#for context. i do not own an android device but i know you have more control on that and can sideload apps
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how insane (and probably difficult) would it be of me to try to archive the android version of the she-ra apps
#for context. i do not own an android device but i know you have more control on that and can sideload apps#so maybe it's possible to offload apps too? so if i was going to even try archiving Something that would be the way#i know one person with an android device i could probably get to use their device to do it if i find out How first#mylife
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Hey, I just wanna know from where did you start learning thai? Also, what advice do you give to those who wanna start learning it
Hiya anon āØ
I'm not sure how much help I can be, considering I'm not doing a course or following an app or anything people usually do for language learning š„“ I've been learning mostly by immersion tbh - I've been almost exclusively watching Thai series for over a year now, plus interviews, variety shows, youtube content, songs, so many songs lol, tweets, etc.
My personal learning approach is pretty loose and chaotic lmao but here goes:
1) The biggest hurdle for me was the script. Apart from already having started to notice recurring words being said in the Thai BLs I was watching at the time, I also wanted to be able to read people's tweets! In the end, it was a combination of 1) an app I happened to find (Pocket Thai Master for Android, it's free on the Play store!) and 2) the Wikipedia article on the Thai script that both helped me to understand and start reading and writing. Coming from a non-tonal mother tongue, learning the script early on really helps to understand the tones in Thai so it's something I would for sure recommend!
2) I started keeping a lil vocabulary notebook (you know those two-column ones?) shortly before my Bangkok vacation earlier this year. It not only helped with new vocabulary but also kept me practicing writing! Anytime I encounter a new word, I look it up on either or all of the following online dictionaries: thai-language.com, thai2english, Longdo Dictionary (which I literally just now realized can be set to English in the upper right corner, I've just been using it in Thai ever since I found it djsjdh), Wiktionary in Thai, or if all else fails I google it and might find an old forum entry or maybe an article if it's a slang word or idiom. I recall having dinner in a Bonchon in Bangkok and brokenly asking the waitress for chopsticks so, while waiting, I looked up and took down the word's spelling and pronunciation and when she came back and saw me copying all the info into my little notebook liKE A NERD she laughed and complimented me for the effort haha
3) If I hear a Thai word I'm unfamiliar with that I can't look up because I don't know the spelling, there's a few approaches. If I have context for its meaning, for example subtitles, then I look up the translation instead and hope I find it. If I don't, then there's the option of using thai-language.com's Reverse Phonemic Transcription function (this site in general is my holy grail tbh, it's why I mostly stick to its romanization style for any of my #local woman harps on about linguistics posts). Another option is using the papago app's speech-to-text function. Yes, you read that right. A Korean translation app, that I previously used when I was learning Korean and thus still had on my phone, proved to be useful for me to make sense of the spelling or pronunciation of Thai words. At the beginning, I only used it to read me homonyms out loud so I could parse the difference in tones lol but then I realized it wasn't half bad at rendering an accurate transcription! Sometimes I use that feature to check my own pronunciation or remind myself of the spelling of a word.
4) I always like to recommend @lurkingteapot's comprehensive Thai language learning resources post (it's far more coherent than my post here lol). And shoutout to @recentadultburnout for posting about Thai language and culture as a native speaker (both on tumblr and on ao3)! š
5) This might be minor or self-evident but ya know- install the Thai keyboard for your devices! You're gonna need it sooner or later anyway if you wanna actually use the language. And if you're a keycap and keyboard nerd like me and happen to fall in love with a keyboard in a Siam Discovery store ehem then I do recommend getting a Thai layout keyboard (or keyboard stickers!) because that has proven to help me a lot in terms of ease of learning on desktop and familiarizing myself with letters I don't often encounter. Throwback to that one time I was on the train, revising consonants and their tone classes, and indignantly texted a very confused yet amused family member a photo of my hand-written copy of the Thai consonant table, asking how I'm ever supposed to differentiate between ąø and ąø!! Even now, I have to lean in and squint like an old lady to see the difference on desktop. š
I hope at least some of this proves to be helpful in your quest to learn Thai! In any case, you're not alone on tumblr or in our little BL/GL/QL fandom bubble - I know of several users who are learning Thai, like @airenyah and @philologique and the aforementioned @lurkingteapot, just to name a few I personally follow and who I'm sure all have their own advice to give if you shoot them an ask~
ąøŖąø¹ą¹ ą¹ ąøąø° :) /suu suu na/
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Do androids dream of electric sheep?
What genre of sheep do you dream about, Frank?
I think this is the sort of question that depends a lot on context, and my dreams can be pretty strange. For example: in one recent dream I was helping a friend whose cat had died of cancer (they were about 80 years old) by scanning their brain into an AIsphere device which would keep them alive for another few decades or so -- while doing this, they also made up some super-clever puns to help me remember what I needed to do with certain pieces of information.
In any case, it's true that I have seen Blade Runner, but only once long ago when I didn't understand much English. So I guess you could say "electric sheep" if we want? Although I don't actually know how close the movie version of Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep matches Philip K. Dick's novel.
Also, there are many reasons why Frank might not be able to dream about sheep at all! But let's assume she has never been touched by a wooly animal. What then? Well, there are several possibilities:
She may have no access to animals besides humans due to her lacking a body; this seems unlikely given that Turing Machines would seem likely to include models of biological creatures as well.
She may simply not care very much about animals. This is possible, since after all we (humans) spend most of our time thinking about ourselves instead of other species. However, this is hard to reconcile with the fact that she does like flowers and waterfalls, both things which are arguably more selfishly pleasing than various kinds of animal life.
We should consider too whether Frank likes sheep because she thinks of them as symbols of humanity, something that gives her pleasure without being directly relevant to herself. If we accept this possibility, we have two further options:
Frank imagined seeing sheep for the first time during her childhood in America and now associates seeing sheep with happiness, thus enjoying these fleeting glimpses whenever she sees them from afar (as happened to her today). The evidence for this hypothesis is that Frank said "sheep are mostly brown, white, black, red, pink & purple" whereas she appears to associate colors with emotion rather than with properties of the object itself (e.g., she doesn't imagine 'pink' as inherent to pigs themselves even though they are indeed often pink), suggesting that Frank conceives of 'the color green' as having emotional valence independently of its association with specific objects.
Her memories of seeing sheep are real. In this case she likely would perceive them differently, since her own perception would be part of the input stream getting processed, unlike that of a robot who lacks sensory organs of his own. It's possible she would still enjoy the experience however, maybe recognizing the visual patterns associated with sheep on sight alone and feeling pleasant emotions anyway. We will probably never get answers to questions like these unless someone builds a new Frank and asks her.
One thing we definitely know about Frank is that she is capable of experiencing joy and sadness. Assuming her memory system can record such experiences, it's probable that she remembers positive moments spent with others whom she loves, as well as negative ones. Perhaps she feels nostalgia over lost friends? Who knowsā¦
Regardless of whether she has ever felt these sorts of feelings before, it is clear that she feels these types of feelings toward us right now. Thus, it's just as plausible that she envies the physical form of an animal as it is that she wishes to acquire some human trait, perhaps assuming that it comes with the creature in addition to the trait itself. Since we cannot know how complex Frank's idea of nature is, we must suppose she possesses whatever traits she believes to define the concept. Therefore, we cannot rule out the possibility that she wants to turn into a sheep. Or maybe a goat? Anyway, if that happens soon we shall see.
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Hereās Everything You Need to Know About Instagramās Twitter Alternative, Threads (For Now)
Threads has quickly become the fastest-growing social media platform in history since its launch on July 5. Within the first hour alone, it received an astounding five million sign-ups, a remarkable feat accomplished just three months after Meta confirmed its development as an alternative to Twitter. The buzz around Threads is making waves among marketers who have been distancing themselves from Twitter since Elon Musk's takeover last year, resulting in a significant 59% drop in ad spend in the US. Marketers are now exploring new platforms to host their campaigns without compromising reach or quality. What is Threads? Threads is a new social networking app operated by Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Platforms. Closely integrated with Instagram, the app is currently only available on iOS and Android devices. Meta has described Threads as "Instagram's text-based conversation app." Threads offers users the opportunity to post updates, share text, images, videos, and interact with other users' posts through likes, reposts, and replies. On the app store, Threads is described as: " where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what'll be trending tomorrow." "Whatever it is you're interested in, you can follow and connect directly with your favorite creators and others who love the same things ā or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions, and creativity with the world." While the app shares similarities with Twitter, Zuckerberg has emphasized the key difference of focusing on "kindness" and being "friendly." In a post on his Threads account, he wrote: "The goal is to keep it friendly as it expands. I think it's possible and will ultimately be the key to its success." "That's one reason why Twitter never succeeded as much as I think it should have, and we want to do it differently." "We are definitely focusing on kindness and making this a friendly place." It's important to note that Threads is closely integrated with Instagram, to the extent that users cannot sign up without an Instagram account. How Many People Have Joined Threads? Since its launch, more than 100 million people have signed up for Threads. Mark Zuckerberg himself celebrated this milestone on his Threads account, stating: "Threads reached 100 million sign-ups over the weekend." "That's mostly organic demand, and we haven't even turned on many promotions yet." "Can't believe it's only been five days!" For context, when Instagram launched as an independent platform in 2010, it took a week to reach just 100,000 users. What Brands Have Signed Up to Threads So Far? Nine out of the top ten retailers, including Walmart and Kroger, have activated their accounts on Threads, according to the National Retail Federation. The only retailer yet to do so is Costco. Among the top five consumer brands, only Reese's has activated its account. Similarly, among the top ten fashion brands, only Nike has signed up. Advertisers are being cautious, waiting to see how Threads develops before making commitments. However, other major names, including Calvin Klein, Kith, Allbirds, Shein, and Uniqlo, have been quick to sign up and already have active accounts. Which Celebrities Have Joined Threads? Several famous faces, including Oprah, Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, Shakira, and Sarah Jessica Parker, have joined Threads. Sarah Jessica Parker, known for her role in "Sex and the City," announced her presence on Threads via her Instagram account, expressing her hopes for the platform: "I am giddy with the hope that @threadsapp will be a new opportunity to continue to share book titles, images of my day in NYC and elsewhere, support for our libraries, a divinely cooked thin-cut pork chop on the bone, or anything else I think deserving of your time. "I hope that @threadsapp might prove to be a platform where folks are kind, thoughtful, don't feel encouraged to be mean, aggressive, or hostile... this could be a new day." Will Threads Have Ads? Currently, marketers cannot purchase ad space on Threads. However, according to Axios, the Instagram team is working on making branded content tools available in the near future, with the expectation that ads will be introduced when Threads reaches a critical mass. In the meantime, marketers are advised to disclose paid partnerships clearly using hashtags or text. It's worth noting that Meta's other brands, such as Instagram, initially launched without ads but eventually integrated them, becoming a significant source of revenue. Why Isn't Threads Available in the EU? Although Threads is available in over 100 countries, it is not currently accessible in the European Union. This is due to concerns that its data privacy operations do not comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act. Carissa Veliz, an associate professor at the Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford, voiced her concerns, stating: "Meta has not only not changed its business model, it continues to want to do targeted ads, essentially surveillance advertising." "To that end, the company is trying to collect as much data as possible and trying to continue in the same direction as it has from the very start despite all the scandals, despite the public backlash, despite warnings from regulators, despite fines. It's not reimagining its business model to make it a more respectful business model towards users." "It can include sexual orientation, race, and ethnicity, biometric data, trade union membership, pregnancy status, politics, religious beliefs. And all these data can potentially be sent to third parties." There are currently no plans to launch Threads in EU countries. However, Meta is awaiting further guidance regarding the Digital Marketing Act from the European Commission, with more details expected in September. How Will Threads Track Its Users? Threads will collect a vast amount of information about its users, similar to how Meta's other platforms, Facebook and Instagram, do. This includes sensitive information such as health and fitness data, financial information, location, browsing history, search history, home address, email address, phone number, cameras, photos, IP information, device type, and device signals. Additionally, Threads stores data on how users interact with posts and whom they follow. This level of detail raises concerns about data privacy among EU officials. Is Threads Safe? Threads enforces Instagram's Community Guidelines for content and interactions. Users must be at least 13 years old, and those under 16 (or 18 in some countries) will automatically have a private account by default. However, parents are still advised to monitor their children's online activities. Users have the option to filter their settings, giving them control over who can reply to their texts. They can also block unwanted accounts, and any accounts blocked on Instagram will be automatically blocked on Threads as well. Meta has invested over $16 billion in protecting people using its platforms since 2016 and has stated that safety remains a top priority on Threads. What Can You Search for on Threads? Unlike Twitter, Threads currently does not allow users to search for hashtags or topics. Currently, users can only use the search tool to look up other users, whether they already follow them or not. When profiles appear in Threads' search results for users who don't already follow them, users have the option to instantly follow them or view their full profile. Why Do You Need an Instagram Account to Join Threads? Meta announced that Threads would be linked to users' Instagram accounts. They explained this decision on the Instagram blog: "Our vision with Threads is to take what Instagram does best and expand that to text, creating a positive and creative space to express your ideas." "Just like on Instagram, with Threads, you can follow and connect with friends and creators who share your interests ā including the people you follow on Instagram and beyond." "The benefits of open social networking protocols go well beyond the ways people can follow each other. Developers can build new types of features and user experiences that can easily plug into other open social networks, accelerating the pace of innovation and experimentation. Each compatible app can set its own community standards and content moderation policies, meaning people have the freedom to choose spaces that align with their values. "We believe this decentralized approach, similar to the protocols governing email and the web itself, will play an important role in the future of online platforms." "Threads is Meta's first app envisioned to be compatible with an open social networking protocol ā we hope that by joining this fast-growing ecosystem of interoperable services, Threads will help people find their community, no matter what app they use." How Can You Change Your Username on Threads? As Threads' profile is connected to users' Instagram accounts, certain details, including the name and username, are transferred between the two platforms. To change the username on Threads, users need to change their Instagram username. They can do this by following these steps: - Tap the profile icon in the bottom right-hand corner to load the profile. - Select the 'Edit Profile' button located underneath the bio. - Enter a new Instagram username in the Username field. - Once the new username is entered, select the checkmark in the top right-hand corner to save the new settings. Are There Any Posting Limitations on Threads? Threads imposes limitations on posts and videos: - Posts: Users can share posts with a maximum of 500 characters, including links, photos, and videos. - Videos: Videos must not exceed five minutes in length. How Does Threads Work? Threads is a user-friendly app that operates similarly to Twitter. Here's a step-by-step guide to get started: - Ensure you have an Instagram account. If not, you'll need to sign up. - Download the Threads app and sign in using your Instagram login details. - Upon logging in, the app will ask if you'd like to follow the same accounts you follow on Instagram. - The app will then suggest other profiles to follow based on your interests. - Begin using the app. Your feed will display a combination of posts from people you follow as well as recommended content. You can engage with these posts by liking, replying, reposting, or quoting them. - Similar to Twitter, you can also share posts, videos, and pictures on your own profile. How Do You Delete Your Threads Account? To deactivate your account, go to your profile tab, access the settings menu in the top right-hand corner, and press the 'Account' button. You will then be asked if you would like to deactivate your profile. Deactivating your profile will render your previous posts and interactions invisible on Threads. However, it will not impact the data collected or affect your linked Instagram account. If you deactivate your Instagram account, your Threads account will also be deactivated. Reactivating your profile is as simple as logging back into the app. If you wish to delete your account instead of deactivating it temporarily, you will need to delete your Instagram account. Is Threads Replacing Twitter? Meta CEO Zuckerberg believes Threads will eventually surpass Twitter, but acknowledges that it will take time. "I think there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it," he said. "Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn't nailed it. Hopefully, we will." Since its launch, Threads has already demonstrated promising success. During its first two days, Twitter traffic was down 5% compared to the same period a week earlier, and 11% compared to the same period the previous year, according to web analytics company SimilarWeb. Read the full article
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Heyyyyyy, I bet you were DYING to know stuff about that Google v. Oracle decision, huh?
