#is kris breaking down in fear of their own mortality

[akanemnon]

What is this tension?

FIRST - PREVIOUS - NEXT

MASTERPOST (for the full series / FAQ / reference sheets)

(Chara's dialoge being a different shade of red is NOT a plot thing. It's just supposed to make it easier to read)

[izzielizzie]

Addy/Keely fic for Helicopter by Maisie Peters?

i was genuinely screaming when i got this ask because tbh this is a perfect song for them since i’ve always thought of addy as constantly taking risks/doing something stupid and keely is just like ??? and if this seems mildly unhinged it’s because I haven’t slept in over a day i’m running on coffee, also half of the weird things addy does in this have been attempted by my boyfriend so he’s the crazy one not me

Babe, without me, you are just so defenseless

For motorbikes and girls who might try break your heart

When Keely heard Addy had gotten a motorcycle to match Nate she nearly had a heart attack.

"You want to drive a motorcycle?" she had asked incredulously.

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?" Addy had responded, the picture of innocence. As if she hadn't nearly gotten run over by a shopping cart the day before.

"Addy! No offence but you're not exactly the most coordinated person in the world," Keely had said, gently grasping Addy's hand in hers.

"Pshaw," Addy had said, literally waving her hand in the air as if dismissing the fear. Keely didn't know if she was supposed to laugh or cry.

Now, as Keely clings to Addy as they drive her motorcycle to Nate’s apartment to show him, and Addy nearly swerves as she turns to tell Keely about the last girl who nearly broke her heart.

“Addy watch out!” Keely screams as Addy straightens.

“Whoops. Sorry!” she calls over her shoulder, wavering again. Keely leans her helmeted head on Addy’s back. This is going to be a long drive. 

So I'm pretty sure that I should make you breakfast

“Breakfast time!” Addy calls the next morning, jumping on the couch where they had falling asleep after their movie night and pulling Keely out of a deep sleep. 

“What did you make?”

Addy hesitates for a moment before answering: “Pancakes!”

“Great,” Keely responds, following Addy out of the room, passing the kitchen on her way to the bathroom. She glances into the kitchen and does a double take. “Addy! What did you do?”

Keely steps into the kitchen, her mouth hanging open. The counter is covered with flour and egg shells are scattered on the floor. A pool of milk is steadily dripping onto the floor.

“Addy what did you do?” Keely repeats in shock. 

Addy peers into the room, resting her head on Keely’s shoulder. “Oh I was playing music and was kind of in the zone. Also the pancakes burned.”

“So why did you tell me you made breakfast?” Keely turns to see Addy’s puppy eyes. 

“Fine, I’ll make you pancakes.”

And then I should never leave the front seat of your car

Keely is still gripping the handle of Addy’s car when she pulls up in front of Keely’s parents’ house. Addy had been jamming out to Britney Spears for the entirety of the ride, scaring Keely. 

“Are you going anywhere after you drop me off?” Keely asks.

“Yeah to Contigo. Why?”

“I think I’ll stay here, make sure you don’t do something stupid.” Keely re-buckles herself.

You are important so of course it maddens me

When you're nonchalant about your own mortality

“Why are you always so worried about me?” Addy asks as she merges back on the road smoothly.

“Because you don’t seem to care that half the stuff you do is going to get you killed!” 

“No they’re not,” Addy says. “When have I even done anything stupid?” Keely opens her answer, but Addy cuts her off. “You know what, don’t answer that.”

As Addy turns to look Keely, she nearly swerves onto the sidewalk. “Watch out!” Keely nearly screams. Addy straightens the car, a look of hurt on her face. Keely doesn’t yell. Not normally. Keely sighs and laces her fingers with Addy’s free hand - something that normally Keely would insist against. 

“Sorry Adds. It’s just you’re so casual about this stuff and I really love you. I can’t deal with you getting yourself killed because you wanted to see what Cooper’s head looked like from the top by climbing a wall.”

Addy snorts. “That was pretty epic.”

“You could have just asked him to bend down,” Keely says, ignoring her.

“Yeah but it was epic,” Addy insists as she parks across the street from Contigo. Keely shakes her head at her.

Please be more careful when you cross the road

They’re about to step onto the street when a car comes flying, and Keely pulls Addy back into her.

“Whoa are you okay?” Keely asks.

“Yeah, I’m good. But I bet I could have jumped onto that car like they do in action movies.”

You're a perfect arrangement of rickety bones

They’re about to start walking again when Addy’s knee pops. Keely looks at her sideways.

“Right. Defiantly could have jumped onto a moving car,” she says. Addy snorts as she takes Keely’s hand in hers. 

So forgive me

If I hover close

Addy is finally settling into the swing of things at Contigo when she turns to head to the kitchen and crashes into Keely. 

“Keely! What?”

“Sorry! I’m sorry. I just need to make sure you weren’t going to spill those nachos on yourself.”

I'm a helicopter

'Cause I love you so

“You’re like the girlfriend version of helicopter parents.” Addy is torn between adoration and annoyance.

“Only because I love you.”

“I know,” Addy says with a smile, leaning forward to kiss her. 

Oh, bear with me

Darling, you should know

“That tray isn’t too heavy though?” Keely asks as Addy emerges from the kitchen.

I'm a helicopter

'Cause I love you so

“I’m fine, helicopter.”

“Love you!” Keely calls, her cheeks creasing into a smile.

Addy sticks her tongue out over her shoulder. 

It's not interfering if you can't be trusted

To treasure that heart like I do

“Are you sure Addy isn’t going to go insane with your interfering?” Luis asks, following Addy out of the kitchen. 

“Luis. It’s not interfering if she can’t be trusted to take care of herself like I can.”

Luis raises his eyebrows at her.

“Come on you’re really telling me you never take away Maeve’s coffee when she’s had too much?”

“Touché,” Luis says, nudging his shoulder against hers. 

Your sense of danger is antique and rusted

And mine's laser sharp, oh, when it comes to you

“So would it be dangerous if I tried to untie myself from chains upside down like a magician?” Addy asks casually as they lay in bed one night.

“Yes!” Keely says firmly.

“Okay great so I’m not taking Nate up on that dare.”

“No, no you’re not. Also care to explain to me why I had to pick you up from the hospital because you had M&Ms in your nose?”

“Not really,” Addy says. 

“Was it a bet?”

“No! Possibly... yes.”

Keely sighs and pulls Addy closer, running her hands through her short hair. “Next time you try to do something stupid, check in with me first okay?”

“Deal,” Addy mumbles sleepily into Keely’s shoulder. 

When you wait for a train, don't cross the yellow line

“Don’t cross that line,” Keely says, pulling her back. They’re at the train station. 

“Helicopter,” Addy mumbles under her breath as she snuggles Keely.

Don't run with scissors, and don't text and drive

“Addy! Are you running and holding scissors?” Keely asks as she enters Maeve and Bronwyn’s living room.

“Yes. I’m trying to make this poster making thing efficient.”

“By getting yourself stabbed to death?”

“No! By making sure Cooper has great posters.”

“Blood doesn’t make for good poster decorations,” Keely says dryly as she pulls the scissors out of her girlfriend’s hand and handing them to Kris.

“Okay fine, can I have my phone back?”

Keely fishes a hand in her purse. “Yes sorry.” She hands the phone back. 

“Let me guess,” Addy says, talking over Keely. “Don’t text and drive?”

“You got it,” Keely says with a grin.

Call me the minute you get to your dad's

I'll be worried all night and I won't wanna ask

Addy hugs Keely tightly at the airport. Addy’s going to Chicago to visit her dad, and she’s getting anxious. 

“I love you,” she says into Keely’s hair.

“I love you more,” Keely insists, wrapping her arms around Addy’s waist.

“I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Because you’ll miss me?”

“Because I don’t want you to worry.”

“Yeah,” Keely says, pulling away and putting her hands on Addy’s shoulders, studying her face. “You’ll miss me.”

So forgive me

If I hover close

“How was the trip?” Keely asks a week later, as she stands at the airport parking lot in front of her car. 

“Good!”

“Was your dad okay? Your stepmom? Your stepbrother?” 

I'm a helicopter

'Cause I love you so

“Gosh girl, chill with the questions. You know I don’t like them.” Addy slams the passenger door shut, trying to forget how much she liked building tours with her seven year old brother. 

“I know. But I also know that deep down you do.”

Oh, bear with me

Darling, you should know

“What are you, a psychic?” Addy asks, never able to stay mad at the girl she adores so much. 

“Nah, just your girlfriend.”

I'm a helicopter

Addy grins and pulls Keely in for a kiss. “Even better... helicopter.”

[marshmallow-phd]

My Soul to Burn

Part of the EXO Demon Series

Genre: Demon AU

Pairing: Fem!Reader x Minseok

Summary: Unknown to the mortals, the world was plunging into chaos. But Minseok couldn’t care less. He was still able to take assignments, able to continue in collecting souls of the gullible. As long as he could do his job, he didn’t care what the angels or his boss were up to. Out stalking his next target, he met you, someone who could see him even when he chose to be invisible. At first, he shrugged you off, not interest in the mystery. But after another chance encounter, Minseok was intrigued. As your abnormality could have a part to play in the war against the angels, he was reluctantly keeping you close. With you as warm as he was cold, he tried to stay the terrifying demon while being haunted by Kris’ last words…

Part: 1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 I 6 I 7 I 8 I 9 I 10 I 11 I 12 I Final

**

This couldn’t be happening. No. Not to you. Not to someone who worked so hard and never stepped out of line, never broke the law, and did really well at being a productive member of society. And certainly not to Mr. Kwon, whose main goal in life was to make people happy and comfortable.

And yet, here you were.

Thanks so some faulty wiring in the building next door, a fire had broken out and spread to your place of work, burning a new skylight into the roof and destroying a good portion of the inside. It would be months before the building was usable again.

Thankfully, Mr. Kwon had good insurance and he’d be able to open the shop back up, but what were you supposed to do in the mean time?

“I’m really sorry, Mr. Kwon,” you consoled softly. Standing out there on the sidewalk, watching the smoke drift up into the sky that was too blue and clear for the corresponding event happening in front of your eyes, you put a hand on your boss’s shoulder. You had to remind yourself for a moment to stop being selfish. He’d lost his livelihood as well.

He was amazingly stoic as he turned to look at you. “I’m more worried about you,” he admitted. “A building can be repaired. But will you do?”

You shrugged. “I’ll find something temporary. As soon as you’re back in business, I’ll be at your front door.”

The smile you gave him was strained, but you had hope. Hope that you could survive and find something so help you get by.

As soon as you walked into your apartment, you sat down at your table and flipped open your laptop that honestly needed replacing. The backing was starting to come detached from the screen and the letters on the keyboard were horribly faded.

Waiting for it to boot up completely, you stood up and poured yourself a glass of water and searched your cabinets for something to munch on. Nothing was jumping out at you saying “eat me” so you gave up and sat back down.

For hours, you searched the local job sites, submitting your pathetic yet prettied up resume and hoping for the best. You had a fair amount of work experience, surely you would get something.

You couldn’t have been more wrong.

A month went by and even after submitting applications day after day, all you received were rejections, rejections, and more rejections. You didn’t understand. It was like you’d been secretly blacklisted. One of them had to hire you. The sinking feeling in your stomach was only made worse when you learned that John, Hana, and Monica had all been able to find replacement jobs.

Frustration didn’t even begin to cover how you were feeling. You hated being anything but calm. The worst part about being frustrated is that your body had no other way to relieve it but through tears. And you hated crying the most. It made you feel weak, like you didn’t have control over your own life or situation. It wasn’t a freeing experience like everyone else seemed to take it as.

Slamming your laptop shut and shoving away the latest rejection email, you closed your eyes and took deep breaths.

You are not going to cry, you told yourself. This is just a setback. You still have time. You still have plenty of savings to last you. This will not break you.

With a groan you crossed your arms, laying them down on the table and burying your face to hide away from the world just for a minute or two. At least you were alone.

“I’d say this place is dingy and sad, but I guess that just means it fits you to a ‘T’.”

