#just continue to port it / update it with new tracks every once in a while

[genericpuff]

I'm torn between wanting Sega and Crypton to go fully scorched earth and just make Project Diva Mega Mix+ into a community-supported game with custom beatmaps and songs (similarly to that of Osu) knowing fully well that would never happen due to all the copyright and gameplay issues that would arise (it would be such a stripped down version of the game that it wouldn't even be Project Diva anymore) and just wanting them to release another paid DLC pack some day which also likely will never happen because dev support for Mega Mix+ is basically dead.

The songs packed with Mega Mix+ are great, I've found a lot of new favorites through it as well, but inevitably I'll still wind up dropping the game when I either hit my skill ceiling or simply lose interest in trying to perfect the same limited number of songs, and that bums me out because it is a very fun game, but it's severely limited by the restrictions that arise by its curated-only track design.

Like, 251 tracks (if you have all the DLC) sounds like a lot until you realize that only a third of them might be fun to play and despite so many legacy songs being available - Love is War, World is Mine, Rolling Girl, etc. - there are a lot of others that are strangely missing as well. Ievan Polkka and Hato are nowhere to be found despite being in prior titles thanks to copyright disputes. Matryoshka and Echo are both songs that have been covered to death by the Vocaloid community precisely because of how iconic they are, but of course they aren't even in the DLC packs. Despite Kasane Teto and Akita Neru being present as customizable characters, they don't really have any songs to show for their presence; they feel more like the obligatory fanservice cameo which I can understand to some degree considering they're from the UTAU cast and aren't as massively known characters as Miku and the Kagamine twins, but you're telling me the devs got as far as including the OG UTAU trio of Teto, Neru, and Haku, and didn't think for a second to include Triple Baka as a playable song??? 💀😭

There damn well better be some legal reason they couldn't include it because I won't take "the song is cringe" as an excuse, y'all put the Miku cover of Nyan Cat in there LMAO

I will continue to dream of a day when I can play a Project Diva beatmap for Bacterial Contamination. Or Panda Hero. Or Adventurous Girl & Miniature Garden Game. Shit, I'd even take Honey Honey at this point, at least the OG UTAUloid trio are in that one. Fifty years from now I'm gonna be in the fucking retirement home grumbling incoherent nonsense about Teto Territory and y'all can't stop me 😆

[the-scarecrow-of-aus]

Soooo...

Um, for mermay...

I was thinking of what might be fun to write for dcxdp, I thought I might be able to hash something out as I drove home from work earlier...

Listening to a random Spotify playlist that contained 'two' songs right after each other.. (this will come up later)

People know about pirate!batman right?

'Leatherwing'

My mind went about updating leatherwing to include all the bats and birds. Then it went to how I'd introduce danny.

-

Danny, who learnt he was a mermaid when he was 14, after being knocked overboard unconcious, into the port he fell, getting brained by a stray lumber spar, caught in fouled rigging and then dragged over the side by dead weight all on accident by his port-friend sam.

He didn't drown, but it took a while to wake up then realising you were staring at the underside of the ships keel.

-

not a good thing to discover when your parents hunt mermaids and other mythical creatures. "Dangerous creatures danno my boy, once you anger a mermaid best ready yourself because they don't forgive easily!"

Even worse when they're constantly travelling by ship with their benefactors: the GIW (the gentlemen in white).

A privately sponsored armada of hunters: whether their prey is pirates, mermaids or any creature they consider a threat, you don't want to be hunted by them!

So danny, doing his best to not be caught but still learn what he's capable of, learning how to use his voice to stun and enchant... finally he gets discovered freeing their captives.

He has to flee and flee he does, escaping them and striking out on his own.

(I assume jazz stays in Port and isn't aware of what's currently happened-away at 'college')

-

Sometime in the future though, constantly dodging his parents attempts to track him whenever he comes to a port, Danny happened upon captain leatherwings pirateship.

He follows them as a mermaid, watching them work. Sometimes they attacked a ship and other times they fled, being chased by pirate hunters but never caught! It was fascinating to watch despite the danger of being seen (he's seen).

At night he'd wrap himself around the rudder and hum or quietly sing listening to the ocean, hoping another mermaid would answer his call (he's never met another)

One day as leatherwing's ship, the flying fox. Starts to sail into port, danny hears them say they will put up a request for new crew (some leaving, some died).

Danny slips away ahead of them to shore, stealing some dry clothes (without holes to look presentable) and camps out at the inn by the docks looking for hire.

-

It takes some work but Danny gets hired on, excited to be among people again. He's introduced to the crew and does his best to fit in, it becomes apparent some of the long term crew are more then just crew, they act just like family...

Danny gets close to them, curious about their relationships with each other. One night (I'm picking cass for this but it could be anyone) he finds 'orphan-blackblade' sitting on the stern of the ship.

her feet through the railing on the back trying to hum a strange tune that sounds familiar, another of the crew sees Danny watching and laughs, 'orphan doesn't talk, but she sits on the back of the boat every night listening to the 'music of the sea' (you do the math)

-

-

That would continue building a relationship at a pace but now, we come to the part where danny is revealed.

leatherwing and the flying fox is attacked by the GIW who stumbled on them looking for danny with whatever dark magic's they use to track him. This coincides with a storm approaching and as the battle rages Danny gets pinned under water by debris and is forced to start transforming.

He breaks free and seeing the fight going poorly tries to help using his cry to shock the GIW, it works. This is where things get a little angst as the flying fox crew don't recognise danny as a mermaid...

Danny seeing the mainmast of the GIW ship coming down tackles orphan out of the way but in saving her gets attacked by her and everyone else forcing him to take her hostage to save himself and flee, whisking her away into the dark of the stormy sea.

-

This is where the songs literally came in:

Fish in a birdcage: 'rule #34'

(Awkward timing, forcing me to decide which was the priority: getting my ace asses mind out of the gutter or keeping my car wheels out of the gutter as I did some specific driving on the freeway to avoid some surprise gridlock traffic ahead!)

So play that song and imagine pirate!cass waking up in a cave of an unknown island being stared down at by an angry, shirtless, very familiar looking mermaid who you'd just stabbed...

My brain while trying to drive:

The second song was: fin- ship in a bottle

What comes to mind (as I was now stuck in gridlock) is an angry danny fighting back as leatherwing tries to find his daughter orphan after she was taken by a mermaid that suddenly attacked them during the fight.

He'd interrogated the GIW who invaded his ship, those who hadn't been able to flee in time as he chased after his daughter, they were hunting the mermaid and assumed he was on-board (a thought backed up by nobody knowing where danny had gone-they found his torn off shirt though...).

He tore the knowledge from them on how they tracked the mermaid, learnt the consequences of using the magic, forced them off the ship because they were now 'deadweight', cast the magic and set sail.

And now that he'd found him he was going to get his daughter back... But as said before, dannys angry and they fight...

- that's all I got at the moment.

-

The only other things I have is cass going non verbal in the cave and humming her song which could calm danny down as he recognises it as the song he sung when wrapped around the rudder at nights.

Cass stopping the fight between Danny and Bruce (and her siblings) threatening to beat both their asses

Ellie showing up as a mermaid, trying to find danny, she bumped into jazz and they've been trying to find danny for a while (Danny forgets to check in every now and then)

[songofwizardry]

after everything is done, the mighty nein stay with each other.

not all the time, of course—but they have Sending spells, and letters, and at one point Essek gets hold of an extra sending stone, but still. they stay together.

Caduceus visits them all, one by one. makes the long journey down to Nicodranas, and meets Jester and Fjord and Kingsley on the beach. he brings dried fruits from his garden. they picnic in the shade of the Wildmother's lighthouse. he finds work to do wherever he wanders—there are hundreds of people, dozens of towns, in need of a healer, or someone to help with a farm, or someone to listen to them through their grief. the Wildmother occasionally guides him, the winds urging head East, or, find this gnome in this town. usually, though, he lets his feet guide him.

Fjord and Jester make their way up, down, the Menagerie Coast. after so long in the Empire and the Dynasty, they both find they've missed the coast they grew up on. Fjord picks up new crew, sometimes—young people looking for work on the docks, older ones who give obviously-fake names and don't answer questions. he pays them fairly, and teaches them the ropes, and treats them with kindness as someone once treated him with kindness, and lets the salt water and sea-air do their work. Jester finally sees Port Damali, and Feolinn, and Port Zoon, and they are lovely, even if she still thinks Nicodranas is the best. she leaves dicks in temples and on street corners, and once or twice, she sees a green-cloaked figure admiring her work. she sends messages every day, working her way through their family—just updates, about the dragon turtle they just saw, or how Kingsley is trying his hand at painting, or about the new crew members they've picked up.

the two of them find trinkets wherever they go. it starts off as a joke, Fjord saying, oh, we should definitely buy that box of buttons for Veth, I can tell her we found Buttonbeard. but then they keep going—a book of Lucidian folk-tales for Caleb, a strange pepper plant for Caduceus, an ocean-blue set of fighters' gloves for Beau. wherever they go, they find something that reminds them of their family, and they bring it back.

an expositor's work is never done, so Beau ends up back in Rexxentrum or Zadash at least once a year, often more (and maybe she goes back more often than she strictly needs to, but nobody needs to know that). she sees the house Caleb's found, a small place, not on the academy grounds, but close enough. she stays a few nights, and watches Caleb light the stove with a snap of steady fingers, and is introduced to a loud, demanding black cat, who doesn't have Frumpkin's infinite patience for their bullshit.

the seeds Caduceus gave her serve Yasha well. she goes back to the Blooming Grove in the spring, spends time with the Clays. learns more about the earth. gets more seeds. she and Caduceus spend time together, walking the grounds, tending the plants, tilling, and they don't say much.

when Marion goes back to Nicodranas, they all visit. Jester stays for the longest time, bouncing between spending time with her mother and teaching Luc prank ideas catching up with the Brenattos, but eventually, all of the Nein end up there. they take over several rooms of the Chateau, and stay up far too late (and let Luc stay up far too late with them), swapping stories and sharing drinks: Is Vandran re-reading Tusk Love again? You need to introduce him to more literature! and Wait, so when you say you and Essek were stuck in a snowstorm without the tower, that to-tally means you had to cuddle for warmth, right? and Did you actually just... walk to Uthodurn, Caduceus?

they don't let Essek disappear for long. sure, he does eventually drop off the face of Exandria, researching this or that, at one point sneaking back into the Dynasty to see his brother, but he always shows up again. Jester sends him messages. he and Caleb keep up a continuous stream of letters, eventually finding magical means to get them to each other faster. and with Teleportation spells, he's always visiting—a week in Rexxentrum, heavily disguised; almost a month with Caduceus, using his rose-patterned gardening gloves; a brief stint in Nicodranas, helping out at the Brenatto Alchemists. (a few years after Aeor, he spends more time in Rexxentrum. stays a month. then two. then six. then a year. eventually, he and Caleb get a second cat. and he cannot stay forever, but he still stays.)

for the first time in his life, Caleb has time. and so he takes it. slowly, he walks the streets of Rexxentrum, learning to love it again (he's not sure if he ever really stopped loving it). he works, slowly, with Beauregard—it might take their whole lives to dismantle the mess of power and abuse that the Assembly is; it will probably take even longer. but he keeps at it anyway. he goes back and forth between the Academy and the Soul; when Beau combs through questionable documents, Caleb asks questions; when the mages of the Academy and Assembly hold meetings, Caleb goes to them and keeps his eyes on the Martinet.

he starts teaching. he's not sure about it, at first—the Academy hurt, not just him, but so many others. but with Trent gone, he thinks—there can be a change. and he wants to feel the joy of new magic again, to watch new eyes come alight with it, he wants to show people how it can be used to help, and heal, and love, instead of hurt. so he starts teaching. it's joyous, and energising, and exhausting, and he watches his students – his students – all the while, for the slightest hint that they are being hurt, or forced, or coerced, or trained into something they don't want to be. he watches them grow, and learn. he pushes the envelope of treason, just a bit, talks of magic and wonder beyond the empire and its structures. and with every group, he teaches them the spell find familiar.

the Brenattos open up a new apothecary in Nicodranas. it's bigger, and brighter, and busier than the one in Felderwin—they get more herbs and more customers here, and with both Yeza and Veth in the lab, they're soon coming up with new concoctions, experimenting together. when Veth gets the itch in her bones (and she does, numerous times), she tracks down one of the nein, and wanders with them for a bit—visiting Rumblecusp with Beau and Yasha, a trip investigating Halas' halls with Caleb, a few weeks on the Lucidian ocean. she never stays long, and she always comes home. she hasn't broken that promise yet.

Luc grows up on the coast, and learns to swim. sometimes, she joins him.

when they get a house, she and Yeza – by unspoken agreement – find a place with two extra rooms, a sitting room large enough for several people to fit on the floor, and a garden. Yeza's food is almost as good as Caduceus', so it's no surprised that the nein come and visit, often. Yasha helps them grow beds of flowers in the garden. Jester and Fjord bring all manner of strange mementoes from the oceans. when the academy is closed, Caleb stays for months on end, helping her teach the teenagers of Nicodranas basic cantrips and how to pick locks during the day (we are unleashing a menace, he warns her, but he's smiling), and reading to Luc in the evenings.

they gather, together, in her house, too. sometimes for a special occasion (she and Yeza renew their vows in the garden), but often, for no reason at all. just to be together. there is space for all nine of them—she made sure of that. they talk, and laugh, and fall asleep in a chaotic pile in the Brenatto's living room.

in a few days, they will embrace, and separate, and head back to whatever they've been doing. but they will come back together, eventually.

after everything, the mighty nein stay together.

[riversofmars]

Hi all! So sorry this update took a while, I got side-tracked with the RiverDoctorPromptWeek which was a lot of fun :D But now that that's over, back to business! Hope you like this next chapter! <3

Chapter 13: Into the Lion’s Den

Torchwood Two Hub, 2021

“I did not expect that to be down here,“ Jenny observed, sounding thoroughly impressed as they followed the Doctor into the Torchwood Two hub.

“Looks can be deceiving,“ Vastra mused but she was surprised as well. Humanity really had improved on their defences since the time they lived in.

“Thank you for coming, Doctor,“ Kate greeted them, her expression one of relief. She felt better already for having them here. She looked the Doctor up and down, her new body would take a bit of getting used to but her identity was still unmistakable.

“That’s… the Doctor?“ Gwen raised her eyebrows, mumbling to Martha who was just as surprised.

“I’m sorry to be pulling you away from whatever you’ve got going on…“ Kate hadn’t expected the Doctor to arrive with as big an entourage as she had. She eyed the Doctor’s numerous companions with interest and, in the Master’s case, concern.

“I actually think both our problems might be connected.“ The Doctor didn’t stop to chat, she carried on along the corridor to where she presumed the main working area was.

“You wouldn’t happen to have a cell, would you?“ Vastra asked, giving Kovarian a little shove to walk along.

“Who is she?“ Kate asked with a frown.

“Long story but locking her up would be most helpful,“ the Doctor retorted.

“I’ll see to that,“ Gwen volunteered. They were set up for all eventualities in the hub.

“These are my friends Vastra, Jenny and Strax.“ The Doctor made their introductions as they reached the main area.

“And this…“ Kate had read the files on what had happened with Daniel Barton. It couldn’t possibly be…

“Oh don’t mind me…“ The Master looked around the room, hands in his pockets managing to somehow look bored, and yet scan his surroundings with interest. It was disconcerting.

“Doctor is this a good idea?“ Kate reached for the Doctor’s arm and stopped her in her tracks.

“I told you, I was busy too, there is a lot going on…“ The Doctor replied, watching, as the two Osgoods regarded the Master with surprise and distrust. The last time they had encountered the Master hadn’t ended well. She chose to disregard it for the moment, there were far greater concerns. “You said there were disappearances and potentially experiments going on? Any idea where I can find whoever is behind this?“

“We lost contact with Ryan, Graham and Jack when they were following a lead to an address that seemed to be connected to this project.“ One of the Osgoods spoke up, trying her best to ignore the Master who seemed to be intent on freaking them out as much as possible. He maintained a predatory smirk and mumbled threats. The Doctor hated his sense of humour.

“Daniel Barton is providing funds, that’s about all we know. The address was planted as a trap, we should have realised that,“ Kate continued ruefully.