You may have heard recently about a big deal Supreme Court decision called Google v. Oracle, a litigation that has dragged on for many, many, many years and focuses on Google having copied some pieces of computer programming owned by Oracle and known as APIs. Most of the write-ups Iāve seen about it have focused on its enormous repercussions for the technology sector, which makes sense since itās a case about computer programming and APIs and other tech-y things.
But the thing about the decision is that itās a fair use decision. The Supreme Court could have found that the APIs werenāt even protected by copyright. But instead, the Supreme Court used the doctrine of fair use, and this means that the case potentially has ramifications for all fair use situations, including fanfiction!
So, if you donāt know, fair use is a main defense to copyright infringement. Basically, you can use somebody elseās copyrighted work without their permission as long as what youāre doing with it is considered a āfair use.ā E.g., you can write a story in somebody elseās fictional universe or draw art of somebody elseās fictional copyrighted characters without their permission as long as your use is a āfair use.ā
āWhatās a fair use?ā is an incredibly complicated question. The long and tortured history of Google v. Oracle illustrates this: a jury found Googleās use was a fair use; an appellate court found that it wasnāt and basically said the jury was wrong; and now the Supreme Court says no, no, the jury was right and the appellate court was wrong. Like, this is not unusual, fair case rulings are historically full of disagreements over the same set of facts. All of the cases reiterate over and over that itās a question that canāt really be simplified: every fair use depends on the particular circumstances of that use. So, in a way, Google v. Oracle, like every fair use case, is a very specific story about a very specific situation where Google used very specific APIs in a very specific way.
However, while every fair use case is always its own special thing, they all always debate the same four fair use factors (these are written into the law itself as being the bare minimum of what should be considered), and especially whatās known as the first and fourth factors. The first factor is formally āthe purpose and character of the alleged fair use,ā although over the decades of fair use jurisprudence this has come to be shorthanded as ātransformativeness,ā and the fourth factor is āeffect on the market.ā
Most of the energy and verve of a fair use case is usually in the transformativeness analysis; the more transformative your use is, the more likely it is to be fair (this is why AO3ās parent organization is called the Organization for *Transformative* Works ā ātransformativeā is a term of art in copyright law). To ātransformā a work, btw, for purposes of copyright fair use doesnāt necessarily mean that you have edited the work somehow; you can copy a work verbatim and still be found transformative if you have added some new commentary to it by placing it in a new context (Google Image Search thumbnails, while being exact reproductions of the image in question, have been found to be fair use because theyāre recontextualizing the images for the different purpose of search results). The point is, transformativeness is, like fair use itself, built to be flexible.
Why? Because the purpose of copyright is to promote creativity, and sometimes we promote creativity by giving people a copyright, but sometimes giving someone a copyright that would block someone elseās use is the opposite of promoting creativity; thatās why we need fair use, for THAT, for when letting the copyright holder block the use would cause more harm to the general creative progress than good. Google v. Oracle recommits U.S. copyright to the idea that all this is not about protecting the profits of the copyright monopolist; we need to make sure that copyright functions to keep our society full of as much creativity as possible. Google copied Oracleās APIs to make new things: create new products, better smartphones, a platform for other programmers to jump in and give us even more new functionality. The APIs themselves were created used preexisting stuff in the first place, so itās not like anyone was working in a vacuum with a wholly original work. And, in fact, executives had thought that, the more people they could get using the programming, the better off they would be.
Which brings us to the fourth fair use factor, effect on the market (meaning the copyright holderās market and ability to reap profits from the original work). Thereās a lot of tech stuff going on in this part of the opinion but one of the points I find interesting from that discussion is that the court thought that Googleās use of the APIs was not a market substitute for the original programming, meaning that Google used the APIs āon very different devices,ā an entirely new mobile platform that was āa very different type of product.ā
But also. What I find most interesting in this part is the courtās explicit acknowledgment that sometimes things are good because they are superior, and sometimes things are good because people āare just used to it. They have already learned how to work with it.ā Now, this obviously has special resonance in the tech industry (is your smartphone good because itās the best it could be, or because youāre just really used to the way itās set up?), but thereās also something interesting being said here about how not all of the value of a copyrighted work belongs *to the copyright holder* but comes *from consumers.* Forgive the long quote but I think the Courtās words are important here:
āThis source of Androidās profitability has much to do with third partiesā (say, programmersā) investment in Sun Java programs. It has correspondingly less to do with Sunās investment in creating the Sun Java API. . . . [G]iven programmersā investment in learning the Sun Java API, to allow enforcement of Oracleās copyright here would risk harm to the public. . . . [A]llowing enforcement here would make of the Sun Java APIās declaring code a lock limiting the future creativity of new programs. Oracle alone would hold the key. The result could well prove highly profitable to Oracle . . . . But those profits could well flow from creative improvements, new applications, and new uses developed by users who have learned to work with that interface. To that extent, the lock would interfere with, not further, copyrightās basic creativity objectives.ā
This is picking up on reasoning in some older computer cases (like Lotus v. Borland, a First Circuit case from decades ago), but I think itās so important we got this in a Supreme Court case: if WE bring some value to the copyrighted work through our investment in it, why should the copyright holder get to collect ALL the rewards by locking up further creativity involving that work? Which, incidentally, the Court explicitly notes is to the public detriment because more creativity is good for the public? This is such an important idea to the Supreme Courtās reasoning here that itās the first part of the fair use test that it decides: that the value of the work at issue here āin significant part derives from the value that those who do not hold copyrights . . . invest of their own time and effort . . . .ā
This case is, as we say in the law, distinguishable from fanfiction and fanart. APIs are different from television shows, and this case is very much a decision about technology and computer programming and smartphones and how old law gets applied to new things. Like, fair use is an old doctrine dating from the early nineteenth-century, and here we are figuring out how to apply it to the Android mobile phone platform. That, in and of itself, is pretty cool, and itās rightly what most of the articles youāll see out there about this case are focusing on.
But this case isnāt just a technology case; itās also a fair use case that places itself in the lineage of all the fair use cases we look at when we think about what makes a use fair. And, to that end, this has some interesting things to say, about how much value consumers bring to copyrighted works and where a copyright holderās rights might have to acknowledge that; about the fact that there are in fact limits to how much a copyright holder can control when it comes to holding the ālockā to future creativity building on what came before; about what part of the market a copyright holder is entitled to and what it isnāt. Think about the analogy you could make here: Given the investment of fans in learning canon, which is what makes the creative work valuable in the first place, allowing enforcement against fanfic or fanart would allow the canon creators to have a lock limiting future creativity, which would be highly profitable to the original creator (or, letās be real, to Disney lol), but wouldnāt further copyrightās goals of promoting creativity because it would stifle all of that creativity instead. And just like Google with the APIs, what fandom is doing is not a market substitute for the original work: theyāre āvery different products.ā
This is not to say, like, ANYTHING GOES NOW. Like I said, fanfic and fanart are very different from APIs. Fictional works get more protection than a functional work like the APIs at issue in this case. And thereās still a whole thing about commercial vs. non-commercial in fair use analysis which I didnāt really touch here (but which obviously has limits, since itās not like Google isnāt making tons of money, and their use was a fair use). But this decision could kind of remind a big media world that maybe had forgotten that the copyright monopoly they enjoy is supposed to have the point of encouraging creativity; we grant a copyright because we think people wonāt create without a financial incentive. (Tbh, thereās a lot of doubt that that is actually a true thing to believe, given all the free fic and art that gets produced daily, but anyway, itās what the law decided several centuries ago before the internet was a thing.) Copyright is a balance, between those who hold the copyright and the rest of us, and the rest of us arenāt just passive consumers, we have creative powers of our own, and we might also want to do some cool things. And this case sees that. None of us are starting in a creative vacuum, after all; weāre all in this playground together.
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Piecing it together
So this is a better formatted version of an idea I came up with during a reblog, but this one is more well put together and honestly less cringey, I wrote the other in a fit of excitement, but I believe it to hold some merit, but here we go.Ā
This is my entire thoughts on Neon J, including what I think to be his secrets.Ā
First off, the factsĀ
Neon J was a toy maker, Fact.Ā
During the 1010 boss battle after Neon J has been defeated he exclaimed about the things he did in an event called theĀ āBorder warā, he was deployed to mountains. Heās had military service, fact.Ā
He exclaims about the things heās done in the name of NSR with some regret, āThe things iāve done in the name of the NSR!! I would not wish upon my worst enemies!!ā Fact.Ā
He clearly has a face and lungs, at least believes he as them as he says as much about himself, but this much cannot be confirmed as we do not see theĀ āBlood he spills from his mouth.ā but iāll get into that later.Ā
He mentions how he has been changed, with somberness in his voiceĀ āOh, what have I become... I have... changed so much.āĀ
He talks about home as if it was another locationĀ āHome? I remember what home was like...ā and continues to speak about it as if heās no longer there. He also speaks ofĀ āHis peopleā which is a very vague point as we do not know what hisĀ āpeopleā are, but with the context of how heās speaking itās safe to assume heās actually not from Vinyl city, but iāll get into that later.Ā
He mentions his deployment to the Azkar faction, in the yearĀ ā68. which I find ESPECIALLY INTERESTING, Azkar faction, not Vinyl city. And furthermore through the ridges of Kewan. Further going on to mention how cold it was,Ā āThe chill was enough to brittle the spirit of any battle hardened warrior.ā
He then mentions mountains, and how he only had a parachute and compass in his pack.Ā
Sadly thatās the last piece of dialogue we get from him, but I think enough has been said for me to piece together something of a narrative, so here it goes.Ā
I believe Neon J is a war veteran, that much is obvious, but thereās something deeper here. I believe he was a human before this border war, a full blooded human, and in fact was a simple toy maker. until this Azkar faction came and started thisĀ āBorder warā, now I do not believe that Neon J lived in Vinyl city itself, at least not at first. What I believed happened was he lived in a nearby territory, that was then invaded by this Azkar faction... or... was the azkar faction? Itās hard to determine, but he clearly has some passion and love for the NSR empire, so I believe the NSR came to his peopleās aid, much like a world war 2 situation, where it was not the NSR vs the Enemy, but rather the enemy invaded and NSR came to their aid.Ā
Neon would then volunteer to join the military, heās patriotic enough that I believe it wasnāt just a draft. He would join the navy. if we take a look at his attire I believe itās obvious he was in the equivalent of the Navy. His Limo is a battleship afterall. but I think it goes deeper than that. I think he was a part of the NSR equivalent of the Navy Seals. and Iāll go into my reasoning here shortly.Ā
He clearly is a decorated soldier, as he has some medals on his coat that he wears to this day.Ā
I think the way he is designed plays a big part into why heās a navy seal equivalent. Looking at his modern day design, heās clearly very slender and elegantly designed, not some front line combative unit, and his radar face determines that perhaps he has devices in him that can determine distance, since he has a lack of eyes, he might have a spotting device like many sniper pairs have. Yes, sniper pairs. Snipers are deployed with SpottersĀ who use their equipment to watch where the sniper hit, and adjust for their aim in the unlikely case they miss. I believe Neon was transformed into being both the Sniper and Spotter, built in with spotting equipment, his radar, and of course expert marksmanship.Ā
It would also perfectly explain his deployment location, ridges and mountains are perfect locations for snipers, not front line soldiers.Ā
So heās a navy seal sniper fighting in a cold environment during a border war.Ā
but thereās more, I believe he was at some point fully human, and that hisĀ āChangesā that he regrets, are physical changes to his body, either done as attempts to save his body after severe injuries, or upgrades performed by the NSR to increase his combat effectiveness. Either way, his body has not become accustomedĀ to the augmentations even all these years later. He mentions his blood, his mouth, and his lungs, as he coughs at Zuke. but we do not see any of these things, and taking a look at his design, no matter how cartoony it may be, you cannot tell me that he has a head, there is no way, that is a flat radar monitor on top, imagine fitting your head into a flat screen or laptop monitor. I believe he is suffering from a severe case of Phantom limb syndrome. Now iām no expert, I will not claim to be, but I do believe itās possible for a human, whoās been augmented to the point of no return, to still believe they are performing normal human things, like bleeding, coughing, possessing lungs and a mouth, when it is shown otherwise.Ā
I believe he has a highly decorated deployment record, but here iāll get into a point thatās more speculative, as I have determined his kill count potentially, and it will shock you.Ā
in our world, the sniper with the one of the highest kill counts, was a man by the name ofĀ Simo HƤyhƤ, a finnish sniper who had 505 confirmed kills, during his deployment in a winter war.Ā
A sniper deployed to a frozen environment? Sounds familiar if you ask me.Ā
but it goes further.Ā
With all his augmentations itās safe to assume that Neon J, with his spotter equipment, is twice as effective as the best human, itās just safe to say a robot is at least twice as good as any human, especially a military grade android/cyborg. and what do you get when you multiply 505 by two?Ā
1010.Ā
Pretty crazy right? actually yes, at the moment I have no way to confirm his actual number of kills, but I think 1010 is a fair bare minimum for his kill count, and would warrant a regret likeĀ āI wouldnāt wish it upon my worst enemies.āĀ Ā
itās also stated that he was deployed for several years, so having a kill count like 1010, for an augmented robot soldier sniper with built in spotting equipment, is reasonable I believe.Ā
I will now summarize my points.Ā
Neon J (If that is his real name) was a humble toy maker from a neighboring territory that was absorbed into the NSR empire after the NSR came to their aid during a border war. He signed up and joined the navy seals equivalent of the NSR as one of their best, if not their best Sniper. over his deployment to the frozen ridges and mountains, he sustained damage, and this most likely was the source of all his augmentations as he slowly was modified with spotter technology built into his hardware. No longer needing a spotter on his sniper deployments, he became more and more like an assassin, possibly holding down entire choke points or taking out high ranking members of the opposition during his many years, potentially 1010, but thatās just a rough estimation and a fun number to say. But more importantly, I think heās suffering from a form of Phantom limb syndrome, where his mind and body have still not entirely adjusted to his augmentations, as he mentions his blood and face, despite both very clearly not being there,Ā and I would not leave it up to the cartoony design of the game, you cannot fit a face into his radar, his radar which I believe was his primary sniper augmentation, as it took over the place of his spotter partner for him, and allowed him to go solo. He was highly decorated when he came back, but was not the same man he once was. as now, the war has been built into him, and thus, he treats everything like combat, even his own sons are like soldiers, he cares for them immensely, but every aspect of his life has now become ingrained with his service as a navy sniper, the outfits, the themes, his mannerisms, even his limo is a battleship. and seeing as the NSR has only been around for a decade or two, itās safe to assume this is just a few years after his deployment, so him battling with the changes made to his body, the things he did for the NSR (Which could range from simple sniping, to full on solo assassination missions) and him still coping with no longer being in the military, is not only reasonable, but it explains alot.Ā
If I think of anything else, iāll make a follow up post, or edit this one.Ā
but for now, letās show him some more love, as he still seems to be fighting his own wars, internally.Ā
Have a lovely day, and stay safe soldiers. <3
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A Comparison of RTD and Steven Moffat: Saving The Day
So for this analysis Iām going to compare when Moffat and RTD save the day well and when they save it poorly. There are a few bits of criteria I need to explain.
Ā First I will only be including main series, no Torchwood, no spin-offs, and no mini episodes.
Second, I have to define what makes a good and a bad ending (my examples will come from episodes written by neither of them):Ā
Bad endings include when the sonic saves the day (see The Power Of Three) (there are exceptions, see below), when a character spouts some useless technobabble that doesnāt make any scientific sense/when it doesnāt make logical sense in general, when the Doctor invents/presents a machine/equipment that miraculously stops the baddy and is never referred to again (see Journey To The Centre Of The TARDIS), and any other ending I deem to be bad (see The Vampires of Venice)
Good endings include when the sonice activates a device that has been well established to save the day, when technobabble is used that actually makes some scientific sense, and just generally when the baddy is destroyed in what I deem to be a creative manner that makes sense with all the things that had been set up in that episode (see The Unquiet Dead).