Your head snapped up. Leaning up against the wall right across form you was the blonde stranger from the shop. Shocked, you instinctively jumped to your feet, sending the chair crashing to the peeling tile floor underneath you.

“How the hell did you get in here?” you demanded.

The man smirked. “I’m someone of… many talents.” He pushed off the wall, stalking in your direction.

You shuffled back, nearly tripping over the chair. Too soon, your back hit the wall. Searching around frantically, your eyes settled on your knife block. Not even giving yourself a second to think it through, you hurled yourself at the counter, snatching up the biggest knife.

Before you could even blink, the man was by your side, whirling you around to face him. The edge of the counter was digging into your back. You were trapped. Taking the chance, you slashed at him. With impossible reflexes, he caught your wrist, slamming it down of the counter and forcing you to let go.

“You know,” he snickered, his sharp eyes conveying that he seemed to enjoy this little game of cat and mouse, “I’ve never had someone try to stab me before. A few missed punches, sure, but the knife is a new one.”

“What do you want?” Terrible scenarios ran through your head. Whatever sick thing he was into, you’d make sure to fight him the whole way.

“I actually came to offer you a deal.” Releasing your wrist, he snatched up the knife from the counter. He spun the sharp object around in his hands, the tip held in place by a single finger. “Things have been awfully rough here lately, haven’t they?”

You stared at him, your eyebrows pulled together tightly. How would he know? “What does that matter to you?”

Nonchalantly, his shoulders raised up and then dropped back down. “Let’s just say I can offer you a quicker route to the light at the end of the tunnel.”

That actually made you laugh as you crossed your arms. The fear was slowly dying out of you. He obviously wasn’t human with the way he could move and disappear. And you knew for a fact that you were the only one who could see him at the shop. “And what exactly what would this deal entail, Rumpelstiltskin?”

By the annoyed look on his face, he didn’t seem to care for your little nickname. It didn’t matter. You had no intentions of making any deals whatsoever.

“I’m not exactly something out of a fairytale,” he snarled. “More like your worst nightmare.”

You snorted. “Was that supposed to strike fear in me?”

That just pissed him off.

The lights around your apartment began to dim until you could barely see the man in front of you. Unfortunately, you could still see and you watched in horror as his eyes inked over into a pitch black darkness. You pressed further back into the counter, nowhere to run. The whole floor began to shake, throwing off your balance.

“You should be very frightened of me indeed,” he mocked. His voice came out like a chorus in perfect unison.

Just as quickly as the scare had come, it was gone. Your apartment was back to its normal brightness and the whites of the man’s eyes were once again visible.

“What the hell are you?” Your voice was breathy, hardly understandable your words yourself.

The man smirked. “I am the demon Minseok.”

Demon? They were real?

Your grandmother would tell you stories, but you always just assumed she enjoyed frightening you to point of being unable to sleep. She always insisted they would come after you, although she would never tell you why, simply saying one day you would find out. But you’d grown up since then. They weren’t supposed to exist.

“Get out.”

The self-important smirk slipped from his face. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” you snapped. Pointing to your front door behind you, you repeated, “Get out. I have no intentions of making any sort of deals with you.”

Minseok scoffed. “Do you understand what you’re throwing away? I can offer you anything. Endless wealth, a comfortable life, never have to work again. Famous just for being famous. You could live a life of luxury. Anything your heart desires, I can get it for you.”

“And what would you want in exchange?” You were sure you already knew the answer.

“Just your soul,” he replied as if your soul was simply your favorite pair of shoes or any other item of little consequence.

You shook your head. “Not worth it. I’m not sure where I’ll be headed after I die and, honestly, I’d like to keep it that way. I don’t need to be swimming in money. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time, I think I can continue handling it on my own.”

That was not the answer he was looking for. While still in their normal state, his eyes were on fire with rage. “Do you not understand what you are letting slip through your hands!”

You made sure that every word came out clear. “I. Don’t. Care. This is one soul that you won’t trick into suffering for forever. If that’s my fate, then I rather earn it on my own.”

Although, you really hoped that wasn’t where you would end up. Overall, you tried to be a good person. You weren’t too sure about the rules that dictated your place in the afterlife, but you hoped you hadn’t done anything to cause too much damage.

Finally understanding that you wouldn’t be changing your mind, he shimmered away, leaving you alone as the knife fell to the floor with a clatter. Taking a deep breath, you slowly made your way over to the table, picking the chair up off the floor. And then you slapped yourself. Perhaps a little too hard. Your cheek stung, but confirmed what you were hoping wasn’t true. You were definitely awake.

That man – Minseok – being a demon, well it explained so much. And yet, you had too many questions. Had he been following you this whole time? But he didn’t seem to have any interest in you at all the two times you confronted him. His concentration had been on Mr. Thomas.

Your eyes widened at that conclusion. Was that how his luck seemed to magically turn around?

Shaking your head, you turned on your oven to get started on dinner. If that really was what happened to Mr. Thomas, then you felt especially sorry for him. Desperation and bad luck should not have to cost you your soul.

**

The very second Minseok was back at the mansion, he threw the folder across the front parlor, not getting any satisfaction or releasing any of his anger as the papers floated softly to the hardwood floor. Continuing his path of destruction, he flipped over the decorative table that was pushed up against the left wall, sending the vase of dying flowers crashing into the ground. Shards bounced off the floor, spreading across the room and creating a dangerous trap for anyone who might enter the room.

Never – never in over a thousand years had Minseok ever been turned down. Deal after deal, he’d closed every contract, taken every soul he’d been assigned. He reveled in the fact that his record was perfect. He’d never… lost before. And he didn’t understand how it could have happened.

The fire had been too easy to set up. A beautiful little spark, a little urging to jump next door, and your comfortable job was gone. He’d been successful at blocking your ever attempt to secure a new paycheck, messing with the system so the person reviewing your resume would see something they didn’t like.

Perhaps it’d been too easy. He thought he’d gotten you to the point of desperation, barely an ounce of effort needed on his part. His expectation had been that you would be begging at his feet to pull you out of the poverty you were slowly sinking into. Instead, you’d thrown him out of your apartment.

“Whoa.” Luhan, investigating the crash, stepped into the parlor form the hallway. “Minseok, are you okay?”

“No,” he roared in reply. His fists were curled at his side.

Noticing the papers scattered around, Luhan picked them up, careful to avoid the shards. They wouldn’t necessarily hurt him, but he still felt the need to be cautious. Looking over the now back together file, he frowned. “Do you not like your assignment? She reads like it might be easy.”

“I’ve already gone to see her.” Pissed that now someone knew of his failure, Minseok kicked at the upturned table, sending it crashing into the wall and splintering it into pieces. That noise was enough for several of the others to come rushing.

“What the hell was that?” Sehun gasped.

Luhan put up a hand to stop the younger demon from saying anything else. “Minseok, what do you mean you already went to see her? What’s wrong?”

“She wouldn’t take the deal!” Minseok shouted. The fire inside was only fueled by the jaws that dropped in front of him.

“W-what?” Jongdae gasped in disbelief. “You didn’t… close the deal?”

“No! I didn’t!”

Shame poured over Minseok. This couldn’t actually be happening. He never failed. Maybe– maybe he could try again. Yeah. He could get you more desperate, dig the hole deeper and then shove you in as you screamed for help. Then you would give in.

“Alright, guys. Show’s over,” Luhan barked, shoving the younger demons around. “Get back to your assignments.”

Grumbling, they all eventually dispersed, leaving Minseok to stand there, staring at the aftermath of his destruction. All except, Yixing, that is. The pompous ass was leaning his back against the wall, his hands in pockets as he stared at Minseok.

“You know,” Yixing mused. “That was Junmyeon’s favorite vase. Three hundred years old, I think. Maybe from Louis the sixteenth era?”

Minseok scowled at him. “I don’t give a shit about some pottery.”

Not wanting to stick around and hear what else Yixing had to say, Minseok stomped up the stairs and straight for his room.

The space was barely furnished, with a few chairs, a desk, and floor lamp; he didn’t spend much time here, preferring the study or to be out stalking his target.

Damn, you were infuriating. When you compared him to that ugly, German fairytale, he nearly gagged. What made you so special, huh? He’d met humans in better situations than you that still took his deals. Why couldn’t you just cooperate?

Still pent up with too much anger, Minseok swiped off the papers and books from his desk accompanied by a wordless yell. The universe must be really ticked at him. Was this seriously payback for the Kris situation? As demon, he didn’t believe in karma, but this was feeling dangerously close to it.

No. He would not apologize. Kris deserved that. Kris broke the law. If Minseok hadn’t turned him in, someone else would have. Everyone already disliked him, might has well have driven the knife in deeper.

A knock at his door made him straighten up, pulling down on his jacket to convey some sort of stability. Opening the door, Jongdae was standing out in the hallway, an empathetic look on his face. That just made Minseok scowl even deeper.

“What?”

Jongdae cleared his throat. “Junmyeon wants to see you.”

Huffing, Minseok stepped out of the bedroom and slammed the door behind him, making Jongdae flinch. A twinge of guilty tugged at Minseok, but he ignored it, heading down the stairs to the library where the head honcho was waiting for him.

Junmyeon was in his typical, overstuffed leather chair near the center of the room. He was facing the door, his hands in front of his face with the tips of his fingers pressed together.

“Minseok,” he greeted. He didn’t use Minseok’s official demon name.

Well, at least that meant he wasn’t in too much trouble for the vase.

“Junmyeon.” That damn smug look on his face….

“I heard your latest assignment didn’t go so well,” Junmyeon started. He nodded, obviously feigning sympathy. “That’s tough to hear, but everyone has them.”

“Not me,” Minseok growled. “I don’t lose.”

Junmyeon waved his hand. “But this time you did. And it’s perfectly fine. You’ll get the next one.”

Not going to happen. “I haven’t given up. I’ll get her to sign.”

“Actually, you can’t.” Junmyeon stood up, slipping his hands into his pockets. “Perhaps you don’t remember, since you’ve never needed to in the past, but once an offer is refused, that offer can never be approached again. We’re a one-time deal. You can’t go back and try again.”

Minseok could feel the skin stretching over his knuckles as he tightened hands into fists. Stupid fucking stipulations. “Technically, since we’re supposed to currently be at war with the angels, doesn’t that through the whole agreement out the window?”

“Not while I’m around.” Junmyeon turned away, staring out the window at the empty, lifeless field that rested behind the mansion. “You can go now. I’ll get you a new assignment soon enough.”

Resisting the urge to slam his fist into that pretty face, Minseok stormed out of the study, slamming the door hard enough to shake the walls on his way out.

[reactingtosomething]

Reacting to Wynonna Earp: Episodes 210-212

An Occult 23andMe

The Setup: Miri and Kris adore Wynonna Earp and have been reacting to this season a few episodes at a time. As always, we are in awe of Emily Andras’s writing, Melanie Scrofano’s face and general talent, and the entire cast and crew. We also have a few questions, critiques, and predictions that are sure to be proven wrong. 

Find our previous Wynonna Earp s2 reacting here, here, here, and here.

Spoilers through the season 2 finale, “I Hope You Dance,” below!

KRIS: I feel like you should lead with some all caps here or something

MIRI: As usual I HAVE A VERY MANY FEELINGS

THE BAAAABY

WYNONNA

***ASCENDED WIDOW MERCEDES?!?!??!***

And Jeremy is just such a peach

as per usual

KRIS: I actually saw this Scrofano Instagram the night of the episode (and I watch the morning after via iTunes) so I had some sense of the twist coming

MIRI: OH MY GODDDDDDDD

(I was really proud of how well I avoided spoilers this time)

KRIS: Which was kind of a bummer, but it still landed for me

Especially because of the detail of Nicole’s involvement

MIRI: Yes! An excellent tying together of various threads

KRIS: So you kind of called this, or something like it, back when we reacted to the pregnancy. Was this what you had in mind?