“We had but they wanted to investigate regardless,“ Martha interjected. It wasn’t that they hadn’t realised that it was a trap, they had just decided to take the risk and it hadn’t paid off.

“Daniel Barton, eh?“ The Doctor regarded the Master with a frown.

“I don’t know what you’re looking at me for,“ the Master snapped, taking her meaning.

“Well, it’s quite the coincidence, isn’t it,“ the Doctor shot back sarcastically.

“Well, who knows maybe it was the Thirteen all along that’s been playing you and been working with the Kassavin.“ The Master rolled his eyes at her.

“Very funny.“

“Just saying, maybe I have been a good boy all along,“ he carried on mockingly.

“Shut up,“ the Doctor groaned, annoyed. She felt herself being pulled back and forth between wanting to trust him and remembering that experience had taught her not. The Master had been a genuine help at Demon’s Run - in his own destructive way, but a help nonetheless. But for whatever reason, the coincidences just kept happening, stacking the deck against him. It was beginning to look purposeful.

“So what is he doing here?“ Martha asked with distaste, recalling her own unpleasant experiences with the renegade Time Lord.

“I found him,“ the Doctor answered vaguely.

“Is he connected to this somehow?“ Kate asked, wondering if it might not be advisable to put him in a cell as well.

“Don’t know yet,“ the Doctor replied thoughtfully and the Master groaned, exasperated.

“Doctor, for the last time, I was sitting on Gallifrey while all this happened…“

“Then why does he have your face?!“ She snapped and he just stared her down, holding her intense, questioning gaze.

“I’m not following…“ Martha shook her head to herself.

“Nothing for your weak little ape brains to worry about!“ The Master exclaimed with surprising rage.

“Get it together,“ the Doctor snarled, her voice threatening as she stepped up to him.

“Stop goading me. I don’t know anything about it.“ The Master didn’t move back, if anything, he stepped even close, his eyes twinkling with madness, his darker instincts seemed to be struggling for control and he was just about holding them at bay.

“Perhaps if you could tell us what you have been doing… you said you thought there was a connection?“ Kate interjected, hoping to calm the situation.

“We have to find where their hideout is.“ The Doctor turned away from the Master, abruptly changing her priorities. She made her way over to the Osgoods at their workstations. “What sort of scanning equipment have you got here?“

“State of the art and then some but what are you looking for?“ One of them asked, relieved to be back in an area they felt comfortable with.

“Time Lord life signs. Scan for people with two hearts. If we connect the hub to my TARDIS, we should be able to do it,“ the Doctor explained, crossing her arms in front of her chest as she considered the logistics.

“You believe other Time Lords are behind this?“ Kate asked, surprised.

“If things are connected then yes, for sure. One particular Time Lord, that is.“ The Doctor nodded. “Chances are the Thirteen will be wherever they’re keeping Ryan, Graham and Jack. And my son.“

“Your son?“ Martha was the first to echo in disbelief while the other UNIT members just stared at the Doctor in shock.

“He was kidnapped, we have been chasing after his kidnappers ever since,“ Vastra interjected sensing that the Doctor’s mind was already on other, more practical matters as she leaned over the computer screens.

“Doctor I’m so sorry, I had no idea…“ Kate started saying but the Doctor wasn’t paying attention.

“He’s bound to have a Time Lord life sign too… between River and me…“ She explained to the Osgoods and took one of their keyboards off them to start typing.

“Right, okay, let’s get to work,“ Martha interrupted the stunned silence, calling them all to action.

——

Unknown location

“Tempting offer, mate, but I don’t think you can just turn people immortal,“ Ryan replied, looking around the room.

“Talking of immortal people, where is Jack?“ Graham asked, noticing his absence.

“Oh, he will be quite useful. He may not have the kind of immortality we are looking for but he might be just what we need to differentiate the genes,“ the blonde man answered graciously.

“Is that what your experiments are about? Making people immortal? You’re not doing a very good job, are you, if you’re killing them,“ Ryan snapped, pulling against restraints that had been fixed to their wrists. They had to find a way of getting out of here and get help, else they would be next in a long line of dead bodies.

“Every attempt takes us closer and we’re confident, we’re almost there now. You could be our first successes,“ the man carried on with charismatic confidence. He seemed awfully convinced of what he was promising.

“If you’re so sure about that, why don’t you try it out on yourself?“ Graham shot back, trying to get out of his restraints as well but to no avail.

“No need, I already have that ability, it’s your species I’m concerned with,“ the man answered and Ryan and Graham exchanged confused glances.

“What?“

Before they could ask any more questions, the door opened at the far side of the room.

“Padrac! There you are!“ A familiar voice barked.

“What…“ Ryan and Graham couldn’t believe their eyes as they watched the Master strolling into the room.

“Impossible.“ Graham shook his head. “She said you’d died on Gallifrey!“

“Did she now?“ The Master barely regarded them with a glance but it seemed to have picked the other man’s interest, who appeared to be called Padrac.

“You know of Gallifrey?“ He raised his eyebrows, surprised. He clearly hadn’t realised who they were.

“’Course we bloody do!“ Ryan snapped but focused his attention back on the Master: “We stopped you once and we will do it again. Just you wait, the Doctor will be on her way, once she realises this has been you all along.“

“The Doctor, ey?“ Padrac smiled, intrigued.

“I very much doubt that, you see, she’s pretty busy right now,“ the Master retorted. “You are the last thing she’s concerned with.“ Then he grabbed the other man by the arm. “Padrac, we need to talk.“

——

Luna University, 52nd Century

“Wow,“ Yaz breathed, looking out of the window as they made their descent to the moon’s surface. The university campus was quite a sight from above. Large domes were keeping the emptiness of space at bay and provided pleasant living conditions for the people below. They docked to what appeared to be a space port, for lack of a better word. It was a tall structure that stuck out between the domes and provided passage into the area below.

“What time period are you from?“ River asked, watching the fascination play on her young face.

“2020,“ Yaz answered absentmindedly as she moved away from the window.

“Ah, a little way off then, Luna University is the hub of academia in my time.“ River gave her a kind smile as she picked up Dorium who scolded her for tipping his box a bit too much. River chose to ignore his protest as they left the shuttle.

“What is your time?“ Yaz asked as they found their way to an elevator that would take them down to the surface.

“That’s a question and a half…“ River chuckled. “My parents were from your time, 2010 or something there about… and I lived there for a while… until the Doctor whisked me away and stranded me here, 52nd century… I guess I consider it my time, that’s where I spent most of my linear life… and it’s where I died. A time traveller doesn’t really have a home but Luna University is as close as it gets for me,“ she explained as they rode the elevator to the surface.

“It’s where you live when you don’t jump through time?“ Yaz understood what she meant. The elevator opened and they stepped out into the foyer of a large building of massive stone and impressive architecture. It reminded Yaz of a class trip they had taken to Oxford once where they had passed by the university. This appeared to be the Oxbridge of the future and it was very impressive.

“I teach here, too,“ River revealed with a smile. “This way.“

“Archeology, wasn’t it?“ Yaz asked as she looked around the entrance area, signs and arrows on the floor indicating which way each department was situated. “Isn’t that cheating when you can visit any time period?“ She realised she was falling behind a little bit, getting distracted by the sheer impressiveness of it all. She quickly caught up to River again.

“I certainly am the most hands-on archeologist out there,“ River chuckled. “Admittedly, not everyone is a big fan of that… but I don’t usually mention the time travel bit. Here we go…“ She grimaced a little, then put on her best smile as a middle aged man hurried to meet them. Quickly, she closed the door on Dorium’s box so as not to draw attention. A muffled protest came from the box but River gave him a little shake to be quiet.

“Ehh… Professor Song?“ The man greeted her, stammering, utterly surprised to see her by the looks of it. He was rather short and unimpressive looking, his suit was ill-fitting and there was a stain on his tie.

“If I have missed any classes, I’m very sorry, my last expedition ran over,“ River explained.

“Ran over? We received word from the Lux Cooperation that you died during the expedition,“ the man replied, utterly stunned upon seeing her. It was understandable given the circumstances.

“As always, accounts of my death have been vastly exaggerated.“ River gave a brilliant smile and a crystal clear laugh, hoping to put the matter to bed, just like that. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get to my quarters…“ She didn’t want to waste time on idle chit chat.

“Well…“ The man went slightly pale around the nose and uncomfortably tugged at his collar to loosen it a little.

“Where are my things?“ River frowned.

“Storage. We tried to reach out for your family but when thirteen different people turned up claiming to be your spouses we decided it best to keep your affects sealed for the time being…“ He answered awkwardly.

“What can I say, I’ve had a good life, didn’t expect them all to come back and haunt me after my alleged death,“ River sighed, though oddly touched that the Doctor would go to such lengths.

“Quite.“ The man cleared his throat. “I’m just gonna need some identification, bio-scan or… just to prove you are who you say you are, you understand… doesn’t happen every day someone returns from the dead…“

“Here, hold Dorium.“ River handed Yaz the box. Dorium complained loudly and the university clerk jumped away from them in shock at the talking box. “Lead the way,“ River sighed at him exasperatedly. “There better not be anything missing!“

——

Torchwood Two Hub, 2021

“Here we go, that should do it.“ The Doctor had finished linking the Torchwood computers to the TARDIS and transferred Time Lord biodata prints across for reference, now it was just a matter of time.

“Scanning now…“ One of the Osgoods announced.

“Two here, that’s the Master and me…“ The Doctor smiled enthusiastically when the first results came in. It was working.

“I still can’t believe you brought him here,“ Martha huffed.

“As it happens, I have been very helpful through this process,“ the Master shot back.

“I’ll believe it when I see it,“ Mickey backed up his wife.

“It might be easier if you start scanning where you lost track of your friends?“ The Master ignored their quips. “Idiots.“

“Doctor, does he really have to be here?“ Kate asked softly, stepping closer to the Doctor. “No-one seems comfortable with having him around.“

“Well, I don’t like being here, and I don’t like playing nice, I would quite happily murder each and every one of you but we can’t all have what we want, can we?“ the Master bellowed, losing his temper at last.

“Master!“ The Doctor snapped, her eyes shooting up to him. They had been toeing a fine line and it was becoming increasingly hard to justify his presence to the others.

“Sorry. Sometimes my emotions run away with me,“ the Master took a deep breath and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“Doctor!“ The Osgoods chanted in unison and the Doctor returned her attention to the computer screens.

“There we are!“ She exclaimed excitedly. Finally they were getting somewhere! “But… that’s not possible…“ She frowned, leaning in closer, doubting the findings and her ability to interpret them in equal measures.

“What is it?“ Vastra asked, concerned.

“There are three Time Lord life signs there…“ The Doctor revealed after a moment’s consideration. “Even if the Thirteen really came here and that is where they’re keeping my son, there should only be two…“

“They must have succeeded,“ the Master announced. “With their experiments.“ He laughed and shook his head: “Making more Time Lords, just after I thought I’d wiped them all out… that’s what you think they’re doing, right?“ He looked to the Doctor.

“We have to go now,“ she said, straightening herself up. They had no time to lose. They had no idea what exactly was going on in that place but it was entirely possible that the Master was right.

“I hope you’re not expecting to go alone,“ Kate spoke up and the Doctor looked around, finding everyone getting to their feet, determined faces looking back at her.

“No, I’m not. I’m quite happy to bring down the full force of Torchwood and Unit down on them… whatever it takes to get my son back and stop them,“ the Doctor smiled with vengeful fury behind her calm facade.

——

Luna University 52nd Century

“I can take it from here, thanks.“ River took the key card from the university clerk that had insisted on walking them to the storage area personally. He also insisted on asking the most impertinent questions about what had actually happened to her during the expedition and why she was only returning now. By the time they reached the storage locker, River had had enough.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to…“ The clerk started but River interrupted curtly:

“Quite.“ He handed over the key card and when River made no attempt to open the room in his presence, he finally got the message and departed.

“How long have you been dead for?“ Yaz asked as the archeologist unlocked the door at last.

“I’m not quite sure… but it is getting dusty in here, isn’t it,“ River commented as they stepped inside the room and flicked the lights on. They were garish and bright, almost clinical and all of River’s personal effects, her furniture, her books, her life - for all intents and purposes - looked incredibly lifeless, as if they were entering a morgue.

“What exactly are we looking for?“ Dorium asked, as River opened up his box and set him down on a sideboard.

“Well for a start, this,“ River replied when she opened the top drawer of her desk and pulled out a blaster gun. It appeared out of charge as she checked it over but that was easily remedied.

“Is the Doctor happy about you carrying a gun?“ Yaz raised her eyebrows, remembering many passionate speeches about how terrible guns were.

“Never but they’ve given up arguing,“ River answered with a smirk and attached the gun to her belt.

“Is that ‘cause they always lose the argument?“ Yaz chuckled. Her eyes fell on a box on the desk, full of picture frames that had probably once decorated said desk in the professor’s office. She picked up a picture of River and a tall, white-haired man. They were standing on a balcony, a beautiful sunset stretching across the sky behind them and two large towers of stone in the distance. Yaz turned the picture over, there was a note on the back that read “The Singing Towers, Darillium. “She said she used to be a white haired scotsman…“ Yaz mused as she turned the picture back around and smiled. It was a beautiful picture for sure but what was even more remarkable was the expression on the Doctor’s face. So full of joy and adoration. While River was looking at the camera and smiling, he was looking at her, as if the rest of the universe ceased to exist.

“Yaz?“ River drew her attention.

“Yeah?“ Yaz looked up, blushing a little, quickly she put the picture frame back where she found it, embarrassed. She probably should have asked before looking at her personal effects.

“Can I trust you?“ River asked, searching her expression for a truthful answer.

“Of course, why do you even have to ask that?“ Yaz was genuinely surprised.

“I don’t know you. Vastra, Jenny, Strax, Dorium even… I have history with them, you’re… new,“ River explained and it was obvious that she wasn’t trying to be unkind or distrusting, she simply had to ask before they got any further. “And for what we’re about to do, I need to know I can trust you, completely.“

“Of course. The Doctor is one of my best friends and to think what you’ve been through, both of you… whatever you need, River. I mean it.“ Yaz nodded, her assurances genuine and determined. After everything that had happened to the Doctor, Yaz wanted nothing more than to make sure she got her family back and found some happiness at last. It was long overdue.

“Good. I thought so.“ River smiled and waved her along.

“What exactly are we going to do?“ Yaz asked and picked up Dorium’s box as they carried on further into the room.

“We’re gonna be the cavalry,“ River revealed, she seemed to know exactly what she was looking for.

“And how do you intend to do that?“ Yaz frowned, stopping as River did too, in front of a large cupboard.

“Here we go!“ River announced, full of enthusiasm.

“An old cabinet?“ Yaz asked, confused. It was pretty, solid oak and classical craftsmanship but she couldn’t see how it would help them in their quest.

“I would have thought by now you would check every cupboard for extra dimensions,“ River chuckled as she opened the door.

“It’s a TARDIS?“ Yaz exclaimed as it opened up into a vast room in its own right, fully furnished with computer screens and a control console.

“Let’s go and see what that wife of mine is up to. I imagine there might be trouble as she hasn’t been around to pick us up yet.“ River grinned.

——

The TARDIS

“Are you sure it’s such a good idea to just fly in there?“ Kate attempted to be the voice of reason as they piled into the TARDIS.

“I’m done messing around,“ the Doctor retorted as she started working the controls.

“Just like back in the old days…“ Martha hummed looking around the control room. The Osgoods had agreed to stay behind and provide intel as needed. Everyone else was crowded into the control room.

“Everybody ready?“ The Doctor cut through the chatter. She was tense, it felt like they were finally getting somewhere and she was eager to get going.

“Ready when you are,“ Kate confirmed and there were nods all round. Without further ado, the Doctor launched the TARDIS. Their journey only lasted a few seconds as suddenly, they were knocked forwards, almost as if they had crashed into something. The TARDIS was shaking, instead of grinding to a halt as they had expected, it felt more like they were spiralling.

“Not as easy as all that, is it?“ The Master called over the racket with amusement.

“They’re using some kind of force field, I bounced right off it,“ the Doctor explained, ignoring the Master’s quip.

“If these are Time Lords we’re dealing with, I’m not surprised they prepared for that eventuality,“ Vastra pointed out, just as the Doctor managed to stabilise them.

“Let me try,“ the Master stepped up to the console, pushing her away.