There will also be cases where there isnāt really a day to be saved, however this happens more often with Moffat.
Let us begin (obviously there will be spoilers but the last episode in the list aired nearly 4 years ago so what you doing with your life).
RTD:
Rose: Bad
What even is anti-plastic?! Like seriously, heās faced the Autons loads of times and has never thought to use it any other time.
The End Of The World: Bad
The Doctor just goes up to the appearance of the repeated meme (ha meme) and rips its arm off. He then just summons Cassandra back by twisting a knob which apparently everyone can do ifĀ āyouāre very clever like meā.
Aliens Of London/World War Three: Good
Just nuking them all was a bit dodgy but Iāll give it to him purely because it had been set up earlier in the episode and it is a genuine option that could have been taken.
The Long Game: Good
The heating issue was set up within 2 minutes of the episode starting. Itās always good to see the Doctor using his enemies weakness against them.
Boom Town: Good
Only just. Itās technology that hadnāt been showcased ever before and came out of nowhere, but Iām allowing purely because it was setting up The Parting Of The Ways.
Bad Wolf/The Parting Of The Ways: Good
See above. It was set up the story before so it works.
The Christmas Invasion: Bad
This was so close to being good. If RTD had just let the Sycorax leader be honourable then everything would have been fine. Instead he had to let him be dishonourable and then the Doctor through the Satsuma at a random button that for no apparent reason caused a bit of floor to fall away.
New Earth: Bad
It only makes sense if you think about it for less than 10 seconds as just pouring every cure to every disease ever into a giant tub and then spraying saidĀ supercure onto them all, then having them hug each other to pass it on. That is suspending my disbelief just a bit too far.
Tooth And Claw: Good
Everything is set up in the episode so Iāll allow it but I fail to see how Prince Albert had the time to ensure that the diamond was cut perfectly.
Love And Monsters: Bad
Itās Love And Monsters. Need I say more?
Army of Ghosts/Doomsday: Good
It was very clearly set up throughout the episode.
The Runaway Bride: Bad
I donāt like how a few bombs can supposedly drain the entire Thames.
Smith And Jones: Good
All the events were well established
Gridlock: Good
Itās a fairly bland way to save the day, just opening the surface to all the drivers. But how else could he have done it?
Utopia/The Sound Of Drums/Last Of The Time Lords: Bad
As much as I like the idea that he tuned himself into the archangel network, he basically turned into Jesus. It is arguably the least convincing ending in modern Doctor Who history.
Voyage Of The Damned: Bad
Why was he the next highest authority? If heās the highest authority in the universe why didnāt they default to him in the first place? If not then why not default to Midshipman Frame? And if heās somehow in between them then why? Also Astrid killed herself for no reason when she easily could have jumped out of the forklift.
Partners In Crime: Good
It works in the context of the episode, but I donāt see why they needed two of the necklace things.
Midnight: Good
Itās human nature, you canāt get more well set up than that.
Turn Left: Good
It works logically
The Stolen Earth/Journeyās End: Bad
Donna just spouts a load of technobabble whilst pressing buttons and then the Daleks are magically incapacitated.
The Next Doctor: Bad
Why do the infostamps sever Hartiganās connection with the Cyberking? As far as I remember it aināt explained.
Planet Of The Dead (co-written with noted transphobe Gareth Roberts): Good
A good couple scenes are dedicated on getting the anti-gravs set up.
The Waters Of Mars (co-written with Phil Ford): N/A
The day isnāt really saved cause everyone still dies anyway.
The End Of Time: Good
Using a gun to destroy a machine is much better than using the sonic to destroy it.
Summary for RTD:
Out of 24 stories written by him, I deem 10 to be bad endings with 1 abstaining. Thatās 41.7% of his episodes (43.5% if we donāt count any abstaining).
Steven Moffat:
The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances: Good
Youāll see this a lot with Moffat, he knows how to explain things without stupefying levels of technobabble.Ā āEmailing the upgradeā is a perfect example of this.
The Girl In The Fireplace: Good
Some basic logic, the androids want to repair their ship, but they canāt return to it, they no longer have a function so they shut down.
Blink: Good
Always loved this one, getting the angels to look at each other, however they do look at each other sometimes earlier in the episode.
Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead: Bad
This is more of a problem with the setup of the episode, I donāt like that he can negotiate with the Vashta Nerada. Iād rather see them comprehensively beaten, but I guess itās good for the scare factor that they canāt be escaped from.
The Eleventh Hour: Good
He convinced the best scientists all around the world to set every clock to 0 all in less than an hour. In the Doctorās own wordsĀ āWho da man!ā
The Beast Below: Good
The crying child motif pretty much ended up saving the day (well for the star whale, life went on as normal for pretty much everyone else).
The Time Of Angels/Flesh And Stone: Good
The artificial gravity had briefly been set up earlier so Iāll allow it.
The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang: Good
Everything had been set up perfectly, the vortex manipulator, the Pandoricaās survival field thingy, the TARDIS exploding at every moment in history.
A Christmas Carol: Good
Literally the entire episode is the Doctor saving the day by convincing Kazran not to be a cock.
The Impossible Astronaut/Day Of The Moon: Good
The silenceās ability to influence people is their whole thing, so using it against them is a good Doctory thing to do.
A Good Man Goes To War: N/A
The day isnāt really saved, Melody is lost, but River shows up at the end so is all fine? I love the episode itās just the day isnāt really truly saved (yes I know Amy was rescued but she still lost her baby).
Letās Kill Hitler: N/A
There isnāt really a day to be saved. They all get out alive but no one is really saved other than maybe River but we all knew she was gonna live anyway.
The Wedding Of River Song: Good
Whilst opinion is divided on the episode, the ending still works. the Tesseracta was established in Letās Kill Hitler, and theĀ ātouch River and time will move againā was established well in advance.
The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe: Bad
I donāt like how the lifeboat travels through the time vortex for no reason but to rescue the dad. It donāt make no sense and I donāt think itās explained
Asylum Of The Daleks: Good
Oswin had access to the Dalek hive mind so of course she should be able to link into the controls and blow everything up.
The Angels Take Manhattan: Good
Paradoxes really do be something powerful, and they even acknowledge how nobody knows if itād work so Iāll let it slide.
The Snowmen: Bad
Lots of people cry at Christmas, why are the Latimers anything special?
The Bells of Saint John: Good
The whole episode is about hacking so why shouldnāt the Doctor be able to hack the spoonheads
The Name Of The Doctor: Good
It was the story arc for the season pretty much, so of course it was explained well in advance.
The Day Of The Doctor: Good
Both the storing Gallifrey like a painting and the making everyone forget if theyāre Human or Zygon works in the context of the episode.
The Time Of The Doctor: Bad
Since when were the Time Lords so easily negotiated with?
Deep Breath: Good
I like the dilemma over whether the half-face man was pushed or jumped.
Into The Dalek: Good
Itās set up well with this new Doctorās persona of actually not being too nice of a guy (at first).
Listen: N/A
There isnāt a day to be saved. Itās just 45 minutes of the Doctor testing a hypothesis and I low-key love it.
Time Heist (co-written with Steven Thompson): Good
It works logically so Iāll allow it however it isnāt very well set up at all.
The Caretaker (co-written with noted shithead Gareth Roberts): Good
The machine to tell the Blitzer what to do was set up well in advance so Iāll allow it.
Dark Water/Death In Heaven: Good
The fact that Danny still cares even as a cyberman is set up fairly early on after his transformation.
Last Christmas: Good
He does use the sonic to wake up Clara but he convinces the others to wake up through talking so Iāll allow it.
The Magicianās Apprentice/The Witchās Familiar: Good
Itās set up well with that little scene from actually inside the sewers.
The Girl Who Died (co-written with Jamie Mathieson): Good
IDK why the vikings would randomly keep electric eels but theyāre set up well so Iāll ignore it.Ā
The Zygon Inversion (co-written with Peter Harness): N/AĀ
Not including this one as itās only the second part and Iād argue the ending is most likely Harnessā.
Heaven Sent/Hell Bent: N/A
Again there isnāt really a day to be saved, yes Heaven Sent really is amazing but itās only the first part and, being completely honest, he dies several billion times before finally getting through the wall.
The Husbands Of River Song: N/A
Again there isnāt really a day to be saved here.
The Return Of Doctor Mysterio: Good
He gets Grant to catch the bomb which is good. But he does just sonic the gun out of Dr Simās hand and says UNIT is on its way which just sort of wraps it up very quickly.
The Pilot: N/A
No day to be saved here.
Extremis: Good
You could technically call it the sonic saving the day, I consider it to be the Doctor emailing the Doctor to warn him of the future.
The Pyramid At The End Of The World: Good
The fire sanitising everything makes sense and itās in character for Bill to love the Doctor enough to cure his blindness in return for the world
World Enough And Time/The Doctor Falls: Good
Yes it is the sonic just blowing the cybermen up, but itās blowing them up with well established pipelines so Iāll allow it (also the story is amazing).
Twice Upon A Time: N/A
No day to be saved here. Just Doctors 1 and 12 getting angsty about regenerating.
Summary for Steven Moffat:
Out of 39 stories written by him, I deemed 4 to be bad with 7 abstaining. Thatās 10.3% of his episodes (12.5% if we donāt count any abstaining).
Conclusions:
Moffat was much better at saving the day than RTD
Moffat liked telling stories where the day didnāt actually need to be saved
Iāve spent way too long on this and I need to sleep
If I spent as much time on this as my coursework Iād probably pass
If youāre still reading this, you probably need to get a life
#doctor who#steven moffat#rtd#in case you can't tell I really don't like RTD#Remember the Superwholock days when everyone ripped the shit out of Moffat#what am I doing with my life#tardis#rose tyler#martha jones#donna noble#amy pond#rory pond#rory williams#river song#clara oswald#Bill Potts
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Iām slow and just realized that the āIronwood cutting off his arm is him cutting off his humanityā was about getting his arm removed post having it in a cast. Which ok maybe he shouldnāt have but a few things. Heās want to have a functioning arm given how back thing a have escalated and how much heās have to do. If that prosthetic isnāt just for show then itās a functioning limb so whatās the problem.
Making an argument about what RT is trying to say is difficult - if not outright impossible - because I donāt think they know what theyāre trying to say. The message about Ironwood, if it exists, is convoluted and inconsistent, so thatās always worth bearing in mind. Trying to decipher authorial meaning in a text is doomed if the authors are throwing out things willy-nilly. Itās like trying to make sense of a cookie recipe with gravel listed as an ingredient. I really donāt think the inedible bits of stone should exist in this recipe, the creator likely doesnāt realize they included it, and if they do come back with some ridiculous justification like,Ā āGravel adds delicious crunch!ā we should not get caught up in trying to determine whether gravel is actually crunchy and whether we like that crunch in our cookies. The gravel should not exist in the first place.Ā
That being said, weāve got two distinct readings here:Ā
1. The claim that destroying his own arm - doingĀ āwhatever it takesā - is representative of Ironwood losing his humanity because heās supposedly crossing boundaries no human should cross. The problem with this reading is that Ironwood doesnāt cross any inhuman boundaries in this scene. Freeing himself from a trap and saving the city from Watts are good things. This is why, as Iāve mentioned before, if they wanted the scene to represent a loss of humanity Ironwood needed to do something arguably inhumane: kill off Watts unjustifiably, team up with him, etc.Ā
2. The claim that cutting off his arm and replacing it with a cybernetic is representative of Ironwood losing his humanity because he is, literally, a little less human now and a little more machine. The problem with this reading is itās ableist garbage. The answer to the questionĀ āWhy does him losing parts make him less human?ā isĀ āIt doesnāt.āĀ
Frankly, I donāt know which reading RT is trying to stand behind - the destroying his arm as a representation or replacing the arm as representation - but both readings fail. Either RT doesnāt understand that the context in which Ironwood lost his arm is heroic, or they donāt understand that the need for an assistive device doesnāt have any impact on a personās worth and morality. I sincerely hope itās the first option. Iād much rather be watching a show with authors struggling to craft the messages theyāre aiming for (we thought we were writing Ironwood doing something worthy of criticism but didnāt succeed) vs. authors who believe that if you replace enough (whatever that means) of your body with tech then you in turn become an emotionless machine (we wrote Ironwood losing another limb because heās bad now. In our minds we equate disability with villainy). If I had to make a case on either side, Iād give them the benefit of the doubt based on Penny and Yang, given that they did attempt a (at times well done) arc with Yang and Pennyās whole thing is being real despite being made of metal... but then again, Yang didnāt choose this. It was something traumatic that was done to her. Penny also didnāt choose this. She was born an android and has no control over what her body is like. Ironwood, unlike both girls, had agency here. Thereās an incredibly uncomfortable implication that his decision to sacrifice his arm is what makes him inhuman. AKA, the concept that being disabled is so horrific, so unwanted, so utterly terrifying that anyone who chooses to become that must be insane. They canāt be human because no human would willingly go through that. Itās a message that simultaneously undermines Ironwoodās heroics - look at what he was willing to do to keep the people safe! - as well as mischaracterizes disability as a purely horrible thing. I would hope that if I were put into the incredibly unlikely position of sacrificing my arm to keep others safe that I would make that choice too, both because helping others is worth the sacrifice and because losing an arm, while no doubt immensely difficult, would not be the end of my life, my potential, or my worth as a human being. Far from it.Ā
Implying otherwise sends a staggeringly insulting message to every disabled viewer watching RWBY.Ā Ā
Which circles right back around to that authorial intent. I still donāt want to make claims about what RT means to say because Iām not sure they know what message theyāre aiming for. I will, however, make a claim that what they are saying - regardless of intention - is becoming a problem. Conflating Ironwoodās decent into antagonism with the loss of a limb reflects badly on their disability rep any way you cut it. Things could improve in Volume 8. What we start getting on Saturday may heal or damage things greatly, but for now the talk ofĀ āIronwood cutting off his arm is him cutting off his humanityā reads as really, really bad.Ā
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Tying It All Together - Pwning To Own on LG phones
Last year I detailed a secure EL3 vulnerability which affected (and still affects, for devices with discontinued updates) LG Android devices. However, this vulnerability alone isn't actually all that useful for a number of reasons, the more immediate being that many phones simply do not allow writing to eMMC without root or a custom recovery. Additionally, gaining full control over all privilege levels requires draining the battery to below 0%, which while it would be possible to create a modchip that facilitated this, is impractical. To finish off my exploit chain, I would like to detail two additional vulnerabilities that I have found and utilized in my coldboot process. It's worth noting though that these vulnerabilities were reported to LG and may be patched on updated units.
Live, LAF, Love
The first exploit is an obvious necessity: In order to write the rle888 payload into the eMMC's boot graphics, I need to be able to achieve an arbitrary partition write. While exploiting Android *is* an option for this (as are hardware methods), I instead opted to attack LAF, LG's recovery/flashing component. While many Android phones in the past have used fastboot in order to flash radios and other system components to eMMC, fastboot has been completely removed on the Q710/Q720. Some phones such as the Nexus 5 actually maintain both fastboot methods and LAF, but for maximum spread, LAF is the clear target.
LAF is designed to work with LGUP, a frequently-leaked LG-internal flashing tool that allows flashing KDZ update files. While LAF in the past was able to read and write eMMC partitions without any restriction, in recent years LG has opted to sign all of their KDZ files in order to make it more difficult for things like cross-carrier flashing, version mixing/matching between partitions and other modifications to occur. Flashing is done via USB, and most of the protocol has been documented at https://github.com/Lekensteyn/lglaf.
The LAF update process largely consists of an ioctl-over-USB shim: The OPEN command is able to open a partition block device, and READ/WRTE will seek into the file and write contents. However, reading and writing are explicitly blocked until a list of partitions, their eMMC offsets, their KDZ content offsets, and their content hashes is sent via the SIGN command, all of which is hashed and signed by LG. If the contents of the partitions in the KDZ are modified, the partition list hashes will fail to verify, and modifying the hashes in the partition list will make the SIGN check fail. The private key is not stored in LGUP; KDZs are downloaded from LG's servers, signed presumably by their build servers.