MIRI: ...I might have to reread that reaction really quickly to refresh my memory on what I meant

KRIS: I remember you said “noble sacrifice”

MIRI: Ohhhh yes

Yeah, I think from a show and a show writing perspective this is what makes sense

KRIS: At the time my mind went somewhere darker and more supernatural

MIRI: Because it is the version that reinforces/adds a layer to the core plot of the whole thing--Wynonna has to end the curse. For herself, but mostly for everyone she loves because she refuses to let this fall on someone else like it fell on her

And the baby adds to that, but without having to change the actual structure of things drastically--which they would have to do to add an actual baby in week to week

Also, this is the version with a combined maximum pain now and pain in the future. (slash tension, slash stakes)

KRIS: Yeah it definitely is obvious in hindsight that Wynonna would not want her baby in the Triangle

MIRI: But they covered it with the revenant question so well it didn’t feel obvious at the time!!

KRIS: It’s a little funny to me that Wynonna’s version of “I named her so no one looking for an Earp will find her” is “I didn’t give her a name that starts with W”

MIRI: HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA

KRIS:  Because I feel like “named after the grandparents” is pretty standard?

MIRI: “It’s just your mom’s name and my mom’s name and we’re only MASSIVELY FAMOUS/INFAMOUS within the community of people who might want to use/abuse this baby”

KRIS: I guesss maybe people wouldn’t necessarily expect Doc as the father

MIRI: Maybe, but several people with great knowledge of history already know

Like the Firebros Cult

KRIS: But aren’t they all, like, barbecued now?

Did I read that scene wrong?

MIRI: Oh, right

I forgot about that

Which is funny, because in the moment I was super excited about Dolls using his fire again!

KRIS: Right! And obviously I wanted a wide shot but I UNDERSTAND

MIRI: I mean, they already got a helicopter and a baby in the budget

KRIS: That did feel a little unresolved, mechanically, I guess because Dolls’s goal for the episode (get the doctor) was ultimately irrelevant

Emily Andras was very happy about her helicopter

“I was bluffing!”

MIRI: Let me just say for the 8,000th time: I would very much like to be Emily Andras when I grow up

KRIS: I usually roll my eyes at “gonna move to Canada” but if it’s “gonna move to Canada to work for Emily Andras” I’d have to be like “yeah that makes sense”

MIRI: YES

K: I really do like Canada, just not when Americans say they'll move there to run away from our problems

KRIS: Stuff like not getting a resolution beat for the Order made me think, not for the first time, that this show definitely rides a knife-edge of just having too much going on

MIRI: Yeah, I feel that re: Rosita and Mercedes too

KRIS: And if the emotional storytelling wasn’t as assured the whole thing could easily fall on its face

YES Rosita

MIRI: And I wonder if it was part baby clock/changing the whole season so late in the game?

KRIS: Maybe

I’d probably have to rewatch the first season

MIRI: But in general this show is just chock full of plot

Rosita is the only one that really bothered me

KRIS: I’m not super clear on what Rosita’s plan was, re: safe passage

MIRI: I wonder if there’s a scene or two on the cutting room floor there

(in this episode or previous ones)

Because she’s set up to be pretty cool, and while her point about the whole “I’ll shoot you last” thing being kind of TERRIBLE to say to someone/have to live under is valid, the turn just felt rushed to me

KRIS: Yeah

MIRI: Also, did she die?? Was she Saved? What exactly happened?

KRIS: I had to look up the last time Peacemaker turned blue and it was when Wynonna shot Willa

MIRI: Ahhhhhh I did not remember that

Huh

KRIS: I thought maybe she’d been un-revenanted but her reaction was still pretty angry so that didn’t feel right, so then I thought maybe Waverly had fired a warning shot?

MIRI: So maybe its when it has to act outside of normal bounds? Killing an heir, working for a non-official heir (yet?)

KRIS: Yeah that makes sense

MIRI: Hmmmm I’m holding out a tiny bit of help for it having saved Rosita and her not understanding

which is why she’s angry

KRIS: I definitely hope she comes back

as a regular

MIRI: And that would potentially fit with the idea of Waverly being something else supernatural

Me too!! I really love her

KRIS: Also sentient or semi-sentient weapons are always a favorite trope of mine

MIRI: I know this is not at all what you meant, but it reminded me that I love the Wynonna moment of declaring that she’s her own damn weapon, not anyone else’s to use

KRIS: And although I think the more straightforward reading here is “Peacemaker does what Wynonna says,” I also kind of like the idea of like “Peacemaker’s understanding of Family has caught up with the 21st century”

Yeah!

M: Speaking of family...(I love this gif and couldn’t find a better place for it)

MIRI: Well if Widow Mercedes could do it, maybe Peacemaker could too

Can we talk about her? Because I’m low-key obsessed

KRIS: Yeah that was wild

MIRI: I was 100% shocked

did not call her turning against the husband at all

and I LOVED IT

KRIS: Yeah, and a break with Beth was pretty well set up with her getting steadily disgruntled by everything over the last few episodes

MIRI: Yes! Her turning on Beth felt totally natural, but I did not even consider her turning on demon husband

How did you feel about him being all weak? I know someone who didn’t buy it, but to me it totally worked nicely as another Andras subversion of the expected story.

KRIS: That made sense to me

MIRI: Especially if he’s a demon who needs to feed (as the Widows clearly need to) and he’s been cut off for 100 years

Cool

KRIS: And I definitely didn’t feel cheated out of a battle with a demon lord or anything since I was invested in the baby stuff

MIRI: Totally! They did a very nice job of shifting the main tension and keeping stakes very high

Did you briefly think that Doc had become a revenant? Because I briefly thought that when he was talking to Bobo and I was Very Concerned

KRIS: No, but what line made you think that?

MIRI: When Doc said he’d been to hell

(yelling down to Bobo in the well)

And Bobo mentions Wyatt screwing both of them

But then he called Doc mortal

KRIS: Oh okay. Yeah I just really liked that line both on the level of having lied to Wynonna earlier and on the level of conceding that at least so far Doc’s maybe done more bad than good

MIRI: Yeah, it all worked, I just had a moment of fear

KRIS: So now we know that Doc listens to Adele

MIRI: As any right-thinking person does, yes

Wait, we jumped off of Widow Mercedes too quickly

I just need to say that she was SUPER COOL all ascended and powerful and shit and I wish there had been time to have her be the big bad of her own 3 episode arc or something

Ok, moving on to the bullet splitting thing

KRIS: My concerns about too many plot threads notwithstanding, I actually think this season was just as long as it needed to be and I don’t know that another major twist would have worked for me

MIRI: No, I don’t think it actually should have happened. The overall narrative would have suffered. I just wanted more Ascended Widow Mercedes in like a pocket universe or something

KRIS: She had kind of an Evil Elsa from Frozen thing going on (as someone who has not seen Frozen)

MIRI: And an interesting mix of Dark Willow and finale, white-haired ascended Goddess Willow from Buffy

KRIS: Oh that’s probably more what they were going for

Okay bullets

MIRI: I think the Frozen thing is valid

Yes, bullets! Doc finally gets to kill something/one

KRIS: I feel like we have literally never seen Wynonna load Peacemaker before so I had gotten to a point of accepting that it magically didn’t need to be loaded

MIRI: Hahahahahah

KRIS: I did kind of want his dramatic “When I shoot something, it dies” line to be lampshaded by someone

Although to be fair he called it out himself last week

MIRI: I would like to take this opportunity to say something that is not fair of me, but I feel strongly:

Tim Rozon’s face doesn’t make sense to me without the Doc Holliday mustache

KRIS: HA

MIRI: He’s still handsome! It’s a good face! but it just makes no sense to my brain

KRIS: There was a time in my life when I wished I could grow a mustache like that

It’s possible that time has not entirely passed

MIRI: hahahahah

KRIS: But mostly it was like, senior year of college

I feel like we should probably circle back to episodes 8 and 9 10 and 11 for a second

MIRI: Definitely

They did a whole episode without Wynonna! That is so fascinating and ballsy

KRIS: I feel like I wrote down notes somewhere about this but I can’t find them so maybe I just think about it a lot -- how do you feel about tropes like the Couple Destined to Be Together, or “destiny” tropes in general?

MIRI: Hmmmmmmmm it entirely depends on how well executed they are. Sometimes I am ALL IN, other times I think it gets creepy

I’m good with it here

Because it’s not super heavy handed to me

It falls more on the “they are just so right for each other, they keep finding each other” side of things than the “they are Destined To Always Be” side

Plus they had known and cared about each other as friends for a while in the alternate reality

You?

KRIS: As a trope it’s not my thing at all and I may be reacting more to fandom reactions than to anything actually in the text

MIRI: Been there

KRIS: I mean generally I was onboard with it

I think “they’re so right for each other” vs “they are destined” might be a distinction without a difference but I agree that execution counts for a lot

MIRI: I am a little bummed Waverly is confirmed gay (rather than bi) but I’m still so happy about the character and her sheer existence

KRIS: I’m also not sure exactly when it happened (and part of me is deeply suspicious and legitimately concerned that literally letting her hair down had something to do with it) but this last run definitely cemented Nicole as my favorite character

MIRI: Well I think the difference falls in what makes them right for each other being destined implies predetermination and an outside force

While being right for each other comes out of who they both are as people, and there could theoretically be other people just as right for them out there Say more about Nicole as your favorite

KRIS: Maybe part of it’s that she’s in a way the least intense of everyone? Not in the sense that she’s boring but that she has a healthy sense of perspective?

MIRI: Right. She is arguably the normal amongst all of these eccentrics

KRIS: I feel like it can’t be as simple as “audience surrogate,” but I guess there’s a little of that

MIRI: And she’s working to remain that, per Nedley’s speechifying

KRIS: And I think a lot of it is in her line readings -- like you could easily see someone delivering “your ass is top shelf” and “I’d do a lot of things to you” with too much of a wink

EASILY

MIRI: Yes! She’s just so sweet and earnest about both and it MAKES those lines

So, how did you feel about alternate reality without Wynonna?

I don’t know if I 100% buy Doc as the town bad guy, but he was kind of a dick before

So i guess becoming worse is as possible as becoming better

KRIS: I also think -- and I’m getting a little more real than I’m generally comfortable with here -- that as a straight man with a tendency to be hand-wringing about my trying to be a good feminist, there’s a safety in identifying with a character like Nicole who is also sexually attracted to women but by virtue of NOT being a man (and being written and acted as well as she is) is free of a lot of potentially toxic baggage

MIRI: That makes total sense to me

KRIS: I think the alternate reality was a pretty good execution of the “this one person makes all the difference” trope

(The “Remedial Chaos Theory” episode of Community is the high bar for me there)

I bought Doc as a bad guy but maybe not entirely as a ringleader

MIRI: Fair

KRIS: I loved how Rosita, Jeremy, and Nicole had all taken on bigger Black Badge or Black Badge-adjacent responsibilities

MIRI: Yes! I liked all of their interactions

The Iron Witch stuff worked for me too

KRIS: Yeah, better than I think I would’ve expected

MIRI: Grounding it in the sister relationship is always a safe bet on this show

KRIS: That bit where she let down the glamor for a second and Waverly and Nicole were Slowly Spinning in their “real” outfits was pretty cool

MIRI: Very dreamy and funky

I buy Waverly making a stupid choice to save Nicole. You?

KRIS: Yeah, in general I think pushing her luck when other people don’t want her to makes sense for Waverly, and definitely on the heels of everything she’s been through up to that point

MIRI: Agreed

KRIS: I really liked the team interactions in 8 a lot

Dolls telling Waverly “let’s just say it was an order”

MIRI: In the vision quest ep?

KRIS: The Nicole in the Hospital ep

MIRI: Oh, 10, not 8 👍🏻

Yeah, I like the friendship between Dolls and Waverly a lot. It’s never super heavily explored, but it’s always really charming

KRIS: Oh wow I totally lost track of the episode count at some point

MIRI: It was a 12 ep season, not 10

I think we got slightly thrown off in our thoughts about when we would react, that’s all

KRIS: I also really wished there’d been more of a reckoning between Jeremy and Wynonna about Rosita

That seemed like a really important beat that ended up not going anywhere because of all the ensuing crazy

MIRI: Yeah. I hope they come back to it in some way next season

KRIS: But I also really liked Dolls stepping in to be the test subject for awhile and I thought it was weird that possibility didn’t come up earlier

MIRI: Hmmmm

That is valid

Maybe because he couldn’t be killed? And she couldn’t either, but revenants can be harmed short term

KRIS: There also was never an acknowledgement that Waverly broke a promise to tell Wynonna about Rosita

MIRI: Like she was out for a few minutes when Tucker shot her

KRIS: I mean I bought it happening

MIRI: Yeah, people have been in general shitty to Rosita

KRIS: But there was a beat missing on either end -- even Rosita didn’t really mention it

MIRI: Maybe her turn was more earned than I have acknowledged

Right--the building blocks are there, but she never really had a good moment dealign with it all

KRIS: Oh, Nicole’s soon-to-be ex-wife!