“Don’t be stupid,“ she snapped, giving him a shove in turn but he ignored her, focusing on the controls.

“I’m not being stupid, in fact, I’m being extremely clever, now move,“ he snarled and after a moment’s consideration, the Doctor gave him room.

“Doctor, is this a good idea,“ Vastra mumbled to the Doctor who was watching him work. Before she could reply, the TARDIS ground to a halt.

“We’re in,“ the Doctor realised, surprised. She started laughing with relief. “How did you do that?“ She had watched closely but she couldn’t quite explain what he had done but she didn’t care, he had succeeded. She reached out to touch the controls, scan their surroundings when suddenly, the power started draining. The TARDIS wheezed and whined, almost as if she was in pain. The yellow crystal pillars started dimming, the lights were going out.

“Doctor, what’s happening?“ Kate asked, trying to remain calm as concerned mumbled erupted amongst the companions.

“I… don’t know!“ The Doctor’s fingers flew over the controls, trying to work out what was going on, trying to hold on to her oldest friend but the screens flickered off, the buttons stopped responding and the humming died down. “She’s shutting down!“ She exclaimed, in near panic. They had just landed in enemy territory and the TARDIS stopped working. Why was this happening?

“Oops… we’ll isn’t that unfortunate…“ The Master chuckled and utter silence fell around them, all eyes on him. Before anyone could say as much as “Told you so“, the silence was interrupted by a loud transmission:

“How nice of you to join us, Doctor, raise your hands everyone as you exit the vehicle in an orderly fashion.“

“Padrac?“ The Doctor mumbled, recognising the voice instantly, she was stunned. How was he here? What did he have to do with this? Maybe the Thirteen wasn’t working alone after all… Working with Padrac and probably even working with the person that had led them into this trap. The Doctor looked to the Master who grinned. Despite her better judgement, despite the many lessons she should have learned over millennia… she couldn’t believe she had fallen for it again. He started laughing now, clapping his hands together, enjoying his moment of triumph as silence fell in the lifeless TARDIS.

[traditional-with-a-twist]

xxxi. Beauty and Her Beast - REWRITE

@the-pompous-potato  awww, so glad to hear that you love all of it! It’s like reading through the chapter with you, hearing all the moments that caught your eye. Yeah, I really wanted to bring Mitsuhide back into this arc - he hasn’t been mentioned lately, but he is missed.

@bubblesthemonsterartist  XD these are factors that were not taken into consideration but the advice is undeniably sound!

<<Previous || first arc || second arc || AO3 || Next>>

A/N: Dear readers, you’ve been both patient and supportive. Please consider this both an apology and a thank you: the wedding arc just wasn’t coming together. I had fought my way to the climax only to discover that the key moment fell flat. There was no way to recover - it had all started off on the wrong foot. So I scrapped everything starting with Ryuu’s chapter and started afresh. I will edit the AO3 chapters for the sake of preserving comments, etc, but may post the original version as an attached fic if you’re interested in seeing how it lurched to the finish.

The good news is, the entire arc is now written, so you can expect more regular updates for the next little while!

...

Ryuu had left the castle in spring, and now it was autumn.

The plants had changed seasons in his absence - some had gone to seed, others flowered, and still others were breaking the soil. He had the curious sensation of life going on without him, of decisions made and friends lost, all while he was away, out of sight.

...

Some things hadn’t changed: stone moves only slowly; it shrinks as the wind carries particles of it away once the sun has baked it hard and crumbly, layer and layer, altering its shape not with a hammer and chisel but fine trickles of dust.

Stone moves so slowly that it is invisible; in a human’s lifetime, he will see only one shape. Even though it alters, his eye alters with it; he perceives nothing. 

In that way, Ryuu had carried the walls of Wistal with him, in his mind’s eye, and erected them anew on his return.

The ceiling rested overhead; the walls held the room together; Garrack worked at her desk; Yatsufusa greeted them every morning.

Some things hadn’t changed.

...

Some changes he had expected: the leaves turning to gold, painting the trees’ faces a new color with their reflected light. 

Clustered around the outskirts of the castle and extending deep into the countryside, the trees hung over everything in their new agedness, come too soon for Ryuu. 

The trees in the port town, warmed by the nearby water, had not finished turning; their transformation was not yet complete but now that he was home, he found all the trees here different - wearing new faces, losing their green luster in preparation for winter, overnight and prematurely.

So it seemed to him, returned to find that mourning had set in like an early autumn in Wistal. 

No one spoke of it anymore, as they might have when the leaves first shed the color of life; now it went unacknowledged and yet omnipresent in the unfamiliar shadows the change had cast over them all.

...

These changes - known but unseen, or anticipated but unwelcome - would have been more than enough for Ryuu.

His acute sensitivity to the currents of nature, was matched only by his awareness of the energies of the people around him - except that nature he had learned to explain, to give a precise account of, while people continued to speak in languages largely foreign to his ear, and to behave in patterns that he could no more explain than he could wish them away.

He felt their fluctuations through an instinct too deep for words - which meant that he could seek no help for the confusion it caused him, any more than he could give voice to the questions he wished answered.

How could he receive answers when he could not articulate the questions?

Unable to decode, decipher, or analyze with the aid of his mind, Ryuu instead absorbed the turmoil he sensed, holding it inside himself like a human capacitor, until the charge diffused.

...

This took time - but time was what no one could give him, even if they had understood how badly he needed it.

Change - precipitous and shattering as a lightning bolt - had struck in his absence, permanently altered the sphere of his existence, and left him hopelessly behind in recognizing and tracking its movements.

It had come and gone before he knew anything of it. Now he was left to make sense of what remained in its wake.

...

It was not that Ryuu was unhappy that Shirayuki and Obi would marry. It would not cross his mind to approve or disapprove of their decisions. 

He did not wonder, why so soon? He did not ask, was it proper? He did not compare Obi to Zen or wonder at Shirayuki’s change of heart, at Obi’s sudden revelation of passion.

He did not think the worse of them for it.

He would have preferred not to think of it at all.

...

He didn’t have the tools to approach it; he withdrew in confusion and fear from what had once given him delight and fed his heart and his mind with warmth and curiosity.

Shirayuki had been a source of joy to him - as startling as the red of his favorite flower at first, then comforting in her quiet consistency. Day after day, she had worked beside him, gentle and understanding, keen and quick in her thinking, yet soft as petals in her presence.

She had been transplanted too soon, trading away her uniform out of season for another dress, and he had missed her -  but now she was something else entirely, inexplicable.

He had thought he knew her; now she felt further from him than ever, slipping away when he wasn’t looking, and he couldn’t bear to look.

...

Then there was Obi: like the too-tall branches of a tree, Obi had been out of sight, then out of reach - stretching overhead, impressive and other, to the point of intimidating Ryuu with his strength and presence. 

He and Obi belonged to different worlds, though they might occupy the same space: Ryuu grounded, Obi somewhere above - skyward, tending free and waving in the mind. Obi was challenging and supple yet also somehow vulnerable when bent to the point of breaking.

It wasn’t until Ryuu had risked enough to test his weight against Obi that he realized this laughing stranger could support him, bear him up, lift him to new heights unimagined, out of his comfortable places and into the clouds - not as blank and terrifying a place as Ryuu had imagined but full of wind and sun and new life.

...

He hadn’t looked for either of them to break the soil in his life, and now he didn’t want them to leave. 

Be perennials, he wanted to beg them, and come again after this season of death and destruction and dormancy.

He knew, nonetheless, that some flowers only bloom once in a lifetime. He knew, but at the same time could not know it, could only wish it untrue in the very admission of it.

The knowledge was too awful for words, especially now with the charge of change built up so high in Ryuu that language failed him and left only a mute unrest.

...

It was in this state that Obi found him.

Obi was a frothing mix of anticipation and impatience; he was on a mission to conscript witnesses for the ceremony.

Shirayuki said it ought properly to be his blood brother; Obi wouldn’t know where to find such a man even if he existed, so then he had thought of Little Ryuu.

...

He thought almost guiltily of Ryuu because Obi had felt his silence since the announcement and felt it impenetrable. 

No matter how much Obi filled that silence with his own voice, the words ran away, like drops of rain over a parched earth that would not drink. 

Then when Shirayuki spoke of brothers, Obi had thought of Ryuu.

...

Obi hoped this gesture, this invitation, would speak for him and say more than his words could when he said the miss would be very pleased if Ryuu would stand for them at the wedding.

Really he was saying, Would you be my brother?

Brothers, as far as Obi could understand them, were forever.

...

Obi hoped for a yes, or at least a smile, but then Ryuu wasn’t a talker.

He didn’t say yes, but he didn’t say no.

He had always been quiet, and so Obi had to content himself with silence.

[knitcrate]

Letter from our CEO

I would like to begin by saying thank you to the many people who have written in via email, through our DMs, or on social media expressing their support, understanding, and compassion as KnitCrate navigates this situation. Whenever we receive one of those messages, we share it internally with the rest of the team, and it helps boost morale and remind us why we enjoy being a part of this community. So again, THANK YOU.

The situation over the past year has been, well…to say it has been messy would be an understatement. The lack of inventory being in stock (particularly in the last 3 months), delayed shipments, and customers understandably being more budget-conscious with the uncertainties of the pandemic have all strongly impacted our sales as a company. We have been doing whatever we can to overcome it. One of the biggest challenges we’ve dealt with as a company during COVID-19 has been our supply chain, both with getting the yarn to our warehouse for kit assembly and for production of the yarn in the first place.

Issue 1: Logistics of receiving the yarn

There are two main problems affecting companies who rely on importing/exporting goods these days.

The first is that, due to COVID, there are less commercial flights. Almost all commercial flights carry the passengers up top and cargo down below. With less commercial flights, there is less opportunity to transport cargo. This causes a backlog of cargo sitting at the airports. For example, we paid our mill in mid-March to try to get what should have been the April yarn now in March (paying it a month ahead of what was planned in our budget), at which point they sent the cargo to the airport in Lima.  The cargo sat there for over a week because of the backlog of other cargo waiting to be put on a plane.  The airline finally delivered 3 pallets to the US on March 30th.  The remaining 9 pallets arrived today on March 31st.  Customs wouldn’t let us pick up the first 3 pallets until the other 9 arrived, because they wanted us to pick up the order in its entirety. We finally got clearance to pick it up earlier today.

The second issue companies are facing are capacity constraints at the ports, whether airports or ocean. All ports worldwide are working with far less employees than they were before the pandemic, which causes massive delays in being able to process shipments. This affects us with our large inbound orders but also with shipments to our international customers, as packages sometimes sit at customs in your countries for what may seem to be an eternity.  

Issue 2: Production of yarn at the mills

Because of the volume of yarn we are now ordering monthly, we have to contract with our mills 12+ months in advance. For example, as of today, all yarn orders through March 2022 are already contracted. Why the long 12-month lead time? The mills need this amount of lead time to plan their own raw materials purchases and production schedules, not just for our orders, but the orders of all their clients. Every month, we pay our mill at the time of shipment, they proceed to ship the yarn to us. Under normal circumstances, it takes a shipment by air only 1-3 business days to arrive, clear customs, and be delivered to our warehouse.  Outside of a worldwide pandemic, this is not usually an issue. The mills have plenty of time to produce yarn and deliver it the first week of each month when we need to assemble your kits and ship to you.

However, the COVID pandemic has complicated things. Both of our main mills in Peru and Italy have had periods of time where they outright closed due to government restrictions on non-essential businesses to help combat the spread of COVID in their respective countries. For example, in April/May of 2020, our Peruvian mill was closed for two months and that left us without yarn to send out in May. Due to the lead times required and the fact that most mills worldwide were (and still are) facing similar issues, looking for alternate yarn was nearly impossible. Thankfully, our team was quick on their feet and we put together a fun dye-it-yourself project using undyed yarn from our Dyer Supplier business.

During this first quarter of 2021, our Italian mill, who was originally supplying yarn from December through February, has been facing stringent lockdowns and closures in response to the recent increase in COVID cases in Italy. This disrupted their ability to produce yarn and has resulted in part of the January yarn and all of the planned February yarn not being delivered. We were horribly disappointed about this, but despite our best efforts as well as the mill’s, the production needs could not be met. Thankfully, our Peruvian mill has been able to come back online with a more regular schedule in the past few months, and we have been working with them to get yarn delivered now that was originally meant for a later month.

While this is a solution to the inventory needed for crate shipment, it presented the company with a new problem. We had to fund the purchase for this yarn outside of our budget and available funding, which has been difficult during a challenging and financially straining year. This is why we have been forced to issue a credit, as opposed to an outright refund, on those purchases. It would be impossible for the company to do both - issue a refund for all those orders at one time while allocating funds to pay for yarn ahead of time.

***

Does this situation absolutely suck? Yes. It absolutely sucks. Am I sorry that this is happening? Of course. Business owners who give a damn about their business, customers, and employees do not set out on a mission to disappoint customers or give a less-than-exceptional experience. It is more heartbreaking to me than I can explain. But we aren’t dealing with normal times. We are doing what we need to do to get the company through this temporary situation to keep delivering yarn each month, keep our team members employed, and continue to be the business so many of you have grown to love.

Unfortunately, this also means streamlining how we offer products to you as well as increasing prices. When we took over KnitCrate in mid-2016, the kits ranged in price between $45 to $65 USD. We lowered those prices significantly to $24.99, including shipping & handling, that same year. We have kept prices there since then, even though shipping costs and wool prices have skyrocketed over the past 4-5 year period.  Keeping our prices that low could not continue indefinitely. We had plans to introduce these price increases later in the year, but this situation has forced us to accelerate those changes. However, even at the new prices, we still feel there is superb value for the yarn you are receiving. Moreover, you still have access to the member discounts in the shop which gives you even more value.

I am hoping that most customers know us well enough to understand that we aren’t trying to pull a fast one or go Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde on you. We would never turn into a completely different company who is out to take advantage of you. However, we recognize that these sudden changes and issues have understandably raised concerns. Among them, there have been concerns raised about the products and website that we would like to clarify:

Our Terms and Conditions have not changed since 2019 and our Privacy Policy hasn’t changed since 2017.

We will continue to include 2 skeins per crate for the traditional membership and 1 for the sock membership. The “1+ skeins” wording previously seen on the website was updated back in 2019 when we tested featuring 1 skein of ultra-luxury base in the months we featured Citrus Squeeze and Titmouse. We subsequently sent a survey to our customers asking how they would like us to approach this in the future. The answer was that the majority preferred two skeins, and so we have featured at least two skeins ever since and will continue to do so.

We had seen some comments regarding extras no longer being included in kits. Please rest assured that extras will continue being a part of your kits.

Member Central discounts, Double Down discounts, etc. will continue. These are some of the key benefits of being a member and will continue to be so.

I have come across some hard-to-read comments about how KnitCrate is going out of business or won’t be around in 2 months. Are we going through a tough situation? Yes. That is no secret. Are we disappearing in 2 months? No. Like I said above, the yarn is contracted out through March 2022 with our Peruvian mill. This mill has already come back online and is working with us to push every month contract up by 30 days. We are working overtime and making the necessary changes to get things back on track and get the shipping schedule normalized again.  

Ultimately, whether KnitCrate, or any company for that matter, stays in business or not is always in the hands of the customers. Companies can die for many reasons, but there are two overarching reasons.  

The company cannot deliver a product the customer wants. The company created a product the customer wants and is willing to pay for, but the company cannot access or deliver it to the customer.

The company cannot get customers. The company developed a product a customer doesn’t care for and isn’t willing to pay for and they go out of business.

As a company, we have predominantly been battling Reason #1 during the pandemic and are actively working on solutions within our team and with our partner mills to address the supply chain issues.  Given that our Peruvian mill was able to finish the April yarn by mid-March and ship to us early, we are looking forward to working with them on the future orders already contracted as we bump up each of those months.  Going forward, we will not be pre-selling yarn on the shop.  Yarn will only be listed for sale once it has been received into our warehouse, quality controlled, and counted. We understand that this may upset some customers who liked the ability to reserve the yarn by pre-buying it, but it is a necessary action.

That leaves us with Reason #2, and this is entirely in your hands as a customer. We offer great products, great value, and fair prices not available in most places.  In fact, I encourage anyone who has been a member with us for a long time to look at the yarn they have purchased through us over their lifetime as a customer, either through the kits or in Member Central, and tally up the savings they have earned. I don’t know many other places that can enable you to save on quality yarn as much as KnitCrate.