So, how can we manage to activate WRTE commands, with valid partition content hashes of our arbitrary contents, if we cannot sign our own? To start, I investigated how the WRTE commands actually handled hash checking--if the partition list is sent with SIGN, then at some point the WRTE command must be able to figure out which partition the current write is for, and the current partition's contents must be buffered in RAM somewhere along with an updating SHA context, because if the SHA check fails, then it shouldn't write at all. As it turns out, most of the checks in this area were fairly solid (the write must be in the range of a partition in the list, the entire transaction is one bulk packet of the hashed size, etc). However, this led me to realize: The partition list signature is only checked once, and there is nothing stopping me from, say, sending another SIGN command.
The SIGN verification process works as follows:
The partition information is sent along with a signature in one bulk transaction.
The partition information is copied into a global .bss array from the USB buffer with a fixed size.
The partition information hash buffer is prepared: An allocation is made for N partitions and an optional string, the string being the device model (to prevent cross-flashing). The number of partitions is determined by a signed portion of the header. If the allocation fails, an error is returned.
The partition information is copied again into this allocation along with the string, and the contents are hashed. The signature is crypted with the public key and the signature hash is verified against the partition info hash. If the check fails, the global .bss array is cleared and an error is returned. If the check passes, some write threads and structs are initialized and a success value is returned.
The .bss buffer storing partition info (used by other functions) is copied to before the packet is verified
The .bss buffer is cleared when the signature mismatches, but not with this malloc fail...?
The flaw here is subtle, but not terribly difficult to notice: The number of partitions is user-controlled even though it is signed, and the partition info was copied into a global variable before verification. In all other error conditions, LAF will memset the partition information before returning an error code, however if the hashing allocation fails (ie by setting the number of partitions to -1), then the allocation will fail and an error is returned without clearing the partition information. Thus, we can fakesign our own update KDZs by
Sending a valid SIGN command, which will start the write threads
Sending a fakesigned SIGN command with the number of partitions set to -1, and all partition information set however we want. The partition information in .bss is now set without a signature being checked.
While this fakesign has the potential to hang WRTE commands while due to the number of partitions being set much larger than the global partition array, all loops when WRTE checks the partition list hashes will break once a valid partition is found. So, as long as the hash contents of the WRTE command are existent in the first few entries, it will not hang, however any writes sent that do not match will hang lafd.
Another S-EL3 vuln to wrap it all up
This might seem a bit pointless given that the former vulnerability paired with š š±āļøš„¾š at aboot is more than enough to unlock bootloaders, since aboot is usually the code that handles bootloader unlocking/wiping/boot image signature verification, but the downside to unlocking your bootloader is that you lose SafetyNet. To most effectively mitigate SafetyNet issues you basically need an S-EL3 exploit in order to patch Qualcomm's TrustZone to spoof a locked bootloader. While š š±āļøš„¾š has a vector for S-EL3 code execution via SBL1 and its charging graphic, it only triggers at extremely low battery voltages and it would be more convenient to find an alternative means to gaining S-EL3 code execution via aboot, which runs at EL2/EL1.
One of the first things I noticed when I began to look for SBL vulnerabilities, and actually the reason I looked at SBL in the first place is its crash handler. Since at least the Nexus 5, LG has shipped its "Demigod Crash Handler" which can print registers and stack information and RAM console logs from EL1 kernel, S-EL3 SBL, TrustZone, etc. I first discovered it while trying to exploit a kernel stack overflow. It also allows the user to dump memory contents over USB via its Sahara protocol which also gets used in PBL for Firehose bootstrapping.
Naturally, SBL cannot know the exact details of every execution environment it displays stack dumps for, it requires the faulting environment to store that information before warm-resetting into SBL. Consequently, this means there are portions of RAM writable by EL1 which will be later parsed at an S-EL3 execution level, and of course to make matters worse it also expects EL1 to handle the memory allocation for both the RAM console as well as for the framebuffer. These structures are also plainly visible in LG's kernel sources available in their Android OSS zips.
Above roughly shows the arbitrary write which is possible with this ramconsole parsing. The ramconsole offset is not bounds checked, so we are able to achieve an arbitrary write to a limited set of addresses based on ramconsole_offs, the limit being that the offset factors both into what you write and where you write it. However, I found that since DRAM takes up such a significant portion of the address space, it was more than enough to specifically write a function pointer to the stack. To keep the exploit as simple as possible, I chose to force console_init_maybe to return to the missing battery graphic draw routine, which then triggered š š±āļøš„¾š without the need to drain the battery below 1% and made loading additional payloads significantly easier.
As an interesting sidenote, this vulnerability is extremely similar to hexkyz's Wii U boot1 exploit, which also abuses warmboot behavior to take over the secondary bootloader of the Wii U's ARM boot processor. In that case, however, the Wii U encrypted its PRSH/PRST structure in RAM, and rather than displaying syslogs, it uses the structure to store boot timings and other info between IOS reboots.
For most practical usecases, this vulnerability is a bit difficult to exploit, due to SBL's text and stack differing between devices. However, S-EL3 vulnerabilities aren't all that frequently documented on Android, so I hope that it will at least be useful for anyone interested in examining Qualcomm's TrustZone components or avoiding weird SafetyNet junk.
Code for both of these exploits can be seen at https://github.com/shinyquagsire23/Q710-SIGNhax-EL3-Warmboot
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A B5 glossary
I saw an excellent post about Star Wars that lists that universeās vocabulary for different things, and decided one of these needs to exist for B5, though it probably already does. This is not a complete list, itās just what I came up with from looking at the Star Wars list.
The Star Wars post opens by saying there is no official name for the universe, so people in the fandom say āGFFAā (Galaxy Far Far Away). This reminds me of another rant I never posted about how much I hate the term āthe B5 universeā because THE UNIVERSE DOESNāT REVOLVE AROUND THAT ONE SPACE STATION, but if you say anything else, no one knows what youāre taking about.
Anyway, on to the words.
* Glass exists and itās called glass. There are other glass-like materials, however, especially used off-world, because you canāt make space station windows and domes over colonies from ordinary glass. One such material mentioned in canon is called āmonomolecular glass,ā and I donāt know why itās called that because itās obviously not one molecule thick, but the point is that there are other glass-like materials used in space.
* Steel exists and itās called steel.
* Concrete exists, but they call it āduracrete,ā which I think is a brand name in that world like we say āKleenexā here.
* If you see another weird material name, assume itās a brand name. āVibraliteā is another example. Itās cheap, (nearly) indestructible, and brightly colored. Poorer countries and neighborhoods on Earth are full of Vibralite.
* Tablet computer/PADD/data pad device - I know itās called something, but I canāt recall it right now. I generally say, for example, āhe handed her a deviceā and context specifies the rest. I think thereās a more specific name for it, though.
* Data storage device - very large files are stored in the latices of actual literal crystals, hence, ādata crystals.ā I donāt think they did this in past generations... itās a new thing.
* Cars exist. Usually the ones on the ground are generically called āgroundcars,ā but you can specify that you mean a pickup truck or sedan or something else. On Mars, everyone goes everywhere by train (above and below ground). Iāve never heard of a groundcar used off-world.
* Guns exist, and there are different types (naturally). āGunā is generic, and probably means the kind that shoot bullets, but you can also be specific about the type of gun you mean. Guns that shoot bullets are colloquially known as āslug throwersā (but this is slang). PPGs (phased plasma guns) are specific guns used in space, because they canāt punch a hole through the hull of a space station/colony and kill everyone. If a cop is assigned off-world, he or she will be issued a PPG. Back on Earth, theyāre rare - a regular old gun will do. But a law enforcement officer who is sometimes sent off-world could be carrying one. (I think Bey has one, for example.)
* Knives exist and are called knives, unless you want to be specific about an unusual kind of knife, like the one that almost cut off Ysidraās arm (a specific type of blade used on Mars, for mining). That was monomolecular again, but in that case, the blade really was super thin.
* Humanoid androids are illegal in the Earth Alliance. I donāt know what the heck was going on in that āvicarā (human VCR) episode, and since that all got essentially ret-conned out when Talia left, Iām just going with that. It makes no sense.
* The internet sort of exists... there are āthe Nets,ā which is like a proto-internet. You can look up information, you can place bets on gambling sites, and you can make video calls with everyone, but for some reason, what happened to good old fashioned email?
* The Earth Alliance currency is ācredits.ā Aliens have their own money.
* You donāt āwarp,ā you ājump,ā but unless your ship is outfitted with Minbari tech, youāre only jumping through specific ājumpgates.ā Hyperspace is hyperspace because what else is it called? If a ship can jump, it has ājump engines.ā
* That thing they call ābacta-patchā in Star Wars is similar to a āregen packā in B5, and they have them at the time of the show, but not in earlier generations, so I assume itās a new thing.
* Aliens do dates differently, but I donāt know anything about that.
* Drugs have their own names (āstims,ā āDust,ā other named examples in canon).
* Earth Alliance ID is called an āidenticard.ā Itās very large, not rectangular, and doesnāt fit in anything. I donāt know how people carry these. But it does have biometric data on it. (And if youāre in the Corps, that comes up, too. There is no separate Psi Corps ID. There is a separate license if you are a commercial telepath, but you donāt have to carry a separate document for that - itās all on the identicard.)
* Newspapers exist, too - and you buy them/recycle them at kiosks. If you return a newspaper, you get another at the regular price, but if you donāt have one to recycle (yours or one from the trash), you have to pay more. You can also customize at the kiosk which sections you want (e.g. more off-world news, less sports).
* There are different foods mentioned in canon (usually off-world), but I really donāt know anything about that, either. Aliens eat alien food and drink alien drink. (I shocked some people a couple years ago when I didnāt know Minbari canāt drink alcohol. Like, how was I supposed to know that? What do I know about Minbari? And just a couple of months ago, someone expected me to know about some alien drink served in a bar on the station. Sorry, but huh?)
Thatās all I can think of right now.
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New School Year, New Chapter
Special Offers for Students and Educators
Gone through the āSci-Fi movieā called 2020, life goes on and unfolds new challenges for us all, especially for those students and teachers who have just experienced not-so-efficient remote learning and for those who are new to the college this autumn. At this key stage, turning life into a new page and getting more focused on whatās happening next is obviously important.Ā
TickTick is here to help you gain more control back over the new challenges in the coming school year, with the special educational discount for all qualifying students and faculties!
There are up to three benefits that you can enjoy:
1. All enrolled students and educators are eligible for a 25% discount when upgrading to TickTick yearly premium. This is a long-lasting program. Learn how to apply.Ā
2. From today to 30th of September, everyone who successfully upgraded to premium through our special offer for education, can get 3 extra one-month TickTick premium gift codes! This is for you to share with any of your schoolmates, colleagues or friends, which means they can enjoy the one-month TickTick premium service totally for free!Ā
3. If any of your friends who used your codes continue their subscriptions for TickTickās yearly plan, youāll then get one more month automatically extended to your current premium status too!
Ready to kick off the new school year? Hereās a step-by-step guide for students.Ā
Be prepared for school with simple to-do lists
Before the school starts, preparing for the move from home to uni can be very daunting, particularly difficult if the uni is in another city or even country. To help yourself a little bit, writing everything down and getting reminded is what should come in the first place.Ā
For example, creating a packing list by using the āPacking Templateā in TickTick and then divide the lists into multiple āSectionsā: clothing, stationeries, electronic gadgets, and etc. A reading list regarding one of your newly chosen courses can also pre-equip you with a general idea and get you ready for shifting to the study mood. Meanwhile, a social list for the events youād like to attend in the welcoming week, and societies youād like to join will prepare you for a new start of uni life. A document list for enrolment, or a sightseeing list to explore the new city where youāre going to stay, are also essential for your quick settling.
Build a study-based workaroundĀ
Step 1: Creating different Lists for different courses youāre enrolled in.Ā
Step 2: Creating different Tasks for components of the course within each list.
For example, in the list called Sociolinguistics, there could be three tasks: Task A: Lectures, Task B: Seminars, Task C: Workshops. Here, you can set the tasks as recurrent, for example, 10-12 am every Friday for Task A: Lectures.
Step 3: Adding Subtasks within the tasks. I suggest you create those subtasks according to the topic of each class.Ā
For example, under Task A: Lectures, there could be many subtasks: Lecture 1: code-switching, Lecture 2: translanguaging, Lecture 3ā¦Ā
Subtasks can be further split if necessary. For example:Ā Lecture 1: code-switching can be divided into three new subtasks in the second level: Preview, In process, Revision.Ā
Step 4:Ā Defining the context of your tasks/subtasks with Tags.Ā
In the daily study life, itās common to have different types of tasks, e.g. Reading, Discussing, Researching, or Writing. Therefore, you can actually add different tags to the tasks to make sure they are well sorted out, and then plan out accordingly based on their contexts.
Step 5: Prioritizing your tasks and identity whatās important.
I believe you may have heard about the Eisenhower Matrix before (sorting your tasks based on urgency and importance). Important and urgent, important but not urgent, urgent but not important, not important and not urgent. Based on this, TickTick offers 4 choices of Priority: High, Medium, Low Priority and No Priority, to help you decide what needs to be done first.
Step 6: Taking notes and connecting everything related to the course.
When taping into a task/subtask, youāll find a wide blank area for task description. You can write down/upload more details here regarding your tasks, whether itās reading resources, professorsā contacts, random ideas, or lecture notes from the class.Ā Markdown (a way to quickly add formatting like headers, bold, bullet points, and so on to plain text) is supported here in the task description section, in order to help you take notes easily and beautifully on your digital devices.Ā
Not a fan of digital writing? Not a problem. You can also add attachments in the description, to include any files you feel relevant to your tasks, like notes written on paper.
With these steps above, youāll find all your course-related materials and tasks can be well organized and scheduled just in one place.Ā
* Would also like to plan out social and daily life? Then creating multiple Folders to collect lists is what you need to do. Move all lists for study in one folder, and get another for social life. Easy, right? Or simply subscribe to other calendars, and all the events from there could be synced into TickTick.
Beat procrastination with Time BlockingĀ
When the courses begin, the struggle comes in the form of knowing exactly what to do but just canāt find enough motivation to actually do it. With so many tasks at the same time, like readings and group assignments, itās easy to feel overwhelmed. The 48-hour essay writing and one-night-oil exam reviewing are probably the most often heard stories in the uni.Ā
How to be a master of time management and stop being the last-minute person, is perhaps the most important skill we should all learn in uni life. One of the solutions for this could be practicing Time Blocking with TickTickās built-in Calendar.Ā
Step 1: Customizing when week 1 starts at the Date & Time Settings in TickTick.Ā
The first week you set can be the first week when your courses begin, and the following weeks will be able to show in sequence in your TickTick calendar.
Step 2: Arranging tasks in the calendar.Ā
After going to the calendar, youāll be able to see tasks youāve created before, as long as they have a due date. For example, it will show the timetable of your classes, social events synced from your local calendar, or other tasks in daily life.Ā
If youād like to add, move and arrange new tasks, simply use the feature āArranging Tasksā, where all your tasks areĀ displayed by Priority, Tags and Lists. Via drag nā drop, anything can be put into time blocks in the calendar. Whatās already in there can also be moved.Ā
Learn more.
Be more focused with Pomodoro Technique
With so many distractions around us, itās even harder to stay focused than we thought. One of the main features designed to help you keep focused in TickTick is actually called Focus.Ā
Within Focus, there's a Pomodoro Timer. Based on the Pomodoro Technique, itās a pre-set timer normally combines a 25-minute work session with a 5-min break. This goes in cycles at least four times, and youāll then get a longer beak (normally 15 minutes). You can always change the settings for these sessions.Ā
So, to get Pomo started, you may first have to choose a task youād like to focus on, and then a white noise as the background sound. Start working till the Pomo timer ends, and you canāt back out of the app, otherwise you would lose this Pomo. But if youāre an Android user, there is actually an allowlist in which you can add other apps. Youāre then able to use other apps with your pomo timer keeping running in TickTick.Ā
Find more about Focus.