Again it felt like there was a beat missing in Shae’s recognition that Waverly was the new girlfriend, or someplace where that might have come up explicitly, but I really liked skipping right over the jealousy tropes

MIRI: Agreed on both counts!

Do we think she’ll come back though? Only because of the note on the divorce papers

KRIS: I didn’t really get that sense, I more just read it as “hey here’s a healthy relationship that’s nice”

MIRI: I think you’re right

I like that Waverly can be weirded out without going full tropey Jealous Girl

So @sweet-but-mostly-sour wanted us to discuss Jeremy’s apparent powers. Any thoughts?

KRIS: I don’t know that it would’ve occurred to me independently

The line there did seem to be hinting at something (I can’t recall what he said) but it also would have made sense to me that he just knew the plan?

Especially because Waverly was pretty clearly expecting Doc at the rendezvous, as opposed to meeting up with him beforehand

Oh it was something about why he’d been recruited into BBD

MIRI: Yeah, one sec, I’m almost to it in the ep

I think

Ok I was wrong but I WILL find it

Oh, I think you were right about it being a warning shot--Waverly grazes Rosita’s temple and Rosita runs out

KRIS: Ah

(I wonder if she just missed?)

MIRI: Yeah, no idea if it was a deliberate warning or not. We know how tricky Peacemaker is

Found it!

Doc asks how Jeremy knows stuff and he says:

“I told you I was in an accident. [The car accident when he was 11.] I wasn’t recruited to Black Badge for my excellent Seinfeld impressions.”

KRIS: Hmm

MIRI: I really love how transparently into people he is without ever creeping on them

KRIS:  “I’d feel it in my groin”

I guess in hindsight that is also a plant

MIRI: The groin or the powers?

I forget who he said that about

KRIS: Doc

A plant for his having powers

hidden in a “Classic Jeremy” joke

Honestly I think I might prefer a Jeremy who picks up on things like Wynonna’s pregnancy just because he pays more attention than other people (or other men)

But I’m not against Jeremy having powers or anything

MIRI: Well, hopefully one doesn’t preclude the other

KRIS: I liked “I don’t fit in here. None of you asked me to” a lot

MIRI: YES that was beautiful without being shmoopy

KRIS: It was an unexpected way for that line to go

MIRI: I think he and Nicole could get a long very well

Yeah, I was expecting a “I never fit anywhere but here” thing and I liked this much better

KRIS: I think my other favorite finale line was “That better not be a nickname for your beav cause I’m not in the mood”

MIRI: Wynonna is always so very Wynonna and basically it’s just dialogue goals in all the ways

KRIS: And Melanie Scrofano finally got her f-bomb! Though I don’t know if it was censored on air

MIRI: I love how important that was to her

We have not yet discussed Mama Earp

KRIS: Oh yeah I really wanted to come with a Mamas Earp joke but blanked I guess there’s not really a joke there, I just wanted at some point to say Mamas Earp

That was another spoiler I stumbled on ahead of time (gif somewhere)

MIRI: I did not get what you were doing there but I finally caught up

Oh no!

So has Wynonna known where Mama Earp is this whole time?

KRIS: I didn’t even think of that. I guess so. That’s interesting

I definitely thought the very first line of that VO was a “flashback” line

MIRI: Me too! I think it still might have been?

KRIS: It seemed like it was part of a “There’s X, and there’s Y, and then there’s Z”

What do we know about Mama Earp?

(Do we know Mama Earp’s name?)

MIRI: (Is it Michelle? the baby’s middle name?)

KRIS: Oh right

MIRI: We know she left when Waves was 2, if I recall correctly

And that’s about it

KRIS: Hang on I’m gonna rewatch that bit

MIRI: “There are men, Wynonna, mean as a rattlesnake cornered at dusk. And there are demons sweet as clover honey. And then there’s him. I told you he was real. I never stopped believing. But he will rise. And when he does, you’ll believe it too.”

KRIS: Man there’s a lot going on there

And maybe a lot of possibilities

MIRI: I know!

Has she been working on this the whole time? Did Waverly get her researcher tendencies from Mama Earp?

KRIS: Right! Is this why she came back to Purgatory?

MIRI: But she’s not fully back

KRIS: Was there some point when Mama Earp might have reached out post-return?

I mean Wynonna coming back

MIRI: Oh, did you mean Wynonna?

Gotcha gotcha

Also, will we get specifics about the mean men and sweet demons?

KRIS: (I also have to say -- #sorrynotsorry -- that I appreciate a show that is this careful about its use of needle drops)

MIRI: (this is such a Thing for you and I love it)

(Also, the music in Wynonna Earp is always damn effective, so I think I have to agree)

KRIS: Is mean men and sweet demons an unusually poetic line for the show or do I just feel that way because when other characters say lines like that it doesn’t always feel right?

MIRI: I think it is unusually poetic, but the HEAVY accent might be meant to somewhat excuse it as country sayings?

Also, I think it’s meant to read as “something my mama used to say” the way we took it, and then twist to be much more literal

I think Mama must have been wrapped up in the occult too. It can’t just have been Ward’s thing. Even if it was after she married in, the “I told you” part means she knows a decent amount about how all this started and where it might go

KRIS: Right

I wonder if Wynonna might have reached out to her after the vision quest?

MIRI: Would she have kept it a secret if she did? I’d buy that

Oh, speaking of Bulshar and secrets, what about that little nod Nicole and Dolls have when we see Nicole has the ring near the end there

KRIS: Definitely seems like Nicole getting an unofficial promotion (that I guess they don’t want Waverly to know about?)

MIRI: Maybe it’s less a secret and more a “when we have time, we’ll discuss all this”? I hope?

KRIS: The classic Intense Dolls Stare did come close to being unintentionally comical in slow motion, that close to Waverly’s line of sight

MIRI: YES

KRIS: Yeah I don’t see how it could be a secret

Maybe Dolls and Nicole are already just moving ahead and they want the others to Have a Moment

MIRI: That makes sense for all involved

Ok, is there anything big that we’ve missed?

KRIS: It’s kind of insane that we’ve mentioned Bobo literally once

I don’t know that I have anything to say about him, but still

MIRI: RIGHT, I meant to bring up Bobo!

KRIS: I guess I’d missed or forgotten that he was specifically Magneto-ish and not generally telekinetic

MIRI: I do have things to say, or just to bring up, I guess

Yeah, I had too!

And I wonder if there’s a reason for that that we will see/explore?

Ok, points that I don’t really have much to say about, but I feel should be stated: 1) He’s now an acolyte of Bulshar and 2) He called Waverly kin, but is pretty certainly not her father

KRIS: Someday Waverly’s going to start an occult 23andMe

MIRI: Hahahahahahahahahahhaa

KRIS: I definitely had one more little thing I wanted to mention but it’s escaped me

Oh Nicole’s cat!

MIRI: Calamity Jane!!!

KRIS: (God I have to get back into Deadwood)

MIRI: Do you have any predictions for next season? (Knowing, of course, that Andras will subvert all expectations and impress us all in the process)

KRIS: I basically wouldn’t dare at this point

Though I will ask for a web series that’s The Adventures of Randy Nedley and Calamity Jane

MIRI: OH MY GOD

I never knew I wanted that until just now

They are grumpy best friends

KRIS: I’m even too afraid to guess in which “act” of the season Waverly will come face to face with Mama Earp

MIRI: You say that, and I’m like, “Oh, well...wait. No...Could be..?” Andras is breaking my brain

I can definitely see a first episode option, a midseason option, an end of act 1 option, etc...

I predict we’ll learn what Waverly is, if she’s not entirely human

KRIS: That makes sense

I still kind of want to know what happened to BBD but I get the sense that’s a closed door

or at least as closed as TV gets

MIRI: Yeah, I’d say try to let that hope go for now

I wonder if we’ll be getting any new members of the gang? I feel like no

KRIS: Hmm

MIRI: Maybe someone to replace Rosita if she’s gone?

KRIS: I mean I hope Rosita comes back to the fold, somehow, but I could just as easily see her having a more complete villain turn

I could also see a version of this that’s vaguely Alias season 2 where Mama Earp is around a lot

MIRI: But I feel like things are pretty well balanced, plus we’ll be getting Mama Earp and surely some new enemies/adversaries

KRIS: I really hope Jeremy gets time with her

MIRI: Yeah, same. And she may come with a supporting character or two Interesting

Wait, with Mama or Rosita?

KRIS: Mama Earp

Just for the jokes

MIRI: Yes, I’m weirdly into that

KRIS: I was a little surprised there wasn’t a Wynonna-Dolls beat somewhere at the end

MIRI: I wonder if they didn’t want to put it in competition with the Wynonna-Doc beat

KRIS: I don’t see where it would have fit in but I’m curious about which ship is sailing next season

Yeah that’s what I figured

MIRI: I thiiiiink it’s Wynonna/Dolls

I think the little kiss with Doc was just an acknowledgement of the magnitude of it all and that they care about each other

She and Dolls seemed pretty settled after the vision quest

KRIS: Yeah

MIRI: Which reminds me that we may have the same side/opposite sides thing come up again next season

KRIS: With Doc and Dolls?

MIRI: Dolls and Wynonna

They discuss it in bed after the vision quest

KRIS: Ohhhhh right right

That kind of came out of nowhere for me

MIRI: Yeah, I think it was either a red herring going into the finale arc, or groundwork for future tension

KRIS: I’m basically just looking for a good Andras or Scrofano tweet to end this on

https://twitter.com/MelanieScrofano/status/901230636748464128

https://twitter.com/emtothea/status/901474002631249921

https://twitter.com/emtothea/status/901272365060861952

MIRI: She has a voice she uses to talk to/about cakes. Again, I aspire to be Emily Andras when I grow up

KRIS: https://twitter.com/emtothea/status/901278447497994240

https://twitter.com/emtothea/status/901278890181574656

https://twitter.com/MelanieScrofano/status/901265498771513344

MIRI: KRIS you have to give me time to react to things, stop texting at the speed of Wynonna plot twists!!!!! KRIS: OH we forgot about Jeremy referring to Wayhaught as Wayhaught!

MIRI: Jeremy is the most genre savvy, but in a totally non-annoying way and I love him very much

Oh my godddd I missed this as a callback

KRIS: Oh me too

MIRI: I feel like Jeremy’s “It feels like a Phil” line means they’re not going to go too far with whatever his perception/power is

He’s not all knowing. He has feelings and observations that are just him being Jeremy too

KRIS:  I think I found the winner

MIRI: 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

They did say vagina/euphemisms for vagina a lot this episode

KRIS: https://twitter.com/emtothea/status/901264948176629760

MIRI: https://twitter.com/MelanieScrofano/status/901263525510873088

KRIS: https://twitter.com/MelanieScrofano/status/901279279379611648

We’re clearly out of control

MIRI: Our role models are not helpful on that score

KRIS: I feel like this has been a reasonably successful seeing-a-season-through

MIRI: Yes! I liked doing it this way and would be down for picking a show or two to do this for in fall

https://twitter.com/VarunSaranga/status/901268191984439296

KRIS: Maybe a half-hour?

MIRI: Yeah, that would be good. Do we want to do a new one or something returning?

KRIS: I guess we should wait and see

OH we should do Crazy Ex when it comes back

MIRI: YES

That’s not a half hour but YES

KRIS: OK we should really wrap up and have one of us start formatting this monster

Thanks to anyone who followed along with us

MIRI: Definitely! We hope you enjoyed and that you come back and keep enjoying. And let us know if you have any requests!

