rural vs urban, right vs left wing coded it hurts. Diesel power mainly thrives where frequencies are low and distances are long and rail is a private business that often can’t afford to electrify.  Urban trains are almost exclusively electric due to their inherent frequency and pollution requirements, and are almost synonymous with being state-owned. 

Him being particularly nasty to steam engines also checks out, he’s the era of diesel locomotive that often directly replaced them and I’ve seen claims EMD did deceptive things if not outright cheated on tests vs steam engines.  At the very least they had fairly aggressive marketing.  There’s a reason why I object to the idea that Electra would cheat against a steam engine (even in the early days electric ones trounced them so thoroughly it routinely exceeded railroads’ expectations), but think Greaseball doing it makes sense.  Him playing dirty against Electra also makes sense because they’d have similar top speeds (and that’s being very conservative with Electra’s abilities and keeping them a relatively old model) but Electra benefits far more from a clean setting and would be relatively vulnerable to attack. There’s been decades of cultural downplaying of the advantages of electric vs diesel trains due to the latter’s sheer dominance in the US too. Further tying into the political aspect, electric trains are one of those things whose status only goes up the more you actually learn about them… and it really knocks combustion engines down several pegs, paralleling how right wing politicians in the US tend to be actively anti-education because they quietly rely on voters being low-information and uneducated about how negative the effects of their policies often are.  

Greaseball as a macho jock is also reflective of the perceived strength of diesel vs electric engines.  Because the US is infamous for its large heavy freight trains that are almost entirely diesel-hauled (besides a single power plant out west), electric freight is an almost alien concept and people associate electric traction with high speed trains, subways, maybe lighter, faster European freight trains at most.  People often act like they’re weak because of this.  This is patently untrue, just look at IORE or the Virginian Railway.  Also see my earlier discussion of how weak diesel engines were early on.  Electric locomotives still have vastly higher horsepower per single unit and the only reason there aren’t ones as strong as diesel engines in the US is lack of demand.  It wouldn’t be that hard to build one for that niche.  But diesel has strong associations with being the “strong and manly” blue-collar option because of its use by every large freight railroad and almost every shortline for all the tough, gritty jobs, unlike those darn city slicker commuter trains. Let’s just conveniently forget that the Milwaukee Road existed and that mines are full of weird little battery-powered “lokies”.  People will even crow about the Big Boy all day and rarely acknowledge the multiple electric engine models of that era with comparable abilities.  

EMD E and F UNITS

Finally, we can discuss Greaseball’s more specific basis.  Greaseball’s helmet doesn’t have a single explicit one like Electra’s, but its styling is very typical of 30s-50s era carbody diesel locomotives, specifically the “bulldog nose” E and F-Units.  These models were and still remain some of the most popular toy and model diesel engines, and are some of the most recognizable American trains in general.  Which they totally deserve, they came in a lot of fun colors and were VERY widely used from the 30s to early 80s irl and were still used in limited numbers for decades after that and are extremely common in museums today.  It’s probably harder to find a railroad museum in the US that doesn’t have one.  They are probably THE symbol of diesel trains in the US, especially circa the 50s.  Even highway signs for train stations resemble them.  

Carbody locomotives like these made the streamlined body a structural element of the engine to save weight and required indoor walkways for maintenance access vs being able to open external panels.  Alco and Baldwin also made far less successful carbody locomotives as competitors but they looked very different. Funny enough, a number of electric locomotives of the era also were built this way, but with cabs at both ends, some of them looking a LOT like Greaseball’s helmet.  

The E-units were EMD’s first line of road diesel locomotives, mainly designed for passenger service.  Since the 30s there were several different models of the line, the first few being built in smaller numbers, and the later ones being much more widely produced post-WWII.   They were relatively long and large for a diesel engine of the time, with atypical A1A -A1A (powered/unpowered/powered x2) wheel arrangements and two seperate prime movers (the actual diesel engine) to produce more horsepower due to the limited abilities of individual engines.  While successful compared to their competitors (which were… generally a mess) there’s a sense that they were designed for a time that would never come.  

They were very much optimized for being smooth at speed for passenger use and while not useless for freight service, weren’t ideal for it due to their limited strength and not having all powered wheels for traction.  Which was a terrible market to be in with the massive decline in passenger rail post-WWII.  The E-units still generally had long and successful lives, but were never as successful as their younger, smaller sibling, the F-unit.

F-units visually resemble shorter E-units, but with single prime movers and Bo-Bo wheel arrangements (four powered axles).  By modern standards they’re small and not terribly powerful, but for their time they were solid and VERY successful in freight service, and often took the place of E-units in passenger service since they worked for that too, and were more versatile overall.  There are a bunch of F-units running in museums because they look good and are easy to find parts for due to the sheer quantity produced (also some, but far fewer E-units). You could totally make Greaseball an F-unit and it would fit with how there’s been some infamously short Greaseball actors.  

There’s a lot of fun commonalities between both models that are relevant to Greaseball.  Both were explicitly designed to be used in multi-engine sets due to their limited individual strength, which perfectly fits Greaseball having his Gang follow him around.  Working in packs that large is a VERY midcentury diesel thing.  Both had the massive drawback of having no rear visibility and basically no ability to go backwards for switching.  That was one of the main traits that led to this style of engine falling out of favor, roadswitchers that actually had rear visibility were more versatile than having separate road and switch engines.  In a race going backwards, Rusty would clean his clock even if he was SUPER crappy and could only go walking pace, because Greaseball would be flying totally blind and crash.  It’s also a hassle to perform maintenance and get inside that body style and the noses were reportedly harder to manufacture.  

As a cursed side note, ATSF solved these problems with their old F-units by roadswitcherfying them into CF-7s.  Hey, they were old and past their prime but still useful and worked GREAT as ugly utilitarian roadswitchers and ran for decades afterwards.  There’s several of these things running in museums.  I’ve actually worked on one and I approve of roadswitcherfication because they really are way less of a pain to maintain this way.  

Speaking of rebuilds, the highest horsepower Greaseball would have as an E-unit would as-built is only 2,400 if he was an E9, but because early EMDs got modified so much and routinely re-engined, we can play around with this.  It fits the character and the Railways Series routinely did this kind of thing.  We’ll suppose Greaseball was re-engined or otherwise modified to get up to 2,700 horsepower… but then there’s the reported issue that the unpowered axles might make him too slippery to actually apply full force, so we’ll get a bit more out there and say he got more substantially rebuilt into a Co-Co (six powered axle) arrangement.  Now you have something that would be vaguely comparable with one of Amtrak’s dysfunctional SDP40F diesels of the late 70s-early 80s, if still a bit weaker but probably more physically stable.  It’s hard to avoid that Greaseball is kind of statistically wimpy no matter how you slice it.  They’d need to tweak the numbers in the song a little, but again, swapping out engines in early EMDs was super common and suits him so it’s not too much of a stretch to bump him to 3700 or something.  You still have issue that he’s not large by UP standards specifically (they are INFAMOUS for large single-unit engines) but he’d still be fairly large vs more typical passenger diesels of the time.  

Anyways, another VERY fun fact about E and F units is that they were regularly used on corporate trains after most of them were withdrawn from regular mainline service in the 70s-80s.  People often complain that Greaseball is barely relevant circa the 80s, which isn’t really true since a lot of E and F units were used on commuter lines for years afterward (if often in cab car form, which are terrifying in any talking train verse).  But there’s another huge loophole that gives a perfect excuse for his existence well into the modern day.  Union Pacific itself used a set of three E9s on their corporate specials until 2019!  They only got pulled due to wheel issues… got no lovers if you got no wheels I guess.  But now you have a perfect excuse for why Greaseball is a 50s-era engine with UP colors pulling passenger trains well after the railroad axed those services in the early 70s.  He’s a corporate pawn!  He’s one of the faces of their company, chauffeuring executives around. Which leads into another fascinating topic with him.

UNION PACIFIC, FREIGHT RAILROADS, AND PASSENGER RAIL

All of the modern big Class I railroads in the US suck in similar ways, but Union Pacific has a stronger identity and seems to have the largest cultural presence abroad, making it the most visible and appealing of them to the public.  It tends to be THE American railroad to many, which goes well with Greaseball’s basis being THE American diesel engine.  Yes, they do have some cool heritage fleet stuff and really cool heritage unit paint jobs, but you’ll never see me depict them in a terribly positive way (if at all) because they’re a PR campaign like the Budweiser Clydesdales for an infamously awful company.  Make no mistake, this is a company that’s been voted “worst place to work” on multiple occasions (and its cohorts aren’t much better).  That’s the ironic thing about Electra being made a crappy boss, Amtrak is notably much better to its workers (and steam engines are the most competitive where labor is cheapest and least organized).  The main thing is unreasonable on-call hours, lack of sick leave, vacation, and break days in general, and working conditions.  Look into the blocked 2022 railroad strike for more on this.  Greaseball could be SO nasty to the freight to reflect this if you made him a symbol of railroad leadership.  You’d have any railroaders in the audience booing him if they did this in the US, it’s a very relevant political issue.  Ironically, things weren’t nearly as bad labor-wise in the 80s, ALW just really bet on the right horse in terms of railroads to align a train villain with.  But there’s a more prominant and existing aspect of canon that also fits the crappy things UP and other class Is do.

Passenger rail has never been as profitable as freight in the US. To give a modern ballpark estimate, I’ve heard $30,000 revenue on a fully loaded longer passenger train vs $500,000 revenue on a train of oil tankers.  And that’s not even including the higher maintenance standards that passenger rail requires, which adds millions to its cost and makes it almost impossible for it to turn a profit.  There is a reason why almost all countries with widespread passenger rail today have nationalized rail systems and even US passenger service is all government-run outside Brightline and museums.  

This situation was particularly bad in the 50s-60s before Amtrak took over passenger service.  Passenger trains absolutely bled money overall, and many of them were required to keep running even at massive losses per government regulation because they were an essential service.  This contributed to the financial ruin of many railroads, and most of them dropped passenger service or sold it to the government as soon as it was offered.  UP in particular was more financially stable, but also happily got rid of their passenger trains when offered.

Since then, the giant merged Class I railroads have become almost exclusively freight-oriented and hostile towards Amtrak-run passenger services.  They’re almost all terrible, but UP is one of the more visible offenders, holding up commuter services in Chicago, and contributing to the massive delays in long-distance western trains.  “Coach sexism” in the form of widespread hostility towards passenger rail by the likes of UP is one of the few canon social metaphors that WORKS.  The other engines would not be that way considering the systems they’re aligned with, but Greaseball could be made so, so much worse.    

There is a weird element of “I hate my wife” boomer humor when people describe passenger trains.  There’s “keeping freight trains in line” schedule-wise due to their time sensitivity.  There’s being seen as needlessly spendy for PR reasons (often true in the older days) paralleling “my wife wastes money on stupid things”.  There’s being seen as more delicate and refined due to needing better track conditions and gentler handling because you know, humans have standards that grain hoppers and sand don’t.  There’s the way that passenger rail isn’t as profitable as freight and basically requires government subsidies… not unakin to caring jobs and “women’s work” in general vs blue collar industrial jobs (Caveat: passenger rail employees were almost all male until Amtrak).  In short, yeah the freight railroads’ treatment of passenger trains in the US does have parallels to sexism, if slightly different from how canon does it. Abruptly dumping them in the 70s also fits Greaseball ditching Dinah mid-show. 