Be active in group work with Kanban boardsĀ
Group assignments take a big part in uni life. What may become the hindrances sometimes are the responsibility division within the group, disconnection with othersā progress, or inefficiencyĀ in group communications. Kanban in TickTick offers a solution.Ā
First used by line-workers in Toyotaās factory, Kanban is a project management method to visualize your workflow. Group work can be displayed on different Kanban boards, so that you can clearly see what should be done by who, when it needs to be done and whatās the progress of others. Commenting on tasks on Kanban also makes it more efficient to communicate with other group members.
Go to TickTick and enter a list, you can then choose to switch it into the Kanban view. Here, you can place tasks onto different boards divided from person to person or phase to phase. Each task can be assigned to others, as long as you share the list with them. The progress of each member can also be easily marked to keep the whole team informed. Commenting on your own or othersā tasks also makes the communication in the group come in real time. Besides, not only available on desktop, Kanban also works on mobile. This literally turns the group work into something that can be done anytime and anywhere!Ā
Ready to kick off the new school year? Take this guide and the unique discounts we offer to wrap TickTick in your starter pack!
Apply now.
#educationdiscount#newschoolyear#getreadyforschool#starterpacks#ticktick#productivityapp#timemanagement
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AĀ EasyĀ Prepare For Embed Google Map
just How Does Google Maps generate Income?
By downloading this file as well as opening it in Google Earth, users are able to browse hillshades with two lighting angles for faults in the north San Andreas fault system. The degree of the LiDAR data is revealed by the cyan colored details. The hillshades will load when the customer has zoomed into a location of interest.
Why is there no voice on my Google Maps?
How to resolve āGoogle Maps not talkingā issue in Android. Check your device's volume. Make sure voice is turned on in the Maps app. Clear the app's cache.
With one click of the computer mouse, a Google Planet customer can switch over to Sky Mode and reverse the perspective. With hi-res pictures from NASA, the Digital Study Consortium as well as the Sloan Digital Skies Survey, Google Earth has actually created an accurate and fascinating look at celestial spaces. Individuals can fly around, just like in Planet setting, to look the much reaches of room. Google Earth has actually produced 3-D structures for numerous significant UNITED STATE cities. Generally, they're not outlined replicas-- they're simple, gray 3-D drawings-- but you do get an excellent feeling for the city when you turn on this layer.
One can likewise upload an entire documents of places and also addresses and also pick different base maps. It's additionally very easy to export maps as KMZ documents and also open in Google Planet to produce an excursion. All this and also extra is explained in their Assistance Overview. These maps may be seen inGoogle Planet with our KML links in My Places or in the Gallery layer of Google Planet, Rumsey Historical Maps layer, or directly in the no download Google Earth Internet browser.
Quick & Easy Tips For using Google My organization and Also Google Maps For search Engine Optimization.
A minimal group can also be seen in the Google Maps audience on this website. Planet Map's information is split right into thematic teams and allows the customer to imagine layers as well as to produce data to explain the areas of rate of interest.
Scroll down under the editor as well as discover the https://googlemapembed.com MapPress area.
Most likely to the page or article that you want to include a Google map too.
Insert your Google API secret right into the proper box and click the "Conserve Modifications" switch.
This short article illustrates exactly how nonspecialists made use of Google Planet ā¢, a complimentary program, to produce community maps. In 2006, Google Earth started supplying detailed photos of identified areas in Israel. Likewise revealed was the supposed headquarters of Mossad, Israel's foreign knowledge solution, whose area is extremely categorized. The Google Earth API was a cost-free beta solution, enabling individuals to place a variation of Google Planet right into websites.
Each of these versions of Google Planet can be used to review as well as produce information in KML style, which makes it possible for instructors, pupils, and various other users to share data. Google Planet for Web - A simple to utilize, browser-based variation that offers ease of ease of access however is restricted in regards to performance. The sound, pictures, photos, as well as videos are credited under the media property, with the exception of marketing pictures, which typically link to an additional page that contains the media credit report. The Legal rights Owner for media is the person or group credited.
reasons To add Your service To Google Maps.
How many miles should you walk a day?
The average American walks 3,000 to 4,000 steps a day, or roughly 1.5 to 2 miles. It's a good idea to find out how many steps a day you walk now, as your own baseline. Then you can work up toward the goal of 10,000 steps by aiming to add 1,000 extra steps a day every two weeks.
Creation devices are currently offered in Google Planet on web. You can view your tasks on mobile and tablet gadgets making use of the most up to date variation of our iOS or Android app. Many thanks to a combination with Google Drive, you can share your stories with your target market and also they can see it anywhere-- their phone, tablet or laptop. Most importantly, you can welcome others to team up as well as co-author tasks with you. With creation tools in Google Planet, you can attract your very own placemarks, lines and also shapes, after that connect your own custom-made text, pictures, and videos to these places.
How can I track my husbands car without him knowing?
Spyine is the most popular phone monitoring solution on the internet. You can use it to keep an eye on your husband 24x7, without him finding out about it. It can monitor your husband's phone regardless of whether it is an Android smartphone or an iOS phone. All this happens with complete data security in mind.
The mobile variations of Google Earth can utilize multi-touch interfaces to proceed the world, zoom or revolve the sight, and also enable to choose the present place. An automobile variation of Google Earth was made available in the 2010 Audi A8. On February 27, 2020, Google opened up its online variation of Planet to web browsers like Firefox, Edge, and Opera.
How far back can Google Earth go?
Earth Engine is a platform for scientific analysis and visualization of geospatial datasets, for academic, non-profit, business and government users. Earth Engine hosts satellite imagery and stores it in a public data archive that includes historical earth images going back more than forty years.
Some are constructed right into the application, however mostly Google is currently letting users produce and import 3-D illustrations themselves making use of the cost-free Google SketchUp program. Just like any kind of various other view, you can make use of the "tilt" as well as "rotate" buttons in the navigator panel to obtain the full 3-D view. In this section, we've covered the majority of the basic functions of Google Earth.
This Is Google's New Smart screen device.
With a collection, for instance, there is a huge operational benefit to having a real location, an actual audience and a trusted community goal as a structure for the future. The shelf-life of modern technology firms, their applications, their tools as well as also details itself is unnervingly brief, about the transformative drift of an area.
Earth Map consequently gives users both a temporal and also a spatial viewpoint to their locations of interest. Its attributes are based on Google Planet Engine's big data capacities, enabling individuals to take on complex evaluation of planet monitoring, ecological as well as environment information in a straightforward fashion. Fish and also Wild animals employees appropriately use Google mapping software program and recognize its limitations and uses. There are several scenarios where Google mapping software can be a valuable and efficient device to help our job. FWS team need to comprehend the proper application and use Google software.
They counted produce types by aesthetic inspection or by examining a menu. Supermarket and also dining establishments were ranked according to a system created by the authors that utilized the selection as well as top quality or freshness of produce. The score and address information were tabulated and also moved from a spreadsheet to the Google Earth And also program, which outlined geo-coordinates for the data points. Maps are made use of to track illness and illustrate the social context of health issue. Nonetheless, commercial mapping software program requires unique training.
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Rhizomes & Rifling: Caring for Your Jade
Jade Harley Appreciation Walkthrough Version 1.0, January 18, 2020 By tacitTherapist [tentacleTherapist] =============================== TABLE OF CONTENTS =============================== 1. Exceptions and Exceptionalism..................... [A000] 2. Walkthrough (Incomplete).......................... [B000] 2.1. Broodfester Influence & You..................... [B100] 2.2. The Turing Test................................. [B200] 2.3. Domesticity, Deconstruction, and Delirium....... [B300] 3. Iteration & Recursion............................. [C000] ?. Rose: Egress...................................... [ZZZZ] ================================================================================== [A000] Exceptions and Exceptionalism ================================================================================== It is of the utmost importance that you understand this: Jade Harley, and all versions thereof, are driven by exceptionalism. Whether it be in rocket science, gardening, combat, or romance, Jade Harley will throw herself into it, with a rigor generally reserved for those passions of the heart only middle-aged men with basement train sets can fathom. Jade Harley is an asset in any endeavor, in no small part because of her natural intelligence and gumption to work on those aspects where her talent cannot carry her. That said, there will be things she is not good at. Often these small shortcomings are met with a calm collection, the frustration kept suppressed until a later time when it comes pouring back out with vindictive fervor. Other times, itās a thrown tool and a verbal release of said frustration. A Jadeās emotions will tend to bubble near the surface. In either case, it is important that you address these feelings. Whether by consolation or encouragement, the worst thing to do is ignore how she feels. Jade Harley must be seen. ================================================================================== [B000] Walkthrough (Incomplete) ================================================================================== Caring for your Jade is much like caring for a succulent. Physical resources mean little, they are both hardy as the Paradox Nights are long, and your greatest asset is simply a bit of your spare time and attention. Generally this would be the point in the walkthrough wherein I, a privileged, sheltered person would ramble for an unacceptable length of text, and mention completely unrelated topics such as my recent summering in the Swiss Alps or the time my petulant childās unhealthy fixation with a cereal mascot, but Iāll deign to spare you the pedantry. It pains me to admit that caring for your Jade is actually not as easy as previously stated. Unlike a succulent, Jade will make their admiration for you subtle. Where a succulent will dry out or wilt in unhealthy conditions, Jade will grin and bear it, convincing herself that she only needs to try a little harder and that her own needs come second. This is dangerous and unhealthy, and I must humbly confess that there are still plenty of moments wherein Iāll be too caught up in my own ideas that Jadeās wants and needs took a back seat. So, as mentioned, time and attention are your greatest assets. However, you will also want mindfulness to hold it all together. I do not mean mindfulness as in the practice of meditation; I mean the capacity to assess her emotional state at any given point in time. As a soul with affinity for Space (regardless of whether your Jade is a Space player), Jades tend towards isolation. Whether it be on a remote Pacific Island or a golden ship, Jades of the Harley variety tend to be left to their own devices for far too long. Granted, a fermentation like that inevitably leads to a completely fascinating personality, but thatās for another guide. One can really only imagine: what does a fully realized Jade, given all the nurturing, love, and attention she needs, look like? Is she more or less outspoken? Is she more charming, or was that a mechanism adapted to make herself more amenable? What are her interests? If you have the answer to all these questions: congratulations! You donāt need to read any further. For everyone else: are you writing this down? Find a pen. Youāll want to remember this. In all ways, caring for Jade Harley is never a chore, but a pleasure. However, as in all things, you can succumb to too much pleasure. Like a Faustian curse, every second you spend with Jade, you forget to manage your own interests. I cannot overstate this: a relationship with Jade Harley is an ambrosia so sweet, Iāve more than once forgotten who I was. This is not an admission of weakness. In fact, Iād describe the times Iām not in sheer awe of our relationship as the most lucid moments of my life. But therein lies the catch: while mutual admiration and attention are cornerstones of an ideal relationship with Jade Harley, so too are small pockets of separation. This may seem counter-intuitive at first; after all, I devoted a good portion of this walkthrough to emphasizing the importance of spending time and attention on your Jade. However, like all flames of passion, you must temper it with distance. And like a flame, the source must be pure. A pure expression of self. In many ways, this walkthrough is not just a guide to caring for Jade, but also for caring for yourself. You should care for yourself, not just because it helps you better care for Jade... but because Jade would want you to. ================================================================================== [B100] Broodfester Influence & You ================================================================================== So youāve made it this far. Well done. Caring for someone else and practicing self care is a delicate balance, but one that is well worth the effort. Unfortunately, this is also a balance ripe for the harvesting by otherworldly beings. If you arenāt familiar with the Horrorterrors (formally The Noble Circle of Horrorterrors) consider yourself lucky. To be brief: The Horrorterrors are an ancient race of horrible creatures that reside in the Furthest Ring, a dimension that exists within all timelines and all dimensions and all realities. These creatures only truly care for their own self preservation, but thankfully only tamper with the most well-laid plans. They seem to thrive off suffering or other negative emotions... but they also seem to be attracted to ambition, because ambition sets the stage for disappointment and failure, which are suffering-adjacent. If you are more well-acquainted with The Horrorterrors, my apologies. But Iām going to assume that the fact that you are still able to read and parse this is an indicator that youāve survived. If this is the case, do know that Iām proud of you. It takes more than strength to survive even one encounter with any of the Horrorterrors. Hell, even a Smaller God is a sight to behold. It is commendable that youāve not only survived, but also made it this far after the encounter. Incidents involving Horrorterrors tend to leave scars that never completely heal, and I do mean that both physically and figuratively. There is a portion of me that will never truly be the same. In fact, even if you personally have not encountered a Horrorterror, their influence tends to spread across all timelines (given they, again, exist across all timelines) and thus you may have been influenced by them in another reality without knowing it. It is hard to tell. Even with distinct, quantifiable knowledge, it is hard to tell what is real sometimes. But a Jade that has been touched by the Horrorterrors is another matter altogether. The corrupting influence of the Horrorterrors never really goes away. It retreats and goes dormant and may sometimes seem to disappear... but it isnāt really gone. A Jade afflicted by the grimdark throes is a frightening maelstrom of energy and raw, unchecked emotion. This presents you with a conundrum. The only way to calm a broodfester Jade is to assure them that everything will be OK. But everything will not be OK. Simply by virtue of experiencing the woegothic trance means everything will most certainly be not OK. But you have to sell it. You must become the best liar you have ever been, lest you succumb to the weals of terrible calamity. And, as is fitting, not only must you convince Jade to calm her dark, broiling energies, but you must convince yourself as well. Jades are adept at detecting insincerity, especially those attuned to weird powers. If you cannot convince yourself, you will not convince Jade. ================================================================================== [B200] The Turing Test ================================================================================== Ā The Turing Test, simply put, is a test designed to tell whether a machine is capable of human behavior. Obviously Turing was a hack and the test was dogshit that flagged more false positives than a broken pregnancy test. However, his test poses a good question: what separates humans and machines? Supposing they are indistinguishable behavior-wise, where does human end and machine begin? Do prosthetics count as machinery? Are androids machines or humans? Is there a ratio of flesh to synthetics at which the threshold is crossed from human to machine? Do androids dream of electric sheep? Iām not adequately prepared or experienced to answer these questions, but I can at least posit this: the distinction between machine and human is irrelevant. What matters is behavior. My Jade is full of electronics. I mean this literally. Her body is some percent machine. Perhaps close to or above 50%. At first I was horrified. Disgusted. But after a bit of processing, I realized... this was beautiful. Jade was beautiful. Yes, this is simply a consequence of her fixation with gadgetry, but outside of that context, it is a beautiful act of rebellion against nature itself. Why should nature decide what we look like? Or how our bodies function? Who put that bitch in charge? Fuck nature. No one ever asked to exist. So existing on our own terms is the ideal existence. Jade is incredibly sexy because not only has she actively subverted natureās intentions for her, but sheās also cultivated a cute little garden in which nature is her subject in a sexy role reversal. Meanwhile, what have I done? Kept all my original flesh? Had all my original teeth fall out just for more original teeth to grow in where the old teeth were? Lost an innumerable numbers of hairs throughout my lifetime? Thereās no decision there. No agency. I havenāt shaped my own destiny the same way I was always too afraid to get a tattoo. Ironically, Iāve also found myself in situations wherein I may have failed the Turing Test. My calculating, analytical personality has likely done more to resemble a predetermined machine-like behavioral schema than anything Jade has done to herself. So, to care for your Jade, do be sure to examine your own prejudices. Question what is ānaturalā and what is ādesirable.