KRIS: Also fuck it, if the others aren’t watching The Bold Type by the time the season ends we should just do a finale reaction

MIRI: YES SOMEONE IS FINALLY GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE BOLD TYPE WITH ME

KRIS: SOMEONE PLEASE CATALOG EVERY SUTTON REACTION SHOT FOR ME

Wow that’s completely unreasonable, sorry Tumblr I take it back

MIRI: Never apologize, Kris.

Would Melanie Scrofano apologize? I think not

KRIS: Our Lady of Go Fuck Yourself

Hmmm, not my best

MIRI: No, I liked it

[soitg03s-blog]

I don’t know what to tell you, about when it started, she said. I just don’t know, maybe around the time she’d used all her returns from Wal-Mart, or maybe when her self-administered Fentanyl drips allowed her to tango with death all too often. She definitely wasn’t wearing the right shoes. It was about that time she looked in the mirror and realized she wasn’t who she thought she would be at 28 years old. She hated looking in the mirror, why save something you don’t care about? Her hair was chopped off; she had cuts and cigarette burns running along her arms, riding in a car with no brakes, expired plates and hitting in the same parking lot she’d copped in. Just for a brief moment before the overdose, just for second, she remembered who she really was. Was this the Karma Police? Didn’t you know this is what you get when you mess with us? And the feelings sometimes were almost too much to bear, but she thought she had to keep going. She couldn’t get clean for her family or her mother, who means the world to her. Her friends kept telling her, “We’re going to bury you Kris, please get help. It’s okay you relapsed, its okay.” But didn’t you know she was that girl that never made a mistake twice. She had to want this.

She remembered being pissed because her dealer wasn’t answering her calls at 8am in the morning. Didn’t you know they only have one customer and are supposed to be open 24 hours a day? She finally got a friend to answer, shockingly a former friend from NA, leave it to the rooms to help you with all your endeavors; however pure or not. Her smile wasn’t what is used to be, and she didn’t smile much anyways. Numbness was preferable. Induce the Profanol doc, call it human nature, and just beat it. Who doesn’t want to feel like MJ just for a second, a God among men? Her small pale arms bruised from dull rigs. Shame is purple and blue. She couldn’t handle it, she needed to use right then. There was always this compulsive need to have heroin, have Xanax and if she was tired enough throw an Adderall or ten in the mix. How do you know when you’ve reached the edge? She thought about that Hunter S. Thompson quote she loved so much, something about the only people that truly know what the edge is, are the people that have gone over it. She swan dived over without thinking and during the free fall, didn’t regret a thing; however, she came to this realization that she would hit the ground soon, impending doom. Do all dogs go to heaven? Shit, she’s a cat; nine lives and she’s about to become a prime number.

There is a saying in the rooms of NA that states there are only three things that will happen to you in drug addiction. There are only three places you’ll end up, jails, institutions or death. Leave it to her to be an overachiever, skip a grade or in this case skip right to death. She remembers sitting in a Rite Aid parking lot in Kannapolis, NC and taking a hit. Euphoria followed by a tube being jammed down her throat. Her feelings were always rather paradoxical, a sun Taurus and Scorpio moon sign. Are things really black and white? Because life is lived in the gray. She was gray, rotting, she felt like she had an expiration date on her and she just reached it. Is this how it all happens? She lay there and wonder. What happened to that girl who had so much zeal and lust for life, for living? And in addiction, despite her intense and passionate urge for what the French would call, L’appel du vide, which is defined as: the call of the void. She began to think in that moment she didn’t want to die. She didn’t want her mother to bury her. She wasn’t 27 anymore, no cool club to join; she was just an almost thirty something aimlessly searching for meaning. She would become that girl people who say, “She had so much potential.” She reached transcendence through chemical best friends or so she thought. L’appel du vide has a literal translation as the instinctive urge to jump from high places. As an addict, she began to think she wasn’t worth saving; no one would climb this cliff to come get her.

The monotonous tone of the sirens wailed and she lay there in absolute misery, wondering why they brought her back. Just let me jump, she thought. She thought about the last time she was in treatment, they had an activity where she had to describe her perfect day, a peaceful place she could go, a safe place. She went there in her mind. She was in the mountains with her mother, with her best friends. The leaves were changing colors and they all laughed. Neil Young playing on a portable record player, her friends taking Polaroids, joking around about the latest Louis C.K. standup. “Let’s just do everything a little bit wrong.” She looked over at her mother, who is healthy and smiling, looking right at her with those same green eyes she has. And suddenly her beautiful moment interrupted. Static over a Walkie Talkie, “Yeah, Jim we’ve got a 28 year old, heroin overdose. Caucasian, Female. She’s incoherent. Pulling into back entrance now.”  Hey, you, she thought. I’m here, this isn’t me, wait, wait, all I wanted to do in the beginning was lose myself…. And now, right now, she would give anything to find herself again.

Fast forward to 46 days later:

I read an article the other day about the concept of a Multiverse. Damn it feels nice to sit still and read again. Also, that whole concept of being able to concentrate, eh it comes and goes. All in time. Where were we? Oh that’s right, the article stated basically, in short, that we never truly die. Our spirit at least, it never truly vanishes. I’ve always believed in this in some way, our pictures, our loved ones and our memories, they keep us alive.  But this, this is more than just memories. This is something you can hold, put a wire around and protect, I’m referring to a soul. I was fascinated by this article; I’ve always been a fan of Quantum Physics. Basically the implication was we never truly, at least in terms of our consciousness, die. Instead when we leave our bodies, our mortal portals, our consciousness goes into time and space. The universes own compost and into the void we go. I’ve always honed in on the belief that we are all stardust, so small, so insignificant but found joy that we, mere mortals, could make such a lasting impact on this world. In a multiverse there are infinite possibilities. There are multiple realities happening simultaneously, and one decision, has the ability to throw you into a different reality, a reality which is already occurring. Which road will you take? Follow the white rabbit? The yellow-brick road? Are you more a breadcrumbs kinda girl?  Truth is all relative and our surroundings shape our perspective. We begin to believe what we see, what we taste, feel, touch and hear. But the fact of the matter is we can chose to emphasize the reality we are in. Embrace this universe.

In active addiction it was like I doggy-eared just one page of the narrative of my  life and space and time bent. If addiction doesn’t break you then you’re sucked into a black hole. Sadly for most of us, never to be seen again. Nothingness ensues. I’ve thought about this deeply, how in this reality I am 46 days clean and sober. Nothing mind altering, unless you count my normal psychedelic thoughts, sorry ya’ll that’s all natural. But, I thought about how in one reality I am still stealing random things from Wal-Mart and complaining at the cashier when they won’t return 4 three month supplies of this flea and tick medicine for dogs or take my license because it is literally expired by 8 months. True Story. I am using and I’m not dead, yet. In another reality, I see my beautiful mother crying, all my friends there, all my old teachers, and I’m six feet underground. “It’s such a shame, she had such promise. She got Most Outspoken 2006, she won’t be speaking much anything anymore.” And then I thought about this reality, the reality in which I am in. How the term Oxford was an argument about a comma or a university my favorite teacher in college went to, but now it means the ground in which I stand on. I always had all these thoughts about an Oxford House, but they have thus been extinguished, since this fire to live has lit inside of me. I’ve also been, to get real with you guys, so terrified that I cannot do this. I have self-doubt often, symptomatic of any addict. Am I smart enough? Am I pretty enough? What is my identity, am I just a needleless junkie? What if I can’t manage my own life? But life, these thoughts, they don’t stop for anyone and these moments I feel sadness, it’s inevitably fleeting and in the same breath I think I am terrible for what I’ve done, I realize I’m clean nothing else matters. I am who I am.

I have scars, imperfections. Can you tell I went through years of active heroin use, I’m not sure, but does it matter? This is the universe I dwell, may as well manifest a better reality for myself. I have deadpan humor. I like all things vintage and despite my seemingly cynical and sarcastic demeanor, I have so much faith in this world. Faith in my fellow human being, I am not hopeless. I’m Southern, keep holding those doors boys. The girl next door appreciates it. I even have a hard time looking at myself in the mirror today. It honestly reminds me of the first time I ever took Acid. “KRIS DON’T LOOK IN THE MIRROR.” You already know what I said, fuck ya’ll, I can handle it. And I did, but damned if I can’t always handle looking in the mirror, clean, all that well today. I fear that I may actually see what other people are talking about, that potential and in doing that I fear letting everyone down. I’m always screaming from the inside out, but in the best way possible, if such a thing exists. There is an energy that hits me in the chest and I realize I’m alive and everything else just seems secondary. Whitenoise. My life is a perpetual electric guitar shoving against an amp, waning out of control. And I wouldn’t change it for the world. I’ll indulge in recovery and take those suggestions, why? Because fuck heroin, fuck drugs. I’m too old to be doing that shit anyways. I’ve done enough for about ten times worth of watching Fear and Loathing and towards the end there throw in some Requiem For a Dream and we all know how that ended. I don’t need DMT to awaken that third eye. I was once blind, but now I see: Third Eye Blind, a great band. I want my life back, my semi-charmed kinda life.

I woke up that first day in detox completely lost from the days prior, still having some rage happening from too many benzos, starting to opiate detox, the watering eyes and muscle cramps, nausea. The unknown is scary, but today the void isn’t death or jails or institutions, it’s recovery. I still want to jump from high places, because I’ve always craved the adrenaline our body naturally produces; only the high places are my goals, my ambitions and dreams. Every day I’m clean, I start to believe I can reach those high places once more. I’ve found that the void I was so aimlessly searching for, its recovery. The void is being clean and truly feeling things again. Feelings just happen to you. I’m not the girl in the back of that ambulance. I am not a statistic. I’ve never conformed, why start now? I’m not simply a name on a tombstone or a member of the wasted youth.  And if I ever feel myself slipping, believing that I could indeed be the girl in one of those other multiverses, those other realities, which could so easily happen, perhaps I’ll call Rick and Morty, have them help me out. Whabbudubdubdub! Who doesn’t want friends that traverse time and space, am I right?

And into the void we go, loves.

Into the Void I don’t know what to tell you, about when it started, she said. I just don’t know, maybe around the time she’d used all her returns from Wal-Mart, or maybe when her self-administered Fentanyl drips allowed her to tango with death all too often.

[amalthasscripts-blog]

Shakespeare and the Kardashian Family

The social and political currents in William Shakespeare’s time manage to find their way into his plays through plots, puns and allegory. The genre of tragedy, as was the case with Renaissance tragedy in particular, place questions of the political dispensation through their fictionalized world. Shakespeare, it appears, was perceptive about the structure of his society. It was profoundly hierarchical with the king on top of the state, and the father or husband as head of the family. Women were considerably socially subordinate, and (as is not surprising even today), gendered divisions were like trenches, impossibly hard to bridge. Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s tragedies in which gender and sexuality are crucial for defining human identity and political power. Contemporary industries that revolve around show business and entertainment depict similar socio-political characteristics as can be seen in Shakespeare’s plays.

Macbeth explores the corruptive nature of power through its namesake protagonist, Macbeth. Although Macbeth is initially a lionhearted nobleman faithful to the Scottish king, the supernatural prophecy of his ascent to the throne catalyses his descent into power-crazed madness. Macbeth resorts to ruthless means to attain and maintain his authority, trailing destruction and bloodshed in his wake. In a hip-hop song “Power,” that released in 2010. Kanye West lyricizes the burden of power, with lyrics expressing both its grandeur and its danger. Although Macbeth, a Shakespearean tragedy, and “Power,” a hip-hop song by Kanye West, may at first glance appear disparate, they parallel in their message of cautioning against unchecked megalomania.