When it comes to business, the customer is always in charge. You vote with your dollars whether any company you buy from, including KnitCrate, stays in business or not. This is not new, though. This has always been the case, ever since we took over the company in 2016, and will always be the case. We have had to make some tough decisions during a temporarily very sh!tty situation. We made those decisions in order to stay alive and keep delivering yarn to you at affordable prices long into the future. If you will have us, we will be here working to bring you yarn with great projects at great prices.  

Thank you for your support. We hope you stay well and keep stitchin’!

- Rob and the KnitCrate Team

[multiverseforger]

Chris Powell was the teenage son of Mike Powell, a cop, and Grace Powell, a District Attorney. Following his younger twin brothers, Jon and Jason, to the abandoned amusement park across from his home, Chris discovered his father taking a bribe from mob boss Phillipe Bazin.[5][6]

While trying to escape with his brothers from Bazin's henchmen, Chris discovered an amulet that transposed him into the Darkhawk armor. When his father disappeared after Chris saw him, he swore to use the Darkhawk armor as an "edge against crime". Darkhawk's powers included a force blast which emanated from the amulet on his chest, a force shield from the same amulet, a claw cable which could serve as both a Wolverine-like claw, and a grapple cable, glider wings and later flight capability, enhanced vision and strength, and an image underneath the Darkhawk helmet which served to frighten and distract his enemies.[citation needed]

He often teamed up with Spider-Man. As a sometime member of the New Warriors, he befriended Speedball, Nova, and later, Turbo.[citation needed] During his tenure as a crime fighter, he was often trying to rescue his father, mother, or other family members.[citation needed]

He developed quite a roster of enemies: he would fight villains such as Hobgoblin and Tombstone, who were seeking to take his amulet, with the latter succeeding. He was extremely weakened and even dying from having the amulet removed, but still able to use all of his powers except for turning back into human form to heal. Once he retrieved the amulet he was able to put it back in his chest and fully heal. Darkhawk had 2 separate encounters with Venom, who felt that Chris was good natured and held back whereas Darkhawk was greatly opposed to Venom's ideals and way of handling crime, and swore to bring him to justice, despite Venom offering to be his ally. Lodestone: a magnetically-powered villain developed by Bazin, was often pitted against Darkhawk. He also fought against some who would later ally with him, such as Portal, a teleporting mutant who killed another Darkhawk and stole parts of his armor, Savage Steel, which had been created by the secret police cabal that Chris' dad had been a member of, and Damek, a mercenary sent from the future to kill Darkhawk.[citation needed]

Chris learned that his armor was actually an autonomously existing android armor, one of five commissioned by an alien mob lord named Dargin Bokk, being held in a sentient spaceship, Ocsh, in Null Space. When Chris grasped the amulet, it actually caused his body to switch places with that of the Darkhawk body, although his mind remained in control of the 'replacement' body.[citation needed]

After helping them several times, Darkhawk was brought aboard the Avengers West Coast as a reserve member, but saw little action with them after becoming a member, because they were dissolved shortly thereafter. Nonetheless, he did at least start a lasting friendship with Spider-Woman.[citation needed]

Darkhawk 2.0

Later, Chris and Darkhawk actually split into two separate entities, with the armor being updated into the "2.0" form, as it was informally known. This advanced form of armor gave Darkhawk new powers, such as the ability to form a force shield encasing his body, an actual "Hawk" construct (a gigantic force-field shaped like a hawk), and the ability to summon weapons from Osch. Darkhawk 2.0 and Chris re-merged, with the prospect of no longer needing to use the amulet in order to switch bodies.[citation needed]

Loners

Chris joined a self-help group of ex-teenage-super-heroes, the Loners, who admitted to being addicted to their powers. Members included: Turbo, Green Goblin IV (Phil Urich), Ricochet, Lightspeed and later Spider-Woman III (Mattie Franklin). The group was hired by a mysterious benefactor, later revealed to be Rick Jones, to track down the Runaways in Los Angeles.

Powell displayed trouble controlling his anger in his Darkhawk persona, leading to a short skirmish with Turbo. Dismayed with himself, Powell admitted to his teammates that he suffered a nervous breakdown.[7] Powell decided to never turn into Darkhawk again, but this decision did not last long, as shortly thereafter the group battled the notorious Avengers villain, Ultron. Darkhawk delivered the final blow, using a darkforce blast at point blank range to blow Ultron to pieces.[8]

The Loners continued their meetings and Chris was drawn back into heroics by Spider-Woman and made an enemy of MGH manufacturers who had abused Mattie Franklin and the woman running them as well as Nekra, a woman who was getting rich by selling her bodily fluids to them. Chris then got his Darkhawk amulet stolen from him temporarily by an unbalanced Phil Urich but was able to regain it with help from the group.[9]

Secret Invasion

Having registered with the government, Darkhawk was assigned to the position of security chief at Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S.. During the Skrull invasion, he worked alongside his old teammate Nova against the Deviant Skrulls.[10]

Fraternity of Raptors

The being known as Talon came to Earth, and offered to teach Chris how to control his amulet. They went to the Negative Zone to fight Annihilus. There, Chris bonded fully with his amulet. This allowed him to learn that the Fraternity of Raptors that Talon represented was evil and that the Fraternity had created the amulets. Evilhawk had been a hallucination caused by his mind, which had been unable to process all the information the Amulet gave him. The Raptor, known as Razor, took over Chris' body and assassinated Lilandra.[citation needed]

Later he fought Gyre another member of the Fraternity of Raptors that had been recruited as a pawn of the Sphinx. Darkhawk, Nova, Black Bolt, Mr. Fantastic and Namorita defeated the Sphinx and his pawns. Darkhawk was able to separate Gyre from his Kree host by using the same technique Talon used to separate Chris from Darkhawk and bring back Razor.[citation needed]

Avengers Arena

Arcade kidnapped Chris and fifteen teenage heroes and brought them to Murderworld, a secluded island where no one could find them, and forced them to fight each other to the death, and only the last man standing within thirty days would be allowed to leave.[11] One night, he was attacked and had his amulet removed, leaving his fate unknown.[12] His amulet would get passed around by others locked in Murderworld.[13]

Chris was later shown in a coma-like state in a strange tank along with the deceased heroes, where Arcade appeared to be healing him. Waking up, he located Arcade and knocked him out. He later reclaimed his amulet and was among the survivors of the battle.[14]

Marvel Legacy

Powell eventually resurfaced back in New York, set to marry a new fiancée by the name of Miranda Cruz. With whom he'd shared all of his exploits while piloting the sentient automaton known Darkhawk. Nowadays his Amulet has become inert, not so much as even changing when he focuses his thoughts on becoming his alter ego again; but lately has been suffering from nightmares of the Tree of Shadows every time he slept. Following in his father's footsteps, he eventually became an officer of the law at the NYPD. Taking to the same beat Micheal Powell used to back when he was one of the police, he reminisced about how his father would listen to people and remember their names while trying to keep the peace on the streets.

Trying to be the every bit as big a man and a better cop than he was by holding the values he once thought Mike stood for before, Chris found out his father was a corrupt cop. All the while ruminating on whether the world needed him as Christopher Powell, police officer or as the cybernetic hero he once was. While on patrol, dispatch sent out notice of a disturbance at Wonderland Amusement Park, where he first found the Raptor Amulet.

While investigating the derelict establishment, Powell was approached by two shady cops right near the area where he first became Darkhawk. Officer Hal Fingeroth and Sergeant Harold Conrad came to Powell offering certain opportunities while on the force which Chris quickly denied, when the latter opted to be a bit more forceful in his persuasion; Conrad was quickly eviscerated by members of the Fraternity of Raptors who were after the young officer's depowered amulet. Canorus and Aceptar created the odd circumstances which led to Christopher retracing his origin as a superhero in order to kill him and take what they believed was theirs by right, but the former raptor didn't go without a fight; discovering that these new raptors were in actuality just armored Shi'ar thugs given how easily Aceptar was stunned by a shock baton.

Though Christopher was eventually subdued by Canorus and his gem taken from him. Canorus was able to activate it again with a damaged Razor taking his place, whom nearly beat Powell's other would be assassin to death until Chris got his attention. The badly broken android grabbed hold of Powell and ported him to a portion of the Datasong he called the "Perch," where memories of previous host pilots were stored within a Raptor's own motherboard.

Razor, now calling itself Darkhawk after the recombinant persona imprinted on itself due to their shared escapades as a hero. Chris learned from his other half that a whole new Fraternity has sprung up in the wake of Novas' decimation, eager to bring the universe to heel under their thrall and had been searching for a means of acquiring the Raptor androids from the Null Space void to cement their dominance. Horrified by this development the now empathetic Razor sought to defy this mandate by said cabal of zealot pretenders by escaping his pod and severing his link to the Tree of Shadows, which was the reason why Powell couldn't become Darkhawk anymore. Severing his brethren's connection to their amulets earned Raptor their ire, however. They nearly hunted it down and executed until he was summoned to Earth by Canorus. Seeing the opportunity to heal itself, and hoping to enlist aid in stopping the renegade Raptor sect, Darkhawk sought union with Chris Powell once again in order to recover and grow in power.

Seeing as the whole of the universe was at stake, including his own homeworld in the long run. Chris knew in spite of his misgivings about space travel and the new life he has on Earth, that since his android had grown a conscience since the War of Kings. That he could not just sit by and pretend what effects the galaxy has no consequences for everybody involved, himself included. Donning the name Darkhawk once more, he took to the skies after blasting the other raptor back to his enclave in space before taking off, wondering how Miranda will react to the change of pace.[15]

Infinity Countdown

After learning from Richard Rider that the Fraternity of Raptors were after the Infinity Stones, Chris wanted to find a way to stop them, but he was stuck on Earth. He was later attacked by the bounty hunter Death's Head who was hired by the Raptors to capture Chris and bring him back to them alive. After learning that Death's Head had a spaceship, Chris was able to convince Death's Head to take him to the Raptors. After saying goodbye to Miranda, Chris and Death's Head traveled to where Death's Head was to meet the Raptors, the planet Arcturus IV; however, the Raptors betrayed Death's Head and destroyed his ship. Chris survived the ship's destruction and confronted the Raptors, but he was quickly overwhelmed by their numbers.

Chris' Darkhawk Amulet was removed from his body by the Raptors' leader Gyre and used in a ceremony to transform Richard Rider's brother Robbie Rider into the being called Dark Darkhawk by fusing him with Ratha'kon, a being supposedly more powerful than the Phoenix Force. The Raptors then left a dying Chris where he was set off to destroy Earth. As Chris dragged himself across the ground, he encountered his other half Razor who revealed to him the origins of the Tree of Shadows and of the first Raptor. After some coaxing from Razor, Chris tapped into his hidden strength and emerged with a new Darkhawk body after fully fusing his mind with the armor. Chris then flew after the Raptors to stop them.[16]

Chris battled the Raptors with help from Death's Head and Nova Prime. Nova made it difficult to fight Dark Darkhawk as he preferred to reason with his brother Robbie than fight him. Dark Darkhawk then shockingly turned on Gyre and destroyed him while stating that he would bring order to the universe, not Gyre. The Raptors were eventually stopped when Death's Head rigged the power core of the Kree ship the Raptors stole to explode. Only Dark Starhawk survived the explosion, though stunned, allowing Chris to reclaim his Darkhawk Amulet. Dark Starhawk then disappeared in a flash of light after striking his Nega-Bands together. Grieving over the loss of Robbie, Nova angrily told Chris to stay on Earth or he would have him locked up. After Chris returned to Earth, he decided stay out of space for a while. Later that night, he was met by Sleepwalker while he dreamed, telling him that the influence of the Infinity Stones threatened the Mindscape and that the only way he could protect it was to become a Sleepwalker.[17]

Young Again

Darkhawk attended Thanos' funeral along with prominent cosmic figures where it was revealed that Thanos had transferred his mind into a new body. However, the Black Order came and stole Thanos' corpse, while opening a rip in space in order to trap them.[18] While trapped there, Darkhawk's atoms began to break apart, affecting his link to the suit. After being captured by the Universal Church of Truth from a possible future, Chris found out that his body was merged with the armor and that he had become younger than when he first found the amulet.[19] Under the control of the Church, Darkhawk and the other prisoners attacked the Guardians of the Galaxy, but Rocket Raccoon was able to free them from the Church's control and sent the church back to their timeline.[20]

After the Void was leading the forces of the Cancerverse into invading the Negative Zone, Darkhawk was among the heroes summoned by Mister Fantastic using his Dimensional Anchor in order to defeat the Scourge. Once the Silver Surfer managed to merge Bob Reynolds with Void back, Nova sacrificed himself in order to defeat the Scourge, ending the threat.[21]

Powers and Abilities

Power Grid [24]Intelligence 2Strength4 Speed*5  3Durability4 Energy Projection*6  3Fighting Skills 2* Armor Transformations

Abilities

Skilled Combatant: Chris is skilled in Kendo and an unidentified branch of Karate.[citation needed]

Strength level

25+ Tons.[15]

Paraphernalia

Equipment

Darkhawk Amulet:

Consciousness Transfer: Chris can transfer his consciousness into the Darkhawk's alien android while at the same time, switch the robotic body's place with that of his own body wherever he is at any time.[citation needed]

Darkhawk Android: The Darkhawk Armor is advanced Shi'ar technology meshed with magic, allowing the host numerous superhuman capabilities:

Superhuman Strength: The Armor allows Chris to lift in the excess of 25+ tons. Able to knock out Venom.[citation needed]

Superhuman Speed

Superhuman Durability: Darkhawk is superhumanly durable; he is capable of shrugging off physical impacts, energy blasts, and most artillery fire.

Superhuman Agility

Superhuman Reflexes

Armament Conjuration: The Android can summon weapons from the extra-dimensional expanse from whence they came, or manifest desired munitions from its own body at will.[citation needed]

Flight: The retractable glider wings under his arms allow him to glide on air currents. Darkhawk can also fly at speeds that let him fly from New York to California in only a matter of hours. After the Darkhawk armor attained a new form, Chris is able to fly interstellar distances.[22]

Self Repair: Even major injuries to his Darkhawk body can be repaired by switching back to his human form.[citation needed]

Superhuman Vision: Darkhawk has telescopic and infra-red vision. He can see through most camouflage.[citation needed]

Force Field: Chris can utilize a circular wafer-thin force field.[citation needed]

Concussion Blasts: He can fire blasts of destructive dark energy from the amulet on his chest.[citation needed]

Mode Shifting: Talons can morph their bodies into a host of augmentative forms. Becoming transparent, doubling body armor, projecting greater weaponry, etc.[citation needed]

Formerly *Avengers Identicard

Transportation

Formerly Avengers Quinjet

Trivia

Darkhawk's armor and appearance has been a continued source of debate amongst Marvel "True-Believers." After his series was canceled, his new appearances often reverted back to the original Darkhawk armor. As of his Loners appearances, he is in "DH 1.0" form, although he had appeared a few times as DH 2.0 prior to this.[citation needed]

It has been a misunderstanding amongst many readers and fans of Darkhawk that he was aware of his status as a hero within the Marvel 2099 universe, in which he is known as "The Powell," one of the "most powerful, and feared, heroes in the universe." This wasn't Earth-928 (or Marvel 2099), it was a similar cyberpunk dystopia world within Chronopolis. This was resolved by DeFalco himself within the letter columns in one of the final issues of the ongoing series.[citation needed]

Links and References

185 Appearances of Christopher Powell (Earth-616)

15 Minor Appearances of Christopher Powell (Earth-616)

Media Christopher Powell (Earth-616) was Mentioned in

123 Images featuring Christopher Powell (Earth-616)

13 Quotations by or about Christopher Powell (Earth-616)

Character Gallery: Christopher Powell (Earth-616) 

Christopher Powell (Earth-616) on Wikipedia.org 

Darkhawk Zone: The Ultimate Darkhawk Fansite

Darkhawk @ New Warriors Continuity Conundrum

New Warriors Message Board

Recommended Readings

Darkhawk #1-50 (March 1991, April 1995)

Darkhawk Annual #1-3 (1992, 1994)

New Warriors #14, 22-25, 47-51

New Warriors Annual #3

Avengers West Coast #93-95

Runaways Vol 2 #1-6

Marvel Team-Up #15-18, 25 (2005)

Loners #1-6 (2007)

Nova (vol. 4) #17-#19 (November 2008, January 2009)

War of Kings: Darkhawk #1 and #2 (February 2009 and March 2009)

War of Kings: Ascension #1-4 (April 2009, July 2009)

Discover and Discuss

Search this site for: Christopher Powell (Earth-616)

Footnotes

↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #3

↑ 2.02.1 The Loners #1

↑ Avengers Vol 3 #2

↑ Darkhawk Annual #3

↑ Darkhawk #1

↑ Amazing Spider-Man #353

↑ Runaways Vol 2 #1-3

↑ Runaways Vol 2 #6

↑ The Loners Vol 1-6

↑ Nova #17-18

↑ Avengers Arena #1

↑ Avengers Arena #3

↑ Avengers Arena #4

↑ Avengers Arena #18

↑ 15.015.1 Darkhawk #51

↑ Infinity Countdown: Darkhawk #1-3

↑ Infinity Countdown: Darkhawk #4

↑ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 5 #1

↑ Guardians of the Galaxy Annual Vol 3 #1

↑ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 5 #11-12

↑ Annihilation - Scourge Omega #1

↑ Infinity Countdown: Darkhawk #3

↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #3

↑ Darkhawk #51, Trading Card Variant

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[weareigloo219]

DUBAI SMART CITY AND THE DIGITAL INDUSTRY

It’s amazing how science and technology have come into the picture with a wave of revolution that was unimaginable just a few years ago. The world seemed like it had reached its peak of inventions when the mobile phone was discovered in the past century and later on the computer. Right now as we view into the future, it’s outstanding just picturing all the possibilities that could be brought about by the vast internet of things. There is nowhere better to view this 21st Century revolution than in Dubai.