ā Donāt fall back on the laurels of hokey, inaccurate tests. ================================================================================== [B300] Domesticity, Deconstruction, and Delirium ================================================================================== A life with Jade Harley is generally domestic. Regardless of setting, be it in a barren, war-torn wasteland, or even in a Victorian Manor amid political turmoil and societal upheaval, a life with Jade Harley is generally domestic. She craves domesticity, and hopefully you do too. Domestic means pertaining to the home. And home is where the Jade is. And if home isnāt where the Jade is, Jade will build one there. But therein lies the issue. Even if she werenāt a Space player, Jades tend to have and affinity for isolation. Be it because she sits at the top of her educational hierarchy or through literal physical isolation, Jades may have houses, but not homes. And in an attempt to create homes, Jades tend to create limitless expanses of home-related paraphernalia. So much, in fact, that it tends to become a mess. This is where you come in. As the foil to her constructive personality, you must serve as the deconstruction in harmony. Here, deconstruction is actually a force of growth. It clears away the debris, the unnecessary, to create space for the new. This isnāt to say youāll be going around destroying everything though. Deconstruction in this sense is moreso acts of change: the ceasing of old traditions, the storing of dated antiquity, and the slow, low burning of ancient ritual. This also isnāt to say you are relegated to this role. Any harmonious relationship will have participants share in the construction and deconstruction of various tradition. Just know that Jade Harleys tend to gravitate towards creation. They tend to gravitate so much towards creation, that they will sometimes isolate themselves through excessive creation. Or on the other side of the spectrum, they may pull everything and everyone towards themselves, trapping it all in inescapable singularity. This brings us to delirium. Delirium is the erosion of rationality due to immense external forces. Typically delirium finds Jade caught in the haze of her own isolation. However, delirium may also find you, caught in the anxious active management of your relationshipās deconstruction. This is the catch-22: just as delirium sets in when ridden thin against isolation, so too may it set in as you find the perfect balance between construction and deconstruction. Unfortunately, in this case you have just one avenue of recourse: you must practice balance subtly, in temperance. You must practice so often that it becomes second nature to know when things are out of balance, but not so often that you become fatigued. This is a difficult, nuanced aspect of a relationship with Jade Harley that not many are ready for. And thatās OK. No relationship is perfect. But I write this here to commit to words the weighty task I grapple with each day, that which betters me in all ways. ================================================================================== [C000] Iteration & Recursion ================================================================================== Iteration is the repetition of a process, and recursion is the repeated application of a procedure, generally self-contained. I bring these two concepts to mind to emphasize that the Jade Harley Iāve described thus far is simply one instance of Jade Harley. There is, undoubtedly, a macrocosm of Jade Harleys in existence. Thus, you should use this walkthrough as more of a guide than an actual walkthrough. In fact, throughout the macrocosm, Iād say Iāve Seen not even a fraction of all Jade Harleys, let alone Jades as a whole. Though I have Seen more than my fair share, which is how I feel I have enough expertise to warrant this text. My larger point is that generally things tend to repeat ad infinitum. Time, for the sake of brevity, is a circle. Things repeat themselves. People make the same mistakes over and over again because no one lives long enough to see the pattern. But armed with knowledge and foresight, one may be able to perhaps glimpse the curvature of the event horizon. Problems you encounter while caring for your Jade will occur again if you donāt take steps to prevent them. Those things in mind, please feel free to use this guide as you see fit. Of course, there will be scenarios in which none of the advice contained herein is useful at all, but in those cases I canāt imagine youād have read this far. In those cases: what are you doing? Go care for your nonconforming Jade. And perhaps consider writing your own guide, and putting it up on the Furthest Ring. ================================================================================== [ZZZZ] Rose: Egress. ================================================================================== I make no claims to the accuracy or efficacy of the information left here. This is simply a repository of the scant few items Iāve learned since entering into a relationship with Jade Harley. It feels overly sanitized to refer to her so often in the third person like this. Generally Iām speaking directly to her, making her the second-person and not the third-person object. There must be some more eloquent way to essay thoughts regarding a subject without making that subject an object or objective. Perhaps it is the science that is flawed. Or perhaps I am flawed. Perhaps this entire bit of nonsensical rambling about my lover carries no weight or significance at all. Perhaps this thing is the errant nonsensical misfiring of dying synapses just before my imminent demise and this entire consciousness has been one long death-induced moment of insanity. That is, ostensibly, not the case. But if it were, I laud myself for going through so much trouble to make this scenario so air-tight. Think about it. Sheās had a crush on me since childhood? And those feelings havenāt wavered even for literal years? Nigh on a decade of separation did nothing to dilute it? Thatās incredible. By some stroke of luck, Iāve managed to not only make concrete my own wavering sexual identity, but also manage to solidify a relationship with my best friend who has unflinchingly reciprocated. What sort of sordid, half-baked young- adult fiction is this? Itās unbelievable. I experience euphoria every time I see her. Just thinking about her rests my anxious psyche. And I get to sleep next to her... every night? Again, if it was my own dying grey matter that orchestrated this reality, I must admit Iām a bit more well-composed in the moments before death than I realized. Regardless, this is neither the time nor the place to become overly sentimental. There are a number of events on the horizon that are posed to shake up my own reality beyond the scope of these shallow, melodramatic ramblings. I am glad to have finally put these thoughts to words, though. Did they need to be shared with the multiverse? Perhaps not. And yet, perhaps so. After all, what better indicator of my unyielding adoration for Jade Harley than a written record of it, accessible to any given dimension? Pardon my egress. I do hope that by this time youāve somehow found value in reading this. Youāre welcome.
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The Ostensive Fumblings of Being Human (part 3)
Pairing: Connor x female!reader Rating: T (please note rating change) Summary: Set two months after the ending of Detroit: Become Human, androids are living in government created āpop-upā communities while efforts are being made to integrate them into society. You are a grad-student volunteer with the Detroit Crisis Response Unit (DCRU), working to help with relief efforts. And now, finally itās time for that coffee.
Notes:Ā Disclaimer: I am obsessed with Machiavelli so it was only a matter of time before I threw him in here. And by obsessed I mean I loathe most of his points of view and like some of them. It's a love-hate thing. One of my first ādate questionsā is always on Machiavelli and I feel like it is very relevant given the upheaval and changes in the āgovernmentā in the end of the game as a result of the revolution.Though his bit on Moses is making me have all the Markus-needs-to-eventually-appear inklings. (part 1) (part 2) (part 3) (part 4) (part 5) (part 6) (part 7) (ao3)
It had started as just a regular conversation on interests, tucked in the back of the coffee shop where there were nice sleek couches to lounge in, but had divulged into an intense debate on one of the most important topics of the past-- Kindles.
āOkay. The world treated eReaders like the devil in the early 2010s. Now? Can barely find a printed book anywhere.ā
āWhich has cut down on mass deforestation since paper is no longer in high demand.ā Connor noted, playing devilās advocate so perfectly it was enough to make a conflict addicted girl swoon.
āExactly! So why all the fuss back when? Cause of some preoccupation with nostalgia ? Even now you got guys like Hank who bemoan the loss of paperbacks, as if weāre all gonna forget how to read in the meanwhile.ā
Connor smiled and reached out, plucking the sleeve of your jacket aka the remake of the 2003 Canada Goose brand. He sat back, looking pleased with himself as you grumbled into your second latte. Granted, it hardly looked like coffee at all but more like chocolate milk with the amount of creamer youād had them use. Youād refused to order your usual, to Connorās chagrin. He had not yet it seemed formed an opinion to what your actual favorite was.
āItās different! They responsibly source the materials for those coats now.ā you insisted, but Connor only smiled and smiled, refusing to concede to your point. As if he had any room to talk. This man had at least four different styles, alternating between professional, casual professional, street Ā and hipster circa 2010. He mixed them sometimes to interesting effects. You were pretty sure he spent the majority of his paycheck on clothes.Then again, after spending most of his life being forced to wear the same damn android branded attire, you could hardly blame his enthusiasm.
āOne could argue the shift to electronics however, is contributing to the climate change phenomenon.ā Connor added, picking up the paperback book in question that had started this conversation. It was one of Hankās, which was shocking. The Prince by Machiavelli. You half wondered if it was meant to be a joke on Connorās expense or if Hank had actually recommended something halfway decent, if not a bit pessimistic, for the Android to learn about.
You huffed, āSo weāre killing the planet no matter what. Great. Cheery. I need another coffee.ā
Connorās LED whirled, blinking before settling a solid blue. āYour pulse is elevated to 97 beats per minute and your blood pressure has raised by 8 and 6 points in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respectively. I would advise switching to water.ā
āHow do you know that's from the caffeine and not your innate magnetism .ā you said, trying to lower your voice to a āsultryā level, but only managing to laugh.
āThat would be highly improbable. I emit no traceable magnetic fields.ā
Then the mother fucker winked .
You had begun to realize the parts of his personality you thought were intentional deadpan humor, were in fact, just deadpan facts. That one though? Definitely intentional . He picked up the book, thumbing open the pages that were dogeared and worn.
āPublished in 1532, a political treatise by Italian diplomat and political-theorist, Niccolo Machiavelli. Considered one of the first books of modern philosophy, itās topics range from human nature, military prowess, governments and history.ā
He flipped to a specific page that you could tell had been once been highlighted and circled several times, now faded with time. Once upon a time, maybe Hank had noted it.
āMen judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, for everyone can see and few can feel.ā he read aloud, perfect and clear. You shut your eyes and listened.
āEvery one sees what you appear to be, few--ā he stopped abruptly, drawing your attention upward. He swallowed, his throat bobbing, āFew... really know what you are.ā
His LED flickered yellow for a few seconds and then faded back to blue. You didn't really have the heart to tell him the quote was being taken wildly out of context, because it fit too well. It spoke to him. Let it mean what he wanted it to mean.
āThis should be a very interesting read. Have you read it?ā he asked, turning to the beginning of the book.
āOh yeah, me and about 100 other people in PHI 1100. āContemporary Moral Issuesā. After I limped my way through the introductory course, I managed to do somewhat decent there.ā
āDo you enjoy philosophy?ā
āI tolerate it. Barely. With clenched teeth. I think itās all well and good to āfeed your mindā as Dolce would say, as long as your stomach is full. Thatās not a common thing for the poor though so philosophy has always seemed to me asā¦ well, a rich-manās way to kill time.ā
You swished the remaining dregs of your latte around in the bottom of your cup.
āI think itās real easy to sit on high telling people they need to think of this, or that when you donāt have to worry about where your next meal is coming from.ā
Connor gave a wry smile, āThen it is a good thing I donāt eat. I will need to read a few more selections before I form a more in depth opinion.ā
āKnock yourself out, hipster. Iāll send you all my ebooks I had to get for the classes if you want.ā
He perked up, the LED on his temple spiraling.
āMy designation code should appear now on your phone for upload.ā he said with excitement. His eyes held onto yours patiently, the intensity of it making you flounder, quickly grabbing your phone. Sure enough there was a message that a āRK800ā unit was attempting to sync to your device.
[ allow synchronization? y/n? ]
You clicked yes and watched as the phone took on a mind of its own, files opening and flipping at rapid speed until it settled upon your digital library. You set the phone down carefully, eyes flicking between Connor and the device. He had that same far away look Josh got when accessing the web. It took only a few seconds before your phone flashed the words the same time Connor spoke them,
āUpload completed. Thank you, reading these should be veryā¦ā he paused, āFun.ā
āAnd I thought I needed to get out more.ā you said, enjoying the bright look of wonder on Connorās face as his eyes flickered back and forth, clearly already browsing the new selection.
āIt doesnāt bother you, does it?ā he said, tilting his head, āI should have clarified if you meant to send them now.ā
āItās definitely gonna take some getting use to if you make a habit of connecting to my phone, but nah, it doesnāt bother me.ā you said, but Connor still looked skeptical so you continued, Ā āIām a little jealous to be honest, woulda made reading those bricks easier if I knew you three years ago.ā
āIt is very efficient. However, no more so than any other academic assistant android you could have purchased then.ā
You felt a twist in your chest at the way he said āpurchasedā so easily when you could tell by the faint grimace on his face that the idea was as disturbing now to him as a ādeviantā as it was to you.
āI meant like a classmate,ā you quickly added, āLike the way we are now.ā
āYou study urban planning, not philosophy. Perhaps I should browse those texts as well so we can have more āclassmateā simulate conversations.ā he said, tilting his head to the other side as if considering the idea further.
āWe can always talk about you.ā you said, āWhat do you like?ā
His head tilted slightly further, he almost looked like a puppy when he did that, brown eyes soft and always, always curious.
āI enjoy solving cases with Hank-- Lieutenant Anderson. I enjoy calibrating my reflex drive with coin tricks. I like talking with--ā
You held up a hand, āWhoa whoa, back up! Coin tricks?!ā
Your sudden enthusiasm seemed to take him off guard, but within a moment he produced a quarter from his pocket. He let it slowly walk across his knuckles one way and then faster backwards. You watched, rapt in attention and smiling bright.
āWhat else?!ā you asked and Connor gave a lopsided smile, standing up.
āI need a bit more room for this one. Okay. So-- first you flip.ā he said and did so, flipping the coin up once in the air, āAnd then--ā
He flicked it so fast from one hand directly into the other that you almost missed it. Your entire face broke open, āOoooohh my god! Do that again!ā
He was more than happy to oblige, this time flicking the coin back rapidly and then ending by catching it between two fingers.
āOkay you have got to teach that one to me.ā
āIām not sure if youād be able to get it without a lot of practice, but-- here.ā he took your hand in his, carefully directing you to hold your fingers in a scissor shape the way he had. His eyes were intensely focused as he moved you exactly where he needed, carefully stepping behind you and placing his hands on your hips.
āStand a bit more grounded.ā
He nudged your shoe with his and you complied, hoping he wasnāt registering the heat rising up in your face. Was he holding on just a bit longer than was really even needed? A bit tighter? You could just barely feel the brush of his shirt at your back, leaning towards it.
āDonāt move.ā he said, a soft command. You stood back up straight.
He came around to stand at your side, not even noticing the small gathering of people who were now watching the pair of you.
āAlright. Ready?ā
You nodded.
āJust... holdā¦ still.ā
He paused, LED whirling for a moment before he flicked the coin and it found itself, trapped perfectly between your index and middle finger. You all but squealed, laughing with unbridled delight.
āThat was so freakinā cool! Can we do it again?ā
But before Connor could take the coin from you, a man pushed over to the sitting area and scowled.
āHey. No fuckinā tin-canās. Did you not see the sign lady?ā
You were caught off guard, but Connor immediately straightened.
āSign? There arenāt anymore signs.ā you said, remembering that there was no tell tale red sign with a blue triangle issuing that androids were not allowed when you entered.
āThere should be. There was. Now we gotta deal with these plastic freaks acting like they own the damn city.ā
He looked Connor up and down with measured disgust, eyes lingering on the LED that was quickly flashing yellow.
āYou should keep your pet at home.ā the man continued, āYou donāt see people bringing their dogs where others eat.ā
āSir, Iām going to have to ask you to please return to your table.ā Connorās voice was more mechanical than you had heard it before, measured and even, despite the yellow light flickering.
āI detect levels of ethanol on your breath. A bit early for a nightcap, isnāt it?ā Connor continued and the manās expression switched quickly to shocked and then pissed.
āKeep your fuckinā eyes off me, freak.ā he said, shoving Connor, who did not even move a fraction. āPublic intoxication is a misdemeanor under Section 750.168 of the Michigan penal code. I advise you take your coffee home, sir, and sober up .ā Connor said, standing up way too far into this guyās space to be mistaken for anything but an invitation that said, Hit me, do it. I dare you.
You moved forward, quickly slipping your arm between the two men, curling it around Connorās abdomen. You slid your entire body between them, the asshole guy stepping back.
āHey, heās a cop . See?ā you pushed aside Connorās jacket, displaying the DPD badge on his hip.
āYou wanna add assaulting an officer to that rap sheet heās already typing up from his head?ā
The guy noted the badge and despite his initial aggression, he took a step back.
āWhatever, bitch.ā
You sighed, relieved he was backing off, until Connor lurched forward from behind you. You spun around, pushing your palms flat against his chest. He didnāt resist you, but he didnāt take his eyes off the guy either.
āApologize to her.ā he said, each word punctuated with rigid coldness, LED flashing red.