As the king and queen of image promotion and self-branding, Kanye and Kim exhibit the perils of pursuing ambition that Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth portray. Upon receiving her husband’s letter about the witches’ prophecies, Lady Macbeth wishes to be like a man, “Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here; and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty!” in order to exude the strength needed to gain additional social status as royalty. Lady Macbeth appears to be very influential in planning, instrumental deciding when and how they should kill King Duncan.  A recent controversy that reflects such a plot can be seen in the news breaking legal scandal between pop star Taylor Swift and Kanye West wherein, Taylor was suing Kanye for his song "Famous," that contains the line, "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex. I made that b**** famous." A representative for Swift released a statement thereafter claiming she had no idea about the "bitch" portion of the lyrics, and that she’d "cautioned him against releasing a song with such a strong misogynistic message.". Kim Kardashian West broke the Internet for a well-executed clap back to her current target Taylor Swift. Kim fanned the flame in her July GQ cover story, saying Swift "approved" the infamous line on West’s “Famous.” However, Swift denied approving the song and specified she was not made aware of the "I made that bitch famous line," which she deemed offensive and derogatory. Kim Kardashian also stated that Taylor’s lawyers demanded that the couple destroy the video in order of its “irrelevance”, which did not play in the pop star’s favour and led her to lose the case as well as being publicly humiliated by the media for being an alleged ‘liar’ and a ‘hypocrite’.

Between using her reality show to create hype and buzz for the eventual “reveal” on Twitter, Kardashian has displayed that she is more than just a woman who likes to put nude pictures of herself online: she is as something of a multi-platform-managing Lady Macbeth, assisting her husband not in regicide but in the take-down of an image-obsessive pop queen.

Sexuality and gender are prominent themes in Shakespeare’s plays. Depending on the genre of the play, sexuality and gender are used as either a tool of manipulation, a form of propaganda or sometimes both. The evil woman or the seductress who tempts men and brings about his destruction is one of the oldest themes of literature, mythology and religion in most cultures. The Kardashians have celebrated female sexuality and confidently embraced their bodies despite venomous backlash. They gloriously rejoice in their womanhood in a world where women are expected to be small and self-conscious. Their power over their sexuality has often earned them the title of the ‘femme fatale’, who stock character of a mysterious and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly. These titles were given to them having witnessed the life of the men who have been allegedly “destroyed” by the Kardashian women. Examples of such are, Chris Humphries. He was Kim’s husband for a span of 72 days. Their marriage was documented on their show ‘Keeping up with the Kardashians’ through Kim’s perspective.  However, Kris later filed an annulment in which it indicated that he requested "nullity of voidable marriage," on the basis of fraud. It was Humphries' legal way of saying he felt duped into a sham marriage having been “manipulated” in order for the show to get more ratings. Having lost the case, Kris Humphries struggled with a bad and abusive reputation in the public eye which directly affected his career is Basketball and later financial difficulties. Similar can be seen in the character of Lady Macbeth who always gives the final reason to Macbeth, an indecisive Thane, and manipulated him to climb the political ladder by shedding blood which leads him to his misfortune. Her capability to seduce her husband to fight his own conscience and do the unthinkable suggests that Lady Macbeth is a femme fatale. Indistinguishable to the characteristics that Kim Kardashian possesses.

The similarities between the Kardashian family and Macbeth can also be seen within Act 1, Scene 1 of Macbeth. The Kardashians and the witches both, a group of three sisters. The three witches foretelling power (fate) in the play is similar to the three Kardashians power among the people around them as their influence and popularity is vast, people listen to them and take their advice on matters that concern fashion, glamour and business, just like the protagonist of Macbeth did from the witches. The three witches are full of wisdom and knowledge and which gave them the power of foretelling one's destiny, this wisdom and knowledge is represented through the Kardashian sister’s economic wealth, which gives them the power to maintain their status and public image which keeps them trending and in the public eye. The power of the witches in Macbeth generated fear and respect amongst the readers towards the power women can hold over individuals and their destinies, similar to the Kardashians, who’s fans respect them for the influence they hold over social media and contemporary trends.

Other instances that proof the life of the Kardashian family as none other than a Shakespeare tragedy is the relative social and professional position rivalry between Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian. Hamlet cantered on revenge, familial loyalty and a struggle for the throne, and the Kardashians focus on Instagram likes, keeping TMZ on speed dial and finding new KUWTK plotlines to keep the fans interested. The metaphorical “throne” often used to describe Kim and Kylie’s ambition to take each of their makeup lines and glamourous statuses can be often seen in their reality show. In which questions are posed to each of the sisters asking who’ll be taking over the throne with the title of the ‘Queen.’ Kylie Jenner, with a billion-dollar business at the age of 20 and being the current most relevant public figure on social media appears to be going for the alleged ‘throne’ that Kim Kardashian has possessed since KUWTK has been popular. This war for titles and power amongst the family questions words such as ‘loyalty’ and ‘betrayal’, as can be seen in numerous plays of Shakespeare.

Shakespeare has determined many of the ideas that directly reflect the workings of the ‘modern’ world: ideas about human character, individuality and selfhood, government, leadership, love and jealousy, sexuality, ambition, youth and age can each be observed in our day to day lives. The interrelationships between Shakespeare and contemporary culture are vivid. From the persistence of difference in Othello to the matter of character in Hamlet to the untimeliness of youth in Romeo and Juliet, these ideas have been re-imagined in modern fiction, theater, film, the news, and in the literature of psychology, sociology, political theory, business, medicine, and law. As well the manifestations of his scenarios and characteristics in our peers, family and glamour icons. Shakespeare thereby appears to recast our own mental and emotional landscapes as refracted through the prism of the protean ‘modern day’.

[mountphoenixrp]

We have a new citizen in Mount Phoenix:

                                   Hundun, the God of Chaos and Creation,                                            whose origins stem from Ancient China.                                            He is now a bartender at Dr.Feelgoods.

FC NAME/GROUP: Kris Wu - Soloist GOD NAME: Hundun PANTHEON: Chinese OCCUPATION: Bartender at Dr. Feelgoods HEIGHT: 6’8 - 203 cm WEIGHT: 236 lb - 107 kg DEFINING FEATURES: Hundun is covered in scars from the fights he has been in, primarily around his chest and back area. He does have piercings, specifically conch, helix, and daith piercings. Surprisingly, he does not have many tattoos, but is looking to get some more. Currently he has one tattoo on his right arm (x) and one on his left wrist (x). Aside from the basic features, one that sets him apart as a definite divine being is his eyes and teeth. His eyes are a mixture of orange and gold, somewhat like a fiery amber, and his teeth are very elongated and sharp.

PERSONALITY: Hundun is a troublemaker above everything. His entire existence, after all, is to create chaos and strife. Still, he only uses such trickery and malice in certain moments, and might consider himself less “immature” than other gods such as Loki or Set.

However, even despite his behavior he is not one to be trifled with. He is equally cunning and intelligent, and years of watching the human population has allowed for him to adapt to their waysand learn their weaknesses.

Hundun is not without his faults, however. While he is strong physically and mentally, he has a problem dealing with new threats. He has a tendency that, if he is unable to properly size someone or something up, he will become irrational and tense. This causes him to close up completely, and if he hates you enough, to lash out. He also is not very keen at making friends out of the blue, so you would need to prove yourself “significant” enough to get to know him. When you do, however, you will find he cares for people in a very ‘special’ way so to speak, rather that the longer the relation between you two is, the kinder he will become.

HISTORY:

I. WARMONGER

The last thing Hundun would have wanted in all of eternity was to end up on some island surrounded by fog that was filled with the sons and daughters of every deity imaginable, including his own.

And other gods. He hated the other gods.

Time had been unkind to the patron of chaos and creation. He once had power, tons of it, and ruled the abyss without worry. He watched empires crumble, kings rise and fall, warriors wet the grass with their blood all in the name of everlasting glory. But they were not everlasting. Nothing was.

Still, Hundun took great pride in the battles fought over the ages. The trickery and malice caused by him was a trophy in a treasure room- a symbol of his power. He enticed mortals, created pacts which he never upheld, and gave leaders their power in return for blood. War became his symbol, and the chaos that followed was his weapon.

He was proud, he was powerful. But most of all, he was feared.

II. DIVINE

He first became worried when warriors, previously accepting of each other, began to quarrel between each other. Diplomatic disagreements had become history, and soon disputes were solved with blades and arrows. Still, his worry was more a pang of uncertainty that simmered down in his belly. They did not prove to be too meddlesome in his affairs, rather quite the opposite. These warriors brought battles and war, something Hundun was quite fond of, and in one of the few times in his existence, he simply sat back and watched. It was interesting, to say the least.

China had changed overtime, modernizing and expanding. However, time told that these warriors were not fighting to solve national problems, despite what they told the population, but for the throne. This corruption, enticed by Hundun, ravaged the population, knocking off more people besides the fighters than he could count. Overtime, and despite Hundun’s efforts, the fighting began to grow out of hand as distrust and malice plagued the minds of everyone, keeping from a single ruler to be found. Despite Hundun being a sort of overseer, it was not his exact domain to rule in, and the other gods had already been working frantically in an effort to keep a hold on the civilization that was quickly unraveling before them. The divine beings were losing their grip, and quickly at that, and to add to the mess the idea of a supposed “single supreme god” had been promoted to the chinese population, causing the gods’ power to diminish greatly.

Quite frankly, Hundun understood why most of them chose to lose faith in the gods, and for once in a very long time he was scared.

In fact, Hundun, the great god of chaos and creation, was terrified.

III. EVANESCE

It was 1902 when Hundun officially left China, and renounced his title as one of the gods overseeing it. The Chinese population, significantly lessened due to war and disease, had given up by now with keeping ties with the old religion save for the small loyal stragglers. The gods had dispersed, not telling anyone of their plans and Hundun was no different. Whether some stayed and tried to reclaim the people’s faith or not, Hundun was gone. New religion had wiped him away, and instead of praying to Hundun to end violence and his malicious intent, the people prayed to an everlasting god high above.

Hundun was small, and he hated the feeling.

Hypothetically “packing up and moving away”, Hundun began to wander the earth for a new home. Other gods, present in their respected territories, would not have the god of chaos. No one wanted him, and so he instead went to places that he could practice his magic and control temperament on his own terms. These places were different to what he was used to- Hundun had grown accustomed to cherry blossoms and lush forests, but he found himself in grasslands and looming hills. He became very territorial over his newfound home, especially since, unfortunately, there were very few of them. This caused a rift with other nearby gods, especially those that controlled certain aspects of the territory Hundun was in, and small scuffles began to break out. Humans would note the skies darkening at random intervals of the day, the smell of rotting wood plaguing the air, and terrible storms appearing nad wiping away people and buildings. Overtime, the conflict between Hundun and the other gods began to completely change the environment, making it go from lush, green, and full of vegetation, to barren, rocky, and without a single tree in sight.

Even Hundun, not one of the most “caring” individuals on the planet, knew he had to leave.

IV. ASCEND

He was like an infection when not in his natural domain, and this infection would keep spreading into other areas unless Hundun did something about it. If anything, he didn’t want to piss off an entire legion of divines who were more than happy to defend their realm and join together in utterly obliterating the god of chaos.

So, he chose to find a solution.

Hundun started inquiring to many beyond, taking on the shape of different vessels as he searched within the human population. More often than not, these people would know nothing about places empty of other gods and cultures, and so Hundun was left with no answers. However, overtime he managed to catch snippets of information regarding a mysterious place home to deities and their children alike, where any being with ancient power housed in their blood could find a home. Hundun, although slightly adamant against sharing the same land as others, took this as a blessing and immediately set off to find this island, called “Mount Phoenix”. When he did, he was greeted with open arms, something the god of chaos was very wary of and not used to at all. However, with time, Hundun has come to adore his new home and (despite his nature) tries to be as welcome to newcomers as he can (although personality-wise, he’s still trying).

POWERS: Hundun grows stronger and more powerful in chaotic situations, whether it be great or small, and is able to use this to his advantage, not to mention he is also able to cause distrust and suspicions in people, causing them to turn on each other or worse, on everyone else. Hundun is also gifted in animating inanimate objects whenever he pleases and for whatever cause he wishes, although only for a limited time.

STRENGTHS:

Hundun has no limit to his power when in a chaotic environment, and his strength grows with each passing second

When Hundun instills distrust and suspicion in others, he is rendered somewhat invisible to them. Meaning, if he is in an environment with others who he causes to distrust each other, he will be left out of the post-conflict entirely

Hundun can instill varying levels of distrust in others, ranging from the smallest suspicions to outright chaos

When Hundun animates inanimate things, those object will obey him completely until they are dismissed.