Even if you go the comparatively mild route of mirroring modern railroads, you still have him treating the coaches as second class vs freight (despite them being legally prioritized).  This is a major issue and why Amtrak has so many delays on long distance trains.  To summarize a complicated issue: due to the relatively unique economics of railroads, they are incentivized to run fewer, longer, irregular freight trains that have become so large they don’t fit in sidings and can’t physically let prioritized passenger trains through.  They then get delayed for hours, especially if the freight train breaks down (bonus: freight trains have a staff of two, engineer and conductor.  The conductor may have to walk up to THREE MILES to check out a possible defect on a car, delaying even more).  The Class Is have a broadly hostile relationship with Amtrak in general for various reasons related to insurance and minimal investment in track maintenance, and it even affects non-Amtrak passenger services like steam excursions.  UP has its personal steam fleet for publicity reasons,  but all of the Class Is are various shades of hostile to running steam excursions with passengers now due to those same reasons.  Even UP barely sells public tickets for theirs.  

Bonus: the reason Mexico has basically no passenger rail now is due to the nationalized railroads being taken over by companies heavily aligned with US freight railroads and with many similar attitudes towards passenger service.  They ditched virtually all of it en masse when they took over. Turbo works perfectly as just Greaseball but in Mexico because the same thing happened there… only a few years before the Mexican Stex production happened.  Electra might be an even more pathetic and unthreatening character there though, because the single, long-delayed electrified mainline built by NdeM was ripped out after only a few years of service by the  private freight railroads.  

WARNING: Leave now if you do not want to read about how abusive Greaseball could be made based to US railroads’ treatment of passenger trains pre-70s.  It’s not graphic, but it is blunt and dark.  I put this at the end for a reason, there is nothing beyond this last section.  

Basically, canon even at its worst arguably undersells how awful Greaseball could be to Dinah and the coaches if you make them symbols of UP and other major railroads vs passenger service pre-Amtrak.  They could be even MORE toxic.  You have a situation now where he outright hates her and wants her gone for above reasons, but is forced to stay in the relationship due to outside requirements and is fundamentally built for that kind of setup as an E-unit.  Railroads forced to keep passenger services usually didn’t have mandated quality standards for them.  They just had to have something.  This led to pathetically short trains (one or two cars), understaffing, and poor maintenance because they just had to have SOME passenger train on that line.  Track conditions reached terrible standards in the 70s on railroads that were near bankruptcy and delaying maintenance.  I absolute do not blame canon for not going this dark in a kids show, but basically there is no limit to how miserable Greaseball could make her life, short of actually killing her. I can’t understate how much she symbolizes something he’d want to rid himself of at any cost but can’t and will take that out on.  It’s BLEAK.  I don’t think I’d even write them this dark myself.

Well… now you see why I do not redeem and revise Greaseball the way I do Electra.  While the latter is wrongly demonized in an impressive number of ways, Greaseball is awful for all the right ones, to extents deeper than the creators probably ever imagined.  He is so versatile and nearly timeless in his awfulness.  If Greaseball were portrayed as remotely good I’d be ripping him to greater shreds than I do Rusty, but he’s great as a hateable bad guy who’s entertaining and globally recognizable even by much of the general public.  Despite all this, I’m fine with him just being a cartoon bully because it’s more palatable and not wrong.  But you could also make him so much nastier than even the workshop if you wanted to go darker.  

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Andy L.

Published: Apr 14, 2024

It has now been just little under a week since the publication of the long anticipated NHS independent review of gender identity services for children and young people, the Cass Review.

The review recommends sweeping changes to child services in the NHS, not least the abandonment of what is known as the “affirmation model” and the associated use of puberty blockers and, later, cross-sex hormones. The evidence base could not support the use of such drastic treatments, and this approach was failing to address the complexities of health problems in such children.

Many trans advocacy groups appear to be cautiously welcoming these recommendations. However, there are many who are not and have quickly tried to condemn the review. Within almost hours, “press releases“, tweets and commentaries tried to rubbish the report and included statements that were simply not true. An angry letter from many “academics”, including Andrew Wakefield, has been published. These myths have been subsequently spreading like wildfire.

Here I wish to tackle some of those myths and misrepresentations.

-

Myth 1: 98% of all studies in this area were ignored

Fact

A comprehensive search was performed for all studies addressing the clinical questions under investigation, and over 100 were discovered. All these studies were evaluated for their quality and risk of bias. Only 2% of the studies met the criteria for the highest quality rating, but all high and medium quality (50%+) studies were further analysed to synthesise overall conclusions.

Explanation

The Cass Review aimed to base its recommendations on the comprehensive body of evidence available. While individual studies may demonstrate positive outcomes for the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in children, the quality of these studies may vary. Therefore, the review sought to assess not only the findings of each study but also the reliability of those findings.

Studies exhibit variability in quality. Quality impacts the reliability of any conclusions that can be drawn. Some may have small sample sizes, while others may involve cohorts that differ from the target patient population. For instance, if a study primarily involves men in their 30s, their experiences may differ significantly from those of teenage girls, who constitute the a primary patient group of interest. Numerous factors can contribute to poor study quality.

Bias is also a big factor. Many people view claims of a biased study as meaning the researchers had ideological or predetermined goals and so might misrepresent their work. That may be true. But that is not what bias means when we evaluate medical trials.

In this case we are interested in statistical bias. This is where the numbers can mislead us in some way. For example, if your study started with lots of patients but many dropped out then statistical bias may creep in as your drop-outs might be the ones with the worst experiences. Your study patients are not on average like all the possible patients.

If then we want to look at a lot papers to find out if a treatment works, we want to be sure that we pay much more attention to those papers that look like they may have less risk of bias or quality issues. The poor quality papers may have positive results that are due to poor study design or execution and not because the treatment works.

The Cass Review team commissioned researchers at York University to search for all relevant papers on childhood use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for treating “gender dysphoria”. The researchers then graded each paper by established methods to determine quality, and then disregarded all low quality papers to help ensure they did not mislead.

The Review states,

The systematic review on interventions to suppress puberty (Taylor et al: Puberty suppression) provides an update to the NICE review (2020a). It identified 50 studies looking at different aspects of gender-related, psychosocial, physiological and cognitive outcomes of puberty suppression. Quality was assessed on a standardised scale. There was one high quality study, 25 moderate quality studies and 24 low quality studies. The low quality studies were excluded from the synthesis of results.

As can be seen, the conclusions that were based on the synthesis of studies only rejected 24 out of 50 studies – less than half. The myth has arisen that the synthesis only included the one high quality study. That is simply untrue.

There were two such literature reviews: the other was for cross-sex hormones. This study found 19 out of 53 studies were low quality and so were not used in synthesis. Only one study was classed as high quality – the rest medium quality and so were used in the analysis.

12 cohort, 9 cross-sectional and 32 pre–post studies were included (n=53). One cohort study was high-quality. Other studies were moderate (n=33) and low-quality (n=19). Synthesis of high and moderate-quality studies showed consistent evidence demonstrating induction of puberty, although with varying feminising/masculinising effects. There was limited evidence regarding gender dysphoria, body satisfaction, psychosocial and cognitive outcomes, and fertility.

Again, it is myth that 98% of studies were discarded. The truth is that over a hundred studies were read and appraised. About half of them were graded to be of too poor quality to reliably include in a synthesis of all the evidence. if you include low quality evidence, your over-all conclusions can be at risk from results that are very unreliable. As they say – GIGO – Garbage In Garbage Out.

Nonetheless, despite analysing the higher quality studies, there was no clear evidence that emerged that puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones were safe and effective. The BMJ editorial summed this up perfectly,

One emerging criticism of the Cass review is that it set the methodological bar too high for research to be included in its analysis and discarded too many studies on the basis of quality. In fact, the reality is different: studies in gender medicine fall woefully short in terms of methodological rigour; the methodological bar for gender medicine studies was set too low, generating research findings that are therefore hard to interpret. The methodological quality of research matters because a drug efficacy study in humans with an inappropriate or no control group is a potential breach of research ethics. Offering treatments without an adequate understanding of benefits and harms is unethical. All of this matters even more when the treatments are not trivial; puberty blockers and hormone therapies are major, life altering interventions. Yet this inconclusive and unacceptable evidence base was used to inform influential clinical guidelines, such as those of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), which themselves were cascaded into the development of subsequent guidelines internationally.

-

Myth 2: Cass recommended no Trans Healthcare for Under 25s

Fact

The Cass Review does not contain any recommendation or suggestion advocating for the withholding of transgender healthcare until the age of 25, nor does it propose a prohibition on individuals transitioning.

Explanation

This myth appears to be a misreading of one of the recommendations.

The Cass Review expressed concerns regarding the necessity for children to transition to adult service provision at the age of 18, a critical phase in their development and potential treatment. Children were deemed particularly vulnerable during this period, facing potential discontinuity of care as they transitioned to other clinics and care providers. Furthermore, the transition made follow-up of patients more challenging.

Cass then says,

Taking account of all the above issues, a follow-through service continuing up to age 25 would remove the need for transition at this vulnerable time and benefit both this younger population and the adult population. This will have the added benefit in the longer-term of also increasing the capacity of adult provision across the country as more gender services are established.

Cass want to set up continuity of service provision by ensure they remain within the same clinical setting and with the same care providers until they are 25. This says nothing about withdrawing any form of treatment that may be appropriate in the adult care pathway. Cass is explicit in saying her report is making no recommendations as to what that care should look like for over 18s.

It looks the myth has arisen from a bizarre misreading of the phrase “remove the need for transition”. Activists appear to think this means that there should be no “gender transition” whereas it is obvious this is referring to “care transition”.

-

Myth 3: Cass is demanding only Double Blind Randomised Controlled Trials be used as evidence in “Trans Healthcare”

Fact

While it is acknowledged that conducting double-blind randomized controlled trials (DBRCT) for puberty blockers in children would present significant ethical and practical challenges, the Cass Review does not advocate solely for the use of DBRCT trials in making treatment recommendations, nor does it mandate that future trials adhere strictly to such protocols. Rather, the review extensively discusses the necessity for appropriate trial designs that are both ethical and practical, emphasizing the importance of maintaining high methodological quality.

Explanation

Cass goes into great detail explaining the nature of clinical evidence and how that can vary in quality depending on the trial design and how it is implemented and analysed. She sets out why Double Blind Randomised Controlled Trials are the ‘gold standard’ as they minimise the risks of confounding factors misleading you and helping to understand cause and effect, for example. (See Explanatory Box 1 in the Report).

Doctors rely on evidence to guide treatment decisions, which can be discussed with patients to facilitate informed choices considering the known benefits and risks of proposed treatments.

Evidence can range from a doctor’s personal experience to more formal sources. For instance, a doctor may draw on their own extensive experience treating patients, known as ‘Expert Opinion.’ While valuable, this method isn’t foolproof, as historical inaccuracies in medical beliefs have shown.

Consulting other doctors’ experiences, especially if documented in published case reports, can offer additional insight. However, these reports have limitations, such as their inability to establish causality between treatment and outcome. For example, if a patient with a bad back improves after swimming, it’s uncertain whether swimming directly caused the improvement or if the back would have healed naturally.