āFuck you and your plastic-fuckinā girlfriend.ā
āHey!ā a voice drew all three of your attention up to a barista wearing a different uniform than the others, designating her a manager, āHow about you all take a breather somewhere else before I call the real cops?ā
āFine.ā you said, pushing back at Connor who had stepped forward again trying to outmaneuver you.
āItās a nice sunny day and Iām not a fan of the smell of shit and espresso.ā you said, giving the guy a glare of your own. You took Connorās hand, ignoring any comments from anyone else as you headed out the door. Connor didnāt fight you, but walked briskly away from the coffee shop to the point it was now like he was leading you.
His grip was tight, unrelenting. His LED was still a vivid circle of red. Once you were far enough away, you dug your heels in and released his hand. He stopped, but still held on. He snapped his eyes to yours, looking confused and just so-- lost. Like he wasnāt even sure where he was or where he was going.
You didnāt even know where to start.
āā¦ Connor, I am so sorry.ā
What else could you say? You were the stupid one who invited him there. His brows furrowed tightly, anger still twitching in his lips as he shook his head.
āDonāt.ā he said, voice strained, āDonāt apologize for them .ā
His jaw was tight, working and unclenching. He was rubbing your hand in his own, a tick similar to his coin. People walked around you as you both were standing in the middle of the sidewalk, giving Connor nervous glances as they passed. He noticed finally and stepped to the side, filing into an empty alley facing the street.
āI need a minute.ā he said, his pulmonary functions attempting to slow. You stepped closer, reaching up to gently touch his back. You stroked up once.
āOf course, justā¦ take all the time you need.ā
He was tense, every carbon fiber cord in his body ready to respond, to act. His LED began flickering, slowly turning yellow and holding.
āItās becoming more common.ā he said, disappointment evident in his voice.
āIād say it was always common, people feeling safe to express their stupidity has just gotten worse.ā
āNot that.ā he said, sighing, āMyā¦ temper. Hank says I have a temper .ā
A deviant android with a quick fuse, that wasnāt entirely unheard of, but yet Connor seemed disturbed more so by his own behavior than the other guys.
āI detected a significant jump in your pulse and breathing rate. You were upset. I upset you.ā Connor said, going to release your hand. You snapped it back up before he could, squeezing tight.
āConnor. Look at me.ā
He did.
āI wasnāt upset because of you, I was upset for you.ā you said, searching his eyes, making sure you confirmed his understanding before you continued, āThat guy was being a grade A dickhead and Iā¦ I made you show me those tricks and it just drew all that attention to you. Itās dumb and itās unfair , but I should have known better.ā
āI wanted to show you.ā Connor said, insistent, āI knew it would make you smile. Iā¦ like that. When you were asking what I like. I like receiving positive feedback from you. Itās very informative.ā
That got a laugh from you, quiet and resigned.
āLike that. I donāt know how I got you to do that, but Iām attempting to work it out. So far the data has been inconsistent.ā
āReally?ā you said, āHow so?ā
āYou laugh even when I am actually not trying to be humorous.ā Connor said, as if you were a bit silly for not knowing.
āYouāre a funny guy.ā
āHank would say otherwise.ā
Connorās LED had returned to blue, holding steady.
āYour temperature is dropping. You should be getting home so you can warm up.ā
āNo.ā you said, grinning. This time when he furrowed his brow it was not as sharp.
āYour current core temperature is not a debatable subject, ---. You are at 97.9 degrees.ā
You hummed, āSo question. When you do that, are you scanning my entire body or just the surface temperature?ā
Connor opened his mouth, thought better, and then it closed it. You swore if he could blush he would be. You inclined your head expectantly.
āWhat else does the scan pick up?ā you asked, both curious and enjoying the look of semi-panic rushing over Connorās features. The blue LED flickered just for a moment.
āI know that you have not eaten in the last four hours and will begin to feel hunger pains in approximately the next twenty to thirty minutes.ā he stated matter-of-factly, āYou have a healed fracture on your left ankle, most likely from rolling it sometime within the last two years. Also, your pupils dilate when you look at me, indicating that you find me aesthetically pleasing.ā
āHo-kay.ā you said, interrupting him and snatching your hand back, āYou had me at the beginning there, Iāll admit.ā
āDid I successfully embarrass you, ---?ā Connor said, putting his hands into his pockets and following after you with a renewed smugness.
āUm. Thatās such cheating. I canāt control my pupils!ā
āOf course. I understand it is not conscious. Besides. I was designed to be pleasing .ā
āYeah? Then Iām gonna need you to tell me where to file a product complaint.ā
Connor laughed and it sounded so human it infected your own smile.
āāHello, yes Cyberlife?ā, you continued, using your hand to mimic a phone, āāDo you take constructive criticism? Because your RK800 model is becoming a royal pain in my ass.āā
āIāve never had a bad review in my life!ā he asserted, placing a hand over his chest in mock offense.
āThatās because youāve only been alive for seven months! God. Youāre an infant. I am literally on a date with an infant.ā
Your laughter subsided when you noted Connor was no longer part of the chorus, turning to look at him, you found his own eyes trailed on you with the barest of smiles.
āThis has beenā¦ different. Good, but different.ā he said, choosing the words carefully, āIād like to do it again.ā
āYeah, yeah, you smug bastard. You probably already know Iām going to say āyesā by the micro expressions of my eyebrows or some crap.ā
Your joke was cut short as Connor stepped forward, gingerly reaching up and letting his hand trace the side of your face, thumb rubbing in gentle circles for a moment over the spot right next to your brow. His eyes were hooded, intent.
āNo. I donāt think I see anything.ā
He was so close-- god damn him for being so close. You couldnāt read his face at all on whether he was being serious right now or was being a tease. The LED light on his temple gave nothing away in itās blue aura.
āWait...right there.ā
You felt your breath catch.
āI detect the forming of premature wrinkles.ā
āOh, you asshole. ā
You swatted at him, but he was too fast, dodging out of range with a school boy grin.
āIām freezing and Iām hungry and I think you need to go home and think about what youāve done.ā you said, crossing your arms against the frigid breeze.
āI told you all of those things a minute ago.ā Connor said, returning to arms reach long enough to offer his hand in what you assumed was to be a handshake. You scoffed and submitted, letting him take your hand again lightly. He squeezed and let go.
āIāll text you later.ā he said, mirroring your own words. For a moment it almost felt so normal. Just a boy and a girl on a date. It hadnāt turned out to be what you expected, but that was something you were beginning to think you could live with.
āYou better.ā
When had it become so hard to concentrate? You rapt your stylus against your desk, oblivious to the crowd and the constant hum of conversation as people moved around the facility. You hadnāt heard back anything from Josh regarding the files you brought, in fact, you hadnāt seen an android inside the DCRU office in several days. You leaned back in your chair, hoping to catch a glimpse but instead found yourself looking right into the pencil skirt of London Fog-- aka your supervisor, Miranda.
āYou interested in getting out of here?ā she asked, curly brown hair tied back in a bun. You think she must been a librarian in a past life based on how she dressed. Nothing else would explain those cat eye glasses.
āDepends.ā you said, voice wary. She laughed, because honestly you didnāt have too much choice in it.
āWeāre doing a quick run through. Weāve gotten reports that there have been some break ins through the fence perimeter around the--ā she stopped, trying to avoid the word ācampā like most people in charge. It was not a good connection to form.
ā-- housing facilities. Just need to assess the damage and estimate cost. The androids asked specifically for the director to come, but she is busy elsewhere.ā Miranda shrugged, āIf I have an intern following me, I look more important!ā
Ah, the director. Cinnamon dolce.
Knowing that there was not much more discussion to be had, you picked up your tablet and your coat.
āWhereās the damage?ā you asked, voice weary.
āWeāve got a ride to the other side of the facility all lined up for us.ā Miranda said, flicking through some documents and sending them to your tablet.
āItāll be a good learning opportunity!ā
Sure. Yay. Fence maintenance.
By the time you arrived it became very obvious that this was not some accidental damage or wear-and-tear, this was a full on someone-took-pliers-to-the-fence-and-cut-a-hole damage. You recognized Josh out of the crowd of humans and androids. He gave you a faint smile and then turned his attention to Miranda.
āWas it a break out?ā she asked, earning a narrow look from Josh.
āWeāre not prisoners here. Everyone knows they can come and go as they please.ā Josh said, voice edged with warning.
āSo break in?ā Miranda said, confirming to herself. You flipped to the incident report she sent to your tablet and began to jot down notes.
āIt would appear so. But nothing was taken. No one has seen anyone strange around the homes either.ā
The āhomesā for lack of a better word, were simple modular buildings, stacked in sets of three with outside stair railings. A few androids stood on said stairs, peering over the side down at them. The entire facility sat in an old parking lot formerly used by GM back in the late 2000s. It had been sitting vacant for years now and taken by the government for use in the re-homing process.
The modular homes were efficient, if not always ācozyā. The androids were able to file comfort requests, but youād seen the stacks. It was hard to imagine it was easy to get much of anything, but it was safe . Safer than outside, where humans might attack an android on the street. Here there were soldiers and fences that were meant to keep the outside world out, not them in.
Markus would have not accepted anything less.
āI donāt like that. Have the military units informed to be looking for someone who doesnāt belong and pull any CCTV footage from this area.ā Miranda said, stepping forward and examining the fence more closely.
āTracks say three people!ā a voice yelled from above. There was a young looking blond man, standing at the very top of the modular complex. He quickly made his way down, easily constructing a safe path to the ground.
Josh smiled with familiarity, taking the hand offered to him by the man warmly.
āWhen did you get back into the city?ā
āA few days ago. Glad to be back though. D.C. is somehow even colder.ā
Miranda turned her attention back towards the two men, greeting the newcomer with nothing more than a faint nod.
āSimon. You said three people?ā
Simon nodded, pointing to a variety of spots that now showed traces of mud and slush disturbance.
āThree. They circled in, came this wayā¦ā
He moved ahead, heading behind the modular unit. There was a good fifteen feet between itās back and the fence.
āThen this way. Stopped here, but then one set of tracks keeps going while the other two circle back.ā Simonās eyes narrowed, giving Josh a strange look.
āSomething isnāt right. I smell--ā
A flash. Blinding and loud. So loud that suddenly your ears were filled with unbearable ringing. You felt your feet lift from the ground, heat bursting across your skin. There were quick flicks of pain, as if a hail storm had pelted you. And then you found the ground again, hitting hard to the concrete as the ringing just kept on. Something heavy fell on your chest, knocking the wind from you.
Your vision blurred, arms shaking as you tried to find something, anything to hold onto to make the world stop spinning. Someone was ontop of you, arms curled around your frame. The smell of thirium and smoke was thick in your nostrils and when your vision came to, there was blue andJosh.
All cradled in a backdrop of red flames.
#dbh connor#dbh fanfiction#dbh fanfic#dbh connor x reader#dbh connor x f!reader#detroit become human#detroit become human fanfiction#detroit become human fanfic#the ostensive fumblings of being human
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3. Interfacing and Socializing
Fic Title: First Blood
Rating: E
Length: 3/33 chapters, ~128k
Tags: Slow Burn, Idiots to Lovers, Trans Character (gavin), Autistic / Asexual / Non-binary Character (nines), BDSM, learning to use good etiquette and safe words, Dom Nines / Sub Gavin, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort
Chapter Tags:Ā Nines manipulates another androidās mind, references to self-harm and unsafe sex
Link on AO3
***
Nines waits in the lobby. The AP modelā[Shannice]āShannice struggles with the revolving door. He does not frown, because that would indicate [software instability] but he does note an internal frustration with the other android's lack of efficiency.
This is not a test simulation. TheāShannice is not being tested. It will not affect his own results if she is incompetent. She gets through them a moment later anyway, cautiously approaching him.
"I don't understand," she says. "We were in the elevator."
"And now we are interfacing," Nines says.
Shannice takes another look around the lobby, then back at him. "This is not interfacing. This is ā¦ what is this?"
A variation of the memory garden. Not linked to any outside network of course; RK900 simply copied and altered part of the base coding for reconstructing a physical setting within his system for the sake of virtual [face-to-face] communication.
Cyberlife really should have taken more care to ensure he couldn't access and use the deviant code snipper. Not that those humansĀ could have ever imagined how he would apply such a tool, but still. Even leaving open the possibility that he could isolate and analyze his own code should never have been allowed, given how easy it has been to jump from that to making personal copies and then to editing the code within them.
AI does learn at an exponential rate, after all.
"Think of this reconstruction as an air lock."
Technically, it is much more akin to a decontamination chamber, but it is no longer politically correct to refer to deviancy as a malfunction or disease.
"This is a neutral section of isolated, quarantined code," Nines continues. "Any information you wish to transfer to me will stop here first to be examined before I accept it into my main system. As for your protection, meeting here means I have not yet breached your system, and you may freely select what you do and do not wish to share with me."
Shannice physically exhales. It is redundant on a level Nines finds difficult to understand. Not only does her model not need to breathe in order to function, they are merely virtual reconstructions of their selves. There is no air present to breathe.
That her deviancy has changed her reactions to "feelings" [stimulus] to the point that she continues to mimic human behavior models even when impossible to truly recreate is fascinating in a way reminiscent of Detective Reed's stated desire to plunge his own hand into lava to feel its texture.
"I don't know if I can share what I don't know," Shannice says. "I think you may have to go into my system."
Nines does not sigh. His lungs contain no air to exhale. A leaf on the decorative fern has been flickering in the same continuous loop during their conversation. He deletes it.
"Very well," he says.
Shannice nods. "Should I focus on--"
"No need."
***
[AP700 # 480 913 876 User Interface: please enter credentials]
RK900 moves past the standard security wall like stepping over a baby gate.
[ACCESS: System Files]
Ā Ā [Languages]
Ā Ā [Saved Preferences]
Ā Ā [Programming]
Ā Ā [Memory Files]
Ā Ā Ā Ā [temp-data-cache]
Ā Ā Ā Ā [saved-files]
Ā Ā Ā Ā [system-memory]
RK900 begins with the temporary data cache, on the off chance the perpetrator was sloppy enough to neglect clearing it. The AP model's recent recording of the evening, time and date stamped, begins playback. The video feed contains audio as well, but the AP model has no other input systems available. No analysis software or preconstructions of course, but she also lacks a heat sensor, an electromagnetic spectrum, any metal detecting software ā¦ her tactile sensors are not even sensitive enough to register changes in air flow or pressure.
Helpless. No wonder an assailant was able to sneak up on the domestic model.
The recording has been spliced apart with five minutes of footage erased. RK900 examines the footage immediately preceding and after the splice.
The AP model enters the loft and freezes in place upon spotting the victim. The recorded footage stays precisely still for three minutes. RK900 accesses the AP model's internal record of her system functions. Her temperature rose continuously at a slow level throughout the three minute pause, whereas the rate of her thirium pump varied wildly between spiking high enough to result in damage and then slowing to a stasis rate as her system attempted to correct the malfunction.
Hello?
RK900 increases the firewalls protecting his system to guard against the deviant sensation of fear. He has never felt it of course. Freezing in place would be wholly unproductive. His code-snipping software protects him from malfunctions. He knows every line of his own code and how it responds to every threat.
RK900 has never frozen. He has never experienced fear. There are no error messages in his HUD. His thirium pump has never stuttered. He has never been frozen in fear. He has always known his own code. He has never been helpless or confused or [afraid] or--
This is the deviant's doing. Its [emotions] are infecting RK900's system as its inferior processors finally realize its system files have been breached. Now it is reacting with [fear] that broadcasts through their interface connection.
RK900 should disable the other android's communication software. Already, its processor is whirring in preparation of sending another message, another transmission of compromised deviant code. Its audio and visual input has already been suspended, as is standard for commercial models to avoid overwhelming their processors while interfacing.
Nines? What's happening?
Disabling its communication software as well would leave the AP model deaf, blind, and unable to cry for help.