When Hundun animates inanimate things, those things can take on a different purpose from their original design (such as a blender turned killing-machine type of thing).

WEAKNESSES:

Although Hundun can grow stronger/more powerful in chaotic situations, he cannot diminish said strength, meaning he can lose control in the situation and/or possibly cause even more damage than intended

When Hundun cause distrust in others it renders him somewhat ignored in their eyes, however if someone outside of the conflict brings him into it and/or something happens that causes him to be dragged directly into the chaos, then there can be trouble and the suspicions may be turned on him.

When Hundun instills distrust in more than one person it involves varying levels of focus. Instilling destruct in one person is easy- almost like breathing to him. However, with groups of 5-10 he must be very focused and have all his attention on those people.

When Hundun animates things, a time limit is set. For smaller objects, such as keys or knives, the time limit increases to up to an hour. However, for larger objects such as cars or even beds, the time limit is diminished to 30-45 minutes.

[mindthump]

End of the road: will automation put an end to the American trucker? http://ift.tt/2y6FvuO

Jeff Baxter’s sunflower-yellow Kenworth truck shines as bright and almost as big as the sun. Four men clean the glistening cab in the hangar-like truck wash at Iowa 80, the world’s largest truck stop.

Baxter has made a pitstop at Iowa 80 before picking up a 116ft-long wind turbine blade that he’s driving down to Texas, 900 miles away.

Baxter, 48, is one of the 1.8 million Americans, mainly men, who drive heavy trucks for a living, the single most common job in many US states. Driving is one of the biggest occupations in the world. Another 1.7 million people drive taxis, buses and delivery vehicles in the US alone. But for how long? Having “disrupted” industries including manufacturing, music, journalism and retail, Silicon Valley has its eyes on trucking.

Google, Uber, Tesla and the major truck manufacturers are looking to a future in which people like Baxter will be replaced – or at the very least downgraded to co-pilots – by automated vehicles that will save billions but will cost millions of jobs. It will be one of the biggest changes to the jobs market since the invention of the automated loom – challenging the livelihoods of millions across the world.

More than 70% of US fears robots taking over our lives, survey finds

“I’m scared to death of that,” says Baxter, an impish man with bad teeth that he hides behind his hand as he laughs. “I can’t operate a pocket calculator!”

But Baxter is in the minority. Iowa 80 is a great place to check the pulse of the trucking community. Interstate 80 – the second longest in the country – runs from downtown San Francisco to the edge of New York City. The truck stop, about 40 miles east of Iowa City, serves 5,000 customers each day, offering everything they could need from shops and restaurants to a cinema, chiropractor, dentist, barber and a chapel.

Every week, a major tech company seems to announce some new development in automated trucking. Next month, the Tesla founder, Elon Musk, will unveil an electric-powered semi that is likely to be semi-autonomous. But most of the truckers I spoke to were not concerned by the rise of the robots. “I don’t think a robot could do my job,” says Ray Rodriguez, 38, who has driven up a batch of cars from Tennessee. “Twenty years from now, maybe.”

Nor do the managers of the Iowa 80 see their jobs changing any time soon. “The infrastructure just isn’t there,” says Heather DeBaillie, marketing manager of Iowa 80. Nor does she think that people are ready for autonomous trucks. “Think about the airplane. They could automate an airplane now. So why don’t they have airplanes without pilots?” She also argues that the politics of laying off so many people will not pass muster in Washington.

The family-run Iowa 80 has been serving truckers for 53 years, and is so confident about its future that it is expanding to secure its claim to being the world’s biggest truck stop, adding more restaurants and shopping space to the “Disneyland of truckers”.

But not everyone is so confident that truck stops will survive the age of the algorithm. Finn Murphy, author of The Long Haul, the story of his life as a long-distance truck driver, says the days of the truck driver as we know him are coming to an end. Trucking is a $700bn industry, in which a third of costs go to compensating drivers, and, he says, if the tech firms can grab a slice of that, they will.

Left to right: Iowa 80, known as the ‘Disneyland of truck stops’; Jeff Baxter, 49, with his truck after having it washed; Douglas Berry, 55, with his truck and trailer. Composite: The Guardian

“The only human beings left in the modern supply chain are truck drivers. If you go to a modern warehouse now, say Amazon or Walmart, the trucks are unloaded by machines, the trucks are loaded by machines, they are put into the warehouse by machines. Then there is a guy, probably making $10 an hour, with a load of screens watching these machines. Then what you have is a truckers’ lounge with 20 or 30 guys standing around getting paid. And that drives the supply chain people nuts,” he says.

The goal, he believes, is to get rid of the drivers and “have ultimate efficiency”.

“I think this is imminent. Five years or so. This is a space race – the race to get the first driverless vehicle that is viable,” says Murphy. “My fellow drivers don’t appear to be particularly concerned about this. They think it’s way off into the future. All the people I have talked to on this book tour, nobody thinks this is imminent except for me. Me and Elon Musk, I guess.”

'From heroes to villains': tech industry faces bipartisan backlash in Washington

The future is coming. Arguably it is already here. Several states have already laid the groundwork for a future with fewer truckers. California, Florida, Michigan and Utah have passed laws allowing trucks to drive autonomously in “platoons”, where two or more big rigs drive together and synchronize their movements.

The stage has been set for a battle between the forces of labor and the tech titans. In July, the powerful Teamsters union successfully pushed Congress to slow legislation for states looking to broaden the use of autonomous vehicles. After arm-twisting by the union, the US House of Representatives energy and commerce committee exempted vehicles over 10,000lb from new rules meant to speed the development of autonomous cars. Many truckers came into the industry after being displaced by automation in other industries, and the transportation secretary, Elaine Chao, has said she is “very concerned” about the impact of self-driving cars on US jobs.

The Budweiser cans driven by self-driving truck.

But Ryan Petersen sees the Teamsters’ move as a speed bump at best. Petersen, the founder of Flexport, a tech-savvy freight logistics company, says fully operational self-driving trucks will start replacing jobs within the next year, and will probably become commonplace within 10.

“Labor accounts for 75% of the cost of transporting shipments by truck, so adopters can begin to realize those savings. Beyond that, while truckers are prohibited from driving more than 11 hours per day without taking an eight-hour break, a driverless truck can drive for the entire day. This effectively doubles the output of the trucking network at a quarter of the cost. That’s an eight-times increase in productivity, without taking into account other benefits gained by automation,” he says.

Larger trucks making highway trips, like those occupying the 900-truck parking spots at Iowa 90, are the lowest-hanging fruit and will be automated first, Petersen says.

Last year, Otto, a self-driving truck company owned by Uber, successfully delivered 45,000 cans of Budweiser in a truck that drove the 130-odd miles from Fort Collins, Colorado, to Colorado Springs. A semi-automated platoon of trucks crossed Europe last year in an experiment coordinated by DAF, Daimler, Iveco, MAN, Scania and Volvo.

But the automation that seems to most concern drivers at Iowa 80 concerns their log books. Truck firms are shifting drivers over to computerized logs – and they hate it. The new system adds another layer of oversight to an industry that is already heavily regulated, and will limit where and when drivers can stop. A driver looking to add an extra 30 minutes to his ride in order to make it to the truck stop rather than rest up in a layby might find that option gone, under a system that is centrally controlled rather than filled in by him in the log books that occupy a long shelf in Iowa 80’s giant trucker store.

The trucker holds a special place in American mythology: sometimes a symbol of freedom and the open road, sometimes a threat. Truckers entered popular culture from all directions, from the existential horror of Spielberg’s Duel, to Convoy, the bizarre trucker protest song that became a global hit and introduced the world to CB radio slang – “Let them truckers roll, 10-4!”

Left to right: Ray Rodriguez puts wheel-bolt covers on his truck; promotional material for Smokey and the Bandit; the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum. Composite: The Guardian/Universal Pictures

In the 1970s, Hollywood’s he-men wanted to be truckers: Kris Kristofferson in Convoy, inspired by the song; Burt Reynolds CB-slanging his way through Smokey and the Bandit I and II. Thelma and Louise took their revenge on a cat-calling trucker in 1991. Hollywood, presciently, had a cyborg drive a big rig in Terminator 2, and went full robot with Optimus Prime in the Transformers franchise. At the turn of the 21st century, the ever nostalgic hipsters’ love of trucker hats and T-shirts revived America’s fetishization of the long-distance driver.

But it’s a nostalgia out of sync with a reality of declining wages, thanks in part to declining union powers, restricted freedoms, and a job under mortal threat from technology, says Murphy. Truckers made an average of $38,618 a year in 1980. If wages had just kept pace with inflation, that would be over $114,722 today – but last year the average wage was $41,340.

“The myth is that the long-haul truck driver is the cultural evolution of the free-range cowboy from the 19th century,” says Murphy. “In fact, trucking is one of the most regulated industries in the United States. Every move the trucker makes is tracked by a computer. We have logs we need to keep every time we stop, pull over, take a leak. The truck’s speed, braking, acceleration is all recorded. This is not a cowboy on the open range. This is more like 1984 than 1894.”

Douglas Barry has been driving trucks since 1990. A wiry firecracker of a man, Barry says those pushing for automation are failing to see the bigger picture. The general public is just not ready to see 80,000lb of 18-wheeler flying down the highway with no one at the wheel.

“That big old rig could blow sky-high, slam into a school. It needs a human being. There isn’t a machine that can equal a human being,” he says. “Artificial intelligence can be hacked ... Who is ready for that? I wouldn’t want my family going down the road next to a truck that’s computer-operated.”

He says the involvement of the tech companies has stopped people from looking for more holistic solutions to transportation problems. The answer is better roads, more delivery points for trains, streamlining the supply system – not just looking for ways of cutting manpower.

“A lot of these people at Google and so forth are very intelligent. But in a lot of ways they are out of touch with reality,” Barry says.

Yet computers don’t get tired, don’t drink or take drugs, and don’t get distracted or get road rage. Murphy, the author, says the argument that people are better than machines will not hold for long – especially as more and more people get used to autonomous cars.

“The assumption is that we are living in some kind of driver utopia now and machines are going to destroy that,” he says. “The fact is that we have 41,000 highway deaths in America every year. If we piled those bodies up, that would be a public health crisis. But we are so used to the 41,000 deaths that we don’t even think about it.”

Rise of the robocar: are connected cars safer, or a target for hackers?

Virtually all those deaths are from driver error, he says. “What if we took that number down to 200? Here’s how it looks to me. Thirty years from now my grandchildren are going to say to me: ‘You people had pedals on machines that you slowed down and sped up with? You had a wheel to turn it? And everybody had their own? And you were killing 41,000 people a year? You people were savages!’

“They are going to look at driver-operated vehicles the way people now look at a pregnant woman smoking,” he says. “It’ll be the absolute epitome of barbarism.”

It will also be a change in the workplace of historic proportions. “I watch a lot of Star Trek,” says Baxter, as he prepares to get back on the road. “The inventions of an innovative mind can accomplish a lot of things. I just don’t want to see automated trucks coming down the road in my lifetime.”

[marshmallow-phd]

My Soul to Burn

Part of the EXO Demon Series

Genre: Demon AU

Pairing: Fem!Reader x Minseok

Summary: Unknown to the mortals, the world was plunging into chaos. But Minseok couldn’t care less. He was still able to take assignments, able to continue in collecting souls of the gullible. As long as he could do his job, he didn’t care what the angels or his boss were up to. Out stalking his next target, he met you, someone who could see him even when he chose to be invisible. At first, he shrugged you off, not interest in the mystery. But after another chance encounter, Minseok was intrigued. As your abnormality could have a part to play in the war against the angels, he was reluctantly keeping you close. With you as warm as he was cold, he tried to stay the terrifying demon while being haunted by Kris’ last words…

Part: 1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 I 6 I 7 I 8 I 9 I 10 I 11 I 12 I Final

**

Minseok arrived back at the mansion, Chanyeol pouncing as soon as he saw him.