Dubai Smart City stemmed from His Highness Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum who had the vision to transform and fully technologize Dubai by 2021. The vision is well on course even as the city plans to host 25 million visitors worldwide in the Expo 2020 Dubai. The plan is to ensure that by the time the globe realizes the 2030 vision, Dubai will be well ahead and above the rest of the cream. It’s not a competition, however; it’s a developmental vision that every citizen of Dubai should associate her/himself with. Now without further ado, let’s have a look at the Dubai Smart City and all it means to us as a people.

Introducing Dubai Smart City

Take a moment of silence and picture this: you wake up one morning when you’re supposed to travel outside the country, but sadly your daughter has acquired some illness that has her bedridden. You cannot cancel your flight, but you also need to give attention to your child who always comes first to you. So you prepare the both of you, and you decide to take her to the hospital as your wife tags along. At the hospital, you find no lines at all and you are immediately welcomed by the doctor who accesses all her medical files at the touch of a button! Phew, that must have been a relief – at least there are lesser questions by the medical attendant since the medical history almost says it all.

At the hospital, it takes less than 20 minutes for you guys to be served and she’s already smiling as you’re coming out of the hospital; it seems the injection actually worked! All she has to do is finish up with her dosage. You are pleased since you experienced no traffic on your way to the hospital and also absolutely none as you’re headed to the port. Your flight is due in 30 minutes and it takes you just about 15 to reach the airport. As you bid your family farewell and hand over the car keys to your wife, you check your watch and realize you still have 11 minutes.

You leisurely walk into the airport, get searched as you hand over your documents and walk straight into your plane. Jeez, that was fast! No lines at the waiting bay and you still have 4 extra minutes to settle down on your seat as you get acquainted with the change of setting. Alas, it’s departure time!

This is what Dubai Smart City is all about – a comfortable convenience that will save on so much time and money too. Talk about less congested and safer roads, faster service delivery, quicker access to data, improved infrastructure generally and even a seamless end-to-end connectivity among so many more.

The vision here is simple, sophisticated and very much attainable – we seek to make Dubai the happiest city on earth. Well, if you’ve traveled around the world, you might conclude that there are happier places to be, but come on! Which place in this galaxy can you really compare to home? Dubai Smart City seeks to be recognized worldwide as not only benefitting from the deeply invested technological hub but also prove that the systems are workable and benefitting everyone from every sector. This includes the government as well as the general public.

Impact of the Vision

Who is set to benefit most as a result of a technologized Dubai City? Well, the vision broadly classifies the impact of the 2021 Dubai Smart City on three particular areas:

The Customer Impact: The Happiness Agenda was primarily formulated to benefit the Dubai consumer. Everyone will be classified as either a producer or a consumer in the city – the producers also get to purchase services. Since the consumer is the one driving the economy, it’s only fair to implement goals that will transform their lives. So, be it the government, businesses or even private individuals who are in need of services, the impact falls squarely on them.

Social media agency

The Financial Impact: Who said going through a technological revolutionary phase has to be costly? After analyzing the economic costs it would take to achieve ultimate happiness, the 2021 strategy formulated simpler, cost-effective ways to achieve all the goals. This creates a financial benefit the city at large as there will be numerous financial saves while still realizing complex digital innovations which will tantamount to further future expenditure cuts.

Resource & Infrastructure Impact: At what costs to the environment, in general, are we likely to incur as we pursue our digital transformation? Well, again, a course has been chartered that will ensure the city environment is fully supported and sustained as we fully dive into this inevitable digital transformation.

The belief with the visionaries is that all the above three areas mentioned above will be positively impacted even as we harness the technology to realize a digital industry in Dubai.

Assessing the Objectives of Smart Dubai 2021

Dubai smart city web marketing

It might seem impossible to attain a 95% happiness level by 2021 but residents of Dubai are already seeing the vision becoming a reality. It’s important to comprehend exactly what we intend to achieve to reach this level of happiness. Having created objectives for the Dubai Smart City project has made it much easier for individuals and businesses to attach themselves to the vision. It’s also made the government better placed to work towards the end goals.

Living the Smart Way

Some cities in different parts of the world have already come up with strong connected Wi-Fi systems that surround such cities enabling dwellers to be connected to the internet 24/7-365. This, however, fails to beat any logic if such systems are not trusted. The rise in cyber-attacks have continually made people on the edge and more afraid to share their data. This is where Smart Dubai City comes in.

Not only does the project seek to provide all-day-long internet connectivity to users but it also aims at eliminating such threats that would cause panic and mistrust. Not only will mobile phones be connected to the internet but also other devices and systems to enable real-time tracking and updates to thus faster service delivery. Such systems include drainage systems, sewage, energy, water, buildings, waste distribution networks, roads among many more. In the case of impediments arising in a certain location, it would be much easier to track the source as well as offer direct assistance and repairs.

Residents will also be better equipped as they will get a chance to monitor all their resource consumption making it way easier to educate the users and have them lower their consumption. They will do so willingly in a bid to save their city resources, therefore a more conscious consumer in the Dubai Smart City project.

It doesn’t end there: city planning and coordination will be much easier with real-time logistics and statistics. City authorities will have much easier time allocating such resources as land, water, electricity and the likes. A new legislature will be set up to oversee these technologies. Corporate lawyers in Dubai are ready to adapt to these changes.

A technologized Dubai will also mean a more prepared Dubai in times of natural calamities, adverse climate change as well as other man-made disasters. This will, however, call for unified teamwork between residents and authorities.

Globally Competitive Economy

The project has to obviously touch on transforming the financial systems for it to make any economic sense. Simple applications from the digital transformations will have the Dubai’s economy competing favorably with other top world economies. Not only will the government benefit from increased revenues but also from a more participative private sector.

To reach here, the project has foreseen simplified regulations in businesses due to more credible forms of transactions, easily accessible services to the general public which will be supported through accelerators and incubators. Immaculate and reliable digital services will make it much easier for entrepreneurs to embark on different ventures without much hassle. Since this will attract more human personnel into the city, the project also identifies plans on how to train and enhance the skills of both the public and private sectors to empower them in realizing their dreams and aspirations.

Eliminate Digital Benightedness

Logic dictates that we can’t have a Smart Dubai City without first having smart people. Currently, the bigger percentage of Dubai residents is well vast with simple digital processes as a result of the already digitized state of the city. Nonetheless, further digital literacy will be necessary if occupants are to benefit from the rapid technological developments that are taking over the city. For instance, they should be able to book healthcare services online, access educational services such as school registration and payment of fees online among other services.

Once the city dwellers are empowered with such knowledge and know-how, we can only foresee an efficiently, irreproachable and a strong social community aggrandized by digital services. This will result in happier social experiences in the widely culturally diversified Dubai Smart City society.

How About Transport Systems?

Have you been lucky enough to see a self-driven car at this day and age or have you only seen that in movies and cinemas? Now, imagine a system of cars which can self-drive and also communicate with other cars. The communication through sensor technology among other systems will act to prevent accidents from occurring. No more need to put our reliance on the errs of man that have caused hundreds of millions of deaths over the years.

There will also be a lesser congestion on roads as mobility improves which will save on time. The ratio of usage of public transport will also rise in an attempt to eliminate extra cars on the roads. Smart traffic lights, smart tolls as well as smart parking will all contribute to a speedier mobility system allowing people to reach their destinations faster and safer with nothing but joy.

Since the 2021 Smart Dubai City project is making a move towards a digital industry Dubai, we are likely to have more people making lesser travels to attend meetings which can be held online. Video conferencing will have fewer people on the roads which also counts as a time saver and cost-efficient.

A Move to a Smart Environment

Happiness might be completely subjective but one cannot claim to be in a happy state when constantly attacked with sicknesses. In other quarters, people’s standards of living will determine just how happy they are. If such a people are living in a degraded environment, then it doesn’t matter how technologized the place is – happiness is quite unattainable on the larger scale.

The digital transformation is to foresee cleaner resources being employed, lower pollution on the environment as well as lower emissions. Modifications are being applied to modern day buildings to reduce cases of GHG emissions. Emissions of electromagnetic radiations and ambient noise will also be checked through established action plans to ensure safer limits. There is also a move towards an enhanced use of solar energy to boost renewable energy. On top of all that, there are electric and hybrid cars which are currently being tested and perfected to ensure a smarter, eco-friendlier Dubai City.

A Digital Government

Not only will the government take part in constituting these changes but also will be embracing such changes in its course of operation. All government services will be cashless as well as paperless to quash the need to make visits to government offices. Imagine accessing all the services you want at the comfort of your backyard as you chill out with your family! Fun, right?

Citizens are also able to contribute and access all government proceedings online thus enhanced accountability. Through the eSuggest and eComplain sites, they are able to effect changes in their administration on a unified front.

Procurement opportunities will be made available to SMEs online with invoices and payments done digitally. How about that for sleek convenience!

Fast Paced Technologies

dubai new technologies marketing

Now that we understand the objectives behind His Excellency’s vision of a happy Dubai, it’s important to take a look too at how the different technologies are being innovated, invented and applied to lead to a digital industry Dubai. Here, we’ll have a look at how digital marketing in Dubai, social media and other technologies are set to change the present and metamorphose the future.

The journey began in 1999 when the first ICT strategy was announced. Later on, the Dubai Internet City would be launched followed by Dubai e-Government and the rest is present history. At this very minute, Dubai can boast of being the most technologized city in the region with the application of IoT increasing by the day.

Social Media

About 95% of the population has access to social media and it’s even being used as a measure of happiness. Most businesses and advertising are also done online as organizations endeavor to make a breakthrough in the unlimited online market. With the improved Wi-Fi connectivity in the city, one cannot skip the chance of missing out on recent developments online.

Businesses which market themselves properly have a competitive advantage in the online market. It’s also cost-effective to SMEs which don’t have to incur outrageous advertising costs on TVs, radios and the like, which was the case a few years back. Social media marketing Dubai means consumers are also more educated and ready to speak out against shunned brands thus better knowledge on the part of the buyer.

SEO Marketing

Digital marketing Dubai is seeing more and more consumers reaching out to Google for answers. The answers could be searches for products, quick fixes or simply basic information that might be unknown to them. This is where Search Engine Optimization comes in. Business websites are coming up with articles based on frequently searched words as they strive to drive traffic to their sites.

Businesses that do so in the right ways end up generating a considerable flow of online users seeking basic answers to life’s questions. This gives the organization a propitious opportunity to market and sell their product or service and even maintain a loyal set of clients. It also takes your business to the nextlevel as it boosts your brand credibility. Remember people trust Google – make them trust Google t

hrough you.

E-Commerce

Since everyone is buying online, everyone is also making payments online with a general acceptance now as compared to before. A lot of individuals were skeptical about using online forms of payments a few years ago. Currently, trends indicate a move to digital coins which are much safer and require no middlemen. E-commerce is also set to benefit through customization which enables buyers to go deeper in terms of elaborating the details of the product they are in need of. Another technology will develop this trend, 3D printing services in Dubai will a game changer for e-commerce platforms. For instance, a customer buying a shoe will be able to choose the right shoe fit, size, type, and color among other options.

This hefty reliance on online buying options has seen businesses making more sales and even other businesses popping up to offer delivery services. Not only that: customer retention is at a higher level for most businesses that manage to sell it successfully to their esteemed clients. Gargantuan data aggregation and different shopping algorithms have even made it possible for shoppers to receive pinpointed recommendations during their shopping experience. Not only does this increase the business sales, but it also enhances the business ratings in the eyes of the buyer.

Dubai Blockchain Strategy

Blockchain Strategy is probably the biggest invention – not only for Dubai but to the world in general. This would be better explained from the bitcoin point of view. Picture a system of transaction, payments and processes which isn’t in the control of one single person. A system where data uploaded cannot be reversed since it’s in the hand of the ‘system’ in general. A structure which no one person can manipulate the data once uploaded since all of it is decentralized rather than in a single location!

The blockchain technology is already in effect in Dubai Smart City and will soon be ingratiated into every system making fraud a new vocabulary. An example is seen where a writer uploads content online using blockchain technology and doesn’t have to worry about marketing or copyrights since the technology does that for him. Anyone accessing the writer’s data will be charged a small fraction enabling the artist to make a decent living as they continue with their day to day lives. Isn’t that amazing!

The applications of blockchain technology can be seen in every sector since data is created in every sphere. Blockchain will ensure there is no manipulation, duplication or even theft of information and comes in to protect the user’s data. Considering that data is a $300 billion industry, businesses can only embrace the safe technology to be on the impregnable side of things.

Dubai, What Next?

As we reach the end of our discussion, we should give much thought to the impact of a digital industry Dubai. Sure, we can talk about it all day, but are we really ready for all these changes? The Dubai Smart City can only fully be achieved by input from each of us: we all have a role to play to make this dream a reality. Businesses would do well to start implementing some of these methods earlier on in advance. This will call for an overall upgrade of employee skills as well as changing their mentality. Basic forms of artificial intelligence could go a long way to change your brand’s image and have you ranked higher. Since the future is inevitable, we can only walk towards it with self-assurance and a positive mentality.

[aliceslantern]

Grow, a Kingdom Hearts fanfic, chapter 3

Suddenly human and abandoned in the Keyblade Graveyard, Demyx struggles to survive and come to terms with what his life is. Only by chance is he saved from exposure, and brought to Radiant Garden to recover. Unsure of who he is and where to even begin, Demyx finds a kindred spirit in Ienzo, and before long finds perhaps he isn't the only one lost in this new life. But how can they move forward with so much holding them back?

Roughly canonverse, Zemyx, hurt/comfort. Started for Zemyx day (9/6). Updates Wednesdays until it's done.

Chapter summary:  Newly recovered, Demyx tries to figure out what he wants from this life.

Read it on FF.net/on AO3

---

Demyx was getting used to being prodded by Even. He checked on him at least once a day. The more time passed, the more often Demyx looked forward to it, because at least he was someone to talk to. As long as he was tethered, he couldn’t really go anywhere by himself.

“Admittedly I know little about ophthalmology,” Even said, staring deep into his eyes with the same penlight. “These should help. I had Ansem print them for me.” He handed Demyx a pair of glasses.

“...Ansem?”

“Oh--right. I don’t believe you’ve had the pleasure of meeting.” His lip curled. “The former king of Radiant Garden. This is his castle.” His tone was bitter.

Demyx only knew a little about the story of the apprentices from his time in the Organization, and that he suspected was embellished. “So is he, like, your boss?”

“No,” Even said shortly. “He was our mentor--in the past, anyway. Now we work together.”

“With Kairi.”

“Yes. Try those, will you? I have to get back down there soon.”

Demyx put them on. After days of blurriness, to have clarity back was odd. “Whoa. HD.”