Further up the hierarchy of clinical evidence are papers that examine cohorts of patients, typically involving multiple case studies with statistical analysis. While offering better evidence, they still have potential biases and limitations.

This illustrates the ‘pyramid of clinical evidence,’ which categorises different types of evidence based on their quality and reliability in informing treatment decisions

The above diagram is published in the Cass Review as part of Explanatory Box 1.

We can see from the report and papers that Cass did not insist that only randomised controlled trials were used to assess the evidence. The York team that conducted the analyses chose a method to asses the quality of studies called the Newcastle Ottawa Scale. This is a method best suited for non RCT trials. Cass has selected an assessment method best suited for the nature of the available evidence rather than taken a dogmatic approach on the need for DBRCTs. The results of this method were discussed about countering Myth 1.

Explainer on the Newcastle Ottawa Scale

The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) is a tool designed to assess the quality of non-randomized studies, particularly observational studies such as cohort and case-control studies. It provides a structured method for evaluating the risk of bias in these types of studies and has become widely used in systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

The NOS consists of a set of criteria grouped into three main categories: selection of study groups, comparability of groups, and ascertainment of either the exposure or outcome of interest. Each category contains several items, and each item is scored based on predefined criteria. The total score indicates the overall quality of the study, with higher scores indicating lower risk of bias.

This scale is best applied when conducting systematic reviews or meta-analyses that include non-randomized studies. By using the NOS, researchers can objectively assess the quality of each study included in their review, allowing them to weigh the evidence appropriately and draw more reliable conclusions.

One of the strengths of the NOS is its flexibility and simplicity. It provides a standardized framework for evaluating study quality, yet it can be adapted to different study designs and research questions. Additionally, the NOS emphasizes key methodological aspects that are crucial for reducing bias in observational studies, such as appropriate selection of study participants and controlling for confounding factors.

Another advantage of the NOS is its widespread use and acceptance in the research community. Many systematic reviews and meta-analyses rely on the NOS to assess the quality of included studies, making it easier for researchers to compare and interpret findings across different studies.

As for future studies, Cass makes no demand only DBRCTs are conducted. What is highlighted is at the very least that service providers build a research capacity to fill in the evidence gaps.

The national infrastructure should be put in place to manage data collection and audit and this should be used to drive continuous quality improvement and research in an active learning environment.

-

Myth 4: There were less than 10 detransitioners out of 3499 patients in the Cass study.

Fact

Cass was unable to determine the detransition rate. Although the GIDS audit study recorded fewer than 10 detransitioners, clinics declined to provide information to the review that would have enabled linking a child’s treatment to their adult outcome. The low recorded rates must be due in part to insufficient data availability.

Explanation

Cass says, “The percentage of people treated with hormones who subsequently detransition remains unknown due to the lack of long-term follow-up studies, although there is suggestion that numbers are increasing.”

The reported number are going to be low for a number of reasons, as Cass describes:

Estimates of the percentage of individuals who embark on a medical pathway and subsequently have regrets or detransition are hard to determine from GDC clinic data alone. There are several reasons for this:

Damningly, Cass describes the attempt by the review to establish “data linkage’ between records at the childhood gender clinics and adult services to look at longer term detransition and the clinics refused to cooperate with the Independent Review. The report notes the “…attempts to improve the evidence base have been thwarted by a lack of cooperation from the adult gender services”.

We know from other analyses of the data on detransitioning that the quality of data is exceptionally poor and the actual rates of detransition and regret are unknown. This is especially worrying when older data, such as reported in WPATH 7, suggest natural rates of decrease in dysphoria without treatment are very high.

Gender dysphoria during childhood does not inevitably continue into adulthood. Rather, in follow-up studies of prepubertal children (mainly boys) who were referred to clinics for assessment of gender dysphoria, the dysphoria persisted into adulthood for only 6–23% of children.

This suggests that active affirmative treatment may be locking in a trans identity into the majority of children who would otherwise desist with trans ideation and live unmedicated lives.

I shall add more myths as they become spread.

==

It's not so much "myths and misconceptions" as deliberate misinformation. Genderists are scrambling to prop up their faith-based beliefs the same way homeopaths do. Both are fraudulent.

[fearfulfertility]

MEDICAL REQUEST REPORT

DRC, Prenatal Division, Gestational Support Division

To: Operations Oversight Committee

From: Dr. [REDACTED], Gestational Support Division, Head of Dermatology

Date: [REDACTED]

Subject: Increased Demand for Dermatological Supplies

Overview

The Dermatology Department has observed a significant increase in cases of nipple irritation and related dermatological complications associated with excessive lactation and weight gain among surrogates. This trend has created an acute demand for additional moisturizing lotions, ointments, and specialized care supplies, which our department currently lacks the funds or infrastructure to provide.

I. Key Observations:

Excessive Lactation

Surrogates carrying large multiples exhibit abnormally high milk production starting in mid to late-term gestation (15-20 days). This leads to skin overhydration, irritation, and cracking of the nipple and surrounding areolar tissue.

Nipple Irritation

Constant leakage causes persistent dampness, fostering irritation and increasing susceptibility to [REDACTED].

Friction from improperly fitted paternity garments exacerbates the problem, causing rawness in extreme cases.

Complications

Reports of dermatitis have risen by 37% over the past quarter, requiring additional intervention.

II. Lactation Volume Trends

Generally, surrogates at +15 days gestation can lactate up to 1 gallon or more of milk daily. This necessitates additional accommodations for milking and storage capabilities. The substantial output directly results from enhanced hormonal protocols, multi-fetal pregnancies, and specialized dietary regimens designed to maximize pre-natal milk supply.

"I wake up drenched, and the fabric sticks to me. My chest is so heavy it’s pulling my shoulders forward, and it feels like my back is going to snap. My pecs are always sore, and the creams don’t do much. It’s not funny when you can’t sleep because it feels like your chest is wetting itself." - Surrogate S136-645-L, 27 days gestation with dodecuplets (12)

Due to the extraordinary lactation demands, the average pectoral size for surrogates has risen to K or larger. This unprecedented increase in breast size presents unique challenges:

Physical Strain: The weight of milk-filled pectorals, combined with the already substantial physical burden of multi-fetal pregnancies, significantly increases strain on the back, shoulders, and chest.

Clothing Requirements: Standard paternity garments cannot support surrogates with such large pectoral sizes. Custom-fitted or medical-grade support is necessary to reduce discomfort and prevent long-term musculoskeletal issues.

Dermatological Concerns: The enlarged size and volume contribute to persistent skin irritation, chafing, and [REDACTED]. Prolonged dampness from lactation leakage exacerbates these conditions, emphasizing the need for high-quality emollients, breathable fabrics, and anti-[REDACTED] treatments.

III. Stretch Mark Management

The extreme abdominal growth observed in surrogates has resulted in widespread reports of severe stretch marks accompanied by skin tearing and irritation. The epidermis’s inability to maintain elasticity under such extreme strain has led to:

Deep dermal tears across the abdomen and sides, causing discomfort and risk of infection.

Skin discoloration and prolonged inflammation complications have led to [REDACTED].

"The stretch marks are everywhere — they itch like crazy. My belly is so big it rubs against my legs so badly when I walk. I’ve been using diaper cream because that’s all they have, and even that’s running out. It’s humiliating to ask for more!" - Surrogate S112-529-P, 30 days gestation with sexdecuplets (16)

Recommendations:

Increase inventory of stretch mark creams containing high-grade hyaluronic acid and retinol to improve skin elasticity and promote healing.

Provide surrogates with access to medical-grade silicone sheets for scar prevention.

Weight Gain and Related Complications

The rapid weight gain associated with multi-fetal pregnancies has also resulted in significant dermatological challenges in the buttocks and upper thigh areas. Reports of chafing, redness, and [REDACTED] have increased as surrogates struggle to manage:

Localized inflammation due to friction from excess weight.

Moisture buildup leads to skin irritation, particularly in the thighs and lower back creases.

"The swelling, the stretching, the leaking — it never ends. My pecs are so big they hit my belly like doorbell knockers whenever I walk. My nipples are basically faucets from the constant milk flow." - Surrogate S126-773-O, 28 days gestation with quindecuplets (15)

IV. Resource Needs

To address these challenges and maintain operational efficiency, the Dermatology Department formally requests the following:

Increased Lotion Supply

The current inventory of emollients and specialized nipple creams, including higher volumes of lanolin-based creams, breathable clothing, and anti-[REDACTED] treatments.

Provide high quantities of zinc oxide-based diaper creams to prevent and treat skin irritation caused by chafing and moisture.

Enhanced Clothing Options

Access to soft, breathable paternity garments designed to minimize friction and wick moisture is urgently needed. Custom-fitted support designed for surrogates with K-pectoral sizes or larger.

Additional Staff Support

More trained dermatological aides are required to handle the increasing caseload effectively.

Regularly monitoring surrogate health to preempt complications arising from excessive milk production and epidermal strain.

V. Impact on Compound Operations

Failure to address these dermatological issues promptly risks:

Reduced surrogate comfort, leading to lower compliance and increased resistance.

Escalated medical costs due to untreated infections and complications.

Conclusion

The Dermatology Department strongly advises immediate approval of the requested resources to mitigate these challenges and ensure the continued efficiency of the compound’s operations. Please prioritize the allocation of additional lotions, creams, and suitable clothing options for surrogates experiencing these conditions.

Report Prepared by Dr. [REDACTED], Gestational Support Division, Head of Dermatology

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Sending...

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To: Head of Dermatology, Dr. [REDACTED]

From: Director [REDACTED]

Date: [REDACTED]

Subject: RE: Increased Demand for Dermatological Supplies

Following your memorandum's review, I approve the request for the increased lotion supply and additional staff support to manage the complications among surrogates. 

However, the request for enhanced clothing options is denied at this time. While clothing-related discomfort is acknowledged, allocating resources to garments over medical supplies is not justifiable under current conditions. Prioritizing lotion supplies and preventative care will address most dermatological concerns without incurring unnecessary costs. Surrogates will continue wearing standard paternity garments or nothing at all (for late-term surrogates), and this decision will be reassessed during the next yearly review if issues persist.

Moving forward, while their discomfort is noted, surrogates are to remain functional assets. I expect your team to focus on preventative care and rapid treatment protocols to maintain compliance and meet compound objectives.