“Who was that?” he asked with those annoyingly big eyes.

“Just a nuisance,” Minseok grumbled.

“But she could see us.” Chanyeol bounced from one foot to the other. He was so easily spooked and that pitiful state was obnoxious.

Minseok ignored him as he stalked to the kitchen. Jongdae was sitting at the middle island, reading over his latest file sprayed out in front of him. He looked stress, but after his debacle with an older contract, it was understandable. He couldn’t leave any opening for the target to get out unscathed.

Fetching two glasses out of the cabinet and pouring more whiskey than necessary, Minseok slid one glass to the other demon who picked it up and downed nearly half of it.

“Thanks, hyung,” Jongdae sighed. Minseok just shrugged.

Most of the others in the house kept their distance from Minseok. While they were all demons, most of them were softer than they should have been. Yixing sickened him the most, too sweet and interested in the everyday numbness of human lives. The youngest ones, mostly Sehun and Tao, really got on his nerves with their antics and occasional whining. Jongdae seemed to be the only one he could stand being around for long periods of time. Luhan as well, but he was more relaxed around the former.

“What was Chanyeol talking about someone seeing you?” Jongdae inquired, flipping his folder shut. He could never stay concentrated on a target for long.

Minseok shrugged, taking another sip of the alcohol. Sometimes he wondered why he bothered to drink the stuff, the burn wasn’t as searing as it was to a human and the amount it took him to get drunk would be almost half a liquor store. “Just some girl. It’s not a big deal.”

“You say that now,” Jongdae murmured. “What if something else happens? We’ve already had issues thanks to one human girl. We don’t really need her to track us down here or mess something up.”

“Just drop it,” Minseok snapped.

Truth be told, Minseok wanted everyone else to drop it so he could. He needed to keep up the pretense that you being able to see him wasn’t bruising his ego. Having power that humans could only dream of? Yeah, he lived for it. Not having one of his favorites be usable against one measly female? It was pissing him off.

Minseok finished off his drink, taking both his and Jongdae’s empty glasses and washing them clean in the sink before laying them on the hardly used drying rack. Just as he was exiting the kitchen, he threw over his shoulder, “Get that case done in a timely manner. I can’t keep covering for your sluggishness.”

Jongdae smirked. “Sure thing, fearsome leader.”

Minseok rolled his eyes and left. Just before he made it to the first step, Yixing came down the stairs, taking a wide berth to avoid him as much as possible, not even making eye contact when he passed. As much as Minseok didn’t care for the softy, he was getting sick and tired of this childish silent treatment.

“Are you actually going to spend the rest of eternity blaming me?” Minseok snarled at Yixing’s back.

Yixing froze before slowly turning just enough to look over his shoulder at Minseok. “I don’t blame you. It’s not your fault that you did your duty as a pawn to Lucifer and caused the world to turn into a battle ground. Besides, Kris would have eventually left with her on his own.” He looked away and continued to the door. Just as he turned the handle and opened it a crack, he added, “You know, I hope what Kris told you really does come true. I think it be good for you.”

“Deaf ears,” Minseok scoffed. Of course Yixing heard that pathetic speech Mr. Noble gave him. “I don’t even remember what that little traitor said.”

“Yes, you do,” Yixing challenged. He disappeared through the entryway, the door closing with a soft click.

Minseok shook his head. What a load of bullshit. If anyone else was going to crack and fall for a stupid human, it’d be Yixing. Then Minseok could laugh in his face and then watch his traitorous butt drive away just like Kris. Maybe he should introduce you to Yixing?

He shook his head. No. As much as he didn’t care for Yixing, he didn’t think he should put him through the torture of your attitude.

Shrugging off the thought, Minseok took the stairs two at a time. He was sure that he had all he needed to persuade his target to make a deal and that’s where his focus needed to be.

**

For about twenty-four hours you were extremely paranoid. Looking over your shoulder every five seconds, jumping at every little sound that hummed through your dingy studio apartment, seeing things that weren’t actually there. You were completely exhausted from being in a permanent state of fight or flight.

But after making it through two whole nights without that stranger coming after you, you calmed down and went back to your normal programming. Besides, maybe you just imagined him disappearing into thin air. The adrenaline of the run mixed with your exhaustion after working seven days in a row without a break was just making you see things.

Yes, that’s exactly what it was. Your mind playing tricks on you. There was no way a person could actually turn invisible or teleport or whatever the hell it was that your mind came up with. He was not going to come after you. There was no reason to be fearful for your life.

This was a mantra you kept repeating to yourself as you came in through the back door of the coffee shop. You were greeted by Mr. Kwon, who was getting ready to make the first batch of fresh brew for the day, and Hana as she was simultaneously stuffing napkins into the metal holders and texting catch-of-the-week on her phone.

Immediately, you started on your own pre-opening tasks: wiping down tables for anything that might have been missed the night before, refilling sugar packets, and double checking that all dishes were cleaned and ready for use.

Hana leaned on the counter as you reorganized the cups stacked for any to-go orders.

“So, John told me you were seeing someone who wasn’t there the other day.” Her lips were pulled into a teasing smirk. While Hana was a nice girl, she wasn’t necessarily someone you would hang out with outside of work. She could be a little too nosy for your liking.

“Misunderstanding,” you lied coolly. “I accidently said table six rather than table seven. That’s why he thought I was seeing things.” You let your shoulders fall in a nonchalant shrug. “It was busy. You know, because someone else wouldn’t answer their phone.” You pointed your gaze on the device in her hands, making her put it away guiltily.

“I was in a movie,” she pouted. Although it was perfectly clear that she was more disappointed by your ordinary explanation rather than being called out for avoiding her job. She wasn’t scheduled to work, but it was her week for backup duty.

Unreliable was a good descriptive word for Hana. But Mr. Kwon kept her around because she did, admittedly, always show up on time for her days that were marked on the calendar. You just couldn’t get her to come in for extra help.

The subject was dropped, however, and soon the shop was open for business. As it was a week day, morning business mostly consisted of sleepy commuters needing their daily dose of caffeine before heading off to their boring office jobs.

That was something you could never do. The idea of sitting at a computer all day every day, doing the same thing over and over again made you die inside. Did you have the most luxurious home? No. Did you have a car? No at all. Did you get to go out on expensive vacations all around the world? As nice as that would be, the answer was still no.

But you were comfortable. You actually enjoyed coming into work most days. You liked having the same customers that you could talk to, make them smile when their day was down, or secretly give them an extra treat just because, but each day still came with surprises. Of course, you had days that you rolled over and didn’t want to get out of bed, but didn’t everyone?

You didn’t need the fancy luxuries in life. You just needed to get by with a little treat every now and again. That kept you satisfied.

“(y/n)?”

You shoved the rest of the Danish in your mouth that you had snuck into the back to eat. The morning rush was over and your stomach was yelling at you to give it something to hold you over until your actual break in an hour or so.

You turned around, trying not to choke as you cleared your mouth of the pastry. “Yeah, Hana?”

Hana batted her eyes for a moment and then hooked her thumb over her shoulder. “Mr. Thomas is asking for you.”

Nodding, you hurried past her before she could voice her opinion on whether or not the middle aged accountant had a thing for you or not. She was always jumping to conclusions and gossiping. Some day you were sure it would get her in trouble.

When you reached the counter, you blinked, at first not recognizing him.

Mr. Thomas looked better than he had in weeks. Gone were the bags under the eyes and the wrinkled clothes that desperately needed a good dry cleaning. Instead, the stubble on his face was shaved away, his clothes looked fresh from the tailor, and he was smiling as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

“How can I help you, Mr. Thomas?” You gave him a smile, feeling a bit relieved that he seemed to be doing much better.

“I’ve come to offer you a job, Miss (y/n),” he stated, getting straight to the point.

Your mouth dropped. “W-what?”

“My firm is back on track,” he explained, “and I’ll never be broke again. You’ve helped keep my spirits up a lot these past few weeks and so I was hoping I could bring you along with me. The office could use a girl like you.”

Um…. “Thank you, Mr. Thomas.” You tried to remain polite. He was obviously sincere about the position, but working for him was a one way ticket to a cubicle and dying spirit. “I really appreciate the offer, but I’m not sure what I could do in an office….”

You’d worked service jobs your whole life. You weren't even sure how a copier worked for the most part.

“I figured you could be my personal secretary.” His eyes looked… not hopeful, but almost as if he was sure that you’d have no other answer but yes.

“Thank you, again, Mr. Thomas,” you lost the smile on your face so he’d understand that you were perfectly serious in your rejection, “but I’m quite comfortable here. I’m sorry.”

The grin slipped from his face. “Oh. Are you sure? I have enough that I can pay you double than what you make here. Just name your salary, I’ll give it to you.”

To any other person that would have been more than enough to take the job. But you remembered how weathered and soulless your father looked each night getting home from work. That wasn’t worth it in your eyes.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Thomas,” you emphasized, “but I just can’t accept your offer.”

He sighed. “Okay, then. I understand.” The smile was right back on his face. “How about I take you out to dinner then?”

Your eyes widened. Hana snorted from her eavesdropping hiding space in the back. If only someone would kill you now.

**

Minseok nearly gagged. Was the old man serious? He was at least twice your age and yet, there he was, trying to get you out on a date. As grotesque as Minseok found the situation, the look on your face pushed a laugh out of him. You were utterly horrified and Minseok nearly patted himself on the back.

Something else that always set him apart from his brothers was how he liked to stick around the targets and watch the aftermath. When someone went from a few days of being evicted to suddenly rolling in money, there was always a show. They either took themselves farther down the road of destruction with endless means to fund it or they found themselves back where they started – if they were dumb and only asked for a certain amount of money and prosperity.

That was what people always wanted these days. Money. Wealth. Fame and fortune. The amount of actors and singers who had contracts signed in their name and waiting for their deathbed was unbelievable.

Most of the targets got big heads, walking around like they had the world at their feet instead of their name on the list of hell-goers. They live it up now, forgetting the torture that awaited them after death.

But this. This right here just might be the most hysterical event Minseok ever witnessed. The old man got his skyscraper accounting firm and million dollar home and now he thought he could just waltz in the shop and sweep you off your feet. At this point, Minseok was tempted to leave his hiding space just outside the shop, blocked from view by the wall and leaning forward just enough to see your face, and head inside to be closer to the action. But then you would see him and the show would probably be over. He was extremely thankful that demons had superior hearing.

“Mr. Thomas, I don’t think that’s appropriate at all.” Your overall tone was nice, but even Minseok could feel the underlying tension in your voice.

“Come on, (y/n),” Thomas whined, practically begging like a dog. “It’s just dinner. Besides, what’s the big? It’s the twenty-first century. Age doesn’t matter.”

You snapped. “I said no. I am not interested in getting dinner with you. And your insistence is making me uncomfortable. So either please order something or leave.”  

Minseok was impressed. It was rare to see someone stand up for themselves like that.

Figuring out that just because he was rich now didn’t mean he could get you, the idiot ran out of the shop with his tail between his legs. Snorting, Minseok shimmered away before you could notice him.

Back at the mansion, he just wandered around, already itching to get a new assignment. This one had been too easy. Thomas had practically begged for the contract as soon as he figured out what Minseok was. There was no fight, no bartering or back and forth. Boring.

“Minseok.”

Excellent.

Turning around with a smug smile on his face, Minseok answered, “Yes?”

Junmyeon didn’t look as happy. He was always so stoic and serious. Minseok actually kind of liked that. But he did wander if Junmyeon knew how to smile, wickedly or otherwise.

The fearless leader held up a folder and Minseok could feel his eyes shining.

“I was supposed to give this to Tao,” Junmyeon stated. “But he’s still working on his previous assignment. I heard you’ve finished yours and I know-”

Minseok snatched the folder out of his hand and was halfway up the stairs before Junmyeon could blink. He waltzed into the second floor study and plopped down in one of the chairs near the bookcases, leathery and overstuffed but comfortable, and opened up the file.

He nearly choked. It was strange feeling. He didn’t know whether to laugh or groan. But he’d already taken the assignment, accepted the target. This would be… interesting.