“I had to hazard a guess at the strength.”

“No, they’re fine.” He blinked.

“Well, that just means the poor vision has nothing to do with what you went through.” He shook his head. “One less thing to worry about.”

“You must be busy.”

“Idle hands make the devil’s work,” Even said absently. Then, “well… I suppose busy hands do too.”

“What do you guys do down there?” He swung his legs back and forth a little.

“You know of the princesses of heart, yes? Kairi’s one of them. We’re hoping given her connection to Sora, and the special properties of a heart of light, we might be able to find answers as to where that boy is. If he is.” A pause, then, “I don’t know why I’m telling you this, it’s not like you understand.”

Demyx shrugged, trying to hide how he was stung.

“Regardless, it is a concrete goal to work towards… and for that I’m thankful.”

He turned away. With his newly sharpened vision, Demyx could see more acutely the lines around his eyes, the gray mixed into his blond hair. He looked exhausted. “Thanks, Ev,” he said. “Do you know how much longer I’m gonna need this?” Gesturing to the port in his hand.

“Even,” he corrected, then sighed. “I suppose you have a point… your last labs were the best yet. If you’re up and about you can take care of yourself.”

“Yeah. Plus I’m kind of going insane sitting here for so long.” He offered a hesitant smile.

Even considered. He went over to the sink, washed his hands, put on gloves, and grabbed some gauze. “I’m afraid this may hurt,” he said.

Demyx had thought it was just a needle, but it was more of a thin tube inside of his vein due to how long they’d thought he’d have it. Removing it did hurt a lot, and he swore out loud. But once it was gone… despite his throbbing hand… he felt so much lighter. “Can I walk around?” he asked. “Can I do stuff?”

“So long as you are careful. ”

“Thank you!” He leapt to his feet and pulled Even into a hug; he jerked as though he’d been shocked.

“Please do not touch me,” he hissed in a completely different tone. There was something dark and closed off in his eyes, more than his typical sharpness.

“I’m sorry--I’m just so glad.”

“Yes. Quite. Well.” He left without so much of a backwards glance.

Demyx bit his lip. He hadn’t meant anything by it. It was just a hug, right? He’d apologize again later when Even checked on him.

It was time to get out of this room. Apparently this place served as a sort of infirmary for the castle, though nobody else had had to come down here. It had its own bathroom, so Demyx hadn’t even needed to cross its threshold. Leaving felt odd, but it wasn’t like he was in prison.

The hallways down here were dark, without windows, sconces providing the only light. The carpeting was thick, heavy, and needed a good clean; it squished uncomfortably under his slippers. He wandered for a while, mentally taking stock every now and again so he would be able to find his way back. The layout was weird, putting it lightly, and he could see places where the castle had been renovated, or added on-to, architecture and design clashing oddly. Apparently the apprentices had all lived here in the heyday--they must live here now. It wasn’t like Demyx was a stranger to living in castles, but this one felt so much more real and old than the one in the World that Never Was. He ran his fingers along the crown moulding, touched the lamps when he saw them. This place must’ve once been nice, but it was dirty, and in a state of relative disrepair.

Would this be his home now?

The thought was jarring, and he stopped in his tracks. Pushed the glasses up his nose. The better he physically got, the more apparent it was that he had nowhere to go and nobody. No friends, no family. Hadn’t Lea and Isa just extended that invitation to be nice? Did they really mean what they said?

A weepiness came over him, and he bit it back. He felt like he’d been buffering for so long, going here nor there in his life? What did he want? Who was he really? The more he thought about it, the less Demyx felt like the self he’d been as little as two weeks ago. Was he changing? Becoming “different”?

All these thoughts were giving him anxiety.

He wandered for a little while longer, coming across a section that seemed a bit cleaner than the others. There was wood flooring here, not carpeting, and Demyx could see some old windows in the walls. A few swatches of paint were here and there. He saw a few doors here and there and tried one on impulse; it was open. He could just barely see bedroom furniture, a small rose bush in a pot by a window--

“What are you doing snooping around?”

The voice startled him; he yelped and clutched at his chest, the new glasses falling to the floor. Demyx scrambled to pick them up. Slowly, he turned and saw Dilan, Xaldin’s Somebody, in a blue uniform. Frowning. “I’m sorry,” he stuttered. “I didn’t know… I’m guessing this is your room, then?”

“...Quite,” he said gruffly. “And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t go barging into spaces you haven’t been invited to.”

“Of course. Yeah.”

There was a pause. His hair was neater than Xaldin’s, Demyx realized, and was his skin a bit darker.

“I didn’t know you guys lived here,” Demyx continued. “I was just… taking a look around.”

“You’re up on your feet, then?”

“Well. Obviously.” He cleared his throat a little. “I haven’t been able to leave that room for like a week.” A wry laugh.

“Ienzo told me what happened.” Dilan shook his head. “What a cruel thing to do.”

Demyx shrugged. He and Xaldin hadn’t had the best rapport in the Organization days, and he didn’t know what to say.

“You’re well, though?” he asked.

“...Getting there. I think.” He rubbed at his sore arm.

“Do you… know what you’re to do next?”

“No,” he admitted slowly. “It’s been… hard.”

“Of that I am well aware.” He touched his chest.

“So… I’m gonna go,” Demyx said. “I won’t, uh, mess with your stuff.”

“Much appreciated.”

Demyx set off in the opposite direction. He was getting hungry now, his appetite only growing in the passing days. Usually someone brought along a meal to him, so he headed back. He found a sandwich and an apple on a plate on his bedside, and once this lunch was done with, he just… sat. Waiting. After a few minutes of this, he decided to take out Arpeggio to try and get his mind off of things. His fingers were a bit shaky, but within about fifteen minutes he was able to play with the same fluidity as before.

But it was… harder. Not physically. But as he picked through old compositions he felt the emptiness composed by his Nobody self, the sadness, the loneliness. At the same time, they felt like they’d been created by a stranger, despite the fact that he remembered writing them. A strange dissonance. Wasn’t this what he’d wanted, a heart to truly feel music with?

What did Demyx feel?

He tried to parse it out. Empty, again? Tired, sad? Overwhelmed?

Having a heart was supposed to be easy.

He let Arpeggio fade and curled up. A cool breeze came in through the cracked window. He stared out at the little bit of town he could see, feeling on the verge, the breath of remembering--

“I thought I heard you playing. How do you feel?”

Demyx’s head snapped up. He saw not Even, but Ienzo, in that white-coat getup. He was carrying a small bundle. “Um, alright,” he said, blinking yet more tears out of his eyes. “Where’s Even?”

“He and Ansem are trying to solve a problem with one of our simulations.” He cocked his head a little. “I do know enough about medicine.”

“I know, I just…” He swallowed, and considered telling Ienzo. “Nothing. Never mind.”

“I brought you some more clothes, too. And this.” He held up a gummiphone. “You might find a use for it--if you don’t break this one.”

Demyx took it from him. “Thanks,” he said. “You didn’t have to--”

“The castle is large. It makes it easier to keep in touch if we all have one--heaven forbid something happen to you.” His tone was dismissive.

Ienzo came over to him, went through the familiar motions of taking his vitals. He listened to Demyx’s heart. It was strange to be so close to him, and a little uncomfortable in a way Demyx couldn’t define. His eyes were a bit greener than Demyx remembered, and his eyebrows furrowed together just slightly. Demyx could hear him breathe. “Your heart rate’s a little high,” he said. “Are you nervous?”

He cleared his throat. “No. Ah. Just a little anxious, I guess.” He felt the blood rush to his face, trying to place that feeling.

“Why?”

“I just don’t know what to do now,” Demyx admitted.

Ienzo took the stethoscope out of his ears. “That is the question, isn’t it,” he said slowly. “After so long of having little to no choice, suddenly the world is open in front of us. Like having the rug yanked from under you.”

“Yeah,” he said. “It really is. But don’t you… have your work, and stuff?”

Ienzo set the object aside. “I do,” he said. His eyes flicked up in thought. “But at the same time… I was with the Organization for considerably longer than you. Work… well, it’s something concrete to work towards.”

“Even said the same thing.”

His expression darkened a little. “We all seek to be better people. To… make up for the hell we’ve wrought. Working with the guardians of light… providing them with whatever they need to the best of our abilities... is the least we can do.”

Demyx picked at the lint on his pants. “I… thought about it, in the desert,” he admitted. In his newly-sharpened peripheral he saw Ienzo’s head snap up, his eyes widening. “If this wasn’t karma.”

Slowly, he nodded.

“But… you know…” He forced a laugh. “I’m here , right? If whatever forces exist in this world wanted me gone… I would be toast. Same for you. And Even and them. We literally came back from the dead.”

“A second chance,” Ienzo murmured. “Quite.”

He pressed a hand to his chest. “But that doesn’t help tell me what to do. Or how to feel about any of it.” The blood rushed to his face. “And I’m sure you’re too busy to listen to this.”

“No,” Ienzo said. He sat down next to Demyx on the bed. He was shorter than Demyx remembered. More weird reformation? “This is the first bearable conversation I’ve had in a while.”

He snorted. “Really?”

Ienzo sighed heavily. “A lot happened that I don’t particularly care to get into at the moment. But things between us are… a bit tense.”

“...Oh.” Ienzo’s smile was small and sad. Demyx couldn’t actually remember if he’d ever seen him do it, and before he could stop himself he said, “you have a nice smile. I’ve never seen it.”

The blood rushed to Ienzo’s face.

“I’m sorry, was that weird to say?”

“No, ah.” He pulled at his collar a little. “No.” He knotted his hands in his lap. “I know in the past our rapport has been… rocky.”

Demyx bit his lip and thought back. For a long while, he and Zexion had both been part of the reconnaissance team, but whenever they’d been paired together, it hadn’t exactly ended well. Their personalities clashed like oil and water; Demyx’s carefree attitude and low ambition combined with Zexion’s perfectionism always ended in fights. “You could say that again.”

He chuckled a little; strangely, it had no sound. “Perhaps it would do to start over,” he said. He offered his hand. “I’m Ienzo.”

“Demyx. Nice to meet you.”

He pretended not to notice the tingle he felt when they shook.

[oneofyatosfollowers]

Noragami/Wall-E AU

Prologue

The air was a visible mustard brown with dirt particles and other debris mixed in. It gave the natural sunlight a dull glow, just enough to illuminate the hunks of useless metal that orbited the planet. On the planet, similar junk made up mountains, piled high against windmills and phone poles. Lose paper and plastic bags caught against the skeletons of old sky scrapers that have long-since collapsed into more rubble. Everything old, rusted, and abandoned; covered in the same brown dust that seemed to make up the planet itself.

On the outskirts of the city, the trash dunes were much smaller. Pressed into compact squares and piled into neater cubes. Pathways between these heaps curved and stretched on for miles, the darker shade of brown the dirt made showing which were the most traveled on. Traveling at a relaxed pace, an object made it's way through the cubes with practiced ease, not even glancing at it's surroundings. Old 80s music echoed from the object, traveling without any clash.

The speaker was a small, bright pink electronic, plugged into another machine. This machine was imbedded into a creature that was once human, but now a cyborg of ancient technology, made only to clean up the leftovers of man-kind's time on Earth. As he traveled, a short breeze or two ruffled his black hair, greasily pulled back into a short pony tail. The pink iPod was shoved into the pocket of a light brown fullbody coverall. One of many small nicknacks in one of many pockets. The jean fabric more than wore down, but with every rip stitched back together almost seamlessly. On his right breast pocket, the name 'Yato' was stitched in black, below the title 'Wall-E'.

The trash cleaner made his way to the nearest non-compacted trash pile and took a deep breath through his oxygen mask. Sitting down the small cooler he carried, Yato reached above his shoulder to grab hold of a lean metal handle, his brain send the signal for object to unlock. The metal clasps embedded in his back fell open and the flatted compactor came lose. He brought it to the front of him and set it on the ground. Opposite to the handle was a folded steel box that would click into shape. In the middle was a heaver iron square that molded into the handle. Once set up, all the cyborg had to do was gather as much trash as can fit in the hollow box bring the handle- with the lid- on top and press down. After the trash was in a neat square, the Wall-E would yank the handle up and let the cube roll out before placing it next to the billions of others.

This jostling woke up a small cockroach, who peaked outside a soup can to see what the ruckus was. At the sight of the cyborg, the insect squeaked and made her way over to the pile that only grew as the years went by. She made her way up the piles without much effort and sat herself on the new block. At the sound of her squeak the trash-collector turned with a wide smile.

"Stray!" he exclaimed cheerfully, "You're awake! Goodmorning!"

At his words, the cockroach let out an annoyed shriek. Yato recoiled but never ceased smiling.

"Sorry. Nora. There is that better?" Yato reached a hand out to her waiting for her to climb on. Nora flicked her antenna and crawled on slowly, with her nose in the air.

"I don't know why you like the japansese way better," he said as she settled on his shoulder, "though I guess Nora is more of a name." he mumbled the last part. Grinning at her when she chirped in agreement.

To his left, something shiny caught his eye. Making his way over to it, Yato moved aside some old newspapers and found a trash can lid. He held it up and watched as the sunlight shone even brighter against the silver disk. Yato's blue eyes didn't look away as he moved the light to different parts of the lid.

"Pretty cool, huh? Rare to find something not rusted." He said, walking back to where he left the cooler and placing it with the other treasures found earlier that day. On his shoulder, Nora's head made the movement of rolling her eyes. Yato contiuned back down the path that winded around a skyscraper made of the trash-cubes. Nora faithfully on his shoulder. He made his way past the abandoned super store, its food long since degraded and any other item caked in dust. Some of the hallow gram advertisements flickered on and off, their color long since dulled and the music coming out slow and deep. One sign stood out to him, just for a moment, the sign posted across the globe long long ago. "Become a Wall-E and save the world! Be taken care of and live for ETERNITY!"

Yato remembers his father, a biotechnical engineer who lost all faith in mankind. Who chose to stay far away from the rest of humanity- here on Earth- but remained human. He remembers being the first sucessful Wall-E test subject of his father's design. Outliving his creator and all the other Wall-E volunteers who later realized money is irrelevant as a cyborg without a government.

Nora made a soft noise and Yato gave her a small smile- covered by the oxygen mask- and continued on his way, his footsteps echoing in the empty city.

When they made it to the train tracks, Yato looked both ways out of habit, then made his way north. Walking down the tracks, Yato stood above 'The Graveyard'. A place where Wall-Es that forever stopped working were laid. Most of their organic bodies have eroded away, leaving behind their inorganic parts. The young woman he helped lay down decades ago, was a special friend to Yato. the last of the Wall-Es. Except for himself. Yato took a deep breath in, his filter has become more and more worn down by the particles.

The stairs creaked as Yato padded down them, dirt falling in an avalanche to the ground below. He silently and carefully weaved among the older remains, looking to take only what he needed. One mask looked hardly touched, so he pocketed his old one and quickly exchanged the new. It wasn't as if he lungs needed clean oxygen, but the filtration is what kept him going so long in the first place. The owner of this one, either ignored it in favor of their new 'immortality', or no longer wanted to live forever.

By now Yato had reached the old transit staion. Large bridges connected to tall stair cases that hovered over empty terminals, deep enough to fit a blue whale and long enough to fit the Empire State building. Twelve of these ports were lined up for this station, all empty without waiting for return. More advertisements flickered into action as the Wall-E went by. Nora hissed at the reassurance the audio gave as it showed family deals for the Outer Space Luxury Cruise Liner. Pictures of Yato's former colleges compressing the trash in the local dump flashed by in a promise for the humans to return to a better home.

As he walked through more advertisements popped up, one for the main cruise: "Heaven's Sun"- mostly just called Heaven-which would hold the majority of the upper class and the worker-bots like Yato, as well as the very first space branch military. It held promise of the best food, comfort, and entertainment out of all the other cruises. Heaven's Sun is lead in this flocks departure, with a captain and cyborg copilot.

Yato stared again at the picture as the advertisement kept glitching. The promise was for five years. It was well past that. Of course the planet wasn't cleaned up yet, so of course they weren't back. But Yato hasn't heard word from Heaven asking for an update, or if they were even coming back. Or even if they were still out there.

On his shoulder, Nora buzzed. Yato didn't look at her.

"Did I ever tell you my dad designed the copilot after he worked on me?"