Director [REDACTED]

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Click Here to return to DRC Report Archives

[luonnon-varainen]

I had it in mind for a while already so I here are my thoughts and headcanon about Collie or rather the „bodily functions” of the eldritch god, here the "species" is archivist

There are some extra notes on doodles but oh boi the amount of typos there is unbearable x"d

Starting from the beginning and basic - the core:

The core is a semi-conscious substance of unknown molecular structure, if with any molecular structure, functioning as magic carrier/vector(similar to the ATP). It's a mystery whether it is really an elemental structure, a condensed energy or a form of electromagnetic waves beyond our current knowledge. In general it is said that core is pure celestial magic. It has many physical qualities of a fluid. The closest liquid to the core would be a Non-Newtonian fluid. It is a blackish, very sticky, dense liquid similar to pitch, which is highly sensitive and "reactive" to a electromagnetic field like ferrofluid. The core, most likely due to its structure and origin, is very unstable. Visible light exposure is enough to cause a spontaneous rapid reaction which ends with an explosion. Making existence on its own very unlikely. In case when the core happens to be sealed inside the archive - the semi-conscious body made of mostly gold, iridium, wolfram and glass, which contains all collected life forms - it creates what is known as an god, in this case an Archivist. This amalgamation allows to not only creat a stable form of both elements, but also develop an fully conscious eldritch, who is able to exist actively. Archivists possess almost full control over their core: shaping it, moving around, grabbing different objects with it, shielding themselves

The core is a more "human" side of an archivist. The element capable of adapting, blending, learning mortal structures both anatomical and social and rebuilding it to their own standards, experiencing emotions and many more. It plays the main role in defining what kind of person the archivist will be. Yet, the core is not equal to Archivists. It possess it's own "personality" and "opinions", similarly to the archive. Sometimes the core and the archivist are quite different and are working not very well with eachother. Situations like these are called "speaking" - a small part of core presents, usually visually, it opposing opinions against whole god's will. It's not harmful, just annoying and uncomfortable

The core is like a liquid - almost incompressible. It's quite an issue when you are a planet size entity who needs to shrink whole your body to be able to fill the archive and keep on existing, but also need to protect "guts" from exploding during day. The long, baggy robes come to aid in this case. Dresses, veils, hats, too puffed trousers and sleeves allows to hide quite a lot of the liquid from external conditions, by creating the precious shade, controlling the temperature amplitude and keeping it away from other liquids. Extra protection are given by their characteristic cloaks, which inner lining is a portal to the Grand Archive. The Grand Archive is a pocket dimensions away from intense light, where the core can be a bit safer and longer outside the capillary archive than usually. Also in order to work in an unwelcoming environment such as a planet, archivists developed a pulsating movement of the core. As the whole core cannot be at the same time in the archive, to prevent the destabilisation and consequently explosion, it is constantly flows through the body and around their closest surrounding. It's quite similar to the cytoplasmic movement around vacuoles in a plant cell or blood flow in Mollusca' s vascular system. The free flow of the core is the key reason why archivists avoid intense light and making them rather a "nocturnal" creatures

The core is inside the archive, where it's well secured and stabilised. However, there are many passages for the core to leave its shelter. These channels have no protection besides a thin membrane. They have a crucial role in an archivist's life as they are the doors to the inside of a god. All collected mortals eventually will end up inside the archive, but that requires a special spell that will reduce the mortal to smallest functional elements. Even smaller than the scrolls provide. That is possible thanks to these exact entrances. The mortal, whether in a scroll or not, will be pushed through one of those channels, encapsidated by the core, " dissolved" and placed inside one of bazillion capsules of the archive. It's unknown if the final archivisation is an painless process, but the truth is that it doesn't matter at this point - whoever was placed inside will stay there forever. The main passage are eye sockets-

The eldritch gods and deep sea creatures are extremely similar in terms of their adaptation to the environment, conserving energy idea and their life motto "eat or be eaten". So no wonder that archivists put a lot of effort to become the most efficient and effective as they could. The core shaped the archive to resemble intelligent life forms displaying a beautiful example of aggressive mimicry. As mortals are the most troublesome in terms of catching them without excessive energy loss. Looking like a young and lost in the forest nymph can really boosts chances of putting hand on curious mortals. After all who wouldn't try to figure out who the hell is this and why it's in my forest at 11 pm(at least I would, but I'm the natural selection's target for a while so I'm not the best example xd). Why go and chase when you can make them come to you. There are way more of the adaptations but it's more the archive than the core topic and I'm not writing it down today

A skilled archivist can use the surrounding matter, even quite reactive one like water, to temporarily shield the core or divide it and archive in order to create the "puppet - puppetmaster" form. A terrible thing to encounter on a long voyage or while wandering on the desert, especially if your specie decides to resist god's will-

[ddarker-dreams]

Nexus.

Yandere Blade x F Reader.

Warnings: Nothing major yet, some minor Honkai: Star Rail spoilers. Word count: 4.6k.

Nexus index.

On the planet Eris, in the city of Perianth II, night reigns, for there is no star close enough to challenge its rule. 

Deep within the bowels of the metropolis lit only by manmade contraptions, sits a bar known as LOTUS-EATER, carved into the cragged terrain as if it’d always been there. It had not, in fact, contrary to local legend. Had the IPC not run into issues with overcrowded prisons, this planet they now consider a scourge would never have had the means to limp on. 

Easy solutions cultivate the conditions for worse problems to develop later on. 

This is what your mother — a shrewd woman to her core — instilled in you. 

Grimacing, you reread the words on your screen for the umpteenth time. 

… You wish she had instilled some business management skills instead. 

“Miss Exalted-One-Ma’am, when are you coming back inside? This client is refusing to leave until he can speak with you. Lear is running interference, but that’s going as well as you can imagine,” a feminine voice calls out. 

You glance up fast enough to assess her expression. Despite the severity of her words, she’s smiling, amber eyes crinkling by the corners. Her chestnut-colored hair is worn in a braid that extends down the length of her back, meaning she hasn’t clocked out yet, or else it’d be loose. You have some wiggle room, then.

“Nona,” you beckon her over, “What do you think this means?” 

Inquisitive creature she is, she doesn’t waste this opportunity to poke around in your private matters. Her eyes flitter back and forth as she takes in the contents of your phone. Interlocking her hands behind her back, she hums. 

“Looks like we’re due for a visit.” 

“That’s what you gathered too?” You murmur. “What a mess this is turning into. The last thing we need is for the hounds to start sniffing around.” 

“I dunno what you’re frazzled about, exalted one. The locals wouldn’t cough up info to the IPC even if their life depended on it.” 

“Therein lies your answer — the locals won’t, but our clientele is vast as the universe is infinite. Someone looking to score quickly could put in a tip. The hounds are just itching for an excuse to put an embargo on Eris again.” 

She shrugs. “Outsiders bribed and snuck their way in last time, they would now too. Benefits of a quality product.” 

You shake your head and pinch the bridge of your nose. Nona means well, but if she thinks in such simple terms, her training period won’t ever end. Or perhaps you’re being a tad too harsh on the girl, you haven’t slept since receiving this text message two cycles ago. If it weren’t for how scarce this technology is, you would’ve smashed it to pieces for causing you such prolonged strife. 

Alas, as a native of Eris, there are two things you intrinsically cherish above all else — any object that emits light and the special nectary cradled within the planet. 

“I’ll take your input into—” 

A shrill shriek cuts you off before you can finish your sentence. 

“The hysterical client, I reckon,” Nona dryly remarks. “Now, can you please come in before Lear gets stabbed? If it isn’t already too late.” 

You don’t bother dignifying her macabre speculation with a reply. You enter through a back door accessible only to LOTUS-EATER staff, weaving around boxes of cargo that need to be sorted. A heady, aromantic scent clings to the wood, yet its temptation is long lost on you. Where the clients indulge, you abstain. The livelihood of yourself and your workers relies heavily on your psyche’s clarity. 

Emerging from the back rooms has you standing on the building’s second floor, an area known as The Lounge. Here, the spherical, gravity-defying emitters of lights standard in this region are set dimly. This latest model even allows you to adjust the dimensions, ranging from small enough to fit in the palm of your hand to the size of a room. There was supposed to be one more on this floor, but while unpacking the order, it slipped from Lear’s hands and met an early demise. Great cooperation was needed to locate the glass that floated to the ceiling. 

You check the status of occupancies. Two private rooms are in session, the other eight are empty. By your design, it had been a slow night. You gave orders to the receptionist, Thalia, to only book appointments for influential customers, just in case the omen floating over your head comes true. You walk down the hallway which leads to the first floor, only to notice cool colors set in a square array by the digital lock. 

The sight doesn’t sit right with you. You consider taking a detour to investigate, only for the commotion downstairs to encourage otherwise. 

“Sir, if you’d please calm down—”

Lear’s gentle voice is cut off by another. 

“I demand to speak with her,” it heaves. “The mind witch. Where is she?” 

The electronic curtains that lift for those put into the LOTUS-EATER’s database part in a magnificent flurry of scarlet hues. You feel each set of eyes that glance your way. It’s a typical ensemble present — affluent travelers, political emissaries, and well-to-do merchants. Some drink at the bar, others watch the live entertainment playing soft music. Everyone aside from the heaving interloper is dressed in the formalwear expected of the establishment. 

The click of your heels against the dark wood floor reverberates throughout. The man’s reaction to your appearance is delayed, though he eventually turns his head to see where Lear is looking. Resentment contorts his face upon spotting you. You recognize him. Jay R. Alister, a client who gave Thalia a difficult time due to his demands to have a Synalink booking today. You thought you smoothed over the matter by granting him access to the first floor, The Club, and placing him on a priority list for next time. 

Copious amounts of alcohol must’ve unraveled your hard work. 

“Shall we take a moment to collect ourselves, sir?”

“No one— no one understands,” he insists, swaying ever so slightly. It’s a peculiar sight. One message from a handful of the individuals present would be enough to spell doom for Alister, this charade likely already has him blacklisted across multiple star systems. To be a client at LOTUS-EATER is a privilege. Everyone adheres to the unspoken rule of the honor system, eliminating the need for security inside. 

“I’d like to, Mr. Alister, if you wouldn’t mind explaining to me outside.” 

He’s drunk, but a low-level link can be established, you surmise. It isn’t an option without risks. As a recurring client, he could catch onto the invasive feeling and grow further agitated. The eyes fixated on you grow heavier. Some are curious, others bemused, and a few pass silent judgment, comparing your capabilities with the previous Exalted Arbiter. 

He blinks slowly. “My Roze… she’s upstairs. She’s waiting for me. I can’t— can’t be late…” 

“You won’t be,” your voice takes on a concerned lilt, “Let’s go meet her elsewhere. Follow me and I’ll take you to her.” 

A white ring forms around his pupils. 

“You… will?” 

“I will. Come, now, we wouldn’t want to waste any more of her time, would we?” 

The ring goes from opaque to solid. 

The low-level link has been made manifest. You feel the thread connecting you to the essence that makes Jay R. Alister himself. 

You stride past him and he immediately scrambles to follow. Out of the corner of your eye, you note how Lear’s shoulders relax and give him a reassuring nod. He did a good job stalling until you could personally see to this matter yourself. If this had occurred any other time, it would’ve been your top priority, but a far more sensitive issue threatened to ensnare you in a worrisome web. 

One after another, the pairs of eyes fall, like a flying pest in its final moments. Conversation resumes and the music increases in volume. 

Cool air embraces you once you’re outside. This particular region is well-lit, a testimony to its prestige. Restaurants, boutiques, and other fine shops have been built with walls of dark stone naturally found on Eris for better insulation. The once rugged streets are smooth, painstakingly cobbled together by a city planner many Amber Eras ago. Any crack has molten gold poured into it so that when it dries, the ground beneath your feet is a never-ending sea of ebony and gold. 

You wave over the closest security guards. The rest can be left to them, Mr. Alister has damaged his reputation enough for you to consider his dues paid. You’ll tell Thalia to take him off the registered client list for LOTUS-EATER and that’ll be the end of it. You’re preparing to head back inside when a pervasive, overpowering influence freezes you in place. It’s reminiscent of an electric current.  