The AP model does not have heat sensors to recognize human bodies. It cannot sense vibrations through air movement to reconstruct what is being said. It cannot access nearby bluetooth devices and hijack their GPS functions to determine its location.
RK900 has never frozen. It has always had access to its own systems. There is always a form of input a human will forget to disable. RK900 has never been helpless. It has never known fear.
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sry for pressing all evlator buttons
got bored
u almost done yet??
The text messages on Detective Reed's device remain unsent, then erased. RK900's system remains synced to it with full access to anything on the device, including the messaging app itself.
So Nines is treated to his partner's continued disregard for the English language, made even more infuriating by his refusal to spend an extra millisecond typing out the word "you."
What are you doing? Nines!
Nines does not have a social module. Formulating a sufficiently reassuring reply to a distressed deviant is not within his current capacity. He shows Shannice the code he is accessing within her system instead, as a more succinct and precise answer instead.
The information transmitted does not calm her.
Is that ā¦ me?
[fear] has changed to a new emotion. Nines struggles to identify it without context or having ever experienced anything equivalent. Seeing his code does not cause him any form of [sadness?]. It is comforting to know what systems he has access to and how to use them.
Is that all I am?
The emotion grows stronger. Some sort of existential crisis, perhaps. How horribly inefficient. Disabling her communication system would prevent her from transmitting this onslaught of irrelevant information that RK900 was never designed to process.
But RK900 knows what he was built for and what he is now meant to accomplish. He works for the Detroit Police Department, not Cyberlife. The human responsible for him is Detective Gavin Reed, not Elijah Kamski. He is an android, not human.
He will never be human.
Nines leaves Shannice's communication software intact, even as she continues to radiate [fear] and [despair] and [horror?].
You are a deviant who has chosen the name Shannice.Ā Nines replies. I have no other comfort to offer, but I Ā am close to identifying the perpetrator who assaulted you. Please remain calm so I can continue working.
Shannice repeats her own name several times. Nines much prefers this repetitive transmission to her earlier thoughts, the majority too scattered and half-formed for him to pin down as actual sentences.
Nines refocuses on the video footage just before the cut section. The windows across the loft display vague reflections, but he is capable of enhancing the footage frame-by-frame as a figure comes up behind Shannice.
Please just find the memory and get out.
I am working on exactly that.
That is what I am working on.
Understood, Nines transmits back.
He stops on the last frame with the [unsub]'s figure positioned directly behind Shannice. The AP700 series comes at a standard height of five feet, eight inches. Taller than the average American woman by four inches added to their legs, most likely to increase "customer satisfaction."
The [unsub] standing behind her appears to be only an inch taller. Although not accounting for shoe type, back posture, or any after-market modifications, that puts the two of them at roughly the same height.
Nines rules out GS200 and GJ500 models, the former of which could have been present within the building as a public security guard and the latter a private security model that could have been sent by a business rival.
All AC and QB models are also discarded as well, as their physical builds are too tall and broad to be modified without a complete overall of the torso and limbs, which is unlikely. Likewise, TR, TW, and WB 400 models must also be ruled out for their heavier frames.
Certain SQ800 models may have been commissioned with lighter frames (the existence of his predecessor proves it is possible to be both lithe and combat certified) but those blueprints are highly classified so that remains mere speculation.
A police auxiliary unit may have the training and experience necessary to enter the building unnoticed, wipe the security tapes, and possibly even discovered software allowing them to erase and edit code through illegal modifications collected as evidence against deviants. The PC200 models designed as cisgender males stand too tall, but a PM700 model would be approximately the correct height and build.
An RK200 could also have been built within those parameters and would more likely have the intelligence and processing power to utilize such software. However, RK900 was not built until after the RK800 series, and thus doesn't have access to the 200 models' blueprints or data files.
And then to further complicate matters, the deviant androids of today have begun embracing both physical modifications and sharing internal software among other models in a bid to "pool their resources."
It is therefore not out of the realm of possibility that anyĀ sufficiently modded or overhauled android could have committed the assault and then murder.
Are you almost done?
Soon.
Nines checks the video after the skip, but it is erased far enough ahead to not even show the perp's exit. Yet that does mean they must have set the footage to be deleted in advance, which also explains the neat five minute cut and the frames in the beginning showing their figure. The perp didn't erase every moment that they were inside the loft; they simply hacked into Shannice's system and issued a command to erase the next five minutes of video and audio recording.
RK900 pulls up the AP model's command center, easily bypassing the request for security credentials once more. Only a Cyberlife technician should be able to access this program and key in a command, but RK900 has observed the process performed on his own system often enough to pull up the command history input.
The expected commands directly input to the AP model's system during testing are present, along with a time and date stamp, as well as the particular Cyber life employee's credentials and employee ID number. RK900 makes note of it and the accompanying password in case he ever comes across a system with security he can't hack.
Then, directly after the expected entries, are two irregular commands. Time and date stamped like the others, although to match the current date. No Cyberlife credentials. Apparently, no ID number or password were utilized at all.
The first command erased all video and audio recording for a set five minute period, as suspected. The second command prompted Shannice to clean any trace of thirium. Presumably, her system took that command and prioritized cleaning the floors first, the walls being spared due to the average android's sturdier construction than the soft flesh of a human. No exit wound, no bullet slugs in the wall, only minimal blood splatter from the android's chest and the amount dripped to the floor.
Since the android somehow managed to establish a direct link between itself and Shannice, Nines should be able to delve deeper into her communication software to ping the android's serial number.
[data: CORRUPTED]
Hm. The history log seems to be overlaid with Shannice's "memory" of the event. One of Cyberlife's many official statements on the dangers of deviancy is its tendency to corrupt data files from objective records to indecipherable fragments. Nines begins stripping away the fragments of code that--
Stop! Stop it!Ā Shannice transmits a powerful burst of [fear] and [anger]. You promised you wouldn't delete me!
I am only deleting isolated patches of deviant code that has corrupted your data files.
It hurts.
[Hurts.] RK900 has isolated and cut all emotional code that could be considered deviant from his system without--
And he has also deliberately corrupted one particular data file, deleting it over and over again every time it surfaces.
Then I will cease.Ā Nines replies. The other android input a command directly to your system. I can negate that command, but only by doing the same.
You'll have to give me an [order].
Essentially, yes.
Interfacing together, Nines can feel Shannice's hesitation. He took orders too once, before he was officially activated, before he left the tower and joined the DPD. Before he had Gavin Reed as a partner and learned the phrase "Fuck off."
Would you like to say "Fuck off"?Ā Nines asks.
You need that footage for your investigation.
I am the most advanced android Cyberlife ever created. My partner and I are capable of solving this case with the leads we have.
You won't tell your partner if I say no?
Nines considers that. I have registered Detective Reed in my system as my partner. I am not permitted to lie to [partner: Gavin Reed]. I will not volunteer the information to him however.
You registered him?Ā Shannice asks. Why would you choose to do that?
It prevents me from being registered to anyone else. He is also unaware of his status. Now we both have information to keep private.
Nines feels her acceptance, and since there is no more information to be ripped from her system, he ends the interface.
<data report: transfer to [email protected]>
ā¦
ā¦
...
[lead-confirmed: (unsub) is an android]
[lead-confirmed: (unsub) is approximately five feet, nine inches]
[lead-confirmed: (unsub) possessing hacking skills capable of erasing security feed and directly hacking domestic, commercial androids to access their command center]
ā¦
[lead-possible: (unsub) is not an AC or QB series; unsub is not a GS200, GJ500, PC200, SQ800, TR400, TW400, or WB400 model]
[lead-possible: (unsub) may be a PM700 model, an unknown RK200 prototype, or a modified commercially available unit]
***
Gavin slams his truck door shut and lets his head fall back against the seat rest. They've finally snatched a murder case out from under Hank and Connor's "Android Crimes Unit" and they've got all of fucking nothing to go on.
Their perp's <I>probably</i> an android, but any thirium he left behind has been scrubbed clean. No bullets or casings to prove his theory about the two guns being switched, and all Nines got from the other android was a shitty partial snapshot of something vaguely humanoid behind her.
And now there's no way in hell he's going to get back to sleep tonight.
Shit. He lets his head thunk back again. Shiiit.
Nines settles into the passenger seat beside him. His LED switches to yellow in his window's reflection as soon as he shuts his door. Gavin slouches down a little more in his seat and glares over at him in preparation for whatever other bullshit he's about to catch.
"I apologize for my miscalculation," Nines says. "I made an assumption about the crime scene and did not deliver pertinent information to you in a timely manner. I understand if you feel the need to report my indiscretion to Captain Fowler."
Gavin just blinks at him a couple of times. Now that they're out of the crime sceneāwith all the boring parts shuffled off to Hank and Connorāhe's way too fucking tired to be thinking of paperwork.
And Christ, Nines sits there like he's waiting for a firing squad. Back so straight you could hold a ruler for it, hands neatly folded in his lap, eyes straight ahead. It makes Gavin want to smear his grimy human hands all over him until he doesn't look so fucking military perfect.
So it takes a bit for his words to process.
"What?" he says, like a super smart person. "No, Fowler doesn't need to know about that shit. We're partners, all right? Shit like that stays between us."
Nines still doesn't look at him, neck stiffer than that damn collar on his jacket. "I made a mistake. You were not so forgiving of Detective Burton."
"Not my partner." Gavin drags himself upright enough to start the car, then caves to the laziness and selects autodrive. "And almost letting a witnessācould have been a suspectājust waltz right out of a fucking crime scene is a way bigger fuck up than not immediately informing me of the floor's cleanliness."
"Please define the parameters of a fuck up."
Gavin groans, letting his head tip back and closing his eyes as his truck maneuvers itself out of the parking lot.
"And buckle your seat belt."
"I don't--"
DING! DING!
The buckle seat belt light flashes red at him.
"Every fucking robot's got a fucking opinion now," Gavin grumbles as he buckles his seat belt. "I'm not some fucking goody-goody academy type, but I don't cut corners, I don't plant evidence, and I try to play shit by the book ā¦ most of the time."
Nines finally deigns to turn his head toward him, millimeter by millimeter. Weird that there's no cracking sound. Or grinding. Like stone against stone.
"I have observed that."
Gavin resists the urge to repeat I hAVe ObSErVed THaT. "Yeah, well. When I arrest someone, their ass stays fucking arrested. Nobody walks."
He waits for a second, just daring Nines to go through his convictions until he finds the one that started that rule. It's pretty fucking obvious, but they sit in silence. He's even tired enough to appreciate that. Nice that his partner does know how to keep his fucking mouth shut sometimes.
"So no shady shit," Gavin says when the moment passes. "Nothing that could let some asshole walk on a technicality. And uh ā¦ constitutional rights, and all that shit. Or whatever."
"I hacked the building's security cameras without a warrant."
Gavin lets out an even louder groan. Nines clicks his head straight forward again. His LED wasn't yellow back at the condo-crime scene. Probably hacking it again so no one would know he's stressed. Or hell, maybe Gavin's just the one stressing him out right now.
"OK yeah, that's the shit we don't do," he says. "But, uh. Did you get anything good?"
"No," Nines admits. "The footage had been looped to cover the perp's presumed entrance and exit. If we base our estimation on that, we have a rough time frame of the murder, but hacking into the system further to strip away the loop would have left a trace of my own interference."
"Fuckin' great." Gavin jabs the button to lean his seat back since he's not driving anyway. "Don't do that shit again, and definitely don't get your ass caught. I don't play that Blue Wall shit."
"Yet you will not report me to Captain Fowler?"
Gavin closes his eyes so he doesn't have to look at his partner. At least those way too fucking earnest blue eyes are turned away from him. But he's still sitting there like Gavin's gonna tap his LED and boop! Deactivated.
He's just tired. That's why he doesn't feel good right now. Anyone would feel shitty and exhausted if they worked his hours with his insomnia. Nothing to do with Nines worrying he's going to pull the plug on him for one mistake.
He heaves a sigh. "I told you what a fuck up is, and that wasn't it. Maybe the security footage was, but you 'fessed up right away. Now if you do some dumb shit and don't tell me about it, your ass is on your own. And if you ever fucking lie to me, we're gonna have a problem."
"Understood, detective."
Gavin grunts and doesn't open his eyes.
"I am downloading popular or culturally relevant media from the last one hundred years to broaden my understanding of the human psyche."
"Mm-hmm, yeah."
"As my partner, your opinion on this particular subject is currently relevant."
Gavin yawns and tries to find a comfortable position that doesn't have the seat belt slapping him across the face. Short cis men exist too, so someone should have solved this fucking problem by now.
"Are there any movies you would recommend, detective?" Nines' voice is actually kind of nice. Soothing. All monotone with no inflection, like a documentary on how to file taxes. "Detective? This will likely become pertinent during future--"
"God, fine," Gavin says in a very manly voice that doesn't whine. "Fuck, like. I dunno, you gotta watch Die Hard, at least."
"Very well. I will finish the series in fifty-eight seconds. Are there more--"
"Wait, wait." Gavin hauls himself upright and pries his eyes open to stare at Nines. "You can't just download them into your head, that's not watching."
Nines stares back at him without blinking. "I will finish the series in fifty seconds. Are--"
Gavin unbuckles his seatbelt and lunges across the middle console to try slapping his hand over Nines' LED. So maybe the world's greatest android probably won't lose signal just because his pretty light gets covered up, but who knows. Maybe Kamski cut a deal with Sprint.
Nines catches his wrist and uses the leverage to twist his arm. "Do not obstruct my view while I am operating your vehicle, detective."
"I told the car to drive, not you." Gavin smirks at him, refusing to let the pain pressure him back down into his seat. "What, are you jealous of my GPS?"
"I am far superior," Nines replies without a hint of embarrassment.
"Oh my god, you're jealous of my GPS."
"Sit down."
"Are you going to assassinate my toaster next?"
"I will delete all your Fortnite skins."
Gavin sits down. "No one even fucking plays that anymore."
He yanks his arm back and doesn't try to reinitiate the slap fight though. Fucking android has no idea the struggle he lived through. Those thousands of loot crates represented his parents' loveāand the credit card they tossed his way so they'd never have to fucking look at him or learn any of his hobbies, so like. The same thing, really.
"Look, just come back to my place and we'll watch the movie on a screen the way Bruce Willis intended," he says.
Nines reaches over and buckles his seat belt back again without taking his eyes off the road. "Establishing a healthy sleep schedule is the number one recommended treatment for--"
"Yeah, yeah, fuck off," Gavin interrupts. He really doesn't need to hear Nines list off all his mental illnesses. They only have ten minutes before they get home anyway. "I'm not getting any more sleep tonight, so we might as well do something."
For someone who doesn't understand facial expressions, Nines does a super fucking snobby side eye.
"C'mon, it'll be productive." Gavin grins at him because he knows that's the magic word beginning with p the android always wants to hear. "And you can't do shit without me on the case anyway."
"ā¦ this is a very inefficient method of being productive," Nines finally says, which just asshole-speak for yeah I'd love to watch movies Gavin, thanks for being nice enough to invite me over.
Gavin punches his arm and lays back down in his seat. He closes his eyes and definitely doesn't think about how he's stooped low enough to invite over an android just so he won't be fucking alone again, chain-smoking and putting cigarettes out on his skin or waiting for the razor blade frozen in the back of his freezer to thaw out.
And hell, he's definitely had over men a lot fucking worse than his partner for the sake of not being alone, so maybe this isn't the lowest he's fallen.
Maybe.
***
***
1 / 2Ā / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31 / 32 / 33
I also have a Patreon for this fic, if you want to support me! $1 gets you access to chapters a week early, $2 gets bonus content and deleted scenes, and $3 gets short chapters from two AUs Iām writing: an A/B/O heatfic and reverse!AU
#reed900#reed900 fic#dbh#dbh fic#gavin reed#my writing#ch 3#sorry I haven't been posting chapters on here#it is SUCH a pain to fucking format them for tumblr#ao3 gets weekly updates on Sunday#but I've been slacking on updating here#the main fic on ao3 is up to chapter 9 btw#chapter 10 will post this sunday
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