Nora didn't answer. He had, many, many times. The two had long since run out of new things to talk about, other than Yato's dreams or things Nora found. The copilot stared back with glowing red eyes and a small smile, his hair a light brown color, it matched the dust that littered the atmosphere.

By the time Yato made it home, it was dusk. He lived in an old massive semi-trailer, modified to open only at the pull of a lever. The inside was also modified to have rotating shelves, in order to neatly hold all of Yato's findings and necessities. Odd shiny nicknacks tied together with string hung from the ceiling, along side Christmas lights and posters. The lamps and lights all connected flickered on once Yato flicked up a hanging switch.

Once the door was closed and the air filter was on, Yato tugged off the mask letting out a large sigh, hanging it up on a hook. He then took off his ascot and hung that up too, before letting his hair fall out of its tie. He then set down his cooler of goodies and opened it. First came the trash lid, which he placed with the other shinnies. Next came some Capybara land keychains- each wearing different color overalls and a crown- which went with the other small Capybara toys. He continued emptying the box, a lighter with other lighters, a glass bottle, a pink scarf.

He had a movie playing in the background, often playing it when he got ready for work in the morning but it was finished by the usual clock-out time. But today he had called it quits early, so the movie was on the final scene. The lady capybara and the man capybara having successfully made it to an island together, after a harrowing journey. Yato crept closer with shiny eyes. They sang a beautiful song of love, having made it through together because of it and now never having to be alone.

Yato numbly took out his iPod and hit record, placing it next to the TV's speaker. His eyes never leaving the screen. He watched them sing while gazing into each other's eyes, their hands held between them, twining together seamlessly. When they leaned in for a kiss, Yato's eyes got even bigger and his heart did a bittersweet dance.

The movie then faded to black and showed the names of humans that created it. He sighed again and clicked the television off, taking his iPod as he did so. Walking back towards the the door he opened it again, placing the mask back on as he did so. He then plopped down on the ramp and began shaking out his cooler, feeling the wind shift as he did.

Yato looked up as he dusted the box, and himself, off. The smog clearing so that the stars could be visible. It filled Yato with the same wispy feeling the movie did, so he pressed play on his new recording. It echoed off of the small round speaker just under his chin, filling his bones with the melody. That was until is mainframe sent an alert through it. The song cut out as the alarm blared though the night. His blue eyes quickly flickered back and forth, numbers and words flashing through his parifial.

His vision went red when he focused to the front of him, the words 'Weather Alert' and 'Danger' flashing. A massive dust cloud was barrelling towards his home at an alarming rate. This wasn't common, but it wasn't unheard of. Regardless, Yato quickly got back inside, calling Nora as he did so, and shut the door before any dirt could get in.

He wouldn't be able to go out for a while so, it was time to hit the sack. Yato gave Nora some food, eating some dry ramen as well, then made his way to the bare mattress in the far corner next to the TV. He flopped down and threw the blanket haphazardly over himself, ordering his system to set an alarm for the morning, then go into sleep mode. Yato was asleep instantly.

[rorykillmore]

i can't remember if you've said, but where do you think your characters will settle post-shift? what are their new living spaces going to be like?

sokay i talked about this a bit in an ask from tony but i’ll just refer back to it and expand on my ideas a bit! especially since i have some revamp stuff more fleshed out now

lucille’s gonna be living in victorian london! i think she’ll kinda miss living by the water though so she might get a place by the river or something. and she’s gonna probably start composing music and finally make a career out of that because that’s something she’s always wanted to do, and every now and again maybe i’ll give her a monster encounter or something since. she does have a shitton of monster hunting experience by now,

her place’ll probably incorporate a lot of the style she’s developed living on her own in her beach house, so it’ll be a touch modernized by london’s standards but still very. elegant in aesthetic. and i like your idea about her and maria rooming together so maybe we can do that!

siobhan’s staying in the southwest. in the same damn saloon, in fact. so there’s not much new to describe about hers or the denny guardians’ living situation; though maybe they’ll like... have an expedition to explore some of the newer towns at some point? road trip!

though i also said i wanted her to get the chance to visit the triassic period location with raptor red and that still stands; i think that could lend to some interesting dynamic development

sara is gonna be staying on the waverider and maybe sometimes visiting port royal if that’s where nyssa���s gonna be hanging out. so not much new to say here either, except that her life might be less... exciting than she’s used to. she might be restless for awhile. ‘cause, y’know, no more time travel, no more timeline that needs protecting. the legends’ll be kinda robbed of their purpose so she’ll need to find a new one. she might revert to more traditional vigilanteism in chicago perhaps or just, maybe they’ll tour around trying to get leads on the organization and that can be their new thing, who knows!

the cats don’t really need much of an update...

dolores and alana are both staying in beacon heights so i’ll just group them together! for alana, it’s probably pretty convenient that it’s closer to metropolis, because she’ll be spending a lot of her time there trying to help the mld get a handle on things anyway. dolores is too content in beacon heights to really want to move around, although i do have vague plans for her to get involved with our Future Location. maybe in some campaign for sentient ai there. it actually might be a good place to continue to make use of host printing stuff

and now for my characters who are ACTUALLY moving around more,

sophie’s gonna be in chicago, of course, running her own club/speak-easy, so she’ll probably live somewhere close to there! i envision her like... moving into an apartment building and renting out a big ol’ penthouse and living it up. that might be where she conducts some of her shady business related to the club and keeping it protected from the organization. oh i actually forgot i added a cool hotel location to chicago; she might rent out the penthouse THERE. and then she can interact with some of the guests and stuff too.

camille’s gonna be living in metropolis still, so technically not much is changing there, but... she might not be home all that often. once the revamp hits i’m really envisioning her traveling a lot, actually. because one of the challenges of the revamp is like... figuring out how to establish mass communication (there aren’t cell phone towers or wifi in a lot of these locations, unless someone icly starts an initiative to install them!) and spread news from place to place and keep everyone connected. i thought it would be cool and make sense if that task sorta fell to the daily planet, so, yeah! camille might be all over the place, staying in different hotel rooms or crashing on people’s couches, that kinda thing. it’ll be interesting to see who she meets along the way

sly, as we’ve already discussed a bit, is gonna be in port royal! he’ll be on the mainland some of the time but i’m also considering... bring in his (canonical) pirate ship and just letting him fuckin’ have at it with whatever crew he assembles. while he’s in town, i think he’d be the type to try to keep things safe and vaguely ordered (i know we discussed him and nyssa being kind of, like, thief-vigilantes) and while at sea he might be doing things like rescuing people from pirates and... maybe even discovering the location of the Plot Thing in that area, so that later he can help guide people to it

cordelia is gonna be in st. denis (or technically just outside of it) since that’s where the academy is being moved! it’s... gonna be a bit of a lifestyle change for her and everyone living there because the people of st. denis. aren’t so culturally appreciative of witchcraft as the people in new orleans are. so i’m interested to play with the conflict of her and the coven kinda... clashing with some of the locals, and what kind of plot stuff that might draw to the area. they might ESPECIALLY get off to a bad start because fate and i are planning on implementing venomplot soon after the revamp, so like. whoops if cordelia bonded with the symbiote gets noticed somewhere in town,

susie and villanelle are both gonna live in paris! fuckin’ naturally.

susie... despite the fact that she could live pretty much anywhere if she wanted to, probably would be happy with somewhere pretty modest. she really isn’t used to anything lavish. although one thing i was definitely considering was having her start some kind of dance academy there, so maybe she’ll live there if that becomes a thing?? what’s really nostalgic for her about paris is that it’s... pretty much stuck in the time period she comes from, too, so there’ll be that to grapple with

and villanelle. honestly i have this whole complicated thing in my head for how villanelle operates on denny, the hoops she jumps through to keep herself under the radar. essentially the situation is going to be: she has a pretty standard apartment in metropolis, which is the address her rifter id is registered to, and the place she’d bring anyone who was like, casually visiting her or whatever. that apartment is... she takes care to make it appear lived in, but it’s pretty standard and impersonal.

her flat in paris is not registered under her name, is much harder to track, and far fewer people get to see it, but it is definitely more resembling of a place she’d actually call home. it’s very... her, very similar to the place she has in canon, probably. expensive and stylish and ~trendy~, very much a 25 year old girl’s apartment if you discount the weapons she keeps in the drawers. i still think it’d be funny if fox had to live with her for a bit as a parallel to him taking in her younger self,

i’m not quite sure where laura will end up yet; i’m considering a few options. one is -- i haven’t set the details of this particular location in stone yet, but she might be an interesting candidate to hang out in whatever fantasy world we develop! because technically, she’s more magical than anything else. i’m also vaguely considering london or future world for her (and she should definitely have an encounter with those fucking. zombie people who live outside of st. denis, FEAR) but yeah we’ll see. might depend on who she falls in with.

[aion-rsa]

Best PC Games to Play in 2021

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

We’re entering a golden age for PC gaming. The next generation of graphics cards are capable of pumping out 4K graphics and high FPS on almost any big name release, and real-time raytracing is taking graphics to new heights that weren’t possible just a couple years ago.

Add in Sony bringing more PlayStation ports to the PC and nearly every Xbox exclusive making its way to PCs as well, and a high-end gaming computer looks to be the definitive way to play almost anything over the next few years.

The following is a list of the most anticipated games coming to home computers this year. While release dates are always flexible, these are only titles that have already been released or officially confirmed for 2021.

Back 4 Blood

June 22 | Turtle Rock Studios

Despite persistent rumors of a third Left 4 Dead game entering development, it’s been more than a decade since Valve has released a new entry in the beloved co-op zombie series. Enter Turtle Rock Studios, the studio behind the original Left 4 Dead game, with a spiritual successor, Back 4 Blood.

By all accounts, Back 4 Blood plays a lot like Left 4 Dead. There are safe rooms, tons of melee weapons, an AI director who constantly changes things up, and zombies. Lots and lots of zombies. But there will also be perk cards that add interesting perks and buffs to the experience, making each playthrough unique. If Back 4 Blood can capture the spirit of the original Left 4 Dead, it should be fantastic.

Chivalry 2

June 8 | Torn Banner Studios

Chivalry was once considered one of the PC’s premier multiplayer titles. Could the sequel follow in its footsteps? We’ll find out pretty soon when Chivalry 2 launches exclusively on the Epic Games Store. According to Torn Banner Studios, the sequel aims to deliver combat that’s deep enough to keep players interested for awhile, yet easy for newcomers to pick up for the first time. 

The latest gameplay videos show off lots of brutal medieval melee combat, with battlefields absolutely drenched in blood after a few minutes of 64 players hacking away at each other. This should be on your must-buy list in June!

Deathloop

May 21 | Arkane Studios

The best way to describe Deathloop is Hitman meets Groundhog Day. You play as Colt, an assassin stuck on a mysterious island, who must take out eight targets before midnight. If you die or fail to eliminate all targets, the day resets, and you’ll have to start all over again. And all the while you’re also being hunted by Julianna Blake, a rival assassin who doesn’t want you breaking the time loop. She can be controlled by either the AI or another player.

Arkane has a great track record when it comes to unique first-person games like Prey and the Dishonored series. If Deathloop’s heady concept can hold up, it could be another home run for the developer. 

Diablo 2: Resurrected

TBA | Vicarious Visions

While Diablo III’s reputation has improved substantially since its controversial 2012 launch, there’s still a vocal group of gamers who prefer the second game in Blizzard’s genre-defining action RPG series. Knowing how much this game means to a lot of people, Vicarious Visions has said it’s not out to reinvent the wheel for Resurrected. The updated 3D graphics will display in 4K, but you can switch back to the original graphics at any point with the press of a button.

And while there will be some quality of life improvements like a shared item stash and automatic gold pickup, don’t expect any revolutionary changes that will spoil the original experience. This should be exactly what we need to tide us over until Diablo IV hits.

Evil Genius 2: World Domination

March 30 | Rebellion Developments

It’s taken 17 years to get a sequel to the criminally underrated Evil Genius, but it’s finally here. If you never had the pleasure of playing the original, imagine being a James Bond villain and managing your own secret lair to build a weapon of mass destruction and eventually take over the world. Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.

World Domination promises to be a bigger and better sequel. You’ll be able to pick from four different evil geniuses at the start of the game and one of three islands. Each minion in your lair now has their own personality and traits, so you’ll have to use them more strategically than ever to prevent the Forces of Justice from foiling your evil plans.

Far Cry 6

TBA | Ubisoft

Far Cry 6 was originally supposed to be out by now, but development has slowed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It’s still expected to be out in 2021, though. According to Ubisoft, the theme of the game is revolution against an oppressive government, with substantial research going into how and why revolutions are fought to better develop the game’s setting and story.

Ubisoft certainly picked the right actor to lead an oppressive government, with Breaking Bad and Mandalorian villain Giancarlo Esposito portraying the nefarious “El Presidente” who we’ll be looking to topple later this year. 

Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker

TBA | Square Enix

After one of the worst MMORPG launches ever, it’s a miracle that Final Fantasy XIV is still around a decade later. Not only did Square Enix turn things around, this game is now regarded as one of the very best in the genre.

Endwalker, the game’s fourth major expansion pack will conclude the story of the warring gods Hydaelyn and Zodiark, which has been running since the game’s 2013 relaunch. This won’t be the end of the MMO, though. Square still says it has several years worth of stories to tell.

Along with the obligatory new zones and quests, Square has promised two new classes. The first one shown so far, the sage, is a healer who battles with floating swords. 

Guilty Gear Strive 

April 9 | Arc System Works

The Guilty Gear series has never quite received the same attention as fighting games like Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, but the franchise has quietly earned a reputation as a technically sound alternative for the competitive fighting game community.

The footage of Guilty Gear Strive released so far looks stunning. Arc has perfected the 3D polygonal character on a 2D plane, and the gameplay promises to be more accessible than ever, with the addition of a new dash button and a “wall-stick hit-state” which allows characters knocked into walls to slide down and continue fighting back.

Halo Infinite

TBA | 343 Industries

Halo may be Microsoft’s flagship franchise, but it’s always had a complicated relationship with the PC, with entries only being ported years after their initial release on Xbox (if at all). Halo Infinite will be the first mainline entry in the series to show up on both console and PC at launch, and it’s currently expected some time in the fall.

Halo Infinite’s public unveiling last year didn’t quite go as planned, with footage receiving a rather frosty reception from most fans. There are a lot of rumors of development troubles online, but Microsoft has a good track record of pulling its Halo games together in time for release, so hopefully we’ll end up with another classic game in the series later this year.

Hitman 3

January 20 | IO Interactive

Hitman 3 makes murder fun. Yes, there’s a lot of murder in video games, but true to its namesake, Hitman is more about the setup than the execution. No other franchise has perfected the thrill of expertly sneaking into an area, tracking down a target, and setting up an unfortunate “accident” to get away unscathed. Or just go in guns blazing like a maniac if that’s your kind of thing.

With Hitman 3, you can even import levels from the previous two games to get the full “World of Assassination” experience, but expect further updates throughout the year, including ray tracing. 

Humankind

April 22 | Amplitude Studios

As popular as the Civilization series has become over the last three decades, it’s surprising that few developers have been up to the challenge of developing a competitor to Sid Meier’s classic creation. Humankind could be up to the task, though. You’ll lead your civilization across six different eras of human history, selecting one of 10 different civilizations in each era. You can handle relations with other societies diplomatically, but if that goes south, combat is handled as a tactical RPG.

Developer Amplitude Studios has been dipping its toes into the 4X genre over the last decade with the well-received Endless Space and Endless Legend, and now the team are looking to apply everything they’ve learned from those games into Humankind.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition

May 14 | BioWare

Gamers have been clamoring for a re-release of the Mass Effect trilogy for years, and the Legendary Edition looks to exceed expectations. All three games will support 4K resolution, higher frame rates, and new graphical effects. The original Mass Effect in particular has seen a number of improvements akin to a partial remake, with improved combat, re-tooled enemy AI, and a faster Mako vehicle for traversing the Milky Way’s many planets.

While the Legendary Edition will include almost all of the DLC from the original trilogy (including some rather awesome add-ons like Lair of the Shadow Broker and Omega), BioWare has also announced a few omissions. Mass Effect 3’s lauded multiplayer mode isn’t going to make the cut, and Pinnacle Station, a much-maligned arena style add-on for the first game won’t be included either due to the loss of its source code.