The taut link between you falters. 

Straining…

(He’s reaching into his pocket). 

Fraying…

(His hands wield a sharpened implement).  

Until it snaps. 

The subjugated lunges at the subjugator. 

You try to re-establish the link, but there’s a fortress around his mind that wasn’t there moments prior. Imposing and unbreachable. Where did this surge of mental fortitude come from? You need to think, you need to act. There must be a way for you to regain control, your technique is unshaken even in the face of imminent demise. In the three seconds it takes for him to close the distance, you make seventy-four attempts, each ending in failure. 

Has the last grain of sand fallen to the bottom of the hourglass, cementing this choice to believe in your abilities as the wrong one? 

This can’t be the end. Who will take care of—

Metal clashes against metal. 

The being in front of you is a shade. Tendrils of agony untold slither up from his thigh and squeeze around his neck, constantly choking him, yet refusing the sweet reprieve a crushed windpipe would give. This is a person acquainted with every suffering a living creature could ever endure. The prismatic shards that detail his countless tragedies aren’t just broken, they’re eviscerated, an indecipherable mess. Some scattered to the wind and others forcibly scratched out. 

This nightmarish presence eclipses your would-be killer. 

His eyes meet yours and the hairs on the back of your neck stand. 

“Don’t bother,” is all he says. 

He could sense you trying to poke around in his head? Has he come into contact with Arbiters before? That can’t be possible, you’re familiar with everyone on the LOTUS-EATER registry. You cease your ministrations without verbally acknowledging him. His hollow expression burns into your retinas, invading your mind’s eye. The sword he saved your life with holds a similar weight. It radiates such intensity that you needn’t use any techniques to get a better read on it. 

Walking up the steps in a casual manner is the last person you wanted to see — Kafka of the Stellaron Hunters. She spares the now subdued Alister a glance then turns to face you. 

“Fortunately, I had the foresight to send Bladie ahead,” she smiles. You resist the urge to scoff. “Otherwise, our meeting would’ve been far less pleasant.” 

So that man’s with her, you think. That’d explain why I couldn’t make any progress. 

If the defenses surrounding Alister were comparable to a fortress, the minds of the Stellaron Hunters are like a deflective shield. Any extensive attempts at trying to gain access end up backfiring and causing you damage so long as they remain up. The only other being capable of a similar feat was your mother. Now, in the few years since her death, you’ve encountered three more with similar capabilities. 

Are your abilities growing dull? Or are other species simply evolving? 

You order the guards to deal with Alister as they see fit, he’s no longer your primary concern. 

There’s a far worse headache forming on the horizon. 

“... I suppose you’ll follow me inside whether I invite you or not?” You question, just barely managing to maintain the smile painted hastily on your face. 

Kafka doesn’t reciprocate your hostility. She never does. Instead, she motions in the direction you were planning on taking them to avoid any unwanted attention. The guards won’t be an issue, since they’re on your payroll. You don’t want to risk lingering and being spotted by someone without an allegiance to you.

“I won’t overstay my welcome, Exalted Arbiter. You have my word.” 

By essentially showing up uninvited at your front door, she’s placed you in quite a precarious situation. The man who parried Alister’s attack hasn’t dropped his vigilance for an instant. His posture is that of an animal poised to pounce. You lack the means to fight them off should they choose to utilize force. 

Your gut instinct tells you it’s a bad idea to get involved any further. Your mind reasons you can only play the cards you’re dealt. 

A sigh passes by your lips. “Very well. Let’s get on with it then.” 

The duo follows wordlessly behind you. Kafka remains close, whereas the swordsman lingers further back, taking care to avoid well-lit areas and remaining hidden. Had you not already been alerted to his presence, he could’ve easily slipped past your detection.  

The Stellaron Hunters are a formidable group indeed. 

During the short journey, you recall the text message that pushed you into this vat of strife. 

It was accompanied by an animated emoticon of the magenta-haired fugitive blowing a kiss. 

You’ll be in need of me shortly. See you then xoxo 

“Absolutely not!” 

An exclamation of unrivaled proportion leaves you, accompanied by your palms slamming against your desk. Old-fashioned writing stationary clatters noisily in the aftermath. She stops the doomed descent of one pen and then looks back to you, unperturbed. 

This woman is a shadow that follows her target persistently, devising fresh torments and sowing discord wherever she steps. To fight her is to do battle with a phantom, no attacks will land. The hopeless charade serves to tire you out. Still, your pride is wounded and without a balm to assuage the tender gash. It can’t scab over to heal. Again and again, it’s reopened, fresh blood washing over what had just dried. 

“I haven’t finished my proposition,” she hums. She sits in front of your desk, legs crossed, her eyes shining an eerie shade. “I wouldn’t dare to ask so much of your resources if you didn’t stand to benefit as well. Our current arrangement has helped you cut down on costs, yes?” 

You drum your fingers over the wood’s lacquer finish. “The word ‘arrangement’ implies cooperation, I believe extortion would be a better fit.” 

“I’ll stand by my original phrasing. The IPC has abandoned all pretense of slowly creeping up rates on shipments to Eris; what they’re charging now will look generous in a few short Trailblazer Years. They want this planet dead and their past misdeeds to die alongside it.” 

“Our current projections estimate we have at least two medium-length Amber Eras before we get to that point, by then, we’ll have countermeasures in place,” you droll out. These details have been drilled into your head ever since you became the head of this quadrant. “What proof do you have that the IPC will make such a drastic move? The other factions will lodge complaints, many of them use our… exports.” 

You wince at the awkward phrasing of the word ‘exports’, knowing full well she’ll pick through any vulnerability like a vulture does a corpse. 

Kafka leans forward. “By ‘exports’, you must mean Eris’ most sought-after natural resource. The tonic of the nectary.” 

“I’m not allowed to discuss such sensitive material with outworlders.” 

“You needn’t say anything, just listen,” she pulls out a vial from inside her jacket. The familiar sheen of glimmering gold within causes your breath to hitch. “Here I have a sample of the latest synthetic developments into the tonic, courtesy of Silver Wolf. The IPC is discreetly channeling funds into the Genius Society to revitalize the research effort.” 

You bite back a laugh. “That knowledge is nothing new. They’ve been trying to replicate the tonic for ages; it’s a money pit. The last I heard, the closest they could get after investing billions of credits is a 14% match.” 

“Try 70%.” 

She sets the vial down and nods, encouraging you to take it. You don’t. 

“... You can’t be serious,” your voice sounds far away, as if it were coming from another room. “You’re bluffing.” 

“You don’t have to take my word for it. Have your alchemists examine it and come to your own conclusions.” 

As a disciple of Destiny’s Slave, she’s confident that this will suffice to convince you, and loathe as you are to admit it, she’s right. The repercussions of this allegation could be disastrous. It’d be irresponsible on your part to not at least run it by the appropriate channels. 

“What does this intel cost me?” 

“Nothing, consider it a token of good faith. There’s a more pressing matter I hoped to bring to your attention, now that that’s out of the way.” 

You raise an eyebrow. “More pressing than the future of my home?” 

“That’d depend on who you ask,” Kafka dances around your apprehension to a rhythm no one else has ever composed. “It has to do with my companion. I didn’t bring him here to take in the sights, he’s to stay on a job until further notice.” 

The mention of that enigmatic man brings with it a resurgence of the feelings you experienced earlier. It hit like a tidal wave, concentrated and suffocating. What would someone have to endure for their psyche to be saturated in such wretchedness? 

“Alright. I’ll arrange for accommodations somewhere more discreet.” 

“I think it’d be best if he stayed here, at the LOTUS-EATER.” 

…

…

…

“What?” 

Kafka has made many requests in the time she’s known you. Normally, she uses you as a point of contact to meet influential individuals or a warehouse of yours to store important items, but this is an entirely different beast. Those endeavors fester outside your purview. You give the push necessary and wash your hands clean of the implications. 

To host a Stellaron Hunter in your most lucrative establishment could very well be the start of the end. 

“After the events that unfolded earlier, you should see the potential advantages. You’re in a precarious situation. The IPC can’t place a bounty on you in an official capacity, but there are ways around bureaucracy. That attempt today won’t be the last.” 

She lowers her voice to an enticing whisper. “And we both know you’re not financially sound enough to hire competent help. Take him. He’ll be yours if you permit him.” 

How her melodious voice can invoke such a raw desire to argue is unknown, and yet, each fiery word fizzles out to ash on your tongue. In the same way you’d establish a link for the first time, you take the pieces of information at your disposal to test where the edges might align. The unusual fees on shipments, the supposed progress on the tonic, and the overall strain that’s been placed on every level of your business — the mosaic it forms is a crimson shade with a metallic scent. 

You can’t die. Not yet, not when it’d cause so many to perish alongside you. 

“This goes beyond ‘a token of good faith’,” you murmur. “Kafka… there’s far more to this, isn’t there? Just what are you planning?” 

For once, the curvature of her smile is genuine. Blatant insincerity would unsettle you less. 

“A gift for a friend.”

Upon LOTUS-EATER’s roof sits your favorite getaway, a secluded balcony. 

There’s nothing fancy about the decor, if anything, it’s worn rugged by the elements. Paint chips off the three chairs and stubborn foliage congregates no matter how often you banish it with your broom. After ensuring you can only be contacted in an emergency, you wipe the condensation off the chair furthest to the right and sit tall. 

Although you aren’t alone, you keep your eyes on the starry sky.

“I would like to apologize for the behavior I displayed earlier,” you take your time with the words, ensuring each syllable has a pleasant ring. “It must’ve been from the shock, although that’s no excuse. Please allow me to thank you properly.” 

An icy wind whistles through. Once it finishes, you fuss over your hair, putting each strand back in its designated place. You grimace when it picks back up again. 

“You can express your gratitude by speaking normally.” 

Your head snaps in his direction. You examine his side profile through narrow eyes, impatience writhing beneath your skin. He pays your poorly masked hostility no mind. One by one, each muscle in your body relaxes, a domino effect you can’t bother putting a stop to. You slump down into your chair and cross your arms over your chest. 

“Have it your way,” you sigh. Your capitulation earns you his piercing stare. “Pretty words or not, I meant what I said. So, um… thank you, and…” 

Despite yourself, you try meshing together a more subtle phrasing, only for those infinite pools of vermillion to act as a successful deterrent. 

“I don’t like being indebted to others, it’s a hassle. So, here is my offer. I’ll perform a Synalink on you, free of charge. Or a waitlist.” 

Blade exhales sharply through his nose. It takes a moment to register that your proposition amused him more than it intrigued him. The perceived affront on your capabilities causes you to bristle. This is a rare opportunity you’re granting him, surely he must’ve heard of your abilities somewhere! People spend years trying to get an audience with you. The other Arbiters you employ are capable enough, otherwise, they couldn’t work here; but you transcend their combined efforts. 

“There is only one thing I’d want to experience, it’s beyond your means.” 

Propping yourself up on the chair’s arm, you scoff. “Hah, try me. Any emotion, scenario, for whatever length of time; tell me what you want to experience and I can make it happen.” 

He doesn’t instantly rebuke you. You share a moment of silence — almost solemn, certainly more meaningful for him than it is for you. There’s a light tug of guilt that pulls at your conscience. Perhaps it isn’t him underestimating you, but not wanting to set himself up for disappointment again. If you’re going to be occupying the same space for an unknown amount of time, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get on adequate terms. This could be the door that’ll open that path. 

You clear your throat to dispense the accumulating tension. “That clothing… you must have ties to The Xianzhou Luofu, or some experience with them. Are you familiar with Immersia games?” 

“Vaguely. An acquaintance of mine plays them.” 

You’re confident you could put a name and face to this ‘acquaintance’. For the sake of cordiality, you keep your opinion to yourself.

“I’ve never been fond of the comparison to my work, but I suppose it’s a decent touchstone. An Immersia grants the player a simulated experience predetermined by developers. There is a degree of immersion, hence, well, the name, but that’s barely scratching the surface,” you explain. 

Reassessing his body language only reveals neutrality. You decide it’s better than blatant disinterest and continue. 

“Traditionally, there are thought to be five senses in advanced lifeforms. These senses don't create the continuity of reality we experience, they just break it down into bite-sized pieces for easy consumption. Forming a Synalink is akin to overclocking a computer, not placing a hard drive in a different system. Your brain finds the stimuli I send it indistinguishable from the touch of your hair against your face, or the woody scent of incense in that jar.” 

His eyebrows crease slightly downward. “A single glimpse into my mind was enough to send you recoiling, and still, this is an offer you’re comfortable making?”   

You purse your lips. It’s a fair point. 

“That was… different. Ideally, any link should be made in a stable environment to minimize disruptions. I had nearly been—” You cut yourself off, finding the sentence to be one you’d rather not finish. “—You know, so I wasn’t at optimal performance. That’s why we have private rooms in The Lounge.” 

Your nostrils flare when he keeps regarding you with that impassive expression. Is his face permanently frozen? Does he need to be unpaused? You almost want to snap your fingers in front of him.

“Hey, you’d be less effective if you had to improvise and fight with, say, a spoon. Would your combat ability be based on that one irregular instance or the total sum of all your fights? Hm? What you witnessed earlier was my irregular instance. If you’re open to the idea, I can make it work.” 

Blade shifts so that he can resume gazing at the sky. Before you can celebrate your victory in this one-sided battle of wits, he speaks up. His voice adheres to a softer creed. 

“You are…” he trails off, taking care to select the proper description, “Remarkably strange.” 

Your eye twitches. 

This has been a miserable cycle. You had to breathe the same air as Kafka, deal with a drunk client that later tried to stab you, and you found out the main export that keeps your planet’s economy from total collapse might be duplicable. All things considered, you should be giving this guy the cold shoulder for the problems he’ll inevitably cause in your future. Altruism gets you about as far as jumping into the air and hoping that’ll transport you through space. 

“Forget it, then,” you get up and twist around. The chair you formally occupied scrapes loudly against the ground. You don’t spare him a single glance while traversing the few steps that separate you from a long, well-deserved rest. Maybe you’ll be extra petty and lock the door so he has to remain here until you wake up. The olive branch has been extended, if he wants to take it and break it in two, that’s his prerogative. 

You raise your hand to unlock the door when abruptly, something captures your wrist. 

Your heart stutters. 

There isn’t the softness of flesh or the warmth that radiates off skin. Instead, you feel the textured surface of bandages graze against you in a featherlight touch. You know the vice-like grip he’s capable of. You saw it in how he clutched the grip of his sword, like it was the only thing he was good for. Gentleness cannot come naturally to someone of his disposition. It’s an intentional choice that requires swimming against the tide. 

Shakily, you exhale, hoping it’ll ease how your hands tremble. 

When was the last time someone touched you? Ah… it must’ve been then. 

You will the thought away. 

Blade doesn’t tether you down for more than a few seconds, just long enough to ensure your attention is back on him. Your skin tingles where he came into contact with you. It’s a prickly, blisteringly hot sensation that starts at your wrist and spreads all over. You squeeze your eyelids shut in a last-ditch effort to recompose yourself. 

He’s looking straight at you when your eyes reopen. 

“I didn’t mean to offend you,” he says. You find it strange how quick you are to believe him. “If you sincerely think yourself up to the task, then…” 

There it is again, that swelling of feeling, visceral to a degree every survival instinct screams at you to turn away. 

You find yourself leaning in closer. 

He rewards your burning curiosity with the unprecedented utterance: 

"Show me what it's like to die." 

[contlis12]

Male Feedee and Genderless Feeder dark feederism short story

Cole groggily came to feelings his feeder lifting his legs with the straps they had installed in the bedroom after Cole had passed the 550 pound mark and changing and cleaning was becoming more of an issue. Pushing the massive parachute sized white underwear half way up his thighs ready to squeeze them past his sagging hips when they finally got him standing. As his feeder was slipping on his bariatric soft socks over his plump feet Cole asked almost nervously “why are you dressing me already? I haven’t even had my first feeding yet” his feeder just chuckled sweetly. “Oh we are going to do your breakfast out on the couch today, you are going to need the energy you’ll be busy today” they said rubbing lotion into the crevasses of Coles fat struggling to keep him from getting any bed rash or chub rub spending so long in bed and being so unhealthy and massively fat. Coles walk or more accurately waddle to the living room couch was eventful to say the least at one point Cole had broken down in tears begging to go to back to bed and that he couldn’t make it to the couch and had to be taken in his bariatric wheel chair the rest of the way to the couch. “There piggy I know this was hard and you are really cranky from being hungry so I’m going to make sure your belly is aching after this feast and you feel all better baby” and they weren’t exaggerating. Giant bowls heaped to the top with gravy and biscuits, greasy hashbrowns swimming in ketchup, even glazed doughnuts with slices of American cheese melted on the top of them. Coles feeder loved listening to him retch in pain so full his stomach is screaming to expel the food to make room and then greedily scarfing down the next bite making guttural gulping and snorts as he loses control plunging his mouth into the greasy low quality slop he’s been conditioned to love. After what seemed like hours Coles feeder had considered it satisfactory and let the pig stop eating and left in a messy ketchup and gravy covered mess. Grinning they came over and softly rubbed the sagging slab of fat that Coles gut had grown into a huge stretch mark covered waterfall of fat going nearly to his knees. “That’s such a good job piggy, I’m glad you ate plenty so you have the energy to entertain your friends tonight”. 

Coles already thudding heart started racing even faster as his food fogged brain started to realize what his feeder had just said. “Whu-what do you mean?” Cole stammered looking down at his feeder now with their head resting on his stomach looking  sweetly up at him. “Oh I invited your friends out to finally visit with you again, they all missed you so much so I kept up with them for you and set up a surprise visit honey” Coles mouth dropped open as he seen the glint in his feeders eyes as they drank in the absolute shock on his face. “I’m tired of you not giving me my due recognition Cole, you lay in my house pigging out all day eating up my money and you’ve never once told anybody how proud you were to be my piggy and grow for me. You try and hide that body I’ve grown and I’m due some respect and you to be a little more grateful” Cole began to let the words tumble out of his still open mouth “I-I-uh” his feeder puts a finger up to his lips. “Don’t speak because I don’t care, you need to learn how to give in this relationship and you are going to start by letting all your friends see what I’ve grown you into and how happy you are that I was kind enough to pick you for all this affection and time”. Cole hoped this was another role play scenario his feeder, there’s no way that this could be real. “They are going to be here in about 15 minutes or less. They texted me they were close to town towards the end of your breakfast. I was hoping to have you better dressed but there’s no way we could even get you into the bathroom that fast much less cleaned up and I need to welcome everyone in since you can’t open the door or really do anything but sit there and eat ofcourse” Coles eyes widened as he looked down and seen his massive exposed food stained body. His underwear were almost completely swallowed by his cascading waterfall of fat his body had turned into, if you didn’t look close you’d assume him nude. “Please you can’t do this to me! I can’t face people I used to know in this state!” Cole wailed eyes streaming tears that mixed with the ketchup staining his bloated fat puffy cheeks. “Oh I can’t? Okay Cole go walk to the bedroom and get yourself dressed” his feeder said coldly armed crossed smiling. “I can’t! You know I can’t!” His feeder walked over looming over him sitting on the couch “exactly so stop telling me what we are going to do piggy! You are going to learn your place, you are out of control princess!” They said grinning ear to ear at this point. “Now beg me, ask me like a pathetic hog since you’ve ate your manners away with your self control”. “Please I’m sorry can I get cleaned up and clothes” he said angry and totally mentally drained at this point knowing this wasn’t going to stop. “No” his feeder immediately replied “you are going to learn to respect me piggy, but I’ll let you have a shirt”.

Coles three closets friends all pilled out of the van they’d rode in from the airport in. “I can’t believe Coles partner paid for all our tickets here and everything! I mean seriously that guy is lucky to have a partner with those kind of expenses.” Mike said to Kayla “Yeah nice house too, must have been an old couples or something before. There aren’t even steps just a wheel chair ramp”. “I’m just glad to see the guy again, it’s been over two years since he moved out here with them and he barely kept touch. Honestly kind of annoying” Danny said following them up the ramp. “Oh stop Danny, you know how life can be. I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it, at least the old gang is back for a few days!” Kayla said as she rung the door bell on the large oversized double door that seemed way too big for a suburban single level home. Coles feeder answered the door “Hey guys! Hope the flight wasn’t too bad” as they helped them bring everyones bags in. “No not at all, so where’s Cole? I can’t wait to see him!” Kayla said looking at the kitchen that’s as near the entrance to the home. Where those funnels on the wall? Surprising that they are still doing beer bongs at this point but who is Kayla to judge, they all used to party with Cole alot. Coles feeder smiles “oh he’s in the living room watching tv” as she points to the next room. Kayla is the first to walk into the living room and Danny walls face first into her back as she completely stops in her tracks “what the hell Kayla?” He starts to say as he hears Kayla say “Cole? Cole?” And I raspy breathy voice responds “yea hi Kayla” Danny peers around her shoulders to see Cole and nearly drops his jaw on the floor as he accidentally lets a “oh my god” without even realizing he had said it out loud. Looking at what he is told is his old friend he can’t believe it. He wasn’t even sure if the thing melting into that couch was male. Coles huge stretch mark stomach hung obscenely out of the too small shirt his feeder had pulled over his torso that barley even covered his belly button. “Yeah I kind of gained a lot of weight” Cole said staring down at the floor to embarrassed to even meet his friends eyes “uhh yeah you’ve gained some weight” Mike said finally after standing silently behind the other two “are you doing okay buddy?” He said walking towards the pile of fat that spilled off the sagging couch. “Yeah I just have a- I have an eating disorder I think” he said nervously. His feeder stepped into the room behind them “Cole has had some issues in the past we are trying to work on and even spoke about this morning but let’s not worry about that now. You guys are old friends! Sit down please you guys need to catch up!” Coles feeder said putting a hand on Mikes shoulder “he always talked about you guys so much”. The three friends looked at each other concerned before Mike spoke up “ofcourse no need to dwell on this negative stuff I’m just happy we are all together. It’s always good to see old friends”.