New World

August 31 | Amazon Games

Amazon has had its sights set on the gaming world for quite some time, quietly pumping money into a number of projects, and New World could be its breakthrough hit. In this MMORPG set on an unnamed land in the Atlantic Ocean in the 1600s, you’ll wield bows, hammers, hatchets, magical staffs, musket rifles, spears, and swords against a variety of fantastical creatures. There will also be plenty of opportunities to gather resources, craft and build settlements. Best of all, there’s no monthly fee to play.

Launching a new IP is always difficult, and MMOs are a particularly difficult genre to break into, but if any company has the resources to succeed, it’s Amazon. 

Resident Evil Village

May 7 | Capcom

There was already a ton of hype for the eighth main installment in the Resident Evil franchise following its initial reveal last year, but the introduction of antagonist Lady Dimitrescu aka “Tall Vampire Lady” has put the hype train in overdrive. We still don’t know a lot about the story, but we do expect there will be plenty of run-ins with the 9-foot tall lady and her vampiric daughters.

Village’s first demo gave us our first glimpse of stunning European manor rendered in 4K with ray tracing. The RE Engine was already a looker on last-gen hardware, but Village should be even more stunning when running on a newer graphics card. 

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2

TBA | GSC Game World

We still know remarkably little about S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, a game that’s scheduled to release by the end of the year. In December, GSC Game World released an in-engine teaser trailer that looked impressive, with a first-person view of someone running down a hallway in a dilapidated building around Chernobyl.

If the previous games in the series are any indication, we should be in for some truly terrifying encounters and harrowing firefights with twisted irradiated mutants. Here’s hoping we get more info soon.

Total War: Warhammer III

TBA | Creative Assembly

The trailer for the final entry in Creative Assembly’s Total War: Warhammer trilogy looks very cool, with humans mounted on horses and polar bears facing down chaos demons on a frozen battlefield.

The campaign is said to be twice the size of the one in Total War: Warhammer II, and those who own the DLC for all three games will have access to a combined map that will combine patches from maps from all three games for an absolutely massive strategy experience. 

Valheim

February 2 | Iron Gate AB

Valheim came out of nowhere to become one of the big success stories of 2021, selling more than a million copies less than three weeks after its early access release. If you aren’t caught up on the latest Steam phenomenon, think of it as Minecraft mixed with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. You and up to nine other friends are dropped off in the middle of a Viking afterlife to survive, craft, and battle mythical creatures.

Iron Gate AB has been vague about what exactly to expect from future updates, but the studio has teased future customization options for homes and ships, and eventually even a new biome to explore. 

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide

TBA | Fatshark

There have been dozens of Warhammer video games over the years, but few have found the success and crossover appeal of Fatshark’s Vermintide games. It turns out that mowing down waves of enemies with three of your friends is just plain fun, no matter the setting.

Darktide features the same Left 4 Dead-inspired gameplay, but moves the battle to the futuristic Warhammer 40,000 setting, incorporating more gunplay along the way. If you liked the Vermintide games, this is pretty much a must-have. 

Wrath: Aeon of Ruin

TBA | KillPixel

First-person shooters have come a long way in the last couple of decades, but some times you just want to run and gun in a dark fantasy setting as quickly as possible. And remarkably few modern games provide that experience. Enter Wrath: Aeon of Ruin, a spiritual successor to Quake, Doom, and Hexen, built on the 25-year-old Quake Engine.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Wrath has been in Early Access since November 2019, and what’s been released so far is very promising, looking and sounding like a lost PC shooter from the late ‘90s. The full game should be out later this year. 

The post Best PC Games to Play in 2021 appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2MPhaTB

[recycledinvestments]

AAPL

 I’m taking AAPL off my portfolio. Three incidents lead to this with the first being the death of Steve Jobs. AAPL was a tech company. Steve Jobs’ idea of the iPhone was genius. It was like a handheld CPU that would connect to any 3rd party device. The size and connection port remained the same across iPhone generations so that even new models would fit into pricey, professional 3rd party devices. With the iPhone 5, this was over. The size and connection port changed. Although people often change smartphones within 3 years, professional equipment such as sound or video equipment are often much longer than that. With iPhones changing in form every model, professional equipment manufacturers are no longer motivated to create serious equipment for iOS. So rather than Apple creating a business model based on an environment where 3rd party companies and consumers pay to be a part of

 Second, around last year, I had an iOS update. I barely used my iPhone and mostly it was just turned on with occasional charging to keep battery levels at around 80%. I had an older iPhone which I used more often. It contained most of the apps and data I frequently used and didn’t bother to sync with the new iPhone. Battery health of the new iPhone was at high 90% range, but after the update, I could no longer see the battery health and the phone started switching off at 40% battery. This was a deal breaker, but I continued to use the new iPhone as I could not adapt to Android and the Numbers app was convenient for keeping track of stocks. But I did start lowering my dependency on the iPhone.

 A few days ago, the deal broke. After another update, my iPhone turned off at 100% state of charge. Also, during the night, it turned off again and only turned on after 2.5 hrs of charging. Though I was trying to move away from my dependence on I found that I couldn’t do my daily activities for that time. With a bit of learning, I am now used to Google Docs and the last reason to use iOS is gone.

 Furthermore, there are videos on Youtube which demonstrate that new iPhone’s more components on new iPhones are coded for each phone and cannot be interchanged with identical iPhone models. Apple seems to be looking at repairs as another one of their business models, which will charge ridiculous amounts to customers. Not only is this bad news for customers, but also bad news for the environment.

 Finally, iOS has become so complex with unnecessary built in features that it is no longer intuitive. One of the biggest reasons I stuck to iOS over Android was that I didn’t want to bother learning to adapt to a new environment. Now, I feel I need to either learn to use new iOS versions ever time one is released or just use the limited features that haven’t really changed over time. Considering the price and longevity of iPhones, it would be much more beneficial for me to use something like Fairphone. I’d have to learn to adapt to Android and any updates, but at least it won’t cost as much as relying on Apple products. By the way, I still have my iPhone 4S and while it is incredibly slow, it is much more intuitive and stable compared to my new iPhone. The cease of updates and addition of unnecessary features has actually made it a much more robust gadget for me.

 All in all, AAPL is losing grasp of its tech business in which they could create a platform that would serve close to infinite number of customers. Now it looks more like a manufacturing company. The brand image of Apple was built on professional music or visual producers choosing Apple for their work. I no longer use the iPhone for music nor videos. Friends with creative professions have also moved away from Apple due to short longevity and high price. Apart from the brand prestige built quite some time ago, there is no reason for consumers to flock to Apple anymore. If Apple loses its ties with music or visual professions, it’s brand prestige can also collapse. In the end, the truth will catch up and I believe AAPL will become more of a manufacturing business stock rather than a tech stock, lowering its adequate PE ratio levels to below 20. In essence, manufacturing requires cost of production for every sales the company can make. Most tech stocks are based on services that can be created once and used by almost infinite number of users. Revenue of manufacturing companies may be higher, but profitability is significantly lower. Before Apple can find another innovator like Steve Jobs, I am going to stay clear of AAPL.

[oneofyatosfollowers]

One Of A Kind Chapter 1- Prologue

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20191861/chapters/47843311

FanFic: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13360973/1/One-of-a-Kind

The air was a visible mustard brown with dirt particles and other debris mixed in. It gave the natural sunlight a dull glow, not enough to illuminate the hunks of useless metal that orbited the wasteland. On the planet, similar junk made up mountains, piled high against windmills and phone poles. Lose paper and plastic bags caught against the skeletons of old sky scrapers that have long-since collapsed into more rubble. Everything old, rusted, and abandoned; covered in the same brown dust that seemed to make up the planet itself.

On the outskirts of the city, the trash dunes were much smaller. Pressed into compact squares and piled into neater cubes. Pathways between these heaps curved and stretched on for miles, the darker shade of brown the dirt made showing which were the most traveled on. Traveling at a relaxed pace, an object made it's way through the cubes with practiced ease, not even glancing at it's surroundings. Old 80s music echoed from the object, traveling without any clash.

The speaker was a small, bright pink electronic, plugged into another machine. This machine was imbedded into a creature that was once human, but now a cyborg of ancient technology, made only to clean up the leftovers of man-kind's time on Earth. As he traveled, a short breeze or two ruffled his black hair, greasily pulled back into a short pony tail. The pink iPod was shoved into the pocket of a light brown fullbody coverall. One of many small nicknacks in one of many pockets. The jean fabric more than wore down, but with every rip stitched back together almost seamlessly. On his right breast pocket, the name 'Yato' was stitched in black, below the title 'Wall-E'.

The trash cleaner made his way to the nearest non-compacted trash pile and took a deep breath through his oxygen mask. Sitting down the small cooler he carried, Yato reached above his shoulder to grab hold of a lean metal handle, his brain send the signal for object to unlock. The metal clasps embedded in his back fell open and the flatted compactor came lose. He brought it to the front of him and set it on the ground. Opposite to the handle was a folded steel box that would click into shape. In the middle was a heaver iron square that molded into the handle. Once set up, all the cyborg had to do was gather as much trash as can fit in the hollow box bring the handle- with the lid- on top and press down. After the trash was in a neat square, the Wall-E would yank the handle up and let the cube roll out before placing it next to the billions of others.

This jostling woke up a small cockroach, who peaked outside a soup can to see what the ruckus was. At the sight of the cyborg, the insect squeaked and made her way over to the pile that only grew as the years went by. She made her way up the piles without much effort and sat herself on the new block. At the sound of her squeak the trash-collector turned with a wide smile.

"Stray!" he exclaimed cheerfully, "You're awake! Goodmorning!"

At his words, the cockroach let out an annoyed shriek. Yato recoiled but never ceased smiling.

"Sorry. Nora. There is that better?" Yato reached a hand out to her waiting for her to climb on. Nora flicked her antenna and crawled on slowly, with her nose in the air.

"I don't know why you like the japansese way better," he said as she settled on his shoulder, "though I guess Nora is more of a name." he mumbled the last part. Grinning at her when she chirped in agreement.

To his left, something shiny caught his eye. Making his way over to it, Yato moved aside some old newspapers and found a trash can lid. He held it up and watched as the sunlight shone even brighter against the silver disk. Yato's blue eyes didn't look away as he moved the light to different parts of the lid.

"Pretty cool, huh? Rare to find something not rusted." He said, walking back to where he left the cooler and placing it with the other treasures found earlier that day. On his shoulder, Nora's head made the movement of rolling her eyes. Yato contiuned back down the path that winded around a skyscraper made of the trash-cubes. Nora faithfully on his shoulder. He made his way past the abandoned super store, its food long since degraded and any other item caked in dust. Some of the hallow gram advertisements flickered on and off, their color long since dulled and the music coming out slow and deep. One sign stood out to him, just for a moment, the sign posted across the globe long long ago. "Become a Wall-E and save the world! Be taken care of and live for ETERNITY!"

Yato remembers his father, a biotechnical engineer who lost all faith in mankind. Who chose to stay far away from the rest of humanity- here on Earth- but remained human. He remembers being the first sucessful Wall-E test subject of his father's design. Outliving his creator and all the other Wall-E volunteers who later realized money is irrelevant as a cyborg without a government.

Nora made a soft noise and Yato gave her a small smile- covered by the oxygen mask- and continued on his way, his footsteps echoing in the empty city.

When they made it to the train tracks, Yato looked both ways out of habit, then made his way north. Walking down the tracks, Yato stood above 'The Graveyard'. A place where Wall-Es that forever stopped working were laid. Most of their organic bodies have eroded away, leaving behind their inorganic parts. The young woman he helped lay down decades ago, was a special friend to Yato. the last of the Wall-Es. Except for himself. Yato took a deep breath in, his filter has become more and more worn down by the particles.

The stairs creaked as Yato padded down them, dirt falling in an avalanche to the ground below. He silently and carefully weaved among the older remains, looking to take only what he needed. One mask looked hardly touched, so he pocketed his old one and quickly exchanged the new. It wasn't as if he lungs needed clean oxygen, but the filtration is what kept him going so long in the first place. The owner of this one, either ignored it in favor of their new 'immortality', or no longer wanted to live forever.

By now Yato had reached the old transit staion. Large bridges connected to tall stair cases that hovered over empty terminals, deep enough to fit a blue whale and long enough to fit the Empire State building. Twelve of these ports were lined up for this station, all empty without waiting for return. More advertisements flickered into action as the Wall-E went by. Nora hissed at the reassurance the audio gave as it showed family deals for the Outer Space Luxury Cruise Liner. Pictures of Yato's former colleges compressing the trash in the local dump flashed by in a promise for the humans to return to a better home.

As he walked through more advertisements popped up, one for the main cruise: "Heaven's Sun"- mostly just called Heaven-which would hold the majority of the upper class and the worker-bots like Yato, as well as the very first space branch military. It held promise of the best food, comfort, and entertainment out of all the other cruises. Heaven's Sun is lead in this flocks departure, with a captain and cyborg copilot.

Yato stared again at the picture as the advertisement kept glitching. The promise was for five years. It was well past that. Of course the planet wasn't cleaned up yet, so of course they weren't back. But Yato hasn't heard word from Heaven asking for an update, or if they were even coming back. Or even if they were still out there.

On his shoulder, Nora buzzed. Yato didn't look at her.

"Did I ever tell you my dad designed the copilot after he worked on me?"

Nora didn't answer. He had, many, many times. The two had long since run out of new things to talk about, other than Yato's dreams or things Nora found. The copilot stared back with glowing red eyes and a small smile, his hair a light brown color, it matched the dust that littered the atmosphere.

By the time Yato made it home, it was dusk. He lived in an old massive semi-trailer, modified to open only at the pull of a lever. The inside was also modified to have rotating shelves, in order to neatly hold all of Yato's findings and necessities. Odd shiny nicknacks tied together with string hung from the ceiling, along side Christmas lights and posters. The lamps and lights all connected flickered on once Yato flicked up a hanging switch.

Once the door was closed and the air filter was on, Yato tugged off the mask letting out a large sigh, hanging it up on a hook. He then took off his ascot and hung that up too, before letting his hair fall out of its tie. He then set down his cooler of goodies and opened it. First came the trash lid, which he placed with the other shinnies. Next came some Capybara land keychains- each wearing different color overalls and a crown- which went with the other small Capybara toys. He continued emptying the box, a lighter with other lighters, a glass bottle, a pink scarf.

He had a movie playing in the background, often playing it when he got ready for work in the morning but it was finished by the usual clock-out time. But today he had called it quits early, so the movie was on the final scene. The lady capybara and the man capybara having successfully made it to an island together, after a harrowing journey. Yato crept closer with shiny eyes. They sang a beautiful song of love, having made it through together because of it and now never having to be alone.

Yato numbly took out his iPod and hit record, placing it next to the TV's speaker. His eyes never leaving the screen. He watched them sing while gazing into each other's eyes, their hands held between them, twining together seamlessly. When they leaned in for a kiss, Yato's eyes got even bigger and his heart did a bittersweet dance.

The movie then faded to black and showed the names of humans that created it. He sighed again and clicked the television off, taking his iPod as he did so. Walking back towards the the door he opened it again, placing the mask back on as he did so. He then plopped down on the ramp and began shaking out his cooler, feeling the wind shift as he did.

Yato looked up as he dusted the box, and himself, off. The smog clearing so that the stars could be visible. It filled Yato with the same wispy feeling the movie did, so he pressed play on his new recording. It echoed off of the small round speaker just under his chin, filling his bones with the melody. That was until is mainframe sent an alert through it. The song cut out as the alarm blared though the night. His blue eyes quickly flickered back and forth, numbers and words flashing through his parifial.

His vision went red when he focused to the front of him, the words 'Weather Alert' and 'Danger' flashing. A massive dust cloud was barrelling towards his home at an alarming rate. This wasn't common, but it wasn't unheard of. Regardless, Yato quickly got back inside, calling Nora as he did so, and shut the door before any dirt could get in.

He wouldn't be able to go out for a while so, it was time to hit the sack. Yato gave Nora some food, eating some dry ramen as well, then made his way to the bare mattress in the far corner next to the TV. He flopped down and threw the blanket haphazardly over himself, ordering his system to set an alarm for the morning, then go into sleep mode. Yato was asleep instantly.

Chapter 2: https://oneofyatosfollowers.tumblr.com/post/187701265234/one-of-a-kind-chapter-2