The evening had gone well until the pizza Coles feeder had ordered had arrived. His feeder had came in the room with a tv tray and a few boxes of pizza as they started laying slice after slice of pizza in a large dinner bowl. “I got you the extreme pepperoni lovers with extra extra cheese you like honey, I know you are starving. Let me get your ranch” coming in the room with a huge bottle of ranch Coles friends stare in amazement as Coles feeder starts squirting messy cup fulls of ranch all over the pizza that was messily thrown into the bowl

“Now eat fast because you have a lot more to finish babe” they say as they give Coles belly a hard open palmed smack after filling the bowl to the max. “Do you really think he should be eating that?” Mike says as Coles feeder starts walking back to the kitchen. “Excuse me?” Coles feeder says still holding the massive bottle of ranch. “I said do you think he should eat all of that?” Mike said pointing at Cole. “I mean seriously what was that? Look at that pile of cheese and ranch! You are killing him!” Mike says raising his voice.  Kayla puts a hand on his arm “Mike” as he pulls away. “No Kayla it isn’t right! They are killing him and enabling him with this weird fucking fetish! Look at him!”. Danny stands up beside Mike “He’s right Kayla, it’s obvious this is some weird feeder kink thing and they are enabling Cole. This is just as bad as somebody handing an alcoholic beer Kayla.” Coles feeder puts their hands on their hips and surveys them all. “Do you think he doesn’t want this? Coles happier than he has ever been being my feedee” they walk over squirting an even more obscene amounts of ranch on his pizza as they grin at Coles friends “Do you want more piggy?” Coles feeder coos pinching Coles double chin “or maybe your friends are right maybe we should put you on a diet” Cole weakly clutches at his feeders shirt “please feed me I’m so hungry piggy wants more” Coles feeder picks up a messy handful of the ranch covered pizza and holds it up to his nose. In a moment Cole is digging his face into the messy pizza slop making obscene oinking and gasps “feed me please I’m a good piggy grow my belly!” Feeling his feeders fingers push the pizza over his tongue.

Mike huffs in disgust “fine, I’m not being a part of this weird fetish bullshit. Have fun eating yourself to death Cole. I really hope you get some help but I think you are too far gone” as he walks into the entryway grabbing his bag and walking to the street “I’m calling an Uber”. Danny stands without saying anything besides “Bye Cole” and following Mike out to the porch. Kayla walks over absolutely disgusted about what is happening before her “Cole please, we can get you help. You aren’t going to live like this. You aren’t happy, you can’t be” Coles feeder pulls the slop away from his face “what do you think honey ready to leave me and get help?”. Coles eyes roll as he looks at Kayla’s distraught and disgusted face “Piggy needs feeding tube, so hungry” is all Cole moans in response. Coles feeder grins at Kayla “want to help”. Kayla looks at Cole one last time “Fuck you” she says to Coles feeder before looking down at Cole “bye Cole, good luck” before walking out of the front double door to join her friends waiting for their Uber as she wonders if Cole will even be able to fit out of them by the next year.

[mayordea]

i have made more alice of human sacrifice content.

i had the idea of potentially designing a deck of cards based on it, or at the very least the face cards. and my dumbass drew it at card size so they’re pretty small and perhaps a little crusty. as much as i’d like to release the blank lineart for this, i can’t due to the quality issues :,)

also will probably not draw the face cards until a long time from now. cuz i wanna do something else for now.

[yanderes-galore]

I'm so glad you're writing for Smilling Critters! Bobby Bearhug is my favorite and now I can finally have some good yandere content for her. Her voice lines already show us how clingy she is and how being alone would leave her devastated. Now, we can see these feelings in one of your concepts. Does she has a monster form like DogDay and CatNap?

Panther trying not to write murderous bears challenge (It's impossible).

🌹Yandere! Bobby Bearhug Concept ❤

(🐻My Version🐻)

Pairing: Platonic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Clingy behavior, Stalking, Possessive behavior, Manipulation, Fear of abandonment, Isolation/Kidnapping, Delusional behavior, Blood, Forced companionship.

Bobby is certainly the embodiment of love.

Her character is meant to be kind and caring.

She loves everything unconditionally.

That affection would definitely be directed towards her obsession.

She'd be overwhelming towards you, too.

Bobby is warm and giving to those around her.

Even when such a quality is easily used and abused.

Another thing to note is Bobby hates being abandoned.

So... I can see her getting attached to someone who reentered the abandoned Playcare.

Just like my other takes on the Smiling Critters, she has a "plush" and "monster" form.

Her plush form is about the size of the others, seeming like the size of a toddler or young child in plush form.

She gives off the smell of roses and often likes to cling to her obsession.

She's probably the most affectionate and clingy of the Smiling Critters.

If not the most obsessive.

Her monster form no doubt leans into her bear characteristics.

She's large, on all fours, and looks ferocious.

Despite her monstrous form, she still focuses on smothering her obsession in affection... the smell of roses still faintly in her fur.

Actually... That's a good way to describe Bobby.

Smothering.

Bobby seems like she'd ignore set boundaries if it meant she could be close to you.

She doesn't want her obsession, her friend, to abandon her like all the rest.

What better way to prevent that than clinging to you tightly?

Perhaps even to the point of claws digging into your flesh.

For this concept, I can see you coming back to Playcare after having worked there.

For years Bobby has been alone.

Many of the other Smiling Critters died off except for DogDay and CatNap... Far as she knows.

She's survived this long by hiding in her smaller form and only using her monster form to hunt whatever she can find.

She's baffled to see a human again in this place.

But as you roam Playcare, looking for answers and escape, Bobby can't help but follow.

She doesn't want to be left alone again...

For all she knows, you're her only chance at companionship.

Which leads you to encountering the small bear... and befriending her.

She plays herself off as a guide, even though she'd really say anything to make you stay.

You can notice Bobby's clingy behavior easily.

She's never away from your side.

In fact, when you do leave her alone, she panics.

Bobby might go into a full blown mental breakdown if you leave her alone.

She sobs, screams, and panics until you come back to scoop her into your arms.

Nothing will take you away from her.

Bobby borders between protective and possessive.

She'd do downright anything just for her obsession to stay with her.

You want to escape? Take her with you!

She has to stay here...?

...

Then you will too.

In a way I feel she's one of the worst Smiling Critters to be obsessed with you.

She has no limits, no boundaries, and will stop at nothing to keep you with her.

You are the first friend she's had in a long time.

Honestly, the isolation has gotten to her head.

She's delusional, insane...

Volatile.

She's so scared to lose you.

You're protected from most if not all harm, due to Bobby using her monster form to tear apart anything that causes an issue.

Like those Mini Critters that roam around?

Yeah, she's tearing those apart like chew toys.

Bloody chew toys.

Bobby may also guilt you into keeping her with you.

She's lonely, she's scared...

Just like you.

Don't leave her alone!

She loves you!

If you tried to leave her behind due to her clingy behavior so you could escape, she tries guilting you.

If that doesn't work... she's clinging to your leg.

If that doesn't work...?

She turns on you... becoming her monster form and dragging you deep into the facility.

You can only out run her for so long.

She'll find you... and she'll keep you all to herself...

Even if it means biting into you until you bleed.

Bobby is... desperate for companionship since being abandoned.

Do you really think she's going to sit back and let you run?

You think she'll let you leave?

Never.

Bobby would follow and hunt you down, making you think you can leave.

Then she ambushes you... dragging you away as her strong jaw locks onto your flesh.

Bobby would drag you deep into Playcare... right into the den she calls home.

You may want her in her plush form... but she doesn't trust you.

She stays in her large bear form, curled around you with low growls.

Blood coats her mouth, from you and previous prey.

Despite everything... the smell of roses is still there...

It's overwhelming... just like she is.

[humalifehealthcare]

From Claims to Care

How RCM Efficiency Improves Patient Outcomes

Introduction In the healthcare world, clinical excellence is only half the equation. The other half—financial operations—often goes unnoticed until problems arise. Delayed reimbursements, mounting denials, and inconsistent cash flow can compromise both the quality of care and the sustainability of healthcare practices.

That’s why forward-thinking providers are turning to Humalife Healthcare, a trusted Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) partner, to bring efficiency, clarity, and control to their financial workflows—ultimately empowering better patient care.

RCM: More Than Just Billing Revenue Cycle Management isn’t just about billing and collections—it's the backbone of your entire healthcare operation. An efficient RCM system ensures:

Faster reimbursements

Lower denial rates

Improved operational planning

Better patient experience

When your revenue cycle is healthy, your organization can focus on what matters most: healing people.

The Hidden Link Between RCM and Patient Outcomes Here’s how optimized RCM directly improves patient care:

Reduced Administrative Delays Streamlined insurance verification and pre-authorization mean patients get timely access to care—without paperwork delays.

Financial Transparency Clear billing, upfront cost estimates, and fewer surprises at the front desk enhance patient trust and satisfaction.

More Time for Clinical Focus When providers are freed from financial bottlenecks, they can focus entirely on delivering quality care.

Reinvestment in Better Services Faster payments and fewer write-offs mean more funds can be reinvested into clinical infrastructure, staff training, and technology.

How Humalife Healthcare Delivers Impact At Humalife Healthcare, we integrate people, process, and technology to deliver RCM that performs. Here’s how we do it:

End-to-End Support From eligibility checks to denial appeals, we manage the entire revenue cycle with precision.

Domain Expertise Our team is trained in US and UK healthcare systems, coding standards, and payer rules.

Customized Solutions We align our processes with your workflows—no one-size-fits-all approach.

Transparency and Reporting With real-time dashboards and analytics, you stay in control and informed.

Client Win in Focus Case Study: Mid-sized Hospital in the UK Challenge: 28% of claims were being delayed due to improper coding and eligibility issues. Solution: Humalife implemented coding audits and pre-verification workflows. Result: Denials reduced by 41%, and claim cycle time improved by 35%. The finance team reported improved forecasting, and patients received faster care with less paperwork.

Conclusion In today’s healthcare economy, RCM isn’t just a back-office function—it’s a patient care enabler. At Humalife Healthcare, we help providers transform financial processes into strategic assets that power care delivery and drive sustainable growth.

Ready to Transform Your Revenue Cycle? Get in touch with Humalife Healthcare to learn how efficient RCM can enhance your care, reputation, and revenue

[zombeebunnie]

Trembling Essence Devlog 7:💙Going through the cabin routes!💙

Hellloo hello and welcome new followers, HAPPY SUMMER BREAK WOOHOOO!!! It's been a whole month so here's how things are going! :]

I'm getting better at balancing out the game and it's routing BUT, I can't progress too far into the "Morning and Afternoon routes" until I bring the "6" choices up to code! :D

I'll try and avoid as much spoilers as I possibly can. I talked about this a while back about how these choices would progress story-wise but I didn't talk about what happens when you do pick them.

Small cabin update!:

This is a small summary but my play tester recently played through the updated version of the cabin where I adjusted Noah's sprites, dialog, the player(Y/N)'s dialog, CG's, etc. Here's what was improved:

There was some dialog I had to go back and redo as it gave away potential spoilers too early. Certain scenes were adjusted due to comments in the past that expressed that Noah reactions towards the player(Y/N) gave off the impression that he's blushing/flustered a lot. These parts were actually suppose to represent the moment just being awkward. When my play tester went through the updated segments, it was mentioned that Noah's reactions and expressions towards the player(Y/N)/choices came off a little too cold which wasn't my intentions. :,[ I think when I originally updated all of this, I didn't have as many sprites of Noah around that time compared to now so I cleaned up the areas once more. Everything should be good now! :,]

"Talk to Noah.":

I wrote up a different way for the story to progress but it'll take time for me to get used to this change so it'll probably have several adjustments over time.

In the [Extended Demo], there's a brief time skip that leads to Noah being asleep before the player(Y/N) finally decides to confront him and I think the dialog after this was a bit longer too before you get the "To be continued" screen.

Parts of it extended from old code that lead to an extremely different situation compared to now. I removed a seperate choice where you could "opt" out of knocking on his door or not, this was more of a quality of life decision to progress the story along and to avoid a continuity issue I discovered when I was testing everything. I wanted to be careful on file size/optimization and I originally thought about re-using a previous CG but I figured out better ways to save on space! I also came across a bizarre bug that caused one of Noah's sprites to disappear throughout the game. I somehow managed to fix it however.. I don't know what I did?? :,D Playtester's advice: So in really good news my play tester was able to play some of this and gave some pointers on what could be fixed for the progression of the story. Outside of a few grammar issues, etc. It looks as though its good to go! Other than that I can happily say that this choice now progress and no longer has a "To be continued." end screen! :,,]

"Go outside":

I was only able to tweak this choice a bit so I can't really give any details on what all was fixed just yet!

"Look around.":

I can't really give any details on what all was fixed just yet but I can say that I have some cool concepts planned in the future! :,]

"Sneak into Noah's room.":

I did go through and adjust this choice quite a lot. I was going through and balancing the variables and I'm not 100% sure if this is in the [Extended Demo] or not but the player(Y/N) actually loses so much closeness with Noah that If you 'made the wrong choice' once, you'd get auto-routed into a bad ending which wasn't suppose to happen. It's been fixed but I still need to do some more testing.

Another major change is this scene. Midway through December 2024 up until the start of March of this year, I went through the afternoon route and made adjustments to the choices, story-building, and overall pacing of the route to make the closeness build-up feel more rewarding given that I'm aiming for more of a slow-burn. Everything was about 95% done but I now have to go back and make sure that everything progresses correctly now that new content has been added that might conflict with this choice and it's progression into the story. I can't say much else because of spoilers but my play testers really liked it! :,]

"Continue to wait.":

In good news I have plans on how this choice progresses the story however, I can't really give any details just because I haven't gotten to it yet. :,]

"Go to sleep.":

In the [Extended Demo], the player(Y/N) finally decides to actually listen to Noah's advice and go to sleep which would then lead to the "To be continued" screen.

Due to spoilers I can't say what happens now but I do like the new outcome a lot more. :,P Playtester's advice: My play tester was able to play some of this and gave some pointers on what could be fixed but Other than that I can happily say that this choice now progress and no longer has a "To be continued." end screen! :,,]

A lot more has been completed behind the scenes but I think this game development post is long enough so I'll save it for later! I am happy that I'm getting closer to updating the [Extended demo]!! >:,]

If you like what I create, please consider supporting what I do on kofi [Here]! All donations and tips help tremendously while I continue to work on the game. Since the battery to my computer still dead I might open up chibi commissions through here BUT i need time to figure it out. Thank you to those that optionally bought the [Extended Demo] on itch.io. :,]

Q&A / Ask box is open:

Thank you to everyone that recently sent in asks! I see them and at some point I will respond, I appreciate the small influx of interest! :,D

To know and understand Noah through Asks and random posts about lore, they'll be under #Get to know: Noah ! :]

**Some asks won't be answered if it contains spoilers but I do appreciate what I receive. :]

If you have any questions about Trembling Essence/Noah feel free to ask here or on itch.io please. This makes it easier for me to see and answer accordingly! I enjoy hearing from you guys!

Thank you to everyone's continued support, especially those that have been here since the beginning, I appreciate it!! :,]

[espionn]

SilkWing tribe sheet!

hey, sorry this took so long. i've been pretty busy. but now there's just one more to go! hope you like the silkwings :)

again, sorry for the color quality. same issue as with the skywings. they look a lot less dull on my end.

Physical Appearance + Traits:

-Like HiveWings’ appearance resembling bees and wasps, SilkWings have the striking traits of butterflies and moths. They have long bodies, large flat wings, bright coloration, and antennae. They are known for being shy and passive.

-SilkWings, uniquely, can be hatched with any coloration under the sun. They are fond of bright colors, and this is reflected in their scales. 

-They are approximately average size when compared to Pyrrhian tribes - next to HiveWings, they are noticeably larger, mostly due to their enormous wings. These wings, like butterflies, allow SilkWings to fly, but in a somewhat sporadic way - they cannot glide straight like nearly every other tribe, and wind drafts can easily throw them off-course. They also don’t get their wings until they are 6 years old and undergo metamorphosis - until then, they are wingless.

-Another thing SilkWings gain in metamorphosis is their silk. Glands on their wrists can produce fine, strong strands of it, silvery in color like that of a spider. They use it to build the webs between the hives, which serve as their homes. They also use it to weave tapestries, clothing and other items. A few SilkWings are born with Flanesilk, which comes in multiple forms: firefly silk, which gives off faint light; glow silk, which glows and is warm to the touch; blaze silk, which glows brightly and burns; and sun silk, which hurts to look at directly and can cause extreme fire damage.

-SilkWings are born with a small extra set of limbs, set behind their front legs. These small arms are used to help control and manipulate silk while the arm in front of them produces it; this way, a dragon can still be standing on three legs even while weaving if they really need to be.

-These dragons also have antennae, used to detect subtle vibrations in the air, which can be curled up when not in use or unfurled when they are needed. They can be thin and wiry or huge and feathery, depending on the dragon. Antennae, especially when large and brightly-colored, are sometimes seen as a mark of power and status among SilkWings, and around HiveWings they are encouraged to keep them coiled up and hidden, in order to appear submissive and respectful.

Life Cycle:

-SilkWings lay clutches of 2-6 eggs, quite few when compared to HiveWings. Before their takeover, the tribe would bring up dragonets communally, but parents would still be involved in their dragonets’ lives, and get to watch them grow up. Living in the hives, however, SilkWing parents live with their dragonets and do everything they can to raise them, although all dragonets would attend a HiveWing-run school. If a SilkWing dragonet cannot be taken care of by its parents, it would be raised by HiveWings, and usually with less care and respect.

-SilkWings hatch small and wingless but extremely hungry. During their first few days, they eat more than any other dragonets, and grow remarkably quickly. Their appetite, and growth, slows down after about a month, at which point they are nearly three times their original size. From there, they grow somewhat normally.

-In the SilkWing kingdom, region-wide educational lessons would be held every day. Dragonets would be expected to attend, but adults could too if they so desired. The process was far less standardized and systematic. Living with the HiveWings, though, SilkWing dragonets attend school separate from the HiveWing dragonets (but still run by HiveWings), where everything is strictly organized and scheduled, and usually not in the SilkWings’ favor.

-Of all the tribes in which parents do not strictly raise their own dragonets, SilkWings are the only one in which dragons form partnerships for life. They do not shy away from romantic relationships, but they do have a habit of pursuing them slowly and carefully. They hate nothing more than to have to cut off a blooming relationship.

Society + Culture:

-SilkWings, generally, are considered pacifist and unassertive. Though this is a stereotype, it is not entirely untrue. Their culture does not glorify fighting over peace, and barring flamesilks, they have no unique natural weapons at their disposal. The SilkWing crown passes peacefully from mother to eldest daughter, niece or sister (in that order) in a method completely unique to their tribe.

-Silk is deeply important to their culture; weavings, tapestries, and accessories ranging from cloaks to scarves to legbands are finely crafted and sometimes dyed. Before the Tree Wars, they lived alongside the LeafWings and built their webs in the tree canopies.

-After the Tree Wars, when HiveWings became the dominant tribe, SilkWings had the expectation placed on them that they were quiet, gentle, subservient and unintelligent when compared to HiveWings. Breaking this pattern, and being in any way brash, inflammatory or aggressive leads to much harsher and crueler  treatment.

-While in reality they are really not much bigger than HiveWings, SilkWings’ longer bodies and necks, larger wings and long antennae make them appear quite a bit bigger. In order to avoid harassment from guards, they are generally expected to hold their heads low, walk somewhat slowly and keep their wings folded on their backs. 

-Before their takeover, SilkWings were actually quite technologically advanced. They had complex silk-weaving techniques and had many uses for the powerful material. The existence of Flamesilks also gave them fire, which makes them the only Pantalan tribes to naturally have it, and they used it to create glass, cook food and keep their webs gently lit at night with firefly silk, though they never cared to dabble in metalwork. (A lot of their ideas and progress in this area, alongside the actual Flamesilks, were stolen by HiveWings during the Tree Wars.) 

-SilkWing beauty standards vary depending on the year and season, but in general, bright, bold and unnatural colors are considered the most beautiful and impressive, and wings with bold and intricate patterning are the most striking. 

-Their diets need to be carefully balanced between sugar and protein, as they don’t eat meat and rely on specific plants. HiveWings’ attempts to provide them with proper food are usually clumsy, and they usually need to buy food themselves from specific vendors. This discrepancy is part of the reason SilkWings tend to be poorer than HiveWings, on top of being regarded as lower-status.

-Metamorphosis is a hugely important staple in SilkWing culture; they transform in a number of days from wingless and silkless dragonets to flying, silk-spinning adults. The transition is greatly anticipated by all young SilkWings, who will excitedly discuss what their wings might look like and plan all the tapestries they hope to weave. The Hives allow newly-metamorphosed SilkWings one day to one week (depending on the Hive) to celebrate and practice flying before assigning them to their career path or next branch of education for those who are lucky.

Diet: Herbivorous. SilkWings are the only obligate herbivores among dragons. They don’t hunt or eat meat, and could not properly digest it if they tried. They eat a variety of leaves from a variety of plants, including milkweed, parsley and some tree leaves. They also eat roots and stems from some plants, on occasion. Finally, they require some amount of sugar to maintain their energy levels; like HiveWings, they use sugar water, honey, and other treats. (They don’t very often eat fruit, but they will out of necessity if their sugar levels drop too low).

[objuct]

UPDATE 2:

they're still broken. i'm trying to fix em but there's a lot of really weird issues people are reporting and i'm not entirely sure if it's in my control. so i'll keep you all updated if there's a fix (which im actively working on trying to do). in the mean time, if someone knowledgeable in this sort of thing wants to fiddle with them, be my guest.

UPDATE: 9/6/2023

HOPEFULLY fixed an issue where the hooves would just... randomly not work for some people (which is a bug i was able to recreate for myself). I don't know what was causing that but I remade the packages and it.... seems to be working now? I think? Maybe S4S did something funky. Lemme know if you're still having the issue. Redownload to fix!

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While trying to adapt my shoe model to the horse, it was hard to get them to fit right due to how low poly the hooves were. So I slightly increased the polycount to gently round out the shape of them while still being reasonable close to the original in size and polycount.

These are a DEFAULT REPLACEMENT! Choose only one! These will conflict with anything that replaces the default hooves.

Also sorry for the low quality preview image. There is just no way to really zoom in on the hooves in CAH.

Horse Ranch Required

DEFAULT REPLACEMENT!

New Mesh & Textures (horse shoes)

Download (the mod is kind of broken atm, sorry!)